Goblin Slayer - Volume 7 - Chapter 2

Chapter 2 – Beard-Cutter Goes To The Southern River

The moment they disembarked from their carriage, the heat of summer assaulted the party, along with an earsplitting racket. People coming and going on the flagstones. Conversations of every type. The river burbling its way through the town. The wind blowing.

For a moment, the overwhelming sense of activity left Cow Girl thinking there must have been a festival or something.

“W-wow…”

“Are you all right?”

She felt a gentle hand support her, guarding against a sudden dizzy spell. “Er… Yeah… Fine,” she replied, nodding to someone. That someone happened to be a person she’d become fast friends with over the past year: the receptionist from the Adventurers Guild. She was impeccably dressed, as ever. Today, she was wearing a pure white summer dress that reminded Cow Girl that this girl was a public official—in other words, part of the nobility. It wasn’t what she normally wore, but even so—in fact, just for that reason—it left a strong impression.

“I just got a little lightheaded with all the people…”

“You haven’t seen anything yet. The capital is even more crowded.”

“I can’t believe you can even breathe there…” I don’t think I could manage.

Guild Girl snickered at Cow Girl’s assessment, stepping down from the carriage as if she did it every day.

You know, when she holds those braids down against the wind, she really does look like a city girl. She couldn’t look more different from me.

Cow Girl gave a private sigh, overcome by what a bumpkin she felt like. She had attempted to wear something a little different from usual, but she’d had nothing like the success of Guild Girl.

She was embarrassed, though, to wear her mother’s dress again, so this was what she had been left with. And yet, she couldn’t quite settle into herself.

Cow Girl wandered around behind the carriage to where the bags were stacked. They would have to unload the luggage.

A leather-gloved hand slid out and stopped her. “I’ll do it.” The hand grabbed some luggage as soon as she heard the short sentence.

She looked over and saw Goblin Slayer in his characteristic grimy helmet. “You rest a bit.”

“Oh, I’m fine,” Cow Girl said, waving off her old friend. “I can ride a horse all day. A carriage is no problem. I know what I look like, but I’m pretty strong!”

“Perhaps so, but this trunk has to do with my business.”

Hmm, Cow Girl grumbled. That was fair. Personal business was important.

“All right, well, let me handle my own luggage, at least.”

“Okay.” For some reason, his brusque nod made her smile. She didn’t hide the grin as she grabbed her bag.

She had never seen Goblin Slayer at work before. And doing something other than slaying goblins, no less. This wasn’t really different in kind from when she asked him to help around the farm, but still, it seemed new.

She went over and stood in a corner of the station so that she would be out of the way; Guild Girl stood beside her, smiling. Cow Girl had learned enough in the six years of their acquaintance to know that this was not a pasted-on smile.

“I’m guessing you haven’t seen him at work too often, either.” “Yeah. I’m usually behind a desk at the Guild.”

“Oh yeah? …I guess that makes sense.”

“Well, there was one time…” I thought I might have a heart attack.

“Huh!” Cow Girl said, her lips pursed.

As the two of them stood talking, work progressed apace.

“Gods above. We haven’t seen this place in a year, and it looks like we left yesterday. Doesn’t anything ever change around here?” Dwarf Shaman said, casually grabbing trunks as Goblin Slayer hefted them down from the luggage rack.

Like most of his kind, Dwarf Shaman was as strong as he was short. He piled up the cargo, one piece after another, without so much as breathing hard.

“They say three’s a crowd, but we’ve got four in women alone. How are us men going to relax?”

“Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Are they not beautiful and sprightly? That is enough.” Lizard Priest was taking the bags from Dwarf Shaman and putting them onto a luggage cart. Lizardmen were naturally brawny, but on top of that, he had the muscular build of a warrior-priest. He tossed the baggage onto the cart faster than Goblin Slayer could unload it.

“And one cannot make light of a woman’s meticulous nature, either. Is that not so, milady Priestess?”

“I really don’t think it’s anything special…”

Priestess scratched her cheek with embarrassment, but Lizard Priest only laid on more praise. “Ah, but careful packing is so important. What if the clay tablets were to break?”

Priestess looked at the ground. “It’s really nothing special… I just packed them with some reeds and moss.”

The luggage in question was the clay tablets they had recovered from the library some days before. According to the nuns they had rescued, the tablets had been discovered at some ancient ruin or other, and the letters had not yet been decoded.

That being the case, there was no point leaving them in some frontier burg with no resources. They could carry some kind of prophecy; or ancient, secret magics; or the hidden truth of all history; or…

Old, indecipherable texts had been the cause of no small strife of late. The adventurers logically came to the conclusion that the safest thing they could do would be to leave the tablets at the Temple of the God of Law in the water town.

“Heh-heh. That’s right, earn your keep, dwarf.” High Elf Archer jumped down from the carriage with balletic grace and a smirk that stretched from ear to ear. She gave Dwarf Shaman a hearty smack on the shoulder. “I’m gonna go pick up some gifts for my sister.”

“Yes, fine. Gods… If we weren’t here to celebrate, I’d smack you right back on that flat little bottom!”

“Why, you—!” High Elf Archer jumped backward, covering her modest behind with her hands and glaring at the dwarf.

She was able to clown around like this because they were in the safety of the water town.

A year ago, it had been different.

Priestess closed her eyes for a second, with an emotion that mixed nostalgia with fear but was not quite either one. That summer, this area had been attacked by goblins, and hardly anyone realized it. The memories were still fresh for her. After all, the whole party had almost died fighting that enemy.

“…”

Goblin Slayer, who had been as close to death as any of them that time, slowly looked from one side of town to the other.

“…I don’t sense any goblins here.”

She found it rather satisfying to be able to come back and see what their work had achieved.

They had been away for a year—yes, a whole year already.

From what she could see, the water town looked almost exactly as they had last left it, everything still clicking along in peace. Merchants and travelers passed by, clerics in the service of the Supreme God hurried about, and children walked alongside their parents. Wizards and knights-errant queried passersby as to whether they didn’t need bodyguards to protect their belongings, boasting of their achievements in battle.

The clattering of horse hooves mingled with the quick talking of merchants making deals with one another; a very important-looking woman worked her way down the street.

But there were no goblins.

For Goblin Slayer, that was enough.

And insofar as there were no goblins, there was nothing for him to do here.

And yet, I am here.

He wondered what he should make of this.

Even if he’d had any interest in a non-goblin-slaying quest, he would never have had the time to look at it. He had certainly never imagined he would take up a courier quest like this one.

Follow the river that ran through the city upstream, to the south, and as quick as walking, you would find yourself at the elves’ forest.

As such, the party had been asked to accompany the clay tablets; there was some kind of talk of the job covering traveling expenses. Because it was a Guild quest, they were allowed to use a Guild carriage to reach the water town. When they received the reward, it would be enough to cover their expenses in town, as well.

Finally, there was the fact that they would be protecting clay tablets that the goblins might have some interest in. This was the aspect that finally got Goblin Slayer on board.

“Okay, everyone, I’m going to go to the local guild to say hello and report that we completed the quest.”

Everything had been arranged by the good offices of Guild Girl, with her fine sense of timing and her unflappable smile. Who better than a bureaucrat to orchestrate something like this? Any time plans for a quest involved more than simply going to a location, looking around, and killing some monsters, there was a way she could help.

“After that, there’s the luggage, the inn, securing a boat… Oh, and gifts.

