Chapter 99

After having a quick lunch at a food stall, Taur and his companions headed for the Exploration Temple in the inner city, their meeting place.

The Ice God's temple, which is also a place of education, seemed to be in the middle of its lunch break.

Several figures that looked like students were loitering in front of the building.

Seeing the gathering of young people of the same age, Sora's eyes immediately sparkled.

"Wow, what are they all doing?"

"They probably came here to learn reading, writing, and arithmetic."

"Hmm, come to think of it, our shrine used to be the same. Taur used to run away a lot, though."

"Yeah, I only have memories of the old man being too strict."

Noticing the lively voice of the girl, the boys turned around in unison and opened their eyes wide.

It seemed they had mistaken Sora for a new student and Taur for her guardian.

Perhaps imagining a beautiful classmate, the young men began to speak excitedly.

However, as Taur and Sora approached, they seemed to notice the plates around their necks.

The students, who had opened their eyes wide again, immediately fell silent.

Puzzled by the sudden silence of the students, Sora tilted her head.

Summoning her courage, one of the young men stepped forward.

"Um, um... Would you like me to show you around?"

The black-haired boy who spoke had a look of fear and admiration in his eyes.

He was fidgety, shifting his gaze between Taur and Sora repeatedly.

Just as she was about to respond, a loud noise came from behind the door.

Hearing the familiar laughter of a child, Taur let out a small sigh.

"Is that Muu now?"

"Probably. Thanks, we'll ask you next time."

Taur nodded to the students and pushed open the large wooden door.

The staircase built into the spacious atrium was immediately visible.

As expected, a child of the Purple-Eyed Clan was perched on the railing.

However, he was not alone.

Behind him, children of about the same age were lined up like a chain.

Muu's movement stopped as he hit the circular decoration at the end.

The other children followed, pushing up one after another.

The children, caught between each other, let out joyful screams and laughed.

Taur couldn't help but scratch his chin at the scene, which didn't seem to fit the solemn temple.

"Oh, I came to see what the happy voices were, but this is a problem."

The one who suddenly spoke from the side was a woman of the Gray-Eared Clan, dressed in a fine gray robe.

She was the temple's head, Meiraririra.

Noticing Taur's involuntary straightening, she continued the conversation with a thin smile.

"That railing is where someone got hurt before, so we told them not to ride on it."

Muu, who had jumped off the railing, seemed to be so engrossed that he didn't notice Taur and the others and ran up the stairs.

The children who had been sliding with him followed, making a commotion.

It seemed that Muu was leading the other children.

"I'm sorry for the disturbance. I'll stop them right away."

"No, scolding them won't do any good. Besides, if you stop them, they'll want to do it even more."

The temple head, who had stopped Taur with a look, approached the stairs silently.

Then, she suddenly stretched up and sat on the railing with her ample bottom.

Muu, unable to slow down, collided with the woman sitting sideways at the end.

The child, whose face was buried in the soft gray robe, let out a joyful laugh.

The temple head gently stroked Muu's curly golden hair.

Feeling the touch, Muu smiled innocently again.

However, the other children who continued to slide down saw Meiraririra and immediately stiffened.

Holding onto the child in front of them without a word, the temple head spoke to the instigator in a calm voice.

"Is the railing slide fun?"

"Yeah! This is a great thing!"

The energetic response came from Muu, but the other children averted their eyes and looked down.

"By the way, are you a student here?"

"Student? No, Muu is an adventurer."

"Oh, that could be a bit of a problem."

"Is that so?"

"Yes, only students are allowed in here. You might get caught."

At Meiraririra's words, Muu's purple eyes opened wide.

"W-What should I do? T-Taur..."

"But it's okay. There's a way not to get caught."

"What? You scared me!"

"That is, if you become a student here. How about it?"

The last question was directed not at Muu but at Taur.

Of course, it was probably a joke, but her gaze was quite serious.

"That's true. I'll think about it."

Taur had never intended to neglect Muu's education.

However, the adventurer's schedule was long, and he couldn't spare much time.

He had planned to ask Yuril, a former teacher, for help when the opportunity arose.

"In that case, let's open the railing only during lunch breaks. But only when a teacher is present."

The sudden announcement by the temple head surprised the children, except for Muu.

They looked at each other, and then burst into cheers at once.

The Gray-Eared woman, who had sat on the railing, lifted Muu and set him on the floor.

The child, who had a puzzled look, finally noticed Taur and ran over to him.

In turn, Sora ran up the stairs.

The child she approached was even younger than Muu.

While the others were jumping off the railing, this child remained hunched over, not moving.

Suddenly, the child's body swayed.

Losing balance, the child fell inward over the railing.

Just before the child fell down the stairs, Sora's outstretched hand caught the child at the last moment.

The girl, who had gently caught the child, let out a sigh of relief.

"Phew, that was close. Are you okay?"

"What happened, Ruu!"

Muu, who had hurried back, called out to the child in Sora's arms.

The child was limp and was taking labored breaths.

Holding onto the clothes with closed eyes, the child's appearance was far from normal, causing Sora to look worried.

"Um, what should we do? Taur."

"Are you hungry? Should I go find some food, Muu?"

"You were observant, Sora. Hmm, he seems to be in pretty bad shape."

Taking the child from the girl, Taur frowned at the sight.

From the straight black hair reaching her shoulders and the adorable face, it seemed to be a girl.

However, her cheeks were clearly flushed, and her breathing was rapid.

"This child has a weak constitution from birth. Thank you for helping, Sora."

Without being introduced, the temple head called Sora by name and peered at the child Taur was holding.

She lightly touched the child's forehead and calmly checked the symptoms.

"A bit of a fever and some difficulty breathing, but with a little rest, she'll be fine."

Meiraririra, who had calmly diagnosed the child, reassured the worried children with a smile.

Then, she smoothly shifted her gaze to Taur, who was holding the child, and Sora beside him.

"So, you came to see Orlindor, right?"

"Yes, that was the plan."

"Then, would it be all right if I asked you to do one more thing?"