176-Chapter 11-10 Rion's Father

Thank you for coming all the way out here. I'm Harold von Hoost, head of the Hoost frontier family.

While I was wondering about the wife in a maid's outfit, the frontier earl had begun to introduce himself.

After all, he was a frontier earl, and he was quite powerful, even among the nobles I've met so far.

There are two reasons why I thought 'just looks(...)' here. One is that the Earl of the Frontier is Rion's father, who is the "representative of the badasses and idiots" in my mind.

The other reason is that the Earl himself, for some reason, seems to be more concerned about his "maid-dressed wife" next to the Earl, than me.

"Thank you for defeating the wyvern herd and supporting the borderline.

The frontier count, he broke off his words once here and glanced next to me.

''And I'm sorry for the inconvenience I caused you about the Vice Commander of my Order. I'm sincerely sorry.

While bowing his head, the frontier count again glanced over to check next to him.

''About the various rewards, I haven't received all the reports yet, and I haven't finished the calculations. I'm sorry, but I'd like you to stay here for a while. Of course, we will pay for your expenses in the meantime. Also, we've prepared a guest room in the mansion for a number of people, but if you'd rather not be in this mansion, we've prepared the best inn in the city. If you have any other concerns, feel free to make a request to anyone in the house.

With that, the frontier count lightly levitated his hips as if it were over and tried to sit back in his chair, but.......

What a bunch of bravado...

When he heard his grandfather's mumbled words, he shuddered for a moment and sat still. It may have been a casual remark to Granddad, but it had quite an effect on the frontier count. Well, I was bothered by his attitude, but I paid more attention to the fact that he was concerned about his neighbor's wife. Incidentally, that wife, while the Count was talking, was smiling the whole time. But.........

Hmmm... 20... 15 points?

Hearing the wife's mumbled words, the frontier earl trembled louder than his grandfather did. His wife didn't even glance at the frontier earl as she said this, just smiling and laughing.

''Nice to meet you all, I am Edilia von Hust, wife of Harold von Hust and mother of Leon von Hust. Thank you very much for this matter. As well as killing the Wyvern, the support of the Ootori at the borderline has helped us not only defensively but financially as well. I also apologize for the frequent inconvenience my son, Leon, has caused you. If Rion causes you any inconvenience, you can ask him to beat his guts back without worrying about his status. And.........

The Count of the Frontier took a deep breath, exhaled slowly, and got up from his chair. And...

Six years ago, the incident in Kukuri Village was our fault. Some people say it was the responsibility of the guards who were sent to the village, but that was the responsibility of the frontier count family, the frontier count, and me. I am sorry.

He bowed his head deeply. Suddenly, me and Grandpa were lightly confused and looked at each other, not knowing what to do. All the while, the frontier earl kept his head down.

''Temma-kun, Merlin-sama. How about talking to the Count of the Frontier for now?　Besides, I don't think we should let the frontier lord keep his head down forever...

Taking Chris's advice, me and Grandpa decided to ask the frontier count to raise his head and then ask him for details.

After raising his head, the Count of the Frontier was about to start talking on the spot, but Edilia-san suggested that we move to the next meeting room. As soon as they entered the conference room, Edilia-san started to prepare the tea, and Jeanne and Aura hurriedly tried to help, but Edilia-san pushed them to take a seat.

When Ediria's tea was distributed to each of them, the Count of the Frontier opened his mouth, but surprisingly, he was not very good at speaking, perhaps because he was not very good at it, but he kept reiterating himself in places.

The first thing he said was that he had always wanted to apologize to me and my grandfather for the incident six years ago. He had gone to apologize to the survivors in Kukuri, but he couldn't do it for me and my grandpa.

The reason for this is because he couldn't find out where I was for a long time, and also because he couldn't leave the territory since he found out my whereabouts, as the movements of the neighboring countries started to get suspicious. As for my grandfather, I went to the capital with Uncle Mark and his friends as soon as I moved there, but despite his half-dazed state at the time, when he heard the word "Haust frontier count," he seemed to go into a terrific rage, and if the frontier count appeared in front of him, he would be killed for sure, according to the king's He had to apologize for the visit, according to his decision. I've heard that he apologized to Uncle Mark and the others at that time, but because it was just after the incident, they didn't accept his apology right then and there. It was shortly before they found out where I was, and the last time the frontier lord visited the capital, they accepted my apology.

