[Saluena]: “If that is the princess’s wish then as your knight, I shall see it done.”
Saluena took my hand, and with her superficially polite attitude, kissed the back of it.
[Iris]: “Geez, enough with the princess stuff already!!”
[Toslin]: “Well, if Iris is saying it I suppose I can help.”
[Rose]: “I would be a sham of a priestess if I were to turn away those seeking salvation. Please guide my way.”
Both Toslin and Rose-san agreed, and so the party’s policy was decided upon. Carol immediately jumped forward because she acknowledged that fact.
[Carol]: “I’m going to scout out ahead for now.”
Leaving those words behind, she jumped over the small gnome, stepped around the wreckage of the two golems, and disappeared into the inky darkness ahead.
[Saluena]: “We’ll give rescue efforts priority for now. Rosa, retrieve the other gnome from the golem.”
[Rose]: “Certainly. Toslin-san, would you assist me?”
[Lapris]: “The other one kept banging on the glass, but nothing came out. Isn’t it already dead?”
[Toslin]: “Don’t say anything unnecessary. Just do us a favor and light up our feet.”
Toslin threw Lapris towards the floor before cooperating with Rose-san to turn over the fallen golem.
[Iris]: “I-I’ll……”
[Saluena]: “Wait”
I was just about to rush over and help when Saluena grabbed the end of my cloak and pulled me back.
[Saluena]: “Leave that to Toslin and Rosa for now. We should do something about that one.”
Saluena pointed at the other gnome who had managed to leave her golem.
≪You’ll help?≫
The gnome happily jumped up and down with her lithograph sign hanging above her head.
≪Thank you!≫
As one word disappears, a new one rises to take its place.
[Iris]: “They were always able to communicate in adventure novels, but are gnomes unable to speak in real life?”
[Saluena]: “It depends on the area. They might all be considered gnomes, but one gnome can be drastically different from another depending on where they were born and raised. This might be something unique to these girls.”
[Ashel]: “This may be imprudent of me to say after they already attacked you once, but she’s cute isn’t she?”
The gnome suddenly turned her stone slab after Ashel-sama stooped down in front of her.
≪Thanks!≫
[Litzreich]: “Hmm, judging by what we’ve seen, it seems she is able to understand what we are saying. Communication may be possible.”
≪I can!≫
[Litzreich]: “……very good. Then perhaps you can shed some light on what is happening?”
But in response to Litzreich’s question, the gnome suddenly began to shake.
Again and again she raised and lowered her slate, and after going through the motions several times, tears began welling up in the corners of her eyes.
≪ヾ(。>﹏<。)ノ≫
And finally, instead of words, a picture came up.
[Iris]: “Oh, perhaps……she is only able to display a certain number of characters at one time.”
≪Correct!≫
The gnome happily affirmed my deduction.
[Litzreich]: “How inconvenient……. In that case, we’ll have to limit our questions to those that would have little more than a yes/no answer.”
[Saluena]: “Then getting straight to business, are you a gnome?”
≪Gnome≫
[Saluena]: “The ones that attacked us a few days ago?”
≪Sorry!≫
[Saluena]: “But you hold no further hostilities towards us…….right?”
≪Yeah!≫
The gnome desperately nodded her head after Saluena’s voice dropped a few octaves. However the entire time, she kept stealing glances behind her.
Rose-san and Toslin had managed to turn over the broken golem.
≪Little sister!≫
[Iris]: “The other gnome is your sister?”
≪Yes!≫
The next word the gnome had scrawled across her slate was sloppily drawn.
≪Worried≫
Seeing that word and the look on her face…….any amount of vigilance I held towards her disappeared.
I know that as an adventurer, I must always remain cautious, but……but I just couldn’t bring myself to look at her that way. Is it the feeling shared by us sisters?
[Iris]: “Yeah, it’s okay. We’re going to help you. It’s fine already, right Saluena?”
I pointed towards the golem that the little sister gnome was still riding in and asked.
[Saluena]: “Okay, but remember that if I see any suspicious movements, I will not hesitate to cut you down with my sword.”
≪(‘ヮ’*)≫
That probably meant she understood. The gnome then tossed aside the slate with the face drawn on it and rushed over to the golem wreckage.
We followed after her and called out to Toslin who was currently trying to pry open the lens.
[Iris]: “How is it? Won’t it open?”
[Toslin]: “No, it’s stuck shut…….woah!?”
The older sister gnome climbed on top of the golem and once again hit her hand against the lens. I’m not sure how it works, but it looked like the glass faded out of existence. With a small hole opened in the glass, the gnome quickly dove in and disappeared inside the golem.
[Toslin]: “Whoa, hold on!! Is it really okay for her to go in!? Won’t it start moving again!?”
Toslin hadn’t taken part of our conversation with the gnome, so she immediately jumped away from the golem and drew her sword.
[Iris]: “She said her sister is in there.”
[Ashel]: “Iris decided to help her. Although I, would like to believe her as well.”
Toslin’s expression turned doubtful when she saw that even Ashel-sama was saying that.
[Toslin]: “Haa……..well then I guess we just stand here and wait?”
[Iris]: “Oh, isn’t she already coming out?”
The older sister gnome was the first to crawl up back into view and reached her hand out to the hole’s edge. She looked at me a bit surprised when I grabbed her arm to prevent her from slipping down, but soon after she jumped back down into the hole and motioned for me to follow.
[Iris]: “Oh, you want me to lift you?”
I’m probably the weakest person here physically speaking, but even I can pull up two little girls like these.
When I lifted them both up, the older sister gnome was tightly hugging her little sister.
[Iris]: “――!?”
But the little sister gnome’s body……had already begun to crumble away.
