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

The season when the sun's rays have softened and the mountains have gradually changed color. Just around the border between hot Zenobia and cool fans. Ruth had come to the fountain near the village with a large number of children.

"Guys - wipe your bodies often!

"I'll give you sweets and drinks when I'm done wiping."

"Wow."

"Look, keep it together. You've got a cold."

"I'm not going to that forest over there, because it's dangerous!

Children rejoice in speaking to the food words of Marianne, daughter of the village chief, and Pariah, daughter of the herbalist. Next to him, Daniel, the son of the Golas family, who runs the butcher shop, wiped the nasty child, and Colt, the third son of the Zelenka family, who runs the family business of guiding the dungeon, called out to the children who want to go to the back of the woods.

"Ruth, wipe me, too."

"Fine."

Ruth comes by the side and wipes the hair of a church kid. Even though it's still a warm season, the little one can catch a cold if it's to the extent that he wiped it himself.

When everyone is finished wiping their bodies, they take the sweets that Marianne and Pariah prepared. When everyone hurried and jumped on the confectionery, they sat in the shade of a tree and started eating it looking delicious. Their slightly sweet cookies are also a treat for them because of the small variety of treats in the village.

Seeing the children grow up, Ruth and the others also eat cookies sitting on the ground. Crisp and edible cookies are also very tasty, unlike those baked by Celine. I can't compare it to what I made myself.

"Marianne, Pariah, thank you for today. He even made me cookies."

"Ruth helped me, too. I don't care."

"Yes, and I've always wanted to participate in these events."

"I always did it with you and Alec."

"That's true. If you'd told me, I'd have helped."

"Thank you both. But it's just the first time I've had so many people so far. Until now, it was just the children of the church."

I brought the children to the fountain today not because I had a whim, but because I hadn't performed a “hike” in a long time.

When Alec was there, Ruth and I were together, once or twice every few months, taking the children of the church away for a little while. To swim in the fountain, to see animals, to take nuts in the wild mountains. It's half play, but it also means half learning. The children living in the church were very excited about this excursion because they had less chance of walking outside the village than the children in other houses.

However, since Alec was gone, he has been unable to make excursions. Because it's dangerous for Ruth to walk in the mountains alone, taking care of more than one child.

But not long ago, Ruth found out that the Birds living in the church were crushing 'I want to go to the fountain again'. It was painful for them to look sorry, and Ruth called Daniels out of his mind after being lost.

Although they did not have the impression that they particularly liked children, Ruth fully understood them if he talked to them. So much so that I should have said sooner to the too normal reaction.

I haven't been on a hike in a long time today because of them like that. Daniel isn't the only escort, he's come with me to Colt, Marianne, and Parlia. Oma, who grows crops on the village's high ground - Fritz, the son of the house, was also about to come, but declined because of the peak harvesting operations in the field. But next time, he said he would join us.

It wasn't just the children of the church because of it, but the children of the other houses we were supposed to go with were also very shabby in the morning. Thanks to the adults dropping him off and four others besides Ruth, he didn't look anxious.

Noisy excursions in large numbers had a different vibe than when I was with Alec, and this was a lot of fun.

(It wasn't possible a while ago.)

Daniels, it was absolutely unthinkable in Ruth that he would leave the village for the sake of his children with the same generation in the village, which had been ridiculed by the women before and by the men. I do miss Alec leaving the village, but I was simply glad that he had so many opportunities to do something with Daniels this way.

(Well, of course it would be great to have Alec here... I guess that's a pleasure to have when I get back)

Imagine Alec together in this circle, Ruth was nibbling alone.

"Ruth, after this, take a little nap, and then just play a little bit more, and go home, okay?

"Oh. That's about as good as I think. Little kids don't have the strength to go home on their own when they're too late, and we'll be the feathers to bear."

To Ruth's words, Marianne noted something in the notebook she had while saying, "I see."

Marianne and I settled for a “delicious” cake as planned. Since then, I've spoken more often than ever before. Sometimes Daniels and I talk to each other. The cause will also be Marianne's recent aggressiveness in interacting with the people of the village.

