The owner of this place is really unique.

“If anything is broken, send the bill to the Richter Duke’s household. Don’t worry, feel comfortable.”

“To, to the Duke’s household, you say?”

The owner, who had suddenly jumped out and struck a triumphant pose, now asked with an expression like his eyes were about to pop out.

He wasn’t the only one surprised.

The thugs who had been glaring with lowered eyes also whispered among themselves.

“Did you just h-hear that?”

“Yeah. R-Richter Duke… That monster duke…!”

“I can hear everything.”

At my words, the thug who had just opened his mouth quickly covered it.

But the atmosphere was such that his cry had already reached even the customers.

A murmuring atmosphere could be felt on the skin.

Ha. Will they take responsibility if our soft Dante gets hurt?

Just in case, I hesitantly reached out and firmly grasped Dante’s hand. I flashed a grin at Dante, who looked at me as if surprised.

It meant don’t dig a hole for no reason.

Then I stepped forward even more confidently and opened my mouth.

“You there.”

“Y-Yes!”

“Have you ever seen such a handsome monster?”

“…Pardon?”

“I asked if you’ve ever seen such a handsome monster! Go look in the mirror again. Judging by your current actions and face, the one closer to a monster is you, not my husband! Right? Isn’t that right?”

“Y-Yes! You’re absolutely right!”

The employee nodded his head vigorously in response to the arrow that suddenly turned back to him.

“Well then, if there’s a good spot available, could you give us one? We’d like to have a chat with those people over there.”

As I ostentatiously linked arms with Dante, the owner once again nodded his head so hard it looked like it might fall off.

The owner, who guided us to a quiet and spacious spot, personally brought two drinks as well.

Ah, the tables are low here too.

“We, we’re sorry! We’ve committed a mortal sin. Please spare us!”

“We were wrong!”

“Please spare our lives!”

As the atmosphere of interrogation set in, the thugs bowed their heads deeply.

Committing a mortal sin but asking to be spared.

The words don’t match at all front and back. As expected, they must be bad guys.

“Right. What sin did you commit?”

As I asked confidently while drinking the beverage, the one holding the tattered wrist sobbed and answered.

“W-Well… We dared to not recognize our opponent and grabbed the wrist of a noble person at will. We’re truly sorry!”

“So you do know your crime.”

Huh? Is that right?

But Dante’s expression was infinitely serious.

I rolled my eyes around and then asked another question.

“That’s right. That is a crime too. But besides that.”

“Besides that?”

“Yes. You were arguing with the owner here about seat fees earlier, weren’t you? With an attitude like you were about to tear down the whole shop.”

“Ah, ah! That!”

It was strange.

We were clearly talking about their crimes, but the thugs’ expressions suddenly brightened.

As if something favorable to them had come up.

“There seems to have been a misunderstanding! I’m really collecting seat fees with proper permission. Really!”

They received permission?

That’s nonsense.

In a territory where Dante is the lord, thugs collecting seat fees with official permission.

It would be more credible if I said I had a terminal illness.

“Bullshit.”

Dante seems to think the same.

Seeing him assert with uncharacteristically harsh words.

By the way, I didn’t know he could use such rough language.

This unexpected side of him that I’m seeing for the first time felt fresh.

How can he be sexy even when saying bad words?

Is this the male lead buff? The world is a bit unfair, isn’t it? But if the one receiving the buff is on my side, that’s a different story.

“That’s right. It’s bullshit. What lord would give permission to thugs and ruffians to collect seat fees? They must be on drugs or something.”

“I-It’s true! It’s because we’re in charge of security for the Sermantor district! So we collect seat fees as payment for keeping everyone safe!”

Dante’s head tilted slightly at the more detailed explanation than expected.

“You lot are in charge of Sermantor’s security?”

The intimidation from his lowly growled voice was tremendous.

It seemed possible to not only gain the upper hand but even choke the opponent with just his gaze and voice.

The thug now seemed at a loss for words, answering only by nodding his head vigorously.

However, Dante’s demeanor grew even fiercer, as if unsatisfied with the answer.

“You lie again. The street’s security is clearly the responsibility of Viscount Bietsa and the guards.”

“Th-That, that would be true normally! But the Viscount said there weren’t enough guards and management funds, so we agreed to support the management funds in exchange for taking over security rights for the Sermantor district!”

From the cry mixed with 70% indignation and 30% truthfulness, I smelled something fishy.

Right. There’s a smell, there’s a smell.

The pungent smell of corruption.

