Published at 1st of September 2019 8:07 pm

[ Day One ]

This chapter is updated by NovelFree.ml

"Hey papa, what's that?", Efi asked, tugging on my sleeve. I ignored her and stared out the window.

Even though we were riding a train, I had to say it was moving along pretty slow. Heck, the horse-drawn carriage that ran past the train earlier was faster. The only thing this hunk of junk excelled at was shakiness.

"Papa, what's thaaat!"

"Ugh, shaddup, runt. And don't call me papa."

I got so irritated as to use some pretty harsh language at Efi. Didn't sound like something I'd usually say. But consider what it's like for a guy like me to get stuck raising a little kid.

"I'm not "runt"! I'm Efi!"

...I got forced into having exchanges like these every day, every hour.

The idea that kids are cute has got to be a fantasy dreamt up by people who've never had to be with a kid all the time. Can't see "cute" in them - "odious" is the right word.

I let out a deep sigh, as if expelling my feelings of having no escape.

"So, what's that? The long thingy, going all whoosh around your neck!"

Efi's eyes sparkled with intrigue as she pointed toward my neck. How long was this quizzing gonna go on?

"...This is a scarf. You wear it when you're cold, or when you wanna look fancy."

"Fancy! Efi wants to be fancy!"

Just as I finished my reply, Efi grabbed the scarf and tugged, hard. Acting too quickly for me to react, she strangled me, and I let out a groan.

I felt ready to die from the stress of conversing alone, and now you're getting me physically, too? I'm not long for this world, am I...

"Aaaaagggh! Stop it, you stupid brat! Just sit still!"

Tearing away her hand (which was trying to strangle me further), I unwrapped my scarf and put it around Efi.

...It served no function for either warmth or fashion; instead, she was all but tied up by it. But...

"Ehehe! Now Efi is fancy!"

...As long as she was pleased with it, I guess it didn't matter.

Looking at Efi so satisfied with herself, a wave of fatigue came over me.

Work hadn't even started, so why was I feeling dizzy here of all places? I couldn't help but worry for what lied ahead.

It had been about a month since my shocking encounter with Efi.

Since then, I'd asked Efi direct questions and looked into as much as I could, but all I really found out was that Efi was a dragon who fed on lies. Not even she seemed to know the reason or experience of her birth.

I was delighted at first to have my hands on a dragon, since everybody sought after them. But with the pain and fatigue just piling on day after day, I was already beginning to regret it.

I should've sold her to somebody for a ton of money while she was still in the egg - thoughts like that grew bigger with each passing day.

"Papa, why are you tired?"

'Cause of you, I refrained from saying. Well, or maybe I just didn't have the energy left to voice it. Instead, a little groan escaped my mouth.

Maybe I should take a nap here, I thought. Then I felt the cellphone in my pocket vibrate. Before the vibration even paused, I answered and muttered "Who?"

"Oh, oh? Why so exhausted? You okay over there?"

"...Informant with the hat?"

The call came from a woman who mainly worked as an informant, buying and selling info. Her always wearing a hat is what stood out to me most, so I called her "the informant with the hat."

...'Course, I couldn't see that gaudy hat of hers over the phone now.

"Hmm, sounds like you're still on the train? You're taking this reeeal slow, huh. The day might just change on yooou."

"...Hopefully not."

This informant was skilled, but had some childish aspects. I was never very good at talking with her, but I felt she was vastly preferable to Efi.

Oh yeah, Efi - I turned to her, and found her sound asleep, the scarf still wrapped around her whole body.

"How boring. Feels like there's not much point in teasing you these days, y'know? By the way, what alias are you using now? Claude? Duke?"

"Those are some pretty outdated ones... For now, it's Al."

Thanks to Efi having fallen asleep for me, I was getting back to my conning self. I had to get things straightened out before I reached our destination, or it could lead to a blunder. The smallest mistake could ruin the time, effort, and money involved in coming here - so, had to avoid that at all costs.

