Brian, standing in front of the carriage, turned to look at Harty.
“Wouldn’t it be cramped for all four of us to ride in one carriage? Lord Turas is quite large, so let’s split into pairs.”
Britia and Sig can go first,” Brian suggested. Britia could sense that Brian was smiling brightly, even though she was squinting due to the effects of alcohol.
His intentions were clear.
“It’s okay. I like tight spaces.”
When Britia said that all four of them could ride together, Harty’s pale face brightened.
“I also prefer tight spaces.”
But no matter what, three people couldn’t sit side by side, so Harty had to sit next to Brian.
“Move over a bit. It’s cramped!”
“Why? You said you like tight spaces, didn’t you?”
Brian didn’t budge despite Harty’s protests. The more Harty grumbled, the more Brian’s tail wagged with delight.
“I’m looking forward to it. I wonder how excellent a collection that receives such high praise from people will be.”
While he was excited, Harty was on the verge of tears.
“I know that you’ve become afraid of carriages. I didn’t know you were this scared. But if that’s the case, it’s okay to hold onto my arm.”
“Why me?”
Harty glared nervously at Brian and clenched his fist. But soon, he started trembling. In the end, he grabbed onto Brian’s arm and tightly closed his eyes.
“Have you ever been to the North?”
Brian tried to keep his voice from sounding too excited, but there was a hint of excitement in his usual low tone.
“Not yet.”
“Then it will be your first time going after you get married.”
“Has the young lord ever visited the North?”
“A few years ago, I traveled to the North in the summer. It was cool and wonderful.”
Brian added that the painting he gave her as a gift was drawn by the artist who went with him at that time.
“I actually wanted to visit the purple mine, but I gave up because the road was treacherous. It’s a pity because the scenery is said to be magnificent.”
Britia looked up at Sig in silence.
“The road must be quite tough.”
“Going there is a bit cold, and there are some monsters, but other than that, the road is steep.”
“It sounds difficult.”
“If you go with me, it’ll be fine.”
“But I have to go with my own legs. If I say this, will you carry me again?”
“If you wish.”
Britia said with a yawn, suppressing her sleepiness. She was getting more intoxicated, and the carriage was shaking just enough to make her drowsy.
“Have you ever been to the purple mine in Devon street? You’re quite close to Devonshire, aren’t you, Lockhart?”
Brian asked if she had been invited. Britia fought off her drowsiness and regained her focus.
“Yes, I have been.”
“It must be magnificent, right? It’s fascinating to think that fluorspar continues to be mined without any signs of depletion.”
He seemed more interested in the production volume than the scenery.
“Devon street is truly remarkable. Of course, it must be challenging as well. Recently, it seems that a troublesome customer who contracted a significant amount of fluorspar is causing headaches.”
Brian briefly closed his eyes, glancing at Harty who was trembling and clinging to him. He couldn’t hear any sound due to his extreme fear.
“I can understand how you feel when you have to deal with customers who demand information and are rude and pushy.”
Despite saying it’s challenging, your tail is wagging so happily, Britia wanted to say to Brian.
“At first, they refused to accept the contract because the customer who owed fluorspar fees was causing trouble. But for some reason, they decided to pay everything in advance and demanded fluorspar earlier than the agreed-upon date.”
Brian turned his head towards Sig as he looked at Harty.
“Don’t you have any troublesome customers like that, Lord Turas?”
After thinking for a moment, Sig shook his head.
“Not really.”
“Well, it’s unlikely that anyone would dare make such demands to Duke Turas.”
He nodded, acknowledging that someone as influential as him couldn’t be easily swayed.
As they continued their conversation, they arrived at the Slanford Mansion. As soon as the carriage stopped, Harty jumped out and took a deep breath of the fresh air outside.
Harty took Brian to the room where he kept his collection. It wasn’t the most important room that he showed to Britia, but a room where he kept his more cherished items.
“If you look around, you’ll immediately know where Kyra is and get out of here.”
Harty confidently acted as if he had forgotten about his trembling fear.
“Could you please be quiet? I’m in the middle of appreciating.”
Brian glanced at Harty and focused on the painting. Britia and Sig stood a few steps away, admiring a painting of a riverside in spring.
“Britia, are you sleepy?”
Sig blinked and yawned, asking Britia, who was struggling to stifle a yawn. She felt a little embarrassed as she tried to yawn discreetly.
“I’m sorry. I think the alcohol is getting to me.”
“It’s okay to fall asleep if you’re tired.”
Britia smiled gently and spoke in a soft and soothing tone, but she kept her eyes focused.
“No, I can’t. Even if you’ve forgotten, I promised someone that I’d give them a deep kiss if I safely brought them here.”
Britia’s eyes sparkled mischievously as she glanced at Sig.
“But is it okay if you just fall asleep?”
“…Then please bear with it for a little longer.”
“Tease.”
Britia teased, giggling, but Sig didn’t object.
“Why not? Why aren’t you objecting? Were you really thinking mischievous thoughts?”
“…The painting is splendid. It feels like I’m looking at my brother’s collection.”
“Are you changing the subject?”
Surprised, Britia grabbed Sig’s arm with her mouth wide open. She suddenly moved her body, feeling dizzy for a moment, and her vision blurred.
Sig caught Britia as she was about to collapse. In his arms, Britia fell into a deep sleep, unaware of the world.
