At Haku-san's Villa

After the audience was over, Rokuko and I were summoned to Haku-san's villa.

To be precise, our entire party had been invited, but since it was too intimidating for most, only I as the newly appointed Baron and Rokuko as my partner went as representatives.

When Sally-san properly explained to the others that "officially you're all invited, but given the circumstances, please decline," everyone naturally nodded. Only Niku seemed reluctant about it.

… I wanted to decline too, but I was called by name. There was no way I could just not go.

And so, that's how we came to [White Villa], Haku-san's residence, for the first time in a while.

We were greeted by the male-dressing butler succubus Chloe and shown inside.

Before long we were having a tea party in the courtyard… I'm glad there's actually a seat for me too.

"I finally got to invite you to my villa."

"Haku-neesama, it's been far too long."

"Yes, I'm happy to see you too, Rokuko-chan. And you too, Kehma-san."

"Yeah… so, I'd like to ask something right away."

What could it be? Haku-san raised the corners of her mouth.

"… How much does His Majesty the Emperor know?"

"That's what you wanted to ask? Let's see… I've told that child that I'm a Dungeon Core. And that this imperial capital is territory under my control."

Huh? Maybe I was reading too much into things. I thought she'd given him even less information than that.

"However, as you suspected, Kehma-san, I haven't told him about Dungeon Masters."

"… I see."

"Of course not. That child isn't a Master, so there's no benefit in telling him."

"Oh? So that means Haku-neesama wanted to hide Kehma from the Emperor."

When Rokuko quietly said that, Haku-san's eyes widened in surprise.

I was surprised too.

"I mean, it makes sense, right? You introduced me as your younger sister, but you didn't say anything in particular about Kehma. That was a move to focus attention on me and divert it away from him, right?"

"… … … Did Kehma-san put you up to this?"

"No, he didn't! H-Hey, Rokuko, did you eat something weird?"

"How rude, Kehma."

Rokuko turned away with a sulk.

But now that she put it that way, I could see it was indeed the case.

I figured she didn't want me to say anything unnecessary. But I never imagined the goal was to hide my existence specifically.

"… You've grown up, Rokuko-chan."

"Well, I've been thinking about a lot of things."

"I never expected Rokuko-chan to see through it… Yes, as Kehma-san probably understood too, you're correct. I wanted to keep Kehma-san's presence hidden as much as possible."

And Haku-san admitted it readily.

Sorry, I didn't actually get that far.

"The existence of Dungeon Masters is the most critical secret of our dungeons. It absolutely cannot be revealed to any human who isn't a Master… And yet, Kehma-san, do you realize just how much attention you've been drawing? For someone who claims he doesn't want to stand out."

With black hair and black eyes, I clearly have the bloodline of a hero.

And that person had been successfully pioneering the frontier, was the founder of a new religion tolerated by the White Goddess Faith, and on top of that, a dragon-slaying hero… Apparently there had been talk of treating me on par with a hero, making me an S-Rank adventurer, granting me the rank of Count, and even holding a parade.

But Haku-san had crushed all of that with everything she had. Thank you…!

"And by telling the Emperor that I'm your sister, you created a way to squash all the parade talk without it seeming strange. Using the excuse that you didn't want my presence beside Kehma to draw attention?"

"Don't say such mean things, Rokuko-chan. The main reason was that I didn't want Rokuko-chan exposed to the public eye, okay?"

"Really, Ane-sama?"

"Really. Here, have a berry tart? It's delicious."

Haku-san presented a tart to Rokuko with an "aah," and Rokuko, still a bit sulky, took a bite.

… What is happening. Rokuko is leading Haku-san around by the nose… what…?

Hasn't Rokuko already surpassed me?

Oh, but I did notice one thing.

"… It's not because it's easier to eliminate me when I'm not in the spotlight… right?"

"Oh my, ufufu."

She's not denying it. Scary, scary.

