"Monster horde??"
Allen turned in surprise. Beside him, Sylphy huddled into her fluffy collar, legs dangling and lightly swinging as she sat on the bench. Her eyes met Allen's startled gaze head-on, her lashes trembling slightly, the tips of her pointed ears twitching just a little.
This winter, Sylphy had been spending her days "studying" at the Greyrat house. Every morning, she was brought over by either her mother or Laws, and picked up again in the evening.
In front of her was a book titled The Ecology and Weaknesses of Monsters in the Fittoa Region. Many pages were marked with small annotations, with side stories expanded in the margins.
It was originally a collection of Roxy's travel anecdotes—compiled over a week with Zenith's permission—intended to give her stories for the children each night, so she wouldn't lose her teacherly authority by getting stuck mid-narration.
Blue Mom took her teaching very seriously.
And now, the book had clearly become Sylphy's favorite extracurricular reading. She had read it cover to cover, over and over.
"A few days ago, that's what Father said. I didn't ask for details, but he didn't look too good."
Allen glanced at her shoulder-length green hair, now somewhat bunched up under the collar. He instinctively reached over to smooth it down, then rested his chin on his hand, frowning in thought.
If I remember right, there was a plot point like this in the original story... but it should've happened during Rudeus's time away from Buena Village as a tutor. The monster outbreak was triggered by...
His expression darkened slightly.
It was the summoning magic for the Teleportation Disaster. The excessive mana fluctuations across the Fittoa region caused monsters to stir. But that timeline doesn't line up—it was supposed to happen during Rudeus's tutoring arc, not now. What gives?
Sylphy's gaze followed Allen's hand as it came and went. Resting her chin on her palm, she quietly studied his face. Her childish features softened into a tender expression that didn't quite match her age.
Just like Rudeus had mentioned in his letter, she'd grown noticeably more "quiet" this past year. But the truth was, Allen had never been the talkative type to begin with. During this formative period—when children's personalities are easily shaped—Sylphy, spending so much time around Allen, had naturally begun to mirror him subconsciously.
Children in their growth phase often imitate the people they admire or aspire to be.
As for whether Allen was the former or the latter in her eyes—
Who could say?
Just then, Rudeus, who had been poring over a magic book nearby, looked up and caught Allen's expression. A thoughtful look crossed his face.
"When Uncle Laws came by a while ago asking for help, I overheard part of their conversation. They mentioned that last year's incident with Uncle Laws made the villagers hesitant about clearing monsters. And since Father and Allen—who helped save him—were stuck at home all winter, they couldn't participate in the clean-up either. People were even scared to go too deep into the forest. So even though they set the traps far out, they barely caught anything."
Allen met Rudeus's blinking gaze.
So this is the fallout from the aftermath of the "cheating and pregnancy" mess? Paul stayed home all winter to care for two pregnant women… and now we've got another butterfly effect from my actions. Still, this one shouldn't be too serious, right?
Nearby, Zenith was coaxing a child to sleep. She paused, a trace of guilt showing on her face.
"If I'd known, I wouldn't have insisted he keep his promise to stay home with us. That ended up delaying the monster clean-up. This is the real issue…"
Allen raised an eyebrow, brushing his bangs aside as he shot a sidelong glance at Rudeus.
Rudeus, now a little taller though still recognizable, had gone from a baby-faced boy to a slightly more mature youth. After over a year of close contact, he'd long since learned how to read Allen's expressions.
Subtly waving a hand, Rudeus signaled that even if Allen didn't push him, he was already planning to act.
He stood up from the table and walked over to Zenith, pulling a face at baby Norn and casually remarked,
"Luai~ Monster hunting is a big deal for the village, but caring for pregnant women is a big deal for the Greyrats too, isn't it?"
Zenith blinked, then let out a soft laugh and lovingly ruffled Rudeus's hair, pulling him into a hug.
Allen adjusted his glasses and, just out of Zenith's line of sight, gave Rudeus a discreet thumbs-up. Rudeus responded with a no-big-deal look and exchanged a glance with him.
Sylphy quietly took in the scene, her reddish-brown eyes blinking slowly. First, she looked at Zenith stroking Rudeus's head, then turned to see Lilia across the room.
But Lilia wasn't looking at Rudeus. She was gently rocking baby Aisha in her cradle, her eyes fixed warmly on Allen.
Sylphy blinked rapidly, her lashes fluttering like butterfly wings. A quiet, contented smile formed on her face as she lowered her gaze back to the book.
Just then—
Knock knock knock!
Urgent knocking echoed from the door.
All four heads turned toward the sound. Lilia stood up to open it.
Outside, in the snowstorm, stood a blond elf.
It was Sylphy's father—Laws.
His coat shoulders were piled high with snow. He nodded apologetically to Lilia, waved a greeting to Zenith, then—under her puzzled gaze—only pushed the door open just wide enough for a face to peek through, keeping the wind and cold at bay.
He showed no intention of stepping inside.
"Father?"
Sylphy assumed he'd come to take her home. She quickly glanced back at Allen and Rudeus, closed her book on monsters, hopped off the bench, and ran to the door with a timid whisper.
"Father… It's barely past noon. Are we going home early today?"
