Garden Party
“Satou here. The closest experience I’ve had to attending a garden party is being at a friend’s outdoor wedding. Maybe that’s inevitable, since there aren’t many houses in Japan with a garden big enough to host a party in.”
“I wish I could have sparred with the Shiga Eight Swordsmen, too!”
When we went to pick up Lady Karina from Baron Muno’s royal capital home, she immediately started complaining.
“Don’t be absurd.” Viscount Nina smacked the back of her head. “What you need is training to ensure that you don’t embarrass yourself at social gatherings!”
“I don’t want to go to that silly garden party.”
“Would you rather stay at home in the mansion and study manners, then?”
“Well…” Karina trailed off.
Judging by her expression, that was a choice between a rock and a hard place.
“This is a part of your training, too. You’re here as Satou’s partner for the evening—look alive!”
“I—I know that!”
We had been invited to a garden party at Count Litton’s home. I was planning to go alone, since I didn’t have a partner to bring, but Viscount Nina requested that I bring Lady Karina along instead.
“Well, we mustn’t be late. Shall we get going?”
Since I was an honorary knight, a low-ranking noble class, I was expected to arrive early or it would be considered a breach of manners. This was unless the host asked you to come later, of course.
“This carriage doesn’t have much of a view, does it?”
“Well, I didn’t want your hair to get disheveled.”
Instead of an open-air carriage, I had rented a box-style carriage for nobles today, complete with a coachman.
Karina ignored the footstool that the coachman set out for her and used Raka’s power to jump lightly into the carriage.
She’ll be getting an earful about that from Ms. Nina later, I’m sure.
“What is a garden party like?”
“It’s an event where you talk to others while enjoying light tea and snacks in a garden. I’ve heard there will be performances from an orchestra, jesters, and other entertainers, too.”
According to what I heard from the viceroy’s wife in Labyrinth City Celivera, the fancier garden parties had a stage set up and sometimes invited famous acting troupes to perform.
“I suppose that does sound like fun.”
“Yes, very much so.”
I smiled warmly at Karina, who still looked a little pouty.
The host of the party, Count Litton’s wife Ema, adored anything flashy or fun, according to her good friend the viceroy’s wife. I was somewhat looking forward to meeting her.
Our carriage proceeded at a slow pace down a street full of lesser nobles’ houses. Once we were out on the main street, its pace quickened, and soon we were in the upper nobles’ area.
“The mansions here are all so enormous.”
“Most of them belong to noble families who have been here since the founding of the kingdom, so they’re large even for upper nobles.”
They really were incredibly big. I wasn’t sure why, but feudal lords’ manors seemed to be relatively far away from the castle, despite being in the same area.
The former Marquis Muno mansion that Baron Muno was planning to move into was in this area, too.
“Looks like we’ve arrived at the mansion.”
The carriage arrived at the gate, which was wide enough for two lanes.
As soon as the coachman gave my family name, we were allowed to pass through without any need to show my letter of invitation. The gatekeeper was holding what looked like a guest list, which must have been how he knew to let us in.
Instead of the rotary area right in front of the entrance, we were directed to a parking area slightly farther away. The former was probably for the highest-ranking nobles.
Sure enough, the other people near our parking area all looked like lesser nobles like me, merchants and working people. They were all carrying letters of invitation, too.
I left my gifts for Count Litton and his wife with a butler waiting by the entrance and escorted Lady Karina toward the garden party. She nearly tripped and kicked me a few times, out of sheer nerves, but I didn’t complain, out of appreciation for the pleasant sensation against my arm.
“Why, I don’t believe we’ve been acquainted, youngsters.”
Once we entered the garden area, a merchant approached us. For some reason, his face was hidden under a hood and veil.
“Hmph. Greeting the likes of a newly minted honorary knight? The Sahbe Company stoops so low.”
“Sheh-eh-eh, unlike the Ghookuts Company of the royal capital, we lowly demi-humans live and die by networking.”
The rude wealthier merchant snorted unpleasantly and walked away with his entourage.
The rest of the merchants all gave me appraising glances as well, then quickly lost interest and headed toward the party.
“Apologies. My colleagues are terribly impolite. I am Homimudory of the weaselfolk Sahbe clan, president of the Sahbe Company.”
A weaselman?
Sure enough, my AR indicated his race as weaselfolk.
I hadn’t noticed because his speech was so fluent.
Usually, beastfolk whose vocal cords were built differently struggled with the pronunciations of human speech, but evidently it was possible to fix that with enough practice.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I am Satou Pendragon, hereditary knight and vassal of Muno Barony. This is Karina Muno, daughter of my employer’s house.”
“Pendragon? Could you be His Excellency Sir Pendragon, the one who became a mithril knight?”
“I’m hardly of any rank worth calling ‘Excellency,’ but yes, that would be me.”
“No, no, if you are a liquor marquis of the Kingdom of Sorcery, Lalagi, then you are most certainly qualified to be called His Excellency.”
This weaselfolk merchant seemed to excel at information gathering.
“Our Sahbe Company imports rare products from the Weaselman Empire, so please do come and visit us sometime. Since marionette cores were considered contraband until recently, we are full up on reservations for them, but we do have many a rare item from the Illusion Labyrinth of Dejima Island.”
Dejima… That was the name of a man-made island that used to exist in Nagasaki.
Was it named by a Japanese person who reincarnated in the Weaselman Empire, perhaps?
“Aside from the scrolls we submitted through the Celivera explorers’ guild the other day, we’ve also acquired a few new scrolls recently…”
Ohh, now I remember.
This must be the merchant who sold me scrolls like Mowing and Cherry Blossom Shower by way of the explorers’ guild.
If I remembered right, the guild had mentioned that he had two other scrolls he wanted to sell me.
