It was clear that Grandmother had summoned Dad again because of that annoying shared responsibility. The lowest-ranked person always takes the blame.
I huffed.
“Theon, are you going to release that?”
Theon was holding a sack that the twins had abandoned and was gazing into the distant bushes.
“Yeah. I plan to leave it far from the annex.”
“Let me come with you.”
“I can go alone.”
“But I know a really great pond. We can release it there.”
“Really? Alright.”
I grinned to myself.
It was such a ‘great’ pond that my aunt loved it so much she took the twins there for a walk every day.
‘Maybe a giant bullfrog will leap out during their walk.’
Hehe. Humming to myself, I led the way ahead of Theon.
At one point, I hesitated, unsure of the path, and ended up bumping into Theon, who had been following behind.
“…Berry.”
“Oh, sorry for bumping into you.”
“Your head is really round.”
“Huh?”
He called my name so seriously that I thought he was mad, but it was just a comment on the shape of my head.
“Really? Dad says that sometimes, too.”
I couldn’t see my own head from above, so I didn’t know if it was true or not.
A round head like a ball… Was that what he meant?
I lifted my head. Theon’s hand was twitching in the air for a moment, but then it quickly disappeared.
“Why?”
“Nothing.”
Nothing? Yet he seemed embarrassed, enough to turn away.
I narrowed my eyes, watching Theon, who was awkwardly clearing his throat.
Something was up. If he was that flustered, could it be–?
“Oh! There must be a leaf stuck in my hair!”
It must have gotten stuck when I crawled through the cedar trees earlier to tease the twins.
Dad might scold me later. I politely lowered my head to Theon.
“Please take it away.”
“…It blew away in the wind. It’s gone now.”
Did the wind blow that quickly?
Tilting my head in confusion, I suddenly snapped back to reality. This wasn’t the time for distractions. I had plans to go out with Dad!
“Let’s hurry and release the frog before Dad arrives!”
Grabbing Theon’s hand, I quickly walked toward the pond.
Splash.
The bullfrog that jumped into the pond was huge.
After delivering the message to the twins, we returned to find Dad already at the stone house.
“Dad! Did you visit Grandmother? Did you get in trouble?”
“What trouble? There’s nothing like that.”
Dad was about to enter the room, but he caught me and lifted me up, making eye contact. After making sure only Sister Sherry was around, he whispered to me.
“Berryberry, you got in trouble yesterday, didn’t you? I noticed you didn’t even write the reflection paper. Did you finish it? I even gave you some time alone.”
Being skilled was a secret, and being good at writing was something I had to keep hidden too. Only Sister Sherry knew that I was supposed to write a reflection paper.
“I’m planning to write it at night…”
I laughed awkwardly, trying to dodge Dad’s sudden remark.
I had completely forgotten about the reflection paper he told me to write yesterday because I was too busy eavesdropping on the maids’ conversation.
It wasn’t that I didn’t want to write it at all.
“Write it tomorrow. Sleep at night. We need to get ready to go out. Where’s Theon?”
“Theon is downstairs! He went to wash his hands.”
“Is that so? Sherry, please get the children ready to go out.”
“Yes, I’ll do that.”
Dad put me down and said he was going to change his clothes, heading into his room.
“See you later!”
I waved excitedly as Dad left, only to realize that I had fallen for his diversion tactic.
‘He used my reflection paper to change the subject…!’
He didn’t want to talk about his meeting with Grandmother. That much was clear. Was he hiding something else from me?
I could guess what had happened. The fact that Dad had returned so quickly meant that he must have accepted whatever Grandmother had proposed.
‘How upsetting…’
I hoped it wasn’t something like compensating for the value of the pearl earrings. I couldn’t bear the thought of Dad handing over his hard-earned savings for such a trivial matter.
What could they have asked for? Even a single coin wouldn’t be easy to give away.
***
Punishment Room.
Anne, who was locked in the punishment room, recalled what had happened yesterday.
She had been falsely accused of stealing earrings. Earrings she had never even seen were supposedly found in her house.
Why me?! Anne, confused, tried to make sense of it all, but the person who had set her up and sent her as a spy to the stone house was none other than Marian.
“You will be framed as a thief. Your life will be spared, but you’ll be expelled from Travel.”
“M-Miss Marian, I can’t leave Travel.”
The employees of Travel were given houses where they could live with their families within the estate. This was a privilege granted only by the Count of Travel, something unheard of in other noble families.
Anne knelt before Marian, begging for mercy. She didn’t even know what wrong she had done. Pleading desperately not to be expelled, a small pouch of gold coins was thrown at her feet.
