Chapter 41: The Bear Finishes the Snake Extermination and Goes Back to Town

Chapter 41:
The Bear Finishes the Snake Extermination
and Goes Back to Town

 

THE NEXT DAY, I woke up early in the morning.

The ceiling was different. I remembered that I’d stayed the night at the village chief’s house. When I got up and stood, I heard activity in the room next to me. The elder seemed to already be awake. I headed over to greet him.

“Good morning.”

“I didn’t wake you, did I?”

“You didn’t.”

“I will make us something simple for breakfast, so please wait.”

I waited absentmindedly, and eventually he brought over our meal. It was bread, veggies…and eggs?

“Help yourself. I hope it is to your taste.”

“Um, what’s this?”

I pointed at the fried egg.

“This is a kokkeko egg. Kai’s father went first thing in the morning to collect some. He said he wanted you to eat it.”

“Uh, thank you,” I said, then notched the bread with the knife, put veggies and the egg between it, and ate.

“It’s good.”

“I am glad. I am sure that Kai’s father will also be glad after he went to collect it.”

Once I finished breakfast I decided to follow up on this new development.

“So you can gather kokkeko eggs in this village?”

“Yes, we can. If we go first thing, we can find them fresh-laid.”

“What’s a kokkeko bird like?”

“It can’t fly very high, so it makes its nests in the bushes on the ground. They are also very quick at running.”

Was it a chicken?

“I believe we still have kokkeko eggs and kokkekos from this morning’s collection, so would you like to bring them home?”

“Could I really?” I was overjoyed.

“Of course. This village owes you its life. We have nothing to pay you with, so this is a drop in the bucket.”

Obtained eggs and chickens!

With breakfast over with, I started getting ready to leave.

“Are you really going home?”

“I need to report to the guild, after all.”

When I left the village chief’s house, Kai came over.

“Miss, you’re going home?”

“The Guildmaster and adventurers are heading over here, so if I don’t report to them, it’ll cause them trouble.”

On the way out, I picked up three kokkekos and about ten eggs from Kai’s father. Whatever folks called them, they were pretty obviously chickens. That might have been the happiest part of the job this time around.

It was a little ways out, but I decided I’d come back again.

I called Kumayuru, and we made for Crimonia, listening to the sound of my hosts shouting their thanks slowly fade into the distance.

 

Several hours later, we spotted someone bearing down in our direction. Suspecting it was the Guildmaster, I had Kumayuru slow down.

“Is that you, Yuna?!”

The Guildmaster brought his horse to a halt.

“What’re you doing here? The village wasn’t annihilated, was it?”

“I’ve defeated the black viper.”

“…huh, sorry, could you say that again?”

“I defeated the black viper,” I said again.

“You’re joking.”

This whole interaction was a pain, so I pulled the body out of my bear storage and laid it out in front of him.

“So you really defeated it on your own. It’s not damaged anywhere.”

“It’s got a hide like a tank, but its insides handle fireballs about as well as you’d expect.”

“You say that like it was easy…” the Guildmaster said, peering into the viper’s mouth. “It’s true. I’m amazed the spell reached so deep—the throat’s what, two meters wide? I’d expect a fire spell to detonate in its mouth.”

I couldn’t tell him my fireballs had walked their way down its digestive tract on stubby little bear legs.

“Anyway, I got it. If there’s no point to going to the village, then let’s head back to town.”

We set off again, the both of us headed for Crimonia this time.

“Begging your pardon, but my horse can’t keep pace with your bear. Could you slow down? I have questions.”

I broke down what happened at the village for him.

“That was pretty reckless of you.”

With the bear gear, I could afford to be.

We took a brief rest stop, and when we got on the road home again, I let Kumayuru take it slow. Both our mounts deserved a break, and I wasn’t in any kind of hurry.

 

We got back to town the following day and went straight to the guild. Helen saw us and broke into tears.

“Yuna, Guildmaster…why are you here? Did the village…?”

“Helen, it’s fine. The black viper was defeated,” the Guildmaster explained.

“Was it really?!” Helen wiped away her tears.

“Yeah, it’s true, so calm down. Why were you so worried?”

“Rush from C-Rank came back injured, and I was having such a difficult time reaching any adventurers above C-Rank. I should have expected you would be able to handle it, Guildmaster.”

Helen looked at the Guildmaster reverently.

“I didn’t. Yuna did, alone.”

“What…?” Helen slowly looked my way. Don’t look at me with eyes that wide, I thought. It’s embarrassing.

“I felt the same, but it’s true.”

She didn’t look reassured.

“So, Yuna, it’s getting late. I hate to ask you to do this, but could you come by again tomorrow? We need to write the report for this and inventory the materials from the viper.”

“When?”

“Earlier would be better, but I’m sure you’re tired too. I’ll let you decide when.”

“Got it.”

I left the adventurers’ guild.