Chapter 27
The Fleure Family
I wonder what happened with the Hunting Festival in the end .
According to Noela, Lilika had come to the store to give her thanks, but she had already gone by the time I appeared .
If she came to give her thanks I suppose it was a great success .
If it wasn’t, it seems like she’d say it was because my strategy was bad or something .
Mina appeared when I went to the medicine room to make medicine .
“Reiji-san, are you busy right now?”
“Nope, I’m not . What is it?”
Did she gain weight again…?
“Ah- . Are you thinking something rude right now?”
“Of course not, of course not . ”
Approaching swiftly, Mina sat opposite of me .
“Reiji-san . I … in the end, I want to go on an outing with Reiji-san and Noelsan…… . ”
“We’re always relying on you to watch the house, after all . ”
I thought about whether I could do anything for her .
The person herself always says one thing or another, but Mina’s current situation is completely that of a ghost; I don’t really know if there’s a single medicine that can manage anything for her .
“Have you tried to go outside before?”
“Of course I have . It was a long time ago, though . When I went to take one step, I returned to the inside of the house . I was in the living room before I realized it…”
It doesn’t seem like she’ll be paralyzed if she leaves the house’s grounds, nor is there an invisible barrier-like thing that hinders her or the like .
In terms of a board game, it seems like the situation is “Return to Start . ”
I’d heard it when we met, but Mina is a mysterious ghost that is satisfied when the people in this house live their lives happily .
At the very least, I have no dissatisfaction about my daily life and am having fun go about it .
It’s probably the same for Noela .
“But even so, she won’t disappear, I guess…”
“What is it?”
In the first place, Mina might also be mistaken about her own condition for disappearing .
“Yeah . She’s the type to hand over a note about her panties, so it’s not impossible…”
“I,isn’t that enough about that~!? Everyone’s had mistakes . – I don’t care about you anymore, Reiji-san . ”
Hmph; Mina turns her face to the side .
The kind and caring Mina also has times she gets mad, huh?
It’s kind of fresh .
“Can I show it to you once?”
Glancing at me on the sly, Mina pressed on with the previous subject .
“I do want to see someone for whom leaving the house is impossible . ”
“Understood . It really only takes a moment, after all . ”
Standing up, we left by the kitchen door .
Passing through the garden, I opened the small gate .
Exchanging looks, I nodded and Mina took a deep breath and took one step outside of the grounds .
And when she did .
Swoosh; Mina’s form disappeared .
When I returned to the house and entered the living room, Mina was there on top of the sofa .
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“So it’s like that . ”
“It’s like that for both your physical form and spirit form?”
“Yes…… Like I thought, I suppose I can’t go outside…”
Hmmmm .
There’s no way to deal with it if we don’t know what’s causing it …
After that, the result was the same no matter how many times we tried it .
“I’m … dead anyway … so I’m never going to be able to leave the house ever again … … Ahaha … … haha … haa……”
Mina hugged her knees on top of the sofa, clearly depressed .
… The inside of her skirt was completely visible from my position .
How to say this; she keeps it from becoming extremely serious .
Although that’s another one of Mina’s good points .
“Cheer up . One day, you might be able to go outside all of a sudden . If we leave it like this, it’s sad for Mina, right? As for me, I want to go on vacation with all three of us . A company vacation . We’ll spend all of the profits we’ve saved up . Sounds fun, right?”
Hehe; as she laughed, tears fell as Mina began to cry .
“Reiji-shaaan… I met a good houseowner … fuee…”
There, there; I patted her head .
Although I said that, I don’t know a single thing about the situation, so I’m not going to do anything .
It’s possible that she’s that kind of existence .
It’s also possible that she’ll disappear if we forcibly take her out or something .
Hearing our voices, Noela came into the living room .
“Mina, what’s wrong?”
“Noelsaaaan…”
Glomp; Mina hugged Noela .
With Noela’s fluffy effect, fuhehe; Mina’s face released its tension .
Seems like fluffiness is justice .
“Why the sofa?”
Noela tilted her head, mystified .
It’s a rare chance for Mina to be sitting on the sofa .
She’s always in the kitchen, cooking and cleaning up, or moving around as she cleans, after all .
… Come to think of it .
We were leaving by all sorts of exits, but Mina always returns to on top of the sofa .
No matter how many times we repeated it, the place she returns to is absolutely the same .
“Is there something about the sofa…?”
No, the sofa was something I bought when we decided on this house … .
“If it’s not the sofa, is it under it?”
There’s nothing there even if I look under it, just normal flooring .
In that case, is it below the flooring?
When I look at Mina, she’s fluffing Noela, loosening up .
“Hey, Mina . Was this room remodeled at any time in the past?”
“Yes . It was . Just one time by the first family after I’d become a house protecting spirit . ”
She won’t break her stance saying that she’s a house protecting spirit instead of a ghost no matter what .
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I don’t have an ability nor tool to check beneath the flooring .
“- Noela, call that person over . ”
“That person…! Understood, will call . ”
Swoosh; Noela dashed off, and after 10 minutes she came back with an old man on her back .
It’s the carpenter who remodeled the entryway and shop area, Gaston-san .
With his back hunched over nearly 90 degrees, he moved his mouth lightly .
It feels like his eyelids would close at any moment .
“Underneath this sofa is flooring, right? I would like to see underneath this flooring; can you do that?”
“Huuuh~? What did you say?”
His ears are as ineffective as before .
“I want to see! Underneath! The flooring! Can you help!?”
“Aah, aah, Granny, see, in the old days ~”
I didn’t ask about that .
“That’s right, in the end, she was stolen, see . ”
This again?
…… . Continue; I’m curious, so I’d like to here it .
