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“You want to come with me? … Sure, why not¹.”

Merc agreed with Totoara’s request.

“Really? Is it really okay for me to come?”

Totoara felt perplexed, unable to believe what Merc had said. Merc deduced from her expression that she had risked everything to ask her.

“Yea. Our destination is the same after all. You’re free to come as long as you can keep up with my pace. Although, based on how well you kept up with me from Ende, despite me being pretty fast, you shouldn’t have any trouble doing so.”
“But we just met today… Aren’t you suspicious of me?”
“Are you asking whether I’m worried you’re going to attack me or something, Miss Totoara? If that were the case, you would have already done so when I purposely provided you opportunities previously, and I didn’t sense any animosity from you while you were following me, so I assume having you join me wouldn’t be a problem.”
“I see… So you trust me.”
“… You could say that.”
“Thank god.”

Totoara said, placing her hands on her chest. After finding that Merc trusted her, she appeared to be pretty relaxed.

It’s preferable for her to be where I can see her rather than following me. This allows me to better understand her motivation.

Merc, on the other hand, didn’t fully trust her.

Totoara’s concealment skills were extremely honed. Merc would find it hard to detect her, unless she purposefully searched for her Mana. This meant she’d have to keep a constant eye on her surroundings, which would exhaust her.

Having Totoara by her side, on the other hand, alleviated that need. Merc would only need to be careful when sleeping if Totoara was by her side, but she would still need to pay constant attention if she wasn’t, thus this worked out perfectly for her.

Merc could also activate Mana Hardening while sleeping if Totoara was camping with her. After all, as long as her opponent wasn’t as strong as Rosemary, no one would be able to break through it.

And if Merc believed Totoara was a danger to her at any point during their journey, she could just ditch her. Furthermore, Merc would only be able to discover Totoara’s genuine personality if they traveled together.

“In that case, thank you. And you don’t need to call me miss. Just Totoara is fine. Our ages don’t appear to be that far apart, so there’s no need for formality, as far as I can tell.”
“Are you sure?”
“Of course. In exchange, is it okay if I continue calling you just Merc as well?”
“Sure.”

Both girls continued on their way after finishing their chat. Despite the wood road being quite rugged and not an area where people would normally pass through, Merc and Totoara moved forward at a rapid pace.

When Merc turned around to see how Totoara was doing, she was surprised to find that Totoara was keeping up with her without difficulty. She even had the leisure to look around her surroundings.

She’s amazing. Adventurer candidates these days sure are something else.

Merc had no intention of being condescending, but she was taken aback by Totoara’s abilities.

After all, most adventurer candidates during her time as Estert had been slightly stronger than an average farmer and lacked any skills. Nowadays, in order to become an adventurer, one would need to be at least as strong as Totoara.

“Is there something wrong?”

Totoara inquired, noticing Merc’s gaze on her.

“I-It’s nothing.”
“I see. Oh, by the way, Merc. Do you use that wooden stick to fight?”

Totoara asked, shifting her gaze towards the wooden stick on Merc’s hip.

“For now that is. I’m thinking of buying a proper sword sometime in the future.”

Merc responded, her hand resting on her wooden stick.

Merc had nearly forgotten that the weapon around her waist was nothing more than a simple wooden stick with a smidgeon of lead in it because she’d been wielding it for so long. When Merc thought about actual fighting, she realized she’d need a good sword.

However, given that Merc was able to apply a high level of Mana Hardening to her weapon, any conventional weapon would be nothing more than a mirror image of her wooden stick.
　
If she had to replace her weapon, she’d prefer something similar to what Jonahim and Elea were wielding. Something with a unique effect.

If I only had those two…

Merc was referring to her old swords, which she had previously used.
　
The swords, on the other hand, had perished alongside Estert in the fight against the Falgaro. Merc was unlikely to see them no matter how far she traveled.

“So, what weapon do you use, Totoara? From what I can see, you don’t have anything on you.”

Merc was the one to ask this time. To be honest, she had been a little curious for quite some time.

Totoara’s Mana was superior to that of most humans. However, it wasn’t enough for Merc to regard her as a magician. And unlike Jonahim and Elea, she didn’t appear to be wearing any armor.
　
She was simply dressed in a tight suit around her body and didn’t appear to be a fighter at all.
　
Rather, the way her clothes enhanced her physique made her appear alluring, and people could easily misinterpret her occupation as one of that nature.

“Me? I use this.”

Totoara replied, digging through her garments for a bit before pulling out a hidden small knife. The knife’s broad handle gave it a distinctive look.

“A knife huh… So you’re an assassin.”
“Hey! I’m quite sensitive about that topic, you know!”
“R-Really? I apologize.”

Merc apologized quickly. Totoara, on the other hand, just smirked and stuck her tongue out.

“Just kidding. It’s something I’m well aware of. Imagine a man approaching me solely to have his way with me, and then I whip this out and kill him. I’d seem like a true assassin wouldn’t I? Hehe.”
“I-I guess you’re right. I’ll be careful.” Merc said as she moved away from Totoara.
“Huh? What do you need to be careful about?”

Totoara inquired, genuinely perplexed. However, if she discovered the reason, it would almost certainly lead to Merc’s demise.

“A knife is a fine weapon in and of itself, but are you going to be okay with only that? Adventurers are more likely to fight Magic Beasts than humans. You won’t be able to puncture through a Magic Beast’s skin or reach its vital organs with a knife in some instances.”
“Huh?”

Totoara had never considered such a thing before. But then she only smiled, as if to dismiss Merc’s misjudgment.

“That may be so. However, I’ve spent a long time honing my skills with it, and I intend to continue using it even when I become an adventurer.”
“That’s a good way to go about it I guess.”
“Oh, by the way…”

Following that, the two girls continued on their journey, chatting about trivial stuff².

Totoara was happily babbling on the one hand, while Merc was merely nodding and carefully observing her.

1. Robinxen: Science isn’t about why!
2. Robinxen: Trivial stuff like murder.