A healthy horse, the same color as the brownies Xion makes. It was definitely Brownie.
Even if Reinhild had forgotten human faces, there was no way he would forget the horse he had spent such difficult times with.
Never imagining he would meet the horse he had parted with so long ago, Reinhild ran toward Brownie in delight.
Neigh!
As if Brownie were equally glad to see Reinhild, he shifted his front hooves and let out a loud cry.
“What is the meaning of this?”
The coachman guarding the horses and carriages stepped in front of Reinhild as he tried to touch Brownie.
He looked considerably bewildered.
And for good reason; he had never seen Horse No. 8 cry out so thunderously.
Though he kept the animal because it was larger and stronger than the others, it was a stubborn beast that rarely listened and had been difficult to tame.
For such a creature to be making this kind of fuss in front of a complete stranger was impossible to ignore.
‘Is he a noble visiting from another city?’
The coachman worried that he might have crossed paths with a foul-tempered noble who would seize a perfectly good horse.
“I know this horse.”
“You… know him?”
“Yes.”
Neigh!
As if responding to Reinhild’s words, Brownie let out a loud cry.
Brownie stretched his head out over the shoulder of the coachman blocking the way and rubbed his face against Reinhild’s cheek.
Reinhild smiled broadly and stroked Brownie.
“It’s been a long time, Brownie.”
Brownie snorted and puffed, clearly delighted.
Watching this, the coachman’s anxiety grew.
It wasn’t that he believed Reinhild’s claim of knowing the horse.
However, if the opponent were a noble, he wouldn’t even be able to argue back if they insisted on taking the horse.
Even if the horse were stolen, he wouldn’t be able to protest.
The coachman cautiously watched Reinhild’s reaction.
Reinhild noticed the gaze immediately.
‘He is terrified by my majesty!’
No matter how much he had weakened, he was still the Demon King.
Unless it was a special human like Xion, it was only natural to feel fear in the presence of his dignity.
Reinhild puffed out his chest with pride.
‘Still, I cannot let it be known that I am the Demon King.’
He didn’t know when the Supreme God might arrive, so he couldn’t afford to cause a commotion.
In times like this, the best course of action was to mimic a human.
‘How do humans act?’
The only human Reinhild knew was Xion.
He had seen a few others in passing, but they hadn’t left an impression.
Imitating the way Xion treated other humans, Reinhild asked the terrified man.
“How much for this horse?”
The human’s expression brightened slightly.
It seemed the act of playing human had worked.
“Do you intend to purchase the horse?”
“Yes.”
The coachman’s expression brightened even further.
Not all nobles were tyrannical, but some were desperate to snatch away everything, even the meager earnings of commoners who struggled to make ends meet.
In the coachman’s experience, the more flamboyantly dressed a noble was, the higher the probability they were that type.
The noble standing before him was dressed simply, but because his face was so dazzling, the coachman had almost misunderstood.
At least this noble had the common sense to pay a fair price for what he wanted.
While he didn’t want to sell No. 8, the coachman decided it was better than having him stolen and quickly named a price.
“That’s incredibly cheap.”
“Ah, yes. Haha.”
A noble, as expected. Since they were people who spent dozens or hundreds of gold coins on a single horse, the word ‘cheap’ must come naturally even for large sums.
If he had known, he should have asked for more.
In truth, the trade value of Horse No. 8 wasn’t that high.
The merchant who had sold No. 8 had disposed of the horse for nearly nothing, claiming he didn’t want to keep it.
Something about being tricked by a black-haired beauty scam ring and having money extorted under the pretext of the horse.
‘Black-haired beauty…’
Come to think of it, the man before him also had black hair and an appearance rarely seen anywhere.
‘No way. Surely not.’
He had heard that the scam ring consisted of a duo: a black-haired beauty and a man with blue eyes and a menacing aura.
The man before him was alone, and there was no way a scam ring that had swindled a quite famous merchant in Audrit would still be loitering around here.
‘Should I have asked for a lower price?’
While the coachman was pondering, Reinhild took out the coin purse Xion had given him and paid the price.
‘Oh, whatever.’
Scam ring, my foot.
The coachman quickly pocketed the money.
“There weren’t this many carriages before. Why did they suddenly appear?”
“That’s because the number of tourists increased after the temple was built.”
“So it’s the same reason the God of Plenty Bread appeared.”
“Yes, it’s similar. Both the bread and the liveliness of these streets are all thanks to the temple.”
