107
My Villains Chapter 107
27. Mountain Lodge (3)
Staring blankly around the mountain lodge, I hear Ellen's voice.
"Why are you giggling to yourself? You idiot."
After saying that, she slightly lifted her body and landed on my arm. I nervously hugged Ellen and nodded my head.
"...No, no. Let's go inside and rest quickly."
"Okay. I was just thinking my legs are feeling numb."
"Oh? Why are your legs numb?"
"I don't know. Maybe because I rode in the carriage for too long."
Indeed, the carriage had bumped quite a bit on the dizzying mountain road...
"Let's go quickly. I'll feed you and give you a massage."
"...How troublesome."
"What's troublesome? Just lie down quietly."
Turning away with a blank expression, I spoke to Utequais.
"Quickly bring spotty. And bring Lump too."
"Lump has grown big. It's about time to eat it."
"...I'm warning you, if you touch it again, I'll beat you within an inch of your life."
Holding the trembling Lump under his arm, Utequais gave a sly smile.
"A baby wild boar, roasted whole, is really delicious. The meat is tender. Juice flows, and the flavor is just right. Don't you know that taste?"
"You crazy bastard. Give it to me, now!"
When I snatched Lump from Utequais, the small piglet burrowed into my arms and squealed.
Ellen immediately frowned.
"Are you going to keep that pig? It smells!"
"If the smell sticks to my body, why are you making a fuss?"
"...Ugh, so annoying."
After giving a coin to a young stable boy and leaving spotty, we entered the mountain lodge. The lodge was quite clean and spacious for its location in the mountains.
We rented two rooms for four silver coins, but since there was no bedding, we had to lay out our own blankets. Well, there was just a bit of dust but no foul odor, so I was satisfied.
I was also pleased that there was a bathroom in the corner of the first floor. After paying a few coins, the lodge workers brought hot water. Thanks to that, Ellen and I could take a warm bath for the first time in a while.
After bathing and going upstairs to the room, Ellen, while drying her hair, looked horrified at Lump in my arms.
"Did you bathe with that fur ball again?"
"Why. What's wrong with that?"
"What if you catch some disease?"
"I always wash it cleanly. What disease?"
I waved Lump's sleepy front paw at Ellen.
"That's right! Why do you always pick on me, sister?"
"Who are you calling 'sister'?"
"Then I'll call you 'auntie'! Do you know how clean I am? I even hide my poop and pee well!"
Ellen shook her head in disbelief at the pig-mimicking voice.
I tied up Lump, roughly wiped my armor with a cloth, and put on just the breastplate, vambraces, and shin guards before leaving the lodge.
At the well in front of the lodge, Utequais was washing himself. Despite his unique appearance and large build that would surely draw stares, he didn't seem to care at all. He's quite shameless.
I headed to the tavern with Utequais. The loud singing became increasingly clear.
"Like a river! Flowing-. I don't walk old paths-"
Candles in wall sconces and on the ceiling's iron decorations brightly lit the interior.
"Chains can't bind me-"
"Keys! I don't need-"
"Find someone like me-"
There were eight large round tables, and the wooden floor looked freshly sanded with no marks.
The soldiers and mercenaries were drumming on the tables with beer mugs, stomping their feet, and singing at the top of their lungs.
And on the central table, a woman was dancing. She was a tall woman with very long limbs.
"Don't do any evil-"
Light body movements, cheerful hand gestures.
Clapping hands, heel tapping, stomping feet with an incredibly joyful rhythm.
"Things to be done, are overflowing-!"
A dance that seems vulgar yet elegant, absurd yet mysterious. The slightly tanned skin and flowing sweat captivate the gaze.
Youth sparkles brilliantly.
"First, a drink! Let's dri-nk!"
Suddenly, our eyes met. Bright brown irises. I held my breath.
Ellen, wearing a robe, glanced at the dancing woman and frowned.
"Isn't she from the Nude tribe? How vulgar."
Until now, I had conversed with Ellen and many others. During the long journey, with nothing else to do, I chatted to pass the time. Thanks to that, I've accumulated quite a bit of common knowledge.
The 'Nude tribe' was one such piece of knowledge.
They say the Nude tribe began wandering the Middle World around the time the ancient empire was collapsing. Naturally, I thought of gypsies... But the Nude tribe was very different from the image I had imagined.
"Falling in, love-" The drunks' song and the woman's dance continued. A new dance move matching a new rhythm.
"A sweet, trap-!"
Her hair swayed softly.
Her high half-tied hair was decorated with three or four rings and a red cloth.
"When it rises, in the heart-"
Perhaps traditional Nude tribe clothing? The woman wore an outfit I'd never seen before.
Large hoop earrings, a red band wrapped around her left forearm, a cloth garment revealing her waist and legs, anklets jingling, barefoot.
"Young one, be care-ful!"
The woman was attractive. Her features were clean-cut, her smile bright. Her eyebrows were straight, and her light brown eyes sparkled like stars.
Revealing her arms, legs, and abdomen, the flickering light softly carved the valleys between her muscles.
"Throwing away the cross-"
When she stretched out her arms and bent her waist, distinct abs appeared, and when she lifted her leg, her thighs tightened elastically.
