'Oh, um, my lord. Are you sure?

Hmm?　What?

You can't give a room to a......slave...?

I don't mind. I mean, it would be a waste if we didn't use it, since we have a surplus.


　Seal is puzzled by this statement.

　The room is as large as or larger than the house where Seal and his family of eight once lived.

　The bed and shelves are pre-installed, and blankets and mattresses have been prepared, so it looks like we can start our lives right now.

　The wooden floor has been carefully polished, and it reflects the sunlight that streams in through the windows, making it shine.

　The room I had been staying at until just yesterday at the Blue Bird House was more than adequate, but it was on a different level.

　Even though he was told that he could use this room freely from today, as a seal, he could only be confused.



　He couldn't help but look up at his master (Sola) with his eyes for help.

　Then, Sola gave a light shrug of her shoulders.


'Well, yeah, I know what you mean. To be honest, I was surprised when I saw it for the first time, too.

'So, isn't it...?　Isn't this a house for high status - that's what the nobility live in...?

The place is in a very high-class residential area. I didn't want to owe the union too much, so I was going to say no at first, but...

But?

I can't say no to that bath.


　I was a little surprised when he assured me with a straight face.

　I know what a bath means. There are a number of public baths in the city of Ishqa.

　Most of them were steam baths, but there were also baths with tubs as big as fountains filled to the brim with water.

　The baths in this house were of the latter type.


When I said I'd think about having a hinoki bath, I meant it as a joke," he said. Or should we praise Fyodor-dono's competence and insight in this case? Either way, I have nothing but full appreciation for this matter.

You're right, I love the smell of wood in the tub.

Right?


　I was quite surprised when she giggled and pulled me closer to her face.

　My face blushed and my triangular ears bobbed above my head, but Sora was completely oblivious to it and spoke up excitedly.


'As expected, there were no hinoki baths in public bathrooms either!　I thought it would be difficult to fill and heat up a bathtub of that size, but the water can be added to the bathtub using the water supply from the Kale River, and thanks to the salamander summoned by Lunamaria, we didn't need to use firewood to boil the water. It's just perfect!

Well yes.


　At any rate, all I knew was that the Lord was more excited than ever.

　It's a very good idea to have a bath for the first time.

　As far as Seal knew, the only houses that had a bathtub in their homes were the mansions of the nobility. Seal nodded his head inwardly, wondering if the person in front of him was actually a good sergeant.

　It's not as if he noticed Seal's confusion, but Sora coughed to disguise his current excited appearance.


'Well, well, aside from the bath thing,'

Yes, sir.

'Take care of the sparrows for me. This is what I told Lunamaria, but when the sparrow goes out, make sure one of the two of you stays by her side.

I'm sorry, sir.


　Thinking of the face of the girl of the demon race who had come to live with him the other day, Seal nodded his head.

　There was no disgust or caution towards the demon men there.

　In the battle three hundred years ago, the beastmen fought against the demons as well as the humans. But to Seal, it was like a fairy tale. There was no way to hold a grudge, and even if there was, he had no intention of hitting the sparrows.

　In the first place, if you talk about the history of the past tribal conflicts, humans and beastmen have also crossed paths many times.

　There are some humans who hate the beastmen, calling them a mixture of man and beast. Some countries and regions discriminate and oppress the beastmen and other sub-humans.

　If one were asked to be wary of the demons or the humans, most beastmen would choose the latter.



　-- Come to think of it, I remember I was also wary of my master in the beginning.

　Suddenly, Seal remembered the old days.

　Even though it was a long time ago, it hadn't even been three months since Sora had bought him.

　Still, the memories that popped up in his head felt a long way off to Seal.


◆ ◆ ◆


　Seal was born in the western frontier of the Ad Astera Empire, in a frontier village near the border of the Canary Kingdom.

　It is a frontier village on the western frontier of the Ad Astera Empire, near the border of the Canary Kingdom.

