Chapter 38: Bridal-Carried by the Prince

“Lady Emma, a carriage from the Sullivan house has arrived for you.” At the sound of her maid’s voice, the girl in a white floral dress turned around. Her outfit was a far cry from the revealing clothes that were popular in the capital, but it suited her nicely.

The girl, with golden blonde hair, light green eyes, and flawless pale skin, nodded with a worried expression. The frail young thing did her best to hide her sighs from her maid. If she just sat quietly, she would appear to be a perfectly proper young lady, but alas...

“Martha? Do I really have to go?” The girl had been invited to a banquet where the royal family would be in attendance. She had begged and cried to be excused from it, but she was the daughter of a count—no matter how rural her region—and an invitation from royalty was something a count’s daughter couldn’t escape.

“Lady Emma, if you truly do not wish to go, you can tell Duchess Sullivan yourself. Now be off. You mustn’t keep her waiting.” Martha wasn’t so easily moved, well-versed in her attempts to get out of school with those same puppy-dog eyes. She’d been taking care of the girl her whole life, so she knew far too well what she was trying to do.

“M-My stomach kinda hurts!”

“You must have eaten too much.”

“I-I have a headache!”

“I’m sure it’s just your imagination.”

“I-I might have a cold?”

“A fake one, I presume.”

“Urgh... Martha, you’re so awful to me...” Emma slumped her shoulders and trudged to the carriage, fully resigned to her fate.

The woman accompanying Emma today was none other than Duchess Hilda Sullivan, her grandmother from her mother’s side. She was an exceptionally stern woman who was known throughout the capital as the Etiquette Demon. It was no wonder Emma was so insistent on staying home. On top of it all, she’d be under constant surveillance, and her brothers (who were usually around to back her up) were not invited. However, sympathy was not a thing that could be afforded to her.

After all, she and her brothers had snuck out of the house without permission and stayed overnight in the slums, of all places. It was unthinkable behavior for a lady of her status. Emma was the Herald of Hullabaloos. The worst troublemaker. A walking disaster. Upon the children’s return, their mother Melsa’s rage had reached a fever pitch, and she decreed that Emma was to undergo one-on-one lessons with the Etiquette Demon herself as punishment. That night’s banquet was a part of the punishment, so she couldn’t escape it no matter what. As they say, one reaps what one sows.

“Emma, be careful out there.”

“Mrowr!”

Though it would only take a few minutes to get to the castle where the banquet was being held, the whole family (cats included) had lined up to see Emma off at the door. Leonard was nodding in fervent approval at her, pleased with how adorable she looked all dressed up.

“Emma. You know what your goal is at the castle, right?” Melsa gave her last warning.

“I know, I know. Don’t stand out.” Emma had heard the same line over and over again all day, and she was tired of it.

“Just stay calm, okay, sis? Calm!”

“Just listen to what grandmother says and don’t do anything weird, no matter what!” William and George couldn’t go with her, and that had them worried as well, so they piled on the warnings too.

“I’ll be fine. I swear, I can do this.” Emma had thrown a tantrum about not wanting to go in front of Martha, but with all this nagging, she couldn’t help but want to talk back. It’s not like I’m the one causing issues all the time. Besides, I’m not a little kid! I don’t need to hear the same thing over and over again! Everything had been fine until she’d arrived at the banquet...

“Lady Emma? A-Are you able to speak, um, the Empire’s language?”

Less than an hour later, the family’s worst fears had been realized.

Look, I may have spilled the beans, but it’s still good... Emma thought, though she was standing smack-dab in the center of attention at the banquet. She’d snapped at her family about how she’d be fine, but it was just one disaster after another tonight.

They’d seated her far from her grandmother. And that seat happened to be at a table with the four great ducal families’ children, the second-born prince, and the guest of honor, the prince of the Eastern Empire. Everyone had eyes on her table from the start.

Mother, you see this, right? The only way for me not to stand out here is if I’m completely invisible.

The one thing she’d been looking forward to (the cooking) was something she had never seen in this world. No, it was something she’d only dreamed of since she’d been reincarnated: a full-blown Japanese meal of spinach salad with sesame dressing, miso-glazed eggplant, and rolled omelet. And as if that weren’t enough, the language the imperial prince had spoken was very obviously Japanese.

How was she supposed to figure out what to do here? This was more like a buffet of ridiculousness than a banquet of food.

William, you see what I’m dealing with here, right? It’s not my fault, right?

She’d tried everything in her power to not stand out. To not make her grandmother angry. Yet when she’d seen the imperial prince Tasuku Hinomoto struggling with his words...

George, you understand, right? You’ve gotta lend a hand when someone’s in trouble, right?

Emma had just thought it would be nice to give the imperial prince a helping hand out of the kindness of her heart, and that had been the finishing blow. The beans had been well and truly spilled.

“Um... I, uh... Did you understand what I said?”

“You were amazing! Your, um, pronunciation, and grammar, and formality were all perfectly imperial! I heard that, um, our language was very, um, difficult for people in your kingdom, but! I’ve, um, never! Met anyone who could speak as well as you!” He must have been overjoyed, because he was gripping both of Emma’s hands and almost seemed like he could hug her.

She was fully in the spotlight now. Nobody was getting more attention than Emma.

“Emma! You can speak the imperial language?!” The king, who had freed Emma from the imperial prince’s grasp, was shocked through and through. However, though she’d initially assumed he’d come to her rescue, he was now firmly grasping Emma by the arms.

This was less rescuing her and more taking the prince’s place.

Why is the king getting in on all this mess?! Doesn’t he know how terrifying my grandmother is?!

Oh, but he’s so close...

But now’s not the time for that! But surprise looks pretty damn good on him... I wouldn’t mind if a rugged, muscular man like the king were to pull me into a hug... Wait.

Actually, now might be my chance!

Before she knew it, a devilish idea had come to her mind. She knew perfectly well that this was not the time to be hoping for something like this, but she knew what she was about, and she wasn’t going to deny herself. She stiffened, waiting for his warm embrace to make up for all this hubbub...but suddenly, someone pulled the king away from her.

I was so close...

“Your Majesty! You mustn’t grab Emma’s right arm like that! Think of her wounds! You’ll hurt her!” This time, the prince came to her rescue by pulling the king off of her. “Emma, are you all right?” Prince Edward seemed genuinely worried for her.

The king had been holding her by her upper arms, where the deepest of her wounds had been (though it was covered by her dress). The prince had seen the true extent of them before they had healed, so he was always on alert about it.

Emma’s first thought was that he’d ruined the moment, but she instantly felt guilty for the impulse.

Sorry, Your Highness, but...my wounds are totally healed, so I’m fine. I lied and said it still hurt so I could get out of dancing, but I’m actually totally fine. Really. I’m completely fine. So you don’t have to worry. I’m fine. Emma kept apologizing to the prince in her heart.

The king snapped out of his stupor when he saw his son’s concern and was now looking Emma’s way with worry. “Oh no, Emma! Did I hurt you? Are you okay?”

The royal family shouldn’t apologize so easily! I know you’re not technically saying it, but it’s written all over your face! I’m super grateful that you’d allow me to save that expression in my mental silver fox folder, though!

But more importantly, why were the imperial prince and the king acting so rashly? They were both royalty, so it was odd to see them lose their composure. They said it was rare to find someone who spoke the imperial language, but Emma didn’t even know where the Eastern Empire was.

“I-I’m quite all right, Your Majesty. Please, pay me no mind.” Emma tried to smile it all off, but this made it clear that she was the center of the commotion. She was too scared to even look in her grandmother’s direction. The cold sweat pouring off her was only exacerbated by the fear that simply imagining her grandmother’s face inflicted on her, and she began to shudder.

The prince—who was deeply worried about her—and his bodyguard, Arthur—who could read the room well enough—helped support her on either side, handling her carefully as if she might break. However, Arthur could tell she was shaking when he took her hand, only increasing his worry for her. “Lady Emma! You’re trembling! You should sit down. Everything will be okay. Just take it slow.”

All the nobles in attendance had stood up to watch over her, with only Emma slowly sitting herself down. It was like she was a patient in critical condition or something. The more attention she drew, the more sweat formed on her. The despair inside her was overwhelming. She knew she was going to get chewed out to high heaven after this.

I’m sorry! I’m so sorry, everyone! I’m fine! I’m healthy! I swear, I’m in tip-top shape! You want me to do some squats to prove it?!

Emma tried to get up to ease everyone’s concerns, but everyone insistently urged her to sit back down. She couldn’t have shown them her squats even if she’d wanted to.

“Emma, are you all right?” a voice cried from behind her.

Eeeek!!! I’m totally fine, grandmother! I’m so sorry to cause such a commotion!

Emma slowly, ever so slowly, looked up at her grandmother, ready to receive the lecture of a lifetime. But her grandmother wasn’t angry.

O-Oh no. Oh no. Oh no, oh no, oh no. She’s worried about me! Her eyebrows are up instead of down! I-I’m totally okay, grandmother! So please stop making that face! It’s killing me! It cuts me to the core to see you so worried! I’d rather you get mad at me! I just want to scream that nobody has to worry!

It was just one thing to panic over after another, and the beads of sweat on her forehead were large enough to feel. She was scared people would start calling her Lady Sweatsalot behind her back when she got back to school.

“G-Grandmother... Er... Y-You all have no cause to worry. I am quite all right. Please, return to your seats.” The air had grown awkward and tense, and though Emma forced a smile when she spoke, nobody did as she requested. Her grandmother wasn’t the only one with such obvious worry in their eyes.

My sins are truly innumerable... Boo hoo hoo... I wish I could just crawl into a hole and disappear.

“Your Majesty, would it be acceptable to let Emma rest in one of our vacant rooms?” It was as if Prince Edward had heard Emma’s voiceless cries. He lowered his head to the king.

The king’s answer was instantaneous. “Oh, of course! You have my permission. Please, let her rest! And quickly!”

Thank you, Your Majesty! And thanks for the suggestion, Your Highness! I’m saved! Now I don’t have to spend another second in this tense as hell room! Now let’s blow this popsicle stand!

And that’s when Emma’s body was swept up off the ground.

“Hyah!”

“Please excuse us, then,” the prince said, then made his way toward the exit...carrying Emma over the threshold like a bride as he left the room.

◆ ◆ ◆

The prince was carrying Emma like a bride. It was the kind of romantic situation every young girl dreamed of. Unfortunately, Emma was the one experiencing it, and she was covered in cold sweat, and trailing close behind them was Emma’s grandmother, the terrifying woman known as the Etiquette Demon. Emma had told the prince several times that she was capable of walking, but he wouldn’t listen.

“Does it still hurt, Emma? You’re not feeling any chills or nausea, are you?” her grandmother asked worriedly. Though Emma was sweating, she was perfectly healthy. She’d never had any pain in the first place, and she’d never even said she was in any pain. She had no nausea because she barely had anything in her stomach, and while she hadn’t been able to stop shaking, it was more from fear than chills. She was also pretty sad that she’d only been able to eat one single bite of rolled omelet from the banquet, which was nearly identical to Japanese-style cuisine. They might have even gotten to eat rice...

White rice, how I miss you... I want to have a piping hot bowl of rice so badly right now...

No, this is quitter talk! It’s game over if I give up here! There’s still hope!

“Um... You really have nothing to worry about. I’m perfectly okay.” After all the commotion, it would’ve been awkward to go back to the banquet, but she still wanted to eat. Maybe the prince would have mercy on her and say something like, You do look a lot better now. If you’re feeling better after some rest, would you like me to bring you some of tonight’s meal? She tried to really put on the charm by pulling herself a little closer, but all she got in return was a sympathetic smile.

Well, if that’s how it’s gonna be... I’ll use the fact that our faces are so close because of the bridal-carry to send him a telepathic message! C’mon, Your Highness! Receive my message!

Emma tried staring him right in the eyes to make the message go through clearer, but the prince quickly averted his gaze instead. Telepathy was a bust. Her eyes really couldn’t say more than her mouth could... And for some reason, the prince’s face had gone bright red too. Maybe it was just her, but she felt like she could hear his heart beating too... It made sense, because being carried bridal style would make her close enough to hear his heartbeat, but...

Wait... Why’s his heartbeat getting faster? His heart’s pounding like crazy... And since I’ve been held all tightly against him, I can feel it too. Wait. We’re right up against each other...

Your Highness... Does this mean... You’re feeling...

How could I have not noticed it until now?! Ugh, curse my utter obliviousness!

“Er, Your Highness, you really can put me down. I’m so sorry... I didn’t even think... I’m probably pretty heavy...aren’t I?” Though Emma was much more slight and slender than average, carrying a whole other person wasn’t nothing. It was clear that was why his face was red and his heart rate had increased. Her well-built father could’ve done this with ease, but of course a boy close to her age would be struggling.

“You’re not heavy at all. In fact, I’d say you’re actually quite light. You should probably eat more... It’s worrying how light you are.” Unfortunately, Prince Edward always had to return to the castle for work during his lunch break, so he had no idea that she was getting second helpings every day.

Her worry for him had him worrying for her instead. She seemed to have been born with the innate talent to make people worry about her. Lots of people got weird powers when they reincarnated, so maybe...?

In the end, Emma couldn’t convince the prince to put her down, so she had no choice but to just stay put in his arms. She was worried she’d been too heavy, but his pace never faltered, leading Emma to muse about how much stronger he’d gotten in the year that she’d gotten to know him.

Then, she saw one of the castle maids approaching at a quick trot. Apparently, they’d finished preparing a room for her and she’d come to fetch Emma.

Maids in the castle sure are quick... Sorry to put you through that, miss.

“I-I’m so sorry to have added to your workload. I know you must’ve been so busy with the banquet and all. I apologize.” Emma couldn’t stop herself from apologizing to the poor maid leading the way. She remembered working in her previous life, so she couldn’t not apologize. Special occasions were always way busier than any other days, and if something went wrong on one of those days, it was even worse. Even if it was out of her control, the fact that she was adding to the maid’s workload over a fake illness cut her to the core.

The maid must have been surprised Emma spoke to her, as she turned around and frantically waved her hands to and fro in denial. “Why, that is far too much concern for someone of my station. Please, do not worry on my behalf, milady.” Adorable. Simply adorable. That totally warmed my heart. Thank you for helping me feel so much better with your cuteness, miss.

“Th-This is your room. There’s a bed in here you can use at your leisure. We’ve also sent a messenger to the Stewart household, so you can rest easy.” Emma had just started to relax because of the maid’s adorable gestures when that same maid dropped a major bombshell.

No, no, no! They contacted my parents?! That means they’ll know everything that happened here today!

“It’s okay! I can do that myself!” Emma wished she hadn’t so confidently declared she’d be fine, because of course something like this would have happened as a result. She was too shocked and ashamed to think straight. She wished she could explain herself away by saying her body went limp because she’d just been so tense up until that moment. Unfortunately, it happened while the prince was still carrying her.

“Emma?! What’s wrong?!”

“Hurry, get her to the bed, Your Highness!”

Shoot.

It was too late to salvage this. Before she could pull herself together again, they’d already placed her gently upon the soft and fluffy bed.

“Emma, are you awake?!”

“Emma!”

“Lady Emma!”

Her grandmother, the prince, and the maid all called out to her.

I’m sorry to have confused you all... I promise, I’m fine...

“I’m all right, Your Highness. I’m so sorry. I just...felt a little weak, that’s all.”

Before she could ask if he was sure she wasn’t too heavy, the prince screamed, “A-A doctor! Someone call a doctor! Hurry!”

The maid took off in a hurry.

Even if she hadn’t been the one to cause the commotion, Emma seemed to be a prodigy at making a bad situation several times worse. No matter what she said or did, everything seemed to spiral out of control. Or maybe today was just cursed.

Chapter 39: The Etiquette Demon

My mother was a strict woman.

“How many times must I tell you, Hilda? Your bow is not deep enough at all.” As the only daughter of a duke, I was subject to my mother’s neuroticisms day after day, though she called it “etiquette lessons.” Even after I’d mastered a subject, she’d go out of her way to nitpick anything I wasn’t doing perfectly. Her current obsession was the angle of my bow.

My father was an important person in politics, so there were plenty of days when he didn’t come home. The servants couldn’t exactly come to my rescue either, so it really was just my mother and me every day. Yet I endured day in and day out, and soon I came of age to attend school.

Though school was a place where students could freely choose what subjects they studied, my mother decided all of my courses. Just as she instructed, I only took classes that would mold me into a perfect wife.

In my advanced etiquette class my third year, I met my beloved mentor. No matter how hard I tried, I could never bow at an angle my mother would accept. Yet by some miracle, I was able to move into the advanced etiquette courses. I thought that surely, the teacher of an advanced etiquette class would know the secret to the bow my mother so fervently sought out, so I became quite attached.

“Professor, I can’t get the angle of my bow correct no matter what I do. My mother’s always scolding me for it...”

Professor Anne tucked my long bangs behind my ear. “The most important thing to remember about manners is that you must always be thinking about who you are with, and to carry yourself in a way that does not bring them displeasure. There are so many people out there, and what one person may consider a beautiful bow may be unacceptable to another. Some individuals may even feel differently about the same bow depending on the day as well.”

That described my mother perfectly.

In the morning, she’d scold me for not bowing deeply enough. That evening, I’d try bowing more deeply, and she’d be upset that I bowed too low. The next morning, I’d try to bow somewhere in between, and she’d be upset that my bow was too low again. After years of the same thing, I believe I had felt that my mother’s standards were malleable somewhere in the recesses of my mind, but I could never talk back to her. All I could do was quietly wait for the rage to pass.

“Why can’t you just do as you’re told? How are you such a worthless child? All you have to do is listen to what your mother says! How many times must I tell you these things? If you just do as I say and mind your manners, you’ll find your prince charming in no time!”

Those who believe they’re always right are merciless to those who can tell they’re wrong. Even if my mother had been right, it wouldn’t be worth berating me so thoroughly.

Professor Anne taught me how to shield myself from her criticisms. Every day, I was to use a protractor to measure the angle of my bow before a mirror. That would be how I could measure the most beautiful bow I could perform with absolute certainty.

“Hilda, you’re quite tall, so if you bow deeper than others, you may appear too exaggerated as you straighten back up. Therefore, I believe this angle would be best for you. I want you to ascertain what angle of bow is appropriate for every level of formality. If you still receive the same criticisms from your mother, come to me and I will test that it is the same angle. If her instructions are different each day, then you should continue doing the same angle regardless.”

It was the first time I’d ever had anyone tell me that my mother could possibly be wrong. The servants at my manor and my father, who hardly ever came home, all did as my mother instructed. That was the easiest way to quell whatever rage she had in her heart at that time, so they simply gave up trying to fight it. Now that I knew her screaming never truly reached them, I started to feel a bit sorry for her.

Every day, I would bow at the same angle.

And every day, my mother’s instructions would change.

My entire world changed.

I had always thought I was a worthless girl who couldn’t even bow properly, just as my mother said. But now, I had confidence. My heart felt lighter.

Professor Anne helped me find the most beautiful angle for each of my bows. Before I knew it, the empty classroom where I practiced with her began to fill with new comrades. I had no idea so many classmates had been suffering the same way I had been. Though my mother was the cause of my pain, some of them were being tormented by their fathers, their tutors, or the people running their apprenticeships. Regardless, we all were hurting over the same thing.

Every person is different. Their height, weight, the size of their face, the length of their neck, the width of their shoulders, their hands, feet—all of them differed from person to person. That’s why each individual had to find the angle that was most beautiful to their individual stature. That concept had always been so hazy to me, but now it formed the basis of something new.

If I could learn these angles perfectly, I could shield myself from whatever criticism was thrown my way. This would build my confidence, making me more beautiful than ever. The very thing that had tormented me for so long had now become a weapon.

Once I was married and had children of my own, I would pass this weapon to each and every one of them. Especially my youngest, Melsa. She was fiercely intelligent and learned her manners so quickly. Before I knew it, she’d already found the perfect angle herself.

Melsa learned mathematics, physics, monster studies, economics—all subjects I had never been allowed to study. They were all subjects so difficult, it was said they were impossible for young ladies, yet she chose them of her own volition. Even if people said she was “too masculine” or “standing out too much,” Melsa always brought back excellent grades.

“You are such a stickler for manners. How could you let your daughter just do as she pleases?” Aristocratic society always favored men, so it was no surprise that such thoughtless questions might be asked. However, Melsa knew her etiquette from a very early age. She had a weapon to protect herself from such criticisms. That was exactly why she was able to do as she pleased.

“You might say men are smarter than women, but that certainly doesn’t translate to their manners.” I had grown stronger myself.

As more time passed, my grandchildren were born, and the culture as a whole was less stringent about etiquette. Parents soon found that love was far more important than discipline. Just as I thought it was time to pass my peerage down to my son and retire, my youngest, Melsa, brought Emma to my house.

“Mother, I need you to discipline this girl. You can be a little... No, you can be very strict with her.”

Melsa had gotten married in one of the border regions, so the first time I’d met my grandchildren was only a few weeks prior, after they’d moved to the capital. Her eldest, George, looked absurdly similar to his father, Leonard, when he was younger. Her youngest, William, took after his mother with his hair color and intellectual appearance. Yet Emma had a veil over her face, seemingly to conceal something, so I was unable to get a closer look. Though their manners were not highly advanced, I didn’t get the impression that they were all that bad. I was shocked, wondering what could have happened to make Melsa come begging me to discipline any of them.

“Melsa, please, collect yourself. Tell me what’s happened!”

The day she brought Emma to me, she was no longer wearing her veil. Her adorable face had terrible scars all across her right cheek. The eyes that timidly looked back up at me were not the same color as her brothers. They were green—a clear, light green one could practically drown in. They were the Sullivan family color. She smiled awkwardly when our eyes met. She had sweet and gentle features, and her body was slender and slight, most unlike her parents. She looked younger than she actually was, making her seem even more helpless. Those scars would likely be there for her whole life as well.

“I understand. For the next month, I want you to come here after school, Emma. I will send a carriage for you,” I said. If she was to bear those scars for the rest of her life, then I would provide her with a weapon. The greatest weapon I’d ever been granted.

“Straighten your back, Emma. Now try to bow two millimeters lower than before.”

“Two millimeters?! Do you really think that’s gonna make a difference, grandmother?!”

“Every little bit counts, Emma. You lose nothing by perfecting the proper angle to bow now.”

“Does that mean I would lose something if I don’t?”

“In the capital, a person’s bow is the easiest way to establish one’s value. No matter how magnificent a lady one might be, she will not be reinvited to parties if her bow is subpar.”

“Wouldn’t that be the dream...”

“Did you say something, Emma?”

“Eep! Nope! Nothing! Nothing at all, grandmother! Two millimeters lower, right?”

“That’s three millimeters, Emma. You need to be up one millimeter.”

“Eeeeek!!!”

I know this may be harsh, but I want to give you every tool you can use to keep from getting hurt.

“Don’t you think it’s time for us to take a break yet, grandmother? I made tea cozies for us today. It’ll make it so the tea stays warmer longer, so our break can be long—I mean, so we can enjoy our tea for longer.”

“All right then. We’ll practice bowing another time. Today, we’ll practice your tea party manners.”

“Wha?! Uh... I mean... Yes, ma’am...”

My grandchild seemed to be aware that her manners were not up to par, but she had a charm about her that Melsa and I did not, and she was cunning enough that she was shockingly suited for high society. It was quite entertaining, in fact.

I supposed it would be some time before the Etiquette Demon could retire.

◆ ◆ ◆

Though Emma kept trying to assure everyone that she was okay, they all insisted she get some rest. As they gently wiped the sweat from her brow, she eventually fell asleep. It really must have been too much for her.

The prince treasured her so, so much. He wanted to keep her away from anything that could have hurt her, and yet she still suffered so. Perhaps it was just his own ego talking when he wished she’d lean on him rather than enduring it all with a smile to keep others from worrying. With his royal duties and his classes at school, he just didn’t have the time to look after her. Yet for the past two weeks, he could tell she was crumbling under the pressure. She’d even be lying face down on her desk during breaks. Any time he tried to talk to her, she’d just smile and say she was okay. He hadn’t pursued the topic further, and now she was too weak to even pretend she was fine.

When Emma had spoken in the imperial language, he had been too shocked to move. People from his kingdom couldn’t understand the imperial language. The pronunciation, grammar, and writing were practically otherworldly. It was simply beyond the comprehension of any of their senses. If they tried really hard, they might be able to catch a short, simple word, but it never stuck. They’d heard that it was difficult for people in other countries as well.

The Eastern Empire had avoided trade with other countries. They’d had their borders closed for many years, and as such, none even knew exactly where it was located. Since the Eastern Empire was the only place where the Empire’s language was used, there were no others out there who knew how to understand it. It was only a few months ago that one of the few places able to communicate with the Eastern Empire—an island country by the name of Balitu—had heard the Empire’s request for assistance.

The food supply in the Eastern Empire was diminishing due to adverse weather conditions, and they had asked Prince Edward’s kingdom for assistance due to its plentiful resources. There weren’t many out there who were willing to do business with an empire as shrouded in mystery as the Eastern Empire. None were able to get any information about the empire itself, so no country was able to guarantee they could get anything out of the deal. In the end, the kingdom used its own judgment to enter into diplomatic relations with the Eastern Empire as well as provide its assistance, and the deal was sealed in no time.

But then the language barrier hit.

While they thought to use Balitu’s language to bridge the gap, the imperials’ accent was quite strong, and they were only able to use basic greetings—which was hardly enough to hold a decent conversation. Yet all the while, they were eating away into the last of their food reserves. Finally, the empire hurriedly decided to send the especially wise Prince Tasuku of the imperial family to study in the kingdom.

It was said that the imperial family was believed to be akin to gods to their people. That they would send someone so sacred to another country was a testament to just how serious the famine had become.

The banquet that evening was being held with young lords and ladies around the same age as Prince Tasuku in order to help him learn the language. Even the most exceptional diplomats in the kingdom were unable to understand a single word of the Eastern Empire’s language, so they were going to have to rely on Prince Tasuku’s language skills in order to negotiate with the empire.

At least, until Emma started speaking their language.

It was only natural that the king would have caused such a commotion, given he was the one who had decided to work with the poor, overburdened prince.

Perhaps if I had been able to tell him to stay calm, this wouldn’t have happened... But I was so focused on Emma’s suffering, I couldn’t even think about the king. I didn’t want anyone else to see Emma like that.

My selfishness strikes again...

There was a quiet knock on the door, and the maid from earlier entered the room. “I’ve brought a change of clothes for Lady Emma. Though a woman of her station deserves much better, I’ve brought my own sleeping gown. Letting her sleep in a dress would be too stifling.” She timidly handed the nightgown to Hilda, who had been looking after Emma. No one had asked the maid to do this; she had done it purely out of the goodness of her own heart.

Most maids wouldn’t have been so proactive about these things, but Emma treated everyone the same, regardless of their status. While she was sure to use the right words and mind her manners, she would never trip all over herself trying to be humble before a prince or look down on a maid for being lower class. She treated everyone as a person worthy of respect and kindness, so it was natural that people took so kindly to her.

Prince Edward left while they helped Emma change. Once they were done, he reentered the room to find Emma was still fast asleep, with Hilda, the woman known as the Etiquette Demon, worriedly gripping her hand.

The doctor who examined her didn’t have any good news for them. “She wouldn’t come to, even when we changed her clothes. She must have been enduring so much. While her wounds have fully closed, and we believe there should be no problems, we just don’t know what lingering effects a monster attack might have on the body. For now, all we can do is have her take it easy and get lots of rest.”

In other words, it was the kind of wound even a doctor couldn’t fix.

Has Emma been suffering these aftereffects all alone? Hiding so nobody would notice? If I could, I would take all her scars and pain in a heartbeat.

After some time, Count Stewart came to fetch Emma.

“Leonard, I beg your forgiveness. Though I was right by her side, Emma still wound up in such a state...” Hilda said, apologetically explaining the situation.

“Mother, Emma will be just fine. If our cats didn’t panic, then she’s going to be all right. I’ll just take her home now.”

“Your...cats? Did I hear that right?”

Leonard called to his daughter, but she didn’t respond. By all appearances, she looked like she was merely deeply asleep. Thinking it’d be a shame to wake her, he wrapped her up in the blankets and picked her up, just like that.

“Your Highness, mother, I’m so sorry for the trouble my daughter has caused you,” Leonard said and opened the door to let himself out...only to be stopped in his tracks.

There were dozens of men standing outside the door of the room where Emma had been resting, blocking his path.

“Perfect timing! Count Stewart, I’d like to speak with you about young Emma Stewart!” a high-strung man at the front said, giving the sleeping girl a sidelong glance.

“Er... I’m kinda in the middle of something right now...” Leonard replied, offering to speak to them again another day, but the man wouldn’t back down.

“This is a matter of national importance, milord! We need to understand the situation, and fast!” All the men surged forward, putting further pressure on Leonard.

“Look, don’t you all have eyes? I want to get my daughter back home to rest already.” Leonard glared at them. She was sleeping so soundly, and he wasn’t about to let them wake her. No matter how much they pressured him, he was the fearsome lord of a border land. He faced horrendous monsters on a regular basis. These men were like ants to him.

Prince Edward noticed the men’s blockade and boomed at them. “What do you think you’re doing?! Get out of his way!”

“Your Highness. This could change the very foundation of our kingdom’s international relations. Now is not the time to be blinded by affection. Leave the diplomacy to your diplomats.” The man snorted, purposely disobeying the prince’s orders and putting the pressure on once more. When they’d heard Emma speak the imperial language, the diplomats had all rushed over in a flash.

“Well, well. If it isn’t Ambassador Oliver Dephros. I never thought you were such a boorish man. Don’t you think your tone is lacking in respect for the second-born prince of the kingdom?” Hilda accused.

“Eek! M-Milady, Hilda Sullivan! I-I know how this looks, but we must carry out our work!” Though the diplomat balked in fear of the Etiquette Demon for a moment, he was spurred on by his cause.

“Isn’t that interesting? Emma’s just a thirteen-year-old girl. She’s collapsed from exhaustion and is completely unconscious. How could you say you’re working in the country’s best interest in a situation like this? In fact, don’t you think it’s a problem that not a single one of you ambassadors are able to speak the imperial language? Did you really think you could foist that responsibility upon my ill granddaughter?” (Of course, nobody but Leonard was aware that Emma was simply napping comfortably in his arms.)

“Wh-What did you say?! We’re doing this for the whole kingdom’s sake! Not even you can get away with disrup—!”

The ambassador’s heated rebuttal was interrupted by Hilda’s long, deep sigh. It was the kind of sigh that made all young ladies learning their manners tremble in fear. Even the king himself would have found his nerves on edge. The Etiquette Demon’s sigh was infamous.

“Oliver. And behind you, I see... Connor, Robinson, Blaine, Mason, Christon, Morrison, and Austin. If this is what your manners are like, I’d hate to see how your daughters behave. I’ve heard they are all soon to be of marriageable age too. It’d be a shame if they were the talk of the next tea party, wouldn’t you say?”

“A-Are you threatening us?!”

In the kingdom’s high society, any girl caught in the Etiquette Demon’s crosshairs could kiss her marriage prospects goodbye.

“I do believe the only one being threatened here is the family you’re attacking ‘in the country’s best interests.’ I just happen to be a concerned citizen noticing a family with poor manners.”

“Eek!”

“We’re so sorry!”

All the men standing behind Oliver turned tail and fled.

“Y-You cowards! Don’t you run! Come back here!” Though the ambassador was left alone, he glared at Leonard and refused to budge. “Count Stewart, this is for the good of the kingdom.”

“And my daughter is more important to me than the kingdom. If that gets me in trouble, then so be it.” Leonard was a full head taller than the ambassador, and the way he looked down on him was turning the pressure back on him instead. Even though Leonard was smiling, the tension was thick enough to cut with a knife. “I hope you understand.”

Leonard smiled and bowed to both the prince and Hilda and easily pushed the ambassador aside, as the man had been frozen in utter terror.

Chapter 40: The Fourth Tanaka Family Meeting

“So. Do you want to explain why you were carried back home from the banquet dead asleep?”

The next day, Emma awoke bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. The family waited for her to finish her copious breakfast, chased the servants out, and held the fourth Tanaka family meeting in Emma’s room.

“Mother, you would not believe how soft the beds at the castle are. It was so cozy, it was like I was sleeping on a cloud!” Emma could tell she was in trouble by Melsa’s question, so she hid behind Kongming and swore it wasn’t her fault.

“Myah myah myah!” Kongming wrapped her tail around Emma’s body, nodding in agreement that you simply couldn’t stay awake in a nice, comfy bed.

“Mrah!” Just imagining sleeping on a cloud started to make Zhang sleepy. He rolled onto his back and started to purr.

“It wasn’t that simple and you know it, sis. I know you were up the whole night before designing dresses for all your friends after you finished your own,” William blabbed, digging through the plethora of designs on Emma’s desk.

“Emma?” If looks could kill.

“W-Well, you know, they really are sweet girls! And they’ve been taking such good care of me! And most importantly, they’re all so beautiful in their own unique ways, and it’s so much fun to think of designs for them and...I just...” With all of her time being eaten up by one-on-one lessons with the Etiquette Demon and being unable to do anything she wanted to do, Emma’s stress levels had been through the roof. Once she’d seen the dress Harold painted and determined the dye would work for it, she found herself overflowing with ideas for other dresses, and she couldn’t stop drawing. Before she’d known it, it was morning.

“Mrah mrowr mrowr!” Kongming yawned wide, as if to say, I told you to get to sleep sooner, meow!

“Y’know, this really would look amazing on Lady Marion, wouldn’t it?” George fished one of the designs out of the stack and showed it to the family. It was an off-the-shoulder black dress featuring a large flower corsage, with a string of beads flowing down from it.

“I came up with that one thinking we’d use a color of thread that blended in with the black fabrics. I bet if we used that ink, we could dye it a color that would stand out more against the background color...”

While Emma was explaining her thought process, George continued gazing at the design and muttered, “Maybe we could take the flower on the shoulder and make it more realistic, and like a bouquet... We could use that ink to dye them the same color as the embroidery thread to make the whole thing come together...”

“Now there’s an idea! I’m totally using it!”

George had always had a good eye for embellishments.

“In that case, we should make the embroidered flowers look realistic too. It might look even nicer if we used smaller beads instead of bigger ones,” Leonard suggested, further altering the design.

“You’re right, but I worry if the beads are too small, they won’t stand out enough against the black fabric...” Emma tilted her head, wondering how to fix this conundrum.

“In that case, why don’t we dye the beads with that ink too? If we can adjust the color of the beads, we could maybe make a gradient to bring it together and make it a bit flashier,” William, resident bead expert, suggested.

“Ooh, that’s a great idea, William! If we’re gonna dye the beads too, we should ask Harold if he can make us something with some extra luster.” Emma grinned, thrilled that they might be able to make such a lovely dress.

Once the design had been all worked out, Melsa split everyone into their assigned roles like she always did. “Then Emma and I will choose the fabric and sew the base, George will take charge of the flowers, Leonard will do the embroidery, and William will be on bead duty.”

“You got it!” the family responded in unison.

“Okay, so next up, we should work on the matching outfits I designed for the...twins...” Emma trailed off, and everyone gasped.

The whole family realized that they had gotten so engrossed in dress talk that they’d completely forgotten the topic at hand. The meeting had already gone completely off the rails. They had all subconsciously decided to turn a blind eye to the problems at hand—dressmaking was a lot more fun than the huge pain of discussing the hubbub at the banquet, after all.

There was a long silence.

For a moment, it seemed like Leonard was mulling over whether they couldn’t keep talking about the dress, but they couldn’t just ignore what had happened the night before, so he righted the trajectory of their conversation. “So...Emma. How long have you been able to speak this uh...imperial language or what have you?”

Emma sighed, then answered honestly, seemingly resigned to her fate. “That’s the thing... The imperial language was, as far as I heard, just Japanese. And the imperial cuisine they served at the banquet was pretty much just Japanese food. I only got to have a rolled omelet, but it was so good...” Emma was practically drooling as she remembered the taste of the rolled omelet she’d had the night before.

“What?! Wh-What about rice? Did they have rice too?!”

“Or soy sauce?”

“I-I want to eat some miso soup!”

George, Melsa, and William all leaned forward in excitement at the prospect of eating Japanese food again.

“I had to leave pretty early in the meal, so I don’t know for sure, but...it sounded like they had some miso too.” She really wished she could have tried the miso-glazed eggplant... Just one bite, even... The loss was eating her up.

“Then that means miso soup is a go! Woo-hoo!” George and William high-fived over the nostalgic flavor they’d longed for.

“If they have miso, then we could do much more than miso soup. We could make miso-simmered mackerel or miso udon or miso meat stir fry...” Melsa, ever the talented cook in her previous life, began listing other dishes.

“Oooh, I want that so badly! I’d love some miso-simmered...mackerel...”

They all gasped again. The prospect of eating the same food they’d assumed had been lost after their reincarnation was far more enticing than the current matter at hand, so the family once again leaped at the chance to avoid the elephant in the room. The whole family was instinctively trying to get out of talking about what was clearly going to be a huge pain in the butt.

“Um, so... Why’d they cause such a fuss when you started speaking their language, anyway?” William brought the topic back on track, though his heart was still captured by the siren song of miso-simmered mackerel. The Eastern Empire had only just started opening up to other countries, so nobody in their family had even heard about it before now.

“The imperial prince was saying that people here can’t speak his language or something.” Emma recalled how he’d grabbed her hand in such a tizzy. The fact that he hadn’t been able to hide his joy in front of all those people was a testament to that fact. Come to think of it, the way everyone had said itadakimasu was all over the place.

“Right, when I went to get Emma, there were all these diplomats saying they wanted to talk to her. They were really pushy, to the point I thought they wouldn’t even let us go home. Especially that...Oliver guy? He was particularly obnoxious about it. Boy, am I glad your mother stepped in.” Leonard smiled, though he then mentioned he might’ve snapped a bit at the diplomat toward the end there.

“F-Father! Don’t tell me you picked a fight with him?!” Emma gasped. What the heck happened out there while I was asleep?!

They’d been trying so hard not to stand out when they’d arrived at the capital, but it was proving to be much more difficult than they’d expected. Emma knew her mother was going to be furious, so she prepared for the worst. It was a guarantee now that the two veins on her brow that only surfaced when she was at her most frightening had appeared.

“M-Mother, I’m really sorr—”

“Sorry, did you say the diplomat’s name was Oliver? You don’t mean Oliver Dephros, do you?” While Emma was trying to get ahead on her apologies, Melsa interrupted her with a low growl.

“Yeah, I think that’s what your mother called him! You know the guy? Wait... Oliver... Actually, that name does ring a bell...” Leonard recalled the name that Hilda had used to address the pushiest of the bunch. He was about the same age as Leonard and seemed especially high-strung.

“Oh, that filthy little rat bastard! He went and became an ambassador, did he?!” Melsa roared, slamming her hands on the desk and cursing in a way one never would have expected of Melsa.

“M-Mother?!”

“Melsa?”

Seeing Melsa with the veins bulging on her head was, quite frankly, utterly terrifying.

“My entire time at school, that disgusting pig was sitting there saying things about how women didn’t need to go to school, or that I should stop acting like a man, or that I was flirting my way into good grades... Ugh, just thinking about him makes me want to scream!!!”

“Oh, I remember that little punk now! Poor guy could never understand just how great you were!”

Apparently, the two had known him back when they were in school...though Leonard had totally forgotten about him, so he hadn’t recognized Oliver when they met face-to-face.

“How dare he be so focused on his own business that he’d disregard the health of my poor baby! I see he’s still just as awful as ever!” It seemed each memory was causing more and more to bubble up, keeping Melsa’s rage boiling.

“M-Mother, I’m, uh... I’m okay now, though?” Emma offered, but her words couldn’t reach Melsa now.

“This is a slight upon us that the whole Stewart family must fight... No, we’ll get my mother to involve the Sullivan family as well!”

“B-But mother, I’m fine? I’m really fine?”

What am I gonna do?

Melsa was always telling Emma not to cause a scene, to stay quiet, to avoid standing out, but now it was like she herself was about to throw a stick of dynamite into a gasoline-fueled bonfire.

Nobody felt they could get a word in edgewise, but suddenly, a pair of hurried footsteps approached Emma’s room and there was a knock at the door.

Leonard opened the door and spoke to the servant standing there. “I thought I said nobody was supposed to come to this room.”

The servant was pale and completely out of breath as they dropped a bomb of a message. “I’m so sorry, milord, but...it’s the king! The king is here!”

It was the one thing they never wanted to hear.

“What did you just say?”

The king wasn’t in a position to just come visit a count’s family for fun. Surely, they’d all simply misheard the servant. The very idea was ludicrous. If it were true, they were in deep trouble.

“H-His Majesty the King is at the gate asking to be let in!” the servant repeated, clearly shaken.

The trouble was deep indeed. How had it come to this?! It was as if just before Melsa was about to throw that stick of dynamite, a volcano had erupted behind her. How bad was this banquet business going to get?!

The king’s sudden arrival brought the Tanaka family meeting to an abrupt close, without them having discussed anything substantial.

For the time being, they needed to hide the cats, at least. Their cats were a bit big, but they were also adorable, and they wouldn’t have been able to handle it if the king wanted them for his own.

“All right, kitties! Can we have you hide in one of the back rooms for a little bit?”

All four cats protested Leonard’s request. Kongming and Liu cried as if to say, We haven’t had any time to play with the kids now that they’re all at school, and now Emma’s got her etiquette lessons too! The family’s hardly ever together now and we want to make the most of it, meow meow meow!

Guan and Zhang both cried as if to say, We were good and quiet while you were all talking! You should play with your kitties more, meow meow!

“I’m sorry guys, but we just really can’t have you being seen...” Leonard said, consoling them with the promise that they’d get to play lots and lots later. The family already had a bad feeling that they’d gotten wrapped up in something very, very annoying. All they could do was ask the kitties not to make it any worse.

◆ ◆ ◆

Nobody wanted any more trouble, so they had the Herald of Hullabaloos continue feigning illness, claiming they were told she could have no visitors and was on strict bed rest. George and William were on observation—er, rather, nursing duty. Leonard and Melsa then prepared to greet the king in their parlor.

The Stewart family parlor was mostly being used as a storage space where they put all the expensive furniture and art that had come with the manor when they’d bought it. As former Japanese commoners, they didn’t really need all those luxuries, so they couldn’t stand having them around. They’d wanted to sell it all off, but each piece was so expensive that it was hard to find buyers. Joshua’s father, who’d gotten ahead of himself in buying the place for them, had prepared them a tremendous mansion with plenty of space in the parlor to put them all, but the only time anyone tended to go near it was to clean it. Though the rest of the rooms in their manor were a lot more minimalist, they were still getting used to the manor being so much flashier than their entire home in Pallas. In the end, they’d wound up sequestering all of the things they didn’t need (luxuries) and things that hurt their hearts (luxuries) away in the parlor, making the space feel exceptionally and unusually gaudy.

The king, along with Prince Tasuku of the Eastern Empire, was seated on the exorbitantly lavish sofa the Stewarts had merely stowed away, and behind them were Oliver and a dozen or so diplomats, who remained standing with cold sweat on their brows. After all, Leonard had placed a finely embroidered cover on each couch to prevent them from getting dirty...and naturally, the covers were made of Emma silk. The Emma silk was worth more than all the furnishings in the room, but the Stewarts didn’t know that. Even the king had been hesitant to sit upon it for a moment. None of the diplomats had such courage. The tablecloth was made of Emma silk and expertly crafted lace (made by Leonard in about twenty-five minutes), so they were also afraid to touch the tea they’d been served.

Though the ambassadors were very experienced in the art of diplomacy, they later said that no mission they’d ever been on had made them as nervous as being in that parlor.

This unintentional show of force was working both ways. After Leonard and Melsa bowed for the king and he put them at ease, he introduced the boy next to him as the imperial prince Tasuku, making their likelihood of being able to avoid the imperial language thing a much, much harder task than they’d anticipated. They’d idly thought that since it was a foreign country with hardly any international contacts, they could just make up any old excuse, but here was a native of that country right on their couch.

Leonard was already losing confidence, and Melsa, his only hope, was in a foul mood from the moment she saw Oliver. They really had had a conflict for ages.

The king then broke the tension. “I imagine you must’ve been shocked when I arrived without notice. I would’ve come alone, but things didn’t quite work out that way.” He’d heard the night before that Emma had collapsed because of him, and he simply couldn’t handle the regret and worries in his heart. He pushed most of his work onto the two princes and tried to leave the castle, but was soon found by the imperial prince and the ambassadors.

“We would have come to the castle at a moment’s notice at your request, Your Majesty...” Leonard moaned, thinking about how this was all so bad for his heart. Why was it that the king was acting on his own like this? He did the same during the coup. What a mess...

“Well, it can be difficult to hold a private conversation in the castle. How is Emma now?” The king’s worried expression pained the Stewarts’ hearts. They couldn’t bear to tell him that she’d been just fine the whole time.

“We’re quite relieved to say she awoke this morning. She had an extra helping—I mean, extra...healthy...breakfast. I-It was only a little bit, and now we’re just letting her rest.” Leonard, who was terrible at lying, was trying his best. He’d almost mentioned she’d eaten an extra helping of breakfast until Melsa stepped on his foot to point out his mistake.

