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“Please, ask me anything.” I barely managed to answer, swallowing hard. 

Even though he had simply said that he only wanted to ask me a question, there was an indescribable intensity to his words. It could also be interpreted as anger. 

I recalled…committing errors of all kinds, but I couldn’t remember doing anything that would inflict harm to the Rosenberg Marquis household. Given the timing, perhaps he had some issues with our outing.

“I’ve heard from Sophia that you’re having an outing in the Flamefield Empire…is that true?”

“It was suggested by Her Highness Folcenia, and His Highness Alforth agreed as well. I’m afraid that this matter could be considered a done deal.” 

So, his question was about the outing. I briefly informed him of the situation and probed around to see what issue his mind was currently occupied with. However, Master Grave didn’t show any reaction to my words. So that meant that most likely—

“The Flamefield Empire is a warm country, and apparently even nobles go to the beaches to swim, is that right?”

“Yes, that’s what I’ve heard.”

“By the way, Cyril, what do you think of the phrase: ‘When in Rome, do as the Romans do?’”

I came very close to having an involuntary coughing fit, but I managed to suppress it by sheer willpower. Master Grave was implying this: ‘Surely you don’t mean to expose Sophia dressed in just a swimsuit to the masses at the Flamefield Empire’s beaches, like those Flamefield nobles right?’

First of all, I had memories from my previous world.

In the other world’s civilized society, it wasn’t strange for women to wear only a swimsuit in public. Looking at it from that perspective, I didn’t think that Lady Sophia publicly wearing a swimsuit was something shameful. It could also be said that my perception was similar to the perception of the commoners of this world.

However, at the same time, it has been roughly ten years since I woke up in this world. Since then, I had gotten accustomed to this world’s noble society as a butler. So, my current self’s perception closely matched the perception of the nobles of this world, too.

Therefore, I understood what worried Master Grave extremely well. However, I had already finished preparations to deal with this issue precisely because of it.

“Even though the two Imperial Highnesses of the Flamefield Empire are studying abroad here, their uniform conforms to the fashion of their own country. So I was thinking that we don’t necessarily have to conform to theirs either.”

I agreed with Master Grave’s views, making him more open to discussion. In addition to that, I quickly continued before he could voice his opinion again.

“However, Her Highness Folcenia plans on wearing a swimsuit, in which case low-ranking nobles—such as Lady Alicia—will have to do the same as her. Additionally, Lady Sophia wishes to wear it as well.”

If a Royal like Fol were to wear a swimsuit, her companions must do the same. Nevertheless, someone with the renown of the Rosenberg Marquis household attached to them also had the choice of not wearing it. But the fact of the matter was that Lady Sophia wanted to have a good time and wear a swimsuit. Since that was the case, it wasn’t my duty to advise her against it, but to remove any obstacles standing in her way.

“So, you’re telling me to approve of Sophia enjoying herself while just wearing a swimsuit? However, Cyril, currently, you’re not only her exclusive butler but also her marriage candidate. Are you going to let her wear a swimsuit?”

“While my status has changed, nothing has changed in my intentions to respect Lady Sophia’s wishes,” I answered, prepared to be met with the current head’s anger. I had prepared myself for this kind of problem ever since Lady Sophia had shown interest in the sea. I met Master Grave’s gaze. Master Grave placed a hand to his temple and then let out a small sigh.

“Let me state it another way: You don’t mind the masses seeing Sophia wearing a swimsuit?”

I only stayed quiet for a moment after hearing his question. Then, I turned towards him and smiled.

“Please, rest assured. There are plenty of private beaches in the Flamefield Empire. I plan to reserve one of the private beaches belonging to Royalty.”

The Royalty of the Flamefield Empire were indebted to me a great deal, not to mention Fol. Therefore, I was going to suggest to Fol that we should borrow Imperial Princess Charlotte’s private beach and have our outing there. 

‘I am able to do at least this much’, I thought silently and smiled.

“…Cyril, you. Aren’t you in hold of more power than His Majesty?” 

“I wouldn’t dare such disrespect.”

“…Is that so?”

‘Why the questioning tone?’ There was no way that I could retort. I was no match for a Marquis, so I had no right to do so. Only a person such as Lady Sophia had such authority.

“Nevermind, let’s get back to the main topic. Even if you use a private beach, His Highness Alforth is also coming with you, isn’t he? You mean to say that you don’t mind even if that’s the case?”

“Please, look at this.”

Slowly—well, to Master Grave it was most likely to be ‘suddenly’—I took out a document from my pocket and spread it on Master Grave’s office table.

“…Is this a swimsuit design?”

“Yes.”

It was a swimsuit that I designed together with a fashion designer, making use of my memories of the previous world. It was an off-shoulder bikini, and the top had frills, so it looked very adorable. Furthermore, the swimsuit had an outer, see-through layer adorned by embroidery and a tiered skirt.

Although it was made out of good-quality, water-repellent fabric, from a distance, the garment looked like something a commoner young lady would wear on a stroll through the town.

“I see…A garment like this isn’t too revealing. There shouldn’t be any issues if Sophia wore it. However, will you be able to make it in time for the trip?”

“Please, rest assured. It’s almost ready,” I replied immediately, which caused an indescribable expression to show on Master Grave’s face.

