Inside the mansion, the parlor in the late afternoon.
　I was drinking tea alone with Hestia, who came to visit me, and chatting with her.

　She is so elegantly dressed that she could easily be mistaken for a queen, and she is so s*xy that you can't help but fall in love with her just by being in the same space.
　She used to be one of the best prostitutes of her day, but then something occurred to her.

Are you an old customer?
Yes. I don't know much about it, because I'm a specialist in Ortiz, but it's rumored that this year's number one Ortiz is the one that's most popular, for example, because of some duke. There must have been some great customers in your level.
"...not a tease, no?
Pure question. That guy in Ortiz said I was the second one.
"Hmm.

　Hestia laughed, hiding her mouth in her sleeve.

'What's funny,'
It's all a rumor, isn't it?
Yeah, but why?
'I always only tell the customer who asks such a question to the second. Tell them to the second, then the first?　I stare back at him silently where he approaches me, "I'm not going to be able to do that. A little moisture in your eyes, that's the trick.
Huh?

　I understood Hestia's explanation, and beyond that, and was a bit impressed.

"You're the best - you mean. That's swell.
I don't know who asked him, but I'm sure it made him feel better. He would have thought he was better than the Viscount.
Okay. And Hestia?　Tell me the second one.

　I asked jokingly, and Hestia chuckled.

I'm retired now, so I won't be using that. So I'll take the real number two...''

　Concon.

　Hestia was just about to say it when there was a knock on the door of the parlor.
　I don't know who it is, but I can tell from the knock that he is in a tremendous hurry.

'I'm sorry--what's wrong?'
I'm sorry.

　The door opened and one maid rushed in.

'Master!　Oh, you have a visitor.
I'm talking to you.
That's why...

　The maid glanced at Hestia.
　Hestia deliberately averted her gaze and picked up the teacup on the table.
　She sipped, but did not drink.

　It's a silent gesture of intent that I won't listen.

　I beckoned to the maid.
　The maid came to my side and gave me an earful.

'Heh, Your Majesty, sir.'
What?
"His Majesty the King is here in person...
Really?

　The maid's face moved away from her ear and she nodded her head with such force that her head sagged.

　By the king, you mean Shaw's father?
　Why is this the time....

　As expected, it's impossible not to see the king.

"I'm sorry Hestia, I'll leave you to it.
As you wish.

　He got up from his seat and left the parlor with the maid.

'Where?'
He's in the other parlor.
"Hm.

　The maid leads me down the hallway.
　A single carriage is parked in the yard of the mansion, visible through the hallway window.

　Is it just one car?　I arrived in the parlor wondering, and when I walked in, I found a middle-aged man sitting in the parlor, dressed in fine, though not flashy, clothes, with Mimis standing upright and immobile by his side.

　The question of whether it was really His Majesty the King lingered until I opened the door, but the moment I saw Mimis's gesture, I was blown away.

　I bowed to His Majesty the King, getting down on one knee in accordance with the Aegina style of etiquette.

"I don't believe I've ever seen you before, Lord Cano.
Yes, sir.
Okay.

　His Majesty the King nodded.
　There was no permission.

　Normally, when you bow, His Majesty would say something nuanced like "no pain" or "raise your face" or something like that, so you would stand up around that, but he didn't say that.

　So I'm wondering what's going on.

'I asked Lina a lot of questions,'
Yes.

　The timing of this, the Mithril thing.

How did you get to her?
What?

　What do you mean?

I trust that girl. But lately she's been acting strangely. She was so stern and fair and now she's applying for two crosses for defeating a slime lord.
It's a--

　I wondered how I should respond.
　I've been told something completely different from the recent rumors.

　Rumor has it that the cause of the third Order of the Cross is whispered to be Mithril, which is already an open secret.
　Influenced by this, the two previous orders are also misunderstood as being of Mithril rank.

　But the way His Majesty speaks, he knows nothing about Mithril, nor has he heard any rumors about it.
　I'm sure you've heard of it.

　I thought about it for a bit and decided to shrug it off once more and see what happens.

'Thank you for looking out for His Highness Lina,'

　The king's eyes looked at him with a very disagreeable and yet verminous look, "Well, I'm not that stupid.

Well, I'm not that stupid. I know that nobles and royalty have all sorts of ties to each other and the treasures they carry with them.
....

　You don't think this is ... me bribing Lina to get involved?
　You misunderstand me, right?

　His Majesty continued with even more confidence: "I know that such things are impossible to eradicate, so I will not nag you.

'I also know that such a thing is impossible to eradicate, so I won't nag you. But don't do it, Lina, and don't drag that girl's fairness down.
Yes.

　I bowed my head and replied, which was meant to mean, "Yes, sir.
　The king's face became more and more sullen.

　This is........unusually good flow.
　After all, he's the king.

　I know about bribes and such, don't overdo it.

　It's best if he thinks of it that way.

　We've gotten the gist of our brief exchange so far.
　His Majesty is a bit of an assumption taker.

　Once you're under the impression that it's this way, you'll never get bent out of shape.
　It's dangerous to admit - or even willingly admit - that this is the case.

　I'll just go with the flow and send it back to you as you see fit.
　That's the best we can do this time.

　So in order to maintain this cold, bug-eyed look - and I'm thinking.

　Concon.

　Silently, there was a knock on the parlor door.
　Immediately after, the door was slowly opened and Hestia entered the room.

''Well, well, well, it was His Majesty after all.

　Hestia walked into the room, no longer using the same language she had used when she was a prostitute, which she had missed.
　No, I mean--.

Oh, you're Mr. Hestia.

　--What?

　I was surprised.
　His Majesty the King looked extremely surprised and gave Hestia a "s".
　The king, who will be in the middle age - a little more in the realm of primogeniture, and an oddly aged former prostitute.

　In terms of age difference, he looked like a father who couldn't get a head start on his daughter.

"I haven't seen His Majesty since I was His Highness," he said.
'Mm-hmm. More importantly, Mr. Hestia, what are you doing here?　
It's nice to meet you, Mr. Hermes.

　Hestia said, and leaned in closer to me.
　Like a chaste wife.

'What!'

　His Majesty the King looked at me with a very - even more startled look than before.
　For some reason, there was a hint of respect on his face.

　His Majesty slipped away without understanding the reason for his face.

　　　　　☆

　I asked Hestia, who was standing next to me, as I watched the carriage leave through the hallway window.

'Do you know His Majesty?'
There's such a thing as coincidence.

　Hestia chuckled. The language had returned.

'My second guest in my lifetime, that's your father, the former King.
Really?!

　That's surprising.

"The former king went to visit me. He once brought His Majesty when he was still a prince and said, 'Introduce him to a good woman. Perhaps, but I suspect that he has a motherly dislike for me.
'Uh....'

　Okay, that made sense.

　She's her father's woman, so in a way, she's his mother.
　If you think it's a bitterness towards the mother, that attitude makes sense.

''........Oh, maybe I did something unnecessary?''
'What?　What?
When I was a prostitute, I was selfish in a way, choosing my clients of my own free will, sometimes refusing them all.
I know that.

　That was when Ortiz asked me to give Hestia a "break".
　I know, but why are you telling me that now?

So did His Majesty the former King. A woman who couldn't see the king when she wanted to, which, ironically, makes me all the more valuable.
I know.
The fact that I'm here means that I'm going to be...


　I could see my face turning pale, even to myself.

　That look of respect mixed with respect for His Majesty the King.
　A man who made a woman behave like a wife to a woman that even her father, the former king, could not fulfill.

　Maybe it was unintentional, and the king gave him a glance....