We welcomed Leticia-san into our party.
Right after that, we were about to head to the Adventurer's Guild, but a visitor arrived at the House Fortis estate.
"Oh my, I never expected to run into you in a place like this."
"O-Olivia-san!?"
The guest who had arrived was none other than my master, Olivia-san.
Seeing our exchange, the members of House Fortis wore puzzled expressions.
Philia already knew about my connection to Olivia-san from what I had told her. Because of that, she looked a little tense.
"Olivia-san, this is a great opportunity, so let me introduce her. This is my party member, Philia."
"N-Nice to meet you, I'm Philia."
"Fufu, this is the first time we've spoken like this, isn't it? I'm Olivia, Erik-kun's master. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"Y-Yes! The pleasure is all mine!"
Olivia-san and Philia finished exchanging their greetings.
"And this is our provisional party member, Leticia-san."
"My, Leticia-chan joined as a new member?"
"Olivia-san, it has been a long time. I was truly surprised to learn that Erik-kun's master was you, of all people."
"Fufu, the royal capital is surprisingly small, isn't it~?"
Olivia-san seemed to already be acquainted with House Fortis, speaking casually with Leticia-san.
"So, Olivia-chan, did you come because you have some business with us?"
It seemed Belinda-san was close enough with Olivia-san to address her with "-chan." As I was pondering that, Olivia-san let out a troubled sigh.
"Actually, it's a bit of a predicament... or rather, I've been saddled with a troublesome favor."
"My, how rare. What could have happened for you to get tangled up in something so bothersome, Olivia-chan?"
"I owed someone a favor from before, so I'm doing this to repay it. I needed to consult with Belinda-san about it, which is why I sent a letter this morning."
After saying that, Olivia-san explained the situation causing her grief, despite Philia and me being present. Apparently, an acquaintance had asked her to find someone worthy of being a master.
"...Hm?"
"Wait, isn't that...?"
Philia and I reacted immediately upon hearing Olivia-san's explanation. Noticing our strange reaction, Olivia-san looked over at us.
"What's the matter?"
"No, well... is the person who asked you this favor, by any chance, Roan-san?"
"Yes, it's Roan from House of Strict, but... could it be that you two know him?"
"We do know him. Though it's a bit of a curious connection."
I then explained our relationship with Roan-san to Olivia-san.
"Is that so? Goodness, it really is a small world after all."
"I think so too. By the way, Olivia-san, weren't you asked to become Alan's master yourself?"
"I was. But I don't have any need for that sort of thing, so I turned him down. Then Roan asked if I could help find one instead. I figured Belinda-san has plenty of connections in the royal capital... and maybe even House Fortis itself could be a candidate for a master, so I came by to talk."
Olivia-san said, turning her gaze toward the members of House Fortis.
"A candidate for a master? What is this about?"
"The truth is, a boy who just underwent the ceremony received [Knight of the Covenant] and is searching for a master. I came today hoping to introduce House Fortis as a candidate."
"A [Knight of the Covenant]? Now that is a rare special skill."
When Belinda-san said that, Vorgus-san nodded in agreement.
"However, doesn't that special skill place heavy importance on the boy's own feelings?"
"Indeed it does. That's why they need to meet first, and if he isn't drawn to them from the bottom of his heart, we'll have to keep looking, but..."
"That's fine by me. Just meeting him is simple enough, and if the child with [Knight of the Covenant] accepts one of us as their master, that would be wonderful in its own right. You're fine with that too, aren't you, dear?"
"Yeah, but it's a kid coming, right? In that case, wouldn't it be better if I weren't around?"
Vorgus-san said in a somewhat dispirited tone.
"I think you'll be fine. Alan is that Roan-san's younger brother, after all."
"Roan-kun's name was brought up earlier, but to think he's Roan-kun's younger brother. In that case, I'm looking forward to meeting him."
Belinda-san smiled warmly at Philia's reassurance. Seeing that, Olivia-san smiled as well.
"I'm glad to hear that. I thought it would be a hassle for House Fortis to arrange a different day, so I brought him along in the carriage. Would it be alright if I went and called him in now?"
"...Olivia-chan, you really want to get this matter resolved quickly, don't you?"
"I want to repay my debt to Roan as soon as possible. Belinda-san, is that alright with you?"
"Fufu, of course. Go ahead and bring him in."
With Belinda-san's permission, Olivia-san stepped out of the room to fetch Alan and the others.