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I got time from Maya-san within her busy schedule, and we have prepared a place for conversation. 

“Now then, we will now begin today’s topic of discussion: how to fix the airheadedness of Rakura.” 

“Something as groundbreaking as that?!” (Maya)

“Maya-sama?!” (Rakura)

The members of today are formed by the members of the Ilias house including Maya-san. That said, we had Wolfie read books, so it is technically a discussion between 4 people. 

“Rakura is not a complete airhead. She has her strong points. I am thinking about analyzing Rakura with the usual.” 

“By usual, do you mean understanding the other party?” (Ilias)

“That’s right. I plan on closing my eyes to the tragedies Rakura does and just concentrate on her as a person as I search for the correct method of implementation. The reason why I asked for time from Maya-san was because I wanted a viewpoint from the Yugura Church.” 

“I see, got it.” (Maya)

“I personally am fine with just being maintained by Counselor-sama though.” (Rakura)

“Rakura, sit on your knees on top of the chair.” 

Now then, let’s hear the personal history of Rakura first. 

Rakura Salf is a 25 year old single woman. She was picked up from an orphanage managed by the Yugura Church in Mejis. 

She likes to interact with others to a decent degree, but when the relationship gets deeper, the other party begins to distance themselves from her. 

To be more precise, Rakura has been causing happenings since the time in the orphanage, and she would mostly drag the people around her in it. 

That said, it is not like she would be ignored or would get bullied, so she managed to hold a decent amount of personal relationships and grow well.

After leaving the orphanage, she became a cleric under the service of the Grand Church that’s the holy grounds of the Yugura Church. The reason why she aimed to become a cleric is because a cleric once told her that she had talent which ignited her interest.

But she wasn’t good with the minute jobs, and her ability for office work was despairing. She was avoided by her coworkers and she is always being scolded by her superiors, so she concentrated on real combat training as if escaping from all that. She had already learned most of the spells by that time. 

The first one to notice the ability of Rakura was Archbishop Ukka. He saw her training, noticed how well she did, and took her in as a disciple. That said, Archbishop Ukka is normally busy with creating connections with others, so there was barely any direct tutelage from him. 

‘Just do these basics’, ‘So you can do it now, huh. Then next is this one’, ‘I am busy, I don’t have the time to watch your training… Right, practice this’.

Rakura polished her skills with such random tutelage. And then, she achieved outstanding results in her first monster subjugation, and climbed all the way to a priestess. 

But she is completely hopeless in other things as usual, didn’t get involved in other Archbishop groups, and is currently working as a subordinate of Archbishop Ukka. 

“Archbishop Ukka excels in interpersonal connections, but he lacks in the other aspects. But he has raised them all to the bare minimum standards through effort. Him being able to stay as an Archbishop despite everything being on average human level is proof of his hard work.” (Maya)

“So the superior of Rakura is a specialized type just like her, huh. Moreover, he is not airheaded like Rakura.” 

“Right. But when he gets overconfident, he often messes up, which resembles her.” (Maya)

Getting overconfident easily despite being a hard worker is pretty peculiar. Is it corruption after learning the taste of success? Rakura hasn’t even tasted success yet she is like this though. 

“And so, did you manage to analyze Rakura, boy?” (Maya)

I look at Rakura. She collapsed on the ground because of her legs going numb from sitting on her knees. 

“Yeah, to a moderate degree. Putting it in a bad way, Rakura can’t deal with a lot of things; putting it in a good way, she is the type who can concentrate to the limit in one thing.” 

It is close to the cases of ADHD. When it goes to the level where it poses complications, it is a medical condition that could affect your communication skills, but Rakura is on the level of your average person. It is most likely something similar but not the same. 

If anything, I would say the shape of her talent is special. It is the result of her being able to capitalize on it in her life. 

“There’s several types of work even if we wrap it up as a whole as work. I have noticed that when Rakura is faced with a constant change in jobs, she can’t maintain her concentration.” 

