Chapter 155
Chapter 155
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 155
Chapter Title: Familiar No. 8's Pursuit
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Caw—
Familiar No. 8 puffed itself up with pride.
Even though there was no one around to see it perched on that tree branch, it thrust out its chest feathers, all fluffed up, and strutted along the narrow limb, showing off its spindly legs.
Caaaaw—
Of course it's me! Who else would pass such valuable intel to the master?
The days of sobbing and wailing its way over the mountains to the capital were in the past.
Familiar No. 8 pecked at a small, sweet fruit hanging from the branch and chuckled to itself.
From Labyrinth City Labirin, through Chabid, to the Spirit Forest in Arinaid, and even to the borderlands of Gabioren.
Was it thanks to chasing that long road?
Familiar No. 8 could now vaguely sense the mana of Adelrian's group.
No, to be precise, not their mana itself, but the traces they left behind.
At first, even that black-haired man the master called a rat pup was clumsy, leaking mana everywhere.
Back then, from the master's view, they were just a black mana-squeezing phony, a rat pup, and a rabbit folk worth using as bait.
Caw—
Then, one by one, more people joined, and now they were so strong that even tracking the lingering mana scents was a challenge.
But even so, the reason Familiar No. 8 could keep tailing them.
Cackle-cackle—
Familiar No. 8 laughed as it pecked another fruit.
The mana traces were wiped too perfectly clean—all except for one human. And that one human.
The blond man.
The phony, good only for squeezing out black mana and tossing aside, often scattered faint traces.
Usually like a forest after rain, or crushed wildflowers peeking from rock crevices—something close to nature.
But every once in a while, very rarely.
Like now, with that red-haired woman they traveled with, similar yet different traces.
Only Familiar No. 8, who had steadily followed them and memorized those occasional post-battle remnants, could track it.
Only Familiar No. 8, who had cried and refused to give up, flying over entire cities, searching inch by inch with its eyes.
And thanks to that, it hadn't missed the moment the black-haired man suddenly bolted to the outskirts, stealthily trailing him to witness it all.
Caw— cackle-cackle—
Ganax.
The old man considered the continent's strongest human.
Because it had witnessed his encounter with the black-haired monster, it had circled as a familiar for so long, finally earning the master's praise.
Plus, the black mana it received was far less than what Familiar No. 1 got, and the black-haired monster never harbored any malice toward it—another perk unique to No. 8!
As it pecked at the sweetly ripened fruit, a passing child threw a stone, annoyed.
The stone whizzed by, and Familiar No. 8 took flight in a grand swoop. To aid digestion, it circled once over the black-haired human's lodging it had scouted earlier. That's when the door creaked open, and a familiar voice rang out.
“…that's why. Let's go. Time to bid farewell to the capital for a bit.”
“Aw, but we didn't even play!”
“We'll come back. Don't worry.”
Caw?
It landed swiftly on the inn's roof.
Wait, doesn't a trip to the imperial capital mean at least three months?
Didn't that blond human leading the party's schedule know the sacred 3-3-3 rule?!
Three days max in Chabid, no less than three weeks in Rabes, and at least three months in the continent's greatest city, the imperial capital!
Even a crow like itself knew that famous common sense, yet the blond bastard ignored it flat out and was off somewhere again!
Familiar No. 8 rubbed its wing over its eyes.
Somehow, tears threatened to fall. It had thought they'd stay a while, so other familiars had gathered here too, working together underground on tasks for the master.
Haha-ho-ho, enjoying the familiars' social life...
Caaaaw......
Familiar No. 8 took off, as if there was nothing more to see.
No need to eavesdrop further on where those black- and gold-haired humans were headed.
Obviously a warp gate!
They had money to burn!
No need to follow—just a mighty flap of wings toward the gate district, where it waited in ambush ahead of time.
A competent familiar always stays one step ahead of the prey!
Lurking near the gate plaza in advance, Familiar No. 8 confirmed the black-haired monster's party entering the warp gate, then flattened itself atop a noblewoman's large hat slipping in right behind them.
* * *
“Is that bird you know by any chance?”
“Mercy me! What's this crow?”
A commotion from behind made me turn. A crow was flying off high.
Come to think of it, back on Earth, birds on hats used to be a fashion thing.
Guess people are the same everywhere?
“Ugh, smells fishy.”
“Fresh air, right?”
I laughed, watching Rachel wrinkle her nose in an unfamiliar expression as I rubbed my own.
“Now then, young master. What first?”
“Find lodging, grab some food, collect a bit of info. Then rent a ship or something.”
As I scanned the surroundings to answer Luna, Rachel's face lit up beside me.
“A ship?”
“A ship.”
“Ship! A big ship!”
She threw her hands up in delight, just like a kid.
Now that I thought about it, Rachel had been stuck in the borderlands Gabioren the whole time.
I glanced at Kane, Luna, Zero, and Leaf's faces one by one. Everyone except one looked expectant.
