Chapter 365
Chapter 365: Freedom and Duty
“Thank you so much, Hero! Thank you, Mage!”
“Thank you very much!!”
After the lake pirate attack, the passenger ship arrived at the next city-state as scheduled, and we disembarked while being seen off by the captain and crew.
Since I was on holiday as the Hero, they had already given me a significantly discounted fare, but it became completely free as a token of gratitude for fending off the pirates. It was mainly Leila who took them down, while the sailors dealt the finishing blows to those trying to swim away. I was merely standing watch, making sure no magical beasts were drawn by the scent of blood.
“Ah, I’m glad I was able to be here at such a dangerous time.”
“…………”
I waved lightly in response, while Leila simply smiled in silence.
Leila had been quite impressive, casting spells left and right during the attack, but ever since, her mood has been absolutely terrible. She didn’t show it on the surface—her demeanor toward me was the same as always—but I could sense the displeasure emanating from her.
‘It’s probably because you didn’t let her rest at all after the attack.’
No way! I had been relaxing! My body was definitely well-rested.
‘…True, you may not have moved much. But the fun she was having fishing got ruined. Her glare has gotten worse too.’
Come on… you wouldn’t expect such declining security, right?
Afterward, many of the pirates were taken care of by the sailors, but a few were captured alive to extract information about their hideout and base.
It turned out that these guys had no hideouts or home villages and had been randomly attacking without any plans. They were wandering aimlessly with a longship, attacking smaller boats, using the stolen money to party in random towns, then running away to launch more raids… and so it went.
I expected nothing less from the sort of worthless beings who would become lake pirates—they clearly had no planning or foresight—but even so, their randomness was extreme. It’s a miracle they’ve survived until today… At the same time, I felt a twinge of frustration at the fact that even such pathetic pirates could roam free without being hunted down.
If only the Holy Church had the luxury to place guards on smaller boats…
“Hey, hurry up and walk!”
“You filthy lake pirates!”
As I was lost in thought, several surviving lake pirates were pushed off the ship. They would probably be tried and sentenced to death.
‘I think there was a promise that they would be spared if they gave up information?’
Ah, that’s right.
We’re not killing them right there; we’ve spared their lives, haven’t we?
But after handing them over to the soldiers, what sentence they receive in court and what punishment they will face is beyond our discretion…
‘Heheheh, thinking about their despair is absolutely delightful.’
Honestly, I wasn’t that interested…
“…Hmph.”
Leila snorted at the nearly naked pirates being led away, their hands and necks tied with ropes. Yep, she was definitely in a bad mood.
“…Well then, Alex! We’ve finally arrived!”
Just as I was thinking that, she smiled brightly and looked at me.
“Let’s go! This time, let’s take it slow!”
She linked her arm with mine and started pulling me toward the inn.
“…Ah, yeah.”
Well, of course, I would book a lodging. I had to drop off my luggage and stuff.
But you know—there should definitely be some Night Elf agents in this town too!
†††
— And so, we rented a somewhat upscale inn along the lakeshore.
The room was furnished with a fluffy bed, a stylish sofa, and even had a side table and chairs for tea by the window. Naturally, the view was lovely. It was a cozy two-person room.
“Um, for starters, I want to interrogate the guys we’ve already taken down, who we haven’t called in yet, and then check on the agents in this city. If there are no issues identifying them, we can take care of that, and once we’ve gone through their information, I’d like to rest for a bit.”
“…………”
After putting up a soundproof barrier, I made that declaration, and Leila gave a wry smile and nodded.
“…I figured it would end up like this. So I was hoping at least we could relax while on the ship…”
“Well, once this mess is over, I’ll take it easy for a bit…”
“…Okay, I understand! Since it’s a wonderful opportunity, I want to try different things with you, Alex! Like fishing, rowing a boat, or swimming… Can we do that, Alex?”
“Y-Yeah, of course…!”
With Leila being so enthusiastic, I was left with no choice but to nod.
…Right.
Leila had lots of things she wanted to do. She had never fished, never rowed a boat, and never swum.
She had been stripped of her natural rights to act as she pleased for a long time. Forced to take on human form, treated like a servant, robbed of her dignity and freedom—
Finally freed from the dragon’s cave, she was just starting to get all that back, only for me to now take advantage of her kindness and goodwill, dragging her along on a bloody journey.
“Yay! Let’s quickly hunt down those Night Elf agents in this town! I’ll help out with everything I can!”
With an energetic snort, Leila was more motivated than ever.
“…Yeah. Let’s give it one more push!”
I couldn’t meet her gaze and looked out the window instead.
And I made up my mind.
I’ll finish cleaning up this town quickly and then just enjoy myself for a while.
My mission is to give my all to destroy the Demon Lord Kingdom. However—
At this rate, Faravgi would surely complain. After leaving his beloved daughter in such agony, how could he not?
After all, I am the enemy of Leila’s parents. I have an obligation to repay her kindness to the fullest. I must not forget that I am relying on Leila’s kindness.
…While mulling over such thoughts, I began to chant the spell to open the gate to the spirit world.
“[Come forth, Trishe]”
I summoned the soul of the Night Elf.
Before my vacation was officially over, I had one last job to finish—
Here we go!
