Chapter 96: A Busy Morning
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 96: A Busy Morning
“You turn into a cat? That’s amazing...”
“I want to do that too! Then I could fly around on Walter’s back!”
“W-well... it’s a skill, so it’s not like I can just do it whenever I want...”
“I remember seeing someone like that among the explorers of Roanmarie once, a long time ago,” Father added.
“Huh? A long time ago...?”
The group—Sera, Tresha, and Father—were huddled together, listening to Ravi Sateria, the storyteller, regale them with the tale of how she hadn't washed for a week and lost all her clothes. The cleanup from the inn’s evening rush was mostly finished, and since it was the time of night when guests upstairs would be sleeping, they were all gathered in Sera’s room, which was relatively far from the guest quarters.
“Your name was... Ravi Sateria, right?”
“Ah, yes...”
“Is being an appraiser very difficult?”
“On days when the customers are difficult, it’s very... I-I mean, on days when there are many customers, it’s very difficult...”
“Then it must not be difficult for you at all, Ravi.”
“Hey, that’s not true!”
When I teased her from the side, she clenched her fists and swung them through the air. Seeing them all gathered like this, it struck me again how small Ravi really was. Tresha looked to be about the age of a ninth-grader, while Ravi looked like she had just started middle school. As for Father, even at a generous estimate, he looked no older than a fifth or sixth-grader.
“You look so young, yet you’re so reliable,” Sera remarked.
“I-I’m not that young! I’ve already had my coming-of-age ceremony...”
“Oh, really? Tresha said she hasn't had hers yet.”
In this world, an adult is someone who has reached their 17th birthday. Because of this, for people whose exact birth dates are unclear, magic to reverse-track biological age has become highly developed—though apparently, it’s only accurate about 30 percent of the time.
I wasn't sure how magic with a 30 percent success rate counted as "highly developed," but I just went with it. It wasn't science, after all; nothing could be done about it. As expected, Tresha wasn't an adult yet, but surprisingly, Ravi was.
“It’s already next year for me! I’m practically a full-fledged adult!” Tresha chimed in.
“A coming-of-age ceremony, huh? Mine was almost thirty years ago, so the memory is a bit fuzzy...” Father mused.
“Huh? Thirty years...?”
Ravi looked confused by Father’s occasional interjections. I still felt that way sometimes, too. Regardless, the chat session ended there. Father, who had been listening from the side, was starting to nod off. It seemed the alcohol had worn off, and sleepiness was taking over.
“Alright, time for you to go to bed.”
“Right... carry me to my room.”
“Yes, yes.”
“Ah, I should be going too.”
Only Tresha and the room’s owner, Sera, would be sleeping in Sera’s room. I picked up the half-asleep Father and planned to drop him off in front of Auntie’s room. Ravi also seemed ready to leave.
“Hmm, but where should Ravi sleep? We do have spare rooms.”
“Sera, just give me a set of bedding. I’ll pay for it.”
“Alright, Yoo Eon. Don’t worry about the money, just head up.”
Leaving Father in front of his room, I took a pillow and blanket from Sera and headed upstairs with Ravi.
“By the way, Yoo Eon, are you the only man in this inn?”
“Hmm... for now, yes.”
“And I was surprised. Everyone calls you Yoo Eon instead of Aven.”
“The name Aven was given to me by Sera. I needed a pseudonym, and I don’t exactly have a talent for naming things.”
It sounded like a generic English name, but if I—knowing nothing—had tried to come up with one, I might have ended up with something ridiculous. It was best to leave it to someone who knew better.
“Aha... I see.”
“Ravi, are your clothes okay? Are they comfortable enough to sleep in?”
“Yes, they’re very comfortable. It might be hard to greet customers in these, though...”
Since Ravi was slightly smaller than Tresha, Tresha’s spare pajamas were a bit loose on her. Still, they were wearable. Once we reached the second floor, I began spreading the bedding in the room where Ravi would sleep. As she watched me, she suddenly spoke up.
“U-um... is that little kid maybe a l-little bit sick...?”
“Who?”
