“I don’t really care about myself. I just hope nothing happens to Belly.”
But so what? Carl meant nothing to me anyway. A character close to being an extra like me. No matter how much such a guy struggled, he usually couldn’t accomplish much.
Well, there was a possibility he was a main character, but if that were the case, his novel would have been registered on the e-reader too.
Rather, I was worried that Belly might be stimulated by Carl’s actions and affect me negatively. Carl had already instigated Belly’s kidnapping, and I had almost taken the fall for it. Such a thing must not happen under any circumstances.
“Do you like this guy that much?”
Rose looked at me as if I were the world’s biggest fool.
Certainly, my words could sound like I didn’t care what happened to myself, but Belly was important. If only they could read my thoughts, they wouldn’t be able to look at me like a fool.
“…Yes.”
“Haaa… Well, whatever. I’ve already made preparations anyway. Hey, kid. Come here.”
As if calling a pet dog, Rose gestured flippantly at Belly. Belly frowned for a moment as if displeased, but soon smiled at me like a good child and went to Rose.
Rose opened a drawer and took something out. Looking closely, it was a collar made of leather. Rose seemed to intend to personally put that choker-like thing on Belly.
However, Belly immediately stepped back. Rose raised an eyebrow. Belly stared at Rose intently, then suddenly held out his hand.
“…”
A suffocating silence floated through the room. I was excluded from their battle of wills and observed peacefully. It was even fierce, but there was no need to worry that much. Rose probably had some intention of testing Belly too.
Really, Rose. He’s such a young child…
And perhaps Rose had the same thought, as she snickered as if finding it ridiculous and dropped the collar onto that palm.
“Master~!”
Belly ran over with quick steps and a triumphant face, holding out the collar. The collar seen up close was made of thin leather material, with a metal buckle of a structure similar to a belt.
No matter how I thought about it, it was a rather heavy accessory for a child to wear, so I looked at Rose as if demanding an explanation.
“It’s a mana suppressor. Beastmen have a different mana form from humans, so even if ordinary people don’t know, it’s easy for mages to detect. This will suppress the beastman characteristics mixed in the mana. I engraved a mana formula on the inner lining so it won’t stand out to other people. It’s expensive, so use it well.”
Long live magic.
I took the collar that Belly kept holding out toward me and put it around his neck. The collar fitted snugly around his neck and should have felt stuffy, but Belly’s face was all smiles. Somehow… I felt like I had done something irreversible.
“I’ll take care of the information Carl spread.”
“Thank you, Rose.”
“What. It’s my responsibility anyway.”
That was true. Rose was the guardian of the children she brought in. Strictly speaking, my current situation could be described nicely as a dispute among children. In such a situation, it was right for the guardian to mediate. Suddenly, Rose seemed particularly reliable today.
“…Hehe.”
At the small laugh, I turned my head to see Belly blushing and fiddling with his neck. At that sight, I asked without thinking.
“Do you like it that much?”
“Yes. I really like it. Master…”
Happiness rippled ecstatically in Belly’s eyes as he looked up at me while speaking. In his green eyes that seemed to draw me in like a deep swamp, indescribable emotions writhed. It was an even more alien appearance because I remembered how Belly had shown sharp reactions to me not long ago.
After the conversation with Rose, Belly became one of the children she supported through Rose’s paperwork. There was an incident where he insisted during the paperwork that Belly, the name I had casually made up, was his real name rather than stating his actual name, but anyway, he legally entered under Rose’s protection.
Having roughly resolved the problem like that, we spent one night at Rose’s house and set out the next day to go to the dormitory. Somehow I felt a bit relieved.
“Are you really going to use the name Belly?”
“Of course, Master.”
“Even now we could go back and fill it out again…”
Belly stubbornly shook his head and gripped my hand tightly.
Wearing the collar, Belly was in completely human form, unlike when he had a fever and beastman traits were visible here and there. Moreover, with the effect of the collar, his mana traits would surely look no different from a human’s.
We held hands and returned to the dormitory. Actually, I had only been to Rose’s house a few times and almost got lost, but unlike me, Belly wasn’t directionally challenged. It seemed really amazing that he knew the way right away after coming only once.
