I Became a Foreign Worker Loved by Transcendents

Hoooong.

As my consciousness returned, the sound of the wind could be heard.

Along with it, the once blurry vision gradually cleared, and the surrounding landscape began to come into view.

Ruined and weathered buildings were everywhere, giving a sense of emptiness to the city that seemed to have been abandoned.

“Why am I here?”

I wondered, feeling out of place and trying to recall why I was in such a location.

“This is strange, isn’t it?”

I was certain I had been in Tacchia’s forge, yet here I was, wandering through ruins.

Thud.

A faint sound caught my attention amidst the confusion.

Following the sound, I came upon a girl squatting in the middle of what seemed to be a square.

Thunk, thud.

Yes, it was a child.

A child in a blue bob haircut and a dress, digging in the sand with a trowel in her hand…

“Hey, little girl?”

Thinking this was a fortunate encounter in such a bewildering situation, I cautiously approached and asked.

“…Huh?”

The girl dropped her trowel and blankly turned to look at me, blinking her eyes.

Her gaze, untainted and pure compared to the bleakness around us, met mine.

“…Da.”

Realizing something, the girl soon ran towards me, shouting with a bright smile.

“Daddy~!”

“Wh-what?”

“It’s Daddy, Daddy. Hehe~”

By the time I regained my senses, the girl was hugging my waist, her laughter filling the air, rendering me unable to question the situation further due to her endearing nature.

I felt bewildered as though I had become a widower before even shedding my naivety, but the sight of the girl clinging to me and giggling was so adorable that any thoughts of argument just disappeared.

Well, she looked no more than three or four years old, so it was possible she mistook me for her father or missed him.

“Alright, let’s just go with that for now.”

Holding the girl in my arms, I stroked her head and quietly surveyed the desolate place.

The only person I found in this mysterious abandoned city was a little girl.

Given the bizarre circumstances, the girl in my arms became all the more significant.

“I’m not sure if we can communicate properly, but it seems I’ll have to rely on her to navigate this situation.”

“Hey, little girl. Do you have a mother?”

“…Mama?”

Wait a minute. What did I just say?

Was I using the kind of language meant for students bummed about their gaming luck on a child who was all by herself? What if this kid was actually an orphan?¹

“Mama is here.”

“You do have a mother!”

Thankfully, the girl had a mother, and I was relieved to avoid being labeled as someone who makes inappropriate jokes to an orphan.

And part of me was also relieved.

At least she wasn’t left alone in this city.

“Well, then, can you tell me your mother’s name?”

“Her name?”

“Yes, I’d like to know your mother’s name.”

Not knowing why she was alone here, if she was lost, I needed her mother’s name to call out while looking for her.

When I asked for this information, the girl put her finger to her lips and said,

“DDaa…”

“Da?”

“Daddy.”

“…What?”

“Yes! Mama Daddy!”

A phrase I couldn’t understand.

Together with that, the girl who had jumped out of my arms spread her arms wide and shouted in a bright voice.

“Daddy’s mama is here~ Damane!”

“…Um.”

I stared blankly at the girl, who had her arms spread wide and her eyes sparkling, for a good few seconds.

During that time, I mulled over the girl’s words and repeated them in a daze.

What did she just say? Mommy is as big as a mouse? ²

“Is your mother a giant mouse?”

“Yes!”

The girl nodded immediately to my question.

I felt my mind going numb and spoke without realizing.

“No way, how can your mother be a giant mouse…”

“What kind of dream are you having?”

“…Eh?”

As I muttered in a daze, a listless voice reached my ears.

Only then did I realize that my stiff body was beginning to relax, and sitting up from the bed I was lying on, I quickly turned towards the source of the sound.

Across the messy room, at the entrance, stood a woman with a weary look, staring at me with indifferent eyes.

“Ta-Tacchia?”

“You’ve slept for quite a while.”

She looked fine, unlike the last time I saw her.

As I felt relieved, she glanced at my body and said.

“Seems like you’ve accumulated quite a bit of fatigue? You slept so soundly that you didn’t even notice when I took off your clothes.”

“…What?”

Took off my clothes? What does she mean?

Feeling puzzled, I looked down at myself and noticed that instead of the damaged armor I had been wearing, I was now in a white shirt and shorts.

This meant that unless I had sleepwalked, someone had changed my clothes for me.

