* * *
Since I’d already decided to be friendly, I figured I’d extend a little kindness.
“I’m in a good mood today. If a handsome guy suddenly needs help, I might just be generous enough to offer some.”
I kept it vague enough that I could back out if it turned out to be nonsense.
The blond man’s bright green eyes lit up.
“For real? You’re not just messing with me?”
That reaction… So he really does need something.
“Yeah. What is it? But if it’s too much of a hassle, I’m out. I’ve got my own errands to run.”
“No, no! It’s nothing troublesome, I swear.”
His voice was serious.
But the more serious he sounded, the more suspicious it seemed.
What is it?
Now I was curious.
“Well, actually…”
He leaned in close and whispered into my ear.
His voice dropped slightly lower than before.
What the—what kind of secret is this?
“I’m starving.”
“….”
This bastard.
The guy crushed my expectations and then had the audacity to burst into laughter.
He was practically howling, completely entertained by his own antics.
He had way too much fun messing with a stranger.
Even now, he was still shaking with laughter, his shoulders bouncing as he chuckled.
It was honestly kind of irritating.
“Hey, I told you, didn’t I? It’s not a hassle at all.”
Well, I guess that’s true.
“For a beggar, you sure are cocky.”
Not that I minded.
I didn’t dislike people like him—those who were easygoing enough to joke around with someone they just met.
He was easy to talk to, and that was a huge plus…
Not that I was saying anything about Batista, really.
I swear.
Besides, it wouldn’t be boring to have him around.
“I’m on the brink of starvation. Please, just a scrap of whatever cheap food you can spare.”
Still grinning, he suddenly put on a pitiful expression when I called him cocky.
He even clasped his hands together in mock desperation.
I ended up laughing too.
There was no reason to refuse a simple act of charity.
Who knows?
Maybe God would take it as a sign of goodwill and wipe away a little of my bad karma.
“Here.”
I tossed him a green apple, and he practically dove to catch it.
That was unnecessary.
He was just being dramatic.
But it was kind of funny.
“Thank you! Thank you so much!”
“You want a sausage too?”
“Shit, really? If you want, I could suck your—”
“No need.”
…Is this guy the same type as Vicente?
Whatever, I got the ingredients for cheap by charming the merchants, so I didn’t really mind losing one or two.
Still, for an adventurer, he seemed oddly fascinated by my generosity.
It must’ve felt weird to receive something for free.
After mulling over it, he finally pulled out a deck of playing cards from his pocket.
“Alright, then. I’ll do a reading for you. Just for fun.”
I had my own goals, but if he wanted to repay me, I had no reason to refuse.
I picked a few cards as instructed.
It wasn’t a tarot deck, just regular playing cards.
How was he supposed to read my fortune with these?
I had no idea, but after glancing at the cards I drew, the guy smirked in a way that was downright irritating.
“Damn, you’ve got something good coming your way.”
“Something good?”
“Your love life is off the charts. Someone’s gonna confess to you soon.”
Wait. This is about romance?
I don’t need that at all.
He made it sound like a huge stroke of luck, but for some reason, I had a really bad feeling about this.
‘Total scammer…’
What kind of adventurer tells fortunes?
If I really wanted my future read, I’d go to an actual fortune teller.
I wasn’t buying it.
Even though I was tempted to ask about Batista’s love life, I decided to dismiss it as nonsense and let it go.
People who get too obsessed with superstitions always end up in trouble.
Faith in divine prophecy was enough for me.
I shoved the man aside as he tried to upsell me on another reading and headed back to the temple.
My little outing had ended up taking longer than expected.
Even though I hurried back, Zerbin was waiting at the entrance with his arms crossed.
Uh-oh.
Did the priest not pass on my message properly?
Why does he look so annoyed?
Did he already assume I was snooping around about Gaspar?
Tsk. Too sharp for his own good.
But I hadn’t done anything suspicious yet, so I put on my best smile.
“Were you waiting for me?”
“You’re late.”
I had been out a little longer than planned, but it wasn’t that bad!
This was all because I was practically glued to Batista’s side all the time.
Since I always insisted that I liked being near him the most, me suddenly going out alone probably seemed weird.
I’d better clear things up.
“I made friends with some vendors while buying your breakfast earlier. They kept chatting me up, so I figured I’d take advantage and haggle a bit. That’s why it took longer than expected.”
I left out the part about feeding a random adventurer and getting my fortune read.
If I mentioned the adventurer, Zerbin might assume I was trying to dig up information.
I’m innocent—for now.
“What did you buy?”
“I messed up your taste buds, so I have to take responsibility. Since I’m staying at the temple anyway, I thought I might as well practice cooking!”
Earlier, I had glossed over some details, but this part was sincere.
I genuinely wanted to be helpful to Batista.
“Then, while we’re traveling together, you can at least make food that I can actually eat.”
Batista stared at me for a moment before abruptly snatching the shopping bag from my arms.
The fabric bag shook, causing a few apples and potatoes sitting on top to tumble out and roll away.
I scrambled to catch them.
“I carried that just fine on my own.”
“You said it’s mine.”
Well, yeah, but still!
Holding the groceries effortlessly in one hand, Batista strode toward the kitchen.
He moved so fast that I had no time to even consider reclaiming the bag—I had no choice but to hurry after him.
“What are you making?”
He set the bag down on the table with a thud.
“They say stew is a good place to start for beginners. Just chop up the ingredients and let them simmer for a while.”
“…….”
“It’ll be way better than the soup we had before! Just look at the ingredients—they already seem like better quality, don’t they?”
After setting down the apples and potatoes I’d carried back, Batista gave a small nod of approval.
A picky-eating warrior… he’s actually kind of cute.
“Go ahead and try.”
Batista pulled out a chair and sat down.
The old chair groaned under his weight, bringing back the memory of that heavy pressure I felt yesterday.
The thought made me uneasy, so I quickly turned away and focused on pulling out the ingredients.
Bacon, onions, potatoes, carrots…
This should be enough, right?
I thought about getting some meat, but seasoning it properly and letting the flavors soak in seemed beyond my skill level, so I just bought something pre-seasoned.
At least I was confident in my knife skills.
A dagger was basically my best friend, after all.
Or so I thought.
* * *
