The Humiliation of Garden

Sub-dungeon #1: The bustling frontier town. Wagner and I had stopped by here to do some shopping. To conquer the sub-dungeon in the underground waterway, the Polluted Waste Deposit, one needs the proper preparations. No matter how skilled an adventurer is, they can't perform at their best without adequate supplies.

"Wagner, what do you think of this?"

"Looks fine. A bit worn, but I like the color."

"No, I'm not talking about the design... oh, never mind."

The first item I picked out was a Large-Capacity Storage Bag. It looked exactly like the duffel bags used in the military, but it was engraved with magic runes connected to a sub-space, making it a convenient bag that could hold a lot of luggage at once. However, even among storage bags, there are high-end ones and cheap ones. The one I found wasn't of particularly high quality, likely because it was just frontier-level gear.

To summarize, this bag can hold a lot, but it gets heavy accordingly. Still, it would reduce the weight to less than a tenth of the original, but low-grade storage bags always have performance flaws. Well, anyway... it's not like I'm the one who has to carry it, so it doesn't matter.

"Here. Use this bag from now on." I handed the bag to Wagner.

"Are you sure? It looks like you paid a fair bit for it..."

"I'm lending it to you. In my opinion, you're the only one in our party fit to use this bag. You're the strongest, after all."

"I see. Alright." Wagner put on the bag and gave a satisfied smile. Good. From now on, you're our party's pack mule. That settles the bag issue. Next, I bought various tools needed for hunting: medicinal herbs to treat wounds, bandages, emergency scrolls, a lamp for lighting, oil, and so on. I couldn't leave out food, either. You can't fight if you're starving. I bought dried grains, dried meat, chicken stock, water, seasonings, and other ingredients. I also couldn't forget cooking tools like a large pot, a mess kit, and a ladle.

"Hmm." Wagner looked at me with an intrigued gaze.

"What? Why?"

"You're quite talented. I've only ever eaten preserved rations at best."

I could picture what Wagner's life had been like until now. He must have just shoved dry, moisture-less bread down his throat with water, eating only to stave off hunger. As is the life of most adventurers. But I didn't want to give up the joy of eating. In a dry adventurer's life with few amusements, I had to endure by eating delicious food—what else would I live for? Besides, eating well-prepared food gives a bonus to the Cooking skill. It raises stats and has various benefits that help in combat, so it's killing two birds with one stone. My Cooking skill level is low right now, so it's not amazing, but if I keep training it, I'll eventually get bonuses I can't ignore.

"You've heard of the Shelter Curry, right? I'm the protagonist of that legend. You can look forward to it later."

"Oho. I'm already looking forward to mealtime."

Finally, I rummaged through the new 'Heroes' and bought a bundle of clothes. The design didn't matter; the goal was to have a variety of sizes. Since our party members all have different builds, picking out clothes is a chore in itself.

"Do we need clothes, too?"

"You'll see later." Wagner tilted his head, not quite understanding this part, but he put the bundle of clothes in the bag as I told him to. Why would you need extra clothes to conquer the Polluted Waste Deposit? You'd feel the reason in your bones much better than a hundred explanations could convey.

After finishing our shopping, "Wagner, it's a shame to go back just like this. Shall we eat a rat meat skewer each?"

"Sounds good."

Having finished our tasks, we headed toward the center of town in a refreshed mood.

"Two skewers, please. With lots of sauce."

As I took a big bite of the thick meat, a laugh escaped me. It's true what they say: humans are animals that adapt to anything. At first, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I was disgusted, wondering how anyone could eat rat meat. Now, my mouth waters just smelling it.

"Did you come with your dad? How cute. Here, have another one on the house."

The skewer vendor looked at me with a satisfied gaze and gave me a freebie. Seriously, between Mitchell yesterday and this guy, are they all blind? What, follow my dad? As if a normal girl would come to a place like the Garden frontier. I wanted to snap at him right then and there, but... if I just swallow my pride for a moment, I get a free skewer. I was torn. I stood there for a moment, lost in deep, deep contemplation. Pride? Or practicality? Which is the right answer? No, is this even a problem worth contemplating? I don't even know that.

"Hey, this girl isn't my daugh—"

"Dad."

"...What?"

"Let's go quickly. Mom is waiting."

I held Wagner's hand tightly, enduring the humiliation. Was it a mistake to come with Wagner, who has such a massive height difference? If I'd come with Flora or Mitchell, would I not have been treated like a daughter? ...No, who knows. If I had, I would have been treated like a younger sister following her older sister.

I intend to call today's events the 'Humiliation of Garden'. Unless I return to being the terrifying Lich who strikes fear into the entire continent, today's shame will repeat endlessly. Let's carve it into my heart. Today's humiliation. The sight of me pretending to be an innocent little girl just to get a free skewer. I tore into the spicy, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠sweet-sauced skewer and clenched my small fist tightly.

Wagner patted my shoulder gently. "People are always quick to judge based on appearances. Estelle, don't let it get to you."

"...Yeah. Thanks."

