Erika: My Friend Is Obsessed with Me
Chapter 25
Chapter 25
Erica - When a Friend Obsesses Over Me
Taking a big bite of her sandwich, Erica turned around.
The sound hadn’t come from the front door. It came from the window.
“Come in.”
The wooden window swung open briskly. A tall man lightly vaulted inside.
It was Chaud.
Though his movements were nimble, his large frame made the window look cramped.
“Why do you keep climbing through there when there’s a perfectly good door?”
Chaud only smiled.
Watching his eyes curve into a fresh, dazzling smile gave her a strange feeling.
Why does he have to look like that?
He clearly knew he was ridiculously handsome even when he just stood there grinning like an idiot.
“Let’s go.”
“Go where?!”
She had ignored his nonsense about tagging along, but looking at him now, he had come fully prepared for travel.
“Why are you even coming with me?”
“I’ve always wanted to visit the Ancient Ruins at least once.”
“I told you, this isn’t a commission!”
“I heard you, I heard you,” Chaud replied in an irritatingly sing-song voice.
Then, stepping closer, he cast his gaze over the map spread out on the table.
He propped an arm beside the map.
With a long finger, he tapped right on the Grand Canal and traced a line straight along the river.
It was the exact route Erica had mapped out earlier in her head.
“Hmm.”
Chaud paused at the very same spot, lightly tapping his finger against the parchment.
“We take a boat down the Grand Canal all the way here… and then we’ll have to cut right through the Lekankan Illusionary Forest.”
“Cut through the Illusionary Forest?”
“A straight line is the fastest.”
“No, even if we cross the jungle, there’s no need to push through the Illusionary Forest at its heart. We head straight, skirt around the Illusionary Forest, and take a slight detour.”
“All right,” Chaud answered meekly. “Let’s do that.”
“…….”
What do you mean, ‘Let’s do that’?
She slapped a hand over her forehead.
No matter how many times she explained they weren’t going together, it was utterly useless.
Erica finally let out a heavy sigh.
“……Stop by the guild headquarters first.”
“Why?”
“What do you mean, why? Even if it’s not an official commission, two S-rank mercenaries heading out together need a temporary team contract.”
“You’re taking me with you?”
“If you get annoying, I’m dumping you halfway.”
She tossed him a sandwich. Chaud opened wide and devoured it in a single bite.
He sure eats well. For some reason, she felt like giving him another, but there were none left.
“Can’t we just sign a permanent pair contract?”
“Shut your mouth.”
“Mum’s the word.”
Seeing him smile so obediently with crescent eyes made him look completely unbefitting of his towering frame.
Erica stared intently at the sleek S-rank mercenary her age.
‘This isn’t even a commission.’
She was setting out to track down her master’s whereabouts.
Why did two S-rank mercenaries need to tag along for this? It was a waste of manpower.
Yet, thinking about it again, there was no real reason to stop him from coming either.
‘It will probably be fun with him along.’
Her master had always told her to keep people who made her feel that way close by.
“A life without fun is a real tragedy. Truly, there’s no greater disaster than that.”
“Boredom kills, after all.”
Her master had constantly urged her to seek out things that brought joy.
She wondered from time to time—had Master ever found something fun again?
In the past, he had likely found happiness in his young daughter and wife, but she didn’t know how it had been for him after their deaths.
Gauging someone’s tightly locked emotions was no easy task.
Erica recalled Pechenik’s face.
The expression he occasionally wore when looking at her seemed quite amused, but she couldn’t tell if it truly fulfilled him.
If the day ever came when she could manifest Aura, wouldn’t he finally reap the true joy of raising a disciple?
How wonderful would it be if the Aura—which refused to awaken despite relentless dawn training every single day—arrived suddenly as a joyful blessing? Both for her, and for her master.
“Let’s go.”
“Yeah.”
With long strides, Chaud stepped up beside her.
Erica glanced up at his face.
He was tall. Easily a head taller than her.
Hair as dark navy as the night sky, and eyelashes of the exact same shade.
The refreshing, smiling gaze looking down at her wasn’t anything new.
His way of being endearing yet irritating all at once was just part of his personality.
“Erica, should I go fill out the temporary team contract? Just give me your seal.”
“My seal?”
“Yeah. I’ll drop by the guild headquarters.”
And that smooth, mellow voice.
