Chapter 26 - <6>
And now, to turn back the clock a little.
Anna, having talked Franz into letting her leave the inn, had a reunion with a certain person in the middle of town. It was the bullied boy, Dill.
"Dill, how have things been since then?"
At Lira’s question, Dill smiled shyly. It seemed he was living peacefully, without being bullied. The bullies were probably scared after getting yelled at by Ritz. Even from Anna's perspective as a companion, he was impressively tall, and then there was that greatsword. To children, Ritz must have seemed like an unknown creature.
"Where are you and Lira going?"
Dill asked, looking curiously between the lamp in Anna’s hand and Lira. It was probably strange to be walking around with a lamp at this time of day, when the sun had just risen. Lira turned to look at Anna questioningly.
"Anna, is it okay to tell him?"
"Of course!"
Anna nodded with a smile. Lira then glanced around restlessly. It was a little cute, like they were playing a secret agent game. When she was with a reliable older person like Ritz, Anna tended to revert to a child-like state, but when she was with children, she couldn't help but become the orphanage caretaker again.
Lira led the two of them to a corner of a relatively empty square and sat them down on a bench.
"No one's listening now, right?"
"Right."
Anna nodded too. In Lira's mind, they were in the middle of a secret mission. Swept up in the atmosphere, Dill also surveyed their surroundings.
"You see, actually…"
Lira whispered in Dill’s ear, her voice low.
"What?!"
"Shh!"
Lira hurriedly covered Dill’s mouth. Dill stared at Lira, then looked back and forth between her and Anna’s face, his eyes wide in confusion. When he was finally released, Dill naturally lowered his voice and asked the two of them.
"You're going to trick Siglet-san and Rusan-san? How?"
"We're not tricking them, just teaching them a little lesson."
Anna denied the word 'trick' with a smile. This was helping people. Ritz had said that a lie to help someone was a good lie, and that it was called mutual aid. Tricking them was out of the question.
Lira, on Anna's behalf, explained the plan in a low voice, trying her best. Where her words fell short, Anna filled in the gaps. With the two of them supplementing each other, they were able to explain it surprisingly clearly and correctly.
"I see… thank you."
Finally convinced, Dill nodded, though he was still a little taken aback. He had never dreamed that his mother was being targeted by the townspeople. Unlike girls, who are sensitive to various subtle details, boys are often oblivious to the atmosphere around them.
Dill let out a deep sigh, uncharacteristic for a child, and rested his chin on his knee.
"Mom wasn't like this when Dad was alive. I wonder why she became so cold."
"Is that so?"
Anna, who hadn't heard about his mother yet, leaned forward.
"Yeah. Dad was often sick, so she was always smiling at home. When Mom laughed out loud, it was like a flower blooming, and the whole house would brighten up."
"That's right. It was like that when I went to play, too. Her leaf pies were so delicious."
"I see."
So, as Heath had said, she didn't seem to be a stingy and eccentric woman. There must be some reason for it.
"But now, even when she's at home, Mom doesn't smile. I don't know why."
Dill looked sad, bewildered by his mother's change, and still unable to accept it. Then, did he know about the treasure?
"Dill, do you know what your mother is hiding?"
Anna asked, her voice even lower. Dill shook his head with a troubled look.
"I don't know. She won't tell me either."
"I see…"
Disappointment must have crept into her voice, because Dill hurriedly said.
"But I think it's something important! Because Dad was the one who hid it."
"Your dad?"
Lira tilted her head in confusion. As his childhood friend, Lira seemed to know his father.
"Dill's dad seemed cranky, and his clothes were all worn out. He didn't look like he was hiding a treasure."
"But Dad had a secret. Every night after supper, he would always go out to the cave."
"The cave? The one where the treasure is hidden now?"
When Anna asked, Dill nodded gravely. According to him, his father rarely came back while Dill was awake, and when he woke up in the morning, his father would already be asleep in his bedroom.
"That's strange, isn't it, Lira?"
"Yeah."
Lira and Anna nodded at each other. What on earth was the treasure? What was the secret of Dill’s parents? Would they find out everything when Heath brought the inspection team from the Royal Capital? But they couldn't help but be curious about what it was.
However, Anna, being the daughter of a clergyman, couldn't possibly pry into the secrets of someone who was going through a sad time. Curiosity versus the duty of a clergyman. When put on a scale, the duty of a clergyman always won.
"By the way, what are you and Lira going to do?"
