Kays Translations

Chapter 19: The Receptionist’s Marriage-Meeting Rumor

Several days had passed since the emergency goblin-subjugation quest.

Tauro selected his usual quest and took it to reception, but a male staff member occupied the desk where Nei normally worked.

“Huh?”

“Oh, Tauro. Good work. Nei had to leave the desk a moment ago because of an emergency.”

“An emergency?”

“Keep this between us, but apparently her parents arrived without warning. I heard something about an arranged marriage.”

The employee leaned close and whispered into Tauro’s ear.

“That’s serious.”

“It certainly is. A lot of adventurers have their eyes on Nei.”

Nei was extremely popular. She was beautiful, but her bright personality and ever-present smile also lifted the adventurers’ spirits.

Although she treated Tauro with particular kindness, none of them resented him for it. They saw Nei as a compassionate woman who had saved a starving child and continued looking after him.

Tauro himself was still small, never boasted about his intelligence, and remained honest and dependable, so no one viewed him badly either.

A nearby adventurer overheard their conversation.

“W-wait! Is that true!?”

His shout echoed through the guild.

“What happened?”

“Is something wrong?”

The room began to buzz.

“Everyone, listen! Apparently Nei has received an offer for an arranged marriage!”

“What!?”

The guild erupted.

“My dear Nei!”

“She isn’t yours! She belongs to everyone!”

“Damn it! I’m retiring as an adventurer!”

“Don’t do anything rash! Let’s pray the meeting falls through!”

Grown men began to weep.

Tauro was astonished, but their reaction showed how deeply everyone cared for Nei. He decided to watch with quiet sympathy.

“Satou, haven’t you heard anything?”

A young adventurer turned toward Tauro, and every eye in the room followed.

“No. I haven’t heard a thing…”

A collective sigh filled the guild.

“Then what good is all that attention Nei gives you? Useless.”

That was completely unfair.

Tauro no longer felt inclined to watch sympathetically.

“All right, Satou. Follow Nei today and report everything you learn.”

“I can’t. I’ve already submitted a quest.”

Tauro looked toward the male employee for help.

The man noticed his plea and grinned.

“I haven’t finished processing this quest, so it’s no problem!”

He even gave Tauro a cheerful thumbs-up.

Do your job, Marco!

Questioning Marco’s professional competence, Tauro found himself enlisted by the adventurers to tail Nei.

But if Nei discovered him, she would certainly be furious.

Instead, Tauro went directly to the guild restaurant next door, where Nei was eating with her parents, and asked her.

“Oh, Tauro. What is it? An arranged marriage? Mother, you said something strange and caused a ridiculous misunderstanding.”

Nei laughed as she addressed her mother.

“Tauro, my parents came from the countryside to see me and do some sightseeing. They surprised me by arriving without warning. Then Mother joked that if I didn’t have a boyfriend, I should attend a marriage meeting. Someone must have misunderstood.”

So Marco had jumped to conclusions!

Tauro’s doubts about the man’s competence deepened.

“I’m sorry, dear. When I heard she didn’t have even one romantic story to tell, I couldn’t help worrying,” Nei’s mother said with a laugh.

“If you’re concerned about her, young man, how about taking our daughter as your wife when you grow up?” her father joked.

“Father, don’t embarrass Tauro.”

The family smiled often, and their easy affection revealed how close they were.

Tauro found himself wondering about his own parents from his previous life.

Were they still devastated by his unexplained death at the prestigious university he had worked so hard to enter?

Looking back, he felt that he had caused them nothing but trouble. The happy family before him stirred a pang of envy.

After saying goodbye to Nei and her parents, Tauro left the restaurant feeling strangely lonely.

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