Chapter 125

After safely delivering Fiene to Kattenstrokt, I exchanged greetings with her parents.

“Mr. Hinoharu, thank you for always looking after our daughter.”

Her parents welcomed me warmly and were eager to hear about how Fiene was doing in Dresden.

So, I told them about how well she was performing as Lady Clara’s retainer and mentioned that she had secured second place in the archery division at the Royal Capital City Guard’s martial arts showcase.

Each time I spoke, Fiene’s family looked at their daughter with eyes filled with disbelief.

“To think my big sister is actually wearing a military uniform… it feels like I’m dreaming.”

Fiene had prepared a brand-new military uniform for this very day, complete with the blue scarf she had received at the showcase.

Of course, it was a secret from everyone that she had changed into it inside the forest just before entering Kattenstrokt.

“Heheh, see? I told you guys I’ve been doing proper work over there.”

Fiene puffed out her chest rather haughtily.

Since it would be boorish to disturb their private family time, I decided it was about time to take my leave.

Her parents insisted that I stay the night, but I had already promised Lady Clara that I would return to Dresden by dinner.

“I’ll be using a portal to head back to Dresden now.”

“Oh right, I forgot Kota had that trick up his sleeve.”

“Yeah. If I’m late, Lady Clara will worry.”

“No wonder you were so generous about letting me stay in Kattenstrokt for three whole days.”

Fiene gave a light shrug of her shoulders.

The gesture was so cute that I wanted to pat her head, but I firmly held myself back.

Even if she was on the petite side, she was a proper eighteen-year-old girl. She was past the age where one could casually pat her head.

“Well, don’t worry about me and just get going. It’d be trouble if Lady Clara ended up resenting me.”

Though she was talking a bit of smack, Fiene carried a completely carefree smile.

Suddenly, an idea struck me.

“Fiene, why don’t you come along too? For that matter, your whole family can come with us.”

“Huh?”

The Transfer Portal allowed for up to four companions to be transported alongside me.

Taking her family along for a little sightseeing trip to Dresden was well within the limits.

“A-Are you really sure it’s okay?”

“Yeah.”

Fiene began to tremble with excitement.

“F-Father! Mother!”

Her parents and younger brother had been watching our conversation for a while with faces that showed they didn’t understand a single thing.

“What is the meaning of this, Fiene?”

As her father questioned her suspiciously, Fiene explained the nature of the portal.

“So you’re saying we can go to Dresden right this second?!”

Her younger brother, being youthful and flexible of mind, was the first to grasp it.

“Exactly! Are you coming? We’re going, right?! I don’t think an opportunity like this will ever happen a second time.”

Fiene urged them on, but her parents remained half-doubting.

“Can we truly reach Dresden?”

Her mother asked Fiene with a look of utter disbelief.

“Mr. Hinoharu possesses such incredible magic? If that is the case, is Lord Hinoharu perhaps a noble?”

“Ah, I’ll be invested as a Knight Bachelor soon. Though I’ll be a landless noble.”

I said it in a purposely casual manner, but from that exact moment, her parents became completely deferential.

“Please forgive our great insolence!”

“I haven’t been officially invested yet, and I’m also Fiene’s colleague. Please don’t be so formal with me.”

Saying that, I managed to get them to dissolve their tension somewhat.

The fact that Fiene continued to speak with me in her usual familiar tone certainly helped, and before long, their attitude toward me gradually returned to normal.

“More importantly, hurry up and change! Tonight, I’m going to use the money I saved up to treat everyone to a restaurant in the royal capital!”

She seemed completely fired up by the chance to show some filial piety to her parents.

While Fiene triumphantly issued instructions to wash faces, change clothes, and comb hair—leaving the Barbe family in a frantic rush of preparation—I temporarily returned to Dresden alone.

“I have returned.”

Conveniently, Lady Clara and the others were all gathered in the living room.

Yoshioka was present, alongside Oliver Bach and Hans.

“Welcome back, Kota. You are back much sooner than I expected.”

To a delighted Lady Clara, I explained that I had successfully delivered Fiene to Kattenstrokt and that Fiene’s family would be arriving in Dresden shortly.

“Bianca, for the time being, could you please prepare extra tea for four people?”

