Several days have passed since we left Einzheil. It is a lazy afternoon.
We endured the bug zone by holing up in the carriage bed, and after entering the Empire, we have been traveling leisurely, enjoying the scenery from beside Shion, who is driving.
「Fum fum fufun fufufufun!」
「……You’re in a really good mood.」
「Of course! I never thought we’d get to Amatsukuni this quickly! It’s a shame Mizera-san couldn’t come……! But! Let’s switch gears and enjoy ourselves! She’s so kind that if we didn’t have fun because of her, she’d be sad!」
You’ve only known Mizera for a short time, yet you understand her so well.
Indeed, if Mizera heard that, she’d probably be stunned…… all right.
「Yeah. I’ll switch gears too. There’s no doubt I’m looking forward to Amatsukuni.」
「Fufufu. From what I heard, the only one who has visited their homeland is Renge-san’s Roukaku. This puts me one step ahead!」
Why does visiting your homeland count as one step ahead?
Shiro’s homeland…… wouldn’t that be some dangerous place like the Elduke Forest?
「Ah, since we finally have a chance to talk slowly, there’s actually one thing I’ve wanted to ask for a long time. Is it okay?」
「Hm? What is it?」
「Well, it’s a bit late now, but I’ve always wondered…… how exactly did you charm the earth dragon in Roukaku?」
「Charm…… at least call it ‘became friends’ or something?」
「Either way, it feels more like charming than becoming friends. Was it that? A night of unparalleled dominance, even though it was an earth dragon, ‘ahn ahn! Hawawa! So amazing!!’ kind of thing?」
Where is that voice coming from……
And switching between two different tones so naturally, such unnecessary talent and attention to detail.
「That’s not it…… And which one are you even talking about, Cassandra or Reagaia?」
「Well…… both?」
「……I do have preferences, you know?」
「Eh!? You do!?」
Why are you so shocked?
The horse got startled by how surprised you are.
Of course I do.
Sorry, but yeah, I have them.
If Reagaia lost weight, I’m sure she’d become a beauty.
That’s just a what-if, though.
「So? So? What actually happened?」
「Ah…… you know the earth dragon attacked Roukaku, right?」
「Yes. And I know you all defeated it. I don’t know the details, so please tell me.」
「Mmm…… then let’s start from when I first met Cassandra――」
I told the story in order: falling from the desert, meeting Cassandra, why it ended up in a fight with Reagaia, and how we won.
Shion is a great listener. She didn’t interrupt with unnecessary comments, so I finished smoothly…….
「Um…… so that means? You were basically a suicide seeker? Like Hayato-sama, wanting to become a hero even if it meant dying to achieve it?」
「Yeah…… looking back now, I’d agree that’s a normal way to see it.」
Even I think challenging a earth dragon was reckless, even if it felt important at the time.
Well, it was actually Shiro and the others who fought…… I regret dragging them into such a stupid, reckless mess……
「And you also charmed Koren-sama…… The other party was a queen, you know. A queen. What is this? A royal shimaidon? Did you enjoy it thoroughly? Are you planning to go for the shinobi shimaidon next? I’m fine with that. I recommend it. And you’ve charmed Sicilia-sama too, the emperor’s older sister in the Empire we’re heading toward, right? Iris-sama doesn’t seem completely uninterested either. Are you a royal killer? M’lord is terrifying…… Please, whatever you do, don’t charm the fox shrine maiden-sama in Amatsukuni, okay?」
Yeah, uh.
There are so many things to retort to, royal sister bowl, shinobi sister bowl, royal killer, but……
「Shrine maiden?」
「It’s fox shrine maiden-sama. The intonation is different. By the way, it refers to foxkin who possess divine power.」
「Foxkin……」
Fox beastkin, I suppose?
Fox…… fox ears.
Fox ears are cute, aren’t they……
There were some in the adventurer guild too. So fluffy and soft, it felt amazing……
No echinococcus worries either, and I want to bury my face in that fluffy tail.
「……Just make absolutely sure you don’t do anything weird to the fox shrine maiden-sama, okay? You’ll become an international wanted criminal. If you anger her, an entire country could be destroyed. Well? Even for you, m’lord, meeting the fox shrine maiden-sama is probably impossible anyway.」
「An entire country…… what kind of dragon-level destructive power is that…… Divine power, so like a saint?」
「No. Saints receive their gifts from the gods later in life, so it’s different. The fox shrine maiden-sama is born with divine power. She has lived for hundreds of years and is a very great and powerful guardian of Amatsukuni. Think of her as being on the same level as the earth dragons.」
Oh…… literally someone to be in awe of, huh……
But realistically, there’s no way an ordinary person like me would ever get involved with such an exalted fox shrine maiden-sama.
