Those Who Lie In Wait

“Jonah, let’s go.”

“Uuugh… p-please wait…”

Early the next morning, Jonah was being dragged by the hand as Titancia headed straight toward the Guild.

And throughout all of this, he wore a completely exhausted expression.

The cause, of course, was Titancia.

Jonah had stayed at her house last night, and since there was only one bed, the two ended up sleeping together.

Embarrassed, Jonah tried to refuse, but Titancia wouldn’t listen—if anything, she acted like sharing the bed was a non-negotiable condition. In the end, Jonah was dragged in by force.

To make things worse, she held Jonah like a body pillow all night, clinging to him lovingly.

With Jonah’s face pressed firmly against her chest.

Thanks to that, Jonah was too tense and embarrassed to sleep even a minute.

“We’re here.”

It was a two-story brick building along the main street.

A sign above the entrance bore the crest of the Guild.

“Good morning.”

“Ohh! Thank you for coming!”

Titancia opened the door and greeted them expressionlessly. From behind the reception window, a narrow-eyed middle-aged man burst out as if he’d been eagerly waiting.

It seemed he was the one who hired Titancia—the guildmaster.

“The guildmaster acts all high and mighty normally, but only at times like this does he put on a good face. Jonah, you should watch out.”

“Hey, that’s harsh!?”

“Ah… hahaha…”

The guildmaster protested fiercely at Titancia’s dead-serious warning, while Jonah could only give a wry smile.

She was probably right, but since she continued to take jobs from him, she must trust him at least somewhat.

“Hm? And who’s this kid?”

“This is Jonah. We spent the night together.”

“Wh-wh-wh-wh-WHAT!?”

Even if technically true, Titancia’s phrasing made Jonah shout in panic.

If Marguerite, Aurora, or Priscilla ever learned about last night… Jonah couldn’t help imagining it, and a chill ran down his back.

“Sigh… I don’t intend to interfere in your personal tastes, but perhaps you should consider the age difference—”

“It seems the guildmaster isn’t fond of keeping his life.”

“Hie!? I-I’ll go get the delivery item riiight now!!”

The moment Titancia casually reached for her bow, the guildmaster turned pale and fled into the back.

Not understanding what had triggered her wrath, Jonah tilted his head.

“Th-this is the item for the request…”

The guildmaster, now completely formal, bowed deeply and presented the item.

It was a small wooden box, just large enough to fit in the palm of a hand.

“Please deliver this safely to the Central Mutual Aid Association in the capital, Minga.”

“Mm, got it.”

Titancia casually took the box, tucked it into her clothes, and turned on her heel as if her business here was done.

“Make sure the payment is ready.”

“Of course! This job will earn the Guild a hefty cut too!”

With his shady grin and enthusiastic thumbs-up behind them, they left the Guild.

“Jonah, be absolutely careful. Even if the capital isn’t far, the forest is full of monsters.”

At the gate of Mittenberg, Titancia gripped Jonah’s shoulders and repeated her warning.

This was already the seventh time today.

“I’ll be fine. But you should be careful too, Titancia. Based on what you said yesterday, those weird people the hostess from Sunbeam Pavilion mentioned will probably come after you again.”

“Of course I know.”

Titancia glanced toward a building on the far left, then gave a confident thumbs-up.

Meaning someone was already hiding there.

“Well then, Jonah—see you in the capital.”

“Yes!”

Titancia kept looking back anxiously, while Jonah waved her off with a smile.

“Alright then.”

Jonah stretched, grabbed a leather bag far too big for his small frame, and instead of heading toward the capital… he walked straight back into town.

One might think he was headed for the stagecoach stop, but no—he wandered clumsily back to the main street.

Eyes sparkling at the roadside stalls, he strolled through the town.

Then he entered a small inn.

An hour passed, the sun rose higher, yet Jonah never came back out.

More people filled the main street, and the usual bustle returned.

Then… two brown-skinned men with a dangerous air about them entered the inn.

However—

“Damn it! Where did he go!?”

“You check the back! I’ll take the main street again! If we fail, Lady Zeria might kill us!”

The two brown-skinned men burst out shouting.

They were likely part of the group tailing Titancia.

But no matter how hard they searched, they would never find Jonah.

Because—Jonah was already in the capital, Minga.