The next morning.
In the mansion of the Travel family in the capital, Lassek, who had received Callet’s report on the auction incident, burst into a laugh that made his facial muscles move.
“It’s a pity. If it weren’t for His Majesty’s summons, I would have missed that interesting spectacle.”
Callet couldn’t understand that laughter. The result of this auction was that Marian had bought pearl earrings for twelve times the price.
All because of Reytan’s whim!
‘I thought he would mature once he became a father…’
Callet felt a throbbing headache.
A childhood friend whose thoughts he can never understand; he’s the kind of person who would survive even if thrown into the fires of hell.
‘I’m worried about Miss Berry.’
The maid who had been in the punishment room left the Travel family with a pass signed by Reytan, and Marian ended up with nothing but loss.
This aftermath might reach Berry.
“Lady Marian must be furious. And Madam as well.”
“Priscilla?”
Lassek, who was sitting on the sofa, rested his elbow on the armrest and held his forehead and chin. The wrinkles around his golden eyes were smiling, showing that he was enjoying the situation.
“Callet, yesterday, the High Priest was also present in the audience with His Majesty.”
“Yes, he was.”
“He mentioned as a secret that Reytan had expressed his intention to return as the Grand Master.”
“Did you mean the young master?”
“Yes. Since things went the way he wanted, he seemed pleased. Despite committing such an impudent act, he couldn’t hold back from talking to me about it.”
The High Priest, who had been smiling constantly, showed a displeased expression as he brought up the ‘terms’ raised by Reytan.
“Master Reytan requested a contract. He wants our side to provide the holy power necessary for the blessing of the Travel family’s guardian statue while he holds the position of Grand Master. However, why is Master Hevant’s name on the signature line instead of Reytan’s…?”
It was clear that the High Priest was dissatisfied, so he had even divulged the contract details to me. He knew how fiercely the Travel family would scrutinize this matter if it involved their reputation.
Lassek had also been dissatisfied with Reytan’s actions when he first heard about it. He thought, ‘That foolish boy has once again thrown away his achievements just because those around him demanded it.’
However—
“The contract was a transaction.”
“A transaction with Master Hevant?”
“Tsk, tsk. What benefit could that guy gain from involving Hevant at this point?”
In a situation where Marian had set up the board, and Priscilla had turned a blind eye, Reytan took the upper hand.
In that case, who would be the most effective person to make use of that contract?
‘Priscilla.’
Who else but Lassek’s wife, who was eager to place Hevant, her eldest son, in the position of family head?
The family head generally refrains from interfering in the affairs of direct descendants, but the Countess was different.
There was no area within the Travel family where Priscilla couldn’t interfere.
He had always wondered:
‘Is Reytan really a man with the Minus Touch?’
When problems arise, he would either draw his sword or simply wash his hands of it, displaying irresponsible behavior. Yet, somehow, the results always seemed to turn out the way Reytan wanted.
There was a strange gap, elusive yet almost tangible. Because of that, even with his keen golden eyes, Lassek couldn’t fully discern Reytan’s intentions.
‘And now, he’s using the Travel family’s methods, which he used to despise. In the past, he would have impulsively freed the maid or disrupted the auction, regardless of the consequences. But now, he’s joined forces with Priscilla for cleanup? Perhaps becoming a father made it impossible for him to live as a complete fool.’
That was why Lassek couldn’t help but laugh after receiving Callet’s report.
He was convinced.
No matter how you looked at it, that guy knew how to use the cards he held as he saw fit.
The problem was that his intentions lay in something as trivial as maintaining the lowest position.
“What a shame.”
Lassek clicked his tongue.
“How long will he keep chasing Brown’s ghost?”
Then he suddenly paused, realizing he had unintentionally mentioned the name of his deceased child. Callet was equally taken aback.
Silence filled the room. Lassek cleared his throat and stood up.
“Let’s go. Make sure to take that with you in the carriage as well.”
“Yes, but, my lord. What do you plan to do with that?”
Callet asked, looking at the box Lassek instructed him to bring. The contents were items used for teaching young children to read, which no one in the Travel family particularly needed at the moment.
“Uh, hmm. You know, that little one who looks like a puppy, with those bright eyes…”
“Are you referring to Miss Berry?”
Callet couldn’t understand why he would go out of his way to speak in such a roundabout manner when he could simply call her Berry.
“Hmph. When did I ever say it was my youngest granddaughter? Anyway, just secretly take it to their house.”
“………”
Seeing Callet’s inquisitive gaze, Lassek quietly spoke.
“…She doesn’t know how to read.”
Ah. A sigh escaped Callet’s lips.
***
This isn’t a dream.
Hehe.
Early in the morning, I opened my eyes and reached into my pillow to pull out a piece of paper.
Even though I’d looked at it right before going to sleep, the corners of my mouth couldn’t help but lift again.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••
Thank you for keeping our secret. In return, we will be your subordinates.
