The sun went down in the blink of an eye.
　When I arrived at the town of Pehoe, it was already dark, and I was so tired that I went into a random inn to get something to eat, took a bath, and went to bed quickly.


　The next morning, it was about 9:30 a.m. when I heard a knock on my room. I was awakened by a knock on my room.

It's a good idea to be able to have a good time with them.

　One tongue lashing, he pulled himself off the bed and got up to respond by opening the door.

　There stood a handsome man of medium height and medium build, dressed tightly in a butler's uniform.

''Second-sama, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm the butler of the First Test family. Henceforth, I hope you will be familiar with me.

　A splendid bow. Her short, set blonde hair swayed smoothly. A faintly good smell of perfume wafted through the air. When Cubero looks up, his blue eyes pierce me. It's just like a martial artist's eyes. I'm not just a guy," he said.

　...... Well, I get it anyway. It's a good thing that you're our butler. But there was one word I couldn't miss.

"Wait a minute, when did we become first-testers?
Lady Yukari has instructed me to identify myself as such.
"Seriously?

　I'm not sure if I've heard of it or not: ...... After all, I've been getting laid for four months now, so my memory is a bit hazy.

　Hmm?　So, you see. "Second First Test" is going to be my official name. Oh, yeah. I see. Hmm, not bad.

What are you doing here, by the way?
Yes. I'm here to pick you up.
The butler?
"I'll go anywhere for the Second Master. By the way, I'm both Butler and Valet, the Second's personal attendant.
Wow.

　I get the schoolboy impression that I'm busy .......

　Oh no, I'm too sleepy to think straight. I'd like to sleep some more. But we have time to check out, so what should we do?

I'm sorry to wake you up when you're tired. I have spoken to the innkeeper and it is all right to take a rest for a while longer. Here are some cold drinks. Breakfast will be ready for you when you wake up. Would you like to take it in your room?
'What?　Yeah, yeah.
"Left-handedness, sir? If so, I'll bring it to you when it's ready, so please make yourself at ease until then. Now if you'll excuse me.
Oh, yes.

　...... You're very clever, Cubero. He was in his early 20's by the looks of it. But this attention to detail, this attention to detail, was like a skilled hand. What kind of training do you have to do to get like this in 4 months?

　Whoa, the tea is cold and delicious. I'm not sure, but it must be made with good leaves. It smells vaguely high-class.

Good night.

　I greeted Cubero, who would be outside the door, so that he could hear me, and I fell asleep twice, feeling very good.




　Before noon. Just as I was beginning to think it was time to get up, there was a knock at the door. Seriously. Isn't he an esper?

　I opened the door and sure enough, it was Cubero. The breakfast and lunch he brought was moderately hearty and delicious. I invited him to eat with me, but Cubero seemed to have already eaten, and he politely declined.


'Oops, check out then,'
I just finished.
Okay. I'll take Seven Stay O'
Don't worry, I've got my man with me.
That's very helpful. Then I'll have a little snack on the way home.
Today we're serving chocolate cake and hot coffee.
'Well ......, ah, all of a sudden I feel like going home to play cards with you.
'I'm honoured. I have an unopened copy for you.
............

　This guy is amazing. This guy is so professional. Esper and now you've got a superhuman being on top of a human being.

"Way to go, Cubero!
That's very kind of you, sir.

　I compliment him and he lowers his head with a refined motion. As I left the room, he followed quietly behind me at an angle. I get into the carriage parked in front of the inn and give a few instructions to the two men, who are probably my men, before sitting down across from me.

　The carriage departs quietly. Surprisingly, the shaking and noise was only half of what I expected. It must be quite an expensive carriage.

　Cubero sat up straight in a pin and looked at me with a somewhat pretentious look on his face. When he noticed my gaze, he smiled and said, "How can I help you? He asked, "What can I do for you? 'No, nothing,' he replied, and Cubero bowed, 'If there's anything I can do for you, please let me know at any time.


　Hmmm, shrewd. I've been sloppy ...... but something is wrong. From the moment I saw you this morning, it's been happening.

　I'm not sure what's so funny, but I have a vague feeling that it's not quite right.

　I'm not sure what this is. I don't know if it's unbalanced or unsettled. Hmmm ......?

　No, no, I don't know. Anyway, we've got four hours to get to King's Landing, so let's just stare at this thing to pass the time and find out what the discomfort is.

