Chapter 80
Seirou
Translator : PolterGlast
The whole town felt
like one big party.
Even though the sun
had completely set, lanterns swayed in the night sky. The excitement of
repelling the sand scorpions hadn't faded at all, and tonight, everyone was
letting loose all night long. Everywhere I walked, people would call out,
"Hey, you're that kid from earlier, right!?" My voice had echoed
throughout the town. I felt a little awkward.
By the way, Socius had
been desperately adjusting the volume of the megaphone next to me while crying
the whole time. He kept sniffling and saying he wasn't crying, but right now,
he was sleeping like a dead man in his room in the Magic Tower. All sorts of
people had called out to me, and my hands were already full of food. Lotus was
helping me, and even though Ichi and the others were munching away at an
incredible speed, it didn't seem to decrease at all.
For some reason, a
strange feeling welled up in my chest. I had always been the one running away.
That's how it felt in words, but it wasn't a negative emotion at all, just a
fuzzy feeling of "Is this really okay?" When I told Lotus about it,
he gave me his usual laid-back reply, "Well, you should probably just
accept it without thinking too much." So I decided to do just that. This
meat is so good! I took a big bite of what looked like a hot dog. I was very
happy.
I hadn't had a proper
conversation with Veda yet. He was probably still running around dealing with
today's events and was likely busy repairing the water sphere membrane that had
collapsed in some parts where the sand scorpions had gotten over.
"Oooooohhhh!!
Found youuuuuu!!"
It was then. Someone I
recognized called out to me. He still had mud on him in places, so maybe he was
just lazy. He was wearing a straw hat despite it being night. It was the
coachman of the carriage that Yuko had almost used as bait.
"You two, I
remember you! The little one and the big one! You know who I am? It's me. Long
time no see... no, it's not that, you two were my saviors, thank you so much!"
"Of course, I
remember you, I'm glad you're doing well."
That's right, this was
the old man who had asked us, "Hey, are you alright?" and given us a
ride in his carriage when Lotus and I first arrived in Soleil. I had a habit of
appraising people I met. Back then, above the old man's head, it said, "A
very unlucky coachman. Might be used as bait." I had wondered what
"might be" meant, but Yuko's words had made it click.
That's why I thought
it was the old man knocking on the gate asking for help, and when I realized it
was someone whose face I knew and who had been kind to us, I couldn't breathe.
In that instant, I felt the blood rush to my head. But even if it hadn't been
the old man, I might have ended up doing the same thing, and there was no way
to know about such "what ifs."
"...I really
thought I was going to die. I didn't know what was going to happen."
The old man's despair
must have been immense. He must have thought that if he could just reach the
capital of Kasei, everything would be alright. But the doors were heavy and
wouldn't open. The fists he had slammed against the gate, crying for it to
open, had skin peeling off in places where it wasn't covered in mud. His palms
must have been in terrible shape. Noticing my gaze, the old man quietly hid his
fists.
"Little miss, you
were El, right? If it hadn't been for you... I don't even know how I could ever
repay you."
"Y-you've already
been plenty kind to us, old man."
After all, he had
taken two suspicious people he had picked up in a strange place with nothing
but the sea around them all the way to Kasei. Ichi and the others had been
boiling from the heat and we were truly at our wit's end. "Hahaha, that's
nothing, not even a proper thank you. My life was on the line." I really
thought people who could laugh like this after having just resigned themselves
to death were amazing.
"...I heard. That
Saint named Yuko was trying to kill me, right? Little Miss El. You gave me
something I can never repay. I swear, if anything ever happens to you, I'll be
sure to help you. My name is Seirou. I'm somewhat well-known in the merchant
guild."
I trembled at his
straightforward words.
This big man named
Seirou, wearing a mismatched outfit of a straw hat at night, was truly,
seriously saying that to me. It must have been because he didn't know I was a
demon, but even though I was a small child who was probably more than twenty
years younger than him, he treated me directly, as an equal.
"H-hahi... yes,
yes..."
I was overwhelmed and
my tongue wouldn't work properly, so I gave a strange reply, but he gave me a
gentle smile, and his laugh lines were prominent. "Well then, I often come
to Kasei for business. I'll be in this town for a while!" Seirou waved one
hand and turned his back. "Big thanks to you folks in Kasei too! Though, I
won't give you a discount!" He disappeared, spinning around as he laughed
and thanked the people around him. I might not be one to talk, but I thought he
was quite an unusual person. I thought it was awfully quiet, and then I realized
Lotus had been munching away on the stew he had received this whole time. When
did he even get that?
--Festival! Festival!
--So fun! So fun!
--Hey! Hey! Hey!!!
"No, it's not a
festival..."
Ichi and the others at
my feet were bouncing around. It was then. Lotus put the empty stew bowl on the
ground and quietly took a step forward.
Among the cheerfully
laughing people, there was a woman wearing a reddish-brown robe, standing
alone. I thought it was a woman because of her small stature. Her face was
hidden by a deep hood, so I couldn't see it. She was looking down, just
standing silently in front of us.
It was only a distance
of about two or three meters. The surrounding noise faded into the distance.
Slowly, she took a step forward. Lotus tried to push me back with his hand
behind him, but I grabbed it and stepped forward.
"Yuko, isn't
it?"
Her shoulder twitched
quietly. Even while walking through the town, I had heard people around us
repeatedly call her a murderous Saint. That must be why she had to hide her
face. Every time someone approached her, she flinched and her body trembled for
a moment. I felt a little sorry for her, but only a little. But if her plan had
gone through, Old Man Seirou would have died, but they probably would have been
able to protect the city properly, so I couldn't say anything more.
"...Where is
Nabari-san?"
There was no reply to
my question. But when she got closer, close enough for me to see her face, it
was indeed her. Her brown eyes were shining brightly, fiercely glaring at me.
"Let's talk," she said clearly, and I imagined the lines that would follow.
"You, El, no,
Eldorado, right? The most terrifying witch of Cloudy Country. --Don't even try
to tell me it's a misunderstanding."
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