Chapter 21 - The Long-Awaited Reunion
The sky was breathtakingly blue.
Dahlia savored the joy of the clear, unobstructed view of the townscape without her glasses.
The subtle beauty of the colors in her outfit—a pair of olive-green long pants and a white lily sweater—was now fully apparent to her.
That morning, Dahlia had taken a stagecoach to the church to confirm whether her vision could be restored, allowing her to forgo wearing glasses.
The church was located in the northeast of the royal capital, near the royal castle.
The structure resembled the churches of her previous life in form but was constructed with a material akin to white crystal. It sparkled brilliantly under the sunlight, creating a beautiful sight.
The healing procedure itself was conducted not in the church but in an adjacent building known as the "Healing Hall." This square, white facility resembled a hospital. The patients were directed to specific areas depending on the nature and severity of their injuries or illnesses.
Though initially told that the donation for restoring both eyes would be one gold coin, Dahlia added several silver coins to the sum and made her request.
Despite her nerves, the attendant at the Healing Hall had assured her with a smile that restoring her eyesight would be a simple task.
Although the wait time stretched to two and a half hours, the actual procedure performed by the priest took no more than five minutes for both eyes.
From that moment on, Dahlia enjoyed a crystal-clear view, a sensation she hadn’t experienced since childhood.
Instead of taking a stagecoach back, she chose to walk leisurely to the central district, soaking in the scenery.
Today, Dahlia had decided to commemorate her company’s establishment by treating herself to a delicious meal.
The past few days had been anything but peaceful, with her engagement annulled, an encounter with a bloodied knight, and the launch of her own company.
Her perfect plan was to enjoy a nice meal, purchase an intriguing book on magical tools and a sweet red wine on the way home, indulge in a long bath, and spend the evening lazily reading. Starting tomorrow, she would focus all her energy on crafting magical tools.
After some deliberation, she decided on a slightly stylish restaurant along the main street, one Gabriella had mentioned the previous day.
It was her first time at such an establishment so she was a little nervous, but she steeled herself and stepped inside.
The staff greeted her warmly and escorted her to a terrace seat with a smile.
The outdoor terrace had a large, flax-colored parasol set up beside each table.
Under the parasol, which softened the afternoon sunlight, a refreshing breeze that hinted at early summer blew, feeling wonderfully pleasant.
As Dahlia happily perused the menu handed to her by the staff, trying to decide what to order, she noticed something unusual.
At the nearby tables, people’s gazes shifted toward the street, as if drawn by something. This reaction began to ripple through the other patrons.
Curious, she followed their line of sight and found herself locking eyes with a tall young man walking toward her.
"...Oh."
What were the odds of such a coincidence?
Predicting that he might not recognize her, Dahlia quickly averted her gaze to avoid seeming rude.
However, the dark-haired man approached her directly without hesitation.
His strikingly handsome face was as captivating as ever, and his white silk-taffeta shirt and black trousers suited him perfectly.
"Pardon the interruption, but are you perhaps… Dahli-san’s family? No, wait… Dahli-san herself?"
"...Yes."
It was Volf, whom she had met in the forest not long ago.
His golden eyes narrowed with delight as he looked at her.
"Ah, I’m glad it’s you. Back then, my vision was blurry, so I wasn’t entirely sure."
"Apologies. It’s not ideal for a woman to be alone in the forest, so I dressed as I did."
"No, I’m the one who should apologize for causing you trouble. Thank you so much for that day."
Volf wasn’t upset that she had disguised her gender.
On the contrary, he bowed slightly and thanked her politely.
"Uhm...Did you realize it back in the forest?"
"I wasn’t certain. Your voice sounded completely like a man’s. But on the carriage ride back, your scent seemed feminine, so I wondered."
Her scent—can physical enhancement be used to strengthen one's sense of smell? Dahlia had to resist the urge to ask this question for the time being.
"I altered my voice using a magical tool. But how did you recognize me now?"
"The way you averted your gaze seemed unnatural. Also, there was your eye color and presence. Even when blurry, that jade green stood out. Your presence was similar too. When I got closer, your scent confirmed it.”
"You must have a remarkable sense of smell..."
Though she bathed daily and didn’t use perfume, was it possible that she smelled that bad?
Dahlia began to feel genuinely self-conscious about it.
"But it’s good that you turned out to be a woman, Dahli-san.”
"Why is that?"
"Well, even in that disguise, I found you somewhat cute. For a moment, I thought I might be heading in an entirely new direction."
"What direction are we talking about?!"
Unable to resist, Dahlia retorted. Volf responded with a cheerful laugh.
"I’d love to enjoy more lively idle chatter. Would you mind if I joined you? If you're meeting your lover, I can come back another day."
