Chapter 11
Chapter 11
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 11
Chapter Title: Night Guest - 1
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[You have achieved 'The Price of Healing.']
Whoa. Finally got this one.
While I was checking my new achievement, Lucille, who had collapsed amid the corpses of countless boar-like monsters, panted heavily.
"Haa... haa..."
Her ragged breathing was probably due to pushing her mana to its limits in the fight. She couldn't even properly grip the sword in her hand.
Lucille had said she possessed exceptional talent as a child. Though she had locked herself away in her room afterward and never put it to use.
She was apparently proficient in both swordsmanship and magic.
Even though she hadn't trained in a long time, this was an easy quest, so she had more than handled her share.
"Ee-hee."
The werewolf shaman grinned, winking one eye as he watched Lucille take my outstretched hand and stand up.
Our quest had been to gather mushrooms in the forest.
But the reason we'd ended up in such a fierce battle with monsters was simple—one reason.
"Wow, it's been so long since we've taken down this many monsters! Sage! Have you tried monster meat? Oh, humans probably can't eat it, right? But it actually tastes really good once you get used to it. You should definitely come to our village sometime—the specialty monster boar steak is amazing. My sister makes it the best. And, uh, that girl over there, Lucille? You can come too, Lucille! You're the Sage's disciple, after all!"
Despite his friendliness, Lucille shot him a resentful glare. The werewolf boy just grinned wider.
"Just mention the name Willkus Strideum in the village, and you can eat and drink as much as you want! I'm the strongest shaman in the village, believe it or not! Oh, right, you didn't get to see my spells properly, did you? Want me to show you? So, like..."
Lucille's expression grew darker by the second. She fiddled with her earlobe, as if her ears hurt, before finally looking at me.
I flicked the forehead of the nonstop chatterbox hard enough to shut him up.
-Thwack!
"Ow!"
"Can't you just shut up for once?"
"Ugh! That hurt! Even my dad never hit me!"
That's why your dad should've used the stick on you.
If I ever visit that village, I'll make sure to tell him.
That it's okay to give you a good beating when educating your kids.
He'll take my advice as the Sage seriously.
"...Ugh... Why... I heard this was an easy request..."
At Lucille's exhausted mutter, he beamed even brighter.
The reason we'd encountered so many monsters during what should have been a very easy mushroom-gathering request was one thing.
This guy.
It was all because of the werewolf shaman boy's sky-high energy and his ear-splitting chatter.
Try yelling like that in a quiet forest where only birdsong and the sound of flowing water occasionally echo.
No wonder the monsters came running.
Whether he realized he was the troll or not, he was still as cheerful as ever.
Cheerful enough that I wanted to smack him again.
Anyway, we'd secured the quest item: the mushrooms. I harvested a large one from under the oak tree, put it in my bag, and tucked my staff into my belt.
"Haa... haa... Master... I... I'm at my... limit..."
Lucille was always quiet. Her maids matched her mood and were the taciturn type.
But after dealing with this noisy guy—and the horde of monsters his noise had attracted—she looked half out of her mind.
Tsk tsk. How's she going to survive this harsh world like this?
"Let's head back for now."
"Aw, too bad. I wanted to hang out more..."
"...We're going back."
Oho.
Lucille shot him a cold glare and spat out a single word.
The Lucille with rock-bottom confidence and severe self-deprecation!
Talking to someone like that!
Was it her murderous aura?
The boy looked awkward, tapped me on the shoulder, and spoke in an unusually small voice.
"Your disciple is kinda scary."
You made her scary.
After the quest ended, Lucille and I, both utterly exhausted, headed to the central fountain in the capital.
I pulled out my lute as she sat in a quiet spot, calming her nerves with the sandwich and juice her maid had packed.
"Ah..."
"Would you prefer to eat in silence?"
Playing music with the Performer skill reduces stress, which counts toward achievements.
Especially while eating—the effect is even better, so I wanted to do it whenever possible.
As I tapped the lute and asked, Lucille took a small bite of her sandwich from the basket and smiled faintly.
"You're not eating?"
"I never eat lunch."
"Hmm... Then, please do."
I plucked the tuned strings a few times. Looked like I was about to busk as a street musician again.
Sitting in front of the fountain, I played for my sole audience member.
Ding ding. Clear, beautiful notes from the lute began to blend with the fountain's water sounds.
Thanks to all the playing I'd done while following the main story, my lute skills were top-notch—no one had ever complained.
So, passersby who seemed to be resting or on dates stopped to listen, swelling my audience.
-Ding ring...
One song ended, and Lucille looked much more relaxed.
"Waaah~!"
"One more song, please!"
"Here!"
Since I'd played a soothing, atmospheric tune, couples smiled and tossed me a coin or two. But do I need the money?
I politely returned their coins and asked Lucille,
"Are you feeling better?"
"Yes. But Master... your playing is incredible. Even better than the palace musicians."
"You're too kind."
No joke, way too kind.
Those guys can play much better than me.
I'd listened to them occasionally, and yeah, I can't beat professionals.
"I mean it."
"They say music is perceived differently based on the listener's mood."
"Ah... Then, um..."
Lucille hesitated, glancing at me.
"What about the others in the Hero Party...?"
Instead of answering, I just grinned at her. Catching my hint not to mention it, she bowed her head slightly and hunched her shoulders.
"Sorry."
"Apologizing right after realizing your mistake. As expected of a princess."
Most people can't even do that. As I thought about everyone I'd met so far and put away my lute, I said,
"Shall we go?"
