Chapter 11: Horse Hunting and Hidden Motives

“Are you kidding me?” Rui stared at Aria and Serin’s breastplates in disbelief. She discreetly held one up to her face when they weren’t looking. It practically covered her entire head. Was this even normal? And the problem was, they were saying these were starting to feel tight.

“I need to add some comfort formulas.”

They would appreciate better ventilation and a softer texture. A subspace, a temporary workbench, and golden letters appeared around her.

‘They must have met by now, right?’

If the plan worked, the hero wouldn’t be able to take his eyes off Raphilia. She had planned the time, place, and atmosphere perfectly.

Ideally, they would return hand-in-hand. Even if not, it would still be a decent outcome.

She had chosen to help Raphilia first partly because of the original story. Raphilia was the first of the three heroines to develop feelings for the hero, despite no progress for a whole year.

Although it wasn’t the same flower field she had suggested, the two had spent time getting to know each other in a similar location. Thanks to that, Raphilia experienced a sort of awakening and became more confident in her role, which she had previously felt was insignificant compared to the other two.

“Aria, Serin, I’m finished.”

“Already?”

“Oh… can I try it on?”

“Of course. I also added formulas for comfort, durability, and defense.”

At her words, the two exchanged excited glances and helped each other put on the breastplates.

“Wow…!”

“Oh… so comfortable…”

Aria marveled at the breastplate, while Serin sighed contentedly, savoring the comfort. There was no greater motivation in this world than a user’s satisfaction with their equipment.

“Ru, Rui…!”

“Oh, you’re back.”

Just then, an elf came running towards them from the forest. Her bright red face indicated the plan had worked.

“How did it go?”

“Aswell stared at me blankly…！ Then he quickly turned away and went somewhere else!”

“I see.”

That “somewhere else” was probably to pick the flower she had requested. Thinking about it now, she regretted asking for the flower.

If she had said something else, the hero and Raphilia might have spent more time together.

“I think he’s interested in me. You were right.”

Raphilia touched her flushed cheeks and thanked Rui. Although there wasn’t a dramatic relationship development, it was still significant progress.

‘Considering Aria and Serin, this is probably for the best.’

She planned to help them as well. If Raphilia raised the bar too high, it could damage the other heroines’ chances.

Thanks to the hero cutting the interaction short, her future plans would be much easier.

“I’ll finish scouting! Thank you!”

“Okay.”

She didn’t need to ask; she could tell Raphilia trusted her now. If someone suddenly asked, “Does the hero’s party’s mage like the hero?” Raphilia would confidently answer, “No! Rui helped me!”

“Rui.”

Shortly after Raphilia left, the hero approached. They were coming to her one after another like a train.

“Is this it? It was blooming alone on the hill.”

“Yes, that’s it.”

Fortunately, the hero had found the flower she requested.

The Lunabloom Flower.

Despite its name, this flower, which wilted before the moon rose, was an excellent mana catalyst. It seemed to hold special meaning in various kingdoms and regions, but she hadn’t researched that far.

“It’s a beautiful flower, so I recognized it right away.”

“Thank you. This will greatly help my next research project.”

It was true. The magic she was planning to research next was quite mana-intensive, so this flower was valuable.

She smiled at the hero and expressed her sincere gratitude.

“…Um, I’ll go prepare the camp now.”

The hero flinched, averted his gaze, and quickly left under the pretense of preparing the camp. Did he think she was smiling sarcastically?

‘Or was he thinking about Raphilia?’

They were already hitting it off. It seemed she needed to become independent from the hero soon.

There was a city at the end of this road, so she could probably find a small horse there.

With the big event over, the hero’s party set up five tents around a campfire.

Yes, even she planned to sleep in a tent instead of her lab.

“I think I’ll lose my camping skills if I keep sleeping in rooms.”

“Yeah, the room you gave us is really nice and comfortable, but… too comfortable.”

“You can do as you please, Rui!”

With them saying that, she couldn’t very well sleep alone in her lab, could she? She had experience sleeping outdoors for about a month after transmigrating. The thrilling experience of searching for her magic teacher in the mountains, using tree roots as pillows. So, sleeping in a tent wasn’t a problem.