Asked by Dill, Anna and the others finally remembered their original purpose. At the same time, a good idea came to mind.
"That's right, we're going shopping! Dill, you should come with us."
If Dill was bullied again, they couldn't help him if they were separated, but if he came with them, they could.
Dill looked taken aback, and Lira pressed him.
"You heard our story, didn't you? We're companions now. And this is about helping your mom, Dill. As a boy, you have to help your mom, don't you?"
At Lira’s surprisingly mature tone, Dill fidgeted for a while, but eventually, as if he couldn't escape their gazes, he gave a small nod.
"Okay, I'll go too."
For Dill, that must have been a very big decision. He, who was usually just timidly worrying about being bullied, had, even if he was dragged into it by two girls, become willing to help with something himself.
And so, due to mere circumstance and an unfortunate coincidence, another accomplice was added to this plan.
The three of them headed to the weapon shop together. On the way, some bullies in town stared at Dill, but they didn't dare approach.
The strange atmosphere wasn't just due to Ritz’s influence. Anna asked Lira in a low voice.
"Hey, are they not coming because I'm with you and Lira?"
Lira turned bright red and fell silent. Dill answered instead.
"A while ago, Lira beat up all the bullies by herself. It was amazing. She was like a martial artist!"
As Dill boasted, Lira’s face turned even redder.
"Why do you look so embarrassed, Lira?"
Since Lira didn't seem likely to answer, Anna asked Dill.
"At that time, Lira got punched in the face by a bully and her nose started bleeding. She didn't even notice and kept fighting. I think that was scary for everyone."
"Hey! Stop it, Dill! It's embarrassing!"
Lira, her face beet red, shoved Dill with all her might. Dill tumbled spectacularly. Anna couldn't help but burst out laughing at his impressive fall.
But Lira was red-faced and her eyes were moist. No matter how much she won the fight, getting a bloody nose in public seemed to have deeply wounded Lira’s pure maidenly heart.
It would be bad if she started crying here. Anna used a trick she had learned in her orphanage days to distract a child on the verge of tears. It might be simple, but it was to be dramatically impressed.
"Lira… you're amazing!"
Being so simply praised by Anna, Lira was momentarily stunned, then she couldn't help but smile bashfully.
"Eheheheheh… I'm just a little good at fighting."
"That's amazing!"
This time, Anna was genuinely impressed. She then looked at Dill.
"I'm a weakling and can't do anything."
He looked troubled at being looked at. Anna spoke to him in a gentle, admonishing tone.
"If someone helps you, you have to protect them next time. Because you're a boy, Dill. You know, I'm always getting scolded, but Ritz and Franz always help me. So, I want to help them too."
This was Anna’s true feeling, something she couldn't say in front of Ritz and the others. Franz was how he was, but he thought about things quite seriously, and Ritz got angry easily, but he was always as gentle as a father.
Anna loved those two. But she had never said it out loud.
But Anna somehow felt that at least Ritz understood it without her having to say it. For some reason, Anna wished that various things would get through to Ritz.
Was it because she couldn't help but see Franz as a younger brother, so she was relying on the older Ritz?
While they were talking, the three of them had arrived at their destination, the weapon and tool shop.
"I'm going in, okay?"
When Anna looked back at the two, they both nodded with tense expressions. They must have still been in special forces mode.
"Hello~".
Anna said nonchalantly and knocked on the door.
"It's open."
After hearing a man’s equally unconcerned voice, she passed through the weapon shop's door.
"Whoa…"
Unlike the general store in the Village of Vishnu, this shop was filled with somewhat dangerous-looking items.
Anna, finding the new shop novel, looked around everywhere. There were heavy-looking shields and old metal armor, but also light armor like what travelers wore.
As for swords, they were hung horizontally in countless numbers from the ceiling to the floor on one entire wall. There were no extremely large greatswords like the one Ritz carried, but there were swords of a similar shape, and several types of rapiers like the one Franz had borrowed from Hellebore yesterday. Of course, there were also the swords that the people of the garrison unit usually wore.
On the adjacent wall, several types of bows were neatly hung. There were countless varieties, from huge ones she had never seen before to small ones capable of rapid fire. Nearby, there was also a corner with a large number of knives hanging.
She thought it was just weapons, but in one corner, for some reason, a large number of vases were placed haphazardly, and there was also a bottle with dozens of pen nibs stuck in it. Looking closely, she saw that household goods were mixed in with the weapons here and there. Was the spinning wheel placed near the bows and arrows because their shapes were similar?
