novelzi Chapter 246
Chapter 246
Baluffa
“Well then, it’s a promise, Meg!”
“Okay! I’ll send you a letter as soon as I get back!”
And so, after finishing lunch, we exited Annulus to get ready to leave. Rune and Goot, and even Diega-san, had come to see us off, and Rune and I were firmly shaking hands, saying our goodbyes.
“Goot too... Is it okay for me to send you a letter?”
“Eh, i-is it okay for me as well...?”
“Of course! I want to get to know you.”
And then I also said this to Goot, who was being awkward until the very end. I gently held out my hand, asking for a handshake, and smiled. Goot’s face turned bright red, maybe he really is at that difficult age, isn’t he? Maybe it’s embarrassing to casually touch a girl. Just as I was about to pull my hand back, he grabbed it tightly.
“O-o-of course I-I want to be... f-friends... with you... Meg!”
He said that, even though he was bright red. Geez, how cute is he!? I was so happy that I put my other hand over his.
“Yeah! I’m happy!”
“Uu...!”
He didn’t say anything else, but those feelings were conveyed through that firm grip. I unexpectedly got two new friends—a lively and cute girl, and a shy boy!
“Thanks for lunch. We’ll come visit again soon.”
“You say that, but it’ll be a few decades before I see you again, won’t it? Well, I’ll wait, without getting my hopes up. ...And.”
“And?”
“Ah, no, it’s nothing. Take care.”
“Yeah, thanks. Well then.”
It seemed like the adults were done with their greetings. I was waving vigorously, as I was being pulled along by Ludo-sensei.
I had to reluctantly turn around and continue walking with Ludo-sensei, because I was going to trip if I kept walking backwards. I’m not crying!
“I’m glad you made good friends. It was a good thing we stopped by Annulus.”
“Yeah, I’m so happy! I need to tell Gil-san when we get back!”
“Gil? Hmm... I’m sure it’ll be fine. Probably.”
I was excitedly thinking about telling him all about it, when I noticed Ludo-sensei smiling wryly. I wonder why? He patted my head, saying, “Don’t worry about it,” when he saw my puzzled look. I do want to worry about it? But that’s his “I’m not going to talk about it” face. I won’t be able to get it out of him. Hmm, I have no choice but to give up.
“Well, we’re at the beast carriage branch. I’m going to go rent the beast we reserved, so wait here for a bit.”
“I can give them instructions on which way to go by lightly whipping them with this. Twice on the right hind leg if we want to go right, three times to increase altitude, stroking to decrease, and so on. And the baluffa will automatically avoid obstacles and dangerous areas.”
“Baluffa, sho amajing.”
I accidentally slurred. Th-That’s how surprised I am! I don’t normally slur anymore! But it really makes me realize how much I still don’t know about this world, even though I’ve been here for so long. I’m sure there are still a lot of creatures, plants, and other things I don’t know about.
But I won’t rush. My life is very long, after all. I think it would be nice to slowly learn about these things. When I’m older, stronger, I want to travel the world. Like Dad. ...Though Dad has to travel all over for work!
The leisurely journey through the sky continued. It’s a different kind of comfort from traveling with Gil-san. Both have magic tools for the wind and temperature changes, but the way it sways is different. It feels as comfortable as being in a cradle. Ah, I’m getting sleepy...
“You can sleep. Good night, Meg.”
Ludo-sensei said this, his gentle voice like a finishing blow, as he patted my head! Defeat is confirmed. Good night...
“We’re almost there, Meg.”
“Fu-nya...”
By the time I woke up, the sun had already started to set. I folded the blanket he’d placed over me and stood up to look outside. I could just barely see it, if I stretched.
“W-Whoa...!”
What spread out before me was an ocean view! We were flying over the sea. And I could see a continent in the distance. That’s probably Nanrei, the country in the south, our destination this time.
“Can you see that lighthouse? The grave’s near there.”
I looked towards where Ludo-sensei was pointing, and there was definitely a lighthouse. And a bit further than that, I could see something that looked like a field of white flowers. And further in... many stone structures, like graves. Dr. Ludo’s mate is sleeping there...
“There’s a building where we can leave the beast near the lighthouse. We’ll head to the grave once we’ve left it there. Okay?”
“Okay.”
His tone was quiet, so even my usually energetic reply was a bit subdued. My motto is to be cheerful with my greetings and replies, but I’m a girl who can change depending on the time, place, and situation!
The baluffa slowly decreased altitude. The lighthouse got bigger and bigger. We’re about to land. Since this baluffa’s been trained to be a beast carriage, it gently lowered the basket we were in before it landed. The baluffa then also landed softly, and then started deflating. It’s kind of funny.
“Alright, we’re here. Shall we?”
“...Okay.”
I got out of the basket, following after Ludo-sensei, and as I was praising the baluffa, he gently held out his hand. So I took it. Ludo-sensei then pulled the baluffa with his other hand, took it to the building, and left it there. Someone immediately came out of the building and led the baluffa away. This might be like a drop off point for beasts.
He handed a card to the person, who then used magic to scan it, and then returned it. Apparently, we can rent the same one again tomorrow. Ludo-sensei then put the card back in his storage magic tool and started walking down the path to the grave.
Slowly. As if savoring every step.
Ludo-sensei’s profile looked a bit sad, but his eyes were incredibly gentle.@@@@