When I left Rakura to do the clean up at the time she came to Ilias’s house, she screamed a number of times. This is because things happened in the middle of her work, but those screams had a certain rhythm to them.

Sweeping, wiping, dealing with the tools; whenever she would switch jobs, her concentration would cut off, and troubles would happen. But the respective processes were done properly. When I checked the room, it was cleaned up pretty thoroughly. 

Other cases would be when she is concentrating so much in her meals at Dog Bone, she wouldn’t be able to control herself with the alcohol.

“The way of teaching from Archbishop Ukka was effective too. He didn’t make her do several things at the same time. He would have her master one thing first before moving to the next. That’s why Rakura managed to obtain several spells in a short period of time and her technique in battle is high.” 

“Right, but with that logic, wouldn’t it be strange for her to excel in combat? In battle, you don’t only have to take several actions at the same time aside from doing simple tasks.” (Maya)

“That’s the part where we can see that Rakura is growing properly. Rakura continued doing her simple training and has learned how to do a variety of things as naturally as moving her limbs. In other words, she reached a point where she can concentrate in the single process called battle.” 

If she were bad in her training, Rakura would have caused a big tragedy in combat as well, recognizing the several techniques as individual combinations. But Rakura, who escaped from her catastrophic office work experience, concentrated on training only, and obtained each and every process perfectly. 

And then, Archbishop Ukka’s random single shots were a perfect fit for her too. As a result, a single process was dropped to a single motion, and it was now possible to concentrate in a battle by mixing those motions into a single process. 

“This is just an assumption, but if you were to make Rakura switch between attack and support in the middle of battle, she would immediately self-destruct. There were probably no such instructions in her campaigns. I think that’s why Rakura managed to concentrate solely in battle and obtained more results than others.” 

“I see. Then, if we give work to Rakura with that in mind…” (Maya)

“Yes, if you give her simple single processes, she should be able to operate more effectively than other people.” 

Maya-san crossed her arms and thought. She must have thought of something, so she brought out sewing tools. I look at the things in detail and there’s also embroidery tools. 

“If what you say is true, boy, it is okay to just have her concentrate on just one thing, right? Rakura, try this out for a while.” (Maya)

She said this and gave Rakura the embroidery set and a sketch. Uo, what’s with this complicated construction? 

“Ah, the Grand Church, right?! So I have to make this, right?” (Rakura)

Rakura immediately begins working. She dropped the tools to the ground from the moment she passed the string through the needle, but she was progressing in her work silently after beginning the work. 

No, not only that. She is fast…an abnormal speed. She was slow at first, but the string is now swimming through the cloth with a speed as if she was doing this with a sewing machine. Or more like, she is not even looking at the drawing anymore. A splendid embroidery exactly like the drawing was finished.

“Done!” (Rakura)

“…I see. That’s impressive.” (Maya)

“She has the downside of not being able to do normal jobs, but depending on how she is managed, I think she would be able to pull off the work of several people.” 

However, it doesn’t change the fact that Rakura is still airheaded. This is not in the sense of skills, but…

“With this, I think I will be able to think of work for Rakura.” (Maya)

“Really?! Ah, but if Counselor-sama could maintain me as it is… *Peek*.” (Rakura)

This girl has been corrupted mentally. Not only does she have decreased concentration, she is also short-circuited and prefers the easy route. 

Due to this, she would use charm magic because it is the easier choice despite her being aware she doesn’t like it, and in the search for the book, she barely gave her own opinion. This alone I can’t protect. Especially when in front of Wolfie. 

“Ilias, from today on, collect rent and payment for food expenses. I will pay for Wolfie’s share. Kick out whoever can’t pay.” 

“No way, Counselor-sama! You are not going to support me?! Even though we are friends!” (Rakura)

“Shut up. Even if we were married, I would have you pay rent and living expenses!” 

