episode_0014

Ban died.

He was a bit annoying, but he was someone who taught me a lot.

If you’d call it close, we were close.

That Ban died.

Not only did he not die before my eyes, his corpse wasn’t even visible.

At the rough-looking man’s words, ‘He’s dead’, not a single person doubted and accepted the situation.

The reason for his death was the emergence of a bandit group.

This wasn’t something related to monsters, but something the nobles maintaining order in this vicinity had to lead a suppression squad to quell.

While working as an adventurer, I developed an eye for grasping situations, and it was obvious how things would unfold from now on.

Notices for recruiting a suppression squad would be posted everywhere.

The nobles would lead their private soldiers and stand at the front to gain merit, and the reward money would also be quite significant.

Everyone seemed more excited about what was going to happen rather than mourning Ban’s death.

If this is what it means to be an adventurer, I guess I’ll have to get used to it too.

“Mister.”

I slowly, mustering courage, finished the report and approached the rough-looking man who was sitting in a corner resting.

“It’s Jack.”

“Yes, Mister Jack. Could you perhaps tell me what Ban’s final moments were like?”

Perhaps it could have been rude.

Asking about a comrade’s death could itself bring back unwanted memories.

But because I was also Ban’s comrade and friend, I thought I could ask.

Jack took a mouthful of beer, held it in his mouth, and looked down at me.

Even without seeing directly, I could feel that gaze.

“…Right, you’re the one who was hanging around with that guy.”

“Yes.”

“It was funny how someone of the same rank was acting as someone’s master, so everyone at the guild pointed and said you were playing make-believe.”

“Was that so?”

I hadn’t felt any sign of that.

If even I, who think I’m quite perceptive, didn’t notice, it seemed they only talked about it when I wasn’t there.

“It wasn’t anything special. Bandit groups are rampant everywhere these days, so he just got caught up in it unluckily.”

“These days…?”

“Are you from another world or something? This is something even a passing stray dog knows.”

Jack looked at me with suspicion but continued to drink the remaining beer in his glass.

“You asked about Ban’s final moments, right? It was kind of cool, not like him. We thought he was going to die with bandits swarming from all sides, but he broke through the weakest-looking spot and just died right there. Thanks to that, Cheshire and I were able to get out through that spot.”

“You were able to get out?”

“Yeah, after breaking through the encirclement, Cheshire died from a poisoned arrow shot from behind, and as for me, I got hit in the arm and had to cut it off.”

As I couldn’t say anything due to the more desperate fight than expected, Jack quietly tapped the table with his empty beer glass, calling me.

“My arm is like this, so I’m going to retire as an adventurer. So if you know your body is precious, you’d better quit being an adventurer too.”

“……You’re saying similar things.”

“With Ban, that guy?”

“Yes.”

“It’s not that Ban and I are strange, but it’s a common thought among losers who haven’t even earned silver rank after time has passed, so it’s not that special.”

Holding his severed arm, Jack got up from his seat and staggered out of the guild, drunk.

As I watched Jack’s retreating figure, I heard Tsk tsk – sounds from around me.

“He’ll die before long too, won’t he?”

“Can’t be helped, that Jack guy made enemies everywhere too. Even if it was because of quests, quests aren’t indulgences.”

“Indeed, among the guys here, excluding that kid, there’s no one who hasn’t made an enemy.”

“Usually, easy and high-paying quests turn out that way. Everyone just dips their toe in once when they’re desperate, hey, are you listening?”

Ah, they were saying that for me to hear.

When I nodded my head and indicated that I was listening, they nonchalantly spoke.

“Anyway, since he’s dead and that guy is going to die, it’s okay to talk about it. That Ban guy, he was hired as a gambling shill and just fell into gambling, and Jack stepped into contract killings disguised as escorts.”

“What’s the reason you’re telling me that?”

“It’s nothing special. Even though you might feel bad, I’m telling you because you seem like a hard-working kid these days. You should absolutely never do easy and high-paying jobs.”

“Thank you for the advice.”

“If you’re grateful, will you buy us each a glass of beer? It’s cheap anyway since it’s cheap beer, right?”

Right, that was the purpose.

“Sigh, okay.”

What they called beer was a strange concoction of real beer mixed with water, so it only cost 1 copper coin per glass.

I hadn’t taken a break from doing quests, so I had gained the financial freedom to buy about 3 glasses of beer easily.

“By the way, do you know where to apply for the suppression squad that will be formed this time?”

“You want to join the suppression squad? Well, even if you just do supply support in the rear, they’ll give you a few silver coins, so it might be good to do it. The suppression squad recruitment notice will be posted on the quest board. You can apply at the reception desk then.”

