by CHIROLU
Around noon, the flow of customers into the Dancing Ocelot came to a halt. That was when their primary customers, adventurers, headed out for work, so they temporarily closed the bar. During this time of day, they only accepted work involving the Akhdar’s Message Board.
“Rita, I’m going to go replenish our stock,” Kenneth called out into the shop.
Rita’s response was politer than usual. “Take care.”
Before he even had time to question it, a smile and a, “Tak care” came from Latina, who had docilely laid her picture book out on a corner of the counter.
“Children really are great, aren’t they, Rita? Does three sound about right to you?”
“Let’s just start with one before we get carried away.”
Rita thought that he really was an idiot, but the look on Rita’s face wasn’t an entirely dissatisfied one.
Latina pattered up to Kenneth when he got back from stocking. Behind her, Rita was watching with a smirk on her face.
“Welcoom bak.” Latina turned back around to look at Rita, as if asking, “Did I do it right?”
“...”
Kenneth had purchased all sorts of fruit that he didn’t usually buy when restocking, and they were soon rolling about his work station. As he rolled up his sleeves and wondered what he should make, he wore a goofy grin on his face. He had no room to talk when it came to Dale.
At any rate, Latina really was a well-mannered child.
When he brought her out a small cheese sandwich for lunch, she properly chewed as she ate, and once she was done, she took the empty plate to the sink herself. And at other times as well, she just looked through a picture book on her own, or watched Rita and Kenneth. It seemed she absolutely wouldn’t make a hindrance of herself, and was always making sure that it was alright for her to be where she was.
According to Dale, she had survived in a place where magical beasts lived, and she had to search for her own food. While the experience was far too cruel for such a young child, it could also be said that it required an incredibly strong will and a lot of luck. But regardless, he had no idea how long she had done it.
Judging by her terribly thin body, if Dale hadn’t found her, it wouldn’t have been much longer before she would’ve wasted away and ended up in the belly of some beast. Perhaps that was why she seemed to be so hypersensitive about her surroundings.
As Kenneth watched, Latina started to nod off, and she staggered towards the stairs. Even if she was heading back to her room, letting her go up into the attic on her own when she was like that would be dangerous.
Kenneth saw some wooden boxes in the corner of the pantry next to the kitchen and put them side by side. He passed by Latina, who was still tottering along, and headed for his room on the second floor. He grabbed a mat and some sheets, then spread them on top of the boxes to complete the impromptu bed for her nap.
“Latina,” he called, and gave the bed a tap to point it out to her. She was still at the bottom of the stairs, struggling to climb them while fighting off sleep. As she turned around, her eyes were already half-closed.
With a wry smile on his face, Kenneth lifted her up and tucked her in on top of the wooden boxes. She must’ve been right at her limit, as he started to hear the sound of her deeply breathing in her sleep in no time at all.
†
Latina’s eyes shot open with a snap and darted around.
“Dale?” She called out the name of the person who had taken her out of that forest.
The person who found her when she was all on her own.
The person who gave her a safe place to live and food to eat.
The person who made her remember the warmth of other people.
She called out the name of the person who, to her, was a symbol that it was alright to relax.
“Are you up, Latina?”
Hearing the voice of a man other than Dale, Latina panicked. She felt like she needed to run away this very moment, and she put all of her strength into doing so.
But it was then that she recognized the sweet scent gently wafting through the air. With a quick blink of her eyes, Latina remembered where she was.
†
The first sound out of Latina when she woke from her nap was her calling out for Dale. That’s what made Kenneth realize she was up.
Stirring a small pot, he checked on her and found her looking around like a frightened little animal on high alert. When Kenneth called her name, she only seemed to get more on edge. But rather than moving immediately, she saved her strength so she could act after she understood the situation.
Kenneth couldn’t help but admire how sharp the girl was. Compared to those hot-blooded folks who called themselves novice adventurers, her judgment was much calmer and more precise. Considering her young age, it was no surprise that there was no helping the way that she lost sight of her situation after waking up from her nap.
Kenneth took the pot off of the fire and headed towards Latina.
As the berries broke down perfectly, a thick, sweet smell drifted through the air. Just as Kenneth had planned, as soon as Latina picked up the smell, the tension drained from her body.
After hopping down from the boxes, she toddled on over to Kenneth’s side. As Latina peered into the pot held out before her, there wasn’t a hint of that sense of a small animal bristling that he felt before. The look on her face now was absolutely appropriate for a young girl her age.
Having captured Latina’s attention, Kenneth spread the freshly made jam over a thinly cut slice of bread. He wanted to slather it on, but if he did she’d ended up burning her mouth. He measured out an amount that would be plenty to provide a taste while also cooling quickly.
He handed it to Latina, and she looked up at him as if seeking approval. Timidly, she took a bite of the bread, and her expression instantly brightened.
While Latina was absorbed in eating it, the jam started to run like syrup. She licked the palm of her hand, which had stopped the flow, and then looked up at Kenneth suddenly. He was grinning rather than rebuking her, so Latina smiled right back.
