Chapter 40
Clang. The hoe hit something solid and metallic — that’s how it all started.
‘It’s here. A bite!’
Twenty years of living as the daughter of a fisherman must’ve gotten to me, because I couldn’t help but think in those terms.
Anyway, the location roughly matched the one from the game. This was definitely the feel of a treasure chest.
I eagerly dug away the dirt covering it until a wooden chest reinforced with metal plates came into view.
“Whoa…” I swallowed without realizing it.
I knew roughly how many jewels and gold coins were supposed to be inside.
‘Should I just grab it and run?’
The thought flashed through my mind.
If I quietly slipped it into my inventory, no one would know. A perfect crime.
But…
My conscience stopped me.
Ever since I was a kid, I’d been taught to take any wallet I found to the police — and I’d lived that way my whole life.
Sure, the temptation of sudden riches right before my eyes was strong…
‘Still, stealing a corrupt priest’s slush fund is kind of… low.’
Once you start doing that sort of thing, it becomes a habit. There’s a reason people say, “He who steals a needle will someday steal a cow.”
While I brushed the dirt off the chest, Rena and Darren, who had been working separately nearby, came over.
“What’s that?”
“Dunno. It was buried under some weeds.”
I played dumb in response to Darren’s question. Sometimes pretending not to know is a survival skill.
“Wonder what’s inside? Hm, it’s locked. Give me a sec.”
Rena examined the box, cast a strengthening spell on her hands, and promptly tore off the lock.
“……”
Darren just stared at her, looking exhausted.
“What?”
“…Nothing. I was going to open it myself.”
He seemed to be having a moment of reflection about all the times he’d teased Rena in the past — though knowing him, he’d start doing it again tomorrow.
‘Yeah, that guy never learns.’
Even if I hadn’t already known the future from the game, I could’ve guessed that much. Darren giving up teasing Rena? The sun would sooner rise in the west.
Ignoring their bickering, I opened the chest.
And gasped again.
‘Holy crap… What is all this?’
First thing I saw was a golden necklace inlaid with gems, shaped like wings — the symbol of the Goddess, something only high-ranking clergy carried.
In Earth terms, it was like a diamond-studded golden cross necklace or a luxury Buddhist rosary.
And besides that, the chest was overflowing with expensive-looking items.
‘Whoa… are those gold bars?’
It was my first time seeing real gold bars.
I’d seen plenty in dramas — mountains of them in secret vaults of the rich — but an ordinary citizen like me? Never.
“Hmm, maybe this was the former Archbishop’s slush fund?”
Rena said while examining the contents.
Maybe because she was from a noble family, she didn’t seem surprised at all.
Darren, on the other hand, just gaped — he was about to start drooling.
“Yeah, looks like it.”
“So… what do we do with it? Report it to the temple?”
She looked at me as she asked.
Why me though?
In the game, she’d been the one to immediately insist, “Of course we must return it to the temple!” and ran straight to Lucas with it.
Her hesitation caught me off guard for a couple seconds.
“Uh, yeah. Of course we’ll give it to the priest.”
As I said that, Rena smiled faintly and murmured, “Knew you’d say that. That’s right.” Her face seemed a bit flushed.
“I’ll carry it then.”
Darren volunteered, lifting the chest out of the hole. It was heavier than it looked — the veins stood out on his arms.
And just like that, the temple quest was complete.
“So, you received these Rainbow Stones and top-grade potions in return?”
Adrian looked at the spoils spread across the table.
“Y-yeah. That’s how it went. But Adrian… what happened to you?”
Darren asked cautiously.
The usually pristine and composed Adrian looked like a drowned rat. His long hair was dripping wet, and his clothes were soaked.
“I was… exploring the residential area around the temple when this happened.”
Adrian frowned, visibly annoyed.
But the mystery wasn’t solved yet.
“So, how exactly—?”
“Apparently, the house we visited belonged to one of the families most exploited by the previous archbishop,” Leo interjected. “The lady of the house was so enraged that she, um, threw… water…”
He trailed off, glancing nervously at Adrian.
Adrian closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to compose himself.
Even so, he was so striking — wet hair clinging to his face, furrowed brows, that calm intensity — that I couldn’t help staring.
“I’ll go wash up first.”
No one dared object. In fact, we all nodded vigorously, urging him to go.
While he was gone, we chatted about our experiences and exchanged information.
When Leo heard about the treasure chest, he sighed wistfully that he wanted to experience that thrill himself.
After a while, Adrian returned — with his still-damp hair down and loose.
‘Whoa, Adrian with his hair down… this is a rare sight!’
In the game, he’d always appeared neat and composed, even after washing up.
Aside from not having his hair tied, he was still perfectly dressed, gloves and all — but the hair alone was enough to make my heart skip.
‘If only I had a camera… this deserves a screenshot.’
Too bad real life didn’t have a print-screen key.
After taking a moment to mentally preserve the image, the meeting resumed.
We decided to continue helping villagers for now to earn their trust.
The loot from the chest was divided equally among us.
Adrian, saying he wasn’t a combatant, refused his share — meaning the rest of us got a bit more.
And thus ended our second day in the Sylva Grove Forest.
The next morning.
“Uh, I’m not imagining it, right? The darkness… it’s thicker than yesterday?”
“At this rate, it’ll spill over the city walls in a few days.”
Darren and Leo peered out the window, anxiety in their voices.
They were worried that things were progressing too slowly.
‘Hang in there, guys. It’ll all be resolved tonight!’
According to the game, if we went around helping villagers today, the young herbalist would finally come to our inn by evening — kicking off the next main event.
To avoid any butterfly-effect chaos, I made sure to follow the game script as closely as possible.
Everything was on track.
We were about to split up and handle the day’s requests when—
“I’ll go with Lady Elaine!”
Leo suddenly raised his hand.
“Huh? Why?”
“You were attacked yesterday. The followers of the Demon God might strike again. I’ll accompany you for protection!”
“That’s… really not necessary—”
I knew no more attacks would happen here in the Sylva Grove arc. Our next encounter with those cultists wouldn’t come until much later.
But I couldn’t exactly say that.
“It could still be dangerous! I insist!”
Leo’s eyes sparkled with determination — the kind that said he wouldn’t take no for an answer.
“Hm, a reasonable idea,” Adrian said with a nod.
At that point, refusing would’ve just made things weird.
“Alright, fine. Let’s go together.”
And so, Leo became my partner for the day.
The result?
‘Wow… this is amazing. Healers are the best.’
Combat had never been so easy.
We’d gone outside the walls and fought moving tree monsters after taking on a request from a little kid — who’d begged us to retrieve a doll he’d left in his secret hideout outside the city.
Apparently, after darkness fell on the forest, his parents had forbidden him from leaving the walls, so he’d asked us in tears to get it back.
When we arrived, monsters emerged from the shadows, and a fight broke out — but with Leo’s protection spells, I didn’t have to worry about injuries.
I could just charge in and hit things.
That’s when I truly understood the value of party composition.
A tank to protect, a healer to restore, a supporter to assist, and a dealer to attack.
Just having one healer made battle ridiculously easy. I was so touched I almost cried.
“Nice work, Leo. That went so smoothly, thanks to you.”
When I patted his shoulder, his face turned bright red.
“W-well, I just did my part! I’m glad I could help!”
Adorable, seriously.
Having a little brother like Leo wouldn’t be bad at all.
Sure, he occasionally made odd, quietly intense comments — but hey, that’s part of the sibling charm, right?
