The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick up Trash - Volume 2 - Chapter SS

EXTRA * I'm Glad We Met

“CIEL, I’d better go soon.”

Mrrrow. The adandara rubbed its face against me, so I stroked its fur. Ciel narrowed its eyes and purred.

“Too cute!”

Twelve days had passed since the kidnapping ring had been foiled, and the town had regained its usual vitality. I was amazed by the townspeople’s resilience. Rattloore and the others were busy every day, too. Apparently, they had uncovered so many new crimes that investigating them all was taking forever. Nevertheless, peace was gradually returning to Otolwa.

“I hope they finish their work quickly so we can all spend time together. Right, Sora?”

“Pu, pu pu!” The slime bounced around me with its usual enthusiasm.

“What should I make for dinner today? Something more challenging, maybe…”

Mrrrow.

“Pu, pu pu!”

The GM, captain, and vice-captain had been joining us for dinner more often lately. I really liked having them. The more friends we had around us, the better the food was. But for some reason, they never came empty-handed. It seemed like they were competing over who could bring the most gifts. I should probably 

ask them to stop next time I see them. I don’t need that many desserts…

“If I eat all that, I’ll get fat in no time.”

I chatted with my monster friends on the way to town. Once we were close to the town gates, I said goodbye to Ciel.

“Ciel, thanks for escorting me back again. See you tomorrow.”

Mrrrow.

I watched Ciel bound off and then looked over at Sora. “Ready to go in?”

“Pu, pu pu!”

I picked up Sora and lowered it into its bag. A short walk later, the gate had come into view.

“Welcome back,” the gatekeeper greeted me with his usual smile. All of them were really nice. Some even gave me sweets recently! Was it because I was friends with the GM?

“Thank you.”

“Oh! By the way, Ivy.”

“Yes? What is it?”

“When you have desserts, do you like them extra-sugary or not too sweet?”

“Huh?”

Where’s this coming from? Why is he asking me?

“C’mon, which?” He leaned in, pressing me for an answer. I withdrew, overwhelmed by his eagerness.

“Umm, I don’t like things that are too sweet…so less sugary is good!”

“Got it. Thank you.”

“N-no problem?” After getting his answer, he returned to normal. What the heck? I gazed at him curiously, but he cocked his head back at me with a smile. “Umm, see you tomorrow.”

“Yep, see you tomorrow. Be careful on your way back to the plaza.”

Still shaking my head, I made my way to the plaza. Seriously, what was that? As I walked along the main street, members of the guard waved to me. I waved back and continued on my way. The people in this town were so friendly.

“Yo, Ivy!” someone greeted me. I turned; it was the former adventurer from Puff-Puff who I’d met when he helped catch Mira.

“Hello there.”

“Hello, Ivy.”

“Yes…?”

“Could you show me your wrist, please?”

My wrist? I looked at my wrists, but they were just…well, wrists. Nothing special about them.

“Is that a no?” he asked.

“No, it’s okay. Here.” I held my arms out in front of me. What did he want?

The former adventurer held my wrists gently in his hands and nodded. After a moment, he let go and said, “Thanks.”

“Um, is something the matter?” I had no idea what was going on.

“Hm? Oh, well, y’know. Later!”

“Bwuh?”

Ignoring me and my dumbfounded sputter, the former adventurer walked out of sight.

“Really, what in the world?” I tilted my head in thought and returned to the plaza. I don’t know what anyone’s deal is today.

When I arrived at my tent, I took Sora out of its bag. Might as well start dinner.

“I’m gonna go and prep food for tonight. Oh, but I’ll take out some potions. Eat whenever you like.”

I watched Sora quiver as I lined up potions for it, then I stepped out of my tent. I filled a big pot with water and added lots of medicinal plants and a hunk of meat before bringing the whole thing to a low simmer to parboil the meat. After removing the scum forming on the meat, I added it back into the soup. There were three kinds of monster meat today. All of them were a little tough when roasted. When parboiled with medicinal plants before cooking, though, one of them melted in your mouth, the second became soft and tender, and the third became plush yet firm. It was fun to compare their different textures.

“Ivy!” Lowcreek called out to me.

“Huh? Oh, Lowcreek, hello there. Are you already done for the day?”

“Uh, I’m on break. I’m kinda beat.” He did look a little tired.

“Are you okay?”

“I’ve been running interrogations with Sifar today. It’s crazy how the guy next to me is scarier than the guy across from us. He’s a real demon, y’know? I didn’t want to do the job, but the GM said we have to have someone with Sifar, or the people he’s interrogating come out the other side as living corpses. So I went with him to be a team player, y’know? But it’s too much. A mere mortal wasn’t meant to hold back a demon!”

