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Chapter 172




Treats [Part 1]
“Koumei-san, next up is the Flying Geese Formation! It’s the diagonal one.”
“Meow!!!”
When Emma pointed at a shape she had drawn on the paper, Koumei meowed at the tailless whip scorpions.
Fwooshhh!
From the Crane Wing Formation, the tailless whip scorpions changed to the Flying Geese Formation in one swift move.
“Ooohhh… Amazing!!! Everyone’s so smart. How cute!”
“Nee-sama… You remembered the battle formations this well, huh?”
William laughed dryly as he watched Emma frolic around the Stuarts’ large garden.
“I remembered the Crane Wing, Fish-scale, Flying Geese, Arrowhead, and Column somehow, but… the other three…”
“No, people don’t usually know any of ’em, though?”
George, too, laughed listlessly.
“Come on, both of you. You’re still so dull even after seeing the military troops live in action… and you still call yourself a Japanese boy? Why do you think I collected all 60 volumes of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms manga? Of course, I didn’t read it half-heartedly!”
Emma vented her disappointment to her brothers because she couldn’t have a fulfilling history discussion with anyone. Haa, this kind of talk will only liven up when Mother is around, after all.
“Mew, meow?”
“Eh? Koumei-san, you’ll help me think of the battle formations?”
Koumei comforted the dejected Emma.
“Meow!”
With one meow from Koumei, the tailless whip scorpions changed their formation from the Flying Geese to a “く” shape one.
“Meoww, meow!”
“Eh? A Bent Cucumber Formation?”
“Meow!”
Koumei nodded proudly.
“Ah… now that I think about it, Koumei-san likes cucumbers, right?
“Meow♪”
“But why a bent cucumber?”
“Meow, me-meow!”
“Really? The bent ones are easier to eat, huh.”
“Meow!”
Emma remembered that Koumei had somehow come to like cucumbers and would eat them all the time, probably to rehydrate in the summertime.
There were many crop fields around the Tanakas’ house in the countryside. Koumei liked cucumbers so much that Yoriko had to plant cucumbers in the garden of their own house so that Koumei wouldn’t bother the neighbors’ fields.
“Let’s plant cucumbers in the garden this year, okay~.”
“Meow♪♪♪♪”
Koumei happily rubbed her body against Emma.
Fluff + spoiled acts are the best. Emma thought in bliss.
“Meow?!”
Chou-chan, who was washing his face near William, responded to Emma’s words. He flicked his long white tail and sat beside Emma and Koumei.
Then, with a serious face, he also meowed like Koumei.
“Meow!”
At Chou-chan‘s voice, the tailless whip scorpions army moved out of the Bent Cucumber Formation and made one vertical row in an instant.
“Meow meow!”
Chou-chan looked at Emma with eyes full of anticipation.
“Eh??? A Chu*ru Formation???”
[T/N: Ciao Chu~ru is a popular cat treat in Japan.]
Minato had already moved out by the time the Tanaka family raised Chou-chan. Because she brought back a chu*ru as a gift every time she went home, Chou-chan remembered Minato not as the ham person, but the chu*ru person.
[T/N: Refers to a popular ham commercial back in 1999. It advertised ham as the perfect gift to take home or for when visiting a relative’s house, and it would make people remember you as the ‘ham person’.]
Chu*ru is like drugs for cats… Chou-chan’s gaze was scary. Emma grew a little nervous inside.
“C-Chu*ru is a bit… Umm, I’m not sure…? I wonder if we can get it here?”
“Meoww”
As if saying “Pretty please~”, Chou-chan rubbed his body, which was even fluffier than Koumei’s, against Emma. It was double the fluff + spoiled act attack…
“Ahh— so cute! Chou-chan is also cute! Good, let’s ask Joshua for it next time, okay?”
“Meow♪♪♪”
Chou-chan purred happily.
This purring sound… Its healing effect is awesome. Emma thought.
” “Meow, m-meow!” “
Kan-chan and Ryuu-chan, who saw Chou-chan, also sat on both sides of Emma and, looking very solemn, meowed once more.
” “Mew, meow!” “
From the Chu*ru Formation, the tailless whip scorpions army formed a circle at once.
” “Meow” “
The two cats looked at Emma with eyes full of anticipation, just like Chou-chan had done earlier.
“…Canned Cat Food… Formation…? …Um, yeah. I got it. I’ll ask Joshua for this too, okay?”
” “Meoww♪♪♪” “
With the addition of Kan-chan and Ryuu-chan around Emma, a huge huddle of cats was completed.
From where George and William were standing, they already couldn’t see Emma’s figure, which was buried by the cats.
“Eh? What’s that? I’m so jealous!”
“Isn’t it all going to be Joshua’s efforts in the end…”
Crane Wing Formation, Fish-scale Formation, Flying Geese Formation, Arrowhead Formation, Column Formation, Bent Cucumber Formation, Chu*ru Formation, Canned Cat Food Formation.
‘Tis the moment of the creation of the eight battle formations which would later be called ‘The Stuarts’ Eight Battle Formations’.
The daughter-loving frontier lord and the niece-con frontier acting lord would make it known throughout the Kingdom by actively adopting it while monster-hunting. It would later be incorporated into the Knight Order training and was even feared by the Empire, a country which was said to excel in military tactics. However, that future was still currently unknown to anyone.