"So, Layette-chan is with you too?" (Kaoru)
"Yes. The seven of us started a business using that house as our base. Rather than going out to work, it was safer to run a business there, where we could all stay together, and it was easier to protect the house and that thing. Since we owned my own house, we didn't have to pay rent for our residence or our store, and we had the unpaid labor of seven people, so we were able to easily earn enough money to get by. Besides, it's the house where Kaoru-sama lived and the children he looked after, so it's no wonder visitors come." (Emile)
"That's cheating!" (Kaoru)
Well, that's how they could make good money.
...Huh? Seven people? If we add Layette-chan, that makes eight people...oh, maybe Lorotte went to Ashil's place.
"And the first products we chose to handle were, of course, medicinal herbs, since this is a store with a connection to Angel-sama. I didn't want people to expect the same effects as Kaoru's potions, so I didn't sell the medicines themselves, but only the raw materials, the 'medicinal seeds'. In the first place, I didn't have the knowledge, skills, or qualifications to compound medicines, so I couldn't sell medicines. Ah, I have someone with the qualifications now, so I can compound the ingredients. I'm also qualified myself." (Emile)
Emile had been training diligently with his sword skills, but that was to protect me. After I was no longer there to protect, and he had grown old and unable to move around as he wished, he intended to assign other people to guard me in the event of my return, and apparently had encouraged those of his descendants who wished to pursue martial arts. Then he went to desk work.
Originally, Emile didn't like hurting people or doing violent things. So, while he was training with the sword, it was to protect me, so he probably didn't dislike it, but it probably wasn't the path he really wanted to take. Perhaps it was my disappearance and his old age that finally freed him from this curse...
If I hadn't been there, he would have to start from the beginning—there's no way he could have gone down the path. There's a good chance he would have died as an orphan without ever being able to get a decent job, with his face in a nearby gutter. Just having lived to this age was a blessing. So I didn't need to feel any responsibility. Not even a little bit.
...But... After all, it was not something that could be dismissed so easily...
"Lorotte was adopted by Fran-neechan as her daughter and married Ashil-niichan as the daughter of a marquis, becoming his legal wife. This was before Fran-neechan married Roland-niichan, when she was still the marquis. Although Ashil-niichan has become a baron, Lorotte is an adopted daughter of a marquis, and the daughter of that 'Great hero who saved the country, the guardian deity of the continent, the absolute hero, Fran... Moreover, she is the daughter of the soon-to-be-king's brother, the duke,' so she could even marry into the royal family..." (Emile)
Ah, that's right...
"…Wait, Marquis? Fran, did she get promoted twice?" (Kaoru)
"You see, she was the 'Great Hero of the Nation', in other words, she saved the country and rose from a commoner to become a Viscount. It would be more surprising if a nobleman who was the 'Protector of the Continent', in other words, who saved the entire continent, all the countries, and all the living things that lived there, only received two promotions! ...Well, it's probably difficult to become a duke, as expected." (Emile)
Yeah, a duke was something only someone from royalty could become. Besides, she was going to be a Duchess soon anyway, so it probably didn't really matter. Francette herself probably didn't like that sort of thing very much.
"At that time, Fran-neechan also asked Layette as well, but Layette refused, saying, 'The only surname I'll use is Nagase!' ...Well, that Lorotte called herself Lorotte Nagase von Lyotard and came here all the time... When they were newlyweds, Ashil-niichan often complained about it." (Emile)
Well, I guess he'll complain...
"I'm pretty busy these days, so everyone gathers once a week." (Emile)
"Hmm? What about Ashil?" (Kaoru)
"...If he's still alive, how old do you think he is...? And do you know the average life expectancy of a man in this country?" (Emile)
"…………" (Kaoru)
...I see. Ashil had never drunk my serious potion. The potions entrusted to these children were prohibited from being used by anyone other than the members of "Eyes of the Goddess," nor from revealing their existence. There was no way these children would not follow my instructions of that kind. Even if it put their own lives at risk.
"And, of course, Fran-neechan is still alive and well. As long as Fran-neechan is here, no country can dare oppose this country. Some people might find her damn serious, but well, she is ‘the great hero who saved the country, the guardian deity of the continent, the absolute hero, Hero Fran’ after all…" (Emile)
"Ah, they can't resist..." (Kaoru)
My condolences to the royal family...
When he said that Fran saved the continent, it didn't mean that she did anything spectacular and defeated the Demon King or anything, but if Fran hadn't mustered up the courage to advise Celes, the continent would really have sunk into the sea, so there's no doubt that it was a fact. Fran was truly a guardian deity and hero, a true brave person who saved the continent from the clutches of the Demon King (Celes).
"What happened to Ed and the horses?" (Kaoru)
"Yeah, at the time we didn't have enough money to maintain our horses, so Fran took in all three of them. They were kept together with Fran-neechan's and Roland-niichan's horses, and all five of them had extraordinary stamina, so they were treated with respect as Divine horses that served Angel-sama and lived long lives as breeding horses. Now, the descendants of those five have multiplied tremendously, and they have become something of a brand known as the 'Silver Breed'." (Emile)
Ah... Yes, I knew that. No matter how often I gave him potions, 70 years is still too long for a horse to live... But, if they could live a long life and have many offspring, that would be a great wish for any animal... but what if a horse beats them to it? Besides, a breeding horse is a stud, right? Is he cheating? His wife and daughter... But there's no point in expecting human ethics from a horse.
Polygamy was not uncommon among humans in the past, and there are still some countries on Earth that practice it today. It is extremely difficult for a female to give birth to 100 pups, but it is not impossible for a male to give birth to 100 pups. In fact, there was a man named Kido Mitsumasa who gave birth to 100 boys... but that's just a manga, so it's a "fact."
However…….
"Ed and the horses never knew why I didn't come back... Maybe they thought I was dead..." (Kaoru)
"Ah, no, Ed and the horses knew everything that happened, right?" (Emile)
"Eh?" (Kaoru)
"After that, about two months later, a female nobleman came from a faraway country. After confirming all the details, she explained the situation to the Ed and the horses. Even after removing the rocks, they didn't find anything resembling Kaoru's body, so they assumed that Kaoru had erased the damaged body for this world and returned to her own world." (Emile)
"Eh? That's..." (Kaoru)
Apart from me, there's no other female nobleman who can converse with the horse Ed, except...
"Yes, the current head of the Beliscus branch of the Goddess Kaoru True Church, Countess Reyfel. At the time, she was still a Viscount, though. She came with _KARUROSI_, shook off the nobles and royals who tried to stop her, because she thought that no one else could explain the situation to Ed. ...She said that she owes Ed a great favor..." (Emile)
I see… Mariel came here for Ed... Maybe it was a waste of time giving Mariel the potion that enables her to understand the language of animals...
Ok, I've asked everything I wanted to ask. Everyone seems to have lived a relatively rich and happy life. It's no longer my turn. So, shall we continue on our journey?
A two-people trip with Reiko. During my school days, there were always just the three of us—both of us plus Kyoko—so it felt quite refreshing to be just the two of us, just Reiko and I.
Well then...
"Sorry to keep you waiting, Reiko. Well, let's go!" (Kaoru)
"Yeah" (Reiko)
"...Wait! Wait, wait, wait, wait, waiiiiit! If I let you go like this, they'll kill me! Especially Bell and Layette!!" (Emile)
I don't know...
Author's Note
Volume 5 of "Potion" was released yesterday!
Thank you very much. (^^)/