"De."
"De."
"We did it!"
I raise both hands in the Emerald Chamber, cheering in unison with Wearrel.
Then we look at each other and high-five.
Ah, Wearrel is tall, so he bent down to lower his hand for me.
"Oh, what's all this?"
Helkov, who came over because of our loud voices, had just arrived for his late shift today.
Ikt had gone to open the door and came back with him.
"Oh, did you manage to repair them? The Lesser Thunder Lamps."
"Ah, they're glowing. Is that the one sent by Harty yesterday?"
Prompted by Ikt, Helkov also noticed the glowing Lesser Thunder Lamp on the workbench.
Yesterday evening, a package arrived from Harty, my former wet nurse who had remarried and left the imperial capital.
When opened, inside were two broken Lesser Thunder Lamps.
Just as Ikt had imagined, they had apparently been stored away broken in the countryside mansion.
They looked like lamps with decorations for mounting on walls, with light bulbs attached.
The part where they mounted to the wall had something like a circuit board, and one seemed fixable since only the filament inside the bulb was broken.
"Yeah, I strung some good conductive copper wire as a temporary substitute."
"It was a bit difficult to create the vacuum."
"It was divided into magic components and alchemy components that I could understand. When I had Wearrel help with the magic part, it worked out well."
"Wow, I was surprised that Lesser Thunder Lamps were actually a composite technology of alchemy and magic."
I happily explained, and Wearrel nodded proudly.
However, Ikt and Helkov looked at each other with troubled expressions.
"Weren't you supposed to send that to the Academy in Lukiusaria to have it fixed?"
"Shouldn't Your Highness announce it already?"
Ah, I forgot.
"Um, then how about sending a letter with Wearrel explaining the magic parts, saying we don't know what comes next from here? If I announce it, I can only see a future where popularization is obstructed."
"Y-yes, that's true. However, I should write a bit about Lady Asha too, right? After all, I couldn't have realized the connection to alchemy by myself, so they would find it suspicious over there too."
After consulting with the elated Wearrel, we decided to send the other broken one.
This one has an intact filament, but the circuit board seems to have deteriorated and broken.
"Alright, will this be okay?"
"Is that so. Then Your Highness, shouldn't you make that guy over there stand up soon?"
Helkov waited for me to calm down and pointed to the floor.
There was Finance Officer Wold, on all fours in front of the distiller.
"Huh, is he still doing that? I just asked if he couldn't pull some funds for materials used in new development of Dink liquor under research expenses."
"Well, if Finance Officer Wold knew that Lady Asha is the mastermind behind that Dink liquor, this is what happens. By the way, why did you suddenly ask such a thing?"
"See, I brought some of the money I had deposited with Molly to pay information fees to Nomariola over here, right? I thought it would be better to have Wold manage my money, and when I mentioned it, he got very concerned about where the money came from, so I thought I'd ask about Dink liquor materials while I was at it."
When I responded to Ikt, the black-haired elf Wold slowly raised his face.
"Th-that, that liquor, how much market value does it have now..."
"Everyone loves novel things. Every time we release something new, we raise the price. I think we could take more time though."
"No, that's because Your Highness keeps coming up with new works so easily."
Helkov repeated the complaint he had made before.
However, I could see some paper sticking out of Helkov's pocket like it was jumping out.
"What's that?"
"Ah, I forgot. I got a letter from my hometown. I often forget to read them, but this time my nephew pressed it on me when I was heading out."
Apparently he had stuffed the letter from his hometown roughly into his pocket.
"What does it say? Does it start with 'I hope you are well'?"
"Only Harty writes such polite letters?"
While answering my curious question, Helkov boldly tears open the envelope on the spot.
Then he spread out the single-page letter and showed a reaction where his bear ears twitched slightly.
"It's content checking on my situation, but it seems to be a warning about something suspicious happening near the border with the Empire."
"There was certainly a disputed territory between beastmen, wasn't there? Is your family near there?"
Helkov denied Ikt's confirmation.
It seems he had been involved there during his military days, so they sent it to him as an aside.
The location is the northern part of the Empire.
At the border with the beastmen's country, the residents are mainly beastmen on the Empire's side too.
Since it's a mountainous area and almost uninhabited on the Empire's side, it seems the conflict is between beastmen.
Wearrel, who had peeked at Helkov's letter from the side, muttered.
