On the Road
Most players who enjoyed Silia Online hated escort quests.
For one thing, they took way too long.
Depending on the request, they could last anywhere from half a day to several days, leaving you tethered in place with nothing to do. Unless you had the patience of a saint, boredom was inevitable.
Then there was the reward problem.
That, too, varied from quest to quest. Some paid generously, but in others it was more profitable to spend the time killing one more monster than to bother with the escort at all.
This was especially true for the quests low-level players received.
There were plenty of other reasons players avoided escort jobs, but…
For most people, the biggest issue was time.
With only slight differences, time in the world of Silia flowed almost exactly the same as time in reality.
In other words, if you accepted an escort quest and spent several hours guarding someone, you had to burn nearly that much real time as well. And people who only got to enjoy games for a short while after work, just before bed, didn’t exactly have that kind of leisure to spare.
There was even a post like that.
Anyway, for all those reasons, escort quests were usually handled not by players but by the NPCs of Silia.
And Journey was no exception.
For someone like her, who wandered about so often she looked as if she’d been born under the curse of the road, escort quests were practically the same as being shackled at the ankle.
And yet Journey had accepted one anyway.
The reason she could make that decision was simple: she was a streamer.
She wasn’t a dedicated game streamer, but because she could make a living by turning on the camera and playing games, she didn’t feel the pressure of time the way other people did.
Well, that only works when you’re big enough….
Journey knew very well that smaller streamers—“small-fry” streamers, in the crude internet slang—often couldn’t survive on broadcasting alone and had to juggle another job on the side.
“It’s not like anything would change just because I took the request.”
Canaria wasn’t a player, but an NPC.
So as long as she was traveling with Canaria, Journey would have to spend the time anyway.
“I can hear Canaria’s opinion, and I can get the quest rewards. That’s what they call a win-win, right?”
“It’s not a bus, it’s more like a parasite, isn’t it? Pff—ah, sorry.”
“...Could you hold back just a little?”
I really thought I was going to die.
Journey muttered weakly as she recalled the past.
...Though “the past” was only yesterday.
People who had rushed over saying they wanted to see Canaria in person, as if this were some idol fan meeting.
And then that weird rumor spread that if you beat me in a fight, Canaria would give you a souvenir….
When one fight ended, another began; when that one ended, yet another followed.
Thinking of Canaria, who hadn’t stopped them at all but had actually encouraged them, Journey felt wronged—but what upset her the most was something else entirely.
“Why don’t I get a present too…! I wanted a gift from Canaria too!”
Journey made a dramatic show of sniffling and pretending to sob.
But the chat’s reaction was icy.
Journey was currently the only person who could travel with Canaria.
She didn’t get gifts like the ones given to those who beat her in battle, but in return she could do something they couldn’t even dream of.
For example….
“Canaria.”
“?”
Snuggle.
Like hugging her like this.
Journey wrapped her arms tight around Canaria, who was seated beside her in the carriage.
“....”
She’d pulled her hood low enough that no expression should have been visible, and yet Journey had the clear feeling she knew exactly what kind of face Canaria was making under it.
After the brief healing session ended and Journey let go, Canaria moved to a corner farther away from her.
As if that made any difference in a carriage.
Journey, looking at her like someone watching a small animal, stuck out her tongue.
“Hehe. Jealous?”
The viewers sent a roaring wave of support in response to Journey’s blatant gloating.
As the arsonist herself pretended not to see the chat blazing away, only the poor managers were left to suffer.
The mercenary riding in the same carriage laughed warmly and spoke to Journey.
“You two seem very close. Are you sisters?”
“That’s right. Not by blood, though.”
“How lovely.”
“Hehe, thank you.”
Journey answered the mercenary’s words with a shameless lie.
But no one in the carriage could expose her.
“This is the first time I’ve seen an Apostle who gets along so well with a Silian.”
“Is that so? Oh, and you can just call me Journey.”
“May I?”
“Of course.”
“Then I’ll call you Ms. Journey. My name is Catherine.”
“You really can just call me Journey….”
Catherine smiled softly.
“How could I do that to someone chosen by Lady Edel?”
“Ahaha….”
At Catherine’s gentle refusal, Journey scratched her head awkwardly.
Catherine’s attitude was no different from the way many NPCs treated players.
It was the reverence they showed toward Edel’s Apostles.
There were some NPCs who treated players in a relatively calm way, but even when speaking with them, you could still feel that they respected players more than they did their fellow NPCs.
To the people of Silia, Edel must mean that much.
Since she had even descended into the lower world in person, it made sense—but as a player, it wasn’t a particularly tangible idea for Journey.
She changed the subject.
“By the way… what rank are you?”
“I’m a Silver-rank mercenary. What about you, Journey?”
“I’m Gold-rank.”
“Wow, you seem younger than me, and you’re already Gold-rank….”
As expected of someone chosen by Lady Edel.
