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The Baron’s Mansion

“Satou here. When I was traveling overseas on a budget, I sometimes wasn’t able to stay in the hotels I was planning on using. You can’t exactly camp out in less-than-safe countries, so I wound up desperately searching for a hotel.”

“I didn’t know Nana had eight siblings.”

“Yes, we happened to run into them near the royal capital.”

I recognized the head of the five maids who’d been stationed at the baron’s royal capital mansion, but I didn’t remember her name until it showed in the AR display.

“Since we’ve got far more people than I planned for, we were thinking about getting rooms at an inn instead.”

“Wh-whaaat?!”

“But you must stay here, Sir Knight!”

“Ma’am! We’ll empty out our room. Let them stay there!”

As soon as I mentioned getting a hotel, the maids who were standing against the wall all jumped up and started begging the head maid.

“You sure are popular here, master. You haven’t laid a hand on the maids, have you?”

“Of course not. Don’t be ridiculous.”

I pushed Arisa’s forehead away as she leaned toward me.

“But your room is a six-person servants’ room, girls. It would be rude to have our guests stay there, and where would you sleep in the meantime?”

“We can sleep in the hallway or the shed!”

“Or the floor of the kitchen or the dining room!”

“So please, ma’am! Get Sir Knight to stay here!”

The maids pressed closer to their boss.

Even the stern head maid seemed taken aback by their fervor.

“Sir Knight, Sir Knight…,” Erina whispered to me from behind. “Those girls are really just after your cooking. So go ahead and steal their room.”

“I’m with Ms. Erina,” added Ms. Newbie. “The maids can stay with Pina and the rest of us, if you wouldn’t mind staying here.”

Honestly, I would’ve preferred to dive right into bed without doing any cooking after the long day, but I couldn’t disappoint them when they had such high hopes.

“I’ll take you up on your kind offer for tonight, then.”

“Really? Then please wait a moment while we prepare the room.”

“Oh, and, ma’am…” I stopped the head maid as she was starting to give orders. “If I can get the head chef’s permission, I’d like to make a few dishes for dinner tonight. Is that all right?”

“““Yes, please!”””

It was the entire maid staff, not their boss, who responded in unison.

“I’ll go convince the head chef!”

“I’ll check our ingredients!”

“I’ll, umm, umm… I’ll go clean up our room.”

Before the head maid could bring her wrath down on them, the girls went flying from the room.

“Honestly, those girls…”

The head maid sighed, then showed us to our rooms, which were fairly large.

“If there are three of these big rooms, we probably didn’t need to kick those maids out of theirs.”

The rooms aside from mine all had four beds each, which was likely enough for everyone if we pushed the beds together.

It would be a bit tight, but considering all the small kids in my group, we could fit into one room and have Nana and her sisters stay in the other two.

“That’s true. I’ve already bought a mansion elsewhere in the royal capital, so we can go check it out tomorrow and move over there if it seems livable.”

The viceroy’s wife in Labyrinth City had helped me find a house in a scenic area near the border between the lower- and middle-class noble areas.

It was about three times larger than the baron’s mansion, with a salon for inviting over other nobles and a garden big enough to host a decent-sized party. If anything, it was probably intended for mid-level nobles with more social clout than a bottom-tier noble like me.

Maybe it’d be better if I switched mansions with Baron Muno.

“Whoa, all you can see out the window is this huge wall.”

“It’s the third castle wall from the outside.”

The royal capital was a city that had expanded outward from the castle walls several times in its history. Now, nearly seven hundred years after it was established, there were seven walls in concentric circles, with the royal castle at the center. Of course, that didn’t include the several castle walls within the royal area.

According to the wife of the viceroy of Labyrinth City Celivera, Marquis Ashinen’s wife, who was from the royal capital, most of the biggest noble mansions, like those belonging to feudal lords, viscounts, and higher, were all within the innermost wall that had originally been the walls of the city when it was first built.

So really, as a feudal lord with control of a City Core, Baron Muno should have sited his mansion in that area, too.

If it was a problem of money, I would have been happy to provide support, but it was probably more about power and influence. I decided to keep my nose out of it and let the shrewd Viscount Nina do her thing.

 

“Master, Nana’s underwear is too big, I report!”

A little while after we got settled in our rooms, I heard loud pattering footsteps in the hallway, and Number 8 came flying into the room.

She was practically naked from the waist up.

Though she was wearing one of Arisa’s handmade brassieres, which apparently belonged to Nana, it wasn’t even close to the right size, nor was it successfully hiding any of the parts it was supposed to.

“Geh!”

“Lewd!”

