Hospitality
by Afuhfuihgs
The day after challenging the final trial.
From morning, I prepared to head to Modiste. It would take time for the bronze gauntlets I ordered from the magic engineering workshop to be completed, so I planned to meet Estelle and recruit her as a comrade during the remaining time.
Kane, who woke up before me, was busy checking camping gear from early in the morning. Despite my dissuasion that there was a village near the destination of our trip, Kane didn’t seem to want to miss the opportunity to camp.
Kane liked camping, but in reality, he had never camped because of his family’s gaze. The reason he came to like camping was also because he wanted to get away from his family. If so, wouldn’t it be okay to cross off one of Kane’s bucket list items on this occasion?
If we prepared thoroughly, it didn’t seem bad to sleep in a tent for one night. Kane would be in charge of all the camping preparations anyway.
I tidied up my long hair, which I had now grown accustomed to, while looking at the mirror next to the clubroom door.
As I was contemplating whether to stop by a dessert shop before going to Modiste and buy something for Estelle and Amy to eat, an unscheduled visitor knocked on the door.
Knock knock-
A light knock. With the thought that there had been many guests visiting the clubroom since yesterday, I opened the door.
I stopped my hand without realizing it when I encountered golden eyes as I opened the door.
“Hello.”
The guest who greeted me briefly was unexpectedly Bella.
*
I opened the drawer and looked for coffee grounds. Because Bella brought two escort knights, I had to take out four coffee cups.
I drank tea with Roel yesterday, so coffee is appropriate today. The menu for hospitality changes depending on the host’s circumstances.
After making coffee, I looked for something suitable to eat as a dessert in the space warehouse and took out the snacks Navier-nim had given me as a gift.
When I tore off the pretty wrapping paper, there was a packaging box. When I opened the box and checked the contents, it was full of macarons.
Judging by the different colors, the flavors must also be diverse. I haven’t tasted them separately, but with Navier-nim’s strong recommendation, it would be okay to serve them to guests.
I placed the tray with coffee and macarons on the table where Bella was sitting, and I also placed a tray with coffee and sliced cake on the table where the escort knights were sitting far away.
I judged that sliced cake would be better in quantity than small macarons for two burly men.
After finishing the hospitality appropriately and sitting across from Bella, Bella, who had put two sugar cubes in her coffee, stirred the teaspoon with a leisurely hand and smiled.
“I came without an appointment, but thank you for treating me so kindly.”
At the unexpectedly friendly attitude, I reflexively frowned without realizing it. I wondered what she was going to say again, then I remembered something I had forgotten.
Because I was traveling to another world, it felt like a long time ago that I met Bella, but in reality, it had only been a week since I had a conversation with Bella about the improved portal.
I recalled the memory I had with Bella. I remembered replying that I would consider the deal positively. Could it be that she couldn’t stand it and came to see me to hear a positive answer? I decided to remain silent for now in case she came for another reason.
“But did you eat some hair growth tonic or something? Your hair suddenly got longer?”
At Bella’s appearance of examining my face as if she was amazed, I scratched the back of my neck, feeling ticklish for no reason, and replied.
“I did some experiments. It’s a side effect of that.”
Bella, who nodded while muttering something like “I see,” showed interest in the macarons I brought out as a dessert. There were macarons of various colors on the plate. I put several in the plate with the meaning that they should choose and eat whatever they wanted because I didn’t know what each color tasted like.
Bella, who slightly pulled the plate containing the macarons towards her, observed the macarons intently with shining eyes before picking up a blue macaron.
“This macaron… you bought it from the North, didn’t you?”
It was a confident voice. It wasn’t just Navier-nim who had good observation skills. There didn’t seem to be any difference from the macarons I commonly saw in cafes, so I was curious how she knew that the macarons were bought from the North.
“That’s right. How did you know? It doesn’t seem to be any different from other macarons.”
“Seeing you say that, it seems like you’ve never eaten this macaron before?”
“Well, that’s….”
As I was readily admitting it, I swallowed the rest of my words at Bella’s action of turning the macaron she was holding over and showing it to me. A crown-like pattern was drawn on the bottom of the macaron.
“Collin’s dessert shop was something I was completely obsessed with when I was young.”
Bella said that and put the macaron she was holding in her mouth. Seeing Bella’s happy smile as if the macaron was really delicious, I felt strangely strange.
It was a similar feeling to when I observed Aria eating the food I made deliciously. Because that was very incompatible when I thought about the relationship between me and Bella, I shuddered feeling inexplicably bad.
Bella, who was looking at my actions with a puzzled expression while munching, took a sip of coffee and immediately got to the point.
“I’m sorry for coming so suddenly. But I thought it would be good for each other to handle things like this reliably and quickly.”
When Bella snapped her fingers, Ian, who was breaking and eating the sliced cake I brought out as a dessert with a fork, approached our table and handed me the documents he had put in his arms.
“It’s a contract about the improved portal. It includes tax deductions with the most reasonable ratio and legal methods. I think these conditions are satisfactory enough for each other… what do you think?”
After roughly skimming through the contents of the document, I shrugged my shoulders, placing the document I was holding in the middle of the table.
