Chapter 13
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 13
Chapter Title: A Bitter Taste
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The job Ban had brought was an extension of the goblin village cleanup.
Not as dangerous as before, but far more stomach-churning.
It was retrieving the victims' corpses and bringing them back.
We had burned the goblins' huts and totem last time, but we hadn't cleaned up the scattered bodies littering the place.
"Are we supposed to deliver these to their families?"
As I fought back nausea while sorting through the mangled corpses and bones, Ban shot back as if I'd said something absurd.
"These? To their families? Have you no heart?"
"Uh...?"
"It's better not to show them remains like this. Our job is to collect them respectfully so they aren't further desecrated, then have the Adventurer's Guild cremate or bury them."
Ban scolded me seriously while gloved hands gathered the bodies.
Maggots writhed in swarms, and flies along with all sorts of insects buzzed around.
I understood what he meant by preventing further desecration, whether I wanted to or not.
"...So what do we tell their families?"
"That's the guild's job—they find the families and deliver the news."
Ban sighed and came over to check the corpses I'd collected.
"Hey, you gotta shake off the bugs properly."
"Got it..."
"Ellie."
"Yeah?"
I tilted my head as I replied, and Ban fell silent for a moment before speaking.
"Why do you think I'm looking out for you like this?"
Ban murmured while inspecting a severed finger from who-knows-where.
The question came out of nowhere, but his tone wasn't as light as usual, so I knew I had to choose my words carefully.
"...Come to think of it, you've been kind to me, but you've only talked about the bad stuff."
For instance, when I went down into that pit to rip off the goblin's nose, he'd made that veiled threat he didn't have to.
He'd told me tons of stories about adventurers, and they were all negative.
"Do you want me to quit being an adventurer?"
"...That's your call. I'm not some hotshot who can tell others what to do."
But—Ban continued.
"It's just... it's a shame to see a kid your age jumping into a job where you scrape by day-to-day, not knowing when you might die."
As expected, Ban didn't seem to like the adventurer life much.
Even though it was his own profession.
"Now that you mention it, that was weird from the start. Waving me over when it was obvious I couldn't fight, then asking if I could."
It had been odd the moment he said that, looking at my build.
I'd thought maybe his eyesight was bad, or he had no prejudices.
He must've called me over because I looked young and was claiming to be an adventurer.
"But Ban, isn't it a bit much to say you're just worried about me?"
"...What."
"You dragged in a clueless kid adventurer and used her as goblin bait in that village subjugation that nearly got her killed. On an 8:2 split, no less."
Separate from Ban not being a bad guy, it made his earnest words a little hard to take seriously.
"...I told you, I'm no hotshot, so I can't boss you around about your choices. Yeah, I brought up the goblin subjugation, but honestly, I thought you'd get scared and run."
Ban looked so embarrassed that I unwittingly clicked my tongue.
"You thought I'd get scared just from hearing about goblins?"
"Yeah..."
"Why?"
"'Cause that's what I did."
"Coward."
It was hard to picture Ban—nearly 190cm of muscle—being scared.
Maybe sensing my doubt, Ban mumbled in a timid voice that didn't match his bulk.
"Well, I was young back then."
"How young?"
"Not long after I became an adventurer, so almost ten years ago."
He'd said he was mid-20s now, so mid-teens back then.
No wonder he'd been scared of fighting monsters.
Anyway.
"Stop dragging it out and just say what you want. The buildup's too long."
"Is it?"
I had no idea what he was getting at with all this stalling, but whatever it was, it'd probably fall flat, so I nodded. Ban glanced at me and blurted it out bluntly.
"You've got no talent. If you wanna live a while longer, quit being an adventurer."
"You can spot talent, huh?"
"I lack it myself, so I know it when I see it in others."
No talent, huh.
I got what he meant.
"You're regretting it, Ban."
"Always have. But it's too late to switch careers—adventuring's all I know now."
Ban shrugged, and I shot him a glare.
He'd started adventuring ten years ago.
And after ten years, Ban was still bronze rank.
I'd heard adventurers needed silver rank to be taken seriously.
If that was true, Ban hadn't advanced at all in a decade.
The reason was obvious. No talent.
He'd despaired over it and stagnated.
He hated himself for it, so he was projecting onto me, urging me to quit.
For my sake? Or his?
I wasn't sure, but my answer was set.
"I won't regret it. I know I've got no talent, but I like being an adventurer."
"Alright then."
I'd covered my slum origins with the adventurer label.
That alone was reason enough not to quit.
"Fine, I won't say more."
Ban sighed, a mix of relief and regret, then went back to sorting corpses.
"If you spot any ID tags or personal effects they had when alive, set 'em aside."
"Sure."
There was no way we could show these bodies to families.
We'd have to clean their belongings and return those instead.
"...Almost done."
"Nine victims—worse than I thought."
Five women's heads impaled on the totem, three men's rolling around—that made eight, but a skull in the corner brought it to nine.
"We should've subjugated them sooner."
"No use saying that now. Let's bag 'em up, one per sack."
"Sure..."
Before bagging them, Ban and I offered a brief moment of silence for the dead.
I didn't know to do it, but he insisted.
I'd thought in this medieval world, human lives were worth less than bugs.
But the treatment of the dead was better than I'd expected.
"Let's go."
"Sure..."
We returned with Ban, shouldering bags of corpses.
After a simple funeral, my pay was one silver coin.
Since it was cleanup, not fighting goblins, the reward wasn't as big as before.
I parted ways with Ban and headed back to the inn.
Practiced swordplay for about two hours, bathed, and slept.
Next day, my body ached all over, but I woke on time.
Blisters on my soles, toenails blackened—they'd fall off soon enough.
I'd pushed too hard lately; my condition was shot.
But I couldn't rest.
So instead of the guild, I trained swordplay for nine hours straight.
That was my whole day.
The next day came.
I went to the guild and took a light request.
Rat-catching in that basement warehouse from before, and now the follow-up: cleaning it out.
With the rats gone, they wanted it cleaned. The pay was decent—two silver coins—so I couldn't refuse.
They confidently lent me cleaning tools when I said I'd handle it.
It was huge, attached to a mansion, but after two sleepless nights of grueling work, I finished.
Back at the inn, I slept and woke to find the day gone.
Dazed, but with a day lost, I couldn't just sit—too good an opportunity. Straight to the guild.
Ban greeted me, said he had a subjugation quest and would be away a bit. Wish him luck, I waved.
No idea why he told me, but whatever.
The gruff guy who'd lent me gold and the rude woman who'd called me brash were with him.
Guild would be quiet for a while, I thought, and took a herb-gathering quest up the mountain.
Filled a bag and got 50 copper coins.
Four days passed; Ban didn't return.
He really had gone far.
I was getting used to adventurer life.
No one approached me first like Ban, with my gloomy vibe.
No annoyances, but it felt a little lonely.
I'd been nonstop on requests, so money wasn't an issue. Today, sword training only.
Three more days went by.
The gruff man returned alone, missing an arm.
What happened was obvious.
I overheard his report.
Monster subjugation succeeded, but bandits ambushed on the way back. Ban and Chesher were killed.
It didn't make me sob, but it left a bitter taste in my mouth.