{Chapter 40} The Broke Border Knight
"Hehe... It's been a long time since I last went shopping with Anna."
Meeting Helga and Atala in front of the inn was, of course, a given.
After briefly mentioning the "Blood Rage" incident to Helga and seeing her react just as hesitantly as in the simulation, Anna naturally invited both of them to go shopping, just like in the simulation.
"Although it’s true that it’s been a while since we last went shopping together... or rather, it’s been years since we last saw each other, you don’t have to laugh like that, Helga,"
Anna sighed, looking at Helga, who was practically clinging to her, completely disregarding the stares of people on the street.
"So, Anna and Helga have been friends since childhood?" Atala, standing on Anna's other side, asked curiously.
"Yeah, Helga and I have been friends since we were little," Anna replied, recalling the time when her parents took her to visit the Bartham family, where she first met Helga.
"Friends since such a young age..."
"Later, when my family fell into hard times, we moved here. Although my father kept in touch with the Bartham family through letters, after my parents passed away, I lost contact because I didn’t know their address."
"So that’s what happened! I thought you had completely forgotten about me, not sending me any letters for two or three years,"
"No, no, how could I ever forget you..." Anna retorted.
"Hehe, if Anna had forgotten me, I would have been really sad," Helga said smugly.
"If you hadn’t recognized me when we met again, I think my blood would have raged all over again."
"...Your Blood Rage isn’t supposed to be used in situations like that!"
Ever since Helga had been by her side, Anna felt like she had been sighing a lot more.
Helga’s personality hadn’t changed at all, she said whatever was on her mind, loved who she loved, and hated who she hated, without any pretense.
That’s why Anna felt somewhat overwhelmed by Helga’s blatant affection.
‘I’m sorry, simulation-me, how did you manage to handle Helga?’
Seemingly sensing Anna’s helplessness, Atala thoughtfully changed the subject:
"Speaking of Blood Rage... Helga, do you have Lunarian ancestry?"
"...Well, Atala, you’re an elf, so it’s natural you wouldn’t know," Helga said, surprised that someone wouldn’t know about this, but then she remembered Atala’s background and understood.
"The county with the most Lunareth people is the Bartham family’s territory, and the Bartham family is the largest Lunareth noble family in the kingdom," Anna explained, recalling the kingdom’s history.
"Lunareth people... Ah, you mean the Lunarian who live on the mainland?" Atala immediately understood. "So Helga is really a Lunarian?"
Then Atala carefully examined Helga:
"But you don't look like a Lunarian at all. Your skin isn’t the blue-white color of Lunarian, and your hair isn’t pure gold either... though your eyes are the unique light gray of Lunarians."
Indeed, with her wheat-colored skin and black hair, Helga didn’t look much like someone with Lunarian ancestry.
"The Lunareth people have been settled in the kingdom for at least a few hundred years. It’s normal for them to intermarry with other races."
"As long as they’re not those purist lunatics, no one in the kingdom cares about bloodline purity," Anna said, her dislike for purists evident, especially after her encounter with Louise’s purist maid.
"Alright, alright! Aren’t we here to shop? Why are we talking about such boring topics?"
Helga, on the other hand, was getting impatient with the conversation. "Anna, have you eaten yet?"
"No, why?"
"Perfect, I haven’t had royal cuisine in a long time..." Helga pointed directly at a restaurant that was quite familiar to both Atala and Anna. "Shall we eat there?"
"...You’d better ask Atala about that."
...
A few minutes later, seated in a private room under the amused gaze of the restaurant’s owner, Helga chuckled awkwardly:
"So this is where you work, Atala? Why didn’t you say so earlier? I feel a bit embarrassed now."
"At least there’s an employee discount, which is nice," Anna said, not particularly bothered. "Besides, you just made a fool of yourself, no big deal."
"What do you mean, ‘just made a fool of myself’? Anna, that’s too harsh!"
When they entered the restaurant, Helga had immediately acted like a big spender, slapping her chest and saying they could order whatever they wanted.
Then she saw the owner, Anna, and Atala chatting together.
"Helga did look quite silly earlier," Atala added gently, delivering another blow.
"Wow! Are you even my friends?"
Helga "sulked" as she plopped down on a chair, then looked at Atala.
"But Atala, you work here?"
"Yeah, Anna helped me find this job,"
"Atala was so poor she could barely afford to stay at an inn. Since she was just traveling through, I recommended she take a temporary job here."
"Ah, temporary jobs can’t compare to being an adventurer," Helga waved her hand dismissively.
"Atala, since you’re an elf, you must be really good at fighting, right?"
Humans often said that elves were excellent individual fighters, but that didn’t stop the black market from capturing elf slaves.
"...I’m somewhat skilled with a bow."
"..." Anna remained silent, her mind filled with the simulation’s description of being blown up by explosive arrows.
"Being good with a bow is enough! Even as an unranked adventurer, you’d earn more catching cats or dogs than working here part-time," Helga said, oblivious to Anna’s inner turmoil.
"That’s not necessarily true. The owner pays Atala quite well..."
"How well? More than a gold coin a month?"
"...A gold coin? You’re underestimating me," the owner chimed in as she brought in three glasses of lemonade.
"As long as Atala works here, whether it’s a full month or not, I’ll give her two gold coins when she leaves."
"Honestly, even I feel like quitting being a knight and working here as a waitress,"
If it weren’t for that month in the simulation where no one in town would hire her, Anna might have actually quit her job by now.
Besides, she now had a few hundred gold coins from Louise, making her a bit of a wealthy woman.
...
But spending Louise’s money to eat out with Helga and Atala...
Was that really okay?