"Okay, Al it is. So, I'll put together the info for you while I've got the chance."

With that, she began to explain.

On a request from the informant with the hat, I was headed toward a place called Indigo Town to determine the truth of a certain piece of info.

The info in question was the legend of the bluebird. Word was that this thing could grant people's wishes.

"And I'd like you to capture it, if you could... Well?"

"Can't tell you if I can or not until we know if it actually exists."

The informant cackled at that over the phone.

"You're talking about my info, you know? Granted, I'm not sure what conditions will get it to appear, but asking people around town might be the fastest way to find out."

"Right, got it."

The instant our conversation came to an end, the announcement that we had arrived at Indigo Town echoed through the train. I said farewell and hung up, and shook Efi's shoulder as she slept like the dead.

"I'm already fuuull...", she mumbled, drooling with a satisfied expression. So I awarded her a solid poke in the forehead.

*

"It hurts..." Clutching to my sleeve, Efi rubbed her forehead with the other hand.

I didn't think I'd prodded her that powerfully, but I grew worried as she kept acting like this. Maybe I had poked a little too hard.

"It huuurts...?" She shot a glance over at me.

...Ahh, got it. She just wanted me to pay attention to her. Toward the beginning, I wouldn't notice her intentions and got ordered around quite a bit, but after being with her a month, yeah, I could tell.

"Listen, I told you a million times already on the train, but don't walk ahead of me."

"Ah, wait, wait! Don't walk fast! Nooo!"

I had no time to bother with her. First, I had to find a place to lodge here. The train arrived late, so I was in sort of a hurry.

"Oh yeah, do... trains? Do you use money for them?' Realizing her earlier tactic wasn't getting her any attention, she talked to me as she usually did.

"Obviously. If you think anything's gonna be easy, that means it costs money."

"But you said you didn't have money earlier, Al."

Why'd she have to remember that?

"...Listen, Efi. Not having money isn't something you can solve right away."

She nodded eagerly beside me.

"But anything else, and usually you can do something about it."

"So...?"

From my pants pocket, I produced a counterfeit ticket I'd created last night.

"So what you don't have, you make."

We walked for a while, but Indigo Town was a big place with a fair number of inhabitants. Plus, with the exception of some residents I occasionally spotted in the darkness, they had a pretty bustling lifestyle. ...Some things caught my attention, but I had to prioritize finding lodging for now.

At a large plaza with a fountain in it, I decided to try talking with a townsperson resting on a bench to the side. While I'd taken the scarf back from Efi after getting off the train, I pulled it away from my mouth and got my expression and voice in order.

"Good day. There are a few things I'd like to ask you... Is now a good time?"

He slowly raised his head to look at me. A middle-aged man whose thick beard stood out to me. No sooner had he seen me than his face brightened and he stood up.

"Oh, ohh! Could you be a traveler? Well, what do you think of the town?!"

"Ah, it has a very nice air about it. All the inhabitants seem quite joyful, too."

"No doubt! Being here makes you happy. It's the town of happiness, that's what it's called! Hope you can bring home a lot of happiness yourself, lad!"

With a hearty laugh, he put his arm around my shoulder and shook me. It was stronger than I expected, and my body creaked a little. I glared at Efi, who was about to speak up, silently instructing her not to so much as burp.

Then I faced the man again with a smile.

"By the way, is there anywhere I could lodge in this town? I've nowhere to stay right now, you see..."

The middle-aged man gently removed his arm from me, and brought it back around his head. His expression hardened slightly.

"Hmm... Well, let's see. As far as I know, most of the inns are all filled up or closed, so there's just... Ah!"

Having a sudden revelation, the man clapped his hands together in front of his chest.

"That's right, there's a large mansion at the back of town, where a pretty little girl lives, known as the Songstress. How about you head to see her?!"

"So this is... a person's house, you mean?"

"Yeah, but she's such a gentle soul. Don't you worry, she'll gladly accept you!"

