《Stranger's Handbook》 Prologue Prologue ¡°Hmm, something like this maybe?¡± In a humble office,cking in decorations, a man was leaning back in arge chair. He was in his 30¡¯s...no, he looked more like in his 20¡¯s; the man with ck eyes and ck hair was gently rubbing his overused right hand, from all the writing he¡¯s done. When he casually looked out the window it was pitch-ck and he realized he¡¯s been concentrating for a long time. ¡®Knock knock¡¯ the sound of knocking at a door was heard. There¡¯s only one person who could pay him a visit at such ate hour in the night. ¡°Master, I brought you some tea.¡± ¡°Oh! Come in.¡± ¡°Yes, if you¡¯ll excuse me!¡± The person who opened the door and slowly entered the room was the maid who served this man. She was preparing the tea while swinging her chestnut-colored ponytail, but her usual lovely face was sadly distorted. ¡°Master, aren¡¯t you pushing yourself a little too much? Becausetely, you¡¯ve been awake until veryte in the night writing, everyone feels concerned.¡± ¡°Ah! Tell everyone to stop worrying. I¡¯m not overdoing it. But, thanks anyway.¡± He slowly savors the ck tea she prepared for him. ¡°I¡¯m not overdoing it, but if I don¡¯t finish writing this, dying wouldn¡¯t make a good enough excuse. Hahaha¡± She silently stared at her master who was drinking his ck tea while smiling. Her master, this man, was Zest, a first-rate royal mage of The Great Grun Empire that reigns over the entire continent. He, who casted aside his Japanese name almost 100 years ago, was working on his final project. ¡°I¡¯m afraid I¡¯m not going tost much longer. I really must finish this final project no matter what. Because I made a promise, you know!?¡± While saying this with a lonely smile, he picked up the quill pen once again. The girl lowered her head softly and left the room so as not to disturb her master. So as not to disturb her master¡¯sst job. So that her master could keep his promise. She gently grabs the pendant at her chest. ¡°I¡¯m sure he¡¯s able to smile without a care in the world. But we must not forget! Our n has a debt towards him that could never ever be paid. Even if the entire continent turns out to be his enemy, we must never betray this person!¡± She returned to the antechamber clutching the pendant that was passed down to her, a woman of the n who grew-up along with these words. ¡°Grandfather, if I want him to stop working on this final project does it count as betrayal? But even so I wish for this person to continue living.....¡± The final project of a first-ss royal mage of the Grun Empire, Zest¡¯s final work... It is a record of the battles and conflicts spanning over his 100 years. It¡¯s a job to convey a message to posterity, concluding a history of turbulence and agitation, the circumstances leading to The Empire taking over the entire continent. He put together this ¡°Stranger¡¯s Handbook¡± so that when the timees for other strangers to be summoned here from another world, they would be hopefully facing a little less hardships. Chapter 1: Hello, New World Chapter 1: Hello, New World When I came to my senses I was inside a dimly lit room. I¡¯m Kato Toshiaki, a middle-aged man, age 32. I go to work as always and buy a coffee at a convenience store, as always. As usual, I drive my car while smoking a cigarette. As usual, I drink my coffee at the intersection with a long wait signal. Right after that..... What didn¡¯t go as expected was..... Suddenly, the ringing of an early earthquake warning was heard. The shaking was so violent that I could feel it even from inside the car. My surroundings were filled with the screams of people who jumped out of their cars. ¡°Whoa! Are you serious!? Another earthquake!? What is the magnitude scale for this one!?¡± I, as well, left the car and sat-down on the ground, waiting for the shaking to stop. Or that¡¯s how it should have been..... And then, when I came to my senses, I was inside this dimly lit room. Checking my surroundings... There are about 10 people here, from young to old....... There were young boys and girls too and I wondered whether they were high school teens. There were also some white-haired individuals and it wouldn¡¯t be wrong to assume they were old people. But what was the strangest thing about this whole situation was the fact that we were all naked. In normal circumstances, looking at the bare skin of young women is something that one would gratefully ept. I¡¯m an ordinary man after all! However, in such a strange situation you can¡¯t merely enjoy the view. It is clearly an abnormal situation. Just imagine. One day, you find yourself in a 20 tatami mats room, dimly lit, alongside other 10 or so individuals of different ages, all naked. It is NOT normal! ¡°S...something is happening, right? This.....¡± All I could do was mutter to myself. ¡°F...for the time being, since there are also young people around here, all women should gather over there. All mene over here. As much as possible, don¡¯t look at the other party! This is the sensible thing to do.¡± The one who did the dividing was an old man with gray hair. An old woman, who might have been his wife, was talking to the girls while gently stroking their heads. The young women were crying. No wonder... It¡¯s such an abnormal situation. No matter how you think about it, it¡¯s unusual. The fear and embarrassment of having their naked bodies gazed upon, it¡¯s too much for them to handle. Everyone listened to the old gentleman and separated into two groups, but, as one could easily guess, it was quite stimting for the young males and their eyes kept flickering towards the women¡¯s group. It would have still been all right if only for the looking..... ¡°Say, since we¡¯re already in such a situation, we will probably get killed by terrorists, right?¡± A man in his 20¡¯s. So he started, his appearance would be, in normal circumstances, truly herbivorous. ¡°It seems so. If we¡¯ll all get killed by terrorists anyway.....¡± A teen boy started to speak as well. Terrorists? Before one could actually notice, the fact that we¡¯ll get killed by terrorists was already confirmed, it seems. ¡®Terrorists, huh.....They purposely stripped us of our clothes and locked us in this room. Moreover, it happened in the midst of an earthquake......What sort of advantage could terrorists take by locking their prisoners, their hostages all in one room, regardless of gender or age?¡¯ While I was lost in thought, the two men, disregarding the other guys¡¯ restraint, were approaching the women¡¯s group, wearing broad grins on their faces. ¡°Hey, you! What are...!?¡± The old woman, seeming to want to protect the girls, was shouting in front of the two men. Ban! It was simultaneous with her screaming. The door was mmed open roughly and two people wearing armors and helmets, who looked like some sort of European knights, started entering the room. ¡°W...what the hell do you......¡± Something shined brightly. Before the first lecher was able to finish his line, shining lights could be seen from the direction of the knights¡¯ hands. ¡°Low-life individuals who won¡¯t even help their fellow countrymen and who try to assault weak women are needless to us.¡± ¡°T...they killed them......¡± One had his head cut right in half. The other one had lost his headpletely. If one would survive this, they would be either zombies or gods or such. Kyaaa....uwaaa....hiiii.... The knights began their speech regardless of all the noises and interjections in the background. ¡°It is not our interest to kill or harm you without a reason. But we have no intention to spare the lives of fiends, like these two guys. For now, you¡¯ll leave this room and follow us.¡± They announced coldly and left the room. ¡°E...everyone is probably confused, but for the time being it seems like a good idea not to disobey those guys. Let¡¯s follow them.¡± Resting on the old gentleman, the women were crying... The men, while shaking, were trying to get up. ¡°You haven¡¯t even flinched while witnessing such a terrible scene. Police? Self-defense forces? You sure have a strong stomach!¡± The old gentleman approaches me. ¡°No, I¡¯m in the uninteresting sales business.¡± I answered with a smile. ¡°Oh! A salesman. Well, with someone reliable as you around here everyone will feel a little bit more at ease.¡± ¡°Hahaha! Please don¡¯t expect too much!¡± After I gave my modest answer, the old gentleman left the room followed by everyone else. ¡°Erm! Aren¡¯t you leaving?¡± One of the women addressed me. ¡°Ah! I will leavest. You should all go ahead. I¡¯lle too after I finish thisst thing.¡± The woman left the room while nodding her head in understanding... Well now..... I was scared shitless and wet myself a little... I started rubbing my wet legs andher region on the carpet of the floor. I¡¯ll catch up with everyone once I¡¯m done cleaning myself. I was sure as hell scared to death! Chapter 2: All alone Chapter 2: All alone Hello, this is the middle-aged man who wet himself. I am all right. I am all right because it hasn¡¯t been exposed. It appears that one of the knights was waiting for me in front of the room. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to have made you wait!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it! It¡¯s over there.¡± I go towards the direction he pointed his finger at. A corridor made of stones. It really looks and feels like the underground of a medieval European castle. The smooth walls are neatly refined, it seems. Is this a carpet on the floor? This imposing blue-green cloth... Are these electric lights? These systematically arranged lights that go off at equal intervals. Is this Japan? Are there Japanese organizations that could construct such a medieval castle like underground? Or am I in a foreign country? An organization that can easily take out 10 people or so without using passports, huh!?... No matter how you look at it, it¡¯s umon. ¡°Err! Would it be ok for me to speak?¡± ¡°You must not! Be silent and move!¡± ¡°......Understood!¡± Hmmm I was bluntly and coldly refused without feeling any sort of anger in his voice... The incident from some time ago and the interaction just now. These knights have high pride and act ording to a clear purpose. Or so it seems. And as I was thinking, are we by any chance in the middle of a testing or ssifying process? ¡°By the way, why did you stay in that room until the end?¡± The knight following me inquired. How do I answer? ¡°Well, since I realized that you, people, have no intention to cause us any harm, I stayed behind to deal with those who might have gone against your indications.¡± ¡°I see. Continue!¡± ¡°With all due respect, you killed two men and held your swords covered in blood for everyone to see. Most certainly, due to the inflicted terror everyone would have obeyed your instructions nheless. But there were young women inside that room too.¡± ¡°I see. Fear is likely to create confusion and the possibility to ck out.¡± ¡°Yes, it is exactly as you said.¡± ¡°Why did you think that we don¡¯t intend to harm you?¡± ¡°That is because you need us for something. Or, you are looking for a skilled person.¡± The knight halted in his steps. ¡°You don¡¯t intend to harm us? That¡¯s slightly different, isn¡¯t it!? You don¡¯t intend to harm us pointlessly! Isn¡¯t that so?¡± I turned my head to the knight while asking the question.... Ah! He wasughing with a dreadful grim face..... Did I mess up? ¡°Hahahaha...! Youe this way. Follow me!¡± You.....? It seems that this way I won¡¯t be able to catch up with the others. After walking a short while, the knight entered a room. The room was about 20-jou (tatami mats). Is this a guest room? It has furniture and all. Chairs, a table, a bed and the sort... It¡¯s a fully furnished room, huh? ¡°Put these on first.¡± Hearing this, a pair of trousers and a shirt were handed over to me. There¡¯s no underpants! There¡¯s no underpants... ¡°You¡¯ll wait right here after you finish putting those on.¡± The knight left the room at a quick pace. ¡°Fuu....¡± A sigh escaped me. Earthquake Naked bodies Murder So many things urred again and again... There¡¯s simply no way not to feel tired. What will happen from now on, I wonder...... Their objective is unclear. Their organizational capabilities are also unknown. This ce is also unidentified. I....might die as well, huh.... Nay, I guess I will die for sure..... I see no possibility for me to escape with my life no matter how positively I¡¯m looking at this situation. I bet their objective is something dangerous and terrifying as well. They even took all the effort to kill someone too. It is certain that they¡¯re not some sort of volunteers or part of a peace organization. I found myself sighing again while lowering my body on the sofa. ¡°Haa....¡± I pray that it maybe won¡¯t hurt too much.... While thinking that, I examined a water jug. After all this time, they won¡¯t be introducing poison in the equation as well, right..... Second only to the silver water jug, is a little dirty silver cup. By the look of it, it¡¯s ordinary water. I¡¯d like to drink some coffee.....I was thinking while sipping some of the warm water. I remember the coffee left in my car. Cigarettes and coffee alike....I guess I won¡¯t get to savor them anymore. Gacha The one who opened the door and stepped into the room was an old man dressed in expensive-looking clothes. ¡°So you¡¯re the otherworlder hero candidate?!¡± This...... I¡¯m going to die.......probably...... Trantion: Nana Jack-of-¡®almost¡¯-all-trades: Mockii Chapter 3: Proof this is Another World Chapter 3: Proof this is Another World Otherworlder? Moreover, another world?? Just now, this old man said otherworlder, right......? But before that. ¡°Hello. I humbly introduce myself as Kato Toshiaki.¡± I get up off the couch and bow deeply. By the look of things, this person might be of a higher social rank than the knights from before. I guess he won¡¯t be displeased that I greeted him with respect. At least he doesn¡¯t show hostility. If I don¡¯t look like obeying him it might get pretty nasty.....even though my true feelings are nothing like this. ¡°Yea. Well, you shall sit. Talking while standing is too much for an old body.¡± Said the old man and sat down across me. On both his sides were two knights holding themselves back. ¡°Then, excuse me! However, your Excellency. I know nothing about the ways of this world. That is why, if I do or say something that is rude or inappropriate I would kindly beg of you to show tolerance.¡± ¡°Fine. I won¡¯t demand a stranger from another world to suddenly know of our manners. Besides, the ways of this world are not that much different.¡± ¡°Thank you very much.¡± I sit down superficially on the sofa. The old man in front of me is a cmity....... So this world isn¡¯t very different from the one I know..... And then, I can¡¯t deny the existence of his Excellency.....huh? This here is the world to which an otherworlder hase to. And he understands it to a certain degree. The old man who is referred to as his Excellency is none other than his opponent. Hmm...I kind of solved the mystery.....Another world, huh? However, I can¡¯t easily believe such a thing. ¡°Your Excellency, could I humbly ask a question?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll answer his Excellency¡¯s question first!¡± The knights re at me intensely. His Excellency¡¯s question? That one from before? The old man was wearing a faint smile seemingly not caring about all this. ¡°Knight-dono, by his Excellency¡¯s question, are you referring to whether or not I¡¯m the stranger* who¡¯s a hero candidate? If that is the case, if I don¡¯t confirm to myself that this is indeed another world I might end up lying to his Excellency.¡± ¡°Fine. Certainly, if you don¡¯t understand the situation to a certain degree we can¡¯t have a proper conversation. Kato......was it? Or, do they use first names in that world? Toshiaki? The knight was about to say something but he was stopped by the old man¡¯s hand. ¡°It is exactly as you said. Toshiaki is my first name. But if you find it difficult to pronounce, you can call me Toshi.¡± The old man nodded his head and started talking. ¡°Well then, Toshi. Let¡¯s give you proof that this here is another world!¡± When he said that, one of the knights drew his sword. This sword didn¡¯t have the same color as those you often see on TV or in games. It was such a silver color that the sword appeared to be wet. I involuntarily thought that it was beautiful, but then the knight cut his finger off. !? I frowned reflexively. That must really hurt. From the spot he used to have his finger blood was overflowing. He won¡¯t be able to make promises** anymore. The knight¡¯s face was now red due to the pain he self-inflicted and he approached me to show me the wound. ¡°I certainly took damage, right?¡± I could only nod to that question. The knight picks out a bottle from his waist pouch and drinks its content. Right after that, the indeed lost finger started to regenerate very quickly. ¡°Wha!? The...the finger grew back!?¡± I cried out instinctively, but that was inevitable...... His finger grew back just like that, you know? It¡¯s a mild horror movie....... ¡°So, what do you say? Do you have simr medicine in your world?¡± The old man, with his usual faint smile on his face, asked me. ¡°N...no, your Excellency. It¡¯s impossible. This is the first time I¡¯ve seen medicine like this.¡± ¡°Is that so? Then again, are there people like these in your world?¡± Having said that, he took off the other knight¡¯s helmet. He was a man who had dog-like ears. He was swaying his tail carefully and his ears were twitching in a hectic manner. ¡°This person......if I¡¯m not mistaken.......he¡¯s part of a race referred to as kemonobito***. Is that correct?¡± The old man slowly nodded to my question and continued. ¡°Yea. So you did realize this is another world by now, right? Ah,ter on I¡¯ll show you some magic too.¡± Magic!? This is turning more and more into a fantasy pattern, huh........ Well, since they also have hero candidates, they can¡¯t possibly win against the Demon King without using magic. ¡°Y...yes. Thank you for your consideration, your Excellency! I am convinced now that this is another world. However, you said that I¡¯m the hero candidate. What do I possess to make you think so?¡± ¡°Yea, this now is the important part!¡± Knock, knock Someone was knocking at the door. When the dog knight opened the door, a beautiful woman with dog ears wearing a maid uniform entered the room. A beauty with dog ears. This is absolutely magnificent. She¡¯s a dog-eared beauty with a slender body that can only bepared to that of a model. She bows and starts preparing the tea. Oh! There¡¯s some for me too.....this scent, is it ck tea? It is much appreciated, my throat is dried-up. Before long, setting up the table was done and, as she stopped in front of the door and turned around to face us, she bowed and saluted. ¡°Well then, I shall excuse myself-nya!¡± ¡°So you¡¯re a cat!!!¡± My sudden outburst caused the pretty girl with dog ears to look at me with teary eyes and the dog knight to re at me, while clenching his teeth. The ¡®finger cutting¡¯ knight was expressionlessly touching his sword. And then..... The old man sitting in front of me was not smiling anymore...... I will probably die..........sooner than expected...... *Mind that this time I used ¡®stranger¡¯ instead of ¡®otherworlder¡¯ for the Japanese ¡®isekaijin¡® (lit. person from a different world). When the Japanese text allows me, I n on using the term ¡®stranger¡¯ from now on...I like it more somehow. **yubikiri = lit. to cut off one¡¯s finger = linking little fingers to confirm a promise (If you¡¯re a manga/anime fan, you must be familiar with this ;D); pinky promise. ***kemonobito = it literary trantes as a beast-human. Other terms for it are therianthropy, beastkin. Since these terms are a bit too fancy, I decided to use the Japanese term. Yey! Chapter 4: World Structure Chapter 4: World Structure This is bad.......This is extremely bad....... The ck tea¡¯s fragrance made me let my guard down. By mistake, the bad habit I had while on Earth.......while I lived in Japan came forth. The rxation effect ck tea has is outstanding. I just felt it on myself........ ¡°Toshi.......I¡¯ll give you one warning.¡± Said the expressionless old man. So this is what they call ssy eyes......I was thinking carelessly, but my feet were trembling like a level 7 earthquake. My body came loose. ¡°Y...yes, your Excellency.¡± ¡°You¡¯re still not familiar with this world. And I also made a promise in the beginning. I¡¯ll overlook it this time.¡± The old man took a deep breath and my reaction to that was a level 8* trembling. ¡°But, you know, you¡¯ve mistaken a race. You must absolutely never say words of discrimination or despise against a race. If you don¡¯t want to die, that is.¡± I stood up and showed the beauty with dog ears my sincerest apology. I knelt down on the ground**. ¡°This scum who doesn¡¯t even know the customs has offended you greatly! I had no intention to look down upon you or your race. Please, forgive my ignorance!¡± After I prostrated myself to this extent, the dog knight finally seemed to calm down. He was trembling severely and breathing heavily until just now. ¡°What do you say, Al? This is reconciliation. You¡¯re fine with it, right? ¡°Yes, sir. I will obey your decision.¡± So, the dog knight is Al. Al, huh?......I¡¯ll remember it. ¡°You understood too, right, Suu?¡± ¡°Y...yes. Most certainly, your Excellency.¡± So, the maid is Suu. Suu-san, huh? I wonder if she likes fishing. ¡°Well, well, that¡¯s because you got that promise from me in the beginning. However, there¡¯s no next time, Toshi. You have to value your life more......¡± ..........Eh? Was I really in a deadly situation just now?....... Is it such a taboo, talking about other races!? ¡°Yes. I¡¯m very thankful for your special concern!¡± I bow my head to the old man too. I have no idea what¡¯s their kill-switch....... I have to learn about this world¡¯smon sense really fast, otherwise I¡¯ll be forsaking my life. ¡®Cause of death: Stabbing¡¯ or something like that would be too embarrassing. Suu-san left the room after bowing once again. She didn¡¯t seem to have teary eyes anymore. ¡°Well now, returning to the hero matter. Don¡¯t worry, the story is really simple.¡± The old man drinks some ck tea, returning to his usual faint smile. ¡°I won¡¯t ask you something like defeating the demon king or bearing the full brunt of a war. I just want you to be a leader.¡± What, a leader? ¡°To begin with, I don¡¯t even know of the existence of a demon king. Magical beasts and demonic beings both exist though. However, the thing you call demon king in your world doesn¡¯t exist here and there¡¯s no record of it in any historical annals up until now. The demons live scattered, without creating a country and do whatever they please. Something like a country or a king is too much trouble for them, it seems.¡± ¡°I....I see. They do whatever they......please? ¡°Yea. The demons here are an excellent race known for their mages and they won¡¯t go doing something like controlling the magical beasts or such. They do whatever they please, but that doesn¡¯t mean they¡¯re ouws. They¡¯re adventurers, schrs, restaurant owners, inn keepers and so on. You might say they blend in and live freely as simple citizens.¡± I see, there¡¯s no enmity. I wonder if they really don¡¯t want a country of their own...... ¡°This is precisely why discrimination towards races is not allowed.¡± The old man drank some more ck tea and then his face became serious. ¡°When there¡¯s discrimination against a race, those who did it would be facing the wrath of dragons and demons. The race that did the discrimination would be extinguished and only a handful would be left alive.¡± .........Hm? And the point is...... ¡°Are they prosecutors......or, more likely, judges......? ¡°You can say so......It¡¯s actually quite safe to assume this. It¡¯s this world¡¯s way of doing things, you know.¡± I see, there must have been some serious discrimination in the past. And this is a system to prevent that, huh?....... ¡°So, about your......about the hero¡¯s duty........¡± Yes, finally! To some degree, this world¡¯s system is quiteplete. It¡¯s a system based on the dragons and demons¡¯ surveince, I can¡¯t see where the hero¡¯s job would fit in. ¡°It¡¯s been a long while since thest hero has been summoned. Thest records are about the remarkable achievements from 1000 years ago.¡± Ah! I really have a bad feeling! ¡°ording to the records, in the past a hero was summoned to defeat all those who held discriminating thoughts. I¡¯m not nning of doing something this outrageous and I¡¯ve grown attached to this world in which racial discrimination doesn¡¯t exist. I don¡¯t intend to destroy it.¡± Thank god!.......Thank god they didn¡¯t summon me 1000 years ago. Hero-san, whose name I don¡¯t even know, thank you very much! ¡°What I want.......what the Grun Empire¡¯s Frontier Count Razatonia wants to aplish is......¡± What, Frontier Count? Aren¡¯t you a big deal noble-sama, who controls this empire¡¯s essential territories, Razatonia-san.......!? ¡°Royalty usurpation.¡± This time for sure, I¡¯m strongly convinced that I¡¯m going to die. *Õð¶È8 = Japanese earthquake scale (level 1: weak to level 7+: devastation). The author often uses this term to express the level of trembling in someone¡¯s body. **Refers to the Japanese dogeza. (https://.google.at/search?q=dogeza&espv=2&biw=944&bih=927&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjN8Ie3g7HLAhVI2BoKHbwFC_oQ_AUIBigB) Chapter 5: Frontier Count’s Ambition Chapter 5: Frontier Count¡¯s Ambition Royalty usurpation....... By ¡®usurpation¡¯ he refers to snatching away, right; and he¡¯d asked me to be a leader...... If that is the case, he wants me to be a political one? Don¡¯t say he wants me to be the leader of a rebellion by any chance? ........Hmm? Wait a sec...... ¡°Err, your Excellency, royalty...? When I inquired that, he deepened his smile into a broad grin. ¡°Precisely, royalty. There¡¯s a kingdom in the vicinity of our empire....¡± Holy smokes! Such an evil face......I sip some of my tea while nodding to the old man. Ah! This tea is delicious. ¡°I can¡¯t possibly begin to imagine why this country has chosen a Crown Prince that is so unthinkably idiotic.....¡± Crown Prince, huh........the next ruler of a country. So he wants me to meddle in other family¡¯s internal squabble? ¡°And, you know, this Crown Prince is an adept of the discrimination ideology.¡± .........What? ¡°The supremacy of the human race......he practices such a doctrine.¡± Al-san had an annoyed look on his face and the ¡®finger-cutting¡¯ knight didn¡¯t show an amusing expression either. Well, you might say that in a country that prohibits discrimination that¡¯s quite a......no, that¡¯s an extremely awful Crown Prince. As ever, the old Frontier Count........old man Razatonia had an evil smile on his face. ¡°That¡¯s why, it¡¯d be troublesome if such a guy gets to be the next king.¡± .......Uh huh, that¡¯s the official stance. It might be true in fact, but......I bet he doesn¡¯t think this is unforgivable out of good will, does he. Unintentionally, I looked doubtfully at the old man Razatonia. He was smirking......... Hii! Scary!! ¡°You sure have guessed right! This is the perfect opportunity to invade this fussy neighboring country. It would be great if we can destroy it from the inside, and it would be even greater if we can cut into its pirs.¡± ¡°And it would be best if the royalty usurpation seeds. Will you turn it into a puppet country?¡± I somehow forced myself to say this and sipped some of the now vorless tea. ¡°Fufufu*! Well, well, the hero-dono this time is very perceptive, it actually helps. So, what do you say?¡± ......I came to another world, became a hero and my job is internal squabble, huh? Oh well, it¡¯s not like I have knowledge of martial arts and I guess I¡¯m quite worthy as a salesman who can smooth talk. I wonder if it makes it less objectionable when the only thing he didn¡¯t ask of me was to fight. ¡°Yes. Certainly, your Excellency Razatonia.¡± I bow my head respectfully. If I disobey it would only mean death, I can only answer with yes or yes. ¡°Is that so? Excellent! The conversation didn¡¯t go as smoothly with the other strangers. They kept on pushing their country¡¯s ideology on us, like human rights and the sort...¡± I nodded and started to sip on my vorless tea.....Ah, there¡¯s no more..... ¡°I am pained to say this to hero-dono, but their number sadly decreased...well, don¡¯t feel bad about it!¡± ............? What would it be.........just now, I have the feeling I was told something terrible. ¡°Eventually, I will allow you to meet the surviving strangers, but I will be a little busy for a while. I want you to have patience and cooperate. Ah, but don¡¯t worry. I will guarantee you freedom to some extent and offer you training in magic. It shouldn¡¯t be too bad of a deal for you.¡± So, a few of those who were brought here together with me died? In normal circumstances that¡¯d be an absurdity. But, there¡¯s nothing the current me could do about it. For a stranger like me who has no power apart from being more or less good at smooth talking, I have my hands full with just struggling to keep myself alive. ¡°Yes. I¡¯ll try my best, your Excellency Razatonia.¡± The old man Razatonia nodded and quickly raised his right hand. Then, a part of the room¡¯s wall opened simrly to a door and a man showed up. Is he in his 20¡¯s? He has chestnut-colored hair and eyes and he wears an approximately 180cm long blue robe with a fine pattern. I¡¯m sorry to say but he¡¯s a good-looking guy......It¡¯s frustrating...... ¡°How was it? How¡¯s our hero-dono¡¯s magical power?¡± The robed man in question lowered his head while twisting his good-looking face. ¡°Yes, your Excellency. I find it difficult to give you an answer.¡± The corners of old man Razatonia¡¯s mouth moved with a slight twitch, but his faint smile was still in ce. He can¡¯t answer? The robed man, who was most likely a subordinate, said so indeed. A subordinate can¡¯t answer his superior¡¯s question? Is something like this allowed in this world, when the other party is a noble? As usual, the two knights have bitter faces.....no, they¡¯re restraining their anger. That¡¯s how their faces looked like. ¡°I see. That¡¯s too bad. Ah! Hero-dono, I prepared a guide for you, so you shall move rooms. We still have so much more to talk about, but you might be hungry and might also want to take a bath to help you refocus.¡± He said this and exchanged looks with the ¡®finger-cutting¡¯ knight, then the knight opened the door. ¡°Understood, your Excellency. I shall excuse myself.¡± I will quietly obey. I was finally offered food and shower and I have no reason to refuse. ¡°Yea. See youter.¡± I bowed to the old man Razatonia, who still wore his faint smile, and followed after the knight. We climbed up the stairs and I was blinded by the sunlight; it seems we entered a beautiful garden. First of all, I¡¯m so darn hungry.....It seems I¡¯ll be living for the time being...... I nonchntly followed the knight while thinking about these things. Inside the room I left earlier, I had no idea such a conversation was taking ce....... ¡°So, about his magical power? Now that he left the room you can say it, right?¡± ¡°Yes, your Excellency. His magical power is undoubtedly more magnificent than my master¡¯s, than a first rate imperial mage¡¯s power.¡° ¡°T..t....t....t...this can¡¯t be.......He¡¯s not stupid and he also has such a high magical power......He¡¯s too precious to only be used as a hero.......¡± It was the first time I saw his Excellency Razatonia smile so atrociously.....I thought the world was going to end. That¡¯s what Al-san told meter on and only the thought of it made his tail tremble severely. As I figured, I think I¡¯m gonna die. *¤Õ¤Õ¤Õ = giggling sound;ugh Chapter 6: The Decided Time Limit Chapter 6: The Decided Time Limit I follow the ¡®finger-cutting¡¯ knight without knowing of the conversation taking ce in that room. The garden was so wonderful that it reminded me of the magnificent European gardens from old times. On this carpet of greenery a variety of multicolored flowers are blooming in fullness and the pathways are made of perfectly maintained granite-like stones. ¡°It¡¯s so beautiful.¡± I muttered involuntarily. Even though I suddenly got involved in such a mess, it is only natural to feel moved by the sight of such beautiful flowers. ¡°Indeed. It¡¯s because we, from the Frontier Count Household, take pride in this garden.¡± It seems that the ¡®finger-cutting¡¯ knight is in a good mood too. ¡°By the way, since it¡¯s a bit difficult to forever call you knight-dono, could I ask for your name?¡± ¡°It¡¯s..........Galef.¡± ¡°Understood, Galef-dono. Again, I am very pleased to meet you.¡± ¡°Yeah yeah!¡± In the time we had our little conversational exchange, we arrived at the mansion. It¡¯s a huge, all white ptial residence, or better said it has the bearing of a grand imperial pce. We entered the mansion and after a little walk Galef-san opened a door. ¡°You¡¯ll use this room. A maid will be here soon. Make sure to follow her instructions!¡± ¡°Thank you for your guidance.¡± After I entered the room, Galef-san left. This is quite a wonderful room, iparable with the one from before. It seems that at least they won¡¯t be harming me any time soon. This is a treatment to make me realize this, huh... The sound of a light knock is heard. ¡°Excuse me.¡± The one who entered the room is a young woman with a dumpling-like head and red hair; the maid uniform suits this lovely girl perfectly. You can¡¯t say she¡¯s an exceptional beauty, but she¡¯s not in either. Well, she¡¯s more like ordinary. ¡°Guest-sama, we finished preparing your bath. Follow me, please.¡± The maid led me to the bathing room, this huge, extravagant bathing room. How many days has it been?.......I have no idea when I arrived in this world, but anyway, this is my first bath in another world. I would have liked to take my time and enjoy this moment for a while, if not for the maids who started washing my body clean. It sure feels good though. It feels really good. They only washed me as they normally would, but it sure feels refreshing and it also smells good. I¡¯m not a clean freak, but I sure have strong feelings towards being clean. Ah! This is embarrassing though. The maids washing me are saying such things...... ¡°What¡¯s that? A tail? A leg?¡± ¡°Wooah, it¡¯s huuuge.¡± ¡°That might be....pretty inconvenient.......¡± I didn¡¯t hear that.........I didn¡¯t hear THAT! It can¡¯t be helped! I¡¯m a middle-aged man, you know! When you¡¯re washed by young women it¡¯s inevitable for this to happen! ¡°Well then, please wait here.¡± I thanked the first maid whose cheeks were now somehow red and waited patiently back in my room. My body feels refreshed now that I¡¯m also wearing new clothes. Compared to the ones from before, these clothes sure are splendid. However, as I thought, there were no underpants....... This is a no-underpants world, I wonder....... While drinking some ck tea, I was thinking about how to exin to them the importance of wearing underclothes, when the door opened. ¡°I have kept you waiting.¡± Old man Razatonia. ¡°No, you haven¡¯t. Thank you for the bath. I feelpletely refreshed now.¡± ¡°Yea. Well then, let¡¯s talk a bit while eating something light. Ah, don¡¯t worry about manners. Since the conversation is a priority, I won¡¯t mind it.¡± The maids took those words as a signal and quickly started to arrange some sandwiches and baked sweets on the table. They left right after finishing the preparations. Yeah, it looks delicious. It would have been great if not for this old man, with whom I must share this meal...... ¡°And now. About hero-dono¡¯s schedule from now on.¡± I put the sandwich away and gulped down my mouthful. ¡°One year. I will have you learn how to use magic in one year.¡± ¡°Y...yes, your Excellency.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I will give you an excellent teacher. With him teaching you, one year is more than enough for you to be a proper magic user.¡± One year, huh?........During this time I have to be stronger and learn about this world. For going along with this n or for going against it, I need strength either way. And then I desperately need information about this world and gain wisdom. If I don¡¯t want to die, that is....... I don¡¯t know when this currently cooperative old man will turn against me and be a threat. He¡¯s cooperative because he can benefit in return. In that case, I must increase my merits for being his ally. If he can benefit greatly from me, then the risk of being cast away decreases as well....... ¡°Yes. I will try my best to meet your expectations, your Excellency.¡± That¡¯s right, I don¡¯t want to die. If I don¡¯t want to die, then I have to cooperate......I have to make every single effort for that purpose. My resolution will stay firm, at least until i have enough power to protect myself. However, his response was something I could have never anticipated. ¡°Well now, don¡¯t be so stiff. You¡¯ll be my adorable granddaughter¡¯s husband, don¡¯t call me ¡®your Excellency¡¯ anymore, grandson-inw-dono.¡± It seems I¡¯m getting married with this cunning old man¡¯s granddaughter....... I¡¯m sooooo gonna die.......... Chapter 7: Marriage Partner Chapter 7: Marriage Partner Marrying old man Razatonia¡¯s granddaughter...... This old man certainly said that. ¡°Errrr, your Excellency. Ma.....rriage?¡± As one would expect, I had to ask again. It¡¯s no wonder, whatever the circumstances may be this is beyond expectation. To begin with, something like this marriage is impossible, right? The partner is a noble. ¡°Are you against it?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not against it!¡± Ah! I answered in an instance. The old man had such a serious expression...... ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s not going to be right away. Your social status as a hero is still a little bit......That¡¯s why, you¡¯ll first be my subordinate¡¯s adopted son. After that, you¡¯ll be saving my granddaughter from an enemy attack and mutual love will tie you together. How¡¯s that! An impressive tale, isn¡¯t it?¡± ............Aaah! So this is the synopsis. A very clich¨¦ love story between a hero and a princess, huh? ¡°And then, at first, his Excellency will be against it, but persuaded by the wishes of his people and subordinates, he¡¯ll show his tolerant heart and forgive the granddaughter and the hero......¡± ¡°Recently, it¡¯s been hard to implement policies that ignore the voices of people, you know. Meddling with the neighboring country will cost money as well.¡± I¡¯m so very happy you¡¯re enjoying this, old man... ¡°The portraits of a hero and a princess will make for some great marketing. Like books about the love story between the two of you? And then, the advantage of approving your rtionship is that the nation will admire his Excellency, the tolerant and impartial Frontier Count. The proof he won¡¯t even discriminate against a stranger who came from another world... They¡¯ll forget everything about increasing the territories and the pressure against the neighboring country.¡± Hiiii!! That¡¯s why you¡¯re scary, old man! ¡°If we make a pass at the neighboring country, we must collect more taxes. It is something necessary for a just cause......Well, I¡¯m not thinking of going that far as to burden the people too much.....¡± ¡°Congrattory gifts from your fellow nobles? .....Or, is there someone you want their power stripped away from?¡± Holy smokes! The old man has his whole face covered with a smile....... ¡°Hahahahaha, very good! Very good indeed! If only my son would be as sharp as you are! That guy is not quite the strategic thinker; it sure helps having a reliable grandson-inw, such as yourself!¡± He had such a dream-like smile on his face......It is a nightmare. ¡°Well, we¡¯ll go with these arrangements. That¡¯s why I want to seriously wee you into my family. It¡¯s also for grandson-inw¡¯s sake.¡± You understand, right? He examined me, seemingly wanting to ask that. ¡°In return for your given support and ce to live, I must not make the princess sad....is this right? I will make sure I won¡¯t have to deal with something like sudden illness or the sort.¡± In reality, I won¡¯t go for something like not making the princess sad, but instead I¡¯ll need to seduce the princess. If I don¡¯t, even if we manage to have kids, there¡¯s still the possibility I¡¯ll be discarded. His target is the children who share the same blood as his granddaughter, not me who¡¯s not even blood-rted... Is this his objective, to have a prospect for the next head of the Frontier Count Household? By the way, the ¡®sudden illness¡¯ thing is something like a pact with a high ranking noble. They won¡¯t announce something like ¡®he died¡¯ or ¡®he was killed¡¯. ¡®He moved to the countryside where the air is good for a person recovering from sudden illness¡¯ It¡¯ll turn out like this. He¡¯ll be set up in a high position, like a hero or a brave man.......They can¡¯t say something like ¡®we killed him¡¯. After 2-3 years of medical treatment the patient dies, but there¡¯s nothing to worry about since he already had a sessor from the time he was in his better health! ¡®His wife will be in charge of the children until they mature! Let¡¯s all cooperate on behalf of our hero!¡¯ See, there¡¯s no problem? Haaa......This is so bad.......I might end up being in the way........ ¡°There¡¯s no need to worry this much. That¡¯s because the Stranger seems to have a natural talent for magic. An excellent magician is a valuable asset, you know!?¡± As if I could feel at ease......It¡¯s like I shouldprehend it as ¡®I won¡¯t need you without your natural talent in magic¡¯....... ¡°Well, you must be tired by now. You should take your time and rest. In case you need anything just ask the maids I ced in your care. Starting tomorrow, I¡¯ll have you train in magic under your master and gain knowledge about this world.¡± After he one-sidedly dered this, the old man sat up quickly and made his way to leave the room, but he suddenly turned around when in front of the door. ¡°Ah! I forgot to tell you something.¡± ¡°Y...yes. What would that be, your Excellency?¡± And then the old man started talking with that nightmare-like wide smile. ¡°My granddaughter.......she¡¯s very cute. Her character is the spitting image of mine, you know!?¡± ........As I thought, I can¡¯t feel at ease. I can see a future in which I die. Chapter 8: Magic Master Chapter 8: Magic Master I could hear the sound of chirping birds in my room......a gentle morning sets in. It¡¯s a calm weather that¡¯s neither too hot, nor too cold. I got up from my bed and when I looked up the window I was blinded by the bright sparkling blue sky and greenery..... ¡°In the end.....I couldn¡¯t even get a wink of sleep.....¡± The ones that were sparkling brightly were in fact my tears. My tears wouldn¡¯t stop falling..... Later, a maid prepared my breakfast and after I finished it, the blue robed man came into my room and led me to the magic training field. Is this the mansion¡¯s inner-courtyard? It was a vast perfectly maintainedwn. I see, this is where we¡¯ll have our magic practice..... It¡¯s finally starting. If I don¡¯t show results in 1 year, I bet I¡¯ll be thrown away, but still, to be taught by such a good-looking man doesn¡¯t really make me happy either.... After all, for the me who has no confidence in my appearance, a good lookingpanion is too harsh. ¡°Now, I know it¡¯s sudden but we should start. I am called Sonia and I¡¯ll be your teacher from now on. I am also the magic divisionmander of the Frontier Count¡¯s army and I won¡¯t say that I¡¯m the perfect instructor for you.....but I¡¯m not a bad partner either.¡± You¡¯re good looking and you also have true strength.......you sure are a winner, huh? ¡°Yes. I¡¯ll be in your care, master.¡± ¡°Good. Well then, let¡¯s first examine your magic aptitudes. Hold this crystal ball with both hands.¡± After he said that, he handed me a 20 cm crystal ball. The moment I hold it in my hands, a white lighted sphere started to float inside it. Come on, why isn¡¯t it breaking or shining with a violent light!? A white light.....doesn¡¯t this mean I have no talent at all.....? While I felt disappointed I looked at my master and he had such a smile on his face that showed pity, despise and arrogance..... Haa......As I thought, I am so useless....... ¡°Wonderful! The light attribute! Moreover, such a pure white light! To have the same attribute as the hero-sama who fought in the great war in the past, you sure are something different. I¡¯ve also read about this in books, but it¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve seen this crystal shine with such a white light.¡± ..........Am I being praised? This? Master, your face and your words are not in agreement at all! ¡°L...light attribute? What kind is this?¡± My master nodded, wearing that usual smile of his that shows how much he looks down on people. ¡°Compared to the other 5 attributes, fire, water, earth, wind and darkness, with the light attribute you can learn magic specialized in defense and recovery. You can¡¯t do this with the other attributes. There are some light attribute users in our empire, but they are so few you can enumerate them all. It¡¯s an extremely rare attribute.¡± .......Defense and recovery, huh? This won¡¯t count as a magic cheat that would make me peerless, huh......damn it! ¡°While we¡¯re at it, a light attribute user has a very strong protection against the so-called abnormal conditions, like poison, paralysis, sleep and so on, and if you¡¯re a high ranking user you can even nullify everything. Well, you can say this is an extra ability.¡± Wha!? Isn¡¯t this enough of a cheat ability, master!!?? Well, even though it¡¯s considered to be something extra, for me it¡¯s good enough. It¡¯ll be my trump card. For the worse, if I can nullify abnormal conditions, I can continue to survive in this world. Poisonous mushrooms, rotten meat, you can alle to me! I could even challenge garbage! Even though I¡¯d hate it....... ¡°Well then, let¡¯s try using magic. It¡¯s quite easy! For the light attribute there¡¯s no need for incantation or motions. All you have to do is to focus your magical powers and call to your mind the things you want to create. Oh well, it¡¯s not an attribute that needs me to teach you that.¡± He said that and ced his hand on my shoulder. What¡¯s this.....it¡¯s like something warm is entering my whole body! ¡°Errr, master.....Is this thing entering my body magical power?¡± He answered with a facial expression that looked like he was watching a disastrous something. ¡°That¡¯s right. This is magical power. While sensing this magical power...make a crystal ball that shines gently to float in front of your eyes........¡± I was imagining it as I was being told, and it was really floating in front of my eyes.....a light sphere...... Master was grinning broadly. Hii!? That¡¯s why you¡¯re scary! Good looking men don¡¯t show such an evil smiling face! ¡°That¡¯s right. That is magic, easy right? Even though, a light attribute user that can¡¯t use magic is unheard of. Now, let¡¯s practice something that doesn¡¯t need my assistance, shall we?¡± This person shows sarcasm with every single thing he says. Even though that was my first magic.....a long-awaited first magic....... I¡¯m the type of person that advances when praised! I have the mental state of a bean-curd...... ¡°Yes! I will do my best, master!¡± In fact, it was easy even without my master¡¯s assistance..... Once you feel the magical power, you can feel and use it naturally, to a degree that it bes strange you weren¡¯t able to do it up until that time. I can understand now why master said he doesn¡¯t need to teach me this. ¡°Well, it¡¯s because the light attribute is quite simple in itself. To the point that even users of other magic attributes can use easy light attribute magic. It¡¯s the type of magic that you could use normally even without having any sort of aptitude. Dispatching some light and brightness is something that anyone can do, right?¡± He said these words even though I was constantly practicing with the crystal of light. Am I practicing something that anyone could easily do........? ¡°However, when this light attribute bes an aptitude, it¡¯s a different story. You can use defense and recovery magic on your allies without the need of a hymn or incantations. The width of things you could do extends at once and it truly bes the type of magic perfect for a hero. That¡¯s why........¡± Yeah, I think this person is a wonderful master. Only if his words wouldn¡¯t be so biting, hisughter wouldn¡¯t look down on me this much and his smiling face wouldn¡¯t look like that of a viin. ¡°That¡¯s why.....this is the perfect type of magic for my daughter¡¯s husband. I have great expectations from you! Son-inw-dono!¡± While I was looking at my smiling master, I was praying that his daughter wouldn¡¯t resemble him, and lost my consciousness. I don¡¯t want to die........ Chapter 9: The First Encounter Chapter 9: The First Encounter I entrusted my body to this nice floating feeling in this white and airy world. ¡°Ah! I want to stay like this forever.......¡± I truly wish so, from the bottom of my heart. I want to forget about other worlds and magic powers, and stay here....forever..... But instead of that, my consciousness was slowly surfacing. It smells like grass......That¡¯s right! I was practicing magic and lost my consciousness! I opened my eyes slowly, and a strong-willed beautiful girl with ck eyes and ck hair was ring at me like she was watching a filthy something. She was peeking into me as I was barely able to keep my eyes slightly opened. She¡¯s in her teens, I wonder? She¡¯s a young and ssy beautiful girl......Her fascinatingly elegant ck hair is swaying over her white skin. This bearing of hers made her long hair stay upwards.....it seemed it would reach her lower back in normal circumstances. She was overflowing with an oppressive aura. Judging by the beautiful dress she¡¯s wearing, I fear that she might be a noble young woman. And what¡¯s more, she has a bad personality. She possesses such beauty that would undoubtedly make one fall in love at first sight if she were to smile genuinely, but her face and demeanor were followed by an oppressive and intimidating air. ¡°Oh, to try seducing my daughter as soon as you wake up, you¡¯re quite a bold person, aren¡¯t you!? Furthermore, you dare to do that in her father¡¯s presence!¡± ..........Master, what did you just say? You¡¯re..... As I was getting up in confusion, something fell down. Huh? A wet handkerchief? It looks like a woman¡¯s... Ahh! Is it that this youngdy was concerned because of my passing out and ced her wet handkerchief on my forehead......? ........The youngdy ced her wet handkerchief on my forehead in sign of concern of me falling to the ground. And then I say ¡®Ah! I want to stay like this forever!¡¯ Yes, that falls into the category of seduction. ¡°N...no, master! Youngdy, forgive my discourtesy!¡± ¡°Haha! She will be your wife in the future. I don¡¯t see the need for you to apologize!¡± ¡°..........That is right. It is as father says.¡± ........Then, don¡¯t make such an evil face. It was natural for my master, but the youngdy was also watching me with eyes filled with disgust, like looking atplete garbage. ¡°Oh right! Since you¡¯ve already finished the first stage of your magic training and you¡¯ve also met my daughter.....how about the three of us go have some tea!¡± ¡°.....Yes, father.¡± ¡°Y...yes, master.¡± I can¡¯t refuse this...... Discouraged, I follow these two with sullen attitude. We entered the mansion¡¯s reception room. Once we were seated, the maids seemed to flow inside the room and make the preparations. Just like artisans, they¡¯re really vivid. When I casually looked at the two seated in front of me, their faces wore a noticeable, disagreeable expression. As I thought, they might not be very pleased with me as a marriage partner........ Especially since the youngdy is still...well, too young. There should be many other suitable partners for a political marriage to choose from, since the bride is such a beauty...... Gachan! It seems a young maid dropped a cup on the floor. ¡°I.....I am so sorry!¡± The maid had a ghastly white face and kept apologizing. The youngdy looked at her like she was trash and answered. ¡°Oh, it doesn¡¯t matter. It¡¯s a cup that only costs around 5 gold coins.¡± ¡°Yes. If I¡¯m not mistaken, I bought this cup for Beast year on her birthday. It¡¯s no big deal, really.¡± ..........The poor maid was shaking violently and while shedding tears, she kept on apologizing ¡®I am so sorry!¡¯ ¡°.......You. Can you work while trembling like that? Maybe you need a holiday?¡± ¡°I see.....It certainly might be good to take some time off to rx and treat yourself. It gets colder from now on, and yeah, it would be great to take your family and go to the holiday vi in the south. I will inform the administrator myself. Haha¡± Hiiiii!? If you break a cup, they get rid of you AND your family!? T.....too scary! After these two wearing those devil-like smiles told her that, the maid¡¯s face had already a whiteplexion. With a hardlyprehensible voice, she kept on repeating ¡®At least my family.......At least my family.........¡¯ Well, I understand that this is a world in which nobles have the power and you can¡¯t possibly disobey them, but no matter how you look at it, these two have evil personalities. I feel like crying when I think that these people will be my father-inw and marriage partner....... I definitely want a kind and gentle wife. Even though she¡¯s a beautiful girl, if she has the worst character and a haughty demeanor, I don¡¯t think I can live a long life...... Ahh! I wouldn¡¯t have to go through such hardships if I did have any means to search for a bride, like some kind of magic that allows me to read minds or such....... ..........Mind reading magic?..........Can I use it? Can someone like...me...use it? I focused my magical powers and prayed ¡®I want to read her mind. I want to know her thoughts¡¯...... And then I¡¯ve started hearing this ill-natured girl¡¯s thoughts, Bea¡¯s thoughts........ ¡®That girl, is she all right? Her face looks very pale, she should just go have some rest...... I don¡¯t care at all about that cheap looking cup. I¡¯m d she didn¡¯t hurt herself.¡¯ Thank you God! I might be able to live a long life after all! Chapter 10: Young Lady’s Secret Chapter 10: Young Lady¡¯s Secret There was a God after all! To read people¡¯s minds......What¡¯s with this ¡®against-the-rules¡¯ type of magic! However, I can survive with this! It¡¯s quite scary to be allowed to do something like this....it sure is....... But, let¡¯s continue with this advantageous story! If this magic can truly read people¡¯s minds...... I have to test it first. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to interrupt, youngdy! It seems to me that she misunderstood you.¡± Sooo, how do you answer, youngdy? ¡°?........She.......misunderstood me?¡± ¡®What? A misunderstanding? What did she misunderstand? Just stay out of this! I am really worried about that girl!¡¯ As always, she looked down on me when she answered. But, I most certainly heard her thoughts! If that¡¯s the case! ¡°I am sorry! But I know perfectly well how worried you are about this girl. However, I think that she misunderstood your words from before and now she believes you despise her and, together with her family, she¡¯ll be disposed of, isn¡¯t it so?¡± I nced at the maid and she was nodding at my words with a poor expression. ¡°Oh! Is that what you understood? What a troublesome child......¡± ¡®Ah! It happened again......I always be like this......The more I want the kind maids to cherish me, the more it doesn¡¯t happen......¡¯ After hearing her words, the maid¡¯s face looked rather worse. ........Hmmm? So the youngdy happens to be misunderstood on a daily basis? Moreover, I can¡¯t read other minds, except for the youngdy¡¯s........What¡¯s the meaning of this? ¡°Good. You may all take your leave. Let¡¯s pretend this incident never happened. I don¡¯t intend to punish anyone. You can feel at ease and return to your duties.¡± The maids answered simultaneously to my master¡¯s words and left the room. When only the three of us were left, master continued like this: ¡°Why did you think she misunderstood Bea¡¯s words, care to answer?¡± He ispletely expressionless.......His eyes fixed on me. ¡°Bea, she¡¯s.........overflowing with the abilities of the dark attribute.....It¡¯s not an exaggeration to say that she was blessed by the god of darkness. However, because of this.....the other people....well.....¡± He had such a painful expression. The youngdy had a proud and haughty attitude, but she also looked somewhat lonely. ¡®I didn¡¯t want something like the dark attribute.......Why do I have to face such a destiny...... I¡¯m sure this person hates me by now......If grandfather told him to marry me, there¡¯s nothing he can do......¡¯ I see, I see. I finally got it! This youngdy, because of the god of darkness¡¯ bestowed blessings, she¡¯s easily misunderstood by others! The words she says backfire and people get the wrong idea...... ¡°Yes, master. To tell you the truth, after I lost consciousness during the training with the light magic and woke up to the sight of the youngdy, I unleashed my light magic unconsciously and stared at her. When I did that, I felt the unbelievably strong dark magical power that youngdy is d in.¡± ¡°I see. Continue!¡± ¡°Yes. I unleashed all my light magical power then. I truly didn¡¯t want to lose to the youngdy¡¯s talent in magic. ¡®I can also have the same amount of magical power as the youngdy....no, even more¡¯ is what I thought. I was jealous of her magical abilities. I feel ashamed to have thought this.......¡± It should be all right up to this point. Let¡¯s try a little further. ¡°Urm, how should I put it...... I felt like she was protected by something. When I looked at the youngdy from that perspective, I........¡± ¡°I won¡¯t get mad. I want you to answer honestly.¡± ¡°Y...yes. I thought that she........ is a fragile, delicate and kind person.......¡± My master¡¯s expression was serious, but the youngdy......she looked somewhat very angry. ¡®Fragile and delicate!? First time......It¡¯s the first time someone told me that........This person also called me kind..........?¡¯ Oh, you felt embarrassed, didn¡¯t you, youngdy. With that expression, people can¡¯t really get that normally....... ¡°That¡¯s why, I could not believe such a gentle youngdy would do anything to harm the maid, so I thought it was a misunderstanding.¡± I waited for the answer while sipping some of my tea. It¡¯s gonna be ok, right? It¡¯s still safe, right? ¡°Fuuuuu¡± After a very long sigh, for the first time, master looked at me with a gentle smile. ¡°There are extremely many dark attribute users who are often misunderstood. Even though everyone knows it, an extravagantly strong magical power calls for a very strongpelling power as well. And my daughter possesses an exceedingly strong magical power. In this case no one can tell whether it¡¯s the fault of the dark attribute or the fault of her personality.¡± He caressed her hair and continued. ¡°The dark attribute is in the family lineage of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. Since I¡¯m also a son-inw, I was astonished at first. As you could guess, I¡¯m also a light attribute user. That¡¯s why, I tried everything I could to keep this child from getting hurt. This child is not in fault, I am the only one you must me. I wanted people to think that.¡± So the mean expressions and words were all in favor to protect his daughter......? ¡°But now I can feel at ease. I was able to meet someone who has even more talent for the light attribute than me. You can understand this young girl better than anyone else. I think you could make her happy.¡± The smile on master¡¯s face when he said that was indeed very gentle. I felt my stomach shrink from the pressure...... I feel a strange sense of closeness between us now, master...... ¡®Father, I can¡¯t believe you were thinking such things.......I am so sorry! Forgive me for thinking that you were a coldhearted and terrible parent!¡¯ Hmm....That¡¯s what the youngdy thinks. Her face looks awfully depressing instead..... ¡°That¡¯s why, Bea. I will ask you to cherish him!¡± ¡°Y....yes, father.¡± ¡®Really? Doesn¡¯t he think that I¡¯m an awful woman? Won¡¯t he neglect me?¡¯ Yes, now I have to end this story in a cool manner! ¡°Youngdy, I know very well that you are a kind girl. I won¡¯t do anything that might sadden you and I will cherish you dearly. Please, you don¡¯t need to worry!¡± I smiled and the youngdy looked at me with her favorite expression, like watching a piece of garbage.........and answered. ¡°I see. I don¡¯t know the livelihood ofmon people. If you can¡¯t make me experience that, I will be troubled. Besides, you¡¯re a stranger from another world, right? You¡¯ll have to learn so many things until our marriage. But, you can leave aside aesthetic sense. That would be too depressing.¡± ¡®I would be delighted to marry him! But.....I heard this person came from another world. I wonder if he finds me pretty? I grew up like a princess, so I can¡¯t even cook......In his world, the wife makes the food, right? I¡¯m sorry, it¡¯s impossible for me! That¡¯s why he has to understand this world better until the moment of our marriage and don¡¯t me me, okay? Ah, will this be all right? I am worried.....¡¯ .......So this is how the transformation urs? You¡¯ve been through a lot of hardships.....I feel so sorry for you, poor thing! ¡°Yes, this is great, Bea!¡± More than anything, I¡¯m d that master¡¯s happy too. ¡°But, you know?¡± Hm? ¡°I am truly worried about your current magic skills and world knowledge........You have to be a worthy partner for my Bea!¡± The smile my master wore when saying this had the same atrocious expression as the old Frontier Count¡¯s....... ¡®Something like bing son-inw....it¡¯s a lie, right?¡¯ I was sipping some ck tea while thinking this. .....and wet my pants a little bit.......... Chapter 11: Quiet talk – Dog Knight Al’s Shock Chapter 11: Quiet talk ¨C Dog Knight Al¡¯s Shock I am Albert. I am a proud knight who serves one of the leaders of the Empire, the Frontier Count Razatonia. His Excellency is a very fair person and he wouldn¡¯t discriminate even against the likes of kemonobito. ¡®If someone is superior, trivial things like race don¡¯t really matter to me. I ept everyone.¡¯ To put it simple, only those who are capable are epted. Even though there¡¯s no discrimination against the races on the surface, in reality there¡¯s no such thing asplete fairness. But you can find that in the Frontier Count¡¯s domain. In normal circumstances, the third son of a family of countryside knights couldn¡¯t possibly be a real knight. Much less when you¡¯re a kemonobito and your mother is a noble¡¯s concubine. For people like me, bing a knight was a dream within a dream. But his Excellency was different. When his Excellency inspected the solders¡¯ training ground one day, he gave me the honor of catching his attention. Is this person different from other nobles? Won¡¯t he call me a countryside knight? Won¡¯t he despise this kemonobito body my mother gave me? While thinking of those things, I was undergoing a different and more severe training than the other soldiers. It wasn¡¯t only severe. The Knights Division Commander personally trained me inbat and the Magic Division Commander trained me in magic techniques. I wasn¡¯t chosen in order to be bullied for being a kemonobito, it was obvious that something was expected from me! I desperately clung on to this opportunity. In order to meet his Excellency¡¯s expectations.........and to repay those two who trained me. And, ultimately, for the sake of this kemonobito pride that runs through my veins. One day, I was informed that my sister will be weed as maid in the Frontier Count¡¯s household. To be honest, I first thought that my sister was their target from the very beginning. I was a huge idiot to think something so stupid. My sister was getting the same treatment as any other maid. Since the Frontier Count¡¯s household is the best ce for learning good manners, with this my sister will most certainly be able to marry in good conditions. Then, my sister and I made a vow. We were saved by his Excellency..........We will definitely be useful to him! That¡¯s when......... the ¡®Summoning¡¯ took ce. The secret art of summoning went into oblivion after it had been used a very long time ago. But his Excellency brought it back. His Excellency, a famous and unparalleled dark attribute magic user and youngdy Beatrice, who already surpassed his Excellency¡¯s power in his youth... The summoning was a sess precisely because of those two geniuses¡¯ coboration. But several strangers were summoned. Strange! Wasn¡¯t it supposed to be only one? It seems that people gathered around our hero due to some incident, but I couldn¡¯t find sings of magical power in any of them, except for one. And this one person was overflowing with a devastating magical power that could only bepared to a monster¡¯s. It pains me to admit, but I was affected by this incredible magical power and I even lost the ability to speak properly. When they were summoned, the ¡®heroes¡¯ weren¡¯t d in anything, they werepletely naked. I couldn¡¯t approach them carelessly....... I couldn¡¯t draw near that overwhelming magical power. Right at that moment, those idiots attacked the women. The Knights Commander and I prepared ourselves for death and stepped into the room to dispose of those two idiots. Since it was a good opportunity to separate the other strangers from our hero, I told them we would change rooms. Damn it! I couldn¡¯t even speak properly, surrounded by that magical power! I got out of that room as fast as I could........It was too much for me to withstand. I entrusted the Commander with the rest and guided the other strangers to their room, since the hero was the only one who had stayed behind. It was at that time.........The Commander told me about this hero¡¯s tremendous nature............ After he experienced the ying of another person right in front of his eyes for the first time, he stayed behind to ¡®mark¡¯ the room!! Moreover, it wasn¡¯t an ordinary marking, but rather a iming of territory! He even rubbed ¡®it¡¯ against the floor! How bold is that! It¡¯s said that ¡®The leader is the only one who¡¯s allowed to mark the battlefield!¡¯ A kemonobito like me could never do that. And there¡¯s more! He even courted my sister by saying ¡®You¡¯re a cat!¡¯ in the presence of his Excellency, the Knights Commander and mine!! There¡¯s no stronger form of courtship thanparing a dog kemonobito to a cat.........And it was such a daring disy of romance, that my lower body started to shake!!! After that, his Excellency said to pretend that the incident never happened, but I could never forget that boldness anddy-killer attitude that would make women shed tears........ Our hero sure is a dreadful person! Chapter 12: Training Reward Chapter 12: Training Reward One month has passed since master started training me....... My master always wore that evil smile of his that¡¯s so simr to old man Razatonia¡¯s.......you couldn¡¯t even believe he was a mere son-inw weed into the family.......I was truly undergoing some Spartan training. Namely, ¡®If you¡¯re going to marry my daughter, then this should be easy for you.¡¯ ¡®Studying is easy. You just have to memorize....like everything.¡¯ ¡®Does it hurt? Then heal yourself.¡¯ ¡®Just now, you were about to die, weren¡¯t you? That¡¯s because you neglected your defense. Start over again!¡¯ ........Nooo, only by remembering it my stomach started to shrink..... And then, if I were to decide for an answer, his reply would always be the same. ¡®It¡¯s not about being able or not being able to do it. You just have to do it!¡¯ Studying from morning until noon... In the afternoon, I was undergoing training in magic andbat. In the evening, manners practice. At night, before going to sleep, I was practicing dancing with the maids¡¯ help. I always casted a magical barrier before falling asleep... That¡¯s because, at random times during the night, my master would burst into my room to check my strength and reflexes. ¡®You will die if you don¡¯t start applying treatment soon.¡¯ It was my master¡¯s line after he had opened a hole in my belly, while I was sound asleep. Master.......Are you really happy about me getting married to your daughter? There¡¯s too much strictness in this expressing of your love....... After a very dark month has passed, my master finally came to a consent. We¡¯re going to advance to the next step. ¡°Well, you really have improved this past month. Therefore, I will reward you!¡± Such a pleasant line spoken with a smile, but.... unfortunately my master¡¯s smile was the Frontier Count¡¯s smile. Are you sure you¡¯re not blood-rted? I bet you are! ¡°Yes! Thank you very much, master!¡± ¡°From today on, you¡¯ll be the Knights Commander¡¯s adopted son. You¡¯ll receive a new name, and you¡¯ll join the knight division and magic division soldiers in training. You must be happy, right? Very soon, the Knights Commander wille to meet you. Look forward to it and wait!¡± .........So, that n is already starting? First, I be the adopted son of the Knights Commander and from that position I make my debut to the nobles and the army. During these 11 months that are left, I must get acknowledged as an excellent adopted son. Then, I save the youngdy from an unexpected attack and we have our happy ending........ But it¡¯s not actually an ending.......After that, they¡¯ll make a pass at the neighboring country, huh? Master......I¡¯m not happy at all and I can¡¯t look forward to it....... ¡°Yes! Thank you. I am very happy, master!¡± I felt miserable for not having the choice to answer differently.... But, the youngdy is really cute. Such an adorable young girl is going to be my wife? My life right now doesn¡¯t imply that much working for a living as in Japan, and I would say it¡¯s not that bad. While I was making theseparisons, the ¡®dearly missed¡¯ finger-cutting knight showed up. Oh! I haven¡¯t seen him in a long time! I wonder how he¡¯s been, this finger-cutting knight. ¡°Did I make you wait?¡± ¡°No. Thank you for the trouble ofing here and meeting us, Knights Commander-dono!¡± What? The finger-cutting knight was the Knights Commander! ? That armor and helmet and the voice are those of the finger-cutting knight, I¡¯m sure of it. Come on! You have to let me know from the start if you¡¯re a VIP...... Thanks God I haven¡¯t done anything rude just yet. Under that helmet was an old skinhead with a very grim face. Such a man would definitely not look ordinary in Japan. He has a dark skin tone and countless small scars on his face. He looks more like the boss of a bandit group rather than the Knights Division Commander. And I will be that man¡¯s.........adopted son, huh?.........hahaha, I feel I got salt in my eyes. ¡°It¡¯s been a long time. So, you sir, are the Knights Division Commander? I am very sorry for not knowing this earlier.¡± ¡°Ohh! Compared to that time, you¡¯ve be much better at controlling your magical power, it seems. And leave aside the Knights Division Commander! You¡¯re going to be my adopted son, you can call me father.¡± With a brutal smile on his face, he crushed my shoulders. Urm, it hurts.......My feet are starting to sink into the ground, father. If I wouldn¡¯t have strengthened my body with magical power, I would¡¯ve be minced meat for sure. ¡°Yes, father. I will be in your care!¡± ¡°Good. Sorry if it¡¯s sudden, but I will guide you to my mansion now. My wife is really looking forward to meeting you. Come now, let¡¯s go! Ah, Sonia, see youter!¡± So my master¡¯s name is Sonia, huh? It¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve heard his name......Or? Did I hear it before? Once again my memory is failing me....... ¡°Yes. Excuse me, master.¡± My foster father was in much hurry to leave master Sonia and his sarcastic smile behind. You¡¯re wearing a full-te armor and you can walk this fast!? It¡¯s such a terrifying sight to watch a full-te move with incredible speed... Look! The maids are dropping theundry from shock...... We got into the carriage that was stationed in front of the Count¡¯s mansion. Since it was quite spacious inside, even when I was riding it together with the full-te guy, it didn¡¯t seem that tight. ¡°Again, starting from today, I am your foster father, the Knights Division Commander Galef. We will talk more about it once we get to our house, but from now on you will be called Zest.¡± My father Galef said that and startedughing loudly. Zest, huh?.........I am already an inhabitant of this world, it seems. I was nning to keep pretending I¡¯m living inside a dream, though... I¡¯m not even using my Japanese name anymore, and I will have to live on as Zest from now on, right? This too can¡¯t be helped........ I have no idea whether I can return to my world or not, but either way, it won¡¯t be easy. Until then, I have no other choice but to continue living as Zest. First, I must acquire wisdom and power, and continue to survive in this world! If I can¡¯t do that, going back is nothing more than a dream within a dream. ¡°Oh, right! Youngdy Beatrice entrusted me with a letter for you.........this is it. It would be wise to read it right now.¡± I thanked him and took the letter, and while opening the beautiful white mailer, I was weed by the fragrance of flowers. Oh! Aren¡¯t we stylish!! The youngdy is a girl too, after all. I looked over the letter while thinking that. The full-te kept on saying stuff like ¡®You¡¯re so popr! Youdy-killer! Gahahahaha!¡¯ but I ignored him. ¡® ¨C My dear fianc¨¦e ¨C Since this is my first time writing such a letter, I don¡¯t know what to say to you. Should I write this, should I write that too?....my mind is filled with thoughts, but somehow the words don¡¯te out. It¡¯s such a mystery!¡¯ Hmm? It seems the youngdy can actually be honest if it¡¯s a letter.....I feel so relieved. I was concerned I might have had to decipher even her characters. ¡®I have met you only a month ago, but for me it felt much longer than that. Every day I kept on worrying about my fianc¨¦e not being able to spend his entire life together with me, but every time I would remember those unbelievably enjoyable moments we¡¯ve spent. It was the first time someone thought and spoke such things to me. I was very, Very happy!¡¯ She¡¯s adorable.......You¡¯ve been through a lot of hardships until now, youngdy. No....you¡¯ve fallen for me, in fact! Gehehehe ¡®However..........It¡¯s been a month. You haven¡¯t visited me at all during this month...... Did you forget me? Do you already........hate me?¡¯ Wow! .......because of her tears this part has be blurry, it seems. This piece of paper here is worn-out too. The youngdy sure feels lonely.......I must answer this properly. Hmm? Is there a second sheet? .........different from the first one, there are actually two more pieces of ck paper in this letter. I turned the first page over and kept on reading. ¡®Please, don¡¯t hate me!¡¯ The paper, that I thought to be ck, was in fact white....... The surface of the paper waspletely filled in with very small characters, crowded closely, tranting into ¡®Please, don¡¯t hate me!¡¯................. I might actually die. Chapter 13: A Present for the Young Lady Chapter 13: A Present for the Young Lady I sure received a terrible letter....... ¡°Oh! That ck paper contains a fair amount of dark magical power! Gahaha!¡± Right?......I can feel it all around us. The letter in my hands started to feel hot. ¡°You must be really happy to receive such a letter, full of Young Lady¡¯s magical power! It overflows with the blessings of the dark attribute!¡± Father, this is what you¡¯d call a curse. ¡°Y...yes. I must immediately prepare a present and a letter for the youngdy.¡± ¡°You should write the letter once we arrive at our house. As for the present...... if you¡¯d like to use gem ores, I have a lot of them. Since you¡¯re a light attribute magic user, you could use that to create something for her. You sure must be happy that the youngdy thinks so much about you.¡± The full-te was nodding in agreement. Or, it might be that he¡¯s scared and this is just his counter-n...... ¡°Then I will go with that. Thank you, father.¡± While we had this conversation, the carriage came to a halt. It seems we arrived. I got off the carriage and a splendid western-style house came in sight. The mansion doesn¡¯t look that new, but it sure has personality. In the entry hall, the maids were lined up in rows. There¡¯s a nicely dressed, handsome middle-aged man at the end of the rows. He must be the butler. ¡°Wee back, Master.¡± All the servants lowered their heads simultaneously. ¡°Yes, thank you. Everyone, this is my adopted son, Zest. Starting now, you will recognize him as such. He¡¯s an excellent light magic user, Sonia already gave his approval!¡± ¡°Did Sonia-sama.....¡± ¡°That Sonia-sama?¡± ¡°A light magic user.......¡± The old man¡¯s raised hand stopped the shocked voices in an instance. ¡°It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you, Zest-sama. I am Camel and I serve as the family¡¯s butler. I am greeting you in the name of all the servants. Please take good care of us!¡± He said that and lowered his head in a very elegant manner. It was such a beautiful bow, it charmed me. ¡°Hello Camel, I am Zest. I will strive not to bring shame on my father¡¯s name, on our family honor. I will be relying on you.¡± ¡°Yes, young master.¡± ¡°I would say it¡¯s enough for the greetings. Zest, you are free to do what you please until dinner time. You will meet my wife then too. I will make preparations for the ore to be sent to your room. You should quickly write the letter for the youngdy. Gahahaha!¡± The full-te crushed my shoulders and then left. ¡°!? He took Master¡¯s ¡®attack¡¯ so calmly!¡± ¡°There....there¡¯s a crack in the floor......¡± ¡°He...used recovery magic!¡± I see....So that¡¯s a normal behavior for the full-te. After I assured the maid that I was okay, she showed me to my room. ¡°This is young master¡¯s room. All the necessary things for writing the letter have already been prepared. The gem ore will arrive shortly.¡± If I were topare this room with the ones I¡¯ve used in the Frontier Count¡¯s mansion, it¡¯s not inferior to them. I¡¯d rather say, it¡¯s quite a wonderful room. I decided I will write the letter right away, since my life felt in danger. Who would have thought the youngdy was a yandere ............ I will write the reason I couldn¡¯t visit her and I¡¯ll apologize. ¡®It¡¯s all right, I will never hate you. I really think you are very cute. I actually like you very much.¡¯ I kept on writing, even though my body felt numb. It¡¯s quite harsh...If I were to write something like this in Japan, it would only hurt. With very much struggle I managed to finish writing the letter, put it into an envelope and sealed it. It seems the gem ore has arrived as well. ¡°Excuse me, young master. These are all the ores we managed to gather for now, which one do you prefer?¡± There were some rocks lined up on a huge tray. I just chose one of them randomly. ¡°!? T...then, I will take my leave now.¡± For some reason, the maid had a red face while she left the room......was she ill? A cold, maybe? More importantly, I must cast all my light magical power into this ore. I was frantic. I don¡¯t wish to die.....I don¡¯t want to die at the hands of the youngdy. A yandere, huh? Just give me a break! The youngdy would be so cute otherwise. She has good style, her skin looks so white and smooth, her hair looks so silky....I¡¯d rather say she¡¯s just my type....... What? Am I in love......with the youngdy? I might like her.............I do like her a lot! My feelings, please reach to her!!! Somehow, in the meantime I managed to create a gem. Is this the result of the youngdy¡¯s curse? That it became like this..... I inserted the resulted pink colored gem in a charming little bag, and I passed it, together with the letter, to a maid in order to deliver them to the youngdy. Fuuu.....It should be all right for the time being. I looked outside the window only to see that the evening was settling down. It¡¯ll be time for dinner soon......It¡¯s time to meet my foster mother. I sure did concentrate a lot, for the time to pass this fast. I felt aplished, and while the fatigue was greater than before, I drank some ck tea. ck tea, huh?.....Even though in Japan I was the coffee type. In this way, I am rapidly growing ustomed to this world, huh? While I was getting emotional, the butler Camel came to ask for me. It seems that, during my working, some maids were affected by my magical power and copsed. Sorry.....I left Camel in charge to apologize to them on my behalf. ¡°There¡¯s no need for the young master to do that. The madam was actually delighted!¡± Is what he replied. Why would she be happy about it? Ah! Because of the ¡®excellent magic user¡¯ thing?! ¡°The madam said ¡®To frantically cast magical power like that in order to make a present for my cute niece, he sure is a charming son, isn¡¯t he!¡¯ She was very happy!¡± Niece?.......The foster mother I¡¯m going to meet soon is the old Frontier Count¡¯s........blood rtive....... Will I be able to survive this?......... Chapter 14: A New Family Chapter 14: A New Family Once I evaded the youngdy¡¯s yandere g, another, even more dangerous, g in the shape of my foster mother showed up. Fuuu...A normal family would have been so nice......It¡¯s not like I wished for something too extravagant! I was guided by the butler, Camel, and soon arrived at the dining room. Full-te.....nope, my foster father and a 40 years old looking woman with ck hair and slender body were already waiting there. ¡°I am sorry I have made you wait, father. Will you give me the honor of introducing me to thedy?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we have just arrived too. Let¡¯s do the introductions then. This is Celica, my wife and your foster mother from now on.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you, Zest-sama. I¡¯ve heard a lot of rumors about you from my husband and my niece, Bea. From today, I am your foster mother Celica.¡± My mother Celica was smiling coldly......Yes, she¡¯s definitely from the lineage of that cunning old man. ¡°It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you too, mother. I am Zest. I will strive to meet your expectations.¡± After we finished the ¡®ritual¡¯ of mutual greetings, the dining started. The manners my master mmed into me proved to be perfect. While eating, one must not engage in conversation, one must eat slowly and quietly. The food was, as expected from the house of the Knights Division Commander, plentifully voluminous and concentrated on a meat diet. Father? You¡¯ve already had three times the amount I had, and you still want to eat some more? Oh, is it that because of the full-te, if you don¡¯t eat a lot, you won¡¯t be able to carry it? Hmm... After the eating is done and tea has been served, it¡¯s all right for conversations to start. ¡°Oh, by the way, your magical power from a while ago was rather tremendous. Is it that you worked so frantically in order to prepare a gift for Bea?¡± ¡°Gahaha! That¡¯s because this guy has fallen for her. Did you know that he also received a letter packed with a horrific magical power from the youngdy?¡± Gahaha! Ohoho! Yeah.......those forced smiles. I was in the sales business, so I¡¯m quite good with faking smiles, you know? Please spare me the stiff attitudes. ¡°But, that kind of magical power....... You sure are an excellent magic user, aren¡¯t you! Now, this household can have its peace. Bea must hurry and give birth to children. The first born son will be the sessor of your own household, and I will have your second son as the sessor of mine. Otherwise I¡¯ll be troubled......¡± My foster father wore such a happy smile......He held my mother¡¯s hand. You don¡¯t say...! ¡°I apologize for being rude, but don¡¯t you have any children......?¡± All the servants that were offering their assistance until then bowed and left the room quickly. After everyone was gone, my foster father opened his mouth and his troubled heart. ¡°Unfortunately, we were not blessed with having children......My wife...you know....¡± ¡°I don¡¯t mind it, dear. I can¡¯t, well, give birth to children. When I was very young, I injured myself with dark magic......¡± Now I see. And because of that you can¡¯t bear children anymore....... But, I wonder if my foster mother has a lower magical power than the old man and the youngdy? Her image is that of a frightening snake, but there are no unpleasant feelings once you start talking to her. ¡°Normally, a woman like me who can¡¯t bear children could never be able to get married. But, you know? Somehow, my childhood friend, who also happens to be a very stupid man, wished to have me even so!¡± ¡°Gahaha! I¡¯m perfectly fine with the sessor being an adopted child. Falling in love was my weakness.¡± Even if they are nobles, something like this shouldn¡¯t be epted here, right? But she¡¯s......well, a princess of the Frontier Count¡¯s household. If the Knights Division Commander was the one to want her...... I see...That old man would have approved it......that cunning old man. But I sure have respect for you, father......You really are cool. Should I do it then?.......I bet this is still a part of the old man¡¯s n anyway, so....... ¡°Mother, I could probably try something with my healing magic. Please, show me your hand.....Actually, I wille to your side.¡± I left my seat and went to their side. I used some observation magic and came to the conclusion it was in order. I can cure her condition. ¡°Forgive my rudeness, mother, but will you give me your hand?¡± I grasped my foster mother¡¯s hand, while she had a threatening expression, and activated my healing magic.....Father, don¡¯t re at me like that! Because I¡¯m the light attribute hero......Or rather, precisely because I was Japanese before, I can heal her easily. That¡¯s because the world Japanese live in is a world overflowing with information, unlike this one. Even without understanding the smallest details of our bodies¡¯ structure, there is no adult who can¡¯t exin how people are able to give birth to children. It¡¯s not enough to just heal her body. I imagined me curing the interior parts of her body as well, specifically her ovaries and womb, and casted my magical power. It¡¯s finally over. I activated my observation magic........and it was a sess! ¡°I healed you, mother. If you manage to conceive, then I, as a light magic user, will look over you until the moment you¡¯ll give birth. It¡¯s all right. You can have children.¡± I grinned at them, but they watched me with an expression of doubt and astonishment. ¡®There¡¯s no way!¡¯ could be read all over their faces. ¡°You can both use observation magic, isn¡¯t that right? Please confirm it yourselves!¡± They activated their observation magic and for a moment they were bothpletely dumbfounded. But, before long, they started slowly.....to nod over and over again, while shedding tears of joy. They¡¯ve both lived all their lives, while confronting with difficult emotions, but they can finally ovee them now. There should be still enough time anyway. Haha, it seems I¡¯m in the way now......I¡¯ll quietly sneak away from the dining room and go back to my room. I want to give them time to enjoy this moment as a couple, since they¡¯ve been through so much all these years and now their problems are finally solved. I left the room and found Camel, the butler, who was bowing to me. ¡°Please forgive me for listening to your conversation. And thank you so much, young master! I really......really.....thank you.....¡± Camel was shedding tears as well. It seems he was also worried for his masters. ¡°I don¡¯t intend to scold you. That¡¯s because I haven¡¯t met anyone after I left this room. Right?¡± I said that and started walking towards my room. He kept on bowing to me........for countless times. I arrived in my room and sit down on the sofa. As to be expected, I was really tired....... The maids came immediately after and prepared some tea for me. All of them were bowing to me, while expressing their gratitude. ¡°I¡¯ve only showed filial piety. There¡¯s no need for thanking me.¡± ¡°Young master......¡± ¡°That¡¯s to be expected from a light magic user ....¡± ¡°All those worries for such a long time.......¡± Hahaha, it doesn¡¯t feel that bad to receive their gratitude after all. I elegantly sipped some tea. It¡¯s really the first time that young maids are praising me so extravagantly. I¡¯m happy I came to this world! I mean that from the bottom of my heart. Isn¡¯t this Camel, the butler? I haven¡¯t even realized you came here too. Hm? What does he carry is his hand? ¡°Young master......A letter from Beatrice-sama has arrived.¡± The letter was presented to me so respectfully......Heaven and hell.....is this what they feel like? Will I die.....? I wonder...... Chapter 15: A Too Fast Reply Chapter 15: A Too Fast Reply I am staring at the letter, that is handed over to me so respectfully..... I can¡¯t run away from this, right?......It¡¯s a letter in which the youngdy shows her gratitude. Oh, dear God! I really wanted to have a good sleep tonight. ¡°Right! Thank you. It¡¯s quite the fast reply...¡± I received the letter and tried my absolute best to keep my calm. My feet were shaking like a level 6 earthquake, but no one has noticed. ¡°Oh! She already replied?¡± ¡°You are so loved, young master!¡± ¡°We must not be in the way!¡± While saying this, the servants with their blushing cheeks left the room. My face was, on the other hand, ghastly pale..... I readied myself and opened the letter. When I did that, a pointless floral scent, that actually smelled good, hit me. Flowers are bing traumatic for me. ¡®My beloved fianc¨¦e¡¯ It seems I leveled up. I did it! It would be dangerous not to have the youngdy as my ally. It¡¯s all ording to n! That¡¯s the hint it gave me. I want to think that this magical power the whole letter emits is just my imagination. ¡®It seems that I might have misunderstood you. It¡¯s the first time I received such a lovely present and letter. Once again, you¡¯ve made me experience a first.¡¯ Um, it was the first time I received such a letter as well, you know!? We¡¯re the same....... ¡®Moreover, to receive a diamond that confirms our love....and to dye it to such a beautiful pink color..... Zest-sama sure is bold! You must not give such presents to anybody else, ok?¡¯ Whaa? I didn¡¯t know that was a diamond, and I forgot to use observation magic at that time. Besides, why am I bold? Does it have a meaning? Later, I will ask some maids about this. ¡®I pretty much understood your feelings, Zest-sama. We still have some time until our marriage, but I will try my utmost to give birth to a lot of children! You can rest assured.¡¯ ..................? Chi.....children? Is the youngdy on a rampage? Was the diamond a bad choice? Well, I¡¯m good as long as she¡¯s happy. Anyway, I can¡¯t do anything about the fact of not knowing about the diamond¡¯s meaning. ¡®Because of my misunderstanding, I have sent you an embarrassing letter...... Please forget about it, ok?¡¯ ......Yes, I really want to forget about it! ¡®Since I have clearly seen Zest-sama¡¯s feelings, I won¡¯t do selfish things anymore. But, once in a while,e and visit me, ok? And also, until just now I might have cried in front of my father and grandfather.¡¯ ........Please stop! I might start crying too. ¡®I¡¯ve heard that, from tomorrow on, you¡¯ll be starting your training with the soldiers. It¡¯s the first time, but I will prepare you a lunch filled with all my feelings!¡¯ ¡°Someone! Isn¡¯t there someone around here?¡± The youngdy¡¯s ¡®first¡¯ cooking filled with ¡®all her feelings¡¯, you say!? I can¡¯t win this, she must be stopped! The maids came immediately, and I exined them the situation. And they... ¡°Well, well, our young master sure is really loved! Fufufu, enjoy your meal!¡± And they left me without helping at all. A somewhat more mature maid was clearly ring at me. Oi, I am your young master, you know? That¡¯s why you have to help me......No, it might be even more dangerous than I can even expect. Well, the l...light attribute is strong against ¡®unusual situations¡¯. It¡¯s all right, I will be safe. The youngdy¡¯s cooking might not even be that awful after all. There¡¯s still hope. I raised my spirit and continued with the reading. ¡®I am looking forward to tomorrow! Have a restful sleep! PS When I told my family I want to cook for you, they were all against it. They said it¡¯s unheard of since I am a noble.¡¯ That¡¯s right.....Normally, nobles would never do such a thing. Everyone, please do your best efforts to stop her! ¡®But, after I desperately tried to convince them about my feelings, they were deeply moved to tears and sat down on the floor, finally approving! Please, look forward to it! Your one and only, Beatrice¡¯ Youngdy, they were not deeply moved emotionally. Because of your dark magic, they werepletely exhausted. While thinking that, I lost my senses. I wonder how much time has passed.......It seems I¡¯ve lost my consciousness. I looked outside the window at the sky. ¡°I wonder why.....when she said to me to look forward to it I felt I was threatened......¡± What I saw, when I muttered this to myself, was an eerie bright red full moon that seemed to symbolize tomorrow....... Will this mean death.......? Chapter 16: Training with the Soldiers Chapter 16: Training with the Soldiers Today is the day I start my training with the soldiers. I dressed myself, ate breakfast, and now I¡¯m being shaken inside the carriage. The weather is great, no trance of clouds in the sky, it feels like a gentle spring morning in Japan. Since yesterday I got tired from all the crying and fell asleep early, my physical condition is great. Otherwise, I might lose to the youngdy¡¯s weapon, so it¡¯s all good. I might as well use the soldiers as an excuse and go back flying to the mansion? I could pretend a stray bullet hit the bento box? On the other hand, if I get hurt, wouldn¡¯t that turn out as something good? It¡¯s useless. Wounds can easily be treated with magic....... Even though I was riding such a wonderful carriage, I felt like shouting. After I kept shouting inside my heart for like 3 times I arrived at the training ground. There were about 500 soldiers there. And they were all beautifully aligned, waiting for the training to start. My foster father won¡¯te today. Instead, the Magic Division Commander, my master Sonia, will be in charge. It seems that master hasn¡¯te yet. Thank God......If I would have arrivedter than my master, my belly would have received another ¡®air hole¡¯. ¡°Excuse me. Zest-sama, it¡¯s been a long time.¡± ¡°?........Ah! It¡¯s you.¡± ¡°Yes Sir! I¡¯m Albert.¡± It¡¯s that dog knight, Albert. I see. It¡¯s already been a month since I came here.......but somehow it feels way longer. ¡°Albert-dono, I¡¯m looking forward to working with you today!¡± ¡°Zest-sama, please just call me Albert. The honorifics are unnecessary, since I am a knight, and Zest-sama is the son of the Knights Division Commander, viscount Galef.¡± That¡¯s right! He¡¯s a knight to the end, which means that he¡¯s on the bottommost when ites to nobles. Although I¡¯m an adopted son, if things go as nned I will be the heir......In short, the next viscount. Since I haven¡¯t inherited anything officially yet, I should be treated like a baron, one rank lower than the viscount. Something like a baron using honorifics when talking to a knight, it¡¯s unheard of. ¡°I see. Albert, I¡¯ll be counting on you.¡± ¡°Yes Sir! Leave it to me!¡± After our little exchange of words, my master came. ¡°Have I made you wait? Lord Zest.¡± ¡°Master, please stop calling me that. And no, I just arrived as well.¡± Since we were surrounded by soldiers, master switched to his Frontier Count¡¯s Household mode. When we are alone or only with the family, he¡¯s just like a polite ¡®papa-san¡¯ wearing a kind smile, but there are also times when I get blown away by this gap in his conduct. ¡°Well, let¡¯s get started.....Zest, are you ready?¡± ¡°Yes. We can start at any time.¡± I immediately strengthened my body with magical power. Since it¡¯s the characteristic of the light attribute, to cast my magical power and materialize my thoughts, my master bullied me severely in order to handle this ¡®foul y¡¯ attribute........I sure received a lot of training for this. It¡¯s quite easy now. ¡°All right. Everyone! The concept is a siege battle, Zest against all of you. Experience the irrationality and the terror of a first-ss light magic user!¡± That¡¯s a cruel way to put it.....and a terrible strategy........ Most of the soldiers look uninterested, but there are some who re at me openly. ¡°And be sure to attack seriously, with a killing intent! The magic users as well, attack with all your might!¡± The soldiers¡¯ thirst for blood was swelling up.....Master, don¡¯t agitate them too much....... I am red at by 500 pairs of fierce eyes. Hiiii! It¡¯s....it¡¯s only training, you know? Isn¡¯t this just training? Scary......it¡¯s scary, but......I decided I¡¯ll survive in this world! Get ready! ¡°Zest, you¡¯re not allowed to kill them! Well then, you can start.¡± What? Am I really in a position to go easy on them........ The 500 soldiers started their assault even faster than my master¡¯s spoken words. Damn it! I must do it! ¡°Oooooooo!¡± I shouted my fighting spirit and motivated myself. I¡¯m gonna do it! I just have to do it! While I was remembering the training with my master, I d my whole body in magical power. And then, the world as I knew it has changedpletely. What is this? Are they mocking me? I avoided the sword of a knight who attacked me in slow motion, and I pushed his body slightly. The soldier flew away in an interesting manner. ........What? I looked around me only to see the knights advancing towards me with their facial expressions slowly changing to astonishment. Oh! It can¡¯t be...... ¡°Zest, if you don¡¯t go easy on them, the soldiers might die, you know. Keep it up, but be careful.¡± I looked at my master to see him d in magical power in the same manner I was. I see.....I see......I see! Involuntarily, I wore a mincing expression. These guys, they can¡¯t follow! They can¡¯t keep up with mine and my master¡¯s speed! The soldiers were rushing to attack in such a slow motion that it seemed unbelievable. With swords andnces in their hands, casting spells and relying on their physique, the soldiers were attacking, but all their efforts will amount for nothing. Some of them were being blown away, some of them mmed onto the ground, and they were some who even got thrown away forcefully. This was our training.......Was it a kind of training for fighting against a very strong man? Or rather, a training in order to teach me how to go easy on the weak! 500 people were lying on the ground. Once they were thrown down, they refused to get up again and just stared at me in nk amazement. They were fixing their eyes on someone at such a different levelpared to themselves, at someone with an overwhelming power and its unreasonableness. ¡°Good. Well, this is how it goes.¡± My master¡¯s words got everyone¡¯s attention and calmed them down. ¡°Did you understand? This overwhelming true strength! You, the new recruits, must first remember that there is such irrationality in this world. In order to close the gap at least a little bit, you must focus on your training, group into unit corps, and obey your superiors¡¯ orders.¡± I looked around at the soldiers after master said that, and there was no one in a daze anymore. They were all staring at my master. ¡°Besides, this guy here is your ally. This man, who dealt with you all by himself, is in fact the sessor of the Knights Division Commander. There is no other person who could be a betterrade for you during war times than him.¡± He sent a fleeting nce towards me. Yeah, yeah, I know that already. ¡°Um, from now on we are brothers who serve the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. Let¡¯s fight together!¡± In the middle of this uproar of cheers, I went around offering treatment to the injured. ¡°Thank you very much, Zest-sama!¡± ¡°Sooo awesome....in an instant, my wounds......¡± ¡°.....Ah! Aniki!¡± I¡¯m not your aniki, stop that! Since a few of them were sending me dangerous nces, I decided to ignore them. It¡¯s all right. If they lick their wounds, they¡¯ll heal. It¡¯s not like they¡¯ll die anyway. In general, I was favorably epted. My debut served also as training for the new recruits. This was truly the same wicked way of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household that I got so familiar with. But still, it could count as a sess. I¡¯m really d it did. I finished offering treatment and finally felt relieved, when I realized someone was standing behind me....... ¡°As expected from Zest-sama! To take so much time to be affectionate towards something like these new recruits, you sure have interesting hobbies! Well, isn¡¯t it already noon? Zest-sama, I am too anxious to eat my lunch in such a ce all alone. Would you serve as my bodyguard?¡± ¡®Zest-sama is so cool! I can¡¯t believe he¡¯s this strong. Moreover, he kept hisposure against the new recruits, and gave me time to arrive here! What an amazing person! Come now, it¡¯s already noon. Let¡¯s eat together the lunch I prepared for you!¡¯ The basket that was held by the maid following the wickedly smiling youngdy, had an unabashed ck aura surrounding it........ Will that......ount for death!? Chapter 17: Something Called Bento Chapter 17: Something Called Bento A girl has cooked an obento* for me. It doesn¡¯t matter whether you¡¯re a man or a woman, when you receive such favors, from a person who admires you, it can signify the type of status between you two. But of course, I¡¯ve never received one...... Yes, I used the past tense. Right now, I¡¯m exactly in the middle of receiving an obento, but somehow I don¡¯t feel happy at all about it. ¡°Youngdy Beatrice, thank you foring to such a ce.¡± I lowered my head in sign of courtesy. Since she¡¯s a daughter of the head family, being impolite towards her is not epted. The youngdy looked at me with eyes filled of disgust, and while she used her fan seemingly to shake some dirt off her dress, she answered. ¡°You should thank me indeed. It¡¯s the first time I¡¯m visiting such a savage ce like this.¡± ¡®I was told not to get near this ce since it¡¯s dangerous, but I wanted to see Zest-sama so badly, that I convinced everyone to let mee.¡¯ I can properly hear you, youngdy. Today as well, your spoken words and your actual thoughts arepletely opposite. What? She¡¯s approaching me for some reason. She folded her fan and then she grabbed my chin and lifted it up, while showing a Frontier Count-like smile that covered her entire face. It really is the smile of a madman, you know! ¡°Look, my dress is all covered in dust. Whose fault is it?¡± ¡®I haven¡¯t seen Zest-sama for such a long time, but somehow his reaction is bad.....No, the fact that we are getting married is not known yet, so it can¡¯t be helped....but still, I¡¯d like him to pay more attention to me.¡¯ No, youngdy.........the thing is, I¡¯ve got a lot to handle right now. That sinister-looking basket in the hands of that maid, for example........ ¡°That was very rude of me. Youngdy, there is awn close to here, where you can clean the dust off. And I¡¯d be happy if you could offer me a little bit of your time andpany?¡± I quickly offered my hand and she took it while showing a sour expression, and for some reason she entwined her fingers with mine. The lovers¡¯ bond! ¡°Who, who¡¯s that scary-looking woman?¡± ¡°Stop it! She¡¯s a daughter of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household!¡± ¡°He, he¡¯s soposed, even while walking with such an intimidating woman.......¡± ¡°.......That¡¯s his reward.¡± So that guy was the one who said thatst line........I¡¯ll remember this! That guy is dangerous......Ah! Master sent him flying. ¡°I don¡¯t have much time. Besides, for me to hold your bare hand so readily is impossible. I¡¯m really d I¡¯m wearing gloves.¡± ¡®Let¡¯s get to thatwn fast! I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m wearing gloves and it was such a good chance.......Since it¡¯s such a shame, I¡¯ll keep holding onto this lovers¡¯ bond, that the maid told me about, until we get there.¡¯ The youngdy was walking at a quick pace, while swinging our holding hands. However, I really feel for this girl. Precisely because she¡¯s a dark magic prodigy, as an effect, her speech and conduct are badly influenced, and the youngdy looks like an evil person. But since I can use light magic in order to read her true feelings, for me she looks just like a cute girl...... When she is thinking, her dark magic gets activated, but I also find this to be a very cute part of her. It was a time when I truly believed this. ¡°So, here you go!¡± ¡®Will he be happy about this obento, I wonder?¡¯ That is certainly a Pandora¡¯s box.......even though it¡¯s a basket..... The maids apanying her conveniently prepared a table and some chairs for us. That thing was ced on the table. The lunch consisted in the typical so-called sandwiches, having bread as their main ingredient, a sd made of vegetables that were perfectly cut in order to be easily eaten and a ss with some kind of beverage in it. So? Isn¡¯t this just a normal lunch? I bet this is what people would usually ask when presented with this information. For my first obento, I think this is good enough.....Or rather, it¡¯s quite the nice choice. But I started shaking once I activated my observation magic. ¡®Observation result: Deadly weapon Attribute: Dark¡¯ ¡°You have........such wonderful skills!¡± And I¡¯m not even lying. When I grabbed the weapon in the shape of two slices of bread with something dark red inserted in between, I got goosebumps. I strengthened my entire body with light magic. I stole a nce at the youngdy, who was watching me insistently. I can¡¯t run away! The maids that were patiently waiting behind were shedding tears while constantly repeating ¡®Please forgive us¡± without voicing it. I have to do it, there¡¯s no other choice. I prepared myself. The first thing I felt was an unpleasant and rough texture and I was overwhelmed by a pungent bitterness. Every now and then, I would be attacked by these solid somethings that were difficult to masticate and were distinctively odd. I concentrated my mind on them, and when I controlled my perception of their bad taste with light magic and changed it to something sweet, pain resonated within my brain. I obliterated this deadly weapon inside my mouth withrge amounts of magical power. ¡°Youngdy, this was amazing!¡± These are my honest thoughts. It was a wonderful and dangerous weapon that could¡¯ve taken my life away in an instant if I were to let my guard down even for a moment. ¡°Of course it was. Can¡¯t you say something better than stating the obvious?¡± ¡®I¡¯m so d! It seems he liked it!¡¯ After that, I ate the sd that seemed to shriek every time I was taking a bite and proceeded to the ss which contained a mysterious drink that wouldn¡¯t spill even when I inclined its container. I ate this too with a spoon. Master Sonia was brought here by the maids and forced to partake in our lunch midway, but he took it as his responsibility as a father. Due to these two brilliant mages the Frontier Count¡¯s Household is so proud of, the nightmare was starting to vanish. It was such a monstrous weapon....... Thank you, dear maids.....I wouldn¡¯t have won against this if I were alone. ¡°Now it¡¯s time for desert!¡± ¡®Now it¡¯s time for desert!¡¯ ¡°W.......what?¡± ¡°W.......what?¡± The youngdy¡¯s spoken words and her thoughts. My words and master¡¯s words. It was a moment of beautiful harmony......I would rather die! *obento/bento = a nice exnation of the Japanese tradition of making bentos can be found on Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bento Chapter 18: In Order to Never Make a Bento Again Chapter 18: In Order to Never Make a Bento Again ¡°........It was a tough and relentless battle, right Zest?¡± ¡°Yeah, master. I thought my mind was going to break. Also, my teeth......¡± Together with my master, I was currently being shaken inside the carriage while licking some candies the maids offered us. We really made it out alive. At that time, we somehow managed to deal with that frightening weapon in the shape of the desert, and since we were too tired to continue with the training, we were now returning home while enjoying thepany of each other. At first, the n was to continue to train until evening, but since we entrusted everything to Albert, who actually ran away when the youngdy showed up, so there shouldn¡¯t be any problem. ¡°However, that damned Albert.....That¡¯s to be expected from a kemonobito. He ran away before I could even notice.¡± ¡°Yeah, master. But still, if he were to be engulfed in all our magical attack, I don¡¯t really know who would have been more miserable in the end.¡± That¡¯s right! Albert realized the youngdy was about to show up with a terrible weapon so he ran away before anyone could notice. ¡°It can¡¯t be helped. He¡¯s also one of my disciples, and bad boys who don¡¯t help their master would definitely be punished.¡± We exchanged nces and grinned broadly. We both sprawled our bodies on the chairs inside the carriage.......The damage we received was truly enormous. ¡°But, master. Why didn¡¯t you stop her?¡± ¡°........I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°If she were to do that every day, both our lives will be in danger, you know?¡± ¡°Yeah, I realize that.¡± He clenched his teeth and looked me intensely in the eyes. ¡°Zest. I have a task for you, and you¡¯re the only one capable of doing it.¡± .........I don¡¯t wanna hear about it! ¡°I want you to exin things to Bea and make her stop. As it is now, both our lives will be in danger, but more importantly, the servants in my house will surely die pretty soon, if nothing is done.¡± ¡°What? The.....servants?¡± Master slowly raised his body and continued with a serious expression on his face. ¡°Those who are affected by her magical power and copse, during her ¡®cooking¡¯. Those who are forced to taste her ¡®weapon¡¯ when she cooks too much.......Half of them have already copsed.¡± ¡°My...goodness!¡± ¡°I already have my father-inw, the Frontier Count¡¯s approval. I¡¯d like you toe to my house right away and do everything in your power to stop her weapon creation!¡± Even the old Frontier Count backed off from this. Moreover, this is rather an order than a request. ¡°.........Master. With my life on the line, I promise I¡¯ll aplish this!¡± Even though I answered so confidently, I was still lying down on the chairs..... I couldn¡¯t yet muster the willpower to get up........ We received a grand wee when we arrived at the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. ¡°Hero of the light!¡± ¡°We beg of you....We beg of you.....¡± ¡°Our savior....¡± The poor servants, they were really desperate......But I absolutely understand their feelings. ¡°Leave it to me and rest assured!¡± I told the servants who were bowing to me while shedding countless tears, and entered the mansion. ¡°Well, well! We bid farewell only a few moments ago, what business made youe all the way here?¡± ¡®You¡¯vee to see me already? Zest-sama, I¡¯m surprised you missed me this fast.¡¯ The cursed witch......no, the youngdy showed me a veritable Frontier Count smile that would make the weak hearted people start weeping. ¡°Thank you very much, youngdy Beatrice, for your lunch earlier today. Since you made something like that only for my sake, I will forever honor this memory.¡± ¡°Bea, Zest said he has something to say to you. Since he wants to talk with you by all means, I ended up bringing him home with me. Come, I¡¯ll prepare a room for you.¡± ¡°I know it¡¯s selfish of me, but please hear me out, youngdy Beatrice.¡± The youngdy came beside me extremely fast and joined her hand with mine into a lovers¡¯ bond. However, her face was obnoxious as always. ¡°It can¡¯t be helped. Well, let¡¯s go already, father.¡± ¡®He really came to see me! Ah!¡¯ Master staggeringly led us to the mentioned room. Will this be ok?.......A shiver ran down my spine. We soon arrived at the reception room and after the maids prepared some tea for us, they left, leaving only the three of us inside. It can¡¯t be just the two of us. It¡¯s not good for an unmarried woman to be alone with a man, and even when being engaged the man can only visit and be alone with her just for a few moments around noon. It¡¯s really annoying, but since this is a custom for this world¡¯s nobles, I can¡¯t do anything about it. I sipped some tea a looked at the youngdy. She wore a sinister ck and red dress.....the perfect choice for a witch...... Gloves? She¡¯s wearing them again...... ¡°Youngdy Beatrice. Pardon my rudeness, but what happened to your delicate hands?¡± The witch¡¯s cheeks were touched by a pink color. ¡°.......What are you talking about?¡± ¡®No way! Did he find out I injured my hand?.....I wonder if he thinks I¡¯m such an irritating woman, since I injured myself while preparing an obento......¡¯ She narrowed her eyes and red at me, but her thoughts are all exposed to me. ¡°I will heal your hand. I¡¯m better at healing magic than my master. Please leave it to me.¡± I knelt down in front of the witch.....wrong, in front of the youngdy, and used healing magic to heal her wounded hand. As I thought, she really injured herself. If wonder if master couldn¡¯t heal her......The effects of the dark magic were too strong so the wound turned into a curse. While I held her hand in my grip, the youngdy was watching me like I was her family¡¯s greatest foe, but I started talking as kindly as possible. ¡°Youngdy Beatrice. No, Bea. I really thought it was strange! You¡¯re wearing gloves even though there¡¯s no important event, like a party or such. When you were outside, I figured it was a way to protect yourself against sunburn, but wearing them indoors is quite puzzling.¡± ¡®Bea.....It¡¯s the first time someone that¡¯s not family called me that......He called me Bea.....¡¯ The youngdy was frantically waving her fan with her free right hand. ¡°Bea? I¡¯m very happy you made an obento for me. However, injuring yourself because of that is something I can¡¯t endure!¡± It¡¯s going well until now. All that¡¯s left is to convince her to give up the weapon creation! ¡°Therefore, it¡¯s really all right not to make obentos anymore. No, in fact, please don¡¯t make them for my sake anymore! If you want to give me relief.....If you care about me, I beg you. I can¡¯t.....stand this....anymore! !¡± When I realized it, I was already crying........Master was also crying. Tears from the heart. ¡°I understand. Really now, men shouldn¡¯t show their tears to others so easily.¡± ¡®Zest-sama......You were so worried about me that you started crying.....I can¡¯t make you even more worried than this!¡¯ The youngdy was looking at me like I was a cockroach and wiped my tears with her handkerchief, a scene that my master decided to ignore. Master, don¡¯t make such an expression.......This moment now is really important. She smells so good.....I was kneeling in front of her and the youngdy closely approached me and started to wipe my tears in all honesty. Her dressed chest was intermittently wiggling. Such a wonderful perquisite! My heart would shatter if not for this level of reward. The youngdy has an unexpectedly big chest.......Is she a D cup? Yeah, that¡¯s definitely a D cup! ¡°Really now, Zest-sama, you worry too much. I know! If we start keeping an exchange diary, there will be nothing to worry about anymore!¡± ¡®I can¡¯t make him worry anymore! If we keep an exchange diary, Zest-sama would be able to rx!¡¯ The D from ¡®D cup¡¯ turns out to be the D from ¡®death¡¯! Youngdy, your kindness is so painful......I might die this time. Chapter 19: Exchange Diary Chapter 19: Exchange Diary I, who had seeded to stop the youngdy¡¯s weapon creation that took the name of an obento, am currently inside the carriage and on my way home. The servants of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household sent me off while shedding tears of joy, and the youngdy also gave her consent that she won¡¯t do it again. My master was displeased for some reason, saying ¡®To make advances at a girl in front of her father, you sure are ady killer.¡¯ but when I answered ¡®Then, do you wanna eat that again?¡¯ he seemed to grow silent. Honestly, you¡¯re so troublesome. However, with this the crisis has passed. All that¡¯s left now is to keep training hard and keep acquainted with the nobles. In one year I¡¯ll marry the youngdy and then there¡¯s the invasion of the neighboring country. In order to do that, I must keep trying my best...... I am now the adopted son and the sessor of the Knights Division Commander. An ordinary person who came from a different world has be a noble, huh? Moreover, if everything goes as nned, I¡¯ll be getting married with the youngdy of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household, huh.....? A son-inw, huh.......? Will I be living together with that old man? Ha ha, my tears won¡¯t stop falling. I felt a tingling in my arms and then they grew numb. Oops, Ipletely forgot about it......This book that the youngdy entrusted me with. It¡¯s a heavy, massive book with extravagant ck leather covers and beautiful golden designs. There¡¯s the Frontier Count¡¯s Household family crest imprinted on the front cover, a shiningrge snake coiling around a shield. ¡°An exchange diary, you say?¡± Yes, no matter how you look at it, this book seems to be filled with dark magic prohibited spells....this is the exchange diary that the youngdy gave me. It was prepared by my master for when I managed to stop the weapon creation. I really wanted to turn him down, but since both my master and the old Frontier Count, who showed up before I could even realize, insisted that I ept it, so I virtually couldn¡¯t refuse anymore..... With a twitching face and a trembling body, I moved to grab it, but the youngdy approached from the side with a terrible speed and stole the book before I could even touch it. After she finished writing today¡¯s share, she returned this prohibited book to me by throwing it inside the carriage. Since I arrived at my mansion, I decided I would have to deal with this dark magic grimoire as soon as possible. Maybe I¡¯ll just write something casually while sipping some of the tea that was already prepared for me in my room. For today, I wrote something like ¡®I¡¯m happy we started this exchange diary. I really like you, youngdy.¡¯ Since it¡¯s the first day, she also wrote something simr, so it shouldn¡¯t be any problem. I will send it to her tomorrow morning, she¡¯ll write something in the evening and sent it to me the following morning; and we¡¯ll probably stick to this schedule. ¡°However......the dark magic¡¯s influence is already astounding........¡± That¡¯s right......... ¡®I¡¯m looking forward to this exchange diary that we started today!¡¯ With only this little sentence, the diary was emanating an overwhelming magical power. It¡¯s supposed to be a happy feeling, but the fact that she wrote it negatively sent shivers down my spine. That¡¯s why I didn¡¯t want to do it...... Damn it! But well, since both my master and the Frontier Count are indebted to me now, I can¡¯t help but ept my fate....... Because leaving this grimoire as it is might turn out to be quite dangerous, I must do something about it. I asked the maids to bring me some mithril, and I made a chain in order to seal the ck magic. I secured it with a mithril padlock as well. Since this metal called mithril has a high affinity for magic, even though it¡¯s rather expensive, it is extensively used. It¡¯s such a waste of my light magic, but it can¡¯t be helped. If I don¡¯t do this much, the servants who deliver the book might just drop dead. It¡¯spleted......The extravagant, ck leathered book is now sealed with a chain. ...............Exchange diary? No, this is definitely a grimoire, a prohibited book! How should I exin this to the youngdy though?.......I probably can¡¯t tell her honestly that......it¡¯s because of her dark magic. It seems she had some traumatic experiences. Let¡¯s go with this then! I quickly wrote a letter and added the padlock key in the envelope. Since I already went through all this trouble, I also made a set of fine keys, and I hanged mine around the neck. Naturally, they¡¯re also mithril-made. I gave the grimoire and the letter to a maid and I instructed her to run an errand for me the next day. If I forget to send it in the morning, it might turn into something quite nasty. It should be okay now. Today was a really awful day. ~ The following day at the Frontier Count¡¯s Household ~ A major incident.....The servants were making an uproar over the exchange diary that Zest-sama has sent. The exchange diary that the youngdy was so excited about was sealed with a chain. Was this interpreted as a deration of not wanting to continue with this exchange diary, I wonder? How sad will the youngdy be once she sees this? Some of them had pale faces, some of them broke down crying; the Frontier Count¡¯s Household was facing yet another crisis. And then, the youngdy showed up. ¡°What¡¯s with this uproar so early in the morning? Is it that ¡®it¡¯ has already arrived?¡± They could no longer hide it from her.......The maids timidly handed over the exchange diary. Her mouth twitched for a moment. ¡°........I.....I will be in my room for......a while. Make sure no one disturbs me.¡± She said that and left. The servants that were left behind were standing stock still......for like forever..... She returned to her room and opened the letter while trembling. Why was the exchange diary sealed? Did he hate it that much? She started reading while dding her body in a gloomyir of dark magic. A far away scream could be heard, it seems that someone might have copsed, but for now the letter was more important. ¡®£­To my lovely fianc¨¦e £­ I know that you¡¯ll be shocked to see the exchange diary in such a condition, but I intend to exin it properly, so please calm down and continue reading, okay? To be honest, I¡¯m a very jealous person. What if someone else gets a glimpse at what you wrote in this diary?......When I thought about this, I couldn¡¯t bear it. That¡¯s why I made sure to seal this diary so that no one can have a look at it without using the key. I want to know more about you, but I don¡¯t want others to have the same privilege. Please forgive my selfishness of wanting to monopolize you...... I enclosed a key for you in this letter and I also attached it to a pendant so that it would be easily worn as a ne. While thinking of you, I embedded it with defense magic so that it could protect you in my ce when I¡¯m not around, so promise me you¡¯ll always wear it on you. It¡¯s mithril-made and it¡¯s filled with light magic and all my love for you, therefore it will neither rust, nor rot. It will be eternally unaffected, just like my feelings for you. While using these keys, let¡¯s enjoy this exchange diary from now on! Please! £­Your selfish fianc¨¦ £­¡¯ ¡°It can¡¯t be helped. Really now, you¡¯re such a selfish person!¡± That day, the youngdy was d in a fierce and wicked magical power that no one has ever seen before, all while constantly paying undue attention to the ne at her chest. The servants filled me in with the details the next morning, all while lookingpletely devoid of life. Chapter 20: A Man Beyond Expectations Chapter 20: A Man Beyond Expectations One month has passed since the one-day incident that filled the Frontier Count¡¯s Household with despair....ter nicknamed as ¡®the dark grimoire incident¡¯, and for the time being the regional capital was peaceful. I was undergoing the same daily training with my master, my foster father and the soldiers. Since the soldiers have considerably opened themselves to me, we often went drinking in the city after training was over. In Japan, I was in the sales business, so I had a lot of chances to go drinking with my clients, therefore it wasn¡¯t painful at all. I have spent every single day going drinking with the noisy soldiers, going with the middle-aged squad leaders to establishments where we could enjoy thepany of youngdies, or being invited and visiting the houses of nobles andmanders. Ah, I¡¯m also coping with that grimoire in the shape of an exchange diary! Nowadays, I don¡¯t need the servants to deliver it anymore. That¡¯s because the grimoire often decided by ¡®itself¡¯ to go visit other houses than the appointed one. Thanks to that, it had now quite the reputation in the neighborhood: ¡®If you wake up early in the morning, you¡¯ll be able to see the flying grimoire¡¯ ........I decided not to think too much about it...... Well, I¡¯ve spent some rather peaceful (?) days. ¡°Son-inw-dono. Something really troublesome has urred.......¡± ¡°Huh?¡± To be suddenly summoned to the Frontier Count¡¯s Household and be thus informed is...... ¡°To tell you the truth, it¡¯s about yours and Bea¡¯s marriage......It might not go ording to the initial n anymore.¡± The old Frontier Count Razatonia was showing an unusually evil smile and the air around him seemed rather eerie. ¡°The n was for you to take your time and be well-known, cause some strife, then marry her as a reward for solving it. Am I correct?¡± ¡°Yes, your Excellency. It¡¯s just like you said.¡± ¡°However, a fool who dared to interrupt our ns has showed up.....Such misfortune!¡± ¡°Fuu¡± he sighed and sipped some ck tea. ¡°The only son of a priest noble from the imperial capital, you know, expressed his wish to marry Bea and took the trouble toe here......So darn annoying!¡± Razatonia-sama, please choose your words wisely! ¡°However, one does not simply express their wish to marry someone and justes over all of sudden, right? Or does he have any connection to the Frontier Count¡¯s Household?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what you¡¯d normally think, right? Even so, that blockhead came here saying ¡®I heard that here resides a beautiful woman who is worthy of me. There¡¯s no need for you to worry about the ceremony expenses and I¡¯ve already brought a congrattory gift¡¯. Ha ha, he¡¯s making fun of me. The imperial capital bean sprouts think of us only as some mere countryside gatekeepers.¡± Yea, he¡¯s showing a smile that seems to shout ¡®Don¡¯t defy me!¡¯ ¡°But even so, your Excellency has declined, or?¡± ¡°Well, here¡¯s the thing. Without taking all the trouble of causing strife, when something like this falls into yourp, don¡¯t you think it¡¯d be such a pity not to use this opportunity? Grandson-iny-dono.¡± Wooaa! Hiiii!! Please stop, my heart already froze! ¡°He¡¯s lucky to have the necessary court rank though. But I put a condition, namely........that the person in question must wish to marry him as well. He will propose to Bea in the square in front of the castle gates, I chose this ce since it¡¯s rather vast. Nobles, soldiers andmoners will all gather there. I will make sure everyone is informed.¡± Such a wicked old man! ¡°So, I will challenge him to a duel with the youngdy¡¯s hand at stake, right?¡± ¡°Who would have thought that there were mutual feelings between her and another man, and this man is actually the sessor of my Knights Division Commander!? I sure wasn¡¯t aware of it!¡± ¡°I¡¯m quite surprised he agreed to this condition though.¡± ¡°Haha, he said ¡®Something like for me to get rejected by her is impossible. It actually pains me that such an event will pass unnoticed, so make it as grand as possible¡¯.........He really takes me as a fool.¡± His Excellency Razatonia was not smiling anymore. He had such an aura surrounding him that I couldn¡¯t even call him an old man anymore......not even inside my head.......Good-bye, blockhead noble-kun! ¡°I understood. It can¡¯t be helped if it¡¯s an unfortunate death as the result of a duel. What¡¯s the date and time?¡± He grinned at me broadly. ¡°Five days from now, at noon. We¡¯ll have a party after that, so make sure to prepare for it as well, grandson-inw-dono.¡± Even though I said that, killing someone is a bit.....I wonder if they¡¯ll let me go with half killing him or with leaving him one-handed...... And if some unfortunate ident happens afterwards, it won¡¯t have anything to do with me. Yes, let¡¯s just go with that. The moment I decided to ask him about this, the door was opened violently with a bang. ¡°Grandfather, I must speak with.....Oh! You were here, Zest-sama!¡± ¡®Grandfather, save me! .......Zest-sama!?¡¯ The youngdy......¡¯save me¡¯ she said? His Excellency Razatonia also raised an eyebrow at the sudden intrusion. It was such a great disy of failed manners for a noble. ¡°Bea, that¡¯s not verydy-like......What happen to your face?¡± Now that he said that, I looked at her again. She was staring at her ck and red ¡®witch¡¯ dress like she was watching something filthy and her eyes were cold as ice......Is she crying!? One side of her face was bright red...... ¡°Bea, I will heal your face. Please don¡¯t move.¡± I rushed over and cast my healing magic while the youngdy was still silent and obedient. ¡°That would be helpful, Zest. So, Bea, tell me what happened.¡± His Excellency Razatonia was now very serious. Depending on the circumstances, bloodshed might ur. The youngdy caught a fleeting glimpse of me and started talking. ¡°I was enjoying my tea inside the summer house in the castle¡¯s courtyard when some unknown man called out to me. When the maid threatened him, that man approached me and caught hold of my hand, saying ¡®I don¡¯t see the problem since we¡¯re already engaged¡¯.¡± ¡®I hate this.....I don¡¯t want Zest-sama to hear this. But, he¡¯ll find out anyway......¡¯ The temperature in this room dropped considerably. ¡°Since I hated it.....he called me impertinent and hit.....my face.....¡± ¡®I wonder if Zest-sama is mad......I¡¯m such an indecent person, talking with an unknown man like that......¡¯ I approached her quickly and seized her hand. ¡°Bea. I¡¯m sure it was scary, but you¡¯re safe now. However, your feelings are confused at the moment, so it would be better to go back to your room and rest for a little bit. After I finish talking with your grandfather, I¡¯ll send a messenger to my house and then we can have a good talk. What do you say?¡± ¡°Yes. You do just that. It won¡¯t take much time, so you should wait a little bit.¡± After the youngdy reluctantly left, my master came in instead. ¡°Son-inw-dono, that was really helpful. You convinced her to go back to her room. I almost thought she was going to get rid of that idiot just now.¡± ¡°Yes, that would have been a little inconvenient.....at this moment, at least.¡± ¡°Your Excellency.......Master.....¡± Hearing that, they both turned to look at me and their expressions changed from a viinous smile to a very serious look and again to an even more viinous smile. ¡°I want to ask you not to touch that idiotic noble for now. It would be better for an unfortunate ident to have many witnesses.¡± It seems I like the youngdy more than I previously thought and my desire to monopolize her is rather strong. That blockhead........I¡¯ll just kill him. Chapter 21: As Her Fiancé (First Part) Chapter 21: As Her Fianc¨¦ (First Part) After I¡¯ve decided I was going to cause an unfortunate ident, I followed after the youngdy. Since she¡¯s a noble youngdy, I¡¯m sure she had never experienced something like ¡®having her arm seized and her face hit¡¯. In fact, both my master and his Excellency, the Frontier Count, were enraged and fuming. ¡°Grandson-inw-dono, death can easilye from an ident. So, don¡¯t worry about it.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true. Zest, since going easy on him would count as discourtesy towards your enemy, you have to fight with all your might.¡± These much appreciated words came out from them both. The servants¡¯ rage was also at a MAX level. ¡°Zest-sama, his neck. Aim for his neck!¡± ¡°It¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve seen the youngdy cry.....That damn pig....¡± ¡°We¡¯ll all be there to cheer for you!¡± Etcetera, etcetera...... They called him pig......And don¡¯t tell me to aim for his neck, it¡¯s supposed to look like an ident, right? If I¡¯ll aim for the shoulder and I hit his neck in the process, nothing can be done about it, right? That¡¯s the course of action I¡¯ll take. The youngdy was pretty much enraged as well, and the grimoire......no, the exchange diary¡¯s pages were filled with ¡®I won¡¯t forgive him I won¡¯t FORGIVE him I WON¡¯T FORGIVE HIM¡¯.....When I¡¯ve first seen that, I wet myself a little...... Again, the rumors have made their way to the soldiers as well. They all expressed their anger to me ¡°He made a pass at another man¡¯s lover?!¡± ¡°Those guys from the imperial capital, they¡¯re all the same.¡± ¡°He¡¯s after the youngdy of all people!?¡±, but in the end they all came to the same conclusion: ¡° ¡° ¡°Since he managed to anger Zest-sama, he¡¯s definitely gonna die!¡± ¡° ¡° .......All of you, what kind of monster do you think I am? And then, about that damn pig in question.....no, the priest noble¡¯s idiotic son, he was invited to some noble¡¯s residencies, but he kept on making a fuss over the youngdy: ¡°She¡¯s such a rude woman, but she looks good.¡± or ¡°She¡¯ll be obedient once you¡¯ll train her body¡±. As for why nobles invited him, that¡¯s because this guy¡¯s father is in charge of the internal administration in the capital, so you could say he¡¯s part of the upper echelons and he has quite a strong influence. However, after all the trouble they went through to invite him, he tells such foolish stories, it¡¯s no wonder everyone was starting to feel antipathy towards him. Just as one would think, there was no one who would invite this stupid guy anymore, on the contrary, they started to make bets on ¡®In how many seconds I¡¯ll kill the idiot?¡¯. Don¡¯t gamble on this......Nobles sure have a lot of free time...... These five extremely noisy days have passed in the blink of an eye and the day of the idiot¡¯s public execution is finally here. I was waiting for my turn at the gatekeepers¡¯ station. Today, as the son and sessor of the Knights Division Commander, I was wearing the full equipment of the Viscount Gaiyus¡¯ Household. ording to my father Galef, this was handed down in the Viscount¡¯s Household for generations and it¡¯s a proof the one who¡¯s wearing it it¡¯s the head of the family, and during times of struggle and conflict, one would wear this armor on the battlefield..... It seems it¡¯s a tradition in the Gaiyus Household. ¡°Even though you¡¯re an adopted son, you¡¯re without any doubt the Gaiyus Household¡¯s sessor. Wear this and go get the bastard! Gahahaha!¡± He¡¯s really such a kind father. While thinking about that, I was drinking some ck tea and pausing for breath, when I realized the gatekeepers inside the room were having a badplexion...... It appears that I was fairly enraged as well. When I am reminded of that idiot, both my rage and my magical power are running out of control. ¡°Ze, Zest-sama. Do you want some more tea?¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right. It¡¯s almost time for me to show up anyway.¡± ¡°Y, yes sir!¡± Outside, the cheers are bing louder. It¡¯s starting.....I went out slowly. The weather was fine so a lot of people were gathered in the square in front of the castle¡¯s gates. The Frontier Count, my master and the one who¡¯s ying today the leading role, the youngdy, were standing above the castle¡¯s gates. The space right in front of the gates was upied by the nobles affiliated with the Frontier Count, the soldiers protecting them, and further behind them, there were a lot ofmoners gathered. They even installed some food carts and the whole event was starting to feel like a very noisy festival. ¡°Everyone, thank you foring here in suchrge numbers.¡± At his Excellency¡¯s words, transmitted to every single person gathered there through magic, therge group of people grew quiet. ¡°Well then, the reason why I asked you to gather here today, as you may already know, is because someone who wishes to ask my granddaughter Beatrice¡¯s hand in marriage has showed up.¡± ¡°Wooow¡± Shouts of surprise could be heard. ¡°Our Frontier Count Household is the shield of the empire that protects its borders. And this Household seeks elites who have the necessary strength in order to act as a shield and the power to lead you all. That¡¯s why I propose to do as follows.¡± The people were starting to get confused. What on earth is he saying? What the heck is going to start? They swallowed their saliva, and with it their anxiety, and stared at the Frontier Count. ¡°If one wishes to marry my granddaughter, one must demonstrate they¡¯re strong enough to protect her. And if everyone gathered here give your consent, I will allow this marriage to take ce!¡± His Excellency the Frontier Count climbed a bit further above the gates and spread his hands. ¡°Lord Alf, the next head of a Viscount Household is requesting this marriage. Show us your power! Convince us you¡¯re worthy!¡± Wooooa! From inside this deafening wave of cheers, one man showed up. He¡¯s a fat man in his 20¡¯s with a peculiar brown hair that springs up here and there, his face full of sweat. The dazzling clothes he¡¯s wearing don¡¯t suit him at all. While breathing heavily, he somehow arrived to the open space inside the square and raised his voice. ¡°I am Alf! Come, Miss Beatrice, I will give you the honor of bing my wife!¡± Alf finished his ¡®speech¡¯ with a tone of self-importance and whipped the sweat off his face while grinning broadly. How the hell should I answer this? How should I demonstrate my strength? His Excellency¡¯s risen hand stopped the whispering voices. ¡°You¡¯ve made your point, lord Alf. Is there someone who objects to this marriage? However, answer with caution! If someone has objections, I will ask him to put his life on the line for me! So, is there someone who objects to lord Alf¡¯s marriage and wishes to risk his life while at it!?¡± The square was as silent as a grave. That¡¯s to be expected. Although there might be people who are not very pleased with this marriage, his Excellency asked them to risk their lives for it. The nobles have no choice but to stay silent. It¡¯s like he said ¡®disobeying me indirectly ounts for immediate death¡¯. The nobles can¡¯t go against the Frontier Count, same goes for the soldiers......as for themoners, well, their only option is keeping their mouths shut. In the awkwardly silent square, the sound of a metal armor resounded.......Gachan.......Gachan...... Before long, ¡®that thing¡¯ appeared in front of the people. A ck armor that seemed to devour all the light. However, every single person in the empire could recognize the beautiful golden designs and the symbol of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household imprinted on it. It was the armor of the Count¡¯s strongest forces, and I was wearing it. ¡°I¡¯m Zest, the next head of the Gaiyus Viscount¡¯s Household! I object to this marriage! I won¡¯t hand Beatrice-sama over! I challenge you to a duel!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°WOOOOOOOAAAA¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° I drew my sword, and this deafening, huge wave of cheers was apanying my actions. A ck armor, huh.....? It¡¯s like I¡¯m the bad guy in this whole situation.....by wearing this...... While thinking of that, I readied my sword in a stance. Chapter 22: As Her Fiancé (Latter Part) Chapter 22: As Her Fianc¨¦ (Latter Part) In the middle of these loud cheers I readied my sword in a stance. With this pitch ck metallic armor that I¡¯m wearing, I look like a dark knight....no, more like a devil king? Anyway, it¡¯s very embarrassing. The pig wearing some decent clothes wiped the sweat off his face and started talking with a broad grin on his face. ¡°Ha ha. Very well, I¡¯ll be your opponent! To have the guts to challenge the no. 3 Imperial Mage, you sure are a stupid fellow!¡± And he started dding his body in magical power. A...Are you serious!? This magical power! So you¡¯re the 3rd Imperial Mage counting from the top.....!? I was too shocked to speak. How can this be!? There¡¯s a limit to how much one can miscalcte, right? Who would¡¯ve thought ...... The square fell silent, aplete changepared to a few moments ago. ¡°What¡¯s that magical power?¡± ¡°Can....Can Zest-sama win this?¡± ¡°An Imperial Mage......¡± These were the voices of nobles and soldiers. You¡¯re right......Those were not only mere words, this pig is actually disying a considerablyrge amount of magical power. ¡°Oh!......I didn¡¯t expect this.......¡± ¡°Yes, I haven¡¯t seen thising either, Your Excellency......¡± His Excellency the Frontier Count and my master were showing some rather bitter faces......But that¡¯s understandable. A stupid noble made a pass at the youngdy. And because of that, this battle now is taking ce, but he turned out to be an Imperial Mage of the 3rd rank. And this magical power......It¡¯s perfectly understandable if people get surprised. ¡°Ha ha, you¡¯re so shocked to see my magical power that you fell silent! You should curse at yourself for making light of the hair of a priest noble!¡± The pig said that and started gesturing. He created a gigantic magical formation. While reciting an incantation, he furthermore refined his magical power. Is this fire magic? The temperature in my surroundings has already started to rise, and the soldiers started to assemble a magical barrier in front of the nobles. ¡°Esteemed nobles, please step back behind the barrier! Hey you! What are you doing, put some more strength in it!¡± The angry voice of themanding officer. So this idiot is preparing such a dangerous me magic spell. And he¡¯s approaching itspletion. It was a huge white mes sphere controlled by a great number of magical formations.......This sphere had a 2 meters diameter and it floated above the pig¡¯s head. ¡°Well, if you start begging for your life, I might spare you! Since it¡¯s a duel, no one wouldin if you die, but I¡¯m a very merciful person. Ha ha ha¡± The merciful pig showed a very repulsive smile and started sweating again. Hmm, you won¡¯t let me off anyway...... ¡°...............¡± ¡°Buhahahaha, you¡¯re too frightened to speak, aren¡¯t you? But feel at ease, you¡¯ll vanish before even starting to feel the pain!.......Time¡¯s out. Be reduced to ashes!!¡± With his words, the fire ball started to fly straight towards me. When it hit me, a fire pir higher that the castle¡¯s gates rose towards the sky. ¡°The barrier casting group, stay strong! These are truly some outrageously powerful mes!¡± Hearing themander¡¯s yelling, the magic division soldiers desperately put all their magical power into the barrier. The stone paving under my feet was boiling up; these were indeed some rather powerful mes. The people standing there who have seen a great spell cast by an Imperial Mage for the first time, because of the shock, all the colors drained from their faces. That damn pig was breathing rather heavily. Was it that he put almost all his magical power into that fire ball? The magical formations were already starting to fade, as well as the magical power he d his body in. The pig was dripping with sweat, and despite he had such an unsightly appearance, he looked more arrogant than ever. ¡°Buhahahaha, there¡¯s no way a knight could win against me! You were such a fool!¡± The damn pig was so proud of himself andughed loudly.....Those three were staring at that disgusting idiot. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect this.....¡± ¡°Yes, it waspletely unforeseen.¡± ¡°It really surprised me.¡± Those three were muttering the (almost) same words. ¡° ¡° ¡°Who would¡¯ve thought he was this weak......¡± ¡° ¡° Hearing those words, the damn pig showed a full-face smile. Even now the fire was rising up towards the sky, and the only ones who clearly heard those words were the nobles and the soldiers on the side. ¡°Ha ha ha, I am amazed too! I never thought he would turn out to be such a weak opponent!¡± The soldiers frowned at that bastard¡¯s remark, but as one would expect, the nobles weren¡¯t showing anything on their faces. The nobles could ruin themselves only by saying a few wrong words. Of course they won¡¯t react. In this square, where the damn pig¡¯s loudughter was resounding, the fire pir used up all its magical power and vanished. And who came in sight? Me, standing on the boiling stone paving, beingpletely unharmed. ¡°It was quite an amusing performance. Are you done now, Imperial Mage-dono?¡± With one swing of my de I returned the stone pavement to its normal state and temperature. I slowly approached the damn pig. ¡°I was looking forward to some trick behind that fire pir, you know? Was that really all you could muster?¡± The damn pig¡¯s mouth was constantly opening and closing without saying a word. What are you doing, imitating a goldfish? ¡°You were preparing your incantation for such a long time and I¡¯m asking: WAS THAT ALL?¡± I was already in front of the bastard. ¡°If that¡¯s the case, all right then. Farewell!¡± I decapitated the damn pig with my sword. His decapitated head tumbled to the ground simrly to a ball, while the rest of his body crumbled down on the spot. I killed a man....But I was surprised to discover I wasn¡¯t having any unpleasant feelings. It was like killing a random insect invading my space, so I felt strangely calm. ¡°I am the winner of this duel! Is there someone else!? Does someone else dare to propose to Beatrice-sama? Is there someone here who wants to fight against me!?¡± I readied my sword again and nced all around me. My magical power was at full throttle and I was putting up an intimidating air as I looked all around me. And then, I wonder who started it? Everyone started to kneel on the ground. Some of them were trembling......some of them were looking at me with veneration in their eyes like I was some sort of a hero. I looked up at the youngdy. ¡°Beatrice-sama, I, Zest, the heir of the Gaiyus Household, am asking you to marry me! Will you give me the honor to ept this marriage proposal!?¡± I put my sword back in its sheath and knelt down. The youngdy¡¯s answer was already decided.....However...... ¡°There is no one else in this world who could control such a beast like person as you, but me. I will look after you. I ept your marriage proposal!¡± ¡®Zest-sama, Zest-sama, Zest-sama, Zest-sama, Zest-sama, Zest-sama, Zest-sama, Zest-sama......¡® In the middle of all these wild cheers blessing the two of us, no one knew that I, who have risen a death g, being scared I might get killed by this yandere youngdy, wet myself a little....... Chapter 23: Cleaning Up after the Turmoil Chapter 23: Cleaning Up after the Turmoil ¡°Haha, as expected from the heir of the Knights Commander. You overwhelmed that imperial mage with your power.¡± ¡°Thank you. Compared to my father and my master, I still have a long way to go.¡± I can¡¯t remember how many times I had the same exchange over and over again, but there were a lot of people waiting in a queue to congratte me. After I physically ¡®said¡¯ good-bye to that damn pig, the nobles surrounded me and gave birth to thismotion. When I easily killed an Imperial Mage of the 3rd rank, who is said to be at the top of all mages of the empire, I worried that they would be too scared to approach me, but it seems that it wasn¡¯t the case at all. ¡°To easily defeat an Imperial Mage, you¡¯re just like your father.¡± ¡°Yeah, like when the Knights Commander was young.¡± ......So it¡¯s all thanks to my foster father. ¡°Gahahaha, that¡¯s my son for you!¡± With a warlike smile, the full-te started to beat my shoulders. Hey, I¡¯m being buried.....look, the stone pavement is cracking. ¡°Thank you, father.¡± My very happy foster father can¡¯t be stopped. ¡°You¡¯re being modest. But you know, after you showed us such wonderful bravery you should at least boast a little more! I know! Since we¡¯re at it, let¡¯s have a little contest of our own too.....¡± ¡°I cannot do that. I am still no match for you, father.¡± As an adopted son, or more importantly, as his heir it is essential to show the good rtionships between the two of us. It¡¯s like a performance for the nobles. Father, please don¡¯t look at me with bloodthirsty filled eyes. It¡¯s all for the show, right? Please tell me it¡¯s all for the show. ¡°Zest-sama, I¡¯m sorry to disturb you while you¡¯re busy. I bring a message from his Excellency the Frontier Count.¡± A soldier interrupted. If his Excellency gave orders, then that¡¯s definitely a priority, and what¡¯s more, it was such a good timing too, I¡¯m saved. ¡°Oh, what is it that his Excellency wants to tell me?¡± ¡°Yes Sir! It¡¯s about the banquet his Excellency intends to hold starting tonight, in order to celebrate your engagement with Beatrice-sama. It is also the matter of discussing the arrangements for your entering the pce. Please, follow me.¡± ¡°I see, lead the way then. I¡¯m sorry everyone, but per his Excellency¡¯s orders I must take my leave now.¡± The full-te was feeling somewhat bitter, but since he couldn¡¯t disobey his Excellency¡¯s orders, he obediently......well, not really, but he somehow consented. ¡°Argh! Then, you guys, I¡¯m sure your bodies are throbbing for a fight!? Let¡¯s have a match,e with me!¡± ¡°Great! Let¡¯s do it, Knights Commander!¡± ¡°If I can spar with the Knights Commander, I will dly join you!¡± ¡°Hyaa, a contest!¡± ¡°Knights Commander-dono! Please let us, the magic division soldiers, join you as well!¡± ¡°Gahahaha, I don¡¯t mind it, everyone is wee to follow me!¡± These muscle brains started to run towards the training camp. They¡¯ll be back by evening, so I¡¯ll just ignore them......Even the magic division soldiers, what the heck are you doing? Well, at least I¡¯m d they don¡¯t feel enmity towards me. The nail that sticks out gets hammered in, huh?......But to stick out this much, it¡¯ll be hard to hammer it back in. Even so, I must go greet the nobles tonight. It¡¯s so amazing, you won. Congrattions for your engagement. And they all lived happily ever after. Something like this it¡¯s rather impossible in the nobles¡¯ society. At least this time the Frontier Count made the necessary arrangements and it seems my foster father has started to move too. Precisely because of this, the result was favorable. All that¡¯s left now it¡¯s the very enjoyable and fun greetings and congrattions. Damn bothersome.....But if I don¡¯t do it the enemies will increase while the allies will decrease in numbers. It can¡¯t be helped. I casually looked in front of me and I realized the soldier I was following was fluttering and watching me with imploring eyes. ¡°Is something wrong? Is there something bothering you?¡± Started, he flinched and turned around to look at me apologetically. ¡°I...I¡¯m very sorry, Zest-sama. But I....well.....I also have someone I want to propose to, so could I at least shake your hands? I want to share your good luck.¡± The shy and alreadypletely red soldier was in his teens, a youngster that was still rather immature. ¡°Haha, I don¡¯t mind it. But I truly hope that person is not Beatrice-sama. Do you want to duel me?¡± ¡°Th...th.....that¡¯s unthinkable!.....This...this.....She¡¯s not such a sublime person, just a childhood friend, the daughter of a knight¡¯s household. ¡° ......Hey, if you¡¯re scared just say it. ¡°I hope it¡¯ll turn out well. Good luck!¡± I said that and let him shake my hands, while he lowered his head countless of times saying ¡®It¡¯s an honor! Thank you so much!¡¯ It¡¯s really nice, a childhood friend. Is this girl the cute type? The beautiful type? What¡¯s her hair color? Her height?.....while I kept on teasing the young knight, we arrived inside the castle, in front of the room that was prepared in advance. This room, just like the reception room, had a veryfortable looking sofa as well. The moment I sat down in order to rest my body, the maids came in and started preparing the tea, but... They didn¡¯t stop at just preparing the tea. They¡¯re young girls after all. ¡°Congrattions for your engagement.¡± ¡°Such a wonderful proposal, just like in fairy tales.¡± ¡°I¡¯m so envious of the youngdy.¡± Looking delightful, they started to make a fuss over it. Normally, they would have been scolded for this, but since today is special and everyone is in a festival merrymaking mood, it seems it¡¯s safe. Even though the very stiff maid chief was here too, she didn¡¯t seem to be in the mood to scold them either. ¡°If it¡¯s Zest-sama, I wonder if he¡¯ll take some concubines too? That¡¯s right, when he marries the youngdy, new servants will have to enter the mansion!¡± For some reason, the maids started to quarrel among themselves, but I pretended I haven¡¯t seen anything. It would be wise not to intervene when women quarrel, nothing good woulde out of it. I was looking at empty space while drinking my tea when the call came. It seems the maid chief took over the role of guiding me to the Frontier Counts office. She¡¯s a woman in her 30s, she certainly has good style and she does her job properly.....but it seems she¡¯s still single. There¡¯s something fishy about her, and that¡¯s scary. While I was pretending I didn¡¯t notice her flirtatious nces, we arrived at the office door and when I entered the room I could hear a ¡®tsk¡¯......her clicking her tongue, was that my imagination? The Frontier Count and my master were waiting inside the office. ¡°I¡¯vee at your request, your Excellency.¡± When I wanted to lower my head he raised his hand and stopped me. ¡°Very well, grandson-inw-dono. You¡¯re now officially engaged. I want you to think of us as your family.¡± His Excellency smiled at me......If you really think so, then why does your smile look so evil? ¡°Yes, I understand, grandfather, father.¡± ¡°Haha, I want to see my grandchild¡¯s face soon. If it¡¯s a child born to the two of you, I¡¯m sure this child will be an excellent magic user. I¡¯m so looking forward to it!¡± I¡¯m really d my master is in his happy papa mode......He¡¯s the refreshment of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. ¡°Please treat me favorably.