Chapter 63

"Alright, I've already won this, Milko."

"No, there's still a chance for a comeback. Don't you get it? Mongrel... this faint but shining path of hope..."

"Huh? Are you serious? Sorry, I'm not very good at this game, so I don't really understand."

"......I see, even from your perspective, the game is still undecided. Hehehe, you let your guard down. Now the game is back to a tie. Come on, if you hit here... how will you respond!?"

"Ah! That spot... that... if you hit there, it's tough, right... I don't get it..."

"Hehehe... this move is one even I can't predict... take your time to think it over..."

Since there's no good mission, I've been hanging out in the guild's tavern since noon today.

There are always a certain number of guild members who wait around, hoping for an easy and well-paying job. Even though spring is a busy season with many missions, it's tough without breaks, so it's not right to call it laziness.

Right now, there are also guys from "Shield of the Earth" and "Sword of Harvest," making the tavern unusually lively.

Thanks to that, I don't lack for opponents in this board game.

"Mongrel... what do you think of this situation? Hehehe..."

"Can I be honest? I don't really get it."

"What a coincidence, neither do I...!"

My opponent is Milko, a swordsman from "Shield of the Earth."

His cool appearance and suggestive tone are popular with women, but he's a bit slow on the uptake.

The fact that he's having a heated battle with me, a beginner, in a board game with ambiguous rules is telling. By the way, I can only play evenly with Milko; I can't do the same with anyone else.

I wish I could find someone weaker to play with.

"Damn, the guys from Baysun should do more hunting... Why do we have to go all the way to their fields to hunt those weaklings... Are they slacking off or what...?"

"There's nothing we can do, Chuck... Recently, more guild members have been moving their base to Regol from other guild branches, so there's a shortage of manpower..."

"If they're going to reassign us, they should just do it decisively! Don't make us go on expeditions just to save money! Thanks to that, we can't participate in the exploration missions as a party..."

"...Your 'Sword of Harvest' must be having a tough time too, huh?"

"How's Alex doing these days?"

"Well, as you can see. We want to do something, but small hunts aren't very profitable... We're thinking of waiting for the expedition group to return first..."

"You guys are also bored... Bored, right...?"

Spring is the season for small creatures. However, there are few jobs that pay big in one go. Most are missions involving small creatures.

It's frustrating that no matter how much you work, you don't earn much. It's understandable that some guild members get tired of it.

Right now, the city expansion project is booming, and working there is more profitable. Considering such local jobs, going on expeditions for meager earnings seems ridiculous.

In that regard, Artemis and "Staff of the Young Tree" are doing well. They mostly act as a group, so they're well-coordinated and efficient.

The guys from "Shield of the Earth" and "Sword of Harvest" here are also agile, but they seem to be a step or two behind in terms of their sense for good missions.

"...Hey... who do you like the most among the kids of 'Staff of the Young Tree'?"

"Again with this, Chuck... Dick Bart isn't here, you know?"

"It's fine even if he's not here! It's fun, right!?"

It seems he's trying to start some boys' talk because there are no female guild members in the tavern.

This guy's mind is really like that of a middle school boy.

"What about this move!"

"...Whoa."

Ah, crap. I might lose. No way, I don't want to lose to Milko.

"Chuck! Include me in that conversation!"

"Hey! Mongrel, that's not fair!"

"Sure, let's talk more! Oh, I have some pickles from Grandma Daria this morning, let's eat them while we talk!"

"Seriously? You have pickles? That's great, give me some."

Since coming to this world, I've become a big fan of pickled foods. They're healthy, delicious, and go well with alcohol. They're the perfect food.

"Mongrel, you're close with the leader of 'Staff of the Young Tree,' right? Sally, I think?"

"Yeah, Sally. We used to be in Regol together, so we've known each other for a long time. I'm not sure if we're close, though."

"I don't know what she's thinking, but her figure isn't bad... though she's a bit creepy."

"She has a beautiful face... but when she covered her ale with her hand and shook it to remove the carbonation before drinking, I couldn't believe my eyes..."

"Ah, that's scary..."

"Sally is a weirdo."

"Once you say that, it's over..."

"Alex, what's up? Are you challenging me to a board game?"

"Are you thinking you can win against me...?"

"Hey, guys... include me too..."

Ah, Milko is here. Now there are four of us. It's a lonely table.

But Milko is married, so he's already a winner in that sense.

"Milko, who among the guild kids catches your eye?"

"No, Chuck... he's married..."

