Magic Gems Gourmet

Chapter 275

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ED: LonelyMatter

Chapter 275 – To Balt, To Obtain Information About Dragons

The next evening, Ain woke up after sleeping for a few hours, ate a light meal, and went back to work.

His job mainly consisted of checking things at the inn.

A mountain of documents were piled up on the living room table.

“I wonder if Chris was working even after I went to bed.”

There was a cup on Chris’s seat that hadn’t been there before he went to bed.

It pained him to think that he had made her work so hard, but he was motivated to repay her.

“…Let’s get to work. Wait, what?”

As he looked at the pile of documents, he suddenly noticed a piece of paper.

He picked it up and saw that it was written in Katima’s handwriting.

“H-how kind…”

“I had some free time, so I tidied up a bit.” In short, that’s what it said.

She must have helped Chris with her work.

Looking at the pile of papers where the note was placed, he saw that the nearby documents had been carefully signed.

Looking closer, he saw that she had summarized the important points.

Like Ain, Katima must have felt a sense of crisis, which was probably why she helped out.

“I should finish this and thank her.”

He sat down on the sofa and reviewed the points Katima had summarized.

The summary included last night’s events, the results of the investigation into the underground laboratory, and the fact that Noish and the others were missing.

The ancient biological research facility and the surrounding area had already been sealed off.

In addition to questioning nearby research facilities, inquiries have been made to other related organizations.

Furthermore, by order of the royal capital, information about Noish and the others had been disseminated throughout the continent.

And…

“Access to the Ist Trading Company and Baron Albero’s residence… I see.”

However, Sylvird had sent a message regarding this matter.

He said that, instead of Ain, other knights and civil officials would be responsible for entering the Ist Trading Company.

It may be too late now, but he probably wanted to stop the crown prince from taking action.

Then there was the problem of the Baron Albero family.

Someone has volunteered to enter their premises and gather information.

It’s Marco, the living armor.

Marco, who was rejoicing at regaining his former strength, was going to enter the Albero baron’s residence.

“……Yeah, it’s excessive, but just this once… yeah.”

He would surely show his unwavering loyalty to Ain.

Since Krone and the others were in Strohm, he didn’t need to worry about that area.

“That leaves me with nothing to do in Ist…”

There shouldn’t be anything left for him to do.

Well, technically, there was something, but there’s no more work for him to do in Ist.

Everything has progressed to the point where it can be left to the knights and civil officials.

Although things went smoothly, what remained on his mind were the eggshells he found in the underground laboratory.

Only the disturbing facts about them remain etched in his mind.

“Will it take a little longer to investigate the shell? Well, I guess so.”

Since these were traces of creatures thought to be extinct, it would take time to investigate them.

It was only natural that they hadn’t been reported yet, he thought, sighing listlessly.

He continued skimming the remaining documents and realized they only required simple confirmation.

It didn’t seem like much work, so he slumped down on the sofa.

The sound of pages turning—one, two, three—echoed through the living room.

While checking the documents, he got thirsty and made some tea. Other than that, he devoted his time to reviewing the papers.

He still felt sleepy, but finishing quickly was a priority.

He yawned frequently as he slowly made his way through the pile, but…

“…Huh… Ain-sama… Are you awake already?”

“Good morning, Chris. Thank you for your hard work.”

Ain said, but his expression froze.

Seeing her rub her sleepy eyes, he froze, confused.

“…It’s okay. I’m used to staying up all night…”

She was either half asleep or had let her guard down.

Ain thought it was both, but hurriedly looked away.

“Nyahaha…”

Had she forgotten to change her clothes? No, she probably fell asleep in the middle of changing.

Chris put on a shirt and appeared to be wearing only that.

Although her skin wasn’t exposed, her feet were more exposed than usual.

When he looked at her from the sofa, her long, white legs caught his eye first.

“Y-you can sleep a little longer if you want.”

Chris was still half asleep.

Having come to that conclusion, Ain averted his gaze and returned to his paperwork.

In his heart, he couldn’t deny that he was confused.

“What… Does that mean I’m not needed?”

“No, no, no… That’s not what I meant. Chris hasn’t slept much either. Right?”

“A-are you leaving me behind again? I can’t go with Ain-sama to Balt again!”

He thought he had looked away. How did this happen?

Chris’s delusions grew, and she approached the sofa where Ain was sitting.

She eventually knelt down near Ain’s feet and looked up at him with pleading, puppy-like eyes.

(Her loyal dog trait has gone too far… No, wait!)

Perhaps because one or two buttons on her blouse were open, her chest was emphasized.

Her sweet scent, along with her pleading gaze, pierced Ain.

More than usual, his eyes were fixed on her moist lips and long eyelashes.

(It can’t be helped. I’ll put her to bed.)

Keeping his mind calm, Ain thought to himself, doing so for Chris’s honor.

It was so attractive that he needed to calm down.

Convinced he was right, he nodded to himself and stood up.

“Ah!”

Chris looked up anxiously, wondering if Ain was angry.

Without pausing, however, Ain reached out, took Chris’s hand, and started walking.

“We still have a long journey ahead of us, so I want you to get some rest, Chris. I’ve never thought of you as unnecessary, not even for a moment.”

