The Doll Princess Rose

第11話 Miraiya

"Rinka!"

A woman jumped from the house and suddenly hugged the black cat, Rinka. She was so happy and rubbed her face against Rinka's face.

"I missed you, Rinka♪ How are you doing?"

Without waiting for Rinka's reply, she happily hugged her again.

Yes, this woman is Miraiya, the sorcerer. The flow from Escodria's port to this mansion was really fast. As soon as the ship arrived at the quay of the village's port, the people involved in the ship hurriedly prepared a carriage, so they arrived at the Miraiya mansion in no time.

"Umh, by the way, who are you guys?"

Miraiya came to her senses looked at Rose and the others then asked. After Moi introduced herself, she handed Dalgodas' letter to Miraiya.

"I see."

She read the letter and confirmed it.

"There are four of you: the explosive girl Rose, her attendant Moi, her reliable older brother Darga, and my beloved Rinka. Alright then."

As she said hmmm, she checked each one of them.

"I understand~. Hmm, then, you guys will live in the mansion behind this mansion. It's quite spacious, so the three of you will be fine. Rinka will be with me~♪"

"Hmmh!"

Rinka made an exasperated sound for some reason.

"Isn't that okay, Rinka? It's been a while since we last saw each other, so let's sleep together."

Miraiya hugged Rinka again and she sobbed. She may look stupid, but she is a powerful person who is called the greatest sorcerer in Alhatross. Rose has no idea about her age, but she looks like a young woman, very pretty, and has a great figure. Her hair is long, beautiful, and shiny black, tied back in a rather casual bun. Her beast part is red. Her fox ears are red. Her tail has red and white fur and is bushy. Rose thought she looked like a fox after all. By the way, her head has small five-pointed horns. There are two horns on each side of her head, just above her ears, and one small horn on the top of her forehead. She has an indescribable appearance.

"Ah, one thing. That back mansion hasn't been used in decades, so I haven't cleaned it properly~. I'll buy a new bed and carpet later for you guys."

"Yes, thank you."

Moi bowed her head and thanked her.

“Umh, Miss Miraiya.”

Rose asked her in horror.

"Yes, what is it, Rose?"

"Um... thank you for accepting me."

"Hehehe. Those who are friends with Rinka are not my enemies. If you want to thank me, please thank Rinka."

She's a pretty unusual teacher. But Rose has to do as she tells her so she looks at Rinka.

"Miss Rinka? Thank you."

"Huh? What, how do you say that? You don't put your heart into it. Do it again, or get out of here."

Rose was surprised by Miraiya's sudden change in voice. She felt a sense of crisis. She should have said it more politely. Even if it was a cat, she thought.

"Thank you very much, Miss Rinka."

Rose politely bowed her head and thanked Rinka the cat.

"Well, that's good ♪ Then finish the preparations before the sun goes down ♪"

Miraiya smiled and hugged Rinka.

"Yes, Miss!"

Rose and the others hurried to the mansion in the back. There was a large detached mansion there, but it was hidden by grass. There's no problem with the door, but when they open it, it's so dusty. There is no furniture. Not at all. There is no sign that it was even used. This villa was a completely new mansion and looked like it had been abandoned for years...perhaps, Rose wondered as she looked at it.

“Well, we all have no choice but to work together and clean it up!”

Moi said with great enthusiasm, and everyone nodded.

"Miss Rose, please wait here. Mister Darga, please open all the windows and doors. After that, please cut the grass appropriately. If you don't cut the grass, Miss Rose will go missing."

When Moi gave instructions, Darga nodded.

"Got it."

He moved and headed towards the mansion. Without saying a few words, he immediately started moving.

"Why do I have to wait here?"

Rose grumbled.

"Miss Rose, I'll have you mop the floor later, but I'll have to clean the dust first. So let's do it in order, I'll clean the dust and then wipe the windows and doors. Once that's done, you will clean the floor with a mop. Is that okay?"

"Yes!"

Looks like fun, Rose thought. However, the mop was nowhere to be found.

“Moi, I don’t have a mop?”

"I brought it. Please wait a moment."

Moi opened her bag and pulled out her tools. No way, it's an assembled mop. Rose opens her mouth and stares at Moi, wondering if it exists in this world as well.

"Okay, Miss Rose, please take this and wait here."

Moi then pulled out a series of assembled cleaning tools from her bag. Darga looked at her with a shocked expression, but he didn't say anything.

After opening all the windows and doors, Moi used the tools she had with her to clean the dust and dirt off the floor. She worked so hard that it made Rose dizzy to see her work.

"Miss Moi, I brought you some water."

Darga got the bucket and brought water.

"Thank you very much. I appreciate it!"

Darga laughed at Moi's happy voice.

"You have a very hard-working maid, Miss Rose."

