Lille hummed in assent, but then had an uncomfortable thought. “But, the bugs…”
“Huh? Did you say something?”
“…No, never mind.”
She shook her head. She had briefly imagined how unpleasant it would be if Ark were to eat bugs in this form, but perhaps that was something best left unsaid.
Ark wouldn’t be able to fly them anywhere in human form. When she had glimpsed their surroundings from the sky the day before, the forest stretched as far as she could see. The town didn’t appear to be too far away, either, but she wondered how they would get there without transport of some kind.
“Hey, I think Master Charlie and Leo are here now,” Ark said.
She looked toward the door, and sure enough, the two of them had arrived on the threshold. Leo was dressed in a sweater vest and hunting cap, while Charles wore a vest layered under a tailcoat. His hair was pulled back in the same ponytail from earlier that morning, yet somehow he looked like a different person. It was the first time she had seen him in such formal clothing.
“What’s wrong, Lille? Do I look weird?” he asked hesitantly, clumsily straightening the bolo tie around his neck with gloved fingers.
“N-No, I was just thinking…in those clothes, you look more like a prince than a sorcerer,” she said shyly.
“A…prince? You’re far too kind. I’m flattered, though.” Charles blushed, scratching his cheek awkwardly. “To be honest, the robe I usually wear is much more comfortable, but I’d stand out in a crowd… Anyway, come to the door, everyone.”
They all gathered by the front door of the shop. It was made of sturdy wood, and the doorknob was fashioned in the shape of a bird’s head. Curved lines were sketched around the knob, enclosing it in a circle. Altogether, it resembled a sort of dial.
“So you see how the bird’s beak is pointing toward the forest symbol, right? We need to turn it to the town symbol instead,” Charles explained, reaching out for the knob. It made a click-click-click noise as he rotated the bird’s head. “All right, Lille. Now, try opening the door.”
“Huh? Me?” she squeaked. She had been watching from behind, but suddenly Charles was pulling her to the front.
“Try not to pass out from shock,” Leo snickered.
In all honesty, she was rather apprehensive. She peered up at Charles to see he was smiling at her kindly, his hand still firmly placed on the doorknob. In an instant, the insecurity building up in her chest dissipated, as if it had never existed at all. She wondered if Charles’s eyes were enchanted with magic, too. With newfound confidence, she pushed the door as hard as she could.
“…Here I go!” she announced.
As the door creaked open, a large street bustling with people and horse-drawn carriages appeared before her eyes. Lille was stunned; she stood stock-still and her mouth hung open in surprise. The other three shuffled forward, rousing her from her stupor as they stepped out onto the street. Out of curiosity, she whirled around to look behind her, and saw that the shop was still there—albeit squeezed into a narrow space between two other buildings.
“Are you surprised?” Charles said in her ear. “I thought it’d be easier to show you rather than explain it all, but…was that too much?” He sounded concerned and searched her eyes.
She shook her head vigorously.
“We use this same sort of gateway in a variety of cities in many different countries. Other people only see the door if they’re looking for magic items. That way, the shop will only appear in a town if someone’s searching for it. Pretty convenient, huh?” Charles explained proudly.
“Sure, it’s convenient, but I don’t see why you’re so desperate to hide away in the forest,” Ark said, shrugging.
“I’m not hiding,” he huffed. “Crowds just aren’t my cup of tea. Besides, you like being able to stay a bird, right?”
Charles had to strain his neck to talk up to Ark, Lille saw with a certain amusement.
“Yeah, I guess, but…” Ark trailed off.
“Lille,” Charles said, “I need to do my own shopping, so Ark will take you to the tailor. I’ll come find you when I’m done, so take as long as you like.”
“What about Leo?” she asked, looking around for him. At some point he had disappeared.
“I expect Leo’s gone to visit his parents’ home,” Charles replied.
In other words, this place was Leo’s home country—the country where more than half of its citizens were sorcerers.
“All right. Ark, I’ll leave her with you.” Charles walked away briskly, his steps quickening as if he were trying to flee. Not a moment later, a crowd gathered around him and swallowed him whole.
Ark winced. “Yikes. He’s gonna be stuck in that one for a while.”
“Does he know them?” Lille blinked.
“Nope. It’s because Master Charlie’s a hero to the people here. Even if he doesn’t know them, they’ll definitely know him,” he said.
“Leo said he stopped a war. Is that why?”
“Yup, that’s it.” He nodded. “In the past, Master Charlie worked in this country. I don’t know whether he was born here, but this is effectively his hometown.”
Hometown. Both Charles and Leo could easily visit the places they grew up in. Lille’s hometown was so strikingly different, that a bitter, lonely feeling niggled in the pit of her stomach as she watched Charles exchanging words with the townspeople.
“Shall we get going? Oh, before that… Do you want anything to eat?” He urged her forward with a hand on her back, a playful grin on his face.