Chapter 7
Crunch, crunch.
The sound filled the entire room, and the Grand Duke burst out laughing.
It was simply too amusing to watch the child stuff her mouth full of cookies while simultaneously eyeing the cookie clutched in her other hand and swallowing greedily.
However, his laughter did not last long.
The reason he had come to see the child today was not a pleasant one.
Yesterday, after Ariel had collapsed with the chilling cry, “I absolutely cannot give you my blood!” the Grand Duke had taken his son outside and questioned him.
“What exactly did you do?”
“I did nothing. What could I possibly have done to a child that young?”
Ahin had vehemently protested his innocence. He looked deeply wronged.
Well, Ahin isn’t that low.
More importantly, Ahin had no reason to harm the child.
Then what exactly did she mean by that?
Even while unconscious, the child had continued muttering in her sleep.
“No! You wicked humans!”
“I absolutely won’t give you my blood!”
The Grand Duke had spent the entire night thinking about it.
And eventually, he reached one conclusion.
A blood bag.
It was slang for slaves who provided blood for transfusions to the injured.
It was strictly illegal, but there were always people willing to break the law.
They supplied blood to nobles and used their protection to evade the authorities.
I thought it strange that there wasn’t a single family claiming to have lost a child. Could it be…?
The Grand Duke gazed at Ariel with darkened eyes before carefully speaking.
“May I ask you something?”
“Hm?”
Ariel tilted her head before swallowing the cookie in her mouth.
Then she nodded with an unusually generous expression.
“What is it? Ask me anything.”
Part of her was simply in a good mood because of the sweet snacks, but there was another reason.
He might stop me from eating the dirt clods again if I don’t answer like last time!
Repeating the same mistake was something only humans did.
Ariel stared determinedly at the Grand Duke’s lips as they parted.
“About what you said yesterday.”
“What did I say?”
“You said you absolutely couldn’t give me your blood. What did you mean by that?”
“Oh, that…?”
Ariel scratched her cheek awkwardly.
What am I supposed to say?
Telling him the truth was embarrassing because she had apparently misunderstood something ridiculous, but if she kept silent, she would have to give up the remaining dirt clods.
There are still five left.
Besides, a goddess couldn’t tell a lie.
Ariel clutched her head and groaned as she struggled with the dilemma.
After a long while, she finally reached a conclusion.
Ugh, whatever. I’ll just be embarrassed for a little while.
That was much better than either losing her cookies or lying.
“Actually…”
Ariel was just about to speak when memories suddenly struck her.
Jane clicking her tongue and saying,
“You said something you shouldn’t have.”
And the image of the baron being mercilessly dragged away while crying,
“Y-Your Grace, I’m sorry! Please forgive me just this once!”
The foolish baron had been cast out by the Grand Duke because a joke he had made had spread like wildfire.
Gasp!
Ariel’s body went rigid.
Th-this is a state of emergency!
The Grand Duke had not hesitated to cast out even someone who worked under him.
There was no reason he wouldn’t cast out someone like her, whom he had only met recently.
B-but I can’t let that happen. I don’t have anywhere else to go!
Ariel imagined what would happen once the truth came out.
“After having the audacity to freeload in my home while accusing me of being such a despicable person, get out of my house immediately!”
The Grand Duke angrily ordering her to leave.
And herself desperately clutching his trouser leg and begging shamelessly,
“Waaah! Human, I was wrong! Please don’t throw me out! I have nowhere to go!”
Gasp! No! Absolutely not!
She didn’t want to beg some mere human.
Nor did she want to be thrown out of this comfortable place and wander the mortal world alone, without a single person she knew.
Ariel hurriedly shook her head.
“No, I just had a strange dream. Don’t worry about it.”
But the Grand Duke had clearly seen Ariel’s face turn deathly pale, and he did not believe her.
So my guess was right.
This child must have been born illegitimate and sold off as a blood slave.
She had managed to escape by sheer luck, but was too afraid of retaliation to speak about it.
How dare they do something so inhuman to a child?
The Grand Duke ground his teeth and gripped the armrest of the sofa with tremendous force.
Under his powerful grip, the leather split, and white stuffing spilled out in little clumps.
Having turned the expensive sofa into little more than a ragged sack in an instant, the Grand Duke rose from his seat.
Then, as though afraid someone might take them away, he stuffed all five remaining cookies into Ariel’s mouth at once.
He gently stroked the child’s head several times.
It was his attempt to comfort a child who must have suffered irreparable wounds to both body and heart.
And a few weeks later—
The underground slave trade known as the blood-bag system, which had secretly flourished for years, disappeared completely.
It was an extraordinary achievement born from the misunderstanding between Ariel and the Grand Duke.
