“It sure keeps pouring, huh…”

The rain has been falling steadily since morning again today.

Mountains, forests, rivers, and even lakes deep within the woods that I’ve never seen… Riana is a land rich in water sources and has a large water storage capacity.

There likely won’t be any concern about water shortages this year either.

Also, this mansion was properly maintained in advance, so there haven’t been any issues like leaks.

The rain will probably continue for another week, but… well, things should go smoothly.

“Yes, you’re right. Fortunately, not just in Riana, but it seems there haven’t been any major incidents in any of the territories. It shouldn’t affect the crops either. Just like every other year.”

As I nodded with a “Hohh” to Teresa’s words while we both looked out the window…

“Sorry to keep you waiting.”

It was Seriana’s voice that called out.

Normally at this time, she’d be in Liesel’s office, but today, just before she left the room, several letters addressed to her arrived.

Apparently, they were letters from the noble ladies of the territory, and since there were no men in this room, it was deemed more appropriate to write the replies here, so she took care of it first…

“You took longer than usual. Were they complicated?”

It had taken Seriana a bit more time than usual to write her replies.

Normally, it doesn’t take her long at all, but this time, it must’ve been about 30 minutes, right?

“They were about marriage arrangements from a few families. The children who had attended the Noble Academy a year or two ago found partners over there and got engaged. We had been informed, but it seems the arrangements are proceeding smoothly.”

“I see, I see.”

In the case of Seriana and the others, things had gone a bit differently, but for nobles, that’s the typical marriage route.

“Official reports from their families should have already reached Liesel too, so we can just send out our replies all at once. Well then… it’s late, but let’s get going.”

Saying that, Seriana handed the letters she’d written to Elena and began walking toward the door.

◇

Now then, hand in hand with Seriana, we started walking toward Liesel’s office.

She matched her stride to mine, so we were walking quite slowly—though I felt a little bad about it, she was kind enough to put up with it.

Well, we were just chatting idly, so there wasn’t any awkwardness, and it wasn’t a problem at all!

“By the way… you’re traveling light today.”

“Right?”

Today, all I was carrying was the Kuma-san cushion that had safely arrived the other day.

Usually, all I bring are books at most, but when the number increases, it gets heavy, and carrying a large quantity is tough—so I would pack them in a backpack and carry them on my back.

Teresa and Elena were coming along too, so I’d thought about asking them to help, but during a recent errand to the Adventurer’s Guild, Monica had carried my load on the way back, and once that got found out, I was banned from relying on others’ help.

Well, once we get to the office, I’ll just be lounging around, so I don’t really need to carry much anyway…

“Yesterday, while Lady Seria was out of the room, I was checking out the bookshelf in the lord’s room, and I found some new books. He said I could read them, so I’m planning to do that today.”

What I found was a set of books summarizing information about monsters from the days when this place was still part of Zelkis territory and called Lortle.

They contained nearly 30 years of data and came in a three-volume set.

Even just reading through it with other reference materials would easily take me a few days—it was that thorough.

I can’t wait!

“Hm?”

I was grinning to myself in anticipation of reading time, but…

“What is it?”

“Ah, it’s Shirojita… What’s up?”

Just as we passed from the south wing to the main building, Shirojita, who had been quietly tucked under my clothes, suddenly extended his body from my sleeve—perhaps he sensed something.

He seemed to be looking outside, but…

“Hmm? No idea.”

I activated the snakes’ vision and looked in the same direction… but from here, I couldn’t tell what he was seeing.

If I activated 【Fairy Eyes】, I might get a better view, but I didn’t think it warranted going that far.

It was in the direction of the front gate, but with this rain, it didn’t seem likely that we’d have any visitors…

“Outside, huh… It’s either Gilly or Bale, I can’t tell which, but one of them is stationed at the guard post near the front gate. Couldn’t he be reacting to that?”

Seriana must have used a Blessing to check the outside and shared what she saw.

“Ahh, that makes sense.”

So one of the wolves was nearby.

And Shirojita reacted to that…

Compared to the calm Akame and Mitsume, Shirojita is a bit more aggressive—he’s got that kind of personality.

He won’t attack on his own, but if there’s a capable person he doesn’t know nearby, he might show himself and glare as a kind of warning.

Once he sees someone two or three times, that behavior stops, but… when it comes to monsters, things seem different.

He still has a rivalry with the two wolves.

Maybe it’s because, unlike the other two, Shirojita used to live with a monster that led a pack?

“Shirojita, it’s fine. Go back inside.”

I gave the command, but perhaps still curious about the outside, he didn’t retreat right away.

When I repeated it, he finally quieted down and went back in.

Normally, he listens right away…

Hmm… maybe I should set aside some time to talk with the snakes?

“Hmph… Well, I suppose he’s making up for your lack of awareness, so it’s not a bad thing.”

“Sera can be a bit lacking in caution at times.”

Still, while I was fretting about how to discipline him, Seriana and Teresa seemed to think better of me for it.

I mean, sure, the snake guys are meant to protect me too, but… hey, what do you mean ‘lack of awareness’!?

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

Sera ・【Hideout】+1【Prayer】【Mira’s Blessing】【Wind’s Garment】・【Floating Orb】+1【Shadow Sword】【Scarlet Bee Needle】【Fairy’s Eye】【Dragon’s Lung】【Amber Sword】【Danrem’s Thread】【Serpent’s Tail】【Ankle Bracelet】【Amber Shield】【Purple Wings】【Red Sword】【Monkey’s Arm】・4 cards

Seriana ・【Area Identification】・【】・39 cards

Elena ・【】・【Green Fang】【Amber Sword】・4 cards

Alec ・【Strong Strike】・【Red Shield】【Fierce Horned Trumpet】・10 cards