Dating Maha is fun.
　I was thinking about that while having dinner at a fancy restaurant.

Naturally, dates with Deere and Tart are fun, but a date with Maha is a little different from theirs.
　In Dia's case, she surrenders herself to my escort, while also communicating more and more of her needs.
　In Tart's case, he leaves it up to me, just like Dia. However, he's looking at my face and gives me detailed attention and doesn't tell me what he wants. He also pretends to have fun for me, even if it's not fun.
　And when I go on a date with Maha, her escort changes from time to time, and she actively uses her head and acts to entertain me.
　It's exciting and fun, and it opens up my world to new discoveries.

Of course, I'm not going to say that dating the two of them is boring. Dia's selfishness is cute, and the fact that she's straightforward in her demands makes it easier to understand.
　In Tart's case, he's also hard to do because he's forced to pretend to have fun, but it's hard to do, and it's easy to see that he's adored, and his concern is ticklish.
　In other words, it's a three-way street of fun.

'Hmmm... It was a good date today. ...That's why I'm so sad to have to go.
I had a good time, too. I'm going to party again.
Yes, I am. That's the last of the several parties I couldn't turn down. No more King's Landing. There's a lot of busybodies.

The nobles, fascinated by Orna, are eager to invite her deputy to their own parties when she arrives in the capital.
　It's because they are the first to secure the goods, it's because of their interest in Orna... Above all, they are proud to have invited Orna's deputy representative, who is the talk of the town within the nobility, to their party.

''I've been thinking about it for a while now, I rarely go back to Irg anymore. ........I'd like to make Maha my representative, not Orna's deputy representative.

My name is Ilg Balor.
　Another name for me, and a sergeant in the Balor Trading Company.
　But I don't get to use that face much.
　Of course, I use that name often. I still do a lot of negotiations using that name without having to disguise myself as Ilg.

''I don't want to.''

Maha answered immediately.

'It would still be like being a real representative. Being a representative would make my job easier than it is now.
'I know. I know, but it's only an advantage when it comes to management. It's just that, no matter who you're negotiating with, the title of representative and the title of representative agent often make a huge difference.

Maher's authority is exactly the same as mine as a representative.
　However, the other party does not take it that way. The head of Orna is only Irg Balor, and the girl in front of me would think of her as a substitute.

''Then why?　Are you shy?
No. 'No. I want to be under your brother Lug. I want to serve you and I don't want to give up my connection to you in any way. This is selfishness on my part. I just want to be your Maha.
It's not like a merchant. A merchant would have dreamed of owning his own shop.
''I have that dream too. I dream of growing up as a merchant, saving up money, opening my own store, and one day I'll get my father's business back that was taken from me.
Once we get Orna, it's a one-shot deal.

Maha is an orphan I picked up, originally the daughter of a merchant association in a city a short distance from Murteau.
　It was there that Maha's character, calculation and merchant sense were honed.
　Her parents were conspired to kill her after her parents were conspired to be killed by the number two man in the Chamber of Commerce, who took over the Chamber of Commerce by adopting Maha as his natural-born son.
　Realizing this at the last minute, Maha had fled for her life to Murteau.

I'm not sure how many times I've been in the same situation.

Her dream is to regain her father's trade association, rescue her friends from her street children's days, and work with them.

'I don't want you to lick it. I'm going to make it happen without getting Orna. In fact, I've almost made it happen. I know you've been sending in your reports. All those new girls are doing great.
That's right.

I'm working out the details of my former friends in the disparate orphanages and going to meet with them individually to scout them out.
　It's half compassion, but half pragmatism.
　Another treasure is the experience of having a successful business with just kids, albeit with a leader named Maha, who survived and ruggedized in a harsh environment from an early age.
　In fact, they are active and have worked more than they have invested in.
　Orna has gained a hard-to-get talent.

─ Besides, we've managed to cut off a third of my ex-father's business. I've given you the takeover plan, haven't I?
They're looking at you, too.

Once Maha's father's business association began to sell off its assets after a change of representatives, as its performance deteriorated.
　The shop that was sold off was acquired by Maha and he opened a branch in Orna, which he used as a starting point to do quite well.
　I once told Maha, 'I don't tell you not to mix your personal feelings. But now that you've mixed it up, you've got to deliver.'
　She is doing just that.

'I will fulfill my dreams under you. I will reclaim my father's Chamber of Commerce and save my former comrades. And I will stand by you all the way, Brother Lug. I won't ask you to choose. I will do both. I'm better than that. That's why I'll be under your wing.

I smile.
　Maha is really strong.
　And her fondness for me is straightforward and heartbreaking.

"Thanks. "Thank you, Maha.
You're welcome. In the beginning, all I had was a favor. If I had stayed there, I would have been killed without being able to do anything, or sold to a perverted nobleman. Brother Lugue saved my life and helped me become a better merchant. So I knew I had to return the favor.
Not now?
It's not different. It's not different, I still think so. But it's more than that, it's just because I like my brother Roug.

A look of contentment and happiness on her face.
　I felt my heart skip a beat.
　I think again that Maha is no longer a child, she is now a beautiful woman.

