Baron Voltman ran. He was heading toward the entrance of Leaf Village.
Thomas, unable to keep up with the old man’s pace, lagged behind, panting heavily.
The commotion woke the villagers, and people began stepping out of their homes.
“Get inside! No, run away!”
Baron Voltman shouted.
The people of Leaf Village had never held a sword in their lives. Baron Voltman knew that if they faced the wild dog tribe, they would be defeated instantly.
In this village, the only one capable of standing against beastfolk was himself, a man who had once lived on the battlefield.
“Stay away from the village entrance! I’ll buy us some time!”
Baron Voltman yelled as he ran, his breath growing labored.
‘I’m already out of breath. I must really be getting old.’
If only his body were ten years younger. Thoughts of time’s passage filled the old Baron’s mind, along with a storm of uneasy questions for which he had no answers.
Where was Reytan? Why was the wild dog tribe attacking today? Could he convince them to leave by claiming there had been a mistake with the date?
Amid his gloomy thoughts, one small comfort remained.
‘At least Theon isn’t here.’
Knowing that his grandson wasn’t caught up in this dangerous situation was the only solace for Baron Voltman.
Theon was born from a brief encounter between his daughter and a man whose status she didn’t even know. To live with his daughter, Baron Voltman had built a house from logs.
As a retired knight, he had no steady income. Without any territory to his name, Baron Voltman farmed to put food on the table. His wife and daughter toiled in the fields as well. Even so, Baron Voltman never let Theon lend a hand.
‘That boy’s hands are meant to wield a sword.’
The Baron had recognized his grandson’s talent early on.
Theon was destined to rise high.
The fact that Reytan Quartz Travel had taken Theon as his disciple was proof of that.
This old man, this grandfather—
This poor, aging knight who could give his grandson nothing—could not allow himself to become a burden.
‘I’ll put an end to this myself.’
He had no time to look for Reytan. If his grandson’s teacher were to save the village, it would place an enormous burden on Theon’s heart. In some situations, it might even become a shackle, binding Theon’s wings.
Huff, huff.
Breathing heavily, Baron Voltman arrived at the village entrance. The path was empty.
In the distance, the ground rumbled. It could only be the wild dog beastfolk approaching in packs.
“Come.”
Baron Voltman gripped his sword tightly, glaring straight ahead. The sound of pounding footsteps shook the ground and roared in his ears. Shapes became clearer as they approached, kicking up clouds of dust.
Even if this was to be his last stand—
“I’ll take you to the afterlife with me, you beasts…!”
And then—
“Grandpa?!”
His sword fell weakly to the ground.
The moment he saw his grandson riding on the back of a wild dog beastfolk, Baron Voltman’s jaw dropped in shock.
***
After reaching Coco’s sanctuary, I took advantage of the moment when Dad was surrounded by the wild dog tribe and slipped away with Zikal to the location of the spring.
Hovering just above the ground, the Ancient Text awaited me.
“Hooray! I can fix this!”
“R-Really?”
Zikal asked, his tone full of disbelief. Restoring the spring was no longer a difficult task, but it was essential to maintain strict secrecy.
“Coco’s dad.”
“Call me Zikal.”
“If I restore the spring, only you should know about it! Otherwise, it might dry up again!”
“Understood. I’ll tell my people it was a miracle of the forest.”
“Good. Also, I need to be alone when I fix it!”
Although Zikal couldn’t see the Ancient Text, he would surely notice the money falling from the air.
Clink! Clink!
And with that, I earned two gold coins!
Compared to the treasure I received at the Great Temple, this was a small sum, but back then, even Aqum had called it absurdly generous.
Two gold coins were more than I had expected.
“Look! I fixed it! Humans can be helpful too, right?”
“Unbelievable….”
“Hehe. So, is the mountain okay now?”
Whoosh.
Zikal stared in awe at the spring, now gushing water, completely speechless for several minutes.
Meanwhile, I was busy admiring the two gold coins in my pocket, feeling proud of myself. Suddenly, Zikal knelt before me on one knee, lowering his head.
“H-Huh?”
“This is my way of honoring my savior. When you need me, I will repay this debt with my life.”
“Your life isn’t necessary….”
“News of the spring’s return will cause a stir, so I’ll handle telling my people. Thank you, young human.”
In any case.
Dad had become the leader of the wild dog tribe, the hostages were released unharmed, and the mountain’s spring had been restored.
When the wild dog tribe offered to give us a ride back to Leaf Village, we accepted.
“……….”
