Chapter 247: Let's Meet

* * *

"Hey."

I quietly called out to the boy from behind him after landing.

When conducting negotiations, it's important not to be underestimated by the other party.

That being said, it's also quite immature to start by releasing[Intimidation] against a child.

That's why I get behind the other party.

I pretend to be a sudden gust of wind and startle them.

That's how I maintain a psychological superiority.

Hehe, the fact that I can think so calmly like this makes me feel that I've mastered the art of communication.

If my appearance wasn't black-haired and black-eyed, I might have been able to make a living as a merchant in this world.

"Whoa!? So you've appeared, cursed child!"

"Give me that."

My demand to the boy who turned around in surprise was the same as always.

That fried bread you're holding looks super delicious, doesn't it?

I want it, I want it, I want to eat it.

Let's exchange it for my churros!

"H-Hey, cursed child! G-Get out of this town!"

...?

However, this boy gave an incomprehensible response to my peaceful demand.

I unintentionally tilted my head.

What is he saying?

"Give me that."

"There are people who are scared because you're here! H-Hurry up and get out of town!"

Huuuh?

What's with this guy?

He's not making sense...

I'm saying 'Give me the snack,' but he's responding with 'Get out of town.'

We're not even having a conversation, you know?

Don't tell me this guy is also bad at conversation?

<Well, the other party is a child, after all. There may be times when you can't have a smooth conversation.>

Geez, can't be helped.

"Hey! Are you listening to me!?"

Mistaking my appearance of conversing with Extra-sama as ignoring him, the boy raised his voice again.

You're the one not listening to the conversation, geez.

A sigh of exasperation unintentionally escapes me at the boy's actions, even though he's a child.

On the other hand, the boy, perhaps emboldened by the fact that I'm not taking any intimidating actions, started swinging the wrench around.

"I'm only warning you nicely this time! If you don't listen to what I say, I won't be responsible for what happens!"

"I'm saying, give me that snack."

I convey my demand as gently and politely as possible so that even a little kid can understand.

"Y-You'll be in for a world of pain!"

But it's no use.

The boy just keeps repeating his cute threats.

There's no point in talking.

"Hey, are you stupid? Can't even have a conversation?"

Those words unintentionally slipped out of my mouth.

I was getting a little irritated too.

I ended up saying it.

And it seems this remark made the boy snap too.

"DON'T... MAKE FUN OF MEEE!"

The next moment, the boy shouted that with a bright red face and threw the wrench he was holding at me!

The metal tool spins vertically while making a whooshing sound, flying towards my forehead.

It was probably an action taken in a sudden fit of rage.

The boy's face was bright red at first, but he quickly realized the gravity of what he had done and turned pale.

What would happen if the wrench hit my face?

It would be a serious injury, normally.

Turning pale after unintentionally taking an action that would injure the other person.

I think it's proof of having proper sensibilities.

...But.

Catching the flying wrench with two fingers, I glare at the boy.

Suddenly throwing things at the other person.

Unless you want to kill them, you shouldn't do this kind of thing.

"Hey."

"Eek!"

After snapping the wrench in two with a crack and tossing it aside, I lightly use [Intimidation].

The boy is terrified by just that and steps back with a pale face, but this is definitely not something I can let slide.

I take a step forward.

"What's the big idea?"

I can tell that this boy didn't seriously intend to harm me.

But even if it was unintentional, he threw a wrench at me.

At a speed so slow that it makes me yawn.

But what if I only had the physical abilities of an ordinary person?

I would have been seriously injured.

This boy did something he shouldn't have.

Someone has to scold him for that.

That's what I thought.

It would be for his own good in the future, and it's what you call educational guidance.

And I'm the only one here.

Then I should be the one to do it.

I'm probably a little older than him too.

For his sake, I must fulfill my role as a senior in life!

"Wait."

"Uh, uwaaaaah!!"

Perhaps frightened by my growing anger as I gradually approached, the boy's earlier bravado was nowhere to be seen, and he immediately turned his back on me and started running away!

