Chapter 18: Cat and Dog

Chapter 18: Cat and Dog

「You first read this part, then the next is this panel. Ahh, before that, it has sound effects, right. That is overlapping but it’s this panel’s sound effect」

「U?n」

Nadia was staring at the Grimoire while groaning like *UnUn*.

“Teach me how to read it”, Nadia said, so I was teaching her how to read a manga.

「This one is?」

「This sound effect is on two panels」

「He?, is that so」

Nadia looked at it intently.

「Un!」

After a while, she closed the manga.

「Did you read it?」

「I didn’t read it」

I was told frankly.

「Couldn’t you read it? Where is the part you don’t get? Tell me」

「I don’t know where’s the part I don’t know」

「……It’s impossible, with that」

There’s no way of teaching. I can teach the part where she would say she couldn’t understand, but if she doesn’t even know that, there’s no way of teaching it.

By the way, the manga itself was a very normal manga.

It was a love-comedy of a man and a woman, who had the keyword “The Promise when we were still a child”.

「I don’t know, but Lucio-kun could read it so it’s fine. Ne?ne?, this, what magic is it?」

「It’s the magic called Promise. If I use it, I can make the promise be protected forcefully. I can’t force something that isn’t promised, but it’s a magic that will make promises unbreakable」

「He?」

「For example, the time when I gave Nadia that ring」

I pointed at Nadia’s ring finger, there was the wedding ring I gave her.

「If I casted this magic on that, I can make it that you protect the promise of being together until we die. By the way, I can use it even after promising. We promised during the wedding, I can still force you to protect that promise」

「Fu?n, it doesn’t mean anything at all」

「Doesn’t mean anything?」

「Un, because I’ll be together with Lucio-kun forever」

Nadia said that naturally, so I was taken aback.

Soon after, I became happy.

I was happy that she said we’ll be together forever without using magic.

I was so happy, I want to do something for her, when I was thinking of that.

「Lucio-sama! Please help me!」

Sylvia ran from outside the house.

With a pleading face, her eyes were welled with tears.

☆

I came with Sylvia to the town’s plaza.

There was a traveling circus there.

We paid money, and entered the tent.

Inside the tent was quite bustling, and filled with customers.

After waiting for a while there, the circus’ person, a man took a girl with him.

The man was around the middle age of thirties, was very fat, and was making a very friendly smile.

The girl was very cute, a girl with dog ears. She was wearing a collar.

I don’t know if it’s because she have dog ears, she looked very obedient that you can associate her with the loyal dog Hachiko.

……Dog ears huh. I was thinking that I might encounter that in the near future after reincarnating in another world, but I didn’t think I’d meet it here.

「Ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for coming today」

The man said with a theatrical tone.

「What’s here is the rare in the world, a girl with dog ears」

「Dog ears aren’t that rare at allーー」

One of the customers heckles.

Is it not that rare.

「That is correct, if it was a normal dog ears girl it isーーBut!!」

The man emphasized, and took the bucket that was placed on his side.

「What’s inside this is normal water, as you can see, its normal water that is drinkable」

He drank a sip, and continued.

「This waterーーwhen I splash it!」

He splashed the water in the bucket to the girl with dog ears.

The crowd clamors.

The girl who had dog ears until now, became cat ears.

Her face was the same, but from a very obedient kawaii-type, she changed to a strong-willed beauty-type.

It’s like a stranger with the same face, it was that much of a change in her atmosphere.

「Just like this, she changes into cat ears」

「Oooooohh!」

「Furthermore, if I splash her one more time! Looook, dog ears again」

The man splashed water a few times to the girl, and shows that change.

It seems that was really rare, so the audience were cheering, and was very rejoiced.

「Lucio-sama……」

Sylvia who took me here, was grabbing my clothes, and looks up to me with painful eyes.

☆

After the show had ended, I went to the back of the tent with Sylvia.

I heard voices of argument.

「How long are you letting me work!!」

I heard a girl’s shout. It was with a very fierce manner.