"… Ane-sama, you won't eliminate Kehma, right?"

"I won't. As long as Kehma-san knows his place."

"He's my partner. You can't, okay?"

"As long as he doesn't become my enemy, he'll be fine."

I personally think the definition of "Haku-san's enemy" is extremely debatable territory.

"By the way, Rokuko-chan. You're calling him 'partner' instead of 'master.' That's to hide the fact that he's your Master, right?"

"Eh? No, that's not it."

"I see."

Oh, does that fall under the definition of enemy? I just felt a chill down my spine… that's killing intent, isn't it?

Haku-san said nothing and took a sip of her tea.

"So, Kehma-san. What are your thoughts on all this?"

"… I have no intention of being hostile to you, Haku-san."

"I see. So I can take that to mean that, then?"

"Well, that's too broad for me to know what you mean, but… I won't do anything Rokuko wouldn't want."

I took a sip of my tea as well.

"… If Rokuko-chan wants it, well, I'll allow it, I suppose. I'll permit holding hands… no, hugging… … … As for anything beyond that— the young lady from the Tsuia family and that hopeless female knight don't seem to be up to snuff either. What shall we do about that?"

"… So those two were your doing after all."

"Whatever do you mean? I just received some reports about them… Oh, I know. How about I treat you to one of those kinds of shops? There are plenty in the capital."

Haku-san smiled.

"… Well, my primary drive is the desire for sleep. And Rokuko probably wouldn't want that. Right, Rokuko?"

"Kehma…! Hmm, for now let's hug. We have Haku-neesama's permission, so it's fine, right! By the way, what kind of shop is that? Can I go with Kehma too?"

We both choked at the same time, Haku-san and I.

If she's saying that on purpose, that's quite something. But judging by her face, she genuinely doesn't seem to understand.

"Kehma-san…"

"Wait, this isn't my fault!"

"… I see. It seems there are quite a few things I need to teach Rokuko-chan. Let's take a bath together later, and I'll teach you then."

"? Okaay."

Why does she need a bath to teach her… no, there's surely no deep reason. It's just a side thing, like she said.

I have no intention of antagonizing Haku-san, so I decided not to press further. Phew…

"But with this, I've finally… even if it's unofficial, I can openly treat Rokuko-chan as my younger sister."

Unofficial yet openly? What does that even mean?

Even if it's unofficial, won't the aristocrats find out anyway? What a fearsome unofficial darkness. Well, you can do a lot of things if it's unofficial. Like fan-made doujinshi.

"The Emperor probably doesn't think you're my real younger sister, though."

"Oh, really, Ane-sama?"

"Probably. He most likely sees you as someone I've taken a special interest in, rather than my actual younger sister. And in reality, every other Core is also my younger sibling, so that perception isn't exactly wrong…"

Come to think of it, since they were all born from the same Father, Ittetsu, Aidi, and the Three-Way Deadlock Trio would all be Haku-san's younger siblings too. Treating all of them like family the way humans do would be endless.

"Of course, you're the only one I treat as my younger sister, Rokuko-chan."

Haku-san said as she patted Rokuko on the head.

Rokuko's mood improved, and she showed a satisfied smile.

"Well, that's fine then. I can call myself Haku-neesama's younger sister now."

"That's right. It's unofficial, but the Emperor has acknowledged it. Use my name if you ever get into trouble, okay?"

"Yes, Ane-sama."

Watching the two of them happily chatting away, I drank the freshly brewed tea that the butler… Chloe-san had poured. The berry tarts really are delicious. Oh, could I take some as souvenirs? We have a hungry kid back home.

… Ahh, peace is wonderful…

"Oh, that's right. Kehma-san, I have a small favor to ask of you. You can refuse if you want, though?"

Peace really is wonderful. It's so hard to come by, which is exactly why I appreciate it… Sigh. That's basically an order, isn't it? There's no way I can refuse. Give me peace.