The Great Sword is not the Main Body!
Chapter 8 – On the Road to the Ruins (3)

“W-wait… Stop, please! My thighs and butt hurt so much!”

“Of course it hurts if you ride like that. Relax your body a bit. Keep your back straight.”

Aileen’s hands wrapped around my waist and hips.

“Don’t tense up so much. Unless you want to be sore again?”

“Ugh… N-no…”

Her hands moved from my hips and back up to my shoulders.

“Since it’s your first time, we’ll take it slow.”

“Slow…”

Aileen’s breath tickled my ear.

“Now, try moving like this.”

“L-like this…?”

Her hands slid down my arms and enveloped mine.

“Don’t grip too tightly. Keep it gentle.”

“Mmm…”

Aileen’s chest pressed softly against my neck.

“It’s okay, just give it a try.”

Aileen’s scent. Even though we used the same soap, her subtly different fragrance tickled my senses.

“Okay… I’ll try…”

“Good.”

I gently raised and lowered my arm holding the reins.

Snort

The horse exhaled and started walking with a steady clip-clop.

“Oh… Ohh…”

“Keeping your balance is key. You’re fine now because I’m behind you, but when you ride alone, you need to be careful not to fall.”

“O-okay!”

Yesterday and today. We’d been traveling by horse all this time, but it felt different now that I was steering.

Plus, I didn’t have my greatsword with me now… I couldn’t see anything at all!

It was terrifying, but having Aileen hold me from behind made it somewhat bearable.

After a while of riding like this…

“Should we… try going a little faster?”

I’d gotten used to the speed…

At first, it felt fast because I was steering without being able to see, but now…

It felt too slow!

This pace was barely faster than walking!

“Then how about I get off and let you try riding alone?”

“Huh? A-Aileen, you’re getting off? Why?!”

No way! I’ll die without you!

“If you get hurt, I’ll heal you.”

That’s so cold… I know we’ve only known each other for a day, but still!

“Fine… I’ll do it alone…”

“Pfft… I’m just kidding. Go ahead and try. I’ll catch you if anything happens.”

Aileen’s hand patted my head.

“O-okay… I’ll give it a try…!”

“Alright. You remember what I told you, right?”

I nodded.

Tightening my grip on the reins slightly, I pushed forward with my hips…!

“Hup!”

Snort

Clop-clop-clop-clop

“Oh… Ohh…!”

My body bounced more, and the wind rushed by faster.

The slow clip-clop of hooves changed to a rapid clop-clop-clop-clop!

“How is it…?”

“You’re doing great! Shall we keep going like this?”

“Yes!”

I couldn’t sense what was around us or what obstacles might be in the way. But this horse seemed pretty smart!

It dodged obstacles on its own, veering slightly left, then right. Sometimes it even took bigger steps.

I guess fantasy world horses are different? Well, they were much bigger, so their intelligence must be different too.

Enjoying the breeze on my cheeks, I thought about how different Aileen was acting today compared to yesterday.

Yesterday she scolded me all day, but this morning she suddenly offered to help me bathe.

Then she tried to teach me cooking by showing me how to chop vegetables. Now she was teaching me how to ride.

Why the sudden change…?

Does she think I’m useful now that she’s seen me hunt?

I mean… even I thought I was pretty useless before.

But now that I’ve found my use, she’s being a bit nicer… maybe?

It was a somewhat painful thought, but I accepted it.

That’s just how this world works. Can’t be helped.

For now, I’ll clear my mind and enjoy the moment.

The slightly damp scent of earth mixed with the subtle soap fragrance from our bodies drifted on the breeze.

***

“Alright, Noah. Let’s stop here.”

“Okay.”

As the scents in the air started to change, we switched places holding the reins.

“We’re almost there, so I’ll take over.”

I nodded and gripped the hilt of my sword.

A sharp pain shot through me as information about our surroundings filled my mind.

Stone walls. Stone fences. Stone gates.

Until now it had all been trees, but now everything was stone.

Just as Aileen said, we seemed to have nearly reached the eastern ruins.

“Let’s slow down and move carefully now. It’d be troublesome if we got surrounded by monsters.”

Aileen whispered quietly in my ear. Ugh, that tickles.

But… there’s no need for that.

“I… I can sense them…”

“Hm? Sense what?”

“The monsters… Um… I can sense them up to about 30 meters away…?”

Aileen tilted her head questioningly.

“What? What’s 30 meters away…?”

“D-detection. Um… You know how I can sense my surroundings, right…?”

“…Yes.”

“Well… I can see… this much…!”

I waved my arms in a big circle.

“You can see this much…?” Aileen also waved her arms in a circle.

“No, 30 meters!”

“How…?”

Ah, this is frustrating! If I can see it, I can see it!

“A-anyway. It’s fine. Um… I’ll catch them if any come near…”

Aileen was still looking at me with her head tilted.

Ugh. So you’re the type who needs to see it to believe it, huh.

Alright. I’ll show you!

I focused my mind and expanded my sensing range.

More information flooded into my mind.

I pushed further. More. More. More.

A dizzying sensation spread from the top of my head throughout my body.

Ugh… This is my limit.

I sorted through the information I’d gathered.

