Episode 2-b. For Freedom and Adventure (5): Kobolds
“So, what’s a kobold?”
“Pardon…? You don’t know what a kobold is, mage?”
To be honest, aside from wild beasts and imperls, I’d never actually seen one, so I had no clue.
“Yes.”
“But why’d you pick a kobold quest…?”
“… My companion wanted a kobold request.”
It was just that Eileen had gotten obsessed with kobolds and kept singing “Kobold~ Kobold~” in my ear, so I chose it.
“Ah, um… yeah. Sure, that makes sense. A kobold is, um… think of it as a wolf that walks on two legs! They’re wolf monsters with pretty high intelligence—they can even use armor and weapons like humans!”
“So they’re not dangerous?”
Just hearing about it, a wolf monster that could wield armor and weapons didn’t sound like beginner adventurer fodder.
“Uh, they are dangerous…? Not for high-rank adventurers, but for beginners, they’re risky enough that kobold extermination quests require parties of four or fewer. And honestly, I only know this from books—I’ve never actually hunted one myself!”
“… Hm.”
I nodded vaguely at the party leader’s words, then glanced around at the others crammed inside the carriage.
If her description was accurate, kobolds were fairly dangerous for novice adventurers. But looking at our so-called comrades assembled to take them down…
Well. Yeah.
The party leader, looking all innocent in her shabby gear. The creepy adventurer with the deranged face who’d been blushing and chattering nonstop at Eileen and the leader since we left. And the pint-sized guy in a robe—the terminal case of paranoia I’d called suspicious earlier.
Plus Eileen grinning away and me, the gray mage. Honestly, without me, this might’ve been their last day on earth. What a ragtag, pitiful bunch.
As I tilted my head in thought, the party leader’s voice piped up.
“S-So, shall we do introductions…? I’m Camilla, your party leader!”
“Yay~ Introductions! I’m Eileen!”
Eileen was the first to respond, beaming and waving her arms wildly.
“As expected, both ladies have names as beautiful as their looks. Ahem, I’m Hutson. I just registered as an adventurer, so my rank’s low, but my sword skills are already beyond mid-tier—don’t worry about me.”
Next came the weirdo adventurer, eyeing Eileen and Camilla with sticky, smug gazes.
“… I’m Carter. You’re next, robe guy who won’t take it off.”
The little paranoid guy, still busy suspecting me, finally gave his name while glaring.
I was so dumbfounded I just kept my mouth shut.
“Uh… um. Maybe stop with the suspicions—it’d be better for your health…”
“Eileen, shut it.”
“Yep!”
With Eileen clinging to me and muttering that nonsense, I let out a deep sigh and spoke.
“Asha.”
“Wow~ Pretty name!”
“Yes.”
The party leader fussed noisily, probably to lighten the awkward mood, and I gave a small nod before staring out the window.
It was my precious name. I’d never wanted to share it before, but after telling Eileen, I figured it was fine to just say it if asked. It was on my adventurer registration anyway.
The carriage rattled on, soon arriving near the farms. As we climbed out, a dirt-covered farmer came running from the small village.
“Aigoo, adventurers! Thank you so much for coming!”
He vented about how kobolds had settled nearby and kept raiding crops and tools.
“D-Don’t worry! We’ll wipe out every last kobold for you…!”
To my ears, the party leader’s bold promise to the villager sounded pretty shaky.
“Please! We’ll pay handsomely!”
“Y-Yes, leave it to us! Let’s head out right away!”
Still shaky. I had serious doubts this motley crew could pull off the quest.
“Wheee~ Off to see kobolds~”
“…”
And Eileen humming happily beside me like it was a picnic didn’t help.
As we trudged toward the hill beside the village where the kobolds supposedly lurked, I pondered.
Beginner adventurers. Beginner mages. Just how capable were they?
“Eileen.”
“Yes, Asha?”
“Was the spell I used before in the beginner mage range?”
“Uh… if you’re hoping for ‘these days, even beginners are better than that’…”
“…”
Point taken—it wasn’t beginner level. If I swept them all out alone, it’d cause problems, so I planned to hold back a bit.
And soon enough, we reached what looked like the kobold den.
The party leader turned to us to outline the plan, but…
“Uh… that must be the kobold den. So we’ll approach carefully and…”
“Beautiful lady, leave this to me! Damn kobolds! Taste Hutson’s blade!!”
“Ah, no…! What are you doing?!”
Yeah. We were screwed from the start.
Hutson charged the den yelling at the top of his lungs, no stealth whatsoever. Camilla panicked, screamed, and followed him in.
“… Aren’t you going to do anything, mage?”
Even amid the chaos, the remaining adventurer was still side-eyeing me suspiciously.
“Kyaaah!! Kobold, kobold!! It hurts, it hurts…! Stop hitting…!”
“Gah, you cowards…! If it was a fair one-on-one, you’d all be dead by my sword! This is cheating! Graaah!”
The two who’d rushed ahead were already getting pummeled by a pack of kobolds pouring from the den. At least they wore armor but no real weapons, so it wasn’t lethal—just bruises and screams.
And then.
“Even now, not using magic proves you’re… gah!”
Why wasn’t this guy helping them and just nagging me instead? Irritated, I kicked him hard in the ass, sending him flying forward.
“Agh! Ow…! So suspicious… ack! Ow! Stop, ugh!”
Ridiculously, he too flailed uselessly amid the kobolds, getting beaten.
