”Somaroha, a ducal holiday and festival of three days and three nights that takes place seven weeks after the end of the winter, is celebrated in honor of the already slowly establishing spring, or at least that’s what it should’ve been until two years ago.

Unlike any other day, especially at the end of the week, today, the inn was unsettlingly silent. The waitresses were nowhere to be seen, and so was the customer. Inside the restaurant, there was only me and Shawn, and in the entirety of the inn, the four, no, the five of us, along with Madam, Zaraha, and the little baby, who were in their room.

"I think that should be it." Shawn said as we returned each of the tables and chairs to their proper places.

I simply nodded which immediately prompted him to pick on me like he always does.

"What? Don’t appreciate my company? Or is it that you already miss her presence? "he said, mockingly.

Who was "her"? Well, Nia, obviously.

She was not here. She, early this morning, along with Finn and the other young waitresses, went out to buy themselves things for the festival.

With Madam and Zaraha in the couple room, I was left in the restaurant with Shawn. Left with not much to do, I offered my help to him in his task of putting the restaurant's furniture polished the previous day at their belonging spot.

"Sigh,...Can you please spare me for a second?"

Every time my opinion of him as a person somehow rises, he somehow manages to ruin it.

I wouldn’t go as far as to call him a bully, but it seems that I am, despite the fact that he is aware of what I could potentially be, still likes to mock and laugh at me for no particular reason. I'm starting to believe that this might be what people call though love, or not?

Either way, at this point, I got used to just how he is. After all, it’s not like I was his only victim.

If I were to be disappointed in him, it would be my fault for expecting anything out of an someone like him.

"Don’t take it that hard. I was just joking."

"I didn’t take it at all seriously. After all, that's just how you are. " After taking a small pause, I corrected, "a douche asshole."

"That was rough and unearned Okay, maybe a little, but still, that was still pretty rough. Anyway, I received some news from the old man. Apparently, the cargaiseon is to come in the upcoming days.

We can be back to work with my house. Starting from next work, I’ve already found a couple of good mason and housebuilder to assist us, so I'll be counting on you and the others. " He said with a thumb up."

Here we are again, but this time, I didn’t complain anymore.

"Yeah, sure."

He was about to say something when his attention went to the footsteps coming from the entrance, the same way mine did.

"Ei, finally, it’s been a while."

"Hello, you two." Elliel said waving at us, "You’re finally getting along, as I can see. "

"Of course we are. We are best buddies now, right, An? " Shawn exaggerated.

"Hum, yeah,... we are." I said.

"Anyway, Ei, I was waiting for you," Shawn said excitedly. "The baby is finally here. Just like you said, it came out as a girl. "

"I know, I heard of it two days ago from a letter from Madam."

"Oh, you did. Come with me. You want to see her, don’t you?" She’s in our room. "

"Yes, but... won’t we be bothering them?"

"What are you saying? Of course no, I’m sure both of them will be thrilled to see you."

Before I could even say a word to him, that Elliel was dragged by Shawn to his room. At first, I wanted to follow them, but then stopped myself.

I’m sure they had much to talk about. With their shared history, this was a moment for them alone.

My presence would be nothing more but a hindrance.

I pulled a chair and took a seat at one of the tables.

Truth is that Shawn was not the only one eagerly waiting for Elliel's arrival; I was too. Some time has already passed since he brought us to this place, and I think the time has come for me to have a serious conversation with him concerning the future.

While waiting for them to come back, I heard footsteps approaching from above. It was too early for it to be them being back, so it could only be Madam.

She went down, then, upon noticing that I was there alone, smiled and asked, "You didn't come with them?"

"Well, I think they have a lot to talk about, so I think it’s better that way," I confessed.

She nodded, agreeing with what I said.

She then walked past my table and went to the kitchen, only to come back a few seconds later with three empty glasses, which she left on top of my table. She then went to the counter to retrieve a transparent containing a strange milk-like substance, which she presented to me.

"Madam, what's this?"

She poured a small amount of that thing into each of the three glasses, handed me one, and took one of the two remaining ones, leaving me to wonder why exactly three glasses.

"I think it is called punch coco, or something along those lines, but my late husband kept referring to it as coco milk." She said, in a very melancholy voice, as she took her seat at my table.

"I see," I mumbled, guessing who that glass might be for.

"You know An, we, not just me and Shawn, but Zaraha and Finn as well, owe Ei a lot; in fact, too much that we could ever pay back." She took a small pause, then added, "My husband, Finn’s father, didn’t have the chance we had to meet Ei. "

I nodded in silence.

After having spent more than one month with them, I now knew exactly what bound Elliel, Madam, Shawn, Finn, Finn’s father, and Shawn’s father,

Shawn and his father were saved by Elliel's crumbling caused by the dragons' triggered earthquakes.

Later, that same day, Shawn and his father arrived at the Edouard Medical facilities with an injured Finn and heavily injured Finn’s father.

That same day, the one to which they came amidst the chaos, was the Edouard facility, which lacked the capacity to take care of such a crowd. It was no one else but Elliel himself, who the duo-father son recognized as their saviour from earlier in the morning. Finn and his father were the first people Elliel used his healing magic on.

That day, Elliel was able to save the former by not the latter for it was already too late.

