The mirror is quite an expensive luxury.
Naturally, it’s not just the commoners who can’t afford it. Even among the nobles, only those with substantial wealth could obtain one. But you might wonder what that means on a battlefield where lives are at stake.
Surprisingly, luxury items like mirrors have not lost their value. In fact, they are traded at even higher prices. It’s the vanity of nobles who can’t resist the extravagance even in the face of tomorrow’s threats.
The setting book explains it. That’s why there was a mirror at the Time Stop Breeding Uncle’s place. You don’t need to see it to know. You can bet he stole it while stopping time. That sneaky bastard.
But thanks to that, it became a big help for me. Because I could directly check how much weight I had lost. However, this time, I couldn’t check with the mirror.
“Where the heck did it go?”
Has it been about a week now? No matter how hard I looked, I couldn’t find the mirror. I was sure I hid it here. It just wouldn’t show up, leaving me feeling like I was being haunted by a ghost.
“Teacher, breakfast is ready!”
I was startled by the polite voice of a girl from outside while searching for the mirror. For a moment, I thought it was some ghost. But fortunately, the owner of the voice was not a ghost but Helia.
Since about a week ago, Helia had suddenly taken it upon herself to prepare meals for me. To be honest, it’s too much pressure. It feels a bit wrong to make a future heroine do housework.
I-I’m sorry, Teacher. I overstepped my bounds…
I was going to refuse, but every time I saw Helia kneeling and repentant, I ended up accepting her meal. Of course, it was nice for me. But still, a bit much.
“You’ve worked hard. But…”
“Yes?”
Seemingly still clueless about what the problem was, Helia tilted her head, her reddish hair swaying cutely. I knew she was working hard. But…
“Isn’t this too much?”
Usually, I solved meals with turnip bread or potato porridge distributed by the security force. All the food the Time Stop Breeding Uncle stole had already been shared out.
But in the past week, the meals Helia prepared were way too much. Not only various vegetables, but even a whole roasted wild boar and fresh fruits!
In a war-torn area, this amount of food was something only nobles could eat. I knew that too. But you want me to eat all this alone? I’d burst!
“Don’t worry! Teacher, I gathered all these ingredients myself this morning!”
“That’s not the issue…”
“Is there perhaps a food you dislike?”
“That’s not it… No, never mind.”
Helia’s eyes began to glimmer with moisture. I nodded and reached out to pat Helia’s head. She was preparing all this for me.
Here I was complaining about the amount. I unconsciously made a full belly noise. I immediately started eating. The vegetables and meat were all delicious.
Where on earth do these meals come from?
I gathered them myself outside.
…???
When I first received such an extravagant spread that nearly broke the table, I had asked out of curiosity. And I got an answer that defied imagination. She gathered all this by herself?
And this little girl did it alone? From my perspective as someone who knows how the future unfolds, it was a complete rollercoaster of chaos. What if she went into the forest and ran into a monster and got killed?
Not to mention, what if she suffered serious injuries like losing an arm? Who would save the world then? I had tried to prohibit her from doing it. But I couldn’t. Because…
“It took me only 10 seconds to catch this wild boar.”
“…Really?”
“All thanks to your teachings, Teacher!!!”
Helia was taking this as a lesson. I had just given her simple tasks from martial arts novels. She was risking her life training on her own.
Of course, it was right to stop her right away. But… if I did that, it would mean I have to teach her the next level Thunder Dragon Sword Technique. And that in itself is a problem.
At the very least, I’d need to come up with a somewhat feasible sword technique. No matter how I think about it, I couldn’t come up with that kind of direction. But I couldn’t just leave it as is…
“Teacher, there’s still a lot of food left.”
“This is enough.”
“No! You need to eat more!”
“…”
“I’ll feed you myself.”
Before I knew it, Helia, who had stuck to me like glue, picked up a chunk of roasted wild boar with a fork. The juicy meat certainly looked appetizing.
