Leave a comment

Clarissa runs happily ahead of us as we walk back home. That means going through a trail in a forest filled with monsters, with trees growing on both sides of the path.

We’re coming back to the Gardeland estate after being away for around half a year, but we won’t get to relax for too long. We’re planning on leaving Bamel again in three days, so I have to make sure everything is prepared for that.

But it still feels nice to be back home, and it gives a certain feeling of reassurance.

Now we just need to walk a little more and we should be past the barrier keeping people away, and we’ll be…

“Huh?”

My thoughts freeze for a moment.

It’s not like the mansion up and vanished. But the garden from the entrance all the way to the main building is ravaged, with tall stones impaled on the ground and all the herbs and plants scattered about.

I had expected the garden would be somewhat overgrown, but I never imagined it’d be like this.

“What happened here…”

Olivia mutters that, feeling exactly the same way as me.

I didn’t hear about a hurricane passing through here recently, but the marks don’t look very old…actually nevermind, there’s some spots where plants are growing again.

Just what happened here?

Before long we hear an explosive noise.

“Let’s see what caused that!”
“Right!”

Olivia runs ahead and I follow after her, going to the training area behind the mansion, where the sound came from. When we get there, we see something I had never anticipated.

“Shaa!”
“!”

There’s a Cruel Predator waving its vines, and a Copper Spider deploying magic circles. Both are glaring at each other, like they’re about to jump at each other’s throat at any moment.

“Shaaaaa!”
“!!”

The Cruel Predator was supposed to be living near Ingralowe, and the Copper Spider usually never leaves the caves below the mansion, so it’s really strange for both of them to be up here, but that’s not important right now.

At least now I know it’s these two who ruined the garden. This garden, which houses so many memories with Ophelia, and where her body rests now.

“Just what do you two think you’re doing…”
“”?!””

Both of them stop moving and slowly turn to look at me, and start to tremble when they recognize me.

I didn’t ask them to tremble though.

“Let me ask you again, just what do you think you’re doing?” I ask again and the two rush up to me while still cowering slightly.

“Sha shasha shaaa!”
“! !! !!”

Now what?

They’re moving their limbs wildly and trying to communicate something, but since they can’t speak there’s no way I can understand them. All it does is tick me off even more.

“M-Maid.”
“HM?!”

Clarissa talks to me, and I end up glaring at her as well.

“Cl-Claire understands…”
“Then translate.”
“W-Woof.”

It turns out that the Cruel Predator got here because it wanted to be near me after Olivia graduated, even if it was far away from Ingralowe. So it asked Clarissa about the location of our home one of the times we went to visit the Cruel Predator. Clarissa actually went further and brought it here herself, which happened during the days she was away when the panty thief incident happened in the dorm.

Meanwhile the Copper Spider decided to leave the nest of its mother Aria, and go adventuring to see the world together with me. But since it did not know when we’d be back, it just waited for us in the mansion’s garden.

Unluckily both of them entered the mansion at the same time, and believed the other was an intruder, so they began fighting without any regard to the garden.

The panty thief incident happened around three months ago, so that would mean they’ve been fighting for all that time.

“Seriously…”

Once I heard everything I couldn’t stop myself from sighing. At this point I’m not really angry, just thoroughly perplexed.

“I don’t know how this happened, but it seems both of you have a bit of a misconception. You can’t really go on adventures with me. I’m just a magic automaton and Olivia’s Servant, to the world I’m no different from a monster, just like you two. It really isn’t up to me to decide whether you can come or not on adventures, and the fact that you acted on that desire without even asking first isn’t something I can approve of, or rather, it’s quite bothersome.”

“Sha…”
“…”

Hearing that, the two become silent and lower their heads. I feel a little bit bad for them, but I had to tell them that. Clarissa is also at fault for never mentioning anything about the Cruel Predator too though, so I’ll have to lecture her later as well.

“But in the first place, why-”
“Natalia, don’t you think that’s enough?”
“But they-”

Just when I was about to continue scolding them, Olivia stopped me.

