Back to the Start – Part 05
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Translator: Kell
After taking off my clothes, I poured cold water over my head. The blood that had almost completely dried dissolved and streamed across the floor, as if I were bleeding.
“You look like a hairy bubble monster, Mercenary.”
As I was rinsing off all the blood from my body with cold water, Zero appeared with a familiar line. Her hair was wet. She must have been in the hot bath until moments ago. She smelled of fine-quality soap, unlike the one I was using.
“This reminds me of the first inn we stayed in,” she said. “Shall I help you wash your back like last time?”
“Nah. It’s cold water this time.”
“I could easily turn cold water boiling hot if I wanted to.”
“You’re gonna burn me! Anyway, I thought you were gonna clean the little squirt.”
“I did. Thoroughly, at that. I was able to get the ideal texture. I would have loved to caress her a little longer, but she crawled into the bed like a mole.”
“Poor girl.”
“Indeed. I missed the opportunity to savor that wonderful texture.”
“Not you, the pipsqueak.”
Zero pursed her lips. “I see you are taking her side again. So you do prefer young women?”
By now I knew better than to take her nonsense seriously.
One year, huh?
It was too short a time for our relationship to be called long-term. On the other hand, we didn’t exactly just met either.
“So, what do you want?” I said. “Did you come here to peep as usual?” I rinsed the suds off my body. There was no longer any blood or dirt in the water.
“That is simply rude. You would have trouble drying your fur without me. I think you should be more welcoming to this beautiful woman who has come to help you bathe.” Zero snapped her fingers.
My wet fur dried in an instant. “Thanks.”
“You are welcome.” She chuckled. “How about we take this opportunity to comb you as well?”
“No thanks. I’m just gonna get dirty again anyway. I mean, seriously, what are you doing here?”
“If I said ‘to nurture my love for you,’ you probably will not believe me. If you want a reason, I gathered some information about the explosion that the priest was talking about.”
“Really, now? Did you find something interesting?”
“Hardly. Apparently, the mastermind behind the explosion was a nobleman from a small country bordering the kingdom of Wenias. He is a devout follower of the Church. He hired bandits to collapse the tunnel, blocking the road that led to the abominable Magical State. However, only a few stores were destroyed, and the culprits were arrested. Wenias strongly condemned the act, but the nobleman said that he was being falsely accused, and even called the kingdom a despicable liar.”
I frowned. “Yeah… That sounds like a yikes.”
“Indeed. Incidentally, the man who led us here was at the scene of the bombing. He was hired after he protected the owners’ daughter. Apparently, he thought he would be perfectly fine, but being a normal human, he ended up in a critical condition for ten days. He laughed, saying he did not expect a human body to be so fragile.”
“The harm to the civilian population has dramatically worsened Wenias’ relations with the surrounding nations,” she continued. “There is a growing distrust of the Church in Wenias, and rumors are circulating in neighboring countries that Wenias is suspicious. Remember the signboard about Mage escorts?”
“Yeah. Escorts to protect travelers from Ebl Boars.”
“Well, the Mage are there to protect the travelers from hired bandits, not Ebl Boars. There are plenty of Church followers who are willing to pay a bounty if you attack a traveler on the road leading to Wenias.”
“Now that’s just horrific.”
“A yikes?” Zero laughed, mimicking my tone.
There were four tunnels that led to Wenias—on the north, south, east and west. Since the kingdom was surrounded by other countries, you must pass through the neighboring nations first to enter Wenias.
Given the current situation, Church followers probably considered everyone entering Wenias as shady people.
Those who couldn’t stand the idea of aspiring Mages or Beastfallen looking to be a servant passing through their own country would start thinking about destroying the tunnels and roads leading to the kingdom.
“They know they’d be the ones in trouble if their own nation’s merchants couldn’t go to Wenias,” I said. “They must really hate the kingdom.”
“They are past salvation. Hatred is one of the most difficult human emotions to control. There must be a few things you despise too.”
“You mean besides the homicidal priest?”
Zero laughed.
“Hmm? What’s going on outside?”
Sensing a commotion and a disturbing atmosphere, I strained my ears, focusing my attention outside the inn.
It sounded like people were searching for someone. They must be furious, since I could hear their shouts all the way here.
“This does not look good,” Zero said. “As unfortunate as it is, I suggest you put on your clothes.”
“What do you mean by that?!”
“I can explain if you want me to—”
I dismissed Zero’s nonsense with a wave of my arm and put on my clothes. Washing myself seemed pointless when I still ended up wearing the same bloody clothes, but I had no time to wash them right now.
While I was putting on my gear, the noise came closer and closer. Eventually, the ruckus reached the inn.
“We’re looking for the one who killed an Ebl Boar!” one shouted. “We have received a report that a Beastfallen covered in blood entered this inn! Anyone who fits the description must come forward immediately!”
Zero and I exchanged glances. Aw, shit.
“If my ears did not deceive me, I believe they are referring to you,” Zero said.
“If my eyes didn’t deceive me back then, I was the one who killed the Ebl Boar.”
The sign mentioned security Ebl Boars. If they were killed, it would definitely cause an uproar.
“Sounds like they found out too soon, though.”
“Maybe they have a system in place to check their numbers. What should we do? Run?”
“Go back to the room and tell the little squirt and the priest the situation? Unfortunately, I don’t think we’ll have time for that.”
Loud footsteps were coming towards us. I could hear the manservant calling them to stop.
Zero, who was standing near the door, snuck a quick glance down the hallway. “Oh, now this is interesting,” she said, her face bright. She then came beside me. “Feast your eyes for something unusual.”
I’d already felt it since moments ago. This smell. This presence.
Three people barged into the washroom. Or should I say, three animals?
“Wow. They’re all Beastfallen,” I remarked.
“By the looks of it,” Zero said, her eyes glittering, “we have a cow, a dog, and is that a lizard? I have some reservations about calling a reptile a beast warrior.”
After elbowing Zero a little, I folded my hands behind my head in a show of non-resistance. Zero followed my lead, saying, “Are you fine with this?”
The three Beastfallen looked disappointed.
“What do we do again if they don’t resist?”
“Tie them up, I guess?”
Amateurs. My guess would be that the kingdom began hiring Beastfallen as guards, but it was still in the testing stages, and they hadn’t been fully trained yet.
Zero cleared her throat, drawing their attention. “Perhaps this will make things easier,” she said. “We resisted, and you subdued us. Now you are restraining us. What do you do next?”
“Questioning, of course,” one of them replied. “Like why’d you kill the Ebl Boar, or how big is your gang.”
“So we should take them to the captain.”
“Yeah. let’s do that. ”
Yeah, I don’t know about hiring these guys for security. Letting out a sigh, I glanced at their backs, down the hallway.
The priest was standing there, masking his presence. He could cut off their heads in a split-second if he wanted to. Lily was also at his feet, ready to set a swarm of rats at any moment.
I quietly shook my head. We were in Wenias, where Albus was a bigshot. It would be better to wait for her intervention than create chaos now and produce casualties.
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