'What?　Messenger (Mitsuka-sama)!

　One of the giant trees that fill the foot of the mountain.
　From the top of the tree, you can hear a confused human voice.

'Who's there?　If you don't come out, I'll consider you an enemy.

　Who and what's that? Ardis creates a magical block of ice and floats it around herself.

The first time I saw it, I had to say something.　I'm not the enemy, because I'm not the enemy!

　The owner of the voice comes down to the ground, hurriedly replying.

　It's a young man who has probably just come of age.
　You can still call him a boy.
　It's a good idea to be able to have a good idea of what you're looking for.

''Hey, without permission--!

　Then a girl about the same age came down with a panicked voice.
　This one is also dressed similarly to the boy.

''No, because no matter what you think, you would have been attacked if you kept going like that.

But that doesn't mean that you should show your face when you don't even know who you're dealing with.

It'll be fine. I mean, look at those twins. He's got a twin with him, so he's probably got a brother Jig with him.

　As he said this, the boy pointed to Filia and Liana, and they tried to hide behind Aldis' back.

''You look like you're insanely wary.

Jiggy said that's what you do out there.

　The girl gave him a still stare, and the boy returned the words as if to excuse himself.

'Is it about time?'

　Aldis interrupted the boys, who looked like they were going to leave us alone and just keep talking.

'Who are you people?　From the looks of it, you don't sound like a mercenary or explorer.

　The boy and the girl are not dressed for wandering around the foothills of the Canobis Mountains, which are infested with demons by all appearances.
　It's true that they have daggers and bows that are supposed to be used for self-defense, but they are too weakly equipped to deal with demons like the grinder and Yomiuri Praying Mantis for the carnivores of the grassland.

''What do we do?''

No matter what you do, these people will do it, won't they?

　In response to Aldis's question, the girl talks to the boy, but he doesn't seem to be troubled and asks back in a matter-of-fact way.

'What if they're dangerous people?'

But you know what? I mean, he looks just like the angel.

　The boy points to Nere, and the girl's eyes follow him.

The same face for sure, but ...... the hair color and eye color are completely different.

'Relatives ...... or something?　Doesn't the errand boy have one?

How would I know?

　The girl intensifies her speech as if in a bad mood.
　It might be more appropriate to describe her as irritated rather than angry.

''You seem to be worried about my face from earlier, do you have something to say?

Yeah, no, no, no, no, no, no. ......

　Suddenly, the boy blushed when Nere approached him.

'So?　Who are you people really?

　The first thing to do is to ask again, with a slightly stronger voice, when Aldis, fed up with the lack of a reply for goodness sake, asked again.
　The girl, perhaps sensing that it was bad to see that, opened her mouth instead of the boy.

It's a good thing that you're able to have a good time with them. It's not that we were thinking of doing anything with you guys or anything. On the contrary, I ask you, who are you guys?　What are you here for?

　But of course, to her, Aldis and the others were still a suspicious group that suddenly appeared. On the contrary, they turned to Aldis and questioned her.

　Aldis almost thought about how to respond for a moment and immediately stopped.
　He didn't expect to encounter a human being in a place like this, but the person in front of him is a hairy amateur.
　Even though they are armed, they only have magical power that is not even close to Aldis or even Char.
　There was no need to reveal his true identity, but he honestly revealed his purpose, as there would be no need to be alarmed.

''I'm just a traveling mercenary. Right now, I'm cutting through the foothills of the mountain range and heading north.''

''Let's see, ......, this area is supposed to be a pretty dangerous place for demons to come out .......''

So, here we are, armed to the teeth.

So that's the problem, isn't it?

　The girl, who had asked in a reserved manner, gave a complicated look when she heard Aldis' answer.

''If you don't intend to antagonize me, I have no use for you.

　I'm not going to do anything about someone I just happened to meet by accident, let alone if they're going to attack me.
　Ardis was about to ignore the two of them and walk away, when she suddenly stopped as if she remembered.

The first thing that comes to mind is that the settlement-like place just north of here could be yours?

　The girl rolls her eyes.

'Yeah, how do you know that?'

'Did your brother Jig tell you about this, by any chance?

　Aldis, who was unfamiliar with the name that popped out of the boy's mouth, tilted his head.

'Jig?　...... Who are you talking about?

Isn't that right?

　The boy utters a casual remark that I didn't expect.

'I thought it was because I have twins with me.

What's the problem with having twins with you?

　At that moment, Aldis's eyes pierced the boy sharply.

'Hee......!　There is none, sir!

　The boy must be fully aware of Aldis and the others' abilities.
　He hurriedly shook his palms from side to side to deny it.

　I don't know for what reason they are here, but at least they know how dangerous this magical world is.
　It's hard to believe that they don't know what Aldis and the others are capable of after passing through it unscathed.

What do you want to do?

Do what?

　The boy and the girl began to discuss the matter together, with Aldis and the others again, but their voices were too loud to be completely tuned in to the conversation.

