episode_0042

“…Well, I guess it wouldn’t hurt to check as a test.”

After much deliberation and self-persuasion, I finally made up my mind with a determined heart.

Unless the situation was completely unfavorable, I decided it would be better to get some good sleep, if not, for the time being.

Click.

Swallowing dry saliva, I unlocked the helmet’s latch and lifted it off my head. The sweat-drenched lemon-colored hair cascaded down like a curtain, draping over my shoulders.

“Phew….”

Exhaling lightly, feeling the stifling sensation dissipate and my mind clear, I attentively scanned my surroundings.

Since there was no light inside the tent, removing the helmet wouldn’t reveal my face, but still, just in case.

If any of my party members were shocked into silence or flinched upon seeing me, it would mean that my identity had been exposed.

In that case, I had no choice but to “deal” with it, ensuring that the party member who recognized me would remain silent.

“….”

Hmm, it seems there aren’t any particularly suspicious reactions.

Seeing no difference in anyone’s behavior after removing the helmet, it seemed certain that they hadn’t recognized my face.

“Oh, did you take it off? Are you okay…?”

Amy, rather than being surprised at my face, asked if I didn’t feel any discomfort, while Fred lay quietly.

“….Mm….”

Gerta seemed to have already drifted off to dreamland.

“…Yeah, I think I’m fine. I can sleep like this.”

I replied, covering my nose with the edge of my cloak.

“Good. Then, sleep well.”

“You too, Amy.”

“Oh, goodn—no, um, sleep well, Hilde.”

“Yeah, sleep well, Fred.”

After exchanging goodnight wishes with the party members, I closed my eyes. While endlessly reminding myself that I had to wake up before sunrise the next morning.

Sleep came swiftly.

======[ Fred ]======

In the predawn hours, everyone except for the night watchman was deeply asleep.

Fred quietly rose, turning his head to look at the person beside him, resembling a ghost in the dimly lit tent.

“…….”

It didn’t take long after she closed her eyes, exhausted, for the lemon-colored haired female investigator to fall deeply asleep.

‘…Brunhilde.’

Her mentor and comrade.

‘Finally, we meet again.’

Her cheeks flushed with joy. Her small lips curled up. A moist thrill settled on her youthful face, making her look five years younger than her age.

‘My wish has come true. This time, properly.’

Freida gazed down at the sleeping Brunhilde as if possessed, reminiscing about the journey of the past few months.

From returning to her original body and leaving the Line Kingdom, to this reunion with Brunhilde.

◆◆

After regaining her original body’s strength through the power of the Holy Sword, Freida spent three days holed up in an inn room, pondering.

Where could Brunhilde, who had disappeared from the Gunter party, be now?

Had she returned to the Line Kingdom? The likelihood was low.

The upper echelons of the kingdom were currently in a state of turmoil due to the desertion and disappearance of the heroic party that had been generously supported. They had even issued an entry ban for Emelia and Irina, who had sought refuge in Burgund, and a nationwide order to kill Brunhilde on sight within the kingdom.

It was a thoroughly justifiable assassination order.

These were individuals who needed to be nurtured as asymmetrical forces of their own country, the heroic party. Therefore, the kingdom not only emptied its coffers to provide substantial activity funds and all requested equipment for free, but also meticulously arranged and provided dungeons to aid in their rapid growth.

Yet, these beneficiaries had fled to another country and attached themselves to that nation’s heroes, despite the massive investment made to strengthen the foreign power.

As a result, it was understandable that the upper echelons of the Line Kingdom were not able to turn a blind eye.

Having poured vast sums of money into enhancing the foreign power.

For the Line Kingdom, it was remarkably lenient just to have sent out assassins in droves without bringing back their heads.

“Therefore, she wouldn’t have returned to this country. If she left Gunter’s party, she wouldn’t have stayed in Brungut either.”

Frida was certain.

She believed that Brunhilde had departed for a completely different country, not the Kingdom of Rhine or the Kingdom of Brungut.

In the Kingdom of Rhine, there was a declaration to kill her on sight, and if she stayed within the Kingdom of Brungut, there was a significant risk of being exposed to Gunter.

The only way for her to safely disappear after leaving Gunter’s party was to flee to a third country.

So where could she have gone?

As a human, she wouldn’t have headed to the land of the fairies or the land of the merfolk, nor would she have ventured into the swampy territory filled with lizardmen.

There were only two remaining options.

The Kingdom of Herbor in the northern part of the continent… and the savage kingdom of the black-haired easterners who referred to themselves as the Huns, located in the far east of the continent.

“It won’t be the east. Brunhilde’s hair color and eyes would stand out too much there.”

By process of elimination, there was only one conclusion.

It had to be the Kingdom of Herbor in the northern part of the continent.

“Is Brunhilde there…?”

Even Frida couldn’t be certain about that.

Perhaps all these speculations were mere guesses tinged with her own desires, and Brunhilde might simply be quietly resting by Gunter’s side.

If not, she might have left for the Elfenland of the fairies or the Baltgaard of the merfolk for reasons unknown to Frida.

If that were the case, searching through the Kingdom of Herbor would be nothing but a meaningless endeavor.

“……”

Nevertheless, Frida made up her mind.

“…… She must be there.”

She decided to go to the Kingdom of Herbor and search every nook and cranny of the entire country to find Brunhilde.

“Yes. That’s right. I can feel it. She’s there, right? Brunhilde?”

Frida had a gut feeling. Brunhilde would be in Herbor.

It was a conviction that felt like an indelible mark in the center of her mind, almost like a certainty.

Despite having no evidence, why did she feel such a strong conviction?

Unable to fathom the reason, Frida created her own justification to convince herself.

“I think it’s because I made a wish to meet again. Yes, that’s right. It’s what Nivelung taught me. Where Brunhilde is. To fulfill my wish.”

