Meria's Mother, Part 1
"I am Bernil, the elder of this village."
She was a green-haired elf who looked to be in her middle age at most.
Not just her attire, but her voice itself, her tone, her gestures, her gaze, and every single expression proved that she was perfectly suited for the position of elder.
I knew we had to talk today, but did it really have to be right when I was eating?
"I'm Syaruen."
I'd rather it be some solemn ceremony; formal stuff like this always made me uncomfortable.
Meria was still asleep, so it was just Milia and me right now.
"Forgive me for intruding during your meal. First, as the village elder, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to you for saving Armeria. That child has always been lacking in many ways, so I knew she would get into trouble eventually, but I never expected her life to be in danger."
"You flatter me. I was only able to endure and escape that place thanks to Armeria's help as well."
I spoke as carefully as possible, squeezing out every ounce of dignity I could recall from things I'd seen and heard in the past.
"Since you are eating, I shall keep this brief. Armeria will soon be leaving with her parents. Would it be alright if we spoke about you, Lady Syaruen, after that?"
"Yes, you can call for me whenever you like."
"Then I will send someone when the time comes. Please rest comfortably until then."
I wasn't sure if she kept it short because we were in the middle of eating, or if that was really all she had to say.
What mattered was that the moment the elder left, Meria slinked over to the door and peeked through the crack.
"...Is she gone?"
She looked exactly like a small animal peeking out of its burrow after the predator's threat had passed and silence had returned.
"Yes, she's gone."
Only then did the herbivore Meria crawl out, sitting down next to me and letting out a deep, deflating sigh as her body went limp.
"Why are you so terrified?"
"Of course I am. The Elder is intimidating enough on a normal day, but after causing such a massive mess, I just feel so incredibly guilty..."
Slam!
"Armeria!!!"
"Kyaaaah!!!"
"Cough! *Ack, *gasp...*"
"Syaruen, water! Water!"
At that moment, the door burst open, and a voice searching for Meria ripped through the room. Meria practically leaped off the floor in fright, while I, who had just started eating again, choked on my food. Milia frantically handed me a cup of water in a panic.
A tall woman with dull, golden hair and red eyes that closely resembled Meria's.
"I barely held myself back because your brother stopped me when you ran away from home, and now what? Kidnapped? Almost died? Wouldn't it be better for you to die by my hands before anyone else gets the chance?!"
"I'm sorryyyyy!!!"
She marched right over and yanked Meria up by her ear... What was her name again? A... D... something.
By the way, with that face and body, she's a married woman?
"Sorry, Milia. Not only did I scream, but I even kicked the door open."
"No, it's fine, haha..."
Despite Milia's awkward laugh, the mother's furious expression didn't waver.
But a moment later, she finally noticed me. Her face flashed with embarrassment before she glared back at Meria.
"Sigh..."
After giving Meria a fierce glare, the mother let out a sigh, ordered Meria to go stand in the corner facing the wall, and sat down at the table with us.
Hearing her sniffle while staring at the wall made it hard to ignore her.
"Sorry for interrupting your meal. You're the one who saved my daughter, right?"
"Yes, well. It just kind of happened."
I wiped my mouth and adjusted my posture.
I was almost done eating anyway, but there was no way I'd be able to finish the rest now.
"As much as I want to drag her home right now and beat her black and blue, I must reward you first."
"No, it's fine. I only escaped to save my own skin."
"Even so, it's a fact that you saved my daughter. Besides, you must have lost all your belongings when you were kidnapped."
True.
Yesterday, after we subdued those church bastards, the elven knights had asked about our luggage on our behalf, but they said everything had already been disposed of.
Those motherfuckers.
"Then I'll accept just enough to cover that. I'd like to continue my journey."
"Oh, my. I was so out of it that I forgot to introduce myself. I am Adorian Demerde, the current head of the Demerde family."
Demerde? Demerde, Demerde...
"I'm Syaruen. Syaruen Enperumin."
When Meria mentioned it yesterday, I had been too out of it to pay attention, but it sounded like a name I'd heard somewhere before.
Where did I hear it? Was it at the Academy? A teacher's name? A student's name?
Or was my memory playing tricks on me, and I'd actually heard it as an adventurer's name in some tavern?
"Sigh, she's been a restless troublemaker since she was little, and now she's dragged you into this, Syaruen. I'm truly sorry. I need to beat her half to death so she finally learns her lesson."
"No, it's fine. If anything, it's my fault for not looking after her properly."
She has quite a temper. Did Meria inherit her personality from her father?
Tapping her index finger on the table, Adorian let out a sigh and stood up.