'It's about whether or not we should take them back to the village,'

'Why are you bringing this up? I'm not being asked to take you to the village, okay?

'Cause I've got twins.　Besides, there are people with the same face as the messenger, so shouldn't we have them come to the village at once?

　The boy insists, and the girl begins to frown and think about it.
　It is only for a short time, and eventually the girl opens her mouth to see if she has come to a conclusion.

''Is the angel present today?''

'The chief wanted to talk to you about planting, so I'm guessing you're here?

Hmm ...... well, if that's what you mean.

　The girl who said the words of approval as if she had no choice but to turn to Ardis.

"Um, ......

What?

Would you like to come by my village?　I don't have any lodging, but I can at least rent an empty house for the night and some food ...... Oh, I'll pay for it. Of course.

　The boy followed by the girl opened his mouth to face Nere.

I'd like you to meet someone else. Well, there's a good chance he's simply a stranger's sorority.

Who do you want me to meet?

Of course, I'm not saying you have to.

　Nere removed his gaze from the boy, who added in a mysterious tone of voice, and asked Aldis to make a decision.

'What will you do, my Lord?

　Closing her eyes, Aldis thinks.

　It has already been a long time since they left Leytin.
　During that time, the group had been in the field for a long time.
　Unlike Aldis, who was used to traveling, the twins must have accumulated quite a bit of fatigue.
　Charu, who is not accustomed to outdoor activities, also has a bit of fatigue on his face, though he doesn't say it.

　Aside from food, it's great to be able to rest for the night in a covered area.
　It's a place I was planning to stop by in any case, as I was passing by.
　Aldis concluded that it would be rather convenient if they offered to show you around.

'...... All right, show me around. But as you can see, these boys are twins. Is that okay with you?

Oh. I don't care about that kind of thing, my village. I mean, we're twins to begin with.

　The boy's unexpected words surprised Ardis this time.
　Indeed, if you ask me, although there are differences between men and women, their faces are similar.
　The fact that they are twins must also be true.

''At least there's no one to look out for you just because you're twins, so don't worry about it.





　With twin siblings named Din and Karina respectively as guides, Aldis and the rest of the group headed to the village where they lived.
　They didn't get attacked by any demons or carnivorous beasts along the way, and after a very leisurely journey that made it hard to believe that they were in a magical area deep in the mountains, they arrived at a flat area where the trees had ceased to exist after an hour or so.

''That's our village,''

　The boy points to the houses of the people who live here with their roots in the land.
　Aldis understands that this is probably the place he discovered from above.

　From a distance, it looked like a nondescript village.
　Stone foundations and wooden buildings.
　Cattle, chickens and other livestock were roaming free inside the fenced-in area, and fields could be seen on the slope a short distance away.
　The figures of what appeared to be villagers were busily moving about, and it was hard to believe that this was the foothills of the Canobis Mountains, where even mercenaries rarely set foot.

　When he stepped into the village after his siblings, the eyes of the villagers were drawn to Ardis in one direction.

　It would be natural.
　It's not often that an outsider comes to a place like this.

　It's not only that, but Ardis has a sword at his hip.
　It was to be expected that they would look at him warily.
　It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for.

'Messenger-sama ......?'

　However, the word that came out of the villagers' mouths was again an unfamiliar one: 'Messenger.

　I'm not sure I'm going to be able to find the right one.
　And it's not just one or two of them.
　A young man working on the farm, a middle-aged woman washing clothes in a well, and an old woman nursing a child stop their hands and murmur "errand boy" when they see Nere.

What ......?

Come on out here. I want you to see the angel for now.

　Aldis and the others are led to the largest house in the village without fully understanding the situation.

Who is this messenger?　What does this have to do with Nere?

I don't care. Just go ahead and meet him.

　Din said and walked into the house without waiting for Aldis and the others.

'What do you mean?'

'Well, ......, I thought you'd find out sooner if you met me.

　I asked Karina about it, but she only gave me an inexplicable answer.

　I checked the magic power in the surroundings just to be sure, but there is no magic power anywhere large enough to pose a threat to Ardis and the others.
　While being on guard to open the 'gate' at any time to summon the flying swords, Ardis followed Din and Karina.

　Even though it was the largest house in the village, it was also said to be in a small village on the frontier.
　It was not that different in size from the house Aldis and his friends had made their residence in the Caucasian forest.

　Din and his companions took them into a large room which they assumed to be the parlor.
　And when they saw the person who was waiting for them there, they were stunned.

''Nah ......!''

　A primitive man and two oddly aged women sat on a sofa across a modestly built table.
　But Aldis's eyes were fixed on the other woman.

''Oh, you have an unusual girl here,''

　A woman looks at Aldis and the others and smiles softly.
　No, precisely, looking at Nere, who is standing behind Aldis.

'Huh?　Nere?

　Filia looked at the woman and rolled her eyes, her gaze busily moving back and forth between the woman and Nere.

　It was not unreasonable.
　Because the face of the person sitting on the sofa and smiling at us was a perfect match for Nere.