Old Friend
I woke up to the sound of the alarm and looked at the clock. It was six in the morning.
“Sleepy…”
I’d gotten up earlier than usual, so I was seriously tired, but I still managed to drag myself up and leave the bedroom. Then I started preparing breakfast.
Once I had a decent amount done, I went into Mary’s room.
There, Mary was sleeping on the bed, having kicked off her blanket, stomach exposed, with a stupid-looking face on display.
This was the former noble young lady everyone talked about.
“Mary, get up. It’s morning.”
“It’s still night~… munyamunya.”
She’s the only person I know who says “munyamunya” for real.
“You’re the one who told me to wake you up. Don’t cause trouble for Katrina.”
Apparently she was doing adventurer work again today, but before that, she was going to Katrina’s place for a strategy meeting.
“Katrina’s still sleeping too~…”
“The church girl is already awake. Just get up and eat breakfast.”
When I said that, Mary slowly sat up, so I left the room and went back to preparing breakfast.
Then Mary came out rubbing her eyes.
“Mornin’~…”
“Good morning. Go wash your face. And give Rachel water and feed.”
“I knowww…”
Mary went to the washroom and washed her face, then headed to the backyard to take care of Rachel.
Watching her from the kitchen, I really thought she’d grown up.
Well, compared to kids her age, she was still on the small side.
After that, the two of us ate breakfast, then went to the shop side and started getting ready to open.
“Yaaay, Eric~! Look at me, look at me. Ain’t I cute?”
Mary came out from the living quarters after changing clothes and struck the exact same pose as yesterday.
“Cute, cute. More importantly, let me see your sword.”
“Here ya go.”
Mary drew her shortsword and handed it over, so I checked it.
“Hmm…”
“I did maintenance on it properly, just like you said.”
Looks like she did…
“Listen. A weapon is something you entrust your life to. Even if you’ve got magic, be careful.”
“I know already. I’ve heard it a million times~”
She’d picked up Angela’s influence here and there, and she talked kind of like a gyaru now…
There wasn’t a trace of that noble young lady left anymore.
“Is that so? Then get going. Don’t stay out late.”
“I know. Besides, Katrina’s curfew is six.”
The church is strict as hell.
“Be careful out there.”
“Hell yeah! The legend never ends!”
The idiot went charging out in high spirits.
Then while I was cleaning the shop and such, Angela arrived.
“Bossss~ morning~ Your proud poster girl showed up again today~”
“Morning. Wipe down the windows and counter with a rag.”
“Roger. By the way, I passed your daughter sprinting at full speed first thing this morning.”
My idiot, huh.
“She’s probably having fun.”
“She’s so energetic~ Did you drink the wine?”
“I didn’t. I don’t know when the right timing is.”
When I marry her off, maybe?
“You should drink it sooner. If she finds out you haven’t touched the wine she bought, she’ll think, ‘Did he not want it?’”
Is that how it works?
“That’s a pretty heavy gift.”
“The only one thinking that is the person receiving it. I doubt Mary thought that deeply about it.”
“Did you ever give your parents anything?”
“With my first paycheck from this shop, I bought ingredients and made dinner.”
Hoh~... how nice.
“How’d your parents react?”
“My dad got over hating tomatoes.”
Good for him.
At this rate, I feel like I could get over hating green peppers too.
After that, once we finished cleaning, we opened the shop and got to work.
Then the shop door opened, and a customer came in.
“Mind if I come in?”
“Hm? Arvin?”
The customer was a handsome man with short blond hair, wearing a military uniform.
It was Arvin, an old friend who worked as an instructor in the army.
“Yo, Eric. How’s business?”
Arvin walked up to the counter.
Something about the way he moved was a little stiff.
“Normal.”
“That’s a boring answer. Angela, doing good?”
Arvin called out to Angela too.
“Super good~”
“You really are cute~ And you’ve grown too.”
Where are you looking, bastard?
“I knowww~ Also, that’s se*ual harassment~ I’m reporting you to the army and your wife, got it?”
“Haha, just joking. You’re working hard as always. So when are you marrying Eric?”
“When Eric finally learns to let go of his daughter.”
“………………”
Don’t go silent on me.
If you’ve got something to say, say it.
“Arvin, what do you need?”
“Ah, right, sorry. I need an adjustment.”
“Got it. Come around back.”
Arvin came inside the service area.
“Mr. Arvin, here you go.”
Angela set down two chairs.
“Thanks. Oof. Man, winter’s over and it’s getting warm. Times like this make me want a drink.”
Arvin sat down and placed both legs on the other chair.
At first glance it looked rude, but it couldn’t be helped.
“You say the same thing every year.”
Once winter came, it would be, “It’s gotten real cold. Times like this make me want a drink.”
“That’s just how it is.”
Arvin rolled up the hems of his pants.
Then mechanical legs, not human ones, came into view.
Arvin was a former comrade.
He was one of the Black Shadows, the unit I fought beside during the war, a brother-in-arms who survived alongside me.
But Arvin had lost both legs to an enemy trap, landmine magic hidden in the forest.
After that, he’d returned here, to his hometown of Milon.
What do you think about this chapter?
