CH 132

“Good tea, isn’t it? And the garden too.”

“Yes, It’s very nice!”

In our hands, we had a cup of refreshing light brown tea, and in front of us was a garden with colorful flowers. Both were simple but elegant, and just being there seemed to relax our hearts.

“Hoho, I’m glad you like it. Well, aside from the tea, I haven’t done anything to the garden.”

“Eh, is that so!? No, but…”

The flowers in the garden were of various kinds, but they were clustered in a certain area. It was hard to believe that these were natural blooms, but the elder answered my question with a happy smile.

“Ahahah, It’s not a lie, you know? The spirits do this on their own. The seeds of the flowers that fly in the wind fall here just in time, or the nourishing soil that is carried away by the rain happens to accumulate here.”

Hmm. So the gathering of spirits was the true nature of this garden. But, If that’s the case….

“If the spirits love you that much, wouldn’t you be able to create an even more amazing garden if you used your spirit magic properly?”

Tia’s question seemed to express my innermost feelings. The Elder’s ears twitched, but his smile remained unchanged.

“Hohoho, Yes. If I wanted to, I could make a mountain out of this little garden and a river running through it, and create a garden that would be a condensed version of nature. If I were younger, I might have stuck to such a plan. But I am too old. I don’t want to do everything in my power, but it is enough to just have a little bit of feeling for things as they are. But ….”

“Elder?”

For the first time, the Elder’s expression became slightly clouded. His ears were drooping, and he was not displaying the same vigor he had shown just a few moments ago.

“The spirit tree is in such a state. The power of the spirits in this area is gradually weakening these days. If things continue as they are, in less than 10 years, this flower garden may become nothing more than a meadow. That would be a little sad. Well, the only saving grace is that my life will probably end sooner than seeing such a lonely garden.”

“But! Both you and the garden are so healthy, why–“

“Hohoho. I know. I haven’t counted my own age since I passed the 300 mark, but even so, I know that my life is about to end. I feel like I’m getting closer to the …. spirits.  I think the weakening of the body makes it easier for the soul to come out, and that in turn makes it easier to be in touch with the spirits.”

“……………………”

Tia was unable to say anything because she had heard from me about the Elder’s life expectancy. Then the Elder gently touched Tia’s cheek.

“Don’t give me that look. I have lived long enough. If I have any regrets, it is that I will not be able to see the beauty and vibrance of the spirit tree again. ….”

“I’ll do something about it!”

“O-Oi, Tia!?”

“We’ll figure something out! That’s why—“

Ignoring my surprise at her sudden declaration, Tia turned her forceful gaze on the Elder. The elder, however, had a troubled smile and removed his hand from Tia’s cheek.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it that way. Young people should not overwork themselves for the sake of an old man like me who has no future. Do what you can, as much as you can. If you hurt yourself by pushing yourself too hard, you will hurt the man next to you. Don’t be in a hurry. Take one step at a time. Just  receiving your kindness, it’s more than enough for me. Thank you.”

“Elder….”

The Elder had a broad smile on his face, and neither Tia nor I could say anything more to him. After drinking tea and looking at the beautiful garden ……, we had some casual conversation and left the elder’s house.

“Well, see you later.”

“Yes.”

“Thank you for your time. Excuse us.”

With the Elder seeing us off, Tia and I bowed and started walking. After a while, Tia looked at me with a determined expression on her face.

“Hey, Ed.”

“I know what you’re going to say. But honestly, it’s not a very good move, you know?”

The current Hero was the Elder, but the maximum life expectancy of the Elder was approximately two months. In other words, we will not be able to fulfill the “work together for half a year” requirement for our return, and in the first place, it was too impractical to go on a journey to defeat the Demon King with an old man who has only a short time left to live.

“The best thing to do would be to wait for the boy to become a ‘Hero’, and then talk to the village head and take him on an adventure to defeat the Demon King, spending half a year defeating him and then returning, where we would part ways and …. be banished. This way everything would work out.”

“I know! I know, but…”

“I see. If you understand, then it’s good.”

I pulled Tia’s hand and continued on our way. My plan was to return to the inn, but when we reached the main street, I turned my feet in the opposite direction from the inn.

“Ed? That’s not where the inn is, right?”

“What are you talking about, Tia. You know… right?”

“Eh ……?”

“That’s the best way, but it’s not the most satisfying way. So how about we kick some risks and problems and do what we want to do… that’s how we do things, right?”

I grinned at Tia, who looked at me with her mouth hanging open. Then Tia’s jade eyes first widened, then slowly filled with tears, and finally sparkled as she jumped toward me.

(T/N: Someone is a softie)

“Ed! You’re the best!”

“Hey, hey!? Stop it! It’s embarrassing!”

“It’s fine! I am going to brag to everyone that my partner is the best!”

“Ah, I get it already! Get away! We have to hurry and go shopping, or the store will close!”

“Ah, that’s right! Hurry, hurry!”

“This girl. …”

Tia, separated from me and then running quickly ahead, turned and beckoned me, and I followed her with a wry smile. Most of the things we originally needed were in the [Stranger Box] so after purchasing some extra preserved food, we went to the village head and told him that we would be leaving the village for a while tomorrow to do some more investigation, and then returned to the inn.

“Uh, I want to hurry!”

“Don’t be reckless. Even if we know the direction thanks to [Akashic Compass], it’s still dangerous to walk in the forest at night. Even the village head warned us about that, right?”

“I know! But don’t you think we’d be fine?”

“It’s not impossible if we push ourselves, but…”

If we are talking about the fastest, leaving Tia here and me acting alone would theoretically be the fastest way to reach the destination. If I were alone, I could force my way through with [Invincible] and [Hermes Dash]

However, the world was not as simple as saying, “Just drive straight toward your destination and you’ll get there.” If there were mountains and valleys it would work, but if there were big rivers and oceans, it would be impossible to just jump over them, and if I had to cross a border, I would have to go through all the formalities.

It was possible to get through by using [Mirage Shift] but trespassing borders was usually a felony, so it would put a big restriction on subsequent actions. The time wasted and the risk taken were too great compared to the time that could be saved, and honestly speaking, it was not worth it unless the circumstances were very serious.

And even if I make it that far and get to the Demon King, if you ask me if I can defeat him alone,…. yeah, it’s still impossible no matter what I think.

“Nope, Nope. I know how you feel, but don’t be in a hurry. First of all, after we leave the forest, we need to go to a nearby town, register with the Adventurers Guild and get an ID card. We need to gather information on the Demon King outside of this village to know how to move forward.”

“Ugh …… what a hassle ……”

“I agree, but it’s necessary.”

In that sense, the existence of Riel was a god send, as she was able to take care of all these complicated procedures and certifications by saying, “It’s God’s will.” I had almost forgotten how troublesome it was to be an adventurer.

“Got it! But first thing in the morning! We’ll leave first thing in the morning!”

“Yes, yes. Let’s go to bed early today.”

“Okay! Good night!”

I watched Tia fly out of my room with mild amazement and a smile on my face, and went to sleep early to prepare for another departure. The next day, I visited the village head’s house to say a few words before our departure. ……

“Please will you allow this child to accompany you on your journey?”

“P-please!”

With these words, the soon-to-be Hero appeared in front of us.