A few people who received bread came to me to express their gratitude.
“Thank you….”
I didn’t bother replying to them and just memorized their faces before moving on.
The slums are vast, and thus, the number of hungry people is plenty.
That means Nameless and I have to repeat the same act multiple times.
If I respond to each one, it’ll never end.
“With the slums being this expansive….”
Will we even finish today?
Muttering under my breath while emotionlessly scanning the faces, Nameless approached me.
“Master.”
I didn’t have the energy to respond, so I merely turned to look at Nameless.
“What shall we do about those following us?”
Nameless nodded toward the back.
I naturally rolled my eyes and glanced over my shoulder, noticing that people from the slums were trailing behind me.
Hmm, are they the ones who didn’t get any bread earlier?
Honestly, I’d love to give them enough bread to fill their stomachs, but I didn’t bring that much, and to filter out the needy, I still need such folks around.
Besides, among them are those who, despite having eaten bread, are still hungry enough to chase after me.
It’s not that I don’t understand them.
After all, I’m tossing good food around in front of them; it would be odd not to chase.
If Nameless weren’t beside me, wouldn’t they have rushed at me to snatch the bread?
“Tsk.”
Had I been a man, I wouldn’t have to deal with this nonsense. Being a girl means I often come off as easy prey.
Of course, I was short even when I was a guy, but…
That’s not the point!
I randomly kicked Nameless’s calf.
“…Master?”
“Just take it like a champ!”
Anyway.
What to do about them? I thought long and hard as I scratched my chin.
They should realize that excessive greed is toxic…
‘Then they wouldn’t be here to begin with.’
I’d rather avoid aggressive methods, but if they keep following, they’ll only get in the way.
Hmm, should I chase them off after all?
Sighing deeply and shaking my head, I tugged at Nameless’s sleeve to get her attention.
“Nameless, give them a little scare and drive them off.”
“Yes, Master.”
After her reply, Nameless immediately turned her back on them and glared.
It was kind of cute, looking like a puppy trying to protect its owner, but I kept my mouth shut for fear of making Nameless sulky.
Still, perhaps it’s because my appearance is different in their eyes, they quickly turned and scurried away from us in fear.
I sneaked up to Nameless, who must have worked hard, and poked her side.
“Cough, thanks, huh?”
Despite saying thanks, she blushed bright red as if she was shy.
“…Why are you laughing?”
“Cough, cough. I’m not laughing.”
“…”
Wait, is she actually upset?
As her Master, I shouldn’t feel proud, but there’s a satisfying feeling in making Nameless pout for the first time in ages.
My lips curled upwards.
Not bothering to hide my expression, I stood in front of Nameless, cleared my throat, and mimicked the expression she made earlier as closely as possible, opening my mouth to say,
“Get lost, cough, cough, you looked cool.”
“…”
Nameless clamped her mouth shut and whipped her head away.
Her neck and ears were still bright red.
Hmm, did I go a bit too far? She seems truly miffed.
“Are you sulking?”
“…”
“Nameless? Isn’t your Master asking?”
How dare you?
Seeing Nameless refuse to respond to her Master made me hot under the collar, causing me to spin her around while poking her in the side repeatedly.
“Hey, hey.”
“…”
“Hey, hey.”
After spinning her around about three times, I finally got her to respond.
“…I’m not sulking.”
Her ears were still red, and her voice sounded like she was trying hard to hold back something, so it was clear she was still sulking.
“If you’re sulking, you can be honest about it.”
I poked her side again.
Nameless trembled slightly as she replied.
“I’m not….”
…
After scattering bread in the streets about five times, I could finally see the sun starting to set.
“Nameless, we should start getting ready to head back to the inn.”
“Yes, Master.”
Since I could see all the bread was gone, there wouldn’t be any fights to snatch what I threw.
Still, I can’t help but worry.
There could still be some individuals who might potentially gather around me.
I turned to see Nameless, who had slung her bag over her shoulder.
