Ihoujin, Dungeon ni Moguru-Chapter 180: A Gathering Of Wolves, A Bunch Of Dogs III

「And so, once my belly started to grow, His Majesty, the beardy, and even the princess started to fuss over me. All day long. Everywhere I went, maids stuck to me like glue. I got so sick of it that I asked Maria to help me escape」

The reason for Regure's unannounced visit was something like marriage blues.

「Well, I don't mind letting you stay, but I trust you've left word for His Majesty?」

Even His Majesty won’t be able to make it to Lemuria in just a few days. Wait, he's not going to actually come, is he? He's not going to cross time and space with the power of his muscles, is he? It's scary how he just might do it though.

「Of course. I left him a note saying that I was running off to have an affair with his vassal」

「Please no!」

It's no laughing matter.

I'm the only one it could be, isn't it?

「What's the matter, why are you using polite speech when talking to me? We've slept together, haven't we~? No need to be so reserved」

Regure pulled her chair closer and wrapped her arms around my arm.

I'm seriously troubled here.

「Hmm, so Onii-chan's been messing around with other women, huh?」

「Souya, when did this happen?」

My sister and Lanseal gave me cold looks from across the table.

「This person is the mistress of someone I know」

The explanation would go a lot more smoothly if Rana was here, but she was away attending a gathering of female magicians called the "Sorceresses Conference" or something today.

「Don't be such a stranger. I mean, this baby in my belly, there's a possibility that it's yours too, isn't there?」

「Nope! No chance whatsoever!」

For reasons beyond my control, I've touched her buttocks and breasts, but there's no way in hell anyone's going to get pregnant from that!

『Hmmmm………』

The looks my sister and Lanseal were giving me grew colder.

「Lanseal, I've figured out what Onii-chan's preferences are」

「Ea, as a matter of fact, so have I」

「It’s petite and cute girls, right?」

「You're right. Ever since Evetta became smaller, he's been oddly affectionate towards her as well」

「Woah, I had forgotten about that. It's that bad, huh?」

「It’s that bad, yes」

You two, why are you treating me like a lolicon?

「He's also so close to Tyutyu」

「Ea, who’s Tyutyu?」

「Eh, you don't know her, Lanseal? Come to think of it……… Oh, I see. The two of you never had a chance to meet. You always keep an odd distance from anything related to adventuring after all. She's the storekeeper of the "A Respite From Adventuring" store. A blonde-haired beastkin」

「Is she a cat-beastkin by any chance? I think I remember hearing that one of the women my father had relations with had a cat beastkin daughter with blonde hair」

「That’s the one」

「I've noticed that he comes home with an unknown scent every now and then, but……so that's what's been going on, huh?」

Ignoring the scary intuition of the woman who just said that……

「Regure-san, I'll prepare a room for you」

「That's so formal, just call me Regure」

「Well then, Regure, my home is small and humble compared to what you're used to at the castle, but I'll show you as much hospitality as I can」

「You don't have to fuss over me, just take it easy」

「In that case, Regure-sama」

Even though Regure had just said to take it easy, Lanseal bowed her head respectfully

「Though the relationship between Souya and yourself is still unclear, please let me know if there’s anything you need during your stay. I’ll be happy to be of service to you」

「Like I said, just take it easy, Lanseal-san」

Lanseal may be an illegitimate child, but she's still the daughter of the king of this country. It's troublesome in a lot of ways, so I won't even try to explain. I don't want this to turn into an international incident.

Oh.

I forgot.

We don't have a guest room.

Someone will have to give up their room.

She's pregnant, so I don't want to make her climb up and down too many stairs, which means……

「Ea, do you mind sharing your room with Maria for a while?」

I'll give her Maria's room.

「It's okay with me. I mean, she's basically never in her own room anyway. She always sleeps in either my room, Lanseal's room, or Onee-chan's room. In fact, she's taking a nap in my room right now」

「I see」

There had been no point in giving her a room for herself.

Well, she gets lonely easily after all. It can't be helped.

「Aren't you tired, Regure? There's the time difference too, so you should get some rest」

「I'm fine. But I'm hungry. Give me something light to eat before dinner」

「Lanseal, I’m counting on you」

I've been leaving all of the household meals to her lately.

「Oh dear, this is troubling. I usually go out to buy the ingredients for dinner a bit later in the day, so there's nothing much available right now」

「Oh, Lanseal, there’s “that”, isn’t there? The stuff I made while trying out various things」

「But those are meant to go with drinks or as a garnish for a main dish」

「Ehh, I think it's a good idea though」

「What’s “that”」

I see, I don’t understand.