¡± I lowered my head slightly. ¡°Yea. Well, for now you did very well. We had to make a few revisions, but we got to this point as nned.¡± I was encouraged to sit next to my master. ¡°Now, the reason I called for you is not just to congratte you. I thought I should let you know about the cleaning up after this incident with that pig of an Imperial Mage.¡± He fixed his eyes on me to ascertain the strength of my decision and then continued. ¡°Since he was a priest noble and an Imperial Mage, after we notified the imperial capital about his death, a person in charge to investigate the incident has been dispatched. He will most likely look into why the duel took ce, or whether there was any unfairness or foul y during the duel.¡± That¡¯s only natural. A noble of the country¡¯s upper echelons has died. The cause of death is unknown, but that¡¯s all right. I¡¯m not an idiot to think that it would simply end like that. ¡°That¡¯s why, just in case, I wanted to let you know that an investigator is on his way here......Ah, that and I also want you to sign this report exining the circumstances of this incident.¡± He said that and handed over a one sheet parchment that exined in details the incident of the ¡®pig that couldn¡¯t fly¡¯. Though, one passage caught my attention entirely. ¡®Even in my dreams, I¡¯ve never imagined an Imperial Mage would have fallen to such a degree, I was really astonished. Furthermore, such a weak magic user dared to propose to the daughter of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. This is sheer insult. Prepare for battle.¡¯ This report was brimming with desire to quarrel with the imperial capital........ Can I even survive this? This is........ Chapter 24: The Frontier Count’s Household’s Secret Chapter 24: The Frontier Count¡¯s Household¡¯s Secret The Frontier Count showed me his report full of determination, which made me want to pull back a little. Howes these people canugh after reading this report...... ¡°Err, are you.....all right with this?¡± I asked timidly. ¡°Hehe, it¡¯s all right. I think, grandson-inw-dono, that you¡¯re misunderstanding the Frontier Count¡¯s Household a little bit.¡± The Frontier Count adjusted his posture and started exining me, while deepening his smile. ¡°Our Grun Empire, as you already know, is located at the tip of the continent, therefore we are surrounded by sea, but our Varnam Frontier Count¡¯snd is the only territory that has a border with other foreign countries......You¡¯ve already studied this, right?¡± He paused a little to sip some ck tea. ¡°And so we, the people from the Varnam Frontier Count¡¯s Household, have a few privileges. The first is that we are allowed to use ck for our army¡¯s equipment. But it¡¯s not simply about the ck color, you know? We are the only ones allowed to use for our equipment the specialty product of our territory, the mineral so-called ck iron.¡± The Frontier Count grinned broadly. I see, so the armor my foster father made me wear was made from this very precious metal, ck iron. The fact that they¡¯re allowed to monopolize this metal is not something of small significance. Its value is rather moderate, but as a raw material it has some very splendid abilities. From all the metals used in this world, ck metal is the hardest and strongest metal against magic, so it¡¯s used for armors and weapons, while mythril is used for ornaments. Their equipment sure uses the most supreme materials. ¡°The empire¡¯s support sure is extraordinary.¡± I muttered without even realizing. Still, this is amazing, right? They¡¯re monopolizing such a valuable metal. Normally the empire would directly control the manufacture, being afraid of other ns and nobles rebelling against them. ¡°It¡¯s because of his Majesty, the First Emperor¡¯s imperialmand. ¡®We¡¯ll make the Varman Household the empire¡¯s shield. The Varnam Household is the only one who¡¯s allowed to handle ck iron with no exceptions¡¯ he decided.¡± Oh! I somehow feel that there¡¯s some back-story here. Otherwise, the country would be in aplete state of chaos. ¡°And then, there¡¯s another thing...... It¡¯s about the Varnam Frontier Count¡¯s Household¡¯s affairs. This was also decided by his Majesty, the First Emperor through imperialmand.¡± .........The First Emperor sure cared a lot about the Varnam Household. This is more than favorable treatment. ¡° ¡®The Varnam Household will administrate the Frontier territory for eternity. In exchange, I appoint the Varnam Household to be the empire¡¯s strongest weapon and shield¡¯ he decided.¡± I stared at him involuntarily. In....in short ¡®If you¡¯re strong, I can ignore the trivial things¡¯ or something like this. The Frontier Count, seemingly delighted, continued. ¡°That¡¯s why, once they dare to defy our military might, they must reap what they sowed.¡± ¡°Ha, hahaha, I see.¡± ¡°However, since those idiots in the imperial capital keep taking us lightly, this is good medicine for them.¡± Haha, I¡¯m happy you¡¯re enjoying yourself.......The Varnam Household sure is scary. ¡°Well, there are other things as well, but as long as you remember this it¡¯s enough for now. You should just wait calmly, grandson-inw-dono.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Very soon you¡¯ll be enjoying the party together with Bea. Zest, you¡¯ll be very busy from now on.¡± Master.....as I thought, you really are the refreshment in this family. I¡¯m so happy you¡¯re a gentle ¡®papa¡¯.......even though you sometimes switch to the Frontier Count mode. ¡°This is all I wanted to tell you. You should go change your clothes now and then go see Bea. Because of that pig of a noble, she really is in a bad moodtely.¡± I was told that and made to leave the room. The maids took me captive and started changing my clothes. Was there really a need to leave me only in my underpants? Chief maid, look at them. It seems that this very eye-catching, first-ss, ck military uniform that they made me wear is the Frontier Count¡¯s Household¡¯s formal clothing. This ck uniform is only worn by the regr soldiers of the Frontier Count¡¯s territory, and the one I¡¯m currently wearing, with these extravagant decorations, is only worn by the Frontier Count¡¯s Household members. I¡¯mpletely treated as a family member now. Well, this way they won¡¯t easily get rid of me, right? No, I still have to be careful, otherwise the situation might turn dangerous. I must not act rashly. I finally arrived at the room the youngdy was waiting in, with the maids¡¯ guidance. The youngdy was not the only one waiting in this room, there were a few otherdies wearing formal dresses, apanying her. Aaargh!.....This will be bothersome......I greeted them without letting these thoughts show on my face. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to disturb you. Bea, have I made you wait?¡± First, I talked to the youngdy. To suddenly ignore the main person in this room and go greet the otherdies that I¡¯ve only met for the first time, might turn into something ugly, so it was out of the question. ¡°Hello, Zest-sama. It¡¯s not like I¡¯ve really waited for you, we¡¯ll have to stay together at tonight¡¯s party after all.¡± ¡®Zest-sama! I wanted to see you so badly that I got impatient. However, since tonight we¡¯ll be able to be together all the time, I somehow managed to endure.¡¯ As always, the youngdy¡¯s face was showing an array of unpleasant feelings, buttely I¡¯ve started to smile at this huge gap. She really is cute.....Huh? Am I being strange? ¡°Bea? I¡¯m sorry I had to show you such an unpleasant sight early today. Are you in a bad mood?¡± I kindly inquired while seizing her hand. ¡°It¡¯s all right. For a daughter of a military family such an incident as this one is something verymon.¡± ¡®Are you worried about me, I wonder? Haha, Zest-sama is so kind.¡¯ The youngdy answered while staring at me like I was her greatest enemy. However, she didn¡¯t retreat her hand. Even so, it really is not unpleasant, she¡¯s so cute. Watching this exchange, the otherdies started squealing. Bea hid her blushing face behind her fan, but kept on vigntly watching us through a gap. Oh right, these women were here too.....Ipletely forgot. After that, a seat next to the youngdy was prepared for me and the women introduced themselves. However, the information didn¡¯t really enter my head......The youngdy sitting next to me kept on holding my hand without wanting them to part for this whole time. Really now, this girl is way too cute......I fixed my eyes on her without realizing. Seeing how we were acting, the other women were screaming ¡®kyaa kyaa¡¯ while jeering at us ¡°When did you start dating?¡± ¡°How long have you been so charmed by each other?¡± etc. etc. It seems that be it on Earth, be it in another world, the ways of teasing others are basically the same. These girls are all unmarried noble daughters, therefore they got motivated in order to find a suitable partner for themselves at tonight¡¯s party. They really made a huge fuss about it. Oh, it seems their aim of attack went astray. I looked at the youngdy next to me. Seemingly, she felt my eyes on her and she turned to look at me too. ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± ¡®What is it? Is there something wrong, Zest-sama?¡¯ This ¡®What is it?¡¯ of hers was so damn cute, so I decided to tease her a bit. I gently lowered my face to her ear. ¡°I was thinking that you are very cute. I love you.¡± I whispered close to her ear. The youngdy¡¯s face waspletely flushed.......A very grim facial expression was a sure promise though. ¡°..........Me too.¡± ¡®I¡¯ll never let you go; I¡¯ll never let you go; I¡¯ll never let you go; I¡¯ll never let you go......¡¯ Hiii! Her mind is sooo scary!! So she is a yandere? Or is she a tsundere? In any case, there¡¯s no problem. I can manage. Ever though we were having such a good time, the party was to start soon. Since this time the youngdy and I were the main figures of the evening, we¡¯ll arrive after all the guests have gathered. Hence, the otherdies who were our guests had to leave the room early and go to the assembly hall. The youngdy had to finish her dressing up, so I moved to another room and waited alone. A lot of things happened after I came to this world, but it wasn¡¯t that bad after all. I¡¯ve already got a very cute fianc¨¦e, some status and power and if I don¡¯t make a huge mistake from now on, my life should be rather peaceful. I really did my best though. My master¡¯s training was an utter nightmare. It was hell. I felt my eyes grow moist so I sipped some ck tea, when I realized someone came for me. ¡°Are you Lord Zest?........ The man who dueled my son.......¡± This wise looking old man vigorously jumped into the room I was waiting in, and his action made me yelp a little....... Chapter 25: The Characters until Now ※Contains Spoilers ※ Chapter 25: The Characters until Now ¡ùContains Spoilers ¡ù Takkurun: It¡¯s simply a summary of the characters. It¡¯s all right if you don¡¯t read it. ________________________________________________________ Zest Gaiyus Protagonist A middle aged man, 32 years old, with ck eyes and ck hair In Japan he was a salesman. He bes the adopted son of the Knights Commander and is engaged to the granddaughter of the Frontier Count. While scared shitless, he aims at surviving and rising to a higher position (in this world). As the plot progresses, his magical powers be the strongest and he¡¯s a user of the rare light attribute magic. Beatrice Varnam Heroine A 16 years old with ck eyes and ck hair A Japanese style beauty who gives the impression of matureness An expert of ck attribute magic The negatives effect of her magical power is that people are scared of her and she always looks angry. Because the protagonist can read her true thoughts/feelings, she falls deeply in love with him. Razatonia Varnam The head of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household A demon-like old geezer with a dark mind He¡¯s also an expert of the dark attribute magic and is feared in the area. A frightening and always scheming old man He calls Beatrice ¡®Bea¡¯ and is affectionate towards her. Sonia Varnam A son-inw in the Frontier Count¡¯s Household The refreshment of the terrifying Frontier Count¡¯s Household When he¡¯s only with the family he switches to the gentle ¡®papa¡¯ mode. Normally, he interacts with people while being is the frightening ¡®Frontier Count¡¯ mode. He¡¯s the protagonist¡¯s magic teacher and the Magic Division Commander. Galef Gaiyus The Knights Commander The protagonist¡¯s foster father He epted the protagonist for being his sessor, but the protagonist also healed his wife. He is able to have children now. He feels a debt of gratitude towards his adopted son and always causes a stir about his sessor. He¡¯s a loud man who wears a full-te armor. An old man with muscle brains who looks like a bandit. Celica Gaiyus The protagonist¡¯s foster mother The Frontier Count¡¯s younger sister Since the moment the protagonist healed her infertility, she¡¯s always doting on him. She¡¯s very supportive of his marriage to her grandniece Beatrice. Her personality is the spitting image of the Frontier Count¡¯s, but she intends to be kind towards the protagonist. Camel The Gaiyus¡¯ Household¡¯s butler An old man who manages the servants He deeply respects the protagonist who healed madam Celica. Albert A male kemonobito The man called dog knight Because he¡¯s exceptional, he also serves as the Frontier Count¡¯s guard. Since the ¡®marking incident¡¯ he unnecessarily fears the protagonist. The Emperor of the Grun Empire A middle aged handsome man with blond hair and blue eyes Conforming to tradition, he cast aside his name after the enthronement. He was called ¡®Sarsesh¡¯ when he was a child. No one calls him by this name now since it¡¯s considered a sphemy. People call him ¡®his Majesty the Emperor¡¯ or simply ¡®his Majesty¡¯. Empress Natasha A beautiful woman with blond hair and blue eyes She has a gentle aura and she looks like a soothing ¡®onee-sama¡¯. His Majesty is deeply in love with her and won¡¯t really show her in front of the public. The gardener who fixed his eyes on the empress got killed. The master chef whoplimented her cooking skills got killed too. If you breathe the same air that she breathes, you¡¯ll be killed... This is the extent of the rumors, which show how much his Majesty cares about her. Imperial princess Tsubaki The daughter of his Majesty and Natasha She has the name of a flower (1) from the legendary country of Japan. A 10 years old beautiful girl She likes the ¡®spirit¡¯ (2) and she admires Beatrice who is the model of it. The Prime Minister Arc A man in his 50s He has the image of a little fatty with brown hair and red eyes. However, he also acts heartlessly ording to his position of a Prime Minster, and he would be capable of murdering his family if that¡¯s for the best interest of the country. He gets along well with the Frontier Count and he visits him every year. Imperial Mage Rank 4 Lamia Varnam A mage specialized in medical treatments; Sonia¡¯s wife Beatrice¡¯s mother She normally works in the imperial capital. She¡¯s a very indulgent ¡®mama¡¯ towards Bea. Towards her husband she also has a ¡®spartan¡¯ face and often gives him aggressive responses. Meryl The daughter of a baron from the Frontier Count¡¯s territory She¡¯s currently working as a maid in the imperial capital¡¯s pce in order to learn the good manners. She¡¯s in love with Albert. Bicks Viscount The head of domestic affairs He¡¯s the father of the idiotic noble who ¡®offered¡¯ a marriage proposal to Beatrice. Unknown cause of death Tanya A middle aged woman The shopkeeper of a Western-style clothes store, who shows favor to the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. She also opened a shop that sells all sorts of new selections of goods. Terminal Kingdom¡¯s side Harnil Count A grandpa who came to the empire as an emissary for the kingdom (1) Tsubaki £¨´»?¤Ä¤Ð¤­£©means ¡®camellia¡¯ and is amon name for girls. (2) A spirit that shows upter in the story. Chapter 26: Celebration Banquet Chapter 26: Celebration Banquet ¡°I certainly am Zest, but who are you?¡± This really shocked me.....Spare me the sudden intrusions, I also have moments I can¡¯t keep my calm, you know. I controlled my trembling hands and drank some more tea while trying to escape reality. ¡°Forgive my intrusion. I am Viscount Bicks, the empire¡¯s head of internal affairs.¡± Is he in his 40s? He looks like a rather tired middle aged man.....Who is he? The head of internal affairs.....viscount.......? Ah! He¡¯s the father of that noble pig! ¡°So, you¡¯re Lord Alf¡¯s father then?¡± ¡°Indeed. Lord Zest, this time we caused you some big trouble. I am really sorry.¡± Huh? He¡¯s apologizing all of a sudden? ¡°Not even in my wildest dreams I could¡¯ve imagined that my idiot son would do such a rude thing to the youngdy of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household of all people......¡± It¡¯s not reallymon for a noble to bow his head. What¡¯s wrong? When he entered the room I thought he looked pretty angry. ¡°When I heard that my son was in the Frontier Count¡¯s territory I wanted to do something to stop him so I rushed here, but.....¡± However, you weren¡¯t fast enough. By riding a carriage it would take at least one week to get to the imperial capital, but if you ride a horse and you¡¯re in a hurry you might get there in 5 days, maybe? If it¡¯s a fast horse it might take about 2 days or so? Considering that this was taken into consideration and today was the set day for the framing of the noble pig, he couldn¡¯t have possibly arrived in time. ¡°If that¡¯s the case then you are already aware of the circumstances, or?¡± He seemed to have calmed down considerably and his expression was serene. So this is how nobles are supposed to act, huh? ¡°Yes, a few moments ago I asked the Magic Division Commander Sonia, and he exined me. Therefore, I rushed over to express my apologies to the fianc¨¦, Lord Zest......¡± I see. The Frontier Count said that the people from the imperial capital are making light of him, but I wonder if he was wrong about it. Was that noble pig the only one who ¡®tried to fly¡¯? ¡°I...I beg of you, please spare my family!!¡± Correction... To just what extent are you being feared, Frontier Count....... Still, I can¡¯t answer his request non-seriously. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I achieved what I needed to during our duel. The rest is being handled by my grandfather-inw, the Frontier Count Razatonia. Therefore, I rmend you to ask him about this.¡± The viscount lowered his head, and even though he seemed to want to say something more the words didn¡¯te out. ¡°Excuse me, Lord Zest. Viscount Bicks, the Frontier Count is calling for you. Follow me.¡± Oh, isn¡¯t he Albert, the dog knight? He greeted me and his subordinates grabbed the viscount from under his both arms and left. However, I might have heard the man say something like ¡®Lord....Lord Zest! Please put a good word for me!¡¯...... .................I¡¯ll pretend I haven¡¯t heard anything! The Frontier Count¡¯s Household sure is scary! There was a splendid chandelier hanging down from the ceiling. Its light illuminated the hall in which the dressed up nobles have gathered. Some great paintings were decorating the walls, and they were onlyparable to the various extravagant meals lined up on the beautifully arranged tables. The maids serving there were also top-notch. For a party organized by the Frontier Count, the empire¡¯s shield, the women that were chosen to serve the guests tonight were the best among the best. The guards can¡¯t be omitted either. The Grun Empire¡¯s trump card, the only ones allowed to wear ck equipment...They were also the most elites among elites. They are the spear of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household¡¯s territory, and it is said that they even exceed the imperial guards of his Majesty, the Emperor. The one whomands them is none other than the Frontier Count Razatonia. In this spot in front of the doors that was a few levels higher than all the other seats, some very tall chairs were prepared for the guests of honor. ¡°Everyone, thank you foring. As you already know, my niece Beatrice is now engaged. Her partner is none other than Zest, the son of the Knights Commander Galef.¡± These words were the signal for the doors to open. Wow, everyone is looking at us...... The looks were varying from curiosity to jealousy and even worship. I moved forward while escorting the youngdy, who wasn¡¯t wearing her witch dress tonight. She looks like a witch (viin) from the legends.....No, there¡¯s actually no exnation for the way she looked now. I¡¯m also wearing a ck military uniform though...... We lookpletely like the devil queen and her subordinate. The Frontier Count¡¯s Household.....really is frightening. And yet, for the nobles it was an ordinary appearance and no one seemed to be bothered. It does not mean that they were silent because they were afraid. That¡¯s what I¡¯d like to think. Yeah, since all the men are wearing ck military uniforms, I¡¯m all right! ..........However, there are no other witches. For a while now, the youngdy was only saying things like ¡®Thank you!¡¯ ¡®I¡¯m very happy¡¯ ¡®That is indeed so¡¯... Since she was a little too obedient I tried reading her mind and got a warm feeling. ¡®I¡¯m engaged to Zest-sama; I¡¯m engaged to Zest-sama; I¡¯m engaged to.......¡¯ Anyway, it started with the curtain raising dance and then we had to handle the procession of nobles standing in a long line that we had to greet. As one would expect, it was really tiring, so I asked a maid to take the youngdy to a ce where she could rest for a while. The me who is very considerate of his fianc¨¦e is really kind, right?.... I was smirking alone, being intoxicated with myself, when someone suddenly talked to me. ¡°Lord Zest, congrattions for your engagement. Beatrice-sama is really enviable.¡± Ooh! Albert? ¡°Thanks, Albert. I left Bea¡¯s side for the time being. She seemed a little tired.¡± We exchanged greeting while smiling. ¡°I have something to talk to you about....Can we go to the terrace?¡± Hmm, since I figured it would be about the viscount from earlier I nodded and followed after Albert. The terrace was very quiet. A pleasant wind for my hot feeling body was blowing and it was a bit chilly, but I enjoyed that. ¡°About the viscount from earlier, his Excellency the Frontier Count will personally inform you on what happened. If anyone asks you about it, his Excellency wants you to answer with ¡®I don¡¯t know¡¯.¡± ¡°I understand. I¡¯ll do just that. It¡¯s all right not to inform Bea, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Yes, the youngdy knows nothing about it, so it¡¯s all right as it is.¡± I wonder if they made some sort of a deal? I was told I don¡¯t need to know about it so I¡¯ll just obediently abide. In any case, the old man most likely did something not really that good, so not knowing would be better for my stomach. After that, we started having some foolish talks. We arerades having the same master, and since Albert is a knight who swore loyalty to the Frontier Count¡¯s Household, it would be better to make friends with him. It¡¯s not only that though, but also the fact that we both had a very hard time during our training with our master, so naturally we had a lot to talk about. He soon became my conversation buddy. For me it was a very nostalgic men talk. We talked about going drinking again, or who among the soldiers got a girlfriend and the sorts; this really reminded me of my time in Japan. It¡¯s so nostalgic.... And I can no longer go back. When I thought about that, my eyes got a little teary. Shameful....to cry at such an age...... Haven¡¯t I already decided!? To survive in this world and to rise to a high position....... Finding a way to go backes after that. No.....It¡¯s all right even if I don¡¯t go back.....Living together with the youngdy and myrades is not really that bad either. ¡°Hm? Lord Zest, are you okay?¡± ¡°Yes, I just got something in my eye.....¡± I deceived him with this clich¨¦d excuse. ¡°That¡¯s not good. It¡¯ll get worst if you rub it! Please let me see!¡± ¡°N...no, it¡¯s all ¡°Please let me see!¡± right.......¡± Albert, like all kemonobito, is a very serious individual. I¡¯ll just quietly obey for now. Albert started to slowly confirm that there was nothing wrong with my eye. Now that I am already a member of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household, I¡¯ve be a subject that he must protect, it seems. That¡¯s to be expected of the dog knight. ¡®Gashaaan¡¯ An outstanding noise could be heard. I turned around in shock only to find the youngdy standing there. ¡°Zest-sama? What are you doing alone with a man on the terrace so close to each other¡¯s faces?¡± ¡®Infidelity? You¡¯re having an affair with a man? I won¡¯t forgive you Albert, I¡¯ll never forgive you!¡¯ Under the moonlight, I was suspected of having an affair with a man. It was the origin of an incident that made me want to die in so many different ways...... Albert, go the hell away already! Chapter 27: Finding Excuses for the Suspicion of Infidelity Chapter 27: Finding Excuses for the Suspicion of Infidelity Inside the Frontier Count Razatonia¡¯s office, we were sitting in a seiza (1) position. ¡°I see. So grandson-inw-dono got something in his eye and Albert tried to take it out?¡± ¡°Hahaha, that must have been it. Zest seems to have fallen for Bea and I¡¯ve never heard rumors about him......I haven¡¯t heard any rumors about Albert either.¡± ¡°..............¡± ¡®Is...is it so, I wonder? Was it all a misunderstanding from my part?¡¯ Albert and I were sitting in a seiza position while trying frantically to exin what happened. Since in this world is not really that rare for men to engage in sexual rtionships, the reactions were unnecessarily huge. Just a little longer. I must endure. ¡°Bea, you are the only one for me. Albert is just a friend andrade of arms, we have no such rtionship whatsoever. The only one I love is you, Bea.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right! When Zest-sama goes drinking with us he only talks about you, and when we go out with the young ones to that particr shop, he always says ¡®Let¡¯s have fun together!¡¯ and even pays for everything, however I am the very serious type so I quietly wait for them in the waiting room drinking some tea!¡± Albert, you idiot.....Don¡¯t tell her that! ¡°.......The...the young ones¡± ¡°Albert, that¡¯s something that¡¯s supposed to be a secret, you know?¡± ¡°? What kind of shop is that?¡± (2) Youngdy, it¡¯s ok for you not to know about it. However, being suspected of homosexuality is really bad.....It¡¯s not unusual formoners, but homosexuality is prohibited for nobles. Since they value the household and blood rtionships above anything else, not having children is considered heresy. ¡°All right, this time it was Bea¡¯s misunderstanding.¡± The Frontier Count concluded. It took us 2 hours to get to this point; it was quite the torture. To say nothing else but how much I love their daughter in front of her father and grandfather for 2 whole hours...I can¡¯t find any proper word than torture for what I¡¯ve experienced. Albert, you idiot, just shut your mouth! Don¡¯t talk about that panty-less bar anymore, the master is staring at us. ................Master is also a regr customer there, so I want to keep it a secret, you know! When Albert was about to say something unnecessary I hit him from a blind spot and master¡¯s high speed poke in the forehead flew towards him as well, so we managed to ovee the crisis somehow. ¡°That¡¯s right Bea. You received a colored diamond from Zest, haven¡¯t you? That¡¯s the evidence he didn¡¯t do anything wrong, you should calm down.¡± ¡°Oh, right. I most certainly received one.¡± ¡®That¡¯s right! The pink diamond. Towards me, Zest-sama really.......Ah!.....I feel embarrassed!¡¯ The pink diamond? Ah, I gave her one during that incident with the dark grimoire in the shape of an exchange diary. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say that earlier? If that¡¯s the case then you shouldn¡¯t have doubted him in the first ce. I see, so he gave you a pink diamond.....Bea, I¡¯ll arrange for it to be processed, so you should just put your wishes together and tell me, okay?¡± What the....Since they brought up the pink diamond the atmosphere changed with a 180 degree. ¡°Right, that would be great! Since you are engaged now, there¡¯s no better essory for you than this diamond. That¡¯s really great, Bea.¡± ¡°Grandfather, father, thank you.¡± ¡®A pink diamond essory.......Something that most nobles who only get married out of convenience are yearning for.......¡¯ ¡°Yes, yes. However, a pink diamond, I heard that it¡¯s something that only newly-wedmoners who marry out of mutual love can wear. What¡¯s wrong grandson-inw-dono, making such a face, don¡¯t tell me you didn¡¯t know about this?¡± Everyone looked at me simultaneously. Albert, don¡¯t you dare look at me and say ¡®You gave her a pink diamond and didn¡¯t even know.....¡¯ You¡¯re supposed to exin things to me properly, you know!? When the time for traininges, I¡¯ll remember it. ¡°Zest, there is a condition for the pink diamond.¡± Master seems to be kind enough to exin it to me. Thank you, let¡¯s go again to the panty-less bar together. ¡°When you think of your partner and pour your magic into a raw gem, it¡¯ll turn pink. When the partner receives it, they¡¯ll pour their magic into it in the same manner. When you do that the color will adhere to it and it will never change.¡± I see, it has such a nature, huh?......Master, I would¡¯ve liked to get this exnation earlier, you know. ¡°Having done that, the diamond that memorized both your magical powers will be some sort of a magical tool. If you harbor the same type of feelings that you had in the moment you created it for someone else, it will shatter into countless pieces. In short, it¡¯s used as a deration of intention like ¡®I won¡¯t cheat on you, you¡¯re my one and only partner¡¯¡±. ¡°I see. That¡¯s why is only used by newly-wedmoners.....Can you hand it over to another person?¡± ¡°Obviously you can¡¯t do that. If you do that, it will break. That¡¯s why the craftsmen who process them have their hands rather tied.¡± That¡¯s one treasure that nobles can¡¯t really get. It¡¯s really a tool that strongly proves the purity of the body. It¡¯s not broken yet, right? I took a fleeting nce of the youngdy and she turned her back to do something. When she turned around she had a pink diamond the size of a marble in her hand. The youngdy kept it somewhere close to her...... ¡°Ooh! It has such a wonderful tint to it¡± ¡°So this is a pink diamond? It¡¯s the first time I¡¯m seeing one.¡± ¡°Zest-sama, you¡¯re stepping on my tail....Zest-sama?¡± Shut up, Albert, I¡¯m doing it on purpose. After that, the youngdy was in a wonderful mood and decided on her appointment with the craftsmen, thereafter we were dismissed. The pink diamond has various meanings......Right after my engagement I was suspected of cheating. I was really close to death this time. And what¡¯s worse, it was a male partner. Since it was alreadyte, I decided I¡¯ll remain in the castle to rest for the time being and soon a room was prepared for me. Really now, that Albert, from tomorrow¡¯s training onward I must firmly ¡®instruct¡¯ him. I decided on doing just that and fell asleep. Then, starting the next day, the daily training sessions were being restored. In addition to that, I also have my tea meetings with the youngdy and the courtesy calls to various nobles. Apart from that, I simply went back to my previous ordinary life. I started ¡®training¡¯ Albert with scrupulous care. You can call it an outburst of anger, but he was the one in the wrong. Master seems to have snapped as well because of the panty-less bar incident, so he thoroughly showed his ¡®affection¡¯ for him. Right, I also received some really cheerful news one of these days. We will have a new family member! I don¡¯t yet know whether it¡¯s a younger sister or younger brother, but my foster father and mother are really happy about it. That¡¯s to be expected though, since both gave up the possibility of having children because of my mother¡¯s infertility. But now, they finally managed to have a child of their own. However, now that a true child of the Gaiyus Viscount¡¯s Household is about to get born, they¡¯ll be the one to inherit the household, right? I might not be needed anymore. When I voiced out my thoughts, my foster father punched me. ¡®Even if you¡¯re an adopted son, you are my sessor. Don¡¯t say such foolish jokes a second time.¡¯ That¡¯s what he said. My foster mother embraced me closely. ¡®You are too a member of this family. Don¡¯t say such sorrowful things.¡¯ My parents here are really too gentle. Father, please don¡¯t re at me like that. So this is the family¡¯s love expression, huh?.......What am I, a child? However, these generally peaceful days in the Frontier Count¡¯s territories were unexpectedly approaching their end with the arrival of a visitor. ¡°By imperialmand, it is requested of Zest Gaiyus to go to the imperial capital. His Majesty the Emperor is graciously allowing you to have an audience with him.¡± And so, my trip to the imperial capital was decided. I can¡¯t possibly say......that I don¡¯t want to go, right?....... (1) Seiza = kneeling with the tops of the feet t on the floor, and sitting on the soles. (2) the first line is Razatonia¡¯s, the second is Sonia¡¯s and thest is Bea¡¯s. Chapter 28: Journey to the Imperial Capital Chapter 28: Journey to the Imperial Capital ¡°Ho ho ho, it¡¯s all right, you don¡¯t have to worry about this, his Majesty just wants to meet you. You can think you¡¯ll just go on this trip to have some fun. You can gopletely at ease. I don¡¯t need souvenirs, by the way.¡± ¡°Take care of yourself, Zest-sama. If you make sure this pink diamond won¡¯t break, I won¡¯t mind it at all and I¡¯m also fine without souvenirs.¡± ¡®Cheating on me is no good, ok? If you do that I¡¯ll chop you into tiny pieces, ok? Ah! I would so like to eat some sweets from the imperial capital!¡¯ ¡°Gahaha, go defeat those imperial capital weaklings, it¡¯ll be an easy task for you. You can bring me some sake as a souvenir.¡± ¡°Well, my dear, since Zest is very kind he won¡¯t do such a thing. Ah! Recently, my cosmetics don¡¯t suit my skin anymore.......I¡¯m just speaking to myself, you know?¡± ¡°E...everyone, I¡¯m going now. I¡¯ll make sure to bring you souvenirs.......¡± On the day I was setting off for my trip to the imperial capital, I was feeling very nervous, but all they said to me were requests for souvenirs....... The ones apanying me were master and Albert. My master and I were enjoying each other¡¯spany inside the shaking carriage, while Albert was riding on a horse. Of course, it was not only the three of us, our convoy numbered 10 more knights and 2 maids, it was like arge family. When nobles take a trip, it cannot be done too casually. For us to take maids in order to assist us was more like a means to show off, however there are many nobles who can¡¯t take care of their everyday necessities. As for the guards, we didn¡¯t really need them either. Well, for the rtives of the Frontier Count to just casually go on a trip like that without escorts and everything would be a drop in prestige, therefore we took along a convoy only for a stupid reason like that. ¡°Lord Sonia, we¡¯ll be soon arriving at the vige.¡± Albert called out from outside. Since there are a few viges and towns until the imperial capital, we¡¯ve decided to stop there to stay for the night. There are no suitable inns for nobles to stay at in these viges, so we made some announcements and we would stay at the vige headman¡¯s house. This vige was surrounded by a fence made of wood and the vige entrance was currently restricted. It wasn¡¯t really such an imposing fence, but it was a good enough measure for keeping away bandits and monsters. ¡°Please wait! We have indeed received a notice, but we still have to know your names.¡± The soldier gatekeeper called out to us. Every town and vige we came by had stationing troops, however soldiers were especially dispatched only in the territories managed by the Frontier Count. After all, money and time were needed for that. ¡°I am Albert, a knight of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. The ones riding the carriage are the Magic Division Commander Sonia and Viscount Gaiyus¡¯ heir, Zest-sama. You¡¯ve done your duty well.¡± Albert, standing on his horse, answered. This guy in incredibly serious when working. ¡°Yes sir! You¡¯vee a long way. This man will guide you to the vige chief¡¯s house.¡± Following our guide, we entered the vige. At which point, we heard the children in the distance making a racket.....Actually, adults were joining them as well. ¡°So awesome! It¡¯s the ck knights!¡± ¡°So it¡¯s the regr army, I haven¡¯t seen them in a long time.¡± ¡°Look! That kemonobito knight is so cool!¡± Right. Normally, when the armyes people be frightened, however inside the territories of the Frontier Count things like that won¡¯t happen. The regr soldiers wearing ck military equipment are a subject of aspiration, so they are quite popr. That¡¯s what the soldiers told me when we went drinking together. I was a little envious of Albert who had all the attention of women and girls constantly crying ¡®kya kya¡¯, but I waited quietly inside the carriage. Rewards are needed once in a while, and recently Albert¡¯s ¡®training¡¯ got really intense. And so, we arrived at the vige chief¡¯s house and it was time for a banquet. We brought presents like money and meat for the vige, and since we also brought some sake we treated them to a drink. I don¡¯t really want to make an enemy out of themoners and well, it¡¯s also part of the etiquette. Once the enjoyable banquet was over, the maids wiped my body dry and I went to bed. This is not cheating, right? They only wiped my body dry, that¡¯s all. Like that, the first day of our trip ended without any particr problems. After that, our journey progressed smoothly as well. We encountered some dog-like monsters, but the knights defeated them easily. And so, our journey continued peacefully to the point it became rather disappointing. That¡¯s to be expected of the ck soldiers that are said to be the most elites; they are really reassuring. However, when we only had one day left until we got to the imperial capital a problem sprang forth. ¡°Lord Sonia, Lord Zest, there¡¯s some sort of trouble up ahead. Just to be sure, please be cautious.¡± When Albert¡¯s words came out, it made me want to check the situation outside. And then, I¡¯ve seen it. Some people wearing armors were surrounding a group of young men and women. There were also some armor wearing persons who were riding on horses......Are they knights? Besides, their equipment seems rather light. It appeared that the other party had noticed our presence as well. One of the cavalrymen started running away......What? Are you retreating midway? The knight who ran back a little while ago apanied the group¡¯s leader now, a man wearing a full-te armor, and they were rushing towards us. ¡°Excuse me for not dismounting. I am Kenes, one of the squad leaders of the imperial capital¡¯s patrol corps. When I¡¯ve seen your ck military equipment, I realized you¡¯re the Frontier Count¡¯s regr army, however, may I ask who is riding inside the carriage?¡± The full-te took off his face guard and called out to us. My master stopped the carriage and showed his face. ¡°I am Sonia Varnam, the Magic Division Commander of the Varnam Frontier Count¡¯s army. What happened here?¡± Oh, he¡¯s in the Frontier Count¡¯s Household mode now. Master, I can¡¯t believe you were cheerfully talking about the imperial capital¡¯s bars until a while ago. You look so dignified now. ¡°Greetings, Lord Sonia. Forgive my rudeness. We are currently arresting some adventurers.......¡± ording to his story... The adventurers were on a harvesting quest inside the forest close to the main road when some thieves attacked them. They counterattacked and started fighting, but a stray arrow released by an adventurer hit a patrolling knight. Since it was clearly an ident, the patrol squad didn¡¯t want to make a huge fuss over it, however because there was an adventurer who showed a bad attitude towards them, they started to quarrel and ended up arresting the entire group. Hey! Really now, don¡¯t start a fight with the army! Well, the soldiers weremoners, so the adventurers¡¯ lives were out of mortal danger. If they would have offended a noble instead, it would have been an imminent ¡®goodbye¡¯ for their group. ¡°I see. Well then, we have nothing to do with this, so we¡¯ll be on our way.¡± ¡°Yes sir! I¡¯m sorry for making trouble for you!¡± It seemed that my master didn¡¯t want to get involved, and I¡¯m sure the adventurers would be released after spending a few days in jail. I don¡¯t really know to what extent their attitude was bad, however if it was excessively awful, then they might also end up getting killed. Nevertheless, they picked a fight with the wrong group and they must suffer the consequences now. We approached the side of this group and continued on our way. We would just pass them and go ahead on our way......or that¡¯s what it was supposed to happen. ¡°I beg of you! Please save us, Frontier Count, Varnam-sama!¡± That was the desperate shout of a tied up woman adventurer, who jumped in front of our carriage. It was the moment we realized we could not simply advance and ignore her cry.......I¡¯m beaten. Chapter 29: The Adventurers’ Excuse Chapter 29: The Adventurers¡¯ Excuse ¡°How insolent! How dare you stop the carriage of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household!¡± Albert¡¯s angry voice echoed and master rested his head in his palms at this scene. ¡°So, they¡¯re on the move too now.......Really now, if you obediently go spend a night or two in jail, you¡¯ll be able to leave after that. With this, by stopping the Frontier Count¡¯s Household¡¯s carriage, you¡¯ve just added to your crimes, you know?¡± The carriage has already stopped. We¡¯ll cancel our trip, right?.......In my dreams. ¡°They¡¯re relying on the Frontier Count¡¯s Household to ask for help, you know, it¡¯s not decent to simply ignore them. It¡¯s not good to only listen to the soldiers¡¯ story, but if we wouldn¡¯t have trusted them, the imperial capital¡¯s army would¡¯veined....Ah! It¡¯s so troublesome.¡± Don¡¯t look at me so intently, master. Are you trying to say ¡®Do something¡¯? ¡°........So, we must judge both parties?¡± ¡°Well, it really helps that your understanding is quick. Such an excellent son-inw-dono.¡± Smiling, he passed the whole task onto me. Master, you¡¯ve shown no restraint recently. But he specifically said ¡®son-inw-dono¡¯, that in itself is full of meaning. Ah, Albert¡¯s got ahold of the woman......I left the carriage and called out. ¡°Albert, it¡¯s all right, let her go. I¡¯m Zest of the Varnam Frontier Count¡¯s Household, tell me what you have to say.¡± Albert bowed and released the woman, after which he positioned himself to my side. The patrol soldiers can¡¯t intervene.......They can¡¯t oppose the Frontier Count¡¯s Household if we say we want to listen to them. ¡°T...then, I won¡¯t refrain myself to tell you our story.¡± The woman with both her hands tied up, was trembling, and her voice did sound very young. Is she in her teens or 20s, I wonder? Her hair is red and put into a ponytail. Her face is hidden and I can¡¯t see it, but I could figure that her stature is very slender through the leather armor that she was wearing. ¡°We are adventurers, but if nothing is done now, we will be ves! Please save us!¡± ........What? You¡¯ll be turned into ves? I nced at the soldiers only to find that they were hiding their faces. Wait a minute! Can it really be... ¡°Now that you¡¯ve mentioned very, I can¡¯t overlook this. Albert, bring that Kenes squad leader from earlier to me.¡± ¡°Yes sir! At once.¡± One way or another, he caught him in the blink on an eye. The other soldiers were surrounded by the ck nights. Kenes was dragged along to stay in front of me, hisplexion was really bad. ¡°Good, now everyone¡¯s gathered. So, what did you mean with being turned into ves? Continue exining.¡± ¡°Yes sir, we were harvesting inside the forest when the soldiers called us to halt and ordered that me and the other girl go with them.......¡± She sent a fleeting nce at herpanions. It was true that among the other 4 members of her group, there was one who had long hair and looked like a girl. I was shocked.......It was the first time I got so angry that I couldn¡¯t feel anything but shock. ¡°Oi, Kenes. I don¡¯t want to believe it, but I got to ask it. Did you want to take away these women forcibly? If that¡¯s the case, then was the story with the thieves a lie?¡± Squad leader Kenes was looking downward, his face ghastly pale, and didn¡¯t answer, moment in which Albert silently hit him with his spear. ¡°Lord Zest is asking you a question, how dare you ignore him? If it happens again, you¡¯ll lose one leg.¡± Don¡¯t draw your sword yet, Albert. Ah! Even the ck knights drew their swords already.......Why is the Frontier Count¡¯s army so fast in acting!? ¡°Hii! W...we can¡¯t oppose them!¡± ¡°The squad leader will speak!¡± ¡°We can¡¯t go against the ck knights! We surrender!¡± ........Yes, that¡¯s the right choice. They would¡¯ve killed you in the blink of an eye. I started talking louder, in order for no one to realize that I was in fact pretty scared inside. ¡°Kenes, I am asking you whether you¡¯ve lied to the Frontier Count¡¯s Household or not.¡± ¡°Yes. P...please, my life......spare my.......¡± I decapitated him before he could even finish. Since my master was watching from behind, if I were to be too soft in handling this situation, I would end up being unwanted sooner orter. ¡°You¡¯ve also heard it, right? This guy wanted to deceive the Varnam Frontier Count¡¯s Household, therefore he died for his crime. You lot wille to the imperial capital to receive your judgment. If you have any objections, I¡¯ll listen. Step forward.¡± The soldiers were collectively staring at the severed head that was rolling on the ground. These idiots......They¡¯ve made more unnecessary work for me. The ten or so soldiers were tied and the ck knights were pulling them by a rope. Oh well, it¡¯d be impossible for them to run away, the difference in ability between ordinary soldiers and the ck knights it¡¯s too big to even be mentioned. On the other hand, the already released adventurers were prostrating themselves before me. ¡°Thank you so very much, Zest-sama, you have sa...ved..... us.¡± Pipe down that friendly tone a bit.....Albert, don¡¯t stare at him like that. ¡°Don¡¯t be so tense, you were the victims in this case. For now, we¡¯ll be traveling together to the imperial capital. I have to report the circumstances after all.¡± When they heard that, the two young women moved their bodies a little in an attempt to slightly intoxicate me. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t order you to entertain us. There are no scums in the Varnam Frontier Count¡¯s army.¡± We won¡¯t ask for your bodies as a means for thanking us for saving you, you know? We are gentlemen after all. To be honest, the ck soldiers are the most popr of all elites, so they don¡¯t reallyck the attention of women. You have absolutely nothing to worry about. There¡¯s no need to even remind my soldiers of this. As a matter of fact, the Knights Commander is very strict of this matter, so they¡¯re actually too afraid to act improperly to the women. There were no adventurers who couldn¡¯t ride on a horse. That¡¯s to be expected of another world, the horse is the main transportation means, so it was only natural. While the captured soldiers were dragged along by the horses, we were moving towards the next vige. We¡¯ll stay there for the night and we¡¯ll get to the imperial capital early tomorrow. We¡¯re finally arriving......Thest part of our journey was a disaster. Really now, I ended up with more unnecessary work than I was actually disposed to do...... ¡°He he he, dear knights. They look really expensive, those armors of yours. Leave them behind obediently!¡± A bandit group showed up. .......Oi, patrol corps, you¡¯re not doing your job properly. Ah! We¡¯ve seized them so they can¡¯t actually work, ha ha..... I quietly looked up at the beautifully sparkling sky and I really wanted to think that it wasn¡¯t so because of my tears. Chapter 30: The Bandits Showed Up Chapter 30: The Bandits Showed Up ¡°He he he, what¡¯s wrong, dear knights......you¡¯re so shocked you can¡¯t even say a word? Haa?¡± That¡¯s correct. We were really too surprised to say anything. What we saw was a bandit group of almost 30 people. Normally this would be considered a threat, being outnumbered three times. ¡°You have women too! We¡¯re lucky today. Oi! Leave the women and your armors behind and disappear from my sight, little noble boys.¡± The bandits were smiling mockingly. What¡¯s with these guys?......Why are they soposed when going against the knights? Is there something more that I¡¯m not aware of? ¡°You idiots are out of your minds? What are you nning, making enemies of the army?¡± Albert shouted. He readied his spear not leaving a single opening; the ck knights followed his example and were already prepared for battle. They would not show weakness even against a group of bandits. Usually they spar with my master or my foster father....the Knights Commander, and even in those circumstances these guys are happily fighting against them, they¡¯re all battle maniacs.....urm, elites, they¡¯re elites, yes. However, they seemed to be differently perceived by the bandits. ¡°Haaa! After the war ended, the army is onlyposed of weak noble little boys now. Look, don¡¯t try to show off and leave before you injure yourselves.¡± While one of the bandits was saying those words, another one was approaching Albert, and ended up being stabbed to death. His neck was cut open and he copsed leaving behind a mist of blood. ¡°What the hell is this?¡± It was Albert who muttered those words. When the bandits saw theirrade be a corpse in but an instant, they couldn¡¯t even react. ¡°You¡¯re this weak but still dare to challenge us?¡± He muttered to himself again and killed another two bandits who were closest to him. After that, the bandits finally came to their senses. These guys are different than ordinary soldiers.....Did we challenge some unthinkably strong group? That¡¯s what they were thinking. Finally, they readied their weapons, lowered their backs to prepare for battle, and even though they started shouting angrily and threateningly, it was already toote for them. ¡°Don¡¯t make a fool of yourselves, you idiots! It¡¯s an insult to challenge the Frontier Count¡¯s Army when you¡¯re this unskilled! Everyone, don¡¯t leave any of these fools alive!¡± Moved by Albert¡¯s anger, the ck knights started to move simultaneously. It didn¡¯t matter whether the bandits were wielding their weapons or trying to run away. It was a one-sided extermination. The ck knights, including Albert, had a very easy to understand reasoning. They enjoy the status of being the most elites among the soldiers of the empire, so for these guys pride is something very valuable. ¡®As the empire¡¯s shield, the Frontier Count¡¯s Army and its soldiers are to never be defeated. The enemy army is the first and thest opponent you fight against. The defeat of the Frontier Count¡¯s Army is the defeat of the Empire.¡¯ Once you enter this army, this is what you get taught in the very beginning, after that you get trained thoroughly. This also applies for nobles. Even a highly ranked noble from an esteemed family and lineage, once he enters the Frontier Count¡¯s Army, his status would ount for nothing. Nobles that are not soldiers,moners that are soldiers. These kinds of things mostly ur throughout the Frontier Count¡¯s territories. The little noble boys these guys refer to, who can¡¯t hold on even for half a day and end up running to escape death, this situation for the soldiers in the Frontier Count¡¯s Army is daily training. The Imperial Capital Army sure has be dull...... My master and I were inside the carriage thinking about this, when one of the still surviving bandits approached us. A hostage?......Your way of thinking is really not bad..... I left the carriage, my attitude changing from a miserable mood to a delightful one......and I approached the group like I was a predatoring across its prey. I waved my hand to stop the ck knights who were moving towards me to offer protection. ¡°He¡¯s their boss! Take him hostage, hurry up!¡± Someone from the already shrunken group of surviving bandits shouted. Only two?......So few. A bandit carrying an axe on his right shoulder was approaching me insecurely when I drew my sword and shed him from his lower half up to his neck. His severed head was rolling on the ground, his face dumbfounded. The other one wasing shing, aiming at my leg. I stroke with my sword on a diagonal trajectory from above and cut off his arm. This guy was instinctively pressing down on his wound with his other hand, not even realizing his neck was just losing the head above it. It¡¯s a bad idea to aim at me and not be prepared....I never hesitate to kill my enemy before they try to kill me. Besides........ ¡°There is no possible way that I, the leader of the ck knights, am a weakling.¡± I was so amazed by their stupidity and muttered to myself. ¡°Lord Zest, we finished as well. I am sorry to have troubled you.¡± Albert lowered his head. ¡°It¡¯s all right, I don¡¯t mind. The maids and the adventurers are unharmed, I hope?¡± The ck knights would never get injured against weak opponents, so there was no point in asking them. ¡°Yes sir! No damage has been done.¡± Good. The adventurers¡¯ faces were looking bad.....I guess they are not used to seeing people die. ¡°Well then, let¡¯s get going. Toss these bodies in the woods somewhere.¡± The ck knights made the preparations very quickly. The adventurers helped out, which made me grateful. However, it was such an unnecessary loss of time.......Let¡¯s get to the vige fast and rest. And so, we arrived at our vige the same day in the evening. We got here muchter than we had nned, so I was feeling tired. I just wanted to drink and forget about it....... A banquet was taking ce again. This is also part of my ¡®job¡¯ and it¡¯s important for maintaining the Frontier Count¡¯s Household¡¯s authority. Really now, being a noble is damn difficult. I was really in need for a drink. ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Cheers!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Everyone, today you¡¯re allowed to eat and drink all you want!¡± ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°Zest-sama, let¡¯s buy some sake from the imperial capital on the way back!¡± ¡°Ah! I also want some sweets.¡± ¡°Right, leave it to me. It¡¯s a long-awaited journey after all. Leaving that aside,e on, drink!¡± ¡°Zest-sama, this sake is really good!¡± ¡°Oh, vige chief! Did you like it? We still have a lot more.¡± ¡°Lord Zest! I like meat the most!¡± ¡°Albert, shut up! I¡¯ve heard that countless times already!¡± ¡°Hey Zest, Bea has a...... dark mole on her right butt cheek and......¡± ¡°W...who is the idiot who gave my master a drink??¡± It¡¯s my job.....This is my job as a noble...... Other things happened that night, but nothing too problematic. All that¡¯s left now is to have my audience with the Emperor, buy some souvenirs and return home quickly. The enjoyable banquet came to an end and I went to sleep. Suddenly, I wasing to reconsider some things. Among the adventurers we rescued, there were two young women.....!? W...what if perhaps......? A fitting development for the night, huh? Ah! I give up. This is cheating, right?......Will the pink diamond break, I wonder? Will it be okay if there¡¯s no love involved, only the body? No, in the worst case the diamond will break......However, will it be all right if it only happens once? No, maybe not...... In the end, I kept on worrying until morning and nothing actually happened....... Somehow or other, I really wanted to die at that moment...... Chapter 31: Arrival Chapter 31: Arrival ¡°My head hurts......Zest, can¡¯t you heal hangovers?¡± I can, but I won¡¯t, master. ¡°Alcohol is considered a good medicine when consumed in proper quantities. It would be very difficult to heal it with magic, don¡¯t you think?¡± ¡°That might be true.....Ah! I feel so sick......¡± My foolish father, who had no memories of yesterday¡¯s banquet, and I were shaken inside the carriage. My master is very weak against alcohol. It¡¯s not that he can¡¯t drink anything at all, but after two sses of wine if he drinks a third one, he¡¯ll be dead drunk. Moreover, when he gets to that point he even forgets everything he¡¯s said or done, he bes uncontroble. Really now.......Yesterday, he didn¡¯t only talk about the youngdy¡¯s dark mole, but also about when precisely her chest started to grow big only to give me a finishing blow afterwards. ¡®Zest, did you know? Even though Bea looks quite slender in clothing, her chest is amazing. There¡¯s a rumor amongst the maids saying that her chest is very soft and springy and it smells really good, you know? So nice.....it¡¯s soft. So, what was your first impression?¡¯ As if I would know, we still haven¡¯t.......Still, what sort of rumors are you hearing about your daughter, you foolish father. A ck knight blushed extensively and I knocked him off his feet. Master, you¡¯ve said too much. He might have been under a lot of stress......my poor father-inw....Will I be the same in future? I¡¯m a son-inw too after all...... While staring at the other pitiful son-inw, our journey continued uninterrupted. ¡°Wee to the imperial capital. Excuse me, but I have to know your family name.¡± ¡°We are from the Varnam Frontier Count¡¯s Household. Inside the carriage are the Magic Division Commander Sonia and Lord Zest.¡± Oh, we arrived.....Because I haven¡¯t slept at all yesterday, I was absent minded and I haven¡¯t even realized. Master was sound asleep, as one would expect. ¡°Thank you. What about these captured soldiers?¡± ¡°These guys......¡± Albert exined the situation. I¡¯ll leave it to him, I¡¯m still sleepy and I don¡¯t really want to bother. ¡°ves!? I can¡¯t believe it......They¡¯re a disgrace to the imperial soldiers!¡± The gatekeepers were staring at the captured soldiers. Well, normally, people would get mad. After he finished the exnation, Albert handed over the soldiers. They were being hit while taking into custody, but, well, it¡¯s the imperial capital¡¯s problem now, I have nothing to do with it. It can¡¯t really be helped, these guys were trying to do something too uneptable. We said our farewells to the adventurers as well at this point. They too were very misfortunate......However, it all ended safely. Were they lucky or unlucky.......? ¡°Zest-sama, thank you so much. We will never in this life forget your kindness.....¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, besides, if you say such things to a noble, they would really take you away, you know? Saying thanks is more than enough.¡± I¡¯ve already decided, I have already made my mind about this. For some reason, the women were staring at Albert. I¡¯ll make training for him two times harder, this ¡®good-looking¡¯ Albert... After they bowed to us for several times, the adventurers followed after the soldiers. It would be an investigation, but I¡¯m sure it¡¯ll end by evening. With this our business was finished. Let¡¯s enter the city already! ¡°Well now, my father-inw is resting at the moment. Do you want to check inside the carriage too?¡± I looked at the gatekeeper and informed him about this. It seemed like I was asking a question, but, in fact, I wasn¡¯t. ¡®We are the Frontier Count¡¯s family. Let us enter the city already, we are tired.¡¯ This conversion would be the correct one. And so, since the gatekeeper was a decent soldier, his answer was: ¡°Thank you, but there is no need. You can pass.¡± Something like this. If he were to want to check the carriage: ¡®You don¡¯t trust the Frontier Count¡¯s family? Die then!¡¯ It would have turned up like this. Being a noble sure is scary. The rattling carriage advanced on its way. Finally, the imperial capital. For now, I¡¯ll just have to inform the pce of our arrival and wait for further orders. The Frontier Count¡¯s Household has a mansion here, so I¡¯ll just wait there. We passed through the huge gate and entered the city. This is amazing. I ended up looking around restlessly. This really is a city one would call an imperial capital. It¡¯s extremely wide and beautifully maintained, just like arge, red, deep-water scorpionfish. And because of therge number of people, I almost forgot I was in a different world. All that somewhat tranquil atmosphere I encountered up until this point, waspletely gone in this city. I really came to a city......I strongly felt it. I somehow missed this tumult, it made me think of Japan. It would be great if I could stroll around a bit before going back. Our mansion was very close to the pce......in a corner where many noble residences were lined up. It was beautifully maintained by a bunch of exclusive maids and it seemed serviceable at any time. It must cost a lot of money though, it¡¯s somehow wasteful. It¡¯s only asionally used anyway.....But still, this is also one way for nobles to show off. I gave orders to inform the pce of our arrival and entered the mansion. I informed the servants that I would rest in my room until dinner time, and I took an afternoon nap. I find it hard to cope with all-nighters....I¡¯m a middle aged guy after all, you¡¯ll have to pardon me. By the way, master seemed to go to sleep as well. That¡¯s why it was all right for me to do the same. I must be thankful of my master¡¯s hangover. It¡¯s been a while since I¡¯ve slept in a fluffy bed. I immediately entered the realm of dreams. I somehow heard someone knocking at my door and a maid called out to me. ¡°Zest-sama, the dinner preparations areplete.¡± ¡°Good.¡± Forgive me if I seem too unsociable at the moment. That¡¯s because the exchange diary was floating right in front of me........ I understand, I must write something in it. Chapter 32: The Exchange Diary Arrived Chapter 32: The Exchange Diary Arrived The exchange diary locked with a mithril chain was floating in front of me. I really thought that this was no longer a grimoire, but rather a living being. Anyway, I will read it after dinner..... When I was on my way to exit the room, the exchange diary followed me and prevented that from happening. ¡°Do I really have to read now?¡± I started to talk to the exchange diary without thinking. What the hell is this? I look like a person who¡¯s gone mad, don¡¯t I?......There¡¯s no way a book would understand and formte an answer..... (Yes, Master. Please read.) It talked! It answered me in a voice that seemed to be youngdy¡¯s? when she was a child. Did she improve her dark magic? Youngdy, I am so happy....... Ah, tears appeared at the corner of my eyes. These are tears of joy, I¡¯m sure of it.....They¡¯re by no means tears of despair, they¡¯re by no means tears of hopelessness. I persuaded myself to believe that. ¡°You....Can you talk......?¡± (It is possible. To be urate, this is telepathicmunication, Master.) ¡°I...I see.¡± In this world even books can talk. I tried to convince myself that this was normal. Since there is magic in this world, it should be possible for books to talk at least. No problems here. I desperately tried to calm myself down and clear my chaotic thoughts. Well then, what to do now? ¡°For the time being, is it all right to read it after dinner? If I don¡¯t eat, my mind won¡¯t work properly. It is also necessary in order to beposed and read Bea¡¯s notes in the diary. You might be safe without eating food, but living beings are different.¡± These were the words that came out after I considered the situation a bit. This is really terrible news for me. For now, I will just postpone the trouble and go get some food. Putting it simply, this was it. However, the exchange diary seemed to consent. (I see. I do not wish for Master to copse due to malnutrition.) ¡°You understand then. Well, I¡¯ll get going now. It¡¯s too bad you can¡¯t eat, otherwise we could¡¯ve went together to have dinner. Wait for me here.¡± I felt relieved. Yet, when I tried to leave the room, the exchange diary started to shake heavily and the sound of chains reverberated throughout the room. Oi oi, you also want to eat dinner?......Or you hate being left behind? (I aming too, Master.) ¡°Is it typical in this world for books to apany people when eating, and float around the dining table?¡± (............Hmmm) What ¡®hmmm¡¯! As I thought, this is definitely not normal. ¡°I didn¡¯t say that just to be mean to you....There¡¯s nothing to be done since you¡¯re a book, right?¡± (I understand. If that¡¯s the case.....) It started to shake again and a bright light emanated out of the exchange diary. Eh! What is it doing? Is it gonna detonate itself? So, the exchange diary explodes when you refuse something it wants? This world is more than scary. While I was consumed by confusion and irrational panic, the exchange diary¡¯s light emission was fading away. That¡¯s good, it seems it won¡¯t explode. (I came to the conclusion that a human model won¡¯t be a problem. I aming too, Master.) What was unfolding in front of my eyes was a 30 cm tall, extremely adorable distortion of the youngdy. ¡°Zest, you¡¯re sote. Besides, for an afternoon nap you¡¯ve slept too......¡± The smile on my master¡¯s face froze. That¡¯s obvious. A middle-aged guy showed up carrying on his shoulder a puppet looking exactly like his daughter. If I would¡¯ve been in his ce, I would¡¯ve punched the guy...... If he only stays frozen, it¡¯ll be easier for me too. ¡°I¡¯ve made you wait, father-inw.¡± I greeted nimbly and took a sit. Hm? They aren¡¯t preparing any food for me.....What wrong? What are they doing? The maids were frozen in ce, staring at my shoulder. I honestly understand you. However, I don¡¯t want to admit it. I will persistently keep my calm until I know I¡¯ve passed the crisis. ¡°Zest, what is that?¡± My master asked with a smile, which made him look rather scary on the contrary. There¡¯s no way I can go through this safely. I already knew that! But I didn¡¯t want to admit it! ¡°The exchange diary.......¡± For me, it looked like a stupid answer. There should¡¯ve been another way to exin this properly. I started exining that the doll figure on my shoulder was in fact the transformed exchange diary. If I were in Japan, I would¡¯ve been hospitalized for sure. Master was looking nkly, but gradually a smile appeared on his face. ¡°I see, this is spiritification! Zest, this is amazing! There was no case of sessful spiritification in this world for 300 years, you know? This calls for a grand celebration!¡± ¡°This is wonderful!¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t just a fairy-tale!¡± ¡°Everyone, this is spiritification! It¡¯s spiritification!!¡± Spiritification? What the hell is that...... The maids who were looking with a discerning eye at the poor living thing on my shoulder changed their expressionspletely. They were looking at us with glittering eyes now. My master started to exin, his face fully covered in smiles. ¡°There is a legend saying that a powerful mage¡¯s personal belongings can gain consciousness and change into spirits. This is a fairy-tale often told to children. ¡®If you treat your belongings with great care, they could turn into spirits ande to your aid, so you must not handle them roughly¡¯ it¡¯s said.¡± I see. They used to have cases of spiritification in the past. It¡¯s all right, it seems I¡¯m not the first one who¡¯s done it. The maids held the exchange diary in their arms, continuously making cheerful noises. Ah! A tiny te was prepared for the little youngdy. They watched the mini youngdy contently eat her meal and started to make merry noises again. Indeed, this thing sure is cute. ¡°It reminds me of her childhood.¡± ¡°She really looks exactly like the youngdy.¡± ¡°Spirit-sama, please try this as well.¡± She¡¯s been thoroughly turned into a mascot. ¡°I never thought I would be able to see a case of spiritification with my own eyes. Zest, you truly are iparably exceptional.¡± Master was in a great mood. Today was the celebration of my spiritification and it rapidly turned into a huge feast worthy of opening the mansion¡¯s wine cer. It was such an aplishment, an auspicious event that must be celebrated. Thest recorded spiritification was 300 years ago, aplished by a healer mage who assisted the gue countering measures. He had a spiritpanion and saved countless people, but after that no other case of spiritification took ce. When a spiritification urs, it signifies the birth of a great mage, the rebirth of a legend, and it would cause a hugemotion. This was what master enthusiastically exined. Somehow, it was different than I expected and even I started to feel delighted. I felt so relieved to see that they didn¡¯t treat me like a pervert who fell in love with a doll...... My whole body started topletely rx and I enjoyed the banquet. I incidentally looked at the exchange diary which was contently eating some cake now. The maids surrounding her were totally enchanted with the mini youngdy and were full of smiles. She really is charming; I should give her a name. I thought about it a bit while drinking some wine. Maybe the youngdy wants to decide on a name too. I¡¯ll just wait until I¡¯m back and discuss the matter together...... I took a bite of the cheesy side-dish. At which point, my slightly drunk master said: ¡°Zest, make sure to bring this child too for the audience!¡± Right......Ipletely forgot I have an audience with the Emperor. Do I really have to enter the pce looking like a pervert in love with dolls?........This will be exactly what those people will think of me....... The cheese seemed saltier than ever. I can taste my tears....... Chapter 33: Audience with His Majesty, the Emperor Chapter 33: Audience with His Majesty, the Emperor (Master, the pce is so big!) ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± (Master, it¡¯s so shiny!) ¡°.....Yeah.¡± We were currently walking inside the pce, on our way to have the audience with the Emperor. The soldier who was guiding us kept on looking over his shoulder sending flickering nces. That¡¯s to be expected considering it was probably his first time seeing a middle-aged guy talking with a doll sitting on his shoulder. ¡°Zest, I know you¡¯re having fun, but don¡¯t be in too high spirits.¡± ¡°Yes, father. I apologize.¡± He was talking like that because there were other people watching. As a free trantion, it would be something like this: ¡®Is spirit-san having fun? However, we must not expose it just yet!¡¯ ¡®I know that already.¡¯ Since it¡¯s about a very rare happening, a legendary spiritification, the first one we must inform of this is his Majesty. Because of that, I had to suffer a bit longer. The exchange diary spirit kept on talking to me. She was clearly excited and very curious and was constantly crying out. Hey, don¡¯t move too much! Your skirt is lifting...... She was wearing the same clothes she had when she first took form. A ck dress made from the same fine leather of the diary¡¯s front cover with beautiful golden decorations here and there and a belt made of the mithril chain coiling around her waist. I was excitedly fixing this cute doll¡¯s skirt. ........The soldier was looking at me with such an obvious face, I was unquestionably a pervert in his eyes. My master, who was walking beside me, turned his face away, shaking lightly. He¡¯s definitelyughing. The soldier was looking at me like I was an ominous ¡®thing¡¯.....a middle-aged guy groping about a little doll figure. And another weird guy looking in the opposite direction and trembling. The maids we¡¯ve encountered along the way were screaming whenever they saw us. And in this manner, we¡¯ve finally arrived in front of the audience room. The soldiers in charge of protecting the gates readied their hands on the swords at their waists for a short moment, but I pretended I haven¡¯t seen that. When the soldier who guided us started to announce our arrival, the gates opened slowly. ¡°Sonia Varnam, the Magic Division Commander of the Varnam Frontier Count¡¯s Household and Lord Zest Varnam.¡± The soldier at the entrance called out. The audience hall seemed full of nobles. We advanced on the extravagant, blue carpet spreading in front of us and when we got to the boundary line that separated the blue colored carpet from the red colored one, we dropped to one knee on the floor and lowered our heads. By the way, if you step on the red carpet, it means a physical ¡®sayonara¡¯. ¡°Raise your heads.¡± I raised my head and looked at the person sitting on the highly elevated throne. He was a strongly built man with short blond hair and blue eyes. This person.....is the Emperor? ¡°Long time no see Sonia, how many years has it been?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s been 5 years. I¡¯m really happy to see you¡¯re doing well, your Majesty.¡± He nodded and turned to look at me. Such incredible pressure...Is this the aura of the person who has reached the top? ¡°So you are Zest?......I see. Now I understand why the Frontier Count¡¯s Household appreciates you so. You have a good expression and great magical power.¡± ¡°Thank you very much for your kind words.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard about the matter with the Imperial Mage and I¡¯ll recognize your duel officially. However, to duel for marriage......It really was like a fairy tale.¡± His Majesty was grinning broadly. It seems I won¡¯t be med now, nothing can topple over the decision of his Majesty, the Emperor. ¡°I am very grateful. I received guidance from my foster father, so.....¡± ¡°Ha ha ha, that¡¯s right. Your foster father is that Galef! If that¡¯s the case, it really can¡¯t be helped.¡± Foster father, what did you do?...... When I mentioned my foster father who married his childhood friend, the Emperor had a burst ofughter. You did something, right? I¡¯ll have ask him when I go back. His Majesty¡¯sughter reached a point where he could pause and one of the nobles took the chance to clear his throat loudly. ¡°I have something to ask, your Majesty.¡± ¡°Prime Minister, talk.¡± It was a middle-aged man with a good physique. So that¡¯s the Prime Minister? ¡°Yes, your Honor! Urm, Lord Zest......Just what is that doll figure sitting on your shoulder? Did you believe that such a joke during your audience with his Majesty will be forgiven?¡± The entire audience hall fell silent. Whispering voices could be heard. ¡°So it wasn¡¯t an optical illusion after all!¡± ¡°Can you see it too?¡± ¡°I thought I drank too muchst night......¡± It became rather noisy. However, his Majesty raised his hand and the hall quieted down again. ¡°Zest, I suppose it has some meaning, right? Tell us.¡± That is actually true. Only a lunatic would so such a thing on a whim. So there was in fact a possibility to be used of rudeness all of a sudden..... No, since my master took care of this matter, he probably made some arrangements. I gently put the exchange diary down on the floor. ¡°This is in fact our book that went through spiritification. Hey, greet his Majesty, the Emperor.¡± The exchange diary walked with tottering steps, raised her little head to look at his Majesty and waved her hand while smiling sweetly. ¡°Given that it¡¯s been only one day since the spiritification took ce, I humbly ask to forgive her rudeness, your Majesty.¡± I quickly bowed my head. Exchange diary! Bow, you have to bow! My wish didn¡¯t reach her...The exchange diary kept on waving her hand towards the Emperor. Yes, she looks very cute, but that¡¯s not the problem here. The audience hall was ruled by deathly silence. The one who broke that silence was the Emperor, who stood up and said: ¡°Send emissaries to every nation! A great hero who aplished spiritification was born in our empire! ! Furthermore, open the national treasury and announce all the people in the imperial capital! We are to prepare for a grand feast!¡± ¡°It¡¯s the return of a hero!¡± ¡°Quick, prepare the fastest horses!¡± ¡°You can use as much money as necessary, we¡¯ll party in grand style!¡± ¡°Tell everyone to start the preparations. Holidays are to be postponed.¡± The audience hallpletely transformed into a beehive. I gently brushed the head of the exchange diary, who got scared because of all this unfolding uproar. At thiste hour I came to realize once again what an amazing feat spiritification was. ¡°Zest, be prepared. The banquet is going tost three days straight!¡± I didn¡¯t have the necessary energy to answer my smiling master....... Chapter 34: Secret Meeting with the Emperor Chapter 34: Secret Meeting with the Emperor ¡°Well done, Zest. I will also reward your achievements.¡± The audience hall has already lost half its people. And when the noise has finally settled down, that¡¯s what his Majesty said to me. A great achievement not seen for 300 years. Because I aplished this spiritificitation, the ns for a grand banquet are already in motion, but before that, for the situation to conclude properly, I must be rewarded too, it seems. ¡°Thank you, your Honor. I am really grateful for your kind words.¡± The Emperor nodded in satisfaction. ¡°Look forward to it. Later, I will announce it during the state ceremony, when I will show your face to our people, on the pce¡¯s terrace.¡± Ah! I have to think about it for now, so wait a little......Is that what he meant? This achievement is rather big so he might have to consult his people first, before deciding on a proper reward, or so I figured. ¡°Your wish, your Majesty.¡± After the Emperor took his leave, the Prime Minister approached us. ¡°Both of you, his Majesty wishes to meet with you in private. Please follow me.¡± So he has something to say that couldn¡¯t have been said in the audience hall, therefore he requested a secret meeting, huh? ¡°Understood. Let¡¯s go, Zest.¡± ¡°Yes, father.¡± Anyway, there was no other option but epting. I made the exchange diary sit on my shoulder again and followed after the Prime Minister. The pce¡¯s corridors were like a battlefield. With the Prime Minister in the lead, we had preferential ess, however the maids and the soldiers were busilying and going, an absurd uproar was reverberating inside this otherwise refined pce. ¡°We¡¯re short of hands in the assembly hall. You five,e with me.¡± ¡°I called the maids who were taking the day off!¡± ¡°Go in the town and buy up some sake. Hurry!¡± Yeah, this is a battlefield.....I¡¯m really sorry I¡¯ve caused this. The exchange diary was grabbing and pulling my hair when we arrived in front of the room in question. The Prime Minister opened the door and entered. It looked like a council room. It only had a huge desk and a few chairs, and we sat down where the Prime Minister indicated. Waiting in a corner of the room was an old.....wrong, young-ish maid, who started preparing the tea. She red at me shortly and I felt like she could read my mind. It felt awful.... The Prime Minister waited for her to finish the preparations then opened his mouth to talk. ¡°Well, long time no see, Lord Sonia. I figure that Lord Zest doesn¡¯t even know my name yet, so let me introduce myself.....My name is Ark and I am serving as the Prime Minister. You can call me Prime Minister or Prime Minister Ark.¡± ¡°I am Zest. Pleased to make your acquaintance.¡± I stood up and bowed. ¡°Ah, you can sit. And you know......¡± ¡®Bang¡¯ The door was heroically opened and the Emperor entered. ¡°I¡¯ve made you wait. You¡¯re all here.¡± We stood up once again and bowed. ¡°It¡¯s all right. Sitfortably. For this precise reason I wanted a private meeting.¡± He hurried to the seat of honor, sat on the chair and waved his hand. We took a seat as well. He drank some ck tea and turned his head to look at us. ¡°Oh! Does spirit-dono want to drink something too? Zest, what is it that she prefers?¡± (Master, I want to drink that.) ¡°Yes, it seems she was interested for a while now in that fruit water.¡± I felt embarrassed, but I answered nheless. Spirit-dono?......Only the Emperor could have address her like that. The maid prepared a small cup and the exchange diary started gulping repetitively. The exchange diary is drinking juice. Even if I say so myself, it only sounds like the utterance of an insane man. ¡°Good. Now that I look at her closely, she¡¯s undoubtedly a spirit. Really now Sonia, you¡¯ve brought me an utterly shocking souvenir.¡± His Majesty was staring at the exchange diary, smiling bitterly. ¡°That¡¯s right, your Majesty. However, she only got bornst night, we didn¡¯t really intend to....¡± ¡°I know, this is not something that you can actually n for. On the contrary, it¡¯s just the right development, since this will be settled with Zest¡¯s reward and debut.¡± Oh, right. Indeed, as the wall that¡¯s protecting the empire, the Frontier Count¡¯s Household is indispensable. Compared to the likes of that noble pig that caused unnecessary trouble, I, who am already epted into the family of the Frontier Count, am more worthy of deepening our rtionships. So this is your ulterior motive, huh? ¡°I understand. I am a son of the Gaiyus¡¯ Household and a future husband in the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. And ultimately, the shield of the empire.¡± ¡®In any case, you¡¯ve already investigated my background, right? Still, now that I¡¯m a noble too, I don¡¯t intend to oppose the empire, you know.¡¯ That would be a free trantion of my spoken words. The Emperor and the Prime Minister were grinning broadly and nodded. ¡°That¡¯s to be expected of the husband the Frontier Count acknowledged.¡± ¡°If he¡¯s like this, then everything¡¯s good. He seems to understand the inner workings of the nobility as well.¡± All I could sense was a bad premonition, but I didn¡¯t dare to ask further. You¡¯re happier in this world when you don¡¯t know too many things. That¡¯s a fact. I gently brushed the exchange diary¡¯s hair and feigned ignorance. Haha, this thing sure is cute......She¡¯s so docile, even though she looks exactly like the youngdy. I freely admired the exchange diary. However, I was only trying to escape reality in the end. My master, who was watching the scene, had his face covered in smiles as well. Did he remember the youngdy in her childhood or something? ¡°Haha, you, Zest, are really something else. So, you bring up the spirit at this point?¡± ........What? ¡°You sure y your cards in a bold manner, maybe due to your youthfulness. But you are daring. Your Majesty, I think everything will be all right.¡± ........What are you talking about? ¡°Ah! You calm yourself down and bring up the spirit to threaten us slightly. You are quite the schemer.¡± .........Everyone, what exactly are you talking about, wearing those eerie smiles? ¡°I¡¯ve decided! Zest, I will give you the title of the 1st Rank Imperial Mage.¡± I don¡¯t understand what you¡¯re saying. It probably would have been better to say these words out loud, but I swallowed deeply and continued to brush the exchange diary¡¯s hair. Chapter 35: Quiet Talk – The Unknown Soldiers Chapter 35: Quiet Talk ¨C The Unknown Soldiers ¡°Oi, did you hear? It¡¯s about the Knights Commander¡¯s son.¡± ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ve heard. Did he really finish off all the new recruits single handedly?¡± ¡°It seems so. This time he will practice with us, the regr soldiers.¡± Inside the Frontier Count¡¯s army¡¯s cafeteria, this conversation was taking ce. Not only these three, but all the other soldiers were in a trance, talking about the same subject. Their training was not ordinary. When speaking of regr training, what do you think it happens when a noble gets hurt? The answer in simple. The best case scenario would mean imprisonment, the worst would mean death penalty. This is a generally spread ideology in this world in which the lives ofmoners are pretty much casually considered. Then, do they gossip about this because they feel fear? The answer is: You¡¯ll understand once you know about the unique tradition of the Frontier Count¡¯s army. ¡°We should probably go now, guys.¡± ¡°Right. If we¡¯rete, we¡¯ll have a very hard time.¡± The regr soldiers, also known as ¡®The ck Knights¡¯ were going towards the training grounds. Out of the 5000 soldiers in the Frontier Count¡¯s army, only 500 are called ck knights. You might think that¡¯s surprisingly a lot? Or maybe too few? Every year, up to 500moners who aspire to enter the army are chosen and trained until the numbers decrease. And these 500 people are thoroughly bullied for half a year. They must train even while eating, be woken up randomly at night for nocturnal attacks training. If any of them copses, the other ones undergo first aid training while carrying him away, then return to the regr training. However, if you say you want to quit, you can easily return to your normal lifestyle. They won¡¯t chase after the ones who leave. Their number is halved in but a week, and in a month, there are only about 100 people left. Truth be told, if there are 10 people who can hold for half a year, it is said to be quite a lot. Only after one endures this rigorous training, is one finally epted into the Frontier Count¡¯s army. These 5000 people have all put up with that brutal training. And among them, only a handful are called ck knights. And these ck knights have a very simple, single rule for their training: ¡®During training, there¡¯s no distinction in social status.¡¯ Only this. That¡¯s precisely why not many nobles aspire to be ck knights. They can of course enroll as ck knights without going through the brutal initial training. However, they would be thoroughly knocked down during the regr one. Revenge is also forbidden. If by any chance a case of revenge is discovered, the one who did it and his entire family would be eliminated. The ck Knights Commander and the other ck knights will carry on the task and be the executioners. Obviously, the nobles get special treatment even in thends governed by the Frontier Count, but once a noble bes a ck knight, it¡¯s impossible to receive favorable treatment anymore. That alone, makes people admire the knights wearing ck equipment and it also bes the elite soldiers¡¯ source of pride. Even amoner can acquire the privileges of an average noble. Therefore, all the men living in thends of the Frontier Count, dream of bing ck knights and rise up their social status. And these ck knights were waiting impatiently for the rumored son of the Knights Commander to join their training. There was only one thing they all thought about. ¡®We¡¯ll wee him if he¡¯s strong. In case he¡¯s weak, we¡¯ll thoroughly knock him down and drive him out.¡¯ And then, the man in question showed up...... ¡°What, I see you¡¯ve already drawn your swords? It¡¯s great you¡¯re serious about this though. Oh yeah, you can use any weapon you¡¯re good at. Spears, axes, use whatever you like. In case you don¡¯t die, I¡¯ll make sure to fix you, so feel free to charge at me.¡± The gentle man smiled and prepared his stance while saying these words. One enraged ck knight charged in slicing about with his sword, but his arm got cut off and sent flying. Everyone is his surroundings was starting to panic........His arm disappeared, just like that. Scary. Were they frightened they might get killed? Nope, it¡¯s slightly different. They were actually scared of not being able to fight as soldiers anymore. ¡°Is it really over once your arm gets cut off? Is your other arm just for decoration, you fool? You still have your legs attached too. If you all run and charge at me like this, you¡¯ll just give me the chance to bring down some of yourrades. Start again.¡± Said the gentle looking man, holding one hand out. The next moment, the soldier¡¯s arm waspletely fixed. ¡°Even though there¡¯s a limit to what I can do with magic, I already told you that as long as you don¡¯t die, I can fix you back. Now, charge at me again.¡± The man said and smiled. A gentle person? Absolutely not! This guy was a monster. A monster we want to rule over us, thought the knights. ¡°Hahaha, this is the best training ever! Oi, surround him! You let him keep smiling like that and you still dare to call yourselves ck knights!?¡± The ck knights were all wearing warlike smiles. Because they too don¡¯t really function as normal human beings, they ended up acknowledging a monster-like man. They all had weird smiles on their faces and poured their everything into this battle. When the monster saw this, he as well smiled in a simr manner..... ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Cheers! ! !¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° These battle maniacs were having a party in a bar. ¡°Wow, Zest-sama, you really are strong! I lost my arms three times, you know!¡± ¡°Hahaha, your attacks were too obvious and too many. You must proceed with more discretion.¡± ¡°It seems Zest-sama was used to fighting against spears.¡± ¡°Well yeah, I was taught by the Knights Division Commander and the Magic Division Commander after all!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°.........I¡¯ll be damned........¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°.......You¡¯re all charming little thingspared to those two.¡± ¡°That is so right......¡± ¡°Those two, huh?.....¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t be able to manage those two......¡± ¡°It must¡¯ve been hell......¡± The knights were cheerfully talking. ¡°Well, everything¡¯s fine once you get used to it! Anyway, leaving aside all formalities, everyone, eat and drink to your hearts¡¯ content!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Thank you! !¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° After repeating such trainings and drinking parties over and over again, the soldiers started to recognize the monster as their boss. However, the conclusive reason was something else.... ¡°Zest-sama, I am not thirsty. Why don¡¯t you understand, I wonder? As I thought, I¡¯m better off walking alone.¡± ¡°Hahaha, you¡¯re really cute, Bea. Look, they sell cookies over there! Do you want some?¡± ¡°Wow, formidable. He¡¯s escorting the unpleasant looking youngdy around.......¡± ¡°Hey! What¡¯s cute about that kind of face?¡± ¡°Yeah, the youngdy, she¡¯s obviously angry.......¡± ¡°Holy smokes! He caressed the youngdy¡¯s hair!?¡± ¡°Hii! The youngdy looks scary!!¡± ¡°He....he¡¯s gonna get killed!¡± ¡°As I thought, that man is amazing.¡± ¡°Yeah, no one can touch the youngdy without some serious guts.¡± ¡°And there¡¯s more. ording to the maids¡¯ gossip, they meet every day.¡± ¡° ¡°So he goes through that every single day???¡± ¡° This was the real reason the ck knight acknowledged him. It wasn¡¯t known just yet, but the reason for their approval was in fact the result of sneaking a few nces at his date with the youngdy........ After a few years, the ck knights mustered the courage to speak their minds about it, at which point: ¡°What? Bea is actually very obedient and cute. Going on dates with her is really rewarding. I¡¯m good to go every day.¡± He drank and talked like it was really nothing out of the ordinary, but the knights got unnecessarily frightened and pledged loyalty to him once again. Chapter 36: The Emperor’s Decision Chapter 36: The Emperor¡¯s Decision ¡°1st Rank.......Imperial Mage?¡± Damn it.....I asked his Majesty in return. ¡°I am very sorry.¡± I panicked and lowered my head. I can¡¯t possibly question the decision of the Emperor...If I put him in an inferior position I would lose my head. Not only would I lose my ¡®job¡¯.....It basically means I would lose my head physically. (1) ¡°It¡¯s all right, maybe you didn¡¯t hear me properly the first time. I will make you the 1st Rank Imperial Mage.¡± It seems I was saved this time.....God, this was dangerous. ¡°Thank you, your Majesty, I will do as you wish.¡± ¡°Ah! We¡¯re not in the audience hall, you don¡¯t have to be this stiff. Once you be the 1st Rank you¡¯ll be a marquis, you can talk more informally with me.¡± His Majestyughed wildly. Then.....No, I can¡¯t actually do that. I grasped the situation and decided to keep my distance. ¡°Thank you, I will do as you please.¡± ¡°Good. You¡¯re still stiff but I guess you¡¯ll get used to it soon. Anyway, that¡¯s all I wanted to tell you for now. The banquet starts tonight so be at ease......oh! That might be impossible, right? Just, don¡¯t let the nobles catch you! Hahaha¡± We bowed to the Emperor who left the room,ughing heartily. The 1st Rank Imperial Mage, huh?......It¡¯s too much of a ¡®promotion¡¯ all of a sudden.......He actually meant I should be careful for other noble¡¯s envy and ttery. ¡°Well, that¡¯s it. There¡¯s still a little bit of time until the official announcement, which will take ce after the three day long banquet will finish. You¡¯ll have toply with this.¡± The Prime Minister left the room in a hurry as well. After all, he had to take care of a national level affair all of a sudden, there¡¯s no degree to this man¡¯s engagement with his work....... Only my master and I were left. We thought about going back to the mansion, but the maid told us to remain in the pce. I requested for someone to send word to our mansion, and I went to rest for a while in the room prepared for me. I was worried that the nobles woulde to my room while I was resting there, but it seemed it wasn¡¯t really the case. Because there¡¯s a national event in preparation all of a sudden, it wasn¡¯t really the time for visits. Thanks to that, I was able to take my time and rest. ¡°However, master. If I be the 1st Rank Imperial Mage, will I have to work in the imperial capital?¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right. Normally, that would be the case, but the Frontier Count¡¯s Household is an exception. It would be troublesome if you can¡¯t be on the front lines in case of a war, you know? Originally, the title of imperial mage was alternately bestowed, and everyone who had it was supposed to work in the Frontier Count¡¯s Fortress.¡± ¡°Then, instead of staying at the fortress, I will live inside the Frontier Count¡¯s territories......Will the things be no different from how they¡¯ve been until now?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. It actually works for us too.¡± I see. If that¡¯s the case, I¡¯m fine with this as well. The only thing that¡¯ll change is my title. (Master, I want some tea too.) ¡°Ok, but it¡¯s hot. Be careful.¡± The spirit started drinking her tea from a small cup. I decided I¡¯ll call her ¡®spirit¡¯ for now. I¡¯ve never seen another spirit before and if I call her ¡®exchange diary¡¯ my head would be in a state of chaos. Once I¡¯m back, I¡¯ll talk to Bea and decide on a proper name. ¡°Haha, she really looks exactly like Bea. It¡¯s so nostalgic.¡± ¡°Bea¡¯s childhood? Tell me more about it, master.¡± My master smiled pleasantly and corrected his posture on the chair. ¡°All right. Well, where should I start? When she was born, she was thiiiiis small, you know, and I really worried she was a fleeting existence that would break at any moment. However, maybe because of her nursing mother she quickly grew bigger, you know, and when she was 2 years and 5 months old she.....¡± It seems I stepped on and mine......I kept on answering him once in a while, but I ended up ignoring himpletely....... ¡°.......she did that and then......¡± ......Master, there¡¯s still more? As one would expect, I was already pretty dispirited. And then, as if the God himself answered my prayers, someone knocked at the door. ¡°Enter.¡± ¡°Excuse me.¡± I¡¯m saved......Thank you, maid-san, thank you so very much. Master, don¡¯t look so regretful. My stomach is already full. ¡°Everything is set, please follow me.¡± We were led to a room inside the pce. It was apletely crammed dining hall. It had extravagant furnishings and it seemed it was ready for the dinner party. So for the opening day, we had a banquet only for the Imperial household, for the second day there was a banquet for nobles, and for the third day, an open party on the parade grounds where anyone could attend to. This was the schedule. Since I wanted to know about what was going to happen, I asked the maid a little while ago. Today¡¯s attendees were only his Majesty the Emperor and the Empress. There are a few princes and princesses, but they could not participate without prior notice. Was it in sign of concern for us or simply a precaution? I don¡¯t really know, but I¡¯m d. Since I was really nervous, I dly weed the small number of people. Their Majesties were waiting for us. Because we were guests to their dinner party, it was natural for their Majesties who invited us to be there earlier. ¡°Thank you very much for inviting us today.¡± My master greeted and I lowered my head as well. ¡°Leave aside the formalities for tonight,e and sit.¡± We sat on the indicated seats and my eyes stopped on the Empress. Was she in herte 20s? She was a kind looking beautiful woman with blond hair and blue eyes. Standing next to his Majesty, they would make for a wonderful picture, a good looking man and a good looking woman....such a foul ybination. ¡°She is Empress Natasha. Natasha, you already know Sonia, right? The one next to him is Zest, Sonia¡¯s son-inw and the next 1st Rank Imperial Mage.¡± With a wonderful smile, she opened her mouth to speak. ¡°I¡¯m Natasha. It¡¯s been a long time, Lord Sonia. I¡¯m happy to meet you, Lord Zest. And this is spirit-sama?¡± (Master, do I have to bow?) ¡°It¡¯s been a long time, your Majesty, I¡¯m really sorry for my long silence.¡± ¡°I¡¯m very pleased to meet you, your Majesty. I am Zest. Now, you have to bow.¡± The spirit lowered her head obediently. Yes, she¡¯s very cute. This little thing, her entire behavior is charming to the extreme. ¡°Haha, since there¡¯s a small number of people at this dinner party, you can simply call me Natasha. Spirit-sama is so adorable. Can she eat?¡± (Master, I want to eat.) ¡°You want to eat, I see. Then please, Natasha-sama.¡± For some reason, next to Natasha-sama, a set of small tableware was prepared. ¡°Well, spirit-sama, it¡¯s all ready. Come and eat.¡± The Empress, her face covered in smiles, was watching the spirit. The spirit sent me a ce. I nodded and she smiled broadly then started to eat. ¡°Well, well, isn¡¯t she lovely?¡± Yes, Natasha-sama was already caught in the charms of the spirit. I¡¯ll leave things at that for now. ¡°Now, since spirit-dono seems to enjoy herself too, shall we start?¡± Thus, the dinner party began. I¡¯ll be honest. It was extremely tiring. I had to pay attention at my eating speed, since making sounds while eating would have been rather nasty. I couldn¡¯t even feel the taste of my food...... It can¡¯t be helped, I¡¯m a Japanese after all. I¡¯ve only used a fork and knife when I went to family restaurants. Midway, his Majesty the Emperor has fallen for the spirit¡¯s charms too, and it was fortunate that he stopped being so vignt about it. Even so, it was so tiring.....I so wanted to grab that piece of meat with my bare hands and eat it like that..... Once the dinner party ended, we were moved to a lounge close to our previous location and we started making conversations while drinking tea. It was annoying. It¡¯s not allowed to talk during the meal, I already knew that. Only after changing the room was it allowed to do so. I already want to forget the conversations we had in that lounge. ¡°So, what was spirit-dono¡¯s origin?¡± ¡°..........An exchange diary.¡± Pffu. Did Natasha-sama just spout? ¡°An.....an exchange diary, you say?¡± Your Majesty, you can¡¯t withstand this either, huh? ¡°It¡¯s something you and Bea wrote in everyday, right, Zest?¡± Master, please be silent. After all, I ended up severely teased on the subject of the youngdy. My face was so hot I thought it would burst into mes. It was alreadyte at night when I was finally able to return to the room that was prepared for me. They even prepared a bed for the little spirit. The pce maids sure are serious about their job. The moment I got into my soft bed I was attacked by drowsiness. Ah! I wanna go home already. Oh! When should I go buy the souvenirs?.... I¡¯ll think about it tomorrow.....Good night... ¡°Lord Zest! Please have a match with me!! Lord Zest ~ !!!¡± My waking that morning was the worst.....Who the hell is it?......This early in the morning...... (1) The author makes a word y with the word ¥¯¥Ó£¨Ê×£©which basically means neck/head, but it also means to be fired (lose one¡¯s job). Chapter 37: Morning Sparring? Chapter 37: Morning Sparring? When ites to wake-up calls, I want the maids doing them. In the morning, I like to be woken up by the sweet smile of a girl; I was reluctant to move so the guy said to me: ¡°Come on, you sure like sleeping inte.¡± And poked me repeatedly. What pained me the most was to wake up to the sound of a man¡¯s angry voice. I am devastatingly bad when ites to waking, you know? I have no idea who you are, but I¡¯m going to hit you until you¡¯re dead. Annoyed, I got up in order to change my clothes when a maid jumped in my room. ¡°Ah! I...I¡¯m sorry for not knocking. I tried to stop him, but that knight kept on saying he wanted to spar with Zest-sama and rushed inside......¡± The maid lowered her head hastily. ¡°I see, don¡¯t worry about it. I¡¯ll go out once I¡¯m dressed, so wait a bit.¡± ¡°Certainly.¡± She opened the door and gave some orders in a low voice. In the next instant, she approached me and helped me put on my clothes. Obviously, this is not something I would need help for. But letting the maids assist you is another nobles¡¯ rule. Honestly now, what idiot intruded on me so early in the morning, bbering about having a match with me...... The maid said he was a knight, but he can¡¯t possibly have the status of a normal knight. If a simple knight assaulted me, a noble, without any prior appointment, requesting something like a match against me, no one wouldin when he gets killed. Then, a highly ranked noble? No, if that was the case, the maid would have recognized him. All the maids working inside the pce are elites, there¡¯s no way she wouldn¡¯t have recognized the guy¡¯s face. Then was it a middle ranked noble?......It actually could be. Since my position as the 1st Rank Imperial Mage is not yet made known to the public, maybe it was a baron or a viscount...... This will be troublesome. I finished changing my clothes, let out a long sigh and opened the door. ¡°You suddenly turn up early in the morning, what the hell do you......Hm?¡± I looked around the room, but there was no one inside. He wasn¡¯t sitting on the chair either. I saw there was tea prepared for him on the table, so I¡¯m sure the guy was around until moments ago, but it seems he had left. I looked over my shoulder at the maid, but she seemed disturbed by this scene too. Unexpectedly, I came into contact with something soft and warm, on my shoulder. By the way, she smells really good. (Good morning, Master.) ¡°Morning. You¡¯re in a good mood, it seems.¡± The spirit smiled, her face was beaming. All that annoyance I felt minutes ago waspletely gone; my heart got warmer. (Yes! Since a noisy man showed up when Master was sleeping, I silenced him. Praise me!) ........You silenced......him? ¡°Thanks, you did great. And where is that noisy guy now, if I may ask?¡± I was pretty frightened so I made sure to ask in a gentle tone. (Ehehe, I connected to the water fountain inside the city and threw him away. Master, stroke my head, please!) ¡°Yeah, good. Isn¡¯t breakfast ready yet? Let¡¯s go eat together.¡± Trembling, I sat down and started brushing the spirit¡¯s hair gently. I¡¯ll make sure not to provoke her in the future....... My feelings are gradually taking over me, I really must be careful about it. I decided, and continued to caress the smiling miniature youngdy spirit. I made up my mind not to think about the knight who got thrown away. Since it was the spirit who did it, it can¡¯t be helped. I¡¯ll be sure to push through with this. After I finished eating, I looked over the letters some nobles sent me. Who do I meet first? Where will we meet? I came to the conclusion that I¡¯ll have to consult with my master before deciding on such matters. There are some nobles affiliated with the Frontier Count¡¯s Household, so I can¡¯t choose the order as I please. After all, I¡¯ve spent all my afternoon choosing the right order. I¡¯d rather just do it randomly, but the noble society won¡¯t forgive such a thing. It¡¯s truly annoying. I let out a sigh of relief, and without losing any more time, a maid came to pick me up. The second banquet: A meeting with all the nobles in the imperial capital. By the way, the entire city was celebrating. Food and sake was distributed free of charge for anybody on the streets, so it was like a huge festival. Must be hard for the soldiers maintaining the public order right now, but it¡¯s all right. Tomorrow is their time to party after all. The maid led me to the hall¡¯s main guests¡¯ entrance. At his Majesty¡¯s signal, the door would open and I would step in. Master was already there; he came in from another entrance. Since the main guests tonight were me and the spirit, there was nothing to be done. The door opened slowly. Well now, let¡¯s get ready for a nice session of probing each other, my dear nobles! I stroked the spirit¡¯s head once more as I started to walk. ¡°Oh! Is that the spirit?¡± ¡°The new 1st Rank is surprisingly young.¡± ¡°It seems he doesn¡¯t have any concubines yet.¡± ¡°Hee? Is he allowed to wear ck clothes?¡± ¡°Hmm....Such a snob.¡± The banquet hall was full of such whispers. As I was chatting with his Majesty, mostly rascals gathered around me. During a party, a man can¡¯t approach a woman who he¡¯s never met before. First, her father or another male rtive muste to talk with me, and only after that will I be introduced to thedy. It¡¯s always like this. Again, annoyingly enough, there¡¯s a rule for court ranks too. Those with a lower rank are not allowed to start a conversation with those superior to them. It¡¯s not yet official, but his Majesty already told them that I¡¯ll be the next 1st Rank Imperial Mage. And so, they treat me like a marquis now. The only ones I can freely talk with, at a first encounter, are the members of the imperial family, the dukes and the male marquises. Without this rule, all parties would see some corpses. By doing nothing but greeting the several hundred nobles here, my head was already hurting. As per the imperial capital¡¯s rules, the only ones I can meet and talk to freely are the members of the imperial family. Normally, dukes and marquises are the top figures of the empire¡¯s territories, so they are scattered to various ced. That¡¯s why, everyone was starring from the distance; all they could do was wait for me to start a conversation with them. Again, that¡¯s why, all I could hear was whispers. ¡°Oh, right. Zest, let me introduce you to my daughter. She¡¯s Tsubaki.¡± Tsubaki?.....Is that the Japanese Camellia? I remember them saying that long ago, there was a stranger hero who came from another world. ¡°I am d to meet you, Zest, the next 1st Rank. I am Tsubaki. I hear that it¡¯s the name of the flower the legendary hero-sama loved.¡± She lifted her dress a little and bend her knee lightly. This very sweet youngdy, who seemed to be around 10, was the spit image of the Empress. She might have felt nervous thought, since her smile was pretty stiff. ¡°Thank you for your courteous greeting, your Highness, Princess Tsubaki. I am Zest. The spirit doesn¡¯t have a name yet, but would you give us the honor of greeting her too?¡± She offered the spirit a grandiose greeting, like she was an actress in a y, then she smiled broadly, quite childishly. Hehe, kids sure are lovely. ¡°Yes, I don¡¯t mind. Spirit-sama, nice to meet you. I¡¯m Tsubaki.....My name is Tsubaki.¡± She corrected herself; despite being so young she really acts splendidly. My face became loose without even realizing. A little girl is giving her best to do the greeting properly....Isn¡¯t this a charming spectacle? The spirit seemed to like Princess Tsubaki too, so she jumped in the air and flew towards me, only to stop in front of my eyes. Imitating the young girl, she bowed in courtesy and smiled sweetly. When Princess Tsubaki saw this, her face covered in smiles; she seemed to get hooked on the spirit too. (Did I do it right, Master?) ¡°Yea, you did great.¡± I gently brushed her hair and she narrowed her eyes just like a cat; she seemed to enjoy it greatly. Haha, she¡¯s too cute. In thisfortable atmosphere, my master joined us and we departed in order to make the courtesy calls. However, Princess Tsubaki didn¡¯t want to leave the spirit¡¯s side, so we had to let her apany us. And so, we couldn¡¯t go greet all the nobles we had nned to. His Majesty is too indulgent when ites to his little girl.....I quite understand him though. Thanks to her presence, the nobles could not talk about intricate matters, so it all ended with a few courtesy greetings. On the contrary, it was rather helpful for me. After we finished with the greetings, we sat on the seats prepared for us near the wall. I couldn¡¯t get tired of gazing at the spirit and the Princess ying together, and in this manner the party was reaching its closure time. ¡°I¡¯m more than happy to see that everyone enjoyed this evening and warmly weed the birth of the new 1st Rank. We, as well, must strive for the well-being of our empire.¡± With his Majesty¡¯s words, the banquet came to an end. It ended just like that and all I did was mostly y with Princess Tsubaki. However, I was more than happy with this development. Because I was able to avoid the nobles¡¯ probing and scheming.... Escorting Princess Tsubaki, I passed through the main guests¡¯ door, moment in which she revealed a voluptuous smile, not an inch of childishness in it, and whispered: ¡°Zest-sama, thank you for keeping mepany the entire evening. The nobles are sending us their blessings.¡± The Imperial Household¡¯s women, even though small, they sure are scary...... Did she just frame me?.......My stomach hurts....... Chapter 38: A Secret Affair Chapter 38: A Secret Affair After I realized Princess Tsubaki had nonchntly framed me, I returned to my room stumblingly. The Imperial Household most likely thinks something like this: to try to get on closer terms with me and deepen our rtionships, and if possible, seal our connection through a marriage. Frightening, this Imperial Household..... Despite being so little, the girl sure has a crafty mind..... I returned to my room in order to take a bath and try to forget about this evening. This part of the castle is reserved for guests, so each room has its own bathroom. As a Japanese person, this is much appreciated. The maids helped me remove my clothes and I entered the bathtub. They must help ¡®stripping¡¯ me, washing me and wiping my body dry. It is indeed embarrassing, but I got used to it, surprisingly. There are some shops in Japan that offer customers simr services, and since I¡¯m an old guy, I¡¯ve already experienced such shops; they were rather good actually. The one washing my body was the old......urm, the ¡®young¡¯ maid. She¡¯s ring at me again.....Can you really read my thoughts? ¡°Zest-sama, I can¡¯t wash you properly like this. Excuse me for a moment. Hihi¡± The maid showed a bewitching expression. Wait a second, if I¡¯m unfaithful the pink diamond will break. If that really happens, I¡¯m pretty much sure that something very, very bad would befall onto me. Then, do I make her stop? I have the feeling that I might regret it...... In an instant, my head started spinning from all my conflicting thoughts. I never thought that such an erotic development would ur all of a sudden; as one would expect from a different world. However, lovemaking or my life, when thinking about which is more important to me, the answer is really simple. I smiled sweetly and stoked the maid¡¯s hair. She twitched and her body started to tremble as she opened her eyes to look at me. ¡°Because you are wonderful, it¡¯s only natural for things to be like this. I won¡¯t ask you to forgive me, but you should stop this. However, I might not be able to stop at this point, so would you please leave me alone for a while?¡± Her face bright red, she nodded several times and left the bathroom. I made sure she did and looked fixedly at my right hand. The feeling of her thin hair was still imprinted on my right hand. ¡°Ah!.....Why do people feel the need to wage wars? World peace brings me happiness, you know?.... I pray that, at least tonight, everyone will dream some wonderful, happy dreams......¡± (Master, you seem refreshed. Did something good happen?) The spirit and I, we both left the bathroom and were currently drinking tea while being d in matching bathrobes. As you could guess, I was feeling rather wise at the moment. I had the feeling I could forgive anything. ¡°That which is good for me, for you would be aughing matter.¡± I brushed her hair gently. The spirit really likes me doing this, and since I enjoy it too, it was a reciprocal feeling. ¡°Come now, it¡¯s alreadyte. Let¡¯s go to bed.....Thank you for the trouble, you can leave now.¡± ¡°Yes. Good night, Zest-sama.¡± The ¡®young¡¯ maid¡¯s face was still flushed. Was it that it¡¯s been a while since someone caressed her hair like that? I¡¯m sure she has someone who.....I should stop, I don¡¯t want to die just yet. I put the spirit in her bed and felt I was at my limit too. There won¡¯t be any assaults tomorrow morning, right? At least, I hope a woman would wake me up. While thinking about that, I fell asleep. Strange. I can¡¯t breathe. I was bing more and more aware. I wonder what¡¯s going on? I¡¯m sure I was sleeping inside the castle, in my own bed...... Am I ill? Impossible. I heard that, because of my light attribute, I have some sort of divine protection that won¡¯t let me be sick. Was I attacked then? My hands and feet......I can still move them, and they seem all right. If that¡¯s the case, it seems I¡¯m not immobilized. I kept my eyes closed and my mouth shut and pretended I was still asleep, in order to put up a n and wait for the other party¡¯s negligence. I strengthened my whole body with magical power, so I could still defend myself in case they decided to cut at me without warning. How about the smell? I breathed in and I could smell a sweet, floral scent. Did they burn some herbs to inflict me some damage? Haha, I bet they didn¡¯t know it won¡¯t have any effect on me.....These attackers sure are stupid. Still? Why, then, do I feel like I can¡¯t breathe? When I opened my eyes, I could clearly see that precise pitch ckness. This....! So this was the cause!? Oh snap! (Master, good morning.) ¡°Morning, spirit. Get down from my nose, and make it fast. My nose is not your chair, you know?¡± This blockhead was sitting on top on my nose....... Hey God, when I asked you I want to be woken up by a girl, this is not what I had on my mind. As I was getting dressed and finished breakfast, I kept on lecturing the spirit to never do that again. Seemingly, the spirit woke up early, changed her clothes and waited for me to wake up too. When she saw I wasn¡¯t really waking up, she got bored and started to y, but she no idea when I was going to awake. In order to clearly see the moment when I was to awake, she came closer to my face, climbed it and decided that my nose would be the perfect ce to properly observe me. So, she sat on it...... Since I took pity on the spirit, who was about to start crying from all my lecturing, I brushed her hair and praised her: ¡®Still, it¡¯s admirable you managed to change clothes by yourself. I¡¯m happy you waited for me to wake up.¡¯ She started smiling broadly the next instant. .......She¡¯s such a simpleton. Well, it seems I wasn¡¯t actually under attack, so as long as it¡¯s still peaceful around here, I¡¯ll cut her some ck. .......However, she smells really good......I have a feeling she smells exactly like the youngdy. It¡¯s just a hunch though. It¡¯s absolutely not like I was sniffing the youngdy or something, absolutely not. I was about to start crying at my realization that I was in fact quite the pervert, when my master came to visit. ¡°Zest, the knights say they want to train, so won¡¯t youe along too?¡± Just the right timing. I shall vent my frustrations on them and change my mood. ¡°I will apany you with pleasure, master.¡± We arrived at the training ground, but one section of it was under preparation for tonight¡¯s banquet, so it couldn¡¯t be used. Even so, there was still more than enough space for more than 1000 people to move around leisurely. That¡¯s the imperial capital for you. They aren¡¯t superficial at least. I was looking around restlessly and master, who was inspecting me, started tough. Since the maids wanted to observe our training too, we brought them along, and the spirit rapidly turned into their toy. The maids were very affectionate towards her. All in all, it was a rather strange group of people. ¡°Oi! What the hell are you thinking, bringing women to y at this training ground?¡± A man wearing a remarkably extravagant armor shouted from up close, ming us. ttering, he was approaching us, his face growing more and more pale, his pace getting faster. He was already sprinting when he arrived in front of us, and he started breathing heavily while bowing his head. ¡°I¡¯m...I¡¯m terribly sorry. I didn¡¯t realize you were from the Frontier Count¡¯s Household......¡± ¡°....Well, it¡¯s quite unusual for highly ranked nobles to visit the training grounds, I suppose.¡± ¡°Yes. However, father, doesn¡¯t heck consideration?¡± I wanted toin some more to my master, who was already in his Frontier Count¡¯s Household mode, but I endured it. In actuality, I didn¡¯t really want to rant about such a trivial thing. I could¡¯ve simply killed him on the spot for being impolite. I could¡¯ve ended it easily, but since it was a special time, I decided it wasn¡¯t really necessary. The still alivemanding officer, as he named himself, kept on bowing and asking for forgiveness. It was already decided that he was to be forgiven, but if we let him off too easily, people would start to make light of us. I was observing the situation, thinking about what to do next, when that guy showed up. He had such a wonderful timing. ¡°I¡¯ve finally found you! Come now, Lord Zest! I wish to have a fight with you!!¡± A secluded voice could be heard from inside the full-te armor.....It was that guy the spirit sent away flying. Good. This was the moment when I¡¯ve decided that this guy would be the perfect object of my venting. Chapter 39: Sparring at the Training Ground Chapter 39: Sparring at the Training Ground ¡°I¡¯ll ept your apology, however you should hurry to the side.¡± Themanding officer did what my master told him to, and ran to the side. The other soldiers followed his example and kept their distance. It was only natural, since I was already enhancing my entire body with magical power, preparing for battle. The ¡®thrown away¡¯ armored guy was the only one approaching me. He¡¯s either stupid or thickheaded....Or is it that he¡¯s surprisingly strong? If so, let¡¯s just test how strong he is?.... ¡°Come now, Lord Zest, draw your sword! And fight me prop-tpgjamg¡± The thrown away armor guy tumbled down, spouting nonsense. Oh yeah, since this armored guy got thrown away by the spirit, I¡¯ll just call him ¡®thrown away armor guy¡¯. ¡°Zest, there must be something wrong with you for hitting him before he could finish his speech...¡± Murmured my master, smiling bitterly towards me. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I thought he was strong so I just wanted to test him....¡± ¡°Right, and your attack was foolishly honest,ing from the front. It was his fault for not dodging it.¡± ¡°Yeah, I agree, father.¡± The soldiers were following our conversation, all of them dumbfounded. Was it the first time they saw how people from the Frontier Count¡¯s Household train? What you just saw, I¡¯m seeing it every day, you know? The thrown away armor guy went flying again then tumbled down to the ground. I approached him and started to treat his wounds. ¡°You idiot, why didn¡¯t you dodge that? Once you stand in front of your enemy, the battle has already started, don¡¯t be distracted! I fixed you up with healing magic, so, stand up!¡± I told him and moved away a bit, and the thrown away armor guy started to rise to his feet, in a clumsy manner. ¡°Good. Unpreparedness is one¡¯s greatest enemy, got it? Well now, you¡¯ll better dodge it this time.¡± Just like before, I enhanced myself with magical power and knocked him off his feet. A frontal attack again. Oh! He flew more this time. And I was just starting to warm up. I approached him quickly and started to apply healing magic. ¡°Good, you¡¯re fine now. Let¡¯s continue....Stand!¡± The thrown away armor guy was unsteadily trying to stand up. Ooh! You do have guts, don¡¯t you? I don¡¯t dislike it. ¡°Gah, you are so powerful. I never im-rd6vaj.jmtad¡± The armor guy was copsing to the ground, his mouth making strange noises. This time I caught hold of his shoulder and hit him in the stomach, therefore he wasn¡¯t sent flying like before. Walking to him each and every time is too bothersome, so I changed my method. ¡°As I was saying, move your body rather than your mouth, you idiot!¡± I healed him and for once, the armor guy stood up and readied his stance. ¡°Good. It seems you CAN do it if you try. Come now, I¡¯ll let you attack me this time.¡± Without saying a word, he attacked me with his sword. A clean cut from above....His aim is my left shoulder, it seems. I rushed towards his left side, countered the hand in which he had his sword with a side swing of my right arm, and changed its direction. The armor guy was sent back a little, his body feeling heavy, but I jumped to his back and kicked him. ¡°What the hell was that? Observe your enemy closely. You¡¯re fighting someone who, despite being unarmed, is looking pretty confident. Suspect them of being able to use martial arts! If you do that, you won¡¯t get beaten into a pulp like this.¡± I healed him and sent him flying. I healed him again and mmed him into the ground. All the other soldiers were watching dumbfounded. They were watching the training, trying to imprint this fight into their memories and never forget it. ¡°As I was saying, when you stab at me, you have to quickly retire right after that!¡± ¡°You give in after you¡¯ve lost a leg? Does a war have rules, you idiot?¡± ¡°Is that armor just a decoration? Hit me with it. Use anything you can and keep on fighting!¡± ¡°Ha? Is your sword broken? So what? They¡¯re plenty of other men holding swords to the side, go steal one.¡± I gave him some guidance, and he was polishing his movements gradually. Really now, my guidance is several tens of times nicer than my master¡¯s. I¡¯ll have you improve yourself a little faster. ¡°Whoa! The armored guy started to dodge.¡± ¡°Leaving that aside, he keeps on attacking even after he got beaten up to such an extent...He has guts.¡± ¡°Yeah, some awesome guts.¡± ¡°Still, the ck clothed guy from the Frontier Count¡¯s Army sure is a monster.¡± ¡° ¡° ¡°It¡¯s the Frontier Count¡¯s Army after all......¡± ¡° ¡° ......Such harsh words. If I¡¯m a monster, then what are my master and my foster father? Even now, I still can¡¯t win against any of those two. He improved a bit, so maybe I should stop. He turned out to be a great target for my outburst; I also feel somewhat refreshed. ¡°All right, we¡¯ll stop here. The training has ended. You did your best though and improved considerably. Since you were improving very fast, I got excited and ended up using more power than I actually wanted to....Are you ok?¡± After all I did,ing with excuses now is kind of cruel. However, the soldiers watching all this were so moved that some of them started crying. I managed to deceive them. The thrown away armor guy was looking at me, his body trembling. Is he all right? Did I overdo it.....? I have no idea who he is, but if the armor guy is a noble and he ends up broken apart at my hand, it might turn into something ugly. I was worried, so I went to check him up, but he started talking, with some difficulties, to be precise. ¡°Lord Zest.....I........I......¡± Ah! It seems I¡¯ve broken him..... I looked at my master and he sent me back the ¡®you did it this time¡¯ look. Master? My guidance was way nicer than yours, right? You were even more severe, remember? Master wasing closer to me and I asked him in a low voice. ¡°Master.....Did I really break him?¡± ¡°Zest, no one will break this easily from what you did.¡± Master, don¡¯t say such scary words..... This was no big deal for you? Well, knowing you, you would¡¯ve pushed it even further..... ¡°However, he¡¯s acting strangely....Should we go back?¡± ¡°What should we do....Maybe if you fight him one more time, he¡¯ll be fixed.....Hahaha¡± .....Master, as I thought, you never show mercy. Too scary! He might have felt that his body was yet again in danger, so the armor guy rebooted himself. Oh, good, I feel relieved! Don¡¯t die, armor guy, hang in there! My rooting seemed to have reached him and he started to talk. ¡°Being able to fight such a strong person....No, all I received from you was guidance, and for that I am very grateful. Lord Zest....how can I return this favor?¡± You sure hit the wrong spot. For some reason, the words of gratitude this armor guy uttered disturbed even my master. ¡°Zest, maybe you DID break him....What should we do?¡± ¡°Master, this is starting to freak me out too. Should we leave him alone?¡± The two of us were troubled about which was the right way to deal with our broken toy, but the armor guy didn¡¯t seem to perceive it like this. ¡°Damn it! I still haven¡¯t introduced myself. Sorry about that.¡± He started to take off his armor. Well, maybe it¡¯d be better to let him do what he wants..... Shut.....Or I could put the me on someone else and go back home. But who and how?.... We should do this, we should do that....Master and I were discussing the matter when the armor guy finished taking his armor off. He saluted for the first time. ¡°Let me introduce myself. I am Cain, a mercenary who likes to wander from ce to ce. Nice to meet ya¡¯!¡± ¡°A....mercenary? .....Not a noble?¡± I asked in a cracking voice. ¡°Ha? I am amoner. Is that a problem?¡± ¡°A...trespasser! Arrest him!!¡± Themanding officer and the other soldiers beat him senseless and took him away..... What the hell was that idiot trying to do?...... Chapter 40: Zest, the Mentor Chapter 40: Zest, the Mentor ¡°What¡¯s thisck of nerve? You¡¯re underestimating me, you idiots!¡± ¡°We¡¯re sorry, Zest-sama.¡± ¡°Hey you, we¡¯re not dancing here, stop staggering!¡± ¡°Sorry!¡± ¡°You there, stop whining! If you have the time to do so, then what about attacking more!?¡± ¡°Yes sir! Thank you for your guidance!¡± After the incident with that weird trespassing mercenary, I started to offer guidance to the other soldiers too. Why in the world am I doing this? The fact that we allowed a suspicious person to trespass enraged the Prime Minister. ¡®Just how scandalous is that!? Gather all the managing staff in the conference room and start working on a counter-n! Lord Sonia will instruct you! Lord Zest will temper the soldiers!¡¯ I couldn¡¯t refuse the Prime Minister, and so the training continued. Oh dear! ¡°Err, Zest-sama? It¡¯s my turn next. Please be gentle.¡± Said a woman knight and bowed her head. She had a 5 cm scar on her forehead, but she was still a beauty. ¡°Yea, that scar on your forehead? Close your eyes and draw out your power.¡± The beauty knight did what I said. Touching her scar, my hand started to shine brightly, and in the next moment the scar waspletely gone. ¡°I¡¯m done. Do you feel unwell?¡± She shook her head repeatedly. Yes, when a beautiful woman does that, it surees with a destructive force. Such a splendid scene! When she saw that she was now scar-less, she went back to her friends and they were all rejoicing. That¡¯s right. I wasn¡¯t participating in their training. I was instructing them with words only. Then, what exactly was I doing? I was healing the wounds of the women soldiers and men soldiers alike. It¡¯s typical for light magic to heal wounds, but healing them in the blink of an eye is not really ordinary. In normal circumstances, for one to be considered fast at healing, one must be able to stop someone¡¯s bleeding. With that amount of skill, one would be called a specialist and would be made into an Imperial Mage. Furthermore, the only light attribute users who were able topletely heal scars were my master and the 4th Imperial Mage. Since my master got married into the Frontier Count¡¯s family and moved to his territories, the 4th alone has stayed in the imperial capital, but they seem to be extremely busy, so there¡¯s no time to heal this sort of wounds. Then, I shall heal them. This was my situation. I also wanted to test out my healing abilities and I since I got experience from fully using them during the training with the ck knights, it should be ok. I kept on giving them instructions and healing their wounds, but the numbers weren¡¯t really decreasing. Hey, even maids are lining up now? .......Well, if that¡¯s the case, I guess I¡¯ll heal them too...... Before I knew it, a chair was prepared for me. As I sat down on it, I picked up the cup and started to drink some tea. I finished healing all the knights and soldiers. The woman knight with the forehead scar was very grateful and kept on thanking me. As expected, she didn¡¯t like that scar on her face; she was a girl after all. The guys were mocking her, but she answered them: ¡®Aren¡¯t you happy that your colleague is a beauty?¡¯ ...at which point, they fell silent and went back to their training. These guys sure are honest. ¡°Zest-sama, please.¡± The maid lowered her head and held out her hand. I grinned and grasped her hand. The maid seemed somewhat embarrassed, and she blushed a little. A bright light, and the healing was finished. ¡°I¡¯m done. Say now, did it hurt?¡± She checked her hand by opening and closing it into a fist for a few times. After she finally seemed to consent, she looked at me and, with a smile covering her whole face, she thanked me. ¡°Thank you very much, Zest-sama! It¡¯spletely healed and it doesn¡¯t hurt at all.¡± She said, then she returned to her job. So cute. This is where my oasis was; I finally found it after all this time. Gripping the hands of these cute maids and watching their embarrassed faces, healing their wounds and watching their bright smiles... What¡¯s with these side benefits? This is the best! In the end, I only managed to finish the healing session in the evening, but I was nheless content. It turned out to be a wonderful day. .......Ah! You can stop training already, you know? I didn¡¯t even realize you were still up to it. After the officially authorized sexual harassment was over, it was time for the very funst banquet. Since today was a party for the soldiers, I was finally feelingfortable. It¡¯s like my usual drinking parties with the ck knights. I entered the party ¡®zone¡¯ that was built on one side of the training ground. They were about 500 soldiers gathered there. They were few, that¡¯s true, but it wasn¡¯t allowed for all the soldiers to fall drunk, so only a few of them were selected and got permission to participate. OH! The women knights are here too. I¡¯ll go talk to themter. ¡°Because of his Majesty¡¯s kindness, you are able to experience this. First of all, be sure to feel deep gratitude towards his Majesty.¡± At the prime Minister¡¯s words, everyone put up their cups and sses. Why is the Prime Minister present at the army¡¯s party, you ask? That¡¯s simple. It¡¯s because the managing staff was still caught up inside the conference room with my master.....I pity them, to be honest. ¡°Well then, Lord Zest. If you may greet them...¡± I went to the tform, built in front of the party ground. I was told beforehand that I should say a few words, so I wasn¡¯t panicking now. The Prime Minister also said that this was meant to be a very rxed banquet. ¡°I¡¯m Zest, the person entrusted with the 1st rank Imperial Mage. There¡¯s still some time until the official announcement, but I wanted your eptance. I won¡¯t keep it very long, since today, we¡¯re having a free and easy party! Drink all the sake you can, exhaust the castle¡¯s cer! Cheers!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°OOOOOOOOOO!!!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° And so, the big party has started. The young soldiers were frantically packing their stomachs with food and alcohol. Their energy is amazing. The middle-aged soldiers, probablymanders, were rather smart. They were picking only the expensive looking sake. .....They¡¯re sly. The female soldiers gathered together to drink. Yes, that¡¯s where the flowers are blooming. Wonderful! My end goal is to reach that ce. However, if I act too rashly and assault them at this time, I¡¯ll only draw them away. I must not be impatient. First, I¡¯ll crush the Prime Minister. If a big shot like him is here, the party will never get wild. It¡¯s the same, no matter the world you¡¯re in. ¡°Prime Minister-dono, here, please. Now, gulp it down.¡± ¡°Oh! Lord Zest, thank you. This sake...is really good.¡± Ha ha, I grasped his taste. This guy loves strong, acid wine. It seems it wasn¡¯t a bad idea to make Albert inquire about this stuff after all. ¡®Crushing mission¡¯plete! I left the Prime Minister, who fell prostrate on the table. Next, themanding officers. I must be cautious since most of them are nobles. ¡°Hellomanders, do you want to try this sake out? It¡¯s a gift from the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. Here, please. You don¡¯t need to refrain.¡± ¡°Thank you, Lord Zest. Woa!? Is this that famous, well refined sake?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the first time I¡¯m seeing it.....¡± ¡°Is...Is it all right for us to drink such an......expensive sake?¡± Even though they are nobles, since they¡¯re in the army it means they don¡¯t earn that much. They can rarely drink such an expensive sake....Hehe,e now, drink it all. ¡®Crushing mission¡¯plete. I left themanders behind me, all of them lying on the ground. Now, that everything is set.......I shall go ¡®there¡¯. With a quick pace, I was walking towards my Eden. Themanders were rather persistent, so it took me a while.....But, I should not be in such a hurry. The girls seem to be just in the right mood. A little drunk, but that¡¯s perfect. Actually, my timing was great. ¡°Hey, are you drinking? Ah, rx. I¡¯ve already told you, we¡¯ll be putting aside ranks for tonight.¡± The women soldiers stood up and were about to formally greet me. There were some knights among them too, but most of the girls weremoners, so they tried their best not to seem impolite. With a swing of my hand, I urged the girls to sit. ¡°This is a gift. It¡¯s a sweet, fruity sake that is said to be very good.¡± I asked a ck knight to go buy this sake that I am rmending them now. I had no idea that such a sake actually existed in this world, so I kind of panicked, but it seems it got here just in time. As for the ck knight, saying thanks should suffice. ¡°Woooa, it¡¯s delicious.¡± ¡°So good! It¡¯s the first time I had such a good sake.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t get enough of it!¡± Hehehe, my strategy was a huge sess. Alcohol that women like is kind of rare; it was worth to search the entire imperial capital. Should I give the ck knight a reward after this? The women soldiers were drinking at a quick pace. Some of them were taking off their outer garments; they seemed to feel hot. Some of them were looking at me with drowsy eyes. There were even some of them who nonchntly ced their hands on my legs. Wonderful! Toe to another world and finally arrive at this earthly paradise......Simply wonderful! The women were smelling really good, and some of them were sending me dirty nces..... The other soldiers were looking in our direction every so often, but I managed to intimidate them by releasing a tiny bit of my magical power. Don¡¯t stand in my way! Or else I¡¯ll train you really hard. Good, they stopped looking at us. I won. I was confident in my victory and drained my cup of wine. It was tasty. The victory sake is something else! ¡°Zest-sama, you are so strong, in both fighting and drinking....Is it that, perhaps, you¡¯re strong in other ¡®fields¡¯ too?¡± A woman knight was leaning against me. What? What? Do you wanna try me out? I desperately tried to keep my emotions in ce and not show a lewd expression on my face. I¡¯d be too shameful if I were to show a sluttish face at this point. I gently held her shoulders in my arms, while thinking about something to say to her. I was pondering on a nice and cool reply, when I suddenly received a telepathic message. (Master, Bea-sama has arrived.) With my magical power at full throttle, I enhanced my entire body, stood up with great speed and turned around. Please.....Please, just don¡¯t let the youngdy be HERE yet. I wonder, was my wish delivered? Chapter 41: She Came!? Chapter 41: She Came!? The youngdy arrived. The spirit¡¯s words carried such a destructive power that I returned to sobriety in but an instant. Where is she!? Just where is the youngdy? Did she see me surrounded by women? I turned my head around only to see the spirit floating lightly towards me, alone. I desperately searched my surroundings for the youngdy¡¯s aura, my stomach hurting already. Just where in the world is she? (Wooow, Master, such a terrific amount of magical power!) The spirit was pping her hands, her eyes shinning brilliantly....Damn her carefree nature; she doesn¡¯t understand a thing about people¡¯s feelings. ¡°Spirit, do you know where she is?¡± I approached her and put her on my shoulder, I brushed her hair, then asked. She loves to be carassed, but this is also effective in making her talk honestly. As usual, she narrowed her eyes like a cat. (The youngdy just passed one of the viges on the way here. She does seem to be in a hurry, however.) The spirit answered nonchntly. Oi....You said ¡®She arrived¡¯, didn¡¯t you? ¡°Listen, spirit, in that case you must say she¡¯s on her way here. When you say ¡®she arrived¡¯ that means she is already here somewhere, you know?¡± (!? Is that so? Words are really difficult, Master.) .......Really? Did she only make a mistake or did she do it on purpose? Damn, all my drunkness is gone. My body loose, I returned to the party ground..... ¡°Zest-sama, what happened all of a sudden? Is everything all right?¡± A woman knight asked, seemingly worried. ¡°Nothing happened. I just felt this kid¡¯s presence.....and I went to get her.¡± With big eyes, the woman knight looked at the spirit on my shoulder. ¡°Is that the spirit-sama?........We...We are meeting for the first time...¡± The woman knight lowered her head and the spirit brushed her hair gently. ¡®There, there.¡¯ Astonished, the woman raised her head, but all she saw was the big, bright smile on the spirit¡¯s face. The next moment, the woman knight was smiling broadly too. ¡°So....So cute!¡± When she heard she was called cute, the spirit was very happy, she smiled ever brighter than before and started to be yful. When ites to this, no one can resist her; this was the moment when the woman fellpletely under the spirit¡¯s charm. Since I¡¯ve lost the willpower to enjoy thepany of the women, I left the spirit in their care and went to where the men soldiers were. Kyaaa...... A scream could be heard. It seems the spirit arrived at where all the other women soldiers were. Sweets were piled up in the shape of a mountain, and they all took turns to feed the spirit. The woman from before was keeping the spirit in her hands, ced together to form some sort of a chair. By looking at the woman¡¯s face, I was sure she didn¡¯t use her both hands because the spirit was heavy. Her face was flushed and she smiled delightedly..... I¡¯ll just leave them alone. ¡°Hey, are you still drinking?¡± I arrived at the ce where the guys were, but they seemed to have already finished their drinks. ¡°Zest-sama! You¡¯re damnte!¡± ¡°Oi, don¡¯t talk like that to the 1st Rank-sama......¡± Smiling, I answered the soldier who med his colleague. ¡°It¡¯s a putting-asside-rank-party. I won¡¯tin for something this little. In fact, I do this a lot with the ck knights, after training. We often go out drinking.¡± I drank up all the sake that came pouring inrge quantities. ¡°Here, my treat! You can still drink, right?¡± I grinned and the soldiers started tough. ¡°Ha ha ha, aren¡¯t you just talk, 1st Rank?¡± ¡°Generally speaking, I might be, but I won¡¯t joke around about this with my war buddies. Don¡¯t make fun of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household, you fool.¡± All the soldiers fell silent. What? Did drunkness get the best of you already? ¡°Why do you all make faces like you¡¯ve seen a woman changing her clothes? Is the sake not enough? Are the snacks not enough? Wait a second.¡± I caught a maid and asked for more sake and snacks; she smiled sweetly and nodded in eptance. Ah, it was the maid I healing earlier today. She prepared everything in awfully high spirits. This is good, since the soldiers would have never gotten another round of drinks and food otherwise. ¡°Look, the supplements are here! And such a beautiful woman prepared them for you. I guess there¡¯s no coward here who would leave enything behind, right?¡± ¡°Wahaha, you¡¯re the best, 1st Rank.¡± ¡°This is great, we didn¡¯t have enough.¡± ¡°Oi, don¡¯t eat the meat.¡± ¡°This sake is better than the one from before.¡± ¡°1st Rank, I want to drink some expensive sake!¡± ¡°The maid was suddenly nicer, don¡¯t you think?¡± ¡°1st Rank, let me hug you!¡± .........Ha? ¡°I¡¯m definitelly not into hugging guys!! Oi, who said that? Bring him out! I¡¯ll turn him into a woman.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t kill me! Don¡¯t kill me!¡± ¡°Ha ha ha, oi, hold him down!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t run away, it¡¯ll only hurt more!¡± ¡± ¡± ¡± ¡°Gahahahahaha¡± ¡± ¡± ¡± And so, with everyone in high jinks, the party was approaching its ending. Only one person was rolling on the ground naked, but it couldn¡¯t have been helped. I¡¯m not interested in gay dudes. When ites to self-defense, I can¡¯t be anything but strict. Finally, the party was overte at night. Spoiled by the women soldiers, the spirit was in very high spirits. I ced her on my shoulder and returned to my room. I entered the bathroom in order to take a long and rxing bath, when my master came. It was very rare for him to visit thiste at night......Ah! Maybe it¡¯s about the youngdy. Since it was rude to go meet him wearing a bathrobe, I decided that I¡¯d go out after I¡¯d change into some proper clothes. When I entered the waiting room, my master was drinking tea. The one looking after him was the usual old.....urm...¡¯young¡¯ maid. ¡°Sorry to have made you wait, master. Did something happen?¡± ¡°Sorry for thiste visit, Zest. You did a good job at the training grounds earlier today. Haha, I heard you even treated their wounds. The maids were making a huge fuss about it.¡± My master was all smiles. Hm? Even though there¡¯s a maid here, he¡¯s still in his ¡®papa¡¯ mode...... ¡°Thank you. I only treated them because the opportunity showed up, it wasn¡¯t a big deal.¡± I drank some tea too. Why is my master in his ¡®papa¡¯ mode despite other people than family being around?......Was the meeting too exhausting for him? I looked at him questioningly, at which point his smile grew even bigger. What? Just what¡¯s going on?..... ¡°Well, well, did you figure it out? As expected, your judgement is really something else. You are truly excellent, which makes me very happy to have you as son-inw.¡± My master said, then started tough. I have a ......very bad.....feeling. Heughed for a while, then turned serious and began to talk. ¡°You do know her, right? I came here because I thought I should properly introduce her to you.¡± My back was drenched in sweat. Please....Just, please, let me be wrong..... ¡°She is the daughter of the Frontier Count and my wife, Lamia. She is Bea¡¯s mother, which makes her your mother-inw.¡± I tried my very best to keep my consciousness from fading away. I....gently brushed the hair of.....my mother-inw..... I¡¯m disqualified from being human....I deserve to die..... Chapter 42: Greetings to my Mother-in-law Chapter 42: Greetings to my Mother-inw I looked at the ¡®young¡¯ maid in front of me. She had ck eyes and ck hair.......She looked like a smart but somewhat strict woman..... I see, she is simr to ....the youngdy. I restrained my trembling body and voice. ¡°I¡¯m pleased to meet you.....or that¡¯s how we should start, right, mother? I am Zest.¡± I somehow managed to say these words without my voice going all over the ce. ¡°Nice to meet you too, Zest. Haha, are you surprised?¡± She smiled like she had just seeded to prank me; in fact, she did seed... ¡°I never thought my mother-inw would wear a maid¡¯s uniform.....It¡¯s natural to feel surprised.¡± It was an honest answer. ¡°Haha, forgive me, okay? I was also surprised by your actions in the bathroom, you know. Sonia, hold back your killing intent! I already exined you, right?¡± She hit my master with her folded fan in the head. ...... Are you all right? It sounded like it might have hurt. ¡°Actually, his Majesty asked me to test you. But don¡¯t get angry, okay?¡± She leaned her head to one side and red at me with shiny, upturned eyes..... She wanted to charm me, this old.....¡¯young¡¯ woman....But she¡¯s my mother-inw after all. ¡°I won¡¯t get angry, mother.¡± I smiled and decided to confront the matter. ¡°It was a trial to test my humanity, to see whether I can be used as a noble and to verify whether I have bad feelings towards the empire, am I right? Mother, are you perhaps the 4th Rank Imperial Mage?¡± The kind smile she showed me until now disappearedpletely, with the malicious Frontier Count-like smile taking its ce instead. ¡°Well, well, what makes you think that?¡± Her aura is definitely not that of a maid¡¯s. She releases the pressure of being a member of a great noble family....that holds the title ¡°Frontier Count¡±. ¡°First, you were present during the secret meeting with his Majesty. At that moment, I thought that you were no ordinary maid, that you perhaps had a connection to our talk or something. Next, you appeared in the bathroom too, even though the maids in charge of bath activities are always the same. Moreover, it was very unnatural for a maid to be allowed to take part to a secret meeting with the Emperor.¡± I paused for a few moments to sip some ck tea. ¡°From that point, I decided I must be vignt, thinking that you were under some sort of a secret mission from the Emperor in order to test me out. From my current position, it¡¯s really easy to understand the reasons for this test.....A man who showed up unexpectedly, and he even achieved spiritification. The Frontier Count¡¯s Household is pleased with him, but is he loyalty towards the empire? Can he be used, as a noble? What can we offer him in order to be able to control him?¡± Haha, I really am a suspicious guy..... ¡°Therefore, I had to be tested, right?¡± I asked with a grin. ¡°It¡¯s good you understand your ce. And then?¡± ¡°Yes, now that your magical power isn¡¯t concealed, I can clearly feel it. You are no ordinary mage, so I thought that you might be an Imperial Mage....However, offering the 1st Rank to someone from the Frontier Count¡¯s Household means too much political power in the hands of the Frontier Count. Then, what about the 2nd and 3rd Rank? This was impossible too, for the first 3 Ranks are supposed to take turns to participate in wars, so they would be too cruel to offer a young woman such a seat.....In that case¡± ¡°You thought that the 4th Rank was the most appropriate answer.¡± ¡°Yes, mother.¡± We both drank some tea. I didn¡¯t think I was mistaken. I nced at my mother-inw, and saw her face turn red and her eyes filled with fascination. What¡¯s wrong, are you all right? ¡°Sonia....We can¡¯t let go of this child. He¡¯s too cute.....It¡¯s really worth training him.¡± ¡°Right? I already taught him basic magic. Do you feel like training him too?¡± ........Please stop. I¡¯m gonna die. Being ipetent means sure death, but why is the opposite situation dangerous as well? ¡°His magical powers are strong, so there¡¯s no problem here, and he even achieved spiritification. He has enough knowledge to not fall into other nobles¡¯ traps, and he is a light attribute user.....Ah! He¡¯s perfect for being Bea¡¯s husband! Sonia, I¡¯ming to the wedding too!¡± ¡°I know, Lamia. It¡¯s our cute Bea¡¯s wedding, after all.¡± Urm, will you please stop? It¡¯s good that you both feel excited, but try to at least keep it moderate. They grasped each other¡¯s hands and looked into each other¡¯s eyes. I took my eyes off the couple and was about to drink some tea....when I realized there was no tea left in my cup. I¡¯ll just go pour some myself. I already finished my second cup. My mother-inw finally decided to leave their own world and started to talk in a rushed manner. ¡°Yes, Zest. I, Lamia, the 4th Rank Imperial Mage, recognize you. The test is over and you passed it. You can feel at ease for I will report this to his Majesty.¡± ¡°Thank you, mother.¡± I sighed. I was in the clear for the moment. Well, his Majesty was worried, I guess. A man shows up all of a sudden and bes a husband in the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. He even sessfully achieves spiritification. The Emperor could only ept his merits, but what if this man turns out to be a traitor? What if this man is a big idiot who won¡¯t adapt to the world of nobles? It¡¯s normal to doubt such an ¡®unclear¡¯ man. Promoting him without confirming his personality, might affect the Emperor as well. I can rx now and enjoy the imperial capital, without being forced to leave. I let out a sigh of relief and ate some sweets. Yes, they were rather delicious. ¡°However, this will be a problem....He¡¯s too excellent.....¡± What? ¡°I fear so too......In this case........Right?¡± They agreed with each other, then frowned. What is it? Why are you unsatisfied? I¡¯m too excellent?..... That ¡®too¡¯ is troubling me..... Ah, I see now. This is indeed troubling. ¡°Is it that, the Frontier Count¡¯s Household might attain too much political power?¡± This should be it. Such an amazing achievement like spiritification is not something anyone can ignore. For that reason, it was made known in the empire and the surrounding countries that I would be the 1st Rank Imperial Mage. However, the Frontier Count will have two Imperial Mages under his ¡®control¡¯. The Count is reliable, but the Emperor must keep the power bnce in ce. This was the situation. ¡°That¡¯s right....It¡¯s bad for the Frontier Count¡¯s Household to have four Imperial Mages....¡± What? Four?? ¡°Mother, are they really four?¡± Did I mishear? ¡°Yes. My father, the Frontier Count, was the former 1st Rank, now he¡¯s the 2nd Rank. Sonia was the former 2nd Rank, now he¡¯s the 3rd. Yet, there were manyints addressed against us until now. ¡®The Frontier Count¡¯s Household has three Imperial Mages under itsmand¡¯ and the likes.¡± ¡®This is troublesome¡¯ was the expression on my mother-inw¡¯s face when she looked at my master and smiled. Isn¡¯t this a very bad situation? I will startining, you know... ¡°And this time, there will be four people. We will monopolize the first four Ranks. This is bad. Will everything be all right?......¡± Mother, I don¡¯t think it will be. After all, you also think this way; that¡¯s why you tried to drink tea from an empty cup. Something like monopolizing the four strongest battle powers...... This sure is stressing the Emperor out. Master was the one to interrupt the silence. ¡°Zest......It might be impossible for you to be Bea¡¯s husband after all......¡± My master said, his face pained........ I silently stared at him........ Chapter 43: The Reason I Can’t Be Her Husband Chapter 43: The Reason I Can¡¯t Be Her Husband ¡°Sonia......What do you mean by that?¡± My mother-inw was obviously angry. She¡¯s extremely scary. ¡°La...Lamia, calm down....Look, Zest is trembling.¡± Master, you are the one who¡¯s trembling. She looked at me as if she wanted to confirm. I panicked and turned my head to the side. Master, don¡¯t re at me like that. Mother-inw is scarier than you. You¡¯d better give up. ¡°Don¡¯t me it on Zest. Give me a proper exnation, Sonia.¡± That...that look in her eyes, like she was watching a pile of garbage, was just like the youngdy¡¯s. As mother as daughter.... ¡°Li....listen to me. I never said that he can¡¯t marry Bea.¡± My mother-inw slowly took her hands away from my master¡¯s neck. We can marry.....but I can¡¯t be her husband? I see. That is indeed the best way to.....Is it? Mother-inw seemed to have understood it too. ¡°I see.....A new household must be created.¡± ¡°I fear his Majesty is thinking the same.¡± Yes, most likely this is what will happen...... However...... ¡°However, in that case, what will happen to Bea? That¡¯s child¡¯s feelings.....¡± Will the youngdy approve of this? This will be a problem. My mother-inw looked downward, so I couldn¡¯t see her expression. My master was wearing a bitter smile. ¡°Zest, you understand what I¡¯m trying to say, right? What will you do?¡± Master.....You switched to me when you got to the difficult part...... What to do?.....What is the best course of action to conclude this on a happier note? I can¡¯t put my thoughts together..... ¡°Master, I can¡¯t put my thoughts in order, no matter how I try. I first want to confirm that we¡¯re all thinking about the same things.¡± I dered. Are our ways of thinking the same? Did we reach the same conclusion? I want to confirm these things. ¡°His Majesty thinks about making me independent and creating a new noble household.....Then, the youngdy marries into this new household and detaches herself from the Frontier Count¡¯s Household.¡± They both nodded; we seemed agree up until this point. ¡°The problem is whether to give me a domain or not, whether to give me an official court rank or not.....Still, the biggest problem is...¡± I looked at both of them. Yes, this should be the biggest problem after all. ¡° ¡°The spirit¡¯s influence is too great. Neglecting it is too dangerous.