“I plan to entrust all transactions regarding the improved portal to the guild master of Modiste.”
Bella, who had been maintaining silence as if she had heard an unexpected sound, shouted.
“What? You’re entrusting such an important transaction to someone else?”
Despite Bella’s reaction, I leisurely brought a macaron to my mouth. The orange macaron was, as expected, orange flavored. It was several times sweeter than I expected, so I had no choice but to drink coffee urgently.
“I told you. The guild master of Modiste and I are a community of common destiny. I have no experience with these kinds of contracts, so I have no choice but to entrust it to someone I can trust. In the first place, I revealed the improved portal at the Modiste meeting, so the guild master can’t be left out of the transaction.”
Perhaps because her plan went awry, Bella let out a deep sigh and shook her head, then drank coffee. Unlike how she looks, she doesn’t seem to have a cat tongue, as the contents of the coffee cup she put down had already decreased by half.
“Okay, if the seller wants it that way, we have to do it that way. Then, since we’re a community of common destiny, you won’t take a separate brokerage fee, right?”
“Ah, when it comes to money, we’re complete strangers.”
“….”
I picked up another macaron to avoid Bella’s gaze, who was staring at me with a serious face. It’s purple, so I wonder what flavor it will be this time… the answer was, of course, grape.
After a moment of silence, Bella, who had not touched the macaron she had been enjoying at all, opened her mouth, glaring at me with scary eyes.
“Then how about we go to Modiste together now? Like I said before, I think it’s a reasonable contract.”
I was planning to go to Modiste anyway, but I shook my head at Bella’s suggestion. I thought it was a priority to convey the memories to Bella and recruit her as a comrade before that.
“I’d like to have a conversation with just the two of us before that.”
When I subtly gestured towards the table where the escort knights were sitting, Bella rested her chin on her hand.
“Is it a secret conversation?”
“It’s a conversation that’s better if fewer people know about it.”
At my answer, Bella took out something like a smooth pebble from her skirt pocket. When Bella stroked the surface of the pebble with her fingertips, the lid opened and something like earphones was inside.
It looked like wireless earphones, but this was an artifact. Even a relic-grade one that is not easily seen.
“Just put one in your ear.”
At Bella’s appearance of putting an earphone in one ear while saying that, I also put an earphone in my ear.
[ Can you hear me well? ]
I was sure she was keeping her mouth shut, but Bella’s voice was heard in one ear.
[ It’s an artifact that conveys what you’re going to say to the other person. It’s often used because it’s impossible to eavesdrop even with magic. ]
[ That’s amazing. It’s like Bluetooth earphones. ]
[ Bluetooth? What’s that? ]
It seems that the habit of muttering to myself conveyed my thoughts arbitrarily. I waved my hand as if it was nothing and carefully thought about what to convey.
[ There is such a thing. Anyway, there’s something I want to tell you. ]
When I thought that with a serious expression, Bella, who was staring at me intently, frowned slightly and thought.
[ …What is it? ]
[ It’s about the ugly secret that Roel is hiding. ]
“That…!”
I could see Bella flinching her shoulders as she unknowingly blurted out words. Bella, who was glaring at me again with her mouth tightly shut, thought.
[ Roel is hiding an ugly secret? You found that out? ]
[ Yes. And in addition, he’s planning something really stupid. ]
[ …Of course, you have evidence, right? ]
At that question, I reached out my hand over the table and raised the magic to create a snow globe. When I raised my magic power, Ian and Theodore jumped up.
“It’s okay. Wait comfortably until I order you to.”
When Bella raised her hand and said that, the two escort knights, who were about to rush at me right away, sat back down and focused on the cake as if nothing had happened. I used Memorize magic with a smile.
While putting in the snow globe that I was possessed by Ross and what I experienced while traveling through the multiverse, I included as many memories related to Roel as possible, even trivial ones, unlike Raellan. I wanted to prove that it wasn’t a manipulated memory.
[ You can put your hand on the snow globe. ]
When I conveyed my thoughts, Bella narrowed her eyes and stared at the snow globe.
[ This is… Headmaster Nelson’s mental image magic, isn’t it? ]
[ Well, it’s similar. ]
[ So you have some connection with the headmaster? ]
At her appearance of shining her eyes as if she had found out a secret, I shrugged my shoulders.
[ It’s a misunderstanding. This is just magic that conveys my memories. ]
[ As expected, the sage wouldn’t only take ■■ as a disciple. ]
Something like noise got in and I couldn’t hear it properly. When I gestured with the hand holding the snow globe as if to tell her to hurry up and put her hand on it, Bella reached out her slender hand.
When Bella put her hand on the snow globe, the snow globe emitted light. Bella, whose fingertips had entered the inside of the snow globe, closed her eyes tightly.
The snow globe that had been emitting light disappeared, and Bella, who had been closing her eyes for a while with her hand on my palm, finally opened her eyes.
Our gazes intertwined in the air.
Still keeping her mouth shut, Bella was looking at me very quietly, but… tears were welling up in the corners of her eyes.
I just watched without knowing why as a drop of tears streamed down her cheek.
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