Isekai Kansha - Chapter 65

Chapter 65: Waiting for Tomorrow

“Thank you. We look forward to working with you again tomorrow.”

Back on the first floor, Jin and the others said that to the guild staff member and bid him farewell. For now, until about 11 a.m. tomorrow when they call again, they have free time. They had done everything they needed—all they could do was wait, without rushing.

“Muh? I’m hungry now.”

Though the communication tomorrow hadn’t guaranteed anything yet, the relief from finishing the job must have set in. 

Jin felt a sudden pang of hunger, rubbed his stomach, and spoke.

It wasn’t even three o’clock, but because they had rushed so much, they’d taken minimal breaks—and they had not yet eaten lunch.

“Do you want to grab lunch somewhere, then find a place to stay tonight?”

“Yeah… Maybe we should ask if there’s a good place nearby?”

As Erza spoke, Jin answered, when suddenly, a voice with a familiar tone struck his eardrums again.

“Why don’t you eat right here, huh?”

There stood the man who had bothered Jin before the communication—the beastman named Zack. 

He wore a smirk as though saying he’d been waiting.

“Hello. You’re Zack-san, right? Is the dining hall here tasty?”

Despite Zack’s earlier hostility, Jin responded with a friendly tone. The situation had changed; now that the communication was done, Jin had the leisure to engage.

“Y-yeah. It’s cheap and good food.”

Perhaps caught off guard by Jin’s calm response, Zack answered normally instead of causing trouble.

“Cheap and good—that sounds nice. May we eat here then?”

“Yeah, sure.”

Erza answered for the group. Aria and Rachel exchanged wry smiles but agreed.

Honestly, they’d rather avoid tables with drunk trouble-makers—but maybe that’s what Jin’s calm manner was good for. They were increasingly used to it.

“By the way—do you have any recommendations?”

“Uh, yeah. I like the roasted chicken leg best. Crispy skin from the pan, juicy meat inside—it’s good.”

Zack had originally intended to harass them, but ended up getting pulled along into a normal conversation by Jin’s composed tone.

“That sounds delicious. Thank you—we’ll order it right away. If you’ll excuse us.”

“S-Sure.”

And so Jin’s group moved to a different table.

Zack, still bewildered, returned to his comrades, scratching his head. Even drunk, after a normal conversation, it’s hard to restart the harassment. If there was bad intent, it would be different—but Zack didn’t seem like that kind of person.

Whether Jin knew what he was doing or just acted naturally, they weren’t harassed for the rest of the time.

The roasted chicken leg Zack recommended turned out well. They had a bone-in chicken thigh, rubbed thoroughly with spices, pan-seared until the skin was crisp, then finished carefully in the oven until fragrant and fully cooked.

The fat from the chicken, mixed with the spices, became a sauce—it was indeed delicious.

They ordered a single beer and raised it in a modest toast.

In that way, Jin and the others savored tasty food, including the roasted thigh, and enjoyed a long-overdue sense of freedom and relief.

“Zack-san, your recommendation was delicious. Thanks a lot. Well then, everyone, we’ll be going ahead.”

After eating, Jin thanked and said farewell to Zack and his tablemates, then exited the guild.

Not only Zack, but the others at his table registered strange expressions—perhaps unsurprisingly given what had just happened.

Once outside, Jin’s group booked a nearby inn, stowed their valuables into Jin’s Infinite Storage, and headed for the public bathhouse.

After the bath, they planned to spend some free time, then regroup in Jin’s room later in the evening for a meeting.

Washing away the sweat of their journey, Jin soaked in the bath—neck-deep in hot water—and muttered to himself alone.

“I really need to talk to them properly…”

Jin scooped up hot water with both hands and washed his face. But no matter how much he washed it, he couldn’t erase the faint shade of anxiety lingering there.

When dealing with Pelgrun, Jin had spoken honestly about everything—his Blessing included.

It wasn’t because Pelgrun was a higher being whom Jin could never defeat in battle.

If anything, even though they hadn’t known, Jin’s group had killed the magical beast that had been serving as the guardian. And despite that, Pelgrun had approached them rationally. There was no way Jin would even consider something aggressive toward someone acting like that.

To Jin, responding to Pelgrun sincerely was the natural and obvious thing to do.

So, although he had revealed his secrets, Jin did not regret his choice. He didn’t believe his actions were perfect, but even if he could redo them, he would still make the same decision.

However, Jin also understood that his body, which could not be wounded, was far more abnormal than Infinite Storage or the MAP.

After parting with Pelgrun, Jin hadn’t told Aria and the others about his Blessings.

