The next day, we were welcomed by Chris at the Earl Dareinwald House estate in the imperial capital, and we all went shopping… Well, it wasn’t really light shopping, was it? We spent almost half a day walking around, buying various household goods like the latest bedding. That isn’t light at all, is it?

「Hmm, this one feels softer.」

「It’s nice that it’s soft, but won’t it be too hot to sleep with?」

「I’m sensitive to the cold, so something like this would be just right for me. Chris-chan, you’re the same, right?」

「I used to be, but ever since I got body enhancements, I’ve become more sensitive to heat…」

Mimi, Elma, and Chris were enthusiastically discussing something that looked like a blanket. I didn’t realize that enhancing your body could change your constitution and make you more sensitive to heat…

「Isn’t it best if it’s easy to wash?」

「Choosing the right bedding is important, sis. The quality of your bedding determines the quality of your life.」

「You’re being really serious about this, Wee…」

Tina was trying to prioritize cheap and easy-to-wash bedding, but Wiska, with a serious look on her face, stopped her, leaving Tina a bit taken aback… Wiska sometimes has these weird fixations.

「I’m more interested in this chair than the bedding.」

「I think it’s better if you sleep in a proper bed, doctor.」

「No, no, sleeping in a chair can be quite nice, you know? If the quality is good, it’s no different from a bed.」

Just choosing bedding—and some non-bedding items— created a lot of chaos so we stood out a lot. People looked at us with faces that said, ‘What a strange group.’ Well, with Chris and her bodyguards included, we were a group of ten people. It wasn’t an exaggeration to call us a large group. We attracted a lot of attention. To finish it, Chris brought bodyguards who were clearly identifiable at a glance. It was obvious that Chris was a lady of noble status. Strictly speaking, she’s not just a lady but the future Countess, though. Still, it seems that if she doesn’t openly declare her status, she can just barely pass as the daughter of a high-ranking noble.

In reality, the governor of an entire star system was usually treated on par with a baron even if that person was a noble’s daughter without official titles. This meant that it was usually not permissible for such a person to directly pick out items in a store with friends. Generally, they would summon merchants to their mansion to do the shopping, at least in the imperial capital.

What about me, an honorary viscount? Apparently, I could do the same if I wanted to, but honorary titles had a somewhat ambiguous status. They were not inheritable and didn’t count as true nobility. However, when it came to the hierarchy among nobles, the situation got a bit more complex. Mei explained it to me in detail, but it went in one ear and out the other. I don’t remember much. Haha.

After finishing our shopping, we returned to the ship.

「I can’t allow it, milady.」

「It’s fine. There’s no place safer than here.」

「The master has given strict orders, so I can’t let this pass. Milady, let’s return to the estate.」

「I refuse.」

We were having tea on the ship, and just as we were about to think about dinner, the dispute broke out.

「I’ll stay on the Black Lotus tonight. Edeltrud, you can return to the estate.」

「So, you’re saying, milady, that you’ll stay here alone?」

「Yes, is there a problem with that?」

「There are nothing but problems with that!」

The future Countess Dareinwald and her knight bodyguard started squabbling. Well, for them it was probably a serious argument, but… It sure is peaceful.

「Are you just going to watch?」

With my uncarbonated pseudo-cola in my hand, I was watching the situation unfold when Elma spoke to me. Hmm, honestly, I don’t care either way.

「Should I intervene?」

「That’s up to you, Hiro…」

Elma glanced towards Mimi, who was watching Chris and her bodyguard Edeltrud argue with a worried expression. Sigh, I guess I have no choice.

「Okay, that’s enough. Let’s stop arguing here. There’s a girl about to cry.」

「Ah! My apologies Hiro-sama.」

Chris shrank back when I spoke to her.

「Hey, I’m not mad, so you don’t have to shrink back so much. Edeltrud, you are concerned about me sleeping under the same roof as Chris, right? Ah, you don’t need to respond; it’s clear enough. Chris, you’re not trying to use this as an opportunity to take things to the next level between us, are you? You just want to spend the night with Mimi and the others after a long time, right?」

「Y-yes, that’s right… I think?」

Her response was a bit uncertain, but I got the confirmation I needed. That’ll do.

「Alright, then here’s what we’ll do. I’ll spend the night elsewhere tonight. If you’re really worried about Chris, Edeltrud, you can stay on the Black Lotus as well. That should resolve everything, right?」

「N-no, no, no! That doesn’t resolve anything! You understand what it means for a woman to spend the night on a man’s ship, don’t you?」

「It is the first time for you, Edeltrud so it might affect your reputation, but for Chris, this isn’t anything new, is it? She’s already spent a lot of time on my ship before and we even stayed several days on a resort planet. Besides, if we’re going to be officially engaged or married in the future, rumors of us having that sort of relationship could actually be beneficial, don’t you think? As for the real thing, I don’t plan to do it until I get direct approval from Lord Dareinwald himself.」

「Well, that’s… maybe true?」

Edeltrud tilted her head. This is just my opinion, though. I don’t know what you think, and I lack the general knowledge of noble etiquette to judge properly.

