[Book 1: The Adventurers of Flowtier]
Chapter 1: The City of Flower and Water
Henry: “And this is the last...one, got’em.”
A single stroke and the spear pierced the heart of the *demonic creature who was trying to avenge his brethren.
The 3+ meter tall giant wobbled and fell face flat on the earth.
Looking around, several dozen bear-like demonic creatures’ carcasses lay strewn everywhere.
These guys are not that intelligent, so it’s unlikely that they’re playing dead, but just to be sure, I observed for a couple more seconds to make sure that each one was slain for sure. The creatures who died first began to evaporate.
I let out a long, slow breath. With a swing of my spear, I detached the clinging blood, and poured my will into the hand gripping the end.
My spear followed my command and the blade and handle shortened until it was the size of a small knife. I slid my *Nyoiten Spear into its sheath on my waist.
Henry: “I’m all done—!“
I called to the person who evacuated to a nearby brush.
Thomas: “Th-, That’s incredible. You easily dispatched a pack of Wild Bears…”
Henry: “Well, I did just return from the frontlines. Oh wait, I need to collect their claws…”
Thomas: “Here, let me help you.”
The carcasses of the Wild Bear were wrapped in a black mist as they disappeared in turn from the first killed to the last.
Demonic creatures made from *magic will evaporate into thin air at their death.
But if the magic is especially strong in a specific area, that particular piece will remain. For Wild Bears, their claws are most common. If I’m lucky, they’ll leave behind their liver.
It’s too bad that there’s no rare drops this round, but I quickly pick-up and put away the remaining claws into a bag.
Thomas: “Alright, shall we get going?”
Henry: “Yes.”
The old man, *Mr. Thomas, beckoned me back onto his wagon that was protected from the herd of Wild Bears.
Mr. Thomas is a merchant. He was on his way back after picking up a shipment from a neighboring town, and since I was headed the same way, I happily accepted his request as a guard and rode to the next town with him.
The hoofs clicked and clacked against the ground - a sturdy and resilient horse who was not shaken during the demonic creatures’ attack and continued to walk down the path undeterred.
Thomas: “I can’t believe creatures that strong would appear around this area. I’ve seen one or two strays, but never a pack like that.”
Henry: “I’ve heard since the appearance of the *Demon King, the creatures have been more active lately.”
Thomas: “Even so, our area is farthest from the Demon King’s territory! The worst we’ve seen in this area thus far is a Crazed Rabbit or a Killer Dog!”
10 years ago, in the Demon’s country, the coronation of the Demon King took place.
Up until then, though our relation to the *demon citizens were strained, they kept their distance with human society, but after the coronation, even the amicable groups immediately declared all of humanity as their enemy.
The smaller neighboring countries were swallowed and overrun, and the major nations sent in their military to begin the war.
And since then, up until today, the war rages on..
Thomas: “Oh, now that I think about it, you were fighting the Demon King’s army on the frontlines, weren’t you?”
Henry: “Well, yes. I was there as an adventurer at the forefront city, *Ligaleo.”
The bigger battles were strictly carried out by the military, but the explorers were better suited for smaller skirmishes, guerrilla warfare, and we targeted especially the strongest forces in the Demon King’s army.
I was an adventurer in one of the cities sitting directly on the border with the Demon King’s territory, and there was never a shortage of requests for explorers there.
The term “adventurer” itself invites some level of misunderstanding since we are technically warriors who swore oaths to the *god of war.
Thomas: “Ah, that makes sense. It must be because you’re in such an intense battleground that you were able to gain the experience to climb the ranks and become a *Heroic Warrior.”
Henry: “Well, not really. Every big city has many Heroic Warriors walking about so it’s not a rare sight.”
Around my neck is a tag that serves as my ID as an explorer. A blue line was drawn across to signify my status as a Heroic Warrior.
Thomas: “Didn’t I just tell you? There’s nothing but weak creatures roaming about here, so anyone wanting to become a Heroic Warrior will leave for another town.”
There are 3 levels to an adventurer.
The Adventurer status is the lowest, then Heroic Warrior, and then Hero of Legend. Even so, 90% of adventurers remain just as Adventurers and about 10% of Heroic Warriors make up the rest.
What? The Heroes of Legend? They are so few and rare that generations pass by without a single one appearing.
Thomas: “Well, would that mean that perhaps you’ve met with one of the renown Eight Heroes?”
Henry: “Oh, well, yeah. I know their faces. But that’s only because they were also adventurers like me at the frontlines. There were times when I had to team up with them temporarily.”
So far, there are 8 people who made a truly great and special enough accomplishment to be awarded the title, Hero of Legend. In this day and age when the Demon King reigns, there are that many more opportunities to accomplish an amazing enough deed.
In any other age without a Demon King, the ones who earned the Hero of Legend title cleared a task set by the gods, slain an elder dragon-level monster, or drew two legendary-rank *godly equipment at once.