“No way! If we got married, at least the rent…!” (Rakura)

And so, Rakura is now getting work from the church again. But Maya-san refused to take Rakura in, thus, the airheaded cleric will be staying at the house of Ilias. 

My guess is that Maya-san drove her away because she felt how Rakura is mentally scum.

 

“I see. I did feel an unhealthy presence from Rakura, but it was that, huh.” (Marito)

We told Marito about the circumstances of Rakura as we took a break from the isekai learning. Marito must have faintly felt Rakura’s corrupted side as well. 

“I was curious about how the words you directed at her were somewhat harsh, you see. I thought at first that it was just because you were as close to her as Lady Ratzel, but I felt a bit of brashness from your treatment of her.” (Marito)

“Speaking of which…his treatment certainly resembled mine, but I did think it was somewhat different…” (Ilias)

“Is that so? I was not aware.” 

Now that I think about it, my informal way of speaking towards Rakura began from the point when I felt her useless self. 

I must have felt it instinctively. My sensor of people seems to still be working. 

“At any rate, this is a good place.” 

Marito said that it would be suffocating to just stay in a room the whole time, so we are currently having a walk in the garden inside the castle. Its size leaves nothing to be desired and it is maintained to a pristine degree. A place that really reminds me that I am in a western world. 

“Right? It is the garden I am proud of. You can tell the techniques of the artisans even with the eyes of a novice, right?” (Marito)

“Yeah, it resembles the large-scale garden that western—the west continents on Earth prefer. I have seen gardens at a world class level, but this one doesn’t lose to them.” 

“Right? Right? Ah, but with that way of putting it, does that mean you don’t see this type of garden in your country?” (Marito)

“Yeah, in Japan, gardens mostly have a quiet and simple aesthetic rather than being showy. It may feel too simple and lacking, but there’s a lot of depth. It makes you feel the beauty in simplicity.” 

“It is not like it is fine as long as it is extravagant. Is it like how there’s its own flair in the seasons where flowers don’t bloom?” (Marito)

“That’s a good way to put it. I am sure you would sigh in admiration if you were to see it.” 

It really is only after seeing it for yourself that you can tell the greatness of rock gardens rather than explaining it in words.

I have seen how the patterns of rock gardens are made in the media, but I should have learned about them more properly. I don’t think I would be able to replicate it in one go, but I might have been able to at least convey the feeling. 

“There’s also things called bonsais that are small trees you grow in pots. Recreating the trees on the fields with small pots is a thing that has a lot of depth as entertainment when you are old.” 

“That sounds fun. Can you do it even indoors?” (Marito)

“I think it is okay as long as the sunlight can come in… Aah, mana can serve as a source of nutrition in this world, so you could substitute it with that.” 

“I see. Raising plants by giving them your own mana does sound interesting. There’s rare plants in the forest that the black wolfkins live in. Maybe I should get some next time.” (Marito)

“Growing them might be difficult with a difference in environment though. Aah, speaking of splendid plants, the trees in the Black Demon Lord Killing Mountain were especially beautiful. The trees that were as if made from crystals were shining beautifully in the night.” 

“I have heard the stories of it, but I am a bit apprehensive about trying to get them. It is a mountain of death that none have come back alive from. If I were to make knights go get it, my reputation as a king might lower.” (Marito)

A mountain where a slime one-sidedly consumes the ones with mana. Sending people to get plants from there equals a mission with casualties. It reminds me of the 5 impossible tasks of Kaguya-hime. 

For people with no mana, the threat of it lowers to a certain degree, but I wouldn’t want to go. The only one who would match this condition would be children, but if he were a king that would make them go on a life threatening adventure, the country wouldn’t live long. 

“But I would like to see it at least once. It was a wonderful sight, right?!” (Marito)

“Yeah, it was the first thing I saw in this world, but it was such an illusory place it made me realize it was a parallel world.” 

