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“Are you talking about Rizeria, the daughter of Count Mila?”

After Elysia successfully delivered the identity card and left the castle, the Emperor was receiving reports about Elysia’s movements within the castle, keeping a close eye on her every action.

“Yes. I believe you met her not long ago.”

“Right. That happened. But that precious daughter of Count Mila had tea time with a hero?”

“It seems she heard about Young Lady Elysia’s activities through Count Mila. Perhaps out of curiosity, Young Lady Rizeria invited Young Lady Elysia to the gathering.”

Only a handful of people were aware of Elysia’s detailed movements. The more famous she became, the more benefits it might bring, but for Elysia, who primarily used assassination as her weapon, the downsides outweighed the advantages.

However, Count Mila, the Grand General of the Empire, was one of those few. Naturally, she was well aware of Elysia’s whereabouts.

“I hope that’s not where it ends. There must be more to the story?”

“…The next day, Young Lady Rizeria invited Young Lady Elysia to her home, without the usual noble ladies.”

“Hmm… Count Mila has been worried about the marriage proposals coming to her daughter recently, yet our hero decided to personally solve the Grand General’s dilemma.”

“And she has now presented a new problem. Count Mila doesn’t know yet, though.”

Why did Rizeria invite only Elysia to her home? The Emperor, who had been following Elysia’s movements closely, could guess without needing to ask.

“While it is delightful that Your Majesty is pleased, should we not consider restricting Young Lady Elysia’s activities? She seems unaware of the seriousness of the situation, and it would be better if she at least had some awareness of it.”

If only Elysia were knowingly acting with purpose, that would be preferable. It was astonishing how every word she spoke and every action she took came so naturally, without any awareness of the implications.

“Ah, thanks to my insights, I can at least enjoy this show. Frankly, she’s tough for me to handle. And even if she does become aware of it, I doubt much will change.”

“But if you keep watching silently…”

“Do not worry about that. Someone will likely show up soon to stop her on my behalf. By that time, all current concerns will be resolved.”

Although the Emperor spoke casually, he added in a voice barely audible,

“Oh, but she might be different. She could remain unchanged even in such circumstances.”

Indeed, Elysia had far surpassed the Emperor’s expectations, having even charmed one of the Four Heavenly Kings in the past.

“And one more thing. How about revealing your identity to Young Lady Elysia? She keeps misunderstanding that I’m her mother.”

“I’m sorry, but I can’t grant that request. No matter how I think about it, it’s just a pleasant misunderstanding that causes no harm to either of us.”

“Being misunderstood is harmful to me, though.”

Of course, for Isis, who had watched the Emperor since he was a child for over twenty years, she had come to regard him somewhat like a daughter. The Emperor, having lost his mother at a young age, also considered Isis as another mother figure.

However, there was a clear distinction between treating someone like a daughter and actually having a daughter.

“Just bear with it. After all, it’s true that you are of the age to be a mother.”

Yet, the Emperor responded to Isis’s words with a relaxed demeanor. For a moment, Isis felt her sanity slipping away, but she managed to control herself thanks to the extreme patience that had helped her reach the rank of Great Wizard.

“Oh! By the way, let’s avoid scheduling with Count Mila for a while. It seems that meeting her might become a hassle soon.”

Indeed, that was just how the Emperor was.

*

Having received the identity card and no longer having any reason to stay at the castle, Elysia promptly left the next day. The next destination was Defel, the city where Lindy’s Information Guild was established. According to Lindy’s message, all systems were set up, and the handover was completed, so she decided to head to Defel to meet her.

“Master! What’s that in your hand?”

While I was waiting briefly to take the carriage provided by the palace instead of walking, Lilith asked about the item in my hand.

“Oh, this? Hehe… it’s a token of friendship, you could say?”

Although I was given only one day, I was able to completely win over Rizeria. It happened that the other noble ladies invited by Rizeria couldn’t attend the tea party the next day due to various circumstances, which worked in my favor, allowing me to talk a bit deeper with her.

Moreover, now that I was leaving the castle, Rizeria even handed me a charm personally. Her insistence not to let it out of my possession until I return after defeating the Demon King was reminiscent of the gestures between long-standing close friends.

Smack!

“Eek?”

Suddenly, Frecia smacked my behind. It didn’t hurt, but the unexpected action made me yelp in surprise.

Just as I was about to ask Frecia what was going on, she was already stepping into the carriage that had been prepared. Since the carriage had arrived, there was no need to smack me; Frecia certainly had a playful side.