Whether the reason is truly genuine or merely a figment of Freyja’s imagination will be proven by the outcome.

“So… Let’s go. Northward.”

From the worn and dimly lit inn room, Freyja finally rose again from her disheveled bed.

“I want to meet you.”

Her eyes, shining with a determination mixed with obsession, seemed to radiate as if they were melting gold.

◆◆

The journey began in such a way that it was not without its hardships.

During her time as an adventurer, during the period when she had transformed into a man, she had never experienced such arduous trials.

Freyja realized.

When she was active as an adventurer, the villagers seemed endlessly innocent and kind.

Yet, they were people ready to transform into a band of robbers the moment they encountered a girl traveling alone without any escorts.

It was commonplace for food served to her to be laced with drugs.

A farmer who offered to rent out his daughter’s room for a night ended up sneaking into the room with a rope that very night.

Such incidents occurred not once or twice, but nearly a dozen times. Pickpockets, robbers, and outright thugs were too numerous to count.

Proper cities had somewhat decent security, but it was often better to simply sleep rough in the smaller villages.

Amidst these trials, the golden greatsword that she wielded in her oath to protect people was drenched in their blood.

Initially, Freyja had only resorted to using the greatsword to threaten the villagers and drive them away…

– “What’s this little wench? What? You’re asking for mercy just this once? Where, try shouting again, go ahead!”

Having let it slide, there were countless occasions where other men were called upon, resulting in a swarm of attackers numbering in the tens.

So, Freyja had no choice. The moment harm was inflicted upon her, she could only swing her greatsword and cleave them in half.

If it had been the old her—meaning, during the time of Freyr—facing dozens of armed villagers would have been a formidable challenge without armor.

However, for the current Freide, slaughtering them all was far too easy.

“I feel light. Like I could fly.”

Though she had simply returned to her original body, her abilities had greatly surpassed her previous self, who couldn’t even properly face off against an orc warrior.

Perhaps due to her increased height of over 20cm, her sense of balance and distance, which had always felt oddly off, had returned to normal. Her body had become surprisingly lightweight.

She could clearly see the trajectory and flaws in her opponent’s weapon swings, and her once unresponsive body now moved perfectly as she willed.

“…It was this simple.”

Just that alone made Freide noticeably stronger than when she was a man.

“If I’d known it would be like this, I wouldn’t have made such a wish…”

If she had been able to fight like this earlier, if she hadn’t transformed into a man, perhaps the other party members wouldn’t have left. These thoughts made her sigh deeply.

Regardless, with newfound strength surpassing her past, Freide carved through the attackers like butchered frozen meat as she headed north, crossing the borders of the Line Kingdom to reach Herbor.

◆◆

Upon arriving in Herbor, there were still obstacles piled up like mountains that she needed to overcome in order to find Brunhilde and hide within this vast kingdom, while also resolving her own identity crisis as a stateless person.

“Identity crisis…I could just become an adventurer. But finding Brunhilde comes first.”

Where could Brunhilde be hiding?

Surely not quietly working at a flower shop.

Her only talent was wielding a sword, so she must have chosen a life where she could utilize that strength. Freide was certain of that.

“In that case…”

There were three conceivable options.

A hero party here in Herbor, or a knight in someone else’s service. Or, like Freide herself, she might be active as an adventurer.

“A hero of Herbor…it won’t be Heid. If she had intended to work as part of a hero party, she wouldn’t have left the Gunter party.”

The possibility of her becoming a knight was also low.

Formerly a member of a renowned warrior party, but due to Frede’s own actions, the party’s reputation had hit rock bottom…

“…There probably aren’t any employers willing to take me in.”

Who would willingly hire a deserter who had betrayed their country twice?

The kingdom’s knights naturally refused, and the nobles also turned their heads, stating that they had no need for a deserter specialist.

So, there was only one option left.

“Adventurers… Yes, that’s the only way.”

It was the final employment opportunity for those who couldn’t become knights—the adventurer guild was the only choice.

◆◆

Frede was convinced that Brunhilde had become an adventurer in Herbor. With this conviction, she settled in a suitable city, actively engaging in adventuring and diligently collecting every bit of suspicious rumor.

Busy days ensued.

In order to firmly establish herself as an adventurer, she needed to reach at least the Bronze rank, so she tirelessly handled all sorts of requests, piling up achievements.

Amidst this, she also had to gather rumors from other cities and overhaul her own swordsmanship from the ground up.

If Brunhilde, whom she miraculously encountered again, were to witness her swordsmanship, it might lead to the revelation of her true identity.

Even if she didn’t recognize her as “Frede,” she could at least be certain that she was connected to Frede in some way.

Frede didn’t wish for this.

Perhaps she would reveal it herself someday, but for now, she hoped it would remain unknown.

She might just leave again once recognized.

Several months later.

An intriguing rumor about Hilde, the “Iron Mask,” a high-ranked adventurer from Vesperian near Levant, reached the ears of Frede, the Bronze-ranked adventurer from Levant.

“Finally…!”

Frede sensed it. With a heart bursting with excitement, she confirmed it within herself. She shouted inwardly with joy.

Finally, she had found Brunhilde’s trail.

◆◆

And now.

“….”

The girl with golden eyes, who had finally reunited with her comrade, silently looked down at the sleeping woman.

“You’ve changed a lot. A whole lot.”

The Brunhilde she knew had transformed entirely.

The way she spoke, acted, and even her personality seemed to have changed drastically, leaving me inwardly astonished.

“But, on the contrary, right now…”

She seems much more lively than before, making her even more charming.

Extending her tongue, she lightly licked her glossy lips, and Pride sat silently like that for tens of minutes.

With a face where the corners of her mouth were pulled up.