Chapter 39: Encounter
”……..So, Miss Minami, you really want me to come with you?” “Yes. Healing the Demon Forest is good for this country. That’s why I want Miss Sharon and Fleurety to come with us.
When milady asked her that, Miss Minami smiled and said so, bringing a bit of chiffon cake (full of whipped cream) I had served to her mouth.
”It’s delicious. Fleurety.”
“That’s good to know.”
Miss Minami seems to be the same as ever. As far as I can remember, Miss Minami is an intelligent person, even from my point of view. But she doesn’t consider herself to be rejected in any way.
What she says is correct. That’s why she thinks no one will reject what she is saying, and she proceeds on the basis of that.
She pretends that she didn’t see me being bullied in class, and she talks to me like nothing happened, and she thinks it’s right.
So, even now, she wouldn’t think for a second that she could make a request to a lady who is a nobleman and have it rejected.
”………”
Milady glances at me. I nod slowly at that.
“I understand, Miss Minami. I will join you.”
“Well, after all, Miss Sharon is a wonderful person. I look forward to working with you.”
When milady with a somewhat twitchy smile agreed, Miss Minami thanked her without any particular pleasure in words alone. Then, after a little small talk, Miss Minami left with the handmaidens she had brought with her.
Those maidservants don’t have a very good attitude either. Probably the maidservants of the royal palace, but it seemed as if they were looking down on milady.
”……..Huh.”
“Thank you for your service, milady. I apologize that I have make you accept a request that could be dangerous.”
I bow my head to milady as she breathes away from the tension, and she chuckles and shakes my hand.
“I know that Letty always puts me first. It’s important to the country. As a noblewoman, I can’t say no if the saintly lady asks me to.”
“You are very well-behaved. milady.”
Next to those two melons.
”Are you thinking of something strange again?”
“I beg your pardon. You eat a lot of watermelons, aren’t you, milady?”
“What are you talking about?”
It seems that I was able to deceive milady well. Anyway, even if I’m the one who perfectly protects milady, as milady’s personal maid, I have an obligation to make her comfortable even if she’s in the Devil’s Forest.
”That’s why I’ve come to purchase various things.”
“What do you mean?”
I’ve made it to the store near that salt dungeon. The owner’s shop is a little smaller than the shops on King’s Central Street, but the owner’s resourcefulness has allowed him to keep a wide variety of useless products. …he has a wide range of products that you can shop at a surprisingly low price.
“I’d like to say that the owner is the same as always, but I’m afraid you’ve changed a lot in appearance.”
“Oh, you know what changed, maid?”
At my words, the owner proudly turns his head and puffs out his nostrils.
“I got it done by a very beautiful maid.”
“Is that right?”
Unfortunately, that broccoli-like thing is not hair.
“Speaking of which, have you lost weight? Your skin also looks … a little green.”
“Well, I’ve been craving some kind of green thing, or rather, seaweed lately. Could you be a little flexible, maidservant?”
“Good.”
It’s a pretty nasty parasitic type of thing.
But, well, it’s not life threatening, and if its host is in danger, it’ll probably take a risk and save him.
If there’s a drawback, it would be that his whole body would turn green and he would eventually ‘return to the sea’.
That may be a happy life for him, but I’ll continue to shop for a while longer and I’ll handle it somewhat on my end.
“Oh, a woman’s skirt is rolled up outside–“
“What the fuck?”
Before I can finish, the owner of the store leans out from the counter with a lot of momentum.
”–you did, didn’t you?”
“Tsk.” “It’s rude to do that if you have a pretty maid like me right in front of you, isn’t it?”
For now, i crushed the intelligent part of his “hair”. Now that I’ve picked off the nasty part, it’s not like the shopkeeper will be returning to the ocean in a few years. The only problem is that only the top of the shopkeeper’s head has been picked off, reducing his defenses to zero, and his haircut looks like he’s wearing an afro-shaped donut.
I think it’s good to have a very eccentric and unique haircut.
I bought some sweets, outdoor cooking tools, and other necessary items, and while I was at it, I sold a simple map of the Demon Forest that I had mapped out for a fair price.
About that Demon Forest, if it was a ward that resulted in preventing demons from entering the forest, would it allow Jades household members to enter if it was completely destroyed?
Now, let’s get one more thing done, shall we?
“fiiii”
As I lightly whistled near the back street, a group of snot-nosed children began to trickle out of the alley.
“O-nee-chan, Hello!” “I’m glad to see you guys are doing well. Has anything changed?”
When I ask this, the children, in turn, whisper in my ear.
“The number of demons occurring in the western villages is increasing.”
“Apparently the disappearance of the holy beast is a factor, but the cause is not known, even by the Order.”
“Next week, I hear that a group of green saints are going to heal the Devil’s Forest.”
“Lately, the underworld has started telling me to run away if I see a young maid with dark hair.”
There’s also a somewhat rude topic in there.
“I see. Are the soldiers working on that? Any news on the Green Saints?”
“The soldiers aren’t moving for some reason. I don’t know why.”
“The Green Saint was recognized by [the Church]. It is said she was chosen prematurely in order to recover from an earlier blunder, but it feels somewhat unnaturally.”
I gave them a little more rock sugar as a treat, and the kids ran down the street for their errand, smiling innocently.
Innocent children are soothing, after all.
I had expected this, but there didn’t seem to be much useful information. I wish I could have learned something from the child’s rumors, but let’s head to his place as planned.
A few minutes later, I arrived at what looked like a rundown coffee shop.
As expected, I would say, the shop doesn’t look like it’s in vogue.
What kind of coffee shop is it? It’s one of those old-town neighborhood coffee shops where if you ask for an iced coffee, you’ll get a sweet iced coffee with gum syrup already in it, but you’ll be charged 400 yen for a cup.
I entered the coffe shop from here I can see the holy sign of the Goddess on the steeple of the [Church]. It doesn’t seem to go well with me and I don’t feel very good when I see it.
Besides, since there is a possibility that the “goddess” is my “enemy”, I can’t just walk up to her and let her know of my existence without a second thought.
I went to the back room of the shop, and the man I was looking for was already seated.
“Did I keep you waiting?
“No, I’ve just arrived.”
he put his cup of coffee on his plate and he – the Holy Knight of the Church, Lord Elias – looked at me and smiled kindly.