I poked Dante’s back repeatedly with my hand. He flinched for a moment and looked in my direction.

It was his usual facade face, with no trace of the ominous air from just moments ago.

I whispered to him.

“It’s corruption.”

“Corruption? Is the drink perhaps spoiled…?”

“No. I mean corruption. Corruption. The Viscount and those guys are committing corruption.”

Ah. Only then did Dante’s eyes, which had been glaring at the drink, soften again.

“At a glance, I can see the angle. These guys collect seat fees from merchants, and the Viscount collects commissions and bribes from these guys.”

At my simple and clear summary, the thug glared at me with resentful eyes.

What, what. What are you going to do if you glare at me?

“Dante. They’re glaring at me again.”

As soon as I tattled, Dante glared at them with terrifying eyes.

Hmph. You don’t have a super strong duke, do you?

I do.

“We-We’re sorry!”

They apologized with tightly disciplined voices and lowered their eyes almost to the point of burying their heads in the ground.

It was a very satisfying attitude.

“Ugh. I’m tired.”

At least soaking in the hot water made me feel like I might survive.

My aching feet and calves felt like they were melting away.

“Did you enjoy your outing today?”

Siena, who had come to assist with the bath, dissolved the herbs I had made myself into the water.

Ah. The fragrant herb scent.

Just the fragrance makes me feel healthier.

I nodded my head while lazily relaxing my body.

“Yes. It was really fun. I picked out clothes I liked, and we visited the dessert shop Mari recommended. But that place was strange? The chairs were higher than the tables.”

“Ah, that place. Isn’t the owner’s way of speaking unique too? The first time I went, I almost grabbed him by the collar, you know?”

“Hey, you too? Hey. Me too.”

We burst into laughter.

“But from what I hear, you seem to have witnessed some kind of corruption scene. I saw the Duke heading to the office with Barhan with a serious face.”

“That’s right. I even watched them all get arrested and dragged away by the knights.”

The three thugs were arrested as witnesses and accomplices in the corruption.

The outing only ended after confirming that they and the rest of their gang from the hideout they revealed were all dragged away in a chain.

“It seems like they’ll soon arrest Viscount Bienna or whatever his name was too.”

At my nonchalant report, Siena clasped her hands gently and looked at me with sparkling eyes.

What kind of gaze is that?

When I showed signs of confusion, Siena spoke in an excited voice.

“You’re really amazing. Isn’t this all thanks to you, madam?”

“Huh? Me?”

“Yes! It was you who dragged the Duke out, wasn’t it? If you hadn’t gone out with the Duke, ordinary citizens would have continued to suffer. As expected, you’re really amazing, madam!”

Does it flow that way?

Come to think of it, it doesn’t seem wrong. Although Barhan did give a push from behind, it was me who clung to Dante’s arm and rushed out when he was reluctant to go outside.

“Ahem. Did I really do something?”

“Yes! Of course.”

“That’s a relief then. At least I’ve been of help while being the Duchess. Right?”

“…Pardon? That’s, that’s true, but…”

Siena’s answer became somewhat indifferent, but I didn’t notice.

I didn’t even know what kind of expression Siena was looking at me with.

It was just three days later that I heard about the handling of Viscount Bietsa and his accomplices.

It seems they rushed to conduct the investigation quickly, even if it was overkill, since evidence was important in this matter.

Dante had been working overtime every day for these three days.

“As a result of the investigation, Serpina’s prediction was correct. As you said, it was corruption in cahoots with an illegal guild. A heap of evidence documents was found at the Viscount’s house.”

“My goodness. What a scoundrel. So what happened?”

“We will impose an appropriate punishment. We will revoke his authority as acting lord of Sermantor and deal with him according to the laws of Richter territory. The money illegally extorted so far will be returned to the victims. The Viscount and his gang will have to spend a few years in prison. We will also report to the Imperial Family, so it will be difficult for him to maintain his title.”

“That’s an excellent handling.”

I gave a thumbs up while gulping down the drink.

“The people in the commercial district will be very happy too. The thugs who were extorting unreasonable seat fees are gone.”

“It’s all thanks to Serpina.”

“Come on. What did I do?”

“You took me out.”

Huh?

I heard this from Siena, but hearing it directly from him felt different.

He fiddled with the cup in front of him for a moment, then continued as if confessing.

“Actually, I was reluctant to go out. It was obvious that people would be afraid of me. I thought it was better to just stay in the safe and quiet mansion rather than go out and scare people and be pointed at.”

Somehow, his calm voice sounded even sadder.