Reborn: I’m a Dragon Girl With An OP System Book 1
Chapter51 Knight In Shining Armor
Chapter52 The Town Of Hammerlin
Chapter54 Selling The Goods Part 1
Chapter55 Selling The Goods Part 2
Chapter64 The Real
Adel Part 1
Chapter65 The Real Adel Part 2
Chapter66 The Spirit Race Part 1
Chapter67 The Spirit Race Part 2
Chapter68 The Spirit Race Part 3
Chapter 50 Ambush
Night
set in after making quite a bit of ground. The bandits were currently nice and
warm in their holes with their heads sticking out. Since it looked like it was
going to rain, I even put some big leaves over their heads. Whether it would
protect them or not is another story.
"Umm….
Miss. Can we talk about this?" The bald headed bandit seemed to not like
my little setup.
"Huh!?"
I turned, and with a furrowed brow, I unsheathed my sword and began walking
over to him. For some reason, his face paled, and he began sweating.
"Wait. Never mind. Haha! The temperature is just right. I think I can
sleep wonderfully tonight."
"Oh?
Then I am glad all my hard work was not in vain. I could have sworn you were
about to complain." I gave him a blossoming smile that would warm anyone's
heart. But I am sure to him, it was as if he was looking at a devil. I mean, I
had the horns for it!
"Haha,
why would I complain when you have gone out of your way. Look at the pretty
leaf! It is perfect to keep the weather off my face. I thank you kindly."
The bandit grinned, showing me a toothy smile. "Then I will be off to find
us dinner."
Sadly
I still had to feed the bandits. I get more money for them being alive from
what I know. Bandits that are kept alive can be used for prison labor. Also
known as another form of slavery but only for those who commit crimes. This did
not discriminate on race or even gender. If you
committed a crime that was not worthy of death, instead of sitting around
inside some cell someplace mooching off the taxes of the people, you were sent
to do hard labor. Mining and other jobs that would require a lot of people. The
kingdom ensured a roof over their head and two meals a day. But they worked
from sunup to sundown. While I personally think this is the proper way to
handle prisoners, I am sure some human rights activists on Earth would have
screamed unfairness!
At
any rate, having them buried up to their heads means they will not do anything
stupid. I even solidified the ground, so they were basically frozen in time
except for their heads. I was about to head off into the woods nearby when I
stopped and thought for a moment. "Oh right! If you have to go to the
bathroom, do it now because we will not be stopping for you to do your thing on
the road."
I
also did not wish to see anything I shouldn't since they would all need to be
near me while they went. At least this way, I can spray them with water until
they don't stink any more afterwards. But now, with this reminder out of the
way, I put up a circle of rock dirt around their heads before I walked into the
forest to try to find a place to eat. I was not going to share my food with
them, of course, I would find them some food, but it will probably be some
leaves from a tree. Just enough to keep them alive until we make it to the next
village. As for the circle of dirt, it was fortified with a protection spell so
no one could break through it. I couldn't have people stealing my paid day, now
could I?
I
quickly found a good spot for a campfire and gathered a bunch of rocks and
sticks. Once it was set up, I tossed a small puff of my
dragon breath on it to light it on fire. Dragon breath was indeed handy. I wish
I could use it in front of others. But if I did I could be giving away the fact
that I was actually a dragon. Then I would be in for all kinds of problems.
But
now, with the fire lit, I could begin roasting a monster chickig. A chickig
tasted like chicken and bacon merged together. It is to die for if you add a
bit of salvaini spice. This kind of spice was not something you would find on
Earth, at least, it was not something I had ever tasted before. It was a
peppery, spicy taste but had a refreshing aftertaste. It is very hard to
describe. But by sprinkling some of this on and rubbing it into the meat, then
roasting it over the fire slowly, it was to die for. My mother would get mad at
me and my father for eating out in the woods at night.
I
sat and watched the flickering of the flame. Besides the bandits I have
following me around, this was actually my first time being alone outside at
night. In a way, it was kind of exciting while at the same time a little
lonely. I had always been with others, so this was really different for me.
Even in my past life, I had always had someone around. I sat back and looked up
at the cloudy skies above and sighed. "I can't even see the stars…."
It
would be fine if I could gaze at the stars just a little bit, but the threat of
incoming rain ruins my mood. Makes me feel dreary and lazy. No sooner than when
I thought this, I felt a drop of rain fall on my head. I pursed my lips and
waved my hand, creating a protective dome over the area so I could eat in
peace. "Now that I think about it, those guys may drown…. Detection!"
I
sent out my vision over to where the heads were sticking up out of the ground
and waved my hand once more, creating a protective dome
around them. "That should keep them from dying." With nothing better
to do, I began drawing in the dirt while I waited for my chickig to cook. It
was a thick thigh leg, so it took a while, almost thirty minutes until it was
finally roasted just right. I happily took it off the fire and bit into it. It
smelt and tasted so good I even had drool running down my chin.
"Not
bad for my first time… But still… It is not as good as father's. I still have a
long way to go, I guess." As I ate, my right ear twitched. I heard a
cracking sound coming from the forest. I still ignored it as nothing could get
through my barrier unless it was someone powerful. So I kept munching on my
chickig thigh leg.
Not
long after, I watched as a group of monsters I had never seen before came out
of the forest. There were at least thirty in total. Each one was about half my
height and had bodies shaped like a lion but with thick scales on their back
and long narrow heads that had a strange looking mouth. I watched as one in
front of me opened its mouth, which split its head into three sections
revealing rows upon rows of razor sharp teeth. "Oh? A nerdal! I saw
pictures of them in that book!"
It
didn't dawn on me until their heads split. It was a unique feature to the
nerdals. They were creatures that could eat anything, and I mean anything. The
nerdals were also large pack hunters. They never had fewer than one hundred in
their pack at all times, which meant. That there were many more that had yet to
show themselves. They were also very smart, so to fight them, you would need to
be overly powerful and smarter than them. I just so happened to fit both
categories. "If I am not wrong, aren't their hides worth a lot of
money?"
For
me, this was no problem. At least I hoped…. But first thing is first, I need to
finish dinner. I can't fight on an empty stomach, right? It also seems that my
chickig might be what attracted them here, which made things better. Since they
were so smart, I could use this to anger them and make them stick around until
I was done. So I started to eat my chickig with gusto while making all kinds of
smacking sounds with my lips. "So good… Mmmm! Oh wow! So tender…. Yes,
this is right…."
If
anyone were to walk by at this time and heard my words, they would think
something naughty was going on. But I swear I am only eating my chickig!
Luckily my noises did seem to anger them because the nerdals were charging at
my barrier, trying to break in.
It
was just when I was about to finish eating when it happened. "How dare you
attack a fair maiden!"
Yes,
I watched as a young man in knight's armor jumped from only god knows where,
landed next to my barrier, and began slashing his sword and firing magic at the
nerdals. Yes, he was just slashing away, cutting them up into bits and pieces…
Yes, the twenty silver a piece hides were being ruined right in front of my eyes. I could feel the money slipping away.
"You damn idiot! Stop! Stop attacking! No, you're ruining it! My twenty
silver!"
Why
is this idiot here!? Why is he ruining my money!? This is all I could think as
I did away with my barrier, and instead of going to kill nerdals, I went at the
stupid idiot! "Wait, Miss! Why are you attacking me!?"
"Because you're a damn
idiot!"
Chapter51 Knight In Shining Armor
I
couldn't believe it. In a matter of seconds, he had killed so many of the
nerdals that my heart felt like it was bleeding. "Three gold! Three gold
you destroyed!" Three whole gold!
"What
three gold!? Hey, stop swinging your sword at me! Wait, why are you firing
magic at me!? Was I not saving you!?" This idiot just did not seem to
understand! I already told him to stop attacking, but he won't listen!
"You
idiot! Who needs your saving!? I was happily luring them over while I ate
dinner, and you came along, destroying my precious materials! Twenty silver!
Twenty silver for each one you killed! Pay me now!" I did not care if this
stupid boy had to strip naked and give me all the armor he was wearing. He
would need to cough up my three gold!
"What!?
Wait, you were luring them!?" I could see this kid was not all that
bright. But I had to admit he was very strong. With my strength, he was able to
defend against my attacks just now without losing any ground. We actually tied
in strength. This truly surprised me.
"Yes,
I was! Now, pay me five gold!" I yelled, stomping my feet. My money!
Normally I would not be so greedy, but I had everything planned as soon as I
saw the nerdals, and this idiot… this idiot ruined it all!
"Five
gold!? You said three!"
"That's
because you keep killing them!"
"Then
let them kill you!"
"No!"
I
do not know if the nerdals seemed to have decided to side with me, but they
were going all out to kill the young man while ignoring me. And me? I was busy
defending my precious silver! Since we were fighting to a stalemate, I changed
tactics and began blocking the young man's ability to fight the nerdals.
"Why
are you doing this!?" The young man yelled out.
"Because
you owe me money! Look how many you killed! Why did you have to be Mr. Knight
In Shining Armor when I was trying to eat!? Go save someone who wants to be
saved!" I really have no idea why I was getting so angry, but it seemed
the more I spoke to this idiot, the angrier I got. I just wished he would take
a hint and leave.
"How
could I, the one destined to be the hero of the land, let a young girl fight
such terrifying beasts on her own!?" What is this some kind of wanna be
hero syndrome!?
"I
guess… I will need to get serious then… Accelerate!"
"What!?"
*Bam!*
I
smacked the young man as hard as I could in the back of the neck, causing him
to drop to the ground. I then grabbed him and swung him around a few times
before tossing him like a bag of trash towards the road.
"Hah! I should have done that, to begin with!"
I
held my head and shook it before glancing at the nerdals that were still
around, looking at me as if I was their hero. I felt no more killing intent
from them, which made me not want to kill them anymore. But that thought only
lasted for a second before I began attacking. I guess my sudden change in
attitude startled them because I pried one of their mouths open and shoved a
fireball down its throat. Brutal, I know, but this was the best method. It only
took me killing one of them to understand I was still an enemy as they began
attacking me left and right. Fifteen minutes later, I finally had thirty nerdal
corpses in my inventory. Sadly the ones from before all got chopped to pieces
by Mr. Idiot.
Now
I am not only in a bad mood, but it was also raining, so I am also soaked.
"I still need to sell the stupid bandits…. Which means I need to feed
them." I was too tired and lazy at this point to look for proper edible
food, so I just grabbed a branch off a tree with a bunch of leaves and figured
it would do.
I
stuck up a barrier over my head while I used heating to dry myself off. Only
when I was completely dry did I head back. But who would have thought that on
my way back, Mr. Knight In Shining Armor was up to his old tricks again?
"What are you doing?"
"What
am I doing? I am trying to save these poor souls who were buried up to their
heads by some demon." The young man answered me without even looking back
at me. He was currently bashing away at the barrier around the bandits in the
ground. On top of that, he just called me a demon!
"Why
are you attacking me again!? Can't you see these people need help!?" The
young man quickly jumped back and stared at me with an aggrieved expression.
While the young man was handsome, with his blonde hair and blue eyes, he was a
total idiot.
"Those
are bandits that I caught that I am taking back to the nearest town, and you
want to free them!?" I mean, come on. Why do I have to run into such a
weirdo as soon as I start my journey?
"Bandits?"
I watched as the young man lowered his sword and scratched his head. "Even
if they are bandits, can't you at least treat them better?"
"You
really are stupid! Why would anyone give good conditions for the bandits they
caught!? They murder and sell people for a living to steal their goods. And you
want to treat them nicely?" My chest heaving up and down. This idiot's
only purpose in life was to anger me, I swear.
"Why
do you keep calling me stupid this, idiot that?"
"Because
you are a one hundred percent idiot! Can you at least take a look at the
situation before you act? No, no, please don't forget that. How about this.
Give me the seven gold you owe me and be on your way."
"Seven
gold!? You said it was only five before!"
"Why
is it ten now!?" I had to hold my tongue because I almost burst out
laughing, looking at the young man's pathetic face.
"Ahem…"
I cleared my throat and slowly spoke. "Because you are making me deal with
an idiot. So quickly pay up, oh hero of justice."
"I
don't have it!" The young man said proudly.
"So
you are not going to pay what you owe? Then take off all your armor and give me
your sword. I can at least sell it for some compensation." I mean,
something was better than nothing. This would also give him a good lesson in
not just jumping in when it is not needed. Whether he truly felt I needed
saving or not has nothing to do with me. I am someone who only cares about
those close to me everyone else can shoo away. Of course, if I saw someone in
need of help, I would probably try to help them, but this was beside the point.
I, however, would make sure that whoever I was helping truly needed my help.
"No….
I need them both. Plus, if I give them to you, I would have nothing else to
wear."
"What
you wear has nothing to do with me, just take it off and give it to me!" I
couldn't take it anymore and walked right over to the
young man and took his sword before I began pulling on his armor.
"Miss!
I swear I will pay you back, please let me keep my armor!"
"A
hero should always pay their debts!" I suddenly realized I was no
different from a bandit right now. While he did owe me money, I was also
starting to feel conflicted. One thing I did notice was that this entire time
he had not looked down on me for being a demi. I sighed and let go of his armor
and gave back his sword.
"Fine,
keep it. But if you go to the capital, look me up at the magic academy. My name
is Faith Cyrilia. You owe me twenty gold from this day forth. So if you do not
give it to me by the next time we meet, I will strip your armor off you."
In light of him not being a demi hater, I can only do this.
"Twenty
gold… Alright, I, Charles Doli, swear on my path to being a hero that I will
one day pay you back, miss Faith." He doesn't even have a heroic name!
"Then Charles, I will be
waiting. Now then, I need to feed my bandits, so I will not keep you." I
didn't even wait for his reply before walking through my barrier and undoing
the mound of dirt surrounding the heads in the ground. I then began ripping
leaves off the tree branch and placing them in front of the bandits' faces.
"I didn't have time to find anything proper, so make do with this.
Although I am not sure if they are poisonous or not...."
Chapter52 The Town Of Hammerlin
"Miss,
we can go without the food…." I heard the bald headed bandit say. I looked
over at him and drew my sword. "Waa! Look at these tasty leaves. I can't
wait to eat them."
Seeing
the bandits all eat the leaves happily, I nodded my head in satisfaction. I
turned around to go prepare a spot for me to make camp, only to see that the
idiot was still standing there. Drenched from the rain staring at me. "Why
haven't you left yet?"
"I
wanted to know why are you so strong?" Charles asked suddenly. To be
honest, I also wanted to know why he was so strong. I mean, my stats were off
the charts.
[Humanoid
Form]
[Name]:
Faith Cyrilia
[Age]
12
[Level]
42
[Race]
Dragonic
[HP]
20000/20000
[MP]
∞
[Attack
Power] 19600
[Magic
Power] 19600
[Strength]
1960
[Vitality]
2000
[Intelligence]
1960
[Mind]
∞
[Agility]
1960
[Skill
Points] 11
[Skills]
{Appraisal
(LVL 10(MAX))} {Military Command (LVL 10(MAX))} {Military Tactics (LVL 10(MAX))}
On
top of my stats being off the charts, I still had status points I could use,
which may give me an edge over the young man, but the thing was, was that I was
a dragon, and he seemed to be human from what I could tell. "How about
telling me how a human is able to be this strong at your age."
