No, I'd prefer a princess cuddle if I could....
　Claudia, breathing heavily on her shoulder, still desperately chases after Duran.

''Nah, I don't know!　I'm totally fine with Nero.　Great?　Hey, aren't they great?

'Shut up and walk you can get in the carriage if you're tired and you can ride one of them.

No....no...no...I can't talk to the knight in that case...I can't talk to the knight...!

'Why don't the princesses just ride in the carriage?　And in the meantime, your uncle is Nero's!
　Saying that, Nero twists his arms around me.
　No, if I were to be precise, he would jump on my arm, right?

''Kiwi!　Please stay away from my knight, sir!

Oh no!

It's your motivation!

I'll do it!

　Aside from Claudia, who grew up in a greenhouse, even Nero is showing a certain amount of fatigue because he continues to argue and wrangle at all hours of the day and night.
　This is why I can't take care of the kid.

It's a good thing that you're not the only one who's been in the same boat as me.
　I don't know how many times I've already whined to Lesia.
　Lethia popped up from the back of the carriage, slowly got out of the back of the carriage and opened her mouth to say, "Oh, dear.

The two of you have requested this, and it's more fun to travel with many people, isn't it?

'We may be on our way to a dangerous mission, but that's not what his maids are for.

The Princess didn't object to the idea of taking the two of you with her, so why would Lesia object? Besides, the Duran shama was the first to give up.

Tsk.

　Yes, it was Duran who compromised in the end.
　Even though I rewarded their protection to keep them out of dangerous appointments, these guys were crying and begging to follow me, clinging to Duran's hands and refusing to leave.
　When they were awake, it took two of them, and when they went to bed, they would take turns watching over them thoroughly. Duran was the one who raised the white flag at their wastefulness, even following them to the bath and toilet.
　That's what he says when he comes back, but he can't be trusted based on his past behavior.
　In the end, Duran allowed them to take the two of them on their journey on the condition that they would be quietly shut in once they arrived in the religious state.

''Don't worry, Nero is a bandit,''

"Rest assured, when the time comes, we'll use royal karate from the princess's own teachings to round them all up.

　The two of them say confidently, but there's no way Duran would rely on Nero and the others as a fighting force, he just needs to be as quiet as possible and sit in a safe place and that's all that matters.

''Well, don't worry~ the two of you are the Lady of the Chamber of Commerce and her maid. The two of you are in no danger, since it's the Duran Shama Princess Shama SS that actually works.

Well, that's good news.

　An angry voice flies from beside Duran as he mutters that.

''I've been bound to a knight-sama for seven years now!　You shouldn't have gone to bed the day before yesterday!

Your tits are bigger than my mom's!　Little Dickhead, hurry up and get back in the carriage!

It's very motivating.

I'll do it!
　Duran drops his fist to the two men facing each other.

''Ahhhh.........''

Godd*mn it, be cool.

"'Ugh... ouch... ouch... ouch... ouch... ouch...

　We continued walking with the two idiots in tow, with the two fussing idiots in tow, until the sun began to dip.
　As the light in the sky was slowly turning red.

That's enough for today, sir.

　Lethia informed them.
　They stopped the carriage around the watering hole and each moved to rest.
　The women were the first to head to the bathing area, while Duran gripped his knife with a familiar hand.
　Although this kind of thing is a maid's job, the habits ingrained in her from traveling alone made her move her body naturally.

''Hey, uncle!　What are you making today?
　Nero popped up at Duran, who was holding a knife by himself, and said.

'Stew, but more importantly, aren't you going for a dip?

I hate getting wet.

It'll start stinking again.

Boo, Nero doesn't smell.

　Saying that, Nero turned away.
　It was a little refreshing to see that Nero, who hadn't even seemed to care about it when they met, was showing only a slight amount of shame.

'Well, no one would think anything of it if I didn't bathe in the water for a day or two.

