CH 119

Leisurely Time – i novels

()x12-15 minutes

“I’m back!”

It’s Mel’s workshop, but it’s fine, right?

“Welcome back, Yuta!” “Kyuu.” “Welcome.” “Kuu.”

Bell and the others welcomed me, and I played around with them. Sara, Marco, and Kika came out later, and I greeted them while patting their heads.

“Master, you seem to be in a very good mood.”

“Yeah, Mel, sorry for coming late at night. I guess I’m in a good mood because I let off some steam.”

It seems like I can avoid becoming a criminal, so I do feel pretty good.

“You went to talk to the Adventurer’s Guild, right? Is that how you let off steam?”

“Yeah, well, Yunis was at the Adventurer’s Guild, so it’s a good idea to hear what she has to say. There’s a possibility that it will be nothing but badmouthing though.”

It’s not just a possibility, I’m pretty confident that it will be nothing but badmouthing. I wonder if I can escape safely?

“From Yunis-chan? Understood, I’ll ask her. Master, it’s late today, so why don’t you stay at my place?”

Staying over, huh? It would be interesting to stay at the workshop, but if possible, I should disappear discreetly tonight to make the Guildmaster even more troubled. I’ll completely erase my presence, jumping over the city walls.

“No, I want to leave the Labyrinth City tonight, so I’ll ask for another opportunity to stay over. And also, Melal, come here for a moment.”

“Yuta, what’s wrong?”

“Yeah, I caused some trouble for the Guildmaster, so I’m going to disappear for a while. The guys from the Adventurer’s Guild might come here last since this is where I came last. I think it’ll be fine if Melal is here, but please don’t leave Mel’s side for a while.”

As for the people I’m close to in the Labyrinth City, there are the folks at the strong Arm Torque inn, who have connections to the Adventurer’s Guild, and Marie-san and the others. Torque-san, in particular, used to be an adventurer and has ties to the Guild. Besides, he seems really strong, so I doubt he’ll lay a hand on me just because I stayed at his place and taught him some cooking.

As for Marie-san, her father seems to have plans against the Adventurer’s Guild, so she should be mindful of her safety. She seems to have escorts as well, so she should be fine. If there’s any worry, it would be about going overboard.

“Alright, got it. If anyone dares to attack Mel, I’ll reduce them to ashes. You can rest assured as long as I’m here, Yuta.”

“Yeah, well, thanks. But it’s possible that Mel might get caught, so let’s refrain from reducing anyone to ashes. Also, please make sure not to accidentally set the Labyrinth City on fire.”

“I-I’m sorry, Master! Harassment from the Guildmaster? Being attacked? Getting caught? Reduced to ashes? A sea of flames? What are you talking about? Please explain.”

Mel tugged on my pants with all her might, pleading for an explanation. If Yunis were to see this scene, she would probably be filled with tears of frustration.

“Well, I don’t have much time, so ask Yunis for details. And if anyone related to the Adventurer’s Guild shows up, don’t trust them at all. There’s a possibility they might deceive Mel to use me. Take care of Mel, too. Well, I’ll be back in a while.”

After saying that, I left Mel’s workshop. Seeing her distressed expression, I started to feel a little guilty. I wonder if she would understand if I told her that it’s common for disciples to be at the mercy of their masters’ whims?

“Master, are you returning to the Land of Death now? It feels like you’re running away.”

Marco asked with a puzzled expression. In a way, he’s not entirely wrong. The only difference is that I don’t need to run away, but I choose to.

“Yeah, there’s a reason why I need to disappear tonight. It’s okay for Sara and the others to sleep while flying. Also, we’ll send Fukuchan and the others back.”

“Master, you mean you’ll send them back to the Land of Death?”

“Yeah.”

I should send myself back too.

“Dolly, thank you for this time. Let Dyne and the others know that I’ll be returning soon.”

Oh, I spoke out loud even though we’re outside. Well, there’s no one around, and even if they saw, they would think I’m talking to Sarah and the others.

“Understood. I enjoyed observing human activities and the Labyrinth, so please call me again.”

I’m glad if she enjoyed it. The Great Spirits don’t have many opportunities to appear, so I refrained from summoning them unless necessary. Maybe I should call them more casually.

“I’ll rely on you again when the opportunity arises. Well then, see you on the other side.”

I sent Dolly back and then proceeded to pet each of the spirits before sending them back.

“Sylphy, can you ensure that we can escape without being seen by anyone?”

“Yes, it’s nighttime, so there shouldn’t be any problems. Are we departing now?”

Looking at Sara and the others, it seems like they’re ready. I informed them that we’ll be taking off soon and asked Sylphy for her assistance. We were enveloped in a cocoon of wind and flew up into the sky. It was a faster takeoff than usual, probably to ensure that no one would notice us in the dark sky. While flying through the dark sky, I asked what Sara and the others had been doing since I left.

“Oh, Sara communicated with Melal as well. Was there anything different in communicating with an intermediate spirit compared to Fukuchan?”

“Yes, well, intermediate spirits are easier to perceive, and they try their best to answer even difficult questions. And although not as much as Sylphy-san and the others, they gave off a reliable vibe.”

Melal gives off a reliable vibe, huh? It feels a bit odd to see him being overprotective in his young form, but considering the strength of his presence, maybe he’s reliable after all.

“It was a good experience. We’ll visit them again and have them interact with various things.”

“Yes, I’m looking forward to it.”

She seems happy, and maybe Melal and her get along well. It’s a good thing to communicate with spirits more and since Mel is my disciple, I should visit her again. It also seems fun to tease Yunis a little.

“How about Marco?”

