CH 186

After finishing our meal break, we decided to go out to the town of Carruzan immediately. Even here, I have to go on inspections here and there, but today’s schedule is all over the place.

As expected, I don’t know what time I will arrive, but I haven’t planned to do anything as soon as I get there. The scheduled arrival time was before noon, and we did arrive at that time. But when you move, you never know what kind of accident might happen. If you don’t consider that when planning your schedule, the slightest thing can throw everything off course.

For example, if you are traveling in a carriage, the wheels may break on the way. A horse may fall and break a bone. Even if it doesn’t break any bones, the horse’s physical condition may be bad and the movement slows down. What if you are attacked by bandits or monsters? What if the road is impassable for some reason? Movement in this world is a mass of such irregularities. It is impossible to move accurately to the second like in Japan. 1

With that in mind, I was planning to arrive at Carruzan by the afternoon today, and then go sightseeing with the guests. If I had arrived late, I would have had less time for sightseeing, but luckily I was able to arrive on schedule. So today, all I have to do is go sightseeing in Carruzan with everyone.

“Then let’s head out,” I said.

My parents and Gabriella do not go out. Georg, too, of course. In addition to me and the usual 5, there’s Christa, Helmut, and Isabella. And 5 guards are from Oliver’s squad. But it seems there are other members of security. 5 people can already be seen as escorts, but it seems that several people are escorting them, in turn.

When we all left Manor Carruthers, the first thing we headed for was the aristocratic district. You don’t even need to ride a carriage to get here, and you can get there on foot. But when we walk, it becomes a nuisance, so we have no choice but to move by carriage.

“Welcome to Manor Lingerburg,” Alexandra said as she stands in front to welcome us.

As Alexandra just said, this is Manor Lingerburg. They haven’t finished cleaning the house or preparing to live in it yet, but we all wanted to see Alexandra’s house, so we decided to come.

I thought it would be fine just to look at it from the outside because we would get in the way of the workers if we went in, but it looks like we’re going inside anyway. As soon as we entered, those who were working tried to run up to us, but we stopped them. Even if tea or snacks is served while they’re cleaning the house, we won’t be able to drink it, and it’s just useless to stop them from working. We tell them that there is no need for servants to deal with us just because we can look around on our own.

“Hey! This place isn’t half-bad! I like it!” Mikoto said.

“Thank you, Princess Vandenlissen,” Alexandra said.

“Ahaha!”

“Ufufu!”

Mikoto and Alexandra are doing something fun. It seems the compliment and response are a joke. I feel like I’m watching a little skit.

“It’s a really nice house,” Christa said, looking at Manor Lingerburg with interest. “All of the decorations on display are quite good.”

Certainly, the artworks and furnishings that are lined up are luxury items and are very calming. Compared to other aristocratic mansions I’ve been to, this one has a much more relaxed atmosphere. I didn’t think House Bayen was very good because they were glamorous like a newly rich person’s exaggerated tastes.

“Thank you very much, Lady Reingen,” Alexandra said.

“Oh my?” Christa said. “I do want to be treated like everyone else, you know? Am I the only one who’s going to be left out?” she said, puffing out her cheeks.

I think they’ve gotten along pretty well, but Christa might still be a little distant from everyone else. I guess she does it so as not to be rude to those around her, but Christa seems a little lonely and dissatisfied.

“Everyone, please call me Christa,” Christa said. “And don’t be shy. You don’t hesitate with Princess Vandenlissen, so please treat me the same way.”

“Understood, Christa! Then please, call me Mikoto, not Vandenlissen!” Mikoto reacts immediately.

Everyone starts calling each other casually. I’ve been saying similar things many times before, but I haven’t been able to open up easily. By repeating this over and over again, it’s normal to gradually become closer. However, there was one person who was in the distance, shrinking.

“Christa herself has said it,” I said. “You don’t need to hold back either, Louisa.”

“Uuu… yeah…” Louisa replied.

The answer is “Yes,” but it’s still difficult. Louisa seems to be perplexed by Christa, who is a high-ranking aristocrat, trying to make her feel at ease with her. Normally, Louisa and Christa, who has such a social disparity that they would not be able to talk to each other, would be afraid to call each other by their nicknames. However…….

“Louisa……” I said. “It’s actually rude to restrain yourself even though the other party wants you to treat them like everyone else already. There is no need to worry about etiquette. It is important to try not to be rude.”

Certainly, there are formalities and conventions such as etiquette and customs. But the most important thing is to treat others with respect. As long as you’re respectful, it’s not bad enough to get dirty eyes just because you got the form wrong. And being respectful and friendly can go hand in hand.

No one is usually this stiff when dealing with friends. Even if it is a slight violation of manners and etiquette, they will be frankly treated. However, if there is proper respect for the other party, etiquette and manners are not a big problem. On the other hand, if the opponent doesn’t have such inner grace, eventually there will be no one around them. It’s the heart that matters, not the form.

“Well, that’s right… well then… nice to meet you, Christa…” Louisa said.

“Yes, nice to meet you, Louisa,” Christa said.

A cheer goes up from the surroundings. After all, Christa is a child. That’s why I’m glad that everyone seems to have gradually opened up.

After seeing the calm atmosphere of Manor Lingerburg, we headed to the next destination so as not to disturb the House Servants as much as possible.

I called out to Katharina while in the carriage on the way to our next destination.

“Are you sure you don’t want to stop by Manor Royce first?” I asked.

