Nozomanu Fushi no Boukensha (LN) - Volume 12 - Chapter SS2

A Miraculous Encounter

I, Ars—a merchant’s son—didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life.

Should I take over my father’s business, or embark upon a different path? The reason I wasn’t sure was because I had a little brother called Ridd, and only one of us could inherit. There were ways both of us could do it together, but two people succeeding a merchant’s business almost always led to inheritance disputes, and I wanted to avoid that. I also didn’t want to push my little brother into a different trade, since he was still young...well, I was only ten years old myself, actually. Ridd was three.

Currently, I worked as my father’s assistant in the frontier town of Maalt, and we often journeyed to the surrounding villages. The village that served as our base of operations was elsewhere, but my father said that it was most profitable to acquire stock in Maalt. I believed him—the town provided a steady supply of goods, much of which was obtained at a bargain.

Still, the region wasn’t very safe, and since most of Maalt’s adventurers spent their time delving into dungeons, it was hard for a merchant to find bodyguards. Today, however, it seemed that that wasn’t the case.

“Ars! I managed to hire a Bronze-classer! That’s as good as a guarantee that this trip’ll turn a profit!”

The adventurer whom my father, Gund, had brought with him was a sinister looking man wearing a skull mask. He was clad in a robe, but from the sword I could see at his hip, he was probably a swordsman rather than a magician.

Still, I had my doubts. It seemed very reasonable to me that this man could just be a bandit pretending to be an adventurer.

“I’m Rentt, a Bronze-class adventurer,” the man said, inclining his head. “It’s a pleasure to be working for you.”

He seemed more decent than what I’d heard adventurers were like—namely rough and crude—but I still wasn’t sure... Well, there was no point voicing my concerns. It was rare that minor peddlers could boast a Bronze-class adventurer for a bodyguard. I’d just have to shove my doubts aside.

Or at least, that was what I’d thought...

“Ars, look!” Ridd said, as he crouched by the roadside and plucked clumps of grass. Rentt the adventurer was next to him. “He said these are papyr herbs!”

“What? Papyr herbs?” I scoffed. “Those are expensive medicinal herbs. There’s no way they’d just be growing on the side of the ro...” I trailed off when my father ran over to take a look.

“These really are papyr herbs,” he said. “How did you recognize them, Ridd?”

“Rentt told me!”

My father turned to Rentt. “Really?”

“I did,” the adventurer confirmed. “Harvesting herbs and plants is something I do quite often. It’s rare that you find them so close to the highways...but I remembered coming across papyr herbs here before, so I went looking with Ridd as a way to pass some time.”

“I see... Then, would you be willing to sell us your harvest?”

“Oh, no, Ridd was the one who found these. I just taught him the knack for it.”

“But that knowledge alone is invaluable!”

“It’s fine. I’m an adventurer—right now, my job’s to be a bodyguard. More importantly, I accepted this job because I read that it came with meals supplied. Is the food ready?”

“Oh! Curses! Hold on just a moment!” My father hurriedly ran over the campfire.

It was still evening, and the setting sun bathed our surroundings in its beautiful glow. We’d stopped here for the night though, since any farther and we would be heading into bandit territory. We planned on setting out bright and early in the morning.

That night, as I slept wrapped up in a blanket by the campfire, I was awoken by the sound of someone standing up. When I sat up to see who it was, I spotted Rentt.

“Oh, sorry,” he apologized. “Did I wake you?”

“Weren’t you supposed to be keeping watch?” I asked, a little harshly. I wanted him to do his job.

Rentt nodded. “Yeah, but it looks like it’s time for me to handle the other part of my job. There are bandits nearby. Since you’re already awake, could I ask you to watch the fire for a bit?”

“What?!”

Before I could ask Rentt if he was serious, he vanished into the night. I wanted to go wake my father, but I couldn’t just take my eyes off of the campfire, so I gave up and did as I was asked. Eventually...

“Sorry about that, Ars,” Rentt said as he stepped back into the light. He held a bag in his hand. I didn’t know what was inside, but it was dripping blood. “It’s finished.”

“Is that...?”

“They were bandits of some infamy—or adventurers willing to get their hands dirty, I should say. They had their licenses on them, so I collected them to hand into the guild later.”

“You beat them by yourself? All of them?”

“Five of them, yes. Bronze-classers...but they weren’t anything special. You can go back to sleep, Ars.”

“Five Bronze-classers?!”

How did a single Bronze-class adventurer beat five? It boggled my mind.

Rentt seemed to recognize my shock, because he smiled. “I’m stronger than I look. I’d like to move up to Silver-class soon, but that requires taking the Ascension Exam first.”

“You really are strong...”

“Oh, it’s not enough to write home about.”

A thought suddenly occurred to me. “Hey, um, Rentt...do you think I could be an adventurer?”

It was a question that had always lurked in my thoughts, half formed. I’d just never had anyone I could ask about it.

Instead of making fun of my childish question, Rentt asked, “Do you want to be one?”

I nodded.

“That so...?” he said. “Then first, you need to train. You can register as an adventurer at fifteen. You’re around ten or so, right? You should spend the next five years training to fight, gaining survival knowledge, and learning how to use mana, spirit, and the like.”

“How do I do that...?”

“You’re a traveling merchant’s kid, so you visit a lot of towns and villages, right? There are retired, washed-up, or part-time adventurers and mages everywhere you look—people who can teach you how to make simple herb mixtures too. Learn from them. You won’t be able to get much for free, though, so make sure you have something to pay them for their time.”

“Like what...?”

“The herbs I taught Ridd about today are a good example. You could also sell them for coin and pay with that. I’ll teach you spots near the highway where you can find them. Good luck, kid.”

“Are you sure about all this?” I was taken aback by how much Rentt was doing for me.

He smiled slightly. “Yeah. I was exactly where you were once—learning from others. What could make me happier than getting the chance to pass it on? You can pay me back by becoming a great adventurer. When you do, let’s share a drink.”

“Rentt...thank you.”

I stayed up the rest of the night listening to Rentt’s lessons. I had no doubt that the knowledge would be of great use to me in the future.

People said that every encounter was a miracle, but I had never expected that to ring so true...or for a miracle to be just around the corner.