Meeting You Again (Krish’s Point of View)

“Gilbert-sama, brother is back!!”

As soon as we arrived at the management office, Annette-sama threw away my arm that she was holding and ran towards the person she was interested in. Her face was brighter than when she attacked me earlier. Both her cheeks and her lips are rosy, expressing her excitement, her eyes are moist, with a face of a maiden in love.

The reason Annete-sama doesn’t hide her fondness is because she doesn’t have to worry about other people seeing her in the director’s office of the management office. Annette-sama’s crush is the director of the management office.

He said, “Filex-sama and Krish-sama, we are glad to hear that you have returned safely. It is great to see that you are doing well.”

A gentleman in his prime stood up and bowed in a beautiful gesture. He is Gilbert-dono, the Director of the management office and Annette-sama’s crush. Although he was born into a commoner family, his way of speaking and behavior are very elegant. He has a gentlemanly attitude toward women, and many women admire him because just talking to him makes you feel like a princess.

Annette-sama was born as a noble lady, but since she has quite an age gap with Filex-sama, her parents dote on her to the point that it hurts to not see her. Therefore, she seems to be dissatisfied with being treated like a child no matter how old she is.

On top of that, the men around her were Filex’s knights, and they were all tough men who couldn’t give her a single clever compliment. It was Gilbert who treated her like a lady for the first time in her life when she went to the palace. Even now, she is cupping her cheeks with both hands and staring at Gilbert-dono with a dreamy expression on her face.

“Gilbert seems to be doing well too. Word of the gate being completed has reached me on my travels. You’ve done a great job. Also, I met him earlier, the migrant. He was a young man with a child-like appearance and a mysterious vibe. He seems like a pretty fun person. ”

“Have you met him? He’s a cute guy, isn’t he? I leave him to Norn, but it seems like they’ve gotten along well and he seems to be having fun. He has the ability to speed up the growth of plants. Apparently there are some reports that if he plants vegetable seeds, he can harvest them within a few days. They are also being taught cooking from the other world. It seems that the food culture of his world is much more advanced than ours. I’ve tried it too, and the seasonings like butter were wonderful.

Considering that we will be inviting a large number of immigrants in the future, I think it would be better to spread the food culture of the other world. It’s painful when your food tastes don’t match.

Norn’s childhood friend runs a restaurant, and they were talking about how they would like to gradually spread the taste of otherworldly cuisine through the restaurant and create a system where immigrants can live comfortably. ”

The child cooks. No, that’s wrong. Somehow, I get fooled by his appearance and forget that he is an adult. His big eyes, soft cheeks, and high voice express his emotions honestly. The way he speaks seems childish, but it must be something he doesn’t like.

His relationship with the staff at the management office seems to be good, and I feel relieved that he is taken care of without me having to check. However, he is the first important immigrant to this world. Things that we usually take for granted in our lives may feel inconvenient to him. Let’s instruct the other knights to take note if they see him in town.

I don’t have much contact with him as I live in the city as Lord Filex’s knight, and I didn’t see him for a while after that. We met again on the day of the annual Eating Festival, in front of the entrance to the city where the Tree of Life could be seen. I couldn’t help but call out to him as he looked lonely as he sat alone, staring at the Tree of Life.

I was a little shocked when he called me “uncle” but I was the one who mistook him for a child at first. This should be acceptable. What’s more, I had forgotten his name after asking him before, so he told me his name again.

Shinobu. His name is Shinobu. It’s a name that doesn’t sound like it exists in this world.

During the conversation, I learned that Shinobu got separated after watching the festival with his friends, and decided to take the lost Shinobu to his friend’s shop. He was hesitant to walk in a crowd, so when I held out my hand to take his, for some reason he placed a candy in my palm.

The candy that was rolling in my palm made me freeze for a while, and I thought about its meaning. Could it be that he misunderstood that I was demanding payment for sending him home?

“That’s not it.”

I shoved the candy into Shinobu’s mouth and held his hand a little forcefully. It’s a small hand. As I thought, it doesn’t seem like the hand of an adult man. As I was walking, being careful not to crush his hand, which was soft and a little dry unlike my callus covered hands, a man who was out at the festival teased him that he was a lost child.

This man seems to be an acquaintance of Shinobu. From the man’s expression, I could easily imagine that it was not an act of harassment, but rather a friendly joke. Having been called an old man earlier, I was sensitive about the topic of age, so I thought it might be a bit nosy, but I decided to intervene. 

“Please don’t tease me too much.”

Shinobu, who blushed in embarrassment and looked down, felt sorry for me and defended me, but it seemed like he had given him more material to make fun of.

“That’s too bad. You aren’t a lost child, it was a date.”

He let out a disappointed sigh as the man walked away laughing. There are quite a lot of people like this, perhaps because once they become old men, they enjoy teasing young people. I’m used to it, but Shinobu was clearly upset.

“It’s impossible for two men to be lovers.”

Come to think of it, in Shinobu’s world, only people of the opposite sex are romantically involved. In this world, most people can love regardless of gender, but there are some people who can love only the same sex or only the opposite sex. I don’t find it all that strange that Shinobu is heterosexual, but the situation in this world may be something that Shinobu doesn’t understand.

