Oh, Iyer! Iyerpol! – Chapter 40

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Yuziro
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Kugugu!

“The cave…!”

As the Golem’s eye shattered and its massive body crashed to the ground, the cave began to tremble.

As if the cave itself, having lost its master, was about to collapse.

There was no time to celebrate their victory.

Wagner, his face etched with urgency, looked at his companions.

The collapsing cave was a far more pressing concern.

They still had a major problem: they had no idea how to escape.

Retracing their steps was out of the question.

They would be crushed long before they reached the entrance.

“Look over there!”

Kundt pointed urgently towards a corner of the cavern.

Wagner followed his gaze and saw a small passage, one that hadn’t been there before.

But something else caught his eye, something even more noticeable.

Above the passage, scrawled on the wall in large letters alongside an arrow, was a single word.

Wagner stared, dumbfounded, and read the word aloud.

“Exit…?”

Who would be so considerate as to label the exit?

But with rocks raining down from the ceiling, he didn’t have time to ponder the absurdity.

“Bring the others!”

The people who had been watching the battle from the ledge above, led by Pichoni, quickly descended.

Kundt hoisted the unconscious Ronchevich onto his back, and Wagner and the others raced towards the “Exit.”

They sprinted through the passage, dodging falling debris, and after what felt like an eternity, they burst into the sunlight.

Wagner, gasping for breath, suddenly remembered something.

“Iyer and Guinness…?!”

His friend was nowhere to be seen.

Were they still trapped beneath the rubble?

Wagner, his heart pounding, turned to rush back into the cave…

“Wagner! Hey, Wagner!”

A voice called out from the nearby forest.

A young man, a black cloth covering his eyes, waved.

Beside him, leaning against a tree trunk, sat the Dragonewt girl.

Relief washed over Wagner.

Tears welled in his eyes.

“Iyer!”

He rushed towards his friend.

Iyer grinned and punched him lightly in the chest.

“Told you I’d see you later.”

“You, you really…”

Wagner couldn’t help but laugh, despite the near-death experience.

His friend was still as carefree as ever.

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Human plans rarely went as intended.

About eighty percent of the time, things went sideways.

But that didn’t mean everything went wrong.

For every unexpected negative outcome, there was an unexpected positive one.

Just like now.

And so, the mysterious disappearances that had plagued Tillasden came to an end.

Many questions remained unanswered.

Why were there so many monsters in the cave?

Why had people ventured so deep?

But the questions remained just that: questions.

Of course, I, knowing almost the entire story, kept my mouth shut.

How could I explain that a slime, fused with the cave, was controlling everything?

They’d think I was crazy.

Fortunately, the Golem Wagner and the others defeated was deemed the cave’s master, and the case was considered closed.

Good, good.

Our party – Wagner, Kundt, Wolf Who Chases the Wind, Guinness, and myself, Iyerpol – received a hero’s welcome.

We hadn’t just completed the search; we had eliminated the source of the problem and rescued most of the missing people.

We entered Tillasden to cheers and applause.

After safely delivering the survivors to the Feiler family, we received a substantial reward and were even granted an audience with a family retainer, who personally commended us for our service.

I hadn’t expected things to turn out so well, but hey, I wasn’t complaining.

My only regret was that, aside from rescuing Guinness, I hadn’t contributed much to the search.

What exactly had I done?

Apart from the initial encounter, I hadn’t done anything during the Sandman or Sandworm fights.

After that, I’d just taken care of Guinness and chatted with a slime.

Thinking about it made me feel a little guilty towards Wagner and the others.

I’d have to treat them to a good meal later.

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Another peaceful morning in Tillasden.

The marketplace bustled with its usual energy.

I stretched, enjoying the feel of the sun on my face and the fresh air after days trapped in the cave.

“Hey, Iyer! Come get some fruit!”

The fruit vendor waved, and I walked over to his stall.

He started filling a paper bag with fruit. More than I intended to buy, but…

I reached for my wallet, but he stopped me.

“It’s on the house. For Tillasden’s hero.”

“Are you sure?”

“Of course! Take it and share it with your friends! And while you’re at it, spread the word about my stall!”

What a windfall.

This was why you should always be a good person.

I took a bite of an apple.

Sweet and juicy.

Perfect.

But this was too much for me to eat alone…

“Ah.”

A brilliant idea struck me.

I knew the perfect way to use this fruit.

“Sir, could I have another bag?”

He happily handed me another one, and I transferred half the fruit into it.

Now, to deliver this.

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Guinness escaped her fifteen-squared meter cell when she was fourteen.

Once she was physically stronger and capable of combat, her ‘owner’ began her training.

Physical conditioning, swordsmanship, even basic tactics and other weapon skills were drilled into her under the tutelage of professional instructors.

The owner, seeing her compliant behavior, believed he had finally broken her spirit.

He relaxed his vigilance.

Which was exactly what Guinness had been waiting for.

One day, while on a walk with the owner and two guards, Guinness saw her opportunity.

She struck, swiftly and brutally, incapacitating both guards.

The owner, watching his guards fall, trembled and shoute.

“I…I am your master! Have you forgotten that I own you?!”

Guinness smirked.

“Cut the crap.”

She then proceeded to beat the self-proclaimed ‘owner’ senseless before making her escape.

Soldiers were sent after her, but she evaded them with ease.

Her only regret was that she hadn’t inflicted enough pain on the man who had tormented her for over ten years.

She should have castrated him on the spot.

