TLed by NolepGuy
Chapter 211
The potion’s effect lasted precariously until they disappeared.
A narrow margin of time—if they had stayed here just 10 minutes longer, we would have been discovered. If a demonic beast had appeared in the middle, or if we had engaged in trivial chatter, we would undoubtedly have clashed with them.
‘That was close.’
Suppressing my pounding heart from the relief of being alive, I looked at the Young Lady, who was staring blankly.
“Young Lady?”
“Hmm?”
The Young Lady was casually chewing on jerky. As she chewed with a calm demeanor, she looked at me with a puzzled expression, as if wondering why I was so startled.
Was it because she was oblivious?
Or was it because her body couldn’t sense mana? Whatever the reason, I was relieved that the Young Lady wasn’t alarmed.
The Apostle was dangerous just by existing. I thought that even just seeing him would have startled the Young Lady.
The Apostle was a being referred to as the Pillar of Heretics.
Practically a catastrophe.
Possessing overwhelming power.
A being with an extraordinarily self-willed personality.
If it were someone I could handle, it wouldn’t be a problem, but with my current self, the best I could do was bite the Apostle’s arm.
Moreover, protecting the Young Lady while achieving victory was almost impossible, which is why I seemed to have been more tense than usual.
I sighed in relief and observed the Young Lady’s condition.
“Hngya.”
“…”
“Ugh… It’s tough.”
The Young Lady, biting into a large piece of jerky, spoke to me in a muffled voice.
“Ricardo.”
“Yes.”
“Were those people earlier bad people?”
“Pardon?”
Was it the Villainess’s hunch?
At the Young Lady’s question, which seemed as if one kind recognized another, I nodded slightly and answered.
“That’s correct, but… how did you know?”
“They were just ugly.”
“Pardon?”
“Because they’re ugly, they’re bad people.”
The Young Lady nodded with a racially insensitive remark. It was the kind of statement that would have made Green Head clench his fist and charge, and a small chuckle escaped my lips.
Judging others by their appearance is wrong, but sometimes, the Young Lady’s peculiar biases seemed surprisingly accurate. Thinking this, I brushed off the heavy atmosphere and patted the Young Lady’s head.
“You’re quite sharp.”
“Hmm. I’m pretty smart.”
As expected, the Young Lady was far from modest.
I stared blankly at the spot where they had disappeared.
Thinking about the back figure of The Man, whose difference in strength I couldn’t gauge, I looked up heavily.
‘An Apostle… This is going to be troublesome.’
Honestly, I couldn’t handle it.
The Apostle was indeed terrifying, but there was an even bigger problem lurking beneath. A problem that twisted the axis of the novel.
The Apostle named Olaf was the villain who killed Yuria’s Father. Because of this, Yuria awakened the Power of the Saintess and gained great strength.
If compared to a car, it was like a tire; the Father’s death was an essential cogwheel for Yuria’s awakening.
There was no substitute for the shock of losing a Precious Person.
If I were to disrupt such a significant axis simply out of pity, I honestly wasn’t confident I could handle the consequences of what would collapse afterward.
If only I hadn’t seen the Apostle today, I could have forgotten about it….
In the novel, Yuria depended heavily on her Father. It was the same in reality.
Whenever she had the chance, she would talk about her Father in the North or hold onto the letters from him tightly, reading them whenever she was struggling.
That’s why she was deeply saddened by her Father’s death in the novel. She learned of his death through a single letter that came from the North.
Yuria grieved to an indescribable degree. She struggled so much that she even developed mutism and abandoned her respect for life, succumbing to killing intent.
That’s why I kept thinking about it more.
Should I interfere unnecessarily?
Or should I leave it to the flow of the original work and continue living a peaceful life?
I kept deliberating.
While I was lost in thought, the Young Lady’s voice reached my ears.
“Ricardo.”
The Young Lady, gazing at the White Snow, carefully tugged at my collar.
Her pitiful gaze, as if asking if we could leave now, made me shake off the thoughts lingering in my mind and show a Small Smile.
“I need to go to the bathroom….”
“The bathroom, you say?”
“Hmm.”
She was truly an unbothered person.
*
After a brief outing, I returned to the inn, escorted the Young Lady to her room, and went down to the first floor.
Because I wanted to drink.
As my thoughts grew more complicated, I felt like I was forgetting the purpose of this travel, which made me want to drink. I thought that if I could put aside my complicated thoughts, I might be able to enjoy the travel.
A journey that was supposed to be relaxing now seemed filled with unease.
“Sigh…”
As if he had been waiting for me to come down to the first floor, James greeted me with a bright smile, showing me a beer glass filled with cold beer as he shrugged his shoulders.
“Ah, it’s a relief you’re alive.”
He made a ridiculous joke as he spoke.
Shaking off my heavy mood, I smiled at James’s jest.
“Why say such hurtful things?”
“Haha…! At a time like this! And to climb a snowy mountain just to watch animals mate, no one does that.”
“It was entertaining, though.”
With a Small Smile, I sat across from James and let out a sigh.
Because I wanted to shake off my worries for now.
Why they were here.
Whether I should stop them or neglect them.
I wanted to set aside those complicated thoughts for a moment.
With a Bright Smile, James raised his beer glass and offered a Small Toast, saying “Cheers.”
The amber-colored beer in the clinking beer glasses looked especially appetizing today.
With a Small Smile, I clinked my glass against James’s and murmured, “Cheers.”
“Thank you.”
“For what? I’ll add this to your tab.”
“…”
“Haha! Just kidding!”
