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Chapter 47: Welcome Home and Night Chat in My Room

Translator: LynneSuzuran

In the evening, around when the sunlight turned red, our carriages finally arrived at the mansion. Unlike when we departed, perhaps because I was already accustomed to it, I didn’t feel so nauseated. Ah- thank goodness, I felt so relieved.
Once we reached our own rooms at our fatigued state, we only needed to wait for dinner, but it won’t be the same for the maids. They still had the job to take the luggage down from the wagon immediately, and then they needed to carry the luggage in.
Because I was told not to help them out for many times over, I decided to ask for Yuzuruha-san’s hand to help me come down from the carriage instead, since he had been waiting at the entranceway.

“Welcome back, everyone. Did you enjoy your summer in the villa?”
“I’m home-. It was really fun, the horses and the goats were very cute.”
“T-they were cute, indeed, right…”
“Yeah, they were adorable. Especially the small-sized horses.”
“Isn’t that right? They were readily tame towards Seiren.”

Hey, Saryuu, it’s fine for you not to be in the same opinion as me, don’t be so unreasonable. Especially about the horses. Even father and mother were astonished.

“Saryuu-sama. Has it been a little beat easier for you to be close to the horses?”
“N—”

Look, even Yuzuruha-san found out about it. He said his comments even without letting go of the smile on his face.
As for my parents, their expressions turned as they muttered, “Aaah.” Unexpectedly, this might turn out to be an established habit in the future.
Well, shall I intervene here? As one would expect, he’d feel bitter from being nudged by them, just like how people became bitter after being bitten by a dog. If you experience it yourself, obviously it’d be scary.

“Well, well. I think that there’s no problem even if he didn’t get close to the horses, he still has another chance to try it again, right?”
“Yes, that’s right! You’re such a bully, Yuzuruha!”
“Oh my, please excuse me for being rude, then.”

Yuzuruha calmly lowered his head to Saryuu who hastily followed my words’ lead.
…Saryuu, will you be able to grow up to be a proper man just like Taiga-san 14 years from now on?
After all, it’s quite convenient to fly around your territory while riding on a horse like that.

I wonder why did Taiga-san’s name pop out there, hey, me?
Was it because I was together with him up until this afternoon?

In any case, since the thing about the luggage had been settled to an extent, each of us went inside our own rooms. Obviously, I was together with Minoa-san and Oriza-san. Kuon-sensei returned to the house where Jigen-san was waiting.
Anyway, it’s been a week since I last entered my own room, so I felt quite nostalgic.

“Ah, Seiren-sama. Welcome home!”
“I’m home-!”

The one who opened the basket that contained my luggage inside my own room was Alica-san who had returned home during the period of Purification Summer.
Whoa-, I have forgotten that this is the kind of feeling I get from saying “Welcome home” and “I’m home”.
Yes, that’s it, speaking of I’m home.

“Ah, Alica-san, too, welcome back. You went to visit your parents, right?”
“Ah, yes, I’m back. I needed to clean up Seiren-sama’s room and do other things, so I returned this morning.”

Alica-san closed the basket’s lid and bowed her head. In other words, during the time we rode on our carriages to return home, Alica-san and the other employees who remained in the mansion worked hard to do cleaning up and other things, huh?

“Whoa, is that so? Since the mansion’s been left empty for a week, right? Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it, since it’s my job, after all.”

Well, work is certainly work, but it’s quite natural for me to express my gratitude to her for cleaning up my room.
It seems that my habit has infected Saryuu, since recently, Kanna-san and Maki-san often looked surprised. Well, it was obvious since he was originally born and raised in houses that used employees as common norm. They also didn’t feel like they were forced to do their work.

“By the way, is Seiren-sama’s luggage just this?”
“It has been increased, though.”

Minoa-san shrugged her shoulders as she answered Alica-san who tilted her head in front of just one basket.
Just as Minoa-san said, she and Oriza-san has tossed various things into my luggage. Among them was the wax seal set that unexpectedly turned out to be handy.
Oh my, oh my, Alica-san was obviously surprised because it wasn’t weird for me to have around 5 to 6 baskets of luggage just like my parents and Saryuu. I wonder just what kind of things were stuffed into those baskets.

