episode_0093

“Ah…”

Contrary to what I had expected and imagined, a small jolt as our foreheads met made a sigh of regret escape my lips.

Before I could belatedly recover from the sigh that had slipped out, the moment our foreheads met, a refreshing breeze seemed to gently sweep over my body, and the hazy sensations from the dream began to vividly transform.

“Did you sleep well?”

And the moment I opened my eyes again, eyes I didn’t know when I had closed.

Beside me, lying parallel and with our foreheads touching, was Killua-nim’s face, sporting a faint smile.

“Put away those pouting lips.”

Killua-nim lightly tapped my pouting lips with her finger, as if plainly showing my heart that had looked at her with dazed eyes, expecting a kiss.

Her action of tapping my lips caused a belated rush of embarrassment, and I merely pulled my lips back, scrunching them into my mouth as much as I had extended them.

“Why are you on my bed, Killua-nim?”

My inner thoughts, which had heavily anticipated a kiss, were exposed, and to conceal the rising embarrassment, I asked Killua-nim why she was lying on the same bed as me.

Killua-nim lightly shrugged her shoulders and answered my question as if it were obvious.

“To save you. I felt the succubus’s magic, which had gathered on your forehead, fluctuating.”

So, the act of touching foreheads was to use the succubus’s magic to enter my dream, wasn’t it…?

Once I woke up without major issues, Killua-nim lightly rose from her spot, as if there was no longer any reason to lie beside me.

“Alright… I promised to explain why you’re special once you woke up from the dream into reality, didn’t I?”

Killua-nim, who had gotten up from the bed, pointed her hand at the other individuals in the room.

“Eh… Oh?!”

Killua-nim and I weren’t the only ones in the room.

I had just woken up, my senses were still hazy, and Killua-nim was lying right before my eyes, so I hadn’t looked around.

With the bed in the center, around my bed were a few villagers including the village chief, the Herb Collector Hero, and Tom Bolt from the Foxwagen Merchant Guild.

“Remarkable events frequently occur in this small village. I never imagined we’d have to use the freshly acquired World Tree Sap right away.”

Tom Bolt, whose eyes met mine, chuckled good-naturedly and pointed to the bedside table next to where I lay.

There, a bottle that had contained World Tree Sap remained, its luxurious gold leaf and jewel ornaments messily torn off, showing how urgently the potion had been opened.

“Surely… you didn’t use the World Tree Sap on me, did you?”

It was hard to believe that the precious World Tree Sap, which could even heal severed limbs and was truly the pinnacle of alchemy due to its healing effects, had been used on me.

But as proof, my body, which had been so terribly damaged and broken that it looked like I would die any moment…

No, rather, my body, which had been so horribly damaged and broken that I might have even wished for death, was completely healed without any after-effects.

It was a miracle that couldn’t have happened without World Tree Sap or an outstanding priest with saint-level divine power.

“That’s right.”

Tom Bolt slowly nodded, a faint smile on his face, as if to confirm that the World Tree Sap had indeed been used.

“Then what about the payment?”

World Tree Sap was not something that could be bought with a few gold coins.

Even Rai had to pawn the token she received from her former fiancé, Ariel, to him to purchase this World Tree Sap.

From the perspective of Killua-nim and I, who had nothing, there was no way we could afford to buy the World Tree Sap.

As if waiting for that question, Tom Bolt and Killua-nim subtly glanced at each other, exchanging looks a few times.

“It’s free.”

“F-free?!”

I stared at him with wide eyes, astonished that a word that should never come from a merchant’s mouth had popped out of Tom Bolt’s.

At my reaction, Tom Bolt, along with the village chief and villagers, let out small laughs.

“Fox Merchant-nim. It’s a small repayment for the kindness you showed.”

“Ah…”

The Fox Merchant.

When I first heard it, I was simply dumbfounded that a foolish merchant existed who used a fox as a symbol and formed a merchant guild.

But when I faced Tom Bolt. The moment I saw the fox-shaped sculptures filling his carriage.

I instantly realized that the Fox Merchant he spoke of was my own merchant guild, which had disappeared 5 years ago in my memory, and now, due to Killua-nim’s failed escape magic, another 5 years had passed, making it 10 years ago.

However, 10 long years had passed, and it was a merchant guild that had vanished absurdly due to my foolish mistake, so I thought it wasn’t worth mentioning.

“Fourteen years ago, I was a small, nameless merchant guild, a merchant full of nothing but ambition and passion. When I naively got involved in a dangerous contract… you saved me.”

“M-me?”

I didn’t remember.

I only had vague memories of helping merchants in difficult situations multiple times, as long as it didn’t result in a loss, simply because I was fed up with other merchants’ actions of exploiting and extorting.

I, too, was able to secure a moderate profit by utilizing my guild’s influence, and small merchant guilds on the verge of collapse due to unfair contracts, or those who had just started, were able to narrowly escape ruin, so I saved them whenever the opportunity arose.

But my mind, leading a large merchant guild, was simply too complex to remember each and every one of them individually.

“Our village, Eaton, also received help. During the Great Drought 19 years ago, the Fox Merchant was the only one who delivered water even to this remote village.”

Nineteen years ago…

It was a time when my merchant guild was still too small to be called a guild, traveling the continent with just one or two carriages.

