Chapter 27

“Kana, you need to eat.”

“….”

Joanie gently spoke as she stopped Kana from opening the box of chocolates.

After a brief hesitation, Kana obediently set the box down.

Watching Kana steal a glance at the chocolates while Joanie retrieved food from her inventory, Joanie suppressed a smile. No one was going to steal them, so why couldn’t she just wait a little longer? Seeing Kana like that, Joanie thought, No matter how strong she is, a kid is still a kid.

“And today’s breakfast is… drumroll… voilà, a jambon beurre! And here’s some freshly made fruit juice to go with it.”

‘Jambon’ meaning ham, and ‘beurre’ meaning butter.

As simple as the name suggests, making a jambon beurre isn’t difficult. With ham, butter, and bread—anyone could easily make it if they had those three ingredients.

In fact, the jambon beurre Joanie held was something she had made herself. The word “assemble” crossed her mind briefly instead of “make,” but that thought quickly faded. After all, as long as it’s delicious, who cares?

“This one’s for you, Kana. Yuki, you can have one +

“….”

— “Thanks.”

Joanie chose the jambon beurre with the most ham and handed it to Kana.

Kids need to eat a lot and grow big, she thought. Not that the other sandwiches were lacking in ham. In Silia Online, no matter how much you eat, it doesn’t affect your real body, so calories didn’t matter. Of course, Silia still had a sense of fullness, so you couldn’t eat endlessly until you burst, but the fact that you could indulge in delicious but unhealthy food without worrying about the consequences was a definite perk.

Taking a big bite of the ham-filled sandwich, Joanie smiled happily.

“This… is the life. If I ate like this in real life, I’d blow up like a balloon. If I finish this, I wonder how many hours I’d need to spend on the treadmill….”

—Host looks pretty slim, so she’s probably fine.

-I eat like that all the time.

-I used to eat like that, but my digestion can’t handle it anymore…

-How old are you, if you don’t mind me asking…?

-LMAO

-Honestly, with that much ham, it’s too expensive to eat often. Sёarᴄh the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

“Yeah, it is expensive. Buying this at a café would break the bank. Even making it yourself is pricey. Bread, ham, butter—it’s all expensive. Nothing’s cheap.”

The ham in Silia was a little different from the ham Joanie was used to, but not drastically so.

Well, ham is a kind of preserved food, she mused. Salted and dried for preservation, so it wasn’t surprising that the taste wasn’t too far off.

Joanie nodded to herself, satisfied with her own reasoning.

But still…

Her gaze shifted to something else.

The pink-haired girl sat quietly, taking small, neat bites of the jambon-beurre.

She ate slowly, without causing a fuss or drawing attention, gently nibbling away at the sandwich. Despite not using a knife and fork, there was a strange air of elegance about her, possibly because I now knew her true status.

‘No way… Kana is the Captain of the Kingdom’s Knights?’

At that age?

Her appearance alone made it hard to believe, but thinking about the power hidden behind her gentle demeanor, it seemed entirely plausible.

Joanie was certain that the most popular character in Silia Online right now had to be Kana.

Once for the discovery of the new raid boss, twice for the name “Kana” spoken in a soft, delicate voice, and finally, the third time for the revelation of her looks and overwhelming power.

Each time, the community had exploded with excitement. Every time the news spread, not only gaming forums but even non-gaming communities buzzed with talk about Kana.

Considering the massive user base of Silia Online and the casual chatter that filled the forums, it was inevitable. The absence of any quest guide or system directing players meant many users relied on these communities for information.

Because of those three waves of excitement, not only were Silia Online players familiar with Kana, but even those who didn’t play knew of her.

And the ripple effects were more significant than expected.

Some players, like Joanie, started studying the Grasis Kingdom, while others became interested in the history of the kingdom that had vanished, uncovering long-buried information piece by piece.

One such piece was the story of the Crimson Aegis, the most prestigious knight order in Grasis.

Bits of information, like the existence of the knight order, the castle of Grasis given to successive captains, and the names of previous commanders, began to emerge. Although details about the last captain were oddly scarce, it was enough to deduce Kana’s identity.

After learning all this, Joanie began to understand why the Imperial Knights called Kana a traitor.

“Huh? You’re done already? … Don’t tell me it wasn’t good?”

Joanie asked, watching Kana as she placed the half-eaten jambon-beurre down.

Could it be that she didn’t like the taste?

As Joanie anxiously asked, Kana shook her head.

“I’m full.”

Kana answered calmly, carefully wrapping the leftover sandwich and placing it to the side.

Thank goodness, it wasn’t just a polite excuse.

While Joanie sighed in relief, Kana picked up a box, opened the lid without hesitation, and popped a chocolate into her mouth.

Nom nom.

“Pffft…”

Her expression didn’t change, but for some reason, it felt different from before.

Joanie wondered if Kana had eaten less of the sandwich on purpose, just so she could get to the chocolate faster.

“It’s peaceful, isn’t it?”

Joanie knew that if she told Yuki, she would get a confused reaction, but Joanie found this kind of peace comforting.

