43: The whole thing with a maid showing up to wake you up every morning—pretty great, huh?

"Good morning, Master."

"Mmm… good morning."

I groan awake to Ryuuko’s voice—the artificial maid and familiar I’ve got tucked away in my pocket.

A trolley rolls smoothly into view. A bucket filled with cold water is offered.

I splash my face. Only then do my eyes finally open.

"Here you go."

"Mmm."

I wipe my face with the smooth towel she hands me. Ryuuko quietly takes it back.

"Shall breakfast be served in the living room or the bedroom?"

"In the living room, please."

"Understood. Your change of clothes has been laid out. Excuse me."

She bows, then vanishes from the room without a sound.

At first, she tried to help me get dressed. But I made her stop. Too embarrassing.

Once I asked, she stopped pushing and just started laying out my clothes each day—clean, ready to wear, in the order I’d need them.

Yeah. Way easier.

I’d just stepped into the living room when toast and scrambled eggs were already waiting.

Drinking my stamina potion tea, the drowsiness vanished clean away.

"Today’s schedule: a meeting with Kyle-sama this morning. Nothing scheduled for the afternoon."

"Yeah, the progress report on the fields. He wanted me to go over it with him."

We’d been turning the land where we’d slain the dragon into a large-scale farm. Thanks to the initial settlers and the draft horses, we’d shaved off most of the timeline. Already, it was a pretty big wheat field, even if it was still experimental.

"Hope it’s going well..."

A section of the field was already using the alchemy fertilizer I made.

One of the things that helped spread Professor Javir’s name was alchemical pesticide. It makes crops less prone to disease and boosts yield per acre.

The problem is, it’s usually expensive to make—only used on certain rare herbs.

I pored through the professor’s texts, pulled knowledge from the whispering sigil, and developed an alchemical fertilizer that’s both mass-producible and relatively cheap. You could make it in bulk with a proper alchemical furnace, but I only gave them the kind a regular alchemist with a sigil could craft. It was just a test, so I didn’t give them much.

“Still tastes absolutely insane, though.”

“Thank you. Good eggs make all the difference.”

“Huh. Looks like your chicken-raising’s going well, too.”

Didn’t touch raising chickens myself, but word is a pretty skilled chicken farmer’s moved in. Seems to be running a pretty big operation. People’re happy—eggs are both nutritious and keep well, and now they’re easy to get.

“Thanks for the meal. Well then, let’s go. …Hey, what’d Ryuuko been doing while I was out?”

“Today’s cleaning schedule. Otherwise, just regular household chores.”

“Huh. Always good to have. Well then, I’m off.”

“Yes. Be safe.”

At that moment, a slight unease flickered—but I couldn’t place why—so I mounted the Black Dragon and headed for Kyle’s estate.

◆

“Huh?”

At Kyle’s estate, horse preparations were underway.

Looking closer, alongside Kyle’s beloved horse, White Fang, I saw a two-legged bird and a two-legged lizard.

Right, Persia and Alphard had said they’d bought those fancy two-legged birds and two-legged lizards with the dragon-slaying reward money.

Must’ve just arrived, delivered by Akindo.

And a pony too.

“Ah, Craft-sama.”

“Huh. Didn’t you have a meeting today?”

“Yes. That was the plan, but after reading the report, I decided it was better to go to the site myself.”

“That’s fine. But can you ride a horse at all now?”

“I’ve been practicing, you know.”

“Kyle’s a hard worker. Still shaky at a full gallop, but a trot’s no problem.”

“Then I’m okay.”

The farm’s not that far.

White Fang is a proper warhorse—Kyle’s prized mount since the beginning.

Still, I couldn’t ride a horse due to my condition, so I was loaned out for farm work like the other draft horses. Turns out, though, it ended up growing up even better than my Black Dragon.

“Both of you made it, huh.”

“Yeah. A little while back. I’ve been giving it Alphard’s potions. Damn thing’s impressive.”

Alphard patted his fine two-legged lizard with a thump.

Hardy, tough, built for rough terrain—this is what makes these two-legged lizards special. Price is steep, though. Especially Alphard’s beloved mount—crimson brown, the toughest of the lot.

“Nice mount… no, nice lizard.”

“Yeah. Red Flame. Treat it well.”

“Good name.”

Sharp features, like a flame burning bright. Found myself a real gem. Guess you could say Akindō knows his stuff.

“Persia turned her two-legged bird into a mount, huh.”

"Yeah. Heard Alphard bought a lizard. So I figured I should prioritize mobility."

"Ah, right. Two-legged birds are fast and nimble. Already picked a name?"

"Of course. Come here! Tebasaki!"

"...Huh?"

Darting over, a yellow-feathered two-legged bird.

Wait, what'd you just say?

"Good good. Such a spoiled little thing, Tebasaki. Haha!"

Oh. So I didn't mishear...

Didn’t think his naming sense was on par with Jitarou...

I stop myself from teasing Persia, and instead call out to Jitarou, who’s somehow already preparing something.

