Chapter 32

The town of Sabenjiru was more neatly organized than any other town Mika had visited before.

The buildings on either side of the road all had their own charm, and were generally stylish.

The ground was paved with stones and solidified with concrete.

Street lamps were installed on both sides of the road, and they were in the process of being lit.

Using a long pole, they opened the glass box and lit the alcohol lamp inside.

The first sight of Sabenjiru's streets reminded Mika of a medieval Western town.

This was just Mika's personal impression, though.

(Well, I've never been there, after all.)

It was based solely on what she had seen on TV or in photos, but the time of day, twilight, added to the beauty of the scene, making it so captivating that she couldn't help but stare.

"Hey, standing here will get in the way of passersby. Let's go to the inn."

Ninetyana took Mika's hand and walked down the main street.

"But you said the inn, the stop is outside the town. What are we going to do?"

"What are we going to do? I said we're going to the inn."

Mika blinked and looked at Ninetyana.

In just two days, the equation "inn = shabby hut at the stop" had been etched into her mind.

It seemed that the inn they were going to now was a real inn.

Ninetyana smiled wryly.

"Adventurers need to rest properly too. That's why we save on unnecessary things. It's already late today, so we'll go to the dormitory tomorrow. Let's rest at the inn tonight and prepare for tomorrow."

With that, Ninetyana walked without hesitation.

They turned off the main street into a less crowded alley.

After turning a few corners, they came to an area with more run-down buildings, but the street lamps were there, and the area didn't seem too dangerous.

As Mika looked around, Ninetyana stopped in front of an inn.

"It's still here. ...I hope it hasn't changed from the old days."

The three-story inn had cracks in the walls, giving it a sense of age.

However, the interior looked not bad. A bright and clean lobby was visible.

When Ninetyana went in, Mika followed, and a burly man appeared from behind the counter.

He was dark-skinned, muscular, tall, and bald, and looked like nothing more than a bodyguard in the underworld.

A large scar ran from his forehead over his left eye to his left cheek.

(...Ninetyana, did you get the wrong place?)

There was no way this was an inn. It looked more like an underground casino.

Surely, it must have changed from the old days. It must have.

"Hey, Tako. Long time no see. How have you been?"

Ninetyana called out to the bodyguard.

The bodyguard glared at Ninetyana with wide eyes, the veins on his forehead pulsing.

(Ah, I'm dead...)

Mika could see a future where she would be strangled by this bodyguard.

The bodyguard continued to glare at Ninetyana without moving.

Ignoring this, Ninetyana walked up to the counter and spoke to the bodyguard.

"Hey, Tako, did you forget this face? How heartless of you."

"...Are you Ninetyana?"

"Who else could it be?"

It seemed that Ninetyana knew this bodyguard.

The bodyguard's expression softened.

He wasn't glaring at Ninetyana, but rather had been surprised to see her.

"It's been a long time. What happened to Diego? Did you leave him? Ah, did he cheat on you and you ran away! That's why I told you not to move to the countryside, didn't I?"

"That's not the case. Things are going well enough. Well, I won't deny that country life is boring."

The bodyguard seemed to know Diego as well.

As Mika watched the two of them chatting, the bodyguard noticed her.

"......Is this your kid...?"

"Don't be silly. How old do you think this kid is? He's going to the academy, and I'm accompanying him."

"Academy? A knight...? Or the magic academy? Hmm..."

The bodyguard looked at Mika.

He sized her up with a rude gaze.

"Stop it. You're making Mika dirty."

Ninetyana hid Mika behind her.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing!?! Really... So, what are you going to do? Are you staying here?"

"Yeah, one room. Just for one night. Oh, one bed is fine."

Mika looked at Ninetyana in shock, then at the bodyguard.

The bodyguard sighed when he saw Mika shaking her head slightly.

"Ah... Unfortunately, only twins are available today. You'll have to make do with that. I'll charge you for a single room, though."

Mika clasped her hands together and thanked the bodyguard.

Despite his appearance, Mika was convinced he was a good person.

Ninetyana muttered, "Tch..." but she must have noticed the exchange between Mika and the bodyguard.

There was no way the expert in reading the atmosphere wouldn't have noticed.

Ninetyana took out her guild card and settled the accommodation fee.

"When you stay at an inn, you pay the fee in advance. If there are additional charges for meals or other things, you pay them when they occur."

Ninetyana explained the system for staying at an inn.

"When you stay at an inn... ...Didn't you say you were in the Linper territory? How did you get here?"

"Well, the usual way, of course."

"The usual way...?"

The bodyguard looked at Mika.

His eyes were filled with sympathy.

(...Ah, Horacio had the same look when we parted ways last time.)

It felt nostalgic even though it was just a few days ago.

Horacio must have had a good idea of what the journey would be like.

(Sure, this trip wasn't something a child should do. ...But it was a bit fun.)

