Chapter 99 of 100

Chapter 99

8 min read1,953 words

A few days after Aldis returned home with Rona.

Sometimes he would take a nap on the eaves, and other times he would be dragged into the twins' and Rona's play, but Aldis would rest his body at home.

Sometimes he would go into the forest with Nere to gather food, and on other days he would go hunting with Rona.

Each time, Rona would show her competitiveness against Nere and try to catch an excessive amount of prey, which Aldis would advise against.

Incidentally, it was immediately clear to the twins that Rona could speak.

Despite saying she would observe the situation by pretending to be an animal, Rona had already started talking to Nere before the ink on her tongue had even dried.

While playing with the twins, she had inadvertently revealed her true identity.

"Hey, hey, Ald."

"Hmm? What is it?"

It was around the time when the sun was about to reach its zenith.

Basking in the warm sunlight that poured down from above, Aldis was dozing off in the yard when Rona approached and pressed her paw against his face.

"Aren't you going hunting? I haven't gone hunting for the past two days."

"Hmm. I will, eventually."

"You said that yesterday too."

With a dissatisfied voice, Rona started tapping Aldis's head with her paw.

"I went three days ago, you know."

"It's been three days already."

"You can go by yourself, you know."

"I'm tired of hunting alone. There aren't any strong beasts around here, and they all run away when I get close."

Even though this place was near the outer edge, it was a forest inhabited by dangerous beasts.

It was not a place that mediocre mercenaries could reach.

The words Rona spoke would make the mercenaries in the capital doubt their ears.

Despite this, Rona continued to try to persuade Aldis to go out, but the young man seemed to prioritize his nap, and the conversation went in circles.

At this point, Nere, who had come from inside the house, offered a stern comment.

"My lord, it is important to rest and regain your strength, but too much of it is called laziness."

"...That's a pretty harsh way to put it. I'm not lazy. As long as I can sleep, I want to sleep as much as possible."

Nere cut off Aldis's rebuttal with a composed face.

"Isn't that what we call laziness?"

"..."

"Right. Lazy, lazy!"

Rona jumped on the opportunity.

With both his servant and partner criticizing him, Aldis reluctantly got up.

Aldis, who was reluctantly planning to go to the Cossus Forest as a walk for Rona, ended up deciding to go to the capital to buy food and supplies.

"We still had plenty of reserves, but the amount that thing eats is unexpectedly large."

According to Nere, who directed his gaze at Rona, if this continued, they would have to switch to a bland diet.

Rona could sustain herself by hunting in the forest, but she seemed to prefer Nere's cooking over bland raw meat.

Especially, she had a particular fondness for sweets.

As a result, flour and sugar were being consumed at a considerable rate.

Rona's desire to eat delicious food seemed to be stronger than her desire to hunt.

"Let's go shopping! Hey, hey, Ald. Can we buy snacks?"

Without much objection, she tried to satisfy her appetite as well.

"Try to keep the snacking to a minimum. ...By the way, do you still have money left?"

Indeed, the last time, all the rewards from Solt were given to Rona.

However, on the way back, Rona had indulged in street food at various stalls.

While he didn't think she had spent it all, he didn't think she had much left either.

"Oh, then let's take on a bounty request on the way. We can hunt, earn money, and go shopping in the city. It's perfect."

And so, Aldis, who was supposed to be taking a rest, ended up having to work.

About two hours later, Aldis and Rona were on the main street of the capital, Gran.

"Ald! Let's eat that! That!"

"Hey, keep your voice down."

The smell of delicious food wafted from the stalls lining both sides of the street.

Rona was wagging her tail, unable to contain her excitement.

The movement of her tail created an unnatural breeze, causing passersby to turn and be startled by Rona's appearance.

"Let's go to a restaurant first. We'll waste time if we keep buying snacks."

"Restaurant? Can we eat delicious food?"

"Usually, yes..."

Aldis showed a slightly awkward expression and tried to dodge the question.

"Usually, you mean?"

Rona, naturally curious, asked, but Aldis quickly started walking.

"Come on."

"Wait, Ald."

With a dissatisfied expression, Rona followed Aldis to their usual inn in the capital, the 'Rivulet Inn'.

At the Rivulet Inn, which served as both an inn and a tavern, one could exchange copper coins for a meal in the first-floor dining room.

At the entrance of the Rivulet Inn, Rona sniffed the air.

"It smells delicious. Do you come here often, Ald?"

"Yeah. The food here is pretty good, not as good as Nere's, but it's decent. Most of the time."

"Most of the time...?"

Rona looked puzzled at Aldis's cryptic response.

"Just come in and see."

Aldis abandoned the explanation and stepped into the inn.

"Ah, it's Aldis! Welcome!"

Meryl, the inn's signboard girl, who was already familiar with Aldis, welcomed him with a mix of enthusiasm and a scream.

"Hey, Meryl. I'm here for a meal."

"W, w, w, what is that! Aldis!"

The cause was the golden beast, Rona, who was attached to Aldis's side.