During the Great Drought, larger merchant guilds than mine were systematically supplying large quantities of water to big cities or populous towns, so instead of waiting for my turn to transport water and unload what I brought there, I made the most of being a small guild and diligently visited the most remote villages.

Since it was a special disaster, the Great Drought, the kingdom would pay for water if I just delivered it and got a confirmation receipt. So, loading as much water as possible onto my carriage and delivering to many villages was enough to earn a substantial profit.

However, many merchants would simply dump water on the ground and forge receipts to submit to the kingdom. Because of this, worries and concerns spread that receipts from such remote villages were unreliable, so not many merchants sought out those frontier villages.

“Many merchants have built colossal guilds and succeeded. But their eyes were cruelly filled with malice and greed. I, too, thought it was impossible to succeed as a merchant unless I had eyes like theirs.”

Tom Bolt’s words were neither exaggeration nor empty boasts.

The merchants of the large guilds I had met. Without exception, they looked at me with malicious and venomous eyes, scoffing at my actions as if they were pathetic.

“But the Fox Merchant, Jazel. You were different. Seeing you, I realized that someone with pure goodness, goodwill, and noble trust could also succeed, and shine more brilliantly than anyone else.”

Tom Bolt lightly bowed his head, placing his right hand on his left chest as if expressing his respect for me.

“No, I am merely the end result of a failure.”

Other merchants from large guilds, their bellies plump with greed, had proudly patted their stomachs and told me.

They said that the moment my luck ran out, I would realize the futility of all the goodwill and trust I had shown, and regret my entire life…

And their prophecy had come true.

The moment my luck vanished, I became the victim of the first fraudulent contract attempted by an otherworldly being, and the massive merchant guild I had dedicated half my life to building vanished meaninglessly overnight.

In the end, despite all that effort, I was left with nothing, a penniless person who had left no mark.

If Killua-nim hadn’t saved me, I would have fallen into despair over everything, aimlessly wandered the world, and quietly vanished into the cold night wind, unnoticed by anyone.

“The Fox Merchant disappeared… but countless merchants who received help from you. They remembered your kind actions, and the number of merchants who practiced such kindness actually increased. Their goodness has become a brilliant light in this difficult time of war against the demon race.”

“What do you mean…”

As I expressed my doubt, Tom Bolt knelt down to meet my eye level, looking at me with eyes truly filled with respect and gratitude.

“It’s a difficult time for everyone due to the war with the demon race. If there hadn’t been merchants like you… if the continent had been filled with merchants who only sought to fill their own pockets by exploiting everyone’s crises… this continent would already be no different from a living hell.”

Merchants.

They were like the blood vessels connecting regions across the entire continent.

If they only acted for their own gain out of personal greed and avarice, remote areas, rural cities, or villages that didn’t warrant their interest would quickly wither away.

It was because there were merchants like Tom Bolt who would forgo a small profit and income to reach even the most secluded villages on the continent that this small village of Eaton could barely sustain itself.

“The Fox Merchant disappeared, but his traces and presence were deeply etched into this continent.”

When Tom Bolt finished speaking, Killua-nim proudly shrugged her shoulders, as if she had heard praise or a boast about herself, and added a remark.

“That’s what makes you special, Jazel. A kind heart capable of leading others to the right path, and a noble will that allows you to trust others. In a word, you’re the kindest person in the world.”

At Killua-nim’s words, which simply summarized me as the kindest person, a smile unconsciously formed on my lips.

Normally, I would have blurted out that the kindest person in the world was also the easiest fool to exploit, but…

Tom Bolt, who was looking at me with genuinely grateful and respectful eyes,

The villagers, who were whispering as if surprised that I, standing before them, was the Fox Merchant,

And Killua-nim, who was smiling brightly, hoping I would be pleased, as if I were her own pride,

Finally, the Herb Collector Hero, who was staring blankly into space.

It was strange that he wasn’t there when needed but occupied a spot when not. Still… for now, I’d thank him for being here for me.

Seeing their appearances and reactions, I felt certain that living as the kindest person in the world might not be so bad.

“Alright~ Now that the story’s over, could everyone please leave?”

As a smile appeared on my lips from Tom Bolt’s gratitude and Killua-nim’s remark, Killua-nim turned to all the people in the room and gestured for them to leave.

“Huh? Is there a visiting hour or something? With the power of the World Tree Sap, she should already be fully recovered…”

Tom Bolt, being forcibly pushed out of the room by Killua-nim’s hand, asked back with a flustered expression.

Then, looking at the people who were reluctantly leaving the room at her gesture, Killua-nim shamelessly said.

“From now on, Jazel and I are going to have some private time.”

“Ah…”

“Ohh…”

The village chief, Tom Bolt, and the villagers, who nodded greatly at her brazenly direct words, moved out obediently without resistance.

“Hng… Should I hang a ribbon?”

Finally, the Herb Collector Hero walked out, waving a pink ribbon, which he seemed to have brought from who knows where, towards us.

“……”

For a fleeting moment, as the Hero waved the ribbon, a tiny flicker of contemplation crossed Killua-nim’s face.

“No need!”

But realizing that the attention of many villagers was still focused on the room, Killua-nim deliberately emphasized that it wasn’t needed in a strong tone, as if to hide the fact that she had hesitated.

“Heheheh~”

At Killua-nim’s shout, the Hero merely let out a strange chuckle and was pushed out of the room, still holding the ribbon in his hand.