༺ Finding A Place Is Hard! (1) ༻
A few days after the thieves rampaging near the Provence village were wiped out by meteors.
Two weeks to be exact.
After the chaos the vampire caused on 61st Street and the thieves’ rampage, the world was finally returning to normal.
“Dad, look! The cherry blossoms are blooming!”
A lazy weekend afternoon.
Naru was eagerly running across the park.
As Naru said, the cherry blossoms were quite beautiful.
There were a lot of families picnicking below the trees. It would have been quite inconvenient to enjoy this if we hadn’t reserved a spot early.
Clap— Clap—
Just then, Brigitte clapped her hands and said.
“We’re going through it one last time. When the Duke of Freesia arrives, what should we say?”
A Rehearsal?
I felt a little sick of it, having heard it so many times by now.
“Haven’t we rehearsed enough? It’s annoying.”
“You’re the annoying one! The Duke of Freesia is coming to reward us for the subjugation, you know? Maybe he’ll give us some money or grant us a title. Judas, you could even become a nobleman.”
Me, a noble?
I tried to imagine myself as one.
But I couldn’t quite picture it.
“Well, the money part is a bit tempting, though.”
I still have that passive skill that reduces my combat power when I have money.
But since raising children is expensive, It might be good to save some money.
“Dad! Look! This must be a Queen Ant! It’s an ant, but it’s huge!”
Swoosh—
That’s when Naru showed me a big ant she had caught.
It was a pretty cool-looking ant.
—Kemiiiii…!
The cry was a bit strange, but surprisingly its princess power was A-grade.
What kind of ant has such high princess power?
As I was admiring the cool and glossy black exterior of the ant, Brigitte looked at Naru and slowly shook her head.
“That’s not a Queen Ant, it’s a princess ant.”
“A princess ant?”
“Look. There are wings on its back. When a Princess Ant marries, she will shed these wings and become a queen ant. So, since it still has wings, it’s a princess.
“I don’t really get it, but it’s an Ant Princess! Oh holy shh-! Naru is also the Princess of the Back Alley! So, goodbye Princess Ant!”
Bzzz—
The Princess Ant flew into the sky.
The sky was blue and clear.
It felt good.
It was the perfect weather for a nap.
“Dad, Naru is bored!”
Naru, who had come to me at some point, tugged at my sleeve.
She seemed bored.
So, I said to Naru.
“I’m not bored.”
“……!”
Naru looked shocked.
She looked like she was betrayed by the one person she could trust in this world.
As she started to pout and grumble, I continued.
“I’m tired. Naru, Let’s nap together.”
“Hmph…Naru’s not sleepy! And if I sleep now, I won’t be able to sleep at night! Dad, you should play with Naru……!”
Naru seemed tired of playing alone.
She wanted me to play with her.
In fact, I already played with Naru all morning.
And last night too.
“Naru, I played princess with you earlier. Let me rest a bit now.”
“But! You played the princess! Twice! That’s too much! Naru only played the role of a maid fanning the Princess!”
“Hehehe.”
Soon, Naru offered me a compromise.
“Then, give me Molumolu.”
“Molumolu, You mean my pillow?”
—Meow.
I took Molumolu when I laid down.
It was fluffy, soft, warm, and it felt good.
I had the feeling that I could sleep on it forever.
“He isn’t Molumolu anymore, he’s my pillow now.”
That’s what I said to Naru.
Then, she panicked.
“Grrr….! No! He’s not a pillow! He’s Naru’s Molumolu!”
“Let’s ask Molumolu then. If wants to play he’ll make a ‘ring-ring’ sound, but if he likes being my pillow he will meow. There, choose wisely.”
—-Ring, ring.
No way, this guy…?
He perfectly imitated that sound without hesitation.
What kind of animal can make such varied sounds?
As I was thinking about this, Naru sighed.
“Naru feels like getting a little angry, but she’ll hold it in……! Dad had a hard time with a lot of stuff on his plate this weekend!”
“Oh.”
That’s nice.
Naru is childish, but she can be thoughtful sometimes.
Could this be the power of education?
Looking at her now, Naru’s princess rank had gone up from a D to a C-.
A small step.
But big progress in my Naru SSR improvement plan.
Naru slumped again.
“But Naru is bored again! It would be nice if Cecily and Elizabeth came to play today. I wonder how they are doing?”
Cecily and Elizabeth.
I hadn’t seen those two friends of Naru in a while.
Lately, Naru, Cecily, and Elizabeth hadn’t been hanging out as much.
I was worried that maybe Naru was being bullied.
Of course, that’s just my paranoia, since I knew why we couldn’t see those two lately.
First, after her kidnapping, Cecily’s family put in place a stricter curfew.
So much so that she couldn’t even go outside without being escorted by servants.
I still think it’s a bit too much, but it’s better than losing your kid like cattle and having no one left in the barn.
That’s how it was with Cecily.
What about Elizabeth?
Elizabeth’s father, the pharmacist Ilgast, and I had a bit of a problem.
To fully understand, I have to rewind for a moment, back to the day we dealt with the mountain thieves.
—Look, I want to tell you something.
After rescuing Salome and joining the group, Ilgast, Elizabeth’s father, approached me. I was nervous that he would try to convince me to buy insurance or something.
But he told me something I didn’t expect.
—I hope you don’t get involved with Elizabeth anymore, and I would like it if you could tell Naru to stop playing with my daughter as well.
Yes.
That’s what he said.
I was so taken aback because I never expected that.
Didn’t I say something like this to him?
—Ilgast. Do you know who you’re talking to? You have gotten very bold since I’ve been treating you nicely. Normally, someone like you wouldn’t even be able to talk to me.
