Desserts and Bandits

Two days after leaving Stonebridge Town, the road grew wider and smoother. They were drawing ever closer to the Royal Capital, and by their estimate, less than two days of travel remained.

It was nearly noon, and the sun was beating down. The party rested beneath a giant banyan tree, each eating a simple meal of dry rations while sheltering from the scorching sunlight.

Frieren nibbled at a piece of rock-hard bread, but her gaze kept drifting toward the Royal Capital, a barely noticeable longing in her eyes. She finished the last bite, brushed the crumbs from her hands, and turned to Lowell, who was resting beside her with his eyes closed.

"Lowell," she called.

Lowell opened his eyes and looked at her. "Hmm?"

"We're almost there," Frieren said.

"Yeah, about two more days."

Frieren fell silent for a moment, idly twirling a lock of silver hair around her finger. She lowered her voice a little. "...I hear the mille-feuille at Honey and Elf is good, and the strawberry tarts at Moonlight Terrace are famous too."

At that, Lowell gently hefted the somewhat shriveled purse at his waist with his fingertips. A few copper coins clinked inside. "We don't have much left... for the journey. That Automatic Potion Mixer magic tool you bought last time cost quite a bit." He paused. "We'll have to see if there are any suitable commissions along the way."

Frieren's gaze slowly drifted away from Lowell, as though the sunlight had gotten in her eyes, and settled on Ruby, who was hopping around Himmel and talking to him. Her gaze was calm, with a barely perceptible hint of calculation.

She stood and walked at a leisurely pace toward the others up ahead.

"Ruby," Frieren said, her voice neither loud nor soft, just enough for the little red-haired mage to hear.

"Hm? Lady Frieren, what is it?" Ruby turned around, a lingering smile on her face.

Frieren looked at her, no emotion visible in her green eyes, and stated plainly, "We're almost at the Royal Capital."

"That's right! There's sooo much delicious food there!" Ruby's interest was immediately piqued, and her emerald eyes sparkled.

"I remember you mentioning that a serving of mille-feuille at Honey and Elf costs two silver coins," Frieren said, as if in passing. "The strawberry tarts at Moonlight Terrace seem to be even more expensive."

"Yes, yes! They're so delicious..." Halfway through her sentence, Ruby suddenly grew wary. Like a little animal guarding its food, she clutched the small purse embroidered with Cecilia Flowers at her waist, her face full of conflict. "L-Lady Frieren... m-my spending money... I'm almost out for this month too... I promised you a strawberry tart, nothing else..." She hesitated, then opened her purse a crack, revealing the few silver and copper coins inside.

Frieren bent down slightly and leaned closer, a very faint, sly smile appearing on her face as she lowered her voice. "What a pity... I just remembered there are some advanced techniques for Flower Field Magic, like making flowers change color with your mood... It seems someone isn't interested?"

Ruby held her breath at once, her eyes going round. Advanced! Changing colors! The words seemed magical, striking right at her weakness. She looked at Frieren's face, so close to hers, then thought of her empty purse. Her little face scrunched up as she wrestled with herself.

"Y-you..." Ruby's little face turned bright red. She pointed at Frieren, her finger trembling slightly. "That's extortion! Blackmail! Lady Frieren, you're so mean!"

Could you call a mage's business extortion? It was...

Frieren straightened up, planted her hands on her hips, and raised her chin slightly. Deliberately drawing out her words, she put on an even more "wicked" smile and imitated a line she had heard somewhere, deliberately drawing out her words. "Hehe~ Can't be helped, grown-ups are dirty~ If you want to learn something, you have to pay a price~"

Watching from the side, Himmel couldn't help chuckling. He shook his head, his eyes full of an "I knew it" look. Lowell also sighed helplessly, though a faint, indulgent smile touched his lips. Heiter was less reserved; his booming laughter startled the birds from the tree. "Hahaha! Little Ruby, it seems your magic tutor is a shrewd merchant too!"

Even Eisen, who was usually expressionless, looked at Ruby, who seemed on the verge of tears yet utterly conflicted. The muscles of his rocklike face seemed to twitch almost imperceptibly, and he silently turned his head away.

