The night had grown deep.
Outside the tavern, the Magic Stone lamps cast a dim amber glow over the streets. The occasional shout of a drunk drifted past, swallowed almost imdiately by the wind.
Inside [The Benevolent Mistress], the roar that had threatened to lift the roof clean off had finally ebbed.
The hall, once packed to bursting, had emptied out by more than half. The red-faced adventurers who'd been bellowing loud enough to rattle the rafters had mostly staggered out in twos and threes, arms slung over each other's shoulders, vanishing into the cool Orario night.
The floor was littered with flattened cigarette butts, puddles of spilled ale, and a chicken bone or two of uncertain ownership.
What remained were mostly the regulars — the unhurried sort, still lazily swirling their cups and savoring the tail end of the evening.
For once, [The Benevolent Mistress] — a place that never seed to catch its breath — had earned a rare mont of quiet.
"Phew——"
"Finally get to take a breather, nya."
Anya dropped into a chair and flopped face-first onto the freshly cleared table beside her, all dignity abandoned.
That long cat tail of hers hung limp over the edge of the seat, swaying only occasionally with the faintest show of life.
"I'm dead tired, nya.... Why were there so many people today, nya...."
Beside her, Lunor was bent at the waist, arms straining as she stacked several heavy oak barrels on top of one another.
Thud.
The barrels settled solidly onto the corner stack.
Lunor straightened up, dusted off her hands, and wiped the sweat from her brow.
Chloe, anwhile, was spinning a serving tray in her hand like a circus act, the round wooden disc whirring at her fingertips.
Those sharp green eyes swept a slow circuit around the hall.
Then stopped.
Locked, with perfect precision, on the long table in the corner that was still buzzing with life.
That was Hair's table.
Most of the food had been demolished with the thoroughness of a natural disaster, leaving behind only a towering mountain of bones and a row of empty plates.
But the energy there hadn't dimd in the slightest.
In particular, the little orange-haired girl — Aihara Enju.
She was cradling a glass of juice nearly as wide as her face, the cup brimming with orange liquid, ice cubes clinking cheerfully against the sides.
"Burp."
A thoroughly satisfied belch.
Aihara Enju patted her round little belly with a look of absolute bliss.
"Oh my, oh my."
"These new ones can really eat, nya."
Anya lifted her head off the table, rested her chin on the surface instead, and shot a glance at the mountain of plates across the room.
"That little one especially."
"Is her stomach a bottomless pit, nya? She ate two whole chickens.... That's more than Anya eats!"
"That's beside the point, you idiot."
Chloe shot Anya an exasperated look, tucked the tray under her arm, leaned forward slightly, and dropped her voice low — jerking her chin toward the other end of the hall.
Anya blinked, then followed Chloe's gaze.
There.
At the mouth of the corridor connecting the kitchen to the main hall.
A green-clad figure was standing in the shadows.
Right now.
Ryu was clutching an empty tray tightly to her chest, pacing back and forth.
Two steps forward. Stop. Step back. Two steps forward again.
And all the while, her gaze kept drifting — furtive, almost guilty — toward the black-haired deity seated at the head of the table.
But every ti her eyes grazed that direction, she'd yank them back imdiately, staring blankly at the wood grain of the floor.
That look of soone desperate to approach yet terrified to take the final step.
Where had even a trace of the Swift-Wind's fierce edge gone?
"She really does look pitiful, doesn't she."
Chloe's lips curled into a knowing, faintly amused smile as she shook her head.
"Our little Elf miss has gone and fallen in deep, hasn't she."
"Fallen in? Fallen into what, nya? The floor?"
Anya stared at her blankly.
Chloe rolled her eyes and didn't bother explaining.
Ryu, for her part, was entirely unaware of her three friends' muttered comntary. She was locked in a full-blown internal battle.
"What do I do...."
"Should I go over there now?"
"But...."
Ryu's fingers dug into the rim of the tray.
Her gaze crept over to Hair again, just for a mont.
