Chapter 12

"The weather is nice, isn't it, young master?"

The sound of hooves clopping rhythmically, they proceeded leisurely towards the outskirts of town. Cain was riding a horse alongside the gatekeeper knight, Arnoldia, with whom he always went jogging. Arnoldia held the reins, while Cain gripped the horn, a handle-like part attached to the front of the saddle.

"It's almost too hot. Can't we make the horse run and cut through the wind?"

"If you fall off the horse, it would be a big problem, young master. We have plenty of time, so let's take it easy."

Today, the family's daily-use carriage was out, so they were traveling by horse. Cain was about to start riding lessons, so there was also the intention of getting him accustomed to horses while running an errand to the temple. In his previous life, he had lived until his early thirties but, as a city-dwelling recluse, he had never ridden a horse. In the games he played in his previous life, he often rode creatures like bird-horses and dragon mounts, but he realized that there weren't many games where horses were used as a means of transportation.

The elevated view and the rhythmic swaying of the horse's back felt incredibly pleasant. Cain thought he wanted to learn to ride on his own, even though he was currently riding with the knight.

"You seem to be doing well with the horse, Master Cain. Some people find it too high and scary, or are intimidated by the size of the horse."

"I want to be able to ride on my own soon."

"If today's errand goes smoothly, I'll suggest to your father that you start riding lessons."

"Thank you! Sarasinia."

Arnoldia and another guard knight, Sarasinia, were accompanying them. Sarasinia was riding his own horse, clopping leisurely alongside them. In case of an emergency, one would stay behind while the other would take Cain to safety. Dianah was staying behind today.

"The temple is in sight."

Following Arnoldia's finger, Cain saw the familiar spire of the temple, which also housed the orphanage where Ilvareno lived. Cain was tasked with delivering a letter from his father requesting a meeting and bringing back a response. This was his first errand, though he had a guard with him.

The temple's head was away. Cain had anticipated this, so it wasn't a problem. After handing over the letter from his father and a donation from his mother to the head priest and orphanage director, Cain headed to the orphanage.

"Huh? There are only little kids here."

"Oh, Master Cain."

"Master Cain."

In the orphanage's courtyard, only children under four were playing. The boys he had competed with in stone-throwing were nowhere to be found.

"Hey, Asmire, Keiranka, Timoniena. You all look so cute today."

"Hello, Master Cain!"

"Hello!"

"Are Diliparu, Anmiranika, Sas, and Kasuga doing well?"

"Hello, Master Cain!"

"Master Cain, did you find a strong stone?"

"Where is Lady Dianah today?"

"Today, Dianah is staying behind. Let's play another time."

Cain called out to each child by name and greeted them. In his previous life, when he worked in sales for children's toys, his senior had sternly instructed him not to lump together children from different age groups. Calling them by name and treating them as individuals was supposed to promote self-awareness and independence. Although he had never verified this advice, Cain was satisfied seeing the children smile happily when called by their names.

His ability to quickly remember many names was a skill he had honed during his time as a game streaming YouTuber. Comment sections would quickly turn toxic if he forgot or mispronounced character names in games with many characters. Since he was juggling a day job, he didn't have the time to restart from save data just because he made a mistake. He had learned to remember names by repeating them out loud when characters first appeared.

Moreover, in this world, the hair and eye colors were so varied that it made it easier to remember the children.

"Where are Ilvareno, Selenosta, and Amedica?"

He asked about the older children, who were over four. They were either in the fields or fishing and were expected to return in the evening. Cain wondered if the recent donation from his mother was insufficient or if they were continuing their routine food gathering despite having some financial leeway. He hoped there would be an extra dish for dinner.

In addition to the donation, Cain had brought a few picture books. He moved to the dining hall, read them aloud, and then placed them on the orphanage's bookshelf.

"Once you learn to read, you can read them on your own. It's good to learn by having the older children or the priest read to you."

The books Cain brought were similar to the "a, i, u, e, o" composition books often used by noble children to learn to read, which were his hand-me-downs. He had benefited greatly from these books and had personally verified their effectiveness in learning basic characters.

(How unfair that the characters in a Japanese game world are different, though.)

As they played games like "Aitakata Ho-i" (a Japanese game similar to "Simon Says"), finger wrestling, and guessing numbers by raising their thumbs, Ilvareno and the others returned.

"Hey, Ilvareno. You smell."

"Don't say it out loud, even if you think it. We were spreading fertilizer in the fields."

"Good work."

Cain smiled and waved. The girls sitting nearby blushed and looked flustered. Ilvareno sighed.