BSS 130

Chapter 130

So you recognize me, Ash.

“Did you perhaps see a black-haired boy there…?”

But he seemed unable to finish his sentence. The turmoil in his eyes made his tangled thoughts painfully clear.

From his point of view, all of this must have felt far more confusing and complicated than it did to me.

It would already be hard enough to accept that someone he had believed to be dead was now standing right in front of him. On top of that, there was no way he could say out loud that he himself was that boy from back then.

My appearance had changed since that time, and my status had to remain hidden.

So what could we do?

Even though we recognized each other, there was nothing we could actually do.

“Ash.”

“…Ms. Ginny.”

We quietly called each other’s names, feeling a deep, wordless gladness and a small spark of joy rise inside us. Beyond sending such vague yet intimate signals, there was nothing else.

Very quietly, we realized that we had been reunited.

“Hey, you two!”

Maybe we were too absorbed in each other, because it felt almost like an ambush.

We hurriedly sprang apart.

The workshop door flew open aggressively, and Rox burst in, throwing the already cramped shop into chaos.

“What on earth are you two doing?! Why aren’t you coming out? The play ended ages ago!”

Clearly anxious, Rox marched straight up to us and started grilling Ash.

“You said it’d be just a minute! Just a minute! You said you’d be right out!”

“Ah, Rox.”

“Why are you two so suspiciously determined to be alone together, huh?!”

Ugh, what timing.

If that play was going to end, couldn’t it have lasted a bit longer? It was already over?

Useless. Completely useless.

Whenever Rox got worked up, he switched to formal speech with Ash. It was probably because his usual casual tone was just an act to pretend they were friends.

“Why are you looking at me like that? You’re glaring as if I interrupted something really important.”

Rox reacted instantly to my displeased stare.

“I’m not glaring. My eyes just look like this. If you’ve got a problem, want me to complain to my parents for you?”

“…No matter how I look at it, the atmosphere here is really suspicious!”

“Oh my, do you have paranoia?”

“This isn’t a joke! What were you talking about? What were you two doing that you lost track of time like this…?”

“Shopping, what else? Want to see what I picked? I’m buying all of it. It’s not that much.”

True to his role as a watchdog, Rox treated me like a spy at the slightest excuse.

Being suspected was annoying enough, but it would be even more troublesome if he realized Ash’s true identity. So, to avoid suspicion, I proudly showed off what I’d chosen.

A new belt and vest, several pairs of gloves and knee guards. Leather pants and a dagger sheath, an herb pouch, various kinds of straps, a foal-sized saddlebag, hairbands, and more—my arms were full.

“Good grief, you bought all this in such a short time… Why didn’t you just rob the place?”

“There was a lot I needed.”

“You really bought everything imaginable. What’s this foal saddlebag for?”

“Oh! I’m going to put it on Rye. It’d be perfect for carrying luggage, don’t you think?”

“You’re going to put that on a dog? Someone’s definitely going to steal it.”

“Stealing Rye is impossible, so it’s fine. If you’re suspicious, you can try. Just watch your hands.”

Rox looked worried about my plan, but there was no thief in the world who could survive Rye’s teeth.

“Ms. Ginny? Earlier you clearly said he’s a friend, so treating him like a dog was off-limits…”

“This is treating him like a horse.”

“…I see.”

Ash seemed to quickly realize that arguing back was pointless.

You’re pretty sharp, aren’t you!

“Thanks to you, I got everything I needed. Thanks, Ash!”

“You’re welcome.”

“And from now on, call me Ginny. No need for ‘Ms.’ You’re older than me anyway, right? Just speak casually.”

Ash was three years older than me, and in this world, even a five-year age gap was close enough to be friends.

You needed about a ten-year difference to be clearly treated as an adult.

Maybe it was because status mattered more than age here.

“I’ll try.”

“What’s so hard about that? Do it right now!”

“…You really are something.”

“Let’s be friends. Yeah?”

I held out my hand again—the one I’d hastily pulled back earlier when Rox showed up.

I wanted Ash to know. How familiar he felt to me. How full of goodwill I was toward him.

Smack.

“…Ow.”

“Hey! Where do you think you’re touching?! Where—hey!”

“Hey! You just hit me!”

“Hit you? Are you trying to scam me with fake injuries? I just knocked it away. Ash is too innocent to hang around with a dangerous person like you! Friends? Don’t say such alarming things. I oppose this meeting. Don’t even think about being alone together without me!”

He was acting like an overbearing mother-in-law. What, does holding hands make someone pregnant?!

Rox was openly trying to keep me away from Ash. So what did I do?

I grabbed him by the collar.

How dare you hit me! When someone tells me not to do something, I just want to do it more!

“What did you say? So what, you think I’m some kind of gold digger?”

“P-please let go first! Why are you reacting so violently…?”

“That’s exactly what you meant!”

“That’s not what I meant…!”

“Then what is it?!”

“…How can you trust someone who snatches things back from thieves so readily! You’re not exactly the trustworthy type! Just look at you now—grabbing someone by the collar because you don’t like them!”

Oh. That’s… not wrong.

I reined in my temper that had flared up and slowly released his collar.

“Uh, that was… self-defense. Justified self-defense.”

“Exactly! That’s why you’re not trustworthy!”

“What’s your problem? I’m the kind of person who can live without breaking the law.”

“Yeah! Because you’d ignore all laws! Or make your own!”

