"The content of the audience is..."

Lord Fenberg begins speaking with a very serious expression. Hey, is an audience with the king really that dangerous?

"It’s just greeting the king."

Thud.

I slide off my chair.

"A-are you okay, Yabe?"

"Don’t scare me like that!"

With Irina’s help, I sit back down and complain.

(By the way, under my robe I’m in DeLorean Mr. II + two tentacles (right and left hand) mode.)

"The real problems are what comes before and after."

"Before and after?"

"Before the audience with the king, there will naturally be a physical examination, preparation of formal attire, and other preliminary arrangements. That alone will take over a week."

"What a pain! Also, a physical examination?"

Hearing that, Irina stares hard at me.

"Of course. You can’t bring weapons or anything into an audience with the king."

That makes sense, but it’s strict...

I’ll need to come up with a plan to get through the physical exam.

"The formal attire will be prepared by the royal family’s purveyors, so you don’t need to worry about that. We will also cover all the expenses."

"I understand that the preparations before the audience will take time. So what’s the problem after the audience?"

"Depending on the words His Majesty bestows, as an honored guest of the Coluna Border Count family who has been granted an audience with the king, you will naturally receive recruitment offers from various organizations wanting you to join the kingdom. Especially the Royal Mage Division, the Royal Knight Order—both directly under the kingdom—as well as the Church’s Cathedral Holy Knight Order and the Clergy Order. There’s also the possibility of serving under nobles like myself. Another possibility is that a mage guild separate from the Royal Mage Division might come to recruit you."

"Hahaha, when did I become so popular?"

My sighs are firing like a machine gun nonstop.

"I don’t know how you did it, but you suppressed a Labyrinth Overflow Stampede and performed a miracle that healed over a thousand critically ill patients in a single day. Anyone would want you."

"I refuse."

"Don’t think everyone will just say ’yes, of course’ and back off. If someone tries to forcibly drag you in, just tell them you’re already staying with me as a troublesome guest for now. I won’t force you to stay here and lend your strength."

"Being an honored guest of the Coluna Border Count family seems like it could make for a good cover, huh?"

"I don’t know how effective it will be."

Lord Fenberg answers my teasing comment with a wry smile.

He seems to be speaking quite openly with me.

"The king already recognizes that the person named Yabe is an extraordinary individual. That’s precisely why he’s summoning you—to determine what kind of person you are, what you’re thinking, and whether you will be beneficial or harmful to the kingdom."

"You said it was just an audience!"

"That’s exactly what’s packed into the audience."

"It’s too packed!"

"The king is wise. I don’t think he will view you unfavorably."

"Are there any precautions I should take during the audience?"

"Yes. There are cases where many nobles attend the audience, and cases where the number of people is greatly reduced for a more private audience. The truth is, we don’t know which one it will be for you, Lord Yabe."

"Huh, is that so?"

"Yes. That’s why I will also accompany you when we depart from here. If possible, I plan to attend the audience as well."

"That’s reassuring."

"However, it’s still uncertain. In truth, the miracles you caused are hard to believe. Depending on the situation, it might become a private audience."

"This is depressing..."

"Hahaha, even the great Lord Yabe has things he’s not good at."

Lord Fenberg laughs heartily.

"I usually live a relaxed life by the spring, you know? Formal places like that are obviously not my thing."

I let out another big sigh.

"Do you know? In this country, besides the royal family, there are the Three Great Ducal Houses and the Four Great Marquis Houses."

"Yes, I heard about that from Nicea-dono. However, I didn’t ask for the family names or the relationships between the nobles."

Lord Fenberg rests his elbows on the table, places his chin on his hands, and lets out a heavy breath.

"The Three Great Ducal Houses are Ricaorost, Pleasure, and Drysen. The Four Great Marquis Houses are Elserpa, Frealt, Dormia, and Kiel. The Four Great Marquis Houses respectively govern water (Elserpa), fire (Frealt), earth (Dormia), and wind (Kiel). They are said to represent the kingdom’s four elements: earth, water, fire, and wind."

Oh crap... I don’t know exactly what "govern" means here, but if I casually mention that I’ve already contracted with the Four Great Spirits, who knows what kind of trouble that would cause. They’ve been showing up on their own lately even when I haven’t summoned them. I’ll need to have a serious talk with them later.

