Chapter 108

Chapter 108

Episode 108: Black Street El was once again strolling through the streets of Karaldin. There were no requests, and she wasn’t in a position to practice her martial arts right now. Besides, Emily had gone to work, so her routine was quite dull while Layla was away. Of course, it wouldn’t be much different even if Layla were here, but it was still boring. Perhaps that’s why her aimless footsteps stopped in a familiar place; it might have been an inevitable result. “What, you gonna buy me fruit?” “…I don’t like apples.” El looked at Rutian in front of her with a sullen gaze. It would be hard to imagine that he was the former boss of an underworld crime organization, looking at him in his shabby clothes and wide-brimmed, worn-out straw hat. But he didn’t look like a merchant either. His shabby attire made him look exactly like a street vendor, but anyone with a discerning eye would quickly notice. The scars on Rutian’s arms and his well-trained muscular body wouldn’t make anyone think he was a merchant. How did she end up here again? El lightly dismissed it with the simple reason that she was bored. She sighed and asked Rutian, “Have you had lunch?” “Just now.” Rutian nodded and pointed to one side of the boxes on display. A few apples, with only the cores remaining, were rolling around on a shabby wooden plank. “…That’s lunch?” “They’re sweet and delicious. I’ll give you one for free, why don’t you try it?” “No thanks. Call Shanste and have him watch this stall. Let’s go get lunch.” “Hey, I’m broke now. I can’t afford such luxuries…” “I’ll pay. Just come with me.” When El said curtly, Rutian hesitated for a moment, then nodded. “I suppose I will.” After leaving the innocent Shanste in front of the stall, El and Rutian headed back into the streets of Karaldin. This time, the store they headed to had a more shabby exterior. Although she readily offered to pay, El wasn’t in great shape either. She had earned a total of 1100 Rads from the troll capture request last time, but adventurers couldn’t always expect such good income, so she couldn’t just splurge. That didn’t mean she went into a random shabby restaurant. Adventurers lived their lives short and intense, so they were a bit picky when it came to pleasure and enjoyment. This applied to both their sexual desires and their appetites. Most restaurants in Karaldin were above average, but adventurers were good at finding the ones that served delicious meals.

-Creak.

