Opportunity
Opportunity
The horses the cultists had ridden in on were quite well-trained.
I hadn't expected not a single one of them to bolt—except for the one that got killed at the start—so that made the cleanup easier.
Their first impression was shit and I still found the bastards utterly detestable, but they'd been a party who'd worked together for over a decade, and sure enough, without any extra communication they moved in sync, dividing the wagon's baggage among the horses.
While I placated Asilie—who was thoroughly displeased by the uninvited guests crashing our private journey—by seating her in front of me, Sen, having finished her preparations, scurried over to me.
"Um, Honored One? I was thinking that smooth communication might be rather important if we're setting out on a journey together. I thought a simple exchange of names might be goo—"
"That's none of your concern, so just get moving."
"...I did briefly consider whether it might not be, but I knew a person of your caliber would have no need of such things. Hahaha! We'll depart at once!"
I was staring at Sen's rapidly retreating back in disbelief when Asilie, leaning her head against my chest, spoke up.
"She's no ordinary Pulling."
"That's how you get a human who makes friends with demons, I guess."
But given what she'd pulled, I couldn't exactly feel any warmth toward her. Things that ought to be grateful just for being alive, and here they were talking about exchanging names—what the fuck.
Maybe because the tracker's threat had vanished, the bastards moved at a relaxed pace. The kid handled the horse with real skill even while looking after her little brother, and even when we picked up speed occasionally, she kept up without falling behind.
Behind us, the horse Asilie had ridden was leading the charge, with the ownerless horses running diligently along. It was the result of Asilie communing with them and coaxing them to follow, saying we ought to have at least this much side income.
Aside from the boy's gaze occasionally darting back, fascinated by the horses following so well without any commands, there was nothing special about the travel, and just repeating that for a few hours was enough to make the sun start setting in no time.
"Honored One! We were thinking of camping by the river near here, how does that sound?"
"Do whatever."
Sen's presence—reacting cheerfully and moving briskly even to my indifferent answers—was genuinely helpful. Without her, the rest of those bastards would've been busy sneaking glances and hemming and hawing, that was for sure. Maybe she was doing it on purpose to break this awkward atmosphere, I thought as I brought it up with Asilie, and immediately got a negative response.
"Hmm, probably not. That Pulling's probably in a state where she could laugh all day just from the fact that she saved her comrades."
"...A truly incomprehensible race."
After hearing Asilie's explanation, I saw that the smile really never left Sen's face. The others, who'd been sullen and hunched over at first, gradually seemed to be swayed by her too, and a mood of just being grateful to be alive started to spread among them.
So we'd picked a decent spot, and everyone was sorting themselves out, lighting campfires and preparing dinner, when—
"Excuse me, uh, Ega. The meal is nearly ready, and if it's alright with you, would you like to join..."
Suddenly the mage bitch came over.
The way she shuffled over hesitantly was pitiful enough, I'd grant that, but naturally it meant nothing to me.
"Do I look like someone who'd share a table with you?"
"......"
"Don't try to close the distance before I've stamped the contract on you. I might change my mind."
"...I'm sorry."
The moment I openly brushed off the timid invitation the mage—who'd somehow mustered the courage to approach me—had extended, the slightly brighter mood that had been spreading among the bastards dimmed back down. Whether that mattered or not, I kept about my business, and the mage returned to her group, shrunken down, and carried on with meal prep.
Honestly, when I first saw that pathetic display I thought it was just groveling, but looking again it seemed better than the cheerful atmosphere. Whatever might happen later, right now I just couldn't muster any good feelings for those bastards.
"I figured the Pulling put her up to it, but maybe she came on her own after all."
Asilie, ears perked and picking up scraps of the bastards' conversation with the spirits' help, shrugged as she said it, and I let out a hollow laugh.
"Don't know if she's reckless or overflowing with courage."
Still, she's a mage in her own right, so she probably didn't entertain some absurd delusion that I'd warm up just because I spared her. The theory that she'd screwed up her courage to make amends for her mistake was more plausible.
But that wasn't my problem. Until I came to think I'd done well to let her live, she was just a selfish mage bitch, nothing more.
I was chewing on the sandwiches I still had left, ruminating on a life that couldn't go a single day without getting tangled up in incidents, when—had enough time passed?—Sen, having finished her meal, scurried back over and addressed me.
