Chapter 20
“See? It’s definitely different, right?”
“She seems changed.”
“I think so too.”
“Right? I thought the same. What about you, Alessandro?”
Bakun Tata, the dwarf from the workshop, flower shop girl Miya Belkinson, and morning delivery man Alonso huddled together and spoke seriously.
“What do you mean, ‘what do I think’? People can change.”
Alessandro muttered while puffing on an unlit pipe.
“You’re always like that.”
Miya crossed her arms and turned to look out the window, only to quickly snap her head back again.
“Hey, wizard. What do you think?”
“How would I know?”
Ahil, sitting a little apart from the group, answered indifferently. In his hands, he held a long crystal of unknown purpose, fiddling with it as if deep in thought, not even glancing at the others.
It was clear he had been dragged here by force at Alessandro’s request.
“But didn’t you start visiting the shop more often recently? That’s what I heard.”
Miya narrowed her eyes at him, arms still crossed.
“I didn’t go that often.”
“You used to only go when it was absolutely necessary, right? But now you’re basically clocking in. We all know. Right?”
“Yeah, we all know.”
Alonso chimed in beside her.
“It’s not like it’s the first time she’s acted strange. Maybe she just had a change of heart.”
“What if someone else is inside her?”
Miya asked suspiciously.
“What?”
Ahil looked genuinely startled. Miya replied with a serious face.
“I mean, think about it. Can someone really change that much?”
“She’s different, yeah, but is it that drastic? I mean, she was a bit odd when she came to buy the safe…”
Bakun scratched his head, recalling the day Charmant came to the workshop.
Normally, these two bickered like mad—calling each other “bearded stump” and “pointy-eared mutt”—but right now, they were in perfect sync.
“I’m telling you, just watch her for a few days. Have you ever seen Charmant walk that gracefully?”
“No.”
“And that’s not all! She doesn’t even drop things anymore! The plates don’t break!”
“No way! You’re lying!”
“Yesterday, I dropped a cup and she kicked it midair and caught it! I swear!”
“Maybe you dreamed that?”
“Idiot! Stumpy! It wasn’t a dream. Since when does hitting your head make your reflexes better? It doesn’t!”
“Well, maybe it can. What would a bunch of elf-brats know?”
“You wanna keep being sarcastic?”
“Why don’t you listen to yourself first?”
As Miya and Bakun continued their silly squabble, Ahil, who had been watching from a distance, chimed in.
“Maybe Bakun’s right. Maybe she really got better.”
Miya shot him a glare.
“Shut up, wizard.”
“Even if someone else really is inside her, everything she’s doing is still her responsibility.”
Alessandro’s calm voice once again brought the chaotic conversation to a halt.
Bakun and Miya blinked a few times before nodding.
“Well… that’s true.”
“Yeah, I guess even that’s still Charmant’s doing.”
“So let’s wait and see. Whether she’s changed as a person or her personality shifted, there’s probably a reason. And if—just if—someone else really is inside Charmant’s body… just think how shocked that person must be.”
Everyone nodded like obedient students at Alessandro’s words.
“Well, that’s true. Either way, she’s still our Charmant. Oh! Who brought Charmant lunch today?”
“I did the morning delivery!”
Alonso, who had been standing close to Alessandro, jumped up and raised his hand.
“Must be hard doing that every morning. So lunch hasn’t been delivered yet, huh? I’ll go check in and change the flowers in her vase while I’m at it.”
Miya stretched and stood up, her slender frame extending gracefully.
Just then, she peeked toward Charmant’s shop through the window—and her eyes widened.
“Whaaat?!”
“What is it now?” Bakun grumbled.
Miya pointed toward Charmant’s shop.
“Looks like Charmant’s raising a kid now!”
Everyone in the flower shop—except Ahil—rushed to the window in unison.
“Should I go check it out?”
Miya Belkinson’s bright green eyes sparkled.
“So if I clean and run errands here… I can really pay off 50 gold?”
“That’s right.”
“And you’ll… give me food and let me sleep here too?”
“Yes.”
“And if my mom comes back before I turn 18, I can leave immediately?”
“…Yes.”
As expected, the child had been living alone.
He’d been begging, scrounging leftovers from nearby shops and restaurants, all while waiting for his older brother.
