Chapter 22

"……uh……"

He groaned and slowly opened his eyes. It seemed he had regained consciousness.

"Ah, you're awake?"

"………"

When I turned around, he was looking up at the ceiling with a puzzled expression, then shifted his gaze towards me. This was the home of Mauer and Meala. Mauer's usual bed had been moved, and a table was added to lay him down. He was an unknown man who had fainted in the forest. However, we couldn't just leave him there after Meala helped us. We had carried him here with the three of us. He was quite tall and well-built, so it was quite a task, but we managed to lay him down on the bed and let him rest. By the way, Mauer and Meala are outside now. The house is quite small.

"Where am I…?"

He sat up and looked around. He must have realized how he ended up here.

"…Thank you for taking care of me."

Before I could respond, he put his feet on the floor.

"No, no, you need to rest more."

I immediately went to him. As expected, he wobbled and almost fell. I supported him and helped him sit back down on the bed.

"You're still unsteady. Have you been eating properly?"

"…I haven't eaten anything for ten days."

That's terrible!

No wonder you're unsteady.

"What happened to you? Why were you lying in such a place?"

"………"

He remained silent in response to my question. Well, we can talk about that later.

"Let's get you something to eat first."

"…What?"

When you're hungry, your mind gets dull too. So, I had prepared some easy-to-digest food in advance. I placed a wooden tray with soup and bread in front of him.

"Here you go. You can dip the bread in the soup to make it easier to eat."

"……Thank you."

He murmured and started eating. After finishing, he folded his hands and put the dishes aside.

"You're an adventurer, right?"

While clearing the dishes, I asked casually.

"That emblem."

I pointed to the emblem on his chest. The metal badge of the guild he had, which had fallen out earlier, was in his pocket.

"…Yes, I belonged to one of the adventurer guilds in the capital."

As he said this, he firmly planted both feet on the ground.

"I'm Gurai. Thank you for helping me."

Gurai, who introduced himself, stood up. He could stand now. What a remarkable recovery.

"Is there anything I can help with?"

"Eh?"

Gurai suddenly said this.

"I want to repay you before I leave."

He seems to be a principled person. Maybe he's a good guy. I only had a negative impression of adventurers from the one I met at the market before.

"Hmm, let's see…."

I hummed. There wasn't much to do in terms of cooking and cleaning… but then I had an idea.

※ ※ ※ ※ ※

"Hee, I'm so tired."

"What are you tired about? You haven't even finished plowing the field. There's still a lot to do, you guys."

"I know, but we can't keep doing this all day…"

It was past noon, around three in the afternoon. The Beowulfs, who had been enthusiastically plowing the field, were showing signs of fatigue. They were sitting down, drinking water brought by Orchidea and Fressa.

"Everyone, you've been working hard since morning."

I arrived with Gurai.

"Hey, Mako!"

"Wow, farming is tough… I thought it would be over quickly."

"Idiot! Growing crops isn't a simple task! Don't underestimate it!"

"Mako, tell him too. Uga has been acting all high and mighty since morning."

"Ahahaha… Anyway, everyone."

I said to the cheerful Beowulfs.

"Since you've been working like this all day, and you haven't had time for other household chores, let me know if there's anything I can help with."

"Hey! So Mako is going to help?"

"Mako! Clean my house!"

"Wash my clothes!"

"I want to eat!"

"Foot rub!"

"Okay, okay, I'll ignore the last one. Let's start with the laundry, then."

As expected, the most common requests were for household chores. These guys had started the field work with the momentum from the party they had the night before, so they had neglected their homes. I thought they could use some help. …When I delivered diapers to the elderly as part of my job at the home center, I would sometimes help with small household tasks if I had time. That experience made me want to help out a bit.

"Miss Mako, we will help too."

"Ah, that's fine, Orchidea and Fressa. You two keep cheering everyone on."

So, I turned to Gurai, who was standing behind me.

"Anyway, Gurai. Can you help out too?"

There were some "Eh?" and "Who?" voices from the Beowulfs. I thought I could get a bit of help from Gurai while fulfilling his desire to repay us. I didn't plan to make him do heavy work since he had just recovered. I just wanted his support.

