The Traveling Hero Won’t Let the Innkeeper’s Son Escape

"Thank you for waiting."

Benno came back when I was talking to Ed like that. Just like last time, Dickhout seems to be inviting Ruth and the others to the Mansion. Ruth and the others follow Benno with gratitude. Once inside the mansion, Dickhout greeted me with the same pleasure. But...

(Oh, I'm stopping looking at Ed again...)

Once Dickhout turned his gaze to Ed next to Ruth, he hardened like a stone. But in a few seconds, he was smiling back. At the end of his greeting, Dickhout disappeared into the back of the second floor just like before. I guess I'll get rid of the work that's left of me like this.

Ruth and the others went up the stairs when Benno took them. As always, the impact of Natasha's portrait on the dance floor halfway up the stairs is strong.

"Ed, I'd like to confirm, have you ever met Mr. Dickhout?

I'm concerned about how Dickhout is doing, but it's hard to judge because on top of my attitude returning soon, they give me a return that I don't know if I'm deluded or serious. Until you ask Ed.

"…… No, I've never seen Mr. Dickhout's face before since he came here. ……………………………………"

"- Miss Tiana."

Listening to Ed, Dorte, who was down the stairs, gave Tiana's name, so I looked back. She is the one Ruth and the others are most concerned about right now.

Tiana emerged from the hallway behind the ground floor holding the doll. I showed up from the same place last time, so maybe I watched Ruth and the others coming into the mansion from there every time on the ground floor.

(Tiana is alive......)

Looking at Tiana, who wasn't even injured, Ruth sighed of inner relief. Finally, I can erase myself from my memory.

And now I'm in the mood to help her.

(Ok............!

Ruth slowly went down the stairs and gazed at Tiana as she gave way to her mother's unwary smile. Tiana seems like a vigilant child, so don't get too close at this time.

Thanks to Ruth's slow move with Nico laughing, Tiana didn't escape, as she did last time, although she was staring at him to stare.

"Nice to meet you, Miss Tiana, I'm Ruth. That's my brother Ed. You will be able to stay at this house overnight today. Regards."

So when Ruth lowered her head lightly, Tiana looked a little weird, but loosened her expression slightly.

"Sister, are you staying here? Why?"

"Because I'm lost, and I can't go home. It's a dangerous night's journey, so Dick-Tiana, you can ask your daughter's father to stay."

"Sister, are you a grown man?

"Ha...... yes, I am lost even though I am an adult. It's embarrassing, though."

So when Ruth laughed bitterly, Tiana slowly approached him with the doll in her arms. Unlike his earlier alert attitude to dew, he now had an interest in Ruth.

Tiana smiled small as she stared at Ruth.

"Really...... hehe. You're an adult, but you're a jerk."

Tiana, squealing like that, runs to the back of the ground floor as she softly leaves Ruth. And he looked back once before turning the corner, laughing happily before disappearing.

When I dropped Tiana off and then got up, Ed came down the stairs in a bit of a hurry.

"Ruth, don't you have to go after her?

"It's fine now. It's not a good idea to chase them too much."

Ed seemed dissatisfied with the words, but Ruth asked Benno and the others to resume the guide. They had more anticipation for Ruth than the last time.

Ruth and the others, who were put through the room, sat in line on the couch as Benno and Dorte dropped out.

"For one thing, I put him inside the mansion. Tiana didn't react badly either, I think it's going well so far"

"So, Ruth, you said there was a technique that could change this situation, but what way?

Ed seems concerned about what Ruth was saying outside and urges him to continue.

But soon a knock sounded and Dorthe entered the room.

"I brought you a drink"

Last time it was in relation to Ed chasing Tiana, he had time until Dorte came in with tea, but this time he probably showed up right away because that's not the case.

Ed also made a big deal of money next to Ruth without prompting him to talk in front of Dorte.

Ruth watched Dorte place the teacup in front of her as she thanked her, and noticed a mark on her finger that had the ring fitted in. It is slightly white so that it is not only tanned there.

(Um, what's this...?

In this world, when we get married, we learn to put a ring in one particular finger. However, the residents of Hashi Village do little because they can do their job. Still on my fingers are a lot of people who don't hunt or farm. Ruth's mother, Celine, also said that Rosa was taking care of her.

Ruth remembered the words Dorthe had said the last time, his doubts surfaced unexpectedly and he was visiting when he realized.

"Mr. Dorte, is it possible that Mr. Dorte is married to Mr. Benno?

Dorte solidified like a stone statue to Ruth's question. The sight was similar when Dickhout saw Ed earlier.

And Dorte, who had solidified for a few seconds just like Dickhout, suddenly spoke normally as if it had not been there.

"…… Benno and I are not a couple, although we are working together."

"Uh... Oh, is that so? I'm sorry I asked you something weird."

I was concerned about the strange reaction, but Ruth apologizes for now because she smiled and was clearly denied it.

But there remained something moisturizing.

(Right, my mistake…… but then……)

"You" - the last time Dorte was yelling that way at Benno's body.

