"Sister! What about Primera?"
"Albert, be quiet for a moment."
Albert, apparently thinking she was about to talk about Primera, hurriedly tried to cut Angela off—but she glared at him, and he fell silent.
"Albert, I have no intention of dredging up what Father already settled. Personal feelings aside, at the very least, as someone connected to the Duke Sanga household, I have no intention of objecting to what the head of the family has decided."
Hearing those words, Albert and I exchanged looks that said "Then what is this about?" and couldn't help tilting our heads in confusion.
"What I'd like to ask is... I'd like you to sign this."
What Angela brought out, saying she wanted an autograph, was a picture book.
"This is..."
It was a picture book based on stories from my childhood—the first volume, supervised by Maria. I'd heard that after that, the same author published three more picture books, and the series had become popular with children.
"My youngest has been pestering me about it, and I was trying to figure out if I could get an autograph through Father somehow, but considering this whole incident with Albert as an apology, and thinking about the future, I decided it would be best to pay a proper visit—so I thought I'd ask you directly."
That, apparently, was the story. The excuse about Primera and the side-eye at me was probably part of it, but more than anything, this was about maintaining face for the Cagliostro family and getting the autograph. Well, apologizing for Albert was surely one of the objectives too, but that could have been handled with a letter or through Duke Sanga—so Albert had simply been used. Then again, Albert getting scolded was a foregone conclusion, and having him stay at our place had been the most convenient arrangement for Angela. Perhaps Duke Sanga had even lent Albert to me with that exact intention.
"Sure, I don't mind doing that. But I'm not very good at it, you know?"
After all, I could count on one hand the number of times I'd autographed a book. For the record, only two people had signed picture books—Maria and Yoshitsune each had about four.
When I told her this, Angela said she wished she'd brought the other picture books too, so I decided to sign the remaining three copies we had at home.
"My children will be thrilled! And, I know this is forward of me, but I imagine my sister Rachel's children will want autographs too, so please keep that in mind for the future."
Signing wasn't a problem, but for the older sister's children's copies, I decided to have Duke Sanga hold onto them. I really didn't want to set up another sit-down meeting like today's, so if the need to meet ever arose, I'd ask Duke Sanga to arrange it as a party. That way, I could prepare some walls—er, sacrificial lambs—no, companions in the form of Cain and Lion, which would probably be easier on my nerves.
When we finished talking, I heard that lunch was just about ready, so I invited Angela to join us—but she said she had a packed schedule for the rest of the day and would need to take Albert around to various places. Hearing this, Albert stared at Angela with a surprised expression, but he apparently realized there was no point in protesting and quietly nodded.
Angela said she'd come back for Albert's luggage another day, so I went to the entrance to see her and Albert off as they prepared to leave—
"Hm? Oh, it's been a while."
"It's been a while for you too, Lyle."
We ran into Lyle in the hallway on the way. The two of them were close in age and apparently knew each other from the academy as upperclassman and junior.
After exchanging brief greetings and small talk, Angela and Albert headed toward the carriage, and Lyle tagged along to see them off. He'd said they were just acquaintances, but they might have been fairly close.
"Well then, let's grab lunch! ...I just hope nothing troublesome comes of this."
I had a bad premonition from the words Lyle muttered at the end, but we arrived at the dining hall before I could ask, so I never got the chance.
"All right, everyone's got their bowls ready... So, who gets the first pick?"
The selection of ingredients for the seafood bowl from Namitarou's souvenir had begun. The first ingredient everyone pointed at was...
"As expected, seared tuna is the most popular. Rock-paper-scissors it is then. Oh, wait, before that... Reni, since you get a solo pick, go ahead."
"Then I'll go first."
What Reni chose was... raw whitebait. She apparently picked it because it was her first time, but it seemed like a pretty high hurdle for a first choice.
"Um... the rule is one scoop per turn, and you have to completely lift the spoon before transferring it to the bowl... Here goes!"
Reni carefully lowered her spoon while double-checking the rules and tried to quickly transfer it to her bowl, but...
