http%3a%2f%2fi.imgur.com%2fS8U7Bg7.png [http://i.imgur.com/S8U7Bg7.png]
“So,” I said while pointing at the map, “What is this orange colored zone at the top?”
“Ah, that’s the Northland Line. Above it the winters get particularly harsh and it’s hard to grow crops. The people who live there seem to be taller and more robust in stature,” said Tenia. I was astounded by how much she seemed to learn in one day of exploring the nearby town.
“The purple lines are main highways, I’m assuming.”
“That’s correct.”
“Okay, the Hidet Theocracy is connected to this smaller city surrounded by mountains in the north here…”
“That small city is New Hidet, it’s a town built on a labyrinth,” interrupted Tenia.
“Okay,” I replied, “are there any unmarked roads between this New Hidet and our little town?”
“There are many old roads through The Great Thrush Woods,” said Tenia, “but they are mostly considered unsafe due to monster activity.”
“Well, I don’t think we need to worry too much about monster activity around here if they don’t go past level 30,” I said with a grin. Benson gave a slight chuckle too.
“You said a labyrinth,” said Benson as he regained his composure, “is it like the dungeons in the world before… You know?”
“I don’t know,” replied Tenia, “I didn’t go that far into detail. That seemed like a question even an ignorant tourist would know the answer to, so I didn’t ask it.”
“For now let’s assume it’s something similar,” I said, changing the conversation’s tone, “we can worry about that later. Tell me, Tenia, what kind of natural ingredients and materials did you find on your way to the town and back?”
“I found numerous herbs, Phoson type plants, and Brush Goulds.”
“Hmm, so the ingredients for crystallization potions and anti-toxins. Was there nothing else?” I asked.
“I used my [Ingredient Scan] while I moved, but mine’s not nearly as high leveled as yours mistress. It’s likely I missed several rare plants along the way.”
“Ah, that’s fine. Tomorrow I want to go see this town, anyways. I’ll use [Ingredient Scan] on the way to see if I can find anything. Benson, will you be fine protecting our base and, if you have the time, hunting some game?”
“Yes, Mistress,” he replied with a grin. The prospect of hunting seemed to excite him a bit.
“Don’t go bringing back anything strange, mind you. I’m not eating giant bug meat or something stupid. Just go catch some deer or boar monsters. And don’t go overboard either. If you upset the ecosystem of the forest doing something dumb we’ll probably be unable to sustain living here for long.”
The wind seemed to drain from Benson’s sails after I gave him stricter commands. I seemed to have hit the nail on the head in regards to his intentions. Knowing him he was going to go find the biggest monster in this entire forest, no matter what it was, and drag it back. If I hadn’t called him out, he’d surely have brought back something like a giant spider for us to eat.
I reached my hand out and picked up the mug of tea. Without thinking I took a sip and immediately found my face scrunching up. To be honest, this was the first time in my life I had ever tried anything other than ‘iced’ tea. I didn’t really like it. It had a medicine flavor to it…
“Was the tea not to your liking, mistress?” Asked Tenia.
“Ah, don’t worry about it. Perhaps, from now on, if you want to get me a drink just bring a glass of water. I don’t think I like tea very much,” I replied as I set the mug down to my side.
“There are many types of tea, mistress. It’s unfortunate we only have a few available at the moment, but I’m sure if you give me time I’ll find a flavor you like.”
“It’s fine, Tenia. Just, for now, I’ll stick to water.”
“Yes, mistress.”
“Okay then, we have the start of a game plan for tomorrow then. Tenia and I will go to the town to trade in some ‘G’ for Marks. Going by the valuation, we should probably keep the amount low enough to prevent rumors from spreading… I’d say 100 ‘G’ at most. It’s probably best to find other Merchant Guilds so we can trade in our currency slowly. If we ever bring out too much money all at once we’ll be marked immediately, after all.”
I quickly pulled out 100 ‘G’ from my inventory, but the sack was rather large and bulky. It’d be inconvenient to carry.
“Did you see any other people with the ability to use [Inventory] like us in town, Tenia?” I asked.
“Unfortunately I did not,” she replied curtly, “in fact this was something I hadn’t been able to find any information on in my lurking. I assume, in any world with magic, there must be some kind of hammer space items or skills… But I think the town is simply too rural and out of the way to have it.”
“Then, should we let others know we have it?” I asked aloud.
“I’d assume we should hide the ability… To be honest, I don’t think mistress should show herself in town,” said Tenia.
“Why is that?” I asked.