“I’d been told of Emma’s wounds, yet I still grabbed her so roughly. I cannot apologize enough.”

Oliver, the ambassador behind the king, spoke up before the king could lower his head. “Royalty mustn’t apologize so easily, Your Majesty. Please, let us move on to the topic at hand.”

“What are you talking about, Oliver? I came here to apologize to Emma. Royalty or not, if you make a mistake, it’s your job to apologize for it. I came all the way out here because there were so many people like you back at the castle...” The king’s expression showed his displeasure, as though he were really regretting bringing Oliver along.

“Your Majesty, Emma is a shy, delicate girl. I’m sure she was just anxious to be at a banquet with so many high-ranking nobles. It was only a bit of a shock to her, so you needn’t blame yourself. Rather, I apologize for the commotion.” Leonard lowered his head in apology, as it was a problem for the king to apologize to him.

“Right, she was sitting with Edward, Prince Tasuku, and the four great ducal families. It must’ve been awfully nerve-racking for her. We seated her there as a representative for the Sullivan family.”

“Your Majesty... Can we please move on...?”

“Is that so? Why, we hadn’t heard much of the details about the evening. I do hope Emma didn’t make any careless blunders in such a formal environment!” Melsa nearly shouted, drowning out Oliver’s voice. It was almost certainly on purpose.

“She was picture perfect, actually. Her lovely bow in that beautiful dress was the talk of the banquet,” the king responded with a wide grin, remembering her behavior that evening. His expression was enough to tell Melsa that her daughter was still a fogey’s fancy in this world too.

My daughter is truly fearsome indeed.

“Y-Your Majesty! Please, we must know why Emma Stewart can speak the Eastern Empire’s language! That’s why we came here! This concerns the future of the whole kingdom! The rest of this can wait!” Oliver raised his voice impatiently. Things had finally started to relax a bit, but he never could read the room. Melsa sighed the very same sigh she had inherited from the Etiquette Demon and glared at Oliver.

“Actually, I’d like to ask you something, Ambassador Oliver Dephros. Why is it that, as an ambassador of the kingdom, you can’t speak the Eastern Empire’s language? Communication is the cornerstone of diplomacy, as I’m sure you’re aware. It seems like a dereliction of your duties, if you ask me.” Melsa called Oliver out with a high-handed approach she’d never needed to use in Pallas. The man was on his high horse, but the fact of the matter was that nobody there could speak a lick of the imperial language, so they’d all come running to the Stewarts. The fact that they wanted to work with the Eastern Empire despite being unable to communicate told her there was something they needed from it. Melsa was able to read between the lines of Oliver’s urgent pleas and decided to provoke him.

“It’s not for lack of trying! And it’s not just us here in this kingdom—nobody in the world can understand it! The pronunciation and grammar is like something from another universe, and their writing system is even harder to read than our ancient scripts! We’ve been perfectly prudent at our jobs!” Oliver easily explained his issues with the imperial language.

If it really was Japanese, then he’d be right about it being like something they’d use in another universe. Melsa still couldn’t understand why it was so difficult, but maybe that was just how things were in this particular world.

“W-We were able to, um...survive on our own for so long, we had no need for any other country. My people never learned any other languages, though they speak a little bit of Balitese for, um...travel. But my country is in terrible danger. We need Lady Emma’s help! Please!” The imperial prince Tasuku had been silent until then, but he began speaking in his halting, unfamiliar tongue to desperately plead his case: how his country was in dire straits, so they were asking the kingdom for assistance. How there was only so much he could do with regards to diplomacy and conversation. How he wanted Emma to help him.

“It’s a citizen’s duty to serve their country. Even a member of the aristocracy has no right to refuse a request from someone of your station. You have no need to lower your head, Prince Tasuku. You may use the daughter of a mere count to your heart’s content.” Oliver buttered up the prince and responded on the Stewarts’ behalf before even waiting for their response.

Melsa was cursing the man in her head. We never agreed to that and you know it. You’re nothing more than an ambassador, so maybe you should be bowing your head in front of an imperial prince, you pig. You can hide behind your grand pretext of “doing whatever you can for your country,” but you’re just a cog. Oliver was supposed to be asking them for a favor, but his attitude barely reflected it. It was enough to bring Melsa’s anger to a boiling point once more.

“The Stewart family has been in control of a border region that sees over half of all monster appearances in this nation. In addition, we make considerable contributions to the economy with our silk products and our taxes. Yet you wish to use our young, timid, sickly daughter as a tool for diplomacy? Go on, try it. We wouldn’t mind moving somewhere else. Though...it’s likely the Rothschild Company would follow us.” Melsa’s words made the king and the ambassadors’ blood run cold. Without the Stewarts, there weren’t enough nobles or hunters to take over the large swaths of land monsters appeared in. What was more, the Stewarts’ taxes alone were a lynchpin of the kingdom’s economy. Were they to suddenly disappear, it would spell the end of the kingdom.

Then there was the Rothschild Company. They were in control of all the country’s trade and commerce. Their seasoned employees were consistently pulling in enormous profits, and it would be no exaggeration to say they were one of the greatest sources of revenue in the kingdom. And the most bone-chilling consequence of all would be their wives and daughters’ fury if they were unable to get Pallas’s exquisite silk products.

“W-We’re so sorry!” The ambassadors all knelt in apology, and even the king bowed his head to her. Though they remained kneeling, the diplomats all had to question why a family that was responsible for so much of the country’s peace and economic well-being still held such low rank.

Leonard panicked in the face of their sincere apologies. “Aaahhh, Your Majesty, milords, please! Raise your heads!”

Melsa really was terrifying when she was angry. Oliver had been on the receiving end of her fury since their days in the academy, so the fact that he still hadn’t learned by now was frankly impressive.

“I really think, with all of the contributions your family makes toward the country, you should have a higher peerage...” The king raised his head and rehashed his suggestion of rewarding them once more.

“That’s quite all right, Your Majesty. We really can’t accept such an offer! This is quite enough for us already!” Though Leonard was a well-built man, he was exceptionally panicky. These rewards the king was suggesting had no value whatsoever to the Stewarts.

“Well then... What if Emma and Edward were to be betrothed...?”

“I won’t let anyone have my baby Emma!!!” Leonard had been all shaken up, but the second those words left the king’s mouth, he got to his feet and roared, as though his true colors had finally shown through. He stared daggers down at the king and continued in a voice so deep, it sounded unreal. “I mean it. I won’t ever let anyone have my baby. Not even by royal decree.”

Leonard had brought countless monsters to their ends, and the bloodlust in his actions was too horrifying to handle for the poor ambassadors, who’d never seen the slightest bit of war. They trembled in their kneeling state, unable to hold back the tears in their eyes. The large droplets fell onto the carpet, yet, rather than being absorbed, they instead beaded on the surface, embellishing the white carpet. Even in their terror, they still recognized what was beneath their feet.

The carpet that stretched all across the floor of the parlor...was soft, white, and fluffy... That texture...that waterproof fur...could it have really been...

Horned hare fur? The capital’s most popular yet most highly valued material?! The very same material that those coats were made of? The ones their wives and daughters had all begged for? And when the men had seen the price, they’d barked that the women needed to get their heads checked?! The Stewarts were using that...as a rug, of all things?! This massive room...was covered corner to corner...in horned hare fur?!

They had to get out of the parlor, and the sooner the better. If they couldn’t do that, they would have given anything just to float even a centimeter above where they knelt. They had no idea they’d been stepping on horned hare fur the whole time. Though all of the ambassadors felt the same way, they were frozen solid with fear.

◆ ◆ ◆

“How’s it going in there?”

William had gone to check on the meeting in the parlor and returned looking rather puzzled. They didn’t know much about the people who had built their manor, but it had a room where one could secretly peek in on what was happening in the parlor.

“Uh... So you know how there were a bunch of people who came with the king? I think they were all ambassadors. But they’re all in there on their hands and knees bowing down to mother and father.”

“What the hell happened in there?!” both the older siblings blurted in response.

“Apparently, the kingdom needs this relationship with the Eastern Empire to work out, no matter what. And on the Eastern Empire’s side, they’re asking the kingdom for food. Both sides are all for it, but the language barrier is seriously hindering their negotiations,” William explained.

They’d all been in their day clothes, but just in case, Emma got back into her nightgown. She was listening carefully to William’s report.

“But like, nobody had even heard of the Eastern Empire until now. What’s so important about it?” All the other countries they knew about had been positioned in peninsulas facing the sea to minimize their chances of monster encounters, but the Eastern Empire wasn’t on any of their maps.

“There wasn’t anything to go on in our library...” George had requested all the books related to foreign lands be brought to them and had read them front to back, but there weren’t any leads to help them out. It was times like these that they really wished this was a world with smartphones.

“Y’know, I haven’t really had much to complain about in this world, but... I would kill for a smartphone right about now.”

“I seriously feel you. I wish I could just ask the great Professor Mewgle...”

“If we’re doing research, I feel like Wikipawdia would be the place... Actually, have any of us tried summoning a command menu or anything since we’ve been here?”

The siblings gasped. Every isekai story had a menu one could summon, but none of them had actually tried to open one. Emma and George looked at each other, both shocked that they’d completely forgotten about the prospect until then.

“Wait, so if we’re able to open a command menu, then does that mean we could use magic or use items we picked up in our previous life or something?”

They’d previously tried shouting spell names like “fireball” out to see if they could use magic, but they’d entirely forgotten about status screens. It might’ve been the case that shouting the spell wasn’t enough—this isekai might’ve required them to select a spell from the command menu. If that were the case...they might’ve finally found the life hack they needed to survive this world.

“I mean, how should I know? I’ve never played an otome game!” William scoffed. Besides, they’d already gone through their knowledge of otome games when they first realized they’d been reincarnated.

“It’s too early to give up on that now, William! Remember, I played the one on my phone that let me romance Shingen Takeda!” Emma hadn’t played any of the western otome games out there, but now that she’d learned of the Japanese-style Eastern Empire, she might have just been reincarnated into the wrong country in the world of her smartphone game Sengoku Girl’s History: Passion and Peril with the Military Commander. She was starting to regret the fact that she hadn’t bothered with any of the other love interests since they were all only in their twenties. But since she had romanced Shingen Takeda, maybe she could use his famous furinkazan battle standard to summon his army?!

But...er...when would she ever need to use that? Even if she did have it, it felt kinda pointless. But maybe she could use the other item! The “Koshu Mountain!” The fully functional flush toilet that could be used for long hours, any time, any place...except when the heck would that be necessary?

What was with that mobile game?

“Well, might as well give it a try, right? Ready?” George, who was the biggest gamer of the group, suggested. He seemed a bit nervous. After all, they were all over thirty on the inside, so it felt pretty embarrassing to try, but in all the manga and light novels they’d read, people would be able to use command menus right after they brought it up. They had no choice but to rely on the wisdom of their predecessors.

The three of them exchanged looks, steeled themselves, and shouted...

“Menu: OPEN!”

And there, before their very eyes, a translucent screen with menu commands...did not appear.

Yep. Knew it. There’s no way things would be that convenient.

All three of them averted their eyes from each other, fully red in the face.

How embarrassing... We’re thirty-some-years old, man. What were we even thinking?

Then, as if someone were voicing their own thoughts: “What in the world are you three doing?” While no menu had appeared before them, the door to Emma’s room was wide open, and Emma’s maid, Martha, now stood in the doorway with a deeply unamused expression.

“M-Martha! You can’t just come in here without knocking!” Emma was so embarrassed, she threw out a line usually reserved for teen girls. Technically, she was a teen at the moment, so it wasn’t that far off the mark. It was embarrassing enough for just the three of them to have done it, but the fact that Martha had seen them was a killing blow of shame.

“I did knock. The king is here right now, so can you please keep it down if you’re going to play around like that?”

Apparently, they’d gotten so carried away that they shouted loud enough to be heard outside the bedroom. What was worse, Martha wasn’t the only one to have seen them.

“Lady Emma! I heard you collapsed at last night’s banquet! I was terribly worried, but I see you’re doing much better now!” Joshua popped out from behind Martha with a massive bouquet in hand. It seemed he was being merciful enough to pretend he hadn’t heard the shouting. They were so grateful for the merchant’s ability to read the room.

“I recall you once saying that you would love it if my store carried seasonal desserts, so I’ve brought you some! We were first in line for these fresh fruits just so you could try the prototypes for our summer menu!” They hadn’t been able to see it behind the large bouquet, but Joshua had also brought a box of sweets, which he handed to Martha. “I’ve also provided some tea leaves and instructions on how to prepare them so you can enjoy some delicious tea with your sweets!”

Joshua seemed to be able to tell the siblings were feeling especially awkward, so he asked Martha to prepare the tea for them. Finally being freed from her exasperated gaze was enough to have them breathing a sigh of relief. Truly, a friend in need was a friend indeed.

Emma’s room, which was about three times larger than the one she’d had in their home in Pallas, had a table and chairs in it just for this kind of occasion. They cleared the table, which had been covered in books at the time, to get ready for the snacks.

“That’s quite a few books you have there. Were you trying to research something?” Joshua asked as he helped clean up the mess. And that was when both George and William realized something: In this world, even if they didn’t have smartphones or Mewgle, they did have Joshua. As a merchant, he went all around the country and gathered all sorts of information about everything.

“Is something the matter? I really don’t like it when you stare at me like that... Oh, except Lady Emma! You can stare as much as you like!” After they’d finished cleaning, Joshua shot the two gawkers an irritated look, then plopped down next to Emma.

Knowing Joshua, he had likely already heard what had happened at the banquet through his vast network of connections. He probably hadn’t shown up first thing in the morning so he could gather even more information. After all, Joshua would have done anything for Emma. At that point, it was less a friend in need and more of an obsessed freak in need being a friend indeed. Regardless, he was possibly an even more convenient resource than Mewgle itself. Now that Joshua was here, both George and William were helpless to refrain from asking.

“Hey, Joshua! Tell us about the Eastern Empire!”

Ping!

“The Eastern Empire is a country to the east of the kingdom. The imperial family were instrumental in the founding of the nation, and were thus deified. Though the empire’s borders have been closed for over three hundred years, it’s said that last year’s poor weather conditions led to significant food shortages. They rushed to the kingdom for assistance, and now the firstborn Imperial Prince Tasuku Hinomoto has been granted entrance. They speak the imperial language, but since nobody other than those within the Eastern Empire are able to understand it, it has become a major obstacle for diplomacy.”

The little ping at the beginning of his response was just their imaginations, but his Mewgle-esque answers were real.

“Now, there’s something I’d like to know too! How is it that you’re able to understand them, Lady Emma? Not even the Rothschild Company has been able to manage trading with the Eastern Empire!” Joshua moaned, wishing Emma had told him she had this ability sooner.

Just as George and William had surmised, Joshua had already looked into what had happened the night before, as well as the Eastern Empire itself. If the Rothschild Company was unable to do something, then the task was likely impossible for any of the kingdom’s diplomats as well.

“See, I don’t understand why any of you can’t speak it...” George said. He wondered why they weren’t studying harder, despite the fact that in his past life as Wataru, he hadn’t retained a lick of English.

“It isn’t for lack of trying that we’re unable to speak it, you know. The Rothschild Company has put all of our efforts into research, and it would seem that people from the Eastern Empire might be built completely differently from the rest of the world. Even if a baby from our kingdom were raised in the Empire, they’d still be unable to understand the language. But if an imperial child were raised in Balitu, they would be able to learn the imperial language with a bit of studying.” They’d done some pretty awful human experimentation in this world... The siblings all felt awful for the poor child who had been raised in the Eastern Empire simply for research purposes.

“So couldn’t they just use someone who speaks both Balitese and the imperial language?” After all, there were people in the kingdom who spoke Balitese.

“Unfortunately, that experiment was conducted nearly eighty years ago, so we don’t know where the subjects are anymore. But as a result of the experiment, Balitu was able to interact with the Eastern Empire even while its borders were closed, and there are apparently some imperials who are able to use greetings and other simple Balitese phrases.”

Eighty-some years ago... It made sense. Even in another world, human experimentation would have been the kind of thing people would hesitate to conduct given the emphasis on human rights in recent history.

“But imperials are able to speak other languages, right?” According to Joshua, there wasn’t anything preventing people from the Eastern Empire from learning another language. And in reality, Prince Tasuku was able to hold a conversation in the kingdom’s tongue, though it was clear he was still struggling to some degree.

“That’s true. But since the country had closed borders for so long, and the people are so loyal to their nation, there hasn’t really been much of a drive for anyone to learn any other languages. There wasn’t any reason to either. It wasn’t until their food shortage forced them to seek help that anyone gave it any effort. Prince Tasuku is said to be a genius, so he has been able to learn quite quickly. But for the rest of the population, it may be several years before they can reach his level.”

None of their teachers could speak the imperial language either, so they all had to make do with learning words through gestures alone. Prince Tasuku was apparently the most advanced speaker in the Eastern Empire.

While the friends were all focused on the conversation, Martha served them the tea and desserts Joshua had brought with him. It was iced tea and tarts using fruits that ripened in the summer.

“Oooh, thank you, Martha!” The siblings all said their thanks and began eating with glee. The tea had plenty of ice cubes in it, so it was perfect for the hot summer days to come.

“You’re not surprised?” Joshua and Martha were both a bit mystified as the siblings all enjoyed their snack. The siblings tried to figure out why they were supposed to be surprised by fruit tarts and iced tea...

“Oh! Right, this might be the first time I’ve ever had tea with ice in it before!” The three of them suddenly realized that refrigeration was not a thing in this world. Back in Pallas, they would store and use whatever ice they got from their springs with care. They’d never had the luxury of using it just to cool down a drink for snacktime.

Joshua took a small box from Martha. “Heh heh heh! As it turns out, we were lucky enough to get our hands on a high-quality magic stone that made this possible.” The stone must have been in the same box as the desserts. When he opened the box, a chill swept over the whole room. “This stone is one that a mage can imbue with magic. There was only one vein of it in the kingdom and it’s unfortunately been mined through and through. As such, it’s become quite the rare commodity. This stone was imbued with ice magic, so I had Martha use it to make ice for our drinks.”

The stone was enveloped in a faint blue glow as it continued to lower the temperature in the room. It became so cold in such a short amount of time, it was easy to see how ice could be made with it. Once they closed the box, the cold was gone like it had never been there.

“Whoa, that’s crazy! It’s just like magic!”

“That’s because it is!”

Joshua nodded with satisfaction at Emma’s pure and utter joy. Considering the siblings had struggled with poverty for so long, they’d never even heard of magic stones. That was way more high fantasy than command menus.

“Magic stones are usually used specifically for strengthening the barrier, so it’s quite rare to find one like this. And now, you can’t mine magic stones without the country’s supervision. They’re virtually impossible to obtain in the first place, though some of the long-standing shops within the capital are said to have some of their own,” Joshua explained, proud to have finally gotten his hands on one. “Remember how you mentioned Lord Robert’s slime gelatin was nice and cold?”

He was right. You couldn’t make a gelatin dessert without cooling it to make it set. Emma had chowed down on it without even thinking. She hadn’t thought it had been cooled with magic.

But that really was a tasty dessert...

“I searched far and wide to get my hands on this so I could see you enjoying your food like that again. It might’ve cost...a little bit!”

Emma was too busy fantasizing about how good the gelatin tasted back then to hear Joshua’s comment.

“I had no idea this stone was so precious. My grandfather had one like it back home that was a pale orange and was warm instead of cold. Every winter, he’d use it as a kairo or in a haramaki,” Martha mused, looking at the little box.

Joshua looked at Martha quizzically. “Huh? What was that, Martha?”

“Oh, I’m so sorry! I wasn’t meaning to compare something so precious to a mere pocket heater or belly band by any means!” The ‘little bit’ Joshua had mentioned was almost certainly an exorbitant price. Martha frantically apologized for comparing it to something so mundane.

“That’s not what I mean. K-Kaino...? Or a hararaki...? I couldn’t really understand what you were saying.” Joshua asked her to repeat herself, desperately straining his ears to understand her.

“Oh? I said kairo and haramaki.”

“Kamiro? Haikiki...?”

“Joshua, are your ears plugged or something? Martha’s saying kairo and haramaki.” William repeated Martha’s words for her.

“Karoi...and...harikiri...?”

The siblings and Martha were all perplexed.

“Joshua, maybe you should go get your ears checked.” No matter how many times they repeated it, Joshua couldn’t understand these very obvious words. The three siblings looked at him with concern. Maybe he was tired? Why was it that he could hold a totally normal conversation, but those two words were just...

“Oh! Wait a second! Kairo and haramaki are Japan—I mean, imperial words! They’re how you say pocket heater and belly band!” Come to think of it, they’d never used those words in this world. But if that was the case, why had Martha used them?

“Hey actually... When we got sick after eating that matsutake, Martha recognized what we said, right? Like, she didn’t know what it meant, but she could hear it properly, right?” Emma thought back to when she recovered her memories of her past life.

At the time, she had said, “Man...I wish I’d at least gotten to drink the beer!” To which Martha replied, “That’s exactly what everyone else said! What kind of strange incantation is that?!”

Essentially, Martha had been able to tell that Emma had said the same thing as the rest of her family. And based on how Joshua was acting, it didn’t seem like it was the kind of thing you could pick up in just a few days either.

“What’s the matter, everyone?” Martha tilted her head, unable to understand why all their focus was suddenly on her.

Right before their eyes was a person from their own kingdom with the potential to learn the imperial language.

What was going on? Did the king and the ambassadors and their grandmother and Joshua all get together to pull some huge prank on them or what?

“Let’s try to recap here. So your grandfather had a magical stone called a kainyo or something...?” Joshua said, rubbing his temples as he thought.

“Y-Yes. It’s not like the one you brought that can freeze water, but it was warm even in the winter.” So it was just like a pocket heater. Why on earth would someone imbue magic into a rare stone just for a bellywarmer?

“I have a theory that they have a large quantity of these magic stones in the Eastern Empire. In our kingdom, we haven’t been able to mine any of the ore for decades. It’s likely that the vein is completely exhausted. At this rate, even if a mage appears here, it’ll be very difficult to obtain the magic stones we need to be able to maintain the barrier to keep monsters at bay. So I presume the reason we’ve agreed to assist with the Eastern Empire’s food supplies is for their abundance of magic stones.”

Without magic stones to help maintain the barrier, the kingdom would be doomed. Emma was finally starting to piece it all together—why the king had been so desperate that he’d wound up grabbing both of her arms. The reason the kingdom was so insistent upon working with the Eastern Empire was for their supply of magic stones.

“B-But...why would my grandfather have had something so precious...?” Martha responded, quite confused now that she’d grasped the severity of the situation.

“The fact that you can follow the imperial language means that you probably have imperial blood in your veins... And since your grandfather had a magic stone, it’s very likely he was an imperial. Was there anything else he told you like that? Like maybe anything related to the Eastern Empire?” Joshua had Martha sit in a chair to help calm her as he continued his questions.

Martha took a little bit, placing the back of her hand up to her lips as she thought. Finally, she thought of something. “Oh! I remember a little magic my grandfather taught me when I lost one of my things! He said to write this symbol on things I didn’t want to lose!”

A magic spell... Well, maybe that might have been something, though since they didn’t know anything about the Eastern Empire, it was really up in the air whether or not they could understand it. They could practically hear the intro to the song about grandpas telling them about the good ol’ days...

Emma always had pens and paper in her room for when she was struck with inspiration for dress or embroidery designs. She placed some in front of Martha.

“Do you remember what it was? Can you write it here?”

“Of course. I’ve written it on everything I own since I was young,” Martha said, grasping the pen and carefully writing the spell out.

The symbols were kanji. And they read “Maasa Ono.” And Maasa was the Japanese pronunciation for Martha. Since Martha was a commoner, she didn’t have an official last name in the kingdom, so the Stewarts had no idea.

Martha was starting to get a bit worried by the siblings’ intense stares. “Um... Does this tell you anything?”

“Martha... These aren’t just any symbols. This is the writing system of the Eastern Empire.”

“Exactly! It reads Maasa Ono in Japan—I mean, the imperial language.” George and William explained what the words on the paper meant to help put Martha at ease.

“H-Hold up, does that mean you two can speak the imperial language too?!” Joshua shrieked. “And not just speak it, but read it?! I was told it was so complicated, it was impossible to read!”

“Oops.” The brothers went quiet. They’d been trying so hard to keep this mess confined to Emma, but now the cat was fully out of the bag. Not only did Joshua know the brothers could speak it, but they could read it. Though the fact that they’d known what kairo and haramaki meant gave it away too.

“What does ‘Maasa Ono’ mean, though?” Martha asked hesitantly. The tension in the room was awkward and heavy, and Martha was reluctant to ask now that she’d become the center of attention in this bizarre conundrum.

“It’s your name in the imperial language, Martha. Ono is probably your last name... I think...?” Come to think of it, where was her grandfather?

“Martha, you’ve been working for the Stewart family as a live-in maid with your family for ages, right?”

“Yes. My husband served you in the Pallas manor, and though my mother and father passed away quite early, they’d also been in the Stewart family’s care,” Martha responded. Her husband served as a coachman, and was currently tasked with going from Pallas to the capital to deliver Pallas Silk for the Rothschild Company. Once they understood that all of the servants were family, they realized that Martha’s grandfather was the gardener, Imoko. He was a sweet man who would always bring any strange bugs he found to Emma. He had been unable to come to the capital with them due to his advanced age, but he was still looking after the garden in Pallas.

“So, hold up. Your grandfather would be uh...our gardener, Imoko, right?” Emma asked. Martha nodded. Apparently, George and William had completely forgotten about Imoko too, as they both raised their heads in realization.

“Wait, then that means Imoko’s an imperial? But wait...if his last name is Ono... And his first name is Imoko... That would make him the Ono no Imoko, wouldn’t it?!”

The siblings recalled the name of the historical figure from their previous life. He was an envoy from far, far before Shingen Takeda’s time, making it quite unlikely that he had anything to do with that mobile otome game Minato had played.

Joshua couldn’t understand what the commotion was about. “What’s the big deal with this Imoko fellow?”

“If he’s the same guy, that makes him a pawnboy for the Eastern Empire!” Even George, who never had much interest in history, recognized this name. Unfortunately, pawnboy was not an actual occupation. The word he was looking for was envoy.

“Based on the name alone, it would seem the chances of our gardener being from the Eastern Empire are quite high.” If they hadn’t known his last name was Ono, they wouldn’t have put two and two together in the slightest. They pronounced it differently in the kingdom’s language, it was a very old-fashioned Japanese name, and it’d be like having Marco Polo in your garden but only knowing him as Marco.

“But now that we know Imoko’s an imperial, we totally have an excuse for why we can speak the imperial language!” the siblings realized. Wasn’t that just convenient? They could just tell everyone that their gardener had taught them how to speak it. Problem solved! They all breathed a sigh of relief and sipped their iced tea.

But that wasn’t going to fly with Joshua.

“Er. If that’s an excuse, what’s the real reason you can speak it? And even with the excuse that this...Imoko person taught you, there’s long-standing evidence that people from this kingdom are unable to comprehend the imperial language on a physiological level.”

Well, obviously, it’s because we’re from another world where the imperial language is Japanese!

There was no way he was going to believe that. And given that they were already being treated like regular weirdos, they’d rather not have it get any worse than it already was.

“We, uh...worked really hard!”

That would have to do. Whether it was with lies or excuses or alibis or whatnot, the more complicated it was, the more easily it would fall apart. Especially with the Tanakas. Just going with the simple answer would have to do. It was pretty heavy-handed, but that was how it had to be. There was no way that would be enough to get them out of this, so it was time to pull out the big guns.

Before Joshua could question them, Emma made her move:

She tilted her head in worry.

She looked at him with pleading puppy-dog eyes, batting her eyelashes.

She placed a finger to her lips.

(And this was the killer.) She pleaded with him in the sweetest voice imaginable. “You believe me, don’t you, Joshua?”

This was a technique Emma had learned directly from Lady Rose for whenever she needed help. Emma had been worried it might be overdoing it, but Rose had given her seal of approval, saying it would work one hundred percent of her time as a teenager. What was more, Rose had demonstrated it on Emma, and it had been extremely persuasive.

“Hnngh... She’s an angel...” Joshua’s face flushed bright red, and he fell from his chair with his hand to his chest. “Sh-She’s so cute... She’s so cute...! Was that really an angel?! It can’t be! Not even the heavens could contain someone that cute! O-Oh, my heart! It’s going to explode! I-I’m in heaven! Agh, my angel is so damn cuuuuttttteeaaaaaahhhh!” Joshua was choking on his own tears, on his hands and knees, clutching at his chest.

Holy smokes. Lady Rose’s signature pleading pose: cuter when you’re actually in trouble. Joshua’s not even thinking about the imperial language at all anymore. I didn’t think someone like me could pull it off... I tip my hat to you once more, my goddess. Only a woman of your impeccable beauty could have come up with something so genius.

Emma once again swore her loyalty to Rose.

Meanwhile, George, William, and Martha were giving poor Joshua the most exasperated looks. They all sighed.

“All right. Who’s out there teaching my lady such underhanded tricks?” Martha’s expression was completely deadpan.

Joshua was on the verge of death by cuteness. The perfectly calculated head tilt. The flawless puppy-dog eyes, green and watering with worry. Putting her finger up to her lips to guide the target’s gaze to them before using that extra saccharine voice. Martha knew Lady Hilda had been teaching the girl proper conduct, and this was decidedly not proper. This was the work of a different kind of professional.

“That’s not an angel, if you ask me. She’s more like a little imp or something.”

“Not even. She’s a straight-up demon. A succubus. No, the devil incarnate!”

While George and William were exasperated, there was a semblance of pity in their eyes as well. Joshua couldn’t be saved. He’d fallen prey to the demon’s clutches, in a hell he thought was heaven itself. With Hilda’s etiquette and Rose’s secrets to success in her arsenal, she was a force to be feared, and only Emma herself was oblivious to it.

Scratch. Scratch. Scratch. Scratch.

From the other side of the door, they heard the sounds of a new disaster that none of them could have ever imagined.

Chapter 41: Home Security

“Excuse me.” George went to the parlor to report to his parents the...unexpected situation that had arisen. The scene had remained mostly unchanged from when William had peeked in on them before, as all of the ambassadors were kneeling in a row before his parents.

“Oh, George! Just the boy I wanted to see!” The king beamed at him before even his parents did. George wanted to explain what had happened right away, but he couldn’t ignore the king. “I am trying to give your father a reward, but he just won’t accept any of my offers no matter what I say. Could you possibly convince him?”

How did the conversation wind up here? What about the whole Eastern Empire business?

“I thank you, Your Majesty, but we simply cannot accept any such reward.” After all, the whole family had determined that there was nothing the king could offer that would make the trouble worth their while. In fact, all of the rewards were more of a pain than a prize.

“Isn’t there any way you could try?” The king was seriously persistent about all of this. They thought for sure the banquet the night before would’ve put an end to his insisting. “After all, you all put your lives on the line to defeat those slimes! You deserve some compensation for your efforts!”

“As we said before, we only did what anyone would have. It would be wrong for us to accept any sort of reward for it.”

The Stewart parents both looked exhausted, as though this conversation had been going on for ages. They also looked a bit relieved that the king’s attacks weren’t focused on them for a moment, which certainly didn’t make George feel much better. The poor diplomats all seemed like they’d missed their window to sit up. Their legs were probably totally numb by now.

“O-Oh, I know! What about Emma? Why, I would be remiss in not providing some sort of apology! She went through something so terrible, so perhaps this could be to make up for it! It was truly a traumatizing experience, so... Yes, I’ll grant you a higher peerage! In fact, I’ll promote you twice!”

Sounds like you’re being a bit too stubborn about this, Your Majesty. Poor Prince Tasuku can’t even follow what’s going on, you know.

“Emma’s already recov— I mean, why don’t we ask Emma herself how she would feel about such an arrangement?” George felt bad passing the buck, but he’d have her come up with a good excuse for turning it down later. He wasn’t in any place to come up with anything himself for the time being, so he was just going to kick that can down the road to Emma. George caught a quick glance of the king looking quite satisfied knowing that he would be able to continue his talks about rewarding them. Finally, he returned his attention to his parents. “Er, father... There’s been a, um... A little bit of an incident.”

“What is it?”

It was plain by the look on Leonard’s face that he desperately didn’t want to hear of any more craziness.

“It’s, uh... You know our pe—er, uh...security guards? They’re, uh...doing that thing again...”

“Security...?” Both the Stewart parents tilted their heads. The only security they had was the gatekeeper, Evan. They didn’t have any guards, and it wasn’t like they had cameras or alarms like in their previous life.

“Yeah, you know...uh, our security guards... Nyakom and Violsok...” George said, hinting as best as he could at the cats and Violet.

“Y-You don’t say...!”

George took a look at Prince Tasuku, who thankfully did not seem to think anything was amiss.

◆ ◆ ◆

A short while earlier, Joshua had been able to recover from the nearly fatal blow Emma had served him, and they all heard a scratching sound at the door—they knew General Kongming would scratch like that instead of knocking.

“Mrowr!”

Knowing the cats weren’t supposed to be in the hallway with the king still on the premises, Joshua, Martha, and the siblings all leaped to open the door. They’d asked the cats to hide some time before the king had arrived...but maybe they’d wandered out on their own?

The moment they opened the door, Martha let out a startled squeak.

“What’s wrong, Martha? Oh.”

“Oh! Oh. Oh jeez.”

“No way... You’ve gotta be kidding me...”

“This is terrible! Lady Emma, hide behind me!”

William, George, Emma, and Joshua were all shocked by the scene in the hall. There, General Kongming sat proudly in front of the prey she’d captured, which she’d plopped down in a neat line.

“Mrowr! Myah meow!”

Apparently, Kongming had lined them up like that to show off to Emma. She used to do the same in front of the Tanaka household in their last life, lining up cicadas, cockroaches, mantises, grasshoppers and the like at the front door. Kongming likely thought the family were all poor hunters, so she was splitting her kills as presents for them. Sometimes, there would be nothing but the cicada’s wings left, leaving them to wonder—against their better judgment—where the rest of it had gone.

However, her victims this time weren’t big black cockroaches, but ten unconscious men dressed all in black. (Naturally, they counted...and hoped they were only unconscious.)

“K-Kongming!”

While Joshua and Martha were just surprised, the three siblings had a terrible feeling they knew exactly who these unconscious people were, and it brought them to their knees. This was now an international incident.

The presents that Kongming had neatly arranged for them were all wearing the same black clothes from head to toe, with only their eyes left uncovered. It was an outfit that nobody in the kingdom would have recognized. But given that the siblings were formerly Japanese people, they saw that these “presents” were the duplicate of the spitting image of a perfect example of a living picture of something they knew all too well.

“So uh...there’s really no two ways about it. There’s a bunch of ninjas lined up on our floor, huh?” William groaned, his face full of despair as he was unable to bring himself to stand again.

“Mrowr!” Kongming was practically gloating as she looked right at Emma.

You’re so cute... You’re just so dang cute!!!

“And it’s pretty clear that these are all people from the Eastern Empire too, right?” Based on the fact that every vaguely Japanese-looking thing they saw in this world was from the Eastern Empire.

“It can’t be! Are you sure?!”

“The Eastern Empire? What?! You mean they’re foreigners...?”

Joshua and Martha now understood the gravity of the situation and they all had a very, very bad feeling about it. People from the very country they were trying to align themselves with were now collapsed on the floor of the Stewart manor. For the first time ever, George and William wished Kongming actually had just brought them a bunch of cockroaches instead.

“Mrow! Meow meow!” Kongming announced proudly as Emma gave her plenty of head scritches.

“What? There’s five more in the attic?”

“Myah meow! Meooowr!”

“O-Oh... Right. Violet caught them in her web up there, huh?”

“Mrowr!”

Wait a sec... I don’t remember letting Violet out of Emma’s House today... She might be a bit too much of a free spirit.

Martha groaned as Emma nodded and responded to Kongming’s report. “Lady Emma, I beg you to keep your conversations with the cats within the walls of this manor. Honestly. I’ll go get some of the servants. We need to at least move all of these men from in front of your room. If the king were to see this, it would become a major incident, so I’ll try to hide them somewhere discreet.”

As Martha went off to find a way to put the men in one of the empty rooms (note: most of the rooms in the manor were empty), Guan and Zhang appeared with even more ninjas in their mouths.

“Just how many ninjas managed to sneak in here?”

It hadn’t seemed like Prince Tasuku had brought any other people from the Eastern Empire with him during the banquet or today’s meeting. Naturally, she hadn’t assumed he’d arrived here completely alone, but apparently these ninjas had been accompanying him in the shadows.

“If they hadn’t come here, they likely would’ve been able to sneak around the kingdom to accomplish whatever mission they came here to do.” The fact that they’d managed to sneak into their house without Leonard detecting them was a testament to their skill.

“I doubt the king, the ambassadors, or anyone in the castle has any idea about these guys.” William muttered he wished they hadn’t known about it as he rolled the ninjas on their sides. All the servants Martha had called upon were men they could trust. Each one had come from Pallas and were used to the messes Emma tended to create, so it was unlikely they were going to leak this information either.

However, it was quite likely that ninjas were a national secret in the Eastern Empire, given their stealth. The fact that the Stewarts were now aware of them gave the siblings nothing but concern for the family’s future.

But while William was worrying, Emma was delighted to see real ninjas in the flesh before her. Not even ninjas could escape Emma’s overactive curiosity.

“I could see this working with like, one or two ninjas, but there were apparently like, seventeen just here in the manor? What do you think they did for food? I heard they were struggling with food shortages back home...”

They all seemed dangerously thin and were light enough that even Joshua could carry them. It made sense for ninjas to stay lithe, but it can’t have been easy to secure enough food for seventeen people in a foreign country without anybody noticing. Especially since moving anything internationally had to be done by boat in this world. If food and water were already a scarcity back in their home, then wouldn’t even ninjas have a hard time finding enough to eat while traveling?

“Seriously, that’s what you’re worried about in this situation, sis?” William’s glare was ice-cold, but being hungry was a terrible thing. It was only natural Emma would worry.

“Martha, can you ask the kitchen to make something that’s nutritious and easy on the stomach?” Even if the ninjas had snuck into their house, Emma would’ve felt terrible sending them home on empty stomachs.

“You’re so kind, Lady Emma...” Apparently, Joshua’s rose-colored glasses were as rosy as ever after taking that massive critical hit earlier.

Then, as if Liu were relieving Martha of her shift, she arrived with two more ninjas in her mouth.

“Meow! Myah mroooowr!” She wore the same boastful expression as Kongming, rubbing up against William, headbutting him so he’d pet her for a job well done.

“Ugh... There’s more of them? How many are left?” William tried his best to take the headbutts as he pet Liu’s head. Their cats really were beyond adorable.

“Myah myah meow! Mrrrrowr!” Liu replied with a satisfied expression while William gently pet her.

“Liu says there’s just one more; one of the ambassadors in the parlor is a ninja in disguise,” Emma translated.

“Just one more... So that makes twenty in total. And one of them’s in disguise too... Wait, Liu said all that in those four sounds?!” Honestly, it was weirder to George that Emma could speak cat than the Empire’s language. It seemed like she was gleaning whole conversations, but it just sounded like meows to him.

“Well, kitty language is all about what feels right!”

All the kitties meowed in agreement. Emma tried to teach her brothers the basics of kitty language while carrying the webbed-up ninja that had been brought from the attic, but nobody could understand a lick of it.

◆ ◆ ◆

What in the world is happening here?

The ninjas in the attic couldn’t believe their eyes. They’d devoted themselves and trained in the art of staying hidden since birth. It shouldn’t have been possible for any human to sense a ninja who’d erased his very presence. That was what made them ninjas. Even in what should have been the secure area in the kingdom, the castle itself, nobody had sensed they were there.

While ninjas mostly worked as intelligence agents, they were unable to understand anyone in the kingdom, so they were mostly serving as Prince Tasuku’s bodyguards. While they couldn’t do the sort of work they did back in their homeland in such an unfamiliar landscape, they still protected the imperial prince from the shadows, undetected by any of the kingdom’s inhabitants.

So maybe they’d gotten a bit cocky.

At the prince’s welcoming ceremony, there had been a girl who understood the imperial language. The frail and delicate girl then had fallen ill and been removed from the ceremony, but her existence had been a major shock to the prince and all the ninjas. The kingdom’s people had all seemed astounded as well, so it was likely they were just as in the dark about it as the imperials.

The next day, they’d heard the king was going to visit the girl’s house, and Prince Tasuku had decided to go with him. When the prince found an opening, he contacted the ninjas: The girl’s manor might have dictionaries translating the kingdom’s language into the imperial language. Or perhaps, in an even more unprecedented turn, she had some kind of magic stone that allowed her to manipulate words.

It made the ninjas’ hearts sing. If they could understand the kingdom’s language, they could get back to their usual jobs.

The kingdom didn’t seem to have any forces like the ninjas who were able to completely erase their presence, so if they were able to understand the kingdom’s language, they’d have the upper hand in information gathering.

While everyone else was waiting at the gate to the girl’s manor, the ninjas had one of their own sneak in as one of the kingdom’s ambassadors. Since the king would be there, they hedged their bets that the meeting wouldn’t go on any longer than necessary. Luckily, the kingdom was far safer than they’d originally assumed, so it was simple enough to leave the bodyguard work to one person while the other nineteen searched the rest of the manor.

Compared to the castle, the manor actually felt deeply lacking in security. There was only a single gatekeeper for the whole massive place. While the premises were surrounded by a giant wall, it was a breeze for ninjas to overcome. While it took some time to pass through the vast yard, they’d gone unseen as they’d suppressed their presence, even if they passed in front of a gardener or two.

They’d managed to infiltrate the manor with ease, and were just about to begin their search for a dictionary or magic stone, when suddenly...one of the ninjas went flying without a sound. Before they could hit the wall, something caught them and placed them quietly on the ground—the ninja had lost consciousness.

What had happened? There shouldn’t have been anyone who could detect them in the whole kingdom. Yet one after another, they were sent flying and laid out on the ground. Whatever it had been was too fast for them to see. Fourteen ninjas had already been taken down in an instant.

One ninja gave the remaining four the order to get to the attic, where they barely escaped with their lives. It had only been seconds. These ninjas, who were all elite even among all the ninjas in the Eastern Empire, had been taken out in only moments.

“B-Boss! What’s going on here?!” the lead ninja’s underlings asked, trembling in fear, completely unable to understand the situation unfolding before them. None of them had ever been so utterly dominated like this before. They had each faced death time and time again and come out stronger and higher-ranked than ever. They’d thought they’d left emotions behind long ago, but now each and every one of them was racked with fear.

Their primal instincts were ignited by the thought of dying a pointless death in this faraway land where nobody could understand them without ever having fulfilled their mission. They trembled and were unable to even think in this worst-case scenario. They had to at least be sure the prince made it home safely...

They all pictured the imperial prince Tasuku, who had come to this kingdom despite his holy status.

Prince Tasuku was a national treasure. He’d learned Balitese in such a short time, then became the only person able to understand even a little bit of the kingdom’s language. Most imperials weren’t used to learning foreign languages and would give up at learning Balitese, but the prince was an exception. His unparalleled natural intellect and hard work were enough for him to see it through. With the Empire struggling for food, he was someone they absolutely could not afford to lose.

The lead ninja stopped shuddering, as did all of his underlings.

No. It wasn’t that they stopped. It was that they couldn’t shudder anymore.

In the blink of an eye, they were wrapped in a purple string of some sort that prevented any further movement. Even if they wanted to scream, the thread had covered their mouths, and no sound could escape. It should have been impossible for anything to have escaped their detection, given how sensitive they were to others’ presences.

In their limited fields of vision, a spider came into view—a massive, purple thing the size of a human head.

What is happening here?!

No matter how hard they tried, they couldn’t fathom the horrors they faced.

After some time, some brawny men came up to the attic to free the ninjas. Was that freakish spider working for them? Did people in this kingdom keep monsters that could best ninjas as pets? They’d thought they were doing quite well, but perhaps the kingdom’s people had just been letting them slide until they caused a scene.

The ninjas had hidden in the shadows, but perhaps those monstrosities that had soundlessly taken them down and the spider that had bound them had been behind them the whole time.

The purple thread did not allow them to fight back, and though they were filled with worry and regret as they were carried away, they couldn’t even move their jaws, meaning they were unable to bite down on the poison capsules they’d hidden in their teeth.

They were brought to a room in this state of utter despair, where they found the girl from the banquet wearing an innocent smile that was terribly unsuited to the events that had transpired. Behind her were the other fourteen ninjas that had been knocked away, all lined up in a row.

The corpses of the elite squad I’ve trained for so long... Lined up and slaughtered.

The boss was filled with rage, sorrow, and utter terror the likes of which he’d never felt before, but he wasn’t afforded the freedom to tremble, let alone voice his myriad emotions.

◆ ◆ ◆

“Pfflegh!”

Emma unwrapped the webbing from the ninja’s mouth so they could talk, but the second she did, Kongming bapped him right on the cheek. The siblings all gasped in horror.