“Did you change my clothes while I was asleep?”

“Is there a problem?”

Tacchia frowned as if it was odd for me to ask, waiting for my reaction.

Considering I had seen someone naked, it was difficult for me to complain, especially since I had been in a more precarious situation myself.

Even though she was groggy, she must have guessed the situation when I carried her to the bed. Was she just going to let that slide?

“…No, it’s my fault for sleeping in someone else’s house. Yes.”

No, don’t overthink it.

After all, this is the person who pressed further even when their chest touched mine, measuring the size of the armor.

In front of someone like her, it’s a losing battle to argue about such things. With that thought, I calmed my unease and quietly surveyed the surroundings.

…The child, whose mother was a giant mouse, was nowhere to be seen.

Was it all just a dream?

“Anyway, now that you’re awake, come down and eat first. From the luggage you have, it seems you have some business with me.”

“What? Eat…?”

“Whatever you’re going to do, you should eat breakfast first.”

Tacchia said that, standing firmly at the door, staring at me.

Her eyes, weary in a way unique to her, showed only indifference towards me.

“Why? You don’t want to eat what I’m offering?”

“No, I’d be thankful to eat whatever you provide.”

Of course.

Free food should always be appreciated.

A stew based on potatoes with some meat and vegetables, along with bread and salad accompanied by cheese.

The meal Tacchia prepared was not just okay, but good enough to be praised.

Of course, for penniless novice adventurers, this would be a feast.

“…You’re saying the spear flew towards where you were?”

“Yes, like this.”

After the meal, when we sat opposite each other with tea served, I briefly explained what had happened and then threw the spear into the air.

And then, thud!

The spear, which should have fallen in an arc through the air, flew back and was caught in my hand.

“Anything else besides that?”

“So… Does it increase its power by emitting mana on its own?”

“…Really?”

After hearing everything, Tacchia silently sipped the tea she had brewed.

Her taciturn nature was the same, but there was a subtly hardened aspect to it that I could faintly sense.

Her expression was not very good, despite some results.

“Is it possible that the results were less than expected?”

“No, it’s more remarkable than expected.”

As I asked with unnecessary anxiety, she nonchalantly replied.

“When I made it, it didn’t have a consciousness yet, but now it seems to have developed enough awareness to find its owner.”

Indeed, inscribing a name on an Ego Weapon without consciousness was enough to be recognized as its owner.

And since it comes to me when I call, it seems to recognize me as its owner for now.

Of course, given its value, she wouldn’t just hand it over to me… Well, if I’m really that desperate, I could always earn money and come back to buy it.

Even if I sold all the materials here right now, it wouldn’t be enough.

“Anyway, while you were sleeping, I roughly checked what’s in your backpack. You want me to buy these or make them into armor, right?”

“Oh yes, you got it right away?”

“If a penniless novice adventurer, who had invested all his fortune into armor only to ruin it, and then lucks out killing a demon to use its materials for something, it’s easy to guess. Considering the level of the demon you took down, it’s either luck or potential…”

Tacchia looked over the strewn materials.

Then, as if something were bothering her, she soon turned her furrowed brows towards me.

“…Where did you sell the most important thing?”

“What? The most important thing?”

“The heart. Judging by the quality of the materials, it looks like a demon that lived quite long. At this level, the heart would usually have a magical crystal formed by solidified magic.”

Ah, that’s right. I had been told to always collect those when acting as a porter.

Though I was focused on surviving and didn’t pay much attention, I remember being strictly told to secure those, indicating their significant value.

Even though the heroes who told me that all ended up dying, leaving me with a vague memory.

“So, in terms of value, how much is the heart worth?”

“Compared to everything here, it’s about 2:8.”

“…The heart is 2?”

“The heart is 8.”

“Those guild bastards!!”

They took a 20% cut for dismantling and taxes, including the most valuable part!?

Was it jealousy because a novice adventurer managed to take down a high-ranking demon? Or maybe the dismantler or someone high up in the guild swiped the valuable part.

Though I felt wronged, considering everything I’ve been through in this world, I was sure complaining wouldn’t do any good.

They would likely make excuses about not assessing emotions or citing contract clauses to wriggle out of it.

“Really, ignorance is a sin. Ignorance is a sin.”

To think I was delighted, thinking I had hit the lottery, when I was actually robbed of something worth four times more.

