Chapter 54. Afterwards

“That’s all I saw.”

After meeting the Imperial Investigation Unit deep in the mountain range, I returned to the mansion and reported to Lowell.

“I see. It seems they have their own plan, so that's good.”

“Yeah, I hope they just take it away like this.”

I don't know how much that Gigant Statue is worth, but sending a second investigation team suggests the Empire values it highly.

I just want them to haul away that creepy statue.

“The Kingdom's reaction is lukewarm, so if the Empire succeeds in lifting it, they’ll take it.”

“That's a relief.”

“Still, it seems like it will be a lengthy process, so we'll have to see what happens.”

Well... that makes sense.

Even if they lighten the statue's weight, lifting it probably won't be easy.

No matter how light they make it, it's not going to be feather-light, is it?

They have to dig through several meters of the cave ceiling and then pull up a statue tens of meters tall.

This alone is daunting, and considering the task of transporting it from the heart of the Kain Mountains to the Empire, it could take months.

“Get some rest. You've worked hard.”

“Alright.”

“Oh, and one more thing I wanted to tell you.”

“Yeah? What is it?”

The mission just ended, is there something else?

Since it wasn't a difficult mission, I waited for Lowell to speak.

“I’d like you to pick up Young Lady Aria next weekend.”

“...Why aren’t you going yourself?”

He's asking me to do something unexpected.

I asked out of curiosity since Lowell had always handled picking up the Young Lady. Wasn’t it because it was considered dangerous?

Those crazy Devil Worshippers even terrorized the mansion in the Capital.

“It's been confirmed that there are no more worshippers in the Capital. Moreover, I have to go on a long business trip for an urgent family matter.”

“What about the mansion?”

I was curious about what urgent family matter required Lowell’s attention, but I was more worried about the safety of the mansion.

Who will protect the mansion if Lowell is gone?

“Well.”

Lowell just stared at me after I asked.

“...Me?”

“We also have Sir Harwin and the security guards, don't we?”

Sir Harwin is the family knight in charge of the mansion’s security.

He’s a gruff, somewhat difficult man to deal with.

“When the Young Lady arrives…”

“With Daren and Kaiden also present, there will be four knights in the mansion.”

…He has a point.

Four knights are excessive for mansion security, but Lowell has always been there, so it feels like the security is lacking.

“Alright then.”

Well, the Young Lady has grown up, and Lowell can't always be there.

I nodded and left his office.

A few days later, Lowell distributed the mansion duties among the servants and departed on his long business trip.

***

A pleasant weekend.

As Lowell requested, I came to the front gate of the Magic School to pick up the Young Lady.

“It’s huge.”

The Magic School, which I saw for the first time, was even bigger than I expected.

It’s comparable in size to a university from my previous life. The Young Lady has been studying in a place like this?

No wonder she went for a walk outside as soon as she arrived at the mansion.

Walking along the trails on that campus would make walking in the garden feel cramped.

However….

There are so many carriages and people in front of the main gate.

Am I the only one who came alone?

Lowell told me the Young Lady likes walks, so I came without a carriage, but I should have brought one.

“Excuse me…”

“...Are you a knight from the Void Family?”

More importantly, the attention I’m getting for standing idly at the main gate in uniform is intense.

It’s almost like when I went to the Imperial Investigation Unit camp.

Well, it looks like it’s just as uncomfortable for them.

Nobody is approaching me.

Just like that, I waited at the front gate, attracting all kinds of attention, when students started coming out of the main gate, ready for the weekend.

And….

“Dog?”

The Young Lady also emerged from the main gate, followed by a group of students.

…I heard her followers had increased quite a bit since the last time she was at the mansion, but I didn’t realize it was this many.

“Oh my, Void Young Lady, this gentleman is…?”

“Yes, he’s a knight from the mansion.”

She seems quite calm, perhaps because of the presence of her followers.

It's a different side of her compared to her behavior at the mansion.

If she acted like she did at the mansion, she might have friends, but she wouldn't have followers.

The Young Lady isn’t that outgoing to begin with.

“I’ve come to escort you, Young Lady.”

As I approached her, the gazes of the female students, who appeared to be her followers, focused on me.

“Oh my, oh my….”

“He’s a handsome knight….”

However….

“Good boy.”

The Young Lady held out her hand.

Does she want me to escort her? Or could it be…?

“Dog?”

Yes, that's exactly it.

As usual, I knelt on one knee to meet her eye level, and the Young Lady patted my head.

“Good boy.”

Seriously, she introduced me as a family knight, and yet she does this.

Well, she never seemed pleased with me becoming a knight.

She didn’t oppose it, though, because I earned the merit.

“Aria, what is this…?”

The people around us were bewildered to see her patting a knight.

“Um…aren’t you a knight…?”

“Yes? He’s a dog, he's a dog.”

Only the Young Lady and I are unfazed in this situation.

She’s always been like this, and as for me, well…

I’m no longer someone who would be embarrassed by such stares.

One concern I had was the Young Lady’s reputation, but….

“Wow….”

“You’re really amazing, Lady Aria….”

…Seeing her followers looking at her with strangely admiring gazes, it doesn’t seem like it’ll be a big problem.