“What the heck, Kongming?! Why’d you do that? You knocked the poor guy’s tooth out!” William said, picking up the thing that had flown out of the ninja’s mouth. “Wait... This isn’t a tooth. What is this?”

“Maybe it’s that thing you see sometimes? Like, a suicide capsule in case they fail their mission, so they can’t leak any information or something?” George speculated while peering down at the toothlike thing in William’s hand.

“Suicide?! They wouldn’t go that far over a failed mission, would they?!” Joshua took a step back from George, shocked that his friend could imagine something so horribly violent.

“I mean, they’re ninjas, so...”

“Yeah, it’s pretty much expected with ninjas.”

“Ninjas do that.”

The siblings gave a perfunctory explanation that ninjas were similar to spies, but there was no way a spy from the kingdom would have killed themselves over a failed mission. It was just unthinkable. There were some rare cases in the military where someone would take the fall for a catastrophic failure and be executed for it, but that was only in extreme circumstances. Joshua was used to cultural differences, and even he couldn’t imagine that brutal sort of thought process, but the siblings seemed to think it was perfectly normal.

“All right, what have you been up to now, Kongming?”

“Meow?” She was pressing her fluffy front paws against the mouth of the ninja she’d bapped earlier.

“Oh, are you making sure he doesn’t bite his tongue off?”

“Mrowr!” It was a sweet gesture from Kongming, but seeing her kneading at a ninja’s mouth like that was a surreal visual. Though for some reason, the siblings couldn’t help feeling a bit envious...

“What’s your name, Mr. Ninja?” Emma asked.

Kongming removed her paws from the ninja’s mouth so he could talk, but he didn’t respond.

“We do know enough first aid to help you if you try to bite your tongue off, so we’re not gonna let you die. Sorry.” Emma gave her trademark smile to put the ninja at ease, but he looked more terrified than ever.

Just how much did the cats put them through?

“My name’s Emma Stewart.” Emma collected herself and gave the introduction and bow she had learned straight from Hilda herself. Considering they’d snuck into the manor, they probably already knew her name, but her grandmother always said that effective communication always started with a greeting. “This is my older brother, George Stewart, and my younger brother, William Stewart. This is my friend Joshua Rothschild, whom I’ve known since I was little. The cats here are General Kongming, Liu, Guan, and Zhang, and the spider is Violet.”

Emma continued to introduce each of the people in the room, but the ninjas’ expressions didn’t soften one bit. All they’d retained was the mistaken belief that the kingdom had massive cats and spiders with monstrous strength.

“There are a lot of you guys, so I’m just gonna call you Hattori.” Emma was getting a bit impatient that the ninjas refused to respond, no matter how openly she spoke to them, so she gave the man a totally stereotypical name. After all, when thinking of ninja names, you had to go with Hattori or Sarutobi or something.

It didn’t seem like they were going to respond, so she was going to continue talking until she noticed the look of utter fear on Hattori’s face. Finally, he spoke.

“So this means...you knew everything from the start...” He sighed in resignation. The abnormal strength of the gargantuan spider and cats that could detect the presence of even the most elite ninjas. The fact that they knew of and removed the suicide capsules in their teeth and were even prepared for them to bite off their tongues. The fact that they were able to tell which one of the ninjas, who were all dressed the same, was the boss and (although she’d said it was for convenience), she even knew his name... It was a total defeat.

“What is it you want to know?” They couldn’t betray their own Empire, but they knew they couldn’t resist such a formidable foe. The Stewarts easily could have killed each of the lower-ranking ninjas, but they had all been captured alive. Clearly, the Stewarts were in need of some sort of information.

All that mattered was that Prince Tasuku made it back to the Eastern Empire safely. That was the highest priority above all. As such, they were going to have to make a deal.

The girl before him bent down to meet his eyes and answered his question with perfect imperial pronunciation and grammar. “Hattori... Are you hungry?”

The boss let out a sound in shock at the completely unexpected question before he could stop himself. “Huh?”

“I mean, this is just a guess, but it’s probably supposed to be a secret that you’re all here, right? And even if you’re taking turns with the food, if you don’t speak our language, you can’t get more. And if you tried to steal some or go looking for scraps, you’ve gotta get enough for twenty people, and that’s got a major risk of getting caught...”

The boss gasped. She’d just said twenty people! She even knew about the ninja who was at the prince’s side! Hattori was horrified at just how thoroughly the girl before him had seen through them. It was true. Food was one of the things that had plagued him since they’d begun working in the kingdom. They hadn’t been able to bring much with them, as their homeland was struggling with a food shortage. They’d received some leftovers from the banquet the previous night, but they’d already eaten the last of their supplies. And they knew it would be a long time before Prince Tasuku had fully grasped the kingdom’s language.

Was this girl going to hang food over their heads to coerce them into talking?! They were ninjas. Ninjas of the highest degree. They wouldn’t be made fools of so easily.

“We’re ninjas. Hunger isn’t something that could stop us.”

After a knock, the door opened.

“I beg your pardon. Lady Emma, the food is ready,” Martha said, entering with a cart with a pot of soup and plenty of bread. The gentle scent of creamy corn soup came wafting through.

“Ooh, creamy corn soup!” Emma gasped. It was her favorite.

“Lady Emma, this is for our guests,” Martha warned Emma, as the girl drifted over to the pot as though she were on a lure. Martha shot her a dirty look; how could she still want to eat after everything she’d had that morning?

Emma turned to face the ninjas again to escape Martha’s wrath and gave them a smile. “You know what they say: ‘You can’t fight on an empty stomach,’ right?”

The ninjas’ eyes widened. The girl even knew their common sayings. This girl was so delicate. Her large scars stood out, and she was so skinny, she might be sent flying with a mere tap. They never could have imagined they could be so deftly manipulated by someone like her.

“Kongming, could you wake up the other ninjas? It’s better to all eat together!”

“Mrowr!”

Kongming obeyed Emma and began pressing on the unconscious ninjas’ cheeks with her large, squishy paw pads.

“Nngh...”

“Wh-What is this...?”

“So squishy...”

Hattori couldn’t believe his eyes as his underlings began to awaken one after another.

“You were...alive?”

“Of course they are! We wouldn’t kill someone just for breaking and entering!” William said while undoing the webbing around Hattori so he could enjoy his meal.

“You sure you should be speaking the imperial language, William?” George asked as he undid the other ninjas’ webbing, speaking in the imperial tongue himself for some reason.

“You both are speaking it.”

“Oh, shoot!” William and George both exclaimed.

Hattori and the rest of the ninjas were flabbergasted.

Up until this point, people only knew Emma could speak the imperial language, but that had been shattered in an instant by the two stooges she called her brothers.

The vibes could not have been more awkward.

“Welp, why don’t we get to eating?” Emma said. What was done was done. She smiled, dished up some soup, and placed it in front of the ninjas. This room wasn’t in use, so there weren’t any tables or chairs. She placed each bowl of soup on the floor in front of them, though it wasn’t proper etiquette. At the very least, she was able to spread out some placemats she’d made in her embroidery classes. She’d gotten too into her work, accidentally making about one hundred and fifty of them, and even after giving them out to any lords who’d brought her snacks, she still had plenty left over. Martha must’ve made the smart decision to bring some with the food.

“Lady Emma?” Martha warned. She hadn’t stopped pouring bowls after she’d made enough for the nineteen other ninjas. Apparently, she was raring to eat some herself.

“You gonna have some too, guys?” Emma asked.

“I guess I am pretty hungry...” George said.

“Seeing it definitely made me hungry,” William responded.

They’d all dealt with so much that morning, so George and William politely sat next to the ninjas and waited for their soup. Though the ninja sitting next to them began to tremble with fear, they didn’t seem to notice.

“How about you, Joshua?”

“Y-Yes, I will!” Joshua sprang to action once Emma spoke to him in the kingdom’s language, enthusiastically plopping down next to one of the ninjas. “L-Lady Emma is...going to...serve me soup...! L-Like we’re husband and wife! Like newlyweds! Oh, heavens above, my gratitude knows no bounds! My thanks! I am forever in...your...debt!” Joshua kept up his bizarre babbling as Martha placed a piece of bread before him and each of the ninjas before Emma’s soup arrived. She looked upon him with eyes full of pity. Even the ninjas sitting next to him were giving him a puzzled look. Even if they didn’t know what he was saying, some things transcended language.

“All right everyone! Let’s eat!” Emma put her hands together, grinning at all the anxious ninjas who had only just woken up.

“B-Boss, what’s going on here?!”

“What’s happened to us?!”

Unfortunately, even though he’d been conscious the whole time and had spoken directly with Emma, even Hattori didn’t know what was happening. It was only natural that his underlings would be worried. The last time they’d had a proper meal was before they’d left their homeland. What if this food was poisoned? Or some kind of truth serum?

“There’s no poison or anything, I promise!” Emma said, as though she’d read their minds. Then, she took a bite before anyone else. “Mmmm! It’s so good!” One bite wasn’t enough. She kept spooning more and more into her mouth, all the while beaming with pure satisfaction and putting a hand to her cheek after every bite.

Emma’s smile left them stunned, until Hattori finally steeled his resolve and brought the bowl to his mouth. “M-Maybe we should have some too...”

“B-Boss!”

If the Stewarts had any intention of killing them, they could easily do it with the giant cats and spider. They might have wanted information, but if they thought rationally about the situation, the Stewarts already knew that there were ninjas in the Eastern Empire—a place that was entirely closed off from the world. This was a fact that was confidential even from those in the Eastern Empire. What was more, the Stewarts even knew the ninjas’ names.

There was no way they could win. Even if the yellow liquid before them was poisoned, they had no choice but to eat it. Hattori followed the actions of the girl before him and brought the liquid to his mouth with the spoon.

“Mmmph!”

“Boss!”

The other ninjas’ blood ran cold seeing their boss twitch so suddenly. They knew it had to have been poisoned. But then, as though the underlings’ worries were for nothing, Hattori swallowed and let out a breath.

A mild sweetness spread throughout Hattori’s mouth. “This is...delicious! What in the world is this? It’s amazing!” His hunger had surpassed even starvation itself, yet he’d been focused wholeheartedly on nothing more than completing his mission. When he swallowed the warm food, his body, which had become rigid with fear, began to relax. The thick soup filled and satisfied his poor, empty stomach.

Hattori heard a soft giggle, and when he looked up to see the source, he found the girl with her dazzling smile once more. He froze.

How had he not realized how beautiful she was until just now?

Everyone in the Eastern Empire had blue hair and blue eyes. Hattori had always been bewildered by the assortment of colors on the kingdom’s people each day. But the girl in front of him was just...

“Right? It’s the best, isn’t it?” she asked as she grinned and tilted her head. The moment she did, he felt his heart leap. This was something he hadn’t felt before, not even when he’d gone to a woman’s bedchambers. His face went red like a teenage boy’s, and he silently nodded in lieu of the words he couldn’t say.

“What...? Boss?”

“Are you okay? It was poisoned, wasn’t it?!”

Hattori ate more to show his underlings that it was safe. It wasn’t poisoned, and even if it had been, it was still worth it to taste something so delicious. The soup was delicious, but...

Hattori’s heart was beating so hard, he could feel it throughout his whole body. He knew he shouldn’t continue looking at that girl. All good sense in his mind was sounding alarms about her. Yet for the first time since he’d become a ninja... No, since he’d even been born...his instincts won. He met her eyes when she’d brought the soup back to her mouth for another bite, and when she noticed it, she put her hand to her cheek once more, as if to ask him if he thought it was delicious too.

Hattori dropped his spoon with a clatter.

Sh-She’s so cuuute! No, she’s surpassed the realms of all cuteness! She’s... She must be a celestial maiden of some sort! That’s the only explanation! She has to be a celestial maiden with how beautiful and darling she is!

The ninja’s heart was awash in a sea of golden flowers of love.

Hattori Hanzo was fifty-two years old. The poor man was right in the range that tended to fawn over Emma. Given the suspension bridge effect brought about by his fear of the creatures of the household, he’d fallen right into the depths of hell. A place where countless victims had never once managed to crawl back out of.

A short distance away from Hattori, who was now on all fours and clutching at his chest, George and William stared at him with creamy corn soup just pouring out of their mouths.

“Am I having déjà vu or something? We totally just saw this...”

“Here I thought Emma was just being nice to that ninja, but now I see Hattori’s one of those stoic, all-work-and-no-play old men...”

“She’s so scary. Like, way scarier than any demon out there.”

Meanwhile, in spite of the brothers’ fear, Emma was making her way toward the pot with her empty bowl.

“Anyone want seconds?”

“Yes, please!”

The younger ninjas, even as ninjas, were utterly taken by the flavor of the thick, creamy corn soup. The way to their hearts was clearly through their stomachs, and Emma had taken down even the Eastern Empire’s most elite ninjas with its deliciousness.

“Do you think she even knows she’s doing it?”

“This whole thing is getting ridiculous. I should go tell father what’s happening...” George said. He finished the rest of his soup in one gulp, then stood up.

In the end, they managed to befriend every last one of the captured ninjas before they’d even managed to question them about anything.

◆ ◆ ◆

With George’s brief report, he handed Leonard a note.

Leonard pored over it, nodded, then looked over at the ambassadors who were still kneeling to him on the floor.

- Ninjas have invaded. Twenty in total. Nineteen have been captured (and are already under Emma’s spell).

- The last ninja is disguised as one of the ambassadors.

- Mr. Imoko might be from the Eastern Empire. We think so because Martha can hear and recognize when things are said in the imperial language.

- The Eastern Empire might be holding their magic stones over our heads so they can ask for help.

“I see.” Having read George’s note, he was finally able to connect the dots as to why the ambassadors were so fervently after Emma.

Rumor had it that the veins where one could mine magic stones in the kingdom had been nearly tapped out. Even if a mage did one day appear, without a magic stone that could hold enough magic to reinforce the barrier, the kingdom would likely be doomed in less than a century.

Leonard had been familiar with magic stones as a child. Magic stones that weren’t being used for the barrier were instead flaunted by the upper crust as a status symbol. Many were used in a way that was reminiscent of common household appliances in the Tanakas’ previous life.

The Stewarts weren’t very well-to-do back then, so he had never seen something so valuable, but he’d certainly heard plenty of bragging about them at school and around high society, and he’d never been able to hide his resentment for it. There were so many hunters in his region risking their lives to protect the kingdom from invading monsters. These simpletons were bragging about using magic stones for useless junk when they could have been using them to help strengthen or repair the barrier. Even if their stone stopped just one monster from getting through, it would still have saved lives.

All of these nobles clamoring for magic stones had eaten heavily into the supply that the mage at the time needed. Using the magic in one of these stones diminished its power until it ran out, yet those socialites had bragged that they were using the stones over and over until the magic was depleted, then they’d have more mined until finally, the vein in the kingdom had run dry. Even the magic stones that had been intended for the barrier had apparently been sold by the nobles in charge to put a few extra coins in their pockets. All that to say, magic stones were now a valuable commodity that the kingdom would pay any price to obtain.

The localized barrier crisis the previous year was proof enough that the magic imbued in the stones around the border lands was running out. This was now becoming a situation that even those in the capital, who had hardly any worries about monsters at all, were forced to act upon. If the Eastern Empire had magic stones in surplus, then it was very likely the kingdom would have done anything to obtain them now that the barrier was starting to come apart.

Without a mage, they wouldn’t even have the barrier. Without magic stones, they wouldn’t be able to uphold the effects of the barrier’s magic. While Leonard thought he’d understood that well enough, once he got to thinking about it again, it really hit home how bad the situation was.

“Count Stewart, what is that paper?” the king asked, puzzled at Leonard’s stern expression upon reading the note.

Leonard couldn’t just say he was deeply concerned for the future of their kingdom’s extremely internal affairs before the king, so he smiled to cover it up. “Why, it was just a report from Emma’s doctor. It says she’s recovering quite well, so there’s nothing to worry about, Your Majesty.”

“I see...” Though Leonard hoped that would be enough to fool them, the king and the imperial prince next to him had seen how distressed he looked while reading it...which led to the unfortunate misunderstanding that Emma’s condition was actually not good. What was worse, Leonard didn’t even realize this misunderstanding had taken root.

“Well, we shouldn’t keep you any longer. I think it’s time we head back,” the king said, slowly standing up to make sure he didn’t damage the Emma silk sofa cover. Prince Tasuku followed suit, but Oliver, one of the still-kneeling ambassadors who hadn’t seen Leonard’s expression, then piped up.

“With all due respect, Your Majesty! We still haven’t resolved the issue of the imperial language! If Lady Emma is recuperating, then we should discuss it at once!”

Ugh. He’s such a pain. But now that Leonard knew that magic stones were at stake, he could at least understand why someone who knew the dire state of things would be so insistent. Oliver couldn’t just come out and say that the veins of ore had run dry in their kingdom if he didn’t want to cause a panic. It was likely Leonard himself wouldn’t have known about the dwindling supply of magic stones if it weren’t for the information he received from the Rothschild Company. Joshua’s father would go on and on about things Leonard didn’t really want to know about whenever they went out drinking, so before he knew it, he’d become quite knowledgeable about the world around him.

“Oliver, Emma just collapsed yesterday. I understand your concerns for the country, but we should let it rest and retire for the day.” Though the king was even more worried than Oliver himself, as a father to a daughter of his very own, he couldn’t possibly force the matter after having seen Leonard’s consternation.

“B-But, Your Majesty! If this continues... Please, if we could only find out just how she learned it...!” Yet even still, Oliver persisted.

Melsa looked up at the ceiling in utter annoyance. He’d always been like this. He couldn’t read the room or how people were feeling whatsoever. All he could do was doggedly chase after whatever problem was right in front of him. In school, Melsa had always been at the top of her class, but he was always just one step below her. He had a totally rotten personality, but he really had worked and studied hard for his country. That much hadn’t changed at all.

Actually...just plain hard work... That could be something. Melsa’s eyes lit up.

“She put every ounce of hard work she could into studying it...” As Melsa spoke, Oliver raised his head quite enthusiastically. It seemed to him that she had finally given in.

“What?”

“Emma has always been quite sickly, and was never allowed to go out beyond our yard. For so very long, the garden was her whole world,” Melsa began her bold-faced lie. “The only way for her to fight the sadness and loneliness was to learn about the plants”—bug food—“and wildlife”—bugs—“she found in her gardens...”

Melsa paused and looked to the king. “We have a gardener employed at our manor in Pallas. An old man named Imoko. Since Emma couldn’t run around like the others, he taught her so many things. And one of those things was the imperial language...”

“But that’s ridiculous!” Oliver shouted, unable to accept this farce. “Why would that gardener know the imperial language?! And what’s more, we worked just as hard to learn it! Why is it that a little girl can understand it better than we can?!”

“Oh, you worked hard, did you? Did you work for over a decade, every single day, for hours at a time? In the Pallas region, our time as parents was severely limited due to the ever-present monster threat. Her brothers were both far too busy with both social lessons and monster studies, so Emma had nobody to turn to. I can only imagine she did her very best to study the language just to get our gardener to spend even just a little bit more time with her...”

A loud sniffle interrupted them. The king was now wiping his eyes, brought to tears by Melsa’s completely baloney story. Once again, the rugged, handsome old man was weeping massive teardrops without any concern that he was in public. (As a side note, Emma had drawn countless pictures of the king crying in her sketchbook, so Melsa had grown more than tired of it.)

Another loud sniffle. This time, for some reason, from Leonard who had started to cry as well.

Sweetheart, you were with Emma every single day. It was so bad, even she started to get annoyed sometimes. You even brought her with you on your hunts so she could go on about how “super strong” and “cool” her “awesome” father was. Why in the world are you crying?!

And George, quit looking at them with such disgust!!!

Melsa desperately tried to communicate all of this with her eyes, but Leonard’s tears never stopped, and George couldn’t hide his exasperation.

“We only learned today, when Emma woke up, that the words Imoko taught her were the imperial language. We knew it was a foreign language, but, as ashamed as I am to admit, we’d never even heard of the Eastern Empire...” With this detail, she implicitly implied that it would be an issue to suddenly ask them for assistance.

Prince Tasuku had been quiet up until that moment. “Ono no Imoko...” He seemed surprised to have heard that name in the kingdom’s language. “Imoko! He was our country’s only...um...bilingual! He disappeared at sea...um...fifty years ago.”

Imoko had already been their gardener for decades by the time Melsa had married into the family. According to Leonard, he’d been around since before he was even born. It was said that of all the servants, Imoko had served the Stewarts the longest, but he had always spoken the kingdom’s language just fine. Naturally, they had never even heard of the imperial language. They’d need to send him a letter to get the story straight as soon as possible...

Just who was their gardener...?

“I can tell...Lady Emma must have been, um, awfully troubled. But we still...really need her...to save my country!”

“I’m so very sorry. It’s just too great a burden to place upon my little Emma.” Because she’s such a troublemaker. “I can hear how well you’re able to speak our language. Is that not enough?”

Melsa couldn’t possibly leave the fate of the kingdom up to Emma. The girl would wind up causing international incident after international incident in every negotiation, and she wouldn’t even realize what she’d done.

“I am the only one who understands your language. I can’t do all the...um...diplomacy...um...negotiations...and teaching your language all by myself. My country doesn’t have enough time.” The prince kept his head lowered and balled his fists.

It was clear to Melsa that the Eastern Empire’s food shortage was more serious than she’d assumed, and they may have been right on the brink of running out. The Eastern Empire and the kingdom were both in dire straits. They needed these negotiations to work out, no matter what.

“I understand,” Melsa knew she had no choice but to give in. Prince Tasuku raised his head hopefully. “Leonard and I shall lend you our assistance.”

“What?” The imperial prince looked confused, and Melsa gave a bold grin in response.

“Did you think we were content to let Emma be alone for so long?”

“Hmm?”

Even the king could only tilt his head in confusion at the suggestion in Melsa’s statement.

“Our entire family is able to understand the imperial language,” she continued.

The king, the imperial prince, and the ambassadors’ voices echoed throughout the entire parlor. “Whaaaaat?!”

◆ ◆ ◆

“B-But that’s impossible!” Oliver stood up from his kneeling position and shouted. “Your whole family knows it?! Don’t be ridiculous! The imperial language isn’t something you can just learn through plain hard work!”

After becoming an ambassador, Oliver had continued his studies and mastered multiple other languages. Since he understood Balitese, he was able to help whenever Prince Tasuku was unable to communicate in the kingdom’s language. He’d attempted to learn the imperial language, knowing full well just how much he needed to help Prince Tasuku, but it was all to no avail.

So why could the Stewart family do it? He might have understood if it were only Melsa. She was the only one who ever bested him every time in the academy.

“Count Stewart! There’s no way you’re able to speak it too! Y-You only barely scraped by in school and only barely managed to graduate! It should have been impossible for you to learn any second language, let alone the imperial one!” It was a horrible thing to say. He could feel George’s gaze upon him, but Leonard himself was deliberately averting his eyes.

How could you say such an awful thing in front of a man’s son, Oliver? Couldn’t you have just a little bit of compassion or consideration?

“Oliver. Real life is different from the classroom.” Leonard said, giving Oliver a sympathetic look. It was as though he was saying, “That’s something you’ll never understand for as long as you live.” It was enough to make Oliver raise his voice again.

“Then what’s so different about it?!” Oliver was furious. There was no way Leonard could do something he had been unable to in the brains department.

With the most sincere expression he could possibly muster, Leonard lied. “It’s all about love.”

“What.”

“I said what I said. I love Emma so much that I would make the impossible possible.”

Honestly, you saw my daughter, didn’t you? You saw just how much of a darling little angel she is! I would lift off into heaven and space itself just for her!

Leonard gave a proud laugh, despite not even actually having done anything special in particular. When he happened to catch a glimpse of George, he could tell there was nothing but pity in his eyes.

As though you and your brother aren’t soft on your sister too! Whatever! I suppose they are at that age where they’re shy about their true feelings... Leonard thought, grasping at straws for excuses.

“I understand... I understand all too well, Count Stewart! I’d do anything for my little Jadwiga too!” The king was ugly crying now, frantically wiping his tears away with his handkerchief, and agreeing with his whole heart.

Welp. The king’s crying again.

George’s expression of utter pity turned to the king.

“Ahem. Well, since seeing is believing... Prince Tasuku, would you mind speaking with us in your language?” Melsa asked the imperial prince, who had just been silently watching the two weeping old men. She was sure he had plenty he wanted to ask them, but was waiting for the opportunity to speak out of respect for the king.

“In my language... Y-Yes! What would you like to talk about?”

“Well...” Just a greeting wouldn’t be a good way to prove their fluency. It seemed like a great opportunity to bring up something they might not have been able to talk about in front of the king and the ambassadors. They had something they needed to apologize for on behalf of their family too. Melsa subtly elbowed Leonard and signaled with her eyes to the note George had brought them.

Their cats and spider were part of their family too, after all. As the head of the family, Leonard needed to take responsibility for them. They could continue their negotiations afterward.

“Er... I’m so sorry to say this, but we’ve taken the nineteen ninjas who had snuck into our mansion into our custody.”

Tasuku stood up noisily at Leonard’s apology.

“Oh, I know there’s one of you mixed in with the ambassadors as well. Don’t react unless you want to make the king and Oliver suspicious.” Leonard said after seeing the prince stand up. He wanted to nip that response in the bud before the ninja attempted to take matters into his own hands.

Prince Tasuku had gone utterly pale and a bead of sweat ran down his cheek.

“Prince Tasuku? Is everything all right?” The king asked, wiping his tears away and knitting his brow at the prince’s sudden reaction.

“I-It’s okay, Your Majesty. I was just...surprised how fluent they were.” Tasuku swallowed to help steel his nerves, then slowly lowered himself to the couch again. “What do you want from us?”

He understood that Count Stewart had told him this in the imperial language, meaning it was likely he was planning to keep the existence of the Empire’s human weapons a secret from the kingdom. Depending on their conditions...

Prince Tasuku still couldn’t believe that all but one had been caught in the time it had taken for them to have this meeting. They’d never even been noticed at the castle. But here, even the one who’d been in disguise was found out. The fact that the Stewarts even seemed to understand what a ninja was filled him with fear.

At the moment, the only thing the Eastern Empire had to offer other countries was its magic stones. Balitu was an island without any threat of monsters which they still managed to have smooth diplomatic relations with. However, the empire had now heard that the kingdom had seen a large-scale monster disaster only a year prior. The Empire had plenty of magic stones to spare if it meant the kingdom would help them with their food supply, so they would have been happy to hand over a few to a small fraction of the diplomats from the kingdom. This was all because a mage hadn’t appeared in their kingdom for some time, and they underestimated just how much their kingdom’s influence and strength had waned.

The world was so vast. Perhaps the empire was fated to be dancing in the palm of the Stewart family’s hand before they’d even handed over the magic stones. Prince Tasuku had failed his country. He’d never even imagined there was a place with resources that could hold a candle to their ninjas.

He was racked with guilt, and he began to ball up the fabric draped over the sofa—the highest of high-quality Emma silk—without realizing it. This made Oliver, who was behind him, squeal in fear, but the imperial prince was too deep in his despair to hear it.

The king overheard this squeal, noticed the Emma silk in the imperial prince’s hand, and gulped. He made eye contact with Count Stewart as if to say, I’ll pay to make this right, so let this slide.

However, Leonard didn’t seem to pay it any mind. Instead, he responded to Prince Tasuku’s question. “What do we want? Ah, I think someone in our house will be discussing such matters with the ninjas. I do hope it goes as well as I’m sure we’d all like it to...” Seeing the brazen smile upon Leonard’s face made Prince Tasuku tighten his fist.

The ninjas would never talk about the magic stones. Even if the Stewarts tried to torture it out of them. Even if the Stewarts were to kill them in front of each other... No, long before any of that, the ninjas would have ended their own lives to keep that information from leaking. They were ninjas, and not just any ninjas, but the strongest ninjas in the Eastern Empire. It was more than likely they were already dead.

Leonard Stewart was truly a fearsome foe.

◆ ◆ ◆

Just as the king and Oliver were growing pale over the imperial prince balling his fist around the Emma silk tighter and tighter, the ninjas finished their meal.

“Okay, everyone! Attention please! I have a really important thing to ask you all, so I need you all to be good boys and answer me, okay?” Emma said.

With their stomachs full, the ninjas all began to grow nervous. They couldn’t betray the Empire, no matter how delicious their food was. Even if their captors were to rip out their nails, gouge out their eyes, or burn their friends alive, a ninja would never speak.

“Lady Emma... We cannot reveal the Empire’s secrets...” Hattori began, but before he could finish, Emma interrupted him.

“Who here knows how to make miso?”

All of the ninjas tilted their heads in confusion.

“You heard me, right? Who here knows how to make miso?”

Once again, the ninjas couldn’t believe their ears. Apparently, what the Stewarts wanted from the Eastern Empire...was miso, soy sauce, pickled vegetables, tofu, natto, red beans, and so on and so forth. It had been a year and a half since the memories of their past lives had awakened, and the whole family was starving for Japanese food.

“Oh, and white rice! We have tons of flour, so could we trade it for rice? Even just a little is fine!”

“Wait, sis! If you’re asking for rice, then you should ask for mentaiko too! You do have mentaiko, right?” William swallowed hard when he heard rice.

The ninjas were in utter disbelief. It took them around thirty minutes to fully grasp what Emma had asked them, but soon enough, the ninjas who knew how to make miso and soy sauce raised their hands. The Stewarts knew they could probably get the ingredients by asking Joshua.

What the Stewart family wanted was the ingredients they needed to make the good old Japanese food they used to love. That, and people who could make miso and soy sauce. And since they were going to be able to make miso soup, they wanted tofu too. The requests got longer and longer as their greed intensified, but many of the ninjas knew how to cook—making them better husband material than the boys in the kingdom. They were happy to answer Emma’s many questions, and in return, they received the greatest angelic smile of the day.

Chapter 42: A Very Important Question

“Lady Emma!”

As Emma entered the Embroidery classroom, all the girls who sat at her table clustered around her in concern.

“Why, good morning everyone! You’re awfully early today, Lady Marion.” Emma greeted her with a smile. Normally, Marion took her time coming to class, but that day she’d arrived before Emma.

“Are you quite all right?! I heard you fainted at the banquet... You’re not pushing yourself, are you? Perhaps you should have stayed home today?” Francesca took Emma’s hand and guided her to sit down at their table. One of Francesca’s most endearing traits was how she always looked after others. By all appearances, she seemed like one of those extremely pompous nobles, but she was actually the softest and most feminine of all the embroidery group.

I’m going to have to make her dress with pink lace. It’ll be cute, but not too cute. A nice, mature dress. It might be hard to actually put together, but thinking about it is always fun.

“I appreciate you caring so much. I promise, I am back to perfect health.” She hadn’t really fainted in the first place, but plenty of people had seen the prince carrying her bridal style, so even people like Francesca, who hadn’t attended, had heard.

“Is your arm all right, Lady Emma? My brother told me what happened. I’ve been so worried...” Marion asked as she gazed at Emma’s right arm, then told her it was all right if she wanted to just observe in class that day.

While Emma was grateful for her concern, her arm hadn’t hurt at all. Besides, they were supposed to embroider handkerchiefs today, and she’d excitedly brought two hundred with her. There would’ve been no point to her having gone through the (quite arduous) trouble of hefting them all the way to class if she went home without touching them.

“Lady Marion, I am perfectly all right now. I think Arthur was just exaggerating. I’m certain I can embroider a hundred, or even two hundred, handkerchiefs in the blink of an eye,” Emma said, dropping the two hundred handkerchiefs on the table with a thump and a smile.

Emma thought back to the dress she’d sewn the night before and had the idea to ask George to make an accessory that would match Marion’s hair. She was so tall and had such delicate features. Emma was so jealous of her supermodel looks.

“I don’t think the professor asked for that much, right, Catherine?”

“No, I don’t think the professor did ask for that much, Caitlyn.” The twins’ eyes widened at the massive pile of handkerchiefs Emma had brought with her. It was a huge stack of materials, as per usual. They had their silver hair done up in pigtails tied with light blue ribbons that day. The blue in their silver was a really lovely color combination.

The twins’ family owned the Simmons region, which housed a large port. Therefore, an ocean print would work perfectly for them, Emma thought.

With the king, Prince Tasuku, the ninjas, and all their guests yesterday, things were far too hectic for the family to get much sewing done. Here Emma had wanted to make dresses for all her friends with her family during her time off, but she’d only managed to get started on Lady Marion’s.

Come to think of it, when Emma was sneaking a peek at the handsome king after he was done talking with her parents, she noticed Prince Tasuku had looked awfully down.

Well, I’m sure he was just hungry.

◆ ◆ ◆

“Why are you all still alive?”

After returning to the castle from the Stewart house, Prince Tasuku sat down in the room reserved especially for royal visitors. Once he dismissed the servants, twenty ninjas appeared before him. Not a single one of them was missing. They were all present.

For the ninjas to still be alive...

All nineteen of the ninjas Count Stewart said he’d had in his custody were alive and well before him. What was more, they seemed to have been freed without a single scratch on them or even their clothes. Did this mean that his most elite ninjas had been captured without any resistance?

It was unthinkable.

Had they spilled all of the Eastern Empire’s secrets? No, ninjas would never even hint at such secrets, let alone spill them all. There were far too many contingency plans to take their own lives if they ever found themselves in such a situation. That was what it meant to be a ninja.

So then why were they all alive? Had everything the prince had seen at the Stewart house been a dream? After all, the Eastern Empire had gotten more than they ever could have wished for after their talk.

The Stewart couple had agreed to help interpret for them on all diplomatic matters. What was more, the count said he could have a ship with supplies for the Empire sailing by the very next day. All it took was one message to his eldest son, and everything was settled in an unbelievable twenty minutes.

“George, can you have Joshua procure the necessary foodstuffs to send to the Eastern Empire?”

That was all he had said. The first question in the prince’s mind was wondering who Joshua was...but after twenty minutes, George came back with a sheet of paper. It said that all of the supplies they’d asked for—the wheat, soy beans, dried meat, dried fruits, and so much more—had been taken care of like it was nothing at all. The amount they’d asked for would likely have taken days, even if the kingdom itself were to spearhead the effort. Count Stewart politely read the contents out loud in the imperial language, then smiled and added that if they needed anything else, they just needed to ask. It was more than half of what they’d asked for in exchange for the Eastern Empire’s magic stones.

“Joshua said he could have it all ready in about three days, but Emma said food is best when fresh, so this was as much as he could prepare for a boat leaving tomorrow morning,” the eldest son, George, explained to the count after he’d finished reading.

“Tomorrow morning?!”

In just ten minutes, they’d managed to arrange for food supplies to be sent out the next morning? Was that even possible? And again, who was Joshua?!

“If he tried to send it out tonight, the wheat wouldn’t make it in time. But he said he’s got a boat with all the newest features, so the food should arrive in about four or five days.”

“Four or five days?!”

“Oh... Would that be too late?” George asked, worried.

The Eastern Empire and the kingdom were very far apart. Even on the fastest boat the Empire had that was to be used only by the imperial prince, it took about a week. Yet they were saying this boat that was loaded with foodstuffs would make it in four or five days?

“No, that’s not what I mean. I just have a hard time believing it could arrive so soon when it takes a week to get to and from the Empire...”

“Not to worry. Joshua’s boats are fitted with all the newest features, and all the sailors aboard are the cream of the crop.”

The prince couldn’t believe it. Even the Stewart family patriarch was guaranteeing this to be true...and again had the prince wondering who the heck Joshua was. He wondered why Count Stewart and this mysterious Joshua would have treated him so well. Was it for information on the magic stones? But the ninjas wouldn’t have leaked that information. They were the greatest ninjas in the Empire—the elite of the elite. So perhaps this was to apologize for the deaths of all nineteen of them...? Had the ninjas saved the country in exchange for their lives? But if that were the case, Count Stewart could have surely simply demanded as many magic stones as he wanted by saying he couldn’t guarantee the prince’s safety in the kingdom or the food for the Empire.

Count Stewart...was truly a most fearsome man.

My countrymen...my beloved countrymen...can you ever forgive me for failing you so?

As Prince Tasuku left the Stewart household, he felt as though all that awaited each footfall was a darker future. He moved slowly toward the jaws of doom itself...or so he thought until the ninjas he’d assumed he’d lost appeared before him once more. And somehow, they seemed even more chipper and full of life than they’d been when he’d seen them that morning.

“Why are you all still alive?” Prince Tasuku asked once more, as this was especially vital information.

Side Story: Food Is Life

While Emma was enthusiastically embroidering two hundred handkerchiefs, William was in Hunting Techniques, agonizing over a large boulder in front of him.

“I was so excited when I heard we wouldn’t be running anymore...” Each student had been given a boulder and a wooden stick.

“But you never thought we’d have to break such a big rock with a little stick like this, huh?” Joshua said, giving the professor a thumbs up and a grin to alleviate the man’s concerned expression.

And why would you act like anything is fine here, Joshua?! It’s not, and you know it!

“There’s no way we can do this, right?”

“It’s a freakin’ boulder...”

Several of the other students in their class were also moaning about the impossibility of their task.

“There are lots of monsters out there that are as tough as stone. Your swords could break, or you could get blasted back by the recoil if you don’t know what you’re doing. Losing your weapon is essentially a death sentence, so I think it’s pretty great training that prepares you for all sorts of things,” George said with an air of nonchalance as he tapped the boulder with his staff over and over. Though he was a total airhead with his other classes, George was overwhelmingly ahead of the rest of his classmates in Hunting Techniques.

“Easy for you to say when you’re a gorilla, bro. It’s a little harder for us humans.” William chided his brother, and the rest of the boys in their class nodded in agreement.

“I’m not a gorilla, man. But there’s a way to break a rock like this even if you’re not super strong,” George explained. William still insisted there was no way, so George continued. “Allow me to demonstrate.” Then, he leaped toward the rock and thrust his wooden stick forward at the boulder as if to pierce it through.

“Oh!”

“Whoooa!”

“I can’t believe it!”

The boulder split in two with just a single strike. It was done with such ease, the young lords present couldn’t keep from gasping and cheering.

William had given up on telling George not to stand out in this class long ago.

“The direction you hit it at makes a difference. You just have to spot the grain, and it’ll come apart really easily. Though I guess it doesn’t really count as training if you do it this way, huh...?” This sort of thing was done rather frequently by the Pallas hunters to secure escape routes, so George really hadn’t expected it to garner that much amazement.

“George Stewart. If you knew it wouldn’t amount to much training, then why would you do it? Do you have any idea how hard it is for me to gather these boulders each year? It’s backbreaking work,” the professor’s voice rebuked George menacingly from behind. A child of George’s age being able to follow the grain of a boulder and split it in a single strike would surely be a fearsome foe in the future, but the professor couldn’t forget all the pain he’d gone through to bring the boulders here.

“Ack! Professor... I, uh... I’m sorry...?”

The fact that George was more apologetic than boastful made the professor sigh. Most students who surpassed the others in their Hunting Techniques course tended to get inflated egos and put themselves in all sorts of danger, leading them straight to failure. But oddly enough, George Stewart didn’t have those qualities at all. It sometimes felt like he’d already gone through that stage in his life long ago, and he was using those experiences to his advantage now.

But he was just a boy of sixteen. That was the age when boys were supposed to make dumb mistakes.

“George Stewart... Just go around and help the other students. I’m not bringing any more boulders.”

◆ ◆ ◆

“Ack!” Joshua struck his boulder, but the recoil sent his stick flying backward. “I can’t keep a grip on it anymore...” Joshua glared at the boulder that didn’t seem any closer to breaking as he rubbed his now numb hands together.

“You okay there, Joshua? Your grip strength is one thing, but your center of gravity is off too, so you’re not using your full strength. You also need to build up your core,” George advised as he handed Joshua his lost stick.

“I really don’t think...a merchant needs that kind of muscle...” Joshua groaned, knowing for sure he’d be aching all over the next day.

“Oh, quit your grumbling. Just think about what would happen if a monster...like, let’s say a behemoth or something showed up in Pallas?”

“I’d run, obviously! You seriously think there’s any other choice against a monster like that?!”

A behemoth was a massive creature that was all muscle and sinew with horns growing out of its head. It actually looked a bit like a bull. Not many knew about them since they appeared so infrequently, but Joshua had done his research, and George knew about them from video games in his previous life, making it a lot easier to remember what he learned about them.

“Behemoth?”

“You ever heard of that?”

“Can’t say I have.”

The other lords couldn’t even imagine what kind of monster it was.

“You can’t be serious, Joshua! Running from a behemoth would be such a waste!”

“Oh, yeah... They are pretty tasty, huh?”

Yet while the other lords were baffled by the beast, George and William were yukking it up.

“Their meat’s like cow meat, and when you hunt them in the winter, they’re especially juicy with all the extra fat. And even though it’s pretty tough, you can still slice it nice and thin and smoke it to preserve it for longer.”

“Oooh, and when you grind the meat up and put our family’s secret spices on it, it makes the best hamburgers, huh?”

“Heh heh... And if you really stack on the tomatoes, cheese, lettuce, and put it between two buns, you get...”

“One behemoth of a burger!”

The two brothers said the final awful pun in unison.

“And naturally, you’ve gotta have fries on the side.”

“But onion rings are pretty good too!”

The two brothers started getting so hungry, they felt like their stomachs were going to start growling any second, but all they could do was laugh it off.

Joshua slumped his shoulders. “You two will even treat a behemoth as nothing more than dinner, huh...?” All the other lords were starting to feel pretty hungry by the sudden onslaught of tasty-sounding food, but Joshua knew just what a behemoth actually was. Just thinking about it was pretty grotesque.

“Look, you’ll get it if you try it. Just once is all it takes!”

On the rare occasions that a behemoth did appear, the hunters would take it home and eat it. It was the greatest meal a hunter could ever have, and one that would never make it to market.

“You’ve gotta try a behemoth burger with fries and onion rings sometime. Emma likes to eat it when it’s all ground up and made into a sausage so she can make it into a hot dog too...”

Although the thought of turning that meat into a sausage was an even more grotesque image, Joshua suddenly perked up like he’d never been disgusted in the first place. “Lord William! Why are we wasting time on all this?! We should keep training so we can take down any behemoths that might come our way!”

“Huh?”

“Lord George! How is my stance? I need to know the tastiest way to hunt a behemoth! I want to bring home a behemoth to feed my Lady Emma!”

All it took was the sound of Emma’s name to give Joshua more motivation than he knew what to do with.

“S-Sure. But uh, maybe you should wait ’til your grip strength comes back, Joshua...”

“My what? What are you babbling about? I can make up for grip strength with my pure grit strength! I just have to break this boulder, right?! Just watch me!” Once he knew this would be for Emma’s sake, it all became well, well worth it.

“Would you mind lending me your assistance during our lunch break, you two? I’d like to know how best to prepare the meat once I’ve gotten it. Oh, and what other favorite foods does Emma have that I don’t know about? I think I know most of them, but monster meat wasn’t a topic I’d even considered!”

“Joshua...”

“I don’t know whether to admire your gusto or what...”

The hyped-up freak Joshua was then the next to break his boulder, shocking everyone present.

After their class, any time behemoths would appear in the border regions, the Rothschild Company was sighted on several occasions arriving and buying the meat at an exorbitant price.

“I don’t care how much it costs. If a behemoth is sighted, you buy that meat.” Joshua, who had tremendous influence in his company, was the one who started the trend. Once word got out that the Rothschild Company was in a frenzy looking for a certain type of meat, it was only natural that people would want to try it for themselves. Thus, behemoth meat became known as a high-quality meat of legendary proportions in under a year, despite having been almost entirely unknown up until that point.

Yet that very same legendary meat was being bought up entirely by Joshua using whatever he had at his disposal. And he never ate a single bite himself. It all went straight to Emma. All the behemoth burgers, all the behemoth hot dogs. He’d say he just happened to get some of the meat in, so he wanted to share his lot along with onion rings and fries to boot.

“Why, even a thousand gold pieces would be worth a single smile from you, Lady Emma!” Joshua would say, all doe-eyed at Emma as she happily munched away at her behemoth burger.

Meanwhile, George and William could only look on with the most forced smiles.

“What in the world is he even on about?”

Chapter 43: Of Dresses and Evening Affairs

After Emma finished embroidering her two hundred handkerchiefs (in top form, at that), she went to her Monster Studies course, where both Prince Edward and Arthur were exceptionally worried for her health. The prince was especially so, since he felt he’d caused more than enough trouble for her during the banquet.

During the lunch break after Monster Studies, several lords came and went with offerings of sweets. Though she couldn’t help but feel even more guilty about it all, the sweets piling up looked so scrumptious that Emma decided to let bygones be bygones. She couldn’t hide her glee and kept giving everyone smiles to show it.

“I’m so very sorry to have worried you all. I appreciate you coming to check on me. I know something like this is hardly thanks enough, but I would love it if you would use the handkerchiefs I made in Embroidery class today.” Emma dug in her bag, took out some of the gazillion handkerchiefs she’d made during her class, and presented them to the lords who had given her cookies.

