I thought a strange guest came to the auberge, but I realized that it was Claire, whom I hadn’t seen in a long time.
Is she in some kind of cosplay?
She’s dressed like a foreigner and she even wears a veil on her face. But I can tell it was her because of her eyes and voice.
“Oh my, Claire-sama, welcome.”
Yep, Mary seems to know that it’s Claire too.
“What’s the matter, Claire?”
“…………”
Claire kept silent while trembling.
Maybe she needed to use the bathroom?
“Oi Rochelle! What’s going on!? You clearly said that no one would know that it was me, right?”
“Uh-, t-that’s ….…”
Is she her new maid?
Poor girl, she must be suffering a lot dealing with Claire’s whims.
“The powder room is over there. Go wash your hands first. I’ll get you a drink.”
“Hmph! Okay……”
Claire made an angry face and walked away. Mary and I looked at each other.
“I wonder what was that all about?”
“Well, I don’t know either.”
In the past, Claire often behaved in outlandish ways. And then it usually led to harassment towards me.
Is she up to something again today?
While I am pondering about this, Claire returned.
“What’s the matter? Do you have something you need from me?”
“Me? I need something from you!? There’s no way I have anything to do with you! Am I your lover or girlfriend Cedie? We are complete strangers you know!”
“Uhm, you are my niece though……”
“R-right……”
“If you have nothing to do here, why did you come here then?”
“T-that’s ….…”
Claire hesitated for a moment, but she then replied confidently,
“Cedie, I’ve come to supervise you to make sure you are not living an embarrassing life especially since you are a member of the Dantes family.”
“But Claire, why do you have to supervise me?”
“I-, I’m the eldest daughter of the main family. It’s only natural for me to take care of my uncle who is unreliable!”
What a confusing logic it is.
“As Baron Dantes, I’m no longer linked to the main family you know. Besides, Claire, you don’t have the right to tell me what to do.”
“Oh, stop it. Just hurry up and show me around the island! First off, let me check that famous melon soft-serve ice cream. Then I have to supervise the beach, then the hot springs. And, oh yes…. I have to oversee that magic train thing.”
I see, so Claire came to Gandalcia to play.
I wish she could just say that honestly.
“Okay. You want to try the melon soft-serve ice cream first, right? Just sit and wait for me here then. I’m going to bring it to you.”
The melon soft-serve ice cream is so popular that it always sells out after noon. If I grow melons in large quantities, the supply will increase, but the reality is that I can’t afford to do so. The Auberge doesn’t have enough manpower after all. Besides, I’m not that interested in making a huge profit, so I think it’s best to maintain the status quo.
“Sorry to keep you waiting. Here, your melon soft-serve ice cream.”
“Wow…… (Ehem).”
Claire cleared her throat to muffle her exclamation. She then starts to eat the melon soft-serve ice cream.
“…………”
She’s eating it so intently and she looked quite satisfied with it.
The portion is a bit large, but since the melons I grow are special, they are so delicious that anyone can eat half of it in one go. It was the same for Claire, who ate it all clean.
“Mm. Just so-so……”
“Come on. You finished it all and you are only saying something like that?”
“S-shut up! Now, let’s go to the beach next!”
“Yes, yes. Follow me then.”
I walked to the beach with Claire.
“The roads here are all paved with cobblestones huh.”
“Not all of them are well-maintained, but most of the main roads are like this. There are streetlights, so it’s nice to take a walk at night.”
“Mm~……”
I thought she is going to say something sarcastic again, but Claire did not say anything else, she just followed me in silence.
“By the way, did you bring a bathing suit?”
“Of course. I came to the beach to play.”
I knew it. She came here to play……
She has completely forgotten what it means to be a supervisor.
Hmm, it’s things like this that make it hard to hate her.
I did not like her in the first place though……
“You can use the beach house to change your clothes. I’m off now.”
“Hey! What do you mean by that?”
“I’m busy with a lot of things.”
“No! Escort me properly!”
There it is.
