Chapter 13

"Amu... mmm, it's delicious."

"Is that so? I'm glad to hear that."

"Can we really eat the food today?"

"Yeah, it's a thank you. You can have seconds too. Eat well after working hard."

"Really? Yay!"

She, wearing a silver helmet, was happily taking a bite of the hamburger.

The day after she died, I was having lunch with Noal. When I asked what she wanted as a thank you, she said she wanted the food from the gacha.

She preferred food over clothes or accessories, which are more typical for girls. She said she didn't like orc meat, but it was fine if it came from the food.

I plan to organize the items from the gacha later. There are too many to sort through all at once.

"Mmm... So, when are you going to summon the one who appeared yesterday?"

"Hmm, I'm not sure."

I'm really hesitant about summoning her. In terms of performance, she's one of the top URs. She looks great too. But considering her personality... I'm worried about actually interacting with her.

"She's a mage, right? If she fights with us, she'll be a great help."

"Yeah, but..."

Estel's job is a mage. She can use fire, water, wind, earth, darkness, light, and support magic. She's a very powerful ally I want in the party.

"Alright. Let's summon her and see."

We're still at the inn. If I summon her here, it will draw attention. If I summon her in the room, it might make the inn staff suspicious about when she entered.

So I decided to summon her outside.

●

"Oh, I was summoned like this too. I'm jealous that you were summoned properly on the ground."

"I'm really sorry about that."

We moved outside the city to a place where there were no people. I took out my smartphone and selected Estel's summon stone from the item list. The summon cost was 22, which is quite close to the limit.

When I tapped "Use," the screen started to glow, and light overflowed.

"Hmm..."

The light formed a human shape, and a young girl appeared before me. She looked younger than Noal.

Her gray hair reached her shoulders, and she had a cute two-sided updo. She wore a gray shoulder cape and a mini skirt with an open-fronted skirt over it. She was shorter than Noal and held a staff with a long red gem.

"Is the big brother my master?"

"Yes. I'm Oogura Heihachi."

"I'm the knight Noal Fanya."

After a moment, she opened her eyes and met my red gaze. Her eyes were slightly upturned, giving her a bold look. She narrowed her eyes and smiled, asking if I was her master.

I don't know why, but her smile, which should have been very cute, made me shiver.

"Hehe, yes."

Estel whispered and smiled.

Then, her self-introduction... didn't start. She just kept smiling at us, and the atmosphere froze.

"No, do your self-introduction!"

"But you already know, right? So it's fine, isn't it?"

She tilted her head in confusion and frowned.

I must have let my guard down. I know, but still, it's better to do the formalities, right? Noal, who was standing next to me, couldn't even speak, just muttering "Oh..." and freezing.

She looks young, but her tone is mature, making her hard to read. She's a popular character in GC, and I really like her too.

But actually talking to her is tough. It feels like my usual rhythm is off.

"No, well, there are certain formalities, you know?"

"But it's so troublesome. So, what do you need from me, big brother? And I don't like your tone of voice."

She puffed out her cheeks in an angry gesture.

And my tone of voice... is creepy!? I'm being polite for our first meeting, and everyone finds it creepy.

"Creepy... you say..."

"That's right... What's with that creepy tone of voice!"

Noal nodded in agreement. It's really annoying when Noal says it, so I stretched out my cheeks.

"Alright, fine. Estel, will you join our party?"

"Why?"

Her unexpected response left me momentarily blank.

What, why? I didn't expect her to ask why. Normally, she would just help out.

"Well... would you help us hunt monsters?"

"Why are you using such formal language?"

Damn, laugh if you want. I ended up using formal language again.

"Hmm, well. I don't really want to be an adventurer, but big brother seems interesting, so I'll do it."

She turned away, put her finger to her cheek, and pretended to think. It was a very theatrical gesture.

She seems to be willing to help me, but "interesting" is a strange reason.

"That's good. By the way, how do you know about being an adventurer?"

"Didn't I say it at the beginning? Summoners get some of the knowledge and memories of the summoned. So, she should have known from the start. Besides, it's impossible for us to refuse to accompany Oogura-sama..."

Noal explained, sounding exasperated.

I remember her saying something like that. So, Estel knew from the beginning? How much did she know...? No, this is scary.

Still, it's impossible to refuse, right? Is it because I'm the summoner?

"Hehe, I guess. Anyway, nice to meet you, big brother."

She greeted me with a meaningful smile.

No, what's with this girl? She's still scary.

●

"Welcome back. Oh... who is that person?"

After the summoning, we returned to the inn. I'm tired from hunting for the gacha, so I don't plan to hunt for a while.

When we entered the inn, the woman at the reception greeted us.

"This is the girl who will be joining our party. I want to rent two rooms. Are there any available?"

I introduced Estel and asked if there were any available rooms. I thought she might be uncomfortable, but she bowed and greeted the woman politely. Good, maybe she's more straightforward than I thought.

Since the greeting is done, I decided to rent the rooms. Noal and I were sharing a room before, but now there are two women.

It would be better for the two of them to share a room, and I'll take a single room. It would be awkward for one man and two women to share a room.

"Sure. In that case—"

The woman was about to choose a room, but she was interrupted.

"Oh, I'm fine with sharing a room."

"I'm fine with the current arrangement too."

...What are they thinking? We have enough money, so there's no need to stick together.

"No, now that there are two women, you two should share a room. I'll take a single room."

"That's so unfair! To have a room all to yourself!"

"Yeah, that's really unfair."

I don't understand what they're saying. What do they mean by unfair? Estel is laughing and joining in.

It's worse for a man and woman to share a room. Noal's face is hidden, so it doesn't matter, but I don't want to share a room with Estel. She's a character I really like... I manage my urges in the bath, but something might happen.

"That's not the issue... then let's rent three rooms—"

"Hey, miss. Does this inn have a three-person room?"

If it's unfair, we can just rent three rooms. I thought that and was about to say it.

But Estel interrupted me.

"There are rooms with two beds, one of which is a large bed."

"Can we have that room then?"

The woman explained, and Estel agreed. I need to change it immediately.

But, should I really let this chance go? Two beautiful girls in the same room... I can hear a devilish whisper. If they share a large bed, I want to see it. I'm also curious about their conversations... No, I can't. I need to firmly tell Estel to change it.

"Hey!? What are you doing—"

"Oh, it's fine. Besides, you don't mind, do you? Or... do you?"

The short girl looked up at me with big eyes. This is bad, really bad. What kind of power is this? Stop it, it's affecting me.

In the end, I couldn't say anything and just agreed.

"Hehe, that's right. ...I was hesitant about summoning you—now I'll make you regret it."

We borrowed the keys and headed to the room. On the way, Estel muttered something, but I didn't hear the rest.

But did I really feel a chill down my spine?