“Why, I’ve never seen such magnificent embroidery! Thank you so very much! I’ll treasure it forever! In fact, I’ll pass it down to my family for generations!” The lords received the handkerchiefs with trembling hands. Each one had been embroidered with flowers, and they held them with such care. Every boy walked away from Emma completely red-faced.

I told them to use the handkerchiefs, but why would they make them into heirlooms? Emma tilted her head, fully unable to understand what they were trying to say.

“Lady Emma... You certainly look...well.” Arthur was shocked to find Emma giddily eating sweets in the courtyard as though nothing had changed. George and William apparently had some business with Joshua, so they hadn’t arrived yet. Arthur kept an eye on Emma, his little sister Marion, Francesca, and the twins so he didn’t ruin the vibe.

“I sure am! Would you like some chocolate, Lord Arthur? It’s not too rich and it’s oh so delicious!” Emma offered after swallowing a bite of cookie.

“No, I think I’ll decline. It looks so sweet, I can practically taste it just by looking.” Though he was relieved to see Emma’s voracious appetite back, just watching her was enough to make him feel full.

Arthur had received a handkerchief from Emma before Monster Studies. While most of the handkerchiefs he’d received from the girls in the same Embroidery class had their initials and a simple design, the one Emma had given him was completely covered with exquisite detail. It had the perfect balance of lemon and ivy—a unique design he’d never seen before, but it didn’t feel off by any means, and he quite liked it. The green of the ivy wasn’t just a single color either; it had all sorts of subtly different green threads blended in, giving it a sense of realism that most embroidery and even paintings failed to give. The lemons were so realistic, he almost wanted to smell them to test if they were actually real. This handkerchief was good enough to be framed and hung as a piece of art. Arthur could understand why the other lords had said they’d pass it down to their young ones as well.

When Joshua and the prince received their handkerchiefs at the same time, they were trembling with delight. The prince had been so envious of him for receiving cuff links from Emma before, so Arthur was able to secretly breathe a sigh of relief when the prince received one of Emma’s handkerchiefs.

The prince was furious with George and William for wiping the sweat off their brows with one of Emma’s handmade handkerchiefs, though they couldn’t understand for the life of them why he was so upset. After all, that was what handkerchiefs were for. However, Emma didn’t seem to take it badly, and instead handed each of them another handkerchief of the finest embroidery, saying, “Hunting Techniques must’ve been super rough, huh?”

Just how many handkerchiefs had she made in the two hours of her Embroidery class?

Emma was so kind and feminine, and she was wonderful at embroidery. She was utterly unlike Arthur’s sister.

“Arthur? You’re thinking something awful again, aren’t you?” Marion glared at him. All he could do was laugh it off. He couldn’t even let his thoughts wander when he was in front of his keen-eyed sister.

“And what might I have been thinking about, Marion? Regardless, we need to head home right away today. We need to get you measured for your dress,” Arthur responded.

This morning, they’d received an invitation to a ball from the royal family. It had come so suddenly that the Bell family’s head maid was in a royal tizzy over it. Marion didn’t have any new dresses ready, so they needed to take her measurements before the day was over, or her dress wouldn’t be finished in time. No matter how suddenly the invitation might have come, the daughter of a duke could not possibly appear at a royal ball in a dress she’d worn before.

“Oh! Do you mean to say you’ve been invited to the royal family’s ball as well? The Delacours were invited too. We were having quite the time this morning over it...” Francesca finally decided it best to take one of the cookies Emma had offered. She was sure her poor head maid was still scrambling all over to find a seamstress even now. The exhaustion was plain on Francesca’s face. Ever since the failure of the “baptism” she’d been a part of, Francesca had been getting significantly fewer invitations to tea parties and evening affairs, so it seemed she was in desperate need of a new dress.

“Why, we’re having new dresses made for the same ball, aren’t we, Caitlyn?”

“Why, we certainly are having new dresses made for the same ball, Catherine!”

The twins had been invited to the very same event, and had run out of dresses after the banquet the previous weekend. As such, they needed to have new dresses made as well. Even if they finished getting their measurements done that day, it took a lot of time to make a whole dress. It was going to be a very close call whether they’d even be able to barely make it in time.

Normally, it was quite rare for an invitation to come so suddenly from the royal family. As such, most of the dressmakers in the area were working themselves to the bone.

“The banquet the other day was so massive, there were plenty of girls who had only just had new dresses made. I feel awful for the poor tailors,” Arthur said. To have two large-scale social events two weeks in a row made it difficult for any family to keep up.

“Does the Bell family not employ their own tailor?” Francesca asked Arthur. After all, someone of a duke’s social status was very likely to have their own personal tailor. While the Delacour family had a personal tailor themselves, they were in such a rush for the next event that they needed to find another seamstress to help out.

“We don’t exactly...make a lot of dresses, so...” Arthur gave a shrug, glancing at his sister to signal why. Since the Bell family had been knights for generations, the men generally wore their knightly attire to formal occasions, and the women pretty much all avoided dresses like Marion did. Since events didn’t usually come as suddenly as they currently were, they were able to just order their dresses from outside.

“That sounds awfully stressful. I hope you’re able to find a good tailor, Lady Marion.” Francesca couldn’t help but laugh that Arthur, who didn’t need to worry about a dress, was fretting the most, while Marion, who had to wear a dress no matter what, was simply nodding along like they were talking about someone else entirely.

“Thank you for your concern, Lady Francesca. But if push comes to shove, I can just wear my knightly attire, so it is entirely unnecessary,” Marion exclaimed proudly with a laugh.

“Oh no you can’t!” Francesca and the twins all retorted without hesitation.

Meanwhile, Arthur was beside himself, wishing his sister would give him a break already. After all, if in the worst-case scenario, she did show up in her knightly attire, he’d be the one responsible for escorting her. Her and her incredibly handsome, masculine radiance. Even if it would look perfect on her, it was just too risky to have her wearing such attire to a royal event. She was the daughter of a duke, which meant she had far more eyes on her than most run-of-the-mill nobles.

“I mean, I think I could pull it off better than most of the lords there, but... Actually, did you receive an invitation, Lady Emma?” Marion asked, as Emma hadn’t joined in the conversation.

“I don’t think our family got one, no. Though my mother’s been out and about all day, so maybe we just don’t know if we have.” Emma was a bit surprised that everyone had suddenly turned their attention on her, but she spoke regardless. She wasn’t able to talk when she was eating, so instead she’d put all her effort into listening.

In other words, she wasn’t talking with her mouth full! Truly, her grandmother’s harsh training was starting to pay off.

“Wait...did you eat all of that, Lady Emma?” Francesca hesitantly asked once she saw the empty table before Emma. Apparently, she’d made short work of the massive mountain of sweets.

“Of course! I always have room for dessert!” Emma giggled, then saw George, William, and Joshua enter the courtyard.

“Lady Emma! I’ve brought you some financier cakes! Would you like them now?” Joshua said, handing her a box with the dessert. The sweet smell made Arthur grimace and look away. He’d already seen more sweets than he could handle.

“Thank you, Joshua! I love financiers!”

The sweets Joshua brought her were always of the highest quality. Arthur was about to try to stop her, but Emma popped one in her mouth before he could.

“Mmm! It goes so perfectly with this tea! I’m gonna have anoth—” Before Emma could grab a second cake, George and William stopped her.

“C’mon, Emma. You don’t need any more.”

“We saw the waitstaff carrying a ton of wrapping just a bit ago...that wasn’t all from you, was it, sis?”

“Why, I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Emma said, lying without a lick of shame. “You sure I can’t have one more?” she asked, pleading with the sweetest of puppy-dog eyes.

“No,” William and George both said firmly.

Arthur couldn’t believe his eyes. How could the two of them so harshly turn down such a request from such a sweet, dainty girl who was so very talented with embroidery? Were their hearts made of ice? Meanwhile, the begging did have one casualty, as Joshua was writhing on the ground and clutching his chest.

“Look, I just don’t think you should be taking sweets from everyone all willy-nilly like that, sis.”

“You don’t wanna make a bunch of second-born weirdos—I mean, Joshuas, do you?”

Apparently, having such a sweet and feminine little sister was harder than Arthur thought.

Chapter 44: Heading Out

Early one morning, a carriage set out from the manor to the Simmons region. While the decision to go to the Eastern Empire had been very sudden, and the man traveling with Melsa had got exactly what he wanted, she couldn’t help but laugh at the look of annoyance on his face.

“What’s so funny?” her traveling companion, Oliver, asked with a glare.

“I was just thinking that you always look so irritated whenever you’re around me.” Melsa smiled wistfully, never taking her eyes off the lacework she’d brought with her to while the hours away. She’d never been terrible at needlework by any means, but she’d needed to do it more than ever once she got married. Her three children were constantly ruining their clothes, and they hadn’t had the money to buy new ones. The fact that her daughter Emma ruined her clothes the most often was especially vexing to her.

Since the day Emma was born, the only thing she cared about was bugs. Any time she saw one, she didn’t care whether it was in a thicket, or at the top of a tree, or in the crevices between boulders, she’d rush for it regardless. Naturally, Melsa’s mending skills improved significantly. Yet even now, her talent was nothing compared to her husband’s.

“I-I’m not annoyed! I just don’t understand how a woman could suggest going to the Eastern Empire when nobody in the entire kingdom has ever set foot there!” Though deep down, he wanted to say he wouldn’t know what to do if she got hurt, most wouldn’t even guess that, given his expression and way of saying it. It reminded Melsa of how she used to be.

“There’s no need to worry about me. I can protect myself if need be.” After all, Emma had lent Melsa Violet to protect her, and she was now under the skirt of the simple traveler’s dress Melsa was wearing. Currently, she was skittering about Melsa’s legs trying to find somewhere comfortable.

“You’re just a woman! A woman doesn’t have the power to do anything on her own!”

Just a woman. Those were words she hadn’t heard since she’d come to the Pallas region. After all, it didn’t matter if you were a man, woman, or child—if you could work, then you would work however much you liked. The borderland her marriage had brought her to had been far more impoverished than she ever could have imagined, and even with the wits and knowledge she’d gained as the top of her class, it was almost too much for even her.

“Oh? So you’re just worried something might happen to me, but you’re too shy to say you’ll protect me.” Melsa said, sighing in a way that was starting to make her sound just like her mother. She was a bit surprised that she was able to deduce how he really felt from that backtalk. Apparently, she had a long way to go in knowing her own feelings as well.

“D-D-Don’t be ridiculous!” Oliver flushed bright red, then very markedly shifted his gaze out the window and went quiet. It was such an obvious reaction: “I ruined the mood so I’m not gonna talk to you anymore.” It made Melsa chuckle again. Long ago, she might have thought he was just doing all of this to tick her off. But now, she could tell he was just too embarrassed to say what he really felt, and it was even enough to make her smile.

As the carriage went quiet, Melsa reviewed what had led to their sudden departure for the Eastern Empire as she continued her fine lacework. It might not have been as good as her husband’s, but it was still incredibly detailed.

The night before, they’d all been discussing Japanese food while sewing dresses for Emma’s friends.

“I’m so glad I got to have miso soup again!” William beamed, overjoyed that some of the ninjas had known how to make miso and tofu.

From that day forward, the ninjas would be coming to their house in turns. Once they got the ingredients they needed, the ninjas would make them miso and soy sauce, and the Stewarts would give them a place to eat and sleep in exchange. The unused rooms in their manor now became a place for them to rest.

“By the way...what are we going to do about dashi?” While they’d talked plenty about miso and tofu, nobody had mentioned dashi.

“Uh. What’s that?” George asked, tilting his head.

“Well, you need dashi stock if you’re going to make miso soup, right? We’d need kelp or bonito flakes, or sardines...”

The boys all looked at each other, still unaware of what dashi actually was.

“Hmm... I thought maybe we could use dried scallops as a substitute, but...honestly, we probably do just need some bonito flakes, huh?” Emma said. She’d gotten to a difficult part and stopped sewing so Melsa could check her work.

The Tanaka family usually made their miso soup using bonito dashi. Naturally, once they’d made the stock from the bonito flakes, they’d give the remaining flakes to the cats as treats.

“Mrowr!”

“Meow meow!”

“Myaaah!”

“Mrooowr! Mrowr!”

The cats, who had all been sleeping peacefully, all awoke and started clamoring the second Emma said bonito flakes.

“They’re saying, ‘Bonito flakes! We have to get those! I want some bonito flakes! Bonito flakes please!’” Emma translated for them, but the whole family already kinda got the idea.

“You want some bonito flakes, Zhang?”

“Mrowr!”

“What about you, Guan?”

“Meow!”

“Do you want them, Liu?”

“Myah!”

“And how about you, General...?”

“Mrowr mrowr!”

The kitties were all fawning over them with excitement glittering in their eyes. They were even letting the family pet their bellies, which they usually didn’t allow. The power of bonito flakes was nothing to scoff at.

“Hmm... Do you think the merchants will understand what we mean when we say bonito flakes, though? I’m worried they didn’t get it when I explained rice...”

The Stewarts agreed to send food to the Eastern Empire in exchange for rice. There was a boat that the Stewarts had called to deliver emergency food supplies that would be leaving the next day. A later boat would be used for diplomacy with the kingdom itself. One of the most skilled merchants from the Rothschild Company would be going to the Eastern Empire, and they’d tried to explain rice and its intricacies, then said they’d be happy if the merchant could bring back even a little bit of it.

“The ninjas said they had rice in their emergency reserves, so I was saying I wanted some seedlings or seeds if it was possible to grow them here in the kingdom, but...I have no idea if the merchant really got it.”

While Joshua had handpicked the best of the best merchants he had for the job, the language barrier really was nearly impossible to cross. Unfortunately, the whole family had nothing but Japanese food on their minds now.

“Mrowr!”

The Stewarts thought Kongming had been trying to cozy up to them, but she suddenly rushed out of the room and came back with a ninja in her mouth. The ninja had no idea what was going on, but could do nothing to fight a cat of Kongming’s size.

All the Tanakas looked in confusion at the ninja. “Huh? What’re you doing here, Momochi?”

One of the ninjas had just explained the situation to Prince Tasuku and had just come back to the Stewart manor to rest. “What’s going on here, William-dono?” The ninja asked, desperately trying to protect the bread and potato salad in his hands from the kitties, even after the rude kitty abduction.

“Mrowr!”

“Myah myah!”

“Meow?”

“Mrowr mrowr?”

The kitties closed in on Momochi. They were enormous and sent shivers through his whole body.

“What’s going on here? Seriously, what’s going on?!” the ninja asked, slowly backing up until he hit a wall. He was trapped. A wall at his back, cats to his left and right. There was nowhere to run. It was a kabedon by cats...a kabenyan.

“They want to know if you have bonito flakes in the Eastern Empire,” Emma said, squeezing her way through the kitties to interpret for Momochi.

“What? Bonito flakes? I... Bonito flakes?!”

“Mrowr mrowr!”

While this normally would have been the usual cute sight of kitties begging for fish flakes, given the size of the cats, it was more threatening than anything to poor Momochi.

“W-Well, yeah, we should have more fish flakes than rice, even! The whole reason for our food shortage is because our crops...er...won’t grow, but seafood should be...” Momochi made a face for a moment. The imperials had said the reason for their food shortage was the weather, but apparently there was more to the story.

“Great! Then we should tell the Rothschild Company to bring us some bonito flakes back too!” William called one of the servants and had them ask for one of Joshua’s messengers.

“Uh... Kachuomushi?”

“No, no, no. It’s katsuobushi. It means fish flakes.”

“Karuorushi?”

“Katsuobushi.”

“Kuruoshii?”

They didn’t get it at all. The Stewarts had made them understand rice by saying it was a staple food in the Eastern Empire, but the fish flakes were a little harder to explain.

“Maybe it’d be easier if one of us just went with them?”

Even if they wrote a note in the imperial language, only someone from the Tanaka family would know whether it was the real deal. Fish flakes wouldn’t really look like food to someone from the kingdom either.

Emma shot her hand into the air. “Oh, I wanna go! I wanna go!”

“You have school,” Melsa reminded her, and Emma sadly lowered her hand.

“Myah mrowr...” Kongming said, patting Emma on the back as if to say, There, there.

“I’ll go, then. George and William also have school, after all,” Leonard said, thrilled at the thought of taking a voyage by sea. Since Pallas wasn’t facing the ocean, he rarely ever had the chance to travel by boat.

“You’re training hunters the day after tomorrow, sweetheart,” Melsa responded. Since they’d been in the capital, Leonard had been extensively training young prospective hunters once a week.

Hunting had a high turnover rate given the harsh conditions they were subjected to, and even if they sent a hundred hunters to the borderlands, it wasn’t uncommon for fewer than ten people to remain in the long term. Bringing new hunters into the fray was a very important job for those who owned land on the border.

Hunting was a life-threatening job, but the pay was especially good, so there was no small number of aspirants. Up until recently, Arven had sent them people he’d scouted when he wasn’t busy with school, but now Leonard could do several training sessions and handpick some promising people to send all at once, cutting down on transportation costs.

“Uh... You wanna take over training for a bit, George?” Leonard asked, having completely forgotten about his own duties.

“George has school too, remember? Besides, just think of how the poor men will feel if they get beaten up by someone so much younger than they are!”

No matter how tough someone was, the world of hunting was harsh. Yet if people were getting the snot beaten out of them the moment they started, it would certainly put a damper on the number of aspiring hunters.

“Well, who’s going to go, then?” William asked, since clearly that meant nobody was left.

“I will,” Melsa said, taking a step forward and placing a hand to her chest.

“What?!”

“I always wanted to be a diplomat, and I have the education one needs for it as well. Additionally, the food we’re sending to the Eastern Empire isn’t anything they’d be used to, so they’ll need someone who knows how to prepare it to teach them, right?”

She was right. None of them had thought of that. Food ingredients and preparation methods varied from country to country. It made perfect sense for Melsa, who had been a cooking wiz in her past life, to go herself.

“No, we can’t do that. Nobody from our kingdom has ever set foot in the Eastern Empire. I can’t let you go all alone! What if something happens to you? I’ll be so worried thinking you might get hurt out there!” Leonard opposed.

“I’ll be quite all right. Emma will lend me Violet. Won’t you, Emma?” Melsa grinned at her daughter.

Leonard shook his head. “I know you’re smarter and more capable than anyone in the world, Melsa. But I still want to protect you if you ever find yourself in danger! And what’s more...I’ll be so miserable without you, my beloved...”

“Oh, my love...”

As their parents gazed lovingly into each other’s eyes, the children watched on with the same expressions as Tibetan foxes.

My teeth are gonna rot right out of my skull at this rate!

“I don’t know how many times I’ve said this, but could you two please quit with the PDA?” George groaned.

Meanwhile, Emma had her hands to her cheeks in admiration. “You really only have eyes for mother, don’t you, father?”

“Think of the children, man. Our mental health is gonna be in shambles over this...” William sighed. Even gargling sand would’ve been better than being subjected to this.

Nobody ever wants to see their parents get sappy in front of them, but it was an all too frequent occurrence in the Stewart household. The kids wished their parents would put themselves in their shoes, as the years went on and the kids all got better and better at their Tibetan sand fox impressions.

“Hey, um...could you all have this conversation in the imperial language for me?” Momochi had been politely staying put while they all went on and on in a language he didn’t understand, but once the parents started gushing over each other, he couldn’t stand it any longer.

“Oh, sorry! We forgot you were there, Momochi.”

In the end, once Momochi understood what they’d been discussing, he offered to be Melsa’s bodyguard in the capital—a plan that Leonard very reluctantly agreed to.

◆ ◆ ◆

Melsa let out a deep breath, having quickly finished packing her things. It was the first time she’d ever had to go on such a sudden trip in either of her lives, so she was getting quite excited.

“Melsa, are you sure you’re going to be okay?” Leonard asked worriedly.

Naturally, she was a bit anxious to be away from her family, but going to the Eastern Empire was a prospect Melsa couldn’t wait for. When Minato became Emma, her love of bugs got even worse. But when Melsa gained her memories from Yoriko, she started to miss cooking more than anything.

They never had any complaints with the cooks they’d employed at their manor. But ever since they’d regained their memories a year ago, she couldn’t help but think about it every time they had something to eat. And she was certain her family was the same way.

“I would have used garlic butter soy sauce on this steak.”

“It’s been cold, so I’d love to have some miso udon.”

“It’s been hot, so I’d love to have some seasoned cold tofu in soy sauce.”

And any time they thought about umeboshi, it made their mouths water. But since they’d been in this new world, it was watering for something they couldn’t have.

And the worst was the loss of rice.

Japanese people’s very souls cried out for Japanese food. Could she really let her beloved husband and children suffer like that any longer?

Of course she couldn’t.

Could she leave something so important to the men of her family who didn’t even know what color bag salt was kept in?

Of course she couldn’t!

And even if they knew what color bag salt came in, could she really let the Herald of Hullabaloos she called her daughter handle this?

Yeah, that was completely out of the question.

The only one who could obtain the exact ingredients they needed without any problems was Melsa herself. It all came down to Melsa Stewart to obtain the cuisine her family’s hearts desired.

“I’ll be all right. Just leave everything to me, Leonard. I’ll be home with rice in no time.” While Leonard was more worried about Melsa’s safety, Melsa already had her eyes on the prize. Leonard smiled awkwardly, wondering if his wife realized how much she and her daughter had in common in times like these.

Oh well. I’ll just have to really hammer home how important it is to keep her safe when Momochi comes to get her tomorrow. Leonard swore, gazing lovingly at his wife, who was practically radiant as she started brainstorming ideas for Japanese recipes.

When he arrived at the break of dawn several hours later, poor Momochi would then be treated to the most horrifying encounter he’d ever had in his entire ninja life.

Chapter 45: Dear Grandfather...

Martha was at her wits’ end trying to figure out what to write.

Dear Grandfather: Are you from the Eastern Empire? And if you’re not, could you say you are if anyone asks? There’s been a little incident here in the capital...

“‘Little incident’ barely covers it... Ugh, I can’t just say it like this, can I?”

Martha had never written a letter to her grandfather. Not to mention, if this letter happened to be opened for inspections, then all the groundwork the Stewarts were trying to lay would be exposed. So in that case, maybe she should erase that second line... Actually, maybe the first line too. And the third one...?

Her quill had come to a standstill.

Maybe it would be safer to ask her husband to pass the message along?

No, the fewer people who knew, the better. After all, there was no guarantee the knights wouldn’t arrest and try to torture the information out of them.

“Martha? You finished writing your letter?” William asked from behind her. “If you can finish it by tomorrow morning, one of the Rothschild Company’s people can send it for you.”

“Lord William, I just don’t know how I should write it... There’s no guarantee they won’t open it during inspection.”

There were inspection points at the border between regions to make sure criminals and dangerous goods weren’t being smuggled in, and the inspections could be quite stringent depending on the domain.

“Inspections, huh...” William thought back on the numerous inspections they’d been subjected to on the way to the capital. Not a single one of them had gone smoothly.

They’d have the cats leave the carriages and slip out into the night, giving them little incident on that front (their footsteps were quiet enough that they could move about with ease). The problem was the bugs.

They moved the gigantic silkworms all the way to the back and hid them behind butterflies, spiders, and centipedes. The massive quantity of bugs (that only got larger the closer they got to the capital) made the inspectors recoil as Emma cheerily gave them descriptions of each and every one of them. Most of the inspectors gave up before she could get around to introducing Violet, so around that point, the family would give the inspectors a few silver to let the group through. The inspectors assumed this was to keep quiet about the fact that there was a young noble lady with a bug obsession, so they tucked the silver away with forced smiles and stamped the Stewarts’ pass to let them through. If Joshua hadn’t taught them about the importance of timing when giving a tip, the trade secrets behind the Stewart family’s Emma silk would have been exposed during the latter half of their journeys when the family had to travel alone.

“W-Well, if we give it to the Rothschild Company, I’m sure they can deal with it, right?” William replied. Thanks to those inspectors faithfully staying quiet, there hadn’t been any strange rumors about Emma’s bug obsession.

“Then maybe I should just lay it all out... Oh.” Martha froze as she realized something very important.

“What’s wrong?”

“I...don’t think my grandfather knows how to read or write the kingdom’s language.”

“Oh. Welp.”

The literacy rate among commoners in the kingdom was still not the best. William figured that since he was able to write Maasa Ono in kanji, he likely would be able to read and write in the imperial language, so William wrote the letter for her.

A month later, they received a letter back from Pallas, featuring the Empire’s language in the most beautiful penmanship, and it simply read, “I understand completely.”

So Martha’s grandfather really had been from the Eastern Empire after all.

Chapter 46: A Battle of Attrition

“I can’t take any more of this!” Hannah screamed. She’d already taken on three dresses, but they just kept getting more orders from more nobles.

The party season hadn’t even begun, yet even tiny shops like Hannah’s were packed full with commissions. The royal family had suddenly announced they’d be holding a party over the weekend, so all the tailors in the capital were positively overrun.

Hannah had been fighting back tears (working her needle all the while), wondering if it was even possible to make three dresses in one week, when her boss told her another two orders had come in. That was when she finally snapped.

“I didn’t think I could finish three dresses in one week, even if I went without sleep the whole time! Now you’re trying to foist another two on me?! It’s impossible and you know it!” She knew the owner wasn’t at fault here. A tailor shop couldn’t go against a noble’s orders.

Normally, a gown was the sort of garment that would take several people several weeks to finish, so it was quite clear that they were lacking time and people. She could cry and scream and wail as much as she wanted, but she’d still find more fabric on her workbench. She’d barely slept or eaten for several days. She kept telling herself she was going to quit, yet she kept sewing day in and day out.

Hannah didn’t have any family in the capital. She was a girl who’d come to the city to make a living to support her five younger siblings in the countryside. When she’d first arrived, all the people and buildings had practically looked radiant to her, but since she’d become a live-in seamstress, she barely ever left her shop. All she did every single day was move her damn needle. She only had a single change of clothes and a nightgown. On top of that, she only had three sets of underwear, which were all made from hemp since she couldn’t even afford cotton.

Just how many gowns were these nobles going to demand? Dressmaking was always an exercise in futility. The designs in vogue were always so unusual and complicated, yet the nobles would tire of them so quickly. Even if the tailors followed the pattern to the letter, the nobles wearing them would return them days later while complaining that their weight had fluctuated and the dress wasn’t any good anymore. To make matters worse, there must have been some kind of boycott or something, because some of the nobles were telling them not to use Pallas silk.

If anyone were to ask Hannah—who was right there at the center of the tailoring world—Pallas silk was the easiest fabric there was to work with. Pallas silk didn’t just look and feel good, it was already the highest quality it could be before the tailors even touched it.

Yet despite all the hardships the tailors had to go through to make a single dress, many of the nobles would wear the dress once and never again. Why couldn’t they wear the same dress twice? Didn’t they even think for a second how much time it took the tailors to make just one of them?! Hannah never said any of that out loud, but she certainly thought it. She was certain tonight would be another night she wouldn’t get to sleep in her bed.

While she was working herself to the bone, Hannah noticed a commotion at the front of the shop.

“I’m sorry, but we simply can’t accept any more orders.”

“You must make an exception! I serve a duke’s household, you know!”

“A duke? Do you not have a personal tailor you can ask, then? We’re a small store, and we’re extremely short-staffed at the moment.”

“You have one especially skilled seamstress working for you, do you not? My lady said she wants to wear something made by her this weekend.”

“It truly is an honor to be in your high esteem, but we’re simply beyond overbooked. Please, try to understand our position.”

“You can’t be serious! Just do the other girls’ dresses later! You will make this dress! She is the daughter of a duke, for heaven’s sake!”

“I can’t put our shop’s reputation at stake for this. There are countless families who have been with us for many long years and—”

Slam!

“We’ve already finished the measurements! All you have to do is sew it! And you will sew it. It will be at our manor the day before the ball, it will be in the latest fashion, and you will not use Pallas silk under any circumstances!”

“But we truly can’t...!”

“Do I make myself clear? You have a deadline, and you will meet it.” The servant practically slapped the measurements into the manager’s hands, then stormed out of the shop.

It wasn’t the manager’s fault. But Hannah couldn’t take it anymore.

The manager stared at the door for some time, then dragged himself toward Hannah.

No. Please no.

Don’t come any closer.

Hannah felt a cold sweat running down her back.

The manager stopped before her workbench.

“Hannah... I need another dress, please...”

It’s not his fault. But I can’t do it anymore.

“No. I... I quit.” Before she could stop herself, the words she’d been screaming inside fell from her lips.

“Hannah?”

It’s not his fault. But I can’t stop now.

“I said I quit!” Hannah shouted. She slammed her hands on her workbench to help her up, then ran out the door—through the exit in the back, to the outside. She’d done nothing but work, work, and work for so long, she couldn’t even remember how long it had been since she’d seen the outside.

“Hannah?! Hannah! Hannah!” She heard the manager screaming for her, but she didn’t stop for a second. She’d reached her breaking point.

Though Hannah was focused entirely on her running, she’d done nothing but sew dresses for months, so she lost her footing quickly and ran straight into a small girl standing in the middle of the road, both of them falling straight onto the ground.

“Bwagh!” The girl let out an odd little shout as several boys came running after her in tow.

“Emma?!”

“Lady Emma!”

“Sis!”

Hannah apologized profusely as she tried to fight off the pain, but when she saw the girl and the boys with her, she froze. They were definitely not commoners. Since she’d run out to the shopping district, the only people she could’ve run into were people working there or nobles coming by to shop.

The girl on the ground by her had well-groomed, lustrous blonde hair and was wearing an academy uniform with a purple dress shirt. Having a colorful shirt was a symbol that someone came from a family of counts or higher peerage. Two of the boys who came running had the same color shirts, which matched the unusual purple glint of their eyes. The last boy had notable freckles, and brown hair and eyes. There was no color on his shirt, but the fact that he was wearing a uniform meant he was a noble nonetheless.

“Ow ow ow...” The girl Hannah ran into looked up, giving Hannah a glimpse of the large wounds on her cheek.

“Eek! I-I’m so sorry!” Hannah shrieked, certain she’d just injured a noblewoman’s face. She’d apologized immediately, but this was almost certainly bound to get her the death penalty. No...it was likely even her life wouldn’t be enough. At the very least... “I’ll gladly let you have my life, but please...please spare my family! At the very least, my youngest siblings!” Hannah bowed so deeply, she was touching the pavement. She couldn’t help but worry that the manager of the store she worked at would be punished for this too. He really hadn’t done anything wrong.

“Huh? Uh... Um...? That seems like a little much for just a bump...” As the boys helped her stand, the girl gave Hannah a gentle smile.

“It’s hardly enough for my having injured a girl of your status! Please, I beg of you! Take my life, and my life alone!”

“Injured?! Lady Emma, are you injured?! I’ll call a doctor!” the freckled boy said with worry. Apparently, she was a lady of very high status. Hannah had never seen such beautiful hair, and she felt like those light green eyes were similar to a certain duchess’s household...

“Hmm? Oh! I’m totally okay! I’ve had these scars for a long time! Besides, my bag cushioned my fall, so I’m totally unharmed!” The girl grinned, but even from the ground Hannah could sense the boys were still checking to make sure she wasn’t hurt. She must have been a lady of high status.

In that moment, Hannah felt she’d reached rock bottom.

“Yep, you’re totally fine. Phew! Father would’ve pitched a huge fit if you’d gotten hurt.”

Hannah felt a hand on her arm. She thought it would gently help her up, but instead she was hoisted up with a strength she never expected. “There we go! Are you all right?” The tall boy gazed down at her with those purple eyes.

Hannah was shocked that he could lift an adult like her with such ease, but was even more confused why a noble would worry about someone like her.

The girl gasped, then took a handkerchief out of the bag that cushioned her fall. “Oh no! You’re bleeding! You must’ve gotten scraped when you fell!” She gently pressed the handkerchief against Hannah’s scrape.

Hannah’s breath stopped. The softness of the handkerchief...it was Pallas silk. She was trembling, but not from the pain. It was the feeling of that exceptional quality silk she’d been working with day in and day out pressed against her. She thought surely the sensation must have been her imagination and looked down at the handkerchief on her hand only to receive an even greater shock...

The handkerchief was embroidered with an unbelievably detailed image of four cats, all incredibly realistic. There were two calicos, a black cat with glossy fur, and a very fluffy white cat, playing happily with a ball of yarn.

This handkerchief was made with Pallas silk and featured embroidery that could easily be in a museum, and this girl was placing it on Hannah’s wound—staining it with her blood.

As a seamstress, Hannah knew exactly how much Pallas silk and embroidery were worth. This unbelievably expensive handkerchief was being used on her. A commoner. A country bumpkin. A newly unemployed girl. And for a mere scrape. The shock was enough for her vision to completely white out.

Come to think of it, she hadn’t gotten much food or sleep for several days at that point.

◆ ◆ ◆

Waaaah! Billy ripped my clothes!

Well, you kicked my sandcastle over, Lily!

It’s not Lily’s fault! Harry told her to do it!

Don’t be a tattletale, Marie!

All of you, quiet down! I’m trying to study!

Waaaaaah! Hannah! Mike is yelling at us!

Every day before Hannah came to the capital was so boisterous. She was the eldest, then there was Mike. A bit younger than them were the twins, Billy and Harry. After that were the youngest twins, Lily and Marie.

Mike was smarter than Hannah, and he’d learned how to read and write at the church. Billy, Harry, Lily, and Marie were all quite young, so Hannah was tasked with looking after them from morning to evening while their parents were working. The family was able to get by as long as they were frugal.

One day, their father hurt his back and was unable to work like he had before. Mike quit studying at the church and began working in his father’s stead. However, he wasn’t good with hard labor and couldn’t do nearly as much work as his father could. The younger children became more independent as they grew, but they also needed more to eat, and they weren’t old enough to work yet either.

Their mother worked even harder than before, but her job didn’t pay all that much, and they slowly began to sink into the swamp of poverty. Mike, who’d always been praised for being a brilliant child at the church, was now always getting yelled at in his manual labor job. It wasn’t long before he’d stopped smiling altogether, and their mother hardly ever had time to come home anymore.

The younger siblings always seemed so sad that they couldn’t see their mother anymore, so their father was always apologizing to them. Hannah had spent so many sleepless nights tailoring to try and keep their family afloat, but the kind of work that could get them out of poverty was not to be found in the countryside.

Everything had been okay before, even if it had been a bit of a modest lifestyle...

It wasn’t long before Hannah decided to leave home to make money for the family. Luckily, she’d heard it was very easy to find work as a seamstress in the capital, so she saved up the funds to pay for a carriage to come to the capital only a few years ago.

When she first came to the capital, it all seemed so radiant. There were so many people, and she was so excited to work in such a dazzling place. But that feeling only lasted for a short while.

Nobody would hire her.

She was quite confident in her skills, but it wasn’t enough. The rumor that seamstresses could find a job in a heartbeat was nothing more than a lie.

She didn’t learn until much later that she’d arrived in the offseason for parties, and during that time, all but the best seamstresses were dismissed across the board.

The kingdom was quite prosperous in trade, and nearly all fabric (with the exception of the silk they could obtain on their own) was imported from elsewhere. Cotton and wool were mostly from the empire, and they were mostly sent over as ready-made clothes. Once the party season was over and the demand for silk dresses drastically declined, countless seamstresses would lose their jobs.

Hannah just happened to show up at the worst possible time, and she didn’t even have the money to get back home. She had only the coins in her pocket, and it was a question of whether she’d have enough to eat that day or the next. It was likely to get colder at this time of year, and she had no job. How was she going to get by? The thought of sending money home was now a pipe dream within a pipe dream.

“Did you embroider that yourself?” a man asked—the manager of the store that would eventually employ her.

For Hannah, the bright and beautiful shopping district of the capital had become a site of utter despair. After hours and hours, she could no longer move. If the manager hadn’t talked to her just then, it was likely that she would have been living in the slums throughout the cold winter.

She hadn’t been able to afford new clothes, so she was wearing secondhand donations from the church. She’d worn and washed the clothes so many times over the course of several years that the cloth had grown thin and weak. She’d embroidered some original designs onto it to compensate for the parts that were no longer holding up.

The manager of the store took an interest in the designs, which he’d never seen in the capital or the kingdom at all. He decided to hire her as a seamstress during the party season and as a personal assistant during the offseason. Once the party season started, she was finally able to make more money than she ever could have gotten back home in the countryside. She was able to send it home and Mike could study at the church again.

How could she have run away from a place she owed such a debt to? The manager had saved her and her family’s lives. No matter how busy she’d gotten, she shouldn’t have run away. But she couldn’t make the impossible possible.

Hannah’s embroidery had gotten popular, so she was always busy during the party season. She’d always managed to make it through the party season each year, sending plenty of money back home for her family, then waited for the next season as the manager’s assistant.

But this year, the royal family suddenly decided to put on two parties during the buildup to the actual party season. She’d thought she’d finally escaped that hell last week only to have it extended. She hadn’t eaten or slept. She’d devoted all of her time to making dresses, but the orders just kept coming in.

No matter how busy she’d gotten, she shouldn’t have run away. It was wrong to run away. She was the only seamstress her manager had. The manager didn’t have the ability to hire any other seamstresses specifically because he wanted to let her stay during the winter. Because he wanted to give her enough to send back home.

None of this was his fault.

No, it’s not his fault... It’s all...my fault...

A sweet scent wafted by Hannah. There was a table with a lovely assortment of sweets she’d never seen before lined up for her. Before her was a girl with the most strikingly lustrous blonde hair she’d ever seen. The black tea the freckled boy placed before them had ice, which should have been impossible to obtain in the current season. The ice settled with a sound that made one feel cool just hearing it.

Hannah had found herself in another world. Apparently, when she’d started to black out, she’d been guided into the freckled boy’s shop. She’d never seen the shop, since she’d been holed up at work, but the storefront was painted with bright red strawberries, and the inside was filled with all sorts of cute knickknacks. But the most noticeable part was that it smelled incredible inside.

It all seemed like something straight out of a dream. Hannah had already been woozy, but now she could only stare, eventually having to be supported by the tall boy she’d met. The freckled boy said there was a living space on the third floor. Once they all went, she was finally able to breathe a sigh of relief.

It was a simple room with not a spot of excess. Unlike the extravagance of the first and second floors, the wide open space made a commoner like Hannah feel at ease...until she saw it.

The curtain covering the window. Hannah had never seen anything like it before in her life, but her seamstress instincts were at work. She had a screaming suspicion that those curtains were none other than the highest quality of Pallas silk...Emma silk.

How could he use Emma silk for curtains? Was he out of his mind? She happened to meet the gaze of the freckled store owner, who grinned at her.

“I’ll bring some refreshments, so just relax here for now.” The sofa he indicated she should sit on was more comfortable than anything she’d ever felt before.

“Are you all right, miss? You’re not feeling ill or anything, are you? What about your hands? Do they still hurt?” The girl Hannah had run into with the scars on her face sat next to her and began questioning her. “You’re looking kinda pale. Are you hungry? Do you want something to eat?”

This girl, who was almost certainly a noble, really did seem worried about Hannah. It was unthinkable. In fact, it was strange that she was still alive after running headfirst into a noble. The tall nobleman had even helped her all the way up to the third floor. Most nobles would be disgusted at the very prospect of even touching a commoner like her. It really was unthinkable.

“Sis, most people don’t want to eat when they’re not feeling well. The only ones who want to eat when they’re under the weather are you and a certain rubber man,” the auburn-haired boy scolded the girl.

“Rubber man”?

Hannah assumed they were siblings...and all three of them were worried about her.

It was completely unthinkable. Hannah couldn’t accept that these impossible things were a reality and could only hang her head, shaking it back and forth.

“Is something the matter? Talking about it might make you feel better.” Hannah hardly ever left her shop, yet this girl’s skin seemed paler than her own as she placed her hand over Hannah’s in concern. Hannah could feel the girl’s warmth.

Before she knew it, Hannah was talking about her family, herself, her work, and everything else as the ice slowly melted in her glass. The girl was younger than her, and a noble, and had such terribly deep scars. And Hannah was an older commoner woman who’d run away from her work as a tailor.

It was unthinkable.

And yet...

All she wanted was for someone to save her.

So Hannah clung to that frail, delicate hand and spilled her entire heart out.

◆ ◆ ◆

“It’s just not fair...” Emma groaned. She was walking through the shopping district with George, William, and Joshua on the way home from school. Here she’d been hoping to spend her time after school with her friends, but Francesca, Marion, Catherine, and Caitlyn were all busy with other things.

After she (allegedly) collapsed at the banquet the previous week, Emma’s hellish one-on-one etiquette courses with her grandmother had been placed on hold. Now would have been the perfect time to have a girl’s day at Joshua’s newly opened shop like she’d always dreamed of!

When she’d been Minato, she’d lived way out in the countryside where there weren’t any fancy cafés, and the buses only ran once every two hours, so if she missed it, she wouldn’t be able to go home. Therefore, she’d never been able to do any kind of hangouts. It had always been her dream to have tea at a nice café after school with her friends, but it just wasn’t working out, and Emma was puffing out her cheeks in frustration over it.

“It’s not their fault. They’re all busy getting their dresses, shoes, and accessories and the like for the ball.” William tried to comfort his sister, saying she’d have to make do with them, but she was always with her brothers and Joshua. This didn’t count as a girl’s day out at all.

“Lady Emma, I have desserts with plenty of whipped cream available at my shop. They’re very sweet and tasty. Oh, and there’s iced tea as well!” Joshua tried consoling Emma as she pouted with slumped shoulders.

What she wanted was to chat over those sweets and split them among all her friends. She’d told herself today was gonna be the day she’d have her long-sought-after girl’s day, but the king just had to hold his stupid ball. Emma glared in the direction of the castle when suddenly, a woman crashed right into her.

The woman apologized to Emma, but she was so pale that Emma was more worried about her. Emma let out a weird sound, but her bag cushioned her fall, so she wasn’t hurt at all. However, the woman in question scraped her hand and was bleeding, so they decided to take her to Joshua’s nearby shop. From there, she wound up lending an ear to the woman’s woes.

She said she was a seamstress who was being crushed under the pressure of far too many dress orders and had run away from her work. Emma’s friends were too busy getting their dresses and such ready for the sudden ball to be able to hang out too, but clearly the seamstresses who had to sew those dresses were going through something far worse.

“I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t be going on and on about my problems to a lady of your status. I’m sure you have no idea what I’m even saying. I’m so sorry. You wouldn’t understand what it’s like to have to work day in and day out just to live...” Hannah, the poor seamstress, was sobbing while Emma nodded along.

It was always when things were busiest that more work piled up. Emma understood. There were times when there was no possible way the work could get done with the manpower they had. Emma understood. Even if you wanted to ask for help, you’d look around and see everyone else was swamped, so you’d have to do it yourself. Emma understood. Even if you used your lunch break and your ten-minute breaks, you still couldn’t catch up. Emma understood. But if you didn’t eat, you couldn’t work. You wanted to scream how important food was.

She remembered dealing with the royal family’s unreasonable requests and monsters at the same time. They’d thought for sure they could finish a wedding dress within the day, but then all those horned hares had showed up en masse... It had been so hard to prep them all. The memories of Minato working through the busy season and her life in this world when they were poor came flooding back. Emma looked to her side and saw her brother, George (aka Wataru), nodding along as well. He’d been even more of a workaholic than Minato.

Wataru-nii... You would work through the weekends more often than not too... No idea why Peyta’s over there nodding, though. His work ethic had about as much substance as a meringue.

“Sorry to keep you waiting!” Joshua said, entering the room with drinks, sweets, and some ointment for Hannah’s scrape. The smell of the sweets enveloped everyone, helping dissipate the dark mood of the room.

Come to think of it, Joshua and his family are the ones who started selling our silks. If it weren’t for them, we wouldn’t be living in the lap of luxury with our beloved cats and bugs. All hail the Rothschild Company.

“Huh? L-Lady Emma...?”

Emma took Joshua’s hand and squeezed it with as much gratitude as she could muster. “Joshua... Thank you. Thank you so much for everything you’ve done.”

Emma remembered the words she’d said to Jadwiga a year ago:

“Princess, if you don’t tell people that you’re thankful, they might not ever know. Even if someone’s only doing their job, if it makes you happy, it’s perfectly okay to thank them!”

Emma felt that even more strongly ever since she’d been reincarnated. Though she was so glad to have been reincarnated with her whole family, and she’d never had a husband or children or even a boyfriend, Minato had had so many friends and coworkers and handsome old men supporting her in her previous life. She now knew with personal experience that if you didn’t thank those around you, they’d never know. Therefore, she needed to show Joshua her gratitude. It was a little embarrassing since they were always together, though, so she tried to make it less awkward with a timid laugh.

“Hnnngh!” Joshua’s face started turning red from top to bottom, like a fire had been lit under him. It wasn’t just his face either. His hands, his ears, and pretty much any skin that was showing had turned red.

I understand, Joshua... It’s embarrassing for both parties when you show your gratitude. Especially between close friends... Emma smiled at Joshua as his face burned.

“Thanks, Joshua!” The two brothers decided to also show their thanks and hugged him quite forcefully, making him lose his grip on Emma’s hand.

Well, it wouldn’t do for a girl like me to get between these boys and their friendship, Emma thought, and pulled away from them.

“Aaaah, no no no! Your hand! Your hand! Y-You guys! Aaaaagh, you little punks! Get off of me! I said, get off of me!”