“That’s exciting to hear. I’ll be sure to pay you a visit soon.”
Then I asked about some of the intriguing phrases he’d mentioned, like marionette cores and Illusion Labyrinth.
“Marionette cores are an incredibly rare item that occasionally appear in the Illusion Labyrinth. They’re used to make golems in the style of magic tools.”
From the rest of his explanation, it sounded like they were similar to the core parts the elves used to make golems.
As it turns out, construct-like monsters such as living armor and golems frequently appeared in the Illusion Labyrinth. Entering the labyrinth required an immigration check and permission forms, which could take as long as two or three years to acquire.
I learned in this conversation that the Weaselman Empire was closed to foreigners, like Japan in the Edo period had been. Dejima Island was the only part that was accessible as a trade area. The weaselfolk found in the Shiga Kingdom were generally either children of people who had left the empire before it closed its borders or merchants operating out of Dejima Island.
“Please forgive my interruption. Mr. Homimudory, would you be so kind as to introduce the rest of us to this young nobleman as well?”
A merchant from the western part of the continent set off a chain of other interactions, and I was able to meet merchants from the small countries to the east, the center of the continent, and from other areas. Most of them were human, but there were a few fairies, beastfolk, and scalefolk, too.
Each of them told me about their local specialties and scenic areas, while I took notes for future sightseeing visits.
“Satou.”
A tug on my sleeve reminded me of Lady Karina’s presence.
Turning, I saw a slightly sulky look on her pretty face.
No matter how interesting the conversations might have been, I was a failure of a gentleman for forgetting about my escort so easily.
“I’m sorry, Lady Karina.”
“…Well, I’m quite thirsty.”
Karina turned away with a cute little harrumph, and I excused myself from my new merchant friends to accompany her over to the tables with drinks and light snacks.
“Everything looks delicious.”
I picked out some food, greeting other lesser nobles along the way with a nod.
It would be rude to try to talk to them while they were eating; I would talk to them properly later.
“It most certainly is tasty. You should eat some, too, Satou.”
At Karina’s prompting, I brought the food to my mouth.
The light refreshments, like canapés and sandwiches, didn’t look much different from the dishes in Japan. There wasn’t anything with mayonnaise, but otherwise it was delicious.
As I enjoyed the hors d’oeuvres with various toppings, I noticed that the expressions of the people around me had turned anxious.
“So you vulgar country bumpkins eat with your hands?”
Some young noblemen and noblewomen with fancy outfits and haughty expressions had approached Karina and me. If Arisa were here, she’d probably be bellowing, “Here come the clichés!”
For a moment, I was worried that I really was supposed to be eating with a knife and fork, but then I noticed that there were finger bowls all around us. Besides, if eating with cutlery really was the norm, I imagine the butlers keeping an eye on everything would’ve brought some over immediately.
Noticing that the shy Karina was shrinking a little from the rude, sneering nobles, I shifted my position to shield her from their view.
“They don’t have any knives and forks out in the country.”
“No waaay, really?”
“Surely they can’t be that uncultured.”
“Hey, we don’t know that.”
The rude noble’s posse snickered behind him.
I could tell from their attitudes that they were the cowardly types who came up with false pretenses to pick on newcomers.
The kids who used to pick on classmates in middle school acted just like this.
“What’s wrong? You scared ’cause we’re so right?”
His pride obviously inflated, the ringleader noble jeered at us, trying to incite rage or fear.
I wasn’t looking to get into a fistfight here, but I didn’t want these idiots to upset Karina or make her social anxiety even worse.
Just to be safe, I checked their stats to make sure I could theoretically deal with them by way of my personal connections.
“No, not at all.”
As I responded with a smile, I activated my “Intimidation” skill just a little.
In order to make sure nobody had a heart attack, I kept it to a low level that would render demi-goblins too frightened to move.
“Um, wait a sec…”
“This guy’s trouble.”
The rude young nobles all looked frightened. It had worked perfectly, then.
“W-we’ll let you off easy this one time.”
The noble put on a bold face even as he backed away.
Normally I would’ve left it at that, but there was a nasty gleam in the ringleader’s eye that suggested he was going to try to get revenge, so I decided to take action instead. If I didn’t nip this in the bud, he might start spreading rumors about me or following me around.
“Since you were so kind as to point out my blunder, perhaps you could specify exactly what I did that was so vulgar?”
I used “Blink” to get up close in front of them.
“G-get away!”
The rude noble swung the cane in his hand to try to hit me in the side of the head.
What a Neanderthal.
It would’ve been easy to dodge, but because I wanted to make sure everyone saw that he was the one who had gotten violent first, I let the cane hit me.
Of course, I’m not a masochist by nature—I used “Magic Power Armor” next to my head just long enough to block it from hitting me directly.
I also used the “Iron Skin” skill to root myself in place.
> Skill Acquired: “Immovable Body”
> Skill Acquired: “Indestructible Body”
Somehow, this netted me a few skills.
The “Indestructible Body” skill was somehow different from the “Defense Shell” I had gotten before.
At any rate, the cane went flying from the noble’s hand after it struck my head, and he grabbed his arm and yelped in pain.
Since my body had suddenly become hard and heavy, the force he put into hitting me must have recoiled back on him.
I guess it must be like when a cartoon character tries to hit something soft that turns out to be hard as rock.
As he stared at me in disbelief, there was still a foreboding glint in his eye.
This isn’t really my style, but I figured I had better break him a little more.
“Is something the matter?”
I raised the intensity of my “Intimidation” skill just a little, and the rude young nobleman fell back in alarm.
“Now, would you mind explaining what I did wrong, please?”
This time I used my “Interrogation” skill, too.
“…ing!”