"......?"?

　I ignored the bewildered Cubero and observed every inch of his body. If the world were the world, I'd be full of power harassment, s*xual harassment, and drudgery, but this guy is my slave, so he won't be able to sue me for it. However, I feel sorry for him if he stresses out for too long, so I'll let him do it in moderation.

　............ hmm?　Wait. Stress?

　I suddenly thought about it and took a closer look at Cubero's mouth and hands.

　Oh ...... it was just as I thought it would be. I'm not going to be the only one who's been in this situation.

　--I'm sure you'll be able to find out what's going on. When did it start? Since this morning. Why on earth not? It's the first day, that's why.

　But he doesn't blame it on me. I'm just going to do the best job I can, and I'm trying to keep my husband in suspense, and I'm trying to drink up all the tension.

　It's mean. It's not something you can consciously stop being nervous about, but this guy is suppressing it to the limit with willpower alone.

　Hahaha!　Good guts!

Hahahahaha!
What do you want?
Cubero, you're good. You're my kind of guy.
You like ......?

　Huh?　I think I chose the wrong word.

"Wait. Wait, that's not what I meant. I mean I like it.
That would be very much appreciated, sir.
'Well, don't get so stiff. Ah, ...... yeah, let's play cards.
'Yes. I'm awed.

　If you look closely, his movements are a little jerky. But he can still get the job done, this guy must be good-looking. It's still a bit awkward, but he'll get used to it. I'm looking forward to the time when my nerves are completely relaxed.

　Cubero, the butler and attendant, huh? Somehow I feel like we're going to be friends for a long time. I'd like to be on friendly terms with him if I can.

　I took the card from Cubero and opened my mouth as I cut the seal and shuffled it open.

I'm sure you have a terrible past anyway. If you have even the slightest doubt, you need to be prepared to talk to me about it.
......!
I'll figure it out.

　If I could only do something about it-- I said that with a smile of leisure. It's a very irresponsible comment that came out unintentionally because of the fact that I'm getting fired up from taming Anko.

　I just wanted to look good for the occasion. In front of this guy, who showed his guts.

　Cubero's eyes widened and showed a dumbfounded look ...... and immediately afterwards, he bowed his head with a gabari. Below the knee. To the limit.

I will never forget those words from Second-sama, this cubero will never forget them.

　And then he raises his body a little, only to raise his face to meet my eyes. I could even feel the heat in his powerful eyes, as if he was looking at me with the eyes of a man ready to make up his mind.

"Tonight, when you've gone to bed. I would like to visit you for a consultation.
...... tonight. Okay.

　For a moment, he wondered if he had misunderstood something strange, but he changed his mind when he looked into Cubero's eyes. He had just a few tears in the corner of his eyes.

　A man who would stifle his nervousness with willpower, that is. There is no reason why a man who must be determined not to cry can't cry. And what does that mean? I guess I'll have to make up my mind by the end of the night.

"Well, let's play cards. How about some speed?

　I pretended not to notice the tears and handed out cards for two people.

'Supi...... sorry, what?'
Haha, I'll tell you.
I'm sorely disappointed.

　Then we mindlessly continued to play cards with Cubero until we reached King's Landing.
　It was pretty fun. That's all.




　Finally, we returned home. However, I was led to a mansion by Vanilla Lake in the southwest of the city. I was a little less impressed.

　Oh yeah, I remembered. Apparently, they adopted my idea of moving the mansions to different seasons. Indeed, the contrast between the red and yellow foliage of the trees and the clear blue of Vanilla Lake was beautiful, like a landscape painting. I must say, it was a good choice.

"Welcome home, master.
I'm home, Yukari. It's autumn in here--oh.

　Yukari greeted me, and she was so impressed that she hugged me. I was a bit surprised, so I was amused.
　We were hugging each other for a while, and then Yukari opened her mouth first.

Please forgive me for my poor behavior. I'm ...... that I'm, well, relieved. I have a lot to tell you, but I'm sorry, I'm going to stay ...... for a while longer.

　Even though we'd been in regular contact while I was gone, I'd let Yukari take care of everything at home for four months. I'm sure she was relieved to see me. I stroked the back of Yukari's head as gently as possible as she nuzzled her face into my chest in apology and gratitude.

'...... Huh. I'm sorry, Master.

　About five minutes later, Yukari let go of my body and she was back to the usual cold-hearted Yukari I knew her to be. She didn't look at me, perhaps a little embarrassed.

