Chapter 37 - Are You My Wife?
Gail finished his training in the forest early and returned to town to buy a new iron mesh that was melted by Dan's fire magic.
"Welcome, what are you looking for...!?"
Hmm?
"Do you have the same iron mesh as the one I bought last time?"
"Oh, you're the customer from before.... right!?"
The shopkeeper showed Gail an iron mesh like the one he bought last time while staring at him intently.
"Hey, Dan, don't you think the shopkeeper is acting a bit strange?"
"I-I guess it's just unusual for a customer to buy another iron mesh after just a few days...."
Is that so? I don't think that's the case, though.
You are also acting a bit strange, Dan.
Oh well, whatever.
"We can finally bring Misha to the forest soon."
"T-That's right, once the door is installed and the toilet is made, let's bring her to the forest."
"I think it will take another two or three days. Misha will be so happy."
Gail returned to the mansion, feeling excited.
(Young Master and Dan are coming from the direction of the downtown again....)
"Young Master, please tell Master Arnold that I want to talk to him after dinner. I will ask permission to take Misha to the forest."
"Got it."
"Then, I will return to my room."
Having said that, Dan ran off to his quarter
Dan seemed in quite a hurry, didn’t he?
“Welcome back, Young Master.”
Misha greeted Gail, but she seemed a bit down.
"Misha, are you feeling alright?"
"I'm fine...."
Misha avoided eye contact with Gail.
Is she really okay?
"I can go to the dining room by myself. Go take a rest."
When Gail said that, Misha ran off.
Seriously, what's wrong with Misha? Did Sarah scold her or something?
Gail headed to the dining room while wondering about that.
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"Thank you for the meal."
"Hey, Gail. What happened to your head?"
Hmm? My head?
"Your hair is all frizzy and your bangs are gone."
Gail quickly touched his forehead after Aina said that.
T-They're gone!
My bangs are gone!
That's right, it's because of Dan's fire magic.
I've healed the burn with magic, but my bangs didn't grow back.
The shopkeeper and Dan were acting weird because of this.
That damn bear!
"I don't know what you're up to, but don't overdo it, okay?"
Aina looked exasperated.
Tomorrow, I will make him pay for this. Oh, right....
"Dad, Dan said he has something to report."
"Alright. Someone, tell Dan to go to my study after this."
"Have Misha fix your bangs before you go to bed. Don't leave it like that, it's unsightly. Misha, please take care of Gail."
"Yes, Madam...."
Gail returned to his room with Misha, who didn't say a single word.
"Misha, what's wrong? You have been acting strange since a while ago."
Unable to stand the silence, Gail asked Misha.
"Young master.... You don’t need me anymore, do you?"
Huh? What is she talking about?
"If that’s the case, please say it clearly."
Misha started crying, tears streaming down her face.
Eh? Eeeh...!?
"W-What's wrong, Misha? Did someone say something to you?"
"Because, it's always just Young Master and Dan...."
"I went to the forest with Dan to train. I can't take you because it's dangerous."
"You went to the town square today, didn't you? You could have invited me"
Did she see us heading towards the residential area before going to the forest?
"T-That's a misunderstanding...."
"Enough!"
Misha tried to run away while crying.
"Misha, wait!"
I can't catch up with her with these legs. There's no other choice.
"Ei!"
Gail used magic to lift Misha, brought her closer, and put her down on the bed. Misha stopped crying in surprise.
"W-What did you just do?"
"You tried to run away without listening to my explanation, so I caught you with magic. Sorry for startling you."
This is the first time I've seen someone look both surprised and tearful at the same time.
"Listen, it's not like we are leaving you out."
"But, you have been going out with Dan almost everyday.... and eating grilled meat.... You never invited me...."
Is this because I boasted about hunting rabbits and grilling them before? Maybe Misha just wanted to eat grilled meat.
"The more people who know Young Master's secret, the more I feel left out...."
Misha started sobbing again.
"Misha, actually, I'm planning to take you to the forest later...."
“It’s fine.”
Gail started getting annoyed with Misha who wouldn't listen to anything he said. Just when he was about to snap, he remembered something from his past life.
This happened shortly after I got married. I was so busy with my work that I couldn't even take my wife on a honeymoon. Because of that, I was trying to arrange a long vacation for her. I worked overtime every day for three months straight to finish all my work ahead of schedule. But when everything was almost wrapped up, my wife snapped at me.
"Why are you always working? What's the point of being married?!"
Due to the exhaustion from working late into the night every day, combined with the frustration of having worked so hard just to prepare this long vacation, I ended up raising my voice, too.
"Who do you think I'm working so hard for, without even taking a break!?"
"Enough! You should have just married your job!"
That was the first big fight I ever had with my wife. In the end, I didn't take the long vacation I had worked so hard for, and I never went on a honeymoon trip with my wife. It's a memory I still regret to this day.
Realizing that he was about to repeat the same mistake, Gail took a deep breath and spoke to Misha gently.
"Misha, I'm sorry for making you feel left out. I'm still making a preparation to take you to the forest. Dan is probably talking with my father to ask his permission right now."
"R-Really?"
"I kept it a secret because I wanted to surprise you."
"Young Master...."
Misha started crying again. Gail waited until she had calmed down before speaking to her again.
"Let's go to the forest together tomorrow. There's something I wanted to show you and it should be finished tomorrow. Let's have a completion party by grilling meat together."
"Yes!"
Looks like Misha's in a good mood again. However, our relationship is starting to feel more like a married couple than parent and child or siblings....
Meanwhile, inside Arnold's study.
"What? Is that true?"
"Yes, sir. Young master taught me magic, and now I can use it too. I got a little too excited and messed up, though."
"Damn it! That's not fair. I'm going to the forest too tomorrow!"
It seemed Bent inherited his bad habit from Arnold.