Chapter 390
Chapter 390
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: EP.81 – They Should Have Chosen Their Bed Wisely (1)
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Creak...!
The inn's door, with its rusty hinges grating on the ears, rattled in the fierce wind, letting out incessant creaks, but no one inside paid it any mind.
"This rotten world! It's done for, I tell you, done for!"
"What are we gonna do about living expenses this time?"
"I've heard rumors they're recruiting mercenaries and soldiers lately. Maybe I should sign up as a merc?"
A typical tavern-cum-inn.
To the rowdy drunks chattering away, the hinge noise was irrelevant.
Yet strangely, for all their clamor, no smiles graced their lips.
They drank to forget their harsh reality, but oddly, they didn't look the least bit happy even after downing their booze.
Instead, only sighs and grumbles poured out.
But given the current state of things, that was only natural.
...Life was so grueling that even alcohol couldn't numb it away.
So how could there be any laughter?
"Looks like the provincial lords finally picked a fight with Mordred."
"What era are you living in? That was four days ago their heads were strung up on spikes."
"Oh, right?"
"Ease up on the drinking. Can't have you forgetting that badly, man."
"Haha, forgetting's the only happiness we get these days."
"...Did you lose someone you know in this territory war?"
"Not family, but a buddy of mine..."
"Sigh, these are the times we're in. Don't grieve too much."
"...."
...The two men silently nursed their beers once more.
These times.
Just half a year ago, no one could have imagined it.
Who would've predicted indiscriminate territory wars breaking out across the south?
"...These nobles must all have rocks for brains compared to us commoners. No matter how strong they think they are, they're just deer picking a fight with an elephant. Tsk tsk."
When the Pendragon royal family effectively collapsed, the south plunged into chaos.
The great noble houses declared independence one by one, and using that as a pretext, the provincial lords banded together to declare war on the great nobles.
But as the saying goes, know your place.
Families that waged war on the great nobles were reduced to ashes without fail, and tales of numerous noble houses falling or being wiped out were commonplace.
Through all this, people came to two harsh realizations.
One: they were living in an age of war. Two: war was the chief destroyer of countless everyday lives.
Most folks here had lost their jobs when the wars started, and even those still employed often went unpaid these days.
Some stood at the crossroads of becoming soldiers or mercenaries.
It was proof that as the world grew harsher, it was always the common folk who suffered most.
And if it were just hardship, they might scrape by somehow...
"Heard about that?"
"What?"
"The village next door vanished overnight."
"Hmm..."
"Word is, the whole place evaporated. Our village elder said..."
Swoosh...
"...a devil appeared."
The already dire situation worsening further was a nightmare come true.
The entire south was engulfed in war, with ominous rumors of monsters, demons, and other evils running rampant.
But the worst part was...
[Kekeke.]
That people's strife, anxiety, and fear were the very nourishment fattening those evils.
At that moment...
-Creak!
"Why's it suddenly pouring like this? Geez."
"I like it! It's refreshing!"
"Doesn't feel sticky to you?"
"Feels fresh to me?"
"...What? Am I the only one feeling muggy?"
...The inn's door, thick with gloom, burst open energetically as two figures stepped inside.
Like warm sunlight suddenly piercing the rain-dampened windows of the stuffy room.
They hid their faces and figures under cloaks, but their irrepressible vitality shone through as the man and woman chatted lively, drawing all eyes naturally toward them...
Swoosh.
"Something you need?"
"..."
"...Ahem! W-where were we?"
"Weren't we talking about that baby goat born the other day?"
"R-right, yeah! Ahahaha..."
...Just before their gazes met his, they instinctively looked away.
A primal judgment that eye contact with that man must be avoided.
Forcing awkward laughs, everyone turned their heads, wondering why they were acting like this all of a sudden.
No, what...
'Why are we doing this?'
Like animals cavorting before a top predator, the people forced smiles and chatter.
Forgetting even life's miseries by force...
At their display...
"What's with them?"
"Everyone must be having fun."
"They all look so awkward though..."
The knight, genuinely puzzled why they were grinning like that, tilted his head, while the maid beamed with unwavering positivity.
