GILF Hunter

Chapter 490: 490 It’s Nice to Go Just the Two of Us

After making such a sudden promise with Ian.

Ian, who seemed to have other business, asked for understanding from Frenda and the knights before leaving first.

Frenda turned to the knights and asked with a flustered face.

’Wh-why would you suddenly ask Leader Ian for a festival tour...!’

’Oh? Wasn’t that why you came here?’

’That’s...’

It was true.

However, Frenda, who hadn’t expected things to turn out like this so abruptly, looked at the knights with a panicked expression.

’Ah. Did you perhaps want to go on a date with just the two of you?’

’D-da...’

Hearing that blunt word made Frenda’s face turn even brighter red.

The knight, having roughly guessed what Frenda was aiming for, spoke to her quietly.

’But Ms. Frenda, think about it. Leader Ian is always busy and he’s a celebrity. If you had dithered, his schedule would have been completely filled in an instant.’

’That... I suppose so.’

Hearing the knight’s calm explanation, Frenda had no choice but to nod.

Her biggest worry while coming here was that Ian’s schedule might already be packed.

’So isn’t it a relief that we snatched him up like this? Surely by tomorrow, he wouldn’t have had a single spare moment.’

’Th-that’s true, but...’

In the end, Frenda had to admit it.

Because she had met Ian so suddenly without being mentally prepared, she had inwardly intended to aim for the next opportunity...

But as he said, if she had come back tomorrow, there might not have been any time left.

Once Frenda finally acknowledged that fact, the knights asked her the next question.

’By the way. Are you all prepared?’

’Prepared for what?’

’Clothes to wear while going around the festival...’

’Is a specific outfit required to see a festival...?’

’What are you saying? You’re not planning to wander around in your priestess robes, are you!’

The knight spoke to Frenda with a look of disbelief.

’There will be many outsiders on the day of the festival, and if people recognize you as a high-ranking priestess, there will be an uproar. You won’t even be able to sightsee properly.’

’I... I see. Certainly.’

She had just heard that the number of visitors for this festival was higher than usual. Whether it was true or not, the rumor was that the reason was because of Frenda, the high-ranking priestess.

Being swarmed by people who recognized her identity in the streets was a situation Frenda was quite used to.

If she were alone, she would have dealt with them kindly, but it would definitely be troublesome if such a thing happened while sightseeing. It would be a burden to her companion as well...

’Then I should prepare some plain clothes.’

’Plain clothes! You don’t mean that thing you wore back then, do you?’

’I-it is.’

’Absolutely not! Let’s go buy some right now!’

’Eh...?’

Without a chance to refuse, Frenda was surrounded by the knights and dragged off to the shopping district.

＊ ＊ ＊

And so... without even knowing how time passed, the day of the appointment arrived in a flash.

Ian arrived at the meeting place slightly earlier than the scheduled time.

There, Frenda, who had come out first, was waiting for Ian alone.

’Sorry, you came out early. Have you been waiting long?’

’Ah, no... I just arrived.’

Frenda made up a quick excuse.

Ian checked the time briefly.

It was a bit earlier than the original appointment time, but since everyone who was coming had arrived, they could leave right away.

Thinking so, Ian spoke to Frenda.

’Then, shall we head toward the plaza first? Most of the things worth seeing are concentrated there.’

’Huh? What about the others...?’

’I got a message this morning; apparently, something came up at the Knightage suddenly, so they won’t be able to attend.’

’Pardon...?’

Frenda asked back with a dazed face.

’Since it turned out like this, I suppose it’s just the two of us today.’

’...!’

Only then did Frenda understand the meaning behind the knights’ meaningful smiles.

It seemed they had been aiming for this ever since they suggested Ian guide them through the festival.

When Frenda stood frozen like a stone, unable to answer, Ian asked.

’But... for a festival tour, it’s usually more fun to go with people you know. It’s a shame, but should we try to find time on another day instead?’

’Ah... No! You’re busy, we can’t do that! It’s nice to go just the two of us!’

Frenda hurriedly grabbed Ian’s sleeve.

...And then, she felt like she had just said something incredibly embarrassing, and her face flushed deep red.

Fortunately, Ian didn’t seem to notice anything strange about those words.

The two of them walked toward the plaza together.

Ian unfolded a festival pamphlet he had brought along.

It was something that was always delivered to the Ian Mercenary Group but rarely ever used.

It was a guide booklet containing all the festival information, and the VIP pamphlet of the Festival Merchants Association itself served as an admission ticket.

Since it allowed one to enter certain places without waiting in line, it was a good item to have when wandering around like this.

Ian showed it to Frenda and asked.

’Is there anywhere you want to see first?’

’Ah... no. Well, this is my first time doing something like this...’

Frenda answered hesitantly.

Well... I suppose so. Ian nodded and looked through the booths listed in the pamphlet for things Frenda might like.

Excluding places that were too noisy or where massive crowds gathered.

Excluding places that took too long to see.

While skipping over unsuitable options and looking for a decent spot, Ian’s gaze stopped at one place.