"Kyle’s going, I get Alphard and Persia and Leifan tagging along—but why’s Jitarou here too?"

"Aw, come on. Got nothing better to do today."

"Thought your pockets were warm from that last hunt... but whatever."

Jitarou’s not exactly useless in a fight, that’s for sure.

Incidentally, the thing Jitarou’s riding is the Pony Super Jet. I thought he had no sense of naming things, but I never expected to meet someone else with the same level of terrible taste. The pony was bought with the reward from slaying a dragon.

Unlike Jitarou, it’s ridiculously cute. So I went ahead and set up the usual routine—mixed in a stamina potion as feed. Doesn’t look any different, but hey, it’s cute. That’s all that matters.

No point going over every little detail. Let’s just get moving.

I was waiting for everyone to get ready when Maina shuffled over, arms raised.

“Hm?”

“Huh? You want me to ride you?”

“Hm.”

“Kyle?”

“I think it’s fine to bring him along with this crew, but we’ll be imposing on Craft-sama, won’t we?”

That’s slick. Not even trying to hide it, but still—clever.

"No, no problem. Maina, you sure you’re okay riding with me?"

"Mm."

Seems fine, so I help her up onto the horse right away.

Black Dragon’s got enough room for a hundred Mainas, maybe.

She’s perky, sitting in front of me—like she likes animals.

Leifan doesn’t own a horse of his own, so he’s borrowed one from town.

Looks like we’re all set. I move in close and speak.

"So, what’s the problem?"

"Tell you on the way. Seems like the farm’s in trouble."

"What?"

The farm’s the future granary.

Leifan’s serious face makes my gut twist.

◆【Extra】◆

"Right then…"

After confirming the master had left, Ryuuko quietly glanced up at the roof.

"Got him."

"Hey, we went to all this trouble—shouldn’t we’ve sold him for a fortune? You’re a damn alchemist, right?"

"Thought about it. But he’s got that old adventurer vibe."

"Word on the street said he was useless, though?"

"Old intel. Not confirmed, but he’s supposedly fought dragons."

"Probably just a strategist or observer, right?"

"Could be. But pushing it’s a no-go. Besides..."

"Yeah. If we’d gotten our hands on that legendary potion..."

"Exactly—"

At that moment, shadows fell over both of them. Even under a cloudless sky.

"Guests. What brings you to our household?"

"—!!"

The two men on the roof, the thieves, snapped around like springs. There stood a stunning beauty in a maid’s uniform.

Her eyes were emerald green—beautiful, yes—but not human.

Cat-like pupils, long and narrow, looked down on the thief with cold indifference.

The mysterious maid stood atop the unstable roof as if balanced perfectly on a single axis, her feet planted on the very tip of the thin ridge.

And without a flicker of emotion, she spoke.

“You didn’t have an appointment, did you?”

“Gh—!”

One thief lunged forward with blinding speed, hurling a dagger. The other lunged with a curved blade.

The crisscrossed blade was a deadly weapon against flesh and bone.

The thieves were certain of victory. No matter which attack they dodged, the other would hit. The one who threw the dagger was already drawing his second blade, ready to follow up.

“Ah. So you’re the kind who sneaks in before dawn, are you?”

“W—what?!”

It wasn’t surprising the two—thieves and assassins both—cried out in shock with a noise far too loud for their craft.

The maid had stopped the dagger and the crissnife between her fingers.

I wouldn’t have lost my cool if I’d seen it coming.

And the thief, pressing their full weight forward into the Chrisnife, didn’t so much as flinch. As if the blade alone were frozen in midair.

Damn it!

The thief, giving up on the useless knife, went for a kick—only for the maid to flick her hand, sending the kick spinning through the air ten times over, slamming the thief headfirst into the roof.

Of course, consciousness was cut clean away in one strike.

“!”

The thief, realizing he couldn’t win, didn’t hesitate—he bolted.

No, I was about to go in.

As expected, there she was—already standing quietly behind me, her expression cold, not even a ripple in her dress.

The thief couldn’t help but glance back again. Only his unconscious partner was there.

"Whoa!"

What the hell was the thief trying to say? The words dissolved into the ground beneath Ryuuko’s palm, gone.

“I didn’t think you’d manage to break into the mansion Lord Leifan and my master built, but trespassing with dirty shoes? That’s not forgiven.”

Later, the two ragged thieves were handed over to the Adventurer’s Guild.

The Guild now handles public order, after all.

The new Guildmaster questioned them, offering a sliver of pity, digging into their connections. The maid must’ve been responsible for how easily they talked.

As usual, a report would be submitted to Leifan and Kyle later.

“Cleaning’s done.”

A peaceful, ordinary day—something Craft didn’t know.

Leifan: “Can’t judge others, Craft. Not you.”

・Recent Report・

Sorry, but there’s been an issue with my real-life living situation, and my writing pace has dropped sharply.

I’m hoping to sort it out soon, but updates will probably be irregular for a bit.

Thanks for your understanding, m(_ _)m