*

　October, four hundred and thirty-two years of the imperial calendar.......Crono stopped processing papers and looked at the window.
　The blue sky stretched out of the window.

''........The sky is so blue and I'm still working on my paperwork today.''

　Crono poked his cheekbones and let out a sigh of bleakness.
　The reason he was feeling down wasn't because he couldn't play.
　Of course, it's not because of the troubles at work either.
　The estate's management is doing well.
　The agrarian reform over three years has just been successful.
　I've heard from the rural village chiefs that they're going to cultivate new fields.
　I heard that until now they couldn't expand their fields due to the burden of threshing, but that was solved thanks to the 'Thousand Tooth Handler'.
　The cultivation of Count Caddo's territory is also going well, the installation of the Silva-type salt field is going well, and the "Schinner Trade Association" is also going well.
　By the way, the dividend that arrived from the "Schinner Trade Association" was 2,200 gold coins.
　
　The mercenary guild is doing well, the deputies' office is doing well, everything is going well, but there is one problem that bothers Crono.
　Alyssa.
　Lately, Alyssa has been acting strangely.
　I'm not sure if it's a good idea, but I think it's a good idea.

What's wrong with me?

　Crono poked his cheekbones and asked the question.
　No answer.
　Crono was alone, working in his office.

''I wonder what's going on~''

　Crono looked up at the heavens.



　Alyssa stirs the soup with a spoon.
　The dining room is alive with activity at lunchtime.
　As someone who knows the former Marquis' mansion, it's an unbelievable scene.
　The former Marquis of Erakis's time was quiet and the air was cryptic.
　Relations between servants were also bad.
　The relationship between the servants who had become the former Marquis of Erakis' handmaidens was particularly bad.
　Alyssa let out a sigh in a gloomy mood.
　Work was good.
　The burden has increased since she became both the head maid and the maid with Crono, but she hasn't done any half-done work.
　I think I've received a certain amount of recognition from my employer, Crono, as well as from my subordinates.
　But as a mother, I'm a little unsure of myself.
　Of course, I didn't let the financial inconvenience come to Ariston.
　I made her quit her job as a flower seller and educated her so that she can become at least as educated as possible.
　We even moved house.
　That's how much money Alyssa is making now.
　That's why I don't spend as much time with my daughter.
　I've never been blamed for that.
　Alyson is a good kid.
　Originally, Alyssa was a good girl, but since Alyssa had returned to work, she was better than ever.
　But it was another matter that was bringing Alyssa's mood down.
　Lately, Master Crono had been acting strangely.
　When Alyssa felt a look in her eyes while she was working and turned around, she saw Crono watching Alyssa from the shadows.
　That's not all.
　Crono fakes a coincidence and touches Alyssa.
　What should I do?　Alyssa asked herself.
　Alyssa's common sense is that she shouldn't be in that kind of relationship with a man who isn't her husband.
　But she also felt that such a choice was possible.
　Alyssa stopped stirring the soup and looked around.
　The cafeteria was alive with activity, and the maids and clerks who used the cafeteria were laughing happily.
　Crono, the man who created this scene, would not abandon Alyssa like the former Marquis of Erakis did.
　If something happened to Alyssa, Crono would still be able to raise Alyssin.
　I shouldn't.
　Alyssa gave a small shake of her head, "I have to get rid of my shallow thoughts.

'Is this room free?'

　Alyssa looked up and saw the landlady standing face to face with a tray.

'Yes, it's free,'
I'm going to have a seat.

　With that, the landlady took a seat.
　Bread and a small amount of soup were on a tray.

'Are you eating now?'
I'm a little hungry.

　The landlady shredded a small piece of bread and brought it to her mouth.
　Alyssa resumed her meal as well.
　The soup had cooled completely.
　When Alyssa finished her meal, the landlady opened her mouth.

'Is there something on your mind?'
No, it's not that much of a problem.
You look pretty serious for a guy like that.

　The landlady poked her cheekbones.
　Maybe the fact that she was hungry was an excuse to come to check on Alyssa's condition.

''The ... proprietress...''

　The landlady looked disgusted.

'Is something wrong?'
But you call me ma'am, too.

　Alyssa fished her memory, but she couldn't remember the scene where the landlady was called by her real name.

'I beg your pardon, Shelah,'
Just the landlady. The landlady.
Now, your landlady.

　The landlady gave a bitter smile.
　'What do you want me to do?'　Alyssa pouted in her mind.

'So, what's going on?'
...a little here.
I don't think you have to worry about that.

　Alyssa looked around.
　The maids and clerks had disappeared and the cafeteria had regained its silence.
　Apparently, everyone had finished their meals while Alyssa was pensive.