The string came loose, and the cutting board he had apparently wrapped around his stomach as armor fell off!

He was in a terrible panic.

It would be easy to catch and scold him.

I'm overwhelmingly superior in physical ability.

I thought so, but...

<Ah!!>

"Hmm!!"

Whether in a panic or intentionally.

The boy threw the fried bread he was holding far away!

"Ha!!"

Unintentionally pulled by instinct, I pounce on the fried bread thrown in the opposite direction!

Munch, munch munch!

Oh, it's delicious!

A crispy texture!

A fluffy bite!

The lingering aroma of oil in the mouth is not unpleasant at all, and above all, this has a sour-sweet yellow jam sandwiched inside!

<Ah, wait a minute, Emi! The boy is getting away!>

Oh, shoot!!

Hurriedly shifting my gaze back to the boy running away, the boy had just entered a winding path in the back alley, and his figure disappeared.

"Munch munch, munch munch..."

With my cheeks puffed out, I saw him off.

<What will you do? Will you give up on chasing him?>

No, I'll chase him, Extra-sama.

I have to scold him, and I ended up getting the fried bread too.

I have to give something in return.

I sniff with my nose.

What I should follow is the smell of fried bread on his hands and... the oily smell of the tool bag he was carrying on his back.

<Why was he carrying a tool bag?>

Who knows?

Considering that he threw a wrench, maybe he thought it could be used as a weapon.

Well, that doesn't matter.

I started running through the back alleys to catch the boy before the scent faded.

* * *

And the pursuit itself was not that difficult.

At a four-way intersection ahead, after turning a few corners.

The boy was there.

But unexpectedly for me, he wasn't alone.

"I-I made them angry!! I met... the rumored cursed child!!"

The boy was clinging to a woman sitting on her bottom, desperately explaining his current situation.

Judging from the conversation I had heard up to that point, that woman was the boy's mother.

A youthful woman with well-defined features, similar to the boy.

"............"

Probably spilled from the woman's shopping basket when she fell on her bottom.

Round potatoes rolled all the way to my feet.

"U-UWAAH! THEY'RE HEREEEE!!"

The boy, noticing me, screamed and clung to the woman, trembling.

Drawn by that, the woman also looked this way.

...She had her eyes wide open, looking dumbfounded.

Hmm... is she so surprised by my beauty that she can't even speak?

<I won't deny that you're beautiful, but more than that, your current appearance is what it is, so rather than that... Hmm... Hmm?>

Extra-sama, who was about to badmouth me again, suddenly fell silent and groaned.

Huh, what, what?

What's wrong?

<Um, Emi, that boy and also that woman... don't you feel like you've seen them somewhere before?>

Huh?

No, no, definitely not.

I haven't met that many people during my journey so far, you know?

So I remember most of their faces.

Backed by that confidence, I can say for sure that I shouldn't have met that boy or his mother before.

<No, but, hmm... if you haven't met them during your journey... I have a feeling they resemble someone I've met before.>

Huh, what's that supposed to mean?

When you say that, I'm starting to get curious too.

I take a closer look at the mother.

As I said earlier, she's a youthful and beautiful woman.

She's wearing a winter coat and holding a shopping basket filled with food.

Her hair color is light brown.

That hair, which reaches around her shoulders and has a loose, fluffy curl, is tied together with a thin ribbon at a high position on the back of her head.

Her eyes are upturned.

A small nose.

An egg-shaped outline.

Hmm...

...Huh?

I certainly haven't met anyone like this during my journey.

I shouldn't have met her, but...

It does feel like I've seen her before?

<Let's see, upturned eyes... a beautiful woman with upturned eyes... Hmm.>

A beautiful woman with upturned eyes... speaking of beautiful... me...

<Come on, Emi, don't joke around! ...Huh?>

...Huh?

<Hey, Emi, about that boy and his mother.>

...Could it be?

Extra-sama, the people they resemble are...

