Tenkomori: The Homecoming Club Conquers Another World
Chapter 174

Chapter 174. Revisit

I had considered selling the magic stones here, but this town just didn't sit right with me.

Either way, if I were to buy vials, it'd be in Silveck. From there, the labyrinth was just a stone's throw away, and the plains stretched all the way to the Deepforest. Perfect for transporting fragile vials.

I left Wolbar behind in a hurry, reunited with Sarhas, and set off.

Heading south from Wolbar, the forested area connecting the roads between Reedwald and Seren—which I'd passed through three years ago—lay even further south.

Taking the main road would've gotten me back faster, but if Sarhas were spotted, it'd cause trouble.

So we cut southeast through Wolbar territory, then turned south through the eastern lands of Welde, aiming for Silveck.

"I've had my share of that too."

As I recounted what happened while scanning the grasslands for threats, Sarhas responded with nostalgic amusement.

Naturally, he meant the reception desk. You don't run into many like Tenios, after all.

He said it wasn't uncommon for beastmen to be treated roughly, even by those who weren't fresh recruits.

I'd heard the broad strokes of his past, but not the details. When I asked—prefacing it with "if you don't mind"—he replied:

"It's not exactly an entertaining story, but—"

And so, Sarhas began.

There were several reasons he'd left his beastman village, he said.

One was to broaden his horizons, another to find a place where beastmen could live within the Empire—though he hadn't held much hope for the latter. Even if things were fine now, there was no telling what the next ruler's policies might bring.

Fortunately, he'd met decent comrades and formed Belgirio, succeeding in broadening his horizons. But then problems arose.

Beastmen's prime lasts longer than humans', so as injuries, deaths in battle, and retirement from aging whittled their numbers, Sarhas was the last one left.

After that, he joined other parties as a hired hand, but precisely because his former comrades had been so reliable, he let his guard down. Blamed for a failed request, he was enslaved.

Looking back, he said, the discriminatory attitude toward beastmen had been there all along. It was likely a setup.

From then on, his life as a slave began—thrown into battles against monsters and conflicts. But he refused to cooperate in fights he couldn't justify, even when collared.

His owners, assuming he'd die eventually, sold him back to slavers. His stubbornness got him resold multiple times until finally, he was purchased by Viscount Fasden.

"Maybe I should've retired with my first comrades."

"Agreed. Thinking I still had fight left in me was my downfall."

I studied Sarhas's wry smile from the corner of my eye.

"So, do you want revenge on the ones who screwed you over?"

"Hard to say…"

Keeping his faint smile, Sarhas pondered.

"I was a slave too long. Unless I meet them face-to-face… I doubt I'd have an answer. I heard they died in a conflict not long after enslaving me."

"I see."

I let the conversation end with just that.

Sarhas had been enslaved around age thirty. Though he looked young, he was now in his late thirties—meaning he'd spent seven or eight years as a slave. After being isolated from the world that long, maybe hatred just fades.

As we exchanged idle chatter, we reached the depths of the forest.

This was likely the border between Wolbar and Welde, near the southern road.

Glancing up, I saw the sun had dipped considerably.

Should we cut through the southern road into the forested zone, or take the longer eastern route?

While mentally mapping it out, something suddenly occurred to me.

Come to think of it, I never kept that promise.

I'd meant to apologize later, but that chance was gone now.

I gazed through the dense trees.

"If we keep going, we'll reach Verene Village. Mind if we make a quick stop?"

I briefly explained what had happened three years ago, adding that we'd just observe from afar.

They might've forgotten me, and it wasn't like I'd be meeting them anyway.

Sarhas didn't object, so we continued east.

By nightfall, we'd left the deep woods and soon entered another forest.

This one stretched from the northern mountains—the same place where Oveck had lurked three years ago.

We were practically there already.

Stepping into the forest, I felt an odd nostalgia, even though it was just an ordinary woods.

Back then, I'd been searching for the missing Tess, joined by Oze of the Battle Axe of Destruction and Pidosios leading the Sword of Silent.

Of course, Oveck was long gone, and there was no sign of the increased wolf activity.

As we moved through the peaceful forest, the trees gradually thinned until suddenly—the view opened up.

Moonlit pastures sprawled before us.

Beyond them, the village houses huddled together, their lights flickering like fireflies.

From the forest's shadows, I scanned the village, focusing on the inn.

The warm glow made me imagine I could hear Ronnie and the others, and my lips curled into a smile.

But as I strained my senses, that smile slowly faded.

