Chapter 21.4: The simplest way to find a woman
She had said she was going away to search for a warrior, so she might already be gone…
Luckily, the pair had arrived just as she was stepping out of her front door.
“Hey.”
“Ah! This isn’t what you think it is, sister! I’m just going for a walk! I’m not trying to run away, I sw – …”
The girl yelped in panic as she spun around but sighed of relief when she saw it was just Bash and his companion.
“Oh, it’s just you… What do you want? If you’re here to ask me to have your children, it’s still a definite, categorical no. No matter how many times you come back, or even if you beg on your knees. I’ve got things to do, and finding a warrior is first on that list.”
“Good. I’m here to become your warrior.”
“And if you’re going to try and rape me… think twice. This might look like a back-alley dump, but the guards pass by often. And this time, I’ll be resisting for re – … Wait. Say that again?”
She blinked once.
And then once more.
Her eyes went wide as she looked up at Bash, incredulous.
“I’m here to become your warrior.”
The Hero calmly repeated himself.
The girl, though she could understand the words, did not seem to be able to process them.
After a few moments of confusion, she looked over to Zell, hoping the Faerie could help clarify the situation…
…which is the last thing anyone should ever do.
“We’re here to win! I’ll do my best to support you both!”
Luckily, Zell didn’t go off on a tangent, and raiser her voice to help Bash.
The girl was rather skeptical about their brazen attitude as she looked back towards the Hero.
“Are…are you sure about this? I thought you were searching for something. Did you find it? What were you looking for in the first place?”
“…It’s…”
Suddenly being questioned, Bash hesitated for a second, pondering on whether or not he should come clean about his goals.
But the other party had already rejected him.
Furthermore, Dwarves were polygamous.
It wouldn’t lower his chances at marriage if she were to be aware of his objective.
So long as nobody found out he was a virgin, everything would be fine.
“…I’m looking for a woman.”
“Wha – ?”
“I’m looking for a woman to take as my wife.”
“Huh, I see… So, you want to win the Armament Festival and straight up wish for a woman?”
“That’s right.”
The girl looked at Bash for a moment, contemplating his answer, her eyes still fearful that he might suddenly go back on his word and try to violate her.
“…Well, none of that matters to me. But are you really alright with this? My blacksmithing skills are top-of-the-line, but I’m sure that they… I mean, my brothers and sisters – that they might try and sabotage me or something…”
“I’m not worried.”
Bash is the Orc Hero.
During the war, he had accumulated countless victories and accomplished more missions than he could count.
He was more than familiar with the snags that may appear when performing a task.
But when faced with the juggernaut that was Bash, every and all obstruction fell to his overwhelming strength.
No man or woman or beast could stand in the way of the strongest of all Orcs.
“…I see…so, you’re…you’re really willing to be my warrior…”
It took a few seconds for reality to dawn on the girl – for her to realise that a sliver of hope had finally shone through the wall of her desperation.
Tears welled up in the corners of her eyes. It took her all of her will to not break down and bawl.
She had given up.
She had nearly come to accept, in her despair, that she would never be given the opportunity to show the world her strength. To prove everyone that doubted her wrong. That she would live the rest of her life in the shadow of her siblings.
But now…
Now, right in front of her, was a real, flesh-and-blood warrior who was willing to fight alongside her.
She finally had an ally.
Though the girl still had no idea how skilled this Orc she had just met was, she at least had a chance to participate. A chance at victory.
No matter how slim…
At last, she could show her brothers and sisters that she wasn’t the failure they thought she was.
“Ok!”
The girl agreed, beaming, as she wiped away her tears.
“In that case, I’ll be counting on you!”
“Yosh!”
“…by the way, what was your name again?”
“Bash. This is Zell.”
“I’m Primera Do Banga. Just call me Primera!”
And thus, that is how Bash, Hero of the Orcs, first allied with Primera to compete in the Armament Festival.