Nere is early in the morning.
　She slipped out of bed and started to change her clothes just as the sky was beginning to turn white, before the sun had risen.

　In bed, the little twins, who have not yet returned from dreamland, are happily sleeping.
　It's still too early to wake the twins.

　In order not to make any noise, Nere changes into the simple, ornate clothes Aldis had bought her.
　The clothes she was wearing when she was imitating a mercenary would not be suitable for doing housework.
　Once dressed, Nere quietly left the room and headed for the kitchen so as not to wake the twins.

　Nere and the young twin girls are the only ones in the house.
　Even if Nere overslept, no one would blame her if she enjoyed sleeping until the sun came up.

　But that doesn't mean he couldn't do something like that.
　It is the duty of the servants to protect the house in the absence of the Lord.
　Then you must work with all your might.

　First of all, in order to protect the twins, who have not yet awakened from their sleep, I set up a ward around the house.
　It's difficult to maintain it for a long time, but we can at least keep them safe while they look around the area.

　Nere confirmed the feel of the dagger hidden in his pocket and proceeded into the forest with a light step, as if he were taking a morning walk.
　While continuing to run lightly, he chased away every one of the beasts that seemed to cause the twins harm.

　Whenever they found a carnivorous beast, they would threaten it with a less powerful attack magic and make it flee in the opposite direction of the house.
　Some of the beasts were unable to measure Nere's strength and recklessly confronted him, but he had no mercy against them.
　You can find a number of different types of shoes that you can use to help you get the best results.

　The sight of them running through their Alice blue hair is reminiscent of the refreshing morning breeze.
　But to the beasts that live in the forest, it is a wind that brings death.
　It might be rephrased as the sickle wielded by the god of death.

''Hm. ....... That's a lot less.''

　No matter how unintelligent the beasts were, they had begun to instinctively recognize this place as a dangerous place after repeating it over and over again.
　Compared to when they started living in the forest, the number of carnivorous beasts that came close to their homes had clearly decreased.

　On the other hand, as the danger of being preyed upon by carnivores had decreased, the number of docile herbivores had increased.
　A safe zone suddenly appeared in the middle of the dangerous forest. It must be an oasis spot in the desert for the herbivores.

　The area where Nere is keeping the carnivores out is only a small part of the forest.
　If she was serious, she could turn the entire forest into a herbivore's paradise, but what Nere needs is to ensure the safety of the twins, not to change the forest's ecosystem.
　Therefore, only a few herbivores were able to enjoy the benefits of the safety spot.

　Of course, even though it was safer than other areas, it didn't necessarily mean that they would be able to live out their natural lives.
　Even if they were able to escape the carnivores' tusks, there would still be turf wars between the herbivores and their feeding grounds.

　In addition, there was still the possibility of being hunted by Nere, the only predator in this safe zone.
　That day's victims were two small rabbits covered in brown fur.
　They were the unlucky ones who had been chosen to be Nere and his friends' bread and butter.

　After 30 minutes of patrolling the area, Nere returns home with the prey he hunted for his meal.
　He swept off the dust from his clothes with his magic wind and headed straight for the kitchen.

　When you have dealt with your prey, you use water magic to wash away the blood on your hands and tools, and cool the meat with magic to prevent it from going bad.
　At the same time, he would make sure that the air flow was controlled and ventilated to prevent the smell of blood from filling the house.
　As you start to prepare your breakfast, Nere is aware of the light footsteps approaching you.

''Nayle, oh-hoo-yo!''

　The twins came into the kitchen, rubbing their sleepy noggins.

'Aldis is back?

　Following the morning greetings, the twins confirm Aldis' return. This had become a tradition every morning.

'The Lord has not yet returned,'

Aldis, when are you coming back?

'I don't know. It's up to the Lord to decide when you'll be back. Now, go wash your face quickly, because breakfast will be ready soon.

　The twins look sad when they hear Nere's answer.
　However, they know there's no point in bemoaning the fact that Aldis isn't there.
　They obeyed the order and moved to the water drawer and began to wash their faces.

