As the serving cart drew closer, fragmented memories began to surface.
The salty, stimulating aroma that reached me even from afar stirred memories that had sunk beneath the surface of sleep.
The door opened, and the serving cart came in.
At the violently appetizing sight atop the cart, my heart began to ache.
“It’s here...♥”
“Ugh.”
“...Benefactor...?”
Drip. Tears rolled down my cheeks.
There was no doubt about it. What I was looking at now was something I knew.
It had been one of the supreme joys I discovered after my reincarnation, and one of the miracles civilization had achieved.
“...Lady Rabina. Is this chicken?”
“Yes...? This is chicken...?”
“Lady Rabina. I trust you. So let me ask you one thing.”
“...Yes! If it’s something I can answer, I’ll answer anything!”
I was already half certain, but I needed one final verification.
“Was chicken not an act humans do in order to have children?”
“......What? Ch-children?”
I was embarrassed that I had no choice but to ask such a question.
“Children... are born when you pray earnestly, aren’t they...?”
“Huh.”
What? Could it be that Lady Rabina has absolutely no knowledge in that area?
That was possible. I only found out recently myself.
Or maybe Servein really was a place where children were born through prayer.
“Then a chicken restaurant isn’t a place where people do chicken in order to have children?”
“I don’t understand what you mean by doing chicken in order to have children...”
Was the problem that I was asking Lady Rabina, who wasn’t from Earth, these questions?
I felt like I’d have to ask Yohan or Elena to know for sure.
After thinking for a moment, I asked the rest.
“Have you ever been to a chicken restaurant here?”
“Yes...”
“Did anything happen inside the chicken restaurant, by any chance?”
“Hmm... We ordered chicken... and when the chicken came like this, we ate it... I also taught the priests about utilizing divine spellwork...”
“In other words, chicken is ‘food,’ not an ‘act,’ right?”
“Yes...”
Only now did the pieces fall into place.
The fact that our conversation had been strangely misaligned meant the chicken I had learned about wasn’t chicken.
And the memories fitting together like fragments meant that what was before me was true chicken.
‘How could I have forgotten this?’
The golden light glittering atop the cart was more radiant than any treasure in this world.
Unable to understand how I could have forgotten something that shone like this, I retraced my memories.
How had I ended up forgetting chicken?
I remembered asking Father, Mother, and Grandfather about chicken.
I didn’t know why, but when I asked them about chicken, they had given me piles of incredibly delicious things.
“?”
So I had simply forgotten.
How could I be this stupid?
I had completely forgotten because I was busy eating all those incredibly delicious things.
This was a trait of mine that I hadn’t managed to fix even in my previous life.
After forgetting it once, I had buried it for so long that I’d forgotten the very concept of chicken itself.
The voice of the robot, who had taught me as many things as Father, Mother, and Grandfather, came to mind.
「There’s no need to be sad over something like this. You don’t forget what’s truly important, after all.」
The robot’s words were almost never wrong.
Even though I had forgotten chicken, I had lived without forgetting what was important, so it was fine.
When I returned to the Tower, I should tell them that the information they taught me about chicken had been wrong.
“Lady Rabina. Shall we eat now...?”
Lady Rabina’s cheeks had turned incredibly red.
She avoided my gaze, and her shoulders kept flinching.
“Benefactor... If the chicken you were thinking of was the act of having children... then you and I, here—”
“It was a misunderstanding.”
“The fact that you followed me even while misunderstanding means—”
“I was going to run away if it came to that.”
“!”
Lying was bad, so I answered honestly.
“I-I was ready to pray earnestly anytime if that was what you wished, Benefactor...”
“!!!”
If a priest of Servein could give birth through earnest prayer, that was dangerous.
But it also wasn’t easy to coldly tell her not to pray.
What should I do? First, I used telekinesis to separate the chicken meat from the bones, then put it into Lady Rabina’s mouth.
“♥...”
Next, when I checked the serving cart, it was lined with drinks, including cola and cider.
What kind of drink did Lady Rabina like?
As I pondered how to provide the best service without asking, I somehow felt that she would like cider the most.
I used telekinesis to pour cider into a cup and fed it to her.