Mika thought about the journey over the past three days.

"Okay, let's go to the room."

After receiving the key, Ninetyana headed for the stairs at the back.

When they reached the third floor, there were five rooms in a row.

Mika's room was the second one from the front.

The room wasn't very large, but there were two beds side by side, and a small table and chairs in the back.

There was a window in the back, but the view was zero because the wall of the neighboring building was right there.

"You can let go of your luggage in this room. It's not good to be too careless, but this inn is safe."

For the first time in three days, Mika was told it was okay to let go of her luggage.

Even during meals, she had kept it on her lap.

"There are ranks for inns. In the cheap inns where we've been borrowing the baths, you can't be careless even in the room. Well, it's okay when you're in the room, but you should never leave anything unattended."

"Is it okay to leave things unattended here?"

"It's fine here."

Ninetyana stated firmly.

"It's safer than a fancy high-end inn. No one would dare to cause trouble here."

...That person is definitely a bodyguard in the underworld, right?

Could this inn be run by the mafia? A front company, so to speak.

Mika's face was twisted with cold sweat, and Ninetyana burst out laughing.

"Come on, what are you imagining? Tako is famous, so everyone behaves here."

"Famous...?"

"Yeah, that's Yaroyibarov of the 'Crimson Stain.' A former A-rank adventurer."

"A-rank!?"

An unexpected story came up.

Ninetyana explained to the stunned Mika with a smile.

Yaroyibarov of the 'Crimson Stain.' Nicknamed Tako.

(No, no one else calls him that, right!?)

In any case, Yaroyibarov, the bodyguard, was a very famous person.

As his nickname suggests, he was a typical warrior who dyed himself red with blood in battle.

However, there was another meaning to this nickname.

This Yaroyibarov, it seems, turns red when he gets angry.

When his anger reaches its peak, his whole body turns red.

Someone who saw this said, "He looks like an octopus," and the nickname Tako was born.

Mika asked Ninetyana if anyone else called him that, but she just said, "I don't know."

(...No one would dare to call him that, right?)

The only person who could call the burly and intimidating Yaroyibarov "Tako" was probably Ninetyana.

As Mika was lost in shock and disbelief, Ninetyana threw a cloth bag at her.

"Put the laundry in this bag. And bring a change of clothes. We're changing everything today."

It was the first full change of clothes in three days.

Until then, they had only changed their underwear, but their shirts and pants were getting dirty.

"We're going to the bath and putting all the clothes we wore in this bag to be washed."

"Have it washed? Aren't you going to wash it yourself?"

"It costs extra, but they have people who will wash it for you here."

Apparently, if you paid, you could have your laundry done.

They would have it clean and folded by the next morning.

"At cheap inns, you have to wash and dry it yourself, and if you don't keep an eye on it, it might get stolen."

It seemed that even in such a place, you had to be on guard against theft.

When in a party, people would take turns staying in the room to watch over the laundry.

For solo adventurers... well, you had to take responsibility for it yourself.

After all, being solo meant doing everything by yourself.

However, solo adventurers didn't have to share their rewards or pay for multiple rooms, so they could afford to stay at safer inns.

Whether in a party or solo, there were advantages and disadvantages to both.

Led by Ninetyana, they returned to the counter on the first floor.

Yaroyibarov was giving instructions to a boy behind the counter.

In this inn, Mika often saw children.

They were all about Mika's age or a little older, and they were busy cleaning and carrying things.

"Tako, is the bath free?"

"Yeah, everyone seems to be late today. No one has used it yet."

"I also want to have the laundry done. Is it okay to ask any of the kids?"

"It's fine. Just bring it here when you're done with the bath, and I'll take care of it."

After confirming this, Ninetyana headed for the bath.

Mika reluctantly followed, saying nothing.

It seemed that there were no separate men's and women's baths in this world.

But then she realized something.

Mika stopped, and Ninetyana immediately noticed and turned around.

"What's wrong, Mika?"

Time was running out. Mika desperately tried to construct a logical argument in a few seconds.

"...The baths we've been to before were discounted, right?"

"Hmm? Yeah, that's right."

"That was because we went in all at once and were kids, right?"

"Yeah, that's right."

"Here, we're staying at an inn, so there's no need to go in all at once, right?"

"Well, that's true."

"Since this inn is safe, there's no need to keep an eye on the changing room, right?"

"Right, there's no need."

"Then, I can go in alone, right!"

"That's not allowed."

It was rejected.

"Why---!?"

"Because I want to go in with Mika. Come on, let's go."

Logic was irrelevant to this tyrant.

She did what she wanted because she wanted to.

That was all.

Thus, Mika endured the groping and harassment while finishing the healing magic, and it might have been the most exhausting bath of the past three days...

When they returned to the lobby, a girl was at the counter, and Mika handed her the laundry.

