༺ Searching For Mother (2) ༻
Tourette was a level five government employee.
The man was far sturdier than I had expected.
Additionally, he was a middle-aged man.
His white hair held strands of brown hair.
He certainly did exude the aura of a civil servant.
However, his brown eyes were shifty, and he was shaking with fear.
“What are you so afraid of?”
I questioned him.
Then, Tourette grabbed onto a nearby vase before crying out.
“I’m scared of you, barbarian bastard! How dare you enter someone’s home without the permission of the owner! This is a crime!”
“I see. I understand where you’re coming from, mister civil servant. We have some questions, so please reply. We’ll leave immediately afterward.”
“Dad, look at this! There’s a strange-looking vase!”
Bang-!
“…Never mind… ehehe… Naru didn’t do it on purpose…”
Embarrassed, Naru scratched the back of her head.
In response, the civil servant’s eyes rolled back into their sockets.
“T-The vase my wife gave me for our 10th anniversary…”
Oh dear.
If it was just something expensive, I would have been able to compensate him for it.
A vase that his wife had given him for their 10th anniversary would be difficult to replace.
I guess I have no other choice.
“C-Children can make mistakes like that sometimes.”
“……”
Crumple-
The civil servant’s face filled with disgust.
Just when I felt that the conversation would become difficult, I felt someone nearby.
—Dear, is there someone visiting?
“Halaris d-don’t come any closer!”
Tap- Tap-
Accompanied by the sound of soft footsteps, someone entered the room through the kitchen.
It was a woman with short, blue hair.
Dressed in an apron, she was holding onto a tray of cookies. She looked extremely youthful as well.
Perhaps she was in her early twenties?
However.
What stood out to me the most were her ears that were poking out from between her hair.
They were short and sharp.
Something that didn’t belong to a human.
Still, it was different from the ears of an elf.
Cariote was the first to react.
“A nymph?”
Nymphs.
Nymphs were a special kind of fairy that resided on the continent of Pangaea.
It seemed the wife of this civil servant was a Nymph.
“Oh dear, I didn’t hear that we would have any guests. Hohoho-. It’s a relief though. I made too many cookies, so it would have been difficult for us to finish them all.”
Whilst covering her mouth with her hand, she giggled.
Meanwhile, Cariote was marveling at her presence.
“Incredible. I heard that nymphs maintain a childish appearance even after their puberty, and so for the rest of their lives. So it was just a rumor? I’ve never seen a nymph before, so I didn’t know.”
It was clear even Cariote, who was a skilled hunter, had never seen a nymph before.
Halaris the nymph placed the tray of cookies onto the table before speaking.
“We are quite the rare species. Regardless, it’s nice to meet you. I’m the wife of Tourette, Halaris. And you are…?”
“Naru’s name is Naru Barjudas…! Naru likes strawberries…!
Naru hugged the nymph who called herself Halaris.
It was an unusual display of affection towards someone she’d only just met.
“You feel strangely familiar…!”
Naru didn’t discriminate.
Halaris then patted Naru on the head.
“Naru, was it? You’re just as petite as a ditch nymph. Is Naru the offspring of you two?
“I’m Naru’s father, Judas.”
“My name is Cariote. I am not Naru’s mother, nor am I the bride of Judas. I had something I was curious about, so I came here. I have something to ask. Tell me what happened on 61st Street twenty-five years ago.
Cariote got straight to the point.
Following that question, the civil servant who had only been watching up to this point, grimaced.
His pupils focused on his wife.
Halaris’s hand began to shake, suddenly appearing very vulnerable.
Watching her, the civil servant exhaled deeply.
“I have nothing to tell you. Get out of my house.”
“You haven’t told us anything yet.”
Cariote questioned him once more.
However, the civil servant raised a shard of the shattered vase at her.
Its edge looked incredibly sharp.
“I warned you. Leave.”
“……”
Cariote remained silent, her eyes focused.
She was likely attempting to discern the abilities of the man before her.
Aside from the fact that he was a government official, Tourette seemed rather formidable.
He would be at least silver rank.
However, he was no match for Cariote.
He must already know that.
A silver rank meant he would be able to recognize the difference in ability between us.
