The Saintess's Check (2)
The elf girl, stung by my sharp words, slumped like a deflated teddy bear and shuffled off somewhere.
“Pfft! With an attitude like that, no wonder her comrades give her the cold shoulder?”
“Oh, Kate, that's going a bit far, even if it's true. Hehehe.”
I had no idea what they'd overheard, but the beastkin archer and the red-haired mage exchanged petty jabs while snickering to themselves.
Hah, listen to them talking shit.
Riding piggyback on the saintess, I just watched the scene unfold in silence.
I wanted to deny the elf girl's little drama, but my body still wouldn't obey me, so a few muttered words were the best I could manage.
Thanks to that, I couldn't even properly retort and just had to spectate.
Wait, why the hell am I even on her back in the first place?
Thinking about it, the situation felt pretty weird.
We'd escaped from the dungeon's depths, sure, but here I was, slung over her back like luggage.
This picture looks kinda off.
Peering over the saintess's shoulder at the hero party, I grumbled inwardly.
No, the picture's not the weird part...
Honestly, from some point on, I couldn't figure out what this saintess had up her sleeve.
Why was she keeping quiet about the fact that I took down that monster?
No matter how hard I wracked my puny brain, I couldn't guess her intentions.
More than that, it would've been nice to do something to make an impression, but with no spotlight time for my own PR, it was damn near impossible.
And above all...
“Hero, is something bothering you?”
“Nah, nothing at all.”
Even to the saintess's question, Edelic just played dumb.
Nothing my ass.
He'd been glaring at me like I was his sworn enemy for a while now.
I had no clue what his deal was, but it seemed I'd pissed off the one guy I shouldn't have.
Before I could even ask why my first impression had tanked so hard, their attention shifted elsewhere.
“Looks like we should call it here for today.”
Edelic wrapped things up curtly.
The lively chatter shifted direction slyly.
“I'm all for heading back to the capital~”
“I agree.”
The others chimed in without much objection.
Pushing deeper into the dungeon in the party's current state would've been reckless bravado, not adventure.
The call to pack up the expedition and return home quickly became unanimous.
But the conversation had a strangely rough edge to it.
They were pretending to wrap things up calmly on the surface, but everyone seemed dissatisfied with this expedition.
I soon figured out why.
“So this expedition's a failure, huh...”
At Edelic's declaration, some fell silent, others averted their eyes.
“The failed expedition aside... and that kid's an issue too.”
His gaze flicked briefly my way.
“We'll sort out all discussions back in the capital.”
It was just a quick glance, but it was enough to clock that I was the target.
Well, for me, heading back to the capital was actually a win.
No downsides there.
...The real headache was something else.
I clicked my tongue inwardly.
Fuck, this is bad.
Because I was still a license-less nobody.
This could come back to bite me hard later.
A suspicious kid popping out from the dungeon's bottom without official labyrinth exploration permission.
And the young hero lord had already been treating me like an ugly duckling and glaring daggers...
If he decided to dig in, I was screwed.
I snuck a glance at Edelic by turning my head slightly.
Still that sourpuss miser face...
At this point, even I was getting pissed off.
What the hell did I even do to deserve this crap?
Grousing internally, I tilted my head at an angle.
Then something caught my eye.
Edelic's gaze kept drifting elsewhere.
Specifically, toward Veronica.
The glare he'd fixed on me would shift slyly to the saintess, then snap back like nothing happened.
Not just once or twice—he was fidgety like someone caught doing something he shouldn't.
...Aha.
So that's it?
Looks like there was a reason he wasn't thrilled with me.
Come to think of it, yeah, the situation was kinda awkward.
The saintess had escaped the dungeon with my help, while the expedition leader himself had just paced around outside...
Couldn't have felt great from Edelic's perspective.
I shot a sidelong glance at Veronica's profile.
She was utterly absorbed in prayer, ignoring such stares completely.
Poor guy.
Men live and die by loyalty, after all.
“Saintess... hand me over to the hero, please.”
It was about time my limbs started going numb anyway, so I figured I'd use the handoff as an excuse to give Edelic his shot.
Come on, hero. Show 'em what a caring guy you are.
And thank me later.
...I was smugly musing to myself when Veronica's eyelids fluttered open.
I'd thought she was lost in prayer, but she'd clearly heard me.
She stared into space for a moment, then murmured softly.
“No.”
...Huh?
“I'll protect you. Just stay still.”
“Pardon?”
I blurted out like an idiot.
Protect me from what?
But the saintess said nothing more after that.
She closed her eyes again and dove back into prayer.
...What the hell?
It felt like our conversation got cut off mid-flow.