¡± ¡° As I thought...... All three of us let out a long sigh. From the Emperor¡¯s perspective, this is a terrible situation. There¡¯s a hero who sessfully achieved spiritification... And this hero might take advantage of his spirit and defeat the Emperor. He would feel too affected by such an event. On the other hand, if he tries to bring me into the Imperial Family through a royal marriage, he would start a fight with the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. Moreover, I could use the spirit as my shield and try to manipte the empire; this would destroy the country. The spirit can mean their salvation, but it can also mean their downfall...... At this point, there is only one solution for this problem. ¡°To legally marry Princess Tsubaki and receive the title of a duke, then take Bea as a concubine.....Am I correct?¡± We all let out some really long sighs.... ¡°Indeed.¡± ¡°I thought so too.¡± ¡°Right.¡± Sigh........ We were all worried about the same thing. What will Bea think about this?......For a noble, it shouldn¡¯t be a problem. But everyone seems to be soft on her......and she will certainly disagree.... For now, we decided to put a hold on our conversation. It was pointless to continue the discussion anyway. We must think about it more after we hear the youngdy¡¯s thoughts on this matter. Bea should arrive tomorrow and we¡¯ll hold another ¡®meeting¡¯. I kind of felt heavy-hearted though. I took another bath, then hid in my bed. The spirit had such a cute sleeping face. I can¡¯t possibly feel resent towards her. I¡¯ll do what I can to get through this with a positive approach. Still, I don¡¯t want to die..... I don¡¯t want to die, but I also can¡¯t say I don¡¯t care about what happens to the youngdy. I might really have feelings for her. That¡¯s why I can¡¯t even begin to hate the spirit, who looks exactly like Bea. Am I too.... soft....? While thinking about my feelings, I fell asleep. ¡°Are you finally waking up? You sure took your time. I got so tired of waiting that I almost copsed.¡± ¡®Good morning, Zest-sama. Your sleeping face was adorable. I¡¯m so happy to see you after such a long time!¡¯ The youngdy was sitting on the side of my bed, waiting for me to wake up...... ¡°Bea, I really missed you.¡± I uttered and embraced her closely. Bea didn¡¯t resist at all; she silently sank deeper into my arms....... Chapter 44: The Awakened Feelings Chapter 44: The Awakened Feelings As I was waking up, I found the youngdy sitting next to me, so I embraced her instinctively. In order to survive in this world, I followed the nobles¡¯ orders. In order to survive in this world, I trained hard to learn the ways of battle. In order to survive in this world, I got engaged to the daughter of an important noble family, youngdy Beatrice. In order to survive...... It was supposed to be like that..... In order to survive, I need a good rtionship with the Imperial household. I¡¯ll marry the princess and take the youngdy as a concubine. Is this really the right answer, I wonder........? Since when?... ...did I start thinking that this always displeased-looking youngdy is in fact adorable? ...did I start feeling love for her? Was it because I am the only one to understand her real thoughts? ...did I start loving her so dearly? ...did I start thinking that I don¡¯t want to part with her, not even in death? ¡°Bea, I really love you. More than anyone.¡± My words came out spontaneously, stunning the youngdy.....urm.....stunning Bea. ¡°....Me......too.¡± ¡®....Me......too.¡¯ Bea¡¯s face waspletely flushed and she was about to start crying. I looked at her and slowly pressed my lips on top of hers..... (The Masters are kissing!!) ......Listen up, spirit! Don¡¯t interrupt us now! Hm? Masters.....Why the plural? You sure said something I can¡¯t overlook!? I was feeling reluctance to part with Bea¡¯s lips, but I had to. Bea, don¡¯t make such a face... It looks like I did something against your will when I kissed you..... A little depressed, I asked the spirit in order to confirm my suspicion. ¡°Listen, little spirit, just now you said Masters, with an ¡®s¡¯.....What is Beatrice to you?¡± (Hm? She¡¯s my Master.) ..........Oi, oi! ¡°Then, what about me?¡± (You¡¯re my Master too.) Calm down for a moment, stupid self...... What is it Bea? Why are you pulling my sleeve? Hm? Do you want to y with the spirit? I got it, I got it....Go y there. The spirit is calling Bea her Master? Because she¡¯s my wife? No, we are not married yet..... Don¡¯t say...... ¡°Hey spirit, who actually created you?¡± With a nk expression, she answered. (My Master and my Master. It¡¯s pretty obvious, don¡¯t you think?) I thought that I was definitely the one who achieved this spiritification. It was different. Beatrice and I did it together!! ¡°Ha, haha, hahahaha, ha haa ha ha haa ahahaha¡° It¡¯s useless...I can¡¯t stopughing!! I see now, we both created this spirit! We both achieved spiritification! In this case, the terms should be different now. Bea and the spirit approached me. Bea started to softly wipe my face dry with her cute handkerchief. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Why are you crying?¡± With a somewhat ¡®worried¡¯ expressionless face, she continued to wipe my tears. I see, I was crying..... ¡°Sorry, I made you worry. I am fine now.¡± I said, and gently brushed Bea¡¯s hair. The spirit was sitting on my shoulder, smiling brightly. ¡°Good then. But what happened?¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s just that all my worries disappeared. I can be with you now without feeling reluctance......When I thought about receiving everyone¡¯s blessings and be able to marry you freely, it seems I started to cry. I was crying with happiness.¡± Bea¡¯s face got bright red again, while she was ring at me. ¡°Don¡¯t say such embarrassing words with such a serious face! But......¡± She paused for a moment and looked downwards. ¡°Me too....Being able to marry you....makes me happy....¡± She said and smiled. I really thought she looked adorable. Then, she... Embraced me again.... .........................hm? Something felt out of ce........ ¡°Bea smiled!?¡± I was startled........... Moreover, I couldn¡¯t hear any other thoughts from her. What actually happened? Takkurun: This is by no means a ¡°wall-hitting¡± service (I actually have no idea what he means by that.....I only get an image of a reader hitting a wall with their head, after reading this chap....xD) Chapter 45: Bea’s Smile Chapter 45: Bea¡¯s Smile ¡°.......Bea, it¡¯s the first time I see your smiling face. It¡¯s more lovely than usual.¡± ¡°....You¡¯re embarrassing me.¡± ¡°Haha, your shyness makes my heart beat faster.¡± ¡°Stop it already!¡± With a flushed face, Bea started to beat me repeatedly with her small fists. ....I can¡¯t get enough of this. I don¡¯t really understand the reason behind this, but Bea¡¯s expressions got considerably softer. Moreover, she smiled. Then her face got bright red with embarrassment. That Bea, who always had a frown on her face and always looked angry, she... She makes me want to tease her more by flirting with her. But, because I was in a trance while flirting with Bea, the fact that I didn¡¯t notice his presence made me regret my actions immediately. ¡°Urm, you two, are you done yet?¡± Master has such a brilliant face, like he ate some sugar. Ah! This is bad. ¡°Master, I didn¡¯t notice you. I am very sorry.¡± ¡°....Father, did you see?¡± Bea was trembling, casting her eyes down. Master cleared his throat, then opened his mouth. ¡°...Bea, sometimes not knowing makes you happier. W...well,e with me.¡± We followed my master, whose eyes were spinning, to the waiting room. My mother-inw, Lamia, who wearing a dress this time, was already there waiting for us. ¡°Bea, it¡¯s been a long time.¡± The servants were dismissed, so the conversation was done in afortable tone. ¡°Yes, mother. It¡¯s been a long time.¡± Bea was sitting next to me. Maybe because she felt embarrassed, she folded her arms around mine and buried her face in it. Mother-inw was speechless. Master had an expression saying ¡®not again¡¯ on his face... ¡°Well now, Bea....You¡¯ve be quite the spoiled child.¡± When she heard that, Bea increased the pressure of her grip on my arm. I thought she was going a bit too far, but since Bea wanted to do this, it couldn¡¯t be helped. I brushed her hair gently with my free hand. Then I felt this huge wave of killing intenting from my master¡¯s direction. ......Very good. I can y this game too. I fully employed the use of my magical power. ¡°Stop it already, you idiots! Can¡¯t you see that Bea is crying?¡± My mother-inw said, and I looked at Bea. She was trembling lightly, her tears floating in the air. ¡°Bea, I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°Bea, I was in the wrong.¡± ¡°Really now.....That¡¯s why men are stupid......¡± Both my master and I were prostrating ourselves in front of her. Bea raised her face slowly. ¡°It¡¯s natural for a wife to want to be spoiled by her husband. Sonia, it was your fault, you know that?¡± ¡°Yes. I¡¯m sorry, Lamia.¡± I was internallyughing at his misery, when the chance blow came my way. ¡°Zest, you too. Don¡¯t release such stupid amounts of magical power! You could kill a normal people with that, you know? Think about measure, you fool!¡± ¡°I am very sorry, mother.¡± Behind my mother-inw¡¯s back, my master wasughing at me. ........Damn you. As punishment, Lamia ordered us to stay in that kneeling position for a while longer, and we obediently did as told. We couldn¡¯t go against her or answer her back. Because it would¡¯ve worsened the situation. ¡°So, Zest, did youe up with a better answer? Let us know.¡± How? Why did they know that? ¡°Haha, your face says ¡®How did you figure it out?¡¯... Well, you and Bea were pretty much enjoying each other¡¯spany moments ago. Isn¡¯t that obvious enough?¡± Theyughed at me, implying that I was too easy to read. As expected of them... ¡°Yes, I got a better solution. We actually had it wrong from the beginning.¡± I exined them the whole story. The fact that spiritification was not my achievement entirely. The fact that the spirit was calling both of us her Masters. They both listened to my exnation then let out long sighs of relief. ¡°I see. In this case, the circumstances have changed.¡± ¡°Yeah, the problems havepletely vanished. That¡¯s great, right, Bea? Mother-inw stroked Bea¡¯s hair, and she got embarrassed again. However, as I was watching this genuinely happy Bea, my heart softened. I lost all sense of my feet. But since I wasn¡¯t forgiven yet, I had to tolerate it. ¡°Then, I¡¯ll go report this to his Majesty.¡± My mother-inw left the room at a quick pace. She wanted to rapidly get rid of her worries, I guess. ¡°Then, I¡¯ll go help Lamia out for a while.¡± Unsteadily, master started to follow after her. Is Bea all right now? My feet are really starting to hurt, you know?..... Bea, the spirit and I were the only ones left in this waiting room. Well, the spirit is in fact trapped by the charms of a cookie. ¡°...Zest-sama, did you reflect upon your actions?¡± I couldn¡¯t answer her instantly. Because I didn¡¯t repent for what I did! ¡°.....Yes. I feel bad for what I did. I¡¯m sorry, Bea.¡± The pain in my feet made my eyes get a little moisty, but I was nheless looking at Bea. Surprised, her eyes opened widely, and she wondered whether she made me cry. Flustered, she approached me and wiped my tears. ¡°You...don¡¯t have to cry....Zest-sama, please don¡¯t cry.¡± Bea¡¯s face looked rather disturbed. Haha, she really is cute. As an apology, she said she wanted to do something for me, so I asked her to let me sleep in herp. Surprisingly, she quickly consented. Moreover, she even started to clear my ears with an ear pick. This is wonderful! It¡¯s every man¡¯s dream to sit in a girl¡¯sp and get your ears cleaned. Herp is so soft and she smells really good..... The pain in my feet is not bothering me at all anymore..... The ¡®ear picking¡¯ feels good too....This is the best! And so, I was about to fall asleep when.... ¡°Zest-sama, this is Albert. Was that sake popr with the girls, a while back? We were actually thinking to copy your technique and.............Pardon me!¡± Albert, you idiot! You damn fool!! Think about your words first...... It hurts......Bea, you¡¯re ¡®stabbing¡¯ me with that ear pick. It hurts....... That idiot, he actually dared to run away.......Bea, it hurts. Chapter 46: Ears Covered in Blood Chapter 46: Ears Covered in Blood ¡°So that¡¯s how it was?.....Zest-sama, I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay. The jealous you was rather adorable too, so I am fine.¡± ¡°Zest-sama.....stop it.¡± Bea was ¡®hitting¡¯ my arm repeatedly. ¡®Poko-poko, poko-poko¡¯ Yes, we¡¯ve reconciled. I exined her that I was in charge with serving refreshments to the guests, during the army¡¯s party. That Albert, I¡¯ll make sure to carefully ¡®train¡¯ him some moreter. Still, when looking at Bea and the spirit ying with each other, they really seem like they¡¯re sisters.....or, mother and daughter. Children, huh? While in Japan, I never got married, I was always single, but now, I¡¯ll get married soon for the first time in my life and I¡¯ll also have children. I must protect them no matter what. I gazed at the two girls cheerfully ying with each other, when our eyes met. ¡°Zest-sama, won¡¯t you choose a name for this child already?¡± .......Ipletely forgot. ¡°I wanted to decide on it together with you. Did you think of a good name?¡± Good, I managed to sessfully deceive her. She smiled with her whole face. Lately, she started tough and smile a lot. With an adorable smile, she started to talk. ¡°Actually, I have one in mind.......Will it be all right to call her Toto?¡± Toto?....I wonder why she choose this name. ¡°Toto?....Does it have a meaning?¡± My question made her blush excessively, but she answered nheless. ¡°Ites from both our names.....¡± (1) Damn it, this girl is way too cute. She made it up from both our names... (Master, is Toto my name?) The spirit asked, her eyes glittering; I grinned at her and answered. ¡°That¡¯s right. From now on your name is Toto. Do you like it?¡± She looked down for a while, her little body trembling slightly, then raised her head energetically. (I am Toto! I like it very much. Thank you Master and Master.) And then, she hugged Bea and started to rub her little face against hers. I¡¯m d she liked it. However, calling us Master and Master is a little too confusing. ¡°Toto, calling us Master and Master is too confusing. Can you think of some other way to call us?¡± Toto seemed to be troubled. (I know! Can I call you then Dad and Mom then?) As expected, I didn¡¯t see thising..... At such a surprise attack, both Bea and I started to blush excessively. But we both created this spirit, there shouldn¡¯t be any problem for her to call us that. ¡°I...I don¡¯t mind.....What about you, Bea?¡± ¡°Me too. I don¡¯t dislike it.....¡± (Theeeen, Dad and Mom! That¡¯s what I¡¯ll call you.) Toto concluded, her face covered in smiles. We too got influenced by her radiance, and started to smile as well. Is this what family feels like....? Thinking about that, we¡¯ve spent some really happy moments together. However, at that point, the unexpected hit me. ¡°Zest-sama! What is the meaning of this? Why doesn¡¯t Toto have any other clothes?¡± Yes, Toto has no other closes, except for her ¡®original¡¯ attire. She¡¯s still wearing that ck leather dress, made from the exchange diary¡¯s cover, with golden embroidery and the mithril chain around her waist. She only had that. Incidentally, she doesn¡¯t wear panties either. ......You¡¯re wrong! I only saw that when she was sleeping, it¡¯s not like I¡¯ve deliberately checked. Nheless, she seems fine without having another change of clothes, but from a girl¡¯s perspective, this is uneptable. ¡°We must go to the tailor right away. Well, Zest-sama?¡± If I were to say no at that point, it would¡¯ve only meant hell for me. ¡°Yea, let¡¯s go right away.¡± I offered an immediate reply, not wasting time on thinking. The maids prepared a carriage for us and we departed towards the castle town. The castle town¡¯s clothing shops.....well, they¡¯re all tailors¡¯ shops. Everything is custom-made. We¡¯re going to a shop that my mother-inw uses frequently. She rmended it when we told her we were about to head out to buy some clothes for little Toto. This shop works for the Frontier Count¡¯s Household, so it should be safe. When the carriage stopped in front on the shop, I saw the employees standing in a line outside, waiting for us. ¡°Wee, Beatrice-sama. It¡¯s been a very long time.¡± An old woman with strains of white hair saluted. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s been a long time. I came today together with my fianc¨¦.¡± ¡°Oh! The much rumored next 1st Rank? It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you. I¡¯m the shopkeeper, Tania.¡± She held her dress and bend one of her knees in a formal bow. The next 1st Rank, you say? You sure know a lot.....Well, for a merchant to be slow in hearing the news would mean a great disqualification. ¡°I¡¯m Zest. We want to make some clothes for this child today.¡± Sitting on my shoulder, Toto smiled and waved her little hand vigorously. ¡°Well, well, it¡¯s a great pleasure to meet you, lovely spirit-sama. I¡¯ll prepare the best materials for you. Please,e inside.¡± We followed Tania inside the shop. I entered first and Bea was supposed to be right behind me...........But she wasn¡¯t. What¡¯s wrong? Did she find something delicious-looking and went to try it out? She¡¯s such a glutton. I turned around only to see someone taking Bea¡¯s hand. An unknown man was making a ruckus about who knows what. Huh? Who the hell is that? ¡°....Won¡¯t you let go of me already?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be so cold, lovely youngdy. Oh! Your skin is so silky. Won¡¯t you give me the pleasure of telling me your name?¡± An unknown man was grasping Bea¡¯s hand, grinning broadly. ......Good! I¡¯ll take it as a deration of war. I slowly approached the guy. ________ (1) Toto = how can ite from Zest and Bea, you might wonder? Well, in Japanese, Zest would be ¡®Zesto¡¯ and Bea would be ¡®Beato¡¯, therefore ¡°Toto¡±... Chapter 47: The Man Who Aimed at my Fiancée Chapter 47: The Man Who Aimed at my Fianc¨¦e ¡°What business do you have with my fianc¨¦e?¡± I approached and pushed his hand away. I protectively embraced Bea and lightly brushed her hair, in sign of reassurance. You¡¯re safe now, don¡¯t worry. ¡°Fianc¨¦e? Heeh? This youngdy is way too good for someone like you. To hand her over to me, right.....I¡¯ll give you 20 gold coins. Come now, give her to me!¡± He was an arrogant young man with a medium body build. He was wearing a rather fancy attire. His ck clothes were brand new. One gold coin is about 100.000 yen, so 20 would be 2 million yen (1)......He¡¯s making fun of me. I ignored him and continued to gently brush Bea¡¯s hair. Her hair was really soft and thin. (Dad, what¡¯s with that guy? Is he an enemy?) Toto was sitting on my shoulder, ring at the man. .....What amazing magical powers....She¡¯s releasing as much of an amount as my mother-inw. ¡°Toto, stop it. This is a job for them to take care of.¡± I said and stopped her. It would be great to finish this matter with a ¡®throwing away punch¡¯, but that would also mean that this ce would be an empty lot. Such a magical power that would only result in a major threat for the townspeople, should probably be stopped. It¡¯s just too scary. The man didn¡¯t seem to understand what I was saying; irritated, he started to yell. ¡°Oi! I told you to hand over that woman! You dare to disobey me!? Don¡¯t you recognize these clothes?¡± I actually do....You fool, you¡¯ve done it this time... Enraged, the man was staring at me. And then, someone tapped his shoulder. ¡°What? What do you want? I am currently trying to get this woman to......¡± He turned his head and what he saw was the town¡¯s soldiers. Well, when you make a ruckus on the roadside in broad daylight, this is what would normally happen. ¡°So, what do you want from this youngdy?¡± The soldiers encircled the man, looking at him with grim expressions. It¡¯s only natural. ¡°Furthermore, those ck clothes.....You are not from our empire, are you?¡± Precisely. The ck attire is exclusively used by the Frontier Count¡¯s Household; it¡¯s a taboo for other people to wear ck clothing. The Frontier Count¡¯s Household is allowing its ck knights to wear them however. In order to avoid mistakes, ck has be the distinct color of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. The ck color is banned for clothes and gs, and since at funerals people normally wear white, it was no problem at all. Ah, the only exception is Toto. No one can tell a spirit to follow the men¡¯s rules and she¡¯s basically treated like someone from the family anyway. Once in a while, an outsider wearing ck clothinges to the empire, causing a major uproar. ......Well, this guy is done for. ¡°Well, we can thoroughly hear you out at the station. Oi! Take him away!¡± Thus, the ck impostor was unwillingly taken away... ck attire fraud....There¡¯s nothing that can be done for these idiots, who show up asionally. When we were about to enter the shop again, the soldier called us to halt. ¡°Wait! I want to hear about the circumstances.....I see......Such a beautiful youngdy!¡± Grinning, the soldier was looking at Bea. .......Don¡¯t say? ¡°So the victim was this youngdy......Ze...Zest-sama! Thank you for your contribution!! I¡¯ll go right away to deal with that idiot! Excuse me!¡± He ran away,menting......What is this? I have a prickling pain in my chest..... I felt tired. It would have been better if I would¡¯ve released my stress on that ck clothed impostor. ¡°Erm, Zest-sama.....I¡¯m really starting to feel embarrassed.¡± Ah, I was still protectively embracing Bea. I promptly apologized to her. ¡°Those two, are they newly-wed?¡± ¡°Ahh! Amazing, in broad day light...¡± ¡°They¡¯re young after all......¡± Yes, I am sorry. We ran into the shop, attempting to avoid being made fun of for any longer. But well, after we got inside, Bea started to punch me lightly, her face bright red. The shop employees were watching all this with tepid eyes. I¡¯ll just pretend I didn¡¯t see them. I didn¡¯t see them! Because it was important, I had to repeat it to myself. The materials the shop keeper prepared were absolutely wonderful. Since Toto said she didn¡¯t want to change her clothes, they only made some underwear and pajamas for her. Bea took the opportunity to get some clothes done for herself too, so she was consulting with Tania. As for me? I was quietly enjoying some tea, while agreeing with them once in a while. Yes, I¡¯ve be a ¡®yes-answering machine¡¯. Finally, the measurements were taken and the design was chosen; the goods would arrive in a three-day time, it seems. We¡¯ve already received Toto¡¯s clothes. Because she¡¯s so tiny, the seamstress finished them pretty fast. We thought about returning to the castle, but it was rather early. Since we were already there, we decided to go look for a good restaurant or something. We told the driver and he rmended a good shop. I left it to him, since I wasn¡¯t familiar at all with the imperial capital. We decided to go there. The shop was pretty stylish and it also had a beautiful open terrace. I had the feeling that any girl would love this ce. Bea¡¯s eyes were sparkling. We asked for some tea and cookies, and we were now savoring them. ¡°These cookies are so delicious, don¡¯t you think? What is different about them, I wonder?¡± Bea was savoring the cookie with a crunching sound. She looked just like a squirrel. Toto was challenging the cookie as well, having no intention to lose. Yes, you two are mother and daughter, there¡¯s no mistaking it. I sipped some of my tea, while looking at them. I waspletely under their charm. I thought about how great it would be to have some coffee, buttely, I was starting to feel I was already a part of the ¡®ck tea faction¡¯. I was also starting to think about not wanting to return to Japan anymore. Together with Bea and Toto....If I can be with these two, there¡¯s nothing more I can ask for. I became a little too serious all of a sudden. So, to change my mood, I looked around the shop. This was a rather popr shop in the imperial capital, with refined furnishings and a very good taste. It was only that this shop was full of women, so I felt a little ufortable. We asked for some more cookies, and this time all three of us started to munch. Bea was wiping away all the crumbles that Toto was leaving behind. They act indeed like mother and daughter. A lot happened, but after we enjoyed the delicious cookies and tea, our mood changedpletely into a happy one. Still, it was really unfortunate that I didn¡¯t knock that ck clothed impostor down...... We left the shop and started to look after our carriage. At that moment, I felt someone¡¯s presence, sneaking behind our backs. Someone else is looking for trouble?......What idiot is it this time?...... ¡°Beautiful youngdy, if you don¡¯t mind, I¡¯d like to invite you to have dinner with me. No, there¡¯s no need for you to act with precaution, you can feel at ease. Certainly, I am a dog type kemonobito, but I¡¯m herbivorous, I won¡¯t eat you.¡± He grasped his forehead with one hand and looked upwards.....What¡¯s with that stupid pose? ¡°Albert, you idiot! What do you think you¡¯re doing?¡± ¡°Albert, sit!¡± (This dog, can I send him away flying?) Unfortunately, it was out of question; he was part of the Frontier Count¡¯s Army, after all......... _____________ (1) 2 million yen = 19.307$/17.275€ Chapter 48: Stupid Dog, Albert Chapter 48: Stupid Dog, Albert ¡°Even though I¡¯m a dog kemonobito, I¡¯m herbivorous.¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Wahahahahahaha!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°I had a goodugh...¡± ¡°Albert-san is such a fool.¡± ¡°He¡¯s just a natural airhead.¡± ¡°He did think that pose was cool.¡± ¡°He¡¯s nothing but a lunatic.¡± On our way back, we met the ck knights, and they took all their time to thoroughly tease Albert. ¡°You stupid idiots, shut your mouths! Shut up and walk!¡± Albert snapped. ¡°Albert, you¡¯re the stupid one here.¡± ¡°Albert, be silent.¡± (This crossbreed dog, is he your pet? He needs more discipline, Dad.) ¡°Y...yes! Forgive me!¡± When they heard we wanted to go out in the castle town, the ck knights concluded that they needed to escort us. At first, they did indeed earnestly escort us, but I discovered them rather fast. It was when that ck clothed impostor showed up. I did say it, before the guards appeared, right? That it was a job for those guys. When I said that, I didn¡¯t refer to the city guards, but to the ck knights. However, they soon lost their interest in providing ¡®protection¡¯; the imperial capital was a safe ce after all. They decided they didn¡¯t need such arge number of ¡®bodyguards¡¯, so they took turns in watching over us. Since there were many young and beautiful girls in front of that caf¨¦, they started to hit on them. Beaten at his own game, it was decided that I would be in charge of teaching Albert a lesson. The result... ¡°It was the first time a vassal tried to seduce me.¡± ¡°I am truly sorry!¡± Is this.... Albert was now dragged along with us, literally; as the carriage advanced, Albert became pretty beat up. The sound of him constantly hitting the ground was rather nasty, but as long as it won¡¯t end in instant death, I can still treat his wounds; no problems there. We finally arrived at the imperial castle. Albert couldn¡¯t move anymore, so I let him in the ck knight¡¯s care and returned to my room. It was already evening. The same day, my master, my mother-inw, Bea, Toto and I would meet up for a family diner. Bea didn¡¯t have the chance to meet her mother after all. So I wanted us to have a meal together. ¡°And then? How far did you two go?¡± These words stuck in my trachea....... Since I was choking, Bea started to pat me on my back. Master, this is an act of ¡®medical¡¯ treatment. Don¡¯t release your killing intent, please. ¡°Are you all right, Zest-sama?¡± Bea looked into my eyes and asked, visibly worried. Ah! She¡¯s too adorable. ¡°Thank you Bea, I¡¯m fine though. Smelling your scent and having my back patted by you, meant aplete recovery from anything I might have had.¡± ¡°Stop it, Zest-sama!¡± She started to hit me with her tiny fists again. As I was saying, master, this is........yup, it¡¯s just flirting. I¡¯ll try to restrain myself. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for that. But to answer your question, I can assure you that our rtionship is a very pure one.¡± It is actually the truth. Our rtionship is indeed pure and ¡®clean¡¯. Mother-inw got speechless for a short moment, then she started, with a bitter smile. ¡°This wasn¡¯t what we asked. We wanted to know where you went today, as in where in the city.......¡± ¡°Lies!! Zest, you are lying to me!¡± ......Wh...what is this? My mother-inw asked where we went in the city today, right? What the hell is master saying then? What lies? ¡°A pure rtionship? Don¡¯t lie to me! I know it pretty well.¡± He had a demonic expression on his face. My mother-inw looked at him, her face expressionless..... Damn, she¡¯s scary. Bea and I exchanged nces. We both looked a bit confused. What was he talking about? Toto decided that this whole thing had nothing to do with her, so she dedicated herself to eating the cookies. This is how she was.... ¡°I know it pretty well.....I¡¯ve seen it with my own eyes, you kissing Bea!¡± With a rough nasal breathing, my master concluded. Huh? So you did see that! Bea was sitting next to me, her facepletely flushed, and she started to tremble lightly. Most certainly.....we did do that. Was it wrong.....? Bang.... An ugly, heavy sound reverberated inside the room. It was my mother-inw¡¯s iron-ribbed fan. ¡°Sonia, I wonder where were you when you saw that?¡± ¡°In....in Zest¡¯s bedroom.¡± Master, you started to speak respectfully now? Mother-inw¡¯s intimidating air was not to be trifled with. ¡°Sonia, stop whining about a young, soon-to-be-married couple kissing each other. And when you see them doing that, you have to pretend you didn¡¯t see anything, that¡¯s normal, you know?....You even went to his bedroom. It seems you¡¯ve forgotten, but you weren¡¯t any better when you were my fianc¨¦.......Remember that time when you......¡± ¡°Sorry, Lamia, I was in the wrong, so please stop it. I know! Once in a while, I really want to be alone with you and rx. Shall we go to our room? Come now, let¡¯s go!¡± The speed with which they disappeared was rather frightening. .......So master did something in their pre-wedding period. I¡¯ll investigate itter. But well, this worked for me too, and it seems my mother-inw is fine with me kissing Bea, so I can feel at ease. Relieved, I looked at Bea only to see her looking down in shame, extremely abashed. ¡°Are you ok, Bea?¡± I brushed her hair. ¡°Yes, I am all right now.¡± She smiled and she nestled close to me. I could feel her body temperature. I hugged her tenderly and she returned my embrace. ¡°Bea, you smell really good, I love this flower fragrance.¡± ¡°......Zest-sama, you smell of ck tea.¡± Before long, I slowly approached her face. It was like our lips were attracted to each other. Like they were requesting toe together........ (I want to kiss you too!) Yes, you were here as well, Toto...... We both started tough. I kissed her on the cheek, and Toto was extremely delighted. This little girl is unbelievable. I should give up on kissing Bea today. I escorted Bea to her room, and I returned to mine. I finished with the shower quickly, and entered my bed. Tomorrow, a call from the Emperor should arrive. We must decide what we¡¯ll do next. I fell asleep while thinking of that. ¡°Such a beautiful morning......And yet, I¡¯d be the happiest if the world would just perish right now......¡± I muttered to myself. It seems I......wet my bed..........? Chapter 49: It Looked like Bed-Wetting, but it Wasn’t Chapter 49: It Looked like Bed-Wetting, but it Wasn¡¯t For a 30+ years old guy like me, something like this to happen was...... With trembling feet, I got off of my bed and confirmed the disastrous scene. A ¡®world map¡¯ was spreading out on my bed. Is this really bed-wetting?....It¡¯s strange....The position is a little too high, isn¡¯t it? The spots on the sheets were at the level of my chest, and, frankly, I can¡¯t really pee from there. I incidentally looked at the area where the pillows were, only to see a trembling Toto, down on her knees. ¡°Morning Toto. What¡¯s wrong?¡± (Good morning, Dad. I¡¯m really sorry.) .......Now I get it. ¡°Is it that you wet the bed?¡± I approached her and asked as gently as possible. (Yes....I¡¯m very sorry, Dad.) ¡°I understand. Be careful next time, okay? Good, let¡¯s go take a bath.¡± Once I brushed her hair lightly, her smile returned at once.....This absolute simplicity was Toto¡¯s best trait. Cheerfully, we entered the bathroom and I washed her clean. Lately, it became normal for us to take a bath together, and she seems to enjoy the bathing. We left the bathtub, and as I was drying her hair, a maid came to summon me. It was a call from the Emperor, so I couldn¡¯t make him wait. Hurriedly, I made the preparations and followed after the maid. I was led to the same conference room as before; it seemed I wasn¡¯t the only one who got summoned though. Bea and her parents were already there. With the four of us present, his Majesty made an appearance too; we stood up and bowed deeply, then we took a seat again. ¡°Well, we should start without dy. I heard that the situation has changed, but what did change exactly?¡± His Majesty was showing a hearty smile. My master was winking at me......So, I am the one who should do the talk, huh.....? ¡°About the spiritification, it seems that Bea and I did it together. The spirit itself has confirmed this.¡± Toto was nodding in agreement. ¡°And in this case, Bea and I, we both should go independent and form a new household......As for her Majesty, the princess, I fear that.......¡± ¡°Presumably, after I confer you the duke title, I make her marry you?.....So, it¡¯s up to me to agree to an imperial marriage........¡± ¡°Yes, your Majesty.¡± The Emperor nodded in understanding. In short, with the marriage of an imperial princesses the right to the throne session as well. The rtionship between us would surely strengthen, but at the same time the battle for session would be pretty steamy as well. After I get invested with a new title, I should consider giving up the rights for the session. It¡¯s ratherplicated, choosing the best solution. ¡°I understand. First, Zest and Beatrice, you two are going to form a new Duke Household.¡± ........What? ¡°A Duke Household?¡± The duke title is only given to members of the Imperial Household or their rtives. It¡¯s not like the duke title was never given to a vassal household, but it was never done so in the Grun Empire. ¡°Our Grun Empire was revived by the hero from those ancient times. Naturally, the Imperial Household has Japanese roots as well. Therefore, since you¡¯re Japanese too, there¡¯s no trouble in making you a duke.¡± ..........And that¡¯s what he answered. ¡°The descendant of the long gone ancestor and the daughter of an empire¡¯s retainer have achieved spiritification. It¡¯s a just cause for the empire to ept our titles of duke and duchess.......Is it so?¡± ¡°Right. I would have been a bit worried if you were alone in this, but since Lady Beatrice from the Frontier Count¡¯s Household is part of the story now, you won¡¯t run away to another country, and I won¡¯t be concerned about a domestic conflict either. This being the case, I will only take you two in as a rtives.¡± Your Majesty, you are too frank. Yes, it is indeed essential that Beatrice is part of the story now. The spiritification is also the Frontier Count¡¯s Household¡¯s feat. If it were my achievement alone, a revolt or rebellion might have urred. Now, with the Frontier Count¡¯s Household present in this matter, worrying about revolts is futile. The reason is rather simple. It¡¯s because, even using the spiritification as a pretext for causing a rebellion, the chances of sess are nonexistent. To begin with, if the Frontier Count¡¯s Household betrays the empire, it would actually mean the end of it. And now, they even got a spirit to their side. They are indeed trustworthy, but his Majesty can only do one thing to solve the problem. ¡°I¡¯ll say it clearly. I¡¯m not pleased with this decision, but I¡¯ll have to ask you to take Tsubaki as your concubine.¡± His Majesty lowered his head. ¡°Ple....please stop, your Majesty!¡± We all stood up in hot haste to make him stop, but the Emperor wouldn¡¯t raise his head. ¡°I won¡¯t say you have to do it right away. I¡¯ll also give Tsubaki detailed instructions as to not bother the two of you too much. As for the next emperor, it¡¯ll most likely be my son, with your and Tsubaki¡¯s child being next in the line of session. If we don¡¯t do this, the empire will surely fall into pieces.¡± His words were heroic, but tragic. From the start, the Frontier Count¡¯s power was too immense, therefore the empire was barely keeping its bnce until now. And with this turmoiltely, the Emperor got a little too much to handle; did he reach his limit? ¡°Urm.....Does her Highness, Princess Tsubaki, want to be Zest-sama¡¯s concubine?¡± After being silent for a long time, Bea asked. The Emperor¡¯s body swayed a little. Yes, her voice just now was indeed frightening. ¡°Beatrice, I understand that you don¡¯t agree to all this, but will you please try to endure it?¡± Master said, with a slightly trembling voice. ¡°Eh? Try to endure it? I actually think that it¡¯s pretty normal for nobles to take concubines, and if Zest-sama could marry Princess Tsubaki, it will also give him great honor and prestige. What are you asking me to put up with?¡± (Dad, Mom really thinks this way.) ................So that¡¯s her answer? The conference room fell silent. The Emperor raised his head slowly. Your sweat, you¡¯d better wipe it away, your Majesty. ¡°Beatrice, do you really approve of this marriage? Isn¡¯t it unpleasant for you?¡± My mother-inw asked gently. ¡°Yes. It is not decided that I will be able to give birth to a son, so it¡¯s only natural, isn¡¯t it?¡± Bea was in fact stunned that we kept on asking her about this. .......She¡¯s a noble, without any doubt. I let out a long sigh. I wasn¡¯t the only one though. Apart from Bea, everyone let out a sigh. Hey you, don¡¯t you dare to say no now, all right? Look at the situation, okay? Everyone, but Bea, was looking at me insistently, saying that with their eyes. ¡°Your Majesty, I thankfully ept the terms of this discussion.¡± I didn¡¯t know what else to say except for this....... Since we were about to be his rtives, the Emperor asked us to follow him. Bea and I followed after the light steps of the Emperor until we entered the imperial family¡¯s residential area. For everything to be official, his Majesty must announce it to the world first. But inside the residential area there were no wondering eyes, so we were told to feel at ease. The Emperor seemed to feel released as well. He was all smiles. ¡°I¡¯m very happy to meet you, Beatrice ane-sama (1). I am Tsubaki.¡± Beatrice ane-sama....... Since Bea was an only child in her family, she surrendered in an instant. If we do get married, Bea will indeed be Tsubaki¡¯s older sister. There¡¯s no mistaking it. But to say it with this precise timing, Princess Tsubaki sure is extremely determined. Just to be sure, I¡¯ll have to be more careful around her...... Princess Tsubaki was drinking some ck tea, while looking at Bea and Toto ying together. The ones ¡®interviewing¡¯ me were the Emperor and the Empress. ¡°I was so worried. She seems all right with everything, doesn¡¯t she?¡± ¡°I couldn¡¯t even sleep, thinking that Beatrice will turn us down...¡± You two, you really didn¡¯t need MY opinion on this matter, did you? ¡°As for you, as long as you didn¡¯t hate Beatrice, you wouldn¡¯t have opposed it, am I right?¡± ...........Was it that obvious? Tomorrow, an announcement about the spiritification will be made from the pce¡¯s terrace. Princess Tsubaki¡¯s marriage and our conferring of the duke and duchess titles will be also revealed. After all, it was about an imperial princess¡¯ marriage. Normally, in case the princess was not to be the official wife, such a thing would have been impossible. However, since the official wife is a heroine who managed to achieve spiritification, bing a concubine is inevitable, so everything should be all right. It can also indicate that the empire is supporting the ones who gave birth to the spirit. We spent some more time chatting and then ate dinner together, before we returned to our rooms. I decided I had to go rest earlier than usual, since tomorrow was bound to be a busy day from the start. And so, it was settled that I would be a duke and I¡¯ll marry Princess Tsubaki; finally, this day full of shocks wille to an end......... ¡°Zest-sama, I made a big mistake this time.............¡± In the morning, I the words of a maid woke me up. I was dumbfounded for a moment........I didn¡¯t do anything, really! ____________ (1) Now, I had to choose between the English version ¡®older sister-sama¡¯ and the Japanese version ¡®ane-sama¡¯, so I chose the Japanese one (simrly to ¡®aniki¡¯/older brother in one of the beginning chapters). If you think the English version is actually better, tell me and I¡¯ll change it ^^ Chapter 50: Who Did It? Chapter 50: Who Did It? When I woke up, the maid told me ¡®I did it this time¡¯. I could definitely not cope with that.... ¡°M...morning. What did you do?¡± Without moving even an inch, that question was all I could muster. ¡°Good morning, Zest-sama. Urm, well......I am expecting a child. And then......¡± With a face like a tomato, she hesitantly exined me the circumstances. ording to the maid¡¯s story, she was Meril, a daughter from a baron¡¯s household......and was working in the imperial pce as a maid, in order to learn the good manners. One of the ck knights seduced her and forcefully brought her to his room to do naughty stuff. With a basic light magic, I checked her body and it seemed she was indeed pregnant. She didn¡¯t know what to do, so she came to me, since I was in charge of the ck knights. It was like that. .................Who was it? Who¡¯s the idiot guilty of something like this? ¡°That¡¯s.......I¡¯ll immediately search for the perpetrator and I¡¯ll take the proper measures. Are you engaged or anything?¡± ¡°No, before I finish my training here, I can¡¯t.......¡± It was pretty normal for nobles¡¯ children to go work as maids in the imperial pce in order to learn the good manners. Once they be pce maids, they¡¯ll never have to worry about finding a good wedding partner. ¡°I see. Then, what do you want to do about that guy?¡± ¡°If he marries me and takes responsibility, then.....¡± She doesn¡¯t want this to be a too serious matter. Hmm, it can¡¯t be helped then. ¡°Understood. I¡¯ll make the preparations right away, so you can just rx and wait here.¡± However, was it really against her will? I actually do trust the ck knights, so I wonder...... At a quick pace, I went towards the room where the ck knights were in attendance. I asked for another room to be prepared next to theirs. ¡°Oi! Who¡¯s the idiot who raped the maid called Meril!?¡± The door opened and Albert let himself sit in a seiza position. ....................It was you?................ I sat down on a chair. ¡°So? What actually happened?¡± The other ck knights turned away their heads. Well, they didn¡¯t want to see how their colleague was about to get scolded for causing a scandal. ¡°Yes. I have no recollection of what happened yesterday, after we returned to the pce.......When I came to my senses, I was sleeping next to the maid......I am truly sorry.....¡± ..............You idiot! Someone set you up! When I nced at the other ck knights, their shoulders were trembling lightly. You were aplices to this! I let Albert step back for a moment. He looked too pitiful, with his tail and ears limp. ¡°You lot, you set him up, didn¡¯t you? ording to the grinning ck knights¡¯ exnation, it was something like this... That maid was the daughter of a baron¡¯s household from the Frontier Count¡¯s domain, and she was in love with Albert for a long time. However, the baron didn¡¯t approve of his daughter marrying a simple knight, so he sent her to the imperial capital¡¯s pce to serve as a maid. They finally met again, and the ck knights decided to work together with the maid. They devised a n in order to ¡®attach¡¯ Albert to her. ¡°You lot......Then, what about Albert?¡± ¡°Yes, he¡¯s actually in love with Miss Meril too, so there¡¯s no problem there. We¡¯re in your care now.¡± They all together bowed their heads. Oh dear! ¡°Understood. I¡¯ll turn this into a happy story. Tell this to Albert too.¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Thank you!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° Really now, you sure know how to cause a lot of trouble.....However, that maid was really cute. Damn you Albert.....and that handsome face of yours. With my mes of jealousy fully burning, I returned to my room. Meril and Bea were there. ¡°Bea, you came? Meril, I heard about your story. Leave it to me.¡± ¡°Zest-sama, I also heard about it from Meril. However, deceiving Zest-sama is a bit......¡± ¡°Zest-sama, I am truly sorry.¡± Ah, that? Iughed and brushed Bea¡¯s hair. Yes, it feels as good as ever. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. Besides, I¡¯ve already decided on the punishment.¡± Really now, I had to do meticulous arrangements. ¡°Anyway, the suggestion came from my master or mother-inw, am I correct?¡± Startled, Meril jumped up. ¡°As for the punishment this time, I¡¯m nning to assign Albert as those guys¡¯ leader and make them all work directly under me.¡± This was indeed their punishment, making them work directly under me. In reality, I¡¯ll be something like their overseer. ¡°Therefore, there¡¯s no need to be worried, Meril, I won¡¯t scold you. You can rx.¡± She constantly apologized to me; as for her pregnancy, it was actually real. I confirmed it with my observation magic......That rascal was damn fast....... For the time being, I gave some orders to make Meril Bea¡¯s exclusive maid. They both know each other, and Albert would feel at ease knowing that she¡¯d work under Bea. After I finished with these preparations, it was already the time for the big announcement on the pce¡¯s terrace. A maid came to guide me to the waiting room. Bea and I were drinking some tea, while waiting for our turn. Toto, you really like cookies, don¡¯t you......? How many did you eat already? You¡¯ll get fat, you know? Once Toto finished her 4th cookie, the maid called us out. Well, shall we go? We arrived in front of the terrace¡¯s opened door and heard that the Emperor¡¯s speech has already begun. The maid knelt down and approached his Majesty, who was giving his speech in front of the poption, and touched his leg a few times. I see, that was the signal. ¡°.......................to be. Well, as everyone already knows, a hero who managed to achieve spiritification appeared in our empire. It is a brilliant achievement we haven¡¯t seen in 300 years!¡± Waaaaaaaaa... I surveyed the crowd, breaking out in shouts of joy. His Majesty did the same, then raised his right hand, at which point the crowd started to slowly settle down; the Emperor continued. ¡°For this joyous achievement, I prepared two rewards. First, I will bestow them with the duke rank, and second, I will offer Princess Tsubaki in marriage! Everyone, offer your blessings and shouts of joy to our heroes, Duke Zest and Duchess Beatrice!!¡± Waaaaaaaaaaaaaa!! The cheers this time were even greater than before. The maid gestured us to hurry on the terrace. Bea and I looked at each other and nodded, then started walking slowly. (Dad, Mom, I need to pee. It¡¯lle out.) At this excessively clear telepathic message, we both turned around in shock........ Toto, try to endure it......Ha? It seems she won¡¯t be able to........ Chapter 51: When There’s no Toilet Around, Do it in a Cup! Chapter 51: When There¡¯s no Toilet Around, Do it in a Cup! With countless shouts of joy in the background, Toto was trembling slightly...... Do I go search for a toilet? Impossible, we won¡¯t make it..... Then, I tell her to endure? This is also impossible; she seems she¡¯s reached her limit...... I took a cup of tea and drank it up hurriedly. ¡°Toto, it can¡¯t be helped. Use this. We will buy you some time, so you should feel at ease.¡± With a refreshing smile, I offered her the cup. If a human would do something like this, I¡¯m sure they¡¯ll get arrested or something, but she¡¯s a spirit, so there shouldn¡¯t be any problem, right? Please, let it not be a problem..... Afraid, I looked at Bea. It seemed she was all right; she was nodding at everything I was saying, with a serious expression on her face. (I understand. I¡¯ll do my best!) I decided I wouldn¡¯t ask what was there for her to do her best for. There are things in the world you¡¯re better off not knowing. We left Toto in the waiting room and walked towards the terrace. When we showed up in front of the people, the cheers got even louder. There were tens of thousands of people outside. And they were all focusing their attention on us. It was rather intense. I somehow managed to put a smile on my face and wave my hand. Bea was.....as expected. She was wearing a magnificent smile, waving her hand at the people. There are things only noble women can do. After a short while, Toto came floating on the terrace as well. Her smile was filled with kindness, and she looked just like a goddess. In reality, she was only happy and refreshed after doing her ¡®stuff¡¯...... I¡¯ll just be silent about it.............. After we smiled and waved our hands in front of the people for a while, the ceremony of our debut was over. We returned to the waiting room, together with the Emperor. ¡°Oh dear, we¡¯ve finallypleted the first stage.¡± He threw himself down into a chair and drank some tea. The Emperor was extremely thirsty or something, since he drank that cup of ¡®tea¡¯ in one single breath. .................That cup............was it for his Majesty?.............. We too sat down and a maid came to bring us some tea. ¡°In the afternoon, we will have the title bestowing ceremony in the audience room.¡± The Emperor said, after he got his cup of tea replenished. ¡°As you wish.¡± ¡°As you wish.¡± We both lowered our heads in a bow. ¡°Stop it, yours Excellencies, Duke and Duchess. You can act more familiar with me now.¡± Grinning, the Emperor took a sip of his newly prepared tea. Hm? Why did he lean his head to the side just now? ¡°Hmm, well, you are duke and duchess from now on, and also my rtives. I¡¯ll be relying on you. As for your domain, I¡¯ll discuss it first with the Frontier Count, and we¡¯lle up with a decision afterwards. I¡¯m nning on giving you a part of my territory and a part of the Frontier Count¡¯s territory. It should be all right.¡± ¡°Certainly, your Majesty.¡± ¡°Yes, your Majesty.¡± ¡°Haha, Bea, you¡¯re still stiff. I don¡¯t mind treating you like a daughter of mine, you know?¡± The Emperor smiled mischievously. Bea showed a bitter smile, but she didn¡¯t seem to hate it. She seemed rather perplexed. Toto was gulping down her tea at her own pace.......You¡¯ll be full again, you know? We were chatting idly, when the door opened and the Prime Minister came in. ¡°Excuse me for interrupting your pleasant talk, your Majesty, yours Excellencies, Duke and Duchess.¡± He said and bowed his head. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s already the time? Zest, Bea, I have something to talk with the Prime Minister first, so you can rx and wait for now. I will send someone for youter.¡± He patted me on the shoulder rather vigorously then left the room together with the Prime Minister. His Majesty seems quite busy. I thought that highly positioned people rx in a chair and give orders around, but it seems I was wrong. I asked a maid about our lunch, and it seemed we were going to have it here. It was soon the time for it. I had to kill some time, so I yed a bit with Bea and Toto. Lately, Toto seems to enjoy ying ¡®Look this way!¡¯ (1) Immediately after a loss, she wants to y again. Being too energetic, she often ends up touching Bea¡¯s chest region, at which point her breasts start bouncing. This was also great. After we finished our lunch, Bea took Toto to the toilet. It¡¯d be too troublesome if she starts saying again she can¡¯t endure it anymore. After doing her ¡®stuff¡¯ properly on a toilet this time, Toto was in a very good mood. As expected, she didn¡¯t really like doing it in a cup. Obviously. It¡¯s difficult to confirm whether a spirit feels shame or not, but I bet she didn¡¯t like peeing in a cup inside the waiting room. (Mom made me wear this! How do I look?) She said, and showed me her new ribbon. ¡°You look great, Toto, you¡¯re very cute.¡± She puffed up with pride. Haha, she truly is cute. We both brushed this extremely cute Toto¡¯s hair, when the maid came for us. ¡°It is time. Please follow me.¡± The maid assured us that everything was prepared so we followed after her. After the title bestowing ceremony, this day will be over. Just for a bit longer I¡¯ll do my best. ........I got to buy some presents too. I was worrying about the souvenirs I would have to buyter, when I realized we already arrived in front of the audience room. Behind these doors, the Emperor and the nobles are waiting for us. Good! I motivated myself once again and looked at the soldiers guarding the doors, nodding to them. The doors were opened slowly. (Come to think of it, the Majesty uncle guy ended up drinking from the cup I used, didn¡¯t he?) We received this shocking telepathic message right when his Majesty, sitting on an extravagant chair, came in sight........... Bea and I were desperately trying to refrain ourselves from bursting outughing. It was the beginning of an audience, during which we were not allowed tough. ___________ (1) ¡®hi muite hoi¡¯ (look this way) is the second part of ¡®Janken¡¯ (rock-paper-scissors), when you point your finger and the other party has to look the other way, or they lose (you can check on YouTube if you want ^^). Chapter 52: A Title Bestowal Ceremony during which We Must Absolutely Not Laugh Chapter 52: A Title Bestowal Ceremony during which We Must Absolutely Not Laugh The gigantic doors were opening. Inside this dazzling audience room, the Emperor was sitting on his extravagant chair on the tform, lying in wait. Her Majesty the Empress was not there......As always, he¡¯s doting on her. The nobles gathered, anxiously waiting to take one look at the newly born heroes, the newly born duke and duchess. For the nobles, a duke was a person who¡¯s reached the top. Such a title bestowal ceremony happened only a few times since the foundation of this nation. All the nobles in the imperial capital gathered there. This title bestowal ceremony was indeed majestic. For us, it was only a loser¡¯s ¡®punishment¡¯............ His Majesty was sitting in his chair, his expression grave. It couldn¡¯t be helped that only by looking at him we almost startedughing. (Mom, is it that the Majesty uncle guy likes my pee-pee?) Bea continued to advance, her entire body trembling. It was Toto¡¯s final blow. This important looking old man, sitting over there, likes drinking pee...... I must restrain my thoughts. (Dad too, you want to drink pee-pee?) ¡°Pfffu¡± I clenched my fists in a desperate attempt to control my outburst through pain. I¡¯m a drinking buddy of his Majesty! No, stop! This self-inflicted damage was greater than necessary. When I got in front of the Emperor, I fell down to one knee and lowered my head. (I get it now! Once you be a great person, you start drinking pee-pee!) Damn it Toto, you don¡¯t understand a thing....Right at the moment when her telepathic message arrived into my head, the Prime Minister started talking. ¡°First, we will read the achievements that led to this title bestowal. Reading official, you can start.¡± The assigned reading official......Well, basically it¡¯s an honorary position upied by a retired civil official noble. A white-haired old man opened the parchment slowly and started reading. (Dad! That old man¡¯s hat! It looks like it¡¯s made of hair!) Involuntarily, we both looked in his direction. He¡¯s definitely wearing.......a wig...... Please stop! This topic is dangerous. Bea¡¯s shoulders were trembling. Being immensely curios about her surroundings, Toto¡¯s telepathic messages didn¡¯t stop froming into our heads. (Mom, do human women have many breasts?) Have ¡®many¡¯ breasts? What are they, monsters?....... Toto was staring at a fat women, who seemed to have four rounds of belly, as she was sitting down, wiping her sweat away. Those are not breasts, it¡¯s her belly. In a way, she was indeed a monster. Somehow, the ceremony was still going on, but nothing of it would enter my head. The situation in which only Toto¡¯s telepathic messages reached our heads was still on-going. All about this ceremony looked more and more like a gag............I¡¯ll be finished. ¡°A new Duke Household is born in our Grun Empire. I will offer my blessings to them, before the title bestowal.¡± A maid was respectfully caring a silver water jug. The Emperor poured the water in a silver bowl and, with a few tree branches with young leaves, he sprinkled the water over us. (!? So, people not only drink pee-pee, they also sprinkle it over others!) Surprised, Toto¡¯s eyes were shining intensely. Our eyes were shining intensely too. ¡°Zest, as a duke of our Grun Empire you will swear loyalty towards it and will be my sword.¡± ¡°Yes!! I, Zest, swear unyielding loyalty! I¡¯ll be your Majesty¡¯s sword! And I will bring glory to our Grun Empire!¡± My oath was filled with weird yells and magical power....It couldn¡¯t be helped. ¡°Beatrice, as a duchess of our Grun Empire you will swear loyalty towards it and will be my sword.¡± ¡°Yes! I, Beatrice! Swear unyielding! Loyalty! I will be your Majesty¡¯s! Sword and I will bring glory to our! Grun Empire.¡± Beatrice finished her oath somehow, with a few rather strange artictions. ¡°I recognize now the birth of a duke and duchess! Glory to our Grun Empire!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Glory to our Grun Empire!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° (Is my pee-pee that glorious?) And so, the title bestowing ceremony finally ended. ¡°Toto, when I tell you to be quiet, it also means you can¡¯t send telepathic messages, you know?¡± ¡°Toto? I understand you can¡¯t stay quiet in a dangerous situation, but otherwise you can, right?¡± (Yes, I can!) Some way or another, the ceremony ended safely. We couldn¡¯t stand up for a while.............. We somehow recovered and were now walking towards the evening party grounds. Once this party was over, it¡¯ll mark the end of a series of exhausting events. We will return to the Frontier Count¡¯s domain, that I actually missed.........Or, we won¡¯t. Since I will get my own domain now as a duke........we will ¡®return¡¯ there....... But in this case, where will the marriage ceremony take ce? In my domain? In the imperial capital¡¯s cathedral? I¡¯ll just discuss itter with Bea. The evening party was progressing well. The maids were taking care of Toto, feeding her to her great delight. You little! You really can be quiet, when you eat, that is. The nobles gathered in a long line, waiting for me to greet them. ¡°Well, such wonderful achievements. I want to share your good luck. Oh right! You must definitely meet my daughter................¡± ¡°Since my domain is really close to the Frontier Count¡¯s, I get along well with his Excellency. From now on, Lord Zest, I will certainly..........¡± ¡°I heard about Lord Zest¡¯s military fame. Please, allow me to spar with you.........¡± They were all saying the same things........ Don¡¯t introduce me to your daughter! My legal wife is a duchess and my concubine is a princess, you know? Aren¡¯t you a viscount?............It¡¯s impossible.....Give up! As one would expect, there was no fool around who dared to make advances at Bea. There was only one noble who red at Bea¡¯s cleavage, but... Toto sent him away flying. I finally finished with this handshake ¡®party¡¯, and sent Bea off to her room, then immediately returned to mine. I was reaching my limit. I¡¯ll go to sleep early tonight too. Good night........... The next day, I woke up in a wonderful mood. No more bed-wetting, nor trespassing maids..... It was a refreshing morning. I changed my clothes and took Toto to Bea¡¯s room. We had ns to eat breakfast together. We arrived in front of Bea¡¯s room, and greeted the ck knights who were guarding it. ¡°Good work. Is everything in order?¡± Obviously, everything was all right; it was just lip service from my part. ¡°Beatrice-sama......has prepared........the breakfast.................¡± My refreshing morning seems to have suddenly ended.............. Chapter 53: The Nightmare Weapon’s Revival Chapter 53: The Nightmare Weapon¡¯s Revival Bea made breakfast......... After hearing such a hopeless notice, I couldn¡¯t stop from asking. ¡°Idiot, so you watched silently without doing anything to stop her? Couldn¡¯t you just cause an ¡®ident¡¯ to ruin the food, or something?¡± With an admiring expression, the ck knight answered. ¡°Zest-sama, is just thattely, Beatrice-sama has be more sociable.¡± With teary eyes, he continued. ¡°Such a lovely Beatrice-sama was doing her best to make the breakfast, I just couldn¡¯t stop her!¡± ¡°.............Forget it.¡± ¡°.............I wish you the very best of luck.¡± I shook his hand and silently entered the room. ¡°Morning Bea, it¡¯s a great morning, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Good morning Zest-sama. Yes, it¡¯s a wonderful morning.¡± I cast some healing magic on my trembling feet as I tried to sit down on my chair. ¡°I made the breakfast today.¡± Bea was showing an expression like she was begging for me to praise her. d in strengthening magic, I tried to control my trembling while brushing her hair lightly. ¡°It smells delicious, Bea. However, didn¡¯t you promise me you won¡¯t cook again because it¡¯s dangerous?¡± ¡°Haha. Since then, I did a lot of practice, so as not to worry Zest-sama anymore.¡± Her smile was sparkling. It can¡¯t be helped. Such a beautiful girl cooked for me............ I have no choice but to eat it. (D...Dad....this is...) Toto, you can¡¯t say anything else.......I looked at her with a serious expression and she seemed to understand. ¡°Let¡¯s eat...¡± (Itadakimasu!) (1) ¡°Go ahead and eat.¡± As for our breakfast, it contained bread, soup, sd and some dark liquid for drinking. The outward appearance was pretty ordinary; there was nothing strange about it. Timidly, I took a mouthful of soup. ¡°It¡¯s good......¡± !?The soup was a sess! I¡¯m sure the maids helped her! So, the first one was safe.....Toto was gulping repetitively as well. Then, what about the bread? I took a bite. ¡°It¡¯s...delicious.....¡± This was a sess too! Such good fortune.....There are only two left..... Eagerly, I started tasting the sd. ¡°It¡¯s fresh and tasty......¡± How can this be?.........Atst, only the dangerously looking ¡®something¡¯ was left........... I nced at Toto, but she was not approaching the ck liquid. I get it. If I drink this, everything will be settled peacefully..... I prepared myself for the worst, and took a sip from the dark liquid! ¡°It¡¯s.....coffee........¡± Yes, it was actually coffee. ¡°Haha, in Japan, people often drink this, right? I looked up in an old book, and it was written there.¡± Smiling, she was eating her breakfast. ¡°My cooking skills were very bad, so Zest-sama was worried about me, am I right?¡± Bea was smiling kindly and I couldn¡¯t reply to her. ¡°I knew it actually, that Zest-sama was being silent about it out of kindness. But still, I wanted to cook for you, so I kept on practicing.......on my grandfather.¡± ..............Frontier Count, are you still alive? ¡°But since my grandfather is a busy man, he changed ces with the ck knights after a while..........¡± That old geezer Frontier Count, he ran away. ¡°Thanks to them, I¡¯ve be rather skillful, haven¡¯t I, Zest-sama?¡± Really now, this girl is....... She¡¯s really, really kind. Because of the dark attribute¡¯s influence, she went through a lot of terrible and painful situations. And yet, she¡¯s such a kind girl. I hugged her softly. ¡°Bea, thank you so much. Truly......¡± I gazed at her firmly for a while, and before one knows, I kissed her....... ¡°Thank you for the meal.¡± (Thank you for the meal.) ¡°You are very wee.¡± The food Bea prepared for us was in fact delicious. We ate up everything and drank coffee after. ¡°Still, I really didn¡¯t know there was coffee in this world. When did you buy it?¡± I was in a great mood after drinking coffee again in such a long time, so, with a smile on my face, I asked her. Having done so, with a smile on her face, Bea answered me. ¡°I didn¡¯t buy it. It actuallyes from Toto-chan¡¯s bottom.¡± ..............This is kopi luwak coffee. (2) While thinking that this was indeed kopi luwak coffee, I drank it all up. ______________________________________________________ Takkurun-san¡¯s note: Unfortunately, kopi luwak coffee, made of the excrements of the so-called civet cat, actually exists. _______________ (1) Itadakimasu ¨C a Japanese expression of gratitude said before a meal. It literally means ¡®I humbly ept this food¡¯. (2) Kopi luwak is the name of a type of coffee beans. They kinda have a controversial story, so if you¡¯re interested, cheek this link: https://.theguardian/sustainable-business/2014/sep/19/civet-cat-coffee-worlds-most-expensive-brew-made-sustainably-kopi-luwak And yeah, it is poop. >< Chapter 54: If I Could Only Get Used to It…… Chapter 54: If I Could Only Get Used to It........ Three days passed since I first drank this world¡¯s coffee. For me, it was a shocking fact, but for Bea.......no... For this world¡¯s inhabitants, it was only natural. The spirits are the messengers of the gods, they are holy beings. Thus, they bless people with their ¡®Spirit Drops¡¯ and ¡®Spirit Pills¡¯. ...........Or so it seems. The books only talk about Spirit Drops and Spirit Pills, but since there were no spirits around in recent history, there weren¡¯t many people who had an actual understanding about them. Who would¡¯ve thought that Spirit Drops and Spirit Pills were in fact spirit urine and feces....... ¡°Zest will leave soon...We won¡¯t be able to drink Spirit Drops anymore.......¡± The oneining about this was the Emperor. Since that time, he¡¯s gottenpletely addicted to it. The legendary Spirit Drops. He wanted to ask about them right after Toto¡¯s birth, but he gave up, not wanting to ruin the spirit¡¯s mood. Having had no other option, the Emperor had to wait and see what was to happen, but he was unexpectedly made to drink those ¡®Spirit Drops¡¯. ¡®Find that tea!¡¯ That¡¯s what he said after the so-called ¡®pee in a cup¡¯ incident. He instructed his people to look for it, but they couldn¡¯t find ¡®the tea¡¯. But then, the Emperor remembered that we were there at that time, so, reluctantly, he asked me about it. ¡®Zest, what was the liquid in that cup?¡¯ With a demonic expression on his face, the Emperor knelt down on the ground in front of me, making it for a great memory. In reality, he wanted to drink it so badly that he grew desperate..... ¡°It¡¯s truly regrettable, but we can¡¯t restrain them any longer, can we?¡± ¡°Bea ane-sama, I will feel lonely...¡± Empress Natasha and Tsubaki were already addicted too. And because of that, our departure got postponed for a bit. ¡°Tsubaki, you¡¯re such a spoiled child. But it¡¯s all right, we¡¯ll be able to meet again soon.¡± Somehow, Princess Tsubaki gotpletely emotionally attached to Bea. Even though Bea was brushing her hair gently, she had such a sorrowful expression on her face. They¡¯re just like mother and child. But I can¡¯t say that to Bea. ¡®Do I really look that old?¡¯ It¡¯s been only yesterday when she started crying about this matter. I would only end up prostrating myself in front of her again. The woman¡¯s heart is difficult to understand...... ¡°For a short while, I¡¯ll be in the care of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household, so I won¡¯t be able to visit too often, but I¡¯ll make sure toe see you. You¡¯re an important person after all.¡± It was only a followup from my part, nothing more. ¡°It¡¯s the first time I¡¯m going shopping outside the castle!¡± ¡°You¡¯re excited, right, Tsubaki? Look, you can see the water fountain from here!¡± For some reason, we were inside the carriage on our way to the city. I certainly told them I was about to go out to shop for presents, but it was too unexpected that the Princess wille along. ¡®If she¡¯s together with you and the ck knights, she¡¯s safer than inside the castle. No problems there!¡¯ The much appreciated Emperor¡¯s words. .......But I actually wanted this to be a date....mine and Bea¡¯s date. But well, when I looked at how happy and excited Princess Tsubaki was about her first visit in the city, I decided I won¡¯t give too much importance to the minor details. I want to treat this child with great care as well. We were shaken inside the carriage for about 30 minutes, when we finally arrived at the shop we wanted to visit. This shop was recently opened in the imperial capital, but it already had a good reputation of offering a great customer service and an excellent variety of goods. .......I read about this shop in the ck knights¡¯ ¡®Date Spots Report¡¯. ¡°Wee to my shop, your Highness, Princess Tsubaki, your Excellency, Duke Zest, your Excellency, Duchess Beatrice.¡± All the employees were standing in a line, and the one who greeted us was... ¡°It¡¯s Tania! Was this your shop?¡± The middle-aged woman was all smiles. She was Tania, the shopkeeper who looked after us when we went to buy clothes for little Toto. ¡°Eh? So this was actually Tania¡¯s shop. In that case I can really feel at ease.¡± Princess Tsubaki was looking ckly, so we exined her the situation as we entered the shop. ¡°I used the connections I made with my clothing shop, so I opened this one too. I¡¯m really sorry I waste in letting you know about it. What are you looking for today?¡± She said and presented us the great variety of goods she was selling. As expected, ¡®a great variety¡¯ were the perfect words for it. There were a lot of things disyed in this shop, from alcohol and food to all sorts of magical tools. Yes, it¡¯s just like a department store; it has everything. I was trying to look for the right souvenirs to buy, when my attention focused on the three girls, making a fuss over some very lovely ornaments. Toto was there with them, you know? She was sitting on Princess Tsubaki¡¯s shoulder. She looked like Tsubaki¡¯s cute little sister. As for the souvenirs, I decided upon buying sake for the guys and clothing materials or cosmetics for the girls. No one wouldin if the guys get drunk. However, if I offer odd things to women, it could turn into a really ugly situation. I want to avoid that by all means. As for myself, I¡¯d really wanted a magical tool like an item box or something. I bought a bracelet that lets me store inside it arge quantity of goods. It doesn¡¯t have an infinite storage space, but depending on someone¡¯s magical powers the storage quantity grows; it was indeed a valuable item. ........Since it was cheaper than I expected, I ended up buying more than one bracelet. It only cost 1000 pieces of gold coins. Was it actually cheap? Since I received 50.000 pieces of gold coins from the Emperor, signifying my reserve found as a duke, it was actually pretty cheap. I decided to buy about 10 storage bracelets. They only had two storage increasing bracelets left in the shop, so it couldn¡¯t be helped. Still, it¡¯s better to have an item with a fixed storage space, than having none. Bea seemed to have found something good for herself too, so she was negotiating now. Even though I said she was negotiating, she wasn¡¯t actually trying to beat down the price, you know? As a rule, the nobles always pay up the asked price. Bargaining is the activity ofmoners, so it is not appropriate for nobles. Well, nobles do have more gold coins, so they must act resolutely. I went off topic... As I was saying, they were discussing about changing the design and fixing the day of delivery. I was sitting on a chair, drinking ck tea, while surveying the shop. There were no other customers inside, but us. Not surprising. The ce was like reserved, since there ware a princess and two dukes inside. In front of the shop was a carriage with the imperial household¡¯s crest on it. And the ck knights were surrounding the entire ce. There¡¯s no such idiot who would enter the shop at this time. Bea seemed to have finished doing the arrangements and we were about to exit the shop when something happened. ¡°You fool! Who do you think you¡¯re talking to?¡± The angry voice of a man came from outside the shop. ..........It appears that an idiot just showed up......... Chapter 55: A Stupid Noble Chapter 55: A Stupid Noble We heard the angry shouts of a man,ing from outside the shop. I couldn¡¯t believe an idiot would pick a quarrel with us in this situation..... Extremely amazed, I went out of the shop. ¡°What¡¯s with this noise?¡± The man, who was ring at Albert, moved his eyes onto me. He was most likely in his 20s, a young noble-looking man. His face was a little chunky though. ¡°Who the hell are you? These guys¡¯ leader? Are you even training them?¡± This fellow said that, after looking at my ck military uniform. ¡°I am indeed their leader. So what?¡± I decided to act oppressively. I haven¡¯t seen such a level of idiocy in a long time. ¡°Ha? I see you don¡¯t know how to speak properly, maybe that¡¯s why I can¡¯t stand the likes of knights. If the ones guarding you are this vulgar, then you......¡± Say it, just say it! ¡°The Frontier Count is nothing like the rumors say. I feel pity for the Princess having to marry these idiots¡¯ boss........¡± The no.1 idiot was still continuing his lecture, a proud expression on his face. It should be enough. ¡°So, who are you? Say it fast ¡®cause I¡¯m busy.¡± I asked for his name, since I already had enough reasons to get rid of him. It¡¯d be troublesome not to know where to send his coffin after all. ¡°As expected from a provincial person like you not to know of me. I am a baron and the next leader of the Adventurers Guild!¡± .........The Adventurers Guild? ¡°..........The next leader of the Adventurers Guild? A baron?¡± In all honesty, it surprised me. I was surprised that such an idiot was made a baron, and surprised that the Adventurers Guild chose him as their future leader. ¡°If you understood then move aside! Do the likes of you knights dare to oppose a baron?¡± He said then turned to look at me, grinning. Albert was a knight. It was true that he couldn¡¯t overdue it since the other party was a baron. Only in case he didn¡¯t have a direct order, that is. ¡°Albert, restrain this guy right away! We¡¯re going to the so-called Adventurers Guild. Do it!¡± ¡°Yes sir!¡± The idiot was restrained quite easily. ¡°You....you fool! Do you even understand what will happen if you do this?¡± ¡°Albert, he¡¯s too noisy. Stuff something in his mouth!¡± ¡°Certainly, your Excellency.¡± Albert, not a rock... You really endured it, didn¡¯t you.....The ck knights now? Stop stepping on that idiot¡¯s toes so nonchntly! That looks painful..... I looked at the idiot like he was nothing more than garbage, then I returned to my carriage and gave instructions to go towards the Adventurers Guild. Well, getting rid of him at this moment sounded pretty good to me, but in case the Adventurers Guild was a ce full of idiots like this guy, then I¡¯d just take the opportunity to clean it up as well. I didn¡¯t really want to show a bloody scene to the still very young Princess Tsubaki; it wasn¡¯t good for her education after all. At times, screams could be heard from behind the carriage, but I didn¡¯t pay them any attention. ¡°From now on you¡¯ll have the opportunity to meet other high-ranked nobles, so how about giving Albert a promotion?¡± ¡°Is he only a knight now? If that¡¯s true, then that means I can¡¯t y with him.¡± The two girls made me think about it. They¡¯re right. Albert is doing all sorts of jobs for me, so I should promote him. ¡°Since his Majesty offered me the free use of a few court ranks, I¡¯ll promote Albert during his wedding ceremony.¡± (Are you making that stupid dog your official pet, Dad?) Toto, you¡¯re too strict when ites to Albert. Something like a duke showing up suddenly at the Adventurers Guild would turn into something extremely huge. All the more if a princess ising along. I already sent a ck knight to notify them about our arrival, so it should be all right. However, if they are decent people, the level of this incident should be above insane for them. We arrived at the Adventurers Guild. I made Bea and the girls wait for me inside the carriage. Since the ck knights are surrounding the entire ce, it shouldn¡¯t be a problem. I got off the carriage and understoodpletely what the Adventurers Guild was thinking about this idiot. ¡°Your Excellency, we are truly, truly sorry!¡± A sturdy, good-looking man was kneeling down on the ground, while saying that to me. I guess he¡¯s the guild leader. Behind him were the guild¡¯s staff members. All of them, women included, were prostrating themselves in front of me. Good. The Adventurers Guild seems to be decent still. Leaving that aside, it seems that this idiot was the only exception. ¡°That person became an adventurer by using his authority as a noble and in the end he acted like he owned this ce. We were tormented by this as well......¡± It sure seems so. He became an adventurer by taking advantage of his power as a noble, so the guild members, even though they disagreed to it, they had to ept him. But he even threatened them into make him the next guild leader. He¡¯s a prototypical idiot. After hearing their story, I kind of felt pity for them..... And for the Adventurers Guild...... Right......I¡¯ll do just that. ¡°I understand your circumstances. Therefore, how about I submit a personal request to your guild?¡± The guild leader was about to cut his stomach in order to apologize, but the staff members stopped him. Then, I made a suggestion to them. ¡°My request is a sham battle on the castle¡¯s training ground. The opponent is that idiot. There¡¯s nothing to worry about, just ept my request.¡± Everyone present was startled. ¡°He can¡¯t say no to this, I will directly warn him. You can retaliate as much as you like.....urm, we¡¯ll just do a sham battle, that¡¯s all.¡± ¡°Great! I¡¯ll go buy a new axe.¡± ¡°Your Excellency, you¡¯re the best!¡± ¡°Oi, don¡¯t ept my request so easily, you should prepare first!¡± ¡°A spear, I gotta go buy one!¡± ¡°What about his teeth? Are we allowed to extract them?¡± The guys were overjoyed. However, some of them were still worried. ¡°Although, doing something like this to a noble will only mean that we¡¯ll suffer afterwards!¡± ¡°He¡¯s a vindictive person after all.......¡± Ah, that? ¡°No need to worry. He¡¯s already a dead man. He insulted a duke in front of her Highness, the Princess. That means death penalty. All that you will do is a sham battle against a criminal condemned to death.¡± After I finished my sentence, Albert started to grin broadly. Obviously, after having done something like that in front of the princess, nothing could save him anymore. It¡¯s a death penalty by definition. ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Let¡¯s go buy weapons!!!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° That day, all the weapon selling shops in the imperial capital sold their entire stocks. It was a very unusual incident....... Chapter 56: Why Did It Turn Out Like This? Chapter 56: Why Did It Turn Out Like This? ¡°Your Excellency, we discovered the bandits¡¯ secret base!¡± ¡°Everyone, prepare for battle.¡± ¡°Yes sir!¡± Why am I doing such a thing, you ask?.......The story goes back to the sham battle and the stupid noble. 300 people gathered to participate in the battle against the stupid noble. 150 adventurers, 50 maids and 100moners. However, that stupid noble tried to escape after the battle with amoner, but the guarding soldiers caught him and killed him. In such circumstances, the battle participants have lost their venting object, so they were all dumbfounded and about to burst out with anger........ Frenzied, the adventurers started whispering. ¡°In this case, it¡¯d be great if we could go hunt some bandits or something.......¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°That¡¯s it!!!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° And so, the suppression troops have formed. The bandits¡¯ treasures would be equally split among everyone present. Awards were prepared as well, so all the ¡®fighters¡¯ departed in high spirits. A few maids and women were joining us too...... I was all right with women adventurers toe along. As for the maids, I told them to go back, but... ¡°The suppression of bandits is in ady¡¯s interest too.¡± I could only nod and agree silently. It¡¯s too risky to be used of sexual harassment, so I gave up........ This world sure is scary. And so, we arrived at the hideout. ¡°The maids unit has finished the battle preparations, your Excellency.¡± A maid, carrying a spear on her shoulder, saluted me. ¡°There¡¯s a possibility they have prisoners inside, so the maids unit is to standby. However, you¡¯ll be participating in the encirclement operation. Show no mercy to the enemies who try to escape.¡± ¡°Yes sir! The maids unit is to standby, we are to devote ourselves to the encirclement operation.¡± She saluted me again then left. ¡°.........These maids are amazing.¡± ¡°The maids are kinda scary.¡± I could hear the quiet whispers of the adventurers. In fact, I agree with them. I¡¯ll make sure not to forget to give these maids some of the souvenirs I bought. ¡°Your Excellency, the ck knights unit is ready for the assault.¡± Albert came to tell me. Good. You endured a lot, huh?........I get it though......Since I endured it too. ¡°Good. The ck knights unit,e after me. The adventurers will join the enemy encirclement operation. Those who have scouting abilities are left in charge of a raid, in case it¡¯s necessary. Don¡¯t let any of them run away!¡± ¡°Yes sir!¡± ¡°Understood!¡± ¡°Y...your Excellency, are you really going to lead the attack?¡± ¡°......If word of thises out, I¡¯ll be scolded, so keep this a secret, all right?¡± ¡°Your Excellency, let¡¯s go!¡± Good, let¡¯s go Albert! With a faint smile on my face, I led the ck knights inside the secret base. ¡°......Nobles are amazing.¡± ¡°Only those who are on our side.¡± ¡°Hey, which unit is breaking in? The knights?¡± ¡°Not to speak of the knights, his Excellency, the Duke himself is leading them inside, you know?¡± ¡°What? Is he gonna be all right.......?¡± ¡°I think he will. He was smiling after all.¡± ¡°........I don¡¯t really understand the nobles.¡± ¡°Yeah, me too.¡± ¡°Really........¡± ¡°We finished, so we¡¯re going back.......What¡¯s wrong with you? Did you injure yourselves or something? Come on, hurry up with the preparations!¡± ¡°Y...your Excellency.......Did you finish already?¡± When I called out to them, everyone outside grew shocked. Haha, did they think they were many bandits inside or something? They really jump to conclusions, these guys. ¡°Haha, they were about 100 bandits. Since each of us had to take 10 enemies out, I finished first, so I came back.¡± I exined to them, and returned to my tent in order to prepare for our leave. This ce was kind of far away from the capital, much more than I expected.....It took us two days to finish this business here. ¡°Hey....¡± ¡°Ah, the Frontier Count¡¯s Army is really something else.¡± ¡°The ck knights are the only ones I don¡¯t wanna fight against......¡± I didn¡¯t know that the adventurers were talking about such things. I was only focused on storing the bandits¡¯ sake inside my item box. ¡°Good. You did great, everyone! There¡¯s a person in charge of giving the rewards over there, so go back home after you received your prize. You¡¯re free to go!¡± After we arrived at the imperial capital¡¯s training grounds, the party was disbanded. Since the bandits¡¯ treasure was not really that massive, I decided to distribute it among the adventurers. I gave the maids some cosmetics and clothes materials that I previously bought as souvenirs. Since they didn¡¯t earn too much from this ¡®job¡¯. well, it couldn¡¯t be helped. Still, because they could hunt the bears and wild boars that came out along the way back to the imperial capital, they seemed not as stressed anymore. I could rest assured too...... I therefore returned to my room inside the pce. ¡°Oi oi, how did you defeat this red bear?¡± ¡°This wild boar, it¡¯s a mutated specimen!¡± ¡°........His Excellency and the maids defeated them, you know?¡± ¡°.........The maids are amazing.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll ask them to train me.¡± ¡°To kill a red bear with one sword sh....What the hell are these maids?.......¡± ¡°Eh? They¡¯re giving the bandits¡¯ treasure to us!?¡± ¡°Each of us gets 28 gold coins!¡± ¡°Wha? My annual ie is only 10 gold coins, you know!!¡± ¡°Hey, this material.....¡± ¡°Eh? It¡¯s s....silk......¡± ¡°........Does this mean that we¡¯re lovers now?¡± ¡°!? Cos....cosmetics?¡± ¡°Ah! These are really expensive!¡± ¡°.......They¡¯re too wonderful to give them to a .......lover.¡± ¡°Even though we camped for one night, my skin feels smooth and sparkling......¡± ¡°His Excellency¡¯s magic is foul y, you know?¡± ¡°Right? When his Excellency receives his own domain, he¡¯ll need some maids too, won¡¯t he?¡± ¡° ¡° ¡°!!!!?¡± ¡° ¡° Before one knew, they were a lot of people who started to think they wanted to work for me once I got my domain and moved there. However, I only found out about this at ater point in time. Chapter 57: Return to the Frontier Count’s Domain Chapter 57: Return to the Frontier Count¡¯s Domain ¡°We¡¯re finally back. It feels like it took us forever to return, right Bea?¡± ¡°Yes, Zest-sama. I wonder if this is Toto-chan¡¯s first time here.¡± (Hmm. I kind of remember and don¡¯t remember this ce.) After quite a long time, we were back on the Frontier Count¡¯s domain. I somehow missed the view of the castle town. After all, an entire month passed until we could finally return. It was an unnecessarily long trip. The Adventurers Guild and the soldiers asked me to train them, while the maids kept on ambushing me, saying they wanted to work on my duke¡¯s domain. ........I kind of enjoyed the maids ambushing me though. (Mom, this face Dad is making now, it means he is thinking of other women.) Stop it Toto. Bea don¡¯t look at me like that. ........But, I really missed your angry face. You always had this kind of expression on your face before. ¡°Bea, I was only thinking about what to do with those maids. This grimace is a waste for your beautiful features.¡± I embraced her and brushed her hair lightly. In the beginning, she was indeed looking pretty much angry, but little by little her expression changed into a soft, tender smile. ¡°Well, I know this is how you always manage to deceive me, Zest-sama.¡± She returned my embrace, while saying those words. Her soft mass of overgrown goodness was touching my body. At the same time, the fragrance of flowers reached me, and I felt weightless. ¡°You always smell so good, Bea.¡± I watched her ears gradually getting redder and redder, but I didn¡¯t separate from her. ¡°I also like......Zest-sama¡¯s scent....¡± She looked up at me with cloudy eyes. I kissed her lightly on her forehead...... ¡°Hmm? Zest, aren¡¯t you forgetting about us?¡± ¡°Haha,tely, he¡¯s be more.......challenging, hasn¡¯t he?¡± ........Sorry master, I forgot. Bea seemed she had forgotten about her parents too. She hurriedly repositioned herself on the carriage¡¯s bench. Right. We were travelling together with my master and my mother-inw. That was a bit....... ¡°Good grief, you¡¯ll be getting married soon. After that, you can enjoy each other as much as you like.¡± Bea¡¯s face got even redder. ¡°Yeah, I want to see my grandson¡¯s face soon.¡± Stabbed by master¡¯s finishing blow, Bea seemed to be sinking. (When will the children making process start? Can I help too?) Wait Toto, what do you wanna help with anyway?? Moreover, don¡¯t ask about this stuff!.....I have no idea what to answer you. Both Bea and I got extremely flushed, as the carriage continued to tter and advance. I was standing in front of my mansion. Bea and her parents went to the Frontier Count¡¯s castle, while I was returning to my own mansion.......my foster father¡¯s mansion. After making a few preparations, in the evening I¡¯ll be participating in a party, held at the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. We weren¡¯t married yet. It couldn¡¯t be helped, but I indeed felt a bit lonely. I started to think it was natural for me and Bea to be together. With Toto on my shoulder, I brushed her hair and entered the mansion. I was home again, after such a long time. ¡°Wee back, your Excellency, the Duke.¡± ¡°Ah, I¡¯m d everyone is still the same here.¡± I gave some souvenirs to the maids who weed me. They were constantly refraining from epting them, but I still gave them the gifts...forcibly. They looked after me, so I was grateful to them. The extremely pleased maids saw me off, and I was walking towards my father¡¯s room now. First of all, I had to greet the head of the family after all. ¡°I just returned home, father, mother.¡± ¡°Gahahaha. I¡¯m d you¡¯re looking good.¡± My foster father started ¡®attacking¡¯ my shoulder. The stone paving under my feet was starting to break. (Are these Dad¡¯s Mom and Dad?) I nodded, and Toto, now sitting on a desk, made a cute little bow. ¡°My name is Toto. I am a spirit created by him and Bea together.¡± The first one who snapped was my foster mother. ¡°Well, well, such a cute little thing. She looks exactly like Bea when she was little.¡± Smiling, she took Toto captive and started offering her all sorts of sweets. As I thought, all the women who knew Bea had this sort of reaction. ¡°However, who would have thought you¡¯d be a duke! It seems you¡¯ll be getting married to her Highness, Princess Tsubaki as well.¡± They tried their best to look normal, but it was obvious they were worried. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. My official wife will be Bea. I don¡¯t intend to neglect Princess Tsubaki, but, after all, Bea is the one I love.¡± It was a love marriage, so obviously they were worried about us. ¡°....Gahahaha! As expected of our son. If you would¡¯ve made youngdy Bea cry, I would¡¯ve chopped you down after all. That was the agreement.¡± The attack on my shoulder continued more vigorously now.....Father, it will soon start to really hurt. I was strengthening my entire body with magical power, but for some reason I was still receiving damage.....I wonder why? ¡°You¡¯re right. If Zest would¡¯ve done such an insincere thing.....I don¡¯t really know what I could have done to him out of sadness.¡± Mother, your face is all smiles, but your eyes are scaring me. I looked at the two of them having such a good mood, so I offered them the souvenirs. ¡°I bought some souvenirs for you. For father, I got this sake and this thing.¡± I gave him the sake and the magical tool I bought in the imperial capital. It was said that this sake was the reason why the dwarves started to kill each other in order to steal it, or something like that, so I got him a barrel. As for the magical tool, it was a te that could reflect an image that it recorded. My foster father was already drinking...... ¡°This is for you, mother.....¡± What I took out were the clothing materials and some beautifully embroidered swaddling clothes for the soon to be born child. Of course, I couldn¡¯t forget about the cosmetics she asked for. ¡°These materials are soft and have high water absorbency, they are quite valuable. As for the swaddling clothes, I choose them for their smooth texture, so that.....¡± My foster mother hugged me closely. Ah, did something just move in her stomach? ¡°Zest......You are so kind. I¡¯m really happy, thank you.¡± A kind smell. I was embraced closely and got my head stroked. So this is what feels like to have a mother?......Was my mother in Japan the same?..... Since I never experienced the love of a mother before, I got speechless. ¡°Gahahaha. Zest, you really got us something good. The swaddling clothes look warm, and some of the materials seem great for making underwear. My sake is delicious too. Still, what is this te?¡± I gently separated from my foster mother, and answered. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s a new magical tool that can store images and figures, and reflect them the same way as a mirror.¡± My foster father grew serious. .......What? Was it a bad choice? ¡°Then, I can look at Celica¡¯s naked body anytime I want!¡± The great atmospherepletely vanished in an instant, and my foster father¡¯s back was seized by my foster mother. She had a demonic expression on her face. It was very, very sorrowful to watch. Father, I¡¯ll give one more te afterwards...... Chapter 58: Preparations for the Wedding Ceremony Chapter 58: Preparations for the Wedding Ceremony ¡°Well, well, you seem to get along with Beately. That¡¯s splendid. The ceremony will be grand. But don¡¯t worry, you just have to leave it to me.¡± After eating dinner at the Frontier Count¡¯s Household, we were drinking tea now, while chatting about the wedding ceremony. ¡°Father, this is a g asion for Bea. I won¡¯t allow it to be iplete.¡± My mother-inw was in high spirits as well. ¡°First of all, we have to decorate the castle. Ah, when I think of Bea wearing her wedding gown, my tears.......¡± Master was fired up as well. ¡°Urm, I¡¯m fine even if it¡¯s not something that showy......Hii!¡± Bea said with a low voice and everyone looked at her. Scary..... ¡°Be...Bea, I think it¡¯s better to leave it all to them.¡± She nodded. We could not go against them. Such an aura was drifting in the air around us, telling us to obey. (Dad, this juice is delicious!) Yeah, at least Toto is cute. I secretly let out a sigh, as I was looking at the Frontier Count and his family getting all worked out for the wedding ceremony. After all, the heated discussions continued until morning...... The next day, I left the preparations for my wedding in the Count¡¯s hands, and was looking for Albert now. ¡°Albert, are you around?¡± I was inside the ck knights¡¯ cafeteria. The ck knights greeted me and pointed with their fingers. Albert was sitting in his usual seat. ¡°Your Excellency, what can I do for you?¡± ¡°You were eating? However, this is urgent business. Come with me now!¡± Confused, he followed me, and we got inside the carriage. Yes, I made him ride the carriage with me. ¡°Your Excellency, for you to make me ride a carriage, what is going on?¡± Puzzled, he asked. Well, it¡¯s no wonder he was amazed. For Albert .....For a knight to be inside the same carriage with a highly ranked noble was not eptable. ¡°I certainly have a reason for this, but for now, wear these clothes.¡± What I handed over to Albert was a military uniform with my family crest carved in its buttons. My family crest was a sword and a snake. It was mine and Bea¡¯s.....our Duke Household¡¯s family crest. ¡°This is...! Your Excellency, are you sure?¡± He was reluctant in epting the military uniform. The family crest carved inside the buttons. Only the head of the household and the nobles who were invested and epted by him, could wear such a uniform. ¡°I got the approval from the Frontier Count. You are a baron now. I wanted to give you a higher rank, but the elders from the House of Lord were too noisy about it, so you¡¯ll have to endure it for now. I¡¯ll promote you when the timees.¡± ¡°Your Excellency, are you really sure about this?¡± ¡°Stop being fussy! Don¡¯t panic over something as little as bing a baron. If you don¡¯t be at least a viscount, you can¡¯t properly escort me.¡± I forcibly made him ept the military uniform. ¡°You also need this rank in order to get married, right? Just ept it already!¡± After all, Albert always took care of me and helped me out. I want him to get married to the woman he loves. .....He took care of me......Ah, it¡¯s no good, the ¡®stupid dog¡¯ incident is still too vivid inside my mind. ¡°Your Excellency, I will dly ept it.¡± Albert lowered his head in a very deep bow. ¡°You fool, you¡¯re even crying.¡± ¡°......I¡¯m so sorry.........I¡¯m so......¡± Albert cried himself out inside the carriage. Such a fool...... ¡°Oh my, your Excellency, Duke Zest, you are very wee.¡± The one who greeted us was Meril¡¯s father, Baron Fram. He was the one who opposed his daughter¡¯s marriage with Albert, and sent her away to the imperial capital. ¡°Thank you for receiving us. Let me do the introductions. This is Baron Albert who is working for my Duke¡¯s Household.¡± ¡°I¡¯m Albert. It¡¯s been a long time since west saw each other.¡± The man was startled for a moment, but he immediately started to smile. Baron Fram¡¯s head was full of calctions now. ¡°Lord Albert, congrattions for your title.¡± Since Albert¡¯s social status was lower before, the baron neglected him, but now they had the same rank. No, Albert had a higher status now since he was working for a duke. We were guided inside a room, and I was offered the seat of honor. Albert was standing behind me, on the left side. Tea was prepared and we chatted for a while. Not bringing up the main topic from the beginning was a nobles¡¯ annoying custom. ¡°Right, Baron Fram. I have a nice proposal for you today.¡± It was a barefaced lie, but it couldn¡¯t be helped. This was the objective I had in mind all along. ¡°I meet your daughter, Miss Meril, in the imperial capital, and even her Highness, Princess Tsubaki, was very pleased with her, saying she was a wonderful woman. As for me, I¡¯d like her to get married to Albert in order for creating amon ground for the Frontier Count¡¯s Household, my Household and yours to work together.......What do you think?¡± If you want a free trantion, this was it: ¡®Let them get married! Do you really want to start a fight with me, the Princess and the Frontier Count¡¯s Household?¡¯ ¡°Yes sir. This is indeed a wonderful proposal. I have no objections.¡± ¡°I see. We¡¯ll talk about the minor details at ater time. I¡¯ll be the mediator, so you don¡¯t have to worry about anything.¡± If you want a free trantion again, this was it: ¡®The engagement was just decided. If you still want to stop this, you¡¯ve got yourself a war.¡¯ ¡°Then, I¡¯ll be leaving. Let¡¯s go Albert.¡± ¡°Yes sir!¡± We were sent off in a grand style, and were on our way back, inside the carriage. ¡°......You think that nobles are troublesome, right?¡± ¡°......Yes.¡± ¡°From now on you¡¯re a noble too, get used to it fast.¡± ¡°.......Can I even get used to it?¡± ¡°Then, are you giving up on Meril?¡± Albert raised his head energetically. ¡°It¡¯s for the woman you fell in love with. Your ¡®senior¡¯ here will teach you everything.......It¡¯s all right, even someone who came from a different world could do it, so don¡¯t feel this hopeless only because you¡¯re a kemonobito.¡± ¡°.....Yes. Thank you, your Excellency.¡± That evening, I went drinking with Albert. It felt like we haven¡¯t done this in ages. We, who became nobles for the sake of the women we liked, ended up drinking until down.... ¡°Good morning. Today is an excellent weather............Excuse me.¡± They were two guys sleeping together in the same bed. In order to clear the misunderstandings, I got stuck with crying and prostrating myself on the ground for a long time. It became such a great memory. Chapter 59: The Wedding Ceremony Chapter 59: The Wedding Ceremony It was the day of my wedding ceremony. I started my preparations early in the morning. I put on a ceremonial military uniform decorated with splendid ornaments, and was going towards the castle now. I was using an exclusive carriage to ride from my mansion to the castle. It was a white, opened type carriage. When I arrived at the castle, I immediately hurried to the main hall. The marriage ceremony would take ce at sunrise. The nobles were already inside the hall, waiting. While greeting them all, I waited for my bride. She¡¯s here........and she¡¯s absolutely beautiful............ She was wearing a ck dress, the color of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. And this ck dress was plentifully decorated with gold threads, something only suitable for dukes and those with higher court ranks. Even the nobles who were used to extravagant things let out sights without even realizing. Bea¡¯s beautiful face was not paling inparison with the dress; on the contrary, her face was gathering all the attention. Her white skin seemed transparent, and her fascinatingly elegant ck hair was dancing in the wind like silk threads. Her cherry blossom lips were entuating her beautiful features, especially her long slit eyes; she possessed both a mature beauty and sweetness at the same time. Nothing but ¡®peerless beauty¡¯ came to mind when looking at her. While all the attendants were watching in fascination, we started the wedding rituals, basking in the morning sun. We took a love oath in front of the priest ¨C the servant of the gods, and the spirit ¨C the messenger of the gods. ¡°I vow that my love for you will never change until death do us part.¡± ¡°I vow that my love for you will never change until death do us part.¡± ¡°The gods have heard and epted your oath. They offer you their blessings.¡± (Dad, Mom, I wish you happiness.) Simultaneously with the priest¡¯s words, the gates were opened. Holding our hands, we started walking towards the gates. ¡°Bea......You look incredibly beautiful.¡± ¡°.......Thank you.¡± A carriage was already prepared for us once we came forth through the gates. We got help from the attendants, all dressed in white, and got on the carriage. We departed towards the castle town. It was time for the parade. 100 ck knights wearing ceremonial clothes and ornaments were surrounding and protecting the carriage. They were the carefully selected elite unit. The parade troupe was slowly advancing, surrounded by the loud cheers of the townspeople. Bea and I were constantly smiling and waving our hands from inside the carriage. ¡°Beatrice-sama, you¡¯re so beautiful!¡± ¡°Woaaa, mother, she¡¯s so beautiful.¡± ¡°Zest-sama! Look over here!¡± ¡°Congrattions!¡± ¡°The ck knights! So cool!¡± ¡°Beatrice-sama!¡± We slowly paraded through the castle town. We paraded for half a day. Skipping some of the steps was not allowed. In the evening, we returned to the castle. We moved to the main hall and the party started. ¡°Thank you everyone for gathering in suchrge numbers to this joyous event, the marriage between our empire¡¯s leading figures, the Duke and the Duchess.¡± In the time his Majesty was giving his speech, I was looking around me, smiling. The Emperor was attending the party too. It was the first time he attended a marriage ceremony outside of the imperial capital. It showed how important this marriage ceremony actually was. Bea, you don¡¯t need to wave your hand anymore. Return to your senses. Her eyes looked vacant, so I nonchntly held her hand down. The fatigue was gradually reaching its peak........ The Emperor¡¯s greeting finished and we moved to salute the guests. I finished listening to all their greetings, even though my consciousness was about to leave me at times. Could I finally rest for a bit? No. It was time for dancing! We had to do an opening dance since we were the leading figures of the night. I used some healing magic on Bea, and approached her ear. ¡°Are you all right? You don¡¯t have to overdo it, you know?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine. I¡¯ll do my best!¡± We motivated each other and finished in grand style. We returned to our seats with great difficulty. Could I finally take it easy? Nope. We had to cope with the line of new guests who were waiting to greet us! Smiling, I shook their hands, but I ignored all their greetings. At this point, I couldn¡¯t understand anything they were saying anymore. The forced handshake meeting somehow reached its ending. Could I finally rest? Nope. It was time for changing our attire! I returned to the waiting room, and finally got to eat something that was not very appropriate for a noble. It was my first meal for the day. I didn¡¯t even have the time to go to the toilet, so I peed in a pot that I found in a corner of the room. It wasn¡¯t even funny, I had no other choice. Once we finished changing clothes, we returned to the main hall. Could I finally take it easy? Nope. It was time for the second dance round! Even though my physical strength recovered a little, I was still feeling drowsy. I finished the dance, trying my best to keep my face muscles from bing stiff from all that smiling. I took Bea¡¯s hand and returned to our seats. Could I finally rx? Nope. It was time for a handshake meeting with the lower nobles! This time were the lower nobles..... I finished it fast, since all the greetings were the same. Could I finally take it easy for a bit? No. It was time for thanking and escorting the leaving guests! First, we had to salute the Emperor. ¡°Just for a little longer, do your best!¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Thank you, your Majesty.¡± He encouraged us in a low voice, and I felt a little better. We greeted all the other guests and saw them off. Could I finally rest? Nope. It was time to salute everybody still present and take our leave! We turned towards the attendants inside the main hall, expressed our gratitude and left. Could I finally take a moment to rx? Nope. It was time for setting up the bridal night! The maids took off all my clothes and washed my naked body. At this point I didn¡¯t feel anything anymore, not even embarrassment nor happiness. Disinterested, I let them wash my body. With my body shining, I returned to the appointed room. Could I finally just take it easy for a moment? Nope. It was time for the bridal night! A few noble married women were watching over us, as we did our ¡®thing¡¯. Bea and I exchanged nces........We did our best. Once we finished, we got moved to another room. Someone was in the middle of validating the marriage, by checking the sheets. Could I finally rx? Nope. It was time for hearing the results! The woman in charge of checking the sheets came in front of us. ¡°I certainly saw it with my own eyes. I have no objections.¡± Everyone lowered their heads, as we left the room. Could I finally rest? Could I finally take a moment to breathe? Yes, I could!! ¡°Bea, it¡¯s over...........¡± ¡°Yes.....I¡¯m so tired......¡± We both copsed on the bed and couldn¡¯t move anymore. ¡°I understand now why nobles don¡¯t usually get a divorce......No one wants to do this time and time again.¡± ¡°Yeah.......I never thought it would be like this.........¡± I used my arm as a pillow for Bea¡¯s head and was gradually falling asleep. ¡°But since it finally finished......I can feel at ease now.¡± Did Bea fall sleep already?........ I¡¯ll sleep too then...... ¡°.................You have to do your best for your marriage with her Highness, Princess Tsubaki too!¡± I felt my consciousness drifting away and I desperately tried to convince myself it was because of sleepiness............. Do I have to do this whole thing........one.....more......time........? Chapter 60: First Book – Epilogue Chapter 60: First Book ¨C Epilogue ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Are you done already? You cowards!¡± Albert¡¯s angry voice could be heard in the distance. Half a year passed since my wedding. We moved to a temporary residence built on our domain and we got used to it considerably by this time. I employed new servants, so we didn¡¯t live in difort. Bea and Toto were feeling great as well. ¡°Come on, stand up! Stand up and attack me!¡± Albert became the Knights Commander of my newly formed Duke¡¯s Army. He wasn¡¯t going easy on the new recruits. .............Are the soldiers all right? Because I came to see their training, they showed even more fighting spirit than usually. I got 100 ck knights transferred to my army, and even adventurers and soldiers from the imperial capital announced their candidacy for enrolling into it. Up to this point, it was fair enough, so I got no trouble understanding it. ¡°The soldiers adore you, my d....dear.¡± Bea was damn cute when she called me ¡®dear¡¯ and got all embarrassed. asionally, she abuses me with her icy cold expressions, just like before........But, just forget about it. Yes, I am being loved by my soldiers. But still...... ¡°Next, the fighting maids unit! Come!¡± ¡°Yes sir! The entire maids unit, start attacking!¡± ...........The ck knights and the maids were fighting against each other. This is weird........It¡¯s absolutely weird, right? For some reason, a lot of maids who grew up in a military environment ended up enrolling into my army. ¡®Your Excellency, what do you think about women military officers?¡¯ ¡®Hmm? Being a man or a woman is nothing but a trivial problem. All that matters is how useful one actually is. I will ept all those who have skills and reject the ipetents. It¡¯s only natural.¡¯ This was the answer I gave the people who wanted to join my army and came to take the admission test. It was a bad answer. Because they were women... Using this pretext, they were denied the chance to be knights and were looked down upon as adventurers too. Arge number of tomboy girls, who were sent to start their training for homemaking and be maids, ended up enrolling into my army. 80% of the girls passed the awful Frontier Count Style Test, even though it was said that only one person out of 100 could pass it. And because of that, the neighboring domains started to call the newly formed girls army troops ¡®The Duke Army¡¯s War Maidens Unit¡¯. One section of this unit was the maid corps. Wearing the maid uniforms and with spears in their hands, they even worked as gatekeepers. ¡®I see some maid gatekeepers, let¡¯s go mock them!¡¯ If you would take them lightly and pick a quarrel with them, you¡¯d get killed in an instant then thrown away. It was a regr scene in the duke¡¯s domain. ¡°Good, we¡¯ll finish the training here. You¡¯re dismissed!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Thank you, sir!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° It was indeed a praiseworthy training session......however....this......is pretty weird, right? Well, since I¡¯m shorthanded anyway, it can¡¯t be helped. I¡¯ll get over it thinking there was nothing I could¡¯ve done differently. ¡°Your Excellency, what do you think? There are still a few soft spots I got to work on, but it¡¯s considerably finished.¡± ¡°Oh, Albert. As expected from you, it was a great training session.¡± Once the training was over, it was time for the drinking party. A drinking party with the maids. Isn¡¯t this a side benefit for the male soldiers?......I envy them. There were no idiots who would dare to think something like this in my domain. ¡°Your Excellency, are you listening? That noble green boy said I was unrefined!¡± ¡°Hey, isn¡¯t the sd ready yet?¡± ¡°Commander Albert! Fight me!¡± ¡°Your Excellency, did you finish arranging my formal marriage interview?¡± ¡°Anyway, what is good about that woman......?¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Hey, are you listening?¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Yes, I am.¡± ¡° Albert must participate to all the women troops¡¯ drinking parties, since he has to pay for the drinks and food. I only join them once in a while, but even so, I know we can¡¯t really oppose them. Albert was a baron and the Knights Commander, and yet he was also a devoted husband. There was no way he would get drunk and make a pass on one of the soldier women. And, by the way, the other party for the formal marriage interviews wasposed by the ck knights. The empire¡¯s most elite soldiers. For the war maidens, the ck knights were superior ¡®goods¡¯. And so, Albert had to join them every time........ I knew it wasn¡¯t much for him to pay for their drinking parties. The ck knights also started a fund raising campaign; it seemed they wanted to get married too. The war maidens were the perfect partners for them, since they didn¡¯t care much about lineage and court ranks. ¡®I was deeply moved by the ck knights¡¯ dignity! I will fight together with them!¡¯ All the girls in my army had muscle brains....... Still........There were many cute ones. I didn¡¯t want to ept this.......But it was nothing but a nice present for the ck knights and their training. I returned to my mansion and got weed by Bea and Toto. ¡°Bea, Toto, I¡¯m back. Did something happen while I was out?¡± ¡°Wee back, my dear. Nothing happened, I only got to spend some fun time with Toto-chan.¡± (Mom helped me make a flower crown! Did I do it right?) Bea became more and more beautiful. My wife is truly a gorgeous person......I¡¯m d I came to this world. I¡¯ll never go back. I praised Toto for her little work and went to eat dinner, then we entered the bathroom together. Since Toto yed a lot during the bathing, she fell asleep immediately after. I enjoyed a rxing time together with Bea. This was the usual for me. ¡°Dear....I¡¯m sorry for not making you a child ye.......¡± I embraced her tightly. ¡°We don¡¯t have to hurry. This time with you now is a blessing for me. There¡¯s no need to be impatient.¡± ¡°But......¡± ¡°Besides, I want to be alone with you for a little longer. Will you forgive my selfishness....?¡± ¡°........I¡¯ll forgive you since I have no other choice.¡± She joked and pressed her lips against mine. The night was gradually advancing towards morning...... We were spending our every day in a peaceful manner. But then, a messenger from the imperial capital came that night. The sweet and happy time was over, as I got swallowed up by the huge swirl what was about to happen. It was a turning point for the Grun Empire. The story of the Duke, now called the Empire¡¯s de, and his heroic followers, who aplished the domination of the entire continent, is about to unfold. The agitated footsteps were drawing near, slowly but surely. Chapter 61: The Characters until Now ※Contains Spoilers ※ Chapter 61: The Characters until Now ¡ùContains Spoilers ¡ù Zest Gaiyus Protagonist A middle aged man, 32 years old, with ck eyes and ck hair. He married Bea out of mutual love. He likes to flirt a lot. He is a Duke and the 1st Rank Imperial Mage. He became an authority figure inside the empire. Beatrice Varnam Heroine A 16 years old with ck eyes and ck hair. A Japanese style beauty who gives the impression of matureness. An expert of ck attribute magic. She married Zest out of mutual love. She¡¯s a duchess. As a duchess, she¡¯s a popr figure that all the women of the empire admire. Her portrait is selling like crazy. Toto A spirit that Zest and Bea created. She adores her Dad and Mom. Her outer appearance is that of a 30cm mini Bea. Razatonia Varnam The head of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household A demon-like old geezer with a dark mind He¡¯s also an expert of the dark attribute magic and is feared in the area. A frightening and always scheming old man He calls Beatrice ¡®Bea¡¯ and is affectionate towards her. Sonia Varnam A son-inw in the Frontier Count¡¯s Household The refreshment of the terrifying Frontier Count¡¯s Household When he¡¯s only with the family he switches to the gentle ¡®papa¡¯ mode. Normally, he interacts with people while being is the frightening ¡®Frontier Count¡¯ mode. He¡¯s the protagonist¡¯s magic teacher and the Magic Division Commander. Galef Gaiyus The Knights Commander The protagonist¡¯s foster father He epted the protagonist for being his sessor, but the protagonist also healed his wife. He is able to have children now. He feels a debt of gratitude towards his adopted son and always causes a stir about his sessor. He¡¯s a loud man who wears a full-te armor. An old man with muscle brains who looks like a powerful bandit. Celica Gaiyus The protagonist¡¯s foster mother The Frontier Count¡¯s younger sister Since the moment the protagonist healed her of infertility, she¡¯s always doting him. She¡¯s very supportive of his marriage to her grandniece Beatrice. Her personality is the spitting image of the Frontier Count¡¯s, but she intends to be kind towards the protagonist. Camel The Gaiyus¡¯ Household¡¯s butler An old man who manages the servants He deeply respects the protagonist who healed madam Celica. Albert A male kemonobito The man called dog knight Because he¡¯s exceptional, he also serves as the Frontier Count¡¯s guard. Since the ¡®marking incident¡¯ he unnecessarily fears the protagonist. He marries Meril. He¡¯s a faithful dog that is no match for his ¡®master¡¯ Zest. Meril A baron¡¯s daughter. He had to separate from Albert because of the difference in their social status. Zest helps them and they manage to get married. She¡¯s extremely grateful to Zest. The Emperor of the Grun Empire A middle aged handsome man with blond hair and blue eyes Conforming to tradition, he cast aside his name after the enthronement. He was called ¡®Sarsesh¡¯ when he was a child. No one calls him by this name now since it¡¯s considered a sphemy. People call him ¡®his Majesty the Emperor¡¯ or simply ¡®his Majesty¡¯. Empress Natasha A beautiful woman with blond hair and blue eyes She has a gentle aura and she looks like a soothing ¡®onee-sama¡¯. His Majesty is deeply in love with her and won¡¯t really show her in front of the public. The gardener who fixed his eyes on the empress got killed. The master chef whoplimented her cooking skills got killed too. If you breathe the same airs that she breathes, you¡¯ll be killed... This is the extent of the rumors, which show how much his Majesty cares about her. Imperial princess Tsubaki The daughter of his Majesty and Natasha She has the name of a flower (1) from the legendary country of Japan. A 10 year old beautiful girl She likes the spirit and she admires Beatrice who is the model of it. Prime Minister Arc A man in his 50s He has the image of a little fatty with brown hair and red eyes. However, he also acts heartlessly ording to his position of a Prime Minster, and he would be capable of murdering his family if that¡¯s for the best interest of the country. He gets along well with the Frontier Count and he visits him every year. Imperial Mage Rank 4 Lamia Varnam A mage specialized in medical treatments; Sonia¡¯s wife Beatrice¡¯s mother She normally works in the imperial capital. She¡¯s a very indulgent ¡®mama¡¯ towards Bea. Towards her husband she also has a ¡®spartan¡¯ attitude and often gives him aggressive responses. Bicks Viscount The head of domestic affairs He¡¯s the father of the idiotic noble who ¡®offered¡¯ a marriage proposal to Beatrice. Unknown cause of death Tanya A middle aged woman The shopkeeper of a Western-style clothes store that shows favor to the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. She also opened a shop that sells all sorts of new selection of goods. Viscount Mark Media¡¯s father He¡¯s a poor man greatly perplexed by his foolish son. He¡¯s grateful to Zest for arranging a marriage for his son, and can¡¯t wait to see the face of his grandson. Media The heir of the Viscount¡¯s Household. He looks like a beautiful girl, but he¡¯s a man. He¡¯s amander of the Maid¡¯s Unit. He married Tasel. He ims that he would die for Zest¡¯s sake. Tasel A former adventurer She¡¯s a woman that looks like a wild, handsome man. She falls in love with Media and marries him. She swears of oath of allegiance to Zest since he¡¯s helped her making various arrangements. Count Raiza The Commanding General of the Empire¡¯s Army. A 43 years old with blue hair. He has a tough, huge body. The Emperor acknowledged him when he was young and made him a viscount, then a count. He has an official position now. He¡¯s the Emperor¡¯s right-hand man. Tarminal Kingdom¡¯s side Harnil Count A grandpa who came to the empire as an emissary for the kingdom ??? The royalty who led the kingdom¡¯s army. His name is unknown. Herman A male kemonobito. He opposed the despotic administration in his country and created the Rebel Army. He admires Albert and he develops an interest for Duke Zest, since he is Albert¡¯s master. He bes the headman of a fishing vige. Katalina A cat kemonobito and a legal loli. She works for Zest as a civil official. She¡¯s the guys¡¯ idol. She¡¯s unpopr among the ck knights. The Holy Country of Lc Pope Garbera The top of the Holy Country of Lc. He¡¯s quite the tactician, but he¡¯s open to conversation. The Sister A woman who showed up as a messenger. She speaks an enigmatguage. She bes the Priestess of a church on Zest¡¯s domain. ________________________ (1) Tsubaki £¨´»?¤Ä¤Ð¤­£©means ¡®camellia¡¯ and is amon name for girls. Chapter 62: A Messenger from the Neighboring Country Chapter 62: A Messenger from the Neighboring Country ¡°Thank you foring, Zest. I see Bea is doing great too.¡± His Majesty said andughed. He came to visit us several times, and recently he started to act more like a rtive whoes to y every once in a while. I¡¯m a duke and I¡¯ll be getting married to his daughter in the future. I¡¯m not nning to deliberately sow discord among us, since opposing each other would be too troublesome. After all, it was in order to remain allies that I was forced to ept his daughter, Princess Tsubaki, in marriage....... I can¡¯t trust him unconditionally, but I can rely on him. ¡°However, the spirit drops are delicious, aren¡¯t they?¡± .................Isn¡¯t this the real reason behind your friendliness, your Majesty? After we greeted each other and done some idle chat, it was time for the main topic. We were inside the pce¡¯s residential area. Although we could talk about anything, there were certain limits to that too; Nobles are too troublesome and that¡¯s a fact. ¡°To tell you the truth, we are expecting a messenger from Tarminal Kingdom, the neighboring country.....And so I want you to be present to this meeting.¡± Tarminal Kingdom. It was the country next to the Frontier Count¡¯s domain. It was a shady country that promoted a doctrine which allowed supremacy to the human race. At first, the Frontier Count wanted to cause internal conflict in this country, but now it was different. ¡®If we get the chance, we ought to start a war.¡¯ All the nobles of the empire were in agreement with this idea. It seemed we couldn¡¯t remain at peace much longer........... ¡°I can¡¯t predict the matters to be brought in discussion, but it is certain that this country is dangerous.....Well, we won¡¯t know anything until he gets here, but I¡¯ll have you there, just in case.¡± The Emperor had a grim expression on his face, as we both drank some ck tea. Just in case.......In short, he was gathering the strongest battle powers as a counter-n for a possible assassination. Even if the Emperor would get killed, I would kill the assassin and start a war of revenge, or something like that. Well, me being there would also mean that it¡¯s in order not to let him get killed, but I still have to think about the worst it could happen and prepare. After we finished talking about this matter, Princess Tsubaki and Empress Natasha joined us for an idle chat. As usual, Princess Tsubaki was ying with Bea and Toto. ¡°Bea nee-sama, will you sleep together with me tonight?¡± ¡°Yes, we¡¯ll take Toto-chan with us too.¡± (Tsubaki, you¡¯re so lonely.) .........It seems I¡¯ll be free for the rest of the day. Shall I go drinking with Albert? ¡°It shows on your face, the innocence of the newly-wed.¡± ¡°Oh my! Zest is beyond help.¡± You two, stop reading into me. I don¡¯t regret anything, all right? I don¡¯t. I left Bea and Toto behind and returned to my room. They prepared a room just for my use inside the imperial pce. I just went to sleep....... And so, after 3 days, the messenger in question arrived. The audience room. I was standing behind the Emperor, not leaving his side. It was my ce as a duke and as his daughter¡¯s fianc¨¦. The messenger was a slender old man with red hair. His magical power was concealed......That in itself was a statement that he was considerably strong..... ¡°I am the Emperor of the Grun Empire. You may speak.¡± With his face still covered, the messenger started his speech. ¡°My name is Harnil and I¡¯m a Count of the Tarminal Kingdom. I must thank you, your Majesty, for giving this humble old man the chance of having an audience with you.¡± ¡°Good. I¡¯ll listen to your matter.¡± ¡°Yes. I was entrusted with a letter from my Tarminal Kingdom along with a vocal message.¡± He took out the letter from his chest pocket and carried it on both his palms. Just for precaution, I approached him and took the letter. It didn¡¯t contain any suspicious magic. I used my observation magic just in case, but everything seemed in order. I handed over the letter to the Emperor, and he started reading it. The Emperor wasn¡¯t his usual self. Normally, he wouldn¡¯t let his feelings show on his face, but now he was clearly angry. The nobles inside the audience room sensed that something wasn¡¯t right and their faces turned pale. Before long, the Emperor put the letter aside and started to talk. ¡°Are you people serious? Do you know about the letter¡¯s contents?¡± ¡°Even if you ask me this, I have a vocal message to deliver to you.¡± The messenger didn¡¯t even quiver the slightest bit. ¡°The letter is authentic. Starting today, our Tarminal Kingdom deres war against the Grun Empire.¡± He raised his head and, without changing his expression, he delivered the message. They are serious. In this case....... ¡°A message! An urgent message!¡± The gates were violently opened and a worn-out, wounded soldier tumbled into the audience room. His torn figure wasn¡¯t suitable for such a room like this. ¡°What is this? You insolent fellow!¡± ¡°How dare you show yourself like this in front of his Majesty!?¡± ¡°Guards! Take this guy away immediately!¡± These idiots..... These officials can¡¯t even judge the situation....... ¡°Silence! If it¡¯s an urgent massage, he can ignore the etiquette. Report!¡± As I was releasing my entire magical power to pressure and control my surroundings, I already took out a sword from my item box. They already proimed war, which means we must apply the war time rules. ¡°Yes, your Majesty. The Tarminal Kingdom¡¯s Army is attacking the Frontier Count¡¯s domain! The battle has already begun at the Border Fortress.¡± After he finished his report, the soldier copsed. I knew this guy.......He was part of the Frontier Count¡¯s Army. ¡°How can this be?....The battle started at the same time with the war promation......¡± ¡°We must dispatch our army fast.¡± ¡°Gather all the generals.....¡± ¡°Silence!¡± With a single word, the Emperor made everyone fall silent. There was no point whatsoever to panic like that. ¡°Zest, what do you think?¡± Why me, your Majesty?.... It can¡¯t be helped. We don¡¯t have much time. ¡°The messenger came to dere war against us, in short, the battle has just started. The enemy army¡¯s force is unknown to us, that¡¯s true, but if we let them overtake the Frontier Count¡¯s domain and fight them afterwards it¡¯s nothing but a foolish n. If we lose our elites, all that awaits us is copse. We must promptly send them reinforcements and gather information, while we create a second battle formationposed of our greatest military force, and drive them awaypletely.¡± He stood up at once. ¡°As for the reinforcements, I¡¯ll take my own army and lead them towards the battlefield right away. I was thinking that maybe it would be best to gather the main army¡¯s forces at once and send word to other territorial armies to prepare for battle.¡± ¡°I understand. I¡¯ll do just that. Gather all the armymanders immediately and send messages to the nobles of the empire. The officials must arrange for the supply of materials and the Prime Minister is entrusted with.......sending that messenger¡¯s head back to his kingdom.¡± Everyone started to move with the Emperor¡¯s words. I rushed out of the audience room, found Albert and confirmed with him. ¡°Albert, we¡¯re at war. How many soldiers can we bring along?¡± Albert understood the situation in an instant. It was all too suspicious from the beginning. There was no soldier inside the audience room who started to panic when everyone else did. ¡°In total, 100 soldiers. But if we go back to our territory, we can take another 1000 soldiers.¡± It¡¯s good he understood the circumstances. This time, it was a match against speed, so we had to take only the elites. ¡°Send a message and tell everyone to start preparing. We¡¯ll only take the most powerful. The rest are going to join the supply unit and line up the supply goods on the main road that goes to the Frontier Count¡¯s domain, so that we¡¯ll run through it at a breath.¡± ¡°Yes sir! Immediately.¡± It usually takes 3 days to get to my domain by carriage, but leaving that aside and counting only the time it¡¯d take to get to the imperial capital from the Frontier Count¡¯s domain, it would be about 8 days..... If we only take the strongest soldiers with us, we can reach the battlefield in half the requested time, even less. If we get there in 5 days, it¡¯ll be just in time........ The faster we get there, the better the chance to find the Frontier Count¡¯s Army unwounded and fight together with them. In this case, we wouldn¡¯t lose that easily. As quickly as possible, I must reach the battleground. This was the only thing I was capable of thinking at that point. Chapter 63: Battle at the Border Chapter 63: Battle at the Border ¡°Did the scouting unit leave? What about the supply arrangements?¡± ¡°Yes sir, weapons and armors are already being transported from the Frontier Count¡¯s castle.¡± I was riding the horse at full speed, as I was eating some dried meat. ¡°Any deserters?¡± ¡°None. There are still 1100 soldiers riding, just as nned. No one deserted.¡± I drank some water from a water bag. Two days passed since our departure. We enter the Frontier Count¡¯s domain and were rushing towards the goods distribution camp. The original n was to stop at the Frontier Count¡¯s castle first and then head towards the border, but we found more soldiers inside the castle than we could have expected. These soldiers were staying behind in order to transport the necessary goods from the castle to the battlefield in the shortest time possible. From here it¡¯ll take us another two days......Or maybe, we¡¯ll get there tomorrow. After such a long march, with no sleep at all, people would drop out normally. However, the soldiers following me are those who endured the Frontier Count¡¯s severe training. We made camp for the night at the meeting ce, since from here onward the battlefield was too close. ¡°Your Excellency Zest, the scout has returned.¡± The ck knight brought along a former adventurer. ¡°I¡¯ll start my report: The Frontier Count¡¯s Army is in good health. They are confining themselves inside the Border Fortress, resisting the besieging enemy forces.¡± For the time being I felt relieved......It was ok, I could make it in time. They haven¡¯t dropped yet, we can still make it. ¡°The Tarminal Kingdom¡¯s Army counts about 20.000 soldiers. The royalty g was seen above their stronghold.¡± ..............The royal family? Should we capture them? In worst case I¡¯ll have them dead......But I¡¯d rather have them as war prisoners, if possible... It¡¯s useless. I can¡¯t put my thoughts in order. ¡°You did a good job. Are there any sings of enemies in this area?¡± ¡°There aren¡¯t. The defense line is well maintained.¡± ¡°Understood. Go get some rest.¡± After the scout left, I called for Albert. ¡°Albert, let the Maids Unit go to sleep first. If by any chance a soldier goes to where the maids sleep, kill him.¡± ¡°Yes sir!¡± ¡°As for the lineup, in the center will be the tent, surrounded by the maids, the ck knights and the regr soldiers in this precise order. The former adventurers will sleep on the outside of this circle, since they¡¯re used to camping at night and coping with enemy attacks.¡± ¡°What about the Frontier Count¡¯s Army?¡± ¡°They will be on the lookout. We can¡¯t take them to the battlefield with us so I¡¯ll just have them work hard here. You should go to sleep too. Tomorrow is the decisive battle after all.¡± ¡°Yes sir! Understood!¡± Albert left the tent at a quick pace. Iy down and fell asleep immediately.......It was unknown when I could get some sleep again during this. The Frontier Count¡¯s Army prepared some warm food for us, so we took it and departed. I can¡¯t say the fatigue waspletely gone. But I recovered enough in order to fight without problems. We arrived in the evening. And what we saw was the Frontier Count¡¯s Army barricading itself inside the fortress and the Tarminal Kingdom¡¯s Army lined up on the battlefield as much as the eye could see. ¡°I shall report: The Frontier Count¡¯s Army has 3000 soldiers, their morale being very high. They have no problems with the supplies either. They can hold the fortress for one month with 10.000 enemy soldiers attacking it.¡± I see. Then there¡¯s no need to rush foolishly. ¡°Understood. Ladies! Genlemen! We will now enter the fortress.¡± The soldiers didn¡¯t understand those words, so they were all startled. The ck knights started to grin broadly.......They seemed to have understood. ¡°Ladies! Gentlemen! We will now assault the enemy army from behind and run straight to the fortress. Don¡¯t worry, the ck knights and I will be in the vanguard, so you just have to follow us. Easy, right?¡± ¡°As I thought.¡± ¡°Yeah...It seems so.¡± ¡°I¡¯m so fired up...We¡¯ll jump in the midst of the enemy and break through their lines.¡± ¡°Oi, let¡¯spete and see how many of us can enter the fortress before his Excellency.¡± The ck knights were excitedly getting ready for battle. ¡°Good. Don¡¯t speak just yet. We¡¯re about to kick those blockheads¡¯ butts any moment now.....Still, we¡¯ll run straight ahead to the fortress, ok? If you go astray you might get hit by our own arrows, so be careful.¡± We were quietly advancing through the forest. It was evening, the best time for surprise attacks and quick withdraws during wars. Silently, I waved my hand to signal the soldiers to keep galloping their horses. Albert and the ck knights were following right behind me. There were 200 meters left until the enemy¡¯s rear line.....They haven¡¯t noticed our presence yet. I released my full magical powers and cast 100 light arrows into the sky, then made them downpour on the battlefield. ¡°What the.....There is magic behind us.........! En......enemy attack! Enemy attack!¡± A few soldiers realized what was happening and tried to warn theirrades, but it was toote. I shot another 100 light arrows. ¡°Good. They are disorganized! We¡¯ll run through them at once!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Yeaaaaaaaah!!!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° I was in the lead, galloping my horse and constantly shooting light arrows in every direction. I had plenty magical power and shot so many arrows that the enemy was beginning to loathe me. As my magic arrows were reaching the ground, they hit the enemy soldiers¡¯ bodies, with about half of them getting stuck in their armor. They won¡¯t pierce it?.....Then what about this? I controlled the light arrows to fall diagonally from as far up as possible. Every time I employed my magical powers, 100 light arrows fell from the sky. I didn¡¯t even remember how many times I shot them by that time. About the time my breathing started to elerate, I saw arrows and magic spellsing from the fortress and protecting our perimeter. Haha. Gramps, you understood me well. ¡°The sky! The fortress is providing covering fire! You¡¯ll get killed if you go astray, so follow me!!¡± Because of my surprise attack and the covering fire provided by the fortress, the Tarminal Kingdom¡¯s Army could not coordinate itself at all. I was riding my horse, shooting light arrows to ces where groups of enemy soldiers were forming. Just a little further. We¡¯re nearly at the fortress....... We heard shouts of joying from the front. 500 meters until we reached the fortress. ¡°Come on!¡± ¡°Do your best! Just a little longer!¡± ¡°Oii, ready your bows!¡± In order to live up to theirrades¡¯ rooting and support, the ck knights wielded their weapons violently, clearing our immediate surroundings. We¡¯ll soon reach it. The fortress¡¯ gates were opening. Oi, it¡¯s too early! The enemies will get inside......... ¡°Gahahahahaha! I¡¯m just weing my son! You guys can go y!¡± ¡°Follow the Knights Commander!!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Yeaaaaah!!!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° My foster father, Galef, started to wave his spear and assault the enemies. ........I¡¯m d you were safe, father. In those few moments when my foster father, followed by the ck knights, was leading the assault on the enemy forces, we finally reached the fortress. I was relieved. I didn¡¯t expect them to assault the enemy. You were a big help, father. .............It was too embarrassing, so I didn¡¯t tell him that. We entered the fortress and got weed by the cheers of ourrades. Since the fortress was not so spacious, I looked around me and saw that a lot of soldiers were watching me......... Well, I have to do it......I really have to do it... I¡¯m not really in the mood, but it can¡¯t be helped...... My foster father guided me to a balcony. It was time for themander of the reinforcement forces to give his speech. In order to raise the soldiers¡¯ morale, I must say some sensible and smart words. .........I sighed.......Can¡¯t be helped, huh? I resigned and motivated myself, then started talking in an imposing manner. ¡°The time you were all waiting for hase. In order to prevent the unnecessary deaths of our brave men, in order to once again fight for the ideals of our Grun Empire, in order to defend the Frontier Count¡¯s domain! Comrades, I have returned!¡± Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhh!!! It was a huge sess...... And yeah, I........ended up giving a homage speech for myself. Sorry about that. Chapter 64: Meeting at the Fortress – The Secret of the Frontier Count’s Household Chapter 64: Meeting at the Fortress ¨C The Secret of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household ¡°Hohoho. You led 1000 soldiers through a formation of thousands of enemies. You really are reliable.¡± The Frontier Count was showing a smile worthy of ¡®thest boss¡¯. We moved to the conference room to hold a strategic meeting. ¡°And that speech of yours, quite impressive. The soldiers were happy.¡± .......I stole the spotlight, sorry. ¡°Gahahahaha. You took the lead, assaulted the enemy and prated their formation! Even though this isn¡¯t the typical job for a duke.¡± My shoulders were creaking. Haha, my foster father was way too energetic. After this short exchange, we moved to the main subject. ¡°What is the general situation of this war?¡± At this point, I was using the seat of honor since my court rank was the highest. This doesn¡¯t suit me.......It feels awkward. ¡°Both my Commanders, Sonia and Galef, already went wild on the battlefield. And now you¡¯re here too, son-inw-dono. I can¡¯t picture us losing anymore.¡± ¡°To say it clearly, there¡¯s no way this fortress will fall with you inside it, son-inw-dono. Don¡¯t look down on your own strength.¡± .........Master is calling me ¡®son-inw-dono¡¯ too; this is way too awkward. But they¡¯re right. I still have lots of magical power left, so we might take turns and hail them with magical attacks. ¡°With son-inw-dono, Sonia and I together, we could take on about 10.000 enemies. Tomorrow we¡¯ll be enjoying a grand fireworks disy with our families.¡± ¡°It sounds good. We¡¯ll leave the approaching enemy soldiers to Galef and Albert. They¡¯ll do the job.¡± ¡°Gahahahaha, Albert! We¡¯ll go wild tomorrow!¡± ¡°Yes sir! I won¡¯t let anyone get close and return with his life!¡± Gahahaha Ha ha ha ha Hohoho ........I brought reinforcements in order to protect this ce. But was I even needed here? Everyone stoppedughing suddenly. Hiii! It¡¯s been a while since they made me feel this frightened! ¡°Lord Zest, thank you for bringing reinforcements, I¡¯ll be forever grateful. The Frontier Count¡¯s Household pays back its life debts with its own life. Even if you¡¯ll be an enemy to the Empire, we will never betray you.¡± The Frontier Count bowed his head and everyone else followed his example. ¡°Please stop. It¡¯s only natural to want to save my own family. I don¡¯t want you to be indebted to me.¡± Hm? Did I miss something?...... There¡¯s no reactioning from them, it¡¯s too embarrassing..... ¡°Hohoho, you are not greedy, it seems. Well, you must be tired, so you might want to rest a bit.¡± When being told that, I had no other choice but toply......Did I really get it all wrong? I saluted everyone and walked, with some difficulty, towards my room. I¡¯ll go to sleep early today..... By the time I was falling asleep, the discussion in the conference room was still ongoing. ¡°.........However, this is a huge help, your Excellency. If we were to continue like that, it would¡¯ve gotten rather dangerous.¡± ¡°Indeed, Galef. Now that son-inw-dono is here, we are saved. He rescued Bea for me and now this.......Life sure is unforeseeable.........Sonia, I am now adding something new to my testament......Listen well!¡± ¡°........As you wish, father.¡± ¡°You must tell to the future generations about Lord Zest¡¯s achievements, about how he bravely responded to thepression and enhancement training in such a short period of time. He saved the eldest daughter of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. He was the first person to put his life at stake and came rushing to us.........My domain was saved by him and I¡¯ll never forget this favor. If he ever ends up pointing his bow at the Empire, the Frontier Count¡¯s Household is to aid him to finish it. Lord Zest has strong magical powers, so I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll live long. You will listen to thisst request and obey it for as long as he is alive.¡± ¡°I swear I will forever act ording to your will.¡± ¡°Hohoho, I can¡¯t possibly write this in an official document though. The head of this household will have to follow the oral instructions by any means. You heard it too, Galef. The Gaiyus¡¯ Household is the overseer.......You are to kill the heads of this household who reject my will and don¡¯t act ordingly. If the head of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household shows signs of ingratitude, this would only bring about its own ending.¡± ¡°Yes Sir!¡± ¡°As you wish, your Excellency.¡± ¡°Hm.......Because of our debt to him, I followed and protected the will of the First Emperor until this very day, but who would¡¯ve thought that it would change with my generation.....¡± ¡°Yes. His will was.......¡¯Observe the conscience of the Empire, and in case the Empire ends up oppressing the good people and thoseing from a different world, you have to destroy it. However, if this never happens, you are to be loyal towards it¡¯......So it was.¡± ¡°Right......That¡¯s why I gave my protection to this summoned stranger...¡± ¡°As I thought....The ones who summoned him are........¡± ¡°Hoho, it was the Tarminal Kingdom¡¯s royal mages. Even though the summoning was a sess, his death was a certainty. And so, they panicked and came to attack us.¡± ¡°I see.....However father, what if......What if son-inw-dono will start oppressing the good people and the otherworlders? What will we do then?¡± ¡°Gahahahaha, don¡¯t worry about it. He resisted that hellishpression and enhancement training, he has guts. In order to let him live, we made him do absurd things, but he endured it all. Well, if by any chance he ends up doing something like that, I will secretly dispose of him, without the Frontier Count¡¯s Household knowing about it. This is the conviction entrusted to the Gaiyus¡¯ Household.¡± ¡°However¡± ¡°Still......¡± ¡°But you know....?¡± ¡° ¡° ¡°He is way too kind, we don¡¯t have to worry about it.¡± ¡° ¡° ¡°Furthermore.......¡± ¡°And yet......¡± ¡°Besides......¡± ¡° ¡° ¡°He¡¯s surprisingly timid, so we really have nothing to worry about.¡± ¡° ¡° ¡°With him being such a person, I¡¯m amazed he endured that type of training. Such a mysterious son-inw-dono.¡± ¡°You are so right.¡± ¡°With ability and guts, that¡¯s how he made it.¡± __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ They found out I was a timid person... However, it was at ater time that I realized what a recklessly strong sense of duty the Frontier Count¡¯s Household actually possessed. Chapter 65: A Fixed Fort Chapter 65: A Fixed Fort ¡°We have only one simple strategy to follow today. Lord Zest will shoot grand magical spells at random. Sonia and I will shoot what is left of the enemy, but even in this case, if there are enemies who approach the fortress, you will defeat them.......That¡¯s all.¡± It was very easy to understand. A wonderful strategy, Frontier Count....... ¡°Say, there are still enemies around, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, there should be in the areas where Lord Zest is shooting those grand spells.¡± Boooooooom ¡°.........Like there.¡± ¡°..........Right.¡± ¡° ¡°We¡¯re so free it¡¯s boring.¡± ¡° Booooooooom ¡°Lord Zest¡¯s efforts are not half-hearted.¡± ¡°He seems he still has enough magical power left. He¡¯s shouting something, isn¡¯t he?¡± ¡°.................Lord Zest, he¡¯s never half-hearted.¡± The soldiers protecting the fortress didn¡¯t get any chance to engage in battle. They were extremely shocked, watching me, the heroic duke, how I continued to release grand spells and shoot them towards the enemy, all by myself. How can he still go on?.........Could his Excellency defeat the enemy all by himself? That¡¯s what they were thinking..... However, the reality wasn¡¯t nearly that sweet...... ¡°Toss it! Lord Zest.¡± ¡°............Okaaaaaaaaaay!¡± If I didn¡¯t yell in order to motivate myself, I felt like I was going to copse......I desperately tried to control my magical powers that started to overflow and pushed them back inside my body. If I were to be careless even for an instant, the magic spell wouldn¡¯t activate....... With great caution I employed my magical power again.......Good, go!! Booooooooooom Itnded on the right spot, it seems. My entire magical power wasing out of my body.........My knees areughing at me, huh? I beat them and regained my senses; I somehow managed to stand firm. I consumed a lot of magical power, but the problem was my physical and emotional strength.......or to say, my ability to concentrate..... was steadily decreasing. I already knew that. This was.......way too tough.......... ¡°Lord Zest, please shoot one over there as well.¡± ¡°...............Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaa!¡± Damn it! Don¡¯t say it so casually like it¡¯s the easiest thing in the world........ I once again forced my almost out of control magical power back inside my body and tried to imagine the explosion. Ipressed andpressed andpressed my magical power in a reckless attempt to employ another grand spell. My both hands started to shine, but it wasn¡¯t ready yet. I forced myself to make it stronger and smaller...........and I made it! Over there, you say? GO!! Boooooooooooooom Good, it was a...........sess........Damn it.......my consciousness is all over the ce....... What the? There¡¯s something in my mouth...........I can¡¯t breathe. I die if I don¡¯t drink this!? Somehow........I drank it up. What? The ground is close to my face......Ah, was I asleep.......? I stood up slowly and shook my head. I¡¯m all right. Some way or another, my consciousness was very clear. ¡°Lord Zest, shoot the next one over there.¡± ¡°..................All riiiiiiiiiiiiiight!!!¡± That day, all I did was to shoot grand spells towards the ces the Frontier Count and my master indicated...It was an ¡®easy¡¯ task and I gave my all toplete it........ Say whatever you like, but I waspletely exhausted.... It was because for those exploding range spells I was using an unusual amount of magical power. Compared to the strengthening and healing magical spells that I use all the time, this one was consuming 10 times the amount of magical power. In fact, I ran out of magical power a few times. And each time the Maids Unit was forcibly making me drink some recovery medicine.... That day was torture for me. Still, it was good enough for defending our base. Indeed, for self-defense only... If I were to be outside on the battlefield and fire these magical spells in rapid session, I¡¯d be surrounded and disposed of pretty soon. The consumption of magical power was way too unbeneficial....... My stomach was making strange noises as the Maids Unit carried me to my room. Thanks... I was exhausted to such an extent that I couldn¡¯t even say that single word. I copsed into my bed like I was about to lose consciousness. The maids wiped my body with a cold hand towel. Ah, it feels good. Thanks. Even though I wanted to thanks them, opening my mouth was a way too troublesome task. I decided that I will never ever use exploding magic again................. I truly believed it. It looked easy for those around me, but for me it was too much. This...............was nothing but certain death..................... The maids left the room after they finished cleaning my body. I¡¯ll make sure to thank themter. It feels good now so I can rx and sleep. ¡°Enemy attack!! Enemy attack!! The enemy hasmenced a night attack!¡± I heard a sharp noise. It sounded like whipping? ¡°..........................Bring it on! You don¡¯t intend to let me rest, huh?¡± I jumped up to my feet, enveloped by a very strange tension. ¡°Where the hell is the enemy!? I¡¯ll mince them all!¡± ¡°Gahahahaha, Zest is full of energy! Let¡¯s go!¡± ¡°Follow their Excellencies!!¡± ¡°He ceaselessly shot magical spells in that manner during the day, and now he fights so violently with a sword?¡± ¡°Lord Zest is not a half-hearted person.¡± ¡°This is what you call a night raid? How dare you!? After I¡¯m done with you, you¡¯ll never feel like initiating nocturnal assaults ever again!¡± ¡°.........He¡¯s a monster with the sword as well.¡± ¡°He¡¯s at the level of our Knights Commander.¡± ¡°...........I¡¯m d he¡¯s on our side.¡± ¡°I just decided that I will never oppose the sword and snake g.¡± ¡° ¡° ¡°.......Indeed.¡± ¡° ¡° After the assaulting idiots finally scattered, I returned to my room, but... A maid was waiting for me, smiling. ¡°Your Excellency, it¡¯s time for the meeting.¡± I thought so....................... Chapter 66: Conclusion Chapter 66: Conclusion The next day, we decided to fight a defensive battle, in order to preserve our magical powers. The Tarminal Kingdom¡¯s Army started to approach us when the sun went up. Since I used such shy spells yesterday, they must think I can¡¯t use magic anymore today. I will take advantage of this misunderstanding. The fierce battle that started in the morning wasn¡¯t going to end too soon. You could hear the angry shouts of the attacking enemy soldiers as well as the encouraging voices of yourrades, supporting and fighting alongside you. It was already noon. The Frontier Count and my master were now fighting back the enemy with uplicated magic spells, so it didn¡¯t sound like they were firing something big. They were probably patient. In that short time they created for us, we rested our bodies. We had to, ourrades were covering for us. ¡°Your Excellency, the signal.¡± Albert informed me. ¡°Let¡¯s go! Our goal is capturing that showy red g! Don¡¯t pay much attention to anything else!¡± ¡°Follow his Excellency!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Oooooooooooo!!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° The gates opened and we galloped our horses all at once. ¡°We¡¯re taking the lead, your Excellency!¡± I was informed, and a ¡®gang¡¯ outdistanced me enthusiastically, running towards our target. ¡°Hahahaha, to run our horses on the battlefield and take the lead! Ah! I never thought this day woulde! Come on, guys, attack!!¡± They wielded their spears and assaulted the enemy. This ¡®gang¡¯ made its way through the enemy forces quite easily, advancing at a quick pace. ¡°Albert, they¡¯re in high spirits, aren¡¯t they?¡± ¡°......Yeah.¡± All we could hear was the screams of the enemy soldiers, as the ¡®gang¡¯ kept on advancing, like they were running on an uninhabited ground. In the face of such a clean assault, the enemy soldiers couldn¡¯t do anything, except for falling on the ground with spear wounds all over their bodies. ¡°..........The maids are doing their best.¡± ¡°They¡¯re scary, these maids are scary.¡± ¡°........What are these maids?¡± The ck knights were whispering among themselves, but I decided to ignore it. ¡°You guys, are you really all right with the maids taking all the glory? If they ask me to find them husbands as a reward for their merits, I won¡¯t be able to refuse them, you know?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t lose to them, damn it!¡± ¡°Oi! Over there, charge!¡± ¡°The maids will eat us! Hurry up and go!¡± ..............It seems they got psyched, so it¡¯s ok. And so, we finally reached our target. The showy red g, the royal g....We were right beneath it. The stronghold was protected by a number of fully equipped knights, but this won¡¯t stop us. ¡°Hahahaha, I found some knights! This is my achievement! I want credit for this!¡± ¡°Just a moment ago, we left the maids behind!?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t day dream, you fool! Hurry up and attack!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to be made fun of by the maids! They¡¯ll eat us alive!¡± As I was waiting, I also took care of all the enemy attacksing towards my direction. It was already our win. Yesterday, we killed all their elite soldiers in that raid of exploding magic spells. Their numbers got considerably diminished and it seems that a great number of enemy soldiers ended up running away....... When I finished eliminating yet another enemy, I heard someone yelling. ¡°The enemymander, the royalty is down!!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°OOOOOOOOOOO!!!!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° Iunched a magic spell as a signal. Good, the fortress has sent its signal too. ¡°As of now, we are starting a cleaning up battle! As nned, you¡¯ll follow Albert!