Inside one of the houses in Bloomy—specifically, Rose's house—Laos was lying down, counting money. After a while, he kept staring at his iron sword lying on the floor. Eventually, a wide smile spread across his face, and he stood up, muttering: "Well, that's how things turned out. Don't be sad, you free adventurer."
It seems like I feel sad, even though I'm sure I convinced myself not to feel any gloom. And yet, I still feel it. It's really bad. It's like I was kicked out of a competition I was about to win, and I still have the desire to win that competition—even though I've been kicked out. It's weird, and it makes me hate what's happening here. I hate every moment I spend in this house.
Looks like the lie that I'd live a happy life after escaping that palace didn't work. It seems impossible for me to achieve happiness. I can only feel it temporarily—like I did in the beginning of my journey as an adventurer. I think… I think I was happy.
I don't know how I felt in the past, but right now, I'm clearly far from happy. There's no way back to that. I have no path to it. How can I pull myself out of this hole—the same hole I've fallen into again and again, and still don't know how to escape? I have to convince myself I'm not sad, that what happened to me is a good thing. But…
I can't convince myself. Because I am sad… I feel like I've ruined an entire family's life. What will I say to Maris now??!! I'm sure she'll be shocked and scold me, and that will only make me feel worse… Ugh, I hate this so much. I just want to see hope—something that makes me smile… a real smile.
The money I have is still far from my goal, and I can't even cheer myself up by buying a house. I can't gather money quickly either. I lost my job as a registered adventurer. Even though I know I wasn't making anything from it while I was in Yavna, I still feel like I lost something precious—something that could've built my future.
I really am stupid. I thought that if I kept killing wyverns, my rank would go up and I'd start getting good quests that paid well. But now, I've lost that belief, and the only thing I can do is keep killing wyverns and selling them to those dryads. What should I do—raise the price? No, no… they'll just buy from someone else if I do.
Fuck you, dryads. Fuck you, Alis. Fuck you, Yavan. Fuck you, Iveleth. You've destroyed me… I need to calm down. This kind of talk is useless and won't change anything. Okay, all I have to do is raise my strength, so I can kill stronger monsters and make money from them. So my path is the path of strength now. I have to aim for strength.
"Laos, are you awake?" a feminine voice called from behind the door.
"Oh, yeah," I muttered, getting up from my awkward lying position.
"Good morning…" she said softly as she approached.
She handed me a cup of tea and sat down on one of the chairs. Does she know I was kicked out? Fuck, that'd be embarrassing. I'd look so pathetic. I hope she brings up the wyverns or something else. But she didn't say anything. She stayed silent, not a single word. This is weird… and awkward.
"I heard you got kicked out of the guild."
Fuck! She knows. What do I say now? Hmm… obviously, I can't dodge the question. So, what now? Show me what you got, NPC. Let's see how you handle a tough conversation. Okay, calm down, dumbass. You can answer her question. Don't be a weirdo.
"Uh… yeah, I got kicked out. Because of selling wyverns," I replied nervously.
Suddenly, she stood up and bowed to me like I was a king or something. Anyone who saw this would think she's my servant. What's going on here? She kept bowing, and it sent a wave of anxiety, tension, and embarrassment through me. I couldn't stand seeing it—but finally, she spoke: "I'm sorry… all of Bloomy is sorry. We didn't warn you, and we kept trading with you just because your prices were low."
"No, no, it's not about warning me. I already knew about it beforehand."
"No! We're the reason. I only thought about myself and my village. I even forgot to think about our savior—you, Laos… we let you down and left you doing something illegal just for us."
"But I needed the money."
"I'm really a terrible person."
"Rose… you're not. If you were, you wouldn't be saying all this. I told you, I knew. And I take full responsibility for all of this. Maybe you could've reported me and the kingdom would've rewarded you, but you didn't… so stop blaming yourself."
"I still see myself as the reason, Laos… my selfishness is to blame. Looks like my father was right—selfishness is a weapon that kills its wielder. And now, Bloomy might lose you. It might lose its savior… I'm so sorry, Laos. You can do whatever you want to me. I'll accept it as punishment—for my selfishness, and for not listening to my father!!" Rose said this time in a loud voice, and behind the door, Feefy was watching—thinking I hadn't noticed her.
"…"
"Rose, please stand up. Hearing you say all that just makes me feel even worse."
She stopped bowing, and I saw her beautiful face stained with tears. Damn, I hate seeing this. She's like a beautiful painting that a child ruined by dropping ice cream on it. Looks like the gods only bless me with kind girls… except Tiana.
"And also, I think choosing to become a free adventurer was the right decision. It doesn't hurt me that much—if we don't count the sadness."
"A free adventurer? I think that sounds good. At least the guild's rules won't bother you."
"Exactly."
