Chapter 79 – New tenants
While the leader of the assassins cried with his tears streaming down his face when he realized he was that idiot, Sue had removed her disguise and was flying back to the giant tree.
“It looks like those four are not after the little brat. After spending a day worried about it, it actually turned out to be a false alarm.” Sue made her conclusion after reflecting on it. The reason was simple. If they really came for the purpose of assassination, they would have attacked her when they saw the prince’s appearance. Since they did not react to his looks, she thought they were naturally harmless…… The only thing that she did not know, was that there were still morons in this world……
“Meow~” The white tiger who turned into the giant versions was following behind her and complained sadly. It was unhappy over the fact that she had left it behind while she interacted with them.
“Fine, fine, when the four of them reached the center of the forest, you can play with them.” Sue patted the tiger’s heard, then added another reminder: “But the four of them are not enemies, do go overboard!”
“Meow, meow~”
“Ah right, go and inform blackie-bro to get the magical beasts to leave them alone!”
“Meow……”
Ignorance was bliss, said the world.
The four assassins would not have imagined that their idiocy had saved their lives. While they regretted and pushed deeper into the forest according to the map, they would occasionally wonder why they had not encountered any high ranking beasts. However, this small doubt would instantly be replaced with regret and emotional distress—
[[[[Damn it! It was the little prince! I feel like crying……]]]]
They reached the giant tree area as if they were walking in a dream. When they reached their final destination, they were still mired in sadness.
“Where is this?!”
“I’m not sure….. But this place looks familiar.”
“What a huge tree…..”
“Wow…… The air is really fresh here.”
“Tree?! Look, isn’t that the Tree of Life described the Adventurer Guild?”
“!!!”
This good news allowed everyone to recover a little of their senses, and the four of them brightened up with excitement.
[[[[We reached our destination! Where the little girl…… No! Where’s the little prince?!]]]]
They dusted their sleeves and pounded their fists. The humiliation made everyone angry and they surveyed the surroundings to search for him. However, they did not discover the little boy that should be there, but a little girl who was busy raising a fire to cook a pot of soup. Perhaps it was the commotion that she made, when the little girl finished preparing, she turned her head and looked at the four of them. She was initially surprised, but quickly greeted them: “Do you want some soup?!”
“……” The four assassins were speechless.
The target changed from the prince to the little girl then back to the prince again. When they finally reached the tree of life, they saw the legendary girl…… The four of them felt like they were being played for fools by someone.
By whom?! Who the heck would know, maybe it was fate?!
Just what the heck did they came for……
Their morale was severely damaged after the events. It was best to have done things in a single attempt instead of trying over and over again. The only consultation they had was passing through the forest uninjured…….
[[[[Eh?! Come to think of it, we didn’t seem to encounter even one higher ranked Magical Beast……]]]]
“Little girl, are you the only one here?!” The leader decided to negotiate after thinking it through. At least, it was good to settle things clearly. However, when he tried to go closer to her, he felt that he dared not to approach this place…… This area was rejecting him?
“There were some people who were here but they are gone now. I’m the only one here at the moment, but I’m not sure if that’s the case for the future.” Sue thought for a while: “Who are you looking for?!”
[Gone already?! When?! Wait, we just met the little prince……] The leader was shocked.
“I heard there were many people staying here before I came to the forest?!” He asked.
“Yup, they left this morning…… The you over there, the soup is going to be ready, do you want some?!”
“Uhh, no thank you.”
“Okay.”
“……”
After ten minutes later, the little girl was drinking the soup in satisfaction, while the four of them were going crazy…… That was it?! Why did she not continue to talk to them and started ignoring them?!
That feeling felt horrible and the leader probably did not think he could count on the little girl to be capable of normal socializing, so he decided to try and hit on her again: “About that….. Little girl, can you tell me if there really isn’t anyone else staying here?!”
“I don’t think so, are you looking for someone in particular?!”
“…… I guess so.” The leader suddenly felt like he was really foolish. She was just a little girl, and even if she lived here, how much capability would she have?! It looked like he had to find the little prince by himself……
When he was thinking about what to do next, the little girl suddenly spoke: “How long do you plan to stay in the forest?!”
“Uhh, about…..” The stay depended on how long the search for the prince was going to be. It would be best if they finished the mission today and leave immediately. However if they could not find him, he would not discount the possibility of staying for a while…… The leader did not feel much confidence in the future.
“I can help you set tents up. Each person will need to pay 1 gold coin every day. This does not include meals or hot water, but I can guarantee that you wouldn’t get harassed by magical beasts…… Do you want to camp here?!”
“Erm?!”
“That means to say, you need to pay an administration fee if you want to live here….. Do you really think it’s that easy to enter the Magical Beast Forest?!” Sue smiled and snapped her fingers, and the four men heard something move above them. When they turned their heads up to look, they saw a black panther that was clearly a higher ranked magical beast smiling at them……
“!!!”
[[[[Has the world gone crazy?! Where the hell did you send us, dad!]]]]