''Grandpa, did you get so violent?''

I don't remember any of this.

I heard that it was mainly Grandpa's room that was broken, but if left unattended, the mansion could have been completely destroyed, and every time it was broken, Din-san was driven out.

Incidentally, when I looked at the Three Fools and the Frontier Count as a confirmation, Albert and Cain nodded with a wry smile, while the Frontier Count and Rion were shivering with blue faces. Later, Rion told me that he spent his time being scared that if Master Merlin heard that they were in King's Landing, they would be erased without leaving a trace of dust. Perhaps the frontier lord felt the same way as Leon.

'Well, as far as that is concerned, I can't say that I have no resentment at all, but I'm determined to forgive.

I told them that I had discussed this matter with Grandpa and Uncle Mark and the others many times and decided on it, so I told them that it was the consensus of the former Kukri village residents in the royal capital.

Seeing my grandfather nodding in agreement with my words, the frontier count, Ediliyah-san and Rion showed a look of relief.

''However, as I told Rion before, if the Frontier Count's family turned against me or tried to force me into it, please know that this is not the case.

The frontier count braced himself for a moment at what he said afterwards, but he quickly nodded.

I have heard about it. I heard about it, and I also heard that this was the agreement made in front of the Duke of Sangha and the Marquis de Samoens. It may seem like the two idiot sons have been set up by those two, but I will make sure that my vassals know that this is what the Countryman and I agreed to.

The frontier count seemed to have noticed the intentions of those two, but Leon had a surprised look on his face. Moreover, Albert and Cain, who were beside him, couldn't hold back their laughter and blurted out, which seemed to confuse them even more.

I'm not going to say anything else. And about our lodgings........''

As I said before, we have other inns in Shellhide that are considered to be among the best in the area. Would you like me to show you the inn?

No, if you don't mind, I would like to take care of you at the Count of the Frontier's house. I promised Leon before that I would go to visit the Count of the Frontier family, so I thought it would be just the right time. It's just........

"Just?

'The room should be divided between men and women, and kept apart from each other. We are all unmarried men and women, and we want to avoid that kind of slander as much as possible.

After hearing my order, the frontier count nodded widely and promised to prepare the room as I said, but on the contrary, Amour and Aura looked regretful. And for some reason, Ediria-san too........

Then have your men show you your rooms as soon as they are ready. Until then, you may rest in this room.

After saying that, the frontier count and Edilia-san left the room, saying that they had some business to attend to. Before she left the room, Edilia-san turned her gaze towards Chris-san once, so that frustrated look on her face must have been Chris-san related.

''Huh.......my shoulders are kind of stiff. As expected, unlike Rion, I'm nervous to meet with the frontier earl-sama.

Yes.

His wife, for all her smiling, was kind of powerful and...

As Chris-san stretched out in his chair, Jeanne and Aura agreed with him. Incidentally, the two of them had tried to stand in the back when they moved into this room, but Edilia-san had forced them to sit halfway down.

''Maybe being next to another country like the frontier county territory makes it naturally more powerful.

Perhaps. He was more of a warrior than the Duke of Sangha or the Marquis de Samoens.

Well, your father and the Marquis de Samons are more of a civilian character.

'Most of all, I don't think the power of the Count of the Frontier at that time was quite what everyone thought it would be.

At those words, Grandpa and the others said, 'What do you mean by that?' He looked at Cain, but Cain turned his attention to Rion with a laugh.

So when they all looked at Rion, Rion had a somewhat complicated look on his face. And.

My dad is nervous and has a shyness about him...

And then an unexpected testimony popped up. Chris, who had met the frontier count several times before, didn't seem to know this information, and in a way he was most surprised.

That's why Rion's ineptitude is, in a sense, genetic.

Dad says it's not a problem because his wife has that covered.

You only seemed uptight in your first address because you were nervous, weren't you?

'And I wonder if the reason you were so concerned about your wife during the words was because you were showing shyness... If so, what were the fifteen points Edilia said after that?'

Maybe it's the fact that I was too nervous to speak up, and the way I acted when I was thanking and apologizing. Probably, my father is probably being criticized by my mother by now.

It seems that even in the Countess of the Frontier, his wife is stronger.

"What kind of a person is the Countess of the Frontier?

At Grandpa's question, Leon thought about it for a moment.