I could only detect one presence inside.

And it wasn't any of Ronnie's family. Probably the village chief's son.

Strange. But I knew him too, so it wasn't a problem. I waited a while longer, but Ronnie and the others never returned.

Combining [Presence Detection] and [Concentration Boost], I searched the entire village—still nothing.

Hard to believe, but they seemed to be gone.

Still, in this world, only nobles or major merchants had the luxury of traveling for leisure. And even then, would they leave their precious inn in the chief's son's hands?

"Wait here."

"Something bothering you?"

"Not sure yet. I'll check."

Leaving Sarhas in the woods, I crossed the pasture and approached the inn.

The chief's son's presence grew stronger. Pausing at the door, I took a breath and stepped inside.

"Ah, welcome."

At the creak of the door, the chief's son called out.

He seemed slightly startled, but not because he recognized me—more due to the late hour and my appearance.

But what caught my eye was the deep scar on his cheek. Already healed, but fresh-looking. Maybe a month old?

"Staying the night?"

"Just a meal for now."

At my reply, his scar twitched as he frowned slightly.

"Uh… sure. I'll get it ready."

Watching him disappear into the kitchen, I scanned the inn.

It was clean, nothing out of place.

Except for the chief's son acting like the owner—and Ronnie's family being nowhere in sight.

As I waited, a familiar smell wafted from the kitchen.

The scent of careless, uninspired cooking.

It didn't remind me of three years ago—but of my home back in Seren.

Soon, the chief's son returned with the meal: a stew of vegetables and dried meat, hard bread, and fruit water. It looked passable, but I could tell the taste without eating.

A spoonful confirmed it—nothing but salt.

The chief's son watched me eat, then sighed apologetically.

"Sor—sorry. I'll call someone who can actually cook."

"This is fine. More importantly, I'd like to ask you something."

When I stopped him, he gave me a puzzled look.

"I passed through here years ago. What happened to the family running this place?"

"Oh… so you knew them."

His expression darkened as he told me: Ronnie was dead.

◇◇◇◇

The shock hit me first—followed by the fear that it might've been my fault.

Had mercenary remnants attacked? Or had they been caught in Reedwald and Baromatt's feud?

I quickly dismissed both, but couldn't say I was entirely unrelated.

It had all started last winter, at the season's peak.

Baron Welde, the lord, was served by a knight named Livnas. His son, Nivol Livnas, had suddenly shown up with entourage in tow for an "inspection."

Inspections weren't unusual.

Tax collectors came regularly, and knights made rounds occasionally.

But this was the first time an unranked knight's son had visited.

The chief welcomed him as usual and reported the village's affairs—until the topic of the bandits came up.

The ones we'd captured three years ago and left to the village's judgment.

Hearing this, Nivol accused them of stealing noble credit and grew suspicious. Never mind that the bandits had hidden in the forest, not the village—to Nivol, it was all the same.

He kicked the pleading chief aside and began ransacking the village.

That was when he found Miranda and Tess.

Even in her thirties, Miranda's beauty drew countless suitors, and Tess's looks could pass for a man's.

Nivol tried to take them. Ronnie stepped in—too forcefully.

In a blink, Nivol was dead.

Ronnie had been an adventurer, built like Markant. But this was just rotten luck.

The entourage fled, leaving Nivol's corpse behind.

They likely reported to Livnas-sama, but right then, the Empire was hit by an unprecedented cold snap.

Three months later, as the snow thawed, Livnas arrived with soldiers.

Ronnie was charged with murder; innocent Miranda and Tess, as accomplices. They were dragged to Welde.

Without a proper trial, Ronnie was executed. Miranda and Tess were enslaved as criminals.

Later, a traveling merchant told the rest: Nivol had been the type to pick fights and wreak havoc on a whim.

Silence filled the room as the story ended.

It was excessive self-defense… but I couldn't blame Ronnie. He'd tried to protect his family from a tyrant and ended up killing him. A tragic mistake.

But the law didn't care about intent.

Nobles made the laws; knights enforced them.

Killing a knight's son? Unless the lord was unusually fair, a harsh sentence was guaranteed.

I forced down another salty spoonful, washing it away with fruit water.

Still, they'd had three months before Livnas came.

Even with the cold, they could've done something.

Fleeing? No—they'd be hunted, and the villagers made examples of. Ronnie's family wouldn't choose that.

Which left… me.

"You knew the noble who left the bandits here, right? Couldn't you have asked for help?"

