Leaving the mines, Igni walked straight back to town. Elina and the 2 others were going to remain at the small cottage. They probably thought it would be easier for Igni to speak with his friend alone.
And that’s why Igni headed back by himself.
As soon as he arrived at the village, he saw Yoori walking next to an elderly man.
Yoori: “Grandpa, you’re pretty old in age now, so you shouldn’t be walking around like that. It’s dangerous.”
“Well now, when I was younger, we had plenty more geezers who were far older than me and much healthier too.”
Igni: “Yoori, can we talk?” Yoori: “Oh, Igni. Yeah, that’s fine. Good bye, Grandpa.”
“Oh, is this one of your friends, Yoori?”
Igni: “Yes, Yoori has been a very good friend to me. My name is Igni.”
Igni bowed politely to the elderly man.
“Oh, no, no. That’s what we would like to say to you. Yoori is my precious grandson. Please take good care of him.”
And the elderly man bowed his head very low.
Igni: (Grandson. So is this Yoori’s grandfather?)
But Igni could not see the resemblance between the two……
Yoori: “LーLet’s go, Igni.” Igni: “YーYeah…..”
It was rare for Yoori to be tugging at Igni’s sleeves, and Igni was a little surprised to see how Yoori wanted to get away from his grandfather.
Yoori: “So what’s wrong, Igni?” Igni: “There was something I wanted to talk to you about.”
Yoori: “Okay, that’s fine. Where do you want to talk?” Igni: “Some place where there’s not many people will be good.”
Yoori: “Then let’s go back to the cottage where you’re staying. Villagers typically do not enter that area.”
WIth Yoori’s suggestion, he drew and held Igni’s hand as they entered the cottage. Outside of it, they saw Miss Ella hanging and drying the washed clothes. Igni was grateful.
Yoori: “So what did you want to talk about?” Igni: “...........yeah, let’s see. Where should I start?” Igni placed a hand on the table as he thought.
But, in the end, he decided to start from the beginning.
He explained how they found the monster that the “Black and White Sisters” were talking about.
And how they found out that it was actually not a Monster, but a product of human stagnation.
And the fact that that stagnation was looking for Yoori.
Yoori: “.......it was looking for me….”
Igni: “So, I wanted to ask you. ……and if it’s something you can’t tell me, that’s fine too, but……did you do something?” Yoori: “At the mines…..you mean?”
Igni: “Yeah.” But Yoori suddenly got up out of seat.
Yoori: “IーI haven’t done anything!!”
Igni: “Whoa?! OーOkay. I understand.”
And because Yoori suddenly shouted, Igni was caught off guard and shocked.
Igni: “I’m sorry, Yoori. I didn’t think you would have done anything either. But I wanted to know if you knew anything that would help us get to the bottom of this.”
Yoori: “Oh…….yes. OーOf course. I’m sorry for suddenly yelling.”
Igni: “No, don’t worry about it. I should have worded that better.”
I’m sure being questioned about the origins of a human stagnation that was so potent that it took on a life of its own would at best, sound kindly suspicious.
Igni: (I should have been more careful in how I approached the subject…..)
Igni was not one to overlook improving these kinds of mistakes.
Yoori: “But……..sorry. I probably…….don’t know anything.”
Igni: “........IーI see. Thanks anyway, Yoori. And do you think you would know anything else? I’m talking about what happened at the mines. I hate to put it this way, but Yoori is not that uncommon of a name, right? So I thought there might be a possibility that another Yoori may have done something.”
Yoori: “.......yeah, that’s true. That could be the case. But sorry. I’ve been at the Academy all this time, so I don’t know much about the mines. You saw how few letters I got from here right?”
Igni: “Yeah, now that you mention it….”
Igni agrees to Yoori’s words.
Indeed, Yoori did not receive many letters from his village.
He received one letter confirming whether he was coming back during the summer break.
Thinking through it more calmly now, it’s unlikely that Yoori would have known anything about what happened in those mines.