Arisa and Mia jumped up in alarm and immediately scrambled to cover the exposed chest of Number 8 with a towel.

“Master! We used to all be the same size as Nana, but now there is a large difference, I protest!”

“Master, it is unfair to enhance only Nana with new equipment, I report.”

Number 6 and Number 5 came running in, too.

Both of them were also in brassieres that were a few cup sizes too big.

Given that they were under a year old, they had no sense of shame at all.

“Master, turn around.”

“I already am.”

My back was already turned when Arisa made her request. I waited for Nana’s sisters to put on clothes.

“Master, I apologize that Number 8 and the others appear to have caused trouble for you.”

Number 1 came in behind the younger homunculi to apologize on her sisters’ behalves.

The others were behind her, bowing their heads as well. They had changed out of their traveling clothes into some casual clothes borrowed from Nana.

“I’ll be sure to give them a thorough scolding…”

“Don’t worry about it.”

“Thank you for your generosity, master.”

The sisters bowed their heads again.

“Master, Number 1 and the others wanted to speak with you, I report.”

“““Nana!”””

Nana poked her head from behind her sisters, who whipped around and glared at her.

“We intended to wait for the appropriate time—”

“No, it’s fine. I can talk now.”

There was still time before I had to prepare dinner, so I figured I could build up some communication with Nana’s sisters and maybe hear about their adventures at the same time.

Since we wouldn’t all fit into any one of the rooms we’d been given, we borrowed the biggest room instead, the dining room.

“Thanks to your incredible compassion, master, we were able to bury our former master’s mementos at the site of his wife’s grave.”

Number 1 sat up straight and bowed her head stiffly, and the others followed suit.

I respectfully listened. They had already said this, but they may have wanted to repeat it formally.

“Please raise your heads. I’m glad you all made it back safely.”

“That, too, was thanks to the Magic Bags and other travel supplies you provided for us, master.”

The Magic Bag I gave the sisters was the same kind of magic tool as the Garage Bag I’d acquired back in the Valley of Dragons.

I figured I would hear about their journey, but for some reason, they were all sitting and looking at me silently.

“Is something wrong?” I prompted.

“Erm, well…”

Number 1 turned slightly pink as she hesitated.

What could this be about?

“Master, Number 1 and the others want you to give them names, too, but are afraid to ask, I report.”

“““Number 7!”””

“My name is Nana, I report.”

Nana corrected her sisters rather smugly as they shouted her old name at her indignantly.

She had a point, though: When we had last parted ways with the sisters, I do remember promising to give the rest of them names whenever we met again.

“Master, what is my name? I inquire.”

Number 8 brought her face close to mine.

She was so close that we were in danger of accidentally kissing.

“H-hey! You’re too close!”

“Mm, back off!”

The iron-wall pair of Arisa and Mia dragged Number 8 away from me.

“Number 8! We ought to proceed in order of seniority.”

“Number 1, that is an outdated practice, I protest.”

“Perhaps we should decide with rock-paper-scissors to make things fair, I propose.”

“As a sudden death match would take too long, Number 3 proposes a tournament format.”

The sisters argued among themselves about who should receive a name first.

They had surprisingly distinct personalities: Number 2 was watching her sisters in silence, while Number 5 seemed to be struggling to find the right time to join in, opening her mouth only to close it again and again.

“Master, do you have proper names in mind for them?” Arisa whispered.

“Of course—”

“You’re not going to give them super-simple names, like Ichiko or Ein for Number 1, are you?”

…How did she know?

“Ugh, I swear…” Arisa sighed. “Even if you base it on their numbers, at least pick something that will suit each of them.”

That’s why I was going to go with Ichiko for one, Futami for two, and so on…

I couldn’t really come up with any Shiga Kingdom–style names, so I decided to flip through my documents to look for the names of famous people, spellbook authors, and so on—but as I opened the folder, I found something more fitting.

Amid the Japanese memo pads I’d gotten at the dark auction in the old capital was a list of Japanese words and their equivalents in various foreign languages. It was a bit out of place compared to the rest of the notes, but I wasn’t going to complain, since it seemed like it would come in handy now.

I looked over the list of numbers, picking out words that wouldn’t seem too out of place as girls’ names.

“Sorry, but I’m going to go in numerical order.”

I stopped the sisters before they could begin their rock-paper-scissors tournament.

“Number 1…your name is Adin.”

At first, I was going to name her “Ann,” after the French word for “one,” but I had already given that name to one of the alchemist girls in the Echigoya Company; instead, I decided on the Russian word for “one.”

“Thank you very much, master! I, Adin, swear my undying fealty to you.”

