A few days later...
“Man, it really was a cinch building with these things!” Carolina looked up at the lodgings they’d made using owata pieces on the boundary where monsters appeared most in Pallas.
“Indeed. Since owata pieces can be used as bricks, all we had to do was stack them. They’re quite sturdy too.” They’d been faced with countless monster attacks while they were building the lodgings, but didn’t lose a single brick.
“Heh heh. The rooms are nice ’n’ simple too, and the kitchen looks easy enough to use.” For however much more difficult they made it to go outside, they made the inside perfectly supportive for daily life.
“Indeed. Owata pieces are extremely versatile, so we were able to use them not just for the walls and ceilings, but for the bathtubs, stove, furniture, and everything else you could need.” Arven had done as suggested by the letter he’d received with his souvenirs and made the whole building out of owata shard bricks. He seemed quite pleased with the results.
“This way, this whole place’ll stay standing even if I go buck wild in here, huh?”
“What?”
Carolina spun around with a big grin.
“I’ll look after the little turds comin’ to hunt with us!”
Nobody ever wanted to look after the hunters coming to train with them each year. They never listened to a word anyone said, they’d get all pouty if anyone spoke to them too harshly, then whine about how they got hit or whatever.
Carolina was likely stronger than any of the hunters coming to study, but she was also a woman. Funnily enough, nobles were always raised to treat women like they were delicate little flowers. If, in the worst-case, they tried to lash out and got their butts whipped by Carolina, it was very unlikely they’d complain about it as a matter of their “manly pride.”
Arven shuddered at Carolina’s suggestion. “Lady Carolina... You’re a goddess, aren’t you?”
✦ ✦ ✦
The next day...
“The preparations for training are coming along quite nicely, aren’t they?” Serena had stopped by to visit the Stewart family manor.
“Yes. Lady Abigail did even more cost breakdowns on our armored boar shields, and we’ve just received notice that we should be able to get by with renting them for just thirty-five silver pieces.” They’d also made a special four-day rental course for a slight discount of two gold. While the hunters’ meals in the boardinghouse would be provided for free as usual, they could now pay an additional fee to get alcohol with their dinner as well. While their health expenses would be paid for as usual, they would have to pay extra for transportation costs in the event of any major injuries. There was also a training insurance system one could purchase at the start of the event for four gold in case anything happened. If one elected to purchase it, all paid services would be free, and any injuries that took over a month to recover from would have their fees paid for up to five gold pieces. In the worst-case event that someone died, they would send ten gold pieces to the bereaved family. The Stewarts would explain this just after the hunters arrived, once they’d seen the monsters roaming about inside their carriages and their fear was at its peak.
If Lady Abigail hadn’t married into Gane’s family and had instead taken him into hers and worked for her family’s merchant business, she likely could have been a rival for the Rothschild Company itself.
“Lady Abigail always does have such marvelous ideas!” Serena tittered elegantly. Just having Serena there was enough to make one forget they were on the border. It was like they’d been transported right into the midst of high society instead. “Why, I had an idea of my own, actually...”
Unlike Abigail or Carolina, it was quite rare for Serena to come forth with any ideas about monster hunting.
“I’d love to hear it.” No matter how busy he was, Arven was always willing to listen to the women of the family. After all, it was a treasure just being able to have an intellectual conversation here in Pallas.
“Well you see, I heard that Lord Theodore from the Ward region is soon to be wed.”
“That’s...wonderful to hear?” From what Arven could remember, Count Theodore Ward was the ruler of a land near the previous Lengrend region and was significantly older than Arven himself. He’d been friends with Gane and Zack since they were young, so he was on considerably good terms with the Stewart family. Gane once laughed and told him that Emma said she “wuvved” Lord Theodore once, causing some tension in their long-lived relationship.
“It is. Yet I also hear his bride-to-be is much younger than him... She’s only still a teen herself.”
“What?! Well, uh... Isn’t that something?” Lord Theodore’s wife had passed long before he did, and he had no children. Maybe that was why he wanted someone so much younger than him? But even still, that was so much younger than him.
“I’ve heard they get along quite well,” Serena followed up, as though she could tell just how much the age gap had surprised Arven by his expression alone. “I thought it might be nice for the two of them to come by Pallas for their honeymoon sometime soon.”
It might have been because they were worried about the age gap, but the viscount had told her that he wasn’t going to be holding a ceremony. That was when Serena suggested he come to the Pallas region to have a wedding dress made of their famous silk.
