Hamburger and boy (3)

I summoned a flame spirit that feeds on my mana. Little lights twinkle around me.

The boy looked at it with very curious eyes.

"What is this? "It's just sparkling?"

"I will protect you in case your life is in danger. So you can always make a loud noise. "You don't have to be afraid."

"really?"

"Really. "It may look small, but if the Baron is in danger, it will turn into flames and eat everything."

"Nana! I think I read about spirits in a book. amazing!"

"But it's not free."

"Isn't it free?"

"Even if you become a lord, you must come to the restaurant often. However, not with the sensibility of a dignified lord, but with the emotions of a boy like today. "If you come to a restaurant and show off, we'll kick you out."

"Don't worry about that. He is a good lord, so he has no dignity. yes?"

"No, it has to be there when there is dignity. You must know how to react according to the situation. "It's all up to the Baron."

"I see!"

Leaving the boy to make up his mind alone, I called Lurin.

"Lurin, let's stop rolling around and go back."

Lurin, who had been rolling around on the sofa, fluttering as if she liked it, opened her arms wide when I said that. It seems to mean come and hug me. This dragon?

"This is so soft! "Can't we take it home?"

"I'll buy it for you later, so don't be greedy for someone else's."

"You must keep that promise! Well, if you want to go back, give me a hug! This time from the front."

Rurin opens her arms wider again. She has no choice but to go in peace.

"see you later."

I cried out and clung to Rurin.

The boy raises his arms in embarrassment.

"Are you going already?"

"Next time, don't sneak away and visit me, but come find me on your own."

At that very moment, Lurin used teleportation. The black hole's spiral struck my vision again.

The moment the boy comes out strong, the little woman will probably be quite embarrassed. Still, I won't give up.

From there, the boy's fight begins. There's no way there's just a small group of women around. Now I'm in that state because I'm seen as a child with very little will.

There was some interest, but it was a problem the boy would have to deal with in the future.

If you become a regular, I'll take care of you more. If you become a regular.

At least if you have that spirit, your life won't be in danger. The Flame Spirit was a service for leaving 100,000 runes on the table.

You don't want to give back the money you once received, right? No matter how rich I am.

***

A few days later.

The boy came back to the store. I was alone again.

"Did you run away again?"

When I ask, Mr. Youngju next shakes his head. And he pointed out.

"I came to speak confidently. "There is an escort outside."

"Oh, is that so?"

He gently patted the boy's head. And then I surprised myself. I'm glad there's no one watching. If it were my status, even the emperor would tremble.

That's why a count like him can't say anything even if you pat him on the head or even hit him, but the problem here is that he's a retired commoner.

A commoner patting a nobleman's head.

But the boy looks up at me with shining eyes, as if nothing is wrong.

"I did as you said, little by little, loudly. "How dare I ask the Gray family's eldest son and next lord to glare at me, and he couldn't even squeak?"

"Why have you been timidly begging until now when you can do that?"

"Because I was scared. But I felt a little more courageous because I thought that this flame was on my side, too. Your words really touched me. And since he clearly came out strong, didn't you confirm at that time that he was stepping down?"

"Well done. If you do this, the Baron's hidden allies will appear one after another. But the more we do this, the more we need to develop eyes that can filter out people."

"okay? I'll keep that in mind. "It is the eye that sees people."

"If you can do that, you will be able to become a good lord."

"Nana! I'm going to work hard. "I will be a good lord."

Of course, that guard posted outside right now is probably a surveillance station assigned by the little lady. Since it comes out so strong, you can't keep it locked up, so it's probably an inevitable choice. The lord wouldn't have the guts to imprison his son when he wasn't even dead yet.

"Let's do our best at that."

"okay. Anyway, I can eat and eat comfortably today. So, let's try another unique dish… ."

At that very moment, a boy about the same age as Gray came into the store, holding the hand of a girl who appeared to be in her early teens.

I and Grayke both looked at the boy at the same time.

"excuse me… ."

"welcome."

I greeted my siblings with a smile. The customer's age is meaningless to me. There are many things in this world that are more important than age.

"Do you want to eat?"

"A meal is a meal, can you prepare this for me?"

The boy and girl quickly ran to me and took out the runes from their arms. About five hundred runes.

"I want to prepare a dish for my mother, something with a lot of meat…" Those 3 servings… ."

There was no confidence on the boy's face, not even the grime on his claws. The girl, who is shorter than the boy, is trembling, wondering why she is so nervous.

Is it because I was rejected by all the other restaurants? So it must have come up to the top of this hill.

Well, 3 meat dishes for 500 runes. This is something that would never be accepted in a normal restaurant. Five hundred runes is not enough to even make one serving of meat dish. It may be possible to have a very cheap meal, but if meat is included, it becomes impossible.

If you've never been to a restaurant before, you probably don't know the prices. If I had known the market price, I wouldn't have gone out recklessly and sold my money with the money I barely saved.

"Cooking for your mother?"

"brother… ."

