The Blue-Haired Woman Who Won't Leave Me Alone
In this world where females are overwhelmingly strong, the only way for a man like me to live without facing discrimination and in relative comfort was to be recognized as a high-ranking adventurer. To achieve that, tackling higher-grade requests instead of the easy ones I could handle alone was the fastest shortcut to ranking up. That was also why I had blown through about ten gold.
[D] Goblin Den Discovery and Cleanup — 3 Gold
I grabbed the request posted on the board and headed to the reception desk.
“For D-rank requests and above, we strongly recommend forming a party. You’re not seriously thinking of going alone, are you?”
The man at the reception desk, whom I had met before, warned me again that it was dangerous.
“Monsters don’t negotiate with men. There’s no reasoning with them.”
I quietly showed him the sword hidden beneath my robe.
“It’s fine. I brought a very effective means of communication.”
“Are you a male swordsman?”
“Not exactly, but I’ll make good use of it.”
“Even though you’re a man, you’re quite brave, Kang Seo-ja.”
“…It’s less bravery and more just trying to survive and eat.”
“I see.”
The receptionist stamped the request form and handed it back with a lonely expression.
“I hope to see you again.”
He must have seen many men like me at the desk—men who had mustered the courage to become adventurers. Most of them, it seemed, were never seen again.
“I’ll do my best.”
I left the adventurer’s guild and stepped outside. The request had come from a farmer’s house on the outskirts of the village, so if I hurried, I could return before it got dark.
“Hey.”
Just as I was about to set off, someone called out to me. I turned my head.
“You going to hunt goblins?”
“That’s the plan.”
A woman with blue hair had stopped me. She must have seen me pick up the goblin request through the window and approached with interest.
“That voice… you’re a man?”
“…”
“I’m also planning to hunt goblins. Let’s go together.”
She suddenly suggested we take on the request as a pair.
“Do we really have to go together?”
“Can a man handle it alone? Do you even know much about goblins?”
“I don’t.”
Maybe it was because of the robe, but she approached me without any apparent aversion and flashed a bright white smile.
“If a man goes alone, he’ll get captured right away and turned into a breeding tool for the goblins.”
“You look more dangerous than the goblins right now.”
“Me? Me? Where do you get that from?”
“The fact that you suddenly asked if I was going goblin hunting and that you didn’t take the request yourself.”
“T-that’s because… ha! Do you really need to know about me?”
“I’d rather not get stabbed in the back.”
“You’re more cautious than you look! Fine…”
The blue-haired woman quietly pulled something from inside her clothes. It was a pocket watch. Covered in strange symbols, it looked quite expensive.
“Is this enough now?”
“Enough for what?”
“Huh? You don’t recognize this?”
“I don’t. I’m not from this village.”
“Hmm… you’re even more interesting now. We absolutely have to go together.”
“I’d rather not, so I’ll be going.”
“Ugh… hey! Come on, let’s go together!”
The blue-haired woman, eyes sparkling after showing me the pocket watch, kept following right behind me.
“You really don’t know me even after seeing this symbol? How fascinating.”
“Is that really so surprising?”
“Where are you from? The west? From the vibe, maybe south or north?”
“You’ve already guessed three places. One of them’s bound to be right.”
“Hehe… I suppose so~”
The blue-haired woman kept laughing as if something amused her and followed me around. This wouldn’t do. I didn’t want someone I didn’t know walking behind me. The possibility of betrayal crossed my mind, so I slightly lowered my robe, revealing my black hair. Anyone who saw it would usually frown and keep their distance. Even bandits or murderers would find it off-putting.
“Uh… black hair.”
“Whoever you are, I recommend being more selective about who you follow.”
I thought the blue-haired woman would back off after seeing my black hair.
“It’s fascinating… I’ve never seen it before. It’s kind of cool…?”
But that was my mistake. Her interest only grew stronger.
“Wow!”
Her eyes sparkled even brighter.
Damn it…
The blue-haired woman was a peculiar person. She had tried to prove her identity with the watch but never clearly stated who she was, and even after seeing my black hair, she continued to follow me.
“Goblins basically travel in groups, so a man alone can’t handle a whole pack of them. And it doesn’t look like you have any party members~ Oh? But I’m right here~”
“…”
“So I’ll help you out.”
“I’d rather die than accept that.”
“Aww, why so dark and rigid?”
The blue-haired woman circled around me, chattering about all sorts of things—from goblin behavior to making guesses about my situation and teasing me with them.
