I recounted the events I had experienced to the Wandering Merchant, and we exchanged information about them.
“Ah, look at the time… I really should be going now.”
Glancing at her watch, the Wandering Merchant rose from her seat and gathered her handbag.
Judging by its appearance, that handbag looked like a high-end brand. Did she earn a lot from her merchant work?
Though, in truth, neither the brand nor her income held any relevance to me.
“Leaving already? Why not stay a little longer?”
Despite the Wandering Merchant’s readiness to depart, I still wished to continue our conversation. I still required more information.
I had so many questions: tales of the beings that appeared in my dreams, or what if this game had manifested as a real-world RPG?
“I wish I could, but I have my own duties, you see? Thank you for the tea.”
“Oh, really? Right, a merchant’s work must be busy.”
“I also need to procure items to sell in the next village I visit. Anyway, today was enjoyable.”
“I had a good time too. Let’s talk again soon.”
Still, I wasn’t so ill-mannered as to detain someone who claimed to be busy.
“Oh, by the way, how is the Dragon Lady doing?”
“The Dragon Lady? She should still be hatching, I believe?”
The Dragon Lady’s summoning stone, which I had received from the Wandering Merchant, required a considerable amount of time to hatch.
“There should only be about four days left, right?”
“…Summoner, how could you possibly get the full week-long duration…?”
“Huh? Isn’t its hatching time fixed?”
“The Dragon Lady’s hatching time is random. The shortest duration is three days, and the longest is seven days; it’s decided somewhere between three and seven days.”
Normally, the hatching time for a summoning stone is fixed.
However, the Dragon Lady’s hatching time was not fixed at all. To make matters worse, I had been assigned the longest possible duration: a full week.
“…I suppose I’ll have to use a Universal Scroll.”
“Summoner?! Calm down! You know it’s inefficient to use a Universal Scroll for time reduction in this game!”
As I gathered my Universal Scroll and moved towards the incubator, the Wandering Merchant began to restrain me.
I know! I’m well aware! I know that using a Universal Scroll on a hatching summoning stone is a waste!
But a whole week! Seven days! One hundred and sixty-eight hours! That’s just too much!
The struggle that ensued, with me attempting to leave with the Universal Scroll and the Wandering Merchant blocking my path, lasted for ten minutes before ultimately concluding with my capitulation.
“Whew, are you calmer now?”
“Yes…”
Yes, in this game, time resolves everything. I mustn’t forget that.
“It’s too much to hear that the longest duration is a week and then be told to just wait for it… *sniffle*…”
“…How cute.”
“Huh? What did you say?”
“Oh, it was nothing at all~?”
She seemed to have said something to me, though it hardly sounded significant.
“Well then, I’ll really be going now.”
“Okay… Goodbye…”
Once the Wandering Merchant left, I would secretly use a Universal Scroll to shorten the time…
“Oh, if I see the Dragon Lady when I return next time, a lecture might not be the end of it, you know?”
“…I’ll keep that in mind.”
…or so I planned, but as if she’d read my mind, she warned me not to use a Universal Scroll before departing.
The Wandering Merchant… truly a terrifying woman.
“Haa… Fine… I’ll just read the Mikaela Guidebook…”
Well, the recipe was obviously Angel + Angel.
Even though it felt unnecessary to read, the fact that a guidebook was required for combination was truly malicious, wouldn’t you agree?
“…It wasn’t a combination of Angel and Angel after all?”
No, it was indeed formed by combining two Angel attributes.
To be precise, it emerged from combining Cupid, a basic Angel attribute, with Akcheon (TL Note: A compound attribute of both Angel and Demon, often referred to as ‘Devil-Angel’ or ‘Fallen Angel’), which possesses both Angel and Demon attributes.
Ah, Akcheon is its official designation. It’s said to have received that name because it’s a hybrid of demon and angel.
While I’m in no position to criticize, the official naming sense isn’t particularly great either.
Regardless, with such a name, combined with its incredibly beautiful illustration and summon model, it’s one of those summoned beings that has inspired countless fan arts.
This isn’t really important.
The truly important detail is that I don’t have Akcheon yet.
I’ve obtained the Mikaela Guidebook! So why can’t I use it?!
Wandering Merchant! Next time, please bring me the Akcheon combination recipe!
Let’s make Mikaela!
“Haa, that’s enough… Today, I don’t feel like working; I’ll just rest.”
If the kids saw me working while unwell, they would undoubtedly worry about me overexerting myself and then lock me up.
‘Ugh, I must avoid being confined…’
As I entertained such thoughts, a voice echoed in my mind.
I wondered how I could be so certain I’d be imprisoned, but a glance at the children’s eyes these days made it undeniable. Their gazes were so intense that if I were to collapse, they’d surely drag me straight to their homes and confine me.
If I ever tried to escape, they’d probably hunt me down to the ends of the earth as a group and capture me.
Well, I had no intention of escaping at all. What reason would I even have to run?
Unless a reason to escape arose, I wouldn’t run.
…Or so I once thought.
“Summoner! Eat this and get well!”
That was until Cat-Dog tried to feed me a blade of grass, claiming it was medicine.
