I Organized The Leo Queue
“I think I better help her.”
“Yes, please do. …Hey! Wait your turn!”
And so I moved away from Mr. Kalis, and went over to Leo.
Mr. Kalis seemed to be quite busy with stopping children who were running around and not waiting for their turn.
Leo looked quite happy when she saw me walk over to her… Even her tail had wagged a little.
And then I patted her body gently.
“Leo. You were very good to wait here quietly.”
I said while petting her.
Leo’s bark was very quiet, as if she did not want to startle the children.
Now, what could be done about this chaos… I know…
“Leo. Why don’t you bark very loudly once?”
Are you sure about this? Leo seemed to be asking.
“Yes. It’s fine. I’ll deal with the aftermath.”
I reassured her, and Leo barked quietly in reply and nodded.
And then she took a deep breath.
And then the area suddenly became very silent.
Leo barked much louder than even I was expecting, and though my ears rang a little painfully, I looked around to see the reaction of the others.
The clerks who were selling the herbs, Mr. Kalis, and all the children and adults who were around Leo…had all froze and were looking at her.
Now that they were quiet, it was my chance.
“Uh, first of all, could everyone step away from the Silver Fenrir? Parents, please take your children and step away!”
I shouted loudly as if to match Leo’s volume.
…Though, I did not get close…
Still, as the place was so quiet, everyone was able to hear me.
“This Silver Fenrir’s name is Leo! If you want to touch Leo, then please wait in the line in front of Mr. Kalis, over here! You can take turns playing with her!”
Upon hearing my words, the children began to move away.
And then the parents also came and fetched their children.
All right, that should do it.
“You can take it from here, Mr. Kalis.”
“…Uh…very well. …If you want to touch the Silver Fenrir, please form a queue over here! You must take turns! By the way, good parents! We have very potent medicinal herbs that will cure ailments and injuries. Please take a look at the table over there!”
Mr. Kalis called, urging the children to wait in line.
…He also didn’t forget to advertise, which showed his skill as a merchant.
“Welcome. Be gentle when you touch Leo. Don’t worry, she’s not scary!”
“Of course. But do it gently. She might get startled if you do it too suddenly. You wouldn’t like it if someone did that to you, would you?”
As the children waited in front of Mr. Kalis, I instructed them on how to play with Leo.
Leo was no longer being swarmed by them, and only a few came forward at a time.
After that…I don’t know how much time passed. But I felt quite busy as I continued to guide the children forward.
I didn’t know where they were coming from, but the line never seemed to end.
There were also some adults mixed in, but as long as they were respectful towards Leo, I didn’t mind.
“Aha! I see you’re selling something here. Business must be booming!”
It was just as my voice started to grow raspy from so much shouting, I heard a loud voice coming from the table where the herbs were being sold.
Upon hearing it, even Leo and the children stopped what they were doing and turned to look.
With a shout, I heard the sounds of something breaking.
I had to stop Leo from reacting and jumping forward, and then I looked between the gaps of the crowd to see what it was.
What I saw was the remains of the display table after it had been broken in two.
Thankfully, Mr. Kalis’s ability as a salesman had meant that most of them were sold, and so only a few herbs were scattered on the ground.
…Still, while it was my ability, it hurt a little to see the herbs I made on the ground …
“Customer, what do you think you’re doing?!”
“AHHH!? I’m no customer! If you don’t want any more trouble, hand over the profits you made just now!”
While Mr. Kalis tried to deal with the situation, the man was in no mood to calm down.
If anything, from what I could hear, he was threatening to cause more damage unless they gave him some money.
“Leo, you wait right here. It will cause a bigger scene if you get involved.”
But I can handle it so easily? Leo seemed to say in reply, but I told her to stay put. And then I walked towards the voices in the crowd.
I moved through the spectators until I had a clear view of what was happening. There was a man there who was shouting angrily.
“You again… Weren’t you arrested?”
The man turned to look at me.
He was one of the men who had threatened us the last time we had all come to this town to shop.
They had been arrested and taken away by the town guards… Were they really released so quickly in this world…or country?
He had a mohawk, shoulder pads with spikes, and studded leather armor. Furthermore, he was wearing spiked gloves. Like someone from a post-apocalyptic world.
“Eh!? Who the hell are you?”
Apparently, the man didn’t recognize me.
Well, Leo had been the one to deal with them. Ms. Claire was beautiful enough to leave a lasting impression, but I hadn’t even been standing in the front.
“You tried to attack us before, and the guards arrested you.”
“So you’re…one of them!”
He finally remembered me, and then he pointed his gloved hand at me as if he had found his new target.
He was holding a small knife.
So that’s what he had hit the table with…
“Well, your fenrir isn’t here to save you this time… You’re just smallfry now.”
“Hahh… I guess you’ll have to be arrested again.”
The man had seen that Leo wasn’t with me, and suddenly looked confident and relaxed.