"Yes, she is."

Rose proudly responded to Darga's comment. It is a fact that Moi was amazing after all, Rose thought.

Several hours have passed since then, and the mansion is finally clean. Moi has a fresh face after washing the water area. After work had calmed down to a certain extent, Rose took out the book Yanagi had given her from her bag, sat down on a stone in the garden, and began reading.

"Oh, it's clean now. They even cut the grass. Good work."

Miraiya comes and sees how they're cleaning.

“Okay, three sets of bedding, a carpet, what else?”

When Miraiya asked, Moi came from inside the mansion.

"Well, it would be helpful if we had glasses, plates, pots, and cooking utensils."

Moi checked what was needed.

"Also, the bathroom supplies, the washbasin, and cleaning oil.”

"Well then Moi, and your strong brother there, go shopping in the village at the foot of the mountain. Just tell the store owner everything you need. He'll understand if you ask him to take all of them to the Miraiya mansion.''

"Yes, Miss Miraiya."

"No cheap stuff. Okay? Absolutely no. Tell them to send it to you by tonight. Payment must be made at the mansion. Understood?"

"Yes, Miss Miraiya."

"The horse is in the stable. I think two people can ride it. It's quite big."

Miraiya gestured to the stable.

"You seem good at riding horses, so there won't be any problems."

"Yes, Miss."

When Miraiya said this to Darga, Darga nodded.

"Later, please go get me something to eat. I'm really hungry because I haven't eaten in two days.."

"Huh?"

"Because I was working all the time until you guys came and forgot to eat. I threw away the bread because it got moldy, so please go buy some new bread and wine."

"Yes, Miss"

"I think the money is, uh, in a storehouse around there. This is the key to that thing, and take some money there."

Miraiya handed the key to the storehouse to Moi.

“What? Am I going to take the money without permission?”

Moi was surprised and took the key to the storehouse. Rose was also surprised and couldn't hide her shock. Darga was so surprised that his mouth opened. What a bold woman she is, they thought. But Miraiya didn't say anything, she just laughed.

“Now then, The Explosive Girl, let’s have a little chat with me inside♪”

"Yes, Miss."

Rose closed her book and walked behind Miraiya. Moi and Darga rush to the stable, mount their horse, and rush to the village to go shopping.

When Rose enters Miraiya's mansion, Rinka is sleeping on the sofa. She looked so comfortable sleeping, Rose thought.

"Do you like Rinka?"

Miraiya asked Rose while laughing.

"Yes, I love her."

"I was relieved to hear it."

She nods, staring at her sleeping Rinka.

"Why?"

"Rinka is always alone. I'm worried she has no friends."

In the first place, Rose was trying to say that Rinka was a cat. But she stopped it.

"Everyone loves Rinka. She's a smart black cat, I heard. She's a very smart cat, and I'm glad she evacuated to safety during the daytime attack and survived."

Rose said happily as she reported the daylight attack.

"Hey, there was an attack. What happened?"

Miraiya turned her gaze to Rose and she asked with interest.

"Four thunderbirds appeared at the port of Escodria and attacked us."

"Thunderbirds? There aren't any thunderbirds around here. That's strange."

Miraiya looked surprised and she said thoughtfully.

"Huh? Is that so? Those thunderbirds attacked a ship and caused a lot of casualties."

"Oh my, something terrible like that happened."

"Yes, it was."

"I'll look into it in detail later."

Miraiya took out a crystal from the shelf.

"Hey, put your hand on this."

"Yes."

Rose placed her hand on top of the crystal she had placed. Then, Miraiya didn't change her complexion at all, checking each color one by one.

"I see. That's why things got out of hand over there."

"What do you mean?"

Rose asked, tilting her head.

"You have all the attribute magic. And it's not level 1 or 2 either."

Miraiya pointed to the golden light with her finger.

"This is your true ability."

A golden glow?

"I don't know what attributes it has because it's not listed in the magic book."

When Rose said honestly, Miraiya smiled.

"This is the ability called 'thought'."

"I don't understand what that means."

"Yes, it's no wonder you don't understand. It's okay if you don't understand now. You'll understand eventually. In any case, let's properly understand and train for attributes other than gold. If we leave it alone any longer, this mansion will also be blown away.”

Miraiya smiled as she took the crystal and put it on the shelf.

"Yes, thank you."

"Good girl. Ah! Show me the book you have."

Rose showed him the book that Yanagi had given her.

"Magic control? Oh, so nostalgic book."

"Do you know?"

"Yes, of course! Because I wrote it. Thank you for your purchase♪"

"Huh? Really? But this was something I received."

"Hehehe? It must have been a gift with a lot of thought put into it. After all, this is not a cheap book."

Miraiya laughed as she took her book and flipped through it.

