On the way back to the tavern, Leo followed behind like a tail that couldn’t be shaken off.
“I say, Maid… cough, Ailiya, right?” Leo leaned in, lowering his voice and speaking with feigned mystery.
“I saw the trick to that move you just made. Although it wasn’t as flashy as my fireball art, it actually had some merit in practical combat—ouch!”
In his eagerness to talk, he tripped over a stone by the side of the road.
Ailiya didn’t even turn her head; she simply added a tag to Leo in her system notes: **[Sticky Plaster]**.
***
At the entrance of the Wind Moon Tavern.
The boss, Sise, was leaning lazily against the doorframe, a long, slender lady’s pipe held between her fingers. Pale smoke curled in the morning light.
When she saw Ailiya returning with a cart full of goods and a completely unharmed Bella following behind, a hint of relaxation flickered in her eyes, which seemed capable of seeing through people’s hearts.
But immediately afterward, her gaze fell upon the tagalong Leo and his colorful face.
Sise arched an eyebrow, a playful smile playing on her lips. “Oh, if it isn’t little Leo? That’s quite a unique look… what, did you upset your Mother again?”
“Nonsense! How could that be!”
Leo jumped as if someone had stepped on his tail.
Pointing at his swollen eye socket, he puffed out his chest and announced loudly, “This is a medal! It is a mark of battle! A testament to a man’s courage! I was wounded for the sake of justice!”
“Justice?” Sise looked at Bella, who was still trembling slightly. “What happened?”
Once she was back in the safety zone, Bella’s taut nerves finally snapped. With a crying voice, she babbled out the encounter in the alley.
“Waaa… Boss, you have no idea. Walker and those three thugs were so terrifying. They blocked us in the alley with knives. If it weren’t for… if it weren’t for…”
Bella gestured incoherently, just about to point at Ailiya, when a golden head suddenly squeezed between the two of them.
“Cough… cough, cough. If it weren’t for my brilliant application of tactics—first using powerful magic to intimidate the scene, then using my physical body to endure and exhaust their stamina, before finally letting Ailiya go in to harvest the battlefield.”
Bella’s mouth hung open as she looked at this young master who had been kicked around like a ball on the ground just moments ago. For a moment, she didn’t even know how to refute such a shameless statement.
Sise was stunned for a second, then her gaze shifted between Leo’s frail physique and the silver wolf girl who was casually moving beer barrels nearby.
“Oh my, I didn’t expect the young master to be so heroic. To protect my employee, you actually dared to face three thugs alone? My, my, that is the character of a knight.”
Leo had originally been worried that Bella would reveal the details of him being beaten until he was looking for his teeth on the floor, but he hadn’t expected the boss to be so understanding.
He immediately straightened his back, ignored the pain in the corner of his eye, and put on an ‘it was nothing’ expression, waving his hand with feigned humility.
Suppressing a smile, Sise looked past Leo toward Ailiya, who was moving beer barrels with a cold, indifferent face.
As someone who ran a tavern in a chaotic district, Sise knew exactly what Walker and his gang were made of. Although they were just thug mercenaries, they had seen blood.
Leo could intimidate them? Only if he hit their hands until they were sore using his face.
Coupled with the faint, lingering scent of blood and the sharp aura surrounding Ailiya that hadn’t quite dissipated.
The truth was self-evident.
Sise blew out a smoke ring and continued to feed Leo’s ego with a smile. “It seems we’ll have to rely on the great Mage Leo for our safety in the future.”
“That’s easy to say, easy to say! As long as I’m here, no one dares touch the Wind Moon Tavern!”
Leo was so bloated with praise that he felt like he was floating, completely immersed in the fantasy of a hero saving a damsel in distress.
When Ailiya passed Leo while carrying a beer barrel, she paused.
She tilted her head, her ice-blue eyes scanning the bragging youth from head to toe.
There was no anger in her gaze, nor any refutation.
There was only the kind of care one might show to a mentally challenged child.
She let out a soft huff, said nothing, and walked straight past him.
‘It works out perfectly. This can help hide my strength and reduce unnecessary trouble.’
‘As long as the rewards are in hand, it doesn’t matter if this fool takes the empty fame.’