"Because
I am the hero!" Charles stated proudly, causing me to hold my head. Did he
really think just because he said he was a hero that, that would explain his
strength?
"No,
really, how are you so strong? For me, I am a demi, so it's only natural for me
to be stronger. It's just I have never met a human near my age that was just as
strong as I am." This was true. My family was mostly made up of half
demis. While my mother was strong, she was only strong in magic. My father and
brother were both strong due to their dragonkin blood. But even then, excluding my father, since I am not sure how strong
he is exactly, I was still stronger than my brother. But here, a human boy who
was around my age had strength equal to my own, and even then, I still do not
know if he is holding back or not.
I
watched as Charles crossed his arms in front of him and fell into thought.
"I think it started the day I had a strange dream and some beautiful woman
in white with large ti…."
"Get
on with it!"
"Ahem…."
Charles' cheeks turned slightly red as he cleared his throat. "The woman
said something about how this world needs a hero, so she was granting me the
strength to become one. But I had to go out into the world and make people
recognize me to become strong. Since then, I have been strong. Although I do
remember this one time when I was around five that my mother asked me to pick
some radishes, and I came back with a tree."
I
held my head. This kid was just born stupidly strong, and I emphasize the word
stupidly. I mean, who mistakes a tree for a radish!? They look nowhere near the
same! Plus, if he was able to pull a tree out of the ground at such a young
age, what the hell was the story just now about some lady in white? Fantasy?
Did he just toss one of his fantasies at me!?
"Ummm?
Why are you making such a scary face?" Yes, I was glaring at the boy. I
just wanted him to leave so I could finally sleep.
"You
got your answer, so please go. I need to rest." I waved him off, not
wanting to waste any more words on him. The sky was already dark, and I wanted
to get up at first light.
"Then
shut up and go!"
"Alright,
I will go!"
I
watched as Charles walked away with slumped shoulders. I let out a sigh of
relief seeing him go. At least now I could finally sleep. I walked over to
where my bandits were and undid the barrier over my head, and created a small
room made of dirt. It was not too big, just big enough for me to sit inside and
lean up against the wall to close my eyes. But before entering, I rebuilt the
dirt wall around the bandits' heads to keep them out of sight. While my barrier
would keep others out, it was not foolproof. That is why for good measure, I
also set up a few landmine spells around the area.
Only
when I was satisfied did I tell the bandits to get some sleep before retreating
to my little dirt hut. After placing a small fireball in the center to keep the
place warm, did I finally find a comfortable spot and sit down. I am not sure
if it was because of how troublesome the day was or not, but my eyelids did not
seem to be able to stay open, and I slowly fell into a slumber….
The
next morning the rain had stopped, and the sun was high in the sky. To get rid
of the bandits sooner, I decided to speed things up with the spell, accelerate.
While the bandits screamed for mercy, I arrived at the next town by noon. But
when I saw the town, I couldn't help but feel that it felt more like a city.
Tall buildings made of wood rose up over the huge stone walls that surrounded
the town. The only entrance seemed to be the big gates
to the city. "If I remember correctly, this place is called Hammerlin…."
I
walked up to the gate with the tear filled bandits behind me. Of course, the
guards quickly stopped me. "State your business." A guard that looked
to be in his mid forties called out. Although the way he said it sounded rude,
he did not have any harsh tone behind his words.
"I
came to claim a bounty on these bandits," I said while pulling on the rope
behind me. To my surprise, the bald headed bandit dropped to his knees and
began confessing all his ins. "Sir, guard, please arrest us, we are no
good bandits that rob and kill people. We even sell women and children off to
slave traders. If I am not wrong, I even have a three silver bounty on my
head."
"I
have a one silver bounty!"
"Mine
is two!"
Was
this some kind of contest to see who was worth more!? Was my treatment that bad
that they would rather be sent to do hard labor than stay another second with
me? I have a sudden urge to make them travel all the way to the capital with
me! I will show them a thing or two. I mean, even the guard is giving me a
strange look! "Maybe I should just wait until I get to the capital…."
"No,
no! Miss, you do not need us dragging you down. You can just as easily get our
bounties here in this town. Why would you want some dirty, disgusting men
following you around?" I watched as the head bandit turned to his men
behind him and shouted: "What are you all standing around for? Quickly
come to the guard and give him your name! We all got some form of bounty on us! Quickly help the Miss here get paid."
The bald headed bandit seemed to have drunk too much caffeine as he ordered his
men around. I was truly at a loss for words.
"So,
will you be turning them in or not?" The guard next to me asked. I could
tell he was unsure of what to do at this time.
I
sighed and waved my hand. "Yeah. Take them."
"Then
please follow me to the headquarters."
I
nodded and handed my rope over to the guard. For some reason, the bandits all
started cheering and happily followed after the guard as if they had just
gotten away from a horrible monster. But I do not think I was that bad. I kept
them safe. I fed them. I even kept the rain off their heads but yet they still
seemed to be glad to be getting away from me. I let out a long sigh as I
followed after the guard.
When I passed through the
gates, I was met with the hustle and bustle you would expect from a large town.
The streets were packed with people walking to and fro. The buildings were tall
and made me crane my neck just to see the tops of them. The bases were made of
stone, while the rest was wood and plaster, from what I could tell. Each
building had six or seven floors. I was quite surprised at how big they were.
What lined the streets were small stalls where vendors were selling their
goods. I made a note to check them out later to see if anything interesting was
being sold. "I guess I can consider this officially starting my
journey…."
Chapter53 Merits
The
guard headquarters was a four story building that was on the main road,
surrounded by a short log fence. It was set back further because the front yard
was used for training. It did not take a genius to figure this out because the
yard was full of straw and wooden dummies for practicing, and a few guards were
outside swinging their swords. There was even a large circular patch of dirt
that a few other guards were at, two of which were sparring in the center. To
be honest, I kind of wanted to test them out myself to see how strong they
were, but I held back. Not that they would let me anyway but it was still fun
to think about it.
"By
the way, my name is Jack." The guard, who had been quiet this entire time,
suddenly spoke up. "I forgot to introduce myself, which was rude of
me."
"Nice
to meet you, Jack, my name is Faith." I returned his greeting. I was
finding it strange that not many people were giving me strange looks.
Especially now that I was in the guard station. I wonder if this was one of the
rules to join any guard or even the knights, that they had to at least be nice
to demi humans.
"It's
nice to meet you as well. I should have introduced myself earlier, but to be
honest, I have been trying to wrap my head around the fact that you caught
bandits, ten at that. Not to mention these guys seem quite scared of you,
Haha!" Jack let out a loud laugh. The so called bandits didn't seem to
mind either. They even laughed along with him.
"Haha!
Well, in a way, I am glad they did stop you. The fewer the bandits on the road,
the safer it is for the citizens. You would be surprised at how many reports we
get each week. Sadly once someone is robbed, whether it be their goods or their
women and children, trying to get any of it back is a lost cause." Jack
shook his head. I could tell he hated this fact.
"I
couldn't just let them go free after they stopped me even if I did beat them
up…." I really couldn't tell him the only reason I captured them was
because I wanted their treasure. Sometimes it is best to lie.
"That
is true. Haha. I thank you. Now then, if you will follow me inside." Jack
pushed open the door to the guard headquarters and led me down a small hall to
a large room. There was a table in the center of the room, with chairs around
it, and a small windowed counter in the wall on my left, with a man sitting on
the other side. On the far wall to my right was a more comfortable seating area
with cushioned chairs lined up against the walls. It reminded me of a doctor's
office when you went to visit and had to wait your turn. Besides that, there
was a barded door that led to another hallway leading further inside the
building next to the window on my left.
"Faith,
I will ask you to wait here while we confirm their bounties and file the proper
paperwork. Bringing in bandits also raises your merit with the kingdom, so it
is good to make sure everything is on file. Plus, this way, you know you are
getting the correct amounts."
I
looked around the room a bit and pursed my lips with how boring the room was.
There was nothing on the white walls, not even pictures. It was a gloomy room
that gave nothing for the eye to look at. If there was a picture, I could at
least stare at it and nitpick it until Jack returned but sadly, I could only
look at the white ceiling that had a bunch of bumps in it and start counting.
Sitting and doing nothing was not something I was able to do unless I was
trying to sleep.
While
I counted the bumps, I began thinking about what I was going to do for the rest
of the day. Since the town I was in seemed okay for demi humans, I figured I
would do what I never got a chance to do before, and that was to browse the
stalls and try out some of the food the town had to offer.
Wandermere
used to have the same kind of setup until the lynching and the splitting of the
village. While small, it still gave a place for the locals to sell what they
had to others. So I was kind of excited to see what the town had to offer.
I
ended up waiting almost thirty minutes before Jack came back from the back room
with a stack of papers in his hands. "Sorry for the wait. I never thought
that all ten would really have bounties. I hate to say it, but you will need to
sign quite a few forms."
"The
top page is the information on the bounty and how much the bounty is for. The
second page is your authorization for us to take them in, and the second to
last page is confirming that you received the bounties in full. And lastly, we
need your signature, a drop of blood, and magic injection to make sure that you
do not miss out on the merits. When dealing with merits that are not officially
going through proper channels from the kingdom, like being a knight under the
kingdom or going through the mercenary guild, you will have to fill out this
form each time. You can also gain merits at the royal academy as well. But for
a normal civilian, we have to have these forms of signatures so they can be
filed and sent to the capital. When or if you ever register at any of the
places I mentioned, you also have to register your signature, blood, and
magic." Jack's explanation confused me a bit because I did not know
anything about merit points.
"Jack,
what do these merit points do for you? What use do they have?" I asked. I
mean, if you do not know, it is best to ask.
"Merit
points are used to allow even a commoner to reach a higher noble rank. Although
you would need a lot, you can reach the rank of baron or higher if you gathered
enough merit points." So basically, it was a means to rise through the
ranks. It made me wonder just how many nobles this kingdom really had.
I
thanked Jack for his explanation before quickly signing all the forms. By the
time I was done, my hand ached from grasping the quill. I think at some point,
I should really introduce an actual pen. Making such things would be easy. A
metal pen with ink injected inside and a small ball at
the end. Pressing down and writing will allow the ink to escape, I should
probably have the parts made later on to try it out. I wonder if this kingdom
has a thing called patents. This way, after it is made, I can sell it
exclusively under my name.
After
finishing the paperwork, Jack handed over a small pouch full of silver coins.
"Fifteen silver in total. Also, take this." Jack handed me a small
card. "This is your pass. It is good for three days. Normally they cost
three copper, but since you have done a good deed, this one is free. You will
need it if you get stopped by a guard."
I
see, so it seems there was a kind of citizenship when it came to towns. You
needed proper identification if you planned to stay for long periods of time in
the town, which made sense since if someone committed a crime, those in town
could be tracked with these cards. I could even feel a bit of magic in it. A
tracking function was my best guess. To be honest, with how this world was all
over the place with technology, I was not surprised.
By
having everyone carrying a form of identification, if someone committed a
crime, it would be easy to find out who it was or if the person was even
allowed to be in town. You probably had to get one of these before entering
town, so unless you scaled the walls, you were stuck getting one. And if you
tossed it afterward, then the guards would easily find it and then begin
searching for you. Very intuitive for town protection.
"Thanks!" I once
again gave my thanks before exiting the guard headquarters and making my way to
the street. Now I could finally check out the stalls. I feel like eating some
meat….
Chapter54 Selling The Goods Part 1
Sadly
before I could even think about the stalls, I had to find a place to sell my
nerdals. I had at least a few golds worth which would allow me to shop a bit
more. "Excuse me." I stopped in front of a shop that was run by an
older woman. I had spotted her setting things up before going into the guard
headquarters. She looked to be in her mid forties and was on the bigger side,
but when she turned and looked at me, she did not show any disgust at all.
Hearing me call out to her, the older woman turned and smiled brightly at me
before walking over.
"What
can I do for you, young lady?" I really was quite surprised at the way
people welcomed demi humans in this town. While I did feel a few malicious
gazes, most people didn't even pay attention to me. Those that did look at me
would smile before going about their things.
Compared
to the stares and whispers I got back in Wandermere, this town was like a safe
haven for all demi humans. Of course, this was only speculation. Who knows, if
they were not all gloating inside and at some point, I would become part of
some game where I am given some food rations and had to run away from all the
humans trying to kill me. If I survive for a certain amount of time, I win. At
any rate, for the time being, they were all being nice to me.
"Yes,
can you tell me where I can sell materials from nerdals? Is there an armorsmith
around?" I did not know exactly who I was to bring this to, so I figured
an armorsmith of some kind would be best. And since I
did not know what the town had for craftsmen, I figured the term armorsmith
would work best.
"Nerdals?
You actually have materials from nerdals? Hmmm, if you are going to sell them
and want to get the most out of them, you can sell them to the mercenary guild
down the street. Just keep going until you see the big sign with the skull and
swords. I never understood why they chose such a signboard, but that is the
best place to sell materials. As for an armorsmith, There is the blacksmith and
the leatherworking shop. I have never heard of any armorsmith."
"Thank
you! When I sell my materials, I will be sure to stop by and buy a few things
as my way of saying thanks." I waved at the older woman and ran off. I
could hear her telling me I didn't have to buy anything but. She was selling
what looked to be some kind of pastry, and I wanted to try it anyway.
The
mercenary guild was not hard to find. It was a fairly big building with huge
doors at the entrance, and as the older woman had said, there was a big sign
with a skull and sword. The swords were piercing through the skull. Kinda made
it seem like a bandit hideout than a mercenary guild. But nonetheless, I was
here to sell things, and if I can get more money coming here, then I would do
just that. Although…. I walked over to the side and sat down, and opened my
menu. "Let's see…. Business…. Business…. Ah, here we go…. Business Tycoon!
A skill that allows me to be the best of the best when it comes to business.
Not only does it allow me to understand how to make a successful business, but
it also allows me to know when someone is trying to rip me off. A kind of
business sense."
And
so I took the skill Business Tycoon and maxed it out. This was probably the
best all-rounder skill because even if I had to hide in
another kingdom someplace, I could always rely on this skill to make me money
in the future and forge a new path if need be.
{Business
Tycoon (LVL 10(MAX))}
With
that set, I walked into the mercenary guild with my head held high. However, as
soon as I stepped through the door, a loud voice echoed through the big hall.
"What the hell is a demi doing in here!?" A young man with spiked
hair yelled out. To be honest, I do not even know what made him act so tough.
He was just as skinny as I was, and I'm a little girl! He looked like a bad
take on the evil villain from some crappy movie made back on Earth. With his
sharp pointy green spiky hair and loose fitting leather armor, I really
wondered how he even fought in such a getup.
