Volume 1 Chapter 18 Return Of The Valkyrie
The next morning.
I was worried about Rose and her mother, so I couldn't sleep well.
Because of that, I felt a bit tired, and the morning sun coming through the window felt brighter than usual.
Even though I wanted to go back to sleep, my anxious feelings took over, and I wandered around the house restlessly.
"...I wonder if Rose is okay."
She had already awakened as Valkyrie.
In terms of skill, she had grown to be on par with a top-ranking adventurer.
And it turned out she had potential abilities that surpassed even a hero.
But she hadn't become strong in her heart yet.
If that curse-breaking request hadn't been completed, and her mother's curse hadn't been lifted...
What if my predictions were wrong, and her life had already been taken by the curse?.
Could her heart really withstand that?.
Those bad feelings kept nagging at me, making my heart uneasy.
At that moment, suddenly──.
*Knock, knock, knock.*
I jumped at the sound and quickly rushed to the door, placing my hand on it.
"Rose!?"
When I opened the door with a burst of energy, there stood...
"...Sorry, it's not your beloved Rosie."
"..."
With her brown hair and dressed in a vest and shirt, it was Ms. Terra from the guild.
I wasn't exactly disappointed, but I let out a sigh and slumped my shoulders.
Thinking I should at least say something back, I threw out a casual comment.
"...Ms. Terra, you're plenty lovable too, so I'm happy."
"Eh!?"
Joking around, I headed back to the living room.
As I tried to invite Ms. Terra inside, she was strangely biting her lip with flushed cheeks.
"...Seriously, don't say random things out of nowhere."
Muttering her complaints, Ms. Terra stepped inside.
I wondered what brought her here so early in the morning, and as if sensing my curiosity, she spoke up.
"I was wondering if Rosie was here, so I came to check on her. Well, since it was just yesterday, I didn't really expect her to be back."
"Even now, Rose can't just go back and forth between town and the village in just one day."
Ms. Terra knows this, but she must be feeling uneasy, which is why she came to check too.
I even thought, when the door was knocked, maybe Rose had come back.
Ms. Terra looked just as worried about Rose.
"I mean, with everything going on with her mother, is it really okay for her to just run off to town like that? I'm worried about a lot of things."
"I think Rose is tough enough that she won't get into serious trouble over little things, but you never know what kind of weird stuff she might get caught up in."
"So, what, is that dark circle under your eyes because you couldn't sleep worrying about Rosie?"
"...Yeah, kinda."
I instinctively hid my eyes.
Ms. Terra gave me a playful grin, teasing me about it.
"But I guess if she's not here, she might still be in the village over there."
"...No matter the outcome, I think that's true."
Whether or not her mother's curse-breaking worked, or if it failed, there's probably a lot for her to do over there.
It makes sense that she'd take a while to come back and report.
She'll probably come back by carriage, so we should wait a bit longer.
Ms. Terra seemed to understand that too, and since she stopped by before work, she decided to leave the house soon.
"So, if Rosie shows up here, let me know, okay?"
"Sure. It would help if you could let me know if she comes by the guild too."
So, that was a short exchange, but that was the end of my talk with Ms. Terra.
She was heading off to her guild work, so I walked her to the entrance to see her off.
Then...
*Knock, knock, knock.*
The door was knocked on again.
Just as I was about to see Ms. Terra off, we both jumped in surprise.
Feeling a bit anxious about who it could be, I cautiously opened the door...
"R-Rose!?"
Standing in front of the door was a worn-out Rose, looking completely exhausted.
She was out of breath, and her clothes were splattered with mud.
Seeing Rose in such a ragged state, Ms. Terra rushed over immediately.
"A-Are you okay, Rosie!? Did you not take a break...?"
"I-I just wanted to report to Mr. Roezé and Ms. Terra quickly..."
It seemed like Rose had made the journey back on her own 2 legs, just like she did on the way there.
I couldn't help but stare at her in shock.
No matter how strong she had become, this was just too reckless.
She had covered a distance that would normally take 3 days by carriage in just half a day, and she did it without resting.
It was no wonder that even Rose, who had exceeded her limits, was completely worn out.
With tears in her eyes, she told us what she had been so desperate to share.
"My mother is okay. The curse has been lifted."
Overcome with joy, Rose collapsed into Ms. Terra's arms, tears streaming down her face.
Ms. Terra, feeling the emotion, also started to tear up and gently stroked Rose's head.
Eventually, Rose thanked Ms. Terra and turned to me, bowing deeply.
"Thank you so much...! Really, thank you...!"
"...If you're going to thank someone, it should be the Curse-breaker who lifted the curse."
I hadn't done much.
I had only covered the cost of breaking the curse.
"But if Mr. Roezé hadn't paid for the curse-breaking, my mom would..."
Still, Rose kept expressing her gratitude.
After a moment, it seemed like she had calmed down enough to voice a question that had been on her mind.
"How did Mr. Roezé have such a large sum of money?"
"Oh, that's... um..."
As I pondered how to respond, another voice chimed in.
"Well, that's because he was part of the hero party."
"Eh..."
I was taken aback by the shocking revelation.
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