The leader, who wore her hair in a braided bun, Number 1—now Adin—produced her shield and rapier from her Garage Bag and saluted me like a soldier, then bowed formally.

“Number 2…you’ll be Ithnani.”

“Thank you. I am Ithnani.”

Number 2—Ithnani—who wore her hair in a braided ponytail, repeated her name quietly but with pride. Following Adin’s example, she took out her war hammer and bowed.

Incidentally, her name came from “ithnan,” the Arabic word for “two.” I’d better take note of all this so I don’t forget.

“Number 3…Tria.”

“Yes, master. Number 3…I mean, Tria’s name is Tria.”

Number 3, who wore a loose side ponytail, referred to herself in the third person.

She produced her long-handled pike from her Garage Bag and accidentally stabbed it into the ceiling in the process, then ended up leaving a long gash on the ceiling in her hurry to pull it back out. Evidently she had a klutzy side.

Nana had told me that Number 3 enjoyed cooking; I fervently hoped that her klutziness didn’t come out in the kitchen.

I reassured the apologetic Tria, then moved on to the next girl’s name.

“Number 4…Vier.”

“Name accepted, master. I am Vier.”

Number 4—Vier—who wore her hair in a ponytail draped in front of her chest, placed her broadsword on the floor and bowed.

Like Number 2, she used few words. However, unlike the first three, there were few changes in her expression.

“Number 5…Fünf.”

“Thank you for the name, I declare. Fünf…Fünf…it is a good name, I boast.”

Number 5, now Fünf, who had disheveled shoulder-length hair, spoke in a similar way to Nana, with an equally blank expression.

Come to think of it, when we parted ways in the Cradle, Number 3 and Number 4 still spoke like Nana, too, and Number 1 through Number 3 didn’t really change their expressions that much.

They must have interacted with some very expressive people on their journey and learned along the way.

“Thank you, master, I declare.”

Having learned from the mistake of Number 3, Number 5 didn’t take her poleax out of her Garage Bag before she bowed.

“Number 6…Seis.”

“I am Seis. I pledge my gratitude and loyalty to master, I declare.”

Number 6—Seis—who had two side buns, made a dramatic gesture with the short spear she’d taken out of her Garage Bag before striking a pose.

Tria looked frustrated when she saw this, so she was probably trying to do the same kind of move. Maybe I could have them give a performance in a bigger space sometime?

“Master, I am next, I declare!”

Number 8 jumped up and down, her short pigtails bouncing.

Her face was about as blank as Nana’s, but she did express herself through gestures a lot. She was also the only one of the sisters who didn’t have a big bust.

“Number 8…you’ll be Huit.”

“Huit! My name is Huit, I declare! Adin, Ithnani, Tria, Vier, Fünf, Seis, Nana, Huit…” With her scimitar at her waist, Huit enthusiastically announced her name, then listed those of her sisters. “…Yes, Huit is definitely the cutest, I announce!”

“““That is incorrect, I protest,””” chorused several voices.

“Ithnani is the strongest.”

“Tria thinks Tria is the best, I insist.”

Huit’s declaration set off a heated argument among the sisters, who all insisted that their name was the best.

That was fine when it was just verbal, but once they started trying to grab one another’s hair, I stepped in and put a stop to it.

“All different. All nice.”

Mia’s words, reminiscent of a children’s poem, finally stopped the fighting.

“Would you mind telling me about your travels now?”

“Yes, please allow me.”

Adin began speaking for the group.

As the story went, after we parted ways with them near Seiryuu City, they headed west through Seiryuu County, taking a different route than we did: They crossed the mountains by way of the mining city and entered Kuhanou County, then got a bit lost before making their way toward the Fujisan Mountains.

They hadn’t run into any excessively strong monsters, but they still got into danger several times.

“We explored some old ruins, too, I declare.”

“With John, who we met in the harpy valley, I report.”

“Mito was in the ruins, I declare.”

The lower-number sisters spoke up one after another, though I wasn’t sure what they were talking about.

“John and Mito called me Hachiko, I inform.”

…Hachiko?

“Were these John and Mito people reincarnations? Transmigrations or transferences?” Arisa asked.

“I do not know,” Adin answered. “But Mito used powerful magic without a chant.”

That reminded me: Zena, the magic soldier from Seiryuu County, told me that she ran into Nana’s sisters on her journey, and she mentioned those two as well.

If I remembered right, Mito had defeated an intermediate demon on her own.

“Chantless… What color hair did they have?”

“John and Mito both have black hair.”

“Then they were summoned here, not reborn here? But they might just be wearing a wig like me… Master, you can’t get any information on Mito and John, can you?”

