Volume 1 Chapter 28 Invitation I
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
When her heart gets unstable, she throws away her thoughts and just swings her sword with all her might──.
That was Serena Silverwooloo’s way of self-control.
”Ha, ha, ha──.”
In the fresh morning air, Serena was alone in the adventurer’s guild training ground, swinging her sword with single-minded focus.
The only sound in the training ground was the chirping of birds, mixed with the sharp whoosh of the wind from her strikes.
”Ha, ha, ya!”
She felt droplets of sweat dripping from the tips of her natural short hair.
Her white sleeveless shirt clung to her skin, highlighting the white Sarah she wrapped around her chest.
Even inside her gloves, it was pretty sweaty.
”Ha!”
She brought her sword down and froze in place.
With her light blue eyes, she stared straight ahead.
The cold morning wind brushed against her silver, wavy hair.
Her skin felt hot.
Sweat trickled down her throat, pooling at her collarbone and dripping onto her chest wrapped in the Sarah she wore.
”Phew…”
Serena quietly exhaled, twirling her sword and sheathing it.
That was the end of her practice.
It was just basic form training, but she felt a lot clearer.
(When my mind is troubled, this is the best way.)
Serena bowed to the training ground and picked up her backpack and towel from a nearby stump.
She opened her shirt a bit, tucked the cloth in, and carefully wiped away the sweat.
Her armpits were pretty soaked.
(I feel like all the bad vibes have disappeared, and I’ve been reborn.)
She pressed the towel against the wavy ends of her hair.
This was something she had done since long ago whenever she felt lost or faced something unpleasant.
The routine ingrained in her body physically reset her mental state.
”Phew──.”
She rubbed her cheeks against the towel.
The fabric was wet.
A faint scent of her hair wafted up.
It was a bit sweaty──.
Since she had no plans for the day, it might be nice to go back to the inn and ask for hot water for a ‘bath’.
(Now, I have no plans…. Right, I got kicked out of the ‘Falcon Brigade’.)
As Serena walked toward the guard, she felt a little down.
Yesterday, she had been attacked by a griffin and had to flee.
Serena had a serious falling out with the members of the ‘Falcon Brigade.’ The troublemaker priest, Rosen Pitt, even told her, “You ain’t one of us.” With that, there was no way she could keep being part of the group like before.
It wasn’t surprising that the party was disbanded last night.
(The party was whatever. She didn’t care about the adventurer rank.)
She became an adventurer to make a living and to gather info about the ‘Azrael’s Death Sword.’ It wasn’t about racking up points to level up to intermediate or advanced ranks.
But yesterday’s scene clearly seemed to be Serena’s fault.
If she had chased after the griffin with the delinquent priest and the flashy female magician to save Robert, one of the 3 of them would’ve definitely ended up seriously hurt.
The griffin, boasting simple strength and agility, was just a bad match for the delinquent priest and the flashy magician.
Serena, being a swordswoman, was the best fit, but once it took to the sky, she froze up, realizing there was nothing she could do.
It was a clear judgment mistake.
Maybe, depending on the terrain, she could’ve won even one-on-one, but she played it safe and pulled back.
(I made 2 mistakes back then. The first was inviting Rosen and Franciska. The second was thinking I couldn’t win alone. …There was a chance I could’ve won by myself, so I should’ve gone after it.)
Just like Kian──.
Serena thought of that black-haired man and pressed her lips together tightly.
”You’re up early, little lady. Here’s your adventurer card.”
”Thanks!”
She bowed slightly and took the iron identification tag from the guard.
The tag had ‘Rank 9’ written on it along with her guild contribution points.
She had only come to this town 2 weeks ago, but without meaning to, Serena had already finished her time as a Rank 10 (rookie) in the ‘Falcon Brigade.’ In terms of points, she was almost at Rank 8.
(I should at least get to Rank 8. Being a lower-level adventurer opens up more opportunities than being a bottom-tier one.)
As she pressed a towel against her wet hair, she suddenly noticed Kian standing right in front of her.
”Ah…!”
”Hey there. Good morning!”
She hadn’t sensed him at all, probably because of the coat he was wearing.
