“It’s the rain of the spirits.”
So said Kuro, muttering as she looked up at the sky.
Though there were clouds above, they didn’t seem like rain clouds, and the sun was shining. It was what you’d call a sunshower.
“Rain, rain! It’s starting to fall!”
“We can’t waste any time!”
“Excuse us!”
The villagers all bowed deeply to us in unison and then, leaving one person behind, they hurriedly ran off.
It seemed there was some work they needed to do while it was raining.
The villagers who ran off looked genuinely delighted.
“We’re so glad it’s raining!”
“Truly, thank you so much!”
The one villager who stayed behind knelt in the rain and bowed to us, pressing their forehead to the ground.
“To our village’s harvest, rain is something truly special. My lady, thank you for this rain.”
“Luria didn’t make it rain, you know?”
“…Even so, thank you.”
The villager simply repeated their gratitude over and over.
“Raise your head. Didn’t I tell you earlier?”
“This is merely to show my respect for the Grand Duke’s household.”
Even as they said this, the villager did not lift their head.
“This rain will save not only the people of the village but also my wife, children, and grandchildren. Thank you so much.”
To this, my mother spoke kindly.
“There’s no need for you to worry about anything. Leave the matter of the deputy official and the water rights entirely to the Grand Duke.”
“Thank you very much.”
“…However, let me repeat this one more time. You must not speak of my daughter to anyone, understood?”
There was a certain weight to my mother’s words.
“Y-yes, ma’am. I will engrave it in my heart. We will simply say that the Grand Duke arranged for the canal to be opened.”
“That will be fine. …I’ll leave the rest to you. Luria, let’s go home.”
My mother entrusted the follow-up to the leader of the attendants and began walking.
I, along with my maid, hurried after her.
On the way back to the villa, as the rain fell upon us, I asked my mother,
“What’s going to happen next?”
“Well, that depends on the investigation, but the deputy official won’t be forgiven, I’d imagine.”
“I see.”
“Most likely, he’ll be stripped of his position and sentenced to several years of hard labor—ten at least. But it’s up to Graf to decide.”
Since this was the Grand Duke’s territory, my father held judicial authority here.
“What about the taxes?”
“The taxes… Well, that depends on whether the farming can catch up in time. Even if it does, we might still reduce them.”
“Even if they catch up, you’ll lower them?”
“Yes. Luria, Sara, remember this. The deputy official acts as the proxy of the lord.”
“Okay.”
“Yes.”
“So, the deputy’s crimes are ultimately the responsibility of the lord.”
It was probably to make up for the trouble caused by the deputy official that the taxes would be reduced.
“Baa~?”
Perhaps intrigued by the conversation, a goat let out a bleat.
Goats, cows, and even boars were following us as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
While Carro and Koruko remained as calm as ever, Dau was playing around with the goats. It seemed happy to be able to play with creatures much larger than itself.
“Hm? Has something changed about the lake?”
“To me, it doesn’t look like anything’s changed,” my mother replied.
While we were walking, I glanced at the lake and felt something odd.
“It could be because the spirits have returned.”
“Ah, that makes sense.”
When we arrived at the lakeside villa, I had sensed that the spirits were few in number. Now that the effects of the sorcery circuits had dissipated, perhaps the lake’s atmosphere had changed.
“But I feel like it’s not just that.”
I could sense an increase in the presence of spirits. At the same time, there was something oppressive in the air.
“Hmmm…”
As I stared at the lake, lost in thought, my mother stroked a goat walking nearby and said,
“…More importantly, Luria, what are these goats?”
“Baa~!”
“Um, they’re animals that were in the nearby forest.”
“I see… I didn’t realize there were animals this large in the forest…”
“Moo.”
“They’ve been watching us since we left the villa, you know?”
“I didn’t notice.”
“Moooo~.”
In the end, the goats followed us all the way to the villa.
“Thanks for everything today, everyone!”
“Baa~!” “Moo.” “Snort-snort.”
I petted the goats enthusiastically.
After a while, they seemed satisfied and returned to the forest.
When they left, my mother looked genuinely relieved.
“I’m glad you didn’t decide to keep them.”
“I kind of want to, though.”
“No, you can’t. They’re too big.”
“Alright…”
After returning to the villa, Sara and I took a bath, ate dinner, and spent the rest of the evening peacefully.
