The Adventurers' Guild Master and the Formidable Ladies

Translated by: ME

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*****

I was exhausted…
Socializing was going to be an uphill battle.

Setting aside the matter of Victor—who made less sense the more I thought about him and made my head ache—the next to offer greetings was the Marquis Gilmore family.

Gerald had been watching the exchange with Victor from behind with a similarly complicated expression, but when his turn came, he offered a composed bow. Slightly behind him, Wisteria and Brian bowed as well.

「Father, Claude. It has been a long while.」

「Indeed. You all look well.」 Servas said with a nod.

「It has been some time, Brother.」 Claude added.

From Claude’s slightly softened tone, it was evident that—as the rumors suggested—he truly admired his older brother, Gerald. Magnolia offered a small smile at the sight of her uncle acting with a rare, youthful endearment.

Gerald’s eyes widened slightly at his daughter's expression. Seeing her for the first time in two years, now a bit grown, he let his own expression soften ever so slightly.

「…Magnolia, happy sixth birthday.」

After a brief pause, Gerald offered his congratulations. It was likely the first time. At least, within Magnolia’s memories, she had no recollection of him ever celebrating her.

(Well, until my Japanese memories manifested, I had an impossibly poor memory, so perhaps he did celebrate me once... but my doll-like lack of reaction must have fueled their indifference. We just kept spiraling downward in a negative loop.)

As Gerald spoke, Magnolia could see Wisteria and Brian glaring at her from behind with sharp, resentful eyes.

(I see they’re still holding a grudge over what happened two years ago... I suppose he had to bring Wisteria-san and Brother Brian along since he's the only one who might listen to reason. Then again, I guess they couldn't exactly skip this.)

If they didn't want to be here, they shouldn't have come. Magnolia grumbled inwardly with a sigh, but she kept a perfect, artificial smile plastered on her face as she spoke.

「Thank you very much for traveling such a long distance to be here. Please, make yourselves at home and enjoy the festivities.」

Normally, a long-awaited reunion would lead to a lively conversation, but Magnolia cut the talk short to ensure no trouble broke out.

Surprised by her blunt handling of the situation, they each looked as if they had something to say, but Gerald gave a small nod, ushered Wisteria and Brian along, and quietly withdrew.

Servas and Claude remained silent, though they clearly had their own thoughts. It seemed they had decided to respect Magnolia’s somewhat adult perspective and refrain from interfering in family matters. They had surely noticed the glares the mother and brother had directed at her.

(I'm grateful they didn't try to play mediator or do anything awkward.)

After those two primary houses, the greetings proceeded in the order people had lined up.

It seemed the Marchioness of Perronsch of the Ascald Kingdom had decided to yield her turn to later, perhaps intending to observe or wanting to greet Magnolia alongside her friend, Baroness Orsay. Countess Daphne also seemed to defer to the Marchioness of her own country, choosing to wait.

***

And so, the nobles of Azenda who now came forward were staring intently at Magnolia. Setting aside her appearance, they were likely checking to see if there was anything "wrong" with her behavior.

(They are really staring.)

(Is it not considered rude to be this blatant?) Magnolia wondered behind her smile.

When Servas finally lost his patience and directed a sharp look at the guests, they hurriedly stammered out their congratulations. Then, each began attempting to propose joint business ventures or recommending their own daughters as potential brides for Claude.

And then came the matchmaking for their sons—who weren't even present—suggesting engagements to Magnolia, sometimes even nominating themselves (!!).

(I get it for Brother Claude, but I'm only six...) Magnolia thought as she received the "celebratory" remarks that felt like an afterthought.

(Well, there are nobles who have fiancés from a young age. I've only ever seen it in stories, though. It has nothing to do with me.) She tried to convince herself, though it felt increasingly relevant.

(Truly, I'm glad they let me avoid socializing despite the weird rumors. But what happens now that my face is known? Will I start getting tea party invitations? ...Ugh, what a pain.)

Magnolia felt a wave of gloom and stifled a sigh.

***

「Good day, Victor.」

「Ah. You've arrived, ladies.」

In the refreshment corner, Victor looked up from enjoying tarts piled with colorful fruit and canapés topped with salmon, cream cheese, and caviar.

「...You call us 'ladies,' but I'm actually younger than you. And I've never seen anyone pile their plate with snacks like that before.」 Iris said, her shoulders shaking with amusement as she pointed at Victor's mountain of food.

Colette sighed and looked up at Victor.

「We're only a year apart. Magnolia-chan’s cooking is delicious, you know. Even if the ingredients are a bit strange.」

「...Did she really lead this entire series of projects?」 Colette asked directly.

「Yup. The Margrave’s speech didn't contain a single word of exaggeration or bluffing.」

Victor matched her bluntness.

「It’s hard to believe...」 Colette muttered with a troubled look. Victor tilted his head.

「She's supposed to be involved with the Campbell Trading Company in the capital, right? You haven't heard anything?」

「I only heard the outlines. I simply couldn't believe it.」

「...It’s true what they say about your head getting stiff as you get older.」

As Victor shook his head with a sigh, Colette opened her mouth to snap back, only to have a tuna mayo and herb canapé shoved into it.

