Nozomanu Fushi no Boukensha (LN) - Volume 4 - Chapter SS4

The Old Adventurer 

The jaws of a huge monster were closing in... 

On who, you ask? A youth, about twenty years of age... 

There was nothing I could have done as I was fighting another monster. I did what I could to rush to his side, to help him, but...I soon heard him shouting. 

“Father!” 

I... 

“Hey. Hey, gramps!” 

I slowly woke up, thanks to all that shouting next to my ear. I found a young adventurer before me as I finally opened my eyes. He was supposedly over twenty, but he had quite the youthful face. 

His adventurer rank was Bronze-class. He was by no means a newbie. In fact, he was a veteran of several years, but was unable to advance beyond his current rank. Quite the common type, you know. 

His name was Rentt Faina. It was then that I remembered I’d made a request of Rentt. As such, I opened my mouth to speak. 

“Ah... My bad. I’m old now, as you can see. Sometimes I just feel the desire to sleep.” 

“Gramps... I mean, I’m keeping a lookout, so that’s fine, but do be careful,” Rentt said with an exasperated look. 

It was midnight. A fire was burning on the side of the road. Rentt was the one who’d lit it. He wasn’t much of a fighter, but he was a great adventurer in so many ways. 

The request I’d made of him was to escort me to a certain village. Even so, I did intend to fight mysely, but it was difficult to do everything on my own. 

I turned to look at him. “My bad, Rentt…” 

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it. More importantly...the village is near, right?” 

“Yes, that’s right.” I nodded in response. “Maybe only about two hours more on foot. But I should really apologize, Rentt... I imagine you’d want a better-paying job...” 

“It’s okay, really. It’s your last adventure, gramps. Weren’t you somewhat famous in Maalt during your youth, Lazaat the adventurer?” 

Did he really believe all those tales? Well, he did ask... 

Lazaat the adventurer, who’d been adventuring all these years—that was indeed me. But this time, I was truly going to give it all up. 

“I wonder, huh...? I don’t really think I was anything special, you know? You were the only one willing to accept this request of mine after all.” 

In truth, I’d thought some of my old friends from back then would take the request, but, in reality, only Rentt was up to it. They’d turned me away even if I went to them personally. The admiration of others is an easy thing to lose... 

Rentt, however, had this to say to me: 

“Everyone was probably busy with their own requests, right? In any case, we have to be up early tomorrow. Another thirty minutes until you hand over the lookout shift to me, gramps. Don’t fall asleep on me now.” 

“Ah... Perhaps it is as you say then.” 

It didn’t take long to feel sleepy, and I almost doze off again in... What was it? Five minutes? It was never like this back then. 

As I thought...now was a good time...to retire. 

The very next day, Rentt and Lazaat reached their destination: the village Lazaat had lived in previously... 

“Is it really here, gramps?” 

“Yeah, it is. Well, that’s what I want to say... See. Right here. This was where my house used to be.” 

Lazaat approached what appeared to be a completely collapsed ruin. They were the remains of what was once a house. Similar sights greeted them as they turned this way and that; the surrounding houses had all been destroyed. 

This village had been all but abandoned quite some time ago. No one lived in its ruins now. 

The reason Lazaat made this trip... 

“I couldn’t care less about the house. More importantly...” 

Lazaat plodded through the ruins of the village and kept walking forward for a while. Rentt followed closely after. 

The path eventually opened up into a small clearing, revealing ten earthen mounds, each marked with simple. wooden symbols. 

“Graves, huh...” 

“Yeah. As you can see, my wife and son both rest here. I...couldn’t protect them.” 

Lazaat reminisced about the days back when he used to live in this village. About the days when he, the strongest and most capable swordsman, drove back monsters on a daily basis. As well as about the horde of monsters that had passed through one day, trampling and destroying the village. About his guilt as the only survivor of that incident... 

Lazaat’s son, too, had been helping, doing his part to protect the village. There were simply too many monsters. There was nothing he could do. 

Although he slayed and destroyed every single monster that had nested here after the incident, that didn’t make things any better... All Lazaat could do was kneel before each and every grave, offering his heartfelt apologies. 

