At dawn, we arrived at yet another village.
　No time to look up the name of the village. Having just succeeded in evading the assassins' pursuit, we went to the inn and slept there, with no time to hide our battered appearance.

　The owner of the inn did not question our early morning visit and asked us to let him rest. He was more concerned about us.
　When we were leaving the inn after waking up and pulling Mize's still sleepy hand, the owner said, "Don't take it too hard.

It's almost noon.

　Mize mutters, looking up at the sky.
　The sun had just risen in the center of the sky.
　He had rented a bunk at the inn and slept for four hours. He hadn't slept enough, but he still felt much lighter than when he had been on the run from the assassins.

Can you walk?

Yes.

Can you run?

...... for a short time.

　I've noticed something on the road.
　Do not ask Mize, who has a tendency to cheer up, "Are you okay? Don't ask him if he's okay. He would always answer, "I'm fine. However, if you check his physical condition in detail, he will confess to you honestly.

It hurts to lose the ...... carriage.

　Depending on the terrain, most of the assassins sent by the bureau are probably following us in carriages or other vehicles. When it comes down to it, we'll have to use our already limited strength to escape, but the enemy will be chasing us with plenty of strength to spare. We are at an overwhelming disadvantage.

　This village is much larger than the last one we visited.
　As a result, the number of merchants visiting is not small. At the edge of the village, we found a stable where the merchants' horses were kept.

　There was a strong smell of animal, and I looked left and right, looking for signs of human presence.
　The stable keeper was alone. A man with a loose demeanor and not a trace of caution. I can kill a man like that in an instant.

"...... Do you want to steal it?

What?

It's an emergency. I have no choice.

　Kill the stable keeper, steal a horse, and steal the cart as well.
　The cart is by the stables, so you can just steal the one in front of you. Even if you are found on the way, having a horse will make the journey much easier.

Let's not do that.

　As I was thinking of a plan in my head, Mize said.

"...... You told me last night, didn't you, Twight? You said last night that you would run away with me as far as you could. ...... If there is no end to our journey, then this is not an emergency, but our new normal (・・・・・). So I think it's best to stop bothering people with ...... as much as possible.

　You have a point.
　Indeed, Mize is right, this emergency situation is likely to continue in the future. If you keep committing crimes and causing trouble to innocent people just because it's an emergency situation, you're no better than a thief.

　It's been more than ten days since you started running away.
　I needed to change my way of life. If this situation isn't unique, then there's no such thing as unique behavior.

But to get the carriage the right way, I'd need money.

"Sorry, ....... I'm sorry, I didn't know what to do.

"No, ...... is better than forgetting to choose the means and turning into a thief. Thank you for stopping me.

　We're in trouble now because we don't have the money.
　As we were wondering what to do, two men crossed in front of us. Rubbing their slightly swollen bellies with their hands, they were heading for the exit of the village.
　In their hands was a familiar plate-like object.

"Mr. Toate, that was .......

Yeah, it's a ...... adventurer card.

　There are no other settlements or towns nearby. So they must not be adventurers who just happened to stop by this village, but rather adventurers who are about to leave this village.

　We walked quickly around the village.
　And then we found the building we were looking for.

"......... I didn't know there was such a thing.

　The Adventurer's Guild. We didn't expect to find a branch in a village like this.
　It was a short wooden structure with lots of gaps, but the building itself was large. The building itself is large, and it's crowded, so you can tell that it's in good working order.

"Mize, let's make some money here.

I understand. ...... Oh, but you can't use our adventurer cards, can you?

　You'll be able to find a lot more information on this site.
　Of course not. The card has our names on it. You don't just drop information for no reason while you're on the run.

I'll register again as someone else. ......, but I'm the only one.

Just you, Mr. Toate?

The two of us will share the reward anyway. One of us signing up will be enough. Besides, there's a chance that ...... the guild knows who we are. It's better if I'm the only one who's used to disguising myself when dealing with the receptionist.



"......, I understand.

　I decided to leave the guild and finish my preparations.
　On the way, I found a hut where they were keeping livestock. I put my hand on the old fence and used my dagger to cut off a piece of cord used for reinforcement.

　A river flowed close by. He took off his cloak, put his hands in the river and swept his hair back with his wet hands. He then cut off a part of the cloak with his dagger and threaded the string he had just obtained through the cloth. After covering his left eye with the cloth, he tied the cord behind his head to secure it.

"An eye patch, ......?

Yes. This alone should give a much different impression. It's a cheap disguise, but it should last for a few days.

　I also changed my hairstyle. It's a cheap disguise, but it shouldn't be easy to spot.
　I've changed my appearance, but the most important thing to note is that Mize and I are working together. The assassins are probably looking for us as a "duo". The fact that I was the only one to sign up for the guild was not only to save time and effort, but also to get out of the "twosome" requirement.

If you want to make money fast, you have to kill demons. I'm going to take my second driver's license test, so you can wait around there.

"Yes.

　I'm sure you'll be able to figure out what's going on.

"Uh, Mr. Twight. I've noticed a problem with .......

What is it?

If you're going to renew your carriage, you'll need to accept the highest paying request possible. However, as an adventurer who has just registered with ......, you are ranked F, so you can't accept requests of high difficulty, can you?

　Mize's question was reasonable.
　When we first got our licenses in King's Landing, we were all F-ranked. There are certain types of requests that F-rank adventurers can accept. But...

"No problem.

　Basically, adventurers start with an F rank, but there are exceptions.
　Oz, for example, showed overwhelming ability in the exam and received a D rank from the start.
　So, ----, you can do the same thing.

"I'm serious this time.



　After ten minutes.



　Enough later.
　I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to do it, but I'm sure I'll be able to do it.


***********
To Eight

　　Magic Output: D
　Magic Readiness: A
　Magic staying power: C
　Magic Control: A
***********


"..................!

　Stuck for a response, Mize finally let out a grunt.

　I believe the previous results were "DBCB" in order from top to bottom.
　Unfortunately, magic power and magic stamina are still my weak points. However, I'm still a former soldier of the Agency. I had plenty of time to polish my fangs.

As I recall, a rating of A is comparable to that of a knight commander or vice commander. ......

That's right.

In the Kingdom of Terraria, it is comparable to the leader of the Knights of the Kingsguard, who came to the academy last time, and the leader of the Knights of the Shorin, right?

That's right.

".............

　I'm not sure what to do.
　I'm not sure what to make of that.

You can now work as a C-rank adventurer from the start. Now you can take on requests of high difficulty.

I'm sure you'll be pleased to know that I've been taking it easy on you in many ways since this journey began.

As for me, I think I was just making adjustments as needed. ...... I won't deny that.

...... Mmm.

　I'm not going to deny it.

It's not that I don't like being kept in the dark, but I don't like being kept in the dark either. I'm not hiding anything because I want to, I'm just doing it for a reason.

I don't know. ...... So, for example, when you were making that weird gas in Potions class, was that actually an act?　There was a reason why you had to do it that way. ......

　With pure and innocent eyes, Mize posed the question to me.
　After pondering for a while, I answered. 　

"........................Yes.

I knew it!　I'm not sure what to make of it.

　...... I see.
　So I was suspicious after all.