Harty Rose Travel
Marty Rose Travel
•••••••••••••••••••••••••
I held in my hand the signed loyalty oath written by the twins themselves!
This was the prize from yesterday’s auction incident.
‘Well, it doesn’t really have any legal effect, but…’
I lay on my stomach, swinging my legs, as Aqum wriggled its way onto the bed, making space for itself.
Sway. Sway.
The water-like protrusions on Aqum’s back swayed.
‘It’s amazing that it doesn’t feel like anything. If I touch it with my hand, it just passes through like a drop of water.’
While I was playing with Aqum, it glanced at the oath with its large blue eyes that took up half of its face.
[Quartz, you should start by learning how to write a contract. There’s no name, no details; it’s just a piece of paper.]
“I did that on purpose. If I put a name on it, it becomes evidence.”
[Evidence?]
“If the adults find out I’m the twins’ leader, it’ll become an adult fight. Then Dad will have a headache.”
There were three copies of the oath.
Harty and Marty each had one, and I kept one. Since there was no guarantee it wouldn’t be discovered by someone, it was better to write it carefully.
[Anyway, the Travel folks sure like making things complicated.]
Aqum snorted.
“We have to be complicated to survive~”
I guess I’ll learn how to write real contracts when I’m about eleven? Until then, I should be able to keep the twins quiet with this.
‘The problem is Calypso…’
Calypso was Aunt Marian’s only son.
If he finds out that his mother, Aunt Marian, lost 1.2 billion, he won’t stay quiet for long.
How should I deal with Calypso so I can attend classes in peace?
In any case, it seemed wise to hide the loyalty oath before anyone else came in.
‘I should leave it in the Room of Reflection.’
As I hurriedly got off the bed, Aqum naturally jumped onto my shoulder.
[Little Quartz, you didn’t forget that you agreed to help me with the caretaker duties, right?]
“Yup. I just need to restore the weakened water veins, right?”
I replied as I turned the floral decoration on the fireplace pillar. Creak. The built-in cabinet slid to the side, revealing a hidden space. I went inside, closed the door, and continued my conversation with Aqum.
[Exactly! Ancient words emerge from the ground, though not frequently. When they appear, all you have to do is read them!]
According to Aqum, ancient words that connect the water veins are buried beneath the land of Travel.
These ancient words rise very slowly. When they finally break through to the surface, the water flow is disrupted, and the water veins in that area get blocked.
The caretaker’s role is to find the ancient words that have reached the ground and send them back below.
[Simply put, it’s like feeding nutrients to the ancient words to make them heavier. Just like how people gain weight when they eat a lot, ancient words are a type of language, so you ‘feed’ them with words!]
However, the Travel estate was too vast for little Aqum to roam around, so it had difficulty finding the emerging ancient words.
[It was convenient when Quartz helped before. This time, I might have slept too long. I can feel the weakened water veins, but I haven’t managed to locate all the ancient words.]
“You said the letters need to shine for the ancient words to go back down, right? Do you think I can do it?”
[Come on, don’t worry. I vividly remember when I first met your grandmother! The ancient words shone even though I hadn’t read them. I was so shocked! She’s the first human who could see and read them, Quartz.]
“So, I’m the second one?”
[Yes! I nearly jumped out of my skin back then! It’s such a rare thing! But then I woke up, and… Quartz was…]
As it recalled my grandmother’s death, Aqum looked mournful, as if it might cry. I quickly tried to comfort Aqum.
“Well, it’s a good thing I was here when you woke up, right? And you’re not sleepy now, are you? When you’re sleepy, you’re supposed to turn back into a stone.”
[Not at all! It’s morning! Let’s go back to bed before Sherry the maid comes in to wake you up!]
It seemed Aqum thought of me as its friend’s granddaughter, as it would often look out for me.
A child being looked after by a lizard—it was odd, but Aqum was right, so I left the oath in the Room of Reflection and headed back to bed.
Aqum cheerfully spoke from my shoulder.
[Since Little Quartz can see me, I bet you can see the ancient words too!]
“Yup!”
I answered confidently, but it’s times like these that are the most dangerous.
It’s like someone saying, ‘Since your dad was a Grand Master, you’ll also become a Grand Master who wields Wyndis.’ It’s almost the same thing.
You never know about unrealistic things until you experience them. What if the letters don’t react even when I read them?
‘I wish I could see the letters once when Aqum isn’t around…’
It was a moment when I hoped for a chance to practice to avoid losing my partner’s trust. As I sluggishly moved to get on the bed, I heard the door open and someone enter.
“Miss…!”
“…Hmm?”
It didn’t sound like Sherry. Slowly, I turned my head.
My eyes widened in surprise.
“Sister Anne?”
“Yes!”
Why is Sister Anne in the Stone House?