This silent contempt was more piercing than any words.
Leo’s smile froze on his face, his complexion turning a deep red.
Sise had been observing Ailiya’s reaction the entire time.
In this day and age, there were many capable people, but young people who were both capable and could keep their cool without fighting over petty status were far too rare.
“Alright, you girls have had a scare. Go inside and rest.”
Ailiya nodded, picked up the last barrel of ale, and headed inside.
“Hey! Wait for me!”
Seeing that the two had finished talking, Leo, who had been left out to dry, immediately followed like a big wolf tail.
***
Behind the bar.
Sise lowered her voice, blew out a ring of smoke, and looked meaningfully at Ailiya, who was wiping her hands.
“Good skills, little girl. Walker might be trash, but he’s not someone a loudmouth young master could handle.”
Ailiya didn’t stop wiping her hands, her tone flat. “It was just luck.”
Sise smiled, then suddenly changed the subject, leaning forward with a hint of seriousness.
“To be honest, are you interested in changing your way of life? Join my adventure team. You’ll earn more than wiping glasses and serving plates here, and it has a better future.”
Ailiya paused. She turned around and looked at Sise.
‘Join an adventure team? That low-efficiency mode that requires socializing, cooperation, and splitting loot?’
For a solo player, that was a very low-yield choice.
Moreover, what she needed now was a safe location to explore the rules of this world, not to rush out and court death.
“No need. This job suits me well for now. As for the future… I have my own plans.”
Sise looked deeply at her, seemingly reading the independence and detachment in the depths of her eyes.
‘This little wolf has a wild nature that hasn’t been tamed. She won’t be easy to keep.’
“Fine, to each their own. However…” Sise winked. “As long as you’re here, I’ll look out for you. Of course, if you ever change your mind, let me know anytime.”
“Thank you.”
Ailiya nodded slightly and turned toward the hall, preparing to start work.
Just as she took two steps, that familiar voice rang out again.
“Maid! Beer!”
Leo had already found a seat. He slapped the table and shouted, “Bring me a cup of your best ale!”
It was still early morning.
A few mercenaries who had been out all night sat in the hall, reeking of alcohol.
“Hey, did you hear that just now? That kid said he took care of Walker?” one mercenary with a missing front tooth whispered.
“Hehe, and he’s alone now without any guards. He probably snuck out again.”
“That’s the Marquis’s spawn. Don’t go killing him.”
“Don’t worry. The old method: bag him, give him a beating, and strip him of everything valuable. No one will ever know. We’ll just fly far away.”
The group’s conspiratorial whispers were kept extremely low, drowned out by the noisy background of the tavern. An ordinary person would have been unable to hear them.
But behind the bar, as Ailiya wiped the glasses, her pair of silver-white wolf ears twitched slightly.
***
Over the next few days.
That blonde youth who always kicked the door open and shouted for the most expensive ale suddenly vanished.
Word was that not long after leaving the tavern that day, he was bagged in a nearby alleyway.
While his life wasn’t in danger, no one saw the process. All they knew was that he was eventually carried back by the patrol team.
It was said he kept rambling about “failed magic” and a “despicable sneak attack.”
The Marchioness was furious. She not only grounded her son but also sent a squad of guards to search the city for the perpetrators.
As for the mercenaries who had plotted in the tavern that day, they had long since fled upon hearing the news, slipping out of the city overnight to hide in the nearby forest without leaving a trace.
This morning, a brand-new bounty notice was posted on the tavern’s bulletin board.
Ailiya walked over and read the content with interest.
**[Heavy Reward]**
**[Capture the culprit who attacked Leo Castian. Bounty for information: 10 silver coins. Bounty for capture: 20 gold coins.]**
This bounty was enough to buy a full set of Excellent-grade Assassin equipment.
She turned around and looked at Sise, who was doing accounts behind the counter. For once, she took the initiative to speak.
“Boss, I’d like to request a leave of absence.”
“Hmm?” Sise looked up, somewhat surprised. “To where?”
Ailiya folded the bounty notice and tucked it into the pocket of her maid dress. For the first time since arriving in this world, a heartfelt, pleasant smile appeared on her face.
“To go fishing.”
20 gold? For collecting trash? Good loot!