Terrain features… I’ll ignore those.

Rocks and animal carcasses and… panties? What’s that doing here.

Ah, no! Focus!

Filtering out all the unnecessary stuff…

Ah, there it is.

“To the left.”

“Hmm… Alright.”

The horse’s direction gradually shifted.

After about ten paces…

“Now to the right.”

The horse’s body leaned left again.

“Now diagonally…”

“It’s blocked.”

“Oh… One moment.”

I reconstructed the terrain in my mind.

“Ah… This isn’t it. Back to the left.”

Clip-clop, clip-clop

“Um… If we turn right now, there’s a puppy… no, a gnoll… up ahead.”

Aileen inhaled sharply, tensing up.

It’s just a gnoll, no need to be so tense.

We reached the end of the path.

And beyond it.

Grrr

A bipedal dog. An axe-wielding gnoll was growling and scanning its surroundings.

“…Looks like it’s caught our scent. Should I take care of it?”

I slightly unsheathed my greatsword, ready to dismount.

“It’d be best to avoid it if possible… but since it’s already smelled us, we have no choice. I’ll handle this one.”

But Aileen’s hand stopped me.

“Oh…”

But I wanted to take it down…

“I can deal with it quietly.”

I reluctantly nodded.

Aileen took a deep breath and extended her hand forward.

Just like before, strange energy flowed from her body and concentrated in front of her palm.

I almost let out an exclamation, but I quickly covered my mouth with both hands to avoid breaking her concentration.

I always think this, but the most amazing thing in this world is magic.

Sure, a petite girl swinging around a greatsword is impressive too, but… To me, that kind of magic is even more amazing…

“Watch closely, Noah. We’re a party now, so you should know what I can do.”

I can’t see though.

I wanted to say that, but… I just nodded to avoid breaking her concentration.

She gathered energy for about 3 more seconds.

The swirling energy quickly formed into a sharp spear and silently shot towards the gnoll with a whoosh.

Splat

At the same instant, the gnoll’s head exploded into pieces.

So cool…! That was awesome…

I should’ve become a mage…!

“Wow…”

“So, what do you think of my skills? Pretty impressive, right?”

To me, an 8-year veteran, it sounded like a newbie bragging… but I kept that thought to myself.

I just nodded.

It was amazing, after all. And cool too!

Though taking 15 seconds to kill one gnoll is a bit slow…

I may not look it, but I’m quite strict when it comes to hunting. Hehe.

“Anyway, that detection ability of yours really worked,” Aileen said as she guided the horse past the gnoll’s corpse.

“See? Told you…!”

I puffed out my chest proudly.

“Pfft! Ah… Now you’re finally acting a bit more grown-up.”

“Right? I told you I’m good at this kind of thing… You can just trust me and follow my lead!”

My head might throb a bit… but it’s better than carelessly stirring things up and waking Karpeng.

“Alright. I’ll trust you and follow your lead, Noah.”

Aileen’s hand patted my head.

The atmosphere was definitely… different from yesterday.

Did I do something wrong…?

Wait, could she be buttering me up to betray me later?!

Don’t tell me… she doesn’t actually have the 15 gold?! Is she being nice on purpose to build rapport because she can’t pay me?! Trying to get close to me!

I’m not that easy to fool, you know?

If that’s really what’s happening… then… then… W-what should I do?!

Um… I wonder if this world has any legal recourse…

“Why are you spacing out like that, Noah?”

Aileen tilted her head, looking at me.

N-no way… right?

“Oh… It’s nothing… L-let’s get going…!”

“Hmm… Alright.”

Aileen stopped patting my head and shook the horse’s reins.

Clip-clop, clip-clop

Our bodies started moving, but my thoughts were still frozen in place.

Ugh… What if Aileen betrays me…!

Should I at least ask her to take me as far as Alreba Village before betraying me…?

Ah, forget it! I’ll just ask her directly!

I can just ask and see how she reacts!

If she doesn’t have the money, she’ll act weird.

“A-Aileen…”

“Yes?”

“Um… You know…”

“Yes.”

Now that I’m trying to say it, the words won’t come out…

“Do you… have m-money?”

“…What?”

“Money…”

“…Why are you suddenly asking that?”

“Um… Well…”

I heard Aileen let out a deep sigh.

“Are you worried I won’t pay you?”

How did she know… How does she keep reading my mind like this?!

Is it related to that strange energy of hers…?

“N-no… It’s not that…”

“It is. Sigh… Don’t worry. I’ll definitely pay you. I’m not like those people. Okay?”

Aileen’s warm hand rested on my head. And she started gently patting me…

Huh…?

Why isn’t she angry…? Even though I doubted her?

Just get mad at me! This is uncomfortable! It makes me feel like I’m the only trashy one here!

No, I already am trash… Doubting her on my own, making assumptions, worrying by myself…

And I even ended up saying it out loud…

“So what’s your answer?”

“Y-yes… S-sorry…”

“Sigh Didn’t I tell you not to say that?”

“Oof- Ugh- I’m- Th-thank you…”

“That’s better.”

Clip-clop, clip-clop

My frozen thoughts. Finally caught up to our moving bodies after just a few words.

And soon after. We arrived at the eastern ruins.