Rising Life Volume 1, Chapter 28

Episode 28 Solicitation I

　Whenever her mind became unstable, she would abandon her thoughts and swing her sword as hard as she could.

　That was Serena Silverwollo's method of self-control.

「Fuhh, fuhh, fuhh――」

　In the cool, crisp morning air.

　Serena was alone in the training ground of the adventurer's guild, swinging her sword with single-minded devotion.

　The only sound in the training room was the chirping of birds, and the sharp sound of the wind was heard.

「Hah, Huff, yahh!」

　She could feel drops of sweat dripping from the tips of her naturally short hair.

　Her white sleeveless shirt was clinging to her skin with sweat, revealing the white sarashi wrapped around her chest.

　The inside of her gloves was also quite steamy.

「Haahh!」

　She slashed her sword down and stood still.

　Her light blue eyes stared straight ahead.

　She can feel the cold morning breeze hitting her silvery hair.

　Her skin is hot.

　Sweat trickles down her throat, pools on her collarbone, and drips down to her sarashi-wrapped chest.

「Phew. ......」

　Serena exhaled quietly, spun her sword around, and put it in its sheath.

　That was it.

　Although it was only basic kata practice, she felt much refreshed.

(This is what I do when my mind is in turmoil.)

　Serena bowed to the training ground and picked up her backpack and hand towel from a nearby stump.

　She opened the chest of her shirt, inserted the cloth, and carefully wiped away the sweat.

　Her armpits were soaked with sweat.

（I felt as if I had been born anew, with all the evil spirits gone from my body.)

　She put a hand towel on the ends of her wavy hair.

　This is something she has done for a long time whenever she feels lost or has a bad day.

　The routine that had become ingrained in her body was physically resetting her mental state.

「Whew!」

　She rubbed her cheek against the hand towel.

　The fabric was wet.

　She could smell her hair softly.

　It smelled a little sweaty ―

　She doesn't have any plans for today, and she might as well go back to the inn and get some hot water from Tarai. (TLN: tub)

(I have no plans ....... That's right, I got fired from the "Falcon Clan.")

　Serena felt a little gloomy as she walked over to the guards.

　Yesterday, when she was running back after being attacked by the Griffin.

　Serena had a fatal falling out with the members of the "Falcon clan".

　Roses-Pitt, the delinquent monk, had even told her that she was not one of them.

　There was no way she could continue to be a member of the party as before.

　I guess it's not so strange that the party was dissolved last night.

(I don't care about the party. I don't care about adventurer rank.)

　The reason she became an adventurer was to make a living and to gather information about the Deadly Swordsman of Azrair.

　She didn't become an adventurer to accumulate points and move up to intermediate and advanced ranks.

　But yesterday's act was clearly Serena's fault.

　If she had pursued the Griffin with the delinquent monk and the flashy female magicians to save Robert, one of the three of them would have been seriously injured.

　A delinquent monk and the flashy magicians would have been too much for Griffin, who boasted simple strength and agility.

　Serena, a swordswoman, would have been the best match, but she was put off by the fact that she couldn't do anything once the Griffin was in the air.

　A clear error in judgment.

　Even if it was one on one, depending on the terrain of the battlefield, she might have been able to win, but she took precautions and withdraw.

(At that time, I made two mistakes in judgment. The first mistake was to invite Roses and Francisca. The second mistake was to assume that I could never win by myself....... There was no chance of winning alone, so I should have gone after them.)

　Just like that Kian――

　Serena thought of the face of the dark-haired young man and pursed her lips tightly together.

「You've got a lot of energy this morning, little girl. Here's your adventurer's card.」

「Thank you.」

　She bowed and received an iron identification card from the guard.

　On the card are the words "9th Class" and the guild contribution points.

　Although she had just arrived in town two weeks ago, Serena had already completed her 10th class (rookie) as a parasite of Hope's Falcon Clan.

　In terms of points, she was almost in the 8th class.

(I should be promoted to 8th class. Because there are more things you can do as a lower class adventurer than as the lowest class adventurer..)

　With that in mind, Serena pressed a hand towel to her wet hair.

　And then―

「Ah, ......!」

「Hello. Good morning.」

　Before Serena knew it, Kian was standing in front of her.

　Perhaps it was because of the coat he was wearing, but in her distracted state, it was impossible to sense his presence at all.

　Serena stiffened for a moment and then turned her gaze away from him as if to flee.

