The Golden-Haired Summoner - Chapter 9

[Will it wake up if we just leave it like that? Are you going to let it be?]

Arie asked, swaying his long body as if he was genuinely concerned. I twitched my lips at his question and turned my gaze to the ogre.

Upon closer inspection, the ogre’s body was moving slightly, and I could hear it wheezing.

“Tch, I knew it. I barely managed to knock out the orc, so did I really think an ogre would die so easily?”

“Anel, the ogre is still alive.”

“Huh!”

At my nonchalant remark, Anel quickly looked at the ogre in surprise. The surrounding mercenaries also turned their attention to the ogre. Realizing that it was still alive, they raised their weapons, ready to finish it off.

I shrugged my shoulders and picked up my sleeping bag. Exhaustion hit me, likely due to excessive mana usage.

Dragging my sleeping bag behind me, I walked toward a secluded spot that seemed somewhat peaceful.

[Arie, wake me up at dawn. I’ll shed your skin for you tomorrow.]

[Really? What color will it be?]

Arie’s voice was filled with excitement as he climbed onto my head. Although I considered that ashes might get on my head, I decided to let it slide since Arie had helped out.

[Hmm… Since it’s diamond, it’ll be white.]

[White? Won’t that make me a pure white snake? Humans always talk about how they wish I were a white snake for my supposed benefits. Could you add some patterns?]

[A pattern, huh? Sure, what kind of pattern do you want?]

A pattern… That didn’t sound like a bad idea.

[Hmm, how about tiger stripes? Or maybe leopard spots? Master, I want something charismatic. To be honest, my original black body with yellow stripes was a bit tacky.]

[Hmm… Oh, I have a pattern I like. Let’s go with that.]

I liked patterns that were elegant yet not too flashy. I preferred ones that had a sense of regularity.

[What is it? If it’s a pattern you like, Master, I’m really curious.]

[Polka dots. Do you like it? I personally love red polka dots, but you can choose the color. Just remember the base will be white.]

Polka dots! What a magnificent pattern. Come to think of it, I hadn’t seen many polka dots around here.

[What’s that, Master? For some reason, the word “polka dots” terrifies me.](Have I finally gotten used to this place?)

[Oh, come on, you don’t know what polka dots are? They’re like raindrop patterns.]

[…]

Finding a decent spot between two carts, I forced my sleeping bag into the gap. I hoped that if monsters showed up again, they wouldn’t find me. But then, I noticed Arie hadn’t responded.

[What’s wrong?]

[Master, by “polka dots,” do you mean… circles repeated over and over again?]

Arie lowered his head to meet my eyes, and I responded as if it were obvious.

[Yeah, those. They’re also called raindrop patterns.]

I nodded, then pulled Arie off my head and stuffed myself into the sleeping bag.

[Master, I have one request of a lifetime… Could I just be a plain white snake?]

[What? But you were the one who asked for a pattern.]

As I squeezed myself into the sleeping bag, Arie crawled out and said,

[That was… a joke. A joke. I prefer being plain, Master.]

[You! Just like before when you didn’t want to be a mouse! Even Adol is like that—when I suggested we call him “Cheery” as a nickname, he hated it. Why does everyone doubt my sense of style?]

When I spoke with a bit of irritation, Arie fell silent. After a moment of quiet, he suddenly spoke up.

[Master, today I’ve come to realize your greatness.]

[…?]

I tilted my head in confusion at Arie’s words. What was he talking about?

[Master, I really want to be a white snake—a purely white one.]

[But didn’t you say you didn’t like being a white snake?]

[No, that was just me being coy, Master. It’s a courtesy to be harder to get when you really like something, right?]

Arie pleaded earnestly while looking up at me. I thought I should respect his wishes sometimes, so I nodded.

[Fine. We can do that. I’ll save the polka dots for later.]

[I’ll guard this skin with my life, Master.]

