The beast tamer exiled from the hero’s party and the cat eared girl from the strongest race meet
"Huh? Nina, why are you in a place like this…? And why are you in your awakened state?"
Confused, I forgot my manners and instinctively spoke out.
The man and the shopkeeper looked over at us with puzzled expressions.
"Um… excuse me, but who might you be? Do you have some business with my partner?"
"Huh? Partner?"
"Oh? Are you an adventurer? Could it be you’ve been taking our bread with you on your travels? Well, thank you. I’m happy to hear our bread is being chosen for the journey."
"Ah, no… I’m…"
"Hmm."
The man made a thoughtful gesture, then looked at me and spoke.
"…Could it be that you know my partner?"
"Know her? Well, she looks just like one of my companions…"
"I see… Do you have some time after this? If possible, I’d like to talk more."
"Sure, I don’t mind, but…"
Just what exactly is going on here?
I’m so confused, my head’s spinning.
"Nya!? Nina’s here!?"
Kanade returned after finishing her bread selection, just as surprised as I was.
"Um…"
The woman spoke to me quietly.
She seemed a bit timid—perhaps shy around strangers?
"Do you… know me?"
"Ah, no. Sorry, I think you’ve got the wrong person."
Hearing her voice, I could tell she wasn’t Nina.
And when I looked closely, her facial features were different too.
She resembled the awakened Nina, but even so, she looked older.
"I see… that’s unfortunate. I thought maybe you knew me."
"What do you mean by that?"
"I… I have no memories from before."
――――――――――
The man we met at the bakery turned out to be a merchant.
It seems he was the one who came up with the idea for the delivery service.
His name was Von Almira.
Apparently, he recently began doing business in Horizon and quickly rose to success—an accomplished merchant.
We moved to his home to talk… (Kanade had made sure to buy some bread first)… and began listening to his story.
"Her name is Nokia. As you can see, she’s one of the strongest races—the Divine."
"In fact, there’s something I need to tell you about her…"
Von spoke with a somber expression.
"Actually… she has amnesia."
"Amnesia…?"
"Before coming to Horizon, I traveled from place to place for business. I found her during one of those trips."
"Can I ask about the situation at the time?"
"Of course. It happened while I was traveling across the Southern Continent. I had heard of rare goods in a remote region and went to check them out."
"Nyaa, that sounds like a treasure hunter!"
"Haha, that’s not too far off. Back then, I tried all sorts of things to grow my business—treasure hunting included. I even appraised artworks and such… Ah, sorry, I’m getting off track."
Von blushed, as if he’d just shared an embarrassing story.
But he quickly regained his composure and continued.
"While exploring that remote place said to have treasures, I encountered Nokia. She wasn’t doing anything—just standing absentmindedly in the middle of the wilderness. I thought something must have happened and called out to her. But the result was…"
"Aside from my name, I couldn’t remember anything. Who I was, what I was doing, why I was there… nothing. I remembered nothing."
"I see… so that’s what happened."
"I couldn’t just leave her like that. So I became her guarantor and gave her work. Luckily, I’m a traveling merchant. I figured that maybe, someday, we’d meet someone who knew her."
And recently, he came to Horizon and started a new business.
Along the way, he met me…
And now, he’s finally found a small lead.
Von looked genuinely happy.
He was probably overjoyed to have finally found someone who might be connected to Nokia’s lost memories.
He didn’t seem like a bad person.
I figured it would be safe to tell him about Nina.
And if, by any chance, he was up to something suspicious…
Then I would protect Nina and everyone else.
"Actually…"
I began explaining our situation.
I told him I was an adventurer and a beast tamer.
That I had companions of the strongest races—including a divine girl.
Her name was Nina, and she was still young.
Her parents' whereabouts were unknown; we had no information about them at all.
…That’s what I explained.
"Oh my… So you’re Rain Shroud? I’ve heard the rumors."
"Wait, you know about me?"
"Of course. You’re known as the Hero of Horizon. And not only that—you’ve achieved many great feats. I heard you recently saved Krios on the Eastern Continent."
"How do you know about that…?"
"For merchants, information is everything. We’re always on high alert to gather the latest news. Also, regarding Krios, the Oni clan made a huge announcement. They said the one who saved the city was a human hero named Rain Shroud."
…Rezona, what exactly have you been doing?
I almost wanted to bury my face in my hands, but for now, I pressed on with the conversation.
"Um… back to the point. As I said earlier, there’s a divine girl in my party. Her name is Nina. Does that ring any bells?"
"…Nina…"
Nokia had a puzzled expression.
It looked like she was thinking… or perhaps trying to remember something…
But she seemed to struggle, furrowing her brows in frustration.
"That girl’s name is…"
Nokia gently placed her hand on her chest.
She wore an expression that was joyful yet on the verge of tears… a contradictory look, perhaps, but that’s how it felt.
"Nina… is her name."
"Yes. She’s a divine, just like you. And… she looks very much like you. Not just similar—she has your features. That’s why I wondered… maybe she’s your daughter."
"…I’m sorry. I can’t remember anything."
"I see…"
"But—"
Nokia spoke with desperate determination.
"Hearing the name Nina… it stirs something in my chest. A warmth, a flutter… I’ve forgotten everything, and I can’t remember, but… I’m sure of one thing—that name is very important to me. Nina… that name means…"
This… might really be something.
Hope began to well up inside me.
"For now… let’s have you meet Nina."
――――――――――
I returned home together with Nokia and the others.
Just then, the front door opened at the perfect moment.
"Nina, sorry to ask, but could you run an errand? I forgot to tell Rain and Kanade we’re out of seasonings."
"Mm… it’s okay. I’ll do my best… okay?"
Nina appeared.
She immediately noticed us…
Then, as her eyes fell on Nokia, they widened in surprise.
"…Mama?"
Tears spilled gently from Nina’s eyes.
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