Extra in a Romance Fantasy

120 – Entry (2)

“Hmmm……. Nothing much seems to be appearing.”

“…Indeed.”

At the woman’s words, I nodded reluctantly.

The reason for my reaction was, to be honest, that this situation felt uncomfortable.

—

A little while ago, at the crossroads I encountered, I ended up meeting this woman.

Pana, the sister of the famous Baekho Kahim.

Because her brother is so well-known, I immediately recognized her identity from her external features, but I thought of our relationship as one where I merely knew of her without any real acquaintance…

However, for some reason, she seemed to react as if she knew me.

Not only that, but she even greeted me with a look of pleasant surprise.

I was taken aback by her reaction, but I quickly understood through her subsequent explanation.

She was the woman in the hood I had met back then.

Thus, after this somewhat strange reunion, she and I temporarily joined forces and began to move forward on the path that excluded the ones we had already traveled, which brings us to the current situation.

“…….”

To be honest, I found this situation quite uncomfortable.

From my perspective, having no companions is much more convenient in many ways.

Yet, for some reason, she, Pana, didn’t seem to be bothered by me at all.

That fact was quite surprising to me.

I didn’t know much about her, but I had heard rumors about her a few times.

While there were many rumors suggesting she had a more normal personality than her brother Kahim, the rumors about her were by no means gentle.

I had heard that while she could communicate, she generally didn’t enjoy talking to others and often refrained from speaking unless there was a specific purpose.

But the Pana in front of me was not like that.

Far from avoiding conversation, she even initiated it from over there.

“Why have you come here?”

Just like now.

“Are you after the Hero’s sword? Or perhaps you admire the legend of the Hero?”

I didn’t particularly want to continue the conversation with her, but in this situation, I couldn’t just ignore her words or tell her to stop talking, so I had no choice but to respond.

“Just… curiosity, I guess.”

Though it was different in reality, I obviously couldn’t reveal my true intentions.

I made a vague excuse.

“Hmm. Is that so?”

Her gaze turned toward me.

In that gaze was a hint of suspicion.

She clearly didn’t believe my answer.

I wondered what basis she had for doubting my words, but I didn’t voice that thought. After all, it was indeed a lie.

In a normal conversation, it would be typical to ask, “What about you?” at this point, but I decided against it because I didn’t really want to continue the conversation with her.

“I came here following my brother.”

Yet, despite my lack of inquiry, she shared her circumstances.

“My brother said he wanted to see the Hero’s Sword with his own eyes. I couldn’t let him go alone, not knowing what he might do, so I came along.”

“…I see.”

It seemed she had little interest in the Hero’s Tomb herself.

Should I feel pity for her, having come all this way because of her brother, or should I admire her for it?

I had known about her brother, Kahim, even before coming to Darbil.

He had made quite a sudden entrance, causing a significant stir in the world of warriors.

Thanks to that, various rumors about him circulated, and naturally, I became aware of his existence.

I learned that he was an exceptionally skilled warrior, but also not particularly deep in thought.

Most of the rumors surrounding Kahim were tied to the incidents he had caused, so it wasn’t difficult to reach such conclusions.

And those rumors were always wrapped up by her, Pana.

At the time I heard the rumors, I thought little of them, but now, facing her like this, I realized it must not have been so simple after all.

She must have been… no, she was likely going through considerable hardship.

I felt a slight pang of sympathy for that fact, but I didn’t show it outwardly.

Our conversation continued in a similar vein.

She would initiate the dialogue, and I would respond with reluctance.

The content of our conversation was nothing special, just trivial matters.

In any case, we continued this mundane exchange for a while.

Finally, there was a change in the corridor.

Once again, a room revealed itself.

And there, I found a friend I hadn’t seen in a while.

A golem, boasting a mineral-like exterior.

It hadn’t been long enough to truly call it a long time, but perhaps because I had been staring at stone walls for a while, the golem’s face felt particularly welcoming.

