A girl I met in the castle of Samariar.

When she realized her mistake at the maid's words, she bowed her head in dismay and ran into the white house.

I was tormented by the sadness of being suddenly abused by a child I had never met before, but the maid led me to a wooden table and chairs in front of the building and urged me to sit down.

The maid went back to the castle shortly afterwards, but should I wait until the girl arrived?

From the panicked look I had earlier, it seems that I can't come out right away, but .......

　

"But it's pretty big...... isn't it?"

 

If you look around, you can see that in addition to the white houses, there are ponds and trees. The barrier that covers the surrounding area is also translucent, so there is not much oppression.

I guess it means that this place is both outside and inside.

 

"It's an exaggeration to say that it's an inn where you can feel nature, but it's a relaxing space."

 

While waiting for the girl, I lean back in my chair and relax.

I was able to hand over the letter safely, but it looks like I'll be staying here for a while. Extra effort...... No, after all, it's my job to make sure Samaria doesn't get in a bad mood.

 

「...... Solicitation, huh?"

 

Have your own troops in Samaria.

It's something I can't imagine at all in my current immature self.

But if, in a few years, I defeat the Demon Lord's army, defeat the Demon Lord, and become a full-fledged member of the group after being recognized by Rose, what should I aim for next?

 

「......」

 

I don't think everything will go as I imagined, but I can't help but imagine a future where we, the rescue team, and Kazuki, the hero, and our seniors don't have to fight.

Right now, I'm busy with a lot of things, such as letters and the Demon Lord's army, but now that everything is over, I have to think for myself and move forward, not on a mission or the path she has instructed me to take.

If you think about it...

 

「...... Yes, maybe. I'm going to Samariar."

 

Of course, not now.

That is, if the Demon Lord's army is defeated, the Ringle Kingdom is at peace, and Rose recognizes him as a full-fledged healing wizard.

...... If you think about it, I can think of myself as a Samarian lifesaver in the sense of being on my own.

I can't do it now, but I will pass on the experience and knowledge I learned from Rose in this world as a healing wizard to downtrodden healing wizards like Nak.

I'm sure it's an ideal that could be dismissed as "sweet" for Rose, but it somehow felt right to me.

 

"In order to do that, we have to make this world peaceful......

 

With a wry smile on his face, he looked up at the sky, and before he knew it, the sky had changed to the color of sunset, and it was about to turn into night.

He casually gets up from his chair and straightens up.

The light shining in from outside the boundary illuminates the white house and dyes it orange.

 

"Ugh...... Hmm?"

 

There is something in the shadows of the house.

I was somewhat curious about that, so I decided to leave the place and approach the shadows.

If you get closer, you can see a stone built on the ground. It was also a pure white color with no blemishes.

This is...... Is it a grave? It looks like a stone monument, though. But there is nothing written on it, the surface is so smooth that you can see the gloss, and you can't see the letters anywhere.

 

「...... I don't think it's a good idea to touch it too much."

 

It bothers me, but I might as well not touch it without her permission, who lives here.

Especially if it's a grave.

 

"Oh, there it is!!"

「!」

 

At the sound of a voice behind him, he turned around to see a white girl resting her hands on the wall of the house, breathing a sigh of relief. ...... The more I look at it, the more I get the impression that it is "pure white". Is she a little older than Amako?

She puts her hand around her back to hide something, and although she has doubts, she apologizes for walking out without permission.

 

"I'm sorry, I moved without permission, ......."

"No, no! Speaking of the original, it's my fault that I kept you waiting for so long...... Uh, that ......."

 

A girl who glances at me while entwining her hands without whereabouts.

Her behavior reminds me of Nea, a former bruised village girl from a certain time.

 

"My name is Eva Ould Samariar! I'm really sorry I got your name wrong!"

「...... No, I'm okay because I don't care anymore."

 

What's the name?

It's not an easy name to get wrong, but it happens sometimes. No, I've never been called an annoyant.

But I don't think I'm going to have a troublesome personality that I just got my name wrong.

