C134
"Never, no!
"Sniff!
I scolded the divine beast, but he just snorted.
"I'm fine.
The parrot that had fallen due to the divine beast's kick stood up and swaggered.
"More than that, I have a favor to ask of Viscountess Lucibiu. Could you give me the opportunity to study that child?
"What's wrong with our baby?
"Yes, please. I have personal desires, but it will definitely help in the development of magic.
"I know what you mean. But it's my precious baby.
I strengthened the arm holding the divine beast.
"I acknowledge his ability and brilliance, but I don't know if he's still a good person. I wouldn't mind if it were money or magic stones, but I can't entrust my baby to you.
"Yes, but the research is not particularly dangerous...!"
Kais was about to say something but quickly closed his mouth.
"Well, actually, he cares a lot about that child.
"Of course."
The divine beast looked at me with suspicious eyes, but I was not ashamed at all.
"I also understand the feelings of the viscountess."
The reason why his alter ego takes the form of a parrot.
The novel says that it arises from Kais's personality, where he hates humans but loves animals.
"I was impatient. I should have made the request after building enough trust with the viscountess...
Finally, the parrot spread a wing.
I smiled inside.
It was an excellent choice for him, who was hesitating, to show the divine beast as a final blow.
"I'll accept Viscountess Lucibiu's offer. Please take care of me in the future."
I touched the wing as if shaking hands.
"Please take care of me too."
With this, the eccentric inventor Kais became my collaborator.
After that, we discussed the future contract.
The parrot sitting on the portable fan brought by Kais's brother-in-law spoke as if he had no shame.
"In fact, there aren't many inventions that can be commercialized right now. Most items suitable for mass production were contracted with Princess Cassius. The contract period has not ended yet...
I opened my mouth as I took a sip of the new tea.
"But the Iver guild that manufactured and sold those artifacts went bankrupt."
"Yes, the princess said they plan to establish a new guild soon and sell it again."
It was as expected.
I remained lost in thought for a moment, savoring the taste of tea, and then asked the eccentric inventor.
"She only said that there aren't many" inventions worth commercializing. Doesn't that mean there's something else?"
"Oh yes. That's right. I have some inventions that are out of contract. These are mainly my early inventions."
"Let's start selling them first."
"By the way, does Viscountess Lucibiu also run a merchant group? I've never heard of it before."
"No, I don't. Instead, there is a guild that can replace me. It's called the Matima Merchant Guild."
"Matima? This is the first time I've heard of it."
"The main owner is Cecil Iver. It's a new place established by former members of the Iver guild."
The face of the eccentric inventor was colored with surprise.
"Aren't they Princess Cassius's people?"
"They used to be, but not anymore."
"What should I say? It's a bit awkward to say this, but..."
He continued speaking hesitantly.
"I know because I've worked with them for a long time, and they are good and competent people. However, when it comes to the princess, I would say they are too enthusiastic, and their words and actions deviate from common sense in many ways..."
"Haha, it's okay."
I patted the parrot on the shoulder with my finger.
"I know what you're worried about. Are you afraid they will betray me and pursue their former mistress?"
"Well, that's very likely."
"Don't worry. I know. Probably the least likely place in the world for them to betray me is the Matima guild."
"... Is that so?"
"It seems they also felt skeptical after being abandoned. This is a conclusion I reached after talking to several guild members, including Cecil."
These words were not intended to simply reassure Kais.
The people in Matima were once affected by Liena's blessing and were released, so compared to others, the probability of being blessed again was low.
I recalled my conversation with Cecil.
"Looking back, I think I was crazy. Lady Liena is definitely the benefactor who saved our business from bankruptcy. She was a very lovely person, so I personally liked her a lot."
She bit her lip and regretted.
"But that doesn't mean I should accept the illegal actions proposed by Elliot Rudd... At that time, I thought it didn't matter because it was for the miss, but now I don't understand why they would do such a thing and risk the guild."
Cecil had no hostility towards Liena like Roland or Isaac.