"Yes. Back to the castle..."
"No."
"...Pardon?"
"Second one."
It was barely noon. Plenty of time left in the day.
At least three quests to clear. Lucille paled at my explanation, but I had no intention of going easy.
"Um... Who are we going with this time?"
"Who knows."
Who we go with doesn't matter much.
They'll all be trolls anyway.
"But not that guy from earlier... right?"
Lucille asked cautiously, tense. I nodded. I'd heard he was off this afternoon.
We chatted idly like that and returned to the Adventurers' Guild, where
"Crystal gathering in Triven Cave...? Participants... Case Wishtea? But where's Triven Cave..."
Lucille tilted her head, then froze.
Because of the voice from behind.
"Ah! You know Triven Cave! Triven Cave was discovered 300 years ago by A-Rank adventurer Electra. The first floor is home to giant bats and giant rats. They're not that big, but the crystals you can easily get there are great for boosting magic power. There are three types of crystals here that help with magic power and holy power enhancement..."
As a flood of information poured in, Lucille looked at me with eyes about to tear up.
"Um... Is that... Case Wishtea...?"
I pushed up my glasses and nodded at the info-dumping priestess continuing her explanation.
That's her.
The grand finale of the external training was a performer.
Not just any performer, of course.
"Uoooooh! The evil inside me is pouring out! Uoooooh!! Kill kill kill! Uaaaaah!! Crush everything surging from this loosened rage! Ooooh! Wooooooh!"
Thanks to the performer's debuff from madly strumming his lute, the pig-headed monster writhed in agony and collapsed under Lucille's magic.
With his long, disheveled hair, black leather clothes studded with metal, white scales tattooed here and there, and a horned dragonian forehead engraved with the word 'kill' in Draconian script, the dragonian performer grinned.
"Yeaa. Peace."
"P-Peace."
The performer, who had been headbanging and screaming like a possessed demon just moments ago, ended with peace.
Even though Lucille's taste in music must be vastly different, she awkwardly nodded along with a half-frozen, twitching face.
Then she looked at me, as if to say, 'This is unfair.'
I could understand her reaction, given how relieved she'd been when I said the last adventurer was a performer.
That's not what she imagined a performer to be.
But a performer's role isn't just stress relief.
There are attack-type performers who debuff enemies with bizarre tunes.
Of course, I can do that too.
It's just not part of the achievements, and I've been grabbed by the collar too many times after trying it, so I don't use it much.
"Alright. That's all done, so let's head back."
"Man~ Sage. Long time no see, but your tanking is still top-tier, huh?"
"This is nothing. Good work, Dreg."
"Again next time?"
Before I could answer, Lucille grabbed my clothes.
Shake shake.
I smirked at her tearful face.
"I'll think about it. Now, let's collect the items."
We grabbed the quest goods and headed straight back to the Adventurers' Guild.
The report finished, and the long day of classes ended.
"How was it today?"
"...I felt... so much bigger myself..."
A perfectly normal response.
Everyone we'd gone with today was overly eccentric.
Willkus, who yapped endlessly and attracted monsters.
Case, who monologued in the silent cave and let a bat swarm loose.
Dreg, the performer whose debuffs tortured even allies.
All master trolls.
I smiled at Lucille, who elegantly phrased it as 'Where did you find these people?'
"That's why I told you. Among the people I've met, you're one of the decent ones, Princess."
"Haa... What kind of people have you met, Master...? And yet you're so unfazed... It's impressive."
"Haha."
"And... you're friends with people like that... So how badly must they have treated you..."
The 'they' she meant was probably the Hero Party.
I just laughed it off, and she didn't press further.
"I've heard since childhood that physical strength is just paper if your mental breaks, so I trained my mind diligently."
"Ah."
"And the external classes aren't over yet."
"More?!"
"Yes. This will help improve your skills too, so please come along."
"Yeees..."
At the word 'class,' Lucille nodded reluctantly.
We arrived at the palace chatting about this and that, and it was a bit busier than usual.
A knight I asked explained that the Hero and General Leoden had come to transport supplies for the front lines.
There was some confusion in the guard and inspection duties, so he asked for understanding. I said it was fine.
Lucille flinched a bit at Claire's name, but it wasn't an issue.
"Um... Master. They say the Hero is here..."
Worried Claire might barge in like last time, Lucille clung to my clothes.
"It's fine."
"But... Ah! How about you spend tonight with me? I practiced cards too... We could play games late... Then the Hero can't approach you easily..."
Lucille's eyes sparkled as if she'd just thought of it, grabbing my clothes.
Hmm. Staying up late playing cards isn't a bad offer for a card game enthusiast like me, but tonight might be tough.
If the guards and command are in disarray, the event should trigger today.
"You must be tired too, Princess. Rest up. You did well today... Classes tomorrow afternoon."
Disappointed at no card games, she brightened at 'regular classes tomorrow,' like a kid on her birthday.
Meanwhile, her maids, who had tailed us in disguise all day, appeared in uniform.
Lucille greeted me lightly, received their escort and care, and headed to the White Rock Palace.
And.
As she walked away, I scanned the surroundings. Using the archer's Hawk Eye skill, I spotted something in a black robe moving toward the White Rock Castle from afar.
Today it is, after all.
Alright, time to go.
The task during the 'Pale Moon' event that must be handled at the palace.
Stopping the queen assassination attempt.
Author's Note
Hope you enjoyed today's chapter~
Have a good night~