¡± I instructed them, then took a few soldiers with me and returned to the fortress. All that was left was to chase after the escaping soldiers for a while; after that it was over. ¡°Your Excellency, the one who eliminated the royalty is here.¡± ¡°I wonder who did it.¡± A soldier, riding a horse and carrying a spear on their shoulder, with a pierced head on its end, was approaching. All the other soldiers let our shouts of joy..............And screams. ¡°Your Excellency, I took down the enemy royalty. I also have his dagger as proof.¡± ¡°........You did very well. You achieved the greatest merits in this war. Let¡¯s return to the fortress together.¡± ¡°Yes sir, thank you very much!¡± A lovely maid smiled sweetly as she thanked me......... The one who killed the enemy¡¯s boss was themander of the maids unit. Wearing a maid¡¯s uniform covered all over with blood and a long spear on her shoulder, this cute maid was the number one figure of this war. So she achieved the greatest merits, huh?....... Where in the world is my army going towards?........ I felt a little dizzy, as we entered the fortress and faced the conference room. ¡°Everyone, we¡¯re back.¡± ¡°Ex.....excuse me.¡± Inside the conference room were the same old faces. ¡°Oh, Lord Zest, as expected of your much rumored war maidens. Aren¡¯t they splendid!?¡± ¡°Yes, I really thought they were nobles¡¯ children, trained from a very young age in the art of war.¡± ¡°Gahaha, should we add such a unit to the Frontier Count¡¯s Army too?¡± The same old family members....... ¡°She is Media, the maid¡¯s unitmander and the person who killed the enemy royalty.¡± She bowed her head then held out the severed head and the dagger. ¡°Yes indeed, this family crest is undoubtedly the Tarminal Kingdom¡¯s royal family¡¯s crest. Do you know his name?¡± ¡°It¡¯s unknown. He didn¡¯t want to announce it to me.¡± ¡°I see. Good then. You did very well. You can take your time and rest now.¡± After that, Media left the conference room. ¡°Well now, our strategy worked out pretty well, grandson-inw-dono. All that¡¯s left now is to take some rest. We won the first battle for now. It will take some more time until the empire¡¯s main army arrives here anyway.¡± ¡°Gahaha, we¡¯ll deal with the minor details and the settlement of this fight, so you can go rest.¡± ¡°They¡¯re right. You continuously fired grand spells, after all. Please take it easy, son-inw-dono.¡± ¡°.....Right. I understand. As one would expect, I am really tired........I will rest now for a bit. Excuse me.¡± I bowed and returned to my room. I took off my armor and copsed onto my bed. I indeed suggested the surprise attack strategy and my subordinates did very well. We had a chance to win this fight before the real, lengthy war started, so we took it. If they would have grown vignt against my magic attacks and started assaulting us every day for a prolonged period of time, we would¡¯ve umted fatigue and would¡¯ve been in real danger. I¡¯m d we were able to win with this surprise attack strategy. It was all right that I didn¡¯t bring down the enemy¡¯s head myself. It was my subordinate who did it after all. I really thought that I made all myrades draw away from me because of my insane magic attack the other day, but during that surprise attack the maids unit clearly stood out, and, what¡¯s more, they kept on sending me odd looks.....It actually calmed me down. Only good things have happened........But still......... ¡°Your Excellency, I want you to find me a husband as reward! I am an only daughter so I need the husband to get adopted into my family, all right?!¡± I was greatly perplexed by Media¡¯s teasing request for a reward. .........Who should I sacrifice?....... Chapter 67: Reward for the Greatest War Merits Chapter 67: Reward for the Greatest War Merits ¡°Ladies! Gentlemen! Thanks for gathering here!¡± In one corner of the now silent fortress, that was usually used as training ground, gathered all the soldiers upying a leadership position in the Duke¡¯s Army. The Frontier Count¡¯s Army was taking care of the postwar matters and affairs. Since we¡¯ve done a forced march and have fought a series of battles, we were exempted from that, so we could just take it easy for the time being, however... ¡°In thest battle, the person who aplished the greatest war merits is.......Commander Media.¡± *Rustle* Everyone started to whisper. ¡°What she wants is........a husband, who¡¯ll be adopted into her family.¡± No one said anything........It was more like no one wanted to say anything. Media was the Commander of the Maid¡¯s Unit and a first-ss maid herself. She could easily handle cleaning, doingundry, cooking or sewing. Moreover, she was actually very sweet. She had a ¡®younger sister¡¯ type of loveliness attached to her. You could say that she was a beautiful young woman with light brown, soft and curly hair. She looked great on the outside........On the outside, that is....... Actually, her personality was great too. She is a very helpful person, so her subordinates adore her.......But only as a Commander. Even though she¡¯s a noble, she wouldn¡¯t get angry if someone was rude or made a mistake or something. She has a lot of fans because of her soft way of punishing the others.......But only as a Commander. That¡¯s right, as a Commander she¡¯s very loved and appreciated. ¡°Your Excellency, who will you sacrifice.....urm, send as adopted husband into her family?¡± Albert was wearing a stillposed smile. You little...Only because you¡¯re already married......because you have no connection to this, that you look so happy... ¡°I will decide that now......Listen guys, you can be nobles, you know? A viscount. Is anyone who wants to be one?¡± Everyone looked downward, avoiding eye contact........ ¡°You fools, what is it that doesn¡¯t please you? She¡¯s a beautiful girl and has a pleasant nature. Furthermore, shees from a viscount¡¯s family, you know? Isn¡¯t it great? Someone must marry her and be adopted into her family.¡± Albert¡¯s shoulders were shaking lightly. ¡°Your Excellency, as I feared, maybe it¡¯s because of that.....¡± I¡¯m sure it is. Everyone knows after all. And yet, I wanted to entrust this to someone who didn¡¯t know about her....... Media¡¯s sole defect.......If only it wasn¡¯t for that, she would¡¯ve been perfect....... ¡°Your Excellency.......I want to announce my candidacy.¡± The sound of people talking all at once could be heard. ¡°Who, who is that? In the front....Come to the front!¡± Everyone present got confused. ¡°Who is this brave man?¡± ¡°It¡¯s God.....He exists!¡± ¡°Thank you......Thank you......¡± ¡°This is great......Thanks god it wasn¡¯t me.¡± Don¡¯t cry, you idiots. And so, he came to the front. He was an unpolished man with a medium build and short hair. His exterior appearance was exactly that of a military man¡¯s. He looked like he was in his mid- 20¡¯s.......Yes, this was not bad at all. ¡°I am Tasel, a former adventurer, your Excellency.¡± His low voice sounded really cool. It seems he¡¯s the type of guy that Media would be pleased with......Yet, a guy like this was still around? ¡°I see. So you¡¯re Tasel.......You want to be Media¡¯s husband, right?¡± At that point I was fine with anyone. Since I couldn¡¯t possibly think that someone would willingly marry Media and get adopted into her family otherwise. Everyone was feeling the same. No one objected. ¡°Yes. It¡¯s just that......there is a problem. It would be great if your Excellency could......¡± This is such a trivial matter. If he¡¯s willing to be Media¡¯s husband, then I would forgive him for almost anything. But if it¡¯s just too much.............Even so, I¡¯d still forgive it. ¡°Tell me what is it? It¡¯s my dear subordinate¡¯s wish. I will do everything I can to help you.¡± Albert looked the other way, as he started to tremble again. Yeah, I am trying to force this dear subordinate of mine into epting this marriage.....So what?..........You¡¯reughing too much, you cur. And so, with a grave expression on his face, Tasel squeezed out his wish and informed us. ¡°The truth is........I am a woman................¡± This corner of the fortress fell silent again. The sound of the opening gates could be heard from far away. It felt awfully loud. ¡°...............Tasel.¡± He looked like about to start crying....... ¡°................Yes, your Excellency.¡± I slowly ced my hand on his.......on Tasel¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Don¡¯t lie to us! I¡¯ll use observation magic, so try and say that again.¡± ¡°I am a woman! But even so, even so, I love Miss Media very much.¡± Yeah, she¡¯s undoubtedly a woman.......This Tasel. Tasel had a tragic expression as he started crying. ¡°Tasel.......So what about it?¡± ¡°Tasel, there¡¯s no actual problem.¡± My voice and Albert¡¯s voice ovepped. ¡° ¡°Media is a man. Congrattions! You will definitely get married!¡± ¡° Tasel burst into tears of happiness......The guys burst into tears of relief, since they were saved now. The Maids Unit burst into tears of celebration; they were happy for their Commander¡¯s marriage. Albert and I, for some reason, burst into tears too. I wiped my tears away as I looked up at the sky. The blue sky was blessing them.........It was blessing all of us. However, somewhere deep inside me, these words were always present. ¡®Where the hell is my army headed towards?........¡¯ Chapter 68: A Short Return Chapter 68: A Short Return ¡°Duke Zest, how can I ever thank you.......for this?¡± The man who was inside my office, expressing his gratitude while shedding tears, was Media¡¯s father, Viscount Mark. The Emperor¡¯s army arrived at the fortress, so I temporarily returned to my domain, however...... ¡°That...that Media, even though he¡¯s a man, he still acts like that.....I really thought that my household¡¯s lineage was going to end.........That was.........That was...¡± Viscount Mark was crying aloud. ¡°Come on, father, you¡¯re exaggerating.¡± ¡°Silence, you stupid son! Stop talking like a woman!¡± He¡¯s been through a lot of hardships.......His son being like that. ¡°Ahem. Duke Zest, I would do anything for you. You¡¯ve done me a favor I could never repay.¡± ¡°Haha. Lord Mark, don¡¯t say it so carelessly, that you would do anything for me. Saying thanks was enough, I only approved of this marriage, nothing more.¡± After Tasel dered that he liked Media, it all became even more difficult. Tasel was sent out of the fortress, and in the meanwhile, Media refused the offer. In any case, it was the same as always........Once he¡¯d know she was a man, he would run away. Those were her thoughts. When Tasel came back, he realized he got dumped without even being aware of it. ¡°Miss Media said that she wasn¡¯t the kind of woman I thought she was.........¡± My head started to hurt.......This was a bad habit for nobles. ¡°If you want a free trantion, it would mean that I am a man! Understood? Think about it properly!¡± Yes ¡°I am not ¡®the kind of woman¡¯ you think I am.¡± The nobles¡¯ manner of talking could really be tiring. After that, they both opened their hearts and they all lived happily ever after. The only worry they had was that Viscount Mark might not recognize the marriage. ¡°I never thought that I would ever be able to see the face of my grandchild.¡± He was overjoyed, so he expressly came to greet and thank me in person. ¡°Father, I will splendidly give birth to a child, just wait and see.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t possibly give birth to anything, stupid son!¡± ..........Oh dear! I conferred to Tasel the title of knight. Even though his title was too low for marrying a viscount, he was a member of the Duke¡¯s Army. Viscount Markpletely agreed; he wanted a sessor after all. ¡°Amoner? It has nothing to do with it. If there¡¯s a woman who would marry that guy, there¡¯s really nothing I couldin about!¡± Yes, these were unmistakably his true feeling. Afterwards, he continued to thank me, and before long, the viscount went back fully satisfied. After he left, I went to observe the army¡¯s preparations. We temporarily returned home for precisely this reason. His Majesty decided upon conquering the Tarminal Kingdom. Since I went to battle only with my most elite soldiers, I came back to regroup with my entire army. It was a war of conquest, therefore bringing only the cavalry would be useless. We had to steadily prepare and march into the kingdom with all our power. I only finished with the paperwork in the evening. I returned to my room and went to the bathhouse together with Bea and Toto. Once the preparations were finished, I would go back to war.......So I wanted to value this time we still had together not matter what. We left the bathroom, and after we ate dinner, it was time for a make out session. ¡°Bea, I must go back to the battlefield soon. I¡¯m sorry I¡¯m making you feel lonely.¡± ¡°Please don¡¯t apologize. I¡¯m properly waiting for you.......If you return to me safely, I will endure as long as it takes.¡± (Dad, I will make sure to protect Mom!) ¡°Haha, that¡¯s excellent, Toto. Thank you, I leave Bea in your care again, okay?¡± I was spending my time in harmony with my lovely family.........This way, I felt I could fight again for a short while....... Toto was already asleep. As for Bea......she fell asleep a moment ago, so I didn¡¯t want to wake her up. I got up from my bed and moved to the table by the window. I drank water directly from the water jug. It didn¡¯t matter since no one was watching. However, I was saved this time...... Finding a marriage partner for Media was not even close to an unreasonable demand. And yet, I couldn¡¯t tell her that it was impossible. For a noble, in order to receive a good treatment from people, they must fulfill their duties. There¡¯s no future for a noble who couldn¡¯t provide a reward for his subordinate. Eventually, his followers would all abandon him..........However........This time... ¡°Tasel saved me in various ways...............¡± I muttered to myself as I was alone in the middle of the night, looking up at sky. Chapter 69: Quiet Talk – Media and Tasel Chapter 69: Quiet Talk ¨C Media and Tasel Tasel confessed to Media and proposed to her. This piece of news was circting among all the army¡¯s soldiers. That Media.......That Media is getting married. ¡°Media? Are we talking about that Media-sama?¡± ¡°Marriage? For real?....¡± ¡°Who¡¯s the fool........He¡¯s part of the Duke¡¯s Army!?¡± ¡°Are you saying that someone in the Duke¡¯s Army is doing this knowingly?¡± The guys were uproarious and the fortress became rather noisy. ¡°Hohoho, don¡¯t let anyone stand in their way. Lord Zest told me too, you know, that every fool who tries to get in the way will get killed.¡± ¡° ¡°Yes sir!¡± ¡° Zest and the Frontier Count......ording to their instructions, the stage for the confession was progressing steadily. And so, in a room inside the fortress, nonchntly prepared for the asion, Media was enjoying some ck tea. She got asked toe here by Zest. ¡°I wonder why he asked for me........No way, is Lord Zest going to...?¡± If you were to ask the man himself, he would let out some sharp words, muttered to himself, rather than directed to anyone in particr. However, she didn¡¯t dislike that about him. She felt some sort of good will towards Zest. On the other side, as a former Japanese, Zest understood her. He treated her like he would treat any woman, he didn¡¯t look down on her. He was the first man who acknowledged her for who she actually was. Still, she actually knew that Zest wouldn¡¯t do such a thing. She knew that he was madly in love with his wife Beatrice, so much so that whenever he had some spare time, he would spend it with his wife. ¡°Haa, I would do anything for someone to fall in love with me like that......¡± She put down the tea cup she had in her hand for what seemed like a very long time. She suddenly looked at the door and saw a man standing there, looking at her. ¡°Tasel? What¡¯s wrong? Why are you here?¡± ¡°Media-sama, I have something to tell you. Please, let¡¯s get married!¡± ¡®Ah! Not again.¡¯ She muttered to herself. ¡®How many times has it been until now......? I like you, I love you, I want to marry you. But, in the end, everyone is the same.¡¯ The man standing in front of her was Tasel, a former adventurer and the Commander of the Scouting Unit. Still, he was probably the same as the others. ¡°Oh my! I appreciate the proposal. However, I am not the type of woman you think I am.......I¡¯m sorry.¡± She informed him with her usual speech and smile. ¡®.........I am not a woman. I¡¯m sure that once everyone tells him about me, he¡¯ll just give up.¡¯ The man¡¯s shoulders dropped, as he left the room, heartbroken. The woman silently stared at his retreating figure. ...............Her eyes looked so sad. How much time has passed? Duke Zest was yet to show up........Still, it wasn¡¯t something unusual. It was normal for a highly ranked noble like him, a duke, to let a viscount¡¯s daughter wait. Waiting silently was noble¡¯s job as well. Baam. The door was violently opened. Did he finallye? She put down the tea cup and was about to stand when she felt someone embrace her from behind. ¡°Eh!?¡± She voiced her shock involuntarily. ¡®Is Duke Zest...? Why?.........Or maybe? Maybe it¡¯s not him?¡¯ She was extremely confused. Nheless he approached and whispered to her ear. ¡°Media-sama, I am a former adventurer. I¡¯m not a noble and I¡¯m weaker than you.¡± ¡®Tasel? Why is he still in this room?¡¯ He hugged her closer, as she was still fighting confusion. ¡°I know about Media-sama¡¯s circumstances.¡± She shook Tasel off and stared at him angrily. He knows my circumstances? Then why did hee?......To make fun of me? Did hee to look down on me for being like this despite being a man!? She was burning with anger......But right in front of her, Tasel started to take off his clothes. ¡°What are you.........¡± What are you doing? It¡¯s what she was about to say, but she grew silent. No, more likely she couldn¡¯t say anything. ¡°It¡¯s the first time....The first time I¡¯m meeting someone having the same problem as me........I am a woman........But.......¡± She looked on, silently. She looked at Tasel¡¯s body.......She looked at that body which had the characteristics of a woman. ¡°I am a woman, but I don¡¯t mind having you as a man. I am in love with you.........Do you.......Do you hate me as a woman?¡± ¡°..................No way!¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter to me that you¡¯re a man. I love you!¡± ¡°..........................¡± ¡°Media-sama, I really like you.¡± Tasel approached slowly and hugged Media closely. ¡°Please tell me.........Do you hate me as a woman?¡± Media cried for a long time, as Tasel embraced her and continued to ask that question over and over again. It was the first time......It was the first time someone knew about her circumstances, but still acted like this. Tasel still imed he loved her. He told her that he¡¯ll ept her even as a man. And he was embracing her closely. It was the first time. The first time she felt that she didn¡¯t want to ever part from him. Two people entered the fortress¡¯ office, which was recently transformed into Duke Zest¡¯s room. ¡°Howes you two are getting along now?¡± Zest was wearing the same calm and gentle smile as ever. They were holding their hands and they both wanted to convey to Zest the same thing. ¡° ¡°We are getting married!¡± ¡° They said and lowered their heads. That¡¯s when the words which exceeded their expectations got to their ears. ¡°Congrats. I¡¯m happy for you. And don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll take care of the fine details. Since I¡¯ll be the mediator, I won¡¯t let anyonein about this.........You just concentrate on bing happy together!¡± While watching Zest dere that to them then startughing, they both decided. That they¡¯ll forever follow Duke Zest.........That they¡¯ll be his sword and shield. Chapter 70: To the Battlefield, Once Again Chapter 70: To the Battlefield, Once Again ¡°Hoho, you came already, grandson-inw-dono. Bea too, it¡¯s been a long time. How have you been? Good, I hope.¡± ¡°Of course. What about you, grandfather? How is your health?¡± (Toto is here too, grandpa.) The Frontier Count showed the two of them a kind smile, one that he would never show me, as he weed us. Howes Toto isn¡¯t afraid to sit on the Count¡¯s shoulder? She sure is amazing....... I gathered my soldiers and we were going towards the fortress, but I decided to first stop by at the Frontier Count¡¯s castle and give Bea into his custody. It was because the frontier Count wasn¡¯t a part of the current strategy. Obviously, my master and my foster father would take part in it, but they wouldn¡¯t be able to leave the skies above the Frontier Count¡¯s domain; they were supposed to protect the border, after all. And so, the Lord had to remain inside his castle. Still, he kept on bragging about stuff like how boring the house-watching role was or how he wasn¡¯t ready to lose to the young ones just yet. Even so.............. (Grandpa, this is delicious!) ¡°Is that so? I have a lot of that left!¡± He narrowed his eyes and brushed Toto¡¯s hair........He was extremely indulgent towards Toto, maybe because she looked like a little Bea. ¡°Listen, Toto-chan, if you eat too much now, you won¡¯t be able to eat the dinnerter. Be moderate, okay?¡± ¡°Hoho, it¡¯s all right! Come now, drink some fruit juice.¡± (Thank you, grandpa!) He transformed into a foolish old geezer who loved to pamper his granddaughter.........But, I certainly could leave them in his care without any worries. This castle, in which Bea and Toto would live for a while, would be held by the Frontier Count. Only by imagining it chills ran down my spine.........A foolishly looking old geezer trampling down the enemies, while smiling towards his granddaughter. ¡°I leave them in your care then. Bea, Toto, I¡¯ll be on my way now.¡± ¡°Yes, take care. I wish you good fortune!¡± (Dad, take care.) As I embraced Bea, Toto followed along as well. She used her entire small body to stubbornly cling to my head and hug me. ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ll definitelye back. To wherever you are, Bea......¡± I kissed Bea, who waspletely flushed then I left the room. Right at that moment, I decided inside my heart that I would finish this business as quickly as possible. ¡°Albert, we¡¯re leaving.¡± ¡°Yes sir! Everyone, begin marching!¡± We were advancing on the road that led to the fortress. First, we had to meet with the Empire¡¯s Main Army. After 4 days of marching, we arrived at the fortress. It was because I brought along infantrymen as well..........Our speed was rather slow. However, this time we were waging a war of upation, so the number of soldiers did count. It couldn¡¯t be helped. ¡°Your Excellency, Duke Zest, it¡¯s been a long time. I¡¯m Raiza.¡± A knight said to me, as he got out of the fortress. He was a big man wearing an imposing armor and helmet........His hair was blue......Ah! It¡¯s that man with blue hair! ¡°Long time no see, Count Raiza. Or, it might be better to say, the General Commander of the Empire¡¯s Main Army.¡± He was the suprememander of the Emperor¡¯s forces, an army of 20.000 soldiers. The blue-haired Count Raiza looked like a man in his 40s. He became famous in his youth as a great military man, therefore, the Emperor acknowledged him. He was a viscount, but his Majesty conferred him the count title and entrusted him with leading the Empire¡¯s Army. Count Raiza was such an excellent man. Also, he was the Emperor¡¯s right hand. ¡°Your Excellency, just call me Raiza. For now, you should rest inside the fortress.¡± ¡°No. We¡¯ll have a meeting first. If we take our time, the Tarminal Kingdom might make aeback, and that would be troublesome.¡± Raiza bowed his head in assent and silently led us inside the fortress. We went straight to the meeting room, since I wanted to make our move as quickly as possible. What was decided during the meeting was that ¡®In the invasion of the Tarminal Kingdom, the Supreme Commander Raiza would lead the Empire¡¯s Main Army to attack, as I provide the rear guard, as I follow after him¡¯. They wanted this fight to be the Main Army¡¯s turn to shine, so I was supposed to obediently follow; after all, it was I who went all out protecting the fortress not long ago. The Tarminal Kingdom¡¯s main forces were recently defeated, so it was supposed to be an easy victory. It seemed it was safe even without me providing the rear guard......... But well, since his Majesty asked me in person, I decided to follow them for now. We stayed in the fortress for the night and began marching the following morning. The border with the Tarminal Kingdom was very close, but it would take us 10 days to reach the royal capital. We would be on the road for a while........ Just as we expected, we didn¡¯t encounter any enemy during the first 3 days. But as we passed by a few more viges and towns, we still didn¡¯t find any enemy soldiers. We asked the residents about this, and were told that no soldiers were seen around after that time a few days ago when a number of worn out soldiers ran past them. Deserters? Did we really force the kingdom into a corner to such an extent? We sent a few more scouts ahead and increased the speed of our march. Even so, the enemy soldiers weren¡¯t showing up........It felt a bit weird. No matter how you looked at it, it was strange.......Did something happen? We found out the answer once we arrived at the royal capital. ¡°I have a message for your Excellency, Duke Zest! The royal capital will raise the white g, but its gates will remain shut and its cannons ready to fire back! However, we want to capitte, so we¡¯ll send out a messenger!¡± Isn¡¯t this a trap?....... I wasn¡¯t the only one who thought about that. However, the next words I heard threw me into an unnecessary chaos. ¡°The messenger will be a kemonobito man, the current representative of the royal capital! In order for us to capitte, he asks to be allowed to do so in the presence of Lord Albert!¡± ¡°.............A coup d¡¯etat?¡± ¡°.........Yeah, most likely.¡± Instead of making them fall, I had now to participate in a truly bothersome discussion........ Dear me! Chapter 71: Talks with the Rebel Army Chapter 71: Talks with the Rebel Army ¡°Your Excellency, Duke Zest, thank you very much for the trouble of meeting me here.¡± Inside the Main Army¡¯s tent, a too serious man was lowering his head. ¡°Lord Raiza, don¡¯t worry about it........Well now, you say you are the messenger?¡± He rushed here right after the announcement........ If you don¡¯t act fast during a rebellion, things could get really troublesome. ¡°I¡¯m very pleased to meet you. I am Herman, the current representative of the capital.¡± He informed and raised his head. He was indeed a kemonobito. His ears resembled Albert¡¯s, and he looked like a tall, slender, but fearless dog kemonobito. First, I silently cast my observation magic........He looked like the type to show some kind of reaction when lying. ¡°The current representative?.......So it was a rebellion after all?¡± ¡°Yes. Tarminal Kingdom¡¯s royal lineage has died out.¡± As I thought....... However, it¡¯s not excluded that the royal family might have escaped without this man noticing. I really must get a grasp of the situation here........ ¡°Albert, call Tasel here.¡± ¡°Yes sir.¡± ¡°Sorry, you can continue.¡± He followed Albert with his vision as he left the room then continued talking. ¡°As you might already know............¡± And so, he opened up. The situation here was worse than I had previously thought....... First, the Tarminal Kingdom had a doctrine that preached the supremacy of the human race. The human race.......Like back in Japan, where people think that humans are the most superior species and all the other ones with which they interact are considered inferior races. This kingdom oppressed the kemonobito, the dwarves, the elves, and turned them into ves. Were they to oppose the humans, people from their races and families would die executed. So they stopped defying humans. As he was telling this story, the man started to cry........ Still, even in such circumstances, they didn¡¯t start a war. The reason for which Tarminal Kingdom resorted to such a policy was the shortage of food they were confronting with. Their territories contained many wends andrge rivers. Thinking about it, their soil should have been really productive. However, in reality, it was disastrous...... Due to a despotic administration, the people didn¡¯t have enough food. What was to be done? The solution was to throw away the children and the old. But if they were to continue that, the number of workers would have decreased and the harvest would have dropped. Furthermore, the food supply wasn¡¯t sufficient to feed the poption. Therefore........ ¡°The Kingdom sacrificed its royal mages to summon someone from a different world.¡± .............So it was this country? .........I see. It was this country! I desperately tried to restrain my magical power from revealing my disturbance. ........It was useless. It leaked out considerably. Herman¡¯s face turned dead pale in an instant, and he tried to open his mouth to speak, but no sound wasing out. ¡°Your Excellency, I have brought Tasel.¡± Albert returned with the best timing possible. ¡°Thank you. Come closer, Tasel.¡± He approached and I gave him instructions in a low voice. ¡®Your top priority is to be alert of the surroundings as you conduct an investigation about the situation here. You can use the knights as well. Go now.¡¯ ¡°Certainly! Excuse me.¡± I gave Taser the orders then returned to our conversation. ¡°I¡¯ve kept you waiting. What happened to that person........who came from another world?¡± ¡°.......Y...yes.¡± He told me in brief. The summoning itself was a sess, but the aimed location.......In short, that person never showed up inside the magical formation set up somewhere in the Tarminal Kingdom. What convinced them that the summoning was a sess was the way the magical formation was shining, as well as the state of the casters¡¯ bodies. Everything was like in the books. They were so foolish....... After that, Tarminal Kingdom ended up being in a position without its summoned stranger and with all its royal mages annihted. It was the worst situation for them. The administration became more and more despotic.......That was the time when someone from the Grun Empire achieved spiritification. Yeah, that was me. Once they investigated the incident, they discovered I was the summoned stranger........However, they didn¡¯t have any proof that I was indeed the person they tried to summon. The Kingdom was driven to a wall................ ¡°So they decided......... to start a war?.............¡± The tent turned as silent as a grave. He wasn¡¯t lying.......I exchanged looks with Raiza and signaled him that this man was telling the truth. Raiza nodded in response. ¡°So, why does your surrendere with a condition?¡± Herman¡¯s face looked depressed as he was hanging his head, but my words woke him from his trance, and he straightened himself. ¡°Despite being a kemonobito, Albert-sama is the Knights Commander in the army of Duke Zest, the Empire¡¯s de! He is what all kemonobito aspire to be! He is hope! If it is for that person, we thought that we won¡¯t be mistreated.........¡± Huh? The Empire¡¯s de? Who¡¯s the idiot who named me that........? My head hurts. This second name is truly embarrassing........How dare they?........ Still, I understood the situation.......These guys were treated very poorly here. They seemed traumatized by humans. But it was no good. ¡°I understand......But it¡¯s no good. You are in no position to add conditions to your surrender, are you? I shouldn¡¯t be mistaken, otherwise why would the one in chargee here in person?¡± I sighed. Herman¡¯s body was trembling and his face was bitter, but I continued nheless. ¡°I will not allow you to add conditions to your surrender. However, if you do surrender, I will appoint Albert as our correspondent, and I vow on the name of my Grum Empire that you won¡¯t ever be treated poorly by us.¡± The Empire would never ept a rebel army to add conditions to their surrender. Once it did that, it would be aughing matter; an Empire with an army that couldn¡¯t win against some rebels. However, in case it epts the Kingdom¡¯s pitiful people, the Empire might as well be seen as tolerant. It¡¯s sophistry, but it can¡¯t be helped.......It¡¯s all for the nobles and their countries¡¯ honor. Herman lowered his head, finally understanding my words. ¡°Please, please, look after us! We¡¯ll be in your care!¡± ¡°Herman, don¡¯t worry about it. I swear on my pride as a kemonobito that his Excellency is a person that can be trusted. Besides, his Excellency is a stranger who came from a different world.......He doesn¡¯t think poorly of us, kemonobito. Isn¡¯t that right, your Excellency?¡± As he continued to talk foolishly, Albert looked in my direction. ........Haha, Albert became talkative again. I started talking, my face full of smiles. ¡°He¡¯s right. I even forgave him for trying to seduce my wife on the imperial capital¡¯s streets. Even when he wanted to get married and begged me in tears, I helped him. Ah! And that time in the bar with that beautiful woman.............¡± ¡°Your Excellency! I am very sorry! I got carried away, please forgive me!¡± Herman was watching us dumbfounded as we joked with each other, but, before one knew, he started smiling........while shedding tears...... ¡°Wepletely surrender to the Grun Empire.¡± He informed us cheerfully. Chapter 72: Role-sharing Chapter 72: Role-sharing Herman led us into the royal capital........urm, the former royal capital. However, the city didn¡¯t look like a capital at all. Therge streets still looked clean, but once you entered the alleyways, you¡¯d be bound to face destion. The people were extremely exhausted and the rebel army was in a state that it couldn¡¯t be called an army anymore. They were a group of tired people barely having any weapons. That was the impression they gave. First, we confiscated the building that was originally used as the Knights Division¡¯s headquarters. Since the pce burned down, it was useless now, so we prepared the former headquarters of the Knights Division to serve as our temporary headquarters. It seemed that I would end up living here for a while......... I wanted to return to Bea as quickly as possible, but I had to finish the things I had to do first. ¡°Lord Raiza, you were the suprememander of this war, but the situation has changed. I¡¯ll exin you in details, and if you have questions, don¡¯t hesitate to ask me.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± ¡°First, about the rebel army. I¡¯ll put Albert in charge of corresponding with them. Next, about the remnant soldiers of the kingdom¡¯s army, you¡¯ll be in charge of their suppression. I will stay here and take care of the maintenance, as well as try to grasp this country¡¯s internal state of affairs. Then.......¡± I nced at Raiza. He was consenting up to this point. ¡°Then, I¡¯d like to take care of the diplomatic rtions as fast as possible.¡± ¡°Diplomatic rtions? You mean, announcing the suppression of the former Tarminal Kingdom........¡± Yeah, you¡¯d normally think that. ¡°It¡¯s no good. The neighbors are a bunch of troublesome people.......They might start a holy war in order to save the oppressed.........or something.¡± The Sacred Country of Lc, a religious country, is sharing its borders with the former Tarminal Kingdom. It would be really troublesome if they made their move now. ¡°I see. We muste to an agreement before it gets to that.........¡± Raiza nodded in admiration. ..........He¡¯s supposed to be the suprememander, so I want him to be involved. Raiza agreed to my proposal and started working without dy. I quickly finished organizing some stuff, so I was nning to make a sortie. The army was working admirably, so I didn¡¯t have any words ofint. I had nothing to worry about. And so, I began working too....... My job was........writing letters. .........It couldn¡¯t be helped; I had to write a lot of them. I wrote his Majesty to ask for permission to act like a temporarymanding officer of the former royal capital. I wrote the Sacred Country of Lc in order to let them know that we¡¯ll be patrolling the borders for maintaining public order. I wrote to various other lords who haven¡¯t capitted yet, advising them to surrender. I wrote an instructions booklet for the good maintenance of the capital. And so on... My head was starting to hurt.............. Especially when I started to write letters addressed to nobles, even I, the writer, didn¡¯t really understand the meaning of the things I was writing anymore. The wording got extremely annoying. I secluded myself inside the unclean office, until I finished the paperwork. This was all I did........I never thought that fighting spirit and guts were needed in order to cope with this job; it was my worst enemy. This fight I started in the morning only concludedte at night. I did it...........I finally finished. I felt the room, quietly sobbing. The guarding soldiers prepared some lights, so it wasn¡¯t too dark inside the headquarters. I went to the courtyard and took a deep breath, as I rotated my shoulders. I used some healing magic, but somehow a sense of difort still remained. I did some light exercises then I returned to the office. It really wasn¡¯t the moment to prepare some other room just for my sake. I asked for the maids unit, and gave them the letters. With this, it was over for now........Tomorrow, the scouts will bring some new information that I¡¯ll have to organize.......... As I was thinking about the ns I had for the next day, I heard some noise outside. I walked towards the main entrance, and I saw 10 people who seemed to be citizens. They were surrounded by soldiers. ¡°What¡¯s with this noise?¡± ¡°Yes sir! These people trespassed and tried to steal our food.¡± I see. ¡°I¡¯m sure we delivered you food during the day. Did you not receive it?¡± ¡°Haaa? Did you really think that it would be enough? I know you have a lot of food here. The noble-sama even brought maids to the battlefield, after all.¡± Are all these people like this.......? He wore arge grin as he made fun of me. ¡°We are formal imperial soldiers. Come on, you can just overlook us.......The nobles are causing lots of hardships for you too, right?¡± .............Ah! These guys showed up in the middle of the nights, spouting self-important nonsense.....And they don¡¯t even think I¡¯m a noble! The main army¡¯s soldiers who worked as night watchmen certainly said these guys weremoners. But they were actually former imperial soldiers.... ¡°Were you guys part of the Frontier Count¡¯s Army before?¡± ¡°No, we were soldiers of the main imperial army, but.......¡± ¡°Ah! That¡¯s enough......¡± As I interrupted his story all of a sudden, the man¡¯s face looked displeased. But once I knew they were from the main army, I had my decision. ¡°These guys are most likely deserters. Hand them over to Lord Raiza tomorrow, he¡¯ll be very happy.¡± It happens every year. Cases of soldiers who steal army equipment and leave the country. These guys are probably among them. Furthermore, these fools started to be very noisy once they got tied down. However, in the end they wanted to negotiate, saying they knew some good piece of information. ¡°If you have some interesting information, I¡¯ll buy it from you. Now talk.¡± I said harshly. The man who seemed to act as the leader grinned broadly, as he opened his mouth. ¡°You see.......Did you know that the Frontier Count has a granddaughter called Beatrice? How much would you pay.......for a magical tool containing a picture of her naked body?¡± ¡°The situation has changed. Put them in the dungeon. I¡¯ll have them tell me everything as I torture them.¡± I want to obtain that. I must obtain that and keep it into custody.......urm, dispose of it! I was burning with a sense of duty, as I ran around the city at dawn. The magical tool I found had indeed a picture of Bea. Naked?..............She was holding a naked doll, as she seemed to be in the process of changing its clothes................ For this.........I ran all night in order to find this..........this....... Chapter 73: Blessed with a Moment of Peace Chapter 73: Blessed with a Moment of Peace 20 days have passed since the ¡®nude-Bea¡¯ incident. The ck nights knew how I desperately ran around that night, so theyughed at me, but I took care to train them properly. Other than that, we were living in times of peace, going out drinking with Herman and his men, making fun of Albert and his notorious ¡®I¡¯m a kemonobito, but I¡¯m herbivorous¡¯ saying, at which people usuallyugh so hard, that they even lose their breath. The things were progressing smoothly, with all the regional lords surrendering one after another. Tasel and Media were riotously taking care of hunting the former administration remnants. As for me, I was finally able to let the soldiers take turns and train again. Today, Albert was in charge of training the Main Army¡¯s soldiers. I didn¡¯t have any paperwork to do for the day, but I was nheless sitting in my office, when a maid came to visit. ¡°Your Excellency, his Majesty¡¯s letter arrived.¡± Finally. I needed directions for how to deal with this situation from now on, otherwise it could get rather ugly. I hurriedly opened the letter. ¡®I leave it in your care.¡¯ .....................I looked for a second page, but I couldn¡¯t find any. Did he really pass this whole task onto me!? I take it that the Emperor won¡¯t enjoy spirit drops anymore. He said it¡¯s up to me now.... I was a little troubled when the maid started talking again. ¡°There¡¯s a letter from the Holy Country of Lc.¡± I really hoped it didn¡¯t only say ¡®Understood¡¯ or something like that. I opened the letter anxiously. ¡®The God¡¯s guidance is equal for all. And His rtionship with the apostles is.................¡¯ Is this a scripture? I really don¡¯t understand a thing......... It was supposed to be a letter saying ¡®yes¡¯ or ¡®no¡¯............. The Holy Country sure is scary. Confused, I read the scripture-letter again. It started to look more and more like a Bible in the form of a letter. I was in a state of panic when Media came inside the office. I didn¡¯t even notice her....... I turned to face her, only to see Media wearing a huge smile, while patting her tummy. ¡°Your Excellency, I am expecting a baby!¡± ¡°I see. I see. Congrats. You can take a break from the army and take care of your body.¡± ¡°Yes. Thank you very much. Excuse me.¡± She said and left the room. I see Media is going to be a mother. Haha.......They were faster than me....... Well, there¡¯s no need to rush things up anyway. Bea and I will do our best in our own pace. I walked towards the window and looked at the courtyard. Tasel was zealously participating in a sham battle. His opponent was Albert. The battle was violent and it looked pretty impressive. ...............? ...............................!? I opened the window and shouted. ¡°Pregnant women are not allowed to do sham battles! Bring me that stupid Media!!¡± I was almost deceived...... I thoroughly lectured Media for about two hours, when a maid came into my office. ........Another letter? ¡°Your Excellency, a messenger from the Holy Country of Lc just arrived.¡± ¡°........Understood. Let them wait in the reception room.¡± After Media left, I read the letter-Bible again. ...........As I thought, I couldn¡¯t really understand anything. I gave up and walked to the reception room where a brown-haired sister was waiting for me. ¡°I have made you wait. I¡¯m Zest, the former Tarminal Kingdom¡¯smander-in-chief.¡± She didn¡¯t have any noticeable features......but that was a feature in itself. She smiled and started talking. ¡°I am d to meet you. I am a sister of the Holy Country of Lc. I don¡¯t have a name since I was already baptized. I hope you understand.¡± She bent her knees and put her hands together at her chest. This must be a custom of this world. As I thought, there¡¯s a bit of Japaneseness blended with this worlds¡¯ practices. ¡°I do. Well then, sister, what business had brought you here?¡± She smiled and her eyes glittered as she started talking again. ¡°Regardless of me having business with you or not, we must never give our blessing to something that goes against the Will of God. The water that flows down will never make it into the sea. If you¡¯re asking why, the answer is the God¡¯s guidance.¡± Huh!? The sister, no longer smiling, puffed up with pride. Urm.............. The God¡¯s guidance........was the only thing I understood........haven¡¯t I? Chapter 74: A Dodge Ball-like Conversation Chapter 74: A Dodge Ball-like Conversation ¡°I see. That¡¯s some rather deep story you¡¯re telling.¡± Ha ha ha Iughed, but I couldn¡¯t shake the cold sweat feeling. I didn¡¯t understand a thing from what she wanted to convey....... I cast some strengthening magic on my trembling hand, as I took a cup of tea and drank it. I couldn¡¯t taste its vor anymore, but since my throat felt dry, it couldn¡¯t be helped. I needed it. ¡°Hahaha. Your Excellency, Duke Zest, you are the sea at sunset.......For the rest of us who cling to God¡¯s pity the night hase, unfortunately.¡± Again, she struck me with another puzzling riddle. What¡¯s that ¡®sea at sunset¡¯ supposed to mean!?....... This person is unpleasant. I hope she leaves soon. For the time being, shepared me to something....That has to be a good thing, right? I selfishly decided that. In any case, there was nothing I could understand, so why should I have even bothered then? It was useless to worry about it anyway. ¡°That¡¯s much appreciated, sister. Well then, how about we start talking about your business here as a messenger.......Did you bring a letter or the sort?¡± She was stunned for a moment then she took out a letter from her breast pocket. .........Don¡¯t teach the sisters to keep letters at their chests! That ce is not a container, you know? Ah, I see there¡¯s no obstacles in the way, so maybe that¡¯s why it¡¯s the perfect ce for her to carry things around, huh? She handed over the letter and I opened it. I yed to God that this letter¡¯s contents were not some sort of scriptures again. ............Good. The contents looked decent enough. It was actually a very polite letter that I haven¡¯t seen in ages, and it even started with a seasonal greeting. Recently, when I think about letters, I remember the scripture. His Majesty¡¯s wasn¡¯t any better, to be honest; it only said ¡®I leave it in your care¡¯. The name and address were actually longer than the letter¡¯s content. I really don¡¯t want to read letters like that anymore. I read the letter that the sister had brought. To make a summary, it said: ¡®The Holy Country of Lc is recognizing the former Tarminal Kingdom¡¯snds as the territories of the Grun Empire. Your actions were not fickle, but rather justifiable. You rescued the people from discrimination among the races, without fighting a war. Therefore, we will not oppose the Grun Empire. We will be neighbors from now on, so we expect some exchanges.¡¯ These were its summarized contents. The sender was Pope Garbera, the man leading the Holy Country of Lc. There isn¡¯t much information to be found about this country, since it doesn¡¯t really socialize. It was kind of hard to picture this person. But, if I were to judge by his letter, he seemed a person capable of holding a proper conversation. However........There is a ¡®however¡¯ after all. At the end of the letter, there was a terrible entry. ¡®The dispatched sister will create a new church there and she¡¯ll be appointed the new Priestess. She¡¯s fully knowledgeable about our doctrine, and she¡¯s not a shady person. She¡¯s an obedient and honest girl. Thank you and I leave it in your care.¡¯ It was clear to me that he didn¡¯t mean those words exactly as stated. ¡®I¡¯ve sent a demoted sister to work as a Priestess there. There¡¯s nothing in her head, but doctrines, so she¡¯s a great chess piece that won¡¯t ever betray us. What if you decide to dispose of her? That¡¯ll be a great reason for us to start a war.¡¯ It was more likely like this. Since he couldn¡¯t tear off the former Tarminal Kingdom, he sent in the bait.......Because not having a clear pretext to move and attack would be too disadvantageous. When I thought about that, it felt pretty much consistent. This Pope is quite a sly person. The sister was not really a disrespectful person. All she does is talk about her mysterious doctrines. If she were to be punished because of that reason, something like this might¡¯ve happened: ¡®We must pass judgment on the heretics who don¡¯t even understand the doctrines!¡¯.......... The Lc Doctrine is very understanding of other religious beliefs, therefore it is friendly towards heretics. However, they follow a fundamental rule: ¡®If you kill us, we¡¯ll kill you too. Since we are not seeking to convert people, you have no right to talk about our faith.¡¯ They are definitely up to disputes. Realizing the Pope¡¯s unpleasant expectations, I sighed deeply and drank some tea. I must consult the others about what¡¯s to be done. ¡°I perfectly understood the Pope¡¯s thinking. You are to be a Priestess, am I right, sister? Do you n to use the already existing church?¡± ¡°To ept donations from my beloved brothers and sisters and use them as a means to study this transient world is disrespectful to our God. The drifting ship floating on the great ocean is relying on God¡¯s hem; it¡¯s like searching for flowers inside a forest.¡± You do understand, right? It was like her smile and her head inclined to the side in doubt, were asking me that. I didn¡¯t get it.......at all..... ¡°.......Indeed.¡± ¡°It¡¯s like praying to God for his benevolence. As for your Excellency, Duke Zest, I pray for your peace and tranquility. Well then, I will excuse myself now.¡± She stood up and made a praying pose, before she left the room. I was left alone and drank up the tea that had already be cold. ¡°Send someone to tail that sister. And don¡¯t be discovered.¡± ¡°Certainly!¡± The ck shadow that hid itself in a corner of the room disappeared. He was one of the chosen former adventurers who enrolled my Intelligence Unit. ¡°For now, we should hold a meeting........¡± I muttered to myself without realizing. The situation was darker than I previously expected.........and I felt very tired........ I gathered all the management staff inside the conference room. Well, they were only Albert and my master for now. Master just arrived yesterday. He brought along 200 ck knights. It seems that the Empire doesn¡¯t n on selling this ce, after all. ¡°ording to the Intelligence Unit¡¯s report, the sister is at the church¡¯s site, working on some renovations. I believe she will use that ce as a base formunicating with her own country.¡± ¡°I see. However, it¡¯s really troublesome to use religion as your diplomatic rtions.¡± ¡°Your Excellency, should we kill her?¡± Albert.........you should just shut up. ¡°For the time being, I want to inform the Emperor and wait for his acknowledgement. As one would expect, my words alone don¡¯t have enough weight in this matter.¡± ¡°Indeed. You should probably take advantage of the imperial capital more, don¡¯t restrain yourself too much.¡± Master, you are so reliable. ¡°Then, we will wait-and-see for the time being........Master, you will stay here for a while, right?¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right. And I really don¡¯t mind you using me.¡± Good.......I only had to work with muscle brains until now, so I was really happy when he said that. I had an adviser now. I really need a few other smart civil officials as my subordinates, otherwise things might getplicated. The work that needs to be done is gradually increasing after all. ¡°By the way, Zest. I have something to talk to you about.¡± His voice was so low that it felt like it belonged to some sort of creature, crawling at the bottom of the earth, and his eyes were darker than darkness itself. I felt a burning sensation on my skin as I looked at his pretty much visible killing intent. Huh? Why did he snap? Albert! You must........He¡¯s gone..... That rascal, he dared to run away!? ¡°I heard you have a magical tool that recorded a naked picture of Bea, am I right? I didn¡¯t raise her to be an immoral person, you know? What did you do to her?¡± Master was drawing near, his magical powers shamelessly enhanced to the max. ¡°Please wait, master. If we talk.......You¡¯ll understand if we talk!¡± You¡¯ll understand if we talk. Putting it differently, you¡¯ll never understand unless we talk. His magical power was like a whip, shaving the stone floor. As I watched him approaching me, I thought again for the first time in a very long period of time. .................I might actually die. Chapter 75: Duke Zest’s Territory Change Chapter 75: Duke Zest¡¯s Territory Change ¡°This is an Imperial Command! Duke Zest is to receive the former Tarminal Kingdom¡¯s capital city and half of the kingdom¡¯s northern region. The Duke is allowed to name his territory Zest-Gaiyus-Tarminal.¡± ¡°Iply to the Imperial Command.¡± Haha, I am even allowed to rename the former kingdom as I wish. ¡®Zest, let¡¯s protect the Empire together! You are the wall!¡¯ That Emperor, he definitely pushed this onto me. After his Majesty¡¯s messenger left, I discussed the matter with my master. ¡°Master, the Frontier Count is receiving the southern region, right? Let¡¯s trade for food.¡± ¡°Well, we¡¯ll probably have to do that. The north is........¡± Yes, the northern region was not suitable for grain-production. If you go north from the capital city, you¡¯ll only find wends and sandy soil, then the sea, if you go further. Normally, there shouldn¡¯t be any wends near the coast, but...... Ah! It falls under the same category as Japan¡¯s Kujukuri Beach, maybe. 1 Anyway, it¡¯s a very unusual terrain that is extremely rare to find. When ites to crops that could be grown in wends, that would be rice, but, unfortunately, you can¡¯t find it here. This world¡¯s residents aren¡¯t stupid, after all. If they had rice, they would¡¯ve definitely used it. ¡°Then, the only thing left is fishing.¡± ¡°Son-inw-dono, you¡¯ll have to ask the kemonobito to do this job.......Look.¡± ¡°Aaah! The former kingdom used to discriminate them, so there are no fishermen............¡± In this world that hates discrimination to an extreme, there are no highs and lows when ites to races. However, some races do hold monopoly over some upations. And they are fishing and cksmithing. It¡¯s not like other races can¡¯t do those jobs or anything, but there¡¯s such an overwhelming difference in ability that they don¡¯t stand a chance. I¡¯ve seen some human cksmiths around here, but there were no fishermen. Since the sea if filled with all sorts of evil magical monsters, if you¡¯re a fisherman who doesn¡¯t use machines, and you¡¯re not a physically blessed kemonobito, you won¡¯t be able to survive. ¡°...........Should I use Herman and his people?¡± ¡°That¡¯s all you¡¯ve got left.¡± Including Herman, the former leader of the Rebel Army, they were all kemonobito. For the time being, Albert was looking after them as they worked as cleaners and repairmen in the capital city. I told an otherwise pretty convenient maid soldier to tell Albert to select a few fishermen candidates. The Maids Unit was formed mostly by nobles¡¯ daughters, so they were really excellent. ............Even though they had muscle brains. ¡°Then........all I have left is to search for a civil official.¡± Master didn¡¯t answer anything this time, instead, he frowned. Master.........We¡¯re doing overtime work today too. You should just give up. It was already midnight when we finished our work eventually............I already knew that once you get promoted, your office work is bound to increase, but at this rate, I will certainly die. Civil official-san........I¡¯ll give you an ample sry, so pleasee to me! The next day, Albert and I took Herman and his men and walked towards the coast line. Out of 1500 people from the former Rebel Army, 300 volunteered for the job. The rest of them wanted to be soldiers out of admiration for Albert. .........I pray that the mongrels won¡¯t increase with this. On the way, we encountered some thieves and former soldiers of the defeated army, however...... ¡°Hahahaha, kill the thieves!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t let any of them run away! Stab them to death!¡± ¡°It¡¯s been a long time since Ist exercised.¡± ¡°I¡¯m pregnant, so don¡¯t touch me!!¡± Hm? ¡°Media, you¡¯re not pregnant, you idiot!¡± The Maids Unit formed a Death Women Party, apparently. There was a man among them too, but because his outward appearance was that of a woman¡¯s, it couldn¡¯t be helped. Media, don¡¯t stare at me like that........I already told you, I can¡¯t give you a maternity leave. ¡°Your Excellency, you promised that you won¡¯t treat me like a man......¡± ¡°Then, do you want Tasel to go back to work?¡± ¡°........This is discrimination!¡± ¡°It¡¯s called making distinctions, you absolute moron!!¡± Media buried her face in her palms, and she copsed on the ground, but no one was worried about it. ¡°There¡¯s someone crying loudly over there! Kill them faster next time!¡± After two days filled with simr events, we arrived at the coast line. For some reason, we were greeted by other kemonobito........Who are they? ¡°I am d to meet you, your Excellency. I am acting as chief for these people.¡± An olddy.......ahem, a woman kemonobito at a blooming age, prostrated herself in front of me as she spoke. It seemed that there was a kemonobito vige close to here, where people who ran away from the former Tarminal Kingdom¡¯s oppression lived. There were about 50 vigers, who went finishing and lived rather quiet lives, but when they heard that the kingdom has lost the war and the kemonobito got permission to work, they still couldn¡¯t believe it. They even sent a few people to check the situation, only to find that the kemonobito were living rather normal lives. Therefore, they too decided toe out from hiding when they met with us. Yeah, it does make some sense. ¡°In this case, why don¡¯t you join us? We came here in order to build a fishermen vige. If you don¡¯t want to, we will guide you to the city and offer you other jobs, since they¡¯re plenty. So, what will you do?¡± She happily nodded to my proposal. Many of the cat kemonobito women used to do fishing up until now, so they would rather stay in the vige and continue with their lives. They were so grateful that all of them bowed their heads to me. Obviously, this was great for me too. I had no reason to refuse them, since all I wanted was a fishermen vige that would bring me lots of fish. I gave instructions to Herman and his men to finish with the vige¡¯s foundation and demarcation. Once it had a rough shape, I would leave it to them. I had so much work to do that I started to hate it. Albert was in charge of collecting materials for the demarcation. .........I couldn¡¯t ask him to doplicated things after all. ¡°Your Excellency, I¡¯ve finished.¡± ¡°Albert, don¡¯t bury everything! Take some out!¡± ¡®Ah!¡¯ .......Don¡¯t make such an expression....... I already told you this was a demarcation, damn it!? Some simr happenings took ce, but nothing I couldn¡¯t tolerate. I¡¯d rather want it to end with this. That would be actually great. It was already getting dark when we were about to finish. I¡¯ll leave the rest to Herman, who¡¯s going to be the vige chief. I was thinking about that when I heard someone quarreling. ¡°You¡¯re wrong-nya. 2 That¡¯s not enough to enclose the vige with a fence-nya.¡± ¡°Why? 10 logs should be more than enough to do the job.¡± ¡°We could only make about 50 nks from one log-nya. And we need about 800 of them for the fence-nya. We need at least 6 more logs-nya.¡± ¡°..............I see. Your counting is correct. How did you do it? You have no tool, right?.......Did you write it on the ground or something?¡± ¡°That¡¯s not too difficult for a mental arithmetic-nya. I¡¯m good at counting-nya.¡± The young girl cat kemonobito said then started tough....... ...................I found her! I found my civil official! ¡°Hahaha, my dear youngdy........Why won¡¯t youe talk to this old man for a second?¡± It was dark and my words were sudden, suspicious and somewhat dangerous sounding, so much so that the girl freaked out and burst into tears. .........Albert, you¡¯reughing too hard. 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuj%C5%ABkuri_Beach 2. Japanese onomatopoeia for cat sounds; nya = meow Chapter 76: The Birth of a Cat-Eared Civil Official Chapter 76: The Birth of a Cat-Eared Civil Official ¡°I¡¯m Katalina-nya. I look forwards to working with you-nya.¡± The little girl cat kemonobito lowered her head energetically in a greeting. When a asked her if she wanted to work for me as a civil official, she said that she¡¯ll do it with pleasure. She didn¡¯t have a family, she was all alone in the world it seems. Because of the previous kemonobito hunting, seeing orphans was not an unusual thing. I wanted to take her with me and return as quickly as possible, but....... ¡°Well, well, you are so good at greetings. Do you want some sweets?¡± ¡°Woaaa, they look so fluffy.¡± ¡°Katalina-chan, call me onee-sama 1.¡± ¡°I want to give birth to a child as adorable as this one.¡± ..............Media, you won¡¯t give birth to anything. On the way back to the capital city, the Maids Unit wanted to have a pic so that they could y with Katalina. These maids have excessive strength, so it¡¯s actually good there are incidents like these from time to time. Also, 100 or 200 thieves, if they decide to attack, they are nothing to them. We got back to the capital city without any other incidents. In order to formally appoint Katalina as a civil official, my master had to test her. ¡°Zest, you must appoint her immediately. I said immediately.¡± Master gave his approval, his eyes a little teary, and she started to work. Katalina said she was good at counting, and it turned out she was faster and more urate than both me and my master. ¡®This way my workload will be halved.¡¯ My master and I had the exact same thought in that moment. After one month of work, Katalinapletely became our main force. So much so that the muscle brains couldn¡¯t raise their heads in front of her anymore. ¡°Why is it that you destroy the training ground every single day-nya?¡± ¡°Well, urm.......Sorry.¡± ¡°Alcohol doesn¡¯t count as expenses-nya. Your proposal is rejected-nya.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t we work something out somehow!?¡± ¡°This and this are mistaken-nya. This is........like this-nya.¡± ¡°Oh! Thank you very much!¡± ¡°Nya? Sonia-sama, what¡¯s that Mitsurin Company-nya? I received an expenses application from Albert-sama.........¡± ¡°Mitsurin Company?.......Ah! It¡¯s apany that manages some bars, where youngdies pour sake for you and the sort..........It¡¯s better for you not knowing about it actually.¡± ¡°Albert! Where are you Albert,e out! You dared going there without letting me and master know about it!!?¡± When Albert¡¯s embezzlement leaked out, the headquarters rapidly turned into a battleground, but it couldn¡¯t be helped. Katalina¡¯s skills became clear to me, and, now that everyone consented to it, it was a good time to confer her the title of knight. At any rate, I had a lot of court ranks left for me to use. I didn¡¯t want to bargain them, but I wasn¡¯t stingy either. My n for her was to make her a knight first, then eventually give her the title of baron and have her be my trusted confident. It was during the celebratory party that an incident happened. ¡°Nya? I¡¯m 21-nya. I can also drink alcohol-nya.¡± With 140cm of height, her body was that of a child¡¯s.........She was very slender. It was hard to believe she was an adult. No, it was just that I didn¡¯t check out. The guys were the ones to snap at this. ¡°Thank God.......I was actually normal.......¡± ¡°I know, right? She has a strange seductiveness.¡± ¡°..........She¡¯s legal.¡± ¡°She¡¯s someone to admire! I am different from you guys.¡± I was anxious that only one gentleman could be found among them, but.......he¡¯s actually the one I must pay close attention to. Katalina had a lot of fans, and everyone¡¯s excuse for that was ¡®She¡¯s cute like my own child¡¯. If they were to cry out that they loved a little girl, I am confident I would¡¯ve killed them right away. It¡¯s true that nobles get married really young. But that¡¯s only for political reasons. If you were to expressly choose to marry a little girl, you would be treated like a pervert. However, now that everyone knew she was an adult, the story was different. After that, Katalina tasted a storm of confessions......... The office had long queues of people waiting for some sort of idol handshake meeting. Yes......... The guys were thirsty for a normal girl. Not like the manly women from the Maids Unit, but an actual frail girl who needed protection. Except for ck knights, she was very popr to everyone. ¡°Ha? I don¡¯t like women who are not at least as strong as the girls from the Maids Unit.¡± ¡°She looks like she¡¯d break if I touched her, so no thanks.¡± ¡°Adorable? A partner is power! It is something you choose based on strength!¡± ¡°I have no interest in women who can¡¯t win against me.¡± This was the logic of muscle brains. I didn¡¯t really understand them, but I could only consent. The Maids Unit was very happy about this, and I really wanted to press the question of why!? Was it really all right for young girls to feel happy about that? Nevertheless, the Katalina fever started to wane after about 2 months. Well, I actually expected that. She could finally rx and concentrate on doing her job now. Yes, everything was progressing favorably. She was great as a civil official. Those who got rejected by her, didn¡¯t try to seduce her any longer, but rather wereing to socialize with her in a natural manner. She was a civil official after all.......and amoner, so there was no one who despised her. It was only natural. If they were to make fun of her for being amoner, without any doubt, the ck knights would¡¯ve started a fight. I felt relieved that no such ¡®hero¡¯ appeared. Our work was progressing nicely as well. The fishing business already started, and the main road was properly maintained. Isn¡¯t my domain perfect!? Now that the workload was lesser, master and I were spending some fancy time in my office, drinking tea. Recently, I got the chance to take easy. This was indeed an elegant time, worthy of a noble. However, my master¡¯s words ended everything. ¡°.......By the way, son-inw-dono, you are keeping in touch with Princess Tsubaki, right? How are things recently? Do you think she and Bea will actually get along?¡± ¡°........................¡± ¡°Hahaha, there¡¯s no need to hide anything. Political marriages are an indispensible part of a noble¡¯s life. It¡¯s not a grudge, I¡¯m just curious.¡± ¡°........................¡± ¡°Son-inw-dono?¡± ¡°Master...................I haven¡¯t sent her any letter....................¡± ¡°......................¡± ¡°......................¡± ¡° ¡°..........................EH!?¡± ¡° It was the moment that confirmed the fact that Ipletely forgot to treat Princess Tsubaki as a future partner. Chapter 77: Quiet Talk: Zest’s Wish Chapter 77: Quiet Talk: Zest¡¯s Wish ................so it was.¡¯ Good. I finally got this far. There¡¯s still much more to write though....... *knock knock* ¡°Excuse me, Master. It should soon be time for a break.¡± The girl, dressed as a maid, entered the room and started to prepare the tea. I drank some of the tea she prepared then started to talk quietly. ¡°I finally managed to write until this point. I can more or less grasps the ending now.¡± ¡®The ending¡¯.........She probably reacted to this word, because her face got distorted. Was it the handbook that was going to end? Was it the Master¡¯s life that was going to end? She probably wanted to ask that, but she remained quiet instead as she stood next to me. ¡°Since we came to this point, would you like read a little? I might need to make corrections after all.¡± I smiled and handed over the unfinished handbook. Even though she looked a little disturbed, she took it and started to read. ¡°What do you think?¡± She finally took her eyes away from the handbook and smiled. Maybe she recalled her grandmother, a person she missed very much. ¡°Haha, grandmother used to do such things.¡± She said andughed. In these kinds of moments she looks exactly like her grandmother. The women I can¡¯t meet anymore.............. ¡°It¡¯s interesting! I don¡¯t usually read stories, so I was a little worried I wouldn¡¯t understand, but it was very easy to read.¡± ¡°I see. I¡¯m d you liked it. You know.......this handbook..........I¡¯m addressing it to the people living in my native country.¡± I brushed her head lightly, something I haven¡¯t done in a long time. She looked sad........and embarrassed.......They really are alike. ¡°In my native country, there is a tform where many people go to read stories, you know?.......In order to connect to that, I used all my magical powers.......¡± 1 It¡¯s been already 100 years since I came here. A lot of things happened....... ¡°When my fellow countrymen read this, they¡¯ll be able to understand a little about this world. And in case someonees here, they will know better than allow themselves to be used by the nobles.......they¡¯ll be careful not to get involved in conflicts.........they¡¯ll be able to at least smile and live a quiet life.¡± The girl stared at me, her pupils fixing mine. Don¡¯t make such an expression.......I won¡¯t die too soon. ¡°Therefore, I want this handbook to be read by as many people as possible.......People who do not usually read novels, might get summoned here too.¡± ¡°...........That¡¯s why? So that¡¯s why the contents of this handbook are made to look funny and interesting?¡± ¡°Ha ha ha, precisely. If I were to write an instructions book or something simr, nobody would have read it. There is meaning even in looking at it, you know?¡± I pray that....... This book will catch the attention of as many people as possible. I pray that it will spread. I pray that it will reach my native country, where my fellow countrymen live. ¡°This is a handbook that cannot look like an instructions book.......Then, what about making it into a tale? This option was not good, since there are many simr stories in my world...........¡± There were many light novels and fantasy novels in my world. And it was impossible to write something that ispletely different from them.......But even so...... ¡°That¡¯s exactly why I chose this writing style.......Please, fellow countrymen, please realize........that this is a notification I¡¯m writing with all my might.........¡± The girl was silently listening to me. The moonlight was pale. And this pale light was illuminating my room, as I kept on praying. Please God.......It should be all right for me to advise them to such a degree, right? Please, make sure this handbook reaches Japan.......... 1. I find this interesting as a narrative technique. The author (Takkurun) wants us to believe Zest is the one who actually writes the novel and through his magical powers it gets uploaded on ncode.syosetsu for all the Japanese people to see it (and maybe, the future Hero). But that¡¯s my interpretation, and you¡¯re free to see it as you wish. Chapter 78: An Important Gift Chapter 78: An Important Gift ¡°Son-inw-dono.......If you don¡¯t pay more attention to women, you won¡¯t be able to live a long life, you know?¡± ¡°Your Excellency, I brought the jewels you asked for!¡± ¡°Your Excellency, since this ce is famous for its perfumes, won¡¯t that be a good choice as well for a present-nya?¡± ¡°Oh my! It seems his Excellency is busy. And I came all the way here to let him know that the pregnancy is progressing well.¡± Media, get out! My office was currently a fighting ground, and everyone was talking to me as I was desperately trying to write the letter. Thank you everyone.......But I have to finish this letter quickly, so you must wait....... ¡°Woooa, such beautiful jewels-nya! Will he find out if I take one for myself-nya?¡± ¡°Miss Katalina.......That is a bad idea.......¡± ¡°Eh? Lord Albert, how can you even say that-nya? How can you im that.........¡± ¡°Miss Katalina, maybe if you take only one, he¡¯ll think it was an ident or something, so it might be safe.¡± ¡°You two, son-inw-dono can probably hear you talking about this, so try to keep it moderate, okay?¡± ..................Keep it moderate? No, master, you have to stop them. Well, I couldn¡¯t say anything, since it was I who was in the wrong this time. Ipletely forgot to take Princess Tsubaki into consideration. But because everyone was coborating, I could deal with it really quickly; even though there were a few misappropriations and a lot of noise, I decided to ignore them. While listening to the turbulent and intriguing voices surrounding me, I frantically wrote the letter. ¡®After the war, I couldn¡¯t really take any time off. But now that I finally got a moment of break, I immediately wrote you a letter. I¡¯ll be very happy if you like the present I¡¯ve sent you. I want to see you soon.¡¯ I wrote this letter the way a noble would do. ¡°Albert, hurry up and deliver these. I won¡¯t allow any mistake.¡± The cur grinned and saluted, then left the room. He dares tough at other people¡¯s unhappiness......Shall I reduce his sry? Well, it¡¯s all right. I¡¯m too tired for this anyway. I stood up and stretched my body a little. My right hand and my shoulders were sore. I decided to take a break and drink the ck tea that the Maids Unit prepared for me. ¡°........By the way, son-inw-dono, you did write a letter to Bea, didn¡¯t you? ¡°.....................¡± ¡°Are you tired? Didn¡¯t you hear me.........¡± ¡°.....................¡± ¡°Sonia-sama, his Excellency is crying-nya.¡± ¡°.........Don¡¯t tell me...¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t.........write to her.......¡± ¡° ¡°.......................¡± ¡° It was the moment that announced that a second fighting scene would surely take ce. That day,te at night, we finished with Bea¡¯s letter-set atst, but we were feelingpletely exhausted. ¡°........Son-inw-dono, you are not to forget about these matters ever again, all right?¡± ¡°........Your Excellency, I¡¯m expecting an overtime pay-nya.¡± ¡°Your Excellency! If you really are tired, what about holding a sham battle!?¡± ¡°Master, thank you. Katalina, you can expect your overtime pay.......I¡¯ll also pretend I haven¡¯t seen the jewel incident.¡± Albert......don¡¯t look at me with those flickering eyes. There¡¯s no way I¡¯ll fight in a sham battle at this moment. ¡°It will be all right now. Thank you very much, everyone. You were very helpful.¡± I stood up and bowed my head. At this point, there were only people I could trust inside my office, so it was all right for me to bow to them, even though I was a noble. I trusted Katalina too, after all. Just in case, I investigated her past to see if she had any hidden motives or something. I wasn¡¯t such a softhearted person to unconditionally trust everyone around me. ¡°Stop, son-inw-dono.¡± ¡°Please stop-nya!¡± ¡°Please stop, your Excellency, there¡¯s no need for you to thank your subordinates.¡± So they said, with bitter smiles on their faces. Haha, I was blessed with a great master and wonderful subordinates. We all went to eat something light and to discuss about the ns for the near future. It wasn¡¯t very clever for me to act this familiar with my subordinates, but master was part of my family and the other two were trusted friends. That¡¯s why it was more or less all right for me to act like that. Since Katalina has joined us, the office work¡¯s efficiency has improved considerably. The people in the old royal capital have settled down, and more and more of them started to talk about what was going to happen with the castle: constructing a new one or repairing the old one!? ¡°So? Are you going to repair the old castle, son-inw-dono?¡± Master asked me with a serious expression, like he was trying to test me. ........Oh dear! ¡°I won¡¯t. if I end up using a castle, the imperial capital would make a huge fuss about it.......Therefore, I will build a mansion on the site of the former royal castle and use it as my home.¡± ¡°.........but in this case, you won¡¯t be able to protect it in case of an attack, you know?¡± ¡°There¡¯s an expression in my homnd, saying ¡®The people are the castle, the people are the stone walls, the people are the moat;passion is my ally, resentment is my foe¡¯ or something like that.¡± These were the words of that famous daimyo 1 from the Warring States period 2.........Or was he a strategist? Hearing this, my master sank into silence.......However, he was smiling. ¡°I have Albert to lead the knights and Katalina to think about strategies. I don¡¯t need a castle, because I feel safe with my subordinates close to me.¡± Both of them fell silent and looked at me. ¡°I have no great ambitions, after all. I really don¡¯t want to build a castle and be suspected of treason.¡± Yes, since I¡¯m in possession of a veryrge territory now, there¡¯s the likelihood that the imperial capital will be suspicious of me. I must be very cautious in order for them not to be too vignt, otherwise it could get dangerous. Master already understood these things, so he wanted to make sure I understood them as well. ¡°I won¡¯t say anything else, my excellent son-inw-dono.¡± Master said and started tough. It appears that I passed the test. ¡°However......You are a little too excellent........¡± .................Eh? ¡°Your Excellency, Duke Zest!! Do you really........Do you really trust us to such an extent!!?¡± ¡°Woooa-nya! It¡¯s the first time-nya.......It¡¯s the first time someone actually acknowledged me-nya! I was always made fun of for being a filthy kemonobito¨Cnya!¡± ¡°For us, the Intelligence Unit, these words are much appreciated.......We will die for your Excellency at any time.¡± ¡°We, the Maids Unit, swear unwavering loyalty to your Excellency until the end of time!¡± Did they somehow multiply? Ah! The Intelligence Unit is always around........And the Maids Unit is always waiting to serve. ............Why is everyone crying? ¡°.................Son-inw-dono, there is no feudal lord who holds no castle, you know? They¡¯re crying because you spoke those killing words with such a serious expression; you don¡¯t need a castle when you have such wonderful subordinates.......Really now, don¡¯t cause a rebellion or something, okay? If you leave it to these children, the imperial capital would fall in 3 mere days, you know?¡± Master patted my shoulder as he informed me in a low voice. It was also meant as a warning for me to keep this chaotic ce under control. ¡°........You people are my castle as well as my own hands and feet. I have great expectations from you!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Your Excellency.....!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° As I looked at how my subordinates burst into tears, I started to cry as well. ...........I failed to.........keep them under control............ Trantion: Nana Proofreading: Carmina God¡¯s gift to mankind: Mockii Oh and yeah! You found out >< Zest thought that the whole world should know about his story and hear his warning, so he hired me! xD Even now, he¡¯s sitting next to me, paying close attention to what I write and to those who read it. Who knows, maybe you¡¯re the next one to get summoned here and party with us! ;D Japanese feudal lord. Here, Zest is referring to Takeda Shingen. Read more about him here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takeda_Shingen ? Sengoku Jidai (approx. 1467-1568 CE) ? Chapter 79: Reuniting with My Family Chapter 79: Reuniting with My Family ¡°.........And so, you have permission to bring your families here. There will be many other immigrants apart from families, so they will arrive in about a month. You must be looking forward to it, right?¡± The Duke¡¯s mansion was constructed on the site of the former royal castle. This announcement was made in the big square in front of the mansion, and the soldiers who heard it were shouting with joy. ¡°Finally, I can see my family again.¡± ¡°My kid must have grown a little.¡± ¡°If my.......If my wife doesn¡¯t hurry, I¡¯ll.........¡± ¡°.........My family.........My family.¡± One year had already passed since our war with the former Tarminal Kingdom. We assaulted the enemy nation, then we had to administrate it.....There was no possible way for me to go back. Since I was offered a new territory, I had to dere it as part of the empire¡¯snds and proim a new set ofws; I also had to hire new government officials, repair the damage done to the former capital, but also maintain it. All the neighboring nobles have already surrendered, but they never left theirnds, so I had to call out to them and invite them to meet me and so on. But it was finally safe to bring our families over. We were already prepared to do the legal procedures. In fact, I could¡¯ve called Bea to join me much, much earlier, but.... ¡°I can¡¯t be the only one to bring my wife here, when I¡¯m forcing all my subordinates to endure the absence of their loved ones. Nobles andmoners alike love their families dearly, so we will wait and bring all of them together.¡± My eyes looked pretty much unweing when I spoke those words, which actually caused a huge stir among the soldiers. My mansion was therefore finished in a sh. After that, the old royal capital was more or lesspletely restored. In fact, the former residents said that the capital has be busier and safer than before, and everyone was very happy with this. ..........So, we finally came to this......... ¡°Your Excellency, the signboard with the name for the new capital is ready. Please hold the establishment ceremony.¡± ¡°.......Yeah.¡± Albert reported while showing a broad grin on his face. ¡°Good-nya. I¡¯m so jealous-nya.¡± ¡°Right? I¡¯m really jealous as well.¡± The Media and Katalinabo said to me, broad grins on their faces. Since Tasel was on maternity leave, Media had lots of free time, so she spent it in my office, acting like my escort. Because of that, she became good friends with Katalina. ¡°Must I.....really hold the ceremony?¡± ¡°Yes, you must.¡± ¡°Yes, it is a must.¡± ¡°You must-nya.¡± I gave up......It was impossible to run away from this...... The day of the ceremony, I raised my eyes to look up at the sky. The leaden clouds.......The birds¡¯ noisy cries so early in the morning......And one of my shoces broke. A feeling of unrest was building up inside me. ¡°Your Excellency, please do the greetings.¡± As I followed Albert, we arrived at the grounds where the ceremony was about to take ce. The wide square in front of my mansion was packed with hundreds of citizens. ¡°Your Excellency, Duke Zest.¡± ¡°Oh, sister.........I¡¯m sorry, it¡¯s Priestess now, right?¡± I haven¡¯t seen this junky sister in a long period of time, but now she called out to me. ¡°It¡¯s all right, just call me sister. That¡¯s because I¡¯m a mountain colored with countless sprouts.¡± ¡°..........Such modest words.¡± ¡°Haha, it¡¯s like a bird that gazes at distant heights. But I am not the bird, I actually want to be a fish swimming in a small mountain stream. That is the guidance of God!¡± ¡°.........We can only admire God¡¯s thoughtfulness.¡± ¡°Ahaha¡± ¡°Ha ha ha¡± .....................I hate it. I don¡¯t understand a thing from what she¡¯s saying. Katalina was clearly too astonished by this scene.....Stop wigging your tail, will you? Albert, don¡¯t draw your sword, you idiot! ¡°This is a wooden talisman I made for the prosperity of the capital. Please take it.¡± ¡°I humbly ept your kindness.¡± Hearing this, she took out the wooden talisman from somewhere around her chest region, then turned to leave. Why does this sister always take things out from her chest region!?....... I gave the wooden talisman to Albert, and prepared for the ceremony. ¡°It¡¯s still........warm........?¡± Albert said and sniffed the wooden talisman, action that made Katalina draw away from him as quickly as possible. Eh? Did he only make sure that the talisman was not poisoned? No, no, I already know that Albert is an extremely serious person. Uh-huh, I believe him, I really do...... I ignored the sad-looking Albert, and went up on the stage. I didn¡¯t want people to think I¡¯m the same as him. ¡°Thank you everyone for gathering here. I¡¯ve prepared a banquet to celebrate the beginning of a new capital. Today, I will take care of all bar bills; it¡¯s my treat for you. Drink as much as you like and make merry!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaahhhh!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Oi, it¡¯s free alcohol, you hear me?¡± ¡°His Excellency, the Duke sure is understanding.¡± ¡°This would¡¯ve never happened before.¡± All the citizens scattered; they were happily searching for bars. All went ording to n.........This way no one will pay much attention to the new city¡¯s name. ¡°Your Excellency Zest, please rest assured. I gave orders to every bar and drinking ce so that all those who shout out loud the name of the new capital will receive free drinks.¡± ¡°You can rest assured this way-nya. Coming from Lord Albert, this sure is amazing-nya.¡± Albert didn¡¯t even realize she was making fun of him. That stupid cur, he kept on grinning and nodding to her words......You really did something unnecessary, damn you! That day, the name of the new capital was heard countless of times in all the bars and drinking ces across the city. ¡®Let¡¯s toast for the capital city that his Excellency, Duke Zest loves so dearly! Let¡¯s toast for !¡¯ This capital city was named after the Duke¡¯s beloved legal wife. It was expected that he would value this city for eternity; there was nothing to worry about. The citizens partied until the next morning. ¡°Why?..........Why did it turn out like this?.......¡± I was actually in a dreamy state when I identally decided to name this city ¡®Beatrice¡¯........ And because of that, the rumors have spread even to the imperial capital, saying ¡®There¡¯s a Duke who named his city after his wife¡¯..... I also received a letter from Princess Tsubaki, saying ¡®Where will you use my name?¡¯, so I was kind of troubled by that........ When I meet other nobles now, they never fail to include this into their greetings: ¡®As expected from your Excellency, no one could imitate your act of naming this city after your legal wife. Ha ha ha¡¯ Ipletely became a toy, these guys enjoy ying with..........There¡¯s a limit even to embarrassment. As I was drinking sake in my office out of despair, a maid came to deliver a letter. She brought it to me despite beingte at night, so it must be urgent. I watched as the frightened maid left the room and opened the letter. It was a strange letter that didn¡¯t have a sender or a recipient¡¯s name and address. ¡®I AM ON MY WAY BEA¡¯ I saw the dark red letters that looked exactly like blood, and felt extremely frightened after such a long period of time; I even wet my pants a little. This........probably means death......... Chapter 80: The Aim of Her Rage Chapter 80: The Aim of Her Rage It was the middle of the night. I was in my office, crying, as I finished the cleaning........ I couldn¡¯t have finished it so fast if I were alone. ¡°Your Excellency, we haven¡¯t seen anything. Your Excellency, as well, hasn¡¯t seen anything.¡± The one who said that was a member of the intelligence unit, who had hisher region wet as well......As I thought, that thing was really scary....... I remained silent, as I nodded to him and continued the cleaning. ¡°Howes you¡¯re so noisy in the middle on the night, son-inw-dono?¡± My master came right after I finished with the cleaning. He had great timing. Once he saw the thing on my desk, his expression altered and he offered his help. I was thankful to him.......He really is a doting father. When ites to Bea, he is always reliable. For the time being, I¡¯ll leave it to my master. If I don¡¯t know the circumstances, I can¡¯t think of a solution. I was definitely not in the right mental condition to be able to fall asleep, but, nheless, I went to bed and forcibly closed my eyes. After a few dubious hours passed, time in which I didn¡¯t know whether I fell asleep or not, light could be seen from the other side of the window. Maybe I did sleep a little...... As I got up, I realized that a maid was waiting for me with a silver tray in her hands. Her face was ghastly pale as she held the tray with a letter on it. I took the letter. .............This was my master¡¯s writing. I opened it with trembling fingers. ¡®Impossible, impossible........This is impossible.¡¯ ¡°Ah! Call Albert!!¡± Led by the maid, Albert came in an instant. ¡°Albert, this is a very important mission.¡± ¡°Yes sir! I¡¯ll do anything, just give me your orders!¡± ...........Hm? He just said he¡¯ll do anything, right? ¡°Take with you the most powerful soldiers among the ck knights and maids unit to meet Bea and escort her here! You will use the scout unit formunicating me all the details, without omissions!¡± ¡°.........Yes sir! I will do everything in my power toplete this mission!¡± Grinning, he saluted me and left the room. He probably thought that I was doting on Bea and sent him to escort her because I was worried. ................I will never forget your sacrifice though. The day slowly passed; it was a day in which not even food managed to pass though my throat. I wasn¡¯t even able to concentrate on work. The maids unit was extremely noisy, constantly saying that I acted like that because I missed my wife. But the problem wasn¡¯t this simple. I forced myself to eat some soup for dinner then returned to my office, trembling, when a messenger arrived. ¡°Ur.....urgent message! Forgive my rudeness!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t mind. Speak!¡± The messenger tumbled. There was no need for courtesy in these situations. ¡°Beatrice-sama will soon arrive! Furthermore, we cannot get close to her carriage. I pray for your Excellency¡¯s good fortune.........That¡¯s all......¡± And then the messenger copsed. ¡°.........You did well.............He can take all the time he needs to rest. When Bea gets here, show her to my private room........¡± I gave these orders to a maid then stood up slowly and walked away from my office........ I had to make preparations........ I was waiting inside my private room. I used an eye bandage to cover my eyes and asked an intelligence unit member to tie my both hands, then knelt down on the floor in a seiza position. ......I treated myself like a sinner. I didn¡¯t know why she was so mad about, but I had a general idea. I left my new wife alone for an entire year, so there was no way she was in a good mood. If I were to try to persuade her that this only happened because of my work, things would¡¯ve gotten unnecessarilyplicated. This was something I learned from a customer at the time I worked for my Japanesepany. The door opened and someone entered my room. It had to be Bea, since they didn¡¯t knock. ............I prepared myself for the worst. ¡°.......Zest-sama? What are you doing?¡± (Dad, what kind of game are you ying? Toto wants to y too!) ................Hmm? For some reason, her voice was kind. ¡°Zest-sama, it¡¯s been a long time. I really missed you.¡± (It¡¯s been a while, Dad!) Smiling, Bea untied the rope and the eye bandage. Toto, as well, had a huge smile on her face as she squeezed my head. ¡°Well now, don¡¯t sit on the floor. Let¡¯s go to the sofa instead.¡± (You see, Dad, I have a souvenir for you!) ...............She¡¯s not mad at all... What happened? I don¡¯t understand anything anymore. My mind was in a state of chaos, as they helped me to get to the sofa. When we reached it, Bea and Toto hugged me closely. ¡°Zest-sama.......I was so lonely........¡± (Yeah....I missed Dad¡¯s scent!) I was dumbfounded, but as I brushed both their heads, I started to think about this whole situation. What¡¯s going on?........Wasn¡¯t she mad at me? Then what about that letter? What about master¡¯s letter? What about Albert¡¯s messenger? My head was spinning. There was no way I could predict this, nor understand it. Bea was about to drink the tea the maid prepared for us, when I asked her. I couldn¡¯t live without knowing this. ¡°Bea.......Weren¡¯t you mad at me?¡± ¡°Mad at you? Why do you think so?¡± ¡°Despite being newly weds, we were separated for an entire year......I was certain you were mad at me because of this......¡± ¡°Well, I am also a noble, and I am proud of my husband, who went to battle for the sake of the empire, so I won¡¯t get angry at you for something like this.¡± She was in a great mood when she answered me, her face covered in smiles......These were her true feelings. Toto was smiling happily too, as she sat on my shoulder and ate some cookies. ................Then... ¡°.........In this case, why were you angry?¡± In that moment, the entire world froze. She began to overflow with such a profoundly dark magical power that could only be described as pitch-ck. Toto, as well, let loose of her overwhelming magical power, which was mixed with rage and killing intent. ...................Ah! I ended up wetting myself a little. ¡°Princess Tsubaki dly epted a marriage proposal that came from the prince of the country of elves.............¡± (Tsubaki betrayed my Dad.......I want to drown her in darkness!) .................................... I employed the entirety of my magical power in order to protect my body, as I watched attentively the way the stone walls and pavement in my private room started to crack. ¡®Thanks god it wasn¡¯t me!¡¯ I honestly thought that......... Princess Tsubaki.......might die...... Chapter 81: The Noble’s Way Chapter 81: The Noble¡¯s Way ¡°Despite her having a fianc¨¦, named Zest-sama........¡± (She¡¯s making fun of us, Mom........) ¡°.........Well, it¡¯s okay........¡± I was earnestly caressing their heads as the two of them were in a fit of anger. Something copsed behind us........Maybe the intelligence unit soldier.......Don¡¯t die, ok? Listening to the girls¡¯ story, it turns out that: ¡®The elven prince came to the empire for a diplomatic meeting, but he fell in love with Princess Tsubaki at first sight and proposed to her without any warning. Even though they exined him that she already had a fianc¨¦, he earnestly requested her hand, promising her that she¡¯ll be his legal wife, not his concubine. Princess Tsubaki seemed that she wasn¡¯t altogether against it, but the Emperor, on the other side, was really troubled. He couldn¡¯t discuss this matter with me, so he went to consult with the Frontier Count; that¡¯s when Bea overheard them and went crazy.¡¯ Hmm.....It¡¯s good and bad at the same time....... Well now, let¡¯s she why she got so angry in the first ce? ¡°I understand.......But Bea, Toto, I am not angry at all. I¡¯m not even sad, you know?¡± ¡°.........Really?¡± (Dad, don¡¯t you hate it?) Their magical power settled down a little. ¡°If you two even disappear from my life, I would get angry and fight with all my strength to get you back......However, Tsubaki¡¯s marriage with me was a political one.......And I don¡¯t really care about it, you know?¡± ¡°If Zest-sama says so, then I ........But still, what about our Duke¡¯s Household........¡± (Even though Tsubaki got along with me and Mom...........) Hmm......... It seems that Bea is concerned about our nobles¡¯ honor. While Toto¡¯s concerned about apletely different thing. I seized Bea¡¯s hand and looked her in the eye as I started to speak. ¡°Bea.......I will do something about our honor as nobles, so don¡¯t worry about it. I am actually more concerned about your feelings. Did you really consent to my marriage to her? Would it have been better for me to get married to Princess Tsubaki?¡± ¡°........The noble Bea consented to it. But I, personally........hated......it.¡± Her face reddened and she hung her head in shame. I thought so.....Because she is a noble, she couldn¡¯t act her ording to her real thoughts. I¡¯m such a fool; being spoiled by such a young woman like Bea. ¡°I¡¯m sorry Bea, I depended on you too much......I won¡¯t ever make you cry again, I promise .....You are the only wife I need, so I¡¯m determined to never marry another woman.¡± ¡°.......Haha, ¡®You are the only wife I need¡¯ you say? It¡¯s the first time I¡¯m hearing something like this.¡± (Ah! I sure get sleepy after eating sweets....I¡¯ll go lie down.) Toto, you only have to stay silent okay? Go sleep already! In this world, I, a Japanese, can¡¯t make my opinions known and epted, even if I do the impossible. It was precisely because I used to think like that that I ended up depending on Bea...... But it¡¯s true that even if I do the impossible, they won¡¯t ept my opinion. In this case, I¡¯ll take measures so that they¡¯ll ept it without me overdoing it. I have to do it solely for the sake of this precious girl in front of me. That day, I swore to myself once again. That I would live my life as a resident of this world...... And that I would protect Bea without hesitation, no matter the means I would have to use. I kissed her and brushed her hair, and she finally smiled for me. Yes, I will protect this smile...... And so, we slowlyy down on top of each other............. (You had funst night, huh!?) ¡° ¡°Toto, who taught you that?¡± ¡° After I punched some holes into Albert, we were walking towards a certain ce. He dared teach Toto unnecessary things. ¡°We....we.....so..on....a...a.....arri....arrive!¡± Perhaps he¡¯s saying that we¡¯ll arrive soon or something. Such a stupid dog. ¡°Are you really going to use that......?¡± (Dad, I also want to help!) Both of them approved of my n. .......I must do it. There¡¯s no other way. This way the Emperor will also consent and the other nobles won¡¯tin about it. We arrived at our destination, and were weed by her. I will cancel my engagement to Princess Tsubaki in order to live happily together with Bea. ¡°I was waiting for you, your Excellencies, Duke Zest and Duchess Beatrice........as well as Spirit-sama. We¡¯re meeting for the first time. It¡¯s a great pleasure!¡± The woman brought her hand together to her chest and made a praying pose. ¡°Sister, it¡¯s been a while. I came today with a request.¡± ¡°Oh my, a request from your Excellency........What kind of request?¡± ¡°I am engaged to her Highness, Princess Tsubaki, and I came to you, sister, to hear you preach about it.¡± I will make sure to use reason with this junky sister. ...................Will it actually.............work? Chapter 82: The Imperial Family’s Scheming Chapter 82: The Imperial Family¡¯s Scheming ¡°That was rather fast, grandson-inw-dono. Did you make your move?¡± After the junky sister preached for me, I traveled to the Frontier Count¡¯s domain. There was something I needed to confirm no matter what. ¡°So mying here was within your expectation.........Well, I, more or less, took some measures.¡± I showed the Count the sermon the sister wrote for me; it was enveloped by the Priestess¡¯ Blessing.......something simr to a magic seal. The parchment containing the sermon was inside this seal. ¡°Oh? A sermon........Hoho, this can be useful in so many situations.......¡± ¡°Yes. But what about the Emperor? What¡¯s his real intention after all?¡± ¡°The elf prince is a blockhead.....That¡¯s why he wants them to get married.¡± As expected........ I put the parchment away, and the Frontier Count continued. ¡°Grandson-inw-dono, princess Tsubaki betrayed you.......Does this anger you?¡± He looked at me, examining my reaction...... ¡°No. This was originally a political marriage. That princess.......or, better said, the imperial family has to be like that, otherwise it¡¯s no good. Precisely because it was in their advantage, that they lowered their heads to me in conciliation.¡± ¡°.........It¡¯s good you understand this. Listen, all right? You should never even consider that the imperial family moves based on emotions. You can¡¯t sit at the top of a country and still act with simplicity. You should never trust other nobles apart from your family either. It¡¯s okay to rely on them, but you should neverpletely open up to anyone.¡± He looked me straight in the eyes then continued. ¡°I left Bea in your care, and if you want to protect her as a noble, you must possess a capacious mind. But that¡¯s only in case you act like a noble.......For a stranger like you this might be rather strict.¡± ¡°......I made up my mind already.¡± ¡°Then it¡¯s all right. The Emperor wants to conquer the elves¡¯ country from inside, since that blockhead is the crown prince after all. If he takes the Princess as his legal wife, their child will rule the country after the next king.......That¡¯s about it.¡± ¡°Then, what I must do is........¡± ¡°Yes, that would be to cancel the engagement in a skillful manner......In addition to that.........¡± ¡°I have to adopt princess Tsubaki and make her marry the prince......am I right?¡± There it is.... That face!? That¡¯s why you¡¯re scary....... ¡°That¡¯s right. It will be troublesome if she marries as a princess, since we don¡¯t know if the elven royal family will turn against his Majesty the Emperor in the future.¡± ¡°She¡¯s thoroughly treated as an object.......¡± The Frontier Count sipped some of his tea. I drank some too.....My throat was really dry...... ¡°Right. If she marries as a princess, our empire loses its inheritance rights, so they can easily interfere with our affairs. But in case she marries as the daughter of the hero who achieved spiritification, the man also called the sword of the empire, no one wouldin; the spirit gives its divine protection to both our countries after all......so it¡¯s beneficial.¡± ¡°All that¡¯s left now.......is for me to find a reason to cancel the engagement, one that the nobles will find eptable too.¡± ¡°Indeed. You cannot say that you canceled the engagement because of the existence of another proposal. But in case this is the Will of God, then it can¡¯t really be helped......Spirit-sama also agrees to this, right?¡± He smiled at Toto, who sat on his shoulder. Haha, the Frontier Count¡¯s soft spot was exposed...... ¡°Yes, everything should be all right.¡± ¡°Hoho, grandson-inw-dono.............You got a perfect score. The Emperor might trust you a little now.¡± He said and started tough. The Frontier Count was really scary in such moments.... Toto, it¡¯s all right, you can try to send him away flying! I won¡¯t mind. I was in the imperial capital, inside the audience room. I read the parchment out loud in front of his Majesty and the other nobles. ¡®This is a sermon on the engagement between his Excellency, Duke Zest and her Highness, Princess Tsubaki. The river water flows into the sea, praying for the birth of a new life. Every tree in the forest needs light, so we should never try to perforate the rocks. And the reason for that is the Will of God!¡¯ Yeah, I don¡¯t understand it either......However....... ¡°This sermon itself is the Will of God. In our empire, the Frontier Count¡¯s domain is blessed with fresh mountain rivers, while the imperial capital is the sea. And on the opposite side of the sea, there¡¯s a forest........In short, the God¡¯s Will is for the princess to marry inside the elven royal family and make the light shine on our both nations.¡± Toto nodded in agreement. ¡°The Frontier Count¡¯s Household is the rock, and since I have a deep connection with it, I will end up piercing the rock.....in short, this means that I must never marry her Highness, Princess Tsubaki.¡± Toto smiled broadly and kept on nodding to my words. ¡°The spirit recognized the Will of God as well.......In this case, I will cancel my engagement and ept the Will of God. I advise you all to do the same, and approve of her Highness, Princess Tsubaki¡¯s marriage with the elf prince.¡± ¡°This is certainly something approved by a priest.......Since the God and the spirit spoke their thoughts, this is unavoidable. However, isn¡¯t it troublesome for the Duke¡¯s Household?¡± ¡°There¡¯s no such thing.¡± ¡°What about letting Tsubaki get married after she¡¯s adopted into the Duke¡¯s Household?¡± ¡°If that¡¯s what you wish, your Majesty, then the spirit will be a bridge between our both countries, and it will be an honor for my Duke¡¯s Household as well. I must express my gratitude to your Majesty¡¯s consideration.¡± Yes, this was all a huge farce, since everything was already decided. I interpreted the sermon as it seemed fit at the moment, but because Toto acknowledged it, it all became real. It couldn¡¯t be helped if the spirit agreed. As for princess Tsubaki......yeah, she was indeed part of the imperial family.......She¡¯s pretty wicked for a little girl. The Emperor wishes for me to bond with her. For the time being, I¡¯ll try that once she¡¯s part of my family. While we¡¯re at it, I will indeed have connections with the elves¡¯ country, but princess Tsubaki will never make a move with only my words. It will be impossible for me to......turn against the empire together with the elves. The Emperor knew this as well, that¡¯s why he proposed this arrangement. And since I was already showing him an attitude of cooperation for the benefit of our empire, he didn¡¯t want to force me any further. .............Or maybe I was being tested? That¡¯s one possibility too. He might have wanted to see if I will make a move for the benefit of the empire. If I do make a move, then everything is great. But if I don¡¯t, then he will offer me his daughter as a concubine........ Really now, how deep is their scheming!?....This damned imperial family! Well, I already decided that I will be loyal to this empire as long as they don¡¯t make a move at Bea. And they didn¡¯t for now. Instead of making Tsubaki marry me from an inferior position, and probably end up fighting with Bea, it was better, to some extent, for our connection to have a different nature. That¡¯s what they most likely considered. It was all about politics......and that¡¯s really troublesome............ It¡¯s really hard for me to interact with the imperial family for some reason......... I hope I won¡¯t have anything to do with them for a while.............. Therefore, it was decided that princess Tsubaki will get adopted into my family and marry the elf prince. As for me, I just wanted to return home...... Chapter 83: Relaxation Chapter 83: Rxation ¡°I know! Let¡¯s go to the sea!¡± This was the idea that popped up in my exhausted head after I returned from the imperial capital. ¡°Your Excellency, there¡¯s no work to be done at the moment, so now is a good time-nya.¡± ¡°Your Excellency, your ck knight guards are ready too.¡± ¡°Son-inw-dono, I am free too.¡± ¡°Master, you mustn¡¯te.......¡± This was supposed to be a trip for me, Bea and Toto.......Now, these guys areing too. Master, don¡¯t re at me like that, I¡¯m still not taking you along. The carriage was shaking as it made its way towards the fishing vige. I also wanted to watch the way Herman worked. Once in a while, you have to get some rest otherwise you¡¯d be ruining your body....or so they say. After all, when I was in the imperial capital, I was exposed to the Imperial Family¡¯s terrible darkness...... No, stop it!......When I think about that, my head starts to hurt....... I want to forget about Princess Tsubaki too. She is.......yeah, she¡¯s shocking...... If she were to actually be my wife, my stomach would be full of holes...... ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Are you all right, Zest-sama?¡± (Dad, why don¡¯t you sleep if you¡¯re tired?) They looked at me, their expressions filled with worry. ¡°Thanks, but I¡¯m good.¡± These two were really kind, so much so that my troubled heart was starting to heal. I proudly brushed their heads. ¡°Thieves!!!¡± ¡°Surround them!!¡± ¡°Do it! Kill them all!¡± ........The maids unit was full of energy as always....... Almost all of them have decided upon getting married........with the ck knights. Only muscle brains children are likely to be born from them. Will my domain be all right? I must find some other civil officials too, since I can¡¯t let Katalina do everything. We arrived at the fishing vige, and I was amazed by the changes it underwent. There was a solid fence surrounding the vige, and the houses were looking great. The coast already had a pier, and it all looked like a veritable harbor. It seems Herman went through a lot of trouble to do all this. ¡°Your Excellency, Duke Zest, it¡¯s been a long time.¡± ¡°Hey Herman, you did great things here. It looks wonderful.¡± Herman felt proud, but he also remained modest. He did amazing things in such a short period of time......With this our ie should grow considerably bigger. Sooner orter I might have to make Herman a noble too...... ¡°Come now, we have made preparations for a wee party.¡± A banquet hall was prepared in the vige¡¯s central za. It wasn¡¯t extravagant-looking, but they cooked a lot of seafood-based dishes for us. Everything was filled with emotion. ¡°I¡¯m very d you people feel this way. For today, let¡¯s party to our hearts¡¯ content!¡± I greeted and the party started. ¡°Katalina? Long time no see!¡± ¡°Nya? Everyone!? It¡¯s been a long time-nya!¡± ¡°Well then, look at my trick......¡± ¡°Ha ha ha, I wanna try it too!¡± I listened to the soldiers¡¯ merrymaking and drank. As one would expect, a duke was not supposed to be noisy like them. (Dad, you know......Haha) ¡°Hm? What is it, Toto?¡± She sat on my shoulder and smiled at me. (Dad, you were mad at that Majesty uncle, right?) ¡°........You¡¯re right. Our meeting wasn¡¯t really interesting.¡± I can¡¯t hide things from her, it seems...... (That¡¯s why, you know, I made sure to send him away!) ...................Eh? ¡°Totototototo, Toto? What did you do?¡± (I sent away the uncle¡¯s hair!!) You sent away......his hair? (The uncle had some hair ced on his head, you know? That¡¯s why I sent it flying!) His Majesty......was actually bald.....even though he¡¯s young...... ¡°Toto, this is a secret, all right? Do you understand?¡± (Yes! I promise, Dad!) She said and followed me excitedly. I see now, he was bald...... .......If there was no evidence left behind then there¡¯s no problem. However, wigs are extremely valuable in this world, so I bet it was difficult for him. ..............Toto, you did amazingly great! ¡°Oh my! You were talking with Toto, Zest-sama.¡± ¡°Hey Bea, are you having fun?¡± She came to me, escorted by the maids unit. This party was very unusual for her, since she didn¡¯t really attend such frank and open parties before. She constantly looked around her. ¡°Katalina looks very happy. She met her friends again, after a long time.¡± ¡°That¡¯s great then.......I made her do the impossible after all. I actually wanted her to meet her friends.¡± ¡°Zest-sama, you¡¯re the same......doing the impossible!¡± Bea¡¯s expression became sullen. Toto seemed to have guessed something, so she left us alone. ¡°Just by looking at your face I understood everything......I already know, that something happened.¡± ¡°I see.......¡± ¡°Did you do it......for my sake?¡± ¡°That was one of the reasons, but to be honest, I did it for myself. I don¡¯t need anyone else but you, Bea.......I did it because I¡¯m a noble.¡± ¡°.......My father often said this to me: ¡®Because you¡¯re a noble¡¯......¡° ¡°..............¡± ¡°However, at least let me worry about you.......I am your wi.....wife, after all.......¡± ¡°You¡¯re right. Thank you, Bea.¡± I brushed her hair lightly as I began to inform her. ¡°I got a message from the Frontier Count.¡± ¡°From grandfather?¡± ¡°Princess Tsubaki will soon arrive at your grandfather¡¯s castle. The Frontier Count will serve as her guardian as he escorts her here. I¡¯m ashamed to say, but she will enter the Duke¡¯s Household as an adopted child..........¡± ¡°Zest-sama.¡± ¡°........Yes.¡± ¡°She needs guidance, all right? I will train her in homemaking arts........Ahaha.......AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA¡± (Tsubaki!? She¡¯sing!? Awesome! I had something to say to her!) They were d in a pitch-ck aura and there was no way I could oppose them. All I could say was ¡®Yes¡¯ or ¡®Understood¡¯. That day, several hundreds of fish washed up ashore; they could be found all over the fishing vige¡¯s harbor............ Chapter 84: It Can’t Be Helped, for this Is Training in Homemaking Arts Chapter 84: It Can¡¯t Be Helped, for this Is Training in Homemaking Arts ¡°Princess Tsubaki.......Urm, Tsubaki will get married into the elf¡¯s family as my daughter, therefore it was decided that she will undergo training in homemaking arts here, on my domain. Everyone......you do understand, right?¡± ¡°Yes sir! We will have her be a daughter that won¡¯t bring shame on the Duke¡¯s Household!¡± ¡°It can¡¯t be helped if this is training in homemaking arts-nya. I¡¯ll have her be charming enough for a long living elf-nya!¡± ¡°As for her maid experience, we¡¯ll have her start from a 1000 times practice-swinging.¡± ¡°She¡¯ll be entering the Duke¡¯s Household, so she must be able to survive on the foremost lines.¡± Do maids really do practice-swinging? I felt surprise at the excessive motivation the maids and the ck knights showed. I left all the excited muscle brains inside the conference room and I returned to my office. For some reason I decided to ignore, for it was probably my imagination, the disturbing line ¡®Training equipment for a woman¡¯s charm¡¯. ¡°Oh my.....Wee back, Zest-sama.¡± (Wee back, Dad!) ¡°........You....you two look like you¡¯re having fun.¡± Bea¡¯s eyes lost all their light as she peeled something off and stockpiled the kes into a pot. Toto¡¯s eyes looked unfocused as she stared at empty space, while pouring her magical power into the pot. Something ck rose up from that pot and I think I saw a magical charm inside it. But I might be mistaken. I opened the letter on my desk and started to read. ¡®Grandson-inw-dono, before she marries, she must be disciplined until the point she understands what happens if she looks down on the Duke¡¯s Household and the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. I leave it in your care!¡¯ The Count put an emphasis on thest sentence. I put the letter away and nced at the two girls. They were still working on that thing, their smiles constantly present on their faces. I used all my magical power to strengthen my quivering voice as I began to ask them. ¡°..........What is that you¡¯re making there?¡± ¡°Zest-sama, this is the maiden¡¯s secret medicine.¡± (It¡¯s a girls¡¯ secret!) ¡°Then........it can¡¯t be helped.¡± My office resounded with their seemingly eternal devilish giggling....... Keep it......keep it moderate, okay? The Frontier Count and Tsubaki arrived the same day; we greeted them at the capital¡¯s entrance gate. However................ Since she was a 12 or 13 years old child, I would only try to scare her a bit then let her off. That was my n............in the beginning........... ¡°Having toe to such a countryside ce.......it¡¯s a huge bother.¡± ¡°Yes, this is not appropriate for the Princess.¡± ¡°Hey you! Don¡¯te too close to the Princess!¡± Tsubaki¡¯sdy attendants were wearing strong perfume that stuck in my nostrils. ¡°Oh my, is this Zest-sama? You are not very thoughtful, it seems. I am tired. Don¡¯t you see? Well, it can¡¯t be helped. You¡¯re only good at fighting, after all.¡± During those two years we haven¡¯t met, Tsubakipletely transformed into a splendidly stupid youngdy. ¡°Grandson-inw-dono, this is serious talk. If you don¡¯t educate her, it will get ugly.......Since she¡¯sing from a scheming household, I thought that she would be taught the same, but I was wrong. They only managed to aggravate her selfishness..........¡± The Frontier Count showed a bitter face. You believe that she¡¯s part of an imperial family, so she must have elegant skills, but what you see is this mess. ¡°Albert, send the attendants back. They¡¯re a hindrance.¡± ¡°Yes sir! Immediately!¡± Thedy attendants were thrown into the carriage, regardless of their screaming and struggle, and sent away. I didn¡¯t give a damn about the girl who shouted that she was the daughter of a count or something. Now it was time to deal with the person in question. Tsubaki was dumbfounded, but I informed her nheless. ¡°Starting today you¡¯re my daughter and you will be one who¡¯s worthy of being part of the Duke¡¯s Household. You can only answer with ¡®Yes¡¯ and ¡®Understood¡¯.¡± ¡°......Su....such disrespect! If father finds out about this, you will¡± Tsubaki ventured to say that much. But obviously, the ck knights and the maids unit, filled with killing intent, encircled her. ¡°I am your foster father now, so give up already. His Majesty himself took care of the arrangements......He expressly sent you here.¡± ¡°However, if it¡¯s only about making her your adopted daughter, she could still continue living in the imperial capital.......Those imperial capital nobles are good for nothing. This was supposed to be their job.¡± Your Majesty, don¡¯t you think you¡¯re pushing me too far?....... I¡¯ll discuss this matter with the Frontier Countter. ¡°Bea, I leave you in charge of her training in homemaking arts.¡± ¡°AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA, with pleasure!¡± (You stink! Tsubaki, you really stink! We must wash you!) .......Hm? Is it that Toto doesn¡¯t like perfumes? I don¡¯t really think that Tsubaki stinks. I saw Tsubaki off as the maids unit took her away, then walked towards my office together with the Count. It was time to discuss how we were going to harass his Majesty for what he¡¯d done to us. ¡°I never imagined that Tsubaki could ever be like that. What is the imperial family doing!?.......¡± ¡°I was shocked. She won¡¯t manage to infiltrate the elves country with that attitude........¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s impossible. The Emperor is forcing too much onto us. Shall we give him a little warning? What do you say, grandson-inw-dono?¡± He grinned broadly and continued with a shivering smile, one that I haven¡¯t seen in a long time. ¡°This is nothing more than a military training organized by me and grandson-inw-dono. It will take ce near the imperial capital. There¡¯s no problem if all we do is train, right? And I don¡¯t really care what the other party will think about it.¡± And so, thebined military training organized by the Duke¡¯s Household and the Frontier Count¡¯s Household started and the imperial capital trembled violently; they strongly believed that they were experiencing a rebellion. Chapter 85: Training and Education Chapter 85: Training and Education ¡®I didn¡¯t feel alive until you reported that this was all a military exercise. I¡¯m really sorry I troubled you with the matter of Tsubaki. So please forgive me! I promise that I will keep both the Duke and the Frontier Count¡¯s Households in high consideration.¡¯ Half crying, the Prime Minister brought us this letter. A great number of nobles already fled the imperial capital, so the pce was extremely busy with remedial measures. ¡°Grandson-inw-dono, remember that sometimes you have to warn them in order for them not to misunderstand you. You¡¯ll learn, sooner orter, how to add degrees to your warning.¡± It¡¯s easy in case they simply obey, you just take advantage of that. In case they don¡¯t obey, you have to pressure them to, and this is the difficult part. ¡°Understood.¡± ¡°Haha, it would be good for you to learn this while I¡¯m still alive. Anyway, I¡¯ll be alive for a little longer.¡± ¡°I¡¯m also here, you know, you can rely on me too.¡± Frontier Count, master.......thank you. I¡¯m still inexperienced when ites to such tactics. I¡¯ll let these two teach me.......what should I do in this situation. We finished our training and decided to return to our territories; when word of this came out, we were told to hurry up and leave. ¡°We don¡¯t need to stimte them any further. If we stay too long his Majesty might really start preparing to fight back. It¡¯s best to keep it moderate.¡± ¡°I agree. It¡¯ll be troublesome if we can¡¯t see through the whole situation.¡± They grinned broadly as I told them farewell, then I returned to my domain. Those two.......It¡¯s a huge relief they¡¯re on my side. I wanted to visit my foster father too since I haven¡¯t seen him in a long time, but I¡¯ll have to postpone it. I¡¯ll make sure to write him a letter. The return trip was going smoothly until Albert screwed up. ¡°Your Excellency, he peeked on Tasel!¡± ¡°Oi, restrain Media or we¡¯re gonna die!¡± ¡°Where are the medial soldiers?¡± .................What the heck happened!? ording to the beat up Albert, this is what happened. After giving birth, Tasel was back to work, but because her breast milk wasing out, she entered a tent to wipe it dry. Then Albert came and, seeing Tasel¡¯s back figure, thought that he was a man. Therefore, Albert called out to him. Tasel turned around, Albert was astonished, a loud scream could be heard, breast milk flew around... Such a chaotic scene was unfolding right when Media showed up. That¡¯s when Albert and Media¡¯s physical talk started. His face red, Tasel was ring at Albert. His outward appearance was clearly a man. I couldn¡¯t withstand this dangerous atmosphere where a blushing man stared at another man. ¡°I understand.......This was an ident, so let it go.......¡± Media red up at my half random words. ¡°If that¡¯s the case, your Excellency, what would you do if Albert peeked on Lady Beatrice by mistake?¡± ¡°Hahaha, obviously, I would kill him. Without any doubt.¡± Albert........Don¡¯t look at me like that...... ¡°It¡¯s a joke. I wouldn¡¯t me him if it was an ident.¡± Albert, I¡¯m sorry......Don¡¯t cry...... You should give him a break too, Media. ¡°On the contrary, you, Tasel, should feel happy that you were mistaken for a man. And Media too, you should cheer up. Albert is not a peeping tom, I can guarantee you that.¡± ¡°If that¡¯s what your Excellency says, I understand.¡± ¡°.......Yes, your Excellency.¡± ¡°Your Excellency.........Do you trust me?¡± Tears gathered in the corners of Albert¡¯s eyes. He¡¯s such a fool. ¡°Ain¡¯t that obvious? You are not a coward man. And, above all, you are not interested in a mother¡¯s milk, am I right? Since you enjoyed sniffing that junky sister¡¯s chest odor, I bet you like them really small, like nonexistent, right?¡± ¡°.........Lord Albert!¡± ¡°Such a sinful taste.......¡± ¡°Wha!? Your Excellency, that was me checking for poison.......¡± Everyone started tough and the matter settled peacefully. ................Or so it should have been. ¡°Albert-sama...........do you really have such preferences...............?¡± ¡°Me...Meril!? Why are you here..........?¡± Because of his wife¡¯s sudden appearance, Albert¡¯s hellish experience continued to unfold. Such fun events kept me entertained as we arrived to my capital city. Albert and Meril made peace and now were flirting with each other; it was a little annoying, but I endured it. I would meet Bea soon as well. Smiling, I entered my mansion and saw Toto flying towards me to sit on my shoulder. (Dad, wee back!) ¡°I¡¯m home, Toto. Did anything change while I was away?¡± I asked her as I brushed her hair. Brushing her hair was already a reflex for me now. Ites naturally. (Yes! Mom is educating Tsubaki!) ¡°..............It¡¯s a relief that Bea is handling this.¡± (Mom is in very high spirits!) ¡°.........I see.¡± (Tsubaki¡¯s already at the second jar of maiden¡¯s secret medicine, so she¡¯s bing a good child!) Maybe I should really ask. ¡°What is a........maiden¡¯s secret medicine?¡± Toto answered, her face covered in smiles. (If you scoop it with a special spoon, it will flow into your mouth! It¡¯s impossible to avoid and you can¡¯t spit it out either. It¡¯s a curs......good luck charm!) ...........Just now, did she almost say ¡®curse¡¯? (Uncle Sonia tasted it and said that it exceeded Mom¡¯s former obento 1. He was so deeply moved emotionally that he fell asleep!) Toto, he fainted........And also, he wasn¡¯t moved at all, you know? Thanks god that wasn¡¯t me. I thought, and entered my office. 1. The obento incident unfolds in Chapter 17. Read more about what a Bento is Chapter 86: A Lady’s Style Chapter 86: A Lady¡¯s Style ¡°Youngdy Tsubaki, don¡¯t forget your fighting spirit!¡± ¡°With that level of determination you won¡¯t be a finedy.¡± ¡°You still have 500 left! You have to practice sword swinging for another 500 times!¡± ¡°Huuh haaah, oooooryaa ah ah!¡± ............. ¡°Katalina.......What¡¯s this uproar outside?¡± ¡°Ah, the maid¡¯s unit is coachingdy Tsubaki on how to be a finedy-nya.¡± ¡°........I see.¡± Dodies these days really get psyched like that while practicing sword swinging?! Well, these women are strong, so it¡¯s no use to argue with them. It¡¯ll be too troublesome to oppose them, so I¡¯ll just leave it to them. I was doing paperwork in my office while listening to Tsubaki¡¯s fighting scream. My master returned to the Frontier Count¡¯s domain, leaving only me and Katalina for the job right now...... This is........a chance? I put my workload away and looked at Katalina. She¡¯s doing a great job for me and her outwards appearance is that of a beautiful woman; there¡¯ll noint at all. ¡°Katalina........it¡¯s time.......to do that.¡± She was startled. She took a short break from her work to look at me hatefully. ¡°.......Are we doing that again-nya? I.....urm.....¡± Her face waspletely flushed as I approached her and told her as gently as possible. ¡°You don¡¯t dislike it either, Katalina. Am I right?¡± ¡°........Uh! It¡¯s not fair-nya.¡± Katalina and I moved to the room next to the office. We made sure no one saw us........ However, Albert did see something. He clearly saw us vanishing inside a room all alone. And then, he ran to make his report. ¡°Beatrice-sama! His Excellency Zest disappeared inside a room with Katalina.¡± ¡°........Well, maybe it¡¯s about work?¡± ¡°Urm........they said something about doing that and entered the room. I could smell sweat and heard intense breathinging from inside........¡± Albert¡¯s over-sensitive sense of smell was something you could really trust. Even though he sometimes acts in a perverted manner like when he sniffed the sister¡¯s scent, his sense of smell is something you can rely on. Immediately, Beatrice started running, her favorite bardiche 1 in one hand. Her bardiche was made of the same jet ck material as the ck knights¡¯ armors, and the people started calling it fondly ¡®The Grim Reaper¡¯s Axe¡¯; this weapon was her best partner. She controlled her boiling rage and erased her presence as she approached the room in question. If she were to hurry, she might not be able to obtain evidence. ¡°Katalina......We¡¯ll move a little faster now.¡± ¡°Nya!? I.....I can¡¯t move faster than this......it¡¯s impossible......nya.¡± Hearing the voicesing from inside the room, Bea¡¯s magical power escted. This was it. She smashed the door with her bardiche and jumped inside the room in an instant. Beatrice took an imposing stance, her whole body d in magical power, but what she saw was not what she had in mind. What she saw was Zest and Katalina holding hands and embracing each other in a friendly manner. ¡°........What........are you doing?¡± ¡° ¡°We practice dancing (nya).¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°........................¡± ¡° ¡° ¡°I want to soon bestow Katalina with a noble title, but it¡¯s impossible to do so if she can¡¯t dance properly, right?¡± ¡°His Excellency is teaching me-nya, the quick part is really difficult-nya.¡± ¡°...............Dancing...............¡± ¡°Bea.......what¡¯s the matter?¡± ¡°What is your Excellency Beatrice.........doing with that bardiche-nya?¡± ¡°I¡¯m.....I¡¯m practicing to be a .........finedy.¡± Bea ran away, her face bright red. I saw her off then heard Albert¡¯s shriek from somewhere down the corridors. Did she really practice for bing a finedy? I decided not to think too much about it and continued with our dancing training. ¡°I guess it¡¯s time to end for now.¡± ¡°Th...thank you very much-nya.......¡± I felt considerably tired, so I ended our practice for the day. Katalina¡¯s feet were hurting too. It¡¯s always like that until you get used to it.......It kind of feels nostalgic. ¡°I know it¡¯s difficult for you, but dancing is indispensable. Hold on a little longer, okay?¡± ¡°Y.....yes sir-nya.¡± I left the exhausted Katalina behind and returned to my own room. Albert was kneeling down in a seiza position on the corridor with a paper sheet attached to his body on which this word was written: ¡®Reflecting¡¯. I didn¡¯t even look at him. That¡¯s because I recognized Bea¡¯s writing. I don¡¯t want to get involved, you know? She¡¯s scary when she¡¯s like that. I entered the bathroom together with Bea and Toto. Having my back washed clean by Bea was an awfully great service....... We left the bathroom, and after we finished eating dinner, Bea kept on clinging to me. (Mom, is today the mating season?) ¡° ¡°.......It was Albert, right?¡± ¡° (Yes!) This was the moment when Albert¡¯s punishment prolonged until the next morning. It seems he provided Toto with unnecessary knowledge again. After I firmly re-educated Toto, I lulled her to sleep. That mongrel, he made me do an unnecessary effort....... After that, Bea and I enjoyed each other¡¯spany and went to sleep afterwards. I¡¯ll give my best tomorrow too. I thought, as I gently brushed the already asleep Bea¡¯s hair, and fell asleep as well. In the morning, I woke up, greeted Bea and Toto, got dressed and prepared to go to work. I motivated myself to walk to my office and after I finished my work, I had dance practice with Katalina. And in the evening, after making out with Bea, I went to sleep again. Day after day passed in such a peaceful manner. However, one day the unexpected happened. ¡°Zest-sama, we made it........or so it seems.¡± (Mom is gonna be a mom! This is great!) .............It appears that I¡¯m going to be a father. 1. Bardiche=a long pole-axe. See Wikipedia Chapter 87: Congratulatory Gifts for the Pregnancy Chapter 87: Congrattory Gifts for the Pregnancy ¡°A...are we gonna have a baby?¡± ¡°Hahaha, yes, Zest-sama.¡± (Congrattions, Mom, Dad!) ¡°Thi...thi...thi...this is serious! Call the maids unit¡¯s physician......No, maybe the medical soldiers? Or maybe I should do it? No, call a woman medical soldier!¡± ¡°Please calm down, Zest-sama.¡± (Ahaha, Dad is acting funny!) ¡°Ha!? Bea, is it really all right for you not to be in bed? Is it okay to move this much?¡± ¡°Zest-sama, being pregnant is not a disease, you know? I¡¯m fine.¡± (Dad, is this the first time you¡¯ll have a child born to you? Even though you¡¯re so good at making them?) ¡° ¡°................¡± ¡° Toto, please stop......You¡¯re doing too much damage. Both our faces turnedpletely red and we swore that from now on we¡¯ll pay close attention to our surroundings. ¡°Congrattions, your Excellency. If it¡¯s a boy, I will definitely nurse him!¡± ¡°No, no, don¡¯t listen to that your Excellency. Only the maids unit is suitable to nurse him.¡± ¡°Your Excellency, the intelligence unit will most certainly train him before theing of age........¡± ¡°Oh, oh, I will be the one to nurse him!¡± Media, you¡¯re no good......Just give me a break! The muscle brains started a battle for who was going to act like the baby¡¯s nanny, but I ignored them and began to write some letters. Each time things happen, you have to write and send letters. In Japan you make phone calls or send e-mails, but here you must work yourself harder. It¡¯s so troublesome... I finished writing the letters and wanted to take a short break......but I couldn¡¯t do that. Nobles from the capital city came in session to bring gifts and congratte us. ¡°Congrattions, your Excellency. With this the Duke¡¯s Household is secure. I also have an infant and maybe.........¡± ¡°Hahaha, this is such a joyous asion. First, I must start preparing for a banquet. You, sir, will attend it too, right?¡± I greeted all the nobles, while trying to avoid their forced ttery. If I end up saying something to them, it might turn up into a promise or even an engagement, so I had to be very careful. ¡°Foster father, foster mother, I congratte you for the pregnancy!¡± ¡°...........Thanks Tsubaki. Why are you saluting us?¡± ¡°Yes sir! It¡¯s what everyone taught me!¡± ¡°Bring those muscle brains to me!¡± My head started to hurt because of Tsubaki¡¯s thoroughly military salute. Why the heck did they teach her!? When I reported this to Bea, sheughed saying ¡®Well, well, I did that too when I was little. It¡¯s so nostalgic.....Ahaha, this happens a lot with children.¡¯ Isn¡¯t it normal for little girls to dream about their prince charming on a white horse or something? It¡¯s definitely strange for them to ride the horses themselves and rampage around...... I secretly asked Katalina about this too, but she deceived me. ¡®I was not born a noble so I don¡¯t really know-nya. However, if that¡¯s what madam is saying, it must be the truth-nya. In fact, there¡¯s no point in opposing her-nya!¡¯ ..............She was right, so I gave up. Indeed. I decided that I shouldn¡¯t feel too troubled about all this; because this is a different world, why shouldn¡¯t there be princess warriors here too!? There are various definitions of what being girly means........I¡¯ll face the opposition saying that this is the Duke¡¯s Household¡¯s style. I could finally take a short rest after I finished with the queue of greetings. I spent this break in my office, looking at the awful scene unfolding in front of me and sighed. There was a mountain of presents in my office........ ¡°Katalina, once you finish with the indexing, you can choose whatever you like and take it with you, okay?¡± ¡°Nya!? I¡¯ll do my best-nya!¡± Since Katalina was in charge of indexing the presents that arrived, my words motivated her considerably. There were a lot of them, and, honestly, I only needed to know what came and from who, then I¡¯ll dispose of most of them; they were just too many. And I also have to send something back.............. Cloth and jewels, sake and armors, and the sort. However, there was a pairless shoe and a pair of used underwear mixed with the rest of the presents too. What the......Are these guys picking a fight with me? Katalina threw away a headless doll. The maids unit joined her a few moments ago, and as I was looking at them working, I realized something very important. They were all crouching........while wearing skirts...... I nonchntly adjusted my position in the chair, but I did so very slowly. I could not hurry. With utmost carefulness, I left my body sink in that chair. Just a little more and the angle is perfect.......Just a little more and I¡¯ll be able to see...... This was not peeping; this was a conduct in order to assess the work of my subordinates from all sides and angles. I only felt a slight guilt. I finally arrived in paradise and burned the scene into my memory. It¡¯s great when you see them up close, but a fluttering view offers a different kind of pleasure. I pinched my leg, in order for the pain to stop my face from getting too gross, and continued to watch over their work. When I came to my senses, the job was already finished and it was evening. ..................Fuu, it was a wonderful paradise. I immersed myself into that memory as I drank some tea when Katalina came to report. ¡°Your Excellency, we finished-nya! I would like to have this-nya!¡± ¡°Ah, I don¡¯t mind. You can take whatever you want..............¡± ................What? Is that? She was holding a mysterious piece of cloth that emanated a suspicious aura. She wanted such a terrifying thing.........No, actually, who was the idiot who sent that as a present.........? ¡°It¡¯s the first time I¡¯m seeing a cloth that makes chests grow big-nya! This is the legendary tits-cloth that is used to grow huge breasts-nya!!¡± After that, a battle for the extremely rare tits-cloth started. Katalina and Media¡¯s fightsted for 3 days and 3 nights; this battle swallowed up the ck knights too and ended up partially destroying my mansion. Media was the winner at the end of this fierce battle, and so the curtain dropped over the tits-cloth incident. ¡°..............I¡¯ll pay the reparations from your sries, all right?¡± I informed the maids unit as they cleaned up the mess, half crying. Media squeezed her most valuable tits-cloth. ¡°Your Excellency, with this I¡¯ll have huge breasts too......finally..........¡± She said and copsed the next instant; she was covered in blood, but she didn¡¯t let go of that cloth. I checked it with evaluation magic and the thing actually appeared to be an ¡®extremely smelly loincloth. In the end, I couldn¡¯t tell them that............... Chapter 88: Wisdom from a Different World Chapter 88: Wisdom from a Different World ¡°We didn¡¯t go anywhere for our honeymoon.......¡± ¡°........Honeymoon? What is that?¡± (Is that a trip or something, Dad? You said ¡®go¡¯ so...) It was an early afternoon when I said those words all of a sudden. Several weeks passed since the tits-cloth incident and the maids unit was still working on the cleaning up. The time we spent together all three of us after I got married was indeed little. The war started and I had to stay away from my home, then we had the trouble with Tsubaki....... It seems that this world doesn¡¯t have the concept of honeymoon, but I would really like to do it, together with my family....... ¡°A honeymoon is when two people who formed a new family go traveling together. Well, this time we¡¯ll be three. It is also meant for making memories together.¡± ¡°It seems fun! Is this a custom in your world?¡± (Can Totoe too? This will be our first trip together!) ¡°Indeed. This is typical in my world. You¡¯re still in a stable period, right Bea? If so, then it¡¯s all right for you to travel, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s all right, Zest-sama.¡± (Toto is in a stable period too!) ...........I smiled bitterly and brushed Toto¡¯s hair; she clearly didn¡¯t understand a thing. ¡°Then, how about going to the Holy Country of Lc? I heard it¡¯s a very famous ce for sight-seeing.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. I really wanted to see the Grand Cathedral at least once in my life. And it is also famous for its beautiful ces.¡± (Cathedral? I want to see it too!) Oh, this is looking good. This country really does seem to have sight-seeing areas that are famous among women. Once in a while, Albert proves to be useful too. All that¡¯s left now is to adjust our schedule............. ¡°Your Excellency, I¡¯m sorry for interrupting your pleasant chat-nya.¡± ¡°Ah, I don¡¯t mind. What¡¯s wrong, Katalina?¡± ¡°Yes. That incident.......Urm, that banquet.......The cleaning up after it has finished-nya.¡± ¡°I see. Thank you for the trouble. That......was very unfortunate.¡± ¡°It was the result of a fight between people who wanted the same thing, that tits-cloth¨Cnya. I gave up-nya.¡± ¡°Well, it was the prize for helping out, so everyone had the right to have it........Cheer up!¡± She bowed and left the room, but, as I thought, her spirit was very low these days. Did she really want that tits-cloth this badly?........It was fake anyway. That incident, that destroyed half of my mansion, cameter to be referred to as the ¡®banquet¡¯. If word gets out that it all started from a piece of tits-cloth and ended up with the master¡¯s house being destroyed would not even ount for a bad reputation. That¡¯s why I decided to change it into ¡®a trivial thing that happened during the banquet¡¯. ¡°Ahaha, a banquet? If this was all a trivial ident that happened during the banquet, then there¡¯s nothing to be done.¡± ¡°Yeah, and we mustn¡¯t forget that a spirit resides inside the Duke¡¯s Household.¡± (That chaos was really fun! I wanna do it again!) ¡°Toto, stop it........You did the most damage with your magic!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, Toto. You must not do that again!¡± (.........I¡¯m sorry.) Yes......That one-on-one fight between Katalina and Media became the target of a gamble, and everyone ced bets and had fun. And, because of the gradually growing excitement or something, the ck knights and the maids unit started to fight too. It was inevitable, since these guys have muscle brains. The excitement rose even higher and Tsubaki decided to barge in too, but she got beaten full of holes by the maids unit and returned to her seat. Until this point, it was still all right......The Duke¡¯s Household puts into practice the same strategy as the Frontier Count¡¯s Household: ¡®Social status doesn¡¯t count in a sham battle¡¯ However, wanting to show Tsubaki her strong point, Toto decided to join as well. .......The world wasn¡¯t quite wrapped uppletely in a nuclear me......... At best, it was only as powerful as creating just one huge crater.......It was a miracle that no one actually died. As one would expect, Bea was shocked too.......Except for she wasn¡¯t. ¡®It ismon in the Frontier Count¡¯s Household for the vassals to get excited over the master¡¯s soon-to-be-born baby and start fighting, resulting in damaging the house.¡¯ She inclined her head to the side in doubt, wondering why I was so shocked........Her attitude shocked me even more than I already was. The Frontier Count¡¯s Household is scary in so many ways. Well, after that, I left Katalina and the maids unit in charge for cleaning up after the ¡®banquet¡¯. Toto was supposed to join them too, but the work progressed smoothly anyway, and it was originally a scramble for that tits-cloth. Besides, Toto wasn¡¯t the only one who damaged the mansion. She didunch the finishing blow though....... ¡°However......I can¡¯t believe that Katalina is actually that strong.¡± ¡°Yes, her martial arts were exceptional.¡± (That nya-girl was really strong!) ¡°Nowadays, she keeps on getting invited to join the soldiers¡¯ training. Will she be all right?¡± ¡°She seemed to enjoy it, so I guess she¡¯ll be just fine.¡± (She¡¯ll be fine. Nya-girl is strong after all!) I caressed Bea¡¯s tummy as we had that conversation, then realized it was time to leave. I walked towards my office in order to finish my work for the day. I put my stuff in order while sending fleeting nces at Katalina. She really looked depressed. I want to do something for her.......I also want her to make arrangements for my trip too, but I can¡¯t bring myself to tell her that. Aren¡¯t there any good ways to solve this problem............ ¡°Katalina..............¡± ¡°What is it-nya? Your Excellency¡± ¡°..............Could you perhaps make a bra?¡± ¡°What¡¯s a bra-nya?¡± ¡°Gather the dwarves technicians-nya! There¡¯s no time to make weapons now-nya!¡± ¡°The maids unit! Bring all its members here to help!¡± ¡°Gather the metals needed to make that wai...wire thing, or whatever it¡¯s called!¡± Angry roars resounded inside my office.......And so, this world made the first steps in giving birth to the bra. ¡°Is.....is it all right for me to have a trip? I leave the bra thing in your care.¡± ¡° ¡° ¡°Oh, please, please, take your time!!¡± ¡° ¡° And so, I easily received permission to go traveling. Chapter 89: Reasons for Prosperity Chapter 89: Reasons for Prosperity ¡°Without any doubt, this is God¡¯s divinemand, there¡¯s no other saying than this. On our great earth, where the holy gospels resound today, I saw a beautiful white raven.¡± The junky sister recited, her spellbound eyes getting muddy. Today as well, she was in perfect shape! ¡°The perch hopes for a waveless sea to send its gratitude to God, and God will create a mountain without undtions. This is God¡¯s wish!¡± ¡°........We offer our gratitude to God¡¯s mercy.¡± She nodded and brought her hands to her inexistent chest, taking a praying pose, then continued her junk talk. ¡°I must transmit that a ¡®bra¡¯ has to be donated in sign of gratitude towards God!¡± ¡°................I¡¯ll make the necessary arrangements.¡± That¡¯s the only part I clearly understood. It seems you can speak normally if you want, can¡¯t you? I informed the proud junky of my departure then returned to my mansion. I wanted to receive approval to go visit the Sacred Country of Lc, so I wrote a letter and left it in her custody. All that¡¯s left now is to wait and see. I didn¡¯t understand though, did I receive permission or not.......Her answer was like that.......... Inside my office, I made the arrangements to deliver that junky a bra. Katalina and the maids unit put their lives on the line andpleted the bra, which instantly became popr. Instead of using wire, some former adventurers advised them to use raw materialsing from magical beasts, for they are much easier to use. After that, in a blink of time, it became one of the most popr items among women. ¡°It¡¯s a hunt for dark wolves! Get ready!¡± ¡°My bra is waiting for me.¡± ¡°We must at least hunt 20 heads or so, otherwise the order schedule.......¡± ¡°For our bras, we have to hunt as many as we can!¡± The dark wolf¡¯s tail became very important at this point. The whip-like tail gets torn in thin, long pieces that areter used instead of the wire. Since that¡¯s now like the bra¡¯s raw material, the suppression corps¡¯ morale is pretty high. The dark wolf is arge wolf-type magical beast. It¡¯s a dangerous magical beast that usually lives in packs and attacks viges and travellers. It¡¯s also a strong magical beast that won¡¯t lose in a 1 vs 1 battle with a trained soldier. Since they usually move around in groups of 10, it¡¯s typical to make units of 50 to 100 soldiers in order to hunt them. Since they really are dangerous magical beasts, there¡¯s no problem in getting violent against them. Rather, if we don¡¯t do that, the people would get anxious. At the present time, this suppression festival is getting a lot of high praise. ¡°I went out for a stroll when I saw one. Ahaha, I was very troubled.¡± (That dog, Mom cut it right in half! It was amazing!) Yesterday, Bea told me with augh, while shouldering her bardiche. Is it all right for a pregnant woman to do that?......I can¡¯tin since it was a simple stroll. It was inevitable. I became extremely busy because of the bra thing and my paperwork increased as well. I put everything in order then returned to my private room. We had some extraordinary economic results, but the workload increased extraordinarily too......... I finally returned to my room and informed Bea and Toto about the matter with the sister. ¡°Then, it all depends on the reply to your letter.¡± (I¡¯m sure it¡¯s all right! I¡¯m very excited about our trip!) Totoughed cheerfully and I ced her on my shoulder, her ¡®home¡¯ position, then drank some tea restfully. Bea was watching over us, a sweet smile on her face. ¡°However, that bra is amazing. I never thought you can use something like that.¡± (Toto is wearing one too! Do you wanna see?) Toto, it¡¯s all right, you don¡¯t need to undress. You didn¡¯t need one in the first ce. Still, Bea is amazing......She already had a D cup before, but now, her arsenal increased without any doubt. Reflexively, I carefully looked in that direction. ¡°.......Zest-sama? Women understand that ce, you know?¡± (Dad, do you wanna see Toto¡¯s too?) ¡°S...sorry. Toto, hurry up and put on your clothes.¡± It¡¯s no good to re at a woman¡¯s chest.......I must be careful........ After I got scolded softly by Bea, I grew a little timid as I went to bed. As punishment I won¡¯t be allowed to touch anything tonight, so I obediently went to sleep. You must not re at a woman¡¯s chest. I thought I was supposed to have learnt that, but that day in the office I ended up looking at Katalina¡¯s chest. ¡°Your Excellency Zest, a letter arrived from the Sacred Country of Lc-nya.¡± ¡°Th....thank you.......¡± She handed in the letter and returned to her desk. Her chest was filled by a mysterious puff. ...............That¡¯s strange. Breasts don¡¯t grow that fast, do they? Actually, I¡¯m not a specialist when ites to chests so I can¡¯t really say............... She returned to her work, while shaking her D cups. ¡°Ha, my shoulders are stiff-nya. This is so troublesome-nya.¡± Her face was clearly not that of a troubled person, since it was fully covered in smiles, so I couldn¡¯t reply anything to her. All I could do was continue to inspect the letter. I didn¡¯t even exchange looks with the maids inside the office. Since they¡¯re all women, this topic is not to be touched. There¡¯s no way I would inquire Katalina about it. ..............Someone else should do it. This atmosphere spread like a disease in my office, when my saviour arrived. ¡°Your Excellency Zest, the sister is here. Will you see her?..................¡± ¡°Bring her right away!¡± I¡¯m saved......I guess it¡¯s about the letter. It doesn¡¯t really matter, anything is good now. For the time being, I can¡¯t bear this atmosphere anymore. Albert left and returned with the sister immediately after. ¡°Your Excellency Zest, excuse me foring without any arrangements. Thank you for the audience.¡± The junky sister said and started tough; her chest too was now a D cup............. The situation got worse.............. I won¡¯t be able to make a breakthrough in this deadlock situation.............. Chapter 90: The Pope’s Reply Chapter 90: The Pope¡¯s Reply The two with fake boobs were releasing a bizarre air inside my office. It felt already like a battleground....... ¡°By...by the way, sister, what business has brought you here?¡± ¡°Yes.....The truth is the Pope entrusted me with a confidential letter.¡± As always, the junky sister took out the letter from her chest region. .............Am I really mistaken? The difference between her left boob and right boob is just too big. Her right boob, from where she took out the letter, seemed to have withered. ¡°A confidential letter......It¡¯s not going to be very gentle, is it?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not a letter to deceive God.....The spirit who loves the new green leaves is swaying in a spring. In short, it is like amb that runs the earth while looking up at the clouds!¡± She stopped speaking normally. She returned to the usual junky sister.......Katalina, don¡¯t look at her chest with your mouth open! I epted the letter with a vague smile on my face. ¡°Thank you for bringing this to me, sister.¡± ¡°No, I am just a mere pupil of God¡¯s who is in a pursuit of knowledge. This is a trial that tests the eptance of everything......It is God¡¯s benevolence!¡± Then, why don¡¯t ept your chest size? I really wanted to press this question, but I couldn¡¯t...... The junky was about to leave since she¡¯s finished her job here, but Katalina challenged her. ¡°Sister, why does your chest differ in size-nya?¡± ¡° ¡°!?¡± ¡° This girl......She stepped right on and mine...... And why is the junky even surprised? The difference is just too big, what did she expect? ¡°.........God¡¯s kindness is packed inside this. However, I, who amcking knowledge, can only feel ashamed......Why?......Why did God give me such a sever trial?.......¡± ¡°Sister.......it¡¯s difficult for you too-nya.......¡± ¡°................You...............too?¡± ¡°Me too................I¡¯m taking this trial-nya........¡± Maybe because she was surprised, the junky sister talked normally for a brief moment, something that shocked me. Seemingly wanting to inflict the final blow, Katalina started to grope about her chest. ¡°That is!?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right-nya........It¡¯s bread-nya........¡± With an anguished facial expression, Katalina held in her hand two loafs of bread. Her chest disappearedpletely. ¡°Such a sinful thing to do.......But, even so, God will forgive you! However, one must never waste bread.¡± ¡°Sister.......What should I do?¡± ¡°That bread is blessed! One must not waste it, instead one must hand it out to starving people. That way it won¡¯t be wasted!¡± ¡°Sister!?¡± How much longer should I keep watching this lowedy scene.......? I silently stared at the two women, embracing each other. In some way, it was a religious preach, so I won¡¯t scold them and I won¡¯t be disrespectful towards them. But, in reality, I found this whole thing to be annoying. Still, her entrance caused the two women¡¯s bodies to freeze in ce. ¡°Zest-sama, it¡¯s time for your break.......Oh my, sister, what happened?¡± It was Bea, with her E cup battle strength. ¡°Such.........such........power-nya........¡± ¡°Oh God........This trial is just too................¡± The two women left the office with staggering feet and ghastly pale faces. Strictly speaking, it might be a bit disrespectful, but I can¡¯t me them. ¡®Those breasts were so big they broke my heart.¡¯ It would be too troublesome to hear this answer, so I decided to leave this whole thing behind. ¡°?........What¡¯s wrong with those two?¡± ¡°Bea.......just leave them be.¡± I took out the letter and decided to drink some tea. Enough was enough. ¡°I see. So that¡¯s what happened......¡± (Ahaha, bread is not boobs!) While drinking some ck tea, I finished exining Bea, who looked rather disturbed, and Toto, who rolled about withughter, the weird circumstances from before. After that, I looked at the letter. The first part contained our travel permission, and when I told the two girls about it, they grew extremely happy. Thetter part........was just as I thought. ¡®Our Holy Country of Lc has many sisters. Since the chest bes a great obstacle when taking the praying pose, this is a serious problem for us. I already prepared the expenses therefore I want to request that bra thing.......Because of religious reasons.¡¯ And so, we started to export the bra to the Holy Country of Lc. The Duke Domain¡¯s high-ss item, the ¡®Spirit¡¯s Bra¡¯ became more and more epted and praised by women. We could also mass produce other things......However, the ¡®Spirit¡¯s Bra¡¯ needed the dwarves¡¯ cooperation for the mass production, the same dwarves who were in charge of making the ck knights¡¯ armors. The ultra-first-ss craftsmen we brought from the Frontier Count¡¯s Domain had to make minute adjustments to the ck wolves¡¯ tails. ¡°Instead of armors, we have to make breasts equipment!?¡± At first, the dwarves continued to yell. However ¡°You must make minute adjustments......Look, touch this one! If you touch this ce, it feels kind of strange.¡± ¡°.................It can¡¯t be helped if it needs adjustments. Let me see.¡± It seems they couldn¡¯t win against the breasts¡¯ charm. Since the maids unit were already used to this, from their chain mails¡¯ adjustments, so they wouldn¡¯t mind being touched by the craftsmen. After all the touches and confirmations, the dwarves¡¯ craftsmen¡¯s souls ignited. ¡°!? They change so much!