Chapter 35: The Desert Rose Merchant Group
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 35: The Desert Rose Merchant Group
Karami had sent word to Roperman that he would be visiting soon.
It was a move to prevent the disaster of them attacking first. Of course, he hadn't specified an exact date.
Time was tight, but there was no need to set the bomb's timer with his own hands. His plan was to drag things out as long as possible, playing a game of push-and-pull.
The key is how fast Alfia can improve…
Fortunately, just as one becomes proficient at riding a bicycle after the first success, Alfia's archery practice began to gain momentum after she finally hit a target.
Stationary objects were a given.
She could now pierce a falling leaf.
Not only that, but she also began practicing arcing her shots in a parabola rather than a straight line, so she could hit targets behind obstacles.
Even so, it wasn't enough. Her archery skills would improve the more she shot, but her practical combat experience was practically nonexistent.
Even with various buffs helping her, experience was something she had to gain firsthand. If she panicked in a real fight, it would be a disaster.
Luckily, Alfia had someone to help cover her weakness.
“Don’t panic. A single moment determines victory or defeat in battle. The second you panic, it’s over.”
“That’s easier said than done…!”
In the forest where they always trained, Victor had joined the session.
Alfia gritted her teeth, moving her bow this way and that, but there was nothing but trees. All she could see were Victor’s afterimages.
Victor’s movements were several beats faster. By the time she aimed, his form was long gone.
Rustle.
A sudden presence. Alfia quickly spun her bow around, but all that was there was a flutter of grass, not Victor. A dagger materialized silently behind the startled Alfia’s neck.
A single drop of cold sweat trickled down Alfia’s cheek under the crushing pressure.
“…I lost.”
Alfia raised the arm holding her bow in surrender. Victor withdrew his dagger. He clicked his tongue, his expression far from pleased.
“Tsk, tsk. With such slow reactions, you’d be a stuffed trophy in some noble’s art gallery if this were a real fight.”
“Why do you have to put it like that…! Besides, how is an archer supposed to beat an assassin in a place with so many obstacles!”
“I was under the impression that the forest was an elf’s home turf.”
Alfia, who had tried to protest, clamped her mouth shut at the sound logic.
It was true. Elves, who spent their entire lives in the woods, moved through them as if they were their own living rooms. While others would trip and stumble over every root and branch, elves moved with complete freedom, hunting down intruders.
But right now, Alfia was the one having her living room overrun by a stranger.
“I can’t help it. It’s impossible to focus on my bow and sense the enemy at the same time. Do you have any idea how much concentration it takes just to shoot?”
“I don’t understand. Why waste concentration on finding the enemy? You should just feel them.”
“Feel them? How?”
Alfia tilted her head, her expression one of genuine confusion. Unable to stand her pathetic display, Victor finally lost his temper and yelled.
“Are you not an elf! Open your ears! Read the currents of the air! Feel the sounds of nature!”
“Oh… Master. You know all that without even being an elf. That’s amazing.”
Victor squeezed his eyes shut.
“Anyway, you understand what I’m trying to say, right?”
“Yeah, a little.”
“A little… Fine. A little is better than nothing.”
There was no point in explaining further with words. It would be faster for her to experience it herself.
Another practical session began to drill the lesson into her. Victor vanished in an instant, and Alfia took a calm, deep breath and opened her ears.
Trying to feel nature was an awkward act for her.
After all, she was an elf who spent most of her days writhing in pain or passed out drunk. Lazily enjoying the charm of nature was a luxury.
“Hoo…”
But she had to do it now. She wanted to do it.
She was only now realizing how much fun it was to wield a bow as an elf. She wanted to go further.
Enough to be acknowledged by anyone.
She had no intention of stagnating here.
As she focused, various things became clearer.
The sounds of the forest.
The wind on her skin.
And the sense of dissonance that came with it. It was subtle, but she could definitely feel it.
The distinct scent of an old man drifting on the wind.
The sound of small animals and insects scattering in fear!
Thwack!
Alfia threw herself to the side. She rotated in mid-air, nocking an arrow and drawing the bowstring.
Kreeeak.
Thwip!
She fired an arrow into what looked like empty space.
At a glance, it seemed like she was shadowboxing. But in that empty spot, a shadow filled the void.
Victor, who had been sliding across the ground, appeared where Alfia had just been standing. It was a move that seemed to predict the future. The thing that had cut through the air was not an arrow, but a dagger.
Victor’s eyes widened at the arrow rushing toward him. He twisted his body with uncanny reflexes, and the arrow grazed his arm.
He was about to attack again before he could even regain his broken posture, but Alfia, still on the ground, had already nocked a new arrow and was taking aim.
The distance wasn't great, so it was obvious whose weapon would reach its target first.
“I think I was faster this time, wasn't I?”
Victor, his eyes wide with surprise, soon gave a wry smile and raised his hands.
“I lost.”
The moment the word of surrender left Victor’s lips, a grin stretched from ear to ear on Alfia’s face. She sprang to her feet and trotted over, practically radiating an unconcealable excitement.