<...It's you, Emi...>

With that single word Extra-sama muttered.

The memories I had sealed away, the ones I didn't even want to recall, come flashing back.

I am a reincarnator.

From the moment I was born into this world, I had a firm sense of self and accumulated memories.

I don't know about complicated things like brain development.

Anyway, that's the fact.

What I'm trying to say is.

I actually remembered that woman's face.

I just didn't want to remember.

The face of that woman, which I was finally able to recognize as my vision, which had been hazy as a baby, gradually became clearer.

She always looked at me with a hateful expression.

She always looked at me with a disgusted expression.

She always looked at me with a pained expression.

"E...mi..."

The woman, who now had a dumbfounded expression, muttered my name in a hoarse voice.

...Ah.

...Ah!

...Ah!!

How can this be!?

What are the odds!?

Of course she knows my name!

Because you're the one who gave it to me!!

In other words!

In other words!!

That woman is!!!

My mother, isn't she...!!!

When I was in a difficult situation.

When I was hungry and had nothing to eat.

When I was injured and in pain.

When I longed for human companionship.

I cursed that woman.

On the surface, while messing around with Extra-sama.

In the murky depths of my heart.

Why did you abandon me?

If I were to ever meet her in the future.

I even thought about tearing her into eight pieces and killing her.

...But what if I actually met her?

I was simply perplexed.

My heart screams to kill her.

But on the other hand, surprisingly, a part of me was somehow relieved that this woman was alive.

I couldn't sort out my feelings.

I didn't know what was what.

In the midst of that, the words I finally managed to squeeze out were.

"So this is where you were."

The shadows of the boy and the woman had merged with my long, long shadow stretched by the setting sun before I knew it, becoming one.

In the back alley that was gradually getting darker.

We were both dumbfounded and couldn't move an inch.

The silence continued forever.

...Or so I thought.

But, however!

That silence was!

Broken by the sudden intrusion of a third party!!

"Whoaaaaaa!!!"

""""!!?""""

That third party was a man running towards us at a tremendous speed, making a noisy sound of metal armor rubbing against each other!

The boy, his mother, and I involuntarily turned towards that direction!

"I fiiiinally found youuu!!"

Screeching to a halt near us, out of breath, the man was wearing shining golden armor and had an unkempt beard!

As soon as he saw my face, he grinned and introduced himself!

"Missy! Your name is Emi, right!? My name is Golden Arcus! I'm a top-class adventurer and your uncle! In other words! I'm the one who will protect you!"

Overwhelmed by the momentum of the suddenly appearing golden man, both Extra-sama and I were stunned!

However...!

This golden man was not the only intruder who appeared on the scene!

"Haaaaaaah!!!"

""""!!?""""

This time, a woman's shout was heard from the opposite direction the golden man had run from!

The boy, his mother, the golden man, and I involuntarily turned towards that direction!

"Aaaah! There!"

Running up to us at a speed surpassing the golden man, the woman executed a huge jump that seemed to reach the second floor of a nearby house just before reaching us, and landed soundlessly in front of me while spinning around in the air!

Wearing an elegant coat, a wide-brimmed hat, and gripping a somewhat incomprehensible black spherical object, the beautiful blonde woman grinned as soon as she saw my face and introduced herself!

"You're Emi, right!? My name is Lairine! Lairine Rune! I'm the Supreme Commander of the Adventurer's Guild and the woman who will become your... mother!!"

Overwhelmed by the momentum of this suddenly appearing blonde woman, both Extra-sama and I were stunned again!

I didn't understand what was going on!

But at this moment!

In this chaotic space!

It wasn't just me!

Me, the boy, his mother, the golden man, and the blonde woman!

Everyone was equally clueless!

So everyone calmed down a bit, looked around, and after a brief silence, almost simultaneously muttered almost the same thing!

"""""...What's with this situation...!?"""""

With the sudden gathering of the cast, the first part of Arc 14 ends here.

The middle part will begin from the .