Chapter 2370: Receiving Goods and Becoming a Hero

Chapter 2370: Chapter 2370: Receiving Goods and Becoming a Hero

Shard stayed at the doctor’s that afternoon until half past two before leaving, and considering that both Luviya and Priest Augustus had taken long leaves of more than half a month, it was quite likely they would still be away next week. The doctor even sighed:

"How nice, to be able to take leave whenever you want."

"You can actually take time off whenever you like too, since you work for yourself."

"It’s precisely because I work for myself that I can’t afford to relax."

On the way home, Shard of course did not forget to stop by the Betis Coffee Tea Room in the north of the city and buy the fresh cream scones Dorothy had mentioned.

The sweets were indeed very popular; when Shard opened his mouth and asked for 30 portions, the shop simply didn’t have that much in stock. But a coffee tea room would never refuse a customer like Shard, so they had him wait half an hour, or they could send a waiter to deliver them to the Shard Family home later.

"Wait here, half an hour goes by fast."

He ordered a cup of coffee and sat down at a table. Before long, a young waitress brought over a plate of pastries, saying they were a gift from the owner to Shard.

"Meow!"

Mia snapped awake from her nap, staring wide-eyed at the delicious things on the table.

Of the 30 scones Shard brought back, Dorothy kept 10 and had Shard take the rest to Moon Bay for Angelina and the ladies over there to try. Of course, she couldn’t finish those 10 herself, so she invited the Miss Maids at home to take a break and join her for afternoon tea.

Neither Lecia nor Miss Galina would ever do such a thing, but the Miss Writer, a commoner by birth, didn’t care about that sort of propriety.

Shard also stayed with Lecia through afternoon tea, tasting the delicious pastries, and only then set off for Moon Bay together with Mia.

Thanks to preservation methods, by the time Shard arrived at Belindel Estate with the pastries, they were still warm.

He didn’t hand them out himself, but first gave them to Angelina and had her distribute them. As for the girls who hadn’t yet returned, the pastries were to be kept for them until they came back in the evening.

Angelina happily went off to share the pastries, and when she came back to look for Shard, he was on the second-floor terrace talking with Emilia about the Time Flute.

The Relic had been secretly transported to Moon Bay earlier today by some means even Emilia didn’t know. But because the courier didn’t understand the situation in the Moon Bay Region, it wasn’t easy for them to carry that item into the city. So Emilia asked Shard if he could go out of town with her to pick up the goods.

"Of course, no problem."

It was Saturday, and time for the night class again. But Dorothy had said that if Shard had something urgent at Moon Bay, he could come back a bit later.

Angelina pressed her lips together; she didn’t say that she wanted to go too:

"Shard, the Witches said this morning that the Church will be coming to inspect the place tomorrow. Everyone’s tidying up the house today. If you come over, just act freely. You can have dinner here tonight, but don’t come again before tomorrow’s supper."

"Emilia and Little Liana are going to Margaret’s Manor. Angelina, where are you going? Lecia said you can decide for yourself what to do in Moon Bay."

Shard turned to ask her, and the Little Princess replied:

"I’m going to Margaret’s Manor with Emilia and the others too."

"With Angelina by my side, Little Liana and I won’t feel lonely."

The Elf Girl said with a smile, then invited the Little Princess to go and taste the pastries with her.

The Miss Maids were nervously but methodically carrying out the concealment work on the estate. Miss Aphrola, Megan, Luviya, and Miss Eles had gone out of the city for inspections, while the very busy Miss Belindel happened to be at the estate.

So for the remaining hour that afternoon, Shard stayed at the Countess’s side, chatting with her. Dinner that day was held very early, and after eating, everyone left with their luggage, not returning until tomorrow night.

Luviya wasn’t going to Margaret’s Manor; instead she, Megan, the Aphrola aunt and niece, Miss Swift, and Tifa were going to stay on a ship at the docks.

It wasn’t the small pleasure boat the Twin-Tailed Cat had once brought Shard onto, but Miss Eles’s own Radiant Messenger. The ship was now registered under Countess Bella Belindel’s name and had sailed into Moon Bay Harbor at noon today, mooring beside the Aphrola Family’s fleet and Megan’s small cruiser.

Of course, since the vessel was truly enormous, Miss Eles had shrunk it somewhat before sailing it into the harbor. And the reason the Little Unicorn was unwilling to stay on board was very obvious—it was somewhat afraid of Miss Eles.

However, Shard didn’t immediately follow the Witches to the docks after dinner. Instead, he had Luviya take Mia ahead, then saw off the carriage carrying the Little Unicorn and Angelina to Margaret’s side, and only afterward set out with Emilia for the outskirts of the city.

