R302 | Chapter 7

Not long after Ain left, guests and villagers began gathering in the dining room for breakfast. Busy moving around with Heiker, soon Nidia arrived at work, and the three of them diligently attended to the guests.

Only after working tirelessly did they find a moment to rest. Licht sat across from Nidia, who was having breakfast, and they chatted. When Nidia heard that Ain had taken on a cat-finding request, she was shocked.

‘What are you making His Majesty do, Licht!’

She knew it wasn’t forced. No one could command Ain, and he wasn’t the type to follow orders anyway. Nidia, like Licht, had seen Ain often when they were younger, so she knew that much.

Ten years ago, when a noble caused trouble in the village, Ain refused to comply and even hit him, which led to his arrest. It was said that the current Chancellor, Duke Segtia, helped him get released… Anyway, Ain was someone who stood firm if he thought something was wrong.

‘Still, though….’

To an ordinary citizen like Nidia, making the king do something (especially running around looking for a cat) seemed like a serious insult to the royal family. If His Majesty got upset, the end for the insolent would be the execution ground….

Nidia wanted to subtly give a hint to prevent a tragic outcome. But knowing Licht’s personality, he would make it obvious that he knew a secret and ask Ain directly, and Ain, who didn’t want Licht to know, would search for who told, and Nidia would end up paying for her loose lips….

“Nidia.”

“Ahhhh!”

Suddenly hearing her name, Nidia screamed. Turning around, she saw Albina tilting her head with a curious expression. Nidia’s face turned pale.

“Oh, Albina-nim.”

“Oh, no need to be so formal…. Just call me Bina…. Ruschilka is called Lucy….”

Albina winked. It was a gesture meaning, ‘You’re quick-witted, so you get it, right?’ Of course, Nidia understood. They didn’t want to reveal their identities. Nidia quickly nodded.

“Bina-nim.”

“Nim sounds… too distant…. You can call me like Licht does….”

“Bina-ssi?”

Licht chimed in, offering an example. Albina nodded in satisfaction.

“Yes… like that.”

“Yes, yes…. Bina-nim, I mean, Bina-ssi.”

Better not to call them by name. Ain’s companions, though not as intimidating as him, were still in daunting positions.

Albina Blanche was one of the key figures who brought down the tyrant with Ain and held the position of Chief Mage, second only to the tower master in the notorious magic tower. It wasn’t good to catch the eye of such a person. Though she already had.

“Why… why did you call me?”

“Oh, just… your hair was messy….”

“…Ah.”

“It’s better to tie it again….”

Nidia nodded absentmindedly. Though she was intimidated by their status, they were good people. Ain and the other four.

…She knew, but it was still nerve-wracking. She had to behave well from now on.

Nidia quickly finished her meal and hurried to the kitchen. Albina watched her retreating figure with amusement. At that moment, Maser approached and whispered.

“Why are you grinning slyly?”

“Sly is… more fitting for you…. Maser.”

“What did I do?”

“You know what you did, right? Reflect on it with your hand on your heart.”

Bjorn snapped as he sat down. Maser looked around.

“Where are Lucy and Ain-nim?”

“Lucy… went to the temple early in the morning to pray…. Ain-nim… I don’t know….”

“Oh, Ain went out for a request.”

“A request?”

Licht’s words were news to Bjorn. Frowning, he wondered if something had happened. Unaware, Licht smiled brightly.

“Our inn also serves as a request office. Ain took on a request to help out and went out.”

“Re-really? What kind of request?”

“A cat-finding request?”

“…A cat.”

Bjorn was bewildered, unsure how to react to Ain taking on such a trivial request. Licht, oblivious to Bjorn’s confusion, explained cheerfully.

“Yes, Rona lost her cat. It’s a quick one, always running away, but Ain should be able to catch it, right?”

“Y-yeah…. He should be able to.”

What on earth is he doing?! Bjorn silently screamed inside. It wasn’t like ten years ago when they were short on money and took on any request or bounty to buy equipment and tools!

Bjorn closed his eyes tightly and opened them, taking a deep breath to calm down.

…Well, he’ll manage. He’s been ruling the Kingdom of Elio splendidly for ten years. He’ll handle it well. Even if he acts a bit eccentric, the villagers here are tight-lipped, so it won’t leak out. Bjorn rationalized, half giving up.

“Oh, would you like to order food?”

Licht asked as he stood up.

“I’ll have soup.”

“I want a sandwich.”

“Porridge….”

“Okay, got your orders.”

Licht ran to the kitchen to relay the orders to Heiker and calculated the meal costs from the ledger at the counter, deducting it from the money Ain had pre-paid.

Before long, meals for three were served. Licht brought the meals along with three strawberries with their stems removed.

“These strawberries are on the house.”

Licht whispered softly, worried other guests might hear, and returned to his seat. Maser popped a strawberry into his mouth, smiling contentedly.

“Ah, the kid is so cute. If I have a son, I’d want one like him.”

“With your face… it’s impossible….”

“Hey, my wife could be pretty, you know?”

“Would a pretty wife marry you? Wake up from your dream.”

“Oh, come on, let me dream….”