But the description of the person the human stagnation was looking for was without a doubt, Yoori.
That’s why Igni let out a soft exhale……and relaxed.
Igni: “Well, if that’s the case, then it can’t be helped. Sorry to waste your time.”
Yoori: “That’s okay. We’re friends after all.”
Yoori smiled.
Igni: “Well………I’m always looking for more information, so if you learn of something, please share it with me.”
Yoori: “Yes, I’ll do what I can to help.”
Yoori reached out a hand to shake Igni’s.
Igni: “Then I’ll go back now. You have some work to do here right, Yoori?” Yoori: “Well, a job of some sort. It’s helping out with the farmlands.”
Yoori laughed a little embarrassed and pivoted on his heels.
Igni: “Hey, Yoori.”
Yoori: “.........what’s wrong, Igni?” Yoori answered without turning back around.
Igni: “I’ll always think of you as one of my precious friends.”
Yoori: “Me too.” Igni: “<No matter what happens.>”
Yoori made a short gasp at Igni’s words.
Yoori: “........Igni, you really are cool.”
And leaving it at that, Yoori exited the cottage.
After a while, Igni departed too to regroup with the other 3.
Even though the town is near the mines, it’s still a little ways away, and it takes a little over 10 minutes to walk one way. As he walked the path, Igni continued to think.
“Hey! Igni! How are you doing?!?!”
An ear-ringing volume hit his eardrums from the right side, and Igni’s heart stopped for a moment.
Igni: “AAAGHH?! Such a loud voice?! What?! Who?!?!”
“It’s me!! Me!! Are you well?!?!”
Igni: “MーMr……..HーHowell…..sir”
Igni almost forgot to add any formalities to addressing Howell.
Howell: “Yes! It’s Howell! But you are dating Elina, right?! You can call me Brother Howell if you like!!”
And the giant of a man laughed out loud, and without a doubt, the man that stood before Igni was the 3rd son of the Owlight family, Howell.
Igni: “WhーWhy are you here?’
Howell: “Oh! I was just a little worried for you all and came flying over here! I was bored at home anyways!! If you are alive, I’m glad.”
Igni: “........thank you.”
Igni could not grasp Howell’s personality and character quite yet, so he answered with care and suspicion. But as soon as he was about to depart, Howell’s smile broadened.
Howell: “But Igni! You seemed concerned! Did something happen?!”
Igni: “Well, something did and…..it is true that I am concerned.”
Howell: “Then tell me! I graduated top of the class at everything at the Rolmod Wizard Academy! I may be of some assistance!!”
Igni: (He does have a point there.)
And Igni decided to share their experience in the mines while leaving out some critical details.
Howell: “Hmmmm!! A human stagnation that obtained consciousness!! That is indeed interesting!! If possible, I would have made that my graduate thesis!!”
And Howell laughed even louder than before.
Howell: “But Igni! I would not know how a human stagnation became sentient like that, but I do have a guess at why so much human stagnation gathered there!”
Igni: “..........really?” Howell: “Of course! You need to put more faith in your former upperclassman, Mr. Underclassman!”
And Howell puffed out his chest with confidence.
Igni: “......then could you tell me?” A memory from the past stings Igni in the back of his mind at this moment.
<<<<>>>>
[About my second request………I want you to put my 3rd son Howell in his place.]
[In his place……? Like humble him somehow?]
[Indeed. Right now, things are going too well for him, and he believes himself to be at the top of the world. Igni, I would like for you to beat Howell in a match.”
[Mr. Seta. Why couldn’t you do that?]
[Even if he loses to me, he would not see it as a setback.]
And Seta puffed his piped a little more forcefully.
[From a while ago, he’s been getting more and more out of hand.]
And Igni wrinkled his face in thought as he spoke.
[But you would really ask me to do that for you?]
And answered Seta.
<<<<>>>>
But the Serpentine Road is just that ー a slithering, winding road.
Igni decided to trust Howell.
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