What Ruby brought with her was an unmistakable little girl. Judging by her short height and facial features, she appeared to be around five or six years old. She had dark red hair and eyes of the same color, brown skin, and a woolen cloak with an exotic red and white pattern.
“I have so many things I want to say, but who is this child?”
“The one hiding and watching us was this girl… Alvy.”
“I’m Alvy. Nice to meet you.”
The young girl’s name seemed to be Alvy. She gazed at all of us with sparkling eyes, probably intrigued by the sight of creatures she had never seen before. Was her curiosity not a bit too intense? I was confident that if I were her age, seeing my current avatar would have reduced me to tears.
More importantly, where were her parents? Hadn’t she been taught not to approach strangers? We must have looked suspicious enough…
“Ah… My name is Isam. Nice to meet you, Alvy.”
“Yes, nice to meet you!”
As I introduced myself, albeit bewildered, she responded with a bright smile. Though she was certainly a cute little girl, I wasn’t accustomed to dealing with children. How should I interact with her? Someone, please help!
“Oooh! What’s up, brother… and who’s this kid?”
“Whoaaaaa! What a cute little giiiiiirl!”
Jigoro and the others noticed us, and among them, one person let out a bizarre cry and charged toward us with a fearsome intensity. It was Shiitake.
“Little lady, what’s your name? How old are you? Where do you live?”
“Ah, Alvy is… Alvy…”
“So, you’re Alvy, huh… hehehe…”
Wait, was this really her character? She was clearly going overboard! Alvy, who hadn’t flinched even at the sight of my silver skull mask, now looked uneasy and scared. She seemed to be trembling while clutching Ruby who quivered in her arms.
“Hey, big sis loves cute little girls, y’know?!”
Shiitake, with her mushroom body, wiggled her short and thick arms as she crept closer. Just as I thought I had to intervene forcibly, countless tentacles sprouted from behind her and swiftly bound her in a tight grip.
“Maybe it’s time to cool your head a bit, Shiitake?”
“Ah, Iris-chan?! Please forgive me!”
It was Iris who took hold of Shiitake. Without allowing for any objections, she swiftly removed her from Alvy’s line of sight. Since she was acting out of control, I guess you could say it was a reasonable response. I chose to ignore her pained cries of “Little girllll!” as she was taken away.
“Hey, Alvy. My name is Eiji. Where do you come from?”
“Alvy came from over there.”
After Shiitake, it was Eiji who spoke next. His appearance was notably more intimidating compared to Shiitake’s, with a robust physique clad in metallic full-body armor, muscles as strong as steel in his arms, and the ferocious head of a wild boar with bared fangs. However, his manner of speaking was incredibly gentle, and he made a point to kneel to align his gaze as much as possible with hers.
Perhaps it was his friendly demeanor that worked since Alvy seemed to regain some spirit and pointed toward the back. The direction she indicated was the same as where she had been hiding in the bushes.
“So, that’s how it is. Why did you come to such a place alone? Is your family not around here?”
“My sister is at home. Alvy came here to look for food for her.”
…So she had an older sister? Yet she was not nearby, and Alvy had come here alone, apparently for the purpose of gathering food. As she spoke, Alvy pulled out several potatoes from a simple pouch slung over her shoulder. I wouldn’t know for sure until I used [Appraisal], but they were probably edible.
Also, it was somewhat concerning that she only mentioned her sister when asked about her family, not her parents. I had no intention of prying into her personal affairs, but this meant there might be some complicated family circumstances at play.
“Alvy is very brave, isn’t she? Then, let this big brother give you this.”
What Eiji pulled out from his inventory were preserved foods he had purchased at Birdy Perch, consisting of items like dried meat and biscuits. These items were particularly valued for their high satiety restoration relative to their cost, and for Eiji, whose food expenses are high due to his large size, they were necessary items to reduce unnecessary expenses.
He hesitated for a moment about giving away such necessities. However, he always carried extra so he intended to share the surplus.
“Is it really okay?”
“Of course. Make sure to chew well, okay?”
“Thank you, big brother Eiji!”
After Alvy carefully placed the preserved food into her pouch, she bowed her head in gratitude, which Eiji gently patted. Alvy seemed surprised by the sudden touch but did not seem to dislike it, as she squinted her eyes in contentment. If one were to name this scene, it might be properly called “The Girl and the Beast”.
“Now, it’s getting dark soon. You should head home.”
“Can I do that? Can I come again?”
“Is that okay, Isam-san?”
“Hm? Ah, yes, that’s fine.”
I was caught off guard by the sudden question pointed at me, but I figured there was no harm in a child visiting us. Besides, we didn’t plan to stay at this riverside forever. Should any issue arise, we could swiftly escape on Shiratsuki. With no other players around, there was no need to hide or sneak around as we did back in Firth.
