Chapter 18

"I'm back."

"Welcome back!"

"Welcome home, Thor, Sora."

"Welcome back?"

"Oh, good evening. What cute little guests we have here."

Seeing the foul-smelling entity Thor was carrying, the landlord Yuril smiled without a frown.

She had the composure of someone who had lived for many decades.

The cats that followed them slipped into the house before being invited and started exploring, sniffing around.

"Sorry, they seem to have taken a liking to me. Can I keep them for a while?"

"Of course, please do. Shall I boil some water for you?"

"That would be great."

"Tokko, where's the food?"

"First, I'll wash you. Sora, help me out."

"Sure thing."

First, they took the homeless child to the kitchen sink.

Next, they stripped off the tattered cloth wrapped around the child's body, leaving them naked.

"…Are you coming with me?"

"Why are you taking my clothes off? Are you going to eat Muu?"

"We're going to clean you up, Muu."

Yuril brought a bucket of warm water, and they dissolved the animal fat soap used for laundry, soaking the rags.

Then, the three of them scrubbed the child relentlessly.

"Hey, Thor, can we use <Restoration> to remove this child's dirt?"

"I saw it just now, but no memories came up. It seems they haven't encountered any monsters before."

"Is that so? Then let's do our best!"

The girl's body was covered in a layer of dust and mud, making it difficult to clean.

They repeatedly discarded the blackened water and gently scrubbed again.

The child, named Muu, initially looked around curiously, but once they realized how nice it felt to be wiped with a warm cloth, they closed their eyes and stayed still.

With the child now calm, they washed the child's hair, which was mixed with dead leaves and sand.

It seemed the child, like the cats they lived with, didn't have any fleas.

Once the dirt was mostly gone, the three of them used bathing algae soap to wash the child.

The child, covered in bubbles, giggled softly without changing their expression much.

After thirty minutes of hard work, the child was unrecognizably clean.

The child was about as tall as Thor's waist, so they were probably between five and ten years old.

Despite living on the streets, the child wasn't particularly thin and had a well-built body.

This was probably due to Thor's efforts in feeding the child meat and bones over the past few months.

There were also old scratch marks all over the child's body.

The freshly washed hair, now restored to its color and softness, shone golden and curled in waves.

The child had a broad forehead, a slightly low nose, and a cute mouth.

Most striking were the large purple eyes.

Combined with the perky eyelashes, the child looked like a doll.

However, since the child's expression hadn't changed much, they could easily be mistaken for a doll when still.

"Such pretty violet eyes, Muu."

"Ah, that's a characteristic of the Purple-Eyed Clan."

"Purple-Eyed Clan?"

"Watch this."

As Thor brought the lamp closer, the center of the child's eyes shrank.

When the lamp was moved away, the eyes returned to normal.

"They can see well in the dark."

"Wow, that's amazing, Muu!"

Understanding the praise, the naked child puffed out their flat chest proudly.

Then, their stomach made a cute growling sound.

"Let's have dinner now. Here, Mumu, these are my old clothes. Would you like them?"

"It's not Mumu, it's Muu, Landlord."

"The Purple-Eyed Clan uses repeated sounds in their names. Since this one is Muu, Mumu is correct."

The Purple-Eyed Clan typically use repeated sounds in their names, with males using the same letter in their names and females using two repeated sounds.

"So, it would be something like Reremumu or Mumume."

"Wow, why is that?"

"They are blessed by the thunder god Gigor, so they are emulating it."

"Thor, what do you think?"

"Oh, they fit well. They look good."

The clothes Yuril brought were a linen tunic and cotton pants that only reached the thighs, but they fit the child perfectly.

Pleased by the compliment, the child nodded.

Thor, carrying the shoeless Muu, moved to the dining room with Sora.

The plates on the table were already steaming with delicious food.

Roasted sharp-beaked bird thighs, with sweet sautéed onions to counteract the greasiness.

Boiled cabbage soup and hard bread with raisins.

Yuril had specially prepared honey bread porridge for the child.

"Phew, I'm so hungry after all that work."

"Thank you, Landlord."

"Please, enjoy your meal."

"Can I eat? Can I eat?"

Thor nodded, and the child picked up the thigh with their hands and bit into it.

Yuril had already wrapped a white cloth around the child's neck, anticipating the mess.

The child bit into the meat forcefully and swallowed after a few chews.

With an unchanged expression, the child's voice rang out loudly.

"Delicious!"

"Good. Try to chew more slowly. No one is going to take it from you. Don't spill. Use the spoon properly."

"Wow, the thigh is the best, Thor. Let's go hunting again tomorrow!"

