Chapter 03

Nina’s dream had always been the same.

Even before she left the orphanage, and even after she was lucky enough to become a maid at a count’s estate.

She had always wanted a family.

Having been abandoned at the entrance of an orphanage without knowing her birthplace, surname, or circumstances, the only thing the director could tell her was her name.

Apparently, the only thing inside the white cloth wrapped around her as a baby had been a little note with her name written on it.

It hadn’t been long since the war ended, and the orphanage was filled with children who had lost their parents. Few families were looking to adopt children.

With the atmosphere being so unstable that another war might break out at any moment, forcing everyone to flee, it was only natural.

In the end, most of the children had no choice but to spend their fifteenth birthdays at the orphanage before leaving to live independently.

Nina was one of those children.

Still, thanks to her astonishingly good memory and ability to learn new things, which had been remarkable ever since childhood, she was able to find work at various shops throughout the commercial district.

However, the Kingdom of Illite, where Nina lived, was a place that didn’t even allow commoners to take the civil service examinations, so she couldn’t find a stable job.

Many countries had become free states after the war, where people could find work regardless of their social status. But Nina didn’t have the money or courage to leave Illite.

As it happened, the proprietress of an inn where Nina occasionally worked was acquainted with the head maid of a count’s estate. It was incredibly lucky that she recommended Nina for a position there.

And so, Nina was now in her second year of working as a maid at the count’s residence.

Being able to live and eat safely while earning money was nice, but the longer she worked there, the more she yearned for the family she had never even met.

“Mother! Father! Look at this! I did it! I managed to ride a unicycle while balancing a book on my head and holding a plate with a fork!”

“Oh my, David. You’re about to become a student at the academy. Surely you can stop acting like a spoiled child now?”

“Hahaha! What a rascal. You certainly inherited my sense of balance.”

The count’s family got along exceptionally well and was always cheerful and lively. For Nina, who had no family of her own, it was both enviable and lonely to witness.

Even right before she was about to discover that she truly had a family of her own, after praying to the moon every night to let her meet them, Nina had still been envious of the young master of the count’s estate.

More than the fact that he would be entering the academy.

More than the many congratulatory gifts he had received to celebrate the occasion.

And more than his success at performing the difficult tricks he had been practicing since childhood, which had made him so excited.

What Nina envied most was that he had family by his side with whom he could share his joy.

The young master, who had abandoned his unicycle and flung himself into the countess’s arms as if he were flying, looked happier than anyone in the world.

It was a scene Nina had always dreamed of, yet believed she would never be able to experience herself.

Then, one day, a gentleman suddenly arrived at the count’s estate and presented her with the will of her grandmother, Rikita Bones.

From that day onward, Nina’s life was turned completely upside down.

I had a family all along!

Just knowing that made it feel as though all the sorrow and loneliness she had endured over the years had disappeared.

How could something that only happens to the protagonist of a novel happen to someone like me, who’s always been a side character?

Stepping into the sitting room of the townhouse, Nina tried to calm her rapidly beating heart.

But as she looked at the ‘family’ standing before her, there was simply no way she could calm down.

“Welcome.”

“We’ve been waiting for you.”

Their warm smiles and cheerful greetings only made her heart beat even faster.

Nina rubbed her flushed cheeks, lightly grasped the hem of her skirt, and introduced herself.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you. My name is Nina.”

Then, as if she’d just remembered something, she smiled bashfully.

“Ah, but now I’m ‘Nina Bones.'”

She had lost count of how many times she’d said the name “Nina Bones” out loud during the carriage ride.

She couldn’t believe the day had finally come when she could introduce herself as “Nina Bones” in front of her family, in front of the other “Bones” family members.

Was this what it felt like to be adopted?

No, that couldn’t be it.

I wasn’t adopted. I’ve returned to the embrace of my real family!

She was barely managing to suppress the urge to scream and jump up and down when a man with neatly combed dark brown hair approached her first and offered his hand.

“Chaison Bones. I’m your uncle.”

“Y-your uncle…!”

Before Nina could even finish basking in the emotion, a woman with reddish-brown curly hair cascading over her shoulders approached with a beautiful smile.

“I’m Natalisha Bones. I’m Chaison’s younger sister. That makes me your aunt.”

“An aunt…!”

This time, it was a woman with grayish-brown hair pinned up.

“Welcome. I’m Katahari Bones. I suppose that makes me your older sister? Your cousin, that is.”

“An older sister…!”

And then, even a man with long, greenish-brown hair braided down his back greeted her.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Exi Bones, younger brother of Katahari. I’m your older male cousin.”

“An older brother…!”

Nina shook hands with the four of them one after another, smiling brightly.

“I’m so happy! We all have pink eyes!”

At that, a brief silence swept through the sitting room.

The four people surrounding Nina rapidly exchanged glances.

