Chapter 39

Chapter 39. "The Dark Elf, the Dwarf, and a Single Rose."19

Jeff, who had been making a strange face while looking at mine, turned his head and looked toward Rene, who was heading into the kitchen.

"Oh, Rene? It is a little early, but could we ask for breakfast and six packed lunches? We came up empty-handed yesterday, so I think we should head out a bit earlier today."

"What are you trying to find?"

Rene stopped on her way into the kitchen, leaned her head out, and asked. At that, Jeff scratched the back of his head and shook it.

"I am sorry, but I cannot say. Even I think it is too absurd."

"Is that so? If it would be troublesome, you do not have to tell me."

Rene said that and went into the kitchen, and Jeff let out a small laugh before walking toward the door. Then he noticed Luna sitting at the table. He paused and glanced at her.

"Oh. Good morning."

"I suppose it is."

The icy tone Luna had at first had softened a little, but her dry, flat voice remained the same. She said that after giving him a brief glance while still looking down at her book, and Jeff stood there for a while, staring quietly at Luna's profile. Then he grinned, opened the door, stepped outside, and said,

"Waking up in the morning and seeing nothing but beautiful women... this feels strangely nice."

Luna lightly ignored what he said, and Jeff left with a broad smile. Once he was gone, Luna closed her book, stood up, and came over to me.

"What about Uncle Jimant?"

"I do not think he is up yet. I listened outside the door, and I could hear him snoring."

"Really? The room next to mine was pretty noisy last night. He must have stayed up all night. All right. I will go wake him."

"Ah. Right."

Luna tucked the book under her arm and strode up the stairs. I watched her for a moment, then turned my head and went outside.
Late autumn... or would early winter be more accurate? In any case, the morning sun was rising.

Hmm, as it kept getting colder, if things went well, maybe I would be seeing snow by the middle of November. Thinking that, I drew in a deep breath and crossed the yard toward the stable.

On the way, I spotted Jeff in one corner of the yard, doing his morning exercises. Ohh, the very picture of a diligent guide.

"Morning exercise?"

"Huff! Huff! The day after drinking, huff! you have to, like this! Urraaah-cha! work out and loosen up your body, so that, when you are moving around, huff! your body listens to you better! Urraaah-cha!"

He said it while bending himself backward, and I left him with a warning that he was going to snap his back like that before continuing on to the stable. When I opened the door and stepped inside, two sturdily built horses greeted me at once.

"Prrrr! Hiiihihiinng~!"

"Oh, boys. It is a fine, refreshing morning, is it not?"

At my words, the one with the sharp brown eyes bobbed his head. Beside him, the gentle-looking black horse looked at me with soft eyes.

Cute fellows. I grinned and stroked their faces for a bit, then brought over feed mixed with oats, barley, and other grains in proper measure and poured it into the troughs before them.

Then I brought an armful of hay and set it down in front of them before turning my head to look at the white goat still sleeping in one corner of the stable.

It was a rather irritable-looking mountain goat, but perhaps because it was getting old, it seemed to have become much sleepier these days.

All the animals here had been brought in from the village when we were building the house. The horses were for hauling loads, and the goat had been brought to provide the workers with a fresh substitute for milk.

After the house was finished, they occasionally served as excellent mounts for my wife and me as well.

As for that goat, it no longer gave milk, so it was awkward to sell, and if we let it roam free, it might get eaten by monsters, so we simply kept it here.

Somehow, it found its own role and carried it out faithfully. What it did was guard the house whenever we went out and were not around. It was not the most reassuring guardian, but it was reliable enough. If anything it did not like came snooping too close to our house, no matter what it was, the creature charged at it and rammed it with those horns.

After stroking the faces of the animals eating their breakfast one more time, I left the stable.

Perhaps because it was the end of October, there were many trees around with fallen leaves scattered beneath them. Even so, there were still quite a few trees that had kept their greenery.

That was only natural, since the trees here were half evergreens and half deciduous. Still, when winter came, there tended to be fewer monsters around. Most of them went into hibernation.

I turned my head to look for Jeff, but he had apparently already gone back inside. After giving the rosebush, which still had not withered, a quick glance, I went back in.

Inside, Jeff was standing there with a towel over his shoulders, draining a beer mug, and Kal was seated at the table, still looking half asleep. When I came in, they lifted their hands and greeted me.

"Good morning, Mr. Han."

"Ah, yes. But you look rather tired."

"I lost sleep last night because of someone."

"And why are you looking at me when you say that?"

Jeff lowered his beer mug and said that while looking at Kal, and Kal bared his teeth and pointed a finger toward the second floor.