Suddenly feeling a gaze, she looked in that direction and her eyes met with a man who was transitioning from middle to old age. After staring at each other for a moment, she finally remembered her role and who this person was.
"Hello. Um, there's something I want."
The weapon shop owner’s eyes widened.
"This is a weapon shop, you know?"
"Yes. I know."
After nodding, she took another look at themselves. Now that she thought about it, Anna, who looked the oldest, would probably only be seen as being in her mid-teens, and the two with her were twelve. It was probably unusual for them to come to a weapon shop. Surely, such a combination of strange customers was a rare sight.
And one of them was that bullied boy, Dill.
"Umm…"
As she was thinking about how to start the conversation, the shopkeeper’s eyes widened.
"Oh, if it isn't the Sabatieri boy!"
"Hello, mister."
Dill, having been called out by name, gave a small bow.
"You know each other?"
"Yeah. My dad used to shop at this store a lot."
"Oh, really?"
Anna and Lira exclaimed in unison. They had never imagined that the weapon shop and Dill had such a connection. Still, for his father to shop frequently at a weapon and tool store, he was certainly full of mysteries.
"What can I do for you today, boy and young ladies?"
Being lumped together, Anna thought to herself, I'm older than you think, but decided against it. It was a losing battle to say anything, as she had learned since starting her journey.
Besides, it was rather nice to be seen as younger. She didn't like being treated like a kid like Ritz did, but if she were treated like someone in their thirties, it would still feel unsettling. Such are the complexities of a woman's heart.
Feeling the gaze of the shopkeeper in front of her, Anna came back to her senses. Oh, right. I was spacing out.
"Um, do you have any paper that doesn't burn?"
Anna asked as straightforwardly as she could.
"Huh?"
The shopkeeper stared in surprise, but eventually, his gaze slowly shifted to the lamp in Anna’s hand.
"For the fire in that lamp?"
"Yes."
The shopkeeper thought for a moment, then started rummaging through a pile of unidentifiable luggage. Dust flew everywhere. How long had it been since he'd cleaned?
"I-it's dusty."
While the three of them were coughing, the shopkeeper stood up, completely unconcerned.
"Hmm, it might be in the warehouse. Want to come?"
The shopkeeper pointed to the back of the store. Looking at Lira and Dill, they seemed more than willing to go. Anna, of course, had no intention of refusing here.
"Yes, we'll go."
"Alright, closed for today."
With that, the shopkeeper unhesitatingly hung a 'Closed Today' sign outside the store. Was it really okay to close up shop so easily? For Anna, who had seen the merchants of Saradio before, it was incomprehensibly strange.
"Is it okay? To close up like that."
The shopkeeper laughed at the concerned Anna.
"No need for a young lady to worry. It's not like this shop gets any decent customers even when it's open."
Did that mean Ritz and Franz, who came here before, weren't decent customers either? She thought about it but didn't ask.
The shopkeeper, oblivious to the three's worries, briskly went into the back. When they hurried after him, the shopkeeper, without urging the three, went up a narrow staircase to the second floor. After hesitating for a moment, wondering if it was okay to enter someone's house so casually, the shopkeeper’s voice came down to her.
"If you don't come up, I'll leave you behind in the shop."
That would be a bit of a problem too. Anna looked back at the other two. They both nodded back. It was decided then, they wouldn't leave until they got the paper.
"We're coming!"
When they hurriedly ran up the stairs, they found what seemed to be the owner's home. As expected of a bachelor's household, everything outside of the living space was very scattered. As the shopkeeper called them to enter, he served them a large plate of cookies and cold juice that had been cooling outside the window.
"Kids shouldn't be so hesitant."
As the three of them took their seats, still confused, the shopkeeper grinned.
"You all just sit there and eat some sweets while you wait."
With those words, the shopkeeper nimbly went up to the third floor. Or rather, given the structure, it was probably more accurate to call it an attic. That seemed to be where the warehouse was.
The three of them, left behind, looked at each other with confused expressions, but eventually, Anna had an idea.
"I see, that old man probably brought us up to the second floor so we wouldn't stand out in the shop."
Come to think of it, she had heard from Hellebore that it was the owner of this shop who had rushed to the Faldina Garrison out of concern for Mrs. Sabatieri.
"Maybe the old man and Dill's dad were close?"
When Anna asked, Dill thought for a moment before nodding.
"Yeah, more than friends, it seemed like the old man respected my dad."