Caught off guard, Serena froze for a moment and quickly looked away from him.
Inside, her proud self was telling her to stop acting like a loser, but her body reacted instinctively.
It was a mix of guilt and a kind of awkwardness that made her feel this way.
The person she had looked down on as weak was actually braver and smarter than her.
It was embarrassing and pathetic.
Serena wasn’t bold enough to greet him cheerfully.
”Ah, Ms. Serena!”
”…!”
”Ms. Serena, wait a sec!”
”……!”
Kian’s voice chased after her, almost like a punishment for looking down on someone she barely knew.
Before she realized it, Serena had started running.
”Stop! You forgot something!”
”Huh…?”
The word “forgot” made her halt.
She noticed her backpack was open on her shoulder.
Kian, holding a leather pouch, caught up to her from behind.
”Ah…”
”Good! Here! This is yours!”
The leather pouch he handed over was really important to Serena.
It contained a necklace made from the fangs of her brother, who had been killed by a death sword user.
It matched the one she was wearing now, something they had made together when they were kids.
”Ah… thank you.”
She thanked him without being able to meet his eyes.
Kian still had that goofy, relaxed smile on his face.
”No problem! I was worried when you suddenly took off. I’m glad I caught up.”
”…I wasn’t running away or anything.”
”Huh…?”
Kian made a strange face at Serena’s low, almost reluctant response.
(Darn it, I did it again…)
Even though she thought that way, she couldn’t correct herself every time and could only shake her head expressionlessly.
”Nothing. …This is my precious thing. Thanks for picking it up.”
”Oh, yeah…”
”────.”
”Ahahaha…”
Kian seemed to think Serena was a bit hard to deal with.
So he smiled weakly and said, “I’m off then,” and walked toward the East End’s east gate.
Serena was also heading back to the town, so their paths were the same.
She thought about starting to walk after putting some distance between them, but the feel of the leather pouch she was gripping snapped her back to reality.
(Right. He might know something about the death sword user. I gotta ask.)
It might be a bit pushy, but it was to avenge his brother.
Thinking that way, her discomfort toward Kian momentarily shrank back.
Serena sharply called out, “Wait!”.
”Huh, what is it?”
As Kian turned around, she walked up to him.
”I have something I want to ask you.”
”Something you want to ask? …Sorry, but I have some business to take care of. I’ve got a few other places to hit up too.”
Kian was implying, “This is a hassle”.
But the last time she asked him at the adventurer’s guild, he lied and said he didn’t know.
He definitely had some information about the death sword user.
”I’ll pay for the information. I don’t have a lot of money either, so if it’s not enough, I can make up for it with something else.”
”No, you see… I’m on the verge of getting kicked out of the adventurer’s guild, so I can’t really be involved with you right now…”
In the middle of his words, a loud growl echoed.
The source of the sound was Kian’s stomach.
Looks like he was hungry.
(Chance)
Serena took a step toward Kian.
Kian stepped back as if he was pressured.
Serena moved closer.
”I hear most people in this country don’t eat breakfast, but you’re different, right? I’ll treat you to breakfast, so can you at least hang out with me for that time?”
”Uh…”
”Are you planning to buy some meat skewers from a stall and eat while moving? If you come with me, you might get a proper breakfast.”
”Um…”
Kian glanced down at his pocket.
Kian thought it was probably a wallet, judging by how puffy it looked.
He was weighing the balance in his wallet against the hassle of dealing with Serena.
Serena twitched her dog ears.
”You can’t fool me with lame lies or excuses. You’re trying to push me away ’cause I’m a hassle. But if you just answer my questions properly, we can wrap this up in one go, and you might even get some info out of it. Plus, you might get a tasty breakfast too.”
”Uh, umm…”
”Come on.”
Seeing Kian hesitate, Serena decided to take charge.
She called out clearly and started walking ahead.
Kian, though unsure, followed her.
(Alright, I got this)
Inside, Serena was doing a little victory dance as she walked confidently ahead.
Eventually, it seemed Kian shook off his doubts and quietly started following her.
* * *
(In the end, she pushed me into it…)
’You really are weak against strong-willed women, huh?’
He was chatting with his glasses while following Serena.
