Little Hero (2)
Snow-white hair like a sack of flour turned upside down, with red pupils.
Whenever curiosity arose, she always has a bright and innocent color that's charming.
"I want to!"
Rosaria raises both hands and shouts once more.
"I want to go on an adventure!"
"Then shall we prepare to go together?"
"Yes!"
"Go to Phoebe and tell her that we need to go out, and ask her to help you get dressed."
"Okay, got it!"
Excited for the adventure, Rosaria goes out of the room, forgetting about Lucy.
While Rosaria is preparing, Reed decides to prepare for her adventure as well.
* * *
Outside the Tower of Silence, Reed kneels down and adjusts Rosaria's clothes one more time.
The clothes Rosaria and Reed are wearing are traveler's robes.
They are ordinary gray robes without the emblem or color that indicates their affiliation with the Silence Tower.
It was the attire to hide the fact that he was the tower master.
'Being a noble only gets in the way.'
As he always felt while playing the game, revealing one's noble status was akin to bragging about walking around with a lump of gold.
That's why he got involved with some issues in one way or another.
'If there's a situation where revealing my status would be helpful, I can just use my nameplate.'
He checks the nameplate in the right chest pocket once more and asks Rosaria.
"Are you uncomfortable?"
He worried that the dull color might not suit her taste.
But she vigorously shook her head, as if such concerns were pointless.
Her eyes sparkled like a child on a picnic day.
"It makes me feel more like a warrior!"
[T/N: Here warrior refers to hero.]
"Really?"
"Yes!"
He was relieved that she liked it.
Reed stands up from his seat and reaches out to Rosaria.
"Come on, let's hold hands and go."
Rosaria places her small hand in Reed's hand.
That's how their adventure began.
So what was this adventure that Reed began?
It was nothing special.
They just walked straight along the path where they were.
Before setting off, Reed had scouted out places around the Silence Tower that would be safe for a child to visit.
Although Reed, the tower master, was accompanying her, he thought it would be better than going to a dangerous place and facing a crisis for no reason.
"Still, it feels a bit empty without anything."
They could only see a few squirrels, rabbits, and small animals disappearing in the bushes.
The occasional sound of grass insects and birdsong calmed their minds.
It was peaceful.
Unintentionally, Rosaria's adventure became a refreshing break for Reed.
Walking along the quiet trail was enjoyable, but he began to worry if it might be boring for Rosaria.
"Papa!"
"What's the matter?"
"There's a monster!"
"Monster?"
Surprised, Reed looked where Rosaria was pointing.
What was there was a small rock.
'Phew...'
Reed, who thought a real monster had jumped out, brushed his chest.
Looking down at Rosaria, wondering if she was already enjoying a prank by lying, she was staring at the rock with a serious face.
Then he finally understood the situation.
'She's immersed in her role.'
Reed laughed, feeling foolish for taking it at face value.
Rosaria picked up a small branch nearby and shouted.
"Rosaria the warrior will not tolerate injustice! Yaaah!"
She ran with her short legs and vigorously struck the rock with the branch.
After striking it several times, she turned around with a triumphant look and shouted.
"I defeated it!"
"That's amazing."
Reed clapped his hands and congratulated her on that glorious moment.
Rosaria, who received the congratulations, approached with a lively walk and held Reed's hand again.
"Are you having fun?"
"Yes! It's fun!"
Contrary to Reed's concerns, Rosaria nodded with an energetic expression.
Being a girl of an age where everything was fascinating, the forest itself was an unknown land for her.
Her innocence reminded Reed of his own childhood.
He remembered the times when he hopped around trying to step only on the white tiles, imagining the red tiles as lava, and imagining what kind of monsters lived in the dark alleys where light didn't reach.
Just as everyone creates adventures with their imagination during their childhood, Rosaria was creating her own adventure.
In her imagination, all of this was an adventure, a dangerous forest teeming with monsters.
As they went on, Rosaria swung the branch she had picked up, undoubtedly defeating a few demon kings in the process.
Eventually, they reached the first stop of their adventure.
"It's a village!"
Mud houses and well-maintained farmland could be seen through the trees that obstructed their view.
Not far from the Silent Tower was the village called the Fallen Star Village.
It got its name because there was a crater-like depression in the center of the village.
It was a very familiar place for Reed.
'I've been here a lot.'
Not in reality, but in the game.
Since there was a beginner hunting ground nearby and the overall atmosphere was quiet and peaceful, he would do quests and live here when he wanted to experience a healing fantasy.
"Our first adventure is over."
"It's a victory for the Rosaria Warrior Brigade!"
"Right, it seems like we don't need the branch anymore, so let's throw it away."
"Okay!"
As the role-play was over, she threw away her holy sword(?) without any hesitation.
Reed pondered for a moment about what to do in this village.
However, the answer came quickly.
Gurgle-.
It was Rosaria's stomach clock ringing loudly.
"Shall we eat something?"
"I want to eat."
Since it was a planned trip, they had brought enough money, and they had plenty of money to dine out.
As he had often been here, he could find the restaurant with his eyes closed.
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