At last, the village gate came into view.
Owen, who was guarding Bresen Pioneer Village, raised a hand first.
“You’re back. You’re later than I thought...”
His words trailed off, and his gaze dropped to my shoulder.
Only then did Bron look me over, and he said in a low voice,
“You got scraped up pretty badly this time.”
“Haha. There were quite a lot of arrows flying around inside the goblin den.”
“Aren’t you hurt pretty badly...?”
Owen muttered, and Kaya added briefly,
“We’ll settle up and go straight to the healing sanctuary.”
Bron didn’t ask any more and simply nodded.
“Go on in.”
“Yes, sir. Good work.”
“Yeah.”
Owen also gave a short farewell.
“Good work out there!”
Inside the guild, it was filled with the particular bustle that came just before evening.
I could see Luce moving busily in front of the settlement counter.
Adventurers returning after completing requests, people crowding in to get paid, even the air mixed with the smell of alcohol and sweat.
The moment we approached the counter and began placing the magic stones down one by one, the atmosphere around us quieted ever so slightly.
Because the magic stones kept coming out onto the table without end.
Thud, thud, thud...
Luce’s hands paused for a moment.
“Today... you really hunted a lot.”
“Right? We emptied out an entire goblin den.”
At my words, Luce lifted her head with a smile, but the moment she saw my shoulder, her expression stiffened.
“Mr. Siyun, that wound...”
“Ah, this just grazed me a little...”
“It doesn’t look like it only grazed you.”
Luce’s reply was shorter than usual.
She looked once more at the red stain spreading through the bandage, then silently began sorting the magic stones at a rapid pace.
From regular types to warrior types, scout types, archer types, shaman types, and even Iron Tusk magic stones, her fingertips never stopped moving.
Luce read it out in a low voice.
“Base reward for clearing a goblin den, 2 silver coins. 21 regular-type magic stones, 5 warrior-type magic stones, 6 scout-type magic stones, 5 archer-type magic stones, 1 shaman-type magic stone, 3 Iron Tusk magic stones...”
Luce set down her pen and said,
“The total is 11 silver coins and 7 copper coins.”
For a moment, I was at a loss for words.
Beside me, Mari grinned broadly, and Kaya looked like she thought it wasn’t bad either.
“Would you like it in both silver and copper?”
“Yeah.”
“In that case, it comes out to 3 silver coins and 10 copper coins per person. There’s 1 copper coin left.”
“...Siyun, you take it. You’re always the one moving the most and working the hardest.”
“Come on... Even so, that’s...”
When my words trailed off, Mari pushed out some copper coins from her share.
“This too.”
“What’s this?”
“A service fee.”
“No, it’s fine. We should split it equally.”
Kaya also quietly pushed out 3 copper coins.
“Take it.”
“No, but still...”
“Ugh, just take it.”
Mari said with an irritated look.
“Take it when we’re just giving it to you. It’s not like we don’t know how hard you’re working.”
Kaya also nodded briefly.
“That’s right. You worked hard.”
I looked back and forth between their faces. There was no point in holding out any longer.
I took the copper coins, pretending I couldn’t win.
“Thank you.”
With the 3 copper coins Mari and Kaya each gave me and the remaining 1 copper coin all coming to my side, my settlement money became a total of 4 silver coins and 5 copper coins.
And if I added the money I already had...
‘16 silver coins and 7 copper coins, huh... The time has come.’
Just then, Luce took out a small glass bottle from beneath the reception desk. A reddish liquid sloshed inside the bottle.
“Mr. Siyun, take this... with you.”
“Huh? What is it?”
“It’s a low-grade healing elixir.”
I looked back and forth between the glass bottle and Luce’s face.
“Uh... Aren’t things like this expensive?”
“It’s only low-grade, not mid-grade. I’m giving it to you, Mr. Siyun, so don’t refuse.”
Luce added very softly,
“You were hurt more than I expected...”
At Luce’s words, my heart thumped hard for a moment, but I smiled shamelessly and accepted the bottle.
“Thank you.”
“Make sure you get proper treatment. Got it?”
“Yes, ma’am. But how do I use this?”
Mari said from beside me,
“You apply it to the wound. Or pour it on.”
“Oho...”
I opened the stopper of the glass bottle and slowly poured it over my shoulder. A faint herbal scent brushed past, followed by a lukewarm heat spreading inward.
It wasn’t immediate. Still, the hot throbbing gradually began to subside.
“It definitely feels a bit better.”
Luce smiled briefly, and Kaya looked at my expression and asked,
“Does it feel better?”
“Yes. This stuff is really good.”
Mari glanced at my shoulder with her arms crossed and said,
“Still, go to the healing sanctuary and get treated properly.”
“Of course. But before that...”
Clutching the coins tightly, I turned my head toward Luce.
“Luce.”
“Yes?”
“I’ll pay off the entire debt for the iron sword.”
Luce’s eyes widened ever so slightly.
