1,940Chapter 25: Responsible for oneself.
I don't normally try to comment on the habits of other people, namely because of my own habits likely being called into question. Suffice to say, if you aren't doing wrong by others then I don't feel the need to comment upon it.
I like to think it's a reasonable approach.
There is one slight flaw in that, however, and it normally ends up in situations that could otherwise be avoided.
"So you really didn't know that's where she was working?" I ask again, purely for the sake of clarity at this point in time. I know she's told the truth the last two times I asked but it's just something I feel the need to confirm.
Elma shakes her head from side to side, a slightly exasperated expression but one still mixed with understanding upon her features. Reaching up, she adjusts her glasses and thins her lips towards me. "I assure you, had I known that Kobayashi-san was working there, I would have at least spoken with her beforehand."
The way she fidgets for a moment almost earns a raised eyebrow from me, it's like she's embarrassed about something but doesn't want to talk to me about it. Maybe her pride has been wrangled? She did say she had experience in managing reports so perhaps she just doesn't want to admit to me how different office work is to that.
"Well…at least there is someone there that you know." I offer her an olive branch, I feel a little bad for her being hung out to dry like this. Not that I could provide her much in the way of help considering that I know about as much to do with office work as Tohru knew about proper cleaning when we first met.
That is to say, not a lot.
Elma pauses as she considers my statement, her lips slowly purse as her expression eases slightly. Then she nods her head slowly, clearly understanding the point I am trying to get across to her. "I…Yes, you are quite correct." A calmer expression comes to her, the earlier anxiety or embarrassment quickly takes leave.
I'm quite relieved about that, Elma's motives are pretty benign and she clearly takes her job quite seriously. I don't know how things are conducted in this work towards mages and otherworldly creatures but it seems far more tame than back home. Though Rin was always the expert.
Either way, if Elma can get used to the average human life then that means others can too. Well, I suppose there was Violet-san, she managed to get accustomed to it rather well. If only because she now runs a scam business or something along those lines.
Then again, I can't tell if it's a scam if she's selling the exact same product that people without magecraft would sell.
"So, you had an alright day at work?" I ask, tilting my head slightly and letting a bit of hope bleed into my tone. I don't want to pressure her into giving me a good answer but I would be a little worried if she answered negatively. Not because she might do something, but because she might feel bad about this.
"...I would not call it my best day." Elma states after a moment of thought, then gives me a single nod of the head. "Nor would I call it my worst. Perhaps tomorrow will bring about a better set of results, though I believe I will need time to become accustomed to the way in which the agents of this company operate."
A faint twitch comes upon my lips at her hopeful tone of voice, at least she isn't giving up. "Well, good luck with that. I'm rooting for you." I offer her a thumbs up, moving through my living room back towards my kitchen. "Did you have a preference for what you wanted for dinner tonight?"
A loud gulp rings through the house, I don't need to look over my shoulder to figure out that Elma is drooling.
I'm seriously questioning what sort of food she was eating before she came here. I might be proud of my skill as a home chef but it's a little absurd how much value people put into these meals. I guess Saber came from a rather limited time period when it came to food preparation but you can definitely find better meals elsewhere.
Maybe it's the atmosphere?
"Wait, wait, wait…" Elma swallows back her obvious hunger, her voice shifting into something more surprised "You are going to let me pick?"
"Well, yes." I shrug, opening up the door to the fridge and turning my head towards the dragon lady. "We are living together so it makes sense that I would ask you for whatever preferences you have." Actually, her telling me now is only a temporary solution. "On second thought, could you make me a list of all the things that you eat?"
Elma gets a strange look in her eye, as though she can't quite believe what I am saying.
Actually, what if she asks me something absurd?
I should probably fix this before she does just that.
"By that I mean, can you get me a list of things that I can actually get from here." I point down.
She stares at me strangely "The room?"
The room? What?
"Oh, I mean Earth." I reiterate "Tohru said she ate some…erm…odd things." I briefly shudder at the thought of all those people at that convention who were deathly afraid of Tohru because she would actually eat them. I knew she was a dragon but sometimes I just forget.
That might be inclusive of me but at the same time it's also pretty dangerous.
Elma thins her lips, narrowing her eyes in suspicion "What manner of things?" there's a slight edge in her voice. Almost as if she knows more than she is letting on.
She might do, she clearly had some business with Tohru in the past and she is from a faction of Dragons referred to as 'Order' or along those lines. It might be something that she is actively aware of and trying to stop?
"She hasn't done anything bad." I hastily move to defend my neighbour before something terrible can happen. By that, I mean something terrible for the neighbourhood. She smashed a hole through my wall just by arriving, I don't want to see what she can do when she gets serious. "It's just that she mentioned eating things."
She stares at me for a moment "...She is referring to the likes of Orcs, Fae and lesser demons, yes?"
"..." I don't feel confident in answering that, but apparently I don't have to as my answer was clearly written across my face.
"Honestly…" Elma palms her temples, shaking her head from side to side "This is just typical. No, I do not eat the likes of that. We of the Order faction had a strict policy of not consuming the meat of sentient life forms." she lowers the hand back down. "They are beings who are just as intelligent as dragons, to prey upon them in such a manner would be most chaotic. A move wholly befitting to one of Tohru's ilk."
Glad that got settled then.
"Well…that aside…" I clear my throat, looking down at the fridge once more "I need to do some shopping anyway and Tiamat-"
"Mother~"
"...Mother." I correct with a twitch of the eye "Is busy doing something."
Elma blinks "She wanders freely?"
"I don't think I could stop her and I don't really see the need to." I respond with, rather easily. "It's not like I don't trust her, she's proven to be really level-headed for the most part even if a little…eccentric, at times."
I refuse to think about the woman thing.
"I wasn't questioning you, I was merely wondering how no one has noticed her." Elma corrects herself.
Huh, now that she mentions it, I guess it would be a little strange. "Must be a perception filter or something like that." I decide upon, it makes the most amount of sense so it should be fine. "You just can't see the horns on her head unless she wants you to."
"...Yes, the answer seems obvious with the benefit of hindsight."
I chuckle at her down tone "Most answers are. Doesn't stop us asking the questions." closing the fridge door, I return my focus to Elma "Well, I'm going to quickly do some shopping but I think some steamed salmon will go rather well tonight, you alright with tha-"
"YES!" Her shout - quite literally - shakes the room.
I stare at her with wide eyes, she stares back with her face turning a shade of red.
Closing her eyes, she gives a quiet cough and then politely brushes out her office uniform or scales. I'm still not used to that.
"I mean…I believe that sounds rather splendid." She replies, opening her eyes once more and acting as though she didn't cause a minor earthquake with her speech. "...Please get three salmon."
"...That's a lot of portions."
"...It isn't." She assures me with her polite smile remaining on her face "Dragons have a large appetite."
I can believe her.
AN: Been a while…
A long while…
A loooooong while.
Not saying I'm back to this fic or anything, but I just had some spare time and thought about it.
So…here we are once more.