She seemed well-trained, carefully writing it down in a ledger and asking Ninetyana to sign it.

Ninetyana signed the ledger and headed straight for the dining room without returning to the room.

"Hey, you're back. It's just about ready. You hungry?"

As Mika and Ninetyana entered the dining room, they were immediately greeted.

In the kitchen, Yaroyibarov was wearing an apron.

To be honest, it didn't suit him at all.

"Tako, can you take care of it?"

"Sure, leave it to me. It's especially good today."

"That's great."

Ninetyana quickly sat at a table.

Mika sat across from her.

Looking around the dining room, there were eight tables, but no other customers yet.

(Is it okay...?)

It was already past evening, almost night.

An empty dining room at this hour was unsettling.

Ninetyana didn't seem to care at all, and even looked excited.

(She was fine with the daily special. Maybe I shouldn't expect too much...)

The dining room was clean and had a bright atmosphere.

In the kitchen, a child was busy assisting with the cooking, following Yaroyibarov's instructions.

"...There are a lot of children. Why is that?"

Mika asked about something that had been bothering her.

"Those kids are Tako's employees, legitimate ones."

"I haven't seen any adult employees, though."

"They do exist, but maybe they're not here right now?"

Ninetyana didn't seem particularly concerned.

It was probably the same business style as when she knew him.

A boy who seemed to be a waiter brought a bottle of wine to Ninetyana.

It was a bright red fruit wine.

Mika thought about pouring it for her, but she couldn't reach.

It was a habit from her salaryman days, pouring wine for her boss at parties.

Ninetyana poured and drank it in one gulp.

"Phew. Ah, delicious. It's been a while since I had a drink. You're thoughtful, Tako."

Ninetyana was in high spirits.

Watching her, Mika also felt like having a drink for the first time in a while, but it was probably not allowed in this body.

(...Come to think of it, isn't drinking during pregnancy or breastfeeding bad?)

Mika thought about telling Ninetyana, but hesitated to dampen her high spirits.

After all, it would take three days to get back to Rich Village.

It wasn't Mika's place to nag.

"Is it your first time drinking in a while?"

"Yeah! Women shouldn't drink! ...Even if they're in-laws, you can't ignore them when they say so."

It seemed that in this world, women were not supposed to drink.

Well, in a world where male dominance was the norm, it wasn't surprising.

The concept of equality didn't exist.

In this feudal country, there was no equality between nobles and commoners.

"I used to sneak drinks, but I heard it's better not to drink when the kids are small. I'll wait until Dyl is a bit older. Ugh..."

Ninetyana made a crying face and skillfully sipped her drink.

If she usually abstained from alcohol, it was probably fine to indulge a bit now that she was free from childcare.

If she drank too much, Mika would stop her, but for now, she would let her enjoy the drink.

"You abstaining from alcohol? Then a dragon might attack tomorrow?"

Yaroyibarov brought the dishes to the table.

The boy who seemed to be a waiter carefully carried the dishes in both hands.

"That would be strange, wouldn't it? Two years ago, right?"

"Haha, that's true. The kid is Dyl, right? One or two years old?"

"Still one year old."

The dishes were brought one after another, and soon six dishes were lined up on the table.

"We got some good meat. This skewer is really delicious. I almost don't want to serve it to customers."

Yaroyibarov laughed.

Well, it was understandable, but he was being a bit too honest.

A platter of skewers with three large pieces of meat, grilled meat and vegetables with cheese, chicken stewed in tomato sauce, meat-wrapped vegetables, a platter of sausages and bacon, and beef stew—six dishes in total.

It came with bread.

(My stomach is going to be full!)

Incidentally, these were just impressions based on Mika's appearance, so the tomato stew might not actually use tomatoes, and the beef stew might not use beef.

"Let's eat."

Ninetyana got into the spirit, but Mika was a bit taken aback.

(All meat, and so much. Is this normal?)

It looked incredibly delicious and smelled great.

However, serving such a meat-heavy menu was questionable.

"Go ahead and eat. You too, kid. The more meat you eat, the stronger you'll get!"

It seemed that this meat-heavy menu was to the liking of adventurers.

Indeed, no matter how much you train, you can't build muscle without protein.

It was a result of what adventurers, who relied on their bodies, sought.

Watching Ninetyana devour the food, Mika took her share.

She put the skewers and cheese-grilled meat on her plate and took a bite of the skewers.

(Delicious!)

It was soft, and the juices burst out when she bit into it.

The skewers, seasoned with salt, pepper, and a bit of spice, were the most delicious dish she had ever tasted.

Not just as Mika the boy, but including her original world, she had never eaten such delicious meat.

Mika, engrossed in the meat, was watched with a smile by Ninetyana.

"Isn't it delicious? Tako made all of this."

Mika, surprised, looked at Yaroyibarov, who smiled.

"Cooking is like a