“So, then, do you want to live here, Kagali?” (King)
“Sure, if Yuna is willing.” (Kagali)
“I’m fine with it.” (Yuna)
Someone has to live in the mansion.
Besides, Kagali-san knew about the bear gate, so there’s nothing wrong with that. I just have a gut feeling that there will be barrels of sake rolling around the room the next time I come back here.
“Then I’ll let Suzuran know that you will stay here.” (King)
I think it would be okay if someone would come to take care of Kagali-san.
But I have to watch out for Suzuran-san when she comes.
“Also, I’ll present this to you, Yuna.” (King)
King Suou offered me a card, which I gladly accepted. My name was written on the front of the card, and something like a family crest was drawn.
“What’s this?” (Yuna)
“It’s like a guild card. With it, any card bearer can freely enter the city without being questioned, no matter what kind of outfit they’re wearing.” (King)
King Suou was looking at a different place, not at my face.
“Why are you saying that while looking at my outfit?” (Yuna)
“Yuna, here.” (Shinobu)
Shinobu immediately held a hand mirror in front of me.
“Why are you holding a mirror in front of me?” (Yuna)
I pushed back the hand mirror that Shinobu held out to me. I don’t need to look in the mirror to know that I am dressed as a bear.
“I have received a report from Shinobu. I hope you will not feel bad about coming to this country in the future. This card is the royal family’s endorsement of your identity, so it would serve you well if anything should happen in this country.” (King)
Indeed, every time I enter a town, I get strange looks and questions about my outfit. A stuffed bear stands out wherever I go.
“By the way, I have one myself.” (Shinobu)
With that said, Shinobu showed me her card.
Was it necessary because she’s a ninja?
“I’ve given it to Shinobu because I sometimes ask her to go to different places.” (King)
She truly is a ninja.
“Thank you. I’ll gladly take it.” (Yuna)
State authority is powerful, so it’s better than nothing.
However, I’ll have to be careful not to use it too much, because it could get me in trouble.
“Well, then, lightly pour some magic onto the card, and it will register you.” (King)
I did as I was told and let the magic flow into the hand that was holding the card.
“Now then, that card belongs to Yuna. You can treat it like a guild card. Also, please give this card to that Ruimin girl.” (King)
King Suou presented another card. The name of Ruimin was written there.
“Can I ask you to prepare one for someone else?” (Yuna)
“Why?” (King)
“I might be bringing a girl you met the other day named Fina, so I thought I might need one for her, too.” (Yuna)
“If she’s with you, Yuna, it’ll be fine. While dozens of people would be a problem, a few can go through it together with you. Besides, she’s dressed normally, so there’s no need for her to be stopped. They won’t perform an inspection on her name unless it’s a rare occasion.” (King)
“What about Ruimin’s then?” (Yuna)
Then Ruimin wouldn’t even need the card. She couldn’t come in this place without me opening the bear gate anyway.
“I made a promise with Mumroot. Think of it as proof that that elf girl can always meet Sakura.” (King)
Oh right, Mumroot did mention that he wanted Ruimin to be able to see Sakura, didn’t he?
“Show them that card and they’ll let her see Sakura. With that card, she shouldn’t be turned away in front of Sakura’s house.” (King)
“Uncle!?” (Sakura)
Sakura looked at King Suou in surprise.
“Now you can see her when she comes.” (King)
Sakura’s house was a mansion with shrine maidens.
It’s not a typical house, so it’s not like you can suddenly ask to see Sakura. Given that, this card may be necessary.
“I’ve got some business to attend to, so I’ll be heading back. Honestly, I would have asked you to come to the castle and have dinner with me.” (King)
“Don’t worry about it. I’m sure you are busy, aren’t you?” (Kagali)
“I’m sorry.” (King)
King Suoh apologized and looked at Kagali-san.
“Kagali, I’ll leave the rest to you. I’ll have Suzuran come tomorrow, but what about food?” (King)
“Don’t worry, I’ll be fine if I don’t eat for a day or so. And I will go to the city if I have to.” (Kagali)
King Suou then looked at Sakura.
“Sakura, you want to come home with me?” (King)
“If possible, I would like to talk with Yuna-sama a little longer.” (Sakura)
“I see. Shinobu, take care of Sakura.” (King)
“I understand. I will responsibly send her home.” (Shinobu)
“Well then, if you come to the castle next time, I will show you around.” (King)
When King Suou said so, he went down the stairs alone, so we saw him off.
