Chapter 4. Journey
January Afternoon, June 3:
Shellco City. This was the first stop for Subaru and Reinhild's journey.
"It's so plain… I didn't expect not to see even a single magical beast." Looking at the city walls not far away, Subaru couldn't help but sigh. Of course, Subaru didn't know that the magical beast he imagined was in his stomach—a pitiful creature that hadn't even made a sound.
"So, Subaru, what shall we do?" Reinhild asked.
"Well, since we'll be staying a few days, let's first find an inn to settle in, and then go eat. But I must say, no wonder this is the Mushroom Town." Paying the city entry fee, Subaru looked at the streets lined with shops selling all kinds of mushrooms and remarked.
"I heard they have thousands of kinds of mushroom dishes here. Have you ever been here, Reinhild?"
"No, so I'm really looking forward to it." Reinhild showed a faint smile.
Afternoon, June 6: Reinhild followed Subaru out of curiosity. Although they had visited many places over the past three days, this was their first time leaving the city.
"Tomorrow we leave. Reinhild, do you feel disappointed?" Subaru suddenly asked while walking ahead.
"There's not much in the way of entertainment, the food isn't nearly as good as what everyone in Astrea makes, and I'm not a professional tour guide…" Subaru spoke about his impressions of the past three days.
"But, I still want to leave you with a good memory."
Subaru stopped, and Reinhild saw a large pit full of colorful mushrooms.
"It's really beautiful." The usually despised poisonous mushrooms showed their value here. Seeing this, Reinhild couldn't help but admire them.
"Let this be a memento of our first trip." Subaru said, handing a beautiful poisonous mushroom to Reinhild.
"I heard mushrooms are more delicious the more poisonous they are. A poisonous mushroom should be quite tasty—a gift for you, impervious to all poisons."
"No, no, no, I'm not—Oh ! A Cloud and Moon pattern one." Reinhild looked at the pattern on the mushroom in her hand and spoke.
"I remember it's a legend that wishes people in their low periods a fulfilling life in the future. The one you told me about the day before yesterday."
"You remember that?"
"Of course. Subaru, did you feel unhappy being with me these past few days?"
"How could I? These days were absolutely one of the best times in my life."
"Hm, same here. I don't intend to forget any of the good memories from these past few days."
.
..
.
The next day, the two checked out of their rooms and left Shellco City. The dragon carriage now carried an extra box of local specialties.
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.
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Morning, June 20:
"Subaru, let's play hide-and-seek one last time."
Several children clung to the black-haired boy, while the red-haired girl sat on the tree-side walkway watching.
This was a village deep in the southern forest, inhabited by demi-humans who rejected humans—Algonxing, the third stop of their journey.
Even Reinhild had never expected to come here.
Thirty years ago, the demi-humans lost the war, leaving their situation extremely awkward.
No demi-human existed in the knight order or among nobles (note: Felix is a throwback, and Marco wanted to change this situation), and Count Roswaal, who liked demi-humans, was considered an outlier.
Although the king had enacted several reforms during his life, and some demi-humans gave up hatred and lived in the city, most fled to areas humans to avoid continuing their blood feuds. Even Algonxing, the most human-friendly of the three major demi-human settlements, wasn't a place a Sword Saint could go.
"Anyway, at most we'll just get thrown out, right? And now, Reinhild won't cause any trouble going there. Most importantly, don't you want to see how the demi-humans live?"
After hearing Reinhild's explanation, Subaru said this, and it moved Reinhild.
Of course, this was probably the most difficult part of their journey.
Initially, there were only sound warnings, then increasingly excessive traps, and eventually almost a direct confrontation. To avoid casualties, they withdrew from the forest several times, eventually being targeted by a slave-catching gang outside.
The ones clinging to Subaru now were slaves they had rescued.
Of course, this was only the first step in entering the settlement. Afterward, Reinhild, with the self-defense force, eliminated more than a dozen dangerous magical beasts nearby and helped with various chores.
After a few grilled meat meals, she became an honored guest.
"Thank you. Thanks to Subaru, I was able to come here." The dragon carriage slowly moved, Reinhild waving goodbye to the demi-humans and murmuring quietly.
"Let's come together again next time." Subaru said with a smile.
Ps: Subaru received a souvenir—a bracelet made from the poisonous dragon horn Reinhild personally defeated. Reinhild received a souvenir—an ornament made from the hair of the demi-humans Subaru rescued.
June 27: Fruit Town—Dimite was facing a massive crisis.
Matt placed watermelons into the dragon carriage, wiped sweat from his forehead, and looked back at the still-endless pile of watermelons.
"Damn, why did I plant so many? Uncle Li, can you—"
"Sorry, I'm short-handed here too." Matt fell silent, then looked at the various ripe fruits rotting along the street.
"Damn, all today's hard work will be wasted." Reinhild silently watched from afar, glancing at the midday sun. This was the fifth stop of their journey, and the first time Reinhild had seen a problem after she disappeared.
"Subaru, what should I do?" For the first time, Reinhild's words were full of confusion. Of course, she could handle it alone
like a few years ago, but everything she had seen on the way and the several heatstroke cases recently delivered to shaded areas made her realize her usual methods were wrong.
"Reinhild, how did you handle it before?" Subaru asked, curious.
"At first, it was just because Knight Makon was injured, and he asked me to help collect the fruits. Then some neighbors asked me too. After that, every year Makon would invite me."
"So Reinhild took on the physical labor of collecting the vegetables, and the villagers only had to transport and sell them in the city. By the way, how long did it take you?"
"One day and one night."
"So fast. Reinhild, you can help if you want, but at most show ordinary-level effort. Leave the rest to me."
July 5:
"Finally finished." Subaru looked at the busy scene by the carriage.
"Reinhild, you're not charging for helping, right?"
"It's just some small tasks."
"But even with Otto and Crush's connections, replacing a day of your labor would cost tens of thousands of holy coins, and roughly 10% of the fruits would still be wasted."
"Did I do something wrong?"
"Reinhild did nothing wrong, but when it's too easy to get, people don't realize its value. The people of Dimite didn't realize that everything was built on the assumption you would help unconditionally. I believe after this, they will change."
"Let's come again next year."
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