Until now, Marianne had only been watching far behind the village chief, but she had recently started to show her face at various events. The claim is not strong enough to give an opinion yet, but I am wondering if we will also participate in discussions to improve the village together in time.

(Is it because of Tiana the superior spirit?

I didn't ask Marianne herself, so I don't know exactly where she is, but Ruth thinks that Tiana's presence is making her confident and driving her to move aggressively. He says he's also been practicing magic better lately. He's pretty talented. Ruth wonders if she might also be the village chief of Hashi village in the future.

(I'm sure that village chief wants Alec to do it when he returns... that's a little bit)

Alec is more powerful than he is, he has a voice and behavior, and he has a desire to attract everyone's attention. But Ruth thinks there's too much difference in power from the rest of us to be suitable for the “village where everyone lives” village chief. Because he's too strong to need anyone else. I know it doesn't have to be hard, but then there will be fewer people thinking for the village. It has been decided that survival will even be jeopardized, such as in villages where everyone else has been entrusted. Alec didn't think it was for the village chief in that sense.

(Besides, I want Alec to relax after the trip.)

Feeling sleepy in the warm sun, Ruth smiled as she imagined the village of the future.

As the children finished their naps and the yang began to turn a little red, Ruth and the others decided to take them back to the village where they still wanted to play. I also have the strength of the children, but I can't help but worry about the people who welcome them when they get too close.

Even so, the kids don't come straight home, and the walk is pretty slow because it's something that rolls around here and there. That's also within the assumption, but if you're letting them play too freely, it gets seriously dark, so the Ruths are desperate to let them go straight to the village.

"Ruth, I found this!

Such a voice hung close to the point where the entrance to the village could be seen.

It was Bird who lived in the church with Alec who spoke up. He's a totally friendly kid these days and speaks well to Ruth. On the side is also the figure of Addy, who is a servant at Wonok's.

Wonok has been sweet to Addy lately, so he also lets me participate in these events. Has it sprouted with kindness?

"What did you find, Bird?

"This is it!"

"Dolls?"

What Bird took out of his back was a girl's doll in a black dress.

The girl's doll had brown hair as smooth as real hair, purple eyes were also made of glass or beautiful and eyelashes were attached, her skin was also bright white and ceramic beautiful. Clothes are no less pale than human objects, and may be superior to what the villagers are wearing. The body length is a little larger than Ruth's face. Pretty much made for a human being. It's a doll from a previous life, and if it moves, it's scary.

(Such an exquisite doll, there is one in the world right now)

Speaking of dolls in the village, it was the first time I had seen a delicate doll of the wind made by an artisan, as it was dominated by cloth dolls handsewn by his mother. By the way, Ruth has never seen it straight in his previous life, so he can only make judgments to the extent that it "resembles" a doll like that. Because if a bear man had it, he could be called in.

"That's where Addy found it."

"Addy, wasn't there anyone around?

Addy, unable to speak, shakes his head firmly.

"There was nobody there, was there?

Bird explains instead of Addy.

Byrd said he was in the shade of a tree, but there was no sign that someone was there. He said he sat back with the tree on his back, not the atmosphere that he fell out of his luggage.

"Do you want me to sit back......... but I think it's a drop. This is the only doll I make carefully."

"But no one was there... and you can take it home, right?

"Eh?"

"Because if you leave it like this, you could be destroyed by animals and demons! It's a waste of time to have a beautiful corner!

"Well, yes..."

A doll that would have its owner no matter how you look at it. If you find it in a previous life, it's definitely a level item to be delivered to the police or dropping center. Nevertheless, there is no dropping center here in the woods near the village. Like Byrd said, there was also a good chance that if left there, animals and the like would crush it.

"It's pathetic to leave it in the woods like this, and why don't you take it back?

"Marianne."

When Ruth was lost in judgment, Marianne rang me from the side. Looking around, Daniels noticed that they were all anxious to see how Ruth was doing. Ruth and the others stopped walking, so they must have waited for me. Troubled here forever, I'm going to be late for my return to the village.