Emma giggled. Joshua was using much more forceful language than he’d ever use otherwise. He must be more embarrassed than she thought. “The friendship between men really is a beautiful thing, don’t you think?”

Hannah, who’d watched the whole thing from start to finish, could only tilt her head in silence. The lady Emma was...almost certainly misinterpreting this entire situation. But could a commoner like her really say anything about it...?

◆ ◆ ◆

“H-Hannah!” After several hours of rest at Lord Joshua’s home, they brought Hannah back to the place that had once been her own home. The manager came rushing out. “I’ve been so worried about you, Hannah! Are you okay?”

“Sir, I... I, um...” Hannah looked around the shop and saw that the manager had clearly been trying his best to get something done, as the place was far messier than she’d left it.

“Ha ha... I know I rely on you for pretty much everything. I’m sorry. If I were more capable, I just know it wouldn’t have gotten this bad...” The manager’s hands were both scraped up so badly that Hannah had to wonder what in the world he’d gotten into in the short time she’d been gone. They were much worse than the little scrape on her hand from her fall.

“Are you all right, sir?” She wondered if he’d tried to make a dress by himself. The manager was twice as clumsy as a normal person, so a needle or sheers in his hands was a recipe for disaster.

“Yeah. I’m planning on canceling our orders so you can get some rest. All the other shops are swamped too, so we won’t be able to ask for anyone to fill in, and we won’t get anywhere with me trying to help. Six dresses is just impossible.” The manager laughed awkwardly, waving his bloodied hands in front of him.

“But if we cancel them...!” She didn’t continue. If you canceled an order that you’d already accepted from a noble, it wouldn’t just put the shop in danger, it could endanger the manager himself. They wouldn’t have been in this mess in the first place if this were the sort of thing he could have turned down.

“I know. But we’re at our limit. But I’m gonna make sure nothing happens to you. You won’t have to worry about a thing.” The manager put his hands on Hannah’s shoulders.

“No! I won’t let you put yourself in danger!”

“Hannah... All that ever matters to me is that you’re okay...”

The two of them gazed into each other’s eyes for a very, very long time.

Ever since the Stewarts brought Hannah to the shop, those two had been in their own little world. It was unbelievable. It was enough to summon the Tibetan fox within them once more. The siblings were being pummeled by déjà vu. Back at Joshua’s place, Hannah had kept insisting that the manager was never at fault for anything, but they were really starting to understand exactly why she had said that now.

“Er... Hey, uh... You mind if I interject for a second?” George decided to break the veil of their little world.

“Gasp! Oh! Who are you all?” Clearly, the manager had tunnel vision for Hannah, so he was shocked when he realized the three siblings were also there.

“Oh, let me introduce you. I ran into these three earlier. They helped treat my injury and gave me refreshments, and then they went so far as to bring me back here.”

“You were hurt?! Please, say it isn’t so... Let me see... Oh, you poor thing...” The manager was clearly back on the road to la-la land, but George cleared his throat loudly to reel him in again. “M-My apologies. I appreciate you looking after Hannah for me.” The manager had wrapped his arm around Hannah’s back at some point, but he quickly removed it as he lowered his head to the siblings in thanks.

“Hey, are you the one who always delivers the finished dresses?” Emma asked. It was all starting to come together.

“Huh? Er, yes. I take the orders, deliver them, and do the budget. Hannah does the actual tailoring. As you can see, we’re a very small shop, and we have our hands completely full. I apologize, little lady, but I just don’t think we’d be able to make a dress for you.” The manager lowered his head, thinking Emma was hoping to ask for a dress.

Emma grinned. “Oh, I don’t want a dress. I want a job.” George and William gave each other looks, knowing she probably had something up her sleeve.

“What? You...want to work here?” The manager couldn’t believe the words coming out of this girl’s mouth. She was a noble wearing a school uniform from the academy itself.

“I sure do.” Minato hadn’t gotten the chance to hang out at cafés with her friends or work a part-time job after school because it took far too much time to go between school and her house. Emma had always wanted to try it. She passed by the flabbergasted manager and took a look around the shop, nodding as she inspected the orders. “So first off, I want you to tell me what progress you’ve made on the dresses. I’d like to at least finish the designs by the end of the day. Once we’ve come up with the designs, I’ll make the patterns and the base. My older brother will take care of the embellishments. William, could you run over to the slums and see if you can get Harold and a couple of capable kids to come by? Looks like you’ve already gotten started on this dress... My father’s going to be out today, so could you handle the embroidery on it, Hannah?”

The manager hadn’t even said he’d hire her, but Emma had already started giving everyone their roles, just like her mother.

“Wha... Huh? What?” The manager could follow Emma’s gestures with his eyes, but his brain certainly couldn’t keep up.

“Oh, also! You two, get to the church and the public office and get married already.” Emma punctuated everything with a final bombshell command.

“What?! Wh-What are you insinuating?!”

“Huh?! Lady Emma, where is this coming from?!”

The manager’s and Hannah’s faces both burned red. George had already started on making the embellishments for one of the partially done dresses, and William had taken off to the slums at top speed.

“You don’t have a lot of time, so go on. Get married!” Emma hurried the two lovebirds as she looked over three dresses that didn’t have patterns just yet.

“B-But marriage is... This is all too sudden...and I want to consider Hannah’s feelings...” The manager, who really was an upstanding adult, muttered and fidgeted nervously.

Honestly, you forcibly summoned a Tibetan sand fox to take over our faces and you think you’re not in love?

“Oh, her feelings? You mean, the ones both of you have for each other? Not a problem. You can take care of whatever lovey-dovey stuff you wanna do about it once we’ve gone home because I really, really don’t wanna deal with it. Hmm... You’re the manager of a tailor’s shop and a seamstress... It might be a bit tough to get a same-day marriage permit, huh? Stop by Joshua’s shop on the way and bring him with you. The Rothschild Company makes lots of donations to the churches every year, so I’m sure they’ll do anything for him.” Emma could not have been any blunter if she tried. If she’d been a little bit more considerate of these sorts of things in her past life, she might have actually gotten married at some point.

“W-We...have the same feelings...? Is... Is that really true, Hannah?”

“You...have feelings for me, sir...?”

Just moments ago, they’d been gazing lovingly into each other’s eyes, and suddenly they’d grown so self-conscious, they couldn’t even look at each other.

“M-More importantly, the dresses come first! Oh, but Hannah! That doesn’t mean I don’t want to marry you! I... Truly, I would be honored...but I... I just... You know...there are just so many dresses, and...” The timid manager was too afraid Hannah might turn him down and decided to use the dresses as an excuse to change the subject.

But Emma wouldn’t let him do that. The dress issues and him getting married were one and the same, after all. “The thing is, nobles don’t usually get this pushy. If you really want to know how it got this bad...they’re just taking advantage of the fact that there’s a ball.” It was more they were using it as an excuse. The root cause for it was the manager himself, after all. “Look. I’ll put it to you straight. You’re a hottie, Mister Manager.”

“What?!”

The world Emma had gotten reincarnated into was a sea of great-looking people as far as the eye could see. But the manager’s face stood out so much in that crowd, he would one hundred percent have been one of the love interests in an otome game. His looks would’ve been the talk of the school and the capital at large. The person who placed the initial order and the other women who ordered three more dresses were all from families that had their own personal tailors.

A noblewoman normally wouldn’t go out of their way to ask a shop of this size to make their dresses. But they all desperately wanted to see the super mega turbo hunk who’d bring them their dresses. This was just the usual bandwagon effect that happened with young, gossipy girls.

It might have made sense if this was a shop that was on the main road in the shopping district, but there wasn’t a noblewoman alive who would go out of her way to order a dress from a shop so tucked away that carriages couldn’t even fit on the road. In fact, they wouldn’t even know it existed.

“Basically, a bunch of girls just wanted to get a look at you, so they used the royal ball as an excuse and foisted all these dress orders on you.” It was such a ridiculous idea, but one would be a fool to underestimate how obsessed young girls could get with a single hot guy.

“But...that’s just ridiculous...” The manager covered his face with his hands and shook his head. He couldn’t understand it at all.

“The proof is right here in the pudding. Look at the sizes they’ve written here. I don’t know a single noblewoman in the capital who has such perfect proportions. In fact, I’d wager the only person in the world who could match these is Lady Rose!” Every man, woman, and child on the planet would be falling all over themselves to get a glimpse of a girl with the kinds of hourglass measurements on those order slips. If there were anyone like that at her school, Emma’s beauty sensor would’ve been going off the charts. There was no way there could’ve been three.

They didn’t need to come up with such ridiculous measurements just to come see the manager. Honestly, Emma wondered if Lady Lila, Lady Matilda, and Lady Hailey even thought about how much of a waste it was to order dresses they couldn’t even wear. Ah, but perhaps they were using the fact that the dresses wouldn’t fit as an excuse to come back and return them. It made sense.

“Now that you mention it, those sizes are awfully strange. I hadn’t gotten a good look at them before because we’d had so many orders...”

No matter the dress, you’d need to have a pattern to match. But there wasn’t a single pattern that came in those sizes.

Just days ago, Hannah had been screaming about how her plate had been too full and she couldn’t handle how busy she was. She couldn’t believe Emma only glanced at the order forms and could immediately determine they were all bunk.

“But...what does all that have to do with us getting married?” The manager was sort of starting to follow, but this still had him tilting his head.

“Uh, ’cause you’re a hot single dude. All these girls are thinking it’s their chance to snatch up a snack, so they’ll leave you alone if you get married. I mean, that’s why idols aren’t supposed to fall in love, right?”

“S-Snatch up a snack...? Idol?”

A noblewoman wouldn’t have been able to marry the owner of a tailoring shop because their statuses were too far apart, so it matched the way people dreamed about marrying idols despite them being out of their reach. It was one reason people were so particular about whether their faves were married or single.

Regardless, Emma urged them to get going before the church stopped seeing people if they didn’t want to get any more orders.

“Er... Ah... Hannah... Is that... Would you...want to...? With a guy like me...?”

“What?! I... If you’re okay...with a girl like me...?”

“Y-You mean it?! You really mean it?!”

“Could you get going already?” Emma said, literally shoving the two of them out the door; they were running out of time. Her Tibetan fox impression was still as uncanny as ever. They were adults, for heaven’s sake. The longer they twiddled their thumbs, the worse things were going to get.

“Emma... Couldn’t you have been a little better about setting the mood or something?” George asked from behind Emma as she saw the two off. He’d finally stopped working on his accessories. “That was way too heavy-handed, don’t you think?”

Emma understood what George was trying to say, but watching the two of them as they walked away dissipated any feelings of guilt she might have had.

“Dude. They’re walking and holding hands right now,” Emma said. They’d been so wishy-washy about the whole damn thing just a second ago, but now the manager was holding her hand like it was the most normal thing in the world. They looked so damn happy, it was like they’d totally forgotten about work entirely. Hannah was straight-up just resting her head on the manager’s shoulder, and the way their fingers were now laced together was sickeningly saccharine.

George stood up and took a look at the couple as they strolled down the street. “Eugh. You weren’t kidding.”

“Hannah... I want to make you the happiest woman alive. You’ve already made me the happiest man.”

“Why, you don’t have to try. I already am.”

“Hannah... Would you be willing to call me by my name now?”

“What?! I... But that’s... I... Matthew...?”

“What is it, Hannah? Heh... I like the way it sounds on your lips. Can you say it again?”

“Matthew?”

“Hannah...”

“Matthew...”

“Hannah...”

The two lovebirds continued calling each other’s names until they rounded the corner at the end of the street and were out of sight.

There was a pregnant pause between the two siblings, as neither of them had gotten the chance to get married in their previous lives. Finally, both of them muttered, “Happy singles awareness day to us, huh.”

◆ ◆ ◆

“We’re finally done!”

The manager and Hannah both looked positively gobsmacked, unable to believe their eyes at the scene before them.

Six dresses. Fully completed. Not only within the deadline but with time to spare.

The day Hannah and the manager met the noble siblings, the two of them had gotten married. After they’d finished registering with the church and the capital, the siblings had already nearly finished one whole dress, and they’d finished making the patterns of those dresses that should have been nearly impossible to make with the measurements they’d been provided.

Were they actual mages?

The children William brought from the slums helped Emma with the basting, and the artist he’d brought was dying the threads for some reason. Hannah tried to stop him because she knew he couldn’t possibly have enough time to actually finish dying them, but they had the most brilliantly colored embroidery threads she’d ever seen brought to their store the very next day.

Wasn’t this all too sudden?

What was more, the siblings brought their ridiculously built father with them the next day after school. The moment they handed him an embroidery needle, he got to work so fast they couldn’t even see his hands move. His massive hands made the most detailed embroidery in the blink of an eye.

Hannah had developed her embroidery design to help strengthen her clothes’ fabric with a complex series of hexagons, made to look like honeycomb. Making them all the same size without any gaps between them would take quite a bit of skill and patience. Essentially, it was the kind of thing that your average tailor shouldn’t have been able to replicate...but the siblings gave their father a very simple description of it, and after praising what a nice design it was and saying it’d help the fabric and would stand out on the dress, he perfectly embroidered those hexagons more beautifully than Hannah ever had, and at ten times the speed. What was more, he was laughing and chatting the whole time without slowing down for a second.

“Whew, this fabric’s a bit hard to work with, huh? I could’ve done this ten times faster if I’d been using Pallas silk...”

Was he some kind of monster?

Thanks to their monstrously fast father, they made quick work of the dresses.

Even more, Emma had completely ignored the sizes written on the order slips, claiming that she’d met the girls at school and knew their sizes already. She then made the patterns based on what she had seen.

That’s right. She eyeballed the measurements.

Not only was she too swift at basting, the instructions she gave the kids from the slums were totally on point. The flower accessories George made were so detailed and elaborate, they looked like the real thing. Hannah thought she might even try to sniff them if she wasn’t careful. He even decided to make hair accessories that hadn’t been ordered just because he had time.

William had been placing hundreds of beads on the dresses at unbelievable speeds as well. He hadn’t even made any guidance markers either. Just straight onto the dresses. And the beads he was placing made the most detailed patterns.

This wasn’t just incredible. It was honestly scary. Monstrous father, like monstrous son.

“I knew it’d be faster with us all working together! This is so much fun!” Emma beamed.

They finished six dresses in under three days.

Hannah couldn’t believe it, but this wasn’t a dream. It was reality. It was like this family was heaven sent. Even just one of them could have made a killing in the capital. Especially their father, whose embroidery skills should have been a national treasure. Yet even with all this talent, they were making their living mostly as hunters and silk farmers. They even joked that they used to be quite impoverished themselves. Why hadn’t they gone into sewing?! Hannah couldn’t understand it.

“Er... So, about your payment... I’m so sorry, but can it wait until after we’ve received payment for the dresses?” The manager confessed that he simply didn’t have the funds available to pay such skilled labor at the moment.

“Payment? Oh, right! I guess I did say this was a job, huh?” Absolutely shockingly, Emma laughed and said she’d completely forgotten. Then, she told him that she hadn’t planned on getting paid at all, and the whole family agreed.

“Th-That simply won’t do! You’ve done so much for us!” The manager was certain that his store and his life were forfeit until they arrived. He had to repay them in kind.

“Really, I should be the one thanking you, actually!” Leonard shook his head at the manager. “I’ve been so lonely since my wife left us... Putting all my focus on sewing has been enough to fill the void in my heart somewhat.” The pain and sorrow in his eyes were palpable, and he put his hand to his chest.

The manager and Hannah could hazard a guess as to what sorrow had befallen the family. The siblings must have just lost their mother the day they first met. Perhaps when Hannah bumped into them, they’d all seen their mother’s face in her. The smile Emma had when she was eating those sweets seemed so much stronger now, and Hannah’s heart swelled with emotions. She couldn’t cry. The family before them were the ones who were truly suffering, and they were smiling with their whole hearts now.

Both Hannah and the manager choked back their tears.

“Father, you’re making it sound like our mother died. She’s just out on a business trip...” William scolded his father, saying he was going to jinx her.

“Hmm? Ah, I suppose I am. My apologies. But it is true that I am ever so lonesome.” Leonard drooped his shoulders and whined like a dog while Hannah and the manager were screaming internally, She’s alive?! Why would you say it that way, then?!

“Oh, I know! What if you gave us the rights to Miss—er, Mrs. Hannah’s embroidery? I bet it could be used for all sorts of things!” Leonard grinned, proud of his idea.

“You can’t trademark patterns, though...” Besides, the pattern Hannah had come up with wasn’t something easily made unless you were a particularly skilled seamstress. You couldn’t trademark a pattern, and even if you could, it wasn’t the kind of thing just anyone could replicate. Even if it were popular, nobles went from one trend to the next at a moment’s notice, so it would be abandoned before long. Besides, she’d made that pattern to cover up the frays and tears in her old clothes, so nobles who only wore each dress once in their lifetime wouldn’t have any need for the design either.

Leonard gently shook his head and pushed back against Hannah’s protestations. “I tip my hat to your embroidering prowess, Mrs. Hannah. Seeing that is enough payment for me.”

In the end the family saved the shop from the brink completely for free. The manager was still dumbstruck, unable to believe this inconceivable meeting that led to such extraordinary luck. It had taken the children a split second to notice the feelings he’d been unable to confess to Hannah, and though they had been quite forceful about it, the children had brought them together. When they’d come back from the church, the siblings kept muttering “Happy singles awareness day,” over and over again, which must have been some kind of celebratory statement for newlyweds.

The couple knew it would have taken some time for a shopkeep and his seamstress to get a marriage permit if they’d done it later. The reason it had gone so smoothly was because of that boy with the freckles, after all.

“This is a wedding present from our family to yours,” George said, handing the two of them wedding rings.

“Put this on your left ring finger before you go deliver these dresses, and you won’t be getting any more of those ridiculous orders.” Emma beamed.

The newlyweds gulped at the sight. It was an angel—an angel right before their eyes. They vowed then that they should offer the angel their prayers of gratitude. This angel who took them by the hand and flew them out of the very depths of hell itself. They would offer their deepest gratitude to the angel, Emma Stewart, and her family. They would be sure to tell everyone they knew from now on that there were still good people among the nobles. As a result of the manager’s proselytizing, the word began to spread slowly but surely through the shopping district to the public district alike.

Chapter 47: All the Purrs

“Mraaah! Myaah! Mroooowr!”

The Stewarts had had quite the busy week finishing up six dresses and were finally getting some time to laze about in the house with their kitties.

“What’s the matter, Liu?” Liu had always been quite the chatty cat back in Japan, but she’d quieted down since they’d been reincarnated...until that moment, when she had a lot to say.

“Myah! Myaaaah!”

“Huh?!” Emma listened closely so she could translate what Liu was saying to put William’s worries at ease. You had to concentrate or kitty language could be tough to understand. The most important aspects of kitty-ese were context, enthusiasm, and love.

“Is she okay, sis? She’s not feeling sick or anything, is she?”

“Uh...”

“Sis?”

“Myah! Mrrrah! Myaaaaahhh!”

Emma had gone totally quiet, while Liu was getting even noisier. They all started to get a really bad feeling as Emma’s face grew more and more tense while hearing her out. Finally, she faced the family.

“She says...we need to check the letters to our mother...I think?”

Melsa was on her way to the Eastern Empire.

All of her letters were placed in a box specifically for them on a desk in her study. It could’ve been any one of those.

They asked Martha to bring them the box right away. Melsa was always the one who decided whether they attended any tea parties or evening events they were invited to, and since she was currently away, the box was filled with a massive amount of letters. Leonard had taken a look at the letters once since Melsa had been gone and replied to some that seemed particularly urgent. Had he messed up somehow?

The family split the letters among themselves and started going through them one at a time.

“This tea party’s supposed to be for next week, but mother will still be in the Eastern Empire by then, huh?” William showed his father an invitation from a duke.

“Oh, I went ahead and turned it down since Melsa won’t be here.”

“What about this donation request from the church?”

“Hmm? Oh, I was planning on sending about a hundred gold pieces, but Joshua said I should only send about a tenth of that. He said they were going to keep asking month after month, and you can’t lower the donation once you’ve set it... But are you sure we can’t just send a hundred?”

“What?!”

“Father. Do not ever decide anything like this on your own again, okay?” George begged. They’d finally gotten to the point where they were eating whole meals again, but if they took their eyes off Leonard for a second, they could be right back to the life of poverty in an instant. With Melsa gone for the time being, they couldn’t let him control the purse strings either.

With donations to the church, there was no knowing how much of it went back to the people in need. Joshua considered donations to be a necessary expenditure to avoid extra hassle, but had said that if they really wanted to do something for the people, they should find a different avenue instead. The siblings weren’t exactly all that religious, since they were former Japanese people, so they didn’t object all that much. It was better not to poke that sleeping bear, after all.

They kept fishing through all the letters until William finally reached the last one.

“Hmm? Hey, this letter’s the only one that hasn’t been opened.”

“If it was at the bottom, it might’ve been delivered the day Melsa left. We were in such a hurry, we all might’ve missed it.” They’d decided she’d be going to the Eastern Empire the day before she actually went, so it was only natural they’d be in a tizzy the day of. It wouldn’t have been all that shocking if she hadn’t had time to actually look at the mail she’d received that morning.

“Hey, uh... I might...have some bad news.” William slowly turned the envelope around to show the family the seal on it.

“Oh. Oh no.”

A jet-black seal, like spilled ink. It was indeed...a letter from the royal family.

Upon hurriedly opening it, Emma discovered that it was an invitation to the very same ball that had been causing so much trouble for her Embroidery friends and Hannah. The Stewarts actually had been invited.

“What are we gonna do?! This is an invitation to a ball! And it’s being held...tomorrow evening?!”

“So wait, this means we just...totally ignored an invitation from the royal family!” It had been a whole week since the letter had arrived. There wasn’t a worse social faux pas in noble society.

Martha and the servants, who had been watching over the proceedings, all let out screams of terror. They’d have to make preparations for the next evening, have all the cosmetics ready, arrange for a carriage, and arrange for a letter to be sent to the royal family as soon as possible. They all scattered to take on their various tasks.

“Oh... It says we don’t have to respond, because the Stewart family is required to attend.”

“This is tyranny!!!”

The king’s unreasonable expectations were so painful. There weren’t many who would ever turn down an invitation from the royal family in the first place, but they’d never even heard of someone getting called out in the invitation itself.

Martha, who had run off to check that everything was ready, ran back into the room looking very pale. “This is terrible! Lady Emma doesn’t have any dresses!”

The last dress they’d made for Emma had already been done in a hurry, and since they thought they’d had no plans for the current week, they hadn’t even considered making a new one for her...even though they’d made so many dresses for other girls while helping out at the tailor. They’d been riding that wave and wound up starting on dresses for Marion, Francesca, and the twins when they got back, but hadn’t done a single thing for Emma.

“Can’t you just wear one of the ones we made for Lady Francesca, Lady Marion, or the twins? Oh...uh, yeah, no that’s not gonna work, huh.” George thought he’d had a great idea, but all the other girls’ body types were far too different from Emma’s. The twins were the closest to Emma, but the design showed a bit more skin than Emma wanted to.

The family came to a horrific conclusion. “So then...that means...we have to make one...tonight...?”

“No... There’s no way! We can’t!” The whole family was talking about Emma, but the person in question was the most opposed.

“I know, but Emma...” Leonard wanted to comfort her, but he didn’t move. Actually, he couldn’t move.

“I...don’t think I can do it either...” William averted his eyes guiltily.

“But if we start tomorrow, we won’t make it! And we’ll have to get her hair and makeup done too... Agh, but...I don’t know if we can do it all tonight...”

Leonard, George, Emma, and William all had cats resting their heads on their laps, sleeping ever so peacefully. Just for the occasion, they’d taken off their shoes and sat down on the horned hair carpet in the living room. As they were going through Melsa’s mail, the cats began purring and loving on them, then rested their heads in their laps and fell fast asleep. They’d been coming home so late each day this week, so the cats were extra lovey-dovey. They wondered if it was possible to get away from the kitties and their sweet, loving purring resting so peacefully on their laps...but no. There was no way.

“General Kongming...” Emma stroked the back of Kongming’s ears. Kongming sighed happily and started sleep-talking. She was just so cute...

There was no greater joy than having a cat on one’s lap. It had always been that way. It didn’t matter whether you had to go to the bathroom or your legs started to fall asleep. You couldn’t escape the cat paralysis.

“Oooh, you’re so cute... You’re so dang cute...” It didn’t matter if their bladders exploded or if the nobles all talked behind Emma’s back for wearing the same dress twice. They couldn’t fight the joy of having their beloved kitties resting on their laps.

The four giant cats purred and purred as time relentlessly marched on.

◆ ◆ ◆

The next day, the three siblings and Leonard somehow, miraculously, made it to the evening party at the castle. There were apparently several ballrooms available at the capital, but the ball that evening was being held in the largest and most luxurious of them all.

“Lady Emma!”

Emma looked toward the voices and saw her friends from Embroidery waving to her.

“Why, your dresses all look positively marvelous on you all!” Emma remarked.

Francesca was wearing a cute, but not too cute, pink lace dress. Marion was wearing a black one-shoulder dress with a flower embellishment on the shoulder. The twins were wearing matching off-shoulder dresses with an unusual (for this world) marine theme, alternating light blue and white colors.

“I was really worried about what we might do for a while. You really saved us, Lady Emma!” Francesca said with a hand to her chest, bowing with gratitude. Marion and the twins followed suit.

“I’m honored to have been of service to you all.” Emma giggled.

“I do have to wonder if such a feminine dress really suits me, though...” Francesca was a bit shy about wearing the soft pink dress, saying it was her first time ever having worn something like it.

“It looks lovely on you, Lady Francesca. In fact, I’d say it’s perfect for someone as ladylike as you are,” William said, using the honeyed words that had been drilled into him by his sister so he could appropriately compliment the girls. Francesca was so happy to receive such a lovely compliment from the ten-year-old that her cheeks took on a faint pink tinge.

“I never thought I’d wear a one-shoulder dress either. I was really happy you sent it over, but I wasn’t sure if I had it in me to wear it. I honestly was leaning toward wearing my knightly attire, but my parents, brother, and servants all insisted I go with the dress after all...” Marion seemed a bit embarrassed about her bare shoulder and asked if it looked strange.

“Lady Marion, that dress perfectly suits your height and figure! Your hair accessory is quite lovely as well,” George replied, using the same compliments he’d borrowed from his father. The two of them were both rather tall, and seeing them next to each other was practically picturesque. If they were to dance together, they would have been the talk of the ball. Unfortunately, George was not going to dance. Marion smiled and thanked him. She seemed more feminine than ever before, perhaps because of the dress.

“I really like the stripes on our dresses! Don’t you, Caitlyn?”

“I really like the stripes on our dresses too, Catherine!”

Apparently, the twins had really taken a shine to their dresses.

“You really helped us a lot, Lady Emma. My dress was already finished, but Caitlyn’s wasn’t. I couldn’t possibly wear a dress that’s different from hers, though. Right, Caitlyn?”

“You really did help us, Lady Emma! I couldn’t possibly wear a dress different from you, Catherine!”

Though the order of the light blue and white stripes on their dresses was reversed, they were otherwise the exact same design. The light blue marine-themed dress was especially fetching against their darker skin.

“Both of you look stunning! I knew an ocean theme would look amazing on you!” Emma nodded in approval over and over, happy to finally have the chance to dress up two people with her favorite aesthetic. The twins responded in unison that they thought this pattern would become popular in no time flat.

That morning, the Stewart family had heard from Joshua that there were many girls worried they wouldn’t have dresses ready for the evening’s affair. Thinking her Embroidery friends might have been among them and a dress would be better than no dress at all, she asked Joshua’s people to send them the dresses she and her family had made. It turned out to be a good thing that Leonard was beside himself with loneliness after Melsa left at the beginning of the week, because he’d finished sewing the remaining three dresses to get his mind off of it while the kids were at school. He also helped out at the tailor’s, but he’d looked so happy sewing those dresses, he helped the three siblings sew their friends’ dresses when they came home too. It wasn’t long before they’d finished dresses for all of Emma’s friends.

“Your dress is as beautiful as always too, Lady Emma.” Francesca gasped while looking at Emma’s dress. Her dress that evening was nearly pure white, save for the light green embroidery at the bottom hem that matched her eyes. It made her look even more demure than usual (in appearance, at least). Naturally, the detailed embroidery was quite fetching, but the white of the dress was particularly eye-catching. Emma already had a very soft and delicate appearance, but the dress made her feel more ephemeral and lucent, like a sacred being walking among them.

“Th-Thank you very much, Lady Francesca.” Emma’s smile as she thanked Francesca was strangely forced...because she had some pretty mixed feelings about the compliment. After all, her dress that day had to be hastily made in a fit of desperation because they had been cat paralyzed the whole night before. They’d used up most of the ink they’d bought from Harold, and the one color they did have left was a white that had spilled onto the floral-themed dress she’d worn at the previous banquet.

Since Emma, her brothers, and her father had all been cat paralyzed, they whispered for Martha and the other servants (so they wouldn’t wake the cats) to take care of it for them. Thankfully, it had been nice weather the next day, because in the worst-case scenario, she would’ve had to wear the dress to the ball only half-dried. They all thanked heaven for the good weather that day.

Shockingly, once Emma put the newly white dress on, it did seem like it could pass as a new one. Emma asked Martha what she thought, but for some reason, Leonard was trembling at the sight.

“Father? Is something the matter...?”

Emma tried to see what was wrong when her father suddenly flung himself forward and grasped her by the shoulders. “You can’t wear this dress! It’s too much like a wedding gown!”

The dress had been dyed with Harold’s special ink, so it was like the original floral print had never been there. A pure white dress was indeed just a wedding dress, but there wasn’t anything they could do about it. Besides, there weren’t any rules that said girls could wear white only on their wedding day, so it should’ve been fine.

“Hnnngh! Lady Emma, we should get marr—” Joshua, who had been in the other room, came running at the sound of Leonard’s shouting, and at the sight of Emma in her dress found himself sliding in through the momentum alone. But then, in a shockingly natural movement, he went from sliding right into the down-on-one-knee pose until Leonard caught him by his collar and threw him out of the room.

The sound of Joshua’s butt slamming on the ground and his cry upon landing was met with a loud slam as the door closed and barricaded. Joshua said later that the demonic expression on Leonard’s face at the time would haunt his memories for the rest of his life.

“Whoa, what the heck was that?!”

“Why’re you on the ground, Joshua?”

George and William had come running to see what the commotion was about. They both offered Joshua a hand, but he waved them off and stood up on his own. He dusted off the seat of his pants and straightened his jacket, and in a low enough voice that nobody else could hear, he muttered, “If he thinks that’ll make me give up, he’s in for a surprise...”

Meanwhile, Leonard was now shrilly pleading with Emma to the point that Emma and Martha both wondered if this could possibly have been the same man who had just grabbed someone by the back of their collar and thrown them. “Emma, please! If you wear this dress to an evening event, you’ll have more maggots crawling up to ask for your hand, just like Joshua! Please, at least let us add some embroidery!”

“Honestly, you really don’t need to chuck Joshua over a silly little joke.” Unfortunately, Emma had no idea what Joshua or her father’s feelings actually were on this matter.

Martha shook her head. “Master, I’m so very sorry to say, I don’t believe we have time to get the young lady undressed so we can embroider it and put it back on again. We need to leave now or we won’t make it to the ball.” She apologized, but she didn’t seem fussed about it at all.

“But...but maybe we can... Wait, I know! What about the hem? We can embroider the hem while she’s still wearing it!”

“I said it’s already time to go!” Martha shouted. Being late to a royal ball was simply unacceptable, and Leonard should have already known that. They’d already spent far too much time dawdling as it was, and time wasn’t slowing down for them.

“Please! I can do it in forty seconds! I swear!” Emma couldn’t believe she’d hear a line straight out of Nyaputa coming from her own father’s mouth, but to her very surprise, he sat right down and actually did manage to finish a beautiful embroidery on the hem in forty seconds.

◆ ◆ ◆

Arthur had been brought to the evening affair by his father, and he was chatting with the knights of high enough rank to merit an invitation when he felt a sudden strange, gentle shift in the air, focused on one specific area.

Most of the women who had been invited seemed rather tired, likely because of how sudden this event had been. Some of them realized there was no way they’d finish their dresses in time, so they affixed countless ribbons to dresses they’d already worn before to try to pass them off as new. Some of them were wearing dresses that had clearly been made far too hastily. Some of them were wearing dresses they’d borrowed, despite obviously not being their size. Though the ball might have appeared to be beautiful at first glance, the air was riddled with the agonies and shame of these poor women.

Yet in the storm of negativity, there was a pocket of peace. In it was Arthur’s sister, Marion, and her good friends. Just as Marion had been insisting on wearing her knight regalia, the Rothschild Company had delivered a dress from the Stewart family. What was more, it fit her more perfectly than if she’d spent ages at the tailor getting measured. What surprised him most was that in that dress, his usually masculine sister was perfectly sharp and ladylike. And now, she was smiling and surrounded by friends who were all wearing similarly perfect dresses. In the center of them all was the Stewart family’s Lady Emma, clad in a pure, refined white dress.

To say they stood out was an understatement.

Evening parties were like battlefields to the young ladies in high society, and the women who had been unable to prepare their full suit of armor were suffering a full-body pummeling of shame. Meanwhile, his sister and her friends were wearing beautifully sewn dresses entirely fitted to their bodies, utterly unique to them rather than following the latest trends, and the air around them was gentle and relaxed. The difference was staggering. There wasn’t a soul who could have kept their eyes off the girls. Even the glares from the young lords’ fathers weren’t enough to keep their lovestruck eyes off of Emma. If this were a battlefield, then the battle was already won before it had even started.

“Emmaaa!” A streak of marvelous cream color dived into the center of it all. For an instant, everyone’s breath caught. When the Stewart family all smiled and bowed to her, everyone else panicked and did the same.

It was the royal concubine, Rose Alicia Royale.

The nobles had heard that Lady Rose’s dresses had begun to change about a year prior, and though they’d seen her at previous affairs as well, this had been their first opportunity to see her up close.

Rose was wearing a satiny cream-colored dress with lovely gray embroidery. Though she’d freely shown her shoulders, chest, and legs without a thought a year ago, they were now all covered. Her earrings, which used to be adorned with heavy jewels, were now mere pearl studs. To be perfectly honest, it was a very plain dress with accessories far too simple for the occasion...but she was positively stunning in them. It gave her a sort of sensuality that one didn’t normally see when they got a hug from a school friend’s mother.

Rose wasn’t showing any skin. Her dress was a modest and unassuming color. And even though they were covered, the cut made her massive breasts stand out even more. In fact, perhaps it was because they were covered that they stood out so much.

Had she always been so beautiful?

Arthur wasn’t the only person who did a double take at just how gorgeous Rose was. Everyone present did.

“Rosie, your dress looks sooo amazing on you! You just get prettier and prettier every time I see you!” Though Rose had told them it was okay to drop the formalities after their bows, Emma wasn’t about to do that in a public place, so she whispered into Rose’s ear instead.

“Ooh, thank you so much, Emma! You look darling as well!” Rose hugged Emma tightly. Because Rose was taller than Emma, her cheeks were pressed right up against Rose’s ample bosom, letting Emma partake in their joyous suppleness. Emma thanked the heavens for the bountiful harvest.

A loving embrace between a buxom yet classy concubine and the pure and ephemeral daughter of a count... It was a more stunning sight than even the most beautiful of galas.

“It’s...so beautiful...”

“It’s like a goddess and an angel...”

“I don’t understand... I could look at them forever! No, more than that! I want to protect them with my life! No, I’ll be their fan for life...!”

“What are these feelings? Like my heart is being squeezed and beating so fast like it’s trying to escape...?”

“Lady Rose... I misunderstood you for so long...”

“Beautiful... Divine... That’s all I have to say.”

“I never knew sweet Lady Emma was so close to Lady Rose...”

“Lady Rose... You’re a good person. I know for sure now.”

“Lady Emma’s smile just now... Yes, Lady Rose must be a good person indeed.”

With just one hug, Rose’s reputation (which had been in the mud a year prior but had steadily been rising) skyrocketed, though neither party in the hug had any idea.

“Hey, William? The party hasn’t even started yet...”

“Does she have some kinda disease that forces everyone to look at her when she steps into the ball or something?”

George and William gazed with utterly exhausted expressions at the pair hugging and the crowd staring.

If it’s a sickness...then there’s nothing we can do. But only if it’s a sickness...

“All right, Emma! Let’s get going! I came here to pick you up!” Rose took Emma’s hand gleefully and brought her toward the front of the ballroom.

“Huh? Uh, Rosie, what?”

“That means you as well, George! William! And Count Stewart as well!” The Stewart families all sprouted question marks above their heads as Rose brought them all to the front and had them stand on the stage above everyone else.

“Er... Lady Rose? What is the meaning of this?” If the royal concubine tells you to come with her, you simply have to listen. But Leonard still wanted to ask why.

“No need to be shy! You all are the guests of honor for this event!”

“We are?!”

Rose had said something truly bewildering.

“The king was overjoyed when he told me you all finally accepted his offer for a reward last week.”

There was a brief pause, then George cupped his hands over his mouth when he realized just what had happened.

Come to think of it, the king had been really pushy about the reward when he came to the Stewart house. And George had thought it was a pain and just casually said he could ask Emma about it. And naturally, since he was only remembering it just now, he hadn’t said a word to Emma about it.

“George...?” The king was not the type to actually wait for Emma’s response, and Emma was sending George an accusatory glare.

George took a second look at the older crowd and saw that it was mostly high-ranking nobles—counts and upward—and the younger crowd included all the siblings’ friends from school. They were trapped, with no way out but to accept the reward. What with the ninjas, their mother going to the Eastern Empire, the dresses, the lovebirds, and all the other craziness going on, George had completely forgotten to tell Emma about it...but he couldn’t escape his mistake now.

“Emma...I’m so sorry, but...you’re gonna have to do something about the king’s reward.”

They knew it was unreasonable, but since the Tanakas had been commoners in their previous lives, they didn’t want higher peerage. In fact, they wouldn’t have been able to handle higher peerage. And there was nothing all that appealing about having more land either. They were already making enough money as it was, and if they were to receive more, it would just lead to trouble with the other nobles.

“Huh? George, what does that mean?”

George never thought his half-baked answer would come back to bite him at a ball in the castle, in front of a sea of other nobles. He had to hand it to the king. He was going to make the Stewarts accept this reward no matter what.

“George? Hello? What does that mean?! Hello?!” Emma was being dragged up the stage by Rose. Something was going on with George.

But there was one thing that was always certain. One that you never realize until it’s too late.

Communication is the key to everything.

◆ ◆ ◆

Meanwhile, in the Eastern Empire...

Splash.

Since they intended to depart early the next morning, Melsa had decided to turn in early and was doing her usual skincare and hair routine. Suddenly, a crack appeared on the mirror in front of her, though nothing was even touching it.

“That’s...ominous.” Melsa furrowed her brow at the clear sign of bad luck before her.

Chapter 48: The Reward

“Now, Emma Stewart! Tell us what you desire!”

The evening affair began with the king singing the praises of the Stewart family. How they’d been protecting the kingdom for many long years from the threat of monsters. How their sericulture business had contributed greatly to the kingdom’s wealth. How they’d responded to the localized barrier crisis a year prior. And lastly, their ability to interpret the Eastern Empire’s language.

When they put it all together like that, it really did sound like a lot.

The king continued, saying that despite being offered rewards for their meritorious deeds time and time again, the Stewarts had declined every time. However, no other house had made nearly as many contributions to the kingdom as the Stewarts. If things continued, it would be difficult for any house to receive the king’s boons. The king himself had gone to persuade the Stewarts in the most recent attempt, and they had finally agreed.

The king went on at length to all the guests. With every new praise the king laid on, Rose gave a tiny little round of applause. It was so adorable, but the Stewarts couldn’t fully appreciate it because there was no running now. The pressure was on and getting worse by the second.

The raised stage.

High-ranking nobles all around.

Talks of the king’s boon coming from out of nowhere.

The Tanakas, former pure Japanese commoners, were not of a culture that could possibly have taken joy in a single part of this. The only one in their whole family who was well-versed in the ways of high society was currently out in the Eastern Empire. They were totally up the creek without a paddle. The king was before them, telling them they could take their pick: peerage, land, status, honor, marriage... Nothing was off the table.

“So, Emma Stewart! What would you like?”

Because of George, Emma was now in the hot seat, being forced to “pick her poison.” Emma was brought forward to stand in the center of the stage with nowhere to run and nowhere to hide. She turned around and begged her father for help with her eyes, but when he felt her gaze on him, he very clearly looked anywhere but at her. She shot a glare in George’s direction, and he refused to meet her eyes. She tried giving one final plea to her little brother William, who was standing next to George and was supposed to be the smart one in this world, but his eyes were fixed on Princess Jadwiga, who was standing behind Lady Rose.

If Emma had been up against monsters or ruffians, her father, older brother, and even little brother would’ve risked life and limb to save her, but they were absolutely useless now.

Prince Edward was behind Jadwiga, looking quite worriedly at Emma. He was a nice person, so if he had known this was going to happen in advance, he would have likely told her when they saw each other at school.

The king asked what she wanted, but the only things Emma cared about were her family, bugs, cats, and food. If she were to really try to get what she wanted, she’d say that there weren’t as many bugs in the capital as there were in Pallas, since it was a large city. Though their manor had a large yard, she’d already gotten to know the bugs inhabiting it. If she really could ask for anything, she’d want some rarer bugs. But Emma did indeed know that a lady of her status shouldn’t ask for insects, of all things. It wasn’t exactly the kind of thing you would ask as a reward from the king, and she felt like equating bugs with peerage was likely to get her yelled at.

Though if one were to ask Emma, bugs were way better anyway.

So then what was left? What did Emma like? What did she love more than anything?

“Well, Your Majesty. I love Lady Rose, so she’s what I want!” Emma thought long and hard about what she loved, and the moment she saw Lady Rose smiling behind the king, she spoke before she could even stop herself.

“Oh, Emma! I love you too!”

“What?! No! You can’t have Rose! She’s mine!” the king cut in and wrapped his hand around the delighted concubine to pull her close.

“Oh, Your Majesty, you know she was just joking.”

“I don’t care! I won’t let you ever leave my side!”

“Your Majesty...”

The rugged silver fox and the buxom goddess were having an open PDA session...

Emma was annoyed because he’d said she could ask for anything. Also, she’d been having to deal with lovey-dovey couples far too often lately...but Rose looked happy, so she supposed it was fine.

Though there was a strangely awkward feeling around the Stewarts and the prince, the guests were having a hard time hiding their impatience, their thoughts wandering to a number of questions.

I thought the king had given up on Lady Rose?

Our family supports the firstborn prince... What are we supposed to do?

Wait, doesn’t this mean the second-born prince’s faction is in the lead? When did all this happen?!

Then all of this was just a farce to show us Prince Edward and Emma getting engaged?

So the Stewarts and the royal family were plotting all this while we were all desperately trying to get our dresses together?

How underhanded could Count Stewart be?!

And why is Lady Emma choosing the reward and not the count himself?

But wait...I’ve heard Lady Emma had many secret admirers among the firstborn prince’s faction as well.

So then the reason she made such an unreasonable demand was to minimize any backlash from the other nobles?

Then what Lady Emma’s after must be...the prince’s hand in marriage.

She has such a sweet face, but clearly she is a conniving girl deep down.

When Emma offhandedly remarked she wanted Lady Rose, anxiety ran deep in the nobles. They had never felt such fear for their positions in life before. Those in the firstborn prince’s faction gulped, waiting for Emma’s next words with bated breath. If Emma said she wanted Prince Edward’s hand in marriage, they would have to oppose it right then and there. As nobles in their position, they couldn’t possibly accept that this was just some innocent little thirteen-year-old’s puppy love.

“All right, widdle Emm—ahem, I mean, Emma Stewart. What will it be? Peerage? Land? Marriage?” The king limited it to three choices, likely because he didn’t want Rose to be taken from him.

The anxiety running through the nobles reached a fever pitch, and that pressure was being pushed onto Emma now. Hey, Your Majesty?! Your Majesty?! Why did you have to go out of your way to make marriage one of the options?!

Peerage, land, or marriage.

Meanwhile, Emma was lost in her own panic. Why did he have to do a three-combo punch of stuff I don’t care about?!

Peerage... Well, they were just barely able to handle life with Leonard as a count.

Land... Pallas was already pretty damn huge on its own.

Marriage... That was just skyrocketing the peerage issue, wasn’t it?

No matter how many times they asked her, none of them sounded good or advantageous to them. But she really didn’t want to just sit there wasting time twiddling her thumbs about it at the start of the party either, so she decided to just use the process of elimination.

“Then, uh...l-land?” It sounded far better than raising her peerage or choosing a fiancé.

“What?!” Everyone in the ballroom let out a (completely unintended) cry of disbelief at Emma’s answer. Not a single person suspected Emma would have chosen land out of those options. If she’d wanted land, she could’ve easily gotten it just by raising her peerage or marrying into the royal family.

“Huh? Land? Why?” The king, who’d told her to choose one of the three himself, was also baffled by the unexpected choice.

