16-9 The Wandering Duke

After the children quickly finished the sweets they had been given, I told them it was already late, so they should brush their teeth and go to bed. Then, for the time being, I introduced Yamamoto-san to the main residents.

Fal was already stuck right to Yamamoto-san.

First were Ed, Ars, then Mari and Aoi-chan.

I handed Yamamoto-san a PC and tablet connected to Earth’s internet, then left the rest to Aoi-chan.

Yamamoto-san also looked happy to have a cute girl taking care of him.

Aoi-chan also seemed happy to meet a new Japanese person.

After all, the population of Japanese people confirmed to be alive in this world had increased by fifty percent for the time being.

Though I was concerned that the spirits had intensely locked on to Yamamoto-san, who was reeking of sweets.

After pouring a good amount of magic power into Fal, I returned to the Empire.

Then I asked the ambassador to give me information about that duke.

“Let me see. Duke Beckenheim was originally the person expected to become emperor of this country.”

Explosive information came out right away.

Was that why he acted so tyrannically?

Had his resentment over failing to become emperor built up inside him?

This situation overlapped with Duke Bighton again too.

Was this the sort of thing that often happened to those close to the royal family or king, or perhaps to those with the rank of duke?

I continued listening to the ambassador.

“Duke Beckenheim’s mother was the previous emperor’s legal wife. In other words, he was originally supposed to become crown prince and eventually ascend to the imperial throne. The current emperor’s mother was a concubine, and one from a family that did not have particularly high status. That was a problem in this empire, where noble birth is given priority. However, Duke Beckenheim’s conduct was extremely poor, and he was hardly someone fit to be called crown prince. After various events, he eventually lost his right of succession and was sent out as an adopted heir to a ducal house. This was an extremely rare case, but at the time, there were no other men with succession rights apart from the current emperor. Well, the current emperor’s conduct was not exactly praiseworthy either, but that man was skilled at maneuvering.”

So he had unexpectedly been a fallen prince.

W-was this a flag that my title would be upgraded to prince-killer?

Though this time, I really could not actually kill him.

Even so, what should I do?

Even as the duke-killer, I did not really know how things worked in another country.

Well, if I wandered around, knowing me, I would probably get into trouble before long.

For now, I wanted to see that duke’s face.

If I did not mark him, there would be no point.

I would make a separate window to use as the duke’s marker.

“Ambassador, where is that duke?”

“He usually stays at a detached palace. Though it is more accurate to call it a large mansion, only to that extent. And even when he has not been invited, he barges into various nobles’ events and makes them scream. Being rude to foreign dignitaries is also an everyday occurrence for him.”

Since the ambassador was frowning, that meant he had been on the receiving end too.

Well, considering the relationship between our countries, of course he would be targeted first.

But the more I listened, the more it sounded as though even if I overdid things a little, not only would there be no problem, my fame in this country might even rise.

In short, I just needed to make him pick a fight with me.

It looked like I would need to walk around with Fal-tan under the excuse of recharging her.

This time, maybe selling the holy hymn at a bargain rate would be fine too.

I decided to withdraw for tonight.

I asked the ambassador to check Duke Beckenheim’s movements tomorrow.

I headed to the palace in Alba, but unfortunately, the crucial His Highness Michael was not there.

Damn it.

Because he was the sort of person who constantly ran around everywhere like that, he was exactly the one I should have marked.

Next time, I would have him wear one of my bracelets.

I would properly decorate it to royal specifications.

Somehow, these high-performance bracelets were gradually being treated like dog collars.

For now, I went home, had a drink with beer and a packet of shredded dried squid, then slept.

The next day, after making it through the battlefield of breakfast, I decided to stylishly handle a little work.

Officially, I was not supposed to be here right now, so I stopped the usual morning cleaning in front of the gate and decided to make something instead.

Together with Aoi-chan and Yamamoto-san.

It was cheese fishcake sticks.

There was nothing special about it.

I had just been drinking last night and felt like eating them.

I had already made all sorts of cheese.

There were also fish that could be used as the raw material for fishcake.

This country had a sea if you went north.

Monsters also appeared there, so fishing was not flourishing, but there was at least some fishing being done.

However, there were no products that satisfied me, so I had ordered about a hundred golems to gather seafood.

Yamamoto-san was absurdly delighted when he saw the results.

Apparently, his family’s noodle shop had been very particular about various ingredients, and they had even made handmade fishcake.

It was apparently good enough that they could have quit being a noodle shop and become a fishcake shop instead.

At the feeling that I might be able to eat delicious New Year’s dishes in another world, even my chest trembled.

And we had one girl who would help us too.

If I were alone, making New Year’s dishes would be hopeless.

The most I could manage would probably be serving as a taste-tester.

I presented him with an item-box bracelet and a few magic tools that seemed useful for development, then decided to throw the rest entirely to the professional.

The children were also eagerly waiting for the taste test, their ears all clustered together like bells.

Yamamoto-san seemed to be having fun too.

In the future, someone among them might aim to become a noodle shop owner or a fishcake maker.

At the very least, this world’s noodles were sure to be upgraded by an expert’s hands.

The noodles that, without exaggeration, could be said to have been deeply involved in the founding of this Beast-Ear Garden.

Furthermore, the door to a new world called Japanese confectionery had opened.

My mother had loved kneaded Japanese sweets.

I did not know if that was why, but despite being a drinker, I also relatively liked Japanese sweets.

Whenever there was some event among relatives, we would receive those kinds of things.

After that, I returned to the Imperial Capital and casually went to have a look at the duke’s detached palace.

I used Stealth and even walked around inside without permission, but apparently, he was absent.

I took Fal with me to the embassy and asked where the duke had gone.

“Today, from the afternoon, he will be watching a play in the Imperial Capital, and from the evening, he will likely go to some unfortunate noble’s event again. I shall contact you once I know more. At present, who knows where he is wandering around?”

Good grief. He seemed elusive, just like His Highness Michael.

I found myself wanting to sympathize with the imperial nobles.

Everyone, just wait. I will definitely exterminate him sooner or later.

After all, since he was in league with Marquis Nielsen and the second prince, he had to be removed one way or another.