"thank you for helping us"
"No, you people are the one who have helped us. No matter how much we thank you, it won’t be enough."
Arthur and the village chief bow their heads.
Mei let out a sigh in amazement at the sight she had seen since coming to this village.
"They’re doing this again..."
"Isn't it good? It means that we appreciate each other."
The merchant visited the village as planned, and Arthur and the others followed suit.
By also serving as an escort, they obtained permission to accompany him, and while the merchants were trading with the villagers, they went around the village to say their final greetings.
The villagers had prepared gifts along with words of gratitude ────
"heavy……"
Wreaths, furs, knives, wooden dolls, colorful stones, pickles────
Roa, who receive a lot of items and clothes that are far from they expected, frowns while feeling happy.
The other people were in the same situation, although there were some differences in what they receive.
"I'm grateful for your feelings, but..."
The first were the children.
As we were exchanging farewell with the villagers, the children approached us and gave us crowns and necklaces made of flowers.
When the villagers saw these children, they thought that they had to send something to them, so they took pickles out of their houses and handed them to them along with the jars, which they thought would last a long time so they could take them on a trip.
Although it was bulky, they accepted it with words of gratitude to not waste the villager’s feelings, but ─── in hindsight, this was a mistake.
The other villagers, if that's the case, all brought their own gifts, and Arthur and others were hesitant at first, they refused in earnest, but in the end they were overwhelmed by the momentum and ended up receiving all of them.
“It would have been difficult without Alphonse-san…”
Even Rinka seemed tired from the momentum of the villagers.
The merchant Alphonse, who came to the village, rode in a large carriage with two horses. We would be troubled if we were forced to walk with a large luggage to a nearby town that would take several days by horse-drawn carriage.
They just met today and didn't have a proper conversation, but the five people's affection for Alphonse was sky-high.
“Thank you for waiting. The carriage is empty, so please take your luggage inside.”
Alphonse, a well-dressed man compared to the villagers, returned after unloading.
The five triumphantly loaded their luggage onto the carriage while expressing their gratitude. Roa, who was tired of the large luggage early on, finished loading it early and put her hands together in front of Alphonse.
"Why are you praying for me...?"
"You saved my life. Thank you."
"Such an exaggeration"
"It's not an exaggeration. It's a suicidal act to carry that kind of luggage and walk in a place without knowing the geography."
(Even so, they don’t consider the option to throw away the luggage, so they’re probably a good child even if it's a little strange.)
"Repay the favors with work"
"Yes, we won’t let you down."
The other four people finished loading their luggage and were ready to leave.
“Alphonse-san, thank you again. Thank you for allowing us to accompany you.”
"No, no, if I didn't hire an escort, it would be troubling for me. It would be reassuring if everyone could join the escort."
"Is there any danger outside of this village if you didn't have an escort?"
"Yes, I've been around this area for nearly five years, but I've never seen a monster or bandit. Beasts will come out, but if you make a loud noise, you can usually drive them away... Or rather, for a business like mine, it wouldn't be profitable if I hired an escort every time I went."
"I see……"
While Arthur was learning the situation on the world, the villagers who had finished sorting out the goods received from Alphonse gathered.
"Everyone, thank you very much for your help."
"I'm the one who should be thanking you"
Arthur and the village chief were about to bow their heads again, but they stopped and shook hands.
Then the village chief took half a step closer and spoke in a voice that only Arthur could hear.
"I don't mind if everyone sells or throws away the gifts... I'm sorry that all of them are unfamiliar with traveling."
Returning the village chief's words with a wry smile, Arthur and the others get into the carriage.
Looking back from the advancing carriage, the villagers were waving.
Five people waved their hands back.
"Everyone stay well!"
As everyone saw off their benefactor's departure with a smile, a middle-aged man tapped the shoulder of the man next to him.
“And the boys and girls departed, and the villagers who had their lives saved saw them off with gratitude. Happily ever after... but there was only one middle-aged man who had fallen out of love, huh--- pathetic."
"Noisy, you're middle-aged too...wait, how do you know?"
The man who was tapped on the shoulder, Toga, glared at his childhood friend staring grudgingly.
The person himself may be trying to do his best, but from the point of view of a man who has known Toga since childhood, he is no different from a sulking child.
"Well, if an old man like you mixes up with a kid and makes a flower decoration that doesn't suit you, anyone can guess it."
"I said you’re an old man too... wait so you saw that?"
Toga, who was being seen in the place he least wanted to be seen, looks embarrassed and averts his gaze.
“It was hard to hold back my laughter, seeing you desperately trying to make that”
"shut up……"
"What, you're so not honest. Love changes people, but you didn't change that habit of yours."
"Do people change so easily?"
Toga poked the grinning face next to him and turned around.
Her expression was still gloomy, but her heart was strangely sunny.
People don't change easily.
Even if he is attacked by monsters and loses his life, even if he spends a dream-like night, the essence of human beings does not change.
A dramatic experience does not necessarily dramatically change one's life.
I am a woodcutter in a humble village, repeating my boring life ──── until now, and from now on.
From that day on, Toga's life did not change significantly.
If he's changed, it's only in small, really small things.
Just a little bit, actively learn various things────
He worked a little more seriously than before────
He's become kinder to people, just a little...
Truthfully, that's all there is.
Monsters no longer appear in Toga's dreams.
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