Character Introductions
Miyo: A member of the Mercury race from Village Four. A young girl.
Asa: A member of the Mercury race from Village Four. A middle-aged butler.
Earth: Urza’s soil doll. Currently in the form of a young man serving as a butler.
Prada: An Ancient Devil. Also known as the “Devil Who Collects Artworks” and the “Gold Coin Devil.”
Beton: An Ancient Devil. Also known as the “Disease Demon.”
The sun had set.
I had been told that the small academy festival was only supposed to last until dusk, but it seemed it was going to continue quite a bit longer. The reason for the extension was that the number of participants kept increasing.
Apparently, the organizers hadn't originally planned for outside visitors, so they hadn't bothered with advertising. Consequently, people who had only learned about the event through word of mouth from afternoon attendees were just now starting to arrive. It made sense; if you hadn't heard there was a festival, you would have just stayed at work as usual. These people were likely heading over now that their shifts were finished.
This meant the demand for food and drink was reaching a fever pitch. The stalls serving alcohol and the Maruura stalls were particularly popular. I felt a twinge of regret at missing a prime business opportunity. If only I had prepared more ingredients.
But no, the stock I had brought with me was already at its limit. No matter how hard I tried, I simply couldn't have managed more.
Or so I thought, until a fresh supply of ingredients arrived from Noodle Shop Buritoa in Village Five. Miyo, who had come to observe the festival, had apparently made the arrangements herself. As expected of Miyo. And truly, the teleportation gates were incredibly convenient.
The staff and I hurriedly reopened the food stall, despite having already prepared to shut down, and resumed operation of the ramen stand. However, the additional ingredients naturally belonged to Noodle Shop Buritoa. Therefore, the ramen we were serving wasn't my personal recipe, but the official Buritoa style.
In that case, I was essentially out of a job. If I were to cook it, the flavor would end up different from the professional staff who actually worked at Noodle Shop Buritoa. It was a bit of a shame. Miyo had even sent a message saying, “Please leave the stall to the staff and get some rest,” so I decided to concede.
Incidentally, the members of the Angel race who had come along as waitresses were working hard at the background tasks, such as clearing tables and washing dishes. When I tried to lend a hand, they practically begged me not to. “Please, do not take our work away from us,” they pleaded. Since the festival focused on food stalls, there weren't many opportunities for waitresses to truly shine. Still, I thought they were doing an admirable job managing the queues.
With that settled, I returned to enjoying the festivities.
I soon found myself standing before a dejected Asa and Earth. They were looking conspicuously depressed, which I took as a sign that I was expected to intervene.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
It turned out they were quietly wounded by the fact that Torain didn't see them as his ideal model of a butler.
I understood the issue. Torain seemed to be using Eric, Tiselle’s subordinate, as his benchmark. How should I put it? The kind of butler Torain aspired to have was an orthodox type—a house steward or a general manager who directly assisted the master in their private, domestic life. That aligned perfectly with the career path Eric was pursuing.
In contrast, Asa and Earth were close-aide type butlers who supported their master in both public and private matters. Currently, they were focusing their efforts on information gathering, which meant they weren't often physically near their masters, Alfred and the others. Since Torain observed them in that capacity, it was probably difficult for him to see them as the kind of domestic servant he envisioned.
Ironically, Eric was currently being assigned the very same close-aide type work that they performed. I suspected that if Torain hadn't met Eric, he likely would have used Mettora as his model instead.
I tried to explain this, but they told me it wasn't a consolation. They said they wanted kinder, more direct words. I thought they were both working very hard—weren't they doing a great job?
Apparently, that wasn't enough either. This was difficult.
“Urza, I’m leaving this to you,” I said, turning to my daughter.
“Earth,” Urza commanded. “I am satisfied with your service. What is there to be ashamed of? Stand tall.”
Earth immediately straightened his back, his eyes welling with tears of gratitude. I was relieved; Earth would be fine now.
“Alright, next, do the same for Asa,” I prompted.
Urza hesitated. “Eh? Only for Earth?”