"Yes. My brother bought it for me."

"You have a good brother."

"Yes, I do."

"Then, Rose, you have to do your best for your kind brother. Training is tough, but can you do your best?"

"Yes, I will."

Miraiya handed back her book and patted Rose on the head.

"You're still young. You left your beloved family and came a long way. I'm sure there will be many more painful times in the future, but it's okay to cry when you want to. There's no need to force yourself to hold back. Hey. Do you understand?”

"Yes, I do."

Miraiya hugged Rose tightly.

"I'm fine. Hey, Rinka. You're not sleeping, are you?"

Rinka opened her eyes and she yawned. Rose wondered if she was pretending to be asleep. She's a cat who doesn't know what she's thinking.

Suddenly Rinka perked up her ears and looked outside to get her bearings. It looks like Moi and Darga have returned.

"Well, it looks like the horse is back, so let's go eat. After we finish eating, you need to get your place ready."

Miraiya stood up and came to pick up Moi and Darga. Moi prepared a meal for everyone using the food she had bought in the village. Miraiya was very happy drinking and talking while enjoying her meal. She and Rinka also ate a large piece of meat that looked delicious.

Rose heard that cats are carnivores, but this is the first time she has seen a cat drinking wine, Rose thought, looking at her with strange eyes. When Miraiya poured wine into the soup plate, Rinka didn't hesitate and drank the wine with cat-like gulps.

What a strange view it was, Rose thought as she tilted her head again. In her previous life, that act would be a big No No. She had another big doubt: Do cats in this world drink wine? But she still thought she shouldn't give alcohol to cats.

After the meal was finished, the bedding, wash basin, kettle, glasses, etc. brought by the villagers were delivered to them. After paying the bill, Moi and Darga worked together to arrange the carpets, bedding, and other items, as well as prepare the bathtub. Rose was trying her best to help out of the way.

"Miss Rose should have the biggest room."

Darga said while preparing Rose's bed and bedding.

"This is good! So, is it good? Hahaha, I'm not good at it, so please ask Miss Moi to fix it later."

"Well, you made it very well. Thank you."

"What? It's my job, so don't worry about it. Ah, I remember. When I was little, I didn't have any parents or siblings. I couldn't eat for several days, and I was lying on the roadside, hungry. Just then, Lord Dalgodas, who happened to be passing by, picked me up and took me back to his mansion. He gave me food. After that, he even gave me a place to sleep, and for the first time in my life, I slept on bedding. I cried a lot then.”

Darga looked at Rose's bed that he had made and rubbed his eyes.

"You had such a past."

"Yes. That's why when Lord Dargodas decided to go to this world, I decided to go without hesitation."

“Leave a good person over there?”

"There's no such thing."

Rose's word was immediately answered by Darga. Rose couldn't help but laugh when she heard that.

"I see, everyone came here due to their reasons."

Rose said and Darga nodded.

"By the way, Miss Rose, are you a one-year-old?"

Darga suddenly asked.

"Huh? Why?"

"No, it's strange, but it's like having a conversation between adults, and I don't think I would notice it unless I saw you."

Darga looks at Rose with strange eyes.

"Um, sorry. I'm weird, aren't I?"

"No, that's not what I meant. I just realized something. I just realized why Mr. Yanagi cares so much about you."

Rose unexpectedly asked Yanagi's name.

"Brother Yanagi is kind..."

"Kind? Okay! Miss Rose, it's time to take a bath. I now have to make a bed for myself and a bed for Miss Moi."

"Yes, Sir!"

When Rose was outside, Darga muttered in a low voice.

“Is that Yanagi kind?”

Moi, who was very busy, finally settled down for a break. She took Rose into the room bath and put her on the bed. Moi covered her with a blanket, turned off her light, and left her room. However, Rose can't sleep right away. She listens to Moi and Darga's conversation outside her room.

"Has she gone to bed yet?"

"Yes. She always falls asleep early, so I think she'll be able to go for a morning run tomorrow."

"I'll run with her, so don't worry and leave it to me."

"Yes. Please. Oh, here, have some tea."

"Thank you, Miss Moi."

After a while, a metallic sound was heard.

"Are you cleaning your weapon?"

"Yes, weapons and armor must be maintained every day. This is life-threatening."

"Really?"

Moi was surprised.

"Miss Moi, if you're tired, please go to bed first. Have you taken a bath yet?"

"No, I'm fine with being last. Please go first."

"This will still take some time. The water will get cold, so Miss Moi, please go to bath first."

"I see. Well then, I'll go to bath first."

"Alright."

"Excuse me."

Moi seems to have left the room while saying that. Rose heard footsteps moving away. She also heard Darga's voice.

"This tea is delicious."

And then, Rose fell asleep.