I took a glance at Alice, who looked like she was trying to slink away. I grabbed her wrist to stop her from escaping.

「Alice, why are you trying to get away……?」

「Well…… I think I’m in the wrong place.」

She scratched her head and looked away from me in embarrassment.

「Ooh, Alice! It’s been some time. You’re into your disguises as usual?」

Alice’s shoulders stiffened. She looked at Natalie who was grinning from ear to ear.

「……N-Nice to see you…… Aunt……Natalie……」

Natalie’s expression changed in an instant when she heard the word “Aunt”. The air seemed to freeze in a split second.

「Alice…… I’ve told you many times to call me “Big sister”.」

「B-but…… You’re my aunt’s sister. Aunt –」

「What are you saying, Alice……? Do I have to discipline you with magic like when you were young?」

Alice’s mouth was half open.

Huh? Alice’s aunt’s sister? Natalie’s an Elf, but shouldn’t Alice be human? Could she be a Half-Elf?

「Huh? I thought you’re a human, Alice. Could it be –」

「You see, Alice admired humans so much that she used magic tools to transform herself.」

「Aunt Nat…… Big Sis, please don’t say that.」

No matter how you compare them, Natalie looked younger than Alice, so it didn’t feel like she was her aunt at all. Besides, didn’t she seem more immature than Alice?

「You mean……if Alice removed her magic tools……she’d look like a little girl……?」

I asked out loud, and Alice pouted.

「Of course not! It’s just Big Sis Natalie who looks young..」

Alice said, taking off the ring on her right middle finger.

Her face didn’t change at all. Only her ears grew longer, like an Elf’s.

「See, Touya? My face is still the same.」

She was right. The style that I like didn’t change at all. The only thing that changed was her ears.

「Still, I cannot believe that Alice and Touya were together…… You seduced her with your sweets, didn’t you, Touya?」

……I think I shouldn’t say anything.

Alice told me about her sweet tooth during our conversations on the way here. But I never took out anything sweet from my Dimensional Storage.

However, the look in Alice’s eyes changed upon hearing Natalie’s words. She looked at me as if she had just found her prey.

「Hey, Touya…… What are the sweets that Big Sis Natalie mentioned? Do you have a lot of them hidden somewhere? And by the way, you have many curiosities, don’t you? Well?」

Alice grabbed my arm and put her chest against it while looking up at me. I averted her gaze.

「No…… I don’t think so.」

She’s the type of person to eat something endlessly if she got a taste of it. She would eat up all my food if I showed it to her carelessly.

「Are we done?」

Gaulus called out to stop our mutual teasing.

「We’re going to set up a tent for the Imperial Family to rest in. Please feel free to relax here while we prepare yours as well.」

「Thank you very much. Then for now –」

「We don’t need a tent. Touya can just take out his mansion.」

Natalie said, cutting me off.

「Oh, that reminds me. You have a house in your Dimensional Storage, don’t you, Touya?」

Alice added. However, what Alice had seen was the Guild House, not the mansion I had in Fendi.

「We can take a bath there as well. Touya, hurry up and take it out.」

「Natalie…… You……」

She said too much for me to give any excuses. To make it worse, she said it in front of the Emperor……

But there was no going back. The soldiers took us to an open space.

「There should be no problem with this much space. Come on, take it out now. I want to see it.」

I sighed deeply in response to Natalie. I took out the Fendi mansion from the Dimensional Storage and placed it in the open space.

The soldiers became speechless when they saw the mansion suddenly appear before them.

I bet anyone would be shocked if they knew I had such a mansion tucked away in a Dimensional Storage. They’d wonder how much capacity my Dimensional Storage had.

Even Natalie couldn’t fit a single house in her Dimensional Storage, let alone a mansion this size.

Even the Imperial Family was astounded when they saw the mansion. The Emperor’s face twitched.

「– I may be owing a debt to an incredible person like you, Master Touya.」

The Emperor mumbled while looking up at the mansion. I smiled wryly.

Honestly, I would’ve preferred not to show what’s up my sleeves, but Natalie isn’t concerned about it.

She’s the type to dash off while telling me to “just shove everything away” if anything happened.

I was the first to enter the mansion, followed by the Imperial Family, then Gaulus, Char, Al, Natalie, and finally Alice.

The mansion was a little small for the Imperial Family, but at least it was probably more comfortable than staying in a tent. It was certainly much better than the time they spent confined in the underground dungeon, with their legs chained up.

I showed the Imperial Family, including Char, into the living room, where I sat them down on the sofa.

Gaulus sat next to the Emperor and quietly had a few words with him.

Natalie sat on a dining chair without a care, and started bombarding Alice with questions.

I called Ferris out from the spirit stone in my necklace.

I had a few questions for her.

「Ferris, thanks for showing us the way when we were in the castle. I wanted to ask, is it possible to set up a bath here with nothing around the mansion?」

Ferris nodded her head with her usual lack of expression.

「Water and heat can be produced from the spirit stone. It has my magical energy stored within……」

「I see, thanks. Would it be okay to prepare a bath now?」

「Yes……Touya.」

After saying that, Ferris disappeared.

That’s how our conversations usually go, although it wouldn’t seem normal to any other person.

The Imperial Family and Gaulus were speechless. Their eyes and mouths were wide open.

「Master Touya…… That was a house spirit…… H-how are you able to talk to her……?」

「By talking normally……?」

「If only it were that easy……」

Because I somehow found myself able to talk to her, I still don’t understand how exactly it happened. All I can do is appreciate the convenience I get from being able to communicate with her.

「Touya’s just like that, boy. You shouldn’t think about it too much. After all, Touya’s a Sa—」

「Natalie!!」

That’s one thing that I should be careful not to reveal. And although I’ve already accepted that I’m a Sage, I’m ultimately aiming to become a Berserker.

The Emperor seemed a little perplexed at first, then clapped his hands as if he had figured it out.

「“Boy” huh. You used to call me that when I was young, Natalie. And Touya you must be a Sage. that would explain how powerful your magic is……」

The Emperor casually said that I’m a Sage.

He did, didn’t he? Could it be that he knows about the Sage class?

「……Your Majesty, do you know about Sages……?」

I sat down on the sofa and looked at the Emperor.

「Yes…… It is something of a legend. “The Sage is a job that has trained beyond imagination, exceeding one’s limits and reaching the pinnacle of the ways of magic. On the other hand, Berserkers are those who have mastered the way of the warrior.”」

I couldn’t help but feel happy upon hearing what the Emperor said.

It’s a job that I really miss. It gave me joy from the belief that I could be myself in this world once again.

Strength flowed into my hands.