The pickup location was set in the mountainous area east of the city. Shard was familiar with the northern part of Moon Bay, but had seldom come to this side.

Because the place was too far from the urban area, Shard and Emilia each rode a horse to the big banyan at the nameless crossroads in the countryside they had agreed upon. After confirming they were in the right spot, they tied their horses to the tree and waited, chatting as they did.

It was already half past seven on Saturday evening. Three moons hung high in the sky, and there was not a single other figure to be seen on the small road outside the city. Under the trees at the broad crossroads, the moonlight managed to faintly light up the surroundings, and standing there looking around, one could only see seemingly boundless fields stretching toward distant villages dotted with scattered lights.

"Emilia, have you been happy during this time in Moon Bay?"

Shard asked somewhat worriedly. Emilia had first come to Moon Bay because of that Demon, but having her stay on after the Demon was dealt with had been his idea.

"Very happy."

The sharp-eared girl nodded at once, shifting her gaze from the moonlit wilderness to Shard’s face:

"Shard, you don’t have to worry about me. Everyone at the estate takes good care of me, and I have Little Liana and Angelina to keep me company. These days have really been very, very good... I even don’t quite want this vacation to end... Speaking of which, it’s already August now, half the summer break has gone by."

Her pointed ears drooped a little, then she lifted her head again to look at the Moon:

"Although I do feel a bit sorry that Little Liana can’t run free over the grasslands and splash in the river, aside from that, I really wish this stretch of Time could last a bit longer. By the way, Little Liana has gotten quite chubby lately. When we go back I’ll have to put her on a diet."

As she spoke she started laughing, and Shard also smiled:

"I don’t think Little Liana’s weight gain is from lack of exercise. I often see her strolling around the estate. It must be that she’s eating too much, right? Our ’landlady’ clearly doesn’t understand a Unicorn’s diet—I’ve seen her preparing basket after basket of fresh fruit for Little Liana. Even though it’s summer and fruit is easy to buy, she’s still going a bit overboard."

"I know, I know!"

Emilia went on laughing as she spoke:

"I’ve read books at home before that say powerful Witches in past ages all had Unicorn mounts. And Little Liana really is so beautiful—everyone at the Academy likes her a lot too."

She then started telling Shard amusing stories from the Academy, and about how, the first time she saw Little Liana, the Unicorn had timidly refused to come out from behind a tree.

When she finished, she shyly said to Shard:

"Listening to me go on like this all the time, is it boring?"

"Of course it’s not boring. Life at the Saint Byrons Academy sounds very interesting. You know I’ve never gone to school, so I don’t know what that feels like."

The Outlander told a lie; of course, only the second half of the sentence was a lie.

The sharp-eared girl pressed her lips together and nodded:

"Yes, Academy life is fun, and very serene... Even though in the past I often snuck out to play in Randall Valley, those days were peaceful. This summer in Tobesk and Moon Bay, I’ve seen so many things—so this is what the World is really like."

Shard had originally wanted to say, "Only Moon Bay is this chaotic right now," but thinking of what was to come, he never let the words leave his mouth.

"I’ve never seen War, but the papers last weekend said so many people have already died. Together with you all, I’ve encountered Demons that even books don’t dare describe in detail, and I’ve come to understand just how terrifying that kind of Malice really is."

She clasped both hands behind her back:

"Shard, I used to think I was actually a very strong person."

"You are strong. Look at you—this summer you’ve suddenly been through so much, and even after facing a Demon you didn’t get insomnia, you’ve been sleeping soundly all along. That’s not something an ordinary person could manage."

The sharp-eared girl didn’t dare admit it was because she got too excited—unable to fall asleep in the first half of the night and unable to wake up in the second—so instead she asked Shard:

"We saw the statues of Ancient Dragon Slayer heroes at the Ancient Elven Ruins outside the city. Shard, do you think I could become a Hero like that too?"

It was clear she felt a bit lost and desolate. She hadn’t even shared this with Angelina. Though Angelina was a friend... this kind of thing she only wanted to say to Shard, especially after Angelina’s ’War and Love are unreasonable’ sermon last night.

"A Hero? Not everyone can become a Hero—after all, we don’t have that many Evil Dragons and Demons waiting around to be prepared for Heroes."

"Shard, I’m not joking."

The Elf Girl softly protested, and Shard looked at her very seriously:

"I’m not joking either. Yearning for justice is certainly not wrong, but if it’s not your turn, you shouldn’t force yourself to rush out. I don’t like the phrase ’playing the Hero’, yet becoming a Hero depends not only on personal effort, but also on luck and on the course of the times."

He looked earnestly into those emerald-green eyes:

"Promise me, Emilia—you can prepare yourself to become a Hero, but don’t force yourself to act the Hero, all right?"