Chapter 51: Encouragement
“Your turn.”
“Thank you. I’ve prepared some tea, so please help yourself.”
I confirmed that I had woken up on time by looking at the stars in the sky.
The night sky here is quite different from Japan’s, but in the far north, there are fixed stars. Beside a particularly bright star, there’s one called the Time Star. True to its name, if you look up at the sky at night, you can roughly tell the time by its position.
“I’m staying up, so feel free to use the blanket.”
“That sounds tempting, but I can’t leave Ash-sama behind.”
Gently declining, the butler lay down at the base of a tree a little away from the campfire, pulling his hood over his head. He might be the least suited for the outdoors among us. Well, maybe he does fit the night?
Some are wrapped up in their robes as they sleep, while others have taken theirs off and draped them over themselves. It seems everyone has their own preferences for rolling around.
I poured the tea the butler prepared from the pot into a cup to warm myself. It’s not as cold as winter, but the nights can get chilly.
When I was on the island, gazing at the cosmos made me feel so insignificant that I would spiral into my thoughts, but now I have the luxury to remember the stars. If I had been calm enough to realize that I couldn’t find Cassiopeia or Orion, I might have noticed I wasn’t in Japan.
The stars are beautiful, both then and now.
Listening to the sounds of people sleeping and the occasional crackle of the campfire, I gazed at the night sky for a while.
Az approached, nudging my hand that held the cup, burrowing his body between my fingers. Once he seemed satisfied that I was holding him, he stopped moving.
I’ve heard that finches get cold easily and, once accustomed, enjoy being held, but do spirits get cold too? It probably depends on the type. I doubt a cold-type like Rishu would be cold-blooded. Though, he did lie belly-up in front of the fireplace. Huh?
Well, he’s cute, so I won’t think too deeply about it and switched hands with the cup. The butler’s spirit peeked out from the shadows of the trees. Is he trying to hide and observe us?
I set the cup down and poured water from my canteen into a plate. It’s water from home, but would it be okay since it was in the canteen? I had left it a little away, and it seemed fine since it had been bathing in it.
“Good morning, it’s your turn.”
“Good morning, here’s a snack.”
It seems I had started organizing the names of the spirits out of boredom, and before I knew it, it was time to switch. Time flies when you’re busy.
“Thank you. You’ve helped me with more than just snacks.”
“Don’t worry about it; I was just bored.”
“I’ve received quite a bit.”
“I got reimbursed for the potion, and the rest was made out of personal interest…”
After resolving the troublesome inn issue, he returned the potion fee dutifully.
By the way, Ash’s face seems to be getting scarier and scarier. What’s causing that? With Ash, he’s rarely angry, so unless there’s a cute thing he saw or a delicious meal, I can’t predict it without some context.
He hasn’t eaten the Florentine I gave him yet, right? It’s a delightful treat made of crispy sable dough topped with caramelized sliced almonds, and it keeps well. I brought this and some dried squid as snacks.
“Jean is a good man; you’ll find happiness.”
“Thanks?”
“Yes. The confession was just a coincidence of pranks overlapping.”
Wait, is this a continuation of our conversation from dinner? Is he trying to comfort me? There’s quite a time lag here.
“Right now, I’ve had a good encounter, so my distrust of humans is improving.”
The reassurance from the Severance skill has contributed greatly.
“Hmm, I see. I’m glad to be part of that encounter.”
“You’re definitely included. Now, I’m off.”
Feeling a bit embarrassed, I decided to retreat. Ash may be quiet, but his words are straightforward.
“Be careful.”
He called out, but I’m just going home for a walk.
“You too.”
I called back, confirming Az flew onto Ash’s shoulder before stepping into the forest. When did I start feeling that the moonlight was bright enough?
So, here I am at home. I want to eat white rice, but I’ll hold off. I won’t do anything other than use the restroom and walk Rishu, and I’ve decided not to take anything new with me from here.
Otherwise, I won’t realize what I lack, and I won’t be able to decide what to take with me. I might feel guilty towards everyone else in the same situation.
“Rishu, let’s go.”
I called out to Rishu, who seemed to sense my presence and came running from the bedroom, and we headed outside.
I walked through the forest yesterday as well, but this familiar place feels reassuring. Rishu quickly caught up, overtaking me and sniffing the ground a little ahead. As I caught up, he would run off again, stopping to find something, then repeat the cycle.
Rishu is adorable. Yeah, even if I have some strange fetishes, it’s all good.