 

"You may already know my name, but I'm Usato Ken, and I'm an emissary from the Ringle Kingdom...... Kind of: ...... Based on your name, are you Lucas's son?"

 

I'm not used to honorifics, so I feel like I'm saying something amazing.

A girl who frowns slightly at my honorific that I'm not sure if it suits or not---Eva-sama.

Inside, I did it...... When she regretted it, she spoke in a tone mixed with some dissatisfaction.

 

「...... Right. I am Father's daughter. However, you don't have the power of a princess, so you don't have to speak in honorific language, right? If anything, Father has told me to entertain you."

 

No power? Even though she's a princess?

Or rather, Mistress Lucas had asked her to entertain him beforehand.

...... I feel like I'm being made to dance on his palm.

If possible, I would like to at least use honorifics to draw a line, but from the way she looks, I ......'t think that's possible.

 

"I understand...... Endorsement. I'm going to stop using honorifics. Well, Eva...... Sir?"

"It's okay with Eva, Usato-san!"

 

- She is given a carefree smile and involuntarily flinches.

This type of smile that directs her innocence and sincere joy into her heart - this child has a personality that is quite close to Kazuki'......!

A girl who doesn't do fraudulent things like Nea, she's just pure -- to be honest, it's hard for me to deal with because of my poor suspicion and dirty heart.

And that's it. What I see from behind her from earlier is terrifying.

 

"Well, I've been wondering about it for a long time......

"Yes?"

 

Eva tilts her head cutely, pointing to an object that is slightly visible from behind.

 

"That's the back of it.rope・...... What are you going to use it for?"

"What!? Ah, ah, that ......."

 

When I asked her that, she put the rough rope in her hand in front of me, as if she had been exposed.

It's a moderately thick rope. It's like a rope that often involves hostages being tied up in movies...... Is it easy to understand?

 

"I thought I had just messed up and Usato-san had run away."

「......」

"But we don't need this anymore, because Usato-san is here."

 

She threw the rope at her feet and put her hand on her cheek happily with unclouded eyes. I smile at her.

What is the idea of an elementary school student who goes through trial and error to somehow keep a small cat that accidentally strayed into the garden of his house from escaping? If you're dealing with a cat, it's still cute, but if you're dealing with a person, it changes at once.

 

"Ha, haha, did you think you were going to catch me with that?"

"No way! You wouldn't do that to your friends!"

 

Wait a minute. It's okay that you're recognized as a friend without permission, but you didn't even introduce yourself until you met here, right? Was it okay to tie me up at that point?!

I want to pursue that, but I'm afraid of what kind of answer I'll get.

Nature? Is it natural? Is she a woman with one or two quirks?

I don't have a phase of female difficulty, do I? Of course, it's not in the sweet direction, but in the anguished direction.

 

"Well, let's have dinner. I got a lot of delicious food to make tonight, so please look forward to it!"

"Oh, yes, no, I'm hungry."

 

Let's not think about it any further.

This child is not as evil as Nea.

While telling myself that, I was led by her hand through the darkened garden.

 

 

 

 

When Eva and I went back to the table in front of the building, there was the light of a magic tool that had not been lit before, and a man preparing plates and cups by the table.

He notices me and Eva, bows respectfully, and then walks back into the house, carrying what appears to be a square of food on a rectangular plate in his hands and placing it in the center of the table.

 

"Princess, dinner is ready."

"Thank you, Eiri, and please don't hesitate to sit down, Usato-san."

 

Following her words as she sat down on the chair that the butler had pulled, I sat down on the chair in front of her.

In front of you is a square of pure white food similar to a house, and this bite-sized piece of fruit is arranged around it.

Maybe it's a piece of cake? This? It's not impossible because cakes have been around for a long time in the original world, but it's surprising that something so similar comes out.

When I was surprised by the sweetness that I was not familiar with in this world, the butler approached me.

 

"Sorry for the delay in greeting you, my name is Eiri the butler."

"Oh, thank you very much."

"This time, thanks to the kindness of the princess who wished to welcome Usato-sama to visit Samariar, I have been able to cook dinner with my arms."