“Oh, right, the villagers from Intrell gave us some carrots and grains. So, how about carrot soup for dinner?”

“!!”

She was so surprised by the unexpected news that she jumped to her feet and stared at Aria.

“R-Rui?”

“Carrot soup sounds good.”

The hero’s party usually made slightly more than five servings due to their high calorie consumption. Since transmigrating, she had a smaller appetite and didn’t usually ask for seconds, but carrot soup was an exception.

“Hee hee.”

She was on leftover duty today.

“You really like carrot soup, Rui.”

“It’s delicious.”

“Is it that good? Enough to hum?”

Hum hum~

She hadn’t realized she was humming. Raphilia chuckled and handed her a bowl. She hadn’t had carrot soup yesterday or this morning, so she was eager to try the village’s unique recipe with grains.

“…Hero? Why are you looking at me?”

“…Nothing.”

The hero covered his mouth and averted his gaze. So even heroes spaced out. She waited for Aria to finish making the carrot soup. Perhaps thanks to the soup’s warmth, she slept soundly that night, even in a tent.

The next day, the hero’s party set off again. Their destination was the city of Tras, about a day’s journey away.

It was the last place to properly resupply before reaching the major city closest to the Twilight Fortress. That meant today was the last day she would be riding with the hero.

“If it’s not too uncomfortable for Rui, we could continue like this, couldn’t we?”

“?”

Suddenly, Raphilia said something strange.

“Because Rui can’t ride a horse properly by yourself, right?”

“What are you…”

Did she think Rui was some unskilled rider? She stared at Raphilia, dumbfounded.

“I’m a great rider! I even rode a unicorn once…!”

“A unicorn? Come on, that’s a mythical creature. Even I, who have lived much longer than you, haven’t seen one.”

“It’s true…!”

She knew it sounded like a lie. But it was true, and Raphilia’s expression soured.

“Right, right. Rui is a great rider.”

“I really am!”

“Yes, you are. Rui can even ride a unicorn.”

“Ugh…”

Raphilia’s sarcastic tone made her grind her teeth. She glared at Raphilia, gripping the hero’s waist tightly.

“Th-that tickles.”

“Hero, do you also think I can’t ride a horse?”

She asked him, maintaining a neutral expression.

The hero, who had been “analyzing” her, averted his gaze and said,

“…You can probably ride. A small horse, maybe.”

“I can ride big horses too.”

Now that she had proven her skills, they were questioning her horse-riding abilities? This was ridiculous. She would have to find her own horse as soon as they arrived in Tras.

And she would find one superior to the hero’s white horse and make a grand entrance. The saintess would be shocked, the elf archer and knight would fuss, and the hero would tremble before her.

The plan was perfect.

“Rui, are you uncomfortable riding with me?”

“Huh? Why?”

“I was wondering if there was anything I wasn’t being considerate about.”

“No. I’m more worried about you being uncomfortable. And I can’t ride with you forever.”

Every member of the hero’s party should have their own horse. And the hero was the busiest of them all.

Riding with him could hinder his ability to react to unexpected situations.

“I…”

“Yes?”

“…Never mind. Let’s find a suitable horse for you when we arrive in Tras.”

What?

Was the entire party going to accompany her to buy a horse? That was a little embarrassing. It wasn’t like she was a child getting fitted for a school uniform.

But she couldn’t complain when they were trying to be considerate.

They arrived in Tras and quickly found lodging with the help of a city official.

She waited in front of the lodging, gazing blankly at the sky, waiting for the others. They were staying for two days, so she could take her time looking and choose a horse before they left.

“Rui, have you been waiting long?”

“Yes. …Where are the others?”

Something was strange. Only the hero came out; the three heroines were nowhere to be seen.

“Aria said she had business at the church, and Serin and Lia went to the Adventurer’s Guild.”

“Weren’t we supposed to go together?”

“Where?”

“To look at horses…”

“Uh… I thought we were going together, just the two of us.”

The hero answered, slightly stammering. She briefly considered declining for the sake of the other three heroines.

‘I’m not that good at judging horses.’

But the hero rode a fine white horse, so he probably had a good eye. She decided to use the hero as a “good horse detector” and nodded.

“Then let’s go.”

And so, she and the hero set off for the stables on the outskirts of the city.