NOVEL WEB Chapter 6 Part 2
“What is going on? I don’t get it at all anymore.”
As I rested my chin on the table, a soft “Kyuu” sound came from my familiar, a Carbuncle, as it climbed onto my head.
Across from me, my best friend Fine let out an exasperated chuckle as she sipped her tea. I had come to her house to vent my frustrations.
“One moment, he’s looking at the tears I’ve collected, and the next, he’s suddenly like, ‘No more magic for you!’ What the hell? Seriously, I could kill him. That damn bastard.”
“Your language is getting worse… But maybe there’s a reason for it? It’s not like he’d make an unreasonable decision just because he doesn’t like something or because you’re getting too cocky.”
“Well… when you put it that way…”
Now that she mentioned it, that was true.
Master never did things without reason. Any instructions or orders he gave me always had some kind of meaning behind them.
Something that would lead to my learning.
Something that would lead to my growth.
Which meant I had to figure it out.
I knew the importance of thinking for myself.
That was something Master had taught me.
“Maybe you misused magic or something?”
“No way. He’d kill me. Do you have any idea how many years I’ve been at this?”
“Maybe the townspeople complained?”
“No, no, no. If people were crying tears of joy and still filing complaints, I’d go on a rampage.”
“Hmm… tricky.”
Fine let out a small sigh before tilting her head, seemingly curious about something.
“But really, is collecting tears of joy something that’s supposed to be that easy?”
“Well, I used to think it was hard, but once I got the hang of it, it wasn’t so bad. If you target kids with their parents, frail old folks, or overworked company workers, you can get them pretty easily. It’s kind of a gold mine, really. Once you get used to it, it’s a piece of cake.”
“You sound like a con artist.”
Fine took another sip of her tea, then muttered quietly, “That’s kind of a shame.”
“Huh? What is?”
“Tears of joy are the purest expression of someone’s happiness, right? So, I liked it better when you used to treasure each and every one of them.”
Treasure each and every one…
For some reason, those words caught in my chest.
“It’s not like I’m treating them carelessly now.”
“Well, as long as that’s true.”
To be honest, it was impossible to keep cherishing every single tear like I had at the beginning.
I couldn’t say that the excitement of collecting my first tear was the same as what I felt now.
I still looked at the tears I’d collected from time to time.
Just recently, I had been staring at them late into the night—that’s probably why I got complaints from the animals.
But…
It didn’t feel like I had been looking at them because I was happy to have collected them.
I had been looking at them and feeling a sense of accomplishment.
A sense of, “Look how many I’ve gathered.”
The phrase “desire for recognition” suddenly popped into my head.
“You should cherish the weight of each one.”
As if reading my thoughts, Fine softly delivered a follow-up blow.
“You have to collect a thousand in a year, right? That’s already a tough task, and you’re literally risking your life doing it. So, isn’t it impossible to stay sentimental about every single one?”
“Maybe, but Master said, ‘Your fragments of emotion will become useless.’ Doesn’t that mean that, in some way, the value of the tears has diminished for me?”
“Isn’t that the issue?”
“I feel like that’s a separate matter, though.”
I tried to argue back, but I didn’t sound very confident.
Fine gave me a gentle smile.
“Why are you grinning while I’m struggling over here?”
“It’s just funny. You complain so much, but in the end, you’re still following Faust’s orders. Meg, for all your talk, you’re actually pretty serious. Watching you is kind of entertaining.”
“I ain’t some kind of spectacle for your amusement.”
As we chatted about nonsense, Fine suddenly glanced at the clock and gasped.
“Oh no, I have an appointment.”
“What could possibly be more important than your dearest best friend? It’s not a guy, is it?”
“Well… something like that?”
“Wait, what?! Are you serious?!”
“I’ll tell you more later.”
And just like that, I was practically kicked out of Fine’s house.
I walked aimlessly, still dumbfounded by my best friend’s sudden transformation.
Fine had never mentioned having a guy before.
I had never even sensed that possibility.
Even I had never had one.
My friends were growing up before my eyes.
“Haaah… well, of course. Fine’s a student, and I’m just some old lady’s errand girl…”
As I slumped my shoulders, my two familiars appeared out of nowhere and approached me.
When I patted their heads, they both squinted their eyes happily.
“You guys are all I have, you know? Did you know that people say single women who start keeping animals are doomed?”
At my words, the two familiars subtly took a step back.
The white owl immediately flew off somewhere.
Even when I picked up Carbuncle by the scruff and held him up to my face, he averted his gaze uncomfortably.
So that’s how it is, huh?
“Tonight’s dinner is grilled meat.”
At my emotionless declaration, Carbuncle trembled in my arms.