Chapter 2: Our Journey: Preparation Arc ① – Lonely Hoss

Having come in a little after peak hours, the Cider Inn was quiet, like the calm after a storm.

There were still a few customers scattered about, but both the counter and the tables were open.

“Huh?”

I spotted a familiar face. A stocky build. A square face.

A round nose. Messy hair. Fur-like clothing.

It was Hoss. Sitting alone at a table. I walked over.

“Hello.”

“Yeah. Hey there.”

“Mind if I sit?”

“Go ahead. Plenty of space.”

I sat across from him.

I ordered my usual—butter rice and lemonade.

“Are you alone? Where are Axe and Rell?”

Hoss is a Grade IV explorer, a dwarf.

Together with Axe and Rell, the three of them form a party called Lightning Fang.

After taking a swig of ale, he replied:

“Axe went back to his hometown with his family.”

“He did?”

With that family… well, they’re not bad people, but still.

“Rell went home too. Got suddenly called back and went with her sisters.”

“Rell too?”

That’s rare, considering she hates going home.

I wonder if Juicy went back as well.

“So Lightning Fang is temporarily closed.”

“…I see… Ah, in that case, Hoss—are you free right now?”

“Well, if you put it that way, I guess I am.”

Hoss gave a faint, wry smile.

“Actually, I’m planning to head to the trade city of Heisen soon.”

“Ohh—Heisen. That’s quite a trip.”

“If you’d like, would you come along too?”

“…Me?”

He looked genuinely surprised.

Did I say something strange?

“Yes. If you’re up for it.”

“Why’re you going there? A job?”

I told him about the letter I’d received from my uncle.

“—And that’s how it is.”

“Your uncle’s got a hidden base on top of that? Just who is he?”

“I wonder that myself.”

All I could do was smile bitterly. Who is he, really?

I used to think he was a famous explorer.

Hoss ordered another ale.

Then my butter rice and lemonade arrived.

I picked up my spoon. “Thanks for the meal.”

“…It’ll take a while before they come back.”

“Is that so?”

“Rell aside, Axe especially. His hometown’s real far.”

“Now that you mention it, I think I’ve heard that before.”

I believe there’s not even a guild there.

“And even for Rell, it’s that Tasan place. Staying a month is pretty much guaranteed. So I figured I’d go solo for a while. I can make a living that way, but… I just haven’t been feeling it lately, so I’ve been killing time drinking like this.”

“Drinking yourself silly isn’t good for you.”

“I know that.”

…Is Hoss lonely, maybe?

I eat about half the butter rice. The broccoli in it today is especially good.

“Hoss. Won’t you come with us after all?”

“Why me?”

“We’ve known each other a long time, and honestly, I want to drink your mixed-meat soup.”

“I can make that anytime.”

“I really like your mixed-meat soup. I’ve tried all sorts of things to recreate it, but I just can’t make it like you do.”

“If you follow the recipe, anyone can make it.”

“Sometimes that’s true—but sometimes it’s not.”

In my previous life, I was a chef at a famous hotel, until my father collapsed.

He passed away, and I suddenly had to take over my family’s ramen shop.

But people kept saying it didn’t taste like my father’s.

It frustrated me—and I felt it too.

Even following the recipes he left behind, something was off.

It took a long time to figure out what that “something” was.

“…Is that so?”

“Yes. This inn’s butter rice is the same.”

To be honest, it’s not exactly the same as that café’s taste.

That flavor only existed because that master made it there.

And because she was there too.

I finish my meal. Yeah—the broccoli was good today.

Hoss looks at me and drains his ale.

“Heisen, huh. I used to live there once.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Not an unfamiliar place for me. Could make for a good way to kill time.”

Hoss grinned.

“Hoss!”

“Who else is coming? Don’t tell me it’s just you.”

“Mineha, and probably Bid as well.”

“Bid—the rabbit girl?”

“Yes. She’s reliable.”

“I know her. After all that trouble, her party broke up and she’s solo now. At least she’s not a stranger.”

We once worked together during a dungeon disturbance.

“And we’re leaving in four days.”

“Got it. I’ll get ready on my end too. But if there’s four of us, renting a carriage might be best.”

“Renting one?”

“Changing shared rides is pretty rough. To get to Heisen, you’d have to switch three or four times.”

“That many…?”

I didn’t know that. I planned to look it up later.

This is unexpected. That much, huh.

“That’s why renting a carriage is easier. You can move on your own terms, and it avoids trouble with other passengers. Especially since Mineha and Bid are good-looking—you should assume trouble will happen.”

“I see…”

They do get into trouble even just walking around town.

Though, to be fair, they always handle it themselves.

“If it’s you, you should ask the witch.”

“Alright. I’ll ask.”

“It was four days from now, right?”

“Yes. I was thinking we should all meet once before then.”

“Got it. Let me know when it gets closer.”

“Yes!”

And with that, after finishing our meal, we parted ways.

A carriage, huh. That was a blind spot.

Maybe I should consider renting one.

If Hoss says so, waiting areas are dangerous.

Especially with how eye-catching they are—Mineha in particular.

It hasn’t even been a year since I first met her, yet she’s become stunningly beautiful.

They say women change—but does that apply to a ten-year-old too? It feels… different.

When it comes to carriages—these are the ones I know, running through town like this.

One passes by beside me now. An ordinary carriage, even in my memories from my previous life.

But in this world, there are giant carriages.

To put it simply—like train cars.

Imagine four of those side by side, and four connected front to back.

That’s how massive they are.

They’re so huge that even the horses pulling them are monster horses.

A caravan is made by linking many of those together.

More than ten giant carriages, hundreds of people including guards.

It’s practically a moving village.

When I headed to Hydrangea, I traveled with one.

They let me stay for about a week. I wonder how everyone’s doing.

“If we’re renting one, I’d love a giant carriage…”

That’d be difficult, though. I chuckle wryly.

“Still, things have gotten quiet.”

Even the air in town feels calmer.

That was like a fever—though a pleasant one.

“Oh? If it isn’t Wof-dono over there.”

I turn at the voice, and a soft, nostalgic scent drifts by.

Jet-black hair tied together with a white cloth.

Her eyes are covered by white fabric marked with thin red lines.

Long, pointed ears. A dignified yet beautiful face.

White hakama and light armor, a wide black hat.

At her waist, two swords—another Grade I explorer, like the witches.

If I remember right, her alias is “One-Cut, Two-Cleaved”.

And also “Unbreakable.”

Kaede Akima.

“Hello.”

“Indeed. To meet here—it has been a hundred years, metaphorically speaking.”

“Then perhaps we can call it fate?”

“Ahh, quite so.”

Kaede laughs lightly, then clears her throat.

“Then let us begin anew. Since fate has brought us together, would you spare a little time to accompany me?”

“Sure.”

Well, I’ve got time anyway.