CHAPTER 272: THE HUMBLE HERO’S HISTORY ( 272 )

The next morning.

The air was crisp.

The sky just beginning to lighten with a soft golden hue.

Hazuki strolled slowly through the cobbled street, hands in his pockets, breathing in the smell of fresh earth, smoke, and early morning bread.

Most of the shops were still shut.

Wooden signs hung silently. Windows closed. Curtains drawn.

But the fresh market?

Already alive.

Vendors setting up crates of vegetables and fruit.

Some arranging monster meat chunks in salt trays.

Steam rising from early soup pots.

And weaving between it all—

Ridan.

Silent.

But chaotic.

He zipped through the air like a drunken butterfly.

No talking. No commentary.

Just pure, floating excitement.

Hazuki gave him a tired glance, eyes half-lidded.

Then shook his head slowly.

Ridan darted downward—

Fwoosh.

Right between a tall dwarven lady’s ample chest.

He hovered in place, arms folded, smirking proudly.

"Woo~ nice boobs, lady."

Like a streak of mist, he darted off again.

This time passing right through a group of children, who shrieked and shivered as if a cold breeze hit them.

"Brrr! W-what was that?!"

"Ghost!!"

Ridan chuckled silently to himself, spinning midair like a cloud on coffee.

Hazuki kept walking, still expressionless.

"...You done yet?" he muttered without looking.

Ridan did a somersault and floated backward in front of him.

"Almost."

Ridan floated lower, spinning lazily beside Hazuki’s shoulder.

"Anyway, Hazuki, what’s with the early wake-up?" he asked with a yawn.

"And fresh market of all places? What do you expect to find here? Monster bacon on a stick?"

Hazuki gave a slow shrug, not even breaking pace.

"Hmm? Fresh markets back in Japan didn’t just sell ingredients like meat, seafood, or vegetables."

He glanced at one of the stalls starting to unpack some wrapped pastries.

"They also sold stuff you could eat on the spot. Snacks. Street breakfast food. Warm and cheap."

Ridan blinked.

"Really?"

"Yeah. Not just Japan, but most Asian countries."

Hazuki stepped aside as a dwarf pulled a cart past them.

"Morning stalls with buns, rice rolls, meat skewers, soy soup, whatever’s quick and hot."

Ridan tilted his head.

"A... Asian?"

He frowned.

"Is that like a type of race? Or a spice? Or—wait."

His eyes narrowed.

"Don’t tell me you’re saying all that stuff was in that ’memory’ I accessed ages ago."

Hazuki raised an eyebrow.

"You forgot already?"

"Beh~" Ridan puffed his cheeks and spun away.

"Grumpyzuki strikes again."

Hazuki chuckled softly.

"If you’re gonna use my memories, at least remember the good stuff."

"I remember the boobs."

"Of course you do."

"Man! Talking about boobs... eheh~" Ridan grinned wide, swirling in a slow, lazy loop around Hazuki’s head.

"Is it real? Like, really real? That there’s an F cup in your world?"

Hazuki didn’t flinch, just nodded casually as they kept walking past a stall unboxing some wrapped rice balls.

"Yeah. Especially if you go during summer festivals, or cherry blossom season... even just walking around Tokyo, you’ll see a lot."

Ridan’s eyes sparkled with chaotic glee.

"Heh~ Say the virgin who’s never even tasted a real girl yet."

Hazuki froze for a half second.

Then sighed.

Grunted.

Pressed two fingers to his temple like he just got hit with a headache.

"Damn it, Ridan..."

"Hey, hey! I’m just being honest here. You walk like some tired salaryman, talk like some widowed monk, and all you do is cook meat and daydream about Ellyn’s grown-up boobs!"

Hazuki turned to him, deadpan.

"You done?"

Ridan flipped backward in midair with a grin.

"Nope. Not even close."

"So they really go boing-boing? Like what I saw inside your memory, Hazuki?"

Ridan’s eyes were sparkling like a kid discovering candy for the first time.

He floated closer, eyebrows wiggling suggestively.

Hazuki rubbed the bridge of his nose, clearly regretting every life choice that led to this moment.

"What do you expect? Of course they bounce. It’s boobs we’re talking about."

He sighed, defeated.

"Not like that one chopping board I met long ago..."

Ridan perked up. "Chopping board? What chopping board?"

Hazuki stared into the distance, face dead serious.

"Flat as a battlefield. No hills. No valleys. Just plains."

"Oof. Brutal."

"I was starving, okay?" Hazuki added quickly. "Saw a group cooking meat, walked up hoping for some leftovers, but they acted all high and mighty. One of them—this flat-chested mage girl—started shouting about something."

"Wait. You stole meat from them?!"

Hazuki shrugged like it wasn’t a big deal.

"I was hungry. I said, ’Thanks for the food, Chopping Board!’ and ran with the meat."

Ridan stared, jaw dropped.

"And??"

Hazuki gave a slight grin.

"They tried to hit me with spells. One of them launched this huge flashy attack—probably their ultimate or something."

"Blocked it with my sword, said ’Thanks for the fireworks, Flatty!’ and kept running while laughing like a maniac."

Ridan floated backward in the air, laughing uncontrollably.

Hazuki just shoved his hands deeper into his pockets and kept walking.

"Man’s gotta eat."

"Hey, I didn’t have a choice back then." Hazuki muttered, kicking a small pebble off the roadside.

"At that time... I was seriously low-level. No money. No clue where I was. Just barely hitched a ride with a merchant carriage heading to some random town."

He exhaled, like the memory alone tired him.

"Carriage got attacked halfway through. Not even bandits. Freakin’ minotaurs. Group of ’em—big, bulky, covered in scars like pro wrestlers on steroids."

Hazuki scratched his cheek.

"I was weak as hell. Barely managed to kill one of them by stabbing it right in the eye. Thought that was it—they ran off. So I stood there like an idiot, thinking maybe I was stronger than I thought."

He paused.

Then let out a low groan.

"And then..."

He looked up at the sky.

"Dragon. A freaking dragon showed up."

He shook his head, arms limp at his side.

"It looked down at me. Not angry. Not hostile. Just leaned in with those glowing eyes and asked, ’Are you okay?’"

A long silence.

Hazuki looked dead inside.

"I ran. I ran like hell. I don’t even remember touching the ground half the time. I just ran and screamed and probably cried a little."

"Didn’t eat for days after that. Just wandered around. No coin. Just using elemental control to pull water from the sword like a desperate camper. And let me tell you—"

He looked at Ridan now, serious.

"—that water tastes like rusty pipe."

Hazuki scratched the back of his head.

"Anyway... that’s why I stole that meat. It was either that or chewing on bark."

( End Of Chapter )