Rinne and I got near the city as we took a very calm and quiet road with no particular visit from any demon beast. The roads in the meadow are well-maintained, so it’s easy to tread making me realize the weight of the years and years of fighting for the sake of such peaceful life. The brook running next to the road is also clean. Strange feelings came over me seeing all of these.

The Global Guild is located at the center of the city so I thought we’ll have to continue this pleasant journey until we got there. While thinking about this, I sensed something uncomfortable on the road as we pa.s.sed by the road.

It was then—

“Oh no—!”

—I heard a voice.

Looking in the direction of the voice, I saw a meadow with overgrown gra.s.ses. Among them was a woman wearing a green hat rustling in between the gra.s.ses.

“What should I do… If I don’t find it, the warehouse will be empty… and everyone will be in trouble.”

This well-dressed woman, as I observed, doesn’t seem to mind dirtying her clothes as she kept on sc.r.a.ping away the gra.s.ses. What is this child doing, I thought—　

“Ah…?”

Apparently, she noticed me as our eyes met. She then got up and crept out of the gra.s.ses, saying—

“Um, I’m sorry for asking you this suddenly but have you seen a green key around here? It’s about this big.”

She asked while making a few centimeters width using her thumb and index finger which is I think was rather small.

“Was it a key to open a door?”

“Yes, that right. I was about to collect some herbs around here, when I saw a demon beast—a Kobold. I chased it off, but somehow I broke my chain and dropped the key.”

While saying this, the woman showed me the chain on her waist—a chain made of st.u.r.dy looking metal but it was certainly torn off in the middle.

I see, this was either done by the Kobold or by her sudden movement. Even if this area is near the city, there’s still demons lurking outside the city so it’s inevitable that such thing will happen. Well, were also attacked earlier.

“—So, have you two seen anything that looks like a key around here?” she asked with a grave expression.

But we just got here, and we’ve never seen any key even on the roads we pa.s.sed by.

“Sorry, but we just got here and we also haven’t seen any key.”

“I haven’t seen anything too.”

Rinne agreed with my answer which in turn disappointed the woman.

“Ah, of course… they wouldn’t know—what should I do… I’m running out of time…

She grumbled, unable to think on what to do. This woman must have lost something of great importance. It seems that demon beasts continues to do atrocities in Human World and somehow, I kind of miss seeing people having trouble.

"Would you like some help?”

“Eh!? Really?!”

The woman was happy to hear my suggestions, however—

“Ah, but it may took us some time finding the key here. It would surely bring you trouble, but is it okay to bother you with this?”

Well, at least she knows her current situation—is what I want to tell her. I wonder I one day get in trouble, will a good Samaritan ever help me—I shook my head after thinking about this.

“It won’t take that long or perhaps, you may find it instead.”

“What… do you mean?”

“Wait a minute.”

As soon as I told her so, I put one of my palm on the ground while chanting—

『Oh Earth, lend me your powers through my words. Show me the missing key to the chain in this woman’s waist.』

I chanted and asked the ground—to casually ask questions and receive answers—this is one of the Prophet’s magic.

“―!”

The answer was already in my mind after calling out to the Earth Spirit who directly sent information to me. I perked up after getting the information.

“Um, are you all right? You suddenly sat down.”

“Ah, it’s nothing. You remembered dropping the key over there, right?”

I pointed towards the tall gra.s.s near the brook which is flowing next to the road. The woman nodded at me with her eyes widened.

“H-How… Yes. You saw me, right?”

“I just learned—no, I just knew it. Isn’t there a tree next to that tall gra.s.s? You might find what you’re looking for around that place. Why don’t you go and see if for yourself?”

The woman entered the meadow with a puzzled expression on her face and then after a few seconds, she saw something on the ground near the tree.

“I-It’s really here!?"　

Her voice resonated, she picked up something at her feet and ran hastily to me.

"Thank you very much!”

She thanked me with mixed reactions of delight and surprise.

“I’m glad you found it. ”

—And I got the opportunity to test my magic, it’s. .h.i.tting two birds with one stone.

“E-Excuse me! Did you perhaps used a magic to see my past and future!?” The lady asked with a surprised look in her face.

“Eh? What I did wasn’t an advance magic. It’s like those common magic of Fortune-tellers.”

Well, to be exact, I just learned this from the earth spirit whom I asked about the woman’s actions. The earth spirit said how it remembered the woman getting surprised over the Kobold and immediately drove it away then at that moment tore off the chain right next to the tree—that’s where the key fell off.

These spirits aren’t strong enough to voice out their own words but if you help them speak, these spirits will surely help you out. But even if I know where the object is, I don’t know the exact shape of her key so I thought it would be quicker if she herself finds it that’s why I asked her to go. While I was thinking of this—

“Were you famous fortune-teller?!”

“Eh, no. I’m not a fortune-teller. I’m just a collector of the voices of the spirits in the nature.”

—Or perhaps I should say that listening to spirits dwelling in the nature is one of the basic skills of a Prophet. This magic called 【Search】 is relatively a simple skill for a Prophet.

The basic task of the Prophet is to listen to the voices of the spirits dwelling in the nature, to tally the information, and to make predictions. Of course, this is just the foundation, and there are other things that you can do as a prophet.

—Also, to have this kind of reaction… Was it her first time to witness a prophecy?

Or maybe prophets are rare nowadays. Before I left the Human World, the number of people who took up the position of a Prophet decreased considerably.

But this is just next to the city. Basically, a prophet would reside in a place where there are many people but it seems there are a few people who had never seen a prophet.

I wonder if this is the current situation this time.

“To hear the voices of the spirits—so you’re a Spirit Magician, right? That make sense… Thank you very much. May I know your names?”

Somehow, the lady went on with her story but it seems I won’t get the chance to correct her a.s.sumptions. There are some parts where the job of a Prophet is close to a Spirit Magician so I’ll just answer her question.

“I’m Eisen and this is Rinne.”

“Eisen-sama and Rinne-sama! Thank you for very much! I’ll be sure to repay you for helping me with this—! Do you plan to live or travel to this city?”

“I don’t have any plan to live here, but… I think I’ll be staying here for a while. I have business with the Global Guild.”

“Then when you’re free, please visit the Alchemy Atelier right next to the Global Guild! I can’t repay you now but I’ll be sure to do it next time!”

“Sure, we will.”

“Thank you very much! See you later!”

The woman fluttered towards the city after bidding us goodbye.

“She’s a very enthusiastic child and it seems that she’s an alchemist.”

“But she’s quite happy to find her key. I guess Eisen-sensei is still as helpful to people as ever.”

“Because I’m in a great mood since we started walking and I wanted to keep that feeling. In fact, we’re going now to the Global Guild in because of this.”

“Yes! Let’s go, Eisen-sensei!”