The day following the banquet, I received my reward from Daggers before paying a visit to a certain someone. The house belonged to Crumb, a former member of Yui’s party. I was originally a member of the Hero’s party, and really, it should have been her in my current position.
“Um, is this the place?” I stopped before a home that was noticeably larger than those around it. I could feel strong magic from inside. S-rank adventurers really were amazing...
But I could sense two mana signatures—one of which felt a bit off.
“Phew... All right.” According to the map Daggers had handed me, this was it. I had bought some teacakes on the way, and this was probably a fine time to visit. At least, I thought.
I took a deep breath and knocked on the door. According to Yui, Crumb was easy to talk to. Though, I got the feeling that Yui could strike up a conversation easily, which didn’t make her very convincing.
Still, Crumb was watching over her sick sister. She couldn’t be a bad person.
Just as that thought passed through my mind, I heard a cheery voice from inside. “Wait right there a minute!” It was a woman who sounded quite energetic. Even though she was apparently busy caring for her ailing sister, I couldn’t glean any exhaustion in her tone at all.
I waited outside the door for a short while before a redheaded woman came to greet me. Her eyes had a sharp, somewhat scary look to them. She didn’t quite match what I had imagined, but this had to be Crumb.
I needed to make sure I didn’t offend her. We’d never met before, right? Maybe it was best I spoke politely. “Um... Are you Miss Crumb?”
“Huh? Well, yeah, but... Why do you know my name?” she asked, giving me a wary look.
That’s right. I had heard about Crumb from Yui and the others, but Crumb hadn’t met with them for a while now, so she naturally didn’t know about me. I had been a member of the Hero’s party, but I really hadn’t done anything noteworthy. Maybe it was best I start by introducing myself?
With that thought in mind, I gave her my name and explained that I had joined—or really, was about to join—Yui’s party. I really hoped that was good enough...
“Oh, so you’re Lloyd!” As soon as I was done, Crumb mysteriously raised her lips into a smile. Amazingly, she knew of me.
“Um, do you know who I am...ma’am?”
“Of course, I do! How wouldn’t I? I doubt there’s a single soul in all of Ishtar who hasn’t heard of Lloyd the Savior.”
Oh, yeah. I had forgotten about that. For some reason, people were calling me this city’s savior, which I honestly wasn’t very happy about. Yeah, I had done my best to contribute. But the real stars of the show were Yui’s party and the beastwoman. I had just backed them up. This was their victory. Being referred to as their savior just didn’t sit right with me.
Still, it was convenient that she knew of me. I had no intentions of accepting that title or lording it around, but I guess I could do it just this once. “Um... Well, I think you’ve got the right Lloyd...ma’am.”
“Oh, yeah? Well, there’s no use standing around here. Come on in!” Crumb forcibly led me inside. She had her sister to take care of, so I was hoping to keep this short. But unfortunately, I wasn’t in a position to refuse. If I was invited inside, inside was where I had to go.
Just as she commanded, I stepped inside the door.