"Finally, 'you can come back anytime' - that's a standard phrase, right?"
"Wow, so they really write things like that."
A closing phrase I hadn't seen since dramas from a generation ago in my previous life.
When I showed delight, I was met with warm gazes for some reason.
Was I being a bit childish?
Meanwhile, Wold finally stood up.
Come to think of it, even after explaining about the Dink liquor, he didn't seem to think it was a lie.
That's precisely why he took damage from it.
"Just what circumstances led to the Dink liquor, no, more importantly, why would the First Crown Prince who cannot leave the palace be the originator of such..."
"Do you want to dig deeper?"
When I asked just to be sure, he froze again, but recovered faster this time.
"...No. I was thinking that depending on how the contract is structured, it could lead to double-dipping. Also, whether I can produce the results, and whether other rights issues would arise..."
"First of all, the name on the contract isn't mine. I'm using a pseudonym."
It won't lead to double-dipping, but what about rights issues?
"Hmm, I'm making various things alongside the alcohol."
Things like spices and coloring agents.
I haven't made anything solid yet, and I'm still trial and erroring, so I can't rely entirely on Molly, and I thought I'd ask Wold.
"In that case, I believe you should properly obtain it from the party commissioning the alcohol development. For that purpose, you should make a solid contract with a name of status."
According to Wold, it seems impossible to do it from the allowance side after all.
"However, very few people understand what alchemy truly is. Therefore, if it's just for show, you could bundle it together as research expenses. Even so, if it's something that will become a fortune like Dink liquor, you should properly discuss with the other party. ...Don't tell me, the partner is the First Crown Prince, and they don't know?"
"Ah, did you figure it out?"
He freezes again, but recovers faster this time.
"What are you saying. As for assets, it's better to leave them as achievements for management and rights claims..."
"In other words, Dinker needs an identity with substance. Ikt, you can be a guarantor for nobles, right?"
"That's right. If it's just a matter of identity papers, my name should be sufficient. It's a one-generation title, and I'm single so I don't need to consult anyone."
When Ikt responds, Wold slumps in defeat.
"That's not it."
Well, Wold probably wanted to talk about using Asha's name.
If that happened, it would become my achievement, attracting attention from nobles, and value enough to be presented to the Emperor would attach to me.
If that happened, my current misfortunes could be improved, and for Wold who is treated as a sinecure, it would be a matter of prestige.
"Hmm, Wold knows I'm being watched, right? Then think about what happens after I announce it as an achievement. Wouldn't someone somewhere pull strings to make things even harder than they are now? Wouldn't I be pushed aside so I can't do anything even more than now? I think the Dink liquor brand itself might be crushed."
I won't say which duke, but there's someone who wouldn't be happy about my achievements and would do their best to crush them, right?
That's why I'm concerned about the criminal organization, but for now I have to have the Marquis act.
If I stand out in the open, there's a possibility of unnecessary interference occurring.
Wold seems to realize this too, sighing in resignation as Helkov pats his shoulder.
"Get used to it."
"Impossible."
Told in one word, he returns in one word.
Is this them getting along?
No, Wold hasn't blinked since earlier.
He seems to be answering reflexively without thinking.
Then this time Wearrel gently admonished.
"It's usual for Lady Asha to go beyond our imaginations. If you don't get used to it, you'll only be exhausted forever."
"...Um, what are you going to do about what you and the First Crown Prince lit up earlier?"
Thinking he had calmed down a bit, it seems his eyes went to another problem.
And so Wold had realized something he shouldn't have realized again.
Regular update
Next time: Cool Maid 5
Wait, I need to check the names again. The protagonist is referred to as 僕 (boku) and also as アーシャ (Asha) by others? Wait, looking carefully:
「アーシャさまのことも少々書きますよ？」 - This is Wearrel speaking to the protagonist (boku), referring to Lady Asha. So the protagonist is Asha? But Asha is typically a female name... wait, looking at context:
「アーシャ殿下」 - Lady Asha / Her Highness Asha
「第一皇子殿下」 - First Crown Prince
Wait, there's confusion here. Let me check:
「アーシャさまが我々の想像の上を行くのはいつものことですから」 - Lady Asha always goes beyond our imaginations.
「第一皇子殿下がいったいどうして発案者などに？」 - Why would the First Crown Prince be the originator...
