The Great Sage Who Did not Remain in Legend - 8.3
The girl, who had asked Mergin for water and had her money taken, thought she was being asked for money.
“You idiots, I don’t need any payment for food that’s not worth charging for.”
“I-Is that okay?”
“Haha, sure it’s okay. ‘Meeting by chance’ is just how life goes. It’s pitiful to see a young girl eating such a meager meal. Come on, follow me.”
“Yes!”
The girl happily followed after hearing she’d be fed something.
From a tent set up some distance away, lively voices could be heard.
“We’re being rowdy. We set up our tent away from the others. Come on in. Hey, brought someone along. There’s food left. Let her eat.”
“Oh, excuse us.”
“Come on in. Here, eat this and warm up.”
Inside were two men, seeming cheerful from drinking.
“Ah, it’s warm and delicious.”
“Right? Go ahead, eat.”
They urged her to eat more without reservation and offered seconds. They were kind unlike the cold men from before. The girl relaxed completely and started chatting happily.
“It’s cold, right? Have a drink of this.”
They offered her alcohol.
“I-I’m a bit… I’m still underage.”
“Nah, we were drinking at your age. There’s no law saying you can’t drink just because you’re underage.”
Encouraged by the three, she took a sip of the alcohol.
“It feels kind of… fuzzy.”
“Heh, see? Alcohol’s good stuff.”
“Hehehe, yeah…”
Feeling tipsy from her first drink, the girl giggled.
“Well, shall we have some fun?”
“What do you mean by ‘fun’?”
“When a man and a woman are together, it’s obvious, isn’t it?”
The kind men suddenly turned aggressive, trying to undress her.
“W-What are you doing?”
“Stop struggling. I’ll make you feel good soon.”
“I don’t want to! D-Don’t touch me!”
Unable to articulate well due to the alcohol and feeling dizzy, she weakly resisted. One of the men slapped her cheek.
“I told you not to struggle.”
“Eek!”
Frozen with fear after being hit by the man.
“I brought her here, so I should get to go first.”
“Hurry up and finish.”
Ignoring the trembling girl out of fear, the men decided who would go first.
“No! Stop it!”
Just as they were about to overpower her, a stranger opened the tent.
“What are you guys doing?”
Just in time, a stranger opened the tent.
“Who the hell are you? Don’t interrupt our fun. Or maybe you want to join in too?”
“Shut up. If you don’t want to lose something precious, let go of that girl.”
The woman drew her sword. The men thought of fighting back, but there were two other women with short swords and bows, and they were at a disadvantage while intoxicated.
“Fine, fine. Just so you know, I was only thinking of repaying her for eating for free.”
Trembling, the girl clung to the woman who had saved her.
“You’re stupid. Come over here.”
The three women led the girl to their tent.