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  "??? ??… ??? ?? ?? ??? ?? ???~"

  ???? ??? ?? ???? ???? ???.

  but there was a real calculation behind it.

  Pyrug frowned slightly,

  then relaxed and gave a small nod.

  “···Still, thanks. For saying you’ll work with me.

  But how long can you stay in this village?”

  Rynel answered evenly.

  “We have to reach the royal capital before mid-February.”

  Pyrug let out a faint, amused huff.

  “Then if you take this job,

  I’ll tell you a faster route to the capital.

  I can even arrange a wagon,

  and when you get there, I’ll introduce you to a place you can stay.”

  Then he trailed off and added,

  “Unfortunately··· I can’t offer money.

  Can you still do it?”

  Aira answered at once.

  “Of course. Right, guys?”

  Rynel nodded.

  “Yeah. As long as we don’t end up late.”

  Pyrug looked them over, then asked suddenly,

  “But··· why are you going to the capital?”

  Aira smiled.

  “To the adventurer school.”

  Pyrug narrowed his eyes and nodded.

  “Hm··· If you’re heading there, you must be around C-rank.

  But that school doesn’t take just anyone.

  A lot of people fail the entrance test.”

  At that,

  Monero’s face went stiff.

  Aira saw him and giggled.

  “What’s with you, Monero? Don’t tell me you need the bathroom~?”

  “No. It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it.”

  Rynel asked seriously,

  “That test··· what is it?”

  Pyrug laughed like it was ridiculous.

  “You’re going without even knowing that?

  You’re a rare kind of pure adventurer, aren’t you.”

  Rynel looked at Monero.

  “···Monero. You knew?”

  Monero crossed his arms and nodded.

  “Of course. Don’t tell me··· you two believed that one token

  and went without checking anything.”

  Aira’s eyes went wide.

  “What? I didn’t know.”

  Pyrug tilted his head.

  “Wait—token? What token?”

  “When we first started adventuring.

  We got a token from the guild in Bobre Village.”

  Rynel spoke quietly and pulled the token from the leather cord around his neck.

  A worn copper plate, polished smooth by use.

  He carefully held it out toward Pyrug.

  “Hold on··· can I see it?”

  Pyrug took it and stared for a long time.

  He rubbed the rim with his fingertips, brow tightening.

  “···Who gave you this?”

  “A mage named Arzen.

  He introduced himself as an investigator from the Magic Association.”

  Pyrug’s eyes widened slightly.

  “Really··· Arzen gave this to you?”

  Aira practically sprang forward.

  “What is it, what is it? Why are you so shocked?”

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  Pyrug checked the token again, then asked quietly,

  “But··· is this all you have? Anything else?”

  Rynel rummaged through his bag.

  “We have a letter of recommendation too.”

  He took out a scroll, but didn’t unroll it.

  He held it up carefully with both hands.

  “He told us to show it to someone connected to the guild in the capital.

  Arzen wrote it himself.”

  Pyrug let out a short breath.

  Then, with the token still in hand, he muttered in a low voice,

  “···Did you earn this because you’re truly skilled,

  or··· did you get it through connections.”

  Aira’s eyes sparkled, ears practically perking up.

  “What was that~? I couldn’t hear you, it was too quiet~?”

  She even cupped a hand to her ear, teasing on purpose.

  Pyrug gave a small, amused shake of the head.

  “No. Forget it.

  Just looking at you··· doesn’t feel like a lie.”

  He returned the token and spoke softly.

  “If it’s Arzen··· he at least has a solid eye for people.”

  Leaning back, he added,

  “Anyway, rest a bit··· then we’ll go out again around evening.

  I’ll put together a simple meal, so eat and get some sleep.

  I’m pretty good at cooking. You can look forward to it.”

  With that confident tone,

  Pyrug disappeared into the inner room.

  A little later,

  food was set on the small table.

  But what lay in front of them was···

  “···Greens?”

  Monero stared down at the tray with chopsticks in hand.

  “No, this··· it’s all plants.

  I feel like a cow. Moo~”

  Herbal mix, blanched wild greens, pickled dried leaves.

  No meat—there wasn’t even the smell of broth.

  Pyrug looked genuinely puzzled and tilted his head.

  “What’s wrong?

  It’s all delicious. And good for you too.

  If you want more, I can bring more.”

  Then he crossed his arms and added,

  “And do you even know how hard it is to find greens in winter?

  I’m a herbalist, so I prepared what I could so you could at least eat something like this at this time of year.”

  All three of them went speechless.

  “···Well, yeah, but···”

  Aira hesitated with her chopsticks,

  then forced herself to take a bite.

  Rynel ate in silence, only the sound of chewing,

  and gave a quiet nod.

  Monero, still sulking,

  studied a single strand of greens and muttered,

  “···My expectations··· were too high.”

  Even so,

  they ate the meal offered in good faith,

  slowly and without complaint.

  With every mouthful of bitter greens,

  they were reminded what “adventure” really meant.