Do we know what the couple likes?”

“Best learn about the elves from an elf, I’d say. Got an opinion, Long- Ears?”

“Naturally,” High Elf Archer replied, nodding confidently. Her ears gave a surprisingly majestic twitch, and she added, “Besides, I haven’t been back home in ages. I’ll need something to bring my clan.”

“Er, uh, then maybe I can, too…?” Cow Girl edged her way into the conversation, putting a hand to her generous bosom. “I mean… I don’t get a lot of chances to come to places like this, and I kind of wanted to try a little shopping…” She sounded uncharacteristically hesitant, her eyes flitting from one place to another.

High Elf Archer blinked several times. “Just come with me!” she exclaimed, smacking herself on the chest. “As a matter of fact, I’ve been to this town before. I can show you around!”

“Well then,” Dwarf Shaman said, looking dubious about this display of confidence, “once we’ve found the inn and the boat, maybe we’ll tag along.” He stroked the white beard of which he was so proud. “Otherwise, who knows what Anvil might get up to on her own?”

“Ooh, how about you come over here and say that!” High Elf Archer exclaimed. Dwarf Shaman said something laughingly in return, and off they went again, arguing hard enough to sound noisy even over the hubbub of the water town streets.

Lizard Priest rolled his eyes in amusement when he saw people watching the pair with surprise.

“Well, just think of us as porters,” he said. “We do have the strength.” “Sorry. I know how much trouble you’re going to…” Cow Girl bowed her head apologetically, but the lizardman monk put his palms together.

“What’s to apologize for? Consider it an act of gratitude for your plentiful supply of wonderful cheese. Think naught of it.”

Cow Girl felt a hand on her shoulder. “Hee-hee. Well then, maybe I’ll join the rest of you after I finish everything that needs doing.”

She didn’t know when Guild Girl had come up behind her. Her braid gave off a faint, sweet aroma; maybe she was wearing a bit of perfume. Just a dab, not so much as to be anything but tasteful. It felt a world away from Cow Girl.

Must be nice…

The thought passed in an instant, but it must have shown on her face.

“A girl likes to dress up from time to time, doesn’t she?” Guild Girl was smiling almost mischievously.

Cow Girl put up her hands. “Heh, yeah. Ha-ha… Think you could help me out?”

Of course. Guild Girl smiled and nodded, and soon her gaze had moved along to something else.

What was that something? You should be able to guess by now.

It was Priestess, who stood looking rather uncomfortable, as if she wanted to say something but couldn’t.

“And what about you?” Guild Girl asked. “That festival outfit of yours was awfully cute.”

“Eurgh?!” Priestess made a sort of choking sound and flailed her arms, spluttering. “That wasn’t—,” and “I-it’s not for me!” in between gasps.

Cow Girl, however, had already circled around to cut off her escape. The farm girl boxed Priestess in with her generous chest, hugging her close.

“Not so fast! I don’t know how that sort of stuff will look on me, either, but I’m still going. So you’re not getting away.”

“Ohh… Please just…don’t be too hard on me…okay?” She was shaking like a small animal. Cow Girl nodded at her as if at a little sister.

Well, Cow Girl herself wasn’t exactly a fashion maven. She would have to let Guild Girl take the lead…

“……”

Goblin Slayer was silently watching the girls banter with each other. Cow Girl had always been outgoing, but it was still good to see her become part of the group like this. Bright and laughing, zipping around and having fun.

He let out a breath. A sort of relieved phew.

“…I do not know much about either gifts or clothes,” he said flatly, grabbing on to the crossbeam of the luggage cart.

“Ho,” Lizard Priest said at this, his tail wagging. “Porterage, then?

Perhaps it could wait until all else is finished?”

“There is a slight chance that goblins want these tablets.” Rather unusually for him, the words carried the ring of an excuse. “We ought to move them sooner rather than later.”

“…You’re quite sure?”

“I think so,” he said, the helmet moving. “I’m certain of it.”

“Hmm…,” Lizard Priest mused, letting out a hissing breath. After a moment, though, his tail swayed gently. “Very well,” he said. “Once we have settled on an inn, we’ll dispatch someone to the temple.”

“Please do.”

Then Goblin Slayer began to walk off, pulling the cart behind him.

By the time Priestess noticed the creaking of the wheels, he was already far away, a figure growing smaller in the distance.

§

He focused on nothing but the sound of the running river as he pulled the cart along.

The people milling about him stared at the pathetic-looking adventurer then quickly passed him by. Admittedly, his outfit was somewhat shocking. People probably assumed he was some beginner.

Why else would an adventurer, bedecked in full armor as if ready to delve into a dungeon, be pulling a cart through the middle of town? He didn’t quite look like he belonged among the rivers and boats of this city, whose elegance flowed from the old capital where it was built. People snickered at him behind their hands.

None of this mattered to Goblin Slayer.

He kept walking along the route that he had pounded into his memory, and eventually, he arrived at a resplendent building standing by the waterside, supported by marble columns. People dressed in clerics’ robes and clutching law texts came and went busily through the front entrance. There were others among them who looked very serious; these were people who had come for some suit and who now approached the temple with trepidation.

The sun had passed its zenith already, its clear, bright rays reflecting off the image of the sword and scales. This was the great Temple of the Supreme God, who gave this world law and justice and order and light.

There was probably no safer place on all the frontier than this. Goblin Slayer, however, continued to scan the area vigilantly as he strode with his cart into the temple.

In the waiting area, people shot him anxious glances as they marked time until their cases would be heard. He went farther into the building.

“Excuse me, sir, please stop there!” Naturally, he had been noticed. A sandals-clad young cleric came rushing up.

Goblin Slayer halted with a “hrm,” and then he noticed the young man appeared to be praying something softly. He assumed it was something like Sense Lie. Things were so complicated these days.

The adventurer brought the cart to a creaking halt. “I’ve come to complete a quest,” he said.

“Sir?”

“A quest,” he repeated, pulling up the silver tag around his neck. “Perhaps it will help if I say Goblin Slayer is here.”

Unfortunately, it didn’t help.

“Please wait just a moment, sir,” the cleric said, rushing back inside and leaving the adventurer by himself.

Goblin Slayer crossed his arms and, as he had been told, he waited. He felt that he had often seen such rushing about lately.

Perhaps young clerics are all alike…

At length, the young man returned with an older woman and, for the third time, Goblin Slayer explained, “I have come to complete a quest. The transport of some texts.”

“Yes, of course, sir, I understand,” the woman said with a friendly smile. She nodded at him several times. “The archbishop is waiting for you. Please, come this way.”

“All right.” Goblin Slayer grasped the crossbar of the cart again and began walking.

“My apologies for delaying you,” the priest said, but Goblin Slayer merely gave a slight shake of his head as he went by.

The woman—the acolyte—who went ahead of him swayed her hips in a way that caused her behind to wiggle each time she walked. Not enough to be unseemly, however; in fact, her movements were very graceful.

The Supreme God was the master of law. But it was said that it was Pray- ers who should make official legal judgments. Perhaps, then, this acolyte was simply trying to act appropriately for a place of judgment. And for Goblin Slayer, there was no higher praise than to recognize something as the fruit of much practice.

“If only you had come around the back way, you wouldn’t have had to wait,” she said, clearly implying his status as a personal friend of the head of this temple.

“I did not know that,” he said. He didn’t sound at all reproachful. “I’ve caused you trouble,” he added.