Arie said in a serious tone, his voice filled with determination. I closed my eyes, exhausted from overexertion.

[Do whatever you want… I’m going to sleep.]

**Grumble…**

The next test subject was Kirk, the cook, and one of Arie’s sworn enemies. Kirk, busy preparing a meal, was shocked when the water in the pot suddenly floated up into the air. Before he could alert his comrades, the water splashed down on him, causing him to struggle and gasp for air as the water covered his upper body. Trying to escape, he chose to lie flat on the ground, but the water followed, eventually submerging his lower half, too. Kirk desperately flailed, trying to swim, but the water kept dragging him back under.

“Pfft!”

[Rahaha! Look at that big guy trying to swim on dry land, Master.]

Laughter slipped from my lips. Arie, looking ridiculous with his half-white and half-black appearance, didn’t hold back his laughter either.

“Kirk, stop!”

[Yes.]

At my command, Undine, who had been controlling the water, lowered her hands, causing the water to lose its form and disperse.

*Splash*

Kirk, who seemed on the verge of drowning, looked around in a daze, still not comprehending what had just happened as he sat on the now-muddy ground.

*Cough* “That’s strange… I was definitely… in the water…”

Ignoring Kirk as he squeezed the water out of his soaked clothes, I jotted down a few notes about the experiment’s improvements.

* There’s no need to cover the entire upper body to stop breathing. → Just cover the face with the minimum amount of water.
* If they resist too much, they might escape from the water. → Increase water pressure. Compress it.
* It’s hard to tell when they’re out of breath. → Keep it to one minute.
* The result is that they end up looking pathetic, and they even drool. → No solution.

“Hmm… Is that it, Undine?”

[Yes, Master?]

“If there’s no water around, you’ll have to create it to use your skills, right?”

[Yes.]

“And the less water you create, the less mana it uses?”

As I held my pen up, Undine nodded.

[Yes, Master. The amount of water is proportional to the amount of mana used.]

“So, do you really need to splash around so much water? Can’t you use a bit less?”

Undine shook her head apologetically at my question.

[No, it seems I’m not used to such precise control. I’ll try to reduce the amount next time, Master.]

“Is that so? Practice makes perfect. That’s fine. Next, let’s call Adol and practice combining Aqua Ball and Shock.”

[Yes!]

After the ogre incident, we descended the mountain with ease. It seemed that monsters weaker than the ogre were avoiding the area due to its presence.

Now, it was only two days until we reached Veilan, and we had passed all the dangerous monster zones. All that remained was a peaceful descent.

Over the past two days, Rai’s body had undergone about half of its transformation, and with plenty of test subjects, I was in the process of developing new spells.

Naturally, the mercenaries, who had been subjected to various strange experiments, quickly realized that complaining only increased the number of experiments I conducted on them, so they soon quieted down.

My goal was to defeat all the mercenaries, except for Anel.

“Hehe.”

The endless supply of test subjects kept me entertained.

A moment of silence for the Saber Mercenary Corps, who sacrificed themselves for my endless development.

**
It looks like Chapter 5 has finally come to an end. Now we’re moving on to the final part of Volume 1: the bittersweet farewell!
Enjoy reading~
**

**A Bittersweet Farewell**

As we exited the lower slopes of the mountain range, surrounded by trees, the surrounding foliage thinned significantly. In the distance, the walls of Veilan’s capital, Balen, came into view.

Compared to the towering, imposing walls surrounding Dimitri’s capital, Sharan, Balen’s walls seemed rather modest. (I’d really like to see it in person… someday.)

“Geenie, that’s Balen, the capital of Veilan.”

Anel pointed toward the distant capital of Balen.

“Yes, I see it. But it seems a bit smaller compared to Sharan’s walls.”

“Hehe, but don’t underestimate it. While Sharan’s walls are tall and sturdy, Balen’s walls are heavily reinforced with powerful barrier magic.”