What did he mean by respect? Dill continued.
"The old man used to call my dad 'sensei'. My dad didn't like it, though."
"Sensei?"
It was getting more and more confusing.
"I wonder if he was teaching Dill's dad something."
Anna tilted her head. Looking beside her, Lira was also tilting her head.
"No one else in town called Dill's dad sensei."
"So, he was only a sensei to the old man here."
What on earth was the weapon shop owner, and what was Dill's father? The more she asked, the more mysteries appeared. For a while, they sat in silence, deep in thought as they ate the sweets. Then, suddenly, a loud crashing sound came from above.
The sound continued in a chain reaction for a while, then it became frighteningly quiet. Not even the sound of the shopkeeper walking could be heard.
"What was that?"
Anna murmured as she half-rose from her seat. Lira and Dill also looked at each other anxiously and then at Anna. Even when she strained her ears, she couldn't sense the shopkeeper’s presence.
"I wonder if the old man is okay."
At Dill's anxious murmur, Anna stood up.
"Let's go see!"
"Yeah!"
Lira nodded cheerfully. But Dill's reaction was different.
"But he told us to wait here…"
Lira pouted at Dill's troubled voice. She understood Dill's point. They were well aware that it was better to obey adults' instructions.
But Anna, as if she were back in the orphanage, said to the two of them in a gentle, admonishing tone.
"Lira, Dill, it's true that it's important to follow instructions. But you know, sometimes the other person might be in serious trouble, right?"
The two looked up. It was clear they were just as worried about the shopkeeper as Anna was. Still, they were hesitating, wondering if it was better to follow the shopkeeper’s instructions.
Anna continued to speak to the two of them.
"In that case, there's the option of following the instructions and just worrying about the other person, and the option of going to help them, even if it means getting scolded. If it were me, I'd want to go help so I wouldn't have any regrets. What do you think?"
When she smiled, the two looked up with determined expressions.
"Let's go!"
"Okay, let's go check it out!"
When they hurried up the stairs, they found thick clouds of dust pouring out of the open door. The smoke was slowly descending the stairs like a viscous liquid. What on earth had happened?
As Anna hesitated, she faintly heard the sound of someone coughing. No doubt about it, it was the shopkeeper.
As she tried to enter the room, Anna's breath caught. The dust was terrible. Covering her mouth with her sleeve, she called into the room.
"Are you okay?!"
There was no reply to Anna’s voice. No, she heard a faint voice.
"Cough, cough… Is that you, kids…"
"Mister, where are you?"
She heard a voice, but with this much dust, she couldn't see anything. On top of that, something gritty got in her eyes and tears started to well up. In this state, she couldn't understand what had happened at all.
To find out where the shopkeeper was, she needed to get this dust out. To get dust out, you first open a window. It's common sense for cleaning.
"I'm going to open the window!"
Saying this to the stunned duo, Anna took a deep breath, held it, and plunged into the room, relying on the direction from which light was leaking.
Her eyes stung. But there was nothing she could do. If she closed her eyes, she wouldn't be able to reach the window.
Judging by the height of the light, the window didn't seem to be that high up.
"Anna!"
She heard Lira shout, but right now, helping the shopkeeper came first. Besides, even if she wanted to answer, she couldn't because she was holding her breath. She had no choice but to ignore her.
She reached the window, but the lock wouldn't open easily. It was a little rusty. She was running out of air, but Anna desperately continued to struggle with the lock while holding her breath.
At a time like this, if only the strong Ritz were here, she thought, but she knew that wasn't the case. Right now, she had to somehow manage this situation with her own strength.
As she desperately struggled with the stiff, rusty lock, someone stood next to Anna and started to help her open it. Thinking it was Lira, Anna looked beside her, but to her surprise, it was Dill. Dill was also struggling to open the lock with a serious expression.
Working together, they finally got the lock open. Anna, who was at her limit, frantically threw the window wide open. She immediately stuck her head out the window and desperately drew air into her lungs. A little later, and she would have inhaled a lungful of dust.
The effect of opening the window was immediate. As expected, fresh air flowed in, and the dust began to escape outside. The townspeople who saw the clouds of dust pouring from the window stopped in their tracks, wondering what was happening, but when they realized it wasn't smoke from a fire, they quickly quieted down.
As the air in the room cleared and she could finally breathe, Anna looked for the shopkeeper. The fog-like dust slowly thinned, and the outlines of things began to appear.
"Mister!"
