111 - - Children's wishes, adult circumstances

The next evening after his return from the wilderness, Thor went to the temple of exploration.

He had received word from Odle that the medicine he had asked for was ready.

He also had to pick up Moe.

Yuril had accompanied him in the morning, but he and Thora had to be busy with the elaborate cooking for dinner tonight.

A light tap on the door of the medicine cabinet was answered with a "come in".

When Thor looked inside, he was greeted by Audre and Moe facing each other at the table.

"Oh, it's Tor-chan!

"Welcome. Would you like some tea?　It's freshly brewed right now."

Thank you very much. Yes, what's up with that?

Holding a steaming cup of water, the child turned around to see a large cross mark painted on his forehead.

It seemed to have been written in black ink and stood out darkly.

"Is this it?　Let's see, what is mu now ......?"

"I'm reflecting."

"Yes, yes, I was on the verge of a major breakdown."

"What did you do ......, is that it?"

In the middle of his questioning, Thor notices something on the table.

A white skull with a beak at the mouth.

It is the head of a black wrecked eagle, a souvenir of the twins' wilderness.

"You brought it with you. That's not good."

"Yeah, there was a big commotion in the little class room. There was a lot of screaming and fainting.

I apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused."

Sitting beside Moe, Thor patted the child gently on the head.

If he had done it intentionally to scare her, he should have scolded her, but he probably did it simply to show his classmates how he felt.

Thor let out a small breath as he thought back to the sight of Mu, who had been just as excited as Sora when he had seen the skeleton this morning.

You can encounter these monsters in any number of places, but you'll never encounter them in your normal life.

At best, you might be attacked by a few that wandered into the area as you traveled along the roads.

Mu, who is now a budding adventurer, is too young to understand the difference.

But the problems caused by such a discrepancy are likely to arise in the future.

"Hey, Moe."

"What?　To-chan."

The child, sipping hot tea, looks up at Thor with purple eyes.

He does not seem to understand what he has done wrong even though he is told to be sorry.

"From now on, when you bring something here, ask To-chan or Yuril-san if it's okay.

"What about you, Sola-ne-chan?"

"Well, Sola can be a bit careless sometimes."

"Okay!　To-chan and Grandma Yu, right?"

Thor nodded to the child who answered in a good mood and asked about the incident while accepting a cup of herbal tea from Audre.

"So, were any of you injured?"

No, everyone was just surprised, nothing serious.

What about the girl who fainted?

"Oh, he's a weak boy from the start. He had a fever, so we just gave him a rest.

Perhaps some relief showed on his face, the owner of the medicine cabinet smiled a little and continued speaking.

"Don't worry, they don't hate me. She's a very popular girl.

"Is that so?"

"For the children on this side of the world, adventurers are their idols. As long as you have that tag around your neck, you'll never leave. Besides."

Taking a breath, the ash-eared woman stretches out her arm and touches Mu's hair in the same manner as Thor.

"He's such a lovely boy, and he's so good and honest. No wonder people like her so much.

"Moo is very popular. Do you like him too, To-chan?

Don't get carried away. I know you're sorry for what you did.

"Oh, right. I'm not sure!"

He may be trying to be mysterious, but the way his eyes are closed and his cheeks are lightly puffed out is certainly adorable.

Unintentionally, Thor poked the bulge with his finger.

Instantly, the child bursts out laughing, blowing air.

"Don't bother him again!"

"Ha-ha, sorry."

"Oh, you're getting excited."

In the middle of the lively conversation, a voice interrupted by someone both familiar and unexpected to Thor.

Garud, a guide in the wilderness, peeks out from a back door and calls out to Audre.

"Sir, I think he's awake. Will you check on him?

"Yeah, okay. I'll take care of it.

Odle gets up and hurries to the back room.

Garudo came to the table to replace him and sat down in the chair across from him.

He looks at Thor and the others quietly, squinting slightly.

As Thor looked at him, he realized why his fellow adventurer had unexpectedly appeared in an out-of-place medicine cabinet.

"Could it be that the girl resting in the back is ......?"

"Yeah, that's my daughter."

I'm sorry about that.

"No, it happens all the time. It doesn't make any difference what triggered it."

"I see. Don't you want me to follow you?

"...... haven't seen much of you recently. I don't know what to tell you."

Garudo glanced at Moe, who was reflecting on the situation, and his lips twisted slightly in envy.

Then, perhaps noticing the doubt in Thor's eyes, he gave an exaggerated shrug of his shoulders.

"You heard what I said, didn't you?"

"Yeah, I hear there are some bad rumors."

"Most of it is true. Celce went missing and a lot of money fell into his lap, and he broke up the party to look for him.

The middle-aged adventurer interrupts Thor's questioning with a few more words.

"I can't ask you to stay in the wilderness for my own reasons when you want to go on. I bought a wagon with the insurance money.

"You went that far?"

"Yeah,...... that boy really needs his mother."

He's been missing for three years. She's probably not alive.

But there was no insane gleam in Garudo's eyes as he said it clearly.

The determination in his words reminded Thor of his former self.

The days when he had poured everything he had into a skill that had been called useless.

Thor shook his head silently at the sight of his father, who had not yet given up.

Once a man has made up his mind, it is not something that can be easily stopped by the words of someone else.

"Well, are you sure you're not overreacting?"

"I'm trying to find the best people to help me find Cerce, but I've gotten a few warnings from the Bureau for going a little overboard. Well, it's nothing to worry about."

"Why don't you put in a request?"

"We don't have the money, and it's tough for the average guy."

"Well, ......"

"It's all right, Thor. The first day you showed me around, you told me I should find out what it is to be an adventurer early."

"Yeah, I might have said that."

"I understand it's a commitment. Preparedness to put your life on the line. So..."

"Pffuuhhhh... I'm screwed!"

Just as Thor is about to ask what this means, Moe suddenly starts to breathe heavily.

The two gazed at the child who had suddenly made a loud noise.

"Woo, it's so hard to be a semi-s*xual, isn't it?"

"No, holding your breath is not reflection."

"Hey, old man, is Lou's body fixed?"

Moe asks innocently, easily overhearing Thor's correction.

Garudo's face turned surprised and he lifted the edge of his lips as he answered.

"No, not yet. Well, I'm just a little more patient."

"I see. I guess I didn't get to see this."

"Is that why you brought it, that skeleton?"

"Yeah, Lou wants to see it. Yeah, Lou wants to see it. It's the one from my dad's place. He said he wanted to be with his dad.

Garudo's eyes widened at the mention of the word, and he gritted his teeth hard in silence.