Chapter 33

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A New Morning Has Dawned.

The gentle touch of the warm morning sunlight woke me from sleep, and I groggily rubbed my eyes.

Even though I was used to camping and living in the wilderness, and could sleep comfortably anywhere, it was still not as good as having a proper bed.

“Ugh…”

It’s been so long since I’ve enjoyed the comfort of a soft bed and blankets that it made it hard to get up.

I hugged the blanket tightly and buried my face in the pillow, savoring the coziness.

This must be what they call small but certain happiness.

As much as I wanted to soak in this laziness forever…

“…I have to get up.”

I couldn’t afford to keep lazing around.

I left the comfort of my nest, grabbed my cape, and stepped out of the room.

—”Oh, young lady. You’re awake?”

I nodded lightly, acknowledging the innkeeper’s greeting as I scanned the inn.

It seems like Joanie hasn’t woken up yet, as I didn’t see her around.

—”Would you like breakfast?”

“Do you have any meat dishes?”

—”As long as you pay, I can make anything you want!”

“I have plenty of money, so make me the tastiest thing. Add only a little bit of vegetables.”

—”Understood! One serving, right?”

“Make it two servings.”

I wasn’t sure when she would wake up, but if I ate alone, she would probably bother me about it later.

A wise person predicts future troubles and prevents them beforehand.

Today, I have grown a bit wiser compared to yesterday.

—”Fresh orc meat came in this morning. Is that alright? Some customers don’t like monster meat.”

“Yeah, that’s fine.”

Even though I didn’t mind eating monster meat, that didn’t mean I’d eat any and all monsters.

I avoided anything that looked too human or was grotesque to the point of being inedible.

Also, anything that tasted terrible.

There are people who enjoy such “delicacies,” but I am not one of them.

By those standards, orc meat was something I could eat.

Unlike the orcs in fantasy novels from my previous life, which were almost like humanoid monsters, the orcs in this world are treated more like dangerous wild boars, and they look very similar to pigs.

Their intelligence is also on par with wild boars.

And more importantly…

“Orc meat is delicious.”

There are plenty of reasons why orc meat is so expensive.

Though it’s not as dangerous as other monsters, it’s definitely harder to hunt than wild boars. But the main reason is simple: it’s just so delicious.

I really don’t understand why some people dislike it.

— “You’re a lady who knows her stuff!”

The innkeeper nodded vigorously in agreement with me.

Joanie, who once brought a sandwich made from orc ham, seemed to enjoy Cockatrice meat as well. So, she’d probably enjoy today’s breakfast too.

While I waited, the innkeeper brought out the dish just as Joanie opened her door and came out. S~eaʀᴄh the NôvelFire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

“Good morning!”

Upon spotting me, Joanie gracefully approached and lowered her voice to ask:

“Did you sleep well, Canaria?”

“Yeah.”

“Wow… Did you order this?”

The smell… it’s amazing.

Joanie sniffed the air, catching the mouthwatering scent of the grilled orc steak, and smacked her lips in anticipation.

“Eat up.”

“Huh, really?! Thanks!”

Without hesitation, Joanie sat down and grabbed a knife.

Seeing her, I picked up my own knife and brought it to the meat. The steak was so tender that it cut easily, without much effort.

The grill was perfect, but now I had to see if it tasted as good as it looked.

Chomp.

Chew, chew—

“…It’s delicious.”

Of course, a steak grilled this perfectly couldn’t taste bad.

The sauce on top wasn’t too salty or sweet—just right.

I had chosen this inn in a hurry, not paying much attention, but it seems I’ve stumbled upon a hidden gem.

“With ingredients this good, the food’s bound to be tasty!”

The innkeeper smiled contentedly as he leaned against the counter, watching us eat.

“Ingredients? What kind of meat is this?”

“Orc meat.”

“…Orc?”

Freeze.

Joanie’s hand, which had been moving energetically, stopped in its tracks.

“This isn’t the orc I’m thinking of, is it…?”

“I was thinking of a monster, but that’s correct.”

Clink!

The fork and knife slipped from Joanie’s hands.

“Oh, orc meat… Are you telling me that the meat I’ve been eating all this time was orc meat? Ugh…! …What? Didn’t I eat cockatrice meat just fine? Hey! That’s different from this…!”

— “Miss, what’s wrong? Does it taste bad?”

“N-No…! I’ve never eaten orc meat before, but it was so delicious that I couldn’t help it…”

— “Hahaha! They say there’s never someone who eats it just once. It’s expensive and hard to find, so you ladies are quite lucky!”

“Ah, ahaha…”

Even though Joanie was laughing, her voice sounded like she was about to cry, which made me shrug my shoulders.

Why is she acting like that?

— “It’s just a feeling! If you need more, just tell me. I’ll give you as much as you want!”

“N-No… I can’t eat something so precious for free…”

— “Oh, don’t be so polite! I’m just happy to meet guests who appreciate the taste after such a long time. Those guys called apostles freak out at the sight of this. They don’t know the deliciousness at all.”

‘I’m also an apostle, can’t I just refuse…?’

Nom nom.

Regardless of Joanie’s chatter, I focused on eating the steak.