“Let’s go back to the mansion now.”

“Yeah, we should.”

Well, anyway.

Afterwards, I headed back to the mansion, strolling down the road with Daren and Kaiden, the Bodyguard Knights who’d come out carrying the Young Lady’s luggage.

“By the way, where’s Lowell?”

“He’s on a business trip, so I came instead.”

“Is, is that so? If the dog’s coming, give me a heads-up next time.”

But then.

Was the Young Lady embarrassed on the inside?

As we walked down the street together, she blushed and said,

“Were you very surprised?”

“Ugh, yeah, I was.”

More importantly, it seems like she wasn’t informed.

“Let’s send a letter beforehand next time.”

“No, this kind of surprise is fine.”

“Is that so?”

“My dog is cool, right? I wanted to show him off.”

If you think so, well, it’s an honor.

“So, when will Lowell be back?”

“I’m not sure. I heard it was a long-term business trip.”

“Really? Then who’s filling in for Lowell while he’s gone?”

“The remaining Servants at the mansion are handling other tasks, and I’ll be assisting the Young Lady.”

Well, assisting just means following her when she leaves the mansion.

Daren and Kaiden are there for basic bodyguard duties anyway.

“...You’ve never said we were cool.”

“The Young Lady just likes Rain too much.”

They may seem pathetic right now.

But they are both excellent Aura Users.

I think they can probably be compared to the most outstanding members of the Royal Knights.

Well, they were promising talents recognized by the Void Family in the first place.

“We’ve arrived.”

So, we returned to the mansion and unpacked the Young Lady’s luggage.

Unlike usual, there was quite a bit of luggage.

I heard she won’t be going to Magic School for a month.

Was it spring break or something?

Well, in my previous life, it seems similar to a vacation schedule.

“Mmm, I missed the mansion!”

So the Young Lady was very excited.

She’s mature for her age, but she’s just entering her teens, so of course, she’d be happy about a break.

So while the Young Lady excitedly unpacked and changed clothes,

I also returned to my room and changed.

The formal uniform is stylish, but a little uncomfortable.

I changed into comfortable clothes and strapped my sword back to my waist.

Since I’m filling in for Lowell, I can’t leave my sword behind when I escort the Young Lady.

And….

'Should I take this too?'

While I was at it, I strapped a few of the throwing axes Sienna gave me to my waist.

I feel strangely uneasy with Lowell gone.

While helping Sienna with her Aura control, I also learned Throwing Skill.

I'm confident enough with it now.

I carefully hid the throwing axes under my casual clothes and adjusted my attire. Just then.

*Knock! Knock!*

Someone knocked brightly on my door.

“Come in.”

*Burst!*

The door opened immediately after I answered.

“Doggy!”

None other than the Young Lady, now changed, had come to my room without fail.

She used to come into the Doghouse when I was in the garden, and even now, she doesn’t hesitate.

“Doggy, what are you doing?”

“I was just about to head out.”

“Hmm! If you're my assistant, you have to stay with me.”

“Have you finished unpacking?”

I thought it would take a while since she had quite a bit of luggage, but she came out earlier than I expected.

She didn’t leave it all to the Maids, did she?

Or maybe she just shoved it all in the closet without unpacking properly.

“Um, umm… I can unpack later!”

…Turns out it was the latter.

“You should unpack right away. Let's go. I'll help you.”

"Ah, you don't have to…."

If she unpacks late, the head Maid will scold her.

I led the Young Lady to her room.

Her room was, well, familiar.

Just as the Young Lady frequented my room, she often brought me to hers.

“Oh, Sir Rain.”

There were Maids in the Young Lady's room.

It seems they were cleaning up since the Young Lady had left her luggage unpacked.

“Young Lady, you should unpack your luggage yourself….”

“Ah, I know! I can do it!”

Well, it wouldn’t be a problem if the Maids did it.

But this is Lowell's policy.

He said a lady of the Void Family should be able to pack and unpack her own luggage.

"E-Everyone, go back! I'll do it."

I agree with that, so I stared pointedly at the Young Lady. Feeling guilty, she dismissed the Maids and started unpacking.

“I’ll help you.”

“Mmm….”

She seemed quite mature when we left the Magic School earlier.

But a Young Lady is still a Young Lady.

Well, I’m more used to her childish side, so I helped her unpack with a comfortable mind.

After we finished unpacking,

“By the way, Doggy.”

“Yes, what is it?”

The Young Lady, who was lying on her bed, seemingly exhausted from unpacking, spoke to me.

“If Lowell is gone, are you going to the snack party with me next week?”

“...Snack party?”

The Young Lady brought up an event I wasn’t aware of.

“Yeah, I was supposed to go with Lowell, but he's on a business trip.”

“Ah… there was such a thing.”

She was supposed to go with Lowell? Naturally, I hadn’t received any information about it from him.

“Yeah! But the mansion holding the snack party is in the Capital, so it’s close.”

“Alright.”

I can't say I won't go just because I didn't know about it, so I nodded.

Speaking of which. That old man.

Did he just dump all of this on me?

No wonder he seemed so light on his feet when he left; it’s absurd.