Ch.1616. The Path of Hardship (3)

Sione’s irritation and telling me to leave happened just yesterday.

Today, I needed to busy myself preparing for tomorrow’s journey to the Marquisate of Feiosha.

After finishing my morning jog early, I began asking Sione about it.

I need to know what’s going on if I’m going to help.

After chasing me away yesterday, she’s been avoiding conversation, and now I have a mountain of questions.

“Could you tell me about what’s happening tomorrow?”

“Did I not tell you anything yesterday…?”

“You only spoke about your fiancé before chasing me out of your room, then avoided talking to me all day.”

“Ahem.”

See, she’s clearing her throat because she knows she’s in the wrong.

I wish she’d stop making things so frustrating and just tell me already.

This isn’t just anything—we’re leaving the County of Sianella and heading to the Marquisate of Feiosha.

For the previous body’s owner, or for me who fell into this dungeon world before its destruction, this is my first time leaving the safety of this territory.

I’m filled with anticipation, worry, and curiosity.

“Literally tomorrow we’ll be departing for the Marquisate of Feiosha. It will take quite some time to travel from here in the western outskirts of the kingdom to the central southern region where the Marquisate is located. There will be much to prepare.”

“Might we not be able to use teleportation magic?”

“Unfortunately, the County of Sianella doesn’t have sufficient personnel to maintain and activate teleportation magic circles. We’ll have to travel by carriage.”

“…I see.”

So the County of Sianella is located in the western region of the kingdom.

And Sione’s hidden fiancé is waiting for us in the south.

I suppressed a sigh that was about to escape in front of my master.

“How long do you think it will take to travel from here to the Marquisate of Feiosha?”

“We’ll probably need to travel by carriage for about two weeks. If we stop at villages along the way to buy necessities and rest for a day each time, it might take a bit longer.”

“…That’s quite long.”

“It can’t be helped, so you’ll have to accept it.”

“Weren’t you struggling with this yesterday as well, Lady Sione?”

“I… have already resigned myself…”

“…I see.”

So Sione has already given up…

Her small, pitiful smile looked so sad.

But even if Sione has stopped denying reality,

That doesn’t mean I have to stop denying it too.

‘It’s not like they’ve built a highway through the forest.’

This world isn’t that advanced.

She’s saying we’ll have to travel for two weeks straight on bumpy roads in a carriage.

I’m already thinking about how my backside will be destroyed from the carriage’s jolting.

How nice it would have been if the Sianella family was renowned for magic rather than swordsmanship.

Then we could have used teleportation magic instead of a carriage, and this dangerous journey would be over in the blink of an eye.

I remembered traveling by carriage in the dungeon before.

‘That was truly hell.’

It was during a scenario dungeon where correcting the world’s history would complete the scenario and prevent the world’s destruction.

We traveled by carriage for three straight days to find the dungeon boss who was hiding.

Every time the carriage wheels rolled over stones, it was unbearably uncomfortable.

And I thought I’d go crazy from the monsters that appeared out of nowhere, targeting the horses and Hunters.

Since then, I’ve absolutely detested carriages.

“Your expression doesn’t look good.”

“It’s nothing. Please don’t worry about it.”

“Hmm, alright.”

After saying that, Sione stood there blankly for a moment.

Then suddenly she started shaking her head rapidly from side to side.

“Are you crazy…?”

Her sudden action made me blurt out in Korean rather than the continental common language.

“Mi-chot-na? What does that mean?”

“I didn’t say anything… perhaps you misheard?”

“Is that so? Well, never mind. Oh, by the way, with short hair it’s easier to shake off sweat. I like it.”

Sione said this while amusingly shaking her head to get rid of sweat.

Normally I might find it cute, but since she was flicking sweat at me, it wasn’t particularly endearing.

“Lady Sione.”

“What?”

“…I don’t think shaking your head like that is appropriate when you’re with others.”

“…Ah.”

It was indeed behavior that would be embarrassing for a noble’s child if seen by others.

Sione finally stopped smiling innocently and hung her head low.

She brushed her hair with her hands for a moment before looking up.

Her cheeks were slightly pale, suggesting she was quite embarrassed.

“L-let’s hurry back!”

Without making eye contact, she hurried ahead with quick steps, and I silently followed behind her.

After walking in silence for a while, Sione finally stopped and glanced back.

“You should go see the head butler and then return.”

“The head butler, you say?”

“Yes.”

“Don’t you mean the head servant?”

Sione shook her head.

“From now on, you’ll be my personal attendant, so shouldn’t you wear attendant’s clothes rather than servant’s clothes?”

