For a few days after the sumo tournament, I was holed up in the inn, immersed in the "Armor of the Bandit King" that Hana-san had asked me to work on. Until the next day after the tournament, I was out enjoying the festivities, but my face was completely memorized by the residents of the south, and I was surrounded everywhere I went. This made it difficult for me to move around freely and I refrained from going outside for security and mental health reasons.
　Amur and Hana-san, who understood my situation, took care of that, and brought me rare and popular foods from the food stalls, so I had no complaints, and I enjoyed my life in a sense of extreme comfort, eating delicious food in between work and soaking in hot springs for a change.

''Yeah, that's nice. It might be a little less durable in actual combat, but it's good enough for everyday use. As for the color ... can't be helped?

　When I handed the finished armor to Hana-san, she was satisfied with the workmanship and was in a good mood. The color of the armor was the brown of the spear elk, but the shape was made with the image of a tiger in mind, so it seems to be within an acceptable range. However, the size didn't seem to be right, so he'll ask Sana-san to fix it next time.

And this is just for fun.

　With that said, I gave him a stuffed animal-like outfit. You can use this one for everyday wear, or you can wear it over your nightgown. I had a lot of spare spear elk skin left over, so I made this to pass the time. By the way, I made three costumes and gave them to Amur. I'm not too concerned about the size of this one, so making two or three was not too different. In addition, there are several other costumes that are still being made. I'm sure there are others who want them, so I thought I'd make them for them as gifts.

So, what are Temma's plans for the future?

Are you looking for a souvenir for someone you know and preparing to leave as soon as you find one?

　In case you're wondering, Hana was a bit thoughtful when I told her I was planning to stay for another week or so. And then.

'I'm sorry, but can I have one of those days? I'd like to show you a few things.

　I quickly nodded my head as he asked that with an unusually serious expression and voice. I didn't know where she was taking me, but I decided that there was something I needed to tell her.
　I told Hana-san that it would be fine from now on, but it was decided that in order to get to the place, Hana-san would need to make preparations on her side, so we would leave in the morning, two days from now at the earliest. It was decided that Hana-san needed to make preparations to go to the place, and we would leave in the morning as early as two days later.

We decided to tell him about this. It's a good idea to talk to Sanna if you're looking for a souvenir that is unique to the South, she's the owner of a folk craft business in Nanao.

　So I decided to visit Sana immediately. My only concern was whether she and Blanca were creating a pink space like the one after the Sumo Tournament, but she told me that I shouldn't have to worry about that since Amur had gone to visit her.

'The city seems to have calmed down a lot,'　

　I left the Viscount's house and headed for Sana-san's house to check out the city, but since the festival had just ended, there was still some noise, but I wasn't surrounded by people like right after the sumo tournament. Well, it's just because I'm wearing a hood over my eyes, so it's possible that the people on the street don't notice me.

''Hello~, is Sana-san there?''

Yes?

　With a flurry of footsteps, Sana-san came hurrying over. Behind her were Blanca, who was worried about Sana-san's hurried pace, followed by Amur, who seemed to have responded to my voice.
　When I told Sana-san the reason for coming here and asked her to discuss it, she quickly nodded and led me to a room where the goods were lined up. However, that room seemed to have a lot of items that were rarer than what was normally sold, and Amour was angry with Sana-san for trying to handle them roughly.

If you want to give a gift to a woman, gold-themed hair ornaments and necklaces, and silver bracelets for men are popular. However, many women are very picky about what they like, so these handkerchiefs or other small items are safer.

