I could tell something had changed between you two before this.

　Yumina cut her off as she sat down at the table. Leanne is at the table as well as everyone else. But I was the only one who was made to sit upright on the floor. How bad? Hahaha, I'm used to it. How many times have you sat on your head?

'Leanne, you like Fuyao-san too, don't you?
'Yes. Not as passionately as the rest of you, but I like him in my own way, and I want to be with him.
It's...
'Of course I'm not looking for his status or Babylon's legacy, you know? I'm sure that's fascinating too, but it's the one individual I fell in love with, him. I won't lie there.

　Lean interrupted Yumina's words and connected with them. Her eyes were straight and received Yumina's gaze.
　Eventually Yumina's eyes became soft and a smile appeared on her face.

''I understand. I agree with Leanne's decision to become Fuyao-san's wife. What about you all?''

　Yumina looked around at everyone around her. The first one to raise her hand was Yae.

''I don't mind too, that I don't mind.
Oh, I don't have a problem with that.
I guess I don't mind.

　Following Yae, the twin sisters raised their hands in a small way. Seeing this, the other two also raised their hands as if in a panic.

''I have no objection to it either.
Yes, I do.

　Lou and Hilda don't have much contact with Leanne. Still, they've talked and worked together a few times, so I think I know their personalities.
　In terms of relationship, though, Leanne has been around longer than the girls. I didn't expect it to turn out this way, though.

'I don't have Soo here, but I probably wouldn't disagree with her. Leanne, I hope you'll keep up the good work.
Yeah. Nice to meet you.

　They shake hands peacefully and smile at each other. There's really no room for me to interrupt them. No, I don't really have any reason to disagree with them, though. Lean is cute, dependable, and mentally mature.
　If Yumina is the one who brings everyone together, I think she'll be a great sub-leader.
　 It's been reached, man. If that stupid doctor hadn't said something so unnecessary, this wouldn't have happened.
　It seems that Yumina and the others want to quickly decide on the nine fiancées.... I guess they want to do it before they get caught by some strange woman. The fact that they didn't accept Pam, though, suggests that they aren't making their decisions unnecessarily.

''Well, now, Lean-san is Fuyao-san's fiancée 《fiancée》, just like us. We are friends. We are comrades.
'What? Oh, yeah.
So... where have you been alone with him so far?
Huh?

　A goofy voice emanated from Lean. Before I knew it, I was surrounded by the other five people, and I was being released with a smirk and silent pressure.

''Hey, wait a minute. Are you guys misunderstood in some way?
What other reason could there be for being alone with you this late at night, that I can think of?

　Paula desperately appealed to Yae, who was closing in on her, and I was there too, but everyone surrounding Lean was completely blind to the fact that they could not see her at all. Furthermore, the twins are closing in on Lean, zipping away.

'Hi, by any chance...'
Did you do it?
"What?

　Lean and my voice echoes in unison. I did....that's a thing. The person who said it and the person who is told it are both red-faced.

I'm not sure what you're talking about! Oh, no, it can't be!

　Leanne, who looks like a boiled octopus, hurriedly denies it. Oh, hey? That's a very primitive reaction........for someone who has lived for more than 600 years, it's just as old as it looks.
　On the contrary, when I saw that reaction, I became calm.
　So, instead of Leanne, who is too upset to speak, I explain what happened tonight to everyone.

I understand the situation. But if it's going to be this late, shouldn't you have sent me one of your calls?
Uh, I'm sorry...
'Couldn't you have sent a message through Amber and the others?
Oh.

　Well, yeah. I was so slammed that I didn't notice. Surely I would worry in many ways if I hadn't come back without a single communication by this time?
　I didn't think I had anything to worry about, but I got a little carried away.
　It's not my intention to cause trouble and worry to the people I care about. I'll be more careful from now on.

You don't know what you're going to do if you're left unattended, do you?
So, that's that. Whenever you said you were doing some kind of magical experiment...
We burned down an empty house...

　Else, Yae, and Linse sigh at me. That kind of worry! That was just a thought to see if I could control the Fireball 《Fireball》 like a guided missile. I failed, though.
　Is it like this for a husband who came home drunk after drinking and getting angry at his wife? You're already completely out of your ass!
　It's not like I'm going to be a "shut up and follow me" kind of husband and wife. A lot of times when Yumina and her friends get angry, it's because they're thinking of me, so I can't argue with them. My fiancé and I get along well with each other, and we don't have a single fight, and if I complain about this, I'll be punished for it.

'Anyway, from now on, if it's going to be late, call me. I'll do as much as I can. Do you understand?
There's a lot of...

　Then, one by one, I was given a sermon, and it was nearly dawn when I was released and sank into bed. They promised me all sorts of things, but I had to do it because I deserved it.
　 We are completely in control. But I'll have to accept this, too.
　Oh, I'm so sleepy. Ugh.