Thomas: “Oh my, can I ask what they were like?”
Henry: “Oh, ummm…”
A lot of repressed memories are starting to resurface in my head.
Henry: “Well, of course they were amazing people, but compared with normal civilians, they were an odd bunch.”
Thomas: “Is that so? On this side of the country, we hear about their deeds and accomplishments, but we never hear about their character or personalities.”
I think it’s better that way.
There are more heroes who are more adept at accidentally squashing and crushing the dreams of aspiring young boys and girls of one day becoming a hero like them.
Our discussion continued as the wagon rattled on, and Mr. Thomas brought up a question he could have asked much earlier. I’m surprised that he didn’t think to bring it up till now.
Thomas: “Oh, but why would you, Mr. Henry, come all this way to the back of this country? By the looks of how you fought back there, you aren’t injured. I know we get some Heroic Warriors who drop by for a quick tour, but weren’t you planning to set your base camp here?”
Yes, the reason why I, Henry Stone, a Heroic Warrior-class adventurer, left the frontlines...
Henry: “I actually completed my goal on the frontlines, so I wanted to spend the rest of my days in a safe town fighting below-mediocre creatures on occasion, or go search for raw materials as if I was going on a picnic hike.”
The horses’ hooves clicked and clacked as they hit the gravel.
Clicked and clacked. The heavy silence was only broken by the sound of the hooves.
Thomas: “..............”
Henry: “.............did I say something wrong?”
After that, we spent the rest of the trip in painful, awkward silence, but thankfully, our destination appeared in the distance, and I soon forgot all about it.
Henry: “Wow! Is that the city of Flowtier?”
A beautiful city surrounded by unblemished white walls. All around it bloomed flowers of all colors, and you could see the central tower jetting out of the center of the city even from this distance.
Next to the city was the great mountain of *Altohern, and the river that flows from it to Lake Lucan which reflected the color of the sky.
Henry: “The city of flowers and water, oh most beautiful Flowtier...is the lyrics to the song bards always sing when they come here, right?”
Mr. Thomas’ mood improved significantly. I guess we all appreciate any and all compliments to our birthplaces and home.
But what a gorgeous view. And even better, I don’t see a single demonic creature in my line of sight. In the city of Ligaleo, you just have to take one step outside the city gate to get a full view of any creature - that was the kind of town it was.
Of course, I just fought a pack of Wild Bears just now, and that may happen on occasion here, but it can’t compare to Ligaleo where things like that continually spawn like weeds.
Thomas: “Oh, that reminds me. Mr. Henry, did you already decide on where you’re staying for the night?”
Henry: “Well, not really. I don’t know anyone here, so I was going to walk in the first inn I saw.”
Thomas: “In that case, I’ll introduce you to a friend of mine. You did save me, and I haven’t been able to return the favor as of yet.”
We had already decided in the guard contract that any encounters with demonic creatures would be rewarded with a miniscule compensation fee. I’m pretty sure that’s what he’s referring to.
In this area, between countries with more occurrences of demonic creatures and countries with less occurrences, the creatures themselves are different. Where I was originally, we would answer questions like, “How many waves did you push back?” and “How strong were the creatures?” And we would meticulously document every detail to figure out the appropriate compensation amount, but here, getting attacked by demonic creatures on the main road is almost unheard of, so they are much more lax in figuring out these kinds of things.
Henry: “I’d be very grateful if you can.”
Thomas: “I’ll guarantee that you’ll love the food and drinks there. I’m sure of it.”
That is even better news. It’s good to know that it’s a trustworthy establishment, but food and beverages are equally important - especially for me.
So we let the wagon rattle along forward until we ran into the east road, coming opposite from us, and there the roads merged.
Down that same road, a man and woman wave their arms in the air to greet us as they approach our wagon.
Henry: “Who are they? They seem to be waving at you, Mr. Thomas,”
Thomas: “Oh, yes. I know them. They are regular customers I guess. I know them very well.”
Both ran up to us the rest of the way, and by the looks of it, they were adventurers.
The man looked like he worked out a lot with solid muscles across his body. He covered his vitals with metal protectors, and carried a two-handed sword on his back.
The girl wore rearguard equipment, and held a staff with a giant jewel attached to its end.
A vanguard swordsmen and a rearguard magician combination. A very basic lineup.
Jend: “Hey, Mr. Thomas. You back already? Did you bring back any good items?”
Cyril: “Mr. Thomas, Mr. Thomas! I want magic-enhancing accessories!”
Thomas: “Alright, alright. I’ll have the items ready for viewing first thing tomorrow, so you can come by then.”
Mr. Thomas was a magic items vendor. He has everything from things that made your day-to-day easier to standard adventurers’ equipment and carried a wide variety of goods.