　Sanna was explaining various products, but none of them made sense to me at the moment. So, we decided to look at the classification of people who take souvenirs.
　First of all, we are acquaintances of Seigen, such as gin. This one is more likely to be pleased with food and other items than with ornaments. Especially for Master Ganz, it would certainly make him happy if you bring him some alcoholic beverages.
　And my acquaintances in King's Landing. Among them, we'll start with the people of Kukri village. Since there are a lot of people here as well, food, especially food and spices that can be served at the inn run by Uncle Mark and Aunt Martha, would be good for reference. Kelly and the others would be happy with alcohol, as would Master Ganz.
　And Jeanne, Aura and Amy. I think these three should have the Otori family crest on them. Since the three of them will be treated as my family members, they can be used as identification when the need arises, and if they get involved with some strange people, they can be expected to have some deterrence. Just to be sure, I asked Sana-san if she could make a handkerchief with the family crest on it, and she said it would take some time, but that it was possible. However, since it might be a bit lonely with just a handkerchief, I decided to buy some ornaments. Ah! Aina might as well have the same one. In case you're wondering, Aina should still be registered in 'Oration' and she might not like it, but I don't think it's a bad idea to have at least one matching handkerchief with Aura (her own sister). And Mr. Cliffe. That guy would be good for a simple, plain handkerchief.
　The rest is aristocratic. Albert and the three of them are fine with anything, but the Duke of Sangha and the Marquis of Samoens don't know if they're in the royal capital or not, and we can't send them anything too strange, so a set of several kinds of drinks, including the one I wound up with from Grandpa, would be fine.
　And then there's the royals - probably something a little different, since I'm sure you know a lot of the southern items, so something a little different would be better. However, no matter what we choose, we can't miss the requirement of 'high quality items', so we'll have something made by special order.
　First of all, the men, this one was ordered by Sana-san for clothes like samue. I don't think it's necessary to be as detailed as the women's, so I told Sana-san about the size of the clothes (except for Tida, which is a little bigger in anticipation of her future growth) and asked for strong and high quality materials.
　And the biggest problem was the royal ladies. For the record, I don't know what to give them because I can't expect my taste to be the same as mine. In particular, Maria is the most difficult one. By the way, the one that seems to be the easiest is Luna, and I think Luna would be happy with any of them as long as I don't pick a big outlier.

''That being said, what should I take as a souvenir?

　If you don't know, you should ask a professional, I asked Sana, but she said she didn't know because she's never given gifts to people like royalty.
　In such a situation where Sanna is at her wit's end, an unexpected person came up with an interesting suggestion: "Don't think so hard," she said.

"Don't be so difficult," she said, "Why don't you just give it to your relatives? From the side, it looks like the queen is quite fond of Temma, and I'm sure she'd be happy to see you if it wasn't a very good one.

'Blanca is right. That queen would definitely be sweet on Temma, so she'd be happy with something homemade!　

　After listening to the two men who assured her, Sanna seemed to come up with something and walked to the workshop that she said was in the back. As usual, Blanca was still following behind Sanna-san around.
　When they returned a short time later, Sanna and Blanca had several pieces of cloth in their hands, each in a different size and shape.

'This is a sample shawl,' she said. It's a sample, so it's only a simple one, but you can make your own by combining different colors and patterns.

　What I thought was just a piece of cloth was a sample of a woman's shoulder-length (shawl). There was a square and a rectangular shape, and three different sizes, large, medium and small.

Even if you say it might be okay to make it by hand, you won't be able to learn to weave it in a day or two, so if you specify the color and pattern, I'll have professional craftsmen weave it for you.

　Sana said that, depending on the degree, she could make a complicated pattern in a few days, so we decided to ask for five (...) pieces. The reason I asked for one more piece is because I remembered the existence of the Primera. When I was counting the number of tickets to order, I thought it was a bad idea to exclude one person, even though I was going to bring a souvenir to the Duke of Sangha and Albert.

'Five, all right. What about the pattern and the knitting?

　There are various ways to weave it, and after some thought, I decided on the most common way.

It's a larger size and a slightly thicker weave. There are five of them and the colors and patterns are.........

　Sanna wrote my conditions on the order form. As for the colors and patterns, it was too difficult for my taste, so I chose them from the samples with the colors and patterns.

And could you embroider each name on it?

　But that's just a combination of things that were there from the original, and I can't really say it's the original, but I can't really say it's the original, so I gave them Gol and Jill's ball of yarn (which Slarin had secured separately from the one for Sana's gift to her).

What is this string?

　When Sana saw Gol and Jill's ball of thread, she let out a loud cry and excitedly began to look at the two different types of balls of thread from different angles. I haven't yet told you what they are, but Sanna seems to have understood the value of the ball of thread in front of her with just one look. In addition, I gave her the two balls of thread that Slarin had prepared for her as a gift for her pregnancy, and she was so excited that she hugged me, followed by hugging Slarin and rubbing her cheek. I don't think it's just my imagination that Blanca's gaze became sharp for a moment when Sana-san hugged me. By the way, this yarn ball seems to be a special kind of yarn that Gol and Jill produce, and it seems to take a lot of strength and time to make a palm-sized yarn ball.

We have received your order. The price is 15,000 g for 3,000 g each. The delivery date is in five days' time, so I'll give you some time to spare.