A section written in a flashy font that stood out among the sea of information.

It was a theater venue.

Seeing it decorated so grandly in the most prominent spot, it seemed to be the event the merchant association was putting the most effort into promoting.

’Hmm... how about a performance?’

’A performance.’

Frenda seemed to contemplate for a moment.

In fact, Ian had never seen a play or performance here either. Since no one around him particularly liked such things, he never had the chance.

For that reason, although he made the suggestion... he had no idea how much Frenda would like it.

From Frenda’s perspective, it seemed like a decent place—neither extremely good nor extremely bad.

Since the seats were assigned, it wouldn’t be overcrowded with people...

If they were sitting and watching, she’d have some time to think leisurely about what to do next.

’Yes. I’d like that.’

After finishing her thoughts, Frenda nodded.

＊ ＊ ＊

Arriving at the theater, Ian and Frenda climbed the stairs.

The seats were on the second floor.

They were VIP-only seats that could only be accessed with the pamphlet.

’What would you like for your drinks?’

’We’ll order later if we need them.’

The employee nodded and stepped outside the partition behind the seats.

Seeing them wait there without leaving, they seemed to be the dedicated staff for these seats.

...I thought it would be a small performance. It was a much larger theater than she had expected.

Frenda, who had imagined ordinary theater seats, swallowed hard at the sight of the unexpected VIP seating.

Since the seats on the second floor were all divided by partitions, there was no one sitting near Ian and Frenda.

To think it would be a seat for just the two of them...

She had planned to think leisurely about what to do next while watching the play, but in this situation, she felt she’d be too nervous to have any mental leeway.

Before long, the play began.

Come to think of it, she hadn’t even checked what kind of play they were watching beforehand.

It seemed like there was something written about the play’s content near the entrance, but because the manager here had come to meet them and guided them straight to the second floor, they couldn’t read those things on the first floor.

However, Frenda didn’t mind much. She hadn’t come expecting much from the play’s content anyway.

Well... plays were usually similar no matter what you watched.

It would probably just be some hero-like person coming out to fight and defeat evil monsters and receive praise...

With those thoughts, Frenda looked down at the stage on the first floor with an unexpectant expression.

...

- As long as I am here, you shall never pass beyond this point!

’Wh... what on earth is this about? Don’t tell me...’

Frenda muttered as she watched the play with a look of horror.

Ian read the title and description of the play briefly written in the pamphlet once more.

There was a long verse filled with incredibly complex and rhetorical expressions. It was to the point where one couldn’t even guess what the original meaning of the sentence was.

Seeing that the descriptions of other performances were mostly similar, it seemed this style of title was currently in vogue for plays.

Based on that alone, it was impossible to predict the content of the play... but seeing it now, he could vaguely understand what the expressions were hinting at.

’It seems they’ve made a play out of the expedition we went on.’

’Wh-why would they...’

’Well... because it’s famous.’

It was the deep-floor expedition that was the talk of the town.

There was no way it wouldn’t become a topic of conversation. A massive monster decoration was still on display in front of City Hall, after all.

He heard it had now become a landmark that visitors from outside visited first.

There was no way the theater troupes, the leading pioneers of trends, would miss out on such a massive topic.

Sure... she could understand that much.

Frenda lifted her head, which she had been hanging low, and peeked at the stage. An actress in priestess robes was shouting desperately under the brilliant lights.

- My knights, rise up! Fight for the people!

The protagonist of the play... was Frenda.

It was because Frenda was the most conspicuous person among the expedition members.

Regardless of the facts.

From an outsider’s perspective, a high-ranking priestess leading a knightage was much more suited to be a protagonist than a B-rank mercenary guide. It went without saying if that priestess was a young woman.

Furthermore, since the detailed facts of the expedition hadn’t spread outside, the content of the play was bound to be a nonsensical creation filled entirely with imagination.

- Receive the judgment of the Goddess!

When Ian glanced to the side, Frenda’s face was flushed so red it looked like it might explode.

She had been fine standing in front of people, but being held up so blatantly seemed to be embarrassing.

’I hadn’t heard that something like this had been made either.’

’Well, heroic tales or songs are usually created as they please...’

It was the job of bards and storytellers to take a famous story, adapt it, and create songs to spread it.

There was no such thing as copyright for heroic deeds and rumors.

Of course, they had a minimum set of rules.

Out of respect for the protagonist of the story, it was essential to express honor by mentioning their name and achievements again after the performance ended.

In a place where honor and reputation were important values, that effectively substituted for copyright fees.

If stories praising one’s achievements spread, that in itself meant gaining honor, a value more important than gold coins.

From the seat next to Ian, Frenda, with her head hung low, muttered.

’I’m sorry...’

’Pardon? For what?’

’Th-this kind of play should be received by Leader Ian...’

Ian imagined an actor taking his role standing in that spot instead of Frenda.

’....’

And as soon as he returned, he made up his mind to strictly warn the knights once more to keep their mouths shut.

The knights might not be able to endure seeing this play and might jump up to correct the facts.