Ann was visiting a friend in town, so I met up with her and we headed back to the labyrinth together. That meant I got the opportunity to talk with her about Mary right away.
“There’s someone I’d like to hire to work in the labyrinth. How would you feel about that?”
“Umm. Is it a man or a woman?”
“A woman. She looks a bit younger than Deneb.”
Deneb also looked pretty young, but it was hard to tell with elves.
“Well, I’d like to meet her and talk with her first.”
That made sense. Who would immediately agree to live with a stranger?
“You’re too naive and too kind for your own good! I have to make sure you’re not being hoodwinked.”
Ann squeezed my hand and nodded to herself. So she was worried about me? I had to admit, I was pretty ignorant about the world outside of the labyrinth, so I couldn’t really argue.
“I see. Thanks for always taking such good care of me, Ann.”
“Ha ha, leave it to me!”
Since we were outside the labyrinth, she was in her fluffy, cuddly kobold form. I stroked her hair, and she wagged her tail. I’d have to introduce them. Mary was such a sincere person, I was sure they’d hit it off great.