"I go through it often, too. People often talk down to me, calling me a bear because of my size—"

"No, you are a bear. That's a different story."

"..."

Wagner's shoulders slumped powerlessly. Just then, a crowd gathered in the middle of the street caught my eye. A throng of people circled something, as if a spectacle was unfolding. Did something happen? I struggled to see inside through the gaps in the crowd. 'Damn it, I can't see a thing.' I'm so short that standing on tiptoes or jumping up and down was useless. Damn this pathetic, tiny body. I turned to Wagner.

"Dad!"

"...It seems you've gotten used to that title quite quickly."

"I can't see. Lift me up."

Only when Wagner hoisted me up onto his shoulders could I see the scene beyond the people. "Ah." There were familiar faces. The Vigilante leader, Dawson, and his subordinates. In front of them, several people with swollen faces were kneeling on the ground. Judging by the atmosphere, I didn't think it was a very pleasant event.

"Everyone, listen up." Dawson said, resting his mace on his shoulder. "These guys broke the rules of the frontier. They repeatedly acted selfishly, only thinking of themselves, and in doing so, they destroyed the order of our community. I, the Vigilante leader, couldn't just stand by. Hey, you. Tell them yourself what you did."

Dawson ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠kicked the back of one of the kneeling guys. Crunch. The man, who had his face smashed into the dirt by the savage kick, shook his shoulders and barely managed to lift his body. "I... I..."

"I can't hear you, you bastard. Louder!"

Another kick. The Vigilante members standing behind Dawson giggled as if they were playing a fun game. The gathered crowd only murmured quietly; no one dared to stop the Vigilantes.

"I...! I hunted monsters secretly without the Vigilantes' permission...!"

"Fred, why did you do that? ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Control only has meaning if everyone follows it without exception. We're all trying to do well together, so why are you the only one not listening, huh?"

"Th-that's..."

"Enough. Stop with the excuses. If you did something wrong, you should take your punishment like a man, right?"

Dawson aimed at Fred's head a couple of times like a batter stepping up to the plate, then raised his mace high into the sky. 'The main story of the frontier has already progressed this far.'[Vigilante Monster Control]. The Vigilantes, having grown increasingly powerful, began to exert their influence on the frontier in earnest under the command of the cruel and merciless leader, Dawson. Controlling monster hunting around the frontier and demanding a portion of the harvest as tribute was one of the many atrocities committed by the Vigilantes. I stole a glance at Wagner's face. It would be troublesome if he stepped in now, fueled by some shallow sense of justice.

"Don't worry, Estelle. I have no intention of acting rashly," Wagner said in a low voice, having noticed my gaze. Deep wrinkles were etched into Wagner's forehead. "Besides, Fred's gang are just thugs with bad reputations anyway. It's pitiful, but it's ultimately their own doing."

"Yeah."

"But... I don't like it."

Wagner glared at Dawson with a hardened face. I wanted to joke that he looked like a gorilla when he tensed his face, but... the atmosphere wasn't right for that. Dawson brought his mace down. Crack. Thud. The unpleasant sound of heads bursting rang out in succession. Following Fred, his gang collapsed one after another. It didn't even take 30 seconds for four grown men who were breathing and alive just a moment ago to become corpses.

"Eek!"

"Hiiik..."

"Ugh— seriously. Was there really a need to go that far... it's vicious."

The crowd sighed one by one. It was a horrific sight, but I didn't look away. A weak-hearted person who turns their eyes away because they can't bear to watch won't survive in the world of Nine Stars. I have to get used to it. If I don't, I'll be the one to suffer next.

"You bastards, what are you doing here!"

Two guard soldiers ran over belatedly. The Vigilantes didn't even pay them much mind now. They just looked at each other and snickered. "Nothing happened, so why?" Dawson said nonchalantly, wiping his blood-stained mace.

"What? What are these corpses, you bastard!"

"...Bastard?"

Dawson lifted his cold eyes and stared intently at the soldier. The soldier flinched and took a step back. "Wh-what's with that look."

"I helped you out. Why are you jumping around and making a fuss, huh? You guys weren't doing your jobs on time and were dragging your feet, so I just cleaned up a few pieces of trash for you."

Dawson's subordinates tapped their weapons and subtly surrounded the guards. The Vigilante members were not inferior to the guards in skill or the quality of their equipment. It was only natural that the two guard soldiers were flustered, unable to do anything.

'A clash is going to break out soon.' The power struggle between the Vigilantes and the guards, which had been dangerously submerged until now, would begin to intensify in earnest from here on out.

"Let's go." I hopped down from Wagner's shoulder. I'd seen enough. It was time to go do my own work. As I moved away from the crowd, I felt a gaze from behind. "...Dawson."

His hyena-like, grayish-white eyes. Dawson was watching me, mace on his shoulder, smiling and twirling it. A murderer's smile was etched on his lips. As if to say, 'You're next.'

"Estelle?" Wagner turned back to me, having stopped walking.

"It's nothing, let's go."

Yeah, laugh all you want, you bastard. You'll regret bitterly before long that you didn't kill me when you had the chance.