Book 4: Chapter 5 (5)

FitzClarence Family

The day of the party arrived and I was guided by Ester-chan to the location.

We passed through the gates while being bounced around in the back of a carriage.

I knew events like this would be unavoidable after receiving the rank of baron. The stage today is Ester-chan’s home in the capital city of Kalis. 

This is my first time visiting the FitzClarence mansion and after only passing through the entry gates, I can tell that this mansion is even larger than Count Bitch’s.

It’s easily ten times the size of Earl Bitch’s residence and that was the largest home I’ve seen since arriving in this world. Allen told me that there was a difference in power between Earl and Duke, but their two homes act as a physical representation of this difference.

Rich people are scary.

And feudalism is equally terrifying.

This place made me think that the noble mages home was rather simplistic.

“I feel like I’m seeing a new gigantic mansion every day….”

“You think so? This place might be large for the capital but it doesn’t compare to the main house in our territory.”

Seriously?

This isn’t even their main home.

This is the level I have to aim for.

“If you belong to the nobility and hold land outside the capital, that is where your main home will be. Having a mansion in the capital is similar to a commoner owning a second home.”

“So that’s how it is.”

Allen provided me with an explanation.

It’s similar to a daimyo owning a mansion in Edo.

We haven’t even entered her mansion yet, but I’m already lost for words after only seeing the exterior.

With a mansion of this size, there has to be a considerable number of maids.

If Ester-chan’s family is as perverted as her, I can only imagine what goes on behind those walls with all the maids. The black thongs the maids wear become exposed whenever they bend down to clean something. The master of the house would never be able to resist such a tempting display, causing him to give in to his desires in almost no time.

“Ojou-sama has arrived.”

The carriage finally came to a stop.

The driver of the carriage climbed down from the carriage, opened the door, and placed a small platform down for us to step on. After completing this sequence, he took a step back and bowed deeply as he waited for us to exit. Ester-chan was the first to get off followed by myself and Allen.

The entrance to the mansion was straight ahead of us.

I stepped down from the small platform and landed on a lush, red carpet that extended to the front door. Maids and butlers were lined up on either side of the carpet as well. The moment we were all out of the carriage, they bowed and shouted,

“““Welcome home, Ojou-sama!”””

This is what it’s like being rich.

“Come on, follow me.”

And the lolibitch just casually walked forward as if this was an everyday occurrence.

I stood still at the end of the carpet trying to suppress my strong desire to go back home.

How exactly does Ester-chan plan on explaining our relationship? And her relationship with Allen for that matter. I thought their relationship was a secret, but who knows who else Sophie-chan told.

Well, since they’re no longer together it might be fine. But he is the one that took her virginity. No matter how I look at it, I can’t imagine this will end well.

Worrying about it now won’t make a difference. If worst comes to worst, I can just pick up Allen and fly us both out of the mansion.

All right, let’s do this.

“Let’s go, Allen.”

“S-Sure.”

The two of us took one last look at each other before following after Ester-chan.

We passed through the open front door and found ourselves in a grand entryway.

The hall was large enough for a small home to fit in. I’d guess that it’s close to one hundred metres square with a ceiling so tall that I get vertigo looking up at it. This reminds me more of an extravagant hotel rather than a private home.

There were two staircases to the left and the right leading up to the second floor. A second-floor veranda looked down at the entry hall with a large fountain on the first floor directly below it.

“Ooh~, you’ve returned, Elizabeth!”

“Yes, I’ve come home.”

There was someone on the veranda.

It was a middle-aged man with a splendid kaiser beard. He had the same, lustrous blonde hair as Ester-chan styled in the same way as Earl Bitch but this man’s hair was slightly longer.

His physique didn’t match his apparent age. He was easily over two metres tall with broad shoulders and a wide chest that could even put Gon-chan’s to shame.

It’s like someone took all of Ester-chan’s masculine and proud attributes and turned them up to eleven. I could see the hilt of a sword poking out from beneath his long cloak. I said a silent prayer in the hope that it was a decorative sword.

And, as expected, his face was frightening.

“By the way, Elizabeth, who are those two men?”

“This is my child, Baron Tanaka, and this is my friend, Allen. He’s a knight!”

“…hou?”

His eyes narrowed as he looked down on us.

Based on the timing of his appearance and everything he’s said, he must be Ester-chan’s father. However, due to his age, he looks more like her grandfather, but Ester-chan’s parents must have married late.

“This is our first meeting. I am Baron Tanaka.”

“M-My name is Allen!”

For now, introducing myself and acting as respectable as possible should be my best option.

Surprisingly, what came back was a light-hearted reply.

“You look a little old to be Elizabeth’s child.”

I’m scared.

I can’t tell if he’s joking or trying to hide his anger.

It wouldn’t be surprising if he was angry.

His cute little girl brought home a strange old man.

“I believe that Viscount FitzClarence possesses the abilities to stand above all else. I might be older than you were expecting, but I will do everything within my power to honour the name of FitzClarence.”

“Hmm, you speak with the mouth of a commoner.”

“I’m deeply sorry. I humbly ask for your forgiveness.”

That settles things.

It’s time to start planning my escape.

“We came to attend the party, right? We can talk more there if you wish, but we should get going before the food gets cold. D-Don’t you think?” [Ester]

“Eh? Ah, yeah, that sounds good….”

“B-But, I was happy to hear you praise me…. It made me so happy!”

Ester-chan’s face was bright red and she was frantically glancing back and forth between me and her father. A dark shadow swept over her father’s face when he saw her acting this way.