“That red-haired baby...”
“Ah... that’s Sera’s father.”
“What?!”
And so, I explained. Father was a Cobalt-grade explorer, an unfortunate man in his forties who had acquired both a Gender Reversal Skill and an Age Regression Skill.
“Ugh...”
“It’s not that bad.”
“I thought he was a cute little brother...”
She stuck out her tongue and winced as if she had a bitter taste in her mouth. I finished smoothing out the bedding and then picked up the dazed Ravi, tossing her onto the bed.
“How is it? Can you sleep here?”
“Whoa... it’s so fluffy...”
“I’m glad you like it. I should get to sleep too. Will you be able to turn back into a cat by tomorrow morning?”
“I... I’m not sure. I mean, this is my original form to begin with?!”
“Ah, right.”
Whether she could use the magic called Trasforma to turn back into a cat was a bit of an unknown. Apparently, her proficiency was still low, so she had to rely on a random chance of about ten percent. Today, the scroll had just happened to work well.
“A-and, Yoo Eon!”
“Hmm? Do you need something, Ravi?”
“Are you going to form a fixed party with that explorer in Room 7...?”
“I’ll have to think about that. I already have someone else I’m partying with.”
“What?! You weren't always solo?!”
“I was until recently, but someone asked to form a fixed party with me lately.”
Come to think of it, Ravi didn't know I was partying with someone else. To be fair, calling it a "fixed party" was a bit of a stretch since we’d only talked about it verbally. We hadn't actually gone into the Labyrinth together as a formal fixed party yet.
“P-please put me in your fixed party too!”
“I can’t. You can’t fight, Ravi.”
“No! I can! I can fight well!”
“I’m sorry. But you know it’s not a matter of just trying hard. You could die, Ravi. I can’t give in just because you’re being stubborn.”
“Hmph...”
No meant no. There was no helping it. From what I could see, Ravi would be finished by two goblins. In fact, I expected her to barely scrape a win against even one. If I took Rubica along, in terms of combat power, it would be a party of three Gold Grades.
On average, that was a party capable of aiming for the 3rd Stratum. Ravi was a talented appraiser, but that was where it ended. Since it was said to be impossible for even the most talented appraiser to delete their own skills, it would be a problem if Ravi acquired too many curse skills.
And Ravi didn't have the money to afford curse deletion.
“But I went with you last time...”
“That was the 2nd floor. I can take you that far.”
“Oh, really? Then can you take me to the 2nd floor every day?”
“No... why would that even be necessary? Actually, let me hear your reason. Why did you go into the Labyrinth five days ago?”
“That’s... well...”
Seeing her hesitate, it probably wasn't a very good reason. For now, we needed to sleep to wake up on time tomorrow. I needed to get Ravi to sleep so I could get some rest myself.
“Go to sleep, Ravi. You have to wake up in the morning.”
“In the morning? Why?”
“What do you mean why? Are you going to live here?”
“Ah, right.”
Had she forgotten this was an inn? It certainly felt more like a home than an inn.
“Then... goodnight, Yoo Eon!”
Ravi tucked herself into bed, pulling the blanket up to her chin and peeking out to say goodnight. This sight was truly...
“Yeah. You too, Ravi.”
A nostalgic sight.
* * *
“Yes, Rubica. Then I suppose you can come back to the Mounted Goat Inn in a week.”
“I shall do so. For your information, I am staying at the Winking Kobold Inn, so keep that in mind should a situation arise where you must contact me sooner.”
“Understood.”
The voices of a man and a woman conversing outside reached the ears of the late-waking Ravi. The man’s voice was so familiar that her eyes instinctively drifted shut again.
Through the small circular window, the morning sunlight of a now-warm spring day streamed in. The fluffy bed, unlike anything she had felt before, was worlds apart in size from the cot she had set up in her appraisal office.
“Hehehe.”
There was a wonderful sense of stability; she didn't fall off even if she rolled a turn and a half to the right and a turn and a half to the left.