For a while, Latina continued to stare without tiring at the jar Kenneth put the jam into. Kenneth truly felt the effort he had gone through to make it was worth it.
As the sun started to set, the adventurers gradually returned to town. That’s when the Dancing Ocelot became busy again.
It’s not as if all the customers who came to the Ocelot were lodgers. In fact, there were far more who came for the food and drink. In addition to the adventurers, there were also gatekeepers and town guards who were returning from work. Because it was a shop that didn’t put on airs, where you could get cheap food and drink, it was a place where intimidating bastards tended to gather.
Once it got this late, they stopped taking work involving the Akhdar’s Message Board. Rita instead shifted to working the floor, and so the couple managed to pull through the great hustle and bustle.
Latina, who was eating her dinner at a seat at the corner of the counter, had her attention stolen away by the liveliness of the shop as well. When she saw one of the customers let out a hearty laugh, the gnocchi she was carrying to her mouth fell with a plop. She didn’t even realize it. Latina started observing the customer intently, her eyes wide. Kenneth thought she looked like she had encountered some new sort of creature for the first time, but he decided not to say that aloud.
Around when Latina’s eyelids started to grow heavy, the door to the Dancing Ocelot opened.
“Oh, it’s Dale.”
Latina’s eyes shot wide open when she heard Rita say that. She hopped down from the chair and hurriedly ran to meet him.
“Latina, I’m b—” Dale tried to say, only for her to tightly hug his legs. “Latina...”
As he frowned, figuring that he had indeed made Latina feel lonely, the young girl looked up at him and said, “Welcoom bak.”
He froze halfway through bending over to pick her up.
Rita and Kenneth smirked. Unable
to hold himself back from breaking out in a smile, Dale resumed his prior action and lifted Latina up.
“I’m back, Latina. You did a great job holding down the fort.”
That made her grin grow even wider, and she was all smiles.
The regulars in the shop all knew Dale, so when they saw the doofy look on his face, they mercilessly teased him.
“Geez, Dale, that’s an awful tiny girlfriend you’ve got there.”
“Oh, shut up!” While fending off this cruel treatment, Dale took a seat, still holding Latina in his arms. Seeing Rita carrying out food, Dale asked, “Has Latina had dinner?”
“She ate a while ago. In fact, she was just getting sleepy before you came in.”
The girl in question was sitting on Dale’s lap, a satisfied and relieved-looking smile on her face. It was such a lovely sight that those looking at her felt their hearts melt.
“So, how was it? Did Latina behave herself?”
“She was almost too well-behaved. This kid is incredibly clever. She properly understands the situation she’s in and knows what sort of action she should take,” said Rita as she sloppily filled the goblet in front of Dale with wine.
As far as alcohol went, Dale only ever drank wines that had a low alcoholic content. Knowing this, Rita picked a wine for him without even asking. It was well known in the shop that it wasn’t because he couldn’t drink or didn’t like to, but because he hated being dead drunk. A regular had called him childish when he was a first-time customer, leading to the incident of “Dale easily beating a regular with one arm behind his back,” which had become a beloved drinking topic in the shop.
Latina rubbed her cheek up against Dale’s chest like a pampered kitten. Whenever their eyes met, a joyous smile popped onto her face. This may have been the most that she’d ever been pampered.
Rather than making me feel guilty, this may have actually been a bit of a good thing...
He cherished this little girl so much that he thought perhaps it wouldn’t be so bad leaving her behind, if it’d make her want to be spoiled so badly.
†
It wasn’t even a week before definitive proof that Latina was extremely clever appeared.
Latina had become able to handle everyday conversations with seemingly little difficulty. That was when Dale was assailed by a certain worry: Latina had become attached to Kenneth. Dale didn’t even try to hide the grumpy displeasure on his face as he watched Latina chase after the shopkeeper like a chick following after its parent.
Over her dress, Latina was wearing an apron that Dale didn’t recall buying; she also had on a bandana made from the same material. It was the look of a little child acting as a “helper.”
Latina was giving her all to wiping off the tables beside Kenneth as he cleaned the shop.
They... look like a father and daughter when she’s next to Kenneth like that...
Dale had been worried about him to begin with.
Kenneth’s been luring Latina in through her stomach from the very start!
More than worry, this was plain and simple jealousy.
“Cleaning, all done?”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
After confirming that Kenneth was putting away the cleaning supplies, Latina went into the kitchen, climbed up onto a stool, and washed off her dishcloth. Since she couldn’t wring it out very well with her scrawny arms, she ended up leaving it at the sink.
She then dragged along the stool, which was meant for her personal use, back to its “home base” and sat down on top of it. She held a small knife—also made for her at some point—in her tiny hands and awkwardly started peeling vegetables. Considering her pace, she was “taking up time” more than “helping,” but Kenneth wasn’t hard-hearted, so he sat down next to her and began silently peeling as well.
Though she was still clumsy, it was certainly impressive that she could do it herself after having just been taught how. But according to Kenneth, he didn’t break his firm stance and simply watched over her. This was quite a difference compared to Dale; it took everything he had just to resist the urge to get involved without even thinking about it.
