256 – Apostle of Grace -1-

A shop named ‘Yuram’

Though the prices were a bit steep, the restaurant offered a taste that was not bad at all. It wasn’t as expensive as a friend from the forest, nor was there a long wait.

It was a restaurant of quality enough to bring a guest for a dinner meal.

“Is steak okay?”

“Ah… Yes, I like it.”

“If there’s something you want to eat, just tell me. I’ll buy it for you, so don’t worry.”

Mikhail waved his hand and replied to me. He had even received a map, but he couldn’t possibly get a meal as well.

“No! I’ll buy it for you.”

“No, what is there for me to take from a student.”

As a wealthy person, knowing Mikhail’s financial situation, I shook my head and stopped in front of the restaurant named ‘Cradle.’

“There are a lot of people.”

Perhaps because it was nearing dinner time, there were many people waiting. Adventurers returning from their journeys were drawn by the beautiful face of the lady owner, while those who heard about the place through word of mouth waited their turn at a distance.

And Mikhail and I were standing there too.

‘What would they do if they met?’

Mikhail still did not know the identity of the owner of Cradle. That she was his mother, the owner of this shop. And Ella, visible through the glass window, was one of the customers in the shop, unaware that she was the daughter he had abandoned.

What I wanted wasn’t anything grand.

It wasn’t a touching reunion between mother and daughter, nor did I wish for a catastrophe. Simply for Mikhail to realize the existence of his mother. That was why I came to the restaurant named Cradle.

Honestly, I thought it was too much to have Mikhail and his mother meet one-on-one. It would be quite a shock.

Everything has its order. There was no need to rush.

There was only one thing I wished for.

I just hoped that Mikhail would come to know how his mother was living. That she wasn’t living blissfully happy. And that she was still looking for him.

As a possessor who knew the ending of the novel, I wanted to avoid the worst possible outcome.

It might be a whim of a rare possessor, but honestly, I didn’t want to see them leave each other with deep regrets.

“…”

With the hope that my caprice might be of some help, I patted Mikhail on the head.

“Why…?”

“I’m praising you for your hard work today. Do you dislike it?”

“Ah.. No?”

I smiled at Mikhail, whose face had turned red, and nodded.

“That’s a relief.”

My choice may not be the most rational, but what can I do if the spirit within me desires it so.

I shrugged my shoulders lightly and waited in the long line at the restaurant.

After a bit of a dull moment, I cautiously asked Mikhail, who was visibly tense. I carefully uttered a question that could be taken sensitively.

“Excuse me, Misa.”

“Yes?”

“It might be a bit sensitive to ask, but what’s your family situation like? You have such a pretty face, I thought you might have a stunning sister.”

“Ah…”

“Could you… introduce me?”

Mikhail shook his head awkwardly and replied.

“I don’t have one.”

“…”

“I don’t have a mother or a father either.”

“I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s okay. I was the one who asked a more impolite question last time.”

Mikhail smiled awkwardly and shook his head.

“And I’m used to such questions, so no need to apologize. I’ve completely forgotten about it now.”

I spoke with a hint of bitterness in response to Mikhail’s words.

“Did they pass away?”

Knowing everything, yet as if it were the first time.

Mikhail shook his head with a bitter expression, his gaze dropped to the floor, and he spoke in a disheartened voice, like someone unsure of their story.

“I was abandoned by my mother when I was young. I don’t know who my father is.”

“…”

“It’s okay. I really don’t mind anymore.”

“Excuse me, Misa.”

As I glanced at the woman carrying food out from the kitchen, I cautiously spoke to Mikhail.

“If, just if.”

“…”

“If you were to see your lost family again, what do you think it would be like?”

“Excuse me?”

“I was just curious. I wouldn’t recognize my own parents if I passed them on the street, but it’s not the same for you, is it? Even if they abandoned you, you’d remember their faces, so I wondered if you might want to see them.”

“I…”

Mikhail stumbled over his words and threw a question at me.

“What about you, Ricardo? What if someone said, ‘The truth is, you’re your own mother.’ How would you feel?”

“Ah, I…”

I had never thought about that before.

Having lived well without parents, I, who didn’t know much about familial affection, pondered the question that had always intrigued me the most and answered it. It was my greatest wonder, after all.

“I think I would ask why they abandoned me. I’ve been curious whether there was a reason, or if they just left me because I was born ugly. I was abandoned without even seeing a face.”

“Ah…”

“It’s okay. I’m used to self-deprecation since I often hear harsh words from the lady. Of course, I do the same to her.”

“Harsh words?”

“Yes, that’s a thing.”

