Chapter 71: Clara is an Angel, Ahhh!

——After the little incident that just occurred.
No, that wasn’t really a little incident, but rather some kind of foreshadowing, right?
At the very least, based on Svarog’s silent demeanor earlier, Venti could guess that he was probably updating today’s diary.
He might even have recorded what just happened, ready to provide evidence as a witness if Venti were ever brought up on charges—
How terrible that would be!
But in any case, since they’ve run into each other here, it’s only natural to properly fulfill the role of a “host.”
After all, he had just received a “hefty sum” from Pela yesterday.

These Winter City Shields would be enough to keep him well-fed and comfortable for a while, and it even gave him a bit more confidence when speaking.

So much so that even his way of greeting people came off as annoyingly cheeky.
He hopped over to Svarog’s side, slinging an arm around his shoulder—well, more like his waist, given the height difference.

It’s truly tragic to be so short, making one want to wear shoes that add a bit of height, but alas, even on stilts, Venti would never be as tall as Svarog.
Thanks to this, Venti’s current greeting posture was rather awkward, but fortunately, he’s always had thick skin, so it didn’t matter.
“Hey, Boss Svarog. I never expected to run into you and Clara here. Guess this is what they call fate bringing people together from a thousand miles away, huh?”
Faced with this light pat on the back, Svarog didn’t react much, only slightly turning his head to look at the mischievously grinning bard, who seemed more enthusiastic than usual—

“Bard. You seem rather excited.”
Even Clara was looking at him curiously, seemingly surprised by Venti’s elated demeanor, but then she recalled her own bold statement earlier about wanting to keep her family by her side forever.
Ugh…
Leaving aside the now-blushing Clara, who was stewing in her own embarrassment, Venti honestly spread his hands and said,

“I just didn’t expect to run into you guys here, so besides being pleasantly surprised, I’m also a bit curious. Of course, the ‘pleasant’ part of the surprise is definitely the bigger portion.”
“That sounds good. But the reason we came looking for you is that Clara was worried about you—”
Svarog didn’t hide their intentions and spoke directly.

“Now that we’ve confirmed you’re safe, we should prepare to head back. We can’t be away from the Mechanical Settlement for too long.”

“Ah, come on, it’s rare to get some fresh air. Don’t be in such a hurry to go back! Clara would like to stay in the upper district for a few more days, right?”

Venti blinked, acting like the doting older sister who spoils her younger siblings.

“Um, I… I don’t mind. I’ll leave it to Mr. Svarog to decide…”

Clara said softly.

After all, amidst the excitement of coming to the upper district, a sense of responsibility from the past had caught up to her. She couldn’t afford to be selfish forever.
If the people in the settlement found out she and Mr. Svarog were gone, they’d definitely be worried. And if they moved out of the settlement and ran into other malicious wanderers, something bad might happen.

Clara was still young, but she possessed a clarity and determination beyond her years.
Since her selfish wish had already been fulfilled, it was time to return to the lower district and live the life she was meant to.

“Huh? Clara, don’t you want to wait until the dragon incident is resolved before leaving? At least then you could take a stroll around Belobog during normal times.”

“…Take a stroll, like patrolling the streets or something?”

Clara responded with a confused expression.
As a child who grew up in the lower district, the harsh living conditions there had long forced people to abandon many non-essential forms of entertainment.
Not to mention, aside from a few small food stalls in Boulder Town, there wasn’t much scenery worth seeing.

Walking around in such a place would only make one feel worse and interfere with the usual scavenging work, so Clara didn’t quite understand what he meant and only asked naively.
“Uh, not exactly patrolling. Just seeing how people in the upper district usually live and all that?” Venti paused, then added somewhat dejectedly,

“But, sorry. I didn’t consider Clara’s situation and blurted out something thoughtless. It’s fine if you refuse.”
However, the girl didn’t refuse. Instead, she tapped her lips, thinking for a moment.

“Hmm… seeing how people in the upper district live does sound interesting. Maybe in the future, Clara can come with Sister Venti!”

“In the future, you mean after the lower district is liberated?”
“Yes! Mr. Svarog has also told Clara that Sister Venti, him, and everyone in Wildfire are all working hard for this goal.

Although Clara doesn’t fully understand everything, seeing everyone come together, stop hurting each other, and fight over resources already makes her very happy.
If Clara can see everyone’s dreams come true with her own eyes, she’ll feel really blessed.”
Clara had rarely spoken such a long paragraph, and she was now staring at Venti with a serious expression.

“So, Sister Venti, you must take care of yourself.”
At this moment, the bard, utterly charmed by little Clara, felt as if he were floating on cloud nine.
Light and airy, as if he had ascended to heaven—how else could such a well-behaved and sensible child exist…

However, this illusion didn’t last long before it was shattered by a steel hand.
To be precise—Svarog grabbed his head, preventing him from leaning over to Clara and nuzzling her like a puppy.

“Please mind your behavior, bard. I will activate sentry mode if necessary—”

“Sorry. My bad, please don’t stuff me into a cannon and launch me.”
Venti was now fully awake, even feeling a sense of saintly detachment.

“Also, speaking of this topic, there’s something else I want to tell you.”
…He then recounted the discussion they had at the Everwinter Mechanical Workshop.
After listening, Svarog and Clara exchanged glances. The former showed no change in expression, while the latter fidgeted awkwardly.

“Um, isn’t that kind of lying…? And finding such an impressive blueprint was Sister Venti’s achievement. Wouldn’t it be unfair to just hand it over to us…”

“It’s fine, it’s fine. It’s just to give us a bit more leverage. There’s no need to divide it into mine or yours—aren’t we all family?”
Venti skillfully dodged the issue with his cunning words.
Clara hesitated and fell silent. She knew very well that this way, no one would lose out, and everyone would benefit.
Having been raised by Svarog, she had been exposed to more realistic and rational thinking earlier than most children her age.

She had her own independent thoughts and understood that sometimes lying was necessary.
Not to mention, this was a so-called white lie.

But…

Is it really a good thing to always have Sister Venti taking care of everyone like this?
Clara fell into deep contemplation.