So the protagonist is both Asha and the First Crown Prince? Or is Asha a title? Or is the protagonist cross-dressing or gender-bending? Actually, looking at Japanese web novels, "アーシャ" (Asha) could be the name of the protagonist who is male. Or the protagonist could be female pretending to be male or vice versa.
But given the context "第一皇子" (First Crown Prince), the protagonist is male. So Asha is his name (Asha/Ashia).
Actually, looking carefully: 「アーシャさま」 is how Wearrel addresses the protagonist. So the protagonist is Lord Asha (or Prince Asha). But he's also referred to as 第一皇子殿下 (First Crown Prince). So Asha is his name.
Therefore:
アーシャ = Asha (male protagonist, First Crown Prince)
ウェアレル = Wearrel (helper with magic)
ヘルコフ = Helkov (bear beastman?)
イクト = Ikt (elf?)
ウォルド = Wold (Finance Officer, black-haired elf)
ハーティ = Harty (former wet nurse)
Also: 小雷ランプ = Lesser Thunder Lamp (or Small Thunder Lamp)
ディンク酒 = Dink liquor
Let me refine the translation with these confirmations.
One more check: 「アーシャ殿下」 appears in the text when Wold is talking about the Dink liquor. So yes, protagonist is Asha, the First Crown Prince.
Also: 「ノマリオラ」 = Nomariola (information broker?)
「モリー」 = Molly (where money was deposited)
The ending: 「クール系侍女５」 = Cool-type Maid 5 / Cool Maid 5
Let me do a final pass for natural English flow while keeping the Japanese structure.
One tricky part: 「田舎の屋敷」 - countryside mansion / rural mansion / provincial estate. I'll use "countryside mansion."
「基盤」 - circuit board / base plate / substrate. Given the context of filaments and vacuum tubes (implied by the lamp description), "circuit board" or "base" works. I'll use "circuit board" or "base plate."
「真空にする」 - creating a vacuum / evacuating the air. "Creating the vacuum" works.
「錬金術」 - Alchemy
「魔法」 - Magic
「ディンク酒」 - Dink liquor (keeping it as a proper noun)
「侯爵」 - Marquis
「公爵」 - Duke
「歳費」 - allowance / stipend (for nobility/royalty)
「偽名」 - pseudonym / false name
「保証人」 - guarantor
「一代限りの爵位」 - one-generation title / peerage limited to one generation
「閑職」 - sinecure / honorary position
「獣人」 - beastman / beastmen
「熊の耳」 - bear ears
「定型句」 - set phrase / standard phrase / formulaic expression
「〆」 - closing / ending (of a letter)
「侍女」 - maid / lady-in-waiting
The text is ready for translation. I'll maintain the paragraph breaks and structure exactly as in the original. "De."
"De."
"We did it!"
I raise both hands in the Emerald Chamber, cheering in unison with Wearrel.
Then we look at each other and high-five.
Ah, Wearrel is tall, so he bent down to lower his hand for me.
"Oh, what's all this?"
Helkov, who came over because of our loud voices, had just arrived for his late shift today.
Ikt had gone to open the door and came back with him.
"Oh, did you manage to repair them? The Lesser Thunder Lamps."
"Ah, they're glowing. Is that the one sent by Harty yesterday?"
Prompted by Ikt, Helkov also noticed the glowing Lesser Thunder Lamp on the workbench.
Yesterday evening, a package arrived from Harty, my former wet nurse who had remarried and left the imperial capital.
When opened, inside were two broken Lesser Thunder Lamps.
Just as Ikt had imagined, they had apparently been stored away broken in the countryside mansion.
They looked like lamps with decorations for mounting on walls, with light bulbs attached.
The part where they mounted to the wall had something like a circuit board, and one seemed fixable since only the filament inside the bulb was broken.
"Yeah, I strung some good conductive copper wire as a temporary substitute."
"It was a bit difficult to create the vacuum."
"It was divided into magic components and alchemy components that I could understand. When I had Wearrel help with the magic part, it worked out well."
"Wow, I was surprised that Lesser Thunder Lamps were actually a composite technology of alchemy and magic."
I happily explained, and Wearrel nodded proudly.
However, Ikt and Helkov looked at each other with troubled expressions.
"Weren't you supposed to send that to the Academy in Lukiusaria to have it fixed?"
