I regarded the older man at the other side of the table with suspicion. What was this guy scheming this time? Had he really not been involved in the situation, or was he looking for a convenient scapegoat?

For some reason, though, adventuring with Emeri didn’t sound so bad. I still vividly remembered her spearmanship, which had lit a competitive flame in my chest at the time. I had a vague feeling that I could relight that flame if I spent more time with her.

If the cardinal noticed my suspicion, he didn’t show it, because his smile never faltered for a second. Emeri, meanwhile, was still waiting for my response.

“All right. I won’t say no to some adventuring, it sounds fun. However, I expect the church to clean up whoever was responsible for this… ‘rogue’ quest.”

The cardinal’s eyes narrowed slightly, his countenance becoming slightly more threatening.

“Don’t you worry about that, young man. Don’t worry even a bit…”

A few hours later, I had settled the rest of my business in Reito. Emeri had accompanied me as I walked around the trade district, though she hadn’t said much. Her silence had nonetheless allowed me to get through my preparations for the coming journey in no time. I’d also delivered my tier 2 armor back to its original creator. The set had become so banged up and sheared that it didn’t even resemble armor anymore, but it still held sentimental value. In hopes of preserving it, I’d asked the young blacksmith to repair as best he could, so that I could show it off on an armor stand in the future.

Without the chunky, difficult-to-move-in armor, I felt light and free. At the moment, I only wore some leather equipment, and hid underneath a brand-new black cloak that came with a hood and everything. It didn’t provide any protection, as such… but it suited its intended purpose.

With our preparations done, I intended to visit my parents before setting off to explore any new countries, so I told Emeri as much. She’d simply nodded, before walking off in the other direction. Maybe she still held a grudge over how I had riled her up in the finals?

As I made my way to Reito’s gates, I wondered how I could improve her attitude. Maybe an apology or… a gift? This required some more thought.

Lost in those very thoughts, I only noticed I had left the city a few minutes later. Strangely, I had this odd feeling that I was being… watched. Was my mysterious enemy already on the move? My weak mana sense hadn’t picked up on anything, which meant that, at most, this skulking presence was at tier 4. I could handle a tier 4 if necessary, let alone escape one.

As I headed further and further away from civilization, the feeling persisted. I kept my guard up and my hand on my sword hilt while scouring the treeline. Strangely, whoever was following me hadn’t made a move yet, for no discernible reason. We were perfectly isolated, with no sign of anyone else nearby.

Yet, nothing happened.

Night fell, and I made a small camp in a clearing, just like I always did. As the fire simmered, I sat in the lotus position and closed my eyes, as if I was meditating. I hoped that the presence would attempt to take advantage of this opportunity. Still, nothing happened. Still, I was certain someone was watching me. Eventually, I had had enough.

“Don’t you think now would be a good time to come out? I know you’re there.” I called out into the shadows of the trees, which were illuminated by my campfire.

A rustle from within the dancing shadows. Then another… suddenly, a familiar figure appeared.

“Emeri? Is that you?”

“…hi…” she said quietly.

I regarded her for a moment, shocked. She had been the one to follow me the entire time?

“Why were you following me? What were you planning?” I growled lowly.

“Nothing!” she hurriedly responded. “I just… just…”

“Just, what?” I enunciated.

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“I don’t know where to sleep in the city.” She replied very quietly and very quickly.

I squinted.

“…What?”

“…”

“Ever heard of an inn? Or how about a church?” I asked, still incredulous at the excuse she was attempting to use. Did she really think I would believe something like this?

“I… was supposed to follow you… I couldn’t return to the church and I… don’t know what an inn looks like, or how to use one…”

I facepalmed. This girl wasn’t just sheltered, she didn’t have even an inkling of how the world worked! Cerion had been bad enough at first, but this was something else… Why did everyone keep their kids inside so much? Did the high tiers only let their kid train and nothing else?

I sighed.

“All right, let’s say this ridiculous excuse of yours is the truth. Why did you think following me from a distance was the right move?”

“I didn’t think you’d notice, and I was embarrassed.” She said, more bashfully this time.

“Right…” I said with a half-smile unimpressed, before inviting her to join me by the fire. I had packed enough for a long journey, so it stood to reason that I had enough spare gear to give her a tent and a sleeping bag. Ten minutes later, after she’d eaten her fill of board meat, from a wild one that I had caught during the day, she started to open up a lot more. Having regained some of her confidence, she became much easier to talk to, though she still seemed a little… apprehensive sometimes. Maybe that apology and that present were still on the table…

The next few days passed fairly monotonously. We were traveling on foot to avoid any undue attention, which meant that we were taking quite a while just to get to Rolla. Eventually, though, my hometown hooved into view. From the top of the hill, the view that met us was that of a quaint little town nestled into a green valley.

