Chapter 130

That day was unusually foggy.

The thick fog even prevented the sunlight from spreading its power across the world, and the view was so blurry that only a little of the road ahead of the carriage was visible.

Dagdak.

Dagdak.

A carriage was quietly rolling through the fog.

It had been quite some time since we left Arciel, and we were traveling straight toward Astram without stopping at any other villages.

But even that was nearing its end.

“The journey is almost over,” I sighed with mixed emotions.

Originally, this journey was meant to gain Mari’s mother’s approval for her becoming an adventurer, but along the way, we met numerous humans and experienced various stories beyond just Mari’s.

Not that all those experiences were unnecessary…

But cramming so many events into such a short time has left me feeling a bit mentally exhausted.

Once we arrive in Astram, I feel like taking a break without any major incidents for a while.

“So, how much longer until we arrive?” I asked.

Mari rustled through her bag and pulled out a map.

“Let’s see… If we keep going like this, we should reach Astram in about three days.”

“Finally… It’s been a long journey.”

“But are there any villages along the way? We’re running a bit low on alcohol.”

“Nope. No villages along the way. We’ll head straight to Astram.”

“Ehh~.”

At that, Serena dragged out her words, unable to hide her disappointment.

“Hmph. This might be a good chance to cut back on alcohol.”

“Telling a dwarf to cut back on alcohol? That’s verbal abuse!”

And so, Karina and Serena started bickering again.

Mari watched them with a look that said, “Here we go again,” while I ignored them and turned to Mari.

“But are you sure there’s no village ahead?”

“Yes. There’s nothing on the map.”

“Then what’s that up ahead?”

“Up ahead…?”

At my words, Mari quietly turned her head to look forward, and as the carriage moved closer, a village hidden in the fog began to reveal itself.

Dagdak.

Dagdak.

And so, we entered the foggy village.

The atmosphere of the village felt somewhat gloomy.

The people themselves seemed a bit dark, as if they were wary of us.

“There was no such village on the map…”

“Well, maps don’t update in real-time, so it must be a newly established village.”

In my past life, a new village like this would have been updated via satellite images, but in this world, maps aren’t updated that way.

Of course, such maps are either created by the kingdom or local lords allocating budgets and manpower to manually survey the area, or by travelers who sell copies of their handmade maps in shops for profit.

The map Mari was holding was relatively recent, but even that was several years old.

“A Firewood Gatherer’s Village, huh.”

Firewood gatherers are usually people who can’t afford taxes or flee from a lord’s tyranny to the forests or mountains, burning trees and building villages there.

Thinking about it, while they may have escaped taxes or tyranny, their situation isn’t great, so it’s understandable that the villagers look gloomy.

However, unlike the dark and gloomy atmosphere of the villagers, our group’s mood was bright.

“An unexpected village. It’s been a while since we could sleep in a bed.”

“Indeed, it’s a welcome change to sleep under a roof. We stayed in the Fairy Kingdom for quite a while, but it was practically like being homeless.”

“Alcohol! Let’s buy some alcohol first!”

Since we spent so much time in the Fairy Village, we traveled straight to Astram without stopping at other villages, so seeing a human village after so long felt quite refreshing.

With light hearts, we headed straight to the village’s inn.

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.

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Honestly, while looking for the inn, I thought there might not be one in a Firewood Gatherer’s Village, but fortunately, this village had an inn.

When we first entered the inn, we were met with wary eyes, but once we revealed we were ordinary travelers, the innkeeper greeted us with a bright smile.

“Ah, sorry about that. We don’t get many outsiders in this village, so seeing strangers naturally makes us tense.”

“It’s fine. We understand.”

A Firewood Gatherer’s Village is usually unregistered within the lord’s territory, so any outsider could potentially threaten the village’s existence, especially if they were nobles or their attendants.

So, it’s natural to be wary of sudden visitors.

I spoke to the innkeeper, who had scars all over his body but still managed to smile warmly.

The scars suggested he had lived a harsh life.

They weren’t the kind of scars one gets from a regular job but rather from countless acts of violence and suffering.

Yet, despite bearing such scars, he still smiled.

“So, what will it be? Just a meal, or staying the night?”

“We’d like to rest for a day or two. Do you have any rooms available?”

“Rooms? Of course! Hahaha. How many travelers do you think pass through a village in the woods like this?”

“Fair enough. Then we’ll take four single rooms.”

“Got it. Since you’re staying, would you like to have a meal as well?”

As we rented the rooms, the innkeeper cautiously asked, perhaps thinking of making some extra money.

“Well, we’ll have a meal, but we’d like to cook ourselves. Can we borrow the kitchen?”

“T-the kitchen…?”

“We’ll pay a fee. Is it not possible?”

“N-no, of course, you can borrow it…”

At my words, the innkeeper looked somewhat disappointed, probably thinking we were trying to save money by cooking ourselves.

“Don’t worry. We’ll pay the fee properly.”

“It’s not that… Never mind. Wait a moment. I’ll tidy up the kitchen.”

“Sure. Take your time.”

Despite my words, the innkeeper couldn’t hide his disappointment and went to clean the kitchen. It seemed he was quite confident in his cooking skills.

Hmm, if he’s that disappointed, maybe we should check out his cooking skills next time.

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After finishing our meal, we patted our stomachs and let out satisfied sighs.

“Ahhh… Eating under a roof while sitting on a chair really makes a difference.”

“Indeed. Kurt’s cooking is always delicious, but eating inside a building is fundamentally different from eating outside.”

“But what do we do after eating? I personally want to buy some alcohol, but I’m not sure if the shops are still open at this hour.”

At that moment, the innkeeper approached us and spoke.

“Unfortunately, the shops in this village close in the evening. And it’s best if you travelers don’t wander outside and just head to your rooms to sleep.”

“Why? Is something going on?”

“There are werewolves living near this village. So, unless you want to be spotted and eaten by them, it’s best not to go out late at night and sleep early.”

“Werewolves, you say?”

“Of course. And not just any werewolves—they eat people.”

Werewolves eating people?

In typical fantasy, werewolves might be treated as mindless monsters, but in this world, werewolves are a type of beastkin with clear intelligence.

Not monsters, but a classification of humans, werewolves eating humans?

That just makes them cannibals.

“That’s quite a dangerous story.”

“But you don’t need to worry about us.”

“Right. We’re travelers now, but we’re originally quite skilled adventurers.”

“A-adventurers…?”

The innkeeper looked flustered at our mention of being adventurers.

While many adventurers genuinely enjoy adventure and value trust, they are also free agents with unregulated power, making them potential threats.

Especially in an unregistered Firewood Gatherer’s Village, where even if a crime is committed, there’s no one to complain to the lord, making them even more vulnerable to dangerous adventurers.

I quickly reassured the innkeeper.

“Don’t worry. These two here are silver-rank adventurers.”

“S-silver rank…!?”

While adventurers can be seen as potential threats, that usually applies to bronze-rank or lower riff-raff.

Silver-rank adventurers are evaluated not just on skill but also on character and trustworthiness, so they rarely engage in criminal behavior.

“Ahem…! I see. Then you should be able to protect yourselves… I’ll take my leave now.”

Despite introducing Karina and Serena as silver-rank adventurers, the innkeeper still seemed uneasy and quickly left the inn.

It seemed our introduction as adventurers had reignited his wariness.

It was a bit disappointing, but it’s just a passing thought on our journey, so no need to dwell on it.

With that, we decided to follow the innkeeper’s advice and go to bed early, each heading to our own rooms.