Chapter 811

Chapter 811

Bear-san and the Blessing of Bears

Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear continued to run forward, carrying us on their backs.

“Hey, Yuna.” (Mane)

“What is it?” (Yuna)

“I know it’s a little late to ask, but why are you dressed like that?” (Mane)

It was certainly a little too late to ask that now.

“Basically, I don’t care what anyone wears, but when people stare at me like that… Previously, when I went to the Adventurer’s Guild alone, adventurers sometimes bothered me, but this time, all the adventurers’ eyes were on us.” (Mane)

I did think my outfit stood out more than Mane-san.

But, do adventurers have so much free time to get involved with a person who looked like a child?

“Well, I’m dressed like this because I’m under the bear’s blessing…” (Yuna)

I answered with the usual excuse.

But Mane-san gave me a suspicious look.

“Do you really have that kind of blessing?” (Mane)

“These two bears are the proof.” (Yuna)

I stroked the back of the Hugging Bear I was riding on.

“Do you believe it now…?” (Yuna)

“Bear’s blessing. If it really exists, I’d like to study it.” (Mane)

Even with her childish looks, she had the expression of a researcher.

However, since I was lying about the bear’s blessing, I didn’t think she would find anything out even if she studied it.

“But even so, is it really alright to have these guys running at this speed for hours?” (Mane)

Mane-san touched Swaying Bear’s back.

Mane-san might not have realized it because she fell asleep immediately after leaving the royal capital.

“They’re not like the bears you see everywhere.” (Yuna)

“That’s amazing. I can understand why Ellelaura and Sanya acknowledge you.” (Mane)

And so, Mane-san and I continue on, chatting to each other as we travel.

“Yuna lives in Crimonia, right? That’s why you came to our Ministry so late.” (Mane)

That was part of it, but it was also because after hearing the story from Cliff, I didn’t leave immediately and just took it easy.

“Have you been working at the Ministry for a long time, Mane-san?” (Yuna)

“I don’t know, I don’t really care, but I was already working there since Ellelaura was still a student, so I think I have been there for more than 10 years.” (Mane)

Ellelaura-san was 35 years old right now, I think?

That meant that Mane-san had been assigned to the Ministry of Magic for at least 15 to 20 years.

Because she was half-elf, her senses regarding time might have been dulled, just like normal elves.

“Were you researching the method that will help your body grow all this time?” (Yuna)

“I haven’t been doing it all this time. I do research when I get information that will help, find related research materials, or if there’s a new research paper. If I don’t do other work, I’ll get kicked out.” (Mane)

Well, only doing personal work would definitely get you fired.

There’s a saying that says, “He who doesn’t work, doesn’t eat.”

If you work for a company, you have to do the work for the company.

Well, I’ve never been part of the workforce, so what I say might not be very convincing.

I didn’t think there was anyone who was as out of touch with the society gears as I was.

“Plus, even if I am not satisfied with work, there’s no place better than the Ministry of Magic for gathering information. Even if I don’t search for it myself, the people working there still bring in information, or even rare medicinal herbs for me.” (Mane)

Working for an organization connected to the state brings in far more information than researching things on your own.

And if people at work help you, it shows that you have a good work environment.

“This time the information about the Western Forest was told to me by an adventurer I knew.” (Mane)

“It’s nice to have friends.” (Yuna)

My shop was running because of the help I got from Tirumina, Morin, and many other people.

Since coming to this world, I’ve been helped by many people.

I could live on my own, but I think it was better to have people around to help me.

“Yeah, but when I first joined the Ministry of Magic, I was teased because of how I look.” (Mane)

I understood how she may have felt.

I was also mocked and teased because I was dressed like a bear. Some people did say it was cute, though.

We continued on while talking about ourselves.

After just a few hours of talking, we’ve become quite close.

I realized that I have grown up more than I expected compared to my old self, living alone.

As we continued on, the road smoothly curved to the left.

“We should go straight ahead from here, right?” (Yuna)

If we continue on this road, we would reach a town along the road.

But we’re heading for the western forest.

“Yes, that is according to what Sanya told us.” (Mane)

“Well, I suppose it might just be the right time, so let’s prepare to camp for the night a little away from the road.” (Yuna)

The sun was already starting to set.

Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear, carrying us, went off the road and we searched for a place to camp.

Soon we found a place where rocks and trees covered the area, a place where even if we set up the bear house, it would not be visible from the road.

“Shall we camp around here?” (Yuna)

Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear stopped.

“By the way, Sanya said you had a house. What does that mean?” (Mane)

“It means exactly as she said.” (Yuna)

I got off Swaying Bear and took out the bear house for camping from my bear box.

“What, a bear!?” (Mane)

Mane-san was surprised when she saw the bear house.

“A bear? An item bag? Something this big?” (Mane)

Mane-san looked back and forth between the bear house and my white bear puppet.

“What is this? That bear house just came out of it. I knew it was an item bag because you took bread out of it at lunch. You can even put something this big in it too?” (Mane)

Mane-san came over, grabbed the white bear puppet on my left hand and squeezed it with her small hands over and over.

Each time she did so, the bear puppet’s face squished and deformed.