I stopped my feet together with Sylvia, and looked at that.

There was the man and the girl earlier.

The girl was with cat ears, and was glaring at the man with her slanted eyes.

The man was looking at the girl with cold eyes. It was a 180 degrees change compared to the customers, it was eyes that looked down on people.

「What are you talking about」

「Don’t pretend you don’t know! This is different from what we talked about!」

「Talk? What talk?」

「Don’t pretend you don’t know, you said that if I follow you and act with a performance for one year, you will make the house’s debt off and release me, that was the deal right? It’s already a year!」

「U?n? I wonder if that’s right」

「Don’t pretend you don’t know! In the first placeーー」

The girl tried to say something further, but the man, with a bored face, splashed water to the girl.

The cat ears became dog ears.

Her atmosphere had a sudden change. She was lashing against him until that, but became obedient instantly.

「Uu……you’re so cruel」

「Ahnn?」

「Uu!」

It seems that she was weak-minded while she’s dog ears, and was intimidated by the man’s worthless threat.

「Fun. Clean up and tomorrow’s preparation, do it properly」

「……U-Uhmm」

「What」

「T-The promise……」

「You still say that!」

The man threw the bucket that became empty. And slammed it on the ground near to the girl.

The dog ears girl made her body small and trembles.

I looked at Sylvia, she had a very sad, and pleading eyes while looking at me.

I figured out the situation.

I went towards the man.

「Ne?ne?, Oji-chan」

I talked to him in child-mode.

「Un? What’s the matter boy, this is the backstage, you shouldn’t come in without permission you know」

Not knowing that I was looking up until now, the man wore a merchant’s smile and said to me.

His appearance of talking to me in kneeling position, made him look like a good person.

「That Onee-chan, you should release her」

「What are you sayingーー」

「That Onee-chan worked a lot right? Then it’s already okay right」

When I said that, the man’s face colors change.

「Listen up kid. This is conversation between adults, it’s a business talk. A kid like you shouldn’t butt in」

It was still with a kind tone, but he was clearly treated me as a kid, saying it as if he looked down at me.

……Business you say.

「Then, I’ll pay money, so I’ll take care of Onee-chan」

「You kid?」

「Un, how much?」

「Let me think……about 10 million Cet」

「Eeeeehhh, the debt is only 1 million Cet??」

「Shut up, interest comes with borrowed money. Leaving out the money you returned to the interest, it’s 10 million Cet right now」

「No way?……I can’t return that even if I work?……」

「……How disgusting」

I returned to my normal way of talking.

The man said “Ahn?”, and glared at me.

「You’re just like a loan shark」

「Say what you want, that’s parents borrowed, so that’s parents are bad ones. If you borrow money you return it, kid, this is the adult’s world」

「Is it okay if you don’t protect your promise」

「Promise? That’s something made to be broken」

「Nope, promises are made to be protected」

「What are you sayーー」

「Promise」

I casted magic to the man.

It’s a magic that forces someone to protect their promise.

If he really promisedーー.

「Tch, it can’t be helped」

The man said that, and went towards the dog ears girl.

Removes the collar from her.

「Done, go wherever you want」

「I-Is it okay??」

「It was a promise, Khe!」

The man discarded those words, and disappears inside the tent.

The magic was a success, it properly caused its effect.

「Thank you very much, Lucio-sama」

「It’s not that much」

「Even so, thank you very much」

I was thanked by Sylvia.

「Uhm?……」

I was called with a timid voice.

The dog ears girl approached, and cautiously talked to us.

「Thank you for saving me……uhmm」

「Let’s change clothes first」

「Eh?」

She might catch a cold drenched.

「Sylvia. Can you go back ahead and heat the bath」

「ーー! Un!」

Sylvia, with great joy, ran towards the direction of the house.

「For the meantime, let’s go」

I reached out my hand to the dog ears girl.

She hesitated a little, and took my hand.

I don’t know if it’s because she’s a dog, I was somehow trusted very much, and stares at me with feverish eyes.

For the meantime, I decided to take her to our house.