Proofreader: Xemul
After parting with Emery, Loren and his group set out on foot toward the north, and were lucky enough to arrive at an inn town along the city just before sunset.
Compared to Kapha, the temperature in this northern region felt a bit cooler, and this was even more apparent when the sun went down. As for Loren, who had been worried since around dusk that it would be a bit difficult to sleep in the open given this climate, he felt very fortunate to be able to sleep where there was a roof and walls.
Even more fortunately was the presence of something in this inn town that made the team very happy.
As it would be meaningless to arrive at an inn town without being able to get rooms for the night, Lapis had tried to quickly decide on a place to stay and book some rooms.
“Are that hot springs?”
Hearing the excitement in Lapis’ voice, Loren looked at the clerk, who was introducing the facilities of the inn to them. The female clerk, who was smiling at the happy Lapis with a loving smile, nodded deeply in response to Lapis’ question.
“There is a hot spring nearby. We draw hot water from there. The bathing area is large, and you’ll have to pay a little extra, but the water is plentiful, and you can use it as much as you like.”
“How much is it? I will pay whatever you want.”
Loren glanced around as he listened to the clerk explain the price and the precautions regarding bathing to Lapis, who was so eager that he believed not entering the hot spring would not be an option.
This inn was built like any other large inn with the first floor being a combination of a reception counter, bar, and dining room, while rooms for guests were on the second floor and above. The dining hall was crowded with customers having dinner, perhaps due to the time of day, but Loren felt a bit uneasy at the sight of them, contrary to Lapis, who seemed happy.
“What’s with the long face? Are you thinking about peeking into Lapis-chan’s bath or something?”
Loren’s frown deepened at Gula’s whispered words.
“I don’t want to die yet.”
“No, I don’t think it will go… that far.”
“I don’t care if my life is not in danger, I will not go peeping.”
“I’m not especially worried or anything. But what’s wrong with you?”
When asked, Loren subtly gestured toward the dining hall’s direction with his chin. Following his gesture, Gula looked at the dining hall and tilted her head as if not understanding what Loren was trying to say.
“What’s wrong with this?”
“There seems to be a lot of punks here.”
Gula looked around the dining hall again at Loren’s words, but after a while, she returned her gaze to Loren’s face and tilted her head again.
“So?”
“Is it just something so trivial from your point of view?”
After all, Lapis was a demon and Gula was a being called Evil God. Compared to them, those slightly boorish people were probably just cute little things. Loren understood this well, but it was a fact that those people did not know.
As if to prove him right, there were more than a few glances coming from inside the restaurant toward their party as they made arrangements for lodging, which made Loren feel depressed because he could clearly sense the ill intents behind those glances.
“War, for better or worse, brings people together. And among them, you’ll find a few with gruesome deeds.”
“Do you mean that we should be on our guard? But who would mess with us?”
“If they knew who you really are, they wouldn’t.”
This was what gave Loren a headache.
Those who knew who Lapis and Gula truly were, would never consider them targets for some nefarious purpose. But no one here knew.
Those with a certain level of skills might have been able to guess at the hidden abilities of the two girls, but for those who do not, they must be seen as nothing more than beautiful girls. And those who engaged in unscrupulous behavior were usually those who acted faithfully to their own desires without considering the circumstances and capabilities of the other party.
“If you’re with me, they wouldn’t do anything, but… That also depends on the place.”
If Lapis and Gula looked like nothing more than beautiful girls, Loren did look like a formidable swordsman. Even though he did not know the extent of their abilities, Loren believed that the girls would be fine as long as they were with him, as he had an extraordinary body and equipment to match, but there were places where even he could not follow.
“At a glance, the town here is not that big. There’s not much entertainment, so they’ll be starved for some.”
“There are lots of sad people in this world, aren’t there?”
Gula said this in a somber tone of voice, and Loren agreed with her. If they had dealt a bad hand with Lapis and Gula without knowing who they really were, they would almost certainly be much better off getting beaten up by Loren.
“Why don’t you guys just show your true nature? That way no one will touch you.”
The thought that had just occurred to Loren seemed like a very good idea, so he suggested it to Gula, who in turn frowned at his words.
“What’s the problem?”
“If the people in the dining hall get scared, won’t they make it impossible for us to stay here?”