“Well, the clothes are thin because it’s summer. But were they sufficient?”
“It’s enough, it’s enough. The underwears were washed and used again, and they got dry quickly because it’s summer.”
“Seiren-sama is such an economist, huh-“
“That’s because I had been raised in an ordinary house. Ah, Oriza-san, thank you for washing my underwear.”
It’s nothing, don’t mention it-. It’s certainly way tidier than having to wash them all at once.”

Just as Oriza-san said, I was oddly economist because I grew up in that kind of house, so it was no wonder. The one who washed my underwear was Oriza-san, though.
At first, I thought of washing it myself, but Oriza-san volunteered as she wouldn’t let me do so. If it was Minoa-san, the cloth might be damaged if she put too much force during washing.

Alica-san suddenly clapped her hands together while she was in the middle of efficiently tidying up my luggage. She seemed to remember something, and then she turned her gaze towards me.

“That’s right. I have brought Cheria fruits as my souvenir from home. It’s being cooled down in the kitchen, so please enjoy them after dinner.”
“Eh, really?”

As soon as that topic was brought up, everyone’s expressions including me suddenly became bright.
Cheria fruits, in other words, cherries. Even here, there are different places where different types of trees grow, but it seems that the golden age for that fruit is around the end of the Summer of Purification.
The seasonal fruit is so delicious. Delicious things are justice. Therefore, the Cheria fruits that I’m going to eat are justice in itself.
…As I thought, I really have turned into a real woman, haven’t I? I suppose it’s a reaction that’s becoming more similar to the maids.

After dinner was over, Alica-san brought in a container containing the Cheria fruits. This seems to be a variety that doesn’t have any seeds and it’s popular for it’s easy to be eaten. Well, it won’t be good for the seeds to be flying around in this kind of a room.
While eating the fruits, we began to explain the circumstances that happened at the villa to Alica-san. Since she was also accompanying me, it would be bad if something were to happen to her from now on. Of course, I omitted out the details about how I was raised as a man in the other world, though.

“Well… It is indeed bad, Seiren-sama.”

Alica-san listened to our story one by one, and then she stated her current impression.

“Yes, well. …and where would that danger arrive to, Alica-san?”
“Eh, ah, I think it’s mainly Shikino’s young master. Excuse me.”
“That is certainly quite bad, too, though.”

Well, we could avoid touching about the past and hid behind the scenes, but the one who’s to be at the most risk would be Taiga-san, huh. No well, how could he show his good will to that extent, huh? …No, if one were to look at it as an outsider, it wouldn’t be so strange to call him as a stalker, right? Let’s be careful.

“As expected, was it better for us to throw a basket at him?”
“We shouldn’t strike him, so let’s stop at it, okay?”

Perhaps Minoa-san’s reaction was more normal. As expected, throwing a basket at him would be going too far, and if it hit him by any chance, it might turn out to be a problem.
Well, the conversation’s gone astray. Let’s bring it back to the original topic.

“Oh well, that’s why, it might become quite a risky investigation. I repeat, please be careful. I’m saying this to everyone.”
“Of course, we’ll be careful. However, Seiren-sama should also be careful, okay? The current head of the Shikino family seems to be unable to forget our Madam even up until this time.”
“What?”

When Alica-san mentioned that thing, I was stunned for a moment. It’s likely that it might look that way from the outside.

“No, Touya-san lost in the match against Tou-san, or to put it frankly, Kaa-san rejecte–…Ah-.”

There’s that thing where someone will still continue to like their crush even after they’ve been rejected. Yup.
Then, it’s understandable for them to have a wishful thinking like, perhaps I still have some chances.
However, that was something from a long time ago.
In addition, Touya-san already has sons, namely Taiga-san and Saryuu. In other words, he already had a wife.

“No, well, it will be easy if he has forgotten. But, the reality isn’t as easy as that.”
“When Saryuu-sama was welcomed as this family’s adopted child, I heard a talk about how he seemed to be greatly happy.”
“Well, we can certainly connect the story.”

Minoa-san said with a low voice. Aah-ah-ah-, my son has become the son of the woman I loved in the past.
No, I understand, but at the same time, I can’t understand how one could be that persistent to that point?

“…Yuzuruha-san has often said this, too, but… It’s about how Seiren-sama closely resembles the Madam back in her younger days.”

Oriza-san’s words dealt the final blow in a sense, and I shoved the cherries in my mouth to go down to my throat.