"Since I'm here, I should stop by the town hall. I need to thank Bernil as well."
"Oh, Elder Bernil actually just left. It was right before you walked in, so I thought you two had crossed paths."
"We must have taken completely different routes."
"She came by first, and then you arrived right after. She said she wanted to speak with Syaruen in a little bit."
I had long since given up on the honorifics.
Now I was the only one speaking casually.
"It must be a private matter. I should leave right now so I don't get in the way. Armeria!"
"U-Uh, yes!"
"No, it is private... but wait a moment. I need to talk to Syaruen first. Just a second."
Me? Why me?
Milia bowed slightly, then pulled me to a corner of the living room and whispered in my ear.
"Lady Adorian is a very famous mage. 'Very' is an understatement, actually—she's been invited to the royal castle, was part of a legendary adventurer party, and has an incredible record of subjugations. Most of her work is combat-oriented, but her family, her association, and her own skills are so outstanding that I thought she might be able to help with your body. But since you went through such a horrible ordeal in that basement, I thought you might hate the idea of being used for research again, so I wanted to discuss it with you first."
So basically, she could help, but since it's my body, the choice is mine.
"She doesn't seem like a suspicious person, so it should be fine."
"She looks hot-tempered, but she really loves researching things."
...Hey, I wasn't the one who called her hot-tempered, okay?
Honestly, with my body in this state, what more could they even do to me besides chopping off my limbs, dissecting me, or torturing me? But I was curious to see what she could find out.
"If you don't mind, would you like to come along, Lady Adorian? It's too complicated to explain here, and we don't know much either, so we're trying to figure things out."
"Did Bernil do something?"
It certainly was complicated to explain.
"Fine. I'll find out when we get there. Sorry for ruining your meal."
"No, I was almost done anyway."
Besides, looking at the situation now, I'd completely lost my appetite.
"I've been wondering since earlier, but where are you from? I feel like I've seen you somewhere before, though maybe it's just my imagination."
Adorian rested her chin on her hand, narrowing her eyes as she looked at me.
"Dengal. It's south of the capital, about halfway to the border."
"Ah, I know the general location. Dengal... Dengal... I'm sure I went there, but when was it, and why did I go..."
"My family ran an eatery, so you might have stopped by. We also ran a small inn on the second floor."
She frowned, her eyes wandering as she tilted her head, deeply lost in thought.
I guess because she was a beauty, even that puzzled look was charming.
"Ah... Were you... by any chance, the Yugran Party?"
"I don't... know the name."
"Would you recognize it if I said the Wyvern Subjugation Party?"
Adorian offered a hint.
"Hmm... Hearing 'Wyvern Subjugation Party' rings a bell. You had a meal there, right? Wasn't that almost five... or six years ago? It's been so long that I don't remember anyone's face. To think our paths would cross again here."
"It left quite an impression. You definitely shoulder-threw a drunkard."
"Ah."
An embarrassing memory.
"A shoulder throw?"
Milia asked, looking completely baffled.
It was embarrassing to talk about, honestly.
"If I remember correctly, some drunk guy was causing a scene and lunged at me, so I just threw him over my shoulder."
"Didn't you say that was five or six years ago? Syaruen, how old are you...?"
"Twenty-two. So it must have been five years ago. Don't get the wrong idea, the guy I threw wasn't some burly adult; he was a total scrawny weakling."
"Still, throwing an adult at that age..."
"Hahaha! I remember the moment his back hit the ground, he threw up all over your clothes, Syaruen."
Ah, damn it. Bringing up a past I'd worked so hard to forget.
"It was a long time ago, so I don't remember all the details, but seeing that little kid grown up like this... time really flies."
"...If you ever visit again, I'll give you better service. And you can speak casually to me."
"How old do you think I am?"
Out of nowhere?
Considering Meria was twenty, assuming she married early, she'd be around forty, which is the start of middle age. But she looked quite young.
"Considering Meria's age, sixty? Though physically you look about forty. Surely you're not seventy or eighty, right?"
"Correct~"
"Wait, which one is correct?"
"Forty."
Forty??? Not in her forties, but exactly forty?
"Ahahaha, what a cute reaction. Is it because you're young?"
You're incredibly young too, you know?
"Then you had Meria at twenty... No, wait, you said she has an older brother."
"Yep, had my first at eighteen, and Armeria at twenty. Come to think of it, I guess Armeria's been going by the alias 'Meria' around here?"
She really didn't waste any time.
"I don't have a husband. He was an ordinary man, but he died of an incurable disease. I'm telling you this beforehand since I feel like we'll be seeing each other for a long time."
This conversation got way too deep all of a sudden...