"Oh, right. I forgot, Landlord."

"Yes, what is it?"

"I hunted a giant caterpillar and brought back the meat. I left it in the kitchen."

"Oh, that sounds wonderful. Hehe."

"Delicious!!"

"Sora, don't eat so fast. You might choke. Here, have some water."

The noisy dinner table made Yuril's eyes narrow slightly.

Thor, who used to hardly speak, was now taking care of the girls as if they were a different person.

Sora smiled throughout the meal, never taking her eyes off Thor.

The Purple-Eyed girl listened to the conversation around her, her large purple eyes wide as she ate enthusiastically.

Feeling left out of the family-like circle, Yuril lowered her eyes.

If only she had met these children earlier.

Feeling the difference in the passage of time, the old woman quietly sipped her drink.

When she raised her head, Yuril was slightly startled to find Sora's gaze fixed on her.

To hide her surprise, the old woman smiled.

"Is something wrong, Sora?"

"Um, I just noticed, but your ears are really long. Are you...?"

"Yes, I'm from the Gray-Eared Clan."

"Really! You're from a different country. Um—"

Glancing at the gaze, Thor opened his mouth with a sigh.

"Landlord's hometown is in the north. The long ears are to hear sounds on the snow better."

"No, it's to hear the teachings of Strazin better."

"Is that so? I apologize."

"That's the official story. We get teased for being gray rabbits."

Strazin, the ice goddess, is the patron deity of the Gray-Eared Clan, overseeing learning and exploration.

"Do you not know much about other countries, Sora?"

"No, I don't know anything at all!"

"I'm sorry, I'm from a small village in the Central Kingdom."

"If you'd like, I can teach you a bit."

"Please, I'd love that!"

The former teacher's blood seemed to stir.

After putting her knife and fork back on the plate, Yuril moistened her mouth with apple wine and began to explain the world in simple terms.

Long ago, there was a large country in the center of this continent.

This country boasted advanced technology and a peaceful, prosperous life for its people.

But hundreds of years ago, a massive hole suddenly opened in the ground, and the country collapsed overnight.

From the "Gloomy Great Hole," various monsters emerged, plunging the people into endless chaos.

Fleeing citizens gathered in the borderlands, far from the hole.

Eventually, people who followed the teachings of the six great gods, who possessed the power of the spirits, began to appear.

The Gray-Eared Clan, who worshiped the ice goddess Strazin, developed long, gray ears.

The Purple-Eyed Clan, followers of the thunder god Gigor, gained purple animal eyes.

The Brown-Horned Clan, who revered the earth god Gaidaros, grew brown horns on their foreheads.

The Green-Feathered Clan, who honored the wind god Roh, had green feathers mixed in their hair.

The Blue-Scaled Clan, who believed in the water goddess Aluria, had blue scales on their necks.

The Red-Tailed Clan, who followed the teachings of the fire god Raphalit, had red hair and short tails.

These six clans formed new countries around the Central Kingdom.

The icy north of the Gray-Eared Clan, Straz.

The west of the Purple-Eyed Clan, Hakuri.

The southwestern mountainous country of the Brown-Horned Clan, Gran.

The southern grasslands of the Green-Feathered Clan, Rezenia.

The southeastern island federation of the Blue-Scaled Clan, Triara.

The eastern desert of the Red-Tailed Clan, Zuma.

The current Central Kingdom government is jointly managed by these six great countries.

Many people are sent from each country to work together to restore the lost glory.

"Hmm, so that's why there are people with horns and scales."

"Well, they don't usually come to the countryside."

People from the Central Kingdom, with black hair and black eyes, often live self-sufficiently in mountain villages.

Visitors from outside are usually tax collectors or local merchants.

Just as the conversation was about to turn to the characteristics of each country, the child stopped moving, face buried in the plate.

They had been eating the porridge at a frightening speed but seemed to have run out of energy.

Muu, now sleeping soundly, had their hair gently brushed away from their face by Thor.

Yuril smiled and asked, with a playful tone.

"What do you plan to do now, Father?"

Teasing Thor for being called "Tokko" by the child, the landlord's rare light-hearted comment made Thor scratch his chin and answer seriously.

"Well, I thought I'd just feed them and send them away. But—"

"But?"

"I might take care of them for a while."

In Thor's mind, the image of the person who had taught him how to hold a sword as a boy appeared.

The teaching was strict and unforgiving, but the person was undoubtedly a precious mentor.

And that person also had the same purple eyes as this child.

Seemingly satisfied with the answer, Yuril silently offered her cup.

That night, the light in the dining room stayed on late into the night.