No matter how impressive the sculpture, it probably wouldn’t fetch five large gold coins at a festival stall.
Let alone in this remote area, even if it was in the capital city, perhaps some enthusiast might have bought it after hearing rumors, but… it’s impossible in this town.

“The piece is good, but…”
The shopkeeper, an older man, lets out a weak laugh.
He seems to have made up for the sales slump, but it seems that both the boss and the lead craftsman are bad at business.
Well, they’ve likely been getting by like this in this town.
They take orders and begin crafting, making good products.
As craftsmen, they aren’t wrong, but when it comes to selling things, they lack a customer’s perspective.

“Well, that’s fine. I’ll buy both of these.”

“Eh!? Are you sure? It’ll be one gold coin…”

The shopkeeper and the guards around us are taken aback by my words.
They probably didn’t expect it to sell.
Honestly, I don’t really need it… but both the bear and the Simodoki were fought, after all…
It might be a nice souvenir.
It wouldn’t fit in Seriana’s room, but it wouldn’t be out of place in Liesel’s office.
A gift.

“Alright. Here, the money.”
I stop the guard behind me from reaching for his wallet, take out a gold coin from my own wallet, and hand it to the shopkeeper.
This is just my personal preference, so I’ll pay for it myself.

“Thank you… I was wondering how to explain it to the master craftsmen.”

“Tell them, ‘You were told you were doing the sales wrong!’ It’s fine to say that.”

He doesn’t answer but smiles ambiguously, then starts wrapping up the sculpture.
He wraps it in cloth, places it in a box filled with wood shavings as packing material, and wraps the box with a large cloth to finish.

“Um… it’s wrapped now… should I have it delivered to the mansion?”

“Ah… right…”
Back during the royal capital’s festival, I had bought a big item, and since only Alec was with me as a guard, I could just throw it into the 【Hideout】.
What should I do with this one… will it fit?

I bought it on impulse, but now I’m wondering what to do… As I’m mulling it over, the guards volunteer to take it.

“We’ll carry it.”

“Are you sure?”
I was considering not having the guards carry it, but they seem okay with it.
They laugh as they answer.

“Yes. While we are your guards, carrying things is also part of our job. We were actually wondering what to do since nothing had been bought.”

Looking at the others, they have similar expressions. It seems nobles have their guards carry things too…
Seriana sometimes calls merchants to her, but she never goes to stores herself…
Since Seriana is the noble I’m most familiar with, I wouldn’t know if she does something like this.

“Alright then. Please, take care of it.”

“Yes.”

With that, I let the guards carry the items and, with the shopkeeper bowing behind us, we leave the shop.

◇

After buying the sculpture, I wandered around the town for a bit longer… but there wasn’t anything else of interest, so I decided to head back to the mansion.
I usually return from the air, so this time I decided to take my time and walk with the guards instead.

Until now, only the road connecting the lord’s mansion and its foothills had been paved.
Around here, excluding Alec’s and August’s mansions, the knight order’s headquarters and related facilities were lined up, so they had finished the noble district first… but somehow, there is now a proper stone-paved road here!
I occasionally wander around this area, but I never noticed… maybe I should pay more attention to the changes in the town.

“Is this the way?”

There’s a hint of nervousness in the voice…

“Yeah, yeah.”

I answer casually.

Now, normally, I would go up the hill and return to the mansion via the main route, but instead, I head toward the knight order’s headquarters.

“There are still too many people at the top, so this way is easier.”

From the knight order’s headquarters, there is a passage that leads directly to the mansion’s basement.
Initially just a passage, it has gradually been expanded to include important facilities like laboratories and storage.
Since it’s a direct route to the lord’s mansion, only those with permission could use it… but now, in a different sense, only select people are allowed to use it.

The guards don’t seem to have permission, but with me, they generally get a free pass.
The north wing of the mansion and the second floor of the south wing are restricted to women, so they won’t be able to go there…

Anyway, this route lets us avoid encountering other guests and reach the mansion without any hassle.

“Oh, Sera?”

While passing through the passage, I suddenly hear my name called from a side path.
I was planning on getting to the mansion without meeting anyone, but I ran into someone unexpectedly.
Though, it’s family.

“Fiora? What are you doing… here?”

From the side path appears Fiora.
Unlike her usual clattering and cumbersome attire, she’s wearing a simple dress with minimal decorations and a stole draped over her shoulders.
It’s not exactly loungewear, but she looks much more relaxed.

She’s not just a member of the knight order; she’s also an important official of the territory invited by Seriana.
Her sudden appearance made the guards straighten up in surprise.

————————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

Sera ・【Hideout】 +1【Prayer】【Mira’s Blessing】【Wind Garment】・【Floating Orb】 +1【Shadow Sword】【Scarlet Bee Needle】【Fairy’s Eye】【Dragon’s Lung】【Amber Sword】【Danrem’s Thread】【Snake’s Tail】【Ankle Bracelet】【Amber Shield】【Purple Wings】 ・7 cards

Seriana ・【Range Identification】・【】 ・28 cards
Elena ・【】 ・【Green Fang】【Amber Sword】 ・3 cards
Alec ・【Strong Strike】 ・【Red Shield】【Fierce Horned Trumpet】 ・7 cards