“♥♥♥...”
So that was the right answer. Could this be a sixth sense?
Using telekinesis, I continued feeding Lady Rabina chicken and cider with perfect timing.
“Lady Rabina, are you happy?”
“♥♥♥♥♥...”
Seeing Lady Rabina eat so well made me happy too.
She was kind of like a baby bird.
“......! Benefactor! I’m the only one eating! You should eat too! I waited so I could eat it with you!”
“Gasp.”
Feeding her was so fun that I had forgotten.
I should try it too, since it had been so long.
I used telekinesis to strip off a piece of chicken meat and put it into my mouth—
“?”
What is this? Seriously, what is this? What...?
“It’s incredibly delicious, isn’t it...♥”
“......”
“Benefactor...?”
“......”
I needed thirty seconds before I remembered how to speak again.
***
“Are you all right...?”
“Who are you?”
“Have you forgotten me...?!”
“I’m joking.”
“Waaah...!”
We finished eating.
Every time I ate, I kept forgetting something, but there was no major problem.
It was a sorrow that my poor vocabulary could not describe Lord Chicken’s flavor.
I should have read more books.
Clumsily describing it would be an insult to Lord Chicken, so I decided not to describe it at all.
“Lady Rabina. Was the meal satisfying?”
“Yes...♥”
“One moment.”
I gently wiped the oil from the corner of Lady Rabina’s mouth with my finger.
The oil vanished cleanly as soon as it touched my finger.
“...Benefactor. Aren’t you treating me too much like a child...?”
“Did you dislike it?”
“I-It’s not that I disliked it...”
How much time was left before Lady Rabina returned to Servein?
Since there was no clock, I’d have to ask someone else to know the exact time.
“Lady Rabina. Since we’re done eating, shall we walk around a bit?”
“I’d like that...!”
But was it okay for me, as a guest, to wander around without telling Yohan or Elena?
Just in case, I pressed the button on the serving cart, and Elena appeared with a whoosh.
“Is there anything else you need?”
“? Was this button a button that summons Elena?”
“When you press it, Yuyeon, I am summoned.”
“That’s fascinating. Could you tell me the time, by any chance? I’d like to take a walk with Lady Rabina.”
“The current time is 6:35 p.m. on May 2. Would you like to use the walking path on the top floor?”
“??? There’s a walking path inside the building?”
“Yes. It is a space created for the Hunters’ mental stability.”
Shocking. If a building was big enough, you could make a walking path inside it.
When I made a maid café someday, I should make it this big and create an indoor walking path too.
Elena continued explaining calmly.
“Whether it is climbing the Tower or conquering Gates, Hunters cannot help but naturally live with PTSD.”
“Ah.”
“There have also been research results showing that natural environments have a meaningful effect on mental stability, so we created an environment close to nature, including an artificial garden.”
I followed Elena into the elevator.
While we ascended to the top floor, I held Lady Rabina for a moment.
“I hugged you...”
“P-Please don’t spin me...”
“Huh.”
Droop. Did she not like my laundry service?
When I let Lady Rabina go, I saw the expectant look in Elena’s eyes.
“Would you like me to launder you too?”
“May I ask you to?”
“I hugged you... I spun you...”
“Thank you...”
“VV.”
I’m glad Elena liked it.
The elevator doors opened, and the sound of a gentle breeze drifted in.
“Wow...”
A sound of admiration slipped from Lady Rabina’s mouth.
At the sight of a space that was hard to believe existed inside a skyscraper, my competitive spirit surged.
The ceiling opened up dozens of meters high, and the artificial lighting spilled a warm glow like the setting sun.
Real trees grew around the long walking path, and from a small artificial stream came the gentle sound of water...
“......”
With my poor vocabulary, I couldn’t describe this wonderful space in a wonderful way.
If I was only going to describe it clumsily, I shouldn’t do it at all.
Still, what I could say for certain was that it was a space that calmed the heart.
“Yuyeon, this is a smartphone and card prepared for you. Please feel free to use them.”
“???”
“When purchasing items, you may use this card. No matter what you purchase, you need not concern yourself with the price.”