When I asked, the girl's trembling body began to tremble even more and she looked up at the boy anxiously. The boy motions quietly to her younger brother and then opens his mouth towards me.

"Well, today is my mother's birthday. Her mother has been working for 10 years since her father died. He raised the two of us for 10 years by working from field to field, and this is the money I have saved little by little by helping with the work since last year. Still, I went out thinking I would be able to prepare a certain amount of food, but the reality was… Wherever I go, I get rejected... . Hey, I really want to treat my mom to something memorable! I don't seem to have any energy these days, so I made sure to eat some meat to cheer me up... . Absolutely. How could it not? "It doesn't matter if it's for one person!"

"that's right! "I don't want to eat it!"

The girl added. Although he speaks confidently, the trembling of his body and the anxiety on his face are pitiful.

"At our restaurant's market price, it's possible to easily prepare one serving for 500 runes, but… . Will your mother really like it? "I think it would be counterproductive for the two of them to just watch without being able to eat."

"that is… ."

"Oppa, I guess it's not working here either… ."

Although I use the highest quality ingredients in my restaurant, I still have a set minimum price. Not paying even the set price is something that should not happen. That is true for both the eater and the seller.

It is understandable that the customer does not know that the ingredients of the dish are of the highest quality and that the price of the dish is charged according to the general market price.

If they don't even charge the standard price, everyone will try to eat like that, and then it becomes a soup kitchen instead of a restaurant.

At the very least, you must pay what you owe and receive what you are owed. Even if it is a business where you do whatever you want, it is a line that must be followed.

Of course, as a result, the two people slumped their shoulders. Then Gray came up to me in the kitchen and quietly whispered.

"I will pay. So, serve a hearty meal to those children and their mother. "I feel so sorry that I can't see you."

I shook my head at Grayk's suggestion. And he asked for understanding from the boy and girl.

"Would you like to stay for a moment?"

"yes yes!"

After hearing the boy shout, he dragged the Gray boy away from a distance and spoke to him in a whisper.

"That can't be said."

"Why? I feel sorry for you and want to help you. "Isn't that the first step to becoming a good lord?"

"So, are you going to help everyone who is having trouble? Do you cook for all the single-mother families, farmers, poor people, and beggars in Gray City?"

"I need help. "That's a good lord."

"Baron, listen carefully. That's just the Baron's self-satisfaction. "What difference does it make if you help me like that just once?"

"uh?"

"And is that your money, Baron? "It's family money, right?"

"that… ."

"If you become a lord and manage the territory, it will be your property. But not now."

The boy couldn't say anything.

"If you really want to be a good lord, give help for a reason, not the complacency of throwing money away for no reason. Policies or jobs that allow single-parent families to receive assistance. It is the role of a lord to come up with fundamental measures and enable the people to stand up for themselves. "Throwing money is something anyone can do, and it's also something that can't change anything."

"but!"

"People, when they encounter unexpected luck, always feel the need for help. I don't have the ability to take action to solve something on my own. Are you going to take responsibility for them for the rest of your life?"

"Uh, uh… ."

Of course, what I say is not the correct answer. But at the very least, enemy lines for no reason can easily ruin boys and girls. I think so.

"You two, um, how old are you?"

"I'm 18!"

"If you're that age, you'd be helping in the fields, right?"

"yes!"

"Of course, if you want to give a gift, there is no chance. Of course, even this opportunity itself is very fortunate. "The world is not that easy."

"I know that! "I don't know how many times I've been kicked out already."

"brother… ."

"Well, then let's do it like this. I will create an opportunity for you. So do you want to work? If you complete it, I will prepare the best dinner for your whole family."

"Is that true? Oh, please let me do anything! "I don't mind breaking my body as long as I can serve delicious food to my mother!"

The boy nodded his head at me.

"I want to do it too!"

And the girl, holding her brother's hand tightly, also opened her mouth.

"I guess you're too young to work?"

"I'm already 12 years old now!"

The girl looked at me with earnest eyes. It seemed like she couldn't refuse that earnestness, so she opened her mouth again.

"Well, if it's just a matter of helping your brother, then do it yourself."

Then another boy. I felt Gray's gaze staring at me.

"I will try that too. Nana! I want to learn something. I wanted to make money with my own hands. "Thanks to you."

It's good to experience anything. That thought itself was amazing. There is no need to refuse.

"great."

I walked to the Limon Forest, leading the growing sprouts. And he pointed to the entire forest.

"If you look closely, there are eggs like this here and there in this forest, so you just have to search through the grass or bamboo and search again to collect as many as possible. And if I find one that looks like this, I dig it up."

In addition to eggs, they showed bamboo shoots, which are difficult to find and dig up one by one.

"If you're doing it for your mother, try hard."

"thank you! "I will work hard!"

The boy ran into the forest without any hesitation.

"brother! "Let's go together!"

The girl goes in together. Grayke also entered the forest with determination in his eyes. The guards just looked at Gray in silence.