The shopkeeper was lying face down, pinned under a pile of large, board-like objects. Anna didn't know what they were, but they were huge panels with cloth and paper stretched over them.
"Oh, sorry about that… got myself pinned."
At his weak voice, Anna immediately rushed to the shopkeeper’s side.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah. Don't think I'm dead. But my lower half hurts quite a bit."
"Is that where you're pinned?"
"Probably."
"Got it."
When Anna finished assessing the situation and looked back, Lira and Dill were frozen in place. They had probably never seen an injured person like this before and were in shock. But if they just stood there dazed, a life that could be saved would be lost.
"You two, don't just stand there, help!"
When someone is in shock, the only thing to do is give clear, concise instructions. When there was an accident in the village, Anton would cast aside his usual gentleness and act with resolve. Anna had often heard from Anton that this was the way to save people.
Anna’s desperate cry must have gotten through to them, because the two snapped back to their senses and came to Anna’s side.
"Anna, what should we do?"
An anxious Lira knelt beside the shopkeeper. Anna looked her in the eye and gave a firm instruction.
"You and Dill, look for a long pole!"
What Lira and Dill finally found was an old, worn-out sword. It was so rusty it couldn't be drawn.
"This is all we could find!"
"It's fine, it's enough."
Anna inserted the sword into the gap between the board and the floor. Then she placed a vase-like object that was conveniently rolling around between the sword and the floor. The sword was fixed, pointing diagonally upwards.
"You and Dill, slowly push that sword down."
What Anna was trying to do was use the principle of a lever. Lira, quickly realizing this, placed both hands on the sword.
"Dill, hurry!"
Urged by Lira, Dill also put his hands on the sword.
"We'll go on the count of three."
"Got it."
Dill and Lira put their weight on the sword together.
"Anna, we're going!"
"Anytime!"
"Ready, set, go!"
With a creaking sound, the large board slowly began to lift. This wooden board was heavier than she had thought. For a moment, she was worried about the strength of the sword, but she had to believe it would hold.
"A little more! You can do it, you two!"
Gripping the shopkeeper’s hands with both of her own, Anna encouraged the two as they strained. As if pushed by her voice, the two put even more strength into the sword.
"Ugh… Anna, are you done yet?"
"A little more! Keep it up!"
The gap between the board and the floor widened bit by bit. Suddenly, the weight on the shopkeeper’s body vanished. Seizing that moment, Anna pulled the shopkeeper out of the small gap with all her might. Slowly but surely, the shopkeeper’s not-so-small body began to slide out from under the board. Thanks to the dust, it was slippery, which helped.
But it wasn't enough. Something was caught.
"No good! A little higher!"
As Anna shouted while pulling, the two responded by continuing to push the sword with all their might.
Anna, pulling desperately, felt the sensation of the shopkeeper’s body becoming lighter as whatever was caught came free. He was almost out.
"Hngh, get out!"
With a final grunt of effort from Anna, the shopkeeper’s body was finally freed. The sudden release of the snag caused Anna to fall back with a thud.
"Anna!"
"I'm okay! Thanks, you two!"
Ignoring her aching bottom, Anna dragged the shopkeeper to a safe spot where nothing else would collapse on him.
"You can let go now."
When Anna spoke, the two let go of their hands as if all their strength had left them. With a clatter, the board that had been lifted fell back down. It had truly been held up by the slimmest of margins.
"Mister, are you okay?"
Lira and Dill, out of breath, rushed to the shopkeeper’s side. At their voices, the shopkeeper gave a weak smile. His face was pale, and blood was seeping through his trousers on both legs. They might be broken.
"Anna! Heal him like you healed me!"
"Of course!"
Even without Dill saying it, Anna had intended to. Lira also looked at Anna with pleading eyes.
The shopkeeper’s face was contorted in pain. He was in so much pain that he couldn't even hear the three's voices. In that case, sorry, but she would just have to treat him.
Without hesitation, Anna reached for the shopkeeper’s trousers.
"Eh…?"
"Lira, Dill, pull the other pant leg."
"Eh?"
"I can't see how bad the injury is unless we take them off!"
"Ah…"
Lira and Dill were stunned. But there was no time to hesitate. Even Anna felt bad about pulling down a respectable adult's trousers if the shopkeeper’s life wasn't in danger, but in this situation, it couldn't be helped. The two also seemed to have made up their minds and put their hands on the trouser cuffs. On the count of three, they ripped the trousers off.
