Edited

39.

T/N: Everyone calls Aisa Lord even unconsciously’

“So, are you saying you’ll have a morning tea time?”

You? But don’t you often neglect meal times as well?

Erika rarely revealed her expression. Avoiding her strange expression, I averted my eyes rarely.

“Oh, if there’s a beast in the castle. No matter how young, as the lord of the castle, I should confirm.”

Norma’s plea could be summarized as follows:

While roaming the streets of Katam, did you happen to see a cat? The child who drew the attention of Lord Aisa was quite worrying.

I flinched for the first time here. I do remember seeing a black kitten wandering alone in the crowd. But taking it to Diazi?

It wouldn’t leave me alone, and since it was motherless, I brought it along, thinking it was a cat. But it turned out to be a cub. The baby cub, strangely not much bigger than itself, became uneasy when separated and ended up being brought here.

At this point, Norma’s expression grew significantly distant, making me flinch a second time.

I tried to report its entry, but the baby got scared and hid, so I couldn’t. Please allow us to stay with the baby cub.

“Ah, the baby’s name is Antoinette.”

He boldly and cheerfully spoke, leaving me at a loss for words.

“Well, then, you should have ordered the knights to confirm and immediately if it is deemed dangerous, then held Diazi accountable. Why confirm the next morning?”

Erika’s expression was one of disbelief at how absurdly the matter was being handled.

Who wouldn’t know that? I can’t believe it myself right now. At that time, when Norma spoke with a mournful face about the story of the baby cub that couldn’t bear to be separated, there wasn’t such a sorrowful tale.

When facing Norma Diazi, there are times when actions precede thoughts.

Yesterday was one of those days.

“…It’s because I couldn’t see what Norma Diazi was saying.”

I muttered with a rather distressed expression. Somehow, I felt defeated by Norma.

‘I was unknowingly lenient too. Can one possibly cast some sort of spell with charisma? I’ve never heard of such a thing.’

While Aisa pondered the factors leading to her defeat, Erika secretly clicked her tongue upon realizing how absurdly yielding Lord Aisa was to Norma Diazi. Whenever the profound history of the MacFoy, particularly susceptible to beauty, lightly brushed through her mind, she openly shook her head in disbelief.

Lord Aisa, you still don’t realize. Especially delicate and beautiful beings like him, with even a hint of gold in his eyes or hair, unintentionally catch people’s attention, including yours

It’s widely known that the MacFoy Lord dislikes the common populace. As a noble Lord of a prestigious family, she had to avoid anything that might offend her delicate sensibilities in order to accommodate her tastes.

However, even to my generally pessimistic and negative mistress, there was clearly affection present.

The MacFoy clan loves beauty. They are particularly susceptible to beautiful things, especially beautiful people. Their profound preference for things that are delicate, beautiful, and shimmer like gold is deeply ingrained in the MacFoy lineage.

This is something that anyone who has served the MacFoy since the days of the ancestors can easily discern.

Back in the days of the ancestors, when Aisa’s father was the Lord, Harry Forn, who was picked up on the street by Lord Dogmun, wasn’t just accepted. Forn, with his blond hair and handsome appearance, significantly lowered the guards of the MacFoy clan members.

The reason why most people didn’t know this fact was simple. While the MacFoy appreciated beauty, they were very discreet about it!

As Erika pondered over this thought, she hesitated for a moment. Someone who had been favored by Lord Aisa’s father more than her own brothers and sisters naturally came to mind. Thinking of that person inevitably led to a chain of memories flooding in, causing her mood to quickly dampen.

‘…By the way, during the morning tea time, isn’t it customary to find Young Master Archie present at that time?’

Setting aside her conscience, Erika pointed out one more thing. True to her nickname, she managed her expression excellently.

Although not every day, Lord Aisa meets Young Master Archie during the time when most imperial nobles enjoy tea time. It was her way of fulfilling her duties as a guardian.

Of course, recently Young Master Archie hasn’t been meeting Lord Aisa.

“Will Archie let me in today, or will he come out himself? He got angry yesterday just for saying a word, sigh… Anyway, Young Master Archie was upset and vented out.”

Erika silently speculated that Young Master Archie, having been raised seeing Lord Aisa, might have inherited some of her temperament. Despite being younger than Archie, Roxanne, Lord Aisa’s younger sister, was renowned not only for her fiery temper, but also for her genuine nature, even more so than Aisa herself.

“Do you think he’ll come if I call him today?”

With a final impure thought, Erika casually tossed it out.

“Today?”

“If you inform Young Master Archie that Norma Diazi is having tea time, he will probably come. I bet my month’s salary on it.”

Erika, one of the highest-paid individuals in MacFoy, loved money as much as she earned. It was a statement of certainty.

* * *

The protests that had been ongoing for the past week ended anticlimactically.

As I entered the reception room for tea time, I was stunned by my usually radiant nephew. Seeing the clearly self-satisfied baby peacock, who had voluntarily shown off his feathers since dawn, left me speechless.

