Chapter 808: Melody to the Distant Horizon
The next day. After finishing my morning 「Ritual」, I took a bath in the hot springs and then, on a whim, headed to the Baron’s residence. My duties as a soldier and my blacksmithing work were nearly done, and there were no urgent matters. Times like these were precisely when I wanted to deepen my bond with the children. Even if I had no specific business, there were several potential major issues to consider. Things like the new city construction, Princess Ran and the others, and future relations with Crystal Palace. Plus, with autumn approaching, the great monster invasion of Renfangas would soon begin. Considering all that, even if things were quiet now, I never knew what might suddenly start. I wanted to make the most of this time when my mind and schedule were free.
Entering the baron’s residence, the mansion felt oddly quiet……no, wait—music was playing somewhere? Perhaps the entire household was captivated by it.
“This way……?”
I hesitated between prioritizing Selenium’s room or this, but checking the situation first wouldn’t hurt. Drawn by the sound, I followed it through the mansion. While not quite a castle, the baron’s residence was quite spacious. If only the Baron’s family lived here, it would clearly have too many rooms. But apparently, a noble residence must have enough space to accommodate visiting nobles who bring dozens of retainers. Right now, Selenium and the northern elves were staying in one of those guest rooms. Amidst these guest rooms were several whimsical spaces: a room housing swords and art treasures, a room filled with handmade puzzles that a baron from several generations past had devoted his life to, and a room where Almonica’s rare jungle monkey had once lived (the baron died as a child, so now a taxidermied specimen was displayed, apparently very unpopular with the children). One of these rooms was the instrument room……or rather, I suppose it was one of those. I’d only just learned of its existence. Inside, numerous instruments were displayed—flutes, stringed instruments, and an oddly large number of xylophones, among others. By the window, Selenium strummed a harp, while Nord-san fingerpicked a contrabass, playing pizzicato to provide the bass line. And to that music, Apple and Princess Ran were singing in harmony. Apple in elf language. Princess Ran in southern language. Songs with distinct foreign tones resonated together on the same melody. ……And the baron’s family and servants crowded into the room, spellbound by the sound.
“……Irina. What’s this?”
“Don’t interrupt”
“……Sorry”
I tried to get an explanation from Irina, who was among the audience, but she brushed me off. Well, yeah, my bad. Yeah. But while I get Apple and Selenium, it’s surprising that Nord-san is playing, and what kind of idea is it for Princess Ran to sing herself? Still, her voice is definitely good. Like Apple’s, it’s a voice that knows how to use the throat. She must have had proper musical training. Her pitch and the way she vibrates her voice are masterful. Eventually, the song ended, and the room erupted in applause. Only then did I finally decide to speak to Irina again.
“Irina”
“……I heard the princess’s voice had improved. While discussing testing her voice, we mentioned singing a song. That reminded me of a piece of trivia—the same song is passed down in our Northern Forest and the Southern Plains……so I suggested it”
“The same song……what do you mean?”
“I don’t know who composed it. But it’s common for the same melody to spread to other regions, where locals add their own lyrics in their language. In the Northern Forest, it’s a song of love between mountains. In the South, it’s a mother’s lament for her child setting out on a journey”
“……That’s quite different”
Love between mountains. ……Hard to picture, but I suppose it’s that fairy-tale sort of thing.
“Well, songs from the Northern Forest are generally like that. Those with strong emotions or vulgar lyrics don’t last long. For better or worse, they care about dignity”
“That sounds boring too”
“Umm. ……Well, never mind that”
Princess Ran, smiling slightly shyly, noticed my gaze, her expression changing a bit as she came running over.
“Smithson-sama!”
“That was a beautiful voice. Your throat seems to be in good shape”
“Yes! Even when I sing with all my might, there’s not even a hint of an attack!”
She, who once feared asthma and dreaded straining her throat, could now engage in activities to her heart’s content. She was overflowing with joy at having that weight lifted from her life. That was the song……I suppose. A few people had teared up while listening; perhaps they knew the story behind it.
“It’s a fine thing to witness a young person’s life opening up, Your Highness”
“Baron. I’m afraid I’ve offended your ears”
“Not at all! That beautiful voice washed over my heart. It rivals even Apple-kun, one of the finest Polka singers”
So even the Baron’s household sees Apple that way. ……Well, I don’t know anyone better than Apple either.
“So you can play an instrument too, Nord-san?”
I called out to Nord, who was putting away the double bass. She shrugged and smiled.
“Jose taught me ages ago. He said if I only had dancing as a skill, what would I do if I twisted my ankle? Actually, it comes in handy sometimes”
“But you’d hardly ever need to play such a massive instrument”
The contrabass was enormous. Shaped like a giant violin, its total length exceeded Nord-san’s own height. Though its hollow construction made it surprisingly light, it was still far too large for a traveling dancer to carry as equipment. ……But.