Free from her cage, Guinness wandered, eventually discovering the lucrative nature of adventuring.

She sought work, her travels leading her to the bustling city of Tillasden.

Her arrival was…memorable.

“What’s this? A handle?”

She made a name for herself by effortlessly dispatching a group of thugs who had the audacity to grab her horns.

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Birds chirped outside the open window.

A gentle breeze rustled the curtains.

Guinness gazed out at the bustling marketplace, a rare moment of peace.

“Lady Guinness. How are you feeling?”

An elderly physician, his hair thinning and a kind smile on his face, entered the room.

“…Fine.”

“Excellent. There were no major external injuries, but there was always the possibility of complications. If there are no signs of those, you should be fine.”

“Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it. It’s less about my skills and more about your remarkable recovery. Truly, the Dragonewt physique is something else.”

The physician had said that a normal human would have been crippled by her injuries.

But Guinness’s Dragonewt body had healed itself.

With proper nutrition, rest, and some physical therapy, she was able to sit up after just four days.

She was still undergoing rehabilitation, but the physician assured her she would be walking again in a few days.

He handed her a copy of her medical records, then smacked his forehead.

“How could I forget? You have a visitor.”

“…A visitor?”

“Yes. Waiting outside. Go ahead and chat.”

He bowed and left, a knowing smile on his face.

A young man with a black cloth covering his eyes peeked into the room.

“Guinness. Came to visit.”

Guinness flinched and turned away at the sight of the cheerful young man, Iyerpol.

Why am I flinching? she wondered.

Why am I turning away?

She couldn’t answer the questions.

She fixed her gaze on the marketplace outside.

A bead of sweat trickled down her back.

Undeterred by her coldness, Iyerpol pulled a chair up to her bedside.

“Brought some fruit. Thought you might be bored. Something to munch on.”

“……”

“It’s really sweet.”

He placed the bag, overflowing with colorful fruit, on the bedside table.

His expression clearly said, “Go ahead, try some.”

Guinness reluctantly picked up an apple.

She looked at it, then at Iyerpol, and then, with surprising strength, snapped it in half.

She tossed him the better half.

“Thanks.”

“……”

Guinness nodded curtly and turned back to the window.

After escaping the cave, she had been carried back to Tillasden with Iyerpol’s and the others’ help.

She had been admitted to the physician’s care and was recovering well.

Iyerpol had handled everything: the admission process, the fees, even acting as her guardian.

And when she had questioned him about it later, he had simply shrugged and said, “It’s fine. We’re friends.”

“……”

Guinness felt a strange warmth rising in her chest.

She covered her face with her hand.

She could still see his face clearly in her mind, even though she wasn’t looking at him.

Her face felt hot, but it wasn’t the fever from the cave.

It was…something else.

She clenched her fists, fighting the urge to punch something, anything, to dispel the unfamiliar fluttering in her chest.

She would have, in the past.

But now…she could only clench her fists and endure.

“…Damn it.”

A soft, frustrated murmur escaped her lips.

Crunch. Crunch.

The sound of Iyerpol eating the apple filled the room.

Guinness stared out the window, Iyerpol by her side.

A peaceful day, different from any before.

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A few days later…

I cheerfully headed towards the Adventurer’s Guild, only to stop short.

The guild was packed, far more crowded than usual.

“Right…roof repairs this morning.”

They were repairing the roof.

That explained the unusual crowd.

The guild was so full that there was barely room to breathe.

No way I was squeezing through that.

Guess I’d have to come back tomorrow.

Just as I was thinking this, a magnificent set of horns appeared beside me.

Guinness.

I was about to greet her when she took a deep breath and roared.

“Out of my way!!”

Her voice echoed through the guild, silencing the chatter.

People recognized her and scrambled back, shouting, “It’s Guinness!” As if she were some kind of predator.

It was quite a sight.

The crowd parted like the Red Sea, creating a path straight to the counter.

The guild receptionist trembled.

“N-next customer, please…”

Guinness strode down the path.

I, sensing an opportunity, discreetly followed.

This was much easier.

I was trailing behind her when she suddenly stopped.

She turned and looked at me.

Five seconds of awkward silence.

“…….”

“……Me first?”

I pointed at myself.

She nodded silently.

Okay…is this alright?

I wondered.

Why me first?

I stepped forward and approached the counter.

“I have some requests from Rigati. Could you pull them up?”

I felt Guinness’s gaze on my back as I accepted the pre-selected requests.

The guild remained eerily silent until Guinness and I were finished.

The power of Guinness.

I was reminded of it once more.

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Guinness watched Iyerpol leave the guild, three request forms in hand.

The receptionist, who had been assisting him, nervously asked Guiness.

“Um…how can I help you…?”

“…Where are those requests he took?”

“I’m afraid I can’t disclose personal information…”

Guinness glared.

The receptionist paled.

This was Guinness.

The woman who destroyed things she didn’t like.

And right now, his face was a prime target.

He caved under the silent pressure.

“I’m not entirely sure, but…probably the Tillasden Forest, as usual…”

“…Wait.”

Guinness walked towards the request board, the crowd parting before her.

She scanned the board, selected two requests, and returned to the counter.

“These. Process them.”

“Y-yes…”

The receptionist’s hands trembled as he processed the requests.

They were similar to the ones Iyerpol had taken: unpopular, low-paying jobs, all located in the Tillasden Forest.

No one noticed the faint blush creeping up Guinness’s cheeks.

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[Guiness peak tsundere on god]