Elicia, Erika, and the maids are ready to leave the mansion.
The butler who came to see us off at the entrance bowed to us.
Elicia and Erika looked like they wanted to say something, but they held back and went outside the mansion.
The butler is someone who serves the Deus family.
So he listen to what the head of the family says, but a butler also have a heart.
The butler did not stop the head of the family from sending Elicia off to sleep with other nobles like a prostitute, but he did not approve of it.
So I gave Elicia sleeping pills when she was feeling mentally exhausted.
Even though he is healthy, he feel as if he's sick.
It was his own way of rebelling against the head of the family.
...Well, it seems like he still took her out once a year.
And now, the reason why the Count gave up on Elysia.
The butler must have lied, saying she didn't have much time left, or that the doctor had given up.
This was coming from the butler, who had listened to everything the Count had to say, and she must have believed it without a second thought.
As expected, the Earl could not let another nobleman embrace such a girl.
It's not because he's worried about Elysia, it's to protect the Count.
If Elysia had died after he had let her embrace him, his position would have been in danger.
If Elysia can't be used, there's no need to support Erika.
That's why he gave up on her.
I understand, but I can't say he did a good job.
If he had stopped it sooner, the destruction would have been avoided...
I left the mansion without saying a word to the butler who continued to bow.
"You're moving to Suzuya?"
Erika muttered as Suzuya approached.
Erika's mansion was on 9th Street, close to Suzuya on 8th Street.
Erika tilted her head as she spoke, and I shook my head and pointed to the building across the street from Suzuya.
There was a long horizontal wall stretching out, with a single door standing there, like the back door of a luxury inn.
It will be more than twice the size of Suzuya.
I smile as I hand the key to Erika, who takes it with both hands, a question mark flying through her head.
"I'll lend it to you for one month for one large silver coin."
"...Which building?"
With a wry smile at Erika's dumbfounded look, I pointed at the large building once again.
Since this didn't work, I took Erika's hand, walked her to the door and had her unlock it.
When Erika and I went inside, it was late at night and it was dark and smelled of dust.
So I activate the light magic tool near the entrance.
Erika is stunned when she sees how spacious it is inside.
After all, if we just looked at the depth, it was as large as Erika's mansion.
The first floor is spacious with rooms at one end, while the second floor is occupied by rooms only.
Simply put, the second floor is like an apartment.
There are a total of 6 rooms on the first floor and 18 on the second floor.
Leaving the stunned Erika alone, I called out to the maid behind me.
The one who called out was the maid who had suddenly appeared.
"Maid, it's okay to make loud noises in this building. So I'm sorry to bother you, but could you at least clean the room where I'll be sleeping? I have cleaning supplies."
"...It's no big deal, it shouldn't take more than two hours."
Perhaps as a maid's greeting, she lightly spreads her skirt with both hands and bows.
...I remember now, curtsy.
I tell the maid where the cleaning supplies are and tell her I'll be staying at the Suzuya Inn until the cleaning is finished.
By the way, Elicia was first shown to her house by Nimi.
I suspect it's probably due to lack of exercise and poor nutrition. In a sense, the illness may not be a lie.
Minty, one of the three adventurers who had accompanied Erika, who was still stunned, called out to her.
"Hey, Erica, why don't you hire us as your bodyguards?"
"...?"
"We really like Erika, so why don't we hire her?"
"Ah, yes..."
"Thank you! We'll talk about the reward tomorrow! Good night!"
Minty grabbed the stunned Erika's hands and shook them, then let go and returned to the Suzuya Inn with a smile.
Incidentally, when Minty was speaking, Satur and Roll were smiling wryly.
Even though Satur is the leader, Minty is the one doing the negotiations...
Perhaps her mind had stopped working, but she didn't respond, so I picked her up in my arms and headed home.
When I opened the door to my house, I found Nimi and Elicia sitting at the table.
Elicia calmly sipped the tea that Nimi had given her.
Nimi smiles with a troubled look on her face as she watches me holding Erika.
"What happened?"
"Well, a lot has happened today... that's probably why I'm not responding."
"Oh my."
I sat Erica down next to Elicia, and she instinctively hugged her lightly.
Elicia smiled in a troubled manner, but put her tea down and hugged Erika back gently.
I breathed a sigh of relief at the sight and turned to Nimi.
"Sorry, I decided to rent that building to Erika."
"...There's nothing to apologize for. In fact, I'm proud of you as my lover."
As expected, I felt embarrassed by Nimi's words and scratched my head.
That building was an investment, it was purchased to be used as a second Suzuya.
The price was 10 gold coins. Why was a building that would cost 1 platinum coin so cheap?
That's because the owner of the house died in that building.
It was a so-called haunted property. I bought it cheaply because it had a bad reputation.
In the original world, people would be scared of ghosts, but in a world where there are monsters called ghosts, there are no ghosts.
Even if it appears, you just have to defeat it.
"I've shown you something embarrassing."
After a while, Erika clears her throat embarrassedly.
By the way, Elicia is smiling happily and looking at Erika's profile.
They've been living in tension every day until now, so they must be happy that peace has finally arrived.
But we have to ensure that peace.
I start with a smile.
"Bribery...what kind of person do you think would accept it?"
Erika looked serious in response to my question, and put her hand to her chin, as if she was thinking deeply about it.
Start talking about whether you have an answer.
"High status... nobles perhaps?"
"...By the way, do you think royalty would accept bribes?"
"That's impossible."
Erika denies it.
Of course. If other nobles received something like that, they would give them a bribe with an inflated amount.
And if they do as they please, there will be no peace in the kingdom.
But what if the nobles made a "voluntary" donation? The kingdom would be happy to accept it.
The country has no financial problems, and it's only been two years since the war ended.
I don't think it makes up for the damage that was done at the time.
The townscape is incredibly peaceful, but what about inside?
Therefore, let's have the nobles make donations to us and the kingdom "voluntarily."
When I explained this to Erika, she looked shocked.
Nimi and Elicia were also smiling wryly.
"You have... hands?"
(TL/N: Yeah no idea what this mean.)
"Yeah, leave it to me."
I nod with a wicked smile.
I don't show it on my face, but my gut is boiling.
There are nobles, so there are bound to be political marriages and people being pushed aside.
...But I will never forgive him for using his wife like a prostitute.
I won't forgive him, I can't kill him so easily. I will torture him, but he still can't die.
Let's give that life as a gift.
I hope that both the nobleman who holds Elicia and Count Deus are looking forward to it.
I will make you give your life for the kingdom you belong to.