“What exactly is going –”

“Let me show you where the party is! This way!”

The lolibitch ignored her father and hurried us out of the room.

“W-Wait, we’re not done here! Elizabeth!”

“We don’t have time to wait. We’ve been keeping our guests waiting long enough!”

There was no chance I was staying alone with her father, so I offered no resistance as Ester-chan dragged me out of the hall.

And, of course, I could see her father descending the stairs to follow after us.

The butlers and maids in the entry hall all looked confused or surprised as they watched us make our exit. This made me even more anxious about what was going to happen.

With the lolibitch pulling me forward, we made our way toward the party venue.

***

The grand entry hall was merely a sample of what was to come.

The venue for the party was a room over a thousand square metres in size. I don’t have very much social experience, but one of the few times I ventured out into society was for a colleague’s wedding that was held in the ballroom of the Park Hyatt Tokyo. Even the ballroom of that expensive hotel doesn’t compare to this room.

In particular, the vaulted ceiling is higher and probably double the height of the entry hall. I’m starting to get the impression that having high ceilings is a sign of superiority in this culture.

I have nothing to base this on, and considering I doubt I could afford to buy one of the chairs in this mansion, I don’t think it’s anything I need to be concerned with. I’m sure Neumann could tell me more, but his demotion – which I could understand if he blames me for – has probably left him in a position where he won’t have to worry about status symbols like that either. Keep at it, Neumann.

“….T-Tanaka.”

“Yeah, I thought I was prepared, but I doubt I could have ever prepared myself for this.”

The commoner Allen was just as confused as me when it came to how we should act.

While we were making our way toward the party, Ester-chan shot a fireball back down the hallway at her father. He quickly conjured up a ball of water and extinguished the flames. Please, no fire magic in the house or Edita Sensei will get angry.

“Umm, I-I’m really glad that we came together….”

“I feel the same, Allen.”

“No, no, you should feel comfortable among your fellow nobles, Tanaka!”

“Even if you say that, I think you’re more fit to be a nobleman than I am.”

I could feel the stares coming from the crowd the moment we stepped through the threshold into the ballroom.

There was a tall butler standing by the door that introduced ‘Elizabeth Ojou-sama’ in a booming voice. Is there a single person that isn’t staring at us?

This is horrible. I can feel my legs trembling.

I can see Allen’s legs shaking as well.

I’m glad it isn’t just me.

Ester-chan, on the other hand, looked completely at ease. I’d expect nothing less from the daughter of a great noble family. She remained still just inside the ballroom as she looked around the room. What or who is she looking for?

While this was happening I spotted someone I recognized.

It was a man I had just met yesterday.

A sullen expression washed over his face when he noticed me.

His chiselled features annoyed me.

“Mu….”

“Ah, Count Bitch. Thank you for your time yesterday.”

He was talking with someone I didn’t recognize while sipping from a glass. When I greeted him, the person he was talking with took a step back and excused themselves, allowing us some privacy.

“You made an appearance at my home yesterday and now you’re here as well? You really get around.”

“I’d happily walk barefoot across the continent if it would benefit Viscount FitzClarence. I’d even venture into the Dark Continent if necessary.”

“Be careful what you say, Baron Tanaka, you never know what the future might bring.”

“She need only give the command and I will obediently follow.”

“Fu~n, I wonder how true that statement would be if a member of the Goggoru Triber were here to touch you.”

“The Goggoru Tribe?”

“What? You don’t know about them?”

“Excuse my ignorance as a simple commoner.”

“That’s just a convenient excuse to make up for your own lack of knowledge. If the opportunity ever presents itself, I’d like to introduce you to that tribe. I’m sure it would be a great show.”

“I see.”

I’m not sure what it is, but the way he said that made me feel uneasy.

That name is kind of nice though. Goggoru.

It makes me want to say it over and over. Goggoru, goggoru.

“Ara, you two know each other?”

While speaking with Earl Bitch, Ester-chan approached us and asked this.

I forgot that I never told the lolibitch that I met with Sophie-chan’s father. Well, after what happened with him and Allen, I guess it would be hard to explain.

“We met for the first time yesterday.”

“I decided on a whim to visit the mansion yesterday. It was rude of me to not give him notice before my arrival.”

I followed after Earl Bitch with an explanation of my own.

“Eh!? D-Does that mean…w-w-were you there to see Sophie….”

The lolibitch immediately turned jealous.

Earl Bitch is Sophie-chan’s father so I guess it can’t be helped.

“Sophie-san wasn’t there. Allen will tell you the same.”

“I-Is that true?”

Ester-chan turned to Allen.

“Yes, it’s just as Baron Tanaka says, Elizabeth-sama.”

Allen has an entirely different aura about him when he’s no longer in his armour.

He’s overwhelmingly handsome to the point where any woman would fall for him after only catching a brief glimpse.

The average woman would be holding back the desire to spread her legs for him at this point.

“I see….”

As I continued to converse with Ester-chan and Earl Bitch, I noticed a large number of people amid the crowd were whispering and gesturing towards us.

Maybe it was due to the fact that the new, controversial baron was speaking with one of the more powerful figures in the FitzClarence faction, and the rest of the crowd was trying to determine what effect this may have on the power structure of the faction they all belonged to.

“….”

“Is something the matter, Earl Bitch?”

“…it’s nothing.”

Earl Bitch is much more subdued around Ester-chan. He’s far less intimidating than yesterday. In order to avoid suspicion, he must act as an obedient subordinate when around Ester-chan or her father.