「Anyway, if your concern, Edeltrud, is me, then everything should be settled with this. The rest is up to you. I’ll spend the night out with Mei.」

「…You’re going with Mei?」

「Is that a problem? She stayed behind two days in a row to look after the ship and Neve, so I want to show her some appreciation.」

Though Mei doesn’t eat, drink, or really have any material desires, so there’s not much I can do for her. If anything, letting her take care of me is probably the best reward I can give her.

「…If that’s the case, then there’s no helping it.」

Elma agreed, though she seemed a bit disappointed. Look, even I can understand that if I choose anyone other than Mei in this situation, it would cause friction. So, don’t look so disappointed, please.

Also, Mimi and Chris, stop making those faces of regret like your plans have been foiled. Especially you, Mimi. It seems like Mimi has been trying to push Chris and me together rather forcefully. In that sense, I’m already checkmated, so she should just let things take their course without rushing. That’s what I think, anyway.

☆★☆

「Master, thank you for choosing me to accompany you this time.」

「Well, it’s not something you need to thank me for…」

About two hours later, after preparing for the overnight stay, Mei and I left the Black Lotus. We took a rather luxurious air taxi to a fairly upscale hotel. Now, having checked in and completed the room inspection, Mei was taking care of me while expressing how thankful she was. It might sound a little racy, but she was only serving me some high-quality tea from the in-room tea set and expressing her gratitude.

「You seem tired.」

「Yeah… It’s a bit of a self-inflicted situation. No one’s really at fault, though.」

If anyone’s to blame, it’s that fucking Emperor who sent me to the Creon system, or the Earl Ixamal House who decided to betray the Empire and planned a rebellion in the first place. But it’s not easy to complain to the former, and the latter is more or less extinct, so there’s no one to blame there. I personally took care of their heir, after all. Compared to that, being forced to form unavoidable ties with the Imperial nobility and getting dragged into their affairs is a small price to pay.

「Are you unhappy with your current situation, Master?」

「No, it’s not that. I’m just a bit tired. I always knew I’d have to settle my relationship with Serena and Chris at some point… I just didn’t expect it to end up like this. Or maybe I did? Either way, once I got involved with Serena, I knew it was going to end up like this.」

As Viscount Willrose said, this is probably fate. There’s no point in moping around. Whatever will be, will be.

「Let’s set that aside for now. Next, I need to attend some award ceremony or something in the capital, and after that, back to the free mercenary life… or maybe not. I’ll probably need to visit either Marquis Holz House’s territory or Earl Dareinwald House’s territory.」

「That may be the case, but doing as you please is the best course of action. To be blunt, you don’t need to be bound by the nobility’s customs and follow their rules.」

「Isn’t that unrealistic?」

「No, it’s not. In fact, it might be better not to conform to their convenience. If you yield, they will exploit it. Once they figure out your boundaries, they will push them, without fail.」

「I see.」

It’s a likely scenario. They might try to use Serena as a pawn to manipulate me or exploit my crew’s family ties, like trying to leverage the Viscount Willrose House, or Sheila, the mother of the mechanic sisters, under the pretense of helping them. It’s possible they could come up with some excuse to use me for their own ends.

I don’t think Earl Dareinwald is the type to do something like that, but Marquis Laurenz Holz, Serena’s father, is an unknown variable. He seems quite adept at scheming.

「Maybe it’s time to venture a bit further afield.」

「Further afield, you say?」

「Perhaps it’s worth considering leaving the Empire for a while. We could head to somewhere like the Holy Vuelzarus Empire.」

「…I see. That is an unexpected option.」

I saw the rare sight of Mei with her eyes open in surprise. It’s unusual to see her express so much emotion.

「If I managed to surprise you, Mei, then maybe I’m getting better at this. But it’s just one idea. Another option is to visit a star system with a ship manufacturer to procure a new mothership. I would like to get something more habitable than the Black Lotus, with a hangar large enough to accommodate medium-sized ships.」

「That sounds like a costly venture.」

「Yes, and there’s always the chance a certain maidroid will insist on adding all sorts of armaments, driving up the cost.」

「I apologize for the trouble I caused then.」

「It turned out to be the right decision in the end. So, feel free to voice your thoughts again. Other than that, let’s see…」

Talking about future plans and possibilities with Mei is pretty fun. She’s a great listener and takes even my most random thoughts seriously.

I spent the night alone with Mei, chatting leisurely, and having her massage my tired body, it was thoroughly relaxing. I can’t help but wonder what kind of conversations the others are having back on the ship. On second thought, maybe it’s better not to know. Yep, I better forget about it.