Chapter 22: The Exiled Marquise Takes Responsibility 2
“You expect me to believe that?”
The village chief’s reaction was poor from the very beginning.
Erica’s explanation was concise and easy to understand, but that was precisely why it wasn’t good.
Telling someone to believe that a Rank 1 adventurer simply forgot to hold back and turned a swarm of over a hundred Bonbos entirely to ash was, admittedly, an unreasonable story.
Because she explained it clearly and concisely, the feeling of absurdity was only amplified.
Furthermore, Erica’s attire was also problematic.
Her outfit was quite ordinary.
Normally, you wouldn’t find an adventurer wearing a skirt without even any armor.
However, since we planned to acquire proper adventurer gear later, this time she had chosen to wear one of the plainer, less decorated outfits she had brought with her.
In other words, she looked mismatched: wearing clothes that seemed plain at first glance but, upon closer inspection, were well-made garments suitable for a young lady from a decent background, paired with a sword belt from which a Sword hung.
For me, who knows her true strength, I was confident this wouldn’t be a problem, but…
To someone who didn’t know her, she probably just looked like a town girl who was acting out in a bad way.
Incidentally, you can probably guess from the fact that when I first met Erica, she mistook me for her escort.
“As the one responsible for this village, there’s no way I can believe a story about a Rank 1 adventurer burning a swarm of Bonbos without a trace.”
The village chief, his square face tanned by the sun, said so with a troubled expression.
“Well, that’s how it goes, huh.”
I half expected this outcome, so my words were light.
While his inability to see Erica’s strength was unforgivable, his words were natural for someone responsible for the village.
“But Shin, if this continues, we will impose an unnecessary burden on the villagers.”
She didn’t go so far as to say, “Even though it’s my fault.”
She probably thought that saying it wouldn’t help since he didn’t believe her anyway, and it would only arouse further suspicion.
“Believing or not believing is the job of the person in charge, not ours.”
Right?
I asked the village chief with just my gaze.
The village chief ignored my question, but his eyes, which seemed full of a strong Sense of Responsibility, told the answer.
“However…”
mused the other person with eyes full of a strong Sense of Responsibility, seemingly lost in thought.
“However, making the person in charge believe us properly is our job, isn’t it?”
Her gaze seemed to ask, “That is what I believe,” but I immediately understood that nothing I said would change her mind.
There was no way that Erica would overlook someone suffering disadvantages due to her own mistake.
As I nodded to myself, thinking, Yep, this is Erica alright, the village chief spoke with exasperation.
“No matter what you say, I have no intention of changing my judgment.”
“Rest assured.”
Erica smiled.
“I am an adventurer, after all. Let us follow their methods for persuasion as well.”
Erica said this with eyes lit by a strong light—the kind that had once scattered the numerous sons of nobles who tried to approach the Maiden of Light, a light some might even find impertinent.
*
There’s no such thing as the “adventurer’s methods” Erica mentioned.
She said it with such confidence that even I almost thought it might be real.
Naturally, the village chief simply believed her.
Though, it was probably also because believing her wouldn’t cause him any disadvantage.
“It’s cramped.”
“Yes, it is cramped, isn’t it?”
Erica dutifully replied to my Soliloquy.
We were in a dilapidated hut on the edge of the village.
Also known as a Tool Shed.
After that, Erica had negotiated with the village chief.
She asked if they could let us stay in the village for a few days, until they felt reassured.
I thought they might not take kindly to outsiders staying in the village, but…
Perhaps because it was a satellite village to a large town, they seemed accustomed to outsiders, and since there was no particular disadvantage to the village, the request itself was accepted.
This dilapidated hut was the place Erica had negotiated for us to stay in for a few days.
Well, it’s not like a farming village would have spare vacant houses or inns lying around, so we should probably be grateful that the floor is wooden planks instead of dirt.
We patrolled the village outskirts until evening, partly to familiarize ourselves with the geography, then spread the blankets lent to us through the village chief’s kindness on the floor and went to sleep.
How pathetic is it that my heart doesn’t pound even though I’m sleeping in the same room as the person I like?
I questioned myself for having grown completely used to it after sharing a room throughout our recent travels.
As I was thinking about our plans for tomorrow, Erica’s voice called out from the darkness.
“I apologize, Shin.”
Precisely because it was dark, the closeness of her voice startled me.
“For what?”
I tried to keep my voice calm so she wouldn’t notice my surprise as I asked back.
I had a vague feeling that Erica wanted to say something from across the darkness, so the fact that she started with an apology, and that we both seemed to assume the other wasn’t asleep, struck me as strangely amusing.
“Because of my selfishness, I am imposing inconveniences upon you as well.”
“Well… yeah, that’s certainly true.”
For a moment, I thought about denying it, but facts are facts.
I wondered if saying something kind here would make me popular, but the adventurer part of me got in the way.
I had a feeling Erica gave a wry smile, perhaps sensing my momentary hesitation.
“But I don’t dislike it, you know.”
I pushed thoughts of tomorrow’s plans to the back of my mind for the moment and said.
“That strong Sense of Responsibility of yours, I don’t dislike it.”
I felt a little pathetic for hedging by saying “don’t dislike” instead of “like.”
Perhaps to cover up my pathetic feeling, I suddenly recalled something.
“Besides, I’m used to this sort of thing because of my Female Disciple.”
In fact, compared to the trouble she causes, this is utterly trivial.
My Female Disciple, Elza, is honestly… something else, so the trouble she brings is also… something else.
“That would be ‘Elza the Impaler’-san, correct? I would love to hear more about her sometime.”
Hearing Erica say it so casually, I couldn’t help but let out a wry chuckle.
“Did you just make fun of me?”
Her mock anger felt pleasant.
“I’m just thinking that ignorance is bliss.”
Even in the darkness, I could tell Erica was smiling.
“That makes me want to know even more.”
Sometime soon.
Making that promise, I drifted off to sleep.