And indeed, Krul apparently had possessed a voracious appetite until she’d come our way. Julie’s eyes sparkled with hope as she turned to her husband, her gaze practically begging for a pet, and Marius turned thoughtful for a moment. The rest of us at Forge Eizo quietly observed how wholesome and happy they looked.
“All right, all right,” Marius said, finally giving in. “I’ll ask Camilo about it.”
Julie’s smile grew wider than ever, and she looked like the happiest lady in the world. If House Eimoor gets a drake, Krul will have a friend. If her friend’s male and ends up becoming her boyfriend...then as her father, I wonder how I should act. I was clearly getting ahead of myself, so I quickly shook my head, chasing away that silly idea. I neatly took a bite of my meat, then turned to Marius.
“That reminds me, what about getting a dog for hunting or battle?” I asked.
Diana had told me that House Eimoor didn’t have any dogs, but as a household built upon military valor, I suspected that some of his ancestors had owned dogs of war. Nobles also went hunting together; it was a popular pastime, and hunting dogs were essential for this hobby. As a young, up-and-coming noble—not to mention a noble with the esteemed title of “count”—it wouldn’t be strange for Marius to keep a dog or two around.
“Hmm, I haven’t heard any stories of my grandfather owning a dog,” Marius murmured pensively.
Diana swallowed her mouthful of food before she spoke. “I tried asking father about it once, but he just laughed and waved me off.”
“Do you guys have some sort of family rule prohibiting you from keeping dogs?” Anne asked jokingly.
Marius chuckled as he shook his head. “In all my years, I haven’t heard of a family rule like that.”
“Well...” Diana started pouting. “There must be a reason our ancestors insisted on being dog-free.”
Her brother nodded back. “Maybe it’s an unspoken rule passed down verbally or something.”
“Really? Then that means...” Julie trailed off, looking absolutely crushed.
“But,” Marius said with a smile, “I haven’t heard anything. I don’t see any issues with keeping a pet, and I don’t think there’re any laws that restrict it either. I must ask Ms. Schurter about it, but knowing her, I think she’ll find us a law that allows us to keep pets if we ask.”
Julie looked genuinely relieved. Even if a drake was out of the question, it seemed she’d be allowed to keep a dog or some other pet. Matthias would likely be in charge of the pet, but seeing how excited Julie was, I was sure that she’d also take good care of anything she kept. And if that was the case, Marius would too.
Just imagining a handsome man and a beauty frolicking around, giggling, while they play with a dog... It feels like a scene straight out of a fairy tale. I know that my daughters look like they leaped out of a painting, but location’s key—instead of being cute, they might seem a bit intimidating with the backdrop of a forest. What a pity.
Julie’s eyes sparkled with excitement. “Maybe I’ll ask Diana and the rest of you for some pointers while I can,” she said cheerfully.
“Pointers? What kind?” Marius asked, raising an eyebrow.
She beamed back at her husband. “On how to raise a drake and a dog, of course!”
Oh, buddy, looks like getting a pet is set in stone. I knew that Marius was in for a bit of trouble now, and I internally wished him the best of luck. In the end, most of our conversation was about Krul and Lucy, but that was just unavoidable—my daughters were so adorable, and it was impossible not to talk at length about them. After dinner was over, the ladies stayed out as they always did, wanting to talk a bit more before heading for bed.
“Just don’t stay up too late,” I said.
I followed my usual routine and headed for bed a little earlier. Though I’d barely done anything today, I was still inexplicably tired. I was in the home of a close friend of mine, but I must’ve been more tense or nervous than I expected. There was nothing I could do about that, though—it was best to head to bed early and prepare for tomorrow. Without enough rest, I wouldn’t be able to react to any emergencies.
“Gotta sleep whenever I can...and for as long as I can,” I muttered.
It was an important lesson I’d learned while I’d been a corporate drone at an abusive company. The older I got, the less I could recover from lost time—that is, bounce back when I didn’t have time to spare. Back in my old life, I could work longer hours to make up for lost time, but over the years, I’d grown too weary to work so much and sleep so little. I could pull an all-nighter just fine when I was younger, but the older I became, the more impact it had on my body. It was important to get to sleep early so I didn’t start my days utterly exhausted. Though waking up tired can always happen, I guess. Unfortunately, at times, sacrifices just have to be made.
That was why I’d decided to go to bed early. Bowman was in front of me, leading the way to the bedroom. Though I was roughly familiar with the layout of this manor, I wasn’t sure what guest room I’d be staying in. A map would’ve prevented me from accidentally stumbling into a place I wasn’t supposed to be in.
Suddenly, a voice called out from behind me—it was Marius.
“Going to sleep already?” he asked.
“Yeah. The older I get, the harder it is for me to function without enough sleep,” I replied.
Marius laughed. “Come on, you’re not that old yet. Care to humor me for a bit longer?”
I wasn’t totally joking. Even a geezer like me needed my beauty rest, and it was getting difficult to stay awake. The Watchdog gave me cheats to enhance my combat abilities and my muscle, but I should’ve asked for the ability to bounce back and regain my energy too. Dang it.
Despite my regrets, I didn’t want to coldly turn down my friend’s request. It wasn’t often that I stayed in this manor, and if I returned to the Black Forest a bit tired, I could easily recuperate there, in a place that I was familiar with.
I nodded to Bowman and Marius. Bowman nodded back at me and swiftly departed, leaving Marius to guide the way. I’d assumed that Bowman would take us to a room, but apparently, the house’s lord would personally take the lead. Marius carried a candlestick in his hand—he lit the wick using the flame from one of the lamps on the wall, then turned to me.
“This way,” he said.
We walked in a completely different direction from the location of the guest rooms—a route I’d committed to memory. He led me down a corridor of pure darkness, and I could only follow. I was used to the ambient gloom of a world without electrical lighting, and even without my cheats, I could see well enough to make my way. The flame of Marius’s candle wavered. Our shadows on the wall followed suit, flickering and dancing with the fire. If I’d been on Earth, I would’ve been creeped out. But I knew I was at a friend’s house, which put me at ease, and I didn’t feel particularly alert or vigilant. Still, I was curious.
“Where’re we going?” I asked.
This wasn’t a corridor I was familiar with—I had a sneaky feeling that we were going somewhere unusual. In fact, I felt like we were straying farther away from the living quarters, but since I’d never lived in a mansion before (not even back on Earth), I couldn’t be certain. To be fair, the cabin in the Black Forest is large enough to be a manor on its own, but it’s mainly a forge, only has one story, and has a mere two guest rooms. All the other rooms are for us. Marius flashed me a mischievous grin, meaning that he wasn’t intending on telling me. The man was oddly stubborn at times, and if he wanted to keep his mouth shut, my questions would be all for naught. I don’t think he’s gonna kill me or anything, so I’ll just follow.
Two wavering shadows proceeded along the wall as he headed deeper into the manor. Eventually, Marius stopped in front of a seemingly normal wall.
“We’ve gotta climb up from here,” he said with a smirk.
He pushed the wall pretty forcefully, and it slid back, revealing a large hole for us to pass through.
“A secret door?” I asked.
“Yep,” Marius replied. “There’s a staircase in the back. Watch your step.”
“O-Okay.”
Marius stuck his candlestick into the hole and proceeded inside, shedding faint light onto the staircase. Just as he claimed, there was a path deeper inside. The cobblestone steps looked sturdy, and I closed the secret door behind me before gingerly following my friend. I don’t think I’ve climbed a flight of stairs this long since coming to this world. The cabin I stayed in only had a few steps, and I’d climbed up a ton of ladders, but that was all. Luckily, my knees didn’t give way as the two of us walked on.