　When I woke up, the first thing I did was to go and report to Mr. Kosaka about what happened yesterday. He said he would immediately come up with a draft based on the laws of Belfast, to some extent. In this world, as in the Edo period, the second lightest punishment after death penalty is banishment, which in the Edo period would be island exile.
　I heard that in other countries, forced labor is punished in mines and so on, but unfortunately, we don't have any mines in our country.
　If the death penalty is abolished, various inconveniences are sure to come up. It would be a problem if they were to be deported and cause trouble in other countries. Is it better to put people on death row?
　In that sense, the collar of enslavement is probably the right magic tool, an artifact, to punish criminals. As long as it's properly fitted only to felons, though. I wonder if it can't be modified.
　At any rate, if the punishment is in line with Belfast's, it looks like the slaver Javert will be put to death. It's not surprising, considering what he's done so far.
　The question is what to do with the other sailors and slaves. You can have the essence of the slaves examined by Yumina's magical eye, and if there is no problem, we can remove their collars.
　Anyway, I went out of town and headed to the Silver Moon Inn. I was worried about the adventurers I rescued yesterday. I hope they don't have some kind of trauma.
　When I arrived at the Silver Moon, I talked to the captured adventurers, and I was relieved to hear that all ten of them will continue to be adventurers. From now on, I want you to explore carefully and carefully. There is no hurry. You just need to get stronger slowly.
　When they heard that their cards would be reissued, everyone immediately headed to the guild.
　Since we hadn't had breakfast (because we slept until nearly noon), we decided to have lunch here. I invited Rop and the other four to join us.
　At first they were reluctant to join us, but after I quickly ordered lunch for five people from Mika, they sat down with me, though they were a bit apprehensive.

I didn't know there were dungeons in your village," she said.
It's not much of a dungeon. It's more like a small cave. But I'm sure they were ruins of some kind. I've been going in there since I was a kid, playing adventure.

　I thought we were talking about adventure, but isn't that dangerous for kids alone? There could be wolves or something living in there.

We encountered wolves and big bats a few times, but the four of us fought them off and so on. So I had a bit of confidence in myself, but.... But after coming here, I realized how naive we were.

　A frustrated swordsman, Fran, tells me so. She's right, it's a lot different for a wolf or something like that to be a goblin or kobold. And they'll be working together with tools, too. But the fact that Rop and Fran were dealing with a rotten, rank-blue opponent with the two of them, I think they're promising in their own way, don't you think, these kids.

''Well, don't take it easy and start with what we can do. You have to learn from your mistakes and do what you can do within your ability. Also, don't believe in good stories. A good story has an upside, a beautiful flower has a thorn in its side, and nothing costs more than free money.

　The four of them nodded divinely. Well, I guess I've learned my lesson this time. I should have thought about why the other adventurers were telling me that there was a good hunting ground. Like, what's the benefit to the other side of the world of teaching it to me when I'm making less money for myself. I don't want to be too suspicious of people.

Well, Your Majesty. So, about this boy...
Hmm?

　Aeon, the wizard, held out the white hatchet mouse I had summoned to him in his hand. Oh, I forgot.
　Hmm, I'm still worried about these kids. You'll have to follow this guy. As I recall, it's a monster monster called a snow rat, and it's supposed to be quite strong in a group, but it just looks like a house mouse.
　We don't even know if there are any mice in this world.
　It seems to have a sense of danger, and if it's with you, it can prevent you from being taken by surprise, or it can sense danger and run away.

"I'll leave the boy in your care. It's a good idea to keep him in your care, he's smart enough to see the danger, and he can help us in our search. Also, he will be my contact person in case of any problems.

　Aeon smiled and nodded at my words. Apparently, he liked this guy. Well, as long as you get along with him. I don't want you to get in touch with me too easily, though.
　After we finished eating, we separated from the four of us. The snowmouse was on top of Aeon's head and waved at me. He's really smart, isn't he....
　Come to think of it, there was one thing about the conversation we had earlier that bothered me. The cave that the four of us were talking about used to enter and play in when we were children. I have a feeling that the ruins there resemble those of Babylon.
　I'm not sure if they came from a village called Python in Regulus or something like that. Checking the map, it's not that far. I had no idea they were this close.... Did the birds that I released to search for them miss it?
　Oh, maybe they couldn't see into the cave because they had bird's eye sight? No, but I heard that was a mistake. I heard that most birds can see at night as well as humans do. It's just that they don't move at night because they can't find food.
　So I guess it was just an oversight. Anyway, I'll understand if I go there.
　I was about to take off on a "fly" immediately, but before I did, I sent a telepathic message to Amber and asked her to give a message to everyone. I just got pissed off yesterday, you know. I'm hoping that I won't have to preach two days in a row.
　Well, let's go.