Part of it was because they hadn’t asked, but more importantly, resolving the mana fever illness came first—so Jin had told them he would explain everything once things settled down.

They hadn’t complained, and they continued to treat him the same as always. Jin was grateful for that.

He had an almost certain expectation that they would accept everything, no matter what he told them.

And yet… that faint worry just wouldn’t disappear.

But this wasn’t something he should keep putting off. Sincerity should be met with sincerity. Trust should be met with trust. Jin intended to tell them everything at tonight’s meeting.

Their meeting time wasn’t until the evening, so Jin still had plenty of time. Leaving the public bathhouse, he decided to wander around Tron at a leisurely pace.

His mind was already settled, and he finally had the room to enjoy himself a little.

Tron also had a main street, lively with stalls just like in Lientz. Since Tron wasn’t too far from Lientz, there weren’t any major differences in architecture or food culture either.

Even so, for Jin, the scenery was different from the town he was used to—and that made it fresh and enjoyable. 

But at the same time, it made him think fondly of Lientz.

He had been brought to this world far from his homeland… and yet somehow, he had grown attached to Lientz. Realizing that, Jin felt both warm and quietly lonely.

“““Jin (-san!)”””

Hearing his name, Jin turned around to find Aria, Erza, and Rachel hurrying toward him.

“Haha. Didn’t expect to run into each other here.”

The small loneliness he’d felt moments earlier vanished in an instant.

“Hehe, yes. We saw you, so we all ended up running over.”

Aria said with a shy laugh, and Erza and Rachel mirrored her smile.

“Since we’re here anyway, want to look around together?”

There was no way the three of them would refuse Jin’s suggestion—and so the four of them toured the town together.

It reminded Jin, once again, that he wasn’t alone. Today, too, he offered silent gratitude in his heart.

After enjoying their time exploring the town, they returned to the inn in the early evening as the sun began to set.

Since they’d eaten late, they had canceled the inn’s dinner beforehand, but they’d already bought some snacks and drinks while sightseeing.

After dropping their belongings in their rooms, they all gathered again in Jin’s room.

Originally, Jin’s room contained a bed, a small table, and chairs—but they were now stored inside Infinite Storage.

Instead, Jin had taken out a four-person table and chairs from Infinite Storage, and the freshly bought snacks and drinks were laid out on top.

It looked almost like a private dining room in a restaurant, and in that setting, their meeting began.

For a while, they chatted casually while picking at the food, praising each other’s hard work.

They hadn’t been able to talk freely in the guild’s dining hall because of the many ears around them, but here they had confirmed it was safe, even though they still avoided certain critical keywords like “Demonbane Elixir.”

But now that their reports were done, they could finally laugh as they spoke.

Time passed peacefully as they chatted, and the food they had bought was nearly gone.

Seeing that it was about the right moment, Jin straightened his posture, ready to finally bring up the main topic.

“Even though we still have to wait for tomorrow’s confirmation, I think we can say this matter is basically resolved. So… sorry it took so long, but I want to talk about my secrets—”

“Jin-san.”

Aria cut in, stopping him mid-sentence.

“Could I ask you to wait a little longer before talking about that?”

“Huh?”

“I’ve already discussed this with Erza-san and Rachel-san, and they agreed. Right now, my position is that of a guild employee. Unfortunately, that means I’m not truly your companion the way those two are.”

While Aria spoke, Erza and Rachel listened quietly. 

They’d each had chances to talk separately before, but the three of them talking alone hadn’t happened often.

Just earlier, in the bath—their first such chance in a while—Aria had confessed her thoughts and feelings to the other two. It wasn’t only about Jin’s secrets, but also included the affection she felt for him.

Perhaps because they were in the bath, defenseless and face-to-face, Aria’s feelings reached them directly. Erza and Rachel accepted her feelings and were now supporting her as she spoke.

On the other hand, Jin was a bit confused.

It was true that because Aria was a guild employee, Jin and the others had been able to come this far under the pretext of an examination. Setting personal feelings aside, Aria wasn’t even an adventurer at the moment, much less an official member of Jin’s party.

It was obvious when put into words—and yet, for some reason, the statement left Jin feeling strangely shocked.

“My current position… is all I mean.”

Aria said the words quickly, perhaps anxious after seeing Jin fall silent. Those words made Jin lift his head and look at her.

“Jin-san… once we return to Lientz, I intend to resign from the guild.”

“?!”

Jin reacted instantly, but Aria raised a hand to stop him. She took a deep breath and continued.

