Beyond the Horizon
Beyond the horizon, the sun rose brightly, chasing away the dawn's blue air. Like that newly risen sun, I etched today's goal into my mind: figure out exactly where we stood in the main story before leaving the capital. Was it before or after the academy arc? Before or after the adventure began? Or perhaps much earlier—or much later.
But I was the kind of person who'd skip thousands of lines of dialogue with a single button press. Honestly, I didn't have many clues to pinpoint the timeline. Still, I came up with a trick that should work in reality. First, check the appearances of NPCs I remembered from frequent shop visits. 'The weapon shop and the potion shop—those two are the ones that come to mind right away.'
For example, if Hansen's weapon shop owner had hair instead of being bald, or if the potion shop owner's age looked younger or older than I remembered, I could roughly gauge the time period. The problem was that even to check that much, I'd at least have to get near those stores.
"Uncle, can I go around by myself today?"
"What? No way. Do you know how big the capital is?"
My cautious question was met with the obvious refusal. I wouldn't have allowed it either, so the result was exactly what I'd expected. I let out a sulky voice and acted like I'd given up.
"Aww…"
Plan B, then—somehow steer Esmar toward the shops. Even without going inside, seeing through the glass windows would be enough. Hiding my scheming thoughts, I casually changed the subject.
"Can't we have breakfast at that restaurant from yesterday?"
"Ah, that place was pretty good, wasn't it?"
"Yeah!"
When I brought up the restaurant from last night and suggested breakfast, Esmar grinned like he'd known this was coming. The weapon shop was on the way there, so I thought he'd almost fallen for my ulterior motive—until he suddenly turned his head and continued.
"But we can't. That place doesn't open until afternoon."
His resigned words came back without a hint of malice—just the simple fact that it couldn't be helped.
'Ah, seriously.'
The three words slipped out in my head, tinged with irritation. Why couldn't anything ever go my way…? After leaving the inn, I trudged after Esmar with a sulky expression.
Esmar drove the carriage through the city streets from early morning.
"I'll take everything from here to there. Can you give me a discount?"
"For every three pieces, I'll knock off about five bronze coins."
Unlike in Windren, where he'd bought piles of weapons and armor, this time he was stocking up on meat and grain. Even though this was the royal capital, to him it was just another ordinary city for buying and selling goods.
Following his orders, the bright red meat began getting wrapped in broad leaves. "Here, take this inside."
"Okay."
Before I knew it, I'd become part of the business, loading goods into the carriage as instructed. The chunks of meat stacked neatly from the back, bound tightly in what looked like lotus leaves. There was a strange satisfaction in seeing everything packed so orderly. Maybe this was the joy of organizing things.
Anyway, once the endless wave of meat finally stopped, Esmar climbed onto the driver's seat, glanced inside the carriage, and let out a short sound of approval.
"Oh, you packed it pretty well."
"Heh."
His praise made me puff up with pride, my shoulders rising along with a satisfied breath. Now that we'd bought meat and grain, the next stop was probably…
I had a pretty good guess, so I asked, "Are we heading back to our village now?"
"That's the plan."
His straightforward answer made my heart sink. I hadn't obtained or discovered anything in the capital yet. Even if I put off getting items for later, I needed to know how the world was moving…
Completely oblivious to my thoughts, Esmar continued casually, "Since we're going straight back, we'll be out on the road for a while. Be ready for that."
"Um, actually…"
Watching the carriage head straight for the mercenary guild, I spoke up carefully. Ah, whatever. At this point, it was all or nothing. Even if we were leaving, I needed to know when I might die so I could at least prepare myself mentally. My voice trailed off, and Esmar responded.
"Hm?"
"Before we leave the capital, can we stop by just one more place?"
Esmar readily agreed to my forceful thirteen-year-old suggestion. The carriage changed direction and headed for Hansen's weapon shop.
