episode_0325

The carriage, which had bitten the pursuing soldiers, circled the territory after some time.

The purpose was to buy time according to the transaction history, as well as provide an alibi to avoid detection as much as possible.

Thanks to that, when I entered Rusmeyer, the surroundings were quite dark.

“Wait. Stop.”

As we enter the checkpoint, the carriage stops for a moment.

“What kind of peddler’s cart?”

“Here are the transaction details.”

Tasha carefully reads the statement of account she hands him, and he can check it from the back of the carriage, but the inspectors are not paying much attention.

“Well, that’s probably about right. Go ahead.”

“Thank you.”

After returning the bill to Tasha, the carriage passes the main gate.

Karsain, who was riding in the carriage, was half in doubt, but he could tell that this was also true.

‘You really got through the checkpoint so easily?’

The soldiers at the checkpoint, who had been very nervous upon hearing the warrant for Arina, gave way without a care.

Soon the carriage enters deep into the Rusmeyer estate.

-Tiring!

▶Entered the Ruthmeyer Field.◀

▶The risk level of this field is .◀

Borderline stage.

This is a much easier stage than the risks we have seen so far.

You won’t be banned from entering the field, you won’t be cornered by triggers that occur if you don’t meet conditions, and there won’t be any restrictions that limit certain actions or greatly reduce your action power or stamina.

There was no need to doubt the reason.

but.

The direct cause of passing the security check so easily was not you.

-…I’ll call you Rusmeyer. Oh, and thanks to Miss Claire lowering the level of intensity on the inspection side, this side will be fine too.

If a wanted person has nowhere to go, they will hide somewhere, but with the fatal weakness of being allergic to Kelvia, they cannot hide.

So, you have to move to another place to escape the allergy symptoms, and of course, you can prevent it through more thorough screening.

If you set your mind to it and try to catch it, you can catch it anytime.

Why did this strange thing happen?

And that’s not all.

If the area where the Kelvia berries that cause Kelvia allergies were spread all over the North, there would be no way to escape. However, escape was possible not only because of Harnie’s help, but also because neutralizers were spread here and there.

The irony is that the effect of the Kelvia fruit was reduced due to the neutralizer in the first place, and the fact that the path was built all the way here also feels artificial.

Camilla and Tasha’s judgment was the same.

If I had confessed to the wanted person earlier, I could have made a lot of profit.

Why on earth?

The question just wouldn’t go away.

▶Episode II. The path to standing alone is in progress.◀

▶You must survive for a set period of time while in a state of standing alone.◀

[ Time remaining ]

[ 3 days 2 hours 11 minutes ]

But there is a clear answer as to what to do.

‘Yes. Survival is my top priority.’

living.

No other goals are needed other than this one.

***

As soon as the watching eyes disappeared, he gave a signal to the luggage compartment and sent the coachman back, completely erasing the witness.

When I got out of the cargo hold, I heard a familiar voice.

“Carcein!”

“Harnie.”

She, who had entered Ruthmeier first, was also here.

Harnie, who always looked pretty when I saw her, ran towards me with her purple hair fluttering in the wind. She immediately hugged me and looked around.

“Are you okay? Are you hurt or anything…!”

“I’m fine. As you can see.”

“Haa… Really. I was so surprised when I heard that it was dangerous because I was patrolling outside…”

A deep sigh. And a worried look immediately catches your eye.

You could guess how much the insides had rotted away here.

But that look was short-lived. Harnie quickly wiped away the worry that had been hanging over her face.

“Thank you both.”

“No, Miss.”

“We just did what we had to do.”

The mother and daughter bowed their heads politely in response to Harnie.

And this time, it was my turn.

“Master Karsain. Could you please stay here for a day?”

“…what?”

“This is where my daughter stays. So it is a place within the territory that is difficult to enter without permission.”

Tasha took a deep breath.

“As you may have guessed, we are currently acting as the Lord of Rusmeyer’s agents due to the vacant Lordship position. That means that there are no residents who would normally come here.”

…That means, in a word, providing a safe place.

“It’s short, but please hide here for a few days, my lord.”

“As your mother said, our room, which is acting as the permanent resident’s agent, will not be easily searched. If something like that happens, the security guard will definitely contact you immediately.”

Harnie, who had been watching the mother and daughter, gently grabbed my hand.

“I agree with both of you. Karsain. It’s more dangerous for us to get out of here now. It’s not as bad as the North, but this winter is particularly cold. We can’t just stay here with nothing, right?”

“…”

I know that too.

Of course, from my perspective, there is no such thing as good news.

