I had thought that I would have to make a deal with Irina to fix things, but Rio was also a regressor. She was also a regressor, that, by the way, had never had the most remote relations with Luka.
Which drove the fact that the eroge was just someone's fucked up fantasy even further into my head.
Thanks to her getting people assigned to the groups I wanted them in and on dungeons I wanted them in wasn't tough.
"Man, connections do help a lot," Luka muttered as the coachman I had hooked us up with left.
"Don't remember be anytime soon, Eugene Hall!"
"Of course, I'll never forget you for a second!!"
The coachman whimpered and dashed away. It was crazy how all of them hated me when I loved them all so much.
I turned around, behind the cover of a small coppice of bamboos, under the fluttering blue skies and their dancing white clouds spread a wide house.
Ponds and pots of flowers and fishes spread in the wide space behind the boundaries as a wooden veranda circled the outside of the house. Sliding doors and mat floors filled the space with walls thin and thick. On the top was nestled a giant gabled roof with curving eaves that peered down to the ground.
"This is quite the place…" Albert muttered. "Almost reminds me of the ancient places in China and Japan."
"The eaves stretch farther and are more gently sloped so its more Japanese than Chinese."
"Who cares man."
"Quiet, heathen. You just don't understand that having a precise knowledge for architecture is part of being strong."
The two Fonias siblings nodded at my words.
See, my little underlings were complete yes-men. People tended to do that when you helped them get revenge for their moms.
"I can attest that it isn't. Now then, shall we go ahead?" It was Irina who spoke.
"I'll handle the talking," I said. Since I was the adventurer here it was natural to handle most of these matters myself. Irina was here as a supervisor, but she was a part of the organization that was paying me.
And even if I cooked it, work was work.
With me in the lead, we walked past the coppice and to the enormous house in front of us.
As soon as we got to the front, people in traditional dresses made their way toward us. One, seemingly their main butler, was slightly startled but reached us and bowed in deep respect.
It seemed their culture wasn't all that different from back home. I kinda disliked how Japanese it all was but it didn't matter much in the bigger picture.
"I guess," I spoke out in the language of the east. I knew it before, but I had just gotten more and more fluent in it as I started speaking and deciphering the ancient languages. "Ikuro Asahi must have told you of my arrival."
"The young master has! It is a great honor to host a person of your peerage, my lord."
"Do not mind me much, I am just an adventurer at the moment."
Not long after, another man in a Yukata came running out of the house. His Geta clacked against the ground as he made his way toward us and gave me a short bow.
"Lord Eugene Hall-Apollon. It is my greatest honor to have you here."
I bowed back.
"I am honored to meet you too, Lord Asahi."
"Please come in. My stupid son is not here yet, but if you're alright with me."
What was this guy saying. Why was he blushing too!
I turned back and flashed my gang a thumbs up and they all sighed.
Connections, folks. Connections. Everyone was going to pop in here anyway.
The man led us inside. We dropped our boots at the door and were shown some Geta we could use, we could have for Taesahye but whatever. Not like it was tough to wear.
The man led us inside in a special room. His wife then came out too and gladly showed us around with the many servants. The giant house was like a labyrinth in and of itself.
Eventually, the master of the Asahi family showed us the door to a meeting room. He slid the door open and in the center of the tatami mats was a small table stretching up to the height of our shins.
The doors outside were pulled open and the view of the veranda leading to the small pond with koi fish spread. A small rhythmic clack rang as the bamboo shoot next to the stones was filled with water and smacked down on the rocks,
The man let me take the head seat at the the place furthest from the windows, a sign of his clear respect for all of us as he sat on the opposite side.
With the groups settled, we all sat down.
The door slid open once more and his wife entered, followed by multiple servants holding trays of confectionaries and snacks along with beverages.
From Dangos to Manju, rice crackers and fish cakes, an assortment of food was laid out atop the table and presented for all of us to indulge in. It was when the servants leave did the man gesture at us to dig in.
"Ahem," he coughed. "If there is anything else you would like, please just say the word."
Luka spoke up in the language of the western countries. The unified language of the empire.
"Any idea why they are being so nice?"
Idiot.
The man coughed once more and this time, spoke up in the language of the Empire as well. "I apologize, I was unclear."
Luka's jaw dropped open and the two Fonias twins shook their heads together. I liked how these guys sucked up to me, it was surprisingly fun when even the people you save ended up either becoming your 'husband' or being scared of you.
"Ahem. Lord Eugene, your work on our ancient scriptures has helped us make great progress. Even if we can't decipher it, we would be able to make a mark for our future generations that would surely rise up again. You have given hopes of revival to the entire family."
"Oh we'll be deciphering it. You'll help."
The man widened his eyes and laughed.
"Haha! I cannot expresss my gratitude at your attitude. I see, you are teaching me to be more hopeful and trying. Indeed, the world is not over until I am dead, the future generations will only be coming once the present goes away, I have all my life to try and decipher it."
"No? What?" I blinked at his words. Idiot two was here. "We're deciphering your scripts in the next three days. If we don't, we'll be recreating the method."
The man started blinking.
Even if I could have done it myself.
And since I did have something else to do.
"This man right here," I pointed at Albert. "There's nothing his brain can't figure out. That's all he's good for, in fact."
The Fonias twins nodded.
"Devilish."
"He'll go to great lengths just to amuse himself."
Albert scoffed.
"You mean, you have brought a scholar to help us? My, how can I ever thank you for all this—"
"Don't. Get up."
The man blinked for the third time.
I slapped the table and growled at him.
"Get up! Bring us everything you have, we start now!"
"Y-yes!? Already?"
"Do I look like I have time to waste? I have half a continent to fucking unite!"
I also had other stuff to do!
"U-unite?"
"Move your ass, old man. Move it before I kick it myself."
The man stood up and slid the doors open.
"E-everyone! The library, open the library and bring everything!"
"Don't just BRING them, you're all gonna work too you son of a bitch!"
"W-work you sons of bitches!"
"Don't repeat what I say!"
"Repeat what I say."
The old man had his ass kicked anyway.
The people started moving around in a fluster and the others in the group all sighed.
"Well this is fun," Noa said. "It irked me anyway that we couldn't complete it, so it is a good chance."
She stood up and started making her way toward the library when I grabbed the back of her collars and pulled her back.
"What?"
"You think I don't know you're going to raid the BL?"
"BL?" Meryl Fonias muttered.
I glared at her too, while Noa scratched the back of her head.
"You can take that stuff once we're done. Till then, we work."
"Hah, brats," Irina sighed. "So mismanaged. Well, whatever, best finish this soon."
And so began the great linguistic hunt in the Asahi mansion.
Albert in the lead, none of us slept for the next three days.
Until a night came.
And straight in my room came a small arrow. Tied around it was a cloth.
As I opened it up.
I saw the figure of a dark moon.
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