Asa was looking at her with incredibly expectant eyes. Was it because the only one who could formally praise Asa as a butler was Kuzuden, the Acting Village Head of Village Four? Because she couldn't technically praise someone else's servant? Formally speaking, I suppose that made sense, though I doubted Kuzuden himself was even conscious of being anyone's master.
“Can't you say something from the standpoint of living together here at the academy?” I suggested.
“Asa,” Urza said, taking my advice. “You are always a big help. Tiselle causes a lot of trouble, but please keep doing your best.”
Asa’s reaction was immediate. He looked quite pleased with himself. That was a relief. Once I returned to the village, I decided I would contact Kuzuden and tell him I was satisfied with Asa’s work. If I did that, a formal letter of appreciation might reach Asa from his superior.
Wait, did Bell seem more like a superior than Kuzuden? They were likely colleagues in terms of rank, but just in case, I decided to contact Bell as well. If it was a letter of appreciation, I was sure he wouldn't mind receiving one from both of them.
The stalls serving alcohol were doing a roaring trade, having become the center of the banquet area. Naturally, the amount we had brought in the food stalls wasn't nearly enough, so the organizers had been procuring sake from the Goroun Company and the Dalfon Company. Large barrels of expensive-looking sake were being carried in, which made me wonder if the payment for all that was under control. Even if the Demon Kingdom was footing the bill, I didn't think that meant we could just spend without limit.
Still, since Hou, the Demon Kingdom’s Minister of Financial Affairs, was here, I assumed it was fine.
Wait, where was Hou? Had she gone home? She ate dinner at home? I was surprised. I had thought she would prioritize sake over food, but perhaps she had changed since getting married.
Apparently, she had carried a sake barrel away with her. That made more sense. People didn't change that easily.
But with Hou gone, was the payment for the sake really handled? It turned out the procured sake was treated as a contribution from the Goroun Company and the Dalfon Company, meaning it was free. Had the companies prioritized supporting the festival over the cost of the alcohol?
Ah, I saw the logic now. This festival had a strong promotional aspect for Tiselle’s nation-building project. By cooperating here, they were securing a foothold in her future endeavors. Or rather, Tiselle had likely already issued a formal request for cooperation to both companies. In any case, it was a show of support for the festival. I decided I would send a letter of thanks to both the Goroun and Dalfon Companies later in my capacity as Tiselle’s father.
I spotted Prada and Beton, the Ancient Devils. Since they were in the Royal Capital for the auction, it wasn't strange for them to attend the festival. They seemed to be enjoying their meal together, so everything seemed fine. I intended to pass by without disturbing them, but Prada caught my eye.
“Village Head. I wish you would properly invite us to festivals like this,” she said.
“My apologies. But aren't you busy with the auction?” I asked.
“A festival is a different matter entirely,” she replied.
I conceded the point. I promised to invite them properly next time and noted that I should tell Alfred and the others as well.
“By the way, Village Head,” Prada continued.
“Yes?”
“Do you remember the book you bought at the auction in Village Five?”
She meant the Agriculture Diary.
“Yes. Regarding the location of the seeds mentioned in that book... that area is around the ruins where the wyverns are currently making their nests.”
“Is that so?” I asked, intrigued.
“What will you do? Shall we go look for them?”
I was certainly interested. However, it wasn't as if that region had suddenly become safe. Neither the Demon Kingdom’s victory declaration nor Tiselle’s nation-building project were matters that the human kingdoms cared about. If they had the will to fight, combat could break out at any moment.
If I tried to go myself, Lu and the others would surely stop me. Our only real options were to organize an exploration team from the village or hire adventurers to do the searching. In that case, there was no rush. Searching for them could wait until Tiselle’s project had progressed to a point where transportation was more convenient.
Still, I was very worried about Tiselle going to a place where combat could erupt at any moment. I couldn't help but think it would be fine if she just issued instructions from the Royal Capital, but I supposed she felt that not knowing the site firsthand would cause problems.
I had reluctantly given my permission on the condition that she take an escort with her. Besides, Beezel had promised to accompany her and evacuate her with teleportation magic if things became dangerous.
They say you should send the beloved child on a journey, but if possible, I would rather she stayed home. Even though I was the one who had made the arrangements for her departure, I wondered if this lingering hesitation was just my own ego as a parent.