“Wow, barrier magic? That sounds impressive.”

Suddenly, Balen’s humble-looking walls seemed more refined, but maybe that was just my impression.

One of the first things I learned in Drike was that Dimitri and Veilan were originally one country.

Currently, the two major empires that divide the continent, the Holy Empire of Elan and the Dark Empire of Koiren, are mediated by the neutral empire of Drimir.

However, the conflict between the martial faction, which wanted to unify the continent, and the literary

faction, which wanted to maintain neutrality, escalated into a civil war, ultimately splitting the country into two kingdoms at the Dragonia Mountains.

One of the three great empires that once ruled the continent collapsed without a fight.

Naturally, Elan and Koiren didn’t leave the two divided kingdoms alone.

As a result, Dimitri became an ally of Elan. Veilan, which insisted on maintaining its neutrality, eventually chose to support the Holy Empire of Elan, rather than being treated as an enemy by Koiren.

This further strained the relationship between Veilan and Dimitri.

“Geenie, once we enter the city, be careful with your words, okay?”

“Why?”

“Even though we all speak the common language of the continent, there’s a difference in accent. You have a strong Dimitri accent. Everyone knows that Veilan and Dimitri people are enemies, and that’s even more evident in larger cities.”

“Hmm, I see.”

The reason we were heading to Veilan, despite being enemies, was due to an order to use teleportation.

The distance from Dimitri to Elan by carriage takes about four and a half months. Traveling such a long distance with twenty-odd children was obviously a challenge.

Even if we made it, I thought it would only lower the children’s morale, so the king had no choice but to opt for that method.

“Now, we’re about to go downhill. Hold onto me, Geenie.”

Anel extended her hand to me. I grabbed her tanned hand, looking at the steep path ahead. I couldn’t help but wonder where Anel, with her dark skin and silver hair, came from.

“Anel, where are you from?”

“Me? If you must know, I’m from the Kingdom of Koran. But I don’t really think of it as my homeland since I grew up in the Black Jungle, which is included in Koran. My true homeland is the vast jungle where my brave Silver Wolf tribe lives.”

“Silver Wolf? Oh! I’ve heard of them. They’re a distinguished minority tribe in Koran, known for their silver hair and dual-wielding warriors.”

Come to think of it, Anel’s appearance closely matched what I vaguely remembered learning about the Silver Wolf tribe. It only came to mind now because I didn’t pay much attention in class.

“Oh, you know a lot? Are we that famous?”

Anel asked with wide eyes.

In fact, knowing the characteristics of a specific tribe in a certain country is quite detailed knowledge.

As a student in the comprehensive class at Drike, where I received an extensive amount of education, I ended up accumulating more knowledge than necessary.

After descending the mountain and walking a bit further, we finally reached the gates.

Shavel, the leader of the mercenaries, greeted the gatekeeper, who nodded in recognition.

“It’s been a while.”

“Has it? Well, there hasn’t been much work lately.”

“Then you know the drill. Please show me the transportation permit, mercenary pass, and the cargo list.”

After a brief exchange, Shavel handed the gatekeeper two sheets of paper and his mercenary pass.

“Hmm, two carts of plaster, one cart of sculptures, one cart of gilded frames, one cart of valuable art and sculptures, a total of five carts, all being delivered to the Dalph Art Museum.”

“Yes, it was a tricky transport. And it says there are 23 mercenaries in total, right? There’s one more person who’s not a mercenary.”

The gatekeeper’s eyes turned to me at Shavel’s words. I didn’t avoid his gaze and stared back.

I had no luggage, so naturally, I didn’t have any identification, not to mention the student badge that marked me as a Drike student.

“So, it’s this girl. Mr. Shavel, you’ll have to sign a form stating that you’ll take full responsibility for any problems she causes inside.”

At the gatekeeper’s calm words, Shavel gave me a strange look.

“I can’t guarantee she won’t cause any problems… What happens if she does?”

