CH 9

I saw her for a moment …… Tattered clothes and long hair. That must definitely be the witch my mom was talking about. I decided to tell my family about it at dinner that night. It’s not good to hide things from them.

“…… Maybe so, that’s what it looked like when I saw it. I wonder if that means they’ve started to come out to the neighborhoods instead of deep in the mountains ……? Training is fine, but stay away from the mountains.”

“Okay.”

So it seems that “witch” is the right word after all. My brother and I nodded to each other, thinking that it would be best to stay away from the mountain at all costs.

I’m really curious, but I can see my parents’ grief if I don’t come back …… or worse, die, so I decided to stay away from the mountains. I can’t worry about them, can I? Maybe I’ll think about it when I’m older, though.

One week later.

Today, while I was outside playing tag with my brother, I saw a figure on the other side of the road leading to the house. It looked like a child in height, and as it got closer and closer, I saw a familiar face.

“Huh? You’re Nord, right?”

“Oh, it’s you, Lars-kun. I finally found you.”

Nord, still wearing his blind hair and dirty green clothes, waved his hand and called out to me in a relaxed tone.

“Who?”

“Ohh, he’s the kid from the cathedral when I got my skills, his name is Nord.”

Then my brother popped his hand and then held it out with a smile.

“You’re the kid friend that Lars said he wanted to meet! I’m Delaide, Lars’ brother, nice to meet you.”

“A, ahaha …… M, my hands are so dirty, so ……”

“Don’t worry about it, we’ve got mud on our hands too! Long time no see!”

When I forcefully shook his hand, he fidgeted and waved his hand in the air. Thinking it was funny, I led Nord to the log chair we use for training breaks and continued our conversation.

“Anyway, It’s amazing you know this place? I’ve been wanting to go into town too, but my dad and the others kept stopping me.”

“Yeah. I was so happy that you asked me to play with you again, so I looked for Lars-kun, but I couldn’t find you at all. So the other day I happened to see Lars-kun’s father selling vegetables and I followed him.”

“I see, you’ve been looking for me for a long time! Thank you for coming to see me.”

“Oh, yeah …… hehehe ……”

I couldn’t see his expression, but he seemed happy because he was shuffling his feet and his mouth was smiling. This time, brother talks to Nord.

“What kind of skill do you have, Nord? Mine is called “Charisma”.”

“My skill is “Animal Lover”. I’ve only recently learned how to use it!”

“Well, what’s it like?”

When I asked him, he snorted and brought his face closer to mine. I could see the brown eyes through his hair, and he gestured to me.

“You know what! When I pet an animal, its fur gets fuller and shinier! When I clap my hands and call out to them, and when I make eye contact with them, they come to me, even if they are not my pets! I’m already friends with the stray cats in town.”

“What else?”

“Hmm, that’s about it for now. Hmmm, that’s about it for now. Oh, but if I feed them, they might be more energetic than usual? But, hehehe …… my father was angry with me for getting such a stupid skill …… The only job I have is to control the dogs on the farm.”

Then, my brother and I were troubled when we saw Nord looking down and depressed …… But I think Nord’s skills might be quite useful. But that’s assuming there are enough people with pets in this world.

If I stay with Nord, I might be able to come up with other useful ways, and he won’t grow up yet.

So, what can I do now is —

“Okay, let’s not talk about the dark stuff! Now that Nord has come to play, let’s play.”

“Oh, um, Lars-kun …… I, I know I’m a klutz and I’m dumb, but will you be my friend ……?”

Nord listens while holding his fingers together nervously. Friends …… Friends, huh …… Now that I think about it, I remember that there was no one I could call that in my previous life.

(If you have time to plan — why don’t you study so that you can do it? *** were the best again, but you –)

My childhood was filled with studying. When you grow up,

(We don’t have enough money, can you get a part-time job –)

When I was in college, I had no time to make friends because I had to work and study seven times a week, which is not normal for a family living at home. When I started working at a company, I would go to drinking parties, but I didn’t have anyone I could call a friend.

I did what I did for my family …… with the sole intention of making them happy, but that was just sacrificing myself for them, I think calmly now.

And once again, I found my heart burning when I saw Nord in front of me, a child of my age asking me to “be his friend”.

“…… Of course! Let’s get along, Nord!”

“Tha, thank you!”

“Me too!”

I took Nord’s hand and shook it again, and my brother shouted enviously as he put it in our hands. Nord’s mouth loosens.

“Yeah! Thank you too, big brother!”

He replies. Then my brother looks at me, tilts his head, and says.

“What?　Lars, are you crying?”

“N, no, I just got dust in my eyes! Now, what should we play!!”

This is how I made my first friend that I couldn’t make in my previous life. It was fun to play with just the two of us, but it was even more fun with the three of us. It was a day that made me feel that way.

At dusk, I saw Nord off down the hill, looking back again and again, and told Mom and Dad about the day.

“The rumor in town is that the boy’s father is a real scoundrel. I’ve heard that he’s been begging the cooks for leftovers to keep him going.”

“…… That’s terrible …… I wonder did he have a child?”

The mother who loves her son said sadly, even though it was a stranger. As I thought that my mother is really nice, Nina opens her mouth.

“It’s probably best not to get too involved. If people find out that such a child is here, they’ll–“

“Nina!'”

Dad shouted in an unusual way, and my brother and I froze in fear. I’ve never seen a scary expression on …… Dad’s face like this before. Nina’s eyes rolled up in her head and she froze, but she quickly put her hand over her mouth and lowered her head.

“Huh!? Oh, I, I apologize!”

“…… No, I’m sorry for yelling at you too. A, haha! Come on, let’s eat quickly, Mom’s cooking is getting cold.”

We could only nod our heads as Dad hurried to fix it. We realized that he was hiding something and didn’t want the kids to hear it.

Despite this exchange, everything was fine except for the fact that there was something going on with my parents, so we were having a good time.

“I’ll train to be an adventurer too!”

To earn money, Nord also started to accompany us in our training, and the three of us worked hard together. He didn’t come every day, maybe once every two days, but I looked forward to his visits because I and my brother had always been together.

— But

“Huh? I wonder what’s going on …… There are so many people heading up the mountain ……”

“Oh, and there’s my dad!”

I saw dozens of men who seemed to be from the town heading towards the mountain, not towards our house. My brother shouted that he saw my father among them, and sure enough, I saw him.

“Dad!”

“Oh, it’s you guys.”

“I thought you were going to sell vegetables.”

“…… Well …….”

When Dad stammered, an uncle beside him answered for him.

“Nord went into the mountains and hasn’t come back since.”

” “What!?” “

My brother and I looked at each other in surprise.

————————————————–

In a little while, he’ll learn magic and the academy chapter will begin!

Before that, there will be an event that will make Lars-kun resentful!

Thank you for reading!

[Afterword Theater]

“You’re doing it step by step.”

I’m always told I don’t explain things well enough, so sometimes I do!

“I wonder how long this will go on …… Fufufu ……”

Can you please stop saying disturbing things!?