"Hehehe... Yeah, but I like Nastasha from Artemis... those breasts are irresistible..."

"Wait! You're divorced!?"

"No, I'm not."

"Right!? You're answering normally... Is that kind of light-heartedness a sign of the comfort that comes with marriage...?"

"Sure? Just keep it a secret from my wife."

"Are you spilling your guts, knowing the risks...?"

"Big breasts are better, right?"

"Well... I can't really argue with that..."

In this world... or rather, in Halperia, men's sexual preferences tend to be more focused on the lower body. More people think that butts are more erotic than breasts.

Also, it's normal to show interest in or even flirt with girls who are in their mid-teens, which would be considered young girls in my previous life.

While a preference for young girls isn't exactly welcomed, it's not looked down upon like pedophilia.

Men always seek high school girls throughout their lives... Whose quote was that? Nietzsche? I forgot. It might have been my own.

Anyway, men's preference for younger girls isn't met with much harsh judgment. People grow up and get married early. In that sense, the moral standards of my previous modern world might have been unnatural.

"I like... Momo from 'Staff of the Young Tree'! The small girl with sleepy eyes! She's still young, but she'll grow up to be beautiful..."

"Oh..."

"Wait, Chuck, you didn't know? Momo is Sally's daughter."

"...What? What!? Sally is married!?"

"She lost her husband soon after having a child. She's a widow."

Sally is 31 now, two years older than me. Momo was born when Sally was 16, so she's 15 now. Time flies...

"Wait, how old is Sally?"

"She looks younger than her age, doesn't she?"

"Hehehe... Isn't she around 30?"

"She's 31, I think."

"Really!? She doesn't look it! I thought she was 25! And she has a child...!"

She doesn't pay much attention to her child, and it's unclear if she has any affection for her.

When they were active in Regol a few years ago, their relationship seemed more distant than a typical mother-daughter relationship... It felt like they were raising the child as a group within the party. The relationship between Sally and Momo hasn't changed much recently.

But according to one of the other kids from "Staff of the Young Tree," Sally often teaches Momo magic.

I don't want to pry into other people's family relationships, so I don't know much.

As long as the child isn't unhappy, it's probably fine.

"I don't have those kinds of feelings for any of the guild members... I try not to..."

"...Ah, I remember... the legendary party crasher..."

"Milko, please don't bring that up... My heart starts racing..."

"Sorry, I'll stop."

It's nostalgic, the party crasher... She messed with the guys from "Shield of the Earth" and eventually married a wealthy merchant in the capital, living a life of luxury.

Because of her, "Shield of the Earth" had a period of distrust towards women, which was unfortunate.

"Mongrel, you're close with the kids from Artemis, right...? Rina is fine, but to go after Ulrika too...?"

"No, Ulrika... and Rina is fine, but isn't that a bit harsh on Rina?"

"Rina... she doesn't really feel like a woman..."

"I understand. She's honest and cute, right?"

"Hehe... She's a good, serious person. She doesn't have much charm, though..."

Rina... well, she's flat and small...

But Ulrika is different, right... she's a guy...

But saying that might be bad, so I'll keep it to myself.

"Ulrika... she may have a flat chest, but she has a great butt..."

"Hehehe... I get it... she has a great butt..."

"Milko, your wife will kill you! ...But, among the single members of Artemis, she's the only one who's easy to talk to, so I can understand..."

"Why are you close with her, Mongrel? Hey, introduce me to Ulrika!"

"No, she knows about you too."

"Really...? What have they said about me...?"

"Nothing."

"Ah! I'm so popular!"

"To be honest... that attitude is why you're not popular..."

"By the way, Chuck, didn't you like Elena at the reception? What about Elena?"

"My main goal is Elena! But it's okay to have a side dish, right!?"

"Hehehe... I can understand your feelings..."

"Milko, are you dissatisfied with your married life...?"

"No, I'm not."

"Right..."

"...But, Chuck, you might think it's okay to talk like this because Elena isn't here. But I think Mileine can hear us just fine."

I glanced at the reception, and Mileine, who was smiling, caught my eye.

When I waved, she ignored me with a smile.

"...So, Mileine might tell Elena about this..."

"That's a significant risk."

"...So... I can indirectly tell Elena that I like her...? This might be the art of love...?"

In response to Chuck's confident declaration, the three of us just drank our ale in silence.

Popular guys have a mysterious charm, but unattractive guys have a reason that's easy to understand...

Watching Chuck makes me think about that.

Mileine was taking notes at the empty reception, still smiling...