Mebius World Online – Mari’s VRMMO Diary, Embarking on a Laid-back Adventure as a Novice - Chapter 76
Reitia -> Letya
76. Mari-nee and The sisters and the gatekeeper in the outer city
The girl seemed to be around six years old, smaller in stature than Van.
The boy looked about three years old.
Both had unruly, unkempt hair, were barefoot, and their feet looked chilly on the dull black cobblestones of the outer street.
The girl was the one who picked up the apple.
Her gaze was fixed on the apple she had picked up.
She swallowed nervously and looked at the boy beside her with a troubled expression, furrowing her brows, but eventually approached me, offering the picked apple.
Her feet stopped just before entering the gate leading to the inner city.
Beside the gate, a large man of about two meters tall stood as the gatekeeper, silently watching over the girl.
As I approached the girl, I bent down to meet her gaze, then accepted the apple.
“Thank you for picking it up.”
As I stored the apple I received in my item box, a disappointed sigh escaped from the girl’s mouth.
Feeling guilty for eliciting such a response, I retrieved a fresh, untouched apple and took a bite in front of the girl.
“Yeah, it’s sweet and juicy, a delicious apple.”
Trying not to cross the boundary separating us from the city, the girl leaned forward as much as she could, staring at me, or more accurately, at the apple I was eating.
“But it’s a problem. I’m full already and can’t eat anymore. I know! How about you eat this apple instead of me?”
“Huh… Is it okay?”
“Of course, it’s fine. Let’s eat it together.”
Saying so, I gently replaced the partially eaten apple with a new one and handed it to the girl, who happily took it to the boy.
However, the apple seemed a bit too big for both of them, and they seemed puzzled about how to eat it.
Just as I was about to suggest cutting it with “Magic Silver Thread,” a large figure approached them.
It was the gatekeeper, and he calmly took the apple from both of them.
“Hey!”
The girl probably wanted to say “What are you doing?” but she fell silent when he smoothly drew a short sword hanging from his waist.
I didn’t move.
After all, he had been watching over the girl the whole time.
Then, in front of us, he swung the sword once, and the apple was sliced in half.
Handing the sliced apple back to them, he returned silently to his original position as if nothing had happened, continuing his duties as the gatekeeper.
Although the two were taken aback, they quickly understood that he had simply divided the apple, and they started eating it again as if nothing had happened.
Perhaps they were very hungry, as they didn’t savor the taste but ate it quickly, like squirrels, nibbling on the apple from the cut edge.
Their adorable behavior made me smile involuntarily.
Then, when the boy had eaten about half of it, he suddenly stopped and stared at the remaining apple, then approached the gatekeeper.
Holding the remaining apple in both hands, he offered it to him with a cute voice.
“Here!”
The boy’s action must surely be a gesture of gratitude since the apple is no longer difficult to eat due to its size.
He momentarily looked puzzled, but he cut the apple in half with his short sword once again.
“….”
Then he ate one half and silently returned the other half to the boy.
“Ehehe.”
Seemingly pleased that he had eaten it, the boy started eating the apple with a broad smile.
The boy finished his half quickly, and then the girl, seeing this, passed her portion to him.
Oh no, this reminds me of my siblings… Suppressing the urge to tear up, Letya and Ryle arrived.
“Maria-san, we were worried when you suddenly went off alone. And what is this?”
Seeing the unfamiliar children sharing an apple, Letya asked.
“Letya-san… Are people living in the outer streets all in such dire situations?”
“Well… People living in the outer streets don’t have the obligation to pay taxes to the country, but they also cannot receive protection from the country. However, the king arranges jobs for them so they can afford to eat each day. But, for example, people who are injured or sick and unable to work, or small children without parents, cannot take on these jobs and can’t even afford to eat. The king deeply cares for us citizens, but…”
“I see…”
Although the king kept his promise to me through the oracle… but yeah, he can’t do everything, can he?
Thinking so, the glimpse of something dark and heavy, which didn’t suit the appearance of the youthful king, that I saw in his wry smile might have been anguish.
After waiting for the two to finish eating the apple, I spoke up.
“Hey, can I ask your names? I’m Maria.”
“…Ema.”
“Roma!”
While Ema still seemed a bit cautious, Roma, on the contrary, was innocent.
“Ema and Roma, huh? Are you two still hungry?”
When I asked, Ema hesitated for a moment, then Roma nodded immediately.
“I see… Letya-san, sorry to bother you, but could you get some water?”
As I said so, Letya didn’t ask for the reason and happily went to buy water with Ryle.