“Simply put, Mr. Shavel, you’ll be her guarantor. If she causes any trouble, you’ll have to either go to jail or pay a fine.”

Shavel’s gaze darkened as he turned to look at me, his expression far from pleased. Well, I had caused quite a few problems recently.

“Her party will arrive in about ten days. Can’t we work something out until then?”

“Her party?”

The gatekeeper squinted suspiciously, and Shavel nodded in response.

“Yes, she’s a student from the famous Drike Academy. She got separated from her group on the way to the Winkan Festival, so she joined us.”

“…Drike Academy? Our Valentino Academy is far more renowned. Besides, how do you prove she’s a Drike student?”

Drike? That guy is underestimating me.

“Sure, sure, Valentino is more famous. But can’t we work something out for just one person?”

Completely oblivious to my glaring, Shavel only looked at the gatekeeper.

“No, not at all. Especially since she’s from Dimitri… it’s almost certain she’ll cause trouble.”

“Hmm, so I really have to vouch for her?”

Have you seen me cause any trouble? Have you? I shot the gatekeeper a particularly nasty look and gave him the middle finger when he wasn’t looking.

“…What is that girl doing right now?”

“Um? Ah, it’s probably just a really friendly greeting.”

“I don’t think so. Anyway, if you don’t sign the guarantor form, she won’t be allowed in.”

So you’re telling me to stay outside the city? This delicate young lady?

[Master, shall I bite him?]

Arie, who had completed most of his diamond transformation except for his tail, slipped out and wagged his black tail.

[Later, at night. If you bite him now, they’ll know it was you.]

[So I can bite him at night?]

Arie, who had recently developed a taste for biting people, asked excitedly, and I nodded.

[As much as you want…]

[Even the bear?]

It seemed Arie still had a grudge against Kenta. But recently, they hadn’t clashed because Arie had been undergoing major renovations.

[Why him?]

[He’s annoying.]

[True. Then, bite the leader too on our way out.]

[Got it! Just leave it to me, Master.]

Shavel entered the guardhouse, seemingly finished with the conversation.

Shortly after, I found myself entering the capital city of Balen after a grueling ordeal.

Balen, with its quaint buildings lined up, was very different from Sharan and piqued my curiosity.

Veilan is famous for its massive public library, which is said to cover a thousand pyeong. I was planning to visit it.

I had about ten days until the Drike group arrived, so I had plenty of time. Now, what should I do during that time…

“Hehe.”

[Oh, Master, did you think of something fun?]

**A Place Where the Wind Rests**

Following the mercenary group, I stood in front of a rather ordinary-looking inn. They said it was their regular place.

I was slightly excited as I entered the inn for the first and last time since joining the mercenaries.

I set modest goals for myself: to have a proper meal, to wash up since I hadn’t been able to bathe due to the lack of a tub, and to drink a warm glass of milk before bed.

But just as I was about to enter the inn, I had to take a quick step back and cover my nose.

“Hey, kid! Are you coming in or not?”

The mercenaries who were following behind me stopped when I did and shouted.

“…Here?”

“Do you want to stay outside?”

The inn was much larger inside than it appeared from the outside. The problem wasn’t the tough-looking guys filling the place, nor the fact that they were all staring at us, especially at me, who stood out among the group.

The issue was the thick, white smoke filling the inn, making the people’s faces look pale.

It was definitely cigarette smoke, but what made it so strong?

*Cough, cough!*

I hated smoke, especially when it was thick enough to obscure my view. I hesitated briefly at the dense, suffocating smoke.

In the end, I had no choice but to be pushed inside by the twenty-some mercenaries. The inn was so full of smoke that it was difficult to breathe.

I figured that, with this amount of smoke, I wouldn’t even need to smoke; just breathing in the recycled smoke might be enough.

Clinging tightly to Anel’s clothes, I wrinkled my nose in displeasure.