"Bastard,
Jerad, apologize this instant!" A woman at another table yelled out.
"You dare pick on a little girl!?"
"Gesel,
shut up and mind your own business! You know more than anyone how much I hate
demis." Bastard Jerad answered. He really had a unique name, it seemed to
fit him well.
"You!
Just because that rabbitkin told you off in public, you now hate all demi
humans!? Are you an idiot?" Oh ho ho? Do we have some kind of drama going
on in Bastard Jerad's life? So basically, he was rejected and told off, and now
he hates everyone.
"Damnit.
Gesel, I will kill you!" Bastard Jerad seemed to have lost his cool. But I
think this young woman named Gesel did it on purpose because as soon as Bastard
Jerad charged at her, she turned to me and winked. For a
woman who was full of muscles, she was a very kind person. And by muscles, I
mean they were bigger than my father's. Anyway, never judge a book by its
cover. Sometimes they got unique names like Bastard Jerad. This is the lesson I
will take home from this little incident. As for Bastard Jerad, he was knocked
out cold without even being able to put up a fight. As I thought, he was rather
weak.
I
walked up to the counter and rang the small bell to the side that was used to
call the person in the back. "Can I help you?" A young man with
glasses walked over and sat down behind the counter. To be honest, I was just
barely tall enough to see over the counter. It made me realize just how short I
was.
"Yes,
I need to sell quite a few nerdals hides…. Well, more like the entire
monster." I hoped they would take the entire corpse, or I would need to
take up the skill needed to harvest monster skins. And to be honest, I really
did not wish to take up such a trade. But now that I am thinking about
monsters. For some reason, I did not feel my ancient will at all when I killed
the nerdals. I wonder if it is because of the way I killed them or some other
factor that is now restraining it. Well, whatever the reason is, I am grateful
for it.
"Little
Miss, I do not see any nerdals with you." The young man's words brought me
back from my thoughts.
"One
second." I reached out to my side and grabbed a nerdal from my inventory.
With a loud bang, it fell to the floor.
"Hot
damn spatial magic!" I heard a loud, gruff voice yell out behind me.
Spatial magic was a thing? I never heard about it, but by the surprised look
and the fact that someone knew about it, I guess it was. It was also at this
time that I realized that I did forget that people did
not have inventories like me, which is a big blunder on my behalf.
"Little
lady, to think you are able to use such a high ranked spell… How about joining
my merc group?" The gruff man ran over to me and reached out to take my
hands. I instinctively reached for my sword.
"Fred!"
Gesel, who had come up behind the gruff man, grabbed him by the collar and
pulled him back. "You were about to lose that hand. See how the little
lady already has her hand on the hilt of her sword. She is no amateur. Or else
she wouldn't have a fully intact nerdal with no damage on it."
After
scolding Fred, Gesel smiled at me and pulled me squatted down. She was like six
foot five, so while she was standing, I had to crane my neck to look up at her.
So it was nice of her to squat down to my level. "Little miss. I suggest
never showing that magic to anyone. People might even try to kidnap you.
Luckily the only one here who would do such a thing was just knocked out by me.
Hahaha! Isn't that right, boys?"
"Right!
Gesel knows us best. We could care less about spatial magic, but little lass.
There are merchants and a few other not so noble individuals who will try to
covet your magic as it is only something top mages can cast. So be
careful."
"I
will… Well, since I already showed it to you once, can I take out the rest of
the nerdals?" I did not want to cause any issues, but it was hard to pull
out the nerdals if I couldn't access my inventory.
"Wait, you have
more!?"
Chapter55 Selling The Goods Part 2
"Mmm…"
I nodded my head and began pulling the nerdals out one by one soon, there was a
pile of dead nerdals taking up a large area. The way I killed them made it, so
no blood got anywhere, so besides the dirt on their bodies, there wouldn't be a
huge mess to clean up.
"This
is insane!" Gesel yelled out. I could see where she was coming from after
all to her I was just a small girl who looked frail.
"Ahem…"
Mr. Glasses behind the counter cleared his throat. I turned to look at him with
eyes full of expectation. "I can see that each one is in very good
condition. The standard market price for a nerdal hide in pristine condition is
twenty silver. Since we will need to skin them ourselves, I will give you
fifteen silver each."
"Oh!
Not bad. To think even Mr. Stickler over here was willing to give a decent
price for once." Gesel commented. I can only guess that Mr. Glasses is
someone who always lowers the price of things to save the guild money. Which is
not a bad practice but sadly for him, I did not take the skill 'business
tycoon' for no reason.
"Wait!...."
I raised my hand, stopping everyone from continuing. I walked over to the
counter and looked Mr. Glasses in the eyes, and asked: "You said the guild
will be skinning them. So does that mean the guild will also create items with
the materials?"
"So
if you will be selling them which will, in the end, make you a huge profit, why
are you not buying them from me at market price? If I am not wrong, even the
meat of the nerdal is worth a few silver. Since you will still make out on the
deal, should you not at least be offering twenty two silver per nerdal?" I
watched as Mr. Glasses' business smile cracked.
"You
are really shrewd for your age." My smile widened as I gave a small bow.
"Thank you."
"The
highest I can go is eighteen silver each." I shook my head and waved my
hand putting all the nerdals back into my inventory. "I am not so hard up
for money that I would sell my things for lower than market value. Sorry for
disturbing you."
With
that, I gave my thanks to Gesel and the other man before walking towards the
exit of the guild. "Wait! Fine twenty two silver… Geeze…."
I
smiled and turned around. The items from a single nerdal will go for triple the
amount the hide is worth once the items are created. Not only that, but they
can also use the claws and even the teeth of the nerdal to make tools and
weapons. So it would have been a bigger loss for me to sell for anything
cheaper.
Very
soon, a bunch of workers from the guild came out from the backroom and began
hauling the nerdals away. And while they were doing that, I was happily
receiving my gold. Seven in total! Hehe, money, money!
To be honest, this was the first time in both my lives making so much money. A
single gold could be considered like a thousand bucks back on Earth. So for me,
someone who never had an actual job making seven gold in a single day was a
happy event. Now I could go out and try those pastries!
"Hahaha!
I have never seen Mr. Stickler so angry before. His lips and eyes were
twitching like mad. You have no idea how many have tried to get him to pay a
higher price but always failed, and today he really had no choice since you
brought so many nerdals. The armor made with a nerdal hide, if it is a full
set, could easily sell for one gold coin. So he is not taking much of a loss.
But he will always try to lower the price." Gesel came over and patted my
head. "So now that you are rich, what do you plan to do?"
"Mmmm….
There was a pastry stall down the street that I wanted to try out. The older
lady that ran it was nice enough to send me here so I could sell my
things." I promised I would come back, and I would! I would be sure to buy
all her pastries if they were really good. I can stick them into my inventory
to save for later. All these years, I have only had Aunty Finna's cookies and
some snacks my mother would make, so trying out something new was always fun.
"Oh!
Gretta's place. Mind if I tag along? I have been itching to try her new
goods." Gesel's eyes lit up as she spoke about the pastries, but I have a
feeling that while she was going for the pastries, she was also doing this to
give me some protection.
"Sure,
let's go! My treat!" I said with a smile. Those who are kind to me, I will
be kind to in return. Since Gesel was willing to help me
even before I had shown my skills, I would return that kindness in kind. Even
if we may only be passing acquaintances.
"Oh!
Looks like I will be hugging your thigh for this pastry run then! Hahaha!"
As Gesel laughed and so did I. Gesel's smile seemed to brighten the mood of the
room even if she did look like the hulk.
"Hey,
what about me!?" Fred cried out, chasing after us. I smiled and waved him
over, which he quickly smiled back and followed along.
The
three of us left the guild and made our way down the street towards Gretta's
place. This time as I walked down the road, I really took a good look around at
the people on the streets, and I noticed that mixed with the groups of humans
were also demi humans. Seeing this I couldn't help but be happy but also purse
my lips at the same time. I wondered why this town was so demi human friendly.
"Wondering
why there are so many demi's are walking around?" I guess Gesel saw
through my thoughts as I heard her question. I nodded my head as I turned to
look at her. "Hehe… It is because the town lord is a demi himself. He is
nothing more than a small baron, but he has built this town into what it is
today. A place where demi humans and humans can walk around freely. No one is
treated differently here. Sadly places like this are far and in between. Even
in the capital, while the law says anyone caught discriminating against demi
humans will be fined or arrested, there is no way to truly control it."
"Gesel,
you go to the capital a lot?" This interested me. I knew next to nothing
about the capital, so hearing that Gesel has been there, I couldn't pass up
this chance to ask her.
"Yes,
I need to reach there in the next few months. I am joining the Royal Magic
Academy." I found Gesel very easy going and easy to talk to. Kinda like an
older sister.
"The
Royal Magic Academy, huh? I also went there." Gesel's eyes narrowed,
making me curious as to what she was about to say. "Be careful. That place
is a closed box. There are many factions in the school. Some pro demi humans,
and some who see them as nothing but inferior beings. I, for one, have always
been pro demi humans. After all, when I was young, a tiger beastkin gave his
life to save me. But that is just me and the main reason why I fell in love
with this town. So always be careful who you befriend in the academy."
I
couldn't help but sigh. I kinda figured the capital, the Royal Magic Academy,
in particular, was not going to be an easy place to stay at, but I guess
strength will silence all. I do not wish to resort to violence, but if I have
people harassing me left and right while I am trying to learn, then I will put
them in their place, even if they are a prince or even a princess. "Don't
worry, I will be sure to take care while I am at the academy."
"Good."
Gesel patted my head before walking forward and waving her hand.
"Gretta!"
"Haha!
The little lady over there is treating me. Now that I think about it. I never
caught your name! Haha!" I couldn't help but laugh as well. I also just
realized I never gave my name. To be able to get along with someone so well
without even knowing the person's name or any formal introduction shows just
how well the two of us clicked.
"Then
let me formally introduce myself. My name is Faith Cyrilia."
"Wait, did you just say
Cyrilia!?"
Chapter56 A Very Good Day
"You
are that Faith Cyrilia!? The one who helped fend off the Norian armies!?"
Gesel's eyes were wide open as she stared at me. I, for one, would have never
thought my name would be so well known. I could feel my cheeks burning up as I
scratched my head and nodded. It was kind of embarrassing. It was like being a
celebrity in a way. Although for me, it was due to killing thousands of men.
Now that I think about it, I am not sure if I should be happy about being well
known for killing so many people….
"To
think I would get to meet the little genius that every noble is talking about.
Not to mention I get to hug her golden thigh while I mooch snacks. Haha!"
Hearing Gesel joke around and laugh made me laugh as well. She had this kind of
charm about her that made it so you could not not be in a good mood around her.
"Alright,
let's get down to the reason we came here!" I could smell the yummy
pastries and really wanted to try them out.
"You're
right! Gretta, give us the works!" Gesel ordered while pulling me to a
small table that was off to the side. She sat me down before sitting across
from me. "Now, Miss Genius. How does it feel to know that you are like the
number one star of the capital now?"
"I
do not know about being a genius, but I just did what I needed to do. If it was
not for the fact that our kingdom bans slavery, I would have not rushed into
harm's way. I would have taken my family and hid someplace in the mountains.
Believe it, or not my Cyrilia family are all
strong." I flexed my muscles as I said this, causing Gesel to let out
another laugh. She then slammed her arm down on the table and grinned at me.
"Let's
see how strong you are. Come on, arm wrestle me." Gesel opened and closed
the palm of her hand. Her huge muscles bulged. At this point, I was not sure if
I should or not. I mean, if I did win, I would feel bad. But if I didn't win
and come to find out that I was actually rather weak after everything I had
been through, then I would prefer to go out and level up some more. But seeing
the fighting spirit in Gesel's eyes, I sighed and gave in and placed my skinny
arm up on the table.
"Fred,
you be the judge." The middle aged man that came with us, who was as quiet
as can be. The one person who had I forgotten was even here. Walked over from
the nearby stall that was selling meat skewers and frowned upon seeing the
situation.
"Gesel,
are you really arm wrestling a kid? I mean, isn't that a little unfair?"
Fred asked as he sat down and bit into his skewer.
"What
do you mean unfair!? Did you not hear what I said earlier!?" No, Gesel, he
did not since he was not with us! Is what I wanted to say, but I stayed out of
it. I think there was a thing going on between the two. You could say my horns
were tingling when I looked at them bickering.
"You
said something?" Fred asked, causing Gesel to stare at him as if he was
crazy.
"You
didn't listen at all! Look here, you know the name Cyrilia right?"
Now
Fred was all fired up. I helplessly shook my head and grabbed Gesel's big hand.
In a way, this looked quite funny because her hand engulfed mine. Which kind of
gave her the advantage, so I guess I would need to really work hard at this.
With our hands gripped together, Fred placed his hand on top of ours. After
finishing the meat in his mouth, he looked at both of us to see if we were
ready. "And go!"
I
felt an overwhelming force pushing against my hand, causing me to firmly push
back against it. Gesel was strong, and I mean strong. She had a lot of power,
and I was struggling quite badly. This was the second person I have met since
coming out into the real world whose strength was on par with my own. First, it
was an idiot fake hero, and now Gesel. The world was much bigger than I could
ever imagine.
Because
of the size difference, I knew I wasn't going to win. Gesel had more leverage
than me, so my little arm was bending in a funny way. "Faith, you are
really strong!" Yes, so are you! I really wanted to cry. My lovely stats
were nothing! Sigh…. Oh system that has granted me such great power, why have
you forsaken me…? I sighed as I relented and allowed my hand to flop over.
"See,
I told you it was unfair. Look at the size difference!" Fred yelled. He
then looked at me and shook his head. "If you were
not so tiny, I am sure you would have won. Plus, she cheated. She held onto the
table."
"No,
I did not!" Gesel cheeks turned red. I looked at the edge of the table,
and sure enough, finger marks were embedded into it. I looked up at Gesel, who
turned her head to the side, whistling away. After a few moments, she finally
threw her hands up into the air and yelled out: "Fine! I cheated a little!
But who told Faith to have such monstrous strength in such a skinny body!? I
have a reputation to uphold, you know!"
"Hehe!"
I let out a laugh. And shifted my thigh to the right covering up the marks on
my chair. Yeah, I was cheating too… I heard a chuckle to my side, and Fred gave
me a knowing look. I can only lower my head in shame.
"Here
you go! One of my newest creations. Mipalia filled sweet bread. The mipalia has
a kind of tart taste that will make your taste buds scream." Gretta
announced while placing a few plates in front of us.
The
smell coming from the pastry was unlike anything I smelled before. I had no
idea what mipalia was, but whatever it was, it smelled amazing. It had a fruity
smell to it but nothing I had ever smelled before. I picked up the pastry with
my hands and bit into the soft doughy sweet bread. A burst of tart yet sweet
flavor filled my mouth, causing my lips to pucker slightly. but after the
tartness, my lips couldn't help but curl up into a smile. I even let out a
squeal as my body shook. "Gretta, this is amazing!" I had to praise
her. It was truly delicious.
