What Happened To The Hero’s Party Afterward

The Hero’s party left Belgion with an unpleasant aftertaste lingering in their mouths.

Originally, Vanrost had planned to thoroughly crush Nick Bluestar himself and bask in the spotlight, only for that mysterious bear to ruin everything.

Worse still, because the bear had reflected his Light Ball straight back at him, his hair had ended up looking like it had exploded.

No matter how he tried to style it, it didn’t seem like it was going back to normal.

“Seriously… Next time I see that bear, I’m gonna kill him…!!”

Vanrost said this while gnawing on some dried meat.

Irina stared at the dry bread in front of her, sighed, and replied in exasperation.

“You’re probably never going to see him again, are you? I doubt he walks around dressed like that all the time.”

“But, Irina—”

“More importantly, how many more days until we reach the next dungeon? I’m sick of sleeping in tents.”

“It’s not like sleeping in tents is anything new for us.”

“But tents have been so uncomfortable lately!!”

That was because Yuri had taken all the equipment that made their sleeping arrangements comfortable with her.

They wanted to buy a new set of such supplies, but they had no idea where any of it was sold.

They had gone around various general stores in Belgion as well, but none of them had sold anything meant to be laid over the floor of a tent.

“You’re awfully spoiled. Tents are just like this. If you hate it that much, sleep outside.”

Rosa seemed accustomed to hard floors and tough dried meat alike, and remained completely unfazed.

“This is why we shouldn’t have kicked out Yuri, the Errand Runner.”

As Camula muttered under her breath while biting through the tough meat, Vanrost bit his lip.

Those were the last words he wanted to hear right now.

But with each passing day, he was being forced to recognize Yuri’s importance all over again.

Delicious meals, comfortable beds, and even enhancement and Healing Magic they could use during battle without worrying about exhausting their mana. Everything they had taken for granted hadn’t been ordinary at all.

“Aaah, I want Yuri’s soup!!”

After swallowing the dry, airy bread, Irina shouted toward the sky.

She had been the one who first suggested getting rid of Yuri.

So what the hell was this supposed to be!?

Vanrost grew irritated, but since he had ultimately made the decision to throw Yuri out, he couldn’t exactly get angry at Irina.

Hearing her words made him remember the taste of that soup too.

It had been rich with chicken stock and the flavor of vegetables, and drinking it had seemed to spread warmth through his entire body and wash away the exhaustion of battle.

The soup Yuri served before fights had made strength well up inside him and left his body feeling lighter as well.

He had always assumed making soup like that was perfectly normal.

Yet no matter how many renowned chefs’ restaurants they visited, nothing ever surpassed that soup.

Irina and Camula had both boasted that they could make something even better themselves, yet neither showed the slightest sign of actually cooking anything.

He was finally beginning to realize that, just as Rosa had said, the two of them had simply been bluffing.

“Yuri’s roast pork… Yuri’s fried chicken… Yuri’s simmered dishes… Yuri’s…”

Rosa visibly recoiled as Camula muttered under her breath like she was reciting a spell.

Then, with a strained expression, she spoke to Camula.

“You’ve got withdrawal symptoms at this point. Was that kid’s cooking really that good?”

“…No… It wasn’t anything special. Yuri’s cooking wasn’t that impressive.”

“Yeah, that doesn’t sound convincing at all after all that muttering. Now you’re making me want to try the kid’s cooking too.”

Listening to Camula’s spell-like muttering made Vanrost remember all the dishes Yuri used to serve.

He wanted to drink that soup again!! He wanted to sink his teeth into that tender meat that fell apart in his mouth!! He wanted those juicy sausages too!!

Vanrost finished his dried meat, drank some water, then let out a breath.

He looked up at the sky and thought for a while.

He had originally fired Yuri on the grounds of reducing personnel expenses.

It was true that they hadn’t had much money left at the time because they had spent a considerable amount hiring Rosa.

But after participating in the Combat Tournament, he had received a substantial amount of money from his patron. If he had won, he would have received prize money as well, but even the match fees alone had been considerable.

At this point, adding one more person wouldn’t be a problem.

(If we start running low on money again, I’ll just make him work even harder than before.)

Yuri had always earned small amounts of money by diligently gathering medicinal herbs and hunting. Yuri could simply earn enough to cover his own lodging and other expenses.

They could just use him as an unpaid worker.

When he thought about it that way, there was no real reason not to bring him back, was there?

“We’ve established that having Yuri around is better than not having him.”

Vanrost stood up and declared this loudly.

He folded his arms and nodded several times, as though convincing himself.

“We need someone to handle chores and errands.”

Irina’s and Camula’s eyes lit up at Vanrost’s words.

They clenched both hands into fists and nodded vigorously.

“Exactly! I’m busy too. We need someone to cook, set up our beds, and handle the baths!”

“If he’s around, we can use support magic and Healing Magic as much as we want again.”

“Right? Exactly. I think it’s about time we forgave him.”

Pleased by their agreement, Vanrost nodded in satisfaction.

Tomorrow, he would start looking for Yuri.

Yuri had probably gone to the Guild Hall near the tavern where they had dismissed him.

Knowing Yuri, that had to be what happened.

There wouldn’t be much work available to an E-rank adventurer anyway, so he was probably sitting around helplessly in the Guild dormitory with nothing to do.

(If I go pick him up myself, he’ll probably cry with joy.)

After taking another bite of dried meat, Vanrost grinned.

Just imagining Yuri crying and clinging to him brought a smile to his face.

Meanwhile, Rosa watched the group with a thoroughly unimpressed expression as they suddenly displayed an unusual sense of unity at a time like this.

Then she muttered quietly enough that the other three couldn’t hear.

“Wonder if that kid will actually come back…”

While Vanrost and the others excitedly discussed what they would have Yuri do and just how hard they would make him work if he returned, Rosa watched them from the corner of her eye and rose to her feet.

Then she climbed a small hill from which the moon could be seen.

When she reached the top, a hawk landed on her arm.

She kept it as a messenger bird, and whenever Rosa was alone admiring the scenery, the hawk always came over seeking her affection.

With a surprisingly gentle gaze, Rosa looked into the hawk’s face and stroked its head with one finger.

Then she glanced once more toward the still-excited Hero’s party and spoke.

“In my experience, once a bird learns what freedom feels like, it never comes back.”