¡± ¡°Oh! This is certainly a drastic change!¡± ¡°We must do it right, with feeling and all.¡± ¡°Ah? We have a request for armors? Wait for a while, this onees first!¡± And so, with great effort, we gave birth to the ¡®Spirit¡¯s Bra¡¯. ..............It was all right since it yielded great profit, but, you know, I kept wondering where my domain was heading towards. ¡°But I¡¯m so looking forward to our trip! For some reason, my heart is beating so fast!¡± (A trip with everyone! Toto is looking forward to it too!) ¡°Right. We¡¯ll go to a trip together. First of all, we must enjoy it to the fullest! Thank you, Bea, Toto.¡± A was lost in thought for a while, but they were very considerate of me, so I felt grateful. ¡°Thetter part of the letter........requested the bra.¡± ¡°.........Oh my.¡± (Will they fill it with bread again?) We decided to stop making fun of Katalina, instead we started to discuss our trip¡¯s arrangements. Bea and Toto pressed their wish to go see the Grand Cathedral without fail. In addition to that, we could also eat rare foods and see pretty fountains. We talked together about all the fun things we would do during this trip. At such a great family time, a truly inelegant guy intruded. I could feel his presence. ¡°Your Excellency! Please give us that new equipment that helps training the chest, that bra thing!!¡± ¡°Albert, are you gonna wear it?¡± ¡°Albert, go home!¡± (Will the mongrel fill it with bread?) Albert stared at us, swinging his tail cheerfully, butter that day, he ended up crying as he got turned into the dwarves¡¯ toy............. Chapter 91: The Holy Country of Lilac Chapter 91: The Holy Country of Lc ¡°You are very wee, your excellency, Duke Zest! We, the holy knights troupe, will be your escort and your guide for your stay here.¡± The brave looking women knights informed us and saluted. ¡°I see. I am grateful to the Pope¡¯s concern.¡± ¡°Yes sir! Then, we will bring you to them right away!¡± The women knights started to arrange the horses, while I waited inside the carriage. ¡°Even though they are women, the holy knights troupe is quite famous.¡± (They¡¯re all so white and glittery!) This was the holy knights troupe that the Holy Country of Lc was so proud of. It was a unit of elite female soldiers only.....I didn¡¯t imagine they would act as a guide and escort for a couple of foreign travelers and evene to the state border in order to wee us. Are they really attaching such importance to me?......Or........ ¡°Look at the chests of those women from the maids unit.......¡± ¡°The Duke¡¯s Army¡¯s maids unit.........We can¡¯t lose to them!¡± ¡°They are not shaking even while horseback riding..........Really?¡± ¡°What a presence!¡± The highly-regarded thing here is actually the bra....... I enhanced my ears with magic and listened to their talk, but then I decided to flirt with Bea instead. I was stupid for being vignt. For this trip, I made Albert lead the ck knights and the maids unit. I took as few people as I was expected to as a Duke; about 50 people. It can¡¯t be said that it was a veryfortable journey, but that was the situation. Now that about 50 holy knights joined us, we were a unit of 100 people.......It was rather intimidating. My trip, however, continued without any problem. ¡°Your excellency, Duke Zest, we wee you. The Pope is waiting. Please, if you may.......¡± We were about to enter the Grand Cathedral when we were told this. ¡®Sightseeing? The braes first. Hurry up! Hurry up!¡¯ Or so it seems. We were now inside the Cathedral, but we could not look around and enjoy it. We obediently followed the guide. (Mom, there¡¯s a picture on that ss ceiling! Wooooaa.......) Toto seemed to have lots of fun by herself and Bea responded her with a smile. Indeed, that stained ss was quite beautiful and sparkling. It was the main ent of this white building and it had a divine beauty. I didn¡¯t want to be made a fool of for looking around restlessly, so I endured it and followed the guide. She stopped the nest moment. ¡°Your grace, his excellency Duke Zest arrived.¡± ¡°Come in.¡± Was this room an office? Bookshelves decorated the walls, while the desk was right in the front. An old woman was sitting at it, dressed in priest clothes. ¡°I¡¯m Garbera, the Pope, thank you foring.¡± ¡°I am Zest Gaiyus-Tarminal from Grun Empire. It¡¯s a great pleasure to meet you, your grace.¡± ¡°I am Beatrice Gaiyus-Tarminal, your grace.¡± (I¡¯m Toto! I love sweets!) ¡°There¡¯s no one else here. You two should feel at ease. So, Toto likes sweets?......I¡¯ll make the preparations right away.¡± ..........What? Bea¡¯s eyes were round from surprise too. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Ah, did it surprise you that I could hear Toto¡¯s telepathic message?¡± Pope Garbera continued with a huge grin on her face. ¡°That Razatonia youngster didn¡¯t tell you anything?¡± ............Razatonia youngster? We were dumbfounded, but she continued to tease us, while preparing some sweets for Toto. ¡°Well, well, so he forced this onto me........that mischievous youngster. I bet it was very harsh for you, Beatrice-dono, with a grandfather like that.¡± ¡°Do, do you know my grandfather?¡± ¡°Yes, I know him very well. Even that youngster¡¯s weaknesses. Haha........He¡¯s like a grandchild to me. Ah, make yourselvesfortable.¡± We sat down, our bodies trembling. It seems that this won¡¯t be just a regr trip........ ¡°Well now.....about why I can hear Toto¡¯s messages and how I know that Razatonia youngster.......Am I right that this is what you want to hear about?¡± ¡°Yes, if you¡¯re willing to tell us.¡± ¡°I would like to hear.¡± The Pope brushed Toto¡¯s hair and smiled. ¡°You two, be a little more at ease, I am something like a rtive.¡± ¡°.......Y, yes.¡± ¡°Rtive........?¡± Who is this grandma?........What is she trying to say? ¡°That Razatonia youngster and that Galef boy are this generation¡¯s Protectors......I know them very well.¡± .........Protectors?..........The Frontier Count and my foster father? What is she talking about? ¡°As for why I can hear Toto¡¯s telepathic messages, that is because I am a spirit myself. You didn¡¯t realize that?¡± (Ufufu, I knew it right away! Because Garbera has a gentle scent!) Pope Garbera is........a spirit......... I was too surprised to say anything. Bea waspletely frozen..... ¡°I¡¯ll exin you everything........about the Protectors......and about me.......You are the masters of a spirit, you deserve to know.¡± The Pope ced Toto on her shoulders and smiled. ¡°We have enough time, there¡¯s no need to rush. ......................Besides..................¡± She let Toto off and turned to face us with a serious expression. I gulped down my saliva and stared at the Pope firmly. ¡°If I don¡¯t receive that bra first, I would be too worried to tell you the story.¡± An old hag was rubbing her chest with a serious expression on her face. .................Isn¡¯t it.................a little toote? I refrained myself from saying that, and sighed deeply. Bea¡¯s eyes turnedpletely white; it was inevitable after all.......I¡¯ll leave her alone for now. Chapter 92: The Pope’s Confession Chapter 92: The Pope¡¯s Confession ¡°Well, where should I start.........¡± Pope Garbera drank some ck tea then put the cup down. This old priestess.......is she really a spirit? ¡°Shall I start with the story about myself?¡± I¡¯m sorry for making such a serious face, but would you put that bra away for a second? .......I can¡¯t concentrate on your story. ¡°I was born maybe about 300 years ago......Have you ever heard about the story of that hero who saved the people from a gue? That person was my father, and since then, I¡¯ve always been in this world.¡± Is it about that guy who achieved spiritification before me? I¡¯m sure I heard about him......However, she sure had an understanding environment if she could stay as the Pope for 300 years. ¡°Fufufu, this shape is a temporary one......My father¡¯s rtives and I take turns to work as the Pope. Don¡¯t let anyone know, by the way.¡± The old woman¡¯s body started to shine. Is she transforming!? Is she in fact a very beautiful woman or the sort!? The light vanished and it came into sight. ¡°This is Garbera¡¯s real shape......What do you think? You¡¯re shocked, right?¡± ¡°This is.......¡± ¡°...............¡± (Hoaaaaaaaa.............) What came into our sight was a refrigerator. Its height? About 180 cm; a fair-skinned fridge....... It has 2 two doors and a simple design....... This was nothing but madness. The fridge used its two doors as lips in order to speak. ¡°I have a nice body, with bust-waist-hip measurements as 200cm-200cm-200cm.¡± Ah, this is too much! Who made this thing!? ......................Eh? ¡°Bust-waist-hip measurements? Don¡¯t tell me...........your father...............¡± ¡°You figured it out? My father was a stranger who came from a different world......he was Japanese.¡± I never imagined that a Japanese would be part of this story....... The fridge was flipping its doors and continued talking. Bea, get yourself together! Your eyes look lost. ¡°Ah, I¡¯ll go back to my normal way of talking. That was tiring.......Well then, my father created me and then I became a spirit. It was really fun during those days. My father used to carry me on his shoulder and travel to so many different ces!¡± I used healing magic on Bea and she was starting to recover. The fridge continued to chat, its doors opening even wider. Toto wasn¡¯t perturbed.....She was sitting on top of the refrigerator. ¡°And then? When I put medicine and drinks inside to refrigerate, my father would alwayspliment me happily saying how wonderful and delicious they became! About that time I met my mother and, after a while, the children showed up. I used to y with them a lot! It was really fun! .........However, my father died.............¡± The fridge looked a bit sad. No, I actually have no idea how the fridge felt, because it didn¡¯t show anything on the surface...... ¡°Before he died, my father said ¡®Help my children in order to live happy lives¡¯. That¡¯s why I always stayed here, protecting my father¡¯s children!¡± ...................I see. This was that Japanese guy¡¯sst wish............. ¡°And then, when I heard that a Japanese man came to this world and even created a spirit, I was very happy! I decided then that I will help this person who is a Japanese, just like my father!¡± The fridge let out a cold sigh and then continued its talk. ¡°That¡¯s why I want us to get along! That¡¯s why I made that girle to your domain. That girl is really strong, so she¡¯s all right by herself!¡± ¡°That girl? You mean, the sister?¡± I let Bea rest on the sofa, then asked. ¡°That¡¯s right. That girl.......she is kind of too simr to my father, she¡¯s a little weird, but she¡¯s very strong! I want you to get along well. I also want us to get along well.¡± ¡°!? That sister........Is she your father¡¯s granddaughter?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. She¡¯s the next Pope. You should make friends with her, okay?¡± ...............Will the Holy Country of Lc be all right? ¡°Yes, she¡¯s been taking care of me and I don¡¯t intend to neglect her either.¡± The fridge seemed to haveughed? It pped its doors again. ¡°I¡¯m not referring to a marriage or something of the sort, I just want you to get along well as friends. You don¡¯t need to worry!¡± ¡°I, I see.¡± (Dad, Garbera is not lying. She wants to be friends with us.) Toto, sitting on top of the fridge, informed me with a smile. I wonder if I should believe it when Toto is saying that everything will be all right....... Be friends with a fridge......What is wrong with me?....... ¡°T...then.........I¡¯ll be in your care.¡± The refrigerator pped its doors even more intensely. ¡°I did it! I¡¯m so happy. Let¡¯s get along well, all right? Do you want some juice?¡± ¡°.................Thank you.¡± (Toto wants too, Toto wants too!) The juice that came out from the fridge was indeed delicious.......For some reason, I felt defeated. After that, Bea came back to life and joined our fun? tea party. ¡°Oh my, this is the first time I¡¯m eating this, but it¡¯s so delicious......Pudding, was it?¡± ¡°My father loved pudding, so I always carry some with me.¡± (Toto wants more!) I looked at this girls¡¯ party and decided not to think too much about it. This was a different world.......The exchange diary became a spirit after all. So it wasn¡¯t too weird for a fridge to be a spirit either. I told that to myself. About the time the two girls finished their 4th pudding, the fridge continued talking. ¡°Ah, I forgot to tell you about the Protectors.¡± Right. The Protectors. Ipletely forgot about it......The refrigerator¡¯s impact was too strong. She corrected her posture and started to talk, but nothing more than a groan could be heard. Toto, close the door now! The fridge can¡¯t speak because of that. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you about the Protectorster. Everyone will meet us in a little bit, so I¡¯ll tell you this story then!¡± ............Everyone will meet us? What the heck does it mean? When I was about to ask her about it, a knock on the door interrupted me. We saw that light again and the fridge became an old woman. She gave her permission and a woman dressed in priestess clothes entered the room. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for interrupting your discussion. It is almost time.¡± ¡°Already?.......It can¡¯t be helped. Let¡¯s meet again at ater time. I¡¯m sorry but we¡¯ll have to end our conversation here for today.¡± Because she was the Pope, she was probably very busy, so we left the room quietly. The priestess guided us to another room and we decided to rest there for a while. We wanted to talk about it a little more, and we were in fact quite lucky to receive lodging inside the Grand Cathedral. It was also arranged for my subordinates to stand-by close to me, so it was no problem at the moment. We decided to take our time and visit the interiors of the Grand Cathedral. ¡°However, this was very unexpected.¡± ¡°Yes, we must be careful not to say a word about it.¡± (Toto will keep it a secret too!) We have to be careful since this is a great secret that must not be reveled to the outside world. We talked about this a bit and tried to rx when a priestess called out to me, her face pale. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for disturbing you, but the maids unit and the holy knights troupe started a sham battle.......¡± ¡°.....................What?¡± It seems that a battle between muscle brains just started. ................What¡¯s a honeymoon after all!?................ Chapter 93: An Enjoyable Spar Chapter 93: An Enjoyable Spar They started a spar.......That¡¯s what we heard, so we rushed to the training ground, only to see this............... ¡°Hahaha, the maids unit is so strong! You gained my respect!¡± ¡°The holy knights too, it was wonderful how you countered that one blow.¡± ¡°Ah, I prepared some more snacks.¡± ¡°Hey! That¡¯s mine, you know?¡± ¡°Awesome! This bra is awesome!¡± The women were holding a fun gathering of some sort. ¡°...................You guys. What about the battle?¡± Media energetically turned around and was about to stand up, but I stopped her with a swing of my hand. ¡°Your excellency, the truth is........¡± With an apologetic look, Media sent me a bashful upward nce. Stop it, you idiot; I don¡¯t like men looking at me like that. ¡°The holy knights troupe kind of teased the maids unit for their appearance......or something like that.¡± ¡°...............In short, the holy knights asked the maids unit to do their errands and you revolted. The quarrel transformed into a battle and a fun party afterwards?¡± Media showed a big smile. ¡°Yes! As expected from your excellency, you are very knowledgeable!¡± ¡°.................¡± It¡¯s a bit frustrating, but I can¡¯t scold her...... If it was a duel or a fight, I would¡¯ve scolded her, but I can¡¯t do it for a sham battle. The maids unit is taking care of my everyday necessities......In short, they¡¯re apanying me now as maids. They¡¯re not guards, like the ck knights, so in case they have free time, they¡¯re free to use it as they wish. ¡°.........Good. There¡¯s no fault in battling for the sake of friendship. Am I right?¡± ¡°You are right, your excellency.¡± Looking d, Media brought her hands together at her chest and bowed repeatedly. ......I wonder why I feel so annoyed? Should I punish her a bit, after all? ¡°Then, I¡¯ll join you too. It¡¯s for the sake of friendship, right?¡± Haha, that Media......It¡¯s been a long time since I knocked her down. ¡°!? Yeey! Please do, your excellency!¡± ................Huh? The maids, together with Media, started to make preparations, looking extremely pleased. Eh? Why aren¡¯t they against it? I thought I was being unreasonable. ¡°Zest-sama, it had an opposite effect.¡± (Dad, this is more like a reward than a punishment.) ¡°Since you¡¯re up against his excellency, fight with the intention to kill.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t die, all right? I can heal you, unless you¡¯re dead.¡± ¡°I¡¯m so d I joined the maids unit.¡± ¡°A sham battle with his excellency......Ahaha......a sham battle with his excellency........¡± What I meant to be a light punishment, turned into a great reward for them. The holy knights troupe joined us happily as well. For some reason, the sisters were waiting in line, practice-swinging their maces...... ¡°This is our sect¡¯s tradition!¡± A sister informed me when I looked at their practice-swinging, dumbfounded. Their tradition? Is that so? Half resigned, I slowly walked towards the middle of the training ground. ¡°Aaah.....I¡¯m so tired........¡± ¡°You should rest now, Zest-sama.¡± (Dad! Media¡¯s flight was so high, it was very funny!) The sparring finished after about 3 hours; I was now rxing inside a room that was prepared for us. The sisters, with their fretful priestess clothes, came attacking me with their skirts¡¯ hem rolled up, and that wasn¡¯t a dream. It was the first time I wasn¡¯t happy at all for seeing underwear........ I was about to sip some tea when Bea stopped my hand and smiled. ¡°Oh my, did you remember the sisters? Ahaha.........¡± (We could clearly see their panties!) ¡°........Is that so? I didn¡¯t even realize.¡± Why did I say that!?...... ¡°Do you like their priestess clothes? Do the sisters please you?¡± (Ah~! Toto must fall asleep now. Good night.) Toto! Please don¡¯t leave at this point! ¡°What are you talking about? The only one that pleases me is Bea.¡± ¡°........Is that so?.............Truly?¡± I brushed her head as she came closer to me. ¡°It¡¯s the truth......And about those sisters, I was just surprised by how different the fight waspared to the usual ones.¡± ¡°.......But still, since I got pregnant........you know.......about that....Zest-sama is not sufficiently satisfied?¡± So this is what she¡¯s worried about?...... For real now, Bea¡¯s the only one for me, so she shouldn¡¯t even worry about it. ¡°You were worried about that?¡± ¡°.......Leave me alone already!¡± Her face grew bright red as she started beating me repeatedly. I can¡¯t endure this......Yes, I really can¡¯t. ¡°Did you know? Once the pregnancy enters the stable period........It¡¯s all right if it¡¯s only for a short while.¡± ¡°.................I asked.........the maids about this. That¡¯s why........¡± Bea¡¯s eyes were a little muddy as I kissed her. I slowly pushed her down on the sofa, being careful not to be a burden on her body................ ¡°Your excellency! Why didn¡¯t you call for us to join the battle too!?¡± Bea fixed her dress as she got up slowly, grabbing her bardiche. I, as well, drew my sword as I dded myself in strengthening magic. ¡° ¡°Albert,e here for a second!¡± ¡° Afterwards, the Grand Cathedral resounded with the painful shrieks of a dog all through the night.......... Chapter 94: A Sudden Notice Chapter 94: A Sudden Notice ¡°Well now, Garbera, tell me again what you wish me to do?¡± ¡°It¡¯s....it¡¯s embarrassing........¡± ¡°It¡¯s not embarrassing. You are so wet down here.......¡± ¡°!? That¡¯s!.......Don¡¯t touch me there.......¡± ¡°Come on, say it out loud.¡± ¡°............I want you to.¡± ¡°What do you want me to do?¡± ¡°..................Defro...............¡± ¡°Defro?¡± ¡°I want you to defrost me!!¡± Seemingly enraged, Garbera was opening and closing her doors with a thud. She hasn¡¯t defrosted herself in 5 years, so there was a lot of ice gathered inside her. Since it was so rare to see a bashful refrigerator, I was quite satisfied and decided to help defrost her. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re skilled. It feels good.¡± Delighted, Garbera made herpressor buzz. I started to understand her emotions better only by hearing the sounds she makes. ........Though, saying that I grew to understand a refrigerator¡¯s feelings makes my head hurt. ¡°Good. I¡¯ve finished. Pope........Garbera.¡± ¡°I see. You must call me Garbera when we are alone! And thank you, I feel much lighter.¡± The fridge was in a great mood now and we started to drink tea inside her office. She called me here, saying that she had something to talk with me alone, but in reality, her business with me was the defrosting thing....... I was taking a break, drinking the tea that I poured for myself. It was my first time defrosting a fridge and, somehow, I felt worn-out. ¡°Oh right. I must tell you why I summoned you here!¡± ¡°.........Wasn¡¯t it about the defrosting?¡± ¡°Wrong! I have a message from everyone!.......All the other Japanese people are being offered protection, so there¡¯s no need for worry. However, inevitably, out of seven people, four of them are never going to go back. It¡¯s unfortunate........!¡± ¡°...............Eh?¡± A message from everyone? The other Japanese people........? Not minding my confusion at all, Garbera continued talking. ¡°Errr......Here¡¯s a letter exining all the fine details. Also, the rest of the Japanese people are rather healthy, so everything¡¯s all right.¡± The refrigerator seemed to have said something, but I couldn¡¯t understand any of it. ¡°Excuse me. I need a break.¡± I somehow managed to say those words, then took the letter and returned to my room. I soon as I reached my room, I checked the letter. ¡®First, I want to apologize for letting four of your fellow countrymen die. I¡¯m sorry......I don¡¯t think that apologizing would solve anything, but I want to tell you the reason why it happened. We, the demon race, weed the Japanese with our arms wide open, when the Frontier Count Razatonia sent them to us. Of course, we offered them hospitality. We thought that since we were familiar with the customs of Japanese people, there wouldn¡¯t be any problems. However, four of them.......two women and two men, didn¡¯t want to ept that this was a different world and ended up taking children and women as hostages. That¡¯s why we killed them. As for the other three, they epted that they came to another world and are now living quiet lives. They live in a sunny private room and have no difort whatsoever, when ites to their necessities. Of course, I assure you that no acts of violence or discrimination were conducted against them. After all, we have no intention to quarrel. Lastly, if you wish to meet them, I will make it happen. Just tell Garbera about it and I will make the preparations right away. The head of the demon race, Neebel..............To the visitor from a different world¡¯ ...............So, four Japanese people have died. The rest of them........I can meet if I wish to. I wonder how long I remained in that position. Before I knew it, I molded the letter and sat down, only to feel someone shaking my shoulders. ¡°Zest-sama!? Zest-sama!¡± ¡°Bea?¡± With tears floating on her face, Bea was desperately shaking my shoulders. ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t ask me that! Zest-sama, are you all right? Why did you make such an expression while crying!?¡± ...........Crying? Was I crying? Because of the shaking, I dropped the letter on the floor. Bea picked it up and herplexion changed. ¡°So, this is the reason why.......¡± ¡°......Yeah¡± I let them die. Right after I came to this world, my priority was to survive. It¡¯s true that they were nothing more than strangers who got summoned together with me.......They had nothing to do with me. However, I even forgot about thempletely and continued living by myself. To meet them at thiste hour? How should I even face them? ¡®What did youe here for at such ate time?¡¯ I¡¯m sure that this is what they¡¯re going to say....... I didn¡¯t know whether this ferocious trembling was caused by fear or guilt. Still, I couldn¡¯t stop it. Suddenly, all I could see was total darkness. ¡°Zest-sama, what¡¯s wrong? Do you feel responsible for them?¡± ¡°........Maybe that¡¯s it. I¡¯m scared, Bea.¡± She hugged me and whispered. ¡°Fufu, there¡¯s something even Zest-sama is afraid of. Why do you feel so guilty? Did you know them?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t know them personally......However, I let them die.......¡± ¡°That¡¯s wrong. Your life now is the result of your persistence and victory. Besides, relying on someone can make one spoiled. It would be unreasonable for them to demand things from you.¡± ¡°...............¡± ¡°If you are really bothered about it, you should meet with them. And we¡¯ll think about it together after that, okay?¡± ¡°..........Sorry Bea. You have such a miserable husband.......¡± Crying, I clung to her body and she started brushing my hair as tofort me, like I was a child. ¡°To me, there is only you. Even if the entire continent ends up criticizing you, I will be your only ally.¡± She said and smiled, at which point I disgracefully threw myself at her mercy. I continued to cry in her embrace......for what seemed like an eternity........... ¡°Bea, I will meet them.......¡± ¡°Yes, and I wille with you. Anywhere you wish to go.¡± I finally stopped crying at night; Bea kept on brushing my hair all this time. She epted me even though I am such a miserable person. It made me think about it again.......That all I really needed was Bea. I could clearly say it to them now, that I abandoned them in order to have her. For Bea¡¯s sake, I would make an enemy of the entire continent as well.......In case the Japanese people end up bing a hindrance........ We were sitting on the sofa just the two of us, looking through the window at the night sky. The red full moon was shining like it was supporting my determination. (Dad, Mom. Did you finish the baby y? Toto wants to go to the toilet.......) ¡° ¡°Toto, who taught you that?¡± ¡° Once in a while, I want to conclude things in a cool manner. But that aspiration of mine crumbled down in an instant............... It was all messed up after all!! Chapter 95: The Head of the Demon Race Chapter 95: The Head of the Demon Race ¡°I am d to meet you, spirit-sama, you two. I¡¯m Neebel, the head of the demon race.¡± Inside the Grand Cathedral, in the office, I met with the demons¡¯ chief. The fridge was here too, but she said she was going to be quiet this time. ......She was just a refrigerator at this point. The man was tall and had silver hair; he looked young. He also looked rather tough, giving the impression of a soldier. He kept his long hair carefully tied at the back, however he didn¡¯t give off a feeling of weakness. ¡°Well, first I must apologize to you. Zest-dono, I¡¯m really sorry.......¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s me who should be sorry........I apologize for my fellow countrymen¡¯s misconduct.¡± After both of us apologized, we had a silly chat. Without that, we couldn¡¯t get to the real topic.......Well, to the arrangement in this case. ¡°And so, Zest-dono, do you want to meet with them?¡± ¡°That¡¯s the n. I want to confirm their situations.........Also, I feel it¡¯s somewhat my duty........¡± Neebel¡¯s face turned rigid rather quickly. ¡°You¡¯re worried about their situations? Duty? You¡¯re feeling guilty?........Or, do you still n to return them to Japan?¡± .........He said frankly. ¡°Japan is a constitutional country, so you¡¯re right to think so. That is a wonderful world where ethics is a priority. However, this world is different. If you don¡¯t have power, you can¡¯t live. Strength, riches, authority.........If you have none of these, all you can do is obey someone. This is how this world works.¡± He¡¯s right......This is the noble¡¯s society. Neebel said, after he sipped some tea. ¡°It¡¯s unfortunate that they got summoned here, but we had nothing to do with it. We offered them protection out of kindness, so we don¡¯t intend to receive criticism. Am I wrong?¡± ¡°.......You¡¯re not wrong.¡± ¡°You neither. But what are you to those people? Their protector? Their parent? Their boss?........You¡¯re just a stranger.¡± ¡°It¡¯s true that.....I¡¯m a stranger to them.¡± He¡¯sforting me. You did nothing wrong, or so........It¡¯s only natural to prioritize yourself. ¡°Haha, that world seems quite gentle. That country called Japan.¡± Compared to before, his expression now was rather soft. ¡°Kindness is seen as a virtue there, but here it¡¯s sometimes seen as a weakness. Please be careful.¡± ¡°I¡¯m grateful to your words.¡± ¡°No, you already know that anyway......I will make the preparations for you to meet the other Japanese. I had to first verify your reasons, so I¡¯m sorry for taking this long. Also, I need a little more time. If news of this leak out, it can get really dangerous.¡± He¡¯s taking care of me.......Well, well. He even saw through all my worries. After that, we decided that I would meet the Japanese people one week after. As for the ce, we decided to use this office, inside the Grand Cathedral. They wille disguised as pilgrims. He¡¯s being very careful.......I wonder if those whoe here from a different world are really in such a dangerous position? ¡°Zest-dono, I will only say this. We don¡¯t intend to oppose you. Our duty is.......No, I will eventually tell you about thister........¡± What Neebel started to say before he left, stirred up my curiosity. Duty?........There must a secret behind it....... However, there¡¯s no need to force the information out of him right now, I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll exin things to meter. If he can¡¯t do it now, it means he has a reason for that. And so, the interview with the demons¡¯ chief, Neebel, ended. As a demonic being, he was extremely different than I imagined, and it seemed we would get along pretty well. Just to be sure, I will still be vignt around him, but I¡¯m sure everything will be all right; he said he was an ally. .........I felt relief. ¡°Wee back, Zest-sama.¡± (Wee back, Dad! I ate three puddings!) ¡°Ah, thanks. Toto, your stomach will explode, you know?¡± I returned to my room and rxed. I ced Toto on my shoulder and brushed her hair. ¡°Don¡¯t think too much about it. From now on, I think that you should only do the things you can.¡± ¡°Ah, Neebel-dono said the same. I was supposed to know this already.¡± ¡°Come on! You¡¯re not supposed to, you have to know it!¡± Bea beat me on my chest repeatedly, and I brushed her hair lightly. She was also a person who worried lots about me........ The demons seem to be allies too, so I felt much better now. ¡°You¡¯re right. I¡¯m all right now. Sorry for worrying you.¡± ¡°........Then, I¡¯ll forgive you.¡± (Ah~, Toto feels sleepy~ I¡¯ll go sleep now.) Toto said those words in a monotonous tone, and disappeared in the bedroom. I kissed Bea and pushed her slowly on the sofa. ................Good, Albert won¡¯te this time. Just to be sure, I tied him up and left him in the bathroom, so everything¡¯s safe. ¡°Urm......do you want it.......here?¡± ¡°Is it no good, Bea?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that.......it¡¯s no good, I¡¯m just embarrassed.¡± I deliberately took my time to strip Bea of her dress, as her face got even redder............ (Dad! Mom! This is bad! This is really bad!) We were half-naked as we just got to the good part, when Toto came flying in her underwear. What happened? What¡¯s wrong!? Extremely surprised, I was hiding my important parts. .........Unfortunately, Bea was doing the same. ¡°Wh...what happened, Toto-chan?¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong? An enemy attack or?¡± Crying, Toto made a tragic face as she started to inform us. (I¡¯m having a baby............Toto is pregnant!) ¡° ¡°Toto, you overate!¡± ¡° Toto didn¡¯t seem to agree as she continued to pat her stomach, and she cried and cried........for what seemed like an eternity............. Of course, it all went to ruin today as well..............I wanna cry too. Chapter 96: Let’s Go Sightseeing Chapter 96: Let¡¯s Go Sightseeing ¡°Zest-sama, it feels really good.¡± ¡°Right? It¡¯s the best.¡± (Dad! It¡¯s so spacious, it¡¯s amazing!) We were going to meet the Japanese people in a week. And so, we searched for sightseeing spots close to the Cathedral, and we found this......I never thought they would have an onsen 1 here. Furthermore, it was located in the vicinity of the Grand Cathedral, and it even had an open air bath 2; this ce must be visited. ¡°You reserved the entire ce, so it¡¯s quitefortable.¡± ¡°Bea, I won¡¯t restrain myself when ites to an onsen. I took advantage of my political power.¡± (Garbera helped too, saying that it¡¯s inevitable for a Japanese to act like that!) Yes, Garbera and I joined our forces and made it happen. Because it was an onsen......They listened to my selfishness. ¡°Haha, it can¡¯t be helped.......Still, this onsen is wonderful.¡± (Yes, it feels so good! Dad loves hot springs. Do you love them more than Mom?) ¡°........I love Bea more, obviously.......What?¡± ¡°Just now, you thought about it.¡± (Were you troubled to choose, Dad?) We wereughing and rxing inside the open air bath. Since it was an onsen, we were all nude........we weren¡¯t even using towels. Well, I won¡¯t let them use any, anyway! I was extremely satisfied, both with the bath and with the splendid view............... It¡¯s not always good to stay in an onsen for too long, so, when we felt like it, we went out. After a short break, we would go back in...... When we got out, the maids unit entered the bath. ¡®This onsen is making your skin beautiful.¡¯ When Garbera told them this their eyes turn round from disbelief. If anyone interrupts them, they¡¯ll die, I¡¯m sure of it. Their ominousughter was quite scary, so we went back in our room and rested. The ce we rented was quite a wonderful inn, popr even among nobles. And I forcefully got it all for myself........I do feel a little bad about it though. The two girls seemed to be very pleased with the onsen, so we¡¯ll take a day only for bathing; tomorrow we¡¯ll go to the onsen district and buy souvenirs. We decided upon that and I finally had one day in which I could be carefree. However......Bea and Toto said they wouldn¡¯t bath anymore, so I was about to enjoy my forth bath alone, when an incident happened. ¡°.................Media, what are you doing?¡± ¡°Your, your excellency.........¡± At the entrance of the outdoors bath, Media knelt down, crying. ¡°Your excellency! I want to enter the open air bath too!¡± ¡°.........Then do so.¡± ¡°But I want to enter with everyone!¡± ¡°Ah, I see.¡± I seized Media¡¯s both shoulders and informed her. ¡°Give up!¡± ¡°!? But.......Can¡¯t you do anything with your power, your excellency?¡± Because she was troublesome, I used strengthening magic in order to intimidate her but she put up with it...... She was really troublesome.............You can¡¯t enter the women¡¯s bath, it¡¯s a crime, you know? ¡°Media.......The women¡¯s bath is off limits.......But the men¡¯s bath is mixed, so you¡¯ll have to endure it.¡± ¡°Yes! Thank you!¡± Huh? She didn¡¯t want to enter the women¡¯s bath? I saw Media off as she hurried towards the mixed bath. ...............What is about to happen? I was a little anxious as I, too, went towards the mixed bath. I thought Media wouldn¡¯t feel uneasy in the men¡¯s bath, since it was a mixed one. Bea said she wouldn¡¯t enter the baths anymore today, so the open air bath was free. Someone from the maids unit must be here with Media. With this faint expectation in mind, I entered the mixed bath. I entered the washing ce and was weed by the disappointed look of several ck knights. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you? Making such a face.¡± ¡°Your excellency, excuse us!¡± The knights stood up and saluted, but I stopped them. ¡°You can stop. We¡¯re all naked.........There¡¯s no need for it now.¡± ¡°Yes, that helps, your excellency.¡± ¡°I felt pressed....Can we still enter the bath?¡± ¡°You really love this onsen, your excellency......Your body will get wrinkled, you know?¡± The knights washed their bodies, noisily. After we entered the bath, I inquired. ¡°So, why did you make such faces back then?¡± They said, a bit awkwardly. ¡°We thought that the women finally came.......¡± ¡°They tricked you.¡± ¡°Why wouldmander Media do such a thing.......?¡± .............These guys are idiots. How long did they even wait!? ¡°I understand you......But you¡¯re idiots.¡± ¡°But you have it good, your excellency.......right, guys?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Bathing together with her excellency Beatrice, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s so great......your, your excellency! Don¡¯t shoot it, don¡¯t release your magic here!¡± ¡°................I like Toto-chan more?.......Argh¡± I got rid of two dangerous knights then rxed in the bath. Ah......This is the best. When I casually looked at the washing room, I saw Media entering it silently. ¡°Oi, Media. Don¡¯t mind us, ande enter the bath.¡± ¡°It¡¯s, it¡¯s okay! I can stay here........¡± Media waved her hand vigorously, and because of that, something fell down from underneath the towel she used to cover her body. ¡°? .............Re, retrieve that! Retrieve that thing right away!¡± The ck knights hurried to capture Media and the object she dropped. The thing she dropped was......... ¡°A recording magical tool.....you say?¡± Yes......It was simr to what I gave my foster father as a present some time ago, a tool that records pictures. Everyone¡¯s nces were directed towards Media. ¡°Media.......you..............¡± ¡°Your excellency......forgive me. The maids wanted this at any cost so they asked me to.........¡± The ck knights held Media down and she started to cry. It was kind of a chaotic scene. A bunch of naked guys pinned down another guy who looked like a woman and, ultimately, made her cry. This is bad, my head is going crazy. ¡°It was only an attempt, right? I will pretend I haven¡¯t seen anything, you guys should forget about it too. You should instead feel happy that you¡¯re popr among the maids. You should go to some drinking parties and deepen your rtionships, all right? I¡¯ll tell Albert about this too.¡± As I wanted to run away from this disgusting scene, I dered at once, and, without waiting for their answer, I took refuge into the dressing room. I didn¡¯t have any interest in watching naked men, after all. I wiped my body, while thinking about the previous scene........dear me! When I returned to my room, Bea and Toto were already asleep. They were quite in high spirits the entire day, so it was inevitable...... I looked at their happy sleeping faces, then sat down on a chair and checked my luggage. Good, it¡¯s all right. I grinned broadly as I looked at a recording magical tool, which had pictures of Bea entering the open air bath. ¡°Haha, as I thought, Bea is the best.......This will be a heirloom!¡± I was in a great mood as I watched naked pictures of Bea and drank water straight from the water jug. The real thing is great too, but I really wanted some pictures. ¡°..............You¡¯re in such a great mood, Zest-sama!¡± (Ah! Mom¡¯s naked pics! Do you have a picture of Toto as well?) I turned around slowly and saw Bea, her expression cold; it was a long time since Ist saw that Frontier Count-like smile on her face. I patted my stomach, which was starting to hurt, as I knelt down on the floor. This day was going to be very long...............I don¡¯t want to die................ 1. Japanese hot spring 2. rotenburo; Read more about onsens on wikipedia Chapter 97: It’s Been a Long Time Chapter 97: It¡¯s Been a Long Time ¡°It¡¯s been a long time, your excellency Zest. You look good.¡± ¡°I¡¯m d that you are doing well, your excellency.¡± The ones who greeted me were a Japanese old man and a young woman. We met again inside the Grand Cathedral¡¯s office. The old man seemed to have lost some weight; he cut his gray hair short too and now released an aura of an old gentleman. The young woman wore her long chestnut-colored hair tied at the back, and she seemed like a sociable and lovely person. Her style was good too......Bea red at me, so I let the matter drop. ¡°It¡¯s been a long time. I¡¯m really d that you¡¯re safe. You guys can leave after you finish the preparations.¡± The maids unit prepared the tea, then left the room. I waited for them to leave and saluted the two Japanese people again. ¡°Long time no see. You can talk normally now.¡± The two looked shortly at Bea. ¡°Ahaha, it¡¯s all right. I know that you are Japanese, just like Zest-sama, so I won¡¯t demand any courtesy from your part.¡± Bea told them and they seemed to finally feel relieved. ¡°Ha, well......that helps. I can¡¯t seem to grow ustomed to talking like that.¡± ¡°Thank you. I¡¯m not really good with formalities......¡± The thin old man wore a bitter smile and the young woman...... ¡°I heard there were three of you. Did something happen?¡± ¡°No, no. My wife didn¡¯t feel well so I came alone.¡± ¡°Your wife......You must be extremely worried.¡± ¡°I bet it¡¯s just amon cold. She¡¯s old so it¡¯s kind of inevitable.¡± ¡°Haha, he says that now, but before we left, grandpa was terribly worried.¡± After she teased him, the old man sent a short nce at the young woman. They seem to be getting along well. ¡°Grandpa, was it?¡± ¡°Haha, I¡¯m like a granddaughter to them. We have no rtives, so we live like a family.¡± The old man showed a shy smile when the woman teased him again. They sat side by side and they truly looked like a family to me. ¡°.......I¡¯m the only one who lives like a noble now. I abandoned you all.¡± I wanted to get rid of my anxiety first. So I boldly let out those words. ¡°Zest-san, it wasn¡¯t like that. You abandoned us? Did any of us ask you for help?¡± The old man looked fixedly at me. ¡°I don¡¯t think that you abandoned us. They.......the demons, told us about how you went through all those troubles to be a noble. That is something to celebrate, not to feel bitter about.¡± ¡°He¡¯s right. My head was fully thinking only of myself at that time, so I won¡¯tin about anything. Besides, nobility is impossible for me. I would die from worrying.¡± These were their true feelings......I confirmed it with observation magic. ¡°I understand.......Then, tell me about your lives now, how are they?¡± ¡°The demons are taking care of all our daily necessities. I never thought that, before dying, I woulde to a different world......It was a good present for me before going to the underworld. I even have a granddaughter now.¡± ¡°For the time being, we live our lives without worries.......We also don¡¯t have to work, so I kind of gained weight......¡± It¡¯s true that they are being taken care of. Just to be sure, I kept on using observation magic while I listened to their story. ¡°Then.....You don¡¯t need rescuing?¡± ¡°Rescuing? Who?¡± ¡°Eh? Are there any other Japanese alive?¡± ...............They¡¯re talking the truth. It seems there¡¯s no problem. ¡°...............I thought you would resent me.¡± The two looked nkly at me, and I continued to talk. ¡°I separated from you all, ultimately became a noble and obtained power. Why won¡¯t hee help us? Why is he the only one? Things like that...¡± ¡°I see. The ones who died said something simr.¡± ¡°Ah, those idiots......Those guys were truly idiots that couldn¡¯t have been helped.¡± ......These were some harsh words. ¡°We are the victims here, so it¡¯s obvious you must protect us. You also must apology to us and offer uspensations! .......Then......you must teach me magic too, don¡¯t trick me!¡± ¡°This is just a dream so no matter what I do, it will be all right....Or such.¡± .........Eh? Were they really that stupid? I don¡¯t even feel like saving those types of people. ¡°They were so foolish that even the demons felt sorry for them. It¡¯s a shameful story, those guys were a hindrance. All we wanted was to live peacefully in this world.¡± ¡°As one would expect, when you don¡¯t have enough understanding abilities, you¡¯d have to draw back. Since this was clearly not Japan, I often wondered why couldn¡¯t they try to adapt.¡± ¡°That¡¯s......I don¡¯t know what to say.......¡± ¡°We are not ming you, Zest-san. We didn¡¯t do anything for them either. If we wanted to live tranquil lives we had to let it happen.¡± ¡°He¡¯s right. We couldn¡¯t ask for a stranger¡¯s help. You went through a lot of trouble yourself. Besides, I really can¡¯t live the life of a noble. Living a quiet life is all I¡¯m asking for.¡± ¡°........I understand. In this case, we won¡¯t be able to keep in touch too often.¡± ¡°Maybe this is for the best. We want to silently live our lives like dwellers of this world.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why there¡¯s no need to worry about us. We¡¯re quitefortable now.¡± The two of them said andughed. Their facial expressions were calm and gentle, and they really seemed to have found happiness. If they start having rtions with the nobility, the danger will only increase......But if they want quiet lives, it would be best if we went separate ways. ¡°We¡¯ll do that then. I don¡¯t even know your names, but in case something happens to you, please rely on Zest. I will try to solve the problem with as much discretion as I can.¡± ¡°Err, my wife and I are okay with it. It is actually better for us this way, since we don¡¯t want to get involved with the nobles. However, my granddaughter is still young, so when we won¡¯t be around anymore, please take care of her.¡± ¡°Grandpa?¡± The old man stared at me with a serious expression. ¡°This child will be all alone. Please.....please.......¡± ¡°Grandpa, it¡¯s all right! You don¡¯t need to worry!¡± The old man bowed frantically, but the woman tried to stop him. Even so, he wouldn¡¯t stop. ¡°I¡¯m a noble, therefore I can support one or two women. I¡¯m also entirely devoted to my wife, so you can rest assured. Raise your head now.¡± ¡°Thank you very much. I can die now anytime without having regrets.¡± ¡°........Stop it! All you need to do is live a long life, stupid grandpa!¡± The young woman was moved to tears, but the old man consoled her by brushing her hair. He was worried about his granddaughter......If it¡¯s only this, I can surely cooperate. If they were to forcefully ask me for help, I would¡¯ve refused them. But this was different. ¡°It¡¯s good while we¡¯re still alive, but when we will be gone and you¡¯ll be alone, it¡¯s going to be tough, you know? It wouldn¡¯t be a problem if you could find a husband, but in case you can¡¯t, you¡¯ll have to ask Zest-san to give you some work to do. If it¡¯s only you, it would be easier to guarantee your safety so that you could work, right?¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right, really! I don¡¯t want to get married and I don¡¯t want to work! I¡¯m finally living an enjoyable life, so if I start working, I¡¯ll feel like I¡¯ve lost or something!¡± ...............And here I thought it was a good deal. Will this girl be all right? ¡°Besides, I like men who like other men! I¡¯m not an object of romantic interest!¡± .............This girl is rotten. After that, the battle between the old man and the fujoshi 1 girl continued. It became ridiculous; I already finished my third cup of tea and was getting kind of sleepy, but the argument hadn¡¯t finished yet. Maybe it would be better to leave this girl alone...... ¡°Your excellency Zest, we¡¯ll be taking our leave now. I wish you the best.¡± ¡°Your excellency, thank you for this recording magical tool! I will take good care of it!¡± The young woman was very pleased with her present, so she was in high spirits. Their conflict finally ended and they were about to leave, when it urred to me. ¡°Yes, I wish you the best too. I would also like to hear your names.......Or maybe hear the young woman¡¯s name. It would be easier for getting in touch if needed.¡± I didn¡¯t have any secret intentions. I was not that stupid to have secret intentions with a fujoshi girl. ¡°...........Zu.......Mari.¡± The woman said shyly. ¡°What was it? I didn¡¯t hear you.¡± The old man constantly stared at the ground, he wouldn¡¯t look at me. The fujoshi girl turnedpletely red. ¡°I¡¯m Mizuta Mari 2!! Did you hear it now, your excellency!!¡± Hold it, you can¡¯tugh at people¡¯s names, so just hold it in! ¡°What is the matter? You arepletely red, Mizuta Mari.¡± (Look Dad, the pond is shaking.) After Bea and Toto gave me the final blow, I couldn¡¯t hold it anymore. I burst intoughter, and as the little pond got covered in spit, she continued to tremble for what seemed like forever......... 1. Lit. rotten girl; females who enjoy BL manga/anime etc. Read more here if you want 2. Ë®Ìï¥Þ¥ê/Mizuta Mari; written like this it doesn¡¯t mean anything that could be funny, but when you pronounce it, it then bes a different word: ¤ß¤º¤¿¤Þ¤ê/mizutamari which means ¡®pool of water¡¯, ¡®puddle¡¯, ¡®pond¡¯ Chapter 98: A Notification from Home Chapter 98: A Notification from Home ¡°Your excellency Zest, a letter arrived for you from Miss Katalina.¡± Since the meeting with the two Japanese was over, I took Bea to that onsen again in order to enjoy our honeymoon, but once we arrived there, this letter was waiting for me. This time I made sure to make a reservation. I was in the room I booked, when I opened the letter; I had a bad feeling about it. ¡®Your excellency Zest, I¡¯m sorry for interrupting your fun trip. I thought that it was about time you¡¯d return, so I wrote this notification just to make sure.¡¯ ............She indirectly told me to go back. ¡®The Imperial Mage, Lamia-sama ising to visit in order to check on youngdy Tsubaki¡¯s training in homemaking arts. ¡°How is Bea? I want to see her soon¡± That¡¯s what she said.¡¯ ¡°Bea, it seems that mother Lamia is going to visit our ce.¡± ¡°My mother?¡± (Mom Lamia! It¡¯s been a long time!) Haha, it¡¯s been a long time since shest saw her mother. Bea looked really happy, and since Toto be emotionally attached to herst time we met, she seemed pretty happy as well. Still, she¡¯sing to check on Tsubaki.......Well, that¡¯s a valid reason. But I bet her real motive is to have fun during her visit. Let¡¯s see the continuation. I looked at the letter again. ¡®That¡¯s why, pleasee back soon. She already knows that you are having your honeymoon. ¡°I don¡¯t need any souvenirs.......I wonder if they have good cloths in that country?¡± These were her words.¡¯ Yes, yes. Clothing materials......I¡¯ll buy some for her. Well, since I just saw this letter......maybe we¡¯ll go back tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. ¡®About youngdy Tsubaki¡¯s training......ahem, education. There¡¯s no problem with it so you can feel at ease. I am awaiting your return.¡¯ Stop calling it training 1, she¡¯s not a horse. ....................Well, she is quite the stubborn tomboy, so maybe there¡¯s no problem in saying that. ¡°Bea, should we go back tomorrow or so? We have to buy some souvenirs for mother-inw.¡± ¡°Yes! Mother will be pleased with some clothes materials.¡± (I feel so excited! It¡¯s been such a long time!) I finished reading the letter and talked with the two girls. There¡¯s no need to hurry. We were nning to enjoy the onsen for the day, then go greet Pope Garbera and take our leave, but......... ¡°You¡¯re going back already? I¡¯ll be so lonely.......¡± She was leaking water as she clung to us in tears, so we ended up staying another night. As expected from another world, she didn¡¯t short circuited herself even though she was submerged in water. We bid our farewell to the fridge, saying that we¡¯ll visit again some other time, then we got on the carriage. ¡°You cane visit at any time. You may think of the Holy Country of Lc as your own home country.¡± The old hag.....ahem, the refrigerator who changed into a human saw us off; with this, our honeymoon was over. ¡°My dear rival, let¡¯s meet again.¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯ll pray that it won¡¯t be on the battlefield.¡± ¡°Next time we meet, I¡¯ll chop that arm of yours down! Remember this, okay?¡± ¡°Eeh? I¡¯ll beat you at your own game again, you know.¡± ¡°............I¡¯ll definitely catch up with you!¡± ¡°I¡¯m looking forward to it. I can still be stronger too.¡± These were some pretty hot parting words. But it was nothing more than a conversation between girls. At the border, the maids unit and the holy knights troupe said their goodbyes. Some of them started a fist fight, but I ignored thempletely. ¡°Women sure are scary.¡± ¡°They¡¯re savage.¡± ¡°Why can¡¯t they be a little more intellectual?¡± .............The ck knights were talking nonsense, but I ignored them too. You¡¯re all of the same kind anyway, muscle brains idiots. On our way back, there were a few times when bandits showed up, but the intellectual ck knights and the maids unit beaming with femininity scared them away. All the bandits did was toe in front of us. ¡°Gya......It¡¯s the ...ck knights and the Hades unit 2........!¡± The moment they saw us, they started to scream and scatter. ................Why don¡¯t they just quit being thieves? ¡°Zest-sama? Can¡¯t we?¡± (Dad, can¡¯t we?) Bea and Toto both leaned their heads to the side in a very lovely manner. Haha, they¡¯re adorable....... ¡°You¡¯re adorable but you¡¯re not allowed to hunt the bandits, all right?¡± Bea readied her bardiche in such a sweet style, while Toto readied her saw, made of dark magical power, in a very cute way too. ¡°........Anyway, put those away.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± (Okay.) While I listened to the far away cries of the bandits, I looked up at the sky. Before I became aware of it, these two girls turned quite warlike. Well, even so, I¡¯m not too worried about it....... ...............I¡¯ll discuss this matterter with mother-inw. Looking at the sky, I realized it was raining. This is rain.......They¡¯re certainly not tears. After an usual incident-filled journey, we arrived at my mansion. Seeing my home kind of calmed me down. The one who came to meet us was Kataline. ¡°Wee back-nya, your excellencies. Lamia-sama already arrived-nya.¡± ¡°Katalina, thank you for your hard work. She¡¯s already here?¡± ¡°Yes-nya. I have a message from her for you alone-nya, your excellency.¡± She said and handed over a piece of paper, on which these words were written. ¡®I have something to talk with you about in private. Keep this a secret from Bea. I¡¯ll be waiting for you in the office, son-inw-dono......If you don¡¯t hurry.......maybe I¡¯ll tell Bea about that time in the bath?¡¯ That time? ................That time with her in the bath!? I burned that piece of paper with my magical power and rushed inside the house. My stomach hurt so much that I couldn¡¯t breathe.............. 1. The word used here is Õ{½Ì/choukyou, and it literally means to train animals 2. I actually love this. The bandits call the maids unit/¥á¥¤¥É²¿ê  (meido butai) with another word that is pronounced the same Ú¤ÍÁ²¿ê  (meido butai), but ¡®meido¡¯ here means ¡®Hades¡¯ ¡®underworld¡¯ ¡®the realm of the dead¡¯ Chapter 99: My Mother-in-law’s Wish Chapter 99: My Mother-inw¡¯s Wish ¡°Oh my. It¡¯s been a long time. Have you been well, son-inw-dono?¡± ¡°It¡¯s been a long time, mother-inw. Errr........You¡¯re wearing some very proactive Western clothes.¡± Mother Lamia was drinking tea gracefully inside my office. She was wearing her usual maid uniform.....Is she requested to wear this uniform, that makes her look like an attractive maturedy, I wonder? Because I was in such a hurry to get here, my legs were trembling like a baby horse¡¯s right after its birth, so I applied some strengthening magic on them. I took a deep breath so that she wouldn¡¯t realize it, then sat down in front of her. ¡°A honeymoon, huh? That¡¯s lovely. I¡¯m jealous, you know?¡± ¡°Master will go with you right away if mother-inw tells him to. I want you to tell me your secret for how to preserve a rtionship¡¯s hotness forever, like you do.¡± We started with lip service. The nobles¡¯ customs are strict even inside the family. ¡®Precisely because it¡¯s family, it¡¯s perfect for practicing¡¯ that¡¯s what master said. ¡°You know, son-inw-dono.......¡± Finally, we could talk about the main topic. I drank some tea and prepared myself. ¡°Did you team up with the Holy Country of Lc in order to start a rebellion or something?¡± ¡°................What?¡± What¡¯s with this dangerous question?.......Don¡¯t say that the imperial capital believes this!? ¡°Mother-inw, that is impossible. Don¡¯t say that the imperial capital is suspecting me of such things?¡± ¡°One group of nobles made a fuss about it, that¡¯s all. Still, since this matter couldn¡¯t have been disregarded, I was dispatched here.¡± She made a troubled face, as she pped her iron fan. That iron fan was so heavy that, when she put it on the desk, the wood creaked....... ¡°However, dispatching a family member.......a rtive to solve this matter it¡¯s not really meaningful.......¡± ¡°But.......I was the only one, since I¡¯m an Imperial Mage.¡± ...............Well, it couldn¡¯t be helped that we monopolized the superior ranks. If they were to send an unskilled mage, they wouldn¡¯t have won against me. If they wanted to have the minimum hope of winning, my mother-inw was the only options.......Besides...... ¡°I see. So they want me to regard this only as a formality and nothing more.¡± ¡°It¡¯s great you understand things fast. You¡¯re not truly suspected. But the formalities are also important......It¡¯s quite a bother to be honest.¡± Mother-inw smiled sweetly. They needed someone to formally check things up. Don¡¯t the imperial capital nobles get tired of thinking only about formalities? ¡°That¡¯s why, half my work here is already done. All that¡¯s left is to take youngdy Tsubaki to the imperial capital with me, but........how is she?¡± ¡°She¡¯s all right. I train......ahem, educated her strictly. She won¡¯t embarrass us.¡± ¡°I see. I¡¯m relieved to hear that. Ah, about that attendant, she returned to her parents¡¯ home. Her parents found out that she did something improper........It was quite serious.¡± ¡°My goodness!¡± That attendant......Maybe one of those followers of Tsubaki from back then? I believe that she was trained at the Frontier Count¡¯s ce or something? Just as one would expect. ¡°Also, it was quite a big uproar when his Majesty¡¯s headdress disappeared, you know?¡± ¡°........My goodness!¡± She red at me. It wasn¡¯t me! It was Toto who threw away the emperor¡¯s wig! ¡°It can¡¯t be helped. But refrain from making too many pranks, all right?¡± ¡°I gratefully received your advice, mother-inw.¡± She told me with a smile. In case you want a liberal trantion, this is it: ¡®I feel rather sick about all this, so I don¡¯t care anymore.¡¯ ¡®As I thought, you¡¯re angry about it. I understand you.¡¯ Or something along these lines. Because, obviously, we couldn¡¯t say those words out loud, we had to talk indirectly. I kind of got used to ittely. After that, we talked about the honeymoon and the souvenirs.......as well as about the current state of my domain. My fishing vige seems to be a hot topic in the imperial capital. Since there are only a few ces that engage in fishing, fish is quite valuable. I gave her the souvenirs. After we talked this much, it was quitete. I could see the sunset from the window......I wonder if it¡¯ll be sunny tomorrow. We paused the conversation and I let my guard down for a moment; mother-inw took that change to approach me and sit next to me. ........A pleasant smell floated about and my heart started to beat fast. ¡°Err, son-inw-dono........No......Zest¡± She talked with an awfully erotic voice, as she twined her arms around mine and sent me an upward nce. This was quite effective since she looked like an adult Bea. ¡°What¡¯s the matter, mother-inw?¡± I asked her quickly, in order for me not to be even more perturbed by her chest touching my arm. Is she tempting me? This is........But she¡¯s and old.......sister and my mother-inw for that matter........ ¡°You see, I have a request from you, Zest.......Will you listen to it?¡± ¡°.........If there¡¯s something I can do, then sure.¡± I tried to give her a deceitful an answer as possible. I neither said ¡®yes¡¯ nor ¡®no¡¯. My mother-inw deepened that Frontier Count-like smile of hers, and she looked pretty scary at that moment. ¡°You¡¯re already this wary. It¡¯s a simple request......It¡¯s about my hair, you know?¡± ¡°..................¡± ¡°Hey? What¡¯s the matter? Your face is pale........I just want you to touch my hair again.¡± .............Again?..............She wants me to brush her hair again? You want the side dish too!? Right, mother-inw!? No, it¡¯s different......It¡¯s not that....... She¡¯s not really the naughty type of mother-inw, so it has to be a reason for this! ¡°Urm, mother-inw. Your hair?¡± ¡°Ahaha, you remember that you brushed my hair once before, right? That time, my hair became smooth and glossy. Maybe it¡¯s a property of your magic? Do it again, please.¡± So I did misunderstand?......... I thought it was strange; this kind of plot, with a woman seducing her son-inw, only happens in manga. ¡°All right. I¡¯ll try.¡± I started brushing my mother-inw¡¯s hair, as I imagined it. That shampoo and conditionermercial. I pictured in my mind that image of a moist and smooth........that vibrant coating on a woman¡¯s hair. I tried infusing some magical power in my hand as I caressed her, and her hair became more and more beautiful. .........This is quite interesting. I continued to brush her hair with both hands, as I observed the effects. As I absentmindedly brushed her hair, my mother-inw fell asleep. Her sleeping face was simr to Bea¡¯s. I continued to brush her hair, thinking how much alike these two were. ¡°Oh my, Zest-sama. I¡¯m so happy that you get along well with mother.¡± (Wooa, Dad and mom Lamia are making children!?) I turned my head slowly and saw two faces looking at me. They peeked inside the office. It was the usual ck haired girls duo. ¡°Zest-sama......shall we go for a walk?.......Let¡¯s have a little talk.¡± (Ah~ I¡¯m so sleepy. I¡¯ll sleep here next to mom Lamia.) The duo entered the room, talking with an empty tone in their voices. I wanted to tell them that it was all a misunderstanding. But, since Iid my mother-inw down on the sofa and offered her myp, as I brushed her hair to sleep, I was clearly in the wrong. .................Good bye everyone. I¡¯m going to get some fresh air.............. Chapter 100: One Thing after Another Chapter 100: One Thing after Another ¡°You¡¯re such a jealous person. There¡¯s no way I¡¯d do such things with son-inw-dono.¡± ¡°Hahaha, mother-inw. Please forgive her already.¡± ¡°........I¡¯m really sorry.¡± (Mom, your face is bright red!) We went for a walk, in order to have our little physically violent talk; what saw during this walk was a beautiful river and fireworks. Thanks to the pink diamond, the misunderstanding got cleared but, when we got back, mother-inw started to mock us. ¡°Bea, there¡¯s no need for you to worry. I only love you.¡± ¡°........Zest-sama, I¡¯m such a bad woman. Since I don¡¯t trust my husband.¡± ¡°The jealous you is also rather cute, so it¡¯s all right.¡± ¡°Zest-samaaaa!¡± ¡°Say, Toto-chan, do those two not see that I¡¯m here too?¡± (Mom Lamia, when they get like this it¡¯s impossible!) Bea and I ended up flirting with each other in a world meant only for us, but one careless word transformed everything into a battlefield. ¡°But, you¡¯ve never used your magic on me, to make my hair smooth and glossy........Why only mother?¡± ¡°Bea, your hair is always beautiful and glossy anyway.¡± ¡°Oh my.......is that so?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s true. It¡¯s so vibrant, it overflows with youth.......¡± ¡°My goodness! You say that, because I¡¯m old, my hair is all dried out?¡± Mother-inw had veins popping up on the side of her forehead. She was still here?......This is bad, it can actually turn ugly. ¡°Mother-inw, what are you talking about? Even I, who¡¯s only devoted to Bea, was startled by your fascinating charm.......¡± ¡°Zest-sama? Did my mother startle you?¡± A chilly, dark magical power started to overflow from Bea. This, I received this blow a few moments ago. I don¡¯t need this again. ¡°Hahaha, when you¡¯ll be more of an adult, you¡¯ll have that sort of charm too. I¡¯m looking forward to see what kind of woman my cute Bea will be.¡± ¡°You always treat me like a child.......I¡¯m going to soon be a mother, you know?¡± ¡°That¡¯s why. As there¡¯s still a little time, I want to make full use of it and imprint this cute Bea into my memories.¡± ¡°Zest-samaaa. It can¡¯t be helped then.¡± I brushed her hair gently, then we cuddled close together, smiling. Good! It worked! ¡°Son-inw-dono? Perhaps, you believe that you managed to sessfully deceive us?¡± I raised my head and saw the Frontier Count-like smile on my mother-inw¡¯s face, as she readied her iron fan. It¡¯s no good......That why¡¯s I can¡¯t handle old wo.........young-ish women too well. She forgave me after I promised that I would give her a bra as souvenir, then finally returned to my own room. Dear me.......In truth, my mother-inw only wanted that bra, I bet. Now, that my mother-inw was content, she would take Tsubaki with her and leave for the imperial capital tomorrow. The first stage was alreadyplete...... I drank some ck tea and looked at the bed. Bea fell asleep after I brushed her hair with everything I got. Toto was sleeping too......They really look like mother and child, don¡¯t they? I wanted to sleep too, so I stood up then crawled into bed. I felt their warmth and was happy that this day was finally over......... ¡°Zest-sama, are you asleep?¡± ¡°Bea, did I wake you up?¡± ¡°........I thought I should do something to apologize to you.¡± ¡°What are you going to do to me?¡± I gently embraced Bea, and was about to kiss her when... (Dad, bathroom, pee-pee) ................We could not do it. The next morning, I changed my clothes quickly and walked towards my office. Toto got in my wayst night so I was quite frustrated, but it couldn¡¯t be helped. I¡¯ll ask Bea to do me a favorter. I was grinning as I waited for my mother-inw inside the office. It was soon that mother-inw and Tsubaki showed up. ¡°Father, Tsubaki is here to see you!¡± ¡°Yea, mother Lamia is going to bring you to the imperial capital with her. Greet her.¡± Tsubaki turned to face my mother-inw and greeted her tly. ¡°Aunt Lamia.......¡± ¡°Well, well, Lamia is enough, you know? If you call me more than that, I.......don¡¯t know what I¡¯ll do.¡± ¡°Lamia-sama, please take good care of me!¡± Yes, calling her an aunt is very bad. Good job Tsubaki, you sensed it. ¡°Tsubaki-chan, Bea used to talk like that too, you know?¡± ¡°It¡¯s an honor to bepared to mother!¡± Mother-inw nodded in agreement.......Is it really all right like this........? Well, if it is, then great. Besides, was Bea really like this too once? ¡°You traine........educated her well, son-inw-dono. Well then, shall we go, Tsubaki-chan?¡± ¡°Yes ma¡¯am! Father, thank you for everything! I¡¯ll be going now.¡± ¡°Yes, take care......Let¡¯s meet again in the imperial capital.¡± Tsubaki was taken away by my mother-inw; she was getting further and further away. Well, she has to go to the imperial capital before getting married. ................I really hope that they won¡¯t turn her back into the stupid young woman she used to be. They left with a carriage full of souvenirs, and I could finally rx. There¡¯s a meeting with the elf prince at the imperial capital next month, so, until then, I¡¯ll take my time to do some paperwork. Maybe I¡¯ll start with the work that piled up during the time I was travelling? It¡¯s been a long time since I did paperwork, so I was quite fast at the time. After such a refreshing trip, I was moving right ahead with my work. I was doing well and, by night time, I already finished twice the work load I was nning to do. If I continue like this, I¡¯ll finish with work in two weeks.....Maybe we¡¯ll go to the seaside or something after that. As I thought about this n, a very sad notice reached me. ¡°Your excellency! This is very bad-nya!¡± Katalina plunged into the office, her face ashen. It seems that she settled down to a B cup. ¡°Katalina, you¡¯re a noble too now. Be a little calmer, all right? I already have enough of this with the maids unit and the ck knights.¡± I sipped some of my tea. This one has a good vor......It¡¯s a high ss tea that I¡¯m drinking today. ¡°Your excellency! Lord Albert said he is going to marry the sister-nya!¡± I ended up spurting out the tea. Getting married to the sister? Albert is? Just how in the world did theye to this.......? Another troublesome incident? I was already greatly perplexed when another misfortune fell upon me. ¡°Zest-sama........What are you doing to Katalina........?¡± (Woaa, older sis Katalina is fully exposed!) Because of the tea, her shirt got wet and becamepletely transparent. And on top of that, Katalina was trembling, her eyes full of tears........This situation.......... There might be a need for a talk...............again.............. Chapter 101: The Style of the Duke’s Household Chapter 101: The Style of the Duke¡¯s Household ¡°Where¡¯s that stupid Albert!?¡± ¡°In the reception room-nya, your excellency!¡± ¡°Ufufu, take care, my dear.¡± After I promised Katalina that I would buy her an expensive blouse, and brushed Bea¡¯s hair with all I got, I rushed out into the corridor. Toto was sitting on my shoulder......She ys the role of the overseer. But it¡¯s not like I would tease that junky sister or something, would I.....? ¡°Albert, you idiot, what did you...........¡± When I stepped inside the reception room, a fairly chaotic scene unfolded to me. ¡°Sister, I will take responsibility. Let me marry you and take care of you!¡± ¡°God........To take a break from God.........but I was still too inexperienced. But now that it came to this, I will start the fire again with water! And then, the rain will transform into a muddy stream and return to the sea. I must receive God¡¯s divine protection no matter what! We mustn¡¯t wait!¡± ...............I didn¡¯t understand a thing. I tried to sort the situation out. The sister was sitting on the sofa with her clothes ravaged; she was hiding her exposed chest. Albert was kneeling down in front of her, proposing. ...............In spite of everything, I still don¡¯t get it. ¡°Albert........please exin........¡± A maid brought some clothes and I asked the sister to go change. As one would expect, I couldn¡¯t leave a half-naked woman in that state. Besides, if Bea were to see this, other unnecessary problems would ur. ¡°Yes, your excellency.......The sister came to meet you. She brought a letter for your excellency.¡± ¡°Okay, it¡¯s all clear until now.¡± ¡°However, because the sister was very concerned about her chest, I demanded an exnation. I asked her about what she was hiding in there.¡± ¡°.........Then?¡± ¡°The sister did nothing but mutter things I couldn¡¯t understand........Like, a sister who talks in the name of God would never deceive the man!........¡± ¡°What did you do then?¡± ¡°I suddenly took off her clothes to check whether she........was hiding something.......¡± ¡°....................I see......................¡± This sure is a problematic situation............... Most likely.......that junky sister was keeping something at her chest, and Albert wanted to know what. She exined it in her ownnguage but Albert misunderstood her. The sister¡¯s ¡®God talk¡¯ was probably a bad choice. Albert revealed this God obsessed sister¡¯s pure and innocent body to the world.........or something like that. ¡°And after you stripped her, you felt responsible.......right? It can¡¯t be helped that you suspected her. But she¡¯s that sister, you know......I¡¯m sure there were other means to do this.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know how to answer this.¡± ¡°You know, this strictness of your is a virtue, but you should learn to choose your methods ording to your opponent. You¡¯re a noble, you have to learn how to use people, all right?¡± ¡°.......Yes.¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you use the maids unit?¡± ¡°.......Please forgive me for acting rashly.¡± Albert rubbed his head against the floor. ......Dear me! He¡¯s such a helpless guy. ¡°Leave the rest to me. You go report the details to Bea, and tell her toe here.¡± ¡°But¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay, so go. I¡¯ll do something about this. If you feel responsible, just return the favor on the battlefield.¡± ¡°..............As you wish!¡± I saw Albert off and drank some ck tea. ...............What should I do?..............I can¡¯t find a solution............. I tried to hide my stomach pain through drinking tea, as I waited for the sister¡¯s return. ¡°Zest-sama, I heard about everything that happened. What will you do?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t really me Albert for this......I must cleverly think of apromise n.......¡± Bea came to me, making a worried expression. It¡¯s true that when Albert became suspicious of her, he wasn¡¯t mistaken in his conduct. He wasn¡¯t mistaken, but he wasn¡¯t precisely right either. This was the problem. Still, Albert is my cute, trusted servant 1.......I want to save him. But this sister is the next Pope, so it¡¯ll be problematic if we don¡¯t agree upon something....... I kept on worrying about this, when the sister entered the room, her clothes changed. It seems that she is wearing Bea¡¯s clothes.......Her chest is hollow, but I¡¯m not allowed to look at that. ¡°Your excellency, thank you for your concern.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t say that. It is I who should apologize to you. Sister.........Am I too arrogant if I want to live by God¡¯s benevolence?¡± The sister sat on the sofa and, after she corrected her posture, she informed me. ¡°To live by God¡¯s benevolence is not evil. As a tree needs the earth, the water chases after the sea. To say nothing of an act of worrying about your neighbor and wishing for blessings upon another person, this is too in ordance with God¡¯s will.¡± (Dad, is this junky verbally impaired?) The junky sister smiled sweetly. ...............I see. I don¡¯t really get it, but it seems to be working. ¡°This incident with Albert, was precisely conducted by his concern for me. In short, it was as you said, sister, ¡®An act of wishing for blessings upon another person¡¯. Will God forgive this?¡± ¡°Fufufu, God will forgive it. I am inexperienced and imperfect. And since I am imperfect, asking the other person to be perfect would be a wrong reasoning from my part.¡± (!?Dad, I finally understood what the junky is trying to say!) ..............It was the first time I admired her as a sister. You¡¯re a wonderful person, aren¡¯t you, sister! Your speech is a piece of junk though. Besides, Toto, will you be a little quiet? Dad is trying his best not tough here. ¡°To your mercy, sister.......and to God¡¯s teachings, I offer my sincere gratitude and respect.¡± ¡°Sister, you have my gratitude and respect too........¡± We lowered our heads and the sister responded with a kind smile. ¡°No, I too didn¡¯t have enough self-control and ended up talking in the name of God......Please forgive my inexperience.¡± The sister made a praying pose, bringing her hands together in front of her inexperienced chest. I looked in that direction by mistake but Bea still pinched me. ................Women understand men¡¯s looks. (Dad, do you like her chest? Do you like them hollow?) Stop it! Bea is looking at me with a terrible expression, so please stop it! After all, I solved the problem quite cheaply; it only costed me a custom-made bra and some priestess clothes as presents for the sister. If she were to marry Albert, I would¡¯ve been suspected of rebelling and a war might¡¯ve started........ I saw the sister off; she looked extremely pleased with herself. She ended up with a custom-made spirit bra, not a mass-produced item........I kind of feel bad for the dwarves, but it can¡¯t be helped. I returned to my room, thinking about getting some rest, only to see Albert on the floor, waiting in a kneeling position. ¡°You idiot! How long are you nning to stay like that? Don¡¯t worry about the past. And don¡¯t do it again. That¡¯s all there is to it.¡± ¡°He¡¯s right. What¡¯s done is done. Next time do it better.¡± ¡°I will never forget your kind words!¡± Yes, this is good......I¡¯m quite the kind master. Albert was shedding tears as he lowered his head, at which point Bea said to him, wearing a kind smile. ¡°Albert, you have two more times left!¡± (Two more times! I¡¯m looking forward to it!) ................Two more times? Albert and I looked nkly at the two girls; we certainly heard them say that. ¡°Our house only allows for three mistakes. That¡¯s why, you have only two left, right?¡± ¡° ¡°What happens if there¡¯s a........fourth time?¡± ¡° Albert and I harmonized at which Bea informed us, as she put on a Frontier Count-like smile. ¡°The fourth time, you will take a walk in a faaar away and hiiiiiigh above ce. That¡¯s how things were in the Frontier Count¡¯s Household.......Do you disagree, Zest-sama?¡± (Woaaa, this looks like fun, Mom!) This is no good.......Albert begged me with his eyes to refuse Bea¡¯s proposal. ¡°This is a truly wonderful idea! Let our Duke¡¯s Household do the same.¡± ¡°......As you.............wish, your excellencies.........¡± It¡¯s not bad that he managed to say this, while his feet trembled violently........I can¡¯t oppose her and you know it. Sorry Albert.........and good luck............. Compared to a few moments ago, Albert¡¯s never ending cry had a different meaning now. 1. This is a wordy on the word ¡®fukushin¡¯; normally, it is written with the kanji for ¡®stomach¡¯ and ¡®heart¡¯ (¸¹ÐÄ) and it means ¡®trusted friend/retainer¡¯, but here the author changed the second kanji with another ¡®shin¡¯ (³¼) which means ¡®ve/servant¡¯ Chapter 102: Long Time no See, My Parents Chapter 102: Long Time no See, My Parents ¡°Gahahaha, it¡¯s been a while, Zest! How have you been?¡± ¡°It¡¯s been a long time, father.¡± ¡°Father-inw, it¡¯s been a long time.¡± (Dad¡¯s dad! Long time no see!) One week after the uproar caused by the junky sister wedding incident, we came to my foster father¡¯s mansion, on the Frontier Count¡¯s domain. We soon have to go to the imperial capital to meet with that stupid prince, and I also wanted to congratte my foster mother for giving birth. ¡°Oh, youngdy Beatrice........Bea, it seems that everything is going well with you too. Take good care of that child in your belly, all right?¡± ¡°Thank you, father-inw.¡± Despite beating my shoulder with unrestrained force, my foster father was very kind towards Bea. Discrimination! Ain¡¯t this discrimination? I healed my shoulder with magic, but he continued to strike it. ¡°First of all,e inside! We can talk after that. Gahahahaha¡± I kept on receiving his attack as we entered the mansion. Even the stone paving at my feet started to crack, but the servants were not surprised anymore. (Dad is quite sturdy! He¡¯s tougher than stone! Awesome!) I caressed the honest Toto as we entered the house and walked to the reception room. Here, a long-missed smile waited for me. It¡¯s been such a long time.......Reflexively, I smiled as well. ¡°It¡¯s been a while, Zest. How are you? You did not get sick during this time, did you?¡± She embraced me tightly. Ah......My mother¡¯s gentle scent........It feels like I¡¯vee home. However, my foster father started to show killing intent. Please stop! As always, he¡¯s deeply in love with mother Celica. ¡°It¡¯s been a while, mother. Did you lose a little weight? How¡¯s your physical condition?¡± ¡°Fufu, I¡¯m all right. But because I don¡¯t get enough sleep, I also have no appetite......¡± She said andughed, but she looked rather unwell. I used my healing magic on her as I helped her sit on the sofa. ¡°Thank you, Zest. I feel much better.¡± ¡°Mother-inw, it¡¯s been a long time. Afterwards, please show me the baby.¡± (Dad¡¯s mom! Long time no see. You smell good!) ¡°Oh my, Bea, your belly will start to show soon......I¡¯m looking forward to it.¡± With the women¡¯s excitement, our nice tea party started. I distanced myself from them in a casual manner as I wanted to absorb the situation. ¡°Zest, you will stay here for the night, right? Take your time and rx.¡± ¡°Thank you, father. I will do just that.¡± Are you angry that mother hugged me a while back? The power with which he beat my shoulder now was five times stronger than before. ¡°Besides, I have something to talk with you about......So please listen to me.¡± My foster father informed me, his expression serious. ...............As I thought, this was not just a simple sleepover party. I finally got to meet my foster parents again, but there was more to this visit than pleasure and fun. Once we finished eating dinner, I got called to my father¡¯s room. Bea and Toto were with my foster mother, chatting in her room. I was the only one who got called. In short, he has to talk with me in secret.......He must have something important to tell me. ¡°Father, this is Zest. What do you want to talk about?¡± I sat on the sofa opposite to him. My foster father wore an unusual pondering expression........This must be pretty grave. ¡°Ah, you might already know this, but you must not tell a word about this to anyone, all right?¡± ¡°I know, father.¡± He drank up a ss of wine and continued to talk. ¡°To tell you the truth, this is about Celica.................¡± ¡°About mother? What happened?¡± ¡°Yes......Right. After giving birth, her physical condition isn¡¯t quite excellent. You helped us today, Zest. You have my thanks.¡± ¡°Please stop. There¡¯s no need for thanking between us.¡± ¡°........Yes. You¡¯re certainly right. So, about Celica........¡± After saying this much, he stopped. I waited patiently for him to continue. I guess it¡¯s something difficult to talk about. I wonder how much time already passed? ......Atst, my foster father opened his mouth to speak. ¡°Celica, when she was finally.......finally.......able to do it, I got a little violent, unintentionally, and it all turned into this mess.......She won¡¯t let me touch her now!..............¡± ..............................? Eh? This is a lovers¡¯ quarrel, right? ¡°She won¡¯t even let me sleep next to her nowadays.............I don¡¯t know what to do!¡± I stared at my trembling foster father, weeping men¡¯s tears. Stop crying, father.........Besides, there are certain limits, you know? What are you? A youngster?....... Still, I do understand him. If Bea were to be like that.......Only by imagining it my stomach started to hurt. ¡°Father, you did well to talk to me. As a man, Ipletely understand!¡± ¡°Zest.......You understand me?........¡± ¡°Of course. In case.......Bea and I would ever be like that, I would utterly destroy one or two countries in an outburst of anger.¡± ¡°That¡¯s my son.......I am the same. I feel like going to war right at this moment!¡± That¡¯s a metaphor. It¡¯s only a metaphorical expression. ¡°Father, do you want to try learning to massage? You could give mother a massage and rx her body and mind!¡± ¡°.........What¡¯s a massage? Is it something I can do?.......¡± Yes, the massage has not yet permeated this world. For this reason, it should be effective. I took my worried father¡¯s hands, and started to exin. ¡°It¡¯s all right. The massage is a technique for making someone feel calm by gently rubbing their body. Anyone can do it with practice!¡± ¡°Only with practice, huh?.......But, I have too much power. I don¡¯t know if I can restrain it........¡± I see. He does have self-awareness. In this case, please be a little gentler with me too, father. But the traininges first......Good. ¡°Albert! Where¡¯s Albert!?¡± After that, Albert¡¯s shrieks continued to be heard all throughout the night. My foster father would break him, and I would heal him with magic. By down, Albert¡¯s eyes already lost their light, but a splendid masseur was born. My very excited foster father assaulted my foster mother¡¯s room early in the morning. ¡°.......Zest-sama, did I help?¡± ¡°Yes, Albert. You did well.....Take your time to rest.¡± ¡°.......Understood.¡± I drank some tea as I watched Albert burn out his me and pass out. It is getting brighter and brighter outside. .......What the heck did I do this whole night? I wiped away my tears as I returned to my room. Bea and Toto were sleeping next to each other. I got in the bed slowly and quietly, in order not to wake them up, and took a short nap. I woke up around noon. Bea and Toto waited for me to wake up, then we walked together to the dining room. ¡°Zest-sama, are you all right? You weretest night, so I was worried.¡± (Let¡¯s sleep together a lot today!) ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m all right. Thanks. Let¡¯s sleep a lot.¡± My parents were already waiting for us in the dining room. They were shinny and smooth.........Did they enjoy it? Well, it¡¯s great that they made peace and everything...... They were smiling and flirting with each other, and I decided to look away as I finished eating. I was drinking my after-meal tea when my father whispered to me. ¡°Oh, by the way, the demons¡¯ boss ising here this afternoon.¡± He said it so casually, like he just told me that he¡¯ll go to the convenience store. My body became stiff. ...............You should¡¯ve informed me about this first, instead of your lovers¡¯ quarrel. I have a bad feeling about this. Chapter 103: Neebel, Again Chapter 103: Neebel, Again ¡°It¡¯s been a while, you two. I¡¯m d that spirit-sama is well too.¡± The demon race¡¯s head, Neebel greeted us with a smile. Inside my father¡¯s mansion.......in his reception room, we were enjoying another encounter. ¡°I¡¯m d that Neebel-dono is looking well too. How about them?¡± ¡°Yes, they¡¯re good. Especially the girl, who is very pleased with her recording magical tool, doing all sorts of things with it.¡± ............The fujoshi? 1 What is she doing with that magical tool? Was it Mari-chan? I won¡¯t say her full name though. We started with the greetings, and continued with a harmless chat. It was like he was a noble friend of mine who came for an appointment. We got into the main topic about the time when my tea got cold. ¡°Duke Zest, I have something to tell you.¡± ¡°Yes.......You said something about itst time. Was it about your duty?¡± ¡°Yes, I thought that it was about time I¡¯d talk to you about it.¡± He took a fleeting nce at us. Sitting next to me were only Bea and Toto. My parents were not present from the beginning and the maids quickly left the room after preparing the tea. ¡°Our duty is to watch over this world. We are its overseers. Duke Zest, what I want from you is your coboration.¡± ¡°Overseers?......Something like low enforcers or mediators, right?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s not too different from that. However, overseer is more urate. We look out for this world, in order for it not to make errors.¡± ¡°And you want my cooperation?¡± Neebel smiled and continued. ¡°Yes, all of you. We did our research and there¡¯s no problem concerning you three. And you also have the necessary qualifications.¡± ¡°........Qualifications?¡± ¡°Yes, you are qualified to be overseers only by being the spirit¡¯s masters. Besides, you¡¯re a stranger from a different world who can use light magic. There¡¯s noint against you, duke Zest.¡± ¡°I see......¡± I looked at Bea and she had aplicated expression. No wonder she does. I bet my face looks simr right now. They suddenly tell us to cooperate and be overseers.......To be honest, I don¡¯t even know what that implies. ¡°I understand. But first, before I give you my answer, I want to hear details about the overseers and about what you need our cooperation for. Zest-sama, are you all right with this?¡± ¡°Yes, it depends on the contents of your request. There¡¯s a limit to what I can do after all.¡± Thanks for assisting me, Bea. I felt that the conversation was more concentrated on me, so I was rather pressed. He is under his wife¡¯s thumb. If Neebel thinks of me like that, it¡¯ll get considerably easier for me. ¡°Duchess Beatrice, it wasn¡¯t my intention to disregard you. I¡¯m sorry. All right......The job of an overseer is quite simple. We make sure that a science civilization won¡¯t ever develop here. And, what I want your cooperation for is to not spread the technology of your world in this world.¡± I was speechless, for his request was unexpected. He came to tell me not to let technology grow in this world? ........I taught them how to make bras, but I guess that was safe...... ¡°The bra is all right. However, if you were to use technological textiles for it.......then it would¡¯ve been a different story.¡± Neebel smiled, and I sensed his dreadfulness more than it was necessary. ¡°I watched you up until now, duke Zest, but you didn¡¯t teach anyone any scientific techniques. Therefore, I felt relieved. Well, since that refrigerator is a magical tool, that thing is all right but........¡± ¡°If one makes a refrigerator using science?¡± ¡°Of course, they will be the overseers¡¯ target.¡± I instinctively asked, but Neebel answered me without altering his smile. I¡¯m saved by myck of technological knowledge.......Thanks god I¡¯m stupid...... A war against the demon race is just too bothersome. ¡°Science and technology.......Can I ask why?¡± ¡°That is.......for protecting this world. I still can¡¯t tell you everything but we, the demon race, the dragon race and the spirits won¡¯t allow the development of science and technology in this world. I want you to remember this.¡± .......Right, these are precisely the races I don¡¯t want to antagonize. I¡¯ll just obey for now. Even without technology, I didn¡¯t have any trouble living my life here. I also want to avoid pointless hostility. ¡°I understand. I will cooperate. There¡¯s no advantage for me in opposing you all and propagate technological practices in this world.¡± ¡°I agree. I have no interest in that science thing.¡± (Dad, who is Science?) These two didn¡¯t understand what science was in the first ce, so they nkly epted Neebel¡¯s request. They didn¡¯t understand a thing from our talk......But, they didn¡¯t want a fight against the demons. At least they understood that. Still, for me, this was a major thing. The science civilization is prohibited....... Well, they do have magic here so science it¡¯s not really needed anyway. After that, without any problems in particr, we continued with our chat and, after a short while, Neebel left. So, this is a world in which technology is negated....... or, it might be better to say that it is under close observation? I must have to investigate this matter a bit. I was drinking tea in my room as I looked outside the window. This world¡¯s secrets?......Is it better to know or not to know about them?....... I asked myself this but the answer was forever hidden. ¡°Zest-sama? Are you going be upte?¡± ¡°Bea?...... I¡¯ll go to sleep now. Let¡¯s go together.¡± Bea came check on me and we went to bed together. She hugged me closely and I brushed her hair. Whatever happens, I will protect Bea no matter what. Even if the demons......the dragons or the spirits be my enemies, I will protect her without fail. I made my resolve, then I hugged Bea. When I was about to fall asleep........ ¡°Zest-sama, this is a serious matter! Your assistance is needed!¡± A maid shouted in a teary voice, as she knocked on the door. ¡°What happened?¡± I jumped up to my feel and opened the door. The maid had a ghastly pale face as she informed me. ¡°The master......he injured his back inside madam¡¯s room.......The knights¡¯ training tomorrow.......¡± ................I thought about saying something cool and get it over with, but then I realized the insinuation. Father, I told you that there are limits you can¡¯t cross.............. 1. Read chapter 97 for a reminder of who this fujoshi girl is. Chapter 104: Returning Home Chapter 104: Returning Home ¡°Gahahaha.....Thanks for yesterday, Zest.¡± ¡°Zest, you shouldn¡¯t fix him next time, really.......¡± ¡°.......Err, try to be more moderate.......father.¡± ¡°Let me see......Take care of yourself?, father-inw.¡± (Dad is alright because he¡¯s very flexible.) Toto, stop. Bea turnedpletely red, so stop already. I quickly finished this awkward breakfast, then started to make the arrangements for us to go to the Frontier Count¡¯s ce, when a maid called out to me. I wanted to consult with the Count about the affair with the demons, however could it be troublesome for him? ¡°Young master, merchant Tanya requested an audience with you. What will you do?¡± ¡°Tanya? It¡¯s been a long time. Bring her to the reception room.¡± ¡°As you wish!¡± The maid left after she lowered her head. Still, my interest was picked. Since a merchant decided to visit me in person, there¡¯s more to this than a simple greeting. Just in case, maybe I¡¯ll ask Bea and Toto to be present too....... I took Bea and Toto with me and we walked to the reception room, where a middle-aged woman was waiting. ¡°Your excellency, duke Zest, your excellency, duchess Beatrice, it¡¯s been a long time. Toto-sama is looking good as well.¡± As ever, this woman had a soft bearing. As expected from a merchant, her smile alone is making me feelfortable.......She¡¯s rather skilled. ¡°Yes, Tanya, it¡¯s been. Are you in good health?¡± ¡°Thank you for asking. Thanks to you, the business is favorable, as for me, I¡¯m the very image of health itself.¡± We sat down and started to chat. I have to do this every single time but it can¡¯t be helped.......If I skip this step, other nobles would disagree and I¡¯ll be the target of their pricking sarcasm. ¡°Now.......Come to think of it, your excellency Zest. There¡¯s a rumor saying that......you developed some truly wonderful thing.¡± She didn¡¯t have that soft bearing anymore, instead her eyes were shining brightly. So, this is her purpose. ¡°Developed?........Ah, are you talking about the bra?¡± ¡°Yes, about that, your excellency. I would definitely like to be part of it too.........¡± I see......Well, it¡¯s not like I¡¯m hiding it or anything. And I don¡¯t want to monopolize it either, since people¡¯s envy can get scary. ¡°This requestes from no other than Tanya, therefore, I can¡¯t refuse. Right, Bea?¡± ¡°As one would expect from Zest-sama. It¡¯s a wonderful consideration.¡± (Dad is so kind! Towards women, that is!) ......Toto? Look closely, Tanya is already an olddy, all right? Besides, I¡¯m nice towards men too........Maybe. ¡°Thank you so much, your excellency. This is nothing but a small present........¡± Tanya took out some clothes materials and jewels. She¡¯s quite wicked...... This is nothing but a small present, so it¡¯s all right. ¡°I see. I¡¯ll ept it then. I¡¯ll leave it to my assistant Katalina to dispatch the craftsmen and take care of the details. I¡¯ll write her a few lines, so you can feel at ease.¡± ¡°Katalina-sama, right? Understood. I¡¯m looking forward to it. Thank you.¡± ¡°This is nothing but me speaking to myself, but a new underwear trial product is under development. It¡¯s getting quite busy and we don¡¯t have enough hands.¡± ¡°To receive this extraordinary consideration again........¡± ¡°Tanya, I was just speaking to myself. There¡¯s no need for thanks.¡± ¡°Oh my, what have I done?¡± Hahahaha, Ohohohoho We bothughed. ¡®This is still a secret, but I¡¯m releasing a new product. If you send some people and pay for the expenses, I¡¯ll let you in on this.¡¯ ¡®It¡¯ll be a great feast.¡¯ This is a free trantion of our previous exchange. I won¡¯t monopolize the production, instead I will involve merchant Tanya and the Frontier Count in order to diminish the risks. I stand out too much recently......If I don¡¯t reduce my profit, it might turn ugly. I must distribute the risks as much as I can. After that, I arranged for a letter to be sent to Katalina, and so the story was over. I bet that Tanya spent arge amount of money on this not-even-close-to-small present she offered me, but she left this ce very pleased with herself. Well, once she calcted her profit, she must have realized that she¡¯d be in the ck anyway. Merchants have a great sense of smell after all. It got considerablyte, but we, nheless, went to the Frontier Count¡¯s mansion. We left right after we finished eating lunch. There was still enough time, so I¡¯ll take it easy and consult with the Count until evening. ¡°Wee home, Bea. How are you feeling? Are you in pain? Right, hurry up ande inside. Toto, you¡¯re as cute as ever. It¡¯s like I¡¯m watching the child Bea.......Ah, son-inw-dono. You look healthy. That¡¯s good.¡± ¡°It¡¯s been a long time, master. I mean, father-inw.¡± ¡°It¡¯s been a long time, father.¡± (Am I cute? He said I¡¯m cute!) I was the only one who was treated rather poorly by my master, but I still followed him inside the mansion. Recently, Bea¡¯s belly had grown bigger, and this is making my master even more of a doting parent. ¡°The youngdy has such a kind smile.........¡± ¡°Ah, I never imagined that the day when I would see the youngdy¡¯s child wille!¡± ¡°Such a frightening....... I mean, awe-inspiring youngdy is bing a mother!¡± I heard the maids¡¯ whispers. You guys have been through a lot of hardships.........Like the exchange diary and the sort....... Bea feltpletely rxed since she returned to her childhood home. The maids were taking good care of Toto, so she was all smiles. ¡°Say, grandson-inw-dono. It seems you have something to discuss with me.¡± Why am I alone with the Frontier Count in another room........? I know that he¡¯s not a bad person, but even so he¡¯s quite scary. ¡°Yes. I want to consult you about the matter that the demons¡¯ head, Neebel-dono asked me to do.¡± ¡°Neebel-dono? Was it about technology?¡± As I thought, he knows about this. ¡°Yes. Why do they negate technology........I mean, surveil it? I would like to know the reason for this.¡± ¡°I see......But, grandson-inw-dono, you mustn¡¯t hurry. I¡¯m sure that Neebel-dono will tell you all about it when the time is right. You should stop investigating this matter until then.¡± The Frontier Count recited as he stared at me fixedly. ¡°It¡¯s only natural that grandson-inw-dono wants to know more about this. However, you mustn¡¯t be impatient. You have to wait a little longer........please........¡± ¡°Wha!? Please stop!¡± I never imagined that the Frontier Count would lower his head to me and beg........I can¡¯t turn him down. There must be a good reason behind this. ¡°I understand. I will wait for Neebel-dono to exin things properly.¡± ¡°You do that. This way I can feel at ease too.¡± The Frontier Count smiled like he feltpletely relieved. ¡°Now that you feel relieved, shall we reunite with Bea and the others? After all, she¡¯s visiting her home after such a long time.¡± ¡°Hoho, you¡¯re right. Bea will soon give birth to a child.......I¡¯ve sure gotten old.¡± The Frontier Count and I walked towards my master¡¯s room. I guess Bea and the others are already in the middle of a tea party. The Frontier Count was wearing an unusually kind smile as he opened the door to my master¡¯s room. What came in sight at that point was a battlefield......I mean, hell. ¡°You don¡¯t say.........that Zest-sama proposed to you?¡± (Mom, what does propose mean? Is it a flower¡¯s seed or something?) ¡°Yes, youngdy Beatrice.......I mean, your excellency, the duchess. That¡¯s right.¡± My master and Albert were on the floor in a seiza 1 position. Bea was d in a nostalgic dark magical power that was prating cold. A dog kemonobito maid was trembling in front of her. Then......... ¡°Grandson-inw-dono...................What do they mean by marriage proposal?¡± The Frontier Count wore a pitch-ck smile. It¡¯s been a long time since I wasst in such a pinch, and I ended up doing some markings 2 again. This........is probably bad. 1. I¡¯m sure I exined this term before, but just in case you forgot, I¡¯ll do it again. It basically refers to the traditional formal way of sitting in Japan. It¡¯s also quite difficult and rather painful to sit like that if you¡¯re not used to it. xD 2. Refer to chapter 11, for the marking thing. Chapter 105: Family Council Chapter 105: Family Council ¡°Oh, so that¡¯s what actually happened. I was surprised.¡± ¡°Hoho, now that you mentioned it, it did happen that way.¡± ¡°Really now.......... son-inw-dono? Don¡¯t startle us like that........¡± ¡°Hahaha, his excellency is quite thedies¡¯ ma!.......Ouch¡± ¡°Albert, this all happened because you didn¡¯t exin properly!¡± I punched him lightly, my magical power at full throttle. His face is twitching, so he¡¯s still alive.......No problems there. ¡°This time, my brother made troubles for you. I¡¯m sorry.¡± The maid Suu lowered her head very deeply. I thought that she would follow after her brother since he¡¯s be a noble, but she continued to work as a maid, saying ¡®I will pay back our debt of gratitude to the Frontier Count¡¯s Household.¡¯ ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, Suu. Albert too.......he¡¯s been through a lot. Besides, he¡¯s my vassal. His carelessness is my responsibility.¡± After Iforted Suu, I turned around to face everybody. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for the uproar I caused this time. Please forgive my vassal for his clumsiness.¡± I bowed my head to the Frontier Count and the others. The misunderstanding got cleared, but it all happened because of Albert¡¯s insufficient exnation. Even inside my family, as a noble, I have to take responsibility. ¡°Yougur exgucelengucy, fogur my sague yougu...¡± Albert, I don¡¯t understand what you¡¯re saying. Maybe.......I¡¯m sorry you had to do this for me, or something like this? ¡°Hoho, since grandson-inw-dono lowered his head to us, I can¡¯t say anything.¡± ¡°sigh......Albert. You must serve son-inw-dono with whole-hearted devotion.¡± ¡°Guyes sirgu!¡± Albert saluted, as hey sprawled, drooling on the floor. ........Sorry. Did I use too much power? I revived Albert with healing magic. Will this time count as a mistake? I nced at Bea. ¡°Zest-sama, I can¡¯t punish Albert after he received that from you........¡± (Dad, people would normally die from that!) ¡°Thank goodness, Albert! You still have two times left!¡± 1 ¡°Yes sir! Thank you for your consideration!¡± I sessfully forced a good bargain in the end. The muscle brains are indeed wonderful. ¡°........Grandson-inw-dono used a much more powerful technique than I expected. I¡¯m surprised!¡± ¡°It was a time when he wasn¡¯t like this........¡± ¡°Onii¨Csama, 2 The loyalty dance! Do it for his excellency!¡± I don¡¯t want to be told this by the Frontier Count and my master, the frightening duo. Moreover..................Is Suu a muscle brain too!? No way. Besides, what¡¯s the loyalty dance? Albert nodded and stood up quickly. It seems that the dance is starting. ¡°Aaah-ooooooooh!!¡± The mysterious dance started with a howl. It was a strange dance thatbined h dance moves, limbo dance moves and Cossack dance moves. This show continued for nearly one hour....... ¡°Onii¨Csama, well done! I¡¯m sure his excellency, duke Zest is delighted.¡± ¡°Right! For someone like me, this was an impable performance.¡± Albert wiped away his sweat and smiled happily. He finally finished! I have no idea how to react to this........ ¡°Right......This.......is like that, don¡¯t you say, Sonia?¡± ¡°........Yes, right. It¡¯s like that, you know, son-inw-dono.¡± ¡°........It¡¯s like you said.¡± I cut my way through this by invoking my special move, the ¡®It¡¯s like you said¡¯ phrase. The Frontier Count and my master were shocked by my trick........ ¡°Thank you for your wonderful words! This Albert will forever serve you with loyalty!¡± Albert quickly dropped to one knee. I really wanted to ask him what words was he so grateful for. ¡°Good for you, Albert.¡± ¡°(Dad, what was that dance?) As Bea wanted to deceive Albert with a casual congrats, her face now was starting to sweat. (Mom! What kind of ritual was this?) ¡°.......Toto-chan, it can¡¯t be helped. Let¡¯s go eat some baked sweets!) (Yeeeeeey! Sweets!) She waspletely fooled......Toto is such a simpleton. Next time I¡¯ll use baked sweets too. And so, the uproar about Suu¡¯s marriage ended safely. With one exception.....however......... ¡°Your excellency, Frontier Count, you took good care of me. I never imagined that his excellency, the duke, needed my brother that much........This is something I can¡¯t entrust to my brother alone. I would like to serve under his excellency, the duke, as well!¡± Suu bowed in an elegant manner. Unlike the knights, her bow was wonderfully graceful. ¡°With you there I can feel at ease. Bea will soon give birth, so it is rather me who should ask you to do this.¡± ¡°........She could be a candidate for a chief maid. Son-inw-dono, Suu is quite excellent, you know? Take good care of her!¡± ¡°She is Albert¡¯s little sister, after all. I want her as my attendant.¡± (We did it! Dad, we got another pet!) Toto, you can¡¯t say that....... ¡°Suu, I¡¯m relying on you! Please be Bea¡¯s strength.¡± ¡°As you wish! Please leave the youngdy in my care!¡± She lifted her skirt and bent her knee, as she lowered her head beautifully. ......Precisely this................This is what the Duke¡¯s Household wascking. Still, I¡¯m too used to maids saluting me that Suu¡¯s bow felt rather ufortable. A new vassal, the elite maid Suu joined my household. I have two muscle brains units, the ck knights and the maids unit. I have a scouting and intelligence gathering unit formed of former adventurers. I have a kemonobito unit formed of the kemonobito released from very. I also have Katalina, who single-handedly manages the whole internal administration of my domain. She is in charge of the civil officials. .............Isn¡¯t my army just perfect? Since Katalina is training new civil officials, I won¡¯t have to work that much anymore. Now that Suu will lead the maids, their elegance will have a pleasant healing effect. I won. Atst, I can see my victory. A fair amount of time passed since I came to this world. Still, I gradually obtained powerful and relying forces! As I continued to reflect upon my achievements, I drank some ck tea. I enjoyed the ck tea¡¯s taste and scent, sitting on the sofa in the room the Frontier Count prepared for me. Outside the window, the full moon was shining brightly, like it was sending its blessing to me. ¡°I¡¯m no longer afraid of anything.........Fufu, fuhahahahahahahaha!¡± As I looked up at the full moon, I let out a loudugh. Great military force, great political power; I obtained a position that makes me feel at ease! I was already quite excited, but my tension further increased. ¡°Zest-sama? We¡¯ll be in trouble if Toto-chan wakes up. Please be quiet.¡± ¡°Ah, I¡¯m sorry.¡± ...............Still, I can¡¯t oppose my wife. ¡°And since Toto-chan is asleep.......right?¡± ¡°.......Are you sure, Bea?¡± I did it! I really want to hit myself for previously believing my wife was frightening. Bea smiled gently and I kissed her. I softlyy her down on the sofa and removed her thin lingerie......... ¡°Your excellency, duke Zest, this can¡¯t happen. It¡¯s madam¡¯s first childbirth. Please take all possible measures to prevent acting rashly.¡± The dog eared ¡®excellent¡¯ maid peeked through the door and muttered. ................Suu-san..............Not even a little? It appears that she¡¯s taking good care of Bea........ 1. Refer to Chapter 101 to read about the ¡®punishment game¡¯ Bea proposed 2. One of the Japanese ways to say ¡®big brother¡¯; a rtively polite one. Chapter 106: Quiet Talk – Suu’s Resolution Chapter 106: Quiet Talk ¨C Suu¡¯s Resolution ¡°Such an important mission was given to you, onii-sama!?¡± ¡°Yeah, I must meet his excellency, the Frontier Count¡¯s expectations.¡± Albert onii-sama said, then left the room. Please.......be safe....... ording to onii-sama, this is a mission he must do together with the ck knights¡¯mander. Why did they give him, a rookie knight, such an important mission? We grew up neglected for being part of the kemonobito race. Even though discrimination is not epted, the kemonobito were always treated rather poorly even among nobles. Compared to humans, we can¡¯t be promoted and almost none of us is a noble. The truth is, we got expelled from our home and barely managed to reach this ce. ¡°Suu, are you here? His excellency, the Frontier Count wishes to see you.¡± A senior maid entered my room. The people from the Frontier Count¡¯s Household treat us normally, even though we¡¯re kemonobito. .........No one will tell us that we¡¯re filthy. ¡°Yes, ma¡¯am. Where is his excellency?¡± ¡°In his office. He seemed to be in a hurry!¡± I made an agile bow to my senior and hurried to the office. I hurried to see his excellency the Frontier Count, the man who employed me as a maid. ¡°Your excellency, this is Suu.¡± ¡°Yes,e in quickly.¡± As I knocked the door and announced my presence, this was the reply I received. He really must be in a hurry. I rushed inside the room. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to have made you wait. Is there anything I can do?¡± ¡°After this, I¡¯m going to meet with a stranger who came from a different world. I¡¯ll have you serve us in that room.¡± ¡°!?........As you wish!¡± A stranger?......So it wasn¡¯t only a fairy-tale!? They do exist! I tried my best to hide my disturbance as I lowered my head. ¡°You don¡¯t have to be afraid, Sonia and I will be there too. As well as Albert and Galef, so there¡¯s nothing to worry about.¡± ¡°Forgive me. I will do as you wish.¡± Sigh......He¡¯s right...... Since the Count¡¯s strongest forces are gathered together, there¡¯s really nothing to worry about. .......Still, I¡¯m a little concerned about onii-sama. However, the stranger was even more frightening than I expected. I was extremely nervous about seeing a stranger for the first time, as I entered the room. With trembling hands, I finished preparing the tea and was about to leave when it happened. ¡°Then, if you¡¯ll excuse me-nya!¡± Damn it! Stupid me! What was that ¡®nya¡¯!? A kemonobito using a feline race word.......This could mean that I am courting the stranger........ I shouldn¡¯t have read that bookst night. But it was so interesting......¡¯The Nyan-nyan Great Strategy¡¯ ¡°So you¡¯re a cat!¡± 1 The stranger replied to me and I froze in ce. That single line he said.......Isn¡¯t this how they proposed in ¡¯The Nyan-nyan Great Strategy¡¯?! Still, there¡¯s a certain order to things.......But even so, if I look closer at him, this stranger is rather cool....... I was a little confused at that time and I don¡¯t remember much of what happened after. When I came to my sense, Albert onii-sama was shaking my shoulders. ¡°Suu! Get a hold of yourself!¡± ¡°Onii-sama, it hurts. Please realize your own physical strength.¡± ¡°Thanks goodness.......You dazed off and I was worried.¡± ¡°.......I¡¯m sorry. Urm, what happened to the stranger?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t remember? If that¡¯s the case, then let it be. That¡¯s for the best.¡± ¡°But, that person........he........urm.........¡± He just proposed to me by imitating ¡¯The Nyan-nyan Great Strategy¡¯ mature way of doing it. Such a proposal that made my kemonobito heart tickle was not that unpleasant. ¡°Suu, he¡¯s a stranger from a different world, you know? Think about it.¡± ¡°.......A stranger.............Even so, howes he made such a wonderful proposal?¡± That¡¯s right. The stranger said that without knowing anything about ¡¯The Nyan-nyan Great Strategy¡¯. ¡°Right. He said that without knowing what it meant.¡± ¡°.......I see. Understood.¡± I understand, onii-sama. He really did propose to me, right? He didn¡¯t imitate the book; he said it naturally ¡®So you¡¯re a cat!¡¯.....Such a frightening person! He already got a tight hold of my kemonobito heart. ¡°I will do my best to work as a maid!¡± ¡°It seems you understood. I¡¯m counting on you.¡± Onii-sama smiled happily then left the room. Right, I did understand. In order to be a suitable woman for that person, I must first do my best to be a first-ssdy! After that, that person.......Zest-sama, got promoted steadily. He became youngdy Beatrice¡¯s fianc¨¦....... ................Fufu, that¡¯s Zest-sama for you. He can easily deal with that youngdy, with a smile on his face! This person, he¡¯s almost like the sun. When I stay close to the youngdy, my feet start to tremble; she¡¯s a terrific person. I do understand this, you know, Zest-sama? A marriage with a noble is all about politics. You only have deep feelings towards me, and no one else, right? Ufufu, I already know it. Zest-sama was promoted to the duke rank. He even got engaged to her highness, the princess.......He¡¯s such a resourceful person. That¡¯s how a man is supposed to be. Ufufu, I already know it. Zest-sama participated in the war and founded a domain of his own. He still didn¡¯t call for me. This is irritating! Come on already! Ufufu, I already know it, though. Zest-sama is having a child with youngdy Beatrice. .........This is wonderful. This way, his duty as a noble is safely fulfilled. Did he do it so that he coulde for me? Ufufu, I already know it. No matter how long I waited, Zest-sama never came for me. ..........Whatever the circumstances, he¡¯s just toote!! I know! He¡¯s being considerate of youngdy Beatrice, right? It¡¯s okay, Zest-sama. I will talk to her myself! Youngdy Beatrice returned home after a very long time.......Or I should say, I was finally able to meet his excellency the duke. I must tell her about it. ¡°Youngdy Beatrice, I have something to tell you about Zest-sama.¡± ¡°Zest.......sama? Suu, what¡¯s this all about?¡± If a mere servant in another household would dare to address him with ¡®Zest-sama¡¯ instead of ¡®his excellency Zest¡¯, she would obviously get angry. I already felt a sense of intimidation........But even so! ¡°Madam, please allow Zest-sama and I to get married already.¡± ¡°................What?¡± ¡°Now that you¡¯ve been blessed with a child, there must be some inconveniences. Having me around would be quite helpful, besides, he already proposed.¡± She treated me like a low-ss concubine......Or, maybe like a mistress? Still, if I can be by Zest-sama¡¯s side....... ¡°Suu? When did he propose to you I wonder?¡± ¡°Hii!?¡± The youngdy was d in a pitch ck overwhelming magical power. .........Scary.........Awfully scary! I don¡¯t want to die! Was she always like this? Did the madam always have this outrageous kind of magical power!? There was nothing I could do but tremble. I got teary eyes as I continued to tremble when Sonia-sama and Albert onii-sama jumped into the room. ¡°What¡¯s with this magical power!?¡± ¡°Madam! Are you all right!?¡± ¡°You two. Do you know the story about Zest-sama¡¯s marriage proposal to Suu?¡± ¡°?......Ah, about that? I know..............¡± ¡°Yes ma¡¯am, he used a dreadful pick-up line..............¡± ¡°So you did know..........didn¡¯t you, you two!? For the time being, go sit down there!¡± ¡°Wait, Bea? Urm.........¡± ¡°Madam, this is a misun.......¡± ¡°Sit down!¡± ¡° ¡°Yes ma¡¯am!¡± ¡° This is hopeless.......Madam¡¯s magical power is getting bigger and bigger. It¡¯s impossible to go against it.......No matter how many lives you have, you¡¯ll die anyway. My kemonobito instincts are shouting ¡®Don¡¯t oppose this!¡¯ ¡°You don¡¯t say.......that Zest-sama really proposed to you?¡± ¡°Yes, youngdy Beatrice.........I mean, your excellency the duchess. That is right.¡± Because of fear and confusion, I didn¡¯t really think about the right answers to give. ........I will die here soon. The one who saved me from this desperate situation was Zest-sama. ¡°Bea, what happened? This is bad for the child! Come now, tell me what happened.¡± ¡°Zest-sama, you proposed to Suu, right? When did it happen?¡± Amazing! He sat there, bathing in that magical power, shaking his knees in a dance of great affection! He¡¯s now approaching the youngdy! He truly is the hero¡¯s vessel.......Someone like me is not suitable for him................. ¡°I haven¡¯t! What are you talking about, Bea? Come on, calm down.¡± ¡°.........But, father and Albert said you did.¡± ¡°Master?¡± ¡°It¡¯s true that something happened which could be interpreted as a marriage proposal, but the Frontier Count instructed Albert to forget about it since it was a mistake.......¡± ¡°Yes ma¡¯am! His excellency, the Frontier Count instructed me to do so!¡¯ ..................Eh? A mistake? Was that a mistake!? Why didn¡¯t you properly tell me these were the Frontier Count¡¯s words!? ¡°Then why did ite to this? Suu, didn¡¯t you hear about it from Albert?¡± ¡°Yes, your excellency Zest. I haven¡¯t heard about it.¡± What¡¯s this all about? Onii-sama? All our eyes gathered on Albert onii-sama. ¡°Albert......Did you properly..........urately.........correctly exin to Suu........leaving no space for interpretations?¡± ¡°...........Your excellency Zest. We are siblings! We understand each other even without enough words!¡± ¡°Onii-sama, do you understand what I¡¯m feeling right now?¡± Onii-sama turned around to face me. Maybe because his feet got numb, he walked to me unsteadily. ¡°I do understand. You¡¯re worried for your big brother, right?¡± ¡°No, I feel ashamed for my foolish big brother.¡± ¡°..................¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear me? I am too embarrassed to even call you my big brother.¡± Stupid aniki 2.................You brought me such unthinkable shame! Your feelings got to me? As if you could ever do that! Stupid aniki! This.......means death penalty for both of us.......... He didn¡¯t correctly transmit an order, and because of a misunderstanding, a vassal caused an uproar about a wedding proposal....... No matter how you look at it, this means capital punishment.......Mine sure was a short life. ¡°You see? In the end, it was nothing but Albert¡¯smunication error........Bea, will you please understand?¡± ¡°Urm.......Forgive me, Zest-sama.¡± ¡°Fufu, you wanted to monopolize me that badly? You¡¯re so greedy, Bea.¡± ¡°Uuuugh, please forgive me.......¡± ¡°Of course I do! There¡¯s no reason for me not to forgive you. But I do have to punish you. I know! Tonight, you¡¯ll be myp pillow.¡± ¡°Zest-sama? This won¡¯t really be punishment, you know? I want to do it too.¡± .........Woaa, such a sugary flirt. Sonia-sama¡¯s eye are nk. It¡¯s true that this was an atmosphere you didn¡¯t want to be any part of.......It makes you want to die. I emptied my mind trying to resist when the Frontier Count called out. ¡°Suu, I want to drink some tea. Do the preparations.¡± ¡°Is it all right for someone like me to prepare it?¡± ¡°Grandson-inw-dono bowed to us and said, didn¡¯t he? That Albert¡¯s responsibilities are his responsibilities. In this case, we can¡¯t say anything about it.¡± ¡°.........His excellency Zest did.......¡± His excellency the duke........A hero who didn¡¯t budge an inch in front of that magical power......... Lowered his head for us? He lowered his head for the kemonobito who made ruckus about a false marriage proposal? ¡°Onii-sama, do it! The loyalty dance!¡± Onii-sama nodded to my words......My feelings reached him. Please offer him the loyalty dance. This is a dance native to the dog kemonobito. It is a ritual through which the person who dances it, and all his descendants swear to devote their lives to the one they offered it to. I have to make children soon. For the sake of being helpful to his excellency Zest. As long as this person is alive, the kemonobito people¡¯s future is protected. We can¡¯t let this person die. This person cares for us, a couple of kemonobito blockheads. I want him to have a long life. I hope his child will inherit his nature. I pray that the child will inherit his excellency the duke¡¯s kind nature and his strong will. For this reason, I will protect this person and his children. I will always.......always be by their side to protect them. I will do everything I can to protect them! Your excellency, this is my resolution! Still............. ¡°Your excellency, duke Zest, this can¡¯t happen. It¡¯s madam¡¯s first childbirth. Please take all possible measures to prevent acting rashly.¡± Really now, men are such............ As I thought, he might need a mistress! His excellency was about to remove madam¡¯s clothes. He looked at me with amenting expression............ You are not allowed to! Not even a little! 1. If you don¡¯t remember what happened, go back to chapter 3 (and the following chapters). This chapter here is Suu¡¯s interpretation of the events. 2. Another way of saying big brother in Japanese; it¡¯s less polite than onii-sama though. It¡¯s also used to refer to seniors in various organizations, like yakuza par exemple. Chapter 107: Dealing with Suu Chapter 107: Dealing with Suu ¡°Suu, I want to directly hire you in my household. But first, I must confirm something.¡± ¡°Yes, anything.¡± After that turmoil, the three of us were now having an interview in a room prepared for us. By directly employing her, she¡¯ll serve into my household. ¡°Do you wish to get married?........Don¡¯t make such an expression, Bea! It¡¯s not what you think.¡± ¡°........Do you want Suu as your concubine?¡± Even this Bea, who frowns at me, is quite adorable. But it¡¯s not that. ¡°No, it¡¯s different. I want Suu to be out steward.¡± ¡°Ah, in this case I agree.¡± ¡°S....steward!? You want me to be a steward?¡± Suu was extremely surprised by Bea¡¯s consent. She had a mincing expression on her face. ¡°Master said......I mean, I heard it from father-inw. That Suu will make for the perfect steward.¡± ¡°If that¡¯s what father said, all I can do is agree.¡± ¡°Wait, it¡¯s not that! I am a kemonobito woman, you know? Someone like me to be a steward.......¡± The steward in a duke¡¯s household has to attend to highly ranked nobles. While I¡¯m away, she might also have to get involved in politics. In short, she will be the head of all the servants in the duke¡¯s household, and she¡¯ll be responsible for managing my assets. It¡¯s easier to understand when I put it like this. ¡°Hm? Is there a problem with women stewards?¡± ¡°No, there is no such rule.¡± ¡°Right? Bea, you¡¯ll feel safe too with her as our steward, right?¡± ¡°Yes, our duke¡¯s household has be like a big family.¡± ¡°Urm......I¡¯m a kemonobito woman, you know?¡± Yeah, she does have aplex for being a kemonobito! It¡¯s all right, it¡¯s all right. You¡¯ll work on the domain that freed all the kemonobito. I won¡¯t even let his Majestyin about this. And it¡¯s also for the sake of stability. ¡°This is my house. You can rest assured because I won¡¯t let anyonein about it. However, stewards can¡¯t get married........That¡¯s why I asked.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right........Won¡¯t it be a waste since Suu is so young?¡± ¡°No, it won¡¯t. This great duty.......I will dly ept it. Kemonobito can give birth untilte in life, after all. Until then, I¡¯ll devote myself to raising an exceptional sessor.¡± Suu said and lowered her head. She lifted her skirt a little and bent her knee; her shape was perfect. I get why the elite maids in the Frontier Count¡¯s Household said that ¡®Suu is onlycking years and a husband¡¯. I don¡¯t have a servant inside my mansion that I can trust. But Suu is someone who will never betray me. She can learn about her job as a steward little by little. What is important is the fact that she won¡¯t betray me. ¡°Good. It¡¯s settled then.¡± I felt relief as I informed them, but Suu asked me to wait. ¡°There is something I must decline first.¡± She was still bowing as she said this. ¡°I don¡¯t mind. Say it.¡± ¡°My maximum priority is Zest-sama. After himes the child and the madamesst. If you can agree to this, then I¡¯ll ept the job.¡± ..........Shut! Bea¡¯s releasing a dark aura. ¡°.......What do you mean by that?¡± ¡°Yes. The madam is receable. However, Zest-sama can¡¯t be reced. And the same goes for the child.¡± ¡°In short, if we are ever in danger.......¡± ¡°Zest-sama will be my utmost priority. If I can save Zest-sama by sacrificing the madam, I will do it.¡± The room returned to silence; I had a feeling that only the sound of my trembling body could be heard. Suu-chan, that reasoning of yours is a bit too extreme...... Bea, what¡¯s with that magical power?...... Too.....scary! These two are too scary!! The silence continued for what felt like an eternity, until Bea broke it. ¡°I will ask one more time. Zest-sama is your top priority no matter what, right?¡± ¡°Yes, there¡¯s no mistaking it.¡± ¡°......Zest-sama?¡± ¡°Yes ma¡¯am!¡± It couldn¡¯t be helped that I jumped a little. She startled me. ¡°Let¡¯s make Suu our steward. I won¡¯t let anyonein about this.¡± Bea said and smiled, and all I could do was nod in agreement. She hired her! Are you sure about this? Are you really sure about this? This is great!......This is great, right? We finished the interview and started preparing for our travel to the imperial capital. I wrote a letter to Katalina, and prepared some documents of the Duke¡¯s Household for Suu. It¡¯s been a while since Ist did office work. The Frontier Count and my master were very pleased when they heard about Suu bing my steward. ¡°The kemonobito Suu is a steward.......Grandson-inw-dono¡¯s domain is so peaceful. No people will rise against his excellency the duke when he cares this much for the kemonobito.¡± ¡°Are you nning a rebellion or something, since you¡¯ve created such a stronghold? The kemonobito people¡¯s hero-dono?¡± They told me, with a darkughter. ......You¡¯re reading too much into this, you two. ¡°Will you not believe me if I say that I honestly hired her because she¡¯s Albert¡¯s little sister?¡± ¡°Hoho, such an amusing joke. When ites to you, grandson-inw-dono, this is not possible.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because son-inw-dono is extremely wary. I bet he considered both his domain¡¯s stability and the kemonobito¡¯s traits before deciding upon doing this. Besides, he already asked his intelligence unit to investigate Suu and find out if she hides something. Right?¡± ¡°................¡± ¡°I praise you, grandson-inw-dono.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve be quite a noble.¡± The two smiled happily. The Frontier Count¡¯s Household which never ceases to smile......It seems that our rtions will continue for much longer. I remembered this exchange as I finished my office work. And so, tomorrow we¡¯ll depart for the imperial capital. Still, will Suu be all right? I understand why she wants to prioritize me.......I¡¯m the head of the household after all. If I were to say, it was really inevitable, but strangely........after that, Bea started to get along quite well with Suu. I can¡¯t understand what women think..... Or perhaps, I can¡¯t understand what nobles think. Well, it¡¯s important to have a steward that will never betray you. The vassals are important too, but I also have to protect my house. I already feel pity for my children though; they¡¯ll go through a lot of hardships. I put the documents in order and leaned against the chair. My children, huh?.......I will have children in a different world. They¡¯ll have a lot of troubles for being born as nobles, but at least they won¡¯t die unreasonable deaths likemon people often do. Until my children grow into adults, I will found un unshakable household and leave it to them. I drank some tea as I made my resolve, all alone. It¡¯s rather cold.......I rang the bell and called for a maid. It was Suu who answered my call. ¡°Did you call, master?¡± ¡°Yeah. Prepare some tea.¡± She lowered her head gently. She then quickly finished the preparations. ¡°About tomorrow¡¯s trip to the imperial capital. How are the arrangements?¡± ¡°Yes. I prepared a thick zabuton 1 for madam. I thought it might be morefortable for her.¡± ¡°I see. I leave her in your care.¡± ¡°As you wish.¡± Suu prepared the tea before my eyes and was about to leave the room. However, she stopped right in front of the door and turned around. ¡°Did you forget something?¡± ¡°No.......Master, about the matter with madam fromst night........¡± ¡°Can I do it if it¡¯s only for a little!?¡± I called out, finishing Suu¡¯s phrase. It can¡¯t be helped, can it? I had to resist my urges for such a long time. ¡°Master, please use this.¡± She said and left the room quite pleased with herself. She left Bea¡¯s panties on top of my desk. .......In short, she wants me to take care of myself, by myself. ...................Is that so? Maybe it was a mistake to make her my steward....... 1. Zabuton = a t floor cushion used when sitting or kneeling. Chapter 108: Arriving at the Imperial Capital Chapter 108: Arriving at the Imperial Capital ¡°Zest, I¡¯m sorry to have made youe to the imperial capital together with pregnant Beatrice.¡± ¡°Thank you for your kind words, your Majesty. I have to meet the guy. He¡¯s Tsubaki¡¯s marriage partner, after all.¡± Once we arrived at the imperial capital, a secret meeting with his Majesty was already waiting for me. I left Bea in our room. The n was to bring her along but....... ¡°Madam is tired. A meeting with his Majesty? Master alone is enough for that. His Majesty and the madam.......There¡¯s no even a need to think about it, I will prioritize madam¡¯s physical condition.¡± Suu resolutely dered, so I went to the secret meeting by myself. .........Well, she did say those words precisely because she worried about Bea. ¡°Is Beatrice all right? I won¡¯t mind it if she can¡¯te to the audience either. She¡¯s a pregnant duchess, no one willin about it.¡± ¡°Thank you for saying this. It¡¯s really helpful. As I thought, she really is tired.¡± It¡¯s useless.......I¡¯m afraid I¡¯ll burst outughing if I keep thinking about his Majesty¡¯s wig........ I pinched my leg in a desperate attempt to fight this urge. ¡°Of course. Then, the audience tomorrow will be with you alone. Afterwards.........Right, in about two days that guy from the country of elves will arrive. She doesn¡¯t need to show up at the ball, but she should be present when I introduce him to the rtives.¡± ¡°A ball?.......I should be escorting Tsubaki, shouldn¡¯t I?¡± A ball, really?........Oh well, it is an important event for this country. It must be done in a grand manner, in order for his Majesty to save face........ ¡°You must be present there. You also must be careful for that stupid prince.¡± ¡°.......Stupid prince........you say?¡± His Majesty frowned. What? Is he that stupid? Give me a break, will you? ¡°I beg of you, don¡¯t kill him, all right? He¡¯s supposed to have escorts, but beware thatst time when he visited, the Minister of Foreign Affairs who attended to him got so worn out that he ended up losing a lot of weight......¡± ¡°.......I¡¯m amazed that prince........is still alive.¡± ¡°He¡¯s part of the elven royal family after all. Since they have long lifespans, they treat him like a child even though he¡¯s 20. Besides, it is very rare for elves to conceive.......so, you know.¡± ¡°He¡¯s a long-awaited child......you say?.......¡± ¡°Well, the elves always isted themselves from the others. This time too, they came to visit our empire because of the spiritification.¡± ¡°I see.......That Ministry of Foreign Affairs was really unfortunate.¡± ¡° ¡° *sigh*.........¡± ¡° Without thinking about it, my sigh and his Majesty¡¯s synchronized. This conversation had many hidden meanings. First, the stupid prince. Regardless of the secret meeting, for his Majesty to clearly call him a stupid prince, he must really be stupid. Moreover, he asked me not to kill him? This means that he¡¯s such a fool that no one willin if he gets killed. Next, the Minister of Foreign Affairs. An isted country like the country of elves has a Ministry of Foreign Affairs? This is such aughing matter. A useless employee, a messenger with the fake title of minister...... It was his duty to inform the world that the elves celebrated the spiritification. But it all ended up with a marriage proposal....... That minister either got demoted or......the capital punishment, if he were unlucky. In short, as a counter-n, this time quite an elf will apany the prince. This looks rather troublesome....... ¡° ¡° *sigh*...... ¡° ¡° His Majesty and I exchanged nces and sighed again..... ¡°However, their higher ups agree to this marriage, right?¡± ¡°Precisely because of this. That stupid prince forcibly made a definitive offer, so they couldn¡¯t possibly have said something to stop him, could they?¡± ¡°........Yeah, it¡¯s impossible.¡± ¡°Right?¡± ¡°In this case, they¡¯ll make us refuse the offer.......or, they¡¯ll make it look like there was a fault on our end.......¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid so. That¡¯s why I entrusted you with Tsubaki¡¯s training.¡± ¡°Education, your Majesty.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right. It was harsh training after all. It¡¯s our responsibility that she became like that........I do owe you one, Zest. ept that the imperial family owes you.¡± The Emperor stared at me with a serious look. I never imagined that he would dere something like this......Was the wig incident too effective? I¡¯ll give Toto some sweetster. ¡°I do understand. And I also think it was the right thing to do.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t see you as an enemy. I am more or less selfish, but I do want you in my empire.¡± The Emperor smiled, then he started tough wholeheartedly. ¡°Hahaha! For the time being, you should get some rest together with Beatrice. This is all the information I have about the elves. Do you have anything to say?¡± The Emperor drank up his ck tea and I answered him, after I thought about it for a short while. ¡°Right.......For a stranger like me, my wife Bea is the most important person in my life. If I can provide this wife of mine with happiness, then I will endure anything.¡± ¡°........Understood. I won¡¯t forget these words.¡± I bowed to the Emperor who nodded with a serious expression, then I returned to my room. Considering his reaction, I guess he did understand the meaning behind my words. I walked with a fast pace towards the room where Bea rested. It was a room inside the pce, specially prepared for the dukes. ¡°Wee back, master.¡± ¡°Suu, how¡¯s Bea feeling?¡± ¡°She¡¯s resting now. Toto-sama is together with her.¡± ¡°I see. In this case, prepare some tea for me.¡± I sat down on the sofa and drank some of the tea that Suu prepared. I can finally calm down. ¡°Master, how did the meeting with his Majesty go?¡± Since Suu is my steward, I must exin things to her up to some degree. She¡¯s like a private secretary.......She¡¯s making all sorts of adjustments to my schedule too. ¡°I will go alone to tomorrow¡¯s audience. In about two days the elves will arrive. Bea will only have to be present when introducing the imperial family¡¯s rtives, so it¡¯s all right. I will escort Tsubaki during the ball.¡± ¡°Understood. Then, I will make the appropriate arrangements. Master, do you have any other errands to do?¡± Now that she asked me, I thought about it, but I didn¡¯t have anything to do in particr. ¡°No, nothing in particr.¡± ¡°In this case, what about buying the madam a present? Did you offer her somethingtely?¡± .........Come to think of it, I haven¡¯t given her anything. ¡°I heard that pregnancy makes one anxious and irritated. I¡¯m sure that if the madam would receive a present from master, she¡¯ll be very happy.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right......Summon some merchants. I¡¯ll look for something to give her.¡± Suu......She¡¯s wonderfully considerate. Precisely this......This is what my household wascking. ¡°As you wish. As for the merchants, I¡¯ll ask for Tanya¡¯s staff. We could make her a purveyor to the Duke¡¯s Household.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t mind. I leave it in your care.¡± Suu lowered her head gracefully then left the room. She¡¯s simply wonderful......Is it really all right for me to feel this rxed?..... What did I do up until now? If I knew that a steward would make things this easy for me, I should¡¯ve gotten one earlier. I drank some more tea as I admired the amazing and excellent Suu. Since I can¡¯t go shopping in the town, I must summon the merchants here. It¡¯s rather bothersome to have a high social status. I should sometimes go out undercover and have some fun. I ate some cookies as I thought about this. I had spare time now that Bea and Toto were asleep. ¡°Your excellency, duke Zest. I am bringing a message from Lamia-sama.¡± Myid-back spare time was over. Following the nocking, a woman¡¯s voice could be heard. ¡°Come in.¡± ¡°Excuse me.¡± The maid entered the room, lowered her head, then informed me. ¡°Lamia-sama entrusted me with a letter for your excellency. Here it is.¡± I received the letter from the maid and confirmed the seal on its back. Without a doubt, this was from my mother-inw. ¡°I will look at it right away. Wait outside the room.¡± I waited for the maid to leave the room then opened the letter. I looked at it and its contents made my head hurt. ¡®Son-inw-dono, It¡¯s been a long time. How have you been? I¡¯m writing this in a hurry so I¡¯ll omit the greetings for now. There are some nobles who are making secret arrangements to destroy Tsubaki¡¯s marriage, in order to weaken you. I did destroy some of them, but I can¡¯t get rid of everyone involved. You muste see me as soon as possible......There¡¯s something I must consult with you about. Tonight, you shoulde meet me in my room, alone. You don¡¯t want to worry Bea, do you? You shouldete at night, all right? And be careful not to be seen! I can trust that maid so you can feel at ease. In case you can¡¯t meet me tonight, tell her that you¡¯ll send me a letter afterwards. If you cane, then tell her that you understood. Then, I¡¯m counting on you! Your kind mother-inw¡¯ ........Kind? ......I¡¯ll just leave it at that. I called out to the maid waiting outside and told her my reply. ¡°Please tell her that I understood.¡± ¡°As you wish. Then, please take this.¡± What she handed over to me was a key to a room. ........Mother-inw, you want me to use this key to sneak inside a woman¡¯s room in the middle of the night? This situation might cause all sorts of problems....... I pray that nothing serious happens.............. Chapter 109: Secret Talk with Mother-in-Law Chapter 109: Secret Talk with Mother-in-Law ¡°Suu, I¡¯ll be away for a bit. However, I¡¯m still here. Do you understand?¡± ¡°.........Certainly!¡± Suu bowed her head, as I left her inside the room and walked down the corridor. If it¡¯s her, she¡¯ll guess the meaning behind that. In order for no one to find me, I erased my presence as I walked towards my mother-inw¡¯s room. Bea and Toto are sound asleep, so it¡¯s all right. I made them an ample massage fused with healing magical power so they won¡¯t wake up until morning. Although it¡¯s midnight, this is the inside of a pce. I walked stealthily in order to pass the patrolling soldiers unseen. I never thought that I would use detection magic at a time like this....... I somehow managed to arrive safely to my mother-inw¡¯s room. I left the corridor and entered a small passage. This passage that didn¡¯t have any carpets was a secret path used by the pce employees. I used the key the maid gave me and slipped into the room, trying to make as little sound as possible. ¡°I waited for you, son-inw-dono. Fufu, did Bea find out?¡± ¡°It¡¯s been a long time, mother-inw. Urm....... will you put something on please?¡± Mother Lamia was rxing in her room. It was the middle of the night........so she was wearing night-clothes....... Some night-clothes that make your heart race. ¡°Oh my! You panic because of something like this?.......Won¡¯t Bea wear some for you?¡± She let out a roguishugh. She wore a simple dress with arge opening around the chest region; it was quite an erotic view...... The coboration between her soft-looking raw materials and chest was wonderful. Even though her age.......I¡¯ll just stop here; I don¡¯t want to die. She finally put on an outer garment, as she told me to sit on the sofa. I was already tired before getting into the main subject. ¡°I can¡¯t tease you too much cause you¡¯re too pitiable. Fufufu, it¡¯s been such a long time since a youngster had this reaction, so......you know, I couldn¡¯t help it.¡± A youngster?......I¡¯m in my middle thirties, you know? If this is young, then my mother-inw....... ¡°Son-inw-dono? You don¡¯t have the liberty to think about unnecessary things.¡± ¡°Yes, mother-inw.¡± Even though you started it....... ¡°Good! Now.......The nobles are nning to disrespect the elf prince and make you and Bea fight each other. I want to kill them as fast as possible, but this will cause a bigmotion.......If we seed, then everything¡¯s good.......but if we don¡¯t¡± ¡°I¡¯ll lose my dignity as a noble. They¡¯ll say that someone like me isn¡¯t suitable for being a duke......or something along these lines?¡± ¡°In order to prepare for this, they want you to ept a concubine. And it¡¯s not only you, son-inw-dono. They want Bea........to ept one too.¡± ¡°........If Bea leaves me and makes her own duke¡¯s household, my power will weaken considerably......or something like this?¡± So, they didn¡¯t give up yet. With diplomacy as an excuse, they want to split up my duke¡¯s household. Because both Bea and I received the duke¡¯s title after all. It¡¯s not like their n is impossible........ ¡°The nobles in the imperial capital are making light of me, aren¡¯t they?¡± ¡°They¡¯re allplete idiots who take peace for granted. If you get the chance, you can slice some of them off. His Majesty won¡¯tin if they¡¯re lower than viscounts.¡± This was quite a dangerous talk, but for me, as a high ss noble, it was a dreadful situation. If I continue to allow them to make light of me, they¡¯ll take advantage of it. I must imnt some fear into them....... ¡°Understood. Let¡¯s give them a little warning then.¡± ¡°I got the perfect idiot for this. I left him alive precisely for this situation. Take your time and do what you need.¡± You made a list of candidates? You are such a frightening mother-inw. As one would expect from the Frontier Count¡¯s daughter...... I made a small pause to take a breath, then drank some ck tea. Since there were no maids around, my mother-inw prepared this tea. ¡°......Ahem! Ack! Blech!¡± I instinctively spout it out. Gross......Hopelessly gross....... As one would expect from Bea¡¯s mother; her awful cooking seems to be hereditary. Still, how can one even prepare such a gross tea? ¡°Oh my! Son-inw-dono, are you all right?¡± ¡°Blech......I¡¯m.....I¡¯m all right.¡± I covered my mouth with my hand so the damage I received was little. I took out a handkerchief and quickly wiped my mouth dry. ¡°.........Such a strange handkerchief you got there, son-inw-dono.¡± She looked at me like she was looking at garbage. Oh, this is kind of nostalgic; she looks just like old Bea....... Wrong, wrong! What¡¯s this? Why is she looking at me like that? My mother-inw¡¯s nce was focused on my hand. She was looking at the handkerchief I used to wipe the tea. ...............It was a pair of panties. ¡°Son-inw-dono? That handkerchi.......¡± ¡°.......Dear me!? Why is such a thing in my hand!?¡± Even for me, this excuse was stupid. Still, this was my limit. A noble who walks around concealing his wife¡¯s panties.........would normally be finished. To say nothing of showing them to his mother-inw; there¡¯s nothing more I can do but kneel down and beg for forgiveness. ¡°Those.......are the underwear I left back home, you know? And now you used them right in front of me.............Don¡¯t say! Son-inw-dono!?¡± Let me correct it. There¡¯s nothing more I can do butmit seppuku 1. A son-inw who carries around his mother-inw¡¯s panties......Even without thinking about it, this means I¡¯m finished. ¡°I....I am your mother-inw, you know? This is......To Bea this is........I know! Because Bea is pregnant you gave in to temptation! You¡¯re not serious about it, I¡¯m sure!¡± Confused about this situation, mother-inw¡¯s face got bright red. Simrly to her, I was in a confused state as well. ¡°Wa.....please wait! Mother-inw! This is different! I used them without knowing they were yours, so it¡¯s all right!¡± ¡°.........I know, that¡¯s the only thing you can say now.¡± ¡°It¡¯s different! I didn¡¯t know, so it¡¯s all right!¡± ¡°I...I see! You didn¡¯t know, right? It¡¯s safe then!¡± After that, an unproductive conversation of repeated assurances that everything was all right,sted for two hours. I finally exhausted myself and gave up. My mother-inw was under the impression that I lied in order to deceive her. All I could do now was to bring Suu here to exin her what happened. .......This in itself was hell, but it was still better than bing a panties thief. She retrieved her panties, stained with tea, and left her seat. Today¡¯s secret meeting was over, but it appears that I¡¯ll receive a letter. Well, we couldn¡¯t have a fair and square conversation after all........Oh dear! I somehow passed through these hours when all I could think about was running away. It was the first time I received such a mental blow. A short timeter, mother-inw returned with a letter. ¡°You have inside a list with all the nobles you can erase without problems and today¡¯s main topic. You should only check it once you get to your room! All right? You must check it right away!¡± The main topic? Did some other major incident happen? Still, mother-in-low seemed to have received a mental blow as well. Her face looked utterly exhausted....... Misunderstandings sure are frightening. ¡°Understood. Mother-inw, next time I¡¯ll bring Suu along.¡± ¡°?........Suu? Right, understood.¡± We both felt awkward and couldn¡¯t let our eyes meet. I gave up for now and decided to go back.......I greeted my mother-inw, then dragged my tired feet to my own room. Once I returned to my room, I opened the letter. I really wanted to go sleep now. But the panties thief thingy stuck to my mind. I can¡¯t possibly fall asleep........I feel like crying. As mother-inw said, the first sheet was a list of nobles. So, I can kill these guys without any problems, huh?....... I can¡¯t go shing at them all of a sudden though; I must first entangle them before cutting them off. As for the second sheet, it contained something that made my confused head clear up in an instant. ¡®Because he felt danger for his life, the elf prince is putting on an act. His Majesty is suspicious about this too, but because he has no positive proof, he didn¡¯t tell you anything about it. The prince seems to want to speak with you in private, so make sure to make some time for it.¡¯ Again........the problems are multiplying......... So, if he doesn¡¯t act like an idiot, he¡¯ll get killed? In this case, the elf apanying him this time.........That guy is suspicious. Was their objective to kill both the stupid prince and the fake Ministry of Foreign Affairsst time? And because they failed, this time, they¡¯re making a move by themselves........ I burned the second sheet of the letter. It would be dangerous for someone to see it after all. I stared at the burning letter, ced on a silver tray. I was worried about the stupid prince, but a prince who acts like an idiot in order not to get killed.......is even more troublesome. I checked to see if the letter burnedpletely, then inspected the insides of the envelope once again. Having done so, I found a small wrap inside it. There was something else inside too.......Just give a break, will you? I opened the small package. It was something wrapped in paper, about the size of my palm. It was as small as a cigarettes box, but half its thickness; I unwrapped it. Inside were a note and a piece of cloth. ¡®Son-inw-dono, this is thest time since it¡¯s way too embarrassing!¡¯ Mother-inw......I really don¡¯t need your panties........ All I could do at that moment was burst out crying....... Chapter 110: Terrifying Nobles Chapter 110: Terrifying Nobles ¡°It¡¯s hopeless......I¡¯m done for......¡± I took the ss on the table and gulped it down at once. It was an expensive wine, but I couldn¡¯t taste it at all. I was drinking out of despair. Perhaps........It was a handkerchief with an original design! I thought about it and checked the handkerchief again. It was useless though. This handkerchief had three holes and it was made ofce...... The material between the two smaller holes was thicker. No matter how you looked at these, they were still panties. ¡°It helps a little that they weren¡¯t used, but.......¡± Still, nothing really helped at this point, that¡¯s what I felt. But only for the fact that they were not being used before, I thought I was fortunate. I poured some more wine and gulped it down. I can¡¯t keep going if I don¡¯t drink. By the time I opened the third bottle of wine, a heard a knock on my door. ¡°Who¡¯s the...re? Come in.¡± ¡°Excuse m......Were you drinking? I will bring some snacks.¡± She came inside at the perfect moment when I pawed at the ground. She froze in ce. I was so drunk I couldn¡¯t speak...... It¡¯s been a long time.......since Ist drank this much. ¡°Suu! I don¡¯t want shnacks. I don¡¯t need yoww!¡± ¡°Master, you are quite drunk......Water. Please drink this.¡± ¡°Water? I don¡¯t want watter, I want shake!¡± ¡°Yes, yes, I will go prepare some. But first, drink this, all right?¡± She pinched my nose and made me drink water directly from the water jug. Haha, it¡¯s funny. It¡¯s like I¡¯ve be a ss or something. ¡°Wow, master. You¡¯re amazing! Come now, drink some more!¡± ¡°Buhaaa! Really? I can drink a lot more, you know?¡± And so, because Suu forced all that water down my throat, I was starting to sober up. Still, her skills were so vivid. When I came to my senses, she loosened up my belt and put me to sleep on the sofa. ¡°.......Sorry, Suu. I drank too much.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right. Sometimes it helps change your mood. Besides, that cur......I mean, my brother. I¡¯m used to taking care of him in these situations.¡± She said and ced a wet towel on my forehead. Ah.......This feels so good....... It would¡¯ve been perfect if she didn¡¯t call me a cur. After a small break, my mind felt refreshed. What I drank before was not normal water, was it? I never woke up so quickly after a drunkenness like that. Maybe she put some medicinal nts in that water. I put away the towel and stood up. I wanted to take Suu to my mother-inw¡¯s room as quickly as possible. ¡°Suu, I have something to talk......¡± ¡°Master......Is it about this?¡± An expressionless Suu was holding the panties in her hands, expanding them. An expressionless beauty is extremely scary. An expressionless in girl isedy material, but when a beautiful girl does this, well, that¡¯s horror material. ¡°The...the truth is......¡± I knelt down in front of Suu, who was still expanding those panties, and exined her the situation. I didn¡¯t know why I knelt down. My body moved on its own. I finished exining to the expressionless Suu about what happened, while she continued to tamper with those panties. I felt like an underwear thief exining himself to the victim. ¡°.......Master, excuse me but I have to say this.¡± She prompted me to sit on the sofa, then she started to talk. ¡°First, master, you are taking Lamia-sama too lightly. That person is a true noble. Most likely these are teaching materials.¡± She fluttered the panties then continued. ¡°Lamia-sama gave you these in order to train you, master. What if these panties didn¡¯t belong to Lamia-sama, but to some other noble woman? What would you do then?¡± ¡°Training.......Another noble woman?.........¡± ¡°It¡¯s not impossible. Your weakness is precisely your kindness, master. And when the other party is a woman, it¡¯s just too easy to see this.¡± ¡°..........¡± I can¡¯t really answer her back. ¡°If you¡¯re a noble, the underwear is much less important when you could have naked women waiting for you. Besides......did you examine these panties properly?¡± ¡°N...No.......¡± ¡°Please look. Can you see that this part here is rather thick? Most likely inside is.......¡± She said and tore the panties off. ¡°As I thought, it¡¯s a secret message. Master.......take a look.¡± I opened the memo she gave me. ¡®Did it surprise you? You can¡¯t let your guard down, all right?¡¯ .......It¡¯s settled. This was all my mother-inw¡¯s training. Because I panicked too much, she saw right through me that I have no immunity to women. My master¡¯s training was hell......But my mother-inw¡¯s training was mental. Still, I¡¯m d I received this training from her! This dark side of nobles, I will never get it if they don¡¯t teach me. At any rate, my stomach started to hurt......Geez! ¡°Master, you learned something from this lesson......You have to properly check things for secret messages, you must get used to treating women, and,stly, you should rely on me more.¡± ¡°.......You¡¯re right. I¡¯ll do just that. Ah......I feel relieved from the bottom of my heart.¡± ¡°Fufu, that and one more thing......You must never take the Frontier Count¡¯s Household lightly. That Lamia-sama would never give you her own underwear.¡± She said, then ced the panties on a tray and burnt them. .......Err, Suu-san? Your face looks scary. ¡°When did it happen? Howes Lamia-sama got her hands on my underwear......¡± Eh? These panties were Suu¡¯s!? Then, I might have wanted them. That old hag¡¯s......I mean, I don¡¯t need that older sister of a mother-inw¡¯s panties. But if they belonged to a beautiful woman, then the story is different. ¡°Anyway, the issue has been settled. Madam found out about this too, right?¡± He? Madam as in Bea? Where did she?? ¡°Do you need anything from me? Good morning Zest-sama.¡± (Good morning, Dad. You were found out!) Bea and Toto came here from the bedroom. It seems that she observed the situation first..... Bea could deceive me, but Toto is just too frank. .......Great. Please don¡¯t say that you wanted those panties. Bea¡¯s face turnedpletely red and she informed us, as if nothing happened whatsoever. ¡°Come now, Zest-sama. Let¡¯s go eat.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right. Suu, please take care of it.¡± (What will we have for breakfast? Toto likes sd!) ¡°I¡¯ll go prepare it right away.