Chapter 131

The feeling of sleeping under a roof after a long time was quite nice.

Even though the facilities in the Firewood Gatherer’s Village weren’t much to look at, sleeping under a roof still felt satisfying.

After sleeping indoors for the first time in a while, I suddenly missed Astram.

Maybe I should head back soon.

With that thought, I left the room and went downstairs, where the rest of the group was already gathered.

“What are you all doing here so early in the morning?”

“Ah, Mr. Kurt!”

“We were playing with the innkeeper’s children.”

“Children?”

As Karina said, I looked down and saw two kids, about seven or eight years old, staring at me with sparkling eyes.

“Wow! Mister, are you a dragon?”

“Can you breathe fire?”

“Sadly, I can’t breathe fire.”

“Eh…? You’re a dragon but can’t breathe fire?”

“I’m not a dragon, I’m a Lizardman.”

“Hahaha. The kids really seem to like you, Mr. Kurt.”

“True. I thought they’d be scared since you’re a Lizardman.”

“Yeah, I thought so too.”

It was true.

Usually, Lizardmen are slightly larger than humans and covered in scales, which tends to scare people.

But these kids didn’t seem scared at all. They were quite brave.

“Mister! Mister! Let’s play Humans and Hunters!”

“Humans and Hunters? What kind of game is that?”

“Eh? You’re an adult and don’t know that? Humans and Hunters is a game where one person is the hunter and has to catch the other humans!”

“And if you get caught by the hunter, you get skinned and die! So the humans have to run away from the hunter!”

What kind of gruesome game is that…?

Wait, thinking about it, it’s just a scary way of describing tag, right?

I played with the kids for a bit, then suddenly felt hungry.

“Shall we have breakfast? I’ll cook something. Do you want to eat with me?”

I smiled warmly, but the kids shook their heads.

“No, Dad said we shouldn’t eat with travelers.”

Hmm. I thought we were getting along, but keeping distance like this feels a bit disappointing.

“Is that so? But sharing a meal once should be fine, right?”

“No. Dad will get really mad and yell if we do. So we can’t.”

I tried to persuade them a few more times, but the kids, clearly well-taught by the innkeeper, wouldn’t budge.

Given the background of the Firewood Gatherer’s Village, it makes sense to be cautious of strangers, but this level of rejection seems a bit excessive.

It’s not like I’m poisoning the food or anything.

As I stood there feeling disappointed, the innkeeper, who had apparently just woken up, came out and was startled to see us playing with the kids.

“Kids!”

“Ah, Innkeeper!”

“Don’t worry. We were just playing with the kids.”

“Right. It’s not like we did anything bad!”

“Is… is that really true?”

“Yes! Dad! The dragon mister played with us!”

“Well, that’s a relief…”

The innkeeper hugged the kids tightly, visibly relieved.

It seemed like an overreaction for just seeing the kids playing with strangers, but given the scars on the innkeeper’s body and the fact they were hiding as firewood gatherers, it was clear they had their own traumas.

After holding the kids for a while, the innkeeper noticed our stares and awkwardly cleared their throat.

“My apologies. I didn’t mean to offend. It’s just… our living conditions…”

“I understand. Everyone has their own wounds.”

Given that they had to flee their homeland and live as firewood gatherers, there must have been many hardships.

Seeing that I wasn’t upset and understood, the innkeeper relaxed a bit and spoke softly to the kids.

“So, you didn’t say anything rude to the adventurers, right?”

“Don’t worry. We just played.”

“Yeah! The dragon mister played Humans and Hunters with us!”

Of course, even though they were whispering, my sharp hearing caught every word.

I accidentally eavesdropped.

Hearing this, the innkeeper stiffened, glanced at us, and then scolded the kids in a hushed tone.

“Humans and Hunters?! You shouldn’t say things like that!”

“But…”

“No buts! If you call tag by that name again, I won’t let you play anymore!”

“Okay…”

The kids looked downcast after being scolded.

“Hmm… Isn’t that a bit too harsh on the kids?”

“Y-you heard that?”

“Sorry. I have good hearing.”

“Ahem. Don’t mind what the kids say. They’re just repeating things they’ve heard.”

“Right. Kids that age tend to mimic adults. You have to be careful what you say around them.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

The innkeeper thanked us for playing with the kids and then left to clean the inn.

“Let’s have breakfast then.”

With the innkeeper and their kids gone, we naturally decided to have breakfast.

—

After breakfast, the three of them approached me with a proposal they had apparently discussed earlier.

“Mr. Kurt, about the werewolf… We talked and thought…”

“A werewolf? Why suddenly?”

“If the rumors of a man-eating werewolf are true, that’s a big problem, right?”

“It is a problem.”

“In a village of firewood gatherers, it’s hard to ask for help, and the villagers are just ordinary farmers with no strength.”

“So?”

“So we thought! Since we’re staying here for a few days to rest, why not investigate the man-eating werewolf?”

It seemed they had grown fond of the innkeeper’s kids and brought this up.

Well… if a man-eating werewolf really is around, the most vulnerable targets would be children…

Before I could react, the innkeeper, who had come out to clean, overheard and was visibly alarmed.

“You… you’re talking about searching for a werewolf?”

“Ah, you heard? It’s nothing serious. We just thought we’d look around while we’re here.”

“But didn’t you say you’d leave today or tomorrow?”

“Ah, we changed our minds. We’ll stay a few more days to relax!”

Mari said with a bright smile, but the innkeeper’s face clouded over, and they desperately tried to dissuade her.

“But… our village doesn’t have the money to pay for such a request…”

“Don’t worry. This is just us acting out of goodwill. No need to feel burdened!”

“Right. We’re not here to extort money or anything.”

Karina and Serena smiled reassuringly, but the innkeeper still seemed uneasy.

“No… it’s not about the money.”

“If you’re worried about us, don’t be!”

“Well… it’s just… a joke! I was just joking that it’s dangerous to wander around late at night. I didn’t think you’d take it so seriously.”

“A… joke?”

“Yes. Sorry about that. A man-eating werewolf? Such a thing couldn’t possibly exist.”

“Eh~? Dad, why are you lying?”

“Right. There’s no werewolf… Ugh!”

The innkeeper awkwardly tried to silence the kids, but it was too late.

Even the most oblivious person could tell something was up.

“…So the werewolf does exist?”

“…Yes.”

“Why did you lie?”

“Well… it felt too shameless to have you stay and help us with our village’s problems.”

“Don’t worry about that!”

“Besides, Innkeeper, it’s better to prioritize the village’s safety.”

“We won’t ask for money later, so don’t worry!”

The innkeeper looked tearful and said, “Please… take care of it.”

—