“Lord Slanford, it seems like we should be heading back.”
Sig carried Britia in his arms and left without waiting for a response.
“Brian Raiders!”
Harty shouted. Brian raised his hands with a gloomy face.
“Is it something you did?”
Even if he was drunk, it was hard to believe that someone who was laughing and talking could suddenly lose consciousness and fall asleep. Harty grabbed him by the collar, convinced that Brian was responsible.
“What did you do?”
“Hey, can you stop suspecting me every time something happens?!”
Brian expressed his indignation, but he didn’t actively explain himself.
Following Sig, who was heading towards the carriage, the butler sighed.
“Lady, it seems like you have a low tolerance for alcohol. It will be a big problem during the wedding feast.”
In the northern region, there was a tradition where the bride and groom had to drink all the alcohol given by the guests on their wedding day.
“I’m afraid your nose will be crooked from the first night of your wedding. Well, if the Duke drinks it all for you, it should be fine.”
The butler chuckled, excited at the thought of bringing him a whole bottle of alcohol.
“I’m naturally not good at it, but this time, the drink had sleeping pills in it.”
The butler’s laughter subsided. He asked Sig if he had drunk the drink given by the waiter, according to the note that the waiter had given. The note said that the drink had been successfully drugged.
“The lady said she didn’t drink that drink.”
The butler scolded, asking what had happened.
“She said she didn’t drink a whole glass. She did take a few sips, though.”
Is that what you call a few sips?
In response to Sig’s answer, the butler’s mouth dropped open.
“She didn’t drink a whole glass.”
“Yes. It’s all my fault. It was foolish of me to say it was a whole glass without asking about a few sips!”
The butler became visibly angry. Sig whispered to him, saying that Britia had woken up.
“I guess I should go back.”
Even though he was annoyed, the butler suppressed his voice.
“Just in case, I should call a doctor to Lockhart Manor.”
The vice commander muttered and urged Sig to quickly get on the carriage, making sure to carefully place Britia’s head on his lap so as not to wake her up.
The vice commander watched as he lightly tapped his thigh with his fingers.
“If it wasn’t Brian Raiders, then who could have done this?”
“What about Huate?”
“Evry already took care of it. The newly appointed Count Huate is not someone who can do something behind our backs while making a fuss here.”
The vice commander raised his head, indicating that even the people he had used couldn’t take over the position all of a sudden.
“I heard that there is an exceptional magician in the Robley area.”
“There was a magician who served in Robley for a long time and was considered outstanding, but since he went to the other side a few years ago, there haven’t been any noticeable mages.”
There are five apprentices of the sorcerer, but their ranks are just average, the vice commander replied.
Sig smiled slightly as he looked down at the sleeping Britia, lost in thought.
“Didn’t Camelon show signs of gathering magicians before?”
“It seems they demanded it at the Magic tower, but there haven’t been any newly dispatched magicians.”
“Check again.”
“Is there something bothering you?”
As Sig gently stroked Britia’s cheek, she made a ticklish expression.
“They say Raiders is having trouble because of a customer demanding a large amount of flu in Devon.”
“…After making a fuss about it, now you’re saying you’ll look into it. I thought that person might know something as well.”
The vice commander pressed his temple and raised the corner of his mouth.
“I thought you would take more time to open your mouth in order to increase the value of the information.”
“It seems like there’s something pleasant for you too.”
“…Seems like the young lady feels the same way.”
The vice commander nodded, looking at the peacefully sleeping Britia with a content expression.
“It seems like she’s enjoying something delicious.”
“Mmm, so cozy…”
The vice commander thought nonchalantly, seeming unaffected.
For some reason, Sig felt a cold sweat on his back, as if Britia was biting his tail in her dream.
“If it were the Duke of Camelon, we wouldn’t be able to move until His Majesty the Emperor makes a decision on the successor.”
“The successor can only be His Highness my brother.”
“I wish I could say the same, but isn’t His Majesty the Emperor indecisive?”
At that moment, the carriage suddenly jerked to a halt. Voices of fools outside reassured them not to worry since the mad dog was asleep. Soon, the voices of the comrades called by the vice commander were also heard.
“They’ve arrived.”
“Handle it quietly, so Britia doesn’t wake up.”
“I know, got it!”
The vice commander grumbled that the situation had become quite unusual with the appearance of a woman.
Contrary to Sig’s worries, Britia slept soundly, undisturbed by the muffled sounds and screams coming from outside.
Britia dreamed of a world filled with tails. She jumped into the tails, caressed them to her heart’s content, and embraced them.
“This place feels truly dreamlike!”
Then, she spotted a familiar large, black tail.
“Sig!”
Although there was no sign of a person, Britia believed that if she grabbed that tail, she would meet Sig. She leaped towards the tail and grabbed it, and as expected, Sig turned to look at her.
“Sig!”
“Britia, do you remember our promise?”
Sig roughly grabbed her waist and approached her.
“You promised to give me a passionate kiss.”
“Uh, wait. Just a moment, Sig!”
Contrary to her words, Britia’s arms wrapped around Sig’s neck, preparing to accept him. Just as their lips were about to touch, a puff of smoke erupted, and Sig transformed into a dog.
Britia opened her eyes wide. To grasp the hazy situation, she blinked her eyes.
The world full of tails had disappeared, and her familiar and peaceful room greeted her with the morning sun.
“…What kind of dream was that?”
