“My mother, who gave birth to me, put me in a box and put me in this nursery when I was a baby I couldn’t even remember.”

Stella’s face as she spoke with a calm expression contained an emotion close to resignation.

“The director told me that when I was a baby, the box that contained me contained three gold coins and a letter.”

“… … .”

“In the letter, the details of where and how I was born and a promise to bring me back within a few years.

And it was a letter in which the expression of apology to me and the director was written in disarray.”

“Did it say you’d pick me up in a few years?”

“I don’t remember the exact date. I haven’t waited since I was ten.”

“… I see.”

“I don’t know if you’re living your own life, forgetting about me in some part of your memory, or if you’re unable to come because of a really unfavorable situation.”

It’s most likely the latter.

The three gold coins contained with Stella amounted to three months’ worth of living expenses for an ordinary commoner’s family.

The letter he wrote, willingly enclosing that amount, would have been sincere, at least for that moment.

Above all, I know how Stella will grow in the future.

Although I had never even seen her face, her mother probably wasn’t a bad person either.

“That’s why this orphanage is like my hometown to me. The director… She was like my mother.”

“You mean Hermia-san from before?”

“… That’s right.”

Water droplets began to form in Stella’s eyes little by little, perhaps because she remembered the empty seat of Hermia, who had already passed away.

“The director is our… You were the mother of all of us. He was the one who raised everyone like a child born from his heart, without discriminating or abandoning any one child.”

“It was.”

“You don’t know how happy I was to find out that I was able to come to this nursery school through the academy’s dispatch practice. This nursery school is a time when everything, including food and firewood, is scarce when it comes to winter.

It was really good news for me that I was able to repay my mother in time for the most difficult and busy times.

By the way, but… .”

“… … .”

“I thought I could finally repay the kindness of raising me, but my mother didn’t wait.”

After that, Stella burst into tears as if she couldn’t hold back her emotions.

All I could do for her was to lend her a shoulder so that she could pour out her emotions without words.

She silently buried her face in the chest I held out, grabbed my shoulder, and wet my clothes with the tears she had been holding back.

“Now, I thought I could finally return the favor to my mother… ! why, why… !!”

Stella’s expression.

She ran all this far because she didn’t want to see her lose Hermia, who was like her family.

It was already too late to protect her memories and precious people.

As a result, Stella was unable to slay the monster in the form of Hermia, and was able to prevent the nursery school and Waddle Village from being destroyed by their hands.

The consolation of having prevented such a future from ever happening would surely not be enough to make up for her loss.

“it’s okay.”

“… … .”

“Perhaps you are watching.”

“… Yeah?”

“There’s no way you’re not watching over a daughter who has grown up wonderfully like Stella, so you just have to live your life in a way that doesn’t make you feel ashamed of Hermia-san.

It would be much better to vent your emotions quickly and move forward than to regret the past without acknowledging reality.”

“Yes, I guess… .”

Stella, who grasped the meaning of my words, replied with a whimper.

“But if you get tired from walking, I’ll always lend you a shoulder, so you can hold me in my arms and cry to your heart’s content like now.”

“Thank you for your words… .”

“I’m not joking, I’m talking from the bottom of my heart.”

“… … .”

“No matter what difficult or unfair things happen in your life from now on, I will trust you and comfort you as much as I do.”

Only then will the future Stella be able to become a warrior of hope in a true sense and be reborn without going down the wrong path of justice as she did in her previous life.

“Thank you, Senior Conrad. It really comforted me a lot.”

“I didn’t say anything. I was just saying what I thought.”

“That alone has been a huge help.”

“Then I’m glad.”

It wouldn’t have been an emotion to calm down after a bout of crying, but it was important that I calmed down to the point where I wouldn’t be frustrated right now.

It was enough to consume the remaining sadness whenever I could afford it while living my future life.

“And you don’t have to keep it a secret that you came from an orphanage.”

“Yeah?”

“Originally, among nobles, it is not uncommon for a talented child to be adopted as an heir.

Even if it turns out that you’re adopted, there won’t be any damage to the honor of your adoptive father, Professor McDowell.”

“Was it like that? I had no idea.

I thought that since Master McDowell really told me to treat him like a father, there would be a problem if it was discovered that they weren’t father and daughter.”

… That was probably Professor McDowell’s way of expressing affection.

Unfortunately, it seems to have been misrepresented to Stella.

“You should be proud of it. Adopting you as an adopted son even though they are not related by blood must mean that your ability and potential have been acknowledged to that extent.”

“… Is that true?”

“And the more you play an active role, the higher the evaluation of your adoptive father who found the jewel that is you will also go up.”

“… okay. I had never even thought about it.”

“So from now on, don’t hide it, you can proudly reveal it. I don’t care at all whether you come from an aristocrat or an orphanage.”

What is more important than her origin is that the woman standing next to her is the lumber of the future warrior who will defeat the drank Cardia.