Tch. Rox is sneakily formidable. How did he know?

“Don’t tell me you treat Ash like this too?”

“Of course not. I don’t act like that toward people I like. I’m very kind, you know?”

“So that means… you don’t like me!”

Quick on the uptake, Rox fussed over his wrinkled collar while launching a barrage of nagging at me.

Just grabbing his collar once, and suddenly I was the worst person alive.

People get angry and grab collars sometimes, you know!

For some reason, in the middle of all that noise, Ash looked a little shy.

We hadn’t even been walking for that long, yet the sky was already growing dark.

The sun was setting in the direction we were headed, and the fleeting glow of the sunset was so beautiful it naturally brought everyone to a halt.

“Hey, kid. Look over there.”

There were five of us in the group, but only four were walking. For almost an hour now, Aini had been sitting on Chad’s shoulders, riding piggyback.

“It’s pretty!”

“What do you call that in your language?”

“Shuri!”

“Shuri… that’s nice. Your language is really beautiful.”

The two of them had become close with surprising speed, proving firsthand that Aini was especially wary of me.

Aini liked Ash and liked Rox too, so as we walked around town, she held both their hands tightly and swung them back and forth.

As if it were the most fun thing in the world.

It was obvious she’d have had a great time even without me. No—at this point, maybe I was the nuisance.

“Hey, did you know? The meaning of Aini’s name.”

“I don’t.”

Huh. Feels like I’m the only one out of the loop. Looks like the four of them really bonded while I wasn’t around.

“It means ‘blessing of the moon.’ And my name, in my tribe’s language, means ‘horse hoof’! Hahaha, horse hoof!”

“Well, that’s… wonderful, Mr. Horse Hoof.”

“Isn’t it funny?”

“Not at all.”

Are you kidding me? Something has to be funny for me to laugh.

[Shall I kill him?]

[Rye, could you not turn me into a murderer over something like this?]

[But I detected murderous intent inside you, Master!]

It was such an unfunny joke that a tiny bit of killing intent really did rise up.

Chad, not considering the possibility that he himself was the fool, treated me like I was cold-blooded.

“Oh dear. Kid, you must’ve had it rough, traveling with such a lukewarm woman.”

“Yeah… it was hard.”

“This won’t do! Come travel with us from now on!”

“Okay!”

I know it was a joke, but wasn’t that betrayal a little too easy?

“Aini?”

“…But big sister is scary.”

Aini was pouting openly, as if she trusted Chad completely.

Somehow, she seemed to like Chad more than Ash now.

The way she clung to the top of Chad’s shaggy head, resting her chin there, looked so natural it was almost like they were family.

“I like Uncle Chad!”

“Well, I respect personal taste, but still…”

“Hey! What’s wrong with me?!”

“I’m genuinely curious—what exactly do you like about this guy? His ignorance? His loud voice? How he picks fights at the drop of a hat?”

“Hmm… Uncle is… like Dad!”

Ah. Is having odd tastes hereditary, by any chance?

“Mom said Dad was big. Really strong, too. His hands were rough, but when he brushed Mom’s hair, he was super careful. That’s why she chose him to be Dad!”

“…Do you even know what that means, kid?”

“Now that you mention it, they really are similar. Kenta and Chad.”

[They’re similar!]

Why did it take me so long to notice?

In many ways, Chad resembled Aini’s biological father, Kenta. Especially in build—it was almost uncanny.

Rye, walking beside me, nodded along as well.

“Big sister! Have you seen my dad?”

“Only briefly, but we traveled together. When I was about your size—ten years old—so I was a bit bigger than you. I got lost in the forest, and Anel and Kenta were the ones who saved me.”

“Wooow… What was my dad like?”

As we started walking again down the darkening road, I spoke casually, but everyone was listening with bright, eager eyes.

Chad, of course—but Ash and Rox too.

“He was like Chad. Strong, and always the first to charge at an ogre.”

“Really? An ogre? My dad is amazing!”

“He was a vanguard in a mercenary group.”

“That’s awesome! Right, Uncle Chad? My dad is cool, right?”

“Wow, what a man! I’m jealous, kid.”

So that’s how Aini looked when she smiled.

Seeing that bright, innocent smile for the first time made me admit that I’d been pretty mean to her up until now.

If being unkind counts as being mean, that is.

But what can I do? This is just my nature.

That evening, Aini looked happier than on any day she’d spent with me.

Not because of me, but because of Ash’s group.

It was a fairly enjoyable day for me too. I learned that having companions wasn’t so bad. I’d always had Rye, so I never felt lonely, but being with several people like this wasn’t unpleasant either.

Even the noisy, pointless chatter was kind of fun.

“I was sure traveling alone suited me best…”

Late at night, after Aini had fallen asleep with a rare smile on her face, and I was the only one awake, I found myself caught in thought.

It was something bothersome, yet it felt like something I ought to consider.

I was debating whether to change my original plan—sending Aini to Dmitri via warp and then returning by land myself—and instead follow Ash around for a while.

I still didn’t have any firm conviction. For now, my greatest enemy was laziness.

“I want to help, but… it’s such a hassle.”

I didn’t want to become a Guardian for the sake of status, glory, or elevating my family.

I wanted even less the wealth and honor that would come with it. As for fame, I already had more than enough—enough to make my stomach churn.

After all, in this area, I was the saint.