“Not at all, sir, it’s quite all right. I’m sure the archbishop will be overjoyed.” She smiled widely at him.

Goblin Slayer tilted his head slightly in her direction. “…I believe I remember meeting you before.”

“Yes, sir. And may I thank you for all the good you did our archbishop at the time.”

“I only slew the goblins.”

This woman was an attendant, one of those who served Sword Maiden closely. He worked this over in his mind. “Hmm. Does she sleep now?”

“Indeed, and very well, at that.” The acolyte looked as if she were talking about her own child as she smiled. “She’s slept like a baby this past year. I’m sure she feels much safer now.”

Ah, but don’t tell her I told you. It would only make her pout.

He nodded. “I see.” And then he added, once more under his voice, “Well and good, then.”

They proceeded farther into the temple, past the courtrooms where cases were heard, through hallways full of shelves. Toward the innermost sanctum, a place of marble pillars and silence.

He had taken this path before, and it led to the same place as before.

Several great, round pillars surrounded the room, sunlight the color of honey drifting between them.

At the far end of this farthest room stood a statue of the Supreme God, like the sun, an altar set before it. And at the altar was someone with perfect posture clasping the sword and scales, a beautiful woman offering prayers…

“…Ahh,” she said, the joy unmistakable in her voice. “You’ve come. It is you, isn’t it…?”

There was the faintest rustle as the woman, her buxom body covered in just a single thin piece of cloth, stood from her prayers.

Behind her blindfold—which served only to highlight her beauty—her gaze shifted, and a breath escaped her rich lips.

It might seem like seduction, or perhaps a certain devilishness. But her aura was, without question, that of a pure priestess.

“It seems things are well.”

“Yes… Thanks to you.” The archbishop, Sword Maiden, smiled like an innocent little girl, her red lips softening. She made a motion with her hand, almost like a bit of a dance; the acolyte bowed her head and retreated soundlessly.

Goblin Slayer watched her go, the steel helmet concealing his expression.

Sword Maiden looked at him with great warmth. “I’m afraid I troubled you for that girl’s sake…”

“It was nothing,” Goblin Slayer said, shaking his head. “My duty.”

The previous winter was still fresh in his memory, when he had done battle with some goblins on the snowy mountain in order to rescue a noble girl. The young woman had tried very hard to appear brave. Goblin Slayer didn’t know what had happened to her after her rescue. Apparently, she was in contact by letter with Priestess and High Elf Archer, but it didn’t occur to him to ask them about her.

“…I can’t say she’s completely better,” Sword Maiden said gently, as if she sensed what Goblin Slayer was wondering. “Her wounds are deep and pain her greatly.” Her lips pursed slightly. “But she has stood back on her feet. She’s doing all that she can, to the extent of her ability.”

“I see.”

“…And what about me?”

Goblin Slayer hmphed and said, “I heard on the way here.” Then he let go of the cart’s crossbeam with a clatter. “I brought the ancient texts.”

“So you have. I’ve heard the story.” Her lips pursed again, perhaps in annoyance at not being able to ask him personally. But at the very least, there seemed to be no change in the fact that he was looking out for her.

She moved along the marble floor almost as if she were skating across it, approaching the cart with no evident concern. Her pale, delicate hand reached out and brushed the surface of the wooden chest.

“Perhaps you’d be so kind as to open it for me?” “Yes.”

Goblin Slayer took the sword at his hip and used the tip to pry open the chest. It wasn’t something a normal adventurer would do, risking their beloved weapon.

But this was Goblin Slayer. Sword Maiden knew that, so she wasn’t surprised by what she noticed.

The chest opened with a screech of protest. Inside were the clay tablets, buried in soft detritus. Sword Maiden ran her hand along the profusion of characters engraved into their surface, as gently as a lover.

“This writing is old… Very, very old. I think the words might pertain to magic… Perhaps.”

Maybe all this would have been surprising to someone who didn’t know who Sword Maiden was. But as the archbishop of the Supreme God, ruler of law, she would certainly have a miracle of appraisal.

“Does it say anything about goblins?”

“I’m not sure,” Sword Maiden replied with a sad shake of her head that caused her golden hair to ripple soundlessly. “I’m afraid I can’t quite say. I would have to read a little more closely…”

“I see.” Goblin Slayer nodded. “In that case, I’m not interested. I will leave them with you.”

“And I will keep them. Thank you.” Sword Maiden put a hand to her bountiful bosom and gave a deep bow. It was not the way an archbishop would normally behave toward a mere adventurer—even if she had once been an adventurer herself.

She raised her head slowly, then her sightless eyes looked at the clay tablets as if they were a gift.

“I’ll take them to the library later.” “…You yourself?”

“The responsibility has been passed to me, hasn’t it? I’d better see it through.” Before Goblin Slayer could say anything else, she added an emphatic “Right?”

She looked like she was dancing as she moved closer to the man in his crude leather armor. A faint, sweet smell tickled his nose, perhaps the perfume she was wearing.

“Will you be back again soon?”

“No.” This caused Sword Maiden to squeeze the sword and scales. “We will head south immediately.”

“Is that so…? …I see.” The strength went out of the hand that held the symbol. “How unkind,” she murmured. “I don’t believe this trip involves goblins…”

“My friend…,” Goblin Slayer started. “My friend…invited me. I could not refuse.”

“You’ve got that kind heart…”

Her words were not a reproach, exactly, but there was a barb in them.

Goblin Slayer, however, responded, “One never knows when or where goblins may appear.”

“That’s certainly true.” She laughed, and it was like the sound of a bell; it hung in the air as she backed away.

She straightened her clothes (though they didn’t really need it), adjusted her grip on the sword and scales, and gave a quiet cough.

“Be careful, if you’re going to travel the river.” “Careful of goblins?”

She ignored the question, saying quietly, “There have been reports of boats sinking.”

I wish you safety in your travels.

Goblin Slayer let her make the holy sign over him with her fingers. Then he nodded and set off at a bold pace. He didn’t look back.

Just as she had hoped.

§

“I, uh… I bought what they said, but… Am I really supposed to wear this?” “It’s something, isn’t it? Humans think of the most interesting things. I just thought it might look good.”

“This is cutting-edge fashion even for the capital. It’s only recently that having your arms and legs so exposed has become popular.”

“I’ve got a sneaking suspicion this is going to be a little too small…”

There was a spray of water, and the four girls’ voices flew prettily around the riverbank.

It was the next day, and the five adventurers and two tagalongs were riding a raft. The water vessel had a white sail, and the wind pushed it gently upriver.

Trade wasn’t especially frequent between the elves’ village and the water town. The forest dwellers were quite proud, with little interest in money and even less in whatever baubles humans might produce. And when two sides could not fulfill mutual needs, then trade could not flourish.

Rather, most of the boats on the river were bound for the pioneer villages that stood along its banks. Very few of them went farther south, to the forest of the elves.

There were, of course, exceptions…

“If I’d known we were going to be traveling by raft, I might’ve stayed home!”

“We were able to borrow it, and that is enough.”

They had already drifted past several villages, and the sun was climbing to its height. They had just bought some bread from the farmers at the last of the riverbank settlements marked on their map, and Dwarf Shaman was busy complaining.

As he took one of the pieces of buttered bread being passed around, Goblin Slayer said, “What is there to complain about?”

“You’re a surprisingly even-keeled man, Beard-cutter.” “Is that so?”

“I should say so… Here, Scaly.” “Ah, many thanks.”

