Sebastian was awake

---

“Mr. Takumi, Leo. Do you have a minute?”
“Sebastian?”
“Wuff.”

In the middle of the night, when everyone was asleep. Leo and I were on watch duty, when Sebastian suddenly called to us.
He was next, so perhaps he had gotten up early?
Leo had noticed him approaching first, and so she just barked quietly.
It seemed like people always came when we were watching…it was Mr. Ekenhart and Ms. Claire last time.

While Liza had wanted to stay up as well, she was also tired, and by the time my meeting was finished, she was already asleep.
Right now, Ms. Lyra and Ms. Claire were taking care of her, and so she was in their tent.
This would be the first time she slept away from me and Leo…
Which was probably for the best, as Mr. Ekenhart snores very loudly.

“I think this is the first time just us two were able to relax and talk like this? Well, Leo is here too.”
“Indeed… Well, there was that time you taught me magic.”
“Yes, that’s right. Hohoho. It was just a simple lesson, but you have used it so well… I am glad I taught you.”
“Well, I don’t know about well… But it was because of that magic that I survived in Range village.”

It was beginner light magic.
Normally, it was used to illuminate dark places.
Had I not been taught it…or I hadn’t been told how I could use it to buy time…then I would not have been able to survive before Leo arrived.
I would have likely died or been badly injured.

It was possible that when Leo arrived, that most of the village would be gone. And so I was very grateful towards Sebastian.

“…I did not imagine that it would be useful so quickly. In any case, I’m glad that the words of an old man were able to help you.”
“Yes. Thank you.”
“Wuff. Wuff.”
“Hoho. So even Leo is thanking me. It is an honor. By the way, there is something I want to speak to you about, Mr. Takumi.”

Sebastian seemed very happy to be thanked by Leo. But then his expression turned serious.
Apparently, this was why he had gotten up early.

“There is something I want to thank you about as well. Because of you, not only Lady Claire, but Lady Tilura and my master are enjoying themselves.”
“Uh… Well, I think they’re just doing as they please…”
“As they should. Unlike some others, they do not put much importance in their status. Of course, we servants, and the people of the town, always act formally.”
“I see… Even if they do not care, others will not forget that they are nobles.”

What Sebastiana was talking about happened a lot in Japan as well.
In general, there may not be a strong sense of status, but it had once existed…
And there was even a word to describe a class with special privileges
Those who had wealth, or power in the country. Even if they did not wield their power publicly, there was a sense that you could not go against them.
While on a smaller scale, your boss at work, for instance… You felt like you couldn’t share your actual opinion around them.

But this was a world with royals and nobles, and so it was even more stronger here.

“Yes, exactly. But you and Leo are from a different world. Thanks to that, you treat people differently.”
“Well…that’s true… Though, it’s just that I don’t know anything about manners here.”
“No, not at all. I think your manners are more than adequate. But you still act differently. Not in a bad way. It is merely because you were raised in a different country and civilization.”
“Ineed.”

There were invisible differences in status in Japan.
However, according to the law, we were supposed to be equal.
And so even if there were hierarchies with smaller communities, we still had the same rights. There was no doubt about that.

I suppose that was what set me apart from people here, who were used to being around nobles.
Well, I still knew a little about them, and so I had felt a little flustered when I first learned about Ms. Claire…
Even now, I sometimes worried that I was being rude… But they always seemed like they didn’t mind, so I tried to not think about it.

Next Chapter

My Beloved Dog is the Strongest in Another World