“Right now?”
“Yes...!”
At that single word, both Kaya and Mari turned their heads. So did the two adventurers peeking at the next settlement counter.
Luce stared at me blankly for a moment, then took out the ledger from beneath the counter and found the section with my name written on it.
“You’re much faster than I expected.”
“Haha, am I?”
Kaya and Mari’s gazes wavered for a moment before quickly returning to normal. It was only natural. For ten days, we hadn’t rested even a single day.
I placed 5 silver coins in Luce’s hand.
Luce counted the coins, made a short mark in the ledger, then finally drew a line through it.
“The iron sword debt has been fully repaid.”
Luce closed the ledger and smiled faintly.
“Yes. Thank you for the healing elixir, Luce.”
“It’s nothing. And... congratulations on paying off your debt, Mr. Siyun. Please rest well today.”
“Yes...”
For some reason, those words of congratulations sounded strangely loud.
It was as if I had cleared a quest, and one side of my chest loosened all at once.
‘Now I have no debt.’
I stood there blankly for a moment, then turned and walked out toward the guild entrance.
‘Ahh, I can’t hold it in.’
Then I clenched my fist, shrugged my shoulders several times, and struck a victory pose.
“Yahoo~! I paid off all my debt~!”
After a brief silence, I heard someone laugh.
“Oh, you paid it all off already?”
“Congratulations!”
“Treat us!”
People inside and outside the guild began reacting one by one.
Adventurers I had run into a few times, guild staff, even people passing by looked my way and chuckled.
“You really paid it off fast.”
“More diligent than I thought, huh?”
Strangely, I didn’t dislike those gazes. I even thought about shouting one more time.
Just then, Mari asked with a fed-up expression,
“What are you doing?”
“Can’t you tell? I’m celebrating.”
Kaya burst into a small laugh.
“You really are unusual.”
I grinned and looked at the two of them.
“Dinner’s on me tonight!”
Mari immediately narrowed her eyes.
“Really?”
“For real.”
“Aren’t you pushing yourself for no reason?”
“Come on, I made plenty. I paid off my debt too... Buying dinner once is fine.”
At my words, Mari paused for the briefest moment, then gave a small laugh.
“Fine, then.”
Kaya said with a smile from beside us,
“Still, let’s stop by the healing sanctuary first.”
“Ehh...”
In the end, the first place we headed wasn’t the Sunset Hearth, but the healing sanctuary.
The moment Father Edric saw my shoulder, his face stiffened.
“You got scraped up a bit today.”
“Come on, this much isn’t even a scrape.”
“Shut up.”
At that one sentence, I simply closed my mouth.
Kaya briefly explained the situation from beside me.
Edric removed the bandage Kaya had used for first aid and checked the wound on my right shoulder.
Thanks to the low-grade healing elixir, the bleeding had definitely decreased, and the edges of the wound had closed to some extent.
Gathering holy power at his fingertips, he said,
“If you leave it like this, it’ll remain as a scar.”
The holy power spreading from Edric’s fingertips was much heavier than Kaya’s. Rather than warm, it felt like a firm light pressing each torn piece of flesh back into place.
The heat and pain that remained inside the wound slowly settled down.
Only after a new bandage had been wrapped around it did my shoulder finally feel like it had returned to where it belonged.
“Don’t use that arm too much tonight.”
“Yes, sir.”
“And at least see arrows coming and dodge them.”
“What? How am I supposed to do that?”
Beside me, Mari let out a small laugh. I frowned for no reason.
Once we left the healing sanctuary, my body definitely felt much lighter. I still wasn’t completely fine, but the pain that had been scraping at the inside of my body until just now had almost disappeared.
“Father Edric is really something.”
At my words, Kaya smiled faintly.
“That’s true.”
The three of us walked side by side toward the Sunset Hearth.
The moment we opened the door to the Sunset Hearth, familiar heat and the smell of roasting meat rushed over us.
Because I had only had a quick lunch, the smell of the restaurant alone made my mouth water.
Nia, who had been working inside the kitchen, saw us and opened her eyes wide.
“Huh? You’re here! But why do all your faces look like that?”
“In a good way or a bad way?”
When I asked, Nia’s gaze went to my shoulder first. Perhaps because the bandage stood out, her expression stiffened for a moment, but she soon looked at my face and asked again.
“You got hurt. But you look really happy?”
I couldn’t stop the corners of my mouth from rising.
“Because today is a good day~”
Mari threw in from beside me,
“He’s like that because he paid off all his debt.”
Nia’s eyes widened a little more.
“Oh, really?”
“Yes, I paid it all off today.”
“Then I really have to make you something delicious today.”
As she said that, Nia guided us to an empty table.
“Sit here. I’ll make it quickly and bring it out.”
“That sounds perfect.”
Nia laughed heartily and went inside.
A little while later, hot soup, freshly baked bread, golden-brown meat, and roasted potatoes topped with herbs and butter were set down one after another. On top of that, there were three glasses of golden beer.