One might think it’s just grass, something easily eaten to appease her, but the ‘grass’ Cat-Dog offered me was a deadly poisonous herb, capable of granting a one-on-one consultation with the Grim Reaper upon consumption.
Fortunately, I realized it was a poisonous herb the moment I was about to put it in my mouth after accepting it.
“Summoner…? Why aren’t you eating…? Ah! You want me to feed you, don’t you?”
“Huh? Cat-Dog?! W-wait a minute!”
Perplexed by my inaction, Cat-Dog soon seemed to conclude that I wanted her to feed me, taking the poisonous herb and attempting to force it into my mouth herself.
Her action sent shivers down my spine, and I immediately began to flee.
If Cat-Dog caught me, it would be a direct interview with the Grim Reaper. I had to run for my life.
“Summoner! Is this a running race?! How fun!”
…Was this what they called pure evil? I understood her desire to help, but I wished she also understood that her methods were gravely mistaken.
“Cat-Dog! That’s a poisonous herb! You’ll die if you eat it!”
“…I’ll die if I eat this?”
As soon as I informed her of the truth, the sound of her chasing footsteps ceased.
Turning around, I saw Cat-Dog, not pursuing me, but sniffling.
“C-Cat-Dog…?!
“Sniff, Summoner… I, *hic*, I did something… I did something wrong… You mustn’t die… *sob*…”
And shortly after…
“Waaah!”
“Cat-Dog?! Don’t cry! Stop! Stop!”
She burst into tears, weeping like a child.
…No, she *was* a child. Cat-Dog had only recently transformed into a human, so she was still just a little girl.
“There, there, Cat-Dog, be a good girl, okay? Let’s stop crying. Want some candy?”
“Hmph! Hmph!”
“Ugh… What should I do…”
Cat-Dog wouldn’t stop crying. What could I possibly do…?
“Ah, Cat-Dog, do you want some Churu? Here’s some Churu, okay?”
“Sniff… Churu…?”
“Eat this, and then stop crying. Understood?”
“But… *sniff*… I did something bad to Summoner…”
“I’m fine, really. So let’s stop crying now, okay?”
“…Yes, Cat-Dog will stop now… *sniff*…”
Fortunately, it seemed to have been resolved well.
By the way, Cat-Dog really was a pure-hearted child.
Perhaps she had simply found an herb she’d seen in a book, believing it to be medicinal and intending to help me. It just happened to be poisonous instead.
There was indeed a medicinal herb that bore a striking resemblance to the poisonous one Cat-Dog had brought. The distinction between the two lay in whether their leaves were pointed or not; the pointed leaves indicated the poisonous variety.
However, the pointed parts of this particular poisonous herb’s leaves were barely noticeable, making them appear almost identical to the medicinal herb’s leaves. It was highly likely Cat-Dog had been confused.
How did I know, you ask? I had a keen interest in herbs like these and could distinguish them.
I was even called an herb expert by those in the field, if you can believe it.
If even I could be confused, there was no way Cat-Dog could have told the difference.
“Then I’ll dispose of this, so why don’t you go home and play, Cat-Dog?”
“Summoner…? How will you dispose of it…?”
“Huh? That… well… how, indeed…?”
I had only focused on quickly disposing of the poisonous herb, without considering *how* to do so.
“Hmm… Ah, should I just burn it completely? If I ask Phoenix, there won’t even be ashes left, right?”
“Wow, great!”
So, I sought out Phoenix and made my request.
“What? You want me to burn this? Are you crazy?”
I was rejected with a single word: “Are you crazy?”
“No, but this is a poisonous herb…”
“That’s right. A poisonous herb that must be destroyed to prevent its spread if found.”
“Exactly, so I’m telling you to burn it—”
“Burning this would actually have an adverse effect. Toxic substances would simply float through the air.”
“…I didn’t know that either.”
“Hah, I’ll take care of this separately. I know an expert who handles things like this.”
An expert? Who could that be?
“An acquaintance I made long ago works with disposing of such poisonous herbs. I think I can ask him.”
“…I have no idea who you’re talking about.”
“Summoner probably wouldn’t know him. He’s somewhat of a hikikomori (TL Note: A Japanese term referring to reclusive individuals who withdraw from society).”
“Really? Could I meet him with you sometime?”
“What? Meet him? Are you sure you’d be okay?”
“Why? As a guardian, I’m just going to see if he’s a strange person, aren’t I?”
“Hmm… Summoner, to be honest, I’d rather you didn’t go.”
Seeing that she didn’t want me to meet this ‘acquaintance,’ there was undoubtedly some ulterior motive at play.
“He’s a pervert who pounces on any human he sees… I suppose you could say… If you’re not careful, the Summoner’s first time could be with that guy—”
“Ah, I generally understand what kind of person you mean. But Cat-Dog is here, so let’s choose our words carefully, shall we?”
“Ah, that’s right, isn’t it? That would have been a disaster… Haha…”
I didn’t know exactly what it was, but it seemed there were some things Cat-Dog shouldn’t hear, so I intervened.
Fortunately, Cat-Dog didn’t seem to understand, as she simply continued to slurp her Churu beside us.
