Growburn Village – Carriage (2)

-Clatter, clunk.

Jade was gazing at Annie, who had fallen into a deep sleep across from him.

Leaning back against the carriage seat with her head tilted and mouth slightly open, it was clear she was in a deep slumber.

‘She feels more like a younger sister than a friend.’

Was this why Rena always doted on Annie?

Today, Jade found himself empathizing deeply with Rena’s affection for Annie.

Every little thing she did was just so endearing.

That didn’t mean she seemed childish, though. At times, the depth of her thoughts surpassed even his own.

There had been more than a few occasions at the academy where Annie had helped him out.

Right after the carriage departed, Annie had been visibly excited, likely thinking this was a fun trip with friends.

But she soon grew bored of the repetitive scenery of trees outside the window and fell asleep.

In contrast, Jade was quite satisfied with this journey.

Karlson’s driving skills lived up to his master’s boasts – they weren’t bad at all.

Though there was some occasional jostling, the plush carriage interior combined with his delicate handling of the horses made for a comfortable trip.

Karlson’s first impression had been terrible due to the lecherous way he’d looked at Rena. But perhaps that was just an understandable mistake any man might make once.

“Is everything comfortable back there!”

“Yes, we’re fine!”

He kept checking on the carriage’s condition while driving, clearly making an effort to ensure this journey would be remembered as a pleasant memory.

Jade had initially been slightly alarmed when Rena first recommended this place.

‘We’re not getting scammed here, are we…?’

To his eyes, the establishment had looked questionable from the outside.

But as always, Rena’s choice proved correct.

While mentally praising the wise Rena, Jade noticed her gazing out the window.

Rena, sitting beside him, had been blankly staring outside for some time now.

‘Is something bothering her?’

Jade gently tapped her shoulder.

“Rena, is something on your mind?”

“Huh…? No, it’s just that the past week feels like a dream. Everything happened so fast.”

Rena turned her gaze from the window to Jade, then slowly leaned closer to him.

“Can I… hold your hand?”

“Y-your hand?”

Jade was startled by Rena’s sudden request.

“This is embarrassing to say… but I’m feeling really anxious right now.”

Rena closed her eyes and bowed her head.

“I tried pretending everything was fine, but it’s hard. Every time I blink, I remember being brutally violated by Doran.”

As she spoke, the corners of her eyes trembled as if reliving those moments.

“Ah…”

Jade blamed himself for his lack of attention.

Though he’d worried about Rena’s condition after her rescue from Doran, her seemingly normal behavior had reassured him somewhat.

But unbeknownst to him, her heart had been rotting away inside.

A week wasn’t a short time. During that period, Rena had been enslaved and her humanity trampled upon.

There was no way she could forget that quickly.

“I’m sorry, I think I’ve been too indifferent toward you.”

Jade interlaced his fingers with hers.

“You don’t have to hide your pain anymore. I’ll be your support, though I know I’ll be lacking.”

“Thank you so much.”

Rena usually came across as cold and indifferent to those she wasn’t close with.

Jade felt warmth radiating from her hand.

‘So warm.’

Others might think differently, but to Jade, Rena was beautiful both inside and out.

“Jade.”

“Hmm- Huh?!”

When had she gotten this close? Jade nearly stopped breathing when Rena’s face appeared right before his eyes.

“Wh-what is it?”

“Were you disappointed that I only gave Annie a present earlier?”

“…No. Of course not.”

Of course, when Jade saw Annie receive a staff from Rena, he’d secretly wondered what she might give him.

It would be a lie to say he felt no disappointment.

“Hehe, don’t pretend. After all you’ve done for me, how could I give you nothing? I’ll give you the present I couldn’t give you earlier now.”

-Swish.

Rena wrapped her arms around Jade’s neck and began leaning closer.

Flustered by the sudden gift, Jade whispered urgently:

“B-but Annie’s right beside us?!”

“…Are you really going to be this clueless till the end?”

At Rena’s exasperated words, Jade realized his foolishness and closed his mouth.

The moment their lips were about to meet completely.

-Screeeech!

The carriage came to an abrupt halt.

“Urk?!”

“Kyaaah?!”

-Crash!

The sudden impact sent Annie flying from her seat to the floor.

Jade and Rena’s lips met only to immediately separate again.

“Ah…”

“Annie! Are you okay?”

