An Ominous Rumor

“There. All set......”

Done shoveling the snow in front of the shop, Rana looked up overhead, pinching the front of her clothes and flapping them against the unpleasant sweat that had crept out of her, winter or not.

There, hanging proudly above the shop's entrance, was the wooden sign that read ‘Parirot Magic Lamp Store’.

Wanting it to look like a proper shop for magic lamps, which light up the darkness, they had painted the letters on the sign a bright yellow, and they stood out beautifully against the deep blue winter sky.

A “magic lamp” is a type of magic tool; put simply, it is a lamp that glows when magic power is poured into it.

Primitive magic lamps can be made just by lightly processing certain monster materials, which is why people in this world have loved and used them since ancient times.

Nowadays, in any town of decent size, magic lamps have become so widespread that they are used not only to light the rooms of individual households but also as streetlights.

And the shop that dealt in those magic lamps was the Parirot Magic Lamp Store, which Rana had started in this town together with her husband, Parirot.

Besides selling all kinds of magic lamps over the counter, ordered in from affiliated magic tool workshops, they also took on installation work and repairs.

Helped along by her husband's sunny, likable personality and Rana's good looks, about 1/3 of the people in the town of Serelirin were now regulars at this magic lamp store.

In other words, they were reasonably busy, and it was fair to say the business was on track.

When her husband Parirot, who had originally been a traveling merchant, first suggested opening a magic lamp store in this town using the wealth he had accumulated, Rana had naturally hesitated.

After all, while he had dealt in magic lamps during his travels, he hadn't specialized in them.

It was, in a sense, a venture into a different industry.

But Rana trusted her husband, supported his decision, and together as a couple, they had built up the shop.

The result was their current busy but happy life.

As she looked up at the sign, a smile naturally bloomed on Rana's face.

“Excuse me, are you open yet?”

“Ah, yes, thank you for coming out in the cold. I have a fire going, so please come inside and warm up.”

Rana snapped back to herself when the first customer of the day called out to her.

She gave a bright smile and opened the shop door.

◇ ◇ ◇

“Hiyaaa! Kanantir Magic Tool Workshop's heeere!”

It was just after noon, when the customers usually thinned out for a while, that the gravelly voice rang through the shop along with the bell that announced a visitor.

“Ah, yes! I'll be right there!”

Noticing the voice, Rana trotted over to the entrance. Waiting for her was a plump, middle-aged woman whose cheeks and nose were red from the cold.

“Hello, ma'am, thank you as always! It was freezing out there, wasn't it?”

“Oh, tell me about it! I really wish it weren't so cold!”

This woman was Belasato, the wife of the owner of the Kanantir Magic Tool Workshop.

The Kanantir Magic Tool Workshop was one of the workshops affiliated with the Parirot Magic Lamp Store, and mostly supplied it with small magic lamps for ordinary homes.

Today, too, Belasato had loaded about 2 wooden crates full of magic lamps onto a sled and taken the time to haul them all the way here.

“......Yes, yes, everything's here. Just as ordered. Thank you very much.”

Rana quickly inspected the contents, stacked the 2 crates one on top of the other, and lifted them with ease to carry them inside.

Contrary to her relatively slender appearance, she was quite strong.

“Oh, Rana-chan, I was going to help...... don't overdo it, okay? Throw out your back and you'll be sorry, you knooow?”

“Ahaha, I'm fiiine!”

Rana gave a beaming smile to Belasato, who was looking at her with concern.

Rana had once made a living hunting monsters.

This level of physical labor was nothing to her.

“Never mind that, ma'am, how about it? Won't you warm up a little?”

With that, Rana pointed to the stove in the shop.

On top of the black cylinder, its flames burning red inside, a kettle was puffing steam from its spout.

“Oh my, hehe, sorry to bother you! Well then, I might just take you up on that offer!?”

Belasato said this as she leaned her sled against the side of the shop, brushed off the snow, and stepped inside.

Warm air wrapped around her cheeks, turning the remaining white grains into droplets of water.

They arranged chairs around the stove and began to drink tea.

For them, these tea parties were a sort of break, and a chance to gather information too.

In any case, they thoroughly enjoyed several idle pieces of gossip.

But...... today's tea party did not pass as merely a pleasant time.

Because among the rumors Belasato had brought...... there was one that couldn't help but throw Rana's heart into turmoil.

◇ ◇ ◇

“A rumor...... among the children?”

Did she know the rumor that was going around among the children?

......That was how Belasato began, and on hearing it, Rana at first simply looked blank.

“You haven't heard? My two little ones were making a fuss about hearing it at school......”

Belasato got that far, took a loud slurp of her Zamago bean tea, paused for a breath, and then murmured in a low voice.

“......Apparently, a cursed child has drifted into this town from somewhere......”

“!!!”

A cursed child!

A child with black hair and black eyes, said to bring misfortune to those around them!

Hearing those words—just hearing those words—made Rana freeze.

“Word is, it's a cursed child in some weird getup...... Hm? Rana-chan?”

The color drained from Rana's face.

Cold sweat broke out.

Her body trembled.

She even forgot to breathe.

Rana's mind was now a complete blank.

She couldn't think.

Only the sound of her own heartbeat reached her ears.

“Rana-chan!? Hey, Rana-chan! What's wrong!?”

Seeing the state Rana was in, Belasato hurriedly set her cup of Zamago bean tea on a nearby table and clapped her hands in front of Rana's face, pan pan.

“Ah...... hah, ha, haah, haah......”

“There, there, calm down, just calm down, Rana-chan. Now, take a deep breath......”

“Haah, haah...... U, um! I'm okay! Ma'am, I'm fine now!”

Having regained her composure, Rana spoke hurriedly, wearing a stiff smile.

“Fine, my foot! You're still pale as anything, you know? What's gotten into you?”

“I'm...... I'm really fine. I just, well, thought it sounded ominous, that's all......”

“......I don't know what's going on, but don't push yourself, okay?”

Belasato said this and sat back down in her chair.

She didn't pry into Rana's circumstances.

That was the discretion you needed to get along with your neighbors.

“Well, still, that's only a rumor among children, all right? For one thing, a child drifting into this town all alone from somewhere else, in this season? That's hardly realistic, is it? I can see why a cursed child would seem ominous and scary, but it's nothing to take so seriously, you know?”

“Yes, ahaha, you're right......”

Rana agreed, forcing a laugh.

After that, Rana and Belasato exchanged a few more idle rumors before the tea party ended.

But Rana didn't remember a single thing they talked about after that.

In fact, even while she worked after the tea party, she was in a daze, her mind somewhere else.

Before she knew it, it had grown completely dark outside, and it was time to close.

With a pale face, she cleaned the shop and locked the door.

When she peeked into the living area, her son Ikeranjel had returned home at some point; he was resting his cheek on his hand at the desk, glaring at his homework and groaning muu muu.

Rana hadn't even noticed that her noisy, mischievous son had come home.