Chapter 7

"Ah, it's already night. I hope we can make it before the gates close."

Ted looked up at the darkening sky and sighed.

After packing up the campsite and removing the twin rings, it was around dawn when the sky started to lighten. Since then, the group had been walking down the road toward Tria, but as expected, the young twins became a hindrance.

No matter how much their limbs were freed, there was no way they could keep up with the pace of the adult mercenaries, who had strong legs. Occasionally, Aldis would carry the twins to catch up, but he couldn't carry them all day, and as a result, they fell significantly behind schedule.

"I can see it."

Orphelia, with sweat dripping from her face hidden by the hood, said.

"Finally, we made it."

Ted also let out a sigh of relief. To make up for the delay, they had reduced the number of breaks in the afternoon and pushed themselves a bit. Thanks to that, they managed to reach Tria before the gates closed.

Thirty minutes later, when Aldis and the others arrived, the gatekeepers were in the middle of preparing to close the gates.

"Hurry up!"

The gatekeepers, eager to finish their work and go home, urged Aldis and the others to hurry and only gave a cursory check of their travel permits.

But that was only for Aldis and the others. The moment the gatekeepers saw the twins, their expressions hardened and they became authoritarian.

"Hey, are you twins?"

The twins were dressed in children's clothes taken from the carriage's cargo. Aldis had removed the rings that marked them as objects, and the documents that described them as objects had already been burned. Despite some visible dirt, the twins now looked like ordinary people.

However, to the gatekeepers, it seemed to make no difference whether they were objects or not. They glared at the young girls as if they were looking at something filthy and tried to intimidate them.

"Can't you say something!"

"Come on, sir. Even if they are, they are our protection targets. Could you please not be too harsh?"

Ted quickly tried to calm the gatekeeper.

"But—"

"You must have had a tough day. You must be tired. Here, it's not much, but have a drink on your way back."

Norris slipped a silver coin into the gatekeeper's hand from the other side.

"Hmm... Well, there's nothing I can do. Just make sure you don't cause any trouble!"

With that, the gatekeeper waved his hand as if to shoo Aldis and the others away. They quickly passed through the gate and entered the main street, where Norris held out his palm.

"Aldis."

Understanding what Norris meant, Aldis took a silver coin from his own purse and placed it in Norris's hand.

"Bringing the twins along means that kind of thing. If you resist and cause a commotion, you'll just make more enemies. Though, it might be interesting in its own way."

"Yeah, thanks. Sorry, Ted."

"It's fine. We'll go report to the lumber merchant. We'll let you know when we have another job."

"Aldis. ... There's a lot I want to say, but if you need a woman's help, don't hesitate to ask. I'll do what I can."

"Yeah, see you."

With Ted and the others gone, Aldis and the twin girls were left on the main street. The night had already spread across most of the sky, and there were few people around, but everyone who passed by frowned at the sight of the twins.

Feeling irritated by such gazes, Aldis urged the twins to start walking toward the inn.

Aldis's regular inn was located in a convenient spot facing the main street. It was of medium size among the inns in Tria, and it attracted customers with slightly cheaper room rates and more abundant meals compared to the market price. While it was known among mercenaries for its mediocre food, it wasn't a big issue for Aldis, who wasn't particular about taste.

The room and meal costs would increase with the twins, but fortunately, Aldis wasn't short of money. He intended to take care of them until he found someone to take them in, though he couldn't continue supporting them indefinitely.

For now, he wanted to get some sleep. He hadn't slept much in the past few days due to the continuous camping. He planned to give the twins a quick meal and then crawl into bed. He thought he could consider what to do next after a good night's sleep.

Until the innkeeper told him to leave—

"Please leave."

Four days ago, the innkeeper, who had been friendly when they left, now showed a troubled expression as soon as Aldis and the twins returned.

"What do you mean? I've never been late on the room payments, and I always pay in advance. It's too much to suddenly ask us to leave."

Aldis frowned at the innkeeper's 180-degree change in attitude and questioned her.

"That's my line. Those are the twins, right?"

The innkeeper pointed at the twins standing behind Aldis with her chin.

"So what? I said I'll pay for two more."

"It's not about the money. If it gets out that twins are staying here, it will ruin my business! Do you have a grudge against me?"

The situation had deteriorated to the point where communication was impossible. Aldis was forced to choose between leaving the inn or abandoning the twins somewhere. Reluctantly, he decided to leave.

The sky was already dark. Even in the city, it wasn't safe to wander around with two young children. Aldis took the twins and visited every inn in the area, but they were all rejected and treated with hostility.

(Who would have thought it would be this bad...)

Aldis's mood sank as he realized the intense dislike people had for the twins, which was worse than he had imagined. However, after hearing Orphelia's story, he couldn't abandon the twins.

While searching for an inn that would accept the twins, Aldis and the twins ended up in a place that could almost be called a back alley. Far from the main street, it was a quiet and dilapidated area with few streetlights.

"Hey, you there! Yes, you!"

Suddenly, a woman's voice called out in a street that was far from the bustling entertainment district. Aldis slowly looked around and finally realized the voice was directed at him.

The woman who called out to Aldis was in her mid-twenties. She had dark brown hair tied up and a triangular scarf on top. She had a slender, tall build and gave an impression of being lively. Her dress was not overly fancy but clean.

"Are you looking for a place to stay tonight?"

"…Why do you think that?"