"I
am glad you like it! I had a hard time preparing the mipalia. It was a tough
ingredient as the fruit's shell is so hard that it took my husband an entire
day to break open a single one with a hammer and chisel.
But once he got the hang of it, we got quite a few opened, only then could I
start preparing it. Sadly these are only limited additions as they come from
the Kingdom of Lodinia." Gretta let out a long sigh.
It
was hard to get the ingredients you wanted from other kingdoms unless you went
to that kingdom and found a supplier willing to deliver. And Lodinia, of all
places, was basically asking for trouble as it was a kingdom ruled by beastkin.
They did not really like humans very much, and traders seldom went between the
two kingdoms. The worst part about the kingdom was it was a desert wasteland.
This was why none of the kingdoms cared too much for Lodinia at first. But
before they realized it, the beastkins kingdom grew at a rapid rate and now
they were a strong power on par with Gravos or the even Norain Kingdom.
"Anyway,
I am glad you all like them. I got one more. I would like you to try it as well
and let me know if it is worth selling. I have an actual supply line for this
one." Gretta ran off to prepare more pastries while I finished up the one
in my hand. Mesta, a world that could only be dreamed about in stories and
people's dreams back on Earth, was alive and thriving, and here I was,
experiencing it all for myself. I was really starting to get excited about the
future.
I
spent a few hours chatting with Gesel and Fred before saying goodbye, as they
had things they had to do. She told me to look for her if I ever pass by the
capital's mercenary guild hall. I hope we do meet again. I found Gesel to be a
really fun person.
After they left, I bought a
lot of pastries from Gretta, who was shocked when I kept pointing to each
pastry one after the other. The other pastry she had us try, tasted like a
chocolate truffle. It tasted very good. With my hands full of pastries, I walked towards an inn that Gretta recommended and booked a
room. Only when I was behind closed doors did I store all my pastries away. I
will say that I did get strange looks from the innkeeper when she saw me
carrying so many pastries. All in all, I can say today was a very good day.
Chapter57 On The Road Again
Currently,
I was soaking my body in a nice hot bath. Unlike how most fantasy novels
portrayed the worlds in an ancient times setting where you either used a pot to
do your business or ran to an outhouse out back. And if you wanted to bathe,
you needed to get some water from the well and dump it on your body one bucket
at a time. Nope, nothing like that. Hot baths and proper toilets can be found
in the rooms. While it wasn't really separated except for the toilet, I did not
care. To be honest, I do not know how those girls during those times could deal
with it. I wouldn't want to expose my body for everyone to see.
After
a nice hot bath, I got out a new set of clothes and decided to head out to get
some of those meat skewers that Fred was munching on. They smelt very good.
Sadly I never did get a chance to ask Gesel if she and Fred were a thing. He
seemed to stick to her like glue. Maybe it is one of those unrequited loves?
As
I made my way downstairs, the innmarm stopped me and called me over. "I
was so busy earlier I never introduced myself. My name is Lisa. If you need
anything just call me or my daughter Becky. Speaking of that girl, where did
she even go?"
Lisa
looked around and let out a long, drawn out sigh. I guess her daughter is
always skipping out on work. "Okay, I will! Thank you!" I said with a
smile before heading out of the inn. I only planned to stay the night and begin
my trip once more tomorrow. While I really like this town and how nice everyone
is, I still needed to move on. Just knowing there is more than one place in this world, so accepting of demi humans is enough
to let me know that I will always have a place to go.
"Now
then… Time for some of those tasty meat skewers." I licked my lips and
walked over to the stall from earlier. There was a young man behind the counter
working away over a blazing fire.
"Hiyo!
What can I get ya?" The young man asked. He was about sixteen-seventeen,
with a white bandana wrapped around his head to catch the sweat that was
dripping down. His short spiky black hair poked up out the top of the bandana.
"Can
I get four skewers, please?" I asked. The smell was making my mouth water.
I did not know what seasoning they were using, but it smelt oh so good.
"Hiyo!
Will be right up, five minutes." The young man yelled back. I watched as
he handed over the skewers he just cooked to the man next to me before taking
out four long wooden sticks with points at the end of time and stabbing them
into some marinated meat. Chunk after chunk of meat was added to each skewer
with a few vegetables in between. He then began holding them over the fire with
one hand, and with the other hand, he began adding the spices. The grease
dripped down from the meat into the open flame, making it flare up. I stood
there with shining eyes as I waited to sink my teeth into the tasty meat. My
current state made me chuckle because I remembered a meat loving dragon in a
novel I used to read back on Earth. Sadly I never got to finish reading it.
"Order
up!" The young man yelled as he handed me the skewers, I took them and
quickly paid. After giving my thanks, I hurriedly went to find a place to sit
and eat. I will say this. If it smells good, it will
taste good, and the taste was absolutely amazing! It was out of this world, and
the meat was so thick and juicy! While Mother's cooking was also very good,
this was just on a whole new level. This could easily be sold in a high class
restaurant back on Earth.
I
didn't eat all four, only two. I stashed the other two away in my inventory.
This way, they will still be piping hot later on when I go to snack on them.
With a full belly, I began looking around at the shops. There were quite a few
interesting things. And quite a few things, I had no idea what they were or
what they were used for. But sadly all my attention was taken when I reached
this shop with a lot of shiny things. One gold coin…. One entire gold coin, and
I bought the entire shop out. The old man who ran the shop stared at me as I
fervently bought all his merchandise with shining eyes. I just couldn't hold
back. It was not until I returned to the inn with multiple bags full of shiny
things that I realized I might have a major issue. My mother told me not to
follow anyone with candy. This was easy to do, but what if they have a shiny
rock? This thought scared me.
"I
need to be careful from now on…." I muttered as I put my loot into my
inventory. None of the items I bought had any real use except looking pretty
and shiny. I sighed and decided to just stay inside the inn for the rest of the
day. It was already getting close to evening time, so I decided to call it a
day.
The
next morning I said my goodbyes to Lisa and finally met her daughter, who had a
big lump on the top of her head. It seemed she got punished for running off.
She was busy wiping tables with a sour face, so I didn't say anything to her.
As
I got to the front gate, I ran into the nice guard that I met when I first came
here. I gave him my thanks and hit the open road once
more. This time I hoped I wouldn't run into any more bandits. As I walked down
the road humming a song I made up on my own, I walked with my hands behind my
back and a skip in my step. I am currently enjoying my solo travel. The warm,
gentle breeze that swept past my face felt really good. But I found it funny
that no matter how long I stay out in the sun, my skin is always white. I never
get any sunburns or anything. Even as I grew up and was outside all day under
the hot sun, I still never got a single sunburn. My brother, on the other hand,
would turn as red as a tomato. It was kinda funny, actually. Because I would sneak
up behind him and poke him on the reddest spots making him yell at me and chase
me around the house.
I
guess I was that annoying little sister, but even so, he would always run to my
aid when I needed him. He was truly a good big brother… I paused my steps and
looked up at the sky. "Hasn't even been that long, and I am already
feeling slightly homesick."
I
sighed and continued forward. While I will always remember the fun I had while
growing up with my family, I still needed to venture out into the real world. I
just hoped the rest of my journey to the capital will not have any more idiots
in it. However, I did plan to do a bit of testing while out on this journey.
First
and foremost, I needed to find a place that had tall enough trees to block my
dragon body and test out whether or not I could transform with my clothes on.
Now that I had plenty of clothes to spare, I wanted to be sure I wouldn't end
up naked one day if I ever needed to transform into a dragon. I also need to
search for more level up spots. To be honest, when I checked my
stats before, I didn't even realize that I had gained ten levels from the
nerdals. I had been so busy dealing with other things that it all slipped my
mind. I had wondered where I got the skill points to even get business tycoon
after the fact but didn't dwell on it too much.
At
any rate, I still need to level up. After my run in with so many strong people
in a short period of time, I really needed to prepare for the day I run into
some so powerful that I will get my little butt whipped. I can only hope at
that time that my abilities will allow me to escape with my life. This world
was big. Very big. And if there are dragons still in this world, as my father
told me, then the chances of running into one that was not friendly is not zero
percent. They are known to be very powerful, so I was a bit worried.
Of
course, I have no plans to try to fight such creators or make enemies with
them. I want to go to the magic academy, graduate at the top of my class and
get myself a proper noble rank. Then I will work my way through the ranks of
the military and hopefully eventually become a commander. Just remembering the
battlefield, making strategies, and then watching them play out felt right to
me. One of those moments that said this is where you belong. It was also the
best way to ensure my place in this world and not end up standing on a stage
with a collar on my neck being auctioned off to the highest bidder. That was
the last thing I wanted.
If
one day comes and I have the chance to abolish such a tradition, I will do it.
But only if that day truly comes. Until then, I will work on becoming stronger
and stronger. And see what this world will be like one hundred years from now
or even a few thousand years from now if it is true that
my infinite mana will allow me to live forever.
As I was lost in my thoughts,
my nose twitched. "I smell blood…."
Chapter58 Roadside Ambush
Yes,
the scent of iron filled my nose, and it was coming from not too far off. I
sighed and rushed forward. If it was happening on the road, that meant that
someone was in trouble. While I could ignore it, what kind of person would that
make me? I know I speak about not caring about others, but at the same time, I
can not ignore what I already see. Well, in this case, smelled.
As
I rounded the bend down over a hill, I saw a carriage tipped over on the side
of the road and the scaled horses that were pulling it, all dead. A group of
people were huddled together off to the side. It looked like a family of some
upper class nobles. Their guards surrounded them and were fighting off what
looked to be bandits, but when I saw how they were fighting, I knew they were
more than just bandits. "Norian army deserters?" This was just a
guess because their combat and style and how they used magic while wielding a
sword resemble that of the Norian army front linesmen.
Knowing
this, I couldn't just sit around. I drew my sword and entered the fray. I first
targeted the so called bandits that were overwhelming some of the guards with
numbers easily cutting through them with my sword. "Wha? A demi? What the
hell is a demi doing here!?"
Hearing
this, I frowned and turned towards the guard I just saved and stuck my sword in
his face so that the tip of my blade was just barely touching his nose, causing
a trickle of blood to run down his face. "Is this the time to be asking
stupid questions? Are you not supposed to be protecting
your master!? You should feel lucky that I did not just take your head just
now."
I
guess my threat scared him because his face turned pale, and ran away to fight
the so called bandits after I withdrew my sword. I was not looking for any kind
of praise or reward, I was only doing what I think is right. Maybe Hammerlin
affected me slightly and made me forget that people really did not like demi
humans all that much. I sighed as I continued my killing spree. Within a matter
of minutes, all the so called bandits were dead. Sadly blood splattered on my
clothes and face. I really did try not to get any on me.
To
be sure everything was all set, I turned and looked at the family who I had
helped save and began walking over to make sure they were all okay. They did
have kids with them, after all. But I only got two steps when a few guards
rushed forward to surround me. "What are you doing?"
"Drop
your weapon!" One of the guards yelled. I couldn't believe it. They wanted
to arrest me after I saved their stupid butts!?
"Why
would I drop my weapon? Wasn't it me who just came to your help when you were
being overwhelmed!? Now you treat me as if I am your enemy. I just wanted to
make sure the people I saved did not need any healing. Forget it. If they are
injured, then let them die." I snorted and turned around. I went to take a
step and push past the guards, but they formed a tighter circle around me.
"Where
do you think you are going!? Drop your weapon. You will need to come with
us." The guard, who seemed to be the leader, yelled out while pointing his
sword at me. I turned and looked at the family who was
just standing there, not saying anything, and frowned.
"Mana
shield." My eyes lit up with magic circles. A barrier made of mana
surrounded me as I walked forward towards the family. I was mad. Really mad. I
can take discrimination if it is directed towards me. But when I go out of my
way to help someone, and they still treat me as if I am the enemy, then screw
it. Before leaving, I will be sure to give them a piece of my mind.
I
stared at the middle aged man and woman with cold eyes as I began to speak to
them. "Sir, Madam. I do not know what kind of hearts you have, but from
the looks of it, they are black. Not only do you not say a word of thanks like
normal people when receiving help, but you allow your guards to turn their
weapons on someone who was only here to help. And then you want to forcefully
take me away? How sick in the head do you have to be? How about I make sure
each one of you loses a leg so you can remember the next time you get into
trouble that if someone helps you, you should at least show them a tiny bit of
decency and respect."
"Humph!
You dare speak in such a way to my father and mother!? You're nothing but a
dirty demi human. You should feel glad we even took an interest in you. By
coming with us, you can at least work with your head held high, knowing you are
employed by Viscount Sullivan." These words spilled out of the mouth of a
young man who was just crying not too long ago. He even still had tear stains
on his cheeks. But now, here he was acting all high and mighty as if nothing
had just happened. Even his parents were smiling at him as if he was saying
something good.
I
will have to make sure to remember that snot nosed brat who seemed to be around
my age. I wonder if he will end up in the Royal Magic Academy at the same time
as me. If he does… Hehehe…. I am someone who holds grudges. The son of Viscount
Sullivan, huh? He had blue hair and ice blue eyes. I wonder if that is some
kind of bloodline trait. I wonder how I should bully him? Maybe Adel is of a
higher rank. If I do not see him before I meet up with Adel, I will make sure
to ask her for some info on this Viscount Sullivan.
I
kept accelerate on for a while before canceling the spell. I am sure those
nobles are probably peeing themselves now that they see how great I truly am.
"Muwahahaha!"
I
am pretty sure if someone saw me right now with how I was laughing evilly with
my hands on my hips and my head tossed back, they would think I am some kind of
demon lord. I mean, I have the right look if you look past my youthful
cuteness. I got horns, a tail, and wings! I could easily pass the demon lord
tryouts in any movie back on Earth.
After
making sure I was quite a few miles out, I looked around before casting earth
wall and creating a tall dirt barrier around me in a half mile radius. I then
took out some clothes that I had prepared for this testing since I did not wish
to destroy my wonderful armor. After getting changed, I took a deep breath and
transformed.
I
will say one thing about transforming. It is still something I really needed to
get used to because it was so very cool every time I did it.
Because
I had some play room, I walked around a bit to get used to the new form and
surprisingly found it very easy to move in. "Not bad. Not bad at all…. But
now, here is the real test."
With
another deep breath, I let it out slowly and looked around, I did not see any
signs of clothes anywhere. So I could only hope that all was well. I closed my
eyes and felt my body getting smaller and smaller. When I opened them again, I
looked down at myself and smiled brightly. "It worked! I do not lose my
clothes!"
Chapter59 Mr. Blobs
"Exp!
Exp! Exp! Oh, exp how good are theee!" As I sing a strange song, I am
currently racking up experience points. I need to at least get ten more levels
just in case I need a new skill later on. You never know how handy these skills
can come in. While military command, military tactics, and business tycoon were
amazing, there is always a chance that something else will come in handy in the
future.