I searched the name “Mito” on my map, per Arisa’s request, but didn’t get any results. While there were a few hits for “John,” none of them had any unique skills, or else came up as “Skills Unknown.” I reported the results to Arisa.

“Aww, too bad… Well, they don’t seem to be bad people. I was just curious to meet them.”

“I’m sure we’ll run into them someday,” I reassured the disappointed Arisa, without any particular basis. Then I asked Adin to continue her tale.

“After we met up with Mito, we ran into an army fighting demons and monsters in a field and got involved to save a friend of John’s. Fortunately, we were able to accomplish our goals with the help of Mito’s support and attack magic. Then, in order to secure more funds for travel, we worked in a town called Fau in Zetts County—”

“We waited tables with Mito at a restaurant, I declare!” Huit excitedly interrupted Adin.

The other girls seemed eager for a turn, too: They told me about the town of Fau, a dragon encounter, and other stories.

“Mito broke her promise to guide us and disappeared, and John went after her, so we resumed our journey once we had saved up enough money for the road.”

In Kuhanou County, they got involved with refugees, attacked by bandits and deserters, and encountered other troubles, but none of them were serious threats, given how much the sisters had leveled up on their journey.

As always, they continued getting lost, but along the way…

“I saved Spiderson when he was injured, and he got attached to me, I report!”

This Spiderson must be the name of the long-legged spider crab she had tamed as a mount.

“Master, Number 8—that is, Huit—acquired the ‘Animal Training’ skill,” Vier, who had the “Analyze” skill, clarified blandly.

“Then once Huit made Spiderson her servant—”

“Spiderson is my friend, I correct.” Huit interrupted Adin again.

Adin dutifully corrected herself, then explained that once they started traveling on Spiderson’s back, they were able to cover more ground much more quickly.

“We got into a bit of a scrap when we entered the Village of Forest Giants, where the grave is located, but once the chief Mr. Lank noticed our resemblance to Nana, we were able to enter without a problem.”

Apparently Zen’s wife’s grave was in the Village of Forest Giants in Muno Barony.

Then we probably could’ve just traveled together, I realized—but there was no point saying that now, so I kept it to myself.

“Still, I’m surprised the Undead King was able to make his wife’s grave in the Village of Forest Giants,” Arisa remarked.

“Master had an Amulet of Humanity, I report,” Nana responded.

Giants aside, the fairies in the village were very sensitive to miasma. There must have been some other reason he was allowed to enter the village, I think.

“But why did he choose the Village of Forest Giants for the grave anyway?”

“Our former master said that it was the only place where it wouldn’t be in danger of being destroyed.”

Because Zen was an enemy of Marquis Muno, his wife’s grave might have been destroyed if it was near a human settlement. If it wasn’t, it might yet get dug up by monsters or animals, and if he left undead guards at the grave, his wife might become undead, too.

“Once we completed the burial, we rode Spiderson again and crossed the Fujisan Mountains, and we were reunited with you shortly thereafter, master.”

Adin smoothly left out the part where they startled a band of merchants and caused a huge traffic jam, wrapping up the tale.

Well, there was no need to rehash that incident anyway.

“Mew?”

Tama, who’d been sleeping peacefully on my lap, suddenly looked up, her ears twitching.

Pochi woke up next to her, too, and rubbed her eyes sleepily.

Shortly after, there was a quiet knock, and one of the maids peered into the room.

“Sir Knight, I just came to let you know that the kitchen is ready.”

Adin had just finished her story anyway, and the maid looked very excited, so I brought Lulu and Tria, Nana’s sister who supposedly loved cooking, along with me to the kitchen.

 

“Sir Knight, Lord Baron and Lady Nina have returned.”

After a fun dinner, we were using the dining room to discuss our plans for the following days, when one of the maids came in to announce the arrival of the baron and company.

“It’s a pleasure to see you again, Your Excellency, Miss Nina.”

Baron Leon Muno and Viscount Nina Lottel entered, looking exhausted from their long journey.

Lady Karina and a few of the maids, including the head maid, were in the room, too.

“Hello again, Satou. It’s been a while. You’re looking well.”

“Yo, Satou. Your ridiculously impressive feats have been the talk of the town even in the royal capital.”

Baron Muno and Viscount Nina both greeted me in their usual manner.

“Mr. Baron…?”

“It’s Mr. Baron, sir!”

Tama and Pochi jumped out from behind me and rushed over to the baron, who had only just sat down on the sofa.

“Come here, dear Tama and Pochi.”

“Yaaay!”

“Sir!”

The pair seemed very attached to Baron Muno, probably because he’d spoiled them like they were his grandchildren.