Through the glass window, I saw the silhouette of someone with dark skin. Squinting from inside the carriage, I peered in. It was clearly the bald uncle who'd ruined the protagonist's first experience in the game. But my eyes widened at the sight of him not being bald yet.
Hair. Hansen still had hair! That meant the protagonist's story probably hadn't even started. It was still too early to judge based on just one NPC, but hair that didn't exist before wouldn't suddenly grow back… A wave of hope surged in my chest—I might actually be able to prepare for something.
In that moment of indescribable emotion, a mocking voice drifted from the front of the carriage.
"What, so you really were interested."
"Ah, haha… yeah."
I hid my smile at Esmar's teasing tone and just nodded awkwardly. He probably never imagined my gaze had been fixed not on the weapons, but on the black man who was destined to go bald.
I hadn't found any special items this time, but I'd gained something far more valuable—information. Leaving the capital behind, we picked up two escort mercenaries from the guild and passed through the checkpoint. The carriage left the paved roads and began rolling over grass and dirt paths.
'We're already heading back.'
While reflecting on everything I'd gained these past few days, I also felt a lingering regret. For some reason, I was reluctant to return to Pardin Village. I rested my chin on my knees, elbows propped up, looking bored. At the same time, the carriage jolted as its wheels hit gravel.
Carriages weren't suited for steep inclines or declines, especially ones with cargo beds like this. So even roads that could be traveled in a straight line had to be taken in winding detours across flat land. If we had more horses, we might've been able to push through, but…
From watching Esmar these past few days, I'd learned a merchant's motto: minimum investment, maximum profit. With just one horse, Esmar was somehow managing to pull a loaded carriage and continue his trading journey.
'…Stingy.'
The word slipped out in my head, completely sincere. Even from a gamer's perspective that pursued extreme efficiency, Esmar's frugality was something else. At least he always hired escorts—that part had been annoying in the game, but now I saw it as a desperate struggle to stay alive in reality while chasing maximum efficiency. If he'd tried to save even on escort fees and traveled with just the carriage and horse, that would've been beyond reckless… it would've been suicidal. Basically advertising to bandits: "Please kill me."
While feeling the gap between game and reality and mulling over these thoughts, I suddenly spotted a figure in the distance ahead of the carriage.
'Huh?'
Stretching my neck, I saw someone standing right in the carriage's path. A person standing alone in the middle of a forest path? Even as the carriage approached, they didn't move and just stood there stubbornly. As we got closer, a woman I didn't recognize slowly walked toward us.
The moment Esmar stopped the carriage, both mercenaries' gazes locked onto her. The red-haired woman with a somewhat vacant expression approached the carriage with a bright smile.
"Ah, I'm sorry! I got lost. Would it be okay if I rode with you? I have money…"
"…Get on. We'll probably pass through Windren on the way."
Esmar pointed toward the inside of the carriage with his thumb while keeping the rest of his fist clenched. Color returned to her vacant-looking face, and with the sound of wooden planks creaking under her feet, the woman climbed aboard. Naturally, she sat down next to me and flashed me a bright smile.
"Hehe, hello?"
"Ah, hello…"
At her friendly greeting and waving hand, I gave a slight bow. The moment she entered the carriage, the atmosphere inside grew noticeably livelier. She asked where the carriage was headed, how old I was, and so on—each question brimming with curiosity that seemed to belong to her alone.
After befriending the mercenaries as well, she turned her questions to me.
"My name's Brenda. What's yours?"
"Shen."
"Hee, short and cute name."
The woman who introduced herself as Brenda smiled with her eyes, calling my short name cute. While turning my gaze away in embarrassment, I frowned slightly at the strangely familiar name and tried to remember.
'Wait, Brenda?'
It sounded like I'd heard it somewhere before. While I was staring into space, trying to recall it, an incident occurred that brought the faint memory into sharp focus.
"Ghk…"
A short, pained cry from one of the mercenaries. A small dagger clutched in Brenda's hand had slipped between the gaps in his armor and sunk deep inside.