「Souya, it's pickles. When Ea saw me making them, she also tried her hand at making some」

「I tried pickling all sorts of stuff. Chicken eggs, beans, tomatoes, dried fish, green vegetables, carrots, and I've even tried adding curry flavor to them」

「When did this happen?」

I kinda want to try them. 𝑓𝗿𝐞𝘦𝘄ｅ𝘣n𝘰𝘷eƖ.c𝘰𝗺

「What's this "pickles" that you're talking about?」

Regure also seemed interested.

「It’s made by pickling food in a mixture of vinegar, sugar, fragrant herbs, and a seasoning made from garlic and devil's little fingers(red peppers). It's sour, keeps for a long time, and is good for relieving fatigue」

「Hmm………I want to eat that. I really, really want to eat that」

So the thing about pregnant women loving sour food isn't just an urban legend, huh?

『Souya-saaaaaan』

A strange cylindrical object stuck its head out from the stairs leading to the basement behind me.

『Pregnant women shouldn't eat fish. There's mercury in them』

「Do the fish in the alternate world have mercury in them as well?」

『Yes, they do. Mercury in fish isn't purely a result of industrial pollution. Mercury also bio-accumulates through the food chain』

「Yeah, yeah」

『Please listen to Makinaaaaaaa』

I turned to Lanseal, who had come back from getting the pickles.

「It seems that fish is bad. Apparently, it's not good for the child in the belly」

「Is that so? Got it. I'll watch out for that as well」

Hmm? Eh?

When are you going to watch out for that? Not now, right?

Right?

「Souya, is that one of Tortch's henchmen or something?」

「Rather than a henchman…...well, she's something like a descendant of his」

Regure is acquainted with Tortch too?

Then it's alright, I thought, and motioned for Makina to come out.

『Nice to meet you! Makina is a Makina Unit Full-Spec, a sixth-generation Artificial Intelligence for space exploration, modified on-site for the alternate world. Makina is a multi-functional unit capable of tactical and strategic support, reconnaissance, cooking, and housekeeping!』

By "Full-Spec", I assume she means that she's fully repaired?

I can't tell what's changed from before though.

「I don't quite understand, but I'll be in your care」

Regure is the kind of woman who doesn't sweat the details.

Since she's carrying His Majesty's child, she must take after him in some way.

Lanseal arranged the pickled ingredients on a small plate.

Regure immediately began eating them.

「Mmm, these yellow ones are nice and tangy. I can't stop eating the bean ones」

Regure was scooping the pickled beans into her mouth. Her spoon showed no signs of stopping.

「What about the egg ones?」

「Give me a second」

At Ea's behest, I peeled the eggs with my bare hands.

「It needs a little bit more salt, but it's delicious」

「Want to try it with mayonnaise?」

「What's this "mayonnaise"?」

「Fufun~, I don't know where it came from, but it's a condiment you can only find in this region. In other words, it's a world first」

Ea boasted proudly.

Mayonnaise had become a condiment invented in Lemuria. I hope I don't get into trouble for this in future.

Ea took out a jar of mayonnaise and spread some over the pickled eggs.

「Well, just give it a try. Fufufun~, it's really delicious」

My sister had a mischievous look on her face

A bit skeptical, Regure took a bite of the egg.

Then she gave her impressions.

「Delicious! This is delicious! It's five times better than the food at the castle!」

It's because there's not much tasty food on the left continent. The land is too barren, and the foodstuffs that are imported in are all preserved foods.

「What's this, Souya? Isn't this super lavish? What part of this is humble?!」

「That's right, Onii-chan. If this is humble, then the food in Lemuria's royal castle is no better than pig food」

「Ea, that's too much of an exaggeration. Even though we've had two cooks quit because of Souya, calling it pig food is too much」

That's right, Lanseal. They quit. Saying that they had lost confidence in their skills.

Also, one of the cooks who quit opened a ramen stall.

「But you know……」

While saying how delicious the pickles were, Regure gobbled them up with gusto.

「Regure, eat in moderation, or you're going to spoil your dinner」

「It's fine. There's three of us, so there's still plenty of space for more」

She stuffed her cheeks full with pickled vegetables that resembled spinach.

「Eh, three of you?」

She swallowed then answered.

「I'm having twins」

「I, I see」

This makes it all the harder to explain to Shuna.

In case you forgot, His Majesty only has two vassals left, Regure and Souya. So when Regure says that she’s gonna go have an affair with his vassal…yeah, it can only be Souya. It sure would be interesting if His Majesty came, wouldn’t it?

It’s a short and simple chapter this time. Except Lanseal has finally learned the existence of Tyutyu. This isn’t going to turn out well, is it? Well, stay tuned!