Norris came to the inn in the Louth territory, accompanied by a maid beastie that Yuri had brought with her.

　Frankly, it is a remote ...... and previously abandoned village at that.

　As far as he was concerned, there was no chance of finding a good inn.

　Norris thought it was better that he did not have to stay in the fields.

 

　But that was until he was taken to a certain building by a maid.

"We've arrived."

"...... hmm?　Is this it?"

　It looks like a decent building.

　The building looks almost like a brand-new wooden house.

　However, from what Norris has heard, it has only been about a year since Yuri came to this territory.

　Indeed, Yuri Louth is heard to be quite well-liked by the overlords of other countries.

　As if to prove it, he had just met the Dukes of Ames of the Duchy of St. Ames.

　Moreover, the daughter of the Duke of Ames and Yuri seemed to be very close to each other.

　Could it be that the reason this territory has developed so much is because it has adopted the technology of other countries?

　Certainly, I can understand why he would feel threatened if he saw this.

　No, it was probably just a piece of papier-mâché with a tattered interior.

　However, without showing such feelings, he smiled at the maid.

"Thank you for taking the time to show me around."

"I hope you don't mind. Yuri asked me to show you around."

　The maid looks like she has a bunch of gaps, but upon closer inspection, she looks like a seasoned assassin with no gaps at all.......

　There's nothing but gaps.

　Even Norris could easily defeat her.

　It's no wonder she's only a maid.

"What's wrong?"

"No, it's nothing. Can you show me to my room?"

"I understand."

　The inn was like a typical tavern, and when Norris and the others entered, they caught the attention of the mercenaries who were having a drink.

　The mercenaries lost interest as soon as they saw the maid beastie, Fi at their side.

　That's just as well, because the fact that she brought them here means that she is a guest of Yuri, the lord of the house, nine times out of ten.

　He often has princesses from other countries by his side, and important people often come to him secretly.

　Norris was probably one of them, he surmised.

"Wanna bet?　I'll take one for surprise."

"Then I'll take two."

　The silver coins pile up on the mercenaries' table.

"If they're all the same, there's no bet!"

"It's unthinkable that they wouldn't be surprised in the first place."

　Mercenaries everywhere look alike.

　Norris puts a single gold coin on the mercenary's table without much concern for the situation.

'I'll bet against it. Now that would be a bet, wouldn't it?"

'...... sure?"

　Fi, the maid, asks worriedly.

"Of course it is. It's a small price to pay for the excitement."

　The mercenaries were even more excited because they had added the seed money, not expecting the bet to be on them.

　　　　　　　　　◇　◇　◇

Norris was shown to his room and was surprised when he entered.

　The room was small, as one would expect from a commoner's inn.

　The bed in the room looked like a luxury item for some reason.

　Touching the bed, he could understand it well.

　For such a remote inn, a thin blanket, which may or may not be available, would have been enough, but the bed was made of high-grade down, which could be recognized just by touching it.

'Well, then, Fi, you'll have to excuse me now."

'Ah, ah, thank you for guiding me here. I'm going to see Yuri later, please let him know."

"I'll see you later."

　The maid girl bowed lightly, and the next moment she disappeared without a trace.

"What?"

　The maid disappeared in the blink of an eye.

　Looking around, there was no sign of her, nor did the door appear to have been opened.

　Perhaps it was a maid who had the power to kill him at any time, just that he had not been able to detect her power?

　Norris broke out in a cold sweat.

　　　　　　　　　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇

　Norris is now alone.

 

　Norris, now alone, felt tired and wanted to lie down on the bed.

　But to do so, he was concerned about his sandy body.

"I don't think I'm going to take a bath ....... I should ask them to prepare hot water to clean my body."

　He left the room and called out to a child who was an employee of the inn.

"I'm sorry, can you get me some hot water to clean myself up?"

"Hot water ......?"

　The child asked curiously.

" Don't you want to take a bath?"

"A bath?　Don't tell me there are baths here at the inn!"

"Yes, there is. Yes, that's our specialty. It's smaller than the public baths in town, though."

　As expected, Norris could not hide his surprise.

　Still, he asked without changing his expression.

'In this town, do they have that many baths?　Not just in the lord's mansion?"

Well, ....... Most of the houses in this town come with baths, you know?"

　Norris's eyebrows twitched for a moment at those words.

"--Every house in the town has a bath?　That much water can be used freely?　

　In the first place, in order to make hot water, it needs to be heated. In the royal castle, wizards use fire magic to heat the water each time.

　It's not as if all the residents of the fiefdom who live here are wizards ......, is it?

　Even the maids, who he thought were just weak, had a power that Norris could not measure their strength.

　In other words, it might be safe to assume that the people of this territory have a certain amount of power.

　To begin with, this is a dangerous area near the border.

　It is not strange that the village of Alf, which is said to have been abandoned even by the country, is actually powerful enough to survive on its own.

　In other words, it means that their power is misunderstood and they are ahead of the rest of the country .......