Constant noise echoing throughout the village.
I’ve faced countless problems in my life, but it feels like I’ve never been in such a difficult and exhausting situation as today.
– Grumble…
It doesn’t necessarily seem malicious; it’s just an action born from simple curiosity.
Still, I feel very uncomfortable and disturbed by the situation.
I wish they would just leave me alone.
“Oh? You have a rather familiar face there?”
It was only after several hours since entering the warrior guild that I finally arrived at the guild.
However, the receptionist sitting at the front desk looked oddly familiar.
“Welcome… What kind of request do you have today…?”
As the receptionist reacted to my voice while working on some paperwork, she slowly lifted her head. The moment our eyes met, she tilted her head slightly in confusion.
“…?”
“I had a feeling, but now that I see you properly, I’m sure.”
“Ah… This voice definitely belongs to…”
“It’s been a long time, Priscilla. You said you would visit often, but it’s been ten years without a single visit.”
I unexpectedly ran into Priscilla in this place.
I don’t really understand why Priscilla, who was definitely living as an adventurer ten years ago, is now sitting at the guild’s reception desk doing paperwork.
Yet seeing a familiar face unexpectedly in an unfamiliar place is quite a pleasant surprise.
“Eh, huh?!!”
Perhaps it was because her face was covered with a veil. After a while, Priscilla finally seemed to recognize me, her eyes widening and her mouth gaping open.
“Le, Levynia…?”
“What are you doing here?”
Ignoring the numerous whispers from adventurers behind me, I focused my gaze on Priscilla and quietly spoke.
Priscilla, with a blank expression, opened and closed her mouth awkwardly, eventually managing to force a silly smile and slightly shrinking back.
“Ahaha…. It’s really been a long time. It really is you, Levynia, right?”
“Yes, that’s right. I’m covering my face for a reason.”
Behind her, there were piles of papers stacked high and disorganized documents. The quill pen left on the reception desk spoke for the work she was doing here.
“It looks like you’ve completely given up on being an adventurer. What happened during all this time?”
“Well, nothing particularly special happened…. I just kind of became a receptionist after a series of minor events…”
“Minor events?”
“My original village was destroyed, and the few companions I knew scattered…”
“Oh, so in short, your village was destroyed, and after wandering around, you ended up becoming a receptionist?”
“Yes, that’s right…. I got this job thanks to someone from the same guild, a person named Blue Bell, who introduced me…”
It seems that Priscilla was greatly affected by the massive demon raid that occurred ten years ago, resulting in the destruction of the villages nearby.
“Well, that’s just how life is for everyone…”
Priscilla smiled bitterly as she twirled the quill pen in her hand. She seemed to be accepting her situation calmly, but I could sense a hint of bitterness in her voice, evoking an inexplicable pity.
“By the way, it makes me feel good that you still remember me, Levynia…”
“It seems like the environment isn’t very good for a woman to live alone. Are you okay?”
“Ah, yes… Everyone is kind and good… At least they don’t treat me as a woman…”
“……”
Her fingertips gently brushed across the papers on the desk. It seemed she had become more accustomed to holding a pen than to wielding a sword.
“You mentioned the village is particularly noisy today; it’s because you came here, Levynia…”
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll be leaving right after I take care of my business.”
“Huh? Didn’t you just arrive today?”
“That’s right. However, this village is too noisy. I’ll take care of my business and leave immediately.”
“Ah…. Is something happening regarding the children?”
“Huh?”
“I thought you only personally moved for matters involving them…”
For the first time in ten years, Priscilla seems to know me well.
Her memory and perception are surprisingly sharp.
“That’s true, but nothing particularly significant has happened. The children are fine; they can manage on their own without me.”
“Well, I saw in the recent news that they seem to be making quite a name for themselves in the royal capital. I remember being surprised at how much they changed when I saw them here years ago…”
“Did you meet with the children?”
“Yes. At that time, I hadn’t been working here for long, so I couldn’t provide much help.”
Upon hearing Priscilla’s recount, I briefly fell silent, lost in thought.
Because I had never heard such stories from the children.
I thought they had shared everything they experienced in this village, but it seems there were quite a few things left unsaid.
They probably didn’t intentionally hide anything; maybe they just forgot…?
“I, I see…”
Forcing a smile and trying to act nonchalant, I replied softly. I didn’t need to hide my expression since my face was covered with a veil, but it was a habit I couldn’t easily shake off.
“By the way, Levynia, what’s that big thing you brought with you…?”
“Oh, it’s nothing special. I just didn’t want to come empty-handed.”
“Huh?”
To Priscilla’s bewildered question, I swiftly turned around and placed the massive corpse of a monster that was hanging limply behind me on the reception desk.