She specifically pointed out our eye color.

Is she being sarcastic because she noticed the pink contact lenses?

Did she instinctively sense something suspicious? As expected of Rikita’s blood relative.

Perhaps she’s only suspicious. Still, she’s impressive.

It was a moment so brief that an ordinary person wouldn’t have even thought twice about it.

However, Nina, who had developed a knack for handling things after earning money through all kinds of odd jobs since childhood, immediately sensed that she’d made some sort of mistake and quickly looked over the four of them.

Come to think of it, they were dressed in black from head to toe, right down to their black accessories.

“Gasp! I-I’m sorry. I was just so excited to have a family that I…”

Nina clasped both hands tightly in front of her chest and bowed her head.

“Please accept my deepest condolences. Although I never knew her personally, I’m sure she was very dear to you, Uncle, Aunt, Cousin, and Cousin.”

“Ah.”

Exi let out a blank little gasp, having silently listened to her, unsure of what she was trying to say.

Then, all of a sudden, he buried his face in his hands and began to sob.

“Sniff… She really was a wonderful person.”

“Hic…”

Before long, the other family members were also wiping away tears or lowering their heads with sorrowful expressions.

During the carriage ride, Nina had been incredibly curious about her grandmother.

What she looked like, what her eyes were like, what kind of life she’d led, and so on.

But now that she’d met her family, she’d been so excited that she’d momentarily forgotten all about her grandmother. She felt ashamed of herself.

Even if I don’t remember her, she’s the person who left me such an enormous inheritance…

As Nina’s spirits sank and her shoulders drooped, Natalisha, her aunt, gently wrapped an arm around her back.

“Still, thanks to your grandmother, we were able to meet like this, weren’t we? I’m truly happy.”

“Me too! I’m really happy.”

“Nina, come over here and sit down.”

“…!”

They were telling her to come over and sit down. Such a wonderfully familial thing to say!

With wide, sparkling eyes, Nina sat on the sofa where Katahari guided her.

“You must be tired from the long journey. Why don’t we have some refreshments together? I’m sure the kitchen is preparing a lavish dinner.”

“Yes. Th-thank you, big sister!”

An elegant tea set and cookies had been arranged on the table.

Tea time with my family!

Nina’s expression gradually softened as she chatted comfortably with her family.

The fragrant tea warmed her heart, and the sweet cookies brought a smile to her lips.

By the time her teacup had been refilled twice more and the plate of cookies was nearly empty…

Nina, who had already grown comfortable with everyone through their various conversations, finally asked the question she had been carrying in her heart ever since her days at the orphanage.

“But how did I end up separated from my family?”

Chaison nodded as though he’d expected her to ask that question before speaking.

“Your mother went missing while traveling in Illite, and we never saw her again after that. We didn’t know that our sister was pregnant, nor did we know you’d been born.”

“My goodness…”

Natalisha let out a quiet sigh.

“Until the day she passed away, your grandmother kept searching for your mother. And in the process, she found you.”

“Then… my mother…”

“Apparently, her health had grown weak, and she died not long after giving birth to you.”

“Ah…”

Nina had more or less expected that her parents were dead.

That was why they hadn’t come looking for her, even after she’d reached the age when she had to leave the orphanage.

Truthfully, even while she was still at the orphanage, she’d found it easier to believe that her parents had passed away than to think they’d abandoned her.

Seeing Nina’s expression darken, Exi changed the subject.

“You’re safely back home now. You won’t have to be separated from your family again.”

“That’s right. And make yourself comfortable. This is your home, so you can do whatever you like. Is there anything you’d like to do?”

As Katahari asked, sliding the plate of cookies toward her, Nina pondered for a moment before raising her head.

“Come to think of it, there’s something I’ve wanted to try ever since I was at the orphanage. I always thought I’d do it once I had a family.”

At that moment, the four exchanged another swift glance.

Has she already discovered the romance of explosives?

It must be shooting.

If she’s Rikita’s granddaughter, perhaps she wants to subdue multiple people with nothing but a rope.

It must be poison.

“Um…”

Nina smiled shyly before speaking.

“I want to learn how to ride a bicycle. A two-wheeled one.”

After a brief silence, Natalisha narrowed her eyes and asked,

“Is simply riding a bicycle all you want to do? Or is there something else you’d like to do… together with it?”

“Something else? If there’s something else I can do while riding a bicycle, that would be nice, too!”

Clatter.

Startled by Nina’s cheerful answer, Exi accidentally kicked the leg of the table.

Impressive. She’s already ambitious enough to want to learn how to assassinate someone while riding a bicycle.

The family members who had warmly welcomed Nina all recalled their master’s warnings and arrived at the same conclusion.

Rikita’s granddaughter. Go ahead and keep looking all pure and adorable. That won’t make us lower our guard.