Like supporting my dad from behind instead of stepping forward?　I heard that my mother originally entered the frontier family as an apprentice when she was a child, and then she caught the eye of my father's mother, the former wife of the frontier count (my grandma), and they got married. Incidentally, the reason she wears maid's clothes is because it's easier to cook and clean, which is her hobby. Also, my mother's family was a baronial family, and the vassals, who valued horizontal connections, tried to give my father a vassalage, but it didn't work out because of his shyness.

This is a rare kind of nobleman that I know of. But if it were the other way around, I'd hear about it all the time.

''Ahh.......So when you were greeting me in front of His Majesty, after you first confirmed the position of the kinsmen, you never looked at me. That wasn't so much a confirmation of their placement as it was a confirmation of which place to be without making eye contact with an unnecessary person.

Maybe she's right...

Rion's affirmative reply to Chris's statement that he'd reached a point.

I'm sure that's why you can't underestimate him, though. The first thing I heard was that he is not only a commander of an army, but also a skilled military man, and according to my father, he can go toe to toe with the captain of the Kingsguard.

'Mostly, I heard it's a case of no magic,' said Cain, and Chris-san continued, 'It's a famous story. Well, I suppose that's about as good as it gets, otherwise you wouldn't be able to rule a territory that is adjacent to a neighboring country.

'If that's the case, then Rion will have to work very hard. Mainly on the political front.''

Everyone except Rion laughed at my impressions, and when the punchline arrived, Edilia-san came in to say the room was ready. Chris-san, Albert, Cain, Jeanne and Aura seemed to think the timing was only good, but me, my grandfather who could use 'search', my grandfather who had good instincts, Amour who was closest to the wildest, and Rion, who was my relatives, didn't think the timing was good, but simply waited for Edilia-san to be out of sight at the door! I understood that it was from.

The way he dismissed the signs was so close to Aina and Mr. Kleif's that I wondered if he might have the knowledge of warfare as those two did.

''These four rooms are for men and those three rooms are for women.

The room Edilia showed me to was free of the distance between the men and women, as I requested. However, I wondered why there was one less room for women (I thought Jeanne and Aura are maids, so I wondered if it was just one room for the two of them, but two rooms were prepared for them), but just in time, there were only three women's rooms that had been cleaned, so Chris-san had a room next to Leon's.

'Hey, Albert, Cain. I'm sure of this, right?

Yeah, I'm sure.

'Mr. Edilia, you're trying to get Rion and senior Chris to stick together,'

Ms. Chris seems to have been locked on by the current Countess of the Frontier as the next Countess of the Frontier. But Ms. Chris, who has been saying for a while now, "There's no one but Leon.

Countess of the frontier, you needn't worry about that.

And then he grabbed Amur by the scruff of the neck, who was leaning towards me.

"There is this troubled child on this trip and I have been given strict orders by Mary to keep an eye on him. Therefore, I must be in the same room as this troubled child (Amur).

Mmm.

With that said, Chris-san had avoided Edilia-san's attempts. As expected of the Countess of the Frontier, she had no choice but to back off when the name of the queen-sama, who had the highest power among women, was mentioned.

''That's right, mother. First of all, I wouldn't feel safe if Miss Miss was in the next room... sorry, it's nothing.

Before Rion could say his usual light-hearted words, Chris-san glared at him and he became more mature. Edilia was watching the scene and looked very disappointed (probably because of missing Chris-san and Rion's poor performance).

After that, we decided on our respective rooms (I got the farthest end of the men's room, and Chris-san chose the one furthest away from my room, ignoring Amour's opinion), and then we had free time in our rooms until dinner time.

Well, what are we going to do for the next few hours until dinner do we go to bed?

It was halfway through the night to do anything, so we decided to get some light sleep for now.

The room I rented had plenty of room for Shiroumaru and the others to get out (not at their original size, but at the size of their collars), so they each got out of their bags and laid down. In case you're wondering, there's a tag on the door that says 'We'll sleep until dinner. We hung a sign on the door saying 'We'll sleep until dinner, please don't wake us up', but if anyone came in, we asked Slarin to help or wake us up before we went to bed.

And just before dinner.

'Phew!'

Ugh.

Shiroumar's hand woke me up. It looks like Shiroumar was going to place his hand on my shoulder or chest, but I think he misjudged it a bit, and dropped his hand in the center of my face... very suspicious, but before I could get angry, Slarin scolded me (emperorized) and I'll let him take over for you.