Besides
leveling, I discovered something very important about my ancient will. While
searching for some decent monsters to farm, I found a bandit hideout and ran
into some very bad scenes. This group of bandits didn't even deserve to live,
and I kinda lost my head. Luckily I did not sink too far. I think my ancient
will only show itself if I become too emotional. I noticed a stark difference
between killing the bandits on the road and killing the bandits at the hideout.
My ancient will began to show itself as I started to kill the bandits in the
hideout while the ones on the road did not. It scared me a little, but I was
already too deep into the bandit's cave to back out, and the girls… Let's just
say they are in a better place now.
Human
beings are cruel. No different from any monster. As a former human being, I
understand that we stereotype different races based on intelligence factors,
which is kind of unfair in a sense. But this is just how it is. But just
because humans are smarter does not mean that humans are no less monstrous than
a monster who attacks a village.
Now
I know that this is not Earth, and I know that there are many races in this
world. And I know for a fact that the same cruelty that I witnessed today could
be said to happen with other races as well.
At
any rate, this incident allowed me to understand my ancient will a tiny bit
more. So I will need to try to keep better control over my emotions when I
engage in battle, or I might end up losing my mind and turning to the dark
side.
The
current spot that I am in can be said to be a farmer's paradise. Well, an
experience farmer, not a normal one. That was because at this place I found a
rare replicator slime. It can be said to be one of the more dangerous slimes
due to their ability to replicate if not dealt with properly. If someone were
to slash them in half or explode them in the wrong fashion, two to hundreds of
new slimes would instantly form. But this was also what made them good for
farming.
Since
slimes were strange creatures made of magic, they were very unpredictable and
had many strange attributes as they could be made up of different kinds of
elements and none elements, hence the replicator slime. The replicator slime
was a strange slime and the only one that could be diced into many pieces with
a sword. Normal slimes will just rebound any weapon, no
matter how hard they are hit. So they will need to be killed with their
opposing element.
While
not able to be killed by physical attacks, as said before, these slimes could
be cut. And if you diced one up, so many more slimes would appear that you
would be in quite a bit of trouble unless you are me and were trying to create
thousands of them at a time. These slimes happen to be level 30 slimes and
still give me experience. While not much, when you add up thousands of them
that I accidentally blow up and disintegrate, they will give me quite a bit of
experience.
And…
Because replicator slimes are kind of rare, it would be a shame not to keep
one. I read about a spell in one of the books that allows people to contract
with monsters and allows you to be able to strengthen them and make them grow
stronger. But those who can make such contracts are far and in between. This
was because a lot of mana was needed to even sustain such a contract.
And
so I forced a contract on a replicator slime and named it Mr. Blobs. And
because of this, I can make it split apart any time I wish, well kinda. And… It
also opened up a new option in my system.
[Companion
Menu]
Yes,
I have a full blown companion menu. It shows all of Mr. Blob's stats. And the
best thing is that Mr. Blobs can also level up as well.
[Name]:
Mr. Blobs
[Level]
30
[Evolution]
4578/10000
[HP]
3000/3000
[MP]
12230/12230
[Attack
Power] 300
[Magic
Power] 500
[Skills]
{Replicate
(LVL 10(MAX))} {Pounce (LVL 7(MAX))} {Dissolve(LVL 10(MAX))} {Fireball (LVL
1(MAX))}
{Earth
Spike (LVL 1(MAX))}
And
according to the statistics, it can also evolve. But the main thing that is
amazing is that all its replications can be under my command as well, or I can
choose to remove my authority over them, making them a normal slime. This meant
I can make Mr. Blobs replicate and then release it from my control. The only
problem is that he can only replicate ten at a time before I have to wait for
an hour to make more. I am not sure why this is. Maybe because of the contract
or the system itself. I will have to look into it and see if there is a way
around it. Also, the slimes created by Mr. Blobs with his replication can not
replicate under my control. I can't even hurt them myself. It is as if the
system blocks it.
So
in order to make thousands of more slimes, I have Mr. Blobs create a bunch of
slimes and then release one of them. I then dice that one up and allow it to
replicate over and over, and bam, I got myself the
ability to farm as much as I want. With an area of effect a minute later, I
have thousands of free experience points flying towards me. I wonder, though,
does this make me some kind of homicidal maniac? If I was on Earth, would I be
taken to jail for animal abuse? I am really not sure.
I
will say this though, currently, I have a stockpile of mini Mr. Blobs inside my
companion menu. So I basically have an army of slimes to level up. And Mr.
Blobs himself is even capable of shrinking down on command so I can rest him on
my shoulder. Quite the cute little guy if you ask me. In his full form, he is
up to my knee in height.
As
for the experience farming, I have actually gained 4 levels already. But the
experience was slowly fading, which means I need to level up Mr. Blobs before I
can farm like this again. But 4 levels does mean 4 more skill points, which was
good.
So
after clearing out the rest of the replicator slimes, I placed Mr. Blobs on my
shoulder and walked back towards the road. I still had a little while before
dark. I can only keep Mr. Blobs out while I am moving at normal speeds,
otherwise, he just falls off and tries to make his way back to me. I felt bad
the first time I used accelerate, and he went flying away and crashed into the
ground.
One
thing that did surprise me about Mr. Blobs was that he could use magic. He had
two spells: fireball and earth spike. Both were level 1, and I have no idea how
to make them level up. I can only hope it is like one of those use type systems
where if he uses the spell enough, he will become more proficient in it and
will eventually learn more spells as he grows. This is my own wishful thinking,
and will not know until the time actually comes. The
only other thing is that I can only feed Mr. Blob once a day to make his
experience go up. Afterward, he will get a full status, and the feed button
gets disabled. He also does not need to sit there and slowly dissolve the food
I give him as it will be auto consumed through the system, quite convenient
when it comes to a slime that slowly dissolves its prey.
And even though I can only
feed him once a day, based on the level of the monster, the amount of
experience that Mr. Blob gains can go up and down. If lower level then it will
be less experience, but if it is a higher level, he will get a huge chunk of his
experience bar in one go. If you put everything together like this, it makes
Mr. Blobs very amazing and versatile.
Chapter60 I Do Not Need A Man
There
are a lot of things I would expect out of life. Many that I am working towards
now. But never in my life would I ever think that while walking down the road,
a random stranger would walk up to me and get down on one knee and propose to
me. Yes, a complete stranger. I have no idea who this young man is, but if
anything, he has special tastes. He looks to be around fifteen while I, well, I
look way too young. "Why won't you marry me!?"
Yep,
this is the same question I have been asked over a hundred times now. And my
answer has been still the same: "I do not need a man nor any kind of love.
I just want to continue my travels in peace and quiet. How many times do I need
to repeat myself!? In this past week, this is the over one hundred times you
have proposed to me! Do I need to start getting violent!?" I yelled while
kicking him to the side, sending him flying off into the field next to us as I
stomped forward. I just wanted to get rid of this idiot!
I
mean, everywhere I go, there are nice people and idiots. But the number of
idiots is starting to outnumber the number of nice people. I just want to walk
in peace and chat with my Mr. Blobs! Even if Mr. Blobs can't speak, he still
understands what I am saying, and due to our contract, I can kind of feel what
he is trying to relate to me. Like right now, he is bobbing up and down and
jiggling. He is telling me that he wants to punch that idiot too. See! Only Mr.
Blobs understands me! "You're right. Hitting him a few times would make me
feel better for all the aggravation. What? Hehe, should I sick a few hundred on
him? No, no. I mean, he hasn't really been all that bad,
just annoying. Since he really hasn't caused me any harm, I can't just go
hitting him or anything. What? I kicked him for the one hundredth time? Mr.
Blobs, can't you just ignore the small details?"
Yes,
only Mr. Blobs understands me. He also makes for an excellent travel companion.
Over the past week, I have gathered quite a few replications of Mr. Blob. And
one thing I learned about when Mr.Blobs levels up, so do his replications as
long as the replications are in the menu system. A kind of passive gain. I
figure I can use my slime army as a trump card later on. If anything happens
and I am outnumbered, then.... Bam! Millions of replicator slimes casting
fireballs everywhere.
Actually,
the reason I am even replicating them is because I felt like it would be cool
to stand on a battlefield, point out in front of me and go: "Mr. Blobs, I
choose you! Unleash the slime apocalypse!" While my naming sense may be
way off, at least it is better than some names. But I figure a huge amount of
replicator slimes would be a huge help at some point, especially if they were
all evolved forms. I kinda can't wait to see what Mr. Blobs will evolve into.
Only time will tell.
But
none of this will help my current situation. I know I just knocked the young
man away from me, but the problem is that he keeps coming back! I have no idea
why he is so stuck on me. Before this, I have never met him, nor have I ever
spoken to him. It was very creepy! "Maybe I should just run away again for
a little while?"
I
let out a long sigh and activated accelerate after taking Mr. Blobs into my
arms. To be honest, I have done this before. And somehow, that same young man
had caught up to me in no time at all. So I figured I would add somebody
strengthening magic to the mix this time and really run
as fast as I can. If he still catches up to me after this, then I do not know
what I will do. All I know is that he is annoying.
But
who would have thought that just walking down a single road, I would run into
such weird occurrences? I am starting to wonder if I have some kind of curse
placed on me, and I just don't know it or if the real reason my family
originally moved so close to a border was to escape all the weirdos in this
world. If this was really the case, then I do not blame them. I mean, who would
want to live with a bunch of weirdos?
There
is another possibility that I kind of do not want to accept, and that is that I
am the weird one, and the reason this is all happening is because it is
perfectly natural to propose to people you have never met in the middle of a
road that has nothing around it. No…. Absolutely not! This is crazy! Why would
anyone do that!? And so I ran and ran. I had no choice. Escape the weirdos of
the world. It is best to run by them all.
Or
so I thought. "How are you ever here!?"
"Why
do you keep running!? What is so bad about me that you will not marry
me!?" The annoying young man asked.
"Why
would I marry a stranger!? And do not give me that we can start to get to know
each other starting now, routine, because it will not fly. Let me add that if
you say anything like destiny this or destiny that I will chop off your legs
and make damn sure you can not follow me anymore." Is it because I am
cute? Is it!? Is this why the weirdos keep popping up? Should I smudge dirt all
over my face or something!? I mean, by the looks of this young man, he looks
pretty rich, so I don't understand. But looking at his expression, that is
saying, how did you know I was going to say that? I
think this is not the first time he has tried to court a girl like this.
"Since you understand, please leave me alone! Because I will only say this
once more and after this, I will start punching. I do not need a man, nor do I
ever plan to get one. I have my own plans in life. And none of it has anything
to do with love."
What
is the point of love and all that when I will probably live forever? I mean,
the more I think about it, how could I deal with watching my lover grow old and
grey while I do not look much different from the day we had met? To be honest,
I do not think I could ever really handle that. I may have a fling here and
there as I get older, but nothing serious. I mean, I can not turn into an old
prune. While I have never dated or cared much about it, that does not mean that
I have never dreamed of having my first kiss.
"I…."
I had forgotten that the young man was even here. "You are going to the
Royal Magic Academy, yes?"
I
took a step back. How does he know this? Wait…. If he is dressed this well,
then he must be a noble of some kind, so maybe he knows who I am? But even so….
"I do not think what I am doing is any of a stranger's business. Anyway, I
will be off, do not bother me again, and do not even think of proposing to me
again, or I will break your legs."
With
these words, I walked past him without waiting for his reply. I just wanted to
be left alone to enjoy my journey! Hopefully, this time he will take a damn
hint. I already made myself very clear! But as I was walking away, I heard the
young man yell out: "I am Johan Flimsly! I am marquess Flimsly's son! I
will see you at the academy Faith Cyrilia!"
Well, At least this time, I
think the weirdo will finally leave me alone. I just hope I can find a town
here soon. I do wish to find a place to sleep for the night. I want to sleep in
a nice soft bed. While I do not mind sleeping outside, it does get tiresome
after a while.
Chapter61 Monster Tide Part 1
Sadly
I had to travel for three more days before I finally arrived at the next town.
Just like Hammerlin, it had high walls to protect it from any monsters. The
town's name was called Lovesdale, and well, I am now sleeping outside for two
reasons. One, this town was like a red light district, and two, they did not
let me into the town. While slavery was illegal, it did not mean segregation
was not. So there were many towns that demi humans were not allowed to even
enter, and Lovesdale was one of them, and thankfully so. I mean, just standing
at the gate, I saw scenes one should not see until they turn the proper age. My
pure maiden heart was not ready.
And
so, I am currently lying on top of a large rock out in the middle of a field,
staring up at the starry sky. It is at times like this that things seem very
peaceful. The sounds of the insects and nightlife around you giving off a
chorus that is static enough to slowly put anyone asleep. Lately, I have found
much relaxation in being alone away from everyone else. I do not have to worry
about what others think or what others might do to me if I am not paying
attention. I can see why many dragons in stories back on Earth went out of
their way to find caves to live in solitude. All while gathering many shiny
things.
But
this was not in any way a change in my goals in life. I was just enjoying the
fact that after a week of harassment by some idiot, that I no longer have to
deal with being bothered by anyone. Although I do kinda wish I could have slept
in a nice warm, soft bed after so long. But fate was not with me, but this is
also not so bad either.
I
could tell that it was only around two or three in the morning. The moons were
still high in the sky. If someone were to ask why I was not taking care of the
beast tide myself since I could easily do it, my answer would be simple, they
were not nice to me. Why should I do nice things for them? Treat others how you
wish to be treated. That is my motto! Well, it's not, but still. If they had
offered to allow me to enter the city to get an inn or turned me away due to my
age, I would have done so, but they discriminated against me for being a demi
human. So why should I take care of it myself? They have guards who can take
care of it all. But…. I looked over at the town that was still brightly lit and
sighed. My eyes flashed with a magic circle, and four fireballs appeared in
front of me. "I can at least use this to warn them. Fireball!"
I
changed this fire spell so that it would not burn for a long time and so that
even a drop of water could put it out. It should be enough to get the guards'
attention so that they can see what is going on. My weakened fireballs flew
through the air and exploded on the top of the wooden wall setting it on fire.
I could hear the shouts of the guards from where I was. Luckily one person
noticed the happenings while putting the fires out. Soon the
entire wall had the town guard standing on top of it. Some even gathered at the
gates getting ready to mount a defense.
As
for me, I flew off to the sky and sat in the air. I took out some cookies Aunty
Finna gave me, some snacks from my mother and Rachel, and a big glass of
moogoose milk. Moogoose were kind of like a cow but just a giant bird. The milk
that you got from them tasted slightly sweet. I set up my little snack party in
the air as I waited for the monsters to break the forest tree line.
I
did not need to wait long, and to my surprise, there were quite a few high
level monsters. The levels ranged from level 1 all the way to level 40. Kinda
makes me want to kill the level 40 ones, but that would ruin my late night TV.
