A Stuffed Cheonma in my Head - Chapter 171



Only Noblemtl

Episode 171. It’s Not Your Fault

“Ashvan Sherwood”

I stared blankly at the tombstone with my name on it.

“what’s this.”

It was my tombstone.

How many people get to see their own gravestone in their lifetime?

I was one of them.

As it was a rare experience, I had a hard time coming to my senses.

I was in a daze.

Like being hit in the back of the head with a hammer.

“Ashvan Sherwood”

No matter how hard I stared, the name engraved on the tombstone did not change.

It means that you didn’t see things wrong.

The tombstone, which was stuck right next to Tina’s grave like a partner, felt like a completely unfamiliar entity to me.

Besides, if it’s Ashvan, it’s just Ashvan. Why is it called Sherwood?

The surname is usually attached to the end of the names of noblemen, and it refers to the name of the family to which one belongs.

Just as Count Stavanger’s name is Hermann Stavanger.

Just like Ashley’s name is Ashley Granalder.

Before I knew it, my name was Ashvan Sherwood.

“… … .”

A situation where my family was created without me knowing.

“……under.”

A dry laugh came out.

I looked at my name written on the tombstone, especially at “Sherwood,” then lowered my gaze and read the epitaph written there.

“The world laughs at those who try hard.”

“But in our memories, only those who tried remain.”

“… … is acting up.”

Who was it that made fun of me after I got beaten up by a kid?

rather

“Overwhelming talent tramples on effort”

“The Trampled Ones Sleep Here”

I wrote it like that.

I think that would suit you better.

“Isn’t that right, Master?”

[… … .]

Cheonma has been silent since a while ago.

Since I had no one left to complain to except Cheonma, I vented my frustrations to him.

“Master. Do you know how much money it takes to place a commoner’s grave here?”

[… … .]

“I’ve heard it so many times that I can’t even imagine. Why on earth would these fucking bastards do such a stupid thing? Who would benefit from it?”

I know better than anyone how much money it would take to place a lowly commoner’s grave in this cemetery.

Because I tried it myself.

It costs an astronomical amount of money, and I don’t know why they would do something so ridiculous.

When I did it, it was the ones who actually tried to stop me.

Isn’t this a contradiction?

“……ah.”

Thinking about it, I was the one who took the lead in that nonsense before anyone else, so I quickly kept my mouth shut.

“… … .”

It was only after I moved Tina here that I was able to let go of something that had been holding me back, even just a little bit.

I wonder if the guys also felt comfortable doing this.

He was so angry that he told me not to spend money on useless things.

Why did you make my gravestone here?

You inconsistent guys… … .

I stood there blankly for a while, looking at the two tombstones standing side by side.

It was that kind of moment.

… … rustling

I heard footsteps and looked over to see a girl approaching me with flowers in her hand, but then stopped and looked at me with a slightly surprised expression.

I must have been in my mid-teens.

It was an age where I was starting to shed my girlish charm.

He was a foot taller than Joy.

Of course, it wasn’t a familiar face.

The nameless girl looked at me, the tombstone, and the flower in my hand with slightly wide eyes.

He nodded quietly and came and stood next to me.

After bowing to the deceased, he placed the flowers he had brought side by side in front of each tombstone.

The girl stood there with her hands clasped politely beside me, looking at the tombstone for a moment… and then asked in a quiet tone.

“Are you here to pay your respects?”

I nodded silently.

“Then what about the flowers you brought?”

“ah.”

Only then did I quietly place the flowers I had brought in front of Tina’s grave.

It was a flower as white as the boy’s hair and as blue as the boy’s eyes.

The girl tilted her head slightly when I laid flowers on Tina’s grave, but didn’t say much.

Instead, he took a handkerchief out of his pocket and began to wipe the tombstone with his usual skill.

Starting with mine, and moving on to Tina’s.

I stared blankly at the sight.

It was quite meticulous workmanship and seemed skilled.

As if it were something I had done often.

“Do you know him?”

The girl asked carefully as she cleaned my tombstone.

I answered in a bitter tone.

“… … What a pathetic guy.”

“Is that so?”

The girl smiled faintly.

This time he said it while cleaning Tina’s gravestone.

“Do you know who this person is?”

I answered as if I didn’t know.

“It says Tina…”

“yes.”

“Do you know who it is?”

“I don’t know.”

“however?”

When asked why she was so diligently cleaning someone else’s grave when she didn’t even know him, the girl smiled faintly and answered.

“I don’t know much, but I think the person next to me knows.”

I was speechless for a moment.

It’s a little bit ridiculous to see people treating me like I’m a dead person.

The girl continued talking without paying any attention.

“It seems that you were someone very precious to Ashvan.”

“… …Why did you think that?”

“I heard that he spent all his life savings to bring him here. Wasn’t he someone who was that precious?”

The girl’s innocent question left me speechless once again.

“Were we in love?”

“……well.”

The girl neatly folded the handkerchief she had used to wipe both tombstones, put it in her pocket, and came over to stand next to me.

We just stared at the tombstone in silence.

There was silence for a moment.

After a gentle breeze blew through her hair three or four times, the girl opened her mouth again.

His gaze was still directed towards the tombstone.

“Are you a member of the Sherwood Mercenaries?”

I didn’t answer.

“My colleagues come and go sometimes.”

It made me laugh.

“They’re not the kind of people who would do that.”

“Because the remains could not be recovered, they buried his belongings instead.”

When I think about it, that’s what happened.

My remains cannot exist, for I am still alive and well here.

So, are you saying that we spent so much money on a fake tomb that had no remains?

Pick.

A sneer escaped his lips.

