Chapter 67

A few hours later.

After finishing the day's work in the granary, Zirconia met with Noll, the head of the Rousseau family, in the guest room of the Rousseau residence.

No one else was in the room except for Zirconia and Noll, and the soldiers and attendants Zirconia had brought with her were waiting outside the room.

The walls of the guest room were decorated with luxurious furnishings and paintings in a subtle balance that was not overwhelming.

The floor was paved with marble, polished to a shine with not a single speck of dirt in sight.

Zirconia glanced around the room and then turned to Noll, who was sitting across the table from her, and smiled.

"I'm sorry for forcing this meeting into your schedule. There's something I really need to ask of you."

"I am honored that you have come all this way. What is it that you need?"

Noll answered with a soft demeanor, a smile on his face, just like Zirconia. He did not appear particularly nervous in front of Zirconia, showing a remarkably composed demeanor.

"There's a slave in your household, a girl named Marie, whom I would like you to let me have. She's the one who prepared the dinner that Kazura, a friend of Narson, enjoyed so much when he stayed at your residence ten days ago."

When Zirconia mentioned Marie's name, Noll's gaze narrowed.

"…Marie, you say?"

"Yes. Ten days ago, Kazura, a friend of Narson, stayed at your residence, and he seemed to really enjoy the dinner you served. Kazura is planning to stay at our residence for a while, but he doesn't seem to like the food prepared by our cook. So, I thought of having Marie, who prepared Kazura's dinner ten days ago, become his personal cook. I'm willing to pay whatever price you set for her."

As Zirconia spoke, Noll averted his gaze, furrowing his brow and falling silent.

"…Is there some inconvenience?"

Seeing Noll's reaction, Zirconia tilted her head in confusion.

In response to Zirconia's question, Noll raised his head and spoke with a pained expression.

"…Would it be possible to have someone else? There are several other maids in my household who can cook."

"No, it has to be Marie. Kazura seems to like her not just for her cooking, but for her as a person. No one else will do."

"…I see."

"Is there a reason you're reluctant? If so, could you explain?"

Zirconia asked, her smile fading and her face slightly frowning.

Noll, looking flustered, quickly raised his head.

"Marie is my illegitimate child, and I would like to keep her close if possible. I would be grateful if you could consider a temporary loan arrangement…"

"…So, Marie is that important to you?"

"Yes. Even though she is my illegitimate child, she is still my child."

When Zirconia asked in a puzzled tone, Noll replied with a very serious expression.

"…I don't quite understand. Did you have Marie as a slave? If she's so important, why did you leave her as a slave? You could have registered her as a citizen of Isteria during the annual census, which would have freed her from slavery."

"Doing so would mean including Marie in the Rousseau family lineage… officially integrating a slave's child into the family lineage is quite… and my wife and children would not accept it, so I have no choice but to keep her as a slave."

"But, isn't Marie living uncomfortably in this household? Your family, other than you, seems to dislike her. Wouldn't it be better for her to leave and have a more secure future, and be happier?"

When Zirconia pointed this out, Noll showed a brief "oh no" expression.

"Ah, no… that is… yes, but…"

"…Ah, I see."

From Noll's hesitant response, Zirconia vaguely understood Marie's position.

She was likely a tool to keep Havel tied to the Rousseau family.

Zirconia had heard from Isaac that when Ichirou accompanied Havel and others to Grisear Village, Marie had been instructed by Ichirou to ride in the same carriage with him.

Isaac had said that Havel had brought Marie, who was familiar with Ichirou, out of consideration for him, but Zirconia doubted this was the case.

When Ichirou decided to go to Grisear Village, the issue of his dietary preferences had not yet arisen.

If the dietary issue had already been a concern, it would make sense for Havel to bring Marie to cater to Ichirou's tastes.

However, at that point, there was no apparent reason to bring Marie.

If Marie was brought to take care of Ichirou and be his companion, it would sound plausible, but upon closer thought, it seemed somewhat unnatural.

Zirconia had assigned attendants to Ichirou who had been taking care of him during his stay at the Isteria residence.

Havel, who knew this, would not have chosen Marie, a young girl, just because she was familiar with Ichirou.

Moreover, Marie had only taken care of Ichirou for one night, unlike the attendants who had been with him for several days.

It was unclear how close Ichirou and Marie had become in that short time, but even with Ichirou's friendly nature, it seemed unlikely they would have become so close in just one night.

Furthermore, according to Noll, the other members of the Rousseau family did not think highly of Marie.

If this were true, it would create a contradiction in Havel's choice of Marie as an attendant.