“Why, don’t you think a young woman would love to wear a wedding dress like that? Even if she doesn’t have a ceremony, just having a portrait would be enough to make them happy, don’t you think?” Serena seemed as enraptured as a young girl when she started talking about the wedding dress.
“I suppose you’re right.” Arven had no objections, but he didn’t think she needed to go out of her way to ask him permission for something like that.
“Therefore, I would like to offer them some Emma silk. Even just a little bit.” The Rothschild Company had put a limit on how much Emma silk was available, so it wasn’t very easy to procure.
“What for?” It wasn’t as though Arven couldn’t ask, after all.
“Well, Lord Theodore is about as much of a warrior as Lord Gane and my husband. I thought that if he were to stay here in Pallas on his honeymoon, he could be a great boon in the event any monsters might appear,” Serena said, peering into Arven’s eyes.
“He might, but since I’m here, it’s not... Wait. L-Lady Serena, you didn’t!”
“You have a field trip to get to, don’t you? Lord Gane, my husband, and my son will be coming home from the capital soon, so try to be gone before they get home,” Serena said, not breaking her gaze for a moment as she gave a mischievous wink. As sheltered as Serena’s life had been as a high-ranked noble, she had attended school in the capital as well, so she knew what sort of thing the field trip would be. In other words, she was telling Arven to go ahead and get to the capital. If he waited to leave until the others arrived, it would lead to another battle for who got to go. There was no such thing as a “turn order” when it came to seeing Emma. Therefore, whoever set out first would be the one to go.
“Lady Serena... You’re my savior, you know that?” Arven choked back his tears at Serena’s suggestion.
Thus, with the help of the Stewart Family Women’s Association, Arven was able to finish preparing for training faster than ever, head out to the capital, and participate in the school field trip.
As usual, a bunch of hunters from regions without any monsters came along being cocky as ever, but were soon to be subjected to a hell far worse than in any previous years. From seeing monsters for the first time, to being craftily exploited for every coin they had, to the ridiculously strong woman who could drink them under the table, to the worst of all, the teachers, who were all furious at Arven for getting ahead of them.
Their Monster Hunting teacher was Gane Stewart.
Their Monster Processing teacher was Guillermo Stewart.
Their Monster Lecture teacher was Zack Stewart.
From that year forward, training hunters in Pallas became a lot easier for the ones training them and a lot worse for those receiving said training. However, for as strict as it was, their skills improved significantly. No matter how much they begged and pleaded to train in a different region, nobody would let them.
✦ ✦ ✦
“You’re beautiful, my love,” Viscount Theodore Ward said to his new bride, clad in her wedding dress. The dress was so pure white that it practically glowed, and it made Lila’s light-blue hair look even more beautiful.
“Lord Theodore, I really can’t thank you enough for such a lovely dress,” Lila replied with tears in her eyes. Given that her family had been practically disgraced, Lila had given up on having a wedding ceremony, as she didn’t have any relatives or friends she could proudly invite. That was why she hadn’t even thought it possible that she could come here on her honeymoon and wear a wedding dress at all.
“This is the greatest painter in Pallas. Now, now, Lord Ward, don’t get too taken by your bride now. You need to stand next to her!” Serena insisted as she pushed the two newlyweds together.
“I’ll paint you the greatest wedding portrait of all time,” the painter spouted his usual marketing spiel and began his rough sketch. “Pallas is on the border of the barrier, but it’s about as advanced as the capital now, so I’m sure you’ll be able to enjoy the rest of your trip as well. You should try the black monstaurus for dinner tonight. Oh, and there’s a monstaurus cheese fondue that’s pretty popular with the ladies too!” The painter seemed to like talking, so he did his best to entertain the couple as he worked.
“Lord Theodore... I’m truly happy right now,” Lila whispered to the much older man.
“Why, what a coincidence. I feel the very same,” the older man replied with a smile as he ran his fingers through her light-blue hair.
“Oh, no moving please!” the painter teased with a very serious face as he put the finishing touches on his painting. This painter was a well-regarded artist who was always up-to-date with the latest trends from the capital. In the capital, a patron by the name of Carne Lombart had gathered all sorts of up-and-coming artists who were bringing all sorts of new styles to the world of art. “And lastly, we’ll put just a teensy bit of pink on the new bride’s elbow here, and we’re done!”
Naturally, several months later, the border land of Pallas exploded in popularity as a hotspot for honeymoons.