Shelter for the Night
The loose change clutched in his hand.
Yerna had rushed through the payment so hurriedly that she had not even taken the change, so he had received it in her stead.
That she had settled the bill meant she would not be returning—most likely.
"She must have been in quite the hurry. To leave even her bags behind."
Luke sighed as he looked at the bags filling both his hands.
The contents were simply groceries. Vegetables, canned goods, and assorted snacks of unknown variety.
Come to think of it, the snacks of this era. Luke found himself mildly intrigued by those as well.
But still…
To leave so suddenly like that. Had something urgent happened in the forest, perhaps?
"Her heart must have been racing too much. It would have been nice if she had at least said something."
Luke slung the cello case over his shoulder and rose, one hand still full of the bags.
"Hey, isn't that heavy? Can you manage alone?"
"I am fine. Do not concern yourself."
"Shall I walk you home?"
"I appreciate the thought, but there is no need."
It was already 12:10. Even though it was already past closing time because of him, they had waited an extra hour and ten minutes. He could not impose any further.
Luke bowed in greeting and left the shop.
The rain still poured. He worried a little about Yerna, who had dashed out into this weather without an umbrella, but the car was gone from where she had parked it, so she must have taken it.
Was she in that much of a hurry? So much that she had to leave suddenly without even a word?
At this rate, it almost felt as if he had been abandoned.
That cannot be. She must have simply forgotten to say anything.
Perhaps in this era, with the existence of "cell phones," the culture of leaving verbal messages or the like had disappeared. Though that did not explain leaving the phone behind.
Luke shook his head as if it could not be helped. Yerna, looking at you, you really do have quite the scatterbrained personality. If it was truly urgent, that could happen. And since he had the phone—she had not lost it; he had taken it—it should be fine.
"But the bus is not coming."
Well, of course—it was long past the last bus of the night. Even the coachmen of this era, it seemed, had an end to their day. Normally a bus would come after about twenty minutes of waiting, without fail.
Looking around now, the roads were deserted as well. Splash—the sound of tires rolling through puddles of rainwater echoed emptily. Come to think of it, aside from that white sedan, no other cars were passing by.
That car has something stuck to its roof as it drives around.
It was what they called a taxi, but the current Luke had no way of knowing that. The thought of taking a taxi home would not even occur to him.
The place where Luke had eaten was a restaurant near the school. He could not very well take a hungry child far away, after all. But as a result, it was too far to walk home, and even if he could walk it, he did not want to push through the heavy rain like this. The cello on his back and the bags in his hands would all get soaked for certain.
"Hmm… Shall I have to sleep rough, then? Haha, this is rather troublesome."
It was not as if he had no experience with sleeping outdoors, but right now he lacked proper equipment. Moreover, the city at night would be quite dangerous for a young child to wander alone. In any era, the scariest things were not monsters or the like, but people.
And look at himself objectively. His hands full of bags, and outwardly a frail young child. He was the perfect target for crime. Though if a few adults rushed him, he was confident he could subdue them if he did not care about life and death, but deliberately committing slaughter did not suit Luke's disposition, and he did not want to be placed in such a situation in the first place. Receiving gazes filled with fear from others—he was thoroughly sick of that by now.
Then what to do…
"Ah, that's it."
Luke nodded at the sudden idea that struck him.
Ring… ring…
After several rings, a young girl's voice came through, still thick with sleep.
"Hello…? Luke? Yaaawn. What's going on this late at night…?"
It was Mery, the sheep beastman girl.
"Mery, you said you were in the dormitory, did you not? Forgive me, but might you put me up for the night?"
"Huh? What's going on?"
How was he supposed to explain what had happened? Recounting the whole sequence of events would take far too long, so he kept it brief.
"There was a matter nearby. It has grown too late to return home. Would it be all right if I imposed upon you for a single night?"
"Mm, well. One night? Sure. Ah… you know where the dorm is, right? Just come to room 102!"
"That is most kind of you. I shall be there shortly."
Luke offered his thanks and ended the call. Having to rely on that small child was a shameful thing, but there seemed to be no other way.
Well, she will contact me eventually, I suppose.
Luke thought little of it.
A man who appeared to be a security guard stood in front of the dormitory. He asked Luke various questions, but seeing the school uniform, the student ID, and the way the child was loaded down with bags and already damp from the rain, he did not press too thoroughly. When Luke added something about "coming to see a friend," the guard let out a weary "Ugh" and said,
"Don't come this late next time. I'm only letting you in this once."
"Of course. You have my genuine thanks. As a token of gratitude… take this."
Luke handed over one of the snack packages that happened to be within reach—something he had tried before. It was a bag of hard candy. Yerna, who did not care for sweets, would not have bought it for herself, so it was probably meant for him. Why she had suddenly bought so many snacks, he still did not know.
"It is rather tasty. Have some and keep your spirits up."
"Uh… right. Thanks…?"
The man accepted the bag of candy with a bewildered expression, scratched the back of his head, and waved him through. He would have liked to help carry the bags, but even a security guard could not enter the inner halls of the girls' dormitory.
In the end, Luke walked alone down the dark corridor until he reached room 102. Without hesitation, he knocked.
Knock knock.
"Mery, it is I. Would you open the door?"
"Luke! Just a second!"
