Escort Request (3)
"I'm sorry. I got a little... too excited."
As I came out of the kitchen with the coffee, Aileen bowed deeply at the waist toward me.
No, seriously... You don't have anything to apologize for, Aileen...
"Uh, n-no. Why would you be s-sorry, Aileen...?"
"No, Noah. This really was my fault."
"Ah, ahh... O-okay, I get it, so... please lift your head..."
A brief silence passed, and Aileen raised her head with a soft smile.
"From now on, if I ever make you uncomfortable or do something you don't like, please tell me right away. All right?"
"Y-yes... You tell me too, Aileen."
"Good. Then I'll start. The coffee you made tastes terrible."
"Nweh...?"
Coffee is bitter no matter how you make it, right...? What do you mean it tastes bad! Even if I never put points into handiwork stats, I can still make coffee! Hah! Unbelievable. It's all bitter anyway!
"Just because coffee is bitter doesn't mean it all tastes the same."
Oh, is that so...? But how did she know what I was thinking? Does she have mind-reading? This terrifying woman...!
"How did I know, you ask?"
"Uh, uhh...? How...?"
"It's a secret. Heh heh..."
Annoying. So damn annoying...
"Anyway, this is how we talk to each other. Understood?"
Don't you dare change the subject like that! Answer me already! How did you know!
"Y-yes..."
"Good. Then shall we look over the route again? This time I'll explain it verbally. Come sit over here."
I nodded and sat down beside her.
"Hm? No, across from—well, fine. Just sit there and listen. Right now we're in Alrba Village of the Orca Empire. To the east are the Karahan Mountains, and to the south flows the Suar River."
Aileen's gentle voice tickled my ear.
Hearing it this close... it almost sounds familiar? Hmm... the memory's right on the tip of my tongue.
"Our destination, Cartia Village, lies northeast of Alrba."
Just from that short explanation, a map unfurled clearly in my mind.
As expected of an eight-year veteran. As expected of a twenty-first-century brainy guy... wait, brainy girl now? Anyway, present-day me is so cool.
"First, we'll cross the Karahan Mountains. To do that, we have to pass through the East Ruins."
"Oh... the East Ruins..."
That's where the red puppy is the boss. It's also the first raid a newbie ever faces. Back when I was a newbie I died to that puppy so many times... ugh... I didn't even know you needed a party of at least four and just charged in solo. The thrill I felt then still sends shivers down my spine. It's also what got me hooked on Black Sun.
While I was lost in old memories, Aileen's voice reached me, a little colder now.
"Noah. You're listening, right?"
"Hup! Y-yes...!"
I didn't hear a single word. This is bad...
"What exactly were you listening to?"
"Uh... after p-passing the East Ruins..."
"And then?"
I carefully traced the map in my head.
After the East Ruins... Hablon, right?
"Coming out onto the Hablon Plains...?"
"You weren't listening at all."
"Heh, hehe... Then where do we go...?"
As I tilted my head, Aileen let out a deep sigh.
"Haa... You suddenly started grinning, so I just stopped talking. What on earth were you thinking about?"
"Ah... uh, just... old memories... S-sorry. I'll focus."
"Old memories... I see. Then let's continue. First we'll enter the ruins."
Her voice had grown distinctly chilly.
It's because I wasn't paying attention... She's explaining everything out loud just to accommodate me since I can't see the map, and I zone out! You're pathetic, Shin Noah! Full concentration starting now!
"Yes...!"
I straightened my back and adjusted my seat.
"We'll avoid the magic beasts as much as possible, but we won't be able to dodge them all. If a fight breaks out, you'll take the front line. I'll handle the rear."
Huh? Not an archer... a mage? But I don't sense any mana at all. Could she be a supreme master who's completely hidden her power?!
"Um... are you a mage, Aileen?"
"No. I'm not a mage. I can just... do a bit of healing and some light harassment. All you need to confirm is that you're front, I'm rear."
Oh! A healer? A walking potion!... okay, that was too harsh. So she's a priest. Healers in the game were nobility. The class is so boring that anyone who leveled one got snatched up immediately. That's why I almost never partied with healers. Most of them went to the rich, powerful Gold Suns... Anyway, I'll save on potion costs. Sweet!
"Yes...!"
"Good. Now, there's one magic beast in these ruins you have to be especially careful of. Its name is......"
If it's a beast to watch out for, it has to be that puppy.
"Carpeng...?"
"Hmm... so you do know. That's right. You must be absolutely careful of that red wolf."
They call it a wolf here. In the community it was always 'the puppy.' If this were the game I'd beat it senseless without mercy, but this is reality, so I should be careful... If I met it in real life. Hmm... I pictured Carpeng's crimson fur, those vicious fangs, and that massive body. Yeah. Yep... Sc-scary as hell...! Goosebumps all the way to my scalp.
"Yes... careful. I'll be very careful...!"
I don't want to meet it. If I actually do, I might wet myself.
"Yes. Still, Carpeng's territory is deep inside the ruins, so we probably don't need to worry too much."
I nodded.
"After we pass the ruins, we'll enter the Hablon Plains you mentioned earlier. And there... hmm... let's stop the explanation here for now."
"Huh...? Wh-why...?"
Following along with the map in my head was fun! Keep going!
Aileen chewed her lip for a moment before speaking more carefully.