Nia grinned and said,
“Here, eat plenty.”
“Thank you!”
For a while, all three of us ate without saying a word. Once my stomach filled a bit, I felt like I could live again.
After eating for quite some time, I suddenly asked,
“By the way, this just occurred to me, but how old are you two?”
Kaya answered first.
“Twenty-one.”
Mari opened her mouth a beat later.
“...Twenty.”
I immediately smiled.
“Oh, then I’m the oldest.”
“How old are you?”
“Twenty-five.”
“So what?”
“I was thinking... maybe I could talk more casually now?”
Mari cut me off at once.
“I don’t want that.”
“Come on, if you don’t want it, what are you going to do about it?”
Mari’s eyebrow twitched, and a small flame rose above her fingertips.
“Say that again.”
“Uh, uh?! This is a restaurant, a restaurant!”
Beside us, Kaya said calmly,
“I don’t mind. Do whatever’s comfortable.”
I immediately turned my head.
“Good.”
Mari looked at Kaya as if she couldn’t believe it. Then she glared at me for a moment and let out a long sigh.
“Ah... seriously... fine. But don’t cross the line.”
“Of course.”
“If you cross the line, I’ll really burn you.”
“Got it, Mari.”
The moment my words left my mouth, all three of us paused for a very brief second.
Kaya was the first to laugh, and though Mari looked annoyed, she didn’t say anything more.
That was enough.
After that, short exchanges continued across the table.
As the hot soup ran down my throat, the tension remaining in my body slowly loosened.
By the time the plates were almost empty, I set down my spoon for a moment and let out a breath.
“Ah... I’m full.”
Mari gave a small laugh.
“Same.”
When I got up and headed toward the counter, Nia approached first.
As Nia accepted the payment, she asked,
“Did you eat well?”
“Yes, it was really delicious.”
Nia blinked, then quickly smiled.
“Yeah? The beer’s on the house.”
“Really?! Thank you. I enjoyed what you packed for me this morning too. The jerky was good.”
“Heh, really?”
“Yep. After we got out of the cave, eating what you packed for me felt amazing.”
“I’m glad. Next time you’re going out for a long time, tell me. I’ll pack you more.”
“Eek, aren’t you treating me too well?”
“Come on, it’s nothing. Go on and get some rest.”
At those words, I smiled faintly.
“Yes, ma’am!”
After I finished paying, Nia looked at me for a moment, then lightly waved her hand.
“Get back safely.”
Each of us said goodbye to Nia and pushed open the door. Beyond the closing door, the noise of the restaurant faded.
Once we stepped out of the Sunset Hearth, the night air was fresher than expected.
The three of us walked side by side toward the healing sanctuary. The gravel underfoot crunched, and in the distance, a night bird cried briefly.
After walking quietly for a while, Kaya was the first to speak.
“Let’s rest tomorrow.”
I turned my head.
“Out of nowhere?”
“It’s not out of nowhere. We’ve been working too hard all this time.”
Kaya spoke calmly, but there was a fairly clear fatigue buried in those words.
Mari said quietly from beside her,
“I’m in.”
I looked up at the sky for a moment. Now that I thought about it, she was right.
We hadn’t rested once in ten days, and we had been getting through each day by relying on endorphins.
“I’m in too.”
When I answered obediently, Mari glanced at me.
“You’re surprisingly obedient about it.”
“You have to rest when it’s time to rest. Honestly, we really have been doing nothing but work like mad.”
Kaya smiled faintly.
“Yeah. Tomorrow, let’s all rest on our own.”
“Sounds good~”
When we arrived in front of the healing sanctuary, Kaya spoke first.
“Go in and sleep right away. Don’t overdo it.”
I smiled.
“Got it. You rest well too.”
The words flowed naturally from my mouth. Kaya also paused for the briefest moment, then soon smiled softly.
“Yeah, good night.”
Beside her, Mari uncrossed her arms and said,
“You too. Don’t go messing around by yourself today. Just sleep.”
“Got it, Mari.”
Mari narrowed her eyes, then silently flicked her hand once.
I smiled faintly and entered the healing sanctuary.
I took a change of clothes and headed to the public bathhouse. After washing up and returning to my room, fatigue came crashing down on me all at once.
Today had been quite fulfilling.
Clearing out the den, paying off my debt, getting my injury treated, and on top of that, dropping the formalities.
Suddenly, I found myself wondering if I should briefly return to reality.
‘Hmm...’
I didn’t feel like going back right away.
Because things were too good right now.
My life in Bresen was just beginning to settle into place, and Roy was recovering too. The distance between Mari, Kaya, and me also seemed to have grown closer today.
Above all, if I held out for just one month, I could learn aura.
It was still too early to cut things off here and return to reality.
I looked up at the ceiling and slowly let out a breath.
‘Yeah, one month.’
After I learn aura and become a little more stable, I’ll think about it again then.