Iris watched the two of them with a smile, the scene reminiscent of their carefree exchanges back at the Academy... even if Victor’s appearance had changed significantly.

「...Oh, this is actually delicious.」

Colette, who had been scowling at being force-fed, let out a sincere reaction to the flavor, which was mellower than she had imagined.

「Right? It's called 'tuna mayo.' It's a blend of 'fish boiled in oil' and a sauce called 'mayonnaise.' It’s a devilish food you can eat forever. It's dangerous. Infinite! ...This one has minced onions mixed in, too. Delish! This 'tuna,' the 'sauerkraut' and 'pickled paprika' that help prevent Sailing Sickness... plus the standard flower confections and the 'patchwork' items being launched today—the parting gift is a set of all those with full instruction manuals. How extravagant!」

「...A collection of items as an introduction for Lady Magnolia, then?」

「Exactly ♪」 Victor replied to Iris's calm summary with a grin.

「...If the 'Fairy Girl' is the executioner, is the 'Genius Boy' the mastermind?」

「No. I think it’s Magnolia-chan herself. She’s just the kind of kid who can actually do those things.」

Remembering the usual state of the Margrave’s household, Victor chuckled.

「She gets scolded when she goes too far... but basically, it’s Claude-kun who’s being dragged along for the ride.」

「...Even that iron-masked man can be dragged around, huh?」 Colette murmured, impressed.

「Until just a little while ago, she still had a lisp. She used to call Claude-kun 'Big Bwother.' The other day, she was all mopey because she didn't want to do the debut on a meeting day. Even though Claude-kun was expressionless, he kept patting her head, and finally, he scooped her up on his shoulder and left, telling her he’d buy her a favorite snack from a street stall to cheer her up. So, he's actually being a decent 'Big Brother'.」

「A street stall...」

The idea of Claude doting on someone was hard to fathom... but hearing about snacks that were entirely unbefitting of a Marquis's daughter, Colette and Iris wore complicated expressions. Victor laughed and nodded at them.

「Normally that's the reaction. But she isn't stuck-up at all. She’ll stand right there in the street and munch on grilled skewers or rolls without a care.」

Victor gave a wry smile, remembering seeing Magnolia through a window after a meeting, choosing what she wanted with great deliberation and chewing with her cheeks puffed out.

「...Why would he want to hide her so badly?」

If the reforms in Azenda were indeed brought about by Magnolia... why would her father not want to marry such an exceptionally brilliant daughter into the Royal Family, even at the cost of labeling her flawed? She could have been a breath of fresh air for the stagnant royalty.

「Why don't you ask the man himself?」

「...I don't expect that cynical man to give a straight answer.」

Victor sighed. 「I don't know the reason, but he clearly wanted to hide her.」

For Gerald, who seemed to understand everything in an instant, he likely judged that marrying Magnolia into the Royal Family would be "unwise".

「...Well, I'm just a failure of a second son, but I should at least be a bit of a breakwater for her, right?」

As Victor muttered this, Colette let out an 「Ah!」 and stood with one hand on her hip, thrusting a copy of the Noble Registry forward.

「Speaking of which, look at THIS! This is a total scam!」

In the registry, a slender, neat-looking boy in his early teens was smiling softly. The name column read: *Victor Casimir Bristol*.

「Ah~ that’s my portrait from my peak.」

「...Why is yours the only one where time has stopped at Academy entrance?」 Iris asked with a wry smile.

「It's totally the Prime Minister’s doing. My current look probably doesn't fit the family image, right?」 Victor replied, noting he had even filed a request to have it removed.

「True,」 Colette and Iris agreed, looking at his swinging "pineapple" hair and gorilla-like muscular build.

「...When will your disinheritance be revoked, I wonder?」

「Nah, I’m fine with it staying as is. I'm the one who ran away from home ages ago. I wish they'd stop treating me like the 'second son' only when they have chores for me after disinheriting me on their own.」

「How unpleasant.」

「Colette, what is 'unpleasant'? The Prime Minister? Victor? Both?」

***

Gerald watched the three of them chatting and making a scene (?) in the refreshment corner with a sigh.

(They never change...)

*Except for their looks*, he added in his head.

He didn't know the exact circumstances, but during their Academy days, the second son of the premier Ducal house had taken a liking to a poor Baron’s daughter four years his senior and a Marquis’s daughter a year his junior. Aside from public settings, they had maintained a carefree relationship regardless of rank or age.

Later, the poor Baron’s daughter had started her own business to restore her house and became a Baroness in her own right. The Marquis’s daughter had taken up the sword, become a Marchioness, and then the Marquis of the East Wolf.

As for the second son of the Ducal house, he had suddenly declared he would become an adventurer one day and stormed out, submitting his own papers to be removed from the family registry. He became an adventurer just as he said and was now serving as both the Adventurer Guildmaster and Magic Guildmaster in this new territory.

The Prime Minister had suppressed the removal papers... so he was technically still a noble, though he lived his life as a "commoner." Apparently, he returned to being a noble from time to time like this.

(What a strange bunch.)

Gerald let out another sigh.

*****

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