I am back – Chapter 51

“What do you want to eat?”

After a good laugh, I felt the atmosphere soften a lot, so I asked that.

Outside, it was completely dark since the sun had set. Still, it wasn’t too late to have dinner.

There were still many things I wanted to ask. Why they had come all the way here and how they managed to get here in the first place.

Of course, thinking back to my earlier conversation with the Goddess, it was clear that she must have sent these kids. Probably in the same way she initially intended to send me. Though she definitely had some purpose in sending them… When I asked for the reason, she dodged the question.

If the Goddess was evasive, doesn’t that mean it’s something I’m not supposed to know yet?

Well, they would be staying here for a while anyway. No need to rush and press for answers right now.

“I’m fine with anything. Being in a position of just crashing here, I plan to eat whatever you serve without complaint.”

“Same here. Since we’re unexpected guests, that’s only natural.”

Kalia and Dana replied in turn.

“Me too. Being in a different culture, I’m sure the food is different. I don’t intend to make unreasonable demands.”

Not that I thought the differences would be massive… But sure, overall, the flavors were quite bold. It’s not like Korean food is generally spicier than Western food, but they did have all sorts of seasonings like salt and pepper in abundance.

That said, I didn’t think it would be so salty that I couldn’t eat it.

“Indeed, if the cultures are different, the food must be too. Especially since this place looks almost nothing like our home…”

Arna said that with a somewhat worried expression.

Elves have very sensitive noses. Naturally, that sensitivity tends to interfere when eating. Most elves are particularly weak against the smell of game or fish. It doesn’t mean they don’t consume protein at all; it’s just that they usually eat a small amount of meat with a lot of vegetables.

‘Fresh vegetables’ are harder to find than you might think. There are countless herbs in the forest, but very few are actually edible and tasty. Rather, it’s fortunate if they’re not harmful to your body.

Naturally grown, unsorted fruits and vegetables are usually tiny and tasteless. Unsurprisingly, they lack the nutritional value needed to fill the bellies of soldiers who’ve depleted their strength.

So just as we often ate salted meat, Arna frequently dined on salted vegetables and fruits. Knowing full well that asking for fresh vegetables on the battlefield is much tougher than asking for quality meat, she often bore a long face but kept eating nonetheless.

Even though she understood back then that it was ‘just how it was,’ it’s a whole different kind of torment to think there’s nothing even remotely edible in the middle of a seemingly fine city. It would be like a prolonged tease of hope.

“Ah, don’t worry.”

I said to Arna, who looked a bit concerned.

“There are plenty of places selling salads.”

Arna’s face visibly relaxed at my words.

“If that’s the case, then please do.”

“Sure, got it.”

I nodded and took out my smartphone from my pocket.

*

Naturally, it was expected, but while I was ordering food on my smartphone, Dana peered in with fascination over my shoulder.

They have photos where they come from too. They have something similar to phones, and even refrigerators, fans, and air conditioners. Of course, everything is infinitely more expensive than here, so regular commoners couldn’t afford them. All of them operated via magic, and obviously, all magical items were crafted by mages.

But whether it’s expensive or not, it seemed that this ‘magic-free’ operation was incredibly fascinating to Dana.

And while they may have had communication devices over there, they didn’t have anything like smartphones. Even if they could use some rough substitutes for single-function electronic devices, nothing could yet substitute the computers from this world.

“Could I get something like that too?”

“Getting one isn’t a problem… Ah.”

As I scrolled, wondering what might please these girls, a sudden thought struck me.

“Why? Is it really expensive? Is it too high-end for me to own?”

Dana said with a hint of disappointment, but I shook my head.

“No, it’s not like that.”

Sure, buying something expensive would certainly be costly, but there are plenty of reasonably priced options too. Not to mention that even if there were expensive models, it wasn’t something I couldn’t afford.

Rather, there was a much more fundamental issue.

“…To properly utilize this here, you need to have a status in this world.”

“Oh.”

Upon hearing my words, Dana nodded.

“Then it makes sense… I’ve heard that the identity verification system in this world is quite foolproof.”

Everything was stored digitally on computers, and there’s a huge system that allows real-time verification of that info. It wasn’t as simple as just asking someone to register you if you showed up asking.

For foreigners, they were registered at the moment of arrival and departure for entry. If they didn’t register for entry, they’d be considered illegal immigrants and at the same time illegal residents. Leaving on a different date than claimed or overstaying the allowed entry limit without a visa also counted as illegal residency.

In the world where even one extra hand was precious, they could grant temporary status as long as ‘being human’ was proven, and then recognize them as commoners after verifying that there were no disqualifications. After all, there was only one kingdom around them.

“It won’t be a major issue to walk about for now.”

Unless they run into a situation where they’d need to be checked by the police.

In my life, I’ve never once been subjected to a spot check, but for foreigners, it could be different. Even though I’ve never traveled abroad, I’ve heard several times that you should never lose your passport in a foreign country.

“The concept of ‘foreigner,’ huh? Honestly, it’s a bit unfamiliar.”

In the other world, foreigners were mostly elves, who were rarely seen, or sometimes sailors from the East who bravely crossed dangerous seas. While you could occasionally find settled foreigners in port cities, such instances were virtually non-existent in the capital. And traveling beyond noble domains? That was exceedingly rare.

To say nothing of ever having to go out into that foreign land, it was no wonder it felt unfamiliar.

“Did the Goddess give you anything? As for me, I received several documents proving my identity when I came here.”

Upon hearing my words, the four of them looked at each other and shook their heads.

“…Now that I think about it, we came here without any time to grab our belongings.”

Dana shrugged at Kalia’s remark.

“That means the Goddess must have been in a hurry. It was the only time she could gather that much Divine Power. After that, she did say she would have power she could use again, but…”

“Gather Divine Power?”

When I asked, Pia smiled and said,

“We gathered people to pray for the Hero, to send thanks. In the capital and in various noble territories across the kingdom. We all gathered in one place at that same time to pray to the Goddess so that she might send us here.”

“…”

Uh… Now that’s quite a big deal…

I thought it was kind of on a grand scale, but I nodded for the time being. I’d hear about that incident properly later on.

What mattered more than that right now was a different issue.

Though it was unlikely, should these girls get involved with the police, it could lead to trouble in many ways. Not only would they be illegal residents, but they also completely lacked a ‘nationality’ to begin with.

“Um… The only thing I brought are these notes… Ah.”

Dana held up an old notebook she had been gripping. This was the very notebook I had used to explain the characters and civilization of this world to Dana.

Did she think it might be needed once she arrived here?

As I pondered this, something fell from the notebook.

It was a memo about the size of a business card.

Dana picked it up, tilted her head in confusion.

“Hmm…?”

“What’s up?”

“This… I didn’t put this in.”

Saying that, Dana handed the memo to me.

“I think you should take a look at this.”

“Me?”

I received it with a somewhat puzzled expression.

On the memo, there was an address written.

In Korean, no less. It looked like it had been typed neatly, almost like it was printed.

And that address belonged to a certain Church.