We’re headed to the shantytown next. We’re supposed to visit Louisa’s acquaintances. Since House Royce is a viscountcy, naturally they have a home in the aristocratic district. Rather, it’s within walking distance from Manor Carruthers. Well, as I mentioned earlier, walking will cause a lot of trouble for the surroundings, so I have no choice but to go by carriage even if it’s a short distance…

It’s easy to stop by House Royce before moving from the aristocratic town. Despite that, Katharina says she doesn’t need to.

“Thank you for your concern,” Katharina said. “But I would like to take time to visit Manor Royce another time,” she said, glancing at Christa.

Christa nodded for some reason. I don’t know much about it, but that’s okay.

“Is that so…? I understand,” I said.

It’s understandable if you think about why Christa was nodding. It would be easy if only Katharina and Helmut were going back to their parent’s house. All you have to do is show up at and say hello to the parents and other family members. But what if you stop by with us in tow?

From the perspective of House Royce, I am the daughter of the Lord’s family, and even if Katharina and Helmut are returning home, there is no way they can leave the daughter of their immediate superior waiting outside.

And now there are a number of guests with the Lord’s daughter. Moreover, among them, Christa and Mikoto are higher in status than House Carruthers. It’s impossible for Katharina and Helmut alone to enter the house and make us wait outside when we have such people with us.

Then why don’t they invite us to their house, as well? It’s not that simple, is it?

For House Royce, it is also difficult to entertain the Lord’s family. Don’t be rude. You have to put out something suitable to serve and entertain. What if there are even more guests who are higher than the Lord? There is no way the Royce Viscountcy can deal with such guests. It’s not that I’m making fun of Viscount Royce, it’s a pure fact.

Aristocrats have a rank, and each lives their lives according to it. The viscount’s family has a limit because of the lifestyle of a viscountcy. There is no viscount family that can entertain the family members of marquisates and dukedoms from other factions. Only a simple reception or a party within their faction can handle a guest who is superior to them.

If we force ourselves to visit House Royce now, it will only put an extra burden on House Royce. That’s why Katharina is also refusing. Having guessed that, I decided not to get into the matter of Katharina and House Royce any further.

In the meantime, the carriage arrived at the slums, and Louisa got off and started walking. It’s a familiar place for me, but it’s not a very good place for Christa, Alexandra, or Mikoto. That’s what I thought, but everyone calmly got off the carriage and started walking with Louisa.

“Hey, wait a minute! Everyone would be surprised if people in such beautiful clothes are walking in a place like this!” Louisa yelled.

“That is true, yeah,” Mikoto said.

“You don’t really care, do you?” I asked.

Mikoto… it’s not a matter of whether you care or not…

What Louisa says is also true. If the daughters of high-ranking aristocrats wearing dresses were walking in the slums, they would cause trouble to those around them. The same goes for the carriage earlier. Aristocrats usually travel by horse-drawn carriage. If you try to walk to it because it is a close place, you will cause more trouble to the surroundings.

The escorts must pay attention to their surroundings, and the people on the street must not be rude to the nobles. If the carriage is just going through, it’s fine to avoid the carriage and go to the edge of the road, but it’s unacceptable to pass by normally because you avoided the road where the nobility themselves are walking.

Give way and kneel, bow your head, or even if you don’t go that far, you have to stand by the edge and wait until the nobles pass by. That’s why nobles shouldn’t walk on ordinary roads carelessly or on a whim. It’s just an act that annoys those around you.

By the way, you might say that I’m walking here and there too, but I’m responding properly. Even if everyone knew that the person in question was a noble, if they didn’t walk as a noble, they wouldn’t have to react. In other words, if you walk around town without wearing noble clothes, even if the people around you know that you are a noble, you don’t have to treat them as nobles.

That’s why Christa and I dress modestly to go to a crepe cafe. Even if there are people who know that I and Christa are nobles by looking at our faces, if we don’t dress like nobles and behave like nobles, they should just treat us like ordinary citizens.

So what about now? Now, we’re clearly dressed as nobles. It would be terrible if we were walking around the slums like that. The people around us must treat us like nobles. It would be a massive nuisance for the citizens if such guys were walking around.

“Shall we wait in the carriage…?” Christa asked.

“Yes… let’s wait…” I said.

Christa seemed to have figured it out too, so we decided to wait in the carriage. Claudia was dressed relatively casually, so I decided to go with Louisa alone as an escort. After that, Oliver’s squad will be on guard, so there’s no need to worry.

After waiting for a while talking in the carriage, Louisa came back crying. I thought something had happened to Louisa because she was upset, but it didn’t seem to be that.

“What’s wrong, Louisa? Did something happen to you?” I asked.

“It’s not that… it’s because I was able to meet everyone I missed… and… and, so you know?” Louisa replied. “Rita… back at that time, she said to tell you she’s sorry, and she cried, so I cried too…”

Rita, back at that time, I knew what they were talking about. When Louisa was still working on a farm in the north, Rita, who was still so young at that time, started crying when she noticed a Mad Horned Bear was attacking. Hearing Rita’s cries, the monster attacked her directly.

Rita has been working on the farm ever since. She doesn’t understand and wasn’t told that I was Floto at that time. She seems to have thought that she was to blame for Louisa’s disappearance all along. She continued her work on her farm in case Louisa ever returned. She could have reunited with her today.

When she tried to talk to Louisa, it seems that Rita cried and apologized to Louisa about that time. And her saying that Louisa burst into tears. She also said that her companions, who were still little children at the time, cried loudly together.

Louisa, Rita, and all the other children at that time had gotten stuck at that moment and so much guilt was hanging over them. If it was solved today, today is a very good day. Claudia, who was accompanying her, was also about to cry a little. I’m glad I came to see the city of Carruzan today.

After that, we still had time, so we looked around a bit and then returned to Manor Carruthers before it got dark.