We’re just going to sightsee in Amatsukuni and buy the weapon Shion wants, so like she said, the chance of even meeting her is one in ten thousand at best.
「Got it, got it. I’ll be careful not to be rude.」
「Do you really understand!? I’m seriously worried! You’re known as 『Einzheil’s Troublemaker』, right!? Please, really! Don’t cause any trouble!?」
「……I don’t think I’ve actually caused that many troubles in the first place. What a completely baffling nickname.」
「I’m worried because just having you around causes trouble to happen!」
What’s with this treatment, like I’m some child-faced detective whose very presence guarantees an incident?
I haven’t lived in such a reckless, Barlow-like way that cases are guaranteed to pop up around me.
「Haaa…… why do I feel so uneasy? Maybe I should warn Shiro-san and the others too…… Listen carefully? Absolutely do not antagonize her, okay? No attacks, and no lucky pervert moments either!」
「Lucky pervert and attack are the same thing to you……」
「For you they are. In fact, lucky pervert takes priority over actual attack. Absolutely do not accidentally trip and pull down the fox shrine maiden-sama’s panties, or accidentally fall and end up with her small breasts in your mouth!」
「That’s not going to happen normally……」
What exactly are you worried about?
There’s no way something like that would happen in everyday life.
……Even if it did, the worst was when I used vector accel and accidentally lifted Aina’s clothes, ending up groping her breasts directly.
「R-Right? That kind of thing doesn’t happen normally, right? Yeah yeah. I almost got crushed by anxiety and worry and lost all my excitement!」
「Yeah yeah. Let’s enjoy it. Speaking of Amatsukuni…… rice comes first, right?」
「Of course! When you think rice, you think Amatsukuni! It’s on a completely different level from the dry, fake rice in other countries! I’ll guide you to the great merchant Gouki-sama’s place, so let’s buy a ton!」
「Gouki…… ah, Yuuki-san’s father, right?」
I remember Hayato saying Yuuki-san is the daughter of a great merchant in Amatsukuni.
We’ve been receiving rice from Yuuki-san regularly, and since we’re going there anyway, I figure we should at least stop by and say hello.
「Eh, you know her?」
「No, just the daughter a little. She’s always been kind enough to send us rice.」
「I see. That explains why we always have such delicious rice at home…… So, did you charm her too?」
「I didn’t…… She’s got that martial artist vibe, right? Honestly, I thought she might fall for Hayato instead…… Come to think of it, she wasn’t around.」
After sparring with him, she seemed to understand what kind of person Hayato is, and I figured there was no way she wouldn’t fall for him…… that natural playboy.
If anyone’s charming people, wouldn’t it be him rather than me? He’s handsome, a hero, a count, a great guy…… or am I the only one who thinks so?
「Wow…… I’m shocked. To think your reach extends even to Amatsukuni……」
「You’re talking like I’m invading or something.」
「Wouldn’t anyone think that? The kingdom, the Empire, Roukaku…… How far does your hand stretch? The Republic? The Holy Kingdom?」
「Relax. The only people I know in Amatsukuni are Yuuki-san and the carpenter guild master.」
「Carpenter guild…… Ah, the one from the hot spring time.」
Right. The master who helped build the hot spring and the mansion with us.
I wonder if he’s doing well. I wanted to thank him for the comb…… maybe I’ll get lucky and run into him?
「So it’s not just girls you’re connected to, huh……」
「Of course not.」
「Then what about the Republic and the Holy Kingdom?」
「No one there either. Ah, but Teresa and the vice-captain, are they from the kingdom? Or the Holy Kingdom? Which one is it?」
「Teresa…… you mean the kingdom’s saintess? You know her too?」
「Yeah. We get along pretty well.」
「Get along…… even the saintess!」
「Not in that way.」
「Haa…… somehow it feels like…… m’lord, if you wanted to, you could probably conquer the world, right? With earth dragons, heroes, saintess…… Should we do it?」
「No way. Not interested.」
「Right! Ah, the imperial capital is coming into view. We’re stopping by for a bit, right?」
「Hmm, yeah. Since we’re passing nearby, might as well say hello.」
Just like Shion said, the imperial capital is visible…… wait, isn’t that still too far to really see?
It’s like a tiny speck that might be there, but I think it’s still more than a day away……
And so, the journey continued, noisier and more fun than usual.
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