Chapter 76 - Episode 75: The Arqvist Territory Women's Association ②
"Rosetta... did you even have that many points of contact with Pence-san to begin with?"
"Rosetta-san is a maid at Lord Noein's mansion, right? It's true that there probably aren't many opportunities to speak with the Vice-Captain of the retainers, Pence-san, but..."
Hearing the story that Rosetta was in love with Pence, not only Mai, but Anna and Michelle also looked surprised.
"That story sounds interesting; please let me in on this too."
The one who joined the circle of conversation was Radley's wife, Gina. With this, the wives of the primary retainers of the Arqvist territory were all gathered.
"Gina, is this the first time you've heard this too?"
"Yes, my husband has been lamenting and worrying that Pence-san has far too little luck with women. As someone who has been told that, it's a very intriguing story."
"I see... then, let's have her tell us the truth."
Mai said this while looking at Rosetta. Anna, Michelle, Gina, and all the maids looked at Rosetta. Their eyes were filled with anticipation for what kind of love story they would be told, and an atmosphere more suited to a girls' night out than a Women's Association drifted through the air.
"I-if you look at me like that, I'll get embarrassed~"
While laughing with a red face, Rosetta began to tell the story of how she fell in love with Pence.
"U-um~, I accompanied Lord Noein on his diplomatic mission at the end of the year, didn't I~? At that time, there was a day when both I and the retainers were given a holiday, and because it would be dangerous for me to walk alone in a city I didn't know, Pence-san accompanied me for the day~"
"Eh, so you mean you went shopping and ate meals just the two of you?"
"Isn't that already a date!"
Anna and Mai became excited all at once. While Michelle and Gina didn't tease her, their faces were faintly red, perhaps as they imagined the scene of Rosetta and Pence walking through the city together.
"I-it wasn't something that romantic~. Pence-san had an atmosphere of strictly being my chaperone... but, he subtly looked after me so that I could enjoy sightseeing in the city, and even though he surely had no interest in the shops I visited, he followed me without a single complaint..."
As she spoke, Rosetta's face was helplessly grinning.
"I see... Pence-san's dexterity worked well in the direction of being considerate so as not to interfere with Rosetta-chan's sightseeing."
"Pence-san seems good at reading the room, too."
"That man has the feel of a perpetual middle-manager..."
Gina nodded as if convinced, and both Anna and Mai agreed.
"Since then, Rosetta has been head over heels for Pence-san's mature charm!"
"Every time she opens her mouth, it's nothing but talk of Pence-san; honestly, it's almost a bit tedious."
As Mary and Kimberly exposed the current situation, Rosetta's already grinning expression collapsed.
"Even so, to make a girl more than ten years his junior fall for him, Pence-san is quite sinful..."
As long as one had passed the adult age of fifteen, any age-gap marriage did not violate the customary laws of the kingdom.
However, it was generally common to marry a partner within about ten years of one's own age, and it was rare for a man nearly thirty who had remained unmarried to enter such a relationship with a girl who had just become an adult.
"B-but, even so... I-I've fallen for him~!"
As Rosetta declared this with a sweet and sour scream, everyone there felt their hearts pierced by her sheer, single-minded cuteness.
"...If that's the case, let's all give Rosetta our full support!"
"Yes, Pence-san surely won't have another opportunity to meet a girl as good as Rosetta-chan!"
"I'll do some groundwork with my husband so the two of them can get closer!"
"T-then I'll ask Bart-san for his cooperation too!"
"We will too! Whenever Pence-san comes to the mansion for work, we'll always have Rosetta handle him!"
"...I will help, provided it doesn't interfere with work."
The romance discussion that had started casually ended up creating such a powerful bond, centered around Rosetta's love.
.....
From noble banquets to village feasts, what always occurs at any banquet is the person who cannot join any circle of conversation—in other words, the loner.
Even in the square of the capital city Noeina, where the dinner party was heating up in a friendly atmosphere, there were those who couldn't quite join in that air.
"...I can't fit in."
"Ehehe, we hardly have any opportunities to interact with the women of the territory, after all."
The ones exchanging this regrettable conversation were Noein's slaves, Matilda and Christy.
Matilda, who is usually stuck to Noein's side, and Christy, who does nothing but work and hardly ever leaves the mansion grounds, both occupy somewhat special positions within the territory. For that reason, they didn't know what to talk about with the women of the citizenry.
"In the first place, I didn't particularly want to participate in this gathering. And yet, I was brought here half-forcibly by Mai."
"I was sent out by Lord Noein, told to stretch my wings for once instead of doing nothing but work..."
Matilda is Noein's partner both publicly and privately, but conversely, if she is not always by Noein's side, she easily loses sight of her own identity.
Christy, who currently finds the meaning of her existence in her work, suddenly becomes bewildered when she is separated from that work.
Because both of them exhibit extreme ways of living, they were unable to handle this kind of irregular event.
"Ah, you two were here. What's this, shrinking away even though it's a precious dinner party?"
The rescue boat that arrived there was Mai. When Matilda and Christy turned toward the voice, there stood the wives of the retainers led by Mai, and the three maid girls. For some reason, Rosetta's face was bright red.
"Mai... I am not used to these kinds of settings. Without Lord Noein by my side, I have no idea how I should behave."
"You love Lord Noein as much as ever... though that is your greatest strength. Fine, then why don't you let us hear some lovey-dovey stories about Lord Noein? Christy, you want to hear too, right?"
"Eh... t-true, that is a bit intriguing."
Christy, who was suddenly put on the spot by Mai, showed curiosity after her initial agitation.
"I only know Lord Noein's face as a lord, so..."
"Lord Noein and Matilda-san's natural expressions..."
"I'm very curious..."
The retainers' wives were also full of interest.
"No, I cannot simply tell such stories."
"It's fine as long as it's within the range you can talk about. You're always so composed, but what about when you're alone with Lord Noein? Do you act spoiled?"
"That is... rather, it's more that I have Lord Noein act spoiled and I heal him... no, therefore, for me to speak of such things is—"
Swept away by the atmosphere of the place, Matilda accidentally let it slip. She shook her head after saying it, but it was already too late.
"Heh..."
"Lord Noein acts spoiled..."
"A-as I thought, all men are spoiled..."
While the retainers' wives became excited, the maids remained calm.
"We see those kinds of scenes quite often!"
"There are many times when Lord Noein relaxes in the living room or the dining room."
"Even during the recent diplomatic mission, Matilda-san was giving Lord Noein a lap pillow inside the carriage~"
"I see, when working as a maid, you see those kinds of scenes too..."
Mai nodded, as if convinced of something.
"And! When checking the locks while patrolling the mansion before going to bed at night, from Lord Noein's bedroom, a mogo—"
"Mary, don't get carried away."
"That's a bit too vivid~"
Kimberly and Rosetta both blocked Mary's mouth together, but it was just barely too late. The others could already guess what she was trying to say.
When they timidly looked at Matilda,
"..."
Matilda looked off in a random direction and silently drank from her cup. Whether her cheeks were slightly red because of the alcohol, the cold, or embarrassment.
In this way, the first event of the Arqvist Territory Women's Association shortened the distance between the women of the territory and deepened their friendship through candid chatting.