Chapter 54
Chapter 54
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 54
Chapter Title: Sodomora's Morning Star Hassan #5
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The scroll Luna handed me was made from lambskin that had been beaten paper-thin with a mallet—a rather antique-looking item.
Rolled up tight and sealed with a wax stamp that even carried a faint fragrance, it was clearly a document of high class.
These kinds of scrolls were typically handled by the government offices of this world. Like the city hall, or that shitty slave management office—places like that.
A scroll issued from one of those spots meant it contained some pretty important information.
“What’s this?”
“Open it up and see.”
Luna spoke in a voice so flat it could almost feel cold. Her usual high energy made even this calm tone come off as somehow sharp.
A scroll from Luna, handed right to me. What could it be? No way it was marriage registration papers or something?
Harboring those thoughts, I tore off the seal with trembling hands, unrolled it, and quickly scanned the contents scribbled inside like wriggling worms.
『Rights to the land and building in Sodomora West Gate Street 5 district are hereby transferred to Luna Noxdoty, Bronze Tier adventurer of the Mars Guild. (Seal of the Sodomora Mayor.)』
“Oh, what’s this?”
“It’s the deed! Impressive, right? Now I’ve got my own hideout!”
Luna bounced up and down like she was genuinely thrilled. I was pretty shocked myself—and happy for her. I wasn’t sure exactly what it meant, but talk of buildings and land had to mean Luna was now a landlord, right?
Sure, she already owned plenty of land back home, but that was the kind of stuff she couldn’t sell. Still, landing a building and plot smack in the middle of the city? That was huge.
“Wow, that’s amazing. What’s the story here?”
“Let’s go check it out!”
With that, we left the guild and hit the streets.
Luna’s pace was so quick that even I struggled to keep up. Well, her agility stat was something like three times mine.
Anyway, we set out from the central district and ended up near Sodomora’s west gate. A slum crawling with all sorts of lowlifes and shady vagrants.
I’d wandered this west gate area plenty while picking up odd jobs, so the layout felt familiar now as I scanned it while walking.
Swoosh, swoosh.
Suspicious little shits peeking out from alley corners—thugs? Thieves? Pickpockets?—eyed Luna as we went, until we arrived...
“This is that place. The horse stable.”
It was the same rundown stable Luna and I had used back when we were carving those Moai totems like mad.
You could call it a collapsing wooden shed, but no fancy name like “building” was ever sticking to it.
“Right! This was the only spot I could afford. Bought it at a premium, though. Used every last coin I had.”
“How much?”
“Three gold! I did borrow two of it... They said there wouldn’t be anything else available right now, so I snapped it up.”
Luna mumbled a bit more, but honestly, none of it really sank in.
Shit, three gold? I couldn’t even wrap my head around that. Three gold was three hundred silver. Three hundred silver... even grabbing a bowl of gukbap for three copper was a fortune I couldn’t calculate.
Looks like Luna had more cash than I’d figured.
But seriously, dropping that much on this dump? What for? Oil under the ground or something? I had to ask.
“So, what’re you planning to do with it?”
“I’m setting up a workshop, remember? Gonna make booze and potions and all sorts of stuff here!”
“Ah.”
Right, yeah—back when she hit Bronze Tier, we’d talked about her getting a loan to open one. I’d figured that was way off in the future, so I just let it slide. Guess Luna moved faster than I thought.
Come to think of it, Luna always showed crazy initiative in the oddest ways. Was it just natural for a soft girl like her to toughen up to survive a sleazy city like Sodomora?
“But there’s a ton to prep. Gotta fix up the outside. And stock the inside with everything...”
“Just the land?”
“Yeah, pretty much. Still cool, though, right? This is my property! Let’s head in!”
Clank, clank—she undid the rusty chains and lock, then stepped into the dust-choked wooden shed.
“This spot’s got good vibes. I’ve had my eye on it for a while.”
Good vibes?
I hadn’t paid much attention to the surroundings when we were making those Moai statues. But now that I had a chance to look closely, I started noticing all the details.
The whole hut was about the size of a decent one-room. Throw in a bed, a wardrobe, and a desk, and you’d be lucky to have any space left.
Not sure if it was enough for a lone girl to run a workshop. And man, it was way too beat-up.
Cobwebs hanging everywhere, filthy straw scattered around, animal hairs rolling about—you’d need a solid two days of cleaning to scrape off the grime.
“Whoa, w-wolf spider! Shh!”
That’s when Luna, peering into a corner, bolted over and flipped something with both hands.
Whoosh—a massive critter startled and bolted. It came hopping my way, and I legit jumped a full meter.
“Sh-shit!”
It was a spider. Fuck, a hand-sized spider. Tarantula?
Hairy as hell, all rainbow colors—looked dangerous at a glance. I hated the thought of it even touching me. Like I said before, bees are fine, but spiders? No way. Spiders are fucking terrifying.
“C-catch it before it escapes! Hassan!”
“Hieeek!”