However, this familiar golem was different from the last time I had seen it.

Its appearance remained unchanged.

But the number was different.

This time, three golems greeted us.

“This time, there are three of them.”

The sight of three golems standing side by side was quite imposing, yet Pana’s expression remained completely unchanged.

“What should we do? Do you want to handle it?”

With a faint smile, she asked me.

“…No. One might be manageable, but three is a bit much for me alone.”

I shook my head lightly.

If there were no other eyes around, it might be different, but I had no intention of revealing my abilities in a situation like this.

“Hm… Is that so?”

At my answer, Pana tilted her head slightly.

Then she said,

“Well, it doesn’t look that way.”

She spat out her sharp words.

“…….”

I clenched my eyes shut inwardly.

Her reaction just now, and the attitude she had shown until now.

I sensed one thing.

She was doubting my abilities.

And I could roughly guess the reason why.

It was probably because of what happened the day we first met.

Despite the pressure emanating from the two swords, I had remained unaffected, and she had caught me in that moment.

I had tried to play it off as best as I could, but it seemed that had little significance.

“Well, I understand. Then I’ll take care of this.”

Pana, who had been gazing at my face, soon averted her eyes and took a step forward.

Even though there were three golems that even a seasoned warrior could not afford to underestimate, there was no hesitation in her stride.

And seeing that, I did not stop her.

I knew there was no need to worry about this situation; in fact, merely expressing concern over just three golems would be an insult to her.

Vroom—

As she approached, the three golems simultaneously emitted a mechanical sound and began to move.

They were nothing more than slightly larger than humans, seemingly unremarkable, yet they contained the strength to easily crush boulders.

Even well-trained soldiers would surely struggle against such power.

At last, the three golems moved in unison.

With a body that seemed utterly dull, she moved with a speed reminiscent of a wild beast.

One might have been overwhelmed by that momentum, yet Pana’s face remained serene.

And then, she extended her fist.

In that moment.

Bang!

With a thunderous sound, the three golems that had been approaching her were shattered in an instant.

“Alright, let’s go.”

Pana, who had turned three golems into rubble in a matter of seconds, looked at me again with a faint smile.

The younger sister of Kahim, the martial artist known as the next Ten Swords.

She too was a martial artist like her brother.

*

The flow of events that followed was not significantly different.

Similar paths continued to repeat, and occasionally guardians would appear, but even then, the fights ended in mere seconds at Pana’s hands without my involvement.

Just as I was beginning to feel a tinge of boredom with this series of events.

Finally, a noticeable change occurred in the space.

It wasn’t a change as simple as a wider path revealing a room.

The stone road had completely ended, and a forest appeared before us.

“This place…”

Pana squinted as she surveyed her surroundings.

The look in her eyes was one of clear suspicion.

“This is… strange.”

It was her impression after observing the area for quite some time.

“Indeed.”

I did not deny her observation.

The sky was clearly present, and even the sun was shining.

At first glance, one might think it was just an ordinary outdoor setting, but in reality, it was anything but.

“To create such a space with magic… should we really call it Verhabill?”

As Pana continued, it became clear that this place was not an ordinary forest.

This space itself was a realm conjured by magic.

To create a space of this scale through magic was something only a grand sorcerer could even dream of attempting.

“First of all, we should move deeper into this forest, right?”

Pana quietly posed the question to me.

“…I suppose so.”

I nodded silently.

If there was a problem, it was deciding on a direction, but resolving that part wasn’t too difficult.

There was a path.

It was hard to call it a proper road; rather, it was more akin to a narrow trail, but it was definitely a path.

Thus, we began to make our way through the forest along the trail.

However, it wasn’t long before we had to stop in our tracks.

We sensed a presence approaching us.

I stood still, pondering who it might be as I gazed in the direction of the approaching presence for a while.

Rustle—

The underbrush stirred, and a figure emerged.

“Uh? Andel?”

A familiar face to me, it was Johanna.