Chapter 221: Chapter 205: Before the Departure 5

“Now, now, Grace. Stop playing around right about now. Trying to trouble Takumi wasn’t your intention, right?”

I was worried about how to deal with this situation, but Lionel-sama who was laughing out loud stopped it.

“Indeed. Pardon me, Takumi-san.”

Grace-sama who was chided by Lionel-sama apologized.

“Eh? So, you were joking in the end!?”

“No, I wasn’t.”

“She must have been thinking that if you had accepted, or something like that~”

“Indeed.”

I thought she was joking, but it seems that she was half-serious, after all.

“The comment about national interest from a little while wasn’t a lie... saying losing you or letting you get away was rude, wasn’t it? I personally am really fond of you, Takumi-san. In truth, I would really like to keep you in the Capital, but we wouldn’t be able to hold you back anyway. That’s why I thought about sending Alfried with you, so that you don’t forget about us.”

Grace-sama apologized once more.

“I was startled, but I didn’t mind it that much! Please raise your head already!”

I was taken aback just now, but apologizing to me again will make me flustered.

“Haah... not knowing just how serious Mother is, makes me frightened. Mother, let me tell you something. I would only be a burden to them if I tagged along.”

“Oh my, is that so? Alfriend, were you so incompetent?”

“...! It’s not me that is incompetent, it’s just the standard of Takumi and the children is way too high! I believe that the knights who know about Takumi are of the same opinion!”

The guards, Wald-sama, Isaac-san, Najack-sama, Kevin-sama, and Claudio-sama nodded with serious expressions.

“Oh my!”

Catching the sight of the knights, Grace-sama opened her eyes wide in amazement.

“That much?”

“That much. When we went to the dungeon together, they were matching my pace quite a lot, after all. Despite that, we arrived to our destination in an astonishingly short time. Moreover, haven’t you also heard the rumors about how they captured the entire Dungeon of Ripples in no time! Rather, didn’t I inform you of this when I returned from the dungeon before?”

“... Did you, I wonder? I have no recollection~”

As Al-sama said, I feel that the subject was changed at that time~ that was, erm... the first time I met Lionel-sama——Ah!

“Al-sama, Al-sama.”

“N? What is it, Takumi?”

“When you were talking about it, didn’t Grace-sama, umm... had a talk with Tristan-sama about the hidden alcohol in his office?”

“Ahh! That reminds me, Father got a scolding then!”

Just in case, I lowered my voice when talking about this, but Al-sama said it out loud.

That moment, Tristan-sama made a sour expression.

“Oh my, that time? Let’s see~ I recall overhearing some things, but I didn’t hear most of it. Sorry.”

Wouldn’t that be normal? I would be rather shocked if she heard all of our conversation properly while scolding another person.

“But, indeed. Takumi-san is an A-ranked adventurer. He must be strong. Takumi-san has this ‘I am not concerned with fights’ face, so I unconsciously forgot~”

“... I can’t deny that.”

It wasn’t only Al-sama nodding to Grace-sama’s words, as others were nodding in agreement.

... Well, I originally was physically weak, and virtually never use most of my strength when fighting, so it’s not wrong.

“In Takumi’s case, he does not concern himself with fighting and other matters unless the other party comes knocking, no?”

“Certainly. Couldn’t one say that he’s already used to it?”

“... Eh~ that much?”

Felix-sama agreed with Al-sama’s words and added to it.

I acknowledge that I get rolled up in various things, rather than incidents coming knocking, but I don’t want to say that I’m used to it already~

“Ha ha ha, you are used to it? So you are not only popular with people, but with incidents too, I see~”

Lionel-sama burst into laughter again.

Being popular with people is a good thing, but being popular with incidents... I wonder about that one?

“Well, it’s not a bad thing. It’s proof that you are cared for by many. I am one of those people, though! That being the case, Takumi. When you leave, be sure to contact us regularly... let see, at least once a month? I might have to contact you regarding the alcohol too.”

“Oh my, isn’t once a month the minimum? I would like to be contacted every time you find a place to stay for a while~”

Yep, they have decided on a periodical report without me~

But well, that much is fine with me. I just have to send a letter from the Adventurer’s Guild.

“There will be times we will be in the mountains, so please overlook a few days at times.”

“Fufu, we know.”

After that, the silly conversation with the royalty continued for a while, and Allen and Elena who were reading a picture book returned.

“”We are back!””

“Welcome back. What about Julius-sama?”

“It’s Ju-chan’s bed-time~”

“Ju-chan is sleeping~”

“......”

Julius-sama must have been satisfied with Allen and Elena’s reading as he apparently fell asleep.

That is good, but... what about the way Allen and Elena address Julius-sama? No... it’s fine, I guess?

Nobody seems to be rebuking them and are looking at the two warmly too~

“Thank you very much for your time today.”

“N? What, are you leaving already?”

“Yes, we will be leaving. Everyone here is a busy person, after all. It’s not like we can monopolize you all for ourselves.”

Allen and Elena returned too, so I decided to leave after thanking them for the hospitability and wishing them good health.

Ah, before leaving the castle, I made my way towards the kitchen to deliver the rice cooker magic tool. Then, we went to visit the McPhersons, Jake-san’s bakery and other places to say goodbye, and the farewell round was generally finished.