Lizard Priest was piloting the raft with deft strokes of a pole. He settled the vessel in the lock, then let out a hissing breath.

Locks are devices designed to regulate the difference in water level between a canal and a natural river. When heading from the upstream to the downstream, the water in the lock would be gradually lowered to the downstream height. This meant that regardless of what you were riding on, there was bound to be a bit of a wait. A perfect time for a bite to eat.

Lizard Priest stuffed the bread into his jaws, his eyes rolling. “Mmm. But to think, it seems my tongue has become accustomed to the products of that farm so that now I wish for them.”

“Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! Well, look who’s become a gourmand! How about it, Beard-cutter? What about you?”

“If it is edible, that is enough,” Goblin Slayer said softly, glancing around. He was looking at Cow Girl, who was sitting over by the other women, tearing off pieces of bread and eating them. She glanced in his direction, too, and their eyes briefly met.

“…Perhaps I do not quite mean that,” Goblin Slayer added then looked down at his hands. He was whittling some wood with a knife, preparing something. Somethings, rather. One was a short club with a strange groove carved into it; the other looked more like a sharpened spear. When he finished with the grooved thing, Goblin Slayer put his blade to the tip of the longer object.

As he worked, he took the bread that he held in one hand and jammed it lazily into his visor.

“Hey, mind your manners!” Cow Girl exclaimed. “Chew your food properly.”

“Sorry,” he replied, sparing a glance in her direction and shoving the bread in a little more slowly. Then he looked down and resumed his work.

“Sheesh,” Cow Girl grumbled, but Dwarf Shaman grinned and looked at what Goblin Slayer was doing.

“Got a spear there?” He picked up one of the objects with interest.

It was a simple wooden spear, nothing special. It didn’t even have a proper tip.

“I am not skilled enough for my arrows to penetrate water. And a raft has no stones to pick up and throw. I need a ranged weapon.” Goblin Slayer grabbed one of the weapons and held it up to the light, inspecting the work. Apparently, he found it unsatisfactory, because he resumed shaving away at it.

“One must be prepared,” he said brusquely. “More so than usual.”

“Ahh. I know what you mean. I heard the same rumors.” Dwarf Shaman set the spear down with a sour look then sat on the raft. He pulled the stopper from the jar at his hip, pulled a cup from his bag, and offered Goblin Slayer a pour of fire wine. A rich aroma of alcohol wafted from the cup. Goblin  Slayer shook a hand in refusal, so Dwarf Shaman drank the thing down in a single gulp.

“Sunken ships… You don’t think they’re just accidents?” “It would be best not to assume so. As in everything.”

There were only so many ships that traveled upriver. Most of them were adventurers, or the handful of merchants who had found favor with the elves. Hunters, perhaps, or medicine people. Some came seeking caves or ruins, or to collect rare herbs or animal parts with the indulgence of the forest’s masters.

They had gone up the river on rafts, and they hadn’t come back down. That in itself wasn’t necessarily surprising. The only reason anyone knew the boats had sunk was because the elves, as a sign of goodwill, had sent the washed-up remains of the vessels back.

There were some who said, under their voices and without real proof, that maybe the elves had sunk those boats.

“It could be goblins,” Goblin Slayer said confidently, with a glance at High Elf Archer. She was stuffing buttered bread (not the most refined meal) into her face, her long ears bouncing up and down. “Mmm. Eating somewhere new is the greatest.” She puffed out her cheeks squirrelishly, a gesture Priestess couldn’t help but laugh at.

“True. I lived in the Temple myself, so I know what you mean.”

“Last time I was here, I walked along the banks. Going by boat is a new thing for me.”

Or rather…by raft. She twirled her pointer finger in a circle in space. “Right,” Priestess agreed, putting some bread in her mouth, chewing delicately, and swallowing. “Is this that bank?” “Yeah, it sure is.”

It had been more than six months now since the two of them had bathed in that hot spring, looking up at the stars.

“Well now, is there a story here?” Guild Girl asked solicitously, leaning over.

Priestess and High Elf Archer looked at each other with exaggerated expressions of thought.

“A story? Hmm.”

“What story could she be talking about?”

It wasn’t precisely a secret to keep to themselves, but it was a valuable enough memory to act important about.

High Elf Archer’s ears flopped happily. Guild Girl shot her a suspicious look. “I’ll have to make sure to question you thoroughly about this at your next interview.”

“Hey, that’s abuse of authority, isn’t it?”

Guild Girl had dealt with far too many people like High Elf Archer for this little quip to upset her mask. “How tragic, to serve so loyally and yet have adventurers keep secrets from me!”

Being two thousand years old (that’s twice a thousand), High Elf Archer should have been equally poker-faced, but instead, she ground her teeth in frustration.

“Aww, but I wanna hear, too,” Cow Girl said, clapping her hands. “I want to hear all kinds of things about life outside town!”

“Huh. Well, in that case… This was back before I met Orcbolg…”

And thus, Cow Girl’s interjection became the pretext for a story of adventure.

Out of the corner of his eye, Goblin Slayer could see the women chatting amiably. High Elf Archer’s ears flounced and she gesticulated frequently; Cow Girl listened with a smile. Guild Girl whispered about backroom secrets of the Guild, Priestess’s eyes wide.

Goblin Slayer gathered up the ten or so sharpened sticks he had prepared, putting his woodworking tools back at his belt.

“When the lock opens, I will take over from you.”

“Very well,” Lizard Priest replied, slapping his tail down. The resulting jostling of the raft provoked cries from the women.

When the lock finally did open, the raft flowed with the water out into a valley.

“W-wow…”

How many moons could it have taken to carve out a piece of land like this? The river was itself like a scar left by time. The ravine was almost like one giant slab of rock, now in several layers. The mountain must have existed from the Age of the Gods, and the river would have been working away at this place for just as long.

The rocks were so large as to block out the sun at times, casting their shadows before them; among them, the burbling of the river and the blowing of the wind could be heard.

This explained it. This was why the village of the elves was sometimes called a land apart, “the country of shadows.” It didn’t feel like part of the mortal realm.

“This is incredible…!” Cow Girl exclaimed, looking at the massive stones as the raft wove its way through them. Everyone understood how she felt. There were a great many things in the world that were beyond any fantasy of hers.

“My home is just through here,” High Elf Archer said, standing on the raft with no apparent sense of danger and puffing out her slender chest. “How about it? Even the dwarves never built something like this!”

“You’re right, Long-Ears, we don’t seek to compete with the work of the gods. Mastery of the hammer and chisel is our goal.” He stroked his beard then added with a smirk, “And I’m guessing the elves didn’t build these, either.”

“Hrrrmn!” High Elf Archer’s ears went straight back, and she lit into the dwarf as usual.

Everyone around them was used to this, and no one let it distract them from the scenery. Priestess made a variety of inarticulate noises, blinking rapidly. “This is amazing…”

“I’ve read about this in Guild paperwork, but seeing it firsthand is really something,” Guild Girl said.

“No kidding.” Cow Girl nodded. “Takes your breath away, huh? Hey…”

What do you think? she was about to say, but the words never left her lips.

When she turned around to ask, she found him standing at the back of the raft, staring far beyond the edges of the valley.

“How does it look?” Goblin Slayer asked softly, his hand on the tiller.

Lizard Priest considered, making his strange palms-together gesture, his eyes scanning the area constantly.

“Hmm. Above or below, perhaps.” “I agree.”

