Chapter 12
Yubel was at a complete loss.
“Um, uh, Lord Hadrien?”
“Hmm, that sounds lovely. I’m quite pleased to hear you call me that. If you don’t mind, could you drop the ‘Lord’...? That would make me happier than anything.”
Hadrien had said he wanted Se-on and Yubel to treat him as their teacher, and asked them to call him casually.
“All right... Hadrien.”
“Mm. Thank you for indulging my unreasonable request.”
If you think it’s unreasonable, then don’t do it!
And now he wanted us to give him father-daughter relationship counseling.
It’s not like I had any professional knowledge. I was just an ordinary college student.
But in Hadrien’s eyes, the Hero’s party were experts at building relationships—the first people to get close to Riella.
Riella had always been shunned by the other elves, who thought she was childish and strange for talking to plants, so she had trouble forming deep relationships.
As Riella’s father, he wanted to learn their secret since they’d managed to befriend her.
But Yubel couldn’t understand his true feelings.
No matter how Yubel thought about it, Yubel hadn’t tried to get close to Riella; Riella was the one who’d approached and befriended Yubel.
“You really want to apologize to Riella that badly? To be honest, I don’t really know either.”
“That’s right. I left a deep wound in Riella’s heart. At this rate, I won’t even be able to properly convey my apologies. So I’m earnestly asking you, since you’re close to Riella.”
Hadrien bowed his head once more.
This is driving me crazy...
“First, please raise your head. And tell us a bit about you and Riella. How can we help if we don’t know anything?”
Hadrien’s expression brightened.
“Hmm, then let’s move somewhere else.”
Se-on and Yubel followed Hadrien to the Elder’s chamber and listened to his story for quite a while.
Thanks to that, they learned some new things about Riella.
First, Riella was adopted.
Hadrien, who had been a member of the previous Hero’s party, defeated the Demon King and returned to Edellia, where he found Riella and took her in.
And that he used to be close to Riella.
According to Hadrien, Riella had played lots of pranks as a child, like biting his hand.
A very affectionate way of showing love, according to him.
And that she’d undergone grueling training from a young age.
He’d taken Riella to the training grounds whenever he had time and taught her archery and spirit magic so she could handle dangerous situations on her own.
He said he’d scolded her a lot because she could only use the fire spirit.
“Hmm, anyway, that’s about it. Remembering Riella as a child makes me miss those days.”
Wait, is that right?
Kids should be playing. Why were you making her train...?
Well, I guess that might be normal in this world.
Let’s not overthink it.
“But why did you stop her from calling you Dad?”
Se-on asked, looking like he didn’t understand.
Yeah, it’s not like you’re Hong Gildong or anything.
“I’ve never done anything worthy of being called Riella’s father. That title is far too grand for me.”
Good grief.
Whatever. Forget it.
After hearing the whole story, Yubel felt more confident!
Somehow, it seemed more likely that they could figure out how to get close to Riella than that clueless, exasperating Hadrien could.
And so began Operation ‘Heart-Pounding! Let’s Get Closer to Riella!’
It was a simple but effective operation: Se-on and Yubel would find ways to help Hadrien get close to Riella, and he would do whatever they said without complaint.
“Hmm... How about giving Riella a present? From what Hadrien told us, you haven’t even celebrated her birthday until now.”
“What do you mean? On her birthday, I made sure to give her especially light training—”
“Quiet.”
[Operation 1: A Gift Can Make Even an Elephant Leap.]
-Riella, I picked this flower for you.
-......
Hadrien handed Riella a dandelion he’d picked himself.
Se-on and Yubel watched from a distance.
“Ooh! Riella’s standing still! Did we already succeed?”
“Really? She doesn’t look too happy to me...”
Riella’s face was actually contorted.
Because the flowers Hadrien had picked were screaming.
‘I curse you…….’‘We’re going to die…….’‘But I still had dreams left!’
Urk.
Riella felt nauseous as the horrible memories of her childhood—when her friends picked flowers—came flooding back.
Tap-tap!
Soon, she ran off without even making eye contact.
So close.
[Gift operation. Failed.]
“Yubel, when have you wanted to get close to someone?”
“Hmm... I guess anyone who listens attentively to what I say would be nice?”
“Let’s do that right away.”
“Huh? No, wait—”
[Operation 2: The Art of Waiting.]
-......
-......
-......
-......
Riella and Hadrien sat on the stone ground without saying a word.
The elves nearby watched them.
‘Oh my, what could the Elder be doing?’ ‘Oh ho ho. Who knows? Could that be one of those challenges the young people do these days?’ ‘Ah! Then I should try it, too. I can’t become a woman who’s behind the times!’ ‘Then I’ll join in as well...’
The elves all sat down on the stone ground and began meditating.
“What are you doing?”
“Who knows...”
Unbelievable.
[Listening operation. Failed.]
“Hasn’t Hadrien been treating Riella coldly all this time? So let’s use gap moe!”
“Gap moe? What do you mean?”
“Let’s melt Riella’s heart with cuteness. Hadrien, can you act cute?”
“...I’ll try.”
[Operation 3: Cute Hadrien.]
-......
-......
-A-ba-ba. A-ba-ba. Hee-hee-hee.
-??????
Fuck.
What did I just hear?
Hadrien had suddenly regressed to infancy.
It couldn’t be helped.