“…Personal attendant? I hope I didn’t mishear.”

“You heard correctly, so don’t ask any more questions.”

“But for someone of my status to be Lady Sione’s attendant…”

…It’s too generous a position for a slave.

Not just quiet cleaning or menial tasks, but a proud position as an aide working alongside the noble they serve.

It’s not something an uneducated slave would typically do.

“I already discussed this with Mother yesterday, so do as you’re told.”

“……”

It seems she arranged this position for me after talking with the head of the family yesterday.

I’m not sure whether to be grateful or just amazed.

After making an ambiguous expression, I finally smiled slightly.

“I understand.”

“Good. From now on… I’ll be counting on you, Ray.”

“I’ll work hard to repay your trust.”

“Hmm hmm.”

She cleared her throat and headed back toward her comfortable room.

Unlike before, she didn’t rush ahead, but moved at a leisurely pace while quietly humming.

I continued to follow behind her.

Before long, Sione stopped humming and looked at me with confusion.

“…Why are you following me instead of going to the head butler?”

“Isn’t it too early?”

“Ah.”

Sione’s eyes began to tremble.

“I’ll go find him when it’s time for him to wake up.”

“Ah, I see.”

With reddened cheeks, Sione suddenly turned around.

She fled to her room with awkward movements.

Regardless, I slowly made my way to her room.

Sure enough, I could see Sione hiding under her blanket.

She’s not a chrysalis, what is this really?

* * *

I checked my new clothes again.

The attendant’s uniform was definitely made of better material, making it more comfortable and lighter to wear, and unlike the somewhat baggy servant’s clothes, the design was also more sophisticated, closer to a stylish suit.

And the most distinctive feature was the Sianella alphabet written in continental common language above the chest pocket.

Though it might seem insignificant, it gave me a sense of belonging to the Sianella family.

While I was thinking about this, I felt Sione’s gaze on me as she ate an apple for a snack.

“Would you like me to cut another one for you?”

“…One is enough. By the way, the attendant’s uniform suits you well.”

“Thank you.”

As I bowed my head slightly, she pushed her chair back and stood up.

After putting the last piece of apple into her mouth, she wiped her hands with a handkerchief and said:

“Let’s go to the training ground.”

“Isn’t it a bit earlier than usual?”

“Mother said she would assign Diolia as our escort, so I want to talk with her a bit. Also, even with Diolia as our escort, there’s always a possibility of danger, so shouldn’t I select some armor and weapons to protect myself?”

“I’ll follow you.”

I recalled Diolia’s skills when she was sparring with Siabel.

With that level of skill, we should be able to pass safely even if we encounter thieves or ordinary monsters.

I felt some of my fear of unknown dangers lifting.

Sione and I headed straight to the training ground.

At this time, if nothing unusual was happening, Diolia would be there practicing her sword forms to warm up.

We should be able to find her at the training ground.

And sure enough.

“There she is.”

As soon as we entered the training ground, we saw Diolia warming up with clean sword movements.

When Diolia was almost finished with her warm-up, Sione approached and spoke to her.

“Lady Diolia.”

“Ah, Lady Sione. Welcome.”

Diolia greeted Sione with a gentle smile.

From what I overheard of their initial conversation, it seemed to be nothing special—just exchanging greetings and discussing tomorrow’s plans.

Judging by the atmosphere, there was no place for me to interject or add anything, so I lost interest in their conversation.

Instead of forcing myself into their discussion, I chose to look around at the soldiers and knights training in the grounds.

As expected, there were some men among the regular soldiers, but none at all among the knights.

Men in this world couldn’t accept mana and had been left behind.

They couldn’t even dream of becoming knights who strengthen their bodies through mana and, upon reaching mastery, imbue their swords with mana to perform various techniques.

It was inevitable.

As I was staring blankly at the training ground, Sione tugged at my clothes.

“What are you staring at so blankly? Hurry and follow me.”

“Understood.”

I followed her to the front of a storehouse.

Diolia, who had arrived at the storehouse first, opened the door.

“Unlike Lady Siabel and Lady Sion, Lady Sione doesn’t have her own weapon yet. Please choose one here.”

“Thank you.”

“These are all possessions of the Sianella family, so please feel free to choose without hesitation.”

As Sione entered the storehouse, Diolia’s gaze naturally turned to me.

“Judging by your attire, it seems you’ve become Lady Sione’s attendant. Congratulations.”

“Thank you.”

Diolia’s gaze moved to the Sianella insignia on my chest pocket.

“Remember that from now on, every action you take carries the Sianella name with it.”

