episode_0143

Cleaning up the traces of the demons in Greenstone Village was quite a tedious process.

From organizing the chaotic demon camps that only left evidence of the demons entering the empire, to releasing the magic inhalers to restore the depleted magic levels in the village, and even freeing the imprisoned spirits, including the salamanders in the furnace.

Since the day Greenstone Village was restored to its original state, about a month had passed.

Having almost spent the summer vacation at Blackwood Manor, Ethan and I were now on a carriage heading back to Luminaire Academy for the start of the 2nd semester.

Although there was still about a week left until the start of the semester, there was nothing specific to do at Blackwood Manor.

Due to Harold’s temporary professor position, we had to return to the academy a bit earlier than regular students, aligning our schedule with the highest-ranking person at Blackwood.

Even though we all had to take the same 4-seater carriage to accommodate Isabelle, there was no need for Harold to ride separately.

“No need to be mindful of me in this space, feel free to chat as you normally would.”

“Th-thank you for your consideration…”

“I-it’s not uncomfortable for me to be with the master…”

“….”

However, with Harold joining the three of us, the atmosphere became awkward to the point of suffocation.

It was inevitable. I had been Ethan’s exclusive maid for years, so there was no need to act differently just because of a noble title.

Moreover, Harold didn’t seem to enjoy casual conversations like I did with Ethan.

But pretending to maintain the master-servant relationship as usual was challenging after spending so many years together.

It was better to stay quiet than risk making a mistake by speaking out of turn.

Even Isabelle, the mood maker, seemed hesitant to speak in the presence of two high-ranking nobles.

The carriage moved silently towards the island of knowledge where Luminaire Academy was located.

“Why is everyone so quiet?! This is boring!”

…On a side note, the tiny salamander in the carriage kept chattering non-stop.

Just to clarify, it was the fire spirit from the dwarf’s furnace in Greenstone Village.

It followed me purely out of its own will, and the agreement with the blacksmith was made to leave the other fire spirit that was held captive in the dwarf’s furnace.

I didn’t force it to come with me or take advantage of the half-dwarf blacksmith.

“I’m glad. I was thinking the same thing.”

By the way, I did give it a name after we started traveling together. It felt awkward to always address it as Mr. Salamander.

Even though Sally was the extent of my naming sense.

Anyway, after a month of having this little guy by my side, I was already starting to feel exhausted.

Like the time when Ethan, who didn’t know what manners were, annoyed me to the point where he felt like a penalty added to the situation, minus the sexual harassment from that time.

“Why do these kinds of guys keep appearing around me?”

Of course, the fire spirit itself was a very rare existence and always helpful to have around.

Moreover, when Sally was by my side, various auxiliary stats slightly increased due to the “protection of the fire spirit” effect.

Among them, the luck stat increased by 2 thanks to the buff effect, making it a truly necessary item for me. When combined with the buff on the dagger, it could increase the luck stat by a whopping 4.

In that sense, having this little spirit accompany me was a good connection from the perspective of “Release,” but still, dealing with this annoying little spirit was an unavoidable task.

“Oh, I’m bored! Do something! Sing a song or something!”

“……”

“I don’t need to pay too much attention to you all. Just think of me as a non-existent being and talk comfortably amongst yourselves.”

“Oh, yes, of course….”

It was a bit difficult to remain silent under the pressure of the stories coming from both sides.

Eventually, I had to bring out the forbidden remarks that should not have been uttered.

At that moment, I had no idea what tragedy my words would lead to in the future.

“The journey to the Luminor Academy seems long and boring, so how about I give you a simple quiz? Since we are all on the road to the Island of Knowledge together.”

“A quiz?”

“Release?”

“A quiz?”

“It’s a quiz, but it won’t require any specific knowledge. I’ll give you a question that the master, the young lord, and Isabelle can all answer fairly.”

“Hmm?”

“Me, me?! I want to do the quiz too!”

“Yes. Sally can definitely answer the question.”

“If even the spirits can answer the question, wouldn’t it be too easy if everyone can solve it? Release?”

“Well, why don’t you try solving it yourself, master?”

“…Quite confident, I see.”

Harold, who seemed quite interested in the idea that everyone here could solve the problem, fixed his gaze on me.

Not only Harold but also Ethan, Isabelle, and Sally all focused their attention on me.

It was an unexpected situation to receive so much interest for just making a joke.

“I hope he’s not going to give us a punishment for being boring.”

In the tense atmosphere, I finally blurted out the “joke” that came to mind.

I had no idea what would happen to me as a result of that joke.

“What happens if the Spear Master gets bitten by a mosquito?”