Marito was really jealous of me. The one watching us silently as we had a lively conversation about plants was Ilias. I can tell at a glance that there’s a discrepancy in excitement. 

“You seem to be bored, Ilias.” 

“No, I can tell that you two are having fun. It is just that I can’t really relate too much.” (Ilias)

“Even if you can’t tell the greatness of trees, Lady Ratzel, there should at least have been times when you would admire flowers, right?” (Marito)

“No, uhm…ah, there are times when my eyes would be drawn to weapons and I would admire them!” (Ilias)

Silence overtook the place for a while. When me and Marito looked at each other’s faces, he had a sad expression. I am most likely making the same face.

“Different strokes for different folks…” 

“Right…” (Marito)

“?” 

Being in the presence of Ilias who is tilting her head, I decided in my heart to teach Wolfie the beauty of nature. 

“I will be switching the subject here, but you are at an age where it should be good to form a family. Are you interested in marriage interviews?” (Marito)

“That’s really sudden. But can’t that be said for you too, Marito?” 

Rather, considering the necessity of an heir, he should be the one who should be the most hurried out of everyone here.

“Right, I am told the same by my surroundings the whole time. But there hasn’t been a girl to my liking, you see.” (Marito)

“Are marriage interviews trending?” 

“I talk with ladies from noble families when I show up at banquets every now and then. But I still haven’t encountered a girl that has made me go ‘aah, she is the one’.” (Marito)

“Speaking of which, in the history of Earth, polygamy was allowed around this era, but in the modern era, it is full of countries that have forbidden bigamy. How is it in this world?” 

“Polygamy is not really against the law. A king having several wives is something necessary in order to secure an heir. I am being told to ready at least a 3rd queen. There’s powerful nobles that would have several wives too. That said, it is mostly monogamous.” (Marito)

Being hurried to get 1 is already a pain, and yet, he is being pushed for 3. It must be rough.

“By the way, do you have a sibling from a different mother?” 

“Yeah, my father had 3 queens, and I was the first prince. The remaining 2 only gave birth to women, so I have around 4 little sisters.” (Marito)

“Looks like there was no quarreling about who will be inheriting then.” 

“Right. Father thought it was divine providence that I was the only man that was born, and he easily passed the throne to me and retired. It was also in part because I suited the role of king regardless of my gender though. There were barely any issues surfacing from this.” (Marito)

The first prince was outstanding and the other heirs were solely women. Of course he became a king with barely any opposition.

“I have not met a single one until now though. Have they already married off?” 

“Aah, my father and the queens are living in a detached house inside the castle grounds. My little sisters have either married someone they liked or became adventurers, leaving the country.” (Marito)

“Became an adventurer?” 

“We considered a political marriage too, but there weren’t any tasty countries, and the nice ones either had old kings or way too young princes to make it viable. And so, the result was for them to choose what they wanted if they were going to stay in the country.” (Marito)

Considering the normal customs of royalty, this is quite the unprecedented generous offer. That must be why there aren’t many grievances. But in that case, there’s not enough insurance for when something happens to Marito. I can understand why his surroundings are hurrying him. 

“I will be returning to the topic here, but want to participate in the banquets too? I feel like I won’t be able to handle it mentally if I continue the lifeless marriage interviews alone all the time.” (Marito)

“Daughters of nobles, huh. Sounds like there would be a lot of well mannered girls.” 

“On the front. But they would normally have a plot or two ripening, or wouldn’t know how the outside world works at all. I honestly don’t know about falling in love with them.” (Marito)

Girls interacting with Marito at such locations are normally women aiming for the position of queen, or are secluded daughters made to participate by the will of their parents.

There’s the possibility that there would be girls like Rakura who would show up for the food and drinks, but that doesn’t count. 

“When you put it like that, it is not too motivating. There’s most likely no person that you could put a hand on thoughtlessly after all.” 

“There’s a lot of beautiful ladies, so it would be a sight for sore eyes.” (Marito)

“Hmm.” 