Hm. Losers. That nasty word people tossed around fit these types perfectly. Of course, I kept it to myself—saying it out loud wouldn’t be nice.
Anyway.
“Uh… is this what adventurer fights look like?”
“Hardly. Just a gathering of trash.”
Amid it all, the kobolds were smarter than expected. Wolf-like faces showed no expressions, but they could mock with their unique howls.
Kerruk—kerruk—
The jeering cut through the screams as they stomped the trio with rhythmic kicks—almost artful now.
“Kyaaah! My precious shield…! M-Mage…! Help…!”
“Nngh…! Don’t worry, lady! Once I stand, these kobolds are done—one swing of my sword! Graaah!”
“Agh! Knew you were with the kobolds… guaaah!”
The kobolds tormenting the three soon turned to me. A few kerruk-kerruk-ing charged over, like kids spotting a new toy.
Even with some peeled off, the three were still just getting thrashed. Whatever.
“… Sigh.”
What a total clusterfuck.
I wondered if Ain had been this useless as a beginner. Curiosity flickered, but I couldn’t bear checking his traces for that. No way he’d been this pathetic. With a sigh, I extended my hand.
“Eileen, step back a bit.”
“Ah, okay…!”
I didn’t know beginner mage level, but surely I could handle these monsters. Murmuring softly,
“Freeze.”
Mana rippled, knocking off my robe’s hood and revealing my face. White snowflakes bloomed around me, drifting toward the foes.
The ice crystals settled on kobold snouts or armor with a soft sizzle.
“Ker… ruk…?”
By the time their jeers turned puzzled, it was too late.
Crack—
Crackling spread from contact points. The charging kobolds froze into ice statues.
Kiruk—kiruk—
Finally grasping it, the rest fled the encroaching chill—but the snowflakes on artificial winds outpaced their bounds.
They settled lightly, then crack—crackling— froze everything they touched.
“Hm, Eileen. Was that beginner-mage-like enough?”
“Huh? Asking if my ears are clogged? Could you repeat that?”
“… Think I could steam a mid-tier mage like this?”
“Ah, yes! Loud and clear! Any passing mid-tier mages would just take three slaps across the face without a peep!”
“…”
Eileen grinned wide at me. Guess even to her, it was overkill.
A little time later.
Having frozen every kobold solid, I approached the three who’d been beaten senseless.
“…”
“…”
“…”
They just stared blankly, so I looked down and said,
“Just quit adventuring, all three of you.”
At this rate, they’d turn up as corpses in a week. What kind of frozen hell was this adventuring?
They lay sprawled, gaping up at me for a while, and I stared back just as long.
Yeah. That was the gap between our levels.
And so the day ended.
My first adventurer quest—what to call it? Like watching a circus of people desperate to die.
Joking aside, without me, those three would’ve been goners. Precious lives lost to a mere beginner kobold quest.
“Couldn’t say it earlier, but… I don’t think I’m cut out for adventuring.”
“Knew that already.”
Eileen, having seen the spectacle, murmured as we walked from the guild.
“Hehe… Back when I first left the kingdom, I thought the world brimmed with romance, but it’s not as romantic as I figured.”
“…”
Romance. She always chased it, but I had no clue what it meant. Never had it in my life.
Even pondering her words, my past—shivering through cold, heat, snow, rain—had no room for such things. It just bounced right off.
Staring blankly at the darkening night sky, I thought.
If I had any romance, it’d only sprout meeting Ain again—growing huge as we journeyed together, returning to the empire brimming with happiness to spend our lives side by side. That’d be my romance.
And.
Eileen glanced at my dazed wandering and spoke carefully.
“Where to now, Asha? Inn?”
“No.”
One quest done didn’t finish what I wanted.
“Ah.”
“Gonna hit a tavern.”
Finishing quests, he’d always down a beer in one go. My feet carried me to the tavern familiar from visions.
Honestly.
I’d never drunk before, so I was a little worried, but.
Creeeak—
“Innkeeper, a beer please.”
“Coming right up~ Beer and basic snacks!”
I pushed through the door, plopped into his usual window seat, and gulped down the huge mug the owner brought.
Bitter, a bit nutty. Throat-burning, weird aftertaste mixed in.
I scrunched my face but, like Ain, didn’t stop—glug glug—draining it.
“Kuh…”
Like Ain, the sound slipped out naturally.
Silly, I thought, but it came unbidden.
And.
Thud—
I blacked out.
“Asha…? Asha… wake up…, Asha…!”
******** Huh?
“Asha! Asha, wake up…!”
No, Asha? Leaving me alone in the noisy tavern and just passing out—what am I supposed to do?
I thought that as I shook her hard, but Asha just mumbled something like “hmmph—” and face-planted on the table.
“Heh, one beer and she’s out? Weak to booze, your friend.”
The owner scratched his head at the thud of Asha collapsing.
“Asha! The inn’s so far…!”
“Ain… mmm…, Ain…”
“Ain this, Ain that…! Asha!!”
I screamed at Asha sleep-muttering that guy’s name.
And that night.
After paying the tab, I lugged her—bigger than me—back to the inn alone, ending up with muscle pain everywhere.
It hurt so bad I whined for her to heal it with magic, but.
“Healing muscle pain with magic stops muscle growth.”
“…”
Asha just spouted weirdness and scratched her head.
Come on, Asha. What’re you even saying? It’s your fault I’m sore all over!