Me, the Weakest Member of the Hero’s Party? I’m the Villain Though? - Chapter 62
In the end, Kyle let out a low, pained groan.
“We finally got a lead on the Black Flame Dragon, but now there’s no way to reach it.”
Kyle looked troubled, like someone about to lose a thread they’d barely managed to grab hold of.
“Our guess was right on the mark. The Black Flame Dragon must’ve abandoned its old lair and gone north to the mining region. It’s definitely building a new lair there now.”
“When the Black Flame Dragon establishes a lair, it burns a lot of mana. That’s the perfect time for us to attack.”
Kyle and Gerard murmured together. North it was, that much was clear. The only problem was how to get there.
No matter how good Kakaros was at finding routes, or how skilled Gerard was with magic, neither of them could cross an entire sea.
“What if we just buy a small boat ourselves?”
Elonen suggested. And the rest of us knew there really wasn’t a better option.
“Then tomorrow we’ll go see about getting a boat. For now, let’s eat well and get some rest.”
Kyle said this and downed his ginger ale in big gulps. But even he couldn’t bring himself to touch the stew, where fish heads floated lazily.
The hero’s party’s discussion wound down, and the inn grew quiet again.
Those about to face the Black Flame Dragon looked calm. Ironically, the only one with a cluttered mind was me, the one with no battle ahead.
“…It really is the Black Flame Dragon, right?”
I murmured softly to myself, going over what the innkeeper had told us earlier.
“Have you heard the rumor that the hero’s party went to the Black Flame Dragon’s lair and found it empty? Well, about a month ago, there was an attack by the Black Flame Dragon up north in Serendal.”
It had been barely two weeks since the hero’s party discovered the empty lair.
If the dragon had appeared in Serendal a month ago, like the innkeeper said, it might have attacked before I entered this body.
If not… maybe someone else was pretending to be the Black Flame Dragon.
“Well, there’s no way to know unless we see it with our own eyes.”
At Kyle’s reply, Larry crossed my mind. If I sent Larry to check first, I’d feel a lot more at ease. Plus, he’d know whether I had attacked Serendal or not.
I decided that once everyone fell asleep, I’d sneak out like last time and talk with Larry.
Just then, the bell over the inn door jingled. The innkeeper, locked in a life-and-death struggle with gnats, turned toward the entrance.
“Jim! What are you doing out alone at this hour? Shouldn’t you be home?”
The innkeeper’s face lit up as he greeted the man stepping inside.
“Couldn’t stand staying cooped up at home. Thought I’d come have a drink. Been greasing the deck all day. Can’t slack off on ship maintenance, even when it’s docked.”
The moment the word ship came up, our group’s ears perked up.
“Why not go fishing like everyone else?”
“Nah, I’m no fisherman. Just give me a beer.”
The man called Jim waved off the suggestion and sat down behind us. Naturally, all our attention shifted to him.
Jim was an enormous man with a scruffy, unkempt beard. At first glance, he looked like a bandit.
“By any chance, do you own a ship?”
Kyle was the first to speak to him. Jim glanced over warily at the strangers who’d addressed him.
“I do… but why do you ask?”
“We’re trying to get to the Serendal Grand Duchy tomorrow. Would you be willing to rent us your ship?”
“Serendal? That port’s been closed for ages… better find another way.”
Jim scoffed, laughing at what he clearly thought was a joke, and refused outright. He raised his beer mug and started drinking again, but Kyle suddenly spoke, his face serious.
“Fifty fleur.”
“Pffft!”
Beer sprayed everywhere as Jim choked on his drink at Kyle’s words. Unfortunately, Elonen, sitting right in front of him, took the hit.
“Gah— Cough, cough! F-Fifty?”
“Why? Not enough?”
“N-No, not that…”
Jim stammered, wiping beer from his mouth with the back of his hand. Kyle pulled a leather pouch from his coat and tossed it onto Jim’s table.
“That’s the down payment.”
The pouch landed with a heavy thud. Jim peeked inside, and his face instantly lit up.
“I’ve been waiting for customers like you. I’ll take you anywhere you want!”
As expected, this world ran on money. If there’s ever a problem that can’t be solved with cash, it probably just means you don’t have enough.
