「All right, the main topic…」
Noctarl-san straightened up and spoke with a serious expression.
「After Yuuki-dono and Selene-chan’s report, I’ve already issued warnings to the guard unit and castle soldiers. But until the day of the engagement party, there will be a huge number of people coming and going…」
「It can’t be helped. We only caught that one today because he was fixated on Selene. It’s impossible to spot everyone. I’ll figure something out for the party venue itself, so Noctarl-san, please handle security in the castle town and the parade route.」
That said, I didn’t actually have any ideas yet…
「Ah, and there’s one more thing. I’d like to borrow your knowledge, Yuuki-dono. Is that all right?」
「Yes. What is it? As long as it’s something I can help with…」
「Thank you. Actually—」
Noctarl-san was troubled about how to identify people already in the castle town carrying 【Evil God Sprout】. He said stricter baggage checks at entry points would start tomorrow, but what he really needed was a way to find those who had already slipped inside.
「In that case, how about having guests write in a registry at the inns?」
「A registry? What’s that?」
「Um… it’s something from my world. When someone stays at an inn, they write down their name, place of origin, and so on at the front desk. It helps with security, and they can also record customer information.」
「Hmm. So you can sort people broadly that way?」
「Yes. Even among demons, some look almost identical to humans, so asking for their place of origin would narrow it down immediately.」
「That sounds promising.」
「Well, it only works because literacy rates are so high here…」
The demon territory has a long history, and literacy is extremely widespread. Some demon species lack vocal organs, so written communication became essential for employment and commerce. There’s even a common script used across languages.
「That’s good. But there’s one problem.」
「Um… what is it?」
「We don’t have enough paper. A registry would require quite a lot.」
「Ah… yeah, that’s a blind spot…」
「Well, until we can make proper forms, we’ll just have them write on blank sheets. Could you help with making the templates?」
「Yes, I’ll help.」
「Then let’s do it after dinner.」
With that, Noctarl-san stepped out of the bath.
◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆
And so, with the help of any free librarians and archivists, we hand-wrote nearly a hundred registry books. At the same time, we patrolled the castle town—checking taverns and markets for anyone carrying 【Evil God Sprout】. Several days passed like this, and it was now two days before the engagement announcement party.
「Haa… I’m so tired…」
「Thanks for your hard work, Yuuki-sama」
I sank into the sofa in the room. Liliana poured water from the pitcher and brought it over.
「But really… I’m exhausted…」
「Yes…」
「Everyone, good work…」
Liliana handed drinks to the others as well.
「Man, Liliana, you’ve had it rough too…」
「Indeed… Most of my time has been spent greeting the nobles…」
「Sorry. I’ve been out in the town so much that I left it all to you…」
「No, Yuuki-sama and the others have the far more important and difficult task! I’m used to greetings, and since I was bedridden until recently, people end the meetings quickly when they see how unwell I still look!」
Liliana puffed out her chest proudly. To think she was getting away with it through sheer force of presence…
「Yeah. Tomorrow, I’ll join you there too.」
「Is that all right? I would be happy, but…」
「I’m technically the commander of the various armies. It would be strange if the one leading them didn’t show up.」
「In that case, perhaps I should attend as well. I am the Saintess, after all…」
「Th-Then what about me…」
Selene looked down sadly. I didn’t mind, but in a place full of nobles, titles and status really did matter…
「Hmm… How about we make Selene a 『samurai』…」
「「「Samurai?」」」
「Yeah. In my country, it’s the word for a high-ranking knight.」
「「Hee～」」
「I see…」
「Plus, the weapon Selene carries is exactly what a 『samurai』 would use.」
Selene stood equipped with her ōdachi and wakizashi. Come to think of it…
I took one of the souvenirs from spatial storage (item box). I had wondered why it was given to me, but maybe this was the reason.
「Selene, come here.」
I placed the item on the desk and beckoned her over. From inside I pulled out a navy-blue hakama embroidered with peonies in gold thread, along with dark brown boots.
「Yuuki-san, what’s that?」
Selene peered in curiously. When I held them up to her, they fit her height perfectly.
「This is clothing from my world. It’s called a hakama. Want to try it on?」
「Yes!」
Selene answered brightly with sparkling eyes. But… putting it on her… does that mean me!?
(Well, I can’t back out now… Let’s give it a shot!)
――Five minutes later――
「Finally got it on… Even with the instructions, it was tough…」
There had been a booklet with folding instructions tucked in the bottom of the box, so I followed it step by step, but it was surprisingly difficult. I should have asked Haruka and Touka to teach me back home…
(I always just wore my tracksuit… I’ll ask them to show me when we get back…)
「Wow～ Yuuki-san, this is so cute!!」
Selene spun around happily. The navy-blue fabric with peony patterns complemented her rainbow-shifting hair perfectly, and the gold embroidery added an extra touch of elegance.
「So cute～」
「It suits you beautifully…」
「Selene-oneechan looks pretty～」
Croco had appeared at some point—probably sent by Noctarl-san on an errand.
(I won’t mention that it looks more like a uniform from a Japanese-modern café than proper samurai hakama, thanks to the boots…)
「When we go to my world, let’s all wear them together. I want to see everyone in kimono too.」
「Really!?」
「Yay!」
「Yay～!」
Watching the delighted group, I heard a knock at the door. Since everyone was surrounding Selene, I went to answer it.
「Coming～」
――Dogooo!!
「Hibuh!?」
「Wawah! Yuuki-sama!?」
I heard Latiti’s voice. Apparently, she had flung the door open with full force and sent me flying…
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