"Sure, I understand."

Gurai said this with a calm face, as if he understood everything. …I was about to see something amazing.

※ ※ ※ ※ ※

"Wow…"

I couldn't help but sigh at the scene before me. In front of me, the clothes of all the Beowulfs in the village were hanging on the clotheslines, fluttering in the wind like waves of grain. In just a few minutes, dozens of piles of laundry had been done. The clothes of the large, adult Beowulfs…

"Is this it?"

"Amazing!"

I exclaimed, and Gurai turned to me, surprised.

"…I just did the laundry."

"No, no, no, no! The amount! You can't usually finish this much so quickly!"

Fetching water from the well, using the washboard to remove dirt, setting up the clotheslines, and hanging the clothes—this is a lot of work. He was incredibly efficient. Moreover, the clothes were clean and hung without wrinkles, just as I had instructed. It was a rough yet meticulous and precise job… Hmm, I'd love to have him as a staff member at my store. …But that's not relevant now.

"Are you good at housework?"

The Beowulfs passing by, as well as Mauer and Meala, were also amazed by the scene. I asked Gurai, even though I had just said it myself, but it was a rather awkward question.

"No, I'm not particularly good at housework, but… the experience from my time in the guild came in handy."

He scratched his hair, a habit of his.

"Most adventurer guilds are gatherings of rough people, but the guild I belonged to was a bit special. It took in and cared for people without a place to stay, and especially orphans."

"Hmm."

I didn't know what an adventurer guild was like, but it seemed to be a company-like organization and a community. At least, his guild seemed to have a shelter-like atmosphere.

"I was picked up by the guild master when I was a kid. The purpose was to take in and raise orphans to become adventurers, but since I was saved and given a normal life, I felt I had to repay the favor. I had to do various tasks besides my work as an adventurer. So, I became good at doing whatever I was told."

I see. He must have high personal skills. He's the type who can do any job well. Still, it's impressive.

"Everyone, the laundry is done!"

"Already!?"

"No way! Is that all of our clothes!?"

When I reported back, everyone was amazed. Of course, they were.

※ ※ ※ ※ ※

In the evening, we were having dinner in the yard because the house was small. It was me, Mauer, Meala, Entia, and Gurai.

"Gurai, you were an adventurer, right? What kind of work did you do?"

Meala asked Gurai during dinner. She, who is usually quiet, seemed very interested. Maybe because he saved her from the stray dogs?

"Is Gurai leaving the village?"

"Ah, I can't stay too long."

"…You could stay a bit longer."

Meala murmured.

"…No, I can't."

"But really, I hope Gurai stays in the village. It would be a big help if he could help with various tasks."

I said this to support Meala. I praised his efficiency and work from earlier and hinted that I wanted him to stay a bit longer. Gurai scratched his head, looking troubled. After finishing dinner and cleaning up, I decided to go for a walk and check on everyone. In the square, the Beowulfs were having another party. They've been partying every day.

"Hey, Mako! Where's that laundry pro guy!?"

"We need to thank him too!"

"Tell him we have plenty of drinks! He's welcome to join us for a drink anytime."

They were all in high spirits, and it seemed they had already accepted him, even though they had just met him today. It was probably due to his work ethic and honest character.

(…Can Gurai drink…?)

I thought as I walked back to Mauer and Meala's house. Then I heard Mauer and Fressa's voices from the backyard.

"Wow, wow!"

"Amazing, Mr. Gurai!"

I went to see, and there was Gurai with them.

"No, it's not that great…"

He held a knife in his hand, and Mauer and Fressa were holding wooden carvings of birds and frogs he had made.

(…Wow…)

It seemed Gurai had made animal carvings by whittling wood with his knife. I could see carvings of wolves and cats scattered around the garden, which was now full of flowers and vegetables.

"Cute!"

Fressa was jumping around like a little girl. Indeed, the garden had a much cuter atmosphere now.

"Wow, you're good at this."

Gurai scratched his head when he noticed me approaching.

"…The kids in the guild and the town liked these."

I smiled at his embarrassed look. An idea popped into my head. He was dexterous and good at detailed work, and he also had strength. Maybe he could…