“So you want me to defeat the demonic beasts?”

Having been disturbed by the landlady in the early hours of the morning, Ethan was now fully awake. He scratched at his dishevelled hair and looked around the room.

Wrapped in a blanket and hood, the woman was completely buried in warmth, not a strand of hair visible.

He had been on the alert when he heard someone approaching, but it turned out to be a mercenary request. Ethan relaxed his grip on the hilt of his sword.

“The lord has never seen a demonic beast in person, so he doesn’t understand how dangerous they are. It’s the people in the area who are truly afraid. We even considered postponing the festival so as not to provoke the beasts, but…”

Makes sense. The festival is an important source of income for the lord. After all, it means more taxes to collect. From the lord’s point of view, postponing the festival and dealing with complaints from visiting tourists would be more trouble. If he’s unlucky, there might even be a high-ranking noble among them.

“Coincidentally, since the esteemed mercenary is here, the matter has been brought up at the village meeting.”

Esteemed mercenary, huh? They must be desperate. The way they’re tripping over themselves to be respectful says it all.

Ethan scoffed and crossed his arms, leaning slightly to one side.

“As far as I can see, the Lord has no interest in the demonic beasts, which means he won’t be paying for this. And even if you manage to scrape together some money, I doubt it’ll be much. Do you really think you can afford my fee?”

“W-We don’t have much, but we’ve gathered some money among ourselves.”

Well, sooner or later he would have to slay another demonic beast. And if he got paid for it, his pockets would be even fuller.

As it was, he already had enough money to pay for basic accommodation during his travels. But after last night, his priorities had shifted.

A festival like tonight’s would give him plenty to show her. And if necessary, he could buy her finer clothes. For that, the more money the better.

“Three gold coins. In return, I get to keep all the demon beast’s materials.”

For a request to subjugate a demon beast, the price wasn’t particularly high. But considering the value of the materials, it was actually a pretty good deal. Difficult beasts sold for a high price, while easier ones sold for less.

“The location? Do you know the name of the beast?”

Rustle.

Hearing movement from inside, Ethan pushed the landlady aside and quickly closed the door.

“It’ll take a while to get the whole story anyway. Go down and wait – I’ll be right down.”

“Yes. We don’t know the exact nature of the demonic beast, but there are eyewitnesses who can describe it. I’ll gather them shortly.”

“All right.”

After confirming that the lady had gone down the stairs, Ethan stepped back into the room.

If, who had begun to wake from the conversation, frowned slightly as she hugged the blanket that had been left in the empty space beside her.

She didn’t seem to be fully awake yet.

Ethan, used to this, pulled her into his arms and patted her shoulder.

“Mmhh…”

“Sleep a little longer.”

He had originally planned to leave late, but if he was going to hunt a demonic beast, he would have to stay an extra day.

“I’m going out for a while, so behave yourself while I’m gone.”

“Mm…”

Whether it was an answer or just a sleepy mumble, Ethan wasn’t sure.

He pulled the blanket up to If’s neck, making sure she was properly covered, before finally getting up.

By the time he strapped on his sword and headed down to the inn’s dining area, most of the guests had already left, leaving only a handful behind.

Ethan scanned their faces before deliberately sitting down at an empty table.

“Ahem, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I am Colt, the village chief.”

“I doubt you gathered here just to hear the introduction of some lowly mercenary. Let’s get down to business.”

Ethan’s tone, even at its best, wasn’t exactly courteous.

Colt frowned at his blunt words, but since he wasn’t wrong, the village chief simply cleared his throat and got straight to the point.

“You know that demonic beasts have been active lately, right? We’ve seen some in this area as well, but we felt safe because of the fortress walls. This region hadn’t been known for demonic beasts before. The walls seemed to be holding up well, but…”

Ethan looked at the injured villagers sitting in a row next to Colt. Their bodies were wrapped in bandages, dark purple veins spreading ominously beneath them.

“Cagrenis.”

A beast with a thick beak and razor-sharp claws. Two massive wings and a piercing screech that could split the air. It resembled an eagle – only it was many times larger.

At Ethan’s words, Colt’s face lit up with relief.

“You know of this beast?”

“If it has wings, the walls of the fortress won’t mean much.”

“If it has wings, then the fortress walls would have been useless. It must have built a nest nearby and probably hunts at regular intervals.”

“Exactly! We’ve already lost several people. They barely survived, but the poison continues to spread…”

Cagrenis’ claws carry a deadly poison – a paralytic toxin that doesn’t kill instantly, but prolongs the suffering and prevents the body from decaying too quickly. Among demonic beasts, their venom was one of the most insidious.

