Chapter 207
“Thank you for coming, Hash! You may have already heard, but the upper district of the noble quarter—do you remember the former residence of Marquis Alheus, where you once performed? There’s talk of renovating the hall of that mansion and constructing a new concert hall there.”
“That sounds wonderful! I’ve heard that house was confiscated as the home of a traitor, but to use a former enemy’s estate for the development of the nation’s culture—there’s quite a poetic narrative to that, isn’t there?”
“Exactly, exactly! It was actually my idea! The location and hall of that house are perfect for a concert hall. Even as a renovation, it will still take several years to complete the hall—at least two years, at the earliest. Hash, I would like to make a contract with you now, so that in two years you will perform regular concerts at that hall.”
The next day, I had assumed Hash’s form and visited Count Hackartney’s house.
It seemed that many factional nobles had fallen into hardship due to the downfall of Marquis Alheus, but this household had not been affected that much.
It was apparently well-known that they had only ever made proposals regarding music, so they were judged almost harmless.
As expected, the offer for a contract was made. The earliest performance would be two years from now, and by then, Hash would need to be free… Could it be done in time? No—it will be done in time.
“I understand. Until then, I will continue my journey in pursuit of music, but when the concert hall is completed, I will surely return to this place! This land, bearing the name of the valiant dragon, shall spread wings of music across the world! If I can contribute even a little to that flight, it will be the greatest honor!”
I… I literally just said, “I understand. I’ll continue my wandering journey, and I promise to return once it’s finished.”
Yet somehow it automatically…! That Hash never fails to turn into an auto-poet!
After meeting with Count Hackartney, I headed to the hidden underground entrance along the eastern road for the first time in a while.
This place is convenient—I’ve used it many times before.
Once I set out on my journey, I won’t be able to disguise any oddities from changing characters while using this route.
Well, I’m gradually reaching the point where I don’t have to worry about that anymore.
I manipulated the menu, returned from Hash to my original form, and used the underground passage to head home.
If construction were ever expanded on the Underside, this underground passage might eventually be exposed. I’ll need to come up with some countermeasures before that… though worst-case, I can just act like I never knew.
“Phew… finally home—”
“…W-welcome back, Shizuma.”
To consider the possibility of visitors, I returned through the second-floor bedroom entrance instead of the fireplace entrance.
But—just then, I saw Sheele changing her clothes.
Ah, that’s right… yesterday, when we were deciding sleeping arrangements, I lent my bedroom to Sheele, and Same and I slept on the sofa in the lounge…!
“Sheele, sorry! Habit…”
“It’s fine, I was just surprised. It’s okay if you see me since it’s you, Shizuma.”
“I’m the one who’s not okay with that.”
“Oh my, your face is bright red. Hehe, you’ll get used to it, okay? We’re going on a journey together from now on.”
“Could you not tease a young lady too much?”
“You’re already an adult, right? Okay, it’s fine to open your eyes now.”
I had instinctively closed my eyes, so I barely saw anything.
Yes, barely. I won’t deny seeing a little, just a small part.
When I opened my eyes, for some reason, Sheele’s face was right in front of me.
“Whoa!”
“Boo! Hehe… I just wanted to feel you seeing me in front of you like this.”
“Hmm… my lady of the house seems rather mischievous…”
I won’t say it out loud, but when a beautiful older sister is this close, a boy’s heart rate rises easily. Please maintain a more appropriate distance!
“By the way, I already met the Count as Hash, but Sheele, did you just wake up?”
“…Yes. It seems that when I actually gain a body, I end up sleeping a lot…”
“When we set out on the journey, I’ll have to be your alarm clock, huh?”
“Please wake me gently, okay?”
Make an effort to wake up, got it!
When the two of us headed to the first floor, Melt had spread a huge pile of belongings across the living room floor.
It seemed she was arranging items stored in her magic storage device—but what was she doing exactly?
“Good morning, Melt. What are you doing?”
“Oh, good morning, Sheele. Welcome back, Shizuma. Right now, I’m picking which items to leave at home for the journey.”
“Welcome back, Melt. Ah, so you’re sorting what to take… I could carry everything if you leave it to me, though.”
“But there are plenty of things that don’t need to come along, so I want to pick them. It feels nice, like a place to return to, and it makes me a little excited.”
I see. That makes sense. Since there’s a safe home to return to, there’s no need to take everything along. I suppose she’s savoring that fact as she sorts. I spoke thoughtlessly.
“By the way, where’s Same? I don’t see him.”
“Oh, Same went to the Pigeon Trading Company. He had something he wanted to request.”
“Same? I see—he’s probably getting a feel for the connections in this city firsthand.”
After staying in this city, Same will also interact with the Pigeon Trading Company, the Glory Knights, and people related to the royal family. He’s probably meeting them in advance to introduce himself.
“I’m excited—‘Lalareia Continent.’ I wonder what kind of cities are there!”
“Oh? Melt, we’re headed to the Riseark Continent.”
“Huh? Oh, we’re going to the neighboring continent, right? The one to the west?”
“Yes, that’s right. The western continent is called Riseark.”
“Hmm… but in my book…”
Melt then pulled out an old book she must have brought from her family home, and opened it to show a certain page.
‘The Beastman Continent Lalareia’
‘The largest continent where many countries are adjacent, with a giant lake in the center.’
‘On a large island in the center exists the Spirit Nation Hamsterdam.’
‘Conflicts between races are constant, making landing extremely difficult.’
Melt’s book certainly said that.
However… there was no mention of conflicts between races when Koyan-san of Konkon Trading had previously told us. He had said it was a continent governed by different nations east and west, not a “Beastman Continent.”
Perhaps Melt’s knowledge is from a very old era.
