Chapter 09 - Megane-kun Asks About His Sister

"I know it's sudden, but do you two know each other?"

Roloberu and the girl don’t seem particularly concerned about each other. They’re likely fellow adventurers, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re close.

"You’re really late to ask that."

"Yeah. I wasn’t interested at all."

"You should be! Interested! Ah, so that’s why you just run away from people without a care!"

Since that’s entirely accurate, I have nothing to say in response.

Besides, the only reason I asked now is because Roloberu and the girl are sitting together despite being outsiders to each other.
I just wondered if they were comfortable discussing personal matters in front of someone unrelated.

"We’ve never worked together, but we at least know each other’s faces and names. Especially her—she’s pretty famous."

Roloberu answered in place of the girl, who was still fuming.

"Her name is Laila. Not long ago, she came to the royal capital after going through the Selection Ceremony, just like you."

Huh. So—

"She has the ‘Talent for Magic’?"

"Yep. That’s why there was a scramble among adventurer teams to recruit her. That’s how she got famous."

Ah, got it. So that’s why she seems weak.

Basically, she’s a rookie adventurer who can use magic.
Before her "Talent" was confirmed, she probably lived as an ordinary villager without any special training.

No wonder she’s weak—suddenly becoming a mage means her skills and experience haven’t caught up yet.
"Mages are rare. Having just one in a team completely changes how they operate. She had no shortage of offers."

Well, if even a country bumpkin like her gets a chance to serve in the capital, she must be that valuable.

"So, I ended up choosing ‘Dawn’s Blackbird,’ where Horn-neesama is."

Hmph.

"That’s impressive."

"...That’s the most emotionless praise I’ve ever heard."

Can’t be helped. Whether she’s a mage or not, Laila’s got nothing to do with me.

"Alright, now it’s Glasses’ turn."

Huh?

"Me? What am I supposed to say?"

"You’ve got business with Horn-neesama, right? What kind?"

Laila shoots me a sharp look, like she won’t let any lies slip.

I don’t really wanna say we’re related.
If Horn messed up, I might get hit with "the brother’s equally guilty" or "as her brother, take responsibility."

"In short, we’re acquaintances."

"And in two words?"

"Acquaintances from the same village."

"Be more specific?"

"Eh? Specific? Uhh… I was asked by her family to check on her—acquaintances from the same village."

I’m not lying. I just didn’t say I’m family.
Either way, that’s all I can say. This much is enough for an outsider.

As long as Laila gets that I know Horn and I’m not an enemy, she’ll back off.

"...This guy’s super shady."

"Really? I think he’s pretty honest."

"Don’t praise yourself."

With no one else here to vouch for me, I gotta defend myself. ...I do think I’m honest. People say it’s obvious when I’m not interested in something.

"Hey, you really know her, right?"

"Yep."

More than just "know"—we’re blood-related.

"Okay… Just checking, but from the sound of it, you don’t know Horn-neesama’s current situation?"

"Not a clue. She left the village two years ago and hasn’t come back once."

When I answered, Laila’s demeanor shifted.

Her carefree air vanished. After a moment of serious contemplation, her gaze sharpened like she’d made a decision.

"If you’re looking for Horn-neesama, you’ll probably hear about it eventually. So I’ll tell you now."

For a second, I thought, Ah, I don’t wanna hear this.
The way she’s acting, it’s clear my sister’s done something.

...Well, might as well listen. If it’s dangerous, I’ll just bolt.

"Horn-neesama has a massive debt."

Ah. That kind of story.

"What’d she do? Punch some noble? Throw someone’s sword away? Or just eat expensive stuff everywhere? Oh, got it—compensation for breaking something, right? Got scammed? That stuff happens a lot in the city, huh?"

"W-wow. You got real talkative all of a sudden."

Well, duh. It’s interesting. And if it’s bad enough, it might fall on our parents, the village—or even me.

"To put it simply, she commissioned ‘Dawn’s Blackbird’ for a job. The fee for that became her debt. And joining ‘Blackbird’ was to pay it off."

...A commission fee? So not reckless spending or damages.

"What was the job? How’d it happen?"

"A village got attacked by monsters. But they were poor, so the reward they could offer was super low. As a result, no adventurers would take it.
The kingdom was bogged down in paperwork and couldn’t act fast. They urgently needed someone strong to show up right then.

And, well, Horn-neesama happened to be there and spoke up."

.........

"‘I’ll cover the full reward myself, so someone hurry up and go,’ she said. And that got accepted as an official commission."

...Ah. I see.

"So ‘Dawn’s Blackbird,’ one of the most famous adventurer teams, took action."

"Yep. A top-tier team from the capital moved fast. Thanks to that, the village’s losses were minimal. Some livestock died, but no people. By all accounts, the damage was as light as possible."

I see. So that’s the debt.
My sister’s got a big heart, as always.

"Makes sense."

Roloberu, sitting next to Laila, nodded in understanding.

"I’d heard rumors about Horn, but this is the first time I’ve heard the details."

Seems she knew Horn was in debt to the team too.

"But from what I heard, after the job, ‘Blackbird’ declared they didn’t need the reward."

Hmph. I see.

Who knows what the leader of ‘Blackbird’ really thought, but taking a huge sum from a fifteen-year-old girl after that would’ve hurt the reputation of adventurers as a whole.

Honestly, accepting it would have tanked their image.
Jobs that play up compassion and all that—profiting from them just backfires.

Still, I can easily imagine how Horn reacted after being told she didn’t have to pay.

"Did she say something like, ‘I’ll keep my word even if it kills me,’ and refuse?"

That’s just how she is.

"Ah, you do know her! Yeah, yeah, that’s exactly what she said!"

I can guess the rest.

"And she turned down any money from the saved village too, right?"

"Eh?! How’d you know that?! W-wow, fellow villagers really are…"

And that’s how she ended up with massive debt.
Knowing Horn, she probably swore not to return to the village until it was fully repaid.

Two years, huh.

...Hah. What an idiot. My sister is.

She’s a hopeless, ridiculous mess—but she’s still my prideful big sister.