Chapter 21: I scolded the bad people!

The sunlight caressed my eyes warmly, as if tickling them.

I yawned and stretched.

“…Uung. Ria, good morniiing.”

“Good morning, Senior♡”

I rubbed my eyes and looked at Ria.

But something—

“Ria.”

“Yes?”

“Are you in a bad mood?”

Ria paused for a moment, then gave a gentle smile.

“With just Senior and me, why would I be♡”

“…I don’t think so.”

“Really, I’m not♡”

At that moment—.

• Grrrroooowl~

• Grrrroooowl—

Ria and I fell silent simultaneously.

“…I’m hungry.”

“Come to think of it, we haven’t eaten anything all day.”

“Uung…. Even heaven feels hunger….”

Ria smiled and reached out her hand.

“Then, shall we go outside and find a restaurant?”

“Restaurant? Yeah—!”

I grabbed Ria’s hand and jumped up.

And so, we headed over the cliff.

“I hope we meet a lot of people—!”

“I do too♡”

“When we make friends, we should tell them to visit our amusement park—!”

And so…….

We were burning our happy thoughts.

But we had been walking straight to find the village for about an hour……

Instead of a restaurant,

Not even a single building was visible.

Only a large lake and an endless expanse of forest.

“Ria.”

“Yes, Senior?”

“I…. can’t walk anymore….”

It was sad that my legs were so short and my pace didn’t match Ria’s,

And being hungry on top of that was really killing me.

In the end, I collapsed on the ground weakly.

“Seniorrrrr—!”

“…00”

Ria picked me up in her arms.

I’m sorry. I’m going to be really heavy.

…Ah, I was only a five-year-old kid now.

“Senior. You can’t collapse! Open your eyes, okay?!”

“I’m too hungry….”

“I was foolish. Making Senior walk! Even if Senior says you’re okay, I should have carried you no matter what!”

“……Nooo. Ria is tired too….”

“I’m not bothered by this kind of thing!”

But it sounded like Grrrroooowl was rumbling in her ears all the time.

Hearing that sound reminded me of when I first met Ria.

Ria’s stomach also made a rumbling clock then.

Ria, when we first met, looked very sick and somewhat listless.

Like a starving and wounded wild animal,

She didn’t let down her guard, but at the same time, her eyes didn’t even expect a helping hand.

As if both hunger and pain were familiar to her.

She looked at me with a resigned expression, as if this state was normal.

While showing strong distrust of anyone.

I couldn’t leave Ria covered in blood.

So, I used up all the skill points I had and learned healing magic, and did my best to heal Ria.

‘…Although the researchers scolded me a lot for taking useless skill points.’

But I don’t regret that choice.

Because thanks to that, I got my irreplaceable comrade and precious partner.

I let out a pu-hhuu— breathy laugh.

“……Ria, you ate a lot of hamburgers in a hurry back then.”

“Yes? Then?”

“When we first met. You said you didn’t need it, but you ate 10 burger sets.”

Back then, I was young too, and I didn’t have much money because I belonged to the research institute.

“I spent all my assets that day….”

“…I’m sorry, Senior.”

“No. I was so happy to see you eating well.”

My wallet was empty that day,

And I couldn’t enjoy an occasional escape to the convenience store to buy snacks for a while—.

“…Hey.”

“What? Why did you come again?”

“I wanted to see how you were doing. …Are you giving me the cold shoulder saying I don’t have any money now?”

“…W-well, not really.”

I was happy to make a friend for the first time outside the research institute.

That friend became a hunter junior,

She always followed me and went through danger with me, and……

I didn’t know she would become someone who worried about me more than I worried about myself.

I didn’t even know that we would be together even after dying and being reborn like this.

I looked up at Ria, who was holding me tightly and running at full speed.

“Ria, aren’t you tired?”

“No, I’m not tired. So, hold on a little longer, Senior—!”

“Uung. I wish we sold hamburgers in this world. It’s Ria’s favorite food….”

