Chapter 60 - Antecedent of Danger

When she said that she'll come back the next day, she did really mean it.

"Uwaaa, Miss Myriel! Isn't this the special wildberry cake from that famous bakeshop at the Capital?!" Saki exclaimed upon opening the box Myriel placed on the table.

"If I'm not mistaken they don't have any branches other than at the Capital, but they became so well-known that people from the provinces don't mind going there just to buy their cakes and pastries," Saku spoke while his eyes are fixed on the cake, trying to hide his excitement.

Seeing their joyous expressions, she answered, "That's right. I had someone deliver it from the Capital, so that everyone here can enjoy it."

"Really? Thank you very much, Miss Myriel!"

"Ah! Brother Ren, Aoi--Miss Myriel brought us cake! Let's share it among ourselves!"

Aoi and I, who just returned from the town hall, saw the duo happily taking slices off the cake and placing into small plates. Myriel saw us standing at the entrance, and gave us a deceptively warm smile.

"...Not hungry," Aoi blatantly refused.

"Eh? But Aoi, you said before that you're craving for cake..."

"...Not anymore," she said, before heading back to our room.

"Uh, okay..." Saki looked down for a moment before shifting her gaze towards me. "How about you, Brother Ren?"

Honestly I'm not craving for something sweet right now, especially if it came from that woman, but seeing Saki's mood went down made me reluctant to refuse.

"Sure."

I sat on the table beside the siblings, away from Myriel. As Saki was about to cut a slice...

"I'll do it for you, Little Saki." Myriel said as she gently took the knife from her.

"Nn." Saki nodded politely.

Then, while applying light pressure on the blade she made a perfect slice of the cake, without disturbing the decorations at the top.

"Here, Ren. Your elder sister bought this cake for you. Eat, and may the rest of your days be sweet as this cake," she spoke in a warm, soothing voice.

I gave her a quick, suspicious stare. "You sure you didn't put something in here?"

"What kind of a question was that, Ren?" Saku frowned at me. "There's no way Miss Myriel will do something like that. She's your sister, you know?"

'She's not my sister!' I replied to him in my thoughts.

"Well..." Myriel placed her finger on her cheek and said, "I did actually put something in that cake."

"""H...Huh?"" The two dropped the forks they are holding.

"..."

Even I got surprised too. I'm already aware that she's honest but not this honest. Her self-confidence must be larger than this world for her to effortlessly admit the things she's doing without any hesitation.

Seeing everyone's shocked faces, Myriel grinned and said--

"I put inside...my love."

Huh? What?!

"I had the cake customized by the patisserie upon making it, using only the best ingredients they had which they said is much more expensive than the finished product itself. Along with it is a dedication note, which I ordered to be hidden at the base of the cake."

She then pulled out a piece of paper protruding out of the remaining cake slices. When she unfolded it, these words came into light:

'This is your last warning.'

Last. Warning.

As I thought, she will ultimately resort into such methods if I won't be swayed by these petty tricks of hers. Now that she successfully penetrated her way into our lives, there's no way anymore for me to prevent my friends from getting involved in this dilemma of mine.

Stupid, stupid, stupid!

"Uwaaaah, this poem--it's beautiful!"

"I can feel Miss Myriel's longing for Ren and Aoi in this poem. She's right, she did put her love inside the cake!"

"A poem? Beautiful?"

I seized the paper from Myriel's hands and double-checked what's written on it.

"This..."

I don't know how she did it but one thing is for sure: this poem has to be the cheesiest one I've read in my whole life.

"What do you think, Ren? Did I properly conveyed the message of my 'poem'?"

When she asked me that, I...

"I'll go to my room now."

"H-Hey?"

"Brother Ren?!" The two got startled when I stood up from my seat.

"Sorry. I'm not actually fond of sweets, that's why I don't feel like eating cake today," I replied.

My eyes met Myriel's proud, intimidating gaze. I took a deep breath and said to her, "Don't come near me or my little sister ever again."

Not just the two of us, but to Saku and Saki as well.

"Go away, Myriel. This is...my last warning."

-----

"Uhh, Miss Myriel...please forgive our friends' actions just now. Seems like they're not yet prepared to see you after a very long time," Saku said as he scratched his head out of embarrassment.

Because of what happened Saku and Saki felt it's disrespectful for them to continue eating the cake. They decided to store it for later.

Myriel spoke lightly, "It's alright, what's important for me is they're aware that I'm here."

"Will you and Brother Ren and Aoi still be able to get on good terms someday?" Saki asked worriedly.

For her, Ren and Aoi is really fortunate to have a relative whom they could depend upon. At least, they won't suffer the hardsh.i.p.s she and her brother faced by themselves all this time.

That is, if Ren and Aoi do have common relatives.

