Ch. 168
Lox was glaring daggers at us the moment he came back.
Oh my, terrifying.
“You’re back?”
There was no way he’d let this go.
At my pleasant greeting, he abandoned his horse in the middle of the street and charged at me like a mad bull, grabbing me by the collar.
Lox, of all people!
“Hey! Is this how you treat a lady?”
“You’ve lost your mind!”
“Why are you like this! What did I do!”
“How dare you treat the princ— I mean, Ash—like a servant!”
“Me? I’d say I’m a rare beauty and Spirit Mage.”
I picked my ear and blew at it.
“Of course, I meant Spirit Mages are rare, not that I’m a rare beauty. Oh, but that last part’s modesty, you know? Meaning I’m still amazing.”
“…This is why I can’t stand you!”
“So what! Let go already!”
Who cares if you hate me or not!
“Stop bossing Ash around!”
“I’ll do whatever I want!”
“Lox!”
Before it turned into a full-blown fight, Ash stepped in and pried him off me.
Ash didn’t even look surprised anymore—guess he’d gotten used to this.
I smirked at Lox, who was flailing in Ash’s grasp.
“He does it willingly. What do you want me to do? It’s not like I’m forcing him.”
“You just admitted it!”
“Oops.”
“I knew it! You’ve got something on him! A weakness! I knew it!”
Quick on the uptake, aren’t you?
Should’ve killed him before I got attached.
“Ash! What did she do to you?!”
He had no problem grabbing ‘my’ collar, but not even the guts to touch Ash’s. How convenient.
Disgusting double standards.
“Lox, this isn’t right.”
“What? I’m just—”
“Enough. I’ll handle it.”
“Fine! But admit it—she’s got something on you, right? What is it?”
“I can’t tell you.”
“Ash!”
“It’s not what you think. It’s… purely personal…”
And there it was again—his “face explosion” disease. Lox looked like he’d just witnessed a tragedy.
His face was bright red again. Hopefully it wasn’t fatal.
“Ash! How could you! How can you keep secrets from me?!”
“Sorry, Lox.”
“What did you two ‘do’?!”
“What are you even imagining! It’s not like that!”
“Then what is it?!”
You know, this was starting to look like a love triangle.
Heh. Time to add fuel to the fire.
I dusted off my clothes and gestured elegantly.
“Ash, help me up.”
Ash came forward immediately, assisting me with perfect manners—exactly as I expected.
He knelt so I could step on his knee, used his shoulder as leverage, and helped me up into the saddle with ease.
That’s the sort of thing noblemen do for their ladies—or lovers.
Meaning… I’d just stepped on a prince’s knee to mount a horse. Hohoho!
“T-that woman!”
“What a shame. I’m doing great, actually.”
A smile escaped me.
If Lox died of high blood pressure someday, I’d probably be the cause. I’d even attend the funeral.
“What’s going on here?”
“What’s all the shouting? And whose horse is that—Lox’s?”
While I basked in satisfaction and Lox clutched his neck like it might snap, the rest of the group arrived.
Chad and Enk led their horses, and Gale trailed behind.
Lox looked about ready to explode.
“She’s treating Ash like a slave! I saw it! Made him help her onto a horse! Made him brush her hair!”
“What!”
Enk’s eyes widened, and he rushed over to me.
What now? You gonna grab my collar too?
“Please, let me do it too!”
“Huh?”
“You’re insane, Enk!”
At this rate, I might need a sign-up sheet. Though honestly, I wouldn’t want Enk touching my hair.
Ash, on the other hand… hmm. Why ‘was’ that fine?
“Hey! Enough fooling around, let’s get moving. The sun’ll be up soon.”
Chad’s voice boomed as Gale finally joined us at the meeting point.
I was already on my horse, luggage secured, so I took my time stretching.
Ash had done all the prep, but hey—results matter.
“I’m ready whenever. The next city’s Femmington, right? The one with the port?”
“Yeah. If we hurry, we’ll reach it in three days.”
“What’s good to eat there?”
“They’re famous for seafood.”
Even though Chad and I weren’t exactly best friends, food always managed to bridge that gap. I licked my lips and urged everyone forward.
“Hurry up! I love shrimp! Let’s go!”
“We’re not going ‘just’ to eat shrimp.”
“I know. We’re taking the ship to Heidrike after that, right?”
“Yeah, but where’s your mutt? He’s usually glued to you. Rai, wasn’t it?”
