Chapter 812: Torain in the Royal Capital

I am Torain.

I am an oni male born in Big Tree Village. f𝚛𝚎𝗲we𝗯𝗻ovel.𝐜om

I am a young one who was born around ten years ago, so please take care of me from now on.

-0-

Now……

I’m tired.

Returning to the house prepared on the school grounds, I close my eyes and reflect.

Let’s start with the incident on the parade outside the village.

Even though it was to stop Tiselle-anesama from getting out of control, I shouldn’t have involved father in it.

I should have ended it all without him noticing.

Ah, no, he doesn’t like us sneaking around.

We must not do something without his permission.

We should report, communicate, and consult with him.

On top of that, we should move without causing trouble to father.

This is his ideal desu.

However, I could not have anticipated that father would get involved, or rather, that he would come to me to get involved.

I’m glad that the reason is that he is worried about me and Tiselle-anesama’s relationship……

-0-

There’s something else that I need to reflect on.

I’m glad that he is concerned about my relationship with Tiselle-anesama but I did something extra thinking extra thinking about the future.

I thought that if I pulled the overprotective Uncle Demon King from her and gave her a huge amount of work to do, she would just focus on that……

But that was very na?ve of me.

No, it’s exactly as I thought.

Tiselle-anesama did concentrate on her work.

However, I did not expect her to involve the school’s newcomer.

I thought that even if she’s going to ask for assistance, she would choose Asa-san or Earth-san given her personality……

Surprisingly, she did not involve either of the two but came directly to me.

……

By chance, did she find out that I was behind all of it?

I knew she would eventually find out but this is too much sooner than expected.

I was unable to take action.

I can’t help but regret it.

I knew Tiselle-anesama very much when she was still in the village.

However, she seems to have grown considerably after leaving the village, attending the academy, and getting involved in the political affairs of the Demon King’s Kingdom.

-0-

I open my eyes and look inside.

The house that had been prepared for us on the school grounds was a bit big for a family of four.

I had requested a smaller house but Ursa-anesama decided this to be this big.

Ursa-anesama said that bigger is better than smaller in everything.

I thought she might be right so I accepted it.

Maa, a mountain elf who came to the school with me, also lives in this house.

For me, the mountain elf Maa is…..

How should I say it?

Definitely not my maid.

After all, I’m being trained to be a butler.

There is no butler who is being taken care of by a maid.

Yeah, she compensates for my lack of height but she’s not my maid.

She is much older than me so she’s definitely not my nanny……is she?

I’m sure I had never drank breast milk from her.

Then, a lover?

I have only lived for around ten years so I don’t know about that but I’m sure she’s not.

Playmate then……nope.

She and I are……building machines together?

I design, or rather, come up with an idea, and she’ll make it happen.

I think it’s safe to say that we have a client-supplier relationship.

I don’t pay her for the work though.

Well, I think a friend is fine.

Since she followed me to the academy, I can say that she is my close friend.

I live in this house with my close female friend.

So it should be her that I see in this house……

But for some reason, I’m seeing Tiselle-anesama.

Do you understand now why I closed my eyes right after I came back home?

I wanted to think that I was hallucinating from exhaustion.

Unfortunately, I’m not hallucinating.

Ehto, Tiselle-anesama?

May I ask you two questions?

「I don’t mind. Ah, I’m here because I wanted to hear about today’s fishing.」

Thank you very much.

I only have one question now.

「That’s great. So, how’s the catch?」

You’re asking a question first?

I don’t mind but……

I had fished for a while but did not catch any.

There’s no catch today.

「Mou, have they memorized your face? I thought it could go on for a few more days……you hid your horn, right?」

Of course, I did.

I even changed my clothes several times.

However, it didn’t work.

「Were you being watched when you left the academy or something? Or did you overdo it yesterday?」

I don’t think there was a commotion yesterday since it was an overkill……

Though there might have been rumors.

「You think so? It can’t be helped. I’ll think of another way.」

Got it.

「Also, you are my little brother so you should speak to me in a more informal way. You can call me Ti-anee like you used to.」

Mother Ann will scold me so please forgive me.

「Ahaha, she’s very strict.」

She sure is.

By the way, the fishing she was talking about here was catching hoodlums and other thugs who were hanging around the capital that will target me.

Ah, it’s not me who catches them but the military who’s following me around.

In other words, I’m a bait.

Tiselle-anesama calls this strategy “fishing” and the number of hoodlums caught is the catch.

This is her way of securing labor.