It’s hard to survive this harsh winter without food, clothes, or a place to sleep. It’ll be hard to survive the remaining three days.

It would be madness to throw away this benefit that provides all the necessities of life.

Rather, it would be insufficient to ask for a favor from this side.

It’s something you have to pay any price to catch.

But this is really unfamiliar.

…receiving help from others.

It felt so awkward for me, who had always been a loner, to be touched like this.

“Hmm. I get it. I guess he’ll do that. I guess he probably won’t be able to do anything anyway. Right?”

I wonder if I was feeling frustrated after being silent for so long. Harnie answered for me.

…She was right, there really was no other way.

“I’ll explain it to you. If you try to run away, I’ll hold you tight, so don’t worry!”

As Harnie rolled up her sleeves and spoke confidently, the mother and daughter showed bright smiles as if the pent-up tension had subsided.

““We will serve you with all our heart.””

The mother and daughter bowed their heads and readily gave us the room.

She added that if there was anything she needed, she should just let them know, and that she would be happy to treat them like a maid.

After Camilla and Tasha left.

Harnie looked back at me, opened her eyes half-heartedly, sighed, and slapped me.

“…Ah. What is it?”

“From my experience watching you closely, Karsane, you often overcomplicate things.”

“Yes?”

“In times like this, think about it simply. You’re just looking at it too rigidly.”

What the hell does that mean?

Okay. I need to rest for now.

“Let’s just go in. You never know when, where, or how you’ll be chased, so it’d be better to rest here for a bit.”

“…”

“Why are you like that?”

Harnie glanced at me briefly and then took a step away from me.

Then, he sniffs his own body and asks a strange question.

“I’m asking just in case.”

“Yes?”

“By any chance. Is there something strange smelling? From my body…”

“…”

“Or maybe it started when I held you…”

oh my god.

Are you worried that your body will stink in this situation?

How can people be so consistent?

Even at moments when I should be very tense, seeing this sight makes me feel a little less tense.

When I see that kind of foolishness, I just want to tease him.

“Yes, I did.”

“What, what did you say?”

“You have your own unique smell. Hmm. Yes, you do.”

“That’s too much! I used to run a lot, so I smell because of the sweat, but to say it so directly…!”

Even though she said that with a blush on her face, she realized that the distance was getting closer and immediately stopped talking and stepped back.

“I, I’ll go in first.”

The way he hurriedly entered made him look like he was being chased by someone.

I forgot that I was being chased, and I found myself laughing.

“I guess I went a little too far with the joke. I feel bad for no reason.”

I didn’t know he was that conscious of the smell, but it seemed like he would have gone straight to the bathroom just now because of that.

Well, I guess I’ll have to apologize for this later.

Because Harnie always smelled good.

It was the same when we first met.

It was the same even when I became somewhat accustomed to it.

That was and is still the case today.

Whenever she was around, that scent would always be there.

A bright and flashy scent that doesn’t suit me.

If I were to be so honest, you’d probably pinch my sides and puff out my cheeks, but… well. This was my fault for going too far with the joke. I can’t help but apologize.

After letting go of my tension for a moment, I followed Harnie and grabbed the doorknob.

Right then.

As the door opened, Harnie was waiting, standing there, hesitantly.

“Is something wrong?”

“That’s…”

It seemed as if something was bothering him, so Harnie held back his words and finally opened his mouth.

“…Clothes are the problem.”

“Clothes?”

“Because I was wearing clothes in such a hurry… I ended up wearing something like this.”

Harnie turned around.

‘ah.’

A deep sigh welled up inside me.

This garment… no, the item was a very infamous item that I was very familiar with.

There was an item called a stone mask in the game.

It was a mask that I quickly put on because it was said to increase my stats at the beginning, but the problem was that once I put it on, I could never take it off by my own power…

I don’t know what kind of guy came up with that idea, but I used it in the beginning and then a ridiculous choice popped up, resulting in a bad ending.

Of course, I never used it again after experiencing it once.

However, similarly, there is an item in clothing that has the same effect. It was given a derogatory name, called the “Stone Mask Clothing.”

…The problem is that those are the clothes Harnie is wearing right now.

“…”

“…”

We exchanged glances without saying a word.

I know what you want to say.

I can’t take those clothes off by myself, so I have to ask someone else for help.

But unfortunately, I am the only one who can help you.

If you try to take that off, you’ll inevitably have to touch my body…

As for the rest, I don’t want to think about it.

My mind is dizzy.

“…First, could you please cover my eyes?”

Let’s try.

As much as possible.