“That’s because it was the first food you ever bought for me.”

I smiled weakly, and finally closed my eyes in her arms.

I closed my eyes for about a minute.

“Seniorrrrrr—!”

I opened my eyes with a start at the sound that seemed like my eardrums would fall off.

“Ue? Eeee?”

“A village, a village!”

“Reeeaaalllyyyy?!”

Ria, holding me in one arm, pointed with her other hand.

I rubbed my eyes and looked.

It was true.

Beyond the forest and the flat land,

There was a village where old and small buildings were gathered.

Seeing smoke rising from the chimney, it was true that people were living there.

“Waaaaaaaaah—! Finally, I can eat!”

“Senior, hold on a little longer! Let’s go right away and eat!”

“Yeah—!”

Ria hugged me tightly, and ran at full speed again.

And not long after,

We arrived at the village entrance.

“Wowwww…”

“…Here is.”

It looked old even from a distance,

But seeing it up close, some of the buildings looked like abandoned houses.

“…Is there a restaurant here?”

“W, well….”

I looked around with a bad feeling.

A house with a creaking door,

A roof that looked like it would collapse any moment,

And there weren’t many people on the street either.

“…I’m hungry. Ah! Let’s ask that uncle over there.”

“Yes!”

Ria hurried to the old uncle standing on the side of the road.

When Ria approached,

The uncle stepped back a step, wary.

His eyes were filled with suspicion and anxiety,

And he was tensing his body as if he was ready to run away.

…Didn’t they say this was heaven?’

Heaven is a place for good people only,

I thought everyone would be laughing with ha-ha-ho-ho, but……

‘It’s no different from heaven where people live.’

If so, wouldn’t I, as a child, be at a bit of an advantage?

I got down from Ria’s arms.

“Hello, Uncle!”

“…Ah, hello, little girl.”

When I bowed to him 90 degrees,

The uncle awkwardly smiled and greeted me.

“I have a question. Where is the restaurant?”

“…Restaurant?”

“Yes!”

As if to support my words, both Ria’s and my stomachs rumbled at the same time.

Then the uncle chuckled and pointed to the building right next to him.

“Come in. I can make you a simple meal.”

“R, really?! Thank you!”

When I bowed 90 degrees, Ria also bowed her head.

“Ho-ho, you’re girls with good manners.”

The uncle went into the building first, and I whispered to Ria.

“See, it seems like it’s heaven after all. They are giving us a meal even though we don’t know each other!”

“…Elysium, generally, has only good-natured idiots though.”

Ria was still looking around, not relaxing.

“…It feels a little strange. Why do they seem so wary of people?”

“Uung? It’s natural to be wary of strangers—!”

I grabbed Ria’s hand and went inside.

Then, the uncle was already in the kitchen preparing something.

“Sit there and wait. I’ll quickly make you something simple.”

“Wow, thank you!”

With a happy heart, I sat on the table chair.

Ria, with a sullen expression, sat across from me and whispered.

“Senior, be careful, just in case.”

“…Huh? Why?”

“The people in this village… their eyes were wary of us. Something might happen….”

“…Shall I try using the Emotion Skill?”

Ria slowly nodded.

I wiggled my feet that didn’t touch the floor and looked at the uncle.

At that moment, the uncle came over holding a plate.

“Here you go. I can’t make you a great meal, but eat some simple soup.”

“Thank you!”

Two steaming bowls of warm soup were placed on the table.

Ria stared at the soup intently.

Then, as if it was okay to eat it, she slowly nodded her head.

“Thank you for the meal!”

“…Thank you for the meal.”

“Ho-ho, the uncle doesn’t have much, but my hands are big. I made a lot, so eat as much as you want.”

With a happy heart, I picked up my spoon.

I quickly scooped up a spoonful of the warm soup steaming and put it in my mouth.

The warm, smooth taste enveloped my tongue.

“Sooo goooood—!”

“Haha, I’m glad. How about that girl?”

