Black Iron Magician

「W-What going on?」

The shopkeeper came running out of the store when he heard the footsteps of the earth dragons. The shopkeeper is also a dwarf after all. At first, he seemed to be surprised by the sight of Makam and Redon and the dragon carriage with the national emblem of Adelheit, but as soon as he confirmed that they are harmless, he regained his composure. Another reason is that there’s a familiar face.

「It’s been a long time, Shopkeeper-san!」

「Oh, those unique drills, if it isn’t Therese-sama. You’ve grown so big that I have to look up.」

「Ohohoho! I’m always striving to keep growing!」

Apparently, the shopkeeper remembered that Therese has come as a customer in the past. ‘She has a strong impression after all,’ is what the others think.

「Well, let’s not talk while standing here. Please come inside. Ah, these lizards, no, dragons? What about these guys? They can’t fit in my stable.」

「Ah, Gobuo-kun will watch them, so they can wait here. Makam, Redon, wait quietly!」

「Guruu!」

「Guoo!」

「Hoo, they’ve been well educated, huh. Then, please come.」

After confirming that Gobuo started feeding the earth dragons, Haruna and the others were guided by the shopkeeper and went inside. There are a few customers inside the restaurant and they seem to be in the middle of eating, but for some reason, their eyes are focused on the shopkeeper. When the owner told them that everything is fine, they seemed relieved and started eating again. Apparently, the sound of the earth dragons’ footsteps could be heard even inside.

「Sorry. It was so sudden, so they were surprised.」

「We are also sorry. We should have run more quietly.」

「Hmm, it’s difficult to adjust. I wish there is a magic that could erase the sound of the footsteps.」

「Ah…. I’m sure Karua-san has one…. I’ll ask her when we get back….」

Weerel brought up the name of Karua, the same royal palace magician. Speaking of Karua, it means wind magic. ‘Is it possible to put up a barrier that blocks sound with the wind?’ when Haruna and Chinatsu thought so, a loud shout suddenly came from the back of the store.

「Ehhhh!? Rokusai and Katsuragi!?」

「「Eh?」」

Being called by surnames, Haruna and Chinatsu looked at the direction of the voice. There’s Oda, a boy with glasses who has a surprised expression while pointing his finger. In the guest seats behind him are Fuchi, who is looking at them as if looking at something unusual, and Mani, who is chewing some kind of fruit. There’s a group of three classmates of Haruna who went on a trip before the graduation festival of the academy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

「Understood. Please wait a moment.」

The shopkeeper took the food order and disappeared into the kitchen in the back.

「………」

There’s an indescribable atmosphere at their seats, and Oda is hesitating and doesn’t know how to break the ice. He is seated across from Chinatsu, and Haruna, Therese, and Weerel are sitting on the seats lined up on her side. Oda, who has a thing for Chinatsu, is in agony after remembering the line that he said at parting. He can’t bring himself to say anything. Fuchi is observing such Oda and enjoying it, and he doesn’t seem to have the intention to help him. As for Mani, he’s clumsy with words, so he’s just watching over the situation in panic.

「You three, it’s been a long time desuwa! Master Mani, are you doing well?」

「It’s been a long time! Um, about half a month? You three, are you doing well?」

And the ones who break such atmosphere are the usual two people. Therese and Haruna greeted them directly without minding their situation. The word of refrain doesn’t exist there.

「Yes, we are doing well. Looking at your state, it seems that you don’t change. …… Your strength seems different, though.」

Fuchi responded on behalf of the three people since it couldn’t be helped.

「Therese-san too, it’s been a long time. Um, there’s a new face here. Nice to meet you, I’m Fuchi. The one who’s frozen by the nervousness here is Oda, and the one who’s stuffing his cheek is Mani. Let’s get along.」

「………」

When Fuchi extended his right hand for a shake, Weerel seemed embarrassed and hid behind Chinatsu. It seems that she has fear for strangers.

「Wah, what’s wrong, Wee?」

「Oh, does she hate me?」

「No, she’s just a little nervous desuwa. This girl is Weerel the hero. She’s confident when facing adults, but she’s timid when facing someone close to her age. I think she will get used to you soon, so please wait patiently.」

「Ah, I see. But don’t worry, she’s not as bad as our Oda.」

Fuchi took back his hand while smiling wryly. As for Oda, he’s still not moving.

「C-Chinatsu-san…. Who are those people…?」

「They are my and Haruna’s classmates, just like Wee and Therese-san.」

「I-I see…. It’s scary that his eyes are bloodshot and he’s breathing heavily….」

「Y-Yes. I think he’s not doing it intentionally.」

The cause for her fear was Oda.

「So, why are you in Crocus? Ah, before that, I will report our progress.」

「You are looking for a way to return to Japan, right? How is it?」

「Unfortunately, we found nothing. The reason we came to Crocus was because of Oda’s wish. He said that we have to see kemono-mimi, elf, and such if we are going for an adventure. We heard that there’s unique demi-human in Crocus――」

「――F-Fuchi! Please stop, I beg you!」

「Haha, okay, okay. Oh my~, it was disappointing, right, Oda?」

Because it’s a flower country, a country with greenery, Oda visited Crocus with high expectations. However, what greeted him was the dancing muscle men in the pretty flower garden. Oda was so disappointed that he collapsed.

「Having an interest in other races, Oda-san sure is a very inquisitive person! That’s wonderful desuwa!」

「Ugh, please stop…. Don’t stare at me with such pure eyes….」

「O-Oda, calm down. Let’s drink some water.」

Water is our friend. Oda drank the water from the cup and regained his breath.

「So, what was it again?」

「The reason why you came to Crocus. Ah, wait. I’ll try to guess. Hmm….」

Taking a detective pose, Fuchi put his hand on his chin and groaned lightly. A little bit of acting by Fuchi made Weerel’s eyes light up, as if the illness peculiar to 14-year-olds has grabbed her heart. When Fuchi snapped his fingers, Weerel drew in even further.

「I understand. You’ve been summoned for the Hero Alliance, right?」

「H-How did you know that…!?」

Weerel showed her face a bit from Chinatsu’s back and asked so.

「Well, it’s not a mystery or anything. The national emblem of Adelheit is drawn on your carriage that you can see from the window, and I don’t think there’s someone stronger than Rokusai-san and Katsuragi-san other than Knight Leader Nell and Deris-san. So, I can predict it considering the timing you came to Crocus. I don’t know why Touko-san isn’t here, she’s probably made a mess and is being disciplined, I guess?」

「…… It’s not too far off.」

「Ah, really?」

The last reasoning was almost his intuition, so Fuchi couldn’t help but smile wryly.

「Still, how can you know about the Hero Alliance? It’s more or less confidential information, you know?」

「Ah, that’s simple. We are the heroes of Crocus after all.」