"As expected, it's not that easy."
She failed, and hardly any of it landed in her bowl.
"All right, it's our turn next!"
On Chris's cue, the rock-paper-scissors for the seared tuna began.
"First pick, got it!"
"Second pick, mine!"
"Third, I guess."
The one who took first was Aura, second was Amour, and third was me.
"This time for sure... ah..."
"Pff... ah..."
Aura and Amour, aiming for a large haul, tried to scoop from the bottom of the central part, but... both failed and could only scoop up a very small amount.
"Well then, I'll aim for here... that's decent, isn't it?"
While they were failing, leaving a gap, I slipped my spoon in and managed to scoop up a rather good amount. Chris and Jeanne, who had been watching, did the same and put nearly ten times as much in their bowls as Aura and Amour had. Well, saying ten times was because their portions were so small, so even a slightly failed attempt by Lyle yielded about three to four times their amount.
"Now then, let's eat."
Once everyone's bowls were complete, they began their meal in unison, but...
"Seconds please!"
Amour and Lyle finished almost immediately and were already trying to start their second bowls.
"You're too slow!"
"You two, don't take too much!"
Chris and Grandpa, not wanting to be outdone, also finished and went to get seconds.
"I... gulp...!"
"Here, some water."
Aura, in her haste to catch up with the four of them, had stuffed her cheeks and was now choking. Jeanne was tending to her.
After such a noisy lunch ended and everyone was relaxing in their own way, I saw Lyle heading to the toilet and chased after him.
"Lyle, I have something I'd like to ask you. Do you have a moment?"
"Was there some problem?"
I waited for him to come out of the toilet, and then we headed straight for my room. Once inside, I locked the door. Lyle was wary for an instant, but soon relaxed and sat in a nearby chair.
"So, what is it you needed to ask me so badly you had to lock the door?"
"After seeing Angela off, I heard you mutter, 'I hope this doesn't become a problem.'"
My blunt question drew a surprised look from Lyle, followed by a deep sigh.
"I didn't mean to say that out loud..."
"It was very quiet, so I don't think anyone but me heard it."
When I explained that I had only caught it because I happened to be nearby, Lyle looked a bit displeased for a moment, but quickly composed his expression.
"Well, I suppose there's no help for being overheard. As of now, it's nothing more than a 'maybe,' but to put it simply, I was looking at Angela and thinking that 'the Royalist Faction might split apart.'"
"The Royalist Faction might split? You mean Angela might form a new faction?"
When I said she didn't seem the type to do that—
"No, Angela probably has no such intention. If anyone were to become the head of a faction, it would be her father, Duke Sanga."
The kingdom's nobility comprised several factions, the three most famous being the Royalist Faction, the Reformist Faction, and the Neutral Faction. All the other factions combined didn't even amount to half the smallest of the three—the Neutral Faction, he said.
"Within those factions, there are further subdivisions. For instance, the Royalist Faction has a central faction led by my father, a northern Royalist faction, a western Royalist faction... and so on."
Incidentally, the faction centered on the King included nobles such as Lyle and the other royals, Duke Sanga, Marquis Samons, and Viscount Haust.
"But recently, there's one noble within the Royalist Faction whose influence has surged dramatically."
"That would be Duke Sanga?"
"Exactly. On top of his existing influence, in recent years his three children have all married into powerful noble families. And furthermore,
the adopted daughter of the future head's fiancée's family is the lover of the kingdom's strongest candidate for the next king. Just on those grounds alone, it wouldn't be strange for someone directly related to the Sanga ducal bloodline to become king a few decades from now. It could even go so far as a takeover of the royal house... Well, looking at the current Duke Sanga and Albert, I'd judge they harbor no such ambition... but I can't say the same for the generation after them. People's hearts are unpredictable."
I could certainly understand Lyle's concerns, but that topic had come up before—and it didn't connect to why he had instinctively muttered those words upon seeing Angela.