“Understood. However, we do not have enough chairs in this living room.”

Just as Bianca pointed out, the third-floor living room didn’t have enough space for everyone to sit.

“In that case, let’s move down to the first-floor shop.”

The renovation of Amida Trading’s shopfront had already been completed, and it was simply waiting for the grand opening.

Holding their respective teacups, everyone shuffled down the stairs from the third floor.

Right in front of me, Hans was carrying a teacup in one hand and a large platter piled with biscuits in the other.

“Hans, did Emma not come today?”

“My lady is currently visiting the Saint. She was invited to a tea party by Lady Juliana Ceberai.”

Since Emma was a massive fan of the Saint, she must have been overjoyed.

If Juliana’s obsession was shifting toward Emma instead of me, that was actually a welcome development.

Even if the other party was a yandere saint, as long as Emma herself was happy with the arrangement, there shouldn’t be any issue… I think.

While harboring a slight trace of guilt, I let out a massive sigh of relief.

Led into Juliana’s private parlor, Emma looked around at the elegant furnishings with floating, ethereal steps.

Due to a mix of sheer nervousness and intense emotion, she had completely lost the capacity for rational thought.

After all, she was being hosted inside the private chambers of the Saint of Grossel, whom she had admired for so long. It was only natural for her to be overwhelmed.

“Thank you very much for inviting me today.”

As Emma offered her greeting in a raspy voice, Juliana directed a smile toward her that no one could possibly resist loving.

“You are very welcome here. Come, please take a seat.”

The Saint’s beautiful white hand gently took hold of Emma’s.

That brief bit of skinship alone sent Emma’s brain into a state of absolute boiling.

Guiding Emma toward a two-seater sofa, Juliana sat down immediately right beside her.

“Would you like milk in your tea?”

“Yes, please.”

“And sugar? I always end up putting two cubes. I have quite a fondness for sweet things.”

It was a smile that looked like a pure bud suddenly blooming into an enchanting flower.

The most beautiful flower in the royal capital opened its petals right next to Emma.

“I have wanted to become friends with you for a very long time, Emma.”

The sweet poison of the fragrant, gorgeous flower was systematically eroding Emma’s defenses.

Plunged into the Saint’s charm, Emma found herself trembling from the sheer ecstasy welling up from deep within her chest.

With her cheeks thoroughly flushed, Emma stared rapturously at Juliana as if placed under a hypnotic trance.

Abandoning any semblance of critical thought, Emma focused entirely on answering whatever questions were put to her to the absolute best of her ability.

“So, it is the truth that Mr. Hinoharu is Clara Ansbach’s summoned beast?”

“Yes. I have witnessed Lady Clara deploy the summoning formula and seen Lord Hinoharu manifest from within the magic circle countless times.”

“Is there anyone else capable of summoning Mr. Hinoharu?”

“I do not know of anyone. Presumably, it is Lady Clara alone.”

Ria was actually capable of summoning Hinoharu as well, but Emma simply didn’t possess that piece of information.

While maintaining the outward appearance of chatting excitedly with Emma, Juliana turned over cold, calculating thoughts in her head.

Using Emma Petersen to poison Clara would likely be an exceptionally easy task.

However, a single concern gave Juliana pause.

Namely, the distinct possibility that if Clara Ansbach were to die, Kota Hinoharu might be forced back to his original world, rendering it impossible to ever summon him again.

While considering it a highly tedious complication, Juliana simultaneously felt her heart racing at the sheer weight of the obstacle placed before her.

The Saint was precisely the type of person who grew more stimulated the higher the walls blocking her path turned out to be.

She recalled hearing that inside the underground treasury of the Nordicism headquarters, there rested a forbidden artifact designed specifically for capturing summoned beasts, known as the Collar of Taming.

As long as one possessed that item, it was apparently possible to sever a summoned beast’s magical link and bend them entirely to the captor’s whim.

With this collar, there would be no need to take the risk of murdering Clara.

That woman could simply be left alive as an insurance policy for whenever a re-summons became necessary.

No, rather, forcing that woman to witness her and Hinoharu living in blissful harmony might just be the exact sort of refinement this situation required.

Juliana’s strategy was finally set in stone.