2. She Picked Up a Dandelion
If you travel west for half a day from Erudan, the capital of Sadonia, you will reach the great port city of Zidan. It was the empire’s foremost harbor, where ships constantly came and went along the sea routes, and at the same time, a shadowy gateway where smuggled goods flowed freely under the open protection of the Empire and its nobles.
At the most remote corner of the bustling harbor, on a shabby pier, a man in a dark green hood crouched down. It was evening, the sun setting as streetlamps embedded with luminescent stones flickered to life.
“Meeeoow.”
A pitiful cat’s cry echoed through the harbor.
“Hey… don’t do this. You’ve already eaten enough.”
“Meow.”
Three stray cats sat neatly in a row around the man, crying. A plump white cat lifted its fluffy paw and tapped at his hand, begging.
With a sigh, the man took out a piece of jerky from a small leather pouch. Before he could hand it to the white cat, a yellow-striped cat darted in and snatched the jerky from his hand, stuffing it into its mouth.
The white cat stared blankly at the yellow one chewing away, then looked back at the man and cried again in a sorrowful tone.
“Meeeow.”
It had been like this the whole time.
The white cat, likely the mother, begged for jerky. The moment the man took a piece out, the two yellow cats beside her would take turns snatching it. Then the white cat would stare at his empty hand and beg again.
The pouch of jerky he had carefully prepared for his long sea journey was already half gone. Even the yellow cats, their bellies already round, joined in the chorus, crying loudly enough to shake the pier. At last, the man shook his head.
With a firm expression, he spoke seriously to the cats.
“No more. I have to be on a ship for three days. Without this, I’ll be stuck eating only bread. That’s it.”
As he closed the pouch and began to rise, the pitiful-looking white cat suddenly lunged forward and snatched the entire pouch with its mouth.
“H-huh?”
While the man stared blankly at his empty hands, the three cats had already disappeared into the distance.
Behind the man, who remained crouched and muttering “Huh? Huh?”, a sailor shouted loudly.
“We’re departing! Board now! Yoreng, bound for the Heimdal Empire, is departing! Board now!”
It was the very ship the man was supposed to take.
Now unable to return to the food shops, the man boarded with a miserable expression, grumbling under his breath.
Behind him, Renia, her hair hidden beneath a black hood, quietly boarded as well.
Having watched the entire scene from across the alley, Renia discreetly followed the man into the lowest-class cabin.
The man settled into a corner of the large communal cabin and looked into his backpack with a sigh. It was the cheapest passenger ship connecting Sadonia and Heimdal, with no advantages other than its price. Naturally, meals were not provided. He was now doomed to eat nothing but rye bread for three days.
As night fell and the ship fully entered the open sea, the poor travelers who had lingered on deck gathered in the cabin one by one, unpacking their belongings to eat dinner.
In front of the man, who was biting into a chunk of dry rye bread with a forlorn face, a thick piece of jerky suddenly appeared.
Startled, he turned his head. The traveler seated beside him, face hidden deep beneath a black hood, was holding it out.
When he looked up, he froze.
The face beneath the hood was astonishingly beautiful.
“Doesn’t bread alone make your throat dry? Have some of this.”
“Pardon?”
“I said eat.”
Her dazzling golden eyes commanded him.
Eat.
The man accepted the jerky with both hands. As he put it in his mouth, Renia grinned. When he swallowed, she, who had been watching him closely, held out another piece.
As he took it again with both hands, she smiled softly and asked,
“What’s your name?”
“D-Dandelion.”
“So, Dandelion. I’m Ren.”
“Y-yes. Hello. I mean, thank you.”
“It’s nothing. Eat more. I’ve got plenty.”
Dandelion absentmindedly accepted the jerky she offered. The moment he turned twenty, he had set out to see the world beyond Heimdal. For an entire year wandering the southern continent with no preparation, no one had ever shown him kindness without reason. Even the pitiful cats had stolen from him.
Halfway through eating, he looked at Renia with wary eyes. Her beautiful face was smiling.
Uneasy, he pulled out a piece of rye bread from his bag and offered it.
“Would you like some?”
“No, I have plenty. You’re from Heimdal, right?”
Renia opened her bag, revealing it packed with white bread and a large pouch of jerky. Seeing enough food to last a week for two people, Dandelion quietly put his bread away and nodded.
“Are you from Sadonia, Ren?”
“No, I’m from Lorentain.”
