"...Eh?"
Slide—!
"Now, please, come this way."
"W-Wait a moment!?"
The Renard girl, Haruhime, grabbed the hands of Akumo and Bell who stood before her and pulled them further into the room.
"No, that's not what I—!"
Stumble—!
"Whoa!?"
"Kyaa!?"
Flustered, Bell scrambled to steady himself, only to end up tumbling onto the bedding along with her. Akumo watched the scene with a look of utter exasperation.
Bell had been fleeing for his life from a horde of prostitutes moments ago, yet he immediately reverted to his naive, clueless self. Meanwhile, the Renard who introduced herself as Haruhime was blushing furiously, looking more embarrassed by the situation than the 'customers' themselves.
"What are you two even doing?"
"H-Hyung!"
"First off, separate."
Slide—!
"Was the order wrong? Then, perhaps this gentleman first..."
'No, that's clearly not the issue here...'
Akumo prioritized prying Bell and Haruhime apart, but another problem immediately manifested.
"T-The gentleman's..."
Pshhhhh—!
"Collarbone...!"
Thud!
'What in the...?'
Haruhime caught a glimpse of Bell and Akumo's disheveled attire—mussed from their frantic escape—and her face turned a violent shade of crimson before she simply collapsed.
"Hyung..."
"Let's just wait until she wakes up..."
'The Pleasure Quarter truly is a confusing place.'
Several minutes later, Haruhime finally managed to regain consciousness.
"I-I am so sorry!"
"Not only did I mistake you for customers, but I also showed such disgraceful behavior...!"
After listening to Bell and Akumo, she realized her misunderstanding and offered a polite, deep apology.
From the perspective of Akumo and Bell—who had essentially trespassed while running for their lives—receiving such a formal apology felt rather awkward.
"Ah, no, it's..."
"In the first place, we're the ones who barged in without permission."
"You're Haruhime... right?"
"I'm Akumo, and this is Bell."
Akumo took charge of the situation, introducing them while carefully observing Haruhime's condition.
'Level Boost... so this is the Sorcery she possesses.'
"Lord Akumo and Lord Cranel... But if you are not customers, why exactly are you here?"
"Well, you could say we've become a sort of 'prey'..."
"Ah... That certainly sounds like something Aisha would do..."
"You know her?"
"Yes, she has always been very kind to me."
'Hoh... surprisingly enough...'
Haruhime accepted their explanation with a familiarity that suggested such occurrences were common in the Entertainment District, offering a gentle smile to Bell and Akumo.
"It would be difficult for first-timers to escape this place on their own. Therefore, once dawn breaks, I shall guide you to a secret path!"
"Is that really okay?"
"Yes! Though this may be a meeting for only a single night, Haruhime wishes to be of use to Lord Cranel and Lord Akumo."
"...I see."
"As a small request in return, would you care to converse with me until then?"
"Converse...?"
Touched by Haruhime's kindness, Bell responded with a smile. Until the sun rose, Akumo and Bell found themselves engaged in a long conversation with her.
**
"So, Lord Cranel, you came to Orario specifically to become an adventurer?"
"Yes. I have a... a dream..."
"I see. As for me, circumstances led me from the Far East to this land."
"From the Far East...?"
"Yes. It is a land with four distinct seasons and abundant nature."
Bell and Haruhime exchanged stories. Haruhime seemed to enjoy the process, narrating her past with a gentle smile.
"However, I was disowned by my family at the age of eleven."
"Disowned... meaning your ties with your parents were severed?"
"I incurred my father's wrath... it couldn't be helped."
"Ah..."
"S-Still, I had a longing for Orario! Even in the Far East, many tales set in this land have been passed down."
"Dungeon Oratoria... you mean?"
"Yes!"
The conversation could have turned somber, but the fairy tales Haruhime brought up became a common ground that kept the dialogue moving.
Akumo watched them with a faint, indulgent smile, but his mind was piercing through the Sorcery Haruhime held and the undeniable sorrow she tried to hide behind her expression.
"..."
"Lord Akumo...?"
"Haruhime, what is your favorite story?"
"That would be... an ancient tale from the Far East about a samurai with a tiny body who saved a girl from a wicked ogre!"