　Her proud self was telling her to stop being such a loser, but her body was reflexively moving.

　It was guilt, or a kind of bitterness, that made Serena feel this way.

　The person she despised as weak was actually braver and more brilliant than Serena.

　It was embarrassing and shameful.

　Serena wasn't bold enough to greet him cheerfully.

「Ah, Serena-san!」

「......!」

「Serena, waaaiit!」

「............!」

　As if to punish herself for looking down on someone she didn't know well, Kian's voice chased after her. Before Serena knew it, she was running away.

「Stooooop! You forgot something!」

「Eh ......?」

　The word "Forgot" made her stop.

　She looked at the backpack on her shoulder and saw that it was open.

　Kian came after her from behind, carrying a leather bag.

「ah, ......」

「Thank God! Here! You dropped this!」

　The leather bag that was presented to her was something very important to Serena.

　It's a necklace of fangs that belonged to her brother who was killed by a Deadly Sword wielder.

　It's the same one that Serena is wearing now.

　They had made it together when they were little.

「Ah, ......, thank you.」

　She thanked him, unable to make eye contact.

　Kian still seemed to have a lazy, carefree smile on his face.

「No, no, no. you were in a hurry because you suddenly ran away. I'm glad I caught up with you.」

「....... ! I'm not running away.」

「Eh ......?」

　Kian made a funny face at Serena, who muttered in a low, twisted voice.

（Oh shit, I did it again.......)

　She thought about it, but she couldn't correct him every time, so she could only shake her head without expression.

「It's nothing. ...... This is something that I treasure. Thank you for picking it up.」

「Ah, sure ......」

「――――」

「Ahahaha......」

　Kian thought that Serena was a hard person to deal with.

　I'll leave you to it then,――he said, smiling and walking toward the East End's East Gate.

　Serena was also on her way back to the city, so they were on the same path.

　She was about to walk away from him, but the touch of the leather bag she was clutching brought her back to her senses.

(Yes, that's right. He might know something about the Deadly Swordsman. I should ask him.)

　It may have been presumptuous of her, but she was going to avenge her brother.

　Once she thought about it, her dislike for him receded.

　Serena shouted sharply, "Wait".

「Eh, what is it?」

　She strode up to Kian, who turned around.

「I have something to ask you.」

「Something you want to ask me? ......I'm sorry, but I have some business to attend to. I had to go around a few other places.」

　Kian, who secretly says it's troublesome.

　But the last time she asked him at the Adventurer's Guild, he lied and said he didn't know.

　He must have some information about the Deadly Swordsman.

「If it's an information fee, I'll pay it. I don't have a lot of money either, so if I don't have enough, let me make up for it with something else.」

「No, you see. I'm on the verge of being fired from the Adventurer's Guild, so I don't have time to get involved with you. ......」

　In the middle of my words, I heard a loud gurgling sound.

　The source of the sound was Kian's stomach.

　Apparently, he was hungry.

(It's a chance)

　Serena took a step toward Kian.

　Kian took a step back as if he was under pressure.

　Serena closes in even closer.

「I heard that the majority of people in this country don't eat breakfast, but you do, don't you? I'll buy you breakfast and you can stay with me for that time.」

「Uhh.」

「Are you going to buy some meat skewers from a food stall and eat them as you go? If you follow me, you might be able to have a decent breakfast.」

「Mugh ......」

　Kian glanced down at his pockets.

　From the bulge, it must be his wallet.

　He weighed the balance in his wallet against the hassle of keeping up with Serena.

　Serena twitched her dog ears.

「You can't lie to me, or deceive me. You're trying to get rid of me because I'm troublesome. But if you answer my questions properly, I'll only have to do this once, and I'll pay you for the information. And you might even get a nice breakfast on the side.」

「Mmm-hmm.」

「Come with me.」

　Serena decided to force her way through Kian's reluctant response.

　She called out to him in a clear and concise voice and walked ahead of him.

　Then he hesitantly followed behind Serena.

(Okay, I got him.)

　Inwardly feeling gut-punched, Serena walked ahead of him without hesitation.

　Eventually, Kian seemed to have given up his hesitation and began to follow Serena quietly.

　　× x x x

(In the end, I was pushed over the edge. ......)

『You have a weakness for strong women like her, don't you?』

　He followed Serena and reminded himself to talk to the glasses.

　From the east gate, go to the east street.

　If you walk all the way, you'll come to the main street in the center.

