Chapter 179: The adventurer’s second chance, part 2
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Translator: Denryuu; Editor: Ryunakama
◆Meu◆
Meu’s job began the moment she was introduced to the children, and a busy job it was. She was immediately tasked with all the duties needed to run a household — cleaning, cooking, you name it, she had to do it.
As the sun began to set at the end of a long day, the two ladies finally had time to catch a breather.
「A grandmother who lives nearby brings us fresh veggies from time to time. She likes to say hi to the children too. You can say that she has a lot of clout!」, said Almeria.
「Uh… how are you affiliated with Argan-san, your Highness? Are you friends?」
「Roland and I!?」
Meu chuckled at the unreserved reaction. What a heartwarming person to be around, she thought as she watched the princess go beet red. She may be impervious to literal attacks, but when it comes to matters of the heart… not so much.
「Just, uh… friends! Or he’s like my teacher, I guess…? Not only that, but…」
There’s more to it than that, repeated the princess.
「But there’s nothing between you and Roland, right?」, asked Almeria.
「Yes. I saw him at the guild often, but we never really talked.」
「Mm. Good.」
Almeria tried to calm herself down. From Roland’s sans-honorifics way of talking to Almeria, Meu had deduced that they knew each other quite well. She found the way they behaved in front of each other matched that of a teacher and a student.
「Has Roland gone home…?」, asked Rina.
Meu wondered if Rina was here because of the princess, as both had been members of the Heroes’ Party. The Grand Mage, as she was known in the streets, had nothing on her mind except for Roland whenever he visited.
「It’s okay, Rina-chan. He said he’ll visit again.」
「But I wanted to talk to him…! He always leaves right after he comes!」
「Same here…」
「Yeah…」
Rina closed her eyes as Meu ruffled her hair. She would learn at a later date that Rina had, in fact, been born in the same orphanage. Roland must have been the one from who she had learnt her magic.
「What exactly is Argan-san?」
Having always gone to Milia at the guild, Meu had nothing more than a very rough mental image of the mysterious employee. She suddenly realised that she no longer felt dejected when reminiscing about her time as an adventurer, for she loved both working and playing with children. Though they frequently got in the way of things, she nevertheless felt fulfilled living her current life. She even felt okay with not using the magic that she had painstakingly learnt back then.
「And it balloons! It swells! It all comes together!」
Rina’s explanations were too abstract for anyone to understand. She could be referring to the magicka concentrating within her body, but nobody really knew for sure. The spell that she released may have been a sight to see, but left all her students clueless as to how she did it.
「Can I give the teaching a go, Rina-chan?」, asked Meu.
「…Okay.」
「You can do magic, Meu?」, taunted one of the livelier boys.
「Magic is difficult, you know?」, added a girl who acted older than she really was.
She wondered if she still had it in her as she activated the magicka within her body. The ‘sensation’ differed from person to person, but she found ‘burning’ to be the most apt description for her own experience. It was a feeling she hadn’t felt in a long time. The small amount of magicka that she had activated was channeled onto her palm, manifesting itself as a small flame.
「Wow!」, exclaimed the students in unison.
「Ehehe. See? I can! We’ll start from the very beginning.」
And that was how Meu’s lecture began. She may be a second-rate mage, but she could still teach the fundamentals well enough. If it’s for the children, she thought, then any amount of effort is worth it.
Roland came to check on Meu a month later.
「How’s life?」
「It’s tough, but every day was well-spent.」
「That’s great」, he said with a smile.
Meu felt a twinge of… something. The employee in front of her was always composed and expressionless, and yet, his smile was like a flower in the desert. Slowly perfected over the years, it now held power where it mattered.
「I see…」
「What do you see?」
Nothing, she said, dodging the question.
「Play house with me later, Roland –」, whined the young mage who had been clinging to Roland since his arrival.
「What do I do?」
「You can be the father!」
「The father? Sure. I know what a father is… on paper, at least. I guess you never had a real father, but to tell you what it’s like here of all places…」
「Yay!」
In some ways, Rina didn’t act her age. The average ten-year-old girl would have already started trying to look pretty and attract boys’ attention. Instead, Rina’s mental age felt closer to five or six.