Meanwhile, Emma was wondering what the right move was supposed to be after she’d chosen one of the three. If she had to answer for herself, all she could say was that it had been the process of elimination.

Emma was sulking at the unreasonable pressure they were all putting on her, and her gaze started to lower farther and farther. Finally, she wound up staring at the pure white dress she was wearing. The nature print Harold had painted for her had been completely washed away with that white ink. It was unlikely anyone recognized that it was the same dress from the previous week’s banquet. Just as Emma started to distract herself from reality by focusing on how glad she was that they’d managed to get a dress on time, she suddenly came up with a great idea.

“Your Majesty, I, Emma Stewart, do have specific land I would like to request.”

“And what might that be?” the king asked. Though Emma was internally thrilled that things were going well so far, she put on a more reserved show outwardly, and she nodded. “No need to hold back. You can say what you’d like.”

Generally when someone requested land as their boon, people didn’t request any particular land. The majority just had an area chosen and granted to them by the royal family, though it would be land similar in value to the land they already owned. Emma going out of her way to say there was land she wanted was honestly a bit of a shameless request.

The young lady, Emma Stewart, did not break eye contact as she told the king her wishes. “Well, Your Majesty...the Stewart family would like to request ownership of the slums here in the capital.”

Not a single soul in the ballroom could comprehend Emma’s request.

Emma Stewart wanted the slums, what many considered the dark side of the capital. Though there had been an influx of work available for the lower classes (helping with repairs following the attempted coup), allowing them to move to a better standard of living, there were plenty of children under working age who had been left behind in the slums. They were only able to survive thanks to the food the high nobles brought around once a week.

“Th-The slums?! What are you saying, Emma?” the king asked in shock.

Emma couldn’t understand why everyone was so surprised by her answer and cocked her head to the side. “Your Majesty, I befriended some of the children from the slums not long ago. They were all so hungry...and as their friend, I want to do what I can to help them.”

Truthfully, Harold had been receiving a salary from the Rothschild Company and the children had been taking on simple work from the Stewart family, so the kids weren’t actually crying in hunger as much anymore. But she did say this was “not long ago,” so technically it wasn’t a lie.

“They were hungry? But the nobles are supposed to be bringing them food each week...” The king had never set foot in the slums himself due to the myriad of issues with politics and security, but he did read the reports about what food had been distributed each month. Unfortunately, those reports were a far cry from the truth of the matter.

Emma sighed. The king really had no idea.

Sighing at the king was the height of disrespect, and it made everyone’s blood run cold...except one woman, who was sitting on a lavish sofa at the edge of the ball. Hilda Sullivan smiled proudly. Emma’s sigh was a perfect echo of both Hilda, the Etiquette Demon, and Melsa, who had disciplined her day in and day out. It was a sigh that made any noble, including the king himself, freeze solid.

“Your Majesty. Humans need to eat every day to live. Why are we assuming people in the slums can live off of food once every week? We’re all human. How many meals do we eat in just one day?” Emma was frankly disgusted that so many of them had never experienced or had to worry about experiencing hunger like that. They hadn’t even thought about such a thing.

Hunger was the most horrendous feeling of all. There was so much fancy food lined up in the ballroom that day. These nobles were in a position where they had hardly ever had to experience hunger, and could eat without a care in the world.

“The reports say that the food they distribute is meant to be enough to last them for a week, though...”

“It depends on who’s distributing it,” Emma explained. “Some weeks, they have to make do with one bowl of soup per person.”

“What?”

“Do you think that’s enough to live off of? One bowl of soup for a whole week?”

“I... I never saw anything like that...in the reports...”

“That isn’t to say it’s always that. Some nobles actually are distributing enough food for a week. But when I first went to the slums, there were hungry children everywhere, even though the food distribution was supposed to have just happened.” Emma remembered Hugh saying that the amount of food being distributed each week depended on which noble was in charge. Some of them would give them warm food and enough to last them for a week in bags, explaining how they should be rationed in simple enough terms for children to understand. Even then, some of it would spoil in the summer no matter what, and adults might steal from them in the wintertime, so the days when everyone was fed a proper meal were sadly few and far between.

“What? Wait, hold on! You went to the slums?! You know how dangerous that is, don’t you?!” The king and all the nobles were aghast at Emma’s statement. The daughter of a count going to the slums was simply unheard of. They thought when Emma said she’d befriended some of the children from the slums, it was because she’d brought them to the aristocratic district with her, not that she herself had gone to the slums. The guests had all been listening with bated breath, but they could no longer hide their concern. They couldn’t believe that such a frail young girl went to the slums, where even the nobles distributing food wouldn’t dare to tread without some kind of protection. It was simply too dangerous.

“Dangerous? Why? All the kids there were so sweet to me.” Emma smiled without a trace of fear in her words. Of course, nobody present would have assumed she’d visited in such tattered rags that nobody in the slums thought she was a noblewoman in the first place.

“B-But that’s...? Well, you had an escort, right? Nobody attacked you, right?” Though Emma looked perfectly happy and healthy before him, the king looked to her father, Leonard for confirmation. Rose and Prince Edward looked quite worried at the unexpected turn of conversation.

“N-No...they didn’t have any protection. But that’s because the three of them went off on their own...”

“What?!”

Not only did they not have an escort, the children all went alone? The whole ballroom was in a tizzy. Even Hilda, who had been sitting elegantly this whole time, stood from her seat in surprise. She hadn’t asked why exactly Emma had been put in her care, but she could not have ever imagined that this had been the reason.

“Wh-What madness!” the king shouted. “Count Leonard, have you any idea what could have befallen them?! You know just how dangerous the slums are, do you not? Why, the sorts of things that could have happened there are things that cannot be undone!” All across the room, people criticized Count Stewart for the way he was raising his children.

“Worry not! We were sure to discipline them for this. I went to retrieve them as soon as I knew. Though even if there were any danger, it would have just been from other humans. My sons can easily handle keeping their sister safe from a human opponent.” Leonard could tell it was not the right vibe to say that his children had actually stayed overnight in the slums. George didn’t feel all that great about his father’s explanation, considering that they would never have wound up in the slums if he hadn’t allowed his monster karuta cards to be pickpocketed in the first place.

Oh, sis... Go figure you’d fan the flames here... You really are a master of making things worse... William, though, massaged his temples to stop the headache he was getting.

“Your Majesty, if you’re aware that the slums are so dangerous, then why have you not done anything to fix them? There are starving children living out there,” Emma said. Though the king told her not to go to such a dangerous place, the kingdom had left it to become what it was now. Emma pouted. She was none too happy that this whole talk of getting a reward had turned into everyone getting upset with her.

Emma knew she was hitting a sore spot. She was having flashbacks to her superiors asking her why she hadn’t finished her work in her previous life. It didn’t matter if you worked until you were dead tired or down to the last second, you didn’t tend to get people telling you that you did a good job. And while you were panicking trying to get all that work done, you’d get even more work that you’d have to put off for later. It was normally just little annoyances or things you didn’t know where to start with.

Obviously, a king’s work was far busier than that of your standard office worker. And obviously, she knew just how difficult it could be. But how come they had to make it her problem? Emma’s retort cut the king like a knife.

“You’re... You’re right. I am indeed at fault. Our kingdom shouldn’t have any slums. I shouldn’t have just accepted my reports at face value.” The king earnestly took responsibility...though the royal family wasn’t supposed to be apologizing so easily.

“Your Majesty. I know that the vast work you do every day for your people is impossible to imagine for someone of my status. All I want is to help my friends. My world is still so very small...but can you find it in your heart to grant me this selfish wish?” Emma used the king’s guilt as an opportunity to ask for the slums once more. Because if she didn’t, it would mean he’d offer her peerage or marriage again, and she did not want that.

Emma had no idea, but her public perception was skyrocketing. This young girl wants to help the children of the slums? The very slums that the kingdom itself has neglected to work on?

“I-If I may have a word, Your Majesty! Offering a section of the capital, even if it is the slums, to a count’s family is simply unprecedented! What’s more, I find it hard to accept someone speaking so ill of the food distribution system that we, the high-ranking nobles of the capital, have been implementing out of the kindness of our hearts!”

Some of the nobles had no qualms with the Stewarts lending their aid to the slums before the man spoke up. They’d had to deal with people who were unhappy with the work they did distributing food and harassing them for it. Emma deciding to take over work on the slums meant she would be dealing with those problems instead.

“I understand where you’re coming from. However, I don’t believe Emma’s lying either... Perhaps it’d be best if the royal family took responsibility and investigated the food distribution system ourselves.”

“Huh? Uh... No, there’s... You needn’t trouble yourself so...” The man clammed up in an instant.

Meanwhile, Emma began to twitch and tremble now that people were getting upset with her. She sought some kind of solace from all the rage and found it in staring at Rose’s ample bosom—nothing could have been a more effective salve than that. Rose’s breasts could make Emma forget the world around her. She decided right then and there that she would make an off-shoulder dress that showed off Rose’s chest next, just like the one she’d worn the first time they met.

“Emma, are you absolutely certain you wish to take the slums as your reward? I’ll be frank: It won’t be easy to save. It will take a tremendous amount of money, and there’s no guarantee they’ll thank you for your efforts. Some may even find some offense in your actions somehow and it may put you in harm’s way. Is this still what you truly wish?” As the king, he was none too happy at the prospect of giving a frail girl such a heavy burden. He worried her kind nature would one day cause her pain. But Emma did not hesitate.

“I don’t mind. Your Majesty, I believe that all people have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of food and snacks. We have the ability to give them enough. Neither I nor my family would ever choose not to provide when we have the ability to.” Emma responded clearly and confidently, staring at Rose’s breasts the entire time. After all, the other rewards were things she did not want.

Life, liberty, and the pursuit of food and snacks.

Wait.

That’s the damn constitution! William and George both realized, and the disbelief showed on their faces. Meanwhile, the rest of the partygoers in the venue were deeply affected by the utter benevolence coming from the young girl’s mouth.

Those who owned a region in the kingdom knew it was inevitable that some of their people might go hungry, so most of them had simply given up on the matter. They knew it was impossible to save everyone. Yet before the king himself, this delicate young girl still said she believed all people deserved this effort, though her shoulders shook with fear.

These were wise words one never would have expected from a thirteen-year-old girl. They could feel the strong will behind her eyes. It was as though they were getting a glimpse at just how hard she worked for her people on a regular basis. A young girl clad all in white, admonishing the king with such purehearted intentions... Why, there could be no other word...

“She’s a saint...” These were the words whispered from all across the venue. In this world, the title of saint was the highest status given only to those who were pure of heart. Consecrating someone without the church’s permission was unacceptable, but if a girl like her wasn’t consecrated, then nobody should be given such a status.

“You’re right! She must be consecrated!”

“Emma Stewart must be consecrated!”

Those whispers soon spread and had others determined to do the same. They would follow in the saint’s footsteps and work toward making their own lands ones where every person could have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of food and snacks. Though some nobles were still none too happy with her, Emma’s words had had an effect on a large swath of them. The venue was now alive with energy as they believed a country without hunger could now begin with them.

“Oh, you’ve gotta be kidding me...”

“Sis has done it again...”

George and William were in the midst of all the commotion and clutching their heads in despair. She’d done it again, and this time, the hullabaloo was bigger than ever.

“Well. As one who is now consecrated, Emma Stewart, I shall grant you the slums as your reward from the kingdom at large.” The king heard the bustle from the crowd and announced that Emma would have her wish granted.

Unfortunately, his timing could not have been worse. Emma suddenly became aware of the commotion in the venue and was filled with terror that she’d done something terrible.

Wait, why’s everyone freaking out?! What happened while I was lost in Lady Rose’s bounteous bosom?! Wait... Wait, what did the king just say to me?!

In her panic and anxiety, she couldn’t quite understand what everyone had been saying. All she knew was that she couldn’t handle all the pressure and was trying to deal with it by stealing glances at Rose’s breasts...and also the king’s powerful chest. By the time she realized she might have been indulging too much, it was too late.

“W-Wait, what? Consummated?! Th-That’s not... I’m not...! P-Please, nothing’s been consummated here!” I was just staring a little! Emma thought, denying the king’s words with everything she had. How could he say such a thing to such an innocent little girl?! Her guilty conscience had her confusing consecrated with consummated.

“No, Emma. You should be consecrated for your contributions to this country. There truly is no other like you,” the king added, finding her denial of her sainthood to be mere modesty. He meant that nobody else was as kind and pure as her, but Emma was interpreting it in a far different way.

Consummated for the country?! How perverted do they think I am?! Nobody’s like me?! Because I was staring at titties?! Who wouldn’t be staring at them?!

“You’re wrong. That’s not like me at all! N-Nothing needs to be consummated here.” Emma blushed madly and shook her head emphatically...which influenced the nobles’ opinions even more. The more she denied it, the more they saw her as the kind of true-blue saint who wished to remain humble rather than garner more attention for herself.

“Your Majesty, let’s not put too much more attention on poor Emma. We should just confirm that her reward will be exactly what she asked for.” Rose was worried by seeing Emma break into a cold sweat, so she stepped forward and pulled Emma into a hug to protect her from everyone’s stares.

“Right, yes. We’ll make this the end of the ceremony. My guests, please enjoy the rest of your evening to the fullest.” The king patted Emma’s head gently and smiled.

Getting head pats from a silver fox and having my face buried in Rose’s large breasts...maybe this whole consummation business wouldn’t be so bad after all... Emma thought as she let herself relax into the comforting pillowy softness.

◆ ◆ ◆

“Ha ha... Getting isekai’d and then declared a saint... This feels like the worst storyline she could’ve possibly triggered.”

“You sure she’s not doing this on purpose, William?”

William laughed dryly. George could only tip his hat to how good she was at making bad situations worse. Of course it had all begun because he’d put the whole reward business off, but leave it to the Herald of Hullabaloos to really step things up.

“It’s true... Emma is an angel and a saint.” Leonard nodded, clearly the only one who was happy with this outcome.

Emma was finally freed from the stage, and once she reached her family she shot George a look that could kill. “George. You will communicate things like this with us from now on, right?”

“Y-Yeah... Sorry...” This whole ordeal was definitely George’s fault, after all.

“But...I guess all’s well that ends well, since we did wind up getting the slums.” In the underground parts of the slums were the rare mushrooms Harold used as the raw ingredients for his inks. Now that the slums belonged to them, it meant that the materials, Harold’s services, and his ink now belonged to the Stewarts, giving only them the right to use those resources. There weren’t any antitrust laws in their kingdom, after all.

Only George and William got to see the nasty grin utterly unbefitting a so-called “saint.”

“Hey William? I’m pretty sure she’s less of a saint and more of a villain, huh? Like, she fits that archetype way better, doesn’t she?”

“Don’t say that, George. Villainesses are an even messier storyline than saints.”

The two of them could only experience the agonies of having a family member who was apparently a professional at triggering storylines.

◆ ◆ ◆

The day after the evening party, Robert’s father called him to his study. “What’s the meaning of this, Robert? I know I gave you responsibility over the food distribution. Why have I received a letter like this from the royal family?” His brow was furrowed deeply, as the letter was strongly condemning them for their inadequacies during their food distribution duties. “How many times have I told you not to do anything that would bring shame to the Lance name? I’m truly disappointed in you.”

“I’m...sorry, father.” Robert apologized, but he didn’t feel guilty in the slightest. After all, food distribution was supposed to be his father’s duty in the first place. His father just didn’t want to do it, so he pushed it onto his son instead. He had a lot of nerve getting on Robert’s case for it now that problems were occurring. Besides, the servants had instructed Robert in the way his father had carried out his duty, so his father was to blame for the inadequacies. Robert wanted to tell him as much, but he couldn’t possibly talk back to his father.

If that girl hadn’t gone and blabbed to the king, none of this would have happened. Just thinking about Emma Stewart filled him with rage. It was all her fault.

Just you wait. You’re gonna be sorry when we get to school tomorrow.

After getting lectured by his father, Robert called Brian over and made his way across the Lances’ large yard to the very back.

“Lord Robert? Where are we going? I heard you got a letter from the royal family, so I’m worried we might get one tomorrow too... I kinda want to prepare for that.” Brian’s family had been in charge of food distribution the week before the Lance family, and after hearing what Robert had said, he was racking his brain to figure out how to get out of getting in trouble for it.

“Just shut up and follow me. You’re gonna get yelled at, so you may as well get ready for some payback.” Robert ignored Brian’s request and stormed even farther into the Lance family yard. Not even the family servants came this far very often. Along the way, they came across a locked, sturdy fence. Brian thought it was the end of the line, but Robert pulled out a key and unlocked it.

“L-Lord Robert? What is this place? Where are you taking me?” They’d walked some distance already, and Robert kept opening several other gates as they walked deeper down a wooded path. The farther in they got, the more heavily secured it became. It was enough to make Brian fear they were getting into some kind of maximum security prison for the worst criminals imaginable.

“This is the end. What’s in here is going to make Emma Stewart scream and weep.” Robert said, with a nasty little laugh. With something so awful inside, Robert really did wonder whether it was worth it to go or not. But his dad scolding him carried the very real threat of losing his claim to the family inheritance. Considering Robert had plenty of brothers who could inherit the family in his stead, that threat was even more real. That was why he was there. He had to get his revenge on the girl who put him in such a predicament. Yet even still, he hesitated to unlock the last door.

“We really should just go home, Lord Robert. It’d be better to study for tomorrow’s Monster Studies course.” After all, the professor for that class was awfully scary (though his bark was worse than his bite). Brian wouldn’t be able to get away with falling asleep in class if he didn’t know the answers to all the questions.

“Hmph! I-I’m not scared of a little thing like this! Take a look, Brian. I’ll be throwing one of these in her face tomorrow.” Robert unlocked the final door, which opened with a creak.

If it was small enough to throw, then it couldn’t have been that dangerous. Brian peeked inside the gate as Robert said. It was dimly lit, and he had to blink several times until his eyes adjusted. There were plants he’d never seen growing all about.

“Lord Robert? What’re you going to throw at her? Eek!” Brian froze as something black skittered past his line of sight. What was that? What in the world?! Soon, the skittering approached Brian’s feet. “Yeeeaaaaggghhh!”

The second he caught a glimpse of the thing, Brian shrieked with utter disgust. What... What... How... It just... What in the world was that?! “L-L-Lord Robert! Are you seriously going to throw something like that at her? If someone threw that at me I’d... Hrk! O-Only a demon would think that’s okay!”

Brian had never seen anything so repulsive. And Robert was going to throw it? Was he even human? He was going to throw this at a poor young girl! How soulless could he be? Especially now that people were starting to call her a saint and everything! What if she died of fright?!

“Start gathering, Brian. The more we can catch, the better reaction we’ll get. We can stuff them in this box and then drop them on her head,” Robert jeered, clearly enjoying himself thoroughly.

He wants me to get close to those things? Is this some kind of torture?! Robert handed Brian some tongs, and Brian began gathering the creatures. They were faster than he thought they’d be, and he had to fight off his own icy nerves.

“Heh heh heh... I can just see her weeping already.” Robert’s malicious cackling echoed throughout the now empty pen.

Chapter 49: Panic at the School

The morning of the first day of school that week was filled with the screams of young ladies. The source was the path to the Embroidery class: the one class Emma had away from her brothers. Her brothers and Joshua split away from her to go to their required class, Hunting Techniques. As Emma walked alone after splitting neatly away...the things were dropped upon her. The bodies were black. Their legs were unnaturally long. They looked so alien, it was as though they truly were from another world.

Robert and Brian had climbed one of the many trees on campus and waited until Emma was right below to overturn the box they’d packed full of the creatures.

Plop.

Plop.

Plop plop plop plop plop plop plop...

“Yeeeeaaaagh!!!” The first scream came from the poor young lady who was walking just behind Emma. When the first thing fell on Emma’s head, the girl had wondered if it was a leaf and, to her great misfortune, got a closer look. It was once she saw what it was that a flood of them came falling from the sky.

All the girls making their way to the Embroidery class turned to see what the screaming was about, and that was when they saw it too. Soon, it was nothing but screams as panic spread throughout the area. The girls took off every which way to escape. Some of them fainted on the spot. Some tripped or trampled over their fallen friends. Some of them ran. More fell. Panic begat panic, and the girls’ screams echoed all across the campus. In an instant, the whole campus had become hell itself.

It was far more pandemonium than Robert or Brian had expected.

“L-Lord Robert, this is way out of hand!”

“N-No! It was a success! A great success! Now let’s get out of here! Th-Th-This is what you get, Emma Stewart!” Robert laughed as he saw Emma crouching in a most unsightly way on the ground. She must’ve been too scared to stand.

Brian and Robert were the only two boys there, as they had specifically aimed for the Embroidery class, where only girls were supposed to be.

◆ ◆ ◆

“What in the world happened?!” Marion, who always arrived just barely before class started, entered the room and asked her usual deskmates. As she’d passed through the path to the class, she saw unconscious girls being carried away to the nurse’s station, girls screaming in terror, girls tending to their wounds after having stumbled and fallen, girls who were crying, trembling, and too afraid to move. The royal knights had rushed to the scene when they’d sensed something had happened and were currently dealing with the aftermath. Marion tried asking the knights what had happened, but they would only shake their heads and refuse to answer. All she knew was that it must have been something terrible.

“I-I-It was...it was horrible...it was so disgusting...” Francesca responded, trembling and with tears in her eyes. She’d been walking only about ten meters behind Emma when it had happened. “Th-They were swarming her... It was like...those things, wh-whatever they are, were after her...” Francesca had a handkerchief up to her mouth as though just remembering what happened was enough to make her nauseous, and her teeth were even chattering with fear.

“Are you quite all right, Lady Francesca?” Marion put her arm around Francesca’s shoulders, but her trembling didn’t subside. Just what had she seen?

“She’s been like this since we got here, right, Caitlyn?”

“She has been like this since we got here, Catherine.”

The twins were worriedly rubbing Francesca’s back.

“I-I... I should have s-saved L-Lady Emma, but...I-I ran away instead. Sh-Sh-She’s always been so g-g-good to me...and I did n-n-nothing... N-N-Nobody c-could lift a finger to help her...” Large teardrops spilled from Francesca’s eyes as she relived leaving Emma behind. Those things that sent shivers up one’s spine just by looking at them had surrounded Emma. Francesca knew she had to save her, but her body and her instincts betrayed her, and she’d run as fast as she could.

“Lady Catherine. Lady Caitlyn. Please look after Lady Francesca. I’m going to the nurse’s station. They might have brought Lady Emma there.” However, just as Marion stood from her chair to go check on Emma, a male instructor who was definitely not the Embroidery professor hurriedly entered the classroom.

“Classes are canceled for the day. We’ve already contacted your homes. If you are being picked up and returned home, you are to remain in place until further notice. If you are staying in the dorms, I will escort you there now. Some people will be dispatched to question us about what happened, so please try to cooperate with them when the time comes.” The instructor called Catherine and Caitlyn up, since they stayed in the dorms.

“Sorry, Lady Marion! Can you stay with Lady Francesca until her ride gets here?” None of them wanted to leave Francesca in such a state, so Marion had to agree. Just what had happened at the academy that day? Was Emma safe?

This was the first time in the academy’s history that the knights themselves had to get involved with an incident at the school.

◆ ◆ ◆

As the brothers, Joshua, Prince Edward, and Arthur were on their way to Hunting Techniques, they heard the bloodcurdling screams of countless girls. They turned around and saw a stampede of them coming from the path to the Embroidery class where they’d split off from Emma.

“Wh-What’s going on?!”

These girls, who usually walked with such elegance and grace, were running as fast as they could, some of them bleeding at the knees.

“That’s where Lady Emma just went! She must be in danger!” No matter how dangerous the situation might have been or how many girls came running, Joshua’s convictions didn’t waver for a second. He took off after Emma.

“Y-You don’t think Emma’s behind all this, do you...?”

“All we can do is hope not!”

William and George followed after Joshua against the current of stampeding girls.

“Your Highness.” Prince Edward was worried about Emma and wanted to follow them, but Arthur stopped him. “You can’t go after them. If there is any danger, then we have to evacuate you at once.” On campus, Arthur was the prince’s bodyguard. He couldn’t allow Edward to put himself anywhere near danger.

“But Arthur... Emma’s over there!”

“Your Majesty. You have to consider your position.” Arthur was firmly holding on to the prince’s arm, preventing him from going any farther.

Though the girl he loved was in danger, the prince couldn’t go rescue her. He resented that, as royalty, he could only ever be protected, rather than protect those he cared for. He was so envious of Joshua, who could rush to Emma’s aid without being constrained by such things. It was strange for a prince to be jealous of a merchant’s son, and yet...

“Your Highness. You have things that only you can do, as royalty.”

The prince even began resenting Arthur for admonishing him. He knew. He knew Arthur was right. But he wanted to protect Emma with his own hands, as Edward Tholus Royale. It wasn’t because he wanted her gratitude or for her to fall in love with him in return. He just wanted to protect her. He’d never forgotten the sight of her bloodied body after the monster attack. He never wanted to see her suffer like that again. All he wanted was for her to smile forever, and if possible, to be able to protect her smile on his own. But even though it tore his heart in two, he had to ignore those desires. He had to fulfill his role as the kingdom’s prince.

“Call the knights from the castle. I will take full responsibility for it. Tell them to do a full investigation. Help protect the girls and treat any injured,” the prince ordered. Even if this all turned out to be nothing, nobody would complain about the knights being dispatched if the prince’s life could have been in danger.

A person’s first reaction was key. That was what he’d learned during the Vallery localized barrier crisis.

“Thank you, Your Highness.” Arthur released his grip on the prince and sent a messenger to the castle. “We should get you to safety while we can. I’ll take you there.” Arthur had to pretend he didn’t see the prince’s white-knuckled fists, ashamed that all he was allowed to do was act as the prince’s bodyguard instead of his friend. All he could do was pray that Emma and the other girls going to Embroidery would be safe.

◆ ◆ ◆

Plop.

Plop.

Plop plop plop plop plop plop...

On the path to Embroidery, something fell from the sky. After a beat, Emma heard a piercing scream. After that first scream, all the girls who looked her way also started screaming and running away. Emma was shocked by the sudden panic, and she took the black thing that had landed on her head in her hand. When she saw what it was, she gasped...and the emotions welling up in her were too intense to suppress. She let out a scream of her own.

“Oooh my goooosh!” Amid all the cries of panic from the other girls, Emma’s scream was a scream of delight. “It’s an amblypygi!” She was so excited, she accidentally started speaking Japanese.

The amblypygi, or giant tailless whip scorpion—the name of one of the nastiest bugs in Emma’s previous world. Minato had seen them in some movie or manga and decided to look them up online one day, and the bizarre body she now held in her hand looked exactly as it did in her memory. The giant pedipalps that looked like huge arms...the way they were so flat it looked like someone had stepped on them...

“Gosh, you are just such a little creepy-crawly! You’re sooo cute! I can’t deal! You’re the cutest ever!” Emma’s little giggles were just about as creepy as the amblypygids themselves. She swore in her heart that she would take every last one of them home with her. She lowered herself to the ground, making extra sure not to step on any that had made it to the ground. “Oh, not that way! You’ll get smooshed! Over here, little guys! You’ll be safe in here! There’s a good little baby... Over here!” Emma started gathering amblypygids under her skirt.

Amblypygids had a tendency to detach their own legs if they sensed danger, like a centipede, so Emma was calling them and guiding them oh so gently to her skirt. Just as she’d gathered the last one, Joshua, George, and William came running.

“Lady Emma! Are you okay?!” Joshua fell to his knees before Emma, trying to catch his breath. George and William followed after and surrounded her, checking to make sure there was no danger around her.

“Emma, what happened?” George asked. There were dozens of girls who’d lost consciousness, several who were too scared to move, and some who had injured themselves tripping over the fallen girls but were still trying to crawl to safety. It looked like something straight out of hell.

“Was it a monster, sis?! Or another localized barrier crisis?!” William asked, panicked by all the chaos.

“Huh?” Emma finally looked at the girls around her once William asked. “Uh... What’s going on, guys?”

“That’s what we want to know!” William shouted at Emma’s all too casual tone. How was she confused when she was right in the middle of it?!

“Lady Emma, are you injured? Any pain anywhere?” Joshua tried to help Emma stand, but she wouldn’t budge. “Lady Emma?”

The three looked on with worry. Had she actually been hurt?

“Sorry, um... I don’t think I can stand. See...?” Emma flipped her skirt up slightly to reveal the swarm of amblypygids all squeezing in among each other.

“Waaaah?!”

“Eeugh! What the heck?!”

“Aahhh! It’s the inside of Lady Emma’s skirt...!!!”

The amblypygids were weird enough that William and George, who were used to bugs at this point, couldn’t help but scream.

“I was just walking along, and a bunch of these little guys came falling onto my head. I was able to catch them all inside my skirt, but...I don’t know what to do now. If I stand up, they’ll fall out... I want to bring them all home with me!” Emma giggled and blushed.

“So basically, all these girls started freaking out because they saw these bugs?” William asked, trying to piece together what had happened. The corner of his mouth was twitching. It made sense. Most noblewomen would have fainted at the sight of a bunch of these horrible-looking bugs falling from the sky.

“Wait, everyone was panicking because of these little guys? Why? They’re so cute...” Emma asked, shrugging her shoulders in puzzlement.

“Emma, these are just bugs, right? You said they fell on you, so you’re sure they’re not monsters from a localized barrier crisis point?” George asked, looking up to check for holes.

“Why, brother dearest, these are amblypygids!”

“Who cares what they’re called?! Are they monsters or not?!” William butted in, since Emma was ignoring the most important detail.

“Nngh... Well, look. They’re amblypygids. They’re bugs, obviously. When I looked up, I saw Lord Robert and Lord...uh, Brian? were up in a tree grinning and stuff, so I guess they were trying to surprise me with a present or something. They’re nicer than I gave them credit for, I guess!”

George’s shoulders slumped with relief. “Emma, I’m pretty sure they were bullying you.” He’d been worried because if there had been a localized barrier crisis here in the capital, it would have meant that the barrier itself was on its last legs.

“Bullying? But amblypygids are so rare in this world... I saw them in an insect encyclopedia I found in Lady Rose’s library, so I thought it was cool that they were here too...” When Rose had invited them over to the Vallery region, Emma had read all fifteen volumes of the insect encyclopedia from start to finish.

“So...they’re pretty rare, then, I guess. But then why did Robert have a bunch?” George was shocked that there were any bugs that Emma hadn’t known about before they remembered their reincarnation.

“U-Um... Lady Emma...perhaps you should lower your skirt!” Joshua was covering his reddened face with his hands.

“Oh, sorry, Joshua. Do you not like bugs?” Emma hurriedly lowered her skirt to hide the amblypygids.

“N-No, that’s not it... It’s just...your legs are so stunning, they made my heart skip a beat...”

“That’s what you’re upset about?!” All three siblings blurted simultaneously.

◆ ◆ ◆

When the knights received orders to dispatch at such early notice, they’d wondered what it could be. But hearing that it was at the school, where nonacademics were not meant to be, made them realize something had gone terribly, terribly wrong. When they arrived at the academy, they obeyed Prince Edward’s orders and followed the path toward the Embroidery class to extricate the girls and investigate what had happened.

They’d heard three male students had bravely rushed to the scene to help. When they arrived, they found some students who seemed to fit the description. The three of them were looking after a young girl who was sitting before them. Confusingly, there was a dead silence there as though there were a rift in space. The knights couldn’t help but think those children were standing at ground zero.

“U-Um... So according to my sister, a whole bunch of bugs fell from this tree. And they were really gross bugs too, so it made all the girls panic.” William Stewart, a boy who was a bit younger than the usual school age, explained the situation to them. The knights heard most noblewomen were so frail and delicate that even the tiniest of flies would send them into a screaming fit. Would that really be enough to send them into this much of a panic, though?

“And...where are those bugs now?” Though these bugs had apparently fallen from the tree, they couldn’t find any trace of the “bunch of bugs” in question.

“Wh-Who knows... They were all gone by the time we got here. Maybe they flew away?” He kept shooting what they assumed were worried glances to his sister, Lady Emma, as he answered.

Lady Emma Stewart—she’d been a victim of the most recent localized barrier crisis, with terrible scars on her right cheek to show for it. She was the girl the prince was always most worried about. She looked so delicate and frail that it seemed like she might just disappear on the spot. The poor girl must have been so afraid, her legs had given out, and she could no longer stand. It was understandable. These noblewomen would faint at the sight of an insect as it was, and she had been standing directly where they’d fallen.

“U-Um... Do you think we could go home now? Um... We, uh...we want to let my sister get some rest!” Unbeknownst to William, the knights could see his older brother, George, was gently lifting his sister, who was trembling too hard to stand.

“Right. Well, if any of you are injured, you should go to the nurse’s station. Otherwise, all of you get home. I doubt classes will be able to continue in this state, after all.” After escorting the Stewart siblings and the Rothschild boy back to the gate, they returned to the castle to report back. They wanted to put the second-born prince’s heart at ease. He’d lowered his head before mere knights to beg them to save Emma. They had to let him know she was okay as soon as possible.

Though they couldn’t help but wonder what those bugs must’ve been...

“Emma, stop laughing! You’re gonna make the knights suspicious!”

“You heard him, sis! Try to hold it so it’s just your shoulders shaking a bit!”

“Hee hee... Hee hee hee! But guys, the amblypygids moving around in my skirt are tickling me!”

Joshua was dead silent. To him, amblypygids were the most enviable creatures on the planet now.

◆ ◆ ◆

The Stewart siblings and Joshua arrived before the message about the commotion had gotten to the Stewart household.

“Emma! What happened?! Are you all right? You’re not hurt, are you?!” Leonard came running when he saw Emma being carried by her brother.

“We’re back, father. There was a bit of a commotion at school so classes were canceled for the day.”

As Leonard nodded along to William’s explanation, he kept checking on Emma worriedly as George gently set her down.

“Father, the most lovely things came falling from the sky today! Look!” Emma giddily raised the hem of her skirt to reveal all the amblypygids bundled up together.

“What?! Amblypygids?!”

“Whoa, you recognize these things, father?!”

“Emma didn’t even know about them until about a year ago! Or wait...have you seen them before?” George asked, intending to say in their previous world. It was a wonder that Leonard knew the name of an insect that was so rare in their kingdom.

“Um... Y-Yes. They don’t tend to inhabit any environment inside the barrier. It’s no surprise Emma didn’t know about them. They tend to live in much quieter areas with more greenery rather than around humans.”

“Hey, faaather? Can I look after these little guys? Pretty please? Can we make a little home for them here in our yard?” Emma giddily used the same techniques she’d learned from Lady Rose to beg, and seeing Emma asking him in such a way had Leonard’s fatherly heart melting.

“Oh, of course! You can do whatever you want, Emma! But why were there amblypygids at your school? And in such quantities too... Oh, I’m so sorry! Joshua, could I ask you to get the preparations started on making a home for them?” Leonard asked. He’d hidden his daughter behind him when Joshua started writhing about after she’d lifted her skirt.

“Lady Emma... To think I would be so blessed a second time... My gratitude knows no bounds... Ahem! Lord Leonard, I have already completed the preparations needed for another bug hut. We’ve determined that it will be mobile like the one your silkworms and spider are in now, so it can be placed anywhere you wish in your yard.”

On the way home from school, Emma had been in George’s arms, gushing nonstop about amblypygids. Joshua took in every last word and, without any of them noticing, had already gotten to work on making her wishes come true. He already had the layout of the Stewarts’ manor in the capital memorized to the point where he could figure out a place most suitable for the amblypygids in their large yard in an instant. Since he anticipated Emma would get more bugs as well, all that was left was to make it a mobile bug hut.

“I knew we could count on you, Joshua!” Emma beamed her angelic smile right at Joshua.

“Ahh, so cute!” Joshua reveled in his bliss. It would have been no exaggeration to say her smile was what made life worth living.

“Mrooowr!” Kongming appeared when she noticed Emma.

“I’m home, General Kongming! School’s out, so we can play a bunch!”

“Meooowr!” Kongming licked Emma’s cheek to express her joy. But then...

Skitter skitter skitter skitter...

All of the amblypygids came crawling out from inside Emma’s skirt.

“Huh? What’s wrong, guys?”

“Mrowr?” Kongming sniffed the amblypygids and then meowed again.

Skitter skitter skitter skitter...

With one little meow from Kongming, all the amblypygids went into a beautiful little line. They were perfectly evenly spaced, standing at attention like an army of amblypygids.

“What?!”

“What’s going on here?!”

“Eeeeek! They’re so cute! Now I can count you! You’re all so smart!” Seeing how excited it made Emma, Kongming proudly meowed again.

“Myah!”

All the amblypygids turned right. Not a single one faltered.

“Oh my gosh! When the general said line up, they all lined up! And when she said turn right, they all turned right!”

Emma was overjoyed.

General Kongming was proud.

Leonard, George, and William were all agape, completely unable to understand the sight before them.

And Joshua was just happy Emma was happy.

“Okay, okay. Okay. Okay. I just... Where do we even start with all this?” William was trying to break the dumbfounded silence. They had on their hands not army ants but army...amblypygids.

“The amblypygids...followed orders...? Of their own volition?” Leonard kept looking between Emma, Kongming, and the amblypygids. “Is my daughter a genius...? Or is my cat a genius...?” In less charitable terms, they were more like demon summoners or monsters, but Leonard just left it at geniuses instead.

◆ ◆ ◆

“Robert, explain yourself! What have you done?! Where did you take our insects?!” With classes now canceled, Robert rushed home and was immediately subjected to his father’s fury.

This was an unprecedented event, and most students’ parents were so worried that they came to pick their children up themselves, but Robert’s ride had been the same coach and carriage as always. He had been called into his father’s study the second he arrived. Oddly, his father had chased everyone away before Robert went in, and was screaming for reasons Robert couldn’t comprehend.

“I-Insects? What are you talking about?” Robert guessed he must’ve been talking about those awful creatures he’d dumped on Emma Stewart’s head, but fear of his father had him reflexively feigning ignorance.

“The amblypygids we were raising on the innermost parts of our property! Do you have any idea how valuable those were?! They were gifts from the royal family themselves!”

“What?! Th-The royal family?!” How in the world could that be possible? Why would the royal family have anything to do with such disgusting little creatures? Besides, Robert felt like if they’d been oh-so-important, then maybe his father should’ve been looking after them himself. Instead, they were closed up all the way in the deepest part of their property, with the lowest-ranking servants caring for them. There was barely anyone even keeping track of the keys. It didn’t matter if those things were in there or not. In fact, it’d have probably been better if they weren’t there, or anywhere for that matter. They were too disgusting to even think about. Between the stupid food distribution and taking care of those repulsive little beasts, his father would have been better off doing the damn jobs himself instead of complaining about other people doing them.

“Do you want to explain that look on your face? Do you have any idea what will happen if the royal family finds out that those insects are gone? It would spell the end of the Lance family as we know it!” His father threw the massive book in his hand, and it just barely grazed Robert’s face.

“Agh! F-Father, what are you doing?!”

“Several of our servants saw you taking the keys to the enclosure. Now I want to know why those insects have disappeared from our manor. Do you hear me?! What have you done with them?!” His father’s eyes were aflame.

“Th-The servants...were just l-lying... Agh!” Robert’s father threw a lit candlestick directly at him with all his might. “W-Watch it! There’s fire! Ah, shoot!” Robert just barely managed to dodge the candlestick and was carefully trying to make sure the carpet didn’t catch fire.

“Even your life wouldn’t be enough to pay for this screwup!” His father’s normally well-kept hair was now fully disheveled as he shouted at Robert. “Get out and find them! I want those insects back here before the royal family finds out! If you can’t find them all, at least find a male and female!”

After the long, drawn out lecture, Robert wasn’t even given the opportunity to relax, as his father forced him out of the house, screaming he wasn’t allowed home until the insects were returned. It had already started to get dark.

“Why is this happening to me...?” He had no idea where to go, but trudged back toward the school. As disgusting as they were, they didn’t have wings. He didn’t have to worry about them flying off, and insects tended to keep to a much narrower area than humans did. He’d dumped the whole box of them in one spot, so he optimistically thought he could find them if he just searched around the tree.

Unfortunately, unbeknownst to him, Emma had already taken every last one of them home with her instead.

◆ ◆ ◆

“Your Highness, why have you asked the knights to remain at the school?” After Prince Edward had been evacuated to the castle, the knights reported that Emma had been safe. Though he was relieved and the incident seemed to be over, he ordered several of the knights to remain on the campus.

“Because, Arthur, I remembered something Emma said when we were playing with Jadwiga once. She said the culprit always returns to the scene of the crime.”

“Th-The culprit? You think this was intentional and not just some random accident?” If there had been someone behind this incident, they would be facing severe consequences for it. Arthur started to question why the sweet young princess and a noblewoman had been discussing such grisly things while playing, but he quickly returned to his professional demeanor.

The silver lining of the whole situation was that although the chaos was great, even among the girls who had fainted or been injured, there was very, very little permanent damage. But scars on the heart could not be seen.

Prince Edward frowned as he looked at the written report the knights had submitted about the incident. When the knights arrived, Emma had been too terrified to even move. The report said that she was unable to walk and had to be carried home by her brother instead. It was the same as the report the knights had given him when they’d first arrived, but the rage boiling inside him was the same as when he first heard it.

If someone really had intentionally dropped insects all over poor, delicate Emma’s head, they would need to be punished to the highest degree.

He worried most about whether Emma was okay now. He hoped she wasn’t having nightmares about the ordeal. He hoped she wasn’t feeling too downtrodden about what had happened. He hoped she hadn’t been pushing herself to her limits.

It was agonizing. The fact that he couldn’t rush to her aid right away, as a member of the royal family, was pure torture. All he wanted was to protect her with his own strength.

Whoever did this to her would pay.

After he’d finished reading the report, Prince Edward rose from his seat. They had to catch the criminal when he returned to the crime scene.

“The campus appears to be safe now, Arthur. I think it’s time we paid the scene a visit too.”

◆ ◆ ◆

Meanwhile, at the Stewart residence...

“Eeee! Do it again, General Kongming! Tell them to line up again!”

“Mrowr!”

Skitter skitter skitter skitter...

“Eeeee! You are just the cutest!” Completely unaware of the prince’s worry, Emma was gushing over how much she loved those bugs that had fallen from the sky.

Chapter 50: The Eastern Empire

The only port to the Eastern Empire was covered in a thick fog that destroyed all sense of direction. Suddenly, they were faced with a massive, crimson torii gate. Then another, and another. The ship passed through torii gate after torii gate for many kilometers.

“This is so ominous...” Oliver muttered with a sigh as he looked at the overwhelming scene before him.

Behind Melsa was a ninja who had disguised himself as one of the Rothschild Company’s merchants, whispering its history. “This is our torii corridor. Each one is made from magic stones, and they use the magic within them to create a fog. Any ship that tries to pass through without the imperial family’s permission will be forced to wander the fog for all eternity. Without their permission, you would never see the torii or pass through them. Around the torii is nothing but shoals and crags, so even if you tried to force your way through, you would wind up beached. In other words, there is no way to enter the Eastern Empire without the imperial family’s permission.” He then whispered to Melsa, and told her that if she wished to return, she must receive permission before attempting.

Seeing massive torii built with such invaluable magic stones made it all too clear just how plentiful the veins of magic stones were in the Eastern Empire. With this many in their possession, Melsa thought it really had been the right move for the Eastern Empire to close their borders. Magic stones were a finite resource, and if any countries in need of magic stones were to discover their abundance, war was sure to break out.

Perhaps due to the monster threat or because one had to travel by sea in order to interact with other countries, this world hadn’t had any international wars in all of history. However, the diminishing reserves of magic stones over the years could have very well led to a break in that trend.

The kingdom’s lack of magic stones and a mage weren’t the kinds of things they could just hand-wave away. Even if one were to amass a huge fortune, magic stones were no longer the kinds of things one could simply buy anymore, given how valuable they were to every country. All they could do was wait until they were blessed with a mage. Even the kingdom, which was able to help the Eastern Empire with their food shortage, was reaching the point where its very continued existence was being threatened.

The parts of the Eastern Empire’s townscape that Melsa saw from the port looked just like a set from a period drama in her previous life—wooden houses with earth and plaster walls and clay tile roofs. It was like looking at Japan from ages and ages ago, filling Melsa with fascination.

“Oh... Is this red iron oxide?” Though the makeup of the houses was wooden like the Japanese houses of old, they were all dyed a reddish color. It had a bit more brown mixed in than the vermilion of the torii gates at the entrance, making them look like the inari shrines from her previous life. She’d casually muttered her question to herself, but it made the ninja disguised as the merchant jump.

“You knew about the red iron oxide too...?!” They’d happened upon the pigment as gangue when mining for magic stones and discovered that it could be used as both a preservative and an insect repellent. It also had fireproofing properties, so most of the Eastern Empire’s houses were coated with it. The ninja explained that they also used it as a glaze on the clay tiles for the roofs, as it was said to protect against evil spirits (though nobody had asked him to explain this).

The Eastern Empire was the sacred land of the crimson rising sun, protected by the gods.