“I’m sorry, I can’t hear you. Could I trouble you to speak up a little?”
“W-we were just messing with you! Normally bumpkins who don’t belong in the royal capital freak out and apologize when we say that. It’s just for fun!”
Just like that, because of my “Interrogation” skill, he confessed that it was just an excuse to harass us.
A few of the nobles in the crowd watching us must have been fellow victims—murderous gazes landed on the rude noble after his confession.
I didn’t want this to turn into a big deal, so I figured I should let them off the hook and wrap things up.
“I see. Being a country bumpkin myself, I was afraid I had done something to offend you refined royal capital folk.”
I turned off my “Intimidation” skill and smiled at them.
All that was left was to shake hands and part on what I hoped were friendly terms—but no, of course it couldn’t be that simple.
“In other words, you took it upon yourselves to tease Lady Karina, the honorable daughter of a feudal lord, in spite of the fact that she had done nothing wrong.”
A pretty young girl stepped into the fray.
Flipping her distinctive pink hair over her shoulder, she shot me a playful look.
“P-Princess Menea!” the rude noble exclaimed.
“Good to see you again, Sir Satou.”
“The pleasure is all mine, Princess Menea.”
“How many times must I tell you to simply call me Menea?”
“You know these bumpkins, Princess?”
Ignoring the shocked nobleman completely, she turned to give Karina a hug. “It’s so lovely to see you, Lady Karina.” They’d been good friends in the old capital, and Karina looked relieved to have another ally, too.
“T-they’re friends of the princess?”
“That dull-looking guy?”
The rude noble’s entourage murmured in shock.
I didn’t really care what they said about me, though.
“Word of the Pendragon party’s accomplishments has reached the royal capital, you know.” Menea spoke loud enough for everyone to hear. “I hear you defeated a floormaster and became mithril explorers, did you not?”
“A mithril explorer?”
“P-Pendragon…like ‘the Untouchable’?”
“Wasn’t the maid who defeated the Plunderer King one of Pendragon’s servants?”
“I heard he faced off with a demon.”
Now everyone was looking this way and muttering among themselves.
“Although…” Once she had everyone talking, Princess Menea continued. “Perhaps that was an easy feat for the knight who joined forces with the hero and drove off the dragon that was tormenting Lumork Kingdom.”
By the time she finished speaking, all eyes were on the princess.
She might have the makings of a gifted actress.
“He drove off a dragon?”
“Wait, he knows the hero?”
“Wow, I didn’t know you were friends with a hero, Satou.”
…Huh?
I turned around and saw a familiar face.
“L-Lady Helmina!”
“He knows a member of the Shiga Eight, too?!”
“And they seem so friendly!”
Upon her arrival, the rude noble and his entourage all exclaimed in surprise.
Though her usual Holy Knight’s armor suited her well, the elegant white and pale blue dress she was wearing for the party looked great on her, too. It drew out her beauty and coolness in perfect harmony, emphasizing her charms even more than usual.
I made a note of the creator of the dress with my AR display.
“If we’re talking about Satou’s achievements, how about the time he and I fought some lesser and intermediate demons together?”
Usually Lady Helmina called me “Sir Pendragon,” but now she was calling me “Satou” instead. I’m guessing she was making a point of showing that we were close friends, to scare off the would-be bullies.
“An intermediate demon?”
“Like the one that nearly destroyed Lessau County’s capital?”
“I’m amazed they survived.”
The center of attention was now on Lady Helmina.
“It was impressive, all right,” Lady Helmina said proudly. “He went and challenged that intermediate demon with nothing but a single sword, not even wearing armor.”
For some reason, Lady Karina and Princess Menea looked irritated.
“Lady Helmina, is that true?” the rude noble asked.
“Hmm, who’re you again? But yes, it’s true. If you’re going to pick a fight with Satou, you better have an army or two at the ready.”
“A-an army?!”
Helmina’s exaggerated claims made the nobleman turn pale.
“That’s right. I’m telling you this for your own good: Unless you have seasoned warriors at your disposal who can at least take on an intermediate demon, you’d better not make an enemy of Satou.” She smiled unpleasantly and stuck a finger in his face. “Not to mention, Satou doesn’t care about wealth or social status. If he wanted to destroy you, he’d squash you like a bug without caring what it did to his reputation.”
“Th-that’s ridiculous…”
“Perhaps, but it’s true. He even went head-to-head with Sir Gouen in a bout with real swords and ended it in a draw.”
“Sir Gouen of the Shiga Eight Swordsmen…?” The rude noble looked at me with tears in his eyes. “I—I’m sorry, Sir Pindragon.”
It seemed he hadn’t fully learned my name yet.
“P-please let me apolo—”
“There’s no need to apologize to me.”
The rude noble stared at me desperately.
I stepped aside to reveal Lady Karina, who was hiding behind me. “If you’re going to apologize to anyone, apologize to her,” I said.
“E-erm… I’m sorry for upsetting you, miss. I, Moushil Bonam, offer my sincerest apologies.”
He didn’t seem to remember Lady Karina’s name, either.
The name “Bonam” sounded familiar, though… Oh, right. It was the family name of the acting Viceroy Sokell, who fell from grace when I discovered that he was producing demonic potion in Labyrinth City. Let’s hope this guy wasn’t too close with Sokell.
“I—I accept your apowogy.”
“Th-thank you for your kindness.”
With those reluctant words, the rude noble and his friends quickly made their escape.
Lady Karina was so overwhelmed by all the people watching her that she had fumbled that last word, but it didn’t seem like the rude noble noticed, and the remaining nobles in the area were all looking at her favorably.
A few young ladies looked a little afraid of me after everything Lady Helmina had said, but I hoped they would soon realize that I didn’t mean any harm.
