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Chapter 47: Matchmaking with a neighbouring crown prince, part 7

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Translator: Denryuu; Editor: Ryunakama

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King Randolph did not bother to send them off.

「Roland, where do you live now? Are you eating well? You always say that it doesn’t matter what you eat as long as it’s nutritious, right? Anyway, it’s hard for me to leave the kingdom, so if we get to meet again in the future –」

She spoke a lot, for we hadn’t met in a long time. Since the others were ready to set off, a subordinate called for her to hurry.

「Oi, Elvi! They’re waiting for you, hurry up!」

「You always speak in such an indifferent manner…! C-Could it be that you have someone you like…?」

「That is probably not a topic to be brought up when we part ways.」

Almeria chuckled.

「Look, Elvi, we’ll write letters to you, okay?」

「Almeria… I guess you haven’t had the chance to joke around, huh?」

「Eh… it’s not like I intend to do that…」

「Okay, I’ll write letters — one every three days. Please reply, Roland.」

「Too many. You’ll have sent out a new one before the previous one even arrives.」

「B-Baka!!」, shouted a blushing Elvi, thumping me on the chest.

She turned around as if to run and mounted her horse. Almeria waved goodbye as the holy knight rode off into the distance.

「Hey, Roland, where do you live now?」

「Does it matter?」

「Near the guild?」

「Does it matter?」

Oh, right. Is Lyla still sleeping? I had applied a ‘Gate’ earlier, so I could use magic to summon her instantly if I wished.

「Is everything okay at work? How did you become a guild employee? Am I still not allowed to become an adventurer? When should I try again? Can you become our permanent escort?」

I sighed, and returned her barrage of questions with a single line.

「You talk too much. We’ll be leaving soon, so go and get ready.」

Almeria pouted.

「Oh, come on! Couldn’t you tell me just a little about your personal life!?」

「This man is impervious to your feminine charms, young lass.」

Lyla had woken up and overheard our conversation. Almeria screamed.

「It talked –? The c-cat can talk!? Where did it come from –」

「Fuu… so she’s the kind of person who changes their tone of voice when talking to animals. I understand where she’s coming from, but it won’t be pleasant if she ticks me off…」

「Are you an acquaintance of Roland??」

「…I guess so.」

Never in a million years would she have guessed that this was the Demon King.

「Listen, young lass. Good girls don’t chase after men blindly. In fact, they make men chase them.」

「Wow, neko-chan… no, Master!」

「Heh, nice of you to call me that.」

What a pleasant exchange, considering that it was between the Heroine and the Demon King.

「If my charms have no effect, then how should I approach him…?」

「What you need is not to push, but rather to pull.」

「I see…!」, said Almeria, listening intently to Lyla’s lecture on romance.

Guess she had no real experience in it so far.

「M-Master, have you ever done anything s-sexual…?」

「Hmm…」

「…!? What kind of reaction is that!? Be specific, tell me what goes where…!」

「Relax, girl, relax.」

As with Milia previously, Lyla seemed to enjoy being ambiguous about her virginity. At any rate, I couldn’t bear listening to Master Moggy’s Love Lecture anymore, so I returned to the villa alone.

It was just the two of us in the room.

「Thank you for coming down, Roland. I am grateful. Please allow me to say my thanks」, said King Randolph, lowering his head.

「Since you summoned me through the guild, I see this not as a personal favour, but a work-related request.」

There were two rock glasses on the table. Each contained two large ice cubes and some amber-coloured spirits, poured by the king himself. I suppose he was showing his sincerity by not asking his servants to do it.

「Oh, also, I apologise for disrupting the ‘normal life’ you treasure so dearly.」

「…is what you say, but what are you actually thinking?」

「I’m happy that the matchmaking session got broken up!」, exclaimed the king, breaking out into a smile.「Just joking. Okay, maybe not, but seriously, sorry for the trouble.」

「Alright, that’s enough. I was a little worried anyway when I heard that King Reubens was involved.」

Back when he hired me, I got the impression that he would stop at nothing to achieve his goals. As my suspicions had proven true, I was glad that I had been there.

「Almeria likes men who are hard to get.」

The king swirled his glass, making the ice clink against its sides.

「A man like you can’t possibly be that dense. To be able to seduce Leinora in one night and extract information from her like that… you’re definitely experienced in dealing with women’s feelings.」

There are many troublesome men, but none more than you, lamented the king, taking a sip from his glass.

