Chapter 7: Escaping the Royal Capital, The Reason for Heading to Buena Village... A Wronged Man Seeking Revenge?

"So delicious!"

The crimson pork, marbled with muscle fibers, was neatly sliced into almost equal-sized square pieces, each about the size of a palm. Folded and skewered on branches soaked in water, they sizzled as they danced over the flames.

The Maillard reaction painted the meat with an appetizing reddish-brown hue, while bubbling oil dripped and popped from the surface. Allen's forehead was still damp with water droplets as he focused on grilling.

The exclamation of delight came from Roxy's mouth.

She watched as Allen sprinkled some strange powder onto the meat, her cheek resting on one hand, her mouth stuffed full of grilled pork like a satisfied squirrel.

"I've never tasted this seasoning before."

"It's ground seeds from the Barthel flower. They have a very mild toxicity that causes a slight tingling sensation on the tongue, but the seeds themselves are sweet. A natural sweet and spicy seasoning. They say the Migurd race loves sweet things, and it seems that's true."

Roxy nodded enthusiastically.

Allen finished grilling all the meat and placed it on freshly washed leaves in front of Roxy. He stretched, stood up, and looked down at his tattered swordsman's outfit. He had taken it off earlier and asked Roxy to wash and dry it. Though it was now wrinkled, it was still better than being covered in bloodstains.

'At least the undershirt didn't get stained. When we exchanged clothes earlier... I still had something to wear.'

However, Roxy had remained stiff-faced and turned away the entire time, only washing her hair after Allen had put his clothes back on.

So shy...

Quite different from the anime version of her, who would sneakily watch Paul and Zenith's nightly activities, sweating nervously...

[Jobless Reincarnation Major Event Participation Score Increased.]

[Current Stage: Childhood. Total Participation Score: 25 points.]

[Immediate Task: Gain Rudy's Favor.]

[Rudy Countdown: 87:02:37]

Allen glanced at the floating text in front of him. The sudden brightness of the morning light pierced through the gaps between the words, illuminating Roxy's face. Her eyelashes fluttered as she looked up at him.

Dawn had arrived.

The morning sun leaped over the horizon, casting a soft glow through the trees and enveloping the two of them.

Roxy's smile bloomed in the light.

Because they were deep in the forest, Allen hadn't realized that less than two kilometers to the south was a road.

When Roxy led him out of the woods, he felt a bit disoriented.

Under the sunlight, the road was flanked by occasional sections of rotting fences, beyond which stretched endless untamed grasslands dotted with a few trees.

Allen instinctively pulled out a map to confirm their location.

"We're currently..."

A small, pale hand reached over Allen's shoulder and pointed to the southwestern part of the Fittoa Region on the map. The red circle marking Buena Village was less than a fingernail's width away.

Allen turned his head, only to be poked in the face by a strand of Roxy's unruly hair.

She looked up at him.

In the dim light of the previous night, their height difference hadn't been obvious, but now, under the sun, it was clear that Allen was a full 15 centimeters taller than Roxy.

This was a deity who didn't need to look up.

The deity spoke.

"With your physical condition, if you hurry, you should be able to reach the village by tonight... S-sorry for delaying your journey."

Allen twisted his slightly sore wrist and sighed.

Roxy was laden with leaf-wrapped packages of grilled meat of all sizes... and she was clutching a jar of Barthel flower seed powder that Allen had given her.

The best parts of the wild boar—its thighs, tenderloin, and ribs—were all hanging from Roxy's body.

Of course, they were already grilled, having taken Allen a full hour to prepare.

"By the way, can you really eat all of this? Won't it taste bad once it's cold? You could always just hunt and eat fresh meat as you go."

Roxy shook her head, her gaze fixed on the scabbard at Allen's side as she muttered,

"My knife skills aren't as good as yours... I can't cut the meat into thin slices like you can. This way, I can just reheat it with fire magic when I'm hungry... Thank you for grilling the meat and giving me the seasoning."

"I see..."

An awkward silence fell between them.

After a moment, Allen looked up at the sky.

"Well... I should get going. The village..."

But Roxy suddenly interrupted him.

"Maybe you could come with me on my journey. Since you're already fleeing to the countryside, why not leave the Asura Kingdom altogether? That would make it even harder for anyone to track you. And with your skills, you could easily become a full-fledged adventurer. In a year or so, once you've made a name for yourself, you could return to the Asura Kingdom in glory."

Allen was taken aback and looked at Roxy.

Her face was slightly flushed, but it was clear she was serious about the suggestion.

Logically speaking, her reasoning wasn't wrong. In the world of Jobless Reincarnation, it wasn't uncommon for kids as young as ten to leave home and start adventuring on their own.

A prime example was the person right in front of him—Roxy, who had run away from home at fourteen to become an adventurer and never returned, leaving her parents clueless about whether she was even alive.

Then there was Paul Greyrat, who completed his coming-of-age ceremony at ten, quickly unlocked the "noble group activities" achievement at school, only to have the wronged party complain to his family. After a huge fight with his father, he left without a word and...

Wait, this plot development... Could it be... Is Roxy assuming the same thing about me? We're both nobles from the Asura Kingdom, and we share the same surname...

Hmm... It probably hasn't gotten to that point. After all, I'm a decent...

"By the time you return from your journey, that girl will probably have moved on, and her family might have given up on pursuing you."

"???"

Allen, the decent man, stared at Roxy in shock.

He instinctively retorted,

"Wait, are you just trying to recruit a free chef? And a child laborer at that?"

"N-no!"

Roxy puffed out her cheeks.

"You might look young, but you're probably in your teens, right? How can you call yourself a child laborer?"

Allen blinked.

"I'm nine years old."

Roxy froze, her eyes widening as she stared at Allen.

"Nine..."

Allen watched Roxy's stunned expression and furrowed his brow in thought.

...The butterfly effect is happening way too fast. I've only just met the first major character, and after just one night, I've already received an enticing offer from a deity. Forget about how this might affect the future plot—if this keeps up, my participation score is in danger.

Just as he was about to figure out how to politely decline Roxy's offer, she spoke first.

"Nine is too young. I think you should lay low for a while, then go to the Water God Style dojo in the Asura Royal Capital to train for a couple of years before setting out on your journey... Oh, but you're a noble. At that age, wouldn't you be starting to take over family responsibilities? In that case..."

Roxy lowered her gaze.

"Maybe this chance encounter will be the last time we ever meet... Rudy too, and you..."

"We'll meet again."

Roxy looked up.

Under the sunlight, Allen smiled brightly.

"We'll meet again. Not just me, but Rudy too."

Roxy nodded blankly.

"Mm... It's getting late. I should get going, or I won't make it to the village before nightfall."

"...Alright."

Allen turned around. After taking a few steps, he suddenly looked back at Roxy.

"...We'll cross paths again as long as we're on the right path."

He turned away and waved nonchalantly at Roxy before breaking into a run down the road.

For some reason, Roxy felt like his retreating figure looked a bit like he was fleeing in panic.

She watched as Allen's figure grew smaller and smaller, then turned and walked in the opposite direction.

"...We'll cross paths again as long as we're on the right path... huh..."

Roxy smiled and strode off into the distance.