Lizel was terrible at waking up. However, as long as he slept enough, he could wake up, whether early in the morning or at dawn. This time, Lizel woke up and slowly got up as the dark sky of the night began to brighten. He had slept like a log due to his mana shortage, so while his body was slightly sluggish, his head was clear.
Gil was asleep in the next bed. This was a first as whenever Lizel woke up, Gil was already up and ready. Lizel quietly got out of bed, wondering if after he fell asleep, Gil had gone somewhere and slept at a later time. As usual, Gil wore nothing over his torso when he went to bed. His shoulder peeking out from the blanket looked cold, so Lizel thought about kindly covering him with the blanket.
He had a suspicion that Gil was already awake, but when Gil stirred, this suspicion was confirmed. The first words out of his mouth were, “Given your habits, you sure woke up early.”
“I’m sorry. Did I wake you up?”
“Don’t worry. I usually wake up around this time.”
“But please go back to sleep. You had a fierce battle yesterday,” Lizel suggested for him to go back to sleep, but Gil shook his head and got up, “Nah…”
When Lizel saw Gil’s exposed, toned, muscular torso appear from underneath the blanket, he wryly laughed. As Gil put on his clothes, Lizel commented in his head, “And I just put the blanket back on you.” Although Lizel had called yesterday’s fight fierce, Gil had managed to fight and win against an underground dragon unscathed, so Lizel didn’t force him to rest. As the two got ready, they discussed how they would be returning to Parteda today.
“It’s still too early to head to Judge’s home,” Lizel said.
“He said we’ll be goin’ back around noon. He’ll definitely be eatin’ lunch with his old man.”
“I’m glad that they’re close with each other.”
Lizel had never met Judge’s grandfather, but from what he heard from Gil, the old man appeared to dote quite a bit on his grandson. Lizel wished for the two to spend as much time together as possible on their last day here and smiled. Judge had asked Lizel and Gil to come by before noon, but Lizel thought it would be better after lunch.
He calmly put on his coat. He thought about wearing more fitting clothes that were easy to move in like Gil’s since he was now an adventurer, but his current outfit resembled what he wore in his original world, so they weren’t particularly cumbersome to wear.
“We have time, so why not go to the guild?” he suggested.
There was merit in updating the guild’s labyrinth maps. It served to add to your accomplishments for your next rank and rewarded a considerable sum proportional to the information’s content and profitability. As what Lizel had discovered was not only a hidden room but also the existence of an underground dragon, a monster that could be called a hidden boss, the guild would surely pay out a hefty sum. While there was no obligation for adventurers to do so, many members would still bring their newly discovered info to the guild.
This would be Lizel’s second time visiting the Marcade guild. The guild in Parteda had already gotten accustomed to seeing Lizel, so while there was no commotion there, he naturally turned heads here. This was even more so with Gil by his side. In addition, there was also that fight he was involved with the other day. Even though the sun had only come out, plenty of adventurers were present inside to take requests.
“Updates should be at the support desk, right?” Lizel asked.
“Beats me,” Gil replied. He had never gone to update the guild’s maps, nor had he ever really used their maps so he was unaware whether or not he had discovered a new path. And even if he did discover one, he wouldn’t go out of his way to inform them.
With a bitter smile, Lizel approached the support desk where a group was currently buying a map. The support desk provided all kinds of support for adventurers just as the name implied: from purchasing maps to lending out guides on monsters and plants. They could even refer you to adventurer-friendly inns. Since they sold maps, Lizel thought that this was the right spot and lined up. A member of the party in front of him jumped in surprise. It was unclear if their reaction was because of Gil or Lizel. The adventurers finished their business and unnaturally ran off. Lizel watched them go as his own turn came up.
A female employee, a rarity in the ruffian-filled guild, gave a bright smile and asked, “Good morning. What business do you have for me today?”
Lizel hadn’t seen her the other day when he came to buy a map yesterday, but he greeted her back, “Good morning.”
