“Welcome, El!”
As soon as I stepped down from the carriage, Anne approached me with a greeting. Oddly enough, Ian, whom I considered to be a close friend, was nowhere in sight.
“Yeah!”
Anne held out her palm, and I gave her a high-five in return. Satisfied, she fell into step beside me and we began to walk together.
Strangely, Anne had somehow ended up carrying my bags in both her hands. Though they had been taken care of by the maid who had accompanied me in the carriage, I couldn’t help but wonder why or when Anne had taken them. In the end, I grabbed one of the bags from her hand, leaving us both carrying one, as we walked toward the mansion amicably.
“Mom went out to run some errands, and Dad is currently in the study. Let’s just stop briefly to say hello and then head to your room.”
“Alright.”
Since there was no reason to refuse, I accompanied Anne to meet her father and paid my respects. Fortunately, both Anne and Ian had spoken well of me, and the warmth in his attitude toward me was evident.
“Indeed. You must be tired from the journey. Rest as soon as possible. Don’t hesitate to ask if you need anything.”
“Yes, thank you.”
Something unusual stood out: the head of the Kleyn house was not Anne’s father but her mother. Anne had casually mentioned this to me before we reached the study, which luckily allowed me to avoid a major faux pas. It turned out that Anne’s father, Alec, had joined the family as a son-in-law.
“Well, Anne doesn’t really resemble her father much, does she?”
“Right? I don’t look anything like Dad but instead am almost an exact replica of Mom. In contrast, Ian looks a lot like Dad.”
That was true. Ever since I first saw Alec, I could imagine where Ian had inherited his large build from. Though I hadn’t yet met Anne’s mother in person, Alec was certainly tall, comparable to Ian. Seeing him engrossed in reading a book in his study, leaning over a towering pile of them, was an unexpected sight.
If only Anne had inherited a bit more from her father, maybe she wouldn’t be so abnormally short.
“Huh!”
“Ow! What, what is it! Why are you suddenly poking my side like that!”
Startled by Anne’s sudden attack, I let out a yell without thinking. Even though I’d heard this shriek from myself many times now, I still couldn’t get used to it. It wasn’t something I could suppress, even if I knew it might come out when startled.
“Not really. It just feels like El is thinking something unpleasant.”
“That’s not true! Please don’t make people seem like weirdos without reason.”
“…”
Anne looked at me suspiciously with half-lidded eyes. Still, Anne’s intuition was sharp, and nothing slipped past her.
“Oh, alright. I admit it. Yes, I did. I thought Anne was cute. Is that not allowed?”
Well, I did think she was cute because of her small size, so it wasn’t a lie. Honestly, I can’t even imagine what Anne would look like if she were taller.
“Hmm? It’s a little suspicious, but I’ll let it slide this time!”
Fortunately, the word “cute” managed to defuse the situation.
“Anyway, El said this was the first time in our town, right? What do you think of it?”
“Hmm? I’ve only caught a rough glimpse through the carriage window, but I have to say, despite being so close to the Forbidden Forest, this town seems pretty lively.”
Even though this was the town nearest to the Forbidden Forest, a place where even the continent-threatening demons couldn’t enter easily, the city street was unexpectedly bustling. In fact, it seemed to be more active than Yuli’s estate.
“That’s right, right? But just observing the surface isn’t enough. Let me show you around! Let’s go together.”
Before I could even answer, Anne had gotten up and was urging me to come along. I had no intention of saying no, so I followed without hesitation.
The streets were filled with both ordinary townspeople and many who were clearly dressed as adventurers. Most of them carried swords on their backs or at their waists, and occasionally, a wizard in robes with a staff would pass by.
A storekeeper and a swordsman were negotiating over a sword displayed outside a weapon shop, and further down, an older woman was bartering for ingredients, joking around with the shop owner. The sight of townfolk and wandering adventurers mingling harmoniously was refreshingly unique.
“There are many mazes and ruins around the Forbidden Forest where we can’t enter, but there are a number of monsters too, so hunting them gives significant rewards. I hear that our city’s Adventurer’s Guild might be the second biggest in the empire?”
Naturally, the largest would be the capital’s Guild headquarters.
“The city near the Forbidden Forest seemed like it would be desolate, but it’s just the opposite.”
