I was told by Diepser to bring him the Sage’s horn.
With the small vial I received in hand, I walked towards the inn, wondering what to do. Fortunately, I managed to avoid making a contract, but perhaps this was an opportunity. No, that’s not right. Demons are kind to those who are weak. They’re probably trying to exploit my weakness. Besides, there’s no guarantee that I’ll get any reliable information.
Should I tell everyone? But I don’t want to make a big deal out of it. They’re enjoying themselves as it is, and I don’t want to burden them with any more worries. I should go alone. If I can get help, I’d like to get assistance from that sage.
I gently opened the inn door. Inside, my companions, tired from playing, were sleeping soundly. I quietly returned to bed so as not to wake them.
“Where have you been?”
Two eyes glowed in the darkness. I almost fell out of bed in surprise.
“I-I mean, well…”
As expected, I couldn’t fool Sharin’s eyes. I knew her sharp intuition would notice. There was no point in lying here. I decided to tell Sharin the truth.
“I met Diepser. He said there’s a sage living in the south, and I should bring him the sage’s horn. I got this sleeping potion from him.”
“A horn? Does this sage you speak of have a horn? In any case, it doesn’t sound like good news. You haven’t made any more strange contracts, have you?”
I told her about being threatened with the contract I made before.
“I can’t help it. For the time being, let’s go meet him tomorrow.”
The next morning, I told everyone about my plan to go meet the sage. Naturally, everyone looked like they didn’t understand. Nina tilted her head, crossing her arms.
“By going to meet this sage, we’ll know where to go next?”
“Not necessarily, but it’s about all I can do right now.”
When I said it was information from Diepser, Nina’s face grew even more stern. We looked at each other, bewildered about what to do.
“It’s dangerous, so there’s no need for everyone to go. Sharin and I will go. It’s better to be less conspicuous with a smaller group.”
“But it’s outside the town, isn’t it? That means there might be wild animals. I’ll go with you.”
Thinking about it, she was right. I don’t know what kind of animals are on this continent, so I need to be careful. Therefore, we decided to leave Pauline, Lauren, and Veronica behind and set off with the remaining members.
“By the way, do you even know where the sage is?”
“Um, he said south of the forest.”
Nina sighed deeply at my answer.
“South? That’s so vague, we don’t know anything! Aren’t you being deceived?”
“For the time being, let’s just buy a map of the surrounding area.”
Following Sharin’s calm suggestion, we bought a map at a nearby bookstore. Of course, it didn’t have “Sage’s House” carefully marked.
“South, how far do we have to go? It seems there’s another small town after going a while, but it looks like forest all the way. The east side seems quite prosperous.”
The town extended to the east, and as we moved away, the buildings gradually decreased. On the other hand, the south side didn’t have many prominent buildings drawn. It looked like dense nature once we went outside.
“Well, we have no choice. We just have to take a chance.”