When Tiselle-anesama does “this” fishing, the hoodlums don’t come close to her but run away as fast as they can so it has to be me, an unknown face.

I have been fishing for five days now and so far, we have caught around 30 fishes.

A ten-year-old kid, walking alone in a reasonably unsafe place, caught those fishes.

This is part of the “city purification” operation that Uncle Demon King had been carrying out. Not being able to catch one means it’s succeeding, right?

Or does this mean that no matter how much we do, the number of evil doers will not decrease?

「By the way, what’s your question?」

Right.

No, well, it’s a simple question.

Who is that old man standing beside you?

He looks so dead-eyed that it’s bothering me.

「Him? My catch of the day.」

Tiselle-anesama went fishing too?

「No, he was trying to sneak into the royal castle so I got involved from there. I was surprised because he was able to escape several times using his good intuition. And he also has a lot of magic power. You know what I mean?」

Yes, I do.

That’s why I don’t think he’s just someone ordinary……

Let’s not ask any further.

I don’t want to get involved.

If he is a thief, why don’t you turn him in to the appropriate authorities?

Also, why aren’t you tying him up?

「This guy seems to be useful so he is a potential executive candidate. That’s the reason why I’m treating him politely. In the meantime, I’ll have him stay here……for a while.」

………why?

「Because if I take him to our house, Al-nii and Ur-nee will get angry.」

Since you know, why are you getting me involved!

「Don’t you have extra rooms?」

I don’t.

To be precise, the extra rooms are Maa’s workshop and storage.

「What about the basement?」

Ursa-anesama is using it as an armory.

「Darn, she beat me to it!」

No, Tiselle-anesama, you have several rooms at your disposal at the royal castle, right?

「I want one near the academy. Right, Al-nii seems to have made a secret base somewhere in the school. Let me know if you find out where it is.」

If it was between Alfred-anisama and Tiselle-anisama, I would choose Alfred-anisama.

「You’re terrible! Why do you say that? Even though I love you so much!」

Please think back on what you’ve done.

Hnn?

Is there a visitor knocking?

It sounds a little impatient.

Who is it?

If it is Alfred-anisama, the knock would be calmer.

If it is Ursa-anesama, she would call out before knocking.

In other words……

「Sorry, I need help in finding someone!」

It was Uncle Beezel.

I knew him from the village so this isn’t alarming……

Why are you asking me for help?

Why don’t you ask Alfred-anisama or Ursa-anesama?

「Because you make the least fuss. But…..ehto, I no longer need your help.」

Ah, so you’re looking for that old man over there?

「Yeah」

I see.

There’s no sign of Tiselle-anesama.

She seems to have run away.

If the old man testifies to that, I don’t think there’s any point in running away.

「Sorry, you’re a lifesaver. Actually, this person is……」

Ah, no, I don’t even want to know who this old man is.

The fact that this old man is here is a result of coincidence upon coincidence.

So please, don’t bother.

I have nothing to do with any of it.

………

P-please let me go!

I’m telling you, I’m not involved!

I will not give in to your tears!

Don’t try to drag me into this!

Tiselle-anesama involving me in her things is already enough!

No, I don’t even want to get involved with her things!

And please don’t look at me with pity, stop ittt!

-0-

Tiselle: Torain, do you know how to recruit sailors?

Torain: You can recruit them at a port, right?

Tiselle: Yes, that’s right. However, sometimes, you can’t get them.

Torain: Yeah, there are times like that.

Tiselle: If we can’t get enough sailors, we can’t make the ship move. What do you think we should do?

Torain: We’ll just have to keep trying until we gather them.

Tiselle: I heard some were even kidnapping people who could work. Scary, isn’t it?

Torain: Yes, that’s scary.

Tiselle: I’m going to change the subject, let’s go fishing.

Torain: That’s an abrupt change. Well, Okay, but……are we going to do it in a river? Or a pond?

Tiselle: In the backstreet of the royal capital.

Torain: What? Was there even a fishing spot in such a place?

Tiselle: To build a country, labor is desperately needed.

Torain: I don’t get what you’re trying to say.

Tiselle: I think even evil doers would be happier in working in a new place than going to jail.

Torain: ………

Tiselle: Let’s do our best to catch them.

-0-

Backstage

Maa: My name was mentioned but I didn’t even get a turn……

Torain: It’s because you’re holed up in your workshop. If you want your turn, you have to come forward.

Kierbit: Where do I live?

Maa: Somewhere else. You’re not expecting to live with us, right?

Kierbit: Mou