When Lizel grinned, she blinked several times and flashed her own bright smile. It appeared that there weren’t many adventurers who returned her greetings. She probably fulfilled the wish of those adventurers who wanted to receive support from a young woman if possible. Conversely, there was no way the guild would leave a young woman alone in such a place, so just like with Studd, she probably possessed some fierce self-defensive skills.
“I would like to update your map.”
“Okay! Which labyrinth is it?”
“The Crystal Ruins.”
“What?! That labyrinth is old and has been thoroughly searched. It hasn’t been updated in several years, you know?”
“But I found something.”
“You found something?!”
In response to the smiling Lizel, the employee nodded in admiration, and in line with the employee’s surprise, the adventures who were within earshot of the conversation also murmured amongst each other.
At that moment, a young man with a solid build glared at Lizel, drew closer, and raised his voice, “Wait a sec. You tryin’ to show off to Layla? Y’know the penalty for fake info’s high, right?”
Lizel didn’t intend for his question to be a flirt. It was etiquette among the nobility to return others’ greetings, and Layla herself probably only interpreted his words as a compliment. He asked, “Is that your name?”
“Oh, yes, it is!” The employee called Layla replied.
“What a lovely name.”
“Gasp, thank you very much!”
However, the young man didn’t see it that way. He shouted, “Don’t suddenly flirt with her!”
From Gil’s honest perspective, the smiling Lizel giving compliments and the delighted Layla accepting them looked like a grandfather and his grandchild. However, if he were to mention this to Lizel, he was sure Lizel would complain.
It was as clear as day that this young man had feelings for Layla, and he imposingly stood face-to-face with Lizel, hoping to show her his good side. “There’s no way a pansy like ya could find any new info, let alone ’bout the Crystal Ruins!”
“Meaning?” Lizel asked.
“M-meaning? Meaning…y-you gotta show some proof!” The young man shouted back.
Gil looked at Lizel. Lizel appeared to have found this somewhat amusing. He was happy at the fact that this matter actually concerned himself rather than Gil. If someone was casually picking a fight with him, that must mean he finally looked like an adventurer. Lizel hadn’t been treated as an adventurer despite his efforts to act like one, so this was a very joyous happening. However, to Gil, the young man’s mind was so filled with love or affection that he hadn’t noticed Lizel’s abnormality. Nevertheless, Gil wouldn’t do something stupid like rain on Lizel’s parade.
“Do you need proof to update the map?” Lizel asked.
“No need! Even if you lie, you’ll soon be found out. Also, the guild’s trust in you will plummet so no one wants to falsify info!” Layla proudly announced.
The young man was disheartened by this exchange. At the same time, his resentment towards Lizel increased. This was completely a case of unjustified resentment born from a misunderstanding.
“Well, you don’t have to believe me if you do not wish to,” Lizel told him.
“Then are you admittin’ you fakin’ the info?”
“No. If the guild will not believe in my words, then my business here is done,” Lizel said indifferently, putting the man at a loss for words.
Adventurers would normally refute if their peers doubted them since having strange rumors about them circulating would be a nuisance. However, strange rumors were nothing new to Lizel at this point. Moreover, he wasn’t falsifying information, so even if someone were to spread a rumor about him lying, he could promptly dispel it. Nevertheless, today was his last day here in Marcade, and it would leave a bad taste in his mouth if he left on a sour note.
“Oh, that’s right. I have just the thing that can act as evidence. Shall I present that instead?” Lizel suggested.
“Hah?!” The man raised his voice. He apparently didn’t think that Lizel would really produce some proof. This response was only natural. Normally, the only way to prove that the maps needed to be updated was to bring someone to see for themselves.
Lizel gave a teasing smile to the surprised man and those around them who were paying attention. He then took out a book and held it up to show the cover. Voices of admiration and surprise escaped their mouths. It was a strategy book. There were hardly any adventurers who ever laid eyes on it, and in reality, this was the first time everyone present had seen one.
“Do you understand now?” Lizel asked.
