The Porter Is Not Interested in the Hero Party

37 – 5th element (10)

The shovel was inserted vertically and split the mountain in front of me in half. I sat down in front of the round tomb, wiping the sweat from my forehead and touching the bottle.

[dog graph]

I remembered that he said that alcohol was quite expensive in the kingdom. The delicate fragrance flowing through the bottle was showing off its value. Right now, in front of the graves of the nameless people, I touched the bottle and was lost in thought. I was going to return to the Empire and use it, but since the Kingdom and the Empire entered into negotiations, the day when this drink would enter the Empire would be far off.

Rather than rotting away in my bag, it might be an honor for the sake of drinking to become a Jeju for the deceased here. I thought so and opened the bottle and scattered it roughly towards the grave. The soil that had been hit with alcohol turned dark brown, then it was sucked up and regained its color.

He thought about the half remaining liquor while shaking the bottle roughly, then tilted it at an angle to pour it into his mouth.

“Can I take a sip too? You seem to be drinking expensive alcohol.”

I heard Ashria’s voice from behind my shoulder. Who wouldn’t be in this town now, she stumbled along with a very tired face. If I and the warriors did the hard work, the priests including Ashuria were in charge of mourning the way of the dead and offering the last prayers.

The sadistic and violent Ashuria I usually thought of was a kind cleric to the dead.

“I don’t have a cup.”

I handed over the bottle and said.

“it’s okay.”

Ashuria said so and poured out the bottle she received from me. I wondered if I was drinking it all alone, so I tilted my head to the point of impatience, pouring in the drink, and handed the bottle to me while wiping my lips. Compared to the movement of twisting her neck, there was still quite a bit of alcohol left, and Ashuria looked at the grave with a frown on her face.

“These are people who have no connection. I heard that there are many places where entire families were killed because they were unable to evacuate.”

“It is a terrible tragedy.”

I said that and poured out the drink. They say that expensive alcohol has an unusual taste, but it seemed like a lie. The liquor tasted stale and bitter, with a subtle fruity scent, like water in which fruit was washed.

I frowned and talked to myself.

“I bought it because it was expensive… … .”

“Once you get used to the taste of that tree, they say you can’t find anything other than that drink. There is a story that if you eat it with sweet snacks, you will feel as if you are in the forest.”

“I didn’t know that Ashuria-sama enjoyed drinking. We’ve had a few drinks, but aren’t you always quiet?”

I don’t think I’ve ever seen her pass a drink so nicely or talk about it as she does today. Ashuria would set the mood for a drinking party, but she never took the initiative to talk about alcohol or say that she liked alcohol. The relationship between her and alcohol was similar to the distance between an ordinary follower and a heretic inquisitor.

“I don’t like it. But, at times like this, don’t you want to eat something bitter?”

‘At times like this’ was an expression that could be represented by countless graves and hammered shovels. I nodded and drank the rest of my drink. In the meantime, Ashuria drew the sign of the cross on her chest, then knelt on the floor and prayed.

It reminded me of how she took off her shoes and measured the pulse on the assassin’s neck, saying that she didn’t want her shoes to get dirty. I said to Ashuria.

“Ashuria.”

Ashuria finished her prayer and rose from her seat. He shook off the straw and dirt from his knees, stretched himself, sat down next to me again, and answered.

“Why is that?”

“Will you pray like now in the land of the people of the Empire?”

Ashuria tilted her head as if she was asking something like that.

“Of course. The death of the people of the Empire is also death.”

“So, even if there is a great sinner among the people of the Empire, will you pray for his death?”

“Even if you are a heretic, I can pray for you, but I can’t give you a definitive answer because I can’t fathom the grievous sin you are talking about. God is fair, but I, acting on behalf of his will, am ashamed to say that I am not a perfect and fair being.”

“okay.”

I nodded. I didn’t say more because I didn’t want to continue this story. In the sudden silence, Ashuria looked at my expression and added.

“If a situation absolutely requires my prayers, I am willing to do so. We are a team, aren’t we?”

