Willem led us straight to Earl Langridge’s home in the capital. It seemed maybe a little smaller than my own home back in Karelina, but considering how dense the capital was, a home of that size here was definitely quite the status symbol. We were welcomed inside by a somewhat foppish-looking butler, who led us straight to the earl.
The man who awaited us was almost unrecognizable compared to the sorry state I’d first seen him in when I had met him in Karelina. Earl Langridge practically exuded confidence now, and was elegantly handsome in a way that reminded me more than ever of the fifth actor who’d played Agent 007. He had that special something that made middle-aged men look dashing, and he had it in spades.
A woman was waiting for us alongside the earl. She had golden blonde hair and refined features that made her quite the beauty, on the whole, and I assumed that she was his wife. Guess they’re an even match for each other when it comes to looks, huh...? Peh! I thought. The urge to compare the two of them to myself had me feeling a little spiteful.
Oh, and the Langridge couple weren’t the only ones present. A pair of children were lined up alongside them as well: a girl with remarkably long, drill-shaped locks of curly hair who looked like she was in her early teens and who greatly took after the earl’s wife, and a little boy with fluffy, curly hair and an almost angelic face who couldn’t have been older than seven or eight. Apparently, beautiful couples had beautiful children. The power of genetics was mighty indeed.
While I was taking in his family, Earl Langridge himself spoke up. “Mukohda! It’s very good to see you,” he said.
“You as well. It’s been a while,” I nervously replied.
“I thought that I would take this opportunity to introduce you to my wife, Oriane; my daughter, Celeste; and my younger son, Bastian. My elder son, unfortunately, had pressing business that he couldn’t be excused from. You should have seen how upset he was when he realized he couldn’t make it! Hah hah hah!”
“I-It’s a pleasure to meet all of you. My name is Mukohda,” I said to the earl’s family.
“Come now, no need to be so stiff!” the earl said. “You’re among friends here, so spare us the formalities. Oh, and of course it’s good to see you as well, Sir Fenrir.”
“As it should be. Know that I came here only because I had no choice in the matter.”
Oh, knock it off! Enough with the attitude, please!
“Fel!” I snapped before frantically turning to the earl. “I-I apologize, Earl Langridge. I’ll give him a scolding later.”
The earl let out a chuckle. “Oh, no need! I’m not offended. Not even the king himself could stand up to a fenrir, after all. And while I’m at it...I believe this is our first meeting, Sir Ancient Dragon. My name is Edward Langridge, and I serve as one of this nation’s earls. It’s wonderful to finally meet you.”
“I’m told you’ve been very accommodating to my liege in the past,” Gon replied. “I hope you’ll continue to do so.”
“That is my intention, of course!”
《Peh! What are we, chopped liver?》 Dora-chan grumbled.
《Sui’s here too!》 Sui added.
《I mean, what do you expect him to do? The earl can’t talk with you telepathically, so how’s he supposed to have a conversation with you?》 I noted.
《Eh. Whatever, I guess. This is boring anyway, so I’m gonna sleep through it.》
《Sui’ll take a nap too.》
Dora-chan and Sui curled up on Fel’s back and were drifting off before I knew it. 《Sorry about this! I don’t think we’ll be here all that long,》 I told them.
The earl, of course, had been entirely unaware of that whole exchange. As I turned my attention back to him, I was surprised to find that he was grinning.
“I’m very much looking forward to our continued relationship, Mukohda,” the earl said. “Just to be sure, you do intend to continue basing your activities out of Karelina, I trust?”
“That’s the plan, yes,” I replied. “It’s a very nice town, and I have a home there, so I’m in no hurry to move. I’ll be traveling around from time to time, but I’m planning on keeping my primary residence there for the foreseeable future.”
Not only do I have a home there, but all my sla—employees live there as well. I can’t just abandon them! Plus, the Karelina locals are all used to Fel and Gon, which makes life way easier.
“I see, I see! I’m very pleased to hear it,” Earl Langridge said, his smile growing broader still as he gave me a friendly pat on the shoulder.
“Earl Langridge, please—you’re putting Mukohda out of sorts. Let’s call it there, all right?” said Willem, who was well acquainted with the earl.
P-Phew! Thanks, guildmaster.
“I hope you brought everything we picked out before?” Willem added to me in a whisper.
I’d actually almost forgotten, but now that my gifts for the earl had been brought to the forefront of my mind, I pulled them out of my Item Box. Willem had told me that I should make sure that the earl could see what I was giving him as soon as I handed it over, so I presented my gifts in a treasure chest with its lid wide open.
“I-I brought you these,” I awkwardly stuttered as I held out the chest.
“Oh, really? Many thanks,” the earl said.
“Oh my! How very lovely.” Oriane—who’d been standing quietly to the side up until that point—rushed over to peer into the box so quickly, she very nearly sent the earl flying. Her daughter was just as fast, and I wasn’t sure I liked the look in either of their eyes. “Shampoo, conditioner, and hair packs? Why, these are our favorites! Thank you ever so much!”
“Yes, thank you!” Celeste chimed in. “Oh! Mother, look! I’ve never even seen this one before!”
“Is that so? My oh my!”
Oriane and Celeste both turned to look in my direction.
“U-Umm, that’s a type of lotion. It’s meant for your face,” I explained, withering under their gazes. They looked like a pair of predators about to leap in for the kill.
“Facial lotion? I’ve heard of this! It must be the lotion that’s produced such wonderful results for Marie from the Lambert Trading Company!” Oriane said, her eyes wide with astonishment. Seeing a woman as beautiful as her make a face like that was downright terrifying.
“Y-Yes, I believe that’s correct,” I replied as I flinched away once more. Oriane’s and Celeste’s smiles were downright blinding, and the two of them spent a little while squealing with glee about how they “knew it,” and had “finally gotten their hands on some.”
“So, how should we go about using it?” Oriane asked.
“Umm, well...”