CH 192

“Papa will pay for the lessons, and you’ll teach me at my house after school! I’ll even provide the food, how about that!?”

Henrietta said to us, shaking the table and snorting. I’ve already decided what my answer will be, so I told her as soon as possible.

“I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to decline that.”

“What!? Why, If you’re an adventurer, you want money, right!? You can make a lot of money just by teaching me, you know? It’s not a bad deal.”

“We’re adventurers, but we’re actually going to the Royal Capital. We don’t intend to stay here for long. Besides, I’m not troubled for money.”

“Then why are you an adventurer ……!”

When Henrietta sits back in her chair with a surprised look, Makina opens her mouth with a wry smile. 

“Lars has a lot of money and power, but he left the town he’s lived in since he came of age because he wanted to do something else. So it’s not about money or anything like that.”

“That’s right. Besides, I don’t want to teach you how to fight halfway.”

“…… Why?”

“When you become strong, you gain confidence, but you also gain pride. I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but there’s no way you can get stronger in a short period of time. If something happens to you because of that, I won’t be able to do anything even if I regret it. If advice will do, I think you should talk to your mother and father..”

“……”

When I said that, Henrietta turned her head and became silent. I can tell you from my own experience that when I took back the lord’s position, I learned a lot of things from Verna-sensei, but I ran off on my own and got into trouble.

I’ve had to deal with a lot of anger, and I’ve had to put people like the King, the Prince, and Ryuuze in danger …… The result was good, but it was largely due to my outburst.

So, even if I were to teach her during her steady training at the academy, it would be impossible for me to train her the way I want her to in less than a month.

“T-Then, request …… what if it’s a request? Oh, you have the money, right ……”

Henrietta looked up and muttered with a tearful look on her face. It was as if all the energy from earlier had disappeared. Makina pokes me with her elbow and smiles with her eyebrows lowered. I guess that means I should at least listen to what she has to say. 

Well, it seems to be a behavior that’s about her parents, and I wish we could do something other than teach how to fight, so I cough and tell Henrietta.

“Ahem. Since you seem to be in some kind of trouble, I might be able to do something for you other than teaching you how to fight. Can I listen to what’s it about?”

“……! R-Really! Y-You know …… Oh, no!? The curfew!? What do I do!”

“Fufu, If you don’t have time, can you go home for today and tell us another time? We’re staying at the inn. Tomorrow is a dark day, so you’re off, right?”

When Makina spoke to her, Henrietta’s face lit up and she nodded loudly. 

“Yes! Thank you, Makina-oneesama!”

“Ah, I’m probably going to be out tomorrow morning, so can you ask me around mid-afternoon?”

“Okay! W-Well, I have to go home, so I’ll see you tomorrow. Oh, and for the juice ……”

“Okay, I’ll pay for it.”

“I’m sorry!”

I smiled at Henrietta as she hurriedly grabbed her bag and left the coffee shop.

“She looks like a good girl.”

“She said she was going to be strong and help her parents. However, I’m curious about the problem that requires her to be strong.”

“But If Lars, you can be counted on. so it’ll be fine!”

“I’ll have Makina to help too, though.”

“Of course! …… Fuh~, b-by the way, we are finally alone. D-Do you want to go for a walk?”

“Well, as much as I’d like to, I’m sure Basleigh-sensei will be back soon. Let’s do it some other time.”

“Hmm, that’s too bad, but I guess we’ll do it another time. Then, after drinking this, let’s go back to the inn. Ehehe, since we’re sitting next to each other, why don’t we drink it little by little ……? Just kidding.”

“Well, if it’s just a little bit late–“

“……Tsk.”

“Uwah!? Basleigh-sensei?”

“What? Kyaaa!?”

At my shout, Makina turned around and hugged me. It’s no wonder she’s surprised. How long have you been standing there in the first place? The fact that she was looking down at us with a ghostly face and a few strands of hair in her mouth was frightening.

“W-When did you get here …… this place is also a blind spot from the window, so you shouldn’t be able to see us from outside ……”

“Fu-fu-fu, you can’t underestimate your teacher. I smelled romance, so I thought, what if.”

“You were the one who was making all the noise about date …… There’s a lot of strange things going on, but since it’s Basleigh-sensei, that’s okay. So, since you’re here, have you gathered any more intel? And what about Conrad and the others?”

I asked, and Basleigh-sensei smiled and nodded.

“Yes. But to a certain extent, I guess. Conrad-san and the others have a house they’re renting, so we parted outside the guild. They’re going to pick us up at the inn tomorrow.”

“I see, let’s go back to the inn and rest for today then. We’ve been camping for a while and I think a bed would be nice.”

“In the meantime, Basleigh-sensei will be sharing a room with me, so please take care of me.”

“It would have been nice if we were all together, though?”

“I don’t want to, though ……”

“Why not-!? I’m going to get drunk then, let’s go, Makina-chan!”

“You’re not allowed to drink today, okay? If we can’t get an audience tomorrow, it’ll be troubling, after all.”

“Ugh …… Why does the world put me through these trials ……!”

“There’s no need to shed tears of blood, though ……”

We left the coffee shop and went back to the inn while appeasing Basleigh. We had dinner in the inn’s diner. It wasn’t fancy, but the thin slices of meat with juice and sauce and the chicken soup with lots of vegetables tasted homey and delicious.

After that, I took a bath, talked in my room until we got sleepy, and went to bed. I was so tired that I felt sleepy right away, and it was morning when I realized it.

“Good morning, Lars-kun.”

“Good morning to you too, girls!”

Conrad and Borzov greeted us with laughter, and Makina and I returned the greeting.

“Good morning.”

“Good morning!”

Basleigh-sensei comes out later and opens her mouth.

“We’re all here, aren’t we? Please show us to the lord’s house.”

“Okay, this way. We don’t need to use a carriage, we can walk.”

Kavanya said that as he walked ahead of us, so we nodded our heads and started walking after him. We walked to the lord’s mansion, making noise with our equipment in the morning, and arrived at the large mansion after a while.

“Mm, you guys are ……?”

“Oops, we’re not suspicious–“

One of the two gatekeepers saw us and stepped forward to speak to us, but since Borzov and the others had been here before, they immediately smiled and the gatekeeper let us through.

“Excuse me, I have brought a visitor for you.”

At the front door, the gatekeeper called out loudly for someone to come in, the sound of footsteps came closer and closer, and the door opened gently.

“Who are you? I’ve got a visitor scheduled for today– wait, ahhhhh!? Lars-san and Makina-oneesama?”

“Ah!? Henrietta!? W-What are you doing here!?”

“Well, this is my house, though ……”

“What!?”

“What, do you know her? Lars-kun, did you pick up on someone even though Makina-chan was here?”

“I didn’t, though!?”

–I had no idea that Henrietta was the daughter of a lord …… Me, Makina and Henrietta were frozen in surprise–

Oops, here comes the confirmation (lol)

Thank you for reading!

[Afterword Theater]

Right.

“I-Impossible!? The girl he met by chance was the daughter of a lord!? (Stick)”

You know ……