“Our king knows that if our city falls, the monsters crawling out of the Forbidden Forest would cause trouble. So, we enjoy certain privileges, which makes the city grow larger and stronger.”
“Hmm. I see. Where are we going now, then?”
“To the café with the best desserts in this town!”
Although I didn’t start visiting cafés until I entered the Academy, Pelches’ cafés had set a pretty high standard for me. As they mainly catered to students, and especially the nobility among them, my palate had become refined through the many visits I made with friends.
Of course Anne knew this from our joint tours of Pelches’ cafés, so her bragging with such confidence intrigued me.
“El will definitely be shocked after trying a bite!”
Even though Anne isn’t one to lie, when she’s this excited, it usually means she’s genuinely convinced. Seeing Anne, who was even more excited than me, began to make me look forward to it.
“Ta-daaah!”
The place we arrived at was surprisingly run-down. Most cafés catered to younger crowds, so they usually had trendy interiors, but this place at best had a vintage charm and, bluntly speaking, an unappealing exterior.
Still, the shop was fairly spacious and the customers were already filling up the space, making it hard to find an available seat. The poor decoration was evidently counterbalanced by some unique quality that attracted such a crowd, which must be why Anne was so confident.
“What would El like? My suggestion is a double chocolate shake and a chocolate mud cake! What do you say?”
Just hearing the menu makes my mouth feel sticky. Normally, I’d go for a bitter Americano to balance out the sweetness of cake, but suggesting that to Anne would be pointless.
“Then…I’ll go with that.”
“Okay! El, find a seat first. I’ll get it for you.”
Though it feels a bit awkward, I decided to trust Anne’s recommendation and indulge in some sugary goodness with my eyes closed.
“Ah, how much is it? I’ll pay half.”
“No way. If I make guests pay me, my mom will kill me.”
Anne’s serious mention of being killed made me realize just how strict her upbringing must be. But that’s none of my business after all, considering where I grew up.
I left Anne, who was still ordering at the counter, and started looking for an empty seat. No matter where I looked, the inside of the café was fully occupied. I considered whether there might be some space outside, just as I was stepping out of the shop.
Thud.
Rather than “thud,” it felt more like a “poof.” Looking down after something hit my chest, I found a child with his face pressed against me.
I must have missed seeing the small child while scanning the area for an open seat.
Quickly stepping back to check on the child, I was surprised. With flaming red hair just like Anne’s, and similar height, I momentarily mistook him for Anne. In fact, they looked so alike that if they stood side by side, people might mistake them for siblings. Yet glancing back at the counter, Anne was still waiting for our order.
“Sorry kiddo, I didn’t see you there and ended up bumping into you by accident. Are you hurt anywhere?”
Thankfully, the child didn’t appear to be injured.
I guess even my modest chest served as a cushion, which helped.
However, the child remained silent, just looking up at me with wide eyes.
“How dare you! Do you know who this–”
A nearby man suddenly yelled, stepping in on my behalf. Turning toward the sound, I saw a man in armor with an enormous greatsword held in both hands. It was a peculiar sight considering he was already wearing a sword at his hip yet carried this massive weapon separately.
The child’s attire was clearly high-class, giving off the impression of a young noble out on a stroll. Surely, when the child raised a hand, the bellowing guard immediately stopped and stood by.
“Hmm… Are you a newly settled adventurer? You seem quite capable.”
Apparently knowing a lot more than they should, the child looked up at me and spoke. Despite their attempt at an authoritative tone, with such a small frame and cute voice, it was difficult to take them seriously. It reminded me of when Anne tried to act tough.
“Hehe. Your assessment is quite accurate; even though I look this way, I’m known for wielding a sword rather well.”
The child’s guard, presumably their bodyguard, seemed restless as I engaged in this small chat. Though their concern was unwarranted, it was almost enough to make even someone as confident as me feel a little hurt.
“Oh, El! There you are.”
During our conversation, Anne appeared with the tray holding our drinks and cake.
“Couldn’t you find a seat…? Huh?”
However, as Anne got closer, she abruptly stopped in her tracks, making an odd noise.
“Eh? Mom?”
Confused by Anne’s cry of “Mom,” I looked around for the person in question but found no one who fit that description. Shifting my gaze back to Anne and following her line of sight, I realized…
…?
Anne was gazing at the child I had bumped into.
I looked back and forth between Anne and the child but their positions never changed.
…
Ah…
