Several days had passed since I finished making the combs at the boss’s workshop.
Today we decided to visit the home of Gouki-san, the great merchant and father of Yuuki-san, who has been taking great care of us with our regular rice purchases……
On the way there, a suspicious person dressed entirely in pure white robes approached Shion and spoke to her.
「Ehehe～! m’lord, please listen! I won the right to cling to your arm both on the way to Gouki-dono’s house and on the way back!」
「……There was a contest like that?」
This was news to me…… I knew that whenever we walked outside, someone was always holding my arm or hand, but I had no idea such rules were in place. When I glanced back, everyone quickly looked away, so it seemed to be true.
……In reality, although I love all of them, the time I can spend cherishing each one individually is limited.
I think many harem lifestyles fall apart because of exactly this kind of problem, but our household seems to have surprisingly good order. It looks like they have properly established rules.
Well, looking back, there seem to be many things happening behind my back, but with matters like this, it’s probably better that I don’t know.
「Nnfufu～! Little by little, step by step! Today please enjoy the pleasant feeling of Shion-chan’s pai～!」
「……Arayashiki-sama」
「Yes? ……Ah, you’re one of the Kannagi children? Bad timing. Also, right now I’m Shion, technically……」
「Then, Shion-sama. A large man carrying your letter has appeared, but……」
「Large man…… Ah, that person. He’s not a problem. Please handle it however you like.」
「Understood.」
After saying only that, the person bowed and swiftly disappeared into the crowd, avoiding people with smooth steps.
Shion instantly switched expressions and flashed a bright smile. When I looked at her with eyes asking “What was that?”, she answered.
「Ah～, that was someone from the Kannagi Agency. There was a person who got cursed in relation to the duke’s matter, so I introduced them to the Kannagi Agency.」
「A curse……」
That’s right. Curses exist in this world……
Hm? Wait, do they exist in the original world too?
I don’t believe in curses themselves, but thinking about how I always avoided actions that might bring divine punishment, maybe deep down I did believe in them a little……?
「The duke’s curse…… wouldn’t it come after me?」
I feel like I’d be the one most hated……
「No. Even though it’s called a curse, it was made with a magic tool, so the target is the person who killed him…… There was a gentleman who took on the role when I was about to do it. That’s why I wrote a letter of introduction saying that if they want to lift the curse, the Kannagi Agency in Amatsukuni would be best.」
That means the muscular old knight Shion mentioned took on the curse for her……
So it was that person.
I have a feeling he’s still going on about owing me a favor or something.
「I see…… If he took on something scary like a curse for us, I hope he gets it properly lifted.」
「Ooh? M’lord is scared of curses? Don’t worry～! Even if m’lord gets cursed, I’ll undo it right away!」
「Undo a curse…… You can do that?」
Now that she mentions it, the Kannagi Agency is supposed to be an organization specialized in curse removal and prayer rituals, right?
Curse removal and prayer rituals…… somehow give off a pure and holy-attribute kind of image……
I glance at Shion.
「?」
She tilted her head as if asking “What is it?”, but then suddenly realized something. Before I could wonder what she was about to do, she opened the front of her clothes wide to show off her cleavage, spread her arms, and leaned forward with her lips puckered. I gave her a chop.
「Ouch! Why did you do that!?」
「Why do you think? Why would you try to do that right here?」
She feels very far from pure.
I wonder if she can really undo curses……
「You were staring so intently that I thought you wanted to do it outside……? It’s a rare chance, and if we slip into that dark alley right over there, there’s a high possibility no one will notice…… Doing it outside gives high experience points, I think!」
Just what kind of experience points is she trying to raise?
No matter how I look at it, only perverted experience points would go up.
……Isn’t she gradually turning into something like Origol?
No, maybe their personalities were similar from the start……
「……Come on, enough of that. Let’s go. We’re keeping Gouki-san waiting, aren’t we?」
「Come on! That means on the way back…… Kyaa! I’m m’lord’s b.e.l.o.v.e.d.!」
No, she knows full well that because of my promise with Kukuri-sama we can’t do that kind of thing for a while…… She’s doing it on purpose.