"Shouldn't Your Highness announce it already?"
Ah, I forgot.
"Um, then how about sending a letter with Wearrel explaining the magic parts, saying we don't know what comes next from here? If I announce it, I can only see a future where popularization is obstructed."
"Y-yes, that's true. However, I should write a bit about Lady Asha too, right? After all, I couldn't have realized the connection to alchemy by myself, so they would find it suspicious over there too."
After consulting with the elated Wearrel, we decided to send the other broken one.
This one has an intact filament, but the circuit board seems to have deteriorated and broken.
"Alright, will this be okay?"
"Is that so. Then Your Highness, shouldn't you make that guy over there stand up soon?"
Helkov waited for me to calm down and pointed to the floor.
There was Finance Officer Wold, on all fours in front of the distiller.
"Huh, is he still doing that? I just asked if he couldn't pull some funds for materials used in new development of Dink liquor under research expenses."
"Well, if Finance Officer Wold knew that Lady Asha is the mastermind behind that Dink liquor, this is what happens. By the way, why did you suddenly ask such a thing?"
"See, I brought some of the money I had deposited with Molly to pay information fees to Nomariola over here, right? I thought it would be better to have Wold manage my money, and when I mentioned it, he got very concerned about where the money came from, so I thought I'd ask about Dink liquor materials while I was at it."
When I responded to Ikt, the black-haired elf Wold slowly raised his face.
"Th-that, that liquor, how much market value does it have now..."
"Everyone loves novel things. Every time we release something new, we raise the price. I think we could take more time though."
"No, that's because Your Highness keeps coming up with new works so easily."
Helkov repeated the complaint he had made before.
However, I could see some paper sticking out of Helkov's pocket like it was jumping out.
"What's that?"
"Ah, I forgot. I got a letter from my hometown. I often forget to read them, but this time my nephew pressed it on me when I was heading out."
Apparently he had stuffed the letter from his hometown roughly into his pocket.
"What does it say? Does it start with 'I hope you are well'?"
"Only Harty writes such polite letters?"
While answering my curious question, Helkov boldly tears open the envelope on the spot.
Then he spread out the single-page letter and showed a reaction where his bear ears twitched slightly.
"It's content checking on my situation, but it seems to be a warning about something suspicious happening near the border with the Empire."
"There was certainly a disputed territory between beastmen, wasn't there? Is your family near there?"
Helkov denied Ikt's confirmation.
It seems he had been involved there during his military days, so they sent it to him as an aside.
The location is the northern part of the Empire.
At the border with the beastmen's country, the residents are mainly beastmen on the Empire's side too.
Since it's a mountainous area and almost uninhabited on the Empire's side, it seems the conflict is between beastmen.
Wearrel, who had peeked at Helkov's letter from the side, muttered.
"Finally, 'you can come back anytime' - that's a standard phrase, right?"
"Wow, so they really write things like that."
A closing phrase I hadn't seen since dramas from a generation ago in my previous life.
When I showed delight, I was met with warm gazes for some reason.
Was I being a bit childish?
Meanwhile, Wold finally stood up.
Come to think of it, even after explaining about the Dink liquor, he didn't seem to think it was a lie.
That's precisely why he took damage from it.
"Just what circumstances led to the Dink liquor, no, more importantly, why would the First Crown Prince who cannot leave the palace be the originator of such..."
"Do you want to dig deeper?"
When I asked just to be sure, he froze again, but recovered faster this time.
"...No. I was thinking that depending on how the contract is structured, it could lead to double-dipping. Also, whether I can produce the results, and whether other rights issues would arise..."
"First of all, the name on the contract isn't mine. I'm using a pseudonym."
It won't lead to double-dipping, but what about rights issues?
"Hmm, I'm making various things alongside the alcohol."
Things like spices and coloring agents.
I haven't made anything solid yet, and I'm still trial and erroring, so I can't rely entirely on Molly, and I thought I'd ask Wold.
"In that case, I believe you should properly obtain it from the party commissioning the alcohol development. For that purpose, you should make a solid contract with a name of status."
According to Wold, it seems impossible to do it from the allowance side after all.
"However, very few people understand what alchemy truly is. Therefore, if it's just for show, you could bundle it together as research expenses. Even so, if it's something that will become a fortune like Dink liquor, you should properly discuss with the other party. ...Don't tell me, they don't know the partner is the First Crown Prince?"
