CH 3

Girl, and A New Start

The girl did get a wink of sleep the whole night. After abandoning the cave where she had been sleeping, she had no choice but to check for signs of demons.

If she felt that she was in danger, she would move from place to place and wait for morning.

She had been full of alertness for a whole night, and now her consciousness was at its limits.

Around sunrise, the girl stood at the mouth of the forest, the meeting point, waiting for Aldis and his party.

She wanted to sleep, but it would be disrespectful to be in such a state when they arrived. The girl steeled herself and waited patiently.

“They’re not coming…why?”

Even when an hour passed, she didn’t think much and waited.

It was only after two hours that a dark cloud settled over the girl’s heart.

For some reason, they did not show up. Maybe there was something that I had to do first.

She had been expecting such a convenient outcome, but at last she came up with the worst possible answer.

“Abandoned? But I survived? Why?”

Her body trembled, and her eyes were feverishly burning. No matter what he did to her, Aldis would always be a hero in her eyes.

Aldis was testing her in her eyes.

The girl had told herself that, and endured all this time until now.

But in this situation, no matter how positive the girl’s spirit was, she would reach her limits.

“It’s no use since I didn’t have any talent…. But then they shouldn’t have made this kind of promise…. I guess I’ve just been made fun of by that man…”

She had lived with Hero’s party in such an environment where any person with a sane mind would probably run away within a day or few.

That whole time, she believed that her situation would improve if she remained dedicated and worked hard to improve herself.

If all of this was just a prank for Hero, then the daily treatment she had suffered would have been nothing more than harassment. It was not difficult for her to come to terms with this, but it did nothing to reduce her frustration and anger.

The girl clenched her fists and struck the tree with all her might.

“Ugh, darn it!”

Was she a fool for believing it? But the girl held back the tears that were about to spill.

It was easy to be desperate. Even if she was devastated here, no one would help her.

If she were an adventurer, there would be times like this. The girl ruminates over her father’s words in her mind.

She could picture the faces of her parents, who had opposed her so much, but in the end sent her off with a good will.

“…All right!”

Above all, depending on how she thought about it, even the past week would be considered a waste of time.

The girl looked up and saw the blue sky. The world was as big as this blue sky. When she realized this, she decided.

“I will not give up. My dream was not so simple. That’s all. OK!”

She braces herself for a change of heart.

If she remained depressed here, she would feel bad for her parents, who sent her off so willingly.

The girl changed her mind and focused on her next goal. First, she decided to go to a town.

However, it would be dangerous for her to walk around on her feet without any proper destination.

Her body was nearing its limits, but this was not the time to whine.

She traced her memory and recalled the location of the last town they stopped by when she was with Aldis and the others. It was about two days from where she was.

There should have been a watering resource and a convenient place to rest along the way, she thought. Struggling against her exhaustion, the girl started her journey.

***

“Oh, there it is! A town!”

The girl squealed with delight when she saw the town.

She passed through the gate and the sight of the bustling city seemed to snap the thread. She fell on her knees and slumped on the ground.

Even though she could defeat demons, she no longer had her stone knife. In other words, she could not dismantle it, so her only sustenance was water.

The girl praised herself for having made it this far despite being on the edge of her physical strength.

But then she realized something. She realized that just because she had arrived in town, it didn’t mean that everything would be all right. She had no money.

All the money and travel equipment that her parents had given her had been confiscated by Aldis.

The immediate problem was a place to rest and food, but to get them, she needed money.

The girl knew exactly how to get the money. If she didn’t work, she wouldn’t get paid.

Even in the village, children were helping the adults. From babysitting to farm work, some children even helped from morning until night.

The girl was no exception.

“Excuse me! Please give me a chance to work!”

“Oh? Wait a minute.”

The girl visited a restaurant. She remembered eating there with Aldis and his group before.

However, as usual, the girl was not allowed to order, and the food was leftovers.

The owner seemed to remember her and rushed over to her.

“You, I remember you. As I recall, you were with Aldis….san and the others, weren’t you? You look like a mess…”

“We’re separated now, I don’t have any money…I’ll do anything…”

“First, you need a bath. Besides, you’re probably too tired already.”

