CH 23.2

In truth, Count’s guards were more than enough to keep his daughter safe from any danger, so he was not really looking for a higher ranking individual. He actually wanted to look for someone close to his daughter’s age, so meeting Litty was an unexpected surprise for him.

De Mile convinced himself that, although Litty was a Rank 5 adventurer, she was also a girl close to his daughter’s age and could be trusted.

De Mile returned the adventurer’s card and said, “About this job, my daughter wants to go sightseeing in the town by herself. As a parent, I am a little sad that she doesn’t want me to accompany her, but for her happiness and also to let her experience the outside world, I agreed to let her do this tour once in a while. However, she is still a noble, so you never know where some unscrupulous person could be planning to attack her.”

“Yes. So, you want me to protect your daughter?”

“That’s right. What do you think, Maamu?”

At her father’s urging, the Count’s daughter, Maamu, bowed lightly to Litty, who subconsciously returned the bow with the same motion. After the formal greetings, Maamu immediately followed with her introduction.

“Nice to meet you, I am Maamu. Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to accommodate my selfish desires.”

“Hi, I am Litty. I will do my best to escort and protect you for today.”

“Maamu-sama! I’m here too!”

Suddenly a new person joined them. She was a beautiful-looking woman with long shiny blue hair tied into a single knot.

Litty was intrigued by the new arrival, who was supposed to be her colleague and certainly a senior member of the group.

Name: Natasha

Gender: Female

Age: 23

Rank: 2

Main Job: Magic Swordsman, Magic Fighter

Jobs Mastered: Magic Swordsman, Magic Fighter, Swordsman, Magician

“Rank 2?!”

“In case you’re wondering, I’m a senior, so you’ll have to respect me accordingly.”

Without needing to be told, Natasha was instantly the object of respect in Litty’s mind.

Maamu snuggled up to Natasha. From her movements, it was clear that Natasha was dependable. However, Litty could not understand why another escort was needed.

“You can leave it to Maamu to decide where to go, but avoid the places that are not so nice. Well, in this town, you don’t have to worry about that…” (Count)

“Okay! Then you two, let’s go to the fresh produce market right away!” (Natasha)

“I thought Maamu would tell us where to go…?” (Litty)

Litty’s question was valid, but Maamu was not opposed to the idea, and was even looking forward to it.

Seeing this scene, Litty felt that an escort’s ultimate goal was to become someone who could be relied on.

Litty was currently a stranger to Maamu and she had no intention to try to befriend her.

For her, being a good escort was more important than anything else.

***

“Maamu-sama! We are far from the port town, but we have fresh fish here! It’s all thanks to the cold magic stone!”

“Wow! They have dead eyes!”

Litty had been to this area a few times before doing Rank 6 requests.

Maamu, who grew up as a young lady, behaved like an excited child who had never visited the market before, which was very unusual for her.

As per Litty’s observation, Natasha didn’t seem to be on the lookout. She wondered if this was the right thing to do as an escort.

“Natasha-san, what kind of fish is this?”

“This? Umm, this… this is a salamander.”

“It’s a shogun fish, Natasha-san. Unlike a salamander, it has more gills and its scales are of different sizes.” (Litty)

“Litty-chan… that, that’s what I was going to say.”

Maamu’s eyes lit up as Litty corrected Natasha’s sloppy answer.

Seeing Maamu’s attention shift towards Litty and also being corrected by someone younger than her, Natasha’s mouth twitched slightly in annoyance.

“Litty-san, you know a lot. Are you a fish doctor?”

“Uh, well, I’ve handled a lot of foodstuff recently, so I know a thing or two.”

“That’s great! So, do you know what this is?”

“That’s a swordfish. It has many blade-like spines, but this one has been pre-cooked.”

“A fish like that existed!?”

“Well, then, where to go next.”

Natasha plopped one hand down and called the two of them over.

She next led them to a butcher shop. Various meats, large and small, were displayed or hanging from the ceiling.

“Maamu-sama, that meat belongs to a demon called Burst Boar. It is a Rank 4 demon that builds up magic power at the tip of its nose, then rushes forward, and explodes.”

“Scary! How could such a demon’s meat be in here?”

“It’s all thanks to people like me and the other excellent adventurers. Ah! Is this Blast Bear meat? This is Rank 3!”

“Rank 3!”

‘How about that, this time I was definitely better than you’ was clearly reflected in Natasha’s eyes as she looked at Litty, but Litty wasn’t even paying attention to her.

Litty was fascinated by Blast Bear’s meat, as if she was devouring it with her eyes alone.

“Natasha-san, are Blast Bears really that tough?”

“Eh? Well, yes. If you get caught by its hands, an explosion accompanies it as an added bonus. It’s like a superior version of the Burst Bore.”

“Amazing…. Natasha-san, I’d like to hear more about it.”

“Heh? Ah, okay…”

Natasha, who was half-jokingly teasing her junior, became amused when she saw Litty’s reaction.

The number of people with a sparkle in their eyes increased to two.

“Natasha-san’s stories are really exciting! I’d love to hear again about the time you defeated The Invading Mottled Head monster!” (Maamu)

“I am happy to hear that but we have already talked about it dozens of times.” (Natasha)

However, Maamu couldn’t stop herself from saying excitedly, “It was a Rank 2 Named monster with a long torso that was capable of destroying entire forests of trees!”

Feeling shy, Natasha immediately tried to stop Maamu, “There is no point in telling this story when you already remember its every detail.”

“No, it is a real gem for me. That information could help me reach my dreams!” (Litty)

Litty mentioned in an excited tone.

Natasha was thrown off by her excitement, but she didn’t feel bad about being respected by a younger colleague.

At first Natasha couldn’t understand why De Mile hired another escort, with her skills, she alone was more than enough for this job.

However, the sight of Litty’s worshiping gaze made her glad of the outcome.

“Fufufu, Litty-san is interesting!”

“I’m interesting?!”

Natasha was pleased to find a little escort like Litty, who was beyond her expectations.