He’s still talking about Sifar, right? And what’s this about living corpses? Does that really happen if Sifar interrogates people alone? Hmm…I guess that kinda does seem Sifar-ish. Is it bad that I think that?

“Oh, that reminds me. Ivy.”

“Yes?” I scooped veggies into the pot. Mm, it smells yummy!

“That smells wonderful. Oh, crap! Ivy, can you show me the soap you use?” I froze. Soap? The soap I use? Umm, how should I respond to that?

“I’m not planning anything weird, promise. I’m just curious.”

“Umm, you mean the soap I use to wash myself, yes?”

Ever since coming to Otolwa, I’d used soap when I washed myself at night. Dissolving a bit of soap in hot water made me feel a lot cleaner. Before, I’d used fruit I’d foraged in the forest, but Sifar got mad at me when I mentioned it. He said little girls shouldn’t be doing that. He’d actually frightened me so much that I went out and bought soap the next morning to show him. Sifar was a little disappointed I’d bought the cheapest one, but he let it slide. I was just glad it wasn’t too expensive, since I wanted to save up money for lodgings in the winter.

“You can say no if you want,” he said, but I found it hard to turn him down flat.

“It’s okay. Wait just a second.” After tending to the fire under the pot, I went back to my tent. Inside, Sora was sound asleep. The potions I’d set out were gone, so it must’ve already eaten. I plucked the soap out of the toiletries I’d set in the corner of the tent and went back out to show Lowcreek. “Here it is.”

“This one? Isn’t this the cheapest kind they sell?”

“Yes, it is.”

“Huh. Okay, got it. Awesome! Thanks.”

“No problem. But why…?”

“Oh, it’s nothing. I’d better get back to work now. Can’t wait for dinner!”

What is with everyone today? They’re all acting off. Is something going on?

I sliced raw veggies and arranged them on a plate. Now, how should I garnish this today?

“Hey, Ivy!”

“Huh? Oh, Mr. Sifar. Did you happen to pass Lowcreek on your way here?”

“Er? Why do you ask?”

“He just left.”

Sifar fell silent. Huh? Should I not have told him that? He said he was on break, though…

“…Mr. Sifar?”

“Heh heh heh. So this is where he’s been slacking off.” Sorry, Lowcreek! Um…good luck. “That smells good.” Sifar smiled as he glanced over at the simmering pot. Would he be eating with us again today? As expected, he asked, “Mind if I intrude again tonight?”

“Of course not!”

“I was thinking we should all go out to eat together tomorrow. Are you busy, Ivy?”

“Tomorrow?” My plans were to go to the forest, check my traps, and play with Ciel. That was what I did every day, though, so they weren’t exactly plans. “I’m free.”

“Cool. I’ll come and get you tomorrow.”

“Huh? I can get there on my own if you tell me where to go.” Was it the tavern from before?

“It’s a different place. I’ll just pick you up, okay?”

“Understood. I’ll be waiting.”

Sifar gently tousled my hair. He was neither too soft or too rough, so it felt nice.

“Now, I gotta get back to it,” he said. “I wonder where Lowcreek’s hiding from me this time?”

“Huh? Lowcreek said he was going back to work.”

“Really? Hmm… My intuition tells me I’ll need to catch him.” Sifar did have uncanny instincts. “If he’s not at the guild, I’ll just have to chase him down. Off I go!”

Chase him… Lowcreek, do your best! Don’t run away!

“Don’t be too hard on him,” I pleaded. “And don’t push yourself too hard, either.”

“Thanks, I won’t.”

I hope Lowcreek will be okay. That smile on Sifar’s face was pretty terrifying. Okay, so what do we put on this salad? Hmm… How about I slice some strips of meat and crisp them up in a pan? Yeah, that’s perfect!

Yesterday ended up being quite an event. A big capture operation took place right on the plaza—except the one being captured was Lowcreek. As Sifar expected, Lowcreek tried to make a break for it. Sifar made good on his promise and chased Lowcreek all around the town. Or rather, aspiring guard candidates were the ones who chased him. Sifar told them he’d recommend them to the captain if they caught Lowcreek. I was impressed… Sifar was a master manipulator. And this time he’d started an impromptu game of hide-and-seek.

At first, the townspeople were confused to see Lowcreek running for his life. But it wasn’t long before they saw aspiring guardsmen shouting, “I’m gonna be a guuuaaaaard!” Apparently this was a common sight, so the townsfolk started rooting for them. People on the street even cheered when they finally nabbed Lowcreek at the plaza. I guess I do feel a little bad for him.

