SMFLS 10

Ponir Ir Ritea.

She was Sertisha’s eldest maternal aunt, who had left the family and become the Saintess of the Temple of the Five-Colored Waves shortly after Sertisha was born.

Even after leaving the family, she had crossed paths with Sertisha a few times. However, the eldest maternal aunt Sertisha remembered was a somewhat cold and distant person.

She was always composed, and there was a sense of distance about her that made it difficult to approach her.

Grandfather had told Sertisha that her eldest maternal aunt had left home because of a deep emotional wound caused by his own mistake.

Perhaps because of that incident, her eldest maternal aunt had not even attended Grandfather’s funeral.

“Grandfather said she hardly ever comes out of the temple…”

As Sertisha rolled around on the bed, groaning in frustration, Iren began swatting her legs with his tail, complaining that she was making too much of a fuss.

“Eeeee! Iren, think of something for meee! We’re in this together nowww!”

“Ugh! Why should I have to think of something?! Children should learn to think for themselves!”

After saying that coldly, Iren slipped straight back into the pearl.

Sertisha stared at him and pouted.

“Mean lizard… Bad… I hate you… Hic…”

She grumbled under her breath and hugged her blanket.

Click—

The door to the Coralstone Room opened.

The person who entered was Grand Duke Hicaros, who had been away since early morning handling the guardianship formalities and had only returned in the late afternoon.

Seeing Sertisha rolling around on the bed, Hicaros let out a quiet chuckle.

Her hair was a complete mess, and the bed, which had been neatly made, was now a disaster zone covered in paper and crayons depicting bizarre creatures.

“Well, look at that. We have a little loafer here.”

He had only just managed to escape the hell of paperwork, including the remaining guardianship procedures.

At Hicaros’s remark, the baby sea otter who had been lounging around like a loafer furrowed her brow.

“Eeeee! No, I’m not! Tisha is a very, very busy sea otter!!”

Honestly, this man!

She had been thinking so hard about the well-being of her family that her head was practically spinning!

And he dared to call her a loafer!

Indignant at such an awful accusation, Sertisha charged at Grand Duke Hicaros and attacked his legs in retaliation.

Of course, her attack was interrupted when Hicaros promptly scooped her up into his arms.

He gently smoothed out her deeply furrowed brow and asked,

“So, why have you been groaning like that?”

“Hmm… Well, you see…”

Sertisha cautiously studied Hicaros’s expression, wondering whether she should tell him.

Noticing her hesitation, Hicaros swallowed a small sigh and added,

“You asked me to be your guardian, didn’t you? And you’re already trying to keep secrets from me? That makes your guardian a little sad.”

“Gasp! You’re sad?! I’m sorry, Uncle… Tisha didn’t mean to…”

Sertisha patted Grand Duke Hicaros on the chest as he expressed his hurt feelings, then confessed everything.

After hearing the whole story, Hicaros plopped down onto the bed.

Sertisha rested her face on his knee and swung her legs back and forth as she spoke.

“Uncle, should we just ditch the succession banquet and storm the temple?”

“Oh, really? You think it’ll be that easy to ditch it? You’re the guest of honor, you know.”

“Hmph! The head of the family is allowed to do that! My grandpa used to skip banquets all the time, too!”

Remembering how her grandfather used to skip the New Year’s banquet held at the Imperial Palace every year, Sertisha turned her head away with a haughty little expression.

Hicaros let out an incredulous laugh at the young head of the family’s bold declaration. Then, lightly stroking her head, he told her that it was not the sort of thing she should learn from her grandfather.

“On the day of the banquet, the temple will probably be nearly empty. I’ll help you slip away partway through.”

“Really? Uncle, you’re going to help Tisha?”

“If I don’t, you look like you’ll cause a real disaster. I’m just preventing trouble in advance as your guardian.”

“Eee! Tisha doesn’t cause trouble!”

“Sure, sure. Even if you say you won’t, I’d be worried about letting you go alone. Just listen to me.”

Hicaros playfully pinched the tip of Sertisha’s nose and gave it a little shake.

At that, Sertisha sprang upright and clenched both fists, declaring with a solemn expression,

“Okay! We’re comrades… No, allies! From now on, it’s a secret operation! The name is… Operation: Get Rid of the Bad Jellyfish!”

As Sertisha giggled and chattered excitedly about their secret operation like any other child, Hicaros eventually burst into laughter at the absurd name she had come up with.

Outside the window, the warm spring sunlight poured down with unusual brilliance.

It was a spring afternoon more perfect than any other for plotting a secret operation.