“So you’re happier to see Tama and Pochi than your own daughter, Father?” Karina looked a little pouty.

“Of course not, Karina. Please, come over here, too.”

Used to her behavior, Baron Muno spread out his arms to give a fatherly hug to his daughter. It looked a little awkward, given Karina’s pubescent age.

“Welcome back, Karina. You didn’t get hurt or scared in Labyrinth City at all, did you?”

“Mr. Raka protected me, of course. I haven’t been hurt in the slightest.”

I think she did get scared on several occasions, but she didn’t touch on that subject at all.

Lady Karina wasn’t really capable of disguising her feelings, though, so I’m guessing she had already written over those bad memories with fun and happy ones.

“So then, Satou. You’ve been with our dear Miss Karina for about a trimoon, have you not? Have there been any developments yet?”

“Developments…?”

“Tch. I guess that wasn’t enough, then…,” Viscount Nina muttered to herself.

From the sound of things, maybe she was behind the incident before we left Labyrinth City, when Karina challenged me to a battle with marriage on the line.

“…Hmm?”

Nina looked over at the door, where Number 8—that is, Huit—was peering into the room, with the other sisters behind her.

“I see you’ve acquired some new faces…or several more of the same one.”

“Yes, these are Nana’s sisters.”

At this, Nina nodded. “Ah, the ones who were off on their own?”

“Yes, we just met back up in the royal capital.”

“Glad to hear it. But, although I’m sure this isn’t news to you, there can’t be enough rooms for you here.”

“The maids were kind enough to lend us their room.”

“Ahh, those girls, eh? Still popular with the ladies, I see.”

“Not at all.”

They’re not after me, just my cooking.

“Of course you’re the only one who’s clueless about it. Will you introduce us to these girls, too?”

At Nina’s request, I had the homunculi sisters come in one at a time, and I introduced them to her and Baron Muno.

“We must apologize for intruding on your home so rudely,” said Number 1—Adin.

“You girls are with Satou, right? Then you’re as good as family to us, too. We don’t mind putting you up.”

Nina dismissed the apology magnanimously. She seemed more like the head of the house than Baron Muno, the actual owner.

“Sorry about the small space, though,” she added.

“It’s fine for us, but doesn’t a mansion this size hinder your social life with other nobles, Lord Baron?”

Arisa had a point. Noble society largely revolved around inviting other nobles over for banquets, chatting in a salon, having garden parties, and hosting similar events; not having the space for these could really be a problem.

“Mm. Our plan was to buy a mansion four times this size, but the bureaucrat we sent ahead to take care of it turned out to be a bit of a pushover. We gave him a money order for the down payment, but he got talked into using it as payment in full for this place by some crafty real estate merchant.”

It was unlike Viscount Nina to complain like this. The stress of the journey must have been getting to her.

I reached into my sleeve to produce two nutritional supplement potions from Storage, and I handed them to Viscount Nina and Baron Muno.

“What is this?”

“It’s a nutritional supplement, since you seem tired.”

The baron moved to drink the potion immediately, but Viscount Nina silently stopped him and drank hers first, like a poison-taster.

“It’s sweet—but very impressive. I feel like I could work for two or three nights straight with all this energy. But there’s nothing dangerous producing this effect, is there?”

“Of course not.”

Once I confirmed this, Viscount Nina gestured to the baron that it was okay to drink.

“Oooh, this is amazing. Thank you, Satou.”

Baron Muno’s eyes blazed with delight.

As soon as their complexions started glowing, I turned back to the topic of the mansion.

“If you’d like, perhaps I could exchange the mansion I bought in the royal capital for yours?”

The one I purchased would still be a bit small for a baron, but it met all the minimum requirements for noble social events.

“No need to worry about us. I’ve already negotiated with His Excellency the prime minister to give us Marquis Muno’s mansion, which was seized by the kingdom through low-pressure loan repayment tactics.”

I should’ve known Viscount Nina would have it handled.

“Still, Ms. Nina, do you work this late every night?”

“Just about, yeah. I’ve got lots of information-gathering and foundation-laying to do with other lords and nobles before the kingdom meeting at the end of the year.”

I guess feudal lords are pretty busy.

“That sounds like hard work.”

“You make it sound like it’s got nothing to do with you. Right now, I’m working on your promotion.”

“Promotion?”

But I’m perfectly content as an honorary hereditary knight?

“Yes, I’d like to make you a permanent baronet, but the Vistall Duchy nobles and old-guard families lost their minds at the idea. ‘Trying to make a youngster who’s barely of age into part of the Shiga Kingdom’s esteemed permanent nobility is an insult to the ancestral king’s honor,’ or something like that.”