The deity was turned slightly sideways, listening to sothing the little girl nad Enju was saying, his expression warm and gentle. Every now and then he reached over and ruffled the child's hair.
That kind of mont.
She couldn't bring herself to interrupt it.
"Would going over right now be too presumptuous?"
"Kami-sama is enjoying a precious al together with his Familia's children."
"And besides...."
Ryu bit her lip.
The mont she let her mind drift back to that night.
That morning....
The instant the Magic Stone stove exploded.
Kami-sama hadn't scolded her — he'd gently wiped the soot from her face instead.
That sensation.
The faint current that had traced across her skin from his fingertips.
Even now, it seed to linger on her cheek, and every ti it resurfaced in her mory, her heartbeat spiked.
"No! I need to stop letting my mind wander!"
Ryu gave her head a sharp shake and forcibly ejected the image from her thoughts.
"What I need to do is apologize!"
"To clear up that misunderstanding from that night!"
"And also.... also the matter concerning Syr."
The thought of Syr.
Ryu's gaze hardened in an instant.
As Syr's closest friend, she couldn't just stand by and do nothing.
"I have to ask him — directly!"
"Whether it's for Syr's sake or for the doubt I can't put to rest in my own heart."
Ryu drew in a deep breath. The delicately pointed tips of her ears, which had been trembling faintly, gradually rose back upright.
She steadied her breathing. She worked to bring her racing, hamring heart back under control.
Then.
She took the first step.
"Hm?"
As if sensing her approach, Hair turned his head — and his gaze landed squarely on Ryu.
Their eyes t.
In that instant.
Ryu felt her mind go completely, perfectly blank.
All the careful phrasing she had rehearsed.
In that mont, every last word of it jamd in her throat and refused to co out.
"Um...."
"Ka— Kami-sama...."
Ryu's voice ca out strained.
She held the tray tightly against her chest.
"Is sothing the matter, Miss Elf?"
Hair looked at the clearly overwheld Elf girl in front of him — a flicker of puzzlent passed through his eyes, softening almost imdiately into a gentle smile.
No irritation at being interrupted.
That easy, unhurried warmth only made Ryu want to sink through the floor with embarrassnt.
"Um...."
"If you wouldn't mind...."
"Could you... could you co outside for a mont?"
Ryu summoned every ounce of courage she had, and finally got the words out.
The voice was small enough to pass for a mosquito's hum — but in the hall that had grown comparatively quiet, it reached Hair's ears with perfect clarity.
In fact.
Not just Hair.
Every person at the table froze at the sa instant.
They turned, as one, and fixed their gaze on Ryu.
Hestia in particular.
Those blue eyes went perfectly round in an instant.
"!!!"
That look alone was enough.
Ryu's cheeks, already scarlet, instantly turned the color of a freshly boiled prawn — the red spreading all the way down to the base of her neck.
"N-No, it's not — !"
"It's absolutely not anything like that!"
Ryu flailed her hands in a panic, tripping over her own words, her voice pitching upward with every syllable.
The sheer mortification of it — she would have happily dissolved straight through the floorboards if only the floor would cooperate.
Watching Ryu on the verge of literally steaming, Hair gave an amused, helpless little laugh.
This Elf really was sothing else.
Such fearso strength, paired with a personality this pure-hearted and prone to flushing at the drop of a hat.
"Alright then."
"It's gotten a bit stuffy in here anyway. A bit of fresh air sounds good."
"Co along, Miss Elf."
With that, Hair rose from his seat, stepped away from the table, and headed for the tavern's front door.
Seeing him move, Ryu imdiately dropped her head and hurried after him.
Outside the tavern.
Orario at night, wrapped in a gentle, drifting breeze.
The Magic Stone lamps lining both sides of the street cast a soft light, stretching the shadows of the two figures out long behind them.
The air outside was deliciously cool.
Hair ca to a stop beneath a large tree near the entrance, turned around, and looked at Ryu — who had been following a step behind with her head bowed, not daring to look up.
