Volume 1 Chapter 10 The Anger Of The Beloved Disciple
After my conversation with Ms. Terra.
I thought it was about time Rose would arrive, so I decided to wait in front of the guild.
I stepped outside and started looking around.
I couldn't find Rose, but I noticed a small crowd gathering on the town street.
"...What's all the fuss about?"
Curious, I walked over there.
I weaved through the sparse crowd, getting closer to the center, and soon the scene became clearer.
Standing a little away from the center, I tried to get a better look...
"Eh..."
There was Rose, the very person I was waiting for.
Since it was almost time for our meeting, I wasn't surprised she was nearby.
But I never expected she was the one drawing a crowd.
And it seemed she wasn't alone in the center; there were 3 other people with her.
All of them were women, or rather, girls.
Rose looked a bit intimidated, facing them as they half-surrounded her.
It seemed like the 4 of them were the reason for the gathering, but what on earth made people come together like this?
"You're still hanging around this town? You're really persistent, aren't you? You should just give up being an adventurer and go back to the countryside."
"..."
I heard that voice coming from the gap in the crowd.
One of the trio was throwing those words at Rose.
The atmosphere felt pretty tense.
"What's going on? Is it a fight between adventurers?"
"I heard that trio suddenly started bothering the red-haired girl. Then, when she said a little something back, it turned into an argument."
I caught snippets of conversation from the crowd.
So it wasn't Rose's fault; it was those 3 who started it.
I didn't know what they were talking about that led to this argument.
But their voices were still ringing loudly.
"I think you know you don't have any talent, right? Even after all that time 'working with us,' you haven't grown at all. Do you still think you have what it takes to be an adventurer?"
From what I can tell from their words, these kids seem to be former party members of Rose.
The girl with the long golden hair, who's acting all tough at the front, is probably the leader of the group.
She's throwing aggressive words at Rose to intimidate her.
By the way, I heard from Ms. Terra earlier that Rose was trying to go back to her old party.
But she was completely rejected, and seeing her heartbroken, Ms. Terra stepped in to help.
Could these people be the ones who rejected her?
"I'll tell you, you useless one. No matter how hard you try, talentless people can never rise to the top. Everything you're doing now is just a waste of time. Hurry up and pack your bags, go back to the countryside, and grow some wheat. That would suit you better, all muddy and dirty."
"..."
Hearing those insults, the two followers laughed loudly.
Meanwhile, Rose stood there, tears in her eyes, unable to say anything back.
Seeing her sad expression, I found myself stepping out from the crowd without thinking.
"Rose has talent."
"Huh?"
I jumped into their conversation, speaking up for Rose.
The 4 of them, including Rose, turned to me in surprise.
I didn't want to stand out too much, but I couldn't just ignore this.
Even though I didn't know her well yet, it felt wrong to leave her like this.
"...Who are you? What's this useless person to you?"
"I'm Rose's..."
I hesitated when the blonde girl asked me.
What should I say I am to Rose? I thought for a moment, but nothing came to mind, so I turned to Rose for help.
"Um, what am I to Rose?"
"Huh? W-well, that is..."
Rose started to respond but tilted her head in confusion.
"W-what am I, really?"
"Hey, what should I even say?"
"Hmph, don't mess with me! You just barged in here, what do you think you're doing?!"
Maybe because the atmosphere got disrupted all of a sudden, the blonde girl raised her voice in anger.
I couldn't find the right words to describe my relationship with Rose in just one sentence, so what can I do?
But finally, I thought of something that sounded about right, so I shot back at the blonde girl.
"I'm on Rose's side. Nothing more, nothing less."
"On her side? Oh, I see. So, Rose, you're just clinging to this guy because no one else wants you at any party? How pathetic."
"..."
The insults toward Rose kept coming.
It seemed like she had a strong dislike for her, but before I could even think about why, the blonde girl spoke to me.
"And you really have no eye for talent either. Teaming up with someone so useless. I guess you just liked the looks and agreed, huh? Your taste is pretty bad."
"Well, it's not like we formed a party or anything..."
Explaining this is such a hassle.
It seems like this girl thinks Rose came to me for help and that we formed a duo.
