Volume 7 Chapter 5: The Road Ahead Is Dangerous
(Walson)
I sent Melon to the innkeeper to ask for a place where our group could stay.
I thought it would be a room or something like that, but unexpectedly, it turned out to be a large, stand-alone mushroom house!
It was a short, fat mushroom, thick enough that it would take dozens of people to wrap their arms around it, and about six meters tall.
Inside, there were four rooms and a living area—quite the size for an inn.
Hmm... the price was also quite something.
Not many people could afford it.
Considering how packed the village was with people, the only reason we were able to get this place was probably because of that price.
My fiancées, little Tanaya, and I shared one house, while Zakarina, Belle, Alice, and others rented a smaller one.
Naturally, I was the one paying.
Damn it, why is it that in those hero-related stories, the characters don't seem to care about money?!
Though my pockets are still decently full, I still feel the pinch!
When we entered the house, the interior was simple and clean.
Since it was converted directly from a giant red mushroom, the walls were white, with streaks of growth marks.
Don't understand what those marks look like? Just cut open a king oyster mushroom, and you'll see.
After the earthen fort hill, here was another unique place to live.
We would have to stay here until the battle against the Hero King.
We were stationed here so that we could move out to face him as soon as he reached the Labyrinth of Wind.
His goal was to collect the powers of the seven elements.
With the recent news of the Hero King attacking the Elven Empire, we could now fully confirm that his destination was Carmel, the Elven Empire's capital, and the location of the Labyrinth of Wind.
We didn't want to alarm too many civilians, so barging into the capital against the martial law was not an option.
But because of that, it was also difficult to get any news from within the city.
All we could hope for was that everything would go according to plan when the time came.
This battle must be fought, and we must win.
Otherwise, Herobrine, with that Command Block in his hand, could bring unimaginable chaos to the world.
Just looking at how Zakarina, a Vassal of The Earth, almost got killed shows how serious things were.
On our side, we were mobilizing all available forces.
Zakarina even contacted Krista, the Vassal of The Flame, so now we had the Vassal of The Forest, Water, Flame, Earth, and Light, plus Grace and others. It seemed like a powerful lineup, but I still felt uneasy.
That was because there were too many unknowns about the enemy's strength.
Belle was already incredibly strong, but even she said that Hero King Alwin was stronger than her, which was terrifying.
And now he had the Command Block in his possession...
Being a Vassal of The Elements carried such a heavy burden at this moment.
Yep, it's a trap, I couldn't help but sigh.
That night, my Brewing Stand had been continuously brewing potions for several hours, producing at full speed for the upcoming battle.
Grace was wiping her staff with a cloth, Derisha was oiling her Anti-Melon Spear Prototype 1.0, and Melon and Barella were by my side, helping with potion production.
Everyone was silently focused on their tasks, the atmosphere feeling almost frozen.
"Master, these potions are ready," Melon's voice broke the silence.
She tugged at my clothes with her tail, holding six bottles of brightly colored orange potions in her arms.
"Thanks, just put them over there," I said.
"And, um..." Melon frowned slightly, "Master, you don't look well. Is something bothering you?"
"Huh? Nothi—" I started to deny it, but before I could finish, I noticed that Grace, Melon, Derisha, and Barella were all staring at my face.
Uh, uh, uh, four people's worth of concern is now raining down on me!
"...Liar," Grace said.
"You look exactly like someone who's worried about something," Barella added.
"Your brows are all scrunched up," even Derisha, who wasn't usually the sharpest, said.
Alright, alright, I give up! I'll confess, is that good enough?!
"Well, it's like this... I actually don't want you all involved in this battle, not even Derisha, even though you're a Vassal of The Water."
"...Walson, are you scared?" Grace tilted her head, looking at me.
"Huh? You're the bravest villager I know. I didn't expect you to be scared," Derisha said.
Getting looked down on by the girl you like is a terrible feeling, but I had to admit it.
"Yes, I'm scared," I said. "I'm afraid of losing you."
That's what I fear the most.
I don't want them caught up in such a terrifying battle; I don't want anything to happen to them.
That's why I used robots to fight the Dwarven Kingdom's national guardians instead of sending them to battle.
I said at the time that it was to avoid exposure, but thinking about it more recently, I realized that wasn't the real reason.
During the Labyrinth of Flame incident, I lost part of my memory, but I could vaguely sense that something terrible had happened in that forgotten memory.
And this "feeling" was driving me to keep them away from the battlefield.
"Master, then what about you?"
"Don't worry about me! I may be a villager, but I'm not that weak. I—"
I was about to say something more when Derisha, who was usually so naive, suddenly caught me off guard.
She squeezed my cheeks with a dissatisfied look and tone.
"You, don't act like we're not afraid of losing you too."
"Master, you've done this before," Melon folded her arms.
"Uh, I..."
"...Walson, this won't do," Grace puffed up her cheeks.
"Trying to push us away. You're planning something stupid, aren't you?" Barella glared at me with a frown. "No way. Rejected."
...It seems like this is my old habit.
I'd done something like this before in Vanos, and apparently, I still hadn't learned my lesson...
"Um, sorry... I won't say that again," I apologized.
"Hmph." Barella snorted, and the others' gazes softened as well.
At that moment, a series of quick, consecutive knocks interrupted the group…
Who would be knocking at this hour?
Of course, after making a mistake just now, it was my duty to handle this.
I volunteered and ran to the door, but when I opened it and saw who it was, uh...
Why was the little bandit at my door?!
"Boss! Need some room service—hey, hey, hey, hey, boss, don't close the door so fast!"
"You're not getting another penny out of me!"
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