“This is no ocean. On a river, we’re unlikely to encounter a kraken.” “Kraken,” Goblin Slayer repeated. “What’s that?”

Lizard Priest’s eyes rolled in his head. “More likely than not, I would guess above.”

“Understood.”

This was a side of him she had never seen. He looked just like he always did, and yet somehow different. Cow Girl put a hand to her bulging chest to calm her heart.

“Ah—”

She swallowed some saliva. But just as she was about to try again to say something, High Elf Archer’s clear voice cut her off.

“Hold on!”

The ranger already had an arrow in her bow. The adventurers glanced at one another once then sprang into action.

Priestess clutched her sounding staff firmly, while Dwarf Shaman began rooting through his bag of catalysts. Lizard Priest grasped a dragon fang in his hand, and Goblin Slayer, one hand still on the rudder, lowered his hips.

“Think we’d best take down the sail. Give me a hand,” Dwarf Shaman said, squinting against the sun.

“Oh yes, be right there…,” Priestess said, going over to him.

Goblin Slayer, diligently working the pole, looked at the two young women. “Get down and cover your heads with cloths.” His voice was sharp.

“Oh, uh, r-right, sure…!” Cow Girl nodded quickly. She rifled through her belongings, pulling out a rag.

“Over here, quickly!” Guild Girl looked equally nervous with her own cloth.

The two of them huddled together under the coverings, trying to make themselves as small as possible. Each thought she could feel the other shaking, but maybe it was herself.

They didn’t know. That ignorance was their companion as they sat holding hands tightly.

Lizard Priest stood above them to protect them. “…From the banks?” he asked.

“Probably,” High Elf Archer answered. “Something’s coming. A…a lot of somethings!” She drew back her bowstring, her ears working quickly up and down to catch any sound.

An instant later, there came the howling of wolves, and a hail of stones rained down into the valley.

§

“O Earth Mother, abounding in mercy, by the power of the land grant safety to we who are weak!”

First, Priestess invoked a miracle, clinging to her sounding staff.

How could the Earth Mother fail to protect her devoted disciple? An invisible barrier sprang up around the raft. The incoming rocks and sticks bounced off it, bump, bump, bump, making little splashes as they fell into the water.

Sweat was running down Priestess’s brow. “I-if it doesn’t get any worse, maybe we can…”

No sooner had the murmur escaped her, though, than the whistling sound of an arrow chilled her heart. Whatever was up on the banks, it was clearly something intelligent.

Figures approached the ridgeline. High Elf Archer knelt down, her bow ready and her gaze hard.

Animalistic howls. Groans. The noise of feet, not hooves. Her long ears twitched up and down, collecting every bit of sound.

She had seen these enemies before. Knew the sound. She had confronted them in the past. These were…

“Goblins…?!” Goblin riders.

She cried out when she caught a glimpse of the cruel faces.

“I thought we were supposed to be in your homeland!” Dwarf Shaman shouted.

“Well, sor-ry!”

“So it was goblins,” Goblin Slayer said calmly, tossing the pole to Lizard Priest. “Take the rudder.”

“Understood!” With his strength, Lizard Priest would be able to push the craft a little bit. There wasn’t likely to be any close-quarters fighting for him, anyway.

Lizard Priest punted the pole against the bottom of the river, and the raft pushed forward, although it complained.

“Stinking sons of—!” High Elf Archer drew her bow smoothly despite the quaking vessel, firing off an arrow almost instantly. It passed through the divine barrier around them, slowed, and then dropped toward the ridgeline.

“GORRB?!”

There was a muffled scream as one of the goblins was unhorsed—or unwolfed—and fell to the ground. The corpse bounced twice on its way down, colliding with the raft and setting it shaking.

“Eeek?!”

“Eep…!”

Guild Girl and Cow Girl both fought to suppress their screams under the blanket.

It wasn’t enough that the silent corpse should have an arrow in it; its head was split open and it was gushing dark blood. No matter how many adventure stories one might have heard or read, seeing such a brutal death up close was something else again.

“What’s wrong?” Goblin Slayer asked. He pulled the arrow out of the body, then gave the remains a ruthless kick into the river. There was a loud splash and the corpse sank out of view.

Cow Girl watched it disappear. Then, her hand still firmly in Guild Girl’s, she said in a slightly shrill voice, “W-we’re fine…”

“Good, then.” Goblin Slayer glanced briefly at them then tossed the arrow to High Elf Archer. “I don’t know if we can finish them off. Loosen the heads of your bolts.”

“Crafty as ever,” High Elf Archer said wearily, tugging at the head of the arrow he tossed her. Even though the head was not made of metal, if it stayed lodged in the body, it would encourage the wound to rot and spread sickness in the nest. It was a classic Goblin Slayer trick, but the kind of thing High Elf Archer wasn’t very fond of.

“…Yah! Hah!”

Even so, her bowstring sang out again and again, sending arrows raining down on the ridgeline. Three shots, two screams. No falls. High Elf Archer clicked her tongue. Beside her, Goblin Slayer picked up one of the spears and attached a stone object to the wooden shaft.

Lizard Priest breathed a sound of admiration. “A spear launcher,” he said. “What a familiar thing you have.”

“You know it?”

“It was quite common among warriors of my village.”

The lizard people prized close combat most of all; they found even simple ranged weapons distasteful. And throwing, anyway, was something humans excelled at. Rhea rock-slingers were nothing to sniff at, either, but rheas generally disliked combat. And yes, Dwarf Shaman used a sling, but his magic and his ax were his main weapons.

“Will it reach?” Dwarf Shaman asked.

“Easily,” Goblin Slayer replied, just the one word.

“Right, then…!” Dwarf Shaman pulled a bottle of some kind of liquid out of his bag. He popped the cap and poured something like peach juice into the river. Meanwhile, he let his consciousness twist.

“Come, undines, the banquet’s laid; come and sing and dance and play!”

The spray of water took on the form of a beautiful maiden, and behold, the river began to flow backward.

No… Not the whole river. Only the water where the raft rested had begun to turn. This was Control Spirit.

“Maybe I don’t quite see eye to eye with this one!” Dwarf Shaman shouted, glaring into the water. “I can’t get much speed out of it!”

“It’s enough,” Goblin Slayer said, and then he sent his spear flying.

It raced toward the sky with unnatural speed. This was followed by a terrible scream—not from a goblin, but from one of the wolves they were riding on.

“We have little but luck to help us here,” Goblin Slayer spat, readying the next spear. “I do not know how many goblins there are. We can’t kill them all.”

“May I say, we do have one option,” Lizard Priest said. He was still both manning the tiller and standing guard over Cow Girl and Guild Girl. “Milord Goblin Slayer, might we consider escaping the enemy rather than slaughtering them?”

“I do not like it. But…” Goblin Slayer loaded the next bolt into his launcher and sent it flying toward the ridgeline with a motion of his arm. It disappeared out of sight, and then a moment later, there was a scream.

“GOORARB…?!”

The goblin tumbled off the back of his wolf and fell from the cliff. The corpse flipped about as it hit the water with a huge splash.

“…We will have to settle this after we escape.” That made two. Goblin Slayer picked up the next spear. “How is our defense?”

“Holding… Somehow!” Priestess responded, raising her staff and standing as boldly as she dared upon the raft. The entire defense of their party currently rested on her narrow, delicate shoulders. The gods had provided the miracle of the invisible barrier, but it was Priestess’s prayer that maintained it.