　You look at me s*xually, Alyssa was about to say, and she quickly reminded herself.
　Self-control kicked in to prevent her from undermining her benefactor, Crono, even if it was true.

'Does the landlady have no qualms about having s*xual relations with a man other than her husband?
You're trying to pick a fight.
No, I just wanted to see what the landlady thinks about it.

　'Hmmm,' the landlady snorted with a difficult look on her face.

That's right, well, I'll have to resist. I'm still in love with my dead husband.
If you love your late husband, why are you with him?

　The landlady's attitude may be too unfair to Crono and to her late husband.
　Perhaps aware of this, the landlady turned her face away as if she was in a bad mood.

''At that time I was in debt for a hundred gold coins, and I couldn't rely on my parents' house, so I was temperamental.
If I remember correctly, the debt issue was resolved when the landlady was hired, correct?
You remember a lot of things that don't matter.

　The landlady didn't sound amused.

''Well I approached Master Crono to pay off my debts.
"Seduced" is the wrong word.
There's a lot of details, you. Yes, I seduced Master Crono to pay my debts.

　The landlady crossed her arms in a manner that made me wonder if she had a complaint.

'You mean the landlady seduced your husband to have an affair with him to pay her debts?
'Have you forgotten what you said?　You just said the debt problem was solved when you were hired as a cook.
So why?

　If the debt problem was solved, then there would be no reason to be held.

'There was a little incident. I comforted a depressed Crono-sama at the time.
It seems to have been going on for a long time then?
I can't seem to get rid of him.

　The landlady blurted out and looked up with a huff.

'Keh, but I'm telling you that my husband is the best, okay?
I'm not so sure about that, sir.

　Alyssa was beginning to feel like the landlady was a bad girl.

'I knew it was a bad first time, didn't I?
Thank you.

　Alyssa left the dining room, leaving the landlady with her head in her hands.

*

　The sound of a kern, kern, hammering echoed through the garden of the Marquis' mansion.
　
　Despite such an environment, Princess Tilia still prefers to drink incense tea in the garden.
　It could be called a daily routine.
　Princess Tilia crossed her legs and was reading a thin book.
　The thin book was written by Crono.
　His style, full of metaphors, irony and violence, is popular with Crono's men.
　The simple style and storyline is probably another reason why it's accepted.
　Alyssa refrains from standing by the Princess Tilia.
　Naturally, she doesn't do anything that would call out to her.
　The maid should be an airborne presence.
　Princess Tilia reached for a plate on the table and plucked a biscuit.
　The mistress took pains to make the biscuits, which were well received by Alyssa's men.
　There are many variations, including the use of nuts and dried fruit.
　However, the sugar used in the biscuits is a high quality product.
　Even if she had been taught the recipe, she wouldn't have been able to afford it.
　Princess Tilia munches on a biscuit and sips the chilled fragrant tea.
　The biscuits made with sugar are a luxury item, and the maids use magic to cool the fragrant tea, but Alyssa tried not to think about it.
　Much better, Princess Tilia..., Alyssa tilted her head inwardly.
　It seemed like it had been two or three days since Princess Tilia had been dejected.
　No, it must have been my imagination, Alyssa denied her memory.
　Princess Tilia had been deprived of the First Crown.
　She must have been depressed for days after they met.
　She must have been depressed.
　Alyssa decided to think that her husband must have felt the same way.
　Crono's devotion must have soothed Princess Tilia's heart, too, she thought.
　The cup is empty.
　Alyssa tipped the teapot and poured the cooled incense tea into the cup.
　Princess Tilia smiles with a satisfied smile and reaches for her cup.
　Alyssa noticed the rope marks on Princess Tilia's wrists, but she didn't dare point them out.
　Alyssa looked up at the sky, though she had been pretending not to see them before, so she felt like it was too late now.
　Alyssa was a maid with Princess Tilia.
　She knew how Princess Tilia was being treated by Crono.
　And now Alyssa is a maid with Crono.
　She knows what Crono is doing in the nightlife.
　Crono is a good person.
　He is a man who has compassion for his men and his people, and who reaches out to the poor, the prostitute and even the slave for help.
　But that's not all he is.
　Alyssa doesn't know the battlefield, but the stories of Crono's heroics told by his men show that Crono is more than just a good man.
　We should assume that Crono is also ferocious.
　If the master revealed his violent nature..., Alyssa felt a tingle in her chest.
　It would be horrible.
　What would they do to her?
　How would they be violated?
　Alyssa stretched herself with too much fear.

''....Alyssa.
'　Yes, Princess Tyria.

　Alyssa gasped.
　Before she knew it, Princess Tilia turned to Alyssa and tilted her head in wonder.