“They will recover if they take an antidote made from Cagrenis’ saliva. All right, if I kill them, I’ll sell you some of the saliva to make the antidote.”

“Y-You really mean it?”

At Ethan’s words, the faces of those who had been sitting there looking utterly hopeless lit up with relief.

Clucking his tongue, Ethan frowned. They really didn’t know something so basic? This place must have been peaceful for a long time.

“S-So you’ll still accept the job for the agreed payment?”

“Three gold coins and the materials from the beast.”

“Y-Yes, that’s right.”

“Good, I’ll take care of it.”

“T-Thank you!”

They erupted in cheers at Ethan’s confirmation, visibly overjoyed. Mercenaries rarely passed through, and with the casualties piling up, their worries had been overwhelming.

“You have a companion, don’t you? Just say the word and we’ll take care of them! They can stay comfortably until you kill the beast!”

“No, that won’t be necessary. I’ll take care of my companion myself. Just tell me the location – I’m leaving immediately, so have the payment ready.”

“You’re leaving already? Without any preparation? Not that we’re complaining – the sooner the better for us, but…”

“I’ve got a lot to do on my end too.”

With that Ethan got up and went back up the stairs.

Since Cagrenis was a flying beast, it would be difficult to deal with. If he couldn’t pierce its head, he’d have to take out its wings and bring it down first.

‘Perfect timing. I’ll finally be able to test the strap on my sword.’

He also needed empty vials or leather pouches to store the materials. And before heading to the next village, he needed to stock up on supplies.

Ethan’s mind worked quickly.

Click.

As he opened the door, deep brown eyes peered out from under the blanket and stared at him.

‘They’ve changed again.’

When she woke up, she usually remained in a hazy, half-asleep state for a long time. As a result, the colours around her tended to stay in place.

Ethan secured the door and stepped further into the inn room.

As he closed the distance, her unfocused gaze slowly moved from his feet to his face.

“…Ethan…”

Lowering himself, he gently grasped her loosely tilted chin.

His field of vision was instantly filled with her unfocused eyes.

Crackle.

With a faint spark, her dull, murky gaze was soon bathed in a vivid shade of green.

“Haam…”

“If you’re tired, rest.”

“Where have you been?”

“Just stepped out to attend to a request.”

“A request? I don’t like other people.”

At the word “request”, If’s face immediately crumpled in displeasure. She must have disliked travelling with Deverick so much that the mere mention of a job now irritated her.

Ethan couldn’t help but laugh at her reaction.

“It’ll just be the two of us.”

“No one else?”

“No one.”

“Then it’s fine.”

Not long ago, she had been eager to see more people.

Now, stray strands of her hair floated around untidily as she lay in bed.

Ethan picked up the loose strands and slowly ran his fingers through them, smoothing them in one long stroke.

With a single touch, her dishevelled hair settled neatly.

He took a handful and skilfully braided it.

He had done this so often that his hands were quicker and more precise than before.

After checking his work one last time, Ethan finally let go.

“All done?”

“Done.”

She hopped down from the bed and landed lightly.

Her long braid trailed behind her like a tail.

“Are we eating now?”

Eating first thing after waking up, huh? Well, yesterday must have been exhausting.

Ethan’s nose twitched as he searched for any lingering scent of blood.

Yesterday she had tossed and turned in her sleep, but today she seemed fully recovered – her steps were light and effortless.

As If practically floated forward, Ethan reached out and caught her by the waist.

“I told you not to fly.”

“But there’s no one around.”

“Still not allowed.”

“…You always say no…”

Her head dropped in disappointment, and with it her body slowly sank back to the floor.

“Just wait a little longer. I’ll find a good place where you can play freely.”

Ethan thought of his home in Rigo – the farthest place from the city centre. It took quite a while to get there from the entrance, but that also meant it was quiet.

The sound of drunken mercenaries shouting and singing at the top of their lungs was unbearable to him. Even normal noise was enough to give him a headache, let alone the deafening, slurred songs that sounded more like incoherent wailing than music.

For this reason, Ethan had settled alone in the forest on the outskirts of Rigo.

It was a modest, unremarkable house, but that also meant that there was nothing around it.

Ethan had never intended to stay there for long. The house was more of a spare room he used when the timing between jobs was inconvenient.

What was nearby anyway?

He tried to remember details about the place, but never having paid much attention, nothing came to mind.

Still, it only confirmed that there wasn’t much there. If he found a secluded enough place, she might be able to fly free.

No one else would be wandering around either – he had made sure of that by making the place unwelcoming enough to keep others away. And if anyone did approach, he could deal with them if necessary.

“Ethan, I’m hungry.”

At her words, Ethan abandoned all other thoughts.

Whatever the case, food was the priority.