Volume 2 - CH 5

Chapter 5 – I Left Aunen

One night later, it was the day of my departure.

After a quick lunch at the Golden Bear pavilion, I met up with Iris in the lobby of the Adventurer’s Guild.

“Did I keep you waiting?”

“No, I just got here. …Fufu.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, it’s fine. I’m looking forward to the journey.”

Iris was in a good mood for some reason. I’m not sure why, but I think it’s because she’s excited about the journey ahead.

We exchanged idle conversation as we headed towards the south gate of the city.

Many people had come to see us off around the gate.

It was like a festival.

“Dragon Slayer-niichan! Be careful!”

“Dragon-folk-nechan too, have a good time!”

“Thank you so much for protecting the city!”

“You’re the heroes of Aunen!”

What can I say? It’s a huge crowd.

“It’s so lively…”

Iris sighed in admiration.

I know exactly how she feels. I didn’t expect such a large number of residents to come, either.

“Kou-san, Iris-san, have a good day!”

Just before the departure, Milia presented a large bouquet of roses on behalf of the residents, and at that moment, the people’s excitement reached its peak.

The applause rang out with loud cheers, and someone blew a finger whistle.

A volunteer band played a brave melody on cymbals, trumpets, and drums, and the sky was filled with the sound of “Bang, bang, bang, bang!” as fireworks went off in the sky.

I was happy that they were giving us a grand send-off, but as expected, I was a little embarrassed.

I smiled and opened my [Item Box] and reminded myself to take out the Destroyer Golem and Grand Cabin.

A magic circle appears on the ground, from which a steel giant and an even larger carriage appear.

“T-that’s huge! I’ve never seen a carriage that huge before!”

“He’s using a golem as a replacement for the horse? As expected of the Dragon Slayer, he does things on a different scale…”

From the people’s reactions, it seems to have quite the impact.

“Everyone seems to be very surprised.”

Just to my left, Iris gave a small laugh.

“I know what they mean. I couldn’t believe my eyes at first either.”

Feeling a little better, I took Iris into the Grand Cabin.

We walked to the living room at the front of the first floor and sat down on the sofa side by side.

From the speakers built into the ceiling, I hear the voice of the Destroyer Golem.

“Master! Are you ready to go?”

“Yes, please!”

I answered, and the carriage began to move.

Now the journey begins.

With a lot of people watching us go, I left Aunen.

Ten minutes later, the Grand Cabin stops near a forest. This was the place I had designated yesterday as the meeting point with Surara.

As Iris and I stepped outside, a round creature jumped out from behind a nearby tree.

“Master-san! It’s me! Surara!”

“How have you been?”

“Yeah! I’ll do my best to help you out, so please take care of me too!”

Then Surara turned to Iris and greeted her cheerfully.

“Iris-neesan, you too, hello!”

“Hello, Surara. Nice to meet you too.”

Iris said and reached for the pouch on her waist.

The inside of the pouch is a subspace like an [Item Box], and although it has a limited capacity, it can hold much more than it looks.

This time, she took out a white hat from the pouch. It was tied with a red ribbon and had a round brim.

It was a hat that Iris had bought at the general store in Aunen a few days before our departure.

In this world, it is customary for pet monsters to wear ornaments such as collars.

I heard that ornaments other than collars are acceptable, so in Surara’s case, we decided on a hat.

“Wow, that’s a cute hat!”

Surara cackled.

“Is Iris-neesan going to wear it?”

“No, it’s a present for Surara.”

Iris then put the round hat on Surara’s head.

“Wow! Thank you, Iris-neesan!”

Surara became a little taller and bowed to Iris. Then she bounced up and down on the ground and headed towards the Destroyer Golem.

“Hello, Golem-san! I’m Surara!”

“Hello, Surara-san. Nice to meet you.”

The Destroyer Golem bowed, leaned forward, and extended his right hand.

Is this supposed to be a handshake?

Surara also put out a hand (tentacle?) from his squishy body. Then, he touched the Destroyer Golem’s right hand.

“Wow! Nice to meet you too! We’re friends now!”

“We’re friends…!”

The Destroyer Golem muttered happily.

Since he’s a machine, he’s not supposed to have any emotions, but he might have something close to a heart due to the《Advanced Computing Function A+》effect he has been granted.

“Hey, hey, hey, I would like to know what your name is, Golem-san!”

“Name…?”

The Destroyer Golem tilted his head.

By the way, I haven’t given him a name yet. It’s a good opportunity, I should decide here.

For some reason, when I looked at Iris, she had a confident look on her face.

“Hey Kou, how about Desu Desu or Tomu Tomu for the golem’s name?” [T/n: Taken from the Japanese ‘Desutoroy’ and Tomu from To from desutoroy and mu from Goremu.]

“Hmm…”

I don’t really feel right about it. I don’t know why Iris insisted on repeating the phrase.

I thought about it for a while, then decided to go with the idea that was easier to understand.

“How about Dest?” [T/n: The same as above.]

“I think it’s a good idea. I’m all for it.”

“Thank you very much, Master. That sounds like a really strong name!”

It seems that Destroyer Golem… Dest is happy, and both of his eyes are flashing repeatedly.

“Surara-san. I’m Dest.”

“Dest, right? I’ll remember it! I’m glad to learn your name!”

“Yes!”

Dest and Surara are chatting happily.

It’s kind of a peaceful scene.

* * *

We boarded the carriage once again and resumed our journey towards the royal capital.

Our destination today was the city of Toue, which is known for its beef dishes.

According to the gourmet guide, there is a place called “Meat Street” where many meat restaurants are lined up. I am looking forward to dinner.

The carriage slowly moved northeast along the highway.

“Rattling♪ rattling♪”

Surara swayed happily as he gazed out the window.

I sank deeply into the sofa and leisurely read the novel I had bought before we left. It’s been years since I’ve been able to read like this without worrying about time.

Since I became a member of society, I’ve been so busy with work every day.

“Hey Kou, is that book interesting?”

Iris was sitting on the sofa to my left, looking at a tourist guide, when she suddenly asked me something like that.

“It’s interesting. …Do you want to read it?”

“Is that okay?”

“I’ve just finished it.”

I closed the book and handed it to Iris.

“Thank you. Kou was reading it so intently that I was curious about it too.”

That’s true; it does happen. I gave a small nod and took out the second novel from my [Item Box].

The content of the book is a mystery about a murder in a locked room, and I was amazed at the tricks that only a world with magic and skills could pull off. Apparently, there is also a sequel. If I get a chance, I’ll look for it at the bookstore.

After finishing the second book, I fell asleep on the sofa.

Maybe my head was too tired from reading for the first time in a long while.

“Good morning, Kou. You slept well.”

Iris smiled softly beside me on my left side.

Surara was on her lap, and he said cheerfully.

“Master-san, we will soon be in the city of Toue! I’m looking forward to it!”

Looking out the window, I saw that the sky had turned a deep red.

It seemed that it was evening.

In the distance, I could see the city surrounded by walls.

About ten minutes later, the carriage arrived at Toue.