“I see.”
It meant that as more outsiders visited the Temple of the God of Plenty, the tourism industry had developed significantly.
Since people from other cities continued to increase, and an equal number left the city, those operating carriages must have made a tidy profit.
Not only carriages, but the increase in inns and various souvenir shops was also thanks to the God of Plenty.
‘The fact that there are so many delicious things now is also thanks to Xion.’
Reinhild felt proud of Xion’s achievements as if they were his own.
Thinking of Xion made him want to see him again.
“Let’s go, Brownie.”
Still, he had something to do while waiting for Xion.
Reinhild intended to return home quickly and brush Brownie’s coat, which he hadn’t done in a long time.
But first, he’d buy one more bag of God of Plenty Bread.
My name is Brownie.
Born in the city of Audrit, sold to a small village called Root, I met a beautiful human I intended to spend my life with, and then returned to my hometown of Audrit. I am a sturdy horse.
Regrettably, I had to part with the beautiful human, but it couldn’t be helped.
I suppose that is the nature of the difference between species.
The merchant who looked after me briefly in Audrit, my former-former owner, sold me to my current owner.
After that, it was a series of hardships.
I pulled a carriage, and pulled a carriage, and pulled a carriage again.
Why are there so many humans coming to Audrit, and so many leaving!
Strike. It’s a strike.
I missed my life in Root, where I enjoyed freedom while wandering around the lake with other horses.
I missed the beautiful human, too.
Neigh!
When I held out and refused to pull the carriage for my strike, the current owner didn’t feed me.
I gave up on the strike very quickly.
Neigh.
Life after that was just as exhausting as before.
I pulled a carriage, pulled a carriage, and pulled a carriage again.
Then, as if by fate, I met him again.
“Brownie!”
The beautiful human!
To think we would meet again like this; we were truly destined.
Without hesitation, the beautiful human paid the current owner and took over my ownership.
As expected, the beautiful human must have missed me too.
Ah, human. I missed you too.
No, wait. This was no time to be affectionate.
There was a massive obstacle between me and the beautiful human.
The atrocious obstacle known as the former-former owner!
Neigh—
I kept a lookout the entire time I walked with the beautiful human, but the former-former owner was nowhere to be seen.
Even when I peeked through the window of the place the beautiful human called ‘home,’ there was no sign of another human.
It’s just the two of us!
Just me and the beautiful human!
“I’ll build you a stable once we return to Root, so just bear with it for a little longer.”
Neigh!
We’re going back to Root.
That was wonderful news.
I wanted to return to that nostalgic place with the human as soon as possible.
I was also looking forward to the stable the human promised to build.
“I’ll let you meet Xion, too.”
Neigh?
It seems the former-former owner, whom I thought had vanished long ago, was in Root.
Oh, damn it.
I’ve met so many mercenaries while pulling carriages that I’ve picked up some rough language.
Since I’m a horse, I tend to mimic others’ speech habits quickly. Because I’m a horse, after all. Hahaha.
“Let’s go back to Root together.”
The beautiful human began to stroke my magnificent mane.
Though my great muscles had shrunk and my shimmering mane had lost its luster through hardship, I could still pride myself on having the finest coat among horses.
Human.
The fact that he’s stroking me like this must mean he doesn’t care even if the obstacle is still alive and well.
If so, there is nothing to stand in our way.
Human!
Neigh!
To make up for the muzzle-kiss I couldn’t give back then, I thrust my muzzle toward the human.
The human, perhaps shy, turned his head ever so slightly.
“Brownie?”
I failed. Damn it!
The human’s muzzle is so short that aiming isn’t easy.
Fine. One more time!
“Whoa!”
The moment my magnificent muzzle was about to reach the target, the beautiful human fell backward.
He didn’t just fall.
Some scoundrel had stepped between us.
The beautiful human lost his balance and tumbled because of the guy pulling him from behind.
It’s a relief the human fell on the intruder rather than the bare ground.
No, it’s not a relief! It means the beautiful human ended up in the arms of some random guy!
This was unforgivable.
I shall show him the taste of a brave Root-born horse’s hoof-kick.
Ah. I’m from Audrit.
Anyway, I’ll show him.
Who is the one who interrupted our reunion muzzle-kiss!
Neigh!
“Xion!”
Oh. It was the former-former owner.
Neigh…
I quickly looked up at the sky and pretended to be interested in something else.
The former-former owner’s gaze was piercing.
…….
……Please save me.
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