"Honored One? We were about to set the night watch. If it's agreeable to you, we were thinking of standing watch among ourselves so the two of you could get a full night's sleep..."
Any other time, it was consideration I'd have welcomed and been grateful for with both hands raised, but in the current situation it wasn't entirely welcome. Because really, aside from Sen who'd staked her house on it, there wasn't a single one of them I could trust.
For her, they were her friends, so she'd trust them solidly, but my situation was different, wasn't it?
"No. We all rotate on watch. Except the brats."
"Understood. We're planning lights-out at 10 PM and wake-up at 6, was there anything else you wanted?"
"Two-hour shifts. Asilie takes first watch. I'll take 2 to 4. The rest you sort out yourselves. And even if you wake up in the night, don't do anything stupid. Unless it's to go to the bathroom, I'll take it as you getting other ideas. Weapons stay out in the open. We'll hold onto the mage bitch's staff."
"...Yes. I'll come back once it's sorted."
First watch was the easiest, but set up this way, at least two of them would be off the rotation that day, so they wouldn't have any particular complaints. Asilie, who'd been quietly watching Sen's retreating back, asked.
"Keeping watch on them?"
"Obviously. Can't trust anyone but the Pulling yet."
Asilie took a bit of time to fall asleep, and these days if I went to bed early I'd wake up without fail between one and two in the morning. That much would at least let me notice if those bastards tried some shit in the middle of the night.
It'd be a little tiring, but once I'd decided to get tangled up with them, I had to accept at least that much.
◈
"As expected, gaining trust is going to take some time."
The night air seemed to settle heavy as Sen clicked her tongue ruefully and returned, letting out a single remark. It was a natural reaction, one she'd fully anticipated, but still she couldn't stop the regret from welling up.
"Even so, it'll take at least four more days to reach Ogwen at this pace, so there's still time. Let's figure something out in the meantime!"
She'd wanted to at least apologize, because they were clearly aware of what they'd done, but the man called Eldmia Ega kept a thorough wall up and just watched them with eyes full of mistrust. That was obviously why he'd volunteered for the night watch too.
Even though they hadn't expected that mistrust to improve easily, they didn't give up because Sen was the one who'd made such a huge decision for their sake.
They'd worked together in sync for a long time, so they knew as much about Sen and the Pulling race as there was to know. It went without saying how precious she held her house's dagger.
Sen put on a smile and told them not to mind it, but if she truly didn't mind it, then there'd clearly be something seriously wrong with her.
Though, of course, the idea of using someone else as bait to flee hadn't exactly been a proper idea either.
"First off, the elf's been set for first watch. Asilie, she was called. I think I'd better take the last watch tonight. She seemed to trust me at least a little, as I've got my house's honor on the line. That'll let everyone sleep easier than if someone else stood watch."
"Then I'll take the second. Merdela and Baije had a hard time today."
The heavily armored adventurer called Baije didn't refuse Kals's consideration, but Merdela, looking utterly deflated, slowly opened her mouth.
"I'll just... take it today..."
"No. You need to rest a bit. You'll feel clearer-headed after you sleep and wake up. And more than anything, like Sen said—having me, with no special skills, take the watch is going to be better for those people's sleep than having you, a mage, do it."
When he laid out the reasoning he'd already thought through, Merdela stayed silent for a moment, then nodded weakly. They'd been doing adventurer work together for nearly ten years, and they'd never seen her this dispirited, so the party's worry only piled higher—but showing it would've obviously only backfired, so under tacit agreement they kept their mouths shut.
"Let's think positively, everyone. We've survived a brush with death twice over, and for the first time in days we can sleep soundly without worrying about attacks, right? Even if there is an attack, we've got a disgustingly strong warrior with us, so it won't be as dangerous as last time. Let's savor the comfort, get a good sleep, and get up refreshed."
Sen's words as she smiled, repeatedly lifting the sinking mood, were right down to every last detail, so the party couldn't help but laugh a little too. In the atmosphere that regained its vitality through Sen's endless efforts, the party finished their personal upkeep and went to bed for the night.
It had been an utterly exhausting day for them. A day so tiring and eventful that the instant they lay down, every last one of them conked out, no exceptions.
Sen, who stayed awake longer than anyone in her party, prayed that the road ahead would be a little smoother as she slowly sank into sleep.