  “Haa··· I’m sleepy···”

  Aira yawned, rubbing her eyes,

  then slowly opened the door and stepped outside.

  Watching her go, Rynel murmured,

  “Maybe it’s because it’s our first night mission··· I’m running out of steam.

  Let’s finish fast and come back to sleep.”

  Night deepened.

  Moonlight lay softly over the village.

  A little later, Pyrug came out and spoke quietly.

  “Everyone ready?

  Ah—right. Take one of these each.”

  He handed them each a small magic tool.

  A crystal shard that glowed faintly.

  “It’s a weak light source.

  Enough to tell the red flowers apart.”

  Then he unrolled a scroll.

  A map, packed with marks showing Piara’s locations.

  “Here—these are the eighty blooms I’ve confirmed.

  You’re outsiders, so move carefully and don’t get caught.”

  Tired, but cautious,

  they slipped out into the village alleys after midnight.

  “I’ll re-check the obvious spots with Monero,

  and look for any others.

  Rynel, Aira—you’re mana users,

  so focus on areas people don’t usually go into.”

  “Alright··· let’s move.”

  As they walked down the alley,

  Rynel spoke up.

  “But··· what exactly counts as ‘hard-to-see places’?”

  Aira shrugged.

  “Places people can’t easily get into, right?

  Ugh, I’m tired··· I should’ve just taken the easy spots···”

  That was when—

  “Wait. Look over there.”

  Rynel lightly poked Aira with a finger,

  then pointed with his other hand.

  Beyond the moonlight, near the village outskirts—

  someone stood in front of a tree.

  Shoulders trembling, muttering something.

  Back hunched, presence faint.

  Rynel and Aira held their breath and watched.

  “A villager··· right?”

  Rynel asked under his breath.

  Aira nodded faintly.

  “Probably···?

  But why’s he out there at this hour···”

  Rynel stared at the tree by the man’s feet and muttered,

  “That tree··· looks suspicious.

  It might be the main body.”

  “Yeah. First of all··· being out there at this hour is suspicious.

  

  
• ··Not that we’re any better.”


  

  They shared a tiny, quiet laugh,

  but neither of them looked away.

  “Should we go talk to him?”

  Rynel asked, and Aira shook her head.

  “Let’s watch a little longer.

  There might be··· more.”

  Rynel nodded.

  “With your spirit stone,

  can you tell what he’s saying?”

  “Of course~”

  Aira touched the spirit stone hanging like a necklace.

  Soft green mana spread from her body.

  It seeped like a breeze,

  reaching the man beneath the moonlight.

  “Just··· a little longer··· and we can meet again···”

  The man’s voice trembled.

  “···Modia··· my love, Modia···

  We··· we can be together again···”

  He repeated the name and sobbed.

  The desperation of someone at the edge of a cliff poured out of him.

  Listening to the voice carried through the spirit stone,

  Aira’s eyes slowly sank.

  Rynel asked quietly,

  “What is he··· saying?”

  Aira looked at the tree and the man in silence.

  “He’s grieving.

  He’s saying he wants someone back··· someone precious.”

  Rynel lowered his gaze and murmured,

  “That tree···

  might be something left behind by someone important to him.”

  “Yeah··· that’s what it feels like.

  He kept calling the name Modia so desperately···”

  Aira closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them.

  Rynel spoke.

  “For now··· remember it.

  When we regroup, we’ll tell the others.”

  “Yeah. Okay.

  Let’s find the red flowers first.”

  They moved on quietly.

  Only the man remained there, in front of the tree.

  Not long after,

  like a prayer, he spoke again.

  “If we use Piara···

  we can meet again···”

  Blind certainty had seeped into his voice.

  “The villagers··· I don’t care what happens to them.

  If I have you··· if I have only you,

  the world will be bright··· warm, completely full···”

  He gently brushed the bark,

  and whispered low.

  “I’ll bring you back··· no matter what.

  Just a little longer··· wait for me, Modia···”

  ◇

  “There’s one here too, Rynel.”

  “Yeah. Hold on—let me leave a trace of mana.”

  Rynel carefully pressed a hand to the ground.

  Mana flowed softly, leaving a faint mark.

  Not obvious—yet unmistakable.

  “Okay. Next is··· that alley.”

  While circling the village outskirts with Aira,

  they found fifteen more Piara blooms.

  Marking the locations on a small village map,

  they headed quietly back to Pyrug’s house.

  As they reached the front,

  Monero spotted them first and waved.

  “Hey! Here! How many did you find?”

  “Fifteen.

  Five of them were near the outskirts,

  but they were tucked away where they’re hard to see—took a while.

  It felt like··· they were hiding.”

  Monero nodded at Rynel’s words.

  “So they’re slipping into different places. Getting more suspicious.”

  Then Pyrug came out and unfolded the map.

  “Good. On top of the eighty I marked,

  I found four more just now.”

  Aira beamed.

  “Then that’s ninety-nine total?!

  We only need one more!”

  Rynel gave a small smile and nodded.

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