Scheme – 3

“I won’t do it.”

“Huh, huh? Why?”

As if she hadn’t expected to be rejected, the woman stood up in surprise. Her bandaged chest remained firm and centered even in that situation.

There was no particular reason why I refused that request.

That, you see, is a delivery quest. I know it very well because I’ve done it countless times every time I start a new game.

I’d have to go quite far from here, and the reward was just a single free use of the blacksmith shop, so the compensation was overwhelmingly small compared to the hassle.

In the game, it would be very useful in the early stages when it’s hard to spend money on weapon enhancement, or when applying attributes that consume a large amount of money, but now, I don’t need to worry about money, do I?

‘It would be useful if I did it, but is it really necessary? That’s the feeling I get.’

Of course, it wasn’t a delivery with ridiculous conditions like the Holy Water imbued with light. It was just like any other quest: put the item in your inventory, use quick travel or whatever, and then return. That’s it.

I was just skipping it because it was annoying since I couldn’t use the statues.

“And, isn’t this the first time you’ve seen me today?”

“For now, yes?”

“What’s your reason for proposing such a deal to someone you’ve just met?”

In the game, to receive that quest, the total number of times using the blacksmith shop had to exceed five. I wondered why she was trying to ask me, who had just visited today, for a favor, trusting what exactly?

“Huh?”

The woman tilted her head.

“You, aren’t you the… what was it. Anyway, aren’t you the Knight Commander here?”

“That’s right.”

“Someone who’s a Knight Commander wouldn’t possibly try to cheat me, would they? Well, I’ve heard there are occasionally guys who act arrogantly, relying only on their own skill or backing, but if you were like that, rumors wouldn’t have spread.”

I immediately understood. Indeed, I am currently not a mere rookie knight but the Knight Commander of this knight order, so my identity would be guaranteed. Even if she saw me for the first time today-

‘Wait. I think I heard something strange.’

Rumors spreading?

“Rumors, what do you mean by that?”

“Your people came out to spend money yesterday, didn’t they? I heard it then. They said you were a Knight Commander who did something amazing at the Imperial Palace. Everyone was praising you so much that I wanted to see your face, whoever you were, and it makes sense now.”

“……”

I guess that’s why people’s gazes were unusual when I came here.

“Can you tell me what kind of rumors they are?”

“Well, there are many, but… the most representative one is that you caught a dragon?”

“……”

That story about catching a dragon seemed to follow me everywhere. I should really catch one later.

Anyway, when I meet the Devourer of Worlds, to establish some level of conversation rather than just having thoughts unilaterally hammered in, it’s essential to defeat at least one dragon.

I’ll need to secure proof of subjugation, so I might as well cut off a tail or two while I’m at it.

“I understand. Thank you for answering, but it seems I still can’t grant your request.”

I refused the request, untied my gold coin pouch, and placed money equivalent to the price the woman had quoted on the counter.

With a resigned look, the woman took the money, picked up the Wingless Nightmare, and went into the blacksmith shop inside. She didn’t show any signs of disappointment. It was just a feeling of ‘that’s a shame.’

In the game, enhancement was done instantly by selecting a weapon in the UI window and paying the cost, but here, it seemed I had to physically handle the weapon.

Of course, there was no such thing as enhancement failure in B-Dark 4.

“Let’s sit and wait, Aurora.”

“Ah, yes.”

I sat down on one of the chairs lined up next to the shop. Aurora trotted along and perched on the chair next to me.

As she sat down, her upper and lower body bent vertically, causing the hem of Aurora’s dress shirt to roll up slightly towards her torso, fully exposing her already precarious pelvic region.

It felt like her intimate parts would be revealed with just a slight slip. I subtly averted my eyes.

Aurora had been fanning herself continuously since earlier. It seemed she was quite hot, having pulled her hat low and covered her face with a mask.

“If you’re hot, why don’t you take it off for a moment, Lady-nim? I’ll pretend not to know.”

Aurora-no, Aurore-hesitated for a moment, then, as if not declining, took off her hat and mask. At her brazen attitude, I inwardly shook my head in disbelief.

“Ah, I feel like I can live now. I thought I was going to die from the heat.”

“What’s all this commotion about, starting from this morning?”

“Why? It’s fun, this kind of thing. I’ve always wanted to try it at least once. Hiding my identity and wandering around the territory, I mean. I haven’t had the chance until now.”

The woman, who had returned from being the unidentified woman Aurora to the brazen Lady Aurore, said this while holding her hat in one hand and twirling the mask’s strap around her index finger with the other.

“It’s not particularly fun for the one on the receiving end, you know. Didn’t you see how dumbfounded my people were?”

“I’m the one paying, so what’s the problem? I can play a prank like this sometimes. If you didn’t like it, just say so. I’ll double your next salary.”

“You’re utterly shameless, Lady-nim.”

“I do have that side to me.”

Aurore, who had been wearing a sly smile, suddenly flinched and quickly pulled her hat and mask back on. I wondered what was happening, but then I saw the woman holding the Wingless Nightmare walking out from afar.

The woman thumped the weapon she held in her hand onto the shelf. Whirr, the handle spun towards me. Thinking it was done, I approached the counter.

“Is it done?”

“That’s right. It’s such a good weapon that there wasn’t much for me to do to it. After touching it a few times, it was all done. But…”

Her narrowly opened eyes scanned Aurore and me in turn.

“Is the one next to you your lover?”

“No.”