There wasn't necessarily a particular problem with using a person's house, but for the business of a con artist, a proper inn is just more convenient, with its variable population and all. But if he said there were no inns available, guess there was no choice.

"...Understood. I believe I'll go inquire there. The back of town, you say?"

"Yep. Just head straight down the road from this plaza and you'll find the mansion. In fact, around this time should be when the Songstress is singing. If you get lost, you should follow her voice!"

I said my thanks to the man and left.

After walking a few minutes, Efi tugged on my sleeve and asked, "Hey papa, why is it when you talk to people different from me, you're a different papa?"

"Not papa, I'm Al now. Don't ever call me papa. Got it?"

"See, your voice is all different too! And your face! Why?" Efi kept tugging.

She'd really stretch that sleeve at this rate. Appearances are the number one thing you have to pay attention to when you're tricking people. And anything said by some bozo with a mismatched sleeve would probably lack credibility.

I silently poised my other hand to unleash a forehead-poke, and Efi let out a "gwuh!" and went docile.

With a quiet Efi in tow, I walked out of the plaza, and once I was sure we were on a road without many people, I began to answer her question.

"Listen up. People... When they meet somebody for the first time, first they judge the person by their appearance. Next, their voice and tone. What's inside, well, that comes way at the end."

"But you're all scarfed now, so you're hiding your face..."

"Yeah, can't be bothered to fool people except when it's necessary." I pulled up my scarf a little.

Long ago, the informant with the hat told me my real face - the face I was born with, wasn't a great face for being sociable. Since then, I'd hid my expression a lot except when talking to people. Sure, I was aware I had a bit of a nasty glare, but was it really that frightening?

"Hmm... But that means... It's a lie-Al?", Efi asked with a vexed look.

"Lies aren't lies if they don't get found out.", I bluntly replied, and she tilted her head as if understanding even less.

"But aren't lies bad? You lie to people, so... are you a bad person?"

Pure, to the point. And not even with any ill will.

Kids are so difficult to handle when it comes to this stuff. Especially for someone like me who makes a living deceiving people, that much purity is too much to handle.

"Al... Are you a bad person?", she asked again, worried.

I scratched the back of my head a few times, then told Efi more or less the first response I could think of.

"Sure, I'm bad. But so are the guys who get tricked."

After walking straight down the path for a while, a pretty sound came into earshot, like a bird chirping from far away. No... It was a human singing.

"Ooh! Pretty song!"

Efi's mood was improved, her eyes sparkling and voice elated. Felt like a lie how she'd been all quiet and moping like she didn't want to take another step earlier.

"Once we reach the mansion, we can hear it up close. So pick up the pace a little."

"Gotcha!", Efi shouted, and her pace increased. Or rather, she started off running. Did she already forget all those times I said not to get ahead of me?

For as slow as Efi's head was, she was fast on her feet. I supposed she couldn't get lost on a straight path, but there was no guarantee she wouldn't run into something. I groaned and hurried after her.

Turned out I had no reason to worry; by the time I spotted Efi, I'd reached the great white door of the mansion without any real incidents along the way. As for Efi, she was talking with an unfamiliar young man in front of the door.

He had blue hair and wore a black silk hat tilted to one side, decorated with a yellow ribbon. On the side opposite the hat stuck out a perky, dog-like ear, and it twitched about every time Efi said something. Must have had some beast blood in him.

Actually, I recalled how compared to other towns, this place seemed to have a lot of people with animal-like ears and tails.

"Oh! That's him! He's my... um, Al!"

Efi pointed to me and began to explain me to the young man. I was focused on catching my breath after all that running, but when the man looked at me, I hurried to reassemble my expression and stuck my face out from the scarf.

"Good day... I'm sorry my sister's come and bothered you. She didn't pull any pranks, did she?"

He smiled nicely. "Ah, you're her older brother? I was afraid she might be lost, so I'm glad you weren't far. Do you have some business at this mansion?", he asked in a kind voice.

