“It’s just… a stone!”
It was a perfect pebble.
Receiving a stone from Lassek Iron Travel, the great tycoon of the Hayshal Empire!
I had to keep it with the resolve that I’d be scolded severely if I lost it!
Was this some kind of elaborate joke?
The image of my grandfather smirking sarcastically came to mind.
I felt deflated. I lay on the sofa, using the armrest as a pillow, holding the pebble up in front of my eyes.
“So why was Uncle Callet so surprised?”
The stone was as opaque as if it had been dipped in blue paint mixed with milk. It was pretty, but since it wasn’t a gemstone, it couldn’t be worth more than then thousand Kona.
No way.
“Is Uncle Callet also a victim of workplace bullying, forced to play along with his boss’s pranks…!”
Hmm? There was a commotion outside.
Lying with my head on the armrest, I turned my head upward. The sound of people murmuring outside was drifting in through the window.
“Could it be that grandfather has come back…?”
Feeling uneasy, I pocketed the stone, got off the sofa, and walked to the window. The window was high again this time, but luckily there was a small stool nearby.
The moment I stepped on the stool and checked the scenery beyond the window, I couldn’t help but smile.
“Oh, Dad!”
It was a survival instinct.
My dad was standing outside the building, with some knights behind him.
‘Oh no. Dad’s already here. I guess my time with Grandfather was longer than I thought.’
The plan to return the Stone House before Dad arrived had fallen apart.
And that wasn’t the worst of it.
The knights looked like scolded puppies, utterly crestfallen with their tails between their legs.
Even Mr. Rex, the chief commander, was standing beside Dad, his shoulders hunched.
Although Mr. Rex was physically bigger than Dad, the sense of authority was coming from my dad, not him.
‘That spot next to him will soon be mine…’
For now, I should act happy to see him.
Driven by survival instinct, I waved vigorously, and Dad slowly raised his right hand and waved back in my direction.
“Berry.”
Dad called my name. The window was so clear that I could perfectly see his lips moving from the third floor.
Seeing his lips so clearly also meant I could see the rest of his face clearly too.
Cold sweat trickled down.
His golden hair was shining like a wheat field, and his blue eyes were narrowed more than usual.
‘Th-those are…’
Those were Dad’s eyes when he was angry.
“Berry, I’m coming up, so stay there.”
***
Dad came up to the Grand Master’s office with Mr. Rex and a few other knights.
“I thought I told you to stay quietly.”
“I’m sorry.”
I stood next to Mr. Rex and apologized to Dad.
“Even though you went out with Anne, did you really not think that I’d worry?”
“… I wasn’t thinking clearly. I’m sorry.”
I hadn’t planned on getting caught…
But I did, after all.
All I could do was apologize, having made Dad worry.
Going from the stone house to the training center wasn’t the problem. Within the Travel estate, there were only a few places the direct descendants couldn’t go, aside from the private areas of other family members.
The problem was that Dad knew I got caught by Grandfather trying to steal candy from the Grand Master’s office.
“Young Master, as I mentioned, the young Miss isn’t at fault. I was the one who told her there were snacks in the Grand Master’s office in the first place, and I’m the one who failed to anticipate your arrival. It’s entirely my fault. Look at her face! How harshly did the Count scold her for her eyes to be red from crying?”
Mr. Rex even spread his hands as if to support my face, trying to defend me to Dad.
The reason my eyes were red was because I had rubbed them while playing along with Grandfather…
But there was no reason to refuse Mr. Rex’s help, so I looked up at Dad.
Sniff. And, coincidentally, my nose felt itchy at that moment.
“That’s… how it was.”
“Berry, you know lying is wrong, right?”
“Huh? But I’m not lying! I swear, young master!”
“…Chief Commander, I’m not talking with you.”
It seemed like Dad had caught on that I hadn’t been crying. He knows me too well, it’s a problem.
Dad’s gaze then shifted to the candy jar I was holding.
“That candy-.”
It looked like he was about to ask why I was holding it, but he stopped. He must have realized that the knights around us were all eavesdropping.
There were too many listening ears. Aside from Mr. Rex, I wasn’t sure if I could trust anyone here.
“Dad, I have something to discuss with you alone.”
“Rex.”
“Yes, did you hear what the young miss said? Everyone, out.”
“You too.”
“…Understood.”
Once all the knights had left and the door was closed, Dad asked me,
“What is it you want to talk about?”
I explained everything that had happened today.