"Yes, everything will be okay," Myriel said as she gently patted Saki's head.

It isn't just a belief or a promise, it is a certainty.

Ren's attitude is but a minor setback in her plans. Soon, he'll realize what living in this world means without having the guidance of a competent god, especially now that the Lumiari has finally set its gears into motion.

'I'm not pressured or anything. Even without doing anything, I'm sure I'll get what I want sooner or later,' she smiled upon herself.

-----

Aoi and I found it hard to look at Saku and Saki after what happened earlier.

After all, Myriel wasn't just our visitor but also theirs, and being rude to a visitor is considered a disgrace in the industry where they belong.

"I say, if you need help regarding your problem with Miss Myriel feel free to ask us. We don't want you two to look gloomy like that," Saku said while prepping up the dishes.

"Ah, you don't have to...--"

"Hup! Resistance is futile, Brother Ren! You helped us when we had a problem with our family so we're just paying the favor!" Saki interrupted me.

Though they said that, it was Aoi who solved their problem in just a snap of a finger. I was present there, yes, but I didn't contribute to anything. Still--

"Okay, thanks." I should better get all the help I could find.

A few minutes later, a middle-aged woman came in a hurry and started looking around the place frantically.

Saku greeted the woman. "Ah good evening, dear Customer. What seems to be the problem?"

With her lips shaking, she replied. "M-My h-husband...is he h-here...?"

"Your husband is named Balm, right? I don't remember seeing him here today. Have you seen him, Nash?"

"He was supposed to drink with us here tonight but he didn't come. We thought that he's being grounded again by his wife so we just went on without him...we didn't realize he's been missing for a while now," the person named Nash replied.

"Everyone, did you see him today?" Saku asked all of their customers.

"No," everyone shook their heads. Seeing their response, the woman started to cry.

"Balm...where are you..."

Saku tried to make the woman calm down. "How long he's been missing anyway?"

"A few hours already."

"Uh, are you sure he didn't just went somewhere?" He asked.

The person in question has only been missing for less than a day. Surely he went somewhere for various reasons and unless he's having some extra affairs, he'll come back soon.

"No, no..." The woman continued sobbing. "He has a walking problem so he have to use his crutch whenever he goes out but this time, he..."

"Didn't bring it with him, is that correct?"

The woman nodded.

Saku clicked his tongue. "If we report it to the authorities they won't entertain us because that person's been missing for less than a day yet. We have no choice then but to look for him in the meantime."

"Please! Please find him! Without his crutch, his legs might break from his own weight!" The woman kneeled in front of Saku as she begged for help.

Everyone inside the inn didn't looked at her actions as embarrassing or funny. Everyone only thought that the woman loves her husband so much that she's willing to kneel in front of others just to seek help.

At that moment, the man named Nash and his companions stood up.

"We'll look for him!"

"U-Uhh..."

"After all, we're his drinking buddies. We can't just let his wife to all the searching, we'll do it for you."

His companions echoed his sentiments.

"Y-You..."

"I'll help too," I raised my hand and spoke.

"Ren?!"

"One of the things that I've learned in the past few days is that one must gather all the help that is currently available to him. Right now, I am available. I will also find her husband."

"B-But, it's already dark. Are you sure you'll find him at this time?" The woman spoke in worry.

"Then the more reason why we have to find him as soon as possible," Nash said. "Plate Town might be small and relatively safe, but we should not forget that this town's near the desert. Especially during the current season, there might be a chance of dangerous beasts lurking around to look for food."

A disabled person is very vulnerable at times like this. Even without those beasts, there's also the presence of criminals waiting for their potential victims.

"That's why don't worry ma'am, we will look for your husband," I said to her.

"T-Thank you! Thank you very much..." The woman spoke feebly as she clasped her hands together in a prayer.

-----

Balm and his wife lived at the end of the street where the Sandy Fish is located. Although it is still near the inn, his condition still makes his occasional trips to the inn very difficult. Nash and company thought that it's better to bring the woman first to their house and start our search there.

"...Just as when we have our own problems, big brother still butted into other people's problems. How troublesome," Aoi spoke heavily as she looked at the woman.

"Hey, no one asked you to come here, so go back if you don't want here."

She puffed out her cheeks at me when I said that.

"...Muuuu, but I don't want to leave big brother behind!"

"Haaah...you're the one who's more troublesome here," I said as I shrugged my shoulders.

Wherever I go, Aoi is also there. Even if it's obvious that she doesn't like the place where I'm going, she will keep her dissatisfaction to herself so that she could still be near me. While I appreciate her efforts, sometimes I also need to be alone for me to do the things I have to do.

"...Does big brother think that everyone's just wasting time searching for that person at his very home? Other than the people currently present, there's no one else around here."

By sensing the heartbeat of everyone around her, she concluded that Balm isn't anywhere near the vicinity of this house.

