Adventurer's Guild Café: I Was Wrongfully Exiled by the Saint, So I Will Enjoy My Second Life with My Fluffy Friends-Chapter 5.2 - Lulus Disappearance

I had been taking a break from working at the café, and during that time, Lulu continued to bring me all sorts of things.

Delicious nuts from who-knows-where.

Beautiful flowers.

As if to cheer me up, Lulu brought me something different every day.

“Hehe, Lulu, you’re so good at treasure hunting.”

“Ruu~”

With sparkling eyes, Lulu puffed up her chest and chirped.

It was like she was saying, “Of course!”

“Roon.”

“Yeah…”

Sleeping with Lulu and the chicks every night, I gradually started to feel at ease.

Ruri and Dan would visit my room, and Kurona was in the room next door.

With everyone nearby, I felt like I would be okay.

Eating delicious things, looking at beautiful things—that’s how I rested my heart.

But then, an incident happened.

Since last night, Lulu hasn’t come back.

There were times before when Lulu would play outside and casually return in the morning.

But today, even by midday, she hadn’t come back.

Something feels off.

I have a terrible sense of unease.

“What is this…?”

I clutched my chest tightly.

It felt like someone else’s anxiety was flooding into me, not my own emotions.

“Lulu…?”

Am I overthinking this?

Feeling uneasy, I went outside and peeked into the guild.

But Lulu was nowhere to be found.

Today is the café’s regular day off.

Since Lulu likes places with lots of people, she wouldn’t be at the closed café.

I went back to my room.

Am I just overthinking things…?

◆

By evening, the rain had gotten heavier, and my unease grew stronger along with it.

The feeling of foreboding wouldn’t go away.

“Peep…”

“I’m sorry.”

I placed the chicks into the basket, stood up, and grabbed the umbrella by the entrance.

I still had this terrible feeling that something wasn’t right.

If Lulu isn’t at the guild, she might be somewhere in town.

I have to go look for her.

The chicks flapped their wings and tried to follow me.

But I couldn’t take them with me.

It was raining, and if they caught a cold, it would be awful.

“I’m really sorry.”

“Peep!”

I quickly stepped out of the room and shut the door behind me.

From inside, I could hear their sad little chirps.

“I’ll be back soon.”

I’ll find Lulu, come back, and make something warm for everyone.

Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I hurried out into the rain.

When I went down the dormitory stairs with my umbrella, I found Samia-san, the dorm mother, on the first floor.

Samia was a plump, kind-looking older woman.

It seemed she had been mopping the hallway, which had gotten dirty from the rain. When she saw me, she tilted her head curiously.

“Where are you going on such a rainy day?”

“Ah… I…”

For some reason, I felt like she would stop me if I said I was going into town, so I hesitated to answer.

“I… forgot something at the guild. I’m going to pick it up.”

Samia blinked a few times before, for some reason, letting out a relieved sigh.

“Oh, is that so? The rain is getting heavier, so be careful.”

“Okay.”

“Since the weather’s like this, don’t make any detours and come straight back. Don’t go into town.”

“…Okay.”

I ended up lying.

The guilt weighed heavily on me.

Thoughts of Simon and the others crossed my mind as well.

But I couldn’t burden anyone else anymore.

I felt like I really had to go find Lulu. With a small bow to Samia, I stepped into the darkness of the night.

◆

“Lulu, Lulu. Where did you go?”

The rain had grown heavier.

The streets were much quieter now, with far fewer people passing by. I wandered through the town, calling Lulu’s name.

“Lulu, Lulu…”

The lead-colored sky, though it wasn’t yet night, made the town look as dark as if it were.

In my haste to leave, I had forgotten my coat.

I sneezed with a little “achoo” and rubbed my arms.

I had already searched various shops and looked all over, but I couldn’t find Lulu anywhere.

Maybe I should take shelter from the rain somewhere for a while.

Just as I thought that and moved to the side of the road—

Someone suddenly dragged me into an alley.

“Mmph!?”

A hand clamped over my mouth.

As I struggled in surprise, a voice whispered in my ear.

“Stay quiet. If you don’t, your Carbuncle won’t live.”

“!”

It was a man’s voice, one I didn’t recognize.

When I glanced back, I saw a man wearing a black robe.

For a moment, a strange sense of déjà vu washed over me.

Ah, that’s right.

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When I came to town once with Ellen and the others to shop—

At that time, too, I feel like there was a man in a black robe watching me, just like this.

“If you stay quiet, I’ll spare both you and the Carbuncle.”

Where did you take Lulu?

I was about to ask when something with a strange smell was pressed against my nose.

“...!”

My vision swayed.

A nauseating drowsiness overcame me, and I lost consciousness just like that.