¡± Suu lowered her head gracefully and left the room. This girl really is excellent......I¡¯ve got myself a wonderful steward. I admired Suu once again as I drank some more water. Now that I sobered up, I was quite hungry. I¡¯ll eat with all my might! ¡°By the way, Zest-sama?¡± I was in an euphoric mood because of the uing breakfast. Bea smiled at me. ¡°About my mother¡¯s underwear.......you might say that I understood.¡± (Ah, I must go to the toilet.) Toto disappeared, as if she ran away from a dark and cold magical power. Toto, you have some amazing danger sensing abilities. Take daddy with you! ¡°In the first ce......why did have those panties? Fufufu, it¡¯s strange, isn¡¯t it? Let¡¯s take our time and talk, will you?¡± ¡°Please wait. Suu! Suu did it!¡± I didn¡¯t do anything wrong! I didn¡¯t do anything wrong! I squeezed this interior desperate shout to death, and knelt down for the second time today...... Chapter 111: How to Use the Merchants Chapter 111: How to Use the Merchants ¡°Master, the merchant arrived. What should I do?¡± I was finally set free after I frantically exined everything to Bea. That¡¯s when Suu came to ask me this. When I think about it, wasn¡¯t it Suu¡¯s fault that I had to go through all of this, since she¡¯s the one who gave me those panties in the first ce? ¡°I¡¯ll meet with them right away. By the way Suu, because of you I had to go through something terrible.......¡± ¡°I am really sorry for this. Next time, I¡¯ll make sure to prepare madam¡¯s things.¡± ¡°........No, it¡¯s not that. Bea would scold me again!¡± ¡°Eh? Why is that? Isn¡¯t it natural to want to smell the scent of someone you love?¡± I looked at the bewildered Suu, at which point I myself got astonished. ¡°Perhaps, that¡¯s how it is for kemonobito? It is different for humans, you know?¡± ¡°Wha!? Is that so!?¡± ¡°I see.....I finally understand. I don¡¯t want to discriminate against any races, but it¡¯s like that, you know....... there¡¯s a difference between what each race considers asmon sense.¡± ¡°I¡¯m surprised......I really believed that humans felt the same way. Especially Sonia-sama.¡± .......I found out about my master¡¯s preferences in such a nonchnt way. ¡°It¡¯s nothing really special about it. It¡¯s just something men want. However, women hate it. You must keep silent about my master¡¯s matter.¡± ¡°I did learn something. Then, master, shall we go?¡± As I continued to wonder about the gap inmon sense between humans and the kemonobito race, we walked towards the room where the merchant was waiting. From now on, I have to closely examine all the differences between the races, so that this won¡¯t happen again. Now that I think about it, maybe Albert¡¯s dance had some sort of meaning too. I thought about it as I followed behind Suu. The drifting floral scent was quite pleasant. She smells really good...... ¡°I am d to meet you, your excellency, duke Zest. I am Kalfa and I work under Tanya.¡± It appears that Suu¡¯s scent made me go on a small trip. But there¡¯s no time for this...... ¡°Kalfa, I¡¯m looking forward to working with you.¡± ¡°Yes. I prepared some items that might suit your excellency¡¯s taste.¡± The woman started to busily arrange the goods in front of me. Is she in theter half of her 20s? She kept her red hair in a ponytail and she seemed like a lively person. Her eyes looked like two big chestnuts and she had the characteristics of a beautiful woman. ¡°This magical tool is thetest of its model......¡± Kalfa introduced me several items but none of them were suitable for Bea. She was now making a hot exnation about the fire power and the mobility property of atest type magical tool that I really didn¡¯t care about. ¡°Kalfa, can I ask you something?¡± ¡°Ye.......yes sir! What is it, your excellency?¡± Kalfa was startled by my sudden interruption and put down the magical tool. ¡°.......Your shop.......doesn¡¯t sell well, am I right?¡± ¡°!?¡± As I thought, I was spot on. The stupefied Kalfa turned bright red. ¡°Damn you Tanya, you want me to do something about this?¡± ¡°Er....errr.......your excellency, please take this.¡± She handed over a letter from Tanya. ¡°Tanya told me that your excellency might say this. And if this was the case, she said to give this letter to your excellency......¡± Kalfa looked apologetic as she exined. I asked Suu to prepare some tea as I read the letter. ¡°Sigh.......¡± I involuntarily let out a sigh. This is what Tanya wrote in her letter. That I should think of Kalfa as the person in charge of the imperial capital¡¯s affairs, instead of Tanya herself. However, despite her having the right abilities, Kalfa is devastatingly bad at doing business. If she is to be the person in charge of the capital¡¯s affairs, she will increasingly get in contact with nobles. Could I do something about it? Or something like this. Still, this wasn¡¯t bad for me. If I train Kalfa to be useful to me, I¡¯ll have more chess pieces who¡¯ll send me information from the imperial capital. Besides, Tanya will owe me one too........ She really put some thought into this. ¡°Kalfa, are you bad at doing business?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s as you said. I can¡¯t do it right no matter how I try.¡± She was so dispirited that even her ponytail looked wilted. ¡°It can¡¯t be helped since Tanya asked for this favor. I¡¯ll teach you the secret business techniques of the Duke¡¯s Household.¡± ¡°The secret techniques of the Duke¡¯s Household!? To teach someone like me such incredible mysteries!¡± ¡°Yes. However, these secret techniques can¡¯t be taught carelessly. You need to be prepared for this too.¡± ¡°Be......prepared?¡± Kalfa hid her chest in a sh. You¡¯re wrong......Not this type of preparedness...... Suu too, stop staring at me like that! ¡°Once I teach you these techniques, you¡¯ll be the Duke¡¯s Household¡¯s cooperator. You¡¯ll have to help out with various things.¡± ¡°Cooperator.......¡± ¡°I mostly live on my domain so I don¡¯t really receive much information from the imperial capital. And Tanya will move on my domain soon. You do understand, right?¡± ¡°I see. That¡¯s why you need a cooperator.¡± She seemed to have understood. Since Tanya introduced me to this girl, it means that she also had her consent about this. Tanya herself decided to be my ally and work as the Duke¡¯s Household¡¯s purveyor. That¡¯s why she sent Kalfa to me.......To make her our strategic link to the imperial capital. If her employer, Tanya asked her to do this, Kalfa¡¯s answer would be... ¡°As you wish. I¡¯ll be in your care from now on.¡± This was the only answer she could give. At least she does understand this. ¡°Good. So, you do understand these types of bargaining....... Then, sales should be rather easy for you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not.......I can¡¯t seem to.......¡± And so, it was decided that I will teach Kalfa the fundamentals of trade. She had to learn how to bargain with nobles and how to do it withmon people. And also......in a sense, the way you talk as a business person is an art in itself. Normally, her employer Tanya would teach her these things, but since I¡¯m a noble and a stranger from a different world, I am better suited to do so. This was the moment when I thought how great it was to have worked in the sales business. But, this was a job that any noble could do in this world.......The fact that I was a stranger was maybe a coincidence. ¡°Kalfa, you think too much aboutplicate matters. In short, it¡¯s really simple.¡± ¡°I¡¯m thinking too much?¡± For the time being, after I teach her the basics, I will train her little by little. ¡°You give too much exnations. First, you must concentrate on making your customer talk to you.¡± ¡°The customer?.......¡± ¡°It is quite tiring to listen to people¡¯s talks. Think about when you chat happily about something for a while, and when you listen to Tanya¡¯s preach for the same period of time. Figuring out which one is more tiring is easy, right?¡± ¡°Indeed........¡± ¡°It¡¯s the same with customers. To say nothing of nobles, who are frantic about not losing too much time listening to other¡¯s stories. You get unnecessarily tired.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why my customers.......¡± She appeared to have a clue about this. Kalfa had aplicated expression on her face. ¡°First, you¡¯ll have to make your customers chat happily with you. And then you¡¯ll have to search for keywords in their speech. What do they want, what¡¯s their budget, when do they need the things, who is the decision-maker, and also.......why do they need them. Did you look up for these things until now?¡± ¡°.......No.¡± ¡°You have to at least know these things, otherwise your customers will take advantage of you in a business discussion. You start with this first.¡± I drank some tea that Suu prepared. Yes, this is delicious.....Is there a trick behind it? When I prepare it myself, it doesn¡¯t taste like this. ¡°I see......Thank you very much, your excellency. Please take care of me from now on!¡± Kalfa bowed her head and her ponytail swayed in a vigorous manner. It appears that sheprehended my advice. This is very good. It¡¯s the most basics of basics but it seems that this world hasn¡¯t written anything about it. In this case, I¡¯ll take my time and teach her everything.......There¡¯s a long way ahead...... Because it got ratherte, I sent her back for today. I was still going to be in the imperial capital for a while longer. I also had time to choose the right present for Bea. I saw Kalfa off after she collected her items then I returned to the office that was prepared for the Duke¡¯s Household inside the pce. Now, I had to finish my work, after I lost so much time today. I looked at the mountain of letter on my desk. This....I must answer to them all........ About the time I cast the fifth session of healing magic on my right hand, the mountain of letters vanishedpletely. I aplished it......It was a long fight. The harshest of them all were the love-letters from various nobles¡¯ daughters....... If they said something like ¡®I like you¡¯ or ¡®I love you¡¯, I might¡¯ve thought they were cute. It was really painful to decipher their unintelligible metaphorical expressions that didn¡¯t make any sense at all. Wasn¡¯t this un indirect form of harassment........? When I looked outside, it was already pitch dark. In the end, I haven¡¯t done anything satisfactory today. Now that I¡¯m a noble.......I see how tiring it is. I would rather resign than continue to do this....... I was massaging my aching shoulders, when Suu entered the office. ¡°Master, an important love-letter arrived. Please check it.¡± That¡¯s enough.......No more love-letters...... That¡¯s what my eyes were saying when I took the letter and looked at its seal. It was a crown with a tree passing right in the middle of it and a bow with a flower ced at its bottom. This was the seal of the elves¡¯ royal family........ It appears that the tiring work as a noble is far away from ending. Chapter 112: The Prince’s Plan Chapter 112: The Prince¡¯s n ¡°Master, please check this.¡± Suu held out the letter. I received and opened the letter from the elven royal family. .......I don¡¯t want to read it though. ¡®Forgive me for sending this letter out of a sudden. I sincerely wish to talk to duke Zest, one of the empire¡¯s leaders. There¡¯s still a bit of time until I arrive, but once I¡¯m there I¡¯ll wait for the opportunity. At this point, the only one I can rely on.......is the hero who achieved spiritification. Please, I¡¯m begging you, meet with me.¡¯ As I thought, I didn¡¯t want to read this. And because he didn¡¯t write his name, I had an even worse presentment. He wrote it in a hurry and only included the minimum necessary.......That¡¯s the impression this letter gave. ¡°Master, should we dispose of it?¡± ¡°......Right. Burn it.¡± Suu probably guessed the nature of this letter by looking at myplexion, and quickly destroyed the letter. Dangerous letters can only be burned. As I thought....... Does he have a maid he trusts in the elven country.......to send him his letters? ¡°It seems that Tsubaki¡¯s husband is not like the rumors say. He¡¯s not stupid.......he¡¯s a big idiot.¡± ¡°My goodness. Master¡¯s troubles are increasing.¡± Suu said and grinned. ¡°You look happy, Suu.¡± ¡°Yes. Because he¡¯s a big idiot. I¡¯m looking forward to what extent.¡± Just to be sure, she seemed to understand the fact that I called him a big idiot on purpose. ¡®The elf prince is not stupid. He¡¯s a big idiot who pretends to be stupid in order to scheme something in a foreign country......In short, he¡¯s not an ordinary person.¡¯ This was the meaning behind it. ¡°Well, he¡¯s my cute Tsubaki¡¯s husband. Once he arrives, I want to have a long family talk with him.¡± ¡°Yes, I will make the necessary arrangements.¡± Suu lowered her head gracefully then left the room. This reason should work as an official stance.......It all depends now on his reason for ying stupid. I drank up all the tea that becamepletely cold. ¡°Foster father! It¡¯s been a long time. This is Tsubaki!¡± I finally got a moment of peace, when my door opened with such vigor that I thought it would break. Tsubaki entered the room......She saluted tly, as usual. ¡°Long time no see, Tsubaki. Let¡¯s take out time as family, shall we?......You guys can leave. Someone from the Duke¡¯s Household will take care of the rest.¡± Hearing my words, the maids apanying Tsubaki left the office. Suu entered as to change ces with them. ¡°Tsubaki, it¡¯s all right.¡± ¡°Yes sir! Foster father, what is?¡± ¡°Suu, are we clear?¡± ¡°Yes. There are no problems.¡± It¡¯s not like I didn¡¯t prepare for this, unlike before. That¡¯s because I expected Tsubaki toe see me. ¡°Tsubaki, ying along is good. What are you and prince nning to do?¡± ¡°.........¡± ¡°Was I wrong?.......Then, did the prince ask you to do this? He thought about the n and you cooperated?¡± ¡°Foster father, I don¡¯t understand what you¡¯re talking about!¡± ¡°Youngdy, there is no need to be cautious of me. I am the Duke¡¯s Household¡¯s steward.¡± Tsubalki kept silent as she alternately looked at me and Suu. ¡°You knew the prince from before meeting me. However, you couldn¡¯t oppose his Majesty¡¯s orders. That¡¯s why you approved of our marriage......Or maybe, because of my age, you knew that we would get engaged first......How much of this was the prince¡¯s reading?¡± ¡°Err......urm......¡± ¡°Because of certain reasons, the prince must act like a fool otherwise he gets killed. You knew about this and decided to help him. However, I unexpectedly appeared......Am I wrong?¡± ¡°.........Foster father.......you know this much........¡± ¡°An unexpected fianc¨¦....... Besides, rejecting him was too much of a risk. So, the prince thought about this n. The stupid prince would propose to you and you would act like a stupid girl, right? You shouldn¡¯t take me lightly, you know?¡± Tsubaki didn¡¯t answer. She trembled, her face ghastly pale. ¡°Tsubaki, you¡¯re a daughter of the Duke¡¯s Household. I want to protect you as much as possible. However, there are things I can¡¯t do if I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on, right?¡± ¡°Waa, waaah¡± ¡°I¡¯m not angry. I see, the one you were in love with was the prince, wasn¡¯t it? I will grant you this wish. You can be happy!¡± ¡°Waaaaaaaaaah, fa......fatheeer!¡± With a dripping nose, Tsubaki ng to me and cried. Because of her loud crying, Bea showed up too. Still, Tsubaki cried for what seemed like forever. ¡°Did you calm down? You really surprised me.¡± (Ahaha, look at Tsubaki¡¯s nose! It¡¯s dripping!) Tsubaki stopped crying after about an hour. Bea wiped her nose clean with a handkerchief. .......A real handkerchief, all right? ¡°I never thought that foster father would find out about this...... I will tell you everything.¡± Tsubaki, her eyes red, started to talk as she drank some tea. She met the elf prince about the time she was five. Even then, the prince was famous for being a stupid prince. He ended up visiting the capital several times for some sort of exchange between the isted elven country and the empire. Well, the empire produced a grand hero, the first generation of summoned stranger. They couldn¡¯t ignore the empire, but they couldn¡¯t send a simple messenger either. However, if it were for the stupid prince, he could be killed by mistake and no one wouldin.......It appears that the royal family used him because of his title. And so, the two of them met and fell in love. .......Is this prince all right, falling in love with a 5 years old little girl? It happens to Japanese people too......But I can¡¯t give you an example of it because it¡¯s too indecent. The elf prince and the empire¡¯s princess. There was no problem with their social status, so they kept in touch through letters. The stupid prince was different than the rumors portrayed him. He was very kind and affectionate towards Tsubaki. When they thought about getting married.......I showed up. After that, it happened like I predicted. The stupid prince wrote her a letter in which he gave her instructions about how to act...... ¡°I am sorry for everything I¡¯ve done until now. I lied......and I.......¡± Tsubaki¡¯s tears began to overflow again. ¡°It¡¯s all right. You tried your best until now......It was harsh, wasn¡¯t it? All this time, what was his Majesty looking at, I wonder.......¡± Bea wiped her tears tenderly, then hugged her close. It seems that she was caught in a dream of love rather than being deceived. ......But for the prince to wholeheartedly fall in love with a little girl...I can¡¯t seem to consent to this. Yet, I¡¯m too afraid to oppose them so I¡¯ll just keep it to myself. ¡°Zest-sama. We¡¯ll do something about Tsubaki¡¯s matter, won¡¯t we!?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± I can¡¯t oppose Bea when she¡¯s d in a pitch ck magical power, smiling sweetly like a holy mother. I reflexively answered with ¡®Yes¡¯. Tsubaki exhausted herself from all the crying and Bea took her to sleep. It¡¯s no wonder. Tsubaki was still a middle school student after Japan¡¯s standards. And yet she desperately worked hard to fulfill her obligations as a noble.......and as a member of the imperial family. This is intolerable......The royalty, that is. They made a child go through such hardships. I had to kill this rage, that I couldn¡¯t let out, with alcohol. Damn it! I can¡¯t even feel its taste. ¡°Master, please eat something too at least. Otherwise, it¡¯ll be like yesterday.¡± Suu came in bringing some snacks. She¡¯s right.....I haven¡¯t eaten tonight. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll do that. Suu, keep mepany for a while.¡± ¡°Yes, as you wish.¡± I drank my wine as I ate some cheese and crackers. Suu prepared herself a ss and started to drink too. ¡°Master, nobles have duties.¡± ¡°.......I know that.¡± ¡°Commoners can¡¯t live an extravagant lifestyle. Theirs is a life with low safety.¡± ¡°Yeah, I already know that.¡± ¡°In this case, please make up your mind.¡± ¡°I know.¡± I drank up all the wine in my ss and poured some more. ¡°I know that it¡¯s tough. That¡¯s why I¡¯m here. Please rely on me, master.¡± Suu¡¯s eyes were fixed on me and I could feel her firm determination. She¡¯s right. We¡¯ll have to do our best and try everything we can. I do haverades who¡¯ll help me after all. ¡°Thank you. I will rely on you.¡± ¡°This makes me happy. My loyalty is to you only......for a lifetime.¡± She stood up quickly, bowed her head, lifted her skirt and bent her knee. My faithful......my precious steward continued like this. ¡°Please use this. The smell has already infiltrated.¡± She held out a handkerchief with three beautiful holes....... Ah, she was talking about this? ........Right....... This steward......She¡¯s probably no good after all....... Chapter 113: Study Meeting with Kalfa Chapter 113: Study Meeting with Kalfa ¡°Your excellency, duke Zest, I am counting on you today. This is a small present for you.¡± ¡°Kalfa, you don¡¯t have to be this considerate. Suu, prepare some tea.¡± ¡°As you wish.¡± The meeting with the elf prince was still toe. For now, while I still had some time, I decided to train Kalfa. It was something like a study meeting. ¡°Now,st time I only exined you the basics. Today you¡¯ll put that to practical use.¡± ¡°Yes! Please!¡± Kalfa¡¯s pony tail swayed energetically. She felt more like a neighborhood girl rather than a youngdy. She was a very friendly person. ¡°Even though I said it¡¯s going to be the applied version of what I taught youst time, it¡¯s not really that different. You¡¯ll improve the uracy of your standard questions and I¡¯ll give some piece of advice. That¡¯s all.¡± ¡°I understand the questions part, but what about the advice?¡± ¡°It¡¯s about ¡®How can I be the customer¡¯s ally?¡¯ during the conversation.¡± ¡°Be the customer¡¯s ally......?¡± Kalfa blinked her big eyes with surprise. It appears that she didn¡¯t get it. ¡°Right......For example, I want to purchase some goods. I want some magical tool but I¡¯m worried that my wife will scold me for it. Let¡¯s go with these circumstances.¡± ¡°This setup happens rather frequently.......I do remember this.¡± ¡°How are you going to sell me the magical tool?¡± ¡°Right......Should I talk about the magical tool¡¯s performance and price?¡± Haha, as I thought, she went for this. This is a mistake I made lots of times when I was a rookie salesman. ¡°Don¡¯t sell anything to such a customer.¡± ¡°......What?¡± ¡°As I said, you don¡¯t sell anything to such a customer.¡± ¡°Ehh?¡± Hahaha, she¡¯s confused now, isn¡¯t she? Kalfa was so astonished, she looked funny. ¡°If I am to tell you a bit more, you won¡¯t sell them anything for now. Do you understand?¡± ¡°I won¡¯t sell anything for now......For now?¡± ¡°If the customer is worried about his wife, why won¡¯t you persuade her together with your customer? If you ask the customer if sending her jewels, clothes or flowers would work, he¡¯ll answer you. First, you¡¯ll crush his worries.¡± ¡°.......I see! This way I¡¯ll be his ally.¡± She finally understood. If she knows about her customer¡¯s worries, all bes much easier. ¡®I¡¯ll help you solve your problems.¡¯ These killing words are very useful. ¡°Are you doing business in order to sell goods? When a noble is your customer, if he or she likes the goods, you can sell them anyway. What you have to do is to enter the nobles¡¯ pockets, right?¡± ¡°You¡¯re saying that I shouldn¡¯t get fooled by an immediate profit.¡± She¡¯s quite an excellent pupil. It seems that Kalfa realized what she needed in order to manage her business properly. ¡°You don¡¯t really have to present your goods. Your job is to make the nobles buy from you.¡± ¡°Yes, your excellency. I won¡¯t forget these words!¡± ¡°Also......Suu, you can bring that.¡± ¡°Certainly, master!¡± Suu reacted quickly to my words and brought me a box. ¡°Kalfa, ept this. In case you find yourself in hopeless situation, use it. You heard me? Don¡¯t hesitate to use it, all right?¡± ¡°Yes......your excellency! This is...!¡± The object inside the box. It was a dagger with the Duke¡¯s Household¡¯s family crest. ¡°I think that everything is going to be all right, but we need precaution just in case.¡± ¡°Still, a dagger with your family crest.......¡± That¡¯s right. I obviously know this......the meaning behind a dagger with my family crest. The owner of the dagger is regarded as an affiliate of the household using that crest. And if you¡¯re found to use a counterfeit, your entire family will be massacred. In short, the dagger symbolizes this: ¡®If you pick a fight with this person, I¡¯ll be your opponent instead!¡¯ ¡°I¡¯m nning to give one to Tanya as well, so don¡¯t worry about it. That¡¯s just how much I¡¯m expecting from you. Hold on tight.¡± ¡°I...I respectfully ept it!¡± With trembling hands, she received the box as she bowed her head. Since there are no idiots who wish to openly pick a fight against the Duke¡¯s Household, I felt relieved for the moment. Well, once she uses it, she¡¯ll be found out that she works for the Duke¡¯s Household, so she won¡¯t be able to gather information for me any longer. Even so, I don¡¯t want to abandon her. ¡°This is your trump card. But if you feel that you are in danger, you must use it immediately. Then,e to my domain! Understood?¡± ¡°I will definitely live up to your excellency¡¯s expectations!¡± Kalfa held the box tightly in her arms as she stared at me reassuringly. ¡°I do have expectations, but since your death would mean trouble for me, I gave you this. Don¡¯t misunderstand me, all right?¡± ¡°Certainly, your excellency! I¡¯m very grateful for your consideration.¡± After this, our study meeting continued until evening, with me teaching her various minor details. Kalfa seemed to have understood how it worked, as she absorbed my words rapidly. This way it will be all right to leave the information gathering to her. It¡¯s been a while since Ist talked this much and I was rather tired. When I¡¯m on my domain, I don¡¯t receive any information from the imperial capital. Am I bit too enthusiastic about having a valuable someone to gather info for me? I sat on the sofa in my office and rubbed my shoulders. Ah, it hurts......I¡¯m an ossan 1 after all. I used some healing magic as I took a mouthful of tea. Shall I go to sleep early today? While I thought about this, I heard the door opening with a clink. ¡°Albert?.......What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°Your excellency, you seem tired. How about this? Once in a while, secretly going out in the city is great for a change of mood.¡± Albert is the guards¡¯manding officer so he doesn¡¯t need to knock when entering my office. He¡¯s also allowed to enter my sleeping chambers without authorization. Some way or another I do trust......this cur. ¡°The city, huh?.....Do you know a good ce or something?¡± ¡°Yes sir! The ck knights will escort us as well.¡± We grinned and exchanged nces. He¡¯s right. Once in a while, I have to reward my subordinates too! ¡°Good, Albert! It¡¯s been a long time so I might as well go with you!¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go then!¡± And so, we decided to go out tonight and make merry. Even the generals are going rampant. Why shouldn¡¯t the duke do so as well. Thus, apanied by my rascals, we arrived at that particr shop. ¡®Touch Me Bar ¨C Fluffy Paradise¡¯ Or so it¡¯s called. ¡°Damn you, Albert.....You have quite the taste.¡± ¡°Kah.....Zest-sama, it¡¯s the first time I¡¯ming here.¡± ¡°Albert aniki 2 likes the ¡®t Chest Academy¡¯ after all.¡± ¡°Yeah, that really astonished me.¡± ¡°Albert-san, you truly love them small.¡± ........Albert, you¡¯re a noble, you know? Even if you¡¯re doing this to seize the soldiers¡¯ sympathy.......you¡¯re too much...... Albert turned away to avoid my re, then he informed. ¡°Now, let¡¯s go inside! The Paradise is waiting for us!¡± He forcefully silenced the ck knights and we entered the fluffy paradise. ¡°Oh my, such handsome men! You¡¯re my type so I¡¯ll take good care of you.¡± ¡°You¡¯re silent......Are you perhaps extremely shy?¡± ¡°Ufufu, look, you can touch me, you know?¡± What came into sight were leg hairs, chest hairs.....and arm hairs, some fluffy ossans wearing women¡¯s clothes...... ¡°Where¡¯s that idiot Albert!! I¡¯ll kill him with my bare hands!!!¡± ¡°You¡¯re yelling......But I don¡¯t hate it, you know?¡± ¡°He¡¯s a very shy person, isn¡¯t he?¡± ¡°Oh my, you must sit down.¡± And so, the fluffy paradise night wore on........ 1. It is rather annoying to always trante this term as ¡®a middle-aged man¡¯ so I¡¯ll use the Japanese word from now on. I must mention that ossan is kind of a rude term. 2. Older brother/ someone¡¯s superior. Chapter 114: Knowledge is Important Chapter 114: Knowledge is Important ¡°It seems that you had funst night, master.¡± Suu grinned as she greeted me. You know about it? ¡°Thanks to your brother, I had an enjoyable night.¡± ¡°I¡¯m d to hear this. Madamughed when she heard about it, so I think it¡¯s all right.¡± ........Bea knows about this too? That hell of a shop.......once you got used to it, it was rather fun. For some reason, we ended up holding an arm wrestlingpetition with those ossans dressed as women. It¡¯s a good memory indeed. In the end, we stayed there all night and came home in the morning....... ¡°Did you manage to rx a bit? Sometimes it¡¯s good to do so, Zest-sama.¡± (Dad, do you like them hairy? Should Toto grow some hair too?) Please stop......A hairy Toto is horror material. ¡°Morning, Bea, Toto. The hairy thing was unexpected.¡± I didn¡¯t want to argue about that any longer. No doubt that I was tired. ¡°Master, the only thing in your schedule today is the meeting with those good-for-nothing nobles. You can take your time and rx.¡± ¡°Oh my, this is all right then.¡± (Waaai! We can enjoy our time with Dad!) That was a cruel way of calling them.......Poor nobles. Well, it¡¯s okay if I handle them casually. If everyone says so, I¡¯ll take my time and rx! I sat on the sofa and made Bea sit next to me. Toto took her usual spot on my shoulder. ¡°Your belly has grown quite big. Is it painful?¡± ¡°No. It¡¯s true that my back is sore......and I¡¯m feeling ill sometimes. But, it¡¯s not painful. Mine and Zest-sama¡¯s child will soon be born after all.¡± ¡°Bea........¡± ¡°Zest-sama.....¡± (Aaaaah!) As we were about to enter a pink mood, Toto¡¯s powerful telepathic message stopped us. ¡°Wh....what¡¯s wrong, Toto?¡± ¡°Toto-chan, what¡¯s the matter?¡± (This is bad! Mom¡¯s belly moved just now! Is there something inside it!!?) Toto¡¯s face turned ghastly pale and she started to tremble. Hm? Did she not know about it? ¡°There is a baby inside Bea¡¯s belly.¡± ¡°Weren¡¯t you happy about bing an older sister? What¡¯s wrong now, Toto-chan?¡± (But Suu told me about it! That a bird is going to carry the baby! And that magical power has gathered inside Mom¡¯s belly!) .......Right, it may be good to exin things to children up to that extent. ¡°Master, this is what I told Toto-sama. Because she¡¯s still young, I thought......¡± ¡°You don¡¯t need to worry. Someone already taught her about child making after all.¡± ¡°Toto-chan, that was Suu¡¯s kindness, you know? I¡¯ll teach you properly this time, okay?¡± (Kindness? I don¡¯t really get it but I understand!) While Bea properly exined things to Toto, she caressed her mom¡¯s belly. As I gazed at this scene, Suu whispered into my ear. ¡°Master? Who is the fool who told the innocent Toto such a stupid story......¡± ¡°Your brother.¡± Suu opened her eyes, and as she flew into a rage, she muttered with a conspicuously low voice. ¡°......Should I end him?¡± ¡°He already reflected upon it. I have great expectations from him, so I can¡¯t let him die this easily.¡± ¡°Master......I will never forget......master¡¯s feelings. Tonight, I¡¯ll prepare a new handkerchief for you.¡± ¡°Forget about it......¡± After this conversational exchange, the time to meet with the nobles arrived. Guys who rubbed their hands together and got close to me, guys who desperately tried to suck up to me, guys who pressed the matter of epting their daughters into my household in order to learn the good manners...... Everyst one of them is rotten........ I evaded these nobles¡¯ talks as slippery as an eel. ¡®I understand. I will consider it.¡¯ That¡¯s how I concluded, sending them away. It was an easy job. Instead of refusing them, I replied in this manner in order to observe their reactions. Depending on their responses, I¡¯ll decide whether to win them over.......or erase thempletely....... I¡¯m afraid to say but I¡¯ve be a true noble myself. When thest noble returned home, it was already dark. Toto received a health and physical education lesson from Bea and she seemed to have clearly understood now. (Amazing! Mom is creating a new life!) Did Bea be some sort of a god? I nced at her and she turned away, her face bright red. .......It appears that she couldn¡¯t give Toto a concrete exnation. ¡°That¡¯s right. That¡¯s why Toto, you must protect Bea at any cost, all right?¡± ¡°Fufu, please take good care of me, Toto-chan!¡± (Yes! Toto will definitely protect Mom!) It¡¯s better this way......There¡¯s no need for her to understand the process in details. After this, we finally enjoyed dinner as a family again, then entered the bath together. The harmony of a family......The happiness I couldn¡¯t find in Japan, I found in this ce. I¡¯m grateful I came to this world. I believed this from the bottom of my heart, as I got in my bed together with Bea and Toto. I was falling in a doze, when the presence in front of my door awoke my senses. ¡°Suu? What happened?¡± Suu opened the door quietly. ¡°Master, I¡¯m sorry to disturb you at nighttime. Pleasee to this room.......¡± Bea and Toto were in the bedroom too.....And since they were already asleep, she didn¡¯t want to wake them. I quietly moved to the next room. ¡°So, what happened?¡± ¡°Yes, there are two things. First, a notice that son-inw-dono arrived. Second, a notice from his Majesty the Emperor.¡± ¡°From the Emperor?¡± The one from the elf prince was already nned. But the Emperor¡¯s notice was unexpected. ¡®Zest, I¡¯m out of spirit drops. Please take care of it.¡¯ ......Such a demand in the middle of the night? It¡¯s strange......There must be something behind it. Think! However, no matter how much I thought about it, I couldn¡¯te up with anything. Am I missing something? A secret message? Or something like a code? After I received the letter, I worried about it for more than an hour. When Suu prepared another round of tea, I finally realized it..... Don¡¯t tell me......!? ¡°Suu, spill some tea on this letter.¡± ¡°Eh? Ye...yes.¡± Spilling tea on a letter from the Emperor usually meant sever punishment. While trembling, Suu did as I told. Having done so, other characters rose to the surface. ¡®The elves¡¯ country is about to break. The king is already gone.¡¯ These bright red words became visible on the letter that absorbed the tea. Suu ended up seeing this too......Her face turned ghastly pale. The chaos in the elves¡¯ country probably made her remembered that fairy-tale....... ¡°A sign for the devil king¡¯s revival......Another great war......¡± The story about the empire¡¯s first generation Emperor, the stranger¡¯s fight from long ago. The devil king first aimed at the elves¡¯ country, bringing chaos to the entire world. Every race has a legend about the hero who defeated the devil king. ¡°I¡¯m reading too much into this. It¡¯s just a coincidence.¡± I said this, but my voice trembled. Coincidently, I am a stranger from a different world too, having a light attribute magical power. Coincidently, I achieved spiritification. Coincidently, the elves¡¯ country is in a state of chaos. .........Three coincidences. This might not be a coincidence anymore....... I breathed a sigh as I looked outside the window. I had the impression that the bright red full moon was telling me it wasn¡¯t a coincidence. ¡°And, master.¡± ¡°.......Is there something else?¡± ¡°My brother......Could you finally forgive him?¡± ¡°..............Ah.¡± I forgot that I tied Albert to a tree in the pce¡¯s inner courtyard. ........He¡¯s......still alive, right? It¡¯s okay. It¡¯s okay. Chapter 115: The Outcome of Our Secret Talk Chapter 115: The Oue of Our Secret Talk ¡°Good morning, master.¡± ¡°Were you able to sleepst night? Don¡¯t push yourself too much, all right?¡± ¡°Thank you, master. There is nothing to worry about.¡± Because of the Emperor¡¯s letter, Suu turned ghastly palest night, and I also took great damage. I wanted to talk about it again, now that the night passed. ¡°Can you arrange a meeting with the Emperor?¡± ¡°An informal one is possible. In the evening, I¡¯ll make ns for you to visit his Majesty¡¯s residential area to discuss youngdy Tsubaki¡¯s marriage. This should work.¡± It¡¯s perfect. She truly is excellent at this sort of things. ¡°Please do it then. Also, write to Katalina and tell her to make preparations as well. And send a secret messenger to the Frontier Count. ¡° ¡°Certainly! What are the contents of the message?¡± ¡°......The fairy-tale might repeat. He¡¯ll understand.¡± ¡°As you wish. I¡¯ll make the necessary arrangements....... What about Lamia-sama?¡± She probably felt uneasy because I didn¡¯t mention my mother-inw at all. But it¡¯s all right. ¡°I¡¯m sure that Bea will go visit mother-inw. She¡¯ll tell her then.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. If we make too much of amotion, it will be suspicious.¡± Suu agreed, then left the room. Today will be a very busy day...... I entrusted Bea with contacting mother-inw. The daughter will visit her mother after a long time......There¡¯s simply nothing out of ce with that. Much less since Bea is pregnant. It is the perfect reason to go see her. In the meanwhile, I summoned Kalfa. The pretext......To choose a present for my pregnant wife who is in a bad mood. However, the reality was different. ¡°Kalfa, if I were to ask you to prepare food for me.......How big a quantity can you make preparations for?¡± ¡°Food......If you want it at this time, I can make arrangements for an amount that could sustain his Majesty¡¯s entire army for a year.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to start gathering right now. I asked just to be sure.¡± ¡°Understood. You can call me anytime.¡± In case a war would start, this is essential. Katalina would take care of my soldiers, and the Frontier Count¡¯s army woulde to my help as well. As for the food, I can guarantee a certain amount. ........Still, the most important thing is whether I can get my hands on it or not. It all depends now on the meeting with the Emperor. I took all the measures I could, and I decided to take a nap until evening. There¡¯s a chance that after I meet with his Majesty, I¡¯ll rush straight into a meeting with the elf prince. I must rest when I get the chance. As I fell in a doze on my chair in the office, I felt Suu shaking my shoulders. ¡°Master, it is time. Please get ready.¡± ¡°Understood......What about Bea?¡± I asked her as I rubbed my eyes. ¡°Madam said she will return after dinner. It¡¯s been a while so she stayed longer to chat, I figured.¡± I see.....But this is my mother-inw¡¯s way of protecting her. I must send her another presentter. I washed my face and changed clothes. For the time being, I am meeting the Emperor, so wearing ordinary clothes is no good. I put on my ck military uniform and walked towards the imperial family¡¯s quarters. ¡°Oh! Zest. I¡¯m d you look good.¡± ¡°Yes, your Majesty. I¡¯m relieved you look the same.¡± A retainer maid of the imperial family guided me to the room where the Emperor was waiting. The Empress in not present......Is there a reason for that? Once the maid prepared the tea and left the room, the smile disappeared from his Majesty¡¯s face. ¡°Since you hurried toe see me......does it mean that you got the meaning of the letter?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s about the fairy-tale matter, right?¡± ¡°Ah, such a bothersome story. Were you able to arrange somehow your end and the Frontier Count¡¯s?¡± ¡°It depends on how settled we are when ites to the elves. Should time and circumstances permit, I could involve Lc as well.¡± The Emperor¡¯s face was bitter but he made his decision having no other choice. There are all sorts of rumors about the Holy Country of Lc, so it¡¯s not really all right to involve them, but...... ¡°It¡¯s better than losing.......¡± ¡°We still don¡¯t know if a war will start, do we?¡± ¡°Yet, supposing the worst is necessary. The elf prince will arrive soon as well. He¡¯s truly an amazing guy.¡± ¡°The elf prince? What on earth is heing here for?¡± He dares to feign ignorance....... After I asked that, the Emperor looked at me reproachfully. .......Did he find me out? Does he know that I consider the prince to be a very sharp person? Or maybe he¡¯s only suspicious. ¡°Enough with that. Let¡¯s take our time until he arrives.¡± ¡°As you wish.¡± ¡®You knew about it, right?¡¯ ¡®I don¡¯t understand.¡¯ If you wanted a free trantion, this is what we talked about. After I chatted with the Emperor for a few moments, that guy finally arrived. I felt the presence of two people outside the door. ¡°Excuse us. The eldest son of the elf king, Mars-sama is here.¡± ¡°Enter.¡± The door opened with the Emperor¡¯s words. A young man with long silver hair entered after the maid. He had long, thin slit eyes and a slim physique. He gave the impression of a beautiful youth......Still, his ears were long. His outward appearance would fit perfectly in a Japanese idol band. ¡°It¡¯s been a long time, your Majesty.¡± He sent a fleeting nce at me, but the first one to greet is always the Emperor. ¡°Prince Mars, I¡¯m d you look good. Well, sit now.¡± Prince Mars did as the Emperor told him and sat on the sofa. I casted some magic to check him out as I stayed vignt. The maid prepared more tea, and once she left the room, his Majesty began to talk. ¡°Prince Mars, this man is Duke Zest. Did you know him?¡± ¡°You are......It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you, I¡¯m Mars.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you too, prince Mars. Or, I shall call you son-inw-dono.¡± It was a greeting full of smiles, but I didn¡¯t let my guard down not even one bit. This prince Mars.....He¡¯s quite formidable. I prepared myself in case he would stand up at any moment from that sofa where he sat sofortably. ¡°Now......that we finished with the greetings, let¡¯s get to the main topic. Prince Mars, you have some magnificent acting skills.¡± ¡°I was frequently impolite towards you, so I must humbly apologize.¡± He stood up and propped one knee to the floor. My vignce ascended in level. From that position, it was possible to attack the Emperor. ¡°Son-inw-dono, sit down on the sofa right away. In that position, you¡¯re too close to his Majesty.¡± I unleashed my magical power, as I warned him strongly. It¡¯s not like I swore absolute loyalty to the Emperor, but if prince Mars would do it in this situation....... Without any question, I¡¯ll be made an aplice. ¡°What¡¯s wrong, son-inw-dono? Sit down on the sofa.¡± ¡°.....Yes sir! As...as you wish.¡± He sat on the sofa, his face sort of stiff. After I confirmed that he did what I said, I restrained my magical power. ¡°Zest is prone to worrying. But he doesn¡¯t have ill will towards you, prince Mars.¡± ¡°Your Majesty. I apologize for my son-inw¡¯s discourtesy.¡± ¡°Hahaha, that¡¯s because he¡¯s your son-inw. Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± ¡°Thank you for your consideration.¡± Good. A splendid monkey show. ¡®Prince Mars, if you get cocky, I¡¯ll kill you!¡¯ ¡®You understand who is superior here, don¡¯t you? You¡¯re a prince, you say? Your country is in a state of chaos, so that title means nothing to us. You¡¯ll be treated like nothing more than Zest¡¯s adopted son.¡¯ That was the hidden meaning behind our exchange. Prince Mars seemingly understood it, so he quietly sat down on the sofa, his body trembling. ¡°So, what¡¯s the situation like in the elves country?¡± His Majesty took a mouthful of tea, then asked the prince. His answer was, in all honesty......obliquely above my expectation. ¡°Yes......My father, the king is already dead......The Prime Minister seized the power. He ns to.....¡± He probably did it in order to motivate himself to continue. Prince Mars stroke his face with both hands, then informed us. ¡°The Prime Minister ns to revive the legendary magic science. That abominable devil king......He intends to be the king of magic science!¡± So by devil king.......they meant the king of magic science.......? So this is how it is... The room bepletely silent. Even the Emperor was speechless. My heart was thumping as well. In this tensioned room, the sound of violent knocking reverberated. His Majesty returned to himself and started to speak. ¡°What! What¡¯s wrong!?¡± ¡°This is Tsubaki! I¡¯ming in!¡± The answer to the Emperor¡¯s question was a simple ¡®I¡¯ming in¡¯. With a thick sound, the door copsed. ¡°Prince Mars! I¡¯vee to save you!¡± Exactly like a hero from legends, Tsubaki stood there with a smug face. The Emperor and the prince froze in ce in a second, as I started to beat Tsubaki, being careful not to break her neck. ¡°You stupid girl! What the heck are you doing!? You came to help him? You fool! You made it worse instead!! In the first ce........¡± ¡°Zest, Tsubaki can¡¯t hear you anymore, you know?¡± ¡°Fa...father Zest......Tsubaki is spouting foam and she¡¯s cramping.¡± I looked at my feet and saw that Tsubaki¡¯s eyes turned white. ¡°You dare falling asleep!? You stupid daughter!¡± ¡°Zest, she most likely fainted.¡± ¡°Tsubaki......Tsubaki........¡± This chaos continued until the Empress arrived, rmed by the noiseing from this room. ........I might die from worrying too much. Chapter 116: Enemies and Allies Chapter 116: Enemies and Allies ¡°Your Majesty, I am truly sorry for this.¡± ¡°Zest.....You have all sorts of hardships.¡± I intended to apologize for Tsubaki¡¯s rudeness, but the Emperor was sympathetic towards me. We both looked at each other and dropped our shoulders. If it were my real daughter who did this thing, it would be over simply with me scolding her. However, it¡¯s a different story if the one who did it was the Emperor¡¯s real daughter who got adopted into another family. That¡¯s why I beat her like that. ¡°I left that in the Empress¡¯s care. Shall we continue?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s do just that.¡± The Empress transported the white-eyed Tsubaki to another room. She¡¯s resting now so I kind of felt relieved. I drank some sweet tea, perfect for my exhausted body. In reality I was in the mood for wine, but I endured it. ¡°Now, prince Mars. How much power and influence does the Prime Minister have?¡± ¡°Yes. High elves......In short, what you call here nobles, about 30 percent. But the problem is, there are a few of them who have incredible influence.¡± I see, 30 percent, huh?......The rest of them are sitting on the fence, waiting to choose a side, huh? ¡°What do you specifically mean by incredible influence? And how many do you have on your side?¡± My question made prince Mars¡¯s face go stiff, but he answered nheless. ¡°Yes! The Prime Minister has the high officials in the internal administration and one of the three generals in the military affairs on his side.¡± He straightened his back as he answered. Stop it......I don¡¯t need any more muscle brains, and you don¡¯t have to be this nervous. ¡°I see. He has that much power......Then, what about your side?¡± ¡°That is......For the time being, I have no one.¡± ¡°What? I believe I heard that you said you have no one on your side at this point.¡± ¡°Your Majesty, I think I misheard it too.¡± ¡°Because I had to act like a fool in order to preserve my life, you know.......¡± I understand his reasons, but zero help is kind of embarrassing. The Emperor held his forehead in his hands too. ¡°What about the queen¡¯s faction? The queen should have a great deal of influence, doesn¡¯t she?¡± ¡°As expected from your Majesty. I admire your wisdom.¡± I nonchntly sucked up to the Emperor, but the prince¡¯s words made me lose face. ¡°Urm, the queen......my mother is on the Prime Minister¡¯s......¡± The prince¡¯s words seemed apologetic, and the Emperor and I both took deep sighs. ¡°In the end, the Prime Minister¡¯s faction is about 50 percent. Still, it seems that there are many people left who would at least listen to our story or even join our side. Maybe there are not so many who seriously think about the devil king¡¯s revival, after all.¡± ¡°Yes. If Zest is saying this, then, does it mean we have a chance to victory?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s assume that the elves¡¯ army has about 5000 soldiers. Half of them, 2500 soldiers, no matter how powerful the elves are......they don¡¯t stand a chance against me and the Frontier Count. Besides, if we use my reputation as the hero who achieved spiritification......¡± ¡°We can politically corner them......¡± The Emperor closed his eyes and thought about it for a moment, then told us his decision. ¡°Good. In the worst case, we¡¯ll start a war. We¡¯ll move with the goal of saving the prince in mind. I entrust the contact with the demon race and the holy country to Zest.¡± ¡°As you wish. I will first contact the demons and confirm this with them. They surely have information, and hostility from their part is too dangerous. After that, we¡¯ll arrange an urgent marriage ceremony.¡± ¡°Yeah. We¡¯ll go with that. We now have a good reason to intervene in the elves¡¯ country¡¯s affairs.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± ¡°Your Majesty, father-inw, thank you.¡± Prince Mars lowered his head deeply, and so, our discussion was mainly over. However, the Emperor broke the ice after all. ¡°By the way, Zest, how much a military force can you mobilize?¡± You¡¯re going to ask this, aren¡¯t you.......? I don¡¯t really want to answer. ¡°500 ck knights, 200 soldiers in the maids¡¯ unit, 500 adventurers, 2000 kemonobito volunteer soldiers. I can mobilize as much in the first stage......¡± ¡°About 3000 soldiers!? What about a maximum mobilization?¡± ¡°3000 in the first stage.......¡± ¡°If I mobilize the kemonobito in reserve as well, I can possibly gather another 5000 soldiers.¡± The kemonobito on my domain live normal farmer lives. Still, in case of emergency, almost all of them volunteered to be my soldiers. ¡°This way, you can win the war all by yourself......¡± ¡°7000 kemonobito, the elite ck knights and the war maidens?......Just where in the world is father-inw going towards?¡± The Emperor and the prince had shocked expressions on their faces. For some reason, they seemed to understand each other. ¡°See? Zest is scary, isn¡¯t he? Even if I change his domain, there is no one else but him who could rule a ce full of kemonobito. He¡¯s way too troublesome.¡± ¡°I sympathize with you, your Majesty. Furthermore, that Holy Country of Lc is his neighbor?¡± ¡°If they treat Zest coldly, even that country could be his enemy. He can already be Emperor.¡± ¡°That¡¯s.....what can I say....¡± They both let out a sigh. Gimme a break! ¡°I have no intention to stand at the top of the empire. My hands are full with the current position anyway.¡± ¡°I¡¯m thankful he has this kind of personality.¡± ¡°Indeed, he¡¯s more like your right-hand man.¡± ¡°Yeah. But you mustn¡¯t take him lightly, you know? It¡¯s certain that he¡¯s satisfied with his current position. However, if you make the mistake to snarl at him, he won¡¯t make do without inflicting back a massive injury.¡± The Emperorughed, then continued. ¡°Zest, supposing I do something to Beatrice, what would you do?¡± Hahaha, the Emperor likes to joke around. ¡°Such an interesting joke, your Majesty. But......in case that bes true, I¡¯ll erase every corner of this empire.¡± ¡°See? He¡¯s serious about it, so you must be careful too, prince Mars. You mustn¡¯t touch Bea....your mother-inw, okay? You¡¯ll perish if you do.¡± ¡°I will definitely not show disrespect towards mother-inw!¡± Prince Mars shook his head with such vigor that his neck mighte off. The Emperor¡¯s feet were trembling too. Your Majesty, this is just a y, right? It was just to teach the prince a lesson, right? Hmm? Was I wrong.....? ¡°You do just that. Assuming you never touch his wife, this guy is very kind towards his rtives. For your sake.....or, better say, for Tsubaki¡¯s sake, he¡¯s cooperating right now.¡± ¡°Yes. Thank you for your advice.¡± Yes. As I thought, he only wanted to warn the prince. He warned him about how to handle me....... Well, I do believe that I would kill this prince if he ever does something to Bea. And so, the Emperor was about to end today¡¯s discussion. However, he couldn¡¯t do it. Because the door opened slowly. ¡°Dear. Tsubaki cried herself to sleep. What in the world happened to her!?¡± The Empress entered the room, her usually gentle face had now a shade of wisdom. ¡°Then, I¡¯ll excuse myself, your Majesties.¡± ¡°Excuse me.¡± We both sensed danger, so we greeted them with superb timing. I ignored the Emperor who seemed to ask if we were going to leave him like this. In order to save myself, I sacrificed the Emperor...... ¡°Wait, you two. Zest, you¡¯re her foster father and prince, you¡¯re her future husband! You¡¯re not unrted to this!¡± ¡°Forgive me!¡± ¡°I agree with you.¡± ¡°Ku ku ku, you made her angry, Zest......¡± ¡°You, my dear, are the number one reason why I¡¯m angry! Don¡¯tugh! Show some remorse instead!¡± It happened so that, I was left with a precious experience after today; the Emperor and I both knelt on the ground in a seiza position. To women......Or better say, to the wife, even the Emperor has to kneel down and exin things properly. Chapter 117: Education and Training Chapter 117: Education and Training ¡°Then, your Majesty. I shall excuse myself.¡± ¡°I shall excuse myself too, your Majesty.¡± ¡°Yeah. I have put you through trouble. Take your time and rx now......¡± I was thankful to the Empress¡¯s talk, thatsted until morning. I tried to ignore the numbness, as I dragged my feet to my room. The prince was in the same situation as he came along. ¡°Father-inw, could you use your healing magic on me too.......¡± ¡°Don¡¯t behave like a spoiled brat. What will you do if you can¡¯t withstand something like this by yourself!? It seems that you need some education.¡± Seriously, if it were my master, he would¡¯ve suddenly attacked him with offensive magic. I am kind, so I won¡¯t do that. The prince kept silent as I ced a special bracelet on his arm. ¡°Err, father-inw? This is........¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right. It¡¯s a special bracelet I received from my master. It helps you store magical power. It¡¯s a magical tool that inflicts pain if you don¡¯t maintain your magical power above a certain level. Use it without reservation.¡± I heard the prince¡¯s happy voice, as I hurried to my room. Be strong, son-inw-dono. Because I took the prince with me, who was walking like he was a newly born deer cub, it took a lot of time to get to my room, but we finally arrived. ¡°Wee back, master. This person is?¡± ¡°Yeah, he¡¯s my son-inw...... Prince Mars.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you. I¡¯m Suu, the steward of the Duke¡¯s Household.¡± ¡°I¡¯m Mars. I¡¯ll be counting on you.¡± Suu quickly lifted her skirt a little and bowed her head. The prince was trembling. ¡°For now, prepare some tea for us. Ask Bea toe here too.¡± ¡°As you wish.¡± I sat on the sofa as I watched Suu cheerfully making the preparations. The prince was desperate to cope with the situation as he stood there. ¡°Son-inw-dono, there are only rtives here. You can rx.¡± ¡°Yes. But ........¡± The prince sent a nce at Suu. Well, he might feel a bit uneasy. ¡°I told you. There are only rtives here. I¡¯m asking just to make sure, but do you hold something against kemonobito?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m not an advocate of race discrimination. I also have nothing against kemonobito. I¡¯m sorry for this misunderstanding.¡± He said and lowered his head. That¡¯s good. It appears that he might not need an education after all. ¡°There¡¯s no problem then. This is a good opportunity.....so I¡¯ll give you this, Suu. She is my trusty steward, so when I¡¯m not around, you must treat her like my representative. Do you understand, prince?¡± What I gave to Suu was the dagger I received from the Emperor when he invested me with my court rank. The proof of being a noble......Normally, this is something you would never give to others. ¡°Eh!? Master, this is!¡± ¡°She¡¯s your representative!?¡± They were both astonished, in different ways, that is. Suu was shocked for being recognized as the Duke¡¯s Household¡¯s number 2. The prince was startled by the word ¡®representative¡¯ for some reason. ¡°Why are you even surprised!? I value the excellent people around me. I do not care even a bit about race and gender. And I don¡¯t discriminate among the people who devote themselves to me. I¡¯ll keep counting on you, all right?¡± ¡°Yes, yes! As long as I have this life......No, even in the afterlife I¡¯ll always be loyal to you.¡± She somehow frightened me with herst words, but I ignored it. I¡¯m used to these weird moods from Albert, after all. ¡°I see......So this is father-inw¡¯s faithful retainer. The Emperor will make use of this too.¡± Maybe the senses in his feet came back to him, since the prince became more chatty. ¡°You should find yourself a trusted retainer too! There are limits to what you can do by yourself. You still have some time, so you have to do your best.¡± ¡°Yes, I will never forget these words!¡± Yes, I .......said something rather good. Satisfied with myself, I drank some tea, when Bea entered the room. ¡°Zest-sama, wee back.¡± ¡°Ah, Bea. Did you enjoy the reunion with mother-inw?¡± Bea sat next to me and I stroked her belly. For some reason, the prince was ring at Bea. ¡°Mother-inw Beatrice, my name is Mars. I never expected that my mother-inw will be such a peerless beauty.......Should I feel delighted that we became family, or should I resent the unbearable misfortune? Your sublime hair is like the dusk and.......¡± ¡°Son-inw-dono, that¡¯s such an energetic greeting. Do you want to die?¡± He knelt in front of Bea, as he greeted her ecstatically, and I caught hold of his head. ¡°Albert!!¡± ¡°Yes sir!¡± Albert was waiting on standby outside the room. Seemingly delighted, he entered after he heard his name. Did he sympathize with the prince or something? ¡°Albert, son-inw-dono wishes to train. Make sure to be a suitable partner for him. I¡¯ll be joining youter as well.¡± ¡°Yes sir! I¡¯ll teach him plentifully in the Duke¡¯s Household¡¯s style.¡± We both grinned, but the unexpected happened. ¡°Zest-sama.¡± Bea smiled sweetly. The prince showed a huge smile as well, covering his entire face. ¡°A shameless person who would try to seduce his mother-inw needs a thorough education. I will contact my mother as well.¡± And so, it was decided that the stupid prince needed some education. He seems to be weak against women. While we still have time, we¡¯ll firmly educate him. 3 hours passed since the prince¡¯s screams started to be heard from the training ground..... Albert would beat him senseless, then I would heal him, and then Albert would beat him senseless again. It all became like a festival when the ck knights and the maids¡¯ unit joined us too. However, the light in the prince¡¯s eyes was starting to fade. Should I end it? When I was about to say it, she joined us as well. ¡°Foster father, where is the idiot who dared to sweat talk my foster mother!?¡± Thepletely armed Tsubaki thoroughly trained the prince..... Tsubaki.......wasn¡¯t verydy-like, when she hit her fianc¨¦ with a gauntlet. ¡°Oh my, this looks like fun. Toto-chan, let¡¯s join them too.¡± (Waaaai! Since Dad is here, we can also get serious!) The scariest of them all, ended up joining the training. I pressed my hands together in prayer, as I employed all my healing magic....... Chapter 118: Second Book – Epilogue Chapter 118: Second Book ¨C Epilogue ¡°As I said, it was a misunderstanding, father-inw.¡± Prince Mars appealed to me frantically. His clothes were full of blood. .......Of course, it was his blood. ¡°Misunderstanding or not, you did try to seduce Bea. It can¡¯t be helped now, can it?¡± I grinned at him and readied my long sword. The edge of my sword was rather chipped but I still went on with it. I can still cut one or two of his limbs with it if I use my strengthening magic. ¡°That¡¯s it! That is what you misunderstood!¡± He shook his head, half crying. What now...... ¡°I did not make advances at her. That was the elves¡¯ style of greeting.¡± ¡°Ooooh, greetings, you say?¡± I threw away my long sword and stared at the prince. With an expression of relief, he then continued. ¡°This is a natural greeting among elves, father-inw......As I thought, you won¡¯t deny it, would you?¡± The stupid prince had a smug face now. It seems that he still doesn¡¯t understand it. ¡°I¡¯m not well-known when ites to elven customs. And even if what you¡¯re saying is true, I don¡¯t really care. But, if by any chance, you lied to me, you¡¯ll need to be punished. In short, no matter how I look at it, you still need training.¡± I held out my right hand and Bea gave me her favorite weapon, the bardiche. The prince¡¯s smug face froze in an instant. ¡°Come now, let¡¯s train you good. From now on, we¡¯ll go with a real-lifebat style, okay?¡± ¡°His excellency is going to fight for good?.....The ck knights unit, go protect the madam!¡± ¡°Zest-sama, with that weapon you can go all out and it won¡¯t break.¡± (Waaa, I can clearly see his magical power. Dad is amazing as usual!) Listening to Albert, Bea and the other¡¯s voices, I reopened the prince¡¯s training. ¡°You did great, master.¡± I finished with the training and returned to my room where Suu weed me. She was wearing the trousers suit I prepared for her yesterday. As one would expect, a steward wearing maid clothes might be just too troublesome. I changed my clothes which were sullied by blood, and I was enjoying now my tea time. ¡°Suu, is it normal for elves to sweat talk women as a form of greeting?¡± ¡°What? Is that true?¡± She looked at me ckly as she prepared the tea. That¡¯s right, is it not? It¡¯s the first time you heard something like this too. However, she kind of looks now like a beautiful woman disguising herself as a man......This is rather good. ¡°Just in case, look into it a little.¡± ¡°As you wish. If he tries to seduce madam when master is away, it¡¯ll be too troublesome, right?¡± Don¡¯t say that. At this point you must skillfully deceive me. Bea and Toto were enjoying their bath together. I wonder if Albert will soone back with the prince on his shoulders? I drank some tea as I thought about that. Which reminds me, this kind of tastes different.....Even though it¡¯s nothing but normal tea. I drained my cup of tea and ate some backed sweets when they arrived. ¡°Your excellency, I brought him back.¡± ¡°Good work. Albert, care to join me once in a while?¡± ¡°Right. Then, I will have a cup as well.¡± ¡°Water......Please, water.....¡± The prince looked like he was shipwrecked in the desert or something, as Albert carried him on his shoulder. Albert sat on the sofa and drank the tea that his sister prepared. Oi, Albert, don¡¯t blush. Why do feel so nervous, she¡¯s your sister? ¡°This is delicious. It¡¯s the first time I¡¯m drinking such a delicious tea, youngdy.¡± ¡°Onii¨Csama, did you hit your head or something? What are you thinking, making advances at your own sister?¡± She flew into a rage and Albert froze in ce. Even you......What the heck are you doing? ¡°I bet he only wanted topliment you, Suu, since you changed beyond recognition. Right, Albert?¡± ¡°Yes! That is precisely so!¡± I honestly don¡¯t want to start another round of training right now. I will pretend this never happened. I sessfully deceived them by force, so I could now talk about the main topic. ¡°So, how is son-inw-dono¡¯s true strength?¡± ¡°Yes. Honestly, it¡¯s below the maids¡¯ unit. Maybe, against the former adventurers¡¯ scouting unit, he could barely win in a fight.¡± The prince hanged his head in shame. Or maybe, he was just to tired that he couldn¡¯t move anymore. ¡°In this case, Albert, you¡¯ll train son-inw-dono, so that he can fight at a certain degree. If he¡¯s assassinated at this point, it¡¯ll be all over. He¡¯s just too weak.¡± ¡°So-sorry, father-inw. I¡¯m more skilled in using my head.......¡± Yeah, he does have a talent for scheming. But that¡¯s only for the standards of an isted country like the elves¡¯. ¡°Then, prove me your intellect and devise a n right now. How do you secure your safety?¡± ¡°Yes! With father-inw and your family¡¯s power......¡± ¡°Rejected. Do you want me to take along my family and all my followers and march into the elves¡¯ country?¡± The prince fell silent. ¡°Besides, since I¡¯m the hero who achieved spiritification, I might be safe. But, you won¡¯t, you know? If you¡¯re assassinated, everything will be over. We won¡¯t be able to help you then.¡± ¡°Then, what about asking the demons for help?¡± ¡°That is also no good. They have no reason to help you. Moreover, if the family whomitted a mistake like this is still a royal family, they have instead a good reason not to help you.¡± ¡°But, that was my mother.....the queen is responsible for.......¡± Well, I do understand his feelings. ¡°As royalty, for you to take back your country.....you need the demons to acknowledge you. What they really want is stability. Do you think that they¡¯ll support someone like who, who might get assassinated at any moment?¡± ¡°That¡¯s......It¡¯s exactly like you said.¡± The prince bit his lip in frustration. Did he finally understand what a dangerous situation he was in? ¡°You must at least be a king who can protect his own body. In times of peace, there¡¯s no problem with being weak, but this is an abnormal situation. If you¡¯re not a strong king, you won¡¯t be able to bring order in your country. Tsubaki is able to protect her own body, and she can also fight. All that¡¯s left now is you.¡± ¡°Yes. But, can I even do it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not about being able to or not. You have to do it. You want to marry the woman you love and take back your country, don¡¯t you? Find your resolve already!¡± ¡°Understood, father-inw. I¡¯ll be counting on you!¡± He said and bowed. The prince¡¯s eyes now looked somewhat different than before. I will survive this.....His eyes showed such determination. Fufu, did I also have these eyes when master trained me? I¡¯m getting nostalgic...... ¡°You can feel relieved. I will definitely make you a good enough fighter. That¡¯s because I don¡¯t want my daughter to be a widow too soon.......First...¡± When I was about to continue, the door opened violently without any knock. ¡°It¡¯s an emergency! A swarm of dragons is approaching the imperial capital! Per imperialmand, his excellency, duke Zest is to be summoned at once!¡± Out of breath, a soldier plunged into the room. His face looked grim. In fairy-tales, the dragon is an animal who could destroy an entire country all by itself. A swarm of such dragons, which only appear in fairy-tales, was heading towards the capital. That¡¯s how the ¡®Messengers of Judgement¡¯ which remained in the history books of the empire since unknown times, came to us. Chapter 119: The Characters until Now ※Contains Spoilers ※ Chapter 119: The Characters until Now ¡ùContains Spoilers ¡ù Zest Gaiyus Protagonist. A middle-aged man, 32 years old, with ck eyes and ck hair. He married Bea out of mutual love. He likes to flirt. He is a Duke and the 1st Rank Imperial Mage. He became an authority figure inside the empire. He adopted Tsubaki and was able to make a connection with the country of elves. Beatrice Varnam Heroine. A 18 years old young woman with ck eyes and ck hair. A Japanese style beauty who gives the impression of matureness. An expert of ck attribute magic. She married Zest out of mutual love. She¡¯s a duchess. As a duchess, she¡¯s a popr figure that all the women of the empire admire. Her portrait is selling like crazy. Toto A spirit that Zest and Bea created. She adores her Dad and Mom. Her outer appearance is that of a 30cm mini Bea. Recently, she started to read the situation when ites to ¡¯politics¡¯. Wisteria The daughter of Zest and Bea. Even though she¡¯s a baby, she already received a lot of marriage proposals. She¡¯s very popr. However, all the nobles were disheartened by Zest¡¯s condition, which says: ¡®I will never give my daughter to someone that can¡¯t beat me!¡¯ In an attempt to exercise their abilities, the ck knights often challenge Zest, saying ¡®Daddy, please give me your daughter!¡¯ Since this be a problem, nowadays the dragons are testing the men¡¯s abilities in Zest¡¯s ce. When the ck knights doubted the possibility to defeat a dragon, Zest knocked one down, bare handed, right in front in them, as a demonstration. And because of that, the legend of ¡°The duke¡¯s domain¡¯s demons¡± spurred. Razatonia Varnam The head of the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. A demon-like old geezer with a dark mind. He¡¯s also an expert of the dark attribute magic and is feared in the area. A frightening and always scheming old man. He calls Beatrice ¡®Bea¡¯ and is affectionate towards her. Sonia Varnam A son-inw in the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. He¡¯s the refreshment of the terrifying Frontier Count¡¯s Household. When he¡¯s only with the family he switches to the gentle ¡®papa¡¯ mode. Normally, he interacts with people while being in his frightening ¡®Frontier Count¡¯ mode. He¡¯s the protagonist¡¯s magic teacher and the Magic Division Commander. Galef Gaiyus The Knights Commander. The protagonist¡¯s foster father. He epted the protagonist for being his sessor, but the protagonist also healed his wife. He is able to have children now. He feels a debt of gratitude towards his adopted son and always causes a stir about his sessor. He¡¯s a loud man who wears a full-te armor. An old man with muscle brains who looks like a powerful bandit. Celica Gaiyus The protagonist¡¯s foster mother. The Frontier Count¡¯s younger sister. Since the moment the protagonist healed her of infertility, she¡¯s always doting him. She¡¯s very supportive of his marriage to her grandniece Beatrice. Her personality is the spitting image of the Frontier Count¡¯s, but she intends to be kind towards the protagonist. Camel The Gaiyus¡¯ Household¡¯s butler. An old man who manages the servants. He deeply respects the protagonist who healed madam Celica. Albert A male kemonobito. The man called dog knight. Because he¡¯s exceptional, he also serves as the Frontier Count¡¯s guard. Since the ¡®marking incident¡¯ he unnecessarily fears the protagonist. He marries Meril. He¡¯s a faithful dog that is no match for his ¡®master¡¯ Zest. Meril A baron¡¯s daughter. He had to separate from Albert because of the difference in their social status. Zest helps them and they manage to get married. She¡¯s extremely grateful to Zest. Suu Albert¡¯s younger sister. She¡¯s the steward of duke Zest¡¯s household. She¡¯s serious and exceptional, but she¡¯s a bit too fanatic. There are times when she goes on a rampage. As expected from Albert¡¯s sister. The Emperor of the Grun Empire A middle aged handsome man with blond hair and blue eyes. Conforming to tradition, he cast aside his name after the enthronement. He was called ¡®Sarsesh¡¯ when he was a child. No one calls him by this name now since it¡¯s considered a sphemy. People call him ¡®his Majesty the Emperor¡¯ or simply ¡®his Majesty¡¯. Empress Natasha A beautiful woman with blond hair and blue eyes. She has a gentle aura and she looks like a soothing ¡®onee-sama¡¯. His Majesty is deeply in love with her and won¡¯t really show her in front of the public. The gardener who fixed his eyes on the empress got killed. The civil official who only passed by the Empress on the corridors, got killed. The master chef whoplimented her cooking skills got killed too. If you breathe the same airs that she breathes, you¡¯ll be killed... This is the extent of the rumors, which show how much his Majesty cares about her. Imperial princess Tsubaki The daughter of his Majesty and Natasha. She has the name of a flower from the legendary country of Japan. A 12 years old beautiful girl. She likes the spirit and she admires Beatrice who is the model of it. She dreams to marry her first love, prince Mars. Prime Minister Arc A man in his 50s. He has the image of a little fatty with brown hair and red eyes. However, he also acts heartlessly ording to his position of a Prime Minster, and he would be capable of murdering his family if that¡¯s for the best interest of the country. He gets along well with the Frontier Count and he visits him every year. Imperial Mage Rank 4 Lamia Varnam A mage specialized in medical treatments; Sonia¡¯s wife. Beatrice¡¯s mother. She normally works in the imperial capital. She¡¯s a very indulgent ¡®mama¡¯ towards Bea. Towards her husband, she also has a ¡®spartan¡¯ attitude and often gives him aggressive responses. Bicks Viscount. The head of domestic affairs. He¡¯s the father of the idiotic noble who ¡®offered¡¯ a marriage proposal to Beatrice. Unknown cause of death. Tanya A middle-aged woman. The shopkeeper of a Western-style clothes store that shows favor to the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. She also opened a shop that sells all sorts of new selection of goods. Nowadays, she¡¯s an employee of the duke¡¯s household. Viscount Mark Media¡¯s father. He¡¯s a poor man greatly perplexed by his foolish son. He¡¯s grateful to Zest for arranging a marriage for his son, and can¡¯t wait to see the face of his grandson. Media The heir of the Viscount¡¯s Household. He looks like a beautiful girl, but he¡¯s a man. He¡¯s amander of the Maid¡¯s Unit. He married Tasel. He ims that he would die for Zest¡¯s sake. Tasel A former adventurer. She¡¯s a woman that looks like a wild, handsome man. She falls in love with Media and marries him. She swears an oath of allegiance to Zest since he¡¯s helped her making various arrangements. Count Raiza The Commanding General of the Empire¡¯s Army. A 43 years old man with blue hair. He has a tough, huge body. The Emperor acknowledged him when he was young and made him a viscount, then a count. He has an official position now. He¡¯s the Emperor¡¯s right-hand man. Tarminal Kingdom¡¯s side Harnil Count. A grandpa who came to the empire as an emissary for the kingdom. ??? The royalty who led the kingdom¡¯s army. His name is unknown. Herman A male kemonobito. He opposed the despotic administration in his country and created the Rebel Army. He admires Albert and he develops an interest for Duke Zest, since he is Albert¡¯s master. He bes the headman of a fishing vige. Katalina A cat kemonobito and a legal loli. She works for Zest as a civil official. She¡¯s the guys¡¯ idol. She¡¯s unpopr among the ck knights. The Holy Country of Lc Pope Garbera The top person of the Holy Country of Lc. She¡¯s a spirit emerged from a refrigerator magical tool. She likes Zest, since her owner was a Japanese as well. Sister Anastacia A woman who showed up as a messenger. She speaks an enigmatguage. She bes the Priestess of a church on Zest¡¯s domain. She¡¯s the person who¡¯ll be the next Pope, but she¡¯s a piece of junk. She bes Zest¡¯s adopted daughter, and she will be called ¡®The conscience of the archduke¡¯s household¡¯ or ¡®Thest hope¡¯. The Country of Elves Prince Mars Tsubaki¡¯s fianc¨¦. He aims to be the next king, but since he¡¯s weak, Zest started to train him. He seems to be a sharp person, but he has a bad habit of sweet talking women. Prime Minister Heinz He¡¯s the person who¡¯s trying to revive the power of science. He¡¯s a sharp and able person, and even people as good as Kachua lose initiative in front of him. He needs special attention. General Caris The general who belongs to the Prime Minister¡¯s faction. He¡¯s smart and he has the highest military power in his country. However, he doesn¡¯t have a wife....... Kachua The Royal Court¡¯s top mage. Prince Mars¡¯s master. It appears that she¡¯s a conspirator and she¡¯s smart. She¡¯s a Lolita, but her actual age is...... Chapter 120: Strategy Meeting Chapter 120: Strategy Meeting ¡°Oh, Zest! I was waiting for you.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry to have made you wait, your Majesty. Considering the situation, please forgive my rudeness.¡± We were not inside the audience room, but in a big council room. The empire¡¯s upper echelons were gathered here at this moment. Since the legendary dragons were approaching in a swarm, it wasn¡¯t the time for proper etiquette and manners. ¡°Can someone exin the current situation?¡± ¡°I will.¡± The one who stood up was Prime Minister Arc. It¡¯s been a year since Ist saw him. He aged quite a bit.....mister Prime Minister. ¡°The dragons are approaching from the north. A soldier who was watch-keeping in the tower detected them. He first confirmed it with spectacles, then reported to me. It hasn¡¯t passed much time since then, but soon we¡¯ll be able to see the dragons with the naked eye.¡± ¡°Exactly how many are they?¡± ¡°Twelve. It¡¯s a mix of ck and golden dragons.¡± Ah, these colors are eerie...... If you think about it, aren¡¯t these the colors that usually announce a mighty power? Their number is definitely a threat, but these boss-like colors are a threat as well. ¡°How much of a military force can we mobilize at the moment?¡± ¡°At best, 1500 soldiers. What about duke Zest?¡± ¡°I have about 300 people with me..... But we¡¯ll first discuss things with them, right? The dragons finally showed up. There must be a reason behind this.¡± ¡°I thought you¡¯d say that. However, I still want to mobilize the soldiers just in case.¡± After he said this, Prime Minister Arc left the room. He carried a bunch of documents with him, as he hurried out. He went to make adjustments to each department.......He¡¯ll grow even older after this. ¡°Only military authorities are left, huh? You must go and organize the soldiers. Listen closely, you must absolutely not act without orders!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡°Yes sir!¡± ¡° ¡° The generals saluted and left the room. This is serious, all right? I hope they¡¯ll keep that in mind. ¡°Your Majesty, just to be sure......¡± ¡°Yeah.....I made arrangements for Tsubaki to escape the pce. If the worst case happens, I leave her in your care.¡± In case a battlemences, he wants me to take Tsubaki and run away. This is hisst means of protecting the blood of the imperial family. ¡°In that case, please look after my son too, Zest. He¡¯s studying now in the Zaar Kingdom, the country of kemonobito.¡± Studying abroad, huh? I bet the real motive is something different. He was cautious of me, as he let his son leave the country... ¡°We must negotiate so that things won¡¯t turn..... this way.¡± I answered and the Emperor let out a feebleugh. ¡°If I trusted you from the beginning.....But on the contrary, this way was better instead. If my son is safe, the empire won¡¯t be finished. And in case I die, please be his guardian and rule the empire as a regent.¡± ¡°As you wish. I will certainly act in ordance to your will.¡± As we had this exchange, a soldier wearing an armor leaped inside the room. ¡°I report! A man who ims to be a demon arrived and wants to talk about the current situation!¡± The Emperor sent me a nce. So, you¡¯re leaving this to me, huh? ¡°Bring him here. Be careful not to show him disrespect.¡± ¡°Yes sir!¡± And so, the discussion with the demon guy began. ¡°I am d to meet you, your Majesty. I am Neebel, the demons¡¯ head. Duke Zest, long time no see.¡± The one who entered the council room was Neebel. Inside the room were now only his Majesty, the Prime Minister, Neebel and I. A discussion between these four people began. ¡°The demon race has a boss...... Did you know this, Zest?¡± ¡°Yes. We met before.¡± Neebel smiled and answered instead, but I couldn¡¯t let my guard down. He came here for a reason. It must have something to do with his work as an overseer. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I couldn¡¯t tell you about this, your Majesty.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right. I¡¯m sure you had a reason for hiding this, Zest.¡± ¡°Indeed. I forbade him to speak about it.¡± He cut in my conversation with the Emperor, but we couldn¡¯t condemn him for this. Everyone present sensed that Neebel¡¯s position was the strongest of us all. ¡°Well now, I am in a hurry this time so let me confirm something right away.¡± He didn¡¯t have the same expression as before. Neebel continued, d in a bloody aura that made even me feel an electric shock run through my entire body. His magical power.....was the strongest I encountered until now. The Prime Minister lost his consciousness in an instant and copsed.....The Emperor somehow managed to stay awake, enduring the unbearable pressure. ¡°What are you nning to do......about the elves¡¯ conspiracy?¡± Depending on our answer, we might start killing each other in an instant. I prepared myself for this, employing my magical power as well. I don¡¯t intend to make an enemy out of the demon race, but I also have to stand firm. Reacting at my disy of magical power, Neebel turned to face me. ¡°Why are you surprised, Neebel-dono? If you let our that much killing intent, this is the only way I can respond. I am guaranteeing my own safety, so please don¡¯t worry about it.¡± ¡°No, I am fine with that. What actually shocked me was the amount of magical power you have.....I never imagined you had this much.........¡± Mine and Neebel¡¯s magical power. We both boosted it, in order to check who was stronger. At first, I only used magical power, but then I blended in some killing intent as well and it all developed into an intimidation battle. The Emperor finally copsed as well, and only the two of us were left in the council room. That¡¯s when we heard a huge bang. ¡°Neebel-dono, a preemptive strike......Whatever the circumstances might be, aren¡¯t you a little impatient?¡± ¡°Eh!? I never ordered something like this!¡± Neebel quickly shook his head at my words. I doubted his honesty, but the report of the soldier whoe inside the room right after made everything clear. ¡°Urgent message! A dragon fell inside the castle grounds! However, this dragon is spouting bubbles and is unconscious!! What should we do!?¡± The council room fell silent and the soldiers¡¯ tumult could be heard from far away. A dragon fell from the sky?? ¡°I see, this is what happened!¡± Neebel pped his hands together. It seems he has an answer. ¡°Most likely, he was taken by surprise by duke Zest and my magical power disy and lost consciousness. At any rate, it¡¯s been a while since theyst went out, so when he felt this aggressive magical power......Hahahahahaha, even though they look like that, they¡¯re quite delicate beings, you know.......?¡± Neebel talked like it was the most natural thing in the world, but sweat started to flow down his face. It appears that the legendary dragons are surprisingly delicate....... Chapter 121: Dragons and Magic Attributes Chapter 121: Dragons and Magic Attributes ¡°This is what happened, your Majesty. That¡¯s why, I will takemand for this matter.¡± ¡°Yeah, please do so. But Zest.....you should learn to show a bit or restraint. I thought I was going to die.¡± The Emperor waspletely exhausted; he ced a wet towel on his forehead. The Prime Minister was still down. ¡°.......Urm, I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°Hahaha, duke Zest is quite a daring individual.¡± Neebel stroke my shoulder several times, as I apologized to the Emperor. Don¡¯t pretend you had nothing to do with this! You¡¯re one of the causes for this too, you know? I really wanted to retort, but it wasn¡¯t the time for this. I must hurry and collect those dragons. ¡°Your Majesty, I am in a hurry so...!¡± I took Neebel with me and ran out of the council room. I really wanted to avoid this huge failure. ¡°Where is the closest one?¡± The soldier who delivered the message a few moments ago was now guiding us. He had a fearless expression and, judging by his way of moving, he was no ordinary person. ¡°Yes, we should take this passage then...¡± In the worst case, I would¡¯ve ced this soldier on my back and ran but...... This guy....he strengthened his body with magical power. He ran at fairly great speed too. ¡°You are rather skilled. Who¡¯s your master?¡± ¡°Yes sir! It¡¯s Lamia-sama.¡± .......Well, he did enter the council room in the midst of our magical power mixed with killing intent contest. Are all the messenger soldiers trained by mother-inw, I wonder? ¡°Mother-inw¡¯s student?.....If you feel like it, you cane to my domain. I won¡¯t treat you poorly.¡± ¡°Thank you very much!¡± The soldier started to cry for some reason, as he raised his speed, guiding us to the scene where one of the dragons fell. Do you really hate it that much that you¡¯d start crying......My mother-inw¡¯s training? We arrived at the scene, where the soldiers encircled a ck dragon, their entire bodies trembling. Although fainted, his body was still huge, about 10 meters long. It was natural for them to feel scared. ¡°Lower your weapons. I will deal with him, so step back.¡± The soldiers turned around to look at me, then stepped back with an expression of relief on their faces. ¡°We¡¯re saved. His excellency Zest is here.¡± ¡°Good, we can feel relieved now.¡± ¡°Dear me....This means we won¡¯t die.¡± They sat down, talking unanimously. Really now! These guys might need some more training. As I looked at the deplorable soldiers, I approached the ck dragon. It doesn¡¯t seem like he has any external wounds; he¡¯s quite sturdy, as one would expect. I touched his face, which was at the level of my full height, and casted some healing magic. Immediately after, the dragon regained his senses and opened his eyes. ¡°Did you use healing magic? I shall praise you for this deed, human.......However! Don¡¯t you dare think that you can make me surrender with just that.¡± ¡°..........¡± ¡°Fufufu, you¡¯re too astonished to talk? That is inevitable. Dragons are the strongest creatures, after all. We aren¡¯t weak as you, humans! You shall quietly obey us!¡± The ck dragon spoke with a smug face. He was sitting on his back, with his tail between his feet, sprawling on his belly......His tail was trembling. ¡°Neebel-dono, is this the dragons¡¯ way of intimidating others?¡± ¡°No, it is their resignation posture. This guy is kind of a show-off.¡± It appears that there are all sorts of dragons...... ¡°Oh, Neebel-dono! This is great. If possible, I¡¯d prefer to handle this human by myself but.....because of the fall, I hurt my ws, unfortunately. I leave it to you!!¡± The dragon said and showed us his ws. His ws were indeed a bit dirty, but there was no injury whatsoever. Don¡¯t tell me he won¡¯t fight because of this reason? Aren¡¯t dragons supposed to be strong? Amazed, I looked at Neebel only to find him greatly embarrassed. I guess he didn¡¯t expect the dragon be so scared and useless. The soldiers as well, couldn¡¯t believe their eyes. ¡°Zest-sama, are you all right!?¡± In this delicate atmosphere, Bea¡¯s voice could be heard. What? Why is she here?.......Was she worried about me? Our eyes met, and she smiled as she approached us. ¡°I¡¯m d that you¡¯re safe, Zest-sama. Everything is all right now......If you talk to them, they¡¯re quite understanding.¡± ¡°We can¡¯t defy you, ma¡¯am!¡± ¡°We¡¯ll follow you, our master!¡± ¡°The youngdy¡¯s husband? He looks strong.¡± ¡°Toto-san, it hurts.¡± (Ahahaha, Dad! This lizard can fly!) Bea said and smiled, carrying her favorite bardiche on her shoulder.......She was apanied by four ck dragons...... If you talk to them, huh?......They did understand. I know that feeling very well. It was easy after that. The ck dragons, who became Bea¡¯s faithful pets, went to wake up the golden dragons. They¡¯re all on standby in the inner garden now....... All the golden dragons trembled when they saw Bea. We weren¡¯t able to talk to them at all. However, when I got close to them, they changedpletely. ¡° ¡° ¡°This magical power! Big bro, we¡¯ll follow you!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡°Oh my, this magical power feels really good!¡± ¡°Hey, hey, you can mount me, you know?¡± Yes. These dragons liked me a lot. As the ck dragons loved Bea, the golden dragons became absurdly attached to me. ¡°Haha, you¡¯re on extremely good terms......This is great.......¡± When Neebel saw this, his eyes lost their lightpletely....... Because of his own fault, his intimidation diplomacy failed miserably. He exined to us that dragons get extremely attached to those who have the same magical power attribute as themselves. On the contrary, they feel a great revulsion and weakness against those who have an opposite magical power attribute. That¡¯s why the golden dragons crashed because of Neebel¡¯s dark attribute magical power and the ck dragons crashed because of my light attribute magical power. In this extreme situation, when they saw someone who had a great affinity with their own magical powers.......and a strong magic user on top of that........It all turned up as you already saw. .......Hmm? Neebel-san, are you crying? It was you who forgot about this important fact and unleashed all your magical power, remember? ¡°Anyway.....Thanks to duke Zest¡¯s exnation, I now understand that you don¡¯t support the elves¡¯ ns. I will go back now and leave all this in your care......Please look after these children for a while. They don¡¯t want to go back, so......¡± Neebel left the pce with tottering steps. Sorrow hanged in the air surrounding him.....He was somewhat pitiful. I¡¯ll send him a letter and a presentter. After I saw off poor Neebel, I walked towards the council room to report to the Emperor. Bea and Toto took the ck dragons for a walk. The golden dragons waited obediently in the inner garden, basking in the sun. ¡°Son-inw-dono, congrattions.¡± Mother-inw greeted me while ying with her iron-ribbed fan. ¡°Mother-inw, excuse me but I¡¯m on my way to report to his Majesty......¡± ¡°Son-inw-dono? You tried to lure away the messenger soldier I went to great lengths to properly train, didn¡¯t you? I have something to talk to you about, so your report can wait.¡± She lifted up my chin with her iron fan, and all I could say at that point was a very docile ¡®Yes¡¯. .......My mother-inw was way more scary than the likes of dragons. I then understood the feelings of that crying messenger soldier....... Chapter 122: Cute Dragons Chapter 122: Cute Dragons ¡°I see.....Now that you¡¯ve told me to leave it in your care, I can feel relieved for the time being.¡± ¡°Yes. They......said they needed an arbitrator. Let¡¯s do it, your Majesty.¡± After Neebel left the pce on foot, I went to report to the Emperor. As one would expect, I couldn¡¯t tell him about the overseers.....So I told him instead that I was going to be an arbitrator. ¡°I understand the matter with the demons. The problem is.......¡± The Emperor showed a suspicious expression. Your Majesty.......Err.......you¡¯ve got it wrong, you know? But I couldn¡¯t say this. ¡°Will the dragons live on your domain?¡± ¡°Yes. If Bea or I are not around, it is too difficult to control them. I¡¯ll take care of the dragons for a while.¡± ¡°Is that really so?......Your strength is increasing again........¡± ¡°Well, it is only temporary. It¡¯s all right.¡± It¡¯s not really all right, but it¡¯s no use saying this here. I¡¯ll just try to somehow deceive him. ¡°It¡¯s not such a big deal, having a few flying lizards. Besides, in case of an emergency, I¡¯ll wee the prince on my domain. Isn¡¯t it better to have a strong war potential?¡± ¡°Well, if you put it that way.¡± ¡°Moreover, we are rtives, so please don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t betray those whom I call family.¡± ¡°Fufu, I have no choice but to trust you. If you¡¯ll ever betray us, the capital will easily surrender. It¡¯s useless to worry about it anyway.¡± The Emperor let out a long sigh, the repositioned himself on the chair. ¡°Understood. The Prime Minister will deal with the uproar. Zest......you should start getting ready for what¡¯s toe.¡± ¡°As you wish.¡± I lowered my head then left the council room. Getting ready for what¡¯s toe......In short, I must prepare for assaulting the elves¡¯ country. I have to discuss this matter with the Frontier Count at once. After I returned to my room, I summoned Suu right away. We must arrange to send a messenger. ¡°Did you call for me, master?¡± ¡°Suu, make the necessary arrangements to send an urgent messenger to the Frontier Count. I can¡¯t do it alone.¡± ¡°Urgent?......Is this rted to the elves?¡± ¡°Yeah, I must propose a rough n as quickly as possible.¡± Suu thought about this for a bit, then came up with a strange suggestion. ¡°If we use a dragon, wouldn¡¯t that be fairly quick?¡± ¡°But......do we even have a reckless guy who can ride that thing and deliver the message.......¡± Do we have someone like that? Yes, I didn¡¯t even have to ask about this because the candidate was already chosen. ¡°Please appoint my brother for this. He¡¯ll dly ept it.¡± She inly dered, wearing a dark smile on her face. ¡°Yes sir! I¡¯ll leave without dy.¡± I summoned Albert and he didn¡¯t oppose this n even one bit. Are you sure about it? It can be considerably dangerous, you know? ¡°I, Albert, cannot disagree with your excellency¡¯smand! I¡¯ll fulfill it admirably!¡± Albert dered, then he approached the golden dragon whoy sprawled in the pce¡¯s garden. This Albert acts rather cool for a change. However, will this work? Dragons can be indecent, you know? ¡°Hey, dragon! This is his excellency¡¯smand! If you oppose it, his excellency and the madam will spank you!¡± Wait! What¡¯s with his way of persuading him? You rely upon others to attain your own objective?..... ¡°Master Zest.......should I let this person mount me?¡± The dragon asked, his voice a little shaky. Are you that scared of a little spanking?.....I¡¯m gradually bing less human, it seems. ¡°Yeah. I rely on you two.¡± ¡°Good. It can¡¯t be helped if this is master¡¯s request. Oi, kemonobito. Get on.¡± The dragon leaned over making it easy for Albert to mount him. It appears that his feet are still trembling......I decided to just leave him be. ¡°Hey, dragon, go to the Frontier Count¡¯s domain......Hurry in that direction.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll leave it to you, kemonobito. Hold on tight and be careful not to fall down!¡± The dragon flied up in an instant. I saw off the dragon who became extremely distant now and muttered to myself. ¡°That guy......where does he n to go......without receiving any letter, nor hearing any message?¡± ¡°That stupid dog......I can¡¯t believe he¡¯s my brother......¡± Suu had a disgusted expression on her face and she really looked frightening..... Albert returned in hot haste, then left again, but not before being trashed by Suu. I was told that I could return to my room, so I wasn¡¯t present to the actual scene. However, ording to the maids who happened to be present.......Albert was crying. I¡¯ll have to invite him for a drink when he gets back. I sat on the sofa and tried to devise a n as I drank some tea when Bea came. Of course, Toto apanied her. ¡°Zest-sama, we just came back.¡± (Dad, we¡¯re home!) ¡°Wee back, you two. Did you enjoy your walk?¡± Both of them were in a great mood. I didn¡¯t really have to ask this, but if I were negligent in dealing with such trivial matters, it could get quite risky. It can cause a married couple¡¯s rtionship to grow cold after all. ¡°Yes, those children are honest and cute.¡± (Yes! They fly so quickly!) Wait a minute! Is it all right for a pregnant woman to fly like that? It¡¯s not like there¡¯s a rule against it......But, normally, it¡¯s no good, right?¡± ¡°Di-did you fly too? Are you all right, Bea?¡± ¡°Please don¡¯t worry. I didn¡¯t ride them. Only Toto-chan and the maids¡¯ unit mounted them.¡± Ah, in this case.....it¡¯s all right, I guess. I was still a bit worried, but since Bea didn¡¯t fly with them, I had no problem with it. They can do whatever they please. ¡°So, I have a favor to ask, Zest-sama.¡± (Toto has a favor to ask too!) All of a sudden Bea twined around my arm and Toto sat on my shoulder. A favor?.....It¡¯s quite rare for both of them to ask me for something. ¡°What is it? If it¡¯sing from you two, I will allow most things!¡± I brushed their heads gently, as Bea informed me with upturned eyes. ¡°Let¡¯s keep the dragons at our ce. I already finished persuading them.¡± (They all cried with happiness, saying that they wanted to be raised by us!!) ¡°.......It-it¡¯s OK, I guess.¡± And so, due to Bea¡¯s ¡®persuasion¡¯ the duke¡¯s domain was able to acquire some pets. Albert, the ck knights......and the maids¡¯ unit, only the elites started to ride the dragons for walks. Later, people started to call them ¡®The Empire¡¯s strongest and worst dragon knights unit¡¯. When Neebel found out, he was totally unpleased, but that¡¯s a different story. ......Is it all right......not to return the dragons........? Chapter 123: A Sudden Notice Chapter 123: A Sudden Notice ¡°Hoho, grandson-inw-dono..... I never thought that I would fly into the sky at such an old age.¡± ¡°Urm.....Sorry for the trouble.....¡± A few hours after Albert departed, he returned with the Frontier Count on the back of the dragon. In midair, if you fly in a straight line, you can travel unthinkably fast. These pets are rather useful, aren¡¯t they? ¡°So, the reason you called for me is to discuss the elves¡¯ matter, right?¡± As expected from the Frontier Count, he¡¯s quick to understand things. I made a sign with my hand and the maids left the room. Only Suu and I......and the Frontier Count were left. Albert went to train with the dragons; this was perfect since he¡¯s not suited for such discussions. ¡°Suu, grandson-inw-dono is going to extend his influence in the country of elves too. This way, the Frontier Count¡¯s Household alone won¡¯t be able to stop him anymore.¡± The Frontier Count held his cup in a hand and said, at which Suu dered with a clear voice. ¡°I am master¡¯s steward. Please talk to my master first, before talking to me. And another thing.....No matter if you¡¯re the Frontier Count, in case you harm my master......you won¡¯t be able to return anymore. Please be careful.¡± ¡°Hoo, you intend to threaten me? Youss.¡± The Frontier Count released his magical power in a clear attempt to intimidate Suu, but she didn¡¯t draw back. In this tense atmosphere, they stared at each other. ¡°Can you even get rid of me?¡± ¡°If my brother, the ck knights...... and the maids¡¯ unit attack together, we can win. Since returning to our domain is too troublesome, we¡¯ll deal with you right here. Only Sonia-sama and Lamia-sama will be left.....But there¡¯s a high possibility that those two would be on master¡¯s side, so something wille out of it.¡± Fufufu, I¡¯m d that the Frontier Count is having fun. ¡°Hohoho, you passed. Crushing every single threat against your master is the very basics. At this point, you can probably finish me off.¡± ¡°Thank you for your guidance.¡± The Frontier Count withdrew his magical power and started tough. Suuughed as well as she prepared another round of tea. Yes, this was a test. ¡°After I saw this, I can feel at ease and leave things to you. Grandson-inw-dono, you don¡¯t have to worry about anything while you¡¯re in the elves¡¯ country. You will make a lot of progress.¡± The Frontier Count said and smiled, a dark smile that I haven¡¯t seen in a long time..... And so, our lovely meeting full of smiles ended. What was already decided......was that I would apany prince Mars and go to the elves¡¯ country. We felt too uneasy to leave everything in prince Mars¡¯ hands. In this case, it was best if I would go with him. Another job away from home, huh?.....I¡¯ll be so lonely. I drank some tea,menting my solitude. The Frontier Count said that he wanted to see Bea, so he left in a hurry towards her room. Oh dear! He¡¯s such a foolish old geezer...... I casually looked at the window and my eyes met Albert¡¯s. ......Hm? This is the third floor, isn¡¯t it? I rubbed my eyes and looked again but I saw nothing. I let out a sigh of relief but then my eyes met Albert¡¯s again. I opened the window and checked what was going on outside...... ¡°Ooh, he jumped.¡± ¡°Lord Albert is first. He jumped up to the third floor.¡± ¡°I¡¯m next! I¡¯m next!¡± ¡°Fuhahaha, I¡¯ll spring you up with my tail as much as you want!¡± The ck knights were having fun with a dragon. .....Yeah, do whatever you want. I closed the window quietly and pretended I haven¡¯t seen anything. I decided to use my free time and deal with some letters. I started with greeting letters from the nobles, and for some reason I even found a petition for exterminating a band of thieves. I¡¯m not a Jack of all trades, you know? Don¡¯t request such things from a duke...... Still, it¡¯s been a while since Ist took my time and did paperwork. Sometimes enjoying a peaceful day is such a good thing. ......Though, the problem is we only have peaceful days once in a while. As if responding to my intercranial retort, I heard a violent knocking on my door. ¡°Ma-ma-ma-ma-master! This is very serious!!¡± Suu jumped in the room, her facial expression transformed. ¡°Calm down. Did more dragons arrive or something? How many are they now?¡± I sipped some tea as I scolded the flustered Suu. Really now, these guys never behave like nobles..... ¡°Madam copsed because of a bleeding!!¡± ¡°Fuuuuu...........¡± I spurt out the tea, which covered Suu in a poisonous mist. ¡°Ooh, grandson-inw-dono! Use your healing magic! No, wipe the blood......Aah, Bea.....¡± ¡°Madam, fight! You¡¯ll get over this with fighting spirit!¡± ¡°Do-do-do-do-doctor? Where¡¯s the doctor? Ah, his excellency the duke is here, so it¡¯s all right!¡± When I arrived at Bea¡¯s room, what was happening there was a scene from Hell. Beay down on the bed, surrounded by worried people. Everyone was upset. ¡°What happened? Did anyone hurt Bea......Albert, did you kill the criminal?¡± ¡°No, she suddenly copsed. We don¡¯t know the cause.....maybe a drug or some sort of spell!¡± ¡°I was also present and I didn¡¯t sense any magical power. Maybe it was a drug.¡± (Dad, Mom is! Mom is!!) Toto cried and shouted and the Frontier Count was red with anger. Albert made arrangements to gather all the ck knights, his tail fluffy but rigid. I approached Bea in order to heal her, but she tried hard to squeeze out some words, as she suffered in pain. ¡°Uh....uuugh, Ze-Zest-sama.¡± ¡°Bea, your wound is superficial! It¡¯s all right, I¡¯ll definitely save you!!¡± I held her hand firmly and told her, but she informed me, her face drenched in cold sweat. ¡°I¡¯m...I¡¯m giving birth. Please call my mother.¡± She¡¯s giving birth?.............She said she¡¯s giving birth!? ¡°De.....delivery?! Someone, someone call the baby!!!!¡± ¡°Ooh, a baby. Summon a baby!!¡± ¡°Oi! Someone bring a baby here!! Use the dragons!¡± ¡°Master, how old should this baby be?¡± For some reason, this confused gang was preparing to try to abduct a baby. This chaotic ce settled down by the actions of a single person. ¡°You idiots! Listen up! All men leave the room right now!! I brought the midwife. Leave the rest to us and wait outside, kneeling down on the corridor or something!!!!¡± Mother Lamia pped us, and we went out, kneeling down on the corridor. I never imagined that I would live the day when the Frontier Count and I knelt down together in a seiza position......It was a premiere..... Chapter 124: A Noisy Childbirth Chapter 124: A Noisy Childbirth ¡°You guys! Don¡¯t stagger there, go boil some water or something!¡± All the guys started to move at once when they heard the midwife¡¯s loud words. In this world midwives have a high status. Because they deal with all childbirths, their status is strong even against nobles. On the contrary, if you attack a midwife, you¡¯ll be in real trouble. ¡°Albert, take care of the water. The Frontier Count and I will standby here after we gather some clean towels. Since only women can enter this room, you should stay here, Suu, and if something happens you¡¯ll contact me right away.¡± I struggled to give instructions, my head being still in chaos. Everyone was walking unsteadily, but it can¡¯t be helped. The damage from sitting in a seiza position was serious. While I casted some healing magic on the Frontier Count, the maids came carrying arge quantity of sheets and towels. Oh, they¡¯re prepared for this. ¡°Your excellency Zest, the news about madam¡¯s delivery have spread inside the entire pce. You can rest assured and wait here.¡± ¡°I see. That¡¯s very helpful. I¡¯ll rely on you then.¡± I found about thister, but at this time the entire pce affairs were suspended. The Emperor released an imperialmand saying ¡®Zest¡¯s wife is our maximum priority. If anyone intrudes they¡¯ll be used of treason.¡¯ ........Your Majesty, I won¡¯t forget this favor for a while. Since the maids abandoned their regr work and were helping us now, the Frontier Count and I had nothing to do. We sat on the chairs prepared for us on the corridor and waited. ¡°Fuu, a childbirth, huh?......I can¡¯t believe how useless I am in such moments, right, grandson-inw-dono?¡± ¡°Indeed. If it were a battle, I wouldn¡¯t have had problems joining it, but when ites to this I¡¯mpletely useless.¡± We talked as we drank some tea. It didn¡¯t matter that I have a huge amount of magical power, it was still useless for the delivery. Waiting and praying was quite tough on me. The Frontier Count and I waited for several dozens of minutes. The door opened violently with a bang. ¡°Why are you carefreely drinking tea!? Go find a magic user who can use healing magic!! It¡¯s urgent!!¡± The midwife was yelling at us, her expression demonic and her body covered in blood. Is this....... a dangerous situation? ¡°How good a magic user do you need? Or should we bring more than one? Maybe a few high-ranking mages?¡± ¡°A skilled mage is enough. She¡¯s running out of blood, so she¡¯s in a dangerous situation right now.¡± As I thought..... I don¡¯t know much about giving birth, but I actually thought it was strange for Bea to bleed that much...... ¡°Frontier Count, who is a famous healing mage in the imperial capital? Let¡¯s hurry and contact them!¡± ¡°Leave it to me. A good former imperial mage......Ah! Sonia is back on my domain!!......We might as well rely on the much-rumored holy woman-dono of the Holy Country of Lc......¡± My master?......Will he arrive in time if we send someone to get him right now? With the speed of a dragon he actually might arrive in time!? ¡°Albert, where is Albert!?¡± ¡°Yes sir! What is it, your excellency?¡± ¡°Albert, this is an emergency. Go to the Frontier Count¡¯s domain as soon as possible and kidnap father-inw Sonia!¡± ¡°Take this with you! This short dagger is the symbol of the Frontier Count. If you show this to Sonia, he¡¯ll quietlye with you.¡± ¡°Yes sir! I¡¯ll take care of it!¡± Albert took the dagger and started running. All I can do is rely on him now. Next, the holy woman......But who is she? ¡°The holy woman-dono? Who is this person!?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know? She built a church on your domain.......¡± Haaa!? That junky is the holy woman!!! It-it is certain that she has the magical power and the necessary qualities......For the time being I¡¯ll send someone for her too. ¡°Someone from the maids¡¯ unit!?¡± ¡°Yes sir! I, Media, am here for you, your excellency.¡± ¡°Media, go bring the junk......the sister from the duke¡¯s domain. If you exin her the situation, she won¡¯t turn you down. Go!¡± ¡°Yes, I will definitely bring her along!¡± She jumped off the window and left. .......This is the third floor, you know? But she¡¯s Media so it¡¯s all right, I guess. Since I heard the sound of a flying dragon, I believe she¡¯s still alive. Please, make it in time...... While the Frontier Count and I continued to pray, the door opened again. Mother-inw Lamia stood here with an imposing stance. ¡°Zest!! Aren¡¯t you a mage who can use healing magic!? Hurry up ande inside!!¡± ¡° ¡°............Ah¡± ¡° We were still.......everyone was still in a state of confusion....... ¡°Midwife-dono, leave the healing magic to me! I¡¯ll cast it for an entire day if it¡¯s necessary!¡± ¡°Leaving your pride aside, hurry up and do it!! Go wash your hands clean first!!¡± ¡°Ah, yes.¡± Once I entered the room, the battlefield unfolded. All those sheets and towels that the maids prepared were nowpletely red. Bea stretched out on the bed, her face pale. ¡°Bea, I¡¯ll never let you die. You can be certain of this.¡± I spoke those words and released my entire magical power. I created a mental image where I restored her blood while recovering her physical strength. I have to save Bea no matter what....... I have to save my child no matter what....... As I prayed for their safety, I employed all the magical power I could use. ¡°Wh-what a magical power.......Are you still feeling all right?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine. If this is enough, I can continue to use this kind of magical power for three days straight. You don¡¯t need to worry about me. Please take care of Bea.¡± I continued to use healing magic, as the midwife drew away. ¡°Midwife-dono, this kid has an idiotic amount of magical power, so you don¡¯t need to worry about him. Besides, as a mage he¡¯s stronger than Sonia, so we can feel relieved.¡± ¡°He¡¯s stronger than Sonia-sama? Ah, so that famous duke is actually this kid? In this case, we can indeed feel relieved.¡± The tense atmosphere from moments ago was gone now. What! What are they talking about? ¡°Normally, at this point, I would tell you to prepare for a stillbirth, but with this amount of magical power assisting me.......there¡¯s no easier childbirth than this.¡± Exactly as the midwife said, the delivery went on perfectly well after that. ¡°Waah! Waaaah!¡± ¡°Ooh, a healthy baby girl. Moreover, she resembles the madam, so she¡¯ll be a great beauty.¡± ¡°Bea, you did your best.¡± ¡°She¡¯s born.......This-this is my child.......¡± The room resounded with the cries of the newborn baby. Two hours after I entered the room, the delivery ended safely. ¡°She¡¯s truly the spitting image of Bea. She¡¯ll be a very beautiful woman in future.¡± ¡°She¡¯s so warm.......Nice to meet you, my cute baby girl.¡± Bea hugged the baby closely at her chest. Mother-inw Lamia watched over them affectionately. ¡°Dear me! I¡¯ll be taking my leave now. Congrattions! I¡¯m d it all ended well.¡± The midwife left the room, her face looking rather tired. ¡°She¡¯s so cute. I want to give birth too.¡± ¡°This feels so good. I must hurry and get married too.¡± ¡°I¡¯m....I¡¯m.....I¡¯m so jealous.......And I was thinking about getting married as well.¡± The maids¡¯ unit was making a racket too. Fufu, I¡¯m d it all ended safely. ¡°So, son-inw-dono, how long do you n on being like that? For god¡¯s sake, you became anemic just by watching the delivery.......¡± ¡°I feel ashamed of myself.¡± Iid down on the sofa and gazed at the situation from there. I actually couldn¡¯t take a straight look at that process....... Chapter 125: The Daughter’s Name Chapter 125: The Daughter¡¯s Name ¡°Bea, you did great. The baby is adorable.....I won¡¯t approve of someone weaker than me taking my girl in marriage.¡± ¡°Fufu, say what you like but it¡¯s a bit too early to think about that.¡± I recovered from anemia and was now talking with Bea, as the baby slept next to her. This child is my daughter...... ¡°She¡¯s so little.¡± ¡°She is. But it¡¯s normal for babies to be this little.¡± (She¡¯s bigger than Toto! She¡¯s my younger sister, but she¡¯s bigger that Toto!) Toto was a bit troubled by this fact but she, nheless, didn¡¯t separate from her younger sister for she was too lovely. It appears that she waspletely charmed by the baby. ¡°However, I¡¯m happy that the delivery ended safely. Everyone was worried, so I¡¯ll have to go thank them.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Besides, you have to think of a name too.¡± (Name! What name will you give her!?) .........A name, huh? Can I choose it? ¡°Bea, can I choose the name? Did you also have something in mind?¡± ¡°Eh! Will-will you listen to my opinion too!?¡± ¡°Why are you even surprised? That¡¯s only natural, isn¡¯t it?.....Is it perhaps different in this world?¡± ¡°Yes, only men are allowed to pick the name for their children. I chose the name for Toto-chan, but this girl is the Duke¡¯s Household¡¯s eldest daughter......¡± I see, in this world......this is customary among nobles. ¡°I¡¯m a stranger so I don¡¯t really mind. Shall we think about it together?¡± ¡°Yes! I want to give her a wonderful name.¡± (Toto too! Toto will think about it too!) I spent a wonderful happy time with my newly increased family. ¡°Grandson-inw-dono, I heard your talk just now. What a wonderful idea to choose the name together with everyone! I shall cooperate as well.¡± ¡°Son-inw-dono thinks a lot about his family. I shall cooperate too.¡± The ones who opened the door and entered the room were the Frontier Count and mother-inw Lamia, both their faces covered in smiles. ......Cooperate? Choose together with everyone? Who talked about that? We looked at them nkly, but those two didn¡¯t mind it. ¡°I heard from the maids that, even though it is natural for the father to choose the name......you want to choose it together with everyone.¡± ¡°I, as well, was deeply moved by this, father. Bea has a wonderful husband.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t believe I will be present when choosing the name for my great-grandchild.¡± ¡°......I, as well, have be a grandma......Grandma.......¡± Both of them had distant looks in their eyes, in a different way, that is. I couldn¡¯t think of any n to deal with these two. What the hell did the maids¡¯ unit tell them.....? ¡°Mother-inw, how about calling my daughter ¡®Lamia-sama¡¯?¡± ¡°That is wonderful, Zest-sama.¡± For the time being, reviving my mother-inw was my top priority. It seems that Bea supported me on this so she followed along with my n. ¡°Lamia-sama?.....Let¡¯s choose this then.¡± The light returned in my mother-inw¡¯s eyes. I can check the situation this way.....For now, I¡¯ll leave the Count alone. He¡¯s still immersed in something and has no reaction at all. ¡°Well, how about we start now to properly consult about the name!¡± Before Bea and I couldin about why things have turned this way, the Frontier Count came back to life. ¡°Leave it to me, I have about 108 suggestions!!¡± ¡°I can¡¯t lose this either! When we chose Bea¡¯s name.......we consulted for three days and three nights, so much that Sonia begged us to let him go to sleep!¡± And so, the very enjoyable family council for choosing the name of my daughter has started. ¡°As I said, we must choose a name that is rted to Bea.¡± ¡°No, we must choose a legendary flower¡¯s name for my granddaughter.¡± Two hours have passed since we¡¯ve started. The intensity of the fight between the Count and my mother-inw continued to increase. We were at the stage of choosing a range first, before getting to the actual name. ¡°Be-Bea......Will this ever get settled?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.....I¡¯m starting to feel a bit scared too.¡± (Dad, I¡¯m sleepy.) Toto crawled into the bed next to the baby and fell asleep immediately. I bet Bea is tired too......She¡¯s rubbing her eyes. ¡°It appears that it¡¯ll take some time for this to be settled. You should rest as well, Bea.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do just that. Please take care of this.¡± I prepared a futon 1 for her, then returned to the battlefield. Dear me. ¡°Then, we¡¯ll just go with a flower¡¯s name.¡± ¡°Yes, this is splendid.¡± ¡°Thanks god......truly.....¡± They finally chose the name range, and that was the name of an ancient and legendary flower. In short, one of the flower names that the former Japanese stranger left behind. This way, I can participate as well and I think it¡¯s a great idea. I have noints......I really don¡¯t, but this fight issting way too long. ¡°Then, let¡¯s propose some names. Japanese style names, right?¡± ¡°Hahaha, you mean western style name, right?¡± Another two hours fight started for choosing either a Japanese style name or a western style one. It seems that I can¡¯t go to sleep for another long while. ¡°As I thought, a western style name is better.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right, we must choose a western style name.¡± ¡°Master, please stay strong. They finally chose something.¡± ¡°Suu, I can¡¯t do this anymore.¡± In order force my eyes open, I kept on pinching my legs; but this was starting to be insufficient. I lightly stabbed myself with a sword, then used healing magic as I tried to endure this long fight. I¡¯ve been through a lot these past hours so I really wanted to sleep..... ¡°Well now, it¡¯s finally the time we¡¯ve all been waiting for. Let¡¯s propose the names.¡± ¡°Hohoho, you shall be astonished by the amount of proposals I have in mind.¡± Howes these two are so energetic? I corrected my posture backed up only by willpower. However, this was the moment when I remembered something. A very essential thing..... The door opened violently with a bang. We all looked at it simultaneously and saw my master standing in the door. ¡°Bea! Is Bea all right!!??¡± It was the moment when our family council increased by one member. ¡°She¡¯s adorable. This girl will be a beautiful woman simr to Bea.¡± ¡°......Yes.¡± ¡°Right? It makes me remember when I gave birth to Bea.¡± ¡°......Yes.¡± ¡°Hoho, you¡¯ll have a lot of hardships in future. You must get rid of all bad insects.¡± ¡°......Yes.¡± I have almost no memories of this moment. ording to Suu, at that time I was a living thing which could only muster a ¡®Yes¡¯ at fixed intervals. My memories returned right after that moment. That was when the door opened again with a huge noise. ¡°I¡¯ve kept you waiting! I have brought the sister, the holy woman-dono!¡± ¡°Holy woman......I am nothing but an equally loved child of God. As the trees don¡¯tpare their sizes, as the winds don¡¯tpete with their strength. We are all like the continuous sound of rainfall. And that is the will of God!¡± ¡°AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH¡± ¡°Wh-wh-wh-what¡¯s wrong, grandson-inw-dono?¡± ¡°Son-inw-dono? Get a hold of yourself.¡± ¡°E-eh? What¡¯s wrong, your excellency?¡± ¡°Master, don¡¯t do anything rash!¡± ¡°Wh-what happened? Zest-sama!? What¡¯s going on!?¡± ¡°Waaah.......Waaaaaah......¡± (Mom, Mom! My little sister is crying!!) My spasm continued for a while. I could no longer......endure this situation....... 1. Futon = quilted Japanese-style mattressid out on the floor Chapter 126: Naming Chapter 126: Naming ¡°The junky......Where¡¯s the junky!!?¡± ¡°Master, here¡¯s some water.¡± I copsed, emitting this strange voice, and I was afterwards carried in bed. Suu took care of me, looking worried. Bea had to take care of the baby, so it can¡¯t be helped that she¡¯s not with me now. ..............But that¡¯s a good thing. ¡°Did I......copse......?¡± ¡°Are you feeling all right? You seemed like you had a nightmare.¡± I drank the ss of water without stopping to take a breath and I finally calmed down. For now, how did the whole situation unfold? ¡°Suu, tell me what happened.¡± ¡°Yes, after master copsed......¡± I fell senseless right after the junky sister arrived. I do remember up to that part. After that, my master Sonia used his observation magic on me and concluded that it all happened due to overwork. Then I was moved to a bed. The junky sister went to rest after thanking everybody and Albert showed her to a guest¡¯s room. Suu told me that she took notes of what the sister said and asked me if I wanted to read them, but I refused. In any case I won¡¯t understand anything unless I talk to her directly. After that, my master exined things to the Frontier Count and my mother-inw and the family council was suspended for the moment. I see. I now understand that we haven¡¯te to any conclusion yet. ¡°For the time being I¡¯ll go see Bea. If we don¡¯t choose a name before them, this will never end.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. I thought this would be for the best too.¡± It appears that Suu approved of this as well. Right, I¡¯ll go talk to Bea first. I quickly went on my way to our room. ¡°Zest-sama, are you already feeling better?¡± (Dad, are you all right?) These two looked very worried when they saw me enter the room. But that is understandable; anyone would feel worried when her husband suddenly lets out a strange voice and copses soon afterwards. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m fine. I came because I have something to talk to you Bea.¡± ¡°Talk? What is it?¡± ¡°About the name......Carrying on with this situation is too troublesome. We might as well choose the name first?¡± ¡°About that......they did trouble you quite a bit......But you¡¯re right, it is better this way.¡± (Name! Are you choosing it now!?) As one would expect, Bea was also shocked by this whole situation and she came to approve of my idea. Maybe she concluded that, unless we did this now, my mental faculties wouldn¡¯t hold for much longer. ¡°Zest-sama is the one supposed to choose the name in the first ce. I won¡¯t allow anyone toin about this!¡± (Waaai, Dad will choose it!) Bea was overflowing with a strange power; was she angry or something? Maybe because her family selfishly intruded in this matter? ¡°Worries that would make Zest-sama copse........I will let my mother and grandfather feel them too.......Ufufufufufufufu¡± (Ah, Toto must go eat some sweets.) Toto ran away. However, I couldn¡¯t do the same. ¡°It-it-it-it¡¯s all right. You¡¯re prone to worrying, Bea.......But thank you for worrying about me.¡± I gently stroke her head and her ck, sinister magic power finally settled down. This was dangerous......It considerably scared me. ¡°But do you have any good name?¡± ¡°Kind of.....Say, Bea. Is something like thenguage of flowers handed down in this world?¡± ¡°Thenguage of flowers.......? It is the first time I hear about this.¡± She held the baby in her arms as she answered me. It seems that she just changed her diaper. It just happened......It¡¯s not like the baby peed because of the fright caused by Bea¡¯s magic power. ¡°I see.....In this case.....¡± I told her about what thenguage of flowers meant and about the name I chose. As she embraced the baby, Bea seemed very pleased with my choice. ¡°It¡¯s wonderful!! No one will be able toin about this. Ufufu, it is truly a great name.¡± ¡°Kya kya¡± Both Bea and the baby had faces covered in smiles. .......This kid......Can she understand what we¡¯re talking about? Well, it¡¯s just a coincidence......I decided to believe this and hurried to the reception room where the Frontier Count and the others were waiting. ¡°Everyone, I¡¯m sorry for worrying you. But I¡¯m all right now.¡± I entered the reception room, filled with energy. The Frontier Count, my master Sonia and mother-inw Lamia looked at me. ¡°Oh, so you¡¯re fine? You mustn¡¯t overdo it.¡± ¡°You¡¯re such a troublesome son-inw. You should depend more on the people surrounding you, you know?¡± ¡°Zest......I understand you.....I understand you perfectly, Zest.¡± It appears that my only ally is my master. After all, when choosing Bea¡¯s name, he endured this fight for three days and three nights..... I had a hunch that we conveyed out feelings just by looking at each other. ¡°Also, about the name.¡± After our ordinary talk, when I broke the ice and mentioned the matter with the name, the atmosphere changedpletely. You guys, how can you get so obsessed because of a name? However, I cannot lose this fight. My heart felt very calm. ¡°To tell you the truth, I have one proposal as well. I think about giving my daughter this name!¡± How about it!? I told them!! Maybe because my words surprised them, the two troublemakers hanged their heads down. Only my master showed an expression of shock. ¡°Therefore, I will exin to you the na.......¡± I couldn¡¯t continue. My words wouldn¡¯te out. I felt an incredible pressure weighting down on me. ¡°That is great.......If you¡¯ve gone this far, you might as well continue.¡± ¡°Fufu, son-inw-dono......In case you chose a weird name......Ufufufu¡± Ah, this is a hopeless pattern...... I ended up leaking a bit, but it was only a little so everything¡¯s fine. Once it dries there¡¯ll be no problem. Assaulted by an overwhelming magic power, I resolved myself. In case the name is inappropriate, there¡¯s nothing waiting for me but death......Still!! I d myself in light attribute magic power and dered to them. ¡°Do you know about thenguage of flowers? It is something handed down in my native country, and it refers to the emotion and meaning embedded in a flower¡¯s name.¡± ¡°There¡¯s a word for this?¡± ¡°As expected from a stranger. And?¡± ¡°My daughter¡¯s name is ¡®Wisteria¡¯. In Japan, wisteria is a light violet, beautiful flower. And, in thenguage of flowers, it means ¡®dly received / Never let go¡¯. What do you think?¡± ¡° ¡°........¡± ¡° How is it? You can¡¯tin about this, can¡¯t you?......You won¡¯tin, right? The two of them stared at me fixedly without saying any words. My master¡¯s face looked tense too.....If ites to something hopeless, you¡¯ll help me, right? Just how much time had passed? The two of them, who stayed frozen in a silent mood up to now, suddenly experienced a reboot. ¡°Excellent. The Frontier Count¡¯s Household¡¯s women dress in ck and red clothes. The light attribute grandson-inw-dono¡¯s child will wear a light purple color.....This is excellent!¡± ¡°Wisteria......It¡¯s great. And I quite like thatnguage of flowers thing! Let¡¯s go with this name!!¡± It seems that both of them were extremely pleased with the name I chose. .......Thank goodness.....I¡¯m d they liked it. ¡°Thank god, if your choice ended up being inappropriate.....you already guessed it, right? You were very close to dying, you know, Zest?¡± ¡°They¡¯re this much obsessed about something like.......a name......¡± Those two were in a state of excitement, but I ignored them. Then, my master kindly encouraged me. ¡°Still, looking at their state now, everything seems fine. When this happened to me, it was far more terrible. Good for you that everything ended this way!¡± ¡°Is-is that so!? It will end now, right!?¡± I¡¯m finally set free. Because of the happiness I felt, tears came to flow down my face involuntarily. However, it is my life that won¡¯t allow it to end this way. ¡°Wisteria, huh? Now we have to choose her nickname.¡± ¡°Oh my, father. It is obviously Wis.¡± ¡°Hahaha, I tell you, it¡¯s Teria.¡± ¡°Ohoho, and I say Wis........¡± It appears that I won¡¯t be set free for another long time. Can I just say......I reached the finish line?? Chapter 127: Finally, a Moment of Break Chapter 127: Finally, a Moment of Break ¡°Can I finally sleep......?¡± After six nightmarish hours have passed, I was finally released. This is the time it took them only to choose Wisteria¡¯s nickname. It makes me shiver only thinking about what would¡¯ve happen if I haven¡¯t had already chosen the name. ¡°Master, thank you for your hard work. Still, youngdy Wis?......It is a great name.¡± Yes, at the end of the fierce battle between those two, the nickname Wis was chosen. ¡®Like we call Beatrice Bea, following an ancient custom of taking the first half of a name as the nickname, the same we shall do with Wisteria, so we¡¯ll call her Wis!!¡¯ These words spoken by my mother-inw was the winning move. ¡°Right. Anyway, they calmed down now......Do I have anything else scheduled for today?¡± ¡°Yes. But it is already evening, so you should rest a bit.¡± ¡°Indeed......Suu, I¡¯ll rest a little here. For some reason, I feel extremely sleepy.....¡± I fell asleep on the chair in my office. ¡°Master? Master! Please wake up, master!¡± I opened my eyes for Suu shook me awake. What? Is it morning already? ¡°Why the urgency? It doesn¡¯t feel like I slept too much......¡± Outside was pitch dark. Hm? Did I sleep for an entire day?? ¡°It is still early evening. Not much time has passed but......you must go report to the Emperor about the delivery.¡± ¡°Ah, for this one, I must go there in person, otherwise it¡¯ll be no good.¡± It¡¯s true that the Emperor showed concern for this matter as well. Therefore, I have to go meet him in person...... I used some healing magic on my tired body, then I started walking towards the Emperor¡¯s chambers. Because Suu let me sleep for a little bit, I feel a little morefortable now. ¡°I¡¯m sorry foring thiste. You helped us considerably, your Majesty. My daughter......Wisteria was safely born.¡± ¡°Ooh, that¡¯s great, Zest! And you also finished choosing the name.¡± I was immediately able to meet the Emperor, who was rxing in his quarters. The Empress.....is not around, huh? He¡¯s truly doting on her, so much so that it could be considered an illness. ¡°However, I never imagined you woulde this soon. I surely thought it would take another three days and three nights.¡± Three days and three nights.......Did those two also drag the Emperor in the matter of choosing Bea¡¯s name? The Emperor showed a bitter smile and I could do nothing but apologize. ¡°Urm, I¡¯m very sorry for that. The Frontier Count and my mother-inw have caused you trouble......¡± ¡°Hahaha, at that time, I felt I was in hell. The pce¡¯s training grounds became a burnt area. This time, it all ended quite easily.¡± ¡°Bu-burnt area? Those two.......they¡¯re really......¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. Because this is a customary event in the Frontier Count¡¯s Household. I save a budget for this every year. It is funny how the ones who alwayse apologizing are the sons-inw! This tradition! Hahahahahaha!¡± The Emperor was striking his knees, letting out a greatughter. Apparently, this name struggle in the Frontier Count¡¯s Household is more or less inevitable. And now, it even became the amusement of the Imperial household. ¡°The previous Emperor......During my father¡¯s reign, the town was partially destroyed once, did you know that? Themoners and the nobles alike gambled on which of the two proposals would end up passing, so everything was actually all right.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what to say.......¡± The Frontier Count¡¯s Household is beyondprehension. Ah, I also ended up joining that group......sigh...... ¡°Well, think of it as a family custom and give up. There¡¯ll be a next time anyway......I have too much budget saved for this, so when the timees make it big and shy, all right?¡± I can¡¯t deal with this custom. I let out a soft sigh, careful not to let the amused Emperor see it. After I finished reporting to the Emperor, I returned to my room. I nned to quickly finish some of the paperwork, then go to sleep. Thinking about this, I looked over the letters when I hear a knock on the door. ¡°Father, it¡¯s Tsubaki!¡± ¡°Father, it¡¯s Mars.¡± ¡°Ah, what happened? Youe at such ate time......Well, take a sit.¡± I asked Suu to prepare some tea as I listened to what these two had to say. They sat on the sofa and after theypletely harmonized with each other, they continued as follows. ¡° ¡° Congrattions! We are more than happy to hear about the birth of our younger sister!¡± ¡° ¡°Haha, what¡¯s with your reserved manners. But thanks.¡± Even though I said this, I felt really grateful that these two came here in person to congratte me. Younger sister......so they think about her like that. ¡°I see, thenguage of flowers, huh? Such a wonderful source of beautiful names! Wisteria.....she¡¯ll be a great beauty in future.¡± ¡°Haha, I must eliminate all the insects who¡¯ll court her.¡± ¡° ¡°Hahahahahaha!¡± ¡° The prince and I bothughed harmoniously. However, Tsubaki didn¡¯t n to let it end this way. ¡°Father! I also want such a name!!¡± She didn¡¯t have the same smiling face as before; Tsubaki¡¯s expression changedpletely and she had now a sullen look on her face. But I can¡¯t do this. The Emperor chose your name, after all. ¡°But Tsubaki is such a good name.¡± ¡°That is right, father.¡± We both sensed that this could turn out rather troublesome, so we cooperated. It looks like the prince has a strong ability to sense danger as well. ¡°Still......It is true that my name is a flower¡¯s name, but I didn¡¯t know about thenguage of flowers! I really wanted a name with meaning, just like Wisteria!!¡± This has already be troublesome. It is way too dangerous to change the name that his Majesty gave her. On the other hand, it¡¯s too difficult to exin her away..... .......Hm? if I remember correctly, Tsubaki also means something in thenguage of flowers. ¡°There is one after all!? A meaning for Tsubaki in thenguage of flowers.¡± ¡° ¡°Eeeeehhh!?¡± ¡° ¡°And that is ¡®Pride / Reserved kindness¡¯. This is perfect for you actually.¡± ¡°It-it has such a meaning......¡± ¡°This is wonderful, father!¡± Shall I continue? ¡°It is a lovely name that even actresses and dancers use. I also admired your name. Isn¡¯t this great for you, Tsubaki?¡± ¡°Is that really so?......Ufufu, it is indeed great!¡± ¡°Father, you did splendidly. Magnificently!!¡± Good......This is truly great. The two of us overcame the pinch situation. Ignoring the smiling Tsubaki, we both shook our hands firmly. Prince Mars took the extremely pleased Tsubaki along, and it was finally the time to go to sleep. That prince, before leaving, he made a bombshell announcement....... ¡®My guardian would like to meet with you tomorrow¡¯ Because this meeting is tomorrow, I won¡¯t worry too much about it now. I¡¯m already at my limit. I¡¯ll try my best from tomorrow onward.....So I¡¯ll just go to sleep...... I copsed into my bed and lost consciousness instantly. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, master. Please punish me with this.¡± ¡°......Morning, Suu.¡± When I woke up that morning......a lightly dressed Suu held out to me a horse riding whip. She slipped it into my hand and dropped to her knees. What is this situation? I was in a state of confusion, but she continued to attack me. ¡°Please! Please hit me, master!¡± ¡°Good morning, your excellency Zest. The madam ising here.......¡± Suu and I both looked at Albert as he froze in ce. My fate could change depending on a single word from him...... Please......It¡¯s up to you now Albert!! ¡°Madam, his excellency is still sleeping! You can go in after he wakes up, so please wait here on the sofa!!¡± Perfect, Albert! I can deceive her this way!! I will promote you after this. Suu and I kept quiet, looking at each other.....Our hearts understood each other at that moment. (Dad, good morning!! Are you ying horse with Suu? Toto wants to y too!!) ¡°Oh my, this is such an interesting and fun looking horse y! We might need to have a small talk!¡± Yes, it was impossible to deceive her. Chapter 128: Discussing with the Guardian Chapter 128: Discussing with the Guardian ¡°In short, Suu herself wanted to be whipped in order to apologize for her failure 1?¡± ¡°It is precisely as you said, madam.¡± Although Albert¡¯s fine y turned out useless, if we talked to each other in a calm manner, we all understood it. It was actually very simple. ¡°Hahaha, Bea. The only things I whip are the horses and Albert.¡± ¡°Yes ma¡¯am! It is precisely so.¡± Albert instantly agreed with me. It didn¡¯t mean anything weird though. ¡°For us, kemonobito, this is very important. Being beaten with a whip is extremely humiliating for us. However, if our master, whom we respect and care for, does it, the situation changespletely!¡± Right. For kemonobito like Albert and Suu, if I beat them with a whip they¡¯ll actually take pride in it. It indicates that they are willing to ept this humiliation and the master appreciates their resolution. It appears to also mean that there¡¯s a very strong bond between master and servant. ¡°In other words, Suu¡¯s real intention for asking you to hit her with that whip.......¡± ¡°Yes, madam. Regarding my master whom I dearly respect, even after I failed him greatly, will he still believe in me? This is the question I wanted an answer for.¡± (Hee! Kemonobito sure have an interesting way of thinking!) ¡°I see. I alsocked information. If this is the kemonobito¡¯s etiquette, it can¡¯t be helped. In case there are others, please tell me beforehand. Are you convinced now, Bea?¡± ¡°Yeah, forgive me for jumping to conclusions, Zest-sama.¡± (!? Should Toto go take a nap?) Toto, no matter how you look at it, it¡¯s still too early. Doing that right after the delivery is nheless bad. At any rate, this was settled. ¡°Then......Can we stand now?¡± ¡°Your excellency, I can¡¯t feel my feet!¡± We stood in a seiza position for about three hours...... The maids¡¯ unit lent us a shoulder and we stood up, then, after we finished eating our lunch, the prince came. He said something about a meeting with his guardian yesterday. ¡°Father-inw, his name is Callis and he¡¯s the Prime Minister¡¯s right hand. His power is slightly lesser than mine......But still, in the elves¡¯ country, he holds a very high position.¡± ¡°.........I see. In terms or power, what rank are you in your country?¡± He grinned broadly and answered brimming with self-confidence. ¡°I am hiding it, but there is only one person.....who is stronger than me! And that is my master, the old hag......Urm! I can¡¯t win against the senior-sama.¡± ¡°Oh, the second strongest, huh? I see.....In the worst case, we¡¯ll have to attack with strength.¡± Prince Mars¡¯ power is at the same level with the maids¡¯ unit. If this makes him the second strongest, releasing my main force will bring us certain victory. There might not even be needed for Albert to intervene at all. He sometimes manages to defend against my blows and......he¡¯s be quite strong. ¡°For the time being, we¡¯ll talk more about this after I meet with this Callis guy. How¡¯s his character?¡± ¡°Yes, he has military power and he¡¯s also fairly smart. However.......¡± After I gathered some more information, I prepared for the meeting. ¡°I am d to meet you, your excellency, Duke Zest. I am a General in the country of elves and my name is Callis. I am pleased to make your acquaintance.¡± ¡°I am Zest, the 1st Rank Imperial Mage of the Grun Empire. There¡¯s no need to call me excellency, it is unnecessary for peopleing from a foreign country, right, General Callis?¡± ¡°Then, I will call you Duke Zest. Thank you listening to my sudden request today.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. It¡¯s about my cute son-inw¡¯s country after all. There¡¯s no need for restraint.¡± General Callis had a 180 cm, solidly built physique, so much so that you wouldn¡¯t even believe he was an elf. He also had a darkish skin color, probably suntan, and he felt exactly like a military person. As for his age......Since he¡¯s an elf, I can¡¯t properly judge based on his appearance, but he looks like he¡¯s in his 30s. His face was finely chiseled and his short golden hair suited him perfectly. ¡°Then, what is your business with me today?¡± After the usual lip service, it was time for the main topic. This was also the custom in the elves¡¯ country. ¡°Yes......To tell you the truth, it is about prince Mars. That prince, since his childhood......Urm.......¡± In short, this is a summary of what he told me. The prince was raised with excessive care, since he was the long-awaited heir of the royal family. For that reason, he doesn¡¯t havemon sense and is usually impolite. However, this didn¡¯t mean that the elves¡¯ country had ill intentions for the empire. And they wouldn¡¯t mind if we killed him for his rudeness either. These were the contents of his talk. Fufufu, so if I end up killing him, they won¡¯t lift a finger? Or is it that they sent the subject of their hostility to the empire in order to gather their own forces in their country? Is this their ulterior motive? ¡°I see......Such a man is now my son-inw. However, I can¡¯t go against the Emperor¡¯s decision. Moreover, your own King also approved of this marriage.¡± ¡°Yes, that is precisely so.¡± ¡°Then, how about this? It looks rather bad for my daughter Tsubaki to be a widow before even getting married. But, after they are officially married, it will only look like an unfortunate ident. Am I wrong?¡± ¡°.......ident?¡± ¡°Right. Fortunately, since Tsubaki was adopted into my family, she doesn¡¯t have inheritance rights in the Imperial Household anymore. Isn¡¯t this rather convenient for you as well?¡± ¡°As one would expect from Duke Zest. I see now.......¡± In short, the prince can¡¯t be killed just yet. After they get married, the prince will die in an ¡®ident¡¯. Tsubaki is nothing but an adopted daughter of mine, therefore, the Emperor cannot express any direct opinions on this. But I do have a say in this, so they better get along with me. Or something along these lines. ¡°I don¡¯t really know how things will unfold after the ident. However, it makes it quite easy to use the title of the future Queen, who¡¯s nothing but a very young woman who just lost her husband, right?¡± ¡°Right......Even now, we stirred up trouble for the Grun Empire....¡± ¡°You obviously did. Forcing that stupid prince onto us is an open defiance against the empire. My ck knights, my war maidens¡¯ unit......and my kemonobito unit will take the head and attack your country, you know? You stained my honor, after all.¡± ¡°Yo-you are quite right.¡± ¡°Moreover, Razatonia Frontier Count¡¯s Household will join this war too. The ck knights in the main household will happily rage over your country. Ah, even the Holy Country of Lc will join. After all, you insulted the hero who achieved spiritification.......The Pope will be pretty angry.¡± ¡°Ye-yes! We shall go with your n, Duke Zest.¡± General Callis nodded to everything I said, hisplexion looking rather pale. Now, with this, the first stage is over. ¡°Thank you for your hard work, master.¡± ¡°Hm? Well, it went just as nned. But they won¡¯tpromise more than this.¡± I can also ask for the empire¡¯s support, but it can¡¯t be helped. It has to look like the empire is rejecting the prince after all. ¡°Still, this was all within my expectations. There¡¯s nothing really to be concerned about.¡± ¡°Understood. As expected from my master.¡± It feels good to be praised by Suu. Fufu, I am the type who makes progress with lots of praise. I drank some tea, feeling in a great mood, but then Suu gave me a letter. ¡°This is a letter from the demons. Just to be sure, please read it quickly.¡± Yeah......Are they telling me in this letter to quickly send back the dragons? I actually wanted to keep them a little longer. I opened the bulky letter and read it without dy. ¡®First Chapter ¨C The Knight and the Master ¡°Ah, master......I am a man. And yet, you still say that you like me?¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right. So what if you¡¯re a man? Look at you, just how happy you are.¡± ¡°Th-that¡¯s!!¡± ¡°It¡¯s not about that, right? Say it properly.¡± ¡°My c***k.......¡± ¡°Right. What is wrong with your c***k, Albert?¡± Albert twisted his body in an embarrassing way and Zest stared in agony at the cloak in his burly hand..........¡¯ ¡°It was a cloak!! Those absolute morons, why did they 2 censor that word!!?¡± ........This wasn¡¯t a letter, it was a filthy manuscript. Against my better judgement, I ended up reading up to thest chapter, Chapter 10; and I utterly regretted it. The title was ¡®Albert¡¯s Pregnancy! Impregnated with Zest¡¯s Magic¡¯........ I want to die. 1. Now, this failure or sense of guilt that Suu feels wasn¡¯t really exined and I can only suppose that she feels this way because her master lost consciousness the day before, when it could all have been prevented... It might also mean that she did a random mistake which is not yet exined... 2. It is not certain who wrote this stuff, due to the ambiguity of the Japanesenguage and to the fact that no name was specified...I expect it was Albert (since Zest calls him ¡®oobakamono¡¯/¡¯absolute moron¡¯, plete idiot¡¯), but in case it¡¯s someone else, I¡¯ll correct itter, when I actually find out who wrote it....EDIT: As Horus-kun-Sensei mentioned in ament, the one who wrote this stuff might have been the fujoshi human girl living in the demons country.....It kind of makes sense since this manuscript came from the demons in the shape of a letter. I guess we¡¯ll know for sureter tho... Chapter 129: Turn Calamity into Good Fortune Chapter 129: Turn Cmity into Good Fortune ¡°Damn it, I read something terrible.......What the hell is this?.......¡± I had an awful headache caused by the shock from reading this thing and theck of sleep. I soon heard a knock on the door of my office. ¡°Master, you¡¯re pulling an all-nighter again? You should rest a little, otherwise your body will won¡¯tst.......¡± Suu, looking worried, prepared some tea for me. Today, as well, she was dressed in male clothes. This way, if she entangles with me the impression given by this......wait, what the heck am I thinking!? Is this the power of rot and decay? Too scary. ¡°By the way, master. What were the contents of that letter? Was it an urgent matter?¡± ¡°......Do you want to read it?¡± Suu took the letter and started reading it, her eyes turning the size of a chestnut. Well, I did expect that. ¡°Master, this is a frightening text.......¡± ¡°Right? Right?¡± ¡°If you change the names and let it circte.......It will inflict some terrible damage. Not to mention that for the locked-out elves this will most likely make them pull back. As expected from my master¡¯s thoughtfulness. I, Suu, admire your craftiness.¡± ¡°......Right?¡± I had this option too, huh?....... For a married person, this story could inflict some major damage, but for a single person it could mean a fatal wound. This could turn out to be a useful trap. ¡°Prepare the paper without dy. Gather as much paper as you can.¡± ¡°Yes. I¡¯ll ask Calfa to make the arrangements.¡± Great, she is suitable for this task. Fortunately, General Callis is unmarried; I¡¯ll prepare a good present for him and the Prime Minister. They¡¯ll cry of happiness. ¡°Also, you shall ask my son-inw prince Mars about the Prime Minister¡¯s habits, hobbies and ns and add them all to the story. It will increase the credibility.¡± ¡°Fufufu, it¡¯s a wonderful idea. We will mix in information only the high ranked nobles could know, right?¡± ¡°Indeed. However, be sure to avoid the things which only son-inw-dono knows, okay? The only thing I want to achieve with this is..........¡± ¡°To split the Prime Minister¡¯s faction.......and destroy their unity, right?¡± ¡°When people be suspicious, they start to doubt everyone in their surroundings. If it goes smoothly, then great, but if we fail, we at least spread some shameful rumors.¡± ¡°Understood. Did you know master, that you recently started to smile in the same way as the Frontier Count?¡± Thest remark heavily injured my tofu mental state....... Was she praising me with that?...... Suu showed a dark smile, seemingly full of meaning. ¡°And so, I have a request, your excellency!¡± ¡°I see......¡± That afternoon, the festival of visiting nobles started. The pretext was Bea¡¯s delivery and its celebration. The real motive however....... ¡°Please! Take my daughter.......ept my daughter into the war maidens¡¯ unit!!¡± This was the eighth person who asked me the same thing. My maids¡¯ unit is quite popr now under the name of the war maidens¡¯ unit. ¡®I can¡¯t believe that my daughter, who only devoted herself to training and weapons, is now such a finedy!¡¯ Due to Suu¡¯s strict training, my maids became rather decent, and their parents came to thank me for this, feeling great joy. The other nobles who heard them made a huge fuss about me epting their daughters too. ¡°All right, at first, I¡¯ll have her work for me as a maid. After that, we¡¯ll see.¡± ¡°Yes! Thank you very much!¡± A talent recycling factory, Duke Zest¡¯s domain......And so I started to gain more and more capable personnel..... Great, I have more maids now!? ¡°You have a strong influence now, master. It is delightful! Please rest assured for I will thoroughly train them.¡± Suuughed and said, but the maids¡¯ unit¡¯s opinions were..... ¡°Ah, our poor juniors.¡± ¡°They¡¯re all fools.¡± ¡°They intentionally entered hell.¡± ¡°This training was harder than thebat one.......¡± ¡°What¡¯s with those words you just used! As punishment, you¡¯ll stand still until tomorrow morning with books ced on your heads.¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Please forgive us!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° Even my master was shocked when he saw Suu¡¯s spartan-like training style. Thanks goodness I didn¡¯t have to go through that......Yes, as I thought about this, I drank some more tea. ¡°Your excellency, excuse me.¡± Albert entered my office, sending fluttering nces at the situation on the corridor. There were about ten new maids waiting there. It was quite the spectacle. ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± ¡°Ah, yes! It is dinner time, so what do you want to do? There are a few neers among the ck knights too.........so, once in a while.......¡± Right, one section of the imperial capital¡¯s elite unit expressed their desire to join the ck knights. They received the Emperor¡¯s permission and I¡¯m nning to attach them to my ck knights¡¯ unit. However, all of them are muscle brains who joined me because they wanted to test their own powers on the duke¡¯s domain, already famous for its dragon pets. ¡°True......But,st time it was rather awful, so.......¡± If they take to that ¡®Fluffy Paradise¡¯ again I won¡¯t be able to endure it. This time, I¡¯d like to pass. ¡°Your excellency, I did a lot of learning. In order to avoid the riskiness of entering a ce without researching about it first!¡± ¡°Albert, that ismon sense, actually.¡± I took a mouthful of tea, as I listened to Albert¡¯s talk. At any rate, I¡¯m sure it¡¯ll be a worthless ce, so I¡¯ll refuse him as soon as he tells me the name of the shop. ¡°This time, the shop is called ¡®Well-Established! Flower Garden of the Pce Ladies¡¯. It is a ce with tradition that even the hero from the past favored, and this month is the service enhancement month.¡± ¡°Circumstances changed. Continue.¡± ¡°Yes sir! The women wear uniforms in the so-called Japanese style and they do all sorts of stuff for you! At this time, for only three gold coins, you¡¯ll receive the daimyo 1 course!¡± ¡°Albert, we¡¯ll go there immediately! Prepare the horses!!¡± And so, I took the ck knights along and hurried towards that ce. Towards the ce that my predecessor left behind, the ¡®Flower Garden of the Pce Ladies¡¯.......Senpai, thank you, truly! ¡°Aah, this is magnificent.¡± ¡°Your excellency.......I, Albert, am deeply moved.¡± It was indeed a flower garden. Beautiful women wearing Japanese style clothes stood up in lines. I paid for everyone¡¯s fees......Of course, we bought the daimyo course. The kimonos more or less set in the patterns of this world, but... They made me remember my home. Then, the service started. ¡°Come now, please use this.¡± We took the scissors that the girls gave us. .......We took the scissors. ¡°Because you chose the daimyo course, you can get as many flowers as you can carry.¡± The Flower Garden of the Pce Ladies was a flowers¡¯ shop...... It is a high ss flowers¡¯ shop where you reap the flowers directly from the field. ¡°Albert, once we return, we¡¯ll need to talk.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Alberts was shaking severely, but since I managed to see some dearly missed Japanese style clothes, I¡¯ll forgive him with a light punishment. I was thinking about these things when I heard the voice of an unexpected person. ¡°Oh my, isn¡¯t this son-inw-dono! Do you n to give these flowers to Bea for your wedding anniversary? Wonderful dedication you¡¯ re showing there! But, the date will change very soon......Will you make it in time?¡± It was mother-inw Lamia......We-wedding anniversary? Was it today!? This is very bad!! ¡°Albert, you did great! Take your time and enjoy this ce with the youngsters!!¡± I threw towards him a bag of gold coins, grabbed as many flowers as I could and the hurried back to Bea¡¯s ce. Please.......please, let me get there in time....... 1. Japanese feudal lord Chapter 130: Bea’s Feelings Chapter 130: Bea¡¯s Feelings I forgot about my wedding anniversary. When I was still in Japan......I heard something about this. That when the husband forgets about the wedding anniversary, the wife resents him, and the conjugal rtions get colder. ¡°I must avoid this no matter what..........I must get to Bea even one second faster!!¡± I d myself in the entirety of my magic power and ran at top speed through the imperial capital at night. I heard all sorts of screams but I didn¡¯t care. Since my top priority was Bea, I ignored all that and hurried to get to her room. ¡°Wee back, master. Oh? Those flowers?¡± ¡°Suu, is Bea still awake?¡± I arrived at my room and Suu was waiting there with a surprised expression. Hm? There¡¯s no way Suu doesn¡¯t know about my wedding anniversary. What¡¯s going on? ¡°The madam is drinking some tea on the terrace. She put youngdy Wis to sleep after a long cry, so I believe she¡¯s taking a break.¡± ¡°I see......About the wedding anniversary......¡± ¡°Wedding anniversary? Ah, in a few moments and it will be today.¡± In a few moments?........Damn you, mother-inw, you tricked me!? .......No, she actually showed consideration. ¡°Understood. I want to be alone with her for a while.¡± ¡°As you wish.¡± Grinning, Suu left the room. ¡®You¡¯re anxious to please madam with those flowers, right? I get it¡¯, her facial expression was saying this and I wanted her to stop. ¡°It¡¯s been a hard day, isn¡¯t it, Bea? Today is our wedding anniversary, right? Please ept these.¡± ¡°......Eh?¡± Bea was sitting in a chair on the terrace and I approached her from behind and called out to her. She turned around and I saw that she was crying. ¡°Wh-wh-wh-wh-what¡¯s wrong, Bea!? Did someone make you cry? I¡¯ll go destroy that person so tell who it is!?¡± ¡°Zest-sama......Zest-samaaaaaaaaaa!!¡± Bea jumped at me and continued to cry even louder. I brushed her hair lightly and waited for her to stop crying. ¡°Did you calm down?¡± ¡°Yes.......But, I didn¡¯t want you to see me like this. It¡¯s too embarrassing.¡± The flowers were now scattered about the terrace and we sat down on them. Actually, to be more precise, Bea was sitting on myp. I was sitting cross-legged on the floor, but I was all right since it wasn¡¯t a particrly cold season. ¡°What made you feel this sad? Will you tell me?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not like I was sad. Urm, ever since before getting birth, I have many moments when I feel this way.......¡± Bea started to speak, hesitantly and feeling embarrassed. If I were to make a summary of what she¡¯s told me, it would be something like this. About the time her belly started to grow, all these things started. During the day she felt irritated and during the night she felt like crying. Apparently, she was repeating this cycle every day. ¡°That¡¯s why, I didn¡¯t want to burden Zest-sama with something as trivial as this.......¡± She was aware of it, but she couldn¡¯t stop. After the birth, everything was supposed to go back to how things were before.......But she couldn¡¯t put this into words, so Bea continued, while crying. ¡°But, this time is the baby......Wis¡¯ cry woke me up and I couldn¡¯t calm down these feelings anymore.......¡± Am I being strange? If I continue to act like this, Zest-sama will start to hate and he¡¯ll cast me aside. It seems that she kept thinking of these things. ¡°Sigh........