“B-but updating it after so long is—” The man tried to retort, but Lizel cut him off. “I found a hidden room. Although, I have unfortunately already opened the treasure chest.”
Everyone grew excited at the word “hidden room,” but their shoulders dropped at the Lizel’s second sentence. Unlike the treasure chests randomly placed throughout the labyrinth, the ones in hidden rooms were fixed and wouldn’t reappear. So, just as the treasure chest at the lowest level went to the first party who reached it, treasure chests in hidden rooms will never regenerate. Therefore, even if adventurers were to enter this hidden room in the future, a treasure chest would never appear again on the altar.
“But it still might be worthwhile for others to enter the hidden room since that’s the only place you can find an extremely rare monster,” Lizel continued.
“W-wait a second!” Layla quickly stopped Lizel, but Lizel smiled and closed his mouth after saying, “It’s fine. I will only say this much.”
It would be detrimental for the guild if those buying maps lessened. However, if news of a rare monster in the hidden room Lizel mentioned were to spread, many more people would certainly want to purchase maps. That was exactly why Layla stopped Lizel at the perfect time—to prevent the number of people purchasing maps from decreasing if Lizel were to leak any more information.
Leaving the young man still speechless and frozen, Lizel opened the strategy book and pointed, “It’s right here, but should I mention the trick to entering the room?”
“Either way is fine! You’ll receive more of a reward if you do talk about it,” Layla informed him.
“Then—” Lizel started, but Layla interrupted him, saying “O-oh, but please wait a minute! Where did my silencer go…?”
To prevent any of this information from leaking to those around them, Layla rummaged around under her desk and brought out a magic tool. It was a meter-wide magic tool that prevented sounds from being leaked to the outside. Since this was also something present in Lizel’s original world, he wasn’t particularly surprised. Rather, since it could cover an entire room in a noble’s mansion, Lizel even had some installed in several rooms.
Upon the tool’s activation, Layla, Lizel, and Gil were shrouded by a thin curtain of light. The man seemed to have rebooted and was now shouting something from the other side of the curtain, most likely along the lines of, “Don’t get close to her!” But as expected of an adventurer, he wouldn’t disturb the guild employees.
“Okay, please start!” Layla prompted Lizel.
“Alright then. First, it’s possible to break just this area here on the wall.”
“Mhm, we never thought about a breakable labyrinth!”
“Gil kicked here… Wait, Gil, can a normal person break it with a kick?”
“Huh? Can’t everyone do it? I mean, it’s like kicking down the brick wall of a house, right?”
“People can’t do that?!” Layla reflexively retorted. Even if someone was an adventurer, it didn’t mean the impossible became possible.
Lizel wondered if Gil had ever kicked down the wall of a house while Layla wrote in beautiful letters next to the place with the hidden room on the map, “Need a hammer?” Lizel and Gil were the exception as the average adventurer didn’t possess a bag imbued with spatial magic. As such, if people needed to bring a hammer, they would need to be prepared to add this extra weight to their gear.
Lizel continued his explanation. “Then, we went ahead and entered a small room with an altar and a spatial magic circle on the floor.”
“I see. So that magic circle teleported you to that room on the lower levels you just showed me, right?”
“Rather than teleported… we fell.”
“Fell?!”
“The moment the magic circle activated, the entire floor disappeared and we fell through a crystal pit about two meters in diameter for…about a minute or so. It seems that the magic circle was only for returning.”
Layla was flabbergasted at this news, so Lizel tapped his fingers on the desk to wake her up.
She snapped awake and asked, “W-w-were you okay?!”
“Does it look like we got hurt?”
“No, it doesn’t!”
Layla’s mind seemed to be a mess while she scribbled away some notes, so Lizel smiled at her. The two appeared to be having a fun conversation. When Gil took a peek outside, the man seemed to be shouting something in frustration and ruffling his hair. The people in question, Lizel and Layla, didn’t notice, so everyone else who was watching began to pity the man. Gil thought, “Since it’s gotten to this point, I might as well enjoy it.”
