Chapter 497: The night before departure
Night. On my way to the tavern, I look in the distance and see the lights on at the crossbowmen’s quarters. I wondered if it was just now and as I craned my eyes to look at it, Dianne lightly whispered something in my ear and before I turned around……to see what it was, I felt my eyes suddenly get better.
“Wh, What is it?”
“It’s a sensory enhancement spell. Does it bother you?”
“No, ……thank you”
I looked again at the inn. The distance is several hundred meters, but thanks to the magic, I can count the grain on the outside wall. And in that field of vision, I spotted behind the window……an example of one of the drug addicted girls that Bauz had brought in.
“……Are they using the crossbow corp’s quarters as temporary lodging for those girls?”
“I’m not privy to that, but it must have been arranged by Irina or Christie. There are more than a dozen of them, so it must have been difficult to find a vacant house”
“Does the inn cost……money?”
“Yeah. It’s an urgent matter and it’s a little brazen to ask the Baron-dono for accommodation”
“……Ah, I didn’t really think anything of it”
“Well, it seems like things are going well, so that’s fine. The crossbow quarters will not be used until the winter anyway and there are enough rooms to ensure privacy even for that many people. I think it’s a good idea”
“……I see. I thought we were all together, but we should have separate lives, shouldn’t we?”
“I agree. For now, there is a solidarity among them that they have the same disease, but it would be remiss to rely solely on that. They are originally complete strangers. Whether we let them return to their homeland or take care of their lives here, we must respect their individuality, or it will be inconvenient for them later on”
“……Thats right”
As is the case in the military, being in solidarity is easy once it is separated from the rest of the world, but it also makes it harder to return to civilian life because it does not require decision-making. In Celesta, the military is more systematized than in other countries and there are few soldiers who serve for life and many retire amicably (in other countries, it is not uncommon for a soldier to remain a soldier until he or she is old, but in Celesta, except for generals and general staff, old soldiers with declining physical strength are considered to be out of the way). The military has a high awareness of prognosis. In the military, 「Greed as an individual」 often makes a virtue of killing, but in the real world, if you leave everything to others, you will only be taken advantage of. It is said that the fact that they are often enlightened in preparation for the time when they will eventually return is one of the reasons for Celesta’s 「Self-serving, results-oriented」 spirit.
“From now on……It’s a big job, even after all this time, to get those girls to become independent”
“It’s too late for that, isn’t it? Well, just because it’s hard doesn’t mean it’s impossible and if you only worry about the magnitude of the thing, it can slow you down. You shouldn’t worry too much about it”
“Umm……you tell me not to worry about it”
“It’s not something you can do alone. But just because it’s hard doesn’t mean you should ignore it and not offer a helping hand. Remember what you said to yourself when you were trying to save Breakcore, Andy?”
“……Emm”
“『When you can help, when you can reach it, that’s where you are. Then do it. You’re going to turn a blind eye to that sad guy and go home and give up and say that he’s lost his future because he made a mistake, that he was destined to be that way. If I might be hurt, too, will I back off? If he’s that smart, then I’m fine with being an idiot』”
Dia,ne closed her eyes and deflected. Then she looked at me sideways a little happily.
“I remember everything, even your accent. I remember every word, every tone, when you really seemed worthy of the power of a dragon rider”
“……Ugh”
I’m embarrassed.
“That’s fine with you. You’re a fool for not hesitating to help others with a second thought. That’s why you have so many people on your side”
“……Its a very complicated story”
“Even the most powerful are frightened by what they see as their own strength, and how out of their control they are. You may think you’re right, but you’ve given up on the idea that you’re not strong enough. Somewhere along that journey you became the vortex that guided such strong men. You got to be able to stand in the middle of the flow where everyone else has to look up and lend their strength”
“……When you hear me say that much, it makes me sound like a very grandiose being”
“It’s not a gift anyone can have. That’s why you just have to believe in those around you. You need to move forward with a sense of justice that lives up to the name of a dragon rider. If you’re the only one who can rebuild each person’s life, you’ll live forever. It’s a lifetime’s work for you alone to fix one person’s life, but it’s no big deal if all your allies help you. And that’s just a dozen or so”
I chewed on Dianne’s words and thought again about the dependability of my 「Allies」 here in Polka and in the forest and in Trot and Celesta and Renfangas. As usual, I remain an ordinary, uneducated, young man who can’t do anything in particular. What could I do with that many allies? How many people can I make happy? I renewed my determination to do my best not to be disappointed by them, in the quiet night and the distant light.