　Sanna said she would be happy to pay for the ball of yarn free of charge, but we decided to have it made at the normal rate, as that would not be worth the celebration. In the meantime, we decided to buy some souvenirs for the royal men at Sana's place (also named by Gol and her team), as well as handkerchiefs and ornaments for Jeanne and her team to receive with the shawl, and decided to leave to buy other souvenirs.

'Well, let's go around to the liquor store next.

　After we left Sana's house, we (and Amr followed me) went to a liquor store and bought a bunch of liquor (but not the top-of-the-line stuff like the ones we got from Grandpa), and then we went to the grocery store and the grocery store.
　At the grocery store, we bought a few knives made with the same technique as Japanese swords, and at the grocery store we bought mostly spices. But the best thing I got wasn't the knives or the spices.

'But I didn't expect to get any seeds or seedlings of spices that would grow in the climate of King's Landing or Seigen.

　We were able to buy chili pepper seeds, turmeric seedlings, and black pepper plants. I heard that they are not good in cold weather, but if you take measures against cold weather or dig up the turmeric seeds and store them in a magic bag, you can harvest them every year, unless you have a good reason to do so. If you keep the seeds, you can expect to harvest them every year.

It was a bit pricey, but hopefully it will pay for itself in a year.

　They didn't sell much black pepper and turmeric, but they did get quite a few pepper seeds, so if they could get Uncle Mark and the others to grow them, they wouldn't be wiped out so easily.

''Even so, aside from pepper and turmeric, if it's possible to grow them as easily as chili peppers, it wouldn't be surprising if they sold seedlings in King's Landing or Seigen, would it?

''Hmmm ... I think it's simply because it's hard to grow enough to sell. Then it's faster and easier to buy them all in the south.

I see.

　It's true that, as Amur said, you'd need a lot of land if you were to grow enough of it to make a business out of it, and there's a risk that it would be wiped out if a major cold snap were to hit. There may be people like me who grow enough plants for their own use at home, but they wouldn't be able to grow enough plants and seeds to sell.

That's enough to give away.

　We bought a few food souvenirs, and I thought that would be enough for us to go back to the ryokan and relax....

Temma, what did Albert and the others bring back?

Ah!

　Amour reminded me of the Three Fools, and I bought a couple of good-looking knives (better than I thought they would be, so I bought some for myself and some for Kelly and Master Ganz) at a nearby blacksmith shop. It would be good to give them this, along with some southern food.

'All right! This really is the end!

The Three Idiots were treated badly.

　I'm sure he doesn't really mean it when he accuses me of being an idiot, and I think it's worse for him to call me three idiots.

But, Amur. You have to be very careful when giving gifts to women, or you will have a bad experience later on, but you don't have to go that far when dealing with men. In the first place, I've only known those guys for a short time compared to other people, so that's about right.......

　If you're dealing with a guy, you can just say, "I don't know if you'll like it, but it looked good, so I bought it," but that's not how it works with a girl. I don't know what they are saying behind the scenes, even if they pretend to be happy when I gave it to them! Grandpa said.

'I see, I understand........so I won't complain, buy me a shawl too!

　But I refused to buy it because it's a gift for royalty and nobles (primera). Then, I was told that I could get the same handkerchief as Jeanne and her friends, so I had to go back to Sana's house and order another one. It's a good idea to have the handkerchiefs in the custody of the Ootori family (more precisely, of "Merlin the Wise"), so I thought they could be used as proof of identity... Well, since Amour was persistent, I couldn't help but agree. ...

　I was planning to stay at the inn until I heard from Hana-san, but Hana-san's messenger came to the inn that night and left with word from Sanah that we would be leaving in the morning two days later as planned.

　When we headed to the Viscount's house early in the morning two days later, Hana-san and her friends were already ready to go, and they said they would leave as soon as it was OK with me and grandpa. By the way, the means of transportation is Raiden and I's carriage, and the companions on the Viscount's side are Hana-san, Amour, and Blanca. In order to distinguish her from Hana-san, everyone in Nanao has started calling her by the word "honorary" more than before. is a stay-at-home mom. This is not because the Honorary Viscount Lobo is useless, but because one member of the Viscount's family must remain in Nanao (Sana is excluded due to her weight).
　I heard that the destination is quite far away, although it is possible to make a day trip, so Hana-san and Blanca, who know the destination, took turns being the coachman. Taking a break on the way, and also moved on foot where it is difficult for the carriage to pass, we were able to arrive at the place that is just a stone's throw away from the destination, taking about four hours.
　But as far as I can see, there are no landmarks for the village, it just looks like an open area of forest.