The injury was mainly on his upper thigh. There was a lot of bleeding. The part of the bone visible through the wound was broken, but a visible wound was within Anna’s ability to treat.
Anna quietly focused her consciousness on her hands. A soft, cool sensation gathered there. She gently placed it on the shopkeeper’s injury.
"Water Spirit who governs healing, I beseech you, heal this wound."
After the cool sensation that enveloped her palms, the coolness gradually changed to a warm sensation like a person's body temperature. First, the broken bone connected, then the work of closing the wound on top of it began. This required much more care and concentration than the simple healing magic she usually used.
She didn't know how long she had been staring at the wound, but when she came to, the shopkeeper’s skin was gradually returning to its original color. Feeling awkward, the three of them hurriedly tried to put his trousers back on, but the shopkeeper, his face flushed with embarrassment, stood up and pulled them on himself.
Eventually, regaining his composure, the shopkeeper turned to Anna.
"Well, sorry about that. Thanks for your help."
"No, it's okay."
The shopkeeper asked the blushing Anna.
"You're a water spirit user, aren't you?"
"Yes."
Anna answered with a shy smile. The ones who were surprised by the term 'spirit user' were Lira and Dill.
"A spirit user can use magic, right?!"
Lira stared at Anna with awe.
"Yeah, sort of."
A troubled Anna scratched her cheek with her index finger, embarrassed. Come to think of it, she hadn't told these two about that. But from Anna’s perspective, it wasn't something to be so impressed about.
"And you're older than you look. You seem to have a lot of experience. How old are you, anyway?"
Since she was acting with children, she would have preferred that not to be found out, but it couldn't be helped. Anna didn't want to lie when someone asked her something.
"Yes. I'm thirty."
"Thirty?!"
Lira and Dill exclaimed in surprise. She looked only a little older than them, but in reality, she was more than twice their age, so it was natural for them to be surprised.
"I think I'm probably a different race, not human."
When she confessed with a bashful laugh, the two looked even more confused.
"Um, maybe I have some spirit folk blood in me, or something like that…"
Anna was even more troubled by the two's blank expressions, but Lira soon raised her voice in awe.
"Wow! That's amazing, Anna! I've made an amazing friend."
Lira didn't seem to be too fazed by Anna’s age or race, so she was relieved.
"It's okay, right? We're friends, right?"
"Of course."
As she relaxed, a smile spread across her face. It would be lonely if they distanced themselves from her now that they had become friends.
Having grown up in an orphanage for a long time, she had never had a child she could call a friend. She had always been in the position of a guardian. Come to think of it, Lira was the first friend Anna had ever had.
"That's amazing."
Dill, though taken aback, also didn't seem to be changing his attitude. That was a relief.
While they were talking, the shopkeeper, who could now move as usual, brought a box.
"Here you go, non-flammable paper."
When he opened the box the shopkeeper held out, inside was thin paper that gave off a faint light.
"Whoa… it really exists…"
It looked like normal paper, but how was it made? She had no idea.
"It was on a shelf deep in the back, so I accidentally knocked over some luggage and had a terrible time."
Anna took one sheet in her hand. It was light. As light as thin cloth. Would it really not burn?
Perhaps her thoughts showed on her face, because the shopkeeper grinned.
"Anyway, let's go back to my room and try it out. I'm covered in dust and want to change."
Looking closely, Anna and the other two were also covered in dust.
"Well, how about some juice?"
The old man cheerfully went downstairs. Lira followed him. As Dill was about to follow, Anna stopped him. Dill turned around with a quizzical look, and Anna smiled at him.
"Dill, you can't say you can't do anything anymore. Because you helped me, and you helped the old man."
A broad smile spread across Dill’s face. It was the first time she had seen such a clear, bright smile. If he had confidence in himself, he could make a face like that. Dill must be a good kid too.
"Come on, let's go get some juice!"
"Okay!"
The two of them also slowly started down the stairs.
After going downstairs, dusting themselves off, and composing themselves, Anna wrote on the paper.
"Just 'testing'… should be enough, right?"
Murmuring to herself, Anna put it in Sara’s lamp. Sara was delighted, thinking it was food-flame, but when she realized it was paper, she looked displeased.
"Sara-chan, this is a letter!"
"Tega-kee!"
Sara was happy, though she didn't know what it was. She was curious about everything she saw for the first time. That's why Ritz and Franz treated Anna and Sara as two of a kind.
"Is that a living thing?"
Lira, surprised by Sara speaking for the first time, peeked into the lamp.
