Chapter 36

When I woke up, Yoshioka was already awake and in the middle of an intense internet search.

“Good morning. The bath is ready, so why don’t you hop in?”

Last night, the moment I got home, it turned into a talk about divorce, and I stormed out immediately after, so I hadn’t even bathed. Counting the days in the other world, I’d been without a bath for a whole week.

“Thanks. I’ll take you up on that.”

After refreshing myself in the bath, I found breakfast waiting for me. Minestrone, poached eggs, and focaccia with olives were laid out.

“Is this Italy?!”

When I threw out that jab, he even produced a cappuccino. Meticulous as always.

“Maybe I should marry Yoshioka next.”

“Stop talking nonsense and just eat.”

Since I couldn’t exactly live in the apartment where Emi was, I decided to move into Yoshioka’s place for the time being. Come Monday, I’d go to file the moving-out and moving-in notices. We aren’t getting married, but “living together” was officially decided. I’ll move out as soon as possible, so I’m counting on you until then. I’ll make sure to soothe you with my Golden Fingers tonight.

I’m the type who could comfortably live in a car if it came down to it, so I wasn’t taking it too seriously. Besides, while I’m in Japan, I’ll probably only be doing shopping anyway. My car was parked in a nearby coin-operated lot.

Though I didn’t have much of an appetite due to the lingering emotional trauma, I made sure to finish everything out of consideration for Yoshioka, who had gone to the trouble of preparing it.

“Yoshioka.”

“What is it?”

“Thanks.”

Yoshioka simply offered a smile in response to my gratitude.

In the Kingdom of Saxens, flashy and intricate patterns seemed to be preferred. The people of the Count’s household were also captivated by such designs. Keeping that in mind, we formulated our trends and countermeasures before sourcing the goods.

A cup and saucer for 140,000 yen, huh? At a twelve-fold markup, that’s 1.68 million Marques… I wondered if it would really sell.

“It’ll be fine. Since it’s a nice round number, let’s just list it at 1.7 million Marques,” Yoshioka suggested.

For someone so shy, he’s remarkably aggressive when it comes to pricing. Feeling a lack of motivation myself, I allowed myself to be swept along by Yoshioka as we purchased 5 million yen worth of stock.

Still, buying several high-priced items in cash is quite an ordeal. Bundles of a million yen are hard to fit in one’s pockets. Someday, I’d love to have the pinnacle of credit cards—a Black Card. I’m sure it would make shopping much easier.

I stood in the middle of Ginza, waiting for the summoning time. Since I planned to shop again next time, I thought it would be more convenient to be in this area where high-end shops are concentrated.

However, standing in the dead center of Ginza dangling gasoline canisters from both hands, I stood out like a sore thumb. At this rate, a police officer was likely to stop me for questioning. But they wouldn’t fit in the Spatial Storage! And it would be a disaster if gasoline got on the merchandise, wouldn’t it?

“Three minutes left. Just bear with it until then.”

“Yeah.”

But hardly anyone paid me any mind. People in the city were cold in a good way. Mom, I guess I really can’t get used to the city. I suddenly felt like going back to my hometown in Yamagata. Oh, but my mother is originally from Kyoto. My father is from Nagano… And I was planning on becoming a citizen of the Kingdom of Saxens from Yamagata.

In the small room in the gap, I set the gasoline canisters on the floor. Since they’d be an obstacle during the journey, I planned to stock one in this location. I also left things like engine oil in the corner of the room. If it wasn’t allowed, I figured the handsome guy would warn me, but he didn’t show up today either.

Now, shall I pull today’s Skill Card quickly?

I didn’t hate it. I’ve always liked the outdoors and owned several botanical guides. There were even a few among the books I took from the house during the divorce.

But the plants in that world were remarkably similar to those on Earth. I’d eaten several kinds of vegetables so far; while the varieties of potatoes, carrots, and onions seemed different, they were basically the same. There were some vegetables I didn’t recognize, but according to the gourmet Yoshioka, they were the same as those commonly cultivated abroad.