Because of the situation where a woman speaks to a man 'you' on that occasion, Ruth thought that they might be a couple, but they weren't.

"Besides, Benno and I are too old apart. You're rude to Benno for whatever it takes."

"Oh, really? Doesn't look that way............"

Benno and Dorte don't think there's so much difference in age that “age is too far apart”. I think it's somewhat close. Even so, the difference would be around five years old.

"Hehe, you're good. But I'm sixty already, Benno's thirty. Either that or he's my son."

"Uh, yeah!? Is it true!?

Ruth rises to much surprise. And I stared at Dorthe as he sat down.

Dorthe didn't look sixty no matter what. And Benno didn't look thirty either. Because Ruth expected us both to be middle-aged - about forty years past.

"Oh, could it be that Mr. Dorte and Mr. Benno have a species that is not human?

"No, we're both human, aren't we?

Replied as a matter of course, Ruth is increasingly confused.

If you're from another race, you can also see that the growth rate of appearance doesn't apply to Ruth's common sense because of his lifespan. But if you're human, I don't mind old face Benno, but I feel Dorte is beyond the level of making young. It's completely different from the faces of the women in the village around sixty.

Seeing Dorthe leaning his neck towards Ruth's surprise, he hurried back to me and sat back on the couch.

"Oh, I'm sorry...... it's something Mr. Dorte didn't look that old at all, and I'm surprised. Um... I was wondering if she was in her 40s..."

"Hehe, I'm glad. Thank you very much."

Dorte gets up looking really happy. There was no appearance of Ruth in the expression. Instead, he looks a lot more familiar to me than last time.

"Mr. Ruth. This is Tiana lady...... she seems to prefer to listen outside the mansion to play with dolls. If you like, could you please tell us an interesting story that happened in Mr. Ruth's village?

"Ah, yes, I don't mind."

"Thank you. We can't talk about entertaining Lady Tiana… I think you'll be in the library or courtyard on the first floor at this hour. If you'll excuse me, Miss Tiana, while you're at the Mansion."

Dorte passed on Tiana's information and left the room.

(That's a different development)

Last time I told them that Dorte and the others were worried about Tiana being isolated in the mansion, but now without saying anything about that, Tiana told me about a topic of interest and an approximate whereabouts.

I guess they're trying to get Ruth and the others to converse with Tiana and entertain her at all as a result, but naturally the reaction on their part will change when this one behaves differently.

(This is certainly hard to predict the future......)

I felt like I could see why Ed, who had repeated it ten times, had not been successful in anticipating everyone's reaction and trying to take action. Because even if the situation is repeated, their reactions will vary according to time and circumstances.

"... This is the first time Mr. Dorte has told me where she is. He looked rather troubled when I... How could he suddenly?

Ed looked like he didn't know what it meant to give Ruth the information. I'm sure I've tried so many times before to ask where Tiana is.

"Hmm... Is that because I was watching Tiana take an interest in me?

I don't know exactly, but I'm guessing Dorthe and the others figured out that Tiana was interested in Ruth at the stairs.

Ruth's response may also be due to her feeling accustomed to dealing with children and her decision that she is unlikely to cause harm. If they were like that, they would have wanted you to be an aggressive talker.

I was anxious somewhere in my mind the last time I said 'to the person I spoke to'. So even if Dickhout was a guest, he didn't tell me what he liked or where he was. I wonder how vigilant he was.

"Besides. When Ed went after him, Tiana was running, wasn't she? Weren't the Dortes resistant to teaching, too?

"Because I wanted to talk to you just like Ruth did.... but for some reason, he got away."

"That is……………… I think Ed was afraid, huh?

"…… Am I afraid?

I guess this is the first time they've said anything about being scared, Ed had a slightly surprised look on his face.

But if Ed, with a neat face, came after me in a way that was stuffed with cuts, she wouldn't want to come near me when I grew up surrounded by gentle adults. Besides, Ed is a boy and a master of mouth. I might just be on my side and be pushed by the signs.

"Really? I didn't think that far..."

I told Ed that Ruth was the difference in experience.

Sadly, Ruth remembered being run away by scattered women in her previous life, so she said, 'Isn't Tiana afraid of Ed?' I just came to the idea. Though for a completely different reason.

"So, I'm going to... experiment with about two things, and then I'm going to move on"

"Experiment?"

When Ruth held the tall metal teaspoon that accompanied the tea with his right hand, he put his thumb in the center of the handle to help. And seeing a spoon with no change at all, now I can hold the edge with both hands and force them to join each other ahead.

"What are you doing?

"……… I don't know."

Ruth, who does not answer Ed's question and completes the confirmation, puts the spoon on the table, which remains straight, and takes the dish on which the teacup was placed.

I stood up and put it up high, and I snapped, 'I'm sorry,' and I slammed it against the wall as funny as I could -

"Uh, Ruth, what!... What, huh?

Ruth slammed the plate against the wall, making a loud noise and cracking it - instead of making a blunt impact sound, it fell straight to the floor.

Instead of cracking the fallen plate, it didn't even contain a crack.