The next morning.
"Ryoma-kun, what are your plans for the day?"
The question was asked casually over breakfast. My answer was already prepared.
"I’m heading to the Adventurer Guild to look for house demolition work."
"House demolition? Working is all well and good, but why that specifically?"
The whole thing had started during the meeting last night.
Since it was my first time attending, the session began by reviewing the decisions already made and checking the progress of various tasks. Once I had a general grasp of the situation...
"I have a proposal," the groom, Hughes, spoke up.
He made a suggestion to the entire group and requested my help in constructing a portion of the wedding venue.
"The venue is the backyard, and the ceremony is elf-style, right? The maids should be able to handle the preparations on their own," Madam had noted.
"It will be an elf-style ceremony, but we’re going to build a human-style church right in the center of the venue."
"...What do you mean by that?"
Last night, when he first said it, everyone had the same "What is he talking about all of a sudden?" look on their faces. I couldn't help but let out a wry smile as I recalled the scene.
To explain this, I should first clarify the styles and characteristics of the wedding ceremonies in this world.
"First, regarding the human-style wedding, to put it simply, it involves going to a church and making a vow before relatives, friends, and a member of the clergy, right? Depending on one's finances, the reception is usually held separately from the ceremony."
I waited for Serge and Pioro, who were seated with the Duke and Madam, to nod before continuing.
"In contrast, for an elf-style wedding, a stage is set up in a suitable square, with tables and food arranged all around it. An elder or someone of high status and responsibility acts as a substitute for the clergy to conduct the ceremony. Declaring the marriage before relatives and friends is the same, but afterward, everyone there shares the food and dives straight into a banquet."
Apparently, the number of elves living in human cities was increasing, but in the old days, elves formed small settlements in nature and lived as a single village unit. In such an environment, everyone in the village knew each other, so the custom of the whole village celebrating a wedding naturally emerged.
By the way, although it was called "elf-style," this method was actually common in human rural areas as well.
The wedding for the two of them, scheduled for a week from now, was intended to be held in the elf-style, just as Madam had said. This was mainly due to the large number of participants; it allowed more friends to fit into the venue. The people at the meeting and other volunteers had also agreed to go all out for the reception.
But above all, it was because Lulunese had said she longed for an elf-style wedding.
"Actually, it seems she also had a hidden longing for a human-style wedding. It wasn't that her desire for the elf-style was a lie, though."
"She’s a girl, so it's only natural for her to be torn over her wedding ceremony. She should have just told us," Madam said.
"She tends to be reserved, after all..." the Duke added.
She had remained silent about it, but Hughes had apparently noticed her true feelings, which led to his proposal.
At first, the meeting was in an uproar, with people saying it was impossible. However, after learning Lulunese’s true feelings, everyone began to reconsider. Furthermore, Hughes requested my cooperation. Since he knew I had built my current shop in less than a week, he thought there might be a chance if I helped. He also said that just asking was free.
His ability to be so straightforward was definitely one of his strengths.
Well, after that, Lulunese felt guilty about hiding her true feelings but was also clearly happy that he had noticed. Once the secret was out, the two of them became very conscious of each other, and while they tried to talk seriously, the atmosphere became... cloying. Feelings of exasperation and jealousy erupted from the other participants, mostly directed at Hughes.
However, since this was his "big achievement," they watched over the couple despite being fed up. Some of the men looked like they were about to shed tears of blood out of sheer envy.
"I don't really want to dwell on the atmosphere of that moment anymore, so I'll skip it... but the result was that we decided to make the stage look like a church. I'm thinking of a size that can comfortably fit the God Statues I'll make, the bride and groom, and the person acting as the priest. We plan to make the entrance large so that people can see the ceremony from the outside."
The effort required would be roughly the same as building a roofed rest area in a park or a small shed.
"Off-duty gardeners and guards have offered to lend a hand, so as long as the design is finalized, it should be fine in a day—two days just to be safe."
"Indeed, given your track record, you should be able to shorten the construction time," the Duke agreed.