“It’s amazing that such a big item can fit inside this. And what’s more, it’s something that a single person owns. Are you some kind of royalty or noble? Or maybe the daughter of a wealthy merchant?” (Mane)

Apparently, she was more interested in the item bag than the bear house.

She reminded me of a sage, someone who studied magic tools and magic circles.

“I’m just an ordinary person.” (Yuna)

“Ordinary people don’t have such amazing item bags. Where did you get it?” (Mane)

“Well, you could say that this is also thanks to the bear’s blessing.” (Yuna)

I couldn’t help but add another lie.

Well, it was not much of a lie because only I can use this item.

“Bear’s blessing…” (Mane)

She looked at me after what I said, then at the bear puppet she was gripping, then at Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear, and finally at the bear house.

Then she muttered the word, “Bear.”

“Anyway, you must be tired. Let’s go inside and rest.” (Yuna)

I gently freed my hand from Mane-san’s grip and made Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear smaller in size.

“The bears got smaller!” (Mane)

Come to think of it, she didn’t know that Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear could do that.

Mane-san held the now-shrunk, Swaying Bear in her arms.

“How does it work? Why did they become small?” (Mane)

She asked one question after another.

She had the look of someone who had just found a new research subject.

“Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear are special bears, so they can transform.” (Yuna)

“Special? I don’t think they can become small even if they are special.” (Mane)

She was not so easily fooled like a child.

To a knowledgeable researcher, this might have been an impossible phenomenon.

To me, the fact that Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear could transform was no different from magic.

“I wonder what principle it is working on?” (Mane)

She touched Swaying Bear’s body as if to check every inch of it.

She looked at its hands and feet, and observed its mouth and tail.

“That’s strange…” (Mane)

“By the way, I don’t know the answer even if you asked me.” (Yuna)

“But it’s your bear?” (Mane)

“All I know is that if I wish for them to be small, they will become small, and if I wish for them to be big, they will become big.” (Yuna)

“They can grow big too?” (Mane)

“When I say they can grow big, I mean returning to their normal size. They can’t grow any bigger than that. By the way, this is also connected to the bear’s blessing.” (Yuna)

Let’s blame everything involving me on the bear’s blessing.

“Bear’s blessing…” (Mane)

I didn’t know if she was convinced or not. Since we couldn’t stay outside forever, we decided to go inside the bear house.

“Sit wherever you like.” (Yuna)

Mane-san sat on the sofa.

Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear sat on either side of her.

“Here, a drink.” (Yuna)

“Thank you.” (Mane)

Mane-san looked around the room.

“It’s really a house. I can’t believe that an item bag can hold such a big house. I’m sure you said it was the bear’s blessing.” (Mane)

Mane-san looked at the white bear puppet again.

“Yeah, and only I can use this item bag.” (Yuna)

I put the white bear puppet on the table in front of Mane-san.

Mane-san touched the white bear puppet and tried to move it, but it didn’t budge.

“Is it heavy? It’s not. It just won’t move.” (Mane)

I easily picked up the white bear puppet and put it on my left hand.

“The bear’s blessing…” (Mane)

It could also be called the bear’s curse.

I would not say that, because Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear would be sad if I said so.

“There really is such a blessing. I’ve lived a long time, but I didn’t know this. I still have a long way to go.” (Mane)

It felt like she was convinced.

Well, I guess she had no choice but to accept it since she had seen it in front of her and actually touched it.

It was a lie, though.

“Only the owner can use it… it works almost the same way as a guild card.” (Mane)

It was true—the guild card only reacted to magic registered by the owner.

“I can understand that only the owner can use it, but it’s still a mystery as to why it won’t move at all. I wonder if that’s also the effect of the bear’s blessing?” (Mane)

She started thinking deeply, with a researcher-like expression.

“Uh,” “Is there a way to stop it moving…” “Is it a fixed spell?” she started to mutter to himself.

I left Mane-san like that and prepared dinner. That said, it was a simple dish.

I washed the vegetables, made a salad, and stir-fried the leftover vegetables and meat..

It went well with rice, and was also delicious when put in bread.

I prepared rice for myself and bread for Mane-san.

When I brought the dinner I made to the table, Mane-san was playing with Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear.

She might have been researching rather than playing.

“Is that rice?” (Mane)

“You know it?” (Yuna)

“My father brought it from somewhere a long time ago.” (Mane)

Maybe her father had been to the Land of Wa, or maybe he got it from some other place.

Mane-san put the meat between the bread and ate it.

“It’s delicious.” (Mane)

“I’m glad you like it. When you’re done, take a bath.” (Yuna)

While I was cooking, I went to fill the bathtub with water.

The water should be ready by now.

“There’s a bath… really.” (Mane)

“You can’t get rid of your fatigue if you don’t eat, bathe, and sleep properly. Ah, don’t worry, you can sleep peacefully. If it’s a weak monster, you’ll be safe in this house, and if there’s any danger, Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear will let me know.” (Yuna)

“I think I understand why Ellelaura and Sanya said I will be safe with Yuna. There’s no safer or more comfortable journey than this.” (Mane)

Mane-san put the bread in her mouth as she said so.

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