"Comrade, isn't your sense of taste strange? There's no way this tastes bad."

I actually thought it was delicious too, but still. This Berserker bastard?

"It seems to suit your pathetic nature."

Ah, whatever. It's true that I lost my appetite because of a single word from the owner, so I wasn't technically wrong.

Even though I knew this wasn't the owner's fault, I deliberately acted like a jerk. After all, I couldn't always be a good person.

I, too, was the type to look out for my own.

SCRAPE.

"... Are you leaving too?"

"W-Well. I'll go check on the horses. I'm a bit worried about them."

DeB, who had become a bit awkward, eventually stood up to follow. Thanks to me, the others didn't find it strange that he was leaving his seat. They seemed to assume he was going to take care of me.

Damn it. It's a relief, but somehow I feel offended.

"Finish your meal before you go, young hunter."

"I'm alright."

I confirmed that DeB had left his half-empty bowl behind and come out.

Of course, I didn't see it with my own two eyes; I knew it from his presence. Since I had already left the shop and was heading toward where the horses were, there was no way I could see DeB leaving a half-beat later.

And my concept wasn't exactly the type of character who would look back, either.

"Damn it, there are six horses."

"What kind of rich person left them there..."

"Is there only one errand boy?"

"Drop it. The Mage cast a spell on them earlier."

Was it as I walked, confirming that DeB was following me closely about six steps behind?

I spotted some people eyeing the horses we had left in the vacant lot. Since they were standing and chattering right at the entrance to the lot, I couldn't help but notice them even if I didn't want to.

"Get lost."

Normally, I would just ignore them and pass by, but if they stood blocking the way like that, I had no choice but to speak up.

I grumbled slightly about it and scraped my voice to sound as gloomy as possible. At that, the people yelled, "Who are you—" and turned their heads, locking eyes directly with me.

"K-K-Knight."

"W-We're sorry!"

"W-We absolutely weren't coveting your horses, Sir Knight!"

Yeah, right. They looked like they were practically drooling from their eyes.

"We're sorry!"

However, I had no intention of making a big deal out of it. I let them run away and approached the horses. The child who had been standing briskly in front of the horses flinched upon seeing me.

"Go."

I flicked a coin to the child.

My wallet had gotten a bit lighter since a large chunk of money went toward compensating for the bridge, plus regular expenses—like stocking up on consumables such as toiletries and rations—but... I still had enough to give a tip.

"Thank you!"

The child's face lit up, and they ran off somewhere else. DeB, who had been following me silently, glanced at the kid and then approached me.

"Um, Boss..."

DeB saw me leaning my back against the wall and closing my eyes, and he stopped talking. Instead, he crouched down and gently stroked the muzzles of the horses eating hay.

"... I'll go buy some more cloaks."

Cloaks? He's already wearing a hooded cloak... Ah. Is he trying to cover his ears?

I discreetly looked at his perked-up ears and the hair peeking out from the hood.

While the latter couldn't be helped, the former was definitely a fatal flaw. The fur color could be seen because of his ears. The same went for the hair sticking out through the holes.

It was the downside of having large top-ears (ears located near the crown of the head).

Well, seeing how the Slender race cuts holes on both sides of their hoods just because their ears are big, even if they had side-ears (ears located near the temporal bone) instead of top-ears, the problem might just be having large ears to begin with.

"Please wait a moment."

Anyway, I watched him leave the spot once again.

I got up early specifically so I wouldn't leave him alone... No, more importantly, you. Weren't you targeted by a demon before? Is it really okay for you to go like this?

My feelings became complicated. However, tagging along with him was hindered by my concept, as always.

In the end, I decided to trust that DeB would just buy the hood and come back. DeB had enough sense to keep the demon in mind, so it wasn't exactly a baseless trust.

So, instead of following DeB, I popped a piece of candy I had bought beforehand into my mouth. It was candy I had gone out of my way to buy despite being broke.

Even though I couldn't actually give it to the person I wanted to give it to.

"Oh dear, I shouldn't have opened my mouth..."

The Inquisitor looked sullenly at the backs of those leaving and stirred her soup with her spoon.

Even though the food had been delicious just a moment ago, a strangely empty feeling washed over her now that the two had left.

"Inquisitor, are you full?"

"A-No."

Still, she couldn't leave the food she had ordered behind. That would be a sin.

So, she quickly scooped up a spoonful of soup and nibbled on small cuts of meat, putting them in her mouth.

"I apologize. I hope I didn't ruin the customers' moods..."

"It's fine. You were telling us out of goodwill, weren't you?"

She mindlessly shifted her gaze as she ate. The bowls left at the empty seats caught her eye.

The slacker was one thing, but the Demon Knight had also left nearly half of his food.

It seemed it really hadn't suited his tastes. He was someone who, no matter where they went, tried to empty his plate—even at places so terrible that she would frown.

He had even eaten everything when he was unknowingly served meat, which he hated.

"Could it be that the Demon Knight dislikes tomato stew?"

"Didn't he eat tomatoes just fine last time?"

"Hmm."

Then what was the problem? The spices? The sweetness? Neither was particularly overpowering.