"So… you're not sad because you got kicked out?" she asked while wiping her eyes.
"Not exactly. But I'm sad for another reason. A bit more complicated. But what do you think of free adventurers?"
"Free adventurers… they're all strong, and their reputation is all about experience and power. Just like you. So I don't think it's a bad choice. On the contrary, it suits you perfectly."
"That's what I was thinking too… but even so, I'm still sad for some reason. I have this urge to go back."
"That's natural. You lost relationships you cared about. Poiner left the village this morning—I asked him why, and he told me, 'Laos was kicked out, so we're not in the same party anymore.' Of course you'd be sad."
"So my sadness comes from the end of a relationship?"
"That's what I think. When you lose someone dear to you, you can't feel happy."
So Poiner was dear to me. Yeah, Rose is right. The end of my relationship with him is the main reason I'm feeling down. So now what? Should I convince myself I'm not alone? But… why convince myself? I'm really not alone. Just like Thalesa said—I have a lot of people around me. People who love me.
"And also, you're not alone, Laos," Rose whispered.
"All of Bloomy is with you. Everyone knows you, respects you, appreciates you, and loves you. Don't ever think you're alone. Got it?"
"Yeah… thank you, Rose."
"So, did you tell your wife?"
"No… and I have no desire to tell her. I don't want her to feel bad. I'm sure she'll be upset."
"I get that, but you can't hide it from her forever."
"I'm not thinking about that right now… I'm lost, honestly."
"What will you do now? Will you go back to Iveleth?"
"No, no, impossible. I have rivals here I need to surpass."
"So?"
"I'll keep hunting wyverns, work on developing Thalesa, and gather money."
"Develop Thalesa?"
"Yeah!" Thalesa suddenly said cheerfully.
Fuck, I told her by mistake. I thought I was talking to Maris. Oh well, it's not that serious. It's Rose, and there's no harm in her knowing. Okay, should I tell her my story too? No, no, I shouldn't bring up Gaziel with Rose.
"So this is the Astral Sword—Gaziel's sword. I thought it just looked like it. So you're a spirit user… why didn't you tell me?"
"I wanted to keep it a secret because my father asked me to," I replied.
"Your father… Laos, I asked you this before and I'll ask again: do you know anything about Gaziel?"
Fuck, what do I do now? This is exactly why I didn't want to reveal I'm a spirit user. Now she thinks my father killed Gaziel or something, and that's why he wasn't sent to slay that sleeping dragon. I can't tell her Gaziel was kidnapped by Deryal's spies.
"I swear by the Moon Goddess, I don't know anything."
"Strange… so the kingdom refuses to send him for some reason. That really bothers me… it makes me hate this kingdom more and more."
Why don't I just tell her everything? No, no, you dumb. She might leak my location and they'll find me. I could be executed for escaping Tiana's palace. I already regret recklessly telling Ponier everything, so don't repeat the mistake with Rose.
"Well, since this is the Astral Sword that Gaziel used, that means Thalesa is with you."
"Yeah, she's listening to our conversation right now."
"Thalesa… I failed to protect the village. I didn't keep the promise I made to you and Gaziel."
"Failed? What do you mean failed? I know you've been relying on outsiders to protect the village, but that's not failure. I'm sure your father is proud of you," I repeated Thalesa's words—the ones only I could hear.
"Really? But I'm not following the advice he gave me."
"Who cares, as long as you're still protecting the village?"
"So now we have Laos and Thalesa… I'd be happy to work with you both!" Rose said excitedly, her sad expression fading.
"Me too," I replied.
"By the way, can I see your real hair color? Is it green like your eyes?" Rose asked with a big smile.
The Astral Sword vanished, and my black hair appeared. My god, I could see it touching my neck. I really need to cut it a bit. When Rose saw it, her smile disappeared and her expression shifted to mild displeasure—she doesn't like the color black.
"White is better. You'd look great if it were green."
"Everyone says that. Everyone prefers white hair."
"Wow!!" Feefy suddenly screamed after falling as she leaned on the door.
We all started laughing then. It was a great conversation. Thank you, Rose. You really helped me. I'll never forget this talk. I felt truly happy—like I hadn't just been sad a little while ago. How can just a conversation with this girl change my whole mood? She's amazing… and kind. So kind.
"By the way, Laos, I can help you develop Thalesa."
"Really? That would help me a lot in reaching my current goal."
"What's your goal?"
"It might sound silly, but right now I aim to kill that sleeping dragon."
"..."
Suddenly, a terrifying silence spread across the room. Rose didn't say anything, but her expression changed drastically. She looked angry—even clenching her fists tightly. She tried to hide it, but it was obvious. She looked like I had just said I wanted to kill everyone in the village. It was insane—what the fuck is going on with her?
"Slytha..."