Chapter 16: Conquest Festival V
The second day of the Conquest Festival. Including the raucous festivities of the night before I woke up, it was already the third day. The excitement was not dying down; if anything, it was intensifying, enveloping the entire town in a fervor. When I left the Guild earlier, even though it was still before noon, the streets were packed with people. Just looking at the crowd was enough to make me feel drained.
I sat in the Guild’s hall, lost in thought, wondering when they would arrive and what I should do for lunch.
“Row-san!”
I hadn’t noticed them approaching at all, perhaps because I was so spaced out.
“Hey, thanks for everything back then.”
Standing before me were the Tezoro Brothers—Kuroa, the cute, petite younger brother, and Kuroe, the tall, strikingly handsome older brother.
“No, thank you for your help. If you two, or rather, if the Old Capital (Bienetta) hadn’t been involved in this matter, it would have turned into a disaster. I truly appreciate it.”
Surviving that catastrophe without any casualties was nothing short of a miracle, and it would have been impossible without their intervention. In fact, without them, we would have lacked the necessary manpower to contain the rapidly multiplying Fog, likely leading to a collapse of our front lines and many casualties.
“Since you’ve come all the way to Bordaf, and it’s lunchtime, let me treat you to whatever you want. Just let me know if you have any requests.”
I invited the two of them out for a meal as a token of my gratitude.
The town where the Old Capital (Bienetta) was based was quite a distance from Bordaf, taking nearly a full day to reach without a riding dragon like the Eagle Dragon. Despite having their own festival going on back home, the two of them had come all the way to Bordaf just to meet me. Yet—
“Is this really okay?”
I handed them the skewered meat I received from the shopkeeper.
“Yeah, it’s fine. In fact, this is perfect. Right, Kuroa?”
“Yes! I’ve never been to such a big festival before, so I’ve always wanted to experience it someday…”
“Come on, don’t say that! You’re making me weak! Stop it!”
We strolled through the stalls, chatting freely. Kuroa, especially, was bouncing around, his eyes sparkling at everything he saw. The two of us watched him with fond smiles. Despite being seventeen or eighteen, Kuroa looked incredibly frail, likely due to his long illness. His delicate frame made him appear more like a twelve or thirteen-year-old.
“Hey, Row-san, what’s that?”
“That’s a kind of takoyaki.”
It was a knockoff version of takoyaki, made with something other than octopus, popularized by someone from my hometown.
“And what about this?”
“That’s frozen fruit. Oh, look, figs! These are really delicious, so let’s buy a bunch and eat them together later.”
We bought everything that caught our interest. Eating while walking was quite enjoyable, but Kuroa, with his small mouth, was munching away like a little animal, taking his time. It was impossible for him to finish everything he bought, so I stored most of it in my Magic Bag. We could find a place to sit and enjoy it later.
“Brother, Row-san, this is so much fun!”
Kuroa beamed with joy. Naturally, memories of the near-death Kuroa I had seen that day flooded back to me. Kuroe admonished his younger brother, “Hey, don’t wander off too far.”
───Why is it always just us?
He too lamented the misfortunes he and his brother faced, shedding tears. I could only empathize with those words. I had often wondered why I was the only one to suffer such misfortunes, countless times, over and over again.
But the two of them now didn’t give off any hint of the shadows I had seen that day. Watching the brothers, freed from their misfortunes, made me feel that my own painful days had some meaning. Perhaps it was a bit of an arrogant thought, one I could never voice aloud.
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Continuing with the same announcements as last time.
First, I’m sharing various updates and announcements on my recent notes. If you have a moment, please take a look!
Also, on November 19th, the first and second volumes of the paper version of the comic adaptation will be released simultaneously!
Additionally, the latest chapters of the comic adaptation are being updated on the Manga BANG app or the Manga BANG website! Chapter 12 (Part 2) will be updated next Wednesday! Thank you for your support!