kscans

Chapter 235 - Sameim and a Quest for Two

"Alright, Mizuki and I will go back into town to buy some clothes for Sam. Master, you and Sam will go gather medicinal herbs."

"Wh-what?!"

I was taken aback by Famu's sudden proposal.

"If we're buying clothes for her, she should have a say in what she likes, right? Isn't it better if we all go together?"

Mizuki also looked troubled, her gaze shifting from me to Famu, and then to Sameim.

"It's fine. Sam and I are the same size. Besides, I secretly went to the guild yesterday and accepted an herb-gathering quest."

"Huh? Same size? Your chest sizes are completely different!"

Famu shot me a glare. I quickly hid behind Mizuki.

"Master, please give the herb guide and a dagger to Sam."

I succumbed to her pressure and did as she said.

"Are you sure about this?"

Famu pushed a worried Mizuki towards the city. Then, she turned back to me.

"Master, the deadline is this evening. Please deliver them to the guild before sunset."

I had no idea what she was thinking. After watching the two of them head back into the city, I glanced at Sameim, who was also looking up at me. I placed a hand on her head.

"Well, shall we go?"

Sameim gave a small nod. As I stroked her head, I also touched her white, drooping ears. They were fluffy and pleasant to the touch. The place where Famu and I had gathered herbs before seemed like a good spot. I thought that and started walking, but then Famu came running back and whispered in my ear.

"Master, Sameim is hiding something."

We were in a hollow in the forest. The grass growing there was short, creating a clearing-like space. It felt like the place I had come to with Famu, but it was also possible that it was a completely different place. Back then, it was the beginning of summer, and all the greenery was lush and vibrant. It was still lush now, but the colors had deepened and started to fade, so the scenery looked different. Sameim was crouched down, comparing the plants to the illustrated guide—or rather, distinguishing them by smell—and I couldn't help but laugh. It was the exact same gesture Famu had made. But still, what did she mean by 'hiding something'? Was Famu telling me to find out what it was? I didn't know the first thing about her. I didn't even know what would count as a secret. What did Famu trust in me to entrust her to me like this? Besides, Famu was keeping a big secret from me herself. What did she want me to uncover?

As I was thinking about this, Sameim, still crouched, turned to look at me.

"N-no, I wasn't slacking off! I was just..."

I was about to join her in searching for herbs when the bushes behind her rustled. Sameim reacted to the sound and quickly stood up, drawing her dagger. As I reached for my own sword, she brandished her dagger and leapt into the bushes. She was like a hunting dog. Blades of grass and small twigs, sliced by her blade, flew through the air. She returned almost immediately, holding the slime oil left behind by the monster.

"...You killed it?"

It was a stupid question. She was bringing back the spoils, so of course she had killed it. To be honest, I had expected her to have a harder time. But even though she had lost her mana-based physical enhancement, she had been roaming the ninetieth floor of the Crystal Palace. There was no way she was weak. I had been comparing her to Famu when she first gathered herbs. She looked somewhat younger than Famu, but she was her own person. I had to treat her properly. With that in mind, I looked at her more closely and saw she had a scratch, probably from a small branch.

"Don't jump into places where you might get hurt. Fight in a safe spot."

I picked the leaves from her hair and clothes and handed her a health potion. I didn't know the logic behind it, but since injuries healed when you drank this, the scratch should disappear too. Sameim looked surprised as she took the potion.

We continued to gather herbs. We split up to search, but Sameim, with her keen sense of smell, was overwhelmingly faster.

"Are you keeping secrets from Famu?"

No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn't come up with a good way to ask, so I decided to be direct. Sameim shook her head.

"Liar. You had a crush on some guy in the village, didn't you?"

Her hands stopped moving. I also stopped rustling through the weeds and looked at her. Her eyes were wide.

"So it is about a guy..."

A sigh escaped me. I had a feeling it would be something like that. I started rustling through the weeds again to look for herbs, but Sameim tugged on the hem of my clothes. I turned around to see her clutching a small branch. I followed her gaze to the ground.

'Not true. I don't like anyone.' That was what was written there. Could everyone in this world write? I was slightly impressed, and then she started writing again.

'Famu's father taught me.'

"Was Famu's dad a teacher?"

She puffed out her cheeks at my words.

'You're with Famu, so how do you not know something like that?'

"W-well, that's true, but she seems to have sad memories, so it's kind of hard to ask about what happened in the village..."

She blinked slowly.

'Famu wants you to know about her.' Wants me to know. I repeated the words in my mind. Was it true? Was it okay for me to pry? What about me? Did she want to know how I felt when I was living in my original world? Or did she already know with that sharp sense of hers and was following me anyway? I wanted her, and only her, to stay with me until the end, no matter what. But if the battles with enemies like the Messiah continued, I couldn't drag her around with me. As I was thinking about this, Sameim's ear twitched. She quickly grabbed her dagger. At the same time, the bushes rustled again.

"Hey, don't jump in this time. We'll take it out together when it comes out!"

I drew my sword as well.

The slime dropped a Mana Seed. Sameim held it in her palm, staring at it for a long time.

"If you like it that much, you can keep it."

Her sparkling eyes turned to me. But she seemed to doubt my words, her palm still open with the Mana Seed resting on it. When I nodded back, a bright smile burst onto her face. Come to think of it, Mizuki had also made a necklace out of a Mana Seed. I told her it would be a good idea to ask her how to do it later. Famu hadn't shown much interest in jewels and the like, though she had an unusual obsession with things that were light blue. I mused that the two of them had their own personalities.

"Well, if we get separated, you can sell it for travel money. Now then, back to gathering herbs."

She carefully put the Mana Seed in her pocket and took out the illustrated guide. Back to the boring work. We had to meet our quota by dusk.

