Chapter 7
“Alright, you’re all done, Lady Rierusha. You may come down now.”
“Mm, thank you!”
When the dressing was finished and Rierusha greeted them with thanks, the maids exchanged glances as if flustered.
Among them, one maid who looked the most experienced stepped forward with a smile.
“No, young lady. We merely did our duty. From now on, you mustn’t offer greetings like that.”
“Why can’t I?”
“Well, that’s because…….”
When she questioned something the maid had thought too obvious to doubt, the maid seemed momentarily at a loss for words.
“I wanna have you do this hair again next time. I like it.”
Rierusha held Sona’s hand and waved to the maids.
“Then shall we go, Lady Rierusha?”
“Mm.”
As she left the room, Rierusha gripped Sona’s hand tightly. Her face was full of tension.
‘When I meet Grandfather, what should I say?’
Rierusha was still living in the outer quarters, but once the interview with Grandfather was over, she would be formally granted a new castle in the area belonging to the heirs.
However, that would only be possible on the assumption that the interview went positively.
No matter what, she had to win Grandfather’s heart.
When Rierusha squeezed Sona’s hand hard, Sona squeezed back just as firmly.
“You can do it, Lady Rierusha. Just do as we practiced together.”
“Mm.”
For today, she and Sona had trained whenever they had a moment.
For Rierusha, who didn’t properly know noble etiquette, Sona had quickly taught her the formal greeting.
Rierusha pictured the greeting she had learned in her head.
‘Okay, I can do it well!’
Before long, the two of them entered the entrance to the main castle.
At the entrance, she could see a roaring statue of a two-headed dragon symbolizing House Arakrene.
And behind it, the Arakrene ducal castle, with its imposing presence, came into view.
Passing the knights standing guard in strict formation, a beautiful landscape soon unfolded.
“Wow.”
A wide lake and a bridge you could walk across.
Carp splashed under the sunlight, appearing and hiding, and beautiful plants blended together in harmony.
Rierusha, spacing out as she admired the garden, stiffened when she saw a silhouette she could never forget.
“Welcome, Lady Rierusha. I have come to escort you.”
It was Oberon.
It felt as if every hair on Rierusha’s body stood on end.
He looked far younger than the face in her memories, but he still had the same face.
With an intelligent appearance and a sharp bob haircut, Oberon placed a hand over his left chest and bowed politely.
“From here, I will guide you.”
It meant Sona could not come with her.
When Rierusha hesitated, wavering, Sona bent her knees and met her eyes.
“Lady Rierusha. I’ll be waiting here.”
“…….”
“You can do well and come back, right?”
“……Yeah.”
Rierusha was tense, but she nodded belatedly.
‘Oberon is still Grandfather’s person. Nothing has happened yet.’
Rierusha carefully let go of Sona’s hand.
And as she approached Oberon, she thought about how she could naturally probe what was in his heart.
Her palms were already full of cold sweat.
“Then I will guide you.”
“Yesh.”
Oberon was one of the most influential figures in House Arakrene.
There was nothing to gain by making an enemy of him right now.
As if someone who had made up her mind, Rierusha opened her eyes wide and suddenly grabbed Oberon’s hand.
“Oh my?”
The one who let out a startled sound was Sona.
At the same time, Oberon’s emotionless eyes widened at having his hand suddenly seized by Rierusha.
Unfortunately, Rierusha had no psychological leeway to even notice that.
“Then I’ll be back, Ttona.”
“Yes, young lady. Please go and come back!”
Rierusha nodded at Sona’s cheer and waved.
“……Let us go.”
Oberon said softly.
Rierusha moved her feet diligently. In one hand, she held tightly onto Oberon’s awkwardly stiffened fingers.
Soon, behind them, the heavy castle gate shut with a thud.
* * *
‘When did Oberon start to harbor other intentions?’
Rierusha stared hard at Oberon’s face.
His expressionless face gave no hint of what he was thinking at all.
‘If I was what he didn’t like, he could have just dealt with me.’
