The Cause of Lily’s Fatigue
I went to report the quest completion at the Adventurers' Guild.
"… Yes. Quest completion confirmed. Thank you for your hard work."
"...…"
"Hm? Joan, what’s wrong?"
"Well… Miss Lily, you look exhausted. Haven’t you been sleeping? I didn’t notice earlier, but the dark circles under your eyes are really bad, you know?"
"Ah, well… work has just been piling up a bit."
Looking around, I noticed there weren’t any other adventurers lined up at reception.
"Miss Lily, do you have a minute?"
"… Yes."
"Here, eat this."
I pulled something from storage and handed it over.
"Huh? Dried sweet potato?"
"Yep. But it’s not the regular kind you buy—it’s homemade."
"Eh? You made this, Joan?"
"That’s right. By the way, why is work piling up so much?"
"Ah, well, three of the staff all took leave at the same time…"
"Eh? Why? Were they sick?"
"No, not that… Do you know a staff member named Roman?"
"Ah, you mean that guy who’s all about ‘accept everyone, chase no one away,’ loves chaos, and has zero self-control with women?"
"… You sure know him well."
"So, what happened with Roman? Ah, don’t tell me—he messed up again? Got involved with coworkers and was two-timing, maybe?"
"… Bingo."
"Yikes. And now all the workload’s been dumped on you, huh, Miss Lily."
"Pretty much. Even though we’re short-handed, when two receptionists get into an actual brawl over him, with both their faces bruised, they can’t exactly be the Guild’s face at the counter. As for Roman—the cause of it all—he’s been forced into house arrest."
"I see… But honestly, if he keeps that up, one day a woman’s going to stab him. He’s probably even inviting girls over while he’s supposed to be on house arrest."
"Hah, true enough. But maybe if he dies once, he’ll learn?"
"No, no. They say stupidity doesn’t heal even in death."
"Sigh…"
"… Why are you two drinking tea in my office?"
The Guildmaster muttered, exasperated.
Yes, we were having this conversation in his office.
"Because this is Guild shame we’re talking about, right? We can’t exactly chat about it openly downstairs."
"Well… fair enough."
"And besides, I can’t just hand out my dried sweet potatoes in public."
"Why not?"
"Because when I make them with my skill, the effects are… absurd."
""… Huh?""
"I mean, if you eat it today, by tomorrow all your fatigue and everything else will be completely gone."
I showed them by doing a Search on the dried sweet potato and revealing its effects.
""……""
They fell silent.
"Young Lady… is it really okay for Lily to have this?"
"Yeah, it should be fine. After all, both the Guildmaster and Miss Lily already know about my skills here, right? So it’s fine… Probably."
"Hey, don’t ‘probably’ me! Spare me, will you? It’d be one thing if Stan or Gray found out, but I really don’t want to get scolded by Madam or Nancy."
"Ahaha, fine, I’ll explain it properly. We’ll just say it’s all Roman’s fault."
"Miss… if you say that, Roman’s a dead man."
"He’ll be fine~ Oh! Or maybe someone should just chop it off."
"… Chop what off?"
"That."
The Guildmaster went pale and instinctively placed his hands over his crotch. Lily, on the other hand—
"Ahaha… That might be a good idea… hehehe."
She agreed with it, smiling darkly.
Miss Lily… you must be really exhausted.
She actually approved the idea. With a sinister laugh, no less.
---
When I returned to the manor, Sarah urged me to change clothes.
Curious, I asked why. Apparently, a famous wandering artisan had come to pay his respects.
Ohh… must be Mr. Gandarl, right? I didn’t realize he was that famous.
Knock knock knock. "Excuse me."
"Come in."
After Father’s permission, I entered the reception room.
There sat Mr. Gandarl, tidied up much better than before. He clearly hadn’t realized I was the adventurer from earlier.
"Mr. Gandarl, let me introduce my eldest daughter."
"I am Joan Lampail, eldest daughter of the Lampail family."
I greeted him with a graceful curtsy, deliberately avoiding eye contact so he wouldn’t recognize me yet.
"Well, well, what a charming young lady."
I sat beside Father and listened.
As expected, he was here to ask permission to search for ore veins. Of course, Father happily granted it.
"Master Gandarl, if you’d like, why not join us for dinner? Without parental bias, I can say my eldest daughter is an excellent cook."
"Hooh… A noble’s daughter who cooks, that’s unusual. However, perhaps another time…"
"Oh my, Mr. Gandarl, why is that? Are you saying my humble cooking—mere hobby of a noble lady—is untrustworthy?"
"No, no, not at all… It’s just… I’m not fond of overly formal cuisine, you see."
"Then, what if it’s food that pairs well with ale?"
"W-What!? Food that goes with ale… Hm? Young lady… have we met before?"
"Ahaha, yes. Earlier today, in the Westwoods cave."
"Ahh! You’re that adventurer young lady!?"
I quickly explained for Father’s sake.
"Gahaha! To think you were the lord’s daughter! You should have said so—keeping it secret, you’re quite the sly one, young miss."
"Well, when I’m adventuring, I act as just Joan, not as a noble’s daughter…. So? How about food that goes well with ale?"
"Food with ale… That does intrigue me…"
"Then I’ll serve you casual dishes. By the way, the food you ate earlier—that was my cooking too."
"What!? Those stuffed breads, that long kneaded wheat thing in broth—those were yours?"
"Yes. Just a hobby, but tasty, weren’t they?"
"Aye, they were delicious… Lord Lampail, forgive me, but may I accept your dinner invitation after all? I regret turning it down earlier."
"Of course, Master Gandarl. In fact, why not stay overnight at our estate?"
"No, but—"
"Yes, Mr. Gandarl. That way even if you drink too much at dinner, you won’t get carried off by goblins again. Hehe."
"Oh, young lady… must you bring that up… Very well, I’ll take you up on your kind offer."
"Then we’ll have your luggage brought from the inn. Gray."
"At once."
Alright then—time to whip up food that pairs perfectly with both booze and rice!
Let’s get cooking!
What do you think about this chapter?