“How was that? Was it good?”
“To be honest, it’s unbelievable. I never thought you’d be able to apply it in a real fight so quickly.”
“Hee-hee, I’m a pretty fast learner.”
It was beyond being a fast learner.
As he aged, Victor’s body wasn’t what it used to be. But he hadn’t become so weak that he’d lose his timing to a rookie archer with zero combat experience.
Alfia’s growth rate had far exceeded Victor’s expectations. Are all elves like that? It was enough to make one feel that life was futile.
Karami, who had been watching while sitting with his legs crossed, brushed the grass off himself and slowly walked over.
“Is it over?”
“She’s met the minimum standard.”
“If she walked into an enemy’s trap, would she survive?”
“Hmm, it’s hard to say for sure. Her growth rate is certainly fast, and she has plenty of potential, but she still lacks a trump card.”
“A trump card…”
Karami seriously mulled over Victor’s advice.
She had no trump card.
In other words, she had no ultimate move.
Victor could create dozens of daggers from shadows. If that was a magic that defied logic, Alfia’s archery was more like a circus trick you might see in the real world.
The difference was on another level entirely.
In time, she might be able to conquer the world with a single arrow, but the important thing was that she couldn't do it now.
I guess messing up the sequence of events is the cause.
The original route went like this.
First, you heal the broken Alfia, then you win the Slave Festival event that determines the best slave.
With the prize from that, you resolve Alfia’s spirit problem, and from then on, she can increase her combat power, either by combining her spirit’s power with her archery or by learning spirit magic outright.
Ultimately, it meant that unless he did something about her spirit, he couldn't break through Alfia’s limits.
Is there a way to just snatch the item…?
Karami glanced at Victor, then tilted his head.
Hmm, that’s tricky.
Sending him in to infiltrate without even knowing the item’s location was a bit much. And the fact that he was too dependent on Victor was also bothering him.
Karami pondered for a moment.
The answer came more quickly than he expected.
I’ll just make him bring it to me.
*
In Noctar, there was a massive building that rivaled the lord’s castle.
The Desert Rose Merchant Group.
We were now walking toward it.
We had dragged it out as long as we could. Any further delay and they seemed ready to invade, so we had no choice.
There was no reason to hide anymore, so Alfia had taken off her robe. I could feel people’s eyes on us.
The hikikomori elf fidgeted, clearly burdened by the stares. If I had a face like that, I’d be traveling the world.
“Will the shop be okay?” Alfia asked, her face tense. Having grown fond of the children while living with them, she was worried about the shop.
She was concerned they might attack the shop to take hostages.
“It’ll be fine. The Master is there.”
I wasn’t particularly worried, not unless they brought someone stronger than Victor. And people like that weren't easy to find.
It wasn’t the kids we needed to worry about, it was us.
Alfia, equally nervous, couldn’t stop taking deep breaths. I could see her hand tightening its grip on her bow.
“Do you think I can do it? I trained with the Master, but this is my first real fight, so I’m anxious…”
“You’ll do great. I was right there watching you practice so hard.”
“…Yeah, you’re right. Thanks. Saying that makes me feel a little better.”
When we arrived at the merchant group’s building, a man standing by the door approached us.
“Are you the Slave Reaper and the elf who have an appointment with the leader today?”
“That’s us.”
“Welcome. The leader is waiting for you.”
We followed the man, who appeared to be an employee, into the building. I’d gotten a sense of it from the outside, but true to his description as a collector, the interior was dazzlingly opulent.
A chandelier cast a soft glow.
The floor of the central hall was made of gleaming polished marble, and the red carpet laid over it was decorated with ornate patterns.
The animal statues looked as if they had been petrified with magic and taxidermied, so lifelike they seemed ready to awaken at any moment.
So all of this is going to be mine?
I’d better be careful not to break anything.
“Ooh, you’ve finally arrived. I was waiting so, so eagerly, I thought my neck would snap.”
Roperman descended the central staircase with his arms wide open. He said he was glad we’d finally come, but to my ears, it sounded more like, “You bastards finally showed up.”
And what neck was he talking about? I couldn’t even tell if he had one, buried as it was in fat.
Or so I almost said.
I beamed as if grateful for the welcome.
“My apologies for making you wait. It is an honor to be invited like this.”
“Hohoho, an ho-honor, you say. For the famous Slave Reaper to visit, I, I’m the one who should be grateful.”
“Hahahaha.”
“Hohohoho.”
We faced each other and laughed for a good while.
“Si-since you’ve come all this way, how about a tour? I’ll sh-show you around myself.”
“Oh, I was just getting curious. I won’t refuse. Let’s go, Alfia.”
Alfia shot me a displeased look. It seemed she didn’t like the idea of a leisurely tour when we’d come here to fight.
But this was a rare opportunity, wasn’t it?
I’m just trying to learn the building’s layout, not because I’m actually interested in looking around.
When I nodded with a smile, Alfia let out a sigh of resignation. We began to follow the greedy pig.