The production of the Miasma Sensor MD and the Linking Barrier MD was doing well, and unlike the golems, we were even able to make an amount to provide samples to other countries in a short amount of time.
Margrave Volton heard that the magic device capable of sensing miasma was completed. He commissioned for the same number that was made for the activated security golems that would immediately be installed in towns and villages, and we’ve finished making and delivering of the products.
Although the problem hasn’t been solved, our job is over for now and I decided to ask Sophia something that has been on my mind for a while now.
「Hey Sophia, since you’re no longer a slave, haven’t you ever thought of returning to your country once?」
When everyone was relaxing and sitting on the living room sofa, I daringly tried asking Sophia.
Thinking for a bit, Sophia began talking about the reason why she lived in the Moulin Slavery Company for 50 years.
「…………Takumi-sama, you have spoken of how I am of a household of Chevalier[1], and that I am a knight that served in the war of aggression against Triaria Kingdom, did you not?」
「Yeah, at that time, I believed that it was normal for there to be talks of freeing the prisoners through a prisoner exchange and postwar preparations. Furthermore, Sophia, you hold a Chevalier’s peerage, so there’s no way your house would have forsaken you, is what I thought, so I felt something was out of place.」
「……I think Takumi-sama’s cognition is correct.」
Sophia’s story from that point was unexpected. Sophia being sold to the Moulin Slavery Company was said to have partly been the intention of her home. And that it wasn’t out of ill intention.
「In those days, there had been a request from a viscount household to pursue me.」
「Huh? Your household is of Chevalier peerage too, right? Aren’t your court ranks too far apart if it’s a viscount? Is that a normal thing in Yggurle Kingdom?」
In marriages between fellow nobles of Valkyra Kingdom and Lomaria Kingdom, it could be called common practice to be within two court ranks of each other[2]. In recent years, there seems to be a trend of not regarding the partner’s court rank in Valkyra Kingdom and Lomaria Kingdom, but I have heard that Yggurle Kingdom and Triaria Kingdom are strict in that regard.
「Yes. That is why the viscount household pursued me as a mistress.」
「Wait wait, isn’t that rude? Even though you’re of Chevalier peerage, to not even be a concubine but a mistress is…………」
「Yes, normally it would be an impossibly discourteous discussion even for Yggurle Kingdom. Furthermore, the other party’s age is over 650 years old, and his legal wife and concubines sum up to 15 people, as well as already having 5 mistresses.」
Hearing that, our jaws dropped.
I had the image of elves being herbivores, but isn’t that an old man’s habit of being an energetic carnivore? Sure, Sophia isn’t the lively type of elf, but she’s a boing boing elf, so are the elves of this world like that?
「No, that viscount is an abnormal among the elves.」
Sophia said so, probably having guessed what I was thinking. Since the average elf was an herbivore like I had imagined, the country probably has a policy to curb the depopulation, and the population appears to have finally stabilized.
When Sophia became a prisoner of war, her father seems to have moved quickly, making a request to the previous president of the Moulin Slavery Company to shelter Sophia as a slave. And in 50-100 years, the Viscount will be closer to the end of his lifespan, he probably wouldn’t pursue her as a mistress.
In the first place, the cause of Sophia’s seriously injury and becoming a prisoner of war was of a sealing curse inflicted by a subject employed by the Viscount who is supposed to be an ally. After Sophia becomes a prisoner of war, the viscount had planned for his son to sell her to a slavery company, and then buy her himself afterwards. That was where Sophia’s father and the former president of the Moulin Slavery Company took the initiative, seemingly preempting the slavery company that the viscount’s son had a deal with from buying Sophia. Since this is what she heard from Moulin-san, it is probably the truth.
「You couldn’t simply refuse that Viscount?」
「Yes, that viscount is a noblesse de robe, but since he is a shrewd man with both power and economic clout, he could easily crush a household like mine.」
Listening up to that point, I suddenly wondered.
「Huh? Then how did I buy you? You could have refused, and surely you would have been freed by the contract if you waited another 50 years, wouldn’t you?」
At that time, Sophia was certainly disabled and she couldn’t use attribute magic and spirit magic because of the curse, but she is a peerless beauty even without those. There were probably rich men who would pay someone a lot of money to cure her disability. However, Sophia wouldn’t be sold to anyone other than the person she recognizes. as per the contract with the former company president.
That’s right, she’s so beautiful and has an outstanding figure that it doesn’t matter if she’s disabled or anything. There likely were rich men who would be fine paying any price for her.
「Yes, that was because when I took one look at Takumi-sama, I intuitively thought “this is the person”. And that intuition was not incorrect.」
Sophia gazed at me with a passionate look. Since there was no way I wouldn’t know its meaning, I knew my face grew hot.
「I, I see, thanks. So Sophia, you want to go back to your motherland and see your family, don’t you?」
「Yes, I have feelings of wanting to see my Father, Mother, and younger brother once.」
Sophia’s father seems to have understood that Sophia’s body had been injured to the point of being disabled and had even been afflicted with a curse. Only, from the viscount’s standpoint, Sophia had been considered killed in action. That being the case, even the viscount would have given up. And Sophia said she wanted to inform her parents, who probably would have been having hardships saving money for 50-100 years to buy her back from the Moulin Slavery Company, that she is now well.
「I have to confirm just in case, but, Sophia, will you stay by my side as my guard from here on too?」
「Naturally. Be it as your guard, or as your companion at night, I will not leave your side, Takumi-sama.」
If you tell me that with a serious expression, I’ll get embarrassed.
In the end, we all decided to go to Yggurle Kingdom. I want Sophia to meet her family, and I’m also interested in the elven country.
The elves in Mildgard live insularly in a location surrounded by trees, just like I had imagined. The name of Yggurle Kingdom’s royal capital is Yggdrasil. It is said to be a city built beside the World Tree which reaches the heavens as its name reputes it to be. Given that that World Tree can be seen from the town of Volton, its enormity is understood as it towers over its surroundings and pierces the clouds.
「Indeed, it would be alright if I return home now. Both Takumi-sama and I are A rank adventurers, not even nobles would come forth high-handedly.」
According to Sophia, although Yggurle Kingdom is not bound by an alliance with Valkyra Kingdom, Lomaria Kingdom, and Samandour Kingdom, they have established a trade and anti-war agreement. However, the Elven race have professed that they are the most excellent of races. That was bound to conflict with Triaria Kingdom.
「Although it is not similar to the doctrine of human supremacy where other races are completely unacceptable, there are those that have adopted the attitude of looking down on the other races.」
「Well, if they don’t cause harm to others just because they are of a different races, then it’s fine.」
「I will protect Takumi-sama with this body of mine.」
「Yup, I’m counting on you.」
After that, we had fun discussing things like “What preparations do we need to make?” “What will we do for the souvenirs for Sophia’s family?”.
***
Footnotes:
1. I had previously translated Sophia’s rank as “Knight” but considering how often the word “knight” is used, I decided to change the court rank Knight to Chevalier.
2. Knight is 3 ranks below Viscount Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imperial,_royal_and_noble_ranks