The Hero Searches Everywhere For The Companion He Expelled (1)

Meanwhile, the Hero’s party—

“He hasn’t come here either? Yuri Claudevel?”

“No, Yuri Claudevel-sama has not been here.”

“…”

How many places had this made now?

No matter how much they searched, they couldn’t find Yuri.

The Hero’s party had first visited the Adventurers’ Guild Hall in the town closest to the tavern where they had dismissed Yuri.

However, according to the receptionist, no adventurer named Yuri Claudevel had visited.

With no other choice, they went from one Guild Hall and employment office to another in the second- and third-closest towns and villages, but still couldn’t find Yuri.

“Aww, another dead end~”

“Where in the world could he have gone?”

At Camula’s question, Irina tilted her head thoughtfully.

“That old guy who took Yuri away said he’d take him to a Guild, right…? Maybe they went somewhere farther away.”

“But Yuri shouldn’t have had enough money to rent a flying creature, correct? Perhaps they shared a carriage with someone?”

“Yeah, sometimes you run into a nice old guy willing to give you a ride.”

And now they had visited a Guild Hall located an hour away from the tavern by carriage, only for the search to end in failure once again.

(Damn it… Where the hell did that useless bastard go!?)

Vanrost irritably pushed open the doors of the Guild Hall. Just then, a passing child pointed at him.

“Ah, broccoli! Broccoli!!”

“Hey! D-Don’t say that! I’m so sorry!”

The child’s mother scolded him and bowed apologetically.

At the word broccoli, the nearby people also began snickering.

Come to think of it, Vanrost’s hair was still puffed out like it had exploded.

Since nobody around him had said anything, he hadn’t paid much attention to it, but even Irina, Camula, and Rosa behind him were now struggling to hold back their laughter after hearing the child.

Wandering around with his hair like this would seriously undermine the dignity of the Hero.

Vanrost hurried off toward a barber shop.

“Ah, the lower half of your hair is completely damaged from the ends up, so we’ll have to cut that off. But I think the remaining hair can be straightened again with a treatment solution.”

“Then do that. And trim it neatly while you’re at it.”

“Understood.”

As the barber cut his hair, Vanrost thought.

There were only so many places penniless Yuri could have reached on foot… They had thoroughly searched the Guild Halls near that tavern, yet hadn’t found him anywhere.

(Maybe we should go back to that tavern and investigate the information again…)

Vanrost’s hair was neatly trimmed.

But he hated the hairstyle. It looked exactly like a mushroom.

“Hey… what the hell is this hairstyle?”

“It’s very fashionable in this town right now. I wear mine the same way, and women keep telling me it’s cute.”

“Hmph. So it’s fashionable.”

The barber did indeed have the same hairstyle.

Since he was small and youthful-looking, maybe women really did find it cute on him.

(I suppose being called cute isn’t so bad.)

Satisfied, Vanrost strode confidently out of the barber shop and headed toward the café where his companions were waiting.

He had barely begun enjoying how much smoother his hair felt when he ran into the same child from earlier, who pointed at him again.

“Ah, a mushroom! Mushroom! It’s a huge mushroom!”

“Hey!! That’s enough!! Hero-sama, I am truly sorry. That hairstyle suits you very well.”

“…”

Even as the mother bowed and apologized, she desperately avoided looking directly at Vanrost’s face while trying to suppress her laughter.

Vanrost raked both hands furiously through his hair.

(It DOES look like a mushroom, damn it! That stupid barber!!)

For a moment, he considered burning the barber shop down, but even he couldn’t burn down a civilian’s business just because he disliked his haircut.

And on closer inspection, it really did seem that the mushroom cut was fashionable in this town, since he occasionally spotted other people with the same hairstyle.

The reason nobody laughed at them was probably because it actually suited them.

Vanrost once again studied his reflection in a window.

The mushroom cut definitely didn’t suit him. Worse still, perhaps because of the shape of his face, the outline of his head genuinely looked like a mushroom.

(Damn it… Maybe I’ll get it cut even shorter at another barber shop. But this is a town where this hairstyle is popular. Another barber might do the same thing. Better wait until I reach another town.)

Afterward, even the companions he reunited with laughed at his new hairstyle.

Vanrost and his companions returned to the same tavern where they had dismissed Yuri.

It was a popular establishment with delicious food and cheap alcohol, and even during the daytime it bustled with regular customers.

Vanrost let out a deep sigh and sat down.

When a female server came over, each of them placed an order.

“I’ll have the grilled veal with seasonal roasted vegetables, the Wars Whitefish meunière, orange corn soup, Berry-Berry Jelly, green tea tart, Pink Poet cake, and a Blue Wine!”

Irina rattled off her order first.

Camula followed in her usual calm tone.

“I’ll have the deep-fried Wars chicken, rose salad, Ultra Shrimp fritters, Blue Sky Jelly, Earl Grey tart, and champagne.”

Then Rosa placed her order.

“I’ll have fried Arangora, and skewered Wars chicken—skin and thigh, please. And a chilled mug of beer.”

Vanrost looked somewhat exasperated as the women rushed to order first, but he ordered his usual meal as well.

Before long, the alcohol arrived, and the three women raised their glasses in a toast.

Vanrost wasn’t in the mood, so he rested his cheek on one hand and sighed.

“Thank you for waiting. Your Etowars beef steak.”

The steak placed in front of him was cooked nicely, tender, and perfectly good in flavor.

But the doneness of the steaks Yuri cooked had been exquisite, and the way the juices spread through his mouth, along with the springy texture when he bit into the meat, was completely different. Even the sauce had been delicious, infused with the rich flavor of mushrooms.

(…Damn it… Why am I remembering his cooking!?)

Just as Vanrost bit his lip, the conversation from the neighboring table reached his ears.

“Man, I was shocked. I saw it through the window—Plain Roy flew off riding some huge flying creature.”

“Huh? Not a Medium Dragon?”

“It was bigger than one of those, and its face looked vicious too.”

“Don’t tell me it was a wyvern?”

“No way it was a wyvern. Even S-rank adventurers have trouble riding those, you know? That guy’s been stuck at B-rank forever.”

Van’s ears practically perked up at their conversation.

(They were just talking about Plain Roy, weren’t they?)

Plain Roy was the B-rank adventurer who had left this very tavern with Yuri after he’d been dismissed.

Vanrost shot to his feet and hurried over to the two customers.

He slammed both hands down on their table and leaned toward their terrified faces.

“Tell me everything you know about that.”