'Alyssa, what are you swooning about?'
Enraptured?

　Alyssa held her cheeks at the unexpected words.
　She couldn't even touch her hands to see what kind of expression she had on her face.
　If I had to say it was a little feverish, I guess.

'Hmm, were you thinking of something fun?'
No, nothing.

　Losing interest, Princess Tyria went to the table and began to read a book.

*

Mom, welcome home!
I'm home, Alyson.

　When Alyssa opened the door to the house, Alyson jumped in.
　Wouldn't it bother the neighbors?　Alyssa thought, but without saying anything, she hugged Alyson.

'Ehehe, Mom. Dinner's ready for you.'

　Alyson pulled away from Alyssa, embarrassed.
　Alisun would be thirteen this year.
　She is a little young in some ways, but she feels ashamed to be spoiled by her parents.

''I'm always sorry,''
You have my word not to say that.

　Alyssa sat down in a chair in the living room and noticed an unfamiliar jar.
　It was a jar, but it was small enough to hold in the palm of her hand.

'Oh, that was brought to me by a dog soldier. We'll eat it later.'
?

　Alyssa opens the jar and finds several pieces of candy in it.
　I can tell that the dog soldiers are indicating White and Hiilo.
　White and Hiilo are looking out for Alyson in some way.
　Both of them would take care of Ariston even on their off-duty days.
　Would White and Hiilo's paychecks buy them expensive candy?
　Alyssa immediately thought of Crono.
　But there was no way White and Hiilo would be taking care of Alyson at Crono's behest.
　Crono would not do anything to burden his off-duty subordinates.
　Perhaps Crono knew that White and Hiilo were meeting with Arisun on his off-duty day and asked them to give him some candy.

''Arisun, sir and........''
'You mean your brother?　I see my brother sometimes.

　Alyson walked out of the kitchen and put the bread and soup on the table.
　Alyssa leaned forward.

'When?'
So, sometimes. I might see him once a week or so. But you're a hard worker, even on your days off, you're touring the city, brother.

　Alyson sat down in her chair and said with the eyes of a maiden in love.
　'Crono is a benefactor to Alyson as well, so it would be natural for him to do so.

'What are you doing when you meet her?'
That's not a nice thing to say about my daughter.

　Alisun said in a dumbfounded manner.

''Hmm~ I walk through the stalls with my brother, go to the back alleys... and also hang out with my friends.''

　What fun, Alyson pouted.

'You're a lord, brother, and no one will ever notice you.
...Oh, that's...

　When Crono inspects the city, he wears the same clothes as the commoners.
　That's probably why no one notices him.

''You're cute, brother, aren't you?''
...pretty?

　Alyssa questioned back.
　Even Alyssa thought Crono was cute at times, but she felt uncomfortable that her daughter would call Crono cute.

'My brother is an amazing person, but he's not amazing. See, big brother.........

　Alyssa couldn't understand a tenth of her daughter's words, though Alyssa told her how amazing Crono was.
　Alyssa was appalled.
　Alyson is attending a private school.
　It was her parent's intention to at least make her at least minimally educated, but she didn't think she would be educated beyond Alyssa's understanding.
　'Yes, yes,' was all Alyssa could do to return it.

'Also, I'll talk to your brother about your future,'
What do you want to do?
'Mom, that's not the same thing you said to my daughter.

　Alyson shushed him, complaining.

'I want to be useful to my brother. Um, not as a maid or a soldier, but more, in a different way.
...it's

　Alyssa thought of Elena first.
　It takes learning to be useful to Crono in ways other than as a maid or soldier.
　And, of course, connections.
　A minimum of education.
　That's about all Alyssa can handle.
　But beyond that, it's difficult.

''I'm sorry, it's just not possible.
No, I'm fine.
'For the umpteenth time, that's not the way I'm talking to my daughter.

　Alyson said dumbly.

*

　Alyssa turned off the light and lay down on her bed.
　It was a cheap assurance, but it must be said that it was difficult to get Alyssa to study in the Free City State group or the Imperial City.
　Alyssa's monthly salary is two gold coins and ten silver coins.
　Her savings are adequate, but it's impossible for her to continue to support her daughter on a yearly basis.
　The only way to do this is to ask your husband for a loan but will he lend you money without any collateral?　And Alyssa turned sideways and curled up.
　The only thing between Alyssa and Crono was the employment relationship and the credit they'd developed in a little over two years.
　They would use the credit as collateral for debt.
　That seemed like too convenient an idea.

''I seduced Master Crono to pay off my debt.

