episode_0016

“Wake up.”

“…!”

At Jenny’s voice calling her, Eileen woke up from her dream.

“Did you have a good dream?”

“… Yeah.”

Jenny had asked because Eileen’s sleeping expression seemed peaceful, but as Eileen returned to reality, her expression quickly cooled.

“… Allen?”

“… Yeah.”

“… Sorry.”

Thinking she had spoken unnecessarily, Jenny went into her sleeping bag without saying a word.

As Jenny, who was in the middle of the watch rotation, had the last shift, Eileen had to sleep a little longer while standing watch.

Watching Jenny, who fell asleep quickly, Eileen came out to stand watch.

Tap-tap-

Sitting in front of the campfire outside the tent, staring blankly at the fire, Eileen thought about the dream she had just had.

She was glad she could see Allen’s face even in her dream, but reality was so bleak that it made her heart heavy.

Suddenly, Eileen remembered the anniversary Allen had mentioned.

“Merry Christmas… he said.”

Although Eileen had searched belatedly for the anniversary Allen had mentioned, she couldn’t find any information about the “Christmas” anniversary anywhere.

Initially, she thought Allen had made up the words to comfort her, but his explanation was too specific to dismiss it as such.

It wasn’t some obscure village celebration either, considering that Allen was definitely a noble who was born and raised in the city.

So where exactly… did Allen mean by his “hometown”?

“…”

Eileen thought she knew a lot about Allen herself, but there was still much she didn’t know.

Feeling a bit more melancholic about this fact, Eileen just stared blankly at the fire.

***

“Sir! I can see the village!”

The short journey of a few days concluded with the discovery of a new village.

“Yeah. We finally arrived.”

Saying so, Allen, feeling frustrated, put the hat back on Lily’s head.

“Uh… it’s uncomfortable.”

“We have to endure it for a little while.”

Perhaps it was uncomfortable having small horns protruding unlike an ordinary person, but it was unavoidable.

“Well then, shall we go in?”

“Yes!”

Having finished preparing to enter the village, Allen and Lily walked towards the guard standing in front of the village.

“What is your purpose for visiting?”

“We have come to work as mercenaries.”

“Hmm… Can I see your mercenary license?”

“Here it is.”

Allen handed over the mercenary license registered under an alias.

“Please do not cause trouble in the village.”

“Thank you.”

After checking the mercenary license appropriately, the guard let Allen and Lily pass without any further suspicion.

Unlike the villages they had visited before, there were guards stationed here, but it seemed they were not strictly controlling access.

Still, just the presence of guards maintaining order to some extent.

“Now, let’s find accommodation first.”

“Wow!”

Seeing Lily genuinely happy, Allen felt pleased, but the reason Lily was happy was mainly because she could eat proper meals.

Although Allen occasionally hunted and fed her meat, he always insisted Lily eat raw vegetables with her meals.

Lily obediently ate them without refusal, but she thought raw vegetables were too much.

After booking a room for Lily and himself at the inn and settling for a meal, Allen, who had eaten his fill, looked contentedly at Lily, who was smiling satisfactorily.

“Was it delicious?”

“Yes!”

In Allen’s standards, the food was simply ordinary to the point of being bland, but to Lily, it was a delightful dinner.

“Now that we’ve eaten, let’s move.”

“Where are we going?”

Following Allen, who had risen first, Lily asked.

“First, let’s go to the market.”

“Hmm… Are we going to buy things to give to people in need?”

“Yes. You’re smart.”

Allen, about to pat Lily’s head as usual, withdrew his hand upon realizing she was wearing a hat.

…”

Noticing this, Lily made a displeased expression, but Allen quickly turned his gaze forward, not seeing it.

“What should we give to those struggling to live?”

“Food?”

“Yes. That’s the most important.”

Having lived through difficult times herself, Lily could quickly provide an answer.

It is often said that what is essential to human life is consciousness.