The only victim was Ahin.
A few days later.
Ariel lay sprawled across the bed, complaining miserably.
“I’m so bored.”
It had already been a week since she had suddenly fallen into the mortal world and ended up staying in a human’s house.
Being cooped up in her room, doing nothing but eating and sleeping, was unbearably boring.
Ariel curled herself up like a little bug and rolled around on the bed.
Roll, roll, to the left.
Roll, roll, to the right.
Then she heard laughter coming from outside the window.
“Ah! Is there something fun happening?”
Ariel’s eyes sparkled as she hurried over to the window.
But there was one problem.
Why is this stupid chair so tall?
Because Ariel was so small, she needed to climb onto a chair just to look outside.
Unfortunately, the furniture had been made for adults, making it rather difficult for her to climb up and down.
Ariel was struggling desperately to get onto the chair when—
“Huh? Wha—?”
Her body suddenly lifted into the air.
Before she knew it, she had landed safely on top of the chair.
“The furniture is much too large for you to use comfortably, isn’t it, my lady?”
Jane was standing behind her with a gentle smile.
“I heard the butler say he’s going to order furniture for you today, so please bear with the inconvenience just a little longer.”
Gah! You scared me! Why does this woman always move around without making a sound?
Ariel patted her startled chest and let out a relieved sigh before belatedly tilting her head.
“Hm? You’re changing the furniture?”
“Of course. Your bed, sofa, table, and chairs will all be replaced. They’ll be things befitting your dignity.”
“Wow! All of them? I’m fine with what’s already here.”
She was going to return home soon anyway, so why bother bringing in new furniture?
But Jane shook her head in disbelief.
“Absolutely not. The furniture here was prepared for guests, so it’s far too inadequate for you. You’re a precious young lady. Naturally, everything you use should be the very best.”
Ariel’s eyes widened.
How does she know I’m precious? I never told her my identity.
Could Jane have somehow discovered who she really was?
Ariel rested her tiny hand against her chin and pondered.
Then she shook her head.
That couldn’t be.
If Jane knew Ariel’s true identity, she couldn’t possibly act so casually around her.
Which meant there was only one possible explanation.
As expected, no matter how hard I try to hide it, the nobility of a goddess simply can’t be concealed.
Feeling rather pleased with herself, Ariel giggled.
“Hehehe—”
“You must have been joking when you said you were perfectly happy with the old furniture. You’re smiling so widely that you’re even drooling.”
Jane chuckled and wiped the corner of Ariel’s mouth with a handkerchief.
Embarrassed, Ariel cleared her throat.
“Ahem. S-so where are we going to buy the furniture?”
“Where else? The furniture shop, of course.”
“A furniture shop?”
“Yes. It’s where the finest carpenters in the empire have gathered. Among them, the skill of a carpenter named Etem is said to rival even that of the god Pavelon.”
“…Pavelon?”
He was a god renowned for his exceptional craftsmanship.
A genius among craftsmen who could do everything from woodworking to stonework and metalworking.
How good must this Etem be for her to compare him to Pavelon?
Ariel couldn’t help becoming curious.
Perfect! I was bored anyway!
Her eyes sparkling, Ariel grabbed the hem of Jane’s dress.
“Can I go there too?”
“Pardon? You want to go yourself, my lady?”
“Yes! I’m bored staying in here all the time.”
“But you only just recovered…”
“It’s furniture I’m going to use, isn’t it? Of course I should see it and choose it myself!”
Seeing Jane hesitate, Ariel hurriedly added another reason.
“Well, you do have a point.”
Jane nodded.
“Then shall we? Since we’re going out anyway, we can have a few dresses made for you as well.”
“Dresses?”
“Actually, we should have had them made much sooner, but you fell ill, so there wasn’t any opportunity to think about it.”
Jane ran her fingers over the hem of Ariel’s dress and murmured awkwardly.
“But if we’re going out, we’ll need His Grace’s permission. Since he’s away, what should we do…?”
“He’s not here? Why?”
“He went out to inspect the territory. He rushed back when he heard about your illness, so he wasn’t able to finish inspecting the entire territory.”
Ariel’s eyes widened.
He left his work unfinished and rushed all the way back? What…? He’s much kinder than I thought!
Ariel was touched by this completely nonsensical misunderstanding when—
“I suppose we have no choice. I’ll have to ask the young master. I’ll be right back, so please wait here, my lady.”
Jane hurried out of the room.
Ariel stared at the door through which she had disappeared, her eyes shining with anticipation.
Jane returned shortly afterward.
With news that Ahin had given them permission.
“Waaaaah!”
Ariel covered her flushed cheeks with both hands and bounced excitedly.
It would be her very first outing in the mortal world.
