W-W-Wait a minute! Wait just a minute there! How does he know that I came from the Kruvan Holy Kingdom!? The story of ânational crisisâ is spreading wide!
No no, calm down first. Even if the other party has a solid information network and investigates me, I did nothing guiltyăŒNo.
Attempted kidnapping of the daughter of Earl Sillys.
Engaged with 100 troop members of Duke Ebene (and a bonus of road destruction).
Ah~~ There are guilty things towards the end~~!!
As I was thinking about how to respondâ
ăKuhahahahaha! Whatâs with your face⊠Whether you try to dodge the question or admit it, you shouldnât be shaking like that. It is like saying, âThis is my weakness.â KuhahahahahaâŠă
The Emperor was laughing while banging on his armrest.
I wasnât the only one who was staring blankly at him. Her Highness Anastasia, who was behind him to the right, the secretary-like woman, and everyone who were sitting in the rows, looked at the Emperor as if they were caught by complete surprise.
ăAah, I laughed. That was a good laugh⊠Be at ease. Just think of that as a small payback. If you really were plotting something, I thought I could make you slip up some information by shaking you upăŒbut it would seem that you are just a 14 year-old kid. I am also relieved, but⊠no, that is fine.ă
ăNow, then. That is the end of this audience. You can leave.ă
I was at a complete loss as to what to do. There were a lot of things going on in my mind. Like, how did the Emperor get information about me, or if the Kruvan Holy Kingdom said something. For now, however, it would be a good idea to leave silently.
Abba has already been slowly backtracking.
Non-san and I stood up, bowed deeply and left the audience.
After the mentally exhausting exchange, we returned to the guesthouse on a magic car. As soon as I returned to my and Dante-sanâs room, tension left my body and I felt relaxed. I just jumped onto the bed. Iâm still tired from the labyrinth exploration, and in addition to that, the audience with the Emperor was also tiresome as hellâŠ
ăYou did well today, Reiji-kun. Shall I applyăHealing Magicăfor mental stability?ă
ăThank you⊠Rather, how are you feeling, Non-san?ă
ăI was stunned by the glare at first, but you took care of all the rest. Please lie here.ă
Sitting on the bed, Non-san patted on her lap.
Lap? What about your lap?
ăPlease lie down your head here.ă
I sprang up to my feet. A lap pillow? Iâm not crazy, thatâs a lap pillow right?
ăCome. Itâs most effective when you lie your head here.ă
I am indeed hoping theăHealing Magicăto stabilize the mind would help relieve the fatigue, but that spot is obviously Non-sanâs thighs, and if it is discovered that I did such a thing, her father, Dante-san, would no doubt drop a yakuza kick on me.
That said, I could also decline it.
ăAh⊠So you donât want to lie down on my lap after all?ă
Nooo, guilt, youâre working overtime! And, Non-san, itâs not fair if you make those puppy eyes! Youâre even wearing make-up right now!
ăT-T-Thatâs not the case. I just donât want to dirty your dress with the hair styling cream on my hair.ă
ăNow that you mention it⊠Let me lay a towel on top then. Now, come.ă
The ball of evasion I hurled as the last defense was forced out by a simple towel. I ran out of excuses and laid on Non-sanâs lap.
Dante-san, this was unavoidable. Non-san offered, and I resisted. But the temptation was irresistibleâNo, I mean, the atmosphere of this place made it so.
That was the first sensation. The next thing I sensed was a really sweet fragrance. As I lay on Non-sanâs soft and warm lap, in front of me â Non-sanâs two big mounds.
ăIâll cast the mental stability magic now.ă
Thereâs no way my mind can calm down now!
Human beings, when they stay up all night, or when they are overcome with extreme fatigue, they temporarily enter into an excited state. That is exactly how I am feeling right now. This excitement is due to fatigue and no other factor, and I mean absolutely no other factor. I would like to just add that to protect my honor and for Dante-sanâs peace of mind.
When Non-san placed her hands on my chest and the top of my head and the mana flowed in, I felt that my mind and heart quickly calmed down.
Wow⊠the excitement disappeared.
Is this how a motherâs love feels like..? To feel spoiled by your momâŠ?
ăAmashing. Very nishe.ă
ăUfufu, you sound like a baby.ă
ăThis way, Your Highness.ă
At that moment, the door to our room suddenly swung open. Her Highness Anastasia, who had taken off General MacArthurâs sunglasses, stood there.
Our gazes met. I was still in the lap pillow pose.
ăâŠAnd that is why I asked to cast the magic of mental stability. Thatâs the truth. There isnât anything suspicious going on.ă
I donât know why, but I was coming up with all sorts of excuses to convince Her Highness Anastasia. No, Her Highnessâ eyes simply widened when she saw us, but the butler-like Lev escorting herăŒthe one who accompanied her to Muge-sanâs company previouslyăŒmade a big scene by shouting, âYouâre milking in a long-established state guesthouse?!!ââŠâMilkingâ? It was such an out-of-date word that I wonder if anyone even uses it these days. And I was deeply embarrassed when Non-san asked me, âWhat does âmilkingâ mean?â [1. TL Note: âMilkingâ is a literal translation of âäčłçč°ăćăâ, which is an old Japanese word for âsecret affairâ.]
Returning to the main topic, Her Highness Anastasia, who came all the way here, looked away with a pouting look, and Non-san, who is pure of mind, looked lost on what was going on, so it was my job to make an excuse after all.
ăI suppose while itâs a great honor to have an audience with the exalted His Majesty the Emperor, itâs understandable that a human like you would suffer serious mental damage from his magnificence.ăsaid the bothersome butler.
With a deep exhale, Her Highness Anastasia wrote on a memo paper and showed it to the butler.
The butler stiffened, but when Her Highness pointed to the note repeatedly, he left the room while gnashing his teeth. I caught a slight glimpse of what was written on the note. âThey are heroes who captured a labyrinth. Disrespect will not be overlooked. Leave this room.â â something along those lines.
ăWell, then⊠Your Highness, did you come all the way here regarding Lulusha-san?ăI asked.
Her Highness brought along an attendant, seemingly an ally, who was standing at a distance away. We four were the only ones in the room.
Her Highness nodded with a smile.
ăThank you very much. Truly. But why did you go so far?ă
I was slightly hesitant to answer that question.
ăâŠBecause of the letter I received from Your Highness.ă
I decided to be honest. At the end of the letter I received, there was a trace that the pen was removed after it was placed. I guessed from thatâthat Her Highness wanted to help Lulusha-san, but couldnât ask us for any more favour.
It feels kind of patronizing. But if I am not honest, it would feel like I donât trust her. This person is Lulusha-sanâs one of very few friends. So I want to be sincere, at least.
ăOf course, it was nothing more than just a guess⊠but I just couldnât leave things alone after handing over the bag, and above all, the labyrinth capture would certainly help Lulusha-sanâs case, so I decided to challenge it.ă
Her Highness Anastasia was looking at me in a daze.
ăYour Highness? Was our actions too intrusive?ă
I raised my voice despite myself. Because tears streamed down Her Highnessâ cheeks.