“Hey, Lark-kun. Are you really going back today?” After playing in the river for a while, Rin, who had been energetic until now, suddenly spoke in a gloomy voice.

Surprised by her voice, I looked at Rin, who had a sad expression. I looked into Rin’s eyes seriously and nodded, “Yeah, I have to go back, or everyone will worry. I’m sorry.”

“No, I’m the one who should apologize. I just wanted to be a bit selfish… You have your own family, Lark-kun.” Rin smiled, but it was clearly forced.

It’s sad for me to part ways too, but Rin’s behavior is a little unusual. …Should I ask her about it?

“Hey, Rin. If you’re lonely by yourself, why don’t you go to an orphanage?”

“N-No, that won’t work. It would be a bother to go just because I’m lonely.”

This is it. Why is she so stubborn about not wanting to enter the orphanage? Moreover, just now, I saw a flicker of fear on Rin’s face when she heard the word “orphanage.”

At that moment, an idea crossed my mind. “Could it be… you don’t get along with the children at the orphanage?”

“Ah!” In response to my words, Rin trembled involuntarily.

I see, so that’s why she doesn’t want to go to the orphanage…

Rin remained silent for a while but eventually began slowly telling me about her situation, “…The thing is, I’m not really a child born in this village. I was abandoned in the forest when I was a baby, and that’s when my father and mother found me and took me in.”

“You were abandoned as a child…”

“Yeah. My appearance was completely different from my father and mother. My hair and eye color are blue, but both of them had brown hair and brown eyes. My parents loved me as if I were their real child, but the children at the orphanage, who had no parents, didn’t take kindly to that… They bullied me because I looked different from them. I wasn’t lonely when my parents were alive, but after they died in an accident, I had no friends and was all alone…”

While she was speaking, Rin had a face that seemed on the verge of tears.

“…I’m sorry for bringing up painful memories,” I bowed my head to apologize, and Rin hurriedly shook her head, “N-No, Lark-kun, you don’t need to apologize!”

“No, it was thoughtless of me. So, I’m sorry.”

An awkward silence hung between us. The atmosphere was far from the playful mood of playing by the river, and we both left the river without a word.

As we returned to the main street of the village, I saw Mr. Kent walking hastily. Mr. Kent, who was looking around, noticed us and approached with a relieved smile. “Lark-sama, are you safe? I went to the inn earlier, but they said you hadn’t stayed overnight, so I was looking for you.”

“Ah, I see… Sorry for making you worry. I stayed at Rin’s house last night.”

“Rin-chan’s? I-Is that so… Lark-sama, please get along with Rin-chan.”

“Yes, of course. In fact, we’re already good friends.”

As I said that and looked at Rin, she smiled and nodded, “Yes, Kent-sama. I’m already friends with Lark-kun.”

“I see, that’s good to hear… By the way, Lark-sama, could you spare some time? And… would Rin-chan like to come along?”

When Rin and I nodded, he then said, “This way,” and started walking.

The place they arrived at following Kent’s lead was a building that was one size larger than the other houses.

“Why are we at Nagisa-sama[1]‘s house…?”

I heard Rin mutter in a low voice next to me. It seemed that this was his house. We entered the house and were led to a room that resembled a Japanese-style room.

Prompted by Mr. Kent, Rin and I sat facing him on the floor, which felt like tatami mats.

“I’m sorry, Lark-sama. I apologize for the sudden request.”

“No, don’t worry about it. Um, why were we called here?”

“Actually, this morning, there was a report from one of the patrol members that a powerful magic-emitting monster was discovered in the mountains behind.”

“A monster? What kind of monster is it exactly?”

“According to that person, it’s probably an ogre.”

An ogre.

A giant humanoid monster with a strong physique and sturdy horns. According to the monster encyclopedia I read before, it was said to be of the level that required a party of C-rank adventurers to form a group and challenge it. If the information from the patrol is correct, there is a considerably dangerous monster nearby.

Rin looked anxiously at Mr. Kent and asked for confirmation,” “An ogre… Nagisa-sama, is that true?”