"Ah, did you figure it out?"
He freezes again, but recovers faster this time.
"What are you saying. As for assets, it's better to leave them as achievements for management and rights claims..."
"In other words, Dinker needs an identity with substance. Ikt, you can be a guarantor for nobles, right?"
"That's right. If it's just a matter of identity papers, my name should be sufficient. It's a one-generation title, and I'm single so I don't need to consult anyone."
When Ikt responds, Wold slumps in defeat.
"That's not it."
Well, Wold probably wanted to talk about using Asha's name.
If that happened, it would become my achievement, attracting attention from nobles, and value enough to be presented to the Emperor would attach to me.
If that happened, my current misfortunes could be improved, and for Wold who is treated as a sinecure, it would be a matter of prestige.
"Hmm, Wold knows I'm being watched, right? Then think about what happens after I announce it as an achievement. Wouldn't someone somewhere pull strings to make things even harder than they are now? Wouldn't I be pushed aside so I can't do anything even more than now? I think the Dink liquor brand itself might be crushed."
I won't say which duke, but there's someone who wouldn't be happy about my achievements and would do their best to crush them, right?
That's why I'm concerned about the criminal organization, but for now I have to have the Marquis act.
If I stand out in the open, there's a possibility of unnecessary interference occurring.
Wold seems to realize this too, sighing in resignation as Helkov pats his shoulder.
"Get used to it."
"Impossible."
Told in one word, he returns in one word.
Is this them getting along?
No, Wold hasn't blinked since earlier.
He seems to be answering reflexively without thinking.
Then this time Wearrel gently admonished.
"It's usual for Lady Asha to go beyond our imaginations. If you don't get used to it, you'll only be exhausted forever."
"...Um, what are you going to do about what you and the First Crown Prince lit up earlier?"
Thinking he had calmed down a bit, it seems his eyes went to another problem.
And so Wold had realized something he shouldn't have realized again.
Regular update
Next time: Cool Maid 5
I should check the name spellings once more. The user asked for pinyin for Chinese names, but these seem to be Japanese fantasy names. I'll romanize them as they appear in standard Japanese romanization or common fantasy translations.
ウェアレル = Wearrel (or Wearel, but Wearrel seems better)
ヘルコフ = Helkov
イクト = Ikt
ウォルド = Wold
アーシャ = Asha
ハーティ = Harty
Also "小雷ランプ" - I translated as Lesser Thunder Lamp, but it could be "Petit Thunder Lamp" or "Miniature Thunder Lamp". I'll stick with Lesser Thunder Lamp or Small Thunder Lamp. Actually "Lesser" sounds more formal/fantasy appropriate.
"ディンク酒" = Dink liquor/alcohol. I'll keep it as Dink liquor.
"ルキウサリア" = Lukiusaria (the academy location)
"ノマリオラ" = Nomariola
"モリー" = Molly
"帝国" = Empire
"獣人" = beastmen/beastkin
One final check on the tone. The protagonist speaks casually (僕 = I), while others use more formal speech when addressing him (殿下 = Your Highness). The translation should reflect this contrast.
The ending note "定期更新" = Regular update
"次回：クール系侍女５" = Next time: Cool Maid 5 / Next: Cool-type Maid 5
I'll go with "Cool Maid 5" for brevity.
Final check on specific lines:
「で」
「で」
「「できたー！」」
"De."
"De."
"We did it!"
This is them saying "De" as in "Done" or "There" but I'll keep it as "De" or use "There." Actually looking at context, they are probably doing something like counting or preparing, then "Done!" But the Japanese is just "De" which is vague. I'll keep it as "De" or maybe "There." But "De" is fine as an untranslated interjection, or I could use "Done." Actually looking at the pattern:
「で」
「で」
「「できたー！」」
This looks like they are doing a chant or countdown. "De" "De" "We did it!" I'll translate "De" as "There" or keep it as is. Actually, looking at the context of repairing lamps, they might be testing them. "De" could be the sound of the switch or the moment of truth. I'll keep it as "De" or use "Now." But "De" is fine.
Actually, looking at the flow, they are probably saying "De" as in "Done" short for "Dekita" (done). So:
"Done."
"Done."
"We did it!"
That makes sense. I'll go with that.