　Alyssa remembered the landlady's words and held her lower abdomen.
　She knew Crono wasn't that kind of person.
　But if Alyssa forms that kind of relationship with Crono, the idea of borrowing money against credit becomes a reality.
　Would my body be worth that much?　And Alyssa stroked her lower abdomen.
　Alyssa's body was tainted by the former Marquis of Erakis, broken by the unreasonable abortion that had taken its toll.
　Maybe even her mind.

* *.

　Alyssa walked down the corridor of the Marquis' mansion, biting off a lack of growth.
　She thought she was prepared for her daughter, but last night, she hadn't slept well.
　She woke up three, no, four times.
　Apparently, she wasn't as prepared as she thought she was.
　Alyssa was just about to climb the stairs when she ran into Cecily.
　Cecily giggled and cleared her eyes and coughed to mend things up.

'Where's your husband?'
If it was that guy, wouldn't he be coasting in bed?

　Cecily said, holding her mouth as if she was worried about her bad breath.
　Well, I don't know how I feel.

'Your husband was off today, wasn't he?'
I don't know.

　Cecily turned away with a pouty face and went away.
　Cecily didn't seem to notice that Alyssa was off duty.
　When Alyssa entered Crono's room, Crono was in the middle of changing.
　Master has become a warrior ... a fighter, Alyssa said, looking at Crono with rapt attention.
　Crono's body was toned.
　However, his height was not in the realm of average, and he didn't seem to have any muscles on him.
　However, the countless scars carved into it told the story of someone who didn't have a blessed physique and ran on the battlefield.



　Crono finished putting his jacket on and twisted around in a weird way.
　Crono sat down awkwardly in his chair.

'Alyssa, I thought you had the day off?'
I've come to ask a favor of you, sir.
Is it because you came to me last night to ask for help?

　Alyssa was shocked, as if her heart had been grabbed.
　If she looked, Crono was playing with a small object.
　It was a button.
　Alyssa stared at the sleeve of her clothes.
　There was no button that should have been there.

'Do me a favor, sir,'

　Alyssa walked over to Crono and touched his hand.
　Scary, she thinks.
　Chunks of flesh and blood stained floors snatched at Alyssa's mind.

'Alyssa would like to earn your master's favor.
Is that for Alyson?

　Alyssa gasped.
　Crono poked her cheek in a troublesome way.

'I know Alyson wants to study to be useful to me.
I'm a mother.
We've already settled that one, haven't we?

　Alyssa's eyes widened in surprise.

'Scholarships ... the school system isn't properly established, so it's going to be for the wealthy above a certain level.
I didn't know Ariston was going to be on the scholarship.
'The goal is to bring back new knowledge, so it doesn't matter if you're not outstanding, you don't have to be outstanding. Well, it's better to be excellent.

　Aliceen's dream comes true.
　The story is now over.
　There was no longer any need for Alyssa to borrow money from Crono using her body as collateral.
　Alyssa clutched the apron of her maid's uniform.

'Alyssa looks like she's looking for a reason.
'It's my daughter's dream come true. Isn't it natural to be a little skeptical?

　Crono smiled a crackling smile.

'You're not looking for a reason to be held?'
I'm just acting in the best interest of my daughter.
Yeah?

　Crono let go of Alyssa's hand.

'I'm off today, aren't I?
....
'Don't worry about the scholarship. I've known Alisyn for a long time. I don't think Alyson would be willing to abandon her mother to stay on to study abroad.

　Still, Alyssa thinks.

'I'm off today, I know. But I guess I'll just have to work for Alyssa.'

　Crono stood up slowly.

I'll be waiting for you at my landlady's shop.

　He tapped Alyssa on the shoulder and walked out of the room.

*

　The Master will give Alyssa what she wants, and Alyssa went to the landlady's shop.
　She changed her clothes.
　Right now, Alyssa was not wearing her familiar maid's outfit, but a sober dress.
　Alyssa shook her head, for her daughter's sake.
　Crono never breaks his word.
　That's the kind of person he is.
　So Alyssa's actions made no sense.
　Her thoughts are scandalous, like she's floating in a fever.
　
　Fortunately, there were no customers.
　Crono-sama is waiting in the far left room, the elf owner said as he chopped up some vegetables.
　Alyssa walked up the stairs to the far left room.
　Was this the right choice?　And Alyssa stopped there.
　Squeak, she heard the stairs creak.
　'If someone I know sees me...' said Alyssa, running into the room and closing the door vigorously.



　Crono scratched his head on the bed and said unexpectedly.

'It's because the Master told me to come.
I said I was waiting for you, not that you should come?

　Crono shook his body back and forth, scratching his hunchback.
　The cheap bed creaked and creaked just like that.

'What does Alyssa want?'
It's about making my daughter's dreams come true.
Really?

　Crono gave a mocking smile.
　That day, Alyssa knew what she wanted.