"Leaving the forest, huh?"
I tilted my head with curiosity, my tail wagging back and forth.
"I mean, Ellie, do you want to go live with me?"
When I heard Flora say that I went silent.
We had only just met, so why was she inviting me to live with her?
Even though my name came from her, I still felt uneasy.
"How about staying just for a while? If you really don't like it, you can come back here."
Seeing me remain silent, she tried to persuade me with a serious expression.
"If you stay with me, you'll have meat to eat every day, and that meat will be ten times better than wild boar."
"Umm..."
She tried to lure me with food, comparing it to the wild boar meat I had just eaten.
Is there really meat that's better than wild boar?
Wild boar meat was the best I've ever tasted.
Is there a meat that's truly better than wild boar?
"Th-then just for a day or two..."
"Yeah! Just a few days with Ellie, I'll be satisfied!"
Flora showed her happiness before pulling me into a hug.
I had no choice but to surrender and let her hug me with a contorted face.
After agreeing that I would leave the forest to stay with her for a while, the sky darkened. Amid the surrounding darkness, we had only the light from the campfire.
"Y-you can sleep inside if you want."
I walked nervously to Flora, who was now taking off her armor, revealing a tight black outfit. I looked at her for a moment before pointing to my sleeping area.
I've never had anyone stay with me before, so I didn't know how to act around her.
But since she had been so kind to me, sharing wild boar meat and talking to me,
it made me very happy, but I didn't know how to repay her.
At least I could offer her a good place to sleep...
"Huh? Are you going to let me sleep inside alone?"
Flora looked at the small shelter made of branches.
The shelter was quite small; it was wide enough for just one person to sleep in.
But if it's for an adult, it should be enough for both of us, right?
"Aren't you going to sleep with me?"
"Th-the space is a bit too small..."
I replied to Flora, my hands restless.
I felt quite awkward.
"It's not a problem!"
Flora answered before coming towards me and picking me up.
'Huh...'
I froze, looking forward as she slid her arms under my armpits and lifted me up.
Before my brain could process what was happening, we were already inside the shelter.
She set me down and adjusted my sleeping position before lying down next to me.
"See? We can sleep together, can't we?"
She said with a smile while I was still bewildered by the situation.
I nodded in response, still dazed.
She smiled before pulling me into a hug and gently patting my head.
'Huh... Huh... Huh...'
My mind was filled with 'Huh' as I tried to adjust to the situation.
I wasn't used to being patted on the head while being hugged and tried to push her away for a while, but soon I felt sleepy and my eyes closed.
---
[Flora's POV]
I looked at the little one whose eyes were now tightly closed. Her tail, which had been wagging from being patted on the head, had now stopped moving.
'Looks like she's fallen asleep.'
Seeing that Ellie was asleep, I carefully got up, trying to make as little noise as possible, and walked out of the shelter.
Soon, I saw two shadowy figures approaching. I recognized them.
I waved to signal that I was here.
The two figures came closer, my brother 'Vincent' and my childhood friend 'Eleanora'.
"Do you know how it felt when I came back to find you and you were nowhere to be seen?"
My brother Vincent approached me with a calm expression, in contrast to my friend.
"Floraaaa~"
Eleanora ran to me and jumped into my arms.
"Do you know how worried I was about you? I thought you were dead! When I followed your brother and didn't see you, I thought you were taken hostage by the bandits!"
"Y-yeah, I know..."
I pushed Eleanora's face away, which was rubbing against my cheek incessantly, with a grimace.
"By the way, I didn't expect you to wait until Ellie was asleep."
I turned to speak to my brother, ignoring Eleanora, because I felt someone was watching me and Ellie as the sky darkened.
At first, I thought it was the bandits, but I didn't sense any murderous intent, so I knew they weren't bandits.
But given my brother's nature—his impatience and straightforwardness—I didn't think he would wait until Ellie fell asleep before showing up.
Seeing me mention Ellie, Eleanora spoke up.
"By the way, that child... How did that child end up with you?"
Eleanora looked at the shelter where Ellie was now sleeping.
"It's a long story..."
I slowly explained everything to both of them before sighing.
"If it weren't for Ellie, I would have either died from blood loss or been captured as a prisoner."
I said before slowly walking back to the shelter.
Eleanora watched me walk towards Ellie and then spoke.
"Thanks to Ellie, we might not have seen you again otherwise."
Then we both walked towards Ellie, who was now sleeping soundly.
"Ellie is such a skilled child. I can't imagine how she survived in the deep forest on her own."
I said to Eleanora before patting Ellie's head.
"Mm.." Eleanora nodded in agreement before raising her staff.
She chanted for a while before the tip of her staff emitted a blue light that covered the surrounding area.
"I've cast a protective spell."
I looked at Eleanora and nodded in acknowledgment.
Eleanora is my close friend. We joined the same unit three years ago as trainee knights before we went our separate ways.
Eleanora has great magical talent. She excels in fire magic, which has high destructive power, allowing her to advance to a mid-level mage in just two years.
I also didn't fall behind her. I trained hard to keep up and be able to fight alongside her at an equal level.
"But the fact that your unit, which is a top-class unit, had to retreat means that the bandits brought strong reinforcements, right?"
Eleanora asked me with curiosity.
My unit, to be honest, is the top-class of the empire.
"Yes... I never expected that Trukruz would join this battle."
Trukruz is a bandit who oversees three tribes of bandits.
Trukruz is incredibly strong. Even if I had a hundred men, we wouldn't stand a chance. And it's not just his physical strength; Trukruz is also highly skilled in dirty tactics and ambushes.
"Trukruz, huh? It's a good thing your unit survived..."
"I don't understand the Sage. Why did they send your unit without reinforcements here!"
Eleanora said in frustration, rumpling her hair in anger.
"That's because he supports the Second Prince."
My brother interjected.
"Second prince? He's choosing sides in the middle of a war!?"
Eleanora said loudly.
Hearing that, I quickly pointed to my lips and made a shushing gesture.
"Sorry... I got a bit worked up."
Eleanora apologized before turning to Vincent.
"Why did he do that?"
"Because... our unit serve directly to the third prince."
"If our unit dies during the mission, not only will the third prince's reputation be tarnished,"
"But his own power will also be diminished."
Vincent spoke in a calm tone.
"Even though if we lose this war, the empire will lose several cities?"
Eleanora frowned and said with irritation.
Vincent didn't reply to Eleanora.
The atmosphere was heavy, so I decided to change the topic.
"Brother... Eleanora... I plan to take Ellie back with me."
"Sure."
"Of course!"
Both of them agreed immediately before Eleanora sighed and sat down next to Ellie.
"But this child... with ears and a tail... must be from another world, right?"
"Yes... I asked her, and she has no other memories except growing up in this forest."
"So that's why you want to take this child with you."
"Then your brother and I will head back first... We'll wait for you at the western edge of the forest."
"Alright... Once morning comes, Ellie and I will set out immediately."
After discussing and agreeing, the three of us went our separate ways.
Eleanora waved goodbye to me, and I waved back.
After watching their figures disappear, I went back to the shelter and lay down to sleep.