20

“…Welcome home, my lady.”

The maid standing at the front of the line spoke.

She was clearly startled by Ains’s appearance as he emerged behind Laika, but as a professional servant, she did not allow that surprise to show in her behavior before the mistress she served.

“I’m home, Riste. These two are the benefactors who saved my life and the knights’. Be sure there is no discourtesy.”

“Understood. Please come inside. I will summon the lord of the house, so please wait in the dining room.”

“And have food prepared for me as well—and for the two of them. I worked up quite an appetite.”

“Understood.”

Riste, a maid in service to the Brandy family, gave instructions to the remaining maids to attend to Ains and Sophia, then departed to summon the head of the house.

“This is incredible! This is the noble lifestyle! Laika, you’re really a young lady!”

The opened entrance hall was vast, filled with seemingly unnecessary space and decorations meant purely to project authority.

The floor was entirely carpeted, and Ains couldn’t help thinking—sadly—that he would probably sleep better here than on the bed in his forest cabin.

Looking up, he saw elaborate glasswork that was obviously expensive, and a massive chandelier hanging above, decorated in gold from its pillars to its arms.

Lowering his gaze from the chandelier, he saw a grand staircase leading to the upper floors. Naturally, it too was fully carpeted, from riser to tread.

“Ains-sama, this is what nobles of this country are like. A clan with the tragic nature of competing with others through sheer wealth and extravagant mansions.”

“I see!”

“…If you weren’t our benefactors, that would’ve been grounds for imprisonment for disrespect.”

With a sigh, Laika headed toward the dining room, leaving behind Ains, who was still restlessly looking around.

Guided by the maids, Ains and Sophia followed at a slower pace.

They arrived in the dining room, where a large table dominated the center. Led by the maids, they took their seats. Sophia politely declined the maid’s guidance and sat down, stating that she would take the seat beside Ains-sama.

A pure white tablecloth, spotless in every way, covered the table. Dishes were brought in one after another and placed before Ains.

“C-can I eat already? …More importantly, how do I even eat this?”

Everything before him was completely unfamiliar. If anything looked recognizable, it was bread and meat—but even those were different from the black bread and simply grilled meat he knew.

“Ains-sama, we have not yet greeted the head of the Brandy family. Please wait just a little longer.”

Sophia whispered softly.

Because of Laika’s personality, it was easy to forget—but this was a marquess’s household. Ains followed Sophia’s cue and withdrew his hands beneath the table.

Before long, a slender man entered the dining room briskly alongside Riste.

“Laika! Are you safe!?”

His shoulders rose and fell as he spoke, short of breath.

“Father, as you can see, I’m perfectly fine.”

Laika rose from her chair and spread her arms slightly to show that she was uninjured.

“That’s a relief—truly. When I heard from the messenger that you’d been attacked by bandits and a skilled sorcerer, I thought my heart would stop.”

The man pulled Laika into a tight embrace, then checked her face, arms, and legs with his hands to confirm she was unharmed.

“Kansas-sama, we have guests present. Please calm yourself, or you will trouble them.”

Riste gently admonished the flustered man—Kansas.

“Guests? I didn’t invite anyone.”

Only then did Kansas notice Ains, who was repeatedly swallowing the saliva welling in his mouth as he stared intently at the food, and Sophia, who sat quietly beside him with her eyes closed.

“And who might they be? Laika’s guests?”

“Yes, Father. They are my benefactors. We received several rare High Potions from them free of charge, and they were the ones who subdued the enemy sorcerer.”

“What? High Potions?”

Kansas stared at the two in shock.

“Ains, Sophia-san. Come here. I’ll introduce you.”

Only Sophia responded immediately.

She opened her eyes, gently shook Ains—whose gaze was sparkling as it lingered on the food—by the shoulder, and stood up.

Ains quickly grasped the situation. Following Sophia, who pulled his chair back for him, he stood and walked toward Kansas and Laika.

Because the floor was carpeted, the light, distinctive sound of his prosthetic leg made no noise.

Kansas was no mere figurehead marquess of the Santia Kingdom.

For an instant, his eyes widened at the unusual sight of a prosthetic left leg and an empty right arm—but more than that, he sensed the unique presence that surrounded Ains.

“This is Ains. He looks almost like a woman with his long hair, but he’s male.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Ains. I work as a sorcerer, for what it’s worth.”

There were people within the kingdom who called themselves sorcerers, but in Kansas’s experience, they were all fools whose pride had swollen beyond reason and who carried themselves with unbearable arrogance.

That was the only image he had of sorcerers.

Which was why Ains’s modest demeanor took him by surprise.

“And this is Sophia-san. She is a knight of the Silver Snow Knights.”

“Pleased to meet you, Lord Brandy. I am Sophia, of the Silver Snow Knights.”

Sophia bowed deeply as she introduced herself.

“…The Silver Snow Knights, you say.”

“Yes. I serve as Ains-sama’s attendant.”

Sophia answered while still bowing.

The word attendant caught Kansas’s attention.

The Silver Snow Knights revered and served the sorcerer known as the Ains of Silver Snow, a figure even called a demon god. For a knight of that order to use the word attendant—a term not even used toward their own commander—

It was impossible not to read into it.

“…In any case, the two of you have my deepest gratitude for saving my daughter. Please, for tonight, rest yourselves to your hearts’ content.”

After shaking hands with both Ains and Sophia, Kansas guided them back to their seats.