"Oh, I should introduce myself. I'm Al, and the little girl there is Efina. We're on a journey, but we're at a bit of a loss looking for a place to stay in town. A friendly townsperson told us we might be able to inquire here..."

"Indeed, I see now. Yes, Mischa will certainly welcome you. As for myself... I am Phil, Mischa's humble butler." The young man, Phil, politely bowed.

I bowed in return, lifted my head, and put my hand on the door handle. The old, grave doors slowly opened with a slight creak.

The moment the doors opened, a clear singing voice washed over me like a giant wave I'd only been feeling the ripples of.

It was a large hall, and right in the center, a girl with an air of transience about her was singing. Slightly further away from the girl, what must have been townspeople gathered in many rings around her, all intently focused on her song.

It seemed we arrived right toward the end of the song, and when the girl finished the final note, the hall was completely silent for a few seconds. Then immediately after, a storm of cheers and praise erupted from the audience, echoing through the hall. Seeming scared by the loud noise, Efi ducked behind me.

The girl went around thanking the people encircling her one by one, but then finally noticing some unfamiliar guests, she approached us.

With each step the girl took, the soles of her shoes clacked against the hard marble floor and made a rhythmical sound. Just as the sound came to a stop, her mouth opened.

She gently tilted her head and put her hand to her chest. "It's nice to meet you. I am Mischa. Do you have some business here?"

In that moment, the slight flopping of the rabbit-esque ears on her head and the sway of her long hair stood out in my mind.

"You're a super good singer, miss!", Efi leapt out to say before I could even open my mouth.

I just can't contain that boundless curiosity, can I... I held my head.

Turning back to the songstress, Mischa, she didn't actually seem especially displeased. She bent her knees a little to get on eye level with Efi.

"Heehee, thank you. I love to sing, so it makes me very happy to hear that." She smiled a mild smile. Efi smiled back, and a peaceful mood filled the air.

...Not good. These two are gonna bring me down to their level. I loudly cleared my throat, getting Mischa's attention.

"Excuse me? We intend to stay in this town for a little while, and we're looking for a place to stay. If it's not a bother, would you let us stay here? We can handle food and clothing ourselves..."

"Oh my! In that case, you should absolutely stay with us. We can provide meals or anything you might lack, and we won't charge at all. We have plenty of rooms... Oh, yes, Phil. Go find an open room upstairs, please!"

Mischa made a request of Phil, standing a ways behind us. With an "Understood," Phil came up as if sliding on over.

"I will show you to your room. This way, please." Phil swung a hand out in front and began to walk.

I told Efi "Let's go," but she wouldn't move an inch from Mischa's side, so I grabbed her by the collar and dragged her along.

Efi sulked, and waved back toward Mischa.

Going upstairs and down a long hallway, Phil, walking a few steps ahead of us, came to a sudden stop.

He produced a small cluster of keys from his pocket and put one of them into the door's keyhole. Right as it clicked open, he began to speak.

"Please make use of this room. The mansion is quite large, and first-time visitors are often lost... But I believe this room should pose little issue, being near a hallway which leads to the stairs."

Phil quietly opened the door and invited us to go in.

It was a spacious room with two beds and refreshing light pouring in through a big window. Looked fancier than some hotels.

Maybe this was pretty lucky after all, considering they were letting us stay here for free.

"Wow, the bed's so fluffyyy!"

While I was busy thinking about that, Efi dove onto a bed and hopped on it like mad.

Shoot, I got careless and let go of her... I apologized to Phil, who was snickering, and went to seize her.

"Oh, no, it's good to be so full of energy."

While I fought to calm down Efi squirming about in my arm, Phil asked a question in a suddenly serious tone.

"...By the way, for about how long to you plan to stay here?"

It was a normal, obvious question for someone lending out a room - but the air about Phil seemed a little different, I felt.

...Was there something to this?