I flatly denied it. It was clear that if I equivocated here, new rumors would immediately be painted over and spread everywhere. This woman, she seemed to have a loose tongue just from looking at her.

Aurore tugged repeatedly at my sleeve from beside me. Although her eyes were the only part visible, hidden by the mask, I could tell her golden pupils had narrowed in displeasure.

“She doesn’t look like a woman with a sword-wielding profession. Why did you bring someone like that to a place like this? Any affection you had would probably disappear.”

“Originally, I was planning to come alone.”

“Ah, so she fell for you? Well, looking at your face, it makes sense.”

‘Does she not know that the person in front of her is the Lady-nim?’

That was highly probable. I didn’t know the details, but if she hadn’t met Aurore during the settlement process, it would be natural for her not to know who the person in front of her was.

Even setting aside whether it was possible to settle here without meeting the Lady-nim. How would I know about the moving process in the Middle Ages?

“Come again!”

I heard the woman’s send-off as I left the blacksmith shop. After paying the enhancement fee properly, the woman no longer mentioned anything related to the delivery quest.

It was, after all, a purely private request based on curiosity. It wasn’t like the blacksmith shop would go bankrupt because they couldn’t pay their debts immediately without that mineral; she just wanted it brought to her out of simple curiosity.

If there had been some urgent circumstances, I might have considered it, but since that wasn’t the case, there was no particular reason to grant it.

‘If I happen to pass by there, I’ll just stop by and pick it up.’

“Where are we going now?”

Aurora, who was beside me, looked up at me. The displeased gaze she had shown inside the blacksmith shop was gone without a trace, replaced by eyes full of anticipation.

She had completely given up on the Aurora persona and was now openly using informal speech. I debated whether to point it out but decided to let it slide.

I stopped in my tracks and fell into thought for a moment. Since this whole situation was beyond my expectations, I hadn’t thought of any specific places to go.

Moreover, with her looking at me like that, sending her back felt a bit difficult. The possibility that Aurore might have feelings for me was slowly starting to emerge, so it was a headache in many ways.

“Shall we go to a clothing store first?”

“A clothing store?”

“Yes.”

It was based on the thought that if it was a place that sold clothes, there might be one or two normal outfits. A no-panties dress shirt with all its buttons undone, really?

At this point, I wondered if the combination of a white sleeveless top and dolphin shorts wasn’t a fairy’s attire by comparison. Even if she wasn’t wearing underwear, at least it wasn’t clothes that exposed her private parts.

“Are you, Delta, buying it for me?”

“Of course. It’s not my money anyway.”

“You’re utterly shameless, Knight Commander-nim.”

Aurore, who had deliberately thrown my own words back at me, nudged my side with her elbow. Her words might have been like that, but she didn’t seem displeased at all.

“……So, who are you again?”

Laxia looked at the woman in front of her with a troubled expression.

Hair that was half green and half purple, bottoms that were already short but had two large holes, practically exposing her pelvis, and a dress shirt top that felt like they ran out of fabric when making it.

‘Her attire isn’t particularly unusual?’

Generally, people who are mentally unstable usually have strange clothing first. But the clothes the woman in front of her was wearing were normal. If you only looked at her attire, she was perfectly normal.

“Nyx, I’m Nyx. Hehe…”

The woman, who introduced herself as Nyx, wiggled her fingers in front of her absurdly large chest and let out a strange laugh.

And then she began looking around as if trying to gauge someone’s reaction. Laxia’s doubts grew even stronger. She asked, still not dropping her suspicious gaze.

“Hmm, so, you’re saying you know our Commander-nim?”

“Heh, hehe. That’s right. We know each other.”

Nyx laughed strangely again and nodded so vigorously that it seemed her neck might break. Her chest also swayed with equally intense speed.

It was troublesome. Very troublesome. Laxia herself had only recently joined Delta, so she had no way to determine the truth of that statement.

How would Laxia, who had only met Delta a few days ago, know about the Knight Commander’s relationships? She had only just realized today that Delta and the local lord had ‘that kind of relationship,’ after all.

However, it was difficult to just blindly kick out someone who claimed to be the Knight Commander’s acquaintance. As it was hard to completely rule out the possibility that what she said might be true, just in case.

“Hmm…”

Even as Laxia pondered, Nyx, like someone suffering from anxiety, constantly rolled her eyes and made strange giggling sounds while surveying her surroundings.

Watching her, the thought of whether she could trust what this woman said grew rapidly in Laxia’s mind. Her attire was normal, but her behavior was abnormal.

“I understand.”

“Are you bringing him…?”

“This is something I haven’t had a chance to tell you, but the Commander-nim is currently out. So, if you wish to wait at the castle, I will provide a room. However, you will be under surveillance.”

It would be possible to send someone to bring him, but Laxia didn’t want to disturb their private time together. Reporting later, when he returns, wouldn’t be too late.

Though, he might not return today.

“Out… out… Yes. I understand.”

To her embarrassment, despite her intense tension, the woman stood up limply. As Laxia clutched her throbbing forehead, she heard someone’s conversation.

“What do we do now? Go look for him?”

“Heh, hehehe… Are you an idiot? So you’re going to come all this way and then go back again?”

“It was wrong to come again today when we already came yesterday!”

“And wasn’t it wrong for you to stay silent and agree when I said ‘let’s come again’?”

It was Nyx’s voice leaving the room. Laxia watched her short, stubby back gradually disappear and was convinced.

‘She really is a strange person.’

She was indeed a strange person.