“I’m fine!”

“…Okay. When you are done bathing, you can change into this. Hey!”

The owner called his wife, who led her to the back of the house. Since the store was attached to his home, it didn’t take her long to bathe.

The girl almost fell asleep unknowingly after scrubbing off the grime for the first time in such a long time.

However, the girl reminded herself that she mustn’t be lax here.

She had to earn money and get her spirits up before going to the Adventurers’ Guild.

She had not even taken the first step toward her dream yet.

“Have you changed your clothes? It’s already late afternoon, so there won’t be that many customers. Can you do the dishes?”

“Yes!”

“Good, then please do so!”

From then until nighttime, when the crowd was bustling, the girl worked tirelessly. She was used to this kind of chore.

If she had been slower, her job would have flown out of her hands. The girl was efficient, and if there were too many customers, she would carry their items willingly.

The couple and the customers were all in a good mood, as if her energy had been passed on to everyone in the store.

“You work hard! Are you new here?”

“Yes! Oh, you’re out of water! I’ll get you some more!”

“Oh, thanks.”

Then, she got reminded that at Yggdrasia, the slightest lapse was met with a kick in the back.

The whole place was taken in consideration of who wanted what. The girl could clearly see.

With the instantaneous power she had further developed in the Devil’s Forest, she quickly went to the hall. The girl made everything more efficient.

“You must be hungry, little girl. Uncle will buy you a drink.”

“Eh! No, not at all.”

“Don’t be shy. I can see that you’re pushing yourself too hard.”

“Hey, Pops! Can I talk to them for a second?”

“Yeah, no problem. I was just about to ask you to join them.”

The beef stew brought by a guest for her was excellent.

She also prepared meals for Yggdrasia out in the field, but nothing could compare to this.

As the restaurant was about to close and the customers had all left, everyone in the restaurant finally settled down.

“Thanks for saving the day. Thanks to you, little girl, for the first time in a long time I felt like I re-experienced the first days of the restaurant’s opening.”

“The first day you opened?”

“At my age, we’re not getting as many customers as we used to. I was thinking of closing. But thanks to you, I’ve decided to continue to work a little longer.”

“I’m glad I could help!”

The owner sat down at the counter and his wife brought a teacup. The girl, prompted by the owner, sips from the cup, which was hot to the touch.

The owner chuckled at the girl who blew on it.

“It’s my fault the food in the restaurant is in a bad state. However, the way they threw plates at me and asked for free food… I’m disappointed that it was really the hero party they talked about.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know what to do at the time.”

“Oh, no. It wasn’t your fault. I know you didn’t feel comfortable. You were an apprentice?”

“Yes, but I was fired because they said I wasn’t talented enough.”

“I see…”

The truth was that the girl was lied to and left behind, but never said so.

While some parts of her was angry, it was true that they gave her a chance to get out of the village.

She was treated badly, but if she had gone on the trip not knowing what was right or wrong, who knows what would have happened.

In that sense, she was grateful to Yggdrasia.

The girl was very optimistic.

“Um, the food here is not bad. It’s very delicious.”

“I appreciate you saying so. By the way, here’s today’s paycheck.”

“Oh, this much?!”

“Well, this uncle had not felt so energetic in a long time.”

It was enough to cancel today’s earnings. She tried to reject it, as expected, but the owner firmly insisted.

He gently placed the leather bag containing the coins in the girl’s hand.

“I’m happy… to have you do this for me…”

“You don’t even have a place to stay, do you? If you want to stay in town, I’ll let you stay here. What’s your name?”

The shopkeeper barely knew the girl from the moment she arrived. Yet, he hired her immediately without asking her name.

The girl’s appearance was that miserable.

“I’m Litty.”

The girl said her name, which even Aldis had never asked her, for the first time since coming out of the village.

…

T/N: Hi, there. I hope that you are enjoying this novel. This marks the end of the narrator’s POV. POV will switch to MC from next chapter. You will surely enjoy it. Have a great day.