I shook my head. "I'm not sure, but according to the story there's a possibility that he's still near."

For the meantime, I asked Aoi to continue using her aura to sense the life force of anyone having difficulty walking. She said that she could try extending her aura range, but her accuracy would drop and it will use up more of her power reserves as a result.

I decided not to have her do that.

"Uhh, excuse me...can I ask you something?" I approached the woman while she's busy preparing tea for everyone.

"O-Oh, alright," the woman lightly nodded, her eyes are still red after all the crying she made earlier.

We had her rest for a while as we took the task to ourselves. Even though she insisted that she'll go with us, we told her to remain calm and composed.

"Um...it might sound rude for me to ask this, but do you know if your husband is...er, hiding something from you?"

"Hiding something...?"

"Yeah. Like an affair, or..."

I didn't continue with my words. Just from her eyes alone I could tell that I'm asking her too much questions already.

"P-Please forget what I said," I immediately apologized to her.

"No, it's fine." The woman lightly swayed her hand. "Now that you asked about it, I do suspect that Balm is having an affair with another woman right now."

Eh? He is?!

"We've been married for more than 20 years already however up to now, we still don't have a child. Maybe that's the reason why I'm thinking he wanted to find another woman, someone who could give him the things I can't give to him."

She spoke about it without showing any sign of anger or disappointment, as if it's alright with her having his husband do things like that. I don't know what struggles they have went to but for her to accept that fate is just, sad.

In our world usually it ends up in a heated confrontation, but here I think it's different.

"Still, if he does have an affair and he went to that woman, why would he forget his crutch? Is he trying to show to that woman that he's normal? Or maybe...--"

"You!" One of Nash's companions suddenly entered the house, panting heavily.

"What is it?"

"Did you see Nash go here?"

"I didn't. Aren't you guys looking for Balm together?"

"We are, but..."

According to him, for a moment their attention got drawn towards a little girl sitting just outside the woman's house. The girl noticed that they are looking at her, and she quickly turned her back in response. By the time they are asking Nash about it, they realized that he was already gone.

"That girl must be my sister. I'll go ask her if she saw him," I said, before excusing myself from the woman.

Aoi was feeling grumpy when she walked towards me. Since I know already the reason why, I didn't say anything more.

"...Those ugly men...looking at me with their perverted stares..." Aoi muttered angrily.

"Don't worry Aoi, I'll talk to them about it," I said to her. "By the way, do you know where Nash went?"

"...Who?"

"Um...the one who volunteered first to look for the missing person."

"...That one?" Aoi raised her eyebrows. "Sorry, I don't know where he went."

More like, she doesn't really pay attention to them at all.

"I see, so he must be looking for Balm somewhere...--"

{Last. Warning.}

"Wait, there are six people that came here from Sandy Fish. Can you check how many of us are here right now?"

"...Eh? I'll try, big brother..."

Aoi then closed her eyes. A few seconds later, she started counting.

"...One, two, three, four, five...five people."

Five? So Nash is indeed missing?

"...Wait, something's not right. One...I can't sense the heartbeat of one person--"

YAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

"T-That woman!"

I carried Aoi on my back, and rushed back to the house where the scream came from.

"Ma'am, what happened?!"

When we arrived we saw the woman visibly trembling as she sat on the floor. Her mouth are gaped open, probably due to extreme fear.

"Ma'am, are you okay? Your body is shaking..."

'Wait, where is that man from earlier?' I suddenly realized that he's not here.

"T-That..."

"Hm? What is it?" I asked to the woman.

Her hands are cold and shaking when I checked her pulse. There's something wrong going on here, isn't it.

"That man...he--"

With a shaky voice, she told us what happened.

"He was...eaten."

E-Eaten...?

"J-Just as when I'm about to serve him tea, a huge black monster appeared from the ground and grabbed his body...i-it has a mouth and it swallowed him w-whole...AAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!" The woman broke down in tears as she started to convulse.

"Black...hand?!"

Even Aoi was confused. Then she looked at the ground and said, "...I can't feel his presence below."

"Then, that means..."

Aoi only shook her head. Basically, it means that he is more or less dead by now--

BANG! BANG! BANGGG--!!!!! A series of explosions resounded loudly inside the house.

"IYYYAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!"

"...Big brother! This..." Aoi's mouth opened wide in extreme shock.

"Y-Yeah."

Huge trees made of entangling black hands appeared around us after the explosions disappeared. Each hand has eyes embedded around them, and hundreds of them look at a random direction inside the house.

Kkrk--

All of the eyes fixed their gazes at the three of us. The mouths at the palms also started to release saliva, showing their intent to eat us.

"Aoi, are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"...Nn," Aoi nodded lightly.

No doubt, these things are just--