“If it bugs you that much, then you’d be better off just not watching.”
“Then I’d miss out on getting to see Latina grow up,” Dale declared bluntly.
Rita, who was sorting through documents, wore a half-hearted expression on her face.
Having finished peeling, Latina apparently decided it was time for a break. She grabbed the picture books she had left in the corner of the pantry and took them to a table in the shop.
She had two books with her: the first was the one originally used to teach her words, while the second one was a significantly harder storybook.
“Dale, book, read.”
“Right.”
Because Dale had picked out the book for him to read aloud to Latina, he’d figured it would be too hard for her to read alone. But in this short time, even if it was only stutteringly, she had become able to read through it by herself. Normally she read silently, but when Dale was there she read it aloud, apparently intending for him to correct her. She also seemed happy to show the fruits of her labor as well.
Once she finished reading through to the end, Latina received Dale’s approval, then opened up the other picture book alongside a notebook. In rough, childish letters, she was diligently practicing her writing.
“She started studying this on her own, without anyone telling her to, right?”
“Yeah. When Latina asked for paper, I figured she wanted to draw a picture or something. I never imagined it was for writing practice.”
“There aren’t any kids around Latina’s age at the school they hold at the temple of Akhdar, are there?”
“Right. But she knew how to hold a pen to begin with. Kenneth had to teach her how to use a knife at first, but she was able to use a pen without asking anyone how. Maybe she was raised in a pretty good environment.”
Even though Latina was now able to talk, she still didn’t say much about herself. She only answered with the absolute minimum required. Sure enough, the corpse in the forest belonged to her father. After her horn was broken, they had left their old home together. And that place, where she had been born, was a devil village. That was all she would say.
Considering how sharp she was, it wouldn’t be odd for her to know all other sorts of things. In all likelihood, she was also aware of what her having a broken horn meant. She may have been worried that if she talked about herself in detail, she’d be driven out, like she had been from her old village. If she was willing to talk, Dale definitely wanted to know, but he had no intention of dragging it out of her.
Even though they’d only spent a short time together, he couldn’t possibly think of her as the wicked sort of person worthy of being called a criminal, which meant that the “crime” was something that had nothing to do with her character. He couldn’t say if it was political, or perhaps religious in nature, but either way, it was most definitely irrational. And that was most likely why her father chose to leave the village alongside her.
“Dale, what’s wrong?”
While he was thinking, he had apparently been making a gloomy face. At some point, Latina had tilted her head in confusion and looked up at him.
“Hmm? It’s nothing. You’ve gotten good at speaking, Latina,” Dale said while patting her head, causing her to break out in a happy smile.
“Latina is glad she can talk. She worked hard.”
“Is that so?”
Seeing her innocent smile, Dale’s expression softened as well. Dale realized that he’d become able to break out in an earnest smile as well since he started living with Latina. He’d smirked upon hearing stupid stories from Rita and Kenneth in the past, but he’d never broken out in such a calm and gentle smile before. This was a clear change brought about by Latina’s arrival.
In the intervals between lunch, her nap, and her snack, Latina enjoyed her free time. On the days that Dal
e wasn’t out, she played near him. Every now and again, she’d gaze out the entrance to the shop, but at least thus far, she hadn’t wandered out on her own. She’d gone out on walks about the neighborhood with Rita, Dale, or Kenneth before, but she still didn’t understand the lay of the land.
But when the time came for Kenneth to start his evening prep-work, Latina would head to the kitchen and follow him around once more. Every time Dale went to look in on this, he’d see her super-diligent face which seemed to say, “I’m giving it my all!” and end up walking away in low spirits, unable to say anything.
With that same serious look on her face, Latina was currently tackling the task of mashing a large pile of potatoes.
“Calm down a little,” Rita, who was carrying a mug of ale, told Dale.
At the Dancing Ocelot, customers paid up their accounts when they got what they ordered. This was to prevent people from shirking payment. However, that rule didn’t apply to the regulars, who were allowed to settle their accounts at the end. In Dale’s case, if he didn’t square up, then it was added to his rent. The sound of coins jingling in Rita’s apron told of her skill at handling both orders and billing. In the morning, incidentally, in order to more efficiently handle the busy period, there was a simple entry fee instead.
Dale took offense to Rita’s words but was unable to come up with a decent comeback.
While this was going on, Latina came out of the kitchen carrying a tray, and thanks to the weight, she was a bit unsteady. In an instant, the hustle and bustle of the shop quieted down.
Over the course of the past week, the regulars had all become aware of Latina’s presence. Though she was tiny, she never fooled around while darting about the shop, so they all noticed her even if they weren’t trying to. On top of it, there was something incredibly charming about the young girl.
Latina slowly and carefully walked forward, step by step. This was her greatest trial as of late: bringing Dale his dinner. She wanted to do it, but that required her carrying it all the way to the customer. Thanks to her pride and repeated practice, however, she was able to do it.
