3 bar menu

Chapter 324: Important Details

I 【Teleport】back to Canum the following day. It is colder here than in my mountain home, so I adjusted my coat while lighting the fireplace. It is too dark if the window is shut, but too cold when it’s opened. Mm, maybe it’s better to install a glass even if it’ll be too eye-catching.

I already had breakfast, so I put the kettle on to brew some coffee. Maybe it’s just me, but the hot water seems softer* when boiled over firewood.

I set a stool in front of the fireplace and enjoyed my coffee while warming up. It’s quite boring, so I started weaving bellflowers with wild grapevines and walnut branches, forming a basket.

「Jean? 」
Retze’s voice resounded from outside.

「Morning. 」
「Ou, morning. 」
「Good morning. 」
Retze was followed by Hauron and Butler.

「Retze, you’re joining us today? 」
「Noth endorsed him to be my support. 」
I asked while inviting them in. Eh, support?

Retze and Hauron sat down, but Butler, being familiar with everything here, started preparing tea.

「Retze-sama, what do you prefer? 」
「Ahh, can I have some coffee? 」

Oh, right, it’s proven that Canum folks are weak against caffeine. Black tea started appearing in the market, but many folks drank too much and ended up nauseous. Oh well, I can’t differentiate black tea from sugared water.

Chris seems to be the only one who is still fine even after drinking plenty of black tea, I think? Retze seemed to be a rare case, with him being okay with coffee.

Brewing really suits Butler, be it herbal tea or coffee. Everyone sat down with a mug of steaming drink in their hands.

「Alright. I have tons of things I want to ask, but first things first, care to explain? 」
「Why? 」
Hauron smirked.

「You already know what I’m talking about, hm? 」
He recrossed his legs, rested his chin on his hand and stared at me piercingly.

「Is it about 【Teleport】? 」
I did 【Teleport】without a word, after all.

「No. 」
Retze refuted.

But that’s in line with what I was thinking~ Hauron muttered, but Retze seemed to think differently.

「Then what? 」
「It’s not ‘what’. You’re being too lax towards someone you met for the first time. 」
Retze put down his coffee cup on the table and faced me.

「Ah, well, it’s because Noth and Dinosso recommended him. 」
Besides, how will he point out what’s lacking if I don’t show him, right?

「Even so. You have to check him out for yourself before you do that. 」
「But he’s chummy with the other two, and I have a good impression of him as we chatted. 」
And not sure if it’s because of my memories of my own Granny, but I’m weak against old folks.

「Jean-sama, you become too unguarded the moment you acknowledge someone to be your friend. To make things clearer, allow me to give you an example. I sold Wolf King before. 」

「Eh? 」
A mini theater opened in my mind — Dinosso was wrapped around Butler’s pinky finger and was sold to Hauron — uh, I can’t imagine how they looked back when they were young adventurers so their appearance was still the same as how they look now.

「Oh my, you’re shocked, huh? Well, I don’t find anything out of the ordinary with it, though. Rather, I’m more surprised that the prickly, tense atmosphere softened a lot during this reunion. 」
Hauron commented.

Eh? So Dinosso wasn’t sold to Hauron? Maybe it’s to Shiva, so it turned out okay?

「Hey, I’m positive that Jean is thinking of something totally unrelated. You guys are talking about betraying someone and selling his info to the enemy…right? 」
「Indeed. I do feel uneasy when it is confirmed in this manner… 」
Retze and Butler seemed troubled.

「So that’s what you meant! 」
「What were you imagining? 」
「Frankly speaking, slave trade. 」

An awkward silence fell.

「Oh well, Hauron — ah, sorry for being rude and addressing you without any honorifics given that you’re a legendary person. 」
「It’s fine, no need for that since it’s troublesome. 」
Hauron waved his hand at Retze.

「In Hauron-dono’s case, it can’t be helped, but be more vigilant from now on, hear me? 」
「Yes. 」
They’re right, I’ve been too laxed recently, let’s be more careful.

「So, what are you, in the end? Aren’t you too easy going to be Ruf? 」
Hauron eyed the basket I just finished.

「I’m a person from another world, dragged here because of the heroes. Ah, but I think it’s kinda like the transmigration of the soul, since my body was created to match this world? 」
That’s why please don’t turn me into your research subject and ‘dissect’ me.

「Heh? Then, an existence that received protection from deity-level spirits, someone who nurtures deities, a person bestowed with special abilities, an existence that brings rapid progress and development of a different civilization, an existence that brings change to the balance of spirits, someone who possess the ability to provide spirits and also to destroy them, an existence that can prosper but also self-destruct — did those match? 」
Hauron enumerated the traits of a hero while folding his fingers, before finally turning his gaze towards me.

「Mostly? That last one should be told to the regular heroes. 」
「So 【Teleport】is one of those abilities? 」
「Yup. 」

「That’s a relief, although I still have some points that I can’t agree with — Still, I don’t understand why spirits favor you so much, why they don’t bend your wishes to suit their own whims, or why they perfectly understand and acknowledge what you want… 」
Hauron closed his eyes and slouched on his chair.

Maybe it’s because I’m trying my best to name the spirits, or maybe it’s because they are kins of the deities? But I agree with him, it seemed that fundamental difference in the thought process of spirits and humans didn’t apply to me. I couldn’t find anything to nitpick in the way we mutually understand each other.

「— Retze-sama, you seem to be deep in thought? 」
Butler said that, but Retze’s expression didn’t seem any different than usual.

「What’s up? 」
「How far are you willing to open up? Your ‘acting mentor’ is now the one interrogating you. 」
Retze fired back at me when I stared at him.

Oh, he’s right, come to think of it.

「’Acting mentor’ seems to be quite the fitting phrase. 」
Butler admired Retze’s line.

「Hey, hold up, aren’t you treating the significance of my existence as some joke!? I maybe like this, but I’ll have you know that people call me the Grand Mage, or Great Sage and things like that! 」
Hauron seemed to disagree with them/

I also felt ‘acting mentor’ or ‘acting coach’ fits him well. Oh, but I should learn the basics of magic first if I want to act according to the scene and the spell that should be used else it won’t work out.