Chapter 26 – Port City (2)
The morning of the third day since I started making plans to leave for a port city.
Adventurers who had flocked to the shop sequentially from the time it opened went out again sequentially while taking the potions they had purchased.
Loxia came out of the store door to see off the departing adventurers and waved vigorously at them with the brightest expression on her face.
“Goodbye everyone!”
Even while rushing to the guild to receive a request with the best conditions possible, the adventurers turned around reflexively at her beautiful voice… No, the men left, waving their hands at Roxia with a grimace on their faces.
As the people walked away, Roxia approached Roden, who was sorting out her change.
“Just like yesterday, the shelves were robbed as soon as it started.”
“Anyway, I’ll be taking a break for a while after today.”
Rumors spread that the shop would be closed for a while, and as soon as it opened from the previous day, adventurers from around the estate flocked to it, and the potions and herbs in the shop ran out in just three days.
‘I thought it would take a week or so… I’m glad it was a miscalculation. I’ll just have to leisurely prepare until the day I promised them that they’re twins.’
“Now, if you sell all the leftovers in the basement in the afternoon, it will be over. Loxia, hang up the door and follow me downstairs.”
“I understand. Master.”
After changing the signboard to Out, locking the door and going downstairs with Roxia, Roden decided to start making potions with the last remaining inventory.
“Whoa… !”
As soon as she came down to her basement, Roxia, who took off her ring and returned to her demonic form, felt a sense of liberation and let out a sigh.
Then, she approached the large pot in the far corner of the workshop and took out a wand. Close her eyes for a moment and focus on her mind.
ㅡsqueeze…
Soon after, the clear water that started coming out of the crystal ball filled the pot up to the height of the marked line drawn in advance.
Immediately after Roxia had filled the cauldron, she aimed the wand beneath it and lit a fire imbued with her magic.
As the water slowly began to boil, Roden, who had prepared homemade herbal medicines such as dried mushrooms, cinnamon, and licorice, generously poured them into the pot.
‘This work of making a potion is good for the time being, as long as I properly mix the undiluted solution in the afternoon when the pot is completely cooled.’
Loden, who was looking at the boiling pot with medicinal herbs and the last liquid remaining in the automatic blender, praised Roxia for her magic and spoke to her.
“It’s definitely convenient since you can adjust the water and fire as much as you want. Thanks again for helping me this time.”
“I’m so glad my magic can help you master.”
He immediately sat down comfortably on the flat stone floor in the cellar, a short distance from the large pot.
“I’ll be watching the fire, so you’re resting upstairs. You can lie down on the bed if you’re feeling drowsy.”
“I…”
Roxia, who hesitated for a moment after hearing the owner’s words, sat down next to Roden and leaned on her shoulder and looked up at him.
“If it’s okay, Master, can I sit next to you?”
“It must be cold and uncomfortable because the floor is hard.”
“It doesn’t matter. I much prefer sitting next to you than lying on a soft bed.”
Having said that with her own mouth, Roden decided to respect her will and nodded her head without saying anything, then gently placed her hand on the empty shoulder of the girl who was leaning against her own body.
“… !”
She was just intoxicated with the feeling that something was missing, and it didn’t mean anything, but her girl’s face blushed. Her heart pounded.
Indeed, the fact that Roden herself did not notice the change in Loxia’s body because she was still looking at the fire was a matter of luck or misfortune for the girl.
“Master.”
“Huh?”
Then Roden turned her head towards her loxia, her lips quivering as she hung her head down.
“I am… Master…”
I love my master so much. Like Merim, I want to be hugged by my master. I wanted to say, but the girl couldn’t muster up the courage.
My master who is infinitely kind and wonderful. And Merim unnie, who always smiles brightly and is a knowledgeable teacher.
The two of them are a pair that suits each other so well, but they are also human beings.
On the other hand, I am a worthless slave…
Thanks to the ring he received from the owner, he is usually living like a human, but he himself is a demon.
Roxya looked down at her immature body, realizing once again that her birth was completely different every time she touched the horns sprouting from her head.
‘… Moreover, compared to Merim, who is a mature woman, my body is so weak.’
Although she is a demon, she is only a slave. She was so afraid that her current relationship might be shattered if she recklessly told her human master what she had in mind.
That feeling made her say another word out of Loxia’s mouth.
“I am always grateful to the owner to the extent that I cannot express everything in words. Please take good care of me in the future.”
“I’m taking good care of you. Since I’ve been with you, my life here has become a lot more enjoyable.”
“Yes…”
Roxia liked the owner who answered her like that, but she thought the owner’s attitude of treating her like a daughter rather than a woman was subtly savage.
* * *
On the day of departure.
