Chapter 53: The Reincarnator’s Woes
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 53: The Reincarnator’s Woes
“What did you say...!?”
“I’m sorry, Sion. The Guild suddenly called for me while you were out. It looks like I have to leave the city for a bit.”
After finishing her hangover-relieving soup, Lady Leah returned to her lodgings, and Yuria began preparing to head out as well.
She mentioned it was a top-secret mission that would keep her outside the city for several days.
From the looks of it, something had happened, and she was being sent to handle the aftermath.
“Outside the city? So suddenly?”
“Yeah. It seems some suspicious characters entered the city recently. Apparently, there was a commotion in the slums yesterday because of it. Following the trail, it looks like some outside forces are involved... You get the gist, right?”
“Ah... right.”
Yuria spoke evasively.
She was probably going to kill someone.
Whether it was assassination or torture, I didn't know exactly what her task entailed, but it wasn't something I could dare to stop.
Yuria was the Guild’s sword.
Her mother was the Guild Master, after all.
Yuria herself was deeply entangled with the Guild, and since the Adventurer’s Guild was a core institution of the Labyrinth City, it was involved in all sorts of incidents.
Naturally, Yuria was in a position where she had no choice but to step up whenever trouble brewed in the city.
Even if I didn't want to let her go, I currently had neither the strength nor the justification to hold her back.
The Guild didn't belong to the Guild Master alone.
The Guild Master was simply the person who represented and managed the Adventurer’s Guild.
No matter how much influence Moira wielded, she couldn't pick a fight with the city’s entire leadership.
Still.
Even knowing all this, I found myself cautiously acting a bit spoiled.
“I guess I can’t come with you?”
“Hehe. You want to be with me. I’m sorry, though. I have to move fast. Please look after the house with Olivia until I get back.”
Yuria, who had been packing her things while still nursing a hangover, dropped her bags and gave me a tight hug when I complained.
“Have a safe trip. You have to be careful.”
“I will. Sorry for leaving so suddenly. Just wait a little while. I’ll be back before you know it.”
Yuria gave me a light peck on the cheek and hurried away.
I wondered what exactly had happened.
The fact that she didn't tell me probably meant there was a good reason for the secrecy.
Since she mentioned outside forces, I suspected it might be related to the recent kidnappings in the slums.
I decided not to dig too deep.
There are some types of information that put your life at risk just by knowing them.
I just needed to stay here and guard the house with Olivia until Yuria returned.
Since my training would start tomorrow, time would pass quickly.
“U-Um... Has Lady Yuria left...?”
“Yeah. She just took off.”
“Aha...”
The moment she realized Yuria was gone, Olivia stuck herself right to my side.
“F-Finally... it’s just... the two of us...”
“Hey, Olivia. Hold on. What are you doing?”
“N-No. Don’t push me away... Just stay still...”
Olivia hugged me from behind and refused to let go.
She even buried her nose in my back and took a deep breath.
“Sniff... Haa... I feel safe... Um... Sion... I mean, Master.”
“Yeah...?”
“Please... don’t make me sleep alone... I feel... anxious sleeping by myself... Just while Yuria is away... can’t you sleep with me...?”
I already had to sleep with someone anyway because of those earthbound spirits called Roahs or whatever.
For me, this was a good thing.
I was actually going to ask Olivia to sleep in the same room, so I was glad she brought it up first.
“Okay, I get it, so let go for now. I have to clear the table.”
“Okay... I’ll help you...”
“No, just sit on the sofa. I’ll take care of it.”
I felt like things would just get messier if I let her help.
Since she couldn't see, it was difficult to assign her tasks.
“U-Um...”
“Yeah. What is it?”
“Can we... talk about Earth...?”
“If it’s just the two of us, sure.”
“Yes... Hehehe... I really wanted to talk about Earth... There’s no one else to talk to... It’s been so hard being alone...”
I was living a semi-successful life in the Labyrinth City.
Thanks to my ability, the Subspace Pocket, I didn't have to worry about money, and it seemed my luck with women had finally opened up, as I’d been surrounded by them lately.
However, Olivia’s case was different from mine.
She said she was born in a small minority village in the south and fled to the Labyrinth City as soon as she became an adult.
The phrase 'fled' already reeked of severe hardship.
There was no such thing as individual freedom in a small, isolated village.
In a communal society, individual personality and freedom always take a backseat.
Furthermore, if women's rights were non-existent, she was likely raised as just another cog in the community's machine from the moment she was born.
She said the graffiti-like tattoos and mysterious characters etched into her body were also put there against her will.
How much must it have hurt?
It was likely a form of ritual mutilation.
“I tried... so hard not to forget. Information about this world, my family... the dog I used to raise... I tried so hard to remember everything.”
How did she end up falling into this world?
Olivia’s voice trembled violently.
“But I’ve forgotten almost all of it. Their faces. Their voices. I can’t remember a single thing.”
“Olivia.”
“What should I do? The information about the Labyrinth... is my last weapon. I can’t ever forget it. I memorized it to death. But I can’t remember my parents’ faces at all.”
I walked over to her and patted her back.
Overwhelmed by sorrow, Olivia leaned into me and cried for a long time.
