Silvia Repays Her Debt
"P-please spare me—!!"
The scammer's scream was swallowed by the villagers surrounding him and vanished into the noise.
The matter of punishment had left my hands. The enraged villagers would dole out a fitting sentence on their own.
Odds are he'll get beaten to death.
In a rural village without any modern police force or public authority, order was maintained solely through the tight bonds between residents. If someone committed a crime, everyone joined in punishing the criminal. Their wariness toward outsiders was extreme as well.
I had a rough time of it myself at first.
When I first arrived in this village, I had been met with the same suspicious stares. Only after helping people a few times with my abilities—or reading letters for them—had I managed to blend in.
"He's trying to run!"
"Don't let that scammer get away!"
"You're not going anywhere until you pay back every last coin you stole!"
The brutal sounds of someone being struck mixed with shouts and screams, creating a thoroughly vicious racket.
"Master Rix! I'll go join them myself!"
Jones bowed deeply at the waist, then sprinted off to join the crowd surrounding the scammer.
"Heh heh heh. So this is how criminals are punished in the countryside."
Silvia laughed lightly, as if she found it amusing.
"Victims personally punishing their assailants… We should introduce this in the Capital! It seems like a remarkably effective form of justice."
Private retribution certainly came with all sorts of side effects. But ranting about the dangers of vigilante justice in a rural village like this would fall on deaf ears—even a passing dog wouldn't listen. In a place without public authority, this was the most effective crime prevention there was.
The scammer incident had been resolved without further trouble.
"I'd like to head to the place I originally intended to go. Would that be all right?"
"Ah, right. That was the purpose of this walk, wasn't it? I'd completely forgotten."
This stroll had originally been meant to take Silvia to my private secret spot. An unexpected incident along the way had delayed us.
"What would you like to do? If you're tired, we can end the walk here."
"Following Sir Rix is only natural. Come on, lead the way."
Silvia looked at me with a confident expression.
Is following me supposed to be the natural thing to do?
The question crossed my mind, but I kept quiet and took the lead, setting off toward our original destination.
"..."
Silence stretched between us as we walked. After moving around with a whole group, walking with just two people felt rather lonely.
Still, the atmosphere doesn't seem bad.
It wasn't an awkward silence—more the comfortable quiet that settles between people who get along. Silvia and I walked for a while without saying a word.
We climbed the hill path. Before long, we arrived at my secret place.
"We're here. This is my favorite spot."
From here, the entire rural village spread out below at a glance. A landscape utterly different from Korea—and different from this world's cities as well—unfolded before us. The open vista captured the whole village in a single view. With not a single tall building in sight, it looked like a bright, sweeping landscape painting.
"...It's beautiful. I think I understand why Sir Rix likes it so much."
Silvia gazed down at the village in a daze. Having lived her whole life in the Capital, a countryside view like this must have been entirely new to her.
"Lady Robbins. I like it here. I intend to stay in the village for the time being."
I stated my intentions once more. I would not be following Silvia.
"Heh heh. Your form of address keeps changing—Your Grace one moment, Lady the next. You switch them however you please."
"When other people are around, I have to be careful. Calling you casually feels awkward."
"I didn't realize Sir Rix was the type to worry about appearances. News to me."
"Ha… hahaha…"
Well, considering the things I'd done while possessed, it was hard to blame anyone for thinking I wasn't in my right mind. With no room for excuses, I could only laugh awkwardly.
"You can speak comfortably."
"...Pardon?"
"If it's Sir Rix, you may call me by my name. It's not as if you haven't done it before. You've already done it several times."
Silvia slowly turned her head. Those golden eyes that had been looking down at the village now fixed on me.
"Silvia."
If she wanted me to say it, I'd say it. Without looking away, I met her eyes and spoke her name.
"...Nnh. Th-this is more embarrassing than I expected."
"Is it? I figured you'd be used to it after hearing it a few times already."
"I thought so too. But…"
Even as her face flushed, Silvia pressed on steadily.
"The Sir Rix of right now is a little different from back then. The atmosphere, I suppose. I can't put it into words exactly, but something is different."
"Different how?"
"Do you really have to ask that too…"
After a moment of thought, Silvia nodded as if she'd figured it out.
"The Sir Rix of right now is kind. When you helped me before, there was something condescending about it—like you were looking down on me. But now, even when you speak casually, it doesn't feel that way at all."
She'd noticed that. Silvia had a pretty sharp eye after all.
My personality changed when I borrowed the power of Yongwang-shin. A side effect of sorts, you could say. Though I'd benefited from that personality shift enough times that I couldn't really call it purely a downside.
"B-by the way, I never said you could drop the formal speech!"
"Want me to go back to speaking formally, then?"