I smiled faintly and demanded an answer to the question I had posed. It was about time Mikhail would see her in his field of vision. Before it was too late, I needed to find out what he thought about the meddlesomeness of a possessor.

“Do you feel the same way, Misa?”

“I…”

“Yes.”

“I just want to try calling her ‘mom.'”

“Do you not resent her?”

Mikhail nodded slightly and replied to me.

“I do. I think I would curse her out a lot. Asking why she came back now, if she lived well after leaving me. But…”

Mikhail swallowed a silence and then spoke with a trembling voice.

“I think I would be incredibly happy.”

I nodded slightly and said,

“Is that so. Well, that would be fortunate.”

And at that moment.

“…Huh?”

I felt our eyes meet.

-Crash!

The sound of a dish breaking came from inside the restaurant. Along with it, I felt Mikhail’s frozen gaze on me.

Loud noises came from the restaurant. The sound of someone hurriedly running after untying their apron.

And then…

“I’m sorry. Something urgent came up.”

The sound of Mikhail fleeing in haste reached my ears. Running away in the opposite direction of the restaurant, Mikhail didn’t look back.

I pocketed the number ticket I had drawn and thought to myself.

‘You’ll have to handle the rest.’

I’ve done all I could.

I’m not sure what the outcome of this meddlesome affair will be, despite the annoyance it might bring, but I felt reasonably good about it.

Now that we’ve pushed each other forward, he’ll manage on his own.

I nodded with a bittersweet smile.

“But what about my mom and dad?”

For the first time, I envied Mikhail.

At least he had someone to name him.

-Ricardo! That’s your name.

‘Ah… I had one too.’

I smiled faintly and turned my back on the restaurant. Deciding that was enough for today, I slowly walked towards the mansion. Pushing any further would surely snap the delicate thread.

I walked with light steps towards the young lady waiting for her meal.

***

“Ricardo.”

The young lady seemed displeased.

“…Eek!”

With a sullen face, she looked at the plate full of vegetables, expressing her dissatisfaction.

“What’s wrong?”

“I don’t like greens.”

“You’ll say they’re delicious once you try them.”

“No, I won’t.”

Having made Vietnamese spring rolls for the first time, the young lady who didn’t take to them was glaring at me with her lips tightly sealed.

Seemingly unsuited for the always meat-preferring young lady’s palate, she started rummaging through her treasure pouch as she put down her fork and stared down the plate.

“Hmm, chocolate.”

“That’s not allowed.”

“Then candy.”

“That’s not allowed either.”

“Why?!”

I shook my head and kindly explained to the young lady. Even if she didn’t like the new menu, there was a certain order to things.

“It’s a 100-gold meal plan.”

“Whimper…! A hundred chocolates!”

“That’s right.”

I closed my eyes tightly and glanced at the lady as she resigned herself to her fate, and I began to make wraps in my hand.

“Here’s a bell pepper.”

“Ugh.”

“This is a carrot.”

“uuugh.”

“And this is radish sprouts.”

“Ricardo is abusing the nobility. We’re already short on expanding the nobility…”

“Being a butler is like that. We reduce and expand the nobility.”

“Eeeek…!”

The lady seemed to have no intention of getting friendly with the vegetables.

Clatter. The lady pushed the plate with the wrap towards the table where Gomtang, the bear, was sitting. It’s food unfit for humans, so you, a beast, should eat it. While engaging in such owner-friendly behavior, the lady sneakily glanced at me and then murmured softly to Gomtang.

“Eat.”

-Bear?

“Eat quickly!”

-Bear.

Gomtang, who ate well when given food, did just that.

I chuckled softly and spoke to the picky lady. No matter what, was it right to give the wrap, made with a butler’s care, to a bear?

“Isn’t that too much? It’s food filled with dedication, and yet you discard it so heartlessly.”

“Ricardo. What’s the problem with taking care of a pet? A true owner’s mindset is to give the best first….”

“Then I’ll add more vegetables to your wrap, my lady. I must take care of my owner in a friendly manner too.”

“Eeeek! Ricardo is trying to kill me! Gomtang, bite!”

-Bear?

“Yes, bite!”

-Chomp

“Eeeek! Don’t bite me! Bite Ricardo!”

-Bear!

Gomtang was still biting the lady’s head without letting go.

Laughter came out. It made me laugh so much that I thought this is why I live in the mansion.

“Puhahaha!!”

And so, time slowly passed.

The lady had become adept at using dark magic, and a short time had passed as she adapted to the power of the Sword Master.

And then.

The academy began to convene the student council.

Their target was the wild mountain near the capital.

It was the apostle’s nest.