While Jade stood dumbfounded by the interrupted gift, Rena hurriedly got up to help the fallen Annie.

“Owwie… What kind of disaster is this while I’m sleeping? My butt hurts, but otherwise I’m fine.”

Rena sighed in relief as she rubbed the spot where Annie had landed.

“Thank goodness you’re not seriously hurt. But what happened?”

Rena opened the carriage door to assess the situation.

“Mr. Karlson, stopping so abruptly is… why did we stop?”

“Th-there…”

Following Karlson’s trembling voice, Rena saw about ten Orcs blocking the road ahead.

“Orcs? I’ll handle them quickly.”

Drawing her sword to deal with the monsters, Rena tried to step out of the carriage.

-Thud.

But Jade’s hand shot out from behind to stop her.

“Huh?”

“Wait. Rena, please stay here and rest.”

He couldn’t let Rena, still traumatized, fight monsters.

What if her unstable mental state caused her to get hurt during the fight…

Jade shook his head to dispel the frightening thought.

“I’ve gotten much stronger now. Trust me and wait here.”

“But!”

Leaving the flustered Rena behind, he drew his sword and charged toward the Orcs in an instant.

-Tatatadadadadadadadadadadadadak!

As he sprinted, Jade lightly brushed his lips with a finger.

Though brief, the taste of Rena’s lips had been incredibly sweet.

He needed to teach these bastards who ruined his gift a proper lesson.

**

An Orc lumbered toward Jade with its massive body.

“Grrrooowl!”

Whether seeking revenge for its fallen comrades, it swung its club with all its might.

But Jade easily dodged the incoming club. Then he swung his sword, now coated in blue aura, toward the Orc’s neck.

Slash-! Thud.

The last remaining Orc’s head fell like tofu being sliced.

“Phew… Is that all?”

As if his past struggles against a single Orc were ancient history, Jade scattered aura and cut down the Orcs in an instant.

Though lacking talent for mana, he’d overcome this through bone-grinding effort until now.

This was the moment when his swordsmanship and physical training finally shone.

“I’ve really gotten stronger.”

Jade looked at the Orc corpses before him, each missing at least one body part.

At first, controlling the explosively increased mana had been difficult, but the more he used it, the more it felt like the mana itself loved him.

Moreover, the amount of mana he could handle kept increasing with each moment. He probably had more mana than anyone else at his level.

‘Am I getting close to 6-star now?’

The Hero’s power was truly absurd.

Feeling proud of his growth, Jade turned back toward the carriage.

As Jade returned, Karlson wore an expression of admiration at his passenger’s martial prowess.

“Truly amazing. Among the many mercenaries I’ve seen, you rank among the finest.”

Meanwhile, Annie had come out holding her staff, ready to assist Jade.

But seeing him sweep away the Orcs instantly, she comfortably watched the spectacle.

“You’ve gotten really strong. At this rate, you might even rival Rena?”

Wiping blood from his sword, Jade waved off the compliment with embarrassment.

“Aw, not that much. Compared to Rena, I’m still lacking.”

Someone might someday say Jade was stronger than Rena. But to him, Rena would always be stronger than anyone else.

Jade could never forget her beautiful swordsmanship or how she’d sacrificed herself to save him.

“…That was amazing, Jade. It makes me think I need to work harder too.”

Rena sat on the carriage threshold wearing a somewhat gloomy expression.

Jade found her reaction slightly confusing.

He’d been expecting at least some praise for his cool defeat of the Orcs.

‘Did I do something wrong?’

Upon reflection, he realized he might have been too overbearing.

His actions might have unintentionally dismissed Rena.

Though he only wanted to prevent her from overexerting himself, she might have interpreted it as him treating her like someone who couldn’t even handle Orcs.

Jade bowed his head apologetically to Rena.

“Sorry… I just didn’t want you getting hurt. I never meant to disregard you. I won’t act recklessly without considering your opinion from now on.”

“Hehe, it’s not that. I was just amazed by your skills.”

Truthfully, Rena was disappointed she couldn’t enjoy herself since Jade had wiped out all the monsters.

‘I didn’t want them to penetrate me or anything, just to take a club hit for me…’

How dare Jade steal my small pleasures? I can’t tolerate this.

Jade’s considerate actions only prompted Rena to execute a small plan she’d devised earlier.

This would prove rather unfortunate for Jade.