She had been like this since last night... a puppet strung on tears.
"Alright."
"There's no one else out here."
"Whatever's on your mind, Miss Elf — just say it."
Hair leaned back against the tree trunk, his voice easy and unhurried.
Hearing those words.
Ryu's body gave a faint tremor.
She slowly raised her head.
Those sky-blue eyes reflected Hair's silhouette, and above him, the brilliant spread of stars overhead.
"Um...."
"I wanted to ask...."
"Kami-sama, when do you have so free ti over the next few days?"
Ryu's fingers twisted together, betraying her nerves.
"Free ti?"
Hair raised an eyebrow, faintly surprised.
"Yes."
At that, Ryu's voice dropped even lower, a flush rising in her cheeks.
"I... I wanted to...."
"Wanted to arrange a ti... to formally apologize to you."
"Apologize?"
Hair blinked.
"Is it about this morning? The stove? I already said not to worry about that—"
"No! It's not just that!"
"It's for... for the attack that night."
"And... and to apologize for my own recklessness."
"I want... I want to properly explain to Kami-sama what that misunderstanding was actually about."
"After all...."
"After all... after spending this ti together, I've co to feel that Kami-sama is a good person."
Ryu stumbled over her words as she spoke, her head dropping lower and lower, until at the end she had nearly buried her face in her own chest.
Hair watched her quietly.
Watched this Elf girl — so formidably powerful, and yet tied in knots over a simple misunderstanding and a lingering sense of guilt.
He found it quietly, genuinely funny.
——And also, unexpectedly moving.
Because, honestly.
In this labyrinth city.
Soone as straightforward and earnest as Ryu — soone this stubbornly sincere — was a rare, rare thing.
"I see...."
Hair rubbed his chin and thought for a mont.
"An apology, really, isn't necessary at all."
"But...."
Looking at Ryu's face — the face of soone who would clearly agonize over this forever if he didn't agree.
Hair knew that if he turned her down, this hopelessly single-minded Elf would genuinely carry it with her indefinitely.
Might even let it affect her going forward.
And that was the last thing he wanted.
After all.
He genuinely believed in this Elf's potential.
"If Miss Elf insists."
"Very well."
"Would the day after tomorrow afternoon work?"
"The Denatus is only a few days away, and I'll need to deal with so tedious preparations beforehand. These next few days are really the only window I have."
Hearing Hair agree.
Ryu's head snapped up, her eyes lighting up all at once — like soone who had just caught sight of a lifeline.
"Really?!"
"Thank goodness!"
"Then... as for the location...."
Ryu hesitated.
"Let's not make it the Familia manor."
Hair considered for a mont.
"Hestia and the others are there, after all. It wouldn't really lend itself to a proper conversation."
"Let's find a café sowhere outside."
"How about the Vishen Café? I rember it being a rather nice, quiet spot."
"And it's run by Elves."
"In that kind of environnt."
"I think Miss Elf might feel a bit more at ease."
Hair glanced at Ryu, the corner of his mouth lifting in a small smile.
At those words.
Ryu blinked, montarily caught off guard.
Because.
The Vishen Café.
Of course she knew that place.
It was one of the rare spots in the rowdy sprawl of Orario that managed to hold on to a quiet of its own.
And as Hair had said.
The owner and staff were all Elves — especially warm toward their own kind.
That kind of thoughtfulness.
The deliberate choice of a place that would spare her any awkwardness or pressure.
A quiet warmth stirred in Ryu's chest.
This Kami-sama....
He really is remarkably considerate.
"Yes! Understood!"
"The Vishen Café! The day after tomorrow, afternoon!"
Ryu gave a firm, emphatic nod, her eyes full of resolve.
This ti.
This misunderstanding would be put to rest — for good.
"Then it's settled."
Hair smiled faintly and said nothing more.
He turned, pushed open the tavern door, and went back inside.