“Even though it looks like this, it’s a good place. Their quiche is delicious.” El said as she opened the door to the store. As if to prove her words, there were several people inside who looked like adventurers. Most of them were burly men, but there were also groups of women and mixed teams. “….” As if it were an occupational hazard, they glanced over El and Rutian once, then turned their gazes back. Rutian also glanced at them for a moment before turning back to El. The two sat at a table and chatted playfully. “You’re readily buying me lunch, so you must be doing pretty well.” “I’m skilled enough to do that.” “Well, you can survive anywhere.” “If you’re going to compliment me, be more enthusiastic.” “…You’re still beautiful and charming.” Hearing Rutian’s sudden words, El almost spat out the water she was drinking. “No, damn it. You can’t just come in like that!” “You told me to compliment you, didn’t you?” El shouted irritably, but Rutian just smiled and asked as if there was nothing wrong. El was speechless at his brazen reply. Of course, she had asked him to compliment her first, but… wasn’t this a bit sudden? “W, well, that’s true… Thanks.” Even if she wasn’t used to it, she didn’t dislike being called beautiful. El, who had been obsessed with manga in her previous life, had a high sense of pride in her appearance, which she had styled to fit the concept of a vampire (or so she thought). Therefore, she maintained her male mind while also taking pride in her beauty. However, her inner feelings were complicated. It wasn’t that she had abandoned the consciousness that she was a man. But regardless of her own consciousness, she couldn’t treat Rutian as someone of the same gender. In the past, she could dismiss her ambiguous attitude as nothing, but after meeting Layla, El’s values had changed slightly. Layla’s words echoed in her head like a phantom as she fiddled with her fork. ‘So, that’s why you’re still a virgin.’ Of course, Layla hadn’t actually said those words. But in El’s imagination, Layla was already looking down at her with a relaxed smile. “….Ha.” Even though it was just an imagination, the delusion was so realistic that El let out a hollow laugh. But it wasn’t Layla’s words, it was just what El herself was thinking. ‘Dating, can I even do something like that?’ El imagined Rutian and herself having a sweet and cozy relationship in her head. Walking the streets together, shopping, visiting restaurants… ‘Yeah, impossible.’ It seemed like it would be difficult. Just as she was about to shake her head, thinking that she wasn’t cut out for that kind of thing, she realized one important fact. ‘….It’s not that different from what we’re doing now!?’ “What’s wrong?” “Ah, n, nothing.” “…Yeah, when you say it like that, it really seems like nothing.” Just as she was about to be speechless at Rutian’s pitiful gaze, the quiche that came out just in time saved El. The waitress who brought it placed the plate down and spoke to Rutian. “I hope you have a good time.” “Thank you. I hope you always have good luck too.” “Hehe, thank you.” The waitress, who seemed to be the owner’s daughter, smiled at Rutian, who was dressed shabbily, and then turned away. “….” Strangely enough, El could feel herself getting upset at the sight. It wasn’t that she had romantic feelings for Rutian, but it was hard to just watch a girl (who seemed to be) flirting in front of her. But it would be childish to pick a fight with Rutian over that. It wasn’t his fault that he was handsome. “Ugh.” El sighed softly and picked up the fork on the table, poking at the quiche. // “So, in the end, the culprit was not found, and the investigation was closed… is that what you’re saying?” Pursvil Jaynox, the Dragoon Commander of Mesatria, frowned as he stared at Baron Noitlem. It was a rather rude attitude to show to the lord who ruled a city, but Commander Jaynox didn’t care. After all, Baron Noitlem was only a governor, not the grand lord who was the actual owner of the territory. “That’s right.” Baron Noitlem nodded heavily. He was a middle-aged man with graying hair, and he looked rather haggard, as if he had accumulated a lot of fatigue from this incident. The baron looked at Commander Jaynox and opened his mouth in an unpleasant tone. “…It is truly regrettable that you could not find them even after searching the Great Forest thoroughly for five days.” He said it was regrettable, but it was obvious that it contained a tone of blame. Commander Jaynox was inwardly upset, but he didn’t show it. No matter how unafraid he was of the baron, Baron Noitlem was nominally his superior. “Did you find any information about them?” “Roughly.” Baron Noitlem wasn’t completely incompetent. While Commander Jaynox failed to search, he was narrowing down the clues about the culprit through his own reasoning. In response to Commander Jaynox’s question, the baron replied in a heavy tone. “The culprits are probably adventurers, I presume. Of course, they must be adventurers. Anyway, the evidence was clear.” As a result of collecting information obtained by raiding underworld organizations and information said by the hick knight who was dispatched from the west, he was able to get a sense of the identities of the culprits to some extent. “The woman who escaped from the west and two women who claimed to be adventurers. A total of three women are the most likely candidates.” One of them also had consistent testimony that she was blonde. It’s not a rare color, but a ‘female adventurer’ with blonde hair is quite rare. That alone was quite a big harvest, but Commander Jaynox’s opinion was slightly different. “Are you saying that a mere woman killed a griffin rider with a single sword and avoided our pursuit?” Commander Jaynox was a dragon knight belonging to the Halfyid Marquisate, and a knight with excellent martial arts as well as a rider. To him, who had lived in the world of knights, the concept of a female warrior was very unfamiliar. “…Commander, there are many women among the adventurers active in the Great Forest.” “Well, I suppose so. But, I don’t think I can guarantee that they are really doing their part.” “That’s enough of that story. Either way, the person the hick was chasing was also a woman.” Baron Noitlem shook his head as if he was tired of talking at length, and cut off the commander’s words. “The important thing is that we missed them.” That was a very important issue for the baron. It would be a different story if he was the actual ruler of Mesatria, but Baron Noitlem was only a governor who had been delegated the authority to govern the city. He had to somehow convince Marquis Halfyid, the grand lord, of the circumstances of the incident. This was not a problem that could be ended with just one word that a griffin rider was lost. “…I see.” Commander Jaynox nodded with a sullen expression. If the responsibility for the incident was to be asked, Commander Jaynox was most responsible for this situation. This was because the direct cause was the dragoons who had deserted from their posts without permission. The Dragoons, who were represented by griffin riders and dragon knights, strictly speaking, did not belong to the city. They were knights of the Halfyid Marquisate, the grand lord, and like other knights, they were merely touring the city and performing their duties as if they were changing . Therefore, no matter how much the mayor of the base city was, he could not treat them coercively. This case of unauthorized departure from duty had been a customary practice among the dragoons, and Baron Noitlem had been subtly turning a blind eye to it. “As the commander knows, someone has to take responsibility for this.” The baron looked at Commander Jaynox and opened his mouth heavily. It wasn’t a day or two that the dragoons deserted for trivial reasons, such as seducing women, but it was a different story if they lost their lives because of it. To make matters worse, they even missed the culprit. It was a crisis for Baron Noitlem that could jeopardize his position as the governor of Mesatria, and for Commander Jaynox, it was at least a pay cut, and at worst, he could be dismissed from his position as commander. “There are only about ten days left until the settlement. We must somehow find a way to do it within that time.” The reports to Marquis Halfyid are written monthly. It would be best if they could catch the culprit within that time, but if not, their positions would be in jeopardy. “….” Commander Jaynox silently hardened his expression. Someone had to take responsibility for this, and it was highly likely that it would be one of the two people here now. In such a bleak situation, a lifeline was lowered to them. “Governor, a guest has arrived.” At the servant’s words from outside, Baron Noitlem tilted his head. As far as he remembered, there was no one who would visit at this time. He asked towards the door visible beyond Commander Jaynox. “Who is it?” “They say they are messengers from Gardisha.” At the servant’s voice, Baron Noitlem’s expression distorted. It was the name of the noble family that could be said to be the cause of this situation. “….”

Traditionally, the West and the East have never been on good terms. However, in this situation, the arrival of the envoy was welcome news to Baron Noitem. After all, if the Gardisha family, the origin of the incident, had a position, it could cover up his fault, even if only a little. Having finished his thoughts, Baron Noitem replied to the closed door. “…Let them in.” ———= Author’s Note ———= A breather chapter….