Shavel approached the counter, and Anel and I followed. All eyes were on me.

[Why are they staring at us?]

[Maybe because I’m so beautiful?]

If not that, then maybe they’ve never seen a child around here…

[…I don’t think that’s the case, Master!]

[Are you daring to contradict your Master?]

[No, of course not.]

Rai’s voice was filled with denial.

As I watched Shavel complete the payment, I spoke indifferently.

[Then why do you think everyone’s staring at us?]

[Hmm, maybe because I’m so beautiful…]

[Shut up.]

I feared people might say that the spirit is just like the master.

[Sniff, sniff.]

Ignoring Rai’s pitiful sniffles, I watched Shavel finish the transaction. He turned to me and spoke.

[Then why do you think everyone’s staring at us?]

[Hmm, maybe because I’m so beautiful…]

[Sh

ut up.]

I feared people might say that the spirit is just like the master.

[Sniff, sniff.]

Ignoring Rai’s pitiful sniffles, I watched Shavel finish the transaction.

“Hmph! She says, ‘Hmph!’ How cute.”

I turned my head toward the voice. It was a voice that wasn’t just unpleasant to my ears but downright irritating.

When my gaze landed on the source, I saw a large man, not as big as Kenta, but still quite sizable, grinning at me with half-lidded eyes and thick lips.

He waved his hand slowly at me with a wide, toad-like smile and said,

“Hehe, the scared expression is even cuter.”

[Yuck! Master, I feel like I’m going to throw up the mana stone I ate earlier.]

“Keep it down.”

That greasy smile was so strong that even Arie stopped whining. I turned my head away.

I can forgive someone for being ugly, but not for being greasy. This guy didn’t know about my principles.

I clung even tighter to Anel’s clothes. As we climbed the stairs to the room, I felt a shiver run down my spine for some reason.

I glanced at the toad man and made eye contact with him.

“Hehe, she’s shaking in fear. If only everyone looked as good as me.”

Please, just stop smiling.

“…Go to hell.”

[Yeah, yeah! Go to hell! Go to hell!]

I turned my head quickly. The man was still staring at me with that unbearable look.

No matter how good my tolerance was, I couldn’t handle that smile. I shivered again, and Anel called out to me in a puzzled voice.

“Geenie!”

Her tone made me realize that I had accidentally spoken out loud.

Quickly, I put on my best innocent smile, one of my secret weapons.

“Yes? Anel?”

It was the smile I used when mercenaries came to complain after I had experimented on them, the “I didn’t do anything wrong” smile.

“Just now… No, never mind. I must have misheard.”

“Is that so? Let’s go!”

“Geenie, I’ll go down first. Make sure you wash behind your ears.”

Anel said as she started getting dressed.

“Okay~.”

After each of us had taken our baths, we planned to have dinner together.

Following my plan, I bathed first, with Anel and Undine’s help. Undine drew the water for us.

After shampooing her hair, Anel left. I sank back into the tub.

I’d better hurry and wash up so I can eat. But will that greasy man still be around?

The thought of his smile made me shiver again.

[Master, should I pour more hot water?]

“Hmm, no, I’m fine.”

I shook my head at Undine’s suggestion as she sat perched on the edge of the tub.

My golden hair floated on the water, which was still steaming. It had grown down to my waist, so the golden strands spread across my shoulders.

Despite being soaked, it still retained its curls. Hmm, it seemed I inherited my hair from my father in this world, while my eyes were from my mother.

Thinking that far, I remembered my grandfather, who was always telling me to be a model noble because of my typical noble appearance.

The grandfather I met for the first time in this world, a very typical noble old man.

He was a rare, frightening figure to me, always starting his sentences with “a noble is” whenever we met once a year.

If I had to name people I’d never dare disobey, it would be my grandfather, King Dikell III of Dimitri, and then Irue and Anel. For some reason, Irue was hard to deal with.