Or perhaps:
As expected of an Apostle.
Journey didn’t have trouble guessing the meaning hidden beneath Catherine’s admiration.
Though the truly exceptional one is sitting right beside me.
Her eyes flicked toward Canaria for an instant, then returned to Catherine.
Being praised while the real prodigy sat right next to her made Journey’s insides itch.
Catherine lowered her voice.
“I was worried because we had so few escorts, but I’m glad you’re here, Journey.”
“Ah, ah, ahaha….”
At Catherine’s relieved words, Journey—who was really just another bus passenger in the same car—smiled awkwardly once more.
* * *
Clatter, clatter.
The carriage carrying the group rolled along a rutted dirt road.
Now and then a wheel caught on a raised patch of earth, and the carriage lurched hard, making everyone inside cry out in pain.
“Ow… my butt hurts like hell…. We can lower pain sensitivity in battle, so why the hell doesn’t that apply here?”
Of course, that included Journey, who was sitting beside me.
If it didn’t, I wouldn’t even be calling them “everyone.”
Watching the passengers bounce every time the carriage jolted, I was suddenly reminded of a memory from my past life.
There had been some amusement ride like that, I thought. Round-shaped, shaking wildly….
I bit my lip at the memory, which kept teasing me just out of reach, then gave up and let it go.
“Is Canaria okay?”
As I gathered my thoughts, Journey turned to me and asked worriedly.
At that very moment, the carriage hit something unpleasant and gave a violent jolt.
Journey’s body shot upward with it and slammed straight into the ceiling.
Bang!
“Ah!”
“A-are you all right?”
“Ugh…. Y-yeah, I’m fine…!”
Her tongue still seemed to be intact; the words that slipped out of Journey’s mouth were soaked in pain, but at least they didn’t come out slurred.
Rubbing the head that had just shaken hands with the carriage ceiling in a very noisy way, Journey let out a small gasp.
“Canaria’s fine. How?”
“…?”
Had she lost the ability to speak because of the collision?
I clicked my tongue, and Journey hurriedly waved her hands.
“N-no… the carriage is moving, right? But Canaria’s fine. How?”
Oh. So it wasn’t that her language capacity had broken; she just couldn’t find the right words.
Still odd, but now I understood what she meant.
She was amazed that I stayed glued to my seat without wobbling even while the carriage bounced around.
But even if I told her, she wouldn’t be able to copy it.
“You just need to use mana.”
“Mana? How?”
“....”
And if I explained it, would she even understand?
I looked at her silently to convey exactly that meaning.
If the greatsword chick were a student with both excellent curiosity and talent, Journey was a student with neither.
Of course, that was true for combat, not language.
At any rate, as my analysis predicted, Journey lost interest almost immediately.
Then, instead, she scooted closer and pressed herself right against my side.
“...What are you doing?”
“If I stay like this, I’ll be fine too.”
Ignoring my incredulous stare, Journey even hooked her arm through the crook of mine and linked our arms together.
...Honestly, I had no words.
“This will fix it—whoa!?”
Clatter!
Journey’s backside flew upward, hovered in midair for a moment, then dropped again.
“Why isn’t it working…?”
...Because why would it?
My arm wasn’t a seat belt.
“Ah.”
When I sighed and pulled my arm free, Journey made a disappointed noise.
“Seems like my little sister is shy.”
“That’s right! She’s so introverted it took forever for us to get close. Sigh… what can you do? It’s a crime to be the first one who fell in love… no, wait, that’s not what I meant! Are you two going to keep twisting it like that?”
They seemed to be talking about something very bad.
Watching them suspiciously, I suddenly felt a presence and looked straight ahead.
The two of them, still chattering excitedly, hadn’t noticed yet, but it should be happening any second now….
“Huh?”
“Hm?”
Just as I expected, the carriage came to a stop.
The two women, looking blankly at each other, quickly opened the carriage door and rushed out at the sound of shouting.
“Monster! We’re under attack, under attack!”
“All units, prepare for battle!”
As the mercenaries in the other carriages spilled out as well, the peaceful mood shattered in an instant.
Kwaaaak—!
A scream like a pig being slaughtered rang out from all around.
“Well, looks like we don’t have to worry about dinner tonight.”
“Uuugh…! Please don’t say things like that….”
As I got out of the carriage at an unhurried pace and muttered to myself, Journey, who had drawn her sword and tensed up, gagged.
Funny how she’d eaten it up so readily when she didn’t know what it was. It really did feel like she’d improved.
“Are you going to help?”
At Journey’s whispered question, I tilted my head.
“A little.”
I had ridden along, so I’d do my share. But I had no intention of going beyond that.
More importantly, my goal of making Journey stronger was still alive and well, wasn’t it?
People only grow stronger when they’re tested.
What, wasn’t there even a saying about how the ground hardens after the rain?
Maybe this was the perfect chance for her to experience firsthand why the sages of old had said that.