CH 4

“Dale, aren’t you feeling somewhat guilty for this?”

Dale turned towards the fairly young voice just in time to see a black hair girl stepping into “The Dancing Ocelot” from the rear entrance.

It was Kenneth’s wife Rita.

“The Dancing Ocelot” was a lodging managed by this young couple.

Rita, seeing how Dale was scrubbing down that little girl so enthusiastically was startled.

“Your illegitimate child?”

“What gave you that idea? When would I have had this kid?”

Dale replied like he was shocked.

“Picked her up in the forest. Her parent’s corpse was also there.”

He answered straight-forwardly. While Rita was listening to that she observed the girl carefully, noticing her pitiful appearance and race. Falling down next to him, her eyes stopped at a piece of tattered cloth.

“What that kid wore, it couldn’t have been… that? There’s no way she’ll be wearing this again right?”

“Ah… I forgot”

“Just wait here a bit”

Rita rushed back out of the rear entrance she just came from.

Dale only thought about cleaning the filth off, so he completely forgot about her change of clothes etc.

「 ” Dale、*****？ ” 」

“Hmm? Just now, question,…who was that someone just now? Rita, the hostess of this place”

“…? Rita?”

Lifting Latina up from the bathtub, covering her up with the soft cloth that Rita handed over. Latina pointed at Rita as she was getting wiped down.

“Dale, Rita?”

“Uh huh. That’s right.”

“Rita, Latina.”

Latina pointed to herself, lowered her head and did a quick bow.

“You can already do greetings, aren’t you amazing~”

Rita smiled happily, crouching down to meet eyes with Latina. This hostess particularly likes children. Even when she was with Kenneth, even her wishes to be blessed with children quickly, Dale knew about it.

“Rita. Latina, doesn’t understand anything but Demon Language.”

“Is that so? Then how are you communicating with her?”

“It’s the same as spell words, so I manage somehow one word at a time.”

“Hmm… then what do you want to do? This kid?”

“For now, first I’ll go investigate her at “Akudaru’s message board” in the shop.”

During the time Latina spent changing, Dale brought his things from the rear entrance into the shop.

There still wasn’t a change of shoes so, Latina, who had finished changing, was picked up into Dale’s arms once again. Following Rita, they entered the rear entrance, going past the kitchen, coming out into the front of the store.

Leaving through the counter, next to Kenneth who was manning the store all by himself acting as the salesperson.

There was a reasonable amount of people coming down to eat at the store, it was fairly busy.

This shop, on top of its disposition, will become busy before noon and when the sun has completely fallen. Right now it seems to just be Kenneth himself working the floor.

Rita sat opposite Dale at a corner of the counter.

“Now, what would you like to know?”

“Her name is Latina. Demon race. Can you lead an investigation with these conditions? Or, make an arrangement of some sort?”

“True. That’s essential”

Rita nods and slides her hand across the plank called “Akudaru’s message board” that’s been set up in the counter.

“Rauha, Seggeru, Yona-dee”

Reacting to Rita’s words, the board let out a pale green light.

When Rita’s gaze moves, some place that’s not here could be seen.

“Uh huh… there’s no information coming. I might as well try searching again, this time using her exterior features but…”

“Please”

What Rita is manipulating, “Akudaru’s message board”, is definitely the store’s biggest advantage.

Akudaru is the god who governs all information and protects travellers.

Akudaru’s temples, have become places to gather and manage every and all information. The priests and pastors that belong to this god, with that power of divine protection, could perform powerful information transfer magic at a level which could not be compared to normal. That is, the biggest reason.

Due to this, in the regions with a temple of Akudaru, there is no disparity in the land, as the information is being shared equally.

A part of that information, is also released to the town.

However to become that point of contact, like this shop, you must hoist the flag with the crest of Akudaru– A pegasus on green land–

–One theory is that, the people in the temples who wish to solely focus on gathering information, found the demands of the outsiders who wanted information to be troublesome, so it’s been said that they completely left commissioning to outsiders. Giving that story a bit of credibility, the Shinto priests of Akudaru, all seems to be living peculiarly–

The information that’s released to the town is usually, world news, new discoveries, inventions and such. As well as crime-related reports.

Criminals and etc who have performed big crimes are searched for throughout the world.

Having another country’s soldiers and officials cross borders and chase after criminals is a difficult matter. For that reason, using compensation money, they are able to search via the temple. Amongst adventurers, there are many who specialise in chasing after such a reward.

Requests such as the subjugation of a large scale monster can also be collected at the temples.

“Akudaru’s Message Board” is a terminal for extracting information from the temples. To a certain shop, that is a place where adventurers who seek information come and gather. For the purpose of those adventurers, the townsfolk also gather at this place carrying requests and such.

“The Dancing Ocelot” is a bar and inn, but at the same time it is also an agency for adventurers looking for work.

“There’s no one relevant, just like i thought”

“Then… there’s no way that Latina is a felon. …If no search is being done by the parents either, then that corpse, there’s no doubt that must’ve been her father.”

Dale and Rita were both talking with a serious face about their own things, not knowing if they understand or not.

Latina looks around restlessly on Dale’s lap, observing the surroundings and looking up at Dale.

In this shop, having a figure of a child was so out of place that the stern looking men having their meals, would occasionally glance this way. When Latina met those gazes, she would tilt her head with a nod, and would keep on trying to return the gaze by staring at them.

After doing that for a short while, a strange noise resounded from Latina.

Specifically, it was the bug from her stomach which cried out.

“…Latina?”

“Ahh- Lured by the smell it seems.”

Both of them noticed it at once, Latina had a slightly awkward expression.

Rita laughed with a ‘Karakara’, then calling over Kenneth.

“Kenneth, make a meal for this kid. I wonder if it would be better if it’s something easy to digest?”

“While you’re at it make me something too.”

Saying that Dale moved from the counter to a table seat. Since the table was too high for Latina, she could only sit down after something, which was the appropriate size, was carried onto the top of the chair like a pedestal. Dale also brought the chair closer, sitting beside her.

“So, Dale what are you going to do with this kid?”

“I’ll look after her. This is fate too. She can’t communicate, even if i handed another race’s kid over to one of the orphanages in this district who are eternally in debt, in wouldn’t be any good right?”

The declaration that came out of my mouth, is also something to prepare myself.

Dale, as well as the kid, the responsibility to raise them was not something that was easy to think about.

“I will become this kid’s parent.”

(Author’s note: There’s no shape for something like the adventurers guild.

Every “Temple” is also a religious institution, a position of public institution or so.

Even if you’re not a devout follower to the temple you can still use recovery magic, it’s not “Priest” = Healer.

That kinda setting, I wanted to include in the story as well but, the writing outside of the main story would increase…)