But really, I'm just helping her grow.
Since it felt like a pain to make excuses, I decided to just say what I wanted to say directly.
"Anyway, Rose has talent. What you're saying is wrong."
"Hah! Don't give me that loser talk! She's been an adventurer for a year and is still level 3! Can't use skills or magic, and her divine blessing ability is bottom tier. If you can't see that, then maybe you're just a third-rate adventurer with no talent either. You should probably get your eyes checked before the flies start buzzing around..."
While the blonde girl was ranting away, surprisingly, Rose, who was supposed to be behind me, stepped forward.
She cut in between me and the blonde girl, trying hard to glare at her with a fierce look.
Receiving that unexpected gaze, the blonde girl was momentarily taken aback, but she quickly frowned in annoyance.
"...What on earth are you thinking?"
"Y-you can say whatever you want about me. But..."
Rose took a deep breath, as if she had made up her mind, and spoke to the girl with a serious voice.
"I absolutely cannot allow you to insult my precious benefactor!"
"..."
The 3 girls widened their eyes in surprise.
I was just as shocked, staring at the red-haired girl with wide eyes.
I never expected the usually calm Rose to show such passion.
It was also a big surprise that she defended me by calling me her precious benefactor.
"Apologize."
"Huh?"
"Apologize to Mr. Roezé!"
Rose was complaining to the blonde girl in a strained voice.
But deep down, she was probably scared, as her hands were secretly trembling.
The blonde girl, initially frozen by the unexpected reaction, eventually let her anger take over, veins popping on her forehead.
"What do you think you're doing...! How dare you talk to me like that, you crybaby Rose...!"
"──!"
Rose's face twisted in fear.
But she never looked away.
She faced her opponent head-on.
The tension in the air made me think the blonde girl would strike, but instead, she continued to mock Rose.
"Hah! Fine, I don't mind if you apologize to him."
"Eh..."
"But if you do, you have to prove that my words were wrong."
Everyone wondered what she meant, and the blonde girl continued.
"We have a promotion exam in a week, and we're taking it. So you should take that exam too. If you can level up to rank 4, then that means that guy's judgment was correct. If that happens, I might consider admitting I was wrong and apologize."
Rose has the talent of an adventurer.
To prove that, she should take the promotion exam.
Indeed, leveling up would be the best proof of her adventurer talent.
"But in return, if you can't do it, you all have to apologize to us."
"Eh?"
"Sorry for talking back, but if you can't level up, you should just bow your head and apologize. It's only fair punishment for going against me when you have no talent, right?"
The blonde girl wore a creepy smile on her face.
Her 2 friends giggled along with her.
On the other hand, Rose was taken aback by the sudden suggestion and froze, unable to respond.
"Or what? Is it that talentless Ros-Ros is too scared to even take the level-up exam properly?"
"...!"
Rose gritted her teeth in frustration, but still couldn't find the words to reply.
She probably didn't have the confidence to pass the level-up exam in a week.
It's understandable.
She had only just leveled up to 7 during yesterday's training, but her skills were still at a beginner level.
It seemed too early for her to move up from a rank 5 adventurer to a rank 4 adventurer.
However, being provoked in front of everyone and not being able to say anything back must have been incredibly frustrating for her.
So, not that it was my intention, but I spoke up for Rose.
"Alright, let's do it this way."
"Huh?"
"If Rose can rank up to 4 in the exam next week, you'll agree to her request. If she can't rank up, then Rose and I will listen to your request. Does that sound good?"
The blonde girl looked shocked, her eyes wide open.
She seemed to be in disbelief at my words.
"Are you serious? Do you really think this useless girl can rank up to 4?"
"It might be tough as things stand, but if she gains strength by then, it's not impossible."
"'By then'? In just one week?"
"We have a whole week! That's plenty of time. I'll make sure Rose passes the level-up exam."
"──!"
I didn't mean to provoke her.
But maybe she felt offended, as she shouted back with fierce anger.
"Enjoy your confidence while it lasts! You better not back out of our deal by the exam day! Don't even think about escaping from it!"
With that, the girl disappeared into the town with her friends.
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