　There are far more days when you can't take a bath on the road. It's not unusual for me to go a week without bathing.
　And when push comes to shove, there's the useless magic of a stinky maid.
　Duran quietly cut the ingredients and proceeded to cook.
　Meanwhile, Nero sat on the carriage and watched Duran quietly as his legs dangled.

''Hey, uncle--''

He's not an uncle, he's a brother.

It's not complicated.

So, what's up?

　Duran urged ahead, moving the knife around.

'I'm sorry, for being so selfish and following you.

All right, originally it was my fault.
　The responsibility for both Nero and Claudia should always lie with the adults. Even if it was a harsh world that didn't allow that, at least Duran thought so.

''........I just didn't want to leave Nero because he only had an uncle.......''
　The water in the pot on the fire gradually boiled, little bubbles floating slightly and disappearing without a sound.

My mom died because of Nero and my uncle told me to go away, so I went up to him. My uncle and the black man who was with my uncle said he could help me.

　Only once had he fulfilled a request with the wolf beastman known as the Blood Fang, a man who could be called an adventurer, a mercenary, an assassin, or a brigand.
　Duran fought alongside the man in that battle, the coup d'état of Sidonis, in which the assassin state pulled the strings behind the scenes and twisted the succession to the throne.
　They weren't close enough to be trusted, but they had ties to the assassination state. He could have at least sent one of the girls to Duran.

(What's with the kidnapping of the girl, you could have made it up as you go along.)

　Inwardly, he spits at Minaria, who is probably smiling high.

'Yeah, but, well, I'm not a big enough person to help you out.

　Nero shook his head quietly.

'No, not at all, my uncle is kind.

　Putting the lid on the simmering pot, Duran sat down on the grass.
　Then Nero jumped down from the carriage and sat down on Duran's seated feet.

At first I was going to take advantage of you," he said. If he was weak, I was going to take what I could and run away, and if he looked awful, I was going to run right away.

By the way, you're a thief, aren't you?

　Duran chuckled as he remembered Nero when he had turned his blade on him.

'But my uncle was kind to me. He was so nice to Nero, even though he was human, that I didn't want to leave him.

I see.

'Well my mum told Nero to live, she told him to be happy so he did everything he could.......dirty to live. I did a lot of terrible things. But every time I did, I thought how hard it is to live alone... how lonely I am... how can I ever be happy, I kept thinking... ...
　Then Nero laughs.
　He forces his mouth to contort and feigns a smiling body.

'I was doing a lot of things on my own and my grandfather picked up Nero. I learned a lot of things there, like how to get rid of the signs, how to fight... in the end, Grandpa didn't let Nero help me with my work, but...

Well, I'm glad to hear it. A kid your age in the presence of that old man can't do anything about it.

I'm sure--I'm sure my uncle was thinking the same thing.

　Nero continued to speak fondly.

'Nero's hands are clean, I hope you stay clean,' my uncle used to say. Nero's hands are already dirty, but my uncle would always hold them in his hand and say so.

I see.

　With a murmur, he opened the lid of the fully-cooked pot.
　Then the fragrant aroma of the slow-cooked stew rises up.

''Whew, that sounds delicious!

　Nero's belly rumbled loudly.
　Duran placed the soup and the intestine meat on a small plate for tasting and offered it to Nero.

'You can eat it!

　Duran nodded at Nero, who turned his sparkling eyes on him.
　Huffing and puffing, he drinks the soup and chews on the meat.
　I'm sure Nero doesn't realize it, but the uncontrollable smile on his face could not be happier.

'I don't know if I'm happy or not. I don't even know how to be happy. I don't know how to be happy, I don't even know how to be happy, because my happiness is still left in the past. But you know, I think you can still grab a good thing or two from life.
　I think that's what I think when I'm spouting words that are not typical.
　I also think the words are so flimsy that the person who uttered them has suspicions.
　But even so, looking at the current Nero, Duran's words may not be a mistake.

'Aren't you happy, Uncle?'
　Nero asked.

'--well,'
　Duran said that deceptively, but Nero was quick to continue his words.

''Then Nero will make you happy!

　Then, sitting on his lap, Nero was smiling happily again.