''Well then, let's get right to the meeting to discuss the various issues that have accumulated--''
Sendoff!
"Zak!

　A strange voice came out when Eco, who was rushing in at full speed, hit him in the side of his stomach. It wasn't like the sound of something stabbing him. But it was quite a tackle. Now this guy is growing up.

'Sendo!　Welcome back!　World!　Welcome back!

　Eco buzzes her tail as she calls my name and rubs her body around my waist. When I put my hand out, she bounces around. If you pet its head or neck, it purring sweetly. He's supposed to be a cat beast, but he's totally a dog at the moment.

'Oh, hello, hello. I'm home. Hmm?　Eco, have you grown up a little taller?
I don't know!
'I don't know about that. By the way, that's an imitation of Sylvia, isn't it?　You'd better not.

What do you mean?

　Whoa, rumor has it that he himself has appeared.

　Sylvia is walking slowly towards me with an angry face. But the closer she came to me, the more her face gradually turned into a smile. I'm not sure I'll ever be able to control the joy that surrounds me.

...... You look good, Second-dono. I feel like a loss for worrying about you.
You've changed your tune. I'm looking forward to the next time I'm in a dungeon.
Fool, I'm more excited about this than you are.
Oops, that's one for you.

　They laughed at each other, folded their hands in a crush, and then pulled together and hugged. Sylvia and I hadn't had this kind of skin-to-skin contact very often. But the atmosphere was so comfortable that I couldn't help but do so.

　When we let go of each other's bodies, Sylvia said, "A meeting before dinner? I said with an embarrassed laugh. 'Yes. 'We'll be busy,' continued Yukari. Eco was just smiling.

　Then I suddenly remembered.

'Come to think of it, I'd better introduce you all. I've got one more mate.'


...... ho.
"Heh. ......
?

　............ Huh?　The atmosphere that was so harmonious just a few minutes ago has suddenly turned into a press conference to explain the alleged affair.

Mr. Second. You're not going to make a move on me, are you?
Master. In the meantime, please bring the woman here. We'll talk afterwards.

　What is he so angry about, he's going to be confronted by two people with an egregious sword fight. I wonder what Sylvia's reaction would be if I told her that I didn't hit on her, but made her give in with physical language. I mean, how do you know it's a woman?

Wait, wait, wait, wait. All right. I'll call you.

　I made them back down and summoned only Anko with the 《Demon Summoning》. Angolmore is currently under house arrest.


''Lord, I'm here for you.

　Anko emerged from the darkness along with a pitch black shadow.

　Sylvia and Yukari, who had been breathing hard, were intimidated by the dark aura, "d*mn, it's huge! You lost ......! I'm muttering to myself, "I'm scared. I'm scared, I'm scared, but I feel like I'm out of alignment somehow.

'Huh?　These men are ...... ugh.

　On the other hand, Anko also muttered something and thrust her right hand forward with a swoosh.

　...... hmm?　What the hell are you going to do: ----!



No!


　--Just in time.

　I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make it work. I'm not going to be able to say that I'm not going to be able to duck.

　The three of them are stunned. But they soon realized that. My own HP is now 1.

　I grabbed Anko's hair, which was about to be tossed into the air, and pulled her in front of me with a guiding hand.

'Anko, you, what are you doing without my permission?'

'Oh, Aha! ...... Lord, I just want to kill .......'


　...... surprised. Anko was shaking. It's just that I'm not going to be able to get it right. It's a good thing that you're able to have a good time with them.

You're not going to be able to get your hands on any of them.

　Sylvia opens her mouth as she finishes drinking the immediate recovery potion. A look of astonishment, agitation, confusion, and fear. It was the same for both Yukari and Eco. That's right, they were almost killed in an instant. Everyone is scared.

'You shouldn't have killed it, should you? Oh, my God, what a mess. Oh, I'm sorry Lord. Anko will be remorseful. I will never again do anything of my own accord. I will do whatever the Lord tells me to do. I will definitely be helpful. So please forgive me. Please forgive me. ......

　Anko apologizes. He lowers his head and clings to me. Probably because she doesn't want me to hate her. You're going to do everything you can to change yourself so that I don't abandon you.

　But that's not the point. What's wrong with you is your value system of killing people just to get by.