Then he must have found out his brother had sold the pocket watch and came running here.
When Charmant offered to let him stay, the first thing he asked was whether it stayed warm here at night.
Charmant offered him some leftover steamed sweet potatoes and brown bread from breakfast.
His eyes were already on the food, but he still kept a wary expression.
“Eat. It’s valuable, you know.”
“…I-I didn’t even ask for this.”
“It’s okay. You don’t have to pay it back.”
“Y-You can’t take that back later!”
The boy grabbed the biggest sweet potato and shoved it into his mouth, skin and all.
He chewed roughly, barely swallowing, and when Charmant handed him water, he drank it down in big gulps.
He then took a deep breath like someone who’d almost drowned—then, realizing how noisy he sounded, wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
“…Why aren’t you asking my name?”
He stared straight at Charmant, who sat with perfect posture.
“Your name?”
“Yeah. I could run away, you know. Don’t you need to at least know my name to chase me down? You didn’t think of that?”
His face turned redder than the sweet potato peel.
Charmant chuckled at the sight of the boy shoving more food into his mouth.
“Okay. So what’s your name?”
“Jasper.”
“Jasper. Got it. Then if you run away, I’ll just ask around for a green-eyed kid named Jasper.”
“…That’s it?”
“What else would there be?”
Jasper shook his head, clearly hesitating, then glanced nervously at her.
“Um…”
“Yeah?”
“…Can I call you Charmant?”
He’d clearly been struggling over how to address her.
“Of course.”
Charmant nodded without hesitation and stood up.
There was enough space for two people to sleep inside the shop, but it was cramped, and the bed was only big enough for one.
She glanced around the room, opened the window, and checked the small backyard patio before shutting it again.
There’s more mana than usual today. This should work.
Charmant usually used magic for combat or self-defense, but she’d never used it like this before.
She closed her eyes, focused, then gathered her mana.
The house vibrated with a low hum, the air shimmered—and in a matter of seconds, the interior of the house transformed.
Next to the room with the bed, a new door formed and a small room emerged.
It wasn’t big—she’d used part of the backyard space—but it was just right for one child to live in.
I’ll return it to normal when the owner comes back. It’s just temporary.
Satisfied that everything came out just as she intended, Charmant turned around with a small smile—only to find Jasper gaping at her.
“You’re really, really a wizard!”
“Yup.”
“I heard everyone say you were a lazy wizard, so I thought they were lying.”
Charmant’s eyebrows twitched.
Apparently, “Charmant Pepe is lazy” was basically a known fact all over Elrium.
She had intended to move around as little as possible in the mornings to avoid people, but maybe she’d have to start waking up even earlier than 5 a.m.
Once his stomach was full, Jasper jumped up, his expression now dramatically serious.
“Th-Then what should I do now?”
“Digest.”
Charmant, having cleaned up the dishes, pulled out a handmade notebook to organize records of the day’s transactions.
She wasn’t doing it for herself—it was all to show the original owner when they returned.
She’d done similar things every day before her death, like writing in a diary, so it came naturally.
“Digest… what does that mean?”
“Let your food settle. Digest it.”
Charmant explained again as she took her pen and started writing.
She even made a note about Jasper’s debt.
Of course, the errands she’d assign would be ridiculously overpriced.
“Not that! I mean work. I want to pay off 50 gold quickly!”
“Oh? Then take a nap or something.”
Charmant was being serious, but Jasper stomped his feet in frustration.
“I’m not joking! What if I just run away?!”
“Go ahead then.”
Charmant said coolly and returned her focus to the ledger.
“…I’ll really run away, you know!”
Jasper, who had boldly declared his intent to flee, suddenly couldn’t move.
Charmant had secretly bound his feet again.
Red-faced with embarrassment, Jasper clamped his mouth shut.
He stood there like a tree rooted to the spot, simply waiting for Charmant.
Eventually, after a long silence, Jasper’s voice shrank to a whisper.
“…I’ll just clean quietly.”
As soon as he said that, the magical binding vanished like a lie.
Jasper glanced nervously at Charmant and began sweeping up dust with a broom.
Just then, Charmant sensed another presence.
She had just finished writing the last entry in the ledger.
