9-3 Orston County

I reported the results of yesterday’s intelligence work to His Majesty the King.

Then His Majesty laughed and said this.

“So you will make enemies of the Dragon-Slayer pair’s SS-rank and S-rank, and on top of that you claim you’ll make one more S-rank your enemy as well. What an amusing parent and child.”

“Exactly. But we mustn’t let our guard down. The crown prince is an exceptional man—an extremely troublesome figure. He suspects I’m a rare visitor.”

“Well, he would say that much, that man. The brothers’ superiority and inferiority were clear since childhood. If the Emperor had died young, things would have become far more troublesome.”

“Either way, if they meddle with us, they’ll die.”

After that, I went to see Antonio first.

I hadn’t wanted to visit a newlywed household like this.

Orston County—while it lacked standout industries or specialties, it was blessed with a good climate and was a pretty nice place.

Though the lord tended to lean toward military merit, overall it was a prosperous territory above the average level.

For generations, they seemed to live by the idea: “As nobles, we only need to protect the country when it matters. Yes—like the founding king.”

In exchange, they always appointed excellent stewards.

That too was an outstanding decision.

The steward from two generations ago was that butler.

After safely fulfilling his duties as steward, the butler raised the three sons splendidly as their tutor.

No wonder not a single one of those brothers turned out crooked.

Even the eldest brother, in his circumstances, could’ve easily gone bad.

I’d heard Orston’s former mansion had been made the lord’s manor again.

When I asked for directions, I found it immediately.

The older local even cried, saying, “The previous lord had no fault. Now the former lord can finally rest,” and rejoiced.

House Orston was loved.

I rang the heavy old knocker on the manor door, aged yet dignified.

A superb design adorned with a dragon.

Knowing this family, they probably hunted dragons all the time.

I definitely wanted this door.

I’d copy it next time.

After a moment, I heard the lock unfasten from inside, and the door opened.

“Who might you be?”

“Hello, nice to meet you. I am Alphonse von Granburst. Is your lord—Antonio… no, Count Orston—at home?”

The butler? returned my greeting with a wonderful smile.

“Welcome, Marquis Granburst. I have heard of your achievements from my master. Please, come inside.”

The manor had a tasteful atmosphere.

If I had to compare, it reminded me of an old prestigious hotel in downtown Las Vegas that seemed to have existed since the city’s founding.

The chic design and polished wood interior gave it an air of dignity.

It wasn’t actually that worn-down or ancient.

If anything, you could say it was meticulously maintained throughout.

Even though it was a house that had once fallen.

Perhaps seeing my reaction, he continued explaining.

“The steward of this territory was the last steward appointed under House Orston. Believing the Orstons would someday be restored, he ensured this manor was properly cared for.”

That was classy of him.

The people here were impressive too.

“Al.”

When I turned, Antonio greeted me with an open, carefree smile.

“Yo.”

He gave a wry smile at my casual greeting to the head of a noble house, but he still offered a firm handshake.

It had been a while, so I gripped back hard.

His wife came out too, so I greeted her.

“It’s been a while. Margarita-san.”

“It’s been a while. Alphonse-san.”

Given this group, we skipped the stiff formalities.

“That’s a sudden visit. What happened?”

Among nobles, it was normal for an advance notice to come with a letter before a visit.

He’d returned to nobility, so he was probably trying to get used to noble customs.

Back when the house fell, Antonio was just a small child, so he wouldn’t have been involved in such customs.

“Sorry. This isn’t the time for that.”

I gave him the situation briefly.

When I showed him the footage from the Empire, even Antonio wore a grim expression.

No surprise—he’d basically been told, “We’ll kill you and your family.”

“I see. Thanks for telling me.”

“It’ll get rough again, but protect your wife properly. I still haven’t gone back home yet, so I’m heading out. Contact me again.”

As soon as I said that, I vanished via teleportation magic.

“He’s as impatient as ever. Butler, issue notices everywhere to heighten vigilance.”

“Understood.”

“Margarita, don’t worry. I will protect you, no matter what. Still… the Empire people are reckless. To think they’d meddle with him.”

Hearing that, his wife smiled and gently took her husband’s arm.

Watching those exchanges through the security camera I’d left behind, I raised the corner of my mouth slightly.

Then I immediately returned to the Beast-Ear Garden and checked on things.

“I’m home—!”

“Where’d you gooo—?”

The little beast-kids came swarming out.

“Secreeeet—.”

“Ehh—!?”

“Souvenirs—?”

“Ehh—!?”

Feeling overwhelmed with affection, I rubbed the kids’ heads hard with my knuckles.

When I noticed, Ars was right behind me.

“Welcome back. How was the Empire?”

“Yeah… the clouds look a bit dangerous. I want to gather everyone—Ed and Mari too—and talk.”

After everyone assembled, I began speaking slowly.

“To be blunt, the Empire says it will kill me, Ars, and Count Orston and his wife. Ars, they’ll try to recruit you first—then kill you if you refuse. It’s an imperial edict from the Emperor to the second prince. The crown prince seems to be making a sour face about it, though.”

“That’s quite a high valuation,” Ars shrugged.

“Hahaha. Of course. You’re only hired by me, after all. They’ll draw a line between you and the Albatross Kingdom’s legitimate count and honorary marquis.”

“I’d rather not deal with that Empire. Mind if I run away?”

He said it with a laugh, but his eyes were pretty serious.

“Maybe. It depends on how things develop. Even I’ll flee with the kids if it comes to it.”

“That might be best.”

Naturally light on his feet, Ars leaned back into the sofa with a smile.

“No, seriously. I can carry houses around in storage, after all. If things get bad, we can evacuate by teleportation magic, then I come back alone and clean up whoever attacks.”

I had various plans, but we needed to stay flexible.

The victory condition was the children surviving.

Mari and Ars were the type who didn’t seem like they’d die even if killed.

Ed asked calmly.

“Specifically, how will they attack?”

“I don’t know yet, but if they’re targeting us, they’ll probably send at least an S-rank.”

Intelligence work in the Empire had to continue for now.

Alright.

I’ll build a literal “safehouse” as an evacuation point.

Not the kind that shelters street children— the kind in dangerous Hollywood movies where people flee when they’re cornered.

We should also consider other evacuation sites.