Siasha watched absentmindedly as Zig picked up the pace. He was walking so fast that he looked like he was running away from something—not something you saw every day.
Just as she thought it had nothing to do with her, his words from earlier finally sank in.
Someone was watching over her. Honestly, that was it. However, this fact felt so new and foreign to her.
“Hee hee.” Before she could stop herself, she was smiling. It was a strange comfort. She didn’t know what to name this feeling.
So, she decided to follow her impulses. She kicked off the ground and rushed to Zig’s side. He was still facing forward but had slowed down to wait for her. She wrapped her arms around his.
“Aha ha!”
She couldn’t hold back her laughter. In all the long years of her life, she couldn’t remember the last time she felt like this.
“What?” He turned to her, startled by her strange laughter. He was back to his usual self, having put the matter behind him.
Siasha responded by squeezing tighter, like she was trying to hang from his arm.
✦ ✦ ✦
He didn’t falter no matter how hard she tried—this man that was like a great, ancient tree. His large body had already supported her more than once.
He didn’t look at her with pity nor fear, instead considering her his equal. Zig looked at her not as a witch but as a person all her own.
“Let’s head back. We can expect to make a lot today with incidental income!”
It was just oh so comfortable.
✦ ✦ ✦
“No, these scythes are broken… And they’re the best part of the monstrosity.”
Reality wasn’t so kind when they got back. The receptionist, Sian, put her hand on her chin when the materials were brought before her.
“No good?”
Sian shook her head as she checked the price of the materials against a reference book. “I’m afraid not.”
The scythes of the razor-bladed decapitator mantis had been shattered by Zig’s twinblade. Although the scythes were of sufficient hardness considering their sharpness, it was no match for Zig, who was armed with a twinblade forged out of a bloodcrystal-clad dragon’s horns—a twinblade made particularly for durability.
The scythes were broken in half and only had enough blades left to be made into knives. Not ideal for a weapon.
“The razor-bladed decapitator mantis is known for its sharp and long scythes and for not using magic for its stealth. Its carapace isn’t particularly hard and doesn’t really come with any magical properties.”
A harder carapace would make it heavier, and using mana might interfere with its flexibility. Because it was an ambush predator, the monstrosity simply didn’t have any use for additional defense.
“The mantis’s body is flexible and quiet in exchange, however,” Sian continued. “It relies on the sharpness of its scythes because it isn’t very strong. Without them, it’s basically a meat pie without the filling. Just a shell without any flavor.”
Sian examined the other scythe. It was in relatively better shape, though she lamented that the proboscis hadn’t survived. She traced the blade along a notepad, taking care not to cut herself. It glided easily through the paper.
“A letter opener…would be way too sharp. It probably won’t fetch a good price, but we can hold on to it for you.”
“What should we do?”
Siasha looked at Zig with an uneasy smile.
“Take care of it,” Zig said.
“Then we’ll hold onto it for you for the time being,” Sian said. “Someone can probably make a knife out of it.”
Hearing Zig allow Sian to handle the fate of the merchandise, Siasha wrapped the scythes in cloth.
“It’s very impressive that you came out of a razor-bladed decapitator mantis ambush without any injuries, and you defeated it on top of that,” Sian said with a smile. “Since you don’t have any requests related to it and the materials are in a dire state, the guild can’t compensate you for it.”
The two left the reception desk after that.
“All that work for nothing.”
However, Siasha seemed happy despite the letdown.
“Looks like it.”
Strangely, Zig didn’t feel that bad after seeing her smile.
“Well, these things happen.”
With that consolation in mind, it wasn’t a bad day of adventuring for them.
Someone called out to them after they left reception.
“Zig, it’s been a while! You too, Siasha.”
It was Alan, a fourth-class adventurer known for his striking red hair. Next to him were his little sister Milyna and his party member Listy.
“Are you wrapping up for the day?” Zig asked.
“We have today off. Went shopping.” Alan gave a tired smile, making it clear who it was that was doing the shopping.
“Look at you, Mister Popular,” Zig commented. “Accompanying two ladies to do their shopping.”
“I’d rather you not count my sister in there…”
Alan winced and scratched his head awkwardly at Zig’s quip. Meanwhile, the girls jabbed at him with their elbows. They certainly got along well.
“Come on, Big Bro, I thought you loved me?” Milyna said.
“You should appreciate the fact you’re actually acquainted with women, Alan,” Listy said.
“All right, all right. I’ve been blessed with a cute sister and a beautiful party member,” Alan replied with a deadpan voice.
Watching them, Siasha wordlessly tugged at Zig’s coat. He saw from the way she looked at him that she was expecting something similar from him. Zig ignored her, thinking that whatever she wanted was not under the scope of his job as her attendant.
“So, are you just here to show me how popular you are with the ladies?” he asked.
Siasha pouted and stepped on his foot, but Zig’s metal boots provided enough protection against her attack.
“Of course not. I heard what happened to you guys in the woods. Sounds like you had a hard time.”
“You ran around as a distraction… That’s crazy.”
Alan and Listy chastised him for his reckless behavior. Even if things turned out fine, their tones definitely made it known that they were not happy with him. They asked Zig if he would do it again, and he gave them a firm shake of the head.
“Absolutely not. I’ve had my fill.”
“Somehow I don’t buy that…”
Zig glanced at Milyna for that comment, prompting her to hide behind her brother’s back.
Clever girl.
Meanwhile, Siasha had changed tactics, pinching Zig’s arm since her stomp did not work. Unfortunately, Zig’s thick muscles provided a layer of protection against this approach.
“Aha ha… Sorry, but I have to agree with my sister on this one. Your methods tend to be on the unreasonable side.”
“Yeah. You haven’t even told us what happened between you and Elsia.”
No one in the room believed him; Zig had no allies here. Removing Siasha, who had been gnawing on his arm, he put his hands up in surrender.
“Fine, I’ll do whatever reckless thing that needs to be done in a given situation, but I’ll come back alive. Better?”
“Yeah, that’s more believable.”
“You probably won’t die even if you get killed.”
Gaining the three’s approval, Zig left the guild while consoling Siasha, who was clearly upset at being ignored.