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“…I came after finishing the day’s work, and what do I see?”
“Oh, Master! I was keeping your seat warm!”

After finishing the greeting to the client and returning to the guild, I found Momo buried under a mountain of bowls at a table.

The sight was so bizarre that a crowd of onlookers had gathered around.

I couldn’t believe it, but were those all empty dishes? Just looking at it made my stomach feel heavy.

“Oh, little Laika! I’m glad you’re back. We were about to run out of food in the guild.”
“Since you’re done eating, how about we have dinner now, Master?”
“How can you still say that?”

I was really glad I declined the dinner invitation. There was no way I could throw this monster into a noble’s dining table.

Where did all that mass go? At the very least, the nutrients didn’t seem to be reaching her brain.

“P-Please take it easy… The head chef is about to get tendinitis…”
“Momo, take it easy, or you’ll get banned. Come on, disperse, everyone.”
“Wow, pink-haired girl, that was amazing. Thanks for the show.”
“Just watching made me full. Let’s go home.”
“Who do we give the tip to?”

It seemed the surrounding adventurers thought it was some kind of event. As soon as it ended, they all left from around Momo.

Some small change had even been left on the table. Should I return this…?

“Haah… Momo, the allowance I gave you isn’t meant for food expenses.”
“Ugh, I’m sorry… The food here is just so delicious…”
“It’s foolish to eat everything and make other adventurers resentful. If you’re still hungry, wrap it up and go to another place.”

Momo’s appetite seemed to have increased, likely due to recovering from her arm injury.

Fortunately, our savings still had some leeway, but if this continued, we’d go bankrupt in no time. We needed to get her healed quickly.

“Okay, I’ll clean up the bowls… So, how did it go, little Laika?”
“Oh, the client didn’t have a bad impression. The job starts tomorrow as planned.”
“Yes, the bet was won by Momo and me! Everyone, gather for the tallying of the stakes!”
“What are you guys doing while I’m out getting jobs seriously?”

The adventurers, who had previously dispersed, gathered again at the neighboring table, and a flurry of money changed hands.

The odds had been quite skewed, with most adventurers paying up with pained expressions.

“Hehehe, this is an unexpected windfall… As expected of little Laika, your magecraft skills live up to the rumors!”
“It has nothing to do with being a wizard. Besides, that girl has Magic Crystallization Syndrome.”
““Magic Crystallization Syndrome?””

Momo and the pervert tilted their heads in unison. It seemed to be a disease unfamiliar to Outlanders.

“It’s a condition where the magic power within the body doesn’t circulate properly. If someone is born with a large amount of magic power, it can sometimes solidify and clog up when they’re young. In severe cases, the solidified magic power can appear as a stony growth on the skin.”
“Yikes, that sounds painful…”
“Luckily, her symptoms weren’t that severe. We’ll start treatment tomorrow.”

When magic power gets clogged in the body, it’s impossible to use magecraft. Forcing it can even lead to dangerous outbursts.

Excessive fatigue is also a symptom of this condition. Because the magic power, which normally circulates unconsciously, is stagnant, it causes extra physical exhaustion daily.

However, if she learns the proper method to release magic power, it’s a condition that can be cured.

“But little Laika, isn’t the treatment for this more in the realm of magic rather than magecraft?”
“Her mother dislikes magic. It’s not uncommon for wizards and sorcerers to be on bad terms. If I can handle the treatment, it’s quicker that way.”

Besides, having Magic Crystallization Syndrome meant possessing more magic power than others. As a fellow wizard, it was disheartening to see untapped potential go to waste.

Most importantly, there’s the 3 o’clock snack–no! Begone, devil of my mind…!!

“Master, what’s wrong? You look like you’ve just fought a fierce battle.”
“It’s nothing… You’ll be busy tomorrow too. You’ll be getting treatment for your arm at the Ascles Temple.”
“Oh, by the way, Lady Roche’s judgment will be delivered tomorrow morning.”
“Fast work as always, the followers of Astoaera are efficient.”
“W-Will Miss Roche be okay…?”
“There’s nothing we can do even if we worry. They aren’t the type to reduce sentences through compassion or money. It’s pointless to fret about it.”

Astoaera, the god of arbitration, was said to have once bound humans, who were no better than beasts, with law and order, bestowing them with intelligence and reason.

Followers of Astoaera were often placed in positions of authority to govern towns and people due to their nature. To these people, respecting the law was their faith, and they didn’t tolerate any corrupt methods. For better or worse, they were a bunch of rigid thinkers.

“Well, Lady Roche should be fine. It’s not even worth betting on.”
“R-Really…?”
“Yeah, exactly. So, shall we have dinner soon? Momo, any recommendations?”
“Well, this Elvis Sandwich is quite satisfying…”
“Momo, no. If little Laika eats that, she’ll die.”

Listening to the background chatter, I opened the menu placed beside the table, but the cuisine of this era was completely unfamiliar to me. There were annotations describing the dishes, mostly recipes passed down by Outlanders, making it hard to imagine.

It would be quickest to ask the pink-haired girl next to me, who had already sampled everything, but her usual response of “they’re all delicious” wasn’t very helpful.

“I… like this… ‘karee’…”
“Hmm, seems spicy though. Are you sure?”
“Oh, we can make it mild for you. If you order a drink, we’ll even throw in a sherbet for dessert.”
“Oh, that sounds tempting… Wait.”
“…Teach, are you going to eat the karee too?”

……Let’s calm down and take a deep breath.

Now, let’s count again… 1, 2, 3, 4… Yeah, there are currently four people at this table.

There’s me, Momo, the guild staff who has turned waitress, and…

“Why are you here, Stell Umravolf!?”