Lizel continued his explanation. “There was an underground dragon at the bottom, so we had nowhere to escape to avoid its breath on our way down.”
“WAAAIIITTT!!!” Layla dynamically slammed her fist on the table and stood up.
“Ah,” Lizel called out to her attention.
However, Layla didn’t notice. Her mind was overloaded and she shouted from deep within her, “Falling down several kilometers to not only be greeted by an underground dragon but also have nowhere to escape its breath is too brutal!!!”
Her shout echoed throughout the guild, and everyone present in the building froze. Layla looked relieved now that she had gotten that off her chest. Breathing heavily, she finally realized the strange mood in the area in the hushed guild. Lizel looked around, smiled gently, and pointed to the desk. Layla followed his finger to the fallen silencer, no longer functioning after she slammed the desk before. Her face said, “Oh, I’ve done it now.”
Lizel smiled at her and put the strategy book away. “If the adventurers could do something about the fatal drop, the incoming breath, and the underground dragon, I’m sure they can clear it.”
He put the book away into his bag and took out a dragon scale in its place. It was as big as his face, evidence of how large the underground dragon was, and glistened like a jade jewel, indicating its high quality.
Lizel looked at the young man looking back at him in a daze and smiled brightly. “With this proof, will you believe me now?”
“Ah, yes.” The young man was using formal language now.
With a clearer head, he looked over Lizel again. Lizel was visually a refined man. No matter how the young man looked at him, Lizel wasn’t someone he should have started a fight with. He didn’t know why such a refined man was an adventurer, but Lizel exuded nobility that would make anyone feel the need to kneel before him. Furthermore, the one standing beside this man was none other than “One Slash.” Just as the rumors described him, he was entirely clad in black and possessed both a piercing gaze and a uniquely-shaped longsword. Gil presently had no interest in the young man, but if he did, the young man was sure to lose his life.
In contrast to the young man turning paler, everyone else looked at Lizel with more respect. Yet, unconcerned with all this happening, Lizel presented the scale to Layla. She delicately accepted it as if it would crumble at any moment.
She looked up at the smiling Lizel who said, “I will submit this as proof just in case. I’m sure there’ll be people who will doubt the claim.”
“Huh? But based on the dragon’s size and color, you could easily get more than ten gold for this?!”
“Since the dragon was so big, I managed to grab many of them, so it’s fine.” Lizel said and added, “Well, Gil did.”
In reality, Lizel attempted to help before the dragon disintegrated into mana, but he wasn’t able to do anything. Its scales were tightly packed together like armor, not allowing any space to even stick a finger in between. On the other side, Gil easily snapped and tore off the scales, meaning Lizel merely watched from the side until the end. Once the dragon disintegrated, a magic circle appeared, returning them to the room with the altar. However, Lizel laughed and couldn’t believe that the “one-way” direction the circle worked went this way.
“Still, if one scale is ten gold, then defeating one dragon and obtaining an abundance of scales would be an effective way to earn money, yes?” Lizel asked.
“But it’s boring fightin’ the same thing over and over again,” Gil commented.
“Oh, is that the issue?” Lizel asked, puzzled, and Gil nodded.
Watching these two, everyone else wondered with shaking heads and serious looks why the two were discussing such a topic. It was true that far from being a big success, such a feat would be a monumental success for an adventurer. To fight an underground dragon in a sealed room would require as a bare minimum a party of six S-rank adventurers. In the first place, based on the size of the scale Lizel had presented, the enemy must be fairly massive. Therefore, it was still likely that such a party could be completely annihilated. This was also ignoring the possibility of them dying from the high fall before even reaching the enemy. They could barely win the fight if they had the perfect tools and strategy planned, but everything would be for naught if they died from an incoming breath on their way down.
So who exactly were these two to have succeeded without any injury on their first, blind attempt? That was exactly why they could only pity the young man who tried to pick a fight with them. No one would have ever thought that the rank of these two men’s party was D. In actuality, Layla had her eyes rolled back at knowing Lizel was E-rank when she had accepted his card to confirm the map update. The whites of her eyes were still showing when she returned Lizel his guild card, but as expected, he was baffled at this happening to him for the first time. “Um, are you okay?”
