Manuke FPS - Chapter 259
After discussing with Ashley about the future handling of the shooting range, our conversation turned into casual chatting, and we lost track of time just talking.
knock-knock
Such a peaceful and enjoyable time ended by a polite knock on the door.
“Excuse me. Ashley-sama, Schwartz-sama, dinner is ready. Also, Lord Drumo is here to greet you.”
The person who came to my room was Lester, the old butler of the Zephanel mansion. It seemed that it was time for dinner.
“Today, at the request of Predecessor-sama and Charlotte-sama, we have prepared a small dinner party.”
“Alright. Thank you, Lester.”
“Ashley-sama’s change of clothes is prepared in the room, so please go there first.”
“Alright. I’ll head out first.”
Although it is called a dinner party, it is actually a dinner party for inviting guests. Since Prince Khan and Prince Ark, as well as Chancellor Zephanel, have been staying in Amal, such sudden dinner parties have been held frequently. It’s held on a whim by Chancellor Zephanel for no particular reason, but if you don’t create an opportunity to meet the nobles and influential people around the seaside city of Amar, it could become a seed that gives birth to rebels like “Rafflesia” again.
Ashley returned to her room with Lester to change clothes, and I operated the avatar system to change clothes in an instant.
However, there is no need to change into dress code clothes such as a tailcoat. The dinner party at the Zephanel mansion is more casual in nature, so I change the set costume from Schwartz to Shaft, change the tactical Kevlar mask to a black panther’s Venetian mask, and take off the overcoat.
The outside world only knows Schwartz and Shaft as different people, but as Schwartz, I can walk around in Zephanel’s mansion fairly freely, as the servants here are more than trustworthy. Even though they knew that I am both Schwartz and Shaft, the sound collection sensor never caught a voice mentioning that.
When I descended from the second floor where the private room was located to the first floor, there were already several dots floating in the dining room map.
“Schwa――Shaft, you’ve finally come down. Where is my sister?”
“Going back to her room to change clothes.”
The first person who called out to me when I entered the dining hall was Sharle-san. Instead of the light adventurer clothes that she usually wears, she was wearing slightly fashionable men’s formal clothes. Sharle-san doesn’t seem to have any intention of wearing feminine clothes. Holding a glass with a yellow bubbly drink in her hand――the contents must be the beer that she brought from the shopping center.
The guests invited to the banquet were not yet seated. With fruit wine and beer served as an aperitif in hand, they gathered around Prince Khan and Chancellor Zephanel, chatting while sitting on the sofa. Malta-san could be seen in that circle. While greeting the Crown Prince and the others, I also wanted to talk with Malta-san about the expedition to labyrinth island, but――
“Hoo, so you must be the “Black Hero Shaft”.”
Standing in front of me, his large barrel-like belly shook as he did, was a man with blond hair and pig-like nose――Pig Lemon.
“….Please refrain with that “Black Hero” moniker, Lord Drumo.”
“Hmph, you’re right… Even though it’s under direct control of the Chancellor, it’s just too much to give a person from a simple combat unit such a moniker. But that doesn’t even compare to me, the supreme commander of the Amar Escort Fleet, “Sea God of Leitzen”.”
The pig lemon pointed his short and thick finger at me. But, my interest was directed to the person behind him――
What is more important is that Sharle-san, who was listening to our conversation behind Pig Lemon, was trembling with a bright red face as if she was about to vomit beer. I turned my gaze to Sharle-san and silently advised her, who was smiling mischievously, “Please don’t”――Ah, it’s too late.
“Excuse me.”
Dodging and overtaking Pig Lemon, I took out a towel from my inventory while pretending to put my hands inside the German SS’s black clothes, and pressed it onto Sharle-san’s face.
Blehhhhh.
“Sharle, that’s no good.”
I caught the vomit with the towel and cleaned the area around her mouth so that her formal clothes didn’t get dirty.
“Th, thanks…”
Her face was dyed red, either because she was inebriated by the beer she drank, or because she was holding back another wave of vomit.
“It’s no good to drink too much before a meal.”
“Uu…..”
It’s not good to drink beer on an empty stomach. It’s a common knowledge in my original world, since carbonic acid would make the stomach act up. On top of that, all the alcohol will be absorbed by your body, making you get drunk faster. I made Sharle, who was just beginning to finish, sit on her usual seat at the long table and look at the maids standing in the corner of the dining hall.
With just that, one of the maids bowed her head lightly and brought a jug of water from the wagon placed in the corner of the dining hall.
“Charlotte-sama, please.”
