Chapter 95
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
Because Ferris and the others returned from the dungeon, a report meeting was held at the “Silver Orchid” office, and since I was called as “Mose,” I decided to join.
That part was as planned, so it was fine, but for some reason, Ms. Wendy and Frederica were also there.
I was a bit surprised because I thought it would only be people from “Silver Orchid” besides myself.
”Well then… Ferris, please tell us what happened in the dungeon.”
”Okay. So, starting from when those guys showed up…”
The women in the room didn’t pay me any mind, and the report meeting began with Charlotte asking Ferris about the events.
* * *
”…and that’s how I took care of those guys.”
Ferris reported exactly what happened.
However, as promised, there was no mention of “Koji,” and it was made to seem like “Mose” and “Fraud” were the ones who did all the work.
Well, from an outsider’s perspective, they probably wouldn’t have known “Koji” was there, and if Ferris and the others were keeping it a secret, it made sense.
Charlotte occasionally checked in with me, but since there was nothing I needed to deny, I just agreed, and the report wrapped up.
Naturally, this meant that Charlotte also learned that “Mose” was “Fraud,” and she turned to me with a question.
”Mr. ‘Mose,’ were you the one keeping an eye on the ‘Gem Snake’ in town?”
’Well, yeah.’
”Why disguise yourself as someone else… Ah, to avoid being noticed by Ms. Iris, right?”
She was about to ask why I went out of my way to confront them in a different form, but quickly figured it out and nodded to herself.
Then Charlotte looked back at me with a very nice smile and asked.
”This incident will greatly impact the country’s future, and I believe your contributions are highly valued. Of course, we must reward you accordingly… Is there anything you desire?”
Oh, we’re talking about rewards right off the bat.
It’s convenient for me since the conversation is moving quickly, but… what I want to ask for isn’t something I can just say out loud with so many ears around.
So I respond like this.
’Um, I”d like to be alone with you…’
”Oh my♪”
Charlotte looks surprised but seems to be in a good mood, but her 2 attendants raised their voices to criticize me.
”You bastard! No way…”
”How disrespectful! Who do you think you are!?”
Following those 2, another voice chimes in.
”Hey! Are you really going to make a move on the princess!?”
”If that’s the case, then I’ll…!”
Standing up were Frederica (the daughter of powerful figure in the town) and Ms. Wendy (the hooters), and Frederica looked at Ms. Wendy in shock at the almost simultaneous comment.
”Huh? You too?”
”Ah!? Um… y-yes…”
When Ms. Wendy blushed and answered like that, Charlotte jumped in.
”Oh, so you ‘too’ means Ms. Frederica has also been ‘his partner’♪.”
”Ah!? Um… y-yes…”
Frederica, realizing she couldn’t dodge the question with the princess present and in this situation, admitted it just like Ms. Wendy.
As both of them turned red, Charlotte said with a playful smile.
”Hehe♪ Then it looks like I’ll be joining ‘the fun’ too♪.”
She practically gave a thumbs up to the invitation.
However, her 2 attendants tried to stop it.
”Princess, you can’t! Not with someone whose background is unknown!”
”That’s right! Lady Ferris, aren’t you going to stop this!?”
”Huh? If she’s okay with it, then why not? There are other princes and princesses around, so losing one isn’t a big deal. Compared to the royal family of Norland being overthrown, this is nothing!”
Ferris, suddenly put on the spot, answered with a grin.
The two attendants looked around at the other women, but no one showed any signs of disagreement, so… they started saying things like this.
”Ugh… then I’ll take care of it! That should be fine, right!?”
”Wait!? Then I’ll do it too! I’ll squeeze you dry until you stop trying to mess with the princess!”
With the cool attendant following along, the cute attendant suddenly said something like that, and all eyes turned to me.
They were looking at me as if asking what I was going to do, but finally, the moment came for me to speak up.
’No, I don”t intend to mess with the princess. I just didn’t want anyone to overhear about the reward.’
”””Eh…?”””
* * *
Clearing up the misunderstanding, I found myself alone with Charlotte in her office.
Of course, the two attendants came along, and they were probably peeking at us from behind the closed door.
Charlotte actually wanted to stop them from coming, but due to their pleading and my agreement, it ended up this way.
As we entered the room, the two seemed genuinely worried about Charlotte.
”Um, are you really okay, princess? If you want, we can ‘handle’ him right now…”
”I’m not used to it, but I’ll let you do whatever you want, okay?”
They said this to me, but…
”Alright, alright, you two wait outside. If you come in before I call for you, I won’t forgive you.”
With her firm words, they reluctantly backed down.
So, as I sat on the sofa facing Charlotte, she asked again.
”Now then… what do you wish for as a reward for this matter?”