"Well, if you're wandering around at this hour in this area, it's obvious. There are hardly any people wandering around at night, and if you had a place to stay, you would have already returned to your inn."

This area was full of poor households, and there were no shops open at night like in the entertainment district. Moreover, with Aldis carrying all his belongings, it was easy to guess that he was wandering around looking for a place to stay. The woman said as much.

"I run an inn right over there. We have a vacant room right now, so you can check in immediately. How about it?"

The woman, with eyes the same color as her hair, tried to persuade him. For Aldis, who had been searching for an inn, it was like a godsend. However—

"I appreciate the offer, but will it be okay with these children?"

Aldis turned to look at the twins who were following behind him.

"Having children with you isn't a problem—"

The woman's words faltered. Following Aldis's gaze, she saw the twins and was momentarily speechless, her mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water.

"…Are they twins?"

"Yes. Will you still let them stay with me?"

"Eh, ah, u—"

Her usual brisk tone changed to meaningless sounds as she clutched her head.

But unlike the other inns, she didn't immediately refuse. She must be struggling with a lack of customers. The woman was likely torn between not wanting to accept the twins and wanting to fill the room.

"Hmm… Are you a mercenary?"

"Yeah."

"Are the children also mercenaries?"

"No, they're not."

After a moment of contemplation, the woman nodded and began to negotiate with Aldis.

"I have some conditions. If you agree to them, I can let you stay."

The sudden condescending tone was typical of a world where twins were treated poorly.

"Conditions?"

"Yes. First, you must not tell anyone that they are twins. If it gets out that twins are staying here, I'll lose customers. Second, you must not let them leave the room together. As long as they're not seen together, no one will know they're twins."

Aldis considered the two conditions.

The first condition wasn't a problem. He had no intention of spreading the word about the twins' existence. The second condition was also acceptable. He had no plans to take them on jobs, and it didn't seem like they wanted to go out. They hadn't spoken a word since they arrived, but they followed Aldis's instructions obediently and showed no signs of wanting to escape, even without the rings.

To confirm, Aldis asked the woman:

"Can you bring meals and water for bathing to the room?"

"Sure, but there will be a service charge."

"Since I'm often away on jobs, can you take care of these children when I'm not around?"

"Hmm… It will be an extra charge, but it's fine."

"That's fine. How much for the room and meals?"

"Normally, a room for three people costs one silver coin. Meals are five copper coins per meal, but since I'm taking a risk, the room will cost two silver coins."

The price was clearly inflated, but Aldis appreciated her honesty in revealing the base price. There were few inns that accepted mercenaries, and with no other options, he had no choice but to accept the higher price.

"The children don't need separate beds. A two-person room is enough. Meals are breakfast and dinner for three, and lunch for the children as well."

"Then the room will cost one silver coin and four copper coins. Including meals, it will be one silver coin and eight copper coins per day. A bucket of water costs one copper coin per use. The service charge for bringing meals is five copper coins. For taking care of the children when you're away, one copper coin, since I can only check on them occasionally. How about that?"

"That's fine. I'll need it for ten days."

The cost, which was six copper coins per day when Aldis stayed alone, had ballooned to nearly two silver coins.

(That's not enough to break the bank, but...)

Despite some dissatisfaction with the high price, Aldis was relieved to have a place to stay. He wanted to get into a warm bed and sleep.

"Alright. Follow me. If we go through the front entrance, other guests will see you, so I'll take you to the back door."

Aldis hadn't noticed, but the woman had called out to him almost right in front of the inn. The entrance, which looked like a slightly larger house, had a small sign that read "Stopover Inn." If the woman hadn't called out, he would have passed by without noticing.

Following the woman, Aldis and the twins avoided the main street and went to the back entrance. Once inside, they were led to a two-person room.

"Normally, you'd check in at the counter, but—"

After completing the check-in and paying for ten days in advance, Aldis immediately requested that dinner be brought to the room.

"Oh, right. I'm Kasih. This inn is run by me and my father. I'll let him know about you, so please come and see him tomorrow."

With that, she left the room. Left behind were Aldis, the twins, and three servings of food. The only light source was a candle, which flickered in the room.

"It's dark."

As soon as Aldis muttered, the room was filled with a bright light that far outshone the candle. The source of the light was a glowing ball that suddenly appeared and stuck to the ceiling. It was slightly larger than a palm and emitted a dazzling light that made the candle's light seem feeble.

The twins, who had shown little emotion, shrank back in surprise. They then looked up at the ceiling, blinking at the mysterious floating light.

"Eat while it's warm."

The twins were still wary of Aldis. He told them bluntly as he sat down and began to eat.

The twins' hair, which was shorter than expected, revealed their necks and ears. The short hair, covered in dirt, had lost its natural shine.

Aldis scooped up the stew with a spoon and ate it silently, neither praising nor criticizing its taste. He finished eating in less than five minutes, but the twins hadn't touched their food. They didn't even seem to want to approach the table, and they remained huddled in the corner, watching Aldis eat.

"Aren't you going to eat?"

When Aldis called out to them, there was no response. They were looking at him, and it seemed they could hear him, but they had never spoken a word.

"I'm going to sleep."

Exhausted from the job and the search for an inn, Aldis quickly crawled into bed and fell asleep.

2017/11/01 Typo correction: 伺う → 窺う

2019/05/02 Typo correction: それもと → それとも

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2019/07/22 Typo correction: 目に捕らえた → 目に捉えた

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2020/05/16 Redundancy correction: 光の光源は → 光源は

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