Renia lied without hesitation. Dandelion nodded without much thought. There was no reason to dislike a kind, beautiful stranger sharing food with him in such a crowded cabin.
Though he did not completely drop his guard, he became slightly excited, answering her questions about Heimdal.
Then, at one question, he froze.
“So, what’s your attribute?”
His excitement vanished instantly.
Of course. There was no such thing as kindness without reason. She must have some artifact that could sense magic.
Dandelion stood up. Without looking back, he left the cabin and went up to the deck.
Renia clicked her tongue as she watched him go.
He looked naive, so she thought he’d be easy. Turns out he’s picky.
Night had deepened. It would begin soon.
She had planned to handle it alone, and she still could. But finding a mage on such a shabby passenger ship was unexpected. Having found such a useful source of firepower, she had no intention of letting him slip away.
After a while, Dandelion still had not returned. Estimating the time, Renia rose and went up to the deck.
The sea shimmered under the moonlight. After circling the ship, she found Dandelion at the stern, staring down at the water.
“Dandan.”
He turned at her voice, frowned, and looked away.
Unbothered, Renia stood beside him and gazed at the sea.
“You run away without even hearing the situation? Typical mage.”
“I don’t need to hear it. It’s obvious. You approached me on purpose.”
“Did the jerky taste bad because of that?”
“I’ll pay you back for it.”
At his firm response, Renia clicked her tongue again.
It was almost time.
“This ship is about to be hijacked.”
“W-what?”
“A pirate ship will appear soon. The captain of this ship is in on it. They’ll rob the passengers and sell them as slaves. Since this is a ship for poor commoners, no one will care. Even if reported, they’ll just say it was pirates. It’s a thriving human trafficking operation.”
“T-then what do we do? Shouldn’t we warn everyone?”
“And then what? Just cause chaos? It won’t help.”
Dandelion’s eyes trembled.
“Then what are you going to do?”
Renia smiled, her golden eyes gleaming.
“I’m going to rob them instead. With you.”
“W-what?”
“So, Dandan, what’s your attribute?”
She smiled brightly, showing her teeth. The sea breeze lifted her black hood, revealing hair like blazing flames under the moonlight. Dandelion’s gaze was stolen.
“F-fire.”
He answered, entranced. Renia blinked, surprised.
“Fire? Most fire users are insane. You’re more dangerous than you look.”
“Huh? Also, my name isn’t Dandan.”
“You said Dandelion. Too long.”
“N-no, it’s not Dandand—”
“Shh. They’re coming.”
Renia pulled her hood back up and leaned toward the bow. Dandelion followed her gaze.
Far in the distance, lights were approaching rapidly.
The pirate ship rammed into the passenger ship just enough to avoid damaging it. Several men leapt aboard.
Passengers in the cabin were already in chaos.
“Pirates! We’re under attack!”
The ship’s crew shouted loudly before casually retreating to the captain’s quarters.
From afar, it was a dull performance.
The passengers, however, crawled out in terror and dropped to the ground at the sight of the pirates’ drawn blades.
The pirates gathered them all on deck, dragging out even those who had hidden.
Everyone except Renia and Dandelion.
Some begged. Some cried. One man tried to protest.
The pirate captain stepped forward and, without a word, cut down an old man.
He had simply removed a useless slave.
The effect was immediate. Silence fell.
“Is that all?” he asked.
“I should ask the same. Is this everyone?”
A woman in a black hood and a man in a dark green robe appeared at the stern.
The captain frowned.
“These idiots can’t even gather everyone properly?”
Renia unwrapped the cloth around her sword and counted the pirates with the tip of her scabbard.
“One, two, three, four, five. And how many more on that ship? Two? Three?”
“What the hell is this crazy bitch?”
“Too annoying. Call them all over.”
“Get her!”
As soon as the command was given, the pirates rushed her.
Renia drew her sword and charged. Surrounded in an instant, Dandelion hesitated.
As he reached to remove his hood and cast magic, two pirates fell at once to Renia’s blade.
Her movements were flawless. Like a dance, she cut down a third.
“Dandan!”
“Yes!”
“The pirate ship! Magic! Fire!”
“What kind?”
“Anything big!”
The pirate captain joined the fight. Renia blocked his heavy axe with her slender arms.
Dandelion fixed his gaze on the pirate ship.
As he focused, a massive fireball formed above it.
Following his gaze, it slammed down onto the ship.
The pirate ship split in two and burst into flames.
