「Please smooth things over……」
「Yeah……」
After saying something strange again at the lumber shop, I asked Kirk-ojisan to clean things up once more.
This is bad…… I’m already a suspicious masked guy, and now I’m just making myself even more suspicious…….
「Well, I know both the old man at the church and the lumber shop owner, so I’ll explain it properly」
「Sorry, I appreciate the trouble」
「It’s fine」
Honestly, I’ve been relying on Kirk-ojisan a lot. I’ll have to repay him properly later.
「So, how was it really? You wanted to see the wood in the human world, right?」
「Ah, yeah……」
I took a good look at the wood in the shop and examined it carefully……
「――This might be a bit of a harsh opinion, but is that okay?」
「Huh?」
「To be honest, I think the quality of wood in our Meiyu Village is better」
「Oh, really?」
「Yes. My apologies, Kirk-ojisan, but that is my conclusion」
「What’s with that way of speaking……? Well, I don’t really mind……」
This might have been a bit of a disappointing result for Kirk-ojisan, who lives in Kirk Village.
But as a woodworking elf, I can’t lie. I judged that Fleur Workshop surpasses the Kirk lumber shop.
「It can’t be helped. We live in the elf forest. There’s no way we’d lose when it comes to wood」
「I see. When you put it that way, that’s true. There’s no way we’d lose」
「So, sorry, Kirk-ojisan」
「My apologies, Kirk-ojisan」
「Yeah…… I don’t really mind, but hearing you apologize like that somehow makes me feel a bit frustrated……」
Jisrare-san and I ended up apologizing together――though, come to think of it, it didn’t really feel like an apology. It was more like we were showing off. A wood flex.
「That said, the wood we bought isn’t bad, so I’ll make proper use of it」
「Yeah, well, that’s good then」
Overall, I think the wood from the elf world is better, but the human world’s wood wasn’t bad either.
I chose some of the better pieces, so they should be perfectly usable.
「Alright, let’s move on to the next place」
「Next is food」
「Yeah. Let’s check a few places. You want things that last, right?」
「Yes, please」
Now then, what is food from the human world like?
Is it better than what we have in the elf world, or worse?
……Maybe I’ll get a chance to flex again here?
◇
We bought bread.
「This is good」
「Oh, that’s good to hear」
After being shown around several food shops, we were brought to a bakery last, so we bought some bread.
We bought bread that keeps well, but also some that could be eaten right away.
Holding my canteen filled with Jisrare water, I quietly chew on the bread. It’s quite tasty.
「How is it? Is it any different from the elf world?」
「……Hmm」
Kirk-ojisan asks while glancing at me.
Maybe he’s actually still bothered by losing the wood comparison…….
「The bread itself doesn’t feel that different. It’s good」
「I see」
It’s simply good. Delicious bread. No chance to flex here.
「Anything about it that stands out to you?」
「Something that stands out? If anything…… it’s a bit hard to eat because of the mask」
「That’s not something I can do anything about……」
「Well, you asked……」
I just answered honestly about what stood out while eating…….
But yeah, that has nothing to do with the bread itself, so there’s no point telling Kirk-ojisan.
「Alright, so we’ve been to the church and the lumber shop, and we’ve secured food」
「Thanks to you, Kirk-ojisan. Thank you very much」
「It’s nothing. Now then, what else was it? I feel like you mentioned something else」
「Something else?」
「I remember you asking for something a bit unrealistic」
「Um……? Ah, the restaurant, the inn, and the souvenir shop?」
Come to think of it, I did make that request at the start.
I at least told them what I was hoping for, but it turns out none of the shops had it.
「Well, we were able to buy food like this, so you could say the restaurant problem is more or less solved, right?」
「Is it?」
「It is indeed. Thank you very much」
We can eat without any trouble, so I guess that counts as a clear.
In that case, all that’s left are the inn and a souvenir shop…
「What should we do about a place to stay? What do you think, Jisrare-san?」
「Shall we set up a tent?」
「I see…」
Even though we finally made it to a village, it looks like we’re camping in a tent after all…
Well, they did say there isn’t any inn in this village, so it can’t be helped.
Then let’s find an empty spot and put up the tent.
…Though I am a little worried we might get reported.
「…Hey, if that’s the case, how about staying at my place?」
「At your house, Kirk-ojisan?」
「It’s not the 『well-equipped inn』 that Alec was talking about, and all I can offer is an empty room, but it’s better than a tent, right?」
「I see, I see」
「So, what do you say? Of course, only if you two are okay with it」
Kirk-ojisan made that suggestion.
What should we do? For now, I look at Jisrare-san, asking for her decision,
「Yeah. If it’s not a bother, I’d like to stay」
「Yeah, I don’t mind. You’ll both be in the same room, right?」
「That’s fine. Thank you」
And just like that, it was decided that we would be staying at Kirk-ojisan’s house tonight.
It’s decided. I’m going to be staying in the same room as Jisrare-san!
…Well, yeah. Even while we were living in a tent, we were in the same space every day.
But sharing a normal room somehow feels different. It might make my heart race a little.
「Alright, that just leaves the souvenir shop」
It seems Kirk-ojisan intends to grant all of my wishes.
I said some of it on a whim without much thought, so I feel a bit guilty.
「That said, now that I think about it, there’s no point in buying souvenirs right now. I won’t be going back home for quite a while」
「Hm, is that so? How long are you planning to travel?」
「I plan to travel for about two years. So even if I buy souvenirs in this village, it’ll be two years from now」
I’ll be coming back to this village anyway, so there’s no need to carry them around for two years. I can just buy them when I return home.
「I see, two years, huh」
「I’ll make sure to buy something then」
「…Well, to begin with, this village doesn’t really have anything suitable as souvenirs」
「Hmm… If anything, I feel like the bread we bought earlier would be fine」
「Bread?」
If it’s the kind that keeps well, it’ll easily last until we get back to Meiyu Village. I could just make that the souvenir.
「But bread isn’t that different, right?」
「That’s fine. It’s still bread from the human world. If I call it bread from Kirk Village in the human world, Kirk bread, it should feel special enough」
「Is that how it works…?」
「That’s how it works」
My childhood friends have never left the elf world, and Laudette-san said the same. For people like them, even ordinary bread would at least make for a good conversation piece.
We could all nibble on Kirk bread together and say things like 『It’s not that different』. That alone would be fun enough.
That’s what I thought, but… I still kind of want a proper souvenir too.
If possible, something like a pennant.
It would’ve been nice if they had things like a Kirk Village pennant or a Kirk Village keychain.
I wanted to give something like that to Jered-kun…
…At this point, maybe I should just ask someone in this village to make one.
next chapter: Kirk-ojisan’s house
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