Chapter 25 – A Strange Occurrence

A Strange Occurrence

——–

We headed to the warp gate in front of Lonzville early in the morning. Of course, using my teleportation magic.
It feels a bit like I’ve become a taxi, but who cares. Convenience is good.
‘The early morning air is really nice.’

As it’s early morning, there are hardly any people around. At most, one or two people preparing to open their shops.

“Well then. Take care, Ariel. I’d like to stay longer, but I can’t leave the temple empty for too long.”
Just as I was absentmindedly looking at the surroundings, Liste bid me farewell.
“…You can come again next time. Take care, Liste.”
Liste looked visibly reluctant to leave. Naturally, I’m reluctant too.

But given her position as a saint, she can’t leave the temple empty for long.
I nodded with a smile at her farewell.
“Can I really come again?”
“Of course.”
“Then… can I stay over again?”

Liste asked me softly with her face slightly flushed. I was a bit surprised by her appearance, but I nodded in affirmation.
Then Liste’s expression visibly brightened.
“I’ll come again! Ariel!”
“Sure. Anytime.”
With those final words, Liste slowly walked into the gate.

Her figure gradually fading away. A slight sense of regret tickles my heart.
“I should go too…”

The warp gate emitting only a faint light even after she left.
I watched it for a while, then returned to the house where Saya and Puel were.

———

‘The kids must still be sleeping…’
I carefully opened the front door and entered the house.
What greeted me was the same scene I saw in the morning.
…As expected, Saya and Puel seem to be sleeping.

‘Careful….’
I carefully moved to the kitchen so as not to wake the children.
The kitchen bathed in warm morning sunlight.
I feel a sense of satisfaction at the sight of the clean kitchen thanks to the cleaning magic I used this time.
‘People really should clean.’

Since we went grocery shopping while out with the children yesterday, we have quite a lot of ingredients.

‘What should I make for breakfast today…’

Then I sat on a chair and started contemplating the breakfast menu.

“I feel like having bacon and scrambled eggs today.”
After much deliberation, I decided to go with the safe choice of bacon and scrambled eggs.
Except for the presence of monsters and different races, the ecology of this world is very similar to Earth.
In other words, although there might be slight differences, animals like pigs and chickens also exist.

‘I’m glad.. I don’t have to eat goblin meat or orc meat…’
There were times when I had to eat those out of necessity, but… it’s not a memory I want to recall.
When food supply wasn’t smooth on the battlefield, we weren’t in a position to be picky.
‘Where were the eggs and… bacon again…’

Having decided on today’s breakfast menu in my head, I started rummaging through the ingredient box to find bacon and eggs.
.
.
.
Sizzle.

As the bacon was nicely placed on the magically heated frying pan, it made a sizzling sound and a delicious smell filled the kitchen.
‘Let’s cook a bit more generously. For the eggs… with the whole wheat bread, this much should be enough.’
Since Puel has been eating a bit more lately, I decided to cook a bit more generously. She’s in her growth period after all.

After whisking the pre-cracked eggs in a bowl and pouring them into the frying pan, stirring with a spatula… it’s done.

“Yawn… Ariel. Good morning.”
“Sister. Did you sleep well..? It seems that person has left..”
Just then, Saya and Puel woke up and slowly walked into the kitchen.
Saya and Puel with their eyes half-closed, still not fully awake.

“Did you sleep well? Let’s eat!”
I greeted the children and plated the bacon, scrambled eggs, and whole wheat bread nicely.
“…Sister. Is there anything I can help with?”
“It’s okay. Just enjoy the meal. Come on, let’s eat!”

Puel thoughtfully asked if there was anything she could help with.
I told her it was fine, then set the plates of food on the table.
Saya’s half-closed eyes suddenly opened wide at the delicious smell.

“It smells so good.. Ariel. Thank you!”
“I’ll enjoy the meal. Sister.”
Seeing the kids start to enjoy their breakfast makes me smile automatically. Is this what parental feelings are like?
‘I’m happy..’
These are days that make me think I did well to come to this world.

——–

‘It’s refreshing…’
The morning in the forest is always refreshing.
The sparkle of morning dew on the leaves, the birds’ songs, and the ever-silent dense trees.

After breakfast, feeling the cool breeze from the window caressing my face, I made a resolution.
‘Today, I’m just going to stay at home.’
Who would have thought that I, who used to shut myself in and never go outside before meeting Saya and Puel, would live so diligently like this?
It’s not that I dislike it at all, rather I feel fulfilled every day, but sometimes you need to rest.

They say there are extroverted people in the world who recharge their stamina by meeting people or playing outside, but I’m not one of them. Rather, I’m the type who needs to rest for two days after going out once.
“Ariel’s tummy.. so soft…”
Saya lying down with her head on my stomach. Thinking of the children’s health, I should probably stop them from lying down right after eating, but how can I when I’m doing the same thing?
It’s like the pot calling the kettle black.