“What’s the matter?” Sifar asked me.

“I was just thinking about what happened yesterday. It must be the stuff of legend by now.”

As we strolled along the main street on our way to the restaurant, I listened to the conversations of passersby. Almost everyone was discussing yesterday’s hide-and-seek game. Some were upset that they’d missed it.

“Yeah, it was hilarious how everyone got so into it. Lowcreek helped, of course.”

“Ah ha ha ha!”

“Right over there.” Sifar pointed at a restaurant that looked like a slightly fancier tavern. It seemed classier than the places I’d been to before. Was this really the spot? “C’mon. Let’s go in.” He opened the door and gently pushed me though.

I peeked inside and looked around. Huh? I know everyone here.

“Ivy!” I saw Rattloore stand up excitedly. What was going on?

“Mr. Rattloore?”

“Happy birthday!”

“Huh?!”

“Happy birthday, Ivy!” everyone shouted at once.

“Ah!” I was thunderstruck. I’d mentioned to Rattloore and the others that my birthday had passed, and I was nine now. They did say they’d celebrate my birthday once all this was over, but I totally forgot! I’d never celebrated or had anyone else even acknowledge my birthday these past few years, after all.

“Ivy? You okay?”

I noticed my vision blurring, so I scrubbed at my eyes. “Thank you all. It really means a lot to me.” My voice trembled a bit. I was just so overjoyed.

“Good for you!” Someone put a hand on my head. I looked up, and Sifar smiled sweetly down at me.

“Happy birthday! C’mon, over here!” Rattloore took me by the hand and guided me over to Seizerk and the others, who greeted me with more happy birthdays. “Here, sit down. We’ll go first, okay?”

First? I plopped down in the chair, and Seizerk handed me a wooden box. I took it, but…what was it?

“That’s a birthday present from us.”

“A present… May I look inside?”

Everyone nodded eagerly. I opened the box, a little nervous. Inside was a set of pots. The box must have been a magical item, as it even contained a cauldron.

“A cauldron!” I was stunned. I’d always wanted one of these for cooking.

“Here ya go. This one’s from us.” Bolorda handed me a wooden box as well.

Was this box another magical item? I opened it to find a set of cute cooking utensils. Oh? I saw these at a store before. It’s the whole set, too. Aren’t these really pricey?

“These utensils and the pots were expensive, weren’t they? Are you sure I can have these?”

“It didn’t set any of us back that much since we all pitched in. Don’t you worry about a thing. Besides, we’d be really bummed if you didn’t accept our feelings here.”

“I’ll take good care of them!”

“Okay, next up!” Lowcreek held out a cloth pouch.

“Huh? You already gave me something, though.”

“This one’s from the guard and adventurers,” he said.

Both of them? I accepted the pouch and peeked inside. The scent of flowers tickled my nose.

It contained ten bars of soap!

“They had a lot of fun picking those out,” Lowcreek told me. “There’s all kinds of scents in there, so go wild.”

“Thank you very much.”

“Yo, we got you this, too.” The former adventurer from Puff-Puff took my arm and pushed something onto it. I looked down at a bracelet with a pretty stone. “That’s an amulet stone. I hear you’ve got a journey ahead.” He patted my head. So he was measuring my wrists yesterday.

“Thank you. But who is we?”

“All the retired adventurers, along with these oafs’ old mentor.”

The owner of Puff-Puff pointed at Seizerk and the others. Umm, I don’t feel like any of them were involved in this, though?

“Consider us representatives of the townsfolk,” he added.

I dunno…

“Go on and take it,” Rattloore urged. “But hey, if it’s got our mentor’s feelings in it, I’d be careful with it.” Everyone laughed.

“Can you tell them thank you for me, please?” I asked.

“Yeah, for sure.”

Everyone was so wonderful.

“Okay, here’s the last one!” One of the gatekeepers I’d always waved to at the gate came over with something white and fluffy.

“This is called kiffon cake. It’s the perfect dessert for celebrations.”

“We got it at just the right sweetness level for you. It’s all for you!”

The kiffon cake placed atop the table was snow white. It looked lighter than air.

“I can’t wait. Thank you so much.”

Even if it was exactly as sweet as I liked it, it was bigger than my face. There was no way I could eat it all alone. We sliced it up to share and hooted and hollered as we enjoyed the kiffon cake. I’d never had so many people gather just for me, so I cried over and over. Each time, Rattloore and Sifar gave me a big hug.

“Thank you, everyone. I’m so glad I met all of you.”