My grandfather said that they had completely recovered from the mushroom disease, and that they would be discharged from the hospital after one day of observation. That’s why I’m saying goodbye to Theo and Alfie today.
Therefore, I visited the clinic to thank him for participating in the research and to tell him about the honey issue. The moment I stepped into the hospital room where they were, I felt a little sad to say goodbye even though we had only been together for a short time.
“Sorry for yesterday!!”
Even though I came to say thank you, why did Alfie suddenly apologize to me in a posture that stuck him to the floor? I was frozen in place unexpectedly. Theo, who had already changed into the knight’s clothes he wore when he came to this village, sat down on the bed next to Alfie and looked at him with a wry smile.
“Ah, Mr. Alfie?”
“You’ve done so much for me, but to curl up in a ball screaming and not being able to say thank you… I want to die.”
“No, it’s fine. Even though it was an emergency situation, I’m sorry for infecting you with the mushroom disease and creating a dark history.”
Seeing Alfie’s gloomy face, as if he really wanted to die, I hurriedly offered words of comfort. It was necessary in order for him not to become a monster, but I feel sorry for him since I saw him tied up naked and hugging a log. I never thought it would turn out like that.
“No, I heard from Theo that if you hadn’t infected me with the mushroom, I would have died and turned into a monster. It’s thanks to Miss Amelia that I didn’t end up in that situation and that I’m still alive. I really thank you.”
“I wish you would have said that.”
“Yes. I’m really glad I didn’t turn into a monster and end up taking someone’s life.”
Like Theo, Alfie seems to be happier that he didn’t have to take another person’s life than that his own life was saved. Although they are not very similar in size or personality, they probably get along because they are both kind-hearted.
“Miss Amelia is a lifesaver. I will definitely repay this kindness.”
“Um. We’re both mutual, so there’s no need to take it so seriously.”
“No. I’ll definitely come back to return this favor.”
“Theo has given me enough back. Any more is too much!!”
Theo, who had been just watching Alfie’s apology until now, also joined in the conversation. But what more does Theo have in mind?
If this continues, I will be the one who has to pay.
“Theo, you and Miss Amelia have become very close.”
Alfie looks at Theo in surprise. Alfie has always been a mushroom, so he may find it sudden that Theo and I are getting along so well.
“Theo helped me with a lot of things while he was staying here, like collecting materials.”
“Um. If Theo doesn’t use honorific language, then I don’t need it any more. It’s not often that someone speaks to me in honorific language, so it makes me itchy.”
“If Mr. Alfie doesn’t use honorific language, I won’t either.”
Is it a class issue that he doesn’t need it even more than Theo?
I also forget to use honorifics, so it’s easier if you just say it in a reserved manner.
“I understand… No, I get it. So please don’t use honorific language.”
Alfie looked hesitant, but when he saw Theo nod, he seemed to have swallowed a lot.
“Understood. I got the money for the honey and beeswax yesterday, so today I’ve prepared a magic circle, so I’ll explain how to use it.”
“Huh? Honey? Beeswax?”
“Ah. Yesterday, former royal court magician Clark gave me some.”
“Huh? …Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeehhhhh…?! R-Royal Palace Magician Clark?! What?!”
Alfie was surprised, then looked shocked and screamed with a bright red face.
“Lie?! Huh? Why? How did you know each other?! Huh?”
“Calm down. By the way, Amelia is the daughter of Clark, the former royal magician.”
“@※#$%&T?!”
A scream that cannot be put into words echoes.
You can tell from the red face that he didn’t scream because he didn’t like it. His skin is fair, so the redness stands out even more.
“We met by chance. It was Amelia who happened to help us, and because of that, Clark, the former Royal Palace Magician, shared some honey and beeswax with me yesterday.”
“That’s a lie. I can’t believe I lost my chance to see the face of the court magician Clark. Oh no, I want to die…”
“Huh? Hey? Are you okay? Don’t die. Is it that.”
“It’s not like that. I mean, it’s Royal Court Magician Clark?! Uuuuuuuwwwwaaaaaaaaaaahhh, this, my dark history. , there is a worse case besides mushroom disease.”
No. I don’t think we’ll ever see the dark history worse than people imitating mushrooms due to mushroom diseases. I’ve been here for a few years and this is the first time I’ve ever seen anyone actually plant mushrooms, basically they get rid of them before they get too bad.
“Ah. Too bad. Alfie is a follower of Clark, the former royal magician.”
“What? What is that? Did my father have such a religion?”
No, he doesn’t have it, right? My father is knowledgeable and goes beyond people’s common sense, but he is a human being, not a god.
“It’s a little better in the capital, but inside Alfie is probably screaming when he knows that the real thing is just a stone’s throw away.”
“Because if you look up to someone, it’s because they’re such a great person that they’re not even human, right?”
My father’s religion is scary.
Where did the timid Alfie from earlier go?
“Ah, Miss Amelia. Please shake my hand.”
“Stop. Just stop.”