And the pillow was so large. It was a hundred, maybe a thousand times fluffier than her own pillow, which had become flat as a pancake over the years. Of course, her neck was a bit stiff since she wasn't used to a high pillow, but this bed was so cozy for her body, which was exhausted from the shock of suddenly turning back into a human.
She felt like she had fallen into such a deep sleep that she didn't even notice such minor discomforts.
“It’s warm...”
Since her daily routine involved sleeping on a cot that was nothing more than a metal frame with cheap padding and a few thick sheets of cloth, her entire body felt languid, combined with the warm dinner she’d had for the first time in a while.
Not wanting to wake up, she rolled around this way and that.
—Knock, knock, knock.
A knock sounded from outside. It seemed someone had come to wake her. Was it Yoo Eon? Or maybe Sera, whom she’d seen yesterday? It might be Tresha, who had lent her the clothes. She didn't think it was the Madam, and as for Sera’s father... she wasn't sure.
While she was debating how to answer the knock, she heard a voice talking to itself outside.
—She must still be sleeping.
‘It must have been Sister Sera.’
She felt a slight twinge of guilt for pretending, but the bed was just too good. The warm sunlight was faintly illuminating her thighs, and the light reflected off the white bedding was surprisingly intense.
As she buried her face in the pillow, savoring the bed she would soon have to leave, a heavier knock sounded.
—Knock, knock.
“Ravi, it’s me. I’m coming in.”
‘Wait...?! You’re just coming in?!’
She was in a state of total disarray. Of course, Yoo Eon had a history of waking her up to work while she was sleeping before. But right now, she was incredibly unkempt.
Keeping her face buried, she continued her master-class performance of faking sleep, pretending not to know that Yoo Eon had entered the room and was watching her.
Contrary to her expectation that he would shake her awake or quietly leave, Yoo Eon stared at her sleeping back for quite a long time.
‘What is it...? Did he realize I’m faking?!’
After staring for a while, Yoo Eon apparently wasn't satisfied; he pulled over a chair from the table and sat down, watching her messy back.
She worried if her skirt was flipped up and showing her underwear, or if there were drool marks somewhere from her sleep.
‘Ugh...! Please, just do something!’
But it would be too awkward to suddenly bolt upright now. She knew her acting level wasn't high enough to pull off a "just woke up" performance.
As Ravi lay there, unable to do anything, Yoo Eon’s large palm came down onto her messy hair.
“Yuria. You have to wake up early and go to school.”
With those words, Yoo Eon quietly left the room. His footsteps were quieter than usual, and he closed the door so gently she wondered if he’d left it open.
Only after confirming his footsteps had faded beyond the door did she slowly scratch her tangled hair and sit up from her prone position.
“Who’s Yuria...?”
She sat cross-legged on the bed, folding her arms in thought, but it was a name she didn't recognize.
“Mmm!”
Strength surged through her body, and her head felt clear. Not that her hair was neat, but her mind was refreshed. She slipped on some indoor slippers and headed downstairs, only to find everyone moving about busily for some reason.
“Rubica, just eat a reasonable amount and go.”
“But...! Is breakfast not a guest’s right?!”
“Even so, forty steaks is too much. Don’t you see that kid working busily while half-asleep? Have some pity.”
“I-I understand... Just give me what’s on the grill right now...”
“If I’d known this would happen, I wouldn't have brought out the stored meat.”
Wondering what was going on, she looked over to see the female knight from yesterday—the one who had asked Yoo Eon to form a party.
‘Whoa, she took that in one bite.’
The female knight displayed the feat of folding a thick slab of meat with her fork and knife and stuffing it into her mouth all at once.
“Ah, Sister! You’re awake? Please fold these and put one in the drawer of every room on the second floor! Fold it four times, then three times, okay?!”
“H-huh? Me?”
What Tresha handed her were warm towels fresh off the laundry line. Tresha was so busy she disappeared before Ravi could even respond, leaving her with no way to protest.
‘It smells like sunshine.’
Burying her face in the towels that still held the heat of the sun, Ravi headed back up to the second floor.
It was a busy morning in mid-May at the Mounted Goat Inn.