Anel was my savior and caretaker… Let’s exclude Kenta from this list.

As my body relaxed in the warm water, I began to feel sleepy. Just as I was about to drift off, I forced myself to get up.

After quickly drying off, I put on the freshly washed clothes Undine had prepared for me.

I’d been surviving on this one outfit for five days now. This was the first time it had been washed. Then again, with no chance to bathe, there hadn’t been time to wash clothes.

The best I could do was wash my hair. Well, considering we were in the mountains, that was something.

The massive Dragonia mountain range, said to have been formed by the body of the Dragon Lord, stretches across the continent.

In certain parts of the range, there’s an unusually high concentration of mana, and the area I crossed was one of those places.

Naturally, this makes it the ideal place for mana training, but it’s also infested with monsters, making it dangerous.

Mana doesn’t just grant humans power; it also strengthens monsters.

The reason the mercenaries and I made it down the mountain safely was thanks to the ogre we had defeated near the summit.

We sprinkled the ogre’s blood around the carts, and some of us carried pouches of its blood.

This method kept monsters weaker than the ogre at bay.

Training in a place with such a high mana concentration meant that I could accumulate much more mana in a short time.

I managed to gather about 30% more mana than usual. Increasing the amount of mana I had was quite satisfying.

Now that Rai’s body was almost fully transformed, I decided it was time to make some money and buy new clothes. After all, I have standards to maintain.

Undine absorbed the water droplets from my hair. Feeling much fresher, I left the room.

“Hmm…”

I scanned the inn’s tough-looking crowd for a familiar face.

In one corner, Kenta stood out, his large frame drawing attention as he chatted noisily with the other mercenaries.

I walked over to the table where the mercenaries had gathered, and one of them, noticing me, pulled out an empty chair and gestured for me to sit.

“Hmm… Where did my chair go?”

“…”

Just as I was about to sit, a man with a foamy mug of beer appeared, looking around. Was he the owner of the chair?

“What are you doing, kid? Go ahead and sit.”

“Okay!”

I didn’t hesitate and sat down, not bothering to refuse twice.

The table was laden with food, most of it meat, with some items that looked like alcohol.

I scanned the table, trying to decide what to eat, when a large piece of meat was placed in front of me. …Was that for me?

“Is this for me?”

The mercenary, who had recently been the subject of one of my experiments, seemed to have forgotten about it. He handed me the precious meat with a casual attitude.

“Of course it’s for you, kid.”

“Uh… thank you. Hehe.”

Recently, I’d been thinking that the Saber Mercenary Corps were good people despite their appearances.

They were all kind of silly, really. Not that I thought that just because they gave me meat.

[Master, isn’t this the guy you used for that experiment where you made water go up his nose?]

At Rai’s question, I glanced at the mercenary, who I thought was named Halk. Was it him?

[I think so. Why?]

[I don’t know, I just thought he might be crazy.]

[Crazy? Why? He seems fine to me.]

I tilted my head, watching Halk gulp down his beer.

[Because after what you did to him, he’s giving you meat. It seems like he’s either lost his mind or the pain was so intense that he’s suffering from partial amnesia.]

Rai’s words were annoying, but they made sense. Still, I didn’t want to admit it so easily.

[Hmph! He’s simply bowing down to my charm.]

[…]

Ignoring Rai’s silence, I dug into the meat.

First, I was hungry, and more importantly, I hadn’t seen proper food in a while, so I grabbed it with both hands and started eating without any manners.

As I devoured the meat, I suddenly realized that Shavel and Anel were nowhere to be seen.

“Mmph, whph aaph?”

I tried to ask where Anel and Shavel had gone, but the chunk of meat in my mouth obstructed my words.

However, Kenta, sitting next to me, seemed to understand and nodded.

“They went to get ready for our departure tomorrow.”

I didn’t quite catch that, but I decided to let it slide since I wasn’t in the mood for proper conversation.