"Thank you."

 

Eiri, the butler, offers me a cup of tea.

He didn't look like a butler no matter how you looked at it, but when I thought about it, I thought it was strange that he was wearing a butler uniform when he cooked, so I didn't mind that much.

Shikashi .......

 

"It's wonderfully sweet, ......."

 

Tea with cake and fruit.

There are only a few types of cakes, but when it comes to cakes, they are not whole-shaped, but large, rectangular cakes that are often seen overseas.

 

"Excuse me, is there anything else besides cake? ...... vegetables."

「? Usato-san, you don't eat cake and vegetables together, do you? Vegetables are for breakfast and cake for dinner."

 

Is it called a cake in this world?

Or is it that the translation spell that was given to me when summoning the hero reproduces it in a language that is familiar to me? ...... Well, it doesn't matter.

 

「...... What about noon?"

"It's meat, and you have to eat it in a balanced way for your health."

 

Isn't that biased in many ways......? I feel that the way to eat is not the same as a well-balanced one.

Besides, if you eat such a large cake with such a maximum sugar content for dinner, your stomach will be very upset. As a member of the lifeguard, I don't really like putting extra meat on my body, and I'm not that fond of sweets in the first place.

I don't know what to do, I don't want to disrespect her good intentions .......

 

"What's wrong? Don't hesitate to eat."

「...... I'll take it."

 

For the time being, I'll just take a bite and bring it to my mouth.

The sweetness spreads in the mouth, and it is the first confectionery in the world to be eaten. As if to heal my tired body from the trip, an indescribable sense of euphoria wells up in me.

 

"Sweet ......"

 

It's delicious, but the quantity is a problem.

The cake on the platter does not diminish at all with just one scoop of a fork, and it has a tremendous presence. It's an amount that almost causes heartburn, but I can't leave it, so I silently bring it to my mouth.

If you look ahead, Eva is eating cake in a well-behaved manner, unlike me.

As I looked at her, I wondered why this girl was here. This place is not a place prepared for me, no matter how you think about it. It's a place for her.

Trapped here?

Or is there a reason why you have to be here?

Judging by her morbidly white hair and skin, I wonder if she has some kind of disease. Maybe the quickest way to ask her is to ask her directly, but looking at her carefree smile, I can't even ask.

 

「? What's up, Usato-san? Look at my face."

"Hmm. It's nothing."

 

Tilting her head, she moves the fork that had stopped again.

Under the gaze of Eva, who is smiling, I finish eating all the cakes on my plate.

 

"It was delicious."

"Oh yes, yes, there's a lot more, so please eat it!"

 

When she looks at Eiri, he tries to place the larger slice of cake on my plate.

As expected, I refuse to eat any more because it is too hard in terms of calories and heartburn.

 

"No, I'm already full."

"Is that so...... There's a lot more to ......."

 

When she shows her palm to Eiri and refuses, Eva shows a disappointed expression.

However, as soon as he looked at the cake on the table and my face alternately, he looked down depressed.

 

"I'm sorry, but if you think about it normally, you can't eat so much. I was soaring and didn't think about Usato. ...... This cake is a specialty of Samaria and is my favorite food. That's why I ...... Usato I thought, but that thought was the only thing that got ahead of me ......."

 

I feel a tremendous sense of guilt at the voice that gradually thins out.

- Yadakoko's child, ...... who directly torments my conscience! As expected, he is a person with the same pure heart as Kazuki. I don't feel evil enough to draw a difference between Inugami-senpai and Nea.

―――I ...... you can go for one more dish.

 

"Eiri-san, please refill......

"What? Usato-san......?"

"Come to think of it, I wasn't full yet."

 

For some reason, Eiri looks at her with sympathy, and while tilting her head, she puts a freshly served cake in her mouth. The sweet taste spreads throughout the mouth, but it is washed down with black tea.

Ah, why am I so easily swept away by emotion? I ...... it may be the nature of Japan people who can't say no clearly.

 

"You're so kind, Usato-san."

"Well, not so much."