The amount was enough to support herself without having to work as a maid anymore.
But—
“You’re going to need more money, right?”
As if she understood Anne’s situation, Marian fanned herself lightly and spoke.
Anne asked hesitantly.
“What is it that you want me to do?”
“One of the core teachings of the Aubawth Church is mercy. Forgiving those who are weaker than oneself.”
“……….”
“I’ll give you a chance to attend a gathering of high-ranking nobles. There, you will confess what happened to you at the hands of Reytan. Then, you’ll get the money you desire.”
Anne couldn’t understand Marian’s words.
What had happened to her with Reytan? What was she supposed to confess?
Marian lowered her eyebrows, speaking to Anne in a pitying tone.
“It would be truly unfortunate if my brother couldn’t return to his position as Grand Master because of such a scandal.”
***
We arrived by carriage at the shopping district of a town called Hispoth, next to the Travel estate.
After a simple lunch, we visited a tailor’s shop.
“It looks good.”
“Perfect.”
Dad and I nodded in approval as we sat on the sofa, clapping our hands. In front of us stood Theon, wearing his new outfit.
Even when Theon had worn hand-me-downs, he looked impressive.
Now, dressed in clothes that perfectly suited his figure and image, Theon was the picture of perfection.
“You look so cute. Wait a moment. I think a ribbon tie would suit you even more.”
“………”
The employee held Theon back just as he was about to come over to us.
“Dad, Theon is embarrassed.”
I whispered to Dad, glancing at Theon, who was clearly blushing after receiving our applause.
Though his lips were pressed in a straight line, the tips of his ears had turned red.
And both Dad and I couldn’t resist the urge to lightly tease him when he looked like that.
“Dad, should we adopt Theon? Huh?”
“Baron and Baroness Voltman are his guardians, you know. That would be rude.”
“Then there’s another way. We could be adopted into the Voltman family.”
“Not a bad idea.”
As Dad and I were talking seriously, Theon came over, now finished with his ribbon tie.
“…Should I ask Grandfather about it?”
Theon, blushing, added more to the conversation than we had expected.
Was he serious? If that was a joke, Theon was an incredibly talented genius.
“Thank you for the thought, but Baron Voltman might feel troubled, so there’s no need.”
Dad seemed satisfied with Theon’s outfit, which was a combination of navy blue and white. He raised his hand to call the store manager.
“The outfit you’re wearing now is the best. Let’s go with that one.”
“Thank you. Since Teacher bought it for me, I’ll take good care of it.”
Theon bowed deeply. Dad smiled lightly as he accepted his first disciple’s gratitude, clearly not disliking it.
“But, Theon.”
“Yes?”
“Those clothes over there should be worn sparingly too.”
I turned my head meaningfully toward the scene where the employees were bustling about with the clothes.
These were the outfits Theon and I had tried on earlier.
“Dad already paid for all of them.”
Theon’s eyes widened.
“One set would have been enough—”
“Master Reytan, could you please sign the receipt?”
“Sure.”
At that moment, the store manager approached with a golden tray holding the receipt and a fountain pen.
Theon seemed flustered, so I had him sit beside me and pointed to the orange juice on the table.
“The juice is good.”
“Okay.”
Theon picked up the glass of juice and handed it to me.
…Why give it to me?
He even put the straw into my mouth. I couldn’t bring myself to say this wasn’t right.
So, I quietly sipped the juice through the straw and turned my attention to Dad and the store manager.
“But, Master Reytan, there is also Mr. Yossel’s tailor shop in Hispoth Town. Is it alright if you don’t go there? Our shop is a competitor of theirs…”
“I don’t like their style.”
“It is an honor. We’re glad our shop suits your taste, Master Reytan.”
Dad handed the signed receipt and pen back to the store manager. However, the manager stood still as if he had unfinished business, tray still in hand.
Does he have more to do? The orange juice is really good.
Dad, Theon, and I all stared at the store manager. It was me, whose eyes were level with the table, who noticed something familiar first.
As I sipped the juice, small air bubbles formed and popped on the surface.
‘That, that’s…’
The store manager’s fingers fidgeted beneath the tray. A familiar face, drawn on a piece of paper, began to slide out from under the tray, revealing its corner.
‘I don’t know what he’s planning, but it doesn’t seem like a good idea…’
Sweat dripped down my forehead.
The blue eyes in the drawing seemed displeased, as if they didn’t like this situation.
It was a wanted poster for Reytan Quartz Travel.