"So, is the guy you like in the Messiah party?"

She shook her head.

"Then was he in the village?"

Her hands froze. Her reaction was too easy to read. I couldn't imagine Famu would have missed this. This meant that this wasn't the secret Famu was concerned about. I hadn't been told there was more than one secret. At this rate, no matter how many of her secrets I uncovered, I wouldn't know which was the one Famu wanted to know about. I'll have to complain when I get back. As I was thinking this, the hem of my clothes was tugged again.

'Don't tell Famu. Absolutely.'

"I won't. But she definitely knows."

When I told her this, her mouth fell open. She was rapidly turning pale. Her expressions were gradually becoming more varied. This must be her true self. But then, it struck me as odd that Famu hadn't mentioned a single word about who Sameim liked. Come to think of it, she had said that everyone in the village knew each other.

"Was he one of the ones bought by Clovis...?"

I wondered if she was being blackmailed with that man as a hostage, but I quickly shook my head. She had said that three dog-eared people were bought. One died, and one was taken in by Maryanne. And she had started attacking transferrers with Yuki after she was alone.

"Were there any other acquaintances at Clovis's place?"

I immediately dismissed that idea as well. I couldn't think of a reason to hide it. I looked at her. She was still staring at the ground, her face pale. Was it such a big deal for Famu to know she liked a boy?

"Do you like older guys?"

Sameim's expression was hard to read, but she finally shook her head. Then it must be someone closer to her own age. In that case, it was highly likely that he was also Famu's friend. She was worried about Sameim's well-being, but she hadn't said anything about him. I wondered why, and came to a conclusion, then stopped my train of thought.

I noticed Sameim was staring at me, her face bright red. That's when I realized she had misunderstood my previous question.

"N-no! I wasn't asking if you liked me just now, I was asking about your type. Do you like older guys, or younger guys? That's all I wanted to know!"

Her face turned an even deeper shade of red. Watching her, I thought: Sameim is easy to read. But I don't understand Famu at all. Mizuki, either. Myra, too... but maybe I understand Marmi a little.

"Well, whatever. Come to think of it, I remember Famu said something interesting about you. There's something I really want to ask you too."

At my words, Sameim swallowed and then nodded.

"Famu said you're a lewd person. You're really not a virgin, are you?"

"Tch!"

Sameim spun around and resumed gathering herbs.

When we finished the herb-gathering request and returned to the inn, Famu greeted us with an indescribably puzzled look on her face.

"I thought you would come back having become friends..."

"I think we did get along, probably."

Sameim nodded at my words, still looking away.

"..., Master, don't tell me..."

"'Don't tell you' what?! I didn't do anything! I did nothing!"

"Then why are you so flustered?! I believed you wouldn't do anything lewd to Sam, at least not now!"

Hearing Famu's voice, Mizuki approached with a grim expression.

"Mash... again?"

"'Again' what?! I told you, I didn't do anything to Sameim. I just did the herb gathering as you said and came back. Please, Sameim, say something, anything!"

Sameim was staring at us with a blank expression.

"Hey, what are you spacing out for? Clear up this misunderstanding!"

I pressed her, and she started to giggle. Seeing this, Famu and Mizuki sighed.

"Well, whatever. More importantly, I made dinner, so let's eat."

On the table in the back were fluffy eggs, rolled omelets, omelet rice, and egg soup.

"Famu was persistent about wanting me to teach her how to make them..."

Mizuki answered before I could ask.

"R-right."

Seeing the slight wag of her tail from behind, I couldn't say anything more. Myra and Marmi were already at the table. We took our seats as well.

"Did you figure out how to get to the 'World of the Jar of Holy Oil'?"

I took a sip of ale and asked Marmi. Marmi was also holding a mug of fruit juice, cupping it in her hands. She took a few gulps, then set the mug down on the table.

"...It's fine. Probably."

"Is it 'probably' or is it 'fine'? Which is it?"

"...An object the size of a person disappeared. But we don't know where it went."

The experiment was a success, but there was no way to confirm if the vanished object had actually gone to the 'World of the Jar of Holy Oil'. We couldn't experiment with a person. Even if it succeeded, there was no way to get back. And it was a world without air. Marmi scooped some omelet rice with her spoon and brought it to her mouth, chewing thoughtfully.

"...It's as good as Famu raves about. Not bad,"

she muttered. I ate some of the rolled omelet. The broth wasn't seafood-based, but mushroom-based. It was delicious, but it made me a little nostalgic for the original taste. I felt like I understood how Hyakka felt on her journey to a seaside town in search of true takoyaki. The taste of the food almost made me forget, but I brought the topic back to getting to the 'World of the Jar of Holy Oil'.

"There is a way to test if we really made it. Later, let's go to the place where we were transported."

"...Not now. We need to prepare. Tomorrow morning."

I nodded, and she returned the anal cleaner to me. Myra was staring intently as I took it.

"So, what was that item in the end?"

Myra asked. I turned my gaze back to Marmi.

"It was important, why didn't you explain?"

Marmi pretended not to hear me and started drinking her egg soup. Seeing this, Myra, who seemed to have figured something out, started looking around. Famu, Mizuki... whoever she looked at quickly averted their gaze and pretended to be engrossed in their meal. Only Sameim looked back at Myra with sparkling eyes. Finally, Myra looked at me.

"Mash, you left me out again! That's awful, truly awful!"

"Myra, I don't know which is better, but maybe you're better off not knowing,"

Mizuki muttered. Hearing this, Myra's eyebrows drooped.

"Mizuki knows, but you won't tell me..."

"Myra, I'll tell you. Don't you dare run away."

"Yes, I won't run away!"

It was a very good answer.