"But I'm really glad that it seems to be palatable, because I was worried because the people who come here leave right after dinner. I wonder if everyone outside doesn't like sweets very much......

 

I don't say it, but I rarely eat cake, so it's no surprise that some people are surprised by the intense sweetness.

 

"I don't hate it that much, it's been a long time since I've eaten something so sweet."

 

Specifically, since I was in the original world.

 

"Hehe, I'm glad you liked the taste of this country's specialty......"

"Hahaha, what if I don't like sweets? Did you put something else out of the way?"

 

I'm going to be a little mean and ask what bothers me.

Why did the people who visited here before I came here leave immediately? If it's a food issue, it should be enough to serve something else.

Still, if he had left, it might be safe to assume that there was something wrong with the food—well, I may be rude, but with Eiri's cooking.

Well, there is no problem with such a kind child.

 

"Of course, you can eat it until you like it."

"What?"

 

Maybe I misheard, but I think some pretty crazy words jumped out.

No, no, no, there is no reason to force him to eat with the same smile as before.

 

"Don't leave food behind, don't be picky eaters. Don't forget to be grateful for food. This is common sense that you should know. And besides--I want you to love my favorite Samaria and the country that your father has grown up in."

 

Eva stared intently at me with eyes that were unclouded.

In his eyes, I sensed something insane, and I gasped.

 

"That's why I'm going to do my best, even if I don't like it, I'm going to do my best until you like it. That's the least I can do for being called the princess of this country."

「......」

"But you don't have to! It's not that Usato-san doesn't like cakes!"

"Oh, yes...... That's right."

 

I ...... know why I left.

Eva, no. That's not right. It's not that you do your best, it's that you do your best. Pure madness—at this moment, I sensed it from her.

She's pure.

Because they are pure, they accept the words and the situation as they are. Faced with such a girl in front of me, I could only silently peck at the cake that was lying like a mountain.

 

 

 

 

 

In the end, after that, I ate all the cakes that I had refilled.

Towards the end, I almost crammed it with enthusiasm, but after eating it I realized how many blunders I had made.

I imagine what would happen to my body if I continued to eat like this for a week, and at the same time I imagine how Rose would react when she sees it.

―――You can show me all kinds of hell in this world...... Whew.

 

"I have to burn it...... I have to burn it......

 

While muttering like a gossip, the appearance of me doing push-ups with all my heart must be as bizarre as ever before. Anyway, despite being guided to her room by Eiri, she is doing muscle training in the garden inside the boundary.

Exercise is the only way to burn the calories you've ingested.

I don't know how much exercise I should do, but I should be fine if I do about three times as much as I always do.

 

"Uh-huh......

 

Maybe it's because I'm doing push-ups at an over-pace more than usual, so I'm putting a tremendous load on my whole body, but it's still not enough to burn the calories from the cake I just ate.

Slightly out of breath, switch from push-ups to sit-ups.

 

"Is this what Lucas is aiming for...... Whew."

 

They are trying to push me mentally into a corner--they are trying to get me to root out by means of picky eating.

It's a roundabout trick, but it's bad that Eva, the person who set it up, is doing it with good intentions.

 

"Uh...... Usato-sama."

"Hmm? What's the matter, Eiri?"

 

Eiri, who has a somewhat confused face, appears in front of me who is doing sit-ups.

He looks outside when it's completely dark, and calls out to him as if he's worried.

 

"It's time for you to take a break, ...... it seems like you've been doing the same thing for more than two hours already...... Were you really tired from the trip?"

「...... As far as physical fatigue goes, it's almost non-existent for me. It's still going to be okay."

 

It's not a lie.

Healing magic can be used to relieve physical fatigue, so it is possible to keep moving endlessly as long as the magic lasts.

 

"Eiri-san, you can rest without worrying about me, okay?"

"I appreciate your thoughtfulness...... Well, it's very hard to say, but I can't rest unless Usato-sama returns to his room."

"What? No, you don't have to worry about me--"

"Look over there."

 

Eiri shook her head slowly and turned her hand behind me.