I answered her.
’Well… I want a “position.”‘
”A position? …A title, perhaps?”
She seemed puzzled, probably because she couldn’t believe I would want that as a noble.
I was trying to keep my involvement with them to a minimum in this situation.
Of course, that wasn’t it, so I denied it.
’No, it”s not that… I want a position that can prove I’ve been in this country for a long time.’
At my statement, Charlotte narrowed her eyes and asked with a sharp gaze.
”…Like being pursued by enemies from another country?”
’No, it”s not like that.’
It seems like she inferred my current situation from what I requested, but if that’s the case, depending on how things go, it could turn into an international issue.
”…”
She looked worried, maybe because she was concerned about that.
I didn’t think I was being hunted domestically… maybe it’s because she didn’t have any information about my current power?
Either way, even though I have some achievements, it seems my request wasn’t something that would be granted without conditions.
However, as of now, it doesn’t seem like any official pursuit has been launched, so if I can come up with a reason to say I’ve lived in this country for a long time, it might not be impossible to get through.
So, I… since she already know about the Magic Armor from Ferris and the others’ report, I released the left gauntlet part to expose my arm and rolled up my sleeve.
There were 8 black snake-like marks wriggling on my skin.
Of course, it only looks that way on the surface; there’s actually nothing on my skin.
”!?”
Seeing that, Charlotte gasped.
Of course.
If it wasn’t moving, it might look like a tattoo, but tattoos aren’t really common here… and if it’s moving, it’s only natural to find it creepy.
Now, the reason I showed her this is… to make it clear that this is the “reason for my position.”
’Actually, I left my hometown because I was almost cut off due to this being considered ominous.’
”…What exactly is that?”
’I’m not entirely sure, but I think it’s the source of my power to summon fire snakes. However, back when I was there, nobody even guessed that…’
Her face showed a mix of emotions at this explanation.
”I see… I feel sorry for you, but without that explanation, it would be hard to understand how you were treated in your hometown. But if that’s the case, wouldn’t they not try to find you?”
’That would be fine, but my hometown is a place full of monsters. With this incident, my situation might have been communicated, and they could call me back because I’m useful. I wouldn’t mind responding to that, but… I’d rather not be backstabbed once things settle down and I’m no longer needed.’
If a force that poses a threat stays around, it would have a certain level of influence, and it wouldn’t be surprising if the local powers wanted to eliminate what they see as a nuisance.
Even if I try to leave my hometown again soon, it’s natural for the people around me to want to hold me back, considering the possibility that my strength will be needed again.
This is just a story I made up, but I can’t say it’s impossible, which is why Charlotte didn’t question it.
”So, you want to say you were originally born in this country, right?”
’Yeah. Luckily, right now, it’s not known that the fire snake I can summon comes from this arm’s snake, so if this matter reaches my hometown, I don’t think they’ll connect it to me… but just in case, if they find out it’s me, they might take my family hostage.’
”I see. In that case… it’s better if Mr. Fraud’s name doesn’t get out, right?”
’No, I had a different name when I was in my hometown. Fraud is a name I came up with after leaving home.’
”Oh, is that so? But… hmm…”
After I finished explaining the whole made-up story, she put her hand on her chin and looked thoughtful.
Was there something suspicious about it?
No, since I’ve changed my name, there’s no way to verify it, and I could say there’s only suspicious stuff.
While I was thinking that… Charlotte asked me about the “position” she was requesting.
”Um, are you looking for a position as Mr. Fraud?”
’No. It can be Fraud, Mose, or even a completely different identity.’
”I see. But… it won’t be easy. It depends on how much investigation your hometown can do, but changes in population can be tracked through tax records, so it’s hard to become a non-existent person. If you have an unclear background, it might be possible, but then you wouldn’t be able to prove you were born in this country, which wouldn’t help your goal.”
’Well, that’s true.’
”So, that means you’d have to impersonate someone close to your age… in that case, you’d either need to find someone who’s missing or whose death isn’t clear, or you’d have to get that position vacated somehow.”
’I don’t want to go as far as causing someone’s death, though…’
”I thought you would say that. But still, there will always be some unnatural points in relationships with blood relatives or acquaintances. Plus, I can’t say that people from your hometown won’t notice.”
’So… you can’t meet my request, huh?’
Thinking that maybe money could be a reward, I was met with her shaking her head.
”No, it’s not that there aren’t any options. It’s just that it will put a bit of a burden on you.”
’A burden? What kind of method are we talking about?’
When I asked her, she looked a bit scared as she revealed the method.
”Well, it’s about… becoming a noble.”
’A noble? That seems stricter about population changes than commoners, and if I get involved, won’t it make my existence stand out?’