“Thank you.”

Now it’s about time to leave this city too.

There wasn’t necessarily a reason to head to another city, but because it was such a underdeveloped and small city, it didn’t handle the kind of information I wanted.

“To get information about the Saint, I’ll have to go to where there’s a temple.”

If it’s a city where a temple is located, it’s usually in a bustling place rather than somewhere like this.

Building a temple and operating a temple are both costs that the temple bears, so there were no temples in places where money didn’t circulate.

“Before I go, I need to make a big earning one last time before I move.”

Just because it’s a suppression squad, I wouldn’t go to the front lines to fight.

I was planning to be assigned to the supply unit and help other people.

Even while making those plans, the fact that Ban had died kept bothering a corner of my mind.

It wasn’t blind goodwill like Grandpa’s, but he certainly treated me very well.

The news that such a person had died was enough to make my heart troubled.

I left the guild.

I was absolutely not in the mood to work today.

Let’s soothe my heart with the sword.

If I join the suppression squad and contribute to the suppression, it would be a way of avenging Ban in my own way.

Let’s take that as comfort.

They say being an adventurer is a job where you risk your life, but it hadn’t really sunk in.

Today I got a definite lesson.

Being an adventurer was a job where people you were just laughing and talking with until recently wither away so futilely.

Even if you try to package that with the nice word ‘romance’, it only feels cold and harsh.

I arrived at the inn, finished a simple meal, slipped out the back door, and picked up my sword.

As I swung the sword, too many distracting thoughts intervened, and the sword felt much duller than usual.

Today, my stomach churned particularly.

Why is it that everyone who treats me well ends up like this?

To be honest, I resented it.

Not specifying anyone, but everyone.

“Heuu…”

Grandpa Leon treated me blindly well.

He said it was because I reminded him of his granddaughter – but Grandpa’s eyes held wisdom, so he wasn’t weak or foolish enough to think of me as a substitute for his granddaughter.

I liked his actions and words that treated me warmly, and I even thought that maybe living like this wouldn’t be so bad.

But as if to mock my hope and dreams, a sudden choice option appeared and the choice ‘Attack’.

Even though I didn’t want to, I gripped the sword and attacked Grandpa.

If I hadn’t cried out and shouted, it would have gone very wrong.

Even after that day, Grandpa still treated me well, but he clearly began to hold caution.

But, if he were to just cast me out like that, it was obvious I wouldn’t last a week and would die on the streets.

So he taught me even more strictly.

When I had received enough teaching that I wouldn’t die a lonely death on the streets.

I left Grandpa’s side.

My life as an adventurer in the place I arrived at like that.

If Ban hadn’t helped me, I would still be doing silly odd jobs foolishly.

I would have been lonely without a companion to talk to.

Basically, I emit an unpleasant aura, so usually, people don’t approach me first.

Even if someone approached, it was mostly with the purpose of picking a fight.

But Ban didn’t do that.

Regardless of what his purpose was, it was the first time since Grandpa that someone had treated me so well, so I opened my heart.

Although after looking into my eyes he suddenly changed, strangled me, and even threw me to the ground, that was closer to an unforeseen accident, so I didn’t hold it against him.

But, he suddenly died.

“Why do people who treat me well keep moving away?”

I didn’t think Ban’s death was sad enough to sob loudly, but tears welled up and obscured my vision.

I roughly wiped the area around my eyes with my sleeve, but nothing changed.

I didn’t make a sound.

Because it’s embarrassing for a grown man to cry out loud.

“Heuk…”

More than sad, I felt wronged.

I felt like I was going crazy from feeling wronged.

It feels like I haven’t done anything wrong, so why do these things only happen to me?

I don’t know why I even have to go through this hardship in the first place.

My whole body throbbing felt even more painful anew.

What is the meaning of swinging a sword I’ve never even held in my life, and I don’t know why I was thrown into this damned world either.

I lived a not-long life simply ordinarily.

It wasn’t a life that deserved praise from anyone, but it wasn’t lived so badly that I deserved to be treated like this either.

I put down the sword.

And I slumped down.

I wanted to cry only today, and rest only today without doing anything.

Like that, saying I would rest just for one day became two days.

With my eyes swollen, I returned to my daily life once again.

When I came out of the inn after two days, various news reached me.

News that Jack was found in an alley as a corpse with his head cut off, and news that suppression squad members were being recruited.

As soon as I received the news, I immediately headed to the reception desk and applied to participate in the suppression squad.

Not for the rear supply unit, but for the front lines.