Baron Voltman was speechless as he watched us dismount from the enormous wild dog beastfolk.
“Sir, your jaw might fall off.”
Dad, who had ridden with Zikal, helped me down and addressed the Baron.
“Baron! We’re back—!”
“Your back isn’t what it used to be, so what were you thinking, trying to fend off the wild dog tribe on your own? We should have—?!”
“W-what?!”
At that moment.
The villagers, who had been running toward the village entrance with farming tools and kitchen utensils in hand, froze in place when they saw us and the wild dog tribe. Their expressions mirrored Baron Voltman’s.
Mouths agape, eyes wide with disbelief.
“Leader, is there anything else you’d like us to do?”
A wild dog beastfolk lay flat on the ground in front of Dad, wagging its tail and asking eagerly.
The villagers all turned their gazes toward the wild dog beastfolk.
“No. Leave now.”
The beastfolk then turned its eyes toward Dad.
“Aww! That’s disappointing!”
The wild dog beastfolk howled in dissatisfaction. Theon, who had dismounted alongside Jeffrey, approached Baron Voltman.
“We’re back, Grandpa.”
“O-oh, yes. But what on earth is going on here…?”
His face was filled with confusion, completely unable to grasp the situation.
Theon, in a casual tone, explained as if it were nothing out of the ordinary.
“Teacher defeated the leader of the wild dog tribe. So now, Teacher is their new leader.”
“And what does that mean…? The war with the wild dog tribe…?”
“We won’t have to fight.”
Thud.
With that statement, the villagers dropped their tools to the ground. Slowly, they began to step toward Dad.
“…Don’t come charging at me.”
Dad frowned. At his warning, the villagers hesitated for a moment. But I knew better.
‘They won’t be able to stop themselves!’
The relief of surviving would outweigh their fear of Dad!
The sound of someone sniffling was the starting signal.
All at once, the villagers surged forward.
“Master Travel—!”
“A saint! Our hero!”
“Master Reytan!”
The village had been saved. No one had been hurt.
Some tried to lift Dad in celebration, while others clung to his legs. However, their attempts were thwarted by Wyndis’s gusts of wind. Despite this, they managed to surround him and embrace him tightly.
“Berry, over here.”
Before the crowd could engulf me, Theon quickly guided me out of their reach.
Whew.
Escaping through the gaps between people’s legs, I finally exhaled and noticed a familiar face. It was Grandma Marshall.
“Berry, I think she’s calling for you.”
“Huh? Okay, I’ll go then!”
“Alright.”
Grandma Marshall was seated on a large rock, broad enough to resemble a bench. As I approached, she glanced toward where Dad was and spoke.
“It seems the negotiations ended well.”
“Yes!”
At that moment, cheers erupted from the villagers.
“The wild dog tribe is going to guard our village?!”
“Does that mean we don’t have to pay taxes anymore?! We won’t have to worry about security either!”
“Of course! What army could be stronger than the wild dog tribe?”
“We don’t need to pay taxes to Viscount Roslin anymore!”
By Dad’s orders, the wild dog tribe was assigned to protect the villagers and maintain order.
With the tax issue involving Viscount Roslin resolved, all that was left was—
“Ah, my shoulders are so sore.”
I quickly ran behind Grandma Marshall and began massaging her shoulders as I whispered.
“Grandma Marshall, what about the matter with Marquess Ash?”
Grandma Marshall and I had made a deal.
She promised to block any articles linking Marquess Ash’s land development to Dad’s involvement in this matter.
In exchange, I would provide her with lifetime massage rights and insider investment tips.
“The more I think about it, the more I feel like I got the short end of the stick.”*
“Hmph. Should I cancel our deal and let Dad find out instead? Imagine how rich Dad would become. Don’t you think?”
Patting her shoulders enthusiastically, I spoke with a grin.
“You little chick.”
Grandma Marshall glanced at me before making a scolding remark, though there was a smile on her lips.
“Fine. What would he know even if he saw it? Only an apothecary like me—or a peculiar little chick like you, who’s memorized all my potion recipes—could figure it out.”
“…Is that a compliment?”
“Anyway, you’ll have to vouch for me.”
“Huh?”
“I checked yesterday, and all they had were pumpkin seedlings from the Fort Kingdom. They’re supposed to bring in that ornamental plant or whatever tomorrow. Let’s see if it’s really capable of making a proper healing potion.”
🍓; *Is like : ‘The more I reflect on the situation, the more I feel like I was treated unfairly or got a bad deal.’
