“Welcome back, Schwarz,” Liese greeted as I returned to the rest stop. She was stirring a small pot over the campfire, likely preparing some kind of soup. Rudy had gone over to Kinjar’s group. He stood by them, and they discussed plans for the following days.
“Kinjar, are you seriously planning to split up?” Rudy asked.
“How many times do I have to tell you, Rudy? We don’t need six people for a few harpies. With Putei and Boy, we’re more than enough.”
“There are twelve confirmed, and there could be more. Unforeseen circumstances could arise.”
“Unforeseen circumstances? If anything happens, it’ll be because of that amateur standing over there. We don’t want to get caught up in that,” Putei said, glancing in my direction, then looking dead at me.
The rest stop was spacious, even under the same pavilion. Normally, they would be out of earshot. I could clearly hear their conversation, however, thanks to the audio sensor.
“Oh, you caught a wild rabbit!” Liese said. “So that was you I heard earlier, Schwarz.”
“You heard it from here? I couldn’t control the power, so it doesn’t have a head, but I did bleed it. It might not be perfect, though.”
“Let’s cook it right away. Can you handle the butchering?”
“No, sorry. I don’t know how.
“I can do it. Why don’t you split the firewood, then leave half here for us and half by the central box for the next users?”
“On it.”
The rest stops along the roads were maintained through its users’ goodwill. To ensure a pleasant experience, travelers left behind resources for the next visitors and always cleaned up before departing. Those who couldn’t manage these basic tasks would neither succeed as adventurers nor ever earn their peers’ trust. As selfish as they seemed during their ongoing discussion with Rudy, even Kinjar’s group gathered firewood and left some for future visitors.
Back home, I hadn’t practiced the spirit of “paying it forward” much. Yet, here, receiving kindness and passing it on to someone else was common. The adventurer profession here required more than just combat skills. You had to understand the meaning of wielding power correctly, without arrogance, and contribute to the cycle of life rather than disrupting it. This was essential for an adventurer.
“How did it go, Schwarz?” Rudy asked, returning from Kinjar’s campfire.
“Brother, Schwarz caught a wild rabbit for us,” Liese said.
The rabbit I had caught was already butchered and transformed into chunks of meat.
“I know I asked you to do it, but I didn’t expect you to catch one so quickly. Schwarz, were you a hunter?”
“No, this was my first time hunting a rabbit. I was lucky to catch one that hopped out in front of me.”
“I see...”
I was embarrassed by Rudy’s surprise at my rabbit catch. I tried to shrug it off, but Rudy seemed unconvinced. Before I could address Rudy’s doubts, I was overcome by the soup’s aroma wafting into my nostrils. The rabbit meat had been added to the pot.
“Schwarz, do you have a bowl for dinner? It’s ready, so let’s eat.”
Liese’s rabbit meat soup exceeded my expectations. The rabbit tasted kind of like chicken, but with a slight gamey flavor. However, the herbs in the soup helped reduce that.
There wasn’t much to do after dinner. Rudy confirmed that the harpy elimination would be conducted in two groups of three, and we discussed the night watch rotation. The rest stop wasn’t entirely safe. There was risk of attacks from wild dogs, bandits, or other merchant caravans or other adventurer parties. Naturally, magical beasts and humanoid species also posed a threat. The watch was typically conducted in pairs, with one person resting while the other kept watch.
This would be my first time on watch. I was instructed to keep the campfire burning, and to alert the others immediately if anything seemed amiss. That would be no problem. I could quickly detect any disturbances thanks to my goggles’ map and audio sensor. The rest order was Liese, Rudy, then me. The watch was a battle against drowsiness, so Rudy and I engaged in light conversation to stay alert.
“Rudy, why did you become an adventurer?”
“To support Liese. We grew up north of the royal capital, but our village was attacked by magical beasts. Only Liese and I were left. We became adventurers to make ends meet.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to pry.”
“No, it’s fine. It was years ago, and those beasts were eliminated. What about you, Schwarz? What did you do before becoming an adventurer?”
“Me? Well, I mentioned in the carriage that I’m a dud. I lived quietly in a small village in the mountains. But I can’t return there now, so I became an adventurer to survive here in the Kurtmelga Kingdom.”
“I see... I’m still learning, but I find adventuring dangerous. Natural world quests are risky, and labyrinths are even more so. That’s why everyone forms parties to complete quests safely. Kinjar’s group avoids you because you’re E-rank, but if they knew you were also a dud they’d distance themselves even more.”
“Are duds really that despised?”
“Not really. It’s just that without magic you’re seen as like a helpless child. As you know, Schwarz, children at the academy are taught magic words and learn to use magic after their twelfth birthday.”
Magic words are the incantations spoken before casting magic. People imbue words with magic, forming magic words, and complete the spell by declaring the magic name. In this world, children learn to imbue magic and to speak magic words after turning twelve. In essence, Rudy was saying that as a dud, I was no better than a child just starting to learn magic.
“Schwarz, I appreciate you being so open with us about this, but you should be more discreet in the future. Liese and I don’t mind, and you make up for it in combat, but many adventurers, like Kinjar, will fear for their lives and shun you. That information will quickly spread through the guild, and no one will want to form a party with you.”
“I see. I’ll be more careful, then. I should have thought more about this quest, too.”
I lacked the fundamental ability of magic in this world. That was a fact. However, I had my VMB power. While I had no concerns about combat, the journey by carriage and tasks at the rest stop made me realize that fighting alone wasn’t enough.
How should I proceed as an adventurer? I couldn’t explain VMB’s power to every adventurer I met or teamed up with. Perhaps it would be easier to operate alone. That way it would be easy to conceal my VMB power and the fact that I was a dud.
Rudy and I continued to chat quietly while keeping watch. Liese relieved Rudy of his post, and I maintained vigilance while pleasantly chatting with her.