How to Catch a Big Fish (9)
"Hello there, it's a lovely night, isn't it? Quite lively."
Clearing my throat.
Maybe it's because I haven't had any water. My voice is a bit hoarse. What a hassle this is because of them. Of course, if you look at the total amount of trouble, it's about even between them and us....
While I was lost in such carefree thoughts, the underling swallowed hard and, still staring at Leonardo, asked me.
"Who, who are you? What are you doing here…!"
"Are you treating us like thugs? That's hurtful. You were the ones who were rude first."
I raised my index finger and waved it, as if scolding the rude fellow.
"Your master is really petty. How could he mess up my territory like this and expect to leave without paying anything? Doesn't he know anything about ethics? You have to pay the price, don't you, huh?"
Speaking softly as if not offended at all, but making it clear that he was annoyed. When Leonardo thrust his sword, piercing the back of the henchman's hand, the blade he was holding fell to the ground.
"Argh!"
"There are three reasons why I haven't killed you. First, it seems like you didn't know this place was my territory. Second, it's a festival today. I don't want to ruin my mood either."
Leonardo kicked the henchman aside and dragged his coffin with his own hands.
"And the third."
He slightly opened the coffin and faced the peaceful corpse of Leovald again. Calmly, he continued.
"I smell money."
Closing the coffin gently, I crouched near the henchman and played with his hair, softly as if stroking foxtail grass. Silently, Leonardo came closer and took over, grabbing his hair tightly and lifting him up.
I whispered kindly to the henchman.
"Could you tell your master? If he wants the corpse, he should show some 'sincerity'. And that he should meet me for tea. It's customary for the higher-ups to apologize for the rudeness of their subordinates, isn't it?"
Whack! As soon as I finished speaking, Leonardo struck the back of the henchman's neck, knocking him out.
That makes all five of them down.
[Scenario Sub-quest Condition Achieved!: Subdue the Count's Henchmen (5/5)]
[Calculating contributions for '
[Top Contributor: 'Sinistra's Suspicious Innkeeper (Contribution 51%)' identified. Calculating rewards. Please wait a moment.]
Oh, I thought there might be something different since there was a condition for contributions in the 'Hunt Mission'. But giving a reward to the top contributor?
Since it's being calculated and not given immediately, it seems like they'll give me something tailored to my needs, similar to when I obtained the 'Innkeeper's Insight'.
[Calculation Complete!]
[Sub-quest reward,
What could this be…
However, there was no time to check right now. Leonardo, who had just wiped the blood off his blade, was already looking this way. I couldn't show him that I was lost in thought. I stood up from my crouched position and dusted off my hands.
"Wow, we're almost done. Hang in there. Just a few more things to wrap up."
Leonardo nodded and sheathed his sword. The fire was slowly dying down as well.
Although smoke would escape through the underground ventilation holes, it was currently the night market period. The smoke rising from bonfires and food stalls was more prevalent than ever tonight.
Leonardo and I decided to move the bodies to the inn. We borrowed a cart that the merchants had prepared in advance to transport the coffin to the inn and then return the cart to the entrance of the waterway.
We stored the body in the underground warehouse. We cleared out the area that once stored root vegetables and placed the coffin there. If this was the 21st century, I would have already been shut down for violating food hygiene laws.
It felt quite strange to see a coffin where potatoes and pickled cabbage used to be stored. But it was the right choice to keep the body in a cool, dark place. Even if that body was a miraculous one that didn't decay.
No matter how I think about it, this is ridiculous. Hygienically and ethically.
I glanced at Leonardo and then rubbed the soot off the coffin with the hem of my clothes. It would be a disaster if he found out his body had been placed where potatoes used to be and held a grudge.
"What are you doing?"
"Oh, just… polishing."
Leonardo tilted his head but didn't seem to think much of it. I awkwardly lowered my hands that had been diligently polishing the coffin as if it were Aladdin's magic lamp. Since he didn't seem to care, maybe I should just ignore this part.
"You did well today."
"You too."
"Then let's say we both did well. It's late, so go in and rest."
I still had a lot to do. I needed to check the reward I received, and since managing the inn is a key part of my character, I couldn't neglect it.
And I needed to stay alert in case something unexpected happened during the night and wait for the count's henchmen to return to the inn. There's no time to sleep.
I felt Leonardo staring at me without leaving.
It seemed like he was about to start nagging. As I was thinking of an excuse, he approached and scanned my face.
"Your eyes already have dark shadows."
There was no nagging. He simply massaged near my eyelids gently with his thumb. The warm sensation softly rubbing around my eyes felt quite nice, almost like getting a massage. Leonardo seems to have a warm body type, it's pleasantly soothing. I must be tired.