* * *
Unlike his swift decision to leave Vulcan, the preparations took quite some time.
Building the apiary had taken long enough, but there were also the various facilities he'd set up unknowingly while sustaining himself, and sorting those out required days.
Roughly a month.
Only after that could the man and woman depart Vulcan, and after investing another four days...
"There really are no villages near Vulcan. We ran nonstop, and only now do we see one."
Pat pat.
They had finally arrived at a village.
Lee Han dusted off his hood cloak made from wyvern hide.
True to high-grade monster leather, it was top-notch.
It was waterproof too, barely damp despite the downpour, and showed no tears even after dashing through the forest like that.
...If anyone had overheard their conversation, they'd have grumbled it was nonsense.
Vulcan had the capital nearby, sure, but reaching other villages meant crossing mountains or taking long detours.
Even on horseback, it took over a week from this village to Vulcan, so calling his words lies wouldn't be off-base.
However.
"You carried me the whole way, Sir Knight, so it felt easy for me. Wasn't I heavy?"
"You were so light it was no issue."
"Hehe."
The pair didn't care if they seemed odd, paying no mind to eavesdroppers.
"W-would you like to order?"
A cute waitress with freckles approached Lee Han, her face tense.
Tense from an outsider's arrival?
Lee Han spoke kindly, as if to say there was no need for nerves.
"Something warm like tea or milk, if you have it. Oh, I don't have cash right now—does this village have any guild-affiliated facilities? I can settle with them."
"W-well, our village is so small we don't have a guild..."
"I see. Then ask the innkeeper if he handles this sort of thing."
Thud.
"...!"
Lee Han produced glistening honey.
City folk could buy honey from merchants or eateries, but in a remote village like this, it was rare.
Expensive stuff—most offered it to lords or sold it dearly to traders.
The waitress knew that, so honey as payment wasn't odd, but she was stunned by the honey's radiant beauty, unlike any she'd seen.
'I'd believe it if you called it a gem.'
It was exquisite honey.
The kind nobles or royals might savor. Just looking at it stirred greed, when...
"Of course we handle it!"
The innkeeper rushed over with a beaming smile.
Running an inn in a backwater didn't make him any less a merchant.
He had an eye for goods, instantly concluding this precious honey would fetch a high price.
"I'd like a room for the night. Is this enough for one day?"
"More than enough! You could stay a week."
"One day suffices. Consider the deal done, then."
"Naturally. ...Ley, what are you doing? Get that tea out here."
"Y-yes, Dad!"
The waitress snapped to at her innkeeper father's words and hurried off for the tea.
Even then, her eyes lingered on the honey, making her seem quite naive.
Lee Han saw right through it but dismissed it— the honey was gone from him now.
'Good thing I brought it.'
Not Tiger Peak honey, of course.
No way he'd flaunt such a priceless elixir and stir trouble.
Still, nectar from stone bees in the mountains near Vulcan was rare enough.
One might say it was a waste for just one night, but value is relative.
No cash on hand, and he had no desire to haggle and waste energy.
...Though he couldn't keep bartering at a loss like this.
'Gotta hit a big city soon.'
The desperate would come sniffing anyway.
"Sir Knight, why'd we stop here all of a sudden?"
"?"
"I figured you'd camp out. You even prepared rations diligently. So why detour to a village?"
"Ah, that."
"Yeah, just curious. Not complaining or anything, hehe."
A fair question.
They'd prepped fully for camping—why drop into a village out of nowhere?
Lee Han apologized for his lack of explanation.
"The sudden rain caught us short on time to explain."
"I really don't mind..."
"Still. If I acted on my own, I should apologize."
"...Hehe, apology accepted."
"Thank you, Miss Maid. As for why I came to the village..."
Bang!!
"Hey, how many rooms you got here!"
"Damn, why the hell's it pouring now."
"Where the fuck's everyone else!"
Shrug.
"...I figured we could gather some info."
Lee Han shrugged, satisfied as the perfect chatterboxes arrived.
A rough bunch in battered leather armor, reeking faintly of blood like beasts.
- Mercenaries.
They barged in, and he secretly hoped.
'Don't pick a fight, huh?'
Would be nice for some pocket change.