Chapter 47: Interlude: The Women Chasing Mikami 1

In a corner of the capital, in an alley not far from the bustle of the adventurer’s guild, there stood a certain tavern.

“The Sword’s Song”—a common name, one of countless taverns set up to cater to guild adventurers.

When the sun sets and those who’ve finished their requests—or those who failed to land any—gather to fill the place with drink and clamor, that’s a common feature of guild-front taverns anywhere on the continent.

Here in the Royal Capital, it’s no different.

However, it was still before the sun reached its zenith, early hours just after opening, so the interior lined with well-worn oak tables was deserted.

At one of those tables, two young men—probably adventurers who hadn’t been at it long—were griping about something while sending foam from their ale flying.

Their shrill voices and the occasional sound of mugs slamming down were the only things echoing through the quiet establishment.

Apparently, they’d failed a quest they’d taken on and were drowning their frustrations in the middle of the day.

“Damn it! Why the hell is a massive magical beast… a B-rank Hell Hound wandering around in the forest near the capital! If that beast hadn’t shown up, we could’ve brought back the quest item, the ‘Moonlight Grass,’ no problem!”

The one venting his frustration with a bright red face was a swordsman-type wearing light armor.

“Come on, don’t get so down about it. We didn’t complete the quest, but we’re lucky to be alive. Both of us escaped without a scratch, right? In a way, we got off easy.”

His partner, a mage-type in robes, tried to calm him down.

“I guess, but…! Still, just running away like that—it’s pathetic, isn’t it! We’re adventurers, damn it! We’ve gotta take risks and go on real adventures!”

The swordsman downed what was left of his ale in one gulp and roughly set the mug on the table. “Hey! Another round!” he called out, raising his hand.

With so few customers yet, there were no waitresses or waiters to be seen in the establishment.

From behind the counter, a portly middle-aged man who seemed to be the owner, wiping his hands with a weary expression while working on a large stockpot, came out.

“Here ya go. Ale’s fine, right? You boys are new faces—rookie adventurers?”

The owner set down a fresh ale with a thud and struck up conversation in a friendly manner.

Apparently, he had time to kill and was bored.

“Yeah, that’s right! We’re a party called the ‘Grey Hounds’! Well, we’re still green, but still! You’ve probably heard of us, right?”

The swordsman puffed out his chest a bit theatrically.

“Haha! Full of energy, aren’t ya, kid. But sorry to say, your reputation hasn’t reached these ears yet. When it comes to famous folks in the capital lately, it’d be the girls from the ‘Moon Maidens,’ or if we’re talking a while back, there was that warrior woman, the ‘Frenzied War Princess Emma.'”

The owner laughed heartily.

“Idiot! We’re still E-rank rookies. Of course he wouldn’t know us!”

The mage lightly smacked his companion’s head in exasperation.

“I know that… it was a joke, a joke. Sigh… But man, I’d love for us to be as famous as the Moon Maidens someday.”

This time the swordsman let out a heavy sigh.

“Come on… the Moon Maidens are S-rank adventurers. That’s way too high a goal right off the bat.”

“They say the higher the mountain, the better! Sigh… But still, the Moon Maidens… why’d they have to disband… They were my heroes…”

The swordsman’s shoulders drooped with genuine disappointment.

“Who knows… Well, all three Moon Maidens members were drop-dead gorgeous, so… maybe some noble or royalty took a fancy to them and they got themselves men or something.”

The mage said with a slightly mischievous tone.

“No way! There’s no man worthy of those lofty ladies! Rumor has it they turned down marriage proposals from countless powerful nobles… hell, even from royalty from some kingdoms!”

The swordsman shot back defensively.

“Alright, alright… calm down. It was a joke. One of them became a Sword Saint, one’s called the Grand Sage, and the other became a saint. People who reach the realm of S-rank adventurers all have sensibilities beyond us ordinary folk. So they probably don’t have the slightest interest in just any guy.”

“Well, yeah, but… those looks are just unfair. Any man would be captivated by them at least once.”

The swordsman downed his ale again and gazed at the ceiling with a dreamy expression.

“What’s this, boys? You interested in the Moon Maidens?”

The owner, who’d been listening in, chimed in with a grin.

“Of course we are, Master! Anyone who’s an adventurer in this capital would admire them!”

The swordsman spoke passionately.

“Is that so? In that case, let me tell you a juicy little tidbit.”

The owner lowered his voice dramatically.

“Actually… those Moon Maidens girls used to be regulars at this very tavern.”

“For real?!”

The two young adventurers’ voices harmonized perfectly.

“I-in this dingy… I mean, this charming tavern, those S-rank ladies—wait, sorry, Master! That just slipped out!”

The swordsman hastily covered his mouth.

“Haha! Honest kid, I like you!”

The owner showed no sign of offense and laughed heartily again.

“Well, it was quite a while ago… let’s see, about five years back. When they’d just come to the capital, before their names spread across the continent, back when they weren’t all that famous yet.”

