Chapter 232: Princess 'King' Maker 2
TL/Editor: Raei
Schedule: 5/Week Mon-Fri
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By accepting the princess's request, our hero party came to support the princess in the name of the Goddess.
Grace, who climbed into the carriage, threw me a question, her voice filled with worry that even the clatter of horseshoes couldn't hide, seemingly troubled by this part.
"But Roland, is it really okay for us to so casually involve ourselves in this?"
"Hm, what do you mean?"
"Supporting the princess, in other words, doesn't that mean we're making enemies of the two princes?"
While Han Se-ah readily accepted the quest without intending to refuse, it seems the scale of the matter is too large for Grace, who is after all a country girl.
Well, she's not even aware that she's reached the higher levels of skill, so what can you expect?
There's a reason I described it as more of a nuisance than dangerous.
"It's not to the extent of making enemies. The political types won't show their teeth too much."
"Really? Why's that?"
"Well... because we're all high-level adventurers and a hero party."
In a world where supernatural abilities like mana exist, those with power inevitably receive respect.
High-level mages can receive treatment similar to low nobility or enter the royal court to gain titles, and even adventurers, if they exhibit enough aura and skill, can become knights.
Moreover, we are recognized by the temple, and though it was given by the princess, we hold a royal token.
If they were to send assassins after us openly, it could lead the temple to doubt the royal family's leadership qualities, and if a few zealots went mad, they might declare heresy and start a holy war.
Unless the first and second princes are complete idiots who would ruin the country, they shouldn't directly harm us.
And with a saint candidate in our party, assassination?
That's unlikely, and even if one of the princes ascends to the throne, a massacre like purging all nobility not on their side would be hard to happen as long as the Goddess is around.
But they might still be a nuisance.
"If they become a nuisance, would they try to hinder us?"
"Rather, they might pretend to help to share the glory. If we solve it completely, it all goes to the princess's fame, so they'd try to help just to claim a part of it."
In short, it meant they could steal the final blow.
But that's been the case so far, so it shouldn't really matter.
After all, competing with NPCs in a time attack is a major gimmick of Heroes Chronicle, so nothing much changes.
"Ugh... politics is complicated."
"It's more about dealing with bothersome people."
"I wonder if Hanna anticipated all of this and accepted it straight away? Hanna and Roland, you both seem so impressive..."
No, that person just...
I couldn't bring myself to speak ill of the only person who could pull me out of this game world, so I changed the subject.
Grace's preparations would be taken care of by Han Se-ah, and as for me, as long as my body is in one piece, today is truly a day for rest.
Not taking a break and indulging in luxury with the amassed gold coins from conquering the tower wouldn't be too bad either.
Maybe buying formal attire in case we mingle with nobles or enjoy gourmet dining at a high-end restaurant in the noble district.
"Let's end the tough talk here and maybe browse the market for a change. Is there anywhere you'd like to go?"
"I heard from the maids that a new restaurant opened recently. How about we check it out?"
While I was engrossed in the internet, it seems our friendly archer had become friends with the maids.
I hesitated for a moment at the chaos, and Grace, who had walked ahead, turned around with wide eyes.
As an archer sensitive to her surroundings, it seems she can't be fooled by distractions.
I turned off the hologram screen after one last look at Han Se-ah, trying to settle her karma for skipping the story thoughtlessly.
Maybe a stern talk from me, tonight or tomorrow morning, would help her survive.
But since we've come out to the market for a date, I can't just call a carriage back to the alchemy workshop where Han Se-ah might be.
Seeing Han Se-ah getting hit with money every time she grinds an alchemical ingredient, it doesn't seem like she would be in a bad mood.
With that thought, I followed Grace into the bustling market streets.
"Hey, isn't that the adventurer lady from that time? Take this!"
"Wow, Roland! Or should I say, hero, now?"
Having stayed at the 35th floor, visited the royal palace, and stayed in a mansion recently, I hadn't had much reason to wander the market streets.
A fruit vendor lady, whom we had helped during the full moon wolf incident, crammed apples into Grace's arms, and a middle-ranking adventurer we often saw at the bar acknowledged me, using the greeting as an excuse to down his drink.
The fact that I was proclaimed a hero hadn't spread widely, but it seems I gained some fame after spreading money with my name during the full moon wolf incident.
"What's this, Grace? You're more famous than I thought?"
"Ah, ahaha- Maybe because I often came to the market when helping Irene. But aren't there more people recognizing Roland?"
"Well, I practically gave up on tower conquering and lived in bars for years."
Exaggerating a bit, perhaps half the city's drinkers have met me in a bar.
In this place, unlike a modern city where you can buy beer in convenience stores, if you want to drink, you end up gathering at an inn.
Thanks to that, there were quite a few men who claimed to be my fans after drinking with me.
Grace, arms full of fruits and sweets, and a skewer vendor, drunk and closing shop, handed me various skewers.
Without Han Se-ah, our usual inventory manager, this kind of thing becomes inconvenient.
Famous individuals who've also helped others, a handsome man and a beautiful woman, and having taken care of orphans with Irene, the temple's mascot, it seems our group has unknowingly completed a sort of reputation quest while I was absorbed in the internet in my room.
"Should we take these to share for dinner? Or maybe put them in Hanna's inventory to eat at the tower?"
"We'd still have leftovers even if we shared. Shall we pack some food from the restaurant the maids mentioned and head straight there?"
"That sounds good. It was given to us to eat, so we can't just throw it away. Next time, we should just refuse them."
Thus, our date, so to speak, of walking through the market streets inadvertently turned into a collection round from the stalls.
Even for ordinary citizens, not just adventurers, the noise from the temple must have cemented the perception of us as great and kind people.
Carrying bundles of fruits, skewers, and freshly made pane pasta from a newly opened restaurant, the fact that Grace couldn't stop smiling made me think it wasn't so bad after all.
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Raei Translations
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"Hanna, come here and sit down for a bit."
"Eh."
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*not a mistake, the chapter ends like this.
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