As I tucked the charm back into my inner pocket and climbed into the carriage, this royal carriage was luxury personified, and it offered me comfort until we arrived at our destination of Defel just before sunset. Since it was a borrowed carriage, it didn’t need to wait for other passengers and headed straight back to the castle.

Normally, when entering a town, finding accommodations would be a priority, but in Defel, such a necessity was dropped. After all, we were there to escort Lindy. Even if it wasn’t my money, there was no need to spend it unnecessarily; I could stay at Lindy’s place.

“Lindy, we’re here!”

I pushed open the door just as naturally as if it were my home and announced our arrival in a loud voice. After all, I had received the spare key quite some time ago. I rarely came to Defel so I had initially questioned the use of getting a copy of Lindy’s house key, but I never expected I would actually use it one day. Lindy probably never imagined such a day would come either!

“It seems nobody’s home?”

However, no sounds could be heard from within, and the dark interior greeted us without any lights on. They must not have returned from work yet.

We had no choice but to wait in the empty house. Eventually, we all settled into various spots.

Frecia had already taken a seat in the rocking chair by the window, while Lilith was standing behind Frecia, taking it upon herself to gently rock the chair. For a moment, I worried if Lilith had developed some sort of slave mentality, but since she looked delighted, I decided to let it slide.

Luna, seeming amused by Frecia’s swaying motion in the chair, was watching intently. However, unlike how she acted with Lindy, Luna didn’t dare get familiar with Frecia and instead began to wander around looking for other rocking chairs.

Gomtaengi and Tokki, seemingly unfazed by being in someone else’s house, carelessly opened and closed cupboards in the kitchen, eventually finding a teapot and some snacks.

While Gomtaengi boiled the water and Tokki transferred the snacks onto a plate, Luna, who couldn’t find another rocking chair, returned with a glum face. Luna plopped down beside me on the sofa and rested her head on my thigh.

“If you’re sleepy, why not go take a nap on the bed for a bit?”

“I’m not sleepy, and the bed smells like an old lady, so I don’t want to!”

I asked Luna if she was tired, but she casually blurted out something that would surely annoy Lindy and wiggled closer to me instead. This sofa was also the one Lindy used.

“Hehe. Honestly, I prefer your thighs more than a bed or a pillow!”

Luna, despite being a fair age now, still had a penchant for acting like a child. And I guess I was the problem for always indulging her whims.

As I was ruffling Luna’s hair, the creaking of the rocking chair suddenly came to a stop.

Frecia stepped down gracefully from the rocking chair, walked toward us on the sofa, and lightly tapped Luna’s shoulder, who had her head resting on my thigh.

Luna, not truly asleep, did manage to open her eyes at the gentle nudge.

“I’ll let you have the rocking chair.”

“Really? You won’t take it back later? Did you really say you’re giving it up?”

As the elder, it seemed Frecia found it hard to keep watching Luna’s sulky face. Apparently pleased, Frecia, who had taken the chair as soon as we entered, ultimately yielded it to Luna.

“Yep. I don’t need it.”

Once Frecia confirmed that, Luna promptly leapt up and darted to the rocking chair with a joyful expression.

“Luna! You should say thank you to the manager!”

“Yay! Thank you, sis!”

“Likewise.”

Even though Luna’s manner of expressing gratitude was rather lackluster and casual, Frecia didn’t seem inclined to criticize her.

Lilith didn’t follow Frecia’s lead but instead lightly rocked the chair for Luna, who had just taken her seat. However, Luna appeared to be getting restless with the gentle rocking and was shaking the chair back and forth energetically.

In the meantime, Frecia had lowered her head onto my thigh, reversing the previous positions we’d had with Luna.

Seeing the expectation in Frecia’s eyes as she gazed up at me, I lifted one hand and gently patted her head, just like I had with Luna. Luckily, Frecia didn’t seem to have any complaints and began to close her eyes slowly, surrendering herself to my touch.

Clink.

During that time, Gomtaengi and Tokki finished their preparations, setting cups and plates of snacks on the table in front of the sofa.

With one hand still patting Frecia’s head, I reached out with the other to sip tea and take a bite of the snacks.

This was truly a feeling of comfort akin to being at home. Indeed, rather than being cooped up in the ostentatious castle and feeling the pressure, resting here in this simple house was the best. Even if it wasn’t my home.

Since we were waiting, it might be a good idea to prepare dinner so we could eat right when Lindy comes back.