“I see… this is my grandmother’s book, so maybe it’s information from long ago. Ah, so the continent’s name changed a long time ago.”
“Fascinating… old books are always interesting. Show me later, okay?”
“Sure, here you go.”
The continent’s name has changed… and this book also calls it the ‘Beastman Continent.’
But today, half of Rise Ark is probably ruled by humans, the “Consold Empire.” The duke was human, and likely the emperor as well.
…Perhaps the racial conflicts are even deeper on that continent.
Still… even villages considered part of the empire had Beastman families living there.
I wonder if that father-and-child pair was able to reunite with their father. They were suddenly transferred here, and it must have been a sudden farewell—they might still be worried.
“Welcome back—”
“Oh, Same, you’re back.”
At that moment, Same, who had gone to the Pigeon Trading Company, returned home.
He seemed in a good mood. Was something good happening at the company?
When I asked, he explained:
“Before the three set out on the journey, I wanted to give them a small gift. So I asked the company for it. I paid using jewel-type materials that had been sleeping in my warehouse. I kept it to small rubies and topazes so it wouldn’t be too expensive.”
“Oh, right! I’m the one holding all the money. Same, since you’re staying in town, keep half. We might need it for various things.”
“Are you sure? I can earn through high-difficulty quests if needed.”
“No, it’s fine. It counts as if you earned it. So half it is—”
…Somehow, my total money has become absurdly high.
I also earned money as Silent, and money earned as Same through auctions is stored in shared storage.
For now, I decided to round it nicely and prepared to give Same half of the auction money—40,000 gold coins—in a barrel-shaped attaché case.
“…It’s not a very good sight for mental health. Seeing so much money could make someone’s mind go astray. You don’t really need this much, but I’ll hold onto half of it as savings.”
“Yeah, please use it effectively.”
With half of the money entrusted to Same, Melt suddenly spoke up as if she had just remembered something.
“Same, while I’m away, could you take care of the shrimp? Some small insects that can serve as food drift in from the river, but I want you to feed them every other day! And if the roof for the wild birds or sunshade gets damaged, could you fix it too?”
“Ha ha, understood. I also arranged with the company to fence the land around the house. More people have been coming around here recently. I’ll fence around the pond and part of the stream, so don’t worry.”
“As expected of Same. You’ve thought of everything.”
“Now we can set off on our journey with peace of mind. Melt, this trip will be longer than any before, so you should greet your friends properly—Kash, Grant, Rikka… and even Letty.”
“Ah, right. I’ll get lonely… and I also need to return the violin book I borrowed from Letty-chan.”
“Come to think of it, you still play it sometimes in the mornings. You’ve improved a lot; maybe you should show them.”
“That’s a good idea! I’ll go tomorrow, after looking for the three of them at the guild.”
“What should I do tomorrow…? I don’t really have anyone I know there…”
“Sheele, didn’t you have some dealings with Vias from the Thirteen Knights?”
“That’s true, but it’s not like I could just meet him whenever I want.”
Gradually, preparations to depart from this city were coming together.
Even though a new adventure and a fun journey awaited, an inexplicable sense of loneliness welled up in my chest.
…After all, I’ve been here all this time. And this journey is different from before.
It’s a trip without a definite end, exploring dungeons and traveling across the world.
We don’t know when we’ll return here next.
…Which also means I’ll be parting ways with Same, who’s been with me the whole time.
This feeling is natural, I suppose.
“Shizuma. I can tell you’re feeling lonely, just by looking at your face.”
“Caught me. Of course I’m lonely. Same aside, there are so many memories in this city.”
“But no ‘bells,’ okay? That only works for one person, and if we use it now, we won’t be able to use it on the journey. Let’s learn from last time.”
Exactly. If we need the bells during what will likely be a long journey, having them prioritize returning home could cause problems. Last time was precisely that case.
“Got it, we’ll go without them. Same, I’ll leave half of the convenient items and healing potions here.”
“Yeah, then I can receive them safely. After all, Shizuma… you have stacks of them, right?”
“Of course. Even after giving half, I probably won’t be able to use them all.”
“Use them carefully. Some of our potions surpass human knowledge in this world. Sometimes they affect hearts even more than money. Keep that in mind… though if Shile is here, it should be fine. Oh, right. Could I have one bell too? There’s a chance the timing of its use might overlap with yours, but I want one as insurance. There shouldn’t be many left—is that okay?”
“Ah, yes, I’ll give you one for something like that.”
“Thank you, Shizuma.”
Same really is caring—every part of his conversation shows it.
He genuinely leaves the impression of a reliable older brother.
“My arrangements for the gifts will take a little longer. Once they arrive, we can depart, okay?”
“I’m curious about those gifts… but yes, we should greet those who’ve helped us before then. I need to talk to Kokuri and Kres at the castle, and even His Majesty.”
“I’ll accompany you then. We need to let people know we’ll be staying in the city for a while. But at the same time… we should tell them that the brigade has left, and for a while, I’ll be alone.”
“Oh, can I go greet them too? I want to greet the queen and Kokuri-chan!”
Leaving the country… that feeling is becoming stronger and stronger.
…Well, I guess I might as well. I’ll show my face to my former classmates one last time.
I need to make sure Kokuri-san knows, right in front of them, ‘If something happens, punish me without mercy.’
Well, my head knows there’s no real need to worry.
“Then I’ll make tonight’s dinner.”
“Shizuma, I’ll help too. I also have [Cooking Lv.1].”
Sheele confidently offered, but—
“Though, Sheele, you’ve failed at cooking several times before, right? Better to just wait quietly.”
“…Yes.”
Melt—good job.
And so, feeling the day of our departure drawing ever closer, the remaining four of us enjoyed the final moments of togetherness before our journey—