"Yeah, it's a Fire Spirit, a Salamander."
"So that's why she's Sara-chan?"
"That's right!"
When Anna gently placed the letter inside the lamp, Sara received it with her small hands, which were tiny for her body.
"Tega-kee, tega-kee!"
Sara had no idea what it was, but she was happily waving the letter around.
"…It really doesn't burn."
Even though Sara was gripping it so tightly, the paper didn't even produce a wisp of smoke.
"That's amazing. Mister, how much is this?"
Fully intending to buy it, Anna took out her wallet. Franz had given her a third of their total funds, so she could afford it even if it was expensive.
This was her share, in case something happened to Franz and he couldn't use the money.
Franz had two-thirds of the total, but Ritz had none. Ritz had confidently said it was fine because he could manage on his own even without money, so it must have been okay.
"Mister, is it expensive?"
After checking the contents of her wallet, Anna asked the old man, and the shopkeeper laughed.
"Of course it's expensive. The money in there won't be enough. This is a special kind of paper. It's an import, made by coating paper from the eastern country of Tarnien with a special solution and drying it."
"No way…"
Lira and Anna, who had come this far, slumped onto the table in disappointment. Non-flammable paper was, after all, a magical item, not something that common people could easily obtain.
"Don't be so disappointed, it's okay."
At the shopkeeper’s words, Anna and Lira lifted their heads from the table.
"You saved my life. I'll give you this paper."
Anna's eyes widened at the shopkeeper’s unexpected words. Helping people was something of a hobby for Anna. To receive something so expensive felt very apologetic.
"Are you really sure?"
When she asked timidly, the shopkeeper’s mouth curved into an amused smile.
"But, there's one condition. I get to decide who holds this paper."
Anna smiled. A condition like that wouldn't be a problem at all. But surprisingly, the person the shopkeeper entrusted this paper to was neither Anna nor Lira.
The shopkeeper turned to Dill with a serious expression.
"I'll entrust this paper to you. You're a man. A fine man who inherited the blood of that Sabatieri-sensei. I don't know what you all are trying to do. But go and do your best together."
Dill, who received it, nodded with a tense expression. Now that he had been entrusted with this paper, he could no longer be uninvolved in Anna and Lira’s plan.
"Dill, let's do our best!"
At Anna and Lira’s encouragement, Dill managed a smile, though he was shy. That was much better than being timid and depressed. Anna felt happy at the sight of the slightly grown-up Dill. He was no longer a boy who couldn't do anything. He had been able to cooperate with others and help someone.
"I'll do my best, Anna, Lira, mister!"
It was Dill's first declaration of resolve.
After finishing all the tea and sweets, the three of them left the weapon shop owner’s place.
The time was noon. It was almost time for lunch.
They had discussed it earlier, and since Dill was going to stay at the Green Forest Inn for a while, the three of them, after leaving the weapon shop, went straight to the front of Dill’s house.
"Okay, I'll go ask Mom."
Leaving Anna and the others behind, Dill ran into his house. Thinking there would probably be an argument, Anna and Lira sat down on a nearby stone to wait. But contrary to their expectations, Dill ran out of the house without them having to wait.
"She said I can stay for a while!"
On his shoulder, as he said this happily, was a small bag.
"Mom packed my things for me."
That was the only strange thing, Dill seemed to be saying, but Anna guessed why Dill’s mother had packed his things.
She probably realized that a group had started to move to harm her. So she might have been trying to evacuate her only son to a safe place.
She must be a kind mother after all.
Or was there another reason?
She was curious, but Anna couldn't help everyone she was curious about. Right now, she could only handle one job at a time. She understood that well.
At any rate, what she had to do now was return to the inn and decide with Franz on what to communicate to Ritz and when to start their actions. Dill’s mother's safety depended on how she moved.
"Come on, let's go back to the inn."
Urged by Anna, Dill and Lira also started walking towards the inn.
However, the situation had moved much faster than Anna had imagined.
Upon returning to the inn, Anna couldn't help but shout.
"Whaaaat?!"
Inside the inn, where he should have been, the grumpy Franz was nowhere to be seen. Only a stunned Net was lying face down on a table. According to Net, Franz had been taken to the landowner's house. This was a major deviation from the original plan.
"Why? I was supposed to discuss our next steps with Franz!"
"Anna-chan, that's why Franz-kun tried to stop you from going shopping, didn't he?"
