Life as an Adventurer with the Banished Marquis' Daughter - Chapter 27: The Banished Marquis' Daughter is Strong, Part 3

Chapter 27: The Banished Marquis’ Daughter is Strong, Part 3

“I’m getting tired of my own stupidity.”

As I resisted the urge to look away from the approaching Golden Ogre’s leg, I heard a voice. 

When using physical enhancement, it’s common for the timeline between thought and action to get messed up.

It happened this time too. The moment my enhanced hearing caught the voice, I laughed before my thoughts caught up.

The Golden Ogre’s right leg, the one it was about to kick me with, vanished from below the knee. The Golden Ogre fell, screaming in pain.

Blood spurted from its right leg, spraying the field. I nearly got caught in the falling Golden Ogre, but I managed to let go of my sword and fell on my backside.

“This time, I truly hate myself.”

Erika muttered to herself, using wind magic to scatter the Golden Ogre’s blood that was spraying in our direction.

“There are so many things to reflect on that it’s pathetic even to count them.”

Saying this, she sheathed her sword and took a step closer to the Golden Ogre. The Golden Ogre struggled to move away from Erika using its intact left leg and functioning left arm.

“The power control was bad, my spacing between the enemy and myself was off, my reading of the situation was poor, and the arrogant thought of wanting to impress Shin even crossed my mind. It’s so embarrassing that I almost said something unladylike.”

The Golden Ogre desperately struggled to get away from her, creating an awkward trench in the soft soil of the field.

“So what I’m about to do is just venting my frustration. You probably won’t understand, but I really think I’m about to do something bad.”

The Golden Ogre screamed as it crawled away.

“Wow…”

I let out a sound as I watched the scene while still sitting on the ground. I saw the shimmering golden magic forming in the air with ridiculous density.

A ridiculous number of fire arrows. Erika let out a breath that sounded like a sigh.

In an instant, the fire arrows rained down on the Golden Ogre. The sound of the arrows cutting through the air and the massive explosions were deafening.

I only saw the Golden Ogre for a brief moment. 

I prayed for the Golden Ogre. 

What else could I do in that situation?

＊

Erika turned around, using wind magic to blow away the dust. For some reason, she looked embarrassed. She wasn’t boasting or feeling satisfied after venting her frustration.

She glanced at me shyly, her eyes downcast. 

What is this? She’s too cute. 

I stood up, brushing the dirt off my pants.

“Is the magic stone still there?”

I looked at the field, full of holes. 

Fortunately, the crops had been harvested, so no one would complain.

Erika seemed about to say something but swallowed her words, looking away from me.

“It’s fine this time.”

“Are you hurt?”

I knew she wasn’t, but I asked just in case.

“That’s my line. I made a fool of myself.”

Erika started fidgeting with her hands in front of her chest. I memorized this rare sight of her hesitating to speak.

“Um… thank you for saving me.”

“You’re welcome. And thank you too. Thanks to you, I wasn’t kicked all the way to Faltar.”

She looked embarrassed to express her gratitude. She’s really cute. 

As I thought this, Erika was still fidgeting with her hands in front of her chest. I tilted my head slightly, wondering what was up.

“And… I’m sorry.”

“For what?”

“Your sword was shattered.”

I stroked the empty sheath, looked at the field full of holes, and then gave a forced smile. Even the second son of a poor viscount can pretend to be tough.

＊

To my surprise, the village chief hadn’t run away. 

When Erika and I returned to the village entrance with the Golden Ogre’s magic stone, we were met with the astonished faces of the village chief and the Sister.

Not used to such stares, I almost started acting nervously, but Erika, accustomed to this, spoke confidently.

“Village chief, is this satisfactory?”

I had explained everything to her on the way back, so Erika now understood what the village chief had been trying to do. It was a simple matter of saving on the adventurers guild’s commission fee.

Requests to slay powerful monsters like the Golden Ogre come with high fees paid to the guild. 

The village chief, unwilling to pay, had used Bonbos as bait to lure adventurers. He hoped that these adventurers would encounter the Golden Ogre and report it to the guild.

If dangerous monsters like the Golden Ogre are found near villages or towns, they become urgent targets for extermination. 

This way, the village could have the monster slain without paying a commission fee.

Whether the village chief knew about the Golden Ogre is unclear, but regular ogres are well-known emergency targets. The different color probably didn’t matter to him.

This method is rarely used. Naturally, monsters don’t consider human convenience, so there’s no guarantee they won’t attack when it suits them. If such dangerous monsters attack, the village would be doomed.

However, when certain conditions align, many villages consider this risky cost-saving method. 

This village was perfect for it.

It was close to a town with an adventurers’ guild and had magic tools to repel monsters, even if it lacked a protective barrier.

Monsters usually avoid places with monster-repelling magic tools unless they have a reason. Fortunately, there were no fatalities, and in case of an attack, people could escape by carriage.

Being close to a town with an adventurers’ guild ensured a quick response. 

A little risk could lead to significant savings. The village chief likely thought he could save money by taking a bigger risk than he realized.

The village chief remained silent at Erika’s words. 

He couldn’t admit anything to the adventurers. 

He pressed his square lips tightly together, making his already square face look even more angular.

Erika didn’t expect a response. She glanced at him and then walked over to the sister leaning against the fence.

“How are you feeling now?”

Erika calmly asked about the sister’s injuries while being looked at as if she was something unbelievable. The surprised sister responded.

“Better than before…”

At her words, Erika quickly checked the wound. The rib that had been protruding was now back under the skin. 

Though her breathing was still heavy, it didn’t seem life-threatening.

“I see. Well then, we need to report the completion of our mission to the client.”

After checking the injury, Erika was ready to leave quickly, knowing our situation. It wasn’t good for us to get too friendly with church officials.

Leaving quickly was better for both sides.

“W-Wait a moment. Who are you?”

The sister called out to us as we were leaving. Ignoring her would have been fine—I intended to—but Erika stopped and replied.

“We are adventurers from Hecatai, a married couple known as the Longdaggers.”

Erika gave a slight bow, then started walking again, ignoring the sister who still seemed to have questions. 

Erika muttered softly, “I went ahead and called us a married couple,” but I hoped it wasn’t a sign of dissatisfaction with the charade.