Chapter 178: Chapter 174 – The People of House Willrose

Translator: SFBaka

Despite Elma’s brother Ernst suddenly challenging me to a duel, we somehow managed to finish all our shopping and made it back to Black Lotus.

“Was it really fine to leave him like that?”

“It’s fine. He probably thinks you’re keeping me with you using my debt as a threat or something anyway.”

“Geez. Well, he’s not actually far off the mark in a sense though……”

In any case, Elma did offer her everything to me using that 3 million debt as a reason. Probably. Uh, no, maybe that was just my misunderstanding in the first place. I feel she doesn’t even care about the 3 million Enel debt right now…… Or rather, she hasn’t even paid me 1 Enel.

But apart from that time where she splurged her money on buying expensive liquor in the Alein system, she hasn’t really spent her cash all that much. Maybe she really is saving up in order to repay me after all. Or maybe she just doesn’t want to pay her debt so she can continue to stay with me. I’ll have to ask her to make sure though.

“That probably was my intention at first. But now, I’m staying with Hiro because I like being with you. I am saving up money though…… But I’ve only managed to save about 1,300,000 Enels, so I’m not even halfway there.”

“Um, I’ve also saved up 380,000 Enels. It hasn’t even been one year since I started working for you and yet……”

Elma and Mimi brought out their data terminals and showed me their savings.

It’s not like Mimi has a debt to pay anyway, so all of her savings are already her own. I did pay 500,000 Enels when I brought Mimi with me from her home colony, but I have no intention of having her pay that back. That would just mean she’ll get into debt with me instead of with the colony government after all.

Or rather, I have no intention of meddling with how they use their personal finances anyway…… They might not think of it that way though.

“Um, oh right. Since we’ve already made it back to the ship, do you want to contact your family, Elma?”

“Yeah, I guess…… Haah, this is so troublesome.”

“Ahaha…… But isn’t it great? You have a family that worries about you after all. Isn’t that right, Hiro-sama?”

“Mm, that’s right.”

Mimi and I both have no relatives in this galaxy after all. Mimi’s folks already died in an accident, and since she landed herself in that horrible predicament afterward, she might have lost contact with her grandparents and other relatives as well.

And then, there’s me. I suddenly found myself in this dimension for no rhyme or reason and now I’m drifting about in the galaxy together with Krishna before I knew it. I have no family or relatives in this dimension at all. I do treasure my crew as my family though.

“……You’re right. I’ll call them.”

Maybe she remembered Mimi and my circumstances. Elma’s expression changed from being annoyed to an earnest one.

“If it’s alright with you, I’ll sit in as well. We’re all part of the same crew, so we’re something like a family as well, right?”

“I-I’m joining too! Ah, I’ll call Mei-san, Tina-san, and Whisker-san as well!”

“Alright. Please call them over.”

Mimi fiddled with her tablet terminal and called Mei, Tina, and Whisker. Elma displayed a soft smile as she watched her.

Mei stayed on the ship so she made it to the lounge straight away, but Tina and Whisker were still in the Grakkis Secundus satellite office of Space Dwerg, so they told us they probably won’t be able to make it. Apparently, the main branch was located on Grakkis Prime.

“Okay then. I’ll start the call.”

Elma already informed the Willrose House that we would be engaging in a video call with them beforehand. They actually replied straight away as well. It looks like they are also anxious to see Elma as well.

They immediately picked up when we started the call, and the forms of three people got projected on the holo-display. One was a rather young-looking man, but he looked like the older version of the guy who pointed his sword at me when he saw Elma earlier. The other two were young women who very much looked like sisters. All of them had pointed ears like Elma and shared the same sort of aura as her.

“Dear father, mother, sister, It’s been a long time.”

『Elma…… In any case, I’m glad that you seem to be doing fine.』

The young-looking elven male looked at Elma with a concerned gaze and sighed in relief. The two young women focused their gazes at me though.

『……I heard he was a mercenary, so I fully expected a brutish boor.』

『He’s unexpectedly normal-looking, isn’t he?』

So which one of them was the mother and which one was the sister? They looked so young that they would both pass as Elma’s sisters. Well, one of them was really her sister though.

“I’ll introduce you. This is the captain of the ship I’m serving on; a Platinum-ranked mercenary recognized by the guild and a recipient of the Silver Sword Wings Assault medal, Hiro.”

“It’s my pleasure to meet you all. My name is Hiro. As I am of common birth, please forgive my unrefined words from time to time. I am honored to be in your presence.”

After saying so, I placed one hand over my chest and gave them a slight bow. After seeing my actions, the three figures projected by the holo-display all became quite surprised and were wide-eyed.

“Hey, Hiro. You just made my family speechless you know?”

“Huh? Um, did I do it wrong?”

“It would be fine if they were talking to a fellow noble, but a commoner mercenary talking so formally would seem really strange to them.”

“I see. Okay then. You’re up, Mimi.”

“Feh!? Ah…… Um, my name is Mimi. I was saved by Hiro-sama and Elma-san on Termaine Prime and have been together with them since. I’m pleased to meet you all.”

Mimi introduced herself as well and gave a cute bow. The Willrose family turned their gazes to Mimi, and Elma’s father, Viscount Willrose, as well as the two ladies, got startled and widened their eyes once more. Or rather, they did a double-take and focused their gazes on Mimi. It seems one of the ladies realized something and tilted her head in thought.