However, he regretted the past and promised not to make the same mistake again.
That was surveillance, the only means an ordinary person could use against blessings.
Therefore, entrusting Kais's invention to Cecil was the best course of action he could take for now.
"More than anything, the guild is less important."
My main goal was to stop the new business that Liena was currently planning, not to make money selling Kais's inventions.
With just becoming the owner of the Lucibiu mine, I was now rich enough to live my life.
"Kais."
With the intention of getting straight to the point, I called the wizard by his name.
"There is a new business you are planning with Liena, right? It's an innovative and large-scale project."
"How do you know that?"
"I also have an informant. But I want to hear it directly from your mouth."
"I wasn't trying to hide it. It's just that I don't like the princess's suggestion much..."
Kais revealed what had happened between him and Liena since the fall of Iver.
After finishing our talk, we left the leather workshop as the sun was setting.
The parrot that followed them to the front door waved its wings sadly at the divine beast.
"Goodbye! I will definitely come to see you someday!"
Although the divine beast completely ignored him, he still followed our steps.
"Just a moment! Before you go, could you at least tell me the child's name?"
"His name?"
"Yes! Shouldn't there be another name besides the baby's?"
... I don't have one. However, he couldn't say that he hadn't given a name to the one who said he valued the divine beast so much.
"I guess I should have gone ahead with that name back then."
I felt that calling him divine beast every time was not affectionate, so I tried to give him a name before.
"Because he's furry, how about Furry?"
"... Mistress, are you serious?"
"No? Then, since he's chubby, how about Chubby?"
"This is the first time I've felt like breaking the master-servant contract."
But the divine beast was very demanding.
I came up with a new name on the spot, watching the thoughts of the divine beast.
The divine beast lives in the Lucibiu mine. It was there that I first met the divine beast. So...
"It's Lucy."
"Oh, what a cool name!"
"..."
The divine beast, who was once again in my bag, didn't say anything, but the fact that he didn't protest seemed enough to give him a new name.
From that moment on, the divine beast became known as Lucy.
"Vinetta, good job!"
"I didn't do much."
When I came out, Vinetta was waiting for Terence and me.
When I felt that I was far from the workshop, I looked at the two people in turn and said.
"The operation was a success!"
Thanks to the cooperation of the two, I was able to leave a positive (?) impression on the eccentric inventor.
"Thanks to both of you."
"No. Thanks to you, I was able to meet a talented person. I received this as a bonus."
Terence smiled and shook the bag he was carrying.
It was the bag that Kais gave us as a gift before we left.
It contained various useful inventions he had made, most of which had not yet been revealed to the world because they were not suitable for mass production.
"It seems like it could be quite useful."
I looked at the bag with happy eyes and led the two people to the main street.
"Well then. There's still plenty of time before the train, let's eat something delicious!"
But Vinetta suddenly reached out to me.
She said calmly as she took the bag containing the divine beast and walked back.
"I'm fine, so why don't you two spend some time alone?"
"What Vinetta said is correct. Isn't there an important schedule left?"
I had the idea that Terence was talking about an important program.
"Are you talking about... the date? I didn't forget."
I gathered courage and grabbed Terence's arm.
"I heard there's a beautiful lake around here. Would you like to go see it together after eating?"
"A lake?"
"We can get there in about 20 minutes on foot and return at our own pace before the train leaves."
Terence seemed a little surprised.
"You know a lot."
"Because I did my research. For the date."
At those words, a smile appeared on his face that would surely be more beautiful than the lake he had never seen.
"With pleasure."
------------------------------
Two days later, in Mikhail's palace.
"What?!"
Liena, who had just been calmly getting ready in her residence, shouted loudly.
"What are you talking about?! Kais!"
Despite Liena's urgent attitude, the parrot that landed on the window remained calm.
"I don't think you heard me, Princess Liena Cassius."
It was a very stern voice.
"I said I wouldn't do any more business with you. Furthermore, I reject the offer you made before."