Ch.57Chapter 57 – Jerenna Territory (2)

With my acceptance of Eve’s proposal, the meeting for that day ended.

No, I thought it had ended.

“…But why aren’t you going back?”

“Sometimes I enjoy staying at inns like this.”

Eve answered with a smile.

But for some reason, her smile seemed a bit suspicious.

“You’re not hiding anything, are you?”

“I just made a reservation in advance because I thought we’d be staying out late today.”

She said that, but I noticed her eyes shifting slightly.

‘This woman is definitely hiding something.’

Maybe I should question her about it later.

“Of course, I’ll go back home once the request is complete.”

“I see.”

As expected, she’s wealthy enough to own a house in the capital.

No, someone like her would naturally have a home.

“A home, huh.”

I do sometimes think it would be nice to live in a proper house rather than inns like this.

I’ve gotten used to it, so I don’t really feel uncomfortable with the poor facilities anymore, but still, it would be nice to have a home.

“Well then, shall we go in and get some rest?”

Eve smiled and entered my room.

Wait a minute.

“Hey, why are you going into my room?”

“Oh my, this is my room.”

Wait a minute.

What did she say?

“I paid for your lodging, so logically, doesn’t that make this my room?”

“That doesn’t mean you can stay in my room.”

“It’s not a problem.”

Eve smiled playfully.

“Perhaps you don’t like sharing a room with me, Kei?”

“I don’t really mind—”

I quickly swallowed the words that almost slipped out.

Sera and Christina were watching me.

They seemed too shocked to say anything right now.

And seeing Sera’s face reminded me of Rachel, the vice guild master of the Lavencha Guild, who had once directed terrifying killing intent at me when she thought I’d done something terrible to Eve.

‘I’ll be killed.’

My social standing, reputation, and many other things will be killed.

Sharing a room with Eve?

I can say with certainty that this is a trap card.

A wise man never goes near danger…!

“No, an unmarried man and woman sharing a room isn’t appropriate.”

As I quickly played the role of a proper gentleman and refused, Eve’s expression darkened slightly.

Meanwhile, Sera seemed to have recovered from her confusion and quickly interjected.

“I-I think that’s not appropriate either.”

“Oh my, why not?”

“You originally booked a different room, didn’t you? And Kei seems uncomfortable. A man and woman sharing a room is just…”

Sera was speaking rapidly about various things.

Eve was looking at me with a somewhat ambiguous expression and smiling.

As I listened to their conversation, I managed to regain my composure.

‘Well, she’s probably just trying to tease me.’

Thinking about it, Eve often enjoyed putting me in awkward situations and watching my reactions.

She seemed to have some intention behind it, but at least it wasn’t out of malice.

Therefore, I needed to handle this maturely.

“It’s late, so I should take Christina to—”

I looked at Christina, planning to use escorting her to the church as an excuse to escape this strange situation.

I believed that if I left for a while, this awkward situation would resolve itself.

But Christina was lost in thought, staring at Eve.

Then, as if she’d made a decision, she raised her head and spoke.

“Should I just stay here tonight too…?”

“…Do you have money?”

While this inn was quite cheap for the capital, it was still considered very expensive compared to inns in other regions.

At my question, Christina fidgeted a bit and said:

“Well, I’ll be taking on a request early tomorrow morning anyway. One night away from the church should be fine… probably.”

“I’m concerned the church people might worry about you.”

“If that’s an issue, I could wake up early and go back briefly, but sleep here…”

I suppose it’s fine.

If worst comes to worst, she could sleep on the floor in Sera’s room, though it would be cold.

“Well, I’ll pay for your stay tonight.”

“My benefactor? Really, just for the inn fee?”

“You’re always eating porridge. Just accept it.”

I had tried to buy something on the way in but failed.

I was going to spend the money anyway, so I might as well add a bit more and use it for this.

“…Thank you.”

Christina bowed her head in gratitude.

Then she looked at me hesitantly and spoke.

“But, are you really going to sleep in the same room as the guild master?”

“Of course not. I’ll ask about an empty room while I’m paying for yours.”

Some might call this a missed opportunity, but I fear the consequences.