Cyril: “Oh, who’s next to you? That tag! What’s a Heroic Warrior doing in this parts?”
The girl looks up and finds me sitting in the wagon.
Thomas: “Ah yea, it’s been getting dangerous lately so I hired an adventurer as my guard.”
Cyril: “Wouldn’t hiring a Heroic Warrior cost a small fortune?”
Thomas: “Well, he was on his way to Flowtier, so he gave me a considerable discount.”
While Mr. Thomas spoke with the guy, the girl barged into the seat next to me. Mr. Thomas didn’t even bother saying anything to her.
Cyril: “This is so exciting! Hello there, sir! I’m Cyril. I’m Jend’s partner who’s standing right over there, and we’re both adventurers.”
Henry: “Uh, hi, I’m Henry. Nice to meet you.”
Cyril: “So how did you become a Heroic Warrior?! What kind of brave deed did you have to do? Was it something like fighting a dragon?!”
This kid really has no reservations.
Jend: “Hey, Cyril, don’t be so rude to someone you just met.”
Cyril: “But Jend, aren’t you curious? It’s a real Heroic Warrior in the flesh! An actual Heroic Warrior! You always tell me that you’ll one day become a Heroic Warrior and eventually a true Hero of Legend!”
Jend: “Of course I’m curious too, but this is more about courtesy and respecting privacy.”
The guy, Jend, is being rather overly cautious and thoughtful, but it’s not like I mind. It doesn’t feel too bad to be noticed by a cute young girl.
Henry: “Hey, I can tell you all about it on the way to town. If you can take me to the local church, we’ll call it even.”
Cyril: “Leave it all to us!”
They’re so lively and so full of energy...
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CHONKY Notes LiT (Lost in Translation)
*Demonic Creature - mamono (魔物) in reference to a demon, a creature of the nether or underworld, magical beasts, mystical/mythical animals — ALL STUFFED IN ONE WORD to the bane of all translators.
*Magic - maryoku (魔力). Most simply known as “magic” to make it neither good or bad, but the original word stems from witchcraft and/or satanic rituals (and can be used as such depending on the context), but over the decades has been tamed into a source of power and energy like electricity. It is important to note that the “MA” (魔) kanji character is shared between the word “Demonic Creature” (ma-mono) (魔物) and “Magic” (ma-ryoku) (魔力). Because of this, it is hard to disassociate magic from demonic creatures, and the inherent evil implied in the word itself.
*nyoiten (extend • at will • to heaven) spear. Similar to nyoibou (the extending and shortening staff wielded by the original Son Goku - the Monkey King where the author of Dragon Ball got the idea.
*Mr. Thomas - no last names were given but a respectful honorific was added. It’s a little weird nowadays in the U.S. to use Mr. and Ms. with first names, but that is more of a cultural clash between Japanese and English.
*Maou (魔王) - The King/Leader of Demons, Demon Lord, typically characterized as the arch-nemesis of humanity. Over the years, similar to the position of the hero in Fantasy RPG genres, the position of Demon Lord has been redefined numerous times to the point where it’s used very nonchalantly without weight or importance. Note the “Ma” (魔) character in the title.
*Mazoku (魔族) - another loosely defined term for demons of higher intellect or human-like creatures with demonic properties. The subjects of the Demon King. Note the “Ma” (魔) character in the name.
*Adventurer is the RPG trope occupation of exploring demon or creature infested territories and dungeons
*Ligaleo - The current and farthest frontline human city and stronghold. The word itself seems to be a random combination of Spanish “Liga” (league) and Latin “Leo” (lion) which would mean the League of Lions or Alliance/Federation of Lions. Japanese has closer ties to Spanish/Portueguese, Latin, and English then any other foreign languages.
*god of war - not referring to the Greek god Kratos but to another god of war related this novel’s universe. There are a few gods mentioned in the series.
*Heroic Warrior (yuushi) (勇士) - The word itself is a play on words by mixing rikishi (力士) (sumo wrestler but more importantly a warrior of strength by just the Japanese Kanji characters) and hero of legend (yuusha) (勇者). An interim position in this novel between an explorer and hero.
*Godly equipment (shinki) (神器) - an equipment bestowed to the explorers by the gods of this novel. Literally spelled “God” and “container” which roughly translates to a godly equipment.
*Altohern - Alto (Spanish for tall) and Hirun (ヒルン) was twisted a little bit to “hern” (corner or nook) and then it would be Tall Corner Mountain which fits. Otherwise, the phonetic translation is Altohirun and your tongue turns into a twizzler.
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CREDITS
Semi-retired Adventurer Lives Leisurely
Written by Hisagushien
Translated by: ChonkyTranslator
Japanese Title:
セミリタイアした冒険者はのんびり暮らしたい
作者:久櫛緑（ヒサグシエン）
http://kuontenrin.ehoh.net/
Original Source Link: