The familiar vibrations.
At this, Charlotte and Julia’s faces brightened with joy.
“Dirt-Dirt!”
You’ve returned, Dirt-Dirt!
Charlotte and Julia looked up at Aslan as if asking for permission. When Aslan nodded, the two immediately ran outside without hesitation.
Thud-thud-thud.
What Charlotte saw when she ran outside was nothing but a clear, cloudless sky.
Huh, that’s strange?
The sound should have been heard around here.
But Julia quickly discovered the source of the vibrations and smiled.
“Where did Dirt-Dirt go?”
“Right in front of Charlotte!”
“Oh! Dirt-Dirt…!”
Swoosh!
A huge, brown body began to materialize from the empty air. As soon as the insignificant-looking Dirt-Dirt appeared, Charlotte ran up and hugged Dirt-Dirt tightly.
“Where have you been? We searched for you everywhere!”
[I was delayed because I had to deal with the monster lair thoroughly. It took longer than expected.]
“Really? Then monsters won’t appear again, right? Good job, Dirt-Dirt!”
[Kyaaa! I didn’t do it to be praised by you!]
Swoosh!
In an instant, Dirt-Dirt’s massive body wavered and turned transparent, completely disappearing from view.
Charlotte’s eyes widened in surprise.
Where did it go!?
“Dirt-Dirt disappeared again…!”
[Kya-ha-ha! I am now a body that has transcended once more! Moving freely between spirit and physical form is nothing!]
“Do you want me to tell you where it is?”
“No! I think I know where it is!”
Charlotte, refusing Julia’s help, closed her eyes tightly.
Not with her eyes, but with her heart. I
f she could borrow the power of the memories she shared with Dirt-Dirt…!
“I found it!”
[Kyaaa!? How do you know my location!?]
Jumping swiftly, Charlotte leaped to where Dirt-Dirt’s spirit form was located.
Not only that, but Charlotte’s hand was gripping the spirit form, which should have been intangible.
Dirt-Dirt’s face showed a look of confusion.
How is this kid seeing and touching the spirit form?
This is a spirit master ability, not a mere mortal’s…!
‘Oh. It seems Charlotte is starting to awaken other aspects of being a Sword Master.’
Sylvia’s eyes narrowed as she observed this.
The ability to handle Aura is not the only defining feature of a Sword Master.
Aura is just one of the characteristics of a Sword Master.
Another characteristic of the Sword Master, called the Realm of the Demigod.
Although limited, it has the ability to see spirits.
Of course, they cannot see the distinct forms like a necromancer or spirit master, but even recognizing the existence and size of spirit forms can help avoid trouble with great spirits or vengeful spirits.
A Sword Master is someone who has reached a level where they can evade disasters that are otherwise impossible to avoid in the realm of humans.
‘Perhaps, I should learn from Charlotte…’
At first, Aura.
Then, the ability to see spirits.
Charlotte is increasingly acquiring the traits of a Sword Master.
Maybe she needs to learn how to advance to the Sword Master level from Charlotte.
Sylvia found herself seriously contemplating this.
“Did you come back because you felt lonely being alone?”
[Lonely…! Damned, disobedient little child! How could the Great Spirit of Earth that has accumulated power for 1,000 years be swayed by feelings like loneliness!]
“Huh? Wasn’t it to play with me again?”
[Absolutely not! I played for a moment, and you’re not understanding your place!]
“Then why did you come back…?”
[Did you forget our promise? Didn’t we agree on donuts? The kind with lots of sugar cream! I came back to eat that!]
“Huh? Did we?”
[Kyaaa! Damned brat!!!]
Did they make such a promise?
Julia tilted her head in confusion.
Charlotte also recalled that day and quickly gave up.
Besides the memory of swinging the Super Super Strong Sword incessantly, she had nothing else from that day.
Oh, there was one more thing.
She remembered sneaking a peek at the unconscious Mister’s chest.
Julia was asleep then, so she had no idea about it…
[Kyaaa! Make the donuts! Right now! Otherwise, I’ll cause a ruckus!]
“What should we do, Charlotte? I don’t know how to make donuts…”
“Then why did you promise to make them?”
“I don’t know. Maybe I just said something at that time?”
Wow. What a troublemaker.
Charlotte’s mouth dropped open.
To immediately put Dirt-Dirt to work, a promise was made that couldn’t be kept.
Julia seems to be getting more like Mister every day…
[What are you two whispering about!]
“Well, it can’t be helped. We’ll have to ask the maids for help!”
“Maids’ chance…!”
Even if it was a false promise at first, as long as the promise is kept in some form, it’s good enough, right?
Julia and Charlotte nodded to each other and quickly headed towards the kitchen.
***
“Master, shall I bring your meal to the office?”
“No, today I’ll have dinner in the dining room with the children.”
“But… Charlotte and Julia said they weren’t hungry and won’t eat…”
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ is heartbroken and distressed.]
Indeed. They must be full after all those snacks earlier.
Plus, with Dirt-Dirt back, they’d be too distracted playing to think about food.
If they get hungry from running around, they’ll look for snacks again.
“Alright. Deliver the meal to the office.”
“Yes, I’ll do as instructed.”
The maid’s behavior seemed strangely unnatural.
When I sent a suspicious glance her way, she sweat nervously and left hurriedly.
Ignoring Kali’s loud complaints about the children not eating and catching up on some work in the office, I ate the delivered meal.
Feeling sluggish and restless, I thought of checking on the children.
