Chapter 17: Charlotte and the Former Slave Girl

Riven helped me out, and after thanking him, I took the girl into my care.

Well, saving her was all good and well, but now what? Honestly, I hadn’t thought that far ahead.

At least I managed to erase the bruises on her face with my healing magic.

…Before we left the inn, Riven seemed like he wanted to say something.

I already thanked him and apologized, so what was it? Maybe it was just a warning to be less careless.

Well, he did come along with me to the Stray Cat Inn, though! If I’m not supposed to be careless, then I need someone to guard me!

He looked pretty annoyed about it, so tomorrow I’ll make sure to thank him a little more properly. That’s about all I can do anyway.

Right now, it’s just me and the girl alone in the room I’m renting.

Later, I’ll ask the inn’s master downstairs if she can help out around the place.

"A-ano…"

"Hm? What’s wrong?"

"Is this really… okay? For someone like me, I mean…"

The girl still looked uneasy, so I smiled to reassure her, gently patting her head the way you’d comfort a child.

"It’s fine, really. I won’t abandon you."

After all, once I’ve picked her up, I’ve got to take responsibility.

I have some savings, but at this rate I’ll have to dip into them for a while.

She needs clothes, for one thing. And clothes are expensive in this world.

Guess I’ll have to piece something together from a second-hand shop. If I drag Riven along, he’ll probably get mad, so maybe I’ll ask one of the regulars or the inn’s master for help.

For now, I suppose I can fold up the hem of my tunic—you know, the one that looks kind of like a dress—and let her use that as a temporary outfit.

I took a closer look at the girl. She was wearing little more than tattered rags, her thin frame showing just how little proper nutrition she’d had.

Her hair looked blond, though it was so dirty that it had lost its shine. Maybe it would look beautiful if washed, or maybe that dull tone was its natural color. Her eyes, though—those were a striking purple. Lovely.

She looked about ten years old, give or take? Kids like this usually have stunted growth. Still, her features weren’t bad. With a little care, she could turn out to be a real beauty.

"So, what should I call you?"

"Eh? Um… me?"

"Yeah. Ah, if you’d like, I can think of something myself."

Sometimes names come with nothing but painful memories, so I wanted to be considerate.

A new name, a clean slate. That sort of thing can happen.

If she had an attachment to her current name, she would have spoken it herself.

"…All right. Please call me whatever you like, Onee-san."

"Nnngh."

"Onee-san?"

"N-no, it’s nothing. Just… never mind, okay?"

Yikes. That hit harder than I expected.

What is this situation? A cute girl looking up at me with obedient eyes—it really hits something deep inside.

I’m definitely going to try that myself sometime. Maybe I’ve already been doing it unconsciously.

"Then… Alice. Nice to meet you, Alice-chan."

"…Yes!"

Her bright reply came with a smile—the first I’d seen from her. It wasn’t like the sun, but more like a wildflower blooming in the field. Delicate and lovely.

This girl… might turn into a rival for the spot of poster girl around here. I’ll have to work on polishing myself up too.

Well, naming her Alice was kind of lazy on my part. Blonde hair, Alice. Her eyes weren’t blue, but purple’s close enough. It’s like naming a dog—I probably should’ve put more thought into it.

But she seemed happy with it, so… good enough!

"First things first, let’s get you cleaned up. Anywhere hurting? Charlotte-chan will fix it right up~"

"I-I’m fine!"

"Come on, show me. Show me~"

She resisted when I tried to undress her—probably embarrassed about showing her skin.

But I couldn’t just let her stay in rags forever. And taking her to the inn’s master while still filthy didn’t sit right either.

"Then I’ll wipe you down, okay?"

"Y-yes…"

I set aside her rags and let Alice-chan stand there bare.

Seeing her like that again was painful. Not only her face, but her whole body bore the marks of repeated abuse.

I wiped her down with a wet cloth, healing her with magic as I went so the scars wouldn’t remain—cleansing her in both senses of the word.

What kind of things had she gone through? It must’ve been so terrible that I can’t even imagine it. And yet, that girl worried about me… I need to respond to that sincerity with everything I can.

Once I finished wiping down her body, the dirt was gone. I carefully rinsed her hair with water, and its golden shine was starting to return. I wanted to make her look even cleaner, but that could wait. There was something I needed to do first.

I patted her dry and draped my clothes over her. The excess hem I rolled up and pinned in place. It was a simple fix, but at least it was better than rags.

"Okay then, will you come with me for a bit? Don’t worry, I’ll protect you."

