episode_0015

Lunch as usual,

The village street as usual!

Today is a day to leisurely enjoy a break, with no dungeon exploration for the first time in a while.

Having had a hearty lunch, I was walking through the village on a stroll when—

A familiar silver hair was seen beyond the street corner.

“Arte?”

Shining silver hair, golden eyes.

Looking only at her appearance, she seemed human, but the beautiful core embedded in her chest proved that she was an Automata.

Her figure walking down the street expressionlessly as always.

Up to this point, it was the familiar Arte as usual, but…

“She’s carrying a puppy?”

No, to be precise—

“Rather than carrying… should I say she’s wearing it?”

A small puppy was perched right on top of Arte’s head.

The small, fluffy puppy was completely sprawled out, flipped over with its belly facing the sky,

with its tongue slightly sticking out.

In a pose that said, “I shall make this place my bed.”

And what was surprising was that Arte herself didn’t mind it at all.

With an expressionless face, she walked silently and naturally, as if wearing a hat on her head.

Shall I try surprising her?

Carefully, very stealthily.

I was approaching Arte with the thought of surprising her from behind.

“Yuan? Why are you approaching so secretively?”

Oh, I got caught right away.

“As expected of an Automata. There are no blind spots behind you either.”

“Is that so? Anyway, good morning.”

Arte greeted me calmly with her usual expressionless face.

“It’s already lunchtime, Arte.”

“…Then, good lunch?”

She tilted her head slightly.

Her 말투 (way of speaking) was ordinary, but every single one of her small gestures was strangely cute, so laughter escaped me without realizing it.

At that moment, the puppy perched on her head was about to slide down.

But Arte caught it in her arms in an instant.

As expected of an Automata.

When it comes to reflexes, they’re hard to follow with the eyes.

“Woof!”

The playful doggy, panting, barked from inside her arms.

“What a cheeky puppy.”

Then Arte, as if used to it, carefully put the puppy back on her head.

This time, the puppy burrowed into her silver hair even more securely than before, as if it were a nest.

And then, turning its body towards me, it began panting with its tongue sticking out.

“So, where did you find the puppy? It follows you really well.”

At my question, Arte raised her head and looked at the puppy on her head.

“A little while ago… it was wandering around lost near the market, so I rescued it.”

The puppy on her head tried to bury itself in Arte’s silver hair without hesitation.

It even went so far as to narrow its eyes and breathe softly.

“I didn’t give it any special instructions, nor did I give it food… but it keeps following me. It’s strange.”

Arte patted the puppy on her head a bit awkwardly with her fingertips.

This combination, it suits them surprisingly well, doesn’t it?

Arte’s expressionless face,

Snow-white silver hair and golden eyes,

And the innocent expression of the puppy sitting on top of her.

It’s a strangely cute sight while being perfectly contrasting.

Before I knew it, I muttered with a smile on my lips.

“What is this… it’s much cuter than I thought.”

“……!”

Arte, who had been quiet, blinked at my words.

A momentary feeling of joy.

Her expression didn’t change, but it was seeping into her gaze.

And then, she lowered her gaze slightly towards me.

“Am I cute, Yuan?”

For a moment, my heart sank.

“Ah, no! The puppy is!”

Flustered, I quickly denied it.

But then, Arte quietly looked at my eyes and the corner of her mouth dropped slightly.

“Is that so.”

And then, lowering her head slightly, she continued in a mechanical tone.

“That’s right… I am not cute. A feelingless Automata, no… just a tin can.”

“……”

“Ah… it is sad. This is the feeling called despair. I feel like declaring the end of the human era.”

A tone that was half serious, half joking.

But, because of the subtly felt quiet sense of hurt, I reflexively waved my hands frantically.

“Ah, no! That’s not what I meant!”

I quickly approached Arte to give an explanation that wasn’t really an explanation.

“What I meant by cute… no, I mean! Rather than cute, Arte is—”

Arte slightly lifted her eyes and looked at me.

Those golden eyes were quietly waiting for my words.

Ugh. If I say something wrong, it feels like a landmine will explode.

My brain spinning myself.

What should I say to please ChatGPT?

“Rather than cute, Arte… it’s more accurate to say beautiful!”

Arte’s eyes widened slightly.

After a moment of silence, she hesitated, then lowered her head slightly and blushed.

“Really?”

“Uh huh! Really! I truly thought you were beautiful!”

Huh? Was this right? Really?

Arte, who was looking at that sight, lowered her gaze slightly, then said,

“Is that so….”

Thump.

She gently leaned against my side.

“Woof?”

The warm body temperature felt on my head.

The puppy that leaned with her made a small sound and breathed out.

“Then, am I more beautiful than Lilien and Ellis?”

“…Huh? Why are they coming up suddenly?!”

“I am curious.”

Arte said with a face that didn’t waver in the slightest.

“Perhaps I will feel better if I hear you say I am the most beautiful, from Yuan’s mouth?”