“B-but…”

“It’s okay. Get some more sleep. I might wake you up later, so please forgive me.”

Soon, he stood in front of Chris’ room, opened the door, and gently pushed her back.

Looking nervous, she finally nodded, her cheeks softening as he stroked her head.

“I understand. I’ll rest a little longer…”

“That would be a great help. See you later.”

After seeing her off without incident, Ain quickly turned around and looked at the living room.

He saw a shelf where coats were hung and smiled defiantly.

He picked up the sword leaning against the table and said deliberately,

“Maybe it’s an intruder. It’s scary, so I’d better cut it down.”

With a sound like a shrill scream, he drew the sword.

With the blade flashing, he approached the shelf and acted out a scene.

“W-wait-nya! It’s me-nya! It’s Katima! I’m the first princess-nya!”

Katima hurriedly emerged from behind the cloak.

Out of breath, she glared at Ain with dissatisfaction.

“That’s terrible-nya! You shouldn’t threaten people like that-nya!”

“There were paw prints on Chris’ thigh.”

“What-nya!? That can’t be true-nya! I only helped her for two hours—Huh!”

“Listen, I heard you earlier. If you’re going to hide, you should do a better job.”

She was up to her tricks again.

Ain tapped Katima’s head lightly with the scabbard and gave her a questioning look.

“What-nya? I only helped Chris because she said she was sleepy-nya. I went to her room with her and gave her a change of clothes-nya. That’s all-nya.”

“Huh? So you didn’t try to undress her?”

“Nyaa… I wouldn’t do something so vulgar-nya. I’m a girl, after all-nya.”

Come to think of it, Katima did play pranks and make noise, but she never upset people.

This time, it’s something that would embarrass Chris if she found out. Now that it’s been pointed out, it makes sense.

“So, the reason Chris was exposed was…”

“She said she wanted to change before going to bed, so I gave her a change of clothes-nya.” She said she couldn’t undo the buttons, so I helped her-nya.”

Ain regretted getting angry earlier.

Katima really didn’t do anything wrong this time.

“Maybe she was just sleepy-nya. Compared to the past, Chris has become too attached to Ain, and she’s letting her guard down-nya.”

Ain agreed that they’ve gotten closer.

However, it would be embarrassing to bring up what happened earlier after she wakes up, especially if they are of opposite sexes.

“When Chris wakes up, could you mention it to her in a subtle way, Katima-san? Don’t tell her that I saw it.”

“It can’t be helped-nya. Good grief.”

“So, why were you there, Katima-san?”

“It looked interesting, so I was hiding and watching-nya.”

I take it back, Ain thought.

He regretted getting angry, but what was he going to do about her gossipy side?

Feeling emotionally torn, Ain let out a big sigh.

“Come to think of it, there was something I wanted to tell you after you woke up, Ain-nya.”

“…What was it?”

“About the eggshell you gave me-nya. I think it’s real-nya.”

That’s quite sudden.

He stares at her, wide-eyed.

“I did some research-nya. The traces are similar to those of the twins-nya.”

As usual, she’s an excellent Cait Sith. He never imagined she would finish her investigation in just one night.

“So, can you say for sure that it’s a dragon egg?”

“That’s right-nya. Also, I think there are probably twins inside the egg-nya.”

“…Are you serious?”

“Yes, I’m serious-nya. There were traces of two fully grown dragons-nya.”

“That sounds really difficult.”

Dealing with one is hard enough, let alone two.

He said it sounded difficult, but deep down, he felt an even greater sense of crisis.

“I think that if they’re given magic stones like our twins, they might grow at an incredible rate-nya.”

“Do you mean we have to go to a magic stone shop or a guild?”

“That’s impossible-nya. Magic stones are a necessity, so imposing restrictions would cause huge problems-nya.”

Ultimately, their priority was to pursue Noish and the others.

“We must investigate those who worship the Red Dragon-nya thoroughly.”

“Can we already confirm that it’s the Red Dragon?”

Ain asked, half believing and half doubting.

“We’ve come this far-nya. There’s no way it’s another dragon, right-nya? The conditions are too perfect-nya.”

“…I guess you’re right.”

There was no need for any other evidence or information.

Considering the color of the eggs, there was no doubt that they were red dragons.

At that moment, Ain’s mind was made up about his enemies and goals.

“Those who worship the Red Dragon are our enemies. The two Red Dragons that were born are dangerous, so we have to stop them.”

All the problems that had accumulated until then were solved at once.

The criminal organization, the man in the robe, the Ist Trading Company, and the Baron Albero family were all dealt with at once.

It was similar to when the red fox problem arose—they now had a clear goal.

“When are you going to Balt-nya?”

“I want to leave Ist by tomorrow morning. I want to hurry there and ask Sylvia-san about the red dragon and the previous incident involving it.”

He wanted to return to Strohm as soon as possible.

It’s possible that the key figures will return to the capital, where they will hold a meeting to discuss measures against the red dragon.

(Sigh… My birthday is coming up, but I didn’t ask for a festival like this.)

It’s not like Ishtalika to have nothing going on.

When he thought about it, he felt these events were inevitable.

When a country was large and had a large population, problems tend to arise in proportion.

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