Chapter 256: Lost Child
The day after everyone had enjoyed dinner together, we were set to return early in the morning.
We said our goodbyes to Yato and prepared to ride back on Drake’s back.
On the way there, the excitement of the trip had made the flight enjoyable, but on the way back, with the novelty worn off, it was a much tougher journey.
Come to think of it, sitting on an airplane for eight hours is exhausting, so there was no reason to expect air travel to be easy.
Despite it being a bit traumatic, we safely returned to the villa.
Immediately upon arrival, we did farm work, and after finishing, we collapsed into a deep, muddy sleep.
Because we had gone to bed relatively early the previous evening, we woke up quite early today.
Sheila had the same experience—she was in the living room reading a manga while sipping tea.
“Good morning, Sheila. Did you wake up early too?”
“Good morning. I went to bed so early yesterday that I woke up at a strange hour. You too, Sato-san?”
“Yes. For the exact same reason, I woke up at this hour.”
It seemed Sheila had also woken unusually early.
I made myself some tea and sat across from her.
The contrast to the chaos of yesterday was striking—this peaceful moment felt almost unreal.
Even though we sat in silence, the quiet was comfortable.
As I sipped my tea absentmindedly, the outside suddenly became bathed in a dazzling light.
For a moment, I thought I must be seeing things, still half asleep—but no, the light was definitely a warp gate opening.
It wouldn’t be strange for Milagros to come by around this time to report on the sweet potatoes, but this timing was odd.
Sheila also looked puzzled, and after a shared nod, we decided to check it out.
To be prepared for anything, Sheila drew her sword and led the way, protecting me as I followed behind.
I stayed close to her back as we approached the warp gate.
“There’s someone here… Is anyone there?”
Sheila raised her voice slightly, but there was no answer.
Realizing there would be no progress, she took a deep breath and kicked open the door of the small hut containing the warp gate.
“Who’s there!”
We followed her inside. In front of the warp gate, crouched down, was… a small child demon.
He looked like a boy in the lower grades of elementary school, with a sweet, slightly worried expression.
He seemed on the verge of tears, and judging that he meant no harm, I signaled Sheila to lower her sword.
I knelt to meet his eye level and spoke gently.
“And who are you? …Are you acquainted with Milagros?”
“…! You know Milagros-oneechan?”
“Yes. Milagros is my friend. What’s your relationship with her?”
“Milagros-oneechan… is my dad’s uncle’s kid?”
He tilted his head and counted on his fingers to explain.
If he was telling the truth, this boy was Milagros’s cousin.
“I see. So you’re related to Milagros. What’s your name?”
“…Asu.”
“So you’re Asu. I’m Sato. Nice to meet you. …Now, Asu, why did you come here all by yourself?”
“Milagros-oneechan told me absolutely not to come in. But I was curious… and when I went to the bathroom, I came in and ended up here… I’m sorry!”
Asu’s voice broke partway through, and by the end, he was crying openly.
Well, at that age, being told “don’t go in” would naturally make you want to go in.
Now that I knew who he was and that he wasn’t dangerous, I felt relieved.
My only concern was whether Milagros and the others were worried—but they probably hadn’t realized he was missing yet.
I wanted to notify them by letter, but we didn’t have a way to send one.
Previously, a bat-like creature had delivered letters, but there was no method for sending one from here.
The only other option would be to use the warp gate to go there ourselves—but we didn’t know how to operate it.
He had mentioned something about magic power, but if we used it incorrectly, it could be disastrous. So we decided to wait for Milagros to come.
Somehow, I had a feeling she’d sense he had come and take action.
Until then, we would look after Asu.
“You don’t need to apologize. There’s a house over there—let’s rest until Milagros and the others arrive. Are you hurt?”
“…No. Thank you, Sato-san.”
“You’re welcome. Do you have any favorite food?”
“Favorite food…? Meat or sweets?”
“Got it. Then stay here with me for a bit. I’ll get you something sweet.”
“Really? Thank you!”
Though his worried brow remained, a sparkle returned to his eyes.
Food solves everything—it’s the ultimate solution in a pinch.
Sheila would be watching over Asu for the time being, but he didn’t seem like a bad kid, so it shouldn’t be a problem.
I would make him the finest sweets and put a smile on both Asu’s and Sheila’s faces.