The only thing Hadrien had ever found cute was Riella’s baby babbling.
Unaware of that, the Hero’s party and Riella could only be confused by Hadrien’s bizarre behavior.
“We’re doomed.”
“......”
Hadrien had just made himself a memory he’d cringe over forever.
[Cuteness operation. Failed.]
***
“I’m sorry, Hadrien...”
“No, I should be the one apologizing. Your approach might have worked in an ordinary family. This happened because I’ve been doing everything wrong until now.”
I suppose so. Being cute always works.
And yet he failed.
“Then, as a last resort, how about just honestly telling her how you feel? You have to talk things out to clear up misunderstandings.”
After hearing Yubel’s words, Hadrien stroked his chin and let out a thoughtful hum.
“You’re right. I haven’t told her what I think; I’ve simply acted on my own, and that’s why Riella came to hate me so much. Then, could you bring Riella here? I’ll go to the Elder’s chamber and wait for her.”
“Yes! We’ll bring Riella. Just wait a little.”
Hadrien nodded and headed to the Elder’s chamber.
“By the way, do you know where Riella is?”
“She was taking a walk by the lake earlier. Let’s go check.”
It was almost dinnertime.
When they went to the lake as the sun was setting, Riella was crouching there, talking to the plants.
Se-on and Yubel went over and sat down beside her.
“Riella. How was Hadrien today?”
Se-on asked Riella how she felt.
Riella only lowered her head.
“You know what? Hadrien said he’d like for you and us to go on an adventure together.”
“!!!”
When Yubel continued, Riella’s pupils dilated.
Well, I didn’t like her at first, but a party needs at least one cute girl like her.
I’ll protect her from the Hero.
“...Really?”
“Yeah! Really. For real.”
“Yubel’s right. So, would you like to go on an adventure together as part of the Hero’s party?”
When Se-on asked, Riella nodded vigorously.
“Yes! I wanna go! I want to get closer to you and Yubel, Se-on!”
Riella looked incredibly excited.
“But first, you need to talk to Hadrien.”
“...I don’t want to.”
Riella’s spirits sank again.
Still, they couldn’t stop here.
“You know Hadrien tried to get close to you again today, right?”
“Yeah...”
“Hadrien wants to talk honestly with you this time. Wouldn’t you feel better if you went and told him how you really feel? You actually like Hadrien, don’t you?”
That was what I’d felt after watching the two of them all this time.
No matter how you looked at it, they both wanted to be close, but just couldn’t manage it.
“...You’re right.”
“And you want to call him Dad, too?”
“Yeah...”
“Then that’s settled. Let’s go meet him and talk.”
As Riella listened, her eyes began to glisten.
“...Thank you, Se-on, Yubel. I’ll try talking to Dad again!”
That’s it.
This could be the turning point that lets Riella and Hadrien return to the affectionate father-daughter relationship they’d had before.
“Then, shall we get up?”
Rustle.
“?”
As soon as Se-on finished speaking, they heard a rustling sound from the bushes.
“Heehee. Well, well, aren’t you the Hero and his party? Did you enjoy the feast?”
A cat... mask?
A man wearing a cat mask and a black clown outfit sprang out.
“Oh dear, I haven’t introduced myself! I have no name... so please call me ‘Masked Cat,’ ladies and gentlemen.”
“Oh, okay.”
Masked Cat? An extra?
I’ve never heard of him.
“Oh? Oh my? Hehehe, now that I look closely, the horns and tail on this young lady here! They look quite a lot like a demon. Ah, I’m not being sarcastic. I’ve actually seen a demon before. That one was much more grotesque, though.”
What the hell, this guy.
He’s pissing me off so much.
“No, I’m not! That’s really hurtful. Boo-hoo, these are precious horns I inherited from my family! How could you say such a thing!”
Yubel covered their face with their hands and pretended to cry.
“Huh? Huh? Um, well, s-sorry?”
Masked Cat waved his hands, flustered.
That’s why you shouldn’t pick a fight.
I’m so sad. Waaaah.
“Ahem, um, may I ask why you’ve come?”
Se-on stepped between Yubel and Masked Cat.
“Parting is always painful. Sometimes you miss the person who left before you; sometimes you resent them when you think back on them, and sometimes you cry before bed as you remember them.”
“...?”
What is this?
He’s suddenly getting all sentimental and running his mouth.
“But partings can make people stronger, too. That’s why I came all this way to congratulate you. Does that answer your question, Hero?”
“Wait, what does that mean—”
“Boom.”
-KWA-BOOOOOOM——!!!!!!!!!!!
The ground shook, and an explosion rang out as if the sky had been torn apart.
The Hero’s party all looked toward where the sound had come from.
“What is...?”
Pitch-black smoke was rising from the site of the explosion.
That’s definitely...
The Elder’s chamber where Hadrien was?
Whip!
They immediately looked toward Masked Cat, but his figure had already vanished without a trace.
Fuck.
What the hell just happened?
Yubel was certain that Masked Cat, who’d been there just moments ago, was behind the explosion.
...Ah.
That was when Yubel realized.
Why the name Hadrien had never rung a bell.
Why the Elven Tribe’s sacred treasure, a special item, had never rung a bell, either.
And why Riella’s family had never appeared in the game.
You’ve got to be kidding me.
The Hero’s party ran.