—————————————–
“So, I think the problem will be almost gone by tomorrow. I can still see just fine☆”
“Once again, the miraculous spring is amazing”
At the bar, Hilda read out the menu on the other side of the counter with her injured eye, much to Naris’s admiration.
“I just couldn’t get rid of the bloodshot eyes. I made some eye drops with spring water and put them in. Just to be safe, I’m going to go on an overnight course at the hot springs tonight”
“But if you can see that much……I guess it’s time to move on”
Dianne nodded.
“The summer is short……and so is Kalwin and by extension, the demon territory. If we reach it and that’s it, but in light of 100-man commander Dianne’s and Master Buster’s plans, we’d better move quickly”
Neia also supports Dianne’s decision. The actuality that these days of peace of mind are about to come to an end is a little bit complicated.
“I’m sure Lanuz, Goto and the others are waiting for us”
“And 10-man captain Keiron”
Luna added a few words to Naris’ words. ……I might have forgotten about Keiron, to be honest. Hilda, sipping from a ceramic cup (probably with a good one, like great ice field or rough whale), moves on to the current handover of Polka.
“I’ve appointed Marone-chan and Oregano-chan as caretakers for the drug adiccted girls. I’ve told them that they can always rely on the girls wearing slave collars, but they’ll be in charge for the time being”
“Oregano? She’s got a job to do. Why don’t you put Miril or someone else in charge?”
“When thinking about emergency measures using magic, I would like to have an elf in the two-man cell. Marone-chan has a good memorization of magic, but she lacks the ability to apply it because she hasn’t consciously trained it at all……”
And then, while bringing a plate of fried food, Savory mixes it up.
“I could have been the one to do it”
“Hmm, I want Savory-chan and Selen-chan to be calm as relays of information. Also, Oregano-chan said that she was bored at the clothing store”
“I’m sure that’s true, but. ……Polka’s wives are basically good at sewing”
Savory sighs. Immediately, she is called over by tipsy old men from another table to take their orders. The tavern was always busy, that’s for sure. Well, it was originally run by a married couple, so I guess they could get along without us if they wanted to.
“But if that’s the case, it’s going to be more and more difficult to get them to take off their collars……”
When I whispered, Anzeros, who was quietly watching the conversation, frowned.
“Do you want me to take off your collar? Why?”
“Eh, because……you know, I have a bad reputation”
“Wait a minute, Andy. That’s not a good idea”
“Eh”
“Just do what you do……do you really think everyone wears a collar with that level of determination to maintain respectability or something? There’s no way you can just let them take it off that easily!”
“Eh, no, it’s just a fashion thing to begin with”
Oh? What’s wrong with the conversation……?
“It’s true that for Andy, it’s just a little bit of play for one of the many girls! But being a female slave is a big decision for a girl! You’re telling me now that it’s just a fashion statement!?”
“No, I’m not trying to make you quit being a female slave! It’s just that it’s bad for your education to wear a collar around your neck!”
“If Andy is so inclined, why don’t you just give out wedding rings? I’d be worried if I didn’t have one! Andy should be free to express himself even if it’s just a private pussy!”
“Hey, you’re drunk! You’re really drunk, aren’t you!?”
Why is it that today, for once, Anzeros is the drunkest of them all?
“……Ah. I’m sorry, but Anzeros told me earlier that she doesn’t know much about alcohol, so she and Naris decided to start with a little bit of each and every cocktail”
Savory confessed in passing. I looked at Naris and she looked away. She even started whistling.
“It’s not about whether I’m drunk or not! Andy, it is more about the pride of being a female slave!?”
“You’re drunk in a very bad way!”
Don’t make her drink like that.
“……For now, we’ll be leaving around noon tomorrow”
“Andy-kun, you’re going to have to soothe Anze-chan. I think Sensei’s bed will be most effective”
The dark elf sisters abandoned me. Naris and Neia are not……. They’re quickly moving to another table. Only Luna is silently eating her fried food, but I don’t expect her to stop Anzeros from running amok.
“For God’s sake, Anzeros, calm down! It’s a public place! Don’t talk too loudly about your pussy!”
“I didn’t say that! It was Andy who said it!”
“This is what it means to be drunk!”
It hurts my heart to shout. ……I’m sorry. I’ll try not to get drunk in public so casually in the future.