Chapter 57
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 57
Chapter Title: A Casual Outing
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Golden hair brushed against a pure white dress. Rireu’s blonde locks fluttered in the cool afternoon breeze. Pollen drifted from somewhere, tickling the tip of my nose.
The September here was cool and refreshing, unlike the September I knew back in Korea. The faint scent of dry logs permeated the streets, likely due to the many wooden buildings.
For a while, Rireu and I went around asking passersby if there were any decent restaurants nearby.
Most people recommended a flour noodle shop run by a dwarf. They said it was spicy yet refreshing, something to try before the weather got any colder.
“…Not a fan.”
Unsurprisingly, I had no desire to go to the noodle shop that so many people recommended.
The reason, of course, was that so many people recommended it.
“…So it’s bread and coffee in the end.”
“What can I do? I don’t like popular places.”
“Then why did you even bother asking around?”
“You told me to, Rireu.”
In the end, we entered a cafe for bread and coffee, just like always. To me, a Korean, bread and coffee felt more like a dessert than a meal, but in this world based on medieval Europe, it was considered a perfectly hearty meal.
“I didn’t see any instrument shops nearby.”
“I’ve already found a place. We have to go through an alley, but it’s not too far.”
“You didn’t look up a place for us to eat, but you found an instrument shop in advance?”
Rireu stopped sipping her coffee and shot a sharp glare at me.
What on earth did I do to deserve this?
“Well… yeah.”
As if I had nothing more to say, I quietly lifted my cup. Instead of coffee, it held warm black tea.
Black tea contained caffeine, but… compared to coffee, it wasn’t enough to make me worry about going into shock, so I could hold it in my mouth and enjoy its aroma at ease.
Through the cafe window, horses and carriages passed by. Merchants with loads of goods on their backs walked past, and young children ran somewhere, laughing.
Birds I didn't recognize landed on the ground, only to fly away at the sound of the children's footsteps. A gust of wind blew by, gently lifting the veil of a passing woman.
The tea was warm, and the day was peaceful.
It was a good day. I felt like I could compose a decent melody if I had a score and a pen.
“Check, please.”
I handed the owner a gold coin I had brought and was about to get up. The owner broke into a cold sweat upon seeing me offer a gold coin when we had only ordered two pieces of bread, a coffee, and a tea.
“…Sir, I’m sorry, but I don’t have enough change.”
“Ah.”
Naturally, in this era, a gold coin was a high-value currency. A simple piece of bread or a cup of coffee cost about 1 penny… and since 100 pennies made 1 copper, 100 coppers made 1 silver, and 100 silvers made 1 gold…
Me handing a gold coin to the shop owner was as insane as buying a single Americano at a local cafe and paying with a ten-thousand-dollar check.
If this were the modern world, the owner would have looked at me as if to say, ‘…Is this guy nuts?’, but the medieval shop owner seemed slightly intimidated instead.
After all, those wealthy enough to carry gold coins in this era were likely nobles.
“My apologies, my lady.”
But the owner, already looking scared, turned to Rireu and apologized.
“…?”
Well, on second thought, it wasn’t that strange. I was wearing plain clothes, whereas Rireu was in a dress, her face exuding an air of nobility that even a hat couldn't hide.
The owner probably thought I was her servant.
Now that I think about it, that’s a bit offensive.
“Keep the change.”
I stared directly into the eyes of the shop owner who judged people by their appearance and slammed the gold coin down on the table with a *thud*!
…Actually, it didn’t make a ‘thud!’ sound. At best, it was a ‘clink’? No, maybe a ‘tap.’
Then, without giving the owner a chance to apologize, I bolted out of the shop.
I’ll punish you with money, you ignorant medieval man…!
“Hey, are you just leaving?”
“Yes!”
Rireu belatedly followed me as I stormed out the door.
“I brought some pennies with me. You could have just let me pay.”
“It’s fine. I said I’d treat you.”
“…Well, if you say so. The shop owner just hit an unexpected jackpot.”
Should I start dressing up from now on, even if it’s a hassle? Between the incident with Count Guiner last time and now this, living in medieval times in ordinary clothes seemed more difficult than I had expected.
I pushed the unpleasant feeling aside and walked through the alleys. The sunlight was partially blocked by the three-story buildings rising on either side.
As we entered a dark alley, Rireu leaned slightly closer to me. I could barely support my own body, so I couldn't understand why she was doing this and turned my head toward her.
“There are robbers following us. Why did you have to go and show off your money in such a weird place… Huh?!”
Rireu’s face was much closer than I had anticipated. It seemed she had been trying to whisper to me, but because I had turned my head at the wrong moment, our eyes met at that close distance.
*Crack!*
A slender finger struck my back with surprising force. My spine momentarily arched like a bow.
Usually, when someone hits your back with their palm, it makes a slapping sound, but with my body being nothing but skin and bones, it made the sound of hard bones colliding.
“Wh-Why did you suddenly turn your head!”
Is this elf insane?
She was the one who leaned in, so why was she getting angry at me?
I placed a hand on my aching back and glared at Rireu. Rireu, too, quickly realized her mistake and apologized in a small voice.
