Haige Town

Early the next morning, the three of them exchanged looks as they watched Hughes yawn nonstop.

"Elfman, wasn't it your turn to keep watch last night?" Mira couldn't help suspecting that Hughes had been the one on watch.

"Yeah! I even said good morning to you!"

Lisanna: (눈_눈)

Hughes glared back. "You little brat, what are you looking at? It's normal for an eighteen-year-old to have trouble sleeping at night, okay?"

"All right, stop it. Haige Town is just ahead, so let's hurry in!" Mira said.

In just two days, Hughes had fallen a great deal in her estimation. Even Elfman was more mature than him sometimes.

Haige Town was the first town they reached after leaving the mountains. With Elfman and Mira taking turns leading the way, the four of them never got lost and arrived without trouble at noon on the second day.

The clamor and commotion made Hughes feel as though he had returned to the world. People in this other world were terribly rude, though, always looking at him strangely and with contempt.

What was wrong with being shirtless? It wasn't as though he wasn't wearing pants!

Did they think he wanted to go without a shirt? What was he supposed to do when he had no clothes?

"Come on, let's find somewhere to buy clothes. Then we'll find an inn to wash up, eat, and get a good rest before setting out again!"

Hughes patted the bundle he carried, looking brazenly as though he had money to spare.

He had counted it: the villagers from Mira's village had given him a full 100,000 J.

How much was that? Magnolia was a prosperous town, yet a few years later, a month's rent there would cost just 70,000 J!

Elfman stood beside Hughes and tugged at his pants, wanting to speak but holding back.

Hughes knew what he was worried about, but this was something Mira had to go through. He reached out and patted the back of Elfman's head. "Don't worry about saving me money. We're going somewhere expensive."

He didn't think the people at those expensive places were all sensible. It was simply that there were fewer people there, so Mira wouldn't feel as much pressure.

But things seemed a little different from what he expected...

"Sir, this is an upscale establishment. Begging is not permitted here." The security guard politely stopped Hughes and the others at the door.

A flame rose from Hughes's palm. He wanted to use it to show that he was a wizard.

"Sir, wizards aren't allowed inside to beg either!"

"Don't tell me a wizard has actually gone in there to beg before!"

The guard smiled and nodded repeatedly.

Hughes: (°Д°≡°Д°)

What kind of wizard had so little dignity? They could have joined any guild and earned more than that.

Hughes left with Mira and the others, cursing as he went.

At an upscale inn somewhere...

"Sir, our inn caters to high-class guests!"

"I've got money! I'll pay extra!" Furious, Hughes dumped out a bundle of money.

"Give me your two best rooms!"

The receptionist stared at the thick pile of magic coins. She thought of her late father, who had raised her on these very 50 J and 100 J coins.

After growing up, she had never seen magic coins in such small denominations again!

She sighed silently and put the coins back into the bundle Hughes had placed on the counter.

Her fingers brushed over a spot on the bundle that Hughes had accidentally burned. Then she glanced at his bare upper body, and her heart ached for him even more.

How long would he have to beg to save this much money?!

"Sir, begging isn't easy. It isn't worth wasting so much money just to prove a point."

"I absolutely won't give you a room. That would be hurting you, and my conscience won't allow it."

"Security! Security! Throw this gentleman out!!"

Standing outside the grand inn, Hughes hung his head, clutching the bundle the receptionist had packed for him.

"Tell me, why is this happening?"

"Hughes, I've always wondered, where did you find money in such small denominations?" Lisanna asked curiously, standing in front of him. Her kind eyes felt glaring to Hughes.

"That's right, Hughes. I used to go up the mountain to chop firewood, then bundle it up and sell it to the villagers. Even they never gave me such small change!"

Elfman's words were like another knife to Hughes's heart.

"Honey, look! That beggar actually had the courage to have three kids. Can he even feed them?"

"Are you blind? Can't you see they're all grown up?" The woman passing by grabbed her husband by the ear, displeasure on her face.

"Even a beggar can feed three kids, but you can't even support me alone. How can you be so useless?!"

"But, honey, their hair is different..."

"Darling, are you saying...?"

"Oh, honey, I think I'm imagining all sorts of terrible scenarios..."

The couple passing by on the street "whispered" so loudly that Mira and her siblings lowered their heads in unison...

"Let's go! We shouldn't be here... we should be under the cart... no, I mean let's find another inn." The four of them trudged along with their heads down, making for a shabby inn they had glimpsed in passing.

"I really am eighteen!!"

"Ah, yes, yes, Hughes, you're eighteen!"

"Lisanna, you're sleeping on the floor tonight!"

"Hughes, I know I was wrong. Boo-hoo-hoo..."

The owner of the shabby inn did not look down on the four because of Hughes and welcomed them warmly, so Hughes splurged on two rooms.

He and Elfman shared one, while Mira and Lisanna shared the other. Altogether, it cost 5,000 J.

After getting themselves sorted out, the four went back out onto the street. Hughes was going to treat them to a meal and find himself some clothes while he was at it.

Going around bare-chested all the time wasn't an option... He wasn't some pervert who used Ice-Make Magic.

Although Hughes had talked Mira around and she was no longer as withdrawn as before, the crowds on the street still frightened her so much that she buried herself deep in her cloak. She had been too nervous to say a word since entering Haige Town and simply followed blindly behind the other three.

Hughes walked with his hands crossed behind his head. Shirtless as he was, he seemed more at ease than anyone.

"This one will do!" Hughes said, glancing at a rather ordinary clothing shop a short distance ahead.

The simple errand should have gone smoothly, but that changed when a strong gust blew around the street corner.

Mira's loose, thick cloak had plenty of holes in it now because Hughes had damaged it earlier.

The wind blew Mira's cloak aside, accidentally exposing her demon arm.

There were plenty of people on the street, and quite a few saw it. Chaos, muttering, and accusations erupted.

"It's a demon! There's a demon in town!"

"Damn demon, get out of our town!!"

Their language was so vile and their attitude so hostile that it was as though Mira really had committed an unforgivable crime in the town.

The abuse was just like what the three siblings had endured in the village, and they lowered their heads and pressed their lips tightly together without realizing it.

Mira in particular found her legs moving on their own, wanting to flee the place as quickly as possible.

Hughes sighed deeply. Haige Town's prosperity had still led him to think too highly of these people. There were clearly plenty of wizards in this world, so why were these people still so ignorant?