Maser grumbled, biting into his sandwich. As they ate, the three discussed their destination for the day.

By the time most of the dining guests had left, Ruschilka and Ain entered side by side. Ain was holding a yellow-patterned cat in his arms.

“Lucy… Ain-nim is with you too….”

“We met by chance. Licht! I caught it.”

“Wow, really?”

Licht, who was at the counter, approached in awe. The short, plump tail and pattern matched the cat from the request.

“Should we return it to the client right away?”

“Hmm, at this time, Rona would be at school, so she’s not home. We can go in the afternoon… but what about the cat?”

If left alone, it seemed likely to escape again. Hearing Licht’s concern, Albina reached out to the cat. A blue light shimmered over the cat’s head.

Confirming the spell, Ain released the cat. The cat, a bit excited, ran around but was blocked by an invisible wall when it approached the kitchen or stairs.

“I cast a spell…. It won’t be able to leave the dining room for a while….”

“Thank you, Bina-ssi.”

With the problem solved, Licht smiled brightly. Ain also smiled proudly, ruffling Licht’s hair. As Ain’s touch grew rougher, Licht backed away, but he couldn’t completely avoid him.

Only after a while did a satisfied Ain let go. Licht checked his hair in a mirror hanging on the inn’s wall and glared at Ain.

“It’s a mess.”

“Licht, I’ll fix it for you.”

As Bjorn stepped in to help, Ain quickly placed his hand on Licht’s head.

“No, Licht. This hyung will make it… no, even cooler.”

“…Liar.”

“Why don’t you trust me? I’m serious.”

Everyone gave Ain a look of disbelief.

“Ain-nim, would you believe Ain-nim’s words?”

“Why not trust me?”

“Your credibility is low, Ain-nim.”

“That’s right…. Stop bothering Licht….”

“Geez, I have no allies. Lucy, you’re on my side, right?”

“I think it’s Ain-nim’s karma.”

“Unbelievable. Licht, don’t believe them. I’ll really do a good job.”

“…Okay.”

Feeling a bit sorry for Ain being ganged up on by the four, Licht decided to quietly let Ain handle his hair. Ain carefully combed Licht’s hair with his hands, looking serious. Since he didn’t apply anything, it was over quickly. Licht, checking the mirror with a doubtful face, eventually smiled in satisfaction.

“Good. I like it.”

“Yeah, that’s great, right?”

“Yeah….”

Licht replied slowly, glancing around at Ain and the group.

“But, I have a question.”

“What is it?”

“Why do you all speak formally to Ain?”

For a moment, everyone fell silent.

Well… because he’s the king. Even if they pretended to be ordinary adventurers, they couldn’t speak casually like before.

Everyone’s eyes were on Ain. It was a look full of meaning, telling him to handle it. Under the intense gaze, Ain leisurely lifted the corners of his mouth.

“Because, originally, hyung was the leader among us. So everyone decided to show respect to the leader. Now that we’re older, it’s time to stop acting like kids.”

“…….”

What kind of nonsense is that…. While everyone was dumbfounded, Licht rolled his eyes.

“Then should I speak formally too?”

“Huh? Do you want to go on adventures with hyung?”

“No…. I’m the owner here, so I can’t do that.”

Licht said proudly. It might not be a cool job like an adventurer, but Licht was also the owner managing the inn. Licht was proud of himself.

“Right. Licht is also the leader here. Right? Let’s speak casually between leaders.”

“…Childish.”

“Don’t like it?”

“No, I like it.”

Licht smiled brightly. Ain, who had tricked the clueless Licht with strange words, seemed shamelessly unaware of any guilt. The four watching quickly exchanged glances.

‘He fell for it.’

‘The one who tricked him is at fault.’

‘Why is he doing that?’

‘He’s always like that.’

‘Tell him not to mess with the kid….’

‘Would he listen if we did?’

Everyone shook their heads.

* * *

[✧ March 8th, Earth Day]

Ain completed a request. The very request that had been troubling the owner for two weeks without resolution.

Finding it was one thing, but I don’t know how he caught such a quick and fierce one. Ain said he just approached and grabbed it… but is that really that simple? I don’t think so.

Rona, seeing Cheese, hugged and kissed it in delight. Cheese grimaced and pushed Rona away, but eventually rubbed its head against her, seeming pleased.

Ain advised Rona to at least put a proper collar on it. That way, it would be recognizable among the common ones.

Thinking of Rinne, who roams freely, made me feel a bit guilty. But Rinne hated collars. Once, when I put one on, it refused to eat or drink and lay down until I took it off.

I asked Ain if it was okay since Rinne had never failed to return home since my dad raised it. Ain said Rinne was the smartest cat in the world, so it would be fine. Telling Rinne it was smart made it happy.

Ain gave me the cat doll he received as a reward for the request. I declined, saying it was okay, but Ain said he thought I’d be happy to receive it… so I ended up accepting it. It’s a bit silly-looking but very cute. I’ll keep it by my pillow and sleep with it.

Ain and the other four set off on their journey by evening. I hope Ain comes back soon.

☆ To-Do List for Tomorrow

— Place an additional wine order from Thales
— Visit the general store to buy heating stones