Yes,
I was using this as entertainment. I might sound evil, but aw well. I mean, it
is not my duty to protect the masses. I was nice enough to warn them, and they
look like they might be able to hold out. If it gets too bad, I might step in.
But I should let them do what they are trained to do and get paid for. Protect
those around them.
And
so I popped a cookie in my mouth and munched on it while I watched the mass of
thousands of monsters rushing towards the town. "Oh, they are trying to
form a defensive line? Eh!? Why are they only defending one area!? Are they
dumb!? The monsters will push into town this way! Hey! No, you do not need
ninety percent of your forces on the left side where all the low level monsters
are heading! You only need twenty percent! Twenty percent! Ahhh! I want to
smack them!"
I
really couldn't. I mean, I thought the guard would at least know what they are
doing, but they are basically leaving only a few men to defend against the
strongest part of the wave. I quickly stored away my snacks and wiped my mouth
before flying over to where their commander was standing, swaying back and
forth on top of the wall, and landed behind him. He didn't even notice me at
all! I lifted my foot so that my knee reached my stomach and thrust out with
it, kicking the stupid human in the butt. "Stupid human! At this rate, you
will all die!"
"What
the hell!? Who kicked me!?" The drunk commander turned around to see me
standing there. His eyes narrowed, probably seeing double. I waved my hand as
my eyes lit up with magic circles and doused him in ice cold water. "Ahhh!
You damn demi brat, what do you think you are doing!?"
"What
am I doing!? I am trying to help you save this town. Look at what you have
ordered! How are you men supposed to protect this town if your people are all
focused on the low level monsters that even a child can kill!?" I was mad.
The right flank was about to be overrun, but this damn mad man was not even
paying attention.
"What
right does a demi brat like you have to tell me how to command my men? I know
exactly what I am… Ooooffff! You hit me!? Oooofff! You hit me again!" I
even hit him a third time before picking him up and tossing him down to the
ground below.
"Don't
listen to her, do as I say!" I heard the commander yell out as he crawled
up from the dirt, blood covering his face. I am sure I broke his nose. But he
deserved it, and he deserved to be beaten up more but now was not the time.
With no time to lose on arguing with an idiot, I waved my hand and cast a
binding spell on him, and also put a mute spell on him so he couldn't speak any
longer.
"If
you listen to this drunkard, you will not only kill yourselves but also the
people in the town you are supposed to protect. Move all but one hundred men to
the right flank now! Anyone who doesn't move will be killed on the spot! You
few hundred will stay." I waved my hand once more and cut off a hundred
men from the rest of the group with an earth wall and corralled them towards
the low level monsters.
I could hear yells of descent
directed at me, but I did not care right now. All that mattered was fending off
this monster tide that seemed endless. Seeing how the other soldiers refused to
move, I waved my hand once more and, using earth wall again, I started to
corral the rest of the few hundred men towards the right flank. I felt like I
was dealing with sheep! I could tell by the screams and yells that these men
did not wish to fight the stronger monsters but so what!? This was their duty.
Their duty was to protect the masses! If they can not protect the people from a
threat, what right did they have to live? If I catch any fleeing for their
lives, if the situation is not against us, then I will
turn them to ash. If the situation is against us, I could understand, but there
were enough people here to handle the situation. Plus…. They had me!
Chapter62 Monster Tide Part 2
"Keep
attacking!" I yelled out. I was having a hard time dealing with these
guards as they were not willing to listen. I was currently standing on top of
the wall looking down at them, but things were just not going smoothly.
"Should I change how I work with them?"
I
tapped my chin as I watched more people trying to run away from the stronger
monsters when there was no need to. I waved my hand, and three bolts of
lightning struck down in front of the guards trying to run. "Stop trying
to run away! We are far from losing the fight, and not a single person has
taken damage. So why are you trying to run!?"
"Shut
up, you stupid demi! No one wants to follow under your command!" One of
the men yelled at me, so I struck him dead on with lightning before healing him
again.
I
watched as the guard I just hit with lightning look up at me with fear in his
eyes and sneered before cupping my ear and asking: "What? I am sorry I
didn't catch that? You wanted to fight them head on? Then what are you waiting
for? Rush in already!"
But
even with this, it was only a temporary fix. There were too many, and each one
seemed to despise me with a passion. To truly get them to listen, I would need
to zap them all. "Oh? My cute Little Faith is here!"
"I
got a message from the capital saying that a bunch of nobles sent out their
sons to court you. As soon as I heard that, I quickly made my way back. I have
been traveling nonstop, so I might be a bit of a mess. I had stopped at the inn
here and was sound asleep, but then I had a dream that I heard your voice. But
it seemed It was not a dream after all." Adel said as she hooked her arm
with mine as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Seeing her sudden
closeness made me think of Jen from my past life. She used to do the same. She
would run up to me and hook her arm with mine and hug it while talking about
this and that. In a way, this made me feel a little closer to Adel. But to be
honest, I am very surprised that Adel was even here. To think she turned back
around to meet up with me all because those idiots were trying to find me to
court me.
"Ah
yes…. I ran into one of those idiots.." I guess I made a strange face
because Adel began laughing.
"Haha!
I can see by your expression it must have been tough. But more importantly, are
you having issues?" Adel asked as she pointed at the monster tide.
"Well….
I wasn't really going to do anything about this because there was a town guard,
but the idiot over there had no idea how to lead his troops. So I bound him,
muted him, and tossed him aside. I then took command, but I feel more like a
sheepherder than a commander right now because none of these men like demi
humans. To keep them in line, I have been hitting them with lightning
bolts." I mean, I had no choice. If I look away for
too long, someone takes a chance to try to flee, so I have been training them
with love taps.
"I
see… Pfft… Hah…. Hahahaha!" Adel cracked up laughing. In a way, it was
funny but still! "Sorry, Faith, it is just that the way you speak about it
makes it funny. At any rate, let me give you a hand."
I
watched as Adel clapped her hands, and two knights appeared on top of the wall.
"You two take command and follow Faith's orders. If they do not listen,
just kill them. The Gravos Kingdom does not employ useless people. Those who
continue to try to run away will be deemed deserters and deserting at any point
and time during a battle, whether it is enemy or beast, is grounds for death
for not upholding the kingdom's law that they must vow upon when taking up a
position of either a town guard or knight."
Hearing
Adel make such decisive actions made me realize how weak I was truly being. I
knew these laws as well, but as I was only a stand in commander and had no true
authority, I resorted to striking them with lightning and then healing them.
This way, they would get punished, and at the same time, I was saving myself
from being charged with killing someone. Because, to be honest, I do not know
if any of these guys are sons of some noble or something and the last thing I
wished to do was to suddenly become targeted for another reason altogether.
"Listen
up, you ignorant bastards. If I catch anyone trying to run away during battle,
I will kill you on the spot!" One of the knights had already stepped
forward and began yelling at the men down below. And shockingly, these basta….
Guards were listening to him without issue. It made me want to accidentally let
a few lightning bolts go.
With
the guards now under proper control, the monster tide was quickly being taken
care of. While I should be rejoicing, I still couldn't bring myself to do so
when I had worked so hard to get these guys to listen to me to no avail. With
Sir Randford taking command, it is as if a fire was lit under these guards'
butts, or they drank a gallon of caffeine because they were all charging in
with boundless energy. I let out a sigh as I continued giving my commands. I
could only bitterly smile when my words were loud enough to cover the whole
battlefield, yet the guards would not budge until Sir Ranford repeated them.
"It
must be hard…." I heard Adel mutter under her breath. I knew she probably
did not mean to say anything out loud. She didn't even notice she had spoken
out loud. But it was true it was hard and also made me wonder if becoming a
commander was going to work.
I
looked up at the sky and closed my eyes. I pushed out all my negative thoughts
to the back of my mind and hoped that if I work hard, I will eventually be
acknowledged. That those under my command will see my hard work and show me the
respect I deserve. Although I am slightly cheating with my skills from the
system. But I do hope in the future that everything will work out. This was the
path I chose, after all.
Under
the dual command of me and Sir Randford, the monster tide was easily repelled.
So now I was standing in front of a certain idiot commander. I waved my hand
and undid the binds and mute spell on him while bracing myself for what was to come. "You damn demi brat! How dare you treat me
like this. Do you know who I am!?"
"She
does not need to know who you are, Baron Strands. As far as I can tell, you are
not even fit to hold the title of baron. You indulge in douchebaggery and run
this town as some kind of hostel. If it was not for the fact that there was
still one legitimate inn left in the town, I would have missed meeting up with
my cute Faith. As for the monster tide, you are an utter failure as a
commander. The king will hear about this." Adel's voice was loud and very
cold. This was a whole new side of Adel that I am getting to know about. And it
seems Adel is truly trying to be my friend, which makes me feel slightly warm
inside.
"And who are you to say
such thin…." I watched as Baron Strands turned and looked at Adel, his
face turning whiter than my own. I had a feeling Adel was someone from a
powerful noble family. Maybe the daughter of a duke or even a princess. I do
not think her status is lower than any of these, especially with everyone's
reactions when they see her. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Adel
eyeing the baron as if to say if you tell Faith who I am, I will cut off your
head. "You…. Ahem… " Oh? Seems he is brighter than I thought. Tch…. I
was curious as to who Adel truly was, but I will wait until she is willing to
tell me herself.
Chapter63 Merciless Adel
"So
will you explain to me why you would give out such horrible commands and when
pointed out you do not listen at all? Are you an idiot!?" Adel asked,
staring at Baron Strands with an eyebrow raised and her arms crossed across her
chest. She even had one foot impatiently tapping the floor, waiting for his
answer. Since the beast tide was over, Sir Randford was taking care of cleaning
up and ordering the guards while we were currently in the guardhouse.
"Pri…."
"Adel…"
Adel said coldly. I covered my mouth, trying to hide my laugh. I mean, come on.
The idiot already started saying your title. It does not take a genius to
figure it out! I saw Adel side eye me, so I stuck my tongue out at her.
"Pri-Miss
Adel… You do not understand I had everything under control. Then this demi brat
came along and…." A loud sound of skin against skin rang throughout the
room.
I
stared at Adel in disbelief. She had just smacked the baron so hard he fell to
the ground in shock. "I do not want to hear you speak any discriminating
words towards my friend. Faith is not someone you can speak to lightly, nor can
you ever say anything that would offend her. Offending her is the same as
offending the royal family."
"This…."
One
should not look down on a frail looking girl. They can produce some shocking
power every now and then. Just as Adel did just now, she showed power beyond
what I would ever expect. This was another reminder to myself to never
underestimate anyone around me. No matter what they looked like, they could be
super powerful demon lords, and I wouldn't know it until it was too late.
"I…
It was a lapse of judgment…." Baron Strands finally spat out an answer,
but for some reason, he was glaring at me. What did I do? I saved him from
doing something stupid.
"Hmmm?
I will be reporting this to the King. For now, me and my cute Faith will be
heading back to the inn." Adel snorted and grabbed my hand and was about
to pull me out of the guardhouse when Baron Strands suddenly yelled out.
"It
is fine for you to return to your inn, Miss Adel, but my town has a strict
policy that no demi humans are allowed inside." Baron Strands looked at me
with his lips curled up as if he won some kind of prize. Did he really think I
wanted to step foot into his lewd town? I mean, people are doing this and that
in the middle of the road here.
"Miss
Adel, I said you can go in if you want, but the demi girl has to stay
outside." I guess this baron is truly an idiot. Did he think that Adel was
trying to confirm his statement? Did he not realize what she was saying?
"Yes,
exactly. Since Faith is not allowed in then, that means I am not allowed in. I
never thought a town under the Gravos kingdom would rebel in such a way. It
seems you need to be removed from your post and have your land and title
stripped from you. What do you think, Baron Strands… Sorry, from this moment
on, it is Mr. Strands. Sir Randford!" Adel yelled out. It seemed she was
dead serious. I could only shake my head and sigh. It seems the baron did not
have much of a brain. No matter how much you hate demi humans, you should not
let your hate control your actions. Otherwise, it can come right back at you
and slap you in the face.
"Miss
Adel, you called?" Sir Randford walked into the guardhouse, his sword
already drawn.
"Take
this commoner and toss him outside the gates. Anyone with the last name Strands
is no longer allowed to take a single step inside any village, town, or city
within the Gravos Kingdom." Adel was merciless. I never expected that she
would go this far. But in a way, it made me frightened. What if the two of us
got into a fight? Would I be kicked out of the kingdom? Would my head roll?
These kinds of thoughts began to fill my mind causing a cold sweat to roll down
my back. I would need to make sure never to anger Adel.
"Wait!
Miss Adel, I was wrong! I can change my ways! Don't do this!" Surprisingly
he was still calling Adel Miss Adel instead of the unfinished Pri title. This
did show at least some loyalty to the kingdom. I mean, I believe if I spoke up
for the baron and asked Adel to give him another chance, she might just do it
but unfortunately, I was not that kind. I was already kind enough to help him
protect his town, but I didn't do it for him, I did it for the people who lived
here. While the guards and the baron might be demi haters, that did not mean
everyone was. And even if it was only a few people, I hoped to at least keep
those people safe. There were far too few people who did not mind demi humans
after all.
"Sir
Randford, you are moving too slow. I do not want to hear his voice
anymore." Adel said with a frown, completely ignoring the former baron's
plea.
"My
apologies, Miss." Sir Randford hastened his steps and quickly dragged the
former baron away. The only ones left were me and Adel.
"Now
then!" Adel clapped her hands and slipped her arm around mine. "Us
two will now head to the inn. I already have a room so you can share a bed with
me tonight. I do so wish to get to know you better."
I
could only helplessly smile as Adel dragged me out of the guardhouse and into
town. I did not mind sharing a bed as I used to do it with Rachel all the time,
but Adel always had a strange vibe about her that made me wary of her. But this
could just be my overthinking. Maybe it had to do with
how she acted when we first met. I am not too sure.
The
hustle and bustle of the town was nowhere to be seen. Everyone had cleared the
streets. Under the order of Sir Randford, it seemed the law of the town had now
changed. It was no longer a redlight district like it was before. Now there was
no telling if this will last beyond this night or not, but it was at least
quiet now, so I hoped to get some sleep eventually.
The
inn that Adel was staying at was actually quite expensive looking. It was much
different than what I had expected in a town like this. It was very much the
word high class. The inn itself had seven floors and even had a lift to reach
those floors that worked using magic. When we arrived at the top floor, Adel
dragged me along to the end room and opened the door using a key that was
imbued with magic and brought me into what I would call a presidential suite. A
large sitting room, dining room, a massive bedroom with a huge bath, and even a
small kitchen at the side. To this world's standards, it was very extravagant.
"Come,
I am sure you must be tired. The bath here is already hot so help yourself. I
will ready some food for you. Believe it or not, I am not a bad cook!"
Adel said with her nose held high. I could tell she seemed to take pride in her
cooking. It did make me smile, though, but what I did not get was why. Why was
Adel being so nice? This seemed to be beyond her scope of duty, would it not?