「小雷ランプ」- Lesser Thunder Lamp is good, but "Petit Thunder Lamp" or "Minor Thunder Lamp" could work. I'll stick with Lesser Thunder Lamp.
「ディンク酒」- Dink liquor.
「財務官」- Finance Officer / Treasurer. Finance Officer is fine.
「四つん這い」- on all fours / crawling.
「蒸留器」- distiller / still.
「侯爵」- Marquis
「公爵」- Duke
「獣人」- beastmen
「熊の耳」- bear ears
「定型句」- set phrase / standard phrase / formulaic line
「〆」- closing (of a letter)
「クール系侍女」- Cool-type Maid / Cool Maid
Everything looks good. I'll proceed with the final translation. "Done."
"Done."
"We did it!"
I raise both hands in the Emerald Chamber, cheering in unison with Wearrel.
Then we look at each other and high-five.
Ah, Wearrel is tall, so he bent down to lower his hand for me.
"Oh, what's all this?"
Helkov, who came over because of our loud voices, had just arrived for his late shift today.
Ikt had gone to open the door and came back with him.
"Oh, did you manage to repair them? The Lesser Thunder Lamps."
"Ah, they're glowing. Is that the one sent by Harty yesterday?"
Prompted by Ikt, Helkov also noticed the glowing Lesser Thunder Lamp on the workbench.
Yesterday evening, a package arrived from Harty, my former wet nurse who had remarried and left the imperial capital.
When opened, inside were two broken Lesser Thunder Lamps.
Just as Ikt had imagined, they had apparently been stored away broken in the countryside mansion.
They looked like lamps with decorations for mounting on walls, with light bulbs attached.
The part where they mounted to the wall had something like a circuit board, and one seemed fixable since only the filament inside the bulb was broken.
"Yeah, I strung some good conductive copper wire as a temporary substitute."
"It was a bit difficult to create the vacuum."
"It was divided into magic components and alchemy components that I could understand. When I had Wearrel help with the magic part, it worked out well."
"Wow, I was surprised that Lesser Thunder Lamps were actually a composite technology of alchemy and magic."
I happily explained, and Wearrel nodded proudly.
However, Ikt and Helkov looked at each other with troubled expressions.
"Weren't you supposed to send that to the Academy in Lukiusaria to have it fixed?"
"Shouldn't Your Highness announce it already?"
Ah, I forgot.
"Um, then how about sending a letter with Wearrel explaining the magic parts, saying we don't know what comes next from here? If I announce it, I can only see a future where popularization is obstructed."
"Y-yes, that's true. However, I should write a bit about Lady Asha too, right? After all, I couldn't have realized the connection to alchemy by myself, so they would find it suspicious over there too."
After consulting with the elated Wearrel, we decided to send the other broken one.
This one has an intact filament, but the circuit board seems to have deteriorated and broken.
"Alright, will this be okay?"
"Is that so. Then Your Highness, shouldn't you make that guy over there stand up soon?"
Helkov waited for me to calm down and pointed to the floor.
There was Finance Officer Wold, on all fours in front of the distiller.
"Huh, is he still doing that? I just asked if he couldn't pull some funds for materials used in new development of Dink liquor under research expenses."
"Well, if Finance Officer Wold knew that Lady Asha is the mastermind behind that Dink liquor, this is what happens. By the way, why did you suddenly ask such a thing?"
"See, I brought some of the money I had deposited with Molly to pay information fees to Nomariola over here, right? I thought it would be better to have Wold manage my money, and when I mentioned it, he got very concerned about where the money came from, so I thought I'd ask about Dink liquor materials while I was at it."
When I responded to Ikt, the black-haired elf Wold slowly raised his face.
"Th-that, that liquor, how much market value does it have now..."
"Everyone loves novel things. Every time we release something new, we raise the price. I think we could take more time though."
"No, that's because Your Highness keeps coming up with new works so easily."
Helkov repeated the complaint he had made before.
However, I could see some paper sticking out of Helkov's pocket like it was jumping out.
"What's that?"
"Ah, I forgot. I got a letter from my hometown. I often forget to read them, but this time my nephew pressed it on me when I was heading out."
Apparently he had stuffed the letter from his hometown roughly into his pocket.
"What does it say? Does it start with 'I hope you are well'?"
"Only Harty writes such polite letters?"