“Jeez. Fine, we'll charter a really big one.”
I'd planned to borrow a small warship from Arman for stealthy cruising...
But I couldn't let down faces that eager.
“By the way, junior, have you ever been on a ship in your life?”
Zero asked Rachel with an innocent smile. As a dragon, was he provoking her—surely she'd ridden one in her long years?
With that gentle face?
Of course, knowing Zero's personality, it was genuine curiosity, so Rachel answered nonchalantly.
“You think reading about riding a ship a hundred times in a book counts? Or watching a play with a ship on stage?”
Fair enough. For a dragon, leisure was like a midday dream.
When Rachel was playing human, memories from other "playtimes" were just knowledge from unrelated paths.
Zero nodded as if he got it, then huddled close to Luna, whispering something.
“Then I'll scout lodging, young master.”
“Huh?”
Before I could respond, Luna smiled brightly and headed off with Leaf.
“This isn't the capital, so I told Luna-senpai to look around freely. I'll check out good restaurants.”
Zero bowed politely and left.
Suddenly, I was left standing there with just the scatterbrain Kane and Rachel.
“Whew. Heavy responsibility on us, huh?”
Rachel slung her arm over my dazed shoulder in camaraderie. I shrugged it off, jostling her arm away as I replied.
“What responsibility?”
“Aiku,” she whined obnoxiously, flailing like her arm had fallen off, then started counting on her fingers.
“Luna and Leaf: lodging. Zero: restaurant. So us?”
“Info guild?”
“…Unbelievable.”
I answered calmly, and she pouted.
“Kane, you tell him.”
“Confirm sea monsters.”
“Wow. You're just as bad as me!”
What, like you're any better?
Truth was, I knew exactly what Rachel meant.
Just didn't feel like playing nice.
“Scouting fun spots isn't a bad idea either.”
“Exactly!”
She beamed at my words. Kane eyed me like he'd caught on.
I mouthed 'shh,' and he smirked.
Kane gets it quick.
Rachel was 100% thinking bars, gambling dens, or wager duel clubs.
'There have to be archipelagoes out there somewhere.'
I organized what we'd gain from this southern sea voyage in my head as we walked.
“Anyway, not the imperial capital anymore. Wanna spill it now?”
“Spill what?”
“You called her a healer or something. There's a priestess here?”
The seaside sure had plenty of seafood.
Kane, Rachel, and I strolled with butter-grilled octopus leg skewers in hand. As I chomped away, I answered her question.
“Unlike some people, she's brimming with maternal warmth—like a loving mother, mature, kind, and grown-up. A perfect candidate for our party.”
I grinned at Kane.
That stoic, rigid guy who cared for nothing but battle could use a warm older sister type.
Classic cliché, right?
The wounded lone wolf protagonist embraced by a heroine's compassion and understanding.
In the original story, our healer had rippling water-blue hair, slightly drooping eyes, and a beauty mark—an elegant noblewoman vibe.
Of course, away from water, she'd conserve power and turn into an innocent little queen oblivious to the world.
'Though she hated every human except Kane, that was the issue...'
Gardia at least got off with ignored words. Better to meet before it escalates this time.
“Old hag, huh?”
I stared incredulously at Rachel, hands clasped behind her head, munching her butter octopus skewer as she walked.
“Who said 'old hag'?”
“Me.”
Technically, you're the oldest?
“How about a quick stop there?”
Our bickering paused at Kane's words. I turned to see an adventurer's request board in view.
Not great for high-end info, but unbeatable for local scraps.
'Gotta raise Piyan more. Need eyes and ears across the continent.'
Make him loyal enough no betrayal, share Siren's eavesdropping tricks, and info woes would be history.
For now, no choice.
“Yeah. Like Kane says, pop in, skim the requests, and bounce.”
“True, requests alone give a sense of local buzz. Ah, but I wanna drink.”
I promised fancy booze at Zero's restaurant later and headed in.
“Lemme see...”
I told them to grab anything interesting, then scanned the board myself.
One worn request sheet caught my eye, stuck crookedly at the bottom corner, half-hidden—forgot to peel it properly?
I pulled it out: an investigation of an island with nonstop storms.
'But it's probably canceled by now.'
The Storm Orb would be with the evil god cult.
Still, I took it to the counter to check.
“Huh? Oh dear. Sorry, I thought we'd cleared the old ones. This here's canceled. Heh.”
The crocodile-folk man grinned wide. I tamped down my arrogance and asked.
“Someone solved it first?”
“Ayy, sir. Nah. Storms just stopped one day.”
...Failed, then.
He bowed low, rubbing his scaly hands with a rasp, even to my casual question. I backed off casually.
Knew the gist—no need to draw eyes.
“Snagged a few interesting ones.”
“Same.”
Kane and Rachel approached, whispering they'd got some too. I nodded, and we left the request hall.
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