I gave her another chop from the front.
「Ouch! Ah, there it is! That’s Gouki-dono’s house!」
While rubbing the spot where she was chopped, Shion smiled happily and pointed ahead.
What stood there was a magnificent Japanese-style mansion with what looked like a garden.
A pure white wall topped with tiled roofing stretched out, and beside the grand wooden gate stood two sturdy-looking gatekeepers holding long poles.
「Hello～! I’m Shion, who requested an introduction to Gouki-dono today～」
「Yes ma’am! We were informed!」
「Please come in! Gouki-sama is waiting inside!」
Ooh, what loud voices that vibrate right into my ears.
When you’re this close it makes a “hyun” sound, so I think they should try to keep their volume down if possible!
The two of them opened the gate for us, but Shion, who was still clinging tightly to my arm, suddenly got pulled backward——
「Choi saaaaa!!!」
A vajra warrior came charging out from inside, swinging a naginata overhead!!!
That battle cry sounded familiar somehow…… No, that’s not the point!
Aina stepped forward smoothly and stopped the attack, but the moment the ambush failed, the vajra warrior…… no, not a statue, a person, quickly put distance between us and lowered his naginata into a ready stance.
Could this person actually be……?
「Gouki-dono!? What are you doing all of a sudden!? That’s dangerous!」
「Silence! That man! You must be the wandering scoundrel who seduced my daughter! I won’t forgive you! I absolutely won’t forgive youuuuuu! When she finally came home after so long, she told me she met some man called Hayato and her face had turned into that of a woman!」
……That’s not me! That part definitely wasn’t my fault!
So don’t look at me with that “eeeh……” face, Shion!
Everyone else…… Ha! Now that I think about it, no one was there at the time, so there are no witnesses!
Which means I have to clear my name with my own power!
「Um, that, n-no, you’ve got it wrong? That was probably Hayato, not me——」
「What!? You dare say it wasn’t you even though you keep women around you like some womanizer!? How could there possibly be multiple men capable of building a harem right in front of my daughter!?」
I can’t even make a sound!
If I were in his position, I’d probably think exactly the same thing, but truth is stranger than fiction, and there really is another one!
That Hayato guy is sprinting full speed down the heroic path of a proper harem protagonist!
「I heard he was a great merchant, but he’s pretty strongssu.」
「Well, merchants get attacked sometimes, so he must have trained to some degree. Still, I won’t let anyone lay a single finger on my lord against an opponent of this level.」
「Indeed. My liege, please stay behind us.」
The three of them were in full battle readiness.
I’m grateful. It’s reassuring to have safety secured, but this won’t do.
The other party is a great merchant of Amatsukuni, you know?
「You scoundreeel! Aren’t you ashamed to be protected by the women you should be protecting!? If you’re a man of Amatsukuni, step forward proudly, fight, and have the spirit to steal my daughter away at——」
「……That’s enough, Father!」
Eh!? I was thinking “But I’m not even a man of Amatsukuni”, when Yuuki-san suddenly appeared from behind, swung something with all her might, and—— Gonnnn…… A hammer…?
In times like this, shouldn’t it be a harisen…… or at least a wooden sword?
「I am terribly sorry. What disgraceful behavior toward our guest…… Father! Apologize at once! Of course, in proper Amatsukuni dogeza style!」
「Wha…. Yu-Yuuki-chan? You’ve got it wrong! Papa was only thinking of what’s best for Yuuki-chan!」
「What part of attacking a guest the moment he arrives is for my sake? Besides, you have the wrong person! The one I am enamored with is……」
「Yuuki-chan!? Enamored……!? Don’t tell me it’s that other man called Hayato! I can’t let this stand. I’ll immediately send my private troops to the kingdom——」
「……Dear? That’s enough now, don’t you think?」
……Um, is that his wife?
Just what is that huge, huge sledgehammer……?
She looks like a beautiful lady in kimono who would suit being a tea ceremony instructor, yet she can swing such an enormous hammer……
「…………Yes. I am terribly sorry!」
After freezing perfectly still, Gouki-dono, the vajra warrior himself, immediately turned toward us and performed a flawless, beautiful dogeza.