I remember clenching my fist and holding it up to his face.
It was a threat that even first graders would understand.
Maybe he wasn’t expecting such a response, but he didn’t back down.
He tried to look strong, even when his body was shaking.
—Bad things tend to happen with people involved with Naru. Elizabeth is my only family. I can’t afford to lose her as well. If you refuse, then I’ll have to fight you.
He challenged me.
To be honest, he surprised me.
And I admired him.
It was like watching a parent fox charging at the hunter to protect its young one.
Really, I even added extra points to my score for the man named Ilgast.
Yes, any father should stand up to a villain to protect his only daughter, even if that villain is a man known as the King of Thieves.
He’s a good man.
The daughter of such a man would grow up to be an excellent princess, and if Naru could befriend such a girl, her chances of becoming an SSR would increase.
“Naru, are you and Elizabeth getting along in school?”
Ung, ung!”
I see.
Although Ilgast told Elizabeth, ‘Stop playing with Naru’, children don’t always listen to adults.
Then, Brigitte, who was cutting off the strawberries stems with a fruit knife, said.
“And Tywin? Are you getting along with her too?”
“No! She doesn’t play with us! We are going to visit Hina instead. She lives in Provence. She doesn’t have a mom or dad, and she lives alone. She doesn’t even go to school!”
Hina.
Is she that pink-haired girl I saw before?
While racking my brain, trying to remember her, Brigitte handed Naru a plate full of strawberries.
“Here Naru, eat some strawberries.”
“Oh, holy shh…..! Nary Style! Eat All the Strawberries…!”
Naru did eat all the strawberries.
Seeing Naru like this, I thought it would be nice if there was a babysitter to take care of her.
Someone who could play with her when her friends weren’t around.
I fell asleep while thinking — Was there such a person around?
* * *
“Ah, that’s so annoying. I can’t believe I have to wear a suit. It’s hard to move in it.”
I frowned at the suit clinging to my body.
It was like being trapped in a prison.
While I was suffering, Briggite said.
“These clothes weren’t designed to be comfortable in the first place. They are like this on purpose, so you won’t move around carelessly in places where you need to have etiquette.”
“Really?”
Was that the purpose of this suit?
While I was thinking this, Brigitte said.
“Actually, that’s a lie. I don’t know why these things are so uncomfortable too.”
“I see.”
I never thought I would fall for one of Brigitte’s tricks.
Brigitte was wearing a dress that shimmered in the indigo color of the sea.
On her shoulders, she wore a shawl or a scarf of fox pelts that made her look like a rich lady.
However, Brigitte’s expression was quite stern.
Because of Cariote.
“Cariote, it’s an event to see the Duke. How could you go like that?”
“I always dress like this. It’s the most comfortable outfit for hunting demons.”
“We are not going to deal with demons today.”
“Demons can appear anywhere. So it’s better to be prepared than to be caught off guard, and lose something precious.”
Cariote didn’t seem to like the idea of wearing a dress.
Honestly, I also couldn’t imagine her in a dress, laughing like a noble.
Anyway.
Just like that, we entered the carriage that arrived around dinnertime.
Freesia Duchy, 1st Street.
The mansion of the Duke of Freesia.
Even before we reached the entrance to the gardens, we could see a long line of carriages.
I wonder if they are the famous people invited to tonight’s dinner.
I could recognize some.
“Are you Torreta, the civil servant?”
“It’s Tourette.”
I see.
Tourette, a 5th-class civil servant.
This guy truly won in life, with a pretty, mature nymph as his wife.
He said.
“It seems my gut was right; Jack Croker was alive. Of course, now that his death has been confirmed, I can rest a bit easier.”
He sat back in his chair.
Looking at his sagged appearance it seemed like his long-standing worries and concerns were finally solved.
So I said to him.
“Well, now that I’ve taken care of your request, you owe me one.”
Having a high-ranking civil servant as a connection was a good thing.
Of course, he didn’t look too pleased by this.
“I feel like I escaped a tiger only to be bitten by a dinosaur.”
What a nice analogy.
But then a loud trumpet sound rang out.
One by one, the people enjoying the party stood up and turned their heads.
“The Duke of Freesia is entering!”
The highest authority within the Duchy of Freesia.
He was walking down the hallway.
“He’s short.”
He was barely half my height.
His golden beard and golden hair were puffed out.
He must be of the dwarf race.
Can I call him a dwarf?
He stepped up to the podium and spoke.
“Everyone here is a busy person, so let’s get down to business! I will now award the models to the three individuals who made the greatest contributions to the recent subjugation. Please come forward!”
Poke–
Brigitte poked my side.
This was her way of telling me to not mess up.
As practiced until Brigitte was satisfied.
I stood in the designated spot.
Then the dwarf duke spoke up.
“First of all, to you, Judas, who defeated the chief of bandits, I present you with a certificate of Amnesty that can be used in the Duchy of Freesia to commemorate your actions in protecting Freesia in this crisis!”
Amnesty.
Does that mean that no matter what I do, I’ll be forgiven at least once?
Upon hearing this, the crowd stirred.
“Is this a good idea?”
“Isn’t he more dangerous than Jack Croker?”
“It’s like we invited a tiger into our house to hunt a fox……”
Everyone was on guard against me.
It was proof of their superior intellect.
They’d be fools not to be wary of letting the King of Thieves roam freely in their city.
Of course, the Duke of Freesia added as if he didn’t care.
“Also, I will give you one of the mansions Jack Croker and his gang had occupied as a gift!”
Oh-.
A mansion.
What a nice gift.
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