¡± Without realizing, I let out a long sigh. Bea was shocked by my reaction. ¡°I am sorry. Zest-sama, I will be careful from now on!¡± ¡°You¡¯re wrong, Bea. This sigh was directed to myself.......Sorry. I¡¯m really sorry for not realizing what you were going through.¡± Bea, who wanted to apologize herself, looked at me nkly and I continued to brush her hair lightly. ¡°Since I am older, I should¡¯ve paid more attention. We will soon choose a nursing mother so until then I will help you change diapers and everything. Besides, for you to feel this way is not strange at all. It¡¯s normal, so don¡¯t worry about it. I will never hate you.¡± ¡°Is it......normal? But my mother didn¡¯t.......¡± ¡°There are individual differences after all. There are women who don¡¯t go through this, but many women actually do. That¡¯s why, there¡¯s no need for you to feel unease, Bea. You only have to depend on me and let me spoil you.¡± ¡°But, aren¡¯t you angry? Don¡¯t you hate the me I am right now?¡± With her face red and full of tears, Bea looked at me. I allowed such a young woman to worry about these things all by herself, I am such a shameful man. ¡°Ah, my only wife is Beatrice. I do love you, and I will from now on too......No matter what happens, this will never change. On the contrary, if I ever go bald and you will start to hate me, I will still chase after you.¡± ¡°Yes......Yes! Ufufu, it¡¯s all right, though. If Zest-sama ever bes like that, I will still love you.¡± Bea finally smiled and I embraced her, then I kissed her after a long time. On the terrace illuminated only by moonlight, we started to....... ¡°Master, excuse me. His Majesty......¡± ¡°Suu. As you can see, I¡¯m right in the middle of something.¡± ¡°Suu. Read the situation.¡± The both of us were in the middle of relieving the tension that has built between us. We couldn¡¯t stop midway. ¡°Yes. I do understand, but his Majesty.......¡± ¡°If it¡¯s a messenger, let them wait. If it¡¯s a letter, leave it here.¡± ¡°Geez, that Emperor.......I¡¯ll ask Toto-chan to send his wig flying again.¡± We told Suu as we kept kissing, but it seems like this wasn¡¯t the case. ¡°Urm, his Majesty is here.¡± ¡°You two, I¡¯m sorry to intrude......But will you please stop extinguishing my wig?¡± ¡°Well, well, being young is amazing. They do it in such a ce even.¡± Their Majesties sneaked on the terrace. We both hurried to stand and salute them. This is bad, very bad!! ¡°Please excuse us! Your Majesties!¡± ¡°We-we were being impolite!¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right. We suddenly intruded anyway. Right?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s not an official visit after all......Please stop the wig thing.¡± The Emperor was holding down his head and the Empress was smiling, her face red. Just when did they even arrive here? ¡°I feel like I just watched a lovely scene.¡± ¡°Yes, if they do it on the terrace.......everyone outside hears it.¡± ¡°Please stop the wig thing.¡± The Empress and Suu were making a fuss over this. In this case, I must do something in order not to hurt the Empress¡¯ mood. ¡°You¡¯ve caught us in an embarrassing situation.......¡± ¡°Ah, I never imagined that her Majesty the Empress would hear us.......¡± We never had faces as red as now, but the Empress kindly informed us. ¡°There¡¯s no need at all to feel embarrassed, you know? It was a wonderful talk after all! If he goes bald, you¡¯ll continue to love him, right?¡± ¡°Yes, your Majesty the Empress. I¡¯ll love him even bald.¡± ¡°If I ever go bald, please take care of me, Bea.¡± ¡°.......Again, you¡¯re talking about hair.......again.......¡± ¡°Your Majesty the Emperor, you¡¯re slightly off.¡± Suu, fix him back. And so, the curtain raised over the midnight ndestine meeting with their Majesties. Chapter 131: The Last Stop Chapter 131: The Last Stop ¡°Also, we actually had a reason for visiting you in the middle on the night.¡± The Empress smiled as she informed us, but our attention was uncontrobly focused on the Emperor sitting next to her. He was staring in the direction of the day after tomorrow.......His eyes looked like those of a dead fish. ¡°I came to you, duke Zest, because I thought you could do something about my hair. What do you say?¡± ¡°Ha? Not his Majesty the Emperor¡¯s but your Majesty the Empress¡¯ hair?¡± ¡°Come to think of it, you¡¯re always covering it with headdresses.¡± ¡°Hair.....headdress........¡± We both followed the Empress in not paying any attention to the Emperor for now. Because otherwise our conversation wouldn¡¯t advance at all. She took off her scarf from her head; her hair was too short for a noble. Noble women in this world have usually long hair that reaches at least their lower backs, but the Empress¡¯ hair reached only her shoulders. ¡°Urm, you used your hair for his Majesty¡¯s.......you know, hair thing, right?¡± ¡°Aaaah, your Majesty the Empress, you are so kind......¡± ¡°Hair thing.......Fufu, you called it hair thing.......¡± The Emperor was now sitting down on the floor, his body more and more numb, and his usual dignity nonexistent. He looked nothing more than an ordinary middle-aged man. ¡°I asked Lamia about it, since her hair is always glossy and smooth, and she told me that duke Zest did it for her. In this case, I thought maybe you could also make my hair grow longer.¡± I see. So this is why the Empress doesn¡¯t usuallye out in public! It was less because of the Emperor¡¯s doting attitude and more because she wanted to hide her short hair........ ¡°I understand. I will give it a try.¡± Just a few days ago I did my best and used much of my magic power for Bea¡¯s sake. Normally, my magic power should¡¯ve dried up, but luckily my magic power isn¡¯t that weak. Rather, a short while after I use it, I feel good again. As I started to feed my magic power to the Empress¡¯ hair, I created a powerful mental image of growing hair. ¡°Good. It seems to be working.....While we¡¯re at this, I might as well make is glossy too.¡± ¡°Right. Ah, how would you like it to be, your Majesty? Zest-sama can make your hair straight or curly and fluffy as well.¡± Fufu, it¡¯s not like I practice on my maids¡¯ unit just to put on airs or something. I can make it look however I want, be it straight or curly. ¡°Well, in this case, I want it to be long and straight just like duchess Beatrice¡¯s hair. I admired it for such a long time!¡± ¡°As you wish. What do you think?¡± I stopped infusing magic power and moved a bit to the side. She checked her hair by looking in the mirror that Bea prepared, and she became exaggeratedly happy. ¡°This is wonderful! It¡¯s so beautiful and silky.......and perfectly straight! Aah, I yearned for this since I was a child!¡± The Empress touched her hair with her hands and frolicked like a young girl. In this world there¡¯s no such thing as perm treatments......People with frizzy hair can only yearn for straight hair. ¡°I am more than happy to have pleased you.¡± ¡°Your Majesty, this hairstyle looks great on you.¡± ¡°Oh my, but doesn¡¯t it make me look too young?¡± The two women started to enjoy a conversation about hair ornaments and hair styles. Suu evacuated the zone in order not the be dragged into their world. .......She kind of has a sharp intuition. ¡°......Zest. Can you only make the hair grow longer?¡± With bloodshot eyes, the middle-ag.......the Emperor drew near. He didn¡¯t have dead eyes anymore......He looked very serious now. ¡°It-it is likely that I can make it grow as well.¡± ¡°Do it!! I¡¯ll never ask you for anything else in my lifetime! I¡¯m begging you!!!¡± And so, the Emperor¡¯s head returned to its golden days. I never imagined that he would prostrate himself in front of me....... Also, I who have saved his head, ended up receiving a new court title. ¡°I didn¡¯t offer you anynds when you adopted princess Tsubaki. The reason for that was for me to test how you would treat Tsubaki as a foster father and how you would bring this marriage problem to a conclusion. I trusted that you wouldn¡¯t use this as a bait and that you would unmistakably cope with and solve the situation. In response to this, the Zest who splendidly concluded the marriage problem is worthy of bing an archduke. Objections are not approved. This is an imperialmand.¡± The Emperor stood up and held a sword in his hand. The nobles in the audience hall simultaneously ced one knee on the floor and all made a respectful bow. ¡°You will also be the Crown Prince¡¯s guardian. In case I copse before handing over the imperial throne, you, archduke Zest, shall give your guidance.......and devotion to the Crown Prince.¡± ¡°I humbly ept the heavy responsibilities of a guardian and an archduke.¡± I received the sword from his Majesty, then Prime Minister Arc stood up as nned. ¡°As the retainers¡¯ representative, I, Prime Minister Arc, will give you our answer. We will follow your Majesty¡¯s imperialmand, we will assist archduke Zest and we will pledge an evesting loyalty to the Crown Prince.¡± And so, I was made an archduke in this audience hall.......and I realized that this will undeniably make me busier and busier....... ¡°Really now, right when I¡¯m supposed to leave for the elves¡¯ country.......My work load will unnecessarily increase again.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because the war potential master possesses is abnormal. They might have designated you as archduke and the Crown Prince¡¯s guardian with the ulterior motive of binding you to this ce.¡± As I processed the congrattory letters I received from nobles in my office, I talked with Suu. The Emperor¡¯s choice was about 20% backed by gratitude for healing his baldness and about 80% backed by political reasons. That cunning old man.......I really can¡¯t let my guard down with him. ¡°But still, master¡¯s influence increased now. We should be pleased with it.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right. Besides, those guys will also return very soon.......¡± Even as I kept conversing with Suu, my hand didn¡¯t stop. The returning letters for the nobles must be hand-written, and I must be the one to write all of them. There were about fifty pages or more, but I wrote them all as I constantly casted healing magic on my hand. ¡°Your excellency, here¡¯s the report from the intelligence unit.¡± About the time I started to get tired of writing letters, I heard a voice from my back. They finally returned. ¡°Thank you for your hard work. So, how was the elves¡¯ country?¡± ¡°Yes. We made a summary of their war potential and internal administration in these documents. We roughly understood the factions¡¯ organization, so we will be able to protect your excellency when you arrive there.¡± I sent the intelligence unit beforehand to investigate the elves¡¯ country. It would be suicidal to march into an enemy country without any information after all. I won¡¯t be that negligent. ¡°How about our n and its presumed errors?¡± ¡°Yes. We might increase our ally side with about ten percent. It is all ording to n, so there are no problems here.¡± ¡°We can increase our ally side......Ah, that means there were many opportunists.¡± Fufu, is that so?......I previously thought that it could all turn into a trap, but those guys are nothing more than opportunists. ¡°Good. Then start preparing for our departure. The country of elves shall return to my son-inw.¡± ¡°Yes, certainly, master!¡± ¡°Yes sir! We will protect you from the shadows.¡± Everything was prepared. This way, the Prime Minister¡¯s faction in the country of elves is already done for. I settled it in a cool manner. With proud feelings in my chest, I sipped some tea. However, it is an unwritten rule that won¡¯t let it end this easily. ¡°Your excellency, Prime Minister Arc is here!¡± The Prime Minister entered the office apanied by Albert¡¯s cheerful voice. What¡¯s the matter? Another problem? ¡°Archduke Zest......Please.......Please do it for me too!¡± With teary eyes, the Prime Minister ced his hands on his head. And there it was......A shiny, kappa-like 1 head........ You too............ 1. Trantion: Nana God¡¯s gift to mankind: Mockii Kappa = mythical water-dwelling creatures; a y¨­kai demon or imp found in traditional Japanese folklore; usually, the top of their heads is bald and shiny. Here¡¯s a picture where you can see a kappa: http://.natsumeyuujinchou.wikia/wiki/Kappa Chapter 132: Arrival! The Country of Elves Chapter 132: Arrival! The Country of Elves ¡°Master, did you listen? About today¡¯s schedule. If you don¡¯t hurry, we won¡¯t make it in time.¡± ¡°Unless I misheard it, you said that I have thirty meetings.......¡± ¡°You¡¯re so mature, Zest-sama.¡± (Dad! I got the diaper!) I heard Suu¡¯s report in Bea¡¯s room as I changed Wis¡¯ diaper. Despite me leaving tonight, why is my schedule so packed today!? ¡°Good, perfect. I made the diaper silkier so that it won¡¯t hurt her skin. Do you like it, Wis?¡± ¡°Kya-kya!¡± ¡°Oh my, this is great.¡± (Dad, she looks incredibly happy! That¡¯s amazing!) Instead of using baby powder I used healing magic; normally, this would be unthinkable. But this is the archduke¡¯s household so it can¡¯t be helped. ¡°If youngdy Wis¡¯ maintenance is finished, we should go, master.¡± ¡°.......See youter, everyone.¡± I left the room with painful reluctance. From this moment on I have to attend a festival of bald old men. ¡°It¡¯s finally over.......¡± The operation of restoring the heads of the kneeling old men finally marked its end. Suu only scheduled a meeting with those nobles who support me. There were others too on the corridors begging me to heal them, but Albert took them away. Restoring the heads of all of those people would¡¯ve been nothing but bullying to me. ¡°Now, after a short break we will take our leave. Are son-inw-dono and the others ready?¡± ¡°Yes. As soon as master arrives there, we¡¯re ready to leave.¡± I rubbed my shoulders as I sipped some tea. Suu showed consideration and started to massage my shoulders.......Aah, this feels good. ¡°After I go check on Wis again in Bea¡¯s room we shall leave. I won¡¯t return home for a few days so, if she forgets my face, I¡¯m confident I¡¯ll cry.¡± ¡°No one forgets their parent¡¯s face in just a few days.......¡± I ignored Suu¡¯s scolding and decided to spend a little more time with my family. This time, I¡¯m taking only Toto along. Bea and Wis will return to our domain and take care of the house. ¡°Then, I should be leaving. Bea, on your way back, please drop by my foster father¡¯s house on the Frontier Count¡¯s domain and introduce them to Wis.¡± ¡°Yes, I will make sure to pay them a visit.¡± ¡°Kya-kya¡± (I¡¯m going together with Dad! It¡¯s been a while!!) I haven¡¯t met recently my foster father Galef and my foster mother Celica, but with this everything will be fine. I ced Toto on my shoulder and walked towards the square where son-inw-dono and everyone else were waiting. ¡°Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa¡± ¡°Fatheeeeeeeeeeeer¡± ¡°Those two, are way too noisy.¡± ¡°You¡¯re so right, father.¡± ¡°Master, your hair is disheveled.¡± (Ahahaha, this is so fast!!) Two guys were screaming their lungs out.......Prince Mars and General Calis. Tsubaki and the female soldiers were fully enjoying the air trip withposed expressions. ¡°Still, this really is fast......This way, we¡¯ll arrive there in a few hours.¡± ¡°It would¡¯ve taken us about one month to get there with a boat, father.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t believe they¡¯re screaming because of something like this......Master, they definitely need more training.¡± We were rxing on the back of a dragon. We were enclosed in a magic barrier so that we didn¡¯t feel the wind too strongly. This way, I could let everyone mount the dragons without any worrying. ¡°I¡¯ll die! I¡¯ll diiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiie¡± ¡°Motheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeer¡± .........Are they really that scared? They¡¯recking some guts. ¡°Too noisy!! Don¡¯t panic because of something like flying in the sky on the back of a dragon! Are you idiots!? Look at the ck nights and the war maidens¡¯ unit! They¡¯re so quiet.......¡± ¡°How about it? Do you like the air trip......? You are quite a good-looking man. In case you like riding me.....I¡¯ll let you do it again, you know?¡± ¡°.......A dragon is making advances at me?¡± ¡°Gahahaha, isn¡¯t it great! You are single anyway!¡± ¡°The only one to try to seduce me is a dragon......¡± ¡°So, about those two? The he-female and she-male.¡± ¡°You mean, lord Tasel!?¡± ¡°Yes, yes, those two are lovely, aren¡¯t they!¡± ¡°I want to get married too......Hey, do you know a good man? A dragon is fine too!¡± It all turned into an enjoyable pic...... And yeah, it was not even close to being quiet. ¡°Master, it appears that those two fainted.......Let¡¯s not pay them any mind.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right.....Afterwards you must increase the prince¡¯s training load. Also, try introducing someone to the girl who said she wanted to meet a dragon even.¡± ¡°Yeah, she¡¯s way to pitiful.¡± ¡°As expected from my father¡¯s units......Your people can even marry dragons......¡± And so, the enjoyable sky trip was reaching its end. It all turned out into a formal marriage interview though....... ¡°Master, I can see thend. We¡¯ll soon be arriving.¡± Suu called out to me and I looked over. But, what she could see as a kemonobito was hidden from a normal human¡¯s eye. It was already dark. ¡°I see. We already sent a messenger. We informed them that we¡¯ll be arriving with the dragons.....Suu, it¡¯s all safe, right?¡± ¡°Yes, I unmistakably sent a messenger beforehand.¡± Good, this should be safe. We¡¯ll go straight to the capital city then. ¡°Since it¡¯s already night themoners shouldn¡¯t be able to see us. Dragon, we¡¯ll go straight to the castle.¡± ¡°Understood, my master.¡± The huge, ck dragon I was riding on, took the lead, followed by ten dragons who let out war cries as we approached the castle grounds. The elves¡¯ country¡¯s castle......We drew as near as to see it clearly. ¡°D-d-d-d-d-dragons! Just what in the world are you doing!? This is the elves¡¯ royal castle!!¡± An extremely loud voice resounded, amplified by magic. Was it in my imagination? It seemed that this voice was trembling.....Also, it was a woman¡¯s voice. Is she feeling nervous or something? ¡°I¡¯m archduke Zest from the Grun Empire. I¡¯m bringing along my daughter and my son-inw for the purpose of my daughter¡¯s marriage. Who the hell are you!?¡± I also amplified my voice as I gave my answer. Having done so, a bonfire was lit up in the square in front of the royal castle, illuminating the region. Right in the middle of that square a small little girl was standing. ¡°Fo-forgive me. I am Kachua, 1st Rank Royal Mage. Archduke Zest, pleasend inside this square.¡± ¡°Kachua-dono, I understand. I willnd first, so you guys should stay away for now. If the nearby soldiers draw near me, consider them a threat and eliminate them.¡± I one-sidedly dered and instructed my dragon tond. It would be too troublesome if they shoot at us from the darkness of the night. If I¡¯m on the ground, I¡¯m confident I won¡¯t lose. The dragon slowly descended. After she confirmed it, the little girl approached me. ¡°Let me greet you again......I am Kachua, the 1st Rank Royal Mage. Nice to meet you, archduke Zest.¡± ¡°Yeah, you can check this. It¡¯s a handwritten letter from his Majesty, the Emperor of the Grun Empire.¡± I took out the letter and handed it over. The little girl received it with great care and confirmed the seal on the other side of the envelope. Her outward appearance is that of a little girl......However, the magic power she¡¯s d in is fairly exceptional. She¡¯s at least two times stronger than the prince. She¡¯s wearing her long silver hair in two pony tails. ........This hair style suits her lovely outward appearance. ........Her chest though......Yeah, you know. ¡°Yes, this is indeed his Majesty the Emperor¡¯s seal. Wee archduke Zest. We wee you to our country.¡± Kachua ced one of her hand to her chest and saluted me in elven-style. The nearby soldiers¡¯ thirst for blood was also lessening. ¡°This was quite a dangerous reception. Didn¡¯t my messenger arrive here first?¡± ¡°Messenger? No, not yet.......¡± The girl looked bewildered so I believe she really didn¡¯t know about it. She is panicking for treating an important person from a foreign country this rudely.......This is unmistakably so. ¡°Master, a while back, we passed a ship. Wasn¡¯t it the ship our messenger was on, I wonder?¡± I became stiff when I heard Suu¡¯s murmured suggestion. Eh? Was it really that slow, the boat my messenger was on!? It took only an instant with the dragons.......Ah, the boat that should¡¯ve informed these people of our arrival with the dragons didn¡¯t get here yet........ What should I do? .......It¡¯s way too bad to start all of this with an error all of a sudden..... The square became still as death; that¡¯s when we heard the sound of something dropping down. It appears that the prince fell down. ¡°Guho!? Father-inw?......What happened to me?.......¡± ¡°Wha!? Mars! What did you just do!!!¡± Before I could retort, Kachua¡¯s riposte resounded all around us. ¡°An old loli.....?¡± ¡°Master, you¡¯re saying it out loud.¡± The prince¡¯s painful shrieks were luckily louder than Suu¡¯s calm voice. It appears that this loli is not simply a 1st Rank Royal Mage....... Chapter 133: Elven-style Reception Chapter 133: Elven-style Reception ¡°So......son-inw-dono, what is your rtionship with her?¡± I asked the prince, who got beaten by the little girl. That Kachua didn¡¯t go easy on him. She didn¡¯t care for an instant that the other party was a prince, she aimed straight at his face and released one full power magical punch. ¡°Yes, father. That old hag......I mean, Kachua-sama is my master.¡± ¡°Fufufu, it¡¯s all right to call me an old hag. In any case, after this, we¡¯ll have to take our time and talk.¡± ¡°Hmm? That magic power was quite the spectacle.¡± ¡°Yes. The ck knights are making a fuss about letting them fight......¡± ¡°Foster father, I would like to fight too!¡± It appears that this might turn out into something troublesome...... Good, I¡¯ll take this course of action then. ¡°If you want to fight, you¡¯ll have to do it in order......I¡¯ll do the selection tomorrow, so wait patiently until then.¡± I employed my magic power and intimidated them, so they finally quieted down. Good, I can rx now. ¡°We caused you trouble, Kachua-dono. Anyway, I¡¯ll rely on you to show me around.¡± ¡°What a magic power.....No wonder the dragons obey you.¡± Kachua had a shocked expression on her face, but she wasn¡¯t one to talk. She was rather scary; the 1st Rank Royal Mage who was sent to wee us, but beat the hell out of the prince, without any warning. If they tell me that this is the elven-style of weing, all I can do is keep silent about it...... ¡°First, you must be tired from your journey. I will guide you to your rooms, archduke Zest.¡± ¡°Yeah, thank you, Kachua-dono.¡± (Dad! This granny is strong, right!?) Haha, through Toto¡¯s eye she looks like a granny...... A granny, huh?......So she really is that old. An old hag loli, huh? ¡°Hohoho, spirit-sama is such an enjoyable person.¡± ¡°No, no, she¡¯s still very young......¡± Kachua, who was now leading us to our rooms, turned around and a vein popped out on her forehead. ......Urm.....What¡¯s wrong with her? ¡°Spirit-sama, people usually call me senior, but......please call me Kachua.¡± (Understood, Kachua!) ¡°Hohohohoho¡± (Ahahahahaha) ¡°Father-inw, my master utterly despises the words old hag and granny. If you¡¯re careless and say those, gah.¡± ¡°Mars, who¡¯s an old hag?¡± Son-inw-dono got blown away by magic spheres unleashed in a sequence all around his area. Yeah, so this happens when you say it. ¡°Son-inw-dono, there¡¯s no fool in our empire who would utter such words to this beautiful young girl. It was a futile advice.¡± ¡°Mars-sama......How could you say that to this lovely and sweet person.......¡± ¡°Hohoho, archduke Zest, you¡¯re so good at ttery. To call me a beautiful young girl......I haven¡¯t heard it in hundreds of years. Tsubaki-sama is such an honest and great person too.¡± (Waa, Kachua¡¯s magic is so fast!) Alongside this energetic group, I followed Kachua as we walked towards the castle. It appears that the castle was not far away from the square wended to. It soon came into our sight, a white castle surrounded by trees. ¡°However, you, archduke Zest, were the first......not to make a scene after seeing our elven-style weing.¡± Inside the castle, as we advanced through a long corridor, Kachua murmured. Only Toto, Tsubaki, the prince and I were following her now. The ck knights had to take care of the dragon¡¯s relocation. ¡°Elven-style? You mean that dangerous reception?¡± ¡°Hohoho, you say this even though you could have finished off that level of magic power it in an instant.¡± Her magic power slowly shook. Is she going to challenge me? I also employed my magic power and put myself on guard. ¡°I never imagined that the archduke could react to my subtle magic power flows......Is the elves¡¯ country already done for.......?¡± She drew in her magic power and, dropping her shoulders, turned around to face me. ¡°Right, archduke? We might not be a good match, but......could you endure to leave this old neck of mine attached?¡± ¡°What are you talking about, Kachua-dono? Did you think I want something like your neck?¡± The spot we stopped at was right in the middle of the corridor. There were no rooms around, nor any person. .......It was the ideal ce for a secret talk. ¡°The current situation in our country was more or less caused by me. I didn¡¯t see through that prime minister¡¯s perseverance, so it all turned out this way.¡± Kachua wore a tragic expression on her face as she continued. ¡°The king is already dead, the queen was seduced by the prime minister.....But still, I can¡¯t just wait patiently for the empire to absorb my country. You want to use Mars as a puppet king and subdue our country, right? Please, dispose of this neck first!¡± ¡°Kachua-dono. I don¡¯t intend to do that. Again, the demons also left this matter in my care.¡± Kachua pressed her knees against the floor, but I helped her stand up. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. Mars is my son-inw. I won¡¯t interfere, nor object to his ruling. Also, I am nning to clean up the prime minister¡¯s faction, so, afterwards, I¡¯d like you to help him with his reign.¡± ¡°But, this way, the empire has nothing to win from this. There¡¯s no way a country that doesn¡¯t have ulterior motives and cooperates based on good will actually exists.¡± She¡¯s right. Since she¡¯s an old hag, she should already know about the sourness and sweetness of life. She probably saw enough countries moving with filthy ulterior motives. ¡°I am a stranger from a different world. I established my position in the empire, but I want to secure it. There¡¯s the Pope in the Holy Country of Lc. If Mars will reign over the elves¡¯ country, that in itself is enough of a profit to me. I won¡¯t let the empire interfere......Either way, they can easily and quickly erase this entire country. But the empire won¡¯t concern itself with its direct governance.¡± Kachua looked at me fixedly. I guess she¡¯s confirming what I just said inside her head. Is it the truth or is it a lie?.....Or maybe she¡¯s confirming the merits and demerits. ¡°What if the empire and the country of elves decide to work together temporarily?¡± ¡°While the Holy Country of Lc pins down the country of elves, the empire will cease to exist. To begin with, ten dragons, the ck knights, the war maidens and the kemonobito units will engage in attacking them. And I will provide support, employing all my healing magic, you know? Do you think they have any chance of winning this?¡± ¡°I see.....It has indeed logic to it. Mars, don¡¯t you have anything to tell me?¡± The discussion suddenly switched to Mars and he strengthened up his back. His face taken aback, he let out a loud voice. ¡°I forgot!! The country of elves is in good health, master-sama!!¡± He ced one hand on his chest and dered. But, after she heard it, Kachua¡¯s expression became demonic. ¡°You stupid disciple!! I told you that in case they be our allies you should use this signal to inform me! You absolute idiot! Thanks to you, I was almost ready to die!¡± It appears that they had an arrangement to use a coded signal in case that the empire decided to work together with them. And because he didn¡¯t use the signal, she thought that we were their enemies........ ¡°Tsubaki, are you really all right with this piece of junk?¡± ¡°Father, I¡¯m starting to feel a bit uneasy.......¡± (Dad! The snapping sound just now, did something break?) On the corridor, the screams of my stupid son-inw resounded indefinitely...... Ah, he¡¯s burning this time...... Chapter 134: Quiet Talk – Katalina’s Busy Schedule Chapter 134: Quiet Talk ¨C Katalina¡¯s Busy Schedule ¡°You do it like this-nya. But, these papers have to be done like this-nya.¡± Sigh, I can finally take a break-nya. After I gave the instructions, I leant against a chair and took a breath. The duke¡¯s domain......Half the territory of the former kingdom, managed now by duke Zest. I alone was entrusted with its internal administration-nya. ¡°We need a few more bureaucrats-nya.......I wonder if we can find anyone good at this-nya.....¡± I feel gratitude towards his excellency Zest-nya. Amoner cat kemonobito young girl. He even made someone like me a noble and even entrusted me with such an important official position. Other feudal lords would never have treated me this way-nya. But.......this hectic schedule of mine is hell-nya. ¡°Still, where can I find an excellent capable person.......I know-nya! Maybe that person!!¡± That person is definitely excellent-nya! However, without a good reason she¡¯ll never agree-nya....... ¡°I know! I¡¯ll go with this-nya!¡± Without dy, I started writing a letter. ¡°Lord Katalina, you received a letter.¡± ¡°I was waiting for that-nya!¡± A few days after I sent the letter, the reply came. A reply containing the eptance of my invitation-nya! This way, we¡¯ll have more hands at work-nya! ¡°Also, the sister came here with a different matter......¡± ¡°Ah, perhaps......it¡¯s about the matter we¡¯ve been talking about-nya. Show her to the reception room-nya.¡± I instructed the maid, then made preparations for forwarding the letter. If his excellency were here, he would definitely seed with this-nya. The smirk on my face stiffened as I hurried towards the reception room. ¡°I have made you wait-nya. Forgive us for the other day-nya.¡± I greeted the sister who was waiting in the room. During madam¡¯s childbirth uproar we caused her many troubles, so I had to start with an apology-nya. ¡°Fufu, apologies are unnecessary. I, a maiden of God, am pursuing knowledge every day. In this case, all the incidents are the will of God......Yes, precisely like how a gentle breeze shakes the leaves of trees!¡± ¡°......I understand everything, but thest sentence-nya.¡± Maybe because I got used to her, but somehow this junky sister had started to talk properly-nya. Still, when she¡¯s nervous or when she¡¯s excited, she keeps saying iprehensible things-nya. ¡°So, did youe to check on that matter-nya?¡± ¡°Yes. If that ispleted, thembs will shed tears of great joy. And we will be one step closer to God¡¯s utopia.......Like a mild fall¡¯s sunlight filtering through trees!¡± As ever, the junky sister looked away from her invisible chest. Because I can barely understand her intentions, I won¡¯t plunge into this-nya. ¡°It is already 90%plete-nya. Once it¡¯s done, I will inform you right away-nya.¡± ¡°Is that so?......In order for the sunset not to turn into an ultramarine color, we need the resolution to find a clear stream inside a thunderstorm. And that is God¡¯s affection......Yes! A multistoried building inside the skies! That is good.¡± She smiled then returned home. I didn¡¯t understand anything she said towards the end-nya......Maybe, she really wants that¨Cnya. ¡°So, Katalina-chan. What are you scheming?¡± ¡°Nya?¡± When I returned to my office, Media was waiting there. Since we be good friends, I know her well. If she ever concludes that something is not of benefit to his excellency Zest, she won¡¯t hesitate to kill even me. For this reason, we became good friends-nya. ¡°It¡¯s all right-nya. It¡¯s a n that benefits his excellency and can be helpful for our domain-nya.¡± ¡°.......I see. Good then. Ufufu, I went to buy those new baked sweets! Let¡¯s eat them together!¡± She wore a friendly smile on her face, but she never showed mercy to any of his excellency¡¯s foes. She¡¯s truly a follower of his excellency¡¯s doctrine. Just the other day too, when one of the noblesined about going to such lengths for something like the madam¡¯s delivery.........he ended up killed by someone. I¡¯m sure it was her doing-nya...... ¡°Media. If I ever be his excellency¡¯s enemy, you can kill me without reservation-nya. But in turn......¡± ¡°Yeah, me too, if I ever be his excellency¡¯s enemy......or if you ever conclude that I¡¯m a burden to him, please kill me.¡± Right, we became good friends precisely because she¡¯s like this. Without his excellency, we would¡¯ve never lived a good life. That¡¯s why, we¡¯ll return the favor-nya. We won¡¯t let anyone hinder his excellency-nya. ¡°So, what about your n?¡± As we enjoyed our tea, Media munched on the newly produced baked sweets. That¡¯s right-nya......I can exin to her without problems-nya. ¡°I wrote a letter to Mizuta Mari 1 about his excellency-nya.¡± ¡°A letter? Who is this......Mizuta Mari?¡± ¡°She¡¯s an acquaintance of his excellency-nya. She¡¯s amoner but she¡¯s quite excellent-nya.¡± ¡°Did he have such an acquaintance!? Then?¡± I drank some tea, then answered her. ¡°I asked her to write a story about two men who love each other-nya.¡± ¡°.......What??¡± Well, I expected as much-nya. I must exin to her, otherwise this thirst for blood of hers might kill me-nya. ¡°We¡¯ll scatter this story around inside the country of elves, with the prime minister and some of his retainers¡¯ names. Such a shameful story will inflict great damage-nya. To say nothing of the unsociable elves; they will definitely be astonished-nya.¡± ¡°So, you¡¯ll use this in our tactics.¡± ¡°Moreover, his excellency will most likelyprehend this plot¡¯s effectiveness and riskiness. He will also unmistakably want the sender Mari brought here and guarded-nya.......¡± ¡°I see. That person will have toe to our domain. She¡¯s an excellent person, after all.¡± ¡°Right-nya. However, since the demons are involved, I couldn¡¯t use normal means-nya. But this way his excellency has got a reason to act too-nya.¡± Media finally drew in her killing intent and returned to her usual smile. It appears that she agrees to this n-nya. ¡°Demons? I see. That person is a stranger too, right?......I now understand why you did this in secret. Ufufu, Katalina-chan, you¡¯re truly a follower of his excellency¡¯s doctrine. Do you n to quarrel with the demons?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to be told this by you-nya, Media. And about the demons, we can solve the matter by discussing it with them-nya.¡± ¡°Hmm. Well, these kinds of things are your specialty. Right, did the sistere to ask about that matter?¡± ¡°You know a lot-nya......You¡¯re right. She really wants those things-nya.¡± ¡°Well that¡¯s to be expected. Don¡¯t you want them too?¡± ¡°The breast pads? I don¡¯t need them-nya......I will ask his excellency about this-nya! If he can heal baldness, then he should be able to make breasts grow too-nya!!¡± ¡°Lord Katalina, is that really true!?¡± ¡°His excellency is truly a genius.¡± ¡°If this is his excellency we¡¯re talking about then it might actually happen........¡± Nya!?.......Why were so many maids from the maids¡¯ unit hidden here-nya? You guys have a plentiful chest, so you don¡¯t need that-nya! Right when I was about to yell this at them my vision distorted..... Ehh? The world is spinning-nya....... ¡°Hey, Katalina-chan! What¡¯s wrong!?¡± ¡°So-someone, call the sister! Tell her that lord Katalina copsed!¡± ¡°Get a hold of yourself, lord Katalina!!¡± ¡°Lord Katalina copsed......Lord Katalina copsed......Uh........¡± ¡°Hey, why are you copsing too!?¡± Katalina copsed..... Unfortunately, time was needed for news about this matter to reach Zest in the country of elves. And as a result......This marked the beginning of the afterwards incident....... 1. One of the summoned survivors who¡¯s living on the demons¡¯ territory. The fujoshi girl. She shows up in Chapter 97 Chapter 135: The Mysteries of the Elves Chapter 135: The Mysteries of the Elves ¡°And?¡± ¡°What¡¯s with your attitude!? I am a glorious high elf! In the human countries, my household is treated as a marquis household!¡± This is the second stupid elf I met today. The one before made a fuss about how he was part of a ¡®glorious household¡¯ too. ¡°I am an archduke. By our awe-inspiring emperor¡¯s imperialmand, I came here as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary. And you dare challenge me to a verbal argument.......Good, I¡¯ll regard your entire household as an enemy to the empire. Go home and polish your weapons.¡± ¡°You-you alone have the authority to do that!?¡± ¡°As I said, the emperor authorized me to do this. Oi, we¡¯re going back. Make sure to give him the letter, all right?¡± ¡°As you wish, master. High elf-dono? With regards to your marquis household, this is a promation of war letter from the empire. Please choose whether you¡¯ll apologize with your head or we¡¯ll start an all-out war.¡± Suu gave the signal and the maids¡¯ unit equipped with bardiches entered the room. It was Bea¡¯s idea thatdies should fight with a bardiche.......so, this became the official weapon of the maids¡¯ unit. ¡®Now that we have the same weapon, it¡¯s not strange for me to use it.¡¯ Bea told me smiling, but I don¡¯t believe it was like that...... But because I am scared of her, I didn¡¯t tell her this. ¡°Sigh, I never expected to encounter only idiots up to now.¡± ¡°Yes.....Perhaps they don¡¯t understand the meaning of an ambassador.¡± Furthermore, the elf who made a fuss about his glorious household was beaten full of holes by the maids¡¯ unit and taken away. Since I am the main figure of this whole action, it¡¯s not like I want to quarrel with these people. However, I have no other choice but respond to those who pick a fight with me. That¡¯s because I can¡¯t be silent about them looking down on the empire. ¡°My decision is the empire¡¯s decision. I never thought that nobles who don¡¯t even understand this woulde forth. Is it because they¡¯re an isted country......?¡± ¡°I ampletely shocked, but it can¡¯t be helped. If they look down on us to such an extent, there¡¯s nothing we can do but retort.¡± Looking down on the archduke means picking a fight with me. Looking down on the ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary means going at war with the empire. That¡¯s because the emperor trusted me with all the diplomatic affairs. Well, I am the representative of his majesty after all. ¡°It¡¯s ridiculous when peace fools end up like this......Our empire looks kind of cute right now.¡± ¡°Even the blockhead nobles in the imperial capital are a bit more decent.¡± With a beautiful smile, Suu spits out poisonous words. However, she prepares the tea with a perfect conduct. .......Why is it that my vassals all seem to have something broken inside them? ¡°And, did I receive an invitation from the prime minister yet?¡± ¡°I hear that they want to prepare a wee banquet coitantly with the wedding ceremony......But aren¡¯t they actually doing some secret maneuvering?¡± Normally, there should be a weing banquet for the ambassador, but they didn¡¯t hold any so far. In this case, I thought that the prime minister woulde in person to meet me...... ¡°Well, I¡¯m grateful that this way we have more time to gather information and make our own schemes. We have many advantages......but I don¡¯t know what they¡¯re plotting.¡± ¡°The people in the intelligence unit were very happy that they had genuine work to do. Let¡¯s wait for their report.¡± That is certainly the most important thing right now. I nodded and continued to enjoy my tea. ¡°Your excellency! This is bad news, your excellency!¡± ¡°Albert, don¡¯te in from the window.¡± ¡°Onii-sama, your manners are way too bad.¡± My elegant tea time ended with a thunderous roar. Clouds of dust scattered around and the room fell apart, but I didn¡¯t care. A dragon crashed into it after all.......I¡¯m actually d it ended with only this. ¡°You are Bea¡¯s guard. What are you doing here?¡± ¡°As I said, your excellency, it¡¯s an emergency!! When we were on our way back home, we met a messenger who told us that Katalina copsed.......¡± ¡°I see. That¡¯s why onii-sama rode a dragon here to deliver the message.......Master, please take Kachua-sama with you and hurry back home. That junky sister¡¯s healing abilities are first-ss. If this message came our way even though the sister lives on our domain......there¡¯s a high possibility that master¡¯s healing magic and the elves¡¯ knowledge is needed.¡± Suu interrupted Albert and informed us in a quick manner of speaking. She¡¯s right. This might be the best course of action, and it¡¯s not like I have the time to worry about what to do anyway. ¡°Albert, you stay here. You will follow Suu¡¯s orders and you will protect Tsubaki and Mars. Suu, you are allowed to evacuate if you conclude it is necessary, and you¡¯re also allowed to act heartlessly if needed. All right?¡± ¡°Yes sir!¡± ¡°As you wish, master. Please leave it to us.¡± The heartless way.......It¡¯s our final measure and it includes using the dragons. They will create a circle and ce Suu and everyone else on my side inside it, then they will use their breaths to wipe everything out. This castle will vanish in a mere instant. I do believe that the situation won¡¯t turn up this way though...... I left everything else in Suu¡¯s care and walked towards Kachua¡¯s ce. Because it was an emergency, I was in my battle mode, employing my entire magic power. ¡°Kachua-dono, please. Apany me on a walk.¡± ¡°Ar-archduke-dono? All right, all right. Please restrain that magic power now! The maids will copse!¡± She was probably about to take a bath, since I caught Kachua in the process of taking off her outer garments. She wasn¡¯t naked though. She wore something like a tube top and a skirt. But, a tube top without strings? Howes it stays fixed? Half forcefully I took her along to where the dragons were and ced her on top of one. It¡¯ll be all right if I exin her what happened now. Since Suu will exin things to Tsubaki and son-inw-dono, it shouldn¡¯t be too much of a disturbance. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Kachua-dono. The truth is this is an emergency.....¡± I exined her the situation on top of the dragon. She understood that this was a matter of life and death for one of my subordinates, and she started to speak, wearing a smile on her face. ¡°Hohoho, you plunged into my room exhibiting such a magic power and wearing such a threatening face.......I believed you had your reasons, but I didn¡¯t expect it to be this. Really now, you¡¯re such a threatening person.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry.......I needed your knowledge, the knowledge of an elder elf, no matter what.¡± The loli baba, wearing a tube top, turned around slowly. ¡°Archduke-dono. You will stop calling me an elder. I want you to call me Kachua......Before it all turns into an ident.¡± ¡°Kachua-dono, you¡¯re wearing such a lovely outfit. It looks very good on you......it increases your loveliness and I believe you look even more charming.¡± Since the atmosphere became turbulent, I had to praise her clothes and her cuteness. It was outstandingly effective! ¡°I know, right? This is a truly elven secret art, infused with our best technologies! It is thetest model too!¡± ¡°Hoo.....Even though it doesn¡¯t have any strings, it doesn¡¯t show any signs of slipping off.......Don¡¯t tell me......that this is one of the elves¡¯ secret arts!?¡± ¡°I expected you to notice that. All the tops I wear, they usuallye off. But this one is all right!! To be frank with you, the secret art is.......¡± Well, obviously theye off since they must stuck on an invisible chest. I thought about this as the old loli exined me joyfully. If your country uses its secret arts on something like this, your country is about to face its end...... We descended the dragon; Kachua was now in an extremely good mood. We arrived at my domain in just a few hours, but I was already worn-out...... As wended inside my courtyard, the maids¡¯ unit called out to me. ¡°Please hurry! Lord Katalina......Not even the sister knows the cause of her copse.....¡± Sobbing, the maids led us to Katalina¡¯s private room. Her face was red and she was moaning in her sleep. All the top brass members of my household were present. ¡°We used observation magic and it¡¯s not an illness. Also, healing magic is not effective.¡± Media exined us the situation. We had no time to extend our greetings right now. I rushed over to Katalina and used my observation magic, but she was indeed not ill. ¡°This.....I¡¯ll use healing magic.¡± I prayed for her to return to her healthy and energetic self as I employed the entirety of my magic power. However, Katalina¡¯s facial expressions didn¡¯t change........ ¡°This is!? If even his excellency¡¯s healing magic is useless.......¡± Media crumbled down to her knees, her sobbing voice resounding in the room. That¡¯s when Kachua slowly opened her mouth. ¡°Dear me! Youngsters nowadays......don¡¯t even know something as simple as this.¡± All the attention gathered on Kachua, who actually looked the youngest of us all. This old hag, does she know something? ¡°Tell me, Kachua-dono! I want to save my subordinate! Please, I¡¯m begging you.¡± I didn¡¯t care about appearances right now. My domain would be brought to its knees without Katalina around. I earnestly requested her help, prostrating myself in front of her, not feeling even one bit of regret. ¡°Wha!? What are you doing, archduke!? I¡¯ll tell you, so please stop!¡± Extremely flustered, she took my hand and made me stand up; the old hag then continued. ¡°Her mating season aggravated!!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°.........Ha?¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡° Mating season?.......Aggravated?........Is that so?....... Chapter 136: An Illness Called Mating Season? Chapter 136: An Illness Called Mating Season? ¡°The kemonobito folk develop at fixed intervals a condition called mating season. Normally, the parents should teach their children about this sign of adulthood, but.....this girl didn¡¯t have such parents.¡± Kachua continued, ignoring all of us who became speechless. ¡°Once a year, during that whole period, if single, you should spend your time inside your home. As for the symptoms, it shouldn¡¯t exceed a light state of excitement, but......if you ignore it for several times, then this is what happens. This is quite an often urrence for stubborn women.¡± Kachua exined with a smug face, but the exnation didn¡¯t really reach my ears. Inside my head, I kept eximing ¡®For such an absurd reason I was called back from the Country of Elves?¡¯. ¡°That¡¯s why, there¡¯s no need to worry. Two or three stimtions, and she¡¯s back to her former self!¡± That¡¯s when my heart broke. I was summoned in a foreign world and tried to survive up until now. I obeyed the nobles, trained and was forced into a political marriage...... I made a family, and in order to protect it, I left my family behind and went to the Country of Elves. Despite me trying my best for so long......I was called back home for such a reason!? ¡°U.........uuuu.......uuuuuuuuuuuu¡± Because of this whole absurd situation, I couldn¡¯t stop crying. I had to refrain from hugging Wis closely and giving her my love and care, and instead I desperately made battle ns. Mating season......I crumbled down to my knees and ng to the bed where Katalina slept. ¡°Archduke-dono really thinks dearly of his subordinates. Were you this worried......?¡± ¡°Your excellency, you¡¯d do this much for your subordinates.......¡± ¡°Thanks goodness! Katalina-chan, his excellency did so much for your sake.......¡± ¡°Fuuuueeen, thanks god I¡¯m his excellency¡¯s subordinate!¡± Without knowing my inner thoughts, the people in my surrounding misunderstood me for some reason.... I had no room for correcting them. ¡°Sorry for being distracted. So, who¡¯s gonna treat her?¡± We left Katalina¡¯s private room and gathered inside my office. ording to Kachua, she needed two or three times of relief...... But the person in question was unconscious.....Someone has to do it. By the way, the ck knights and all the guys were mobilized in a different country. Only women were left here.....It was quite natural. ¡°I will. Katalina-chan is my good friend and if I can be her strength then.......¡± Media said, announcing her candidacy. She¡¯s indeed qualified, being her friend and a married person. The maids¡¯ unit nodded as well. ¡°Good, I¡¯ll leave it in your care, Media. I¡¯m counting on you.¡± ¡°Please leave it to me, your excellency.¡± Media bowed and left my office, and I drank tea as I saw her off. Damn, I returned for such a trivial matter..... ¡°Someone, stop that idiot!! She¡¯s a man 1!!!¡± ¡°Ha! Come to think of it, she is!¡± ¡°Ipletely forgot!¡± ¡°We must stop her quickly!¡± ¡°......Archduke-dono, you surely have some strange subordinates.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry for their noisiness......¡± There¡¯s no mistaking it that my voice trembled as I answered. In front of a leader from a foreign country, we greatly embarrassed ourselves. ¡°All right. Leave it to me. In the past, I was known as the ¡®Single¡¯s mass producer¡¯! I used to calm down the kemonobito folk¡¯s pots as well!¡± ¡°......Thank you.¡± ¡°Uh huh. Then, I¡¯ll be on my way!¡± The loli baba left the room with a nod. My answer was actually a refusal......but I wasn¡¯t in the mood to tell her that. Still, what¡¯s with that single¡¯s mass producer? Is that even all right? Contrary to my worries, Katalina returned to us safely(?). She was just as usual but....... ¡°I have made you worry-nya! But I am all right now-nya!¡± All tense, Katalina dered, and that tenseness was the problem. ¡°I see......Then, why do you stick closely to Kachua-dono?¡± Kachua had dead fish eyes, but Katalina took her hand and firmly entwined it with her own hand. This is awful......Without any doubt it is going towards that direction. ¡°I opened a new gate-nya! Thanks to big sis Kachua-nya 2!!¡± ¡°Urm.....It¡¯s inexcusable.......but, since it¡¯s been a long time, I didn¡¯t know when to show restraint.......¡± Don¡¯t open that gate! It¡¯s useless, my dizziness is cruel......The world is spinning round and round. Just how should I cope with this situation? ¡°I am also a woman, but since this happened, I n to take responsibility!¡± ¡°Big sis Kachua, you¡¯re wonderful-nya!¡± The two stared at each other and a pink aura developed between them. This is already beyond my powers. ¡°For the time being, Kachua-dono has all sorts of formalities to take care of......Katalina is also in convalescence and it must be very difficult for her. I¡¯ll take care of this for the time being. I will return in about a month and we¡¯ll decide then what to do. You¡¯re fine with this, right?¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll leave it in your care, your excellency.¡± ¡°Yea, I have no objections.¡± Despite solving one problem, I returned to the Country of Elves carrying a bigger problem in my hands. The inside of my head was in an extreme situation.....I have to consult with Suu and the Frontier Count. On my departure, I hit the two embracing individuals with a punch on their heads infused with my most powerful strengthening magic. Of course, I went easy on them, so they didn¡¯t die......They twitched constantly so I knew that for a fact. It¡¯s all right. Kachua lost her consciousness and I grabbed her and ced her on top of the dragon. Their rtionship is under consideration, but they nheless embraced each other in public, those two idiots. ¡°U¡ªn, ah, archduke-dono. Why did I fall asleep?¡± ¡°Probably fatigue. Take your time and rx.¡± ¡°I see, you¡¯re right. Yea.....understood.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll wake you up once we arrive, so I won¡¯t mind if you want to sleep.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a long-awaited air travel. I¡¯ll enjoy the scenery!¡± ¡°I see. Last time was night time......Fully enjoy the trip then, Kachua-dono.¡± After that, we traveled as we appropriately matched our talking subjects. My head was full of questions about how to deal with these two¡¯s rtionship. Katalina wanted to give birth to a child, but.....will she walk the road of girls¡¯ love? No, I¡¯ll first have to listen to Suu¡¯s advice, who is also a kemonobito, and decide afterwards. I used healing magic on my stomach, which quickly started to hurt, as I waited for our arrival. ¡°Wee back, your excellency!¡± ¡°Master, thank you for your hard work!¡± I finally arrived back to the Country of Elves. Because Kachua was in very high spirits during the trip, she was sound asleep now. The maids were probably used to it, so they shouldered the sleeping Kachua and disappeared somewhere. .......That woman, she sleeps all the time. ¡°We didn¡¯t face any problems. At the prince¡¯s instructions, in order to deepen our friendship, we strolled around using the dragons. So, how is lord Katakina?¡± ¡°I see, that¡¯s all right. Let¡¯s talk about Katalina¡¯s situation in my room. There¡¯s no threat to her life, but something troublesome happened.¡± As I conversed with Suu, we walked towards my room. For the time being, I had to exin things properly to these two executive staff members of mine. I cleared out all the people once I got to my room, then I started my exnation. ¡°.......That¡¯s what happened. What do you think?¡± ¡° ¡°Aah, so her mating season aggravated?¡± ¡° They didn¡¯t seem astonished, nor they felt any shock. Suu and Albert took everything calmly. Hmm? Does this happen often among the kemonobito folk? ¡°My mother taught me about this. Lord Katalina didn¡¯t have the chance to find out about this due to the war time.¡± ¡°Under those circumstances, the adults were desperate to stay alive, after all.¡± The old Tarminal Kingdom persecuted the kemonobito. Maybe Katalina didn¡¯t have any adult to teach her about this, since she ran away and lived in concealment. ¡°Then......does it happen often for women to wake up attracted to the same sex?¡± ¡°It mostly happens among women.¡± ¡°Men.....you know......many take care of themselves by themselves......¡± Well, even if you leave men alone, once morninges.....Of course. So this is only limited to women? But still...... ¡°It¡¯s all right, master. It only happens once. There are many of us who experience this after the aggravation, but once they calm themselves, they return to normal.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, your excellency. In the past, when Suu experienced the aggravation herself, she aaaagh!? Gofuu!!¡± Froth came out of Albert¡¯s mouth as he copsed. Before anyone became aware of it, Suu grasped in her hand the morning star. ¡°Master, there are things in the world better left unknown. Don¡¯t you think so?¡± ¡°It¡¯s precisely as you said.¡± Suuughed as she stepped on Albert¡¯s head, and her smile looked exactly like Bea¡¯s dark smile. ......Suu-san, is it okay to heal Albert, since he¡¯s having convulsions and everything? No? You sure? I see....... 1. Don¡¯t forget that Media is a he-female..... 2. In Japanese it is Kachua onee-sama. Do you prefer the Japanese version or should I stick with the ¡®big sis Kachua¡¯ version? Your choice ^^ Chapter 137: Tactics from Now On Chapter 137: Tactics from Now On ¡°By the way, Suu. Are you doing it by yourself? Or do you have a partner?¡± ¡°.......Forgive me, master. I can¡¯t understand the intention of this question.¡± It was a pretty understandable question, but it¡¯s not like I wanted to sexually harass her. I asked this because I needed to know if my steward Suu had a intimately close woman to her. ¡°If my steward has a woman close to her......I need to consider various things.¡± ¡°Ah, so that¡¯s what you meant? Please don¡¯t worry about it, there¡¯s no one.¡± ¡°I see.....Suu, this is nothing but a discussion.¡± At my words, Suu removed her foot from Albert¡¯s head and faced me. He was still having convulsions, so he was alive. It¡¯s all right. ¡°This time it all ended with a funny story, but this kind of situation might cause a big incident in the future. Therefore, don¡¯t you want to write a ¡®Kemonobito Folk¡¯s Handbook¡¯?¡± ¡°A handbook?¡± ¡°Yeah, there will be many kemonobito nobles on my domain from now on. In this case, if someone makes a mistake because they didn¡¯t know about some things.....Also, because the other people don¡¯t know about those things either, they will misunderstand each other.¡± ¡°I see.....Understood. I am a bit worried about my ability to aplish this, but I will give my best with all my might. I¡¯ll try writing it.¡± And so, Suu wrote the ¡®Kemonobito Folk¡¯s Handbook¡¯. This will end up being a big hit not only on my domain, but on the entire continent. To the kemonobito people, this became a reference book describing their passed down customs and etiquette. For the other races, it was an informative book teaching unknown things. In a way, anyone must have this book. And because of this book, I also started to write the ¡®Stranger¡¯s Handbook¡¯..... However, I didn¡¯t know at that time. That because of this handbook, an unnecessary uproar would ur..... ¡°Well, then? Let¡¯s hear your report.¡± I ordered Suu to write the handbook, I healed Albert, and it was now time to reach the main topic. I ced them on the sofa, and it was time for a report meeting. ¡°Yes sir! Excepting five golden dragons, I sent the other ones back to our territory. Also, the soldiers stationing here are five ck knights and ten war maidens. There are ten more people from the intelligence unit, so we have a total of twenty-five soldiers.¡± ¡°I must say that most of them aremanding officers so we have enough of a war potential.¡± ¡°I see. What about reinforcements?¡± ¡°With the ck dragons¡¯ transportation, I ned to mobilise thirty ck knights and fifty war maidens.¡± ¡°In a few days everything will be prepared.¡± ¡°All right.....Supplement the intelligence unit as well. I understand that you all are worried about me, but this time it is an intelligence battle. It¡¯s enough to supplement fifteen ck knights and twenty war maidens. Make arrangements to mobilise our entire intelligence force.¡± ¡°Yes sir! Understood.¡± ¡°As you wish, master.¡± For a moment, we drank some tea and took a little break. Now that we finished with the current conditions of our military affairs, it was time to discuss the current conditions of the secret information gathered so far. Since I considerably used my head......I sweetened my tea ever more. ¡°Next, about the information gathered.¡± ¡°I will report.¡± Suu took out a bunch of documents. This was impossible for Albert, so I didn¡¯t expect anything from him when it came to this. Don¡¯t look so deplorable, you mongrel. ¡°To start with, I¡¯ll talk about the prime minister¡¯s ns. There¡¯s no mistaking it. We got ess to the undersurface stories......It is rather good for them to be in a state of istion. This topic is widely talked about at quite arge-scale.¡± ¡°That......Is the prime minister an idiot?¡± ¡°He boosts with self-confidence and pride. He¡¯s this kind of man......Besides, it¡¯s not like many people approve of him. Most of the elves seem to be taken along by the stream. In short, they¡¯re all peace fools, without any opportunists and independent individuals.¡± ¡°In this case, it¡¯ll be easier for us than what we previously nned.¡± The two of us were having a serious conversation, while Albert was eating cookies with a crunching sound, next to us. He had nothing to do.....We¡¯ll be finishing soon, so have a little more patience. ¡°Therefore, if we suppress the prime minister and engage in a coercion diplomacy, there¡¯s a high possibility that they¡¯ll obediently follow us. As for the queen, she¡¯s out of the question.....She¡¯s something like a sample woman for all the stupid nobles.¡± ¡°She¡¯s my son-inw¡¯s mother. Will he feel at ease if we imprison her?¡± ¡°Right. There shouldn¡¯t be a problem.¡± ¡°Understood, then we¡¯ll go with this.¡± Good. The course of action was decided. With the intelligence unit ying an active role, there might not a be a need for me to use military force. ¡°So, how about our little present?¡± ¡°Yes. I gave it to the queen¡¯s chief maid, since she seems to manage the castle¡¯s servants. I entrusted her with the distribution method as well.¡± ¡°In case there are not enough, I can supplement as many as needed.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I gave her quite a few gold coins. As the report said, she¡¯s the type of person who likes money.....She was extremely cooperative.¡± ¡°Did you deliver that to the noble ss women?¡± ¡°Yeah, the bra was extremely popr. But please don¡¯t worry, I will interact with these women myself as a representative.¡± I see.....The servants inside the castle are silenced with money. The noble women.....The wives of those I¡¯ll be getting to know from now on are already appeased due to the bra. All is going way too much ording to n that it¡¯sughable. ¡°It¡¯s only a matter of time, master. This country is truly peaceful.¡± Suu said andughed, and she looked terrifyingly simr to the Frontier Count. A workce where you can¡¯t stopughing......Thisugh was definitely not that..... Albert, you¡¯re spilling cookies, so stop trembling. You¡¯re way too scared of your sister. ¡°Your excellency......Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re marking this ce as well 1.......This Albert admires you greatly!¡± ¡°.......Master, it¡¯s because of the fatigue......¡± As I received the two brothers¡¯ various looks......I peed on myself after such a long time. Before they told me, I didn¡¯t even notice it.....Could I be sick?..... ¡°Master, it¡¯s all right. We won¡¯t tell anyone.¡± ¡°Suu, I¡¯m going to be unnecessarily miserable, so please give me a break.¡± With a deplorable posture, towel rolled over my hips, I felt quite down. It was all right recently, so why did I do this with such a timing...... My mood was the worse as Suu busily prepared a change of clothes for me. I felt extremely embarrassed......That¡¯s because I wasn¡¯t exposed like this before. And this came to light in front of a woman.....I wanted to die. ¡°Once you finish changing your clothes, we¡¯ll have to leave since an invitation came from the prime minister.¡± ¡°Yeah......¡± Her kind smile like that of a nurse hollowed out my heart in an unnecessary way. Albert left, saying something like ¡®In order not to lose to his excellency, I have to train more!¡¯. I didn¡¯t know what was thispetition about, but I didn¡¯t care about it since he was a mongrel. I stood in front of Suu who was holding my change of clothes. Ah, did she already finish preparing them......I wanted to escape from reality a little longer. I looked at her but for some reason her expression was dark. ¡°Master, forgive me. It was my clumsiness.¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Don¡¯t worry about this.....You¡¯re less objectionable than me.¡± I didn¡¯t know what clumsiness she was talking about, but it must be way better than peeing on oneself. Besides, I have no qualification to scold her right now. ¡°I didn¡¯t prepare any underwear for master. Please use this instead.¡± She said and held out to me a pair of pink string bikinis. I watched fixedly what was most likely Suu¡¯s private property. ¡°Are you telling me to wear these?¡± ¡°Forgive me. Now that it already came to this, I have to take responsibility and die......¡± She took out a dagger from her breast pocket and brought it to her neck. I hurried to sop her arm, but the trace of a light wound was already visible on the nape of her neck. ¡°Don¡¯t be hasty! I don¡¯t dislike this! I don¡¯t dislike this, but I thought you might!!¡± That was a lie.....Wearing something like this was torture. However, it can¡¯t be helped if it means I¡¯ll lose her otherwise. ¡°It¡¯s all right, master. There¡¯s no way I dislike this. It¡¯s an honour for me. I just took them off so they¡¯re not chilly. Here.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be better for them to be a new pair?¡± ¡°That is no good. What will we do if that underwear contains chemicals or drugs or something! With these, since I already wore them, there will be no problem, so you can rest assured.¡± And so, I equipped myself with a pair of pink string bikinis and was on my way to the prime minister¡¯s house. Today, I felt I lost all sorts of things...... I might already be useless as a human being...... 1. Remember Chapter 11? Chapter 138: Prime Minister Heinz’ Mansion Chapter 138: Prime Minister Heinz¡¯ Mansion ¡°Wee, Archduke Zest. It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you. I am Heinz and I serve as the prime minister.¡± It took about 10 minutes from the castle to get to this gorgeous mansion. It had a vague Japanese style atmosphere. And yet, fundamentally, it was a western style building looking quite close to a Japanese house.....It was that sort of a ptial residence. ¡°Prime minister Heinz. I am Zest......I¡¯m looking forward to working with you from now on.¡± In Japan, this greeting of mine would receive a failing grade, but here in this world it was inevitable. More than that, my current position forced me to greet him in this manner. I came to this country in the name of his Majesty the Emperor, so greeting people too politely would conversely be no good. ¡°It is an honor to be able to invite you here, Archduke-dono. Come now, let¡¯s go inside.¡± ¡°Yeah. Albert, let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Yes sir!¡± We finished our conversational exchange in the entry hall of the mansion, then Heinz guided us inside. I only took Albert with me. I couldn¡¯t bring the maids along.......That would mean something like ¡®Your hospitality is insufficient¡¯. The same goes for guards.......Taking them along would mean something like ¡®I don¡¯t trust the likes of you¡¯. ¡°Oh, so this is the famous Lord Albert? The man said to be the Archduke-dono¡¯s right hand.......¡± ¡°Nobles of the empire can¡¯t go out all by themselves. They need someone to entrust with misceneous jobs.¡± ¡®Hee, so you took a guard with you.¡¯ ¡®He¡¯s not a guard. This is a custom among the nobles of the empire, so don¡¯t mind it.¡¯ This was the hidden meaning of our exchange. Is he casually searching for errors in my conduct or something? He¡¯s quite the sly person......I should raise the level of my vignce a little bit. As I thought about that, we preceded inside the mansion. We were led to the dining room and the dinner started. Because we didn¡¯t converse during the meal, I concentrated on my manners as I ate. This was quite easy since my master harshly trained me in this area. ........Albert was standing behind my back. He was definitely not a guest, but an attendant of mine, so it was fine this way. ¡°Now, we can take our time and talk.¡± As he drank some tea, Heinz said. We changed rooms after we finished eating dinner, so now we were in the reception office. Tea was prepared here and we could finally talk about our main goals. ¡°Right. Heinz-dono, I already understand your intentions. If I can have a reasonablepensation, I¡¯m fine with it.¡± ¡°Hooo......a reasonablepensation?¡± The person in front of me......I observed again prime minister Heinz. He kept his thin silver hair, like most of elves have, swept back, and his eyes looked sensitive and slender. His figure was a little fat, and it didn¡¯t look solid but rather chubby.......His face wasn¡¯t that bad, and I couldn¡¯t grasp his age. If I were to judge by appearances, he looked like he was halfway in his twenties.......The age of elves was truly a puzzling matter. ¡°I heard from general Kalis. Is the Archduke all right with this?¡± ¡°Good or bad, this is a point ofpromise, right? As you, prime minister Heinz think about the country of elves......I think about the empire........There are no problems here.¡± Heinz nced at Albert. Well, I understand what you want to say. ¡°It was you, Heinz-dono, who said that this man was my retainer, right?¡± ¡°Hahaha, you¡¯re right.¡± ¡°This story is mutually advantageous for us. I won¡¯t say something like trust me, but we can use each other as much as we can.¡± ¡°Hooo......Use each other......?¡± This man¡¯s suspicion was strong, he was also confident and seemed proud of himself. Then, instead of using empathy which he probably didn¡¯t have, I sparked in him an idea about profit. Then, precisely because this was profitable for me too, I wanted to appeal to the idea of cooperation....... ¡°Fufufu, Archduke-dono is quite an impressive individual.¡± ¡°Hahaha, not as much as the prime minister-dono.¡± Simrly to myself, he is an ambitious person. This is probably what Heinz thought, as he showed me an extremely viinous smile. Yeah, there¡¯s no way I¡¯m the same kind as you. ¡°If we are to do this, then what do you, Archduke-dono, assume that will happen next?¡± ¡°First, there will be Tsubaki¡¯s marriage. It must be done in great fashion so that everyone acknowledges it. Then, shortly after, there will be the national funeral of the king......Also, there are, of course, different uses for the future queen and the actual queen.¡± ¡°Shortly after?......It¡¯s like you¡¯re assuming that the king is already gone.¡± ¡°What are you talking about at suchte time........As a matter of course, I already did some underground research. It¡¯s not really interesting for me to be looked down on.¡± ¡°Forgive me for that. However, I have a trump card.......And it¡¯s not only enjoyable things, you know?¡± ¡°Your trump card is my trump card. You should realize this.¡± He¡¯s probably talking about magi-science. This is certainly his trump card....... On the contrary, if he achieves that, we will have a just cause to start a war. With such a meaning, I tried intimidating him with magic power. This type of person, when he thinks that the other party is below him, he will turn to an obstinate type of interaction. ¡°I don¡¯t have any intention to ask for the demons¡¯ intervention. However, if you are not satisfied with this n, there¡¯s a high change I will do just that. It is not the right time yet, you know?¡± ¡°The right time......¡± Indeed......This guy doesn¡¯t have the power and the time to bring order to the country of elves for now. If everything goes ording to my scheme, I will make the prince king and bring order to this country. I already understand that I can only go at war together with the demons after the prince gets his throne. And that¡¯s only if soldiers who use magi-tech show up. ¡°I¡¯m not saying to be a subordinate country of the empire. If this is profitable for me, you being the true leader of the country of elves is not a problem for me, prime minister-dono.¡± ¡°Fufufu, I was quite shocked when I heard general Kalis¡¯ report........You, Archduke-dono, are truly a dreadful person. Do you n to sooner orter make the empire yours?¡± ¡°Precisely for this reason I don¡¯t have any interest in the country of elves. These are quite the good terms for both of us, right?¡± ¡°Is it precisely so. This Heinz will follow the Archduke.¡± Heinz lowered his head in a rather forced manner, as she said these words, wearing a faint smile. You did dare say that, despite this being your goal in the first ce. There¡¯s no wonder that the loli baba was forestalled......This guy is dangerous. From today¡¯s discussion I clearly realized that Heinz was a very sly guy. At first, the conversation progressed with fairly equivalent standpoints. He then confirmed that he couldn¡¯t treat me as a subordinate of his. He dealt with me like I was nothing more and nothing less than the ambassador of the empire. Then, he reconfirmed it when I brought up the matter of the king and the magi-science. Whether he believed the stories told by general Kalis, and whether I actually knew about magi-science, he was able to confirm now. The most dangerous of all was thest part though. When the time is right, does he really intend to start a war against the demons? Also, does he understand he can¡¯t do this right now? If this is confirmed......then, this guy, ns to start a massive war in the future. ¡°We had a valuable discussion today. The entertainment arrangements are ready, so you should go to the inner chambers. I will take my leave now.¡± Heinz opened the door to the inner chambers and muttered something. After that, he lowered his head and left. ........My job here is still not done, apparently. ¡°Your excellency, I will first go confirm things.¡± ¡°I leave this to you, Albert.¡± Albert, who stood behind my back all this time, slowly went towards the door to the inner chambers. I was relieved that this guy was sturdily built, so much so that he could sometimes dodge my serious punch and take a direct hit from Suu¡¯s morning star without dying. The mongrel opened the door at once and informed me with an astonished expression, looking over his shoulder. ¡°Your excellency, this is the Eden!¡± Let me correct this. As I thought, the morning star inflicted quite an enormous damage. ¡°Albert, was my healing insufficient?¡± ¡°No, I am perfectly sober! Please have a look!¡± Albert left the door opened, being somewhat excited. Inside those rooms, many dog-eared and cat-eared beauties waited for us....... ¡°Wee, Masters!¡± ¡°There¡¯s a handsome dog-kemonobito-nya!¡± ¡°Ara, there¡¯s no need to feel shy, you know?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s enjoy ourselves-nya!¡± This was indeed an easy to understand honey trap. Still, I¡¯ll be suspected if I refuse this......But if I ept, I¡¯m too scared of what Bea will do to me. An extreme decision pressed me, when I heard a cheerful conversation. ¡°I......was born for this day......¡± ¡°Oh my, you¡¯re exaggerating.¡± ¡°Nyahaha, you¡¯re quite interesting-nya.¡± ¡°Ufufu, this onee-san is happy.¡± The mongrel was already cheerfully drinking with the army of beautifuldies....... When we¡¯re back, I¡¯ll definitely inform his wife about this...... But leaving that aside.......What should I do?....... Chapter 139: A Battle Called Reception Chapter 139: A Battle Called Reception ¡°I¡¯m a dog kemonobito, but I¡¯m herbivorous, you know!¡± ¡°A-chan, you¡¯re interesting-nya!¡± ¡°No good, Iughed so much that my stomach hurts......¡± ¡°Bu!! A herbivorous dog kemonobito!!¡± A-chan, meaning Albert, told the sure thing joke material line ¡®I¡¯m a dog kemonobito, but I¡¯m herbivorous¡¯ so he gained lots of poprity. .....As always, I had no idea what was funny about that. ¡°So?.....Hey! Are you listening?¡± ¡°Hey, until when do you n to keep the monopoly?¡± ¡°She¡¯s right! I also need advice!¡± In contrast to theughter from over there, on my side we were having an advice meeting. In my attempt to escape the honey trap, I used my sales abilities to the max and this was the result. ¡°Then, that customer, you know?¡± ¡°Right, right.....What happened with that customer?¡± Their everyday irritation piled up considerably.....So I heard these girls¡¯ints as I drank some sake 1. The sake prepared for us was something simr to whiskey. It appears that this is a special product from the neighboring Dwarves¡¯ Kingdom. ¡°Zest-sama is so strong! This sake has the reputation of being quite intense.¡± ¡°Hm? It truly is intense, but it is a good sake. Can you buy it in this country? I¡¯d like to buy some as souvenirs.¡± In the middle of ourint meeting, the leader of the girls, a dog kemonobito, started to talk. She¡¯s the woman whomanded both the girls sitting at my table and those sitting at Albert¡¯s. She was perhaps in herter twenties? Still, she was older than the other girls. She was a beautiful woman with gorgeous blue hair which dropped to her shoulders. ¡°Besides, prime minister-sama said that you liked beautiful women......Do you perhaps like older women more?¡± ¡°How did youe to the conclusion that I like older women......Ah, because I went to an air trip with Kachua-dono?¡± The women in this room were all beautiful women. I do think that they¡¯re all cute, but unfortunately I can¡¯t see them as such. I¡¯d rather spoil them likewise to a daughter. ¡°Talking and drinking with these girls is quite enjoyable. However, if we¡¯re talking about taste, then I like mature women more.¡± ¡°Fufu, it is a good refusal reason.....but I thought that this might happen.¡± The woman made a sign and the girls around us withdrew. In their stead, mature and beautiful army women showed up. ¡°This way, Zest-sama can enjoy himself as well, right?¡± The leader said andughed, and she somehow resembled Suu. ......Are you that type as well? And so, the reception party¡¯s second division rushed inside. ¡°So, I told them...I am a dog kemonobito, but I¡¯m herbivorous!¡± ¡°Ahahaha, as expected from A-chan!¡± ¡°He said it! The herbivorous line is here!!¡± ¡°A-chan is so cool!!¡± I couldn¡¯t understand why they got so excited. A-chan was in an absolute good mood as he drank and made merry. Does he even understand the situation? ¡°Next! I am next!!¡± ¡°You¡¯re after me! I am older than you after all!¡± ¡°Eh? You, didn¡¯t you say you turned seventeenst month?¡± It looks like in this world they use the ¡®I¡¯m seventeen¡¯ practice as well. I have no problem with this though......Besides, if I were to interfere, it would most likely hurt me, so letting it go is much safer. ¡°There¡¯s no need to worry. Even if I use healing magic on everyone present, I¡¯ll still have much of it left. Don¡¯t fight each other and wait patiently.¡± ¡°No way! Zest-sama, you¡¯re lovely!¡± ¡°Amazing......My burnt marks are all gone.¡± ¡°Eh!? My skin is so smooth now, isn¡¯t it!!!¡± My table became a beauty clinic. I am using healing magic on adult women who all say they¡¯re seventeen. As for the women with very dry skin, wearing lots and lots of makeup, I changed them all with my magic power to a lively state very much appropriate for the age of seventeen. ¡°Since Ist used cleansing magic, your face has no makeup anymore. Look in the mirror and check.¡± ¡°Eeh!? I¡¯m too embarrassed to see my unpainted face........Hmm, what is this!!! Who is this!!??¡± The self-proimed eternal seventeen-year-old was moring. Can I now take a short break? As I thought about this, a woman called out to me. ¡°You truly.....can do anything.¡± ¡°Anything is a bit impossible. I can only do what I can.¡± The leader of the girls sat down next to me, and made the girls who were too noisy retire for the moment. She didn¡¯t have the same courtesy smile on her face as before. She continued, her face now grave. ¡°Zest-sama, what do you want to do with this country?¡± ¡°Nothing really, I am here only to attend my daughter¡¯s wedding ceremony.¡± ¡°I am the one who.......controls and looks after the girls in the underground world of this country. Can you believe it?¡± She wore a faint grin, but this grin was ice cold. ¡°Your excellency, should I dispose of this woman?¡± ¡°Albert, hold down your killing intent for a bit. She¡¯ll lose consciousness.¡± Albert was standing behind the woman, expressionless, pointing a sword to her neck. His face was dangerous.......He was really going to kill her. ¡°Don¡¯t move, all right? If possible, try not to breathe either. If even for an instant I feel suspicious about you, you¡¯re dead.¡± ¡°Albert-sama, you¡¯re exactly like the rumors say. Zest-sama¡¯s right hand........¡± As I thought, she was not an ordinary person. She was still veryposed even though she received Albert¡¯s intense killing intent and a sword was pointed at her neck. Besides, the girls who remained in the room.......they didn¡¯t even shriek. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you all just in case, don¡¯t do anything strange, all right? Even though you seem to have battle experience, it doesn¡¯t look like you can win this fight......Right, Tasel?¡± ¡°Precisely. We can finish them off at any time, your excellency.¡± Behind my back, a ck clothed person was standing. I knew that the intelligence unit came along, but there was only one person whose position I didn¡¯t know. Tasel was the only person whose presence I couldn¡¯t detect. So, his 2 maternity leave ended? I can feel assured now that he¡¯s here with the reinforcement unit. ¡°Is everyone inside this room?¡± ¡°No, there are five men outside. If ites to it, we can escape at any time, your excellency.¡± ¡°I see. So, what do you want to ask me? And also, what do you want to do from now on?¡± ¡°His majesty, the King of Elves was a very kind person who received us, the kemonobito people, inside this country. It will be our greatest pleasure to die for his son. Are you an ally of the prime minister?¡± ¡°I see. You possess a strong sense of duty that is characteristic to the kemonobito folk. So, even the underground world believes that I¡¯m part of the prime minister¡¯s faction........Fufufu, he¡¯s quite loathed, isn¡¯t he?¡± ¡°There are no fools among the proud kemonobito folk who would follow that guy.¡± ¡°Hoo......You really hate the guy, don¡¯t you? Then, don¡¯t you understand the reason why Albert is following my orders? He¡¯s also part of the kemonobito folk, you know?¡± ¡°........Don¡¯t say that you¡¯re his highness, prince Mars¡¯ ally!?¡± The girl moved her head energetically and, reacting to this, Albert put more strength into his sword. Blood started to drip from her neck, but she didn¡¯t seem to be bothered by that. ¡°P-Please! I beg of you......let us be prince Mars¡¯ strength! We will do anything!!¡± She said and took off her clothes. It wasn¡¯t only her, all the girls left in the room took off their clothes. Then, they knelt down in front of me. ¡°We will do as Zest-sama pleases. We will do anything. We won¡¯t refuse any order.......So, please.......please......¡± ¡°We beg of you!¡± ¡°Please show mercy!¡± ¡°Please save us!¡± A bunch of naked girls who begged me to let them serve ¡®His highness, prince Mars¡¯..... As expected, Albert understood the situation and moved to my side. I didn¡¯t know that his majesty the king had so much poprity.......Prince Mars has to work hard. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I do care about my son-inw. Therefore, put your clothes back on.......I don¡¯t need this kind of thanking.¡± ¡°I see. Your excellency won¡¯t do something like this. At any rate.......¡± I informed the girls who stood up, but Albert moved quickly. He unfastened my belt and pulled my trousers down. ¡°Look! He¡¯s naturally wearing the marking of deep affection, done by a kemonobito woman! He dly epted the deep affection feelings shown by the kemonobito woman through offering him her own worn underwear! Do you need any other reason to trust this person!?¡± ¡°This scent!!¡± ¡°Aah, it¡¯s like the legend said!¡± ¡°He¡¯s a human, but he epted the deep affection marking.......¡± I stood up, revealing these pink string bikinis for everyone to see, and the naked kemonobito women started to worship me. In such a chaotic room, I stood stock still..... ¡°Everyone......Rest assured. Leave everything to me.¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Yes!! Zest-sama!!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° Weeping, I informed the girls, and they started crying as well. Most likely they were crying for different reasons, but this was a trivial matter. This was also the moment I acquired some new subordinates. Weeping, I looked outside the window, and saw that the full moon was bright red today as well....... I.....might not recover from this....... 1. In case you didn¡¯t know yet, sake refers to the Japanese rice wine, as well as any alcoholic drink. 2. Remember that Tasel is a he-female ^^ Chapter 140: The Forgotten Thing Chapter 140: The Forgotten Thing ¡°We finally returned.....¡± I was finally back into my quarters inside the royal castle. The girls, the kemonobito reception unit, took a different course of action. There was no way I could take them all back with me, so this was inevitable. ¡°Wee back, master.¡± ¡°Suu?.....How should I put it, they really were useful.¡± ¡°As I thought, a kemonobito reception party took ce, right? I figured the prime minister would do something like this.¡± Suu nodded with a smug face, and I thought that......she should really exin things to me more..... I took a huge mental damage because of this, you know? ¡°Listen, Suu.....Since the kemonobito folk¡¯s customs are difficult to understand, you should exin things to me beforehand.......¡± ¡°At that time, I was in a hurry and I was too embarrassed. But you¡¯re right......I¡¯ll hurry with the publication of the handbook. Are the girls from the reception party your subordinates now? In this case, I really must hurry.¡± Her face slightly red, Suu answered me. She surely must have been embarrassed to give her panties to a man. To say nothing of the panties being used. ¡°Aah, next time be more careful.......Also, did you distribute that book?¡± ¡°Yes, since we increased the number of personnel in the intelligence unit it all went well. The noble ss people should already know about it.¡± ¡°I see. In this case make preparations for sending a letter.¡± ¡°Certainly.¡± That book.....That rotten book about two men. I changed it to a hot love story between the prime minister and his general. Suu made the preparations and I started writing the letter. On one side it was a letter of thanks for today¡¯s invitation, and on the other side it was aint letter. ¡®At the time of agreeing to cooperate with you in order to obtain the country of elves, I didn¡¯t realize how big of a mistake it was. Thanks to this, my work has be so much harder to handle! However, that reception party was the best......I want to meet those girls again.......¡¯ This was the content of the letter. The lewd archduke enjoyed the reception party, so he saw the prime minister¡¯s error as a good opportunity. The goal was to make him believe this. ¡°This way, I can summon those girls without looking too suspicious.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right. You let yourself be caught in his trap, then used this as a pretext to ce those girls right inside his nest......As expected from master.¡± ¡°Fufu, I never show mercy to my enemies. About how will he deal with the rumors.......it all depends on the prime minister¡¯s skills.¡± ¡°Yes. And if the prime minister manages to deal with the rumors in a clean way, what will we do then?¡± ¡°.......At that time, the prime minister will be involved in an unfortunate ident.¡± ¡°As you wish. I¡¯ll give orders for Media toe here.¡± I nodded, and Suu started to line up a tea set. Since I drank a little this evening, my belly was rather empty, so this was just right. Media, huh?......She looks just like a woman and the prime minister will surely be negligent. And she¡¯ll certainly get rid of him...... ¡°I¡¯ve thoroughly be a noble as well.......¡± A muttered these words for no one to hear...... As I drank my tea, Suu kept staring at me. (Dad! Toto is angry!) I finished writing some detailed instructions for my people, then returned to my bedroom, when I saw Toto re at me with an angry expression. Because Toto was always together with Bea.... I forgot that she came with me this time........ ¡°Toto, today¡¯s little trip was a dangerous one. We¡¯ll spend tomorrow together, all right? That¡¯s why, you don¡¯t have to be this angry.¡± (Really? Will we be together tomorrow?) ¡°Yes, of course. I know. I¡¯ll summon some merchants, so that we can choose a souvenir for Bea together. What do you say?¡± (!? We¡¯ll chose a souvenir for Mom!) I brushed Toto¡¯s hair, as she instantly showed a happy smile, then I took off my clothes in order to change them. What about the shower?......I kind of drank tonight, so I¡¯ll just take one in the morning. (Dad, why are you wearing Suu¡¯s underwear?) ¡°......Toto, you must keep this a secret from Mom, all right? I know. I¡¯ll buy you a mountain of sweets tomorrow.¡± (Dad, Toto didn¡¯t see anything!) ¡°Good. You can choose as many sweets as you want.¡± I sessfully bought her silence with sweets, after which I finished changing my clothes and went to bed. Today was a difficult day...... Toto came together with me under the nket, and she was in high spirits as she kept muttering ¡®Sweets, sweets¡¯, but she soon fell asleep. ¡°Good morning, master. A letter came from the prime minister.¡± ¡°Hahaha, he was quite fast.¡± I finished my morning bath, and as I walked towards my office, Suu waited for me with a grinning face. .........I¡¯m wearing my own pants today, you know? What are youughing about? ¡°Well then, I wonder what he wrote.......¡± I opened the letter, sending Suu, who was showing an eerie smile, a nce. The contents were as expected. ¡®I really know nothing about that. I¡¯m sorry for making trouble for you all of a sudden...... I made arrangements for those girls toe to your ce, so please forgive me.¡¯ This was it.....He must have been in a hurry to write this letter, since I saw ink drips in several ces. ¡°As expected......It looks like the girls will be here tomorrow. I leave the arrangements to you.¡± ¡°Certainly. I¡¯ll make the nesary arrangements.¡± ¡°Also, summon some merchants. Today........Toto and I will chose some souvenirs. She¡¯ll wake up soon.¡± ¡°Understood. When Toto-sama wakes up, should I bring her here?¡± ¡°Please do so. Aah, summon some merchants who trade in sweets as well.¡± ¡°Sweets?.......Aah, you¡¯re bribing her into secrecy? Understood.¡± I was found out.......I thought, as I watched Suu leave the room, giggling. This, will this really not be revealed to Bea? A woman¡¯s intuition is a scary thing after all.......And so, with these thoughts, my day started. (Dad, Toto is incredibly happy right now.) ¡°Thank you very much for your purchase! This amount......As one would expect, archdukes are something else.¡± ¡°Haha.......No matter how you tter me, I won¡¯t buy more than this, you know?¡± Judging only by this conversation, it looked like nothing but a pleasant exchange. However, the problem was the amount and quality of the things I bought. ¡°Master, are you really all right with this?¡± ¡°Suu, these are inevitable expenses.......¡± Despite being worried, Suu nodded.....This happens when you use gold coins in units of thousands when doing shopping. My dominion¡¯s yearly budget is about a hundred thousand......Wait, I shouldn¡¯t be thinking about this or I¡¯ll lose my mind. ¡°I understand about the sweets......but, it seems you bought many souvenirs for madam as well........¡± ¡°It¡¯s not like I feel guilty or anything, you know? I genuinely want to give her many presents!¡± (Mom will be very happy!) Yes, I only want to give her these presents; these are my honest feelings. I¡¯m definitely not thinking about deceiving her with expensive things! It¡¯s absolutely different! ¡°Good. The shopping is over. Now, shall we eat some sweets, Toto?¡± (Yes! I¡¯ll start with these!) ¡°Sigh......Buying people with things.......I can already see the failure.¡± I disregarded this murmuring, as my and Toto¡¯s sweets feast started. ........It¡¯s all right. This way, Toto won¡¯t talk and Bea will be deceived by all those presents! With this assumption, I enjoyed my sweets. ¡°Your excellency, as I thought, you¡¯re working too much.¡± ¡°Albert, you¡¯re awake?......Making apletee-back in just one day after receiving my punch........¡± As punishment for stripping off my trousers, I knocked him off with one punch, but it appears that he already recovered. Even though I used a considerable amount of strengthening magic as I hit him........He really is sturdy. ¡°Eeh, without this armor, it would¡¯ve meant an instant death. Your excellency¡¯s punch is as one would expect.¡± ¡°.......I see. If you¡¯re saying this, then it might be true.¡± I thought I hit him on the face.....Is my memory ying tricks on me? Albert muttered something as he brushed his ck armor, then he suddenly turned to face me. ¡°Apart from this, your excellency, you must rx a little. If you continue in this manner, you will copse.¡± ¡°I enjoyed a sweets feast.......I didn¡¯t work that much, you know?¡± I enjoyed my time today ying and eating with Toto, so it was already evening. Toto was sleeping, being tired from all that ying.......I was also resting inside my office. ¡°No, since we came to the country of elves, you worked non-stop. I will.......draw you out to the night district........¡± ¡°You fool, you still haven¡¯t learned from your experiences? Last time and the time beforest you did nothing but fail miserably!¡± ¡°Fufufu, your excellency. I am not that stupid. I do learn from my mistakes!¡± ¡°What.....are you talking about?¡± Albert took out something like a notebook from his pocket. No way! This mongrel can actually learn!? ¡°First of all, I gathered intelligence and narrowed everything down to a few shops, then I personally went to check them out. After the confirmation, I found out that this shop.......has beautiful women of just the right age!!¡± With a booming sound effect, the notebook spread vigorously in front of me. Inside it, this was written with huge letters. ¡®High ss secret bar ¨C the New World! Many beautiful women, good sake, elves, kemonobito and humans alike are present¡¯ ¡°You can actually do it right if you want to......Albert, prepare the horses! We¡¯ll depart for the front!¡± ¡°Yes sir! I will ask the ck knights to apany us!¡± This time for sure, it¡¯ll be all right! There¡¯s no way he will fail this time! I do believe in him!! Third time lucky.......Believing in these words, I sallied forth towards the twilight district....... Chapter 141: Party at the Bar Chapter 141: Party at the Bar ¡°It¡¯s here, your excellency. At first sight, it looks like a normal civilian house, but this is the entrance to our paradise.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t have a signboard......Will this be all right?¡± Guided by Albert, we arrived at this shop. In truth, the building really looked like nothing but a civilian house.......This made my danger senses ring like mad! ¡°Your excellency, did I ever take you to a weird shop? Unfortunate idents did happen, but I have never done something so dishonorable!¡± ¡°You......Those two times, are you trying to call those unfortunate idents?¡± The mongrel quickly averted his eyes and nocked at the door to the shop (?). You rascal......You deceived me. A grim middle-aged man showed up from inside. ¡°Aaan? What are nobles doing to such a ce.......Master Albert! You came again?¡± ¡°Yes, this job must be difficult for you, mister bodyguard. Today, I brought my master here as well. Quickly, show us inside.¡± Bodyguard, huh.......So this is a ce that needs someone like this bandit-looking middle-aged man...... Moreover, with no signboard, it¡¯s like this ce does business secretly. This is already the maximum level of danger. ¡°You came in such arge number.......Let¡¯s get you inside right away, he he he.¡± His smile looked like that of a bandit boss who aimed at his pray. The bodyguard opened the door slowly. Instead of a drinking party, won¡¯t this be a battlefield, I wonder? As I felt a considerable level of anxiety, we entered that ce......the ce that the mongrel called an utopia...... ¡°.......Albert.¡± ¡°Yes sir! What is it, your excellency?¡± ¡°This ce is amazing.¡± ¡°Thank you for your words!¡± The only moment I felt anxious about all this was in the beginning. Inside the shop, there was another door, and once you opened that, the earthly paradise would spread in front of your eyes. There was an army of beautiful women and the customer service was perfect. The sake was delicious as well! This was truly a wonderful ce; I had nothing toin about. ¡°Is this ce entirely reserved for us today?¡± ¡°Yes, the people here were very generous. What should we do then?¡± This ¡®What should we do?¡¯ was asked because, since we were nobles, other people were not allowed to enter the shop for the moment.....It means more like ¡®Shall we order as much as we can?¡¯ ¡°Show them consideration. Tell the girls that they can drink and eat as much as they want. Aah, give them some souvenirs as well, all right?¡± ¡°As you wish!¡± From the table we sat at, Albert lowered his head and left. We were drinking, only the two of us. .......I wanted to drink with the girls, but just the other day I drank as much as to feel reluctant now. ¡°Mistress, let the girls order whatever they want for today. We will pay for everything. I¡¯ll give you something now.......If it¡¯s not enough, I¡¯ll pay you moreter.¡± ¡°So many gold coins for an advance payment!? Ah, thank you very much!¡± In Japan, you usually pay at the end, but in this world, offering an advance payment ismon sense. But when ites to nobles, they usually pay at the end. Demanding an advance payment to a noble would be the same as suspecting them, like ¡®Hey you, can you even pay for this?¡¯... Since we rented the whole ce, if we don¡¯t pay, this shop would suffer a great deficit. That¡¯s why I wanted to do at least this much. ¡°And then, this here is not the fare, but our feelings. Divide it among you.¡± ¡°It is dly epted. Everyone! These are customers who already gave us gifts and payed us in advance, you know! Feel relieved and make merry!¡± ¡°Gifts!? No way, A-chan, you really were a noble?¡± ¡°When noblese here this is what happens......I didn¡¯t know that......¡± ¡°Did you know, they¡¯ll give us souvenirs when they leave?¡± ¡°Eeh!? Won¡¯t theye every day, I wonder......¡± Shouts of joy rose up and the party got even more exciting. At least for today, I wanted to thank the ck knights for their service and let them have a great time. Albert returned, and we both took a mouthful of sake.....Fufu, for some reason, I missed this. A little while ago, I used to go out with these guys and make merry in bars. Thinking about those days, I really enjoyed my time here. ¡°Oh, oh, this sure is looking good. Let us join you.¡± A sturdy man showed up to our fun party. Looking at his garments and expression, he was nothing but a hooligan. .......What happened to the bodyguard? ¡°Hey, you guys! The whole ce is reserved for today! What is the bodyguard doing?¡± The mistress¡¯ voice could be heard; she was the woman who a few moments ago received the payment from Albert. She was a sexy woman, who seemed to be in her 30s, and because she showed a strong-willed expression, it did have a certain impact. Still, those guysughed as they continued. ¡°Bodyguard? You¡¯re talking about that weakling? Gahahahahaha, he was so damn useless.¡± ¡°He was a small fry who got silenced by only one punch from our aniki.¡± ¡°Ooh, it looks like they¡¯re drinking some really expensive sake.¡± With a giant man, two meters high, in the front, these three guys selfishly sat on a table and started to drink. Because Albert showed a murderous expression, I stopped him from going to them with a gesture. For the ck knights, these guys will be nothing but an exercise to help digestion. ¡°You guys, it¡¯s about time your stomachs swelled out, right? Go do some exercise. Leave no proof so that we won¡¯t cause trouble for this shop.¡± ¡°Yes, sir! Leave it to us.¡± ¡°Still, they sure look weak.¡± ¡°Hyahaa! Exercise, exercise!¡± The ck knights stood up, faces covered in smiles. Good. It¡¯s great that they¡¯re so into this. ¡°Ah, urm.....Zest-sama. Is this going to be all right? These guys defeated that bodyguard of ours.......¡± ¡°Aah, it¡¯s all right. If he was defeated by those guys.......¡± The mistress looked worried, and as I was about to answer her, a weird sound resounded. I turned around and the giant man pressed down hard on his right arm, which took a wrong turn towards the direction of the day after tomorrow. ........Don¡¯t do it inside the shop, can¡¯t you have a little patience? ¡°I don¡¯t care whether you break or slice their arms off, but do it outside.¡± ¡°Yes, sir! Forgive us.¡± ¡°Still, this guy sure is fragile........¡± ¡°Aaaah, you already broke him? I¡¯ll take the other two, all right!?¡± ¡°Gyaaaaaaa, uu, my arm......my arm!¡± ¡°A-aniki! Are you all right?¡± ¡°You! We are part of a famous bandit group......¡± The trio of idiots red towards me with a threatening look. Hm? They¡¯re not thugs, but bandits?.......In this case, we have to deal with them differently. ¡°Albert, the situation changed. If they¡¯re a bandit group, make them speak and go kill theirrades. We have no reason to keep them alive.¡± ¡°Leave it to me. On this asion, the maids........I mean, the holy maidens unit will benefit from this. They¡¯ll be very happy when they hear about the bandits¡¯ extermination training.¡± Albert stood up and, as he waved his tail happily, he took the trio of idiots with him and left. If they¡¯re really a famous bandits group, we might be able to use this for growing prince Mars¡¯ reputation. ¡°And so, you didn¡¯t need to worry, now, did you? Calm down and let¡¯s continue drinking.¡± ¡°Sigh......Urm, are all the nobles from the empire this strong?¡± I looked at the amazed mistress, and,ughing, I continued to drink my sake. ¡°Your excellency, just to be sure, I sent a ck knight to keep watch together with the bodyguard.¡± ¡°Because of a supposed revenge from the bandits group? I don¡¯t think that will happen, but all right.¡± Albert returned with a refreshed expression, and informed me. It¡¯s true that we can feel more at ease on one¡¯s guard. I thought that they were bluffing, but those idiots really were bandits. ¡°It¡¯s a small bandits¡¯ group with about thirty people. This won¡¯t even count as exercise for the war maidens.¡± ¡°But still, if those girls feel they¡¯ve been left out, they¡¯ll be quite scary afterwards......So, leave those guys to the war maidens.¡± ¡°Smart and strong.......He¡¯s certainly a noble.......¡± ¡°Lovely......Even his ¡®I¡¯m a dog kemonobito, but I¡¯m herbivorous¡¯ is lovely.¡± ¡°For an elf as myself, that is iprehensible.....¡± ¡°That tail, I¡¯d like to groom it......¡± Smart? Just who in the world are they talking about.... For some reason, A-chan was very popr. The ck knights too got pampered by the girls, saying something like ¡®Strong knight-sama! You¡¯re lovely!!¡¯....they all fopped. Maybe it¡¯s time I organize a formal marriage mass meeting for them.....I was too busy so I kind of neglected this...... I contemted the fact that my subordinates¡¯ marriageable age got a little overdue, when I heard again load voicesing from the outside. Good grief.....But, since there¡¯s a ck knight there, they can¡¯t breakthrough. I thought and drank up my ss of sake, when the door pped open with a wonderful booming sound. ¡°Your excellency! For someone like an archduke, throwing a party at a town bar is outrageous!¡± The one who showed up dragging along the ck knight like he was nothing but trash, was Media. .......You already came?.......That was fast. ¡°Don¡¯t get mad, Media. Rxing once in a while is beneficial.¡± ¡°No, your excellency. There is something called a standpoint. Drinking with such women at such an outskirts bar is just.......¡± ¡°With such women? This surely is a rundown district......but still, I am very confident in our customer service!¡± Normally, the mistress would never talk against a noble, but today she drank a little too much. Since she was drunk, her real personality surfaced. ¡°What? You, nothing but amoner talking to a noble......Hm?¡± ¡°Haaan! Listen, young girl. Even though you¡¯re a noble-sama.......Oh my?¡± Media and the mistress got closer and stared at each other......Or so it appeared. Both of them stared fixedly at each other and, when they looked up and made eye contact, they embraced each other. ......What? They like each other even though they¡¯re women? ¡°My friend......I never thought I would meet a friend in such a ce.¡± ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m thankful to the gods for making this possible. My friend.¡± ¡°Albert, go eat your teeth!¡± ¡°........Yes sir?¡± The two women wept as they embraced each other, but, before long, they separated and looked towards me. Yeah, I am ready...... Thank you for giving me the time. ¡°Your excellency, you searched for my dearrade and found this bar......I¡¯ll follow you a lifetime!!¡± ¡°You have my dear friend as one of your followers......Please take us too as your subordinates, your excellency! We¡¯ll be very helpful!!¡± The two of them looked at me, their faces flushed.......Yes.......¡¯Friend andrade¡¯ You¡¯re both okamas 1, huh?...... ¡°Albert, do you have ast request?¡± ¡°Yes sir! Because of their smell I thought they were women......Oh dear me, since the elves¡¯ perfumes are too excellent, I .....buhoooaa!!!¡± And so, the okama troops and girls-dressed-up-as-men unit from the country of elves migrated to the archduke¡¯s dominion. Later, because of this, a great pleasure quartier was built on my dominion, and my capital city became the empire¡¯s greatest metropolis...... At this time, however, I felt nothing but extremely sad for knowing that more perverts came under mymand....... I want ¡®normal¡¯ subordinates and citizens....... Chapter 142: Returning Home for a Short Time Chapter 142: Returning Home for a Short Time ¡°Prime minister-dono.......At such an important time, a very interesting rumor is spreading.¡± ¡°Yes, that is.......¡± ¡°Men love, huh?......Being too concerned about this rumor, nobles don¡¯te visiting anymore, right?.......Our n will precede unhindered, right?¡± ¡°........Yes, but, urm.......¡± ¡°As a counter-measure against this rumor, would it be a little better if I be a lustful and lewd archduke? The focus might more or less stray from you.¡± ¡°Ar-archduke Zest, thank you very much, truly........¡± ¡°Hahaha, I never thought that my friends will end up dragging me down.......Howes it is always me?¡± ¡°I¡¯m really sorry!!¡± A few days passed since that okama corps incident. I finally returned to my senses...... ¡®Such beautiful women were in fact men¡¯ ¨C the shock was just too big. ¡°So, don¡¯t tell me, prime minister-dono, .......that you actually believe that I truly desire women and that was in fact the reason I asked for those girls?¡± ¡°Of course I don¡¯t believe that! I am being saved by archduke Zest¡¯s consideration after all!¡± Prime minister Heinz visited my private quarters and he was very apologetic. At first, he wanted to let the people know that ¡®The archduke has a lewd heart, so I summoned the reception girls for him again¡¯........ However, unexpectedly, the elves had a keen interest in the ¡®Prime minister loves men¡¯ rumor. ¡°I see. So you do get that. Then, again, why didn¡¯t you prepare your subordinates to act against this rumor......What¡¯s the meaning of this?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t even give you a proper answer.¡± Heinz lowered his head, cold sweat pouring down his face. That book was much more offensive than I thought, so we have to decentralize this rumor by spreading another one about ¡®Archduke Zest, loving women too much!¡¯.... ........Otherwise, Heinz¡¯ fall would be too quick. ¡°Sh-shall we call this an unexpected issue.......?¡± ¡°The only ones to make use of this ¡®unexpected issue¡¯ thing are the nobles. It is precisely the leader of the country who must cope with unexpected issues........If you were a noble of the empire, all that would be left of you by now would be your head, you know?¡± ¡°It¡¯s as you said, my foresight was a bit too optimistic.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t get a second change. For the time being, I¡¯ll be ying around with those girls, so I¡¯ll leave the wedding ceremony arrangements to you, all right? If I am to make a move, you¡¯re the one who¡¯s gonna fall.¡± ¡°I am truly extremely sorry!!¡± The blue-faced prime minister Heinz, bowed many times before leaving the room. Suu entered afterwards, like she just changed ces with him, and informed me while grinning. ¡°You got yourself caught in his trap, and now you absorbed yourself in sarcasm.....As expected from my master. This Suu admires you greatly.¡± ¡°Actually, that was only a y........¡± ¡°Moreover, you can now wee those girls with your arms wide open.......Master, you can¡¯t exploit them, all right?¡± ¡°As I said, it was only a y.......¡± ¡°If it was only a y, then I will report this to the madam.¡± ¡°Please don¡¯t.¡± I¡¯m sorry, all right.......I just wanted to vent a little......But, it¡¯s not like I want women or something! ¡°I was a bit distracted, but those girls are different. I simply want them as my citizens, as my subordinates, nothing more.¡± ¡°Fufufu, I understand, master. However, the girls are definitely a reason for concern. You should return home for now and talk to the madam.¡± Yeah.....it¡¯s true that I¡¯m free now and there¡¯s still time until the wedding ceremony.....I¡¯ll go back for a little while then. I also want to see Wis! ¡°You¡¯re right, I¡¯ll do just that! Will you be able to handle everything if I go home for two days?¡± ¡°We don¡¯t have any matters that must be dealt with urgently, so you can take your time.¡± Suu, you truly are excellent...... You do break asionally, but I can¡¯t believe you¡¯re actually rted to Albert. ¡°Lord Media is here as well, so the mongrel......I mean, Albert, you can take him with you. Of course, you can take Toto-sama with you as well!¡± ¡°Call him brother, all right......Are you two still fighting?¡± Because of that okama corps incident, Suu got extremely mad at Albert. Still, the reason she got angry was very Suu-like..... ¡®You brought master to such a shop.......He¡¯s an archduke, so you should¡¯ve brought the entire shop here!!¡¯ It¡¯s all right to drink with women, and it¡¯s also all right if they¡¯re okamas, since she¡¯s used to Media. asionally, it is also all right to fool around with the guys. However, going out is prohibited! Summon everyone here!! Or so was the argument. Because of my noble status, I can¡¯t go out as freely as before. ¡°I feel like crying when I think that Albert is my brother. I can only call him a mongrel. Anyway, leaving this aside, I¡¯ll go prepare your departure.¡± Suu made a beautiful bow and left the room. She probably went to prepare my stuff which were in the neighboring room. Well, I¡¯ll try consoling herter.......She¡¯s a little too pitiful. ¡°For the time being, don¡¯t look outside the window. If Suu sees you, she¡¯ll flip, all right?¡± ¡°......Ooorrrrhhhh!¡± ¡°You¡¯re no pigeon! You big idiot!!¡± Albert, whose temple was dented by the paperweight I threw at him, dropped to the ground. Well, he¡¯s sturdy, so he won¡¯t die or anything...... ¡°Oh my, as expected from your excellency. You immediately sensed my presence.......and that attack! If I didn¡¯t have this armor, I would¡¯ve died instantly.¡± ¡°I see. If you¡¯re saying this, it might be true.¡± (Dad! The mongrel is all red! He¡¯s covered in blood!) Albertughed heartily, even though blood still poured out of his head. .......Was that a joke? I don¡¯t really get the kemonobito people¡¯s jokes. We were now on top of a dragon, on our way back to my dominion, and we rxed as we fooled around. We weren¡¯t worried at all since no one could hear us up in the sky. We could talk serious matters and we could also talk about our nostalgic time spent together in the Frontier Count¡¯s household. ¡°Say, Albert. We¡¯ve known each other for a very long time now.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right.......Time sure flies.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you have any wish?¡± ¡°I am happy with being able to stay by your excellency¡¯s side. You are my master after all.¡± ¡°I see......I will make you a marquis and leave the border with the Holy Country of Lc in your care. Be my shield, all right?¡± ¡°Wha!? A marquis?¡± Still covered in blood, Albert turned his head with unrestrained vigor. Hey, are you all right? When you turned your head, blood oozed out again. ¡°Truth be told, I¡¯d like to make you a duke, but, since we¡¯re not blood rted, the marquis title is your limit.......I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that. The marquis status is just too high! If you make a kemonobito like me into a marquis, the nobles in the imperial capital will........¡± ¡°I won¡¯t let themin about it. This is about my life after all......If the empire attacks me, you¡¯ll be my reinforcement, and if the Holy Country attacks me, you¡¯ll be my wall. Who else can I entrust with such an important duty? You¡¯re the only one. I¡¯m counting on you, all right?¡± ¡°.........This Albert, no........my entire family will be your excellency¡¯s shield. I will definitely meet your expectations!¡± Good. I¡¯ll feel relieved if Albert, whom I¡¯ve known for a long time, will protect my border. Even if I die, he will definitely help my children. Among the kemonobito folk......the dog kemonobito are particrly loyal. ¡°Yeah, I leave it to you. ..........By the way, you......¡± ¡°Yes, your excellency.¡± ¡°That blood is dangerous, you know? Should I heal you?¡± ¡°Hahaha, such a good joke. For a knight, a wound of this level should heal just by fighting spirit alone!¡± With unclear eyes, Albert answered me, his eyes looking in the wrong direction. You.......You can¡¯t see anything, can you.......? Heughed once again, then the mongrel lost his senses......Maybe I should¡¯ve told him that blood loss is a dangerous thing....... (Dad, as I thought, you should perhaps choose a more capable person for this job.) Dad also thinks so....... As I brushed Toto¡¯s hair, I really thought that from the bottom of my heart. We finally had an interesting conversation, but the mongrel¡¯s personality traits were hard to beat. When I¡¯m together with him, something will definitely happen.......Or so I feel. We arrived at my dominion and descended in my courtyard. We left the country of elves first thing in the afternoon and arrived here in the evening. This way I can take my time and show my affection to Wis, and I can also make out with Bea....... With such thoughts in mind, I opened the door to my office. There, I saw Katalina and Bea doing paperwork together. Aah, they are still working.......Does Bea feel better now? I was about to say ¡®I¡¯m home!¡¯, but Bea was faster, and told me, not moving from her chair. ¡°Oh my? You came back? It would¡¯ve been much better to stay there in the country of elves. Besides, you came home without sending us a notice beforehand......And you call yourself a noble?¡± There she was, with that nostalgic cold look, her frowned face and that dark magical power surrounding her......The witch was here again. ................Eh? What¡¯s this?? What¡¯s with this reaction? ¡°We-wee back-nya, your excellency the archduke! Madam was waiting for you as well-nya!¡± ¡°Katalina, I didn¡¯t really wait for him. Shut up and continue working. I will be leaving my seat for a bit......Zest-sama came back after all. Good grief, my entire schedule is going amiss!¡± Katalina nodded right away, feeling pressured by Bea¡¯s full use of dark magic power. There¡¯s no way she could go against that thing........I was once subdued by it too. Bea threw the documents in her hand on top of the desk quite violently, she walked towards me with determined steps and took out her iron fan. ¡°Zest-sama, we should have a little talk. I am busy so I don¡¯t need your reply. Follow me quietly.¡± ¡°Yes ma¡¯am!¡± (Ah, Toto wants to eat some snacks! I must hurry!) And so, I was taken captive by Bea, who returned to her dark state from during our engagement period. Will I.......being alive out of this? Chapter 143: Bea’s Unusualness Chapter 143: Bea¡¯s Unusualness ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Stop making that face. Even though I am very busy, I said that we must talk, didn¡¯t I?¡± With her iron-ribbed fan in her hand, she lifted up my chin. Aah, this is mother Lamia¡¯s favorite technique.....But this is not the point. Something seems off now, doesn¡¯t it? It¡¯s not necessary for her to pressure everyone in her surrounding in this manner. Still, Bea is spreading dark magic power in all directions......Hmm? Will this perhaps work again? ¡°Bea, thank you for taking care of the household while I was gone. It must have been difficult for you.......How is your physical condition?¡± I asked her, as I casted a certain spell. This was a safe question even in case she was angry, and if everything goes as I expect it to, then! ¡°Words of thanks are unnecessary. Besides, I can¡¯t be called a noble if my physical condition gets bad because of something like this. Good grief, you¡¯re only stating the obvious.....Maybe youck a little bit of noble self-awareness?¡± ¡®Aww! Because Zest-sama is so kind. I am all right, I am full of energy, you know? Besides, since I am Zest-sama¡¯s wife, taking care of things is only natural!¡¯ She stared at me like I was a cockroach, as she said this. Aah, I have no doubts......She¡¯s back to her former self...... But what was the trigger? No, first we have to take refuge in our private quarters, otherwise Katalina and the others might die from the stress. ¡°Hahaha, you¡¯re right. Then, shall we move to a room where we can be just the two of us?¡± ¡°What are you doing? I can walk by myself.¡± ¡®Eeh, pri-princess-carry?......Everyone is looking though.......¡¯ ¡°I want to do this. I was too lonely because I didn¡¯t see you, Bea. Forgive my selfishness.¡± ¡°........Then, it can¡¯t be helped.¡± ¡®Was Zest-sama lonely too? Ufufu, in this case, I¡¯ll forgive you.¡¯ With enmity in her eyes, Bea covered half of her face with her fan, as I carried her in my arms. If strangers were to see her, they would judge her expression as being enraged......But I already knew. She was just hiding her embarrassment. ¡°Katalina, leave me and Bea alone for a while. If someone intrudes, I¡¯ll feed them to the dragons.¡± ¡°Since the dragons might damage their stomachs, it¡¯s better to let the intruders be their ythings instead.¡± ¡®You can¡¯t feed your followers to the dragons! I will warn the dragons, so let¡¯s forgive them with only a training match, okay?¡¯ Yes, yes. The trantion went as smoothly as before. As I thought, Bea really is a kind person. ¡°I see, we¡¯ll do that then. Bea¡¯s a very kind person after all.¡± Bea turnedpletely red, as I kissed her forehead, then we left the office. ¡°.......His excellency is amazing-nya. He called the current madam a kind person, he must have a high level of tolerance-nya.¡± ¡°I was too scared to even move.¡± ¡°She didn¡¯t even tell us not to intervene, but we couldn¡¯t go near her.......¡± I heard Katalina and the others¡¯ words somewhere in the back, as I hurried to my private quarters. ¡°Now, Bea. How is it? Do you have self-awareness?¡± ¡°I do.......I am not a child after all. Also, I can sit by myself.¡± ¡®I knew from everyone¡¯s reactions. But leaving this aside......I wonder if he will let me sit on his lp?¡¯ With a face like broken domino pieces, Bea sat on myp hesitantly. Since the tsundere Bea, that only I knew, came back to life, the tension was extremely high. As I brushed her silky hair, I asked as nicely as I could. ¡°In this position, I can feel your warmth, Bea, so I kind of like it. Also, when did this start?¡± ¡°In this case, it can¡¯t be helped. Let me think......About two days ago or so.¡± ¡®I¡¯m embarrassed but I¡¯ll endure it! Zest-sams is such a spoiled child!¡¯ ¡°Two days ago?......You¡¯re not feeling sick or anything, right?¡± ¡°Yes, I feel great.¡± ¡®Fufu, you worry too much.¡¯ Beaughed and her face looked like she was nning my murder or something. If people who didn¡¯t know what I knew were to see her, her smile would definitely look so dark that they would start crying. However, the cause is unknown, huh?.......It¡¯s good that there¡¯s no problem with her physical condition.......Except that it isn¡¯t good!! Should I ask Toto about this? When I think about it, Bea changed right after Toto showed up. I didn¡¯t have much time to think because my clothes were pulled down suddenly. ¡°Zest-sama? Who are you thinking about in front of your wife?¡± ¡®I understand that you¡¯re worrying about my current condition, but you said it in front of everyone, that they weren¡¯t allowed to disturb us.......I was so embarrassed I could die!¡¯ Why was she embarrassed? ......Ah!! I see. We¡¯re just the two of us in a room that cannot be entered! My words meant something like don¡¯t interrupt a couple¡¯s business.......I¡¯ve done it this time. ¡°So-sorry. I didn¡¯t do it on purpose, but I let them misunderstand my words.¡± ¡°Was it a misunderstanding?¡± ¡®Was it a misunderstanding?¡¯ Bea¡¯s outer and inner voices harmonized as she asked me, and I couldn¡¯t resist her. As I felt the warmth of her arms twined around my neck, Bea and I became one....... ¡°Your excellency, I¡¯m sorry to disturb you when you¡¯re tired......Toto-sama wants to talk to you.¡± ¡°Stop the tired thing. If Bea hears you, you¡¯ll be rust on her bardiche! All right, Albert?¡± A little time passed since we finished our business, and I was drinking tea when the revived mongrel came to inform me. At this precise moment I felt big-hearted, so I wouldn¡¯t get angry because of something like this. And since Bea was asleep in the next room, he was safe. ¡°Bring Toto here then. It¡¯s perfect since I also wanted to talk to her.¡± ¡°Yes sir! Right away!........Are you really not tired? As I thought, your excellency has amazing stamina.¡± Hahaha, Albertughed, as he went to bring Toto to me. Does he not know the word delicacy? Is this a trait of all kemonobito people? I¡¯ll have Suu finish that handbook quickly......Otherwise, you never know when you step on and mine. I was amazed, but still kept pouring tea for myself, as I waited for them toe back. ¡°We kept you waiting!¡± (Dad, you had a lot of funst night, right!) With a bright smile on her face, Toto informed me in a telepathic message. This is the mongrel¡¯s doing. ¡°Albert, you fool, what are you teaching Toto!?¡± ¡°Your excellency, it¡¯s a misunderstanding! I didn¡¯t say anything!!¡± (It wasn¡¯t the mongrel. The Garbera fridge taught me! That in case Mom and Dad went to sleep together, I should say this to you.) That fridge did something unnecessary.......Since she¡¯ll being to the wedding ceremony, I¡¯ll tell her a thing or two. However, it wasn¡¯t the mongrel.......I did him wrong. Sorry........But this word never came out. (The mongrel said to the ck knights that if you train three times per night it is perfect and you end up working hard until morning! Dad, what did they train for?) ¡°Toto, close your eyes and cover your ears for a little bit.¡± (All right! I¡¯ll keep them closed tightly!) ¡°Albert, I told you not to bring Toto to your drinking parties, didn¡¯t I?¡± ¡°But I didn¡¯t! Toto-sama mixed up with us before we could even notic-gyoufu!!!¡± I hit the mongrel right in his neck with a strengthened punch epassing my entire magic power. He spited out foam and was convulsing, but he was still alive, so it was oaky. The foaming out of his mouth was mixed with blood, but he was all right........I ced Toto on my shoulder and I brushed her hair, as she still kept her eyes closed. (Can I open my eyes now? Besides, Dad, what did you train forst night?) ¡°.......Cu-curry.......It¡¯s a Japanese dish, you know?¡± For some reason, I had to bring in this world the existence of curry........ I couldn¡¯t think of anything else to answer her....... Chapter 144: Increasing Work Arrangements Chapter 144: Increasing Work Arrangements ¡°......I see. So, if Bea stays away from you, she returns to her older self, is that right, Toto?¡± (Yes! Mom¡¯s dark magic is too strong after all.) I physically silenced Albert, then Toto exined me about Bea¡¯s situation. It appears that if Toto stays close to her, everything is all right....... ¡°So nothing is wrong with her body in particr?¡± (No, she¡¯s all right! Since that isn¡¯t an illness. Mom and I don¡¯t usually get sick.) ¡°I see.....Then, will you stay with Bea, Toto? I love both Beas, but in her current situation she might remember the past, so she will be sad. Don¡¯t you think that she¡¯ll be too pitiful that way?¡± (Understood. I will stay close to Mom!) Toto answered me as she chewed on a cookie. As always, she¡¯s in a very good mood when she eats sweets. I honestly regret that the tsundere, dark Bea will disappear, but it can¡¯t be helped since this affects the administration of my territory. (Fufufu, you care about Mom a lot, right, Dad!?) ¡°Of course I do. I love you and Wis too, but as my daughters. Bea is the only one I love as a woman. When you¡¯ll grow up, you¡¯ll understand this, Toto.¡± Toto, who sat directly on top of the table, looked at me, and her expression changed from a cute smile to a broad grin. ........She looks indeed like a mini Bea, but I wonder what happened? I was about to ask her, but then I felt something warm around my neck. ¡°When I was finally able to get some good sleep......I woke up because of your noisiness. Obviously, you will take responsibility for this, right, Zest-sama?¡± ¡®Zest-sama, you¡¯re saying such things even when I¡¯m not around.......I¡¯m embarrassed, but very happy!¡¯ I was hugged from behind, and I couldn¡¯t move around. Bea¡¯s face looked like she was ring at a molester, but her actions were quite the contrary. She hugged me and rubbed her cheeks on my face. Her clothes.......As one would expect, she was wearing some.......But, she was wearing thin night-clothes than made my heart race. ¡°Bea, in this case, shall we go to sleep together? We can talk detailed stuff tomorrow.¡± (Then, Toto will clean up around here and go sleep with Wis! Good night.) Toto understood the situation and sent a magic bullet into Albert in order to move him. Which reminds me that he didn¡¯t wake up at all after receiving a punch in the neck from me....Is he all right? .......Well, this is Albert, so I bet he¡¯s all right. For now, I¡¯ll just ignore everything else......Bea¡¯s eyes are saying ¡®I won¡¯t let you fall asleep!¡¯ so I must work hard. ¡°Well then, Katalina. Thisst period was quite difficult for you. Bea will be back to herself in a few days, so don¡¯t worry about this. Also, since we will have some new citizens, I¡¯ll leave the arrangements to you. Everything is written in these documents, so please look them over.¡± ¡°Certainly-nya. This is helpful-nya.¡± ¡°There are also some business ns among those documents. Your work load will increase, but.......Was the Mizuta Mari incident your doing?¡± ¡°Nya!? Ye-yes.¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯ll ignore it this time. Just in case, next time, let me know about something like this beforehand, all right? I also sent a letter to the demons, so she¡¯ll be here soon. If we don¡¯t put a bell around her neck, she can be quite dangerous. You do understand, right?¡± ¡°Yes. I¡¯ll make arrangements for a few people from the intelligence unit to always stay next to her-nya. They¡¯ll be doing this under the pretext of guarding her. As for her treatment, will it be all right to treat her as your excellency¡¯s precious retainer-nya?¡± In my office, Katalina and I were having a business meeting. Since yesterday I fully replenished my Bea ingredient, I was now in perfect form. ¡°Do that. Ah, I will promote both you and Albert. I¡¯ll also leave these preparations to you, all right? Albert will be a marquis and you will be a count.¡± ¡°Yes, understood......Nyanya!?¡± ¡°You do all my internal administration. My dominion includes that kemonobito fishing vige as well......Since I also n to build a harbor, that will be our first source of ie.¡± ¡°Wa-wait a second-nya, please! Me a count-nya??¡± Katalina dropped the documents she had in her hands and asked me hurriedly. ¡°Are you perhaps discontent? I can only name one marquis, and that will be Albert.......I know. You will also be Wis¡¯ nanny. You have to endure this now.¡± ¡°Nya!? Youngdy Wis¡¯ nanny!?¡± She gathered half of those documents, but dropped them again when she heard this. Oi oi, are you that astonished? ¡°You¡¯re the only one I can ask this to. Listen! Supposing that something happens to me, you will be Wis¡¯ guardian and continue to manage my dominion. Bea and Suu both agree with me on this. Also, when Wis bes an adult, please help her when she needs.¡± ¡°Of, of course I will-nya! I have absolutely no problem with helping the children of your excellency-nya!¡± ¡°I¡¯ll leave it to you then! Also, I have one more favor to ask.¡± ¡°Yes. Ask me anything-nya.¡± ¡°In case Wis turns out to be someone unfitted for an archduchess......send her to a remote vige. You will have the authorization to do this, so it¡¯ll be up to your judgement.¡± ¡°........Do you understand what you¡¯re saying-nya?¡± Katalina gave up on gathering the documents, and stared at me with a serious expression. Precisely because I do, I have to say this. ¡°Albert is as he is. Even if Wis turns out to be a blockhead, he¡¯ll follow her nheless. Suu is the same. She will never agree to force Wis to retire early. As for Bea.......It will be impossible for her to keep her daughter away from power, precisely because she¡¯s strongly conscious as a noblewoman. However, this way, the people will have to suffer, you know?¡± ¡°............¡± ¡°Therefore, you are the only one who can do this. One of the reasons my archduke¡¯s household hasn¡¯t employed the intelligence unit is this. Economic strength and the intelligence unit......These will be your powers. This way, neither Bea, nor Albert.........nor Wis will be able to take you lightly.¡± ¡°Are you sure about this-nya? It is dangerous to offer so much power to your subordinates, you know that-nya?¡± ¡°I am doing this precisely because my subordinate warned me that this is dangerous. Since I am a jumped-up person, my household¡¯s honor or status are not important to me. I only want my family to be able to live safely. Therefore, I¡¯ll rely on you......It¡¯ll be a nightmare if a civil war starts in the future. So, if my family can continue to live quietly, then that is fine with me.......I am leaving this in your care then, all right?¡± ¡°I will definitely protect your excellency¡¯s family-nya! Therefore, there is nothing to worry about-nya!¡± Katalina said and looked at me, then she continued as she looked me straight in the eyes. ¡°First, I will educate youngdy Wis in order to be a wonderful ruler-nya. I won¡¯t let anyone interfere with this-nya.¡± ¡°Yeah, I entrusted you with this precisely because you know what pain is. It¡¯s up to you now.¡± ¡°It¡¯s just that........¡± ¡°What? Is there a problem?¡± Her face looked a little worried as she continued. ¡°I¡¯m a little worried about lord Albert bing a marquis......Mainly with a domestic affairs¡¯ meaning.¡± ¡°Ev-everything will be all right if you often rotate the officials.......¡± ¡°But......Ah! I just thought of something great-nya! There¡¯s a perfect person for this job-nya!¡± ¡°Who is it? Who¡¯s the convenient person you¡¯re talking about?¡± ¡°It¡¯s Meril-sama! Lord Albert¡¯s wife, Meril-sama is perfect for this-nya. Thatdy graduated the nobles¡¯ school as the head of her ss-nya. She was also invited by the Frontier Count¡¯s household to work there as a civil official, so she truly is a talented woman-nya! We must immediately summon her and discuss this matter-nya!¡± ¡°In this case, summon Meril. We must probe her quickly, since she¡¯s also busy with raising her children.¡± The moment I said this, the door opened vigorously with a bang. As I feared, it was Albert. ¡°Please wait, your excellency. I know that this might be rude, but I have to say it. You enjoyed yourself too, didn¡¯t you, your excellency? I also enjoyed myself without knowing they were men!? Therefore, my wife.......Meril.......Please keep this a secret from her!! If you say this is impossible, then I¡¯ll offer you my head right away!!¡± ¡°Your excellency, what is he talking about-nya? Enjoying yourself with men?¡± ¡°Albert, I¡¯ll put you to rest with one punch. Come closer.¡± And so, the mongrel destroyed the serious mood......However, the damage didn¡¯t stop at that point. ¡°.......Zest-sama........Did you enjoy yourself with men? I do want to know the details.¡± (Dad! Toto didn¡¯t say anything! It was the dog who talked!) Toto, if you say this now, you only make it worse....... Chapter 145: Albert’s Depression Chapter 145: Albert¡¯s Depression ¡°Zest-sama, you are an important nobleman, you know? Therefore, you must be careful so that this does not happen again. Going out in the city is not what nobles do.¡± ¡®I¡¯m more shocked that you thought I would get angry because of this, than of the subject itself.......I must be a little more gentle, otherwise he¡¯ll hate me!¡¯ (Dad, is the mongrel still alive?) For the sin to have mistook men for women when he guided us to that shop, Albert received my punch and copsed. I didn¡¯t do it because he exposed our secret incident though. ¡°You¡¯re right. I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯ll weight the situation better from now on.......¡± ¡°Also, do you always feel like going out because you don¡¯t want to drink with me? Well, you probably lost your interest in me already, since Ie from a countryside noble household.¡± ¡®I really want to drink sake with him sometime.......Maybe I am not charming enough......¡¯ (!? He moved! Amazing! The mongrel sure is sturdy!) Toto, that was a convulsion, so it¡¯s rather a dangerous sign, you know? Since I¡¯d be troubled if he died, I used healing magic on him. ¡°Losing interest in you, Bea, is impossible. Let¡¯s take our time and have a couple of drinks together this evening. I can stay here for one more day or so.¡± ¡°.......Right. It can¡¯t be helped then, I¡¯ll keep youpany since I¡¯m your wife and everything. So, we¡¯ll be together this evening......Only thinking about it made me feel sick, therefore you¡¯ll have to excuse me now.¡± ¡®Yeeeey! I must go prepare for tonight!!¡¯ Bea said and took Toto with her as she quickly left the room. Will she prepare some evening snacks or something? In this case, I must be careful not to eat too much this afternoon. Since I finished healing the mongrel, I sat on a chair. I have not done any work yet, so I must finish this now. ¡°Fuu. He looks considerably better now, but it¡¯s still scary-nya.¡± ¡°Your excellency, I was very close to death this time......Excuse me, but it appears that Ick sufficient training!¡± Katalina saw the whole incident from beginning to end, so she was now pulling back a little. And there was Albert, who just made a recovery. You, that¡¯s what you apologize for? ¡°From now on, everything will slowly return to normal. I will trouble you for a little while, Katalina, but I¡¯m relying on you. Albert, you must think a little before talking.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it-nya.¡± ¡°Your excellency, there are thing I can do and things I cannot do. Thinking before speaking is extremely difficult for me!¡± With a rather fresh and clear expression, the mongrel just called himself a fool. It can¡¯t be helped now that he said this. ¡°I see.......Then, I will entrust Meril with this. It appears that she¡¯s quite an excellent woman, so I¡¯ll have her train you.¡± ¡°We can safely leave this in Meril-sama¡¯s hands-nya.¡± ¡°Wha!? Will you tell this to my wife too?¡± When I was about to tell him that this wasn¡¯t the case, someone knocked on the door. It seems like she arrived. ¡°Excuse me. Meril-sama is here.¡± ¡°Let her in.¡± ¡°Certainly!¡± A few minutes after we heard the reply, Meril entered the room. Albert¡¯s face turned ashen......Are you that scared of her? ¡°Meril-sama is a very strict person-nya. She¡¯s actually famous for being particrly severe with men-nya.¡± ¡°That is wonderful! She¡¯s perfect for your education, Albert. You¡¯re bing a marquis after all, so you have to give up.¡± ¡°.......Yes sir.¡± Even his ears hanged down, and I felt that this despondent and defeated Albert was kind of charming. I have no interest in men, but I might have animal instincts or something. Thinking about such stupid things, the woman who was strict with the above-mentioned man entered the room. ¡°It¡¯s been a long time, your excellency Zest. I am Meril, Albert¡¯s wife.¡± She said and lowered her head. She had reddish blond hair and loose curls. Her face was gentle and she looked like a nurse. Is Albert perhaps strange for fearing such a woman? ¡°It¡¯s been a while, Meril. Is everything going smoothly with child raising? Isn¡¯t it too much for your physical condition?¡± ¡°Thanks to you, everything is going smoothly. My son and I, we¡¯re both too energetic even.¡± ¡°I see. Health is the most important thing. Don¡¯t hesitate to call me in case something troubles you.¡± ¡°Thank you for your words, it is an honor for me.¡± It doesn¡¯t matter that she¡¯s Albert¡¯s wife, first we must do some idle talk. This was the noble people¡¯s conversation flow. On the contrary, talking about the main topic all of a sudden would be too impolite. It¡¯s safe to do this with your subordinates, but this woman was still nothing but the wife of my subordinate. ¡°By the way, Meril. I have various things to discuss with you today. Also, it¡¯s not going to be a bad talk.¡± The four of us sat at a table, and I waited for the right timing to break the ice and talk about the main problem. Since she has a small child, she probably doesn¡¯t want to be away from home for too long. ¡°The truth is, I am thinking to make Albert a marquis......However, there are no problems with his armed might or loyalty, but.........¡± ¡°Forgive me!¡± I only went to say this far, but Meril lowered her head energetically. So, did she already understand the problem? ¡°Because this mongrel is a fool, you¡¯re probably worried about internal politics and social life, am I right? Please rest assured. I will work as a civil official. Also, I will firmly educate him at home.¡± ¡°Err, when you said mongrel did you refer to me?¡± ¡°Who gave you permission to talk? If you want to talk in front of his excellency, you must first ask for permission. If you don¡¯t even know this, you will cause problems for his excellency.¡± ¡°Right, right.¡± ¡°Besides, do you even know why this was no good? That¡¯s because a superior is having a conversation. Interrupting it from the side is very disrespectful, you know?¡± I watched as Albert got scolded, and checked Katalina too. She drank tea as she nodded continuously. I see now. This woman is very strict when ites to manners. ¡°You did understand, right? If you did, then start preparing for that!¡± ¡°He-here?¡± The nurse-san red at the troubled Albert and took something out. .......Urm, isn¡¯t it a breach of manners for a woman to take something out from a breast pocket? This troubled me deeply, but I didn¡¯t say anything. That¡¯s because I never thought she would take out a thorned whip from that spot. ¡°Zest-sama, do you know about the kemonobito folk¡¯s expression of affection?¡± ¡°Yo-you use a whip for that, right? Go ahead, go ahead.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t mind it either-nya. Please go ahead-nya.¡± Because the permission was given unanimously, the mongrel had no other choice but to sit on the floor in a seiza position. Are you all right? Your face is ghastly pale, you know? Do you hate it that much? ¡°Then, excuse me. Well now, let¡¯s confirm our affection as you repeat what you just learned!¡± ¡°......I¡¯m counting on you.¡± With a smile on her face like that of a holy woman, Meril wielded the whip, and as she hit him vigorously enough that blood oozed out, Albert kept on replying ¡®Thank you very much!¡¯. I drank tea as I watched this strange spectacle. ¡°Say, Katalina......Was this within your expectation?¡± ¡°As one would expect, this was unforeseen-nya. But, this way he¡¯ll definitely remember this-nya.¡± I looked at Katalina, who kept her calm but was in fact trembling, and I thought again. The reason why there are few kemonobito nobles is also for this strange practice. At first sight, it looks very abnormal. I must hurry Suu to finish that handbook.......But I didn¡¯t have time to keep thinking of this...... ¡°Then, thest repetition.¡± ¡°I cannot interrupt the conversation of someone who has a superior court rank!!¡± ¡°You did good. Let¡¯s stop here then.¡± ¡°Thank you very much!¡± The animal training......I mean, the expression of affection ended. Meril sweated a little, though she soon returned to her gentle smile. You can¡¯t even imagine that she just a moment ago hit her husband with a whip.......Which is her true nature, I wonder? ¡°For the time being, we¡¯ll go with this n. Also, I don¡¯t mind if you bring your child to the office with you.¡± ¡°Eeh!? Something like that......Is it really all right with you-nya?¡± ¡°My child? Your excellency, that is.......but........¡± Aah, so you don¡¯t usually bring your children to your work ce in this world? Then, I¡¯ll add this to the features of my dominion. ¡°A nursery school......Let¡¯s make preparations to build a ce where many children are taken care of and where people work as educators. A territory with few children has no future. Let¡¯s put this in practice on my dominion, so that people won¡¯t worry about having children anymore.¡± ¡°I see-nya. Your excellency espresses the importance of poption-nya.¡± ¡°A nursery school?.......Leaving nobles aside, this is more than wee formoners.¡± ¡°I will also introduce the maternity leave. Such trivial concerns will bring prosperity to my dominion......¡± We were about to have a very unlikely good talk, when someone knocked on the door with just the usual timing. Incidentally, the mongrel used up all his strength and was currently knocked out. ¡°Your excellency, the sister came to see you.......What shall we do?¡± ........Since I troubled her during Bea¡¯s delivery, I can¡¯t ignore her now. I ordered for the junky sister to be led to the reception room. .......Again.......It is time for a cryptanalysis. Chapter 146: A Trap Called Custom Chapter 146: A Trap Called Custom ¡°Katalina,e with me. Meril, what will you do? Are you going back for now?¡± ¡°No, I have something to talk with you.....Could I wait here?¡± ¡°All right. I¡¯ll be back as soon as the meeting with the sister ends, so you can take your time and rx until then.¡± She sat right next to the still copsed Albert; I took Katalina with me and went to the reception room. Being alone with the sister in a locked room is kind of scary. To say nothing of the fact that she¡¯s he next Pope-sama........I¡¯m d Katalina is here. ¡°We¡¯ve kept you waiting. Sister........You helped us a lot during Bea¡¯s delivery.¡± ¡°Thank you for your consideration-nya.¡± This was a proud way of talking but it can¡¯t be helped for an archduke. Instead, Katalina said an expression of thanks. If I were to say it, it would¡¯ve been all sorts of problematic. ¡°No, it was only natural since this was God¡¯s intent. The trees in which small birds take shelter from rain don¡¯t say anything. The same goes for the huge trees which look up at the clear sky. Also, the dark clouds let the rain fall above the ground evenly........Your excellency, Archduke Zest, what do you think of this rain?¡± I was confused by the junky talk just now. Moreover, I was asked a question......I have no idea what to answer. On the side, Katalina¡¯s eyes were wide open. It seems that she didn¡¯t understand either. ¡°Right. The rain?......It brings blessings, but, at the same time, it also brings cmity. In short, it has a bipr meaning, right? Sister, do you have any word of advice for me?¡± Shocked, Katalina turned around to look at me. You get surprised too easily, you know? I just said this casually. I didn¡¯t understand a thing the sister said, so don¡¯t get your hopes too high. ¡°You are just like Pope-sama described you in the letter......This was a wonderful answer. A miracle born from God¡¯s power.¡± She said and made a praying pose. It appears that my answer was correct.......Oi, understanding your words and giving you an answer turns this into a miracle? Besides, did she receive a letter from that fridge? ¡°In a house wherend beings and sea beings coexist, trials will often happen. The sea dwellers can¡¯t always grant water. Also, it can¡¯t be said that the sea people don¡¯t need water!¡± This....I can¡¯t catch up with her words...... Still, she kind of seems different today, doesn¡¯t she? She looks like she wants to convey something important to me, but I have no clue about the meaning. ¡°Trials, huh?......Katalina, what do you think?¡± ¡°Nya!?¡± Maybe because the sister looked at her, wearing a rare serious expression on her face, or maybe because I suddenly brought her into this discussion, Katalina¡¯s shoulders shook a little. ¡°Ri-right-nya. Let¡¯s deal with them immediately, your excellency.¡± ¡°As expected from Katalina. Sister, please rest assured.¡± ¡°Aah! I feel like the first time when I entered a chapel. The wind which slides over the calm water surface and swings the trees¡¯ leaves must feel this way too. In delight, the forest trees grow new buds. Even though it¡¯s not necessary.¡± At Katalina¡¯s reply, the sister returned this, smiling and nodding.......She was probably very pleased.....Probably. Is this something that we have to hurry to deal with? This I understood clearly. Sincetely, I am quite in close terms with the sister, she came to warn me, I wonder? ¡°So, what did she mean in the end? I didn¡¯t understand a thing!¡± ¡°......Me too......I didn¡¯t understand what she said-nya!¡± ¡°........¡± ¡°........¡± Alone in the reception room, Katalina and I stared at each other without saying a word. ¡°I can¡¯t criticize you since I didn¡¯t understand either, but........there must have been other ways to answer that question. The way you did, it seemed like wepletely understood the situation, you know?¡± ¡°Forgive me-nya. She looked different than usual so I felt agitated........¡± We returned to my office, but the problem wasn¡¯t resolved. And I can¡¯t go the sister to ask her about this again......This is troubling. ¡°Your excellency. You seem busy so we can talk another day if you want.¡± Meril said in a low voice. No, no. Since I¡¯m going back to the country of elves, we have to talk now, otherwise I don¡¯t know when we can do this again. ¡°It¡¯s all right. We¡¯ll do this now. This problem won¡¯t get solved no matter how much we worry about it, so don¡¯t mind it.¡± ¡°Understood. I said I wanted to consult with you, but in fact it is about me and Albert¡¯s married couple¡¯s business.¡± Without thinking, I spurt out the tea inside my mouth. Katalina coughed too. Ma-married couple¡¯s business.......What the heck is she trying to say...... ¡°Your excellency, are you all right?¡± ¡°Listen, Meril. Are YOU all right? Talking about a married couple¡¯s business, you know.¡± ¡°So this is what they call a natural airhead-nya! It¡¯s scary-nya!¡± She gapped at my and Katalina¡¯s words, but she seemed to understand the meaning, because her face turned bright red. Flustered, she kept waving her hands and she talked. ¡°It-it¡¯s different! I wanted to say marital rtionship.¡± ¡°Hm? How is this different? You two got married because you liked each other, didn¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Yes. Since I am a human, I learned a little about the kemonobito people¡¯s customs, for his sake. However, I can¡¯t put up with this anymore.¡± ¡°Yeah. Many couples of humans and kemonobito on our territory don¡¯t seem to get along too well-nya.¡± Is that so? Well, there are many mixed couples on my territory. Also, I got reports recently that this has started to give birth to all sorts of problems. I never imagined that a noble like Meril would ever talk about this. ¡°Well, calm down now. Why do you think like this? Did Albert cheat on you? Should I cut off one of his arms?¡± ¡°No, it is my fault! He did nothing wrong!¡± She cried as she took out the whip from her chest region. As I said before, that ce is not a container. ¡°This is the cause. I can¡¯t put up with whipping him anymore. I hate it.¡± ¡°......Well, they have some frightening customs.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t seem happy before, your face looked rather hollow-nya.¡± ¡°Katalina, what will happen if you stop using the whip? From the kemonobito folk¡¯s point of view?¡± ¡°That¡¯s......Being all right while getting whipped is also for disy-nya. It¡¯s impossible not to do it-nya. But, if not a whip, then something painful is all right too-nya.¡± ¡°I see.....So you have to hit hard? You can¡¯t do it lightly?¡± ¡°Among kemonobito, it is an unspoken agreement that they go easy on each other. However, since humans usually hit them hard, this result often turns out-nya.¡± ¡°Eeh!? You can hit them lightly too!?¡± Surprised, Meril stood up and she shouted. ¡°That¡¯s right-nya. Even though it looks like the partner hits hard, the agreement is that they go easy on the other-nya. Still, a kemonobito will never talk about this-nya. It¡¯s........because our race¡¯s pride-nya.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t believe this.....I thought that my affection for Albert will be perceived depending on how strong I hit him.......¡± ¡°Well, men want to honor such things-nya. It¡¯s really a troublesome custom-nya.¡± ¡°Then, maybe if you¡¯ll tell me more about it......¡± ¡°It¡¯s prohibited for other people to talk about it-nya. This is a married couple¡¯s talk, so, if I say more than a piece of advice, I¡¯d be treated like I¡¯m meddling into something that is none of my business-nya.¡± Such a troublesome custom.....It¡¯s full of traps...... We must do something, otherwise it might turn ugly. ¡°A disy, huh?......For example, if we created something line this........¡± I exined my n to both of them. I folded a piece of paper and exined, and the girls sat down, listening to me. Once I created and used that thing in practice, their excitement rose to a climax. ¡°This is amazing-nya! We must mass-produce this right away-nya!¡± ¡°This way I¡¯ll be all right too! Thank you very much, your excellency!¡± ¡°I know I came up with this myself, but is this truly enough to solve this matter?¡± Because they were kind of too happy, I pulled back a little. The girls¡¯ tension was at a max level. ¡°This is a ground-breaking invention-nya. Your excellency, this means hope for all the mixed couples-nya!¡± ¡°If I had this from the beginning, we wouldn¡¯t havee to this.....Your excellency, please give your permission for all couples on your dominion to use this thing!¡± ¡°Ah, yeah. I don¡¯t mind. Everyone can use this to their heart¡¯s content. Is this all? Then, I¡¯d like to go to Bea and Whis¡¯ ce if you don¡¯t mind......¡± ¡°Please, please-nya.¡± ¡°We won¡¯t let anyone intrude. Please take your time and rx.¡± And so, I managed to spend the rest of my time here with my family. This refreshed my spirit. The time spent with my wife and holding my baby in my arms.......In order to protect his happiness, I¡¯ll have to deal with the country of elves quickly! I thought about this again. Several dayster, by the time I left for the country of elves, the new item was announced in grand fashion all throughout my dominion. At that time, the following announcement was spread and it addressed everyone in my name, causing a major uproar. And......this is also connected to the incident that happenedter....... ¡®This is to inform all mixed couples I know about the kemonobito folk¡¯s custom to use a whip on the partner in order to show sincerity and bravery. We must value this custom and we need to tell the future generations about it. However, hitting the partner with a whip is halfhearted. Since I prepared for you a new weapon from a different world, you will use it to show your affection even more. This doesn¡¯t mean you will cast aside tradition. This will be the new tradition and custom on my entire dominion. Therefore, worrying is useless. Take the initiative and use this at your hearts¡¯ content, as a custom in the Tarminal region. However, be warned that during the use, loud voices wille out. Grun Empire, Archduke, 1st Rank Imperial Mage, Zest-Gaiyus-Tarminal¡¯ ¡°Oi, this means the end of us!¡± ¡°Yeah, a weapon from a different world.......I¡¯ll definitely die.¡± ¡°Until now we were close to that too.......What will happen from now on.......¡± In order to confirm the use and strength of this new weapon, a few people were called and gathered in front of my mansion. The one selected were all married kemonobito people. They all had human wives and husbands. They all stood in rows with pale faces. In front of them, the fully armed ck knights and war maidens prepared their weapons. ¡°Are you ready-nya? Then, start-nya!¡± At Katalina¡¯s order, they all wielded their weapons simultaneously. These were trained elite soldiers......They couldn¡¯t evenpare to the wives and husbands of the people gathered here. However, this was his excellency¡¯s orders so no one could oppose this.......The participants quickly gritted their teeth. Zbaaaan!! A dry excellent sound drifted about the entire za. The onlookers and the participants¡¯ spouses covered their faces. This sound.......sounded like nothing they¡¯ve heard before. The participants can¡¯t possibly be all right after this...... ¡°......Hmm?¡± ¡°I-I am alive?¡± ¡°Eh? Did something happen just now?¡± The ck knights holding the weapons murmured to the nkly looking participants. ¡°This is the foreign weapon that his excellency created. There is no better thing to show one¡¯s spirit other than this. Its power is precisely as you felt it. This is his excellency¡¯s consideration towards you......From now on, this is what your partners will use.¡± Dumbfounded, the participants received the new weapon and they started to slowlyprehend this unthinkable situation. ¡°This doesn¡¯t hurt as much as the whip!¡± ¡°Aah, there¡¯s not even a need to go easy on us!¡± ¡°This way we can protect our kemonobito pride!!¡± ¡°From now on the whip is banned-nya! This new weapon, the harisen 1, will be used for the kemonobito folk¡¯s custom-nya!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° ¡°Your excellency archduke Zest, banzai 2!!!!!!!!!!!!¡± ¡° ¡° ¡° The savior of mixed couples......If we are to get married, then we better go live on the archduke¡¯s dominion! Such rumors spread, which became the trigger of the explosive poption growth on my territory; people started to immigrate here from many nations. 1. Here¡¯s what a harisen looks like and how it¡¯s used (I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve seen this before) 2. Celebratory cheer Chapter 147 A new mansion

