Chapter 47 – Two Years Later

Two Years Later

It’s already been two years since I first met Saya and Puel.
Time flowed mercilessly, and before I knew it, the two children had left my side… and all that remained beside me was our house dog, Cherny.

I was looking at the forest scenery outside, feeling a void as if there was a hole in a corner of my heart, soaked in melancholy…
‘It’s lonely…’
“Ariel-nim. We’re back!”

Pitter-patter.
As soon as I heard Cherny’s voice, I stopped pretending to be a parent who had sent their child off to a distant land and immediately ran to the front door.
If the children had really left my side, would I be calmly looking out the window? I would have been crying and making a fuss.

The children had left. With Cherny to go shopping in Ronzville.
I wanted to go with them badly, but I refused with tears. It was part of a plan to foster the children’s independence.
“Ariel! I’m back!”
“We’re back!”

When I reached the front door, Saya and Cherny greeted me with bright smiles.
“Welcome back, kids!”
“We’re back, sister…”
Unlike them, Puel’s expression looked a bit gloomy.

“P-Puel. Did something happen?!”
“I-I don’t feel well… The carriage shook too much…”
Puel stumbled and fell into my arms.
Over the past two years, Puel’s height had grown significantly, and now she had grown to the point where I had to look up at her a little.

Although long-lived races like elves are said to grow quickly up to a certain level… it’s true that I feel a bit sad.
‘I wished she would remain my little Puel forever…’
Is this how parents feel watching their children grow?

“Huff… huff…”
“Puel?”
Puel seemed to be breathing hard for some reason. Was her motion sickness that severe?
“Um… are you okay?”
“Just stay still for a moment, sister. Huff.”

At Puel’s somewhat resolute words, I quietly supported her. It seems the motion sickness was worse than I thought.
“Huff. I’m okay now, sister.”
Puel’s face, as she stood back in place saying that, was filled with satisfaction.
“…”
“Saya? What’s wrong?”
“…It’s nothing!”

Saya, who had been watching me and Puel for a moment, walked straight into the house.
‘Did something unpleasant happen?’
Feeling puzzled by Saya’s unusual behavior, I asked Cherny.
“Cherny. Did anything happen outside?”

“Not particularly. Oh, there was a human who was hitting on Puel.”
“What did you say?”
What kind of rascal dares to flirt with our Puel?
…Of course, Puel had grown to be so beautiful that even I sometimes lose myself looking at her.

After Riste fixed Puel’s ears last year, Puel’s appearance became even more striking. Is this what it means to be an elf?
‘But Puel is my baby.’
Hearing that some rascal had flirted with Puel, I got angry, and Puel said to me,

“Fufu. Calm down, sister. I just ignored him.”
“Still…”
Pat pat.
Puel gently patted my head as I couldn’t contain my anger.
…Somehow it felt strange, as if the parent-child relationship had been reversed.

‘By the way, what’s wrong with Saya….’
Saya seemed to be in a bad mood for some reason. But from what I heard, nothing particular had happened….
“Then, I’ll be organizing the things we bought. Come quickly, sister.”
“I’ll go in too~.”

With the other two going inside the house, I was left alone in the entrance where the shoe rack was.
‘…What’s that?’
As I was pondering why Saya seemed to be in a bad mood, I accidentally discovered Saya’s worn-out shoes.

‘Those were definitely the shoes I bought for Saya not long after we met…. They’re very worn out.’
Could it have been because of that?
Saya is at a sensitive age now.
She might have been embarrassed to walk around in such worn-out shoes.

I too fought a lot with other kids who made fun of my shoes with worn-out soles when I was in school.
…Perhaps because that memory became a trauma, I developed a hobby of collecting new shoes I never wore even as an adult.

‘I lacked consideration.’
Although Saya returned to her usual self afterwards as if nothing had happened, until the moment I fell asleep that night, the image of Saya’s worn-out shoes kept lingering in my mind.
*
“Shaa…. It’s the same.”

Scratch. Another line drawn in the same place.
After Ariel and Puel went to their room to sleep, Saya, having finished washing up, scratched another line on the wall with her fingernail.
Then Saya let out a deep sigh while looking at the lines etched on the wall.

“Sigh…. Why is it still the same?”
Puel has grown taller than Ariel, but why am I still the same?
…I want to hug Ariel tightly too.