The stares from nearby women were not just prickling but outright stabbing her.
If anyone she knew saw them, she’d undoubtedly face questions later. But at this point, with all the attention gathered, she figured it was too late.
"...Go ahead. I’m here alone."
Resigning herself to the situation, Dahlia nodded.
"Thank you. I was on my way to the Merchant Guild, so this worked out well."
"Shopping for the Chivalric Order?"
"No, I was looking for you."
"For me?"
"I was planning to ask the Merchant Guild about anyone matching your description. I wanted to thank you properly, pay for the potion, and return the coat I borrowed. My captain wrote me a letter of introduction."
That was close.
Had he reached the guild, she might have been questioned regarding her solo forest trip or why she’d used an alias.
Worse, she could imagine guild women interrogating her about Volf in exhausting detail.
"Let me treat you today as a thank-you. Also, I insist on paying for the potion."
"Uhm..."
"Oh, don’t worry, this isn’t a pickup attempt. We had a deal, remember? ‘If you see me in town, call out to me. Then I’ll let you buy me that drink.’ I want to thank you, and I’d also love to continue our conversation about magic swords and magical tools."
"...All right. Then, I’ll graciously accept your treat."
"Perfect. Let’s do that."
Knights, perhaps due to the nature of their work, seemed to have a strong sense of duty. With that thought in mind, Dahlia chose the seafood spaghetti and chilled tomato soup.
Wolf had ordered herb-crusted chicken, a platter of cheese and ham, vichyssoise soup, and, in addition, a slightly pricier white wine along with two glasses.
"Is white wine okay? If you prefer red, I’ll get some."
"No, I like white too."
Thankfully, the capital’s food culture was exceptional.
The city was referred to as the "Capital of Cuisine" by other nations, suggesting that this world, too, had a place abundant with delicious delicacies.
The staple grain was wheat, and the cuisine closely resembled Western-style dishes from her previous life. While traditional Japanese cuisine didn’t exist, there were dishes that bore some resemblance. Additionally, with monster meat being a common ingredient, there were many dishes unfamiliar to Dahlia.
Since childhood, Dahlia had always looked forward to dining out twice a month with her father. Together, they would bravely try new dishes, and on the rare occasions when their choices turned out to be a culinary disaster, they would simply return home and have another meal to make up for it.
Looking back, ever since her father had passed away, Dahlia had lost the motivation to dine out and had stopped seeking out new restaurants to try.
Today might be the perfect opportunity.
From now on, she would explore new restaurants without hesitation, savor delicious food, and enjoy fine drinks to her heart's content.
"When we met in the forest, I never realized you were such a beautiful person."
"Thank you for the conversation-starting complement. Well, the face you saw in the forest was my natural self; right now, I'm just wearing makeup to create this look."
She had already heard about this because her father was a baron.
It was said that noblemen were required to compliment a woman at least once before engaging in a proper conversation with her for the first time.
Incidentally, her father often suffered from stomach aches and took stomach medicine before and after gatherings involving nobles.
"...Could it be that you’re a noble too, Dahli-san?"
"No, I’m a commoner. My father was an honorary baron, so I picked up on polite greetings. Complimenting unfamiliar women before a conversation seems really difficult."
"True. Forgetting to compliment them or doing it poorly can be quite troublesome."
Volf, his expression slightly clouded, seemed to be imagining something.
With looks like his, it was no doubt that he had been caught up in misunderstandings and misinterpretations more times than he could count.
As Dahlia thought of changing the topic, white wine and a platter of cheese and ham was brought to their table.
"Let’s start with a toast. Also, let’s share the cheese platter."
Volf poured the wine into their glasses. It was a pale golden white wine.
"To our reunion."
"To our reunion."
Their glasses clinked together with a clear sound.
In her previous life, clinking glasses during a toast with wine was considered inappropriate, but here, it was customary. They believed the act of clinking glasses drove away evil. Whether it was wine, ale, or any other drink, the ritual remained the same.
Even when drinking alone, one would clink their glass against the bottle.
She once seriously wondered if this was a scheme by glassware merchants. However, it seemed that even wooden cups used by farmers and the silver goblets of nobles were included in the practice.
"How is it?"
"It’s delicious."
The white wine was slightly dry, without bitterness, and full of grape flavor—a taste that perfectly suited her preferences.
"Good to hear. When we were drinking in the forest, I thought you seemed to prefer red wine."
"I usually do. I prefer the sweeter varieties."
"Then let’s order a sweet red next."
Though they had just opened their first bottle of wine that afternoon, they were already discussing a second.
Even as she questioned whether it was too soon, the smooth wine slipped easily down her throat.
As food arrived, they began to eat while continuing their conversation.