The tranquillity of the sight put a smile on my face, but Emeri had a very different reaction.

“That has to be the smallest town I’ve ever seen!” she said in wonder.

I groaned. “That’s not usually said as a compliment, Emeri.”

“Really? Why? Is it bad that it’s small?” she asked as she turned to me, curious, before she caught on to what I meant. “Oh… sorry.” She said in a small voice.

“Think nothing of it.” I called out behind me, as I’d already started to descend toward the town.

Ten minutes and a few muffled greetings from the townsfolk later, I found myself in front of quite a busy bakery. An unfamiliar lady was tending to some customers as I walked inside, causing one of my brows to rise in confusion. Emeri was instead drawn to the various pastries on display, her face nearly touching the brand-new glass pane that hung above them.

“Can I have this?” she suddenly asked, far louder than I had yet heard her talk. She was pointing at a steaming apple cake. An entire apple cake.

“You can pay for it.” I replied with a grin. Suddenly, a middle-aged lady that I instantly recognised as mom appeared from the back of the bakery, carrying a tray of fresh buns. Apparently, she had heard our little exchange, because the moment she set the tray down, she took the cake out of the display and handed the entire tray to Emeri. Without even greeting me, she instead welcomed my companion.

“Of course you can have it, sweet girl. Anybody with a good eye for pastry is in my good books.” Mom said happily. Emeri received the tray with both hands, before awkwardly trying to look for a place to eat. Before I could even get a word in, mom had already dragged Emeri along with her cake, to the back of the bakery.

Astounded by mom ignoring me in favour of coddling Emeri, I followed them in a huff. Since when did she not even recognise her own son anymore?!

As I got to the back, I found Emeri making faces as she nearly squealed at the taste of mom’s apple cake recipe. Mom, meanwhile, was asking her various questions, to which Emeri would nod or shake her head in reply, too busy devouring what little was left of one of my favorite cakes. I hadn’t even gotten a piece…

As I entered, mom finally acknowledged me.

“Oh, hi Arthur.” She said, before resuming her questions. Sighing, I just left them to it and headed to the living room. Emeri would eventually realise that she had made a deal with the devil… Why did mom take to her so well, though? Whatever.

As I entered the living space, I found dad sitting and the floor playing with little amber, who was laying on a fluffy-looking carpet while holding some small wooden toys. Dad had his back turned to me, so I called out.

“Hi, dad. I’m back from my latest mission.” I said suddenly.

He jumped in shock, before turning around. “Arthur! You’re back!” Before I knew it, my old man had wrapped me up in a hug, while Amber continued to play. Well, she was just shaking her toys, but I guess that counts as playing.

Me and dad caught up for a little while, while Amber continuously distracted us with her being… you know, a baby. Apparently, mom and dad had hired a couple of people to run the bakery, though they still did all the actual baking. They took turns watching Amber while the other worked for the day, which had been a way for them to take breaks, I guess. Amber still took a lot of time and energy to look after, but I’d been no different as a kid. Thankfully, no other problems had arisen while I had been gone, though dad didn’t seem to like the stories I told of the between lands. I guess Marie reminded him of Amber too.

About two hours in, mom and Emeri joined us. Mom was in front, practically dragging my traveling companion along behind her and shoving her onto one of the chairs at the dining table. Emeri looked frazzled. The cake had long since been finished, so she’d been left to mom’s tender mercies for the past several hours. Who knew how many strange questions she had been asked by the she-devil known as mother. Before she could run away, though, mom made an announcement.

“Emeri will be sleeping in the guest room for the next few days, before you two set off Helios knows where. Both your father and I would like to get to know her better in the meantime. Isn’t that right, dear?” mom explained authoritatively. Sometimes, no, all the time, mom could be like a whirlwind.

“Uh… what is this about, dear?” dad asked. Noticing mom’s glare, however, he changed tunes. “Oh, right! Um, of course. Why don’t I go clean your room right now, miss Emeri? It’s not much, but it should be warm and dry, at least.” He said, before scampering out of the living room.

Emeri looked at me pleadingly, her eyes glistening with tears like a doe about to be slaughtered. No doubt, an inn was starting to sound pretty good right about now…