Seeing Frieren acting like a "wicked grown-up," Ruby flushed bright red and clutched her purse even tighter. "Y-you... how can you do this?! Lady Frieren, you're a meanie! There's only a little... really only a tiny bit of Ruby's secret savings left..."

She was angry and anxious, and stamped her little foot on the ground. In the end, her desire for magical knowledge won out over her reluctance to part with her money. As though making an enormous decision, she opened her purse with trembling hands. "I-I can only give you a little... just a little, okay! Lady Frieren, you have to keep your word..."

Just as she was preparing to part with her money and count out a few silver coins—

"Halt! I planted this tree, and I built this road! If you want to pass, leave the toll behind!"

A rough shout came from the woods beside the road. Immediately afterward, more than a dozen fierce-looking burly men in worn leather armor jumped out, wielding an assortment of weapons, and blocked the way. Their leader was a burly man with a gleaming bald head and a large, rusty cleaver slung over his shoulder. Having shouted the classic line, he swept his gaze over them with what he thought was a menacing look, while his underlings screeched behind him, trying to create a fearsome atmosphere.

The bandits imagined the ordinary-looking group of travelers before them wetting themselves in terror and dropping to their knees to beg for mercy.

But the panic they had expected failed to appear.

Frieren merely gave them an indifferent glance, then looked back down at the silver coins Ruby had yet to hand over, apparently weighing whether to continue extorting her little apprentice or deal with the source of the noise first.

Lowell yawned, then, as though something had occurred to him, his eyes brightened slightly.

Himmel rose gracefully and brushed the dust from his clothes, his face wearing a politely helpless "what a bother" expression.

Heiter stopped laughing and scratched his head, looking at the bandits with eyes full of sympathy.

Eisen didn't even pick up his weapon. He merely glanced at the uninvited guests as though they were stones by the roadside.

Ruby was in the middle of "losing money," and the sudden interruption made her temper flare. She glared at the bandits, her cheeks puffed out and her emerald eyes practically spitting fire.

An eerie silence fell over the scene. The bandits felt like clowns on a stage, while their audience showed no reaction at all.

The bald boss was a little embarrassed. He waved his cleaver. "Hey! Scared stiff, are you? Hand over your money and valuables! Or don't blame us for getting rough!"

Just then, one of the bandits, an underling in a battered hat who looked a little more quick-witted, cautiously leaned close to the bald boss's ear and whispered, "B-boss, something's not right... Look at them: there's a swordsman, a priest, an elf, a dwarf, and two people carrying staffs. One of them doesn't look like much... but that lineup looks like a proper adventuring party! And there are two mages! They look... like they're not to be trifled with..."

"Really?!" the bald boss asked gruffly. His bell-sized eyes swept over Frieren and Ruby again, as well as the apparently valuable staffs in their hands. Suddenly, he slapped his forehead as though a realization had struck him. "I hear mages are all rich! They must have valuable magic tools on them! All the more reason to rob them! Get 'em, boys! Focus on those two mages!"

The battered-hat underling's face fell at once, an expression of "Was that what I fucking meant?!" on his face. He quietly edged backward and began considering what position he should surrender in later.

On the adventuring party's side, everyone's expressions grew even more complicated when they heard the bandit leader's peculiar line of reasoning.

Frieren finally took her eyes off the silver coins and looked at the bandits. For the first time, something resembling... "curiosity" appeared in her emerald eyes? She tilted her head slightly, as though pondering the logic behind these humans' thinking.

Ruby, meanwhile, was so angry that her little face had turned bright red. She hugged her purse tightly to her chest and shouted at the bandits, "You bad guys! Don't even think about getting your hands on Lady Ruby's... or Lady Frieren's purse!"

Himmel stepped forward, his hand on the hilt of his sword. He still wore that smile as refreshing as a spring breeze, but his tone carried a hint of authority that brooked no argument. "Gentlemen, leave now, and no one will get hurt."

Heiter chuckled and flexed his wrists. "Just as well. A little exercise will help me digest."

Eisen silently gripped the handle of the battle-axe on his back.

Lowell smiled and said to Frieren, "Looks like you won't need to extort the little girl after all."

"Hmm..." Frieren said, tightening her grip on her staff as well. Looking at the bandits, who were still shouting as they charged forward, she added:

"Make it quick. The sun's a little hot, and I want a sundae."