“Ugh. Theo, it hurts. It’s cracking. It’s turning into a tomato.”
When Alfie suddenly asked to shake my hand and I was confused, Theo grabbed Alfie’s head. I guess he has a lot of grip strength. Alfie is seriously hurting. And I don’t want him to turn into a tomato.
“I’m sorry. I thought that if I shook hands with Miss Amelia, I could indirectly shake hands with Royal Palace Magician Clark, but…”
After a while, Alfie was released and apologized again.
No. It’s good, but… That’s fine though.
Alfie’s image is starting to become strange.
“If you don’t mind, would you like to meet my father one last time before heading home? I brought the magic circle with me, so if I explain this to you, it’s okay to leave for town.”
It’s too rural and there are no horse-drawn carriages to take you to the capital. There are carts that sell vegetables, but they only go to nearby areas, so it’s best to walk to the next town from the beginning, stay there for the night, and then use a horse-drawn carriage to move to the next big town and then head to the capital. It should be the shortest.
“That’s it. I can’t believe we’ll meet. But. I want to see him at least once. Theo! Please!!”
“…Don’t just look at him, just meet him normally. I’m sorry, but is it okay if I listen to the explanation of the magic circle at the store?”
“Yeah. Of course.”
I never thought that my father would be such an influential person to Alfie. Alfie is about the same age as me, so I’m sure he’s not one of my father’s former subordinates. If so, is he somehow involved?
I don’t know how he became a follower of my father, but I feel like if I talk about my father at my grandfather’s place, he’s going to be in a bad mood, so I’d better move on.
“Don’t ever be in my care again.”
Please be careful not to become a monster again.
When we left the clinic, my grandfather came outside to see us off.
It’s my grandfather’s encouragement, but if you take his words literally, it feels like my grandfather hates you. I thought about translating it if they looked uncomfortable, but neither Theo nor Alfie seemed to be offended, so I just watched in silence.
“Even if there are healthy people here, it’s a nuisance. Go quickly.”
“”Thank you for helping us.””
You’ll arrive late at the next town, so please leave early.
These words were also quite harsh without translation, but the two of them said their thanks without worrying. In response, my grandfather just snorted and waved his hand back and forth, telling them to go. He’s not honest at all.
Well, I guess this is my grandfather’s way of saying farewell without sadness.
If you can live without going to a clinic, that’s better.
After leaving my grandfather’s clinic, I took the two of them and headed back to my house.
“What should I do? My heart is pounding so hard I feel like it’s going to stop.”
“It’s too early even before you meet.”
“It’s not early. It’s actually late. Why did I waste all my time pretending to be a mushroom?”
I think it’s because Alfie’s will is weak, but it’s probably better not to say it. I’m sure Alfie doesn’t want to remember this either.
As we talked like that, my house soon came into view.
“That’s my home and my father’s workplace.”
When I explained it, Alfie was only trembling without words. When I looked at Theo to see what I should do, he shook his head.
As long as he doesn’t pass out, that’s fine with me too.
“Dad I’m home.”
“Welcome back. Huh? Theo and the others came too, didn’t they?”
“Hello.”
“E-excuse me.”
Theo entered after me, and Alfie went inside, hiding in the shadows. Alfie’s behavior is quite suspicious.
“Dad. This is Alfie, who was in the hospital with Theo, and he actually seems to be, uh, a fan of my dad.”
“Ah, ah, ah, ah. My name is Alfie Wright. That, I longed to meet Royal Palace Magician Clark. It’s an honor to meet you.”
“Thank you for that. However, I am a [former] royal magician.”
“No. Royal Court Magician Clark may indeed be the original in terms of title, but his legend is still passed down even now…”
I thought he was going to collapse from the stress, but once he started talking, his enthusiasm was amazing.
It was so amazing that I couldn’t believe that the story was about my father. Theo also smiles bitterly.
“It seems that Alfie actually wanted to become a magician. He also admired the former royal magician Clark.”
“Huh. But he’s supposed to be a priest, right?”
“Because he was an orphan, he apparently didn’t receive enough support to go to school. He said he gave up because he didn’t qualify for special treatment that would allow him to attend school for free.”
“Ah.”
Going to school costs money.
So if you’re an orphan, you have no choice but to aim for special treatment, but one of the conditions for special treatment in the magic department is that you have four or more attributes. This condition cannot be overcome by effort alone. Whether or not a magician’s skills become high requires effort, and having many attributes does not necessarily mean that one is excellent.
But the more you have, the more advantageous it is, so if you don’t have the money, you have to give up. On the other hand, alchemists can learn similar things even if they have fewer attributes, but they cost more money to learn than magicians.
My father doesn’t seem particularly offended and is listening to Alfie’s story, so I’ll just let him talk as much as he wants.
“Then I’ll leave Alfie to my father and I’ll explain about the magic circle.”
I called Theo and spread out the magic circle on the desk.
Well this is an interesting development. I hope Alfie is able to study to become a magician somehow.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter and thank you for reading!