“Yeah, it’s true. That’s why Rin-chan should stay at our house as a temporary shelter.”

“…”

When Mr. Kent made that suggestion, Rin shook her head in silence. As if he had anticipated that response, he continued to persuade Rin calmly, “Your house is far from the village, so it’s dangerous. If the ogre comes down from the mountains…”

“I don’t want to! My mom and dad are waiting for me!” Without listening to Mr. Kent’s words until the end, Rin rushed out of the room.

He then let out a small sigh and then turned to me to speak, “…Lark-sama. We can handle the ogre issue ourselves for a few days, but it’s impossible for only the villagers to subjugate it. Could you please submit a request form for ogre subjugation at the guild?” he said, before taking out an envelope from his pocket and handed it to me.

I accepted the envelope and expressed my concerns to him. “Understood… Um, what about Rin?”

“Don’t worry. I’ll go and persuade her now. Lark-sama, it’s time for you to head back. Please go to the meeting place with Boris-san.”

“Alright, thank you.”

I had a little anxiety, but I thought everything would be fine if I left it to Mr. Kent, so we left the house together. After seeing him off, who was heading towards Rin’s house, I made my way to the meeting place with Boris.

A few minutes passed after our arrival, and Boris arrived with a carriage.

“Lark-kun, sorry for making you wait. Did I keep you waiting?”

“No, I just arrived a moment ago, so it’s fine.”

“That’s good. By the way, there was quite a commotion in the village, was there something going on?”

“Oh, didn’t Boris-san know about it?”

I told him what Mr. Kent had told me.

After hearing the story, the man’s expression turned serious. “So, something like that happened. In that case, let’s hurry back to the capital.” He then urged the horse forward at a slightly faster pace.

A few minutes after the carriage departed, I heard Shafal’s voice in my head.

(…Lark)

(Huh? …Ah!)

Oh no! I completely forgot to give Shafal his meal yesterday!

Shafal continued to communicate with me through telepathy in a calm tone.

(…Didn’t you promise me something before going to the village? Don’t come out on your own in the village because I don’t want anyone to see you. In return, I’ll prepare the meal at the right time.)

(I’m sorry, Shafal! I completely forgot.)

I glanced at Boris-san, who was focused on driving and looking ahead.

I discreetly let Shafar out and handed him about ten rice balls from the “Useful Box.”

“Sorry, really sorry.”

I apologized in a low voice, and Shafar snorted, “…Well, I’ll forgive you just this once.” He said briefly and started munching on the rice balls.

As I let out a sigh of relief, Boris spoke without turning towards me, “By the way, it’s quite rare for an ogre to appear in a place like this. Based on my experience, it’s the first time I’ve encountered something like this.”

“Eh?! Is that so?”

“…Is something the matter?”

Surprised by the sudden interruption, I became flustered, causing Boris to look at me suspiciously. I hurriedly returned Shafal inside my body and continued the conversation with him.

“Oh no, it’s nothing. Rather than that, are ogres not appearing around this area?”

“Yeah, ogres are monsters mainly found in the neighboring country of Leblanc. They usually inhabit the foothills of the Silver Dragon Mountain.”

“Silver Dragon Mountain…?”

I recalled that a few months ago, I encountered no monsters when descending from the Silver Dragon Mountain. At that time, Shafal had said, “They were scared by my own magical power and ran away.”

…Could it be?!

With a sense of unease, I spoke to Shafal in my mind. “Hey, Shafal. Just maybe, the ogre that appeared in Nihori came from the Silver Dragon Mountain, didn’t it?”

“Hmm… That might be possible. However, it’s not entirely my fault, you know? That place is practically my territory!”

The dragon made excuses in a strong tone, as if feeling blamed.

I didn’t intend to blame Shafal, but I couldn’t help but feel him being responsible for the situation.

“I wonder if Kent-san and the others are alright…”

Muttering to myself, Boris nodded firmly, “…They should be fine. The people of Nihori are excellent at responding to disasters. They recovered swiftly even during the large-scale landslide a few years ago. There might be some damage, but I think they’ll manage this time too.”

