Inn Overlord: Reincarnated with Enhancement Magic, Now Worshipped as a Divine Messenger! - Chapter 7

Things were finally starting to make sense.

I had given Luka the clothes I was wearing and also had her put on the fur that the Hobgoblin had wrapped around its waist. Then, I checked her body. Just to be clear, I had no ulterior motives.

If I did nothing, Luka would eventually run out of magic power and die. That was the same for us humans. To restore magic power, we eat food and process it through our bodies.

I was worried that once the effect of my enhancement magic wore off, Luka’s body would collapse. However, after touching her, I realized that the magic’s effect had already disappeared.

—So, all she has to do now is live normally. But why does she look like this?

—Did the mental enhancement I gave her cause some kind of biological evolution?

—If that’s the case, why did she evolve into a human-like form?

Luka spun her hips as if checking her new body, glancing at her backside while waving her arms around playfully.

I was lost in thought when something suddenly hit me.

“Wha—!? What time is it!?”

Ruka tilted her head in confusion and said, “Huh?” She clearly had no idea what I was talking about. I tried using my sensory enhancement to judge the time by the air currents and the sun’s position, but my body was still weak, so I had to stop. Instead, I decided to take Rubens’ sheep and leave the forest.

There were no monsters on the way back. When we emerged from the deep, cursed forest, I could see that the sun was beginning to set.

“Oh no! It’s business hours already!”

I rushed toward the inn.

—Wait, hold on! How am I supposed to explain Ruka!?

I thought about it, but no good ideas came to mind. In the end, without a solid plan, I arrived at the inn, The Black Piglet.

—…For now, I’ll just take Luka to the room my mother and I use.

It was the last room on the second floor. Since the inn was already open for business, I knew no one would be in there. I used my body enhancement magic to jump up to the second-floor window and cling to the frame.

I opened the window and called for Luka.

“Can you make it up here?”

Luka’s face lit up with excitement. She jumped up and hugged me as soon as she reached the window.

“I’ll be back after work, so wait here, okay?”

“Okay~!♪”

I left Luka in the room, jumped down from the second floor, and headed outside again.

Leading the sheep, I passed by The Black Piglet, which was now busy with customers, and knocked on the door of Rubens’ house.

“Please don’t tell me you’ve already gone drinking…”

I knocked on the door, hoping for the best. Rubens soon appeared, and the moment he saw the sheep I was leading, his face lit up with joy.

“Oooooohhh!! Seraph!! You found her!?”

I nodded firmly.

Rubens knelt down, touching the sheep all over to check for injuries.

I spoke up.

“Um…”

“Seraph! Thank you so much!! This is definitely my missing sheep!”

As Rubens hugged me in gratitude, I finally managed to say what I had been trying to earlier.

“Uh… Actually, the thing is… our inn is already open for business… and I kind of abandoned my post. My mom, Abigail, Laura, and David are probably really mad at me…”

Rubens seemed to understand what I was getting at and offered to help me out.

Together with Rubens and the rescued sheep, I knocked on the door of The Black Piglet.

Even though I was used to seeing this door every day, I suddenly felt nervous.

Rubens slowly opened the door, and Laura greeted us.

“Welcome—Oh? Rubens? You’re here earlier than usual.”

Rubens grinned and said, “Thanks to Seraph! Look, my sheep is back!”

“Oh, that’s great news! Wait… Seraph? What do you mean—?”

At that moment, I peeked out from behind Rubens.

“I-I’m back…”

“Seraph!?”

Laura’s shocked cry was enough to make my mother rush out from inside the inn.

She grabbed me tightly and scolded me.

“Where have you been all this time!?”

Rubens stepped in.

“Please don’t be too hard on him. It’s my fault. I asked Seraph to find my missing sheep…”

I quickly apologized.

“I-I’m sorry…”

“That’s not good enough! You’re getting punished later!”

Rubens hesitated. “W-Wait a second…”

“He disobeyed orders, so of course he has to face the consequences!”

My mother grabbed my arm and pulled me into the inn. As she led me away, I glanced back at Rubens, silently pleading for help.

But Rubens just pressed his hands together in a prayer-like gesture and watched me go.

—T-This is so unfair…

And with that, the door of The Black Piglet closed behind me.