Because that alone was the most important fact to me.

As I silently watched her face, I felt someone’s voice coming directly into my head.

In a sense similar to that of fire magic, which is often used for communication between wizards.

‘Under the bed, 1207.’

‘Yeah?’

‘Perhaps it would be okay to give it to you.’

‘… … .’

‘I will continue to take good care of my child, Stella.’

The fire that rang directly in my head was scattered into the air after the last words.

It was the first time I had heard it, a familiar voice.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

The dispatch practice at Cherryfield Nursery School ended up being two weeks later than the original return date.

Once the existence of Hermia disappeared, there were no other adults who could protect the children, so the inmates of Cherryfield Nursery School needed to be moved to other facilities that could be entrusted to them.

Even a child at the orphanage could tell that the process was not an easy task that could be solved in a day or two.

He would have to spend much more time than planned to finish the job.

It was a shame because there was a nursery school in the Arwen county that could accommodate these children through Stella’s introduction.

If I had to search for another nursery school, it would have been impossible to even meet the time until the beginning of the school year.

Of course, just because the destination was decided didn’t mean that even the process was simplified.

It took at least ten wagons to get more than a hundred children out of town.

Moreover, since it was a remote village, it was impossible to reach the territory with the warp gate in one day.

In other words, even while on the move, I couldn’t miss a couple of days of camping.

If one or two people were moving, it would have been enough to eat and sleep in the carriage, but it was impossible to do that until such a large number of people moved.

In the end, it took at least a dozen wagons just to get out of town, as they had to carry three days’ worth of food and camping gear separately.

Of course, there was no way you could rent more than ten wagons in a small town like Waddle Village.

In order to arrange additional wagons, they had to travel to the city where the guild was located over two days.

It took a lot of time and money to rent a wagon, buy camping tools and preserved food, and move back to Waddle Village.

On the contrary, it was considered fortunate that it was only two weeks late.

Maybe it was because there were two people, not just one.

Maybe it was an attempt that I couldn’t even dare to do alone.

It was nonsense to leave over a hundred orphans without a guardian for nearly a week.

While Stella was taking care of the children alone at the nursery school, the wagon I wanted arrived in Waddle Village.

One by one, the children from the orphanage began to board the wagon to leave the village.

It was a place with many memories, so of course there were some stubborn children who said they didn’t want to leave.

Dealing with such children was also Stella’s specialty.

In the end, it was confirmed that all the children got on the carriage, and the wheels of the carriage moved away from the nursery school they had grown fond of in a short time.

Although Cherryfield Nursery School has fulfilled its role as of today, the seeds of children raised by Hermia will prove its worth in the future.

I quietly thought of that in my heart and tried to keep my mind away from Stella’s body that clung to my body.

“I’m sorry, senior Conrad. I should have lightened the load a little more… .”

“… You couldn’t help it. If I was sorting out my luggage there, my departure would have been delayed.”

“As expected, I’d better get off the wagon and run for physical training as well… .”

“It’s not even a distance you can run for hours, so don’t say nonsense. And after one night, the food will be reduced and there will be space, so be patient.”

Stella and I were moving close together in the cramped wagon.

The number of wagons available right now was a bit less than expected.

And there were more things I had to bring from the nursery school than I expected.

Two unavoidable circumstances overlapped, and the conclusion came that someone had to get on the wagon.

Of course, I couldn’t put the children among the luggage.

That burden naturally fell on me and Stella.

When I forced my ass into the wagon full of luggage, there was barely enough room for two people to enter.

The biggest problem was having to move close to her.

“Senior Conrad? Aren’t you heavy?”

“It’s okay, you can hold on.”

“Bur, does being able to endure mean that it is also heavy?!”

“… It doesn’t mean that, so just let it go.”

Stella’s body was repeatedly attaching and detaching in the rattling carriage, so it was really painful to endure something other than the weight.

If I did it wrong, I might have an awkward relationship with Stella because of my physiological reaction as a man.

Of course, I had to avoid such an unfortunate accident, so I desperately memorized the academy’s pious school song in my heart.

The great Alexandros Academy receiving the spirit of Mount Naimei, the shouts of glory spreading across the plains of Nermia are brilliant… .

“As expected, I will go down! Senior Conrad, please climb on top of me!”

“Stop talking nonsense! And how are you going to change seats in this cramped wagon!”

“I can do it! If you climb the wall like this and move with your body close to the senior… .”

“Because it’s a request, please don’t make the situation worse… .”

My earnest cry for Stella was unfinished.

As she forced herself to move, the precariously stacked pile of luggage collapsed inside the carriage.

Because of that, Stella and I were buried in the luggage.

All of a sudden, with our faces facing each other, our posture was fixed so that we couldn’t move even a single finger.

For two hours without moving, me and Stella had to share each other’s breath and warmth.

“… … .”

“… … .”

Until the wagon starts again the next day.

We couldn’t even exchange a word in the awkward atmosphere.