Chapter 77

“It looks like… this is the place.”

“Are you seriously staying here?”

The inn the girl had guided me to was an absolute wreck. It was so dilapidated I wasn’t even sure if it was actually open for business.

“Hey, is your department just completely broke?”

“Ugh… it’s true we have less funding compared to the Knights or the Mages, but this is my first time staying in a place this run-down!”

“You really ought to consider a career change, don’t you think?”

“The Intelligence Department is chronically understaffed… We’re basically nomads, wandering from one country to the next.”

“When was the last time you actually went back home?”

“Not once since I started this job…”

…Is Light-Light seriously okay? Does a bright light mean even deeper shadows?

That wasn’t even a funny joke.

“Hey, kid. Are you okay on cash?”

“Eh? Um, I don’t have much on hand…”

“Fine. I’ll cover the lodging, so just make up for it by giving me extra intel. We’re going to a different inn.”

“What!? But my seniors told me…”

“It’s fine, it’s fine. Just make up some excuse later. I’m not a kind enough man to escort you to the bathroom in the middle of the night.”

“I can go to the bathroom by myself at night!!”

“Even at that place?”

The girl looked at the decrepit inn and let out a groan.

“…Please take me with you.”

“Then let’s head back the way we came and find a normal inn. It’ll be dark soon.”

Seeing the sun beginning to set, I hurried a bit. We found a decent, ordinary inn soon enough, but another problem immediately cropped up.

“There’s only one room left?”

“Yes. If you two don’t mind sharing, I can show you the way,” the owner said.

To be honest, I didn’t have a problem with it, but for her…

Even if she looked like a child, she was supposedly nineteen.

“What do you want to do? Should we look elsewhere?”

“…You won’t attack me, right?”

“I’m not a lolicon. Boss, the room is fine. We’ll be eating at the Guild, so we don’t need dinner or breakfast.”

“Understood. I’ll show you to the room then.”

Led by the owner to the second floor, we entered a room with two standard beds and a simple table.

“This is the room. Will it suffice?”

“Yeah. Thanks.”

The owner handed me the key and headed back downstairs.

“Aaaah! A bed! It’s been so long!”

The girl immediately dove onto the bed. She buried her face in the pillow and started kicking her legs back and forth.

“Don’t get so worked up over a bed. Have you been camping out that long?”

“It’s been forever! Until just the other day, I was camping out with everyone else. We traveled in a carriage disguised as merchants, and my butt hurts so much!”

“Can’t they at least provide one horse per person?”

“No way~. Most of the horses are reserved for the people who actually fight monsters.”

…Combat classes get priority everywhere, huh? It’s a sad reality.

I sat down on my bed before speaking.

“By the way, what’s your name?”

“That’s a bit sudden.”

“No, well, I was just about to address you, and then I realized—I never actually asked for your name.”

“Then tell me yours too. A codename is fine, if you have one.”

The girl sat up on the bed, looked thoughtful for a moment, and then spoke.

“My codename is ‘Alice.’ And yours?”

“I’m Ryu, a Tamer who’s just a little bit strong. Nice to meet you, Alice.”

“It’s a pleasure, Sir Ryu.”

We introduced ourselves with a light handshake.

…It’s a small thing, but that was the first time I’d ever been addressed with “Sir” by a girl.

“Well then, shall we go grab some food?”

“Yes! I’m starving.”

We headed to the Guild to eat.

When Alice and I arrived, there was a bit of a commotion because people mistook her for a child, but we eventually managed to sit down for a meal.

As I looked over the menu at the Guild, I was genuinely shocked to find that the legs of the spider I had caught were somehow listed as an option.

Apparently, those spider legs were edible. It was a complete “bizarre food” menu item, but the price was dirt cheap. For the record, I played it safe and went with the grilled chicken.

“Alice… are you really that much of a challenger?”

“But… they were just so cheap…”

Tempted by the bargain price, Alice had ordered the spider legs.

I can’t believe she actually wanted to eat them. It’s a spider, for crying out loud. A spider.

I scanned the room to see if anyone else had ordered the spider legs, and I spotted a group of people who hadn’t ordered bread or soup—they were just stuffing themselves with nothing but spider legs.

Don’t tell me that group is Alice’s colleagues?

“Hey, Alice. Those guys aren’t your comrades, are they?”

“Eh?”

Alice looked over to where I was pointing and was visibly startled.

I could sense the same presence I felt earlier that day coming from that group, so I was probably right on the money.

“N-no, you’re wrong. There’s no way my seniors would be…”

Your eyes are darting all over the place, Alice.

That reaction alone is more than enough evidence.

“I’m starting to get seriously worried. Was Light-Light always such an exploitative country?”

“Please don’t call it exploitative! We have our pride as the nation where the Hero was born and raised, after all.”

“Yeah, but looking at you and those guys…”

“Ugh… our department is just ‘special’.”

I never thought I’d hear the word “special” used in such a context.

Alice started munching on the spider legs, muttering, “Oh, this is actually pretty good,” but I couldn’t help but feel sorry for her.

Surely those guys aren’t actually staying at that dilapidated inn, right?

“We’ll exchange information once we’re done eating.”

“Yes. Understood.”

She was eating with such focus—is she really going to be okay?