(the new deal is: for every 69 power stones 1 extra chapter!)
Under the moonlight.
Shane and Frieren walked side by side.
Fern had packed up so food and gone back to the inn first to feed Stark.
Only the two of them were left on the street.
Villages in the Northern Lands were a little different from those in other places. Almost every household here had tall courtyard walls.
That small world enclosed behind those walls.
For many ordinary people, that was their entire plain, orderly life.
The night breeze stirred a plum blossom branch peeking over the wall. Pink petals drifted down, landing at Shane and Frieren's feet.
"Why do you think Sein won't accept our invitation?"
Frieren reached out and caught one of the petals, then looked up at the plum tree trapped inside the courtyard wall.
"I just feel that the Sein right now is a lot like back when I was hiding in the forest."
"After Flam died, I traveled alone for many years, trying to regain the feeling of traveling with my teacher. But the farther I went, the more boring it felt. There has never been anything in this world that stays unchanged forever. Especially for humans. In just fifty or a hundred years, everything becos different."
"The thing I wanted to find again had already stopped existing long ago. Just like what you humans often say: [At this point...]"
"So I can understand how Sein feels. [At this point, what aning is there in setting out on a journey again?] He's probably thinking sothing like that..."
Hearing Frieren's explanation, Shane rembered the scene from when he had first t her, when the young elf girl had stopped in front of the statues of the Hero Party.
The companions who had once defeated the Demon King together were gone. The hero and the priest had both passed away. The dwarf lived in seclusion. Only Frieren remained, wandering from place to place, traveling alone.
Back then, she had stood before the statues of her companions with a blank expression. Even though she was on a bustling street, it had felt as if her whole being was still sowhere deep in the mountains.
That loneliness of seeing one's companions depart while being the only one left behind in the world.
That hesitation and uncertainty of being trapped in place, afraid to take another step forward.
The Sein of today and the Frieren of that ti were so painfully similar.
"Then let give him a push! I even managed to invite you back then, so I'm pretty confident in my eloquence."
"Wasn't it because you promised to provide travel funds that I agreed?"
Hearing that, Shane waved his hand grandly. "That's not important."
"What matters is that even an old elf over a thousand years old can bravely start a new journey. A re thirty-year-old young man definitely won't lack that bit of courage either."
"Old elf..."
Frieren caught the key phrase.
Shane quickly laughed it off. "Uh, little elf. Little elf. Didn't Kraft say it? You're still just a baby elf."
As he spoke, he raised his hand, wanting to pat Frieren's head.
But Frieren slapped it away without the slightest rcy.
"Stinky old hag... old elf... You and Stark had better not think I'll forget."
Shane was speechless.
Why was this old fellow's resentful stare getting more and more like Fern's...
The moon climbed high into the sky.
The inn was quiet.
The lights in the next room had already gone out. After confirming that Frieren and Fern were asleep, Shane quietly slipped out of the inn.
"Ah!"
The mont he stepped outside, he ran straight into a suspicious-looking figure.
Looking at the enormous battle-axe in front of him, Shane rubbed his aching shoulder with a grimace, his face full of helplessness.
"Stark, why are you sneaking around in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?"
"Shh! Don't be so loud. If Frieren and Fern find out, we'll get lectured again."
"I already heard about it. Priests are a very rare profession, so we have to find a way to invite Sein to join the party." Stark's eyes were filled with a warrior's thirst for a healer. "I already asked around. He spends every night drinking at the tavern, so I'm planning to go straight to him."
"You're not an adult yet. You can't go to a tavern," Shane reminded him.
"I'm not going there to drink. I'm going there to find Sein."
As he spoke, Stark glanced at Shane. "What about you? Aren't you afraid Fern and Frieren will be unhappy if you go drinking in the middle of the night?"
Shane smiled smugly.
"That's where you don't understand. Fern's acceptance of alcohol is surprisingly high. Back when she was with Heiter, Heiter once taught her that alcohol is the king of all dicines. So she won't get angry."
"...You're joking, right? How could a priest possibly teach soone that?"
Stark looked completely unconvinced.
The two chatted like this as they arrived at the small tavern.
It was a very ordinary country tavern.
There were not many people inside.
Shane spotted Sein behind a card table at a glance.
Sein also saw Shane and Stark. With a cigarette in his mouth, he raised the wine cup in his hand toward Shane. "What a coincidence, my two [life saviors]. Want to play a round of poker?"
Stark was shocked.
"Alcohol, cigarettes, poker... Is this what a priest is supposed to look like?"
Shane, however, found it very familiar.
He sat down directly at Sein's table.
After all, he had lived with Heiter for several years. This level of behavior was nothing.
"Sure."
Sein: "..."
Shane's calm attitude surprised Sein sowhat.
"You're not shocked?"
"Shocked by what? Your forr Archbishop Heiter was just like you."
"Huh?"
This ti, it was Sein's turn to be shocked.
"You must be joking. Archbishop Heiter was such a kind person. He funded the orphanage in the village, and before, he would co here every few years to visit. How could such a devout priest possibly be like ..."
"If you're planning to use that reason to invite to beco an adventurer, then save your breath. I already heard everything from my brother. My answer is the sa as it was ten years ago. I won't leave this village."
So guarded...
Shane raised an eyebrow, casually drew a card, and held it in his hand. "Who said I ca here to recruit a teammate? I'm just here to play cards."
Stark still wanted to say sothing, but Shane stopped him with a look.
The timing was wrong. No matter what they said now, it would be pointless.
Better to farm so favorability first.
The atmosphere in the little tavern gradually grew lively.
Relying on [Great Luck], Shane swept the entire table. Every round was winner-takes-all, beating Sein so badly that he nearly quit his gambling addiction on the spot.
"There are only four face cards and two jokers in a deck, and they're all in your hand. How is that reasonable?"
"Another straight? And it's a straight flush!"
"How can you even win every single high-card comparison without losing once?!"
Amid Sein's wails, a friendship between n quietly grew without anyone noticing... Of course, as for whose perspective this [friendship] ca from, let's not worry about that for now.
At noon the next day.
Shane dragged Stark into his room.
Based on last night's battle results, he had thought of a new way to rapidly raise Sein's favorability.
No healer could resist the temptation of a critically injured teammate. So, if you want to catch a healer, you have to bait him with a child!
Stark: "..."
"Relax. It's only a tiny little sacrifice."
As he spoke, Shane brought out a large steaming pot of [Cream of Mushroom Soup].
Stark instantly understood what Shane ant.
"You want to get poisoned so Sein will co treat ..."
"My child, you've gotten smarter."
"I refuse!"
"Be good. Nothing bad will happen."
"I don't believe you!"
"Co on. You can't catch a healer without baiting him."
"Then why does it have to be ?!"
Fern stood outside Shane's room. Just as she was about to raise her hand and knock, the voices inside froze her in place.
What was going on?
Were they arguing?
Seeing her stop there, Frieren looked a little puzzled too. "What's wrong? Weren't you going to call Shane out to eat with us?"
As she spoke, she was about to step past Fern and push the door open.
Right at that mont.
Hurried footsteps sounded behind them, and Sein rushed over anxiously.
"Sothing happened in the village!"
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