"Adel. I know this might
sound rude coming from me, but why are you doing all of this for me?"
Chapter64 The Real Adel Part 1
Adel
looked at me with uncertain eyes before lowering her head. She played with her
fingers for a minute as if lost in thought. "You are the first…. From the
moment we met, you have not treated me special at all. You treated me as if I
was a normal girl without much concern for doctrine. As you may have guessed, I
am not some ordinary girl. I am none other than Princess Adellia Gravos. I am
the first and only princess of the royal family. When I first heard my father
speaking about you, I instantly wished to get to know you more. A girl my age
who was able to fell multiple armies of an enemy nation and did so without
asking for anything in return. When I thought about the courage that it must
have taken to confront such an adversary, I wondered if I would ever have to
make such a choice in my life. If I could do what you did.
"When
I found out that my father wished to reward you by giving you a chance to join
the royal academy, I begged for him to let me be the one to see you in person.
I begged and even made my case saying that since you were a young girl having
some ugly old man show up would make you feel uncomfortable. It was only then
that he finally allowed me to make the trip to go to your house.
"When
I saw you for the first time, I watched as you laid on the stone wall without a
care in the world chewing on a blade of grass. The sight alone tickled me
slightly and made me giggle. It was then that I thought to myself. Wouldn't it
be nice if I could have a friend like this who was so carefree. A true friend….
"I
am someone who loves the people of the Gravos Kingdom. I love each and every
person in it as it is what allows the kingdom to flourish. Whether it is demi
human or human, each one plays an important role in our economy and allows our
kingdom to stand tall amongst those who wish to see it fall.
"But
even so... I do not wish to be treated like a princess. I do not need fake
friends. I only need a single true friend and nothing more. I am sorry for
keeping my title a secret, but I did not wish for you to change your attitude
about me due to my status. I just wished for us to be true friends, someone I
could confide in and who would confide in me.
"I
will understand if you do not wish to be friends with me anymore after this.
But I hope you will mophh…" I placed my finger on Adel's lips before
pulling her into a hug. A person in high standing is not always happy. Only
having those around you who only care about using you is never fun. I can feel
Adel's sincerity. I can hear the cries from the bottom of her heart that are
asking for someone to truly be her friend. Someone she can trust and rely on.
"Then,
Adel, let me reintroduce myself." I pulled away from Adel and took a step
back, and bowed my head slightly. "My name is Faith
Cyrilia. I am nothing more than a farmer's daughter from the border village of
Cyrilia. Born and raised by two wonderful parents. I hope on this day the two
of us can truly become friends."
Adel's
eyes were staring at me in disbelief before a smile finally formed on her lips.
She then pulled the hem of her skirt into a curtsey and bowed her head to me.
"Miss Faith, my name is Princess Adellia Gravos. First Princess of the
Gravos Kingdom. I may be royalty, but I do hope you will treat me as a normal
girl and will become my true friend."
"Hehe,
you can count on me!" I smiled and pulled Adel's hand. My worries about
before were completely gone. I did not see a princess in front of me but a true
friend that I can rely on in the future. Her being a princess was only a side
bonus. Because I can tell from how Adel acts, that she truly does love the
people of this nation and is thinking about how to best benefit the people. If
I can help her in this endeavor, then I will do so. I can also tell she is not
lying about wanting to be my friend. Some may say I am being too naive but one
does not know what is over the hill unless one climbs to the top to see for
themselves. I feel being true friends with Adel is worth the risk. The worst
thing that can happen is I get mad and blow up the kingdom, right?
Maybe
one day, I will tell her about my system and ask her if she is willing to allow
me to use my appraisal on her. As of now, I only use it on monsters and plants,
but I do wonder what kind of information I will get when used on a human. Maybe
their three sizes? I gazed at Adel's chest, then at my own. A sigh escaped my
lips as I realized that life may just be unfair after all. I am still growing!
But so is Adel!
"Faith,
I left a nightshirt and some underwear here for you. I do hope they will fit. I
am not sure since they are not meant for demi humans." Adel's voice came
in from the other side of the door. The bath had a dressing room area where you
could change your clothes that was split from the bath area by a door. To be
honest with how Adel acted, I expected her to come waltzing in to take a peek.
But I guess that only happens in those Japanese light novels back on earth. Not
that it matters. I got everything she has, so it's not much to look at unless
she had a tail fetish. Rachel had such a fetish…. Would a Princess be willing
to shine my scales for me though I wonder….
My
mind wandered a bit more before I noticed my fingers pruning, so I decided it
was time to get out. I slipped out of the bath and used magic to dry myself off
from head to toe before wrapping a towel around me and walking to the dressing
room. As Adel said, there was a nightshirt and some underwear for me to wear.
Surprisingly the underwear was a lower cut. While I had clothes in my
inventory, I remembered what Gesel said about it and decided to just wear what
was given to me. I mean, I can not just suddenly pull my
travel bag out of nowhere and go: Teehee, I had this the entire time!
Adel
was a bright girl, so this would not work on her. So I could only put on the
clothes she offered and walk out of the bathroom. Luckily everything fit rather
well and even took into account my wings with an open back. Although the back
of the nightshirt rose up due to my tail, but there was nothing I could do
about that. I mean, when I was in a good mood, my tail would curl up a little
and not drag on the floor. Only when my mood was down, did it droop down on its
own. My tail seemed to have a mind of its own.
As
soon as I opened the door to the bathroom, my nose was filled with the smell of
cooked food, and surprisingly it did smell quite good. I guess it goes to show
that Adel did have a thing for cooking. "Faith, perfect timing. I was just
setting the table, come eat!"
Adel's excited voice filled
my ears. She looked much happier than before. Maybe because she was now open
about her status? Either way, it was good to see someone as nice as Adel
smiling. She reminded me a lot of Jen, my best friend on Earth. Maybe this was
why I was starting to feel a kind of kinship with her. At any rate, she is the
first friend I have made outside my family. Now let's hope I do not die to her
cooking.
Chapter65 The Real Adel Part 2
I
sat down at the table where Adel was placing plates of food in front of me.
Each plate smelled very good. There was a noodle dish, a meat dish, a salad,
and a few other side dishes I had never seen before. "Adel, you really
outdid yourself."
"Hehe!"
Adel put her hands on her hips and held her nose high. "Cooking is one of
the only hobbies I can do. It was also in preparation for when I got married to
some man, but I am not so sure I want to marry anymore."
"Why
is that?" I asked, tilting my head to the side. But when I thought about
it, it was kinda dumb of me to ask such a stupid question. Everyone had their
reasons, like I, for one, do not see a reason to marry when my life span will
be longer than others
"Mmmm….
I suddenly realized that marrying someone I do not love or wish to be with is
not something I want to do. I am sure my father will not be happy, but what can
he do about it? Tie me up and ship me off to another country to marry some
prince I never met before? I love my kingdom, but I also think I deserve to
have my own happiness. And Faith, I have you to thank for opening my mind to
allowing myself to seek just that." I could not really relate to Adel's
consequences since I did not grow up in a royal family, but I can say that if I
was in her shoes, I'd run away as fast as I could. But I do not know what I
have done to cause her to change her mind though.
But
even though I was a bit confused, I knew one thing. "Then, if you are ever
forced into a marriage you do not wish to be in, then call for me, and I will
swoop in and save the day!"
"I
must say, though, Adel, the man you do end up falling for will be one happy
person. This food is amazing!" I was starting to wonder if everyone in
this world were five star chefs. I mean, everything I have tried since being
reborn in this world is always amazing.
"Hehe…"
Adel gave me a forced smile and continued eating. I wonder if I said something
wrong? Maybe it is just my imagination.
After
a very well made dinner, I climbed into bed with Adel. Adel was wearing the
same kind of nightshirt I was, except hers did not have an open back which
confused me as to why mine did…. It was almost as if she was prepared for
everything. Not that I am really complaining I mean, I do finally get to sleep
in a comfy bed for the first time in a while. So I immediately snuggled into
the blankets without reserve. I guess Adel did find it amusing cause I heard
her chuckling at the side.
"This
is the first time I am actually sleeping in bed with another person. I am glad
my first experience is with someone who is not out to use me or a man I barely
know." Adel said as she snuggled up next to me. To be honest, I was not
sure how to respond to her words. All I did know was that I was very tired.
When
I woke up the next morning, I was met with Adel's head using my shoulder as a
pillow and my arm as a hug pillow. She was still sleeping peacefully. I have no
idea when I fell asleep, but I did sleep very well. Seeing Adel's sleeping face
next to me, I could tell she was in a deep sleep as well, she looked very relaxed. Although her brow was slightly furrowed, which
made me wonder what she was dreaming about. My first slumber party with my new
friend was quite uneventful. I was expecting Adel to talk my ear off, but it
seems she respected the fact that I was tired and let me sleep. My guess was
that she was also really tired.
I
laid there staring at the ceiling for a while before Adel finally stirred. She
lifted her head and rubbed her eyes, looking quite confused. "Faith? Oh
right…. Good morning."
"Good
morning." I said with a smile while stretching my now free arm. It had
gone numb a while ago.
"Let
me wash my face, and I will prepare breakfast." Adel crawled out of bed.
Surprisingly she looked used to doing things herself. You would expect a
princess to need a maid or two to take care of her, but she seemed fine and
right at home doing everything on her own, although a little shameless as she
did just take off all her clothes in front of me to put on new ones before
heading out of the room. She did seem to be in a daze, though.
About
ten minutes later, I sighed and stretched once more while letting out a yawn.
Only then did I get up myself as I decided to head to the bathroom, but before
I could, I heard Adel's voice call back into the room. "Faith, I have
clothes prepared for you in the bathroom. So wash up and get changed. Breakfast
will be ready soon."
I
almost yelled back, 'Yes, Mom!' But I held it in and chuckled to myself. But
once again, I was given a surprise. Shorts that took into account my tail. A
shirt that also accounted for my wings. A pair of socks, boots, and even a hat.
"Did Adel prepare all of these just in case?"
"Ah….
Sorry. Must seem strange right? Well, I kinda had them prepared before turning
around. I had planned to give you these clothes on your first day at the
academy as a gift, but I ended up giving them to you now instead. As for the
sizes. I asked your sister in law, Rachel…." I kinda wish I knew when she
had time to do all of this. Did she even meet Rachel!? I had my suspicions, but
since Adel said it like this, I can only just accept what she is saying. For
all I know, she had used some spell on me to get all my body measurements when
she held hands with me back at the house. I mean, just getting clothes made
would take a while as well.
"Well,
thank you. It is thoughtful of you to prepare so much for me." I could
only give a smile and change the subject. "Are you going to head back to
the capital today?"
"Mmm…
What about you? Do you plan to wander around more?" Adel asked. Her eyes
showed a bit of envy. I guess as a Princess, her ability to run around and do
as she pleases is very limited.
"I
was thinking about it. I mean, I still have a few months, and if I really need
to rush, I can always use magic to speed along and make it there in a week or
less, depending on where I am at the time. The world is vast, and ever since I
was young, I have always wanted to go on a journey and see its beauty. While I
still have this dream, I figured I would live it in between following my new
dream of becoming a commander of my own army." I still had
plenty of time and have seen so little. I wanted to check out as much as I
could before arriving in the capital.
"I
see…" Adel lowered her head as she took another bite of her food. I knew
her mood had been ruined, but there was not much I could do. We were friends,
yes, but I still had things I wished to do as well. About a minute later I
heard Adel speaking in a low voice. "Umm…. If you do not mind…. Can…. Can
I travel with you for a short time? We will be surrounded by guards, but I
still do not want to head back just yet and was kind of hoping we could travel
together."
"That's
fine." I saw no reason why not. I mean it is more fun to travel with
others to experience things with friends. While it can be fun to travel alone,
it does get boring being by yourself.
"Great!
There was a place I wished to take you to that I am sure you will love. It is a
place I discovered by accident. It is a very mystical place." Adel's eyes
lit up. Her gloomy mood was all gone. Seeing her smiling again made me feel
better. I was starting to feel bad for leaving her alone after she had turned
around to come back to help me out.
"Then let's check it
out!"
Chapter66 The Spirit Race Part 1
Two
weeks later, the carriage that I was in stopped off on a side road. Well,
calling it a road might be stretching it, but because it was more of a path cut
through the thick forest. To be honest, I thought that riding in a carriage for
two weeks would be uncomfortable, but I guess royalty really knows how to ride
in style.
For
one thing, I never would have thought that there was a thing called dimensional
magic. It was a type of magic that could create a whole different space. From
what Adel told me, this magic requires ten people to cast, and each one needs
to be linked up because the spell itself is crazy long. Probably something I
could not even cast in my current state. But I still wished to see the magic
equation for it. It was different from spatial magic because dimensional magic
was a place living beings could enter and had to be stationary, whereas spatial
magic could be accessed from anywhere. Now, if you put such a thing on a
carriage, it can then move around, but it has to be moved manually. And the
carriage we were in had a small compartment that could be entered that was big
enough for a small bed and a bathroom.
It
felt kind of strange entering the door in the back of the carriage to find a
small bedroom that was just as big or even bigger than the carriage itself. And
by small bed, I mean a bed big enough for two people. If it was a single sized
bed, there would be room for more things in the room. But just to make
something this size took a long time to do. The equation always has to be
adjusted for what you were trying to create.
Sadly
some of these small worlds had multiple entrances, so other kingdoms would also
use them. But there seemed to be some kind of fundamental law that every
kingdom would only allow those under the age of eighteen in. This has been some
kind of strict rule that, if broken, would result in every kingdom attacking
the one who broke it.
Adel
also told me that the dangers inside were not only students from other kingdoms
but also the rare and ancient monsters living inside. It truly amazed me that
the more I learned about this world, the more exciting it seemed. Such a large
vast world that seemed to have no end to it was waiting to be explored. As I am
supposedly going to be long lived, I had plenty of time to explore it all. I
wonder what else I will find in the future. Maybe some underground civilization
with high technology? Or some ancient alien technology not of this world?
My
imagination couldn't help but run wild, but it was because of this that I so
wished to explore things in the future. But getting back to the carriage, it
was a rather smooth ride. Especially since we had the small space to sleep in.
During
these two weeks, I have learned a lot about Adel. Like she is pretty much able
to do anything. She is well suited for living outside the castle with her
survival abilities. She knows which plants in the forest are editable or which
plants can help heal wounds. Even the plants that are
rare that could be taken back to be sold for a fair amount of gold. I, of
course, did not let them pass by me, so I picked them up and stored them away.
Because
we have gotten closer, I told her about my 'spatial magic'. I didn't tell her
about the system itself, but I did let her know about my ability to store
things. She pouted for a few hours but soon got over it soon after. I guess she
was happy that she could give me nice clothes. While it was nice of her, I felt
like it was taking advantage of her. Which was not good. Friendship was not
something you could buy! And I think this was why she was always trying to buy
me many new things.