She still couldn’t understand Oberon’s judgment, the one where he had pointed his sword not only at Rierusha, the root cause, but at everyone.
Walking down the long corridor and thinking for a long while, Oberon, in the silence, opened his mouth.
“Do you have something you wish to say to me?”
“Yesh?”
Rierusha jumped in surprise.
It seemed the problem was that she had been staring too blatantly.
Oberon, having noticed her gaze, had been looking down at Rierusha for some time.
Rierusha decided to greet him.
“I couldn’t greet you properly earlier. Hello.”
“……Hello.”
“I’m Rierusha.”
At the sudden greeting, Oberon’s reply came a bit slowly.
She could see Oberon’s silver-gray eyes, a little flustered, wandering through the air.
At his still-young age, he seemed to have little immunity to dealing with children.
‘That’s actually a good thing.’
Relieved that she could deal with this inexperienced Oberon rather than the one six years later, Rierusha let out an inner sigh.
“……I am Oberon.”
Still embarrassed, he returned the greeting in the same way.
Rierusha made a surprised face.
‘He’s kinder than I thought?’
Just what kind of things were going to happen to the house in the future that it led to such a disaster?
“Oberon.”
“Yes, Lady Rierusha.”
“I awakened.”
“My sincere congratulations.”
Oberon answered, looking forward again.
Rierusha thought that was rather fortunate.
Because she didn’t have the shamelessness to meet his eyes and make it obvious—‘I know what you will do in the future.’
Even now, her heart was thumping.
“Now Dad can come back too.”
From here, this was what Rierusha truly wanted to say.
She desperately hoped that hearing this would make Oberon change his mind in the future.
“So that means Oberon can keep staying with Grandfather too.”
She was terribly worried that perhaps he had already turned his back on the family.
Just as Rierusha waited for his answer, utterly tense.
Oberon’s head slowly turned toward Rierusha.
“What do you mean by that?”
“Nothing that Oberon worries about will happen.”
“…….”
“The ducal castle will be safe. If Oberon helps.”
At Rierusha’s words, as if she knew something, Oberon’s eyes widened with surprise.
For the first time, ripples began to stir across his emotionless face.
However, nowhere could she see the kind of emotion that meant ‘I’ve been found out.’
‘What? Has Oberon not decided to betray them yet?’
But even so, Oberon’s reaction was far too subtle.
After a brief silence, Oberon opened his mouth.
“Lady Rierusha, perhaps you…….”
“Ah, we’re here!”
As Oberon tried to ask a question, Rierusha let go of the hand she had been holding and shouted.
‘It’ll be troublesome if he asks any further. I don’t know the details, I just tested the waters.’
Since no one would ever tell Rierusha the family’s inner circumstances, it would look suspicious to act like she knew something.
‘Anyway, from Oberon’s reaction, I can tell the family is in danger even now.’
It had looked like the family had collapsed overnight, but it meant it had been progressing over a very long time.
Rierusha smiled innocently and approached the duke’s office.
* * *
Duke Arakrene’s office.
In the main castle’s office sat an elderly man, seasoned, with silver hair and red eyes.
“That child awakened?”
“Yes. They say Rosinante confirmed it himself.”
Duke Arakrene, Ackmund, narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
It was a perfectly unbelievable timing.
If she failed to awaken even after this year passed, Rierusha was scheduled to be removed from the family registry.
Because that was the deadline Ackmund had promised his vassals.
“The possibility it’s false?”
“None.”
“If it’s a trick by Pernoer?”
“It would be found out quickly.”
Even at the news of his granddaughter’s awakening, Ackmund could not rejoice with ease.
Suspicion.
The situation matched up so perfectly that it instead made him doubtful.
“Fine. If so, I can just meet her and see.”
She was a child who had woken after suffering aftereffects for two whole days.
He intended to confirm with his own eyes just how great the ability of the very one who had made her father wander outside the family would be.
‘Whether that child’s ability will benefit the family or harm it is something I can tell once I see it.’
Since he had sent Oberon, the child would arrive soon.
