“Don’t listen to the words of a strange person like that.”
Even in the face of blatant disregard, the troublemaker didn’t back down.
Suddenly, he put his arm on the table and began to flirt with Erina.
“Think about it. If you join our party, you can make some money. We’re giving you an opportunity.”
Erina still stared at me, ignoring the man, but her face was filled with discomfort.
The troublemaker, with a sneering expression, glanced at me and then shifted his gaze back to Erina.
“How about joining us? I’ll give you a lot of money.”
“Let’s think about roles tomorrow. We have plenty of time.”
Erina continued the conversation without giving the man any attention.
However, the troublemaker didn’t give up. Persistently, he spat out words, determined.
“If you want, I can include the guy next to you too. But if you refuse, I’ll drop him immediately.”
“For now, let’s take a good rest today. There’s a lot to do tomorrow.”
“Excuse me, miss.”
The atmosphere in the inn changed.
People around us gradually sensed trouble and began to turn away, pretending not to notice.
The troublemaker, now with a serious expression, was glaring at us.
With a clattering sound, a glass overturned.
Plates shattered, and a tense atmosphere began to fill the inn.
“Isn’t it impolite not to listen to good words?”
“I don’t want to hear anything from you.”
Erina didn’t bat an eyelid.
As her gaze remained fixed on me, the man turned his attention towards me.
“Hey.”
Unlike Erina, my expression was calm.
My indifferent attitude seemed to provoke him.
As a pitiful look was directed at me, a forced laughter escaped.
No matter how you looked at it, he was just an extra.
His overly conventional way of speaking and behaving was just amusing.
“If you lack confidence, consider your words and actions. Don’t die for no reason.”
“Stop it.”
“It’s better than hiding in a girl’s skirt and sneaking around.”
“I said stop.”
“If you don’t like it, maybe you should quit being an adventurer and find something else to do…?!”
I threw a punch.
The man, unable to continue his words, crashed onto the floor.
The table toppled, and a commotion echoed through the inn.
The man looked at me with a dumbfounded expression.
Quickly grasping the situation, his face contorted.
“This… you b*stard… How dare you?!”
He attempted to charge at me again, but I delivered another punch.
With a thud, the man collapsed on the floor.
‘What… Why is he so weak…?’
I was rather flustered by how easily my opponent fell.
I didn’t expect him to go down with just one punch.
I was prepared for at least a fist fight, but it didn’t seem necessary.
“You b*stard… Do you know who I am!?”
With the man’s shout, his comrades stood up one by one.
However, they appeared tense, perhaps due to the sight of their companion getting beaten.
It seemed like these thugs were inexperienced.
“…Seo-Hyun-nim, please wait a moment.”
Erina immediately pulled out a short dagger she had strapped to her leg.
Though smaller than the longsword she usually carried, it was still threatening enough.
However, I grabbed her arm to stop her.
“Stop.”
The situation where Erina stepped forward had to be prevented.
If she, much stronger than me, confronted them with a dagger, the fight wouldn’t end smoothly.
Moreover, we needed to be mindful of the surrounding eyes.
The innkeeper was glaring at us.
The same goes for other people.
If the fight continued, the guards could have intervened.
Realizing this, the opponents began to step back.
“Just you wait until we meet again!”
With a clumsy threat, the man led his comrades out of the inn.
Finally, the tension subsided, and the situation began to settle.
“Hoo…”
This should be enough.
Honestly, I wanted to stay quiet, but staying silent could lead to a dangerous situation.
That’s why I threw the first punch at the man.
Fortunately, the situation didn’t escalate into a big fight.
‘In the first place, it was just an event created by the game developers.’
A while ago, the entire situation was nothing more than a scripted event.
If I had gotten involved in the man’s provocation and started a brawl, we would have been chased out of the inn by the guards.
This was an event designed to allow people to experience for themselves what happens when a disturbance occurs in a town.
I had experienced similar events while playing the game, where causing trouble led to getting kicked out of an inn.
‘I shouldn’t let myself fall for the same event twice.’
As I felt the eyes around us, I said just one thing.
“What are you all staring at? Sit down.”