“—Yes!” With a flinch, her pupils returned to her eyes and Layla bobbed her head. She added, “Um, I think you are now eligible to raise your rank!”
“But I just raised my rank recently. It hasn’t even been two months since I became an adventurer. I believe E-rank still suits me.”
“B-but! Well, I feel like you wouldn’t even complain if you were caught in a scam in the future!”
“Of course not. Ah ha ha,” Lizel laughed, still unaware of the surrounding mood.
The adventurers who heard that Lizel was E-rank all had their eyes rolled back. The adventurers who recently joined the guild were shocked at what they were witnessing.
“Besides, if I increased my rank here, that child would surely pout,” Lizel commented.
“Eh?” Layla was confused.
Lizel was referring to Studd in his previous comment. In the past when Studd appeared to be busy, Lizel headed over to interact with a bored guild employee who was nodding off, but an expressionless Studd kicked his coworker off his chair and sat in his place as if nothing had happened. By the way, the fallen employee didn’t know what just happened, but he willingly yielded. It wasn’t hard for Lizel to imagine Studd expressing his dissatisfaction through his expressionless face if he learned that Lizel had spoken to another guild employee. Still, Lizel needed to talk to at least one since the information about a labyrinth in Marcade should be handled by the Marcade guild branch.
After saying, “It’s nothing. In any case, thank you very much,” and turning around to exit, Lizel suddenly stopped. Surely seeing all the adventurers around him with their eyes rolled back was horrific enough to cause that reaction. Gil sighed and pushed Lizel along. He concluded that once Lizel had left, everyone else would return to normal. Additionally, Layla finally realized the disaster happening around her and screamed, “Hgaaah!” The two heard her from behind as they escaped the guild.
“But I guess I should raise my rank soon,” Lizel muttered after walking away from the guild.
Gil was honestly taken aback by this and asked in return, “Hah?”
Just like what he said before, Lizel was neither a man greedy to rise in the ranks nor was he a man who cared about how others viewed him. Gil looked down at Lizel as if asking, “What’s this all of a sudden?”
Lizel looked up at him and said after some thought, “Wouldn’t it look bad for you if your party member was ranked E?”
“I don’t care ‘bout that.”
“I don’t mind at all what they say about me, but it’ll be a problem if people question your accomplishments because of me.”
“Idiot.” Gil flatly cut through Lizel’s concern and was astonished from the bottom of his heart.
Just like Lizel, Gil also didn’t place any value in the opinions of others. He had become an adventurer because of a simple-minded desire to be strong. As long as he could continue to cut down monsters and earn some money through it, he was fine. Even if people viewed him negatively or if it was because of Lizel, he didn’t care at all.
“Whether you’re an S-rank or an F-rank, a king or a criminal, it doesn’t matter to me. I’ll still be here.”
“Well, I wouldn’t want to be one of those (a criminal),” Lizel answered frankly and smiled.
Someone whom you could trust to never betray you no matter what happens was important and not someone you could find just by searching for one.
“Then let’s eat breakfast and finish up our sightseeing trip as we head to Judge’s home.” Lizel continued to walk ahead, unchanged.
Gil agreed, “Aye,” and took a peek behind them. Several adventurers were looking at them immediately after hearing the conversation they just had at the guild. There were some hostile gazes among them, but they were probably directed at the dragon scales in Lizel’s possession. They apparently thought that they would have an easier time manipulating Lizel than Gil. Gil mocked their crude plan and the corner of his mouth slowly raised. What could these people possibly do to someone even he couldn’t control no matter what means he had at his disposal? He casually placed his hand on top of his sword and glanced in the direction of those hostile gazes. This was to inform them that he could sense them.
“I wonder if the waterproofing of all the posters around here was done with magic.”
“Probably,” Gil responded, not really paying attention to Lizel’s question.