“A botany guide? Seems like something you’d like, Senpai.”

“Yeah. It lists edible plants, medicinal plants, and even ingredients for poisons.”

Fiene apparently applied paralytic agents to her arrows when hunting, and the plant used for that was also listed. This was a bit interesting. I’d definitely like to collect the rest of the series after the introductory volume.

The practice spear struck the chest of the armor, and Kota fell backward with a heavy thud. If it had been a real battlefield, it would have been a fatal wound.

“What is the matter? You are remarkably distracted.”

“My apologies.”

What truly was the matter?

Kota was completely unable to focus on his training today.

Usually, he was a man who tackled everything with sincerity, but today it felt as though his heart simply wasn’t there.

“That’s enough for today! If you continue while your mind is in such disarray, you will only injure yourself,” I declared sternly.

“Yes, ma’am.”

W-what was with that sorrowful expression? Was it my fault? Or had someone done something to him?

Though I kept my words and attitude strict, my heart was in a state of violent agitation. It reminded me of my beloved late dog, Volke. He used to make that exact face whenever my father scolded him harshly. The poor thing had been so emotionally wounded that he even developed a circular bald spot on the side of his nose.

Would Kota be alright? He wouldn’t go bald, would he? I was incredibly worried.

“Lady Clara, a word if I may.”

“What is it, Akito?”

Akito approached me, having waited for Kota to depart.

“The truth is…”

Akito told me everything he knew.

.
.
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What was I to do? Even while knowing it was a despicable thing, my heart was being dyed in joy. It was disrespectful to Kota, who was grieving. Yet, I did not know the way to suppress these feelings of mine.

Yes—I loved Kota. From the moment I clearly put it into words within my heart for the first time, that thought began to swell at an accelerating rate.

But as a knight and as the Lord of Ebba-berg, I had to at least keep my actions properly restrained. Even if Kota had become single, it did not mean he would love me in return. Even if we were drawn to one another… we could likely never be together.

I had my duties as a noble. The duty to eventually take a suitable husband and ensure the continuation of the Ansbach house. I had dedicated my life to ensuring the people of Ebba-berg could live in peace.

Therefore, this love was something I had to keep hidden within me, never to be let out. I knew it was selfish—to rejoice that a man I could never be joined with now belonged to no one else. I must not let such an ugly heart show. I might as well clad my heart in armor. I was a knight, after all…

“T-today is a rest day for Blitz… Shall we not have some wine?”

Clara-sama suddenly made the suggestion during lunch. I knew she liked wine, but it was rare for her to drink during the day. Besides, I didn’t see what Blitz’s rest had to do with drinking wine.

“Y-yes, indeed. May I have some as well?”

“Do not hold back, Fiene, you drink too. Kota, you should drink as well.”

The conversation felt awkward. Their exchange sounded like pre-rehearsed lines.

“What’s going on?” I whispered to Yoshioka.

“They’re probably trying to cheer you up, Senpai.”

Ah, so that was it. Yoshioka must have told them.

“Um, it seems you already know. As I’m sure you’ve heard from Yoshioka, a divorce has been finalized between my wife and me, and I’ve returned to being single.”

The table fell silent. If anything, the tension only increased.

“Kota… is that my fault? Is it because I kept you by my side for so long…?” Clara-sama asked, looking worried.

“No,” I denied it immediately. “It ended a long time ago. Probably long before I ever met you, Clara-sama.”

As I spoke, I felt a sense of clarity wash over me.

“So, can I have that wine now?”

“O-oh! Yes, of course!”

When I flashed her a smile, Clara-sama looked startled.

“Then I’ll gratefully accept my master’s kindness.”

Clara-sama treated us to wine starting from noon. I realized I had grown quite accustomed to this highly acidic wine. People often use the expression “getting used to the water” to describe acclimating to a new country’s environment, but for me, that “water” might just be this wine.