This House Has A Delicious Restaurant - Chapter 17 - Raid (2) - Part 3

“I knew he’d be near Obella. After all, he looks just like that woman, so it must have been an instinctive attraction.”

Liffree’s incomprehensible words.

Terisier, groaning and sweating profusely, was clearly in distress. Ding, whom Khan had brought through the shadows, was also losing consciousness while bleeding heavily.

Zerdan’s slight frown indicated that Liffree’s actions were unilateral.

“You bastard…! Why did you do this to Ding?”

“Oh, Khan. There’s no need for such a sad expression. I didn’t tell you because you cared for Ding like your own daughter, but she isn’t a living person.”

“What… What do you mean? Are you saying Ding was under the Captain’s abilities too?”

Khan’s face was one of deep shock.

He had raised Ding with a sense of guilt after killing her adoptive parents. Although he had felt guilt over the years, his affection had grown as well.

He had vowed to keep her safe until she became an adult, but now to learn that Ding wasn’t a living person was unbelievable.

A child who laughs, cries, and gets hurt… It was nonsense.

Even though Zerdan could turn corpses into puppets, those puppets couldn’t feel emotions, think for themselves, or act on their own. Unless it was a living being like Sidon, who had used the ability while still alive.

“It’s not Zerdan’s ability. To be precise, it was the work of that fallen guy over there. He didn’t want to part with the dead Ding, so he forced her to be revived.”

“What are you talking about? Terisier doesn’t have such an ability. Stop spouting nonsense.”

Obella spoke threateningly.

In an instant, the child they were protecting was injured, and for some reason, Terisier was in pain. It was clear to everyone that Liffree was in control of the situation, so the warning was given.

With a ferocious expression that seemed ready to strike lightning at any moment, Liffree displayed a shocked face.

“How can you be so sure he doesn’t have such an ability? Oh, I see. Since he had sealed his own memories, he might have thought his only ability was to transform into an animal.”

“What…?”

“We should have eliminated Ding earlier. Who would have thought Ding would become the key? Thanks to that, our faint memories have become clearer.”

Liffree looked at Zerdan. Zerdan, too, seemed to have recalled something he had forgotten, nodding in acknowledgment.

The memories related to Terisier and Ding, which had been vague, suddenly began to clarify.

Zerdan, his head aching from the sudden clarity, rubbed his forehead and glanced at Terisier.

Even with only partial memory recovery, Zerdan was experiencing a headache, so how much more painful must it be for Terisier, who had forgotten all memories?

He had hoped to eliminate him before he could recall his memories, if possible.

Zerdan shifted his gaze from Terisier to Liffree.

Though Liffree seemed oblivious to his gaze, his eyes were gleaming with a hungry expression.

Zerdan knew the meaning of that look.

“Terisier!”

Just as Moa Ablon was about to place a hand on the suffering Terisier’s shoulder, blood began to flow from Moa Ablon’s ears.

“Moa Ablon!”

“Moa!”

Obella and Anise, startled, hurriedly called out to Moa Ablon. At the same time, a large gust of wind began to whip around Terisier.

Simultaneously, a sharp tearing sound started attacking everyone.

“Aaaah!”

“Phel!”

As Anise screamed, Obella quickly called out to Phel, who began using her ability to shield Anise.

Anise also quickly used amplification on Phel, and a protective shield began to form around everyone present.

However, before the shield could reach Moa Ablon, who was close to Terisier, she was thrown away by the strong wind.

As Moa Ablon fell towards Zerdan and Liffree, Obella reached out urgently. At that moment, Terisier’s ability began to manifest once more.

This time, the ground around Terisier began to crack and fissure. The cracks spread quickly, separating Obella from Moa Ablon.

Phel rushed to block Obella, who was running towards Moa Ablon.

“Don’t, Obella! If you go any further…!”

The ground continued to split beneath Moa Ablon. As it started to crumble away from where she stood, Obella tried to shake off Phel’s hand. In his line of sight, someone else appeared.

Zerdan, who had been rushing towards Moa Ablon, enveloped her in his arms and vanished beneath the collapsing ground.

* * *

I sighed as I recalled the situation up to that point. It seemed I had briefly lost consciousness.

Looking around, it was pitch black, indicating how deep we had fallen. Even though I could see a hole above, the voices and appearances of others were nowhere to be seen.

How far had we fallen?

The situation was absurd, but I first turned to Zerdan and asked.

“Zerdan, why did you try to help me?”

What was even more perplexing was that Zerdan, who had tried to kill me, had ironically jumped in to save me this time.

Zerdan did not answer my question. He simply took a seat beside me and asked.

“We fell from quite a height. Are you hurt anywhere? It seems your eardrums might have been slightly damaged by the sudden force earlier.”

“Oh, I think I’m okay now. I don’t feel any pain. I don’t seem to have any other injuries either.”

“That’s good to hear.”

It didn’t make sense to be unharmed after falling from such a height. Zerdan must have minimized the damage by shielding me during the fall.

As evidence of this, Zerdan’s entire body was covered in dirt and small scratches. He was sweating heavily, suggesting he was uncomfortable.

He must have been injured while protecting me. The more I thought about it, the more puzzling his actions seemed.

He was someone I had always believed acted without emotions.

“Zerdan.”

