Roxy looked somewhat surprised.
"Berrias Grayrat? You…"
Allen smiled.
"A noble, didn't expect that, huh?"
Roxy quickly shook her head, as if a thought had just struck her.
"Are you perhaps going to Buena Village?"
Allen leisurely countered with a question.
"How do you know that?"
Roxy scrutinized Allen's face carefully. Unfortunately, Allen bore no resemblance to Rudeus.
Rudeus had a delicate, gentle appearance, with soft hair neatly framing his face. This boy, however, had sharp, intense features, and his dirty, messy hair was tied back loosely, with only a few strands hanging over his forehead.
Allen noticed Roxy's intense gaze and found it somewhat amusing.
He and Rudeus didn't even come from the same bloodline. Not only did they look different, their genetics were unlike each other's.
The Notos family, represented by Paul, favored busty women—Allen hadn't seen it firsthand, but the novels made that clear. Meanwhile, the Berrias family, represented by Eris, had a preference for beastgirls—which, well… Allen himself could attest to.
Of course, Rudeus might not have fully inherited the family traits due to being a traveler from another world; this was evidenced by Blue Mom right here.
Wait… something seemed off.
Allen himself was part traveler too, so why was he still so obsessed with Flare?
This…
While Allen was lost in self-questioning, Roxy spoke again.
"Not to hide it from you, but for the past two years, I've been employed by the family of Sir Paul Grayrat—the knight of Buena Village—as the private tutor to their son, Rudeus Grayrat."
She paused.
"Could it be you're going to seek them out?"
Allen quickly snapped back to the moment and feigned surprise.
"What a coincidence! To be honest, I caused a bit of trouble in the Asura Capital, so I came to stay with Uncle Paul to lay low. This place is more remote, so if you're going to the Asura Capital, please don't reveal my whereabouts if anyone asks."
With that, Allen clasped his hands in a pleading gesture.
Roxy breathed a sigh of relief. She had worried earlier about Allen's ragged appearance after traveling such a distance—he didn't seem like someone seeking help but more like someone looking for trouble.
Trouble at home, maybe? The Berrias family is well-known in the capital. The heir apparent is Philip Berrias Grayrat, the mayor of Roya city in the Fitoria region. He supposedly has only one child, a rather troublesome young lady.
What kind of trouble could leave Allen looking like this? He seemed steady and careful, not the type to cause random trouble. Was he involved with a girl and chased out by her family?
Well, the Grayrat men were notorious womanizers, and their slick tongues were practically hereditary.
Unusual relationships were common among nobles in Asura Capital; the atmosphere was quite different from Miris. It was said that aphrodisiacs were easily found even on the streets.
If some scandal happened and rumors spread, nobles would usually handle it quietly with exile or cold treatment for a year or so before welcoming the person back. That might explain why Allen had no guards.
Allen didn't know exactly what Roxy was thinking, but he saw her expression change several times—her eyes fixed on him like she was looking at a scoundrel. Then she clapped her hands softly, showing a 'case closed' look. Allen guessed she had almost figured out his story.
Well, it's a good thing Roxy is smart and quick to imagine scenarios—makes things easier for him not to have to explain.
As for being a scoundrel… whatever.
Being handsome and called a scumbag? No problem. After all, everyone here is one.
At this moment, Roxy generously responded to Allen's plea.
"I'm just planning to take the carriage to the capital and then travel near the Dragon Mountains. It seems the only direct long-distance coach goes to Asura Capital, so I won't stay there long. You probably won't hear any rumors about you, so don't worry!"
Can't keep anything back—you've already imagined everything, Blue Mom.
"Thank you. By the way, I was traveling through the forest to avoid attention. What about you? Why aren't you taking a carriage or something?"
Roxy blinked, looking at Allen.
Allen raised an eyebrow.
"Could it be… you don't have money? Uncle Paul's hired you as an under-the-table worker?"
Roxy struck her classic face-scratching pose.
"Mr. Paul has paid my salary, but unfortunately, I still don't have enough. Traveling long distances by carriage is expensive."
Allen twitched the corner of his mouth.
Even the god of poverty is still a god. Speaking of which, in the Taiwanese translation, you were called Roxy—'Roxy' with a 'K'—no wonder you're poor.
He then pulled three or four Asura Kingdom coins from the pocket of his swordsman's outfit, including one gold coin.
He extended his hand to Roxy.
"I still have some money. Consider this a thank-you for your kindness and for covering me up. Also, a little hush money. You know how nobles aren't short of cash. Just take it and ride the carriage."
Roxy refused.
"There's no need to pay for helping out. Hush money sounds excessive. I can't accept this."
"Why not?"
"Just can't."
"Must."
"Fine."
"Can't say no, huh?"
Suddenly, the now-embarrassed Roxy, cheeks flushed, quickly snatched the money from Allen's hand, her gaze flickering to the nearby forest.
"Consider it a loan. Honestly, traveling the world costs a fortune. The Asura Kingdom is manageable, but on the Miris Continent, with how I look, I barely have any chance to earn money.
Studying at the Magic University drained all my savings, so I'm really short on cash. Since you're related to Sir Paul, you can always ask them about my character!"
"So…"
Roxy looked up cautiously at Allen.
"You can leave me your address. I promise I'll pay you back."
Allen stared blankly at Roxy's flustered expression.
She genuinely seemed poor—and indeed, Roxy was discriminated against and ostracized on the Miris Continent. That she was hired for a mere two silver coins a month as a tutor said enough.
But it was also the fault of the Asura Kingdom, founded on trade and small-scale farming. To protect its people, the kingdom regularly organized hunts to clear out surrounding monsters, which left few proper adventuring jobs available. So she had no choice but to take on tutoring to make ends meet.
Another part of the reason was the world's unending prejudice against Roxy's hair color—even here, within the Asura Kingdom far from the Demon Continent.
Allen's eyes flickered as he watched Roxy clutch the gold coin, hesitating over whether to pocket it.
"No need to pay me back. Actually, I have a favor to ask, and this will more than cover it."
Roxy blinked in surprise.
The night wind rustled through the leaves.
By the firelight, the lone man and woman locked eyes.
"As the price for borrowing money… you wouldn't want to—"
Allen leaned toward Roxy teasingly.
Her eyes widened and she leaned back.
The next moment, Allen pointed at his bloodstained clothes.
"Smell that stench on me? Please help me wash my swordsman's uniform with water magic—and my hair too. If you can dry it afterward, even better. After all, it's my first time meeting Uncle Paul. Showing up all bloodied and smelling awful won't do. Also, I need to soak and clean the boar meat I got from killing that beast. I heard the meat's quite good."
A sudden gurgle interrupted Allen's words.
He glanced at the young girl hurriedly clutching her stomach and couldn't help but chuckle.
"Looks like…"
"You've agreed."