Chapter 232

Lampail Dog?
“Yes, here you go.”

Nikki handed mugs to the two of them, and to Pearl she served a plate of warmed milk.

“Thank you very much. … Hm? Huh? Is this…?”

“Hehe, you caught me? It’s Jo Company’s honey lemon. Ever since I came here and drank it at the company, it was sooo good that I buy it every day~”

“I see~ Thank you.”

“Oh? Why’s Joan the one saying thank you? Hehe, you’re a funny one. …So? What did you want to talk about?”

“Uh, it’s about me and my family…”

With that, I stood up from my chair.

“Allow me to properly introduce myself… I am Joan Lampail, eldest daughter of House Lampail.”

I greeted her with a graceful curtsy. But Nikki didn’t react, and when I cautiously raised my head, I found her staring at me with her mouth hanging open.

“Um, Nikki? Are you alright?”

“… Eh? Ah, s-sorry. My head just couldn’t keep up… So, you’re the lord’s daughter?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Then that ‘ogre mother’ I mentioned…”

“Uh, that would be Margaret Lampail, the lord’s wife.”

“Nooooo!!”

With that, Nikki clutched her head.

After a while…

“Have you calmed down?”

“Y-yeah. Sorry, I seem to have lost my composure for a bit.”

“No, I should apologize. When I’m working as an adventurer, I just go by Joan.”

“Ahh, I see. Just like the lord’s wife and the owner were saying— you really are quite out of the ordinary.”

“The owner?”

“Yes. Do you know Lady Goodman of the royal capital?”

“Lady Goodman… oh, from when we made the uniforms?”

“That’s right. I saw the design from that time, and it really surprised me. After all, for noble young ladies, long skirts are the standard, but yours was… what do you call it, a culotte? A pants style combined with a skirt so you could run and fight more easily. The owner came back and told us about it so excitedly.”

“Huh… was it really that unusual…?”

“Well, think about it—what kind of situation has a noble young lady running around and fighting at the academy? And now you’re even working as an adventurer? … Wait, does that mean Belle too?”

Belle also stood up.

“Uh, um… I-I… I am Belle Burst, eldest daughter of House Burst…”

“House Burst… That’s the territory known for its martial prowess, second only to Lampail’s, isn’t it?”

“Y-yes.”

“Then that outfit you’re wearing was made by the lord’s wife?”

“No, by a maid.”

“Huh? But you said ‘family,’ didn’t you?”

“Yes. The servants and the private guard are family too, right? We can live because everyone’s there.”

“… But even if you call them family, you don’t eat together, right?”

“Not every day, but we do eat together.”

“You do!?”

“Yes, we all eat outside together. Even yesterday, right?”

“Y-yeah. E-everyone ate together.”

“Huh!? But Belle, you’re a guest, right?”

“That’s exactly why. We host all together as a family.”

“… You’re even more unusual than I imagined. Don’t tell me that cute dog there is out of the ordinary too?”

“Ah—”

“What’s with that reaction? I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”

“… Pearl is my contracted beast—”

“Contracted beast!? Not a dog?”

“That’s right… Pearl?”

(Nice to meet you, I’m Pearl, Joan’s contracted beast. Not a dog, but a Fenrir.)

“Whaaa!? A Fenrir? And it talks!?”

Once again, Nikki clutched her head.

After another while…

“Sorry about that.”

“No, I should be the one apologizing. I never thought a Fenrir would be drinking the milk I served… Ahh, the world is full of surprises.”

“Ahaha…”

“Well, fine. I get the feeling I’ll never be bored here.”

“I’m glad to hear you like the Lampail domain. And it seems you’re fond of the Jo Company too.”

“That’s very diligent of you. Is it because you’re the lord’s daughter that you care about the shops in the capital?”

“Well, I do care about the shops, but… the Jo Company is my store.”

“Eh!? Yours, Joan? Then that honey lemon? The croquettes for snacking and the Lampail Dog too?”

“Lampail Dog?”

“You know, the thing with sausage inside a batter coating, deep-fried and topped with tomato sauce.”

Ahh, so Mother turned a corn dog into the ‘Lampail Dog.’ As expected of her.

“Ah, yes, that’s ours too.”

“A-amazing. I like you more and more. How about it? Would you entrust me with making the clothes you want?”

“Huh!? You, Nikki?”

“I feel like if it were you and me, we could make all kinds of clothes no one’s ever seen before. What do you say?”

“Uh… I think it’d be better to go through my mother for that. I can’t really decide that on my own…”

“Ah, you’re right. You’re still a student after all. Then I’ll go consult Lady Margaret next time.”

“Alright. I’ll tell Mother about it too.”

“I’m counting on you~”

Leaving Nikki’s shop, we returned to the mansion.

Mother was in the living room with the twins, so I reported about Nikki.

“My, that does sound interesting. In that case, we’ll have to speak with Nicholas sometime next week.”

“Nicholas? Who’s that?”

“Oh? Hehehe. We were just talking about them.”

“Hm? … Wait, you mean Nikki?”

“That’s right.”

So Nikki’s real name is Nicholas… That’s surprisingly masculine…

What do you think about this chapter?