Elena suddenly handed me a smartphone and a card.
I was grateful, but it felt burdensome, so just as I was about to refuse, Elena added,
“These were gifts that your fans all gave with one heart and one mind for your sake, Yuyeon, so I hope you will accept them.”
“!!! Th-Then I’ll accept them gratefully.”
I knew I had become famous, but actually receiving gifts like this made me feel strange.
I had never wanted gifts, but receiving them made me realize that I was loved.
I couldn’t refuse, so I accepted them preciously.
“I have also saved my contact information and Yohan’s. Please contact us anytime if you need anything.”
“!!!!!”
What an incredibly romantic ring that had.
She said I could contact them anytime.
Didn’t that mean they would communicate with me whenever I needed someone to communicate with?
Even though she was right in front of me, I immediately called her.
An alarm sound came from Elena’s arms.
—VV. VV. VV. VV.
“?”
Elena had set her alarm sound to my voice too.
Taking out her phone, Elena smiled and answered the call.
“Hello. I’m Han Yuyeon.”
“Nice to meet you. I am Elena.”
Ah. This was so good. Having a greeting returned with another greeting was such a wonderful sensation.
“Elena, would you like to take a walk with us too?”
“I think it would be best for you to spend time alone with Lady Rabina for now.”
“?”
Come to think of it, Lady Rabina was too quiet.
When I looked beside me, I saw Lady Rabina, who had somehow become damp.
“Bene... Benefactor... I’ll soon return to the world I came from, won’t I...?”
“Gasp.”
“Then I won’t be able to eat chicken... and I won’t be able to see you, Benefactor...”
I quickly hugged Lady Rabina, who was becoming damp, and spun her.
“I spun you...”
“Hiiiii—”
Laundry complete. Before she became damp again, I spoke.
“We can meet again in ten days. We’ll only be apart for a little while, so please don’t be too sad.”
“Waaah...”
“Oh dear.”
Elena quietly bowed her head and gave us some space.
Hmm. Was there no way to increase the amount of time I could summon Lady Rabina or reduce the cooldown?
It wasn’t something I could know right now, so I whispered into Lady Rabina’s ear.
“Lady Rabina, Lady Rabina. No matter how much you cry waaah... I can’t summon you for ten days...”
“Waaah...!”
“And the next summoning location might not be here...”
“That doesn’t matter...! As long as you summon me again...!”
“Then next time, I’ll summon you as quickly as I can.”
“Promise...?”
It seemed people in Servein also linked pinkies when making promises.
Since she held out her pinky, I held out mine as well and promised.
“...Hehe...”
“If you’re feeling better now, shall we take a walk?”
“Yes!”
We slowly walked along the path and enjoyed the scenery.
We tried lying absentmindedly beneath a tree.
We also sat there absentmindedly while listening to the sound of the artificial stream.
As I looked at the cityscape beyond the glass windows and talked with Lady Rabina about this and that, time ran out.
“I’ll see you again next time, Benefactor.”
“I’ll see you again in ten days, Lady Rabina.”
Pop—!
Lady Rabina disappeared as the duration of the summoning ended, and I, left alone, lay there absentmindedly wondering what to do before deciding to just sleep.
Just in case, I should set an alarm before sleeping.
“vvV...”
It had truly been a long time since I fell asleep on Earth.
***
Meanwhile, Yohan, who had prepared various things besides chicken, found Han Yuyeon asleep on the walking path.
“......Yuyeon?”
Han Yuyeon, sleeping soundly while babbling triple peace, looked too fragile to be called a hero of humanity.
“...Elena. Could you carefully escort Yuyeon?”
“Yes.”
Seeing as Yuyeon did not wake at all and remained deeply asleep even while being moved to a bed, it was clear that an immense amount of fatigue had built up from racing all the way to the twentieth floor at high speed.
Why had Yuyeon pushed so hard, barely resting even on the rest floor?
There seemed to be too many reasons, so he simply guarded the room as though standing watch.
“Father. Mother. Grandfather... Chicken really was a good thing...”
“......?”
Yuyeon... was said to be an orphan.
That strange sleep-talking left his heart troubled as well.