“I don’t really need a higher rank, but did all of the old-guard noble families object?”

“No, Marquis Ashinen’s faction and the family of Count Sobil were very cooperative. Count Litton’s and Marquis Kelten’s factions were neutral. The only side that really objected strongly was Viceroy Bonam; the rest were mostly half-hearted objections, and there might’ve even been some bribery involved.”

I recognized names like Marquis Ashinen, who was the viceroy of Labyrinth City Celivera, and his wife’s friend, Ema Litton, the wife of Count Litton, but Count Sobil didn’t sound familiar at all.

I searched my memo pad and discovered that they were the family of Bowman, the surname of the young noble boy who I rescued in the labyrinth. If I remembered right, he was the viceroy’s third son and Gerits’s rival.

Count Bonam was family to Sokell, who had been the acting viceroy in Labyrinth City. He had fallen from grace when his involvement with illicit production of demonic potions and corpse potions came to light; maybe he was blaming it on me instead.

“But that’ll be fine. If I make some concessions to the heads of their factions, it’ll be solved in a jiff. The problem is the folks from Ougoch Duchy—specifically, Marquis Lloyd and Count Hohen.”

Hmm? The food-loving noble duo? What about them?

“They insist that baronet is too low of a rank for you. ‘He should be a baron at the least, or a viscount or a count.’ They’re trying to go over my head and make that happen, and it’s not easy to stop them…”

I could see that pair doing something like that.

“But a vassal of Baron Muno couldn’t be the same rank as him or even higher, right?”

There was the precedent of his counselor, Viscount Nina, being an honorary viscount, and as a feudal lord Baron Muno was treated more like a count himself, but it would still definitely be strange.

“Which is why they’re plotting to push through that by making you into a vassal of Duke Ougoch instead.” Nina sighed.

“Such troublemakers…”

The baron chimed in with a light tone as he played with Tama and Pochi nearby.

“Why do you sound so unconcerned? You okay with Satou being stolen by some other noble?”

“Of course not. That would be dreadful, but…given Satou’s quick rise to fame, I do wonder if that might be a better fit for him…”

As always, Baron Muno was a very considerate man.

Nina groaned. “Honestly, you’re such a pushover.”

“That’s one of His Excellency’s good points,” I replied reassuringly.

“Tch, I forgot there was another mild-mannered pushover here.”

Nina scowled, but something about her expression said she wasn’t as annoyed as she seemed.

“Oh, all right. Leave the dirty work to me. Sorry, Arisa, but would you mind helping me with secretarial work while we’re in the royal capital?”

“Of course! You’re breaking your back for my dear master. I’d be happy to help you as much as you need. That’s okay, right?”

She looked to me for permission, and I nodded.

“Thanks a ton. There’s not as much work to do as we had back at home, so just once every couple days is fine.”

“Okey-dokey, you got it!” Arisa saluted Nina lightly.

“How is the recovery of the barony going?”

“Three times faster than we expected, I’d say. The redevelopment of Muno City is coming along smoothly, and thanks to your work on the old capital and the dwarf dominion, we’ve solved our food shortage and brought in plenty of workers and artisans. And you did some socializing on our behalf, too, didn’t you? Our bad reputation as a ‘cursed territory’ has all but fallen by the wayside now. So now we’ve got the third or fourth sons of some broke noble families in Ougoch Duchy applying to be officers and government officials for us.”

At least they had finally made it out of the staffing shortage they were in back when Arisa and I were helping out.

The sasa kamaboko–like dish that I created in Muno City was also now being exported to nearby territories as a Muno City specialty.

“That lulu fruit orchard that you talked Viscount Emerin into is going great, too. It’ll probably still be another two or three years before the trees bear fruit, but the engineer who’s in charge of the farm’s construction says that the soil is a perfect match. We’ve got high hopes for future harvests.”

That was good to hear.

The lulu fruit was a great ingredient for making cakes and other baked goods.

“And then, last month? Viscount Emerin himself came to see the orchard, too. And he brought his youngest daughter, little Miss Rina, to study manners as an apprentice lady-in-waiting to Soluna.”

Viscount Nina happily reported that the rumors about the territory being cursed would soon be completely dispelled.

I guess having an upper noble’s daughter visit as an apprentice was a bigger deal than I realized.

“Once our funds are a bit more plentiful, that’ll open up our options even more. But I guess we can trick some royal capital merchants into coughing up some cash.”

Miss Nina made a face.

“In that case, I can invest some funds.”

“That’s nice of you, but the funding we need isn’t an amount one individual can put a dent in.”