"I'm going to meet up with the person who's going to pick me up around here, but...

　As Hana got out of the carriage as she said this, three hooded men appeared from the bushes a short distance away.

'Ah, there you are.

　Hana-san approached the three men who emerged from the bushes, said something to them, and then they all walked towards the carriage. I was somewhat wary at the time, but I knew that they were the people Hana-san was looking for, so I approached them to say hello first.
　When I was only a few meters away from the three of them, the person at the front of the three of them suddenly took off his hood, and I saw his true face. And when I saw his face, I instantly took a big step backwards. Because.

Tiger....

　Because the face of the lead figure had almost the same face as an animal tiger. And the two people who were behind the tiger face also had almost animal faces under their hoods (or dog or wolf and cat faces).

''Was this... that's how it was meant to be?''

　Grandpa, who was about to greet the three of us as well as I was, was surprised, but he muttered as if he noticed something.

'Temma, you're right to be surprised, but don't be alarmed. Those people are beastmen just like me.

　Blanca, who came down from behind my grandfather, called out to me. Amour, who was beside him, seemed surprised, but not as surprised as I was.

Well, if it's your first time seeing it, it's understandable that you're surprised. I'm just grateful that they don't feel hostile or try to harm you.

　The tiger-faced man in the lead said that in a calm voice, as if he wasn't used to reacting like me, but the two men behind him didn't look amused.

''You guys have had enough. Inviting an adventurer with ties to the Viscount family to the village was a decision made by the lord and the village chief. Understand that even though you are reluctant to do so, you guys have agreed to it at least once.''

　The tiger-faced man told the two men behind him, and they looked away from me with frustrated expressions on their faces.

'I'm sorry. But you have to understand that some in the village are just as frustrated with outsiders, especially the human race, as these two are.

No, I'm sorry, too.

　The fact that I apologized honestly made the two men behind me seem somewhat less puffed up. The atmosphere seems to have softened a little more than before.

I think you might have gotten the general idea from these three, but the village we're going to be going to is inhabited by beastmen whose blood is thick with our race. The head of the village will explain the details to you, but please do not look at them in a discriminatory light or speak to them in any way. If you're not careful, it could lead to a deadly battle...I'm not kidding.

　Nodding to Hana's advice, we decided to follow the three of them. According to what I heard later, in order to keep the location of the village as secret as possible from others, especially those outside of the south, they didn't deliberately build an easy-to-find road near the village. Incidentally, since this forest is said to be managed by the Viscount family, it is said that southerners are basically not allowed to enter the forest without permission. However, on rare occasions, southern adventurers will invade the forest in search of rich resources, but most of them will be eliminated or captured by the village residents before they can approach the village. Of course, the villagers are said to disguise themselves with hoods and full-body armor so that their identities are not revealed.

''Even so, aside from Blanca, Grandpa and Amur weren't too surprised.

Well, I have been to many places in my youth. I never saw them in person, but I heard stories from people I knew.

It was my first time to meet her in person. But I've heard so much about you from your mother.

　Grandpa had been around for years, and he knew Amur as a member of a house at the top of the South.
　Still, I'm glad I didn't take out my weapon on reflex at that moment. If it was that tiger-faced man, he might have forgiven me, but of course he wouldn't have felt good about it, and the two men behind him would never have forgiven him. Therefore, it might be safer to leave the magic bag with the weapons in it with Slarin before arriving at the village, or pack them all together so that they are difficult to take out individually.
　With that said, I decided to take action immediately. Of course, it seems not so good to put out a weapon in front of the three guiding people, so I did it stealthily so as not to be exposed. In the end, I decided to leave the magic bag with the weapons in it with Slarin, who is better at managing things than I am. At the same time, I told Shiroumaru and Solomon not to attack or do anything similar unless they were harmed. In the meantime, I left Slarin in charge of the two animals, so they should be fine. I'm not at all worried that Gol and Jill will do any harm. It's a good thing that you're able to have a good time with them, because they are shy to begin with, so it's almost impossible for them to appear in front of strangers. Moreover, it is not an exaggeration to say that they are in the safest zone, because if something happens, Surarin and his team will immediately protect them.
　The two of them were probably happy with the snacks they were given as a reward for the ball of yarn, and now they are working hard to mass produce yarn.