"Isn't it just that his sense of taste is strange?"

"Th-That can't be!"

There was no way the Demon Knight would dislike it for no reason, so perhaps there was something in this food that she hadn't noticed.

The Inquisitor groaned and fell into deep thought. It was a problem with no likely answer.

"More importantly, owner, tell us about that rumor."

"Pardon?"

"There has to be an origin for the rumor, doesn't there?"

"Ah..."

Or could it be... a demon?!

The Inquisitor stole a quick glance at the shop owner. She couldn't sense any demonic energy. He had a scar on his left arm and walked with a slight limp, but that couldn't be proof of being a demon worshiper.

"W-Well, it's a somewhat sensitive story."

"I ask this of you. My intuition tells me it might be related to the reason we came here."

"Pardon? Ah, right. I've heard that adventurers move upon receiving quests."

Tsk. It would've been great if that degenerate were here at a time like this. She felt a sense of regret and a slight pang of jealousy.

It couldn't be helped. That slacker was truly exceptional when it came to analyzing people.

To the point where she realized the Archmage hadn't brought him along for nothing. To the point where he occasionally made her reflect on her own shortcomings and inadequacy.

"... What I just told you is a secret."

"Of course. I swear to keep it."

After all, she couldn't read a wealth of information from a person's appearance like he could, nor could she extract data with a sly attitude and silver-tongued words.

"... Earlier, you asked why there are so few people on the streets, right? It's a story connected to that."

The Inquisitor swallowed her soup, reflecting on her own shortcomings once more.

"Nine or ten years ago, I believe. A person with green hair assassinated the Lord at the time."

Then, she focused on the owner's words.

It went against her nature to stop putting in effort just because she lacked ability.

"But a rumor spread that the person was from the streets... that they were either a homeless pickpocket or a beggar wandering the streets..."

Because if she did, she might eventually be able to loosely imitate him, even if she couldn't do it as well as he did.

"From that day on, the Lord's family began killing those who wandered the streets of the city, like beggars and pickpockets."

But was the story she was hearing right now true?

"They claimed it was to clean up the criminals operating in the back alleys... but those in the know knew the truth. It was retaliation."

The Inquisitor instinctively clenched her fists. The restaurant owner also half-unconsciously gripped his scarred arm.

"... So, what happened to them?"

"They died."

At the same time, the other person's gaze changed. It was no longer the look of an ordinary man, but of a Fighter fighting for what was right.

"Though they might not have been welcome neighbors, there was no one in this city who thought they deserved to die."

"Mmm. I should pray to God. I feel like I overate..."

"Haha. Wouldn't God forgive even this much?"

"Berserker wants to go again."

Mmm. I definitely trusted him. I trusted DeB.

Why hasn't this little Meat Dumpling come back yet?

I narrowed my eyes at the party who had arrived before DeB. Staring straight ahead, I saw the lines of the Archmage's lips twitching.

"Hmm? Why are you alone?"

I don't know. If I knew, I wouldn't be alone.

"Where did the slacker go? He went after you, Demon Knight."

The Kimchi Dumpling, who had become strangely plumper as if she'd just had a satisfying meal, asked me as well. She seemed worried despite pretending not to be.

I still had nothing to answer with, though.

"Are your eyes functioning so poorly that you can't accept the fact he isn't here?"

"So you don't know."

Yep.

"Hmm. Bought the young hunter's portion for nothing. The food has become useless."

The Berserker expressed regret over the packed container. It wasn't modern takeout packaging, but rather food placed inside a pot we normally used.

"Ungrateful brat. I brought this for him on purpose."

The Berserker surprisingly took good care of DeB. The Inquisitor had also started treating him like a comrade recently.

I positively embraced the Berserker's unexpected side and the dumplings' relationship—which could now be called friendship—and properly straightened my body. Tension entered my back as it parted from the wall.

"Where are you going?"

Well. Concept-wise, it's a walk; my real purpose would be to search for DeB, even if I have to disguise it as a coincidence.

It'd be better if he was just hiding somewhere in town acting pathetic, but I had a bad feeling for some reason.

Considering the possibility that he was being kept away against his will, there were surprisingly many angles for someone to pick a fight with him.

Absolutely. The owner wouldn't have warned him about his hair color for no reason, right?

The fact that I didn't like how it dealt DeB an emotional blow was separate from the weight the warning itself carried.

I didn't gloss over it. Because it was the most common and most annoying cliché.

"Return to the Temple before dinner!"

Call it luck; the party didn't hold me back.

My legs began to take large strides down the street.

"Ugh, what a fishy smell."

But one of the people passing by on the street happened to mutter that right as they walked past me. As a bonus, my right arm suddenly became itchy.

Could they... have been talking about me? They said it smelled fishy, so it couldn't be me, right? Honestly, why would I smell fishy?

... Or wait, do I smell like blood?? It's true I haven't washed yet since coming here...!!

I groaned, recalling the trauma the Kankan had left behind. Meanwhile, my arm being itchy was pure torture.

Scratching would break my character concept, so I had to do it in secret, but taking off the gauntlet was difficult, too...!