「That ‘normalcy’ of yours, is it not enough for you?」

「What are you trying to say?」

「Remember that favour from a while ago? Well, as the king of Ferland, I still have to reward you.」

I waited for him to continue.

「As Almeria’s father, and as one of your friends, I have a personal wish as well. If you can be my daughter’s partner, then I have no complaints.」

One of my friends…? Hmm, I guess King Randolph could be considered a friend.

「I’m sorry, King Randolph.」

「Sigh…」

Sighing deeply, the king took a large gulp of his drink.

「If the two of you got together and had children, that would be perfect… seeing as I only have daughters… I want a grandson…」

King Randolph looked up at me.

「A grandson… so that’s what you wanted all along?」

「Fufu, I’m being rather garrulous, but yes.」

「Well then, I’ll try my best to give you an heir.」

That statement came out like a joke, so I took out some money from my pocket totalling 100,000 rin.

「Your reign will probably end at fifty-seven.」

「Hey, hey, don’t fool around with me, Roland. You think I only have another fifteen years left in me? Okay, you’re almost never wrong, but… I’ll say sixty-five.」

The king also placed 100,000 rin onto the table.

「Closest without going over wins.」

「Aye, sounds good.」

We laughed and emptied the contents of our glasses together.

「Well, how do you feel thinking about the end of your reign?」

「It’s a tough question, and it’s all your fault.」

The king called for one of his male servants and dictated the terms of our bet.

「Your Majesty, if we’re talking about your reign, how about just postponing your retirement?」

「Hey, don’t say that out loud, I’m trying to outsmart Roland here…!」

I stuck out my index finger.

「One month after the last time we had sex. If nothing happens after that, I’ll just consider myself impotent. Wanking is not counted.」

「Roland, that’s so strict…!」

「Well then, that’s all.」

And so the bet was established. When it was time to leave, we left the resort and headed back to Ferland.

After bidding them farewell, I immediately activated the ‘Gate’ and went back to Somarille Coast with Lyla.

Hand in hand, we walked along the shore.

「That Almeria… she’s a Heroine?」

「Yeah, what about her?」

Lyla frowned.

「How do I say it… I think she’s a good, straightforward girl. It’s good that I didn’t have to fight her.」

「Yes, thank goodness.」

「I don’t mind being called Master, but… I suppose being friends would be nice.」

I see Lyla had taken a liking to Almeria.

「Also, I don’t understand why you even took up this offer in the first place. Don’t you want nothing to do with Almeria and the royal family?」

I had been thinking the same thing. While Iris had definitely wished for me to acquiesce, the requestor himself had been okay either way.

Without much thought, I had simply agreed to go.

「Since I’m close to the two of them, I felt that they might be pushed into a tight spot. I thought that I could help them break out of a dangerous situation. Calling it a ‘job’ is probably nothing more than a facade I established for myself… I wanted to help a girl I’m close to — a girl who’s almost like my disciple. That’s all there is to it.」

This was something I could never say to either Almeria or her father.

「So even you have people you call ‘friends’? That’s good」, said Lyla, nodding.「You heard it from Milia, right? ‘Normal’ people have friends, apparently. And what you just told me has confirmed it. You accepted this mission because of your friends. I don’t know what’s troubling you, but that was a ‘normal’ thing to do, you know?」

「Me? Troubled?」

「Mm, it felt like that for some reason.」

I had had no self-awareness — I had believed that being involved with the royal family was anything but ‘normal’. And yet, I had wanted to lend a hand. I suppose that clash between logic and emotion had been troubling me.

「Seeing that you don’t even know yourself that well, you have a long way to go, fufufu」, Lyla snickered.

We started heading back when it got dark, but Lyla suddenly became moody.

「…You had a lot of fun last night, didn’t you?」

「Eh, no, I wouldn’t call it ‘fun’.」

「I’m not talking about that!! I’m talking about the bed, the bed!! I smelt. The scent. Of some bitch!!!!」, spouted Lyla.「I’m a Demon King — the best of the best, peerlessly so! I don’t care where you plant your seed. After all, no woman will let a man like you go. So… do you know what I’m trying to say…?」

「…?」

Looking directly at me, she grabbed hold of my finger. Her voice was barely audible over the sound of splashing waves.

「…I don’t want to go home…」

Even in the darkness, I could feel her blushing. Yes, I understand, I said, clutching her tightly.

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