Among them, food takes up the largest portion, so Lily’s answer, though simple, was close to being correct.

“But just giving out food may not be enough. More is needed.”

Saying this, Allen took Lily’s hand.

“Sir?”

“Let’s start with these clothes.”

Saying so, Allen led Lily to a small clothing store.

Although he hadn’t paid much attention before, Lily’s attire was still nothing short of rags.

He wanted to buy clothes for Lily in the town they met, but considering the villagers’ reactions, there was a possibility they wouldn’t sell clothes.

“Welcome, customer!”

“Hello. This child has come to buy clothes.”

“Oh my! Walking around in such rags! It’s too harsh for a young girl!”

…”

Frightened by the intense reaction of the woman who seemed to be the owner of the clothing store, Lily quietly hid behind Allen.

“Come here so I can take your measurements.”

“Eek…”

Though Lily had opened up to Allen emotionally, she still feared people and couldn’t easily approach the woman.

“Just buying any clothes won’t do, right…?”

…”

Looking pitifully at Allen, Lily pleaded, but Allen silently pushed Lily towards the woman.

“Sir…!”

Feeling betrayed by the trusted Allen, Lily looked at him with wide eyes and a betrayed expression, but Allen pretended to browse the clothes, avoiding eye contact.

‘Sorry.’

Based on Allen’s experience, the woman was clearly passionate about clothes.

And such a person was likely to actively recommend and encourage trying on various clothes.

Like a fashion show.

Although he felt sorry for Lily, Allen didn’t want to get caught up in that fashion show.

“Sir? Your clothes are quite worn and torn as well.”

…!

Suddenly, the woman who had taken Lily’s measurements approached Allen and spoke.

At that moment, Allen’s senses warned him.

Run away now.

“I’m fine.”

“You must. Handsome gentlemen should also dress stylishly.”

“I’m not that handsome, and I’m not a gentleman.”

“Stop saying that and come over here. We need to measure you.”

…”

Thinking further resistance was futile, Allen raised the white flag.

…”

…”

In the end, standing next to Lily, Allen realized that the corners of Lily’s mouth were slightly upturned as she looked at him.

“This is payback for betraying me.”

…”

Only then did Allen understand that Lily had pulled him into her scheme.

“Which clothes would suit the gentleman and lady?”

Alan let out a deep sigh as he watched the woman humming a tune and bringing a pile of clothes.

—

“Finally, it’s over.”

After being held captive in the store for over three hours, Alan and Lily, who continued the fashion show, were finally liberated.

“It’s uncomfortable.”

“It’s new clothes. You look cute when dressed properly.”

Although Lily made an awkward face in her new clothes, Alan thought it wasn’t a wrong decision to visit the clothing store at least.

Dressed properly, Lily looked incomparably cute compared to when she used to wear rags.

“As expected, clothes are wings.”

Even though she’s just a cute girl now, if she continues to grow like this, she will become quite a beauty.

“You think I’m cute?”

“Yes, you’re cute.”

…

Blushing at Alan’s compliment, Lily lowered her head shyly.

Watching Lily in that state, Alan raised his head and looked up at the sky.

The sun was slowly setting, and it was getting dark.

It was because they had spent too much time in the clothing store.

Originally, the plan was to buy clothes for Lily and then go shopping for groceries, but seeing the shops closing one by one made him realize that the plan had hit a snag.

“There’s nothing we can do.”

Although things had deviated significantly from the original expectations, it wouldn’t hurt to take it easy for a day.

“I think it’s best to just go back to the inn today.”

“Resting?”

“Yes, it’s getting too late.”

Since there was nothing more to do, Alan decided to return to the inn holding Lily’s hand. On the way, he noticed a general store that was still open.

“… Maybe it’s a good idea to start teaching Lily how to read.”

Since they had some free time now, studying wouldn’t be a bad choice.

Alan stopped by the general store and bought paper and a pen.