“Princess Menea, would you tell me more about Satou’s exploits in the old capital?”
“Anything you wish, Ms. Helmina. Come, join us, Lady Karina. I’d like to hear what Sir Satou has been up to in Labyrinth City.”
Princess Menea and Lady Helmina led Lady Karina away to chat in a little arbor area surrounded by hedges.
She looked back at me like a calf being led to slaughter, but I thought it was for the best that she talk to girls around her age once in a while.
Surely the sociable Princess Menea would lend her a hand.
“Sir Pendragon, it’s a pleasure to meet you. My name is…”
As a young lesser noble introduced himself to me, I decided to take that chance to make some social connections.
Once I exchanged names (not business cards) with a few other nobles, we started getting to know one another by way of trading rumors.
“Sir Pendragon, did you hear about the airship incident the other day?”
“Yes, a little…”
One young nobleman shifted the topic to the airship.
“Duke Vistall is in serious trouble for that. No matter how much power he might have, he won’t get off easy after being responsible for bringing down the first large airship the royal family has made in twenty years.”
“It almost crashed into the royal capital, didn’t it?”
“I believe it was an emergency landing, not a crash,” I corrected politely.
“Really? But I heard from a friend of a friend that nearly all the skypower engines and propellers were destroyed.”
That was true, but the fins that were the most important part of the engines were mostly salvageable, so I wouldn’t call it a total loss. I couldn’t say that here, though, of course.
“But it was the pilots who messed up the airship, right? Why would Duke Vistall be held responsible when he was just a passenger?”
“That’s the thing!” The young man who had brought up the topic exclaimed loudly, then lowered his voice and continued. “From what I heard, it was Duke Vistall’s own son who tried to assassinate him.”
“By bringing down the whole airship?”
“He’s the duke of a major territory. You can’t kill him by any ordinary means.”
“I guess that’s true…”
Information about City Cores was top secret, but it seemed to be common knowledge that all feudal lords had exceptional power of some kind.
“Hydra poison or a gorgon’s curse could probably do it, but if it didn’t work right away, you would get branded a traitor and your whole family executed or turned into slaves on the spot.”
I don’t think it’s that all-powerful…
Maybe the lords themselves had spread such exaggerated rumors to discourage any traitors or attempted assassinations.
“But why would he try to kill his own father? If he just waits long enough, the territory would end up in his hands eventually.”
“This is just a rumor, but I heard his son Torriel was getting disinherited.”
That was true. This nobleman seemed to have some good sources.
“Disinherited? That’s unusual.”
“Do you happen to know why this Sir Torriel would get disinherited?” I asked, a little curious.
“Hmm, I’m not sure. Did he mess up in the city where he was appointed viceroy?”
“I thought it was because he failed to stamp out a tribe of savages living on the border that wound up causing serious damage to a settlement in the duchy?”
They didn’t seem to have any solid inside info about that part.
“You mean beastfolk? That’d make sense. Sir Torriel’s always been prejudiced against beastfolk.”
Hmm? That doesn’t sound quite right.
But I couldn’t quite put my finger on why that seemed wrong.
“Still, I can’t believe Sir Torriel of the Impossible Pair is getting disowned. Back in his royal academy days, he and the Witch of Heavenly Destruction, Lady Ringrande, were considered unrivaled prodigies…what a waste.”
Now, there was a name I hadn’t heard in a while.
“Really?!”
“That was only until around when Lady Ringrande created the Fire Swallow Rod, though. After Sir Torriel graduated, Lady Ringrande brought back the lost arts of ‘Explosion Magic: Demon’ and ‘Destruction Magic: Demon,’ and the rest was history.”
“Not to mention that she defeated a floormaster with the Holy Knights in the Celivera Labyrinth, and now she’s working with a hero, saving the world.”
“While they were in school, Sir Torriel and Lady Ringrande both studied the sword under Sir Gouen, but Sir Torriel never had the same level of talent.”
“Sir Gouen? From the Shiga Eight?”
“At the time he was Sir Torriel’s guardian knight.”
I learned that he’d been scouted into the Shiga Eight Swordsmen after Sir Torriel graduated.
The sight of Sir Gouen’s troubled face flashed across my mind.
I wonder if he’s all right…
He seemed like a good-natured guy; maybe he was feeling torn between his loyalty to Duke Vistall and his former pupil, Sir Torriel.
I decided I should invite him out for a drink soon and hear his troubles. He might have an easier time complaining to a neutral third party like me.
“But it seems like feudal lords have been having a hard time lately, huh?”
“You mean like Lessau County, the territory that got messed up by a demon?”
“That’s more than just a hard time; it’s life-or-death. One of their two main cities got destroyed, and a lot of villages were attacked by monsters that the demons brought, too.”
“A cousin of mine who’s a soldier said they’re having a lot of trouble with all the refugees from Lessau County.”
I had been to Lessau County only once before; it seemed to be in dire straits.
Even if it was the fault of the previous feudal lord, I couldn’t bring myself to support Lessau County, given what had happened to Tifaleeza and Neru there.
Their citizens seemed to be suffering, too, though. Depending on the nature of their new lord, I would certainly consider offering them some funding.
“The poor youngster who’s going to be the next count has his work cut out for him with a place like that.”
“I heard his engagement to the princess fell through, too.”
“Really? …Well, at least he’s off the hook for marrying a woman past her prime,” snorted a middle-aged noble whose face was red from the wine in his hand.
“Hey, watch your mouth. Even if you’re the Master of Forbidden Tomes, you can’t talk about a direct descendant of the ancestral king like that!”
It was strange to me that the ancestral king had anything to do with that being a rude thing to say, but it seemed to be a serious offense. The man’s face turned from bright red to pale white, and he pleaded with the others, “P-please, I beg you to forget you heard such a thoughtless remark.”
