Volume 4 Chapter 68: Wait Up Already【Final Volume: Balor and Nanashi Arc】

“Kuaaa… sleepy…”

I let out a huge yawn. Yawns come only when you’re both sleepy and relaxed. In other words, right now I’m in an incredibly calm state. After all, I’m in my private chamber in the Apophis territory.

Lately, I’ve been stuck in that so-called royal capital—forced into firefights with one of the four major nobles and an underworld assassination organization—so I haven’t had a moment to relax. It’s absurd, isn’t it?

Why is it that I—a regional noble—am experiencing such ridiculous misadventures? In the end, even in the royal capital, I couldn’t find any woman who was convenient enough.
Damn it! So I have no choice but to seduce the daughter of a wealthy merchant who drops by the Apophis territory!? But even if she’s business-savvy, there’s no guarantee she can manage a domain…

My dreams still seem out of reach. But if I don’t give up, they’ll surely come true. I simply press on.

“Spending the whole morning spacing out instead of working—typical Master, isn’t it?”

“Hahaha, cut it out, cut it out. You act like you’re praising me while only hurling insults. I’ll kill you!”

As always, Nanashi is there—a petite woman in a classic maid outfit with pitch-black eyes that reveal nothing. Why the hell did I hire her? After all, she’s the longest-serving one and her housekeeping skills are superb… yet she’s the very maid who openly proclaims her intent to usurp the Apophis family’s assets. Seriously, what is she?

“But isn’t it a problem slacking off this much? I’m sure Ashvin wouldn’t let it slide—even if Izun and Artemis might.”

“If I had said my body still ached from the aftereffects of my injury, I could’ve weaseled my way out of it.”

I got beaten to a pulp, after all. What does it mean to wake up because of pain? It’s all those maids who don’t guard me properly—useless good-for-nothings. No, it’s absurd to hire maids as bodyguards. You’d understand if you thought about it clearly.

What should I do…? Should I fire every single one of them and hire some buff, macho guys instead…?

“…Are you still in pain?” 

“No, it’s healed.” 

“Impressive.” 

“Heh, well… there’s no need to admit I’ve recovered completely. I’ll exaggerate the pain as long as I can.”

After flashing a smug look, I received a round of expressionless clapping. Of course, not a trace of pain—or even a bruise—remains. Thanks to Ashvin, who went half-crazy and doused me with some mysterious chemical. A maid who splashes weird liquid on her Master… absurd, isn’t it? After all, if a bruise marred my beautiful skin, it’d be a loss for the world. So I’m completely healed—but I’d never admit it. If I kept saying “it hurts, it hurts…,” work would never come my way. I’m smart.

“But don’t we have important work to do?” 

“Even without me, the Apophis territory runs just fine. In other words, we can offload the work onto Ashvin.” 

“A maid doing a feudal lord’s work… what the hell?”

Really, what is this about? As Nanashi tilted her head in confusion, I did the same. Perhaps I’m no longer needed? Maybe I should just leave everything to Ashvin? But if this goes on, my very existence will be questioned. I must shut that down.

“You’re slacking off too, so quit complaining. I’m making you work.” 

“Eek… I’m sorry, Master. Y-your slacker king…” 

“Hahaha. You never know how to give proper compliments—you’re ridiculously awful at it.”

She’s probably trying to please me, but it’s only having the opposite effect. What an idiot. Yet here they are, slacking off as if it were nothing… Where do you find a maid who openly rests in front of her employer? Since I don’t have any work either, I won’t be especially harsh. But if I did have work, I wouldn’t allow such laziness. If I suffer, Nanashi will suffer too. That’s only fair.

“……――――” 

“……Huh?”

Lost in these thoughts, I suddenly realized—did I hear a sound? No, more like a voice.

“Mmm, mmm, fhuun.” 

“…………”

That voice, though slow, was steadily approaching. As it drew near, I discerned more details. It wasn’t merely a voice—it was singing, produced with a nasal hum. And in my mansion, aside from Izun, there’s only one person who’d be so carefree as to do that…
Damn!

“Fufuu, nmm, nmm…” 

“…Nanashi, does this maddening nasal tune sound familiar?” 

“I don’t know. Oh—there’s dirt over here. I’ll fetch a rag.” 

“Wait up.”

As the singing grew louder, Nanashi stood up to leave the room—and I grabbed her slender arm firmly, not caring if it left a bruise. You’d never clean unless ordered, right? A Nanashi who voluntarily goes to fetch a rag must either be a fake or be trying to escape.

“Why are you interfering, Master? Cleaning is a maid’s duty. As someone who loves work, I’m overflowing with a sense of mission to keep things spotless.” 

“This is the first time I’ve heard you claim you love cleaning. By the way, Nanashi, do you know what a meat shield is?” 

“I don’t know.”

Clinging to Nanashi as she desperately tried to escape, I immobilized her. She smells rather nice, but that doesn’t matter. Even if she reeked of a gutter, I’d still hold on. I may not be strong, but Nanashi is even weaker. With our difference in build, there’s no way she could break free. I need a shield—a human shield, not a piece of armor. Perfect!

Knock, knock—the door sounded. Nanashi and I both jumped, our shoulders jolting.

“Balor-chan, let’s get going!”

I heard a deathly voice—not grating, but so syrupy sweet it could make you spit out sugar. The problem was the person speaking. No way, they’d come out…!

“You’re being called, Master.” 

“I don’t know any maid who calls my name with ‘chan’ attached.” 

Nanashi glared at me, but I acted nonchalant. Was she really calling my name? Or was she saying Nanashi instead? After all, it’s odd to attach “chan” to a man’s name. Yeah, it was Nanashi after all. Come on, get going.

“Huh? You’re not here?”

The two of us clung to each other and held our breath. Then we sensed—through fading footsteps—that the person at the door was slowly leaving.

Alright, they’re gone. Playing possum is the best strategy… or so I thought.

Then—Zudon! With a tremendous crash, the door was blown off.

It… blew off?

“Huh? After all, you’re here, Balor-chan.”

Slowly, a maid—neither Ashvin, Izun, nor Artemis, but the last maid employed by the Apophis household—busted through the door. Her name was Konoha. Staggering as she entered, she glared at me with piercing, gleaming eyes. Scary.

“H–Hey, long time no see, Konoha.” 

“Ah, I’m just around here.” 

Wait up already.