As I tried to swallow the meat and speak properly, I felt a hand rest on my shoulder.

I looked around my shoulder and then at Kenta and Halk on either side of me. It wasn’t either of them.

“Hehehe. How cute.”

The unpleasant breath made me lose my appetite, and I spat out the meat in my mouth.

I wasn’t sure what my face looked like, but it must have been a mess.

At that moment, the chair I was sitting on turned around, and I found myself face-to-face with the toad-like man, grinning at me.

“Pfft!”

The piece of meat I was holding flew out and smacked him right in the face. He blinked his eyes shut. I felt a little, just a little, sorry.

[Yuck!]

Yuck? Arie, you’re guilty of doing the same thing!

I felt a growing sense of anger at Arie and the overwhelming discomfort of the man in front of me.

“Uh… Well, I guess I was too handsome for you. Hehehe!”

Hey, have you ever seen a mirror before? I couldn’t help but feel uneasy around this man, so I slid off my chair and stood next to Kenta, tugging at his clothes.

“H

mhm?”

Kenta was still chewing on his food, looking puzzled.

As Kenta turned his head, he locked eyes with the greasy man. There was a brief moment of silence, then…

“Pooh!”

The silence was broken by Kenta’s reaction, which was on a whole new level of grossness compared to what I had just done.

A newfound sense of camaraderie welled up in me as I looked at Kenta, who had reacted just like I had.

“Gaaah!”

Whether it was because of the quantity or because the food had been chewed thoroughly, the man screamed as his face was covered with a mixture of food and beer.

He frantically wiped his face clean, sending bits of food flying everywhere, with one of them landing with a plop in another man’s beer mug.

“Aaargh!”

The man who had just had his beer ruined glared at us with a furious look. The atmosphere became a bit tense.

Oh no… I crouched down and crawled under the table.

[Master, are you hiding?]

[I’m just observing.]

I peeked out from under the table.

The greasy man was still wiping his face with a towel handed to him by a subordinate, while Kenta, after glaring at him, went back to eating his meat. What a glutton.

“Jealous of my good looks, are you? How dare you spit out your nasty food on me! Cowardly Kenta, I guess you’ve finally grown a pair!”

What? It seemed like Kenta and the greasy man knew each other.

At the greasy man’s words, Kenta scoffed and replied.

“Hah! And you’re a damn coward, spitting out your disgusting food! What are you doing, throwing yourself in front of us like that? You made me waste perfectly good food!”

“Disgusting? You cowards, only good for taking on transport jobs!”

Their voices grew louder and louder. The greasy man mentioned the mercenary group, causing the other mercenaries to rise to their feet.

I was thinking the situation was escalating when suddenly, someone poured beer over the greasy man’s head.

“You toad! How dare you ruin my beer… You want to die?”

It was the man whose beer had been ruined. Behind him stood several other tough-looking guys, clearly part of his group.

“Pfft, you look like a wet frog now. Hahaha!”

“You… you bastards!”

Frogs are cuter than toads, but the greasy man was clearly furious. His small eyes bulged in anger, making him look even more ridiculous.

“No need for words! Come on, you frog prince!”

At Kenta’s taunt, the man grabbed his weapon, a spear.

“You muscle-bound idiot! Today, I’m going to smash that ugly face of yours!”

“Who’s ugly?”

“What about my beer?”

They seemed determined to fight, and the three of them headed toward the door.

As they moved away, I crawled out from under the table. I felt a bit guilty, thinking that the fight might have started because of me.

Just as Kenta was about to open the door…

*Bang*

“Oof!”

The door swung open, hitting Kenta square in the face.

Someone else walked in, and I felt a moment of fear, wondering if the fight was about to get even bigger.

“Oh! Kenta?”

Fortunately, it was Anel and Shavel.

Anel glanced at Kenta before turning to the other two men.

“Oh! Isn’t this Anelia?”

“Huh?”