Demons and Evil Gods were very intimidating. If humans were to suddenly face both, who knew what kind of disaster would ensue. There might be some tolerance, but if they frightened the employees as Gula had suggested, they risked not being able to stay at the inn, so Loren decided to retract his idea.
“I hoped you wouldn’t wipe out the inn.”
“It’s not certain that they’ll mess with us, isn’t it?”
“Bad predictions usually turn out to be true.”
“What are you talking about?”
Lapis, who had apparently finished her exchange with the clerk, interrupted Loren and Gula’s conversation. Holding the key to their room, she watched them with a puzzled look on her face.
Loren, not knowing what to say, gave a vague smile. While searching for the right words to say, he suddenly noticed something as he looked at Lapis’ hand.
“It looks like there’s only one key?”
“Yes. We’ll stay in one big room. Is that alright?”
Lapis smiled, and Loren put his hand on his forehead. He felt like he was getting a fever, but he knew he had to say what needed to be said, so he scratched his head and told Lapis, who seemed to be waiting for a response, as if to remind her.
“It’s not…”
Loren wondered if she was inspired by the actions of the Great Demon King, they had met in the demon territory. But Lapis unexpectedly responded by rolling her eyes.
“Three private rooms are expensive. Loren, don’t tell me you want a single room for yourself?”
Loren was at a loss for words.
Certainly, it was cheaper to get a large room that could accommodate three people than to get three private rooms. He did consider getting a room for himself, but in that case, Lapis and Gula would be sharing a room while Loren would be the only one in his own room.
As Loren had entrusted Lapis with the payment, it was a situation that he could not say no to.
“But… That’s not good for a lot of reasons, is it?”
“I don’t mind at all, but… What about you, Gula?”
Gula looked very lost when asked. But after taking a look at Lapis’ expectant face and Loren, who was eagerly waiting for her ‘I do mind’, she spent some time thinking it over, then asked Lapis.
“I’d like to order dinner.”
“I’ll take care of it.”
“Okay. I don’t mind at all.”
At Gula’s super straightforward answer, Lapis clenched her fist on her chest while Loren’s shoulders slumped in disappointment, as he had no way to respond. The only way to turn the tables at this point would be to offer more than Lapis had proposed to Gula, but Loren didn’t have the resources to do so.
“Now the opinion inside the party is two to one.”
“Ahh ok… I see, I see.’
Loren raised his hand in surrender, thinking that if there was no way to resist, it would be better to give up quickly. But Lapis’ face turned a little unhappy.
“Are you unhappy? It’s something many want but can never get, you know? There are a lot of men out there who would pay money to be you.”
“If they don’t know the truth, then maybe you’re right.”
Loren, who was convinced that those men would 100% run away if they knew the truth about the two girls, but he knew that it might upset Lapis if he said anything about it. So, he ended the conversation there and picked up the luggage he had left on the floor when Lapis started talking with the clerk.
Lapis seemed to be a little frustrated, but when she saw that Loren had given up, she decided that there was no point in pursuing the matter any further and began to lead Loren and Gula to their room, fumbling with the key the inn had given her.
“After putting our luggage in the room, let’s go to the hot spring. Let’s warm ourselves up and wash before we have dinner.”
“Don’t forget our agreement earlier, okay?”
“So, I’ll just wait in the room, ok?”
Even though the door was locked, it was dangerous to trust the lock completely. This was a particular concern when traveling, and leaving someone in the room to keep watch was a matter of course. If Lapis and Gula were going to bathe, Loren thought it was his job to wait for them, but Lapis looked at him in surprise, as if wondering what he was saying.
Loren, feeling ominous, asked.
“If you’re going to be out of the room for a long time, you’re going to need someone to watch your stuff, right?”
“What do you think of me and Gula? Of course, we have spells to protect our belongings.”
“That’s… Hm. Let’s go bathe then.”
The sooner you gave up, the better.
Loren, who had been telling himself this, sighed and felt even worse when he noticed a couple of gruff-looking men glancing at them out of the corner of his eye.
“Just to be clear, there aren’t any mixed baths or anything like that, are there?”
“It looks like men and women are separated. Did you want a mixed bath?
Lapis asked back with a smirk.
Perhaps due to these words, Loren noticed that some of the stares he was receiving were tinged with envy and jealousy, and he heaved a deep sigh from the bottom of his heart.