The Path of the Journey
The bustling metropolis of Rahera, one of the stopover points on the way to the Arhen Empire.
This place was a nearby trading city very close to the capital at the center of Orwen.
Because of that, the crowds of people were constantly bustling without end.
Merchants and adventurers from various places came in droves, looking for high-quality equipment, potions of intermediate tier or higher, and such.
While strolling through this noisy place, Free, who had decided to buy the minimum daily necessities Aina would need during the journey, went around purchasing them together.
“Did you buy everything?”
“Yeah.”
After purchasing the minimum items, he was about to leave this place immediately.
“Free, wait a second.”
However, on the way to the carriage boarding area, Aina suddenly grabbed Free's collar from behind a couple of times.
“?”
“That.”
“Skewers?”
What Aina was pointing at was none other than a skewer shop.
There were not only seasoned grilled ones, but also salt-grilled, and soy sauce-grilled with seasoning.
Seeing those being grilled to a golden brown on the iron plate.
Aina couldn't take her eyes off them, drooling at the corner of her mouth.
“……”
'Now that I think about it, Aina must have a pretty good appetite...'
She was drooling that much. It was a side of her that I hadn't seen before.
“Okay. Since we have time, shall we stop by and eat for a bit?”
“Yeah.”
Being pulled along by Aina's collar-grabbing prompt, his steps naturally turned toward the skewer shop.
“Welcome! What would you like?”
The bald, handsome shop owner had said it with a bright smile.
But the long vertical scar on his face around the eyes was visible...
It seemed like he had a past of doing rough work. Maybe a former adventurer or something.
“What will you eat?”
Upon Free's question, Aina immediately pointed with her eyes and fingers.
“That, that, that.”
“……It seems like she wants to eat all kinds.”
“Yeah.”
“……”
'No choice.'
Thinking that, he looked at the shop owner.
“Shop owner. As the guy next to me said, give me one of each kind.”
“Oh! Thank you! What a handsome couple!”
“……”
Listening to the shop owner's overly flattering remark, Free received the skewers that were sizzling and golden brown on the iron plate.
And he quietly handed one of them to Aina, who was following the movement of the skewers with her gaze.
But instead of immediately taking it, Aina rummaged through one of her pockets as if something had occurred to her.
“……? What are you doing?”
“This.”
Shhh.
What was handed to him was none other than the money for her own share of the skewers.
The problem was that it was a gold coin, not a copper or silver coin.
“It seems like the amount is too much for just the cost of a skewer.”
“It's okay. I have a lot of money.”
“……”
'I guess her sense of money has gone off. Well, that's why she can hand over those magic books so casually to others.'
This was seen as Aina's only flaw.
“……Done. Keep it. I don't plan to take it back by pretending.”
“It's not like that. When a man and a woman are together, the man usually handles the calculation. So this is just giving you the money in advance for what you'll pay while you're with Free.”
“……Where did you hear that?”
“From my mom.”
“Your mother?”
“Yeah.”
“……Okay. If that's the case, I'll accept it.”
“Yeah.”
Eventually, receiving a gold coin from Aina, he handed over one of the skewers he was holding.
She took it, stared at it fixedly in front of her eyes for a moment, then...
Chomp...!
Slurp slurp.
She bit off one of the skewers that had several in her mouth and started chewing it in her mouth.
Gluck.
“It's delicious…!”
Since it suited her taste well, her eyes sparkled, and she started biting into the next one and the one after that.
While watching Aina like that, Free couldn't help but let out a soft laugh.
Free also bit into one of the skewers he was holding.
Slurp slurp.
And, the taste was so good that it was enough to fully understand why Aina had reacted that way earlier.
In short, it was a feast.
***
Seeing Aina, who had eaten most of the skewers she was holding happily in one go, ...
Free couldn't help but admire it inwardly.
Slurp slurp.
After eating the last remaining skewer, Aina walked beside Free and stared at the empty skewer in her hand.
“Why are you doing that?”
“This, what should I do?”
“……”
How had he lived his usual daily life?
He said it with a sigh.
“Give it here. I'll take care of it.”
“Yeah. Thank you.”
“……”
She always said thank you when receiving help without forgetting.
This is well-educated...
Free saw the empty skewers in Aina's hand and noticed a public trash can on the side of the road at the corner of the street, and walked over to it.
And when he had thrown all the trash into the trash can.
