325 - - the story of the man who fled afterwards

Expectations always fail.

So the only thing to do is to run away before it happens.

Looking up at the sky through the bars, Likan suddenly remembered the past.

The first time he ran away desperately was when he was sixteen years old.

Back then, Rikan had a boy whom he could call his best friend.

Khalsa was one year younger than him, and they always went everywhere and did everything together.

"I can't wait to get out of this little village ......"

"Yeah, let's go to the border town and be adventurers!"

Days were filled with nothing but boredom, and we talked about nothing but trivial matters.

Khalsa is a scout with a wind spirit tree and knowledge of monster ecology.

Rikan, who is not so big but can already use the skill of the lower branch of the Tree of Earth Protection.

The two boys, who recognized each other as good companions, were filled with longing for adventure.

Their expectations came in an unexpected way.

The village was attacked by a large number of monsters.

Amidst the roars and screams, the two run out of the house in their undressed clothes and dash through the mountain paths at night.

But, mercilessly, the sound of countless feathers is coming from behind them.

"d*mn!　They're chasing us everywhere."

"Can't you put out the scent ....... Oh yeah, they're on fire ......!"

"Just let's get the hell out of here!"

As Khalsa pondered this with the torch in his hand, Likan shouted in frustration.

It was only a matter of time before the two of them would be preyed upon by the pack of monsters.

As if he had made up his mind, Khalsa stands up as Rikan rushes him frantically.

"...... See you later, Likan."

Suddenly, a voice whispered in his ear, and before he could respond, Ricão's body was lifted into the air.

It was not until he fell into the bushes that he realized he had been kicked in the back.

He looked up in a panic and saw the torch fire moving away from him.

I tried to chase after him, but the chorus of the terrible sound of wings was very close to me.

--We were being used as bait.

Rikan curls his body like a stone and shrinks back, his teeth shaking with despair and fear.

Seconds, minutes, hours...

It is hard to say how long he has been doing this.

Before I knew it, dawn had broken.

The monsters were already gone, and so was the boy who had been his best friend.

For the next year, Likan wandered from place to place.

He finally found a job as an adventurer in the border town of Dadan, which had just been established and was looking for a few people.

No one was willing to lend a helping hand to a boy with no relatives.

Likan accumulated skill points by running around alone in the forest of kobolds.

The turning point came in his second year as an adventurer.

He was invited to conquer the ogre's cave by a party that was recruiting shieldmen.

Rikan joined the party with great enthusiasm, but his expectations were once again disappointed.

The party he joined already had a regular shieldman, and Rikan's role was to attract the hobgoblins except for the chief.

Forced in front of four hobgoblins without any support, Likan manages to buy some time by running away as hard as he can for the second time in his life.

He runs away for the second time in his life, believing that they will come to his rescue as soon as he defeats the master of the labyrinth.

But the party had originally intended to abandon Likan.

Maybe they skimped on the reward, or maybe they were afraid of the notoriety that would come with it.

It was not until they saw that Lycan had fallen down and was motionless that they put their swords to the hobgoblins.

Leaving the boy lying on the ground like a rag, the decoys quickly pull away.

After witnessing this, Likan stood up and headed for the exit.

He had used his to endure the last part, secretly pretending to have fallen down.

Rikan barely survived and rushed to the Adventurers' Bureau to expose their evil.

From this incident, Likan deeply understands that he must rely on his authority.

Rikan's rank was raised and he came to the river of blood, but what awaited him here was still the task of running away from the authorities.

It is no wonder that a small shieldman is only expected to play the role of a decoy.

From that time on, Likan stopped expecting anything.

After three years of living by the river, Likan gave up on himself and volunteered for the Guard of the Adventurers' Bureau.

The next ten years were reasonably uneventful.

But just when he had become accustomed to his duties as a gatekeeper, a brash-looking junior colleague joined his ranks.

"Take care of him for me, Rickan."

"You're Mr. Rickan, right?"

Don't worry about the details. You smell like an old man."

Carles was a cheerful and loud man.

But even though they were business associates, they were also the first friends I had made in a long time.

They talked about trivial things and sometimes drank together.

Perhaps it was because they were both people who had been betrayed by expectations that Likan, who never trusted others, got along with Carles, who was the complete opposite.

But the young man from the purple-eyed tribe, who had lost one of his arms, still had hope for life.

Rikan learns this during an altercation with a mud fisherman whom he had underestimated as being more miserable than he was.

And the day of the outbreak.

Remembering the tragedy that struck this town and his village nine years ago, Rikan is driven by fear and overreacts.

He is blamed for his actions, and his career is expunged and he is exiled.

What awaited him when he left the jail with a depressed look on his face was an event that he had not expected at all.

"Let's go. Likan's old man."

"............ Why are you here?"

"Don't worry about the details, buddy."

Likan's eyes widened at the uninteresting exchange, and he simply let out a silent sob.

§§§§§

Six months later, the two had settled down as adventurers in the border town of Sier in the east.

Starting over at the age of forty is no easy task.

But Likan, who had many thoughts on the matter, gritted his teeth and persevered.

"An old man's shield is light, isn't it? Do you know why?　That's because only the old man himself is protected."

Carles' words were harsh but to the point.

But the young man grinned at Likan, who nodded, and continued.

"But I like that. You don't have to defend me. Instead, just keep running away from me.

Lycanthropes tugged and dragged their prey around, and when they were exhausted, Carles would finish them off with a spear.　

