Ch. 156
“Y-Yes! I said we’d be back soon with the rest of our group… no, I ‘told’ them that! They said they’d wait about ten minutes…!”
“What are you doing?”
“Ahem, it’s just… you suddenly hugged me…”
Even as a prince of the Empire, he must’ve been surrounded by women all his life.
But Ash was acting like a man with no immunity to the opposite sex.
His ears turned red over nothing.
Well, it was kind of cute… maybe teasing him from time to time would be fun.
“Then let’s hurry. I doubt we’re the only ones looking for rooms.”
“Exactly! What if someone else takes it? Come on! Where is that inn?”
“Over there.”
“Run!”
Fueled by our determination to sleep in beds tonight, we pushed through the crowd and rushed across the plaza.
The inn was a bit removed from the plaza, but even from afar, it was clearly a high-end establishment.
The green sign bore a white stag with silver antlers and was adorned with three stars.
“That’s the one! I checked more than ten places, and this was the only one that still had rooms.”
“Looks nice.”
The inn was fancy from the entrance alone.
Intricately carved wooden statues lined the entrance, and the building itself was massive—easily the size of three mid-range inns combined.
It looked more like a mansion in the city than an inn. The price was probably sky-high, judging by the sign and the carvings.
Unless it was a festival day like today, most travelers wouldn’t even get near the entrance.
It was clearly a luxury inn meant for nobles.
But I was not a woman who fretted over money.
Besides, I’d come into some unexpected funds today, so I wasn’t afraid of a little room fee.
“Charge!”
“Ooh!”
When I pointed dramatically at the inn and shouted, only Chad matched my energy.
That’s one thing we clicked on—this kind of childish play.
But our excitement was short-lived.
As soon as we stepped inside, we saw four people blocking the front counter.
The same number as us. A bad sign. They were arguing with the receptionist.
“This is ridiculous! That person hasn’t shown up in ten minutes! How long are we supposed to wait? We’ve been here the whole time!”
“I understand, but…”
“Give us the room! Come on, how do you expect to make money like this? Huh? How much longer are we waiting? At this point, it should go to whoever pays first! We’re exhausted! That guy probably found another inn anyway!”
How dare you try to take ‘my’ room!
I clenched my fists in fury and broke into a run.
Then I launched myself at the back of some random man like a wasp.
I tried to kick him in the back, but ended up dangling in the air. Someone had grabbed my collar.
Who else would it be?
Ash had swooped in behind me.
“Gah!”
“Miss Geenie, don’t.”
“Let me go!”
“Please just wait a moment.”
Being short had its disadvantages.
I kicked at the air uselessly while Ash sighed, trying to hold me back.
“Maybe try solving things with words first?”
“Fists are faster than words!”
“You’re a Spirit Mage!”
“If I used spirit magic, they’d all be dead.”
At least punches leave room for mercy!
While I was being restrained by Ash, Chad and Lox rushed up to the counter.
“We’re the ones who made the reservation!”
“We’ll pay right now! How much?”
“Ah! You’ve arrived. That’s a relief. There’s only one room left, and it’s a five-person room. One gold and thirty silver.”
“…Per night?”
“That’s so expensive!”
“Well, it ‘is’ peak season, and it’s the best five-person room we have.”
So we’d all be sleeping in the same room.
Didn’t bother me.
Still dangling, I scratched my chin, while Ash—who hadn’t expected that—looked slightly surprised.
While Lox and Chad hesitated at the steep price, the other travelers puffed up their chests and shouted again.
“If you can’t afford it, get lost! We’ll take it!”
“That’s not fair! We never said we wouldn’t rent it!”
“We’ve got money too! That woman has it!”
Hello, I might be hanging like this for now, but yes, I’m the financier of this group.
Following Chad’s gesture, I waved daintily at the eyes turning toward me.
Eventually, Ash did put me down, but he still held tightly to my collar.
Guess he thought I’d dash out again. But even if I didn’t, the fight had already begun.
“Move! We got here first! That room is ours!”
“Ha! What are you talking about? Technically, we were first! Three of you came later!”
“Our group was the first to arrive!”
“Hey! It’s been more than ten minutes since your time was up!”
“Potential guests? Please take your argument outside, you’re disturbing the others. Let me know when you’ve decided.”
Squabbles like this were common among tired travelers, and the receptionist—clearly used to it—just tossed the decision back to us and went about his business.
