Chapter 58

While traveling in the carriage, Maisen told us various tales of his adventures.

"The enemy had the advantage. We were instantly surrounded by goblins. So I stepped forward and said, 'Let's settle this one-on-one, leader to leader!'"

"Uh-huh, uh-huh."

I fought off sleep and tried my best to nod along.

"No, I wish you could have seen my heroic stance back then. I think it would have made a great picture. In fact, I plan to ask a painter to recreate it someday when I'm hired by a noble."

"Uh-huh, that sounds good."

Goblins are a type of monster.

They stand about one meter tall and have large, pointed ears.

Think of them as green little devils.

They aren't strong, but they grow and reproduce quickly. They are also known for being quite intelligent, cunning, and cruel.

Some goblins even dig pit traps filled with excrement.

Goblins are born in places where the magical field is greatly distorted, so there's a high probability that demons lurk near goblin colonies.

By the way, there are also goblins called Gnome Goblins, or simply Gnomes, who look like adorable young girls.

Both males and females have the appearance of young girls and prefer to wear human clothing.

They look adorable, but they are, of course, cruel and ruthless goblins.

Many pedophiles enter dungeons to catch a glimpse of the Gnomes and end up being beaten by the goblins with innocent smiles.

They are said to have been created to make humans let their guard down.

"Well, of course, goblins don't understand words, so we were all beaten up. But I had a quick wit and threw the food far away, and we managed to escape with our lives. What do you think? Pretty impressive, right? Just being strong isn't enough to be like me. An adventurer needs to be clever. If you just move like a limb without thinking, that's one thing, but if you want to be someone people rely on, like me, you need to be smart."

"Y-Yeah... That's impressive, indeed. In many ways."

"Right?"

He was talking proudly, but was that really a heroic tale?

It seemed more like a story of failure.

I rubbed my sleepy eyes and gently nudged Mear, who was sleeping next to me, with my elbow.

"Huh? What's up?"

"Hey, at least listen to the story. Maisen is like an investor."

I whispered to Mear, lowering my voice.

"But his stories are all boastful and get on my nerves... They're not very interesting."

"That was a story of failure."

"Really?"

Yeah, it's true.

At least he wasn't lying.

"What are you whispering about? It feels lonely to be left out."

"N-No, I was just thinking it would be nice if the exploration of the ruins is successful."

"Haha! That's right! With me around, you can rest assured!"

...The more Maisen talked, the more anxious I became.

I thought I was taking a risk to make a big profit, but maybe I acted too hastily.

Maisen's storytelling continued late into the night.

I can't believe he can talk so much.

Maybe because I showed an interest in listening, he didn't care that Mear was sleeping and kept waking me up when I tried to sleep.

Mear's attitude was probably the right one.

It's nice that he kept watch all night.

But I don't want to be dragged into his mess.

"By the way, Abel. Why did you decide to become an adventurer?"

"Well, it seemed like a quick way to make money, even without trust..."

Most people at the adventurer support office probably had similar reasons.

"Actually, I was once saved by an adventurer. I've always been a bit reckless. On my birthday, I went near a monster's nest with a wooden sword my father carved for me. I was bitten by a monster and thought I was done for, but an adventurer appeared and quickly defeated the monster. That's when I decided I wanted to be an adventurer and fight with a sword like him."

It was a surprisingly decent reason. I felt a bit envious.

Or maybe he brought up this topic to talk about himself.

"The bite left a pretty noticeable scar. My parents asked a specialist if I wanted to remove it with magic, but I decided to keep it as a reminder of when I was saved."

"Wow... That's pretty cool. Where is the scar?"

"W-Well, it's in a place that's hard to show... It's embarrassing... If you really want to see it, I don't mind..."

Maisen said this while reaching for his belt.

"N-No! I don't need to see it!"

"O-Oh, okay?"

Why does he sound a bit disappointed?

However, he didn't seem like a bad guy, even though I initially thought he was tough.

He's still a bit tough, though.

"Abel, you're a good guy. Everyone else always tries to change the subject and shut me out when I talk. It's been a while since I've had such a deep conversation."

...He doesn't seem like a bad guy.

"If I ever get a promotion, I'll recommend you to be one of my subordinates. As a favor from a leader."

"T-Thanks. I'll look forward to it."

I heard a noise from a distance.

"...Was that a monster?"

I said this while looking in the direction of the sound.

"Huh? Did you see something? Perfect, I'll show you my sword skills as a quasi-E-rank adventurer! You watch closely and learn from my every move! I became this strong by thinking about every action!"

"Wait, at least wait until we can see what it is..."

Maisen jumped out of the carriage, drew his sword, and ran towards the sound.

"Growl!"

A large dog with brown fur appeared from behind a rock.

It was probably a Hound, a lower-tier version of the Garm I defeated last time.

I remember James saying that Hounds weren't that dangerous.

He might have been able to handle it. It shouldn't be that strong.

I can just watch and it should be fine.

"Yah! Take this! My sword will rust on you!"

The Hound dodged the sword and was calculating the right moment to pounce on Maisen.

Is he okay?

He seems to be in a tight spot.

But he was so confident...

"Damn, you're not bad... I'll recognize you as my rival."

Maisen's arm seemed tired from the weight of the sword, and he lowered it, panting.

At that moment, the Hound pounced on him.

"Growl!"

It wasn't okay at all!

I quickly raised my staff and aimed it at the Hound.

"Ugh, waaaaaah!"

Maisen screamed and raised his sword.

He managed to counter and cut the Hound's throat.

"See? That's all it is. I showed a weakness on purpose to make it pounce."

Maisen panted, lowered his sword, and said this to me.

Did he just scream for real?

It didn't seem like an act. It's not easy to scream like that.

"Nice fight... Leader."

"Hahaha, to a quasi-E-rank adventurer like me, a low-level monster is nothing! Wait a moment, I'll skin it now. I'm really good at skinning, the receptionist often praises me... Huh?"

"Growl!" "Growl!" "Growl!"

Three Hounds ran towards Maisen.

They all looked angry. They were probably the companions of the one he just killed.

"Roar!"

Maisen threw his sword and ran towards us.

"Get the driver up and run! I'll distract them, take the chance!"

"Your words and actions don't match at all!"

Maisen fell dramatically.

"Ahhh!"

I aimed my staff at the Hounds.

Three magic circles appeared.

"Flame, this hand."

I shot fireballs from each magic circle, hitting the Hounds' heads.

The three Hounds fell to the ground.

"Hey, are you okay?"

Maisen cautiously raised his head and looked around.

"Wh-What just happened..."

Seeing my staff, Maisen's eyes widened.

"A-Ah... Yeah, thanks... Um..."

He said this with effort and added, "Um... Leader, can I take over?"

No, it's fine, anyone can be the leader...

If you want to, go ahead.