Isekai Losers!

Chapter 11: The Mine

The hard-working people of Lyugo were slowly but surely finishing up with their business for the day. Adventurers were seeking a tavern to rest after hunting monsters all day, while stall owners packed their unsold wares away, excitedly so as the very first thing they'd do after closing shop was count their daily earnings. Among the people following their daily routines on the streets, a certain brown-haired boy ran like his life depended on it, leaving behind a trail of dust and confusion among pedestrians.

After having ran across half the town without pause, the panting boy finally arrived at his destination—an old alchemy shop, as well as the residence of the person he was looking for.

"H-haah... hah... R-right, her window..." whispered the boy between short breaths as he approached the building and began circling it.

He spent many hours studying and working in and around this house, so he knew the layout rather well. The front of the house consisted of one room where Barny displayed wares and equipment. Past that room, in the back, were all of the bedrooms, as well as Barny's workshop and even a herb garden behind the house. Lan's room specifically was on the right side of the house, fortunately separated by a hallway from any room Barny might be in at the moment, meaning Gabriel could confidently sneak into the narrow path between the shop and neighbouring house without garnering unwanted attention.

Arriving at Lan's window, Gabriel found the wooden shutters of the window open, while the windows themselves were closed. Hesitant at first, he dared to knock three times.

After a few seconds, a girl walked up to the window. Her mistrustful expression became panicked and her eyes widened at the sight of the boy. She hastily bridged over the remaining distance to the window and opened it.

"You shouldn't be here! You don't know what grandpa is ready to do when he's upset!" Lan whispered loudly.

"I don't care what he does!" Gabriel countered defiantly. "Well, I do care what he does! But only to you! I don't care about what he'll do to me, so I can take all the blame!"

"What?... That's not how it works." Lan sighed. "And even if it did, it wouldn't change anything. We'd still be apart. Besides, I want to share the blame with you because I am equally guilty."

"You're not guilty of anything! You— you just wanted to help me! And I still n-need that help!"

"B-but..." 

"Perhaps what I'm about to say is severely out of line and I shouldn't further my involvement into your family matters, but!..." Gabriel paused his nervous and rapid talking, silently gazing up at Lan for a moment.

"...Barny is wrong, and a jerk. His actions were cruel and controlling. You deserve to be able to make your own choices, even if they go against his wishes."

"Gabriel..."

"So I must ask you to please go against your grandfather's wishes and continue tutoring me! I know this is a tall request with nothing in it for you but I really enjoyed being your student and I don't want it to end! Also, even if there was no need for you to keep teaching me I'd still ask you to do this because... well... because I like hanging out with you, I guess..."

Lan blushed ever so slightly, taken aback by Gabriel's sudden boldness—for his standards, anyway. She kept silent for a couple of seconds, trying to contain her happy smile, finally managing to do so with a forced cough.

"Ahem! I see." she crossed her arms. "That is indeed quite a tall request."

"I'm sorry..." Gabriel looked down. "But I really need—"

"Nuh uh." Lan stretched her hand out, silencing Gabriel. "I get it. I'll do it."

"H-huh...? Seriously? Y-you're not afraid of Barny?"