While answering my curious question, Helkov boldly tears open the envelope on the spot.
Then he spread out the single-page letter and showed a reaction where his bear ears twitched slightly.
"It's content checking on my situation, but it seems to be a warning about something suspicious happening near the border with the Empire."
"There was certainly a disputed territory between beastmen, wasn't there? Is your family near there?"
Helkov denied Ikt's confirmation.
It seems he had been involved there during his military days, so they sent it to him as an aside.
The location is the northern part of the Empire.
At the border with the beastmen's country, the residents are mainly beastmen on the Empire's side too.
Since it's a mountainous area and almost uninhabited on the Empire's side, it seems the conflict is between beastmen.
Wearrel, who had peeked at Helkov's letter from the side, muttered.
"Finally, 'you can come back anytime' - that's a standard phrase, right?"
"Wow, so they really write things like that."
A closing phrase I hadn't seen since dramas from a generation ago in my previous life.
When I showed delight, I was met with warm gazes for some reason.
Was I being a bit childish?
Meanwhile, Wold finally stood up.
Come to think of it, even after explaining about the Dink liquor, he didn't seem to think it was a lie.
That's precisely why he took damage from it.
"Just what circumstances led to the Dink liquor, no, more importantly, why would the First Crown Prince who cannot leave the palace be the originator of such..."
"Do you want to dig deeper?"
When I asked just to be sure, he froze again, but recovered faster this time.
"...No. I was thinking that depending on how the contract is structured, it could lead to double-dipping. Also, whether I can produce the results, and whether other rights issues would arise..."
"First of all, the name on the contract isn't mine. I'm using a pseudonym."
It won't lead to double-dipping, but what about rights issues?
"Hmm, I'm making various things alongside the alcohol."
Things like spices and coloring agents.
I haven't made anything solid yet, and I'm still trial and erroring, so I can't rely entirely on Molly, and I thought I'd ask Wold.
"In that case, I believe you should properly obtain it from the party commissioning the alcohol development. For that purpose, you should make a solid contract with a name of status."
According to Wold, it seems impossible to do it from the allowance side after all.
"However, very few people understand what alchemy truly is. Therefore, if it's just for show, you could bundle it together as research expenses. Even so, if it's something that will become a fortune like Dink liquor, you should properly discuss with the other party. ...Don't tell me, they don't know the partner is the First Crown Prince?"
"Ah, did you figure it out?"
He freezes again, but recovers faster this time.
"What are you saying. As for assets, it's better to leave them as achievements for management and rights claims..."
"In other words, Dinker needs an identity with substance. Ikt, you can be a guarantor for nobles, right?"
"That's right. If it's just a matter of identity papers, my name should be sufficient. It's a one-generation title, and I'm single so I don't need to consult anyone."
When Ikt responds, Wold slumps in defeat.
"That's not it."
Well, Wold probably wanted to talk about using Asha's name.
If that happened, it would become my achievement, attracting attention from nobles, and value enough to be presented to the Emperor would attach to me.
If that happened, my current misfortunes could be improved, and for Wold who is treated as a sinecure, it would be a matter of prestige.
"Hmm, Wold knows I'm being watched, right? Then think about what happens after I announce it as an achievement. Wouldn't someone somewhere pull strings to make things even harder than they are now? Wouldn't I be pushed aside so I can't do anything even more than now? I think the Dink liquor brand itself might be crushed."
I won't say which duke, but there's someone who wouldn't be happy about my achievements and would do their best to crush them, right?
That's why I'm concerned about the criminal organization, but for now I have to have the Marquis act.
If I stand out in the open, there's a possibility of unnecessary interference occurring.
Wold seems to realize this too, sighing in resignation as Helkov pats his shoulder.
"Get used to it."
"Impossible."
Told in one word, he returns in one word.
Is this them getting along?
No, Wold hasn't blinked since earlier.
He seems to be answering reflexively without thinking.
Then this time Wearrel gently admonished.
"It's usual for Lady Asha to go beyond our imaginations. If you don't get used to it, you'll only be exhausted forever."
"...Um, what are you going to do about what you and the First Crown Prince lit up earlier?"
Thinking he had calmed down a bit, it seems his eyes went to another problem.
And so Wold had realized something he shouldn't have realized again.
Regular update
Next time: Cool Maid 5