"Right, it's tough when you're worn out, so let's just take it back.”

"Yay!

"But I'll talk to the priest and see what I can do."

"Yeah!"

Addy nods as Bird laughs happily. I can't talk to a well spoken Byrd. Addy seems to be totally close.

Now that the doll problem has been solved, everyone moves again towards the village. If we stay like this, we'll be home before dark.

Ruth spoke to Bird holding the doll.

"But I didn't know Bird had such an interest in dolls. You like that?

"What, you're not interested?

"Hmm? Then why?"

"Because it seems so expensive! If the dropper doesn't show up all the time, you can make it ours and sell it!?

"Ah... that's the thing"

Ruth, who normally smiled, forgot that Bird had a very successful spirit because of his church-growing.

It was up to the priest to decide if I could sell it, and I went straight to the village. Ruth didn't put it in her mouth, even though she thought maybe she couldn't.

------------

"Don't."

Leaving the dissolution of the other children to Daniel, Colt and Parlia, Ruth and Marianne were visiting the priest with the children of the Church. To Byrd, who told him how he had picked up the doll, the priest replies, while praising him for picking it up, that he can't do it right.

"This is all the delicately crafted flor doll, I think it was taken care of. I'm sure the owner is looking for it. There's no way to sell it. This should be kept in the village."

"But it was me and Addy who picked it up!? Without the owner, it would be mine and Addy's, wouldn't it?

"Don't make anything your own just because you picked it up. That's the same as stealing. Bird, wouldn't you be very sad if you dropped a bottle of treasure that you also cherish and someone picked it up and sold it on their own and stopped coming back to you?

"……… sad"

Looks like Bird figured out what the priest was trying to say. I'm shunned, but I didn't claim to be my own any more with regard to the doll. After all, we should leave this kind of persuasion to the priest.

That real, beautiful doll seems to be a famous doll made in the Flor region, called the Flor doll. It's very expensive, he said, and about a house in the village would be enough to buy it with one doll.

If I did pick up a doll like that, it wouldn't be a good thing to sell it cheaply. Absolutely the owner is looking for it.

"Ruth, I'm sorry because that's the story, but could you please keep this doll at the Blau family?

"At home?

"The Blau family is where the most people from outside the village come together, isn't it? I think the soonest we can gather information about the people who dropped the dolls is in your house."

The priest was right. The Zelenka family, Colt's home, also commercializes site information, so external people visit it, but the chatter does not spread compared to the Blau family. What I can hear a lot of rumors about would still be the inn. I'm sure rumors will come in that you dropped the doll.

(Hmm, I'm a little bad at these dolls, but I can't help it......)

I wouldn't mind a cute cloth doll, but I'm a little bad at realistic dolls that faithfully reproduce the human figure.

But Ruth receives it honestly from the priest while laughing bitterly. 'I hate it because I'm scared' of boulders is pathetic. But I quietly remembered not to move.

"Oh, Ruth. If you look closely at the kid's clothes, he's cut his hem a lot."

"Huh? Oh, really."

When Marianne gave me her finger and Ruth looked at the end of the black dress, the outer cloth did have tears all over it. It wasn't noticeable because I was making skirts that were layered multiple times, but if it were real, it would be a level of clothing tear that I would be ashamed of.

"Ruth's mother-in-law will be in a hurry at the inn, and I'll sew it for you."

"Really?"

"Yeah. 'Cause if I leave it to Ruth, it might not be a skirt anymore"

"Ha ha...... sure. Thank you, that'll help."

Ruth honestly decided to give the doll to Marianne's best opinion. Marianne also knows that Ruth's sewing skills are crawling at the bottom of the ground, so I appreciate the offer. If Ruth sews it, it will definitely be something else.

Marianne is also good at sewing, so she says it will be over tomorrow, whether this is all fissures or late.

"Well, good to see you, Marianne"

"Leave it to me."

Ruth, who left the church, so broke up with Marianne, who had a doll in her arm.