"...Well... information you only take in through your ears isn't easy to remember. I don't know about you, Noah, but that's how I feel."
"Ah..."
She's thinking of me this much...? Are you an angel?! Wait, Hermila's already here, so Aileen can be Angel Number Two!
"We have plenty of time ahead, so I'll explain the rest gradually."
"Th-thank you...!"
"No need to thank me for something like this... All right. The rough explanation's done, so shall we head out? You've finished most of your preparations, right?"
I nodded vigorously.
Thanks to the list Hermila gave me, packing was a breeze.
"Then all we need now are two healthy horses."
Horses...? Not a carriage...?
"Horses...?"
"Yes. Don't tell me... you were planning to go by carriage?"
Of course I thought it would be a carriage! For a trip that long! Isn't a carriage the obvious choice? That's the romance! The dream!!
"A c-carriage..."
"If we take a carriage we'd have to go the long way around, and that would take far too long. Plus it would draw attention... Anyway, we'll be traveling on horseback. I hope you can accept that."
Okay, a carriage would be hard. Yeah. I understand. I understand, but... that's not the problem.
"Um, well... I've never ridden a horse before... I don't know how...! I-I'm sorry!"
I've never ridden a horse in my life!
"Huh? But... you're an adventurer."
"Th-that's true?"
I'll have you know I'm Silver rank! Past Apprentice, past Bronze, Silver!
"Then how do you hunt...?"
"On foot..."
Aileen pressed a hand to her forehead.
"How far have you gone on foot?"
The farthest was probably when I went to hunt orcs.
"To... to hunt orcs... Elain Forest..."
"I'm going to lose my mind..."
"I-I'm sor—"
Just as I was about to apologize again, Aileen's hand cut me off.
"Please stop saying you're sorry. What are we going to do about this..."
"I can go...!"
"How?"
"Uh... by running?"
Krrrkk—
The sound of Aileen's teeth grinding... no, almost shattering, filled the air.
"Hrrk... by rrrunning... how exactly..."
I think she said, "How exactly are you going to run there?"
"W-well...?"
"Well? Weeell??"
Grrrkk...
Bang—
"H-hic—!"
Aileen's tightly clenched fist slammed down on the table hard enough to nearly smash it.
"Wow... I really, truly am going to go crazy... Are you doing this on purpose, Noah?"
"I-I'm sor—"
"If you say 'I'm sorry' one more time... I swear I'll really—"
"Uh... uhh... s-sorry, hic—..."
Hey! You startled me so bad I got the hiccups! Stop scaring me!! My social skills are already trash! Keep this up and I'll completely shut down!! Well, this body will, anyway!
"Hah, is 'sorry' different from 'I'm sorry'? Whatever. How much do you weigh?"
"I-I've never measured..."
I glanced down at my body. Aileen looked me over as well.
Height's about 146 cm, so... probably not even forty kilos.
I let go of the greatsword and was kneading my soft belly when—
"Excuse me for a moment."
Aileen's hand touched my arm.
And then.
"Y-yeheh...?! Wh-what... what the...!!"
Past my arm, to my shoulder. From my shoulder down my neck to my waist.
"H-hyik... euhak!"
Brushing past my stomach, along my thighs to my knees.
"Hold still for a second."
"Eheh... euhik! I-it tickles...!"
Her hand went all the way down to my calves, then climbed back up my thighs and stopped at my spine.
"About thirty-five kilos? No, not even that. Good. We'll just ride together."
After mercilessly groping me, Aileen spoke as if nothing had happened.
I'm over here tingling all over and about to die, and she's completely fine?! Isn't that too much?!
"Heuh... hup, h... the two of us? Together...?"
"Yes. An average adult male adventurer is around eighty kilos, so the two of us shouldn't be a problem."
"Uhh... okay. I-I understand."
Hearing my answer, Aileen began packing her things.
"Now let's really get going."
I nodded and hoisted the bag stuffed full of my gear onto my back.
"But... what's in that huge bag?"
Aileen tilted her head.
"Luggage...?"
I tilted my head too. But her expression looked strange!
Did I mess something up...?
"...Is something wrong?"
"Just a moment—may I look inside?"
I opened the bag and showed her the contents. Inside the bag larger than my own body were preserved foods and everything needed for a long carriage journey, packed to the brim.
"Wh-what is all this?"
"Luggage... H-Hermila told me... what to get..."
"There's no way she would... Where's the list?"
I pulled the crumpled list from my pocket and showed it to her.
"Hmm... ah, so if you mark it like this, you can read it too, Noah. No, that's not important right now."
Aileen studied the paper carefully.
There's no way Hermila would scam me...
"Ah, here it is at the bottom. Everything above is for a carriage; if you're going by horse, she'll rewrite it."
"Uweh...?"
Right. We're going by horse.
"Aileen... what do we do with all this...?!"
My money... my blood-and-sweat money! Do you know how much I spent buying all this?! I only have twenty silver left to my name!
My nose stung.
Ah, I really feel like crying...
"Haa... First let's try to sell as much as we can. I'll help."
"Hic— r-really...? Will, hic— will it sell...?"
With a determined look, Aileen pulled her robe over her head and stood up.
"We have to try. One way or another."
"Y-yes..."
I rose from my seat and watched her back as she walked away.
I'm pretty cool myself, but...
"S-so damn cool..."
Right now, Aileen looked just a little cooler than me.