Return Through Magic

Chapter 12: Suspicion and Plan

“What do you mean by dangerous, Aira?” Yuki stopped eating and looked at Aira, who was staring out the window with a cold expression.

“This village is dangerous,” Aira replied with the same cold expression.

“Please explain more, Aira. I just woke up from being unconscious,” Yuki protested. He was not ready to leave immediately after just waking up from a two-day unconscious state.

“You know, Yuki. You’re an illegal monster hunter,” Aira  stared sharply at Yuki.

“Illegal? What do you mean by that?” Yuki asked, confused.

“It’s because you haven’t officially joined the adventurer’s guild, yet you’re taking on monster-slaying missions. That’s considered illegal. Accepting a mission to kill a monster without being officially registered with the adventurer’s guild is a crime. Not only that, but you also don’t even know what magic you possess,” Aira, who had been looking out the window, now turned to face Yuki, who was taken aback.

"I was just helping the villagers because they said they were attacked by a monster. I had no malicious intent whatsoever,” Yuki tried to defend himself.

“Your intentions may have been good, but rules are rules, Yuki. You can’t act recklessly without considering the consequences,” Aira emphasized, her voice growing more serious.

“What if we encounter a monster on our journey? Should we just let it eat us?” Yuki pouted, feeling wronged.

“That’s a different matter. You’d be killing the monster in self-defense, not as part of a mission. Missions are supposed to be issued through the adventurer’s guild and can’t be taken on privately. So your actions are illegal! Illegal!” Aira repeated the word ‘illegal’ twice out of frustration with Yuki’s resistance.

Yuki stopped arguing with Aira. Though still annoyed, he chose to return to his now cold soup.

“Ah, if you’re caught taking illegal missions, any earnings will be confiscated by the kingdom. Additionally, you’ll be fined ten times the earnings from the mission and imprisoned for three months. So listen carefully. I’m doing this because I need you to enter the royal capital! So don’t cause any more trouble without consulting me first. Do you understand?!” Aira seemed dissatisfied with Yuki’s silence.

“Yeah, yeah. I get it. So, because of that, do we need to leave this village immediately? It feels strange to suddenly flee just because I completed a mission given directly by the village head who also runs this inn. Tell me the truth or I won’t listen to you,” Yuki grumbled.

“I’m not saying this without reason, Yuki. I’ve found some odd things in this village,” Aira continued with a more serious tone.

“What odd things?” Yuki looked at Aira intently, hoping for a detailed explanation.

“While you were unconscious, I did some investigating. Out there have been reports of people mysteriously disappearing in this village. More suspiciously, anyone who tries to investigate also disappears. The innkeeper seems to know more than she’s letting on,” Aira explained

“And you didn’t tell me sooner?!” Yuki looked increasingly worried and angry that Aira hadn’t informed him earlier.

“I wanted to make sure before worrying you. But now it’s clear; we need to leave,” Aira insisted.

“This doesn’t make sense. If the village is truly dangerous, why don’t we inform the other villagers and ask for help?” Yuki tried to find another way out.

“The villagers might already be involved or too scared to speak up. We don’t know who we can trust,” Aira said firmly.

“I still feel this is too hasty. We should at least gather more evidence before making a decision,” Yuki insisted.

“I understand your feelings, but we can’t risk our lives any longer here. We must act quickly,” Aira countered.

Yuki fell silent for a moment, pondering Aira’s words. Although his heart wanted to help the villagers, he knew a great risk was involved.

“And there’s one more thing I need to tell you, Yuki. Whether you’ve noticed or not, all the guests at this inn are too strong and muscular to be ordinary villagers who can’t fight monsters. Since you’ve been unconscious, I’ve been observing quietly, and just so you know, the inn hasn’t received any new guests besides us. Strangely, the people at the inn are still the same ones we saw when we first arrived here,” Aira said seriously.

“Really?” Yuki tilted his head slightly, not having noticed.

“That’s because you foolishly accepted an illegal mission to fight monsters for money without assessing the situation first. You’re too naive, thinking this world is safe and free of crime,” Aira’s sharp words made Yuki fall silent instantly.

“Enough. The point is, you should rest because tonight we’re leaving quietly. Got it?!” Aira pointed directly at Yuki’s face with her index finger.

Yuki nodded quickly, unable to argue against Aira’s accurate points. He realized he had rushed into taking the mission, eager to earn money without understanding that his actions were illegal.

“Alright, Aira. We’ll leave. But I want to come back someday and find out what’s really happening in this village,” Yuki finally said.

Aira nodded, “We’ll return better prepared. For now, our safety is the priority.”

After that, Aira and Yuki acted normally so no one would suspect their plan. Aira claimed she was going to the forest to look for medicinal herbs for Yuki, but she was actually investigating the village further. Meanwhile, Yuki stayed in his room and spoke with the innkeeper, who was also the village head.

“Why didn’t you tell me the village head who needed help was you?” Yuki bluntly asked the innkeeper, who had come to his room under the pretense of checking on him after his fight with the monster.

“Forgive this old woman, traveler. I hid my identity because many have refused to help this village. As you know, we’ve tried contacting the guild in the city, but no sorcerers have come to help us. We haven’t been idle, though. Many villagers have gone into the forest to fight the monster rabbit, but none have returned. Honestly, I’m desperate, and when I saw you, I asked for help on impulse because you looked strong.”

Yuki looked at the old woman in front of him, who seemed sincere in her words. However, he couldn’t shake the feeling that the innkeeper and village head were too smooth in her tale of woe.

Yuki only smiled and said he had taken the job for money, so she didn’t need to worry about his feelings.

“Thank you for the money, Granny. For me, money is the most important,” Yuki chuckled softly, intentionally portraying himself as someone who loves money.

“Alright then. This old woman will go downstairs in case other guests need me.”

The innkeeper looked relieved and finally left Yuki’s room, as there were still many guests. Yuki agreed and let her go, not wanting to ask more questions that might make her suspicious of him.

Seira, who had transformed into a sword before the innkeeper arrived, was now in Yuki’s hand, ready in case something bad happened. Yuki felt better after Aira had used healing magic on him before she went to the forest. The innkeeper didn’t know Aira was a sorceress because Aira had claimed to be an herbalist and Yuki her hired mercenary, was escorting her to the city.

“I’ll take a nap before doing something troublesome later.”

Yuki sighed deeply, feeling his life had truly changed.

“Damn you, god of death!” Yuki cursed the god who had brought him here before finally falling into a deep sleep, as his injured body still needed plenty of rest.