The attacks came relentlessly, and as they did, her breathing grew harder and her legs threatened to give out. It was thoroughly impressive that she could perform three of these soul-enervating supplications to the heavens in a single day.

“Uhh…!”

Even so, she was approaching her limit. The barrier weakened as the gasp escaped her. She drew in a harsh breath and forced herself to breathe evenly. She forced strength into her feet on the raft and her hands on the staff.

“I’m going to add another one…! Give me some time!”

“Please do.” Goblin Slayer brought up his shield to block a stone that came through the barrier.

Branches, stones, rocks, and even some arrows. The motley collection of projectiles tapped and clattered on the raft, causing it to yaw this way and that.

“Hrm…!” Lizard Priest gave a shove with the pole, sending the raft back slightly, but the current was like a rushing wave that washed across the vessel.

“Wah?! Pfft!”

“Ah, oh no…!”

The water soaked the cloths under which Cow Girl and Guild Girl were hiding, provoking more shouts. They were in danger of being flooded out from under their protection, but they clung to each other and held on.

Guild Girl gave a quick wave to Goblin Slayer, who had glanced in their direction, then she blinked several times. Suddenly, there was a considerable amount of detritus—branches and pebbles and other flotsam—on the raft. Had the goblins flung all this at them? No, it couldn’t be.

A look at the water around them revealed a copious number of chips and splinters of wood floating by, even entire barrels drifting along.

“Hrrgh… Ah!”

Lizard Priest fought mightily to control the raft’s direction, but the pole collided with a barrel, causing the craft to shake violently. Another wave crashed down on the adventurers, soaking them and inundating their vessel.

“Oh…”

That was when Guild Girl saw something glistening white: a human skull drifting right past her.

She tried to pick it up with a trembling hand, but even as she reached out, the skull was sucked down under the water, and it disappeared.

She watched it disappear mutely. Soon, it was replaced in her view by several floating piles of trash, restrained with ropes.

“This m-might be bad,” she said with a quiver in her voice. “I think they mean to sink the raft!”

The terrible cackling of goblins filled the valley, echoing crazily. “GRRROB! GOORRB!”

“GROBR!! GOOORRRB!!”

There was no need for the goblins to face the adventurers personally in order to kill them. They could simply capsize the boat, or weigh it down with junk until it sank.

Yes, flipping the raft over would do the trick. The goblins could point and laugh as the foolish people drowned; if anyone survived, then they could enjoy attacking from the high ground.

It was now clear what had happened to the boats that had come this way and not returned.

“Gah! Noisy and in the way…!” High Elf Archer gave one of the piles of rubble a frustrated sweep with her leg, kicking up a spray of water but otherwise having no discernible effect.

The goblins simply had to keep throwing rocks and rubble from above.

Dwarf Shaman, equally frustrated, made a series of arcane gestures. “I’m going to have my undine get that stuff off the raft,” he said, “so take some potshots with your bow or something!”

“‘Or something’?! What do you mean, ‘or something’?!”

The gorgeous spirit danced upon the raft. Her sensuous movements swept away the rocks and other debris, pushing it into the running river.

By this point, everyone was soaked from head to foot, but the raft was still somehow stable. That did not, however, mean they could relax. Much damage had been done, and the debris was piled up underwater, making it all too easy to capsize.

“…So they learned from the lock,” Goblin Slayer muttered, firing off yet a third spear.

He didn’t bother to watch what happened. There would be a scream, or there wouldn’t.

The goblins were hiding themselves cannily along the edge of the cliff, following on wolfback to keep up the attack. The river wound its way among the towering spires. There was no ceiling, but this…

“It is as if we’ve wandered into their nest,” Goblin Slayer said quietly. He used one of his spears to break off an arrow lodged in his shield.

“O Earth Mother, abounding in mercy…”

All this was happening in front of Priestess’s eyes. Her knees were shaking still, and not only because of the difficult prayers.

She was finding it hard to breathe. Her tongue seemed to stumble over words her throat could barely summon forth. Her head spun and her vision grew hazy. Her fingers could hardly move; it was all she could do to hold on to her staff.

How am I supposed to…?

How was she supposed to invoke Protection and keep everyone safe? That was the only question for her. It was the only thing she could do.

What else could she do? How could she see them safely out of this place?

Her teeth chattered; she set her jaw to stop them. Memory after memory came back to her. She closed her eyes and pushed them away.

“Oh…”

At that moment, a light glimmered in her mind like a premonition from heaven.

Priestess opened her eyes. Her trembling lips formed a prayer as if guided by something other than herself. She raised her staff.

“O Earth Mother, abounding in mercy, please, by your revered hand, cleanse us of our corruption!”

The gods were great.

The Earth Mother reached down from the heavens, her hand sweeping through the water and making it clean.

Everywhere the light touched, the water ran clear, all the filth in it disappearing. Moreover, the great many dirty things in the river were cleansed away and vanished.

“…Wow!” High Elf Archer blinked, her ears twitching. She was justifiably impressed to see the effects of the Purify miracle with her own eyes. “You really do have your moments, huh?”

“I don’t. The Earth Mother does… Although she can be a little harsh.” Priestess groaned, the strain of connecting directly to the divine having given her a splitting headache. “Please… Do it now!”

“GRR?!”

“GOORB?!”

The goblins were naturally agitated by this turn of events. The trap they’d laid so carefully had been undone by something they didn’t even understand.

Their ugly voices echoed as the confusion ran among them. Far be it from Goblin Slayer to miss such an opportunity.

One goblin had leaned over to get a closer look at the river; a spear ran him through from his jaw right out the back of his head. He tumbled into the water in a spray of blood—and then his corpse vanished, purified away by the Earth Mother.

“Eventually, we will have to find and destroy their nest,” Goblin Slayer said. “You’re up.”

“Gladly!” Even as he poled the raft along the undine’s current, Lizard Priest opened his mouth wide. He filled his lungs with a great breath, the breath of the wyrm that rules over all things. “Bao Long, honored ancestor, Cretaceous ruler, I borrow now the terror of thee!”

Dragon’s Roar echoed through the valley.

Goblins aren’t the only ones frightened by dragons; every living thing fears them.

“GOORBGROB?!”

“GRORB!!”

The goblins’ gibbering mixed with the frightened yelps of their wolves. Goblin riders were still goblins. They were not even especially accomplished riders.

They tried and failed to calm their mounts; the wolves literally ran away with their tails between their legs. Some of the goblins were thrown to the ground; others clung desperately to the fleeing animals. All of them beat a pitiful retreat.

The adventurers continued to watch the ridgeline vigilantly for a few minutes. Over against the sound of the stream, they used the pole to keep the raft moving.

At last an hour passed, then two, and at length, the wind that blew through the valley grew warmer.

They were floating toward a great, dark wood, a forest of old trees that had stood for thousands or perhaps tens of thousands of years.

Priestess clung to her sounding staff, praying to the Earth Mother to relieve her anxiety.

They were nearly out of the valley. That meant they would soon be in the realm of the elves.

§

The firecrackers danced into the sky with a series of pops, leaving little traces of light behind them. The sky was quite red now, now that it had caught hold of the salamander’s tail.

It was not long after they had chased off the goblins and left the valley.

The sun was well past its zenith and was sinking to the west, settling behind the trees.

The adventurers entered the massive forest, landing the raft on the riverside at a place indicated by High Elf Archer. She said the village was still a ways off. In that case, they figured a night’s rest would be better than a forced march.