“N, thank you――really, that pig lemon is looking for trouble. Suddenly saying all that!”
He was indeed…a little infuriating.
When I turned my gaze to the self-proclaimed sea god, lured by Shale-san’s gaze, I saw the guy continued to point to the void while trembling his shoulders.
Let’s ignore him.
At the same time that I made up my mind, Ashley appeared at the entrance of the dining hall. She was wearing a dark blue long dress made by a seamstress from this world, referring to a chiffon dress she brought from a large shopping center.
Sewing techniques tend to be influenced by the skill level of <Sewing>, but when it comes to design, it is possible to incorporate things from my original world as they are. As for the finish, if the research into basic sewing technology progresses, it will be possible to produce high-quality products in large quantities regardless of skill proficiency.
Even so――Ashley’s white bare skin covered in a transparent thin fabric looks very sensual.
With Ashley joining us, the participants for the modest dinner party have gathered.
The Prince and the guests, who were having a chat as if urged by the maids, sat down at the long table, and I also pulled out the chair next to Sharle-san――Ashley’s reserved seat.
“Thank you.”
Ashley, sitting on the chair, whispered, and I whispered in her ear in response.
“That dress looks good on you. But, isn’t it a bit too attention-grabbing?”
The men sitting at the long table glanced at each other, but the women who accompanied them stared intently at Ashley’s clothes.
“Fufu, thank you.”
Ashley blushed a little. Sharle-san, who was sitting next to her, picked up the edge of the dress and curiously checked the texture of the fabric.
“Ashley-sama’s dress is a design that I don’t remember seeing in the Royal Capital. Where does it originate from?”
Malta-san, who sat relatively close to Ashley, asked questions as if representing the guests. Since the gaze was directed not only at Ashley, but also at me moving to the opposite seat, Malta-san himself must have guessed that the origin of the dress was me.
But, it has nothing to do with the ladies who are waiting impatiently for an answer to their question. Ashley lifted the corners of her mouth and smiled, then dared to answer the question with a clear voice.
“This dress was made in the Zephanel family’s craftsman workshop where they conduct technical research. It’s still a long way from reaching the level of quality needed to be released to the market, but the Zephanel family takes the lead in managing it, including the design.”
“[Ohー, it looks like it’s already done well enough in my eyes.”
“The craftsmen will be happy to know that the chairman of Marida Company complimented their work.”
While chatting like that, she let the guests know that the Zephanel family runs a craftsmen workshop. If this spreads, it will become a cover for the techniques and tools obtained from me.
After the dinner party began, the conversation centered on Ashley’s craftsman’s workshop. This craftsman workshop, to be exact, is mostly the child care of Chancellor Bergman, but from now on, while changing its appearance, it will contribute to the improvement of various techniques and culture of the Kingdom of Kurtmerga.
After the dinner party ended――I invited Malta-san to my room and we talked about the plan after I leave for labyrinth island.
“Well then, I will dispose of the collected elemental magic stones here.”
“Please. Also, is it possible to secure a place to set up the magic circle?”
“Certainly. One of my trading ships is returning to the port. Once it drops anchor at the port, you can install it in the hold, and you should be able to transport supplies without any suspicion.”
We sat facing each other across the table, and proceeded with the discussion while drinking tea after the meal――What I discussed with Malta-san was mainly about supply lines.
With my CP at the bottom of the line, I can’t go on expeditions while relying only on non-elemental magic stones that can be collected from magic beasts and demi-humans. There are also magic stones imported from the Filtonia Islands Alliance, but I don’t know what will happen to the abandoned labyrinth island where the runaway stampede is repeated.
Emergency escape route, supplies such as magic stones and food, emergency response for Prince Khan and Prince Ark who are staying in Amar, considering all of them, I will keep the fact that I personally own the transfer magic circle a secret.
A set of magic circles that I own――the transfer magic circle that connects the Zephanel mansion and the Royal Capital is planned to be left in the basement, but for the time being, the marines dispatched from the escort fleet will manage it.
For this reason, the installation location of the magic circle connected to the labyrinth island and Amar cannot be done at the Zephanel mansion.
So I asked Malta-san to prepare a place where I can freely transfer, and in addition to securing a supply line, it is also where I could report on the activities on the labyrinth island to Ashley and the others. This is to keep the marines unaware of the use of cellphones, and because Ashley is worried if a clear communication procedure is not established.
In this way, the conversation between the two of us continued until late at night, when Malta-san was picked up by the carriage from the shipping dock of Marida Company. The day of departure finally arrived.
