"Since you can't read or write, I'll handle registering us as a temporary party. Just be thankful for my kindness and worship me as a loyal follower while you wait,"
That's what Lynn said after snatching his adventurer card and dashing toward the receptionist counter.
Setting aside his worry about whether he had just been scammed—or whether Lynn would even come back—Arezu focused on the unusual reactions of the other adventurers.
No one approached him, much less sat near him, as he sat alone at a corner table in the guild hall.
Some glanced at him with worried expressions but quickly looked away whenever their eyes met his.
"Am I being treated like an outcast?"
"You might be a country bumpkin, Mr. Arezu, but you don't need to worry about being outcast while we're together."
With another remark teetering between insulting and reassuring, Lynn returned and sat down beside Arezu.
She then placed the quest form on the table, pointing to their names to show that they were now a temporary party—or at least that's what Arezu believed.
"You can at least read and write your name, right?"
His name was written with the symbol for desire and wish, while hers was written with the symbol for dream and vision.
"I at least know my name, and I'll remember how to read and write yours."
"Of course you should, and don't you dare forget."
Confused by her pleased smile and simultaneously threatening words, Arezu followed Lynn out of the Adventurers Guild, leaving behind the worried and apologetic gazes of the other adventurers.
***
Towering walls of boulders, roads paved with stone, houses and buildings made of brick and wood—combined with lush greenery throughout the town and a magnificent castle at its center—this was the classic setting of any Isekai fantasy medieval kingdom.
It was supposed to be more astonishing and awe-inspiring than the world of his creator—a world without magic, yet so advanced they built skyscrapers, observed the stars, and even reached the moon.
But for Arezu, even alongside his cloned brothers and sisters, both worlds felt like entirely different realms of fantasy and magic.
After all, they had been created after their original world had already ended.
"So, what made you decide to visit the capital, Mr. Arezu?" Lynn asked, glancing over her shoulder as she walked ahead of him.
Her playful voice drew his attention from memories of the past as he looked at the busy streets of the capital.
To see the world they once dreamed of, to live as adventurers, learn magic, and experience fun, nonessential adventures.
Those were the wishes his creator and fallen comrades had hoped for, and Arezu was trying to live up to them as atonement for failing to save their world.
That's why he became an adventurer—despite being tired of fighting monsters and feeling more guilty and resentful with each passing day.
"I just want to see the world we once dreamed…"
"Pfft—you really are a country bumpkin! Hahaha!"
For a moment, Arezu wanted to smack Lynn on the head for laughing—at least until she turned, held back her laughter, and faced him.
She stood in front of him, proud and confident, hands on her hips, head held high.
With a loud voice everyone around could hear, Lynn declared:
"Kneel before me and promise to worship me forever—and I will promise to show you the world you once dreamed."
EHH?!
The dumbfounded stares—some surprised, shocked, embarrassed, and flustered—of everyone around them only made Arezu more embarrassed, realizing everyone had the same thought he did.
DID SHE JUST ASKED FOR A PROPOSAL?!
Her cheerful, bright smile, however, made everyone doubt whether she was serious—especially Arezu.
"What's your answer, Mr. Arezu?"
***
"You said the quest is about monster extermination, right, Ms. Lynn?"
"Hmph—I'm not talking to you until you give me your answer, Mr. Country Bumpkin."
Pressed by the curious stares of the crowd and unsure how to handle the situation, Arezu grabbed Lynn's hand as they ran away from the gleeful onlookers who clearly misunderstood their relationship.
Lynn, however, continued refusing to talk as they walked around the capital, eventually arriving at the western gate, where the rest of Lynn's party was supposedly waiting—or so Arezu thought.
"Where exactly is your party—"
"Hmph!"
With a heavy sigh, Arezu surrendered to Lynn's tantrum and gave the only answer he thought would please her.
"Please don't make fun of a country bumpkin, Ms. Lynn."
"I'm not making fun of you, Mr. Arezu."
For a moment, Arezu was caught off guard by Lynn's words—until she clarified further:
"If you become my loyal follower, then I'm willing to look after a country bumpkin like you, who wanted to see the capital but couldn't even read or write—"
"It feels like I'm being scammed, so no."
It took some time for Lynn to calm down from her tantrum before she finally introduced the members of her party—or so it seemed.
"Let me introduce you to my two loyal steeds, Chevaline and Ragwort."
In front of Arezu were two horses pulling a rather large covered carriage, capable of accommodating six passengers.
"Ms. Lynn…"
Before Arezu could ask, Lynn explained the horses' names—though that wasn't exactly what he wanted to know.
"It means horse meat and poison grass, a little reminder of what would happen to them if they ever left me on the road."
Ignoring her smug grin, as if seeking praise for her naming skills, and feeling sorry for the nervous horses, Arezu asked again about her party members.
"The perverted valkyrie and the seductive priestess are on a break for today."
She left it at that and ushered him into the carriage, taking the reins herself in the driver's seat.
With a cheerful shout, Lynn declared the start of their journey.
"We're heading straight to the center of the monster nest, Mr. Arezu."