"You…"
When I showed up at the weapon shop, the old man took one look at me with Raphtalia in tow and was struck speechless, struggling to squeeze out a word.
That's right—what I need is something to fight with… offensive power.
If I can't get him to sell me weapons, this whole thing is pointless.
"Give me whatever weapon seems usable within six Silver Coins' worth."
"…Haaah."
The weapon shop owner let out a deep sigh.
"Is the country to blame, or are you the one who's gone rotten…? Well, whatever. Six Silver Coins, then."
"What about clearance clothes and a cloak? You got any left?"
"…Fine. I'll throw them in as a bonus."
The weapon shop owner came back carrying a handful of knives, muttering about what a shame it was.
"Six Silver Coins gets you this range."
From left to right: copper, bronze, and iron knives.
Even within that price bracket, the handles made a difference in cost.
I had Raphtalia try each knife in her hand several times and picked the one that looked easiest for her to hold.
"This one works."
Raphtalia, pale as a sheet with the knife placed in her hands, looked back and forth between me and the owner.
"Here—your bonus clothes and cloak."
The owner gruffly handed me the complimentary items and directed me to the changing room.
After confiscating the knife, I told Raphtalia to carry the items and follow me.
Coughing and stumbling, Raphtalia entered the changing room and changed.
"Still filthy… Maybe I'll have her wash up in the river later."
A river flowed near the grassland.
It was a branch of the same river that ran through this country, splitting off upstream, and lately my territory had shifted there.
If you fished, you'd never run short on food—a good spot.
Fish were plentiful enough to catch with bare hands, and I'd already acquired a shield with the Ability Release effect called Fish Shield, along with a fishing skill of 1.
Having timidly finished changing, Raphtalia ran over to me in silence.
She knew by now that disobeying orders came with pain.
I crouched down to Raphtalia's eye level and spoke to her.
"All right, Raphtalia—this is your weapon. And I'm going to force you to fight monsters. Understand?"
"……"
Raphtalia nodded weakly, eyes full of fear.
Because if she didn't, the pain would come.
"Then, I'm going to hand you the knife, and—"
I pulled out an Orange Balloon that had been clinging to me under my cloak and showed it to Raphtalia.
"Stab it and burst it."
"H-huh!?"
Raphtalia let out a scream so startled she nearly dropped her weapon, realizing I'd been hiding a monster.
"Eh… I… n-no…"
"It's an order. Obey."
"N-no…"
Raphtalia shook her head violently. But she had a spell on her that made her suffer whenever she refused an order.
"Ngh…"
"See? If you don't stab it, you're the one who'll suffer."
"*Cough… cough!*"
Raphtalia's face twisted in pain as she clenched the weapon tightly in her trembling hands.
"You…"
The weapon shop owner stared down at the scene, struck dumb.
With real determination behind her attack, Raphtalia drove the knife from behind into the Orange Balloon clinging to me.
*Buni…*
"Weak! Put more power into it!"
"…!? Hah!"
Her thrust bounced off. Surprised, Raphtalia struck again, stabbing the balloon with renewed force.
*Ba-an!*
With a loud pop, the balloon burst.
EXP 1
A notification floated into my field of vision, informing me that my companion had defeated an enemy.
And that's when one thought surfaced in my mind—murderous intent.
That damn woman. She had no intention of being my companion, and she hadn't even intended to do anything with the system.
"Good. You did well."
I patted Raphtalia on the head.
Raphtalia looked at me with a bewildered expression.
"Next is this one."
I grabbed the strongest balloon that had been latched onto me for nearly a week—the Red Balloon—and showed it to her the same way as before.
The Red Balloon, which had been biting into me for a week without food or water, seemed to have weakened somewhat.
At this rate, even an attack from a frail Lv 1 girl might be enough.
Raphtalia nodded and stabbed the balloon from behind with a steadier gaze than before.
*Ba-an!*
EXP 1
Companion EXP 6
An icon caught my eye.
"Good—you can fight now. Let's get moving."
"…*cough*"
I told her to sheathe the weapon at her hip, and Raphtalia obeyed without protest.
"Ah—hey. Let me say something."
"What?"
The owner glared at me and blurted out.
"You—there's no way you'll die a good death."
"I'm honored by your kind words."
I returned sarcasm with sarcasm.
After leaving the shop, I headed straight for the grassland, making my way through the market street.
Raphtalia walked beside me, holding my hand, her eyes darting about at the town scenery.
On the way, the smell of food stalls pricked my nose.
Three Silver Coins left… Come to think of it, I was getting a bit hungry.
*Gruu…*
That sound came from Raphtalia's direction.
I looked over—
"Ah!"
She shook her head vigorously, protesting.
What was she holding back?
Right now, if Raphtalia didn't take down enemies, I couldn't earn anything.
A knife without a blade was useless, and if she was too hungry to have any strength, that was a problem too.
I looked for a reasonably priced restaurant and went inside.
"Welcome… come!"
Because of our ragged clothes, the server gave us a dirty look but showed us to a seat.
Along the way, Raphtalia noticed a parent and child sitting at another table.
She gazed wistfully at a children's lunch set the kid was eating with obvious relish, chewing on her finger.
So that's what she wanted.
Once we were seated, we placed our order before the server could leave.
"I'll have the cheapest lunch set you've got. And for her, give her whatever that kid over there is having."
"!?"
Raphtalia stared at me in surprise. Was it really that shocking?
"Understood. That'll be nine Copper Coins."
"Here."
I handed over a Silver Coin and got my change.
I waited in a daze for the food to arrive, scanning the restaurant.
……
There were a lot of people whispering among themselves while glancing our way.
Truly, what a world this otherworld turned out to be.
"Wh… y?"
"Hm?"
I heard Raphtalia's voice and lowered my gaze.
Raphtalia was staring at me with a puzzled expression.
"Because you had that 'I want to eat it' look on your face. Did you want something else?"
Raphtalia shook her head back and forth.
Tiny flakes of dandruff flew off.
"Wh… why are you feeding me?"
"I already told you—because you had that look on your face."
"But…"
What was she being so stubborn about?
"Just eat and put some nutrition in your body. You'll keel over and die if you stay this skinny."
Well, if she died, I'd just buy a new slave with whatever I'd earned so far.
"Sorry for the wait."
After a while, the ordered meals arrived.
I placed the children's lunch in front of Raphtalia and reached for my own meal—a bacon set, I think? Hmm. It had no flavor.
"……"
Raphtalia was frozen, staring intently at the children's lunch.
"Not going to eat?"
"…Is it really okay?"
"*Sigh*… Just eat."
Raphtalia's face twisted slightly at my command.
"Okay."
Hesitantly, Raphtalia began eating the children's lunch with her bare hands.
Well, you couldn't expect manners from a poorly raised kid.
I had the feeling the whispering around us was growing louder, but there was no need to pay it any mind.
Raphtalia held onto the little flag sticking out of the chicken-rice-like main dish as though it were something precious.
*Munch munch munch.*
Raphtalia ate with complete absorption.
And as I shared this meal with my slave, I turned over my plans for the road ahead in my mind.