Anyway, it’s the same everywhere; those who have more want even more.

“There’s no use beating yourself up over being scammed. That’s just how the world works.”

As I was stewing in irritation, Tacchia pulled something out of her pocket.

She took out a pipe with a blunt end and a metal case, rummaged through it, and sprinkled some crumbled leaves into the pipe.

“The world has been made that way from the beginning, right? Birds unaware of the law get eaten by ground creatures, and even the mightiest predator, if it doesn’t learn to run, can’t hunt, and starves to death…”

“Ah yes, that’s true, but…”

“If the parents, who are supposed to teach such things, can’t endure the harsh world and leave, the children left behind can’t even properly learn the baby steps necessary to become adults. In such a situation, isn’t it strange to berate someone from another world like you for not being familiar with the rules of this world?”

Tacchia, bluntly continuing her advice, let out a breath.

Along with that, a spark ignited inside the pipe, and soon it was glowing red, emitting smoke.

“Ignorance being a sin is a notion that applies in a world where everyone starts and lives in the same environment.”

Tacchia said this, holding the pipe in her mouth.

“In a world where not everyone is born the same, such a phrase is nothing but a convenient excuse to cover up the imperfections of a lawful society. So, don’t blame yourself. At least in my view, you’re living hard enough, even more than other humans.”

Tacchia, without making eye contact, was just smoking her pipe and quietly blinking her haggard eyes.

Her words, continuing as if nothing were unusual, carried a cynical yet significant weight.

Her distinctively decadent aura subtly indicated that her experiences were not easy.

“…Um, Tacchia.”

Yes, there was a certain weight to her advice now.

As soon as I guessed that, I felt a chain of questions arise in my mind as I faced her.

“May I ask you a question, if it’s not too rude?”

Ignoring ethics and common sense just to handle matters, even lending a mithril Ego Weapon to someone she just met.

And now, her advice was something a normal person wouldn’t usually offer.

“What is it?”

“Tacchia, are you, by any chance, not human?”

“……”

There was no immediate response.

Was that silence an affirmation? Or was it disbelief?

“…Hoo.”

Instead of answering my speculative guess right away, Tacchia just exhaled the smoke from her pipe.

She spoke again only when the leaves in her pipe had almost burned out, and the smoke became faint.

“Why don’t you try to guess?”

“…Yes?”

“You think I’m not human. Then, do you have any guesses about what race I might be?”

Was she asking me back to affirm or deny my words?

Either way, Tacchia seemed not to have any intention of answering me immediately, and she did not appear to be upset by my words.

“Tell me whatever comes to mind. What race do you think I am?”

“Uh, um…”

Yes, I didn’t ask this question without any basis.

Since coming to this world, I’ve met various species, including those like Helkry and the Death Knights, who had ‘unique personalities and characteristics.’

I asked because I faintly sensed a similar characteristic in her.

“M…”

But if her identity is what I think, is it really okay to say it?

As that thought turned from anxiety to fear, a sudden idea crossed my mind and slipped out.

“A mouse, maybe?”

“…What?”

Tacchia, removing the pipe from her mouth, stared at me blankly.

Tacchia, who wouldn’t be surprised by anything, unexpectedly showed a moment of confusion.

“A mouse? Why would you think that?”

Despite her calmness, I followed my train of thought, realizing I had made a mistake.

“Well, because your name is Tacchia, mouse…”

“……”

“…I’m sorry.”

Damn it, what did I just say?

No matter how intense the dream I had today was, it was still absurd to blurt out ‘mouse’ while fumbling through a conversation about different races.

“Well, whatever.”

Despite being able to feel humiliated and angry at such an off-the-wall comment, she just casually turned her head and spoke indifferently.

“It could be. That’s an interesting joke.”

In that moment, her expression was hidden by the sunlight shining through the window.

Was it my imagination, or did the corner of her lips, faintly visible beyond, seem to lift slightly?

1. ED/N: He recognizes that the way he spoke to the child—using a casual or flippant manner of speaking, similar to how one might address a peer or student disappointed by their outcomes in a game—might be highly inappropriate given the child's potential situation. ️

2. ED/N: The little girl's words, as she expressed them, do not directly say "Mommy is as big as a mouse." The confusion or interpretation of that effect comes from him trying to make sense of the child's playful or imaginative language, not from the actual phrases the girl used. ️