“Goblins are vicious. They chase fleeing adventurers until—pop!—they fall into traps! So many adventurers have died that way. That’s why you need comrades.”
Still, she wasn’t just spouting useless information. She seemed to have learned a lot from books or close acquaintances; there were many things she knew that surprised me.
“Haa… fine. I’ll take two gold, you take one. Is that acceptable?”
The beautiful blue-haired woman smiled.
“Good.”
Even though I had offered her more, she seemed pleased. It didn’t look like she cared much about money. There must have been another motive—something like fun or enjoyment.
Or does she want to sleep with me?
No… she had approached me without knowing I was a man. So her goal must really be the goblins themselves.
“Why do you want to hunt goblins anyway?”
“It seems like the perfect difficulty for my current level?”
“Is that even a real goal…”
“Training all the time gets so boring.”
She had said “training.” That gave me an idea about her goblin hunting. I wasn’t sure exactly, but she seemed like a knight candidate from some noble family. Since she wasn’t an adventurer, she couldn’t take requests herself, so she latched onto a passing adventurer to test her skills. Right now, she apparently thought goblins were suitable opponents.
Her robe reached down to her ankles, so I couldn’t see much underneath, but I caught glimpses of rather shiny armor. The answer was clear. This woman had truly come here just to play around. Meanwhile, some people were risking their lives just to earn enough to survive another day.
“I want to slice those goblin bastards to pieces and feel refreshed.”
This blue-haired woman and I clearly lived in different worlds.
“You just said goblins move in packs and viciously set traps, yet you’re walking around so carefree?”
“I’m a woman. You’re a man.”
“So what?”
“It means I’m stronger.”
Her confidence was truly impressive.
“Then I’ll expect you to show that strength in the field.”
“Hehe… leave it to me.”
I arrived at the request location with the overly confident blue-haired woman.
Knock knock.
I rapped on the door of the watermill house. The door creaked open, and a woman stepped out. She was covered in wounds, her arm wrapped in white cloth.
“We received the guild request.”
“You’ve finally come!”
The homeowner led me and the blue-haired woman inside. We sat at a wooden table and listened to her story.
“I was harvesting grapes with my husband! Then suddenly—goblins appeared and took my husband…! Damn it!”
She was a farmer. Goblins had appeared without warning. She had fought desperately but lost. They took farming tools, grapes, and her husband as spoils.
“Please, save my husband! If he’s already dead, then at least take revenge on those goblin bastards! I’ll give you every gold I have! Hic…!”
The requester wept in agony. I nodded and headed to the spot where the goblins had appeared.
“There are traces here.”
“This must be the place…”
The scene of the struggle remained exactly as it had been. The farmer said she hadn’t come back here since she was wounded.
“Lots of footprints. At least nine… no, more than ten. Oh.”
“There are also signs of them eating grapes recently… It looks like they’ve claimed this area as their territory.”
“What? I thought you didn’t know much about goblins?”
“I don’t know goblins, but I know animal behavior. They mark territory and hunt within it. People do the same.”
I glanced sideways at the blue-haired woman.
“I’m not an animal, you know?!”
“I never said you were.”
“That’s how you were looking at me!”
Her voice grew louder, as if she’d been caught. Just from that reaction, I could tell. Tailing adventurers who took requests… this clearly wasn’t her first or second time.
“Let’s follow the footprints.”
“I hope we meet them soon!”
Apparently annoyed by my nagging, she immediately radiated battle spirit. We followed the footprints for a long way.
“Ugh…”
“…”
What we found deeper in was a body torn apart in several places. The blue-haired woman frowned as she examined the corpse closely.
“That must be the farm woman’s husband…”
“You really are ruthless.”
“What do you mean?”
“You didn’t even scream at the sight of a corpse.”
“…”
If it had been a beautiful, lovable woman, maybe I would have felt differently, but I didn’t feel sorrow at a man’s death. Just pity. Looking at the body, one thought came to mind: it wasn’t just human women who were superior—female monsters were stronger too.
“It’s a goblin trait. They play with a man all day long, and if he stops responding, they rip off his lower half and kill him.”
At those words, my groin instinctively tightened.
“So that’s why you need a woman like me to protect you. Got it?”
“I acknowledge it.”
“Huh?”
“There’s no time. Let’s go take care of this quickly.”
I walked forward.
“Not a single ounce of cuteness…”
The blue-haired woman glared at the black-haired man striding ahead.
“Wait for me!”
With a strange feeling in her chest, she followed after the black-haired man.