When I pointed that out, Lyle considered for a moment, then—
"Tenma, when you heard Angela was coming, what did you think she was here to discuss?"
"Huh? That would be… well, I thought it was about the marriage talk with Primera."
When I answered, Lyle nodded and continued.
"Angela’s actions likely made other nobles think the same thing you did, Tenma. In other words, some might suspect that Duke Sanga is using his daughter to rope in the so-called ‘Dragon Slayer’—the strongest adventurer—into his own faction. Furthermore, Tenma, you’re quite popular with the residents of the Royal Capital. If someone like you were to join the faction Duke Sanga is building, he would gain power, military strength, and popularity. If he were so inclined, it might even be possible for him to establish a new nation."
It felt like a bit of an overreach, but if we’re only talking about possibilities, it certainly wasn’t impossible.
"Even if Duke Sanga himself has no such intentions, there might be nobles among the others who act on their own based on ‘what if’ scenarios, or even dark forces working to sow chaos within the Royalist Faction… Nobles from the ‘Reformist Faction,’ perhaps."
The Reformist Faction, falling behind the Royalists, could weaken their power simply by creating suspicion or putting Duke Sanga and the royals at odds—even if a full confrontation didn’t materialize.
"Well, these kinds of problems tend to arise easily when noble marriages are involved. In fact, it happened during Albert’s engagement and Angela’s marriage too, so it’s not exactly a rare story… but it’s a pain to deal with every single time it happens."
"So when Lady Angela mentioned she had other places to visit, that was…"
"Almost certainly to strategize against this, I’d imagine."
I thought, *Being a ducal house must involve all sorts of troublesome things…* just before remembering the signed book for my older sister’s child. I asked Lyle whether it would be better to entrust it to Duke Sanga or hand it over directly at the party.
"The party might be better. Even if you entrust it to him, as a noble, you should meet him directly to offer your thanks. Either way, you’ll have to see him. So, if you hand it over at the party, you can take care of everything in one go, which would be easier. However, since you’re only giving it to Rachel, there’s no avoiding the appearance of special treatment."
That was apparently the case, but he also said we could avoid some issues by giving it to Duke Sanga beforehand and having him pass it along.
"Incidentally, if we send an invitation to Tida in Duke Sanga’s name for that party, we could also highlight the good relationship between the royal family and the Duke Sanga household. Fortunately, Tida’s girlfriend, Aimi, is Elizabet’s half-sister, so it wouldn’t be strange to extend an invitation based on that connection."
I should pass Lyle’s advice on to the King and Duke Sanga soon. I imagine they’re both thinking the same thing, but since my political skills are mostly ad-hoc or brute force, I need to make sure I’m prepared to act according to their plans.
"Well, Tenma, you’ve just been dragged into all this, so you can leave the complicated stuff to your father, your brother, and Duke Sanga. Between those three, they should be able to handle anything bad… actually, it might be better to include my mother as well. Father and Duke Sanga should be fine, but my brother seems likely to take full advantage of you."
As for Caesar-sama, I don’t interact with him as much as I do with the King and the others, so I can’t rule it out entirely, but I think it’s possible he could be used for the royal family’s benefit. Though, when I say benefit, it would probably only amount to being scolded a little by Lady Maria… but if I let my guard down, the conversation might drift toward something like, "How about becoming an adoptive son to the royals—perhaps someone like Lord Ernest?" before I knew it, so I needed to be careful… or so it felt.
"I’ll report to my mother myself."
I decided to leave the report to the King and the others to Lyle. It would be easier to interject after their movements with the royal family and Duke Sanga’s household were decided.
"Well then, I should probably head back to the castle. I expect my mother will either visit or summon me soon, so I’ll count on you then."
Since I had things I could do in a hurry, and Lyle was going back to the castle, I asked him to wait a moment while I prepared a souvenir. He might not have noticed, but even though he had a job delivering Namiitarou, if he found out I’d eaten all the good stuff by myself, I’d surely hear some complaints. Plus, even though it was in a roundabout way, my situation was causing trouble for Lady Maria, so I had to provide a little… thoughtfulness to make up for it.