If that’s the case, I wouldn’t really mind if it is just tagging along. Even if it is just a formality, it is possible it could serve to heal the heart. 

“But His Majesty, he likes girls older than him rather than younger, so I think it will be hard.” (Ilias)

“Eh, really?” (Marito)

Ilias suddenly came in with that statement. I was dumbfounded for a moment, but clapped back.

“Ilias, what’s that all of a sudden? Don’t go instilling weird misunderstandings on Marito.” 

“…Is that not the case? This is the conclusion I came to after watching you though.” (Ilias)

“Please tell me the steps you took to reach that conclusion.” 

“By seeing the attitude you take when interacting with women, I concluded that you like older women like Maya.” (Ilias)

“I will of course act with respect towards older people. If asked whether Maya is within my strike zone, I would say she is, but it doesn’t mean I like older people. I am the type with a wide strike zone.” 

“What…?” (Ilias)

Ilias showed a surprised face.

So you were seriously thinking that? Also, Marito, don’t try to endure a laugh here. 

“But looking at the attitude you take when interacting with women—” (Ilias)

“I have decided to look after Wolfie after all, so I have simply decided to not look at her with those eyes. Rakura has a nice outward appearance, but her insides are terrible, so I treat her like that.” 

“W-What about me?” (Ilias)

“You are a muscle-head, so you are close to Rakura. Aah, but I like your looks.” 

“I-Is that so.” (Ilias)

“In the first place, at the time when I decided to take care of Wolfie, I talked about how I wouldn’t be able to control myself if she were to sneak into my bed.” 

It was the same for when Saira made the clothes for Wolfie. Clothes with a lot of exposed skin makes me nervous. Especially when I am used to the armored appearance of Ilias. I can relax with Ilias in that sense. 

“…Speaking of which, that’s true.” (Ilias)

“Well, I am not looking at you with lecherous eyes, so don’t worry. In the first place, you don’t like being treated as a woman, right? I was trying to be considerate in that front too, you know -in the beginning.” 

“In the beginning, you say… What about now?” (Ilias)

“I think you are the type of person that would solve everything with brute force regardless of gender. I have at least kept a footnote in my mind that you are a woman, I guess.” 

“Mugugu…” (Ilias)

When I heard about the environment of Ilias at first, I was avoiding treating her like a woman. That’s the truth. But after seeing her mowing down bandits and forests, the only thing that surfaced in my mind was ‘She is a gorilla’.

I can still recognize her as a beautiful woman even after purging out those memories of mine completely though… Also, Marito, just how long are you going to be laughing for? 

“I see, I see. So that’s why you show no dissatisfaction with your current standing despite Lady Ratzel being a woman. This is amusing.” (Marito)

“Laughing your fill here. I have read you mostly, you know? You are probably plotting to have me form a family and tying me down in Taizu, right?” 

“Of course. Now that we know the contents of the book, there’s no reason for you to stay in Taizu. However, I think that Taizu needs you. I will assist you if there’s something you want.” (Marito)

“I won’t be leaving immediately.” 

“For now, that is. But I wonder what will happen after the talk with Pope Euparo? You might go to Mejis in order to find a way to return to your world, right?” (Marito)

That’s possible. There’s a chance there’s other books left by Earthlings in Mejis. There might be a method to return to my world there.

“I wouldn’t mind helping you out in returning to your world as an end goal, but we are talking about you here. I feel like I need to tie you up to a certain degree or you might end up disappearing somewhere. But it is true that it would be sad for me to do marriage interviews alone. It is not like you hate meeting new people. It should be okay to tag along with me, right?” (Marito)

“Yeah…but it doesn’t sit right with me.” 

“If aristocratic women are not to your liking, what kind of girl do you prefer? If it is Lady Ratzel, I will give you my blessings though.” (Marito)

“Your Majesty?!” (Ilias)

“That wouldn’t be bad, but let Ilias be a knight.” 