　To Anko, who was born in the Isolois Underground Great Library and spent hundreds of years of solitude in its darkness, that must be natural. She ate the darkness as if she were breathing, dissolved into the shadows, wore the darkness, and killed everything in her life. Perhaps that was the only way she could play.

　It's ....... How to be careful. How do I make it right? How do I make it right? I don't know what to do.


"From now on, you are not free to do anything without my permission. You want to do something, you'll have to get permission from me first. Be absolutely thorough. Then we'll talk.
"~~~~!

　I figured it out for the moment and gave Anko a ruthless order.

　For some reason, Anko looked at me with a debauched look on her face and sat there and nodded coyly. I don't know why, but she clearly looks happy. And she's been looking at me the whole time without saying a word. Ah, so he's following orders in a disciplined manner.

'You may speak.
'Aha! Lord. How generous is your treatment of a fool like me. Give me a more severe punishment until this foolish head can understand. Put a collar of thorns on it and discipline it. If you say that I am no longer useful, then finally use your hand to make me ......
"Sorry, ......, but we're going to be a little busy. Stand by for a while. See you later.

　I submitted a letter to the authorities and then repatriated him. It's a little heartbreaking.

　Ah, ...... one more headache for me. I don't know what to do about it .......

　We can "operate" it well enough as it is, but I don't think it's a good idea. But I don't think it's a good idea to keep this up. I'm sure there will be a breakdown somewhere. I'm sure that the collapse of the system will happen again. Hmm, that's something I want to avoid .......


"Master. What the hell was that ......?

　Even at a time like this, Yukari-san is calm and collected. She has already regained her composure and is trying to analyze it in her own way.

"The dark wolf ...... is an A-grade boss-ranked demon that I spent four months taming. His name is Anko.
Isn't ...... too strong?
I didn't give it half the effort.

　Yukari and Silvia both exclaimed.
　The very thing, a monster - such a guy became their friend. Normally, it should be reliable, but for the life of me, I couldn't accept it with a straightforward expression. Because, that guy just now tried to kill me. That's just what it is.

"I'm sorry. I'll tell you more about it later.
'Yes, sir. I will go and prepare for the meeting. The meeting will begin in an hour.

　Saying that, Yukari climbs the stairs to the second floor. I can tell she's paying attention to me and dares to say something clerical. I can't find the words to call her, and I'm staring blankly at her buttocks, hidden by her long skirt, when Sylvia slaps me on the back from behind.

'Yukari says so, but I'm sure it won't be a meeting today. You'll end up listening to Lord Second's whining while he was away. You'd better be prepared for that.

　With a flutter of her hand, Sylvia also went upstairs. It was obvious that she was showing her strength by saying "don't worry about it" even though she must have been scared.

　Aha ...... I'm surrounded by gutsy guys.

Sorry, Eco.
Nope.

　I apologized to Eco, who came up next to me, and she took my hand and said, "Let's play," and led me to her room.

　She showed me all sorts of things in the room, like the remains of a cracked coconut, a beautiful rock she'd picked up by the lake, a comfortable cushion to sleep on, and so on.

　So I spent the day playing with Eco until the meeting, listening to Yukari complain endlessly at the meeting, and drinking and laughing with Sylvia at dinner. The day I made my return ended up being no different than it was back then.

　...... Everyone seems to have forgiven me for being a bit rough around the edges, although I don't particularly mention it. I couldn't help but feel a chill in my chest.

　We still haven't fundamentally solved Anko's problem. But it's not a simple problem that can be dealt with in a hurry. I learned in a past life that it's important to switch things up. We decided that we would discuss it when we all gathered at the right time and not think too much about it the rest of the time.

　More importantly, there are things that need to be prioritized now. Yes, I can't go to bed yet. I'm prepared to wait for "the man" to arrive, using a state recovery potion to cover up the sleepiness that assails me.



　...... appeared a little after midnight.

　The steward bowed deeply and said, "Please come with me," as he led me to the shore of Lake Vanilla.

　There was no sign of people anywhere. All I could hear was the sound of waves coming in and out, and the sound of gravel being trampled and scraped against each other.

　Cubero walked in front of me for a moment, then turned around and quietly removed his white gloves.

　I was ready to be unfazed by anything that came my way. Hence, I was able to observe the scene with awful composure.

　The moonlight shone on us. The faintest glimpse of Cubero's expression, for a moment, is filled with grief and then ...... changes.


''I would like you to meet with me.