“Oh, by the way, I will be recording this,” was an extra.

“No, no, can’t you let me off a bit on that, Arte…”

I earnestly tried to stop her, waving my hands.

I was trying to clear a landmine, but it looks like I’m about to detonate an atomic bomb!

As I broke out in a cold sweat, genuinely flustered, Arte saw that and chuckled softly.

“Fufu… Teasing Yuan like this is surprisingly enjoyable.”

And then, slowly lifting her face from my arm, she carefully hugged the puppy that was beside her.

“Really… don’t hold your own internal beauty contest. Because you are all beautiful.”

Arte gently lifted one of the front paws of the puppy hugged in her arms.

“Is that so?”

Saying that, she lightly shook it towards me with the doggy’s small paw.

Such unconscious actions are too deadly, you know.

“Ah, so.”

I spoke up as if deliberately changing the atmosphere.

“Did you give the puppy a name?”

“Huh? A name… do I have to give it one?”

“Well, even though you just met, you became this close, right?”

I pointed to the way the puppy was curled up in Arte’s arms as if being hugged tightly.

“It feels like you’ll meet again later. Wouldn’t it be easier to call each other if it had a name?”

“Woof woof!”

As if it had been waiting, the puppy looked up at Arte, panting.

The way it was wagging its tail looks like it’s pleading to be called by name right away.

“Is that… so?”

Arte looked back and forth between the puppy and me, seeming a bit flustered.

“Yeah. Giving a name means forming a special relationship with that existence.”

I asked her carefully.

“Arte, didn’t someone give you a name too?”

“Yes. Ellis and Lilien gave it to me.”

Her expression remained expressionless as she spoke, but for some reason, a warm feeling was embedded in her tone.

“Exactly. After receiving that name, you came to understand each other more deeply, right?”

At those words, Arte quietly looked down at the doggy in her arms.

“I see. If so, how would it be good to give it a name?”

“Hmm, people usually name them according to gender, right? Is our doggy a boy or a girl?”

At my words, Arte gently lifted the puppy in her arms and stared intently at it.

Stare-ntly.

Arte observing meticulously as if she had lenses in her eyes.

“…It is a female child.”

After finishing the determination, she gave a slight smile.

“If so… a cute name would be good.”

At that moment—

“Ruby~!”

A little girl’s voice was heard from somewhere.

A small girl ran towards us.

“Ruby! You were here!”

“Woof!”

The puppy jumped down from Arte’s arms and ran towards the girl.

And then, it tightly hugged the girl.

“It was a puppy with an owner, wasn’t it?”

“Indeed. But it is fortunate that she found her owner.”

A little while later, the girl approached us with Ruby in her arms.

“Thank you! For finding Ruby who was lost…”

The girl conveyed her thanks, bowing her head in greeting.

“I was so surprised… I really thought I wouldn’t be able to find her…”

At the girl’s words, Arte quietly nodded her head, then

She gently stroked Ruby’s head, who was hugged in her arms.

“Ruby.”

Calling her name softly, she gave her a slight look.

“It is a pretty name. I hope you don’t get lost next time.”

“Woof!”

Ruby barked briefly and wagged her tail.

The girl smiled happily, greeted us once again, and then turned around and walked away with Ruby in her arms.

Her receding figure quietly getting further away with small footsteps.

I watched silently, then glanced slightly at Arte beside me.

“Are you disappointed, Arte?”

At that question, Arte quietly looked in the direction the puppy left for a moment.

“Hmm~ A little? However, since it returned to the place it should originally be, it’s not entirely bad.”

Thump.

As if it were nothing special, she quietly leaned her body against my shoulder again.

“And…”

After hesitating a little, she continued as if whispering slightly.

“The place where I should be… is also here.”

Said softly, with her head slightly leaning on my shoulder.

Those words were embedded in my ear so carefully and warmly.

“Really…”

“But are you male or female, Yuan?”

“Huh? What are you talking about all of a sudden? Anyone can see I’m a man!”

“I won’t know until I see directly. I request cooperation.”

“Wh-wh-wh-what are you saying?! I’m a man! What are you going to look at?!”

“Initiating Operation: Come Hither! Come hither!”

“So you don’t need to look—!”

[Eyecatch!]

Today’s Race – Automata

A machine race said to be occasionally found in ancient ruins.

Their appearance is characterized by being all female-type.

They appear expressionless and cold, but in reality, they can show rich emotional expressions depending on their environment and relationships.

Classifications are diverse.

Housework type, Exploration type, Combat type, etc.

They tend to perform specialized roles according to their respective functions.

Among them, Arte is a rare Guardian-type Combat Automata.

Especially, when the objective of “protecting someone” arises, they possess the characteristic of their combat abilities being explosively strengthened.

They say Arte found that certain someone after a long time?

“I have finally found him. The master (husband) whom I shall serve.”