I laughed at that. It was because I didn’t expect Ashria to say such soft words. When I laughed out loud in front of the grave out of nowhere, it was Ashria who was taken aback. Fortunately, the sound didn’t spread too far, so no one saw us.

Ashuria looked around and said.

“It is in front of the grave.”

“…sorry. It just makes me laugh.”

The atmosphere changed with laughter. Ashria spoke again in a calm tone.

“What are you going to do after you catch the Demon King?”

“I am thinking of building a farm or something. A farmer who caught the Demon King. Isn’t it cool?”

Ashuria looked over my whole body at my words, then shook her head and said:

“It feels like a waste.”

“A strong body should be used for farming. What could be more productive than farming?”

“For example, there is a church chastiser. The work is small, but it pays well.”

I didn’t bother to ask. Just by hearing the name, I thought I could understand why Ashuria brought up the topic of such a job. But Ashuria would not allow me to hide my curiosity.

“Aren’t you going to ask what your job is?”

“…..I’m not curious.”

“Nuns and priests who believe they have sinned often volunteer to be punished in order to reflect on their sins and repent. With a whip for these people… … .”

It was a story I didn’t want to hear anymore. Ashuria had the characteristic of revealing her s*xuality and freaking me out when I thought I was a good person. As I shook my head, Ashuria began to laugh herself.

It was a very small voice, but I could tell that she was smiling at the grave with her mouth wide open. I couldn’t help but shake my head and be a little taken aback when I saw her smile. She laughed lightly for a while, then shook her head and said.

“It was a joke. Either way, I wouldn’t recommend doing that. It’s a job with severe mental stress and a high turnover rate, so how could you make a party member do that?”

“ah… … . Was it a joke? I thought you were serious.”

“I thought you seemed weak, so I tried to cheer you up. How, are you a little more motivated now?”

“Thanks to that, I was refreshed. You seem to have forgotten the taste of the drink you just drank.”

“I’m glad you said it was tasteless alcohol. thank me.”

Saying that, Ashuria robbed her seat and stood up. Then he patted me on the shoulder and said.

“I am not saying this now, but we will have to face many deaths in the future. Do you, who was always bright, have to be so droopy? You are the only one who can give comfort to the hero.”

A gentle hand pointed at me. It seems weak to pleasure and pain, but on the other side, a hand with a warm heart for the poor and weak reached out gently toward me. I said holding her hand tightly.

“All right.”

****

Millet was the last to say goodbye to the graves of those who had been struck by magic stones. Millet, who did an excellent job of monitoring the surroundings with the archers, prayed in front of the tomb, shedding tears, and the people whispered to each other as if seeing an elf shed tears for the first time.

“What, elves shed tears?”

“You also pray for the dead?”

“Look at that. I am truly sorry.”

It seemed more strange to them that the elf shed tears than the fact that the hero had prayed for them and the villagers. I asked Lena in a low voice.

“Don’t elves usually do funerals?”

said Lena.

“I don’t know if the other elves I saw were outliers. According to him, when elves die without a will, the person who owns that person’s things first becomes the owner. I heard that after distributing all of them except for the cost of selling the grave, they will draw lots to decide who will bury the body.”

“uh… … . Um, that’s unique.”

Because Millet was praying next to me, I couldn’t bear to express myself. The hero was also looking sideways at me and Lena with a complicated expression, but he just lowered his head as if he couldn’t say anything in this atmosphere.

“Huh… ! black… ! Poor… … !”

And it was true that after hearing about the elves, I was curious about Millet.

What kind of education did Millet receive among those elves to become a relatively sensitive and kind elf? Who taught Millet?

The funeral was over at a time when no one answered and no one could ask questions. Each of the bereaved families shared their sorrow and got on the trolley, and we also got on the wagon. The warrior who stood in front of the tomb until the very end stroked Millet’s head while holding the hem of his clothes.

“Let’s go back. Everyone.”

It was time to go back.

to the kingdom.