They headed from the east gate to the east street.
If they kept walking, they’d hit the main avenue.
It seemed like Serena had rented a room at some bar along that street.
(I regret it. I had a hard time with Sophia too.)
’Some women might find that personality appealing. You are kind of a natural freeloader… but surprisingly good at housework too.’
(A freeloader… that’s such a dishonorable label.)
’Hehe, I’m not being sarcastic. This one saying that if this one ever got a real body, this one would be the type to spoil you in all sorts of ways. Be happy. Getting this kind of praise from this one is quite an honor.’
(Enough already.)
Kian shrugged and stared at Serena’s back as she walked ahead.
The sweet scent of sweat wafted from her silver, naturally short hair.
She wore a white sleeveless shirt, beige shorts, and sturdy leather boots that reached up to her knees.
The blouse-like fabric of her shirt exposed her slender shoulders, and the waist of her shorts had a special design that let her silver tail hang down.
Black long socks are pulled up with garters from the boots.
The height is about 160 centimeters.
With short hair, from behind, one might mistake her for a slender boy.
But if you look closely, her shoulder muscles are toned, and her legs are quite developed.
Especially around her hips, she seems to have trained hard, creating a stunning curve despite her slim figure.
She’s slender yet has a figure that suggests she’s built for easy childbirth──there’s a wild, beast-like beauty to her.
She has surprisingly sexy curves than Esther when she takes off her clothes.
She’s different from Aliona, who has a goddess-like feminine line.
Kian sees her as a new kind of beautiful girl.
”What?”
Noticing the gaze, a sharp profile turns toward him.
Kian hurriedly shakes his head.
He mustn’t let her realize he was having inappropriate thoughts.
”…?”
Fortunately, Serena only furrows her brows slightly before turning back to face forward.
However, the wolf ears on top of her head stand up alertly.
’That was close. There was a time when your lie was seen through, but that was probably because of those ears.’
(Beastman ears──like the bones in a human’s back or the center bone in the butt, they are remnants of ancient beasts from the evolutionary process.)
’Ah. The ears below catch sound, but those up top are a different organ. Most beastman ears are just for decoration, but this girl seems to have strong blood from the wolf god Wooloo, possibly a throwback to her ancestors. She might be able to sense something like a 6th sense.’
(Though she just looks like a pretty girl with ears and a tail.)
’Be careful. Do not be deceived by appearances. You can feel the dense magic power she is wrapped in, right?’
(Yeah. Not as strong as Ms. Aliona, but she has an incredible life force.)
”Here.”
Suddenly, Serena, who had been walking ahead, stops.
When Kian looks around, he sees they are at the intersection of the main street and East Street.
Many adventurers are walking from the main street toward the eastern gate.
Hidden in the noise, Serena’s inn stands alone.
”‘Pumpkin Pie Inn’.”
He reads the sign aloud.
Overall, it looks plain, but it’s a sturdy stone tavern.
It seems that Esther’s house is of a higher quality.
However, the well-polished sign and the water-sprinkled front of the shop gave off a vibe that the owner was really running the tavern properly.
It was one of the inns Kian was renting──no comparison to that rundown place.
”Is the owner gonna make breakfast for us?”
”No way. I’m borrowing the kitchen and making it myself.”
”Eh…?”
”So whether it’s a tasty breakfast or not depends on your taste buds.”
”Whoa, whoa, whoa…”
”Come on. I’ll show you inside.”
”Seriously…”
’Since we have come this far, might as well stick it out. If you think there is no benefit for you, just create one.’
(What if I end up eating something weird and get a stomachache?)
’That is a girl from the Wolfmen tribe. Their custom is for the men to fight outside while the women protect the home. She can cook, no doubt.’
(But she was out swinging a sword on a quest!)
Even while arguing with himself, Kian followed Serena into the tavern.
Inside was a narrow hall with a cozy, dimly-lit hideaway vibe.
Of course, it was stone-built, with vines and grapes decorating the place here and there.
”Just sit anywhere and wait. I’ll go back to the room and grab the ingredients.”
Serena said that and headed up the stairs at the back of the tavern.
Left alone, Kian shrugged and sat down at a nearby wall-side table.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
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