Hmm, she looks rather pleased.
Unlike her dirt-stained body, Nameless has a faint smile on her face.
“Nameless, do you remember all their faces?”
“Yes, Master.”
“Good, let’s go.”
…
Once I fully exited the slums, I pinched my nose and scowled.
“Ew….”
Even though I was only there for a short while, my clothes felt like they reeked.
“Why do you say that?”
“I think I smell bad….”
Nameless approached me and started sniffing near me.
Hmm, why is she acting like this?
I was a bit surprised, but I didn’t push her away or show any sign of dislike.
“It seems fine; I can only smell strawberries from you, Master.”
“Straw… berry?”
How does someone smell like strawberries?
I raised my sleeve to my nose and sniffed.
Hmm, definitely not smelling like strawberries.
“What nonsense are you talking about….”
I looked at Nameless with a cold glare, and she let out a deep sigh, looking absolutely wronged.
Hmm, is she serious?
Seeing Nameless look that way makes me wonder if it actually could be true.
Isn’t it said that you can’t smell yourself?
I cocked my head inquisitively.
Still, I certainly remember not eating enough to smell like strawberries…
As I pondered this, Nameless extended her hand to me.
“What is it?”
When she opened her hand, a plump strawberry popped out.
“Master, I just remembered that the specialty sold in this region is strawberries.”
“Ooh.”
A specialty of strawberries!
Rejecting this would be a disgrace to strawberries.
“Wow, it’s really sweet.”
I guess I should worry about reducing my strawberry intake later.
…
The next day, I set off to find the people I remembered from yesterday before dawn even broke.
“Master, is it true that I don’t need to pack anything today?”
“Yes, just make sure to bring your wooden sword.”
Nameless hesitated while biting her lip and finally nodded.
Hmm, maybe I should explain it.
“Nameless, today we will observe people in a different manner than yesterday.”
“A different manner… you say?”
“Yes.”
I shared my thoughts with Nameless.
The reason I came at such an early hour can be attributed to the second filtering process.
The mornings in the slums are particularly early.
Just as the early bird catches the worm, they also have to wake up earlier than their fellow dwellers in the slums to beg more effectively or dig through trash cans for food to survive.
Having initially remembered only those who could think of others, it’s now time to see their diligence.
While there might not be a direct correlation between a person’s goodness and diligence, they’re not entirely unrelated.
Those who do nothing but wait for opportunities without any effort will be swiftly cast aside.
Still, we should probably find at least one with a bare minimum desire to escape from the slums; otherwise, it wouldn’t make sense, right?
Excessive greed can plunge you into the abyss, but moderate greed serves as a precious driving force to live.
Of course, I don’t expect to find many such wonderful individuals in the slums.
Hmm, if I find just one, I should consider myself lucky, right?
A sigh escaped me.
At this rate, how much longer will it take to build a proper organization, I wonder, but oh well, there’s nothing I can do about it.
Lowering my expectations for the type of people I want to recruit only worries me for the future.
If I settle for any random folk, I might quickly bulk up in numbers, but in the long run, that bloated mass might become detrimental to me.
While sacrificing their souls for my goals wouldn’t be a bad choice, I’m not evil enough to kill people for that, so I can only gather those who can genuinely help my ambitions.
Of course, there may be those who find this frustrating.
But fundamentally, I’m a coward.
No matter what I do, if I don’t plan it out in a way that allows me, a coward, to feel reassured, I wouldn’t be able to sleep properly out of fear of the future.
Embarrassed to share my shortcomings with my disciple, I only explained the plans I had thought out earlier.
Upon hearing what I said, Nameless’s eyes sparkled, and she nodded vigorously.
“Indeed, you are a true Master.”
Nameless’s excessive reaction made me feel bashful, and I scratched my cheeks.
Hmm, even if you praise me like that, nothing will come of it.
“Anyway, I plan to observe only the movements in the slums this morning.”
“Yes, I understand.”
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