Chapter Twenty Seven: Mistress of deception

There are many kinds of people in this world. Some, like Milta and Leila, were simply born good. Others are greedy parasites, like that noble who stole Leila’s freedom. Then there are brainless fools, like the Basilin family, who would kill a man over nothing but pride. And still others are reckless idiots who gulp down enhancing potions to fight opponents far beyond their reach—like those three I encountered before meeting Leila.
But right now, I was facing a type I’d never met before.
This girl was… contradictory. She was stupid, noble, prideful, humble, and foolish—all at once.
She was stupid for walking around in only a shirt, knowing full well that it revealed more than it hid. She was noble because she constantly boasted of how brave and heroic she was. She was prideful because she declared she would never let anyone approach her rival. She was humble in the way she listened to others and answered their questions. And she was foolish—utterly foolish—for waking me up just to spout nonsense I didn’t care about, not realizing she didn’t even know what I might do to her.
She rambled endlessly: first saying Leila was just a child who didn’t know right from wrong, then ridiculing her level—“That girl is just a level 32.” After that, she returned to boasting about herself. “That demon didn’t even know what hit him,” she said proudly.
I couldn’t believe how insane she was. How was I supposed to sit and endure her chatter for over ten minutes straight? Even when I closed my eyes, pretending to fall asleep, she shook me awake just to keep going.
Eventually, I had enough.
At first, I’d wanted to ignore her insults toward Leila, dismissing them as nothing more than a rival’s ridicule. But she wouldn’t let me rest. And since Leila is the greatest person I’ve met in this world, I couldn’t stand by quietly anymore.
“Hey, crazy girl…” I finally muttered.
She froze, stunned into silence by the remark.
“Are you a pervert or something? Why in the world are you walking around town with only a shirt? That shirt even looks expensive. If you’re so poor, why not sell it and buy yourself some pants?”
“…H-H-How dare you say I’m not wearing underwear!?” she shouted, her face blazing red.
So she was crazier than I thought.
Curious, I pressed further. “So you’re fully dressed?”
“Of course! What do you take me for? I’m not called the Silver Blue for nothing! This long shirt you see is legendary. It was made from items dropped by powerful aquatic monsters—creatures of deception that took years to hunt down! It’s so long it covers my knees. And my silver hair is so beautiful it reflects the sun.”
“To your knees, huh?” I cut her off, unwilling to let her keep mocking me.
“Yes! This shirt is legendary. With its power, even heroes are no match for my magic!” she boasted, pointing dramatically at me.
I sighed, rubbing my temple. “If you’re really that confident the shirt is long, then stand with your legs apart. You’ll still be fully covered, right?”
If she really was that stupid, I’d finally expose her.
“W-What are you saying!? You pervert!!”
“Hey, don’t turn this on me! You started it. How do you expect me to believe that shirt is long when it only hangs centimeters below your waist!?”
At that, she panicked, pressing her legs tightly together as she backed away. Fear flashed in her eyes.
“Why press them together? Weren’t you fully covered? Like hell you are! I can even see a pubic hair!”
“KYAAAA!!! STOP! STOP!!” she screamed, collapsing to her knees, her thighs clamped together.
“Unhu~ Unhu~…” she sobbed—obviously fake.
“…How are you able to see through my deception so easily? Even heroes couldn’t tell I wasn’t fully dressed. Everyone should see me as a silver-haired girl in a long, expensive dress. Unhu~ Unhu~…”
I folded my arms. “Oh, about that silver hair—you’re just a brown fox, aren’t you?”
Her eyes widened. She froze, then burst into loud wails. “Uwaaa!!! Uwaaa!! How can you see everything!?”
I couldn’t believe it. She was actually crying until I gave in and comforted her.
“Come on, it’s not that bad. I think the shirt is long enough,” I said reluctantly.
Unbelievable. She was the one who started this, yet now I was the one comforting her. Girls are such a pain.
When she calmed down, she explained how she got the shirt.
“I met a merchant a while back,” she began. He was a swindler who cheated people with his deception magic. But she turned his own magic against him, forcing him to sell her his prized possession for only one gold coin. The shirt came with a condition: Never wear any other clothing beneath it. If she obeyed, it would let her deceive anyone into believing whatever she wanted.
And so she’d lived by deception, tricking people into thinking she was some legendary figure when she was nothing of the sort.