　In the meantime, Nere quickly prepared breakfast.
　I reheated the soup I had prepared, lightly roasted the bread I had baked yesterday with fire magic, washed the leafy vegetables I had just harvested from the garden with water magic, tore them off with my hands and sprinkled them with a dash of salt.
　It wasn't a sumptuous meal by any means, but it was enough to energize him for the morning.

　If Nehle had his way, he could put together a dish that would have made a nobleman's table.
　But since the master of the house has no desire for extravagant meals, he has made a habit of sticking to a modest menu.

Bread and pork.

Delicious.

　The twins didn't complain about the meal, which was almost exactly the same as the day before, but they smiled and ate their bread.
　Fortunately, the twins didn't have any likes or dislikes, and they ate everything served to them without leaving anything behind.

　The honesty of not saying anything selfish and selfish is probably due to the painful past that has been ingrained in their bodies.
　It's a good idea to have a good time with them.
　But he is aware of the practice of abhorring twins, and knows that it is a ridiculous practice.

"How much time passes, does it not change the stupidity of mankind one bit: ......

　Letting out a murmur so small that it may or may not be said aloud, Nere shakes his head.

　It is not Nere's role to lament the folly of others, much less guide them.
　She only does her mission solemnly.

''Good day!

Thanks for the food!

　When the twins had eaten all their breakfast, Nele called out to them as usual.

Take the dishes to the washing station and do what you want until noon. But you must not leave the garden and go into the forest without permission.

Yes!

Okay!

　The twins responded cheerfully and took the dishes to the washing station and began to discuss what they would do to play together.

What do you want to do today?

Liana and her friends want to play on the swings.

Yeah. Okay, then. We'll swing on the pontoon.

Which one of you will ride first?

Do you want a ride?

Do you think you can do this with me?

Sounds interesting!

Let's go, let's go!

　They held hands and cackled as they walked out into the garden.

　The goal was the small swing that Nele had built five days ago.
　For the twins who couldn't get out of the garden, Nere had made some playthings for them to play on in the empty space.
　In the past ten days alone, swings, slides, seesaws and jumping boxes have been added to the garden.
　The yard, which had been quite spacious when we first built the house, was now taken over by the playground equipment and looked cramped, even cramped.

'Well, let's get this over with, shall we?

　Nere cleans up the dishes he used for breakfast from the table, then quickly finishes washing up and begins to clean the room.

　Cleaning doesn't mean sweeping with a broom or wiping with a rag. By applying the magic of wind and water, he collects dust and dirt without even touching it.
　It would have taken me more than half a day to clean the room by hand, but after I finished in 30 minutes, I started washing my clothes.

　First, he filled a large, deep-bottomed vat with water and added the dirt remover Aldis had bought from King's Landing.
　Then he threw the dirty clothes into the vat and began to move the water magically.
　A current of water spirals inside the vat and the clothes begin to dance in the water as if they were riding on the current.

Hmm. So this is it.

　After washing up in not much time, Nayle went to a sunny spot to put up a rope and quickly hung up her clothes.
　Then, after checking on the twins playing happily on the swing, she went into the house to prepare the food for lunch.

　This is how the day passed for Nere and the twins.

　After finishing the housework, Nere sat down on a bench he had made in the garden and watched the twins frolicking.

It's not a bad idea to have a leisurely time like this once in a while.

　I would like to follow the Lord if I could.
　But the Lord is young and has a long way to go. There is no problem in taking it easy for a couple of years.

'Huh. What will the others say when they hear it: ......

　Nere murmured with an unusually wry expression.

'Nere!　Nere!

Look, look, look!

　I turned my gaze to the energetic call and saw the twins swinging on the swing, their long, platinum blonde hair swinging.
　Their windswept hair clung to their faces.
　Seeing the twins' slightly annoyed expressions, Nere had an epiphany.

"Come to think of it, I've never cut my hair ......

　Nere brought a chair and scissors out of the house and moved to the middle of the yard and called the twins over.

'Did you call for me?'