"Mm…"
As I let out a short groan, Leonardo paused, thinking he had hurt me. I opened my eyes slightly and smiled.
"Alright, let's call it a night and get some sleep."
Leonardo remained silent for a moment, then slowly nodded, as if relieved that I wasn't being stubborn today.
I went to the bedroom and sat down at the desk.
[Accessing Archive: Retrieving
[Today, Paulo, who was on cooking duty, boiled a whole turtledove without removing the feathers. Raul called Paulo an idiot, and the campsite became noisy. Eventually, our location was discovered, and we had to deal with them, so we had our meal much later. It's true what they say about young men running around like headless chickens.]
[While crossing the mountains, we often set up camp. Once the sun sets, visibility drops, and it's hard for the knights to move through the forest. Seeing that they can't adapt to the forest, it's clear they grew up in the city.]
[During my watch, I got bored and made a hunting trap. I used to catch deer with this back in the day.]
[I caught it with the deer trap. Surprising that it got caught.]
[It hasn't reached the mimicry stage yet. It's in an amorphous state. I split it open briefly to see who it was trying to mimic. Judging by the bone structure, it seems to be mimicking a male.]
[I asked the captain if I could carry it around and observe it for a while. He said it's okay as long as it doesn't cause trouble for the camp. Luckily, the captain is flexible.]
[Once it completes its mimicry, it might die during dissection, which would be a pity. So, I decided to find a way to deliberately delay its mimicry and keep it in an immortal state.]
[I found a way. Surprisingly simple. When it tries to transform, attack it. It's in an amorphous state, so it won't die, but the attack interrupts the mimicry process, slowing and reversing its progress.]
[Calculated the appropriate timing. Attack every 30 minutes to keep it in an amorphous state.]
[Day 2, no abnormalities observed during observation.]
[Day 3, no abnormalities observed during observation.]
[Day 4, no abnormalities observed during observation.]
[…Day 10, the subject died. It was in the amorphous stage, not the mimicry stage. I thought it was supposed to be invincible in the amorphous stage?]
[Reported to the captain, and he insisted on finding out the cause, so I have to investigate. He said he'll provide a few more captives since there's no subject to observe. Everyone is learning how to make deer traps from me because of this. I'm glad to have found a new hobby.]
Natalie's Journal ends here.
Given the terminology used and Natalie's situation described throughout, it was easy to deduce that she was a soldier. She seemed familiar with forests and hunting, probably a hunter. The journal overall had a mad scientist vibe to it.
"A hunter…"
How coincidental. Didn't Leonardo once tell a story about a huntress who overcame her fear of it by carrying around the skeletal remains of her deceased husband?
'Then this Natalie person. Isn't it possible she's the same person Leonardo knew when he was Leovald?'
The story he told back then was quite detailed for something he might have overheard by chance. It's likely he was recounting the story of someone close to him. Besides, a hunter who resisted and survived multiple encounters with those things is hardly an ordinary person.
Maybe she was scouted because of her skills back then. It's just a fragmentary guess, but this Natalie person doesn't seem like an extra by any means.
Perhaps I should subtly confirm it later. Anyway, it seems I have gained a better understanding of that thing from this. It's fortunate to learn something new.
Even in an amorphous state, which is supposed to be inherently immortal, it can die. I really want to know how that works.
Since the journal was numbered (#001), there must be subsequent entries like journal 2, 3, 4, and so on, which can be found somewhere. For now, it's not a curiosity I can resolve immediately. It can't be helped.
***
And the next morning.
I went downstairs in a groggy state, yawning widely. Leonardo was already up, as usual. Vittorio was also up and was about to leave, saying he was off duty, but I managed to convince him to stay for breakfast. The two of them followed me into the kitchen.
Today, I need to make enough for eight people, including the guests. In such cases, a large-quantity dish like curry rice or bone broth would be… What curry in a fantasy world? Let's make stew again. Considering Leonardo's appetite, I should prepare for about ten servings.
I sliced some bread and put it on plates. I made a hearty and mild stew with chicken broth and root vegetables simmered gently, and paired it with a refreshing salad dressed with a bit of lime syrup mixed with honey.
Vittorio was curious about the lime syrup flavour, so I gave him a little. As soon as it touched his tongue, he grimaced and said, "Too sweet and bitter," his face scrunching up. Seeing that, Leonardo and I shared a quiet laugh.
At that moment, there was a rustling sound from the stairs as the henchmen came down.
Seeing them, I was startled, my mouth dropping open as I asked, "Goodness. What on earth happened to you all? Did you get caught up in a fight last night or something? You all look terrible!"
I felt Leonardo glancing at me with a very ambiguous expression from right next to me, so I subtly moved and stepped on his foot.
Tsk. Can't you see I'm working hard for the big plan right now?