Oliver was acting all self-important by walking in front and looking ahead, but Melsa had no need to show off, so she got to enjoy seeing the sights around her like a tourist as the ninja told her all about them for the few dozen meters it took them to reach their carriage.

“We’ll be arriving at the imperial palace soon. We’ve gotten permission to specially arrange lodging for all of you special visitors from the capital.”

As they left the port and rode in the carriage, the straight path led to a large gate. The orderly paving of the path reminded Melsa of Kyoto. Apparently, all countries in this world were wont to place the most noble family near the ocean, where there were no monsters.

The carriage they were in was surrounded by samurai, who were guarding them at the government’s behest, and people of the Eastern Empire were coming in droves on the sides of the road to get a glimpse of the rare foreigners. Some were wearing kimonos, and others were wearing more western clothes. All of them had blue hair and blue eyes, and their face shapes and bodies weren’t all that different from people from the kingdom. Melsa was struck by the strangeness that they were definitely like Japanese people, but weren’t quite Japanese people.

Once they passed through the gate to the imperial palace, they saw a Japanese-style garden. It was the kind of dry landscape garden she would have expected to see in a Heian picture scroll. All the way at the very back of the garden was a towering black castle.

“That building you see over there is Edo Castle. It is where His Majesty the Emperor and the shogun do all their government affairs. It is nicknamed Ujo, or Crow Castle, and is seen as the most sacred of places in the Eastern Empire.” The ninja explained politely as Melsa stared up at the castle.

“Who ever would have thought Edo Castle would be black...”

“What was that?”

“Oh, nothing.”

“His Majesty the Emperor is the rock that supports all our hearts in the Eastern Empire. The imperial family oversees all government and religious activities. Our warriors protect the people against monsters, spearheaded by the shogun’s house. Though we ninjas are part of the shogun’s house, our job is primarily to act as the imperial family’s eyes as informants and bodyguards.”

The emperor and the shogun were performing their government affairs in the Crow Castle. She was once again struck at how very like but also unlike Japan this place was, and could only imagine how excited her daughter (who had been a massive history buff in her previous life) would have been. Picturing it made her smile.

They were then guided to a manor that, once more, looked straight out of a Heian picture scroll.

“Please take off your shoes,” the ninja whispered. Melsa then stopped Oliver, who was about to step into the manor with his shoes on, and instructed him to remove his shoes as well.

Surprisingly, the inside of the building wasn’t red.

“Y-You should’ve told me sooner, Melsa!” Oliver glared at her, having no idea what the rules and customs of this foreign land were, but she ignored him.

“I will inform everyone that you’ve arrived. I’ll only be gone for a moment,” the ninja said, then disappeared in a flash.

“We thank you for coming.” Three ladies-in-waiting arrived to guide Melsa inside. The middle woman was an old lady who looked like she was pushing well over a hundred years old. A closer look revealed her hair wasn’t actually white but a very pale blue.

Melsa tried to remember whether their gardener Imoko had the same color hair (or, what little was left of it) back in Pallas.

On both sides of the old woman were two young women dressed like shrine maidens.

“I am Ume, the head lady-in-waiting.”

“I am Melsa Stewart, here as an interpreter. I thank you for looking after us during this visit. This is Ambassador Oliver Dephros, and merchants from the Rothschild Company.” Melsa greeted the ladies-in-waiting and introduced everyone present.

Ume and the two other court ladies were quite surprised at Melsa’s fluent speech, but they quickly regained their composure. “I’m most impressed by your language skills. Now, I will show you to your rooms. I apologize for the rush, but once you have done what you need to, the emperor and the shogun wish to see you at once.” Saying such, the three ladies then all performed a deep, Japanese-style bow.

◆ ◆ ◆

The ninja appeared in a flash before the emperor and the shogun at the inner citadel of the top floor of Edo Castle.

“Good to see you back, Momochi. This support came far sooner than we expected. I take it everything went well, then?” The shogun wasn’t surprised at all by the ninja’s sudden appearance, and instead expressed his appreciation for all the shipments of supplies being brought to the palace one after the other.

“Your Excellency, it pains me to say this, but...I do not think everything will go as we hope. We were utterly defeated on the combat front.”

The shogun, who had sent the greatest ninja in all the Eastern Empire himself, felt his eyebrow twitch. “Beg your pardon? You were defeated?”

“Completely and utterly. I was unable to find a single point in might, intelligence, or influence where we could win.” The ninjas’ stealth was a source of significant pride. Yet they had been discovered not by the royal family, but by a mere count’s cats. Their language, which supposedly was impossible to understand anywhere else in the world, was being spoken to perfection by a little girl and her whole family.

What was truly shocking was the influence the family must have had to be able to arrange for such a massive quantity of food in a matter of minutes. In order to bypass whatever government procedures they had (knowing full well the dangers they’d face in the Eastern Empire) and have a ship loaded with all the relief supplies the very next day, they must’ve had complete knowledge of the country’s available food supply.

“However, I do think it was right of us to ask the kingdom for assistance,” Momochi continued. “We should do what we can to make their representatives welcome. We mustn’t put on airs just because we have magic stones.” Magic stones were precious resources, especially for countries where the threat of monsters was close at hand. The Eastern Empire happened to be blessed with a plentiful source of magic stones, which was apparently an extraordinary thing these days. With magic stones, even the Eastern Empire (which had never once had any diplomatic interactions) could have a prominent seat at the proverbial diplomatic table.

Or so they’d thought.

Just as the Eastern Empire was hiding the fact that they had magic stones, other countries must have had aces up their sleeves as well...like those cats at the Stewart manor, who were so strong, the ninjas hadn’t even stood a chance against them. With cats like those in large quantities, the kingdom could easily overcome any monster threat, even without a barrier.

Even more perplexing was that the Stewart family had no interest in magic stones either. All they wanted was rice, soy sauce, miso, and a whole laundry list of other nonsensical requests. The age of magic stones being precious might have long passed.

“Whoever would have thought the people of that kingdom were extraordinary enough that our very own ninjas would have such an opinion...”

The kingdom’s territory was second to the Western Empire in size, so the area the border would need to cover was quite wide as well. The Eastern Empire had formed their strategy for dealing with the kingdom based on the thought that they would be champing at the bit to get their hands on magic stones, so the ninja’s report had both the emperor and the shogun completely shocked.

“Your Majesty. We must make allies of this kingdom. With their might and intelligence, I believe they can save our great empire from destruction.”

The emperor, who’d had a stern face until then, let out a sigh. “You still haven’t given up on our empire, have you, Momochi?” The ninja’s plea brought to mind his son Tasuku’s face when he’d come begging to at least try to save their people from starvation.

“With their help...I think it may be possible.” Momochi was placing an excessive amount of hope and expectations on the Stewart family’s plate. He had to, as the emperor and the shogun had become so pale that they seemed they might collapse.

Nothing had improved since Prince Tasuku and the ninjas had left for the kingdom. The Eastern Empire could not escape its doom. The people of the Eastern Empire had accepted that they would die with their homes.

Of course, they’d tried everything they could before they’d come to this conclusion, but it had all ended in failure. Now, the only thing they could do was secure enough food for their people to last them the short amount of time they had until their empire was in ruins.

But as the emperor and the shogun despaired, the ninja Momochi gave them a glimmer of hope. He chose to believe in the Stewart family, their cats, and their spider. It was a hope that the kingdom could possibly save their empire from the brink of destruction. Hope that might’ve been a bit much to ask of the Stewart family, who just wanted to eat rice again.

◆ ◆ ◆

“May I introduce the 121st Emperor, His Majesty, Yukarinomiya Hinomoto. Beside him is his excellence, the forty-fifth shogun, Fujishiro Toyotomi.”

The head lady-in-waiting, Ume, had guided the group to their rooms, where they had changed into formal wear, and had then been brought to Edo Castle proper.

Having an audience with the emperor and the shogun meant going to the top floor of the castle, and naturally, there were no elevators in place. Instead, they’d had to keep up with Ume, who had taken to the stairs at a blistering pace. Melsa had asked Ume to slow down a bit since Oliver was panting and wheezing, but he had snapped at her, saying there was no need. He always used to get mad at her whenever she did something for his sake back when they were students too.

“Welcome, all. We thank you for your kingdom’s assistance.” The emperor and the shogun both bowed their heads. In the Eastern Empire, the emperor was revered as a god, and the shogun was the head of the military. Seeing the two of them showing their gratitude in such a way truly drove home the strength of each man’s character. While maintaining one’s nobility was important, manners were just as important as well.

Oliver, on the other hand, was looking quite pleased with himself as the two lowered their heads, which was quite frankly an embarrassment.

“This is a catalog of all the relief that we, the Stewart family, have provided.” Once they’d finished their greetings, Melsa gave the inventory to Ume, who had been waiting on the side. She was sure it was what the emperor and the shogun were most interested in seeing. The Rothschild Company had provided the list to her ahead of time, so she had already translated it.

The emperor took the inventory from Ume and gulped after he’d taken a glance. “Why, this is...” Far more than they had ever imagined.

“One moment. You said this is from the Stewart family? I thought this was relief from the kingdom itself.” The shogun was not about to let that bit of information slide. Relief from another country and personal support were two very different things. A person might want compensation if they were the type to want to fill their own pockets. When making deals between countries, there were formalities in place to prevent anyone from acting out of pure self-interest. If they had, the law would come down on them.

The Stewarts were almost certainly after magic stones. This greedy noble must have somehow secretly caught wind that they’d had magic stones and leaped at the chance. They should have known before now, based on how quickly the relief had come and how the ninja had acted when he gave his report. They attributed this failure to their lack of knowledge of how outside diplomacy was meant to work.

“It is. If we had asked the kingdom itself for supplies, it would have taken a significant amount of time. After speaking with Prince Tasuku, we surmised that your people didn’t have the luxury of time. We do have the king’s approval. However, we as a family are asking for something in return for these supplies, so I ask that you raise your heads. We’re here to make a deal.”

Though the shogun had felt guarded until then, the woman coming straight out and saying she wanted compensation made him relax slightly. Being so brutally honest was surprisingly appreciated by the shogun. After all, their greatest wish was to be sure their people were fed until the very end.

“Interesting. Now, what did you say your name was?” The shogun had taken far more of an interest in this interpreter than the arrogant diplomat by her side. Enough so that, had their empire not been in such dire straits, he would have loved to take her as part of his harem.

“My name is Melsa Stewart.”

“Stewart?”

“Yes. Count Stewart is my husband.”

The shogun’s face went flat. Aaaagh, of course she’s married! I thought for sure a woman coming all the way here by herself meant she was single! Ugh, I thought I’d had a chance, dammit!

“Well then. What is it that this Count Stewart wishes in return?” the emperor asked in the shogun’s stead, as the mighty military man was too busy moping. Exhaustingly enough, the shogun’s love of women was still ever-present even in the face of his empire’s destruction.

“Your Excellency!” The emperor’s advisers on either side were unable to stay put at the question, but both the emperor and the shogun shut them up with a look.

The Eastern Empire only had about another year left. The food supplies listed on the inventory would be enough to last that long. It would be rude not to hear them out.

“We can see just how dreadful things must be for the Eastern Empire just by seeing Prince Tasuku. However, we also have some things we cannot afford to let go of. I hope you can understand our position.” Melsa handed another paper over to Ume, who passed it to the emperor as she had with the inventory.

The emperor looked over the list of the Stewart family’s requests.

“Wh-What in the world?!” The emperor gasped. Magic stones weren’t anywhere on the list. “A-Are you...truly serious about this?” He kept looking over the list from start to finish, but magic stones were nowhere to be found. Instead...

“I understand how much we’re asking. But we absolutely must have what’s written at the top, and what comes after it would be ideal if at all possible,” Melsa declared, clearly unwilling to back down on either of those items.

“Are you...even in your right mind?” The shogun took a peek at the list in the emperor’s hand and was at a loss for words too. The unusual response from the two of them made the attendants anxious.

“What have they written, Your Excellency?”

“How unreasonable is it?!”

“D-Don’t tell me they want the torii corridor in the harbor!”

Without a mage to imbue magic into them, magic stones were as good as any old pebble, but the torii corridor had enough protection magics to keep the country safe that it was now their country’s national treasure. It aided in their many years of isolationism and had become a symbol of the Eastern Empire as a whole. The expressions on the emperor and the shogun’s faces must have been because they were having to weigh their people’s hunger against giving away their national treasure, the attendants guessed.

“No. They don’t want the torii.” The emperor’s hands were shaking. It was then that the attendants remembered their empire’s other treasure.

“N-No...! Is it Prince Tasuku?! Did they come to insist we give them Prince Tasuku’s hand in marriage?!”

Prince Tasuku was a diligent soul in whom all the people placed their trust. He’d mastered Balitese and was now studying the kingdom’s language. He was a bright and handsome boy who was desperately trying to find a way out of the predicament their empire had been faced with. If the Stewart family had a daughter, it would be all too understandable if she’d want to marry him. But Prince Tasuku was a light of hope for his people...they couldn’t just hand him over so easily.

“No. They don’t want Prince Tasuku either.” Even the shogun, who had a wide breadth of battle experience, was trembling.

“Th-Then...are they asking for...your heads...?”

So they were planning on killing off the heads of the state and putting an easily manipulated puppet to take control of the Eastern Empire as a whole?! If they did that, they’d have the torii, the magic stones, and Prince Tasuku all in one fell swoop... The Stewarts were truly horrifying...

“No...that’s not it either.” The emperor and the shogun shook their heads.

“Then what in the world is it?!” The attendants all begged the two to answer. Just looking at the amount of supplies that were being brought was enough to tell them that the Stewarts wanted something tremendous in return. The emperor and the shogun both should have been amply prepared for such a thing when they read that paper, but their expressions... Just what kind of unreasonable request were they making?!

“The...first item they want is rice.”

“Um...what?”

“And the second...is bonito flakes.”

“Wh-What?”

“After that...they want miso, soy sauce, mentaiko, pickled vegetables, natto, tofu, and...red bean paste...?”

“What?”

Out of the blue, the emperor began reading out a list of ingredients. He’d been looking at the list of what they wanted in return, but nobody could have expected something like that would be written on it. The attendants all looked at Melsa. Surely there must have been some kind of mistake.

“I am fully aware it is an impudent request to ask for food from a country suffering from a food shortage. But we want rice. No matter what.”

And there it was.

“Are you serious?!” All the attendants raised their voices in shock.

“M-Melsa! What the hell are they so upset about?!” Oliver, who’d been left in the dark while Melsa conversed in the imperial language, finally spoke up when the attendants started to panic.

“They’re worked up about the compensation our family has requested in return for our supplies.”

“What kind of insane ploy have you people cooked up?! They’re freaking out!”

“Oliver, this is an important matter, so could you just shut up for a bit?”

“What?! Melsa, I’m asking because I’m worried for your—”

“I’ll explain everything later.” Oliver could be as worried about her as he wanted. It wouldn’t magically make the situation better.

“That kind of behavior is so unattractive, you know. Always has been.”

“You are not my husband, so I don’t care whether you find me attractive or not.”

“You are just...so...uncute!”

Luckily the people of the Eastern Empire couldn’t understand what Oliver was saying, as he kept muttering under his breath about how “women couldn’t negotiate to save their lives” and “he would’ve given her some pointers if she’d asked” and “this was no place for amateurs” and whatnot.

Melsa was annoyed enough that she just chose to ignore his whining. Did he really think that would be enough to hurt her feelings? It...certainly had in the past, but she’d completely forgotten. All of the bad-mouthing Oliver had directed toward her was overwritten by how Leonard heaped praises upon her. When the two of them had first met at school, she never thought the day would come when Leonard would tell her how much he loved her every single day. He had brought her true happiness.

Melsa wanted to give Leonard and her children the opportunity to eat rice again. And of course, most of all, she wanted to eat rice again. So she straightened herself up once more and asked: “Your Majesty. Your Excellency. Will you be able to compensate us with rice and bonito flakes?”

◆ ◆ ◆

“So. How did it turn out like this?” Oliver asked, irritation plain in his voice. He was leaning against a wall behind Melsa, who was hard at work. Melsa had asked the emperor and the shogun for something in return. He had no idea what she’d asked for, but they were all clearly shocked.

The kingdom wanted magic stones. That was why the Eastern Empire had secretly let the kingdom know they had them. The Empire should have known that the kingdom would be asking for them, so they shouldn’t have had such a tremendous reaction. What was more, they seemed to be faltering at what Melsa was requesting.

“Rice... Of all the things...”

“Yes. We want rice.”

The emperor and the shogun both exchanged looks, neither of them looking too happy. They had both been certain these representatives would have asked for magic stones. Considering the Eastern Empire was fated to die soon enough, magic stones were wasted on them as it was. They wouldn’t have hesitated to give however many the kingdom asked for if it meant making sure their people could eat until their empire met its end.

But they wanted rice. And it went without saying that that was the Eastern Empire’s staple food. It was the one food they’d stored the most out of all others in case of emergencies. They had an emergency supply of rice in their storehouses specifically for the food shortage they were facing, but it was rice for their people. Whether the request came from the kingdom or the Stewart family, whether they gave them massive amounts of relief supplies or not, any food brought over was food that the people of the Eastern Empire weren’t accustomed to. They wanted to let the people of their empire have rice until the very end.

If the reason for the food shortage was the weather, as they’d told the kingdom, then they likely wouldn’t have hesitated to give some of the rice they had stored in exchange for the large quantities of supplies they’d received. After all, the weather would likely clear up after a year or two, and they’d be able to grow enough rice again. They could likely go without rice for a few years if it meant they’d still be able to live.

But the Eastern Empire didn’t even have a year left. The rice they had stored away...the flavor of their home...was one of the few solaces their people had left.

“The...supplies you’ve given us are quite unfamiliar ingredients to our people. There are some I’ve never even heard of. I am loath to allow what rice we have available for our people to be taken from us.” The emperor, who was putting his people above all else, was clear that he could not give Melsa what she wanted. “However, I would be willing to part with our magic stones. However many your kingdom asks for.”

Even still, it was certain that their stores of rice alone wouldn’t be enough to keep the people fed, so they did still need the relief supplies. Therefore, the emperor finally spoke openly about the magic stones himself. If any other country learned that the Eastern Empire had magic stones, especially the other Western Empire, it would undoubtedly spark the flames of war. After they’d discovered a massive vein of magic stones, the Eastern Empire had isolated themselves for hundreds of years. In doing so, they helped bring about peace around the world. While speaking about them openly now might have broken the peace their ancestors sought to protect, if it would allow their people to live happy lives until the very end...

“We don’t need any magic stones, thank you.”

“What?!”

Melsa flatly denied the emperor’s determined offer.

“We don’t have a mage in the kingdom, so magic stones would be no better than pebbles to us now. It wouldn’t be a fair trade for rice.”

“You...don’t need magic stones?”

“Indeed. However, that only goes for the Stewart family. You can still use those magic stones to negotiate with the kingdom when they arrive. Giving magic stones to a single family like ours is only bound to cause trouble.”

“And...you want rice? No matter what?”

“Yes. No matter what.” Melsa would not back down. “But if it’s a matter of these ingredients being unfamiliar...I will prepare a meal using the ingredients we brought. If I can make something that is palatable to everyone here, will you agree to share your rice with us?” With negotiations coming to a standstill, Melsa offered a compromise. She wasn’t going to give up on her goal, so she decided to offer them something to think about. She would use the skills she had learned in school all those years ago so her position on the rice would never have to move.

“That’s impossible. The kingdom and the Eastern Empire’s cultures are far too different. Our climate, landscape, people, and everything is beyond comparison. How do you expect us to fully enjoy a meal from a country we’ve never even interacted with before?” The shogun shook his head. Only a mage would be capable of such a feat.

“Allow me to make one for you. It would be a significant loss to the kingdom to have all that wheat flour used only for soup dumplings and udon, after all. Miss Ume? Could you show me to the kitchen?” Melsa stood.

“Huh? Hey, Melsa! What’s going on? Where are you going?! Melsa!” After ages of speaking in the imperial language, Oliver was surprised to see Melsa suddenly stand again. He tried to follow her, but after sitting seiza-style for so long, his legs had fallen asleep.

“Here is the kitchen.” Ume showed Melsa to the kitchen, swiftly descending the stairs with Oliver desperately trying to follow after them on his jelly-legs.

Once they arrived, Ume handed Melsa something with white sleeves. “Please use this so you don’t dirty your kimono.”

“Oh, you have a kappogi apron here! Thank you very much.” Melsa put it on without hesitation and swiftly got to work. She started to boil some water, determined which of the vegetables, meat, pasta, and spices they’d brought would turn bad fastest, then began chopping and boiling to prep the meal.

“So. What’s going on now? How did we get here?” Oliver asked in annoyance as he leaned up against a wall to give his legs (which were still on pins and needles) a rest.

“When I told them I’d like the Eastern Empire’s staple food in return, they said they couldn’t let us have it because their people weren’t used to food from the kingdom. Therefore, I said I could make them something using the kingdom’s ingredients that I thought would agree with anyone here.”

“You...you asked a country with a food shortage for their staple food?! How heartless are you?!” He couldn’t fathom what Melsa was thinking. People from the kingdom shouldn’t be all that used to food from the Eastern Empire either, so why did she want it anyway?

Melsa’s knifework as she cut the onions was so swift and skillful that it belied the fact that she was the wife of the most affluent count in the kingdom. Normally, noblewomen wouldn’t have done any cooking. In fact, they shouldn’t. And the Melsa that Oliver remembered had never cooked.

“So why is it you can cook, anyway? It’s weird, isn’t it? The hell did they make you do when they swept you off to that nowhere land?” Oliver started thinking about Leonard Stewart, the bastard. If Melsa had just made the right choice and married him instead, he never would’ve made her do any cooking. She could’ve had the most beautiful dresses and jewelry she wanted, sipped upon the most delicious wines, and gone to high-class evening affairs... It would have been the most luxurious life anyone could have asked for. So why should Melsa, of all people, be doing the kind of job that a servant should be doing? It was simply wrong. Melsa wasn’t so low-class that she should be doing a servant’s work. She should’ve been treated right. She should’ve been with him...

“Oh, wow! The fire and water are all handled with magic stones?!”

“Yes. Every home in our empire is equipped with fire and water magic stones. We use fire stones to light our houses at night, we wash our kimonos in a box with water stones, and dry them with wind stones.”

“Th-That’s awfully convenient...” Melsa kept talking with Ume while she cooked, and it was quite clear that the Eastern Empire was far more technologically advanced than the kingdom. Most of the home appliances Melsa’d had in her previous life were made, in the Eastern Empire, with magic stones.

“Do you not have these in your kingdom?” Ume asked, surprised. The kingdom was supposed to be second only to the Western Empire when it came to political power, so she’d assumed the Eastern Empire wouldn’t have been able to hold a candle to them.

“No, we don’t. I’d heard some of the nobles used to have some in their manors about twenty years prior, but...” Melsa hadn’t expected the Eastern Empire would have this great an excess when it came to magic stones.

“It isn’t all that difficult to obtain magic stones that assist with daily life in the Eastern Empire. Unlike barrier magic, the magic doesn’t need to be applied where the stones will be used, so you should be able to use them this way in your kingdom as well.”

“That’s amazing... Maybe I shouldn’t have said we didn’t need any...” The Eastern Empire was able to sell magic stones with magic already imbued in them. With such an advanced, magic stone-based society, how was it that they were struggling with food shortages?

“There’s still time, my lady. You can still ask for magic stones rather than rice.” Ume’s eyes were shining at the opportunity.

“Hmm... No, these are separate issues. The rice is something I can’t give up on.” Melsa laughed bashfully, then began cooking the ingredients. They all made an appetizing sizzling sound. Melsa was truly impressed that the Eastern Empire’s burners even had settings for low, medium, and high heat.

◆ ◆ ◆

Not even an hour had passed before Melsa had finished cooking and she returned to the emperor and the shogun in the throne room.

“What in the world...?”

“What is this...?”

The emperor and the shogun were confronted with a dish neither had ever seen before.

“I’ve made something that will suit the palate of the people of the Eastern Empire. Something that can be made in place of rice. I believe its red color is perfect for the red of this nation.” Melsa smiled and told them it would be best to eat it while it was still warm, but the two were very clearly hesitant.

“Y-Your Majesty...are you sure this is food?”

“Your Excellency, this might be the first time anyone has ever tried to poison you so obviously...”

The attendants had smaller portions set before them for tasting, but not a soul had touched their chopsticks to try. After all, it was bright red. The meal, which was made from ingredients from the kingdom, didn’t seem to smell all that bad, but it was bright red.

They could understand the carrots being a reddish color, but all of the other ingredients were red as well. Even considering all the meals that would have been common knowledge in the Eastern Empire, the appearance of this meal didn’t seem like something anyone could have gotten used to.

“There’s no poison,” Melsa assured them.

“I never took my eyes off of her for a moment while she was preparing it. We’ve also already tasted it for poisoning.” Ume gave her guarantee that it hadn’t been poisoned once Melsa spoke up.

“But...why is it so red? I’ve never seen a dish that’s just...completely red.” Even the shogun, who had been thrilled at the prospect of eating a beautiful woman’s cooking, was shocked at the dish that was brought to him. He sniffed it anxiously.

“I heard that red was a color that symbolized protection from evil in the Eastern Empire. I thought it would bring luck. I promise there’s no poison or red iron oxide in my cooking, though.” Melsa then urged them to eat what felt like the devil’s dish.

“Your Excellency, your loyal servant, Fukushima, shall take the first bite.”

“Your Excellency. I, Kato, shall also try.”

Two of the shogun’s vassals spoke, having fully steeled their resolve. The two of them tightened their fists, then took the red things on the plate before them and ate them all at once.

“Hnngh!”

“Nnngh!”

Both Fukushima’s and Kato’s eyes went wide and they continued chewing with all their might.

“F-Fukushima! Kato! You mustn’t force yourselves!”

The emperor and shogun both watched over their loyal retainers, rising from their seats with concern. The room watched the two with rapt attention as they chewed. Finally, they swallowed, and there was silence.

“It’sh...it’sh sho good.”

“Y-Yesh... It’sh quite delicioush...”

“What...?”

“Your Excellency. Despite its appearance, it has a very mild flavor.”

“Your Majesty. I believe it’s a dish that women and children alike could enjoy.”

However red it was, it wasn’t spicy in the slightest. Rather, it had mild sweet and sour flavors that worked in perfect harmony with each other. There were both vegetables and meat in it, so it was exquisitely filling as well.

“It’s...good?”

“Amazing, even!”

Though the two of them wanted to say they couldn’t believe it, their tongues couldn’t lie. The two of them were the most loyal of the shogun’s seven vassals. Seeing them say how delicious it was made the others hesitantly bring the food to their lips as well.

“What...? This is great!”

“Wow... It’s amazing!”

“What is this?! It’s so good!”

What was even more amazing was that not a single person seemed to dislike it. Finally, the emperor and the shogun steeled their nerves and tried the meal Melsa had prepared for them.

“It’s... It’s quite good.”

“Yes... Yes it is...”

It was their first time ever eating it, yet it still seemed to taste like home. Melsa smiled in satisfaction at the reaction from the Eastern imperials.

“And...what is this dish called?” the emperor asked.

It was the dish that everyone loved, no matter who or where they were.

“It’s called spaghetti napolitan,” Melsa responded.

Chapter 51: The Devourer of Empires

“Now then. Will that suffice in exchange for one bag of rice?” Melsa asked with a grin once the emperor and the shogun had both completely cleaned their plates.

“What...?”

“One bag?!”

The Eastern imperials were all so shocked by Melsa’s question that they rose from their seats.

“Y-You brought all these relief supplies just for a single bag of rice?!” The Eastern Empire’s food stores, which had almost completely been depleted, were now filled to the brim with the Stewart family’s contributions. They couldn’t believe how much they’d been worried over one bag of rice. Why hadn’t she just said she wanted a single bag at the start?!

“Are you sure you’re saying that right? Are you quite certain you don’t mean one year’s worth?” Even a year’s worth felt like it wouldn’t be enough for the amount they’d given, but perhaps she was just unable to articulate what she actually wanted properly...even if her proficiency in the language was extremely high.

The emperor and the shogun were both taken aback by Melsa’s bewitching smile. “I wouldn’t dare ask for that much from a country that’s suffering from a food shortage. Oh, though I will insist that the rice you give us is white rice. I won’t accept brown rice.”

It wasn’t a fair trade in the slightest. The Stewarts had given them enough food to feed their nation for over half a year, and all they wanted was a single bag of rice and bonito flakes in return.

“I-Is that...really all you want?”

“Well, if you can find it in your heart to give us a bit of your harvest each year afterward too...” It was similar to the hometown tax system Melsa had in her previous life. Such a deal wouldn’t last long if there weren’t a mutual benefit to it.

“Each year...” The imperials’ expressions had clearly darkened.

Melsa had gotten her wish. The rice was hers. Knowing that a warrior would never go back on his word, she then decided to ask what she’d wanted to know most. “By the way, I don’t believe your food shortage is related to the weather. After all, we haven’t received any request for aid from Balitu or any of the other countries near the Eastern Empire.”

“What?!”

“What’s more, I saw quite a few people in the streets on the way to the imperial castle. Even if it is unusual to see foreigners here, it just felt like there were far too many. It was like your entire country was crowded around Edo Castle for some reason.” Melsa had heard the Eastern Empire was a large country. Even knowing she was in the capital city, there were still far more people than one would expect to be there. When she’d strained her eyes beyond the main street, she’d also seen several hastily constructed huts crowded all together. Based on Prince Tasuku, the emperor, and the shogun’s actions, it was clear there was some reason they weren’t planning on sending the supplies to the countryside. Therefore, Melsa believed there must have been some reason that the majority of the imperial citizens had been forced to move to the capital instead.

“I’d heard you were just an interpreter...but you’re awfully sharp.” She’d only taken one look at the city and had already started to get to the heart of the problems the Eastern Empire was facing.

Momochi, the ninja, appeared in a flash. He’d been standing guard up in the ceiling.

“Your Majesty! Your Excellency! I believe we should tell the people of the kingdom the truth. Lady Melsa is someone we can trust. I believe she can help us!”

“Momochi, you know that’s impossible. We’re beyond help now. Telling the people what’s happening will only cause them undue distress.”

“But sir...!”

“Momochi. There is nothing left for our great empire but destruction now.”

The attendants couldn’t hide their tears of despair.

“Hey, Melsa! What the hell did you say to them?! What’s going on?! Why are they crying now?!” Oliver, who had been practically twiddling his thumbs in silence, balked at the suddenly bizarre scene.

“Destruction...?” Melsa echoed. “I can’t let that slide. We still have okonomiyaki, yakisoba, and takoyaki to make.” With the okonomi sauce for those, they could make even more delicious foods. They’d have regular rice and bonito flakes. They’d need to learn how to make miso and soy sauce too. In order to get a full picture of what sorts of delicious foods they could get, they needed to know exactly what was and wasn’t happening in the Eastern Empire. They couldn’t just let it get destroyed.

“Erm... Okonomiyaki?”

“In other words, my family and I need to have a long-standing relationship with the Eastern Empire!” However, no matter how Melsa tried to convince them, the emperor and the shogun only shook their heads with resignation.

“Melsa! Quit ignoring me! What are you all saying?! Hello?!”

“The diplomat by my side is saying our kingdom will do whatever it takes to support you as well.” Melsa ignored what Oliver was complaining about and instead used a slapdash translation to further convince them. She’d already come so far. She didn’t want to give up on getting a share of the first crop of the next year.

“If you’re that certain...perhaps it’s best that you see for yourself.”

“Your Majesty?!”

“We can’t!”

“She’ll understand if she sees it.”

Once both the emperor and the shogun had given in, their meeting came to a close.

◆ ◆ ◆

“What’s going on?! Where are they taking us?!” From start to finish, the conversation with the emperor and the shogun had been spoken entirely in the imperial language, and Melsa hadn’t interpreted any of it for Oliver whatsoever.

“I asked them to tell us what’s leading the Eastern Empire to destruction.”

“What?! Destruction?! That’s not... What?! Would you just tell me what’s going on here?! We can’t be forming diplomatic relations with a country that’s not even going to be here in the future!” Oliver fumed. Prince Tasuku never mentioned anything about destruction.

“Oliver, could you please stop talking for a bit? My ears can only take so much. We’re going to find out what they mean right now.”

“I-I wouldn’t have to raise my voice if you would’ve just told me what was happening in the first place!”

The day after they’d met with the emperor and the shogun, they’d been woken up far too early for anyone’s tastes and put on a carriage. It was understandable that Oliver would be in a mood about it.

There were about thirty samurai surrounding the carriage. Fukushima and Kato, the two who’d eaten Melsa’s spaghetti napolitan first, were at the front, leading the carriage in the opposite direction of the ocean. They had a thirty-minute break on the way to their destination for lunch. When they finally arrived, the sun was already starting to set.

The carriage came to a stop before an area cordoned off by watchtowers and fences, with samurai standing guard at even intervals. Beyond the fence was a dense forest, so one couldn’t discern what could be behind the Eastern Empire’s destruction from there.

Fukushima gave a signal to a guard in one of the watchtowers, and the gate was opened.

“We’ll be walking from here on.” The samurai dismounted from their horses, and they continued on the path deeper into the forest, their nerves growing more tense the closer they drew. Even Oliver could read the room enough to know to stay quiet, but he still kept shooting Melsa glares from time to time. A man with a grudge could be such a pain in the side.

The moment they’d exited the forest and its thickly packed greenery, they were struck with a vision of utter defeat.

Melsa whispered in utter astonishment, “It’s...an owata...”

“Please don’t get any closer.” Kato warned Melsa in hushed tones as he blocked her path.

Before them were plants growing en masse, all several times taller than Melsa herself. Compared to the surrounding trees and vegetation, there was something clearly different about them. They were blossoming with flowers...massive golden petals covering the landscape. It was something straight out of someone’s wildest fantasies.

“M-Melsa... Is this really...?!” Oliver’s voice was trembling. He hadn’t actually needed to take Advanced Monster Studies back at school, but he’d taken it just to compete with Melsa. “Th-This is a botanical crisis! But how?!”

The plant-type monster had somehow managed to propagate inside the Eastern Empire’s barrier.

“There’s only one plant-type monster with great yellow flowers like these. If it’s already managed to get into the barrier, then it’ll only be a little over half a year before they encroach on Edo...” Melsa realized that this was why the shogun said the Eastern Empire could only wait for their imminent destruction.

“Melsa... That really is an owata, isn’t it?” Plant-type monsters that are rooted to the ground and unmoving generally wouldn’t be growing inside a barrier where people lived. But in some exceptionally rare cases, a seed would get stuck to a monster that then made it inside the barrier, where the seed could begin to grow. Without the monsters that serve as their natural enemies to cull them inside the barrier, the plant monsters would then grow out of control. This was especially true for the owata, which had roots, leaves, and stems too tough to cut through or burn. Without any way to stop it, it would take over human civilization in only a few years.

“H-How did owatas manage to get here? This is too far south, isn’t it?” The kingdom and the Eastern Empire were connected continentally. Owatas had only ever been sighted on the northern part of the continent. There was no record of them ever appearing in the southern part. No matter how strong their samurai might have been, they wouldn’t have been equipped for such an unprecedented situation. In the kingdom, only the select few who had passed Advanced Monster Studies would have even known about owatas.

“There was a localized barrier crisis here in the Eastern Empire two years ago. Our samurai were able to defeat the monsters, and our mage was able to close the hole...but we believe one of those monsters had an owata seed stuck to it.” Fukushima choked, clenching his fists. He had been responsible for the hunt back then. It was his fault that he hadn’t noticed the seed, thus his fault that the country was doomed. The regret he felt was unfathomable.

“It was stuck to a monster from a localized barrier crisis?!” Which meant that the monsters that came from the localized barrier crisis must have come from the north. Melsa thought this warranted much, much further investigation.

Owatas would fire its seeds once every half a year. Since it was already flowering, it was likely that the seeds would take root near Edo by the summer. That meant after next year, the Eastern Empire would be no more.

“We’ve tried everything to defeat the owatas. We’ve lost our mage and countless samurai. We don’t have any options left to us. They’ve already taken over most of our rice paddies and fields, and we can’t harvest any of our crops anymore. We’re truly grateful to the kingdom for its support. You showed such concern and understanding when we told you there was nothing we could do, and you’ve still given us enough food to last us until our great country is destroyed.” Kato put a hand on Fukushima’s trembling shoulders and bowed his head to Melsa.

“So you’re saying...there won’t be any more rice...ever?” They wouldn’t be able to have a bit of the new crop each year...? Melsa staggered and grew faint.

“Melsa!” Oliver rushed to Melsa’s aid in a panic. However well she might have carried herself, Melsa was still a woman. It was only natural that she would faint at the sight of such a monster. “Let’s go home, Melsa. Unfortunately...I don’t think there’s anything more we can do here.”

Melsa reluctantly let Oliver help support her as she decided to go back the way they’d come.

George... Emma... William... I’m so sorry. There’s nothing we can do against an owata. Nobody has found a way to fight against them. The bombshell news gave her such a fright that Melsa could only apologize to her children in the back of her mind. She pictured the face of her daughter, the Herald of all Hullabaloos...

Wait... Emma...?

“Let’s go home, Oliver!”

“Uh... Yeah, that’s what I just said...” Oliver gave Melsa a confused look. He had a bad feeling about all this.

“Fukushima. I want you to tell me everything you can about owatas. I’m going back to the kingdom to formulate a plan against them.”

“What?” Fukushima was lost as to what had Melsa suddenly perking up again.

I’d nearly forgotten! My dearest daughter has one of the most exceptionally creative and inventive minds out there! Hee hee... I do so hope they’re all doing well... I hope Leonard’s been dutifully looking after the children... I hope George has been studying well... I hope William’s keeping up with his Hunting Techniques class... And I hope Emma isn’t causing any problems...

...

She isn’t, right? Emma hasn’t caused any issues, right? She’s fine, right?

◆ ◆ ◆

Despite the moonlight, the dead silence of the academy at night brought an eerie stillness to the air.

“Ough... L-L-Lord Robert... Why do we have to find those creepy little guys anyway?”

“Shut it, Brian! Just keep looking!”

Robert and Brian were desperately searching around the tree where they’d dumped the creepy-crawlers over Emma Stewart’s head.

“I’m gonna get in serious trouble if they find out I snuck out of the house this late, though...” Brian whimpered. Robert had forcibly dragged him to the school to find the bugs they’d lost.

“Just find the damn things already, Brian! Neither of us are going home until we find them!” Strangely enough, even though they’d dumped so many of the nasty things, they couldn’t find a single one.

Robert was visibly shaken. His father had gone utterly wild with rage and told him he wouldn’t be allowed back in the manor empty-handed. As such, Robert was crawling on the ground with Brian, fervently searching the grass and brush around the tree in a desperate attempt to find even just one of the bugs. He parted the grass, overturned rocks, and even painstakingly moved the paving stones aside one by one...when suddenly, a figure appeared before him. Robert initially thought it was just Brian slacking off and looked up to shout at him to do his damn job.

“Y-Your Highness?!” Indeed, it was Prince Edward. Robert wanted so badly to be wrong, but the prince’s black hair and black eyes blended in with the night around him, making him completely unmistakable.

“What are you doing here in the middle of the night, Robert Lance?” the prince asked, his expression as cold as ice. Arthur and several knights were standing guard behind him.

“Your Highness! Why are you here?!” Brian, who had been focusing his search around the tree, finally noticed the prince and went pale.

“I should ask you the same, Brian. What brings the two of you here, to the very site of this morning’s commotion?” The prince glowered with disgust.

Heaven above, why is it that Emma is always faced with such horrible things? Her heart is so fragile and delicate...is she faring well after what happened? Her body is so dainty and frail...it wasn’t too much for her, was it?

The knights reported that Emma had been uninjured and had been able to converse freely with her brothers and friend who had rushed to her aid. But Edward knew how kind Emma was—she was the type to push herself to her limits to keep others from worrying about her. Edward couldn’t rest easy until he saw her for himself. And if it turned out that this incident had been done on purpose...the perpetrators would be punished to the fullest extent.

“Take these two to a cell.” When Edward thought about how terrified Emma must have been...it was everything he could do to suppress his boiling rage and command the knights behind him.

“What?! Y-Your Highness!”

“Wh-Why are you putting us in jail?! I-I mean...jail?!” Robert and Brian both blanched when they heard the prince’s command.

“P-Please, Your Highness! Have mercy on us!”

“D-Do you even know who I am?! I’m Robert of the Lance family! A filthy knight has no right laying his hands on someone of my status! Arthur! What the hell are you just standing there for?! Do something! Help us! Arthur!” Robert had nowhere to run. Both he and Brian were flanked by knights, arrested by both arms, and carried away. Their screams echoed out fruitlessly into the night.

“Are you quite sure about this, Your Highness? This is entirely a unilateral decision on your part.” The Lance family had an exceptional amount of influence among the nobles. Putting Robert—who was in line to become their heir—in jail was sure to get the old guard among the firstborn prince’s faction talking.

“I have a hunch about what the connection between the Lance family and those bugs might be. If I’m right, then Robert won’t be the only one being punished for this.” Even Arthur, who was always at the prince’s side, felt a chill go up his spine at the cold expression Edward gave him. “Let’s report back to my father.”

The people who had caused this incident were fellow students. If those were the insects he was thinking of, and all of them had gone missing, then it would have tremendous consequences for the country. This couldn’t be settled like standard schoolyard bullying.

Unfortunately for Melsa, those problems she had been so worried about most certainly were occurring.

◆ ◆ ◆

“General Kongmiiiiing! Could you move a bit?”

“Mrowr?”

Emma normally would have been in bed at that hour, but she was currently at her desk instead. There was a big piece of paper spread across her desk, and she was desperately trying to jog her memory about something as she jotted figures down on the paper.

“Hmm... I just can’t remember the last three. I know there’s supposed to be eight, but... Huh... Maybe someone else remembers it? Nngh... Ah, c’mon! Kongming, I’ll just be a little bit longer, okay? I’m sorry...”

“Mrowr?”

Most of the paper Emma had spread out to draw her figures on was covered by General Kongming. The more Emma tried to concentrate on it, the more Kongming sloooowly stretched her body out to block her ability to write.

“Agh, Kongming! You’re getting ink on your fur!”

“Myah?”

“I know, I know. I’ll be going to bed soon, okay? We can sleep together and everything. But I just want to get this square down... Okay? Could you move your front right paw? Hey! That was on purpose, wasn’t it? Ah, your claws! Put your claws away, Kongming! Soft paws, Kongming! Soft paws!”

“Mrowr?”

“I know. Just five more minutes, okay? Then we can go snuggle in bed.”

Emma had gone to lie down earlier, but as soon as she remembered the way the amblypygids had all lined up to Kongming’s commands, she’d gotten a great idea for a new game to play. Kongming, who had been hoping they’d get to sleep together, didn’t seem all too interested in what Emma had gotten up to draw, as she’d also gotten up, draped her whole body down on Emma’s workspace, and refused to move. The pressure was intense. This back-and-forth between the two of them, fighting for control of the paper, continued until Emma managed to finish the five figures she could remember.

“I guess...I’ll give up on the other three for now.”

“Mrow?”

“Yep, I’m all done for now! Let’s do all these tomorrow, okay, Kongming?”

“Mrowr!”

“Remember this, okay? This V-shaped one is called the Crane’s Wing formation, and the arrow-shaped one is called the Fish Scale formation!”

“Myah myah?”

“You got it! We’re gonna pretend to be Takeda’s army with the amblypygids tomorrow!”

“Myah myah myah?”

“Yeah, that very Takeda! But wait...didn’t Zhuge Liang come up with these formations first...? Wait... Weird... I don’t know why I can’t remember...”

“Myah myah!”

“Oh, sorry! You’re right! Let’s get to bed. I can’t remember the last three anyway, so I guess we’ll just go by what feels right.”

They’d all heard that school would be closed the next day because of the incident, so that meant tomorrow would be a day full of playtime with the kitties after so long.

◆ ◆ ◆

“All right, General Kongming! Next up, let’s do the Birds in Flight formation! That’s the diagonal one!”

“Mrah!”

Emma pointed to the diagram she’d drawn last night, and Kongming meowed a command to the amblypygids.

Skitter skitter skitter...

The amblypygids moved from the Crane’s Wing formation to the Birds in Flight formation.

“Wooow, you guys are so amazing! Look at how well you did! You’re so cute!”

“I...can’t believe you remembered all these formations, sis...” William laughed awkwardly as he watched Emma giddily giving orders in the large Stewart yard.

“Yeah... I mean, I remember the Crane’s Wing, Fish Scale, Birds in Flight, Arrowhead, and Yoke formations, but the other three...”

“Most people don’t remember them all, Emma...” George also gave an awkward laugh. It seemed that even in a new world, his sister would nerd out over history.

“Myah myah?”

“Oooh? You wanna come up with some formations of your own, Kongming?” Emma was rather sad she couldn’t remember the others, so Kongming tried to cheer her up.

“Mmm... Myah!” After a moment of quiet thought, Kongming meowed and the amblypygids all went from the Birds in Flight formation into a boomerang shape.

“Myah myah myah!”