“It seems Young Master Archie has taken a liking to Norma Diazi. It looked almost like love at first sight. Didn’t you know?”

Simultaneously, Erika’s words from the morning in the study came to mind. Yesterday, I was too distracted to even consider Archie.

‘I never imagined the child would look at Norma Diazi with such eyes.’

Even though they haven’t even talked, acting like a bright-faced kid. Anyway, Archie was upset.

‘He’s still young!’

Of course, when I looked at Archie with disdain, I didn’t know that behind me, Erika was silently scoffing at the MacFoy who only brightens their face.

Sitting on the stone bench, I alternated my gaze between Archie and Norma sitting across from me. Ironically, both seemed to be quite fond of each other.

“Lord Diazi, it’s an honor to meet you again.”

His bashful gestures and respectful demeanor made him look childlike and cute for a moment, which made me chuckle.

“The honor is mine, Lord MacFoy.”

As Norma held Archie’s hand, it seemed like she was trying to express her friendliness by subtly releasing her charisma. It was some sort of communication that only those with charisma could do.

As the warm golden glow resembling Norma enveloped Archie, he blinked round eyes and soon burst into a bashful smile. In MacFoy, it’s rare to find someone who can handle charisma, so even the smallest things are fascinating.

When Archie laughed excitedly, Norma chuckled as if finding him adorable. It was evident to me that Norma adored Archie, who was eleven years her junior. Perhaps it was because Nicholas Diazi had experienced a similar separation at that age, making him even more endearing.

Ranteres, Diazi, charisma, paladins!

Archie chattered away about stories unfamiliar to me. His flushed cheeks were filled with excitement, and his violet eyes sparkled brightly as he looked at Norma.

Norma’s experience in caring for children gave her a seasoned air. Unlike me, she conversed effortlessly with Archie without any interruptions.

Even Archie’s nanny, Mrs. Seymour, was amazed at how skillfully Norma conversed with Archie.

‘I have never seen such a happy expression on my face when I saw my aunt who raised me and fed me.’

Feeling a strange sense of envy, I took a sip of tea. Setting down the cup, I looked back at the two, and at that moment, Norma turned her gaze towards me, and our eyes met.

In that instant, Norma closed her eyes into a crescent moon shape and smiled.

“….”

‘It feels awkward. Strange.’

The morning sunlight. Cheerful chatter. Pleasant laughter.

This peaceful scenery felt so out of place. It could be said that it was too unfamiliar to me.

‘When was the last time I leisurely drank tea while listening to someone’s chatter like this in the morning?’

If I were to search for it, I’d have to go back at least ten years.

‘Is it okay to be this ordinary? Can I really be this comfortable? There are still unresolved issues, things to confirm.’

Above all,

‘Shouldn’t I be uncomfortable? Why does it bother me to drink tea…’

Suddenly, I felt anxious and unjustly blamed Norma.

During dinner yesterday, and now. In the slightly over two months since I last saw her, Norma seemed to have definitely improved. At least she didn’t seem to gaze into the void or space out as often as she did in Katam.

‘I’m still anxious. Norma Diazi doesn’t seem to be like that.’

The relaxed atmosphere didn’t seem awkward for Norma. She herself seemed at ease.

‘…Should I stay just a bit longer?’

Watching Norma like that, I felt like it wouldn’t hurt to stay just a little longer. Just a bit more.

Then Archie spoke with his innocent voice.

“It’s fascinating. In MacFoy, there are hardly any people who can handle charisma. There might be no one else but me!”

I was taken aback by Archie’s words spoken without much thought. It wasn’t my intention to cherish talents in handling charisma; it was my father’s intention, the Lord of the ancestors. Especially considering the chaos that erupted ten years ago because of “charisma,” I couldn’t help but tremble at the thought.

Since that day, MacFoy had invested heavily in temples to avoid rumors of being cursed by the gods. The first thing they did when they got money was to make a massive donation to the temple under the name of MacFoy.

However, they didn’t directly foster priests and paladins. More accurately, they were wary of outsiders.

“Damn it.”

Old memories buried deep down started to creep up from the depths. Unknowingly, I exerted pressure on the hand holding the teacup.

“My Lord.”

Just as I was about to bite my lip, Norma called out to me.

“By now, Antoinette’s meal should be over.”

He said to me with a gentle expression.

Blinking a few times, I recalled Antoinette. Oh, right. I decided to check on the cub.

I shook off the old memories clinging under my feet. Shortly after, as I nodded, Norma gestured to his escort knight.

Soon, the junior knight disappeared to bring the baby cub.

‘But I’m the Lord of MacFoy. No matter how sensitive the baby cub is, waiting until mealtime… This is crazy. My time is precious.’

Wait. Meal… Meal?

“..By the way, what about its food if it’s a cub?”

I asked with a puzzled expression. At that, Norma grinned.

“I think I had difficulty answering that before.”

As I squinted my eyes, Norma eventually spoke up.

“It’s incredibly, adorable.”

It wasn’t an answer about the food. However, it sounded affectionate.