"…Yes."

"Mm, thank you. Watch your step, alright? Be careful not to trip on the hem of your clothes."

When I held out my hand, she nervously placed hers on top of it. She looked just like a small animal—so cute that I couldn’t help but want to protect her. I decided right then and there: I’ll teach her all the little tricks I’ve learned to capture men’s hearts. But not the fake-cutesy act—it doesn’t suit her. Pure, childlike innocence will be her strength.

I took Alice-chan’s hand and led her down the stairs toward the tavern. On the way, I could see the tavern through the railing. A few scattered customers were there, nothing more. Soon the place would be full again. The master was at the back counter, polishing a tankard.

"Master, do you have a moment?"

"Mm."

That was all the reply he gave, more like a grunt. Alice-chan, already nervous around the customers, stiffened up even more. The master was a muscular man who gave off the aura of a seasoned fighter. Standing in front of him carried a weight of pressure. To me, he’s a ruggedly cool guy, but to Alice-chan, he’s still frightening. Or maybe just being an adult at all makes him scary. After all, she seemed afraid of the other customers too. How was it with Riven, I wonder? I think she might’ve been a little nervous around him as well.

"I’d like for this girl to work here at the tavern. What do you think?"

I showed Alice-chan to the master. She was trembling like a leaf, but there was no helping it. This was a hurdle she had to get over. I could support her for a while, but I’m a money sink myself, so there’s a limit. The sooner she has a job, the better.

"…Can she work?"

"I think she’ll need time to get used to people. But once she does, could you let her work here? I’ll probably be going dungeon diving more often, and I think another poster girl would be good for the tavern."

"…That’s true."

That was all he said before returning to polishing the tankard. Alice-chan looked up at me anxiously. So cute! No—focus. To ease her worries, I stroked the back of her hand.

"It’s alright. For now, you’ll only work when I’m with you, okay?"

"B-but…"

"Ah, worried about permission? It’s a bit hard to tell, but what Master just said means he agreed. Right?"

Without stopping his work, the master gave a nod. Alice-chan blinked in surprise, puzzled. The truth is, the master just doesn’t talk much. When I first drifted into this place, it was the same. Back then, I thought he was hiding something and tried all sorts of ways to get a straight answer, but looking back now, what a waste of effort that was.

In the end, he’s just bad at talking. Especially weak against crying girls. He’s a rare one in this town—a man with real compassion.

It seemed that a little of that had reached Alice-chan too, because though timidly, she looked at the master.

The master’s gaze turned toward her.

Her body jolted sharply in fear.

"…First, get some rest."

With just those words, the master carried the tankard he’d been polishing back into the rear of the tavern.

Alice-chan sat there, mouth agape, looking dazed. She probably hadn’t expected that. Honestly, the sight was a little amusing—he doesn’t exactly look like the gentle type, after all.

"Hey, Charlotte-chan! Who’s the girl?"

One of the regulars, seated at a table, called out to me. It was getting close to evening, so he’d clearly had a few drinks. That meant I should be a bit cautious.

"This is Alice-chan. She might be in your care from now on."

"Oh, a newcomer, huh? Nice to meet ya, young lady."

"Hii…!"

The regulars were adventurers, so naturally, most of them were rough-looking men. Even if the master’s face was the scarier one, what’s frightening is still frightening to her.

"Hey, hey, is this kid gonna be alright?"

"Seems like she’s had some bad experiences with adults. Please, be gentle with her, okay?"

"Got it! Leave it to me!"

I flashed him a smile to sweeten the request, and he gave a cheerful agreement. His booming voice must have startled her, because Alice-chan shrank down in her seat. I soothed her with a gentle "It’s okay, it’s okay." There, there.

"Still, this place used to be just some out-of-the-way eatery, but it sure has changed."

"Ahaha."

"Feels like things picked up ever since Charlotte-chan showed up. It’s the flower, you know—gotta have the flower."

"Oh, come on, you care more about your booze than any flowers."

"Ain’t that the truth! Gahahahaha!"

I bantered back and forth casually with the regular, and suddenly I felt eyes on me. When I looked, Alice-chan was watching me with a gaze full of respect.

I gave her a wink in return, as if to say, You’ll be doing this kind of thing too, someday.

"For today, just watch, okay? Sit over there and observe how I work."

Alice-chan gave me a timid nod. Good. At least she was starting to look forward a little.

After that, evening came and the tavern hit its busy hours. I poured all my energy into serving. And the new poster girl sat quietly in the corner of the tavern, watching me the whole time.