James chuckled heartily and looked at me with an excited expression.
“So, how was it?”
“What do you mean?”
“The North. Isn’t it truly beautiful?”
What the Northern Mountain Range was like.
Whether the breathtaking scenery surprised me.
Whether the demonic beasts in the North were stronger than those in the capital city—James’s curious eyes were fixed on me.
With a Small Smile at James’s enthusiastic gaze, I threw out a joke. I said something vague, like it was more fun than I expected.
“I think it was more enjoyable than I anticipated.”
“How low must your expectations have been….”
At James’s disgruntled expression as he clicked his tongue, I gave a Small Smile and raised my glass.
“Haha! Just kidding. Thanks to the Proprietress, I had a really great time.”
“Then that’s a relief. I was surprised because I thought you meant you had no expectations but still found it enjoyable.”
“Haha…”
Behind my Bitter Smile, a small worry lingered.
I wondered if it would be okay to spare at least one Innkeeper.
The Novel did not contain detailed information about the Cultists’ Raid. It merely mentioned that people in The North died due to the Apostle’s Raid, without explaining their purpose for committing such acts.
“Guest…?”
While I was lost in deep thought, James’s Voice reached me. With a warm impression, James was looking at me with concern-filled eyes.
“Did something happen? Your expression seems quite dark.”
“No. Nothing happened.”
“Is that so…? Hmm.”
James continued to stare at my shadowed face. His expression seemed to wonder what kind of worries a young man like me could have.
Clearing his throat, James opened his mouth.
“Guest, do you know what ability I gained after running an Inn for over 10 years?”
“A hunch?”
“That’s correct. From the first impression of a Guest walking through the front door, I can instantly tell whether they’re a Troublesome Guest or a generous, high-class customer who tips well.”
“…I don’t think that’s it.”
“…”
James clamped his mouth shut as he looked at my face.
“Of course! Sometimes I might be wrong, but that’s how it is. Anyway, I’ve served many Guests, and people who keep their worries bottled up inside always end up causing trouble. Like creating Havoc while drunk or breaking a Window, oh dear…”
With a hearty laugh, James quietly spoke.
“Sometimes, you need to share what’s on your mind with others or even gossip about someone to relieve stress.”
At James’s cheerful advice, I let out a Small Smile as I emptied my Liquor Glass.
‘If only my worries were that simple.’
Would he understand?
That my worries involved weighing someone’s life on a scale…
Lowering my head, I asked James.
“You said you have a daughter, right?”
“Yes. Want to see a Photograph? She’s really pretty.”
“No, thank you. My Young Lady is prettier.”
“Haha…”
James clenched his Fist and looked at me. At the sight of an Overprotective Father showing his first sign of hostility, I let out a Small Smile and shook my head.
“How much does the Proprietress miss her daughter?”
“I miss her every day.”
“What if… you could never see your daughter again?”
“What? Why do you ask that all of a sudden?”
“I’m just curious.”
“Could it be… are you eloping with the woman on the second floor?”
“…No.”
“Really?”
“I said no.”
In a slightly Low Voice, I spoke to James.
“It’s not about that. I asked because I have something I must do. Something that feels like betraying familial bonds.”
“…”
James seemed to be imagining a dramatic love story. A Butler and a Noble’s forbidden love.
A man defying his Household’s opposition to claim love, and a couple choosing to elope despite the Father’s disapproval.
As James envisioned a youthful love story, he rubbed his nose with his finger.
“A daughter… She’s someone so dear that even if she asked for all my internal organs, I’d gladly give them to her.”
“If I could never see her again… well.”
“It would be incredibly heartbreaking.”
I darkened at James’s words.
Unaware of my feelings, James continued to talk. He spoke with a Small Smile about how great a Father’s love is, how far he would go for his daughter.
“…But if my daughter were happy, I think that would be enough for me. Even if I could never see her again, as long as she’s living well somewhere, what more could I ask for?”
“…Is that so.”
“Yes, that’s what any Parent would think.”
My thoughts grew more complicated.
Thinking that Yuria’s Father might feel the same way made things a bit more tangled.
Which side should I choose?
Yuria’s Awakening.
Or a harmonious family.
Whichever I chose, the guilt would never leave me. The weight of Emotions and the responsibility stemming from them would remain a heavy burden.
Honestly, the answer had already been decided.
Facing an Apostle, who even a Sword Master would struggle against, was beyond me. With so much to protect and so many responsibilities, I didn’t want to sacrifice my life for a small loss.
But.
Seeing the excited face of a Middle-Aged Man rambling about his daughter made my selfish thoughts disappear.
Honestly, I wanted to run away.
Looking at James’s face, I nodded.
“I understand. That was quite helpful.”
James let out a Small Smile and patted my shoulder.
“Guest.”
“Yes?”
“Sigh… Normally, I wouldn’t share this kind of thing, but you seem to be struggling so much that I’ll make an exception.”
“Yes?”
James pulled out a Small Paper from his pocket and held it in front of me.
[Warm Northern Hot Springs.
└Mixed Bathing available.]
With a sly grin, James whispered in my ear.
“It’s a bit pricey, but it’s a famous attraction in The North.”
Shaking One’s Head at James’s sly expression, I accepted the ticket he handed me.
“Really, you’re such a sly Innkeeper.”
“This is just marketing.”
“Ha… Seriously.”
Really, I don’t know anymore.
*
Three days later.
Late at night, after Ricardo had left for the Hot Spring.
-Knock. Knock. Knock.
The sound of knocking echoed through James’s Inn.