Ch.6521. Is the Journey Smooth? (3)

“Ah, I understand now.”

“Hmm?”

On top of the wagon with no ceiling to speak of.

The two of them lay there, staring blankly at the sky, using the thin pile of luggage as a makeshift sleeping bag.

At that moment, Luirin confidently thrust her face toward Kariel as if she had just figured something out.

“I got caught off guard because there was no killing intent.”

“Killing intent?”

“That’s right. That’s why I was defeated so irresponsibly.”

“…Wouldn’t ‘helpless’ or ‘incompetent’ be better expressions than ‘irresponsible’ in this context?”

“Imperial language is difficult. Let’s start using Badarasa language.”

“If you wish.”

“Huh? What? You knew it already?”

“Somehow.”

It’s one of my few talents.

Probably because I was dragged around various places as a child and got used to hearing it.

Foreign languages.

In this regard, I was among the top students at the Academy.

…Though it wasn’t an official subject.

Still, there’s a difference between being familiar with something and being able to use it as a language.

“……”

But what does it matter?

“When you engage in hostile actions against something, you instinctively reveal killing intent or hostility, but you didn’t seem to have any of that, customer.”

“I see.”

I can guess why.

What I learned wasn’t about killing, subduing, or defeating opponents.

The premise itself was to respond to the hostility and killing intent of others.

For example, self-defense rather than inflicting harm.

Focused on defense and counterattacks rather than offense.

That doesn’t necessarily mean I can’t take the initiative in attacking.

Do trees ever just stand there and strike passing creatures?

What about rocks?

What about water or wind?

“……”

Come to think of it, rather than imitating nature, it’s more about blending in and becoming one with it.

Focusing on that seems to have naturally led my consciousness to flow in that direction.

If there’s a difference from before, though.

Perhaps I’ve become more expressive and responsive compared to when I considered myself a tree or rock?

“Are you listening to me?”

“Up to the middle part.”

“Oh come on! You’re like this because you hate talking a lot.”

…No, that’s contradictory.

You speak dozens of words for every one of mine.

“Ah, excuse me! I’ll just hitch a ride this far! Sorry for the intrusion!”

After glancing somewhere, Luirin urgently requested to stop the wagon as if she had spotted some kind of marker.

“From here, we go this way.”

Despite there being no visible path, she suggested plunging straight into the forest.

Looking up a bit, I could see the forest leading to a mountain path, and I realized that once we entered, we probably wouldn’t see paved roads for quite a while.

“Alright.”

“Aren’t you curious? What makes me so confident about going this way?”

“Wouldn’t a competent guide have made a proper judgment about that?”

“That’s true. But accepting things so readily can also be problematic. Someone other than me might take advantage of that trust.”

Then she deliberately rummaged through her belongings and pulled out a small leather map.

“Large maps are necessary, but in places like this, detailed sketches of specific regions are what really matter.”

“Especially for places you’re visiting for the first time?”

“It depends on the person. People with a good sense of direction can wander around just fine after visiting a place once or twice, even without a map. I’m not quite at that level.”

“But you have no problems with maps and sketches?”

“Precisely. It’s nice having a smart customer like you who doesn’t need explanations two or three times.”

“……”

I understand it’s a compliment, but I’m not sure why it leaves me feeling a bit awkward.

“It’ll take a while if we walk.”

“Then we can run.”

I immediately climbed up a nearby tree.

“Huh?”

Then I started moving by leaping between trees and running along branches.

“What are you, customer?! Are you an elf?!”

Her astonished shout quickly faded into the distance, but…

“Wait a minute! Slow down! It’s not like we’re having a race here!”

…she was keeping up quite well.

From what I’ve observed so far,

Luirin’s physical abilities were truly on a different level compared to ordinary humans.

Is it because she’s half-demon?

Or does she naturally have exceptional physical capabilities regardless?

“What speed would you prefer?”

After coming down from the trees, I could see Luirin regulating her slightly elevated breathing.

“You’re not human, are you, customer?”

“I’m a pure human.”

“Then did you grow up in the forest? But human beings shouldn’t be able to move like that.”

“In exchange, my mana utilization is garbage.”

“Is there a connection between those things?”

Good question.

Kariel was a bit curious about that point too.

“If you had used mana to move like that, I wouldn’t have said anything.”

“But you kept up just fine.”

“I was following you as best I could.”

She turned around and said,

“Look! We can’t even see our starting point anymore, no matter how hard we look!”

“That’s just because the trees are blocking the view.”

“Don’t make excuses!”

It’s not really an excuse.

If the view were clear, we could definitely still see that far.

We might even be able to see it if we climbed a tree right now.

“At this pace, we’ll reach our destination several days earlier than planned. Now I fully understand why you were so calm when I suggested crossing the mountains!”

“Oh, right.”

“By the way, can I learn that too?”

“…I don’t know.”

I’ve never even thought about teaching this to anyone.

Besides, with mana, high-speed movement isn’t really a big deal anyway.

While I move quickly, this is specialized for long-distance travel.

Therefore, in terms of instantaneous speed, it falls far short compared to movement techniques based on mana.

And if someone were to refine these as separate arts and increase their mastery?

My simple movement would be almost useless in combat.

