Mebius World Online – Mari’s VRMMO Diary, Embarking on a Laid-back Adventure as a Novice - Chapter 80
80. Mari-nee, him and the resident
A few days after meeting Bart, he began to observe me more closely than before.
Yes, not monitoring, but observation.
I sensed something like a will to understand, to know unknown things in his manner, and secretly, I was pleased.
Today, as part of my daily routine, I was making my usual casserole.
Thanks to the help of Letya and Ryle, the time it takes to cook has been greatly reduced.
By the way, the three big children have been focused on working on the interior of the dining hall and making furniture, as per Letya’s suggestion.
Thanks to them, the dining hall now has splendid tables and short-haired carpets on the floor.
With these, even if children or the elderly were to fall, they shouldn’t sustain major injuries.
And there’s another change.
It’s the counter opposite to the one I use for cooking, where weapons and armor made by Mareus, Canna, and Roulette are now being sold.
The counter has been replaced with something like a display case, inside of which actual samples are placed, and if customers have any questions, they are instructed to ask Letya.
By the way, I’ve asked Letya to call the three if there’s a need for specialized explanations, but for now, Letya seems to handle most of the questions.
Really, Letya is too competent for her own good.
Well, it seems there are also adventurers who come specifically to talk to Letya.
One person has bought dozens of the cheapest daggers already.
I’m happy they’re buying them, but Letya isn’t a hostess, you know?
As I was finishing up the casserole, I suddenly felt the ground shake.
It’s been happening a lot lately, maybe it’s an earthquake?
Letya asked around the townsfolk and other people, but it seems it’s not happening elsewhere.
I wonder what it is… well, it’s probably fine not to worry about it, surely.
When I headed out for my daily routine, he was firmly following behind.
The distance between us has definitely shrunk compared to before, and it seems like we’ll soon be able to converse normally.
On the way, the person from the shop where I always buy apples in the market gave me a lot of extra apples, saying, “Please use these for the children.”
Feeling this kind of kindness spreading, I’m truly happy.
…It’s not because Letya is pulling strings behind the scenes, right?
It’s a secret that I briefly thought might be the case, okay?
I’m not pretending, you know!?
As usual, I handed out meals to the children in front of the gate where Brutt is.
I feel like the number of children coming has increased, perhaps because of word spreading.
Soon, even two pots might not be enough, but thanks to my skills, the effort to make them doesn’t change much.
As for money, between the revenue from the dining hall and occasionally posting on the bulletin board for transactions, it’s more than enough to cover expenses.
In fact, the revenue is too much, and honestly, I’m having trouble managing it.
I like the weapons and armor, and since I don’t particularly go into battle, there’s no need to buy new ones.
I suppose leveling up by fighting is important, but for now, spending leisurely time at home and seeing the children enjoy my cooking is enough to satisfy me.
It would be nice if there were some effective use for the excess money…
As I was thinking about that, Nero and Kuuga growled and raised their voices.
In the direction of their gaze, there were several men in their fifties wearing dirty clothes.
The eyes of the man at the forefront were bloodshot, and saliva-like foam was dripping from the corner of his mouth.
I instructed the children to move behind Kuuga and asked Brutt for help.
“What can I do for you?”
Before he could approach, I stepped forward and said so, and the man suddenly started shouting.
“What do you want? You’re feeding those brats, but you won’t give us anything!”
Words like “That’s right!” and “Don’t play favorites!” continued from behind.
“These kids want to work but can’t. Don’t you think if they can’t do it on their own, someone should lend a hand?”
“Then why don’t you give us anything?!”
“You adults can work, can’t you? I heard the king is providing jobs. Instead of begging for food, why don’t you work?”
“What did you say! You little girl, speaking down to us like that?!”
“Ouch!”
Something hit my head, and for a moment, my vision blurred.
It was probably a stone or something… yeah, I’m okay.
After confirming my condition just in case, I took a breath and then spoke up.
“You guys have the strength to throw stones and show anger. Why don’t you use that power for yourselves? Even if you were given food now, could you really enjoy eating it? Could you laugh and eat with the children?”
“Shut up!”
In that clenched hand was a dark lump.
Probably a fragment of the cobblestone from the outer city.
The hand was raised, ready to throw what it held at me.
I closed my eyes, preparing for the pain, but the impact never came.
When I opened my eyes, a white hand extending from a gray shirt sleeve had caught the stone that was supposed to hit me just in time.
“You lot…”
He gritted his teeth as if holding something back.
Perhaps sensing his strength, the stone he was holding shattered with a loud noise.
“””Eek!””””
Seeing that power up close, the frightened men stumbled and nearly fell over multiple times as they left the scene.
Well, they’re certainly lively after all…
Feeling a mix of emotions, the children rushed over, asking, “Are you okay?” “Does it hurt?”
“I’m fine, really. It’s okay. Hey, Brutt!”
As I moved away from the children, Brutt was inexplicably bowing to me.
Maybe he’s worried that he couldn’t protect me, but I don’t think Brutt needs to apologize. I’m the one who asked him to protect the children, after all.
It took about 20 minutes until I finally got Brutt to raise his head…
On the way back home, the distance between him and me had narrowed even further, to the point where we could almost touch each other’s hands.
“Why did you help me earlier?”
When I asked, he turned his face away, but still gave me a proper answer.
“If you had dodged, it might have hit the kids behind you. That’s all.”
He said it brusquely, but he probably didn’t realize.
The way he addressed me changed from “impolite” to “respectful” recently.
Come to think of it, we had a similar exchange not long ago.
Remembering that, I chuckled, but he responded with an indifferent “What?”
“It’s nothing.”
With just that, I returned home in a good mood.
Despite the trouble, our distance had further shortened, and I was thinking of spending leisure time at home.
But just as I was thinking that…
When we returned home, Letya, who usually never seemed flustered, was there, looking unusually frantic.
“Maria-san!”
She rushed over and firmly grasped both of my hands.
Oh? That’s an unexpected turn of events.
“Letya-san seems unusually flustered. What’s wrong?”
“I tried to stay calm, but I couldn’t, so I had no choice but to wait for you to come back, but I’m sorry for keeping him waiting!!”
“No, no, let’s calm down a bit, okay?”
“I can’t calm down! Anyway, Maria-san is already here!!”
“Wait, hold on…”
I was forcefully taken to a small room behind the counter, which wasn’t particularly used at the moment.
And when Letya knocked and opened the door for some reason…
“It’s been a while. Your deeds have reached even my ears.”
“What?!”
I was speechless.
Letya immediately prostrated herself on the spot.
There stood King Areis Roa Caldia of the Kingdom of Caldia.
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