[Saluena]: “If that is the princess’s wish then as your knight, I shall see it done.”
Saluena took my hand, and with her superficially polite attitude, kissed the back of it.
[Iris]: “Geez, enough with the princess stuff already!!”
[Toslin]: “Well, if Iris is saying it I suppose I can help.”
[Rose]: “I would be a sham of a priestess if I were to turn away those seeking salvation. Please guide my way.”
Both Toslin and Rose-san agreed, and so the party’s policy was decided upon. Carol immediately jumped forward because she acknowledged that fact.
[Carol]: “I’m going to scout out ahead for now.”
Leaving those words behind, she jumped over the small gnome, stepped around the wreckage of the two golems, and disappeared into the inky darkness ahead.
[Saluena]: “We’ll give rescue efforts priority for now. Rosa, retrieve the other gnome from the golem.”
[Rose]: “Certainly. Toslin-san, would you assist me?”
[Lapris]: “The other one kept banging on the glass, but nothing came out. Isn’t it already dead?”
[Toslin]: “Don’t say anything unnecessary. Just do us a favor and light up our feet.”
Toslin threw Lapris towards the floor before cooperating with Rose-san to turn over the fallen golem.
[Iris]: “I-I’ll……”
[Saluena]: “Wait”
I was just about to rush over and help when Saluena grabbed the end of my cloak and pulled me back.
[Saluena]: “Leave that to Toslin and Rosa for now. We should do something about that one.”
Saluena pointed at the other gnome who had managed to leave her golem.
≪You’ll help?≫
The gnome happily jumped up and down with her lithograph sign hanging above her head.
≪Thank you!≫
As one word disappears, a new one rises to take its place.
[Iris]: “They were always able to communicate in adventure novels, but are gnomes unable to speak in real life?”
[Saluena]: “It depends on the area. They might all be considered gnomes, but one gnome can be drastically different from another depending on where they were born and raised. This might be something unique to these girls.”
[Ashel]: “This may be imprudent of me to say after they already attacked you once, but she’s cute isn’t she?”
The gnome suddenly turned her stone slab after Ashel-sama stooped down in front of her.
≪Thanks!≫
[Litzreich]: “Hmm, judging by what we’ve seen, it seems she is able to understand what we are saying. Communication may be possible.”
≪I can!≫
[Litzreich]: “……very good. Then perhaps you can shed some light on what is happening?”
But in response to Litzreich’s question, the gnome suddenly began to shake.
Again and again she raised and lowered her slate, and after going through the motions several times, tears began welling up in the corners of her eyes.
≪ヾ(。>﹏<。)ノ≫
And finally, instead of words, a picture came up.
[Iris]: “Oh, perhaps……she is only able to display a certain number of characters at one time.”
≪Correct!≫
The gnome happily affirmed my deduction.
[Litzreich]: “How inconvenient……. In that case, we’ll have to limit our questions to those that would have little more than a yes/no answer.”
[Saluena]: “Then getting straight to business, are you a gnome?”
≪Gnome≫
[Saluena]: “The ones that attacked us a few days ago?”
≪Sorry!≫
[Saluena]: “But you hold no further hostilities towards us…….right?”
≪Yeah!≫
The gnome desperately nodded her head after Saluena’s voice dropped a few octaves. However the entire time, she kept stealing glances behind her.
Rose-san and Toslin had managed to turn over the broken golem.
≪Little sister!≫
[Iris]: “The other gnome is your sister?”
≪Yes!≫
The next word the gnome had scrawled across her slate was sloppily drawn.
≪Worried≫
Seeing that word and the look on her face…….any amount of vigilance I held towards her disappeared.
I know that as an adventurer, I must always remain cautious, but……but I just couldn’t bring myself to look at her that way. Is it the feeling shared by us sisters?
[Iris]: “Yeah, it’s okay. We’re going to help you. It’s fine already, right Saluena?”
I pointed towards the golem that the little sister gnome was still riding in and asked.
[Saluena]: “Okay, but remember that if I see any suspicious movements, I will not hesitate to cut you down with my sword.”
≪(‘ヮ’*)≫
That probably meant she understood. The gnome then tossed aside the slate with the face drawn on it and rushed over to the golem wreckage.
We followed after her and called out to Toslin who was currently trying to pry open the lens.
[Iris]: “How is it? Won’t it open?”
[Toslin]: “No, it’s stuck shut…….woah!?”
The older sister gnome climbed on top of the golem and once again hit her hand against the lens. I’m not sure how it works, but it looked like the glass faded out of existence. With a small hole opened in the glass, the gnome quickly dove in and disappeared inside the golem.
[Toslin]: “Whoa, hold on!! Is it really okay for her to go in!? Won’t it start moving again!?”
Toslin hadn’t taken part of our conversation with the gnome, so she immediately jumped away from the golem and drew her sword.
[Iris]: “She said her sister is in there.”
[Ashel]: “Iris decided to help her. Although I, would like to believe her as well.”
Toslin’s expression turned doubtful when she saw that even Ashel-sama was saying that.
[Toslin]: “Haa……..well then I guess we just stand here and wait?”
[Iris]: “Oh, isn’t she already coming out?”
The older sister gnome was the first to crawl up back into view and reached her hand out to the hole’s edge. She looked at me a bit surprised when I grabbed her arm to prevent her from slipping down, but soon after she jumped back down into the hole and motioned for me to follow.
[Iris]: “Oh, you want me to lift you?”
I’m probably the weakest person here physically speaking, but even I can pull up two little girls like these.
When I lifted them both up, the older sister gnome was tightly hugging her little sister.
[Iris]: “――!?”
But the little sister gnome’s body……had already begun to crumble away.