"The tale of Issun-boushi, the Little One-Inch Boy?"
A smile touched Haruhime's lips as she spoke of the story she admired, but it was quickly replaced by a look of resignation, and she lowered her head.
"I, too, wish to go to the world I long for... by taking the hand offered by a hero, just like in the books..."
"But those are merely shallow dreams..."
"I do not possess the right to be taken away."
Her voice was heavy with a blend of melancholy and surrender, as if she had already decided she was beyond saving.
"...Why do you think that?"
"I am not a lovely princess, nor am I a saint. I am merely a prostitute."
"....."
"I have abandoned my body to many men and shared their beds."
'I see... this child...'
"I did not protect my virtue with conviction; I sold my body for coin."
"Why would such people ever try to save someone as vulgar as me?"
She continued in a detached tone, as if stating an obvious fact of the world.
"To a hero, a prostitute is a symbol of ruin."
"From the day I realized I was defiled."
"I lost the right to read those beautiful stories."
"I am not permitted to harbor such longings."
"Because I am merely a prostitute."
**
Hearing her words, Bell was struck dumb. He didn't know what to say to someone who truly believed they were unworthy. He couldn't find the words of encouragement she needed.
"...Haruhime."
"Yes?"
"Who do you think decides that?"
"What do you..."
"That you're dirty, that a prostitute ruins a hero—who decided that?"
The words Akumo spoke weren't empty comfort.
However, he looked at her with a face of absolute gravity. As the room's light flickered low, the moonlight reflected in his eyes, causing them to shine with intensity.
"But, I am a prostitute."
"I understand. That feeling that you can't stand beside a hero... I've seen it more often than you'd think."
'Like Raul and his group, or Lili...'
"But, do you really think the hero you're imagining would think that way too?"
"....."
"Bell and I are adventurers by trade. Some see it as romantic, others admire it like a hero's calling."
"I think so as well."
"It's not always like that, though."
Akumo began to tell Haruhime about his own experiences—of being discarded by his village, surviving countless battles to reach Orario, and the despair of facing gargantuan monsters he couldn't hope to defeat.
He told her the 'backstory' of those called heroes.
"That's..."
"It's the same for me. Did you see the recent War Game?"
".....Yes."
"It was a fight I didn't even want. My Goddess was insulted, and though we won in the end..."
'If we had lost...'
Bell also explained that his recent adventures weren't always positive, nor did they resemble the ideal fairy tales she spoke of.
"How can that..."
'Why did such things happen to Lord Akumo and Lord Cranel...'
Tears welled in the corners of Haruhime's eyes. Was it because their stories were tragic, or because she was hearing the harsh reality while longing for an ideal?
"And yet, I still have dreams."
"And yet, I still want to move forward."
"Even if the world lacks ideals, I will still pursue them."
"In that process, I will protect the people I want to protect."
"Whether they are a saint, a princess, or a prostitute doesn't matter."
She saw them.
The crimson and black eyes shining in the moonlight.
Seeing her not as a prostitute, but simply as Haruhime.
"You aren't dirty at all."
"Haruhime-san is just Haruhime-san."
**
"...It's time."
Step, step—
Haruhime stood and looked out the window. The presence of the prostitutes chasing Bell and Akumo had vanished, and the lights of the district had dimmed.
"This was a very pleasant conversation... Lord Cranel, Lord Akumo."
"We enjoyed it too, Haruhime."
"I hope we can meet again, Haruhime-san."
".....Yes."
She guided Akumo and Bell through the secret passage she knew. Her face remained the same, but her eyes now clearly held a spark they hadn't before.
"The road ahead connects to Daedalus Street. If you follow the alleyway, you'll be able to leave the Pleasure Quarter safely."
Step, step—
Haruhime saw them off at the edge of the secret path.
Her gaze remained fixed on them, as if trying to memorize the sight of the heroes she had met by chance. They offered her a bright smile as they walked away.
"Bell."
"This might become another dangerous adventure..."
"But you're still going to save her, aren't you?"
"....Yeah!"
The two heroes had no intention of letting this girl's story end in a tragedy.