“That’s true. Sorry sorry.” (Marito)

What Ilias is aiming for is to become a knight like her father. Being made to resign at this timing by the top of this country would be horrible.

But Marito is telling me he wants me without shying away. Who knows what kind of woman he will make me tie the knot with if he stays holding the lead. But I have to think about the eyes around me, so I can’t take too drastic a measure. I will have to think of a plan. 

“Alright, Marito, how about we set fair conditions for both sides?” 

“Fumu, let’s hear it.” (Marito)

“If you are trying to make me form a family, I will also find you a queen candidate. That makes it fair.” 

“Basically, every time I recommend you to a woman, you will be recommending one to me?” (Marito)

“Yeah. If I get hit as pleased with your resources as a king, I wouldn’t be able to do anything after all.” 

Becoming the wife of Marito would mean entering the winning leagues as the queen. But I am just your regular otherworlder. I would like to avoid mass producing women that are used for the sake of tying down a man like that. 

That said, it is not like I am completely uninterested or have no expectations from it. If the numbers are limited, I have to see through it properly that she is an appropriate woman. Marito will most likely analyze my likes too. 

“If you are attacking with numbers, I can also fight with numbers. So you are telling me to find a woman fitting for you to tie you down in a way that doesn’t burden you, huh. As for me, I would be able to meet women that you are seriously trying to recommend to me. It would also become a competition of who has the better eye for people… I see. This is nice.” (Marito)

Judging from the personality of Marito, I am sure he wishes for changes in his daily life. While at it, it also serves as an excuse for me to escape. ‘He told me that he would be finding me a suitable woman. I will wait for that!’ -something like that.

This is how weird rules were made between me and Marito. We decided on the specifics and promised to not rely on underhanded means. 

We then left the castle and on our way back, Ilias complained as usual in a bad mood.

“I can’t believe it… Dragging His Majesty in a weird game of yours…” (Ilias)

“It is for the sake of both of us. It is also for the sake of the women that will get dragged into it too.” 

“I can’t say I respect that when you are dragging them into a competition.” (Ilias)

“Don’t say that. With that current state of Marito, it wouldn’t have been strange for him to give you a royal decree that would force you to marry me, you know?” 

“That’s…I can’t deny it…but…” (Ilias)

“That goes for other women too. Getting pushed to a man like this by the pressure of the king would be extremely unpleasant. If we are introducing partners, we have to properly think about the other party’s standing. I plan on finding a partner that Marito will accept, so there’s no issues.” 

It is not only Ilias. Even if I can deceive myself into accepting the path I want to walk on being twisted by the rampage of Marito, regrets would stick in the near future. 

Marito is a king, but he is not a samaritan. He seriously would think of any means for the sake of the nation. 

“Right…” (Ilias)

“If it is women that Marito has thought of with me in mind when introducing them, I do want to meet them.” 

“With you in mind, huh… This may be a curt question to ask, but what’s your type of woman?” (Ilias)

“Who knows. I like cute and pretty girls like a normal person, but I don’t have any particular likes. I have fallen in love with a variety of women in the past, so I can’t draw anything conclusive.” 

“It really does sound like your strike zone is wide.” (Ilias)

“You only know when you have fallen in love when that time comes. I don’t want to squander such a meeting by pushing my own selfish ideals.” 

“I see. That’s an answer that fits you.” (Ilias)

Ilias laughed as if baffled. If she were to relax a bit more like that, it would be easier to think of her as a woman, but let’s just leave it as a personal trait of hers. 

“As for your preferred type of man, would it be a knight like your father?” 

“I would find it preferable, but it is more like an ideal out of admiration. I don’t know if I would fall in love even if I were to meet a person like that.” (Ilias)

“I feel like you would direct your sword at him instead.” 

“You…no, that might be true.” (Ilias)

Regardless of gender, I would like to continue having this kind of relationship with Ilias. However, without the violence, please.

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