Doting Master
After lunch, Penrose continued to practice using Presence Detection, as we destroyed small groups of goblins. I tried to stick to goblins that carried weapons. It was never too late to learn to fear a blade. Apparently, it was his father, the guild master who taught him to use a sword, but he was going up against monsters now. They weren"t teaching him, they were trying to kill him. They wouldn"t play by any book, and the only will that existed behind their every wild swing was a desire to end his life. But Penrose showed no signs of letting his guard down. He didn"t allow them to surprise him and handled the attacks well. Having a good tutor really made a difference. As I watched him, the rays of the setting sun began to disturb my vision.
It was time to end the hunt and return to Replant.
"Thank you for helping me today!"
“Yeah, you did well. You had the basics down already. Having the guild master teach you is a great advantage.”
"My father is the best!"
He really did like his father… Well, perhaps he was that great of a father then.
"Alright, we"ll report to the guild and disband."
"Yes…"
Penrose looked a little sad as he held his hands behind his head. But then he laughed when I tousled his hair. Kids were the best when they were being honest.
We entered through the western gate and headed straight for the guild house. The town was starting to light up with glimmering lanterns. There was an excitement in the air as if to say that things were just getting started. I considered taking Daniela out and eating somewhere after disbanding…and then realized I had forgotten about Gardo and Ness. I had to tell Daniela about that.
"We are here."
I looked up at Penrose"s voice. Thinking while you"re walking made the time pa.s.s so quickly. It took me by surprise.
We opened the door and went inside. It was crowded with other Adventurers who had finished their quests for the day. See how many monsters I killed! I just thought of an amazing trick! Etcetera. It was a bit rowdy, but no one bothered us. There was always a level of etiquette that was maintained here. Wonderful.
But there was one that was different. A slender man with long blond hair that was bound in the back was running around the room as if searching for someone. The other Adventurers who noticed him cast suspicious glances his way. After a while, the unsuccessful blond-haired man raised his voice with a look of despair.
"Where are you!? Are you here!?"
The others began to murmur. But their faces showed no concern. If anything they looked exasperated and annoyed.
"Where are you? Penrose!?"
Oh? Now there was a familiar name. I turned and saw that he who should have been next to me was now in the far corner and chatting pleasantly with Daniela.
"Hey, Penrose…"
"PENROOOOSE!!"
Just as I was about to call him over, the man with blond hair howled and rushed past me.
"Ah, father!"
"Penrose! You! Goblin slaying…!"
"Yes, I went with Asagi and Miss Daniela."
"Ah, ahhh, but that is so dangerous!"
So the blond man was his father… In other words, this man was the Empire"s finest guild master(according to his son). Honestly, he looked like a pushover…
"The master is looking for his son again…"
"He deserves a medal for doting…"
A pair of Adventurers muttered next to me. I see, so this was just the usual for them. That made sense. Their face expressions. This happened all of the time.
"Asagi and Daniela, you say? You mean that famous pair on the rise?"
"Yes! They were with me, and so I was fine!"
It was time to go…
Well, as much as I hated the complications that were likely to arise, I had to at least make a report after taking his son with us.
"Pardon me, but are you the guild master?"
"Mm, yes… Ah, and you must be the young Asagi?"
"Yes, Asagi Kamiyashiro."
“Thank you for taking care of my son… I never dreamed that he would go on a hunting quest while still being G rank, and I acted a fool. I am sorry.”
"No, Daniela and I enjoyed his company."
"That is a relief. Hmm, perhaps we could talk in the back room? I would like to hear more."
"Uh, sure."
I shot a glance at Daniela and she nodded. Penrose also looked happy to be able to be with us longer. And so all three of us followed the guild master out of the hall. People stared at us as we left, but I felt like I"ve been caring about that too much recently. Maybe it was important to just think, "stare if you want," sometimes…