Will I End Up As a Hero or a Demon King (WN)

Chapter 117

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Chapter 117 – Hunter Discussion

It was about sunset.

We arrived at a large open area that could almost be called a stagecoach stop between Bezart and Malta, and we quickly ate our meal.

After Horio-san took care of the horses, I made a fire using the same magic lighting tool I had borrowed from Mei-chan’s house earlier.

I wondered if Amanda-san was going to make us some food as she was fiddling with a wooden box behind her. When I looked over, she was handing me that thing that looked like horse manure.

What?

Didn’t she just say she had ingredients in the box?

I thought she was going to make us something.

And assuming the worst, I’d already bought some of that horse-manure-like thing myself…

So I couldn’t help but ask.

“Aren’t there any orcs around here?”

If there were, I’d go and get some ingredients.

“Boy… no, Loki. Highways are built in places where the kind of monsters that kill people are unlikely to appear, that’s why they’re called highways, you know? Of course, there are some highways that couldn’t be built that conveniently.”

When I heard such a logical argument, I couldn’t say a word.

When I look at the horse-manure-like thing, my broken heart is even more torn.

But when complaining doesn’t help, there’s no choice but to accept it.

In the end, the three of us sat around the fire and ate together.

Let’s just be thankful that the dried meat was too hard and salty.

I can’t forget to be grateful for the food they prepared for me… but this is way too salty!

Afterward, I suggested that we take turns on the night watch simply because I wasn’t tired.

Originally, Horio-san seemed to want to do it, but it would be hard if he had to be the driver again tomorrow.

In my heart, I also wanted to stay awake until Amanda-san slept well.

I told Horio-san that I would call him if I felt sleepy, and he happily joined Amanda-san as they all fell asleep. I took a moment to relax in front of the fire with Horio-san by my side.

“(Once they’re completely asleep, I’ll use Divine Communication to tell Riste-sama that I’ll be arriving in Malta as planned… After that, maybe I’ll do some drawing?)”

Since I can’t have the goddess accompany me on the carriage ride, I’ve asked Riste-sama to wait until I arrive in Malta before descending with the split body.

She won’t say “Hurry up!” like Felin, but I’m sure she’ll be relieved when she knows the schedule.

Now, all I have to do is add a few more instructions.

I had a vague idea of what the carriage ride would be like, but when I actually got on it, I realized that my expectations were nothing compared to the reality.

I think my butt would have split even more if I’d been shaken around for a long time.

Even if it’s unavoidable that the road surface is not paved, another major cause is that the carriage has no suspension.

So, I don’t think it would be easy to make a hydraulic or air suspension, but I thought along the way that an orthodox spring suspension, like a spring, would be possible even at the level of civilization in this world.

Also, there are some ores in this world that I don’t understand, so a material with a lot of elasticity would be best.

While I’m at it, should I also tell you about Japanese zabuton cushions? {T/N: It’s a flat floor cushion used for sitting or kneeling, usually rectangular].

The reason I’m talking about Zabuton cushions is that my butt is hurting right now, but even though there are pillows in this world, I’ve never seen cushions before, so I think the grandmothers of this world would be happy if they had cushions.

All right, now that I’ve decided, I’ll go and get some paper and a pen as soon as possible.

If I get to the carriage too late, it’ll be bad for Amanda-san, and if I make her think I’m doing something wrong, I’ll be in trouble.

For now, I’m just thankful that I can concentrate on something by myself in silence.

▽ ▼ ▽ ▼ ▽

The next day.

I continued to write the instructions for the difficult suspension system by the light of the campfire, and when I finished, I thought it was too late to shift, so I just relaxed and looked at the status screen.

In the end, I didn’t use any of the 128 skill points I had, but I wonder what the connection is with Spatial Magic?

It was a good time to think about it.

It was dawn when Amanda-san woke up, so after Horio-san woke up, we all had breakfast together.

As soon as we left, I gave Amanda-san two extra manuals, and then I slept like a log in the carriage.

Amanda-san also understood from Horio-san’s explanation that I had taken the night shift, so she kindly allowed me to sleep at her feet.

Maybe she was too busy with the extra instructions to notice.

After that, I woke up before noon, and without disturbing Amanda-san, who was lost in her own fantasies while reading various instructions, I had a lively conversation with Horio-san about hunting.

It seems that Horio-san is from a town called Mir, which is north of Malta, and there is only one small forest in the area that is equivalent to an F-rank hunting ground.

So, it seems that he used to operate from a base in the town of Lipsum, which is further north.

I thought I had heard the name Lipsum before from Yagov-san, so I asked him if it was the location of a D-rank hunting ground and bingo!

That means I’ve pretty much decided which town to go to next.

