chapter 62
62 – House
The main gate of the royal capital.
The carriage we rode was similar to an official car registered in the kingdom, so we were given a free pass to a side street without inspection.
Kalia and the others were also eligible for a free pass since they were in charge of a mission similar to that of an envoy of the empire.
But I was slightly disappointed.
A sorceress who was kidnapped and returned alive.
The princess, his betrothed, runs away from home and returns together to save him.
Even if it wasn’t enough to cause a fuss, I expected some people I knew to come out and greet me…
‘Have I become so sick of being a celebrity?’
The royal capital, the center of the kingdom. Even in the royal capital, the experience of standing on a podium in the central square in front of a large crowd was enough to boost my self-esteem.
I just felt like it was a bit excessive, so I thought I should be more careful.
We quietly entered the royal capital without anyone welcoming us and stopped our carriage in front of a high-class inn where nobles and important guests stayed.
An old man who seemed to be the inn manager came out after hearing the sound of a carriage and greeted us.
It is said that the old man was the younger brother of the pre-war king, and that he married a commoner and built this inn.
“Lord Tyler, Lord Anderson. I’m glad you’re safe.”
Because he has been officially deprived of his noble status, he bows down to other nobles even though he was born as a royal.
From what I’ve seen a few times, there are aspects of him that are polite.
“Please raise your head. Please take good care of them.”
I handed over the Kalia team to the old man.
Because of their status as imperial envoys and their achievements in protecting me, they decided to let me stay at the best inn in the country.
Originally, it was a place where adventurers could not set foot.
“Thank you for your hospitality, noble. It is time to say goodbye.”
Jespa puts her hands together and bows her head slightly to me.
‘Goodbye Lolicon.’
I held back what I wanted to say and nodded.
“Oh, I hope to see you again someday…”
Kalia said that while still giving awkward stares.
“Why are you all so upset? I have to stay here for a few days anyway, so I can go see you in the meantime! Isn’t that right, Tom? Let me take you on a tour of the capital!”
Rishari looks at me with a grin.
Then Betty, who was next to me, glared at Richari and came into my arms.
I answered, scratching the back of my head with my free arm.
“Well… I also need to relieve my travel fatigue… Let’s all have a beer together in a couple of days. How about?”
“Okay! I’ll compromise to that extent.”
After answering, Li Shari took her companions and entered her inn.
Me and Betty on the carriage again.
“Phew… It’s gotten pretty quiet.”
In the Calia team, Calia and Jespar were quiet talkers, but Lishari had an extroverted personality that was frustrating.
‘Wizard. Magic and occult otaku. A sullen bust with bangs covering her eyes. But because I’m an extrovert…’
These were combinations that somehow did not match.
When she, who was always chatting next to me, left, the surroundings became quiet.
‘Well, I prefer silence.’
I couldn’t help but feel a little lonely.
“Thank you for your hard work, Tom…”
At that time, Betty, who was sitting across from me, spoke up.
I wonder if he spoke to me because my expression darkened a little.
She wasn’t particularly talkative either.
“It was quite fun. When will I have another experience like this in my life?”
I grinned and joked.
Betty puffed out her cheeks with an upset expression.
“It was an experience I never want to have again.”
Tears well up in Betty’s big eyes.
“I… I’m incompetent…”
-Tuk. Tuk.
Teardrops falling thickly.
‘Oh my gosh, I cried..’
I moved to the seat next to Betty, leaned her head against me, and stroked her gently.
“Hibb.. Hibb..”
She was like a girl, holding back her cries and shedding tears.
In a meaning that is opposite to the meaning commonly used in this world.
“I… I should have protected it…”
Betty was blaming herself, wetting my shoulder more and more.
I didn’t have anything to say, so I just stroked her soft red hair.
-Ratly.
At that time, the carriage door was wide open.
Beyond the carriage door, the view of Anderson’s mansion in the royal capital unfolded.
And in the yard of the Anderson mansion, quite a few people gathered and stood in front of the carriage.
Anderson family. Duke of Tyler. Olivia Hex, who became my student. Plus, there are faces I don’t know.
They were clapping, but when they saw Betty and I standing close together, the applause gradually died down.
“Uh… Hmm. Well, welcome back, Tom.”
Maria greets you in a hesitant manner.
