Since dinner would be catered towards noble customs, I had to dress up. After being dragged into the bath, I got cleaned all over to be sparky clean, before getting dolled up. The maids decked me out with accessories until they were satisfied with the result, and then I went to the dining hall to wait there with Sword who had reluctantly shown up.
ââŠIâll pass the ownership of this mansion to you, âkay? Your fine with beinâ the master of this house, right? So, would you allow me to quietly leave?â Sword started to whine.
âI donât want that! You paid with your money, so itâs your mansion! I wonât be able to come to terms with this arrangement unless I buy this place off you at the very least.â
âIâll sell it to you for one silver, you know?â
âI told youâŠ!â
When I got upset, Sword soothed me, ââŠGotcha, I guess youâve got your own pride, too. Buy it off me for the price I paid. No, half the amount will do. And then letâs register both of us as owners. Iâll yield all rights to you, so please take measures so you wonât ever get dragged into any troublesome stuff in the future.â
Given that he told me all that, I reluctantly nodded while pouting, âOkay. âŠBut, the situation this time isnât my or Damsel Scarletâs fault, you know? Damsel Scarlet had apparently planned to come alone at first, and that was my intention, too. Your fan forced his way in, okay? I had plans to treat Damsel Scarlet to cooking, which she might consider as nostalgic, in a relaxed atmosphere in my room, if she had come here alone.â
âUgh,â Sword groaned as he didnât know how to refute this.
âI planned to let her eat âudonâ and âramenâ with âchopsticks.â And even though I even had Sahad bake bowls for this sakeâŠâ
Theyâve become completely useless now. Sorry, Sahad.
ââŠI told you that Iâm sorry. But, it ainât my fault either.â
âI know. Iâm well aware of that. âŠWell, itâs unfortunate, but it canât be helped anymore.â
The one being disappointed the most has to be Damsel Scarlet. After all, sheâs going to miss out on the chance of slurping noodles without needing to care about manners. Though, I think I shouldnât tell her any of this.
ïŒ
They showed up soon after we waited in the dining hall for a bit. Both froze simultaneously when spotting me.
ââHeâs cross-dressingâŠ..ââ
âIâm not!â
Donât harmonize your remarks!
âWell, I heard about it, but I was under the impression that youâre a guy in reality. Forgive me.â
âNo, itâs okay. Adventurism transcends gender. And since Iâm not always dolling up like some noble women, itâs got to be hard to tell.â
I held him back with a raised hand since I accepted his apology. Swordâs line of sight pointed â for some reason â at my chest, but when I asked him, âIs something wrong?â, with a smile, he quickly looked away.
ïŒ
âHero ăThuâŠâ
âItâs Sword! âŠLong time no see, Duke Chaudgal.â
He interrupted Duke Chaudgalâs greeting with his own and performed a proper knight bow. Somehow Sword sure looks like heâs used to it.
But that makes sense. Even if he may say this or that, Swordâs ability to adapt is extremely high.
âSir Sword! Itâs truly been a long time! Maaan, when I heard that you set up a mansion, I wanted to rush over right away, but my wife didnât let me goâŠâ
So he had been reined in by his wife, eh? And this time she couldnât hold him back, I suppose.
ââŠAh, so even Ally couldnât hold you back, huh? You truly havenât changed a bit!â Sword spat out.
But, the duke smiled cheerfully without minding it at all.
âMy respect and love towards you is eternal and unmovable! No, it actually grows with each passing year!â
âOof, can I have you stop that? Iâve told you at least a hundred times by now,â Sword croaked wearily.
Damsel Scarlet covered her face with her hands.
âI am truly and utterly sorryâŠâ
It looks like sheâs quite embarrassed about this.
But, I can understand. Totally!
If I had a father like thisâŠokay, heâs still better than that guy, but I think itâd be a bit too much for me! Though itâs fun to watch as an unrelated party!
ïŒ
The adults chose their aperitifs.
âOoohh, so this is the legendary phantom wineâŠ!?â
Hmm, he knows about it?
When I looked at him with an expression making my question clear, Duke Chaudgal puffed out his chest and drummed on it.
âI also participated in that auction! Given that it was wine created by Sir Sword, itâd have been unthinkable for me to not buy it! Though I missed the days following after the first since I got stopped by Ally!â
ââHmm, I see. Maybe itâd have been better if Mrs. Ally would have come along this time? Wouldnât it have been smarter to not let the duke at large instead of not coming out of reservation?
Well, I have fun with this, but it does look like the mental and spiritual damage to Sword and Damsel Scarlet is escalating quite a bit.