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Volume 12 Chapter 3 Part 1

Chapter 58: Elder of the Clan

『Sherry』
Current Levels & Equipment:
Master Smith Lv.44

Equipment:
Steel Spear of Power
Chain Mail
Hardened Leather Hat
Leather Gloves
Hardened Leather Boots
Sacrificial Misanga

「I don’t know exactly how it happened, but somehow it turned out that someone named Cassandra wants to meet me and Rutina. We’re going to be going out tomorrow morning to get that over with so keep that in mind.」

He went back home from Bode and explained the situation to Rutina.

「Aunt Cassandra said so?」

「Yeah, or at least that’s what I heard.」

Rutina seemed to know who I was talking about right away, so this elder Cassandra must really be a famous person in the Elven clan that Rutina and Cassia belong to.

I wonder what her exact relationship with her is?

「Honestly speaking, I am not on the best of terms with her.」

Rutina told me that her relationship with Cassandra wasn’t exactly an ideal one.

「Is that so?」

「Yes, a little.」

「But Cassia said that she’s someone who’s kind to the members of her clan.」

「We are not on the best of terms because the subjugation of the Labyrinths was not progressing at her desirable pace at my father’s territory.」

I see. That actually explains a lot. The whole reason why the earl of Selmar was dethroned was because the subjugation of the Labyrinths, which is the duty of every noble who governs their own territory, was not progressing at all, so I imagine that the elder of the clan must’ve voiced her disapproval of his inaction quite loudly.

The kinder you are to others, the more you’re worried about their well-being, and the more you’re able to feel for them. But looking at it from the other, the Earl of Selmar’s, side, he must’ve thought that he was probably being scolded and criticized for no reason.

「I see.」

「No. Back then I used to think that father was criticized by her for no reason, but now I see that the words she was speaking to him must have been genuine advice given from the bottom of her heart. If only I had more power back then, then perhaps I would have been able to help him in some way.」

Well, that explains why she thinks that they’re not on good terms.

After all, when you think that you’re always in the right, any sort of good advice is just going to fall on deaf ears.

「Then Rutina, does that mean that you don’t want to go see her?」

「No, I am going to go with you. Who knows that she would have said if I purposefully ignored her wish to see me right now?」

Well, it is such a situation. If she goes with me, she’s most likely going to be scolded on behalf of her father, but if she doesn’t go with me, then she’s going to be scolded for not going when Cassandra wanted her to come.

It’s like a daughter-in-law being called by her in-laws for questioning: whether she chooses to pull out or to push forward, she’s still going to be stuck in hell.

That’s what not being on good terms with one of your family members means.

「It seems that the duke and Cassia are also going to be going there by a different route, but are you okay with that?」

「The Duke of Hartz, my father’s sworn enemy. If he appears in front of me unarmed…」

「Please make sure to not do anything rash while I’m going to be there with you. Can I ask you to do that?」

Even though she didn’t want to meet with the Duke, she still saw it as an opportunity to avenge her father’s humiliation.

Come to think of it, maybe we’ll meet the Duke and Cassia after all. I just hope that Rutina won’t think that I’ll help her take revenge for her father, which is why I would like Rutina ti promise me that if we do meet them, she won’t leave me, her current master, behind in order to pursue her desire for vengeance.

It’s like, in the top five words that I want her to say, but is she going to listen to me? I’d be glad if she could find it in herself to do that so that our visit would turn out alright.

Well, even if revenge is not as active here as it was in the Edo period in Japan, this world is still a pretty brutal place, so you can never know.

I also wonder if Rutina would be able to remain the same as she is now if she managed to actually take revenge for what happened to her family.

Roxanne and Sherry who are listening to the conversation after they finished their cleaning duty didn’t say anything.

「It’s okay, master. Revenge is a right that’s officially recognized by imperial law.」

Oh no, Sherry inadvertently ended up giving some good advice to Rutina.

What am I going to do if she ends up deciding to use that knowledge to her advantage after all?

「Anyway, we’re going tomorrow, so be ready.」

「Okay.」

I wonder if she really is okay or if she’s simply saying so to keep up appearances.

Even though I felt a little uneasy, we still went to the Labyrinth because it couldn’t be helped at this point, but throughout the day I felt indifferent about anything that we managed to do there.

The next morning, we entered the Labyrinth before eating breakfast as usual, but maybe it was because she knew that I wasn’t wearing my Sacrificial Misanga this time either, but Roxanne was not making any kind of unreasonable requests of me.

That’s what I initially thought, but the frequency of her guiding us to the groups of enemies on the 45th floor has increased in comparison to yesterday.

Is it really like that, or is it just me?

Well, I did say that we should increase the amount of battles fought on the 45th floor over time, but when I was saying that, I didn’t mean for that frequency to increase so fast!

Goku, come quickly! I don’t know what to wait for!

That being said, we managed to finish the early morning bit of Labyrinth exploration, and we somehow managed to do it without me feeling as if my life was constantly in danger, to the point where I myself started thinking that maybe we should start fighting on the 45th floor some more.

Does this mean that Roxanne managed to deceive me?

No, I don’t like it. I don’t like that possibility at all!

Be strong and never let yourself be carried away!

Don’t be fooled. This is a trap, and you absolutely cannot fall for it!
「Well then, Rutina, shall we be on our way?」

「Yes.」

「Have a nice day, master.」

After we finished eating breakfast, I took Rutina and warped us to the castle belonging to elder Cassandra.

The lobbies always looks splendid, whether it’s the one of a castle or a mansion.

I looked up to see if there’s going to be a chandelier or a winding staircase, but there was nothing of the sort.

It’s not that kind of world, after all.

Either way, it’s a nice lobby. Well, since this place belongs to the head of Rutina’s clan, it should be obvious that her place needs to look the part.

Aristocrats, even if they are married to some influential person, will be quite wealthy, and unless they fall into ruin, they should own a mansion or a castle like that.

And since this is the castle of the elder of an entire Elven clan, then maybe she used her wit to rebuild his fallen bridegroom and made him the most influential merchant in the territory? And

Since she is someone powerful like that, she probably has a certain eye for people, and she wants to use it on me to gauge the worth of a man who has become Rutina’s owner?

This is starting to get too scary for me.

No, it’s going to be okay. It should be fine.

I’m just doing a light greeting today, so there should be no problems. Whether or not a simple greeting is going to be enough another matter entirely.

Everything is going to be fine just as long as Rutina won’t testify that I am a hopeless and helpless human being.

No, it has to be okay.

I am not treating her badly, so today’s meeting really should be just that: her wanting to see what kind of man I am.

I just have to make sure not to make a complete fool out of myself.

W-Well, Cassia and the Duke will also come, so it should be fine.