10 - Marquis Maron
Episode 10
By the time I came out of the inn to find Reikart, the sun had already set. Perhaps because it was a small village, the few shops there were were closing early.
I stood at the entrance of the inn, keeping an eye out for where Reikart might be visiting.
Ah, that's the blacksmith, and that's the bakery. The village was so small that it was easy to memorize.
"Why are you out here?"
He asked as he returned, laden with purchases. Unfortunately, he couldn't find a Magic Brazier, but instead, he bought multi-purpose oil that made it easy to start a fire.
"Just because."
I smiled.
Reikart urged me to finish my meal. It seemed that in his eyes, I looked like a skinny twig about to fall over.
"Reikart."
"What?"
"Go to bed early. You didn't get any proper sleep standing guard all the way here."
"Was I the only one standing guard?"
"You got even less sleep than me. You were tossing and turning because you didn't trust me."
"I was going to go in anyway. Rest well today, and let's go back tomorrow morning."
There was a limit to how much we could carry, so we couldn't buy everything we wanted. It was also awkward to try and find a cart or carriage. To get from Selbon to Maron Keep, we had to go through a forest without roads.
Reikart pointed towards the plaza.
"I'll have to find a horse as soon as we wake up tomorrow. The village is small, so I probably won't be able to find a good horse, but maybe there'll be a donkey or something."
"A donkey sounds good."
Since I have to keep Purifying while we're going, maybe I should just ride it next time. I've never ridden a horse before, but maybe a donkey would be better.
With that trivial conversation, he went into his room and fell asleep instantly.
He must be in a deep sleep, deep enough to be carried away without noticing. How tired must he have been? He almost collapsed and died coming to kill the real Hayley, and before he could even recover from that, he had to take me out of Maron Keep.
"Sleep well."
Reikart Winter.
Poor protagonist.
"Live happily."
I stared at his closed door for a moment before descending the stairs.
My luggage was already packed. With the skills I had packing travel suitcases, I managed to cram all sorts of things into my luggage, just enough for me to carry.
I might have to rest a little along the way because it's heavy, but I have plenty of time anyway, so it's fine.
"Did you pay your respects?"
Fatima, the innkeeper, asked while doing her closing cleaning.
She was a kind person who had given me three sets of clothes, dried meat, new cooking utensils, and other necessities.
"I did."
I left a treasure that looked expensive at first glance by his pillow, so Reikart wouldn't have to worry about money for a while.
"Hey, where do you live that a young girl is trying to carry such heavy things by herself?"
"It's not that far."
"Why don't you ask that brother from earlier to carry it when he wakes up?"
"He has his own way to go."
I offered Fatima another gold coin as a thank you. She hesitated for a moment before cautiously reaching out and taking the gold coin, then quickly went into the kitchen, telling me to wait a moment.
Then she quickly returned and placed a lunchbox and two seasoning containers in my hands.
"It's our shop's special seasoning. If you keep it in a cool place, you can eat it for a while..."
"Thank you."
"Hey, you know."
Fatima was looking at me with a strangely ambiguous frown. It was a look I had seen often. Come to think of it, Reikart seemed to have a similar look whenever he looked at me.
"It might sound like nagging, but listen carefully. A girl shouldn't go around handing out gold coins to just anyone while traveling alone. There have been a lot of unsettling things happening around here lately, and..."
"This area is dangerous anyway. The Contaminated Zone is right nearby."
"That's not it. I mean, bad people might steal your money. Even ordinary people might suddenly have bad intentions when they see such good gold coins. You seem too naive and weak."
Wow, is that a compliment?
I grinned and thanked her. It was funny how Fatima was genuinely worried about me.
Where did the clichés go? Shouldn't bandits or robbers appear and take all my money, or I get noticed by slave traders and sold to perverts? Shouldn't that kind of thing happen?
Is it because I'm not the protagonist?
What a kind person. How strange.
"As you live, you know, people become scarier than ghosts. You have to be careful. Got it? If anything happens, throw money first and run away. Do you have a knife for self-defense? Make sure to memorize the location of this village, too."
"Yeah."
I nodded vigorously.
I know better than anyone how scary people can be. I wasn't afraid of monsters, zombies, or ghosts at all. People were much scarier.
So, I need to go home quickly.
"Thank you."
My steps felt lighter as I left Fatima's inn.
In fact, I had decided from the beginning that I would leave Reikart in Selbon and return alone.
He is a person from 'outside,' so he should live outside. By now, the female protagonist should have appeared, so they can meet somewhere by fate and fall in love.
My keep is enough for me and my fairy.
Stars flowed across the dark sky. I thought the road would be deserted since I was leaving the village in the middle of the night, but there were quite a few people. They were men returning from work in the nearby forest.
Come to think of it, this was said to be a production city.
They were all dressed similarly, wearing baggy vests and various tools hanging from their waists.
I looked at them curiously, and they looked at me curiously as well.
"Hey, kid, where are you going?"
"Home."
"At this hour? You have to be careful. Stick to the road. Don't go in any direction just because it's dark, okay? If you go into that forest, a wicked sorceress like Hayley will catch you! Hayley, have you heard of her?"
"Wow, yes."
Selbon, was it? Are all the people in this village kind? Is it normal for complete strangers to worry about you like this? Or is this novel being particularly kind to me?
The innkeeper, and these men, too. Weren't they supposed to transform into villains at this timing, be defeated, and disappear?
"Do you have to go far? Why don't you sleep at the inn for a day and go in the morning! We'll take you to where we're logging."
"It's okay."
They were lumberjacks from Selbon. They were returning to the village after finishing work in the nearby logging area.
"Should I give you this, at least?"
One man offered me an herb to repel pests. I didn't refuse and quickly accepted it.
"A girl being brave all alone. Go home quickly."
"Yeah."
"Are you really not scared? Should I ask my wife to go with you just to the front?"
"I'm fine, I said."
They shrugged their shoulders when I repeatedly refused and hurried on their way. Then they continued their conversation among themselves.
"Soldiers have been dispatched to the border of the Contaminated Zone, right? The Order, right? They abandoned it for a hundred years, and now they're sending a belated investigation team?"
"I heard one of the cardinals is young and full of energy."
"A useless act."
They laughed heartily. I perked up my ears but soon became listless and quickened my pace.
An investigation team for the Contaminated Zone, huh.
Let them investigate all they want.
Maron Keep will remain a remote area forever. An island within an island. Because I'm going to make it that way.
I plan to live a long and quiet life inside, without being executed or chased. To do that, I have to avoid getting involved with the protagonists as much as possible.
I'm sorry, Reikart, but it was an unavoidable choice since you're the protagonist.