“I had a great time watching Mel-nee-chan do some blacksmithing. She hammers away with all her might. I wonder what would happen if I used Master’s hammer?”

…I wonder what would happen? It would be a disaster if the hot iron went flying and shattered into pieces.

“Maybe I’ll let Mel test it out next time. If I make it smaller and take it easy, it should be fine.”

Since I still don’t fully understand the capabilities of the Development Tool, it might be a good idea to study the tools in depth when I have some free time.

“I’d like to see that too.”

It seems like Marco is interested not only in swords but also in blacksmithing. It’s good to have various interests. But don’t forget about being a Spirit Master.

“Well, we’ll go together to Mel’s workshop, and when the time comes, I’ll call you too.”

“Thank you, Master.”

“You’re welcome. What about Kika?”

“Kika played a lot with Mel-chan! We had lots of conversations and studied about Mame-chan and Melal-sama.”

…Perhaps in Kika’s mind, Mel is her friend. While Mel probably understands the situation to some extent, it seems like she accepted it with a mixture of kindness and timidity.

As a master, I should probably explain to Kika about adulthood and the need for a certain level of respect toward elders… But seeing Kika enjoying herself so much, it’s the first time I’ve seen that.

“Ah, I see. So you had a lot of fun. Did you enjoy playing with Mel?”

“Yes, we talked a lot, and I learned about Mame-chan and Melal-sama.”

Kika also refers to him as Melal-sama. She must have picked up on Mel’s way of speaking. It’s rare to see Kika being so talkative, so maybe I need to help her make more friends.

“Well, since we’ll be visiting Mel’s workshop again, make sure to have lots of fun then.”

“Yes!”

Kika responded with a smile, clearly delighted. While they are disciplined, Sara and Marco are still children, so it’s important for them to have opportunities to play with friends in addition to their training as Spirit mages.

…I have no idea what I should do. Maybe I should increase the number of disciples and build a network of friends?

And as for play… It’s different to let them play in the Land of Death, and there’s no elementary school here either, so it’s difficult. Well, if I could consult someone, it would be great, but Marie-san doesn’t seem reliable for anything other than business, and Martha-san might be someone I can turn to for advice. Kalk-kun is also around, so I’ll ask him various things the next time I go to the Labyrinth City.

Casually flying and having a relaxed conversation, I realized that Sara and the others had fallen asleep without me noticing. It’s late at night, and inside Sylphy’s cocoon of wind, it’s comfortable, so it’s no wonder they dozed off.

“It’s okay for you to sleep too, Yuta.”

“Well… I’m not sleepy yet, so let’s talk a bit more.”

“Is that so? Then let’s have a nice, long conversation, something we haven’t done in a while.”

“A while? …Come to think of it, it has been a while since I had a leisurely conversation with Sylphy. The last time we talked was when we decided to go to the Labyrinth City.”

It hasn’t been that long, but it feels like a distant memory. In the beginning, we were struggling even to find food, and there were various challenges.

“Yes, you’ve been quite busy, Yuta, so we didn’t have many opportunities to talk.”

“Yeah, I’ve been through some hectic days. Sylphy said she wanted to come along because it sounded interesting. So far, would you say it has lived up to expectations?”

“Yes, it’s been so much fun. Delicious drinks, cuisine I’ve never tasted before, conflicts with the Adventurer’s Guild. Compared to aimlessly wandering the world, this is much more enjoyable.”

Haha, if I can entertain the Great Spirit of Wind, it must be quite something.

“Haha, that’s quite impressive. So, Yuta, keep doing your best.”

I feel like she’s genuinely saying that with a beautiful smile. There are things I can do and things I can’t, but I’ll do my best.

“I can’t guarantee if I’ll meet your expectations, but well, I’ll do my best in various ways.”

“I’m looking forward to it.”

For now, I should try to remember a new dish that would go well with Sylphy’s drinks and present it to her. Oh, speaking of which, I stored some Japanese food in the magic bag… Since I don’t have to worry about running out of food anymore, it should be okay to eat them.

…Even though I sometimes have the desire to eat something, I can’t bring myself to do it due to the feeling of it being wasteful. It’s also like a support for my heart.

I have miso soup, but I’ve been holding back from drinking it, and it’s a completely different feeling from not being able to drink it at all for the rest of my life. At the very least, I want to find rice and soybeans. There are different kinds of vegetables, some that I’ve never seen before and some that are exactly the same. Rice and soybeans should be among them.

I’ll have Sylphy confirm my food supply little by little. If I can find rice and soybeans, I can have hope. There’s even a possibility that I can miraculously make soy sauce and miso. Oh, speaking of which, if it’s wheat miso, I have wheat, so I wonder if I can make it? I only know how to make it from reading manga, though.

“By the way, Sylphy, I’ve been thinking about stocking the waterways and ponds in our base with fish and aquatic plants. Do you think it would work?”

“That’s not my area of expertise, so it would be better to ask Dyne or Dolly. If they say it’s possible, it sounds interesting. Maybe we can all go catch fish in the river together?”

That sounds good. Let’s gather aquatic plants and fish that can thrive even in the Land of Death. It would liven up the waterways even more.

Ah, but maybe it’s better not to put fish and plants in the central spring to keep the water clean. I’ll consult with them about that too. If it’s possible, we can all go together. The bento may not be anything special, just store-bought, but I’m sure Bell and Sarah will enjoy it.

“Yeah, it would be a fun event, so I’ll talk to them about it.”

I wanted to swim too, but I forgot to ask Marie-san about swimsuits. I made a mistake. While having a relaxed conversation with Sylphy, we continue our journey through the sky. Sometimes, moments like this are nice.