I still remember the killing intent Rachel showed at the restaurant last time.

Sometimes, reason must overcome instinct.

+

I woke up feeling it was dawn.

After securing a room for Christina, I came back upstairs to find that the two who had been arguing had disappeared.

Noticing that Eve had entered my room, I went to sleep in another room.

Since I technically ended up in a different room, I thought I should pay, but the innkeeper allowed me to stay since there wouldn’t be any more guests in the middle of the night.

I put on my helmet and armor that I had left in the corner of the room, and saw Christina opening her door.

She was quietly murmuring with her eyes closed, perhaps in morning prayer.

Then she looked up.

“Ah, benefactor. Did you sleep well?”

“Yes. How about you?”

“I slept well too. The bed here is definitely better than at our church.”

Considering the facilities here, I wonder how poor the conditions must be there. It almost makes me want to cry.

I headed toward Sera’s room, thinking I should wake her up.

I knocked on the door several times, but there was no sign of Sera coming out.

‘What’s going on?’

I knocked a few more times, but still no response.

She usually responds and gets up when I knock, so this seemed strange.

The door behind me—my original room—opened.

“…Good morning.”

“Why are you coming out of there?”

Sera came out yawning slightly.

Eve was behind her, fully dressed but covering her mouth as she yawned sleepily.

“What exactly happened yesterday?”

“…Just, you know, things.”

Sera’s vague answer made me even more curious.

As I was about to ask more, Eve covered my mouth.

“Sometimes it’s better not to know.”

“You two didn’t do anything weird, did you?”

Both Eve and Sera are quite proper people.

They wouldn’t have done anything inappropriate.

“……”

“……”

…I believe they wouldn’t have.

“Shall we head to the guild? I need to submit my request too.”

“I’ll stop by the church briefly.”

“Ah, we should leave a message for Sir Ludger, right?”

I had momentarily forgotten about Ludger’s existence.

It would be good to meet him on the way, or at least leave a message if we can’t.

“……”

The memory of getting beaten under the name of “sparring” starts to resurface.

Do I really need to leave a message?

“If I get the chance.”

If I see him, maybe. If not, I’ll just go.

After gathering my sword, we headed out.

Christina went toward the church, while Eve, Sera, and I headed to the guild.

“Excuse me—”

“Oh my?”

As we entered the guild, I saw someone I hadn’t seen in a while.

“Nina.”

“My goodness, it’s been so long!”

Nina, the guild receptionist who had often helped me, was there.

And in front of her stood Ludger.

“You?!”

The two approached me, one with a welcoming face and the other with a surprised one.

+

“…Hmm, so that’s what happened.”

After I briefly told Ludger what had happened, he frowned.

“As expected, mages tend to be sinister.”

“The Masters did promise to guarantee my safety.”

“That’s good to hear, but I still have my complaints.”

Ludger grumbled.

“Anyway, I’m truly glad you’re safe. But who is this person?”

As I turned my head, Eve bowed in greeting.

“I am Eve Lavencha, head of the Lavencha Guild.”

“I’m Ludger Jestia.”

After they exchanged greetings, Ludger looked back at me.

“So, about this request. What kind?”

“It’s an escort request.”

“That’s good timing. I’ll be away for a few weeks, so it’s better for you to take a break during that time.”

“You’re leaving?”

“Yes. Because of that gem investigation.”

Ludger grumbled with displeasure.

“I was supposed to leave today, but I got to see you again.”

I should have come a day later.

What a shame.

“So, at the guild?”

“I was asking Miss Nina here to let me know if you returned or if there was any news about you.”

“A request that’s no longer necessary now that you’re here.”

Nina, who had brought a pen and paper, answered with a smile.

“Now, please write the request details here.”

Eve skillfully filled out the request form, as if she had done it many times before.

While watching her, Ludger spoke up.

“Well, I’ll be on my way then.”

“Have a safe journey.”

I said, though I didn’t really mean it.

Still, Ludger laughed heartily.

“Let’s have another sparring match when I return.”

With those words, Ludger left the guild.

Almost as if trading places with him, Christina entered.

“You’re still here?”

“We were just filling out the request form. You came back quickly.”