But the weirdness didn't end there.
After that, Veronica handled me like fragile treasure.
She moved with exaggerated care, as if afraid I'd bump into something, and twisted away if anyone got too close.
She carted me around with obsessive attention, like I was a sack of jewels wrapped in cloth.
I barely got to breathe fresh dungeon-exit air before becoming the saintess's personal luggage.
It got even worse when the carriage arrived for the trek back north to the capital.
As people boarded one by one, Veronica claimed a spot at the edge of the luggage compartment and gently shoved me into the cramped corner.
Then she naturally blocked the front.
It screamed "no-entry zone."
Short replies to anyone who spoke to her, and if their interest strayed my way, she'd subtly widen the distance.
I watched the whole thing in a daze, then grumbled inwardly.
What the actual fuck.
...No clue what her deal was.
⁕ ⁕ ⁕
Upon returning to the capital, the hero party headed straight for the Adventurer's Guild.
This report wasn't held in the usual public venue.
The fact that the hero party was reporting a failed dungeon assault was irregular enough, and the cause of that failure was even more problematic.
So the report session was naturally treated as top secret.
In the end, it moved to a small conference room inside the guild, with attendance strictly limited.
Hero Edelic, the party leader.
Saintess Veronica, who needed to explain the circumstances.
And the boy plopped in a corner chair...
Luin, the biggest variable from this expedition.
Guild Master Gideon sat at the desk opposite them, his massive, muscle-bound bald frame going silent as he listened to the report before slowly rubbing his chin.
“Hm... Never thought a party like yours would get tripped up by a mere trap.”
It was less a reprimand and more tinged with regret.
The hero party was among the kingdom's elite, famous for making almost no mistakes.
Suddenly, Chris— who hadn't joined this expedition—flashed through Gideon's mind.
Not much combat prowess, but the one who handled all the party's grunt work and prep.
With him around, maybe these variables wouldn't have cropped up.
...Maybe.
But that thought didn't linger.
Gideon's gaze shifted to one side of the room.
The small boy sitting quietly in his chair.
Luin.
The kid who'd guided the lost saintess out from the dungeon's deep underground layer.
As if he knew the place like the back of his hand.
A short sigh escaped Gideon's lips.
“Whew, so... this kid led the saintess back to the surface?”
It sounded like casual musing, but the room's air was anything but light.
A boy who still looked so young had read the dungeon's underground layout and guided the way.
If true, it wasn't something to brush off lightly.
Gideon stroked his chin again before speaking.
“Just one question.”
A subtle shift crossed his face.
“Why didn't you take the official labyrinth route?”
Luin's gut sank quietly.
...Here it comes.
Luin showed no outward reaction.
Or rather, pretended not to.
He blinked a few times, then awkwardly dropped his gaze.
“...Uh... uh...”
He trailed off vaguely.
Acting like someone whose body hadn't fully recovered, whose mind was foggy and sluggish.
Gideon's expression stiffened subtly at the sight.
“...Hm.”
He crossed his arms and nodded curtly.
“Can't get a full account until you're recovered, I suppose.”
He looked a touch regretful for jumping the gun.
Gideon's eyes returned to Luin.
“More importantly, I'd like to check the boy's license? If he was rescued by the hero party, it'd count as achievement for promotion—no issues there. Could even fast-track a rank-up depending on the case.”
Luin said nothing.
He just shook his head lightly.
The motion was tiny, but clear enough for anyone in the room to catch.
His face stayed composed.
No one could tell, but sweat was trickling down Luin's back.
Is this what it feels like for an undocumented worker?
The room's gazes slowly converged on Luin.
As every eye in the room fixed on him—
Knock knock.
A knock came from beyond the conference room door.
Gideon furrowed his brow slightly.
“Come in.”
The face peeking through the cracked door belonged to...
“Huh?”
Dorothy.
She stepped in, then froze at the sight inside.
The hero party and the guild master.
Luin sitting between them.
Dorothy's eyes went wide.
“...It is Luin after all.”
Her gaze flicked between Luin and the others.
Tilting her head, Dorothy continued.
“...What are you doing in here?”
The room's air wavered subtly.
Wearing an utterly clueless expression, Dorothy pressed on.
“I saw you heading into the conference room with the hero party, so I got curious and followed... Didn't expect it to really be you.”
She looked at Luin with genuine curiosity.
“How'd someone without a license end up here? What connection do you have?”
The room's air froze solid.
Edelic blinked.
Veronica blinked.
Gideon silently blinked once.
Everyone in the room stared at Luin.
Luin smiled serenely, like a monk who'd cast off all worldly cares.
Yep. You heard that right.