My words started to ease the atmosphere in the inn.
People avoided making eye contact with me.
A person clicked their tongue while looking at the fallen man.
And there were people who looked at me with unexpected glints in their eyes.
“Seo-Hyun-nim…”
“I’m fine. No injuries.”
I brushed off Erina’s anxious gaze and continued with the meal.
With an angry expression, she took her seat.
Her hands were trembling, showing her frustration for not taking action earlier.
Unlike before, she couldn’t enjoy the grilled wild boar she liked.
After nibbling at the food for a moment, she weakly put the fork down.
In the end, she left the uneaten food on the plate.
Though there was still meat on the plate, Erina clapped her hands together.
“Finished? Then let’s go.”
“Oh… yes.”
After a moment of absentmindedness, she stood up and followed me.
“I was planning to look around for a bit. Want to come with me?”
To live as an adventurer, it was good to be familiar with the geography of the capital.
Naturally, Erina didn’t refuse my suggestion.
“Let’s go quickly.”
Ignoring the glances from around, we headed outside.
I wanted to avoid the inn for a while until the crowd thinned out.
When we opened the door, a chilly wind greeted us.
Unnoticed, the sun had set, and a dim moon hung in the darkening sky.
Relieved from the tense atmosphere, I felt the tension leaving my body.
Erina, who followed behind, still didn’t have a bright expression.
“We’re here. Let’s go then.”
“Just a moment.”
Suddenly, she grabbed my arm.
Turning around at her abrupt action, I saw Erina forcing a smile.
“I have something I want to say. Would it be okay…?”
Seeing her gloomy expression, it was hard to refuse.
“Sure. Let’s walk for a bit first.”
Taking her with me, we walked through the streets for a while.
After arriving in the capital, it was the first time I could take a look around.
There were hardly any people. The sun had set, and the shops had closed.
The lively streets had turned quiet in an instant.
Not long after, a massive fountain appeared in front of us.
Located in the center of the capital, it was often used as a landmark for finding one’s way.
“It’s beautiful.”
“Indeed. It’s impressive.”
While gazing blankly at the fountain and exchanging some light banter, Erina suddenly tugged at my sleeve.
“What’s wrong?”
She didn’t respond immediately.
Her lips trembled, but no words came out.
A brief silence hung between us.
In the nighttime streets, only the sound of the flowing fountain could be heard.
I patiently waited for her to speak.
It didn’t take long before Erina opened her mouth.
“There’s something I need to tell you.”
She slowly approached, grabbing my hand.
With her head lowered, she gently caressed the back of my hand.
“Actually, I have the Goddess’ Blessing.”
It was a fact I already knew.
However, I hadn’t expected her to tell me this now.
It’s not for nothing that I got irritated when I saw the Goddess’ Blessing.
Having the Goddess’ Blessing came with many penalties, including the ability to kill the Demon King.
The kingdom forces sacrifices and the people have endless expectations.
There were even assassination groups targeting those with the Goddess’ Blessing.
As a result, those blessed by the goddess had to live in hiding.
Revealing the fact of having the Goddess’ Blessing also meant trusting the other person, and it signified a lot.
“I came here to subdue the Demon King.”
Erina revealed everything that had happened until now.
Her hometown burned down, and she lost her precious family.
All of it was the work of the Demon King’s army.
The protagonist, left alone, dreams of revenge and heads to the capital.
Erina is the protagonist born to defeat the Demon King.
But no matter how strong she was, she couldn’t defeat the Demon King alone.
“I need your help.”
That’s why Erina wanted me to join her as a companion.
“Can you continue to be with me until we kill the Demon King?”
It was what I had hoped for as well.
It was difficult for Erina to deal with the Demon King’s army right now.
It was impossible for me, who was much weaker than her, to defeat the Demon King alone.
From the moment I met Erina, I had already decided to become her companion.
If she hadn’t proposed it first, I would have asked her.
But I couldn’t give an immediate answer.
Instead, I had a question I wanted to ask.
“Erina.”
“Yes?”
“Why do you want to be with me…?”
Erina’s eyes widened at my question.