"You know, before looking like this, this inn was once a lot smaller than what it is now, maybe an eighth of what it is now... The fact is that it was a lot smaller, but it was despite its smallness, to us, it was the product of 6 years of hardship and labor here, in this place that was not our birthland. "

"That day, on the dragon rumbling, I lost not only my husband but the inn. Not even one of the four walls remained of what I and my late-husband worked so hard to build on."

I wanted to say something but ended up settling with, "I'm... Sorry for that,... for your loss. It must not have been easy. "

Nodding in silence, she continued, "Indeed, it felt hopeless, but it was then that we were approached by him, and it was there that he introduced himself as Ei." Maybe it was to check on us, but he was, a few days after the calamities, actively looking for us in the common district where someone like him

shouldn’t normally be wandering, and he found us. He was only eleven back then, merely a child, but he, despite all he had already done, took pity on us. "

"The money we used to build our ravaged inn was half from our earnings, while a percentage of it was from a bank’s debt. As such, in the state the inn was in, the local bank had clearly no intention of allowing us to take another loan. The bank knew I was at my wit's end and clearly intended to seize the last vestiges of our propriety."

"They would’ve succeeded if it weren’t for Ei and Lord Anson's intervention. They settled our debt at the local bank, rebuilt the inn, and went even as far as to purchase the nearby property to expand the inn to it where the room are now. I no longer have any loans due to the bank anymore. What I own now is due to Lord Anson. "

"So the count you were keeping for Lord Anson was for that?"

"Yes, investisment, the two of them called this. Lord Anson refers to the two of us as equal as this inn’s co-owners, but I know very well that with the amount I’m versing each month, I doubt he does even notice its presence or absence. I know that all of this is an excuse to permit me to first rebuild, then rebuy my own inn. "

"He’s really kind."

"Too kind, I would even say. It’s even painful when you realize that you will never be able to fully, or even halfly, pay back his kindness. " She said, gulping the last drop of her drink. So when I heard that he needed help on something, I couldn’t help but jump on it, even though there was a possibility that you were not like the only nobles we had encountered so far. At least that was until I realized how the two of you truly were."

"How we are?"

"I don’t know where you come from, but you and Nia are like Ei, kind, just like him."

"Nia, surely, but certainly not me."

"Is that what you truly think?"

"Yes."

"Did it ever happen to you to think that you could be wrong?"

"It does happen, but I have a very valid and objective reason to think that I’m not that innocent."

She did not answer, only smiled, and said, "Either way, you and Rena have been great guests. No, you two did for us and are more than what any guests would've." Raising her glass, "So if you and Rena were to one day leave, I would miss you and remember you two sweetly. I’m sure it would be the same for everyone, Finn, Shawn, Zaraha, the boys. "

I was taken aback by her words.

"Was... it that obvious?"

"Well, not so much, but I still noticed." It was only for one month and a few weeks, but I pride myself on thinking that in just a short span of time as an innkeeper, I easily get to know how and what my customers think and want. "

"That’s impressive."

"Not so much. When do you plan to leave? "

"I don’t know yet. I still have to discuss that longly with Ei and Rena."

She was about to say something else, but hearing the approaching footsteps, she simply said, "Take as much time as it takes you to do so." Patting my shoulder, she announced quietly as to not be heard,

"My inn, and I’m sure everyone will be happy to have you two around for some time yet."

I nodded silently as Elliel and Shawn finally reached us.

"Oh, is that it, coco milk, Madam, can I have some?" Shawn asked.

"No."

"Eh. That’s unfair. "

"Sorry for this. I completely forgot about you." Elliel apologized for the moment.

"No, there is nothing to apologize for. So how was she? "

"Very cute. She didn’t seem to have much inherited from the specimen that is her father." Elliel joked.

"Right." Shawn said, proudly and smugly, that he was deaf to the second part of Ellie’s sentences.

"She is truly the cutest for sure. So Ei, for her first sortie, I would like it if you were there. " In that last sentence, Shawn's tone of voice went from his usual to one that suggested that this was a request he himself knew was hard to accede to.

"It’s in five days, right?" Elliel asked, clearly bothered by that date.

"Yes, Charle is the parrain, but I would like it if you could be the third one to call her by her name after Zaraha and I."

"With what’s going on at home, I have really-"

"Of course, I don’t force you to Ei. I can understand if you can't."

You heard that Ei? You don’t have to force yourself; we know that if you could, you would have. He and Zaraha know how busy you are." Even Madam intervened.

Elliel nodded at their words, went silent for several breaths, before out of the blue said, "I will try to come if I can."

"Really?"

"Ei, you’re sure?"

Nodding at both of them, he said,"... I can’t promise I will be there, but I try.

"Thank you, Shawn," he rejoiced, reaching for Elliel for a hug.

Finally, turning their attention to my forgotten self, "Sorry, again for this."

"As I said, it’s nothing. After all, it was me who brought this matter." And to be honest, it isn’t half bad to hear Shawn like that, all Daddy daddy"

"Oh, is that so? Then may-" Shawn started.

"That's enough for you," Madam interrupted, then proposed to us, "An, Ei, I don't want to sound impolite, but what if you two went out a little, to see how the preparation for festivities are out there?

There's nothing interesting in this inn today, and if you stay around here, you'll be constantly interrupted by that idiot." pushing Shawn away.

"But Madam," Shawn complained.

"You, shut up."

Elliel and I looked at each other and agreed to Madam’s proposal.