Luna was darting around trying to grab the thing, but I just prayed it vanished from my sight. Finally, she used her nimble speed to smack it down with her palm.
She lifted its front legs and held it out toward me with a grin.
“Wow, it’s huge. Never seen a wolf spider this big before. We’re lucky!”
Woof, woof woof!
“Wait, why’s the spider barking?”
“It’s a wolf spider. You’ve never seen one? They’re valuable as alchemy ingredients. Sell as pets for about twenty copper too. Cute, right? No venom, super docile. Just skittish.”
Grrr, woof woof, grrr woof woof!
Shit, docile my ass. That thing looked like a predator dying to sink its fangs into my neck. Nature’s assassin, straight up.
Rainbow colors with no poison? Sounds like bullshit. Anyway, Luna spun the hand-sized spider around, poked its belly with her fingers, and said,
“Wow, it’s a female! Gotta raise her right. In you go...”
She opened an old jar in the corner, herded the spider inside, and sealed the lid. Only then could I finally let out a sigh of relief.
“Shit, that was fucking scary.”
“You hate spiders, Hassan?”
“Fucking terrifying.”
“Spiders are cute. Anyway, chairs and desk over here, furnace in that corner, big pot and supplies there—should come together nice, yeah?”
Luna pointed around the hut, laying out her plans. To me, it was just a rundown shack, but to her, it looked like the launchpad for her big dreams.
I couldn’t really picture what was in her head, so I just nodded along.
“So, you’re ditching adventuring now?”
“Nah, no income for a while yet. And I’ll need to gather materials myself sometimes. Uh, so... Hassan...”
She hesitated like she had something big to say.
“What.”
“F-for the time being... party with me...”
“Nope.”
Her face, full of expectation, crumpled into this heartbreaking pout. Her big eyes looked ready to well up with tears.
“Kidding. Party up for now? Hell yeah, works for me.”
Luna was this enigmatic force in my life. Sticking with her longer could only benefit me.
Plus, she was growing fast right now. Might even outpace me soon and turn into the group’s bus driver.
Even without that, hanging with Luna just felt good these days.
“Hassan, f-for real? You’ll party with me?”
“Yeah. But got a question.”
“Huh? Something about me you’re curious about?”
“Uh, so... what are we? Doesn’t feel like just party members.”
Luna’s face flushed red, and she clamped her mouth shut like she wasn’t saying a word. A heavy silence filled the cramped hut, making it feel massive.
Luna broke it first.
“What do you want us to be, Hassan...? What do you want me to be to you...?”
“Uh, g-girlfriend?”
It was the bravest moment of my life.
With a track record of nothing but preemptive rejections before even confessing, this had to count as my first real one.
Heart pounding like crazy, I stared at Luna.
She was so embarrassed she couldn’t respond, head down, staring at her feet. Her toes wiggled cutely between her sandals.
“H-Hassan... I-I’ve got a confession...”
“...A confession?”
My heart plummeted at the word.
Anything but a straight yes or no meant something off was coming—and those were usually code for “no.”
“...What’re you confessing?”
Still, clinging to faint hope, I asked gently. Luna kept her head bowed, mumbling and hesitating forever.
“Spit it out. I won’t get mad.”
“That night on watch duty... I prayed to the Mother of the Night, Lady Nox...”
“...”
This felt like the continuation of that story she’d kept trying to tell but always got interrupted on. No distractions now—just the two of us in this tiny space.
All I could do was stare tensely at her lips.
“Lady Nox answered my prayer for the first time in my life. Or... maybe it was a hallucination. Felt like a half-dream while dozing...”
She trailed off again.
“What? Come on, keep going.”
“She said... my husband has to be a great male god or no one could handle me. At least a hero who’s fulfilled their Karma...”
Felt like a hammer to the back of my skull.
Luna didn’t seem to know Nox was her mom. But I’d kinda met her once, so I knew the truth.
In other words, Nox—the potential girlfriend for her daughter Luna, who didn’t know better—was her mom. And that mom didn’t approve of me.
Because...
I was miles from any great male god or hero.
Just irregular illegal resident Hassan!!
Was this what parental opposition felt like? Kinda different vibe, but nothing else fit.
Still, Nox had blessed me before. Didn’t she like me?
I said to Luna,
“But yesterday, we were together. Purity vow or not...”
Like a drowning ant flailing for anything to grab, I racked my brain for an out.
Luna replied,
“...She only permitted that one day.”
“For real.”
That’s when I got why they say people collapse from the knees.
The strings holding my puppet body up snapped, and I crumpled straight to the floor.
“...So you’re gonna marry someone else someday?”
Luna shook her head at my question.
“...I don’t want anyone but you, Hassan. Never even thought about it.”
Her words flooded strength back into my body. No time to sit here.
“So, how do you become one of those heroes?”
They hand out certificates or something? Shit, probably not.
And so time passed.
The next day.
What I heard from Hippolytē at the training grounds was a real shock.
“There’s a license for it.”