“That’s still amazing! So you’re saying that this table I’m sitting at, this chair—maybe one of the Moon Maidens sat here! When you think about it, this run-down old place suddenly looks like a historic landmark…!”

“…Kid… I’m seriously about to get mad now.”

A vein throbbed on the owner’s forehead.

“Ah! S-sorry, Master! I got too excited! S-so! Master! Do you have any more juicy info about the Moon Maidens? Like… what kind of men they’re into, stuff like that—did they ever mention anything?”

The swordsman pressed on, eyes sparkling despite learning nothing.

“Hey… were you even listening to me? Like I said, people who reach those heights exist on a plane completely removed from normal sensibilities.”

His mage partner shook his head in resignation.

“It’s almost impossible to imagine those ladies with their godlike strength getting all lovey-dovey with some random guy. After all, one of the Moon Maidens… Alicia-san, who’s now a saint, supposedly beat down a dragon with her bare hands back in the day.”

“…Seriously… I saw her at the guild once, but she looked so refined and delicate, nothing like that… Still… maybe it’s good I didn’t try talking to her…”

The swordsman’s face went pale.

“You… you were seriously thinking about that? Let me tell you, if you’d approached them with any ulterior motives, you wouldn’t have gotten off easy. Even though they were all stunning beauties, even the skilled male adventurers at the guild kept their distance from them. Maybe nobles and royalty operate on a different wavelength than us commoners, but… any person with proper survival instincts wouldn’t seriously try to woo them. After all, you’d run out of lives real quick. Actually… this is just a rumor, but supposedly some noble playboys who kept pestering them too persistently went missing.”

“…I-I see… U-um, Master, please forget what I said earlier…”

The swordsman, all his earlier bravado gone, looked completely deflated and pale.

“Nah, kid, sorry to say, but I never heard them talking about what type of men they liked or any romance stuff. But… there was one person they always talked about, someone they called their ‘goal.'”

The owner dropped his voice slightly.

“Huh? Those S-rank Moon Maidens have someone they consider their goal? Just what kind of monster-level person is that?”

The swordsman leaned forward again.

“Beats me… I only overheard them talking when they were drunk, from across the counter. But all three of them called that person ‘Sensei,’ so maybe it was their master or something.”

“There was a master who trained the Moon Maidens…! But if they were that incredible, you’d think their name would be more well-known.”

“Well… maybe they’re not from the Kingdom of Lemuria, but from another country… maybe from one of the great powers in the central continent. Or if they’re that level of martial expert, maybe they’re wandering the continent like a national hero, seeking stronger opponents.”

“Sigh… This all feels like it’s from a world way too far removed from us low-level adventurers. I guess people on cloud nine like the Moon Maidens really do live in a different world than us. …So, did they mention any distinguishing features or, like, a title for this ‘Sensei’?”

“Not really… they didn’t say anything like that… Oh, but there was one thing they said a lot… ‘Sensei is incredibly fast.'”

The owner stroked his chin as if recalling.

“‘No matter how strong a person, no matter how vicious a magical beast… even dragons flying through the sky like they own the place absolutely cannot catch up to Sensei’s speed’—that’s what they said with such passion.”

“Faster than dragons… is that really human… Honestly, that sounds like a bard’s exaggerated hero’s tale.”

“Who knows… I didn’t hear more than that, so I really have no idea… Whoops, I’ve been chatting too long. Better get back to prepping for the evening rush—that’s when the real money comes in.”

With that, the owner wiped his hands on his apron and headed back behind the counter.

The two young adventurers left behind stared at each other in bewilderment for a while, but eventually downed their ales and moved on to other trivial topics.

Behind the counter, making rhythmic chopping sounds as he cut vegetables, the owner muttered to himself.

Well… truth is, I know a lot more about that ‘Sensei’ of theirs…

After all, when those girls got drunk, they’d talk about their sensei endlessly without ever getting bored.

The owner deliberately hadn’t shared those details with the young men.

There were two reasons for that.

One was that even in a backwater tavern like this, there’s a minimum code of conduct for those who serve alcohol.

Namely, you shouldn’t go blabbing customers’ private information to others carelessly.

Of course, this owner was naturally loose-lipped and rather talkative by nature.

So why was his tongue tied this time?

The answer lay in the second reason.

The owner had sensed something deeply unsettling—a kind of madness—in the feelings the Moon Maidens expressed toward their “Sensei.”

Their feelings toward their “Sensei” were far beyond what could be expressed with simple words like admiration or respect for a teacher. It was something deeper, something twisted… yes, an obsession almost like a compulsion, or perhaps a fanatic fixation—an abnormal fervor.

They yearned so desperately to meet this “Sensei,” yet apparently couldn’t.

According to them, it was because their “Sensei” was married…

…The look in those girls’ eyes back then…

The owner recalled their expressions from those days and involuntarily shuddered.