100
My Villains Chapter 100
26. Fever (1)
Meow.
It feels a bit empty.
Until just a few days ago, there were multiple cats singing in chorus.
Meow, meow.
Under the utility pole, there's styrofoam, plastic, vinyl...
Cats.
Among the small cats lying in a row, only one is crying loudly.
The garbage pile reeks due to the hot weather.
"Ugh, the smell."
I crouched down, pulling my turtleneck up to my nose.
Trying not to disturb the lifeless kittens, I picked up the crying one with my index finger.
Meow, meow.
The kitten, unable to open its eyes, squirms.
Should I take it?
I have nothing else to do during my leave anyway.
When I go back to school?
Return to school? Will I?
Well...
I regretted holding the cat against my chest immediately. Something sticky was on it, maybe coffee.
"Hey. Want to live with me?"
Meow.
The weak cry somehow makes me happy.
I took it home, washed it, and dried it.
For food, milk... Oh, that's not allowed?
Cat formula milk. Ah, what a hassle.
I headed to the vet with the tightly wrapped kitten.
"You shouldn't pick up kittens carelessly. The mother might come back for it."
An unexpected, scolding tone.
"Don't tell me you washed it? If the scent changes, the mother won't recognize her baby. This is serious."
The nurse intimidates me with talk of stimulating bowel movements, massage, maintaining body temperature.
Lecturing that I can't save the kitten with such a casual attitude - lecture, lecture, lecture, damn it.
I stabbed the nurse to death and got the formula.
Bapful (the kitten) ate the formula well.
It fell asleep with a full belly.
I find myself humming.
"Are you happy?"
I turned my head at the familiar voice.
A girl standing at the entrance.
"Han Ji-won? You… You died. How?"
Ji-won splits in two.
A teenage girl who looks just like my sister.
A blonde girl with blue eyes.
"Are you happy?"
"I-"
The blonde girl blocks my path.
"No need to answer."
"Ellen, I-"
"It's okay."
Ji-won bursts into flames.
Ellen hugged me and patted my shoulder.
"It's okay. It's okay."
***
Ippotranslation
***
The next day was busy with preparations for the journey.
They say the sea route west from here takes at least a week, up to two weeks at most. Unlike in games where you just watch a video to move between regions, it's natural to have many things to prepare for such a long journey.
It's fortunate the schedule was delayed by one day. If we had tried to leave today as initially planned, we might have left the city only by evening.
First, I rechecked the equipment.
In the last battle, I killed the Robber Baron. Thanks to that, his black plate armor naturally became my loot.
But damn, I couldn't find the helmet anywhere, and the breastplate was unusable with a palm-sized crack.
I could roughly patch it with iron plates, but they say it would be better to repair and wear my old armor instead.
Still, I could salvage the rest of the set except for the helmet and breastplate. The craftsmen at the workshop adjusted it to fit my body, and replaced the breastplate with a shortened coat of plates.
Since the armor became more reliable, I considered not buying a shield... But the workshop craftsmen made one for me. It was made by wrapping scales around the Underground Lord's bones.
They made it into a round shield considering my preference, and its performance was quite good. Since I'm still used to sword-and-shield style and it gives me psychological stability, I decided to use the shield.
Well, when I become more skilled at two-handed swordsmanship, I might give up the shield then.
Ah, I also bought several javelins. I've used them a few times in actual combat, and practiced with knights, and they feel quite natural in my hands.
Additionally, I bought two daggers, two pairs each of leather boots and gloves, and several sets of clothes.
Ellen still stubbornly refused to wear armor no matter what.
Well, what can I do if she doesn't want to? Instead, I bought her several sturdy leather clothes. Since she had experience wearing leather vests, she showed less resistance to leather clothing.
Ugh, these won't stop arrows at all. I guess I'll have to block them with my body.
There was no need to prepare anything for Utequais. He doesn't wear armor, and he buys his own shoes and pants just fine.
After checking the equipment, I stopped by the jeweler and bought three diamonds.
In this world, diamonds weren't just rare gems. They're apparently very valuable materials frequently sought by mages and alchemists. As a result, their market price was quite stable.
The reason I bought diamonds wasn't for anything special, but because I had too many gold and silver coins.
I had over 60 gold coins and about 200 silver coins, which was too cumbersome. So I bought small and light diamonds instead.
Next, I stocked up on food supplies.
Although the employers said they'd handle basic meals... Both Utequais and I eat enormous amounts. Even if we loaded up only on food instead of goods, supplies would probably run out before reaching Longville, no, before reaching the West.
So I bought a week's worth of food supplies generously. There were issues with preservation, and if the volume got too big, we couldn't carry it.
And since we'll be stopping at several ports along the way, there shouldn't be much to worry about.
I also packed various items like shovels, hammers, ropes, candles, torches, leather pouches, ointment, bandages, and other miscellaneous things.
After that, forget about the weight, the volume was so large that it was impossible to carry it on our backs.
As Utequais and I were struggling to pack in the inn's backyard, Ellen clicked her tongue and said, "Stop being stupid and remove some food. Who packs ten pieces of ham for a trip?"
"Ungh, that's only 5 kilos? And protein intake is so important."