“I sure didn’t expect we’d be wearing these so soon…”

“If we’d known we were going to get so wet, we should have put them on to begin with!”

“Heh-heh. We wouldn’t have had a chance to wear them otherwise. Oh, do you know how to put it on?”

“Oh yeah, I’m fine. The only thing I don’t understand is why you’d bother wearing one at all. Like this, right?”

A rope had been strung between some tree roots and towels draped over it. From the other side, the women could be heard having an animated conversation. There were four of them, after all; it was bound to get a little noisy.

After a few minutes, the towels were pulled down from the inside. Four women in swimsuits appeared like a vision.

“I just don’t get why you would put on clothes specifically to get wet. Can’t you just go without?” High Elf Archer looked very uncomfortable, playing with her hair in an uncharacteristic gesture of embarrassment.

“Why worry?” Lizard Priest responded promptly. He had stopped working to roll his eyes. He opened his mouth importantly. “I admit I little appreciate skin with no scales, but my judgment is that this outfit rather suits you.”

“You think?” Well all right, then. High Elf Archer gave a little nod as if she now accepted the situation.

Dwarf Shaman looked like he was about to make one of his usual smart remarks, but it turned into more of a sneeze, and then he shut his mouth. Perhaps he figured there was no need to deliberately sour the elf’s mood right when they were going back to her home.

“…I s’pose our opinions on the looks of Long-Ears and friends are well established by now.”

“I guess. I’m honestly a little jealous…” Guild Girl put a hand to her cheek, though she had no cause to be embarrassed.

Of course, she came from a part of society where people were taught not to show too much skin. It wouldn’t be quite true to say she wasn’t embarrassed, but it was what it was. The work she did each day couldn’t be undervalued. She wasn’t especially afraid to be seen this way—which made her quite different from Priestess, who was hiding behind her.

“Oh… Ohhh…”

The cleric’s face was bright red, and she was trying to make herself as small as possible. She was much ashamed of her own small, youthful body. What she was wearing now wasn’t so different from the outfit she had worn for the dance at the harvest festival, but having others beside her for immediate comparison was not easy. At least Witch, with whom she was discreetly (she thought) infatuated and with whom she certainly couldn’t compare, wasn’t present. She wished she could be like that sorceress someday, but that was only a sign of how far she still had to go.

“Oh, you’re fine,” Cow Girl laughed, patting Priestess on the shoulder. Cow Girl thought of her as sort of like a little sister and found her willowy body adorable. She also felt that she herself had gotten a little muscular from all the work she did. She twisted her hips around for a look, a dubious expression on her face. “Good enough… Maybe?”

“That is not a question I can answer,” Goblin Slayer said. He had taken four of the sharpened sticks from earlier and set them in the ground, describing a square. His helmet was pointed toward the group of women; he wasn’t so uncouth as to fail to spare them even a glance. Still, his appraisal may or may not have made them very happy… “But personally, I think they look good on you.”

Sheesh. Cow Girl sighed. Somehow she knew that after taking a quick glance, he had immediately looked away again.

Her cheeks softened into a smile. It was just how he was.

“I think you could stand to learn a little more about girls’ feelings.” “Is that so?”

Guild Girl giggled beside her. “I think our dear Goblin Slayer is fine the way he is.” Yes, she might wish he were a little more attentive, but there was something about him being him that made her heart dance.

He thinks they look good on us. Personally.

The brief sentence was as good as a sonnet from him.

“I would be…embarrassed if anyone looked at me too long…”

So this is good by me. Priestess was trying to make herself even smaller.

Her cheeks were red, and it wasn’t just because of the sunset.

High Elf Archer leaned forward as if hoping to get Priestess to unwind a bit. “So I just have to duck in the river and scare up some fish, right?”

“Yes.”

“Although I won’t eat them,” she said with a glance around. “But no choice.” She almost looked upset, but her ears fluttered happily, and she ran into the water, kicking up little splashes.

Lizard Priest watched the girls chat and play on the riverbank from the corner of his eye. He nodded solemnly. “Now, perhaps these leaves will do for your purposes.” The huge armful of leaves he was carrying rustled as he shook them. His long tongue slipped out and touched the tip of his nose. “I apologize I could not gather more. It will soon be dark.”

“I know,” Goblin Slayer said, standing up. “Let’s get the crossbeams set, then.”

It was straightforward work. They just needed to affix upper and lower crossbeams, eight in total, to the wood poles Goblin Slayer had put in the ground. Then sticks would be laid on the lower level to make a crude floor, while leaves would be spread on top as a roof. A nice, simple shelter.

Considering the presence of poisonous snakes and insects in the forest, it would be foolishness itself to put up a roof but then sleep on the bare ground. They built two shelters: one for the men and one for the women.

Normally, they had only five people, but today it was three men and four women.

“Gracious me,” Dwarf Shaman said, looking away from the ongoing work to check on the girls in the water. He was on fire duty; he wasn’t tall enough for anything else. Dwarves were unrivaled for their handling of fire, but as a keeper of spirits, it wasn’t his strong suit. Dwarf Shaman quickly gave up on trying to strike a spark and instead produced a flat stone from his bag.

“Dancing flame, salamander’s fame. Grant us a share of the very same.”

He pressed the stone between his hands and incanted Kindle, producing a firestone. He tossed the glowing rock from hand to hand (“Hot, hot!”) and surrounded it with some other stones. It would do in lieu of a fire.

The glow from this makeshift “bonfire” shone on the party. At the moment, it was being used to dry out their sopping clothes, but no doubt the garments would soon be replaced by fish.

“Don’t you think it’s a bit…unguarded, letting the girls play like that?”

“I will keep guard enough for all of us.” Goblin Slayer had finished laying the floor and had started on the next step. “And I want to give them a chance to relax.” As he stood sticks up in the earth, his helmet inclined ever so slightly toward Cow Girl and Guild Girl.

Then it turned to High Elf Archer, who had dragged Priestess in to help hunt for fish.

“Perhaps it’s ’cause this is her homeland,” he grunted softly.

“Ho-ho! She had no time to show this side before. Ah, hold! My skill does not match yours.” Lizard Priest laughed, showing his fangs, draping leaves on the wooden beams as soon as they were up. “But why, milord Goblin Slayer, do you display the compassion of Maiasaura?”

“…What do you mean?”

“That you are rather a more considerate person than your appearance would suggest.”

“Is that so impressive?” Goblin Slayer let out a breath. “Am I so impressive?”

“I would call it a quality more valuable than mithril,” Dwarf Shaman said, tossing a small stick onto the fire. The dancing salamander opened its jaws and took a bite and, with a crackle, grew hotter.

“Just look at that long-eared lass,” Dwarf Shaman went on. He indicated the river with one heated branch. High Elf Archer was there, reaching into the water with both hands as if to catch a fish. But she missed and, instead, sent up a great splash straight at Priestess.

That caused Cow Girl to burst out laughing, whereupon Guild Girl splashed her, too.

Maybe High Elf Archer had grown tired of the fruitless fishing expedition, or maybe she had just decided to forget it, but in any event, she had dragged Priestess into it…

“I don’t believe she thinks of herself as a high elf at all.” Dwarf Shaman chuckled, his smile almost hidden by his beard.

“Whatsoever the case, we are already in the land of the elves,” Lizard Priest said, plopping himself down by the fire and rubbing his scaled hands together.