Leaving Ryu alone beneath the tree, standing there in a bit of a daze.
Moonlight spilled across her face.
The night breeze stirred past.
Lifting her short, pale green hair.
Back inside the tavern.
Hair had barely settled back into his seat when Hestia was already right there beside him.
"Hair, Hair!"
"What did that Elf waitress want with you?"
"All mysterious like that!"
"Did she confess to you?! I knew it!"
"I said so, didn't I! I always knew that Elf was up to no good!"
"Only been a waitress here for a few days and already trying to seduce the head deity!"
"Absolutely shaless!"
Hestia puffed her cheeks and brandished the half-eaten drumstick still in her hand, the picture of righteous indignation.
Beside her, Amou Kirukiru said nothing.
But those dark eyes of hers were fixed squarely on Hair, clearly waiting for his answer all the sa.
Even Aihara Enju — who had been completely absorbed in eating up to this very mont — had paused, blinking her big curious eyes at him.
"What are you thinking."
Hair gave Hestia a mildly amused tap on the head.
"She just needed to sort out a small misunderstanding. That's all."
"Really?"
Hestia rubbed her forehead and peered at Hair suspiciously.
"Of course."
Hair spread his hands.
He didn't linger on the subject.
His gaze drifted across the others at the table.
And then — it paused.
Landing on Inaba Tsukuyo.
A thought struck him.
Just now, what Ryu had said outside — even through a door, even at this distance.
For soone with hearing as preternaturally sharp as Inaba Tsukuyo's.
She had almost certainly caught every single word.
That realization brought a wry look to Hair's face.
It seed.
This welco banquet had yielded far more than full stomachs.
The night grew later still.
The tavern's crowd continued to thin.
Finally.
With the last lingering patron weaving his unsteady way out the door.
The boisterous feast drew to its close.
"Alright."
"Has everyone had their fill?"
Hair rose to his feet and swept a look around at the contentedly stuffed faces before him.
"Yes! Kami-sama!"
Aihara Enju was the first to leap up, patting her round little belly with a grin of pure satisfaction.
"I... had enough too."
Hiruko Kohina followed with a small nod.
"Good."
"Then let's head ho."
"Starting tomorrow."
"The real adventure begins."
Hair smiled.
"Yes!"
The whole group answered back in one voice.
Back in the kitchen of the tavern.
Ryu was still off in her own world.
Even after washing her face several tis with cold water, her cheeks still felt warm to the touch.
"Hey, hey, hey."
"Ryu, are you alright, nya?"
Anya sidled over, poked Ryu's shoulder with a finger, and peered at her with naked curiosity.
"Why's your face so red, nya?"
"Did that deity do sothing embarrassing to you, nya?"
"He did not — !"
"Stop making things up!"
"I... I was just...."
"Just what, nya?"
Chloe had drifted over too, wearing that expression of hers — the one that said she already knew exactly what was going on.
"'A café run by Elves — that way Miss Elf should feel more at ease,' nya~"
At those words.
Ryu's whole body went rigid.
Then she snapped her head toward Chloe, eyes wide, utterly disbelieving.
"You.... How do you know that?!"
"Heheh."
"Don't forget, nya."
Chloe's grin turned sly as she tapped her own ear.
"These ears of mine."
"Are very good, nya."
"A little whispered conversation at this range?"
"Trying to keep it from these ears isn't quite so easy, nya."
With that, Chloe planted both hands on her hips, looking thoroughly pleased with herself.
Ryu, for her part, felt her vision go dark at the edges.
It was over.
She'd heard everything.
The sha of being called out like this, in front of everyone — it was a hundred thousand tis worse than the day Hair had defeated her in a fight.
"Chloe!"
"I'll kill you!"
"Waaah! Help , nya!"
"Mama Mia! Ryu's trying to kill Chloe to silence her, nya!"
____
👻🔥Seek: Walnut-chan🔥👻
🔥 New history: JJK: Naoya Zenin Reborn as a Woman
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