Chapter 33: A Journey Together
The next morning, Rowena and I gathered all our belongings and left our room.
When we went downstairs, the innkeeper was already waiting at the counter.
“Alright, you’re heading out, huh. Here—have this for breakfast.”
Saying that, the innkeeper handed us two sandwiches made with freshly baked bread, wrapped in a paper bag.
“Sorry for always troubling you. Thank you very much.”
“It’s nothing. Come back anytime.”
With those warm words seeing us off, we stepped outside the inn.
There, the members of Black Dagger were already waiting with their travel gear prepared.
“Ready to go, Edwin?”
“Yes, anytime. Thank you for doing this.”
“Rowena, we’re heading out!”
Fiona called out cheerfully.
We all nodded, then passed through the gates of Norest, a city we had grown somewhat familiar with.
Our destination was the south.
But first, to cross Blackleaf Forest, we would retrace the road we had taken before.
Traveling with a professional adventurer party was completely different from traveling alone with a child.
The scout Lyra and the large warrior Zack took the lead, constantly watching the surroundings.
Rowena and I walked behind them, surrounded by their leader Gordon, Fiona, and the apothecary Pip.
Along the way, Pip gently taught Rowena about the plants growing beside the road.
“This one is called Bloodstop Herb. If you crush the leaves and apply them to a wound, it helps stop the bleeding. And this one… it has a bright color, but it’s a poisonous mushroom, so you must never eat it.”
Rowena listened carefully to Pip’s explanations, nodding seriously even though it was unclear how much she truly understood.
That night, we camped in an open area along the road.
While sitting around a large campfire, Gordon asked me a question.
“But when it’s just the two of you traveling, how do you handle things? Night watch must be tough.”
“Well, I can usually sense things by presence. Instead of taking turns, I’m the one who stays awake most of the time.”
At my answer, Gordon let out an impressed grunt.
That night, we accepted their kindness and took turns standing watch with the others, passing the night peacefully.
During the journey, Fiona and Lyra in particular looked after Rowena as if they had gained a much younger sister.
During breaks in the daytime, Fiona would style Rowena’s new haircut in various ways, while Lyra taught her simple games using berries and small stones.
They spoke kindly to her about their hometowns and about the mistakes they had made when they first became adventurers, explaining everything in a way a child could understand.
Rowena couldn’t reply with words, but she listened intently to their stories.
At night, when it was time to sleep, the three of them wrapped themselves in a single large blanket like sisters, whispering happily to each other.
And that wasn’t the only change.
On the second night while we were camping, the light of the campfire illuminated the wooden hairpin fastened in Rowena’s hair.
Zack, who had kept his distance from her until then, noticed it.
“Hey kid, you cut your hair, huh. That hair ornament suits you.”
His words were blunt, but there was a hint of embarrassment in them.
Rowena smiled shyly.
Then she timidly moved closer to Zack and began eating dinner beside him.
Zack didn’t seem to mind at all.
He even cut pieces of his dried meat into smaller bits and placed them on Rowena’s plate.
I joined their circle as well, spending a calm and peaceful evening with them.
Our journey, which had begun as just the two of us, had somehow become lively and warm.
The road to the roadside inn before Blackleaf Forest passed without incident.
It was such a quiet journey that it was hard to believe we had once been attacked by a drake and goblins.
“I can see it. That’s the last roadside inn before the forest.”
Zack’s voice called out from the front of the group.
“This is where our journey together ends.”
At Gordon’s words, I nodded quietly.