"Oh, let's see... There are a few matters we want to look into in this town. I would like if we could stay here for three days, at least. Would that be a problem?"

For an instant, Phil's expression seemed to stiffen at the words "three days."

...So there is something.

Observing Phil's countenance, I waited for his next move.

"...No, that's not a problem. Simply, it's just that there are many inhabitants in this mansion, coming near-daily to listen to Mischa sing or just to visit. It is typically busiest in the noontime..." He paused. "Is that all right with you?", he asked with a somewhat uneasy look.

He seemed to be desperately trying to conceal his thoughts, but his expression just grew stiffer. I supposed everything he'd just said was his answer for the public.

I put on a cheery look in contrast. "No, no! Not to worry. As you can see, my sister's rather noisy herself, so I'm quite used to it."

With that, Phil's shoulders loosened and he smiled. As for Efi, who I'd offered up as an example, she was still thrashing her arms and legs about in my grip.

"...Alright, let's make it simple. You're Efi, my little sister. That's all the info you need to remember. Don't talk any more than you need to. Got it?"

Once Phil had left the room, I gave Efi a reminder to keep her from causing any blunders. I'd tried having her use an alias, but she kept forgetting and calling herself Efi no matter what, so it didn't pan out.

"Mmm... I can't talk about anything?" Her brow wrinkled, and she tilted her head.

"Like the past, for instance. Where you've traveled, what you've seen - if you get asked anything like that, don't say a word. People who suck at lying talk about things they weren't even asked. And don't even notice the inconsistencies in their stories."

Efi seemed awfully confused by that explanation, and her head spun around.

"So what should I do if I get asked?"

"Simple. You can just answer, "I'm a dummy, so I don't know!""

"What's a dummy?"

...Was she really that big of a dummy? Well, maybe convenient for me.

"It means you've got a lousy brain."

"Hmm. Is having a lousy brain bad?"

"Means you're gonna have a lot of troubles ahead, that's for sure."

Boy. I just can't handle kids at all. Especially when they're pure and straightforward... and keep innocently bum-rushing me with an empty head, like this runt.

"Hmmm..."

And even after I'd explained it this much, she still didn't seem to understand. Seemed like continuing with this any longer would just be a waste of time.

"...It's not really that bad of a thing. So you don't have to worry about it."

"Got it!"

Wonder if she really understood? ...That'd probably do, at any rate. Until Efi knew what "dummy" meant, I could go with that. I didn't really mind.

"Alright... There's still time until the sun goes down, so I'll check out the town some more. If I'm gonna look for the bluebird, I should know where things are first."

"Me too!" Efi leapt over as I stood up from the bed to go out. It was pretty forceful, so I nearly toppled over. Managing to regain balance, I tore Efi away from my waist.

"Thought you were saying you didn't wanna walk anymore earlier? This town is huge, so forget it. Stay here."

I threw her toward the bed, and she booed me from atop it.

"I'll buy you something sweet on the way back."

"Efi will hold down the fort!", she replied with gleaming eyes.

I gave her a sidelong glance, left the room, and went back outside the mansion.

A few hours had passed since we arrived in town, but the bustle outside showed no sign of dying down. I headed for the fountain plaza and found the middle-aged man who told me about the mansion, taking a break on the same bench as before.

Noticing me, he heaved himself up. "Oh, traveler! Well, did you find a place to stay?"

"Yes, we had no problems. We went to the mansion as you said, and Miss Mischa warmly accepted when we asked to stay. You were a great help."

"I see, I see." The man smiled and slapped my back a few times.

From what I could tell, there were a lot of good-natured inhabitants here, even besides this guy. With people like that, you wouldn't get any funny business - easy to handle in general.

The man checked his watch. "Oh, would you look at the time! I'd better get home, or the wife'll get real annoying... Oh, don't tell anybody I said that. A happy day to you!" With a quick goodbye, he left in a hurry.

I turned around to resume my rounds. When I did, I noticed a circle of old ladies in the shade of trees whispering to each other about something.