What’s more, if you go north from Lipsum, past a number of towns, you’ll come to the royal capital, and if you go even further north from there, you’ll come to the only C-rank hunting grounds in the Kingdom of Lagreth.

Horio-san, who was employed by the guild, is a hunter who specializes in driving carriages around the southern part of the kingdom so he said he only knew that much about the north, but it was still more than enough information for me.

The stories of the senior hunters who travel to various places are all eye-opening for me, who has no idea where my next destination will be.

And while we are talking about it, monsters appear on the highway every few hours or so.

“Hey, there’s a goblin coming up on the right. What should we do?”

This is the fourth one, including yesterday.

“I’ll defeat it!”

If there are other people in the carriage who can defeat the goblins, it seems that the carriage won’t stop every time one appears.

I jumped down from the coachman’s seat while running and dashed towards the goblin in front of the carriage before the horse got scared.

After stabbing it with my dismantling knife, I decided not to dismantle it and leave it as it was so as not to waste water since I didn’t have any of my own.

It’s nice to be able to move around like this while traveling, but only goblins with no skills appear, and they appear in such small numbers that the ride in the carriage is so boring that it’s a disappointment.

I can’t help but murmur in my heart that I wish there were at least ten times as many.

“As always, you’re so lively…”

“They’re just goblins, after all. I’ve never accepted an escort request before, but is it really that easy?”

“Well, I can only say that it depends on the location, but most of them are for when you really need them. If anything, there are more merchants who hire guards to protect them from bandits than from monsters.”

“I see~ So there is a possibility that bandits might appear between Bezart and Malta as well, right?”

I thought I should prepare for that, so I asked, but Horio-san laughed at my question and said, “No way!” while pointing to the back of the carriage.

Then I saw the symbol of a sword, shield, and staff, which is also displayed at the entrance to the guild, painted on the hood.

When I came to think of it, I noticed that this mark was also painted on the side of the back entrance and the side without windows.

“There is no way any bandits would attack us after seeing this symbol, you know? They know we’re only carrying things that aren’t worth anything. Besides, even the merchants between Bezart and Malta don’t carry anything worth stealing, and there’s no place for bandits to hide anyway, because the view is too good.”

“Ah, you’re right…”

“That’s why I told you to play. The monsters that appear from time to time are just goblins. I always get sleepy on this part of the route, so it’s a relief to have someone to talk to this time.”

As I looked at Horio-san, who was laughing heartily as he said this, I suddenly wondered why he was doing a job that was only for coachmen.

The way he yawned loudly, one after another, didn’t seem to indicate that he enjoyed his job.

He looked older than Alba-san and Mizuru-san, but was it because his body didn’t move as well as he would like?

Or was it just because it was a job that was both easy and well-paid?

I thought about it and asked him lightheartedly.

“By the way, is there a reason why you became a hunter who only rides around in a carriage?”

“Well, yes. I found out about reality.”

“Reality?”

“When I was young, I got carried away. I was called a promising rookie, and I got better and better at hunting D-rank monsters. Then, when I found out that there was a B-rank hunting ground nearby… you know how you want to go and see what it’s like, right?”

“Well, I guess I would want to go.”

“And then I barely escaped with my life from a tragedy even worse than I could have imagined. While many of my party members were being eaten alive by monsters… After that, I was too afraid of losing my friends to form a party again.”

“…..”

The promising newcomer… interest in strong hunting grounds… there are many things about Horio-san that overlap with me.

“I told you because I thought Loki was a bit strange, so be careful, okay? You can’t just go along for the ride. If you go to a hunting ground that doesn’t suit your abilities, you’ll end up like me, you know?”

Horio-san, who says this with a dry smile, probably has a story like this that is common in this world.

The simple curiosity that comes with choosing the profession of Hunter, the desire for a higher income than before, the longing to become a high-ranking Hunter, overconfidence… and then the sudden and unexpected death of someone close to you.

Even if the guild restricts applications based on rank to prevent this from happening, there will still be many hunters who, out of curiosity, will try it for themselves.

I would definitely have been one of those people in the game.

And even now, in this other world, I’m aware that I’m one step away from that.

I feel like if I die, it’s the end, but maybe if I have this defense, I can somehow manage to jump ranks and become a B rank.

If I can defeat them well and consistently, I’ll get a sudden level increase and the skills of a high-level hunting ground, and my power will increase dramatically…

These feelings fight with each other.

“Don’t worry. I promised the people of Bezart that I’d see them again. I won’t make a decision that will get me killed.”

“I hope that’s the case…”

――I couldn’t say it with absolute certainty.

Whether he realized it or not, Horio-san didn’t press the point.

The two of us leisurely watched the direction the carriage was going…

“We’ve finally arrived, you know? This is the city of Malta.”

Horio-san told me as we began to see the high stone walls of the city.

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