"...It's fine. Just keep talking the way you are."
Silvia answered hesitantly. Then a faint smile slowly bloomed on her face.
"Today was truly enjoyable. Thank you, Sir Rix."
A breeze swept through, tousling Silvia's hair.
"I've been terribly busy lately. Becoming the head of the house and trying to restore a ruined family has been exhausting, so this was a welcome rest."
Now that she mentioned it, I could clearly sense the fatigue on her. Restoring the family that Bardo had wrecked was going to take some hard work for a while.
"I understand why Sir Rix likes this village. Maybe I should just move down here myself?"
"...Are you serious?"
"Heh heh. Of course I'm joking. Though I was partly serious. Just as Sir Rix doesn't want to leave this place, I don't want to leave my family right now either."
To Silvia, the Robbins family was the home where she'd been born and raised—and a source of pride. You couldn't casually throw away your identity.
"Once some time has passed and the family is stable, I'll come find you without fail. Sir Rix, please stay safe until then."
"Yeah. I hope you stay safe too, Silvia."
"...Do you think I can manage well without Sir Rix?"
"Yeah. If it's you, Silvia, you'll be fine."
A single line filled with hope and encouragement. Silvia smiled with a look of relief.
"It's a cliché thing to say, but when it comes from Sir Rix, it feels so reliable! Sir Rix really is different from everyone else."
Finished speaking, Silvia drew something from her breast pocket and held it out.
"Here. A gift."
A blue stone about the size of a palm. The shape was extremely familiar.
"Don't tell me—is this a Communication Stone?"
"Yes. Please accept it without refusing. I'm giving it to you on the condition that I don't kidnap you off to the Capital. If you don't take it, I really will abduct you."
"Uh… well. Thanks."
I took the Communication Stone she offered. Communication Stones were extraordinarily rare items that even among nobles, few people possessed. The production process was complex and time-consuming, so the quantity available was extremely limited. In short, it was something you couldn't buy even if you had the money.
"That Communication Stone is linked to mine. Now I can talk with Sir Rix whenever I want!"
Silvia continued cheerfully, clearly delighted.
"The Communication Stone just now was repayment for saving my life the first time."
The first repayment. Which meant…
"There should be a second repayment for saving my life a second time as well. For the second reward, Sir Rix gets to choose."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean I'll give you whatever you want. Anything at all. Countless gold coins, a dragon's heart, real estate in the Imperial Capital—whatever you desire, I'll use every bit of my power to obtain it for you."
The head of the Robbins ducal house. With that kind of power, she could probably get her hands on just about anything.
Perfect timing—there was something I wanted. This works out well.
I hadn't expected to obtain it this way, but borrowing the power of a ducal house would let me get a high-quality item.
"What I want is…"
I finished explaining to Silvia.
"Really? You're fine with just that?"
"Just that? To me, it's more important than anything else."
"Hmm, all right. Since Sir Rix is putting it that way, I'll prepare the highest quality I can manage."
Silvia smiled with the conviction of someone who'd made up her mind.
Together we descended the mountain and returned to the mansion. Along the way, we collected the various gifts of gratitude—ham and assorted vegetables—that had been left by the roadside in the village, and brought them home.
Once everything had settled, Silvia left her farewells and returned to her main house in the Capital.
A few days later.
"Young Master. A messenger from the Robbins family has arrived."
"Got it. I'll go out."
Hearing Hanna's words, I stepped outside.
"Are you Sir Rix?"
"Yes. I'm Rix."
"Here—this is the item Her Grace instructed me to deliver to you."
The messenger held out an elegant silk wrapping cloth.
"Thank you."
"Yes. I'll be taking my leave now."
Having finished his task, the messenger turned and left at once. Thorough professional spirit.
I took the wrapping and went back inside. Unwrapping it revealed a fine wooden box. Opening the box, I found the item I'd requested from Silvia.
A long iron rod with several bells hanging from the end like fruit. The clean finish made it obvious at a glance that a master craftsman had made it.
I gripped it in one hand and gave it a light shake.
Jingle-jingle-jingle.
A clear, elegant bell sound rang through the house.
The weight balance is good, and the sound is excellent.
This was definitely a high-quality piece. Clearly handmade by a master artisan.
"Young Master, what is that?"
"Shaman Bells."
"...Hearing the name doesn't help me understand."
"Think of them as similar to the ceremonial bells mages use."
"Young Master, you can use magic too?"
"No. I can't use magic."
But.
I could do something else.
"Now I'll be able to do my work a little more properly."
Shamans didn't dress in fancy clothes and use tools like fans and knives for no reason. Shaman work was all about the gear, after all.
For the first time since falling into this RoFan world, I had obtained proper equipment worthy of me.