“Huh?”

“…What?”

“The Spear Master gets bitten by a mosquito?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Think about it. What happens if the Spear Master gets bitten by a mosquito?”

As each of them pondered my nonsensical quiz, they all made strange faces, along with a spirit.

With each of them lost in their own thoughts, I was able to leisurely look out the window and relax.

The first to attempt an answer was Isabelle sitting next to me.

“It itches?”

“Wrong!”

“Oh, no…?”

“…Strictly speaking, that might be a correct answer, but I’m talking about what happens when the ‘Spear Master’ gets bitten by a mosquito. It’s itchy for anyone who gets bitten.”

“Umm…? I don’t know…. I’ve never seen a Spear Master….”

Strictly speaking, I’ve never encountered a problem that could be solved by asking if I’ve ever met a Spear Master, except when playing games.

Judging by Isabelle’s reaction, it seemed like she had given up on solving the problem and was now waiting for the remaining answers while enjoying the reactions.

It’s quite amusing to see Ethan and Harold struggling and pondering over the problem.

“Can’t you just tell me secretly, Lillis?”

“No, you can never be too careful. Besides, Sally hasn’t solved it yet.”

“I promise I won’t listen! You can tell me!”

“Even if you try to sneakily approach me, I won’t tell you.”

“Ugh, frustrating!”

Asking for the correct answer right from the start is a desperate move.

With my firm attitude, it seemed like both Isabelle and Sally had given up and were quietly waiting for the responses from the others.

Next, Ethan was the first to speak up.

“Do mosquitoes die?”

“What?”

“A skilled Spear Master would never let a mosquito that bit them live to fly away. Therefore, from the Spear Master’s perspective, that mosquito is already as good as dead.”

“… ”

“If everyone could catch a mosquito that bit them, then mosquitoes wouldn’t exist in this world. So, this answer applies only to a ‘Spear Master’…”

“Then if a Sword Master catches a mosquito, does that make them a Spear Master from that day on? And what about mosquitoes that suck blood and fly away? Should I catch those too?”

“…Well, that was a loophole. That was a weak answer.”

A weak and nonsensical answer couldn’t possibly be the correct one.

It seemed like Ethan didn’t quite hit the mark with his answer, leaving Harold as the only one remaining.

Despite Harold and Ethan being fairly experienced, Harold seemed to enjoy this kind of prank, so maybe he could come up with a close answer. I waited quietly for Harold’s response.

“Hmm, I see. It was a simple problem after all.”

“Oh? Did you figure it out?”

“Yes. You’ve posed quite an interesting problem, Lillis.”

Seeing him so self-assured, it seemed like he had gotten the answer right.

Perhaps Harold was someone who understood my humor, and I began to feel a strange sense of anticipation.

Ethan and Isabelle also focused on Harold’s words, waiting for his answer.

“For someone like me who knows a Spear Master, it was quite an easy problem, Lillis.”

“…What?”

“I have a Spear Master friend who wielded a spear on the battlefield with me for quite a long time. Of course, back then, neither he nor I had the skills to be called ‘Masters.’”

“In my naive younger days, when I felt the limits of my sword, instead of paying the price of cutting the empire’s walls in half, I worked as a mercenary in the army and that’s when I first met him. Although he wasn’t of noble birth like me. Quarty Jameson, a commoner, I could sense a special energy from his spear that other mercenaries couldn’t handle.”

…Wait, what?

Why is he suddenly delving into his past memories and reminiscing?

I tried several times to interrupt and get him to give the answer to the nonsense quiz, but once Harold started talking about his past, he couldn’t stop and continued to unravel his war hero Spear Master comrade story endlessly.

In the end, for the rest of the afternoon, we had to listen to Harold’s tales about his ‘war hero days as a Spear Master comrade.’

“…It reminds me of the time when we were struggling with bugs at the jungle camp. Both me and my colleagues couldn’t sleep at night because of the flying insects, but for some reason, that guy Quarty didn’t even have a single bite mark on him. Since then, he was already a master in his own right, almost on par with the Spear Master’s skills…”

“We have arrived, master.”

“Hmm, I got carried away and the story became longer than intended. I’ll save the rest for another time.”

“Yes, yes…!”

“That was an interesting story, master!”

“It was truly a story that touched the heart, father.”

“Yes. Everyone must be tired from the journey, so let them rest.”

With those words, Harold walked towards the professor’s quarters with a somewhat pensive expression.

As I watched Harold disappear between the buildings, I quietly made a promise to myself.

I vowed to never make a joke in front of that chatterbox again, lest he declares me as not human.