There was a rustle of movement inside, and then the door opened to reveal Mery in a frilly pink one-piece nightgown, greeting him with a smile.
"You're soaked! Is it raining hard out there? Come in, quick!"
"Then I shall impose."
The dormitory at Tig Academy was excellent. It had everything one could need—so much so that it was not greatly different from Yerna's apartment. No, it was actually better. Truly worthy of being called a prestigious school, Luke murmured to himself. Thanks to that, he was able to dry his soaked socks and shoes and even take a bath.
As expected, the shower is the finest invention.
The sensation of washing one's body beneath a waterfall whose water temperature could be adjusted in real time. A comfort that defied description. After scrubbing thoroughly and blotting away the moisture with a towel, a spirit's breeze carried off whatever dampness remained. Of course, all of it was possible with magic as well, but the fact that it could be so simple and efficient without any complicated mental labor left Luke thoroughly satisfied.
However.
"This is…"
What Luke was wearing was a light one-piece nightgown not much different from Mery's. And it was pink.
"It really suits you!"
Mery nodded with a smile.
"Heh heh…"
Well… truthfully, it was not as if he found something like this embarrassing at this point. It was merely a nightgown whose hem happened to be a little longer. The problem was the comfort itself. It was so comfortable that it felt unfamiliar.
He had already thought the fabrics of this era were excellent, but a high-grade nightgown made with genuine luxury cloth… that was already a revolution. Woven with a delicacy of technique incomparable to the past, fabric developed solely for use as sleepwear. On top of that, the faint enchantment that felt like gentle mana had already turned the nightgown into a kind of magical tool. Soft, light, and comfortable. Yet precisely because of that, it felt almost like being naked, which was somehow unsettling.
"Is there nothing else besides this…?"
"If the sleeves get in the way, I've got a sleeveless one too!"
"Never mind. I shall simply use this…"
Ere…!
Pai seemed thoroughly pleased…
"It is not Ere, but Luke Irushi, I say."
"Hm? I know. Luke Irushi. Why are you saying that all of a sudden?"
Luke considered telling her about the spirit, then decided against it. Talk of spirit girls and the like was something he would rather avoid by now.
"It is nothing."
In preparation for sleep, Luke fitted the horn covers Mery had given him onto the tips of his horns. He pressed them experimentally a few times; they were soft and springy, so there seemed little chance of injury from thrashing in his sleep.
"Sleep well, Mery."
Luke switched off the light and sat on the left side of a bed that seemed rather large for a single child to use alone. At once his body sank deep into the mattress with a soft poof.
This is truly soft. Absurdly so…
When he lay fully down, the bed molded completely to Luke's shape, offering a floating sort of comfort as if he were suspended in midair. He had expected to fall asleep the moment he closed his eyes, but perhaps he had slept too deeply in the infirmary, or perhaps thoughts of Yerna kept him awake. Sleep would not come.
"Luke, you awake?"
It seemed Mery could not sleep either.
"What is it?"
"You're not sleeping. Are you sleepy right now?"
"Not particularly. I took too long a nap earlier…"
"Actually, same with me. I woke up in the middle and even counting sheep isn't working."
"That is my fault, then. My apologies."
"No, it's not like that! Just thinking that Luke is right next to me got me a little excited."
"So it is my fault after all."
"Is it?"
Hehe—Mery gave a slightly empty little laugh, then turned her head to look at Luke's profile. Lying on her side like that was something Luke could not do, so he merely rolled his eyes toward her.
"Tomorrow's a holiday anyway… Want to stay up all night?"
"Mery, children ought to sleep at night. That is how they grow big and strong."
At Luke's words, Mery sat up in bed with a sulky air.
"Talking like a grandma… You don't want to stay up?"
"…"
In truth, Luke was not sleepy either, so he sat up as well. Well, if he played with her for a little while, she would probably grow drowsy again soon enough. Luke let out a sigh and said,
"Very well. What exactly do you wish to do?"
"This and that? Stay up chatting all night, or maybe watch a movie?"
"A movie would be preferable."
Chatting properly with a child was something he doubted he could manage well, so watching a movie seemed the better choice.
"Ah."
Yerna snapped back to her senses. How had she lost consciousness? She sat bolt upright and looked around.
A police station.
"Ah…"
"Yerna, you with us now?"
"Where is this?"
"You don't remember? What you did?"
"I…?"
Click—an alien sensation at her wrists. Handcuffs. Now that she looked, the place she had opened her eyes was a holding cell.
"Huh? Siena, what is this?"
Before she knew it, a dark elf stood in front of Yerna with her arms crossed, sighing as if she could not believe it.
"You suddenly barged in and caused a ruckus."
Yerna's eyes went round, and she pointed at herself with a finger. Now that she noticed, several officers were glaring daggers in her direction, each rubbing some part of their body…
"Me?"
There was no way she would have hit police officers. She shook her head vigorously.
"Yes, you did. Get a grip. You were practically out of your mind…"
Out of her mind? Why would I—? Yerna carefully tried to recall why she had done such a thing. Looking out the window, the rain was still coming down hard.
"Ah…"
Tap, tap, tap—the rain grew heavier. At the sight of it, a memory slammed into her brain.
"Luke has disappeared. I have to find him. Help me."
"…Then file a missing person report first, you idiot."