Welcome to the Special-Grade Guild! ~ The Beloved Elf Poster Girl Soothes Everyone’s Hearts ~
Chapter 177

177. Kidnapper

“I see, so your parents aren’t here right now… This is troublesome.”

The knight seemed to have understood my little-girl explanation and was frowning, looking troubled.

It seems the medicine I gave him is called “holy water” in this land, and is a precious item used by some nobles and royals. Ah, I knew it!

“I was a fool to down it without really believing you… I don’t have anything on hand to repay you.”

Ah, well, it was foolish to drink it without any doubts, I agree. But honestly, I don’t need anything in return. It’s something we can easily make back on the Demon Continent… It’s a difference in values, I guess. Of course, it wouldn’t have been possible without Shizuku-chan’s hard work!

“I don’t need anything in weturn.”

“Don’t be silly, that’s not how it works.”

Of course. He seems like an honest guy. But I want to get back to the room as quickly as possible. Because I promised Ravi-san, and I went outside…!

“Then, then, pwease keep this a shecret…”

“A secret?”

As a trade-off, this is the most important thing for me right now. It wouldn’t be good to stand out while we’re in this city!

“That I gave you that medicine… I was told it would be dangeroush if I stood out.”

“Hmm… It’s true that if a child had something so expensive, unsavory individuals might target her.”

Oh, is this going well? I was about to say, “Then that’s fine as a reward,” but…

“But it’s only natural to keep it a secret. It’s normal to try to make sure that no danger befalls you, isn’t it? That’s not a reward.”

He’s tough! More than that, I want to go back to my room! As I was looking troubled, the knight chuckled and placed his hand on my head. Is he patting me?

“Children are so pure. Normally, I’d have your companions come with you and express my gratitude properly…”

Oh no, that would be bad!? We really can’t stand out! I felt my heart pounding.

“But right now, I have to pursue a suspicious individual. I also have a search mission.”

“Search mission…?”

I had a bad feeling. My heart was pounding louder and louder. D-Don’t tell me…?

“Yeah. I’m looking for three children… A black-haired boy, a boy with reddish-brown hair tied back, and a little girl with black hair, around your age… I hear they’re incredibly beautiful. You’re also incredibly beautiful, but you have red hair.”

S-Safe!! No, not quite safe!? Ugh, he’s… he’s one of the people searching for us! Is he a knight dispatched from the Eastern Castle? Uwaa~, Uwaa~, my face is about to twitch, I’m trying so hard to control it!

“Oh, that’s right. You should take a look at this too, since we’re on the subject. It seems like there’s a kidnapper who took these children.”

Kid…napper…? I felt something catch in my throat. The knight took a piece of paper from his chest pocket, unfolded it, and showed it to me. And there…

“A female adventurer named Ravi. If you see her, don’t approach and contact us immediately.”

It was unmistakably a portrait of Ravi-san. It was hand-drawn, so it didn’t convey her exact likeness, but it captured her features well, such as her long hair in a ponytail, her determined eyes, her freckles… Anyone who knew Ravi-san would immediately recognize her.

Why? Ravi-san is a kidnapper…? She’s the one who helped us, but they’re treating her like this…? It’s not true. Ravi-san isn’t a bad person!

But I can’t say that. A child’s words aren’t reliable. Even if Licht, Ronny, and I insisted, they’d just lecture us, saying we were deceived.

It’s frustrating. It’s frustrating, but I have to be patient now. And pray that Ravi-san returns safely, without being found. I tried to calm my pounding heart and simply answered the knight, “Okay.”

“Ah, and one more thing. I still want to thank you properly. If you ever run into trouble, you can come to the Knights’ Order anytime. Just mention the name of Liger, of the Eastern Knights’ Order, at any order, and they’ll listen to you. And if it’s something serious, I swear I’ll rush to your aid.”

Liger-san, the knight, said that, apologized again for not being able to express his gratitude properly now, and then immediately ran off. I watched him leave with mixed feelings.

If you’re going to help, then I want you to stop chasing us. Stop trying to capture Ravi-san. Because she’s a really good person.

Liger-san might be an enemy to us, but I don’t think he’s a bad person. He’s probably just following orders from above. I don’t regret healing his wound. It was an act of kindness.

『No matter how kind they seem, humans are a race whose true intentions are a mystery.』

Leo-jii’s words echoed in my mind once again. That’s right, he’s human too. Maybe he was just being kind because I’m a young civilian, and his attitude would change if our positions were reversed.

But I still can’t help but think that Liger-san is also a good person. Am I being naive? I am, aren’t I? I know. But I want to believe in him.

…No, this isn’t the time to be thinking about those things. Ravi-san, please come back soon…! Praying for that, I hurried to Licht and Ronny’s room.

“Are you stupid!? Don’t do anything dangerous!”

“Shtop pinchwing my cheeks!”

And now, in Licht’s room, when I honestly told them what had happened, as expected, Licht got mad. Super mad. I’m reflecting on it, so please stop pinching my cheeks! I looked at Ronny, pleading for help.

“This time, Meg was… wrong.”

“Aww…”

Even Ronny scolded me. This hurts more than being scolded by Licht…!

“…Jeez. Thank goodness you’re okay. Honestly, don’t make us worry so much…”

“I’m so glad, really…”

Licht, who had finally let go of my cheeks, said this with a relieved expression, and Ronny also said that, his eyebrows furrowed. Ah, you were worried about me, both of you… Realizing that, a different kind of tears welled up, tears that weren’t from the pain in my cheeks.

“I’m really sowwy… sniff.”

I shouldn’t have acted on my own. I should have talked to them first. Why did I just do what I wanted? I still haven’t fixed my bad habit of acting on my own. I deeply, deeply regretted it.

“Okay, it’s fine as long as you understand. So don’t cry.”

Licht said that with a faint smile, and Ronny took out a handkerchief and wiped away my tears.

We chuckled, and Licht and Ronny apologized for getting angry. They have nothing to apologize for, they’re both so kind.

Even though I came to the human continent, I was able to meet people who treat me like family, and I realized that I was truly, truly blessed.