“My cover story at the Merchant’s Guild was that I worked for a young noble… But if you’re going to be a noble then some things would need to happen. First of all, you’d need to arrive in a carriage or some other form of transport. No noble I’ve heard of would just saunter into a town with their servant. It was fine when I was alone because it could be assumed you were just staying within some expensive carriage, but if you showed up on foot with me I could see us getting suspected of being thieves instead…”
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“Tenia,” I interrupted, “I’m going to be honest and frank with you… You’re overthinking this.”
She immediately gave me a dumbfounded expression.
“If there’s one thing I understand, it’s lower class working people living in a poor town. When I tell you that they don’t really give a single shit about the rich assholes that come through town, you can know it’s from the heart. Some might share a rumor or two about us at the bar, but within a week we’ll be forgotten. Well, that’s assuming we don’t make a scene. It’s also the main reason I’ve don’t want Benson to be seen in town. Someone like him is memorable. Us, though, we’re just two women. While some of the people might have questions, I guarantee you none of them will voice them aloud.”
“I see your point, mistress, but I still don’t think it’s a good idea. I’d like to err on the side of caution here,” said Tenia with a slight softness in her eyes.
“Tenia, our mistress wants to see the town,” said Benson with a shifty smile, “She’s giving all these excuses, but it’s obvious she just really wants to explore a bit now that she knows it’s not overly dangerous. If the highest level there really is only 16, even if you guys get targeted by someone, you can easily escape into the woods and then just circle back here. Now that mistress has set up her repellant runes, it’s essentially impossible for someone to find this place. If our mistress wants to be spoiled then let her.”
While I was happy Benson argued for my sake, I was a bit upset in the manner he chose to do it… Though I didn’t rebuke him. It’s hard to argue against the truth, after all.
“B-but what if something unexpected happens?” Asked Tenia in a fluster.
“Tenia,” Benson’s face hardened, “Are you telling me you can’t protect our mistress?”
There was a long pause as the two made eye contact. They almost looked to be having a conversation with their eyes alone. Of course, I was completely lost trying to understand what was happening. They surely weren’t fighting over me, where they? … Oh my God, I’ve become a dense harem protagonist!
The realization seemed to drain all my spirit. Tenia and Benson seemed to snap out of their staring contest and looked at me with puzzled expressions.
“Mistress, what’s wrong?” They both seemed to ask in unison.
“It’s nothing,” I replied with a sigh. “Listen, you two… I want you both to understand that I consider you to be my friends. I don’t think of you as slaves, pets, or lovers… Okay.”
Again I was met with confused expressions.
“We know that, mistress,” replied Tenia, “we both consider you our friend too.”
“Good, if you both consider me a friend then please don’t fight over my love!” I said in response, going completely over the top.
At my exclamation, both of them seemed to stop breathing for a moment. Then the laughter started.
“M-mistress, you seem to misunderstand,” said Tenia between giggle fits, “we are both your loyal friends and retainers… But that doesn’t mean we’re necessarily friends with each other. Benson and I have been a bit at odds since our awakening… That’s all that’s happening.”
Oh.
So I completely misinterpreted the whole thing… Well, I suppose that’s better than the other option. They weren’t fighting over me. They were just fighting with each other.
I deflated like a balloon into the cushions of the chair. The house was starting to grow dark as the sun finally set past the treeline.
“I’m going to bed,” I said without any motivation left in me. Both Benson and Tenia continued to stifle their laughter as they watched me saunter upstairs to my room.
Today had been a long day. Tomorrow as probably going to be long, too.
I pulled the clothes off my body and walked into the upstairs shower. I turned on the water crystal, hoping to enjoy the feeling of getting clean.
The water was cold.
Miserable, I washed myself quickly and then toweled myself off. I returned to my room, threw on the slip I had woken up in, and climbed into the bedding. I hugged my mattress and it hugged me back. The bedding truly was more luxurious than anything I ever experienced in my last life… Unfortunately, that didn’t make me feel any better. Instead I thought of my mother still sleeping on her hard box spring mattress… I wished I could bring her here so she could enjoy this too. I wondered what she was doing right now. I hoped she was okay. I hoped that she wouldn’t be too upset by my disappearance… Or my death, depending on what happened to my original body.
I had come to terms with it earlier, but lying down in bed while staring up at the ceiling gave me a chance to really think. I had to wipe away my tears. I had always been emotional in my last life… I cried when my father died, after all… Now it felt like I had lost my mother too. I could only offer a prayer to her as sleep claimed me.