"In reality, the Four Great Marquis Houses are the four pillars that support the country. There aren’t many unsettling rumors about them. Among them, the Kiel Marquis House currently has a female head."

"Hmm, I see."

"I can’t say this too loudly, but the Three Great Ducal Houses each have one or two quirks. After all, if something happens to the royal family, the ducal houses would step in."

"I’m getting strong ’don’t get involved’ vibes."

"Especially known for their ambition is the Ricaorost Ducal House. The current king only has three children: the eldest son, the eldest daughter, and the second daughter. The eldest daughter, Lady Cordelia, is married to the prince of the neighboring Gardenbar Kingdom, so she is not in the kingdom. There are only the Crown Prince Carsel and the Princess Cassina."

"If something were to happen to those two..."

"It’s presumptuous to say, but it’s not impossible. Furthermore, Princess Cassina suffered severe burns to half her body, including her face, in an accident in the court mage’s private room when she was five years old. The high priest and other clergy used recovery magic to save her life, but since then, almost no one—not even inside the royal castle—has seen her face. Only once a year, during the New Year’s celebration ceremony, does she appear wearing a mask that covers half her face, standing beside the king during his greeting. She doesn’t speak at all and leaves the venue immediately after the king’s address."

"Hmm... so Princess Cassina almost never appears in public. That must put a heavy burden on the eldest son, Prince Carsel."

"Who the hell is Kashiori!? That’s not a souvenir! It’s Crown Prince Carsel! Don’t make that mistake even as a joke in front of the person himself!? You’d definitely lose your head!?"

I had muttered it thoughtfully, but I got yelled at for messing up the name.

Yeah, calling the Crown Prince "Kashiori" to his face would definitely get me killed. I’ll be careful.

"I got sidetracked. The Ricaorost Duke seems eager to strengthen ties with the royal family."

Irina suddenly trembles and grabs my hand tightly. What’s wrong?

"Strengthen ties... does that mean they’re trying to send a daughter to the Crown Prince?"

"No. The Ricaorost Ducal House has two sons—the eldest and second son—and both have been persistently proposing to Princess Cassina. Since half her body is scarred by burns, it’s true that the only proposals she’s received are from the Ricaorost family."

"Are they obviously only after power? Is there no one who actually likes Princess Cassina herself?"

"Princess Cassina doesn’t meet with anyone. Since they haven’t even met her, they probably don’t care about her as a person."

What an infuriating bunch. Show some guts and say you’ll take care of her, burns and all!

"Besides, the Ricaorost Ducal House is troublesome. Lady Irina, who is the daughter of Count Lubengerg, should understand this well."

"What do you mean?"

I look at Irina and ask.

"The Ricaorost Ducal House has been pressuring the Lubengerg Count family to marry Irina to one of their sons. Quite aggressively, in fact. Right now things have calmed down a bit because Irina is officially ’missing,’ but they were putting pressure on the Lubengerg territory to force the marriage through."

"Yabe... that’s why I ran away from the royal capital. My father and mother didn’t explicitly tell me to run, but I could sense their feelings. I received the minimum luggage and money from my brother and escaped the capital."

"So that’s what happened..."

Still, that was an extremely sudden and dangerous situation. If I hadn’t saved her, Irina would likely have been killed. Even if they were letting her escape, she should have had escorts or something...

"In that case, would it be bad to greet the Lubengerg Count family when we arrive in the royal capital?"

"It’s complicated. I obviously won’t say anything, but if a woman traveling with you is recognized as the Lubengerg Count’s daughter, people will figure it out. If you act together in the capital, it will definitely be exposed."

"I see... Then there’s only one thing to do."

"W-what are you going to do?"

"Of course, I’m going to greet your parents!"

"Fueh!? F-f-finally Yabe is... going h-home with me..."

"Oh? Finally paying the tribute, Yabe?"

"What?"

"You’re going to greet the Lubengerg Count family, right?"

"Yes, as Irina’s master......"

"M-Master...?"

Irina looks at me with a blank, dazed expression.

"Hey, what’s wrong? We used that setting when we were in Solenarini, didn’t we?"

"S-Setting...?"

Irina’s face turns bright red and she starts trembling.

"You... that’s not right..."

Even Lord Fenberg gives me a dumbfounded look.

Huh? Did I say something wrong!?