We ventured out to the forested outskirts of Rondan to take down the Outsider.

Just the two of us—me and the Female Knight named Muyun!

In a different scenario, I might have felt good about being out with a woman, but the destination we were heading to was the lair of the Outsider.

If things go wrong, we could end up facing fates worse than death.

Yet, I felt no fear for some strange reason.

Under normal circumstances, I might have been trembling in terror.

Could this be the effect of the Super Coward Mode?

In contrast…

“Huff, I can do this. I can do this. Ouch, I bit my tongue. That hurts. Ugh.”

Behind me, Muyun was walking like a nervous stalker, shaking like she was stuck in a bad horror movie.

Honestly, just like Agartha, I also anticipated hunting the Outsider with the Hunter, so I felt a pang of regret when it was just the two of us. Still, I was somewhat relieved to hear there would be a partner joining me.

But of all the possibilities, it had to be a coward.

I began to wonder how someone like her ended up in the Knights.

Thinking back to my time in prison, her physical abilities had been impressive—she had smashed the ground with an axe back then!

But now, look at her state.

When I turned my head slightly, Muyun jumped as if startled.

“Is this the right way?”

“Yes, yes! The map says we just need to go straight in that direction.”

As we walked, I decided to ask a question that had been bothering me.

“But, they told us to go catch an Outsider. Is it really okay for just the two of us to do this?”

I had tried to express my discontent subtly, but of course, I got the predictably vague response in return.

“Uh, they said not to discuss any matters related to outsiders with you people… And, um, they mentioned that creature isn’t of high rank, so don’t worry… I mean, you’re a criminal, and you’re asking for too much…”

A criminal.

Right, I couldn’t argue too much with that.

It’s not my title, but the label attached to Leydan Tanton draws quite a few curious glances.

To those on the outside, it didn’t matter if we caught the Outsider or not; we were just expendable.

That’s why I swapped these unreasonable conditions with my life to escape this identity.

This time, I need to survive the Outsider and gain my freedom so I can leave the Knights behind.

Rustle.

“Ugh.”

“…What’s wrong?”

I suddenly realized a lot of time had passed.

I had an excuse I couldn’t share with Muyun, so I scratched the back of my head and said,

“Um, sorry, I need to take care of something…”

“Oh, right! I didn’t think about that. Go ahead, take your time…”

How embarrassing.

Actually, I kind of wished it were a guy with me, but recalling the command I heard from the jade ball earlier made me feel like nothing good would come of that.

This was probably for the best.

So, I stepped into a nearby thicket, making sure Muyun wasn’t watching, and quickly turned my back to her.

I didn’t actually come here to relieve myself.

I had pulled out the Outcast God that had been tucked away in my pocket.

As I gently took it out, the Outcast God leapt out.

It flew straight to my face and stuck to it, making me realize just how suffocating it must have been.

I gently pinched its neck, peeled it off, and placed it in the palm of my hand.

At first, it looked around in confusion, but then its expression softened, and it seemed to become more squishy and comfortable.

“Did you feel trapped? I’m sorry for not taking you out sooner.”

I whispered to it, and the Outcast God just smiled back silently instead of responding.

The little guy isn’t talking.

When I was in the underground prison, it used to speak clumsily.

But since it didn’t say anything this time either, I wondered if it connected to that statement about the leader Outcast God growing weaker if they got separated from the group.

It’s oddly calm this time compared to before.

“Uh, Tanton?”

“Yes?”

“You really should be leaving soon…”

When I glanced back, Muyun had an anxious expression as she looked down the path we were supposed to take.

I had intended to take a brief moment to let the Outcast God out, but I suppose that had to be put on hold.

As I contemplated that, I looked at the Outcast God and was taken aback.

“Ugh!”

T-This is unbelievable.

There is no creature in the world that could possibly cast such sparkling eyes at me regardless of what animal it may be.

Now, I felt like if I ignored this look of utter longing to play a little longer, I might incur a divine retribution.

“Aww, no… I need to put you back now…”

It seemed that my refusal to let it play had prompted the Outcast God to flap its wings and entirely cling to my neckline.

It was even trembling its body to express its anxiety!

“Well, but… I really can’t…”

I tried to resist succumbing to this violently cute attack, denying the urge to comply with my brain’s inclination.

But I couldn’t help it.

The Outcast God, with its face barely peeking out from my clothing, looked up at me with those damp, hopeful eyes.

And it tilted its head in the most adorable way.

“Ah.”

I ultimately had no choice but to declare my defeat.

“Muyun, I’m sorry… but my pants’ strings got a little tangled up…”

“Oh, is that so? Please fix it as quickly as you can.”

I felt a bit guilty towards Muyun, but sometimes you just can’t help it.

This was a matchup I would lose no matter who was there!

Upon hearing my words, the Outcast God beamed a bright smile and leapt once more, enveloping the back of my neck in a warm embrace.

…Well, as long as you’re happy.

Even so, guilt and fear raced through my heart like a caffeinated rabbit.

I was, after all, keeping a knight of Rondan waiting.

What’s even funnier is that this knight is quite obediently listening to a criminal’s words.

What’s going on?