As Gil narrowed his eyes, the group who thought about targeting Lizel when he was alone froze in place. Their bodies spontaneously broke out into full-on cold sweat, sensing their life to be in danger. However, they couldn’t run away, as if their bodies were fixed in place. The moment they realized that murderous intent was being directed at them, their bodies had resigned to their fate to be killed and spontanteously began to tremble. The murderous intent was growing sharper. Just as the group was about to faint, a gentle voice reached their ears, clearing the air.
“Gil.”
With that one word, the murderous intent disappeared. Lizel turned around, surprised that Gil was several steps behind him. But then he looked farther past Gil. The trembling men, somehow managing to still be standing, were captivated by the perfectly gentle gaze. The men watched in a daze the moment the man’s perfect index finger covered his smiling lips.
“It’s our precious sightseeing trip, so please let us enjoy it in peace.”
Judging the men’s unconscious act of nodding as their consent, Lizel was satisfied and nodded back. He took the astonished Gil and left the area. The men watched them leave and never did any attempt on Lizel ever cross their minds again. Whether this was because of Gil or Lizel, the men themselves didn’t know until the very end.
Lizel admired Gil as a carnivore for eating meat so early in the morning while Gil thought that Lizel would soon get hungry again with just a risotto. After their meal, the two checked some interesting stores as they made their way to Judge’s home.
Judge’s home belonged to a prominent merchant in Marcade. Moreover, this old merchant played a large part in Marcade’s growth after having started off as a trading business and making his way up. Judge’s grandfather used his connections and started a curio shop in Parteda. After obtaining success with that venture, he was no longer just a simple trader.
The place Judge was currently staying at was a store on a street lined with Marcade’s famous businesses. The actual residence was in a place that was a bit more convenient for transporting goods, but Judge’s grandfather was situated in this location and this was certainly the address Judge had given them. It was probably correct in calling this a larger version of Judge’s curio shop in Parteda. In contrast to the scope of his place in Parteda where Judge could manage everything by himself, this place employed several people. Upon entering the shop, several people called out, “Welcome!” It appeared that good customer service was ingrained into them.
“This is something, indeed… Ah, but in terms of items, I think Judge’s shop is of higher quality,” Lizel commented.
“Ain’t it because of the difference in customers?” Gil responded.
“That’s true.”
Judge’s shop was oriented towards adventurers so the quality and practicability were his focus. And because of that focus, Judge had customers from various occupations besides adventurers visit. But this store catered to tourists. Therefore, a great variety of goods at reasonable prices was their focus. While the physical sizes of the stores were completely different, Judge’s shop might have the same or even higher number of sales. And this probably made Judge the apple of his grandfather’s eye. As Lizel looked around to see whom among the busy employees he could bother, one of them caught sight of the pair. This elder man seemed to be the most senior of the employees.
He respectfully inspected the two before approaching. “Are you two perhaps Mr. Lizel and Mr. Gil?”
“Yes. Did you hear about us from Judge?” Lizel asked.
“Yes. He has informed me that once you have arrived, I should welcome and guide you inside. This way please.”
Following this employee, Lizel and Gil were taken farther inside the store. It appeared that the second floor was the storehouse and the third floor was the residence. As they climbed up a staircase that wouldn’t seem out of place in a noble’s mansion, Lizel looked up at the employee in front of him.
“I’m surprised you realized.”
“You two are exactly as Judge had described.”
“By the way, may I ask what he said?”
“A pair composed of a man with a gentle smile who looks like a nobleman and a strong man in jet-black clothes.” The employee said with a chuckle. He was probably familiar with Judge since long ago. He added in a pleasant tone, “It appears that Judge has been doing well,” making him sound like a parent.
Lizel looked down at Gil climbing the stairs behind him. Gil grumbled with an annoyed look that he always had these “jet-black clothes” and that he couldn’t help it that they were conspicuous. Lizel smiled and reassured Gil that he was still being complimented by being called “a strong man.”
“Besides, I think being completely clad in armor would be more conspicuous.”
“Shaddup.”