“This is the...Bendy Cucumber formation...?”

“Mrowr!” Kongming nodded proudly.

“Oh right... You always did like cucumbers, huh?”

“Mrooowr!”

“But why’s it bendy?”

“Myah myaow!”

“The curved ones are easier to eat, huh?”

“Mrowr!”

Minato remembered how, in the summer, Kongming had always loved eating cucumbers. Maybe they had been good for hydration? Back then, their house had been surrounded by nothing but fields. Their mother, Yoriko, had started growing cucumbers in their yard specifically to keep Kongming from messing up their neighbors’ land.

“We should grow some cucumbers in our garden this year!”

“Mrooowr!” Kongming rubbed up against Emma happily. There really was nothing like good ol’ fluffy love.

“Myah myah?!” Zhang, who had been cleaning his face next to William, perked up at Emma’s suggestion. His tail, with all its long white fur, was raised high as he then plopped himself down next to Emma and Kongming. He then let out a command with a stern expression.

“Mrowr!”

At Zhang’s command, the amblypygi army went from the Bendy Cucumber formation to a vertical line formation.

“Myah myah!” Zhang gave Emma a very hopeful and expectant look.

“Uh... Wait, so this is the...Lickable Kitty Treat formation...?”

Zhang had come to live with the Tanakas after Minato had already moved out. Every time Minato had come back to visit, she’d always brought those lickable kitty treats with her, so she’d become like a kitty treat delivery woman in Zhang’s mind. Zhang’s love of those lickable treats was honestly frightening, and his face at that moment was just as intense.

“Uh... I dunno if we can get that kind of treat here...”

“Mrooooowr!” Zhang started rubbing up on Emma even more than Kongming had been, as though he were saying, “Pretty pleeeease!”

“Aaagh, Zhang, you are just so cute! Okay, I’ll ask Joshua next time he comes by, okay?”

“Mrooowr!” Zhang started purring happily. The healing vibes of a cat’s purrs were truly undefeated.

“Mrow mrowr!” Guan and Liu, who had seen what Zhang had done, sat on both sides of Emma’s little group and gave a command of their own with serious expressions.

“Mrowr mrowr mrowr!”

The amblypygi army went from the Lickable Kitty Treat formation to a circle formation.

“Mrooowr!” The two kitties stared at Emma with a similar look of expectation that Zhang had given her.

“A...Wet Food formation? Yeah, okay. I can ask Joshua to get this for us too.”

“Mya myaaah!”

Guan and Liu both rubbed up against Emma as well, completing their giant kitty pile. Emma was buried in cats, and George and William couldn’t see her anymore.

“Aw, I’m kinda jealous!”

“Wait...I kinda feel like Joshua’s gonna be putting in a lot of work here, though...”

The Crane’s Wing formation. The Fish Scale formation. The Birds in Flight formation. The Arrowhead formation. The Yoke formation. The Bendy Cucumber formation. The Lickable Kitty Treat formation. The Wet Food formation. With that, the Stewart family’s Eight Military Formations were complete. What nobody knew then was that these formations would be adopted by her doting father and uncle for use in monster hunts. These would then spread up to the kingdom at large in training their knights, and would even become fearsome tactics used by the Western Empire, which boasted a powerful military presence already.

“My lady! Lady Emma!” They all heard Martha’s voice from far away. She wouldn’t have been shouting so loudly if it weren’t for something pretty intense. Unfortunately, intense happenings were pretty regular for the Stewart family.

“Agh, Martha’s already heading this way... What did you do this time, sis?”

“If you tell it to us straight, we can cover for you. It’s easier to know ahead of time.” The two brothers both started questioning their sister-turned-cat-pile.

“But I didn’t do anything! You two are the worst!” Emma tried to argue from within her cat cushion, but William and George weren’t having it.

“Just try to think back. Did you do anything that could’ve gotten you in trouble since you woke up?”

“There’s a lot of stuff you think is totally fine that’s extremely not fine to the rest of the world. So what was it this time?”

“I said I didn’t do anything! Right, Kongming? You were with me the whole time!”

“Mrowr?”

“See! The general says it’s just fine!”

“That was clearly a question, not a statement.”

“You can’t just mistranslate the cats for your own purposes, sis!”

“Lady Emma? Lady Emma? Ah, Lord George and Lord William. Have you seen Lady Emma around here?” Martha gasped for breath, unable to see that Emma had been completely buried in cats.

“She’s under all the cats, Martha.”

“Ugh, William! Why would you sell me out?!” Emma poked her head out of the cat pile, glaring at her traitorous brother.

“What in the world are you doing, Lady Emma?! The prince, Prince Edward, himself has come to see you, and your clothes are all covered in fur! And...what are those bugs behind yooooooou?!” The moment Martha caught a glimpse of the amblypygids in their Wet Food formation, she let out a scream of bloody murder.

◆ ◆ ◆

Prince Edward and Arthur arrived at the Stewart household with knights to guard them. They were guided to the very parlor that had so recently caused the diplomats so much distress. Count Leonard offered them the sofa, which was covered with a handmade Emma silk sheet. While the prince and Arthur sat nervously, the knights stood in the back like the diplomats before them. No matter how many times Leonard offered, the heavily armored knights stubbornly refused.

“I apologize for the wait, Your Highness.”

The prince shook his head, unable to hide the exhaustion on his face. “No need. This was quite a last-minute visit on my part.” He’d been so worried about Emma after he’d had Robert and Brian locked up that he couldn’t sleep. After a night of tossing and turning, he woke up early to attend to his royal duties, but he was unable to concentrate. Arthur, who was unable to let this pass, then suggested they go speak to Emma about it after all.

“Your Highness! What brings you here?” George and William rushed into the parlor and gave the standard bow. Emma was nowhere to be seen.

“I came to ask about yesterday’s incident... Is Emma all right?” the prince asked. He knew there was no way she would be, not after such a scare. He bit his lip in self-reproach when he thought about it again. What Robert had done to her was the pinnacle of cruelty.

“Emma? Oh, she’s fine. Totally fine. Nothing wrong with her at all. Right, William?”

“Y-Yeah. She’s, uh, just getting changed. That’s why she’s not here yet. No need to worry about her.”

George and William stammered through their excuses. The prince’s pained expression had them quite flustered. As it was, Emma had been enthusiastically playing with the cats and amblypygids all morning, completely coating her clothes in cat hair. Martha had forced her to get changed.

“She’s...changing?” Seeing George and William panicking like that made the prince’s expression darken. They were saying she was okay and not to worry, but the prince knew the two of them were terrible liars. Their faces were stiff. It was clear that Emma was, in fact, not okay. It was understandable, given that the incident had happened only just yesterday. He surmised that she was changing not because she simply needed nicer clothes to greet the prince, but because she’d been recovering in bed all day and had to change out of her pajamas.

“She doesn’t need to push herself. If she’s still recovering, I’d prefer if she just got more rest.”

“Uh. What?”

George and William both looked confused. Apparently, they hadn’t thought the prince would see through their lies.

“Your Highness, I apologize for the wait.” Having finished changing, Emma gave a bow and apologized. She was a bit winded, as she hadn’t wanted to keep the prince waiting when he had such a busy schedule. She had run all the way from the yard to the manor and changed as fast as she could.

“Emma, how are you feeling?” The prince rushed to her side, gently offering a hand to help her to the sofa out of worry that walking might be too difficult for her in this trying time. Her skin, which was always so pale, had a slight pink tinge to it today. She must have been feverish from the shock. He went to put his hand to Emma’s forehead to check for a fever, but was stopped by Leonard.

“Your Highness, I’m ever so sorry. But touching my daughter is off-limits.” Leonard was smiling, but his hand was gripping the prince’s so tightly, he felt like his bones might snap.

Emma puffed out her cheeks and glared at him. “Oh, father. Where did you learn to talk like that?”

The prince, however, was unable to respond. Hearing Leonard say that touching his daughter was “off-limits” froze him in place. Just...what was I doing? What was I trying to do? I just took Emma by her slender wrist, put my hand along her slender back, and then went to touch her oh so soft forehead...?

The prince felt his face grow red and hot.

“Your Highness, are you all right?! You’re bright red!” Emma worriedly tried to wave her hand in front of the prince’s face, but he didn’t respond.

“Pfft!” Arthur, who’d silently been watching the events unfold, couldn’t contain his laughter. “Heh heh... Ah ha ha ha! Hee hee! L-Lady Emma, His Highness just hasn’t gotten much rest since yesterday’s incident. Heh heh heh... Aha ha... I-I’m sorry, but...you think you could lend him a hand?” Although he was doubled over in laughter, Arthur was sure to shrewdly act as Edward’s wingman again.

“You’re not feeling sick, are you? Maybe you should lie down...” Emma put her hand to the prince’s cheek. Unfortunately, staring at him with such worry had the exact opposite effect than she intended.

Arthur was enjoying himself thoroughly, and he made a suggestion while giving Leonard a sidelong glance. “Count Stewart, the prince hasn’t slept since last night. Would you allow him to rest here for a time? I’d hate to disturb him, so we can discuss yesterday’s event in a different room.”

“Nngh... I suppose I have no choice...” Though it truly pained him to do so, Leonard asked a servant to prepare a different room for them. As everyone made to leave the room so Emma could look after the prince, Leonard let everyone go but George.

“You’re staying in here. You hear me? If anything happens to Emma, I don’t care if he’s the prince. You show no mercy. I’ll take responsibility for whatever you have to do. Do you understand me, George?”

“Uh... Yeah...”

Emma, you’ve literally only been here for five minutes and you’ve already caused a huge scene... And dad, you know your daughter’s in her forties on the inside, right? You really don’t have to worry about this. George could only quip about his sister’s total obliviousness and his overprotective father in his mind.

Finally, it was just Emma, George, and Prince Edward, who had gone as still as a mannequin.

“Maybe you should lie down for a little bit, Your Highness... Oh, I’ll let you rest your head in my lap! Hee hee, that kinda takes me back. Remember when we did this last year?” After hearing Arthur say that the prince hadn’t gotten any sleep, Emma took the malleable prince by the hand and had him rest on her lap.

“Oh, come on, Emma! Are you seriously going to put the nail in the coffin like that?!”

The prince’s face was now at critical levels of redness that shouldn’t have even been achievable by man. George glared at his sister, utterly at his wits’ end.

“Um... What are you talking about, George?” Emma was unable to see the prince’s face as she stroked his soft, black hair while he rested on her lap.

◆ ◆ ◆

“Are you sure you’re okay to get up, Your Highness?” Once Prince Edward had come to his senses (like reviving from the dead), he lifted his head from Emma’s lap.

“Y-Yes. What about you, Emma? I heard the insects that caused such a panic at the school were enough to send any young lady into fright. Were you okay? Were you able to sleep last night?” Edward asked worriedly.

“I’m quite all right, Your Highness. I slept very well. I wasn’t injured either. I’m doing just fine.” Emma beamed, but she was frankly a bit nervous when the prince brought up the insects. If he found out her adorable amblypygids were there in her home, he might just confiscate them. “Truthfully, you look much worse for wear than I do. Lord Arthur said you hadn’t slept last night. Did something happen?” Emma asked, trying to take the focus off the insects.

“Ah... Y-Yes. We were capturing the culprits behind yesterday’s incident.” While the prince recognized Emma was deliberately avoiding the topic, he decided not to press it any further. Clearly, Emma hadn’t been doing as well as she was saying...or so he wrongly concluded. Unfortunately for the prince, that was not the topic Emma was trying to avoid.

“Oh, you caught Lord Robert and Lord Brian?”

“You knew they were the culprits?!”

Emma realized her flub and covered her mouth, but the prince wasn’t going to let that one slide. Here she’d been staying quiet because she knew talking about Robert and the amblypygids meant they might be taken back, but it was all for nothing. Meanwhile, George was sitting across from her and staring with a dumbfounded expression at how stupid that slipup was.

“I-I’m so sorry. I know I should have said something sooner, but...” Emma was embarrassed that she’d been caught knowing the truth and not having said anything.

The prince gave a sympathetic smile to Emma’s pained apology. “It’s all right. I know how kind you are, Emma. I know you wouldn’t have wanted anyone put in jail, even if it was someone like Robert.” She was always so kind and considerate. That kindness made what Robert and Brian had done exceptionally heinous and unforgivable. Even so soon after they’d put her through such a nightmare, even as she was unable to look up and trembling with her hands on her lap, she still wanted to forgive them.

“L-Lord Robert and Lord Brian...are in jail?” Emma choked, still trembling and looking down.

“We caught them when they came back to campus last night to find the bugs they’d unleashed. Considering the academy is right on the castle’s doorstep, they’ll be jailed until it’s decided how they’ll be punished. While it’s not common knowledge, those bugs were actually incredibly valuable to the kingdom.”

“They’re...in jail...? And those bugs...were valuable?” George broke out into an intense sweat at the frightful developments. It was hard to tell since she was hanging her head, but Emma was just as flustered.

“Th-They just dropped a bunch of bugs, though! I-Is that really worth jailing them for?” Emma looked up at the prince, her voice quivering in panic.

“You don’t need to pretend, Emma. And you don’t need to downplay it either. The fear you felt in that moment must have been overwhelming. There were countless other girls who suffered at his hands, but you suffered the greatest of all. I’ve been so, so worried for you...”

I’m not pretending at all, though! How was I the one who suffered the most?! I was just shaking with excitement! Why are Lord Robert and Lord Brian being locked up for just throwing some bugs on a girl?! They’re just kids! This is normal for kids! This was just, like, regular schoolyard bullying! Like when kids back in Japan would flip girls’ skirts up and stuff! And they’re going to jail for that?! What the hell! This isekai stuff is scary as hell!

“Y-Your Highness... Were those ambly—ahem! I mean, the bugs that they threw really that important?” George had a terrible feeling about the bugs they’d taken home completely without permission, so he was hesitant to ask. If those creepy-crawlies were really that important, it might have been for the best that they return them, no matter how much Emma screamed and cried about it.

“Those bugs...were something the royal family painstakingly convinced the Western Empire to give to us two hundred years ago. I’ve only seen them in pictures.” Based on George’s unusually serious face, the prince surmised that Emma must have told him all about the bugs in question. Once again, the prince (mistakenly) surmised that George must have been trying to learn more about the bugs that caused his poor little sister so much pain, all the while suppressing his boiling rage. While the information wasn’t top secret, it was something that had faded from common knowledge as two hundred years passed. The prince, understanding George’s feelings, decided to tell him what he’d learned from the king last night. “Those bugs are apparently meant to be used for medicine.”

“M-Medicine...?” the siblings repeated simultaneously.

Here I thought they were just ornamental, but they were for medicinal use... If people’s lives are on the line, I probably have to give them back... But they just learned the eight battle formations and everything... Emma moaned internally, though she was probably the only noblewoman alive who would think amblypygids could be ornamental animals.

“It’s the one medicine we have found to treat the disease that killed even the Great Mage, Connie Moo. It was a horrible disease... He was hemorrhaging all over his body, his old wounds kept opening, and even his teeth were an utter wreck by the end. He died in excruciating pain.”

“Connie Moo...? The one from the books?” They recalled the book Lady Marina had told them about during the Stewart family’s first tea party. The Great Mage was so famous, not a single person in the kingdom was unaware of him...yet he couldn’t beat this sickness.

“Yes. The Chronicles about him only write up to when he came back from his adventures in the east, but he fell ill during his adventure, and the royal family took him in to care for him. His death was so grisly that it had even the king at the time trembling.”

“And those bugs are a cure for that disease?”

The prince nodded, and told them to keep secret both the disease and the fact that they’d lost the one cure in order to avoid causing undue panic and anxiety among the people.

“Though we don’t believe it to be contagious, it had the same symptoms as the epidemic that hit the Western Empire the year their crop yield was low. What’s more, the records show that the same disease ran rampant, devastating the population again several years later when the Western Empire had a botanical crisis.”

“So the royal family, fearing the disease might spread, asked the Western Empire for the raw materials...the bugs to make that medicine?” George sighed. He was going to have to convince Emma to hand them over once the prince went home. He was too scared to ask just how much they were worth.

“Exactly. The royal family somehow managed to convince the Western Empire to trade them to us just in case the disease should come our way. They then gave it to a duke’s family for safekeeping.”

“And that family must have been Robert’s ancestors.”

“Yes. We asked the Lance family to check this morning, and there wasn’t a single one of them to be found,” the prince said, his expression darkening. “What’s worse is that those bugs can’t be found within the barrier.”

“Then...would it be possible for our hunters to go outside the barrier and find them?” George asked, prepared to go search for them himself in the worst-case scenario.

“No, the risk is far too high. We don’t even know if they can be found on the southern continent. The only reason the Western Empire had them in the first place was because a plant monster happened to have some stuck to it during a botanical crisis.”

“A botanical crisis, as in, when a bunch of plant-type monsters grow en masse inside the barrier?” George looked confused, so Emma pretended that she wasn’t certain, so he could save face.

“Yes. You’ve really studied up, haven’t you, Emma? It’s not the kind of thing that happens much on the southern continent, so most aren’t too familiar with it.”

“Uh... Yeah, I’ve totally heard about it too. I think. Maybe.”

“You were supposed to have studied about botanical crises for class yesterday, George,” Emma reminded him.

“Yeah, but you know how busy things got...”

Without Melsa around, George had been slacking on his studies.

“So by the way...what kind of medicine do you use the bugs for anyway? Topical or oral?” As was typical of Emma, the moment she heard talk about bugs, her curiosity went off the charts.

“Wh-Why are you asking, Emma? You’re going to make yourself sick again.” The prince was a bit taken aback, as Emma’s eyes were practically sparkling in a way he’d never seen before. After everything that had happened to her, it was odd for her to take an interest like this.

“If it has something to do with medicine, I want to know it sooner rather than later. That way I can help if something happens!”

That made sense to the prince. Emma had such a weak constitution, and she didn’t want anyone to suffer the way she had.

“You’re so kind, Emma...”

She just likes bugs, dude, George thought, pitying the poor, doomed prince.

“According to medical texts from the Western Empire, they dry the bugs out, then dissolve their powdered remains in a citrus mix. Apparently, the medicine has a bit of a smell to it that makes it hard to endure without masking it with citrus.”

“I wonder what it might smell like... By the way, has anyone had this illness in recent years?” Emma asked hesitantly. If there had been, she really would have to give them back...

“I haven’t heard reports for many years, no.” The prince’s response made Emma breathe a sigh of relief. However...

“That’s because those reports never reached you, Your Highness,” a voice not belonging to Emma, George, or the prince chimed in. It came from Joshua, who had once again dutifully made his way to the Stewart manor that day. He’d burst in without a care after William had told him that the prince was resting his head in Emma’s lap. Joshua quickly bowed, then breathed his own sigh of relief to see that the prince’s head was no longer resting in Emma’s lap.

“In fact, there are still some people in the slums and in the port towns who have that disease even now. Yet that valuable medicine has never been used on those people. Not back then and not now either,” Joshua explained, bitterly thinking, If you have time to use a girl’s lap for a pillow, maybe it would be better spent learning more about the place you’re supposed to rule.

“So there were... I can understand how it might have reached those in the slums, given the poor living conditions, but why the port towns? Do they contract it while traveling?” Emma seemed clearly despondent after hearing that there were people who were sick.

“My word... She’d even extend such sympathy to commoners... She really must be an angel...” the prince whispered, seeing how sad Emma had gotten (though he didn’t know it was just because she didn’t want to give up the bugs).

“Oh, she’s been an angel for far longer than you’ve even known her, Your Highness.” Joshua said in a low voice as a show of dominance. “Lady Emma, the illness you have been discussing is one that has been spoken of among merchants for ages. It’s the most common among sailors. I’d heard that many, many sailors became ill back when our ships were less efficient and they’d have to spend months at sea.” As Joshua was wont to do, he’d spent plenty of time researching amblypygids before he’d come to visit that day. There was a reason the siblings had come to call him Professor Mewgle.

“Wait... Sailors? Hold on a second...” Hearing that it was an illness that afflicted many a sailor made Emma pause.

“The merchants from the Simmons region have sent petition after petition for many years now to the Lance family. They’ve begged to have some of the bugs or medicine, but they were blown away by the exorbitant price and rebuffed each time.” Since the Rothschild Company always used the best boats, Joshua was unaware that the less profitable merchants were only able to travel on low-quality boats. It was whispered among the inhabitants of the port towns that the longer the voyage, the more likely it was that one would contract the disease. For the businesses that didn’t make much profit, the price of the insect-derived medicine was tremendous when sailors were practically disposable. And for commoners with hardly any money to their name, all they could do was cry. Though some tried to pool their resources together, the expenses for treatment were so high, they couldn’t keep up on payments for the whole thing.

“What?! But we’ve been paying the Lance family so much every year to support the bugs’ care! That way they can give medicine to the sick free of charge!” The prince was shocked.

“Perhaps you should talk to both Lord Robert and Duke Lance about this.” George chided the prince for not having checked this before. Considering there were enough amblypygids for Emma to make battle formations with, they certainly had enough to give. If the Lance family was the only one raising them and they were intentionally raising the prices while reporting that nobody was sick, this would become a massive case of embezzlement or fraud.

“R-Right. I really should look into this more. I’ll report it to the king! Ah... Emma?!” The prince stood up to rush back to the castle, but Emma grabbed him by the sleeve.

“Your Highness, I understand how very busy you must be, but you need to make sure you get enough rest, okay?” Emma worried about him working himself to the bone like some poor corporate slave, so she gripped his sleeve without even thinking. He was still so young. It was wisdom from his elders, really.

“Oh, Emma... You truly are just...so, so kind...!”

Emma gave another push with a “Promise, okay?” as she tilted her head ever so slightly, gazing up at him as she held his sleeve. Even though he’d finally seemed to have calmed somewhat, it was needless to say that the prince’s face went beet red again.

George groaned after the prince left. “Okay, that just wasn’t right! Where the hell did you learn to plead like that, Emma?!”

Meanwhile, Joshua went pale when he saw the prince turning red at Emma’s request. He wished it could’ve been him so badly...but also he couldn’t stand seeing it, period.

“What’ve you done this time, sis?” William, who was now sitting next to George, gave his sister a cold look. Emma, however, was ignoring her brothers’ scolding, as she was deep in thought. Something had been bothering her for a while.

“Hmm...”

“Er, Lady Emma? If I may ask, can you please not let the prince rest his head in your lap again? Ever?” Joshua, who was now sitting next to Emma, begged with a pained expression.

“Huh? Sorry, what was that, Joshua? I was thinking.”

“Please stop letting the prince rest his head in your lap, Lady Emma.”

“Huh?” Joshua hardly ever told Emma that something she was doing was unacceptable, so she decided to put her thoughts aside to listen. Come to think of it, letting the prince rest on her lap actually could have been considered disrespectful to the royal family.

“Got it. I’ll be sure not to, Joshua.” Emma nodded, realizing what a predicament she’d managed to escape.

“Honestly, it’d help a lot if you just...didn’t do it with any other guy.” Joshua figured that Emma didn’t actually “get it,” like she said, so he drove the point home again.

“Oh... Right, yeah, I tend to forget status and everything, so I guess I wind up being disrespectful to everyone, huh?”

“Huh? Uh... Yeah! Right! That’s totally it! There are so many high-ranking nobles and the royal family here in the capital and at school! So you shouldn’t give anyone the right to your lap!”

“Joshua...” George and William both gave their old friend a look of pity.

“Anyway, what were you thinking about, Lady Emma?” Satisfied with her answer and completely ignoring the brothers’ pitying gaze, he asked away.

“I was just thinking about that illness. There’s something bugging me about it.” It seemed both familiar and strange, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. The more she thought about it, the more she relaxed her body until finally, her head was in Joshua’s lap.

“Ack! Emma!”

“Sis!”

George and William freaked out.

“What? It’s fine if I rest my head in someone else’s lap, right?” After all, she’d been busy all day playing with the amblypygids and talking to the prince. She wasn’t nearly as tired as the prince was, but she still whined about being a bit tired regardless.

“The angel... The angel... The angel... Her head is...in my lap...!” Joshua was forced into prayer mode again.

“It’s not fine and you know it!”

“Yeah, what he said!”

“Aw, what?” Emma whined. She reluctantly started to raise her head after her brothers got upset with her, but Joshua stopped her.

“I-It’s completely fine, Lady Emma! In fact, ah, as you are well aware, I was a commoner until not long ago. Therefore, it’s not disrespectful whatsoever! In fact, you can let me rest my head in your lap too! You can do it either way as long as it’s just me!” The moment that little weight left his lap, it awakened something in Joshua. Despite the brothers’ glares, he used the quick wits he’d gained from his many years as a merchant to get Emma back in his lap once more.

“Joshua, you are seriously something else.”

“That is so unfair to everyone else, Joshua.”

George and William were taken aback, frankly feeling sorry for the poor prince now.

“Ahem. So, what is it that’s been bugging you about that disease, Lady Emma?” Joshua still had his hand on her shoulder from the earlier confusion and he turned the conversation back to the original topic.

“I can kind of understand how people might have gotten sick during a botanical crisis, when the crop yields were low. And I can kinda understand the weakened populace in the slums too. But why would it affect the sailors?” While Emma had never seen them with Pallas being so far from the sea, her idea of sailors was a bunch of brawny, healthy guys based on Joshua’s stories and her memories from her past life. They didn’t seem the type to get sick easily... Suddenly, she got up with a gasp and looked at George.

“George, do you remember what the prince said they did to turn the bugs into medicine?!”

“Uh...he said they ground ’em up into a powder and mixed them with some citrus juice, right?”

“That’s it!”

“What’s it?”

“The disease! It’s gotta be scurvy!”

“Uh. What.”

Emma was so excited when she said the name, but George had no idea what she was talking about.

“C’mon, you read Nyan Piece, didn’t you?!” The poor guy never learned anything from the manga he read, apparently. She wished he’d actually scrape something together in that empty head of his.

“Dude, do you know how many chapters that series has?” George retorted. There was no way he’d be able to remember it all.

“I think you’re forgetting that you’re the only one who can remember that far back, sis. No need to pick on poor George.” William was there to back up his brother, as if he somehow heard what Emma was thinking.

“Lady Emma, I really don’t follow. What are you all talking about?” Joshua, who was mourning the loss of the weight on his lap, asked the siblings to explain what in the world they were discussing.

However, Emma didn’t explain much else. She grinned widely and asked, “Joshua, I’ve got a favor to ask of you. Could you gather as many of the people you know who are sick like that and have them come here? I have a treatment I want to try out.”

It was obvious what Joshua’s response was.

Chapter 52: The Saint Descends

A saint had appeared to them, though she was still so very young. Jacob, the sailor, softly kissed the girl’s shadow. And he wasn’t the only one. All of her patients who had been suffering so terribly from that awful disease, gave the girl’s shadow kisses of gratitude as it extended out in the setting sun.

No matter how much they’d begged, they had never been able to get the medicine they’d needed. The sailors all worked for a small company at a large port, and after their long voyage was over, the illness took them one by one. They had no appetite. They could hardly move. They started to get bruises on their legs without even realizing it. They’d just kept getting weaker and weaker. With no education to speak of and only their strong bodies to count on for money, their savings quickly dwindled to nothing.

And then it spread. They’d all distanced themselves from the people they’d been talking and laughing with just days earlier.

The illness couldn’t be cured. The smiles had slowly faded from their beloved family members, and each day was filled with despair. With their breadwinners now out of commission, their families’ already meager living had dwindled to nearly nothing. They no longer had enough to eat. All they could do was wait for death to take them. They’d all given up on living. There was no hope. They were simply to writhe and suffer and wait for death...until she’d arrived.

One day, a freckled boy had appeared and ordered several men to gather up everyone, including their destitute families, into an opulent carriage. It brought them to the Aristocratic District, a place they’d never even stepped foot into. They’d passed through a large gate and had each been led to a clean bed in the manor. There, their bodies had been cleaned, their open wounds treated, their stomachs filled, and they were truly healed, both in body and mind.

They’d heard the rumor that a saint had been consecrated in the capital. The stories originated with the merchants, especially the tailors. The people of the port town had all laughed it off as the kind of foolish rumor that always went around. Most tall tales tended to die out after three days or so, but this one never did. It spread to the public district and the aristocratic district. Even the people of the slums—who were the most likely to laugh off such a silly rumor—were talking up this saint.

It was a stupid rumor. If there really was a saint, then why hadn’t she come to save them? Obviously, they’d known such thinking was illogical. They were just lashing out. A saint didn’t have all the time in the world. There was no way that a saint could take time out of her busy schedule to come look after poor, sickly, uneducated men like them...but then she did.

“I heard you’re able to eat again, Jacob! Well, make sure you eat your dessert too! I brought oranges today!”

“Oranges today!”

The saint smiled and held out the fruit. That dazzling grin was enough to soothe the pains of the body, the heart, and even the illness itself.

There were little kids running about, busily helping the saint. Apparently, they were all children from the slums.

The white robe the saint wore as she worked really did make her look like a trained nurse. Every meal, morning, noon, and evening, came with dessert. They even had afternoon snacks. The kids from the slums never once tried to take them either. These children didn’t seem at all like the kinds who would fight or lie or (in the worst case) kill just for a single loaf of bread. The way they respected her every word and followed her commands made them look more like little cherubs instead.

Just what is all of this?

In just a few short days, Jacob had steadily started to recover from that horrible illness. All the saint had given him was a clean bed and food to eat—none of the medicine he’d asked for and no doctor either. Yet somehow, the incurable illness...was fading.

“Your wounds are starting to heal up too, Jacob! That’s a sign you’re getting better, I bet!” The saint smiled as she spoke to him.

Jacob had always hated the nobles. They’d always looked down on people like him as if they were filth. And it wasn’t just Jacob; all sailors hated the nobles. When he’d been brought to the aristocratic district, he had steeled himself for death. He was certain he had been brought there for a bunch of crazy nobles to toy with.

“I’ll be back later, Jacob. And make sure you eat every last bit of those oranges! Promise me, okay?”

There wasn’t a soul there who could say they hated all nobles anymore. That beautiful, young saint was the daughter of a count, after all. She never looked down on them. Rather, she was gentle and treated the sailors with tender, loving care. She didn’t show her disgust when changing their bandages either. She looked them in the eye when speaking with them. She held their hands. She never even balked at giving goodbye hugs. The saint helped them remember that they were people with dignity—a thing they’d lost once they became ill. Her smile cured their sickness. She never used medicine or doctors. It was her smile that cured them. Her smile helped bring life back to their listless and weak bodies.

The rumors were true. There really was a saint in the kingdom.

Jacob took the oranges that the saint gave him and put each piece in his mouth, cherishing each bite. The fresh fruit was something he’d been unable to have when he’d gone on his voyage.

I’m going to recover. Jacob swore in his heart, as he savored each bite, that her smile would help him get better.

◆ ◆ ◆

“Hey sis? We got a message from the school saying they’re gonna start classes back up soon,” William called to his sister, who had just finished passing out the oranges. “Ugh, could you maybe tone down the creepy grin, sis?” She’d just turned around with the biggest smile on her face, and it left William utterly exasperated.

“But William...it’s a bevy of beefcakes in there.”

It had been a few days since they’d opened up the annex (which was too large for the Stewarts to have ever used under normal circumstances) as a treatment center for scurvy patients. In a stroke of luck, the incident had given them time away from school, which meant Emma got a very happy surprise when she volunteered to start treating the ill. Most of the sailors—who had been cruelly forced into going on long sea voyages where it was almost a guarantee they’d get scurvy—were much older men. The younger sailors were able to get better quality jobs just based on their youth alone. There were jobs where sailors wouldn’t have to board ships that would get them ill, but the ones who were on those awful voyages were mostly poor men in their fifties and sixties who could still do manual labor.

Because of all the work the Stewart family and Harold had done, the hunger crisis in the slums had largely improved, and there were no more people with scurvy there. If the high-ranking nobles had paid more attention to the nutritional value of the food they were giving out, nobody would have come down with scurvy in the first place. With a lack of patients from the slums, all the people who were brought to the Stewart manor were men in their fifties and sixties who had been in tip-top shape before they’d gotten sick.

Their tanned skin...their deep wrinkles showing their age...the rugged look of a sailor...their dependable nice guy demeanor... They were all exactly, one hundred percent Emma’s type.

“I’m finally getting my isekai harem, huh?” Emma giggled. She’d been giddily going over to attend to the handsome old men even when there wasn’t anything in particular for her to do, and William was feeling particularly salty about it.

“You always go on about how I’m not supposed to touch or talk to or even look at younger girls, but here you are getting to do all that and more with these guys! It’s not fair! You’re such a jerk! Why can’t that be me?!” What was worst for him was that with her being a fogey’s fancy and all, it meant the feelings were mutual. The world was cruel, and so was his sister. Yet all he could do was slump his shoulders, as he didn’t know anyone who would listen to his woes.

The children from the slums came back to her once they’d finished cleaning up after the meals. “Lady Emma! We’re all done with work!”

“Nice work, everyone! I’d better get your payment for the day, then. We’ve got a meal ready for you too, so be sure you eat that before you go home.”

“Okay!”

Now that the slums had become part of the Stewarts’ land, other nobles were far more willing to hire the children. There were no children in the slums going hungry any longer. What was more, with the Rothschild Company giving their full cooperation, they were making great progress on repairing the formerly dilapidated buildings of the slums as well.

“Why do we only get boys, anyway...?” William grumbled. All of the children coming to work at the Stewart household were boys, which meant William still didn’t get to see any of the younger girls he preferred.

“Lord William, the girls all prefer helping with Hannah’s tailoring or dyeing Harold’s threads,” one boy explained. “They said something about how it was good for their future I guess? I dunno, I’d rather get a meal like we do here!”

Apparently, girls were future-oriented and boys were shortsighted regardless of what world they were in.

The Stewart family, the tailor, and the Rothschild Company regularly made jobs available that even children could do, and the children could choose which ones they wished to take, with Harold working as their manager. There were even plans to use one of the restored buildings to help teach reading, writing, arithmetic, sewing, dyeing, ink-making, etiquette, and more to help them get even better jobs in the future.

“Hugh’s place is the most popular place to work, but it’s like, really tough to get in...”

“Right? We’ve gotta work hard to get there!”

Giving them the freedom to choose to work gave them a sense of responsibility, which in turn made them study so they could do more of the jobs they wanted. The little glimmer of hope that the Stewart family gave the people of the slums was already proving to be far more effective than they’d expected.

Emma smiled at the boys. “You can all do whatever you want to. Everyone has things they’re good at, so you should try a whole bunch of stuff and find what your strengths are! Then you can work at that and get better at it than anyone!”

“Okay, Lady Emma!”

And so, the children of the slums studied hard and began to grow into budding professionals in a wide variety of fields. Naturally, all of them had complete loyalty to the Stewart family.

Chapter 53: The Fifth Tanaka Family Meeting

“Now then. Two weeks. I have only been away for two weeks. So why is everyone calling for my sweet baby Emma to be consecrated?” Melsa asked her family, sitting in her chair in the library of the west, looking like an empress. The moment she’d stepped upon the Simmons region’s famed port after her journey to the Eastern Empire, all the men carrying her baggage, the cleaners, the sailors passing by, and the merchants had all offered Melsa their prayers.

“That’s Lady Melsa! The saint’s mother!”

“Lady Emma’s mother? Then that would make her the holy mother!”

“We wish all the blessings of the world upon Saint Emma, the holy mother Melsa, and the whole Stewart family!”

What.

It wasn’t just at the Simmons region’s port. It happened when she went to the castle to give her report on her way home too.

“It’s Lady Melsa! What good fortune that you returned home safely. I’m sure the saint will be most glad.”

“What a noble and imposing demeanor, befitting of one who birthed the Consecrated One.”

What.

“So. Do you want to explain yourselves?”

The family was all forced to sit seiza-style before Melsa.

Leonard tilted his head, having no idea what Melsa was so upset about. “Well, Melsa, we’ve always known Emma is an angel! I think everyone’s just seeing the light now.”

“I think you should stop talking for a bit, dear.”

“Right.”

“William? I want an explanation. Why are the slums part of the Stewart family land now? Why do we have so many new and strange bugs? Why has our annex become a clinic? Why is Emma being called a saint? It’s only been two weeks. You all swore to me before we left Pallas that you wouldn’t stand out when you came to the capital, remember?”

“M-Mother... It was...I mean...it just kinda all...happened? Y’know...?” William answered, trembling before his mother’s terrifying demeanor.

I can’t believe she already knows everything... I can’t just make excuses to get out of this huh...?

Wait a sec. It’s only been two weeks?! And this much has happened?! I keep thinking back and I don’t think we did anything wrong...

“Emma. Why is everyone asking for you to be consecrated now?” Melsa’s ice-cold glare pierced right through Emma.

“Eek! I-I’m sorry! I... I really don’t know either!” She couldn’t let her mom know that the whole reason was because she’d been staring at Lady Rose’s massive mounds during the royal family’s party. Or because she was grinning ear to ear at all the buff silver fox sailors she got to treat. That no matter how hard she tried to hide it, the rumors were now spreading throughout the castle and the capital alike. That now they were spreading through high society, the slums, the tailors’ neighborhood, and the Simmons region’s harbor at a terrifying speed, and they were just spreading farther and farther by the day.

That was why they wanted Emma to be consummated. And now, the worst-case scenario, it was happening at school too. If only she hadn’t tried to cover for Brian and Robert, saying they should be freed despite their schoolyard bullying. Now that she’d covered for a couple of boys for bullying the way a skirt-flipper might, they probably thought she was one of those types too. She knew if her mother thought of her as tainted...she would never be forgiven.

“What’s more, I see we’ve spent a lot of money. George?”

“Eep! It just...we used a lot of ink for the ball and ran out, so... And then we had to use it on the streets and buildings in the slums... We were revitalizing stuff, y’know? A-And since the people in the slums are part of our domain now, we had to do a census and simple physical exams...and we needed to recruit teachers because the children definitely needed to get an education too...and we started trying to find them jobs so they could be self-sufficient... Um, what else was there...? Oh, we had to make a place to raise the amblypygids, and start up the treatment center for scurvy victims, and...” George was so scared of getting yelled at that the end of his explanation turned into weak-spirited muttering.

All it took was a little coaxing from Emma, and Joshua would take care of everything in an instant, so everything had happened so fast. What with Emma giving the prince her lap to rest on, he’d moved even faster than usual getting the treatment center set up. That wasn’t really the kind of thing he needed to compete with, but...

Melsa sighed and all four family members who’d been left to watch the house trembled.

“How did all of this happen in a mere two weeks?”

“Uh... Who knows...?” the family responded in unison. When they thought back on it, they really had no idea. They’d just been living their lives as usual.

“B-But Mother, I really didn’t cause any of this! All of it happened to us!” Emma protested with all her might. The king pushing the reward thing, the tailor having trouble, the bugs falling on her, the scurvy patients needing help... Emma hadn’t caused any of that.

“Yet you still got involved with it all, didn’t you?”

“I...! Y-Yeah. Okay. I did...” Ultimately, Emma still had to apologize.

“I don’t want you turning around if someone calls you a saint or consecrated one or whatever again, Emma. The church is going to pitch a fit one of these days.” The Tanakas weren’t very religious, so they really didn’t want to deal with the church. Especially because if they mistakenly accepted her as a saint, it meant she wouldn’t be able to get married. Saints were supposed to be pure maidens, and Melsa wasn’t about to let anyone take away her dream of having a grandchild.

“M-Mother, you know I’m not stupid enough to turn around when someone says something like that...” Emma huffed indignantly. The whole “consummation” or “tainted” business was plain bullying, and she wasn’t about to freely admit that she was a big old pervert herself.

“M-Melsa? Perhaps we could move on to the actual topic you wanted to discuss for this meeting?” Leonard raised his right hand to suggest getting to the point, as it would be a waste to spend the whole time getting yelled at. After all, it was a meeting they’d had the servants step away from.

“Hmm. I suppose you’re right.” Melsa’s expression softened as though a switch had been flipped, though the change was so subtle that only her family could tell.

“So...were you able to get what we asked for, mother?” Emma asked excitedly.

“I did. I’ve gotten us rice, miso, soy sauce, and bonito flakes.”

“Woo-hoo!” All four family members who had been left to watch the house let out a roar of excitement. They’d get to feast on rice and miso soup that very night. The three siblings and Leonard were making merry about the veritable banquet in their near future.

“However, it will be quite difficult to continue getting rice from them going forward,” Melsa continued, putting a stop to all the merriment as she explained the problems the Eastern Empire was facing.

“A botanical crisis?” George groaned after having heard the whole story. “That’s supposed to be pretty rare on the southern continent...”

“Why, someone’s been studying awfully hard, hasn’t he?” Melsa smiled at her eldest’s unexpected input.

“O-Of course I have, mother!” He wasn’t about to say that it had just happened to come up recently while he was talking to the prince. Emma was giving him a cold look, though.

“And for it to be an owata, of all things... I always thought owatas were only on the northern continent.” In all the things William had read, there had never been any record of owatas anywhere but the southern continent.

“I know. But it was an owata. I saw it with my own eyes, so I’m certain.” Melsa had gotten the top score in her Advanced Monster Studies course when she was in school, so there was no way she would have mistaken it.

“When is it going to sow its seeds?” Leonard’s face darkened. He was the owner of a border region who was in charge of monster hunting, so he knew just how grave the situation in the Eastern Empire was. The roots, stalks, flowers, and seeds of owatas were all too hardy to simply cut down.

“The flowers have already bloomed, so it will likely begin in the summer. And based on what land is left in the Eastern Empire, there won’t be an Eastern Empire after a year.” Owatas would launch their seeds once every six months to increase their territory, similar to the way slimes would divide when one didn’t know how to defeat them.

“But that’s crazy... Are they all going to evacuate? Or...move or something?” George asked, feeling the full brunt of the danger from his parents’ expressions.

“Bro...”

“George...”

“What?”

The family all gave George a look.

“Did you forget how hard it is to move in this world?”

“Oh... Right.”

In this world, the only places someone could move to were either within a barrier where there were no monsters or on an island surrounded by the ocean. There weren’t any countries with the land or the food supplies to easily accept a bunch of immigrants, and although it seemed harsh, mass immigration was banned from country to country in order to protect existing populations and avoid mutual destruction.

“It’s not completely impossible, if you do it in exchange for large financial contributions or valuable skills or magic stones, but to migrate a whole country? There’s no way. Not to mention the language barrier for those in the Eastern Empire, and it’s unlikely that any country would welcome a place that had been isolated for so many years with open arms.”

“That goes for our kingdom as well. We can help out if it’s just a temporary food shortage, but with a botanical crisis...especially with owatas...” Melsa and Leonard both worried that this was the end of the line for the Eastern Empire. There wasn’t a country out there that didn’t have its hands full with its own monster problems. They didn’t have the time to help out another country with its crises. And if, in the worst-case scenario, an owata’s seed happened to wind up in the kingdom from the Eastern Empire, the kingdom would be next on the chopping block. They couldn’t casually lend a helping hand without risking getting burned themselves. The future for the Eastern Empire looked hopeless.

There was brief silence...that was broken when Emma spoke up. “But we have to save them!”

The situation was grim. They were pressed for time and had no method by which they could save the Eastern Empire. It was likely that the people of the Eastern Empire themselves had long given up by that point.

But even then. Even knowing all that, Emma still stood up and demanded they find a way to solve this crisis.

“If we don’t, we’ll never be able to eat rice again!”

Everything they did, they did for rice.

Afterword

Hello everyone. How are you all? It’s me, Choco. Thank you for purchasing The Tanaka Family Reincarnates Volume 3, a volume about saint lovers, by saint lovers, for saint lovers. I’m humbled and excited to have finally gotten here! We added one more line per page, so the book is jam-packed fuller than ever!

This volume continues the Royal Academy arc from volume two. The Tanakas have started to get a little more used to their life in the capital. As they originally planned, they managed to keep from standing out, they didn’t cause any problems, and they’re just living a nice and modest life... As if! But hey, what can you do? It’s fine if they cause problems. They’re the Tanakas, after all!

Now, I know this is a sudden topic change, but I really need to warn all my readers as the author of this story: There are some bugs that show up in this story, and I would advise you all not to look up pictures of those bugs on a whim if you’re not someone who can deal with them. Don’t say I didn’t warn you if you look them up. My people (?) accept no responsibility for what happens if you do.

And if you still wind up letting curiosity get the better of you after all that and look up pictures of those bugs that you really shouldn’t have, you can make yourself feel all better by looking at the illustrations in volume three. The kitties are so cute, it hurts.

From the bottom of my heart, I want to thank kaworu, who did the character designs and illustrations. The girls are all so cute, the boys are all so handsome, the old men are so dreamy, and all the characters I dreamed up in my head look so much more beautiful and stylish than I’d even imagined. Both the characters and I are happy as can be with this. I also want to thank those in charge who told me whenever there was a chance to add more cats. I bet the cats, who got to have more time in the books, are awfully happy too.

But most importantly, I want to give my deepest thanks to all of the readers of The Tanaka Family Reincarnates. They’re a family of airheads written by an airheaded author. We’re all working as hard as we can, so please watch over us warmly for a long, long time. I’d be so happy if you’d keep reading along. Thank you as always!

Choco