That's Not Very Convincing!

"Fwaaah. I slept well… What time is it?"

I peeked outside the storage space — morning.

Nice weather. Perfect day to "raid" the lord… Though wouldn't rain be better for a raid?

"G-good morning, Onee-san."

"Huh? An angel… ah, no, Dea-kun."

Whoops, looks like I used the angel as a body pillow… Ack! I forgot to put away my handcrafted woodwork! Into a separate secret storage it goes before Dea sees. The vibrating gadget too. That can wait…!

"Anyway, you can't handle alcohol, Dea-kun. I'll buy juice next time."

"Uu… after saying all that, I passed out from a single sip… A-anyway, could you let go? I, um, the toilet… Where's the toilet…?"

"Ah. That jar. There's a slime in it — keeps it clean."

I pointed to the pot the Scavenger Slime called home. Dea tottered over, lifted the hem of the one-piece like he was gathering a skirt, and reached for his underwear… I averted my eyes. Staring while he did his business would be rude.

Until now it's only been me in here, but I should probably make a private stall if I'm going to host people.

Huh? Come to think of it, my Scavenger Slime isn't the unisex type. The unisex ones cost three times as much. But with Dea's cuteness… maybe it'd work anyway…!?

"Eep — p-please help, Onee-san…!"

"Ah — sorry, sorry. Guess even Dea's cuteness doesn't work on a Scavenger Slime."

The slime in the pot got mad and swatted Dea's butt. Though it tucked away the dirty parts and only touched him with a clean surface — surprisingly considerate.

… Hmm. Maybe there's a unisex one in the pirates' base or ship?

With that thought in mind, I rescued Dea using Spatial Magic. Thankfully his clothes stayed clean.

"Oh, right. I've got a job for you, Dea-kun."

"Yes! I'll do anything! What should I do?"

"Survey the inside of the ship and the base! Requisition anything useful!"

In other words, burglary! I'll have Dea carry his share of the loot!

An accomplice! I set up a gangway so he could board the ship.

"Understood! I'll do my best to help!"

"Good. I'm counting on you… Oh, and there might be better bedding than my blanket somewhere. Sorry about that, Dea — did it stink?"

"… U-um, it smelled… nice?"

He's trying to be considerate…! But saying that while looking away awkwardly isn't very convincing!

 

*

 

"Siesta. Where's the lord's manor?"

"How sudden, fellow Sister… That castle you can see there."

"Castle? Which?"

"You don't see those walls?"

"Ah, that fort-looking thing. So that's a castle. Blockier than I imagined. Thanks."

With that intel in hand, off to the lord's place!

I could use the Goddess's universal hypnotic pass and waltz in through the front, but this time I'll slip in from above. I need to find where the elf girl is, and using the pass over and over would be a hassle.

Well rested, mana topped up. I do want better bedding than just blankets, though.

I want Dea to have a proper sleep setup!

… Huh? The pirates' base and ship probably have better bedding than the blankets. I should've scavenged before sleeping… Dea, keep an eye out for that, will you?

"Now then, where's our elf…"

I teleported to the lord's manor, cloaked myself with optical camouflage, and slipped inside. Oh, maids. Borrowing a maid outfit for a disguise could be fun…

I quietly eavesdropped on the servants.

… Grilled fish for dinner tonight. Sounds tasty.

Training new recruits? Sounds rough.

Ordering in booze? I've got wine in stock — interested? Heh.

"Hey, have you found that elf yet?"

"Apologies. We're searching, but no new leads…"

Oh! Elf talk! A soldier and his captain, maybe. More, please!

"No progress, huh… Keep looking. Given who we're dealing with, don't stir things up. And even if you find them, no attacking."

"Sir!"

And that was that. Hmm. So the lord's people are looking for the elf too? Did Dea's sister escape?

While I snooped around the lord's home, I spotted a familiar face.

Maria-baachan! From the bathhouse!

She was dressed to the nines — looked noble. No, not just "looked" — she actually was noble, right? And the attendants were the bathhouse aunties.

So Maria-baachan was important? And the aunties were her ladies-in-waiting? I guess they'd visited the public bath incognito. No wonder they were so good at washing people — it was literally their job.

… Hmm. Judging by our bath time together, she didn't seem like a bad person. Hard to imagine she'd keep an elf as a pet. If she said, "An elf? Perfect pet material!" I'd be horrified. But I didn't think she would.

Right. I'll consult her secretly while hiding my identity!