Muyoku no Seijo wa Okane ni Tokimeku

Chapter 83: Leo is told about his past (1/2)

"Cold"

In the dense forest, the grumpy voice of a discontented boy echoed.

"It's dark. Branches keep getting in the way. The grass grows up to my knees, and I don't understand the point. Bugs are annoying. The presence of beasts is noisy. The luggage is heavy. My feet hurt."

It was a parade of complaints.

With a faint trace of freckles on his face, the boy, Lena, scowled and rudely exclaimed forward.

"Are you even listening?!"

Then,

"...Oh, were you talking to me?"

The boy, walking with confident steps, turned his brown face, lightly raising his eyebrows.

"I thought you were just talking to yourself."

His tone was indifferent, and his obsidian-like eyes revealed no intention.

Lena, fueled by her rising anger, vehemently scolded her companion.

"Who in the world talks to themselves endlessly for over an hour? Since a while ago, you've been unequivocally blaming some reckless someone for jumping out of the carriage without permission. Get real!"

Indeed.

Lena and her companions were traveling on a shared carriage from Richard, gathering funds to head to the Covenant Festival in Eland.

However, as soon as they reached the forest near the border, Bruno, for some reason, jumped off the carriage.

Though Lena, who barely managed to get off with foam in her mouth, continued to follow Bruno while complaining.

"Where even are we...? This isn't a road, it's more like an animal trail."

With no compass and only occasionally glancing at the sun while silently following Bruno, Lena had no clue where they were. All she could say was that they were in a rugged place more like a mountain than a forest, and that dusk was rapidly approaching.

"What are you going to do with all the travel money we've gathered? You're not seriously suggesting we spend the night here, are you?"

"...I told you to stay on the carriage, Lena."

Muttering complaints, Bruno offered such an excuse in a quiet voice.

"It can't be helped. If we had stayed on that circuitous carriage route, we wouldn't make it to Eland by the third day of the Covenant Festival. And besides, if we were to approach Eland during the Covenant Festival, it's better not to ride a carriage."

"What's that supposed to mean? We're not the shrine maiden."

Casually retorting, Lena's partner looked slightly surprised.

"...You know a lot about it."

"Well, I researched it."

Lena answered with a disgruntled expression.

When she heard that Leo had decided to go to Eland as a shrine maiden, she had exhaustively researched the history and rituals of this fallen kingdom using all her connections. This was because Bruno, the key figure in this "Great Escape to Eland" project, was often absent from the monastery for a week until the Covenant Festival, leaving Lena with no choice but to investigate the situation in Eland herself.

There were mountains of things she wanted to ask, and Lena's frustration grew day by day.

Moreover, it was difficult to meet Bruno, and ultimately, the departure was delayed until the last minute.