Episode 132

I didn’t know what had been said between the Duke and the marquis—

But Marquis Tebron had decided to stay at the Duke’s estate for the time being.

Even the cold and sharp-edged Duke probably found it hard to cast out a limping father-in-law.

‘Well, it actually worked out for the best.’

I felt relieved.

If I could run into him now and then, I might figure out why he was limping on one foot.

And if I could do that, a chance to heal him would surely follow.

It hadn’t been the most pleasant first meeting, but he was still an elderly patient.

So I decided to set aside my personal feelings for now.

The marquis was, in his own way, important to the people I love.

Besides, even though that stingy old man had disliked me intensely ever since my past life, I didn’t feel all that much hostility toward him.

‘Maybe because he weirdly reminds me of Joshua…?’

However, contrary to my plans, the marquis had locked himself in his room for days, and I hadn’t been able to run into him once.

I even heard he was having all his meals in there.

I found his behavior strange and suspicious.

‘He wasn’t like this in my past life.’

He’d been a very cranky and temperamental old man—someone who would throw a fit even while bedridden.

And his pride? Immense.

Even when he’d been attacked by a demonic beast, he hadn’t asked the Duke for help. That alone showed how stubborn he was.

But in this life… something about him felt off.

“…Hmm.”

Looking toward the side of the estate where his room was, I turned on my heel and stepped outside the front door.

The crisp morning air pleasantly filled my lungs.

Before heading to the salon, I often stopped by Grandpa Gordon’s herb garden.

Part stroll, part routine check to see how the fairy herbs were doing.

“Gramps! I’m here!”

But when I arrived at the workshop, it was completely empty.

He wasn’t one to sleep in—in fact, he was usually up early, diligently tending to the herbs by now.

“…Where’d he go this early in the morning?”

Sure, I kind of bossed him around unilaterally, but still.

As a business partner of sorts, I wanted to discuss the copycat shop that had opened up right across from our salon.

As I glanced around the quiet garden, puzzled—

“Oh! Lady Belze, you’re here?”

Someone suddenly emerged from the forest and called out to me.

It was Jackson—Grandpa Gordon’s assistant and, well, my slave number two.

“Jackson! Good morning!”

“Good morning to you, milady.”

“Thanks! So, where’s Grandpa Gordon?”

“The physician? Um, well…”

Jackson scratched the back of his head.

“He was summoned to the main house early this morning. A house call. He hasn’t returned yet.”

“Summoned? From the main house?”

My eyes widened at that.

“W-Who’s sick? Don’t tell me—it’s Josh?”

My heart sank at the thought that Joshua’s condition might’ve worsened again.

But thankfully, Jackson shook his head.

“No, it’s not him.”

“Whew… You scared me.”

I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding.

Once relief settled in, confusion followed.

Right now, Edwin wasn’t even at the estate.

The only people who would’ve summoned Grandpa Gordon urgently at dawn were the Duke and Joshua, and both of them seemed perfectly fine when I saw them yesterday.

“Then who called him?”

“Well, I only caught part of it, so I’m not totally sure, but… didn’t the young masters’ maternal grandfather arrive? Uh… Te… Tebe?”

“Marquis Tebron?”

“Yeah! That’s him!”

Jackson smiled sheepishly and nodded.

Maybe because I had just been looking toward the marquis’s room, the news left me with a strange feeling.

‘Is he actually seriously sick…?’

Thinking back to the day we met in front of the estate—

I felt a bit of regret. Maybe I should’ve pressed him more about his injury instead of just backing off.

But then I shook my head.

This was the same cranky old man who whacked me on the forehead just for calling him “Grandfather.”

If I’d gone as far as asking about his limp, he might’ve tried to kill me on the spot.

‘Tch… Well, since Grandpa Gordon went, I’m sure it’ll be handled.’

Still feeling the dull sting where I’d been hit, I rubbed my forehead and pouted.

“Thanks, Jackson. If Gramps comes back, tell him I stopped by, okay? I’ll get going now!”

“Sure. Have a safe trip, Lady Belze!”

After saying goodbye to Jackson, I headed straight back to the front of the estate and boarded the Duke’s carriage that I used for commuting.

Normally, I would’ve waited until Grandpa Gordon returned…

But thanks to the shameless copycat who popped up right across from our salon, I was going to be very busy reviewing legal documents for a while.

* * *

After spending the entire day wrestling with legal consultants and lawyers, I decided to call it an early day.

“Goodbye, Director!”

“Yeah. Good work, everyone!”