Landslide… It refers to the accident where Rin’s parents passed away.

“I hope Rin is okay…”

As I worriedly glanced towards the village—Boom!! An explosive sound echoed, followed by a blast strong enough to shake the carriage.

“What was that!?”

Getting off the carriage, I looked in the direction where the explosion occurred. Black smoke was rising from Rin’s house.

“Ugh! Boris-san, I’ll be right back!”

Reactively applying full-body enhancement magic, I sprinted towards Rin’s house with all my strength.

“Please be safe. Rin!”

Although I didn’t know the true nature of that explosion, it’s natural to assume that ogres are involved based on the situation.

While running, I confirmed my own status with “Appraising Eye.”

[Name] Lark Voltoris

[Age] 12

[Race] Human

[Gender] Male

[Status] Impatience

[Level] 41

[SP] 400

[Strength] 4307 (+17)

[Mana] 4905 (+11)

[Agility] 4581 (+10)

[Dexterity] 3108 (+8)

[Luck] 51

[Skills] Cooking: 4, Useful Box: 3, Daily Life Magic: 1, Appraising Eye: 3, Short Sword Technique: 3, Mana Control: 3, Sewing: 2, Concentration: 4, Faith: 5, Wordless Incantation: 3, Synthesis Magic: 4, Presence Detection: 3, Martial Arts: 3, Swordsmanship: 2, Physical Ability Enhancement: 3, Poison Resistance: 1, Mental Resistance: 3, Hunger Resistance: 1, Fire Magic: 4, Wind Magic: 4, Water Magic: 3, Earth Magic: 2, Light Magic: 1 , Dark Magic: 1, Thunder Magic: 1, Ice Magic: 2, Holy Magic: 1 , Null Magic: 2

[Special Abilities] Enhanced Memory Capacity, World Language, EXP Amplification: 10x, God’s Veil,

[Divine Technique] Miraculous Sacred Light, God Summoning Magic

[Blessings] Samadyla’s Protection, Magilt’s Protection, Goldra’s Protection

[Title] The Reincarnated, The God’s Host, The Blessed, Individual who has Reached the Limit, Believer, Divine One

“Divine”

Some of my skills have increased in level since the last time I checked my status, but I’m not sure if that’s enough to fight against ogres.

…That’s right! When I asked about Shafal’s status before, he said it was around an average of 5000. Since then, he also absorbed my mana, so he should’ve become somewhat stronger…!

I spoke to Shafal in my mind.

(Can Shafal defeat the ogre based on your status now?)

(If that ogre is a normal individual, I might be able to handle it in my current state. However, the magical power I sense coming from the direction of the explosion is not that of an ordinary ogre. Based on my estimation, the one over there is probably a subspecies…)

A subspecies of a monster.

It is said that subspecies are the forms in which monsters undergo sudden mutations for some reason and are several times stronger than regular entities.

(Why would there be a subspecies…)

(…It’s possible that when I returned to the Silver Dragon’s Mountain, it absorbed the mana I was releasing and underwent a mutation.)

(Absorbed mana…?)

(All monsters, including myself, grow by absorbing mana. It wouldn’t be strange to think that it became a subspecies as a result of gaining my immense mana… It’s not my fault, you know? Normally, they shouldn’t undergo mutations. Besides, if I weren’t getting old, I wouldn’t have been able to release magical power. Aging is tough…)

(I’m not blaming you. I just hope you can help me in battle.)

(Understood. I won’t run away.)

Continuing the conversation with Shafal, I hurried to Rin’s house.

As I approached the distance where the house would be visible in about a minute, a roaring sound, “Gurōōō!” echoed from ahead. At the same time, a strong magical power tingled on my skin.

I rushed to Rin’s house at full speed.

“Ugh!”

One minute later, I arrived at Rin’s house. The building was partially destroyed, and near it was a large black monster resembling a demon.

The black ogre, which must have been over three meters long, was approaching Rin and Mr. Kent.

[1] I think its Kent’s last name.