“Don’t worry. I earned quite a bit through my trading on the sugar route.”

I whispered the amount of money I had earned from Dragonpen Trading Company dividends and pirate-busting.

“…Oh-ho. Yes, that is impressive. So how much of that would you be willing to invest?”

“All of it is fine with me. I have no other use for it.”

“Don’t explorers need a lot of expensive equipment?”

“I have other funds secured for that.”

In fact, I’d earned ten times that amount of money from salvaging on the sugar route. Considering my total assets, this was probably less than 1 percent of my wealth.

If I didn’t use it like this once in a while, it’d just keep piling up in my Storage.

“Then we’ll gratefully accept your investment. Right, Baron?”

The baron nodded.

“Now we can begin preparations to take back our territories from monsters and villains.”

“Really?” Arisa tilted her head.

“Yes, we’ve managed to recover two towns along the main road, but the other cities and towns are still beyond our reach so far.”

Nina nodded bitterly.

“Pochi’s great at getting rid of monsters!”

“Tama tooo…?”

Pochi and Tama volunteered eagerly.

The abandoned mine city that had been taken over by kobolds and other fairy races was a separate matter, but we could probably take back the towns that had simply been infested by monsters in a matter of days. After all, I had helped the kobolds find a new vein where they could mine the blue crystals they needed for reproduction a while back, so they would probably be willing to relocate if I made a separate safe area for them.

“You mustn’t interrupt adults’ conversations, you two.”

“Aye-aye.”

“Yes, sir.”

As Liza gave them an uncharacteristically quiet yet intense scolding, Tama and Pochi shrank back meekly, their fur standing on end.

“It is true, though. We’d be happy to help you take back the cities anytime.”

“You make it sound so easy. But when the royal capital investigated the territory before Baron Muno took over, they found some beastly naga and five-headed hydras. Even the Shiga Eight Swordsmen of the time were reluctant to face such foes.”

“Those sound like worthy opponents.”

My “Keen Hearing” skill picked up a quiet murmur from Liza.

At a glance, Nana and the other kids looked ready for a fight, too.

“I know you all have beaten a floormaster, but I imagine that’d still be tough even for you. More importantly, we need to have strong enough forces to keep those areas secure once we’ve taken them back, or there’s no point. No matter how fast we move, we’ll need to gather some knights and soldiers before we ask for your help—I’d say it’ll be another six months at least.”

“Understood. Please let us know if you need help investigating beforehand, though.”

“Sure. Will do. Besides, we’ve also got to solve the fact that we don’t have any nobles except me who we can be appointed as viceroys or governors in Muno Barony.”

Technically, my group could receive honorary knight titles, since they had defeated a floormaster, but evidently that wasn’t enough to be appointed governor. One would probably have to be at least a baronet for that.

Maybe that was part of why they wanted to promote me.

Hmm?

Thinking about it further, I realized that I was able to take control of several City Cores beneath the desert as just a hereditary knight, and I was offered the option of controlling the City Core in Muno Castle’s basement even before I had that honorary title.

I was a little curious about whether I was an exception, or if it was just a formality of Shiga Kingdom law.

“…Orion is coming to the royal capital, too?!”

Lady Karina, who was in conversation with her father, suddenly bellowed.

Orion was Baron Muno’s eldest son and Karina’s younger brother.

“That’s right. The eldest son of a feudal lord can have his coming-of-age ceremony performed by His Majesty. It’s quite an honor,” Baron Muno said proudly.

He went on to add that Orion would get here right at the end of the year.

“Excuse me, master. You have a guest…”

The head maid came hurrying into the room to address Baron Muno.

““Sir Satou!””

The maid was interrupted by two excited voices yelling my name.

They were none other than the pair of Ougoch Duchy big shots we’d been talking about not long ago: Marquis Lloyd and Count Hohen.

For some reason, they were each holding a bottle of sake.

“We heard that you were in town and could not wait another second to come see you.”

“We’ve heard a lot about your exploits from Baron Jeetbert and rumors on the grapevine!”

“Indeed, we are quite proud to call you a friend.”

Marquis Lloyd and Count Hohen seemed elated on my behalf.

The person Count Hohen mentioned, Baron Jeetbert, was a noble from Ougoch Duchy and captain of a trade fleet, who I’d happened upon and rescued when he was stranded in the Seadragon Islands.

“Sorry, Sir Pendragon. I couldn’t stop these two from running wild. Baron Muno, Viscount Lottel, allow me to apologize on their behalf for the sudden intrusion.”

This came from Viscount Siemmen, a man who always looked like a stern teacher.