"Ugh…"
It was true that Anna was largely responsible for Franz being taken away.
"Waaah, Franz is definitely mad at me."
"No, that's not it… why is Dill here?"
Net was confused by the sight of Dill, who had come with his luggage. For now, they decided to all calm down, have some tea, and then talk.
"Alright, let's calm down for now."
After sitting down and drinking the tea Net had made, the four of them let out a big sigh in unison.
They were finally in a state to talk.
"Umm, first, about the shopping trip."
Anna, Lira, and Dill, supplementing each other's words, conveyed the general gist of things to Net.
He seemed unable to hide his surprise at the part where the shopkeeper was pinned under a large board-like object.
"I see. Lira, Dill, you did well! Anna-chan, thanks to your precise instructions, you were able to save someone. Thank you."
Waiting for Net's excitement to subside, they finally finished talking about how Dill came to this inn, which took a considerable amount of time.
"I see, I understand. You can stay with us for a while."
"Thank you."
Dill nodded with a smile. Since the incident of saving the shopkeeper, he had started to show Anna and the others his smile more often.
"Okay, now it's your turn, Mister Net. Why was Franz taken away?"
After letting out a big sigh at Anna, Net began to explain the course of events.
Listening to him, Anna felt terribly guilty. Should she have waited a little longer to go shopping, as Franz had said?
But even if Anna had been there, she couldn't imagine the situation would have improved. From what she heard, Siglet was completely beyond Anna’s ability to handle. If Anna had been there and interfered in their conversation, it probably would have made things even more complicated.
"Yeah, I get it. It might have been better that I wasn't there, but it's probably my fault, huh."
The other three fell silent at Anna’s mumble as she rested her cheek on her hand. This was not good. If they couldn't get in touch, the plan would fail.
"What should we do?"
At times like this, Ritz would usually come up with a plan, but he wasn't here now. Franz, who would just say something random, wasn't here either.
In this situation for the first time, Anna was at a loss. A person's life might be at stake, but she didn't know where to start…
"Anna, are you okay?"
Lira asked with concern. Glancing around, she noticed that the three of them were staring intently at her. It seemed she had been lost in thought.
"Yeah, I'm fine. I was just thinking."
She felt helpless. This was the first time. In Vishnu, Anton was there, and since starting her journey, Ritz had been there. Whenever Anna was lost, they always gave her advice.
But to have to think on her own was too difficult.
Although no particularly good ideas came to mind, Anna suddenly remembered something she should ask. Would it be more likely to meet their companion if they went to the landowner or the rich man?
"Mister, who is a better person, the one who took Franz, or the one Ritz went to?"
Since both of them were trying to swindle a treasure, there was no good person or anything, but she wanted to know which one was more likely to have a weakness.
"Siglet-san is malicious. I can't say he's a good person at all. He's the slyest man in town. Rusan-san is selfish, but he's a bit slow."
"I see…"
In that case, it would be easier to meet Ritz, who was with Rusan.
"Umm, if I say that Ritz left something at this inn and I've come to deliver it, do you think they'll let me see him?"
"Hmm…"
Net thought for a moment, then nodded.
"It probably won't work if you're alone, Anna-chan. It might work if Lira is with you."
When Anna looked at Lira, Lira nodded seriously. She seemed more than willing.
"Okay, then I'll go meet Ritz and talk to him! I might not be able to talk, so I'll write a letter too."
For now, they had broken through the situation where they were all at a loss. All that was left was to put it into action.
It was decided that the forgotten item they would make up would be the non-flammable paper.
If Ritz could move around freely, it would be possible to meet him, but if not, the most reliable way to get in touch from now on was to entrust it to a letter.
If Ritz was in a situation where he could go outside his room, she could release Sara-chan towards him, and they could exchange letters.
By the time she finished writing the letter and all preparations were complete, it was night. If they went now, they would be suspected, even if it was two young girls.
Suppressing her impatience, Anna decided to postpone going to see Ritz until the next morning. The situation probably wouldn't change in a day or two.
"We'll leave tomorrow morning. Lira, I'm counting on you!"
With Anna’s decision, they decided to rest for the day.
When she was alone, the tension that had been building up eased, and a big sigh escaped her. She realized just how much she had been relying on Ritz and Franz.
Even after getting into bed, Anna woke up several times from a light sleep. This was a first for her.
"May things turn out okay. Goddess, please guide us…"
The best she could do now was to pray. After praying, she gradually became sleepy, and without realizing it, Anna fell asleep.