Is Nere playing too?

　The twins came in breathless, their hair stuck to their necks and cheeks with sweat.

I'm sure your hair has grown a lot. I think it's time to cut it off ......, would you guys prefer to keep your hair long?

'Hmm?　Hair?

'Um, you know, the shorter the better for Liana and her friends.

Well, we'll cut it short for Filia and the others!

　Neither of them seemed to be particular about the length of their hair, opting for a shortcut that wouldn't get in the way when moving around.

　Now that they've decided on it, they decided to cut it quickly, so Nere grabbed a pair of scissors and decided to cut the twins' hair.
　With wind magic, there is no need to have scissors, but for Nere, this is a kind of distraction.
　While conversing with the twins, he slowly put the scissors into the twins' hair, as if enjoying the conversation itself.

　The small sound of snapping hair, the twins' conversation, and the rustle of the trees swaying in the wind. The occasional chirping of birds interrupting them gives me the illusion that we are the only ones separated from the flow of time.

It's over. Now it's your turn.

Something is stinging.

　He finished cutting Filia's hair and now sat Liana in a chair.

''Is it okay for Liana to have her hair the same length as Filia's?''

'Yes!　Liana and the others are just as good as Filia!

　In the end, Liana chose the same length as Filia.
　Slowly, she finished cutting Liana's hair when the sun had fully risen.

'That's good. Now, let's get to lunch, shall we?

Is Nere good?

Do you cut your hair, Nele?

　The twins ask Nayle, who is about to pick up a chair and head back to the house.

'Me?　I don't need--

Then Nere will be cut by Filia and her friends!

Liana, you're cutting Nele's hair.

　In return, the twins speak up.

'M....... Are you guys going to cut my hair ......?

　It's a good idea to be able to have a good idea of what to expect.

I've been using the scissors themselves on a regular basis ....... Everything is experience, or .......

　I'm sure both of them are well aware of the danger of knives.
　You wouldn't stick a pair of scissors in your neck just for fun. There is no danger if you deploy a thin physical barrier along the skin just in case.
　Nere judged that, handed the scissors to Filia and sat down on the ground with his knees folded.

'Come on, we're ready. You just need to cut the tip a little bit. Take care not to hurt yourself.'

　At Nere's signal, Filia ran the scissors through her hair.
　Immediately, a small chop-chop-chop sound came into Nere's ears.
　It seems that Filia is cutting Alice Blue's hair in a fearful manner.

　Strange sounds that don't exist in nature and the sounds of nature flooding the forest. Why is it that the harmony of these sounds, which we would never have encountered without the intervention of human beings, is strangely soothing?
　Nere closes his eyes with a smile as he thinks about this trivial matter.

　Just then, Nere sensed the presence of a human being walking straight through the forest. Someone is approaching towards the house.
　But Nere didn't move.
　The presence was someone she knew well, and she knew it was someone who would not cause them any harm.

　Eventually, a dark-haired boy emerged from the trees, dressed in wisteria-colored robes and carrying three swords at his waist. Wrapped around his forehead is a violet-colored cloth. The excess cloth hanging down from the knot at the back of his head was swaying in the wind.

''What's that, more stuff again?''

Safe return. That's good, my Lord.

　The squire, sitting in the garden, smiles softly at the Lord (Aruji), who is smiling at the playground equipment in the garden.

'Ah!　It's Aldis!

Welcome home!　Aldis!

　The twins, noticing the landlord's return, squealed with joy.

　It was a disaster, and Filia's hand, which had been moving the scissors carefully until then, went crazy.
　With a loud jokiri, the blades of the scissors are closed with a loud sound.
　Following that, with a potluck, something coherent fell to the ground and made a sound.

'Ah ......'

Oh, .......

Oh, .......

　All three of them, except Nere, open their mouths at the same time and utter indescribable sounds.

　Six eyes are focused on a single point.
　A piece of long hair that had stretched past her shoulders and straight to her back was busted off in the middle, and in its place was a single Alice Blue object, unceremoniously exposing its figure on the ground.