Haaa…
I have been sighing more and more lately…
My name is Cecille. I am close to my thirties. I am not in my thirties! Just close to it! I am still young! There’s still time for me to look for my destined man.
I work as a guild receptionist for adventurers in Nanab Harbor Town.
This place is great. We get to eat various foods. We can trade off fish for meat or buy it. We sell various sea stuff too. Despite being just a town, our economy is stable, sometimes it declines, but it doesn’t really do any permanent damage to us who lives here.
The breeze here is great. I love the sea. It’s a wonderful place for me. As a child, I live in the inner land. Specifically, inside a small forest, my hometown is located. Not a pretty desolate place as merchants and travelers can easily traverse inside the forest. But seeing trees every day and farming made me sick. As I become fifteen, I venture out of that place and become an adventurer myself.
At first, I feel really great about myself doing commissions. I rise up the rank every year or two. I am adept at using the spear as it is the only weapon that I am interested as a child or more so, it’s the only weapon I can make on my own with just a wood.
After years of years of adventuring, I got stuck at rank B. It was kind of frustrating because rank A’s adventurers are either has been adventuring far longer than I have or just a talented individual.
Of course, in my younger dumb years, boys flock to me not because female adventurers are rare. It is because of my good skill with spear and my looks…my looks.
I retired seven years after I started. It was an early retirement from being an adventurer as more and more people already outclassed me and it made me bitter.
My hopes and dreams were crushed by the reality brought by gifted and talented people. They are so lucky to be born with such strength!
I settled in this town and used up all of my savings to buy a decent house here. My job as the guild receptionist is a bit hard because of the rowdy men and women. But all in all, it was fun.
I got to live my life slowly and peacefully.
But… there’s something I want. I don’t know what it is. But something…
…
After some years of working in the Nanab Harbor Town as a receptionist, I decided to go on a trip to relieve myself from the stress and traveled a bit with the approval of the guild headmaster and a recommendation from someone I know.
While traveling…I met this girl… around the age of twelve… in a desolated place devoid of any other humans… with nothing but snow and freezing water… with tons of monsters…
With a beautiful silver hair, lovely round yellow eyes and fair skin…
It was an ephemeral beauty and cuteness unbound by any negative emotions…
As our gazes met, she just smiled cheerfully at me…
She gestured at me something by opening her mouth and pointing her fingers in.
“Eh? Food? Wait, wait!”
“Ehehe!~”
I rummage through my things and found bread dipped and covered in butter. I also hand her a canister of clean water.
She takes both of it, but she didn’t eat it immediately.
“Is something wrong? Wait, aren’t you cold?!”
“Umm… miss… can I really eat this?”
“I gave it to you. You are free to eat it!”
“Ehehe. Thank you very much for the food, for the blessing you have bestowed upon me.”
“Hmm. What a weird child you are…”
I take off my coat out of consideration for this little girl as the harshness of the cold temperature isn’t forgiving to weak bodies.
“Eh? Is it really okay? I am not really cold, though.”
“No, no, no. You are just wearing that thin clothes in the midst of this winter. And a girl shouldn’t expose her skin to too much cold as it can also damage it.”
“Muh? How about you, miss?”
“Ahaha. I am an adult! I can hand--- achooo!”
“Ahahaha! Miss looks silly!”
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“Cheeky brat! But damn! You’re really cute when you laugh like that!”
“Thank you.”
“Achoo!”
“Ah… then I’ll just do this so you won’t get cold.”
The girl, who I gave my coat to, hugs me tightly. It was getting a bit warm…
No, no, no!
Her hug is a bit tight…no…it kind of breaking me!
“Hey! Hey! Hey! You are going to snap my back into half!”
“OH! Sorry…”
“Geez…what’s with yo--!”
As I am about to lecture her…
Something dangerous came…
A wild Frost Wyrm…
A type of magical beast that lives in cold places and rumored to freeze adventurers in one breath to death…
This is dangerous…
“Little girl… we… are in danger…”
“Oh?”
“This frost wyrm here…”
I have to steel myself. I cannot leave this girl behind. No, my consciousness told me not to. I feel like this is a fated encounter between me and her.
But… a frost wyrm is a commission to slay for A-rank adventurer or a group commission for B-rank.
On top of that, I don’t have any weapons here. If I were alone, I’d be using my feet and wits to run and avoid this monster…but as the situation gives… I can’t do that…
“Little girl… get behind me!”
“Eh?”
“Don’t “eh” me! This is a matter of life and death!”
The frost wyrm saw us and walks cautiously to us. I can feel my whole body shaking with fear…
The monster in front of me is a size of a house… I can use a magic, but it’s a magic for healing and recovery.
RAAAAAAAAAAAWRRRR!
N-no!
It’s charging right straight to us.
I close my eyes because of its sudden attack. I can feel like my mind is recounting the days I have spent in this world. How I lived my life and all the happy and sad times that I experience.
BAM!
I heard something loud…
The attack never came…
I slowly open my eyes…
The girl, who I hid behind me is now standing atop of the frost wyrm with detached head.
Eh?
What just happened?!
“L-little girl… that…”
“OOOHH? It was easy you know. It died with one kick.”
“Eh?! You…killed it?!”
“Yes…”
“Amazing…”
“Umm… isn’t it scary?”
“I was really scared! I thought I was going to die!”
“No…miss… do you hate…strong children?”
“Ah? What are you…!”
She looks down as she speaks. In her eyes, I can feel that she has been through in hardships. A child of her age…is dealing with something…
“Little girl…what’s your name?”
“Alstroemeria!”
“Such lovely name… I am Cecille. You can call me however you like.”
“Un!”
“Will you come with me, Alstroemeria?”
“Where?”
“To my home, it’s going to be quite a travel, but I can assure you a good stay.”
“Okay!~”
“…do not just trust strangers like that…”
“?”
With that, I have traveled home together with Alstroemeria to Nanab Harbor Town.
On our way, she’s been curious about many things and I patiently teach her and answered all of her inquisitions. She learns fast but quite an air head when it comes to fundamentals of life. Nevertheless, she is a genius in arithmetic. She also said she learned the way of the Ki. She’s been meditating first thing in the morning, telling me that she wants to be kept connected to the world.
A bright and talented child! Well…not so bright in many things and many ways…
Our travel has ended and we arrived at the Nanab Harbor Town. I introduced her to the headmaster and to my other co-workers. She receives praises and some criticize her.
I told her about her strength which I witness too during our time together. Some just scoff it off as a bluff. Some are skeptical…
I understand that very well. Everyone doesn’t want to be outmatched by a child…
So for now, I brought her home and feed her and brought her clothes.