「Then I’ll be your sister, Roland!」
「My sister?」
「Yup! Let’s talk about finance and inheritances!」
「Wow. Those are some pretty grown-up things to talk about, Rina.」
Meu had no idea whether Roland was joking or not.
「Hm? Is something wrong?」
「I was just thinking that it contributes to that allure of yours.」
Confused, Roland looked at her sideways. It’s not for you to understand, thought Meu.
「How’s Milia?」, she asked.
「She’s doing well. She was happy for you when I told her that you were working here.」
「I see.」
Meu wanted to meet her and talk all about her new life. She wanted to gush to the kind girl behind the counter, to thank her for her unwavering support and guidance towards the useless adventurer that she had once been. Knowing that they had parted ways without a single word being spoken gnawed away at her.
What she did not expect, however, was that life is full of unexpected turns.
「Meu-san!」, came a familiar voice from the distance.
Meu, who was playing with the children in the courtyard, looked up. It was Roland — and he had brought Milia with her.
「Milia!」
Milia ran into Meu’s open arms and began to weep.
「I’m so glad to see you again, Meu-san! You look so much happier now!」
「It’s all thanks to Argan-san.」
「He told me all about it!」
Meu instructed the children to play on their own and invited the two employees into her room. It was a simple room, containing a bed, a table and two chairs. She sat on the bed and gestured for her guests to sit down.
「Calling it quits was the right choice…」, said Milia. 「You seemed about to crack under all the pressure! It hurt to see you look like that day in and day out!」
「I’m sorry for making you worry, Milia. And thanks for being concerned about me. Everything’s fine now!」
Hearing Rina’s voice from the corridor, Roland excused himself. As the two ladies caught up with each other, Meu remembered what she had wanted to ask.
「Milia… what kind of person is Argan-san?」
「Roland? He’s my junior at work.」
「I mean… he’s her Highness’s teacher. Not only that… Rina, the Great Mage, also takes a special liking towards him…」
「That’s Roland-san for you! He gets along with everyone.」
「Why is that?」
「I can’t say for sure… but it’s a good thing, isn’t it?」, said Milia with a twinkle in her eye.
You couldn’t tell that she had been crying just minutes ago.
「He’s mysterious, cool, amazing, a gentleman…」
Wondering if it was already too late, Meu sighed on the inside.
「It’s better to give up, Milia. About Argan-san.」
「Why?」, pouted Milia.
「Because…」
Because the princess is already madly in love with him, she thought to herself. You may be pretty, but an average city girl like you will never win.
「Ah. I get it. You like him too, right? Right? That’s why you want to keep him all to yourself!」
「No, that’s not what I mean.」
「The fewer rivals, the better!」, Milia continued. 「That’s the art of war! The oldest trick in the book! Countless adventurers have tried — as many as there are stars in the sky — but I won’t budge an inch!」
「Have you confessed? To him?」
Milia went crimson instantly.
「Sorta. It was too embarrassing, so I kind of… uh… beat around the bush.」
「Then there’s no point, is there?」
「I mean… yes, but… if I get rejected, I won’t be able to show my face at work again!」
「I believe in you. You can do it!」
「If only I had some of that unfounded confidence.」
「Shh…」
They laughed.
「If both of you have the day off, why not ask him for a meal?」
「Er… don’t say it out loud. I was already planning to… and I’m super super nervous…」
Going out into the courtyard, Meu gave Milia a small nod.
「Ro, Roland-san!」
「Yes?」
「D-Dinner… together! Shall we?」
「Sure. I have nothing on later.」
She looked at Meu, her eyes sparkling with enough light to rival the night sky. The former adventurer acknowledged her success with a thumbs up.
「I hope it all works out」, she muttered after seeing them off.
I’m sorry, Almeria, she thought to herself. I’m team Milia.
She watched the two employees disappear into the distance, one of them looking like she had just won the lottery.
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