The swamp faded into the distance as Breeze and Sayah trudged onward, exhaustion weighing heavy on both of them. Running non-stop over treacherous terrain had taken its toll, and the unconscious agent slung over Breeze’s back added to his burden. Despite his fatigue, Breeze couldn’t complain too much—after all, the man had been hunted by a monstrosity for over 24 hours before collapsing from sheer exhaustion.

Sayah raised a hand, signaling Breeze to stop. Her sharp eyes scanned the area, ensuring they were far enough from danger. “Let’s catch our breath. That was a tiring escape.”

“Tiring escape?” Breeze gasped between breaths. “It was... my tiring escape. I’ve been... carrying this guy... the whole way, and you could’ve shared... some of the burdens, you know, look my legs are shaking from exhaustion.”

Sayah smirked. “Eww, how dare you ask your master to carry a filthy corpse?”

“He’s not a corpse—he’s alive!” Breeze shot back. “And don’t tell me you actually expect me to keep carrying him alone, It's understandable that you were preparing to fight anytime considering we were chased, so it was impossible for you to carry him but now what?”

Sayah crossed her arms. “With that smell? There’s hardly a difference between it and a corpse. Carry it or bury it, whatever you do it's up to you.”

Breeze stared at her shockingly. “You’re already calling him ‘it,’ aren’t you a bit too cruel?”

Shrugged ignoring him, Sayah climbed a nearby tall tree to scout the area, pausing only to snag a squirrel on her way down. “What should we do with this thing?” she asked, dangling the squirming animal by its tail.

Breeze sighed. “Leave it alone. Squirrels are harmless—and, honestly, kinda cute.”

"Ah, my disciple, sometimes you’re as naive as a child," she said with an exasperated sigh, slamming her palm against her forehead in frustration.

“Cute?!” Sayah grimaced, recalling a memory. “They’re devils in disguise! I once had a pack of them hurling nuts at me and my cohort during a mission. We called it ‘The Deadly Nuts Attack.’ You wouldn’t believe it—those nuts could knock you out cold!”

“Let me guess,” Breeze said dryly. “You provoked them first.”

“Absolutely not!” Sayah exclaimed. “All I did was borrow a small squirrel for a bit of fun and maybe gave it a little food—”

“Food it probably couldn’t eat,” Breeze interrupted. “Imagine someone taking your child and feeding them random junk. What would you do?”

Sayah’s eyes narrowed. “Now that you mention it this way, I would skin them alive, probably.”

“Exactly. That’s why you got attacked. Now, leave this one alone.”

"But just look at how plump it is! Honestly, taking it might be doing its family a favor. I’d bet he’s the kind of husband who stuffs himself first and leaves the rest to fight over crumbs."

Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

"Please!"

Sayah hesitated, then reluctantly let the squirrel go. “Alright, alright, fine. I just wanted to give you something to keep busy with. Stay here and rest—I’ll head back for the kill proof. If you feel like you’ve recovered, you can start moving on your own; I’ll catch up to you.”

“You’re going back?” Breeze asked, surprised.

She grinned. “Of course! My student completed his first quest. It wouldn’t be right if I didn’t secure his proof of success.”

Breeze smiled warmly. “You really are the best, master.”

“Don’t forget it!” With that, Sayah unleashed her tekko-kagi—a weapon she only used when things got serious—and disappeared back toward the swamp.

Breeze sat quietly for a while, letting his muscles recover. Once he felt strong enough, he hoisted the unconscious agent onto his back and started walking toward the bastion. “Sigh…” 'My life is way too tough for a ten-year-old.'

By the time he was halfway there, Sayah caught up with him, shouting from a distance. “You ungrateful student! You really left without me?”

“You told me to go if I felt recovered,” Breeze replied as she approached. “Besides, you took forever.”

“My dear student, you should know—when a lady tells you something, don’t take it at face value. Always read between the lines.”

“What was I supposed to do—wait for him to die?”

“Oh, right! I forgot he was even here. His presence is so thin it’s almost ghostly,” she teased. “Anyway, let’s get this smelly weight off our hands.”

“Your deadly words could seal his fate.”

Sayah smirked. “That would be the most advantageous course of action. It would streamline the process and mitigate potential complications.”

“Wow, you seem to abhor this guy.”

“His nickname alone is enough for me to hate him.”

“Which is?”

“You will know once we reach the MES.”

After a smelly journey that made the short distance look long, The duo finally reached the Monster Extermination Society (MES). As they entered, one of the agents exclaimed, “It’s the Sewer Rat! He’s still alive?!”

Hearing the nickname, Breeze immediately Threw the injured mercenary, recoiling as though he’d been carrying an actual rat.

Sayah mockingly added, “You should’ve dropped him earlier. Carrying trash is a waste of effort—especially trash of this caliber.”

Her words drew scowls from the crowd, but they also shifted the blame onto her, sparing Breeze from harassment. One of the agents couldn’t hold back. “You’re both disgusting! How can you treat an injured person this way, throwing him like trash, Is this how you treat your seniors?”

Sayah stepped forward, her voice cold. “We saved his disgusting life and brought him here when we could’ve left him to die. Treat him or don’t—it’s none of my concern. But if you ever speak to me like that again, I’ll make sure you regret it.”

The agent gritted his teeth but backed down, muttering curses under his breath as he carried the injured man to the apothecary.“S*** friend, You are as tenacious as your smell.”

At the reception desk, Sayah placed two large bags on the counter. Breeze tilted his head. “What’s in the second one, Master?”

Sayah smirked. “The claws, fangs, and hide of the Mad Hyena—the Dread Monster that wiped out the Sewer Rat’s party.”

Gasps erupted around them. “You killed a Dread Monster?!”

Sayah shrugged. “It wasn’t that hard. The Mad Hyena’s a stupid creature—it just plays with its prey like a psychopath. I bet it spent a whole day toying with the party before finally killing them. This guy only survived due to his horrible smell.”

She then addressed the receptionist, requesting, “Brother Oak, please pay us for completing the quests, and for the sake of our friendship, could turn a blind eye to me not taking the quest beforehand.”

The receptionist, Brother Oak, sighed. “Sayah, I've told you a thousand times—take the quest first. But old habits die hard, I suppose. Here's your payment.”

“Thanks, Brother. Let’s go, Breeze. I’m too tired to deal with these fools.”

Back at the inn, Breeze helped Sayah to her room. As he left, he thought to himself, 'She could’ve just admitted that monster was tough—at least to me. But no… she’s too proud for that.' A small smile played on his lips. 'Still, she is awesome, I just hope that potion and ointment that I left by her side will help.'