‘No. The book said I shouldn’t act spoiled….’
All the older sisters in the books were taller and more reliable than their younger siblings.
But I’m Puel’s older sister, yet I’m shorter, and I keep wanting to act spoiled with Ariel….

“Shaa….”
Saya, recalling once again the contents of the book she read recently—[How to Be a Good Older Sister], headed to the room.
Ariel and Puel sleeping with peaceful expressions.
Saya wriggled in between them and fell asleep with complicated feelings.

“Good night, Ariel. Puel.”

Many things happened over the past two years.
While living my usual life doing adventurer work, I foolishly forgot to use a disguise spell and went to the adventurer’s guild, revealing my identity,

And because of that, the upper echelons of the Empire started chasing my whereabouts, forcing me to live a leisurely life at home until public interest died down.
Also, Puel growing taller than me, and Saya no longer asking to be hugged at some point.

…Among these, what affected me the most was the last issue.
“Ariel. You don’t need to hug me anymore. I’m not a child.”
…When I heard those words, I think I cried inside for about three days.

Moreover, Saya’s aegyo has noticeably decreased lately for some reason.
She still smiles brightly when she sees me, but Saya’s slightly changed appearance felt unfamiliar.
‘Do children change day by day?’

The reason I came to the capital the day after seeing Saya’s worn-out shoes was also because of the expectation that Saya might return to her former affectionate self through this gift.
Bustle bustle.
Nobles riding in carriages, people wearing luxurious clothes, and people dressed as merchants.
Various people form a single flow as they walk the streets.

‘As expected, the capital is still the same….’
Where I am now is in front of Leon’s statue, which can be considered the landmark of the Empire.
I was sitting absentmindedly on a bench, watching people.

The reason I’m sitting here while I came to buy shoes for Saya is because I’m waiting for someone.
Pitter-patter.
After a while, I heard footsteps that seemed a bit urgent. The sound got closer as time passed.

When I turned my head towards the source of the sound, I saw someone with a deeply pulled hood approaching this way.
The identity of the person who finally reached me was—Riste.
“…Riste. You could have come slowly.”

“Phew. How can you say that? You called me so suddenly.”
“Sorry.”
Riste glared at me with her lips pouted.
…It was a bit sudden.

I impulsively contacted her when I remembered that today was Riste’s day off.
It was an action stemming from the thought that choosing a gift with the eyes of another woman would be better than me choosing alone.

“Fufu. It’s okay. Rather, I wish you would call me every day. Anytime. When I wake up in the morning, when I eat, when I go to the bathroom, before I go to sleep…”
“Huh? What did you say?”
I couldn’t hear Riste’s words well due to the surrounding noise. Seeing Riste shake her head at my question, it seems it was just a mumble to herself.

“It’s nothing. By the way, why did you call me? C-Could it be… a date invitation or something…”
“W-Well, I wanted to choose a gift for Saya, and I wanted your help.”
“I see…”

Riste’s voice lowered a bit. As if slightly disappointed…
“Let’s go! Have you had lunch, Ariel?”
“Not yet…”
“Then let’s eat first! I know a place!”

…or maybe it was my imagination, as Riste said with a smile so beautiful I almost lost myself for a moment.
“O-Okay.”
After that, she gently took my hand and started guiding me somewhere, her silver hair fluttering.

‘…Is it normal for girls to hold hands?’
As far as I remember, it was common for close girl friends to hold hands.
Feeling the touch of Riste’s flawless white and soft hand, I moved my steps following her.

The place she led me to was a restaurant.
It was a different place from where Riste had taken us before.
‘…They must all be nobles?’

Although it’s broad daylight outside with the sun high in the sky, the interior is slightly dark.
Dark red magic lamps located here and there create a strange atmosphere.
Honestly, it feels a bit intimidating.

“Two seats. Couple’s table.”
“Understood.”

Riste said something to the waiter who approached as if familiar.
The waiter who heard her words guided us to our seats.
“U-Um, Riste. I’m sorry but I don’t have money…”

“Don’t worry. I told you before. There’s a dignity maintenance fee that comes out in the name of the Saint.”
“Still…”
Just as I was about to say something out of guilt.

Riste, with a gentle smile, lightly touched my lips with her finger.
“Shh.”
Riste spoke softly while playfully winking.
Oh no. I think I might fall for her.