Laws looked down at her flowing green hair, visibly moved. Just over a year ago, Sylphy had insisted her mother cut it short. But ever since Allen's arrival, she hadn't brought it up again. In fact, a constant smile had started living on her face.
Aside from that grin being suspiciously similar to Allen's, there wasn't much to worry about.
Laws nodded, glancing at Allen—who was just about to greet him—with a small smile.
Allen's still young, but he's remarkably reliable… in every sense.
"I'm not here for you today, Sylphy. I came for Allen. We're short-handed in the forest. Lord Paul asked me to fetch him for assistance, so… I'll have to borrow him from you for a few days, all right? I'll return him later."
At first, Sylphy's expression remained sweet and calm—but the moment he said those last few words, her eyes flew wide open. She frantically got on tiptoe and waved both hands in front of Laws's face as if to block his vision. Laws, amused, caught her flailing hands and exchanged a knowing look with his daughter, who had suddenly reverted to her old flustered self from last year.
By now, Allen had already strapped on his sword and walked up to the door, Rudeus trailing behind.
"Sorry to trouble you, Allen," Laws said.
Allen smiled casually. "Not at all."
Laws nodded, then bent down to hug Sylphy—whose hands were still awkwardly suspended in midair now that Allen stood beside her.
"Sylphy, I'll leave it to Rudeus to walk you home today. We'll likely be staying overnight near the forest."
"No need—let Sylphy and Rudeus come too," Allen interjected. "If we're dealing with a monster horde, having AOE magic from spellcasters will be more effective than slowly hacking away with swords and arrows, right?"
He reached over and gave Sylphy a quick pat on the head, shooting a glance at Rudeus's increasingly uneasy expression.
Running a dungeon without PVE? Unthinkable. Besides, Sylphy's obviously curious—she keeps rereading that monster book. She'd probably love the chance to see them up close. Better to expose them now while it's relatively safe. With their experience, they'll be better prepared after the Teleportation Disaster—especially Sylphy's arrival storyline. That was way too risky.
Sylphy snapped out of her daze. Looking down at the "storybook" in her hands, she then tilted her head up to find Allen winking at her.
Rudeus scratched his head.
"Uh… Are you sure it's okay for us to go? It is a monster horde. It's one thing to hear Teacher talk about it—but facing them for real might be a bit much. And we'd have to stay out overnight too. I mean, I wouldn't mind spending the night with you guys—it'd be like those days when Teacher was still around—but wouldn't it be kind of inconvenient? Ow! Sylphy, what was that for?!"
"Sorry, Rudeus. My leg fell asleep. I needed to move a bit and accidentally stepped on you."
"Huh? But you're nowhere near my foot! How'd you stomp on me without even—ow!"
"See? Totally possible."
"???"
Laws hadn't noticed their little skirmish. He turned his gaze to Allen—who, despite only being a head shorter than him now, looked entirely serious—and was suddenly reminded that this dependable figure was still only a boy, just four years older than Sylphy and Rudeus. Still prone to rashness and whim.
Sure, Rudeus and Sylphy are magic users. Rudeus's talents have been acknowledged by many. But can they really handle something like this? Even if I let them come, won't Lady Zenith be worried?
Just as he was about to object, Allen continued:
"Sylphy and Rudeus are stronger against monsters than most adults in the village. She's an Advanced Mage, and Rudeus is already at Saint-rank. There are adventuring parties with spellcasters not half as capable. Wouldn't this be the perfect experience for them? A bird raised in a greenhouse never learns to fly, right, Uncle Laws?"
Laws hesitated, glancing past Allen toward Zenith. She was a former adventurer—surely more persuasive than he could be.
To his surprise, though she looked taken aback at first, she seemed to agree with Allen's "greenhouse bird" metaphor. Thinking back to her own experiences—being tricked after running away from home—she paused for a moment and then nodded without much hesitation.
"I think it's a good idea. Paul's said similar things before, but I never agreed. Now that I think about it, Rudeus may be a child, but he's far more capable than many mages in adventurer parties. He just needs some field experience. This is the perfect opportunity. Rudeus is smart, but compared to Allen, he's still got a lot to learn in how to deal with people."
Allen: ???
Rudeus: ??????????
"Also," Zenith added, "if they're with Allen, I won't have to worry about their safety. Hmm… Allen could probably serve as the main frontline swordsman in an S-rank adventuring team. He combines Paul's adaptability with Ghislaine's sharpness, doesn't he?"
Rudeus: ??????????
Allen shook his head to clear away the odd praise, looking from Zenith's pensive expression to Laws's stunned one. He raised the hilt of his sword and drew it lightly along the doorframe.
As the sheath swept through the air, the snow blowing into the room seemed to be stirred by the blade's motion, swirling momentarily before slipping back out the narrow gap and into the storm.
Laws instinctively recalled the winter from the previous year.
That same sword—its light slicing through the air—had pulled him back from the brink of death.
He hesitated for a moment, glancing at the eager Sylphy. Though it still felt a bit reckless, he gave a nod.
"Alright then."
And so, under the watchful eyes of Zenith and Lilia, Allen, Rudeus, and Sylphy—armed with several days' worth of spare bread—followed Laws into the snow.