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Uuuuu…
He saw…

The prince saw my thighs…
A-at that angle, he shouldn’t have been able to see any further in, though!
Even just having my thighs seen makes me want to die…

Together with Flora, Ekaterina had fled back to the strawberry-bearing bushes. There, bracing her hands against a tree trunk in a “monkey-being-scolded pose,” Ekaterina hung her head in dejection.
For the record, she had already put her stockings and shoes back on.

How much did he see… I had my knees together and my legs slightly angled, so it wasn’t a triangle sit but closer to a side sit. My skirt had fallen almost to the base of my legs… And the prince appeared from my front-right…
No, there was distance! The river was four or five meters wide, and since he was diagonally in front, the distance was even greater!
But no matter how I think about it, he saw my thighs—!

No, the prince is a gentleman. He surely wouldn’t spread it around. Don’t dwell on it!
I-I mean, in my previous life there were miniskirts and hot pants and even swimsuits! Just seeing thighs—
…In this world, in my social position, that’s fatal…
…Even in my previous life, I never wore miniskirts. For work I wore pantsuits, and in private it was always unflattering jeans…
Waaah, it’s so embarrassing to have my thighs seen…

Let it go already, me.

Or so I thought, but I can’t let it go!!!

.

“Lady Ekaterina, you are worrying so much… Lord Mikhail will surely be fine. That location favors someone of the water attribute, and he was displaying tremendous magic.”

Ah, you’re so pure, Flora-chan! She thinks I’m despondent because I’m worried about the prince!
Sorry. I’m actually just brooding over my thighs. Truly, I’m sorry.

“Just as you say, Lady Flora. Lord Mikhail will surely dispatch the great-horned bull splendidly.”

Putting on her noble-lady mask, Ekaterina spoke crisply.
If anything, the prince’s magic had been so astonishing that she felt no worry for his safety at all.
No, no. He rescued me from danger, and I’m thinking such heartless thoughts.
That’s right, I must thank the prince! …Though it’s embarrassing to face him. Uuu.

“Once things have settled, let us go to that riverbank to seek assistance.”
“Yes.”

Just as Flora nodded—

“Milady!”

The maid Mina came running into the clearing.

.

“Mina! You came!”
“I am so sorry to have left your side, milady…”

With a fearsome expression, Mina tightened her grip on whatever she was holding.

“Ow, ow, ow—”
“It’s fine. To find us so quickly—just as expected of you, Mina.”

Truly, without any GPS or the like, to locate them in such a forest—Mina was remarkable.
But something else drew Ekaterina’s attention even more.

“Um… Mina, that thing you’re holding in your hand… what might it be?”
“This is the culprit. This little fairy b̲a̲s̲t̲a̲r̲d̲ is the one who separated me from you, milady.”

……As expected.

It was being held by the torso in one of Mina’s hands. If a creature of that size were gripped by a combat maid of monstrous strength, its bones ought to have been crushed to splinters—but it seemed unharmed.
Height wise, about twenty centimeters. It wore gray clothes like a jester’s, with only a small vest in vivid green. Fairly fairy-like attire, perhaps, but Ekaterina’s impression was—

…Small Old Men.¹

Its face was that of a middle-aged man.
Because of the phrase “mischief-loving,” Ekaterina had imagined something childlike, so the gap was painful.

Well, the idea that fairies are cute is a fantasy. Goblins, often fodder enemies in video games from her previous life, were also classified as fairies. And redcaps from folklore were vicious beings who wore caps dyed in the blood of those they killed. Perhaps urban legends were comparatively better than traditional folklore.

“I didn’t do anything wrong, you~ I didn’t, you~”

The small old man flailed, trying to escape Mina’s grip.

“The young ladies were just so cute, you see~ I only wanted to let them taste my special snack, you~ That’s all it was, you~”

So these strawberries were fairy snacks.
Still, the way this small old man spoke was rather distinctive.

“You’re cute too, big sis, you~ I was going to let you eat as well, you~ I didn’t mean to separate you~ hngk—”
“Milady, do not believe a word it says. Fairies are liars.”

Mina tightened her grip as though to crush it.

“Such brazen lies after emitting such a wicked aura. It was trying to lure you into the fairy realm and keep you there, never to return, by making you eat fairy food. It is only because I found and captured it, the connection shifted and you ended up here instead. That is why things from the fairy realm are growing here.”