Still, he refused to back down.
“Leave my home immediately.”
His demand almost seemed desperate.
At that moment, Tourette’s wife raised her hand.
“It’s okay dear. I was just surprised by the question.”
“Halaris…”
“It’s okay. I’m sure they have a good reason for asking. I’ve even heard the name Judas before. They aren’t bad people. We, nymphs are good at discerning that.”
“……”
As Halaris spoke, Tourette slowly placed the shard of pottery on a nearby table. He then sat down on the couch, exhaling deeply.
“Before I start, I want to make sure you know that I’m not part of the underworld anymore. I serve neither Snix nor Nocturne. I go to church every Sunday, and I’m even part of the choir there.”
* * *
“25 years ago, I was living like trash. I didn’t bother saving any money, and just did whatever I wanted. If I ever needed money, I worked at a slave auction.”
Tourette began to speak.
As he did, Naru and I began to eat the cookies Halaris had brought.
Their crunchy texture made them surprisingly delicious.
“The owner of the slave auction, Jack the Ripper, was the worst of the worst. To be honest, he was terrifying. He used to stab his subordinates just because they had bad breath.”
Tourette’s expression was resolute.
However, Cariote seemed dissatisfied with the story.
“Stop blabbering. Get to the point. We’re here to find the missing Young Lady Leone who vanished 25 years ago. As a member of the Ragdoll family, she would have been part of Jack the Ripper’s slave auction.”
“It’s likely. There were all kinds of people who came and went. Leone… I don’t seem to recall a name like that. Still, it was 25 years ago…”
Tourette’s expression became grave.
Then Halaris, seated beside her husband, began to speak.
“Blonde hair and blue eyes. There was a lady that had a doll-like face. I remember. I was still a young nymph at the time, and I was caught by hunters.”
Swoosh-
Halaris then extended her right hand.
As I inspected it, I found that part of her pinky was missing.
“Nymphs are beings most beloved by the Demiurge. The entirety of their existence is a blessing. That’s why the blood and hair of a nymph are so sought after. Consequently, this also extends to bodily parts like fingers.”
“……”
“I was caught by a human hunter. In the cell directly next to mine, there was a kind and beautiful noblewoman. I can still remember her. Even now.”
I see.
That was why Tourette was so hesitant to speak about the events of 25 years ago.
He didn’t want his wife to have to recall those painful memories.
“However, things changed after a horde of black-haired men rushed in. They seemed to be heroes intending to save those who had been sold into slavery. There was an intense fight after that.”
It was said that the slave auction had been destroyed by a group of enraged barbarians.
In the midst of that pandemonium, the slaves were able to escape.
Afterward, Tourette supplemented additional information.
“Following that incident, Jack the Ripper was declared dead. By the time the soldiers arrived, all they could find was his severed left hand. The barbarians tore him to pieces.”
“What about Young Lady Leone?”
Cariote urgently asked a question.
Unfortunately, Halaris merely shook her head.
“I’m not sure. I lost track of her in the frenzy. Now that I think about it, you two resemble the Barboi that attacked on that day. Even how you travel around with a child.”
Is that so?
Whilst nodding, he began tapping the table with his finger.
After a brief moment, he got up, intending to go to the balcony.
“I’m going to go smoke.”
“Cariote, Naru. I’m going to go get some fresh air too.”
I followed behind closely.
While I had been pretending to nod, I had tapped the table twice.
To denizens of the underworld, it meant that he had something to tell me in secret.
By the time I entered the balcony, Tourette had already lit a cigarette.
As I approached him, he began to speak.
“This isn’t something I should be saying, but Jack the Ripper was truly trash. The atrocities he committed can’t even be counted. Even Shehrazade was a model citizen in comparison.”
“Is that so?”
“He worshiped Nocturne to the point of absolute devotion. Not only would he offer sacrifices, he would even make children wield knives and kill their own parents.”
“……”
“However, as a denizen of the underworld, your name is held in infamy as well. Judas, the King of Thieves. Jack the Ripper wouldn’t hold a candle to you.”
“Really? I didn’t think I was that famous.”