“Is there something wrong with our Mimi?”

『N-No. It’s nothing. I’m sure it’s just a coincidence ……Ahem. Excuse us. I am Elma’s father, Viscount Eldmoore Willrose. This is my wife, Milfi, and my other daughter, Elma’s older sister, Elfin.』

『Thank you for taking care of my daughter.』

『It’s nice to meet you.』

The lady with straight waist-length silver hair was the mother, Milfi-san, and the lady with hair that was close to golden blonde in color tied in a braid was the big sister, Elfin. Un. They all looked really young, including Elma’s dad.

『The reason we got in touch with you immediately is due to Ernst. Ah, Ernst is my son, and-』

“We already met dear brother. He suddenly challenged Hiro to a duel, so I shooed him away.”

『……Well, it’s alright as long as he’s fine.』

Eldmoore closed his eyes and sighed in relief.

『As soon as he learned that you were in the capital system, he immediately flew out of the house and went over to the Secundus colony. I already know that Hiro was awarded the Silver Sword Wings Assault medal, so I was worried something would happen once he finds you.』

“I see. Rather, what was the meaning of that demand you sent to the Mercenary Guild anyway? You told them to immediately hand me over in the name of House Willrose.”

『What? I should have only sent them a message telling them to have you contact us as soon as possible though?』

『That idiot probably intercepted your message and tampered with it, father.』

Elfin-san sounded rather harsh when she gave her take on the matter. She was referring to Ernst when she said ‘idiot’, right?

『Perhaps so…… I shall confirm it with the Mercenary Guild later on. More importantly, it’s been five years since you left us, Elma. The engagement with Gilliam has already been called off, so you don’t have anything to worry about anymore. So please come back, dear.』

Eldmoore-san gently implored Elma with a serious expression on his young-looking face. Gilliam? Engagement? Aha!

“I see. So that’s the reason you ran away huh?”

“That’s not really the only reason, but it was a major factor, I admit. I’ll talk about it with you later…… Dear father, I do not have any intention of coming home yet.”

『Is it because of your debt? It was 3,000,000 Enels, I believe. We can easily pay off that amount, dear. We can actually pay double or even triple the price if you wish. So please come back, Elma. The life of a mercenary is always fraught with danger, right? If you come home, there’s no longer any reason for you to risk your life.』

“It’s true that I haven’t paid off my debt to Hiro. Or rather, I haven’t even paid him 1 Enel, not to mention 3 million. But I can’t have you pay it off just like that either, dear father. I’ll work hard and pay Hiro myself.”

『I admire your sense of duty dear but bear in mind that you are a member of House Willrose. Besides, you are still an unmarried girl. You must know the implications of a girl staying on a male mercenary’s ship-』

“Of course I’m aware. And we’re already in that sort of relationship as well.”

After saying so, Elma grabbed my arm and snuggled with me.

『Wha-!?』

When Eldmoore-san saw her actions, his eyes opened as wide as saucers in sheer shock, but his expression turned quite murderous shortly after.

『How dare a mere mercenary like you touch my beloved daughter……?』

“Well, I won’t deny what I’ve done. And I don’t intend to part with Elma either.”

I took his gaze head-on without flinching.

『Ha! Well said, you brat. But don’t think I won’t dare to open a hole on your- Ugeh!?』

The holo-display clearly showed two fists attack Eldmoore-san’s sides simultaneously and took the wind out of him. And the owners of those fists were, of course, Elma’s mother Milfi and Elma’s sister Elfin.

『This is why the men in our house are no good. As soon as something happens, they immediately go shouting ‘duel, duel’ like idiots. ……Honestly.』

『One foolish muscle-brained brother who’s enamored with those Drawn Sword folks is more than enough for this household, father.』

『In the first place, Hiro-kun is already hailed as a hero and has received the Silver Sword Wings Assault medal. He will also be receiving a Silver Star, or perhaps even a Gold Star, later on, right? A Gold Star recipient will be given the same accords as a viscount. And even if that was not the case, Hiro-kun should already be treated as an honorary imperial knight due to the Silver Sword Wings Assault medal. This is not the time or situation for you to propose a duel.』

Eldmoore-san, who was currently crouching in pain due to the attacks on both of his sides, was scolded mercilessly by the two women. Um, even I’m starting to pity the guy. How about you leave it at that, ladies?

“And, um, there’s no way I’ll be able to part with Hiro now anyway……”

『Ara? Ara ara, ara ara?』

『So you beat me to the punch huh? To think I’ll be overtaken by my own younger sister.』

After hearing Elma’s words, Milfi-san and Elfin-san started grinning teasingly at her. What? What did they get from Elma’s earlier words anyway?

“Hey, Mimi. What are they talking about?”

“U-Um, err, ahaha.”

Mimi seems to know something. Just what the heck is up here? I have no idea at all.

“It looks like you have lots of things to talk about with your family huh.”

“There’s no reason to hide anything anymore, so I’ll tell them everything later. Later, okay.”

『Oh my. I don’t mind if you tell us everything now you know.』

『Right, right. We’re all ears, my dear little sister.』

“Isn’t it obvious that those are things I want only dear mother and sister to hear!?”

The red-faced Elma started making a ruckus with her mother and sister projected by the holo-display. The riot continued until the downed Eldmoore-san finally managed to revive.

Specifically, it only ended after a full five minutes.