　Seal is fifteen years old, the eldest of seven siblings. She is the eldest of seven children, and lives an unassuming but peaceful life with her parents.

　The family's life changed dramatically when her father, a hunter, was attacked by a magical beast in the mountains.

　The father has lost one of his legs and is no longer able to work, and the family is quickly impoverished. Seal's younger daughter is ten years old and his younger son is eight years old. The youngest is eight years old. The youngest brother is still an infant. It didn't take long for Seal to think about selling himself.


　Since the Empire grants citizenship to sub-humans, they are not subject to any overt discrimination.

　Still, there are those who hate and dislike the beastmen.

　This is true even if they have citizenship. If they become slaves, they have no idea how they will be treated.

　Even so, the seal visited the slavers' shop. He sold all his rights and gave all the money he earned there to his family and had them put a collar on him.



　After being bought by the slavers, Seal was told many stories by other slaves.

　There was a rabbit beastman who was stripped naked by a tattling nobleman and carried around the city like a pet.

　A lion beastman was whipped all over his body and forced to get down on his knees as a form of discipline.

　There were any number of other stories that he could hear that made him want to cover his ears. Seal couldn't help but be pessimistic about the future.



　So when he was first introduced to Sora, he was so nervous that he couldn't even speak properly.

　After that, he crossed from the Empire to the Canary Kingdom and came to the city of Ishka, but even at this point, his fears still prevailed.

　When I arrived in Ishka, I couldn't sleep well and spent days and days stroking my ears, tail and body. When I was told that I get a kick out of seeing an emaciated girl, I used to think that I had come to the wrong person.

　........Now I can see that it was a joke, but it was truly a blinding despair for Seal at that time. He still secretly holds on to his roots that he wants the joke to go at the right time and place.



　The turning point, after all, would be Lunamaria's joining the slaves.

　Since then, Sola's attitude towards the seal has clearly changed. Not only did she have an attitude, but she even offered to free him from slavery.

　It would be a lie to say that his heart was not moved by the proposal.

　But it was obvious that even if he was freed from slavery here and returned to his home, he would still have to peddle again in the not too distant future.

　The large sum of money that Seal earned from peddling would not last more than two years if you take into account the living expenses and taxes of the remaining eight people. If Seal returned, the burden on him would naturally increase, and his savings would dwindle even faster.

　That's how it is for a family with no workers.

　That's why Seal needed to earn a lot of money. At the very least, he needed to earn enough money to keep his family alive until his eldest son, who is now eight years old, comes of age (13).



　Of course, he couldn't earn that much money by working honestly for a year or two.

　Even if Seal sold himself twice, it still wouldn't be enough.

　To earn this amount of money, he would have to find an honest way to do it.

　For example.

　He frequently gives the girl at the inn where he's staying silver coins (!) It's a good idea to be liked by a rich and generous master who gives you tips.




　So Seal changed his attitude from passive to passive.

　He even volunteered to join in the nightlife.

　The seal is a complete slave, having sold all his rights. He was in a position where he could not even be allowed to own private property if his master wanted him to. Normally, he should have tried to serve his master sooner so as not to displease him.

　When he later came to this realization, Seal rang the heavens in his own stupidity. He had been warned many times by his fellow slaves, but he pretended not to notice the good thing that Sola hadn't messed with him.

　In light of those regrets, Seal began to work hard for Sora, and when she saw such devotion from Seal, she naturally developed a fondness for him - and when she found out, she settled into her current relationship.

　Lunamaria taught her how to fight, and as an adventurer, she has successfully completed many requests. After Sola founded the clan 'Blood Smoke Sword', he could also receive a salary for working there.

　Seal sent that salary to his hometown through the 'Union'. The amount of money is enough to eat for half a month, if not a month. If he continued to send the money, his younger siblings wouldn't have to starve and his younger sister wouldn't have to sell herself.


　It is impossible for Shiel to be dissatisfied with his current situation. It was nothing to do with taking care of the demon tribe, if that was what Sora had asked of him, who had given him that situation.