'Hey Temma, it's time to eat!

I can hear Leon's voice from outside the door as he comes in to let me know it's time for dinner.

'I'm coming,'

After lightly grooming himself, he took Slarin and Solomon to join Leon. In addition, Shiroumar seemed to have been swallowed up by Slarin's body (the dimension bag) and was nowhere to be seen. Well, Slarin would probably release him at a suitable place, so it wouldn't mean that Shiroumaru would be the only one without dinner.

''Let's get going!　Because you all went ahead of me!

Everyone else was shown around by Edilia-san first, and Rion stayed behind to show me around.

'I didn't know Temma was sleeping, I went to pick her up to play in my room, but Slarin refused to let me.

The three of them had no choice, so the usual three of them were chatting together.

As I recall, Miss Amur was also collected by Amur when we passed each other.

Then you'll have to lock yourself up for the night.

And so on and so forth, we headed to the cafeteria where everyone was waiting for us with Rion leading the way.

In the cafeteria, everyone except me and Rion were all present and ready to start eating as soon as I and Rion took our seats.

''Sorry to keep you waiting,''

I walked into the dining room and uttered an opening apology, and then Rion led me straight to my seat. The Count and his wife sat at the top of the rectangular table, with me, Grandpa, Amur, Jeanne, and Aura on their left side, and Rion, Albert, Cain, and Chris on their right side. They were divided into two groups: those who knew the frontier count and those who didn't. I would have wanted to.

Then, Kanpa........hmmm!

Seeing me and Rion taking our seats, the frontier count suddenly tried to make a toast, but was interrupted by Edilia-san next to him poking him with her elbow. In the meantime, several maids poured drinks into their respective cups.

'I'll have my tea, please. 'Amour, you have a bad drinking habit, so juice or tea. And Jeanne and Aura, too.'

Chris-san refused the maid's attempt to pour wine and forbade Amour and the others sitting across from her to drink anything with alcohol in it. Well, Amour is a baroness (although she is not aware of it), but she has a bad drinking habit, so it's better not to let her drink in order to prevent blunders, and Jeanne and Aura are treated as guests, but they are maids, so it's better not to drink them. They seemed to be aware of this, and they did as Chris-san said. However, Chris-san refused to drink alcohol and specified tea for a different reason than the three of them, I guess.

Chris-san can drink more than most people do, but he has a tendency to get carried away. But he gets carried away and often gets drunk because he has a tendency to get carried away. In fact, when he comes over to our house because the next day is a holiday, he sometimes drinks in the afternoon, gets drunk, and stays in bed until the next morning.

Well, at times like that, Aina stays behind to take care of him, and even when she's not there, Jeanne and Aura are taking care of him, so my grandfather and I don't have any contact with him (or can't). However, if he gets drunk at the frontier aunt's house, he could be thrown into Leon's room by Edilia, who thinks Chris-san is going to be Leon's wife.

If a drunken Chris-san is carried into Rion's room, if Rion is in a state of normalcy, he can return to his room without any problems (and be returned). However, there's no way that Rion wouldn't drink at a place like this. And since this is Leon's family home, he will drink without reservation. And he will probably drink himself to death.

If that happens, an unmarried man and woman will be spending the night. And since they were drunk and sleeping, they can't prove their innocence. The rest of the time they would have to get married because of the world and their responsibilities.

I think Chris thought that much before he refused to drink. And Edilia looked regretful when she saw Chris who refused to drink.

To commemorate the acquaintance of the Ootori family with the Countess of Husto, I have arranged a small banquet for you. I hope you will enjoy it to the fullest. So, cheers!

After all that under-the-surface bargaining was over, when everyone had had their drinks, the frontier earl, who didn't seem to notice the bargaining between the two of us, made a toast.

In the meal that followed, there was no conversation between me and the frontier count. The first topic of common ground between the frontier counts and I was the incident in Kukri village six years ago, and the other topics were the Duke of Sangha and the Marquis of Samoens, but we had the legitimate sons of both of them (and I was close with them), so we couldn't get on with our conversation.

Leon was worried about me and the Earl of the Frontier, and unusually for him, he was trying his best to bridge the gap between us, but since that's what Leon does, it didn't do much good. In fact, it was probably better that he wasn't there, since the frontier count would switch the conversation to where he could join the conversation.