Trust Chad to notice first—probably because Rai almost killed him once.
Still, kind of touching. Too bad he remembered something I’d rather forget.
[Master…]
[Must be ghosts. I’m hearing nonsense.]
[Can’t you forgive me? I’ll brush your hair too…]
[Not listening! Too late for that act!]
I kicked my horse forward. The rhythmic ‘clop-clop’ of its hooves mixed with Rai’s desperate cries.
[Waaah! Master! I hate this! I’d rather be a candlestick again!]
[It’s a punishment. Of course it’s not fun.]
[Ahhh! It stepped in poop!]
[You’ve offended my dignity, Rai.]
For the crime of angering your master—your punishment is to become a horseshoe!
Enjoy being stuck under a hoof until we reach Femmington!
[Kyaaaak!]
There weren’t many ways to hurt a spirit. Psychological torment was my only option—and I was feeling particularly creative today.
While Ash went to buy breakfast, I had swapped one of the horse’s iron shoes with Rai.
It was simple enough. The only hard part was cramming him under the hoof while he clung to my leg, begging for forgiveness.
[Ugh! You’re so cruel, Master!]
How’s that taste, you little brat?
I deliberately steered through the dirtiest puddles.
[You’re heartless! A monster! A psychopath!]
“Ha, refreshing. Don’t worry about him—he’s fine. Let’s go.”
“What? We can’t just leave him! You didn’t abandon him somewhere, did you? That’s bad karma!”
“I guarantee he’ll pop up in Femmington like magic.”
They didn’t look convinced, but who cares.
“What kind of spell is that?”
“Are you serious? Killing people is one thing, but abandoning a dog—”
“Tell you what. If he doesn’t show up, I’ll leave the party.”
The horse’s hooves splashed through a filthy puddle as Lox clasped his hands together and muttered what was ‘definitely’ a prayer.
I couldn’t hear it, but I could guess—he was praying Rai ‘wouldn’t’ come back.
[Kyaaaak!]
‘Splash.’
Ah. I should probably admit it now. I might have just a tiny hint of sadistic tendencies.
—
We were heading toward the port city of Femmington, the closest to Daniz. From there, we’d sail to the island nation of Heidrike.
Our final destination, ‘Hirillike’, was believed to lie there—where the Cup of the Golden Star was hidden.
Hirillike was so small it barely appeared on maps, but it wasn’t far from the dock. If we didn’t get lost, we could reach it the same day we landed.
If luck—or divine favor—was on our side, we could find the Cup within the week.
Maybe I’d finally see what the gods thought of me.
“The problem is, ancient maps have a large margin of error. So we need to compare them to modern ones and pinpoint the exact area.”
“Yawn.”
“And who in our party has the expertise to do that? Me, of course. It might sound simple, but trust me, it isn’t. What you need to do first is—”
Lox was torturing me with a nonstop lecture, like some cursed exam prep broadcast.
He called it “education,” but honestly, I was starting to think it was his way of expressing hatred.
I wasn’t listening, but my ears still suffered.
When I tried speeding up my horse to escape, he just followed, now explaining in detail the various traps found in ancient dungeons and how to dismantle them.
‘Someone please kill me…’
I glanced at the others, but no one came to my rescue.
They just gave me solemn, sympathetic gestures—like survivors who’d already endured the same horror.
By the time night fell and I was seriously considering knocking Lox unconscious, we finally reached a resting site.
A blessing for both of us.
The men split up for their usual tasks—Gale and Enk went hunting, Chad started cooking, and I joined Ash to gather firewood.
The forest darkened quickly. Ash moved through the shadows with ease, picking up dry twigs.
Sharp eyes, that one—like a wild beast.
I stumbled around with my foot until I gave up and summoned Ador.
[Master! Don’t tell me you’re using me as a torch again!]
[Correct.]
[I hate this! I want something epic! When do I get to do something grand? I’m made for battles!]
[Shut up. I like my life calm and peaceful.]
No tragedies, no hardships!
As I lectured the whining Ador about the beauty of uneventful living, Ash approached, looking concerned.
“Geenie, wet branches won’t light well. You should pick dry ones like these.”
“I know dry wood’s better. I’ve lived in a forest before, you know—an actual jungle.”
After surviving two months stranded thanks to a dragon kidnapping, I was practically an expert in outdoor living.
Ash tilted his head like a curious bird, innocent and intrigued by my strange sense of pride.