“Honestly…do you want to get banished to the Azure Lands or what?” Someone who seemed to be a friend of the red-faced noble dragged him away. “Let’s get you sobered up.”
“The Azure Lands?”
“It’s a penal colony to the southwest of the royal capital.”
From Labyrinth City Celivera, it appeared to be south-southwest, or southeast of the great desert. I vaguely remembered hearing the name mentioned in a discussion of the plunderers’ punishment.
If I remembered right, it was a monster territory where the rate of slave casualties was extremely high.
One nobleman cleared his throat very loudly, then blatantly changed the subject.
“Err, ahem. Have you heard the rumor of the monster that appears in the slums night after night, devouring the residents?”
“A monster in the royal capital? When it’s protected by such a strong barrier?”
“You don’t mean the undead that appear in graveyards and haunted houses?”
Wait, the undead can show up in the city?
“You all seem to be a bit behind the times.”
“Seriously. You don’t know about the huge incident that took place on Main Street?”
Two of the nobles started smugly referring to the demon incident that was caused by the demon lord-worshipping group, the ones that Sir Gouen and I had fought and defeated.
“I—I know all about that.”
“Yes, this is a different incident.”
The first noble seemed to be bluffing, but the one who’d originally brought up this topic insisted that he was referring to something else.
“But it’s probably just those sketchy demon lord worshippers causing trouble in the slums.”
“That could be,” I agreed vaguely, checking the map just in case.
Aside from golems or familiars that had been tamed by monster tamers, there were no monsters aboveground in the royal capital.
There were some lesser undead roaming in the sewers underground, but they seemed to be servants of a necromancer whose base was in the sewers.
That certainly sounded like a low-level villain from a game or manga, but since the necromancer and the undead didn’t have any offenses in their Bounty column, there was probably no need to go crush them.
Still, I marked the necromancer on my map just in case.
“That’s possible, since no one has seen the monster and lived, but…”
“So there aren’t any eyewitnesses?”
“No, but there have definitely been incidents. My cousin who’s a soldier says that they’ve found several bodies in the slums that seem to have been eaten by monsters.”
Hmm. The undead in the sewers were all skeletons, so the necromancer probably wasn’t involved in this.
“If it isn’t some weird monster the demon lord worshippers summoned, it’s probably just a wild dog or a wolf, yeah?”
“Most likely. I heard the hero already wiped out all the demon lord worshippers, and even if some random monster really had managed to get into the royal capital, there’s the Evil-Cleansing Ceremony at the end of the year. Any monster would turn tail and run at that.”
My curiosity piqued, I asked a few questions about this “Evil-Cleansing Ceremony.”
They explained that it was a Ritual Magic cast every six months using Holy Chalices or Holy Grails, which had the effect of chasing away any monsters in or near the royal capital.
This time around, they were doing a larger version that was carried out every six years, which used the royal family’s Holy Chalice and Holy Grails from various dukes.
The Holy Chalice that Duke Vistall’s youngest daughter, Somienna, carried must have been brought here for that ceremony, then.
“Is it possible to observe the ceremony?”
“Aside from the shrine maidens from six temples and higher-ranking priests and priestesses, it’s generally only attended by the royal family, feudal lords, and the heads of high-ranking noble families.”
That’s too bad—wait, if I ask Baron Muno, he might let me attend as part of his retinue. I should ask when I get back.
“Forget that! The best part of the end of the year is obviously the auction!”
“I heard there’s tons of great treasures this year.”
“Right, since Sir Pendragon and Sir Mossad defeated those floormasters and all.”
“There’s a rumor there’ll be a marionette core for sale, too.”
Oh-ho? Now that’s intriguing.
Depending on the price, I might have to bid on that. I was curious to research what made elf-style golems different, too.
It might be a bad look for Satou to place the winning bid. I decided to ask Eluterina from the Echigoya Company to do it in my stead.
“Everyone, the performance is starting soon.”
As we were caught up in conversation, one of the lesser nobles pointed toward a crowd.
Sure enough, music was starting to play in the garden, and the number of high-class-looking nobles had increased.
Jesters and minstrels were wandering about the area as well, performing for the guests. There was even an area with games that looked similar to darts and ring toss, and a sport that seemed like a cross between croquet and bowling.
“Looks like the Laxton Orchestra is performing.”
“Wow, normally it takes at least two months to get tickets to their concerts, but they hired them for a party…”
“No wonder garden parties at the house of Count Litton are so famous.”
“There’s going to be a solo performance by a famed musician later today, too.”
“That certainly sounds exciting.”
We chatted as we walked toward the stage that had been built in the garden.
Since the seats were already full, I stood in the back with the other lesser nobles to listen to the performance.
I don’t have a very good sense of rhythm, but their performance was so incredible that even I could tell it was special. Even in the outdoors without the acoustics of a concert hall, they rivaled the performance of the orchestra that played with Cyriltoa the Songstress in the old capital.
Finally, the song moved into a solo part.
Wow.
The soloist was so incredible that it was hard to believe the same performer had been buried among the rest of the orchestra all that time.
He must have been prioritizing the harmony of the group until the solo section.
The solo was so expressive that magnificent scenery seemed to fill my mind when I closed my eyes and listened to the music.
When the solo finally ended, I let out a small sigh, and there was thunderous applause as the concert came to a close.
“That was quite a performance.”
“Yes, it feels like my heart and mind have been cleansed.”
The other nobles beside us were all having similar conversations.
Just as we were all bathing in the echoes of the incredible performance, a harsh voice suddenly grated on our ears.
“Duel me, Sir Pendragon!”
The rude noble was back with his posse, holding an expensive-looking instrument in one hand.
Someone must have told him how to pronounce my name correctly.
