Chapter 41

Before long, Captain Blanche and Lillian returned with the dragon's food prepared for the tianlang. In the wooden bucket Captain Blanche held, there was minced raw meat that looked like it had been crushed. On the other hand, Lillian had brought goat's milk in a small glass bottle.

"Your Excellency, did you bring Bergenion for the dragon riders' food?"

Captain Blanche looked at the wooden bucket with a slight look of disgust. The raw meat in the bucket seemed to be that of the Bergenion. I remember her saying something about taking the skin and fangs from the hunted monsters. Since the Bergenion is a magical bird, it might yield feathers. I'm not sure about the quality, though.

"It was quite a large flock. Even if they are magical birds, it would be a waste to just burn them and use them as fertilizer."

"Is that so? It seems that a few of them were in a state of madness. Myuran was changing their appearance to eliminate them."

"Ah, I thought I had selected them, but some were still left. I understand. I'll dispose of them later."

The magical poison does not decompose even when heated. It takes some time for the magical poison to naturally decompose. Therefore, the only option for the mad Bergenions is to dispose of them. I wanted to try eating the Bergenion, but since it has been dead for some time, it would be difficult to extract magic power from it with a magic array. I could preserve it by salting it and letting the magic power naturally dissipate, but I'm not sure if there are facilities for that here. I'll wait until I have better preparations to eat a mad monster.

(But, I might want a mad individual. The magic array to extract the magical poison is still incomplete, and it would be perfect for experiments.)

A mad individual is very dangerous. No matter how small the monster, it becomes more aggressive and attacks indiscriminately. If it's already dead, it should be fine as long as you handle the magical poison carefully. I'll ask the Duke to set one aside for me later.

"Well, it's time for your meal. If I treat the tianlang and the puppy the same, will you be upset?"

Captain Blanche mixed the Bergenion meat and goat's milk for the tianlang, which was still small enough to be called a baby. The tianlang, watching from the Duke's lap, stood up and started to sniff and spin around.

"You're efficient, Captain Blanche."

"I have a few dogs at home, and I used to make weaning food for them when they were puppies."

"Oh, you're good at raising children!"

"They were mischievous and required a lot of attention. Here, it's done. I added a lot of goat's milk, so I hope you like it."

Captain Blanche poured the mixed weaning food into a flat wooden dish. The Duke stood up from the long chair and gently placed the tianlang on the floor. The tianlang immediately ran to Captain Blanche. However, it rolled over and over, and its white fur ball trembled.

"Aww, it's so cute!"

Lillian and I said in unison. Lillian, who had been watching the whole scene, clenched her fist and smiled. I'm sure I had a similar expression. The Duke didn't say anything, but he had a very gentle look on his face.

"How long will it take for this baby to grow into an adult?"

"It will be independent in a year, and it will be about the size of a sheep. It will take four to five years to become a full adult."

It's hard to believe that such a small tianlang will grow to be as big as a Loiremoodler. Lillian showed us the tianlang emblem on her left arm.

"This tianlang emblem is our pride. Has the princess ever seen an adult tianlang?"

"I only know from illustrations. I'm sure it has a very majestic appearance."

"In the summer, you can see them flying through the night sky with the 'Sky Soaring' magic. I hope the princess can see it too!"

While the three of us were completely captivated by the fluffy tianlang, Captain Blanche calmly took care of it.

"Here, eat up."

"Kya, kya!"

"Look, if you eat too fast, you'll vomit. Eat slowly, that's it, slowly."

Captain Blanche took the dish away from the tianlang, which was eating greedily with its head in the dish. The tianlang, with its face covered in food, whined in dissatisfaction, and Captain Blanche divided the food into another dish and offered it. After confirming that the tianlang had finished eating, she added more food little by little.

"Wow, you're really good at this, Captain."

Lillian said, impressed.

"When you were in the junior school, you used to follow Blanche around saying you wanted to be a knight."

"Y-Your Excellency, that's not, I wasn't following her around."

The Duke teased, and Lillian blushed and protested. When did Lillian start aiming to be a knight? The junior school is for children aged five to nine, and the knight school usually lasts two to three years. Lillian, who was recognized as a knight at fifteen, must have worked very hard.

"About six months after you got your sword made at the Lusseble workshop... If Blanche gives permission, I could take you on a short expedition."

"R-Really, Your Excellency!"