"Tess said the same thing. That he might help. But Ronnie and Miranda refused. Welde and Reedwald are both baronies—they'd have to negotiate as equals. They didn't want to cause that kind of trouble."

The cold logic of it sickened me.

In a way, they were right. No matter how absurd Nivol's claims, meddling in another territory's affairs was overreach. Especially for someone of equal rank—and beyond my jurisdiction.

Only my father could've intervened, but—

The hollow look in his eyes flashed in my mind, cutting the thought short.

When I glanced up, the chief's son was hesitating before finally speaking.

"Hey… you're traveling alone, right? Can you fight monsters?"

"Depends on the monster. But I won't lose to the usual fare."

"Then I've got a job for you! Take me to Silveck!"

He leaned forward, pleading.

Planning to buy them back, huh? That scar looked too fresh for two months.

When I asked, he said goblins had attacked him.

He'd tried going to Silveck to rescue Miranda and Tess but ran into goblins on the road. Only luck—a passing merchant group—saved him.

"One question. Why me?"

"Adventurers rarely come here, and most are already hired. A pair of women came recently, but they were heading east."

Sisters, apparently.

Anyway, two months had passed. No guarantee they were still in Silveck, or that Silveck's slavers had even bought them—but it was possible.

Slaves were primarily labor. Miranda had her cooking skills and beauty; Tess, her youth and looks. Neither would sell cheap. Especially Miranda—skilled workers commanded high prices.

Plus, they were accomplices in a knight's son's murder. Unlikely any wealthy buyer would trust them with meals or personal care.

Expensive yet troublesome criminal slaves. The odds they were still unsold weren't low.

Either way, Silveck was our next stop. The detour wasn't much.

"I don't mind the company."

"Thank you!"

His face lit up, though he quickly reined it in.

"No guarantees we'll find them. Don't get your hopes up. We leave now—get ready. I'll wait outside the village."

"Got it!"

He nodded and dashed out.

I left too, meeting Sarhas south of the village.

"Change of plans."

When I explained, Sarhas frowned and shook his head.

"Dealing with slavers is dangerous."

"Yeah, true."

I agreed, but my mind was elsewhere.

My time with them had been short but intense.

That's why I'd kept my distance—to avoid dragging them into my problems.

Yet I couldn't protect their lives.

No way to stay in touch.

I'd fought mercenaries and Jarid to keep them safe, but it was all for nothing.

If I hadn't left those bandits…

If I'd wiped out the mercenaries and warned them to flee…

Countless emotions surfaced, but I observed them coldly.

Just like with my family. So many what-ifs, but only one root cause.

Pushing aside the rising feelings, I confronted the truth beneath:

I just wanted to save them.

The detour to Silveck, the bandits, the mercenaries—all excuses.

Even if they'd been in the opposite direction, I'd have rationalized it somehow.

No different from back in Seren.

I'd turned away from suffering refugees, yet gone out of my way to save Emili from being sold by her father. Once I knew, I couldn't ignore it.

Call it my nature, but—maybe my soul was to blame.

Those who don't know their own misery die in blissful ignorance.

I knew a world far fairer than this.

I had no intention of forcing my ideals here, but memories etched into the soul aren't easily erased. If Lambert's curse was his father, then this was mine.

Laughing at myself, I turned to Sarhas.

"Go ahead and tell Phil. If I'm not back from Silveck in a few days, ask him to check on me."

Sarhas sighed deeply, then nodded reluctantly.

"Be careful. Even you, Velk-sama, would be helpless with a slave collar. It's obey or die."

"Never seen one. What's it like?"

"No fixed design, but most are iron collars. The paired artifact for the master varies—the one I saw was a ring."

"Two parts to one magic item? No wonder they're pricey."

As I joked, a presence approached from the village.

Sarhas bowed deeply and vanished into the shadows just as the chief's son—Cliff, apparently—and the chief arrived, the former laden with baggage.

"Too much. Leave some behind."

"O-okay."

Cliff hurriedly shed his load, keeping only the essentials.

"I'm going to bring them home."

"Stay safe. Velk-sama, please look after Cliff."

"Mm. I'll get him there."

Cliff, huh? Had I never asked?

Back then, he'd just been a brat harassing Tess. No reason to care.

"We're cutting straight through the southern forest to the road. It'll be rough."

"Doesn't matter. I'm bringing them home no matter what."

I nodded to the chief, then looked south.

The sky was a sea of stars.

If we could reunite under them, great—but first, we had to get there.

I'd figure out the rest later.