If my siblings saw what I’m about to do, they’d probably say, “Here she goes again,” with a wry smile, but I just like that by nature, aren’t they?
Well, it can’t be helped if it’s my nature, right?
By the way, if Graham-san and co saw this, it would be quite troublesome, so I carefully confirmed that they were nowhere in sight.
Alright, all clear.
I can do this anytime!
But before that…
“Um, is it alright if I cook here for a bit? I’m Maria, by the way…”
“Brutt.”
His voice, which I heard for the first time, was quite deep and heavy.
Combined with his appearance, it was quite imposing.
“Huh? Ah, so your name is Brutt. Well then, is it okay if I cook?”
He nodded silently and cleared a space for me.
After thanking him, I deployed my portable production kit, placed a large pot on the stove, and added butter.
Next, I entwined the apples with Magic Silver Thread, used the elasticity conferred by my equipped ability to thinly slice them, and removed the cores and skins with Intermediate Cooking.
I performed these actions simultaneously with multiple threads, quickly processing a large number of apples and putting them into the pot.
I started heating the large pot and melting the butter, then began sautéing the apples. The sweet aroma mixed with the butter’s fragrance spread around.
Suddenly, I noticed Ema and Roma standing in front of me, watching with bated breath as I cooked.
“Sorry to keep you waiting, Maria-san.”
Letya and Ryle arrived, bringing a wooden barrel of water.
“Thank you, Letya-san, Ryle.”
I took out another pot and transferred the water they brought.
Into the pot filled with water, I added barley bought from Eden’s city and activated Intermediate Acceleration.
After allowing the barley to absorb water quickly, I added it to the pot with the sautéing apples, increased the heat, and once again activated Intermediate Acceleration, bringing it to a state akin to long hours of stewing in a pressure cooker.
Finally, adding milk and seasoning with salt would complete the apple barley porridge.
For utensils, I could use wooden bowls and spoons stored in my item box.
“There, it’s done.”
As I said so, Ema and Roma seemed hesitant to say something, fidgeting awkwardly.
When I glanced over my shoulder, I saw the children watching us.
Yeah, this development was somewhat expected.
After informing Ema and Roma that they could call hungry children over, dozens of kids quickly gathered.
With help from Letya and Ryle, we distributed the apple barley porridge one after another. The children ate eagerly and requested seconds, eventually finishing off the entire pot of porridge that I had made.
Maybe one pot wasn’t enough after all.
Nevertheless, it was heartwarming to hear the children say “thank you,” “it was delicious,” and “it was warm.” Yeah, I’m glad I did this.
After bidding farewell to the children, we thanked Brutt, who had been watching over us, and then cleaned up before returning to the market.
“Thank you for today, Letya-san, Ryle. Regarding the matter of work, please let us discuss it at our home another day.”
“Understood. Then, Ryle and I will buy ingredients for dinner.”
“Ingredients… um, moderately please?”
“Ufufufuu.”
Ah, this lack of restraint…
Survive well, those who run shops in the market!
After parting ways with them, I headed home in high spirits. I managed to buy ingredients at a low cost, found people to help at the dining place, and headed back home in a cheerful mood.
I noticed something was amiss when I was just a few minutes away from home.
There was a crowd gathered, and there seemed to be excitement.
Curious, I approached and saw people talking animatedly around what looked like a notice board.
Using my enhanced vision, I read the contents from a distance… and my knees buckled, my hands hitting the ground with a thud.
“So this was the cause of the trouble…”
This time, I made sure to thoroughly confirm that there was no sign of Graham-san and the others around me.
And although I felt relieved not to see them, upon further thought, it wasn’t enough.
Because the person who had reported my actions to Graham-san last time was someone I didn’t know, likely someone living in the capital.
I narrowed down the suspicious individuals, realizing that I had already lost to them from the beginning.
I won’t go into detail about what was written on the notice board, but it described in great detail how I had distributed meals to the children in the outer streets.
Yes, it even included details that only someone observing very closely could have known.
And at that time, aside from Letya and Ryle, who were helping me, there was only one person who could have done such a thing.
Letya and Ryle were assisting me, so they wouldn’t have had time to convey such information outside.
So, the remaining person was… Ah, I see.
Is it that kind of situation now?
It’s a very famous line, isn’t it?
So, I’ll say it without honorifics.
“Brutt, you too huh…”
[chuckles] Hmm, well, you know…
I wonder if there’s a skill that can make one transparent, Zagreus-san.
Not just appearance-wise, but if it could make my entire presence transparent, I’d be happy…