If my belly hadn’t been full, I would’ve definitely stuffed it in my mouth right away. But now, I really can’t eat any more. However, looking at Helia with a fork in hand, staring at me…
“Ah~♡”
I felt my body moving against my will. She works hard every day to prepare meals for me, leaving leftovers would, in a way, be rude. So, in the end, I finished it all.
After forcing down the wild boar, fruits, and various vegetables, I seriously felt like I would burst. The funnier thing was that somehow, I could eat it all.
Well, with the Time Stop Ability, physical exertion was much higher than expected. My body was somehow shoving energy into itself. But now, I truly can’t eat anymore.
“Teacher, Teacher.”
“What is it?”
“I have a gift prepared for you.”
“A gift?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
Looking a bit shy, Helia slightly flushed and handed it to me. What Helia brought was a helmet made of iron. And not just any helmet; it was well-made.
The front and back were fine, and it even had proper face protection. It was sturdy too. It’s true that I had armor, but I didn’t have a helmet.
“What a meaningful gift. Thank you so much.”
“May I ask one thing, please?”
“Anything, just ask.”
“Thank you. Now, please excuse me for a moment.”
Her soft hand naturally took the helmet from mine. Soon, the helmet covered my head. The cold iron completely enveloped my head.
However, the face guard was wide open, and I realized how close Helia’s face was. She smiled lightly and lowered the guard with one finger.
“When you go outside, please wear the helmet.”
“…Outside? Why?”
“Just a little wish of mine.”
“Alright, it’s not a difficult request.”
After all, I wear armor when I go outside. Adding one helmet wouldn’t be a big deal. Plus, it’s wise to be cautious since who knows what could happen.
“By the way, have you finished preparing?”
“Preparing? Ah, are you talking about evacuation preparations?”
“Yes, is there anything I can help with?”
Right now, this refugee camp had faced consecutive attacks from demons and monsters. After much consideration, I chose to evacuate, and the capital offered to welcome us.
That was already a week ago. And I should have everything prepared by today. Because today, we were set to leave for the capital together. I smiled and said.
“I finished ages ago. So, you should rest.”
“Thank you, Teacher. Then…”
“…???”
Helia lowered her head slightly and greeted me before carefully reaching out and tugging on my shoulder. Her pillow-like soft knee soon supported my head.
Her reddish hair surrounded me like armor. All I could see from there were her red eyes and, vaguely, her smile.
“Captain Hans! Are you there?!”
“Y-Yeah! I’m right here!”
“…Tch.”
If it hadn’t been for Clarence’s voice from outside, I would still be stuck in Helia’s knee. I quickly stood up. Even though a sulky voice was heard…
Thinking I must’ve misheard, I opened the door quickly. Naturally, Clarence was outside. I had never been so glad to see Clarence’s face before. I opened my mouth.
“I’ve finished preparing. Can we leave now?”
“Before that, there’s something urgent I must tell you…”
“It’s fine. I’m the Teacher’s disciple.”
“…That’s not incorrect, but…”
Clarence’s gaze went to Helia behind me. Helia met Clarence’s gaze calmly and nodded. And I, caught in between, had no idea what was going on.
Why is Helia suddenly being called my disciple? We’re just going to the capital, right? Is there a top-secret matter in this? At that moment, after hearing my words, Clarence nodded.
“Then I’ll speak directly.”
“But why all of a sudden the honorifics…?”
“This is confidential, and you must not divulge it to anyone.”
“…Huh?”
I thought it was odd. Clarence, who had been casually speaking until now, suddenly started to address me respectfully after all this time. Taking a deep breath, Clarence soon opened his mouth.
“The Royal Knights’ expedition has failed.”
“….”
Ah, so that’s why he insisted on keeping it under wraps. If people who thought of the Royal Knights as humanity’s saviors got wind of this, it would indeed be chaos.
But why is he telling me? What a piece of work.
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