I told him I wanted to see the rabbit, so I asked Anne to come with me. My legs started hurting, and while I was waiting for her, I heard the sound of swords, which intrigued me, so I wandered off and got friendly with some of the knights by talking about Dad.
As Dad listened to my excuses, his gaze started to soften.
I seized the opportunity to explain what had happened in the Grand Master’s office, excluding the part about the pebble. I didn’t want to tell him that Grandfather had teased me.
“You didn’t get scolded by Grandfather?”
“Yeah! Look, I even got candy as a gift!”
“Then why did you rub your eyes?”
“Well… Grandfather told me to pretend I was crying.”
“…Could you explain that in more detail?”
“Grandfather gave me the candy as a gift for coming home. But then he said that if only I received candy, my relatives might get jealous, so he pretended to scold me and told me to act like I was reflecting on my actions. I didn’t understand why, but I went along with it.”
Dad lightly ruffled my hair.
“Berryberry. There’s no need to go along with things you don’t understand.”
Dad called me by my nickname. That meant he wasn’t as angry anymore.
But judging by the way his lips tightened, it looked like something was still on his mind.
‘Is he bothered that Grandfather only pretended to scold me? He’s probably thinking about Grandfather’s intentions since he took my side.’
Ugh. I still don’t understand what’s going on with Grandfather.
Holding Dad’s hand that was resting on my head, I playfully asked him,
“But didn’t you see Anne? She was in the hallway when you came to the Grand Master’s office. Did she go back already?”
“She’s at the main house. While you were with Grandfather, your grandmother called for her.”
“Grandmother?”
That means Aunt Marian already knows I got scolded.
Aunt Marian and Grandmother are on the same side. Since they both manage the maids, Anne probably won’t be held responsible for this.
In fact, she might even get rewarded for spying.
…Anyway, things seem to have calmed down a bit now, right?
“By the way, Dad.”
I finally asked the question that had been on my mind.
“What were you talking about with Theon earlier?”
6. A New Family Member
Back when Dad had said he was coming up to the Grand Master’s office from outside the building, Theon had been hidden behind Mr. Rex.
Dad had spoken with Theon and Mr. Rex for quite some time.
I was curious what they had talked about…
“Theon is going to be my bodyguard?”
Back at the Stone House, I was eating the strawberry cake Dad brought while listening to his explanation, with Theon sitting beside us.
“……”
When I was young, I required a lot of attention, so even now, it feels natural for my dad and me to sit side by side. Since Theon was a guest, I gave him the seat between my dad and me.
My dad, who was sitting on the left side of the long sofa, responded.
“Not an official bodyguard.”
Right, direct descendants of the Stone House aren’t assigned personal knights.
In other words, we don’t receive financial support from the Travel family. Dad would have to pay for everything, from the knight’s salary to their food, clothes, and lodging.
“When I’m not around, Theon’s job will be to, well, watch over you—uh, I mean, keep you company.”
“Dad, you just said ‘watch over.’”
“Did you hear that wrong?”
“Oh, I’ll let it slide.”
But I understood. The Travel estate was vast, and there was always the possibility of something happening to me out of Dad’s sight.
Besides, the reason Dad brought Theon today must have been because of what happened earlier.
“But did Theon agree to this? Dad, just because you became a noble doesn’t mean you can force him to do this.”
“…Berry, I think you’re forgetting something. You and I are already nobles.”
“I’m not being forced. I agreed to it. Chief commander Rex, the head knight, said it was okay for me to leave the knight order.”
“Leave the knight order? Why?”
“Theon is the grandson of Baron Voltman, who is supported by Dad. He’ll be staying at Travel, so is it okay for you to hang out with him?”
“Yes! I like it! Theon is my friend!”
Not only was it okay, I was cheering inside.
Now that I could be close to Theon, I wouldn’t have to worry about relatives interfering.
Even if they did, a little background check on Theon would bore them soon enough.
The only information they could find was that he was a trainee knight and the grandson of a poor Baron.
So, it was great for me, but…
“But wait. Isn’t Theon supposed to stay with the Red Hawk Knights? Baron Voltman sent him here to learn swordsmanship.”
Theon looked at me in surprise when I said that.
“How did you know?”
“The knights were talking about it.”
I placed the strawberry decoration from my cake onto Theon’s plate. He was our guest, after all.
Mmm, this cake was delicious.
Dad also placed a strawberry on Theon’s plate and added,
“I can teach him.”
Theon looked puzzled, staring at the three strawberries on his plate.
“So does that mean Dad will be Theon’s teacher?”
Whoosh. At my words, Theon quickly turned his head.