Zerdan turned to look at me. His calm golden eyes simply gazed at me.

Though his eyes were the same color as Obella’s, their gaze felt different. Obella’s had a warm, kind feeling, while Zerdan’s, even when smiling, always seemed cold. But now, he wasn’t smiling and his gaze was just expressionless.

Seeing him so unusually calm, I asked again.

“I’ll ask you one more time. Why did you save me?”

“Moa Ablon is more stubborn than I thought.”

Zerdan let out a deflated laugh.

He probably didn’t have a clear answer and was avoiding the question. We weren’t allies or lovers; in fact, we had been plotting against each other or trying to hinder each other’s plans.

“Well, I’m not sure myself.”

“I thought Zerdan was a rational man, but it seems he’s more driven by emotions than I expected.”

“I find that surprising as well. My body moved before I had time to think.”

It wasn’t as if there was some childish reason like affection. Whether it was out of attachment or concern, Zerdan himself didn’t seem to know the exact reason.

I glanced at Zerdan’s bleeding leg.

He was an enemy whose life I had threatened. Although I had taken some revenge, it wasn’t satisfying. Yet, he had saved my life, and I wasn’t confident I could escape this place on my own…

“Are you planning to attack me here?”

I noticed a part of Zerdan’s shirt was torn and, after tearing it further, he made a joking remark without resisting.

As I tied the torn shirt around his injured leg, I spoke.

“It seems unlikely that I’d be able to tear your clothes apart. Also, I wanted to see Zerdan’s waist for the first time in a while.”

“…Moa Ablon, you are the only one who can make me lose in a conversation.”

“I do have a way with words, don’t I? Can you stand up?”

Zerdan nodded. However, seeing his pale complexion, it was clear he had lost a lot of blood.

Walking aimlessly in such a state wouldn’t be very helpful.

Sitting next to Zerdan, he looked at me. It seemed strange to him to see me in black clothes that clung to my body.

After all, whenever I met Zerdan, I was usually dressed in a one-piece or a long skirt.

“That outfit suits you well. It fits your image better.”

“What do you think my image is, Zerdan?”

“Not a weak one. You seem to lead people well. Honestly, you seem more like a leader than Bella.”

“Bella might feel hurt hearing that.”

Or maybe he would be generous towards me. He might even willingly give up the leadership position if asked.

As I smiled lightly, Zerdan stared at me for a moment before speaking.

“Have you and Bella developed a romantic relationship?”

“I’m not sure I have a reason to answer that.”

“That’s true. But from what I see of Bella, it seems he’s completely smitten with you. Despite different upbringings, we seem to have similar tastes in women, probably because we’re like siblings.”

Upbringing.

Zerdan mentioned it casually, but his background story included killing his parents to prove his ability during his childhood.

Acquired ability.

It was extremely rare for abilities to manifest later in life unless threatened.

What could have happened to Zerdan? He used to be unwilling to share, but now it seemed things might be different.

“Can you tell me about your upbringing? I heard you were friends with Liffree, and you have connections with Terisier and Ding too.”

Zerdan’s gaze turned toward me. Yet, he chose not to look directly.

It didn’t matter if he chose not to speak. There were many things I was curious about, but Zerdan had no reason to share his story with me.

The current atmosphere was more relaxed compared to before, but it was uncertain how long it would last. Unlike Bella, Zerdan probably had no personal affection for me, so he had no reason to show me any favors.

“…Yes, there is a connection.”

But today, it seemed Zerdan had taken a different approach. After a brief silence, he seemed surprisingly willing to share his story.

Finally, the moment of facing the truth had arrived.

“First, it might be easier to understand if I briefly explain our family background. Our family consists of people born with innate abilities. My father could teleport a short distance once a day, and as you know, Bella possesses exceptional nature-related ability.”

“What about your mother?”

“My mother had the power to identify those with abilities. She could sense abilities that the person themselves didn’t know they had and understand what kind of abilities they were.”

“That’s… quite a remarkable ability.”

It wasn’t offensive or defensive, but the ability to determine the presence of abilities could be a very useful asset.

Depending on how it was used, it could be quite valuable. If Zerdan and Bella’s mother had such power, she was certainly not an ordinary person.

It seemed my guess was correct, as Zerdan nodded more readily than expected.

“Abilities must also be influenced by parents. Seeing that both Bella and Zerdan have innate abilities.”

“Oh, I may have caused some misunderstanding. To be precise, among my family members, I’m the only one who is not an innate ability user.”

“Oh, so Zerdan is an acquired ability user?”

I knew this fact but pretended to be unaware as I asked.

I was aware from the game settings that he was an acquired ability user. I just didn’t know the detailed background.

“Yes. And it seems my mother found it quite troubling. It’s natural for excellent ability users to receive better treatment. My mother might have been clumsy in using her ability or perhaps wasn’t deemed to have a significant ability, so she didn’t receive the treatment she wanted. The same applied to my father. So when Bella was born with ability, there must have been high expectations.”

“Did they discriminate against you and Bella because of your abilities?”

“Discrimination… there was some of that, yes. But it was within a somewhat understandable range. My mother started to change after she took in a child.”

I instinctively sensed that this child was Terisier.

When I fell silent, Zerdan seemed to understand that I had realized something. He gave a light smile.

“He was a small child with silver hair, just like you.”