After we hashed out some details, Camilo and the margrave immediately went home. I thought they’d stay in Marius’s manor for a bit longer, but it seemed they had much to do before tomorrow.
Both Camilo and the margrave have residences in the capital, don’t they? I think Camilo’s got a branch of his store here, and the margrave’s got a villa. In any case, I’d meet the two men again tomorrow. The other family members—except for Anne, of course—would meet them again in the evening after the meeting was over. Or later, if things dragged out.
I can’t imagine the meeting being completely smooth sailing. Highly ranked people with plenty of time on their hands tended to talk at length and also hold prolonged meetings.
Now that Camilo and the margrave had departed, only Count and Countess Eimoor, along with the members of Forge Eizo, remained in this residence. Oh, Bowman and the other servants too. Diana and the rest of the women of Forge Eizo (so, everyone except me) took Marius’s wife, Julie, and the rest of the women who served the manor (those who had some time to spare, at least) to visit Krul, Lucy, and Hayate. The Japanese had a saying that when three women gathered, they tended to chatter loudly, but it seemed this was the case in this world too. Though, admittedly, there are more than three...
Besides Diana, the members of Forge Eizo weren’t familiar with the staff of House Eimoor, but they were already chatting away like good friends. I considered tagging along, but it felt a bit...awkward for a geezer to join in on a conversation between ladies. I stayed behind. I’m always playing with my daughters anyway, and the other ladies will probably be busy helping Anne get ready tomorrow morning. I can visit my daughters then. I watched Diana and the others leave—and they were so close and lively that they reminded me of a close-knit family.
As soon as Bowman saw me, he bowed. “I deeply apologize for being unable to greet you.”
I hastily waved my hands in front of me. “No, no, don’t be. You must’ve been busy making some last-minute preparations, huh?”
“Precisely so.”
He raised his head and flashed his usual gentle smile. Then he walked ahead of me, and I slowly followed. A familiar tapestry appeared before me, one depicting the battle that had given the Eimoor name its status. I glanced at the artwork.
“All these last-minute changes must be tough for you too,” I said.
“Oh, not at all,” Bowman replied. “This type of thing is not unusual for my young mas—I mean, my lord.”
“Ah, so you’re used to his antics.”
“Hmm... I wonder.”
We both laughed. Bowman was easy to talk to, and I wondered if it was due to his easygoing nature. In my opinion, there was no better man to welcome and greet guests. Marius’s father must’ve had a keen eye for character.
“Right this way,” Bowman said.
We proceeded down the corridor, and he opened a door. When I stepped inside, I noticed that the room was furnished with pieces similar to the ones I’d seen in Camilo’s meeting room at his store. The only striking difference was that House Eimoor’s furniture was much larger; the pieces tended to be austere and sturdy, which was perhaps a characteristic of their household.
“I’ll bring him right away,” Bowman said.
He expertly prepared some tea for me, then swiftly yet quietly left the room like a fleeting spring breeze. I sipped on the tea. Ah, Bowman did mention that this tea came from the Nordic region. Seems he was right. The Nordic region had a culture similar to Japan—this tea was green, and I was familiar with the taste.
My knowledge from my days on Earth told me that powdered green tea was a relatively futuristic innovation that should have been too advanced for this world. However, ground pepper wasn’t a luxury item here either (though commoners couldn’t just generously dump it in everything). Since the nations on this continent are connected by land, I guess some things have advanced faster than I expected.
The only unfortunate thing was that there was no Japanese teacup—that would’ve given me the full Nordic experience. The teacup I’d received was a bit too fancy. But I’m just getting petty and greedy at this point.
As the sun was beginning to set, the tapestry hung on the wall took on an orange glow. It illustrated some sort of war from many years ago, and the young warrior (or young knight, rather) who stood on the front lines of battle sort of looked like Marius. Had one of his ancestors accomplished a feat of valor in this battle?
I doubt this ancestor would’ve ever imagined that the treasured sword of his family would be replaced. I flashed the tapestry an apologetic smile.
Suddenly, Marius opened the door with a loud clack and strolled right into my room. “Good grief.” He sighed heavily. No longer was he wearing stiff, formal attire—he looked much more relaxed.
“Not even a knock, huh?”
He shrugged. “Thought you were taking it easy anyway.”
“You aren’t wrong...”
This is his manor, after all. And he must be exhausted, so I guess I don’t really have the right to say anything.
“You must be tired,” I said.
“Eh, today’s the easy day,” he replied. “There isn’t anyone here throwing a silly tantrum.” He winked at me, but his exhaustion was apparent, so he didn’t look nearly as handsome as usual.
“Yeah? You really do seem exhausted, though.”
“When I think about tomorrow and the things that’ll come...” Marius trailed off and gave another loud sigh.
Tomorrow was the real deal. In a sense, the meeting would partially decide the fate of Marius, the margrave, and Forge Eizo. If only people from the empire and the kingdom’s main faction would be present, I probably could’ve been present for tomorrow’s meeting. But because members of the duke’s faction would be there too, I’d be out of place. A normal blacksmith had no reason to attend.
I assumed that Camilo wouldn’t be at the meeting either. He probably had some preparation to do, along with pulling strings behind the scenes. But despite all his hard work and the power he wielded, he would still be seen as a mere merchant, and nothing more. Considering only his status, it would be absurd for him to attend the meeting. In other words, neither he nor I could offer any sort of direct support. I felt a bit vexed and impatient, but I didn’t want to fool around and somehow make things more complicated. It was best if I just sat tight. All I can do is pray that the margrave, Marius, and Anne do well.
I forced a cheery tone, trying to dispel any sense of anxiety. “I heard you went on a bit of a honeymoon—a vacation with your wife.”
“Technically not a vacation,” Marius replied. “I went to the empire to arrange this meeting. At least, that was the excuse I gave.”
“Huh.”
“The empire has already completed a lot of restoration since the revolt. And since we were there anyway, she and I couldn’t possibly have returned home without seeing the sights. We just took advantage of the spare time we had there, that’s all.”
“Oooh. Any interesting stories?”
“Huh? I mean, sure, I guess. Well, it all began when...”
And so, Marius began his story, partly about memorable moments from his trip, but he mostly bragged about his wife and how they were so happy together. For the next hour, I listened to him dote over his wife, and I didn’t even get bored. I wasn’t sure if he was just an engaging speaker or if his sightseeing trip in the empire was really that interesting. (Though I was reminded that I’d never actually asked Anne about her home.)
Unlike on Earth, tourist attractions in this world weren’t well maintained to attract guests—rumors were really the only way to discover interesting sights. A tourist might hear through the grapevine that a certain location was pretty or that an attraction was fun. The empire had mountainous terrain, boasting a few peaks that were taller than anything in the kingdom. Marius and his wife had spent time enjoying the view of one of these tall, distant mountains. He excitedly told me just how majestic and awe-inspiring it’d been.
When I’d visited the empire, I’d headed straight for my destination before immediately turning around to return home. I hadn’t gotten time to enjoy the sights, and even if I had, I wasn’t sure if I had the right mindset to fully appreciate the natural beauty of the landscape. As I tried to live vicariously through Marius’s description, I considered seeing that mountain with my own eyes if I ever had the opportunity to visit the empire again. Maybe that’ll be enough to make me reassess my opinion of the empire.