Still restrained by Ash, I could only cross my arms and watch the scene with an annoyed expression.
And then the fight went exactly where I expected.
“It’s our room!”
“No, ours!”
“Then it’s settled!”
“A duel!”
Chad raised his sheathed sword into the air and bellowed loud enough to shake the inn.
Like a massive battle gorilla.
“Come at me!”
Being from a kingdom of knights, this was nothing new to me.
In my previous world, this would’ve been absurd, but here, it was normal.
Right and wrong didn’t matter—only strength. Duels decided everything.
Even something like this.
It wasn’t surprising. Just annoying.
“Looks like they’re gonna fight.”
“Wanna watch?”
“Sure! Let’s even place bets!”
To others, duels weren’t shocking—they were entertainment.
Second only to watching a fire. Especially on a festival day, in front of this many people, it was bound to become a spectacle.
“Ash? I’ve got a great idea…”
“No.”
“Just hear me out. It’s totally peaceful. Not a drop of blood spilled.”
“What is it?”
Ash furrowed his brows, clearly skeptical.
It was a big misunderstanding to think I solved everything by killing people.
I was a graduate of Royal Drike Academy—nicknamed the genius factory—and I’d always ranked first in my department.
“We just buy the entire inn! How’s that?”
“……”
“I’ll do it.”
“Restrain yourself.”
Tch. I still think it’s a good idea.
—
We headed to the nearby city wall to find a dueling ground.
The wealthier and more populous a city was, the more complete its walls.
It was a measure of how prestigious a noble’s territory was.
“Poor” territories usually lacked proper walls.
Daniz was clearly in the former category—the walls encircled the city fully, towering and imposing.
The wall was even double-layered on the side facing the monster-infested mountains, giving the city a strong sense of safety.
“That place looks good.”
We arrived at a massive wall cutting across a hill.
The area around the wall had long been used for duels.
That’s because building near the walls was prohibited by the state.
Not only were the structures unstable due to poor building techniques, but walls were the first things destroyed in war.
So the space around them remained wide open—perfect for fighting.
“What’s the format? Time limit? How many fighters on your side? We’ve got three if we leave out Lox.”
“Two on our side.”
“Only two? You’re four.”
“One doesn’t fight, and the other is injured. So 2v2 is the best we’ve got.”
“Then it’ll be a winning streak match.”
That meant a fighter kept going until they lost.
It was common in even-numbered fights to avoid ties.
So if Chad beat their fighter, he wouldn’t stop—he’d fight the next one for a second win.
If he lost, our next fighter would go up against the one who beat him.
The team with the last fighter standing would win.
That meant choosing the order strategically—maybe having the strongest go last or having the second strongest start to take out as many as possible early.
In this 2v2, it was basically a bluffing game.
“We have an injured person, and you still don’t feel like giving up the room?”
“Not at all! We’ve got a weak non-combatant and a grumpy psycho on our side too!”
Wait a minute.
Was ‘I’ the grumpy psycho?
You trying to die, punk?!
Forget the 2v2—I’ll just send him straight to the afterlife… Oh, right. He’s on our side.
Shame. Let’s meet as enemies next life, Chad.
“We’ll send me and this guy. Who’re you putting up?”
“We…”
From our side, of course it would be Ash and Chad.
Lox wasn’t a fighter, and I couldn’t be bothered. Plus, I wasn’t technically part of Ash’s group.
“Oh, and this guy’s a mage, so I’d prefer a match for him on your side too.”
Everyone, including the onlookers from the inn, turned their eyes to me.
I’d just sat down on a rock, ready to enjoy the show, when I was unexpectedly called out.
I openly showed my distaste.
“Why me?”
“Your side’s got a mage too. Or not?”
“I’m a Spirit Mage.”
My appearance definitely looked more like a mage.
No metal on me, and my cloak flowed dramatically—screaming non-melee.
“Same difference.”
“It’s ‘totally’ different.”
“Anyway, if you’ve got any conscience at all, she should fight.”
“Ugh, such a pain. I told you, let’s just buy the place…”
Grumbling, I trudged toward the arena.
A magician vs. a swordsman was a clearly unfair matchup.
It heavily disadvantaged the magician, and it was customary in duels to match professions.
When I stepped forward, Chad looked at the opposing team and gave them a solemn moment of silence.
For them, not me.