The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick up Trash - Volume 2 - Chapter 82

Chapter 82:

Three…Friends?

AS SOON AS MIRA’S GROUP came into view, I froze up. Rattloore patted my back. I chuckled as all the tension left my body. He really was a reliable guy to have around.

“Ivy, over here!” Mira waved, and Luiseria raised her hand in greeting. Callua glanced furtively at us.

Marcreek had said that he wasn’t sure if these three were actually good friends, but Mira and Luiseria seemed pretty close. Callua, on the other hand, seemed like a third wheel.

“Thank you for waiting for us,” I said.

“Yeah, sorry we’re late.”

We stood in front of Puff-Puff. Mira had sent Rattloore a message this morning with details about where to meet, but by the time we’d received it and set out, we were already a little late. Mira and her friends didn’t seem to mind the delay. They entered the sweet shop together, and we followed close behind. The shop was pretty empty this early—a group of two women and another of three men were the only other customers.

An employee showed us to our table. Callua sat on one side of me, and Rattloore was on my other side. Mira and Luiseria sat down across from us. Is Luiseria glaring at Callua? Am I imagining it?

While everyone discussed the menu, I felt those eyes on me. It was one of those gazes that made my skin crawl. I looked around the restaurant, trying to act natural. A man met my searching eyes. I froze, but his gaze didn’t feel like the one from before. Now he seemed more…curious? I didn’t recognize him. Why was he watching me?

“What’s wrong?” Callua asked.

There was no reason to hide it, so I answered truthfully, “That man over there is staring at me.”

“A man?” Callua looked around and saw the man I had indicated. For some reason, she let out a sharp breath. “Sorry, that’s a friend of mine. Let me go talk to him.”

Hearing our conversation, Rattloore looked over, too.

“All good?” he whispered.

I nodded. I hadn’t felt any discomfort from the man Callua called her friend, just an odd, irrepressible sense of curiosity. If he knew Callua, maybe she’d said something to him. What would make him so interested, though?

Pow! I heard a bang from the other side of the restaurant and whipped around in a panic. Callua had dealt a powerful blow to the man’s head. He was apologizing profusely to her, and the other two men at his table were guffawing loudly. They were certainly an interesting group.

“Does Callua know that guy?” Mira asked.

“Uhh, I think so?” Luiseria sounded unsure.

Were these three really close friends?

“Ms. Mira, Ms. Luiseria, how long have you known Callua?”

Rattloore looked a little surprised at my questioning. Still, I thought it’d be even weirder to say nothing. Because we doubted Mira, we were being overly cautious. I thought about what I would do if we didn’t suspect her, though. If I had questions, I’d ask until I got a satisfying answer—that was how I was, after all. So this question shouldn’t be fishy. And hey, I might get a real answer.

“Umm, a little while? We hit it off while drinking…right?” Luiseria said, flustered.

“Yeah! Luiseria and I are thick as thieves. Callua introduced us.”

“Is that so? I’d thought maybe you met while adventuring.”

Mira smiled at me. “It’s hard to make friends with other adventurers unless your teams are on a joint expedition.”

“Really?” Rattloore raised an eyebrow. “It’s pretty easy to get to know people with the same skill.”

“Well, yeah, I guess.” Mira’s answer was evasive.

My weird feeling about Mira and Callua’s relationship nagged at me. When Callua returned, we ordered our desserts. We got five of their newest items, plus Rattloore’s favorite thing on the menu. In no time, fruit juice and plates piled with fluffy, jiggly sweets were placed on our table.

“It looks amazing!”

Everyone picked up their spoons and dug in. The subtle flavor spreading through my mouth lifted my mood. Delicious!

“Good, right?” Rattloore grinned.

I nodded and took another bite. When my plate was empty, I washed the sweets down with a refreshing glass of juice.

“That was delicious!” I said, setting down my spoon.

“Hey, Ivy?” Mira looked at me.

“Yes?”

“I was hoping to forage some of those tea leaves for myself. Do you think you could come to the forest with me to look?”

The forest? That’s obviously a trap. But how do I refuse? Think, Ivy…

“Tea leaves? You mean the kind I drink?”

“Yeah! That tea hits the spot after meals, right? I would love some leaves for myself, but I don’t know how to identify the trees they come from.”

How do I say no…

“I don’t know if they would be in the forest around here.” I finally managed. “I looked around on the way from the expedition camp to town, but I didn’t see any trees with tea leaves.”

“Huh. Maybe we need to go farther in to find them?”

“It’s hard to say.”

“Let’s go search together!” Luiseria volunteered.

Rattloore jumped in. “I’ll go with you!”

“You’ve got work, don’t you?” Mira rebutted. “I’ve got some time off, so I’m free as a bird.”

Time off?

“Ooh, yeah. You’re taking time off since Marm and Tort are away training, right?”

“Yep.” Mira turned to me. “We haven’t forgotten you’re being targeted, but don’t worry—we’ll protect you.”

“Mira filled me in on the details,” Luiseria added. “I’ll help protect you, too, so no need to be afraid.” They’d really cornered me here.

“Oh, no worries there. Seizerk says we won’t be taking any requests for the time being,” Rattloore butted in again.

“No requests? Why’s that?”

“It’s kind of a sensitive time for Sifar right now.” Rattloore was composed, but Mira was getting a little flustered. I had no idea if what he said was true; if it was, it wasn’t something he’d told me about. I didn’t know anything about Sifar’s situation. Was there really something going on with him?

“Well, why don’t we all go?” Callua suggested. Luiseria frowned. It was clear she hadn’t expected that, though she tried to hide it when she noticed me looking.

“Callua, I didn’t know you were into tea,” Mira mused.

It seemed like they didn’t expect Callua to suggest that. Maybe Callua wasn’t part of the kidnapping ring after all?

“Drinking Ivy’s tea yesterday got me interested,” she said. “Actually, is it cool if I bring my friend?”

“Your friend?” Rattloore asked. Callua pointed toward the nearby table. The man she was pointing at visibly panicked.

“Uh, we don’t have to go today!” Mira said a little too loudly. I looked at her in surprise; she was rattled.

“Jeez, what’s gotten into Mira?” Luiseria joked.

I cocked my head at them. This didn’t seem like a formidable organization at all. They must’ve been in deep trouble…though I didn’t know what the trouble might be.