Claire has this kind of selfishness.
“Aren’t you embarrassed to say something so incomprehensible?”
“Shut up! Shut up! What’s wrong with accompanying me!? I mean, you and Eugenie hang out together all the time. So why don’t you play with me!?”
“That’s….…”
“Cedie is always like that. You only give preferential treatment to Eugenie!”
“That’s not true.”
I don’t mean to have favoritism. But I can’t help it. Eugenie is kind and gentle. She’s my best friend too.
“What are you busy with anyway?”
“There’s an apple harvest today.”
“You’re the lord here right? Cedie will also do such menial thing?”
Claire’s eyes widened in surprise.
Well yeah, it’s indeed hard to believe that a noble, especially a nobleman with a title, would do such a thing.
“That’s just how it is here. There’s nothing strange about it. Whether as the lord or a baron, I’m having fun harvesting things.”
“Then I’ll do it too.”
“Huh?”
“I said, I’m going to harvest apples too.”
“Does that mean you’re going to help me?”
“Yes! Why, is that bad!?”
“Uh-, it’s not bad, but can you really do it, Claire?”
“Don’t look down on me! Besides, isn’t this the kind of island it is?”
“Ah?”
“It’s not strange that the daughter of an Earl picks apples in Gandalcia. Cedie said something like that, right?”
I never thought Claire would offer to help.
“Uh-, t-then, I’m grateful for your help.”
“Hmph! Go on, lead the way!”
We got on the wagon pulled by Lucio and headed towards the place where the apple trees were.
“Are you happy about something?”
“Why do you ask me that?”
“Well…. it’s because you’ve been grinning every now and then….…”
“That’s not true at all! Is there something wrong with your eyes or something?”
Uh-, she looked very angry right now.
Perhaps…. is she emotionally unstable?
I thought Claire would give up halfway through, but she helped me harvest the apples until the end. In fact, she seemed to enjoy this new experience very much. It’s rare for an Earl’s daughter to climb a stepladder, after all.
Well, that’s fine, but I’m starting to get a little worried about Claire. I mean, she is grinning one moment and then angry the next moment.
Maybe I should get a proper doctor to check her out?
I’d prefer not to have any contact with her if possible, but if I get the chance, I’ll talk to Alexei-oniisan about it.
Since the harvest was over, I asked Claire to wash off her sweat in the hot springs. She seemed to like the shampoo and conditioner that smelled good. Both of these things don’t exist in this world.
She asked me to send her the whole bottle, but I refused. In this way, she looks exactly like Alexei-oniisan.
Even if I give her a bottle of shampoo and conditioner, these are items that I got using points. Once she leaves the island, they will disappear.
She was complaining about it, but when I told her that she could come to the hot springs again, she turned bright red and fell silent.
Well, I think she was convinced.
Next, we went to try the Magic Train. After three round-trip rides on the Magic Train, Claire finally began to prepare for her return trip to the mansion.
“Ahem, it looks like a decent island.”
“Oh, thank you.”
It’s rare for Claire to compliment me.
“I’ll come back to see you again, so don’t let your guard down and keep developing your territory.”
“How bossy.”
“S-shut up! I’m not bossy! Next time I’ll stay, make sure you prepare a room for me!”
Leaving such parting words, Claire left with a snort.
✲✲✲
In the carriage back to Dantes Mansion, Claire is grinning widely. She didn’t have to hide her face anymore.
Claire is overwhelmed with joy as she remembers her day in Gandalcia.
(Really, I’ve never had such a fun date!
The sweets were delicious, and it was the first time we had worked together.
I was scared of heights, but I was thrilled in a different way because Cedie supported me…….
I even boldly declared that I would stay next time.
But, was that okay?
I already put it into words so I can’t turn back.
Ufufufu…… a sleepover huh.
Oh, that sounds cool!)
“Kufu…… Kufufufu……”
Claire’s creepy laugh frightened the maid, Rochelle, so much that it sent chills down her spine.
This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com.
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