At last, the long-awaited day arrived.

The succession banquet, which had been postponed for a while, was finally held.

The venue was Pershane Hall, where the multicolored ocean could be seen stretching out in all its glory.

The floor was covered in pure white marble, and blue gemstones embedded between the marble tiles glittered beautifully in the light of the chandeliers.

Along one side of the banquet hall stood long tables laden with all kinds of seafood dishes, appetizingly arranged desserts, and wines made from Ponero, a sea fruit served exclusively by the Ritea family.

The beastmen attending the banquet gathered in groups according to their species, admiring the beautiful hall or savoring the dishes prepared along one side.

They had only one topic of conversation.

The human guardian chosen by the current generation’s young head of the family.

Since Grand Duke Hicaros was responsible for escorting the young head of the family, he was nowhere to be seen in the banquet hall. Nevertheless, his presence lingered strongly throughout the venue.

Some beastmen openly expressed their displeasure at the fact that a human had been appointed as guardian. Others, particularly among the nobles who supported the head of the family, were surprisingly satisfied with the choice, since the guardian was an extraordinary being.

Beside Marquis Rodelin, who was effectively the leader of the collateral branches, Sertisha’s second maternal uncle, Louis, spoke in a low voice.

“Elder Brother, what do you intend to do now? I heard that girl really did appoint Grand Duke Hicaros as her guardian.”

The previous day, the head of the family’s seal had undoubtedly been stamped on the guardianship documents.

Once the head of the family’s seal had been affixed, the decision could not be reversed.

And with Grand Duke Hicaros becoming her guardian, the engagement between his son and the young head of the Ritea family had effectively become a foregone conclusion.

Marquis Rodelin was not the least bit unsettled.

He merely swirled the red liquid in his wineglass as he took a leisurely sip.

“There’s no need to make such a fuss, Louis.”

He spoke with a relaxed smile.

“Grand Duke Hicaros Roden is nothing more than a guardian tasked with protecting the young head of the family. You know that a guardian from another family has neither the grounds nor the authority to interfere in a family’s internal affairs.”

He gently set his wineglass down on the table.

“Now that Father has passed away, the real power within the family remains in our hands.”

His gaze was filled with confidence. There were no collateral relatives or retainers willing to take the young head of the family’s side.

After all, from the moment the previous head of the family had taken to his sickbed, they had already all been brought under Rodelin’s influence.

It was then that something changed.

The texture of the quiet murmurings coming from the banquet hall subtly shifted.

Low whispers spread like ripples across the water, and everyone’s gaze turned toward the same direction.

Slowly, the doors to the grand banquet hall opened.

Beyond the entrance, where golden light spilled into the room, the silhouettes of two figures appeared.

Grand Duke Hicaros.

And—

Standing beside him, holding onto his arm,

was the young head of the family, Sertisha.

No.

She was no longer merely the young head of the family.

She was someone under the protection of Grand Duke Hicaros.

A symbol capable of shaking the very order of the family.

The atmosphere in the banquet hall changed noticeably.

The nobles’ gazes converged on them in an instant, and whispers spread quietly throughout the room.

“That child…”

“She’s the one who received Grand Duke Hicaros’s oath of guardianship…”

“I heard the engagement is practically a done deal…”

Sertisha walked quietly beside the Grand Duke.

Despite her tiny stature, her presence was strangely unmistakable.

With his gaze fixed straight ahead, Grand Duke Hicaros strode toward the center of the banquet hall.

Each step he took seemed to rewrite the balance of power in the room.

When Grand Duke Hicaros reached Sertisha, he bent down on one knee.

A faint smile played on his lips.

“I greet the Successor of the Five-Colored Waves.”

As his voice rang out,

“I greet the Successor of the Five-Colored Waves.”

The nobles gathered in the banquet hall, led by Marquis Rodelin, bowed in unison.

Their low, measured voices overlapped, echoing like words from a formal ritual.

Sertisha felt the weight of every gaze bearing down on her and tightly concealed her trembling hands inside her sleeves.

She had never attended a banquet of this scale before.

Her heart pounded wildly, like a drum she could no longer control.

At that moment,

Hicaros noticed how tense Sertisha was and gently took her tiny, shell-like hand in his.

The warmth of his hand flowed into hers, softly melting away the tension that had frozen her in place.

Sertisha took a deep breath.

Then, with clear, bright eyes, she slowly surveyed the nobles and announced,

“I hereby decwawe the succession banquwet open!”

A brief silence followed.

Then, in her childlike voice, she added a little more brightly,

“May the bwessing of the Quiet Waves be with you all!”