Chapter 8: The Road to Hus
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 8: The Road to Hus
According to the driver, it should take about three days to reach Hus.
She told me that while traveling from other regions to Lukart might be difficult, going the opposite way was no trouble at all.
Apparently, right after the war, there were female bandit gangs roaming the roads. However, after an incident where a man was gang-raped and murdered, the government went on a scorched-earth campaign to wipe them out. Now, bandits are as rare as tigers or bears.
In fact, she said I’d have a better chance of running into an actual tiger or bear.
“Hus is a truly wonderful place.”
I was sitting next to the driver, listening to her brag about Hus.
The inside of the carriage was plush and comfortable, but I was bored. Having nothing to do made me restless before we had even gone very far.
Whether it was in the army or Mirei’s party, I had spent every waking moment working, aside from maybe thirty minutes of rest.
I need to get used to this gradually. My body is far too accustomed to labor.
Right!
I’ve been thinking about which city to settle in once I get to Hus and what I should do for a living.
I think I’ll stay in a few different cities for a couple of months each and then pick the one I like best. If possible, I’d like a place with decent infrastructure.
I want to get some psychological counseling.
For the past five years, I chose the extremes of dungeon cities and adventurer parties to manage the violence in my heart, but now I want to enjoy the post-war peace.
I deserve that much, don’t I?
Besides, I’ve never spent a single cent of the subsidies issued in my name on myself.
Ah, speaking of money makes me think of that loan again.
When I was in Lukart, I tried not to let it bother me, telling myself it couldn’t be helped. But now that a new life is beginning, it feels like a lingering ghost of the past holding me back.
Because of that debt, I had to reveal that I was a National Merit Recipient just to prove my identity and track record.
Seeing the people at the Lukart Adventurer Guild change their attitude toward me just because of that one title made me feel hollow. I wondered if I should have just revealed it from the start.
“People from out of town call it the countryside, but it’s the kingdom’s largest granary! The population of the entire Hus region is over 20,000, and there are 800 men! If you look at it city by city, Dakuren City alone has over 80 men. Ah, but since you’re a man, you probably don’t care much about the number of men, right? There are about 4,000 women per city? Sorry, since I’m a woman, I don’t pay much attention to the number of women, so I don’t know the exact figures.”
“That’s more than I expected. I’m surprised.”
Lukart is a prosperous city, but typically, dungeon cities develop only in the immediate vicinity of the dungeon itself.
The territory is small, but the internal development is dense. Consequently, the population is less than a thousand.
Of course, the terrifying thing about that population is that every single person—except for the men—is a combatant.
“Of course! Excluding the capital, it’s probably the most developed place. Well, except for tourist cities like Harbel. On top of that, the food tastes amazing. Ugh, I don’t know how they have the nerve to charge money for what they call ‘food’ in Lukart. I was shocked. Thinking about how much I struggled to find a restaurant run by someone from Hus even there… ugh!”
The driver was excited.
I wasn’t sure if she was happy just to have someone to talk to, or if she liked that her conversation partner was a man—even an ugly one—or if she was just thinking about the fat commission she’d get for transporting me.
As for me, it had been so long since someone had talked to me with a smile that I was simply in high spirits.
“And the men there are so handsome! I’ve only ever seen men as good-looking as our Hus men in Lukart… Ack!”
Perhaps she got too excited.
In the middle of her passionate speech, she realized her mistake and quickly shut her mouth.
Right. They might treat me better here than in Lukart, but it’s only relative.
No matter where I go, I have to be prepared for how I’ll be treated because of my appearance. I’ll have to work that much harder to be accepted as a member of the community where I settle.
Humans are social animals; you can’t live entirely alone.
Do you know who said that?
Don’t be shocked. It was Vanguardier Dakuren, one of the heroes who defeated the Demon King.
It was a memory that only came back to me after we set off for Hus.
Marquis Dakuren. He was the Great Lord of Hus.
I heard that Count Dakuus is the Great Lord now, but that’s probably because Marquis Dakuren fell in the Final War along with his successor.
I heard he had a young daughter he doted on, but he didn’t want her to be dragged through the filth of politics and the battlefield, so he didn’t give her any education in those areas at all.
Yes, I hate thinking about the war, but if there was one proud moment for someone like me, it was being alongside various heroes, including the Hero’s party.
Thinking of Marquis Dakuren made Hus feel even more familiar, and I felt more at ease.
“It’s okay. I’m well aware of what I look like.”
“I-I’m sorry. I overstepped…”
“No, it’s fine. Still, I’m a man with a pretty good personality, you know?”
“You certainly seem like it!”
She’s a cheerful woman. She reminds me of Diane.
A ranger whose strengths were her honesty and the fact that she didn’t get discouraged easily. She was the only party member who spoke to me energetically.
The problem was that later on, those conversations mostly turned into her asking for money.
“What about your husband back home? I assume he’s more handsome than me?”
Since I’d been slighted, I threw out a difficult question with a bit of mischief.
Arasen flinched and scratched her cheek awkwardly.
“He is handsome. Hehe…”
Then, glancing at me, she added sheepishly, “He’s not exactly my husband yet… but he is my boyfriend.”
“If he’s your boyfriend, when are you getting married?”
Bringing up marriage to a woman with a boyfriend is a pretty good topic. It’s a roundabout way of complimenting her, saying she’s a good enough woman to marry.
However, Arasen’s expression darkened.
“Well… you need a lot of money to get married.”
“Money? How much?”
“A lot. A whole lot. That’s why I took the plunge, refurbished my carriage, and started this business with a fresh mindset.”
Arasen gave me a wide grin.
“And it turns out my very first customer is the gentleman sitting right next to me!”
“Wow, that’s impressive. A couple saving up together to refurbish a carriage.”