147. A new mansion

"Yareyare, we finally returned to the elven country. Albert" "Your excellency, I¡¯m really thankful. Thanks to you I¡¯m saved" When I returned to the country of elves, once we got off the za, instead of the castle, we were guided to a mansion in one corner of the city, but it is quite a mansion? It wasn¡ät quite a territory mansion, but it was more luxurious and bigger than a nobility mansion of the imperial capital "Do not mind, if you can work with a piece of mind, then this is nothing" "Ha!" While Albert was formally saluting me1, I entered the mansion. Prince Mars and Tsubaki weed me at the entrance. "Thank you for your trouble, this is a nice residence." "Wee back, foster father. The prime minister agreed to arrange it for you." "Thanks for your hard work, father-inw. That old hag... Master said it was better to have a mansion, so we arranged it." Fumu... Since my subordinates increased, Kachua wants a ce where we are able to scheme, and prime minister¡¯s interests matched since he wanted to apologize for his situation however, this kind of mansion aren¡ät usually vacant. "So... Who was the original owner of this mansion?" "Yes, this was my mansion...but I don¡ät need it anymore." The prince that answered while looking down a bit. Really? If you be a king then you won¡ät any use for this house... I wonder if you remembered your father¡¯s death. "Actually, I built a new mansion! One that is suitable for receiving Tsubaki, and draws a line with this old-fashioned mansion... Guughho!!" "Really, prince Mars. We cannot give such an old-fashioned mansion to foster father. Surely, this must be a misunderstanding." She made a single blow to his stomach with a smile on her face. You got a lot of work ahead of you, Tsubaki. "That¡¯s right, I guess he needs to be more considerate... my son-inw that is. You need to avoid saying unnecessary things" "Ye... Yes, i will be careful." "Foster father, I will thoroughly educate him! I will make use of the iron fan that I received from foster mother" At formal ces with the iron fan, at informal ces with the bardiche, it seems the custom was sessfully passed down... Good luck, my son-inw. "Your excellency is that okay? about the iron fan of the next queen..." "Albert, about Bea¡¯s gift? you weren¡¯t about to say something against it... were you?" "Yes! It¡¯s extremely suitable, I was wondering if prince Mars needed to be appropriately equipped as his excellency son-inw" "I guess so... he¡¯ll probably be." While having such exchange, three men were headed towards the living room with a heavy footsteps. "Hey, Albert, can you hear it?" "Yes! I can hear it. Your excellency, please take care." "Huh? I don¡¯t hear anything." "Foster father can strengthen his hearing with magical power, there should not be anyone in this office. " We arrive in front of the office, and stop in front of the door. There seems to be a suspicious individual inside... to be able to sneak inside this mansion one must have considerable ability. Battle maids, ck knights and the intelligence unit are stationed here. Any normal person would be found immediately and killed "There is just one person, isn¡ät that careless? Albert, protect Tsubaki, the other party looks weaker than me, but it looks like it will be difficult. You guys probably wouldn¡¯t be able to win." "Yes! i will concentrate on defense. Lady Tsubaki2, Prince Mars please get behind me." Albert prepares to withdraw the sword from his waist. Huh? Were you able to strengthen your body with magical power?! Well done!! "Isn¡¯t that a really difficult technique? You¡¯re the first person i see that uses it aside from master3... Well done" "Because I decided to be your Excellency¡¯s shield. If i can¡ät at least manage this then I¡¯m disqualified." "Beautiful control of magical power! It¡¯s amazing, Albert." "Tsu!?A-Albert can do this too!!" The two in the back of Albert be stunned. Why? It was a little frustrating... I guess i can¡¯t call him a mongrel anymore. "Okay, lets proceed." I watch Albert just before opening the door. He nodded, and I opened my door and jumped in while strengthening my magical power! What I saw there... was a fridge settled in the middle of a luxurious room... "... What are you doing here?" Making *Garann* sounds it turns around. A Refrigerator. There is no doubt ... this guy is Garbera... "This... fellow... It moves..." "The... the magic tool moved by itself... What is it?" "You two, please fall back! It¡¯s dangerous." Albert stays vignt, but if it¡¯s this guy then it¡¯s alright. Prince Mars, stop what you¡¯re saying since it¡¯s rude. "It¡¯s Zest! atst you returned, I¡¯ve been waiting!" "I-it talked!?" "It¡¯s a girl?!" "I-is it one of your excellency¡¯s acquaintances?" To Garbera speaking while making a rattling sound, this guys are surprised. Well, it¡¯s only natural when a refrigerator speaks and moves like this. "Yeah, you don¡¯t need to be on guard because I know this guy. Why are you here? Garbera." "It is awful! Even though a girl is crying, they ignore her! It¡¯s a devil!" A fridge that rattles while moving the door with a pitter-patter As usual it is a surreal sight ... and even if it is said that she is crying, how should I judge? "Gerbera, even if I am told that you¡¯re crying, it seems to me that you¡¯re just rattling and the door just fluttering?" "That¡¯s it! The sound is automatic ice making! That is my tears!" "I-is that so? So the ice spilling since a little while ago... that... Cheer up." "Well, I will forgive you. Instead, I want you to defrost meter!" Was it in a good mood? the rat ling sounds sounds disappeared when Garbera talks. Three people with dot eyes were watching behind me. Aa, I guess they need an exnation. But the things about the Pope must remain hidden. "Everyone, this is Garbera the Spirit. She¡¯s also a friend of Toto." "Nice to meet you, I¡¯m Garbera, you can also call me Pope!" Hey, is it okay to say that? There is no meaning to try to cover it now... With the remarks that seemed to be extraordinarily confusing, the office was wrapped in silence. "Were you Pope Garbera? I¡¯m sorry I did something impolite, I¡¯m Crown Prince Mars. This is my fiancee..." "I¡¯m Zest adoptive daughter Tsubaki, nice to meet you." "I¡¯m Garbera. My best regards to both of you! I usually don¡¯t speak like this because of my appearance like grandmother... but it¡¯s alright if you¡¯re Zest¡¯s children." Perhaps it is in a good mood, the refrigerator seems to have fun speaking I have to introduce him too. "Garbera, this is my right hand man." "I¡äm Albert, your Holiness." "Nice to meet you! Make sure you protect Zest." It is a mysterious the sight of nobles greeting a refrigerator, the other party is the Pope though... I guess this type of situations are bound to happen if I¡¯m to maintain a close rtionship with sacred country Lc "Pope Garbera being a spirit is a secret, treat it with utmost confidentiality" ""Yes!"" "Certainly, foster father." "So, why was Garbera in this room? this is unusual..." "Oh, I will exin that. I came as a magic tool pretending to be a gift from the Holy Country of Lc." Oh so she just mimicked a magic tool and came here... Mimicry... What? "It was hard! i was touched in the butt, i was really embarrassed but I endured it!" Where is her ass? I need a moment to process all this. And there shouldn¡¯t any idiot who is pleased by touching a refrigerator¡¯s ass. "We-well... that was awful... Although now I understand the circumstances, why go through such a thing? Is something the matter?" The refrigerator opens its doors with a *pakatsu* Maybe she just remembered4 "That¡äs right! There was something i wanted to tell directly to you!" The refrigerator tells me with her open door towards me while spreading cold. "Congrattions! Zest¡¯s daughter... Wisteria was chosen to be the spirit princess! So the spirits will always be by Zest¡¯s and Bea¡¯s side. They¡äll be able to befriend Wis that way! Everybody wins!" I felt like being hit by a cold wind... Spirits... their princess?? My daughter who seems to have been recognized as a mysterious princess... What will happen to Wis¡¯ future? I... I do not seem to be able to escape from hardship 1. something like this 2. original addresses them as Tsubaki-tachi, how nice is such an indeterminate suffix for plural, except when one is trying to trante it. 3. wasn¡¯t Zest also able to reinforce himself? 4. original expresses all of this as "hatsu" representing this Chapter 148 - Wis t.i.tle

Chapter 148 Wis¡¯ t.i.tle

TL: Dragox "So, Gerbera. Princess of the Spirit? What is that exactly?" We sat on the sofa take out the pudding from the fridge and sit It¡¯s not a time to eat... But Garbera was pretty insistent about it, so I will eat while I ask. "Ufufu,Spirit princess is someone who can use both light and dark magic! Being near her is reallyfortable." She says while rocking the meatpartment with a rattling sound. ... No, I wonder if this counts as puffing her chest.1 "So, when she bes a princess... will there be something like constrains or obligations?" "There¡¯s not such a thing! It just means that she¡¯s someone whom all spirits will cherish." Oh, then I wee it. Something like having her fiancee arranged or the like, It seems it isn¡¯t something like that. "Really. Then, is it okay if she has a normal life?" "That¡¯s right. If the spirits cane and y with her, they¡¯ll be really happy!" "It will be fine if it is about that. I will convey it to my territory as well." "Please do. I wish to meet her soon!" There¡¯s a rattling sound, it seems that Garbera¡¯s ice making is at full throttle. ... Didn¡¯t you say that the ice making was your tears? Ahh, I don¡¯t feel like making a tsukkomi anymore "I understood the gist of the story, but did you reallye to this country just for that?" "Since I was invited to the wedding it was just right. I couldn¡¯t refuse since it is the wedding of Zest¡¯s adopted daughter." The refrigerator said while making another pudding. It seems that it is just in Tsubaki¡¯s strike zone, her momentum while eating is terrifying. "Oh, there¡äs one more thing to tell you" "... It won¡¯t be something more surprising than the thing of the spirit princess just now, will it?" While closing its door with a *batan* the refrigerator says with even more power in its words "In Lc Wisteria will be acknowledged as a spirit shrine maiden.2 That child¡¯s enemies will be the enemies of the holy country of Lc! She will definitely be safe!" "... I guess that can¡¯t be refused." With this, His majesty the emperor will have his worries increased by one. This time it is not my fault, His majesty will have to give up on this one. "Master, please slow down. To make an agreement of protection with the holy country of Lc just after returning... Do you n on waging war against the empire?" "Suu, what are you expecting from me..." After the refrigerator drops a bomb, we start talking about the future inside the office Prince and Tsubaki said "We are afraid that this conversation is too big for us, we will go back for today." and exited. I guess... they just dumped the whole trouble to me. "Then, you should immediately inform the imperial capital. Even the appearance of the spirit princess is important. There is a need to acknowledge the new holy country¡¯s "spirit shrine maiden" It¡¯s the first time there¡¯s one since the legendary saint of the scriptures. Unless you send Albert as messenger to notify His majesty the emperor, this will be troublesome." "T-to be such an important thing... It seems my studies in religion were not enough." I saw Suu appealing with a serious look, it made me realize the importance of the situation. The sole religion of this world are the teachings of the holy cou ntry of Lc. Just thinking that my daughter will be put in the same position as the saint in their scriptures makes me shudder. "Perhaps, isn¡¯t this too outrageous?" "It is, so we must proceed ordingly" "That¡¯s right... in the empire they are too conscious of powerful beings, but the elf country there shouldn¡¯t be any problems." "Your friendship with the holy country is already firmly established. Some people will start to say that there is no need to belong to the empire with this. Even more, there is an increasing number of aristocrats that try to draw close to Master. And isn¡¯t there¡¯s already a long line of people that wish to arrange a marriage with youngdy Wis?" "If someone wants to marry Wis, they will have to beat me first. I will never approve it!" "Master, that kind of line will make you disliked by your daughter. Please be careful." Suu told me while she was preparing tea. So I will be hated... Yosh, lets try to defeat the challenger in secret. "I will avoid being disliked. So, whates after notifying His Majesty?" "Likewise we need to inform lord Katalina, and the Frontier Count. I guess there will be a need for various preparations." "Understood. I will write a letter for His Majesty. I will entrust the rest to you." "Certainly!" With this I guess we can wrap up the matters regarding Wis for the time being. Although it became troublesome, if we regard it in terms of her safety safety, it will be perfect. "What about the report from the intelligence unit?" "Yes, the Prime Minister seems to be busy preparing for the wedding. He can not deal with our movements at the moment. It seems that 50% of the n.o.bles supporting the prime minister can be taken in" She picks up paper from her pocket and starts reporting Since Suu basically keeps track of everything, it has be easy since she can brief me on everything. "If thing goes on like this, the problems of the country of elves will be easily solved. However, the Prime Minister doesn¡¯t seem like the kind of person that will lose without fighting. He prepares carefully to have certain victory, histest setbacks will make him more cautious... negligence is forbidden." "Do you think he has a hidden card...?" Because I am trying to aim at the royalty of one country, I wonder if I am confident enough. It is certainly dangerous to get careless. "Besides the intelligence troops, the new recruits... are they being useful?" "The cross dressers? They are quite excellent. They are perfect for information gathering and plotting." That¡¯s right... their etiquette is top notch, and judging from appearances alone, they are beautiful. Many would be attracted to them... Only to suffer serious damage when they find the truth. It is horrible just to think about it. "There might be a problem with having cross dressers at our territory. What is their interaction with the rest of my people like?" "They are doing fine under the supervision of lord Media and lord Tasel." "That¡¯s fine. give them my praises for their good job." "I will definitely convey your words." I have one cookie and drink tea. Sweet things are great when one¡¯s tired. "Is there anything else?" "There are a lot of applications for visits from high-ranking aristocrats in other countries attending the wedding ceremony. Please check backter." The list she handed up was really heavy. Do i need to meet so many? Isn¡¯t it okay to reduce the list? "They were all carefully selected, we can¡¯t reduce them anymore." "Oh, okay." Aftering back to the country of elves, for a while it seems that it has be an interview festival It seems it will continue until Tsubaki¡¯s wedding... Haa~... "Thank you for your hard work. All the visits are nowpleted ... for today¡¯s minute portion" It really is! When you look at the schedule at hand, there is still much more! Even though those are my thoughts, my voice doesn¡¯te out 20 meetings are too many for a single day... "Hey, about the amount of meetings per day..." "If you reduce them you will not finish in time for the wedding. I¡¯m thinking about Master." "if we make a ball instead of meetings, I could speak to all of them in one stroke." "You would have to dance with thedies. Wouldn¡¯t that make it an extra effort?" As you said ... Bing so tired with just the male, if I have to also attend their female partners, I will certainly die. "Ask for the meetings." "Certainly." Suu prepares ck tea... or not, it is a herbal tea. Ohh... It has a healing fragroance. "This is good. My fatigue seems to be lighter." "It is a gift from His Majesty the Emperor. It is foralleviating worries." Majesty! Thank you! With this, it will be a little bit easier. "I should write a thank you letter." "It seems it came with a request to arrange a fiancee for youngdy Wis." "... There¡¯s no need for a thank you letter." "Understood." Albert delivered my letter as a messenger, it seems he copsed to his knees the moment he read it. It seems the letter that was handed to His Majesty made him to age at least 10 years. "You, absolutely stop the rebellion." It was written with a shaky handwriting. Your Majesty, I¡¯m already doing that so please be relieved. "Apart from the joke, Wis¡¯ marriage partner may be royalty" "Would that be so strange? Anyway it¡¯s okay, that is still a talk for the future." "Political marriage... I have my doubts since it was not a thing in my former world, will she be able to find happiness?" "Master, Didn¡¯t you also married for political reasons? Are you not happy?" That was ... ... That was the case, but now I love Bea, I am thinking too much? "It¡¯s useless to be worried she will find a person you like without permission, worrying is just a waste. Youngdy Wis will say "This man is good!" will you be able to go against it then?" "...That¡¯s impossible. I won¡¯t concede." "Then you have to think about that moment. Won¡¯t that overprotection will case her to hate you?" "I see ... Girls are difficult." While doing such a conversation, I will also check the schedule for tomorrow. I wake up in the morning and have meetings until I go to bed. When listening to the voice of Sue who reads the next interview partner, it bes noisy at the other side of the door for some reason. "Excuse me, Your Excellency. Court mage Kachua wants to meet you." "May Ie in? Don¡¯t refuse me, let me get through." "Yes!" While saluting, Albert left the room, Kachua came in at once. She seems to be breathless though, is it something urgent? "Sorry for barging in at such a time. But by any means listen to me!" Ignoring n.o.ble etiquette, she suddenly brings up the main theme. Is it that urgent? I guess I¡¯m about to find out. "What¡¯s the matter? What made Kachua to hurry like that?" Kachua who took a deep breath to adjust it stared straight at me and said "I¡¯d like you to make me a daughter of the Grand Duke Zest! As a daughter, I want you to stay by your side!" No one present was ready for the words of this loli-granny and we all ended up frozen solid. Is it your purpose to be a family member? Or do you want to escape from the elves¡¯ country? No, if that was the case, wasn¡¯t it enough to ask for asylum? Albert was the first person to utter a word. "Your excellency... will there be candles for birthday cake? In that case Kachua¡¯s cake might need to be as big as the hall." Albert, that¡¯s not the main problem here. 1. : I think they¡¯re talking about the meat tray, literal trantions says "chilled room", and google img shows mostly meat trays, so lets go with that 2. seirei no miko Chapter 149 - Towards the wedding ceremony

Chapter 149. Towards the wedding ceremony

TL: Dragox "So you received a letter from Pope Garbera telling you to act as an escort in the position of my daughter... Is that right?" "As a daughter of the Archduke, I will persevere! As for the country of elves, As long as Archduke Zest is alive everything will be alright." "Master, is this really okay?" "Fufu~, aiming to reach new heights aren¡ät you?" 1 When I asked the reaon for Kachua to barge in and request to be my adoptive daughter, she gave me a reason I could not refuse. It seems it was a request from the refrigerator... But Kachua also got her reasons. "It can¡¯t be helped, since it is Garbera¡¯s request... And Albert, you don¡ät know what you are talking about so shut up." "Indeed I¡¯ve known her since the olden days. You cannot refuse this request." Kachua says while folding her arms, but aren¡¯t those her true thoughts? I saw the letter from the refrigerator for sure but... That¡¯s not the only reason. Aside from me taking care of the country of elves, the adoption also serves for her self-protection. "Well, setting aside the official reason... Shall we hear the true reason, My daughter." "Ah, it¡¯s been hundreds of years since someone has called me his daughter." This granny is that is reminiscing with a light feeling will be my daughter... hundreds of years, how old are you really. I asses the situation while using healing magic on Albert whose face has swollen to more than double of its original size. This mongrel obviously became like this after being blown away by Kachua. "Kachua be a good child and tell me." Even after I finished the treatment there was no response from the loli, so I turned around and spoke. Thinking that she was still in the middle of reminiscing her face had actually turned serious. Was it a mistake to treat her as a child? "Once more, i want you to say it." "...Be a good child and tell me." "While calling my name, do it once again while patting my head!" I wonder whether she¡¯s getting angry or not! Such a difficult loli... Do you like being treated like a child that much? "Kachua, be a good child and tell me." "Okay! I want to marry soon and have children. But in the elven country there are only old partners, so archduke Zest... no, papa, i believe that if I¡¯m with you I¡¯ll be able to get married to a young man!"} I feel my head hurt... to be the father this granny and being called "papa" like that. The one that taught her such word... it could only be that refrigerator. Moreover, her main goal seem to be that I find her a fiancee. "Hey Kachua, is that the real reason for us to be parent and child? to be my adoptive daughter for such reason..." "Such a reason? What a thing to say! Every single day, those old mene to me asking for me to be their second wife, men don¡¯t understand that feeling. Really, how old do they think you are, uh?" The reason is ridiculous. You are probably the older one... "Besides, papa has few pieces for political marriage, isn¡¯t it fine for me to be one?" "I won¡¯t deny it. But, is it okay?" "Certainly, there¡¯s that part about politics. But even so... I¡¯m a girl too!" I wonder if there are many girls like you. I want to be praised since I was able to digest this conversation. "Finally there is a person who I can entrust the affairs of the country of elves. For the first time I can focus on finding a partner and raising a child! If I miss this opportunity I... I..." "Master, this is too pitiful to keep hearing." "Your excellency, we must do something. When I think that your daughter has been single for several hundreds of years, tears won¡¯t stop flowing... Please, be lenient." "... No need to cry, I understood. I will adopt her." In front of the three tearful people, I could only agree. The loli-granny that has been single for hundreds of years, has be my adopted daughter like this. ... "Master, Albert is back from the imperial capital. Here¡¯s the letter from His Majesty." About Kachua¡¯s adoption, Albert became a messenger again to inform the imperial capital. Nowadays important news are bingmon sale. But these news mightbe bad for His majesty¡¯s stomach. "Got it, I have trouble you with consecutive travels to the imperial capital. It¡¯s fine if you take it easy for a while." "Yes! I appreciate your kind words, I will rest for a bit." In this short while, Albert has flown back and forth to the imperial capital, as one would expect he¡¯s already worn out. He exited the office with a badplexion. There seems to be no verbal message... Was everything written in the letter? I open the envelope and confirm its contents Good job! Since elves¡¯ first court magician is now your adopted daughter, are you in need of a marriage partner for her? My son is unmarried, are you interested? The empire¡¯s ties with the country of elves and also our bonds will be deepened! Look forward to it. It¡¯s different fromst time, His Majesty seems mostly pleased. It¡¯s to early to talk about Wis¡¯ marriage, it¡¯s a possibility I am afraid of. Even if one is to be married with an adopted daughter, it is enough for deterrence and ties. "Is there another child besides His Majesty¡¯s heir?" "No, as far as i know the Crown Prince is His Majesty¡¯s only son." Suu answered while preparing ck tea as if saying it was something ordinary ... Is he pretending to make Kachua the Empress? that must not be it. Or else, I wonder if he¡¯ll present an illegitimate child. "Maintain this matter as a secret. It might be a ruckus if information gets out about an illegitimate child." "Certainly, I will do so. Should we keep it a secret even fromdy Kachua?" "That will probably be for the best. If she learns about the matter she will probably grab a dragon and charge to meet her partner." "Master¡¯s daughters tend to be tomboyish. We must make sure Lady Wis to be a gracefuldy." "It will be okay, Katalina is her nanny, she will give Wis appropriate education." "Lord Katalina is also a master of martial arts..." ""..."" Maybe I made the wrong decision... Thinking like that, the day in the country of elves ended. ... "Master, tomorrow is finally the day ofdy Tsubaki¡¯s wedding ceremony. She will being today." "Here? To this residence? What for?" Suu told me this after I finished the interviews with foreign nobles and came back to the office. The mansion prepared by Prince Mars is big and the number of rooms is reasonable. Tsubaki lives in her room apanied by an exclusive maid. "Master, it is the custom for when a woman gets married. Did you forget?" "... I thought that matter didn¡¯t concern me anymore." I answer while drinking tea, she lets out a sigh. It¡¯s a shame to see her that disappointed. "In the night before the wedding ceremony parent and child sleep together. Even adopted children are not exception, are they?" "Indeed, Bea said master was crying at that time." For master to act like that, it isn¡¯t hard tom imagine. Being such a doting father to Bea... should I invite him to drink together? "Therefore, make preparations, please." "What is there to prepare? It¡¯s fine if we just arrange another bed." ¡¯Haa~¡¯ just like that Suu lets out a big sigh without even trying to conceal it. Oi, it¡¯s bad to do that in front of your master... Maybe I am too weak willed? "Aren¡¯t you going to sleep in the same bed? Sleeping separately is meaningless. Master, master Sonia should have taught you this." "Wait, I haven¡¯t heard about that! Master Sonia never told me that much." *Kyoton* Suu was really surprised,2but her face tightens quickly as if she noticed something. "Usually this is the duty of the mother so maybe that¡¯s why you were not told. Please be relieved, I will teach you for now." "That¡¯s not what I¡¯m worried about..." "When the mother is not present, it ismon for the father to participate as a substitute. Of course, since the rest of the family will participate... This time there will be three people." "Well, is that so? Is that normal? When you say three people, Tsubaki, Kachua, and me... What kind ofbination is that." While holding such a thought in my head, the door is knocked and Mediaes in. She is supposed to be escorting Tsubaki, so probably this has to do with tonight¡¯s event. "Your Excellency, congrattions for today! Please enjoy thisst night." "Hey, Media, is it okay for a male parent to stay with her daughter? Is that normal?" I¡¯m probably feeling shaken. Why you ask, normally things such asmon sense are unrted to Media, still I decided to cross-examine with her. "Huh? Oh, It¡¯s alright. The night before the wedding ceremony is considered a family party. There¡¯s nothing toin or be suspicious about." "Is it really alright? I wouldn¡¯t want to be scolded bay Beater on..." "There¡¯s nothing to worry about. Even servants and maids participate in the eve of the wedding. Of course only women. With the exception of His Excellency who is the only male that can participate." Is that so, doesn¡¯t this sounds like a nightmare-like thing where the female servants and members from the family gather together!3 If that¡¯s the case Bea won¡¯t get angry... probably. "I even prepared new night clothes for tonight. Ah, I¡¯m looking forward to it." Saying so whileughing, Media starts discussing tonight¡¯s schedule with Suu. It seems she have nned to some extent beforehand, and she exited the room after a few minutes. While listening to the conversation, it seems that it is an event where you spend thest night as single at home at home while eating sweets. There must be people who do the same thing in Japan, but it is not at customs level. "Master, is there something on your mind?" "I was just thinking that the customs of this world are interesting. There are still things I don¡¯t know about." Drinking the new tea that Suu just prepared, I breathe out. But i felt that I was forgetting something. Suu seems to be the same, she¡¯s making a difficult face. ""...Ah!"" We raised their voices at exactly the same time, ran to the door and opened it wildly. "Someone get that fool, Media! Tell that fool that he cannot participate in tonight¡¯s event!" "Someone, retrieve Lord Media¡¯s night clothes! Hurry up!"4 A few minutester, Media who was bitten by a dragon, was brought back to the office. "Y-Your Excellency. I... understood... Therefore... to be... handled in a dragon¡¯s... mouth... it¡¯s unreasonable... unless it¡¯s lord Albert" Media managed to say that much while being covered in her own blood and twitching. For now I apply her healing magic... Unless discretion is taught from this time, some deceased willes out... I¡¯m sorry Media5 1. Albert says this with an injured face (for obvious reasons) so it bes distorted, but I don¡¯t know how to write distorted speaking so you can use your imagination :p 2. "Kyoton" seems to bee an sfx indicating surprise it¡¯s amusing that the first images that appear after googling "¥­¥ç¥È¥ó" are surprised cats 3. For my social abilities this certainly sounds like a nightmare event as a male. 4. I swear this joke doesn¡¯t get old. Even if it isn¡¯t that good it doesn¡¯t get worse either. Though I fell just a bit bad for Media. 5. now I definitely pity Media. Chapter 150 - Enjoyable wedding eve ceremony

Chapter 150 - Enjoyable wedding eve ceremony

TL: Dragox "You guys. It is no good if you y with others with the same roughness as you y with Albert." "Hahaha, she was full of blood with just a bit of y-biting. Media stillcks training." After treating Media¡¯s wounds, I was preaching the dragons in the mansion¡¯s courtyard. for my subordinates it can be considered a form of training, but it would be bad if one of the foreign nobles thate to visit me ends up being y-bitten. ... Was that really y-biting? At least it is so in Albert¡¯s eyes. "Albert, do not think on your standards. Even ck knights will be hurt if they are attacked by the dragons" "Your Excellency, that¡¯s a matter of the past. Now, most of the recruits have mastered body strengthening, so they will not be injured so easily." "Is that so, I guess it is safe then... Huh?" "Therefore, the ck knights have mastered the magic of physical strengthening. It is not as good as mine, but if it is to the degree of a dragon¡¯s y-biting they will be unscathed." Albert starts saying something dreadful. In the empire¡¯s army strengthening magic is considered standard only at general ss. This is something that I learned after some time... this was the first magic that master taught me. This isn¡¯t at the level of spartan training anymore. Such a terrible master, really... "I-is that so? Everyone is truly doing their best." "Yes, I¡¯m arranging a corps unit of "Dragon Knights"1 with people selected by the dragons. If give the order, they will show you that they can bring sown one or two cities by themselves!" Albert was telling me this while making a smug face. "How reliable. I¡¯ll be having high expectations." "I¡¯m thankful for your words!" I decide to return to my room, leaving Albert who is sanding still in a saluting pose. Having such an excess of war potential, it goes without saying that it won¡¯t lessen my headache. I will get an earful from His majesty again... ... "Thank you for your hard work, Master." When I return to the office, Suu wees me. It is the evening... No, it¡¯s right to say that it is already night. "It¡¯s almost time for ¡¯that¡¯ right? Let¡¯s finish work for today." "It¡¯s the eve of the ceremony, Master. The preparations are underway, please go take a bath and change your clothes." Let¡äs obey and head to the bath. It will be frightening to defy female-based events. For no reason will I go against it. The maid wash my body in the bath, but I¡¯m no longer embarrassed by it. It¡¯s amazing that I¡¯ve gotten used to it... ... "Oh? That was quite fast. Fufu, master is also looking forward to it, huh?" "Yes. This seems to be an important event for female nobles. The maids were talking with passion about it." I went back to my room and was called by Sue who was waiting. The maids who helped me with bathing firmly spoke about the importance of tonight¡¯s ceremony. Although it¡¯s only done by upper aristocracy, it seems it is something they yearn for. "Since it is a form of yearning for noble women, so everyone is interested in it." "I see. Nevertheless, why aren¡¯t you in sleepwear?" That¡¯s right... I was expecting to see Suu in her pink pajamas. She usually wears man clothings except for her pink nightwear... which isn¡¯t there. "I am a steward, master. My first priority is serving the household. Of course I will also participate." "Is that so... "ell, sorry for the trouble" When she told me that, I apologized without thinking. It wasn¡¯t because i was surprised by her menacing looks. Unexpectedly, it was because it caught me off guard the nice odoring from Suu who also just got out of the bath, and i was afraid of bing too excited. "There¡¯s no need to apologize. Now, lets go" "O-Oh, I see." Suu will not be the only one... Tonight¡¯s fight will be a long one... Wait, There should only be Tsubaki, and Kachua! That should not be exciting! I opened the door while thinking so, and was weed by the maiden troops in pajamas "Fufufu2, it is the beginning of a fun night." Suu wasughing while saying this, but her eyes weren¡¯t ...Yeah, let¡¯s run away after all... that¡¯s what I swore in my heart. "So, what happened after that?!" "Err... then prince Mars said ¡¯I love you¡¯ and the pendants..." """"KYA~~!"""" It¡¯s something like that. The night before the ceremony is a girls¡¯ party who be noisy disregarding social status. ... I¡¯mpletely out of ce. Tsubaki is telling stories to everyone, I¡¯ll just quietly suppress my presence. If I get dragged, not even my bones will remain "So that¡¯s the case. The words of an experienced person are certainly a good reference." "Yeah, age doesn¡¯t matter in love, right? I have to work hard." "Isn¡¯t it alright for Suu? Aren¡¯t there many men that wish to marriage you were you not a steward?" "Tsubaki is still above me in this... getting a prince."3 They have already disregarded any kind of polite speech.4 More and more, I feel at a disadvantage... let¡¯s move gently to the corner of the room. "Experienced, huh... Lets see, I would like to hear stories of papa!" "Oh, that¡¯s right, Your Excellency... No, Zest, do you have any stories?" "Fufufu, today it¡¯s not rude." "I¡¯d like to hear dear foster father¡¯s stories about his secret married life." It seems it¡¯s finallye. I¡¯m nked by war maidens on each side, and get dragged like a prisoner... over to the bed. "Come now, papa. Resistance is useless!" "Where did you fall in love with Beatrice?" "Is the origin of Wis¡¯ name truly from your world?" "Are you interested in Suu? You are always with such a cute girl." Women keeping up at me. Honestly, there¡¯s a nice smell, it¡¯s soft, I wonder if it¡¯s actually a very happy situation. ... At least if I wasn¡¯t bombarded with questions. However it seems that I can¡¯t just refuse and just keep being an observer. Then, shall I answer carefully while keeping certain things to myself? "Alright... Do you really want me to speak? Between Bea and me there¡¯s more thanmon love! You better not draw back even if you listen, absolutely don¡¯t!" "KYA--!" "Such a bold man" "I wonder if it¡¯s true he carries Suu¡¯s panties around." "Huh? Was Zest a Kemonobito?" Like this, the public execution began. The battle against Bea¡¯s suitors. Toto¡¯s birth, and Tsubaki¡¯s engagement. While trying to make it vague, Suues and exins in detail... you are too meticulous... "It is not allowed to speakzily at the eve of the marriage ceremony. You should firmly tell the actual facts. Besides, it is custom to keep secret the conversation in the eve of the marriage ceremony until the graveyard. There¡¯s no need to worry." Is that so... Is it useless...? But if it is meant to keep it confidential... Lets tell them everything! I¡¯ve already made up my mind. Due to my frank speech, the shrills and screams continued until morning... "Good morning, foster father." "Oh, good morning. You look tired. Come, I¡¯ll cast healing magic." It seem that Tsubaki fell asleep at some point. I never want to attend such a ceremony again, but I want to participate when it¡¯s for Wis... Would Bea ept? I need to consult this. Kachua... will she be able to get married? leaving that aside, today is Tsubaki¡¯s wedding. It will be bad if the main person of the wedding ceremony has dark circles in her eyes. I stroke her head while applying healing magic. "Well, Tsubaki. If you are ever unhappy yo can go back. If you send me a letter, I wille to pick you up on a dragon." "Ufufu, foster father, is that a thing to say in the wedding day? I am fine." Tsubaki, whose head I had been stroking for a while even after the magic light went off, softly bowed her head. "Thanks to foster father, Ican marry prince Mars. Really... Thank you very much." "There were various things, but it was fun. You are my daughter. You can rely on me if something happens, alright? Be happy." "Yes...Yes..." Tsubaki starts shedding tears, but time doesn¡¯t wait for the bride. The maidse to pick her up in a hurry "Here, I treated your eyes again. Now go and dress up beautifully." "Yes, thank you for the help." While I see Tsubaki off after bowing deeply her head, I feel like I start to understand a bit of my parents¡¯ feelings. Since Tsubaki is adopted, When I am with Wis, I¡¯m confident of going mad. "After master finishes crying, you should also get ready and change clothes. The bride¡¯s father is also busy, right?" "I¡¯m not crying. Get ready my change of clothes." "...I got it. I will help you." I don¡¯t have with me the usual maids, but i finish changing with Suu¡¯s help. I did not sleep at all, but one sleepless night won¡¯t be a problem. It will be alright somehow. "Today the wedding is scheduled..." After changing clothes, Suu reads the schedule after arriving at the office. It is the familiar beginning of a day. I listen to her voice while drinking tea. "Because it is a wedding for ten days from today... there are not other ns. That¡¯s all." Apparently, I¡¯m still sleeping. I drink the rest of the hot tea at once "I¡¯m sorry, repeat that again." "Yes. I said that the wedding ceremony willst for ten days from today. Elves are a long lived race... For them this seems like a moment." "Suu... will it go on the whole day? won¡¯t that be too much?" She took a nce at her documents once more and answered with a smile. "That¡¯s right. It seems to be the greatest disgrace to leave on the way, so please be careful." Elf style wedding... At the royal wedding ceremony, the event which is said someone exits as a corpse each time began... Notes: 1. Who still remembers that these ones were actually hinted in past chapters? 2. I really like this Japanese way ofughing, I¡¯m unable of tranting it no matter how much I try to put my mind on it 3. Should I write in a parenthesis who (if it¡¯s from the character list) says what here? 4. This line says that they¡¯re attaching -chan to their names, but this novel was never tranted with honorifics anyway :p Chapter 151 - Elf style wedding

Chapter 151 Elf style wedding

TL: Dragox "... It will start soon... Hahh~, various hardshipse with this marriage ceremony." I was stuck in doing a greeting like event with each of the elven security guards. I have not even arrived at the venue yet. "... Like this, we express our heartfelt pleasure." "I¡¯m grateful for your feelings." The elven security guard leaves the room while bowing deeply his head. I should have heard his name, but I can¡¯t remember it anymore. "Hey Suu, this is the waiting room right? Since we are waiting for the marriage ceremony, this must be the waiting room, right?" "That¡¯s right, master. I¡¯m certain that the elven wedding willst for 10 days. They are being polite... too polite." That¡¯s right... too polite. Since our arrival at the waiting room, I began greeting all the people that will we aiding this time. Finally, thest guard greeting was finished. "They told me that this would be such a joyous event, but this is not the case." "I was also surprised. You might as well askdy Kachua to make an elf handbook." "By the way, what is Kachua doing?" "She is in a separate room. A woman needs arrangements. It is different from master that just wears his military uniform." Is that so, men and women are different... I¡¯m grateful to be spared from such arrangements. Why does the woman take so much time to prepare? If I could unravel that mystery, I would get a Nobel prize. "Master, please don¡¯t make that kind of face in front of madam or thedies. It¡¯s too easy to read. Men and women move with different timeflows. So you just have toe to terms with it." "... It can¡¯t be helped if the flow of time is different." It¡¯s an exnation that on can¡¯t possibly deny. But, if I thinks so, I can understand a little... It took three hours just to choose clothes, that was torture to me. "Excuse me. Grun empire ambassador ? First royal magician, His Excellency the archduke Zest Gaiyus.1 The bride and groom are ready. Pleasee to the venue." I almost can¡¯t tell my tongue twister-like title said in one stroke, this maid is quite... You, aren¡¯t you from the maiden corps?! "We infiltrated to act in case the worst case happens. That person¡¯s subordinates are around His excellency anddy Kachua. Sincedy Tsubaki is getting royalty treatment, that¡¯s why..." "It can¡¯t be helped. Conversely, make sure the preparations are ready in my surroundings." "We made sure that only the bravest and most beautiful are around His Excellency. If we can¡¯t do it, the dragons maye to y during the ceremony." "...My preference for beauty shouldn¡¯t spread any further..." "Besides, the executives of elves are in the venue. It is a good opportunity to eliminate hindrances." "Let¡¯s deal with that while looking at the situation. I want to disturb Tsubaki¡¯s wedding as little as possible." "I am aware. I will clean up quietly, so do not worry." "Tell Media and Tasel to do things gradually." I will leave the work behind the scenes under the control of those two. I¡¯ll have to give them a reward next time. "Certainly. Well, master, let¡¯s head to the venue." Like this, the nightmare-like wedding began. "It is very pleasing to unite both bloodlines. By her being the adopted daughter of His Excellency who also achieved spiritification, it make s this extraordinarily wonderful." "Really." "I¡¯ve lived for four hundred years, but I haven¡¯t been this happy." "I see." The elders¡¯ greetings continues for a long time. I would like you to spare me from giving a proper reply. There is a reason for this. "Then, I will excuse me. Congrattions." "Oh, thank you for your kind words." He looks like a twenty years old youth bowing his head after the greeting. But he¡¯s an elder elf. Their longevity is really terrible. And there¡¯s something else. "From a little while ago I felt like I¡¯ve greeted repeatedly with the same person... the same slender build, the same silver hair, the same way of speaking..." "His excellency thinks so too? I was actually feeling the same." While making this exchange with Suu, the next person appears from the waiting queue. "Congrattions today. It is a pleasing event... Recently it is hard to see elven kids. I wonder if one wille soon." "Are you a midwife? Did you have the feeling of emptiness by theck of children?" 2 "Huh, How did you know? Have we met before?" It¡¯s bulls eye... there¡¯s no mistake. "Suu, aren¡¯t they faint?" "There¡¯s no mistake. The attendance was supposed to be arranged by the prime minister, so this might besort of harassment." Three hours after the wedding ceremony started. I was underestimating the opponent with them being elderly people... It is simple, but the damage is considerably big! "I¡¯m going crazy... Can something be done about this?" "Even if you ask... They are elders, giving a rude response will affect your prestige." Damn it! It is quite a troublesome trap... this isn¡¯t so simple after all. From the opening of the wedding thatsts ten days, this might cause a mistaketer if I¡¯m not careful. Bring it on, prime minister. "However, my mental strength is going to decrease with this as it is." "Lady Kachua should arrive soon. Let¡¯s leave it to her." I guess that¡¯s the only option... I have to give up and wait for her appearance. I drink a thick-looking ck tea, let¡¯s endure it somehow. Yes, I decided in my heart. ... "Papa, what do you think about this clothes. It¡¯s been a long time, I wonder if I look cute?" Soon I heard a voice that sounded like a goddess to me that was drove to the limit. I am saved ... Afterplimenting her clothes, lets push everything else to her. I think so and look back on the direction of the voice. "Oh, Kachua. You... really... look good." It was unavoidable for my words to be stuck up. This granny, appeared with an outrageous appearance. "Right, right. Does papa likes it too? This is a costume that the refrigerator¡¯s owner liked too. He was saying something like it¡¯s a ¡¯magical girl¡¯" Pink mini skirt, and fluttering essories. Thoroughly equipped with knee-high socks. "It is nostalgic. That guy who was delighted to see me dress like this died, it¡¯s already hundreds of years ... I remember it as if it was yesterday." "Oh, did you get acquainted with people from the other world?" "We were more than acquaintances, that man and me, together with the refrigerator, traveled along. In those days, I was young, so I wore these clothes, and devoted myself to magic. It¡¯s nostalgic." Sitting on myp, the granny starts nodding. Does that mean, that is an old costume? It looks in really good conditions... "Hmmm? Papa, are you wondering about my dress? Since I just made this one, I can make one with a different color if you like, what color do you want?" "O-oh, pink is fine... That¡¯s not it, I would like if you¡¯d tell me such important things sooner. You only told me that you can¡¯t decline Garbera¡¯s words." "I wasn¡¯t going to hide it, but I didn¡¯t find the chance to say it. It is the first time you ask me about it too." "Well, let¡¯s hear it in detailter .... But for now can you do something about this?" That¡¯s it, I point the long queue with my chin. When Kachua looked over there, she said while sighing. "Foolish youngsters! Return home and count your tree rings!! Who thought this was a retirement! Take them home quickly!" The elven maids that heard Kachua¡¯s shout began moving at once. Prince Mars who was looking at the state of things was trembling with his face turned away You bastard, aren¡¯t youughing? Taking it easy because it¡¯s someone else¡¯s problem... Later, I will take him to Albert for training. "I¡¯m saved, Kachua. Listening to the same greeting endlessly was draining my spirit dry." "Papa is too polite. Since you¡¯re an archduke, it doesn¡¯t matter even if you act a bit haughty." Kachua who sits back on my knees, starts eating the food served. There are various dishes arranged on my table. Definitely not the amount of meal meant for one person. "By the way... Is it okay to leave your seat midway?" "Papa, were you nning to keep sitting for ten days? If you do such a thing, your hips will break." My ass was probably broken before beginning. Is this an elf joke? or else, are elves¡¯ rears broken already? There is no way to ascertain... If I tell her to show me her ass to check, I will be killed by Bea. "Th-that¡¯s right. I thought it was strange." "It¡¯s free time while the bride and groom are changing. It will be tough if you do not take a break in the meantime." ... Wait, what about the rest? "Well, this time it¡¯s short and easy for the bride guests. If both sides were already friendly with each other, the marriage ceremony wouldst for a month." "Hey, Kachua. Is it bad unless you sit here other than that?" "Isn¡¯t it natural? Today is meant for rtives and local guests. Tomorrow we wee international guests. There is still a long way to go." "Wait wait, are only the principals and rtives to participate today?" Kachua continued whileughing at what she saw asmon sense. "Because of that it was difficult to get married with a different race. Papa can participate while using healing magic, so there¡¯s no problem! In addition..." "Is there still something else?" "Since this time it is a royal wedding ceremony, there is a celebration ceremony even in the barracks. Soon the queen will interact with the honor guest, alternating afterwards. The ball will begin at night, so you will go over there as well. Oh, there are officials¡¯ banquets... Afterwards there are meetings in the city and meetings where the influential people gather. Well, there¡¯s no problem since dad is one. It¡¯s worrying since fatigue sometimes results in someone¡¯s death... Dad? What¡¯s wrong?" It is exactly a fatigue feast, I understand. Why, stupid elves, doing this event every once in a while... While holding down my pained head, I thought it was pretty serious. This time I might really end up dying...3 1. I had already forgotten Zest¡¯s surname. 2. For the first time I¡¯mpletely lost on the possible meaning of a sentence. I can only guess that whatever he said was something that another 10 or more elves he just greeted alreay told him. what¡¯s written is just my guess of something they might say, and nothing actually close to what the author meant, whatever that was. 3. I feel good just by tranting this phrase of his for the first time :p Chapter 152 - Queens expectationn

152. Queen¡¯s expectationn

TL: Dragox "Well, isn¡¯t the day about to end?" "Looks like it. I guess this room is near so we can pass the night." Beginning with the "foolish youngsters" as opponents, the day with the murder-like schedule has finished atst. After the first half of the day, my memory gets hazy. "Papa, this is a sleeping room. You can getfortable and restore your physical strength." Kachua in her underwear says this while lying on a gorgeous chaise lounge. 1 I¡¯m not sure if it is fortunate or unfortunate... but she doesn¡¯t have any sex appeal. "I¡¯m relieved that i won¡¯t have to pass a sleepless night... What about the bride and the groom?" On the other side of the room, Tsubaki and prince Mars were lying each on a chaise lounge with dead eyes. "Master? Since it would be troublesome for them to sleep together before the ceremony is over, this is a matter of course. Also, isn¡¯t it rude to see so much of single women?" Suu says so, but she is also lying down. ... As expected, we already feel like dying. "Even if you tell me not to see, it will be in line of sight if they are sleeping nearby. And since Kachua is my daughter, she probably doesn¡¯t mind." "If one doesn¡¯t want to be seen, one should wear something. Right now, I rather be asfortable as possible." Even then, don¡¯t just spread your legs. You are a girl, are not you? At least that¡¯s what you say. "So, what¡¯s the schedule for tomorrow?" "Yes. Tomorrow is the correspondence of the soldiers and influential people in the city by the queen in turn. There is nned to be an information exchange with the queen whom wille soon..." When that was said, the door opened. Because this room is off limits except for rtives, those who cane in are limited. "Haa ... well, at this age a wedding ceremony is harsh. Oh, you do not have to rise like that. If courtesy was held during a wedding ceremony, elves would notst." A sexy elf with silver hair says that as she starts to take of her luxurious dress. After she¡¯s left on her underwear, she lies down on a chaise lounge opposite from me. "Surprised? This is an elven introduction. Formality is unneeded in the rtives lounge. I guess one can see a person¡¯s true heart in such extreme conditions. Well, this is a really ancient custom though." "... Lets proceed, then. I am Tsubaki¡¯s foster father, Zest. I¡¯m also acting as Kachua¡¯s foster father." "Fufu, still using that kind of tone. Well I guess I have to get used to it. I¡¯m the mother of that idiot son over there. Elisha 2is the name... also known as the queen." "Is it... normal? So, can I call you Elisia?" "No need to be so stiff.3 Since this ce is for one to act as in home... won¡¯t it be strange if one is too serious?" She startsughing while covering her mouth. Her height is about 170 cm4 and has the body of a model. I see... I can easily see the Prime minister falling for her. "No way Kachua will be anyones daughter. This must means you can be trusted." "Oh, Elisha? He can be trusted. You can speak with papa." Kachua says this as she rolls on her belly to face us. You... you should at least close your legs, you granny. "Really. Hey, Zest. The prime minister¡¯s faction changed the former king¡¯s policies. that foolish prince thought that i sumbed t o their plot, while in truth I just yed the role." "I see. You worked hard." "Fufu, i won¡¯t tell you to trust me all of a sudden. Please decide during this wedding. Just remember this, I will cooperate with you. We want to keep watch on Mars." "I will take your word for now. For the time being, I want to focus on getting through the wedding ceremony." "You really are cautious. Oh well. That¡¯s right, about the inheriting meeting..." "Suu, I entrust it to you." "Please leave it to me, master." Well... How much of what this queen said was true. Will the intelligence unit need to make its move?... While having such thought our interview continues. Needless to say that I had to heal Suu in the middle, I might as well act as medical staff for everyone. If I leave it to Suu, there won¡¯t be any problems. ¡¯Are you the steward steward!? You are really capable! would you work for my country? Are not you interested in being a seconddy?¡¯ While refusing the scouting of such queen, the meeting continues. Mars who was staring at Suu, groaned when Tsubaki used an iron w on him after i resurrected her with healing magic. You still don¡¯t understand... "... That¡¯s all there is to it. You truly possess a good judgment." "Thank you very much. But my lord is my only master. "Elisha5, if you ask too much you will be papa enemy. Lets leave it at that." Does Kachua have the higher position in their rtionship?6 I wish i hadn¡¯t asked, but I was defeated by curiosity. "What kind of rtionship does Kachua have with Elisha?" "Oh, Kachua was my tutor. I can¡¯t get to change our rtionship since I was a child." "There¡¯s also the thing of me changing Elisha¡¯s diapers. It¡¯s nostalgic... at that time there were few female high elves. I was appointed to make Elisha a fine queen who was decided to be the King¡¯s fiancee from the time she was born..." The stories of old people sure are long... Now Kachua can¡¯t be stopped. Thus her storysted all night, and the second day of the wedding ceremony began... "It¡¯s a pleasure." "May the spirits guide you." "Let¡¯s give a prayer of gratitude to God." It¡¯s basically a simple job to talk to these three. What? Is it really easy? ... It isif you can do it with a tired mind, putting a smile while listening to a boring story. "Suu, Aren¡¯t your facial muscles twitching?" "Master, it¡¯s a smile. Augh with fighting spirit." What kind of reasoning is that... There¡¯s a limit to psychology tricks as well. When I look over my shoulder, I don¡¯t see an unreasonable Albert, in his ce there¡¯s Suu. She¡¯s quite tired as well. "Suu, extend your hand." "...Ha?" I forcibly hold her hand a apply a healing spell. I can treat almost any kind of fatigue myself. But she can¡¯t. "If you copse, the dragons might as well cause an ident. Please hang in there a little longer." "Thank you very much, master. But doing this here might cause an ident... It could be misunderstood as you having fun." Rather, wouldn¡¯t this country disappear? While having such dangerous thoughts, it happened. "Hah! Are you telling me that this man that¡¯s just flirting around is the strongest in the empire? Then, I must be the strongest warrior of the continent!" The manes near while pushing around the soldiers that are trying to stop him. He¡¯s a muscle Daruma that has a height of 190cm 7 "Hick... Hey, great Mr. ¡¯Sword of the Empire¡¯. Are you strong? I¡¯m also the one called to be the strongest in the country of elves... Stronger than Caris8 who¡¯s a follower of the prime minister. Ho, addressing general Caris like that.9 And this magical power and intimidation aura... they are the ral thing. "P-please stop it! Masui10, how much have you been drinking?" "General, stop him!!" "Such a bad drunk..." The surrounding soldiers can do nothing but watch from a distance. Well, it¡¯s probably impossible for them... The difference in their powers is so big that there¡¯s no way to win normally. "I will not seek retribution for your sins. This is a party after all... this tiny bit of merry making is fine, such a nice guy." "Master, you have a wonderful smile on your face." It can¡¯t be helped. I finally have an event to vent. Lets take plenty of time and let the rest of the schedule go away. "This is probably not known in the country of elves... I was originally adopted by the captain of a certain territory. In the past, there was such a fuss everyday, so i don¡¯t mind, be relieved." While talking with a smile, the surroundings fills with an air of relief. At least that¡¯s what I think. The punishment for fighting against a key figure from another country is often death penalty. At worst, all people concerned plus the family of the offender might receive capital punishment. "However... What will happen if such a man says such things? Do you understand what happens next?" Showing such a magical power all of a sudden, I can¡¯t just go and nervously say ¡¯stop it¡¯. Let me show you a bit of my own magical power. "Now as we are in the middle of a party, there will not be any crime charges. I Zest, swear it in this ce. So be at ease..." *Boom*11 a roaring sound makes me stop my speech. There was smoke rising in the ce where the man earlier was doing his intimidation. The war maidens gather around me with tightened expressions. They seem to have noticed... There is a monstrous presence lurking inside the smoke. Even though they were working attending the drunk guests just now, they easily enter in working mode. "You guys make some distance. Take Suu with you." They silently nod, while making a circr formation around Suu, they begin to fall back. Confirming that, I Start to fully use strengthening magic. "Fuhahahaha, what a wonderful magic power! If you im to be the strongest, this much is a must!" It came out of the smoke, with long deep blue hair carrying a giant axe on its shoulder. A female kemonobito... a dog kemonobito. Wearing a leather armor with lots of scratches, she can¡¯t be seen as anything but a warrior. "Won¡¯t this be a good side show for the party? Now, y with me! Zest!" Saying it with such a belligerent smile, this person with her hair tied with a cord is so unreasonable. ... such a big world... for there to be such a strong warrior. "Well, fine by me. Let me hear your name."12 I pull out my sword that was brought by one of the war maidens and take my stance. The evacuation was done while we were having the exchange, and we were able to secure enough space. Even if it gets somewhat heated, the damage will be small. "Oh, didn¡¯t I name myself? Hey, this isn¡¯t a duel to death. Isn¡¯t this just like a sport for kemonobito? Lets take it easy." She says while swaying lightly such a big axe with just one hand. Well, it seems she isn¡¯t here with the intention of killing... is that really true? Somehow, she gives the image of a child that really wants to y. "Are you just a fool who really wants to fight... well alright. Either way it won¡¯t be good if I don¡¯t crush that pride of yours." It has been decided. My sword pointed at the other party, words weren¡¯t needed anymore. Even if I say so myself, it¡¯s been a while since I felt like this. Being soaked in the words... my mood was at its peak. "Beast king, what are you doing in such a ce!? Isn¡¯t the marriage celebration is until tomorrow?" "If we can take this person I promise I will go obediently..." "Hey! Her Majesty the Beast King is here! Over here!" I guess we have to stop. The kemonobito kingdom¡¯s... Beast King is a woman. I called her Majesty a fool, but please pardon me since this is a party. She seems to sparkle, I thought from the bottom of my heart. "Please wipe your tears, master. They really stand out." Stop, Suu, you are just stabbing deeper... Notes: 1. My furniture vocabry is reallycking, i had to try 3 tranting times this word to finally understand what they were lying on 2. First name I have to trante from katakana, so i will do what any other respected TL does and ask for suggestions :p (¥¨¥ê©`¥·¥¢) 3. He first called her Elisha-dono, and she said that -dono was uneeded 4. 5¡¯7" 5. Kachua calls Elisha without honorifics. 6. I¡¯m not sure if the grammar in this one is correct. 7. 6¡¯4" 8. I hate all these minor characters that I forget about, and have to search around to remember who they are, and what¡¯s their name¡¯s spelling 9. without honorifics. 10. ¥Þ¥º¥¤ 11. I kinda like that Japanese has such a wide variety of sound effects until I¡¯m the one that¡¯s supposed to trante them. 12. I really don¡¯t understand why he whines about his monstrous muscleheads of subordinates when he¡¯s one of them. Chapter 153. Her Majesty the Beast King and settlement

153. Her Majesty the Beast King and settlement

TL: Dragox "For my rudeness, I apologize from the bottom of my heart." It¡¯s the first time in a long time that I¡¯ve earnestly apologized. I called a "fool" the ruler of a country, I don¡¯t have any excuses. If ites to worst this could result in a war. After that strongest elf became a stain on the crater where shended, we went to a preparation room to have a conversation. As expected, I can¡¯t leave the matter with the ruler of the kemonobito country, Her Majesty the Beast King alone. "Hmmm? It¡¯s a party, right? Then, isn¡ät it natural to forget formalities?" "Her Majesty, that way of thinking is from the kemonobito country." The older sister Beast King who is ying with her blue hair. She looks like a beautiful, tall model in herte twenties, but one shouldn¡¯t be deceived. She is a monster that wields a big axe with such a fine arm. "Politeness and manners are emphasized in other countries. There¡¯s no such a thing as understanding each other with fists." The one preaching to he Beast King is a woman that came as an envoy from the kemonobito country for the marriage ceremony. She¡¯s a tomboyish woman with the same blue hair as the Beast King in a short cut. It¡¯s visible that she¡¯s a woman though, since she has breasts. "This is the reason I was against this. It was obvious that this would happen if Her Majesty the Beast King apanied me. Really, it seems that only your body grows up... Any dignity as a ruler is yet to appear..." "Ok ok, I entrust you the difficult things. Besides that, Zest! Lets fight!" "Unfortunately, it is bad for me to battle against Her Majesty the Beast King. Moreover, since I am in the middle of celebrating a wedding ceremony, I can not respond to Her Highness¡¯s expectations." The older sister Beast King was leaning on her chair, seemingly disappointed. ... This would normally be unreasonable. "Is it not okay? Your Majesty. This is the normal response. Is it not our country the abnormal one? This is a conference room with chairs and a desk. This is not a stone stage where one can just simply fight." "It¡¯s a drag to talk, why can¡¯t we just settle it as if we were in our country?" "As I said, that is not normal..." ... I definitely don¡¯t want to go to that country. In short, isn¡¯t it a country with people like Albert and the ck Knights? It¡¯s easy to imagine the amount of retorting I would have to do. I¡¯m thinking this while watching the short haired older sister preach... But i will still go. It was due my carelessness that resulted in this situation in the first ce. "I am sorry for the disturbance, Your Excellency Zest. I will introduce myself again. I am from the kemonobito country, Griffon Kingdom¡¯s prime minister, my name is Emilia1... now..." After the sermon is over, Emilia stretched her back and said. "This one is the Beast King, Her Majesty Elenora2" "Elenora is fine. I don¡¯t care about naming formalities... Not after I found a long awaited chance for a good fight." She introduced herself with a smug face, the Beast King Elenora seems to be in a good mood. Though I can sense even a bit of dignity with the way she leant against her chair. "Let me greet you once more. I am the Grun empire archduke, first court magician Zest Gaiyus. Is it okay to prepare some tea? Both of you should moisten your throat." W hen a send a signal with my eyes, Suu gives a greeting while bowing. "I am Suu, archduke Zest¡¯s steward. I will be preparing the refreshments." There¡¯s no way for the king to be the one preparing the tea for the other party. It would be unfavourable if it is refused... Well, it shouldn¡¯t be a problem with Her Majesty. "I entrust it to you." "A pleasure." Hearing the expected answers, Suu prepares tea for everyone. Prime Minister Emilia, watched Suu¡¯s hands as she did, but obviously we won¡¯t get offended. It is natural to watch out for poisoning. Her Majesty is the first one to pick up one of the three cup¡äs from the table. Then Prime Minister Emilia, and I picked up thest one. They start drinking after confirming that I tasted it first. "It seems the rumors are true, you actually have a kemonobito woman as your steward. I heard that humans look down on us, is this really okay? For a noble... moreover the figure of an archduke to act like this." "It¡¯s not like Her Majesty says. Just like Emilia is your prime minister, there should be no problem in Suu being my steward." "Fufu, Emilia is my little sister. She has my full trust. On the other hand, Zest and Suu aren¡ät connected whatsoever by blood, right? So, can you say that you can fully trust her?" "She is an excellent woman. Being from another race is just part of her individuality. And even if we are not connected by blood, there is no one more trustworthy than her." "Yes, until this life of mine is exhausted... No my descendants will obey master even after this life of mine is exhausted." When Suu, says this while lowering her head, Her Majesty the Beast King watches her with glittering eyes. At that moment the door opens with a loud bang. "Your Excellency, this Albert shall assist you! Together, we will kill the enemy with no problems!"3 "Papa, Kachua is ready to cast her best magic!" With their eyes bloodshot, those two froze in ce after barging in. I guess that¡¯s because the saw us get along having tea. Her majesty, please don¡¯t smile while grabbing your axe. "To assist..." "Best magic..." "You two, sit there in seiza." I ce my cup on the table, and stand up. I can see two kemonobito copsed in the hallway through the door that was left open. You fools, didn¡¯t kill the, right? Are they alright? ... It seem I have to apologize for a second time today... A second apology in dogeza. "Hahaha, good good. I won¡¯t me the men that are worried about their lord. This is a matter of fact as the Beast King, as it is a natural behaviour for kemonobito. Rather, lets praise them." "Your Majesty, I request you to put down your axe, please. Since there were no deaths, I understand your forgiveness. However, it will be improper for it to be a battle." The prime minister promptly scolded Her Majesty the Beast King before starting a fight. Little sister, hang in there... I feel a great sense of affinity. "I¡¯m sorry, Prime Minister Emilia. Since it¡¯s been a while, I forgot about the Beast King¡¯s magic power." "Stop it, miss Kachua! Just call me Emilia like in the past. Otherwise I would get scolded by thete king." "If you say so, it will also be easier for me. You two who were so small have be splendid... It¡¯s such a shame the early death of that mischievousd, but her daughters have be this splendid..." "I remember the time when I was little and father brought us to the country of elves. When we returned he said: ¡¯I want to fight miss Kachua again¡¯." "Fufufu, such a honorable fighter. We were fighting buddies and drinking buddies... For that fellow to go ahead and pass away." "Miss Kachua..." This should be an atmosphere that makes one spill tears from the story being narrated. But, isn¡¯t your conversation strange? Aren¡¯t you saying that you were fighting buddies with the previous Beast King, who you are also calling mischievousd? I¡¯m appalled by the wideness of this granny¡¯s countenance. "I remembered! the predecessor said: ¡¯I thought I would die! I thought it might be possible to gain control of the country of elves, but it will be impossible while that granny is alive.¡¯, wasn¡¯t that kachua?! I believed her to be a granny in her golden days... But you look surprisingly young." "... A granny?" "Your Majesty, to talk about an internal talk to outsiders..." "Prime minister,dy Kachua¡¯s forhead vein is popping, please take distance from the danger." Standing up while swaying, Kachua enveloped herself in magical power. The Beast King who saw this, prepared her axe with a smile on her face. Albert who made a good decision rarely seen from him, evacuated the prime minister... Yeah, that¡¯s a rally good decision. "Hohohoho, miss Beast King, it seems you already forgot the time when you ended crying while saying: "I¡¯m sorry, older sister Kachua." When I hit your buttocks." "Eleonora is fine, hundreds years-old older sister. You know? One¡¯s thinking changes as a Beast King. In Griffon kingdom it¡¯s thought as useless to dialogue with an opponent. So we should just skip words... right?" "Hohohoho!" "Hahaha!" Their magic power was strong enough to crack the cobblestone floor. If they go at it as is, the wedding ceremony might end in an ident. Hehe... I¡¯ve been patient like this... I¡¯ve been patient since it is my daughter¡¯s wedding... These idiots! Isn¡¯t it fine to not be patient anymore? Kemonobito seem to have a meat miso brain... "Suu, I¡¯m going for a bit." "... Don¡¯t be to hard on them." Okay, it seems I¡¯ve got Suu¡¯s permission. Now I just have to make arrangements with the prime minister. "Hey, prime minister. Is this one really Her Majesty the Beast King? Isn¡¯t she just a female soldier that¡¯s naming herself Beast King?" "Huh? archduke Zest, what..." "Aren¡¯t you the honorable messenger sent as an envoy to the country of elves? In that case you shouldn¡¯t be mistaken. However, since my eyes can¡¯t see very well due to the cloud of dust from a while back... That being the case, one would have to look closely to clearly be sure that she is indeed Her Majesty the Beast King." The prime minister ponders quietly while looking me in the eye. After thinking various things, she replied. "Could you immobilize that self-proimed Beast King without harming her? I won¡¯t be able to tell unless I look at her closely. It is okay with this kind of flow ... " "Entrust the rest to me. There¡¯s the need for a bit of punishment... One shouldn¡¯t be allowed to behave rudely to Her Majesty the Beast King. And she¡¯s impersonating the Beast King." "Prime minister, when His Excellency shows that kind of look, he bes dangerous, please hide behind me." After confirming that the prime minister was hidden behind Albert, I fully unleash my magical power. Unlike, the wait-and-see from a while ago, now I¡¯m really going at full throttle. "What!? What a ridiculous magical power!!" "Oh, shoot4! This isn¡¯t the usual papa! This is different!" When the two turned her head to look, it was already toote. I¡¯ve already closed up the distance... Only master and Albert are able to move at this speed. With both hands enveloped in magic power, I firmly grasp both of their faces. Being able to make the dragons show their belly in apology, I¡¯m proud of my iron w technique. "Self-proimed Beast King, the prime minister is unsure whether you are the real thing. For you toe obediently, should I use a bit of strength? Also, Kachua, aren¡¯t you the elven country¡¯s first royal magician, and my adopted daughter? Think about your position a bit more." "Emilia! Y-your sister is dying! I apologize! I¡¯ll really be obedient!!" "Papa! My eyes, My eyes will pop out! I¡¯m sorry!!" "Well, it is hard for my ears to hear after the two of you roaring, and unleashing your magical power a moment ago... Could you repeat that again?" "Archduke zest, I understood! I will not fight!!" "Kachua will be a good daughter for papa!!" "Prime minister, Albert, could you hear it?" "Wha!? Err..." "Yes! I could not hear it!" "As I thought... My hearing seems to be a bit poor." ""Gyaaaaaaa"" Creaking sounds resounded in the room, both voices continued to apologize, and cry for the next thirty minutes. After the second day, people already have lost it. While thinking as such... I put more power into my hands. 1. ¥¨¥ß¥ê¥¢ 2. ¥¨¥ì¥Î©`¥é 3. These kind of lines make my day and help me keep going with the nightmare called mtl :p 4. Not really sure what kind of curse a lolibaba would use in this situation, and "¤Á¤Ã" is open for interpretation in my jap dictionary, so I ept suggestions. Chapter 154. Beast Kings fiancee

154. Beast King¡¯s fiancee

TL: Dragox "Emilia, is my head okay?" "There doesn¡¯t seem to be any outwar abnormality. Your Majesty, what do you think about archduke Zest knowing he is so strong?" "Yes! Won¡¯t he be my fiancee..." "Good,it is a relief that your thought circuits work as ususal. I am speechless." The prime minister is making a fool out of the interiors of Beast King¡¯s head with a lovely smile on her face. The person herself seems to be satisfied with her treatment, it makes one pity her... "It seems she¡¯s definitively Her Majesty the Beast King. Well, a soldier wouln¡¯t ever think of impersonating her anyway. Hey, Kachua." "Yes. What is it, papa? "Lady Kachua, here is a handerchief, please wipe your face. Kachua cried so much because of the iron w that her face is now tear stained, and has a runny nose. She was blowing hard on the handerchief that Suu casually gave her. "Neverthless... How much do I owe to the prime minister, to do such a rude thing to Her Majesty the Beast King. I sincerely apologize." "What? What for?" "Please forgive him, Your Majesty. The archduke only acted like he did because I requested so." While the look on the Beast King¡¯s face was that of astonishment, tthe prime minister waspletely blue. She knows we are in a delicate situation. "There¡¯s nothing to be worried about, why are you apologizing?" "... It is a formality." "It is embarrasing." This time the prime ministe got a bright red face. It seems it¡¯s useless to be roundabaout about this. "Your Majesty, with the incident that just happened... Do you understand that with just one mistake it could have ended in war?" "...Wha!?" It¡¯s useless... Who made such a child a king!? "I stopped Your Majesty by the request from the prime minister. With the use of force. Do you understand up to here?" "Yes. Certainly I, and... big sister Kachua were about to fight. And neither of us thought of stopping." "However, you are clearlye Her majesty de Beast King... Aren¡¯t you the king? of course I must apologize so I can be forgiven." "But I¡¯m the one that was defeated, so I¡¯m the one in the wrong, right?" I¡¯m starting to feel a headache while hearing her, but it is possible to endure since I¡¯m used to Albert. I¡¯m also using a rude manner of speech, but i guess this brat won¡¯t understand unlees I use simple words. I¡¯m already considerably tired... "For the time being we need a scenario where I need to apologize. Otherwise it would go something like... ¡¯The prime minister from Gryphon has deceived us, she tarnished His excellyn¡¯s honor. Her Majesty the Beast King must be involved in this too. No, this surely must be a conspiracy by the Gryphon Kingdom! All while archduke Zest is an ambassador in the country of elves. However, the Beast King is a coward that attacks by surprise. Moreover, the prime minister must have tricked archduke Zest in all this. Such a country can not be trusted. Lets both defeat the Gryphon Kingdom!¡¯ How would you resolve that?" "Eh!? Isn¡¯t that mostly made up?" "Yes, that¡¯s right. It¡¯s just a false usation. This is the kind of things done in the background for military and economical power are an everyday thing for nobles, when it¡¯s done betweenrge countries it is called diplomacy."(TLN:) "But I don¡¯t..." "Since I understand the mindset of hte kemonobito, I know that this isn¡¯t the behavior of Her Majesty. Since the pride of the kemonobito wouldn¡ät allow you to break promises, and respect strength. Isn¡¯t that right?" "That¡¯s right, since that¡¯s the kemonobito pride." She nods with satisfaction. That¡¯s how this muscleheaded idiot says it. "Nevertheless, for other races negotiations and dialogue are needed. You as a king must be able to cope with all this." "Yes. Understood." ...Really? Do you really understand? I reply with a smile, but my heart is full of anxiety. "Incidentally, are you going to tell someone about this incident?" "Oh, there¡¯s no way I won¡¯t tell this to everyone! Archduke Zest is even stronger than what the rumors tell! By all means, My husband..." "Prime minister, I¡¯m begging you... If Her Majesty the King is left alone, this will cause an uproar." "I have a headache. Since that¡¯s my sister¡¯s nature I wanted to keep her inside our country... but since the strong one rules the kemonobito, I¡¯m unable to do anything." Inside my heart I feel sorry for Emilia. She started calling "sister" to Her Majesty, I guess she thinking something among the lines of: "What to do? She will likely tell everyone about this." "Prime minister, it might be to meddlesome to ask about another country¡¯s affairs, but I guess I¡¯m already involved anyways. What kind of education was given to the Beast King?" "I¡¯m so ashamed I have no words to answer." "What is it? You¡¯ve been talking about difult things all this time!" The beast King became noisy after running out of patience, but here is someone that is at he limit of his patience. For such a brat to be a king... Aren¡¯t my hands full enough with the education of the fool prince? "Shut up! Children who are unable to understand what¡¯s been talked about should remain silent! With just those words one might end up getting killed!!"(TLN:) Normally one wouldn¡¯t say such foolish things to a king. But the situation right now leave me no other choice. "Is that okay? If the exchange just now gets leaked, there will be great problems. It would be a good chance for those that are against me. I will be put under vignce, and bad rumors would easily spread." Yes, such interactions are okay in private. Under the condition that they are kept as a secret. But I¡¯m too worried that this brat will spill the beans. "It¡¯s a scheme made by archduke Zest to betray Gryphon Kingdom and the Grunn Empire.He intends to provoke a war... What if those rumors spread? Will you be able to handle it?" Since /> Since the Beast King became silent, it seems that she undeerstood. No, there¡¯s still the chance that she didn¡¯t understand what I said at all... "The king of a country has the power to kill arge number of people just by his words. Just a bit..." "Those are nostalgic words... the former beast king used to say ¡¯you don¡¯t understand that one can lose his life with just one of your words¡¯ while being angry." "Archduke Zest, I apologize in advance. My sister has a face that says that she is about to spout nonsense."(TLN:) I have an unpleasant premonition about her words, however Albert, and Suu are fast to react. Both of them firmly cover their ears... They make it clear they won¡¯t be hearing this. "I have decided! Let¡¯s take archduke Zest to the Gryphon Kingdom! Only he will be my husband! About Grun Empire, let¡¯s inmediatly..." "My sister is absolutely useless!" "Papa, it seems tha my hearing¡¯s been faillingtely." "I¡¯m also tired of this constant buzz in my ears." While prime minister Emilia is scolding Her Majesty with the looks off a demon, we just silently watch. ... This doesn¡¯t seem to be settled anytime soon. "I don¡¯t want to! Archduke Zest is really strong and majestic. And wouln¡¯t he be an excellent leader? Is there any other man like him!?" "He is a foreign authority, and you can¡¯t expect to marry an already married archduke! There¡¯s nothing but problems with that idea!" Even after nagging her for 30 minutes this doesn¡¯t end. We can just resign ourselves to have a tea break. "However, how can we reach apromise?" "Your excellency! rather than that, in regards to the Gryphon Kingdom in the map..." "Albert, that is really foolish as expected..." "Lord Albert please be silent. You are a bother." Albert who was told by his sister that he¡¯s a nuisance is feeling down, however I have no time to make a follow up. This quarrel won¡¯t end until Her Majesty the Beast King can make apromise somewhere. "Is there someone that can rece me?" "Albert is strong enough, but he¡¯s already married." "In terms of inteligence there¡¯s Sir Katalina ordy Kachua... but they¡¯re women..." "... In short, a man who is single, capable of fighting with me and has high intelligence" "Ha? Is there a person like that?" "Master, you don¡¯t say..." "How about the Frontier Count Razatonia? He is a bit elder, but he is single right now and really strong. Furthermore, he can plot as much as you want!" "Grun Empire¡¯s Shield... There¡¯s certainly no problems with him, but His majesty the Emperor won¡¯t permit it at all." "If not as a son-inw, as a husband certainly... The frontier shield himself..." Suu begins making calctions with an evil face for some reason. It will certainly be favorable for my territory where there ar many kemonobito if I can be distantly rted with the Beast King... Though it seems dangerous to have a direct rtionship with this king with the brain of a child. "I wish Albert¡¯s son was son was a bit bigger..." "!? That¡¯s it, master! Lets make Albert¡¯s son the future son-inw!" "OH, there was tha kind of move!" "... Engaging my baby son? What a honor!! Your Excellency, I can¡¯t thank you enough!!" Wait, isn¡¯t your reasoning strange? Making Albert¡¯s son the fiancee with him being such a fool... It should be okay... the other side is in a simr situation after all. "But, will it be okay with the kemonobito to engage a royalty just like this?" "It is wonderful, this is the dream of every kemonobito man." "For a woman is useless, but if it is a man, he can boast about it, and with the partner being her Majesty...This Albert is only able to show his gratitude!!" "S-so it¡¯s like that. However, it¡¯s still not fixed. First we need to convince Her Majesty the Beast King..." "Master, please do your best" "It all depends on papa¡¯s persuasion." "I will dance at once from my emotions." It seems my task is already decided. ¡¯Make Albert¡¯s son Her Majesty the Beast King¡¯s fiancee! That will solve all our problems!¡¯ In order to achieve this, I slowly aproach the two kemonobito sister who are quarreling... "Hey, archduke Zest. It seems your current wife is the youngdy from the frontier territory. Wouldn¡¯t I be better suited to be together with you?" "P-please stop, your Majesty! Such things..." That¡¯s the first thing she says when I get close. Prime minister Emilia has a pitiful face full of fatigue. "The bare minimum requirement for my wife is to be strong enough. I¡¯m worried that her Majesty won¡¯t be able to win even against Albert." "Hah? That youngdy of yours is like that? If you say to such extent..." "The ck dragons show their belly in submission to her, moreover... Albert, how would you confront Bea in a one-on-one?" "Yes! the moment madam res at me with her dark magic emanating I can only submit!" "Is that so. Dark atribute magicians are scary. Once I saw frontier count Razatonia in his youth from a distance and, I thought I would leak my pants. Mama is said to have a rare talent in dark magic... I would never think of fighting against her." When the frontier count is d in ck magic at full throttle, it¡¯s aplete horror. Bea has a simr amount of magical power... I guess it¡¯s only me that can resist it upfront because of my light magic. "Would her Majesty the Beast King be able to win against my wife whom these two can im they are unable to win? I think it¡¯s impossible. And although I¡¯m being highly assessed... I¡¯m afraid I¡¯m just a human in the prime of his life. In the future I¡¯ll probably just get weaker." "Mumumu, but... with you being that strong, it won¡¯t matter that much if you get older." "Sister, you should just give up, with his wife being such a powerful dark magician, it would just be reckless to fight." If she acknowledges Bea¡¯s strength, she won¡¯t be able to im me as her husband. center style="margin-top:25px"> as her husband. Though it seems she hasn¡¯t given up yet. "Therefore, considering this, don¡¯t you agree that Albert strength is outstanding? He is the man who got this strength after training. It¡¯s possible to say that he is hardworking, and also a natural genius." "I will admit that. It would normally be impossible to find such a strong soldier." As expected from the muscle-head, this might be a quick talk. "Then... wouldn¡¯t you agree to raise, this genius¡¯ son?" "...What do you mean?" "With a young kemonobito, there¡¯s room for development. If we can drill into him the foundations of fighting, he can be her Majesty¡¯s ideal man." "Hee, to rise a young man to my liking? that sounds nice..." "Older sistes, please wipe your drool." It seems that the Beast King is about to bite the bait. She will get a really young fiance¨¦ after all. ¡¯Lets call this off since there¡¯s not a good prospect.¡¯ It would have ended like that with one mistake, good thing there was a sacrifice to take my ce. If Albert¡¯s son is against this... No, a young man will easily fall in love since the Beast king is a beautiful woman. Even more so if he is a kemonobito since they adore the Beast King. "Well then, lets arrange it like that. Is that okay prime minister Emilia?" "I will have to trouble you with this. As long as her Majesty the Beast King agrees with this." "Battle genius child... younger... to my liking... a young man...." The Beast King Elenora is staring into empty space, while the prime minister seems to be relieved With the conssent from the prime minister, this case bes solved. Im releived, this was really troublesome. I thought i finally had a moment to catch my breath, but then the news arrived. "This is an emergency! The prime minister from the elven country Heinz(TLN: ) is making a fuss saying that his Excellency Zest anddy Kachua have betrayed the empire, and that they are conspiring with the Beast King to usurp the elven country¡¯s throne!" When Media barged in the room and said this, everyone inside froze in their ce. To turn out like this at this timing... That bastard really did it. Inside the room where only the rough breathing from Media was heard. It was Tasel from the inteligence unit that broke the atmosphere. "Your excellency, it seems that the background work has been sesful and the elves aren¡¯t buying into prime minister Heinz words. Shoukdn¡¯t you hurry and make a statement at the banquet hall?" "Understood. I will hurry to the banquet hall." Like this, we all rush to the banquet hall. Immediatly after this the troubles in the elven country were settled. Notes: 1. And this is why I¡¯m grateful for living the life of azymoner :P 2. I feel this is the fastest time in which Zest has snapped twice in a row. 3. Behold my ability to trante something I didn¡¯t understand by infering from the context :p 4. Was this his name? Chapter 155. Prime Minister Heinzs trump card

155. Prime Minister Heinz¡¯s trump card

Tl: Dragox "Albert, take the ck knights and surround the ce. This will be just a defense measure, but in the worst case scenario, you¡¯re allowed to kill prime minister Heinz." "Yes! We¡äll certainly bring him down." "Kachua, I entrust Tsubaki¡¯s safety to you. I will also leave the war maidens to you." "Understood." "Suu, stay by my side. I will protect you." "Certainly, If I get in the way, please forsake me." "The intelligence unit will be in charge of escorting the Beast King¡¯s group... Be sure to keep an eye on anyone that shows an unusual behaviors. I¡¯ll deal with this." "By your will." While walking to the hall, I give instructions quickly Thest instructionsfor the intelligence forces, I gave them in a voice that wouldn¡¯t reach the Beast King of course. She¡¯s rally fool, and it would be risky if she was to do something foolish. In the worst case scenario I¡¯ll try toe to an agreement with prime minister Heinz. "Fuhahahaha, how imposing. Is this the real face of archduke Zest?" "Your Majesty, you are being watched, please be quiet." Muscle brain older sister and intellectual younger sister. They were making the usual disy inside the hall... Shouldn¡¯t you be more vignt? "What in the world is this fuss about?! Prime minister Heinz would you care to exin?" When I arrive at the hall, everyone is in an uproar. If the prime minister makes such remarks while the envoys from various countries are gathered, it will be like this. The ck knights keep reinforcing my surroundings, and draw near the prime minister. "The traitor, archduke Zest hase! You guys, what are you doing?! Capture him!!" The prime minister raised a loud voice inside the hall, but the elven soldiers were confused. Tsubaki, and prince Mars are seated behind the prime minister, are they okay? Though the only one near them seems to be a maid... br> /> To call me a betrayer out of nowhere. To receive such a bad treatment... to treat me like that. What an unreasonable thing to do. They would just consider it an act of hostility." "I warn the people inside the hall! Subordinate of archduke Zest, Captain of the dragon knights Albert. Anyone that draws near his Excellency will be killed!" Albert raises his sword with strengthening magic at full throttle. The ck knights following him also strengthen themselves in the same way. ... you guys... have gotten stronger "Is that the sword of the empire...?" "Albert? Is that sir Albert?!" "You guys, absolutely don¡¯t act hostile!" With the foreign envoys talking in a loud voice, I gradually move closer to prime minister Heinz. Oh, the refrigerator looks like a granny again. Since she¡¯s in her white garments from the holy country, it¡¯s easy to find her "You, why are you not listening to my orders?! What is general Caris doing?!!" When we arrived at the stage, Heinz was making a lot of noise with his facepletely red. Standing by my side a member from the intelligence unit whispers to me. "General Caris is being dealt by lord Media. Will it be an ident?" "No, he tried to seduce Media, and she responded with violence. Convey this." "By your will." Media works fast... It seems we won¡¯t have to deal with general Caris after this. The intelligence member... This voice seem to be Tasel¡¯s. He¡¯s hiding his face with a ck cloth, so I can only judge by his voice. After making sure he¡¯s gone, I talk to Heinz. "It seems that general Caris got drunk, and tried to make impolite advances on one of the war maidens. To do such a thing to a married woman... As one would expect from one of the excellent prime minister Heinz¡¯s followers." "That is...! You, how dare you be so shameless?! Where¡¯s the evidence for such usation?!" "What evidence? Isn¡¯t the victim testimony enough? Aren¡¯t Aren¡¯t you able to trust your subordinate testimony? Ah, though in prime minister¡¯s case his subordinate is his lover, right?" "In any case this is something you bastard arranged! How dare such a rumour..." Heinz is furious, the surroundings are sending him various looks. The high officials from the country of elves are sending him cold nces. The refrigerator¡¯s kingdom seems to be fully on my side an the white knights and ck knights are talking between themselves with grins on their faces. You guys really look happy all together. Although, her Majesty the Beast King seems to be the problem... "It¡¯s really regrettable that our Gryphon Kingdom is treated as a coward. We advocate the legitimacy of archduke Zest with our kemonobito pride." Oh, Isn¡¯t her Majesty the Best King amazing?! How is she able to speak such difficult words... No, it doesn¡¯t seem to be the case Prime minister Emilia said those words standing behind the Beast King, while thetter moved her mouth pretendinga speech in an act of ventriloquism. ... I wish prime minister Emilia would be the Beast King. "Kemonobito pride... Even her Majesty goes that far..." "Prime minister Heinz can¡¯t be trusted." "There¡¯s also those books being sold." His situation doesn¡¯t look good. Well, it¡¯s difficult to regain credibility in such a short time. Even so, to make such usations right now, I wonder if he has a trump card... or maybe he had no timing whatsoever. "The Holy Country Lc will also back archduke Zest. Lady Wisteria is the spirit shrine maiden. We¡¯ll regard as an enemy to anyone that acts hostile against her father, the archduke Zest." """We are the shrine maiden guards, under the word of her Eminence the Pope.""" The holy knights troupe looked like sisters in a praying pose with a gentle expression, and a fierce smile on their faces. They¡¯re all making the same terrifying expression... This shouldn¡¯t be the ce to disy such hostility... "Even the Pope..." "Spirit shrine maiden!? shrine maiden!? Isn¡¯t that just a legend!?" "If it¡¯s real, then we certainly don¡¯t want to oppose the believers." It seems that not only the foreign envoys, but the elves also stop being indecisive and join our side. With this, prime minister Heinz ispletely isted. He wouldn¡¯t be able to maintain the sameposure "Your position doesn¡¯t look good, Heinz." It seems the prime minister Heinz isn¡¯t maintaining appearances anymore. It¡¯s clear that everyone else inside the hall is supporting me now. With Kachua staying near Tsubaki, no more problems should arise. However, Heinz¡¯s expression changed from one of anger to an eerieughter. "Fufufu, I certainly thought... I thought I could use the situation with the beast king to turn things around. With the kemonobito nature,it would obviously end in a fight with you. The matter about the spirit shrine maiden waspletely unexpected. This is my loss." Certainly, that Beast King will fight with pleasure with me, though it¡¯s scary for me. By the way, the person in question is being grabbed from the scruff of the neck by the prime minister Emilia... She never learns. Seeing Heinz expression changed from anger toughter, I didn¡¯t lower my guard. A man like him isn¡¯t one to fight lost battles. He must still believe that he can turn the situation around. "However, I seeded in gathering the envoys of each country here. Even if it¡¯s as enemies, this was my main purpose." After saying this, Heinz started to take off his robes while grinning. Under his civil official robes, a full-body silver armor appeared. Though it might be an exaggeration to call it an armor. the design is more like a wetsuit. "Once, the Demon King wore this to battle... with this armour he kicked off hte armies of many countries. This magical armour made with an ancient metal is capable of nullifying any physical attack. Fufufufu, I will show you its strength here." I guess that¡¯s his trump card So the card So the Demon King used that armour? I send an eye signal to Albert. He¡¯s a really talented person on the battlefield. Silently from behind Heinz, he shed with magical strengthening at full throttle. A genuine strike with full force. It might be enough to cause a fatal wound to a dragon. However, such a blow didn¡¯t reach Heinz. The strike capable of cutting one in two was stopped just before making contact with the armor making a *Gwy~n* sound. "Wh!?" "Get away, Albert!!" Albert, who was astonished, immediately took distance as soon as he heard me. At that moment, a red magic circle with five meters of diameter appeared underneath Heinz. "Collect and me of purgatory! me storm!!" Kachua activated her magic the moment it waspleted. After the magic circle shined more brightly, ck mes appeared, and swallowed Heinz. Oi oi, Is it fine to release such a shy magic indoors!? As I worry, it seems that Kachua thought about it since the surroundings look undamaged. The ck mes are raging inside the magic circle though. "Suu, do you know about that magic?" "It seems to be a magic handed down in the country of elves. A dragon tried to test this magic before, and it ended up melting its scales." To the point of being able to melt a dragon¡¯s scale... There¡¯s noparison with a former 3rd court magician. When the heavy breathing lowers her hands, the me surrounding Heinz disappears. Behind the now gone mes, Heinz¡¯s figure appears standing straight. "This is absurd... How did he remain unhurt inside the mes?!" "Your Excellency, is this person really strong?" Kachua and Albert be flustered. As if making fun of these two, Heainz¡¯s face was full ofposure. "Fufu, this armor is able to receive elder Kachua¡¯s ck me and lord Albert¡¯s strike. No one is able to stop me now... Fufufu, fuhahahahahaha!!" Heinz was raising aughter in the center of the hall. We could only watch silently. Chapter 156. Armors weakness

156. Armor¡¯s weakness

TL. Dragox "Unhurt against the sword of the empire sir Albert, archduke Zest¡¯s strongest subordinate, and the beast king second to none1! Fuhahahaha, As I thought, this is the proof that this armor is the strongest! The devil king wouldn¡¯t have been afraid of anything." In front of theughing Heinz, two people were panting on their knees. They weren¡¯t the only ones... the holy knights, and the ck knights teamed up tounch their consecutive attacks without any real result. "Lady Kachua seems to be out of magic power... What should we do, master?" "Hey, Suu. Have none of you truly noticed? Or are you just pretending?" While she was making a surprised face with a *Kyoton*, behind her, without giving up on her ns, the her Majesty the Beast King Elenora could be seen swinging her axe while trying to cut her objective in two. She doesn¡¯t seem to learn.2 Is having muscles for brains a racial trait? "Have you tried using appraisal magic on that armor?" "Naturally. It was impossible for me to appraise it." "...Really. Then, is it impossible unless one got enough magical power? No, is this a characteristic of light attribute...?" "Master what did you see?" "What to do, your Excellency?" While talking, Albert rushes to my side, and both siblings looks at me with the same expression. They really look like siblings right now. "When you line up like that, you really look like siblings." "Master, you really are taking it easy... Haah. What is the weak point?" "...?... Oh, as expected from your Excellency! to be so rxed." Albert makes his own judgment without understanding anything at all. Suu looked like she hasn¡¯t a worry. As proof, both of them were looking at me with a look that there was no problem at all. "Hey! stop chattering with archduke Zest, and help over here!" While breathing heavily, Elenora raised her voice. However, it would be meaningless to help her right now. "Her Majesty Beast King, how about a little break? He won¡¯t move from there for a while" """"Hah!?"""" "...Kuh! What do you mean!?" br> /> After exining, everyone in this ce stared at me like saying ¡¯What is this guy saying?¡¯. "The armor seems to have the effect of absolute defense. Although it surely invalidates any attack , it seems that he will be unable to move in the mean time. It will be fin if one just waits until the effective time is over..." Aside from Heinz who was biting the back of his teeth, the rest were dumbfounded. In this awkward atmosphere, only Suu was smiling with a rope in hands. ... You were already prepared, didn¡¯t you? "So there¡¯s still time, right?" "I think there¡¯s enough time to enjoy some tea." "Archduke Zest, you should have told us sooner..." "Your Maejesty, it¡¯s your own fault for attacking so suddenly." Those were the exchanges between the refrigerator and me, and between the Beast King Elenora, and prime Minister Emilia. With Heinz bounded with a rope by Suu, I dragged him with some ck iron chains that the ck knights prepared. Naturally, since I¡¯m using magic strengthening, it won¡¯t be a simple matter to disengage... such a blockhead "The preparations for the tea are ready. Sincedy Tsubaki, and the other nobles have already taken refuge, I guess we can take it easy." "Oh, thanks for your troubles. Everyone, pleasee." In a certain sense, only the parties involved remain at the hall. Only those rted to the Holy Country of Lc, and the Beast King men. Also the war maidens, and the ck knights. Oh, the elven Queen Elisha is also here. We all sit around the table that Suu prepared, we need to decide what to do next. "So, is it possible to defeat Heinz?" Queen Elisha was the first to bring it up. As the incident happened in this country, and the queen being the top authority in the current time, she naturally was in charge of taking care of it. Although he is in a state where he can¡¯t move, he can¡¯t be leaved as it is. "Well, the armor seems to consume a massive amount of magic power. It would be impossible for that man to activate it again. So in normal normal conditions... it would be possible." "In that case, may I ask archduke Zest to take care of it?" "I do not mind, but there is a problem... To tell you the truth due to the properties of the armor¡¯s structure, its weak point attribute will change ording to the affinities of the user. Furthermore, even without the effect of absolute defense, it has the ability to greatly strengthen the user¡¯s abilities. If I fight, it is possible to defeat him... but the conflict might end destroying half of the castle." "Ha!? Is that even possible!?" It certainly has attacks invalidation, but it seems it wasn¡¯t thought against bindings... so unreasonable. Moreover, he can¡¯t speak right now since Suu stuffed a cloth into his mouth. But when he bes able to move again, this degree of retrains will be easily broken... hard to say if it¡¯s a strong or weak opponent. "Furthermore, it seems this fellow possesses the light attribute. The same as me... So attacking from the front would make the surrounding¡¯s damage to increase. The weak point is darkness attribute, so who inside the country of elves..." "Haa... There¡¯s no one with the darkness attribute in my country. What about the holy kingdom or the Gryphon country?" The queen asks while dropping her shoulders, but the other to respond in a negative. "There¡¯s no one in the holy country." "It¡¯s regrettable that there¡¯s no one in my kingdom." As you can imagine, those were the words from the fridge, and prime minister Emilia. The beast King is eating the snacks prepared by Suu, and is not listening at all. "In that case, do you want to bring Bea from my territory... Or maybe you would want to ask the frontier count for help? With a dragon hurrying it would take some hours..." "In the meantime, would you suppress him, archduke Zest?" "With just that... Let¡¯s also move the holy knights." "Hahahihohefuho!"3 "Your Majesty, please do not speak with your mouth full." Just as prime minister Emilia tried to give tea to the Beast King Elenora... that suddenly happened. At first, it felt as if the temperature of the hall dropped a little. br> a little. But that was only the beginning. If we use an analogy... it felt like a moonless dark night. If despair had a color, it would be that color. Such a ck overwhelming presence overflowed from the hall door. "Hah!?" "Your Majesty, please escape!" "Wh! This intimidation!!" "Oh, Toto¡¯s presence?" "Suu, hide behind me." "Master, please apologize at once." The queen¡¯s legs gave in, while prime minister Emilia was shaking with a deep blue face. The Beast King prepared her axe while shaking, the refrigerator had a rxed face. And then... their figures slowly appeared in front of us. "Zest-sama... I heard from Albert, and Tsubaki." ¡¯Oh, Zest-sama. I¡¯m really d that you are okay¡¯ *Koton... koton* her steps resound as she walks closer. ncing at Heinz, he is foaming from his mouth, showing the white of his eyes. With it being his weakness, he bes like this from such a strong aura of the darkness attribute. "To ruin my cute daughter¡¯s wedding... And a man with such preferences tried to attack Zest-sama."4 ¡¯So stupid... Ufufufufufufufufufufufufufufufufufufufufu.¡¯ (Ah, dad! Mom seriously got angry, lets not disturb her.) It can be understood just by looking. It¡¯s at the level where the aura can be cu with a knife. I patted Toto¡¯s head who flew towards me, and sat on my shoulder. "To try stealing Zest-sama from me... Moreover he is a man..." ¡¯Only for me... Zest-sama is only mine...¡¯ With a high-pitched *kyiin* resounding, Bea¡¯s magical power warped around her body. The pitch ck magical power wrapping her whole body rose like steam. "You need some education!" ¡¯I will never forgive you!¡¯ Bea wore her magical power like a shinigami¡¯s mantle. She¡¯s using her magic strengthening in serious mode... like this he can beat Albert into a pulp, and make the dragons show their belly in submission. Her right hand is holding a ck sphere made of darkness magicpressed to the utmost releasing a *gigigigigi* sound. It sounded like the devil¡¯s voice announcing the end of the world. Meanwhile, the shinigami turned towards with a smile on her face, waiting for my answer. "I love Bea." (Mom, take care!) "Ufufu, I /> "Ufufu, I will be on my way." ¡¯I won¡¯t leave even the bones.¡¯ While walking, the marble floor made a scrapping sound caused by her magical power. Bea ispletely under the impression that Heinz tried to steal me from her. ... I can¡¯t stop her I can¡¯t possibly go against her. I can only pray for Heinz to not die. "Oh, everyone, some might already know, but just in case, she is my wife Bea." "Toto, it¡¯s been a while. Want some cookies?" (I want! It¡¯s been a long time, Garbera!) "I will take good care of Tsubaki, so is it possible to get along? Please!?" "Impossible... I can¡¯t picture myself winning against her..." "Sister, Gryphon will get destroyed!! Please stop!!" Except for one, every leader of each country is in a state of mayhem. I understand that feeling... Bea is really scary in that state. Actually I also leaked a little bit. "Master, how about leaving the rest to the madam and have a cup of tea?" "Lets do that, as expeted it is scary... I¡¯m already tired..." While Heinz¡¯s screams echoed out, our tea ceremony resumed. It¡¯s unreasonable to try to stop her. I don¡¯t want to die yet. "By the way, why is Bea here?" 5 "Since the envoys from each country have arrived, it was arranged for the madam toe, as both parents are supposed to attend just for today." "... Is that so." I have to find out from where did that armor came from, and report it to the demons. Bea, please don¡¯t kill him. I was praying while drinking my tea that didn¡¯t have any taste... Notes: 1. Guessing on this one since it¡¯s really unclear what/who it is apart from being the beast king¡¯s. 2. I hope I¡¯m not getting too liberal in this TL 3. Beats me, full mouth Japanese is well beyond my capabilities. 4. As in a gay man trying to sexually assault Zest, the raws used pretty graphguage about this but I feel it is out of character for Bea, am I wrong? 5. Ihank goodness, I was starting to think I missed this exnation somewhere The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!