"How in the world do you end up drinking with someone you only met a day ago, and a dwarf on top of that? Hm?"

At that, Jeff folded his arms with a snap and lifted his chin arrogantly.

"My master used to say that true friends are made over drinks."

"...I am done talking. Truly done. Mr. Han? Could I trouble you for a cup of tea? I need to wake up."

Watching the two of them, I smiled and then went into the kitchen. Rene was there, moving about this way and that with plates of food in her hands. I smiled and said,

"You look busy."

"I am busy. Do not just stand there looking. Help me."

I nodded, pulled a chair in from the dining room so she could rest a little, and carried all the finished dishes into the dining room.

Rene sat for a short while as though taking a breather, then stood again, took out the lunch baskets, and began filling them with the food she had prepared. Watching her, I smiled faintly.

The shop was usually quiet, so when this many guests came all at once, it felt as though Rene and I alone were not quite enough.

A new discovery. Thinking that, I was taking teacups out of the cupboard and tilting the kettle over them when a dark face appeared in the kitchen doorway and said,

"You look busy. Shall I help?"

Rene and I both stopped what we were doing for a moment, looked up, and smiled.

"The tea is here."

"Huh? Are you working too?"

"For now, I am living in this house too. I ought to earn my meals."

Hearing the conversation between Luna and Kal out in the hall, I continued helping my wife, and the three of us were able to finish everything much more quickly and easily.

Rene looked at the six finished lunch boxes and let out a small sigh, and I smiled at her before passing through the dining room into the hall and calling out to everyone.

"Breakfast is ready. Please come and eat."

"Ah, yes."

Whether because of what had happened earlier or not, Kal and Jeff went into the dining room growling at each other.

Rene came out after taking off the cloth she had wrapped around her head. Then she went to the table nearest the dining room, sat down, leaned back in her chair, and said,

"Haaah... that was a little tiring."

"That is what happens when you overwork yourself."

At my words, Rene looked up at me silently, then smiled and lowered her head.

...Just what was that smile supposed to mean?

Just then, Luna came over carrying the empty teacup from the table. Seeing her, Rene smiled warmly. Luna gave Rene a brief sideways glance, then turned her head and went into the kitchen.

"She is a good child."

"...She is not."

Rene looked up at me at the words that came from somewhere nearby, and I only shrugged and shook my head. Then the voice sounded again, and we realized who it belonged to.

Rene turned her head toward Jimant, who was coming out of the first-floor corridor while wiping his face with a towel.

"What do you mean?"

At her question, Jimant stood still for a while, then slowly lowered the towel from his face, and I snorted before I could stop myself.

Some sort of black soot-like substance had been used to write on his face. Looking more closely, I saw that it was Elvish. The words written across his face meant this:

"Sleepyhead. Wake up."

Jimant flared his nostrils and raised a hand to point at his face.

"So that good child likes to play pranks like this on adults, does she?"

Rene smiled a little when she saw his face, and Jimant turned away from her and covered his face with the towel again.

"Where is that brat right now?"

"I am here."

Luna came walking out of the kitchen with a broad grin. Jimant, upon seeing her, snorted through his nose, then strode over, shoved his face right up to Luna's, and said,

"What did you write this with that it will not even come off, you brat?!"

"I wrote it with magic. Just leave it alone. It will disappear after a certain amount of time."

"Just leave it alone? Maybe to you it looks like something I can just leave alone, but not to me, you little rascal!"

Jimant lifted a fist toward Luna's head, but when Luna lightly stepped back, he punched empty air. After repeating the same thing a few more times, Jimant looked even angrier than before, and in the end, he began flailing his arms and darting this way and that, trying to catch her.

"Hold still!"

"No."

"Grrrk!"

After chasing her around several times like that, Jimant finally stopped some distance away. Luna stood there with both hands behind her back, gazing at him leisurely, and he frowned at her.

"You have gotten quicker than before."

"I got a little taller too."

At that, Jimant let out a small laugh, turned his back on her, and walked toward us.

"I have heard that, unless it is some special sort of magic, the caster can dispel their own spell at will. So I will give you one last chance. Get rid of this thing on my face before other people see it."

After saying that, he pulled a chair away from our table, turned it so that it faced outward, and sat down on it. Luna climbed up onto the table behind him, swung her legs, grinned, and said,

"And if I say no?"

Jimant smiled coldly, looking as though he had expected exactly that, then turned to us and said,

"Would you not like to know how old she was when she finally stopped wetting the bed?"

"...Spell Cancel."