“I didn’t bring it for any reason, so feel free to use it as you wish at the guild.”
As soon as I placed the monster’s corpse down, the reception desk sagged under the weight.
Priscilla stared at it, her mouth tightly shut and blinking her eyes repeatedly for a long while. Eventually, she cautiously let a drop of cold sweat trickle down and opened her mouth with difficulty.
“This is a steel rhinoceros that has been rampaging near the village lately… It’s a type of monster that even skilled adventurers have to tackle in groups to catch…”
“Well, anyway, considering you said you met the children here, it seems we’re getting a bit ahead of ourselves. I’m currently looking for the children’s teacher.”
“Huh?”
“I believe the party’s name was Golden Return. Are they still active in this village?”
At my low question, Priscilla showed a blank expression for a moment.
“Golden Return….”
“Given your expression, it seems they aren’t here anymore.”
“Ah, no… They are still around. Although the party was disbanded, one person is still here.”
Priscilla finally gathered her wits and began rummaging through the scattered papers on the floor.
Eventually, she picked up a slightly faded piece of paper and handed it to me right away.
“They should be here now. They haven’t returned for over a year due to this request.”
“…A year?”
“Yes. They insisted on resolving this request no matter what—”
The paper Priscilla handed me was none other than a job request.
An old request, marked with the signs of time.
“Please exterminate the troublesome dragon…?”
“It’s a young dragon that suddenly appeared a year ago, but it’s stronger and more aggressive than expected, causing trouble for the nearby villagers every day…”
“Are there dragons living in this forest?”
“No. They are a species that usually can only be seen rarely from distant regions. For some reason, this dragon settled here and has been causing all sorts of trouble.”
“How strong could it be that it’s been… for a year…”
“Before even talking about its strength, its behavior is just at the level of a child’s mischief…. It’s a peculiar case where a whole year has passed while they were debating how to handle it.”
I couldn’t believe my ears for a moment. I thought I had misheard, but as Priscilla continued, my doubts deepened, and I began to feel puzzled.
“Huh?”
“I know it’s hard to believe, but it’s true. It digs up fields to steal crops, plays with animals like toys, and sometimes sneaks up on villagers to scare them.”
Priscilla sighed and continued speaking.
“How should I put it… it’s more of pure mischief than intentional attacks…?”
“Being a kid means having a childish mind?”
“No, it’s actually young. It said it was only four years old when it was born. So now it would be five years old since a year has passed since then.”
“……”
In short, while the request asked for extermination, its actions seemed so childish that they were hesitating about doing so.
Ultimately, the client has been wasting time for a year without any certainty on how to handle the dragon.
It’s a situation that really elicits a bittersweet smile.
“So, what’s the name of that client?”
“Oh, it’s Jerion. He might be hard to recognize as he has changed a bit since the last time.”
Jerion.
Aizen’s teacher.
Aizen learned a lot under his guidance.
He said Jerion helped him with the fundamentals of swordsmanship, which I couldn’t teach him.
“Then is he the only one left in this village?”
“Yes. The others have scattered. I don’t know where they are now.”
“I see. Thank you for the information.”
With the request paper Priscilla handed me, I turned on my heel without hesitation.
I’m not sure what happened for the party to have disbanded, but I felt relieved that at least one person remained in this village.
“I’ll take my leave now. It was nice to see you.”
“Are you, are you already leaving…?”
“Yes. I’ll come back today or tomorrow to hear more stories about the children.”
“I can tell you as much as you want, but why do you need Jerion…?”
“Since he taught Aizen swordsmanship for two years without any compensation, I definitely need to repay him. I even prepared a gift in advance.”
Upon hearing my answer, Priscilla slowly nodded, appearing to understand bit by bit.
“Oh, that was the reason…”
“I’ll just drop off the gift and come back, so it won’t take long.”
“In that case, let’s have dinner together tonight and talk. I’ll share a lot about the children.”
“Sure. See you tonight.”
With that, I offered Priscilla a faint smile.
Even though it might not be visible under the veil, it’s hard to change a habit that has naturally developed over ten years.
– Step by step…
After ending the conversation and stepping outside again.
Unlike when I entered the guild, I no longer feel the uncomfortable stares from the people around me.
I tried this method thinking it’s worth a shot, and it seems to have worked quite well.
“…It seems to be further away than I thought.”
Slowly walking ahead, I carefully examined the request paper in my hand.
If I go further up this village, I’ll reach another village, and Jerion seems to be somewhere in between.
“A dragon, huh…”
If that dragon had been an adult, I could have made weapons for the children as gifts using the materials from its body.
What a shame…