Me and Betty separated from each other awkwardly.
“Yes, yes… Thank you for your welcome, Mother…”
So, I returned home after a short and long kidnapping incident.
————————————————————- ————————————
Now I was in a very difficult situation.
After returning to the capital, it wasn’t because Betty didn’t want to leave me even for a moment.
The reason is that Olivia Hex is sitting in front of me with her eyes closed.
Why do I find it difficult to have people sitting in front of me?
That’s because it’s my first time experiencing a situation like this.
After two days of rest, I decided to take the Hex Lady’s magic class as originally scheduled.
So, about an hour ago, she came to her mansion.
“I’m really looking forward to it, Master! I’ve been looking forward to this day!”
She sat across from me in my room and shouted excitedly.
“Hmm… I’ll say it again, there’s not much I can teach you. Don’t expect too much.”
Let me lay the groundwork,
“I am against the teacher’s opinion! This disciple believes that there is nothing to learn from the teacher!”
She tramples on that ground food.
“And I hope you speak comfortably! There is no teacher who speaks highly of his disciples!”
‘No, I heard there are a lot of professors here who use polite language to their students…’
My elven magic teacher, who has lived for hundreds of years, also speaks respectfully to me.
“Huh.. Okay.”
When I answered reluctantly, Olivia grinned.
Then she tilts her head as if in doubt.
“By the way, Lord Tyler, what are you doing standing over there?”
I turn her head in the direction she pointed.
Betty is seen there, standing at attention as if on guard duty.
I sigh again.
Betty volunteered to be my bodyguard, saying she would never let me be in danger again.
Fortunately, Betty had a lot of time since it was her last winter vacation.
If she had been the same, she would have gone back to the Duke of Tyler, but she used that time to stay by my side.
I also needed time alone.
So I asked them to go back.
But she continued to protest until the very end and ended up crying again, so I had no choice but to agree.
Maria said with a smile of a mature woman on her face, saying that she was confident and that she would definitely take care of Tom.
Was it because of my mood that it felt like it was laughing at me?
But the real problem happened at night.
I was trying to shower before going to bed, but she tried to come into the bathroom with me.
“One of the situations in which people are most vulnerable to attack is while taking a bath. I will take a bath too.”
To be honest, I was a little tempted.
She was so overcome by the urge to have him sit in front of her in her bathtub and feel her soft skin on her that she almost said yes.
But I held my head strong.
So I managed to compromise by installing alarm magic.
But the problem did not stop there.
When I lay down on the bed after washing up, there was something under the blanket.
“I put it in a warm place.”
Betty whispered with her shy face.
I couldn’t think of any reason to reject that.
‘The bed is large and I wonder if it’s okay…’
Not all the fatigue from the trip was gone yet, and there were still some annoying things.
‘This is what happened anyway. Let’s make him regret his actions.’
I tried to give her her shame.
So I hugged her inside her blanket.
“Oh…”
Then, as if startled, she looked at me with wide eyes, almost at a distance where her nose was touching.
I’ve always seemed awkward when Betty sticks around, so I wonder if she’s surprised that I’m suddenly acting like this.
But she did not reject my touch and instead hugged me.
“hehehehe…”
And then a happy little smile.
‘Ah… Something…’
I’ve never had a girlfriend in my life, so I thought I’d break up with her right away because this was so unfamiliar.
‘I feel relieved…’
As I hugged Betty’s voluptuous and soft body, her sense of security combined with my fatigue, and I fell into a deep sleep within seconds.
“Master? What are you thinking?”
Olivia awakens my thoughts.
“Oh, no. Then shall we start class?”
I turned my attention back to Betty and proceeded with the class I had prepared.
While I was in the middle of preaching the magic theory I had accumulated, I finally noticed Olivia’s clothing.
She was dressed like a ninja or samurai.
‘I heard that there is an island country similar to Japan in the south of the kingdom. Are you influenced by that?’
She seemed to be tainted by what is commonly called ‘wapanism’ in the world I originally came from.
From the way he speaks to the way he dresses.
‘If you’re going to do that, why don’t you just learn the sword…’
I guess my inner thoughts came out mumbling through my mouth.
“Oh, how did you know? The dwarf’s dream is to recreate samurai and ninja with magic!”
Olivia shouted with a triumphant look on her face.
‘Otaku…’