"Oh, really? Then aren't salted lamb and dried fish protein too?"
"You get tired of eating just ham every day."
"...Sigh. And what's with the smoked herring? I hate that smell!"
"I won't make you eat it. We'll eat it all ourselves, so don't worry."
"The smell gets on all the other luggage!"
As Ellen continued complaining, Utequais shook his head.
"Woman, understandable. Picky with food, that's why short. Must eat lots to grow. Woman, picky with food, that's why chest, hips also-"
"Y-You crazy barbarian!"
Along with her trembling shout, wind rushed and struck Utequais's face.
"Kuhek!"
"Ugh, hey! You're spilling the luggage!"
The troublesome packing was neatly resolved when the Prince's three knights appeared.
"Why did you lords come all the way here..."
"I thought you might have forgotten something."
Sir Langbolt said this while handing me the reins he was holding.
"Spotty?"
"That's right. Isn't it your spoils of war?"
"Ah, yes, that's true."
Actually, managing a horse was quite troublesome. So I had left Spotty with Prince Ulkar's cavalry and had half-forgotten about it...
"Um, thank you. I was just needing a horse..."
As I scratched my head, Sir Ankir burst out laughing and said, "Every knight needs a horse. Whether for carrying loads or for combat. Don't think of it as troublesome and take good care of it, Sir Phoenix."
"Ungh, understood."
"Loading a horse onto a ship will be quite troublesome, so you'll need to pay extra attention."
"...Ah, well. I suppose so."
After resolving the luggage issue, the three knights suddenly dragged me into the inn and ordered lots of alcohol and food without warning.
"No, my lords. What's this suddenly..."
When I made a confused expression, Sir Langbolt said with a solemn face, "Though you're leaving to answer destiny's call, aren't we knights serving the same lord? What's so strange about having a drink to ease the sorrow of parting?"
...What is this old man talking about?
Before I could say anything, Utequais, who had followed us in, spoke up. "For warriors, drink important. I, not join. Have place to visit."
"...Visit? Where would you visit? You don't even know anyone in the city."
"Have regular store."
He said with a grin, and that lecherous smile... It was exactly that face from the package illustration that had generated countless memes.
Sigh, crazy bastard. Maybe he'll come to his senses if he catches a disease.
Meanwhile, Ellen shrugged her shoulders and nodded.
"That's good. I was planning to organize things today anyway. You'd just be in the way if you stayed."
"What things do you have to organize?"
"I emptied the lab. Need to throw away what needs to be thrown and pack what needs to be packed."
After saying that, she swiftly went up to the second floor.
After that... Well, it was a typical drinking gathering.
Talking about dreams, criticizing greedy nobles, chatting about battles fought and monsters killed, reminiscing about hometown scenery - that kind of typical drinking party.
Grania and Arnal joined the drinking party when they came to say goodbye, but the conversation topics didn't change much.
Then suddenly, I felt strange about myself naturally engaging in conversation and emptying drinks among mercenaries and knights.
It hasn't even been two months since I came to this world, but I guess I've adapted pretty well.
"Ugh, I'm dying."
Maybe because I drank until I was barely conscious, my stomach felt heavy and my head was throbbing since morning.
Damn, this isn't the right condition for the beginning of an adventure.
Only after washing my face with well water and getting armed did I start coming to my senses.
I went down to the first floor with the luggage, but no matter how much I looked around, I couldn't find the face I was searching for.
"Innkeeper, where's Daria?"
"Huh? Wasn't she with you?"
"How could she be? I couldn't even talk to her properly because I was drinking with the knights..."
I searched the entire inn including her room, but Daria was nowhere to be found.
Where did she go? I couldn't even say goodbye properly last night...
Thinking about this, I suddenly felt guilty towards Daria.
Acting like lovers enjoying nightly meetings, then not even discussing when I was leaving... Wow, now that I think about it, I'm completely trash.
Since Ellen was still dawdling in her room, I had some time. I ran frantically checking the market and plaza, but couldn't find Daria.
By the time I returned to the inn, Ellen and Utequais were waiting in front.
"Hah, whew. Did you see Daria, Daria?"
"Didn't see her."
"...I didn't see her either."
Both Utequais, who was scratching his belly while chewing dried fish, and Ellen, who looked pale probably from not being fully awake, shook their heads.
"Ha, where did she go..."
Although I hadn't known her for long, she wasn't the type to disappear so suddenly. Perhaps she's hiding somewhere because she doesn't want to see me leave?
As I took off my helmet and ran my fingers through my hair, Utequais spoke.
"Ship, leaving. Will miss it."
"...Sorry. Wait just a moment."
I quickly ran into the inn and left a letter.
After scribbling down disorganized words and leaving it with the innkeeper, I headed to the dock.
Past the Salt Castle, through the revived street vendors and trading post, I kept looking back constantly.
Even after boarding the ship, even when South Harbor became as small as a fingernail as we passed the bay entrance, I kept looking back.
Though it was a brief relationship, I wanted to say a proper goodbye...
The sense of achievement from completing the chapter and the excitement for the new journey had already disappeared.
Feeling only deep regret and belated sadness, I left South Harbor.