The person I met by chance was one of the legendary party members who once traveled with Noin-san, Fors, the Wise Man of the Forest.
　No, I was really surprised. There must really be some reason for this.


Oh, of course. But it's been a long time since I've seen Nong. I haven't seen Noin for a while. That idiot from Laguna often comes to take me out of the house. What do you think?　Should I be happy that I have a good friend who cares, or should I be saddened that I'm being dragged around to be used as a reason to throw out a troublesome meeting...friendship is a difficult thing. Especially since, you see, I'm 'shy and quiet'. Forced removal is hard for me...
What?
Yeah?

　I thought I heard an impossible word now. Who said I was shy and quiet?　.... what an auditory hallucination.

'No, it's nothing. S-So, more importantly, aren't you meeting up with Laguna-san?
'Come to think of it, I did. But it pains me to say this, but I'm raving about being lost. No, to begin with, I am completely unfamiliar with the place, so it is inevitable that I am lost. It is true that I am to blame for my lack of foresight, but I don't think I'll be able to reach the central square or anything like that if I don't.
....

　

What time do you want to meet up with Laguna-san?
Is it time?　It's nine in the morning. Well, given my current situation, it's not clear to me how much significance this time factor has.
''Well I'm just on my way to the central square, so if you'd like to go with me?
'My God, are you a saint?　I hear that the number of young people who have the compassion to reach out to those in need is on the decline these days, and you don't seem to fit the bill. No, I'm sorry. It's not a good idea to measure you as an individual by statistical information. Forget what you just said.
'Yes, yes but we'll continue on the move...'

　If I kept up with Fors-san's machine gun talk, I was going to be late for the meeting too, so I decided to move quickly.
　However, there is a difference in stride between me and Mr. Fors, so I make sure not to walk too fast.

''Oh no, I'm bothering you again and again. As I said before, I also know what politeness is. As I said before, I know how to be polite. For now, how about it?　I know a place that serves very good 'eyeballs'...
I'll just take your kindness.
'Mmm, I wonder if young people these days don't like eye-candy?　This is a pity, because I'm not very sensitive to trends. Now, there is a restaurant that offers quite a variety of 'insect cuisine'...
''No thank you. I'm not helping you because I want to thank you for your help, so your kindness is enough.

　That's not a thank you anymore, it's a punishment!　An eyeball dish and a bug dish - I don't want to eat it from the bottom of my heart.
　I mean, does Forus-san usually eat such things?　No, no, well, they say that people's tastes are different, but.......unfortunately, the day will never come when I can relate to it.

　Despite having such thoughts, when I softly tell her that she doesn't need to thank me, Fors-san's expression changes to one of admiration.

''My God, you are truly humble. That's a very common compliment, but it's truly wonderful. But hmmm. I'm not proud of myself for not thanking you for this. But that doesn't mean I can't think of something that will satisfy you. I'm afraid I'll have to take a moment to thank you. I'll try to think of something extraordinary to thank you.
Okay, I understand.
'Oh, which reminds me, I once studied magic related to cooking...'

　Mr. Fors's machine gun talk went on and on until they reached the central square.







　When I reached the vast central square and moved my gaze, I couldn't find Mr. Laguna, but I was able to find Mr. Noyn and Dr. Fea right away.
　Ms. Fors said she knew Noyn-san as well and hadn't seen her in a long time, so she approached Noyn-san and the others first.

''Excuse me, Noin-san, Fea-sensei. I'm sorry to have kept you waiting...''
No, we just arrived too early. They're your pets, aren't they, they're both so cute?
'Good morning. Kaijin-san........oh?　Who's the lady over there?

　When I call out to him while apologizing for making him wait, Fea-sensei first replies gently, and Noin-san follows suit, and after greeting him, I turn my attention to Fors-san behind me.

''Oh, Noin!　Long time no see!　It's been, what, 30 years?　I'm glad to see you're doing well too.
'What?　Um... "Who are you?
"What?

　Fors-san spoke to me with a bright smile, but Noin-san tilted her head in a heartfelt wonder, and her unexpected reaction caused me and Fors-san to tilt our heads as well.
　Huh?　We're all friends who traveled together, aren't we?　I'm sure Mr. Noin's character isn't joking... what's going on?

'Oh come on, what a sad word. I'd be shocked too. To be forgotten by a companion who has traveled with you, who has shared your joys and pains is certainly a creature of forgetfulness. The act of forgetting is probably a qualification given to many creatures. But even so, I think there are a certain number of things that should not be forgotten, don't you think?
"...well, the hair and the eyes and the mind-numbing way he talks...could it be that he's a phallus... ...?
'What, you remember......you've lost your character. You used to be the kind of person who would make jokes like that...
No, what?　Ho, are you sure it's Forus?!
Yeah?　What else does it look like?
What?

　Apparently, Noin-san remembered Fors-san, but he still didn't think that the person in front of him was like that.
　What the hell does that mean........

'Hey, why are you 'shrinking'!

　Shrinking?　Mr. False?

Hey, hey, what are you so surprised about?
'No, no, because........Fors was 'taller than me and had bigger breasts'!　Why do you look like such a child...
'Oh, yes, I remember. I'd forgotten all about it; it was about fifteen years ago, I think.　You see, in a large group of people, there's someone who's not doing anything special, but who is very underrepresented?　I made a 'potion to reduce the size of the signs' in reference to that thing... and then, interestingly enough, my body became smaller, not the signs. Hahaha!
'Haha... not haha... not!　Why are you taking such a nonsensical drug!
What do you mean, I'm a humanitarian researcher. What do I do with my own body?　Well, things can go wrong!　Yeah, except, of course, for the life-threatening drugs. I mean, we don't make those things, but...

　Finally, I understood why Noyne-san was so surprised. Apparently, Ms. Fors was an adult woman who was taller than Ms. Noin in her original form.
　However, when I saw her again after a long time, her body was about 130cm. Well, you can't tell........

''.........or rather, 15 years ago.......you can't go back to the original?''
No?　I've saved all the recipes for the pills I've made, and it's easy to make a pill that can be reversed.
Well, then, why would you...
'This figure is convenient in this form. "It's convenient for me to look like this, I only need to eat a small amount of food and I have great energy. On top of that, interestingly enough, I haven't gotten any younger. I still have my magic power... rather, the 'two lumps of fat' that used to be in my way are gone, and my stiff shoulders are gone. It's difficult to pick up things from high places, but that can be dealt with by a pedestal or magic. The body is just a vessel for the flesh, I don't care about it at all.
''Huh ... you ... you ... really ...''

　Noin-san looks heartily tired and slumps his shoulders in a gulp. It's no wonder, Fors-san's character is far too dense. It's extremely tiring to deal with this person........

　Dear Mother, Father - Apparently, Fors-san seems to be the kind of person who conducts human experiments on his own body, and Noin-san was also quite dumbfounded. I mean, the vector is unique, but Fors-san is definitely--a mad scientist.