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Chapter 68

"I too...! I will escort the new spark!"

Priests turned around in excitement, shouting one after another. Their lives, spent almost entirely within the temple, were inherently ascetic, especially lately as the brazier began to dim.

Cherwyn finally smiled at the priest\'s fervent gaze, "Then, let\'s all go together."

***

The village adjacent to the Temple of the Brazier was commonly known as the Blacksmith\'s Village. Blessed by the protection of Lu Entre, it was warm and rarely suffered monster attacks, maintaining a significant size even as the temple declined. It was a scene far removed from the desolate village Ian remembered. Thanks to this, the tavern boasted considerable size.

The villagers, initially startled by Charlotte following Ian, made their way as the priests entered in a throng. Soon, the table was laden with food and drink. The priests began devouring the food as if they had been waiting for it. The atmosphere was festive. It was natural since the Ember destined to be Lu Entre\'s apostle had appeared. For the declining order, Lucy\'s presence was nothing short of a beacon of hope.

To think they\'d be surprised by beastfolk after living among dwarves...

Ian, sitting quietly in the midst of it all, chuckled as he brought his cup to his lips. To his eyes, there was little difference between dwarves and beastfolk.

"How is it?" Miguel asked from across him with a curious look, likely referring to the taste of the drink.

"Good." Ian sincerely replied.

The spirit was fiery enough to scald his throat, but that was precisely why he liked it. Due to his high resistance and mental fortitude, he could hardly feel drunk from ordinary alcohol.

"The alcohol in the North is all like this. Beer isn\'t bad either, but I\'ve often missed this." Miguel sipped his drink, his cheeks already flushed.

"Why did you leave the North, Miguel?" Lucy, who was sipping warm soup beside him, suddenly asked.

Miguel blinked, "Why are you curious about that all of a sudden?"

"I don\'t think I\'ve ever heard it before."

"It\'s nothing special."

"But I\'m curious."

"Um... Well, then. I was from a small village in the North. Back then, the war with the demon kind was in full swing..."

Ian listened to Miguel\'s past, which he was hardly curious about, while slowly savoring his food. The tough meat and soup with unidentified chunks floating in it were a feast for him at that moment.

"...So the Black Wall took Miguel\'s hometown."

"That seems to be the case. But having left for so long, now the entire North feels like home to me."

Ian had finished his meal by the time Miguel concluded his story of the past. Lucy looked saddened, but Ian felt no particular emotion. After all, it was rare in this world to find someone without a tragic tale to tell.

Especially since I\'m from another world...

It was then that Miguel looked at Ian, "So... where will you go? Straight to the Empire as you mentioned before? To the directly governed territories?"

"Well..."

"How about stopping by Travelga in the North? With your abilities, you could make a fortune there."

Travelga was the capital of the North\'s dominion region. Charlotte, sitting next to Ian, perked up her ears. She would have to follow him wherever he went, so it was of interest to her.

"I\'ll have to stop by Travelga." Ian put down his cup and looked at his left hand.

"But before that, there\'s something I need to finish."

"Eh...? You have something left to do?"

Not only Lucy but also Cherwyn beside her looked at Ian.

After a moment\'s thought, Ian spoke. "The forest we passed through extends deep into the North. I\'ve made a pact with a being lurking there. So, I need to seek it out."

"What...? Why haven\'t you mentioned this until now?"

"Don\'t worry about it; it\'s nothing. "

"How can making a pact with an ancient being be nothing? What does it want from you?"

Everyone looked shocked, even Charlotte turned to look at Ian. However, Ian remained nonchalant.

"He must want me. No matter. I\'ll just kill him if need be."

The creature was expected to keep dispatching illusions until Ian managed to find it. This tactic, albeit frustrating, allowed the group to traverse the forsaken lands without trouble, resulting in no real harm done. The essence of the oath made by Ian was simply to find the creature, implying that upon their meeting, the creature believed it could dominate Ian. It was particularly vexing that the creature chose not to disclose its identity or whereabouts despite everything. Therefore, the thought of crushing the creature\'s ancient skull brought a sense of profound satisfaction.

"Are you referring to the forest that stretches from the forsaken land to the North?" Cherwyn asked.

Ian nodded, and she touched her chin, pondering.

"I might find some relevant documents in the archives. Do you have any other clues?"

"Yes."

Ian removed the glove from his left hand, revealing a faint pattern etched into his palm. Cherwyn stared intently at the mark and nodded.

"How much longer will you stay in the village?"

"Two days. Three at most."

"I\'ll see what I can find in that time. If there\'s even a small way to repay our debt to you, I would like to offer more help."

"I won\'t refuse anything."

"Then, please visit the temple tomorrow. It\'s been a long time since we\'ve allowed outsiders, but we\'ll make an exception for you."

"What will you give us...?"

"We\'ll ask for the Brazier\'s blessing."

Ian\'s eyes sparkled momentarily. In the game, Lu Entre\'s blessing increased Cold Resistance and Health Recovery Speed. It would be incredibly helpful while traversing the cold, desolate fields of the North.

"May I ask for it before we leave?"

"Of course. The Goddess will surely not withhold her blessing from Sir Ian, the carrier of the Ember."

Ian gestured towards his side, "I ask for this one as well."

As Charlotte\'s eyes widened in surprise, Cherwyn smiled, "Of course."

Ian nodded and brought his cup to his lips again. Savoring the burning sensation, he then turned to Charlotte, who was looking at him.

"What."

"...No, it\'s nothing."

Charlotte quickly averted her gaze, then licked her lips and said, "Have you fought such ancient beings before? You seem very familiar with it."

"Before? Haha. You really know nothing!" The response came from Miguel\'s direction.