When Zirconia brought up Ichirou's dietary preferences to Havel, he immediately recommended Marie.

If Havel disliked Marie, he would not have recommended her so strongly.

If Marie became Ichirou's personal cook, she would be under the protection of Ichirou and the Isteria family.

Zirconia concluded that Havel was likely aiming for this outcome.

"…Well, if you insist, I can agree to a loan arrangement for now."

However, there was no reason for Zirconia to cater to Havel's plans.

Forcing the purchase of Marie's ownership would only worsen the Rousseau family's impression of the Isteria family.

Since things had already progressed according to Havel's plans, the original goal of assigning Marie to Ichirou would not change.

For Zirconia, it didn't matter whether Marie was a loan or a purchase, as long as she became Ichirou's cook.

If Ichirou wanted to make Marie his own, Zirconia would buy her from the Rousseau family without hesitation, but otherwise, a loan arrangement was acceptable.

"…Thank you."

Noll nodded reluctantly, and Zirconia smiled.

"I'm sorry for the trouble. Then, I'll have Marie's belongings collected. Can you prepare them for me?"

"Yes, please wait a moment."

Noll bowed to Zirconia, stood up, and left the guest room.

---

Meanwhile, in the courtyard of the Narson residence, which had grown dark as the sun set, Ichirou and Isaac were discussing the generator.

Havel, who had returned with the carts, was busy cleaning them up and was not present.

Ruth, who had been guarding the generator, had just been instructed by Ichirou to gather a large amount of lumber and boards and was now returning from the storage area.

"Building a roof around this will make it look like a small shed."

"I want to add a door so that we can easily move things in and out, so it can't be a completely enclosed wooden box… Also, I want to move the drum barrels that are left in the room to the courtyard, so I'd like to build a shed for them too."

Ichirou looked toward the edge of the courtyard, opposite where the generator was placed.

The sun had set, but the two were preparing to build a shed in the courtyard to store the drum barrels and other materials.

Of course, they wouldn't finish the construction tonight, and they needed to arrange personnel, so the actual construction would start in the morning and take a few days.

However, they planned to build a simple shed around the generator tonight to protect it.

Currently, a few wooden boards were propped up around the generator to shield it from view, but without someone watching, it could easily be peeked at.

However, if they built a simple shed and locked it, it would be unlikely for someone to break in just to peek.

Of course, they would still post a guard, but once the shed was built, they wouldn't be limited to a few available personnel.

However, they needed to choose someone who wouldn't be tempted by curiosity to peek at the generator.

After a while of chatting, Ruth returned with a cart loaded with wooden boards and other materials.

"Kazura-sama, is this enough?"

"Yes, this is plenty. Thank you."

Ichirou nodded in satisfaction at the large amount of materials on the cart.

"Let's get started then. I'll go get the tools, so please wait here, Isaac. Ruth, you can go home for today. I appreciate you standing guard for so long."

"No, please let me help. I can do anything."

When Ichirou gave Ruth permission to go home, Ruth straightened up and offered to help.

Ruth had been on guard duty since morning and must have been quite tired.

Despite this, his expression was full of enthusiasm.

"But, Ruth, you haven't had dinner yet and you must be tired. I'll need your help again tomorrow, so it would be better to rest today…"

"Thank you for your concern, but I still have plenty of energy. Please let me help."

Ruth's eyes were slightly moist, as if he was moved by Ichirou's consideration.

Beside him, Isaac looked slightly pleased.

Incidentally, Ichirou and Isaac had already finished dinner.

Narson and Lise had other plans and couldn't join them, so they had eaten separately before meeting here.

"Ah, this guy reminds me of a younger Isaac. He's like a mini-Isaac."

This morning, when Ichirou had spoken with Ruth, he had felt that Ruth's demeanor reminded him of someone, and it was Isaac.

Ruth was about 160 cm tall, much shorter than the 180 cm tall Isaac.

However, his body was well-toned from daily training, with no excess fat.

His demeanor was a bit stiff, but he was polite and gave the impression of a diligent young man.

At 17 years old, he would likely grow into a fine adult soldier like Isaac in a few years.

"Kazura-sama, Ruth is not the type to reveal secrets. He already knows that you are Graciel, so I don't think there will be any problem letting him help."

"…Alright, let's do it. We'll finish this quickly with three of us."

With Isaac's recommendation, Ichirou agreed to Ruth's offer, and Ruth's face lit up.

"Thank you! I'll do my best!"

Ichirou chuckled at Ruth's enthusiastic response and headed to the room to get the tools.