After finishing all the preparations, Roden and Roxia came out of the store, each carrying a large and small backpack on their backs, looking at the door of the store that would not be open for a while.
“Master. Is it really okay to just close the door like this and lock the window? No matter how safe the city may be, it’s out of town, so I wonder if I’ll be very anxious if I’m away for a long time…”
For Roxia, who once lived in a slum, her perception that a house that has been empty for a long time in a deserted place is a perfect place to rob is strongly embedded.
Fully understanding what she wanted to say, Roden spoke her softly.
“I didn’t talk about it because I haven’t been away from home for a long time. This house was renovated before I lived with you, and I signed an engraving contract with it, so it’s okay.
“Engrave… What?”
“To put it simply, it’s like engraving magic into letters. It’s consumable, and even though it’s a bit expensive, it’s quite convenient.”
There are two magics that Roden visited the Mage Tower and carved into the shop.
A mana shield that has the effect of defending against external attacks, and a warning that emits a loud sound when pre-specified conditions are met.
“Well, it’s a shield that’s formally engraved, so if you hit it with a hammer or something, it’ll break easily, but if someone breaks into the store, an alarm goes off and the city’s guards come running.”
‘Since I’ve paid my taxes well, I’m sure he’ll come running quickly. All of his property and valuables have been put in his inventory in the first place.’
“Magic works like that… How amazing.”
After hearing Roden’s explanation, Roxia, who put her worries away about her store, headed to the place where she and her owner had agreed to meet her twin sister.
… Soon after, they came into sight of her twin sister, who was carrying her thick backpack, waving her hand.
Her twin sister was already exuding a summer atmosphere in a bold outfit that exposed her upper chest and waist, and she was wearing hot pants on her lower body, so her elastic thighs were clearly exposed.
Since she was just going out to play, she wasn’t wearing any armor, but just in case, Merim had a staff, and Marill only had an arming sword and a small buckler.
“Here! Here! Skip Mr. Roden, who is dressed in plain clothes, and Roxia is wearing clothes that look like something she’s never seen before. Did she dress up for a trip?”
“Does it suit you well?”
“It suits you very well. Did Mr. Roden pick it for you?”
“It was chosen by the proprietress of a clothing store I visit often.”
Roxia’s expression brightened even more when she said that she looked good on her. Compared to the two of them, only her shoulders and arms were exposed, so she was plain, but she was a cute dress that looked good at her age.
“I’m leaving soon. Hurry up and get on.”
“Yes~!”
The means of transportation Roden and his party chose was a wagon that accompanies the company heading to the port city of Ladby.
In terms of price, the wagon would be much cheaper, but since it was a long-awaited trip, we agreed in advance to choose a comfortable one.
The four of them walked to the two-headed carriage that was waiting right next to them and spoke to the coachman.
“Three silver.”
“Here you go.”
After paying the price to the coachman, Roden easily received the silver coin that Merim next to him bounced off.
“Soon the upper ranks will depart, so we will follow suit.”
The twins, Roden and Roxia, who went straight into the carriage, took their seats in the form of sitting on either side of them.
Inside the well-decorated wagon, it was obvious that it was made with great care.
“To think there was a soft chair in the wagon… It even has windows.”
When she was captured as a slave, Roxia, who had only ridden in a wagon because she was dragged behind bars, was so surprised by her comfortable interior that she couldn’t keep her mouth shut.
As she opened her window and peeked out her face, she saw a fairly large procession waiting.
The wagons of the upper ranks fully loaded with goods and the professional guards hired by them. Some adventurers were also mixed, and behind them were peddlers and laborers.
As the destination is a port city, the scale of the ascending group is quite large because there are many goods coming and going.
Meanwhile, Merim, who was reading her map with her brother, roughly calculated how long it would take for her to arrive.
“If we go all the way without any problems, it will take about four or five days. Hehe, when we get to the city, let’s play like a person who will die tomorrow for a week.”
“I’ll have to find a place to stay first.”
When we arrived at the port city, as we were chattering about what to do, the scenery around us began to move. The carriage finally started.
Roden maintains a calm expression and does not express himself, but in her head, she imagines the sea she will see again after a long time and is looking forward to it.
It was on the third day after the carriage departed that Roden’s expression, which had been quietly smiling, changed to one full of regret.
Since the material is completely exhausted and there is no longer a topic to talk about, the four of them remain silent while gazing at the scenery outside or trying to sleep.
“Turn it off…”
‘I already feel like I’m missing home…’
Roden, who made a sound of pain, did not expect that the environment in which he had to sit in the carriage without doing anything, unlike the journey he had been on so far, would be so painful.
Through this trip, Roden came to realize what a great invention her car was.