Fruit originally from the fairy realm…?
If so, had Japan’s selective breeding in my previous life reached the level of food beyond the human world? Impressive.
More importantly—narrow escape! So the rule about eating food in another realm preventing return really did apply!

“I see… Thank you, Mina. If you had not been here, it would have been disastrous.”
“Please wait here. I will attach a weight to it and sink it into the deepest pool.”
“Nooo!”

Mina calmly pronounced its execution; the little fairy screamed.

“I didn’t do anything wrong, you! I just thought the cute young ladies should stay cute forever, you! I was being kind, you know!”

There it is—the confession.
So in the fairy realm, even humans cease to age? I guess there’s been such legends in my previous life too.

“It’s fun over there, you~ You can eat whenever you like, sleep whenever you like, wear thin and cute clothes, and spend your days singing and dancing, you see~”

Why was “thin” specifically included when describing the clothes?
Still, it sounded like the lifestyle from a certain yokai theme song. I had longed for that during my corporate-drone days.

However—
I am no longer a corporate drone. I am a proud Brocon!

“To think of you’d try to take me to a world without my brother—utterly impertinent.”

When Ekaterina said this coldly, Mina and Flora both nodded firmly.

“I’ll go dispose of it.”
“Nooo!”

As Mina started to walk, the fairy shrieked again.

“Please forgive me, young lady!! I’ll give you anything, do anything, just spare me! I’ll give you lots of snacks! I don’t want the water, you~ I don’t like fish, you~”

The small old man began to bawl. Seeing a middle-aged face cry made Ekaterina feel awkward.

“Can you swear never again to take humans to another world without permission?”
“I swear, you~ I do swear, you~!”

In that case, there was no need to threaten it further.
Ah, but wait.

“That fruit was exceedingly delicious. Will you truly give us a great deal? I wish to let my brother taste it.”
“I’ll give you some, you~ A family-loving young lady is cute, you~ I’ll give you plenty, a whole big basket full, you~”

Guess I should give some to the Prince as well, as thanks.
Ah, I’ve got an idea. Sales promotion for the Forest Folk’s tableware.

“You said you would do anything. Can you run an errand to the Forest Folk?”
“The Forest Folk? I like them, lots of beauties there, you see~ I don’t go too close because the Great King Bees are scary, but I can run an errand, you~ I can go right away, you~”

Excellent. This should allow me to contact Aurora directly.
I should purchase as much tableware as possible and request new production… If quantities are needed, perhaps artisans in the Northern Capital could manufacture them, while paying the Forest Folk a design usage fee.
Does something like design rights exist in the Empire, like intellectual property in my previous life? I should ask Daniil the lawyer.

“May we also receive seeds or seedlings?”
“Seeds? Sometimes overripe ones sprout, you~ No one wants them, so I’ll give them to you~”

Perfect. I could hand them over to Forli and the Forestry and Agriculture Bureau. A candidate for a new Jurnova specialty—getto da ze!

“Milady, are you truly going to release it?”

Mina looked at the fairy as though it were garbage.

“Fairies are liars. Even if it says it won’t do it again, it surely will.”
“But Mina, we cannot actually sink it into a deep pool.”
“And why not?”

Mina’s face was utterly serious. Come to think of it, my beautiful maid does have a touch of psychopathy.

“M-Mina, this fruit is truly delicious. I meant to let you taste it as well.”

Hurriedly, Ekaterina selected a ripe red berry and held it to Mina’s lips.

“Here, try it.”
“……”

Mina stared expressionlessly at the strawberry, then quietly opened her mouth and ate it.

“…It’s sweet.”
“Very delicious, isn’t it? If we can add it to Jurnova’s specialties, my brother will surely be pleased. For that, we need this fairy’s cooperation.”

Watching this up close, the little fairy beamed.

“So nice, you~ You young ladies are so cute, you~ It’s rare to see such cute girls, you see~ I truly won’t take anyone else away, you~ Big sister, don’t worry, you~”
“Well, regardless of what this *thing* says, if that is what you wish, milady, I will do as you say.”

Hearing Mina’s words reminded Ekaterina of the phrase Aleksei sometimes used—“If that is what you desire”—and further strengthened her suspicion that Mina had been infected with the siscon virus.