Tsuyokute New Saga (LN)

Volume 7 Chapter 3

The northern district gathered many lodgings for the pilgrims who had come to Sura. The inn called Forest’s Lakeshore that Leyla mentioned was a bit further away from the main street, a stone building that stood out amongst the other inns.

“Welcome!”

Entering the building, a calm voice greeted them. The owner of this voice was a woman in her twenties, sitting behind the counter. She was a beauty in her own right, but there was something else to her.

“Ohh! Greeted by such a charming beauty!”

Seran immediately raised cheers at this, but Urza immediately stomped on his foot to silence him.

“Ahem…We’d like to rent some rooms.”

Kyle actually had to agree with Sean, but he decided to play good cop and took over the conversation. The woman didn’t seem bewildered at Seran’s outburst and instead explained with an apologetic tone.

“I’m sorry, we actually don’t have any more rooms to offer…”

“We were told to come here. I assume a woman called Leyla made arrangements for us?”

When Kyle said her name, the woman’s expression changed instantly.

“Oh! So you must be Kyle-sama! I’ve been awaiting your arrival!” She showed a bright smile, threw away the pen she was holding, and rushed over to him.

It was a complete turn from her previous attitude.

“Leyla-sama informed us of your arrival. Thank you…Thank you so much for coming here!”

She wasn’t exaggerating in the slightest, looking like she was genuinely thankful, as tears started building up in her eyes. She saw Kyle and his group bewildered by this greeting, so she returned to her senses.

“E-Excuse me! I just couldn’t control my excitement of being able to finally repay Leyla-sama. Apologies for the late introduction, I am the owner of this inn, Dalia.” She frantically apologized and lowered her head while she was at it. “You must be tired from your long journey, so let me guide you to your rooms. I will also prepare a meal right away.”

And then, she took Kyle and his group up on the second floor.

Arriving at the larger room in the back of the floor, it revealed a size much bigger than it led on from the outside, with two separate small bedrooms so that they could split themselves between men and women. The room was perfectly cleaned, with flowers being decorated everywhere which created a pleasant flowery scent. The beds were equipped with springs, covered with freshly cleaned sheets. All this helped undo everyone’s tension, as Lieze sat down on her bed. The others felt the same way, with Kyle letting out a big sigh at first, only to immediately get back on his groove.

“Too early to relax.”

Their face-off against Leyla might have been postponed, but letting his guard down was not an option. Through all these years, Kyle had built up a genuine trust for Leyla, and he knew there was nothing happening until she was done. However, things were clearly different now that the Mera cult was involved. Kyle learned of their inhuman antics many times over up to this point. Even if Leyla wasn’t directly involved, there was no telling what they could be plotting. Especially with Urza around. She would need proper protection. Kyle tried to reassure her that everything would be okay and that she was safe here, but he was dead-set on not leaving her alone for even a moment in this town. He looked at her with determination and vowed to protect her, but the person in question was gleefully discussing dinner plans with Shildonia right now.

“…Seems like we’re the only visitors,” Minagi confirmed the situation after looking around for a moment.

“She told us to wait a whole two, or even three days, right? What the hell are we supposed to do during that time?”

Just as Seran grumbled, they were now at a loss on how to spend the extra time they were given. Right now, it was already past noon, so after a quick break, they would eat dinner and then clock out early for the day, but what about the next few days?

“Can’t exactly stay holed up in the inn, after all. Maybe we take a walk tomorrow?”

Shildonia delivered a suggestion, which Kyle thought about for a moment, but eventually agreed. Letting down his guard was not an option, but staying tensed up 24/7 would only leave him more exhausted in the long run. More than anything, Kyle could use this chance to gather all sorts of information. And he could do that under the pretense of going sightseeing. As the girls were discussing their plans, he pulled Lieze away and stepped out of the room.

“I’m going to act separately from you guys tomorrow, so…”

“…Don’t leave Urza alone, right? I know.” She looked at Kyle with a raised eyebrow.

If possible, Kyle wished to protect her personally, but since the Mera cult was keeping their eyes on him, being together with her would probably be more dangerous.

“That’s exactly right. Might give you some trouble, but I’m counting on you.”

The moment Lieze heard those words, she started pouting and lightly hit Kyle’s chest.

“What’s that supposed to mean?! I would do that even without you asking me for it!”

Urza was Lieze’s important friend, and she was greatly concerned with her safety without needing Kyle to tell her.

“R-Right…Sorry.”

Hit with such a valid counter, Kyle had to accept his shortcomings.

“I said you don’t have to apologize. I know you’ve always been dense when it comes to this stuff, so…I forgive you.” Lieze sighed in disbelief, but her voice sounded happy. “I guess Minagi will also tag along with us, then…”

“No, I’m gonna have her work separately too because I need her to look into some…Ogh?!”