“…It’s edible.”

“This one is a bit picky.”

But seeing her moving her spoon busily, it seemed to suit Ria’s taste too.

I quickly emptied one plate and held it out to the uncle.

“Give me one more bowl!”

“…Little girl, you’re eating really fast?”

“Ehe─. It’s delicious, so I ate it quickly!”

“…Me too.”

“Ho-ho, it seems it suits your taste too.”

The uncle smiled with satisfaction and gave me another bowl of soup.

“Here, eat as much as you want.”

“Thank you!”

I quickly scooped up another spoonful and put it in my mouth.

The warm broth was gently wrapping my insides.

Ria also quietly ate her soup.

She was still wary, but she was moving her spoon busily again.

‘…Ah, right. Come to think of it, I have to pay.’

For some reason, there was 2,000 Elies in my pocket.

When I asked Ria, she said it was the currency of Elysium.

I quietly touched the coins in my pocket.

No matter how I thought about it, I didn’t remember keeping this money.

‘It must be a settlement fee, right?’

Ria said that it was probably what the Goddess gave us, and we should use it as a settlement fund and use it to our heart’s content.

I still felt uneasy, but

I held the money tightly and looked at the uncle.

“Uncle! We’ll pay for our meal!”

“…meal?”

“Yeah! Because we shouldn’t just freeload!”

I proudly held out the coins in my hand.

Then the uncle chuckled and gently pushed my hand away.

“I’m treating you, so eat in peace. You don’t have to pay.”

“But….”

“I feel happy that there’s some liveliness in this desolate house, so that’s enough.”

Come to think of it, there’s no one at home.

This house, of course, and even outside is desolate as well.

“That’s the best! I could be a chef!”

“Haha, is it that delicious?”

“Yes! It’s very delicious!”

The uncle laughed heartily and scooped another spoonful of soup for me.

“I was a chef in the old days. Not now, though.”

“Whyee? Even though it’s so delicious?”

I looked at the uncle with curious eyes.

The uncle hesitated for a moment and then gave a wistful smile.

“Are you going to live in this village?”

“Uung, nooo—! We came from over there!”

The uncle, looking at the direction I pointed, tilted his head as if puzzled.

“There should be a more prosperous village than ours nearby.”

“Huh? Really?”

Ria put down her spoon with a ‘thud’.

I also put down my spoon because I had eaten a fair amount and finished my soup.

And then I jumped down from the table chair.

“But I like it here!”

“…Do you?”

“Yeah! Uncle’s food is very delicious! So I’ll come again!”

“Ho-ho, yes. Come again, and I’ll give you even more delicious food.”

“Yeah!”

We were greeted by the uncle and headed on our way.

I smiled brightly, looking up at Ria, who held my hand tightly.

“He was a kind uncle, right?”

“…I think so.”

The uncle waved his hand at us.

The gazes, as if they had been keeping an eye on us,

Were reduced compared to earlier.

“…It feels a little strange.”

“Right?”

“Uung. It’s just that, it’s not just wariness of outsiders, it’s too….”

I stopped talking for a moment.

It wasn’t just simple wariness, but rather─.

“…It’s like they’re afraid of something.”

Ria also nodded at my words.

I wonder what they’re afraid of.

I, I thought I could gain favor with my cuteness, or whatever.

‘…But even then, it’s like this?’

I turned around slightly.

At the corner of the street, the villagers were cautiously peeking out and watching us.

Their expressions were still filled with anxiety and tension.

“A-a-nnyoooong!”

“…Ah.”

I waved my hand at the people, smiling intentionally.

Then, some hid, and some smiled awkwardly and waved their hands.

“It’s nothing bad… . They greeted us. Hmm, they don’t seem to be bad people….”

“…Well, there can’t be bad people in Elysium, anyway…”

“There is, though?”

“…Yes?”

I pointed to a corner of a distant alley.

Ria followed my gaze.

There, a suspicious group was surrounding a man.