'Huh...'

　In my study in the mansion, I looked at the two Cross Medals lined up on my desk and sighed deeply.
　The second Order of the Cross, the name of which is both the defeat of the Slime Lord.

''I didn't see this coming.......I mean, they're both in on it.......''

　My head hurts from an unexpected turn of events and my own disgust.

'Master!　If you're free, please watch the training--oh!

　Midea walked into the study.
　Her eyes lit up when she saw the two crossed orders on her desk.

'So this is what you received this time. That's great Master!　I can't believe I got two Xiphos Crosses in such a short period of time!　I knew my master was an amazing person!
....

　I don't even want to plunge in.
　The innocent lifting of Midea made me want to sigh in the opposite direction.

　A knock sounded, and I turned toward it to find my sister in front of the door that Midea had left unclosed, and she was knocking deliberately on the open door.

'Sis,'
'So this is where you are. Ah, here's the second Cross.

　She closed the door behind her and walked into the study, and her sister, like Midea, first looked at the Order of the Cross.

''Master is amazing!
'That's of course. By the way, Hermes.
What is it, sister?
Why did you give me this?
Ugh.

　As expected of you, sister, you didn't believe in the reason for defeating the slime lord from the beginning.
　That's not surprising. Even the first one was questionable, and moreover, it was the second one in the double bush.
　There is no way that an intelligent sister would take that for granted.

　But I'm not going to tell her that. I'll have to play along.

"Oh no, that's not....

　But I couldn't think of anything to say.
　I feel like I shouldn't say anything. If I said something, I might dig my own grave.
　However, if I don't say anything, I may dig a grave if I don't say anything.

　Huh?　Is that a problem?　
　What a problem I was having.

"It's the dragon king's shadow, I know.
'You knew, sister!'

What?
What?

　For some reason, my sister was surprised.
　I was also surprised by her reaction.

　With Midea in between, my sister and I looked at each other with dumb faces.

''I thought I was just going to say it in a random story since I've been showing up recently but I didn't expect it to hit me.
Yuck!

　It was a joke!　And you fell for it, me!

　Oh my God no wait.
　Look on the bright side.

　How lucky you are that your sister was the one who found out.
　She knows things about me, and it wouldn't be any different now.

　The problem is-- I'm talking to you, Midea!

Uh, Master.
What?
What is the Shadow of the Dragon?
Don't you know...
Yes, is it great?

　Midea responds blithely. It's a reaction that shows she really doesn't know.

　.........
　Not good, that's very bad.

　It's very bad that you don't know.
　If you don't know the seriousness of the existence of the dragon king's shadow, you might be able to innocently say something along the lines of "My master defeated a strong monster!

　You have to keep your mouth shut.

''Midea, don't tell anyone about this.
What do you mean by this?
'That's the name of the monster I killed. Don't tell anyone.
'Eh, but I have to show everyone how cool Master is--'
You'd be excommunicated if I told you.

　When he said it threateningly with a straight face, Midea poof, she held her mouth to herself.


Okay, I won't say it, okay?　You don't have to hold your mouth shut to talk.
'Yes!　I'll take it properly to the grave!

　That's my grandson, using the same language as that old man.
　Midea's an honest girl, she'll be fine, but just in case, I'll give her one more push.

"Are you sure?　If you say anything, you'll be excommunicated immediately.
No!　Trust me!
Okay.

　Midea's eyes were extremely serious, even slightly frightened.
　If she was afraid of excommunication, she wouldn't say it.

　It hurt my conscience a bit that I threatened him so strongly, but it can't be helped.

''I'm going to practice!　I won't listen to any more of the masters' important stories!

　Midea said and walked out of the study.
　If you don't ask, I won't let it slip.
　I was a little relieved to see that Midea was going to keep her promise.

　Midea walks out into the hallway and closes the door behind her.

'Oh, Midea. Hey, hey, can I ask you something?

　Immediately after, you hear a young woman's voice through the wall.
　It's the young voice, the maid, the only other young voice in this mansion besides her sister and Midea.

　The maid tells Midea that she is

Master's medals, what's that for?　You're an apprentice, so you're listening.

　Geez, you came out of nowhere.
　Well, but Midea said she wouldn't tell--

I don't know!　I don't know if my master defeated something amazing or not at all!
Oh, I knew I'd do something great. What, what, what is that?
WOW!

Not a good liar!

　He plunged in with enough force to knock the chair over and stand up.

'She would be,'

　My sister smiled.

　I followed her out, but Midea had already left like she was running away.
　On this day, one after another, people appeared to ask Midea what's going on inside her, and Midea continued to deny it at that rate.

　The rumors of the two orders have become increasingly bogged down.