Turning around, she sees the shadow of a white house, a young girl named Eva peering into the area illuminated by the light of a magic tool. Her eyes lit up with curiosity, and she stared at me without approaching me.

I was unexpectedly scared by the pure white appearance as if it were a horror movie.

 

「...... I didn't notice...... Have you been watching me from there ......? I wish you could have talked to me ......."

"I suppose you thought it was a shame to disturb her, because she is modest and very kind."

 

He is kind, he is certainly a kind child.

However, even if you include that, she is nothing more than a foreign word to me.

 

"Usato-sama, you may have been irritated with the princess. But would you like to stay here just a little longer? The princess is a curious person...... It's not that I have any bad intentions."

"I understand that, but just because she doesn't mean it's ...... her behavior."

"Out of the ordinary, huh?"

「...... Well, that's right."

 

It may be more accurate to say that it is out of place rather than out of the ordinary.

It might be more accurate to say that he is an innocent child who tries to do exactly what he is told.

 

"It may be said that this is insane, but this is the only place the princess knows."

"Is this the place in this boundary?"

"Yes, always has been, and always will be. There's a reason why she has to do that, and she's accepted it. However, for her, who only knew this narrow world, she had no choice but to learn common sense and values in the process of education, rather than acquiring them in her daily life.

 

...... I see, because I learned what I would acquire in my daily life through interaction with people in a way that made me remember it, I wondered if it was out of step with the norm.

So, maybe that's not surprising.

It's understandable that it's innocent.

After all, I grew up without any mention of malice, so I don't know what right is and what is wrong.

 

"--Me...... We wanted her to be free, knowing only such a small world. Her remaining ...... Huh?"

"Eiri-san?"

"I'm sorry, I can't say any more."

 

Eiri had a grimace on her face and bit her mouth. It's hard to hear more about Eva from him. Later, I ...... to ask someone who seems to know, or rather, I would like to ask Lucas.

And why she has to be here. Is it possible to be sick? That's the first thing I think of when I see that gray hair...... Could it be that Lucas put her here because he wanted me to heal her?

When I turned around again, Eva, who was still looking at me as before, waved her hand slightly.

 

"The princess likes to write in her diary."

"Oh, really?"

 

Looking at Eva, Eiri suddenly muttered something like that.

When I hear the word diary, I feel a little familiar.

 

"She wanted to write a testimony that she had been alive for a long time, and every day she wrote in her diary about the joys of everyday life and new encounters...... It's so ephemeral...... I want to do something about it, but I can't do anything about ......."

 

...... Oh, that? The purpose of the diary is completely different from mine. It's not escapism......

It's kind of heavy, as if it's urgent.

As I was confused by the difference between my diary and hers, Eiri walked up to me and grabbed my shoulders.

 

"Ugh!? What is it!?"

"Usato-sama, please stay here just a little longer. No, if you can, will you stay here for the rest of your life!?"

"Huh!?"

 

Lifetime!? Now you've obviously skipped something a few steps, right?

From Lucas's suggestion, the butler asked me to do something outlandish!

Perhaps she didn't see me in astonishment, but Eiri, who had broken her brazen skin and changed her expression to a demonic one, desperately squeezed her voice.

 

"It's very rare to find someone who isn't frightened by a princess...... Whew. None of my colleagues could keep up with the princess...... However, the guests who invited them also endured the princess's good hospitality and left without a single night--an insensitive person like you is extremely precious!!"

"Can you please stop casually calling me insensitive!?"

 

Sure, I'm insensitive to pain, but I'm not desensitized to anything else.

Besides, I can't do it for the rest of my life. But I'm willing to stay for a week or so, as Lucas says. Before I do that, I need to ask Lucas about the situation with Alc and if possible, if possible.

 

"Oh, well, you both look like you're having fun! What were you talking about!? Wow, can I mix it up too!?"

 

How do you look at the current exchange and it looks fun......?

Eva couldn't stand it when she saw the exchange between me and Eiri, and jumped out.

Seeing her like that, I predicted that the next few days would be tough in many ways.

______________________________________________

It's dangerous because it's pure.

Eva is such a girl.