Plus, this relies heavily on the space, or rather, the environment.

Even in the same forest or mountain, if you can’t see paths or gaps… it’s neither here nor there.

“Then that must be an elven trait. But since you’re human, the limitations are severe, making it only half an ability, right?”

“Is that so?”

“Didn’t you learn about that? Even though it’s your own ability?”

…It wasn’t exactly a talent worth showing off or bragging about.

I’d only hear complaints about damaging rooftops when climbing buildings or leaving shoe marks on walls.

So I only used it in the middle of the night or when climbing over walls, and rarely showed it off openly.

‘If anything, I’ve only started using it more recently.’

I developed a knack for climbing walls, and with practice, I got better at it.

Along the way, I incidentally figured things out, never dreaming I’d become this proficient at first.

“That’s good. Having a customer I can learn something from works out well for me too.”

From that point on, she kept questioning me throughout our journey.

“It’s fine if you don’t know everything, just tell me what you can.”

So I tried to explain as simply as possible without being annoying.

“It still seems like a racial trait to me. Gaps created by the wind? How do you see paths? Does that make sense to you? Wind isn’t something visible. You know that, right?”

“Well…”

“Visualizing wind in wind magic is purely for show. If you actually want to harm someone with wind, you’d increase stealth by eliminating sound and even the micro-breezes created by movement…”

She really does talk a lot.

Though she didn’t seem aware of it herself.

Still, what she was saying contained information that wouldn’t hurt for me to know.

…Even if more than half of it went in one ear and out the other.

Eventually, in less than a few hours, we reached the mountain path, where the slope became gentler and ravines and cliffs began to appear.

“Can you climb that too?”

“…It would be difficult, but I could try.”

“That’s a relief. If I had to ride on your back while climbing, that would have been quite troublesome.”

Huh?

After saying that, she suddenly started climbing the cliff with her bare hands.

“Um…”

She’s finding good handholds and footholds.

“Is that possible?”

Though there seems to be a faint path, it quickly becomes indistinct…

If she misses the timing, she might fall.

“……”

If it doesn’t work out, she’ll die, I guess.

Only after reaching the top did I realize my thinking was wrong.

But when I was attempting to climb, I didn’t even realize what was wrong and just mindlessly scaled the cliff.

“Good. Let’s camp here. You probably haven’t fully recovered from land sickness after just getting off the ship.”

“Really?”

Land sickness.

That’s an interesting expression.

“There are no temples or apothecaries here, so if your condition suddenly worsens without you realizing it, there’s no recourse. We need to take care of our physical condition beforehand.”

Though she didn’t seem to have much luggage, she shook her thick robe a few times, and I heard something pouring onto the ground.

“…That’s a magical tool too, right?”

“Unlike yours, mine only increases volume capacity. The weight remains the same.”

Thud!

Even though only the hem of her robe touched the ground, part of the surface was gouged out.

“Like this.”

“…I see.”

She seemed to intentionally hide it in populated areas, so I didn’t ask then.

But when she openly stuffed purchased tools and necessities into her robe, it was clear she had no intention of hiding it from me at least.

So I took the opportunity to ask, and she responded immediately.

Meanwhile, I was carrying a minimal but cumbersome backpack.

“You manage such movements while carrying that weight.”

So there was a plausible reason why those thugs went flying when she headbutted them.

…No wonder she couldn’t understand how my intervention had neutralized her.

“It’s part of my training. If I want to make a living, I need to diligently improve my skills, right? If I neglect training because I’m working, who’s going to guarantee me time for training and skill development? The sky? The earth? The sea? The riverbank? The lake? The swamp? The plains?”

“……”

She’s absolutely right, but she adds too many unnecessary details.

“Now that we’ve established that, teach me how to defeat or knock down opponents without emitting killing intent.”

“…?”

She’s requesting it as if it’s already been decided.

“Is that not okay?”

“Is that included in the request fee?”

At my question, Luirin slaps her forehead.

“Oh come on! Would it hurt to be nice and just teach me?”

“……”

It’s good that she doesn’t seem like someone who would deceive others, but I’m not sure why she’s openly calling me a pushover and nice.

Is it like a childish plea, hoping I might give in if she asks?

Is asking verbally free?

Once you start giving in on small things, it’s only a matter of time before you give in on big things.

Similarly,

Once you start allowing small things, allowing big things is also just a matter of time.

…That’s a very expensive lesson I learned while being despised and trampled on by others.

Anyway.

Perhaps seeing my indifferent expression,

Luirin started making sophistic arguments.

“I’ll put that much more effort into my role as a guide, right? Beyond that, we might develop a relationship deeper than just guide and customer. We might even become really close.”

Her slightly flushed face and those upturned eyes were quite endearing, but

Kariel just blinked without any particular reaction.

“Is that actually beneficial for me?”

“Oh come on! Being able to develop a long-term relationship with a competent guide like me is a huge advantage! How can you be so smart yet not understand that?”

She’s audacious.

And bold.

Kariel shook his head as if conceding defeat.

“Fine. It’s not like it’s difficult to teach anyway.”

“Yes!”

Watching Luirin clench her fist in triumph,

Kariel let out a small laugh.