With slightly unfocused eyes, Miguel pointed at Ian and almost shouted, "This guy has killed dozens of ancient monsters, specters, and corrupted ones right in front of me. Do you think he\'s called the Savior of Age Lan for nothing?"

Charlotte\'s ears perked up as Miguel smirked.

"Why? Haven\'t you faced such monsters before?"

"...Damn it."

Charlotte turned away and grabbed her cup, embarrassed at being treated like a novice.

"You\'ll get sick of them soon enough. I specialize in those kinds of creatures," Ian spoke indifferently, glancing casually at Charlotte.

"Of course, you\'ll have to fight for your life too. You won\'t get your tail back until you\'ve repaid your debt to me."

Charlotte\'s eyes trembled as she looked at Ian. Incredibly, what spread in her eyes was excitement.

Licking her lips, Charlotte eventually said, "If that\'s what it takes to get my tail back someday. I\'m willing."

...Clearly, she\'s out of her mind. Ian chuckled inwardly but quietly continued drinking. It might be unavoidable, so perhaps it was better to enjoy it.

Lucy and Miguel, along with the priests, headed to the temple the next day. Ian declined the invitation to join them and stayed in the village. Unlike them, for whom this place was the end of their journey, he had several matters to attend to in the village.

***

To Charlotte, Ian was definitely different from other humans. The first thing he did after waking up from a whole half-day of sleep was to take a bath, spending over an hour meticulously cleaning himself, even going as far as to replace the hot water several times at his own expense. The humans she knew, even nobles, never obsessed over bathing to such an extent despite knowing they would get dirty again.

Ian and Charlotte went about their preparations in the village. Ian purchased winter clothing and various weapons to withstand the cold of the North, not bothering to haggle over the prices despite buying in large quantities. Charlotte found it surprising not only how much money Ian seemed to have but also what happened next.

Back at their accommodation, while Ian sorted through the items, Charlotte asked, "How are you planning to carry all that? On a cart?"

Instead of answering, Ian effortlessly demonstrated magic that made the items disappear into thin air.

"How did you do that?"

"Well."

Despite his unenthusiastic response, her curiosity didn\'t last long.

"This is for you." Ian handed over a cloak made of bearskin and winter gear to wear under armor to Charlotte.

"For me? Why...?" She asked in surprise.

She considered herself no better than a slave to him, and humans generally believed beastfolk didn\'t feel the cold as much. However, there was some truth to that.

"Why? If you freeze to death, it\'s just more work for me, isn\'t it?"

The next day, Ian continued to prepare, dragging Charlotte along to stock up on food and other supplies. During this process, it was inevitable that Charlotte attracted attention.

"A potential demon brat, huh? Carrying around something ominous."

"Not even a potential one. They should all be killed and skinned, those kinds."

Such treatment and views were all too familiar to Charlotte, having faced them since becoming a guard for the Libra Trading Company. Though overt expressions of disdain had decreased, the underlying sentiment remained unchanged.

Except for a few odd characters like Javier, humans always saw her as a peculiar slave or a sinister demon kind. The law always sided with humans, so ignoring them was the best response for Charlotte, who always held her head high. But Ian was different.

"Beastfolk hides are tough and warm. Hey, I\'ll pay a good price for it. How about you sell her to us?"

The moment a merchant made such a suggestion, Ian\'s fist connected squarely with the man\'s face, and he proceeded to beat down any thugs that rushed him without hesitation. The villagers, armed with hammers and tongs, gathered around but Ian paid them no mind, instead breaking the arm of the last thug defiantly.

"Anyone else need beastfolk hides?"

No one stepped forward after that. Ian finished his preparations as if nothing had happened, without mentioning the incident until they were about to leave the village the next morning.

"Why did you do that yesterday?" Charlotte was the one who finally asked.

"Yesterday...?"

"Beating those guys up."

"Oh. That. I don\'t like listening to nonsense. Why?"

Charlotte looked at him, wondering if he truly thought it was all nonsense.

"Do you really think all that was just nonsense?"

"I\'ve killed plenty of corrupt humans. Doesn\'t mean I call all humans potential corrupts." Ian added nonchalantly, leaning back in his chair.

"The same goes for you beastfolk."

Charlotte blinked, unsure how to process his words. She had expected to continue in a very humiliating and miserable situation. But reflecting on Ian\'s recent actions, it seemed he regarded her as little more than a servant. And surprisingly, she didn\'t mind. In fact, it was the opposite. She felt indebted to him, almost grateful.

Could this be because of losing my tail...? thought Charlotte.

"Next time, handle it yourself. I don\'t want to hear any more nonsense."

Startled by Ian\'s comment, Charlotte looked ahead again.

"I will."

Reaching the Temple of the Brazier, Ian and Charlotte engaged in a deep discussion with Cherwyn. Subsequently, Ian led Charlotte to the temple\'s central Brazier, where she was also granted the Brazier\'s blessing.

A gentle warmth enveloped her, creating a sensation that was quite comforting. As Charlotte savored this inner warmth, Ian took his leave from Lucy and Miguel. In a display of affection, both of them, including Miguel, gave Ian a tight embrace.

"I\'ll head to the Empire after my training. We\'ll meet again then, Sir Ian."

"See you, brother."

Despite his grimace, Ian nodded, "Yeah. Someday."

Lucy and Miguel seemed to have more to say, but Ian didn\'t linger for long conversations, boarding the carriage instead.

"Which way are we going?" Charlotte asked.

"North."

As the carriage set off, Lucy and Miguel shouted something from behind, but Ian never looked back, just sinking deeply into his seat with a faint smile on his lips, as if that\'s just how a wanderer\'s life was.