I like Maha, too.
'I know. With the way things are going today, we could have gone all the way to the end. I'd better get going. Brother Roug, give me a reward and a kiss goodbye.

Maha stands up.

She closes her eyes and waits for me.
　The length of her eyelashes, her beautiful skin, and the smell of her body odor mixed with a subdued perfume are all too distracting.
　As it is, I dodge a kiss on the mouth.
　When I let go of her lips, Maha blushes and presses her lips together.

''I'm glad. Whenever you beg for a kiss, brother Roug, it's usually on your cheek or your forehead.
I had a feeling you'd be better off today.
Phew, I'll keep up the good work!

Maha ran out with a bouncy voice and a smile.

That girl is really doing well.
　Well, I'll order some herbal tea to sober me up before I go.
　As I'm enjoying the tea I ordered, someone sits down in front of me, making a deliberate noise.
　There was my collaborator.

''You're really quite possessive, aren't you? After the little genius wizard-chan, the big-breasted spear-handling maid-chan, and the false princess, the beautiful do-it-yourself merchant-chan. They're all so pretty, beautiful and talented, and they're all in love with you.
Meena. I didn't know you were in town.

Meena of the Snake Demon tribe. She is the one who broke the second prince that I killed yesterday.
　How did she know she was here and how did she know I was here?
　It's getting out of control. It needs to be investigated.

'I'm pretending to be a human to enjoy the human culture. Why wouldn't you want to come to the festival? Well, I had a lot of fun!　How can humans be so tiny, weak, and ugly and yet create something so wonderful? It's really lovely.

As the Countess of Grunfeldt, the scale is different when it's just a pastime to sneak into the heart of aristocratic society.

'Did you come here to make such small talk?
No way. Hmmm, you've done it. I can't believe you broke my toy. That was my second favorite.
What are you talking about?

It's an assassination attempt.
　I wouldn't be stupid enough to leave evidence of an assassination attempt.

Well, you're keeping a low profile.
As a matter of fact, I'm not involved. I'm a nobleman loyal to the Kingdom of Arvan. I would never turn my blade on the Second Prince.
'Do you have proof?' you say, in a roundabout way.　Then there's no such thing. But I do take care of my toys. The toy was not supposed to be broken. Then it must have been broken. And you know what, you're the only person in the world who could have let it die of natural causes. So that means you killed it.
That's a terrible accusation. It's a terrible accusation.
You're f*cked up. But you're not wrong. .... I'm so angry, as expected, I want to get even. Since the toy was killed, should I break the toy too?
Can I take that as a declaration of war on me?
You're the one who started it.

Meena and I glare at each other in silence.
　Neither of us has an ounce of murderous intent.
　And that's why this is not good.
　Intent to kill means to give information to your opponent. Aims, timing, cards in hand, etc.
　The only time someone who is accustomed to killing gives away their murderous intent is when they are threatened.
　Therefore, it is not a threat but an omen to take action if a person who is used to killing does not show any intent to kill in this situation.

'Well, I'm just kidding. That toy was my favorite, but you seem to be the more interesting one. It would be silly to lose you for this. You'd think the same thing about me. If one of my pretty boyfriends is killed, I can see him suspecting me and coming to kill me, even if I don't have any proof.

Oh dear, Meena shrugs.
　But I won't let my guard down.
　There's still a good chance that they'll try something.
　With that in mind, we're going to explore it from here as well.

"I repeat, I did not kill her. And if you did, you'd be the one who messed with me first. I told you not to mess with my friend.
Oh, I knew it. It's my favorite thing right now. She's really good. She's cute, funny, clumsy, and funny. So we had to throw in a little something extra. ...Oh, but I'm afraid I've hit a sore spot. I don't like to get in the way of your friend. This makes it unreasonable to kill your lover for revenge. All right, this time it's mutual.

My suspicions are confirmed.
　After all, Neusch's disappearance is related to Meena.
　And from the way he talks, he's not safe, but he's not dead.

''...What in the world did you do with Neusch?
'We'll find out soon enough about that. I mean, can we stop talking about the trouble? I'd like to cut to the chase, for God's sake.
Isn't that the whole point of this?
Yes, I don't care. I don't care about this.

It's crazy to be a demon.
　I don't care that they killed my favorite caged lover, that they said they would kill my lover, that they disappeared and did something to Noish, all of that doesn't matter.

The next demon will be here soon. The next demon is very, very strong. You and your lovely squires can't even beat them. But don't worry. There will be reinforcements coming.
Reinforcements?　You're not going to help me, are you?　I thought you wanted to hide the fact that you were hostile to the demon race.
That's what I'm talking about. Enjoy. But I'm sure you're on to something.
Well, I don't know.

I lied.
　You can guess who's coming from this storyline.

'I've put all the information together here. Oh, no, you're not going to see that here. All the information you can tell me is in here. I'm not going to say anything else. You're too dumb to talk, and if I tell you, you'll shit your pants.

Meena leaves.
　Then I looked over the material.
　I didn't expect this to happen so soon after the date.
　The appearance of a new demon race is a threat. But this time we can do well with the information we have.