“Duel you…?”
“I’ll show you the skills of a musician who once studied under the famed Kestra.”
He seemed very confident of his musical talent.
Lady Helmina’s words must have convinced him that he was no match for me in a fight, so he must have chosen to challenge me to an artistic face-off instead.
“Hmm? When did you ever study under me?”
A refined male voice came from across the crowd.
It was the musician who’d just performed that solo part.
“Sir Kestra! Please, right this way!”
The rude noble beckoned the gentleman over and looked at me triumphantly.
“Oh? You’re the boy I met at the fountain the other day.”
The musician was looking right at me.
“Whoa, the famous Kestra talked to him!”
“Who is that black-haired boy?”
The other nobles all started whispering about me.
“I greatly enjoyed our little session that day. It was a splendid performance.”
Ohhh, now I remember.
It was the gentleman who played music with Mia during our royal capital sightseeing.
“Thank you…”
I was about to say that I would pass his words on to Mia, but he interrupted, looking around.
“Is that little lady not here with you today?”
“No, she’s a bit too small for that.”
“I see. Please, come by and visit at the concert hall sometime.”
The gentleman produced a ticket from his breast pocket, wrote something on the back, and handed it to me.
“That’s a ticket to see the Laxton Orchestra!”
“And it’s for the special VIP seats, too.”
“Even high-ranking nobles have a hard time getting their hands on those…”
The well-informed nobles gazed at me enviously, and the other nobles started murmuring as well.
“If you show them this, they’ll let you come backstage.”
“Thank you very much. I’ll be sure to bring her for a visit.”
The gentleman nodded in satisfaction at my response.
“Master Kestra! What sort of relationship do you have with Pendragon?!”
The rude noble who’d been left out of this exchange pressed toward the gentleman.
“Ah, you’re Count Bonam’s son… Young man.”
The gentleman didn’t seem to remember the rude noble’s first name.
“What sort of relationship?” He glanced at me. “I happened to run into him while out on a stroll. We were able to have a lovely little concert.”
The gentleman smiled warmly, sending another wave of chatter through the crowd of nobles.
“H-he’s good enough that even Master acknowledges him…?”
“I beg your pardon, young man. But I must ask that you please stop calling me ‘Master.’ That title is reserved for my pupils.”
“B-but you taught music at our home—”
“At Count Bonam’s invitation, I did come to the main house at the time and lend an ear and a few words of advice to your performance, but I’ve paid such visits to many a home.”
The gentleman curtly shut down the rude noble’s desperate grasping.
He seemed like a gentle fellow, but clearly he was strict when it came to the arts.
“Now then, I have another performance today, so I shall go give my regards to Lady Ema and be on my way.”
With a short glance at the trembling nobleman, the gentleman gave me a cheerful smile and strolled away.
The other nobles in the area watched him leave, then turned back to look at the rude noble and me.
I wished I could walk away, too, but if I left things like this, the rude noble might fly off the handle completely.
“So, about that musical duel…”
“Don’t get too full of yourself, Pendragon!”
I tried to clear the air, but the rude noble practically growled at me and ran off with that parting line.
I was planning to lose miserably in the musical matchup and let him satisfy his thirst for revenge… Unfortunately, I guess it wound up rubbing salt in his wound instead.
“Please pardon my intrusion.”
I was in the middle of trying to resolve the misunderstandings about the musician situation and slow down the rumors that were spreading among the nobles when a graceful maid approached me.
“You are Sir Pendragon, I believe? Lady Litton was asking after you.”
I excused myself from the group of nobles and followed the maid to see Lady Ema Litton, the count’s wife and host of the party.
She was sitting at a table in the center of the spacious garden, surrounded by noblewomen in equally extravagant dresses. According to my AR display, they were all the wives of upper-class nobles like Lady Litton.
Near the table was an enormous pile of gifts from guests. Mine were among them, still unopened. I hoped she would get to them soon: They included some freshly made sweets.
“So you’re Reythel’s new favorite, hmm?”
Lady Litton was a refined, feminine beauty, with lovely youthful features that belied the fact that she was around forty years old.
The “Reythel” she mentioned was the first name of the viceroy’s wife in Labyrinth City.
According to her, Lady Litton had a great deal of influence in the royal capital’s social sphere, so I had best be careful to stay on her good side.
Still seated, she gave me a long, appraising stare, then reached out one white-gloved hand.
“My name is Satou Pendragon, honorary knight and vassal of Muno Barony. It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”
I introduced myself using the traditional phrase I was taught in my course on noble manners. Then I kissed her outstretched hand lightly enough that I barely grazed the white glove.
I had never done this outside of my lessons on manners, but now I was glad that I’d memorized it.
“Oh, my. Here I was expecting a rather uncouth explorer type, but I see your manners are impeccable.” Her judgmental look softened, evidently impressed with my display. “I hear you rescued our Bowman in Labyrinth City. Please allow me to thank you. If you should ever run into trouble in the capital city, I’ll be happy to help you out just once.”
“It was hardly anything worth noting, but I sincerely appreciate your kind words.”
Between the rude noble from before and those delinquent nobles at the museum, the royal capital seemed to have a problem with nobles who had overinflated egos. Having a helping hand from someone with a lot of influence in the royal capital was certainly reassuring.
“That being said, I wasn’t aware that young Master Bowman had any connection to the Litton family.”
“We’re not related by blood. He’s the son of a close friend of mine. I would’ve hated to see her cry… Thanking you is the least I can do.” After that, she murmured, “Besides, Reythel wouldn’t be able to help publically because of her faction.”
Ah, so it’s that sort of relationship.
Now I more or less understood why she hadn’t been able to go crying to her friend the viceroy’s wife for help, and why he and Gerits were so close.