Lieze silently but with full determination, rammed her fist right into his stomach. It was her [Armor Breaker] attack that completely ignored any defense. Kyle had experienced this before, but she got even better at it. Brought to his knees, Kyle groaned as he looked up at Lieze’s expression of rage in terror.

“Didn’t you say…you’d forgive me?”

“This and that is different! Minagi might end up fighting the very man who raised her, so she must be extremely tense right now! Yet you want her to stay alone? Do you not care about her?”

“…”

Lieze’s words made Kyle realize, inflicting an impact like he was hit in the face rather than the stomach.

“Seran’s a freak for battle so he’s looking forward to his fight with Leyla-san more than anything, but Minagi is just an ordinary girl like Urza and I!”

Despite Minagi being a trained assassin and a skilled Shinobi, Lieze always stressed that she was still a normal girl with her own worries. Though Minagi probably didn’t feel the same way. Kyle himself never saw her in such a light, and although he treasured her as an ally, he never thought of her as this weak. Even as they met in this life, with her lacking experience since the Great Invasion had yet to happen, Kyle knew she had the talent to follow through. But during the civil war, when she was reunited with her foster father who raised her, she had been losing her edge since. And even though Kyle realized this, he never paid much attention to it. He had many more problems to worry about, but even that just boiled down to being a simple excuse.

“Okay…Yeah, you’re right. Could you take Minagi with you and—No, sorry. Didn’t have to tell you. I’m leaving those two to you.”

Kyle decided to put his trust in his childhood friend and left the two girls to her. Of course, he decided to not touch upon the fact that the person who knocked out [Dragon Slayer] Kyle went around calling herself a normal girl.

“Yeah, I got it handled.” She pressed one fist on her chest, making Kyle feel grateful.

“Thanks for everything.”

“You don’t need to thank me for that,” Lieze said these final words and then went back to her room, deciding the plans for the following day.

Interacting with her, Minagi’s smile was still somewhat stiff, but it had softened up a lot compared to before. Back when the Great Invasion was in its full course, Minagi was cautious around everyone and everything, always faking a smile. He had never seen a smile as natural as this one on her before. And this wasn’t any abrupt change. It had been happening slowly, but Kyle only now understood it, feeling embarrassed at his inability. And seeing her smile, he felt something bring disarray to his heart. For the first time, Kyle had stopped seeing Minagi as a reliable comrade, and saw her more as a normal woman.

During dinner time, the cafeteria on the first floor was rather deserted, with only one other employee present other than Dalia. However, the food filling their table was a sight to behold.

“This stew’s meat is so soft, it’s been boiling since last night. This must have taken a lot to prepare.” Lieze showed her respect for the chef.

Other than the stew, there was chicken and other fried food, paired with vegetable salad and a fruit dessert to truly fill their stomachs. The reason for the fried-heavy dishes was because they couldn’t enjoy much oily food during their journey, showing the inn owner’s consideration for them.

“I’m glad the food is to your liking.” Dalia brought out some more chicken, seemingly enjoying herself.

“This is it. This kind of consideration is the true beauty of an older woman,” Seran nodded to himself.

“Oh yeah, I’ve been meaning to ask, but why are you so grateful to that old hag?”

Completely disregarding the concept of restraint, Seran just asked Dalia head-on. However, Kyle and the group were just as curious about that, so they didn’t comment on it.

“Not too long ago, Leyla-sama saved my life…No, my whole reason for existing.”

Her words sounded genuine, at least. Listening to the details, Dalia once lived at the border of a country called Phoraon to the east of the continent. But five years ago, a war broke out, and with her husband suffering severe injuries, she almost lost her own life before Leyla saved her. Paired with healing her husband, she brought them to his land and to safety. Her husband passed away two years later because of a sickness, so she had been looking after this inn herself.

“Ever since I started working here, I’d been looking for a way to repay her…and now that wish has finally been granted,” Dalia said while tearing up.

“That old hag did, huh?” Seran sounded bewildered.

He probably had no idea something like that was happening without his knowledge. In truth, Leyla rarely was home in Rimarze. For a good third of the year, she was off somewhere. That said, it was a surprise to hear she was being a savior and saint in her free time. Furthermore, Dalia stated that she was no exception.

“That old hag sure loves to keep secrets.”

“But it’s very much like her.” Lieze reminisced about the past, seeing Leyla in a very positive light.

“So what are you planning on doing tomorrow?” Dalia asked, and Kyle responded as the representative.

“We thought of checking out the town.”

“Is that so? Then I will prepare a map for you. I also have some more dessert ready, so I hope you enjoy it.”

With that decided, they enjoyed the rest of their pleasant dinner.