I Join the Party
“Who do you think you are!”
“I am vehemently opposed!”
“Uh….”
The one who reacted with such violent intensity that it seemed like he might faint was Lox. Chad, meanwhile, was expressing his firm opposition by flailing his entire body with all his might.
Ash looked quite flustered, but the moment I flashed him a bright smile, he unconsciously smiled back. It was an incredibly awkward smile, though.
“It’s my decision.”
“I never gave permission, and I have no intention of giving it!”
“Well, that’s because I never asked for it.”
“…Hey!”
“I refuse your refusal!”
Since I never asked for permission, of course I couldn’t be refused! I was a soul of pure audacity—the very symbol of shamelessness in this era. As a bonus, I was also serving as the symbol of sacrifice.
“Have you lost your mind?!”
“Hmm, maybe a little.”
“…Miss Jeanie!”
“You three just go on your way. I’ll simply follow along quietly. Our paths just happen to overlap, so don’t mind me. That said, if you’re preparing a meal, could you share a little?”
When words failed to get through, Lox’s face crumpled as if he were about to cry. I already knew this about myself—people with good heads and common sense were simply incompatible with me.
“Ash! Do something about this woman! She won’t listen to reason!”
“Um, Miss Jeanie?”
“Why… ? Do you hate me? Is that it, Ash?”
The way I dealt with Lox and the way I dealt with Ash were naturally completely different. I did a full one-hundred-and-eighty-degree turn in attitude. With a face full of sorrow as if there were no greater heartbreak in the world, I dampened the corners of my eyes and gazed at Ash with a wistful, longing look.
Are you going to abandon me? Are you going to turn away from me? Are you going to hurt me?
“……Th-that……”
“Snap out of it, Ash! This woman is dangerous!”
Because Ash had such obvious weak points, conquering him was easy. The real problem was Chad. That guy turned out to be an unexpectedly formidable opponent.
Being simple-minded and straightforward, he didn’t get flustered when words failed, nor did he have any weakness toward me.
“Let me make this perfectly clear! I am not traveling with you!”
And his voice was loud, too.
“Tsk, why not? I’ll clearly be helpful. I’m a water spirit master, so if I travel with you, you won’t have to worry about drinking water, right?”
“I’d rather die of thirst! Even if we go to the desert, I’m not taking you!”
“Think about it. Don’t you need more party members? It’ll be tough for just the three of you to cross the mountains, won’t it?”
“Not at all!”
“Then… I guess there’s no helping it.”
It was a shame, but I had no choice but to give up. This was even more disappointing than parting with Einy.
“Looks like you’ll have to die, Chad.”
“…That joke is seriously terrifying!”
“Who said it was a joke? It’s a shame, but let’s give up on your life here. Any obstacles need to disappear.”
“Aaaaaagh! Ash! Do something about this woman!”
“And if you die, it creates an empty spot for me to fill, right? I really am a genius.”
My will was naturally conveyed to Rai, and Rai immediately bared his gums in a vicious display of hostility. Having already experienced fighting Rai once before, Chad knew exactly how disadvantageous this matchup would be.
Rai was a wolf-shaped weapon of mass destruction. Not only were ordinary weapons useless against him, but his weight alone was enough to crush and suffocate anyone he pinned down.
“Grrrrr.”
When Undine appeared beside me with a gentle ripple, without any particular command, all three men nodded in perfect unison as if they had rehearsed it.
“Let’s go together!”
“We’ll take her! We can’t die yet……”
“Yeah……”
“Oh my, so everyone’s in favor now? See, sincerity really does get through!”
[…Even I can tell that’s not what this is.]
The three men began whispering among themselves, but I could hear every single word clearly.
“We can’t possibly leave this woman alone. It’s too dangerous!”
“Yes, the city would be in danger. We should take her with us.”
“If we leave her alone, who knows what might happen……”
Wasn’t the flow of this conversation a little strange?
Were they really thinking about my safety right now? It didn’t seem like it. Just what exactly did these guys think I was?!
[Pfft. Companionship is supposed to be built on trust… but this is straight-up armed suppression.]
[I didn’t use any force at all!]
[You three already know, don’t you? That Master is that walking weapon of mass destruction.]
[…Fine, I’ll admit it. I may have applied a tiny bit of silent intimidation.]
[That didn’t seem very silent either……]
[Will you shut up already?]
There was a bit of noise, but in the end, I successfully joined Ash’s party. I could confidently say it had been done in an extremely peaceful manner.
After all, not a single drop of blood had been shed.
By the third day of subtly inserting myself into Ash’s party and traveling with them, I learned that each of them had their own distinct roles.
Finding the way and checking various pieces of information was Lox’s responsibility. Chad mainly took the lead, scouting for danger and acting as the vanguard in emergencies. He was the party’s primary combatant and, incidentally, the one in charge of meals.
And after quietly observing, I confirmed that although Ash was far stronger than Chad in terms of pure combat ability, he rarely drew his sword—perhaps because of his cautious personality, to put it nicely.
He was the party’s mediator, a pacifist, and their leader.
It was clear they were trying to maintain stability by having each member faithfully fulfill their role while preserving their own kind of balance. This kind of group formed by travelers with a common purpose was called a “party.”
I had heard the term often, but this was my first time actually joining one, so there were quite a few interesting aspects for me.
The goals of travelers were as diverse as their numbers. Some were pure souls who took on trials to better themselves. Others sought to prove their courage and will, to gain fame and honor. And then there were those who were simply out to make money. Everyone had their own reasons.