"I wanted to do some sightseeing in this city and check out the guild anyway. I figured it would be good if I could find a job that provides recycled materials while I’m at it."
If there was no work, or if it ended quickly, I planned to spend time at the chapel to finalize the designs for the statues. Hughes had offered to pay for the materials since it was his request, but he likely had many other expenses. If we could save money, we should. Fortunately, he didn't seem to mind using salvaged materials.
"You'll be back by dinner, won't you?" Madam asked.
It felt like she was warning me not to overwork myself.
"Yes. I'll be in your care again tonight."
Even if she hadn't worried, that was my intention, but it seemed I wasn't entirely trusted in that regard.
After breakfast.
"..."
I was in a carriage.
Madam had insisted, "If you're going out, take this!" but surely no adventurer would pull up to the guild in a carriage bearing the Jamil family crest. I had tried to refuse, but she was quite pushy, so we finally agreed that I would ride in it only until we left the Noble District.
"I feel like Madam has become more overprotective than before..."
"She lives apart from her daughter now. Perhaps she is very lonely?"
Fei, who was riding with me, answered my accidental mutter. He had stayed in the servants' quarters last night, and since I was going out, it was decided he would naturally accompany me.
"Is that how it is?"
"Not wanting to be apart from one's child is natural for any decent parent, ne? If it goes too far, that is one thing, but for nobles, using a carriage to travel is simply common sense, you see."
If I thought of it as a parent driving their child to lessons, I suppose it was within the normal range. Wait, did Fei know that Elia had started attending school?
"The Duke and Madam called me in to speak yesterday, you see."
"What!?"
"Those people... they knew about my previous profession quite naturally. It seemed to be a final confirmation that there would be no problems, ne. After they heard I had a daughter, the conversation turned almost entirely to talking about each other's daughters, you see."
"I see..."
They were good people, but they were still high-ranking nobles. It was only natural for them to be on guard against suspicious individuals in their territory, and it wouldn't be strange for them to have gathered information. Since even the Guild Master of the Commerce Guild had noticed and helped find them work, a report must have been made at that point.
However, I didn't expect them to meet face-to-face and bond over their daughters.
"In any case, I'm glad there were no problems."
"Far from a problem... look, these are identity guarantees and recommendation letters for the Adventurer Guild. I received them for myself and for Li Ling, you see. In exchange, I was told to look after your shop."
"That's quite generous..."
He pulled high-quality stationery from his pocket. The wax seal bore the same family crest as the one on this carriage.
"...Since you have them, why don't you register with the Adventurer Guild today? It's not like you can just follow me around while I work all the time."
For them, coming from another country, these documents would greatly reduce the hurdles of daily life. I didn't intend to let them be inconvenienced while they were at my shop, but it was good to have options if they ever wanted to move on. Besides, it would be difficult to ignore documents given directly by the Duke.
"That is true, ne. With these, we can lead a normal life at any time. I will take this opportunity to register, you see."
He seemed to hesitate for a moment, but in the end, he decided to register. Maybe the three of us could take on a job together sometime if the opportunity arose.
"Oh, right. Changing the subject, have you felt like you were being watched since yesterday, Fei?"
When I mentioned the House Fairies I had heard about from Lulunese, he seemed to have an idea.
"I thought for sure it was surveillance, you see."
"Me too. It's the natural conclusion."
The fairies were just doing it of their own accord, but I suppose it technically counted as surveillance.
"But a fairy that protects a house is rare, ne. In my country, there were only spirits that brought misfortune to the household. It is said they gather when a member of the house dies—especially in a terrible way. Or they are born from it."
"...Are those really fairies? Not evil spirits or undead-type monsters?"
"In my country, both are called 'Gui.' We lump them together as monsters, so that might be the case. To drive those Gui away... in this language, it was called Necromancy? I think. Since that magic exists, we use it."
"From the sound of it, they definitely seem like the evil spirit type."
I found myself becoming interested in this unknown magic.
The carriage continued toward the city, and we enjoyed our conversation until it was time to get off.