The entire sequence of movements was smooth and elegant, without the slightest hesitation.
「Haa…… Please forgive my rudeness. Thank you very much for coming today. Shion-sama, and you must be…… the guest who carries fox shrine maiden-sama within you. Thank you for regularly purchasing our rice.」
「Ah, yes. No, thank you as well. The distance is quite far, yet you deliver rice regularly. It has been a great help!」
Amazing.
For a moment I was struck by her mature charm and elegance in that kimono, but the sight of the massive sledgehammer still resting on her shoulder made my heart skip a beat for an entirely different reason.
「Ara? How embarrassing. It’s an old habit…… There we go.」
Noticing my gaze, the lady casually tossed the sledgehammer onto the ground and released it.
……Unless I was imagining things, the ground seemed to sink a little. Just how many kilograms does that thing weigh?
「Old habit…… Does that mean you used to be an adventurerssu?」
「Yes. I was an A-rank adventurer in Amatsukuni.」
「I see…… I can certainly feel the presence of a strong person.」
「Well, she’s casually carrying a hammer that big, so of course.」
Aina and the others are A-rank adventurers too……
Which means this person is on the same level of strength as them……
「So you are a merchant and a former adventurer couple.」
「Yes. Earlier he was talking about what it means to be a man of Amatsukuni, but we actually met when he hired me as an escort. He was the one being protected. He fell for me at first sight and said, 『I’ll give you all my fortune, so please marry me!』 I replied, 『That’s not enough, you idiot.』」
Ooh…… Her current refined appearance makes it hard to imagine her speaking that way, but the persuasive power of that sledgehammer……
I’ll just accept that she used to be quite the wild one in her younger days.
「Yu-Yuzuki!? Please don’t tell such embarrassing stories from my youth in front of our guests!?」
「Ara? I was planning to also tell the story of how I fell for you after you said, 『I’ll increase my assets a hundredfold, no, a thousandfold!』 and actually rose to become a great merchant.」
「……. I-I see. Well, that part is embarrassing too, but……」
「Fufu. Isn’t he adorable?」
「……Uuu.」
……Ah, he is completely under her thumb, isn’t he.
Even with that magnificent body and face like a vajra warrior, he still can’t win against a woman……
I feel a very strong sense of kinship!
I’d like to pat him on the shoulder encouragingly, but I’ll probably get scolded, so I’d better not.
「Father, Mother…… Please stop talking about such things in front of your daughter…… Also, how long do you intend to keep our guests standing outside?」
「Y-Yes, that’s right. Please, come inside.」
「Hmm…… What should I do? I got a little excited by that fighting spirit…… It’s been a while since I moved my body. Would you mind sparring with me?」
「If it’s with us, we don’t mind, but……」
「All of us at once would be bad, right? It would be troublesome if he attacks again.」
「That won’t be a problem. If even a single scratch is left on our guest…… right?」
Yuzuki-san turned a bewitching smile toward Gouki-dono.
Gouki-dono kept nodding vigorously in response.
As expected, he really is……
「I will also be present, so if Father loses control, I will cut him down with my blade.」
The moment Yuuki-san placed her hand on the sword at her waist, Gouki-dono’s nodding became even faster.
……Well, we only planned to have a normal conversation, but being this cautious is probably just the consequence of our own actions.
For some reason Yae also looks full of motivation, but I wonder what exactly she thinks she can do……
「I have no interest in fighting, so I will guard m’lord.」
「Then I guess I’ll take you up on that!」
「Ufufu. I was interested in the guest who carries the shrine maiden-sama and is a drifter, but I was actually more curious about the famous A-rank adventurer party from Einzheil, the 『Red Line』. Well then, please go easy on me.」
「Yes ma’am!」
「Well, if we’re being challenged, it can’t be helped.」
「Indeed. We shall accept.」
And so, Yuuki-san, Gouki-dono, Shion, and I would talk inside, while Aina and the other two would spar with Yuzuki-san.
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