After exchanging goodbyes with Charlotte and the other staff, I was just about to get into the carriage when—

I suddenly froze at the sight of a figure quickly slipping past behind the carriage.

“…Josh?”

He vanished in less than a few seconds, but after raising the kid for seven years, there was no way I wouldn’t recognize him.

“Wait. I’ll be right back—just going somewhere real quick…!”

“D-Director! Where are you going?! Director!”

My staff panicked at the sight of me suddenly taking off in a run, halfway through getting into the carriage.

But I didn’t care and sprinted straight into the alley where Joshua had gone.

As expected of those good genes—his height couldn’t be ignored.

Joshua, who had turned twelve along with me this year, had grown so tall that it was hard to remember the sickly, scrawny little boy he used to be.

I chased after the boy who had already disappeared, my short legs working overtime through the alley.

And finally—just around the corner, in front of a cluster of shabby, eerie-looking buildings—I spotted a head of silver hair standing still.

‘So I wasn’t seeing things after all.’

Royal Academy uniform. Noble air unmistakable to anyone.

It was definitely Joshua Kallios.

“Josh—!”

I called out to him loudly.

Startled, Joshua flinched and whipped his head around.

His blue eyes widened in shock when he saw me.

“…B-Belze?”

Afraid he might disappear again, I hurried forward and ran straight up to him.

“Huff, huff… What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be at the academy right now?”

Still catching my breath, I grabbed his sleeve and asked. He narrowed his eyes at me.

“What about you? How the heck did you end up here?”

“What do you mean, how?”

He looked at me like I’d been stalking him or something, so I shot back in disbelief.

“My shop’s literally right around the corner, you idiot.”

“…Ah.”

Only then did Joshua relax a bit, letting out a dazed sound.

I glanced sidelong at the buildings behind him and asked bluntly:

“Do you need money?”

Joshua flinched, then turned his gaze away and mumbled,

“…It’s not that.”

“Then why’d you come to a pawn shop?”

“How do you even… Ugh, never mind. It’s not what you think.”

He looked startled that I’d figured out his destination at a glance, but quickly shut his mouth and shook his head.

After nearly seven years of running a shop on the busiest street in the capital, there’s not much that escapes me.

Especially in an area like this, where pawn shops and money changers are clustered—if you don’t know what you’re doing, it’s easy to get scammed.

And someone like Joshua, a well-bred noble in a school uniform, would be an easy mark.

But rather than pointing that out and hurting his pride, I tried a softer route.

“Then what is it? I won’t tell the Duke, so just say it. Are you short on allowance? Want your big sis to lend you some?”

“Since when are you my big sis? And who needs allowance? What do you think I am, a kid?! Just drop it. It’s not what you think.”

Joshua snapped, clearly irritated.

But I’d heard that one before, many times—so I brushed it off and continued.

“You’ve changed, you know? Back in the day, even when I told you not to call me ‘Sister,’ you still went around saying it all the time.”

Just as I suspected, what he once said freely had become one of his most embarrassing childhood memories.

Every time I brought it up, his face turned bright red and he’d start stammering.

And of course, he had no idea how cute that made him look—or how fun it was to tease him for it.

Wanting to both lighten the mood and dig a little deeper, I hooked my arm around his.

“You used to take allowance from me without fail before going off to the academy, and now you don’t even want to call me sister? What a little—”

“Ugh, seriously—!”

But right then—

Whap!

Joshua suddenly and irritably swatted my arm away.

Then, completely out of character, he shouted in anger, face twisted in frustration:

“I told you, it’s not like that! How can you joke around in a situation like this?!”

“…Josh.”

I looked at him in surprise.

It wasn’t that I was scared or unsettled by his sudden anger.

But…

“You…!”

Despite being shoved away, I rushed forward and grabbed his shoulders tightly.

“What’s with you? Why are you acting like— Wait—your face! What happened?!”

“What are you talking about…”

“Your lips! And your cheek—under your ear too, you’re bruised!”

There was a tiny split at the corner of his lip, and faint bruises on his cheek and just below his ear. They weren’t that obvious—but with my healing senses, they couldn’t escape my notice.

Joshua, who had been shouting with a scowl, went quiet once I gently held his face in my hands.

Then he lowered his gaze and murmured softly.

“The lip… it’s just a bug bite. The bruises are from training earlier today…”

“Bullshit. Start talking. Now.”

I cut off his pathetic excuse without hesitation and growled,

“Who was it? Who the hell hit you?”
TL/N: if you guys missed there was a time skip 3 years so josh is 12 and belze is 15. There were past 2 time skips till now lol