“That’s a ridiculous thing to do.”

The girl turned her head and looked at me.

“There is no greater waste of money than this. Pathetic bastards. They are so stupid. This is the most useless thing that has happened since the founding of Maia.”

The girl glared at me, her eyebrows furrowed.

“Don’t talk carelessly.”

I met his gaze quietly.

“why?”

“You are precious to me.”

I looked at her slightly angry face again from the beginning.

Reddish brown hair and freckles on the bridge of her nose.

No matter how much I look at it, it’s a face I don’t recognize.

I don’t know if it would have been better if my older sister had been wiping it for me.

Why is this guy, who has no face at all, cleaning Tina’s grave along with my grave?

“Precious… …Who are you to clean this idiot’s grave?”

The girl answered in a tearful tone.

“It’s Mary.”

It was a common name.

But it’s not a name I know.

I couldn’t recognize her even after hearing her name, so I observed her clothes.

Chuck Bonney wasn’t from the city.

A long green skirt with a white shirt.

Her simple attire made her look like a country girl who worked on a ranch in the mountains.

“Mary who?”

“Just Mary. Not a noble, but a commoner.”

“Yeah, I see.”

“… … .”

The guy glared at me.

I held back my laughter.

The little guy is fearless.

When I met his bold gaze without avoiding it, the guy flinched as if he was scared and slowly lowered his gaze.

I looked at the dispirited guy and asked quietly.

“I don’t think you’re from here.”

“yes that’s right.”

“How would he know if I just said Mary? He wouldn’t know either.”

Then, when I kicked my tombstone with my foot, Mary was startled and stopped me.

“Wh, what are you doing! The Sherwood Mercenaries will be furious if they see this!”

“So. Are those good Sherwood guys here now?”

As I continued to tap the tombstone, the guy clung to me and protected the tombstone with his whole body.

“Stop it! Stop it!”

I giggled and calmed her down.

“Okay, okay. I won’t lie, so tell me. How did you meet this guy?”

Mary hesitated for a moment before answering.

“… …you saved me.”

“You saved me?”

“Yes. It’s a bit of a long story.”

“I have a lot of time.”

“Yes, it looks like that.”

“… … .”

“Ah! I told you not to do that! Are you trying to get punished by heaven?”

I was only able to hear her story after I promised myself never to kick the tombstone again.

“One day, a large boar-like demon appeared in the village. It was destroying crops and attacking livestock. The adults set traps but failed to catch it. Some people got injured. Thinking that it was no ordinary demon, the village chief put in a request to the mercenary guild.”

A wild boar-like demon?

He’s a guy that shows up occasionally.

“After hearing the characteristics and appearance of the beast, the guild decided that it was a D-class beast, and soon after, the mercenary came to the village. The adults welcomed the mercenary and held a small festival. It was a long-awaited visitor to the village, and since our village is located in a very remote place, they were worried that the mercenaries would not come.”

He nodded.

“That’s what they mean by rural.”

“Oh, it’s not a country town!”

“I think it’s true, judging by the way you’re getting upset.”

“I told you, it’s not a rural area. Anyway, we were having a party after slaughtering a pig, when suddenly I heard a terrible cry. I thought my heart stopped beating. It was such a terrible cry that just hearing it made my legs lose their strength.”

At this point, I felt a strange sense of foreboding.

Wild boar, country bumpkin, roast pig, festival, intrusion.

It’s a series of flows that are somewhat familiar.

“… … It was a monster. Its appearance was as terrifying as its cries. A monster from the forest came and attacked the village. Everyone was frozen, and it shouted at them to run away. Only then did the villagers come to their senses and run away in panic, but I couldn’t. The monster was staring at me. My body was frozen and I wouldn’t listen.”

Kwaaaaang!

I thought I could hear the bastard roaring.

“I just stood there dumbly, watching the monster get closer. And just as it opened its mouth wide to devour me… he rushed at it.”

Mary spoke with a distant look on her face, as if the image from that time was still vivid in her mind.

“I watched him fight from the beginning to the end. It was really… brutal. No matter how I looked at it, it didn’t seem like he had a chance of winning. He looked really small in front of that huge monster. If I had hit him wrong, I would have died without even breaking a bone. I would have been scared to death just watching him, but he ran at the monster without hesitation.”

I quietly watched the girl explain with tears in her eyes.

It was still an unfamiliar face.

However, I realized that we were clearly connected by the thread of fate.

Was this the past relationship that Ketel spoke of?

“He went into the forest with his horse, badly injured, and… he never came back. I kept waiting for him, but he never came back.”

“… … .”

“I asked the Sherwood Mercenaries who came to find him later, and they said he fell off a cliff with a monster.”

Mary lowered her head and shook her shoulders.

“… … It’s all my fault. If I hadn’t just stood there like an idiot, you wouldn’t have been hurt so badly. Then you wouldn’t have fallen off the cliff with the monster… … .”

Mary cried and sobbed.

Tears rolled down my chin.

“It’s all, it’s all my fault. Because of me… Because of me… … .”

“… … .”

I stared blankly at the girl who was crying sadly.

What’s so sad about that?

I’m the one who died.

Why are you crying?

I could guess how much this guy had been suffering from guilt and pain.

Bringing flowers, placing them in front of the tombstone, and carefully cleaning the tombstone were all part of an atonement to appease the spirit.

Then and now. She was still a stupid girl.

I placed my hand on the head of the girl who was crying sadly.

“It’s not your fault.”

Mary looked up at me with tearful eyes.

“That guy would have chased me until I died anyway.”

The girl’s watery eyes stared blankly at me, then slowly grew wider.

“……uh?”