Anyway, thanks to that, we were able to arrive at the dormitory on time. And having just crossed the threshold of the dormitory, I broke out in a cold sweat. It was because of the glare flying down from the top of the stairs.
“…”
That’s really an incredible stare…
It was a hot gaze I couldn’t ignore even if I wanted to. When I turned my neck creakily like a rusty robot, there was Carl shooting a flickering glare. His appearance, full of disbelieving emotion, showed no intention of hiding his feelings.
However, Carl, having made eye contact with me, soon smiled as if to hide his gaze and came down the stairs. He was wearing comfortable clothes, as if he was thinking of eating breakfast.
“Hi, Jack.”
His appearance, smiling as if nothing had happened, was truly great acting. Why doesn’t Carl go into acting? He could surely become a great actor. I’m even thinking of giving him a glass mask as a congratulatory gift.
“Good morning! Carl.”
I also answered Carl with a smile.
On the surface, what Carl had done to Belly wasn’t revealed. Rose might have it, but I had no evidence, and I didn’t want to fight with a 10-year-old kid.
For now, Belly was also safe, and I still had to live face-to-face with Carl for quite a while. In such a situation, conflict wouldn’t benefit me in the long run.
“Yeah. But who’s that next to you?”
However, Carl seemed full of intention to pick a fight, contrary to my feelings. His innocent way of pointing out Belly specifically only looked vicious to me, knowing his actions.
But I had prepared a way to deal with Carl’s behavior last night, so I wasn’t scared.
“A new friend.”
Carl’s eyes widened slightly for a moment. Soon a sneer hung on his lips.
“That can’t be. He’s—”
Before Carl could say anything, I conspicuously pulled out the documents Rose had given me. They were documents to submit to the caretaker. That paper with the guild master’s seal clearly engraved proved that Belly had come under Rose’s protection.
Carl’s face turned pale in an instant.
“My new friend, his name is Belly.”
“…”
I gave Belly a look as if to say hello, but neither Carl nor Belly greeted each other, only glaring at one another.
Well, it was natural. One was the person who sold him, the other was the victim who was sold. If Belly had a weak personality, he might not have been able to endure it. It was strange to be in the same space in the first place.
“Well then, we’ll go eat breakfast. Enjoy your meal.”
“…Where did you eat?”
Carl asked out of nowhere. But there was nothing I couldn’t tell him, so I answered with a bright smile.
“We ate at the house of the person who gave me this.”
I deliberately mentioned it, thinking it would be good to show off my connection with Rose a bit. If I emphasized my connection with the guild master, wouldn’t that guy soften up a bit? I didn’t know why he found me disagreeable in the first place anyway… I hoped that by revealing the fence protecting me, he wouldn’t pay attention to me.
“Let’s go, Belly.”
“…”
Belly silently gripped my hand tightly, and we headed to the management office to have Belly assigned a room.
The caretaker assigned Belly a private room after receiving the documents, but Belly shook his head and planted his stake in my room. I should have opposed it, but seeing him on the verge of tears, I looked like I was kicking him out and my heart ached, so I had no choice but to allow it.
Thus began an unexpected cohabitation.
* * *
[The maid was always respectful before that man. The man, the master of the mansion, always quietly looked down at the maid from atop the stairs shrouded in darkness.
“Master, I have finished all the tasks you commanded.”
A respectful voice echoed through the empty entrance hall. The man gave no reply, but the maid could tell. His gaze passed over her face as if licking it.]
“Master?”
“Uhueok.”
Absorbed in the book, I was startled by Belly’s sudden call. It wasn’t simply because I was so focused on reading that I didn’t notice my surroundings.
[“Master, I have finished all the tasks you commanded.”]
It was because the maid’s way of speaking in the novel was exactly like Belly’s way of speaking.
“Belly, I have something to talk to you about.”
I closed <The Lily of Enchantment> that I was reading and looked at Belly seriously. Belly looked at me with an innocent face as if knowing nothing and tilted his head. He was cute enough to make me want to bite his cheeks. He already had a pretty face, but with even the venom gone, he sparkled lovingly.
But having such a kid call me ‘Master’ was really embarrassing! It was even more embarrassing because it was similar to the female protagonist’s way of speaking in my favorite book!!