Unfortunately, Lizel’s attempt at reassurance was fruitless.
When they reached the top of the staircase, they were greeted by another door. It was likely that there was someone’s living space on the other side. When the employee knocked several times, the pitter-patter sounds of someone rushing over could be heard from the other side of the door. The door slightly creaked as it opened, and a flustered Judge appeared.
“Mr. Lizel, Mr. Gil, I’m sorry… I actually wanted to wait for you downstairs…!”
“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it,” Lizel reassured him.
“You’re our client so ya can act bossier, y’know?” Gil jested.
“I-I can’t do that…”
Judge’s appearance without his monocle meant that he was completely in his private mode. Also, his long, fluffy, chestnut-colored hair wasn’t tied together and was left to puff out, making him closely resemble the cowardly lion because of his size.
“Did we arrive too early?” Lizel asked.
“N-no! Well, Grandfather had prepared many things as gifts for me, and—” Judge said.
“Judge! Here, take this as well!” An old man’s voice could be heard.
“I-I already said that’s enough…!” Judge cried.
So the reason Judge had yet to prepare for departure was due to his grandfather’s meddling. The old man appeared from farther inside. He was holding some kind of magic tool and was calling for Judge. His gaze landed on Lizel before moving over and stopping on Gil. Gil turned his head gaze with an upset look on his face, but it was already too late.
“If it isn’t Gil! I heard from Judge, but you don’t look like you’ve changed at all.”
“So loud.”
The old man stomped over, causing Lizel to gradually have to bend his neck backward. Judge’s grandfather was quite tall. Even though he was old, his back remained as straight as can be. He might be as tall or even taller than Judge. His chestnut-colored hair was streaked with gray but had yet to thin. If Lizel didn’t know that this man was Judge’s grandfather, he would have believed that he was Judge’s father based on the man’s energetic and youthful air.
The old man’s eyes were fixed on the longsword hanging from Gil’s waist. “I know it’s ’cause I picked it out for you, but you’re still using it, right? While it’s blessed with protection against breakage, wear, and dulling, you still have to be on top of its care.”
“Of course I am,” Gil snapped back.
“All good then! And, this guy is…?”
“I’m Lizel. The reason for my visit is to apologize for taking up Judge’s time on his first day here.”
“Mhm, I thought ’bout giving you a piece of my mind, but you’ve gone and done apologized.”
Seeing his grandson Judge scramble over to protect Lizel, the old man cast a sharp look down at the smiling Lizel. If he deduced at this point that Lizel was someone who would harm Judge, then he would mercilessly pull them apart even if it meant making Judge cry. The old man’s heavy gaze was in contrast to his light tone, but Lizel acted composed before him. Attempting to lie in front of an excellent merchant would only lead to being found out.
Since there was no malice directed at him besides his connection to Judge, Lizel decided to act as he normally did. “Judge, we’ll be returning after lunch. Should we come back around that time?”
“No…! I talked about you two to Grandfather, and he said he wanted to talk to you at least once… So, would you like to eat lunch together with us?”
“It would be an honor.”
Judge broke out into a smile. Lizel smiled back and looked at Judge’s grandfather once again. Even if he chose to act like he normally would, it wasn’t easy to do, yet Lizel did it flawlessly. The old man smiled. He held out his hand and Lizel gripped it back. The old man’s hand was large, proportional to his body, so while Lizel’s certainly wasn’t small, his hand was completely encompassed.
“You’re bold, despite how you look. I’m Insigh. I heard you’ve been taking care of my grandson.”
“No, I’m the one who’s in his care. Judge’s shop has been very helpful to me.”
“Right. You’re an adventurer. You don’t look like one though.”
Lizel bitterly smiled at this blunt statement.
Judge shouted, “Grandfather!”
[Author’s note]: The first named female character is the energetic, go-getter girl, Layla (A teenager specializing in hand-to-hand combat). Incidentally, she thought nothing of the young man who fought with Lizel. She’s quite talkative. I don’t have any plans for her reappearance.
Towards the Sky 
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