‘I’ll go see what they’re up to.’
As I stepped out of the office to confirm if they were playing well, a maid standing in the hallway suddenly looked alarmed and began pretending to clean the floor.
“Oh, Master! Where are you going?”
“I’m going to see what the children are doing.”
“Ah! Wait a moment. There are some documents that require your urgent approval.”
“Documents?”
That couldn’t be right.
If it were urgent, Sylvia would have already handled it all.
Was there something Sylvia missed?
I took the envelope handed by the maid and returned to the office.
“…These are documents that have already been processed. Approving this would result in duplicate processing.”
“Ah! Is that so? I’m sorry! I must have misunderstood…!”
“Dispose of these documents by shredding them.”
“Ah…”
The maid, fidgeting like a puppy needing to go out, looked at me anxiously.
What’s going on?
It feels like they’re trying to delay me deliberately.
Ignoring the suspicious behavior, I left the office.
I planned to check the garden to see if they were playing there, but…
“I’m sorry, Master! This area is being washed with water. It seems difficult to pass through!”
“…Who washes the floor so thoroughly with water?”
“Today is a major cleaning day. Hehe. Sorry!”
“…”
The entire hallway was suddenly filled with soapy water, making it impassable.
“Ah, Master! This staircase is under inspection. It’s dangerous, so please use another staircase.”
“…”
Suddenly, perfectly fine stairs were being inspected.
“Hehe. Master, I’m sorry. This door’s locking mechanism seems to be broken and won’t open.”
“…”
Now even the doors were broken, and everything was in chaos.
How could so many problems occur simultaneously in the mansion in just one day?
I quickly realized what was going on.
These guys must have caused some kind of accident.
‘Did they cause an accident and are trying to clean it up before I find out?’
It’s clearly intentional obstruction.
They are desperately trying to prevent me from getting from the office to the first floor by any means.
I could force my way through, but that would lead to significant resistance.
There’s a better solution.
“Sylvia.”
“You called, Master?”
“Carry me and jump out the window.”
“…Are you serious?”
“I am always serious.”
“Very well.”
With an expression that seemed to question if I had finally lost my mind, Silvia sighed and lifted me onto her back.
Then, with a leap, she jumped out the window and landed lightly on the first floor.
The maids were startled, their eyes wide.
They hurriedly moved to some location upon seeing me reach the first floor in an instant.
Thanks to this, I discovered where they were hiding something.
The kitchen, perhaps.
What kind of accident could they have caused in the kitchen?
Oh no, could it be a fire?
“Sylvia. To the kitchen. Hurry.”
“Please don’t pull my hair like you handle words…”
I gritted my teeth and urged Silvia onward.
Thud-thud-thud.
Sylvia sprinted ahead, overtaking even the maids who had left before us, and arrived at the kitchen.
I, out of breath, followed and got off Silvia’s back once we reached the kitchen, stepping inside calmly.
“Everyone, stop what you’re doing.”
“Eep!?”
“M-Master!?”
The startled maids froze in place. It was odd.
There were more people in the kitchen than usual, and it wasn’t even mealtime.
Just maids, without the head chef? Were they making snacks?
Something felt off.
Then, a cute voice came from the cooking area.
“It’s done…!”
“It’s ready, Charlotte!”
Charlotte and Julia appeared, carrying a tray full of donuts topped with sugar cream.
Their faces were smeared with powdered sugar and syrup.
When they met my gaze, their expressions stiffened, and they stopped in their tracks.
“M-Mister…”
“Aslan…”
“Donuts? Ah, now that I think about it, I promised Dirt-Dirt that I’d make donuts. Did you make these yourself?”
“Yes…”
“Can I have one?”
“Oh, no! These are for Dirt-Dirt.”
“…”
Julia swiftly pushed the tray aside as I reached for it.
How cruel.
Couldn’t they spare at least one?
I wanted to taste the donuts made with their own hands.
I almost felt tears welling up.
‘Strange. It doesn’t seem like there’s any major accident.’
But why were the maids preventing me from entering the kitchen so persistently?
As I pondered, Charlotte and Julia hurried back to the kitchen and emerged again, each holding a plate.
“There’s a special one for you!”
“W-we made one for you too, Aslan…!”
Charlotte cheerfully presented a plate with donuts topped with confusing combinations of toppings.
Chocolate syrup, pistachio powder, peanut butter…
Julia’s plate, with a blush on her face, featured donuts decorated with a thin drizzle of syrup, resembling intricate floral designs.
The quality was on a whole different level compared to the rough sugar-coated donuts.
Given the effort that went into them, it must have taken a tremendous amount of time.
“I wanted to finish making them before you got off work and bring them to the office!”
“We were trying to surprise you, but it all went wrong. Why did you come to the kitchen…?”
The children looked disappointed. My heart ached with the pain of almost having my surprise spoiled.
I had no idea they were planning such a surprise…
Hiding my excitement, I maintained a serious expression and took the plates from the children, biting into a donut.
“It tastes really good.”
“Really!?”
“It’s a lie.”
“Huh? Huh? It can’t be bad?”
“This is the best donut I’ve ever had.”
It was sincere, not just flattery.
It was the best donut.
Not just the taste, but also the expressions of joy on the children’s faces as they watched my reaction.
.
.
.
As evening approached and the sun began to set.
Dirt-Dirt sat quietly in the garden of the Vermont mansion.
[When will the donuts be done…?]
It seemed the kids who went to make the donuts had no intention of returning.
