After some more time passed, Alice finally learned how to turning. Grace and Ethefelis were still by the river, while Jacob came out because he was hungry.
"Karen, it's been lunchtime for a long while. Didn't you notice?"
"I asked Grace and Ethefelis to go catch some fish. They haven't come back yet."
"Don't tell me they ran into danger?!"
I could understand Jacob's reaction. When someone you care about doesn't return for a long time, it's only natural to worry.
I spoke while waving my hand dismissively, then beckoned Jacob over.
"No, no. Come here—I teach you a magic."
After that, I taught Jacob and Alice the "Detection" magic. Jacob had panicked earlier simply because he didn't know Grace's position.
"Ohhh! That's amazing!"
"This long shape is the river, and those two dots next to it are Grace and Ethefelis… Karen, did you use this magic yesterday to knew about the demon race's movements?"
As Jacob processed the mental image produced by "Detection," he suddenly remembered what happened yesterday morning.
"Yeah."
"Ah, Ms. Grace and Ms.Eis just moved."
Alice spoke up at that moment, her voice filled with excitement, like she'd just discovered something new.
So Grace and Ethefelis had finally finished catching fish, and Alice had learned how to ride a bicycle. In that case, it was time to head back inside.
As soon as I entered the house, I started preparing our late lunch. About halfway through cooking, Grace and Ethefelis returned.
"Mr. Karen, we're back."
Since I was stir-frying, I replied to Grace without turning around.
"You were gone quite a while. How many did you catch?"
"Five."
"Then finish your assignment early today."
"What assignment?"
She'd forgotten in less than a day. Honestly.
"Killing the fish."
"Kill—! I just got back. Can't I rest for a bit first?"
"I still have five dishes left to cook. Finish it before I'm done. And don't throw up."
"…Yes."
After that, Grace pushed her limits once again. It wasn't until just before I plated the final dish that she finally made her move.
I didn't pay attention to whether she waited for the fish to stop breathing like yesterday, but she had improved. She looked nauseous, yet she didn't vomit.
Once everyone had their rice, we started eating. Standing while eating was a bit tiring for me, but it would be fine once we bought chairs in the next town.
At that moment, Alice looked at me and asked an obvious question.
"Mr. Karen, aren't you going to sit?"
"Where would I sit?"
"Sit… huh?"
Alice looked around and finally realized there weren't enough chairs. She started to panic. I scooped some food onto my plate and tell her.
"Don't worry about me. Keep eating."
"But—"
"We'll just buy chairs in the next town. Hurry up and eat."
I cut Alice off as soon as she spoke. I figured she was about to say, "But Mr. Karen must be tired from cooking." If I was wrong, then I was just being self-satisfied.
"Okay."
Alice was a child who never let people rest easy, but she was kind at heart. There was a reason she'd been chosen as the Saintess.
Still, I didn't exactly have the personality of a Brave—so why had I been chosen? Well, if you could understand a god's thinking, they wouldn't be a god.
After Alice resumed eating, the other three slowed down, as if lost in thought. Suddenly, Jacob and Grace stood up at the same time and spoke to me in unison.
"Karen, take my seat."
"Mr. Karen, please sit in my place."
So that was what they had been thinking about. Seeing Alice's kindness had made them reflect on themselves? The two of them immediately started arguing over who should give up their seat.
"Grace, you worked hard killing the fish earlier. I was the one who had it easy, so let me stand."
"Mr. Jacob, I'm more comfortable standing. It's good exercise, too."
"Then I should stand even more. My stamina isn't great."
"No, if you stand, you won't have the energy to ride the bicycle later."
Even though the argument was technically about me, I didn't step in. Honestly, it made the meal go down easier just watching them.
At that moment, someone tugged gently at the corner of my clothes. I looked down and saw Ethefelis.
"Sit in Eis's seat."
Her expression shifted ever so slightly, like a child who thought she had done something wrong. Really now—she was the youngest one here. She didn't need to worry about things like this. I smiled and replied to her softly.
"It's fine. I'm almost done eating. You keep eating."
Jacob and Grace didn't hear our exchange and kept arguing. It wasn't a fight, but their reasons were slowly drifting into the realm of the trivial.
Alice finally couldn't take it anymore and stood up in a panic.
"Mr. Karen, sit in my—"
"Karen!" "Mr. Karen!"
Her words were drowned out by Jacob and Grace speaking at the same time. Startled, Alice shrank back into her seat and quietly continued eating. There clearly wasn't any room for her to step in here.
Just as I was about to put the last bite of rice into my mouth, I froze in place and looked at them.
"You're going to sit in whose seat?!"
Their timing was impressive, but I didn't answer. I pulled the spoon from my mouth, finished chewing, swallowed, and then said calmly,
"I'm full."
"Huh…?"
Leaving them both stunned, I headed toward the kitchen. After all that arguing, they'd done nothing but waste time and energy. I glanced back at them with mild annoyance.
"Stop wasting time and eat."
"Okay." "Yes."
That snapped them back to their senses. With brief replies, Jacob and Grace finally sat down and continued their meal.
Ethefelis was the last one to finish eating. It wasn't that she ate slowly—she just ate a lot. After cleaning up her bowls and plates, she brought them over, so I took the opportunity to teach her how to use the dishwasher.
It couldn't always be me doing everything, after all. I needed rest too.
When the time reached 4:03 p.m., we were finally ready to depart. I walked to the entrance of the living room and spoke to everyone.
"We're leaving. Hurry up and get ready. Anyone who didn't turn off the switches in their room, go do it now. If you need the bathroom, go now. If you're done, wait outside."
The moment I finished, Jacob asked me curiously,
"What kind of way of talking is that?"
"It's what moms say before going on a long trip."
That was exactly how my mother in my previous life used to speak whenever our family went traveling—always worrying about this and that. I'd clearly been influenced by her, shaping my personality without me realizing it.
"Really? My mother never said things like that."
Of course Grace's mother wouldn't. In a noble household, servants would check everything. There was no need to worry.
"So that's what Mr. Karen's mother was like."
Alice had misunderstood. My mother in this life did worry as well, but if you thought about it carefully, contradictions would start to appear. I'd only just realized I'd misspoken, so I quickly changed the subject.
"Enough talking. Get moving."
Soon everyone gathered outside. After double-checking everything, I stored away the traveling house and set off.
We slowed our pace to match Alice, who was still inexperienced, and Jacob, who lacked stamina. Alice didn't have much endurance either—just a little more than Jacob.
(Ha… it's really hot today.)
I looked up at the sky and couldn't help letting out a sigh. The road ahead was still a long one.