Chapter 66

The carriage began to move, fueled by my boredom. To soothe the boredom of the three women, I decided to tell them various stories I knew. This is why people should read books, I guess. Surprisingly, the reactions were incredibly positive. It felt like I had become some kind of electric storyteller.

First, I told them about the Chu-Han Contention, depicting the battle between Liu Bang, who had a name like milk, and Xiang Yu, the Overlord of Western Chu. Airi showed interest in Liu Bang’s milk-like name, Glacia lamented Xiang Yu’s foolishness, and Camelian Peony liked the part where Xiang Yu parted with Lady Yu the most. None of them showed much interest in my favorite part, where Liu Bang shouted that he’d have a bowl of soup if his father was cooked. That part was the funniest, though.

Then came the sequel-like Romance of the Three Kingdoms. It took two days to tell. Interestingly, each of the three women supported different factions. Airi favored Liu Bei’s Shu Han, Glacia rooted for Gongsun Zan, and Camelian Peony liked Wei. As a result, my favorability with Airi slightly increased, while it slightly decreased with Camelian Peony. How could anyone like the Xuzhou Massacre where Lady Bai was killed? Maybe elves have that kind of culture.

I almost started telling them about a manga I enjoyed, Hunter x Hunter, but stopped. Because I haven’t read the ending yet, and probably no one ever will.

I also considered telling them Bible stories but stopped. Though I was baptized as a Catholic, I wasn’t devout enough to know the Bible inside out.

In the end, the romance novels and manga stories I knew well were a hit. Stories like “The Sorrows of Young Werther” and “Romeo and Juliet.” Airi pitied Werther, while Glacia mocked him for being foolish. I felt like they were glaring at each other, but I chose to ignore it.

The story then moved to the early parts of “The Count of Monte Cristo,” and just as Edmond Dantès was receiving teachings from Abbé Faria, the carriage stopped.

“We’ve arrived at the Water Tower.”

So, it’s time to face it. My childhood friend, and the sins that Werner, that bastard, left behind.

I got off the carriage. There were quite a few people around, mostly adventurers selling monster corpses since we were near the tower. There were also many inns and bars targeting these adventurers. If 21st-century Korea has station areas, this world has tower areas.

I was pondering whether to buy land and build a tower later when I bumped into someone wearing a full-body black robe. The man dropped the paper bag he was holding, and apples spilled onto the ground.

Ah, this is clearly my fault. My ugly desire to scam redevelopment areas caused an innocent victim.

“I’m sorry. I was lost in thought…”

The robed person replied.

“…No, it’s partly my fault for not avoiding you.”

His deep voice and tall stature suggested he was a man. He seemed quite polite for an adventurer selling monster corpses. I was sure he was an adventurer because the hilt of a sword peeked out from his robe’s waist, and his hands, full of scars, clearly belonged to someone who wielded a sword.

I helped him pick up the apples, and despite me being the one at fault, he bowed his head in gratitude.

“Thank you for your help.”

“It’s nothing…”

“If we meet again, it’d be nice.”

He finished his greeting and walked away. Adventurers near the capital are so polite. If you send words to Jeju and people to Seoul, that’s how it should be. Even adventurers, who usually lack manners, are this polite here… The capital’s future is bright.

I entered the tower with relief, and a waiting attendant guided me to Lorcha’s room.

“This way.”

I took a deep breath and opened the door.

As soon as I opened the door, the scent of old books from a used bookstore hit me. It was a smell I personally liked, but now wasn’t the time to enjoy it. My attention was drawn to the woman in the center of the room.

Her sky-blue hair, green eyes reminiscent of a dense forest, and… a slim figure that made her lack of chest oddly charming. Lorcha had grown from the naive girl who reacted fiercely to Werner’s words into a woman.

Her thin arms were visible through silk sleeves, and the emblem of the Water Tower was on her chest. She wore black tights that clung to her legs.

“Hoo…”

Only adults can smoke, right? Lorcha, holding a pipe like Sherlock Holmes, put it down and turned her gaze to me.

“…You’ve come, Werner Altan.”

I didn’t know what to say for this reunion. An apology for my past foolish words? An expression of joy at meeting again? Or a formal greeting between mages?

Fortunately, Lorcha cleared up my dilemma.

*Bang!*

I didn’t need to greet her because I was sent flying by Lorcha’s dropkick. If I hadn’t blocked it with my arm, I might have died. Even with the block, I fell, so it was clear Lorcha had practiced this dropkick for a long time.

The power was probably around 985 hPa central pressure, with a maximum wind speed of 23 meters per second.

Of course, Lorcha didn’t think about what would happen after the dropkick, so she fell too. She got up and dusted off her clothes.

“Do you know why I kicked you?”

“No…”

Was it the foolish words I said to her 15 years ago? Or cutting off contact and disappearing? Or the fact that Lorcha had to fill the void left by Werner’s disappearance? There were too many possibilities.

“…Still a bad guy… really a bad guy.”

Tears welled up in Lorcha’s eyes. I was the one who got hit, so why is she crying? Regardless, the one who made Lorcha cry was Werner, not me. I was an innocent victim.

By the way, Werner, you bastard from my past life. You made a woman cry, and now I have to clean up your mess. You left your crap behind and ran away.

Next time I see you in a dream, I’ll hit you with a dropkick of 985 hPa central pressure and 23 meters per second maximum wind speed. Then I’ll follow up with a one-inch punch and a temple strike.

“You disappeared on your own… got hurt on your own… and I had to hear about you being alive through someone else?”

Lorcha glared at me with tears in her eyes and began to pour out her thoughts.

“Four years.”

“What?”

“The time we built our friendship. Short or long, depending on how you see it.”

About the length of a presidential term. Our bond broke around the time presidents changed.

“Three years.”

What now?

“The time we drifted apart after you told me to leave, treating each other formally. It’s as long as the time we built our friendship.”

Because Werner didn’t apologize for three years, I got a dropkick. Just apologize and let’s go drink, you coward.

“And twelve years.”

I knew what that period meant, so I stayed silent.

“The time you suddenly cut off contact and disappeared. Three times the length of our friendship.”

“Lorcha, I…”

“Do you still think of me as a friend? Fifteen years. The time you distanced yourself from me. More than half my life spent like that.”

Lorcha’s words hurt more than her dropkick. Though the sin wasn’t mine, my body remembered the sins of my past life.

“Every day, I waited for a message from you! I thought you’d at least let me know you were alive! But you… didn’t contact me at all…”

Well, it’s all my sin. Werner is me, and I am Werner… A symbiotic relationship like “I am you, and you are me” from some JRPG.

“And then you go and get hurt? I had to hear about it from someone else! And on top of that…”

Lorcha pointed at my neck.

“And you come here hurt after I sent a carriage to ensure your safety? Are you provoking me on purpose?”

I touched my neck and found it bleeding slightly. Not a serious wound, but it looked like something sharp had grazed it.

When the hell did I get hurt?