That’s why when she traveled, she deliberately sought out quiet places and often enjoyed peaceful camping.

If only such days could continue forever.

‘It’s probably impossible.’

Joanie glanced at the chat window.

70% of the chat was in agreement with Joanie, 20% were asking questions or making demands, and 5% were clearly trying to be funny.

And the remaining 5% were either talking nonsense or voicing complaints.

—”We’re seeing the same scene over and over again.”

—”I’m so bored I could die.”

—”When are you going somewhere else, host?”

—”Is she a wandering spirit or something?”

‘It’s only 5%, but considering the total number of viewers, it wasn’t a small number.’

At first, it wasn’t this many, but as the days passed, the number grew, and now it had reached this point.

‘I’ve held out for quite a while.’

No matter how beautiful the scenery, if you see it repeatedly, you get tired of it.

Thanks to Kana, she managed to last a long time, but seeing more people express boredom, Joanie felt that the time to move on was approaching.

As long as she was streaming, she couldn’t completely ignore the opinions of her viewers.

There were still many who wanted to see Kana—mostly foreign viewers—but that wouldn’t last forever.

‘Let’s use this as a base and explore the surrounding areas. I’ll name it the “Grasis Kingdom Exploration Series.”’

It wouldn’t be immediate, but soon she’d have to start traveling again.

As she formulated her plans, Joanie popped the last bite of food into her mouth.

Smack!

Before Joanie could finish eating, Yuki, who had already finished, impatiently attacked Kana but was struck down by Kana’s sword, sprawling on the ground.

Though she wasn’t bloodied, Kana habitually flicked her sword before sheathing it and sitting back down. The bribe seemed to have worked since Kana didn’t look particularly upset.

“Are you okay?” Joanie asked.

— “…Hehe.” A sinister giggle echoed.

“…Oh dear.” Joanie shuddered at the ominous laughter.

She couldn’t understand how Yuki could find such joy in something like this when she couldn’t last even a single round in a real fight.

As someone who hated pain, Joanie couldn’t comprehend those feelings.

Then, as she watched Yuki twitching on the floor, Kana suddenly spoke.

“Don’t come back.”

“Huh?”

The cold dismissal caught not only Joanie but also the chat by surprise.

Yuki showed no reaction, possibly not understanding what was said.

Joanie, who had been with Canaria since meeting her, had never heard her speak so decisively before.

Although she had spoken with her sword, she hadn’t verbally declared an expulsion.

It’s possible that Joanie didn’t catch it because she didn’t understand, but still.

“But, Yuki isn’t a bad person—”

Just as Joanie was about to defend her by saying, “No, that’s not right,” she was met with a sharp glance from Canaria.

“You’re no different.”

“Huh? Me too?”

Canaria nodded.

Joanie, confused by the sudden accusation, asked again.

“Why? Why?!”

I’ve been nothing but good to you, how can you throw me away like an old shoe…!

Joanie, recalling a line from a novel she once read, asked with a heartbroken expression.

Canaria responded with short, clear words that Joanie could understand.

“I’m leaving here.”

“…Leaving?”

Joanie wanted to ask, “Where to?” but she couldn’t remember the Grasis word for destination.

Instead, she shouted enthusiastically.

“Me, too!”

“…Huh?”

“I want to go with you!”

Joanie cheered at what she felt was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

She had been thinking of leaving anyway, and now Canaria was talking about leaving—what perfect timing, as if she could read Joanie’s mind!

‘…Though, it’s only possible if Canaria allows it.’

Suddenly realizing the reality of the situation after her moment of excitement, Joanie began to chew on her lip, anxiously watching for Canaria’s reaction.

It didn’t seem like she was entirely against it, but she didn’t seem thrilled either.

Canaria’s face was as calm and gentle as usual.

Joanie knew that there wasn’t much for Canaria to gain by accepting her offer.

Joanie’s abilities were far too insignificant for her to be considered a real companion.

She wasn’t necessary as a guide since Canaria was already familiar with Silia. She couldn’t even bring her food, like she had been doing up until now.

Frantically thinking, Joanie finally remembered her only real value.

“Translation! Kana, you don’t understand Arkish, right?”

“…”

“I’ll translate for you! It’s frustrating when you can’t communicate!”

If only they spoke the same language, she could have persuaded her more effectively.

Joanie spoke more earnestly than ever before.

Why is she suddenly acting like this?

Kana blinked a few times, as if to say that, while Joanie nervously waited for her response.

After what felt like an eternity, as if several autumns had passed, Kana finally spoke.

“…Do as you like.”

“R-really?”

Nod.

“YESSSSS!!”

Kana widened her eyes in surprise at Joanie’s sudden shout, but Joanie, overwhelmed with joy, didn’t notice.

The worry she had felt earlier now seemed meaningless…

“Who cares! I get to travel with Kana!”

Ba-bam! Kana has joined the party!

Joanie burst into loud laughter, imagining such a message popping up, oblivious to the way Kana was now looking at her as if she had lost her mind.