And the itchy part wasn't even near the opening! If it were near the opening, I could at least jam a finger in to scratch it, but why did it have to be the deepest part that was tickling?

I trudged along, crying internally from the weight of being told I smelled and the agony of not being able to scratch. Even amid all this, I couldn't bear to lose my cool factor, so I kept my expression straight.

If I showed a weird expression to DeB when we happened to bump into each other, there was no telling how he would react.

"...!"

"...go!"

"...?"

Did I advance down the main street while agonizing like that? By the time I reached the commercial district, I spotted a crowd of people.

Judging by the noise, it sounded like a brawl was breaking out.

"...if you don't want to, get out of the way!"

"...doing! You're the one who needs to get lost!"

I approached the place where the fight was happening. People were surrounding it thickly, but fortunately, I was tall enough to see over them.

It was possible because, aside from the Shaggy race, they were on average a good ten to twenty centimeters shorter than me.

"... And you still call yourself a person of this city after doing that!?"

"Hah, of course I am! I'm a proud resident of Ednium! Unlike you bastards, throwing a fit over hair color!"

"His hair color isn't the only problem with him—!"

"Shut up, don't pin the blame on others when you aren't even sure!"

But when I looked, there were two groups of three or four people arguing with each other.

The problem was that DeB was standing behind one of the groups, fiddling with a new cloak.

And as if he had been slapped, the face visible through his hood was red. My eyes trembled furiously.

STEP.

"Don't push from behind— Gasp."

"M-M-M-Move."

"... It's a knight!"

"A-A knight? Isn't he an adventurer?"

Damn it. Looking at the situation, it seems our kid got beaten up for no reason, and some righteous citizens who saw it are protecting him.

Does this make sense? Does it? No matter how much you hate green hair, is it right to beat up an unrelated—at least outwardly—person!

And you, Meat Dumpling! Why are you bowing your head silently like a sinner! What did you do wrong! Keep your head up!

"Wh-What do you want."

"Haven't seen your face around here. Be careful. Those guys are thugs who smash the faces of passing pedestrians."

"What?! Thugs?!"

"Yes, thugs!!"

Their true character showed just by looking at how they treated me.

Satisfied with the people who worried about my safety first, I walked between them.

Rather than looking like I was trying to intervene, my steps gave off the impression of 'whether you guys fight or not, I'm going my own way.'

"Don't butt in when this has nothing to do with—"

And when those bastards opened their mouths, I deliberately stopped right in the middle—just enough to show them my profile. I didn't turn my eyes.

I merely placed a hand on the sword hilt at my waist.

"Lately, things that aren't even human are speaking the human tongue quite often."

"... Boss?"

Ah, more importantly, from that empty-headed Young Master in Camberer to these people, why have I had to threaten civilians so much lately?

"I-If you attack me, e-even if you're a knight..."

But those bastards started it with me first.

"Even if?"

I shifted my eyes slightly.

"E-Even a knight, i-if you kill someone..."

"How utterly laughable."

Along with that, I pivoted my ankle as he finished speaking and slowly approached him. Unlike a certain Young Master, I didn't knock him over, so the guy faced me while still standing.

Even if he had to practically crane his neck backward due to our height difference.

"You dare strike another while disregarding the law, yet you think you'll receive its protection?"

"H-Heek!"

"Get lost, you insect. Occupy the street and bother me one more time, and I will make those careless fists of yours truly weightless."

Still, I didn't use violence. Because I was a cultured modern person.

Instead, I glared at the guy, packing my eyes full of bloodlust. At that, his legs visibly trembled before he scrambled away with his group behind him.

It was a victory for the concept.

Well, the side effect was that even the people around us flinched and stepped back when they looked at me, but that didn't really matter. I was only going to see them once anyway.

"Boss..."

Most importantly, DeB wasn't scared.

"... Did you come looking for me?"

"Nonsense."

Actually, I did. Thank goodness I found you quickly, man.

"... I was going to leave right away... but a fight broke out... I'm sorry, Boss."

What do you have to be sorry for? Anyone can tell it wasn't your fault.

More importantly, does your cheek hurt a lot? The inside of your mouth didn't burst, did it?

Ah. So annoying. You guy who just ran away, come back. I've never been a fan of the Code of Hammurabi, but you need a beating. Who do you think you are to touch our Meat Dumpling.

"Boss."

What.

"If... if something you did because you thought it was right... ended up producing innocent victims..."

I left the scene of the commotion with DeB trailing behind me like a tail. People parted like the Red Sea with every step I took, so moving forward wasn't much of a problem.

"What would you do then, Boss?"

The problem was our Meat Dumpling's question.

"A worthless question."

But what could I do? This kind of question completely clashed with my concept.

"If one cannot bear the consequences of their deeds, they should never have taken up the sword to begin with."

Even as I answered, I asked myself.

Is this right? I mean, is this really the right response?

"... I suppose you're right."

Even if I looked at it while doing a backflip, this didn't seem right...!!

"Maybe someone like me should never have picked up a sword."

Waaaaaaah!! Archmage, help!!!