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Louis was waiting on the terrace of the royal banquet hall.

If it were during the banquet, the hall would have been bright as day. They might have scraped together every last bit of magical light from the royal storerooms to illuminate the place.

In fact, it wasn’t strange at all for me to be here, even if the banquet was ongoing. The hero thought to be dead had returned to life, hadn’t he? No, to be precise, it was more like that a dead person had resurrected and come back. Well, debating which of those is cause for celebration seems pretty pointless.

But… here was the situation. No matter how clearly I showed that I was me, there would definitely be some who wouldn’t believe it. Especially when a banquet was held, there would be nobles and royals not just from near the palace but also distant regions; among them might be those I’ve either never met or only brushed against during my time in Irrelaysia.

And those kinds of people might have questions about my existence.

So, the kingdom was looking for a more certain way to prevent any issues. I was not only the hero who defeated the Demon King but also a significantly symbolic figure religiously. If suspicious people started popping up, it could crack the peace we had worked so hard to achieve.

Well, to be honest, I didn’t really care about all that; I just wanted to know that this side of the world was functioning properly.

“Are you here?”

As I followed the maid out to the terrace, Louis spoke up.

The maid bowed politely, and Louis nodded in acknowledgment.

“I’ll wait in front of the banquet hall.”

Of course, the banquet hall would be dark, so the corridors would be pitch black too… then again, the royal palace is a place where even demons haven’t properly invaded. Plus, there definitely wouldn’t be anyone daring enough to mess with a maid, who at least seemed to be from a well-off family.

So, waiting alone in the dark corridor was probably due to that confidence.

The maid, speaking in a humble yet confident manner, turned without any hesitation and distanced herself from us.

“You don’t have to worry too much; she’s from a trustworthy family.”

Louis spoke in a strangely Kalia-like tone.

“I’m not really worried about that. She acted confidently, so that’s why she behaved like that.”

At my words, Louis looked at me intently.

“What’s with that?”

“Nothing.”

Louis shrugged his shoulders.

“To be honest, I did have a bit of doubt. The goddess might have had some other thoughts and sent someone other than you.”

“… Why?”

“Well, I’m just a mere human, so I can’t fully grasp the goddess’s intentions. If she were to pull something like that, I’d have to assume she had some reason for it.”

That was a rather alarming discussion if the goddess were to hear it.

It’s a bit awkward to say this, but the goddess’s plans were never complicated. That doesn’t mean it’s bad; it’s just that the clearer she is, the easier it is to follow.

The reason her words get interpreted in various ways in this world is that the people hearing them twist those words in many different manners.

In the church, they interpret the goddess’s words as holy and try to ascribe meaning to them, while the elves seek hidden wisdom in the words of the ‘Great Prophet.’

As a result, every time the goddess says something, it’s parsed and spread around in all sorts of ways, complicating people’s minds.

The goddess wasn’t particularly fond of that situation.

Ah, of course, the goddess doesn’t personally explain everything herself. She is thoughtful and, naturally, wouldn’t bother to explain what she doesn’t want to say or what isn’t necessary to know.

And she also doesn’t seem to want to arbitrarily forbid anything.

For example, telling Pia, “Dress a bit modestly,” is a message just for her, not something she deliberately relays through other faithful. If that message spread, all humans would likely try to dress ‘modestly.’ It could easily lead to an oppressive atmosphere, like the world some fundamentalists might wish for.

And that’s why, even if Pia wears somewhat revealing clothes, the goddess only complains about it a little.

In fact, thinking about it, the goddess didn’t say much about anyone else wearing somewhat risqué outfits. Like dancers on the street barely covering their essential parts.

Perhaps the reason the goddess was so alarmed every time she saw Pia in revealing clothes is that she resembled her too much?

Whenever Pia wore such outfits, she probably felt a sense of shame, as if she were wearing them herself…

…

Well, thinking too deeply about this will only complicate my mind, so I’ll focus on the conversation with Louis for now.

Besides, I had the feeling that the goddess might intrude on this line of thinking.

I didn’t pinpoint what Louis said but instead asked, “So how were you so sure that I was me?”

“Not many people can drop their guard and speak comfortably around me.”

In truth, the person who had encouraged me to speak comfortably was none other than Louis himself.

But considering Louis’s position, it seems there aren’t many who would really let their guard down around him.

I only dealt with him as if he were Kalia’s brother, but Louis found that extremely curious.

“Moreover, even if I didn’t believe it, it wouldn’t matter much. There’s solid evidence like the Sacred Sword, so even if you really weren’t you, we’re forced to believe it. Even if we were deceiving ourselves, we have no particular reason to ascertain that fact. All we need to do is treat you as you.”

He sure has a knack for twisting his words.

Getting wrapped up in this would mean listening to a continuously confusing story where similar words are repeated, so I decided to get to the point quickly.

“So, what’s the reason you called for me separately?”

“I didn’t exactly call you separately. I simply called for ‘you.’ If that maid misunderstood, I apologize.”

“….”

Well, that doesn’t matter much. Even if someone else was there beside me, Louis would probably have talked to me anyway. That’s why he called for me.

“Anyway, what was the reason for calling me?”

“I wanted to give you a warning.”

“A warning?”

I furrowed my brows slightly.

Was he saying there were someone among the nobles who envied me?

If that were the case, I was already aware… but what if that ‘envy’ had developed into a concrete plan?

“No, it’s not like that.”

“What do you mean it’s not like that?”

“I’m saying there’s no noble trying to kill you or your loved ones. Even if there were, they would be insignificant enough not to matter. If they’re an issue that doesn’t reach my ears, the kingdom will handle it. You don’t need to worry about that.”

“Um….”

It felt uneasy, but this man wasn’t one to lie to me. Being a noble, he wasn’t one to spill every truth either, but I at least had some trust in him.

“Anyway, the reason I called you…”

After talking about unrelated stuff up until now, Louis finally got to the point.

“… Are you still into women?”

“… Huh?”

I didn’t understand his meaning, so I accidentally asked that back.

“What I mean is, do you still maintain the same sexual orientation you had when you were a man?”

“Well, yeah… I suppose.”

Just because I became a woman didn’t mean I suddenly felt like I had to date a man. I was actually dating my older sister and was quite happy about it. Moreover, I felt sexually attracted to her too.

“Then you need to be even more careful.”

Louis looked at me intently. His eye color was similar to that of his sister Kalia, but somehow felt much cloudier. A reddish hue that appeared almost black in dim light.

“Probably, a noble man will come propose to you.”

“….”

At that moment, I didn’t understand what he meant, so I just stared at Louis.

“Oh, so you mean among the noble ladies?”

And then, after a moment in realization, I asked back. There had been a few nobles attempting to discuss marriage in previous gatherings. Even Louis had subtly inquired about my relationship with Kalia. I had declined all of them.

“No.”

But Louis shook his head to deny my viewpoint.

And with a very calm voice, he said, “What I mean is about the noble men.”

“….”

I found myself answering with delayed comprehension again.

“What?”

But Louis’s eyes were certainly not joking. Then again, I had never seen this man joke around, so…

 

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