The ultimate goal of a party was for like-minded travelers to pool their strength and reach their desired objectives more quickly.
They traveled together because they shared the same goal.
There were ordinary people who lived their entire lives peacefully in their hometowns, and then there were courageous souls who challenged the world. The latter were what people commonly called “travelers.”
Children often dreamed of becoming travelers. They wanted to form parties and accomplish great deeds. For example, hunting a dragon—that legendary, magnificent feat! It was one of the grandest goals a party could aim for.
However, in reality, such things were nearly impossible. Most ordinary parties proved their strength by subjugating monsters that harmed people, or showed off their wisdom by discovering ancient cultural ruins.
‘It seems the public goal Ash established is something like that too. Searching for ancient treasures… It’s pretty safe and ordinary.’
I stared intently at the back of Ash’s head as he rode ahead on his horse. Perhaps sensing my gaze, Ash turned around. Today as well, he really did have such an ordinary face.
Looking at that fake face always made me curious about what the real, grown-up Ash looked like.
Since he had been such a beautiful boy that he was even kidnapped as a child, surely he had grown into a handsome man who could delight my eyes, right? I wondered how I could get a look at that.
Maybe I should just knock him out cold and steal the necklace.
“Do you have something to say?”
“Not at all?”
“For some reason, your eyes look terrifying.”
“Oh my, I wonder why? I have no idea.”
When I had asked what this party’s goal was, Ash told me they were searching for the Cup of the Golden Star, one of the most prized treasures among the remnants of ancient civilizations.
It was a legendary artifact said that if you gathered the morning dew in its sister item, the Chalice of Dawn, and drank it from the Cup of the Golden Star, it would cure any disease.
And according to the rumors whispered in secret, the Chalice of Dawn was hidden deep within the Elan imperial family. So the cup hunt was obviously a cover story, but it would still be nice if they happened to find it.
Though something that had been missing for over five thousand years wasn’t likely to be found so easily.
“According to the map, there’s a rest area beyond that hill. Shall we stop by?”
“Perfect! I was just starting to get hungry.”
It looked like we would be having a late lunch. As Lox guided us accurately along the path, Chad’s shoulders bounced with excitement at the thought of food. He rode ahead even faster than usual.
All four of us were riding horses—borrowed ones.
I had learned from Ash that during long journeys, having your own horse could actually be inconvenient in certain sections. Rather than suffering a loss by buying and selling them, borrowing was a good alternative.
The downside was that the deposit was expensive, and you could only ride them on designated routes. If you went off-route, you’d have to rent new ones.
“It’s pretty big. And clean.”
“It’s a nice rest area.”
“There’s even a table? This is lucky!”
Every time travelers stopped to eat, finding a spot and building a campfire was quite troublesome. So reusing a spot someone else had already used was very common among travelers.
When the same place was used repeatedly, public rest areas like this one would sometimes be built.
Since many people used it, it had naturally been marked on maps. This was one of those places.
Because it saw frequent traffic, there was even a large, roughly-made wooden table. For a journey, this counted as a small stroke of luck.
Having a table to sit at while eating made a surprisingly big difference.
“Then let’s prepare the meal! Hey, fill this with water for me.”
Chad, in charge of cooking, laid out the ingredients on the table and shoved a pot into my arms. It was a small pot about the size of a human head.
“Hmm, the bread’s already gone hard. If we don’t eat it soon, it’ll go bad, won’t it?”
“Do we have any jerky left?”
“It should be in my bag. Let’s throw it all into the soup before it spoils too.”
While the men worked together in perfect sync to prepare the meal, I sat at the edge of the table and used Undine to fill the pot with water.
Naturally, compared to the jungle escape I had been forced to endure alone after leaving Magi’s lair, this was a much more enjoyable journey.
I was quite entertained just watching what normal adventurers’ daily lives looked like.
“Should I add all the carrots? What about the onions? The corn looks like it’s about to go bad too… but if I add this, the flavor might turn strange.”
With two men who were skilled with swords, I had nothing else to do.
While Chad skillfully peeled potatoes with familiar movements and sliced them directly on his palm without needing a cutting board before tossing them into the pot, Lox mixed spices and chicken powder in the right proportions, added them to the water, and stirred until they dissolved.
“I like it when there’s a lot of black pepper.”
“Ah, yes.”
Meanwhile, Ash went into the forest, gathered an armful of firewood, and started a fire. As for what I did? I helped by staying still and not getting in their way.
Truly, my consideration knew no bounds!
I really was the Saint.
“It’s done!”
After throwing various ingredients into the pot and letting it boil vigorously, they adjusted the seasoning one last time. Paired with the hardened bread, it made for a decent meal.
Chad’s cooking skills were surprisingly decent.
“Wow, so can we eat now?”
I picked up my plate and spoon and looked up, only for Chad to immediately burst out in complaint.
“Hey! Do you only ever eat?!”
“Want me to pay you?”
“That’s not what I’m saying! But if you’re offering, maybe I should take it?”
“Chad.”
To me, Ash always looked gentle, but the way he could freeze Chad in place with just a low call of his name made it clear there was definitely a hierarchy between them.
“Tsk……”
After watching them for a few days, I had figured it out.
Chad was weak to Ash. Ash was weak to Lox. And Lox was weak to me. It was like rock-paper-scissors.
And me?
I was the pistol stuck in the middle of rock-paper-scissors. No matter what they threw out, I could just shoot it. Still, if I had to be honest, I was a tiny, tiny bit weak to Ash.