“Saya. You shouldn’t lie down right after eating… You too, sister.”
“Just this once..”
…In the end, we got scolded by Puel. She looks down at us as if we’re hopeless.
“Puel… lie down with us…”
“That’s right, Puel. Here, there’s a fluffy griffon feather pillow.”

Pat pat. I placed a soft pillow next to me and tempted Puel.
“Ugh…..”
Puel hesitated for a moment. In the end, she put her head on the pillow placed next to me.
Hehe. Corrupting an innocent child… oh, maybe that’s not right.

Anyway, while we were having a happy time.
Rustle rustle.
The sound of someone walking towards us from outside the house was heard.
‘Who could it be?’

The sound getting closer. Eventually, someone who had come right up to the front door knocked.
“Looks like someone’s here, sister.”
“Kuu….”
To interrupt our precious happy time.

I suppressed my slightly worsened mood, got up, and approached the front door.
“You are….”
“I apologize for the early hour, Magician.”

When I opened the door, what I saw was a familiar man. It was the village chief of Helen village with his bushy beard.
…Although relations with the villagers had improved after the kidnapping incident, we weren’t close enough for him to casually visit in the morning.
Did something happen?

“What brings you here?”
“Well.. There’s something I wanted to consult with you about, Magician, so I took the liberty of coming here despite the rudeness. This is a small token of my sincerity, but…”
Saying that, the village chief handed me a slightly worn leather pouch.
…When I opened the pouch to check its contents, I found it filled with quite a lot of herbs that looked like magic herbs.

‘Does he think I need magic herbs because I’m a magician?’
Actually, they’re not very useful to me. They’re usually used as catalysts by people researching magic, or as ingredients needed by alchemists to make potions.
But considering his sincerity in bringing them, I decided to at least listen to what he had to say. It’s also good for me to maintain good relations with the villagers.

“I’ll listen to what you have to say. Come in for now.”
“…Thank you.”

“No, wait a moment.”
Come to think of it, it’s fine for me since the villagers already know my real face, but it would be a bit troublesome if Saya’s identity was revealed.
Puel is also noticeable because she’s an elf, but Saya is a dragon.

“Kids. Could you go to my room for a bit? We have a guest.”
“Yes, sister.”
“Kuu….”
I had the village chief wait outside for a moment, then went inside and spoke to Saya and Puel.
I should cast a disguise spell just in case.

I carried the soundly sleeping Saya in my arms and headed to my room with Puel.
“I’m sorry, Puel. Could you stay here with Saya for a bit?”
“…It’s okay, sister. We can’t let anyone find out that Saya is a dragon.”
How thoughtful she is.

The village chief has seen Saya and Puel with disguise magic before, but it doesn’t hurt to be careful.
“Your name is… Anyway, come in.”
“Then, excuse me for intruding.”
The village chief still waiting in front of the front door.

As I turned back into the house, he carefully started following me.
Eventually, we arrived in the living room.
“Wait here for a moment. I’ll bring some tea.”
“…Thank you.”

When I pointed to the sofa, he nodded and sat down carefully.
I left him behind and moved to the kitchen.
‘For tea leaves… this should do.’
Actually, there wasn’t a variety of tea leaves to choose from. I just bought a few kinds out of curiosity.

I took out the tea leaves from the cupboard and simply poured hot water over them, and a scent similar to chamomile started to fill the air.
‘The scent is quite nice.’
After preparing two cups of tea, one for me and one for the village chief, I carefully headed to the living room.

“Even if it’s not to your taste, please bear with it. I don’t know much about tea.”
“…The scent is nice. I’ll gratefully enjoy it.”

When I handed him the tea, he carefully received it and expressed his gratitude.
The village chief’s attitude was excessively polite.
Perhaps because our first meeting wasn’t very good, he’s maintaining that initial attitude.

‘It kind of feels like I’m doing something bad…’
Honestly, it was a bit uncomfortable, but there wasn’t really anything to correct, so I just thought about it inwardly and sipped my tea.
It would be strange for me to treat him politely at this point too.

‘It’s delicious….’
The tea’s aroma filling my mouth as I took a sip.
It felt like the subtle anger towards the village chief for disturbing my peaceful time with Saya and Puel was subsiding.

“I apologize once again for visiting so early in the morning.”
The one who broke the silence flowing between us was the village chief sitting across from me. He bowed his head again, offering words of apology to me.
“It’s fine. By the way, what’s the matter? The thing you wanted to consult about.”

I wonder what made him visit at such an early hour.
“Well… Recently, strange things have been happening in the village.. I came to seek your expert opinion, Magician.”
He hesitated for a moment, then started explaining the reason he came at such an early hour.