“It isn’t your fault...” Rentt called out to Lazaat as he went about his rounds. But his voice trailed off—the younger adventurer didn’t finish his sentence. 

He, too, was one who fought. Perhaps he understood well enough that those words weren’t always a form of salvation. 

“Hmm... Kept you waiting, Rentt?” 

Lazaat, done with his last prayers, stood up and turned around, only to see a large monster looming behind Rentt. 

A Sylph Drake. 

Slowly, it opened its jaws, as if to swallow Rentt whole. Rentt seemed unaware. 

Sylph Drakes were a draconic subspecies of monster that lived in the forests. They were very skilled at concealing their presence. Even Lazaat wouldn’t have noticed it had he not turned around and come almost face-to-face with it. 

It was obvious a warning to Rentt at this moment in time would do little. What could he do then? 

In that instant, Lazaat saw an image of his son flash through his mind. More vibrant than anything else was that one image, seared in his memory, of how he’d made an error in judgment and failed to save his son. 

Would he apologize again? Offer prayers again? No. He’d do nothing like that. He couldn’t allow himself to do anything like that. 

Lazaat was filled with a single desire. This time, he’d undoubtedly save his son! 

The very moment Lazaat steeled himself and his resolve, he drew his blade faster than the eye could see. With mana running through his body, he darted past Rentt, his posture low. Rentt’s eyes widened, unable to comprehend what had just happened. Lazaat, however, had already sprinted past Rentt at this point, and swung his blade down decisively on the creature’s neck, its jaws still wide open. With a smooth motion, Lazaat’s blade sliced cleanly through its prey, and soon enough, the head of the Sylph Drake was on the ground. The beast’s body soon crumbled, falling onto the ground with a deafening rumble. It was then Rentt realized what had come to pass. 

“...Gramps... You really saved me...” 

“Ah, it’s nothing... Don’t worry about it. I, too, felt like I’d tidied up some loose ends from my past. Thank you, Rentt...” 

And so it came to be that Rentt and Lazaat’s short trip had ended. They came here to pay their respects, and that they did. 

After harvesting the Sylph Drake’s materials and magic crystal, the pair returned to Maalt. 

“Well then, Rentt. As of today, Lazaat the adventurer is officially retired. Have to return my adventurer’s card too... But do come have some tea with me sometime.” 

Rentt seemed a little panicked at Lazaat’s statement. 

“Ah, no. Wait just a while, gramps. Just a bit...” 

Lazaat didn’t understand what Rentt was going on about. He tilted his head in confusion slightly, unsure about the strange wait. In the next instant, an audible “pop!” rang through the air, as if a small explosive had gone off. Following that, the sound of musical instruments could be heard. Then... 

“Mister Lazaat! Thank you for all your hard work as an adventurer up till now!” 

That statement seemed to be spoken by many voices at once. 

Confused, he turned, looking around him, realizing he was surrounded by adventurers, many of them with familiar faces. They all had cups and steins in their hands, their faces all smiles. 

“Gramps.” Rentt approached the old adventurer. “As you can see, we’re officially holding your retirement ceremony today. You’ll be attending, right?” 

“You for real, Rentt?” 

“Of course. Everyone felt really bad for turning down your request, but their hands were tied, you see! They were all preparing for today! So they asked me to help...” 

“I-Is that right. I see, I see...” 

Surprised, but somewhat moved, the many adventurers soon approached Lazaat, each one greeting him, offering words of thanks or praise for how Lazaat had lived his life as an adventurer up till now. Everyone had been helped by Lazaat at some point. He’d done good work in this township of Maalt. Those words warmed up old Lazaat’s heart. 

After losing his wife and son, he’d continued adventuring, thinking he was good for nothing else. But perhaps... Perhaps there was some meaning to it after all. 

“...Rentt.” 

“Hmm?” 

“Maybe...adventuring isn’t so bad after all.” 

“Yeah... I want a retirement ceremony and celebration of this scale when I go, too, you know?” 

“That’ll be up to you from now on, no? Work hard!” 

“That’s what I’ll do, gramps. Make sure you’re still alive by then!” 

“Just how old are you hoping I’ll get, Rentt?” 

“Hahaha!”