“Regardless, you’ll do. Everyone believes Jack the Ripper is dead, but I don’t believe it. I want to know for sure.”
“Are you asking me to do it?”
“I still see him in my dreams. I don’t want to see the peace that we worked so hard to obtain be crushed and destroyed by that man.”
“Alright. Since you answered our question, I’ll take care of that for you. Naru and I even ate some of your wife’s cookies. We should repay you for your grace.”
Although I claimed I was repaying him, it wasn’t a bad deal for me.
A thief like me would benefit from doing a civil servant a favor.
Tourette seemed incredibly capable.
He was skillful and trustworthy.
I suppose that was why he lived in a spacious, luxurious home with his beautiful wife.
Even if he had washed his hands of it now, he was still a former denizen of the underworld.
Because he was likely well-informed about their affairs, there was no better person to serve as a proxy.
“I heard the little girl you brought along is named Naru. Is she your biological daughter?”
Tourette questioned me.
I nodded in response.
“She is, but I don’t even know her birthday. By the way, do you happen to know what it means to be the daughter of a lion and a maiden?”
“Is that some kind of a riddle? My wife might know better than me. Because nymphs are blessed beings, they are able to understand obscure analogies.”
Swoosh-
With that said, we returned to the living room.
“…That’s when Naru found Molumolu inside the treasure chest! Molumolu is really smart! It can even count up to a thousand! It even taught me about equations last night but Naru doesn’t understand it!”
“My, what an incredible child. Hohoho.”
The atmosphere was incredibly homely.
Sitting down on the sofa, I questioned Halaris.
“Halaris, have you ever heard the phrase ‘daughter of a lion and a maiden’? It was a hint given to me about Naru’s birthday. Something about the lion tearing into something and a maiden in the meadows.”
“Her birthday, huh? A lion and a maiden…could it be a metaphor? No, it must have actually happened. Naru’s birth occurred between the tiger and a maiden. Her birthday was likely sometime in the late summer months.”
Why the late summer months?
Upon seeing my confusion, Halaris giggled.
“It’s referring to the stars. We nymphs are quite knowledgeable in that regard. August 22nd. That date is likely Naru’s birthday. She was born in a scorching summer, between the lion and maiden constellations.”
Ding!
To think she was referring to constellations.
I hadn’t even considered that possibility.
However, as I thought about it deeply, it seemed certain that Halaris was correct.
She had hit the nail on the head.
“Oh, holy shh..! Now that Naru thinks of it, we went to the pool for my birthday…! Naru played under the scorching sun with Mom and Dad, splashing water everywhere…! It was really hot..!”
“I see.”
By some strange stroke of luck, we had managed to figure out Naru’s birthday.
If she was born in August…
Then after subtracting 10 months from that… It would have been October.
It was only March, so we had plenty of time.
It felt like a huge burden had been lifted from my shoulders.
Next, my gaze turned to Cariote.
Now that we knew Naru’s birthday, all that was left was finding Naru’s mother.
To me, Cariote seemed like the most likely candidate.
However, I didn’t know much about her.
With how complicated our journey was, I hadn’t exactly made an effort either.
Now might be a good time to start.
“I’m going out to get some fresh air.”
Step-
As Cariote headed to the garden, I swiftly followed.
“Why are you following me? Do you have something to say?”
Cariote questioned me.
I responded simply.
When I was going through your bag earlier, I saw a photo inside.”
“……”
“I didn’t know at the time. But now, I can’t help but think that the person inside that photo resembled Young Lady Leone. She did look a bit older. Still, I think they are the same person.”
I had seen the photo previously.
Like the pottery that Halaris had made for Tourette.
That photograph was likely Cariote’s treasure.
–-Is it really Lady Leone?
Internally, I suspected Cariote but didn’t attempt to pry further. Not only did her situation seem complex, I wasn’t particularly interested in other people’s stories either.
Nonetheless, I felt like I had to ask.
After a brief moment, Cariote returned a simple reply.
“She is my mother.”
Been a while, heh? Hope you’ve all enjoyed this chapter. Also, Huge thanks to Mr. White Tower for writing a review, glad to see fellow Michuri enjoyers. You can read his review here, and write one of your own here.
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