Then her tone shifted, sharp and bitter. “It’s all Leila’s fault!”
She explained: she and Leila had grown up in the same village. From the beginning, the difference in their abilities was obvious. No matter what she did, she could never measure up. When Leila was sent to the capital, she followed, desperate to grow stronger. But Leila and the others dismissed her, telling her to get lost.
Since then, she’d lived alone, adventuring by herself. She tried proving her worth time and again, but they never accepted her. Then came the day only Leila returned from the dungeon. In that moment, she claimed to have been there for her rival, offering a shoulder to lean on.
“And when she broke that vase and became a slave…” she said, trailing off.
After Leila’s punishment, she worked herself to the bone, saving money to help pay off Leila’s debt—even though Leila didn’t know.
“Amazing… you’d go that far for Leila?” I asked.
“How can she be so inconsiderate after everything I’ve done?” she snapped.
I saw her differently after that. Not many would sacrifice so much for someone who had pushed them away.
“How much have you saved?” I asked.
“Heh-heh! Don’t be surprised… I’ve saved thirty gold coins!” She struck a magical-girl pose, finger pointed at me.
“…………………………” I stared at her blankly.
“I’ve saved thirty gold coins since then!!” she repeated, finger still raised.
“…Why the hell did you have to repeat that? Saving five gold coins in two years is something to be proud of?”
Flustered, she buried her face in her hands. “W-What… I-I…” Then she fell to her knees again.
Good grief. I had actually raised my hopes for her.
But then she snapped at me, her voice fierce. “Do you know how hard it is to save five gold coins!? In the capital, adventurers who don’t fight monsters barely make ten silver coins a day! After expenses, they might save six or seven. Inns cost three silver a night, equipment needs maintenance, clothes cost twenty silver. At best, they can save one and a half gold a month. In two years, I managed to save thirty—for Leila! What right do you have to mock me!?”
My chest tightened. She was right. I hadn’t considered how harsh life was for someone like her.
“Oh no… I’m so sorry. I didn’t realize how hard you worked for her,” I said, bowing deeply.
She gently lifted my head with both hands. “No, it’s not your fault. It’s my fault… for being weak.”
But as she raised my face, I was positioned directly beneath her shirt. I saw it—clear as day.
“Now I’m sure you’re not wearing panties,” I muttered.
“Huh!? Why’d you look!?” she cried, stepping back, eyes brimming with tears.
I prayed she wouldn’t start wailing again.
Thankfully, she didn’t run. She just stood a few meters away, and from then on we spoke seriously, almost as equals.
She admitted she didn’t enter the Nightmare Forest or dungeon. “In the forest, there are no rules—the monsters gang up on you. And in the dungeon… after what happened to my friends, I want nothing to do with it. Besides, my only magic is deception, and that doesn’t work on monsters. So now, I just run errands in town.”
“I see,” I said. “But maybe Leila and the others didn’t take you along for your own safety.”
She lowered her head. “I know… I can’t defeat a single monster alone. I just wanted to adventure with them.”
“You’re a sweet girl. Leila’s lucky to have you. Sorry I laughed at your efforts. I didn’t realize how hard it was to earn money. I made over three hundred gold in just two days.”
Her eyes went wide. “What? And you thought I was weird? No one earns that in two days. Not even in a month.”
So she didn’t believe me.
“Well, believe what you want. But we already have items worth over six hundred gold coins. Leila and I will still be rich even after paying off her debt—”
“It can’t be!!” she gasped, eyes wide with disbelief.
“I know it sounds impossible, but I fought in the Nightmare Forest for eight days straight.”
Her face turned pale. “To think you were already so far ahead of me… Just what have I been doing all this time? I should have approached you sooner, but your aura was overwhelming. I watched from afar, even followed Leila to the mountains once. But I’m just level ten. If I got close, I’d die instantly.”
So she’d been keeping tabs on Leila all along. It was obvious now: this girl truly cared for her. I almost felt guilty for mocking her earlier.
Soon, she asked for my name.
“Since we’re allies now, we should know each other’s names. I’ll go first. I’m Sora.”
“You’re right,” she said softly. “My name is Serila. Please… save Leila.”“That I will. Even if I have to die a hundred times, I’ll save her.”
After that, Serila left to run her errands. I returned to the inn and waited for Leila. When her break finally came, the two of us went to see the shopkeeper who had sold us the mask, to find out just how much our items were truly worth.