Add to that her slightly tanned skin. A beautifully trained body reminiscent of a fitness model or track athlete.
"Falling into the pit-!"
Until sitting at the empty table, I couldn't take my eyes off the dancing woman. Her charm alone was reason enough to be captivated, but I had more reasons. Because then, something tapped my shin under the table. And then,
"Ow,"
Ellen beside me let out a groan and clutched her foot.
"...What are you doing?"
"Ugh. Are you wearing shin guards?"
"Leg protectors? Yes."
"Geez, why are you only wearing those! You're not wearing any other armor!"
"Why are you getting mad at me when you kicked me?"
Ellen mumbles to herself, speechless. I sigh deeply and grab her foot, pulling it onto my thigh.
"Where did this girl get the strength to kick when she can barely walk?"
"Are you in a lot of pain?"
"Just a moment, wait a bit. It's not that-"
I ignored her resistance and took off her shoe to examine her foot.
"It was just noisy, doesn't seem like you're actually hurt?"
"I told you I'm fine, idiot..." A faint voice. Ellen's face beneath the robe was blushing bright red.
Seems she's still not used to skin contact. Her consistently bashful appearance is incredibly cute.
Ellen falls silent, and when the server approaches, we order food. Ordering various items, I end up paying five silver coins.
Between the mountain lodge fees and the prices reminiscent of the South Harbor siege, staying here long would quickly make me a beggar.
Spending money generously in every village during the journey has made my coin purse quite light.
What's left now... About twenty gold coins and around sixty silver coins.
Of course, this is still a considerable amount, and I have diamonds if needed, so there's no immediate worry. Still, I feel slightly remorseful about spending so freely.
As I'm securing my coin purse, someone approaches the table and speaks.
"Hello. Can I sit for a moment?"
"Hm?"
It was none other than the woman who had been dancing!
While I hesitated unexpectedly, Utequais was carefully observing the woman. Ellen remained silent with a hardened expression.
"Umm-"
The woman sat across from me without waiting for an answer. She pushed her gray hair behind her shoulder and stared directly at me. Then she suddenly asked a question.
"Have we met somewhere before?"
"Huh?"
"Have you and I met?" She asked this while playfully smiling. It was a lovely smile.
"Well, no. I think this is the first time we've met."
"Right? Because I definitely wouldn't forget a face like yours."
A playful tone. Her eyes were brimming with curiosity.
"'A face like mine'?"
"Yes. It's exactly my type. You're re-ally good-looking."
"......What?"
I couldn't help but be flustered. Kim Seung-soo's face was hardly what one would call strikingly handsome. Since becoming Phoenix, no woman had ever approached me so directly.
Well, Daria was around, but she wasn't the type to throw such direct comments...
Seeing me unable to find a response, the woman was laughing heartily.
"But what if you stare so intensely? You almost fell off the table."
"Oh, um. Sorry. You reminded me of someone I know."
The woman, who had been giggling, spoke up.
"I didn't say that to apologize. But who's this 'someone'?"
"Huh?"
"The person who looks like me. A woman? Is she pre-tty?"
...What is this? Is this how strangers talk? Is she a bit odd?
"Huh? Pretty?"
No, wait. This might just be the life of good-looking people. It's not strange, just unfamiliar.
Yes, this is about adaptation. Getting used to life as Phoenix.
"Why don't you leave since you smell like sweat?"
Ellen, who had been silent, cut off my contemplation and snapped at the woman.
The woman stiffened her expression for a moment, then smelled her own arm. Then she gave an awkward smile.
"Well, I don't think I smell bad."
"It might be fine for Nude tribe members, but it's disgusting for us. It's killing our appetite, so leave."
"Hey, that's too harsh."
At my intervention, Ellen glared at me.
"What's too harsh?"
"Saying 'disgusting' to someone you've just met. And you said she doesn't smell bad, so why?"
Ellen turned her head away sulkily.
Well, I inadvertently ended up taking the side of this strange woman instead of Ellen. Can't be helped.
I turned to the woman and gave a slight bitter smile.
"Sorry, but our group is a bit uncomfortable socializing with strangers."
The woman, who had been looking interested, tilted her head, not quite understanding.
"Hmm?"
"It was nice meeting you. Let's meet again if we get the chance."
At this clear dismissal, the woman with a slightly cracked smile shrugged and stood up.
"...Well. I'm not sure if we'll meet again."
Just as she was about to turn away,
"Oh, wait a moment."
"Hmm?"
"May I know your name?"
I asked while staring directly at her. The woman narrowed her eyes and asked back.
"Isn't it proper for you to introduce yourself first in this situation?"
"Oh. I'm Nix."
"Nix? Nix..." The woman pondered my pseudonym for a moment, then smiled.
"It's an unusual name."
"And you?"
"...Atilia."
"Atilia?"
It couldn't be that name.
As I furrowed my brow, the woman raised her eyebrow.
"What? Is there a problem?"
"No, no. Nice to meet you, Atilia."
"...Likewise."
The woman who introduced herself as Atilia looked at me for a moment. Then she turned her body to return to her Nude tribe companions.
As far as I knew, her name was not Atilia.
Atalante. The Phantom Hunter Atalante.
That was her real name.