Breaking Off The Engagement… Bring It On! Chapter 12

Fuu~, as expected of the head chef.
There was way too much of the even more filling than usual ExtrLarge Hamburg Steak.
But, I still ate it all.
I ate it all splendidly including the dessert.
I somehow get the feeling that as it is, if I stayed in the territory, I would eat too much every day.
Right, there’s no two ways about it, I got to go out monster hunting after all.

When I had returned to my room and was thinking such things, there was
the sound of the door being knocked on.

“Ririinsama, it’s Sana. Is now a good time?”

“Eeh, it’s alright. Please come in.”

Sana entered with a ‘please excuse me’.

“Sana, good work. It seems like you mangaged to safely retrieve the
masked men.”

“Yes .. But in the end I couldn’t find out who had hired them. I am very sorry.”

“It’s not Sana’s fault, so please don’t apologize.
But just who in the world would target me?
Honestly speaking, I don’t believe there is any point in targeting me who had her engagement broken off already and was returning to her territory.
Furthermore, the issue of the cancelling of the engagement shouldn’t have been made public knowledge yet.
Someone who knew about it, and on top of that that I would be pa.s.sing through that place, that rather limits the possibilities, doesn’t it.”

“That is true. I think Liessama and Leaf-sama who is still at the royal capital are probably currently investigating that.
Wouldn’t it be proper to think that we will hear of some results in the comming few days?”

“That’s true. Maa, as for what I can do in this situation it’s probably around the level of obediently going monster hunting I reckon.”

“.. Ririinsama, there are probably other things you could instead be doing .. Wouldn’t it be fine to get away from (the subject of) monster hunting a bit?”

“Sana, it’s not good to want to steal away my fun, you know. Also, it doubles with patrolling the territory, so it would be of help to everyone.”

“.. Just keep it in moderation.”

“I’ll be using discretion.”

It seems that the things to think about have increased even more, so while I was still completely fine physically speaking my mind was somewhat tired which is why I rested early that day.

— The following day

Since I was sound asleep I was now feeling completely refreshed.
Saa, let’s go out hunting those monsters!
– is what I was enthusiastically about to do, when I received a false start notification from my mother.
W-why~?

“Ririina, this morning a letter arrived stating that it seems your Grandfather and Grandmother would return here. It appears they’ll arrive here in 2 to 3 days.
That – is – why, instead of going out monster hunting please help out with various things here until then.” 

Eh, Grandfather and Grandmother are coming back?
Grandfather and Grandmother are Mother’s parents but hurriedly handing over the responsibilities of the territory to their Daughter they left on a journey wandering around all sorts of places under the pretext of retirement.
If I recall correctly right now they should have been somewhere in the western nation from here that was on good terms with our country ..
They moved so much and frequently that pinpointing their location was always very difficult, such was the issue with these two.
Those two still hadn’t lost much of their strength so without even any guards they just willfully departed on journeys all around.
And those two would be comming back, just what must have happened?
Perhaps because I was making a wondering face Mother told me about the contents of that letter.

“Ririina, you look like you’re wondering ‘why are those two suddenly coming home’, but you see, those two’s information network is incredible.
For some reason they already knew about the breaking-off of the engagement. They touched upon it in their letter.
Exactly how did they manage to learn of that information I wonder? If they want to act like they’re retired already anyway the least they could do is hand over that information network to me, couldn’t they.”

Are?
For some reason the main focus turned out to be my Grandparents information network.
As expected of Mother, the things that catch her eye are different after all.
Instead of the matter of her daughter’s engagement being broken off, the intelligence network .. well, it’s very like her.

“That being that, Ririina, since those two are returning for the first time in a while there are things I want to prepare.
Everyone else in the estate is currently busy with their own tasks such as cleaning and remodelling so could I have you get something for me? Since you’ll be bored just staying at home anyway?”

An errand girl, it is?
Maa, it’s better than being bored at home.

“I understand. On that note, exactly wherefrom should I get you what?”

“Remember, there are those medical plants that don’t grow anywhere but the forest close to here, aren’t there? I want you to bring me those.
The tea that can be made from those herbs is a favourite of the two after all. Also, I’m sure that those two are swiftly going to leave on another journey anyway.
Therefore, I want to give them some of it to bring along, so go get a large amount, would you.”

Something of that level is an easy task.
I can just do that while taking a walk.

“I understand. In that case I’ll be going right away.”

“Eeh, I’ll leave it to you.”

It’s not monster hunting but it will serve as a change of scenery.
In addition to that, if it makes Grandfather and Grandmother happy there’s even more worth in doing so.
I mounted a horse and left in the direction of the forest.
To be honest, I could have just walked but then the luggage might get in the way afterwards.
After 10 minutes I arrived at the entrance to the forrest.
The roots of tree’s inside the forest are a hindrance, so I had the horse wait by the entrance.
This child is clever so it will be alright even without binding it to something, it will come to me with a single whistle after all.
I told it to go enjoy itself in the area as I temporarily released it, to which it neighed happily and run off while staying in the general vincinity.
After I confirmed so I entered the inside of the forest.

Inside the forest nothing had changed, everything was still just as in the past.
While thinking things such as ‘come to think of it, this is the forest I first met Prince Leon’ and ‘Chris’ bow drawing figure was dazzling’ I arrived at my target location before I noticed.
Well then, well then, the medical herbs are .. ah, found ’em.
Indeed, indeed, since they haven’t really been plugged much lately there were a lot of them growing here.
Essahoissa, I plucked them.
If I took too many there wouldn’t be any growing the next time so I plucked them in reasonable moderation.

Nh?
I could feel a presence of some kind.
No bloodl.u.s.t but .. that’s a person, isn’t it.

As I looked over to the place where I sensed the presence under rushling noises the owner of said presence revealed itself.