Chapter 9

In the labyrinth of Merharts, on the fifth floor.

I was heading for the seventh floor, where the slimes are said to be, together with Yuel, determined to advance through the labyrinth.

And we had just reached the middle of the fifth floor—

“Whoa, close one!”

“Master!”

I dodged, and Yuel screamed.

The monsters on the fifth floor, Big Chicks.

We were having our first tough battle with these monsters, which resembled chickens grown to the height of an adult’s waist to chest.

There were four of them.

Their pecks easily pierced flesh, and the power of their charges was something to be wary of, as I had heard from the Adventurer’s Guild.

Indeed, these charges were troublesome.

Perhaps because they were chickens that couldn’t fly, they were fast on their feet.

Moreover, they charged not only at Yuel, who was in front, but also at me, who was waiting in the back.

The fact that their movements were linear was a saving grace, but I had to take evasive or defensive actions.

Otherwise, I would be pecked to death.

Incidentally, I had no intention of attacking.

Let the professionals handle the professionals.

Combat was Yuel’s job.

With my unskilled techniques, I would likely be counterattacked if I tried to attack.

All I had to do was avoid or endure until Yuel came to my aid.

I thought it might be Mace’s turn to shine, but the enemy’s attack was a full-body charge.

Even though Big Chicks were only as tall as an adult’s waist to chest, I wasn’t sure if I could block them.

If I managed to block their body but got pecked in the face, it would be a disaster.

Actually, I might lose my eyes.

It was dangerous.

Even if I tried to deflect the charge, I didn’t know how to do it.

It was faster to just dodge.

So, I was running.

I was holding the mace, but I was only dodging the Big Chicks’ charges to the right and left.

Upon closer inspection, the charges were linear movements, and dodging them wasn’t too difficult.

However, it was my first proper battle with a monster, and I was a bit scared.

I was panicking against the fast-footed chickens.

Even when I took evasive action again, the Big Chick’s charge grazed me.

The damage was negligible, but I stumbled and lost my balance.

“Aaaaaah!!”

Yuel screamed when she saw this.

By the time I regained my composure, Yuel had already defeated the other three.

Yuel turned to the Big Chick that had body-slammed me, running with a look of anger.

She slashed the Big Chick’s neck, stabbed its chest with a knife, and then plunged two knives into its head from both sides.

It was thorough.

Clearly overkill.

The knives might be damaged.

Yuel was a bit scary.

The Big Chick dissipated into particles of light.

However, Yuel didn’t come to me.

Usually, she would run over with a “Master, I did it!”

But she was looking down, not moving.

When I walked over to Yuel, I saw a small tear stain on the ground at her feet.

She opened her mouth while still looking down.

“I’m sorry, I said I would protect you with my life. I couldn’t protect Master.”

I think she said something like that on the first day.

I would be in trouble if she really offered her life because she couldn’t protect me.

Besides, I wasn’t injured.

“No, Yuel has done a great job protecting me. This time, it was just a graze.”

“But, but, I decided to protect Master!”

It seemed that the Big Chick had trampled on Yuel’s pride.

There was no way Yuel could stop four charging monsters alone.

In chess terms, it would be like trying to save the king from four lances lined up horizontally with just one piece.

Thinking about it, Yuel was more than competent for attracting three of them alone.

If anyone was to blame, it was me for rushing into the fifth floor to get a slime jelly and for not being able to dodge such a minor attack.

If Yuel cried any more, my guilt would grow boundlessly.

Ah, what should I do?

Yuel was pressing her hands to her face, crying.

My heart ached.

It ached a lot.

I wanted Yuel to smile.

I wanted to see Yuel running over with a smile, and I would pat her.

I would cast a healing spell, and Yuel would look at me with admiration.

I wanted to continue this relationship forever.

However, this was Yuel’s own issue.

Yuel had said she would protect me, but she couldn’t.

That was the problem.

But it was in the past.

The past cannot be changed.

There was nothing to be done.

The lost confidence could only be regained through her own strength and actions.

No matter how much I played with words or patted her head, it wouldn’t solve the problem.

Well, if I had to choose whether to pat her or not, I would pat her.

I couldn’t think of any clever words to cheer Yuel up, and all I could do was pat her head.

I wasn’t good at comforting people.

The only person I could comfort was probably my own son.

“Yuel”

When I called her name, her body trembled.

This was serious.

My injury was just a graze, or rather, not even a graze.

I could only pat her head, but could I at least cheer her up a little?

I placed my hand on Yuel’s head.

However, she didn’t make the usual movement of rubbing her head against my hand.

She was probably feeling down.

She might be thinking that she didn’t deserve to be patted.

It seemed likely.

The communication where a pat would make her smile was enjoyable.

I slowly and steadily ran my hand down the gentle slope of her head from the center.

From past experience, I thought Yuel preferred a thorough pat that transmitted the warmth of my palm to her scalp over a light and gentle stroke on the surface of her hair.

It seemed to make her happier, and considering her age and her status as a slave, she might be hungry for human warmth.