Like
we stopped in one city, yes, an actual city. And when I say city, I mean
something along the lines of the size of like Connecticut in the United States
back on Earth, but the entire thing as one city. She dragged me to these high
end shops and was buying me all kinds of dresses that fit demi humans, which
were more expensive than a regular dress.
To
be honest, I kind of felt weird wearing a dress. Between the people who were
glaring at me hatefully and my own self conscious with wearing a dress, I just
felt out of place. I did find out, however, that while the city I was in, which
was called Dagnar, allowed demi humans to live there, it was just that the
quality of life was not very good for them. So me being a demi human in a fancy
store made me the center of attention, and I am sure if it was not for Sir
Randford and the other knights surrounding me and Adel, we would have been
tossed out.
Another
thing I had noticed was that no one even knew who Adel was. But I guess this
was normal as there was no real communication between the cities besides
inspections that happened twice a year. So no one even
knew what their king looked like.
This
has also bothered me a great deal as it must be hard to understand how your
citizens are living if you are only reading reports from each city, town, and
village. Those who do the inspection might be even taking a kick back on top of
it to leave out anything that is unfavorable to the noble who is in charge of
that city, town, or village.
As
such, there is no telling how much money is actually being embezzled, or
whether it is actually being used appropriately. Like funds to aid the poor and
farmers that are under a nobles rule. When I asked Adel about this, she could
only give me a bitter smile and tell me that because the kingdom was so big, it
was indeed hard to keep track of it all, even with a team of people working on
it.
The
filing system they used, used magic for indexing things and keeping things on
file, which was pretty interesting, but it was not foolproof. Many mistakes can
be made, and everything is only registered based on what is reported by the
investigators.
At
any rate, you can say I now have a few fancy dresses. I did plan to buy some at
some point because I heard there would be dancing in the academy that required
formal wear, so now I guess I would be all set.
After
all, I was not going to the academy to become a prim and proper young lady. I
was going there to learn military tactics and become a good commander. A life
filled with battle is the life I planned to lead. I would be one of those old
army veterans who tells war stories to their grandkids. Although I think I
would only be telling them to the new slimes that I replicate.
I
had to explain everything to her about how slimes worked before she finally
understood. Only then did she let Mr. Blobs eat the monster corpse. But that
brought on all kinds of new problems because the corpse disappeared as soon as
Mr. Blobs touched it. I really had no way of explaining it, so I lied and said
that Mr. Blobs was a rare kind of slime and that I had no idea what breed he
was.
With so many things
happening, you can say that the past two weeks have been fun and fulfilling.
Which brings us to the path we were about to set out on. I still have no idea
where we are going, and Adel refuses to tell me. But I was very curious as to how
Adel knows about anything out this far from the capital. I mean, she told me
herself that she rarely leaves the capital for anything and even if she does,
it is only a few miles away from the capital itself. Not that it really
matters. If she wishes to tell me, she will.
Chapter67 The Spirit Race Part 2
"We
will need to go on foot from here, so it will probably be best if we
change." Adel said while grabbing my hand and pulling me into the small
bedroom.
"Do
you have armor, Adel?" I asked as I started to pull out my leather armor
and the underclothes that went with it.
Out
of the corner of my eye, I saw Adel already taking her own clothes out and felt
my question was kind of stupid, but she still kindly answered with a nod.
"Yep! Everyone needs to have armor when going to the academy, so I have a
few sets."
A
few sets…. I looked at my only set of armor that I normally had to wash a few
times a week and sighed. Must be nice to be rich. I really need to start
earning some money! Although I guess normally, when one went out, it could be
said they would only be carrying a single set of armor on them. So I guess it
was not wrong to only have one set. I think I will start going with the motto
of, only real adventures wear one set of armor until it can not be worn
anymore! Although I do get annoyed with how sweaty I can get when it is hot….
Maybe I should get a few sets after all when I become rich. So much for my
motto.
"What's
so funny?" Adel's voice entered my ear. I almost jumped out of my skin
because she put her face right next to it. I looked over at Adel, who was
already dressed while I was still standing there in my underwear, and pursed my
lips. "Just thinking about something my brother did when he was
younger." And so I lied. But I can't help it. It is too embarrassing to say that I was lost in my own thoughts and that I was
basically talking to myself and making myself laugh. She will think I am crazy,
and then bam! I will be booted out of the carriage.
"Hmmm?"
Adel raised an eyebrow as I quickly averted her eyes and began putting my armor
on at lightning speed.
A
couple of minutes later, we were standing outside the carriage, looking at the
long path in front of us. It was already starting to get dark, but I guess
there was a reason why we had to make this trek at night. Sir Randford stood in
front of us and began issuing some warnings. "The place we are heading to
is owned by the spirit race. We must not by any means attack anything unless it
attacks us first."
So
it seems this place is under the watchful eye of the Kingdom. No wonder Adel
knew about this place. This at least answered the question I had before.
"Princess, Miss Faith, Always watch where you are stepping as well. Do not
step on any spirits by accident. Spirits come in all different shapes and sizes
and are easily injured, but if angered, they could upturn the entire Kingdom by
causing droughts and other natural disasters."
The
spirit race was a race that was the closest to the world and was born from the
world. Any spirit race habitats were always secured and protected by the
government. A one thousand mile perimeter is always established around their
habitats. So this way, even the soldiers would not be able to bother them. During
times of war, a huge force of soldiers would protect the habitat before any
cities or towns. This was just how important they were.
"Are
you ready?" Sir Randford asked.
"Yes!"
Both Adel and I responded at the same time, causing us to giggle. While Sir
Randford was trying to be all serious, I was still rather calm. Because if
anything happened, I could quickly act no matter what the situation held. At
least, I hoped.
All
the guards except Sir Randford all stayed behind while Sir Randford led the
way. We made our way down the path that had tall grass up to my shoulders
growing on the sides that hung over the sides of the path. We had to watch our
step every inch of the way to make sure no spirits would fall victim to death
by foot.
Although
we did not actually see any spirits until about three hours later when the sun
finally went down. Only then did we start to see glowing lights begin to fill
the forest all around us. And to my amazement, spirits of all sizes began
walking around. Some were shaped like leaves, while some took on the forms of
sticks. There were even those who were nothing but a rock. Each one had a set
of big black eyes, and almost stick figure sized arms and legs. You could even
see some floating through the air as little balls of light.
"From
here on, be extra careful." Sir Randford reminded. But what made me
chuckle was the cute little voices of the spirits that repeated Sir Randofrd's
words. "Yeah, be careful!" "He said to be careful!"
"Careful, careful!"
I
watched as Adel smiled warmly at me and shook her head. "Leave it to Faith
to do the unthinkable."
I
could only smile and stick my tongue out at her. The little spirits kept coming
out of nowhere and climbing on top of me. At some point, I have no idea when
but my head was covered in quite a few of them. Some rode on my horns while
others swung from my hair. To be honest, this was the first place that seemed
truly magical to me in this world. I know this sounds weird since I have been
casting magic, but this was how I truly felt at this time.
As
we walked further up the path, the bigger the spirits got as well. Currently, I
had two rock spirits holding my hands while more large ones surrounded me. I do
not know what it is that they like about me, but they seemed dead set on being
near me.
Adel,
on the other hand, was pouting. She wanted to have one of the little ones sit
on her shoulder, but it spat at her and called her stinky. I almost died from
laughter while Sir Radford's face turned bright red from trying to hold back
his laughter. And poor Adel, the victim, lowered her head and pouted even more.
By
the time we reached the top of the mountain, it was already late into the
night. But what stood before us was truly a mystical sight. A large ancient
tree spirit with a humanized face made of bark and a
long beard made of leaves sat at the peak, looking at us with curious eyes.
"To think humans would come this far after such a long time. And even a
dragon who is loved by the spirits. This is indeed a grand occasion. I had been
wondering why the little ones seemed so excited."
I
watched as Adel stepped forward and dropped to one knee with her head bowed.
"Your Grace, I have come with a word from my father. He says the war has
been quelled, and the lands are safe once more. To ensure the safety of your
lands, we had over a million soldiers encircling your territory to make sure it
was safe."
"I see… It is good the
pact with your kingdom is being upheld. As you know, I am able to see all that
happens in this kingdom. Every vibration is felt by me. I know that you humans
are not all good. But I can see that you are at least good at sticking to your
word. But this little girl is very different. She gives off a feeling that I
have not felt since ancient times. Strong yet noble. One who will help those in
need. It is also thanks to her that your human war was quelled so quickly. I
hope you humans will treat her well." I was a little shocked by what I was
hearing. Why would the leader of the spirits of this Kingdom go so far to speak
out for me?
Chapter68 The Spirit Race Part 3
"Your
Grace, you do not need to worry about this. On my name, Adellia Gravos, I swear
on my honor that I will be harmed first before any harm comes to Faith."
Hearing Adel swear on such a thing left me feeling strange inside. Why would
Adel protect me over her own life?
"Adel,
please retract that statement. Your life is not something that should be taken
lightly." I really couldn't have Adel sacrificing herself for me at some
point to uphold her word. I mean, I have mana shield! What can hurt me unless
it is indirect? The last thing I want on my consciousness is Adel being
seriously hurt or ending up dead thinking she is protecting me.
"No,
I will not!" Adel immediately refused. Looking at her serious expression,
I could only sigh. I guess I can only promise inwardly that I will keep her
safe if anything were to happen.
I
guess Adel was happy with me giving in so easily because her puffed out cheeks
quickly turned into a satisfied smile. The leader of the spirits looked back
and forth between us and nodded his head. "I see you are both close, which
is good. Child of dragons, I must ask you to look over this kingdom as well.
Over the years, this kingdom has always held true to its promises and has made
sure my lands are peaceful and kept safe from any of the other races. My spirit
race is not one that can fight easily, and when we do, it will bring
devastation to the lands even if it is not the fault of those who live upon
them. But we are also not a race that can be created easily as we are all born
from the planet itself. So I ask that if those from outside this kingdom come
to invade these lands that you assist the kingdom in
warding them off. If you do this for me, I will be sure that your home village
will always have a bountiful harvest."
I
gazed up at the leader of the spirits who was trying to make a deal with me in
surprise. I guess he truly can see everything in this kingdom. But this was not
a bad deal. It would not only help my family out but also aligned with my goal
in life anyway. "You have my word. If war breaks out, I will be on the
front lines defending this land. I also do not wish to see anyone taint these
lands of yours. Not when so many cute spirits live here."
"Then
I give you my thanks. It looks like this kingdom will have a prosperous future
with this child helping it out." I kinda felt embarrassed. I have done
nothing, but the leader of the spirits kept showering me with praise. I now had
to live up to his expectations and keep my end of the bargain, so that my
family, no matter how long they live for, will always have good lives. For
farmers having a bountiful harvest every year is something that brings life and
energy into their passion.
My
father loved working in the fields, and so did my brother. My brother will one
day take over for my father as he grows older and will also have his own family
grow more and more. The more they can harvest each year, the more they can sell
to the merchants. It would then allow them to provide for the new Cyrilia that
are born. A faint smile formed on my lips, thinking about it. My nephew will
one day grow up and have kids, and his kids will also grow old and have
children of their own. I just hope each one of them will live peaceful and
eventful lives full of happiness. And I….. I will watch quietly from the side.
"Faith?" Adel
called out to me, breaking me out of my thoughts.
I
looked over at her and smiled. "Thank you for bringing me here today,
Adel."
"Hehe,
I just wanted you to see this place." Adel blushed slightly. But I am
really glad I got to come here. I got to see such an amazing place. This will
always be a day I will remember.
We
ended up talking with the leader of the spirits for a while before saying our
goodbyes, but before we left the mountain, a voice entered our ears.
"Child of the dragons, please wait a moment."
"Hmmm?"
I turned my head and looked up towards the mountain top.
"One
of my kind has tried to hide themselves in your hair. Little one, it is useless
to hide." The leader of the spirit's voice was stern. Soon I felt some
tousling in my hair before a flower spirit popped its head out from within.
"I
want to go with her…." The flower spirit voice sounded like a young girl,
but I could only assume that she must be much older. I could also hear a bit of
stubbornness in her voice.
"You
know it is dangerous outside for our kind. If you leave this mountain, I can
not protect you no matter what happens." I guess according to the leader
of the spirits words, the spirits here are allowed to roam as they please but
will not be protected by the pact of the kingdom.
A
long, drawn out sigh came from the top of the mountain. "Child of dragons,
would you mind looking after this little one?"
"It's
fine. I do not see why not. But she will need to behave." I had no issues
if she followed me around. I mean, after all, she was cute and small, so she
wouldn't take up any space. I wonder if she will get along with Mr. Blobs? I
guess I will need to introduce them later.
"Then
I will leave this little one in your care. Child of dragons, I bid you farewell
and safe journeys." The voice of the spirit leader began to fade at the
end. I gave a slight bow and turned back around. I guess I got a new travel
companion.
I
looked at the flower spirit and smiled, and held out my hand. "Since we
will be traveling together, just call me Faith. Do you have a name by
chance?"
"No….
Spirits normally do not have names. Only names humans give us. Names have no
meaning for us. But if you, Faith, wish to give me a name, I will gladly
accept." The little flower spirit replied.
I
stood there and thought for a moment looking at the little spirit, before a
name popped into my mind. "How about Little Bell?"
Her dress was shaped like a bell which reminded me of a bellflower from back on
Earth. They were very pretty flowers and had a bell shape.
"Little
Bell…." Little Bell seemed to fall into thought for a second before
nodding her head. "This name I like, thank you Faith."
"Then
shall we go?" I asked, motioning with my hand. Little bell nodded and
landed on my hand before running up to my shoulder and hiding in my hair.
"I
will stay here. It will be the safest place for me." Little Bell seemed to
want to just be there for the ride as if she was on vacation.
With
everything settled and an envious Adel, we exited the path and made our way
back to the carriage. It was already very late in the night, so we planned to
stay the night in the carriage at the end of the footpath. Adel was full of all
kinds of complaints because the spirits did not like her. Even Little Bell kept
her distance from her. I felt bad but also found it kinda funny.
"Tomorrow,
we will head out of this special area and head back onto the road towards the
capital. Faith, are you sure you won't travel with me?" I could tell Adel
did not want to travel alone. But I also knew once we reached the capital, we
would need to separate as well. At the rate that we are traveling, we will also
be there about a month before the academy's entrance tests. This means I could
still take the time to get to know the area around the capital and the capital
itself.
Since
I could enjoy my time with my new friend before we would be split apart for a
while, I figured why not. I have all the time in the
world to travel around. "Yeah, we can travel together. Once we reach the
capital, you will need to go to the castle anyway. And I can take some time
getting used to the city."
"Really!? No, wait! You
can't say no now! You already said yes!" Adel looked very happy, which
made me smile. I just hope nothing happens in the future that will make this
girl who longed for a friend to do something stupid like try to protect me
using her life. One thing I have learned in my twelve years on this world is
that when people give their word about something, most of them will always keep
that word. I guess I will just need to make sure nothing happens that will put
her in danger.