Lillian jumped up in joy at the Duke's words. It seems that Lillian had her sword made at the 'Lusseble workshop' when she became a knight. The name of the workshop is the same as the one engraved on the Duke's sword and Captain Blanche's and Lillian's swords. Since I couldn't get much information from Captain Blanche, I took the opportunity to ask.

"Your Excellency, is the Lusseble workshop where the blacksmith who made your sword works?"

The Duke, who knows my skill with blades, might be willing to introduce me to the workshop if I ask properly. The Duke, however, sounded surprised.

"What, you didn't know?"

"What about what?"

"The Lusseble workshop is Blanche's husband's workshop. The head blacksmith, Gareo, is Blanche's husband."

"Lusseble is indeed Captain Blanche's last name, but... is that so!?"

"Blanche, you didn't tell Melfi?"

When asked by the Duke, Captain Blanche coughed awkwardly. The tianlang, which had been eating enthusiastically, perked up its tail in surprise at the cough.

"The princess showed a great interest in our swords, but I wasn't sure if I could decide on my own."

"That's true. So, how about it? What do you think of Melfi?"

"The princess's blades are handled very carefully and are well-used. I think Gareo would recognize her, but he's a stubborn man, so I apologize."

I see. Captain Blanche's husband is the head of the blacksmith workshop, and from what I understand, he only works for those he recognizes.

"He's a skilled craftsman. If you think about how his dedication supports the knights of Galbreath, I might talk to him, but he might insist on meeting Melfi."

"Probably, there's no avoiding it."

The Duke and Captain Blanche looked at me. I don't know what kind of person Gareo is, but if he's a craftsman with a strong sense of pride, like those in the Martial Raid, I would need to prove my skills to gain his recognition. Perhaps showing him how I handle monsters would be a good start?

"Princess, my husband Gareo is very rude and difficult to deal with, so if you meet him..."

"Kya, kwa!"

"Hey, calm down a bit."

"Ku."

The tianlang, now full, started to sniff and dig at the floor. Sensing something, Captain Blanche quickly scooped it up. She looked around and then went out to the terrace through the large glass doors.

"Lillian, do you have any boxes or rags that can be thrown away?"

"Rags, um, um..."

"It's about to have an accident, hurry up!"

The Duke ran into my bedroom and came out with a flat, square wooden box. Lillian quickly took it and went out to the terrace where Captain Blanche and the tianlang were waiting.

"When you eat a lot, you can feel relaxed and have an accident."

"It seems it hasn't been weaned yet. If we can't find its mother, it will be a problem."

The Duke and I looked out onto the terrace, where Captain Blanche was stimulating the tianlang's bottom to encourage it to urinate.

"How long do you plan to keep it?"

"I intended to release it into the wild once it could hunt for itself, but... if we keep handling it like this, it might be difficult."

"Once it gets too used to humans, that happens. If it could be tamed like the dragons, it would be ideal. The first Duke managed to tame a tianlang, didn't he?"

It's good to care for it, but if it's to be released into the wild, it shouldn't be handled too much. However, the tianlang is a symbol of Galbreath. If it's possible to raise it like the dragons, it might be feasible. I don't know if it's possible to raise it to eat monsters, but I have no experience with that.

"For now, it seems to like the Bergenion meat and goat's milk. I'll ask the stable to take care of it."

"It's not just a puppy. Let's hope its mother is safe."

"Indeed... but what is this strong smell?"

The smell from the terrace was so strong that the Duke had to cover his nose. I covered my nose and looked at the tianlang, but it wasn't doing anything. Then I realized something.

"Your Excellency, let's keep it closed until it's done. I completely forgot that I had the red Scrime Wood on the terrace!"

At the end of the terrace, opposite where Captain Blanche and the others were, there was a wooden box that was supposed to be tightly sealed. It contained the pungent Scrime Wood. The smell was so strong that the Duke and I closed the windows and inhaled the sweet scent of the other Scrime Wood.

"Should we dispose of that too?"

"I was thinking of letting it ripen until it turns black, but... we can't open the windows with this smell."

I looked around the room for something to deal with the trapped smell. I had some herbal soap, but it wouldn't be enough. Then I saw the orange cloudy crystal and thought it would work.

"What are you going to do with that?"

"Look, Your Excellency. The magic power stored here has a very good scent. I thought I could draw a magic array here and use it as an air freshener."

It's a good idea. I immediately went to get the tools from my bedroom's safe (the Duke told me to store my research materials and tools in a locked safe).