“I just happened to pick this one because it caught my eye. I can handle percussion, flutes, guitars, harps—pretty much anything. I was trained in all sorts of things whenever the opportunity arose”
“……Damn”
More multi-talented than I expected. Or rather, maybe it’s precisely because she’s a dark elf with an 80-year career and 300 years of life. That alone makes her a living treasure, and the fact she can do all this other stuff too is just unfair. ……Well, Dianne’s pretty much the same, I suppose.
“More importantly, Selenium-chan and Apple-chan, they’ve got some serious skills, don’t they? That other girl might be a bit too much to handle as a traveling performer, but I’d love to have Selenium and Apple as my accompanists”
“Is this the first time you’ve heard them play like this, Nord-san?”
And yet, pulling off an impromptu ensemble like that is incredible. I feel like all I’ve been saying is 「Incredible」.
“It’s fine occasionally, though”
“But leaving Ele-chan alone and going to the tavern together……”
Selenium and Apple exchanged troubled smiles. Looking after Elenia seemed to be a major responsibility not just for Selenium, but for Apple too. Well, they’d originally envisioned a future where they’d work together to keep me company while taking turns working……or something like that. Now that the child was born, it was only natural for them to fully cooperate in caring for her. ……This situation just made me even more conscious of my own uselessness as a parent, someone they barely even remember.
“In that case, how about being our children’s music teacher?”
The Baroness approached Selenium with a beaming smile.
“If you teach at our place, you won’t have to worry about Peter or Elenia. With your skill, I’m sure we could afford the tuition”
“E, Emm……”
“……I’ll think about it……”
Selenium and Apple looked slightly flustered. I thought they were pretty proactive about making extra cash, so maybe they weren’t keen on this? Not having to worry about Peter and Elenia is definitely true, and it seems like a pretty good deal. ……To my unspoken question, the answer came from Fennel, who was dressed as a maid and had appeared nearby without me noticing.
“Madam, she’s trying every trick in the book to keep them here. After raising Peter and the others together all this time, it would be lonely if they were to retreat to the Smithson mansion”
“……Ah”
I see……. While I feel threatened that the Baron might take the position of 「The man they recognize as their father」, it seems Selenium and the others could also have their status as 「Mothers」 undermined if things go badly. No, really, we’ve been taken care of so much by them, it would be outrageous to speak of them as if they were enemies.
“Don’t you think it’s better for Andy-kun and Peter-kun to stay and be raised here? There are always maids here, so they won’t be neglected……and Marie-san works here during the day, so they won’t be lonely”
“……N, No……”
“Besides, having little kids at home……well, you know, it’d be hard to focus on that other thing, right?”
“…………”
Ugh, ugh. ……Well, the Baroness has plenty of children herself, so bringing this up so bluntly now probably won’t change anything.
“That part won’t be a problem”
Irina steps forward.
“We have more than enough female slaves to serve as wet nurses and female slaves eager to bear children. Already dozens of them”
“Even so, none of them have experience raising children, right?”
“Mu……”
The Baroness wouldn’t back down easily. Or rather, she hit a sore spot. Among the female slaves, there truly were none with child-rearing experience. That was a fact. The Baroness and the Baron’s household staff (including many of Polka’s aunts) held an absolute advantage in terms of know-how. Honestly, just as it had always been, leaving the children here gave me a tremendous sense of security. But.
“I plan to have many children from now on, so I can’t possibly leave them all here. I’m truly grateful for everything up to now, but the Baron’s household can’t be entirely consumed with raising the children of just one of its subjects. If that’s the case, I can’t give Peter and the others special treatment”
“……Well, that’s……”
The Baroness reluctantly nodded. Right. There are dozens of female slaves. That means I intend to father at least that many children. If I were to raise all of them in the Baron’s household like Peter, my children would overflow this vast mansion. When asked if they could accept them all, if they could raise them all with love, even the Baroness couldn’t give a strong answer. Well, I’m a bit daunted by the idea of raising that many all at once myself. But there’s no point in bringing that up now. We’ll worry about it when the time comes.
“Now, now. Today, we simply heard a beautiful song and performance. Isn’t that enough, Daria and Andy? Don’t look so serious”
The Baron wrapped things up. He seemed to be having a bit of trouble with his wife Daria’s maternal instincts running wild toward Peter, so he was probably waiting for the right moment to speak up. To change the mood, I turned my attention to the instruments hanging on the wall.
“By the way, Baron, what’s with all these xylophones?”
“Ah, these…….well”
The Baron gave a wry smile.
“Actually, they’re Smithson-dono’s work”
“Eh?”
“The master wasn’t well-versed in instrument-making, but he was overjoyed when you showed talent for playing long ago. However, flutes and stringed instruments were beyond a blacksmith’s skill. He said these were about the only instruments he could realistically make himself. So, after you left for the capital, he made several prototypes and compared their quality to our instruments. He said, when you come back someday, he’ll let you play them at the festival”
“……I see”
“He ended up stopping after the war. ……But I couldn’t bring myself to throw away what he left behind”
The Baron’s face held a mix of a smile and sadness. ……I’m sure mine looked much the same.
“……May I play it?”
“Of course. ……Ah, today is a good day. For these iron chimes too”