I passed by, feigning ignorance, and listened in. Their conversation caught my interest. "Is it all right to let them stay at that mansion?" "Shouldn't they stay away?"

Were they talking about me? Even after I'd passed them by, I felt their eyes on me, so I supposed it was so.

Ever since coming here, I'd felt something wasn't right. I couldn't pinpoint it, but it gave me a bad feeling.

Still, the conversation didn't seem directly connected to my search for the bluebird. It was probably safe to just forget about it.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts, and refocused on the bluebird.

Watching the sunset turn the sky a dark purple, I rewrapped my scarf.

"...Hope this can go without incident."

The words unconsciously slipped out, and I was taken aback with myself. Didn't saying things like that just make bad things happen? ...But it was too late.

I decided to head back for the day.

Right around then, I remembered I'd promised to buy her something sweet. My feet feeling a little heavy, I went to go pick something out.

Back at the mansion, I opened the front door and found Mischa singing in the hall again. But unlike before, there wasn't a huge gallery; the only person listening was Efi.

"Oh, welcome back! You must be tired."

Mischa noticed me first and gave me a soft smile. Nobody had shown me any concern for my fatigue and suffering lately - and I'd been going through nothing but, so I really needed that.

"Huh? Al, you're back! Sweets, please!"

...And she was the main reason why.

Wanting to keep that from showing to Mischa, I prepared my face, removed my scarf, and took out a package of cookies I'd bought at a nearby store. Efi's eyes shone at once, and she tried to rip it from my hands, but I firmly held onto the edge of the package.

When Efi ate sweets, it was like she removed some kind of limiter, and sometimes she'd spit fire. It seemed there were some dragons who could manipulate forces of nature beyond their usual abilities, so I wondered if Efi was one of them. I'd had to throw out a change of clothes in the past thanks to it.

"...You can't eat it here. You'll have to come back to the room to eat."

My normal self nearly came out in front of Efi, but I was cautious to keep on the mask of a kind older brother in front of Mischa.

"Whaaa?! But I wanna eat with the singer lady!" Efi refused and pulled on the package.

Typically she would complain, but comply - why was she resisting now of all times? I guess I really didn't get how to handle her yet.

"Heehee, don't concern yourself with me. You do need to get back to your room soon. Please enjoy them for yourself, little sweet-lover Efi!"

Mischa spoke with a charming smile, then bowed and went up the stairs.

...How unexpected.

I didn't think our war over the cookie bag had been very well-acted. Yet she didn't show any particular doubts - in fact, maybe she could even see us as a friendly brother and sister.

"Heyyy! Let's eat cookies!"

Efi's words brought me back, and hit me with fatigue. Augh... How long should I keep this life up?

Should I consult with someone else of her species? The dragons I knew were enough to count on one hand... My feelings started to get messy thinking about it, so I put a stop to that.

Let's just sleep for today. Yeah, that's a good idea.

Not lending an ear to Efi's whining, I quickly headed up the stairs to our room. She went "Ah!" and went after me, sticking behind me thereafter.

Once we got back to the room, I took off my coat and immediately fell onto the bed. It was rare that I'd ever gotten this tired.

I often dealt with a lot of peculiar people in this line of work, and I was proud to say I was accustomed to handling them. But the girl here was a dragon. And a kid. I didn't understand one iota of her thought process.

As I felt like I was going to be crushed by fatigue, Efi looked at me worriedly. I turned my gaze to look at her face.

Looking at her again, I thought, she didn't look much different from a human at all. I wondered if there was a reason why dragons imitated humans in appearance.

Efi had been pondering something as she watched me. I wonder. Maybe she was concerned for me? Then I wish she'd leave me alone.

I had no energy to voice that sentiment and just stared. Then Efi, seeming to have an idea, put on a victorious smile and asked cheerfully...

"Can we sleep together?"

"...Gimme a break," I bluntly refused.

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