“…I will keep that in mind.”

Her words carried quite a bit of pressure, just like before.

I quickly bowed my head.

“Though you’re an attendant, I know you’re skilled with a bow. You should go in with Lady Sione and prepare some basic armaments.”

“Would that be alright?”

“Of course. Though it shouldn’t happen, if danger arises when my eyes aren’t on Lady Sione, you’ll naturally be the one to protect her.”

“…You’re stating the obvious.”

“Hehe. Now go on in.”

At her words, I passed by Diolia and entered the storehouse.

There seemed to be some dust floating around, but that wasn’t a problem.

I approached Sione, who was examining bows.

“Have you chosen one?”

“No, not yet. There are so many types, it’s quite difficult to decide.”

“Do you need my help?”

“Thank you, but I’ll just accept your offer in spirit. You should choose your own weapon as well.”

“Understood.”

Sione resumed her focus on selecting a bow for herself.

She examined them carefully, even testing the bowstrings.

Leaving her to her commendable task, I began selecting my own bow.

The bows here could be divided into crossbows and bare bows.

I immediately ruled out crossbows.

I started examining the bare bows.

How nice it would have been to have a modern mechanical bow, but there was no way such a thing would exist here.

I had to be satisfied with literal bare bows without any attachments.

There were only wooden bows anyway.

There were flat bows with flat limbs and recurve bows with limb tips that curved forward.

Among them, I chose a usable recurve bow, the type I had more experience with.

“This one seems the most usable.”

The others either had bowstrings that were too loose with weak tension, or were too strong for my current body.

This one was just right for me now.

Before, hunting monsters with bows that couldn’t be bought with money was my daily routine…

Now I have to agonize over choosing one shabby bow.

What nonsense.

I sighed softly and checked the section with swords.

“I need a separate weapon for self-defense…”

I started selecting a sword I could use in close combat.

I couldn’t just hit enemies with my bow if they got close.

An auxiliary weapon is essential for an archer.

I found a blade.

A blade about 50cm long with a 20cm handle.

This roughly 70cm blade fit perfectly in my hand.

After drawing it and examining the blade, I saw it was in good condition, so this would work well as my auxiliary weapon.

After selecting my weapons, I looked for Sione.

She must have chosen a bow, as she was now standing where the armor was displayed.

I picked up my sword and headed toward her.

“Are you looking at armor?”

“Yes, though I’m not sure which would be best.”

“For an archer, leather armor with iron plating on the chest is the most comfortable and suitable for movement. These over here would be most appropriate.”

“You’re knowledgeable not only about bows but also about armor.”

“I was once meant to be sold as a male knight, so I received education not only about weapons but also about armor to appear knightly.”

“…I see.”

As she quietly examined the armor, her gaze shifted to the sword in my hand.

“What is that sword?”

“It’s an auxiliary weapon. I can’t exactly hit enemies with a bow if they get too close.”

“Hmm, can you use a sword as well?”

“I can use it fairly well, though not as well as a bow. Would you like me to demonstrate?”

Actually, I was quite skilled with it, not just “fairly well.”

Among 700 million Hunters, it was almost impossible to rank in the top 150 by being proficient with just one weapon.

Everyone had a secondary weapon they were skilled with, and for me, it was this kind of sword.

“If possible, I’d like to see it once.”

“Then… excuse me for a moment.”

With a smooth sound, the cold blade of the curved single-edged sword emerged from its scabbard.

Seeing the blade calmed my mind.

I slowly touched the handle, turning it to regain my feel for it.

Soon I was able to freely spin the single-edged sword in my hand.

‘It’s been a while.’

In the dungeon, I used to play like this, spinning my sword when I was bored.

It looked quite flashy, and since I did it often as a pastime, I became skilled at it, making it seem impressive.

With a whirl and a smooth sound, the sword that had been dancing freely in my hand returned to its scabbard in an instant.

Sione looked alternately at the sword and me with her mouth slightly open.

“…I hope that sword is never pointed at me.”

“Don’t worry.”

She asked me to show her, and now what is she saying?

Amused by her reaction, I slightly raised the corner of my mouth.

“On the contrary, I’ll always protect you with this sword.”

“…Huh?”

“I’ll always be by your side to protect you, Lady Sione.”

“Uh, uhh…”

“…Your complexion doesn’t look good. Are you alright?”

“Th-that… Lady Diolia! I need your help!”

And just like in the storehouse,

After returning to her room, and throughout the day, Sione avoided making eye contact with me.

Yesterday and today. I really don’t understand why she’s acting this way.