I get out of the bath and go back to the room I was assigned.
　Right now I want to take my time and think alone.
　Thinking back to Al's words, I try to think about everyone again...

Good evening, Miss Lane.
Hi. Hey, man, we're here for you.
'Mr. Tin!　Mr. Milua, too....

　For some reason, Suzu and Milua were there.
　They seemed to be fresh from a bath and were also warm.
　Also, they smelled good from the soap.

　They look younger than Kanade and the others, or maybe they're just like normal girls, so....
　It's a bit annoying to be shown that kind of vulnerability.

'What's going on?　You wanted to see me?
Yeah. I was trying to convince Miss Lane.
Persuasion?

　Isn't that what we're supposed to do?

'You are opposed to us attacking King's Landing, aren't you, Rain?
Yeah, yeah. That is, of course.

　We've talked about that a lot...
　And, unable to convince him, the conversation ends up on a parallel track.

'Maybe you're ready to change your mind?'
No, it's not.
'Or rather, we've come to the conclusion that we should persuade Mr. Lane to do something about it.
Well...?

　I don't know what the two of you are looking for.
　They say I'm often blunt, but for once, I think I'm outside of that adaptation.
　........right?

Can you be more specific?　I'm not sure...
I'm sorry.
Here's the thing,
Wow.

　I lose my balance as Mr. Suzu pulls me back.

　My head is sitting side by side with Zsu-san and Mirua-san, while........
　In other words, I would be on top of their thighs.
　It was a double knee pillow by Suzu and Milua-san.

''Oh, um.......what is this?''
'Hmph, we thought we'd try to melt you down with our adult charm to appease Rain-kun.
I was wondering...

　I think it's hard to get a sense of adult charm out of the two of them in their appearance.
　However, there was no way I could say such a thing, so I kept my impressions to myself.

　That and the word "nostalgia" gave me some idea of what they were thinking about.

''Maybe, but... you two want me to be on your side, right?　I don't want you to stop us from attacking King's Landing, but on the contrary, I want you to agree with me. So, persuasion.
'Yeah, yeah, that's what I'm talking about!　Lane, you're so smart.
So I think we'll entertain ourselves like this.
'You don't have to do that but...'

　He tried to get up, but Suzu was holding his head firmly in place and he couldn't escape.
　It's impossible to resist the power of the strongest species of cat spirit race, and even more impossible to resist the power of Suzu-san, who stands at the top of the race.
　I gave up and decided to wait for the two of them to get bored.

''Ehehe, how do you like it?　Does our kneeling pillow feel good?
What do you think, Miss Lane?
'Um ... yes. It honestly feels good.

　A warm, soft lap pillow.
　And a gentle pat on the head.

　They look so young, yet their gestures are unmistakably my mother's....
　Remembering my late mother made my tear glands flutter a bit.

　However, I can't just soak it up.
　This is a chance to have a long talk with both of them.
　Even though I'm in this position, I'm going to try to persuade them.

''Um........Suzu-san and Mirua-san, do you really plan to attack the royal capital?''
It's just that Kanade-chan and the others were bullied and you can't just do nothing about it.
Any brave man or knight who bullied little Tania will be beaten to a pulp!
''We, the strongest species and humans don't have diplomatic relations with each other... rather, we're not even a country... but we do have a certain amount of relations with each other. If we sit back and do nothing here, we might be seen as lowly ourselves.
'You can't do that!　It could happen again, because it could happen again. We've got to make sure it's nailed down.

　I see what you mean.

　I know it's an extreme statement, but people don't learn if they don't make mistakes.
　It's a painful experience that makes you grow and build up strength and knowledge that you don't want to have to go through that again.
　On the contrary, if you don't go through the pain, you don't grow.
　Nothing will change.

　If we don't properly reflect on the case that led to the unjust arrest and detention of Kanade and the others in this case, something similar might happen again.
　Suzu and the others are working to avoid that.

　Thus, if one listens to only part of the story, Suzu and her friends' claims are perfectly natural and highly legitimate.
　But.....

'First of all, the knights and adventurers who captured Tania and her friends are going to be sandbagged!　Also, the country's heavyweights who gave the brave men their own authority are going to get full blown!　And then, from then on, the brave man who hurt Tania-chan............is put to death. Ufu, ughhhh.

　
　It's seriously threatening to destroy the country.

　As expected, that's too much, so we have to find a compromise somewhere.
　Well, for this amount of time, if the plan I have in mind works, we should be able to work it out, but.......

...do you have a minute?

　This is the time.
　I want to hear all I can.

'I understand the anger between the two of you but I also have one question.
What's this about?
Well you're not angry with me?
What?

　Suzu looked at him curiously.
　Mr. Milua was also scowling.

　I can't help but ask the two of them.

"This time Arios the brave man was the main culprit and his target was me. In other words, Kanade and the others were involved in the incident because of me............The fundamental fault is mine. So.........
"Huh?

　Suzu and Milua-san let out a sigh together.
　Then they give us a dumbfounded look as if they are twins, with a similarity that makes us wonder if they are twins.

''I didn't expect Rain-san to think like that...''
I don't want to say anything bad about Tania-chan's su....benefactor, but it's kind of a pompous thing to do, you know?

　I've been told I'm being presumptuous again...

'You're so kind, Lane, I don't blame you for worrying about it. But you don't have to take on that much responsibility, do you?
'I mean, if you say that, you're saying that I'm fundamentally responsible for sending Tania on the trip, right?　We'll be talking about how this wouldn't have happened if we hadn't sent him on the trip and kept him in the village all the time, right?
It's...

　That being said, that may be true.
　But, as I said, it's sure to get everyone involved...

...phew.

　I want to take care of my people.
　But I don't want them to get hurt.

　These two thoughts run through my mind in circles.
　No matter how much I think about it, I can't find an answer, and my head gets heavy.

　What should I do...?
　I mean, what do I want to do...?

"Hmm.

　Tin-san seems to have seen through my struggle and gives me a kind face.
　When I look at her, I see that Milua-san also has a motherly look on her face.

''The problem with Rain-kun is that he thinks too much.
But as Kanade's mother, I'm happy for her.
Yes, you're right. If you're that worried, it means you're thinking about Tania and the others seriously.
'It's ... of course it is. I'll take it seriously. We're all dear friends.
Then why don't you tell everyone about it instead of keeping it to yourself?
You're right, Suzu.
But that's...
I'm not saying that you have to tell me everything. Everyone has a thing or two they'd rather keep to themselves.
'But I don't think those concerns are separate. Because it has a lot to do with the future of your party, Lane, doesn't it?
'We'll all share those things, talk about them, find answers... isn't that the best way to do it?
It's just that we all think it's presumptuous.
....

　It was like the scales had fallen from my eyes.

'I see, I...'

　You seemed to be thinking about everyone else, but as a matter of fact, you were only thinking about yourself....
　They're both right.
　Normally, this kind of problem should be shared and discussed.

　But I'm the one who thinks about it, not the one who wants to be told.
　I thought I had it all to myself and was trying to solve it.

　It's no wonder they say I'm so presumptuous like this.
　I now understand how Suz-san and Milua-san felt.
　And I also understand how Al-san felt earlier.

Thank you. I'm awake now.
'Yeah, yeah, you're welcome. I knew you'd look better like that, Rain.
By the way, our feelings have not changed. You can trust Kanade-chan and the others to take care of them, so please continue to take care of our daughter in the future.
Yes!

　I nodded firmly, this time to make sure I didn't make a mistake.