It was so delicious; why wasn’t she eating it?

It tasted better when eaten warm, after all.

***

After finishing the meal, we were on our way out of the inn where we stayed for the night.

As we entered a deserted alley, Joanie bent over and gagged.

“Ugh… I feel like I’m going to throw up.”

She had been feeling queasy for a while, so maybe her stomach was upset?

As I watched her in silence, Joanie spoke in a resentful tone.

“Kana… You should have told me it was orc meat…”

“?”

I tilted my head in confusion.

Could it be that she had been feeling unwell because she ate orc meat?

“Did it taste bad?”

“It was delicious… No! The taste isn’t what matters!”

I kindly corrected Joanie’s words.

“What’s important is…”

“The taste doesn’t matter!”

“Then?”

“The problem is that I ate orc!”

“Why? You ate it last time too.”

“Last time? When?”

At that, I mimed holding something long and eating it.

In other words, I mimed eating a sandwich.

“The ham you had last time, that was made from orc too.”

Unfortunately, my tongue isn’t sharp enough to identify all the ingredients of food I’ve tasted once.

Thanks to that, I’ve managed to survive by eating just about anything, so it’s not entirely a bad thing.

Still, the reason I knew what that ham was made of was because orc meat has a distinctly different taste compared to pork.

I wonder where on earth they got that ham; what a talent they have.

“That ham was made from orc?”

Could it be that she didn’t even know what kind of ham she bought?

Joanie seemed taken aback, struggling to find her words.

Of course, I was equally dumbfounded.

‘How could she not know what she bought?’

Thank goodness it was edible; what if it had been poisonous and she couldn’t eat it?

Though it’s unlikely such a thing would be sold on the street, there’s always that “just in case” scenario.

Is this what they call being airheaded?

Leaving behind the foolish Joanie, I hurried along.

With such a long way ahead, I didn’t have time to entertain such silliness.

“Come with me!”

I stepped out of the narrow alley and onto the main road.

Time had passed while we ate breakfast, and I could see many people passing by.

“Where are you going now?”

“To the merchant guild.”

I answered without stopping my pace.

I had considered whether to buy a horse or a carriage, but I should save money if I can.

Whether I would be escorting someone or requesting to join a group, I’d sneak onto a merchant guild heading towards Sedeth or nearby; if there wasn’t a decent one, I’d plan to buy one then.

Merchant guild, merchant guild…

Muttering to myself, Joanie opened her arms wide.

“Leave it to me!”

“….”

The upper guard is more suited for someone like her, a mercenary…

… but I just can’t trust her.

I didn’t trust her much to begin with, but after seeing that ridiculous look on her face, whatever trust I had just vanished.

As I looked at her with suspicion, Joanie confidently told me to follow her and started walking.

The place we arrived at was the Liberi Ordo branch.

But, am I forgetting something?

“I’m not a mercenary.”

It’s one thing to dislike mercenaries, but can an outsider like me even accept a request?

I wasn’t trying to go all the way here for no reason.

“Um… it should be okay, right?”

Sure enough, it seemed she hadn’t thought that far ahead, as the confidence in Joanie’s voice disappeared entirely.

“I’ll do my best!”

Was she trying to say she’d figure it out somehow?

Clenching her fists, Joanie left me behind and went into the Liberi branch.

Left alone, I crossed my arms and waited nearby for her to come back.

“…”

I waited there for quite a while.

Slowly, the eyes of passersby began to turn towards me.

— “Is that…?”

— “Doesn’t it look like…?”

— “Why…?”

“It’s annoying.”

Had they never seen someone in a hood before? Why were they whispering about me like that?

No, upon closer inspection, most of the murmurers were Apostles.

Looks like my reputation has spread this far.

Thankfully, it seems the annoying people whispering were keeping quiet, as even the Apostles seemed to fear the taste of public power.

“Canaria…!”

Joanie bounced out of the building.

“I did it!”

“Really?”

“Yep!”

I can’t believe this…

Maybe Liberi really operates on a wing-it basis.

“So, what’s the destination?”

“Liberi!”

The Free Mercenary City, Liberi.

As Joanie spoke the name with a big smile, I thought about it.

“Liberi….”

It’s supposed to be located in the northeast of the Empire, right?

It’s a bit far from the southern Sedeth Kingdom, but it’s not too bad.

It’s not like the direction is completely off either.

“When do we leave?”

“Um, at 10….”

“10 o’clock.”

It’s tight on time, but I don’t really have anything else to prepare, so it should be fine.

However, Joanie wasn’t done talking yet.

“… that means we have 9 minutes left.”

“…?”

“We need to run!”

Before her words even finished, Joanie grabbed my hand tightly and sprinted down the street.

— “What the?! Watch where you’re going?!”

— “Ow, my shoulder’s gonna break!”

“Yikes! I’m sorry! I’m in such a hurry…! Ah! I’m really sorry!”

“Geez….”

Well, I should have figured that. I wondered why things were going so smoothly.

If she keeps bumping into people like that, I’m not sure if my shoulders will hold up.

I sighed as I watched Joanie rush forward, not knowing if she was trying to dodge the people passing by or just collide with them.