Chapter 44

Thank you for waiting.

85,000 points and 30,000 bookmarks, and a million views, thank you! I will continue to work hard.

On the day of the Spirit Festival, it was a clear autumn day.

Under a cloudless, clear blue sky, the sounds of people's chatter echoed through the village.

The main street of the village, from the entrance to the central square, was lined with stalls set up by visiting merchants.

The items offered by the merchants varied widely. In addition to essential items like rock salt, which were hard to come by in the village, they also displayed fabrics, ropes, and brightly colored decorations, aiming to loosen the purse strings of the festive villagers.

The merchants skillfully talked the villagers into buying their goods.

"Hey, you there! Why don't you take a look?"

"Huh? Me?"

"Yes, sir, the one with the fine beard, you!"

"Oh, oh..."

A villager was called by a merchant.

He was likely a farmer, with sunburned skin and a sturdy build.

He wore a used leather pair of pants, a rough tunic, and a woolen hat, typical attire for a rural man. Although his clothes were dirty, they were not tattered, suggesting he was a self-sufficient farmer.

The man, called by the merchant, was drawn to the stall like a bug to sweet honey.

"How about it, our selection? It's a feast for the eyes, isn't it?"

"Hmm... I can't decide."

The merchant's stall seemed to be set up using a cart, allowing it to serve as a shop. The shopkeeper, who was calling customers, showed the attracted man the goods.

The stall was filled with various items: small knives, glowing stones, combs for women, fabrics, sewing tools, and flint.

Price tags were placed next to the items on a cloth spread on the cart, and most items were priced in copper coins.

"Sir, are you married?"

"Yes, I have a wife."

"Of course, of course. A fine man like you couldn't be single. Women wouldn't let you be."

"Is that so...?"

The bearded man smiled at the merchant's flattery.

The merchant's polite words and the treatment he received, which he didn't get in the village, made him feel like a superior person.

"Your wife, she must be beautiful."

"Well, she can be a bit nagging, but she's a proud wife."

"Then how about this? Why don't you give her a gift?"

"Hmm... Not a bad idea. But what should I give her?"

"What about this? Imagine your wife in a dress made from this fabric."

The merchant handed him a piece of fabric.

It was beautifully dyed, a vivid green. A fine dress could be made from it.

"Nice... It's good!"

"Isn't it! Would you like to buy it?"

"By the way... how much is it?"

The man, now fully interested, asked the merchant for the price. There were price tags, but the man couldn't read.

The merchant told him the price of the fabric.

"Well, if it's enough to make a woman's dress, it would be about this much."

"Wh-what? I can't afford that at all."

The fabric was expensive.

While it might be affordable when harvested from sheep or plants in rural areas, after being transported to cities, selected by the Weavers' Guild, and dyed, it became a price that farmers couldn't afford.

The bearded man was brought back to reality by the quoted price.

"I see... I'm very disappointed."

"I'm sorry... I'll have to give up."

"No, wait a moment!"

"What is it? I can't give what I don't have."

"It must be painful for a fine man like you to not be able to give your wife a gift. How about this? What about this item instead?"

The merchant picked up a comb.

It was a wooden comb with intricate decorations. The floral design would likely please a woman.

"This is a fine piece of work... How much is it?"

"Normally, it would be five large copper coins, but for you, sir, I'll give it to you for two large copper coins!"

"Oh, oh...! Thank you, I can manage that."

The farmer took out a leather purse from his pocket, gathered the copper coins, and handed them to the merchant.

The merchant counted the small copper coins, confirmed the amount, and handed over the item.

"Thank you for your purchase, sir!"

"Yes, I made a good purchase, thank you!"

"Not at all, I'm glad I could help."

The farmer put the comb, priced at one large copper coin, in his pocket and left, imagining his wife's happy face.

(Hehehe... I made a good profit. Hey, that man has a good build, he's probably an adventurer. Let's see if I can make another profit.)

The farmer left, and the merchant, with a sly smile, spotted his next customer.

A young man in his early twenties with golden hair. He wore a fabric pair of pants, a tunic, and a leather vest, typical attire for a townsman.

A sword was sheathed at his waist, and a crystal guild plate was visible at his chest. He was likely an adventurer staying in a nearby town, perhaps even from this village.

"Hey, you there, adventurer! Why don't you take a look?"

"Yeah, me?"

"Yes, the one with the golden hair, you!"

"Hmm. Well, I have nothing to do until evening, so I'll take a look. What do you have?"

(Alright, if he can't read, I'll fleece him.)

The merchant opened his mouth to start his well-practiced sales pitch to the young man.

§

As the autumn sky gradually turned red, Nod returned to the Oubriere mansion.

The Alba village Spirit Festival would continue until night and last for two days.

However, Nod decided to return to the mansion for a while.

"Hey, Newt. Are you here?"

"Kyu!"

"Oh, welcome back, Nod."

"Nod-nii-sama."

"Welcome back."

Nod called out for Newt, who wasn't in the guest room he was staying in at the Oubriere mansion.

He heard a voice from the living room and went there, where he found Newt sitting on the floor, lifting his head in response to Nod's voice.

Around Newt were the Oubriere sisters.

"Did you take care of him?"

"No, it's fine. I was bored too."

"Franka-nee-sama and I were keeping him company!"

"I see, thank you."

