Start of my Journey

It's been a week since I caused an uproar at the guild.

The news spread like wildfire—Tom Scott, the Phantom Blade, has retired. Well...that was most of it.

For most, it was an issue of national significance. Losing an S-ranked adventurer wasn't just a blow to the guild but to the kingdom's pride and security. But for me? It was freedom.

[I'm sorry, Merlina] I whispered to the cold air as the city's walls grew smaller and smaller behind me.

I had attended my retirement ceremony, endured the pomp and circumstance, and accepted their hollow praises. But I skipped the bureaucratic mess of the retirement payment process and conveniently forgot to leave any concrete details about where I was heading. I knew that ditching the reward would annoy Merlina even more, but honestly, it didn't matter to me.

I left a letter on her desk before I disappeared, filled with vague hints about my plans. Nothing solid. Just enough to mislead.

I could almost picture her now—furious, her green hair disheveled, gripping the letter in a white-knuckled rage. She's probably yelling my name to the heavens, cursing me for making her life even more stressful.

[Where are you headed, young man?] (??)

The voice of the coachman brought me back to the present.

The man was old, with graying hair and a face weathered by years on the road. He was transporting ores and coal to a blacksmithing town further up the mountain pass. As for me, I was simply unrecognizable.

Thanks to recognition inhibition magic, my black hair now appeared brown, and my brown eyes gleamed a cerulean blue. To anyone looking, I was just another passenger, not Tom Scott, the first S-ranked adventurer of Miruzo City.

[To a quiet town somewhere at the neighboring empire~]

And so, my journey to start the life that I had yearned, the freedom that I had dreamed, began.

---

Back at the Guild

Merlina slammed the letter onto her desk, her hands trembling with anger. She has just finished meeting the duke who is ruling the city, and this is what she was greeted with as soon as she returned.

[...] (Merlina) One could feel the anger she was feeling, judging by how she crumpled the letter.

The letter had been short and vague, offering little explanation for Tom's sudden departure. It didn't help that he'd left behind five white gold coins with instructions for the guild staff.

[He said we should use it to drown ourselves in alcohol!] (??) one adventurer laughed.

[Gahahaha! The Phantom Blade wants us to drink in his honor!] (??) Another chimed in, raising an imaginary glass.

The guild's festive atmosphere grated on Merlina's nerves.

[Why did he do this?!] (Merlina) she yelled, slamming her forehead against the desk repeatedly.

[Guild Master! Your forehead is bleeding!] (??) one of the receptionists exclaimed, rushing to her side.

The adventurers around her scattered, half-laughing, half-terrified.

[Tom Scott! I hate you!] (Merlina) She screamed, her voice barely audible over the raucous laughter in the room.

...

....

.

On the Road

[A-achoo!] (??)

[Cold, old man?]

The mountain pass was chilly, and the wind bit at any exposed skin. The canvas roof of the carriage offered some protection, but the coachman sitting out front bore the brunt of the cold.

[I'm fine, young man. But you look like someone who's used to warmer climates] (??) The coachman said with a chuckle.

[Well... you're not wrong]

[So, why leave the city? A young fellow like you could make a fortune there instead of heading to some provincial town] (??)

[I've got my reasons] I replied, leaning back against the rough wooden interior of the carriage.

[But honestly, I just want to live the kind of life I've always dreamed of]

The old man laughed.

[Hohoho! Wanting to start a family, are you? How nice to be young! I remember when I was like that. Though now, I've got a wife who doesn't let me out of her sight for long] (??)

The conversation was light, the kind that helped pass the time on long journeys. Despite the biting cold, there was something peaceful about the rhythmic clatter of the carriage wheels and the occasional banter with the coachman.

The journey to the border town between the empire and the kingdom I have come from was still very far and is probably stretched on, but for the first time in years, I felt a sense of quiet contentment. I wasn't chasing glory, fulfilling quests, or dealing with guild politics.

I was simply... free.

What surrounded us on our trip were lush greeneries, tall pine trees, and occasional sightings of monsters. 

[Wow, the air quality is really different from the city]

On another note, perhaps the change in environment should bring a lot of positivity into my life.

The air is crisp and fresh, totally something that was uunlikely from that filthy air I have been breathing within the city's confines.

The old man laughed at my amazement, and the journey continued without any problems.

The weather was just perfectly right, and there was nothing that stopped us on our travels.

There were times, however, where we had to make a stop to observe the area ahead of us, just to be sure.

[Is it safe to pass?] (??) The old man behind me asked as I surveyed the landscape around us.

It seems to be safe as far as I could tell and my instincts tell me that there are no hostiles.

[Yes it is, but we still need to be careful. It is not bad to be pessimistic once in a while, isn't it?]

There are hostiles other than monsters: bandits and thieves.

These people are those that resort to stealing stuff or money to live, and some of them even have bounty on their heads. Have I hunted them before? Yes, a lot of them that is.

They might be people, but the guild treats them as having the same status as a monster. The reason for that is simple, because some of them has become too infamous to be ignored for their crimes.

Pillaging villages, enslaving people, raiding trading caravans, and even stealing artifacts that are protected by the kingdom.

I readied the crossbow that was put within the floor of the carriage and nodded at the old man to move forward.

We're just glad that the trip after passing the valley is peaceful, but one could not simply be careless. The world is significantly crueler than that of earth's.

Monsters roam every part of this world, be it the sky, land, the seas, or the world down under. There's also conflict within some neighboring countries, and then there's the demon king and his/her kin.

Haaaaah. How I wish I could have asked for a way to return to earth from the sage, but there's nothing that he could do to return me.

I guess my choice of living in this world was really cemented when I arrived here a decade ago.

The start of my journey back then was far less forgiving than the one I am currently taking, and it makes me laugh a bit under my breath imaging that.