“Sir Pendragon, do you have a moment?”
While I was mulling all this over, Lady Litton requested a look at my sleeves—specifically the cuff links attached to them. I held out my arm accordingly.
“So Ema’s new boy toy has black hair?”
A beautiful, sultry woman, evidently a friend of Lady Litton, cast me a strangely syrupy look.
“Why, this is a rune light gem from the Echigoya Company,” the woman declared as she looked at my cuff link.
“Not quite,” Lady Litton responded with a pointed smile, then continued. “It’s not a rune engraved in the light stone, but Sir Pendragon’s family crest. And this exterior is a processed gemstone, not colored glass, is that right?”
“Surely not… I can’t imagine anyone but the legendary jewel magic master Gemma creating such a thing.”
“But the only way to inscribe one’s crest into a light stone and place it within a transparent gem would be to use Earth Magic, correct?”
“That’s right.” I nodded.
The sultry beauty continued gazing at me, cranking up the sweetness in her syrupy expression.
“I don’t suppose you’d tell me how you did it?”
It would be easy to give her Akindoh’s name, but it would be a hassle if they tried to dig up more information on him. Instead I just used the classic Japanese technique of smiling vaguely.
Lady Litton chuckled. “Rayuna, looks like there are some men who can resist you after all.”
“That’s not it, Ema. He’s not so stricken by my charms that the poor thing can’t speak. But let’s see… Would you be willing to procure one for me, then?”
“It would take some time, as the jeweler who made this one lives in a somewhat distant country, but if that’s all right with you I’d be happy to pass your request along. It’s a very difficult process, though, so he can only make so many…”
I decided to make up a reason to limit the number of requests so I wouldn’t be flooded with custom orders.
“Yes, of course. Right, Ema?”
“Agreed. Let’s keep this as our little secret.”
“Well then, how much would it cost?”
I used my “Estimation” skill on my own cuff links to check.
They had only been five gold coins this morning, yet now that all these upper nobles were eyeing them, the price had jumped to nearly three times that of a similarly sized Heaven’s Teardrop. I guess noblewomen really love shiny things like these.
“I believe it depends on the size of the gemstone. Other designs besides family crests are also possible, but the jeweler said he would need a sample carving of the design as reference.”
I gave the “Estimation” price for one around the size of my cuff links; then I added about 20 percent more than that for one the size of the brooches and pendants the women were wearing.
“Oh my, that’s not as much as I expected.”
“But surely that doesn’t account for your finder’s fee, Sir Pendragon? You simply must include more than the commission money from the merchant.”
The syrupy beauty’s eyes widened while Lady Litton scolded me.
She said that anywhere from 5 to 30 percent was standard for a finder’s fee.
Thanking her for her kindness, I raised the price by 5 percent, as she suggested, and took down their orders.
Oh, I know…
“I apologize for bringing this up right after taking your order, but…,” I said, and I asked if they wouldn’t mind opening the presents I’d brought.
“Well, well, what have we here?”
Lady Litton had one of her attendants fetch my gifts, then opened them herself and looked inside.
“Good heavens! Isn’t this something?”
She exclaimed in surprise as she took out a pendant with a sizable Heaven’s Teardrop.
“Sir Rayleigh once told me that a Heaven’s Teardrop would be the ideal present for you, so I asked a merchant friend of mine to sell me the best he had to offer.”
I’d had an artisan elf make this for me when we visited Bolenan Forest, since the viceroy’s son, Rayleigh, had mentioned this to me a while ago.
Despite being teardrop-shaped, as its name suggested, this mysterious gemstone sparkled and reflected light as brightly as a brilliant-cut diamond. And although it was called a gemstone, it wasn’t found in mines; it was made from the sap of a tree that only grew in areas rich with spirits, and no ordinary humans knew how to make them.
Those trees were quite common in Bolenan Forest, where they used the material to make durable tableware and decorations.
“Why, it’s remarkable! The transparency is even higher than the Heaven’s Teardrop Sir Rayleigh brought me straight from the Kingdom of Ishrallie!”
“It could almost be the Fairy’s Teardrop from the legends.”
Noticing the woman’s syrupy eyes back on me, I quickly informed her that this was a rare commodity the merchant had happened to find, not something I could likely reorder.
“I hope Reythel won’t be cross with me for keeping such a lovely gem to myself.”
“She isn’t the sort of person who would get angry over such a thing.”
Besides, I still had two more of these that the alua artisan had made for me, and I was already planning to give one to the viceroy’s wife.
I had been thinking of having Lady Karina wear the last one for her societal debut, but after seeing the reaction it got from Lady Litton and the others, it was probably best to hold off on that. It would defeat the purpose if it made Karina the target of jealousy.
“Goodness, it really is lovely. Sir Pendragon, I’ll be calling you Satou from now on. Is that all right?”
“I would be honored, Mrs. Litton.”
“I’ll let you call me Ema.”
“Thank you very much, Lady Ema.”
The other women around her tittered in surprise; evidently it was rare for her to let people use her first name. I’d been bracing myself since the viceroy’s wife told me that Lady Litton liked teasing people, but maybe I was worried for nothing.
Now that we had gotten to know each other a bit, I also suggested that they try the fresh sweets that I’d presented her along with the pendant.
“This is a bit different from the castella Reythel was boasting about in her letter, isn’t it?”
“Yes, it’s called a roll cake.”
“Well, it’s simply scrumptious.”
“Ema! This one has strawberries inside.”
The syrupy beauty squealed like a young girl.
I guess good food can bring people back to their younger days.
While we enjoyed the snacks with tea, I asked the ladies to tell me about famous makeup studios, sewing workshops, and similar boutique niches in the royal capital, as well as their favorite accessory shops, famous designers, and other such things.
