414 - - Episode 23 Love at First Sight

At the request of peddler Jorg, Erio visits the capital of the racial kingdom, where the "Inauguration Ceremony of the Queen of the Racial Kingdom" is held, as an escort.

He was introduced to an inn that looks like a shabby place from the outside, but the inside is as clean as possible, and since the inn is inexpensive due to its poor appearance, he plans to stay in town until the "Inauguration Ceremony of the Queen of the Kingdom of Races"-a festival is over.

(They left already? That was quick. ......)

Elio was sharing a room with Yolm and the young men he brought with him from the village as guards, but when he woke up, both were gone.

Jorg seems to be at work and the youths have already gotten up and gone to town.

Elio was also invited by the young people to look around the festival, but he declined.

Since they had already walked around the town once, the young people probably already knew the way to the inn where they were staying. If they get lost, they can call out to a guard soldier on foot and ask him.

He was also aware that the young people would be able to enjoy themselves more comfortably if they could look around together with their peers rather than having their boss, Elio, with them.

......In fact, this is only a pretext.

(If I went shopping with them, I might not be able to resist buying a few things. If that's the case, it would be better for us to work separately.)

Elio did not want to waste this escort fee by saying, 'It's a festival.

This is because he wants to send money to his younger sister Mya, who attends the Magic Academy of the Duchy of Six.

The school has been able to cover her tuition fees, but she has to earn her living expenses on her own.

As an older brother, he is saving money to send to Miya so that she can concentrate on her studies and to help with living expenses.

Therefore, it would have been better for Erio to separate from the young people who came out of the village.

............"

The inn where Elio sleeps is located on a back street off the main road.

Despite this, I could faintly hear the joyful noise outside even though I was in my room.

(As planned, I will at least take a look around the festival as a souvenir for Mya.)

I don't intend to waste my money, but I am here at the festival.

Even if we don't spend any money, it will be fun just to look around.

Elio got dressed and washed his face at the well in the back.

When he turned up at the inn's dining room, there were no customers at all, probably because of the festival.

He ordered the cheapest meal and had it for breakfast.

During his stay in the capital, Jörg would pay for his lodging, food, and drink.

He has already received money for the cheapest meal in advance for the duration of his stay.

If they wanted to eat or drink more than that, they would have to pay for it themselves.

Erio, of course, had no intention of asking for more, and once he finished his meal, he went back to his room and prepared to go out.

Once he finished his preparations, he went outside.

--And then, Elio meets his destiny.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

(It's very crowded. ...... crowded but ......)

Elio regrets his decision early on to leave the inn and look around the festival.

Thanks to the bustling crowd, there are many stalls, and because of this, there are many temptations.

(The baked goods at that store look delicious. The grilled meat rolls and skewers over there look good, too. ......)

For Elio's young body, the sweet pastry looks delicious, but the smell of roasted meat violently irritates his stomach.

His body craves meat.

But he can't spend money to make his sister's life a little easier, and desire and reason battle it out inside him.

(Shall we return to the inn before temptation takes over?)

I thought, 'Shall I go back to the inn,' as I was about to give in to my desire to eat meat, but then I noticed a commotion that partially caught my interest.

The knife-throwers were getting unusually excited.

Despite the distance from Elio's position, the heat was so great that it could be felt this far away.

(Why are they so excited?　(I guess I'll just look over there, check it out, and then head back to the inn.)

To make a break, Elio sets a rule in his heart and turns his feet.

Those who noticed the excitement of the knife-throwers, like Elio, were intrigued and started to turn their feet.

He, too, follows the trend and approaches.

Kekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekekeke!　Hey there, big guy, can I have a word?"

What?

A girl wearing a hat calls out to intercept Elio's advance.

She is a young girl, only about the height of Elio's chest, including the hat, but she has large eyes and black hair. She has large eyes and black hair, and a row of small, fang-like teeth peeking out from her large mouth like a predator.

Her face is well-defined and her appearance can be described as "beautiful young girl," but in Erio's view, her appearance is more mysterious than cute.

But there is something behind her that blows away such suspicions.

(Meh, the goddess is here on earth. ......)

Elio's eyes widen to their limits and he is aware of his own face heating up.

A girl with a hood over her head accompanies the girl behind her. In her hand, she was holding a long cloth-wrapped object.

She was wearing a hood, but her face peeked out so that we could see her.

She had the same short-cut black hair as her sister, large eyes, and rose-colored lips.

Her teeth, which peek out faintly, shine like jewels.

Her skin is smooth and blood-colored, with no blemishes, moles, or dirt.

She has a quiet face, and seems to enjoy reading and embroidery.

Erio was involuntarily reminded of a story his mother told him about a goddess when he was a child.

It is a fairy tale about a goddess who created the world and, on a whim, transformed a part of herself into a race and descended to the earth in order to tour the earth.

The goddess, who descends after being transformed into her race, enjoys looking around the earth, but her beauty is so beautiful that every man falls in love with her at first sight and asks for her hand in marriage.

It is not only a race.

Elves, dwarves, beasts, demons, dragons, and all other races fall in love with the beauty of the goddess and court her.

The goddesses are troubled and demand unreasonable demands from the men who come to ask for their hand in marriage.

Naturally, none of them succeeds, and in the end, the goddess returns to heaven.

The appearance of the goddess changes depending on the species.

Depending on the story, the goddess would sometimes be married to a man who had faithfully accomplished the impossible task, as promised, and they would end up "living on earth in harmony.

The beauty of the hooded girl reminded Erio of the fairy tale, and he thought, "A goddess has come down to earth.

To put it simply, Erio fell in love at first sight with the girl in front of him.

I'm in love with the girl in front of me.　We came here to see the festival, but we're a bit tired from all the commotion. I'm looking for a place where I can rest with my sister. Hey, girl."

KOKUROKURI."

The head of the girl who hides her face, called my sister, shakes.

Under the hood, even the movement of her bangs, which swayed faintly, was cute as Elio.

He can only see the hooded girl in front of him - Suzu.

'Kekekekekekekekekeke!　...... Onii-chan?"

......!"　Ya, a place to rest!　Oh, I was just about to move to a place where I could rest because I'm tired of the crowds too!　I know a quiet little hole-in-the-wall place that might work!"

'Kekekekekekekekeke!　Of course, you're welcome to join us, right, girl?"

"Koku koku kuru."

The girl who seems to be the younger sister asks, and the older sister, the hooded girl, nods silently.

Even the taciturn girl's attitude looks cute in Elio's eyes now.

He walks out looking awkward, unable to recognize his own two limbs moving at the same time from the tension.

He is in a rather confusing place, so follow me.

'Kekekekekekeke!　Roger that. Roger that."

Following telepathic instructions from the lights, Mera and Tin succeed in keeping Elio away from the lights and Yume and the others.

Mera sees through Erio's inner thoughts to some extent, as his gaze is fixed on Suzu and his face is bright red.

Tin, on the other hand, is fed up with the crowds, but is satisfied with how well he is handling Light's instructions so far.

Naturally, he is not aware of or interested in Erio's feelings at all.

(Kekekekekeke!　(Things are getting a little interesting here.)

Tin, with Erio's one-sided concern at her side, Mela laughed heartily in her chest.

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