Wings of the Wasteland
""Good evening—""
I spoke to the four who were devouring curry with all their might.
"Mm? Ah, Lady Belle, good evening… Ahhhh!"
"What is it, Frank? Hm? … Eh? Ehhh!?"
""… Munch munch….""
At the sound of their leader Frank’s voice, Bosco, who I had once healed of an injury during a subjugation in Lampail, looked up to check us and was shocked. Meanwhile, the other two, Peck and Murdock, were too absorbed in the curry to even glance over.
"Eh? You’re the Young Lady of House Lampail, aren’t you? Eh? Why?"
"It’s been a while. I came to visit Belle during the summer holidays. Is it good? The curry."
"Ah, so this dish is… Wait, you guys are way too absorbed!"
Smack! Smack! ""Ow! What was that for, Bosco!!""
"You two, pay attention already!"
""Huh? … Ahhhhhhh!!""
""Ahahaha.""
The adventurer party Wings of the Wasteland, belonging to the Burst Adventurers’ Guild, had apparently been asked by Belle’s father to act as undercover observers during the upcoming free onigiri distribution.
"Ahh, but seeing Young Lady Joan here, I get it now."
"Yeah, we were shocked too when we ate rice in Lampail."
""… Munch munch….""
"You should have told us back then—."
"Ahh, sorry. I did report the subjugation and all to the Lord, but… I didn’t report about the food…"
Frank apologized to Belle.
Huh? But why would there be anything to report to Belle's father?
Weren’t they just adventurers coming to Lampail?
… Wait. Five years ago was the same year Belle and I became friends, and even Young Master Eric was wary at first that I might be a danger to Belle…
Ahh, so that’s how it was. I see, I see.
"What’s wrong, Joan? Why are you laughing?"
"Eh? Oh, I was just thinking Frank and the others must’ve had way more important things to report than curry."
"Eh? What do you mean?"
"Mmm, basically it means Belle is loved by everyone. Right, Frank?"
""""!!""""
"What? I don’t really get it?"
"Ah, never mind that, Belle—weren’t you going to serve sherbet to your mother and Lady Isabella?"
"Ah! Oh no! I almost forgot. I’ll go right now."
Belle hurried off to fetch the sherbet we had prepared between curry cooking. Watching her leave, Frank spoke to me.
"Uh, Young LadyJoan?"
"Hm?"
"Uh, since when…?"
"Eh? Ahh, you mean since when did I realize you were asked by Belle's father to investigate me? Just now."
"Just now…? But why?"
"Bosco, remember what Frank just said? He mentioned reporting the subjugation to Belle's father."
"Yeah, he did."
"Then why would you have reports to make? You’re just adventurers. You might owe reports to the Guildmaster, but you’ve got no obligation to the Lord of the land, right? That’s when I thought, huh, strange. And that was the year I became friends with Belle… Around then, Young Master Eric said he was wary of me at our first meeting, because back then Belle was being targeted with all kinds of nasty things by other noble ladies.
So I figured, maybe Belle's father had you investigate me because he was worried about Belle. After all, things like contracting a Pegasus, doing First Aid for adventurers, or cooking despite being a noble lady are way bigger reports than just eating rice, right?"
""""……""""
"Come on, say something. I’m not upset about it. I mean, the fact that I’m here in Burst now means Belle's father gave me a passing grade, right?"
"Well, true, but… didn’t you dislike having your background checked?"
"Peck, that’s normal for nobles. I bet back home they investigated Belle and Young Master Eric too. It’s just an unspoken rule. More importantly… the curry’s going to run out. Look, the private soldiers are lining up already."
"Eh? Ah, crap! Murdock, let’s go—oh no, they’re already lining up!"
Peck scrambled to get in line for seconds.
"Jooaaan, explain the sherbet for meee."
Belle, serving dessert to her mother and Lady IsaBellea, called for help.
"Coming— Anyway, Frank, Bosco, eat up lots, okay?"
"Uh, Young Lady Joan…"
"It’s fine. What we just talked about stays between us. Oh, right. Here, take this."
"This is…?"
"Curry bread. It’s got curry inside. There are only two, so don’t tell Peck and Murdock. See you."
""Thank you very much.""
I waved them off and went over to help Belle.
"Sigh… I can’t believe she figured all that out just from what I said…"
"She’s… one unpredictable Young Lady."
"Well, at least she seems to be getting along with Young Lady Belle. That’s good, right?"
"Yeah. Anyway, let’s eat this curry bread before Peck and the others come back."
"Yeah, good idea."
Chomp. ""Delicious!""
"The bread’s fried and… huh? Hmmm…"
"What’s wr— Wait!? Spicy!! Water, water, water…!"
Gulp gulp "Haaah… way too spicy!"
Gulp gulp gulp "Haaah, haaah, haaah… my mouth’s still burning. And it’s kind of numb…"
As the two glared resentfully at Joan for giving them such a thing, they saw her laughing and chatting with the Belle family. Suddenly she whipped her head toward them, gave them a sly grin, and shot them a thumbs-up.
""!!""
"Sigh… I guess she was a little mad at us after all…"
"Well, if this is all the punishment we get… though my mouth’s still on fire…"
"We’ve got to make Peck and Murdock eat some too."
"Of course. These leftovers are for them."
Although Joan accepted their assignment as reasonable for a noble, she was still a little annoyed—so she gifted them the Ultra-Spicy Curry Bread Mk II. Unlike the normal spicy bread overloaded with chili peppers, this one also had a massive dose of sansho pepper she had found in Crimson Woods.
Later, Peck and Murdock also fell victim to the Ultra-Spicy Curry Bread Mk II—but for now, they were happily lining up for more curry with big smiles on their faces. That smile would soon twist into agony from spiciness and numbness—fifteen minutes later.
What do you think about this chapter?