Once they had somewhere to sleep, all that remained was to wait for dinner. And he did love both meat and fish.

“I don’t believe the little devils will easily reach us here.”

“You don’t?” Goblin Slayer took his cue from Lizard Priest, sitting down as well. He clapped his hands to get some dust off then muttered, “I thought the same.”

“…That right?” Dwarf Shaman shrugged, his eyes half-shut, and he grabbed the flask at his hip. He uncorked it and began pouring spirits into a cup from his bag. He offered the drink around.

“Anyway, start with a drink,” he said. “Not enough to get drunk, of course.”

“…”

Goblin Slayer looked silently from the drink to Dwarf Shaman, then at the girls playing in the river.

Cow Girl noticed him and gave a big wave. Goblin Slayer nodded. “Very well.”

Shortly thereafter, there came a cry of “We got some!” and the fellowship was able to proceed to dinner. Perhaps unwilling to be left out, High Elf Archer had helped catch seven separate fish. Dwarf Shaman snorted softly but skewered and grilled the catch without complaint.

The seven of them (including the girls) sat in a circle and waited for the fish to cook. Though they’d been so shy earlier, playing around seemed to have helped the girls relax, and now they sat there with just a single blanket over them. Their clothes, which hung over the firestone, were not yet dry, and they couldn’t put on any of their other clothes because their supply of outfits had to last until they reached town.

Instead, they dried off their bodies, mopped their sopping hair, and waited eagerly for dinner.

“Well, looks like everyone’s having a good time.” Dwarf Shaman pulled a variety of small bottles from his bag of catalysts. He opened each one, taking a whiff to check the smell, then distributed pinches onto the food.

When at last they could hear the crackle of melting fat, he announced, “That should do it,” and distributed a skewer to each of them.

Despite the simplicity of the meal, an enticing aroma wafted from it, no doubt thanks to Dwarf Shaman’s spices.

High Elf Archer brought the food up to her nose, giving it an experimental sniff, after which she glared at the dwarf. “…You know I can’t eat this.”

“I just wanted you to feel included. Patience. If you won’t have it, I’m sure someone will.”

“Hmph…” High Elf Archer’s long ears drooped as she looked the fish in its dead white eye, before tossing it to Priestess.

“O-oh! I can’t possibly eat two of them…”

High Elf Archer smirked. “What’s the matter? There’s a feast tomorrow, you might as well get some practice eating. I’ll have some dried beans.”

“…All the more reason to make sure my stomach’s empty, then.” She grimaced at High Elf Archer, but the ranger ignored her. Priestess blew on her fish to cool it, starting in with little nibbles.

The fat melted in her mouth with a slight bitterness, then a salty flavor spread across her palate. “Mm!” she exclaimed, her cheeks softening into a smile. Then, “Are we close?”

Uh-huh. High Elf Archer nodded, popping open the beans she had retrieved from the luggage. “We’re probably right on the border between the forest and the village. They might even find us before we find them.”

“So your older sister is going to be a bride,” Cow Girl said, taking a generous bite of her own fish and murmuring, “Mm, that’s good.” Then she said more loudly, “I’ll bet elf brides are gorgeous…”

“Well, obviously!” High Elf Archer chuckled and puffed out her chest as if Cow Girl were talking about her. She spread her arms and elaborated: “My older sister is especially beautiful! She’s a high elf, after all!”

Dwarf Shaman looked up from his meal long enough to interject, “You’re walking evidence of how that doesn’t prove anything.” But in her current mood, High Elf Archer was able to ignore even this slight against her.

“Ho-ho-ho. I hope they will be welcoming toward a lizardman,” Lizard Priest said. He had taken a round of cheese from his luggage and was slicing away at it with his claws. He stuck pieces on his skewer, where he cooked them over the fire. His scaled hands hissed as they rubbed together in anticipation while he waited for the cheese to melt.

“You really like cheese, don’t you?” Guild Girl said as she watched him. She was taking dainty bites of her own fish. “It seemed like you were something of a coordinator in that battle earlier. At least from what I could hear…?”

“Administration has its own trials.” “Spare me the details. It’s all trouble.”

So many things to think about. Guild Girl smiled ambiguously; no doubt she had more than enough concerns of her own.

In fact, neither adventurers nor staff knew that much about the day-to-day work of the other. There were so few opportunities to experience either the danger of adventure or the brutality of desk work.

“I’ve had some really informative experiences on this trip. Even if they were a little scary.”

Sorry, High Elf Archer seemed to say, her ears drooping again. “When we get to the village, I’ll be sure someone gets a piece of my mind. ‘What are your guards doing?!’ That sort of thing.”

“I’ll have to be sure to greet your sister properly, though,” Guild Girl said. “I need to let her know how much I appreciate all you do for us.”

High Elf Archer scratched her cheek as if embarrassed. “Going to my sister with that sort of thing is all well and good. But as for my older brother…”

“You have an older brother?” Goblin Slayer asked quietly, in between stuffing pieces of fish into his visor.

Well, I mean cousin. High Elf Archer answered shortly, her pointer finger drawing circles in the air. “I can’t quite remember what you humans call it. A brother-in-law-to-be?”

“You mean the groom?”

“Yeah, that’s it,” she said with a nod. She popped more food into her mouth and looked at the sky. It was already nearly black, a medley of stars just visible through the leaves of the trees. With a cadence like music, High Elf Archer explained that the elves called this the “rain gate.”

“My cousin,” she said, “he’s been crazy about my sister for ages, acting all big about it!”

“Well, pride is certainly the one thing everyone associates with elves!” Dwarf Shaman quipped.

“Exactly!” High Elf Archer replied. “He’s a real elf’s elf.”

“But if they’re getting married…,” Priestess said, putting a finger to her chin in thought. Then she smiled as the answer came to her. “Your sister must have figured out that he cared about her!”

“He wasn’t exactly subtle about it. Not that I know what she sees in him. It all seems like a lot of trouble to me.” Then came that tinkling laughter. High Elf Archer hugged her knees. “You know what elves do when they  want to get someone’s attention? They sing to them.” Her voice was quiet, as if she was revealing a secret, and carried just a hint of mischief. “He went around singing this epic ballad about all his great martial achievements, until he got beat up.”

“Ah. Some bandits got him?” Lizard Priest asked with amusement. “No—my sister did!”

The entire party laughed.

High Elf Archer shared one story of old times after another, tales she could never have told at a wedding reception. Like the time her cousin had wanted to catch a deer as a gift but failed. Or the time he had gotten sick, and her sister had been so worried about him that she couldn’t sleep and ended up catching cold herself. There was the time her sister had overcooked some baked treats (an uncharacteristic lapse), but her cousin had eaten them all with a straight face.

There was the fact that High Elf Archer had learned everything she knew about herbs, fruits, and more from her sister, while her cousin had taught her archery and how to cross a field in a hurry.

Or when she’d said she was going to leave their village, her sister was opposed, but her cousin supported her…

She had spent two thousand years in these woods. There were so many memories scattered throughout those changeless, ever-turning days.

In the middle of this flood of stories, Goblin Slayer said, “So this is your home.”

“That’s right.” “That’s good.”

“Well—” High Elf Archer’s eyes narrowed like a smiling cat’s. “It’s where my heart is.”

Goblin Slayer nodded. Cow Girl blinked at him for a moment. Then he said, “And there are goblins near it.”

The note of anger in his voice was unmistakable.