If they can track population changes from tax records, it should be the same for nobles, and there are issues with heirs too.
So, wouldn’t it be difficult to say that a person who just appeared out of nowhere was actually a noble?
When I asked her about this, Charlotte explained the loophole that comes with being a noble.
”Yes, there are indeed issues with heirs for nobles, but ironically, that can create loopholes as well.”
’What do you mean?’
”There are several noble families that have gone extinct because they didn’t have heirs in the past. If we say you are a hidden relative of one of those families… no matter how you’ve lived until now, you could be considered born in this country.”
I heard that some nobles, due to not having heirs, have taken more wives or even pursued women outside of marriage.
Well, it seems there are cases where they just wanted to pursue women for the sake of it.
Anyway… if a woman outside of marriage has a potential heir first, that child isn’t counted as a candidate for the heir, and if an heir is born from the wife, that child is treated as a commoner.
It seems the idea is to use that and say I’m a child of a noble who became a commoner through such circumstances.
The blank period that would appear in the records might raise suspicion, but if I can claim to be born a noble in this country… even if someone from another country investigates, I can at least prove that I’m a citizen of this country.
But…
’I see. But… if I can’t prove that I’m related to that family, wouldn’t I just be treated as a criminal pretending to be a noble?’
”That’s true, but…”
Charlotte replied like that, and I brought up another… more important issue.
’Besides… even if a noble thought to be extinct is found, wouldn’t that position have already been taken over by another family? In that case, I wouldn’t have any role as a noble, and if that’s the case, there’s no point in recognizing me as a surviving noble, so I wouldn’t be publicly acknowledged, right?’
Once I said that, she seemed to realize what I was thinking and hurriedly denied my assumption.
”Wait! I’m not thinking of making you a criminal and using you as a pawn!”
The idea of “making you a noble” means that by claiming to be a noble, if you become a criminal, you’d be forced to work as a pawn for the royal family, which would create a “burden.”
If that’s the case, then what Charlotte said wasn’t a lie, and that’s why I doubted whether it was a “method of deceiving without lying, but making someone misunderstand.”
I think I might be overthinking it, but… as someone who has the power to become a criminal due to false charges, I need to eliminate this possibility.
But well, judging by her flustered state, it doesn’t seem like she was trying to trap me.
’…So, what were you planning to do?’
I asked, and she seemed relieved that I wouldn’t suddenly use force against her, regaining her composure to answer.
”Well… if we can confirm with the royal family and get their permission… there are noble families that serve directly under the royal family. They are literally noble families that serve the royal family directly, but among them, there are also families that have become extinct. If the royal family recognizes you as a relative of one of those families… it would mean that the royal family guarantees you were born in this country, and you would gain the position you desire.”
’Ah, I see.’
Listening to Charlotte, I understood that there was a possibility of things going well.
However… I confronted her with my remaining concerns.
’But becoming a noble means you would be in a position to serve the royal family, right? In the end, it seems like there’s no change in becoming a pawn of the royal family…’
”Don’t worry about that. Even if they recognize you as a relative of the nobility, it doesn’t mean they’ll accept you as the heir to the noble house.”
’So… all I need is for the royal family to vouch for my noble background.’
”Yes. And the burden I mentioned is related to that process. We can’t just accept your claim without any proof, so we’ll have to fabricate some evidence, and we’ll need to share that information between us. But…”
Indeed, it wouldn’t be good if there were any discrepancies in that regard.
As I was thinking this, she used her fingers to pull down the already slightly open neckline of her dress, revealing more of her chest, and continued speaking with a seductive look in her eyes.
She tugged at her dress.
”I don’t think the Norland family will give up that easily, and I’d like to continue relying on your help in the future. Of course, I’ll reward you as much as possible… you know? ♡”
Well, this offer was expected since not everything has been resolved yet.
I thought that exposing herself like this wasn’t something a princess should do, but she had been talking about offering her body as a reward from the beginning… and it seems like she’s serious about it.
The fact that she’s offering her body means she’s probably investigated me to some extent and realized that she doesn’t have any other effective options.
I’d rather not get involved with her like that.
But well… I’ll appreciate her enthusiasm.
To her, I reluctantly replied.
’…Well, I do have some business in this town, after all.’
”So…?”
’I’ll accept your offer, as long as it’s within my reach, even if it’s not your body.’
At those words, Charlotte leaned forward on the table.
She leaned forward.
”Thank you! Oh, please don’t hold back with my body either♪”
She tugged at her dress, causing her chest to jiggle.
As she said this, she pulled down her neckline even further, leaning forward to expose and jiggle both of her breasts… so considering the situation, I decided to say this.
’Please put it away for now.’
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
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