“Who! Stole! Granny!?”
“Under the flooring? Aah, I can do that~ . ”
He returned to the topic!?
Dammit, I’m extremely curious .
It has absolutely no relevance so I’ll stop digging any further for today; I ask Noela to remove the sofa .
“Here, right? Awright, awright, I’ll do it~ . ”
Clatter clatter; taking his tools out from his toolbox, Gaston-san began to work .
Wor-king, wor-king
Like I saw before, he works at quite a leisurely pace .
“Um-! How long! Will this take!?”
“Let’s see~, three days abouts~”
“It takes that long…? – Alright, I’m going to use THAT . Noela, bring it over?”
Seems like I conveyed what THAT was; Noela returned to the store and took a bottle .
“Gaston-san, have this . It’s something that will give you energy . It might improve your performance . ”
“What this~? Some weird sort of drink?”
Narrowing his eyes, Gaston-san looked at the bottle .
He’s totally forgotten that he’s drunk it before .
Tilting his head, he drank one mouthful, two mouthfuls .
Take that . My number 2 best-seller .
Energy potion .
Woosh; the bottle was thrown at me, and I caught it .
“Boy, hold on to this . I’m overflowing with power… -! Fuhahaha!”
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Oooh, just like I thought! His personality changes! The Legend version .
His warped back straightened in a blink of an eye, and a mysterious aura blazed intimidatingly behind him .
“With just this much wooork! I can do it! In 10 seconds! Don’t look down on the Legend- . Fu-hahahaha!”
Um, just those words took 10 seconds, though .
Enough with the stupid smirking and move your hands as you speak .
“Don’t regret … that you woke me!”
“Why do you look like you’re 5 seconds away from a fight? Rather, please fulfill my request . ”
Fuhahaha; while raising a loud laugh, Gaston-san exhibited the work of the Legend .
He immediately opened a hole in the floor so that I could peek underneath .
“And neeeext! It’s fine to take this with you-!”
Saying so with a loud voice, Gaston-san installed a tiny door that could open and close .
His work is careful and quick . Yup, this guy is a pro alright .
But his commission isn’t high and his sense of duty and empathy is that of a gentleman .
“It’s fine to call me over again!”
“Yes! If the chance comes, we’ll rely on you!”
Bowing smartly, Gaston-san gave a nod and took his leave .
“He’s an amazing person, isn’t he… I wonder if he has a split personality… . ?”
“Crazy… he’s just, crazy…”
Oh, this is the first time these two have seen him .
His personality is pretty strong, naa … especially aftr he drinks the energy potion .
“Reiji-san . What’s underneath?”
“If my expectations are correct, I think something that concerns Mina will appear . ”
Haa; Mina doesn’t seem too keen on it .
“Concerning me…?”
I quickly opened the small door installed into the floor .
There was a small cavity there, and a worn out ladder continuing further below .
I descended downwards on the ladder .
It’s not that deep and I reached the ground soon .
There was a small room when I opened an old door . It had a single bookcase, desk, and chair .
The dust was gathered thick all over .
H-m . Is there anything out of place?
According to my expectations, I thought there would be something draws Mina to itself, though- .
When I pulled out a drawer from the desk to look, I found a brooch that resembled the shape of a flower petal .
[The Fleure Family Brooch: an expensive ornament inlaid with green garnet . ]
Fleure…? Come to think of it, I’ve never heard what Mina’s family name is before .
“Reiji-sn, are you alright-?”
“I’m coming back now . ”
I went up the ladder and returned, showing the brooch to Mina .
“Do you recognize this?”
“Ah- . That’s something Mother entrusted to me-! How nostalgic … this, it was in the basement(?)?”
“Yeah . Your mother entrusted it to you?”
“Yes . It’s something Mother passed on to me, telling that I should only wear it for important days . In those days, I was … um, when she no longer had those opportunities, Mother entrusted it to me . In the end, I never had a chance to wear it and … … ahaha… . ”
Isn’t this what’s pulling Mina…?
Let’s try it out .
I took the brooch and went to the medicine room .
“Min! Go ahead-!”
When I said so with a loud voice, appeared in the middle of the air and descended like that .
“Uuwaaa!?”
“Kyaaa!?”
Crash;
I was pinned underneath Mina .
“A,are you alright, Mina?”
“Y,yes, somehow … Ah, sorry, Reiji-san . I landed on top of you . ”
Mina got off, and I got up .
“It really is this . If Mina leaves past a certain distance, she returns to where the brooch is . ”
In order to prove my hypothesis, I attached the brooch to Mina and we went outside together .
Mina wasn’t returned back, and she was constantly there just like that outside of the grounds .
“It really is this! If you carry this, Mina won’t be bound to the house . ”
Yy! Mina raised both hands .
“It’s outside, outside-! I can go shopping by myself, and I can do anything-! Reiji-sn!”
“Yup, like this, the three of us can go all over the place, right?”
Glomp; Mina hugged me .
“Wai, let go . This is outside, so -”
“I can, go, anywhere … uuuuu, fueeeee~ . ”
“Why are you crying?”
“Because I’m happy~”
Hearing our voices, Noela came over, and going along with what was said, clung to me .
“Noela too . ”
“Noela, Mina can go out now, so where should the three of us go from now on?”
“Ru-♪ Master, Mina . Going out, all three of us-”
Swishswish . Swishswish .
Noela’s tail is wagging in perfect form .
“A company trip . Where should we go?”
Her eyes swollen, Mina wiped her tears and smiled .
“Reiji-san, I’m very happy . ”
“Noela too, Noela too . ”
“Yeah, me too . ”
The bonds between the members of Kirio Drug have deepened greatly .