Ren turned toward the source of the voice and found the woman in clerical robes he had spoken with at the guild standing nearby. Her voice still had that synthesized, artificial quality, making her unmistakable.
He squared his shoulders and frowned. "Why are you here?" he asked, his voice naturally wary. The question lacked a certain gravity, however, given that he was currently dripping with river water and caked in mud.
"That's my line," the woman replied nonchalantly. "You were supposed to be in Clausel. Why are you playing in the river?"
Ren had no way of knowing if she was being genuine or just teasing him. "I have my reasons. And for the record, I wasn't playing."
It was legitimate work, but he couldn't exactly hold his head high in his current state. The woman seemed to enjoy his disgruntled expression; she let out a soft chuckle and traced a circle in the air with her finger.
"It wouldn't do for you to catch a cold," she said.
In an instant, Ren’s clothes began to dry. The mud and grime vanished along with the moisture, leaving his outfit as crisp and clean as if it had just been laundered.
"What was that?"
"Heh-heh... To tell you the truth, that was magic specifically for cleaning clothes! Well? Impressive, right?"
Ren doubted the spell was limited to such a narrow purpose, but more importantly, he hadn't known such magic even existed. Then again, if a spell like that had been in The Legend of the Seven Heroes, no one would have used it. The game had no concept of 'dirt,' making a cleaning spell entirely useless.
So, there’s lifestyle magic in this world that I don’t know about, Ren realized, smiling with satisfaction at the new knowledge.
Misinterpreting his smile as simple joy, the woman in robes crossed her arms triumphantly. This finally gave Ren the opening he needed.
"Why are you here?" he asked again. He wanted to know the purpose of this blatantly suspicious woman, regardless of whether their meeting was a coincidence. He knew he couldn't take her answer at face value, but he had to ask.
"Work," she said. "Despite how shady I look, I actually have a very serious job."
"I see." Ren didn't confirm or deny her self-assessment, though he silently noted that she was at least self-aware. Still, the mention of a serious job piqued his interest.
A serious job that requires a disguise? What could that be?
He remained on guard. The woman showed no sign of elaborating. Her voice was still distorted, and though her hood was pulled low, Ren found he couldn't see any of her features besides her mouth, almost as if the robes themselves were enchanted to hide her identity.
A brief silence fell between them, eventually broken by a third party.
A low growl emanated from behind a cluster of fallen trees just off the riverbank. Several monsters were watching them—Little Boars, a creature Ren knew well. They looked hungry as they slinked forward, grunting softly.
"The disaster probably drove them away from their usual feeding grounds," the woman remarked.
"It seems so," Ren replied.
The woman immediately moved to step in front of him. "Ah, Ren-kun, stay behind—"
Ren was faster. He stepped forward, putting himself between the woman and the monsters, and drew his Iron Magic Sword. The woman blinked in surprise.
"Wait... why?"
"Why what?" Ren asked without looking back, his eyes fixed on the boars.
He could practically hear the confused expression on her face. "Why are you standing in front of me?"
"To fight, obviously."
"No, I mean... it's like you're trying to protect me."
"I am protecting you. Is there something strange about that?"
"Wait, what?" she gasped.
Despite her suspicious nature, Ren’s body had moved on its own. It was a habit ingrained in him from his time with Licia. Besides, he couldn't bring himself to let a woman stand in harm's way while he watched. He felt a lingering unease about showing her his back, so he moved to finish the fight quickly.
The woman let out a soft, surprised sound behind him. "I guess you really are that Hero everyone's talking about," she whispered.
The comment didn't reach Ren’s ears. He cut down the leaping boars in a series of swift, fluid motions. Once the threat was neutralized, he sheathed his Iron Magic Sword and turned back.
"Did you say something?"
"Yeah. I said you’re cute."
"I don't follow."
"If I promised to explain, would you come to the Imperial Capital with me?"
"Absolutely not."
"Haa... what a pity." The woman sighed with genuine disappointment and began to walk away. As she passed him, she waved a hand, purifying the last of the monster blood from Ren's clothes. "I have to get going. I was getting sick of all the work I have to do, but meeting you was actually fun."
"Wait!" Ren called out, reaching for her. He still had questions. He needed to know how she knew about his strength. But just as his hand reached for her shoulder, a warm gust of wind swept across the riverbank.
Ren instinctively shielded his eyes. When he looked again, the woman was gone. Even the massive logs he had been tasked with clearing had vanished.
He stood there in the sudden silence, thinking. He went over her various spells, her choice of pronouns, and her strangely familiar, friendly manner. A possibility began to take shape in his mind.
"It couldn't be her... could it?"
The name that surfaced was Chronoa Highland, the Academy Principal of the Imperial Academy. But he couldn't quite believe it. Why would someone as busy as her be out here in the middle of nowhere?
"So, why did we have to come back so early?" Licia asked that evening.
She had come to visit Ren in his guest room as she usually did. Weiss hadn't sworn Ren to secrecy, so he saw no reason to hide the truth from her.
"Actually..."
He told her everything: meeting the mysterious woman at the guild, their encounter by the river, and how, given that it hadn't even been six months since the Jelququ incident, they decided to return early as a precaution.
Licia nodded understandingly. "What was she like?"
"I honestly couldn't tell. She wore clerical robes and a deep hood that hid her face. Even her voice sounded like it was being altered."
"She certainly sounds suspicious," Licia agreed. She didn't seem particularly worried, though. With Ren and Weiss around, her voice was full of confidence. "In that case, do you think we could stay up a little late tonight?"
"Since tomorrow’s plans were canceled?"
"Exactly. I brought a little something to pass the time. Care to join me?"
She hurried back to her room and returned with a board game reminiscent of chess or shogi.
At first, Ren lost every round. But as the night wore on, he began to grasp the strategies and started a winning streak. Licia’s competitive nature immediately flared up. Not to be outdone, Ren matched her intensity, insisting on "one more game" every time he lost. By the time they realized how long they had been at it, the night was nearly over.