Do Heroes Need Welfare Too? - Chapter 130

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 130

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“Grandmother, it’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

“Been a while? Has this young child already gone senile? Didn’t you come by just last week!”

“Well, still.”

Other villagers treated her as a cranky old woman, but she reminded me of my late grandmother, making me smile naturally.

“You took all the medicine I gave you last time, right?”

“What do you take this old woman for? Of course I didn’t forget to take it. I’m not that useless yet, child.”

“Haha, of course I didn’t think that!”

I smoothly responded to her joke.

“It seemed like it would be difficult for you to come down yourself, Grandmother.”

“Why does this young one come all the way here when you’re not even paying extra?”

“Hehe, this way I can take a break from work too.”

“Oh my, I don’t know if this child is foolish or kind… I thought my granddaughter was the only such pushover in my life. Tsk.”

Though she grumbled in her rough voice as if displeased, I knew she was quite fond of me.

“Here, eat this.”

She always gave me something to eat like this. If I didn’t eat it right away, she’d grumble about why I wasn’t eating and pile even more food into my arms, so I quickly put the candy in my mouth. Sweet fragrance filled my mouth.

My recently dampened mood quickly improved with the sugar.

“You must be excited that your granddaughter will return soon!”

“Oh my, one chattering granddaughter is becoming two.”

“Am I your granddaughter too, Grandmother?”

I giggled and clung to her. Then she shouted as she always did.

“Don’t say such strange things and just take this!”

“Thank you. I’ll use it well.”

“What! I just made it because I had leftover fabric.”

I bowed my head to her in greeting and came outside. Receiving the black ribbon, I fingered it. The soft fabric showed the care put into it for the recipient, unlike her manner of speaking.

‘Really, she’s just not honest.’

Inside the ribbon was a small crumpled note with my name written on it.

I was curious whether her granddaughter would also have such a dishonest personality, but she didn’t seem to have arrived in the village yet.

Then I saw a small figure climbing up the hill in the distance. I squinted and examined the strangely familiar person.

And when her figure came closer, I opened my eyes wide and couldn’t hide my surprised expression.

“High Priest Meriel?”

A voice like an exclamation burst out.

Meriel, who had been lost in other thoughts and not looking ahead, showed alertness in her eyes.

“This voice, could it be…”

I stared at the person before me with wide eyes.

Meriel, who had heavy-looking luggage on her shoulders and in her hands, also seemed quite surprised as she opened her eyes like a rabbit.

“Iberis?!”

Meriel, who had been blinking, suddenly threw down her luggage like someone whose loading had suddenly completed and ran to hug me.

“Is it really you, Iberis?”

She touched my arms as if moved.

When warm warmth was transmitted through my skin, large tears formed in her eyes.

“I thought you were dead, Iberis.”

Meriel, who had come into my arms, burst into tears.

I thought I’d be fine, but it seemed I had also shared much affection with her. My eyes reddened for no reason, so I deliberately looked up.

And looking at the large luggage Meriel was carrying, I muttered.

“To think the granddaughter Grandmother mentioned was High Priest Meriel.”

“You know my grandmother?”

When I muttered in surprise, Meriel opened her eyes like a rabbit and looked at me.

It would be harder to find similarities between Meriel and Grandmother.

Unlike Meriel, who seemed like she couldn’t even curse at bad people, Grandmother was famous for her rough tongue.

After ending our tearful reunion, Grandmother muttered small complaints while taking us inside the house.

As if she was just now believing that I was alive, Meriel shed tears again.

“When I heard the rumors, I really thought you were dead… I searched through all the documents to see if there was a way to revive people… but there was only mention that monsters exposed to magic stop aging…”

All the words pouring out incoherently were words of worry about me.

“Not just me, but many people were worried. Penin and Silena, whom you saw when you stayed at the temple, were the same.”

Penin and Silena were the ones who followed me around with bright, burdensome gazes when I went to the temple.

I didn’t particularly want to see them.

As I let out a small bitter laugh while reminiscing about the past, I hesitated for a moment before carefully asking Meriel about Adam.

Lately, whenever I let my guard down even briefly, my head would naturally turn toward places where I could hear talk about Adam.

When the word Hero was mentioned, I would unconsciously stop everything I was doing and look in that direction.

The problem was that rumors about the Hero had suddenly decreased recently.

Before, I heard ominous rumors like the Hero threatening nobles, or making someone a eunuch with the holy sword…

Of course, I didn’t believe any of it.

That kind Hero? Really, the Emperor must be spreading rumors to slander him again.

However, when even the absurd rumors suddenly stopped, I became quite curious.

I thought it would be more accurate to ask someone who was actually there rather than listening to rumors.

However, Meriel showed considerable confusion.

“Ah… the Hero…”

When the Hero’s name came up, Meriel rolled her eyes around.

At Grandmother’s scolding from the side about why she wasn’t answering quickly, Meriel put down her teacup and made a resolute expression.

“…How much do you know?”

And she suddenly asked me back.

“Ouch, Grandmother!”

Frustrated with her granddaughter’s hesitation, Grandmother restrained her.

Meriel grabbed the cheek that Grandmother had lightly pinched and released.

With her face red where she had been pinched, Meriel chose her words.

“Well, the Hero… has been doing some strange things lately. The Elderly High Priest told me to come down so I wouldn’t get caught up in the storm unnecessarily. Oh, you should be careful too, Maid.”

“Strange things…?”

“Ah, you’re not a maid anymore. Iberis.”

Meriel giggled, saying she made a mistake with the title because it had been so long.

She still hadn’t answered the question I asked.

“Do you really want to hear it…”

When I asked her again, Meriel sighed deeply and said.

“Lately the Hero has been fighting with everyone he meets, you know? He seems to have no fear. Of course, he doesn’t do that anymore, but…”

“…What?”

The answer that came back was beyond imagination.

That wasn’t an absurd rumor but actually true?

Surely the rumor about making nobles eunuchs wasn’t also true?

The nobles that the Hero supposedly tormented and made eunuchs happened to have the same names as those who had given me somewhat unpleasant looks.

An unpleasant feeling remained.

“If he knew Iberis was alive, he wouldn’t do such things…”

“Hmm…”

I smiled bitterly without affirming or denying her words.

‘It doesn’t seem like Adam would take revenge for me… Maybe he’s doing it because there’s no one around to stop him?’

For three years, there was no maid or god to restrain him. Now that the shackles that held him were gone, who would know he was doing what he wanted?

“Anyway, the Hero is living fine, so don’t worry, Iberis.”

He’s living fine even after attacking several people and making them eunuchs?

I couldn’t believe Meriel’s words that he was fine.

I muttered worriedly.

“That may be true, but we only heard ominous rumors before they suddenly stopped, making it seem like…”

Yes, it was like the calm before a storm.

The quietness that felt like something big was about to explode only heightened my anxiety.

However, Meriel wore an enigmatic smile and slowly averted her gaze.

“You’ll find out soon…”

And she left behind one meaningful remark.

“Ah! Come to think of it, shall we check your divine power again like we did last time?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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