He was a noble of Ougoch Duchy who ran a scroll workshop, as well as the older brother of my friend Tolma, and he frequently helped me with making and ordering original magic scrolls.

Upon hearing his sensible comment, Count Hohen and Marquis Lloyd awkwardly exchanged glances, then cleared their throats deliberately and stood up straight.

“Baron Muno, our apologies for visiting at night without warning.”

“We were too eager to be reunited with our friend and came without thinking. Forgive us.”

They both lowered their heads to Baron Muno.

I didn’t think they looked particularly sorry, but fortunately Baron Muno seemed much more grateful for the visit than annoyed.

“So, are those bottles a gift?” Miss Nina inquired.

“Indeed. We found some sake that goes well with tempura—erm, I mean, goes down the throat very nicely. So we brought it along in hopes that Sir Satou and company might enjoy it with us.”

Marquis Lloyd couldn’t keep his real intentions from slipping out before he loudly cleared his throat again and corrected himself.

In other words, they came because they wanted some freshly fried tempura.

“High-quality sake and fresh tempura—the baron and I are invited, too, of course, I presume?”

“Yes, of course.”

“All right, then we’ll go fry some up.”

I headed to the kitchen with Lulu, put a pot with preheated oil over the fire, and started frying some prepared ingredients.

The reason I conveniently had all this prepared was because of all the drinking parties we had in Labyrinth City.

Fried foods like tempura are popular just about anywhere.

“Aah, now this is the life! I’ve been dreaming of this red pickled-ginger tempura!”

“Preposterous! Shrimp tempura reigns supreme! And it goes so well with the mild White Mountain sake.”

“Red pickled-ginger tempura goes best with Royal Sakura!”

Count Hohen and Marquis Lloyd began boasting about their favorite kinds of tempura and sake.

The two sake bottles they brought as gifts, White Mountain and Royal Sakura, were famed as the top two best Shigan liquors.

Aside from the shrimp and red pickled ginger, I also made the shiitake mushrooms, pumpkin, carrot, green bean, perilla, and lotus root tempura that I’d gotten in the old capital, as well as the tara sprout, green bamboo, mioga ginger, and river cod that I’d acquired in Bolenan Forest, plus some octopus and squid from the sugar route, and even quail eggs, cheese, and sausages from Labyrinth City.

“Oooh, this is so piping hot and delicious.”

“Deliciosooo…?”

“Pochi thinks Mr. Hamburg tempura would be yummy, too, sir.”

Tama and Pochi popped up on the other side of Baron Muno, sneakily joining in on the feast.

But of course they were quickly caught by Liza and carried out in limp corpse-like poses.

Some of the other kids and maid staff were peeking in through the door, practically drooling. My kids and the maids had all eaten a full dinner not long ago, but seeing all this tempura must have made them want some, too.

“Lulu, if you don’t mind…”

I whispered to Lulu, requesting that she fry up some tempura for the other kids and maids in the kitchen.

“It’s different from deep-fried food. I like the light texture.”

“They’re all delicious, but this fish tempura is especially exquisite.”

“Yes, it really makes the sake go down quicker.”

Miss Nina and Viscount Siemmen seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the tempura and sake, too.

I joined in a bit myself; the Shiga sake that the gourmet-loving noble pair had brought was from particularly good years of both White Mountain and Royal Sakura, and it was truly delicious. No wonder these brands were so prized by upper-class nobles.

“Satou, isn’t there any sakura salmon tempura?” Miss Nina asked me after ordering some ale from a maid.

“Sakura salmon?”

Come to think of it, the progenitor vampire Ban, who lived in the Lower Stratum of the Labyrinth, might have mentioned something like that as a possible sushi ingredient.

It must be some kind of fish from this world.

“Sure. It’s the most popular fish for cooking in the royal capital in this season.”

“Sakura salmon fishing will be banned for the rest of the year soon,” Viscount Nina and Viscount Siemmen explained.

“I see. I was planning to do some sightseeing in the royal capital tomorrow, so I’ll see if it’s for sale in the marketplace somewhere.”

“Wait, Sir Satou!”

“Yes! You must wait!”

Marquis Lloyd and Count Hohen, who were both a bit red in the face, stood up to loom over me.

“Sakura salmon tastes far different depending on the skill of the fisherman and its transportation to the market!”

“Indeed! It is so difficult to discern the best specimens that there are some in the royal capital who make that their entire occupation!”

Evidently, they had strong opinions on sakura salmon as well.

I decided to ask their recommendations for the best fishermen and fish markets, and they even wrote some letters of recommendation to their favorite restaurants and the markets with the best ingredients and spices.

Given their love of fine cuisine, I had no doubt that all the options would be delicious.





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