They even gave me letters of introduction. I planned to bring my group and Lady Karina along to those places in the near future.
“There you are, bumpkin noble! Let’s settle this!”
Once I excused myself from Lady Litton and company and went back to the area where the other nobles were gathered, the rude noble came after me yet again.
He stood in front of me looking smug, with his retinue behind him.
All of them had mithril rapiers, gaudily decorated Magic Swords, and other such weapons at their hips.
There was even one Holy Knight with a yellow spear—it was Jagou, the one who’d picked a fight with Liza and me back at the Holy Knights’ headquarters.
“P-Pendragon?”
“Well, this is quite a coincidence.”
The rude noble must have called him in as backup, although he seemed to have neglected to tell the knight who he’d be confronting.
“Come on, Sir Jagou! Show this upstart country bumpkin the true strength of the royal capital’s proud Holy Knights!”
“R-right…”
While the rude noble looked triumphant, Sir Jagou looked rather pale.
“Sir Jagou here is a top candidate for the Shiga Eight Swordsmen! He’s on a par with the mighty warriors who can even defeat intermediate demons!”
I guess he must have gone looking for “seasoned warriors who can at least take on an intermediate demon,” like Lady Helmina had said earlier, and gotten overexcited when he thought he’d found one.
That overconfidence was probably why he was back to calling me a “bumpkin,” too.
On the other hand, the knight with the yellow spear looked deeply uncomfortable about how the rude noble was talking him up.
Since he was trying to get into the Shiga Eight, I’m sure he didn’t want to get into a fight he might lose in front of a bunch of famous nobles at a garden party.
“Now, let us duel! Sir Jagou will be my proxy! Since it’s a garden party, we’ll say whoever gets in the first hit wins!”
The rude noble kept on blathering anyway.
It would be a simple matter to defeat Jagou, but I got the feeling that I wouldn’t gain anything from winning that fight except more of Jagou’s hatred.
As I was worrying about what to do, a helping hand came to my rescue.
“I won’t have anyone trying to pick on our dear Satou.”
“And who, pray tell, gave you permission to have a duel at my party? I won’t allow such conduct in my garden.”
Led over by a maid, the sultry beauty and Lady Litton stepped in on my behalf.
The servant must have noticed that the men were trying to start a fight with me and told Lady Litton and the others.
“M-Mrs. Litton, Mrs. Raffol… W-we were just trying to defend our honor, you see…”
The rude noble started falteringly making excuses.
Somehow, it all seemed a little familiar.
First Princess Menea and Lady Helmina, then the musician, and now Lady Litton and company… This would be a bit much, even if it was a running gag in a manga.
“What are you dragging me into, Sir Dotoumuru? I came here today to see a friend, you know.”
“Come on, don’t be like that. This battle needs a witness, but since Sir Jagou is the stand-in, I’m sure it won’t take long.”
I heard familiar voices in the crowd.
“O-over here!”
“There you are, Moushil! Here, I brought a great witness for ya.”
One of the rude noble’s friends dragged a handsome young man over.
Behind the young man came a gaggle of young noblewomen and wives, all batting their eyes.
“Rayleigh, you’re involved in this nonsense, too?”
“Why, if it isn’t Lady Ema and Lady Rayuna. You’re both as beautiful as ever. I really just came to see a friend of mine, so hopefully this nonsense won’t take long— Sir Pendragon! There you are!”
It was Marquis Ashinen’s second son, Rayleigh, who gave Lady Litton a friendly greeting before spotting me and smiling.
“Y-you know him, Sir Rayleigh?”
“Sure do. He saved my life, owns the Dragonpen Trading Company that I run, and is one of my very best friends.”
At that, the rude noble fell to his knees.
He was probably hoping that having the popular ladies’ man Rayleigh on his side would help him out even if he made Lady Litton angry.
Now his entourage of nobles and the knight Jagou were slinking away from his side.
“I came as soon as I heard you were in the royal city.”
“I’m honored. Your sea voyage must have been quick this time, then.”
As I chatted with Sir Rayleigh, we went back to our seats, along with Lady Litton and company.
Before she left, Lady Litton said to the rude noble, “Know that if you lay a hand on Satou, you make an enemy of the house of Duke Litton.” Between Lady Helmina’s threat of violence and Lady Litton’s threat of social ostracization, the rude noble’s heart must have been in tatters.
Hopefully he would fade into the background, and we could continue sightseeing in the royal capital in peace.
Once the rude noble finally left, the rest of the garden party unfolded without any further incidents.
Even the awkward Lady Karina was able to talk to some new noblewomen, given the help from the sociable Princess Menea and the popular Lady Helmina.
That evening, Rayleigh invited me out for a night on the town with some other young noblemen.
“Sir Pendragon! This next place is my favorite!”
“Is that right? I’m looking forward to it, then.”
The places we’d visited so far ranged from a pub that boasted a show featuring scantily clad female dancers to a high-class bar where beautiful women from all over the world would chat with you to a musical tavern with topless waitresses. If this place was his favorite, that raised the bar even higher.
The place Rayleigh led us to was rather well-hidden in a side alley.
It was plain on the outside, but the inside was pretty fancy. Once inside, we had to go downstairs to the partially underground bar. Classy music was playing from the other side of the door.
“Well, well, weeeell, if it isn’t Lord Rayleigh. We haven’t seen your face in a while, now, have weee?”
When Sir Rayleigh opened the door, we were greeted by a muscular, hairy man.
Why…?
After the night out with Tolma in the old capital, this was the second time I’d ended a night on the town in a gay bar.
Along with the pale-faced young noblemen, I enjoyed a rather unusual night.
Just to be clear, it didn’t involve any of the indecent acts I’m sure Arisa would have gone wild about.
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