Peaceful Hydrangea 0: Their Beds.
Maybe it’s because the commotion with the Lab and the Minos Unit has finally settled down.
Ever since the barbecue party, things have been peaceful lately.
However, if there’s been one big change recently, it’s about getting a new bed.
I finally got around to graduating from my straw bed.
It all started with Hayyarn. That rabbit.
Recently, Mineha-san has been coming over to make breakfast.
And Hayyarn asked if, as a man, I wasn’t embarrassed about having a straw bed?
At first, I thought, “What’s this rabbit talking about?”
Then she complained that it was hard for her to sleep too.
Why is this rabbit sleeping with me in the first place?
But now that she mentioned it, it’s true that girls have been in my room more often lately.
And having a straw bed in that situation… yeah, it started to feel embarrassing.
But I don’t really know much about that sort of thing.
Hayyarn confidently declared that women know more about bedding.
Half-doubting her, I decided to head to the Torquetum base mansion anyway.
Liv-san showed me in, and I met with Ms. Pachira.
“M-My bed, you ask? What a strange question. I use one made of slime.”
“Slime is the material?”
“It’s a bed made using a material called Slime Block. It’s nice and soft.”
Is it like the waterbeds I remember from my past life?
Come to think of it, there were slime cushions too.
“They’re expensive, right?”
“Indeed, they are. Also, including the service, they need replacing once every six months.”
“Ah, so it’s like that…”
“Depending on the season, you also have to change the type of Slime Block inside. That costs extra, of course.”
“I-I see…”
What a pain.
This one’s not an option.
“By the way, I think Lupinus’s bed would also be out of your price range.”
“I figured as much. Liv-san’s was a pipe bed, wasn’t it?”
“That one’s handmade by her… How do you know that?”
“Ah, no, I just heard about it.”
“Hmm. I see.”
I managed to bluff my way through it on the spot.
Otherwise, I’d have to explain that I’d been in her room and why.
Liv-san had said it was a secret. I couldn’t tell even Ms. Pachira.
Next, since Bid-san happened to be around, I asked her.
“Huh? E-Eh? The bed I use…ssu?”
She seemed bewildered, her cheeks faintly blushing as she looked wary.
When I explained, Bid-san gave a wry little smile.
“Ah, so that’s it. In that case, I won’t be much help…ssu.”
“Is it straw, perhaps?”
“Nope…ssu. Mine is, um… I-It’s a secret, okay? It’s a sleeping bag…ssu.”
“Eh? Why?”
I didn’t expect it wouldn’t even be a bed.
“…Um, well…”
Looking embarrassed, Bid-san leaned close and whispered in my ear.
“Th-This is a secret too, okay? I… I like sleeping while being held tight…ssu…”
“…So that’s why you use a sleeping bag?”
Her face is close, so close. She smells sweet.
And her voice in my ear was alluring and cute.
Bid-san was bright red with embarrassment, right to the tips of her rabbit ears.
She looked up at me with moist eyes, as if slightly blaming me.
S-Sorry. Feeling unbearably awkward, I quickly excused myself.
S-Somehow… I started wondering if it was really okay to ask this stuff.
But oh well, since I’m at it, I might as well ask Juicy-san too.
Currently, half of this mansion serves as an annex for the Tasan Territory.
Because of that, Juicy-san is living here too.
From what I heard, the arrangement for the annex was apparently quite favorable for Torquetum.
They said it worked out well since there were plenty of spare rooms anyway.
“Wof-san?”
“Dova-san.”
I happened to run into a beautiful woman in a white suit.
Dova=Tasan. She’s Juicy-san’s and Rell-san’s older sister.
A beautiful, brown-skinned Elf woman with long, flowing silver hair.
She wears a monocle over her green left eye.
It’s the same with Rell-san, but…
…the Elves of the Tasan Family seem to be on a whole different level of beauty compared to other Elves.
She lives in this annex as the acting lord of the Tasan Territory.
It feels like a long time ago when I first met her dressed as a Maid.
Ah, right. I should ask her too.
“Hello.”
“Ah, yes. Hello.”
She wiped some crumbs from her mouth as she returned the greeting.
“Dova-san, there’s something I’d like to ask you.”
“Ask Dova? What is it?”
“What kind of bed do you sleep in, Dova-san?”
“Eh…? My bed?”
“Yes. I was wondering what kind of bed you sleep in.”
“Ah, yes. Um… Are you interested?”
“Yes.”
“…”
“Dova-san?”
“In that case, please come with Dova.”
“Eh?”
Dova-san started walking. I followed her for the time being.
What is it? What’s going on? We went through a connecting corridor to a room around the corner on the first floor.