“After that, I plan to return to adventuring—and if possible, I would like to formally join your party.”

Her face naturally relaxed, relieved to finally say it. Erza and Rachel also let go of their tension.

They had risked their lives together more than once, understood each other, and emotionally, they had felt like companions long ago. There was no way Jin didn’t feel the same.

“I’m happy to hear that. Actually… I kind of forgot that you weren’t already a member.”

Jin’s answer was only natural, but even so, those words made Aria genuinely happy.

“Thank you. As long as I’m a guild employee, I don’t feel I have the right to hear your story. Now that I’ve received their approval to officially join, I’d like to ask: can I hear your story after we return to Lientz—after I quit the guild and officially become your companion?”

Ah, so that’s what she meant.

Jin finally understood.

He had been an old man in his previous life, with plenty of experience as a working adult.

From that experience, he knew that belonging to an organization sometimes meant putting the organization’s interests above personal feelings.

On the lighter end, things like selling older products first because their expiration dates were near—even if personally you wanted to sell the fresher ones, the rules of the workplace wouldn’t allow that.

Worse examples included games released full of bugs or incomplete because they had to meet deadlines or fiscal periods.

Taken too far, those attitudes turned into organizational cover-ups and deception—even crimes. Even without going that far, similar stories were endless.

Thinking along those lines, Jin could easily imagine what Aria feared.

In her current position, if her superior demanded information about Jin, refusing wouldn’t be simple. At least, that would be the case normally.

There were situations where a legitimate reason could justify refusal, but unfortunately, “protecting a private individual’s rights” was usually a weak argument. Especially in this world, Jin thought with calm analysis.

Of course, before being a member of an organization, being a decent human should come first—that much was certain.

In this case, Greg, her supervisor, likely wouldn’t ask anything of the sort, and Aria herself would surely never leak Jin’s information.

Jin had always believed that the reason he could live freely now was thanks to the people around him—people who didn’t treat him any differently even after learning part of his secret.

Even so, he fully understood Aria’s belief that, in her current position as a guild employee, she had no right to hear his secrets.

“I understand. Erza, Rachel… you two are fine with this, too?”

“Yeah, we’ve already agreed.”

Erza answered Jin’s question, and Rachel followed right after.

“So hurry back with us, okay? Once we’re home, let’s get an official party registration done.”

Hearing Rachel say that made Jin realize something he’d completely overlooked.

It was true they’d been acting as a party for a while now, but on paper, each of them was still registered as a solo adventurer.

“Oh, right… I totally forgot about that. Sorry for not noticing. Well then, Aria-san—when we get back to Lientz, we’ll be counting on you too.”

Feeling like he’d been pretty inattentive, Jin scratched his head with a wry smile and apologized to the two. Then he bowed his head to Aria as well, in a slightly different sense.

“Yes. I’ll be in your care. And when the time comes, please speak to me the same way you do with Erza-san and Rachel-san.”

Aria said this with a bright smile, and Jin scratched his head yet again.

He had gotten used to always speaking politely to her, but if that was what Aria wanted, he had no reason to refuse.

“Alright. When that time comes, I’ll do that.”

Jin smiled back at her, and with that, it was decided—after returning to Lientz, Aria would formally become a member of their party.

But the conversation didn’t end there.

“So, Jin-san… about that, I actually have one more thing I want to talk about. A separate matter.”

Aria said this with the same gentle smile. Her expression didn’t change at all—yet Jin felt a faint chill run down his spine.

When he glanced at Erza and Rachel, they too were smiling… but their eyes weren’t smiling in the slightest.

“““It’s time for your scolding.”””

Just as the three said in perfect unison, Jin ended up receiving a lengthy lecture afterward.

It all started with Jin displaying the MAP in 3D back in the mountains, but that was only the beginning.

Judging by how deeply they went into it—his past ways of using his skills, how he’d revealed things, all the little frustrations they’d quietly held onto—it seemed a lot had built up over time.

One after another, the three took turns lecturing him. But Jin accepted it gratefully, knowing they were doing it because they cared about him.

Words like these were possible only because they trusted each other, recognized each other, and accepted each other. Jin took it all not as criticism, but as advice—guidance from people who truly worried for him.

There was no hostility in the air; if anything, the atmosphere felt almost playful.

To anyone watching from the outside, the scene probably wouldn’t have looked like a scolding at all—it would’ve looked more like friends teasing each other.

And so, strengthening their bond as companions, the group finished everything with smiles, wishing each other good night before returning to their rooms.

Believing that tomorrow would bring good news, they brought their day to a close.

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