However, there are some people who are difficult and may feel uncomfortable with Shinobu’s words. When I gave him some vague advice to avoid causing unnecessary trouble, he obediently complied. I really like this aspect of him. He is still young and will be able to accept everything flexibly.

Normally, I would be at the mercy of Annette-sama, but his honest demeanor touched my heart, and a smile naturally appeared on my lips. If possible, I want him to continue growing honestly and straightforwardly.

When we arrived at a restaurant run by a friend of his, we saw a young man pacing back and forth in front of the restaurant. It was Norn, from the management office, who usually maintains a calm attitude, pacing around as if he can’t help but worry.

Norn looked up at the sound of Shinobu’s voice and ran towards him as quickly as he could. The current Norn probably doesn’t even notice me. The way he hugged Shinobu with all his strength and scolded him was just like a mother, and I watched their reunion with a smile on my face.

As Gilbert-dono said, these two seem to have a good relationship. In the short time it took to drop off Shinobu, who had gotten lost, I was able to get to know his personality, but there was something about him that made me feel like I couldn’t leave him alone. It doesn’t mean that he’s unreliable, but when I see his expression change and his innocent smile, I want him to keep smiling like that. Maybe Norn feels the same way.

Shinobu might be dissatisfied that I was treating him like a child if I said something like this. I was following Shinobu’s pace, and a lot of time passed. It seems like there was some commotion before we got here, but it was probably drunken fights. I have already confirmed where the patrolling knights will rush to, but I have yet to receive a subsequent report.

“Thank you, Krish-san!!”

“Don’t get lost again.”

As I was leaving, Shinobu went out of his way to chase after me to say thanks, then I turned around and started walking away. I just did what a knight should do, and I didn’t need any thanks.

However, “Thank you” is a good word. Those words seemed to clear up my heart, which had been heavy with sadness and disappointment after returning after a two-year journey without finding any clues about a plant that could replace the Tree of Life.

The third time I met Shinobu was when I was on my way to the next town with Filex-sama. I don’t know how they met, but it seemed like he was helping younger children work in the fields. Even though he is young, the older brother looks much older than Shinobu. The three of them said they are about to sow seeds.

“Then I’ll teach you. You’ll have to sow the vegetables while praying for them to grow deliciously, okay?”

If I recall correctly, Shinobu’s cheat ability was said to be plant-based. According to Gilbert-dono, it is possible to speed up growth. In that case, the fields of these brothers would have no problems. However, Shinobu did not try to sow the seeds himself. After carefully teaching them, he took a few steps back and watched the two of them. There was something about his expression that caught my eye.

His features were the same as when I first met him, and it was hard to believe he was an adult, but the intensity of his gaze was different. It was not the expression of a 10-year-old or so. It was the first time I was convinced that Shinobu was an adult man.

I wonder what Shinobu is thinking now. I wonder what this world looks like in Shinobu’s eyes. I really wanted to know, and I couldn’t help but call out.

“When the two of them start living independently in five or ten years, I won’t necessarily be around. If they had relied on plant-based cheats, they would have been in big trouble at that time. So Nott and Marco have to do everything from planting the seeds to taking care of them.

Even if I fail now, I can still share the vegetables I grew at my house with them, and I can help cultivate the soil as many times as they want. It’s much more important to fail a lot now, feel frustrated, and gain experience than to use cheats to harvest.

If I’m going to help them, I have to make sure they can do it themselves, otherwise it won’t be good for either of them.”

Shinobu’s gaze was looking straight ahead.

I see. So you saw the brothers’ futures in your eyes. Anyone can be kind in the moment. It would be easier for Shinobu to give them alms or use cheats to grow vegetables. But if you’re serious about their futures, you know that momentary kindness won’t be enough.

“Shinobu, you…”

You have a genuine sense of compassion for people. Children are cherished in this world, but I wonder how many adults think about it before offering their help. From now on, I will never refer to Shinobu as a child again. That’s not possible.

He, Shinobu, is a fine man worthy of respect. His small body is packed full of deep compassion and kindness that we should all learn from.

“You seem to have more of an mature mindset than I thought.”

The hand I raised with friendliness and respect almost touched his head, which was in the perfect position, but it seemed like I was treating him like a child and was rude.

Shinobu is the same. The way he tries to lead the brothers in a better direction has something in common with us knights, who continue to search for plants of hope in search of a ray of light for the future. I’m glad Shinobu was the first immigrant in the world. Let’s be grateful for the miraculous coincidence that brought us such wonderful people from another world.

My hand wandered around looking for a place to land, and it settled on Shinobu’s shoulder. Even though his shoulders are so slender they fit snugly in the palm of my hand, it felt strange and reassuring, but I guess this is Shinobu’s true nature. Shinobu is not so weak that he needs to be protected. He has the strength to watch over Nott, who is much larger than him.

I wanted to talk to Shinobu more, but unfortunately he was working. When I have time, I would like to listen to stories about the other world.

What kind of place is Shinobu’s home world? Is it a calm and peaceful place that reflects Shinobu’s personality? Or is it because of the harsh environment that a strong-willed gaze was born?

If possible, I would like to see it with my own eyes. A world different from this one where Shinobu grew up.