After descending to the first floor, we stepped into the courtyard and headed toward the hall that was still under construction.

The courtyard led directly to the back gate of the estate grounds, which seemed to be where the servants came and went.

At the Müller estate, there was a back door to the building, but the only gate used to enter or exit the property was the front gate.

After all, this mansion was located right next to the castle, and anyone passing through this area was either here on castle business or affiliated with high-ranking nobility.

Even just coming and going would require a certain level of discretion.

That’s why the back gate existed, but having more entry and exit points also meant more locations that needed to be secured. Though the area around the castle was already under constant patrol by soldiers day and night, the mansion also had its own heightened security measures.

The courtyard itself was being thoroughly guarded by the estate’s soldiers. When they saw us arrive floating on a 【Floating Orb】 and 【Small Orb】, they showed a momentary look of surprise, but quickly resumed their watch.

Judging by their reaction to us, these soldiers probably weren’t brought over from Riana’s domain.

Still, the fact that they so swiftly returned to their duties spoke to how competent they were.

These capable guards were stationed not only in the courtyard but also around the estate’s outer walls and, of course, the under-construction hall.

The exterior was still incomplete, with building materials exposed in places, but the interior was reportedly nearly finished.

Two soldiers stood at the double doors, spears in hand.

It was certainly tight security… not that it was unjustified. After all, the master of this estate, Miles, had been entrusted with the royal capital by Liesel—essentially acting as a governor.

He couldn’t afford to let his guard down.

As I nodded thoughtfully at the heavy security, Seriana exchanged a few words with the soldiers and had the door opened.

I didn’t know what kind of wood it was made from, but it was a thick, luxurious-looking door.

Probably similar to the one at the mansion’s main entrance.

One of the soldiers opened the door by himself, but he did so with surprising ease.

Maybe it was because they were well-trained, but then again, the main entrance had also been opened by a single servant. Perhaps the door was enhanced with some kind of magical tool?

Up until now, I’d only paid close attention to the room we’d be staying in, but maybe I should take the time to explore the rest of the estate during our stay.

“Sera? I’m coming in.”

“Oh? Okaaay!”

As I lingered at the entrance, curious and scanning around, Seriana called out from inside.

Of course, the servant who had guided us thus far had already gone in with her, but both she and the soldiers still looked at me with somewhat surprised expressions.

Even more surprised than when they saw me floating on the 【Floating Orb】.

…Well, I was her escort and had left Seriana alone, after all.

For people unfamiliar with me, it probably looked like a bizarre sight.

That wasn’t good.

I hurried in after her.

◇

“Hoo…”

Stepping into the center of the hall, I looked up and let out a long breath.

The interior space was probably twice the size of the largest conference room in the estate located in Riana’s domain capital.

It looked like it could easily accommodate fifty people.

From the outside, it hadn’t seemed that spacious, but once inside, it was just a vast open area with absolutely nothing extra.

It made me wonder if such emptiness was really okay—but I guess anything else could be handled in the main building.

Since the main building was right next door, this design made sense.

For example, the Müller estate in Zelkis’s domain capital also had a large hall within its grounds, but that one was equipped with various facilities and was easily more than double the size in terms of building scale.

I had only visited it a few times and didn’t know everything about it, but even so, the width of that hall compared to this one probably wasn’t twice as much.

Still, what exactly was this hall for? Most likely parties or similar gatherings, right?

It could surely accommodate fifty people for a meeting, but for a party… I wasn’t so sure.

I didn’t know much about how nobles in this country hosted parties, so I couldn’t say for certain, but what was the expected scale?

The one that left the strongest impression on me had been at a mansion in another country—it was quite the large-scale event…

“Hey, Lady Seria…”

I decided to just ask what was on my mind and turned to Seriana, who was also looking around the hall.

The servant was still with us, but… well, I guess it’s fine?

Seriana answered my question without much thought.

It had been a sudden question, but it seemed she already had a clear understanding of the hall’s intended use.

“Right. If we were to host a party here, even including the serving staff, I imagine it’d cap at around thirty people.”

“Isn’t that a little few?”

“If this were held in a domain, sure. But this is the royal capital. Anyone involved with Riana here would find that number perfectly sufficient. If a larger event were needed, we could simply use one of the castle’s facilities instead, right?”

“Ah… I see…”

In a domain, it was normal for couples to attend events together, but this was the royal capital.

It was unlikely that many would show up as a couple.

And for truly large-scale events, the castle itself could be used.

I see… there really wouldn’t be any occasion that this space wouldn’t be sufficient for.

I gave a small nod in response to Seriana’s explanation.

————————————————————————————————————————————————————————

Sera ・ Blessing ・ 【Hideout】 +1 【Prayer】 【Mira’s Blessing】 【Wind’s Garment】

Blessed Item ・ 【Floating Orb】 +1 【Shadow Sword】 +1 【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】 ・ 3 cards

Seriana ・ 【Area Detection】 ・ 【】 ・ 0 cards

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

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