The man who had ruined the greasy man’s beer lit up when he saw Anel.

Without hesitation, he grabbed Anel’s hand, leaving her a bit bewildered.

“Wow, today is my lucky day! Meeting Anelia! That black skin, silver hair, and dual swords… You must be Anelia!”

The man seemed to have completely forgotten about the incident with the beer. He was convinced that today was his lucky day.

“Yes, that’s me… Could you please let go of my hand?”

At Anel’s request, the man reluctantly released her hand.

Behind him, the other two men grumbled.

“Hmph, what’s so great about Anel? She’s got a temper… Oof!”

Kenta wasn’t having a good day either. Anel’s angry strike hit him squarely on the forehead, causing him to groan in pain.

Anel sheathed her sword in an instant, then turned to the greasy man with a questioning look.

“Ahaha, I don’t care if it’s Anel or Amel. A beauty is a beauty.”

The greasy man said, pointing at one of the other men. All eyes in the inn turned to me.

“Huh?”

Feeling awkward under their gazes, I looked around nervously.

What is that toad talking about? It can’t be me, right?

“…Geenie?”

Anel’s voice sounded a bit uncertain.

“Hehe, Geenie? That’s a cute name. Do you want to play with me, little girl?”

Ugh! This is a nightmare.

[Master, isn’t this what they call a “lolicon”? Hehe! I’m pretty smart, aren’t I?]

I grabbed Arie from my waist and threw him at the greasy man who was staring at me from afar.

Toads and snakes are naturally good friends, so it was only fitting that I sent Arie his way.

The attention that had been focused on me shifted to Arie, who had landed on the floor.

A chilling silence fell over the inn, and I regretted my actions. Life was tough.

The silence was soon followed by chaos. Someone in the inn shouted,

“It’s a white snake!”

As soon as the words left his mouth, the men in the inn jumped up from their seats. The first to grab Arie was…

“It’s mine!”

[Hiss! Why would I be yours? Let go, you idiot!]

It was Kenta. Whether by luck or bad fortune, Arie had landed right in the middle of Kenta, Anel, Shavel, the greasy man, and Anel’s fan.

Kenta quickly grabbed Arie with both hands and claimed ownership, while Arie fiercely protested.

Soon, a few others approached Kenta.

“Tsk… You know, good things are meant to be shared, right?”

“Yeah, yeah. They say white snakes are great for stamina. How about we make some snake wine together?”

Kenta snorted and lifted Arie, saying,

“You guys don’t know anything. The best things are meant to be enjoyed alone! And when it comes to snakes, grilling is the way to go!”

“What nonsense! Snakes are best when made into wine!”

“Ah! Let me tell you about a true delicacy. Have you ever heard of snake shabu-shabu?”

A few more men joined in, crowding around Kenta.

The group, now about ten strong, started arguing about how to cook the snake.

[Master, Master! Help me!]

I ignored Rai’s desperate plea as I happily ate my meal, satisfied that things hadn’t escalated too much.

It seemed that I wasn’t fated to die today. The greasy man had also joined the snake-cooking debate, so I continued eating in peace.

“Alright! We’ve decided on grilled snake.”

It seemed the decision had been made, as Kenta stood up, declaring it loudly.

“Well, grilled isn’t bad. As long as I get to taste white snake.”

“Should we use the bones to make broth?”

I heard murmurs as the others stood up as well.

At their murmuring, Kenta suddenly changed his expression and said,

“This is mine! Who said you could taste it or make broth from it?”

Kenta’s words caused the others to get agitated.

“What? How could you do this?”

“Are you going to destroy our friendship over this?”

“Tsk! They say you can’t trust anyone when it comes to food. I thought I could trust you!”

“I’m fine with just getting the skin.”

Had they already bonded over this in less than ten minutes? The sight of ten or so men crowding around Kenta was a bit intimidating.

“You can’t have it! I won’t share!”