Chapter 59
Chapter 59
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 58
Chapter Title: Helping Hands
I headed over to Sean, who was in the middle of stacking up the fence.
He was sweating profusely, carefully placing each brick one by one.
I approached and set down a brick.
He seemed deeply focused.
Hearing the sound of the brick being placed, he turned his head and greeted me with a slightly surprised expression.
"Ah, thank you."
"Yeah."
Sean's gaze shifted to Merthesia.
His eyes widened a bit.
He looked flustered, just like Lauren, seeing a child carrying bricks.
But unlike Lauren, Sean quickly regained his calm expression.
"Little miss's name is Mer... right?"
"Yeah. That's right."
"Thanks, Mer."
"!"
Merthesia beamed brightly.
Maybe because she bought his mushroom skewers every time he came to the village.
Even the shy Merthesia, who was wary of strangers, smiled without hesitation—perhaps thanks to that.
Or maybe it was his uniquely diligent and serene demeanor.
'Doesn't look like his dad at all.'
A chuckle escaped me.
On the way here,
the general store owner had bragged that his son took after him completely.
Looking down at Merthesia, I said,
"Hand it to Sean."
"…!"
"Haha, thanks. It's tough work, but with Mer helping, I feel more secure."
"!"
"Still, be careful. It'll hurt if you get injured, and Lauren will be upset too."
Did she understand Sean's words?
Merthesia nodded with a slightly serious face.
Sean smiled faintly and took the brick Merthesia offered, placing it on top of the fence.
Precise and steady movements.
He applied mortar between the bricks, then immediately smoothed it out evenly.
Watching the process, Merthesia's eyes sparkled.
"Want to try?"
"!"
Sean flinched for a moment but soon smiled and said,
"Want to give it a go, Mer?"
"…."
"She says yes."
"I see. …Sorry, but could you lift Mer up for me? My legs are a bit unsteady."
I nodded slightly and picked Merthesia up.
Sean had already scraped off some of the applied mortar,
spread it widely over the brick, and tapped it down evenly with the tool in his hand.
"Tamp it down like this, and it sticks well. Not hard, right?"
"…!"
Merthesia's eyes sparkled as she reached out her small hand.
Sean gently covered the back of her hand and guided the pressure.
"Don't press too hard, slowly. That's it."
"…."
"You're doing great."
"!"
Her small hand slowly moved across the brick.
After focusing intently for a while, Merthesia looked up at me.
Her expression said she wanted to show off her accomplishment.
I smiled softly and stroked Merthesia's head.
"Good job."
"!!!"
"Haha, I think this every time I see it, but Mer really likes you, Mr. Row."
Merthesia flinched, her shoulders trembling.
The child looked at Sean for a moment, then nodded very slowly.
A smile spread across Sean's lips again.
"Thanks for the help, Mer. I'll finish up."
"!"
He focused back on his work.
Even when buying mushroom skewers,
and now, he felt completely different from his father.
Unlike his boisterous, playful dad, he was composed,
and unlike his dad who was awkward with girls, he handled Merthesia skillfully.
"You're good at adjusting to her."
"Pardon?"
"Kids like Merthesia. The general store owner is pretty clumsy with them."
Sean blinked for a moment, then smiled faintly.
"Well, I've been looking after Lauren since I was young."
"Ah, you're four years older than Lauren, right?"
"You knew? Yes, that's right. Taking care of Lauren from a young age made me used to it. Thanks to that, I'm not awkward around kids."
Sean glanced down at Merthesia and shrugged.
"Unlike the well-behaved Mer, Lauren was a total tomboy."
"Who's a tomboy—!"
"You heard that? Why are your ears so sharp?"
"You said it so loud, how could I not!"
Lauren strode over and pinched Sean's cheek.
Even as they bickered, their long-standing relationship was evident.
We felt like mere background while watching them.
"Shall we move some bricks?"
"!"
Leaving the noisy pair behind, Merthesia and I carried bricks back and forth.
One.
Two.
Three.
As the trips increased,
the number of bricks Merthesia carried grew little by little.
"You're doing well. You've carried a lot more."
"!"
"We'll carry even more firewood next time."
"!!!"
Her eyes lit up brightly.
I had a feeling the area around the cabin would soon be a mess of firewood.
At this rate, I might need to clear space for stacking it soon.
As I turned my gaze while thinking that,
my eyes met a familiar face a short distance away.
"Mr. Row, by any chance?"
"Ah, hello."
"It is you! I thought so when I saw the black robe!"
It was the alchemy shop owner.
She was also in the midst of repairs, holding bricks in her arms.
Soon, her eyes widened round.
Once at the stack of bricks in my arms.
Twice at the three bricks Merthesia held.
Her eyes grew larger, and her face went blank.
I ignored her stare and continued working,
but the alchemy shop owner rushed over and grabbed my arm.
"Mr. Row!"
"Yeah?"
"Could you help me out a bit? I'll give you herbs cheap."
"Herbs?"
"Yes!"
The scene she just saw must have impressed her deeply.
She clung to me with a face that said she couldn't miss this chance.
From what she explained,
she needed to repair the warehouse wall and move alchemy tools and materials,
but most of the village men were busy with their own homes, so help was scarce.
But….
"Sorry. I promised to help here first."
"…Really?"
"Haha—! We're good. Go ahead."
"Huh? It's okay?"
