22

Only three remained in the dining room: Kansas, Laika, and Riste.

Perhaps tired from talking and laughing with Ains, Laika leisurely tilted her teacup.

“I went to speak with Sophia-dono earlier, in the guest room.”

The elegant, quiet atmosphere that flowed between family members came to an end as Kansas opened the conversation.

“Did you talk about something?”

Kansas, the head of the house, had gone out of his way to speak to Laika’s guest—yet not to Ains, who had effectively saved Laika, but to Sophia instead.

Wondering what his intention had been, Laika set her cup down on the table.

“I heard Sophia-dono is a member of the Silver Snow Knights. Which means she was in that Autonomous City of the Ains Domain.”

“That’s right. Ains and Sophia-san both said they came from there.”

“And Sophia-dono said something during our conversation. She called herself Ains-dono’s ‘attendant.’”

Laika frowned, not understanding the significance, and Kansas gave a wry smile and rubbed his forehead.

“I couldn’t help but suspect more than I should.”

“What do you mean? Sophia-san really did act exactly like Ains’s attendant.”

“Something must have happened that made Sophia-dono feel deep respect toward Ains-dono. But, Laika—who do you think a knight of the Silver Snow Knights, from the Autonomous City of the Ains Domain, is meant to serve?”

Kansas signaled Riste with his eyes, requesting more tea.

Riste understood immediately and left the dining room.

“They’re knights, so their commander? Or if it’s the Ains Domain, then maybe the lord of that territory.”

“That’s the usual assumption. But that place is quite unusual. It isn’t a simple lord-vassal relationship.”

Laika still didn’t understand what he was getting at.

And it was only natural that she wouldn’t. The Autonomous City of the Ains Domain was a land wrapped in mystery. It generally refused entry to outsiders and cut off information. The only thing that had ever come out from that domain was the Original Canon.

Even why the Original Canon had been made public remained unclear. And the original text itself was mana poison—hardly anyone could read it.

Yet when the mysterious Eternal Witch produced a copy of that unreadable text, it spread as an ordinary magic book, raising the standard of living across society.

The only “information” to emerge from a mysterious land was itself a mystery—and the one who revealed it was also a mystery, a figure called a witch.

It was difficult to grasp the truth anywhere at all—unless one was connected to the core of the Santia Kingdom.

“A knight of the Silver Snow Knights does not serve their commander. The commander is merely a role for organizing the order—and nothing more.”

“Then… the lord of the territory?”

“Yes, the territorial lord. In other words, we can presume that the person called Ains is the lord of the Ains Domain.”

The tea Kansas had requested was set before him. He enjoyed it straight, without milk or sugar, savoring the aroma.

The tea, brewed with water near boiling, released fragrant steam upward.

The rich scent passed through his nose and reached his mind, giving Kansas a sense of calm.

“Now then, Laika. The name Ains—does anyone come to mind?”

“…The demon god, ‘Ains of Silver Snow.’”

“Exactly. The name of the Silver Snow sorcerer.”

It was widely known that Ains of Silver Snow had gone missing. It was, after all, a name from long ago. Most assumed he was dead.

“Which means… the territory has no lord.”

“That’s right. If we describe it strictly under the kingdom’s laws, it’s an ungoverned lawless city.”

Kansas took a sip of tea to wet his throat, then continued.

“However, because of the Original Canon, the civil technologies it enabled, and the order maintained by the knights, the kingdom recognizes it as an autonomous city, taking its contributions into account.”

Because it would be absurd to designate a nonexistent person as a territorial lord, Kansas concluded.

“And in that context, Sophia-san used the word ‘attendant’…”

Now Laika understood why the wording felt off.

She also understood why her father had been forced to think it through.

“That’s why I went to Sophia-dono’s guest room. I didn’t get a clear answer, but at the very least, I felt we must decide what path you and I should take going forward based on what we learn.”

Kansas, the current head of the Brandy Marquess Family.

His political judgment and situational awareness truly were sharp.

“For now, tomorrow is what matters. It’s only an informal audience, so nothing major should happen, but I want to at least lay the groundwork for the formal audience that will be arranged afterward.”

Kansas leisurely tilted his cup and enjoyed his tea.

Laika lifted her cup as well, but its contents had already gone cold.

“Ains-sama, good morning. It is time for breakfast, so I have come to call for you.”

A knock sounded at the door, and Ains woke up.

He stretched his upper body atop the bed. Having slept in high-quality bedding, he felt no fatigue at all. More than that, he felt as though some of the lingering exhaustion from before had been washed away by the bath and the bedding.

“I’m coming out now.”

He glanced at the jacket draped over the back of the chair beside the bed, but decided there was no need to put it on. Wearing only a collared shirt with an ink stain on the left sleeve, he opened the door.

“Morning.”

“Good morning. I will guide you to the dining room.”

The maid bowed slightly. She appeared to be the same one who had guided him to the guest room the day before.

When Ains asked about Sophia, the maid replied that she was already waiting.

As expected of a knight—she likely didn’t change her daily schedule even when her environment changed.

“Maybe I should try going to bed early and waking up early too.”

Ains said something he didn’t truly mean.

A meaningless line with no sincerity behind it—something even he would forget the next moment.

The maid ahead only walked quietly and showed no reaction to Ains’s words.

It was probably her way of ensuring she showed no discourtesy, since Ains was Laika’s guest. But with his comment turning into something like a soliloquy, Ains felt a little lonely.

“Please watch your step.”

At the maid’s words, Ains focused forward and saw the grand staircase of the entrance hall before him.

The sheer magnificence of looking down at the entrance from above made him groan in awe.

Even with his prosthetic leg, Ains descended the stairs skillfully.

The maid, who had been watching him from the corner of her eye, seemed reassured and continued forward without slowing her pace.

When Ains finished descending and entered the dining room, Sophia was there, of course—and Kansas and Laika were already seated as well.