This peculiar feeling that the roles of pro and con seem reversed is rather unsettling.

I turned my gaze towards Muyun in the thicket, and she looked more anxious than before.

It’s a bad thought, but why do I feel like I might be able to use this situation to my advantage?

It reminded me of a wife who, in silence, bears the burden of witnessing her husband’s infidelity.

Not that I’m anywhere near that level of humanity, mind you.

As I gently scratched the Outcast God’s chin with my fingertip, I heard a voice more anxious than before.

“Are you done yet? We really need to go…”

It was indeed time to get moving.

Satisfied this time, the Outcast God zipped back into my pocket and gave me a thumbs up.

Then my pocket began to sink slightly before its form dissolved entirely.

I hadn’t realized it until now, but this was one of the Outcast God’s abilities I had learned while being together.

This was probably why Agartha and the other knights hadn’t caught on.

Though, the Hunter had caught a whiff of it.

“Uh, Tanton?”

“Yes, I just finished! I’m coming out now!”

I felt I’d raise suspicion if I stayed any longer, so I bolted out.

Upon seeing me, Muyun’s expression brightened considerably compared to earlier.

“I thought you had run away since there was no answer, so I was about to activate the sigil…”

“I only have one life.”

The bear-shaped sigil stamped on my hand was also on Muyun’s, signifying that any contractual obligations attached to it would be strictly upheld.

While I wouldn’t receive a death command, if I lacked the intent to hunt the Outsider or tried to escape, there would be penalties related to that.

“I’m sorry; let’s set off again.”

“Okay…”

Muyun slightly stepped back and began walking behind me like a shadow partner.

“Please also tell me where to go next.”

“Oh, um, just go over there.”

A few minutes of walking, and we were still silent, with an oddly uncomfortable atmosphere pressing heavily against my chest.

I could finally empathize a little with Agartha’s whiny mood.

“Muyun?”

“…”

“Muyun?”

“Oh, yes. What can I do for you?”

“Could you tell me a bit about the Outsider we’ll be hunting, the ‘Gardener’?”

I had heard we were hunting some Outsider, but I didn’t have any detailed information.

I had heard people say it was weaker than the Watcher, but that was mainly because she was defeated using unfair tactics.

It really felt like we were just breaking a gimmick boss that we should have been unable to defeat in the first place.

Even though I had asked, I doubted Muyun’s shy personality would allow her to speak much.

“Um… you can take your time…”

“The Outsider Gardener we’ve been assigned to hunt has been deemed impossible to hunt, but it’s not really that threatening. There are no distortion phenomena, and while it has made its lair in a forested area making it somewhat inconvenient, getting in and out isn’t too difficult. However, entering the depths is quite tricky. Still, it hasn’t ventured outside the forest area, so it’s been left alone.”

“Uh, um.”

“Does that help?”

I was taken aback by the words that spilled out in an instant.

“It was indeed helpful.”

“Thank goodness! I tried my best to study so I wouldn’t hold back the other knight seniors.”

She lightly brushed her pink hair back behind her ear, her cheeks glowing red.

“While escaping is easy, getting close to the Gardener is very tough… the closer you get, the more dangerous it becomes.”

So, it’s tough to get close.

“How does it attack?”

“Well, I’m not really sure either. Everyone who has gone deep inside has vanished without leaving any information behind.”

Not having information made it hard to act recklessly.

Even my Super Coward Mode wasn’t perfect.

After all, it only helps me to reframe reality to be less scary.

This was merely a skin mode; the inherent power didn’t change.

I wished I could communicate with it at least like I could with the Watcher.

The difficulty would inevitably change exponentially depending on the Outsider’s attitude.

Currently, my greatest advantage was that I could converse with the Outsider.

If the Outsider was favorable towards me, I could pull off a so-called “free ride.”

But when the Outsider was hostile, the narrative changed completely.

Just because the sword created by the Outsider couldn’t harm me didn’t mean I could dismiss the fact that if it started causing chaos, I would be helpless against it.

And from what Muyun said, it seemed reasonable to think that the Gardener generally held hostility towards humans.

“We’re almost at the Outsider’s lair.”

Following Muyun’s words, I looked ahead.

It appeared there had been an old, rusted iron cage, with some grotesque vines growing from it, creating an ominous atmosphere.

It was as if the iron bars were warning us not to come any closer.

“Th-This is where it really starts getting dangerous, so be careful… Tanton?! Don’t read that!”

While looking around near what seemed to be the entrance, I noticed some engravings and instinctively walked closer to them.

“Hello! Today, we’re going to learn about the ‘Gardener’s Garden’!”

The Gardener’s Garden is a place guarded by the Gardener, where humans rarely set foot.

I feel like the Gardener might be a little lonely… 

Anyway! The Gardener’s Garden is hard to enter, so people call it the ‘Land of Death,’ but once you’re in, getting out is actually easy!

There’s supposedly some ‘plant’ that the Gardener cherishes inside, but no one has seen it, so there’s no way to prove it exists.

That was the story about the ‘Gardener’s Garden’ up to now!

Damn it.

There’s no way the person who wrote this inscription could have a brain; I firmly believed that.