“Pardon…?”
Huh? What now? Why did her face sour again?
“You said you had a good personality, but you’re stabbing me right where it hurts. Is it because of what I said earlier?”
“No, no! I just assumed that since you’re in business together, your boyfriend would have invested as well…”
“I barely managed to get a loan for the money myself. What kind of man invests in a woman? In a world where women have to earn the money to provide for them.”
“Oh…”
Is that the kind of world it’s become? Are men really that precious?
Well, it’s not like that has anything to do with me anyway.
“What about you, sir? Were you good to your girlfriends?”
“I didn’t have any girlfriends. I had female business partners. I did invest in them using my subsidies.”
“My goodness. Are Lukart men really that sweet?”
“Haha… it was just… a business matter.”
“Still. If a woman asks a man to go into business, it’s because she has feelings for him. A Hus woman wouldn’t do that. How could you take money out of a man’s wallet? Especially from his subsidies. We take full responsibility for our men.”
She started badmouthing Lukart women, saying they were arrogant and that’s why adventurers there couldn’t get married and just lived promiscuous lives.
I don’t like badmouthing people, so I started to feel a bit uncomfortable.
“Ha! Wait, are you hitting on me right now?”
Now this is really uncomfortable.
“I can tell you’re a good person, but as you know, I already have a lover, and I’m really, really sorry, but you’re just not my type.”
Didn’t she just brag that a Hus woman would never refuse a man’s suggestion? Didn’t she say they should be grateful just for a man’s interest?
But I’m all too familiar with the fact that the rules change when that man is me.
“It’s not like that. I know my place, you know?”
“If you put it like that, what does that make me?”
She’s quite bold and shameless, isn’t she?
I guess anyone in business needs to be thick-skinned. I don’t think I could ever work in a field like this.
Hmm, maybe I really should go to a city with a dungeon. If all else fails, I can just go in and out of the dungeon alone for odd jobs.
“A rest stop!”
Arasen shouted, spotting a sign.
“Wow. Speed buffs really are something. We’re already halfway there. At this rate, we might reach Dakuren in two and a half days. There won’t be another rest stop for a while after this. Why don’t we grab a bite to eat?”
“Sounds good.”
The rest stop was quite large.
To think there are rest stops like this along the roads connecting cities. The world has really developed. During the war, you’d never see anything like this.
How do they even supply a rest stop in the middle of nowhere?
“Is this your first time at a rest stop? There’s a restaurant and an inn, so why not give them a try?”
“Let’s go to the restaurant. The sun is still up, so it’s better to keep moving after we eat.”
“I agree. Inns are too expensive.”
Exchanging small talk, we stood before the restaurant counter.
The female clerk at the register had a strange expression when she saw my face. It’s probably because I’m ugly.
“Would you like to… order?”
“Yes. Um… chicken soup and a turkey sandwich. What about you, Arasen?”
Arasen was the driver’s name.
“I’ll have a boiled potato. Two… no, just one.”
“Is that enough?”
“Rest stop food is expensive.”
“What?”
“Pardon?”
We both tilted our heads in confusion. Not understanding, I asked, “Go ahead and order. I’m paying.”
“What?!”
She looked incredibly shocked. Why? I was just buying her a meal as a gesture of goodwill since we’re traveling together.
“Order.”
“No, no, no, no! How could I possibly let a man and a customer…!”
“What does it matter? How are you going to drive the carriage until evening on a single potato? I couldn’t do it. It’s for our sake. Order. It’s fine.”
“But…”
“Seriously. Or should I just order for you?”
“Then… the same as you, please…”
Seeing someone who was so energetic suddenly become so hesitant made me wonder if I’d done something wrong. It’s just buying a meal; it shouldn’t be a big deal.
“They have drinks too. Two sodas, please.”
“That will be… 48,000 Dalk.”
Prices are definitely high.
Arasen wasn’t the only one acting strange. The woman at the counter also had wide eyes, looking back and forth between the two of us.
“Here you go.”
“Yes. Please take a seat and wait, we’ll bring it to you.”
I took the small wooden plaque with our order number and sat at a table.
I looked around to see how long the wait might be, and only then did I realize that every woman in the rest stop was staring at us.
“My god, a man is paying?”
“What is this? Are they on their way to Hus? Dakuren?”
“She’s a disgrace to all Hus women.”
There was unpleasant whispering.
However, the target of that whispering wasn’t me, but Arasen.
“Customer number two!”
“Yes!”
When our number was called, Arasen jumped up faster than me and brought over two trays of food.
“I could have gotten them.”
“No! You can’t, absolutely not.”
Feeling bad for making her carry two large trays by herself, I took a knife and cut the long turkey sandwich in half, starting with Arasen’s. Then I did the same for mine.
This made them a manageable size to hold and eat.
“Enjoy your meal.”
“…”
But this time, Arasen just stared blankly down at the cut sandwich.
“Arasen?”
“Yes? Yes! Ah… thank you for the food!”
Mmm, it’s good. I was starving, and for a rest stop in the middle of nowhere, the quality is decent.
Glancing sideways to see if she was eating well, I saw Arasen vigorously biting into her sandwich.
“A man is cutting her food for her…?”
“Who is that bitch? Did she save the country in a past life? Is she a veteran of the Final War…?”
“What a slut. She’s not even that pretty. Is it because the man is a bit below average?”
“Shh! Be careful! What if he hears you? And even if he’s not much to look at, if he treats me that well, I’d lick his ass and balls every night.”
“You crazy bitch, haha…!”
More unpleasant whispering from all around.
I guess because they’re provincial women, unlike those in the advanced city of Lukart, they’re incredibly narrow-minded.
If it’s going to be like this, I’m starting to wonder if Hus will really suit me.