Nod had gone to see the Spirit Festival but couldn't bring Newt along, so he had instructed Newt to stay at the Oubriere mansion.

The incident where Newt flew with Emilia had spread throughout the Oubriere family, and Johann had instructed the servants to keep an eye on Emilia to prevent her from flying again, reducing the risk of a repeat.

However, the older sisters of the Oubriere family had apparently been watching over Newt to prevent Emilia from playing with him unsupervised.

"No, I'm sorry. I should have taken care of Newt myself..."

"It's really no trouble at all."

Nod, embarrassed, was reassured by Kataria, the eldest daughter of the Oubriere family, who laughed with a voice like a tinkling bell.

"By the way, Nod, how was the Spirit Festival?"

"It was surprisingly lively. I thought it would be... well, you know."

"Did you think it would be a more shabby festival?"

"Um, well..."

"Hehe, don't worry. I heard the same thing from someone two years ago."

Nod had subconsciously compared it to the Spirit Festival in the capital, thinking it wouldn't be much. However, the Alba village Spirit Festival, while smaller in scale, was just as lively as the capital's.

"I heard the festival will continue tomorrow."

"Yes, today is a pre-festival to celebrate the harvest. The prayers to the Earth Spirit will be offered tomorrow."

"The priest is coming!"

"You remember well, Aria."

"From the town of Wayne?"

The lady of the house, sitting next to her, gently stroked the abundant, wavy golden hair of her youngest sister.

The priest Aria mentioned would likely be sent from the temple that worships the Earth Spirit and god. When Nod mentioned the name of the nearby town with the Adventurers' Guild, the lady nodded deeply.

"Alba village is close to Wayne, so we have a deep relationship and benefit from it."

"Oh, that's why I thought there were so many people today."

"Many of the people in Wayne have relatives in Alba village."

These relatives would return to Alba village for the Spirit Festival. Nod now understood why the village seemed more crowded than usual during the day, with more people than the village's population, even excluding the merchants.

"By the way, Nod, did you have something to do?"

"Oh, right. I wanted to give this to Newt."

"!"

Nod opened the package in his hand and took out a skewer.

He had rushed back after buying it, so it was still warm. When he opened the package, a delicious aroma filled the living room.

Newt, who had been wagging his tail, perked up when Nod said, "Here, have it," and eagerly bit into the skewer.

Newt held the skewer skillfully with his front paws and ate the meat. Emilia exclaimed, "Cute!"

Emilia, still sitting, looked up at Nod expectantly. Seeing this, Nod handed her the skewer.

"Thank you, Nod-nii-sama!"

"You're welcome."

"Here, Newt, have another one."

Emilia, with a radiant smile, offered a new skewer to Newt, who had finished the first one. Newt gently placed his front paws on Emilia's hand and ate the meat from the skewer.

"Hey, Onee-sama, I want to do it too."

"Sorry, Nod. Can you give me one too?"

"Of course, I don't mind."

Seeing this, Aria, who was sitting next to Kataria, started to pout, wanting to do it too. At four years old, she was likely at the age where she wanted to imitate her older sister.

Nod happily handed her the next skewer, and with Kataria's support, Aria and Emilia offered the skewer to Newt.

Newt, happy to eat his favorite skewers one after another, chirped happily.

While watching Newt eat the skewers, wagging his tail, Nod remembered something and started rummaging in his pocket.

"Here, for you, sister-in-law. I have some for everyone else too."

"What is this? Oh, a beautiful comb!"

"Can I have one too?"

"Of course, it's a token of my gratitude. I'm sorry, it's not much."

Nod handed out intricately decorated wooden combs. There were enough for all the Oubriere sisters.

The combs had cute patterns like flowers and birds, which Nod thought would be suitable for young women.

The other sisters in the living room, Franca and May, also smiled at the gifts Nod offered.

"I'm glad you like them."

"Thank you, Nod-sama."

"No, no, it would be a pleasure if the combs could be used to style your beautiful hair."

"Oh, you're so good with words."

"Oh, there you are."

At that moment, the door to the living room opened, and Johann entered.

"Oh, Nod... Yes, those are combs."

"Yes, brother-in-law. Nod-sama gave us gifts."

"They're not bad... But didn't you spend a lot buying five of them?"

"No, not at all. A fair merchant gave me a good discount when I told him they were for the ladies."

"I see, that's good."

Nod told Johann in a low voice that it cost two large copper coins in total.

He had intentionally fallen for a merchant's trick of trying to sell him items at an inflated price to someone who couldn't read, and pointed it out before the transaction. When Nod pretended to be suspicious, the merchant, stammering, gave a significant discount.

"By the way, I have a favor to ask of you, Nod."

"What is it?"

"Well, I just saw the Spirit Festival. The skewers are selling better than expected, and they might run out of meat by noon tomorrow."

"I see, so you want me to go hunting in the forest."

"Thanks, that's a relief. It seems Roz, the hunter, won't be enough, so can you help?"

"Of course. I feel guilty just eating, so I'd be happy to help."

Newt had just finished the last skewer and was licking the meat juice off Emilia and Aria's hands with his red tongue.

"Newt, you've had your fill, right? Let's go do some work."

"Kyu!"

When Nod called out, Newt chirped loudly, as if to say, "Leave it to me," and then let out a puff of air from his mouth.