　Serena seemed to have rented a room in a tavern somewhere on the main street.

(I reflect on that. Sophie was not my cup of tea either.)

『You have the kind of personality that would make you popular with some women, though. You're a pimp at heart. ...... You're also surprisingly good at housework.』

(The pimp nature is ....... There is no more disgraceful evaluation than this.)

『Kufufu, I'm not trying to be sarcastic. As the saying goes, if I were to get my hands on a flesh and blood body, I'm saying that you have a personality that you could love in many ways every day. You can rejoice. It is a great honor for you to receive such recognition from this me.』

(Enough.)

　Kian shrugged his shoulders and stared at the back of Serena's head as she walked in front of him.

　He could smell a sweat from her silvery natural short hair - a sweet smell.

　Her white sleeveless shirt.

　Her short beige pants.

　Sturdy leather boots that covered her to the knees.

　The blouse-like material of the shirt exposed her thin shoulders.

　The shorts had a special waistband with a silver tail hanging down from it.

　A long black sock was pulled up by a garter from her boot.

　She is about 160 centimeters tall.

　Her hair is short, and from behind she could be mistaken for a boy with thin lines.

　However, if you look closely, he can see that her shoulder muscles are tight and her legs are well developed.

　Her hips in particular seem to have been worked out very hard, and despite her slender frame, she has wonderful curves.

　She's thin and slender, but she's also an easy-going woman - what can I say, she has the beauty of a wild animal.

　If she takes off her clothes, he'll find that Esther and she have surprisingly naughty flesh.

　She is also different from Arueno, who has feminine lines like a goddess statue.

　She was a new kind of beautiful girl in Kian's mind.

「What?」

　She may have noticed his gaze, but she turned her head to look at him.

　Kian hurriedly shook his head.

　Don't let her realize that he had a bad delusion ――

「......?」

　Fortunately, Serena only raised her eyebrows a little and turned around to face forward.

　The only thing she has on top of her head is her dog ears, which are up in the air as if in alarm.

『It was a close call. I've been caught in a lie before, but it was probably because of those ears.』

(A beast's ear――Is it a sign of an ancient beast left over from the process of evolution, like the bones in the back and middle of the buttocks of humans?)

『Yeah. It is the lower human ear that captures sound, but the upper one is a different organ. Most beastmen's ears are ornaments, but this woman seems to have the blood of Wollo, the wolf god, in her veins or something. She must be able to sense something like a sixth sense.』

（She looks like she's just a beautiful girl with ears and a tail, though)

『Be careful. Don't be fooled by her appearance. You can feel the thick magic she carries, can't you?』

(Yeah. It's not as strong as Arueno-san, but it's an incredibly strong life force.)

「Here.」

　Suddenly, Serena, who was walking in front of him, stopped.

　Kian looked around and saw that they were standing at the intersection of Main Street and East Street.

　Many adventurers were walking towards the east gate from the main street.

　The inn where Serena was staying stood alone, hidden from the bustle.

「Pumpkin Pie Pavilion.」

　He read out the sign.

　The sign read, "Pumpkin Pie Pavilion." The whole place was plain, but it was a solid stone tavern.

　As expected, Esther's house looked more upscale.

　However, the polished sign and the watered-down front of the store suggested that the owner was running a proper tavern.

　Not to mention one of the lodgings Kian was renting - the rundown inn.

「Does the owner of this place cook breakfast for their guest?」

「No way. You must rent the kitchen and make it yourself.」

「Eh, ......」

「So it's up to your taste buds whether it will be a good breakfast or not.」

「Hey, hey, hey. ......」

「C'mon, follow me. I'll show you in.」

「For real ......」

『You've come this far, so let's finish this. If you don't think it's in your best interest, make it out.』

（What if she makes me eat something weird and makes me sick to my stomach?)

『That's a girl from the Silver Wolf tribe. In that tribe, it is customary for the men to fight outside and the women to protect the house. I'm sure she can cook.』

(But she was on a quest and wielded a sword.)

　Despite his rebuttal, Kian followed Serena into the tavern.

　Inside was a small, dimly lit hall like a hiding place.

　Of course, it was made of stone, and ivy-covered grapes adorned the walls here and there.

「Just sit down and wait. I'll go back to the room and get the ingredients.」

　That's all Serena said and walked up the stairs at the back of the tavern.

　Kian left alone, shrugged his shoulders, and took a seat near the wall.

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