The general store owner appeared just in time, nodding with a laugh.
"Thanks to Mr. Row, we finished in hours what would have taken half a day. I can handle the rest!"
"Alright…. Got it. I'll help."
"Thank you so much. You saved me! This way."
"…!"
I stopped Merthesia, who tried to follow eagerly.
"No. There might be dangerous herbs."
"…."
"Stay with Lauren. That's safer."
"…."
Merthesia's eyes welled up.
She shook her head.
Clutching my robe tightly with both hands, refusing to part.
"Merthesia."
"…?"
"What Sean taught you earlier. It seems useful."
"…."
"Try various things with Sean and Lauren, and tell me about it later?"
She pouted her lips, pondering, then nodded slightly.
Still reluctant, but she seemed willing to go along with my words.
I gently caressed Merthesia's cheek.
"Thanks."
"!"
"I'll come back and tell you what happened."
"…!"
Merthesia held my hand tightly for a moment,
then toddled over to Lauren, looking back repeatedly.
I waved until Merthesia was out of sight.
Only after Lauren took Merthesia's small hand did I turn to the alchemy shop owner.
"Sorry. Let's go."
"Oh, no need to apologize. You saved my life."
After that, I helped the alchemy shop owner.
Carrying bricks and planks,
and moving the herb boxes from outside the warehouse to inside.
Maybe because there was another warehouse right across?
I felt someone's gaze watching my movements intently.
A person I'd run into a few times before.
He stood still for a long time, observing my handiwork and motions.
I ignored him and kept working, but he hurried over and stood in front of me.
"Huff, huff. You there."
"Yeah?"
The man caught his breath, straightened up, and spoke urgently.
"If you're okay with it, could you help with this side too? I have to finish today, but we're short-handed and only halfway done."
"Uh…."
"I'll pay you well!"
"Hmm…. I can help, but there's still a bit left here."
The man nodded quickly.
"Then I'll help here for a bit, and we go together when you're done!"
"Sure."
The man rolled up his sleeves immediately
and started moving herb boxes with the alchemy shop owner.
Thanks to him, the work finished faster than expected.
The alchemy shop owner bowed repeatedly in thanks.
"Whew, you really saved me. Thank you, Mr. Row!"
"Glad I could help."
"Help? This is way more! Wait, let me grab some rare herbs and mushrooms for you."
"No need. I can't take them now, so later."
Leaving the bowing owner behind,
I leisurely adjusted my gloves and slowly headed to the next task.
After that, I kept helping around the village.
While moving warehouse goods at the man's request,
other residents who saw me started approaching one by one, asking for help.
"Um, if you're okay, could you move this?"
"How much for a day's wage? I'd like to hire you for a few days."
"You moved that warehouse load alone? Impressive."
Probably because I kept going back and forth from the outskirts warehouse to the central shops, drawing attention.
Since it was all just heavy lifting,
nothing too hard, I didn't refuse.
Thanks to that, I helped villagers until the sun began to set.
"Ah…."
"What's wrong?"
"Someone's waiting for me. Time to go."
"Ah, I see."
It was a woman selling simple snacks from a stall.
Hearing me, she hurried home and brought back some food.
Since I declined payment, she wanted to give something instead.
"You helped so much. Days of work done so quickly. What a relief."
"Glad to help. I'll enjoy it."
"No, no. You did way more. And you even refused payment…."
I didn't need payment.
Money wasn't an issue at all.
Besides, putting a price on kindness turns it into mere labor, which I disliked.
What I wanted was good memories for the child.
If Merthesia's day was a bit happier, that was enough.
"No need for money. And I already said my reward—be good to Merthesia."
"Merthesia…."
"The kid I brought along."
The woman blinked in surprise, then softened her expression.
While chatting briefly with her,
people started gathering around one by one.
"Here, take this."
"Thanks a lot. You saved us."
"This is homemade seasoning. Great with meat."
All were people I'd helped in big or small ways.
Before I could refuse, they kept shoving things into my hands and left.
My hands ended up full.
Food,
dried herbs,
jarred honey,
even a hair clip for a child.
The variety was immense.
Too awkward to refuse or return, I decided to take it all.
Above all, Merthesia was waiting.
"I'm back."
"You're back? …Oh my, what's all that?"
"People gave it to me."
"…!"
Merthesia was covered in dust and paint.
She seemed to have been tasked with painting the fence.
She tossed the brushes from both hands and toddled over, waving her arms.
"Sorry. No free hands right now."
"…."
"It's fine. Come here."
"!"
Her small, warm body nestled right into my arms.
Paint and dust smeared onto my robe.
But I didn't mind.
After nuzzling into me for a bit, Merthesia pointed somewhere.
The fence she'd been standing by.
She probably wanted to show off her mural.
The child's drawing on the gray fence felt somehow endearing.
"You drew it well."
"!"
"Was it fun?"
"!!!"
Merthesia nodded and smiled brightly.
At that moment—.
A familiar, appetizing aroma tickled my nose.
"Ah, you're here. Perfect timing. Have some of this."
"Mushroom skewers?"
"Mer likes them, right? So I made a few."
"!"
"Thanks. I'll dig in."
I handed Sean’s mushroom skewer to Merthesia.
The child took it with both hands and offered it back to me.
I took a familiar bite.
"Tasty."
"!"
"Eat a lot."
Her face lit up with pure joy, and I couldn't help but chuckle.