A room set slightly back. Dova-san put her hand on the door.
“Please. This is Dova’s bedchamber.”
“O-Okay.”
She opened the door. A faint floral scent wafted out.
First, I saw a window hung with white lace-patterned curtains.
Next, a large canopy bed. Beside it was a vanity, lined up with a closet.
“Whoa.”
“This is the bed Dova always sleeps in alone.”
As she spoke, she opened the bed’s canopy and sat down.
She gestured with her hand, so I nervously entered the bedchamber.
“It’s king-sized.”
It was wide enough for four or five of me to lie side-by-side.
The bed took up most of the room. It truly was a bedchamber.
Dova-san lightly patted the spot next to her.
A gesture to sit. I obediently sat down.
“My family home has a canopy bed, but it’s smaller than this.”
“Then why one this big?”
“Ah, yes. I received it to commemorate the annex.”
“…It was a gift!?”
Amazing. As expected of high nobility. I wonder how much it cost.
It looks so luxurious, even 100 gold coins probably wouldn’t cover it.
Dova-san muttered quietly.
“It’s spiteful, isn’t it? A bed this size for someone single. Truly spiteful.”
“…”
“You see… Dova isn’t single by choice. I want to get married. I want to fall in love, I want a boyfriend, and I’m lonely. Actually, Wof-san… it’s not just Dova; none of my sisters are married, let alone have boyfriends. Whether they want one or not is up to them, of course. There was a time when we were treated as political tools regardless of our feelings, but that’s not the case anymore. Little by little, public opinion is gaining strength, and the authority of the nobility is waning. That’s happening across the entire continent. Well, ah, yes. There are still idiots who flaunt their old noble power, especially around the Royal Capital. I think you know this, Wof-san, but a certain major noble family hostile to the Tasan Family was targeting Torquetum using a third-rate clan while simultaneously interfering with Tasan affairs. Yes. Dragon Fang Wax.”
“…They messed with me too.”
“Ah, yes. Their leader died then. I know he was the third son of a noble, a failure who caused various kinds of trouble. Since he died as a Seeker, he couldn’t be charged with any crime. Though he was practically exiled anyway. After that, some kind soul meticulously exposed the dark secrets of that great noble family, complete with evidence, and the Steelland Count Family was crushed. Their family business related to the iron industry became a private enterprise.”
“Is that what happened?”
“That’s why Dova… the Tasan Family is grateful. We are always indebted to you.”
Dova-san smiled at me. I couldn’t help but blush.
This wasn’t helpful for choosing a bed. Right. Dova-san should know.
“Um, there’s something else I want to ask.”
“Ah, yes. What is it?”
“What kind of beds do Sesh-san and Juicy-san use?”
“Eh? Why do you ask that?”
“Actually, I want to put a new bed in my room, and I wanted some ideas.”
“…Is that why you asked about Dova’s bed too?”
“Yes.”
“…Did you ask others too?”
“Yes. I did.”
“Is that perhaps why you came here today?”
“That’s right.”
“…Wof-san.”
Dova-san looked at me with a troubled expression and said.
“Asking a girl about the bed she usually uses… I really think that’s… inappropriate, you know?”
“…B-But Hayyarn said girls know a lot about bedding…”
“Ah, yes. You shouldn’t take that pervy rabbit seriously. It’s true that some girls are particular about their bedding, but even so, asking a girl about the bed she sleeps in every day… Dova really can’t recommend it… It’s better than asking about her underwear color, I suppose, but it’s still embarrassing.”
Having said her piece, Dova-san blushed and looked down.
“I… I-I’m sorry.”
I had vaguely realized it myself.
When I asked Bid-san, her reaction made me think something was off.
But it’s also true that, apart from getting ideas, I became genuinely curious as I kept asking.
“Ah, somehow, I’m embarrassed now… I’m really sorry.”
“It’s alright. Though I did think you had rather niche interests.”
“Th-That’s not it!”
“By the way, Sesh uses a normal bed. Nothing interesting about it.”
“Huh.”
“She’s much more sensible than she looks. Juicy sleeps on the floor.”
“Eh? On the floor?”
“Ah, yes. She lays out a large futon on the floor and sleeps surrounded by lots of long pillows and cushions.”
“She doesn’t use a bed?”
“That girl doesn’t use one. She’s always been like that.”
The dog my family had in my past life was like that too. Well, dogs don’t really use beds, do they?
Ah, I see. So there’s the option of not using a bed. I’ll be sleeping in a bed, though.
I apologized to Dova-san again, thanked her, and left the mansion.
Alright. That Hayarn. I’m gonna punch her.