While placing my left hand on Yuel’s back, I slowly and steadily moved my right hand up and down.

However, Yuel’s expression was still dark.

It seemed that she hadn’t recovered her smile yet.

While continuing to pat with my right hand, I lifted my left hand.

I placed my free left hand on Yuel’s drooping elf ears.

They were usually perky and energetic.

I observed Yuel’s expression and gently rubbed her soft ears, searching for the spots that would make her happy.

“Huh... n...”

A shallow breath escaped.

This was it.

I focused on rubbing the spot where Yuel reacted with my left hand and increased the intensity of the patting with my right hand.

“Nn...”

I continued patting until Yuel’s forehead was slightly damp with sweat, and then I switched hands to massage her right ear.

It seemed that Yuel’s expression was slightly flushed, and the sadness had faded.

However, it wasn’t enough to bring back her shy smile.

I stopped patting her head and began to massage both ears simultaneously with both hands.

I pinched the slightly softer cartilage of the elf ears with my fingers, tickled the inside, and gently enveloped them with the warmth of my palms, stretching the tips softly.

“Fah... n... ya... ah...”

I continued to massage her ears.

I continued, but...

It seemed that Yuel’s expression was different from usual.

This was, how should I put it...

She was blushing, or rather, melting.

This wasn’t it.

It was different.

What I wanted to see wasn’t this expression of Yuel.

I wanted to see a more healing, smiling face.

Not this gooey, morally ambiguous expression.

By the way, the hand that was massaging Yuel’s ear right now was the same one I used in the toilet yesterday—

No.

I shouldn’t think about it.

Yes, I felt I was doing something wrong.

I decided to stop and removed both hands.

“Ahh...”

Yuel let out a sad cry, and her expression darkened again.

I could see it at a glance.

This expression was “anxiety.”

I didn’t have any intentions of touching Yuel’s body, and on the first day, I told her I bought her because she could use a short sword.

That’s why Yuel probably sought her value as a slave in combat.

And her pride in being useful in battle had just been shattered.

Yuel’s expression was that of a child who had been abandoned and left behind by their parents.

She felt “anxiety” when her ears were no longer being touched.

That cute Yuel.

Making such a pained face.

Just looking at it made my chest tighten.

I couldn’t do it.

It was bad.

I couldn’t stop.

Reluctantly, I placed my hands back on Yuel’s ears.

“Nn...”

Oh.

She blushed a little.

I must have been right.

This was the moment when my full effort bore fruit.

Yuel, who was caressing my hand as if cherishing it, had returned.

Her initiative had returned.

I would continue.

I squatted in front of Yuel, focused on her expression, and placed both hands on her cheeks.

I stroked her moistened eyes with my thumbs.

I gently traced her tear bags, and slowly massaged her cheeks along the cheekbone.

“Nn...”

Yuel’s cheeks flushed more, and she sandwiched my hand between hers, becoming more proactive.

This meant that the feeling of not deserving to be touched had disappeared.

I was right.

I hadn’t done anything wrong.

While massaging her cheeks with my thumbs, I didn’t let my other fingers wander.

I held Yuel’s jawline firmly with my pinky and ring fingers, and tickled the inside of her ears with my index and middle fingers.

“Huh... ah... nu...”

Yuel shuddered.

I continued to stroke her cheeks—

Suddenly, I saw a shadow behind Yuel’s back.

A monster had arrived.

Well, it was natural to encounter a monster after spending so much time in a labyrinth like this.

“Yuel, it’s a Big Chick, one of them.”

Yuel’s expression instantly changed to a focused one.

No, it was more like a face of anger at being interrupted.

Yuel drew her knife and charged straight at the Big Chick’s charge.

Just before the collision, she dodged the Big Chick like a matador.

Then, as she dodged, she slashed the Big Chick’s neck.

The Big Chick, bleeding, collapsed while running.

Yuel, who had collected the drop, approached me as if asking for a continuation of what we were doing earlier.

There was a hint of hesitation, but her expression was filled with clear expectation.

Of course, I would pat her.

Yuel was fine as long as I patted her.

She had recovered.

She was still a child, after all.

All I had to do was repeat this until there was no trace of hesitation on Yuel’s face.

“Shall we head back, Yuel?”

“Yes, Master!”

In response to my words, Yuel smiled shyly and answered enthusiastically.

We returned to the town and decided to buy equipment.

Yuel said she wanted throwing knives.

According to Yuel, if she had more throwing knives, she might have been able to protect me this time.

I remember she once took down a goblin with a single throw of a knife.

Perhaps due to a skill, it had considerable power.

Moreover, if she could protect me from four Big Chicks again, Yuel might gain confidence.

That would lead to Yuel’s smile.

If throwing knives could achieve that, there was no reason not to buy them.

Fortunately, thanks to the two income sources of the healing center and the adventurer’s guild, we had some extra money.

I bought Yuel four throwing knives and two slightly longer, more practical knives made by a master’s apprentice, in addition to the ones she already had.

We were almost back to being penniless, but Yuel said she would be fine with multiple enemies now.

The day when Yuel becomes a knife turret might be near.