However, it would be a problem if Alvy or one of her people approached Shiratsuki without permission and inadvertently activated its defense mechanism. It might be wise to adjust the settings before logging out.
“Yay! I want to play with you next time!”
“If I’m good enough, I’d be happy to.”
“Thank you! See you again!”
With another bow, Alvy trotted off, looking back several times and waving in our direction, which was really cute. While I don’t particularly have a fondness for young girls, there was no denying that it stirred a protective instinct in me.
“You seem unusually good with kids, don’t you?”
“I have a much younger brother in real life. I just applied how I talk with him and his friends.”
In response to Usagi’s question, Eiji answered while waving back. It seemed his skill came from real-life experience.
Despite the minor commotion, things had settled down. With Alvy gone, it was time to log out and get some rest.
◆◇◆◇◆◇
Shiratsuki was anchored a short distance from the great river, near which Alvy’s settlement was located. Though referred to as a settlement, Alvy and her sister didn’t actually settle there permanently. The reason being, they were nomads, continuously roaming the plains of the Timbrica continent.
“I’m back!”
Alvy cheerfully announced her return to her beloved sister after parting ways with Eiji and the others. Without hesitation, she ran to the foot of her sister’s futon where she was sitting up.
“Welcome back, Alvy.”
“Sister, sister! I want you to see this!”
“Oh…?”
Alvy pulled from her pouch some potatoes she had gathered and preserved food she had received from Eiji. Potatoes were a staple food for them, so they weren’t unusual. However, the presence of processed food, clearly made by human hands, was odd.
Considering it unlikely that Alvy had stolen them, there must have been someone who gave them to her. Alvy’s older sister, Sayla, came to that conclusion and asked her question while stroking her younger sister’s head with her gentle hands.
“Well done, Alvy. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome!”
“But who gave you this dried meat? I would like to thank them.”
“It was big brother Eiji!”
“Eiji…?”
The man called Eiji was not a member of Sayla’s settlement. This meant there were currently strangers near their settlement. They were a tribe of nomads who wandered the continent and visited settled villages while working as merchants. This meant they were not isolated or excluded by nature.
However, the sudden appearance of mysterious strangers could not be simply ignored. She felt bad, but this meant Alvy’s encounter needed to be reported to the chief. That’s what Sayla thought.
“Big brother Eiji was really kind! He gave food for Alvy and big sister to eat!”
“Is that so…? What was he like?”
“Well… he was a big person!”
Alvy, who had never in her life seen an Orc or a Boar Orc, described him briefly. She had more to say about his characteristics, but unfortunately, her vocabulary was limited.
“Really? Were you scared?”
“Not scared at all! He was very kind! I’m going to play with him again tomorrow!”
“Play? Where are you going to play?”
“By the riverbank!”
“You went to the riverbank? Isn’t that dangerous?”
“”Granny!””
The one who made herself at home in their house was the oldest elder of the village, an elderly woman who was also the great-aunt of the current chief. No adult could stand above her; she was akin to a mother for the entire tribe.
She had come to the house to care for Sayla. She was the most skilled healer and doctor in the tribe.
“Granny, will my sister recover?”
“Yes, she will. Now, Sayla, open your mouth… Hmm… This is just a cold. Take this, and you’ll feel better in no time.”
Sayla obediently swallowed the pill she was given. This pill was a panacea that was effective against most illnesses, and of course, it worked well for Sayla’s sickness too. It would take a few days for a complete recovery, but there was no doubt she would be cured.
“Granny, thank you so much!”
“It’s alright, Alvy. Granny is on everyone’s side you know. Now, about what we were discussing earlier…”
“Granny, let me explain.”
Afterward, Sayla summarized and elaborated on Alvy’s poor explanation. The Granny listened intently, nodding her head in interest several times.
“Is that so, is that so. Alvy, did you see anything resembling a house near those large individuals?”
“A house? Well, um… Oh! There was this really big white thing floating on the river!”
“Floating…?”
“That must have been a boat. Probably, those large individuals came from across the sea.”
For them, nomads of the grasslands who roamed the inland settlements, the concept of a boat was unfamiliar. However, perhaps due to her age, Granny alone had knowledge of such things. Although she could not conceive of them arriving by air, she believed they had come from another continent.
“From across the sea…”
“Yes, indeed. Now, I suppose I should inform our chief. Things are likely to get busy.”
Leaving with a remark about the interesting developments ahead, Granny departed from their home. Alvy didn’t fully grasp the discussion and stared at Sayla with a puzzled expression on her face. Sayla hugged her sister as if to reassure her and began preparing her meal while praying that no disaster would befall her.
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