His voice was so excessively pleasant that it had tickled her ears at first, but she was used to it now.
“Come on, hand it over. The seal.”
She wasn’t sure how Master felt right now, but honestly, Erica’s own days hadn’t been boring at all lately.
“Don’t try anything funny.”
* * *
Off to the Ruins Area to find Master!
The departure started off smoothly.
Right before leaving, when they stopped by the guild headquarters to write the temporary team contract—
“……I told you not to try anything funny.”
“Caught me.”
Aside from Chaud getting beaten to a pulp when he slyly tried to swap it with a permanent pair contract, that is.
“We’ll rent two horses.”
They rode horses to the Grand Canal.
Erica was naturally a skilled rider, and Chaud was no slouch either.
Since both were capable of mounted combat, ordinary horse riding was far too easy for them, and their pace only accelerated.
“……!”
“……!”
Kicking up clouds of dust, their competitive streaks flared, and they tore down the road in a neck-and-neck sprint.
Even after riding non-stop day and night over a long distance that normally took five days to reach the Grand Canal, neither of them felt exhausted.
Everything was great up to that point.
When Erica triumphantly dismounted after arriving just a palm’s width ahead, she had been in high spirits.
Missing the boat right before their eyes and having to wait until the next morning was fine too.
Drinking all night at the adventurers’ tavern while waiting for departure—well, she had gotten a little wasted, but even that was totally fine!
Everything about the start had been smooth sailing.
Sway, sway—
Until exactly one hour after boarding the colossal ship.
“Blergh!”
Before seasickness struck, that is.
Clutching the railing, Erica doubled over, looking ready to plunge her head straight into the wide, flowing river.
Roll, heave—
As the vessel rocked with the current, it felt as though the entire world were spinning.
She had never experienced motion sickness like this in her life.
On mere river water! What a blow to her pride! She hadn’t even gotten seasick during the naval battles on the southern seas.
‘I shouldn’t have drank so damn much yesterday.’
She realized it was a hangover, but it was already too late.
“Ugh.”
The wild, ferocious sprint of the high-speed vessel transformed Erica’s hangover into full-blown motion sickness.
“Hmm, blergh.”
Chaud, leaning right beside her, mimicked her sounds.
“Ugh…… What, are you seasick too?”
“No. I just thought you’d be embarrassed if you were the only one heaving.”
“Damn it, get lost!”
She kicked at him to shoo him away, but he was back by her side in an instant.
“Erica, you’re so strong in battle, yet so weak against this kind of thing? That’s a total contradiction.”
“Don’t pick a fight.”
“The fact that the world’s strongest squirrel suffers from severe hangovers and motion sickness is something that should be reported to academia.”
“Please stop talking nonsense. Haah…… My head hurts.”
Sliding down with her back against the ship’s railing, she slumped to the deck, and Chaud immediately followed suit, sitting right beside her.
“Haah.”
Glancing sideways, she saw that his seated height was tall enough to create the perfect angle. His shoulder was ideally positioned to lean on.
Seeking comfort was pure instinct.
Blinking her eyes, she eyed the sturdy pillow—
And rested the side of her face against him.
“…….”
She could feel Chaud looking down at her, the sensation prickling the crown of her head.
It felt as though his gaze might drill a hole right through her skull, but she paid it no mind.
If Caron or Horizon had been next to her, she would have laid down with her head pillowed on their thighs without a second thought.
With Chaud, doing something like that might provoke him to complain about the weight and refuse to stay still.
“Erica. Do you do this to just anyone?”
“…….”
Whether he was teasing her or not, she didn’t answer.
Her current position was just right. Leaning against his steady, broad shoulder felt remarkably comfortable.
She melted against him, slouching limply like a sleeping puppy.
“……Why do you keep doing this to me?”
His low whisper tickled her ear, but it was bearable.
‘…….’
Closing her eyes, she tried to sleep.
After a good nap, even if they hadn’t reached Lekankan yet, they would surely have covered quite a distance.
Her long, light brown hair spilled down, swaying softly with the motion of the ship.
Lightly. She felt Chaud’s hand gently catch the tips of her hair.
She was fully prepared to drive an elbow straight into his solar plexus if he pulled it.
“…….”
Since he merely caressed it with gentle care, she let him be.
Following the river, the ship forged endlessly ahead.