“But did I really deserve such a big mansion?” (Yuna)
“It doesn’t matter. In fact, you did that much. Take it. Even though you won’t use it all the time, I will make sure I will be using it thoroughly, so don’t worry.” (Kagali)
“Yes, I’m counting on you.” (Yuna)
“I think that’s the part where you refuse.” (Kagali)
“If you use it, I’ll be relieved. It’s not like you’re going to break things or anything, right?” (Yuna)
“I won’t do that, but I won’t clean it either.” (Kagali)
“I’ll leave that up to Shinobu, so it’s fine.” (Yuna)
“Why me? Well, I guess it’s fine once in a while.” (Shinobu)
“I’ll help you too then.”(Sakura)
Sakura said it with a smile.
“I’m going to do some exploring then. I’d like to install the bear gate somewhere.” (Yuna)
“Well then, I’ll show you around.” (Sakura)
Sakura then pulled my bear puppet and started walking.
The rooms on the third floor all have tatami mats on them, making them feel like a ryokan (Japanese-style inn). The rooms were spacious and looked like rooms you would see on a school trip in a comic book or anime. Perhaps it was the king’s room?
But it’s an empty room.
“There’s nothing in here.” (Kagali)
Kagali-san gave the same impression as I do.
The room feels empty. It was like moving into an empty house.
I thought there might be hanging scrolls or vases, but there was nothing to be seen.
“They have cleaned out everything you don’t need. This fusuma sliding door had the royal family crest on it, but they replaced it.” (Shinobu)
“Is that so?” (Yuna)
“This place is to be given to Yuna. So they’ve cleared out everything that pertains to the royal family.” (Shinobu)
So not only was there nothing here but to think that they even changed the sliding doors.
“But why do you know that Shinobu?” (Yuna)
“Fufu, I know everything, but the reason why I know it is a secret” (Shinobu)
She said it in a way that makes it sound like a waste of time.
She’s a ninja, so it’s natural for her to know everything. I am really glad I did contract magic with Shinobu as well. The ability of ninjas to gather information was terrific. I hear that they were doing espionage activities in enemy countries even in actual history.
“Shinobu knows because she came with me the other day.” (Sakura)
However, Sakura easily exposed her.
“Why did you reveal it? My mysterious atmosphere is ruined.” (Shinobu)
The truth was trivial.
But it helps to have no stuff in the room. When there were things that belonged to people who used to live there, it’ll be difficult to simply throw them away. And even more so when it belongs to someone you know.
If there’s a weird ornament, it will be difficult to handle it. Also, the futon used by Sakura would be okay, but I would like to refrain from using the futon used by the king.
“Is there something wrong?” (Sakura)
While I was thinking about this, Sakura tilted her head and asked me.
“I figured since there’s nothing in here, I had to have some things in place.” (Yuna)
Well, I won’t live here, so the bare minimum would be enough. Besides, everything I needed was in the bear box.
We headed toward the back of the room while looking around the room.
Around here maybe?
There was a sign in front of the entryway, with “Yu” written on it.
“A bath maybe?” (Yuna)
“Yes, it’s a hot spring.” (Sakura)
When I opened the door and entered, I found a changing room. The back of the changing room was a wall.
“Please wait for a while.” (Sakura)
Sakura trotted to the front wall.
“I’ll help you, too.” (Shinobu)
Both of them started doing something on the front wall. Then, what I thought was a wall turned out to be a sliding door. The sliding door opened to the left and right, revealing an open-air bath. There was a hot spring in the stone surroundings, and steam rose from the hot spring.
“A big bath as usual.” (Kagali)
“The scenery you see while bathing in the hot spring is beautiful.” (Sakura)
Indeed, it would be nice to take a hot spring bath while looking at the night sky. The view was beautiful even in the daytime. When I went near the hot springs, I could see a lake surrounded by forests.
“I’d love to go in there with a drink.” (Kagali)
“We don’t have liquor, but we do have hot springs.” (Yuna)
Hot spring water was coming out of a bamboo tube. Was it a free-flowing hot spring?
“I’m not ready. But maybe I’ll come in later.” (Kagali)
“Well then, after we look around the mansion, shall we all go in?” (Yuna)
I also want to enter.
“Is that okay?” (Yuna)
“Of course, you don’t mind if I do too, do you?” (Kagali)
“Sure.” (Yuna)
“In that case, I would like to invite Ruimin-san to join us.” (Sakura)
“Then we’ll have to call Fina, right?” (Shinobu)
We decided to go to the hot springs after checking the other places.
If I don’t place the bear gate, I can’t call either Ruimin or Fina. I can place it temporarily, but only after we have checked all of the rooms in the mansion.
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Author’s Note:
Onsen Getto.
※ The covers of the book volume 10 and the comicalized book volume 1 are now available. For more information, please visit the activity report and the author’s Twitter.
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