With this strategy established, the shieldmen, whose only advantage was their ability to run away, finally showed their full strength.

In a short period of time, the duo killed one big fish after another, and they were now highly esteemed.

"Shall we stop by again today?　Carles."

"Yeah, of course, old man."

They are so familiar with each other that they even have a favorite restaurant.

"Welcome, Mr. Rickan, Mr. Carles.

Irma, the proprietress of the Moon Drop Pavilion, beamed with happiness when she saw their faces.

She had once interrupted them when they were being harassed by a bad drunken customer at this restaurant when they first arrived in Sierra City.

They have been regular customers ever since.

Irma was a widow with two young children and her husband was an adventurer like Rikan and the others.

She runs this small store with the money her husband left her, even though she is still a young woman.

She is somewhat inept and clumsy, and perhaps Rikan liked her because she reminded him of himself.

"It's me and my brother!　Tell me a story!"

"Where did you go today?　Pops."

As they take their seats, the younger siblings run up to them and cling to the knees of Likan and Carles.

Kirme and Rivka.

They dream of becoming adventurers and helping their mother's store, just like their father.

They too are familiar with each other.

"Hey, you shouldn't interrupt."

"No, it's fine. A cold barleywine and some snacks are fine. All right, what do you want to talk about?"

"Let's see, a story about a big boar!"

"Oh, good choice. You'll have to hear what I've been up to."

The pleasant evening passed in a flash.

The next day, the two of them head for Abuk Swamp, southeast of the city, at the request of the Adventurers' Bureau.

It is said that recently there have been some unfamiliar monsters appearing in this swamp.

They set out to confirm this information, but after a day of mud, they came up empty.

"What do we do now, old man Likan? Should we call it a night?"

"No, some monsters come out after dark. Let's stay the night."

I guess a cold one's on the house.

At midnight, the sound of countless wings grates on their ears, and they peek through the cracks in the tent to get a glimpse of each other.

Flying over the surface of the swamp were a tremendous number of winged insects.

"What the hell is that?"

"...... That's a blood-sucking moth. They're small, but they're numerous and troublesome."

You know about this?　Pops."

"Yeah, I know exactly what I'm talking about. Don't turn on the light. They'll come to you."

Some monsters have a rare migratory habit.

Blood-sucking moths are one such species. Every few decades, they begin to migrate in huge herds to change their habitat.

Naturally, the settlements along their route are severely damaged.

Rikan gritted his back teeth as he recalled the village where he was born.

"What are we going to do ......?"

"I don't think the city can handle it this suddenly. And it's the middle of the night. ...... but we're definitely in trouble if we don't."

Even at midnight, the Temple of Liberation in Boundary City will never cease to burn.

It was not hard to imagine that sooner or later tonight, those winged insects would find Sie's border town.

Likan's mind is filled with faces.

Irma, smiling and pouring him a drink.

Two little children innocently beckoning to me.

The girl who came to him when he closed the gates in Dadan.

And the little best friend who disappeared without even saying goodbye.

"You must inform the city at once. Then build a fire in the windswept fields off to the east. We'll all kill them as they gather there."

"............ what are you going to do about the old man?"

"It's obvious. ....... We've got to get out of here!"

Saying this, Likan grabbed the magic stone lamp and rolled out of the tent.

Then he ran on the mud, shining it to the fullest.

"This way!　Follow me, you d*mn bugs!"

The man's screams roared through the sea of mud.

At dawn, when most of the work was done, Carles hurried out of the battlefield.

Thanks to Lycan's stalling for his life, the guards were ready in time to destroy the monster without letting it get too close to the city.

However, the adventurers, who were the greatest contributors to the success of the battle, were not .......

With a sad face, Carles rushed to Abuk Swamp, but what he saw was Rikan sitting in his tent with a face of calmness.

"What the ....... He's alive! ......"

"Don't kill them on your own. How's it going over there?

"Yes, the city is safe. And seriously. How did you survive?

"You didn't know what I'm good at.

"What the hell is that? I'm so worried about you.

Despite his lighthearted words, Carles' eyes were sharply fixed on him.

There was no way he would be safe in the face of that horde.

Although he was not badly injured, Likan's body was in a terrible state.

His face was covered in scratches, and there were many streaks of fresh blood sticking to it.

He must have been dying.

"Thanks to you, we made it just in time. Thanks for everything, buddy."

"I see. That's great. Can you stand up?"

"Yeah, I guess so. ......"

"Let's go home, old man. I'll buy your hero a drink for saving the city.

"Hero. "Hero. That doesn't sound so bad.

The city's residents had already heard about last night's incident due to the massive fire that had been set.

In the midst of the flurry of people coming and going, the two of them head for a familiar restaurant.

The door was not closed, but Carles senses the presence of someone and opens the door.

Irma, who was sitting in front of the counter, looks up as if she had been hit by a bullet.

"......Oh, thank God. You're safe."

Irma stands up with tears in her eyes and runs over to them.

She jumped into Carles' chest and began to sob.

Ricão let out a small gasp at the sight of her.

Expectations always fail.

So the only thing to do is to run away before it happens.

Well, this time it's too late.

"I'm a little sleepy, I'm going to go take a nap. You take care of the rest, Carles.

"Hey, hey, wait a minute!"

Ignoring his partner's cries, Likan turns on his heel and leaves.

The remaining Carles scratches his head in exasperation and talks to the widow who is still sobbing unawares.

How can you hug the wrong person? You two are really clumsy!