“…I believe that the topic of an outing only came up today, didn’t it?”

“My Lady had expressed her interest in the sea a while ago, so…”

“Geez, you are truly infallible…That being said, it’s not like you’d just wanted to see Sophia in a swimsuit, is it?”

“I am Lady Sophia’s exclusive butler—but at the same time, I am also her marriage candidate.”

If I were to say that I wanted to see Lady Sophia in a swimsuit, I’d get onto Master Grave’s bad side. But, if I were to say that I didn’t want to, I would get onto Lady Sophia’s bad side. There was no way I could have made such a terrifying choice. So, I dodged the question.

Naturally, Master Grave must have noticed too. He let out a small chuckle.

“…Geez. Fine, enjoy your trip.” 

“Thank you.”

The next day, I went to get permission from Imperial Princess Charlotte to borrow her private beach and Fol agreed to have our outing there as well, so our plans for the trip progressed without a hitch.

Then, that same day after class, I was summoned by Teacher Tristan.

“It’s the DLC event ‘Falling into Darkness.’”

This was the first thing he said when I stepped into his laboratory.

“…That’s sudden. The DLC event ‘Falling into Darkness,’ you say?”

“Yes. An event where she falls into darkness.”

“Who?” 

“Lady Sophia.”

I avoided replying immediately, carefully inspecting those words. I kept pondering them over and over again in my head for well over ten seconds and then, I looked up at Teacher Tristan again.

“…Who?”

“Stop trying to escape reality,” he retorted, using the same tone of voice my elder sister used. 

“I apologize. Please stop talking like my elder sister.”

In our previous world, my elder sister had a very ‘young Lady-like’ appearance. When that image of her overlapped with the image of the slightly rugged Teacher Tristan, I was seized by an indescribable feeling.

“Okay, okay. But, I only did it because you were trying to escape reality, you know?”

“I’m sorry. However, Lady Sophia is going to fall into darkness? I expected that by now, Lady Sophia wouldn’t fall into darkness anymore.”

There was a lot I wanted to say. But, the most important fact was that the current Lady Sophia was brought up completely differently from the young Lady in the original story. I couldn’t imagine the current Lady Sophia falling into darkness.

“You may think you understand, but you don’t. She isn’t the type of person to have violent ups and downs. She’s a very persevering young Lady who will do her best even if she’s hurt.”

“Of course I know that…”

“Then use your imagination a little. When do people fall into darkness?”

“…Oh, so that’s what you meant. It seems that I’ve been mistaken.”

No matter the circumstances, there was never a person who didn’t get hurt. And the issue was how they got hurt. 

Very persevering people would hold back even when they got hurt and they might end up getting wounded to such a degree, that as a result, the harm can’t be undone anymore. Falling into darkness was a phenomenon that occured when someone got deeply hurt in this way.

In other words, while the possibility of Lady Sophia falling into darkness was low, once she fell, the way she’d fall would be much more intense than in the original story. 

What the hell, that’s so scary!

“…By the way, you said that it’s an event, right? Does that mean that the place I chose for our outing is the stage of the event, and that there are going to be incidents occurring that could hurt Lady Sophia to this extent?”

If so—

“‘If so, I’ll put a stop to the trip.’ Is that what you wanted to say? You borrowed a private beach from a Royal, so you can’t really change the place, can you?”

I wasn’t able to answer. I had been thinking just about that.

It would be fine if I canceled the outing, but if I said that we were changing the location, it would seem as if we weren’t satisfied with the private beach that Imperial Princess Charlotte prepared for us. It would be alright if we decided to go to the mountains instead of the sea, but it was impossible to go to another beach.

Therefore, it would be necessary to give up on the sea in order to avoid the event. However, I also thought: Was canceling the outing that Lady Sophia was looking forward to, really for her sake?

The answer was no. If my Lady wished for it, even if it was a dangerous path, I would walk together with her and eliminate all the enemies. This was my duty as a butler, and my decision as her marriage candidate.

“I will go to this trip and I will protect Lady Sophia, too.”

“Heh, I thought you’d say that. It is possible to avoid the ‘Falling into Darkness’ event but it all depends on your actions. Or rather, depending on what you will do, those actions could be what prevents her from falling into darkness. For that reason, rest assured and enjoy the trip.”

It seemed that he didn’t have any intentions to tell me any further details about the event. However, even that served as a hint. For example, if it was the type of event where we\'d get involved in a fight or a natural disaster, he would definitely warn me.

‘Depending on my actions.’ In other words, it meant just that. It was the type of event that would be made more difficult by telling me any details. Moreover, I had a hunch about what type of event it might be.

“Thankfully, I can somewhat imagine what it’s going to entail. However, I need to correct you on one thing.”

“…Correct me? About what?”

“You told me to enjoy the trip, but as our homeroom teacher, you’re also coming along. So, you should also do your best not to let Fol fall into darkness, okay?”

When I laughed, Teacher Tristan looked uncharacteristically astonished.

Thank you so much for reading. Due to a sudden loss I am currently dealing with, I won\'t be posting a chapter next week. I hope to be back after the week hiatus, but as you can probably imagine, things are very difficult at the moment. Thank you for understanding.