“They came here because they like you and want to be around you, right? Don’t you feel bad for telling them off for that?”
“Young Lady, keeping them here would require them to become your Servants as well, but that’d be a needless responsibility you shouldn’t have to bear.”
“That doesn’t really bother me though? I’d actually love to grow my family of Servants.”
“Sigh… Alright, if that’s your decision, then that settles the matter.”

I really feel like I shouldn’t let them off so easily, but if the most affected party, Olivia, says it’s alright, then I really have no right to say more.

“Well, you heard the Young Lady, she’ll let you stay. If you want to be around me, just remember you have to follow anything she says.”
“Shaaa!”
“!!”

The Cruel Predator and Copper Spider quickly start nodding vehemently. It seems they’re alright with following Olivia’s orders.

“Alright, time to clean the garden then.”
“Leave that to us, Young Lady. You should go unpack inside.”
“Really? Are you sure you don’t need any help?”
“We can’t possibly ask you to do such menial labor. Not to mention that even if they’re forgiven, that doesn’t exempt them from fixing their mistakes.”

From now on we’ll be traveling together and also spending time in society, so they need to be trained to live under different rules from those out in the wild.

“Okay then, I’ll leave it to you.”
“Alright. Let’s enter the mansion for a bit so I can unload your luggage.”

Most of Olivia’s belongings are currently in my magic storage. I’m sure Olivia is strong enough to carry them on her own, but it’s still easier to take out everything indoors.

“Cruel Predator, Copper Spider, I’ll go inside to unload some luggage. You start tidying up the garden. Clarissa, you help the Young Lady.”
“Woof.”
“Shaa.”
“!”

I make sure they all give a response, then head into the mansion.

The Cruel Predator and Copper Spider stayed behind to work on the garden like they were told while Natalia entered the mansion with Olivia and Clarissa. They began working from opposite sides of the garden, swiftly undoing the damage they had caused.

The Copper Spider used its earth magic to dissolve the chunks of stone scattered around and to even out the battered ground. The Cruel Predator picked out all the herbs and plants that were still intact and planted them again so they could grow.

Eventually they met each other in the middle, where they began to gloat about their respective work.

The Copper Spider had patched all the holes and evened out the ground, something that Natalia would surely appreciate.

Meanwhile the Cruel Predator had restored a large portion of the plants, and they would eventually spread out and become like they were before, something that Natalia would surely praise it for.

But since they worked separately and with different skill sets, their work did not really mesh together well. The ground on the Copper Spider’s side of the garden looked even and without stones, but there were still plenty of herbs half buried, while all the plants had been taken care of in the Cruel Predator’s side, but there were pits and small mounts all over the place.

The Copper Spider pointed that out first, questioning why the plants had been placed on such uneven ground, but the Cruel Predator responded by mocking all the plants buried on the other side.

“…!”
“…Sha!”

The two glared at each other, bared their fangs, and then raised their front appendages.

“…!!”
“…Shaaa!!”

And then they were about to lunge at each other…

“What are you two doing now?”
“?!”
“Sha?!”

Natalia had returned from unloading the luggage, and stopped their rivalry with a cold voice.

“I really thought both of you were well mannered and obedient, but I guess I was wrong.”
“! ! !!”
“Sha, shasha, sha!”

The Copper Spider tried to argue that it had worked its best, but then the other tried to provoke it. The Cruel Predator denied that, saying that the Copper Spider had been the one who started the conflict.

Both of them were trying to pin the blame on the other.

They could not talk to Natalia directly, but their sounds and mannerisms were enough for her to understand what was happening, and sadly for the monsters, that only made things worse.

“Enough, both of you. Sit.”

Natalia did not even stop to wonder how monsters like them could physically sit as she shouted that order, but her severe tone would not allow such questions. Both of them quickly curled up and moved closer to the ground, keeping their heads down¹.

“I can understand that you thought of each other as an intruder and began fighting before, and I get that sometimes there’s conflicting opinions. But you need to learn to cooperate if you want to live together here.”

While Natalia was scolding them, the Copper Spider whispered, it’s your fault. But the Cruel Predator whispered back, no it was you.

“You’re still going, aren’t you?”
“”!!””

In the end Natalia continued scolding them until the sky turned dark.

1. Robinxen: I really want to see some art of this scene… two monsters curled up and being scolded by a maid…