"This? This is Rona. My partner. ...Wait, is it not good to bring her in?"

Thinking it would be quicker than buying snacks from the stalls, he had brought Rona along, but upon reflection, this was a place where humans ate.

Bringing in a beast like Rona might be a breach of etiquette.

Especially since Rona was not like a common dog or cat, her body length exceeded a meter.

Moreover, the sharp fangs visible in her mouth suggested she was a carnivore.

For Meryl, who had never left the capital and had never seen a carnivore up close, it was too much of a shock.

"Um, a... Are you going to attack anyone?"

Meryl instinctively used a round tray as a shield and cautiously peeked from the side.

However, hiding only her face left the rest of her body exposed, making it completely ineffective.

Aldis tried to reassure Meryl by petting Rona's head.

"Don't worry. As long as no one provokes her, Rona won't start a fight. She follows the rules and is smarter than most humans. Right, Rona?"

"Woof!"

Rona agreed with a response that didn't match her appearance.

"If that's the case... Since there are few customers now, if you can sit at a table far from the entrance, you can bring her in."

"Thanks."

With Meryl's permission, Aldis took a seat at a table in the back of the restaurant.

As Meryl said, the restaurant was past lunchtime, and there were only two other groups of customers besides Aldis and Rona.

Initially, they had stared at Rona with wide eyes, but after hearing the exchange between Meryl and Aldis, they seemed to have concluded that she was not dangerous.

Occasionally, they would cast curious glances and whisper to each other.

"That's the sword mage—"

"One of the three great demons—"

"If that's the case, it makes sense—"

From the snippets of conversation, it seemed they knew who Aldis was.

Perhaps they had complaints but were afraid to voice them directly to Aldis.

"Um, Aldis, what would you like to order?"

Meryl, regaining her composure, took the order.

Her smile was a bit forced, but she was a professional and did her job properly.

"Is your father making the food today?"

"Yes. My mother is on break, but my father is still in the kitchen."

It seemed to be a safe day.

"Then, I'll have six servings of something filling."

"S, six servings?"

Meryl's eyes widened at the unexpected order.

"Yes. One serving for me, and the remaining five for Rona. No need to change the seasoning. The same dish is fine."

"O, okay. I'll get it ready right away. Please wait."

With that, Meryl hurried away from the table.

"Why do people keep being scared of me?"

Once the surroundings were clear, Rona whispered, puzzled.

"It can't be helped. In the city, you don't often see a beast as big as Rona."

"Well, it's fine. I just hope the food comes soon."

"Hey, stop wagging your tail. You're making dust fly."

Aldis complained as Rona, with her tongue hanging out, wagged her large tail.

"Oops, sorry. But there's no one else around, so—"

"Hey, Meryl! Is Aldis here? ...There he is!"

A male voice intruded on their conversation, coming from near the entrance of the inn.

"Hmm? Oh, it's Jean."

The voice belonged to someone Aldis knew.

Looking in the direction of the voice, he saw a man in his early forties.

He was one of the 'facilitators' who mediated requests for mercenaries.

He had once been a skilled mercenary but had retired due to a deep wound on his leg, as Aldis had heard from the information broker Cesare.

He had once been a popular figure, known for his handsome face and solid skills, with many fans among both female mercenaries and the general public.

But that was a long time ago.

Now, at best, he was a 'nice old man,' and the traces of his former charm were long gone.

His receding hairline told the story of the cruel passage of time.

"Good timing. I have a job that's perfect for you, uh— What the heck is that!?"

Jean, who had been walking towards Aldis, stopped in his tracks when he saw Rona.

"Don't worry. This is my companion, Jean. She's quite tame as long as no one provokes her, so you can relax."

"Is that so? Well, if Aldis says so, I guess it's okay..."

Jean, a former mercenary, approached the table without showing much fear, unlike Meryl.

His slight limp was a result of the injury that led to his retirement.

"Still, that's a pretty lively-looking beast."

Jean sat down in the chair opposite Aldis and looked at Rona, who was crouched at his feet.

"Kaaah."

After watching Rona yawn widely, the facilitator tilted his head.

"I don't remember seeing a beast like this before..."

Aldis prompted Jean, who had muttered to himself.

"So, what is it? What's this perfect job for me?"

"Oh, oh... Sorry, sorry."

Jean turned to face Aldis and put on a business-like expression.

"It's a new job. The location is a bit of an issue, and it's not something that can be handled by just anyone."

Given that he had specifically sought out Aldis, it was likely not a job for ordinary mercenaries.

"The job is to conduct an investigation, and the reward is fifty gold coins."

"Fifty coins? For an investigation?"

Aldis was surprised by the high reward.

"Right. Just for the investigation. But I think the reward is justified."

"Why is that?"

"The problem is that the location of the investigation is a small island south of the capital."

Aldis, who knew the place Jean was talking about, frowned.

"That's...?"

"Right. It's the island where one of the three great demons, the 'Four-Feathered,' used to live before it was slain by some surly mercenary."