"Then, please give this to Lady Maria. Kurif or Aina should be able to handle the cooking."
"Thanks, that's a huge help."
Lyle looked at the souvenir I'd prepared and seemed to realize that without it, he'd have caught an earful from Lady Maria, bowing his head deeply in gratitude. The contents were enough seafood and rice to make rice bowls with fish and shellfish for over a dozen people, and I'd framed it as a joint gift from Namiitarou and me. That way, Lyle wouldn't get shunned for having eaten all the good stuff by himself.
After seeing Lyle off until he was out of sight, I headed back to the dining hall, where—
"Come on, come on, just a little more!"
"Funnhmm~!"
"Go for it~! Prin~cess~!"
Everyone had gathered in a circle around Namiitarou, doing something together.
"Mmfh~... I tried! But, no good!"
"So it really won't work, huh~. So far the only ones who've managed it are Merlin and Jeanne."
When Amour gave up, Namiitarou lightly tapped the egg that Amour had been touching moments before, letting out a disappointed voice.
"What are you guys doing?"
"Oh! The main event is here~! Well then, without delay... Tenma, come over here, will ya~"
When I called out, Namiitarou beckoned me over with an eager "I've been waiting for you!" — using the Kyoto dialect for some reason.
"Here, here, right here. I need you to place your hands on this egg and pour just a smidge of Magic Power into it. Just a smidge is fine! Just the tiniest little bit, if you please!"
"Got it."
"Hm? Tenma, what you're touching is my face, not the egg, ya know? Hey, Tenma... you hear me?"
Playing along with Namiitarou, who was being completely ridiculous, I decided to have a little fun of my own. I cupped Namiitarou's face between both hands. And then—
"Takemiii..."
"Hold it right theeeere! That's no good! That one's not funny at alllll!"
I was about to cast the most powerful spell among the ones that seemed most effective, when Namiitarou — whether he'd heard about it from someone or figured it out from the name, I couldn't tell — quickly pulled free of my grip and retreated with tremendous force, putting as much distance between us as he could.
"I'm joking. Even I can't use Takemikazuchi without preparation... at most, it'd just make your body tingle."
"Even if you say that in a quiet voice, Nami-chan's ears can hear you just fine! Electrocution is no good for fish! Shock fishing is off-limits, you know!"
The excited Namiitarou kept making a ruckus. "Electric shocks are the enemy of fish! It's environmental destruction! Even if God forgives it, Nami-chan won't!"
"So what exactly are you trying to get me to do?"
"I want you to share some of Tenma's Magic Power with this egg."
"You go and make all that fuss, and then you're just having a normal conversation..."
Once Namiitarou's excitement had finally subsided, I asked him why he'd called me over, and he calmly explained the matter as if nothing had happened.
Chris, who had been watching us this whole time, said something that seemed to voice the thoughts of everyone else, but there was no other way to describe my relationship with Namiitarou, so I just pretended not to hear — it was nothing new.
"Tenma, back when you were hatching Solomon, you poured Magic Power into the egg, right? I want you to do the same thing."
Those words from Namiitarou confirmed that this egg was no ordinary egg. Well, I already knew it wasn't a regular Monster egg since Appraisal didn't work on it... but I had a bad feeling about this.
"I know you seem wary, but this is something the egg's mother asked me to do. Apparently, the more different kinds of Magic Power you pour in, the stronger the child that hatches."
That wasn't what I was wary about, but if the egg's mother had given her permission, it should be fine. Remembering what had happened with Solomon, I poured Magic Power into the egg.
"Oh! Just as expected from someone with experience — the Magic Power is flowing in perfectly!"
It had been a while, but the injection of Magic Power seemed to go well... or rather, it went too well, and it siphoned away as much Magic Power as I would use to cast Tempest. As a result,
A crack appeared!
"Is it hatching?!"
"Both of you, step back — it's dangerous!"