“Everyone was in morning prayer when I arrived.”

As Christina entered while answering, Eve seemed to have finished her business.

“It’s been confirmed, Guild Master Lavencha.”

“Thank you.”

Eve turned back to us with a smile, and meanwhile, Nina stamped the request form and handed it to me.

I accepted the request and we left the guild.

“Oh, I need to find my weapons.”

I realized that currently I only have one sword.

It’s not a problem, but having spare weapons wouldn’t hurt.

I wondered if the blacksmith would be open at this hour.

“I brought them to your room yesterday when I picked up my own weapon. Didn’t you see them?”

“Someone occupied my room, so no.”

Eve laughed at my comment.

“I’ll go to the guild to prepare for departure. Let’s meet at the front gate.”

“Alright.”

“I’ll prepare all the food and supplies, so just bring your weapons and some emergency funds.”

After parting with Eve, I went back to the inn to gather my weapons from my room.

I armed myself with the halberd that had its blade restored, the greatsword made from Centipede’s fang, a bow and arrows, and headed to the gate.

For the halberd, Sera said she would carry it, so I decided to entrust it to her.

“Ugh, why does she keep teasing you, Kei?”

Sera looked at me and asked.

“Probably because she finds it amusing.”

“Even so, there should be limits…”

I walked with Christina, comforting the slightly grumbling Sera.

Various people were passing through the gate, and we walked among them.

Perhaps because people had just enjoyed the festival until yesterday, everyone was moving about energetically.

Here and there, carriages were stopped, and people were bustling around. We observed all this as we headed toward the gate.

Meanwhile, I noticed a rather large carriage that I had never seen before.

‘That’s big.’

I found myself staring at it due to its unusual size.

A window was slightly open, and I could see a middle-aged woman sitting inside.

Through the glimpse of blonde hair, her face was briefly visible…

“Huh?”

“What’s wrong?”

That middle-aged woman somehow resembled Eve.

I had the feeling that if Eve were to age, she might look something like that.

Actually, her hair was tied up in a way that made her look older, and there were wrinkles that even makeup couldn’t fully conceal, suggesting she was quite advanced in age. But apart from that, she looked like she could be in her early to mid-thirties.

“That woman in the carriage.”

“…Woman?”

Sera’s expression darkened slightly.

“Yes. She kind of resembles Eve.”

At my words, Sera’s expression immediately softened, and she looked at the woman.

“She does look similar, doesn’t she?”

Good, so my eyes weren’t playing tricks on me.

“What kind of noble do you think she is?”

“Judging by the carriage’s atmosphere and size, she might be from a fairly large domain.”

Christina also joined us in observing the carriage.

My curiosity piqued, I examined the carriage more closely.

There was some kind of emblem on the door, probably indicating their noble house.

‘Could this be related to what Eve is hiding?’

The thought seemed plausible.

It’s unlikely, but the wild idea crossed my mind that the people inside might actually be Eve’s birth family.

‘Come to think of it, I don’t know Eve’s family composition.’

If I did, I might be able to better identify the carriage. That’s a shame.

I should ask her about it in detail later.

While I was curiously staring at the carriage, it unfortunately departed.

I decided to stop focusing on it and wait for Eve at the gate.

With nothing to do, I observed the people coming and going through the gate, chatting with Sera and Christina as we waited for Eve.

“Ah, there she comes.”

Looking in the direction Christina pointed, I could indeed see Eve making her way through the crowd.

She was riding a Moo, a beast I had seen in the New Kingdom before, heading toward the gate.

Eve, who had now approached, smiled and said:

“Have you been waiting long?”

“No, we just got here.”

“That’s good. I was a bit worried because I’m later than I expected.”

Eve smiled again, seeming genuinely relieved, as if she had been anxious.

“Shall we go then? You can ride in the cart if you’d like.”

“I’ll get on if I get tired along the way.”

It seems strange to ride in a cart when we haven’t even started yet.

Besides, unless you’re severely injured, you have to stand for inspection when passing through the gate.

Eve seemed to have the same thought as she nodded and said:

“Then let’s get going.”

As Eve spoke, her livestock, the Moo, began pulling the empty carts toward the gate on its own.