My chest grew damp. It was soaked through with her tears and snot.
“I-I’m sorry...”
“It’s okay. It happens.”
“Thank you... You’re so kind...”
“We’re from the same hometown, after all.”
Olivia seemed to like the phrase 'from the same hometown,' as she leaned into me again.
And she cried some more.
There probably weren't many situations where she could pour out her inner thoughts and just weep.
Since her reincarnation into this world, she must have lived constantly walking on eggshells around others.
So, I just let her cry.
I used to cry a lot by myself on the streets in the beginning, too.
I had no money, I couldn't fight, and I couldn't even read the language of this world.
Until I obtained the Subspace Pocket, I couldn't even buy a single piece of bread whenever I wanted.
“I’m so glad... that I met... a fellow Earthling... I’m so glad there’s someone who understands everything I say...”
Computers, air conditioners, airplanes, cell phones, mobile games, NPCs, and so on.
Countless words that didn't exist in this world.
I was the only person who could understand those things without any issue.
The first person she could truly call a comrade since her reincarnation.
Now that such a person had appeared, she seemed to want to lean on me in every way possible.
“Please... don’t throw me away... I’ll do... whatever you want. So please don’t discard me as useless... I’ll memorize the Labyrinth info with my life. I’ll remember it all... please...”
“...”
Olivia was begging me not to discard her even if her usefulness ran out.
Even while she was forgetting her parents' faces, she had tried to remember information about the Labyrinth by any means necessary.
When I first found her at the slave market, she had been half-insane, reciting the Labyrinth walkthrough over and over.
She knew that one day, it would surely be useful.
In fact, before she became a slave, she had tried to use that information to make a name for herself.
“I understand, Olivia. I won’t throw you away.”
“R-Really...? Promise... make a promise with me...”
“A pinky promise?”
“Yes... a pinky promise...”
I hooked my pinky with Olivia’s and made the promise.
That I wouldn't discard her.
‘As long as you don’t cause trouble.’
There was still a lot of information I hadn't heard yet.
Also, if another Great Cataclysm ever occurred—that is, if the Labyrinth was updated—I would need someone to provide information.
“Thank you... for promising...”
“It’s nothing.”
As I stroked her back, Olivia leaned even deeper into my embrace.
“I want to... I want to get even closer...”
“We’re already pretty close, aren't we?”
“No... not just... physical distance... I want to... have a more intimate relationship with Master...”
“An intimate relationship?”
“Yes... so you won’t just suddenly leave me... please take me in more...”
“Are you afraid I’ll leave you behind?”
“I’m scared... the Labyrinth is... dangerous... Even with the information I give you... it’s still dangerous...”
She was right. The Labyrinth was dangerous.
No matter how much information Olivia gave me, I was the one who ultimately had to act on it.
I never knew when I might die.
That was why Olivia was saying she wanted to get closer now.
“What should we do to get closer?”
“That would be... like this...”
Perhaps because she couldn't see and misjudged the position, Olivia kissed me right next to my lips.
“W-Was that... not the lips...?”
“Yeah. It was a bit to the side.”
“Ah... Ahh... A-Again...”
She aimed for my lips and tried to kiss me once more.
“Wait... that’s not it either...”
“That was my nose.”
“O-One more time...”
Finally, with great difficulty, Olivia managed to press her lips against mine.
“Was that... a success...?”
“Yeah. That was a success.”
“Did... did this... make us a bit closer...?”
“Well. I guess it feels a little closer?”
“I’m so glad...”
Olivia’s actions couldn't be dismissed as simple love.
This was also her own survival strategy.
I was Olivia’s current master.
From her perspective, I was a fellow Earthling who didn't treat her poorly.
If I abandoned her, she had no idea where she would end up.
That was why she was acting out this 'love' right now.
Actually, whether it was an act or not didn't really matter.
Either way, the fact remained that she had to stay in my good graces.
Well, whether it was real or fake love wasn't the important part.
What truly mattered was whether I was satisfied with Olivia’s behavior.
‘Satisfied. Very satisfied.’
Olivia was cuter than I expected.
To think that the best thing her brain could come up with to please me was a simple kiss.
Should I call it a maidenly thought?
She didn't throw her body at me or beg me to take her; she just thought we had become closer simply by touching lips, and she was blushing because of it. It was amusing.
“I have to go out for training starting tomorrow, too. You’ll be spending a lot of time at home alone.”
“Yes...”
“I’ll prepare meals in advance before I leave. Make sure you eat, even if you’re by yourself.”
“Okay...! Thank you for looking after me...”
I planned to head to the Martial Arts Hall starting tomorrow morning.
After getting some exercise, I’d go to the Black Market in the afternoon to look into the Roahs.
I also planned to borrow and read Monster Dismantling Savoring, which was said to be in the library.
‘I’ve heard about monsters from Olivia, but it’s still better to look into them separately.’
I had to prepare as much as possible before the subjugation campaign began.
I’d also have to proceed with the Young Lady’s party and the Upper Levels raid.
So for now, I should enjoy today’s rest to the fullest.
Because starting tomorrow, I’d be busy again.