“Aah…!!”
“Can't you be quiet!?”
He accidentally witnessed someone being pursued in the alley corner.
“……”
“Why are you doing that? Free?”
Aina, who had suddenly appeared behind his back, tilted her head and asked.
But Free's attention was already focused on the figures inside the alley.
“Wait a second, Aina. Wait here.”
“? Okay.”
Feeling uneasy, but Aina followed obediently.
Free entered the alley.
Then, he saw a scene where a boy in dirty clothes, wearing a torn rag, was being held by one arm by some thugs and being forcibly taken somewhere.
“This guy! If I beat him more, will he learn his lesson!? Come along quietly!”
“Ugh…! Let go!!”
“This guy is still like that!”
“……”
After the conversation, Free approached the two figures who were leading the way in the brawl.
Dark alley.
'I never thought such things still happened in a metropolis like this.'
Free sighed lightly and said quietly behind the back of the thug.
“Stop. Let the child go.”
“…!”
“Who are you?”
The thug, who had his back to Free, turned his body and head with a whoosh!
Then, behind the turned thug, what was revealed was another third party hidden in the darkness.
Behind the young boy in ragged clothes, a girl who looked younger than the boy, dressed the same, was trembling in fear. Unable to say anything.
“……”
“Hey! Who are you? I can't hear you!?”
The burly thug with a threatening appearance shouted at Free.
However,
Free's gaze was on the wrist of the young boy who was still being forcibly held and trying to escape.
Upon closer look, there were numerous sharp bruises as if beaten by the thug.
“I told you to let go, right?”
“Hah! What an unbelievable little brat…”
The burly man let out a sigh as if amazed and said with a sly smile on his lips.
“I'll close my eyes this one time, so stop pretending to be a righteous knight and go your way quietly. If not…”
Free no longer tried to talk.
He entered the physical confrontation.
Slippery…!
“Eek?”
The thug suddenly slipped on the ground and fell.
Clang-!
Since it was a narrow alley, his head hit the wall briefly and fell.
Free's No-Chant magic,
Friction Decline (Friction Decline = Friction Decrease)
had activated again after a long time.
A dense blue magic circle with a small star shape had appeared in one of his eyes.
This kind of magic was used to quickly subdue opponents or ordinary people who were being careless.
“Grr…! M-Mage? You! You brat…! Do you know who I am!”
Although his head had bumped a bit, it wasn't a big shock, so he pushed himself up from the ground and said, but blood was flowing from the head that hit the wall.
The magic had disappeared.
It was deliberately stopped and erased by Free in the middle.
“Get out before you see a more dangerous sight. I don't know what you're up to, but it looks like you've been beating that young boy unilaterally. Even in Orwen, such things would definitely be subject to imperial law.”
Free had learned that the thug was a mage, but seeing him regain his momentum as if he had some backing, he gave a final warning in a low voice.
Then, seeing Free's appearance that didn't show any fear at all, the thug, guessing that there might be something Free believed in, couldn't hide his panic and stepped back a bit, then turned around and ran away.
“Hey, you! Just you wait!”
Exactly the same repertoire that didn't exceed expectations.
“I said I'll wait and see, and no one has waited to see yet…. Well, it doesn't matter.”
One person.
A fleeting memory of Alkas in the past flashed by, but soon Free turned his gaze to the remaining children.
Then, seeing the girl trembling in fear without lowering her guard, and the boy behind her, he paused for a moment and asked.
“Are you okay?”
“……”
Even after being saved, she reacted like that.
How much rough treatment had she endured until now? Thinking that, Free turned around and said.
“My help ends here. You can go your own way now.”
“……”
Free said that and slowly walked toward Aina, who had been quietly watching from outside the alley.
After a few steps.
“T-Thank you……”
“……”
In the voice of the injured boy who had gathered courage belatedly to express gratitude, Free did not stop walking, just waved his hand a few times so they could see it, and then completely left the place.
When he came out of the alley.
“Good work.”
Aina, who had a faint smile on her lips, with her hands clasped behind her back, holding a bag from the shop here, greeted him happily.
“……Let's get going.”
“Yeah.”
Behind Free's back as he headed to the carriage location.
Aina with long sky-blue hair followed quietly behind his back with her hands still clasped, without saying a word.
Seeing him trying not to show this incident, Aina had a soft smile on her lips as if she had come to like the human Free a little more.