"Are your eyes all right now?"
"Thanks to you, I can see clearly. Just to be safe, I’ve been told to take it easy for a while, though."
"Uh, could it be because of the apology you had to write...?"
"No, it’s pure leave. Thankfully, I didn’t even have to write a letter of apology."
"That’s good to hear."
"Still, my squad members searched for me for two whole days, so I’ll need to treat them to drinks once I’m back."
"In that case, shouldn’t we split the bill today?"
"I must decline with all my strength. The Subjugation Force gets a well enough pay, so don’t worry about it."
As they chatted, she tried the seafood spaghetti. The small pieces of seafood were richly flavored with salt and spices, perfect for the warm season.
Being near the sea, the royal capital had a steady supply of seafood.
However, unlike the ones in her previous life, the sizes varied greatly. Some squid hung at two meters long, prawns were as large as fists, and scallops could reach thirty centimeters. Ordering without seeing the actual items required extra caution.
The chilled tomato soup was sweeter than expected, but its basil flavor added a refreshing touch, making it a good choice for summer.
Volf, meanwhile, was neatly cutting his herb-crusted baked chicken, alternating bites with sips of wine. Judging by his satisfied expression, it was to his liking.
"Feel free to try some of this."
"Thank you."
He pushed the platter of cheese and ham toward her, along with the wine.
On the plate, there were two pieces of cheese that looked strangely close to red. The cut surfaces were red as well, so it wasn’t just an outer coating. She had never seen such a red cheese, even in her previous life.
"This red cheese is new to me."
“It’s from crimson cattle.”
"Crimson cattle?"
"Yes. In a neighboring country, they’ve domesticated a type of monster—red cows with white splotches. Their milk is said to be pink, and the cheese has become popular recently."
"I'll have one."
When she took a bite, she was surprised to find it quite firm. The taste was similar to mimolette cheese, but a bit sweeter and more intense.
It seemed like it would pair better with red wine than white.
"If I'm going to order more of this cheese, I think I'll stick with red wine..."
Volf chuckled, thinking the same thing.
"By the way, about the coat I borrowed—did your father get angry?"
"It’s fine. My father has already passed away."
"My apologies. I didn’t realize I’d borrowed a memento."
"No need to apologize. These days, I mostly use it as a raincoat. There’s no point in keeping it just for display."
"I’ll send it to be cleaned before returning it. I didn’t realize the lining wasn’t sand lizard leather but wyvern leather."
"You don’t have to worry about that. I can clean it myself at home. The wyvern material is just scraps pasted together with a fixation spell. My father was prone to tearing it, so I added it for reinforcement.”
"Reinforcing with wyvern hide..."
Volf looked at her with an open-mouthed expression.
Even though it was wyvern, it was just discarded material chopped into smaller pieces, with a bit of blue slime powder mixed in. Then, a fixation spell was applied using both chemicals and magic. It was much cheaper than using actual large wyvern leather.
"Yes, it’s mostly just disposable-grade wyvern material. The area around the elbows, for instance, has a weak adherence and is falling apart."
"Dahli-san, does your work involve clothing or materials by any chance?"
"Apologies, I forgot to introduce myself properly. I’m Dahlia Rossetti, a novice magical toolmaker."
"A magical toolmaker? That explains why you’re so knowledgeable about magical tools. I must’ve embarrassed myself, talking about waterproof cloth to a professional."
The young man covered his face with one hand, and even that gesture seemed picturesque. She found herself silently admiring him.
"I was glad to hear feedback from someone actually using it. I was the one who developed the waterproof cloth, after all."
"You developed the waterproof cloth?"
"Yes. After hearing your feedback, I’m thinking of creating a lighter, more breathable version next."
"That would be amazing. It would make camping so much easier... God above, I give thanks for my meeting with Dahlia Rossetti!"
"Stop it."
When Volf suddenly clasped his hands together and closed his eyes in mock prayer, she reflexively retorted seriously.
It was the second time that day.
Across from her, the young man was grinning like a mischievous child who had just pulled a successful prank. His appearance and behavior didn’t match at all.
Being with him, she couldn’t tell if he was throwing off her rhythm or simply pulling her into his pace.
Perhaps it was just the wine getting to her.
"The wine’s almost empty. Shall we order another bottle?"
The restaurant seemed busier now, and the staff weren’t coming out to the terrace often.
"I’ll go order some more."
Before Dahlia could say she would go, Volf had already stood up.
Whether he was accustomed to the hierarchy in the Chivalric Order or simply experienced with women, Dahlia chose not to dwell on it.
Good food, good drinks, and a companion with whom she could converse in an easy flow.
The gentle breeze felt wonderfully soothing.
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