A crack had formed in the egg, and Amour and Aura, who had been watching, leaned forward to peer inside, but Chris, on guard, grabbed them by the back of their collars and forced them to keep their distance.
"It's coming out, it's coming out~... It's out!!!"
"Buihiii...bui?"
With a cracking sound, a turtle-like creature poked its head out of the egg. Everyone except Namitaro and me was watching the turtle-like monster baby with delight or fascination, but I was breaking into a cold sweat. Because—
Species...Behemoth
—that's what Appraisal showed. In this world, a Behemoth is a species of ancient dragon — a dragon that has no wings but possesses a colossal body well over a hundred meters long. It has the most sighting reports of any individual dragon species, and thanks to its relatively gentle temperament, it's supposedly not dangerous as long as you only observe from a distance. However, because of its sheer size, if you carelessly get too close, you can get caught up in the shockwave of its movements. Incidentally, its form resembles a giant tortoise scaled up enormously, but it apparently lives primarily in the sea.
"Ah! It hid inside the shell!"
Perhaps not liking being surrounded, the Behemoth baby retracted its head into its shell as if hiding. While everyone was absorbed watching this, I pulled Namitaro aside—
"What's the meaning of this?"
"Could it be... you found me out?"
I thought about finally making Namitaro eat a Takemikazuchi for playing dumb, but sensing my intent, Namitaro dropped to his knees—
Kill.
My resolve dissipated.
"I might've mentioned this before, but I have a friend called Hi-chan, and she's the mother of that baby."
The name did ring a bell. Back then, I'd had such a bad feeling about it that I didn't ask, and that premonition turned out to be right on the mark. From the moment Appraisal didn't work on the egg, I'd known that thing didn't belong to an ordinary monster—
When I pointed that out to Namitaro, he got angry for some reason, saying "There's no way I'd bring in something weird!" But dragging in an egg that enormous and suspicious-looking meant that excuse wasn't going to fly.
"Never mind that... What I want to know is whether the parent Behemoth is going to show up angry because we hatched its egg without permission."
Saying it in a low voice so the others wouldn't hear, I watched Namitaro. He flashed a grin—
"She might come~... Overjoyed, she'll come to say thank you! Gwah!"
That was so infuriating that I slammed my fist into Namitaro's head with everything I had. It probably wouldn't have worked back in the day, but over the past few years I'd gotten stronger and my use of Magic Power had improved further, so it seemed I could actually deal damage to Namitaro bare-handed now. Well, the recoil damage I took was apparently still worse — it felt like I'd fractured a bone somewhere in my fist.
"W-well, I'll make sure to talk to her so that doesn't happen, so I don't think she'll come here. Though she might say something like 'come visit me.'"
If she was going to come to the Royal Capital anyway, it would be easier for me to go meet her on my own terms. So I firmly pressed Namitaro to make sure he smoothed things over with Hi-chan when he saw her.
After finishing my conversation with Namitaro, I headed back to the dining hall to check on the baby. Before I'd left, the old man and the others had been gathered around the egg, but now they were watching from a distance, with Slarin and the others attending to it instead.
"Oh, you're back."
"You went so far away — did something happen?"
When I noticed the old man looking relieved, I asked what had happened while I was gone. Apparently, the baby had gotten stressed from being surrounded by everyone and had cast magic toward the old man and the others. Fortunately, the spell used only produced water, and Slarin had immediately absorbed it so there was no damage — but apparently it had unleashed quite a large amount.
"That's why that little turtle has kept its distance. As for why Slarin and the others are staying close — it might be because they're Monsters too, but the little turtle didn't seem wary of those three at all."
So they were having Slarin and the others calm the baby down, apparently.
"There's something I should probably tell you about that... come over here for a second."
"What is it?"
When I led the old man to a corner of the dining hall, Chris and Amour tried to follow, but I held up my hand to stop them and told them to wait. And then—
"What did you say?!"
Hearing the whole explanation, the old man's voice echoed throughout the entire mansion.