“Well, anyway! Robbers are following us.”
Rireu took a step or two back as she made her excuse.
“How do you know they’re robbers? Maybe our paths just happen to overlap. Aren’t you being a little self-conscious?”
“Because I can hear the sound of daggers.”
“Ah.”
…What kind of era is the medieval period, really?
This wasn’t some remote countryside; it was the capital of the Allied Nations. For robbers to immediately tail us just because I flashed a gold coin or two… do they not have police in this era?
“Is it because of my clothes?”
Usually, someone who would pull a gold coin from their pocket would likely have a reputable noble family backing them.
And common thugs wouldn't dare try to rob the children of such noble families. They were always with escorts, and even if none were visible, a guard might be hidden nearby. Even if they were truly alone, the consequences would be unbearable.
However, my current attire was clearly that of a commoner, and while Rireu was wearing a dress, it had no fancy decorations. In fact, where ornaments should have been, there were clumsy mending marks.
From a medieval perspective, perhaps it was my fault for jingling a gold coin while dressed so plainly.
Stab a kid with no apparent backing, and gold coins will rain down? I can’t pass that up!
…This world is insane. Truly insane.
“Rireu, you handle it.”
“Me again? I did the work at the pizza bread shop last time, too.”
“I bought you a meal.”
“Hey, that’s different.”
Rireu and I spoke quietly so the rats tailing us wouldn’t hear.
“It’s your turn to do some work, Bin.”
The only magic I had was Blooming, and the only skill to supplement my basic attacks was ‘Red Crystal.’
I obviously couldn’t use Blooming… and if I fired Red Crystal carelessly here, it might pierce through the chests of the robbers behind us, blast through the cafe wall, and singe the hair of the chef kneading dough in the kitchen.
Dajin… was naturally not an option. That guy might use the excuse of catching robbers to wreak havoc on the capital.
And wasn't it strange to summon a transcendent being close to a god just to chase away some robbers?
Unless I wanted to burn down the entire town, not just the house, to catch a flea, it was better not to even think about calling Dajin.
“Ah, whatever. If you won’t do it, Rireu, I’ll just let them stab me.”
“…Now you’re just being stubborn.”
We continued our conversation as we entered a secluded alley. It wasn’t specifically to lure them into an attack; this was simply the fastest way to the instrument shop.
“Hey.”
A clichéd, uninspired medieval threat blocked our path, as if on cue.
“Hand over the woman and the money, and get lost. If not, you can leave your life behind, too.”
The sun was beginning to set, and the silver blade the robber drew was stained crimson by the light.
I knew it was foolish to expect creativity from thugs who robbed kids not even twenty years old, but weren't their lines a bit too stale?
“What kind of brat carries gold coins? Son of some successful merchant? Business must be booming, huh?”
“The girl next to him is a top-quality prize, too. Boss, can I play with her first before we sell her?”
“Ugh…”
Is there a school for robbers somewhere I don’t know about? Why do all these low-life thugs spew the same lines?
Rireu and I sighed almost in unison as we looked at the men blocking our path from the front and back.
Rireu’s expression at that moment was quite impressive. Seeing her face, filled with pure disgust and annoyance, sent a chill down my own spine.
It was probably because she was irritated by the way those thugs were looking at her and treating her like an object, calling her a ‘top-quality prize.’
Looks like she’ll take care of this herself, even if I don’t ask her to.
“Don’t kill them. If there’s a body, we’ll have to call the guards, get investigated… it’ll just make things complicated. Let’s just enjoy our day off for once, alright?”
“I know.”
Her expression said otherwise…
“Boss, what are these two whispering about?”
“Kill us? How absurd. I may be old and not what I used to be, but in my day, I was a renowned adventurer. Ever heard of me? Axe-Hand…”
*Zap!*
A flash of white light descended upon the dim alley for a brief moment.
Electricity spread from beneath Rireu’s feet, pierced through their shoes, traveled up their peripheral nerves, and burned out the nervous systems of the robbers surrounding us.
The smell of something burning filled the air.
Faint sparks of lightning crackled where the white flash had passed.
“…Oh.”
I let out a low sound of admiration as I watched the flash Rireu had created.
Something… something was different from the lightning she usually summoned.
Not only had the speed at which she converted her mana into lightning increased, but the way it spread through the air had noticeably diminished, and its purity had risen.
I wasn’t in a position to teach or praise anyone, but… I could feel on my skin that Rireu’s skill had improved to a level incomparable to what I had seen in the dungeon just a few days ago.
“You’ve gotten a bit better, haven’t you?”
“…Is it that obvious?”
I could feel an overall improvement in her level. I suggested that she might have even risen a circle, but she just laughed, told me not to tease her, and patted my back.
*Crack!*
…My back arched like a bow again.
This is definitely going to leave a handprint.
“A 5th-Circle at twenty-one would make me the youngest lightning mage, even including humans.”
Rireu brushed off my words with a pleasant laugh.
At that moment, neither of us imagined that today would be the day the name of the youngest 5th-Circle mage in the school of lightning would change.