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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: An Inscrutable Inscription
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“And when it gets cold, I… I get sleepy all the time… I guess even that is like a… a snake.”
In the empire, snakes had the worst possible reputation.
Kivrin was blaming himself.
“If you were a snake, you’d be the cutest snake in the world. I think I’m pretty cute for a monster, but I’ll happily settle for second place!”
Since we’d decided to be monsters together, I spoke with confidence, and Kivrin let out a small chuckle.
It seemed his mood had lifted a little.
*Hmm, but it’s clear that otherworldly being holds Kivrin in special regard.*
However, the Viscount Rose that others saw and the one I saw were so different that it was hard to make any rash judgments.
*Guess I’ll have to confront them myself, won’t I?*
My deductions about the enigmatic Viscount Rose were going nowhere.
Eventually, I remembered my original purpose for coming here.
“Oh, right, how was your lesson with the Baron?”
“I-It was… fine.”
I spotted the notebook Kivrin had open.
“Can I see?”
Kivrin readily handed it over.
From the very first page, I was greeted by impeccably neat handwriting.
The angles were so perfect it was as if he had written it on an invisible grid.
*No one would ever think this was a child’s handwriting.*
It felt like Kivrin was the one on his second life, not me…
I spread out the map Menelik had drawn for me next to the notebook.
The crooked map and the carelessly scrawled words were a stark contrast to Kivrin’s masterful penmanship.
*Does having pretty hands mean you have pretty handwriting too?*
In any case, Kivrin’s handwriting clearly took after Winter’s more than Menelik’s.
“I… I think the purpose of this place changed.”
Kivrin, who had been looking at the map, pointed to the part labeled ‘Artifact Storage Room.’
“It used to be full of… of stone tablets.”
“Stone tablets?”
“They’re said to be valuable. B-But they’re not very interesting.”
The fact that even Kivrin called them valuable piqued my interest.
*Should I go see?*
Kivrin whispered softly.
“It’s t-time for my next lesson.”
No sooner had he said that than someone knocked on the door.
“Young Lord, may I come in?”
It was a young woman’s voice.
“T-The Countess is a g-good teacher, just like the Baron…!”
If that’s the case.
I told Kivrin to have a good lesson and left the room.
The Artifact Storage Room’s security was laughably lax, making Menelik and Kivrin’s accounts seem like an overstatement.
*There’s no one even guarding it.*
The spacious interior was also minimally maintained.
“I’m coming in?”
Feeling a pang of guilt, I muttered to myself and stepped inside.
The stone tablets Kivrin had mentioned were displayed at the far end of the room.
“…Huh? What kind of content is this?”
[Likes glasses. Likes pretty hands. Likes it when they cry when they’re alone.]
*What is this?*
*A secret code?*
The next line was even more absurd.
[Hates stiff clothes. Hates messy work. Hates lies.]
I could see why Kivrin found it uninteresting.
It looked like someone had written down the preferences of a person they liked.
*To think they went to the trouble of carving something you could just write in a notebook onto a stone tablet.*
Quickly losing interest, I turned away and looked at the artifacts.
Some were encrusted with jewels, while others looked as unremarkable as pebbles.
As I was curiously examining some sparkling spheres, I heard the door open.
“Well, if it isn’t the Young Madam.”
He approached, deliberately making his presence known so as not to startle me.
“Have you come for a look around?”
“…Yes.”
The man appeared to be in his early thirties.
His light gray hair reminded me of the knight I had gone out with in the capital.
Though that knight’s hair had been a darker gray.
“I am Emil Silentium, a mage who has sworn a lifetime of devotion to the ducal house. Please, just call me Emil.”
The man bowed with considerable grace.
I returned the greeting before asking a question.
“Are you in charge of this place, Emil?”
“It’s clean, isn’t it? I clean it more diligently than my own room, you know.”
“Ah, I see…”
Emil cleared his throat, having read something in my expression.
“Ahem, have you found anything interesting?”
“About those stone tablets.”
I was about to say what a ridiculous thing they were.
But Emil waved his hands dismissively.
“Ah, no one can decipher those. It’s not an ancient language, nor is it a code. Even the folks at the Magic Tower gave up on them long ago.”
*Huh?*
I walked back to the stone tablets.
I could still read them perfectly.
*What?*
*What is this?!*
“Now, now, let’s look at something more exciting than that boring stuff. I heard the Duchess herself issued a warning to all the retainers that if anyone mistreats our Young Madam, a suspension won’t be the end of it.”
“…”
Emil’s words snapped me back to reality.
*Winter did? Really?*
“There are some artifacts that look like accessories. How about you throw away that funny headband and take one?”
“The Duke gave this to me.”
“…What I meant was that it suits the Young Madam so well it brings joy to all who see it.”
Emil corrected himself without missing a beat.
With him as my guide, I finished looking around the Artifact Storage Room. Then, I went back up to Kivrin’s study.
The Countess, who was just leaving the room, gave me a bright smile.
“Hello, my lady. Are you feeling better? I do hope the day we can have lessons together comes soon!”
I eagerly nodded at her words.
*I like kind teachers too!*
Kivrin was waiting for me, just as before.
*Hah.*
“I didn’t eavesdrop this time!”
I explained myself, but Kivrin paid me no mind.
“I… I was waiting. I th-thought I’d be really happy if you came again.”
“Um, you’re not tired of me visiting during every break?”
Kivrin shook his head.
“B-Being with you, Cheria, is… the best.”
“I feel the same way, but still.”
I settled into my familiar spot beside Kivrin.
“I went to see the stone tablets you mentioned.”
“They’re boring… right?”
Kivrin’s reaction was a bit different from Emil’s.
He looked as if he knew their entire content, and my eyes darted around.
“Can you read them?”
“Yes.”
“Me too! But it seems other people can’t.”
Kivrin wasn’t surprised.
“Isn’t it strange? Why can only we read them?”
“Because we’re… that.”
Kivrin lowered his voice as much as possible.
It was like watching myself, unable to bring myself to say the word ‘husband.’
*But I’m a fake monster.*
Whether in the novel or in the memories of Cheria that remained in my head.
The only plausible explanation was a transmigrator’s perk.
“Then is that the script that… that *they* use?”
I found myself whispering along with him.
Kivrin tilted his head.
“I… I don’t know about that. But you can recognize what only I could before, Ch-Cheria.”
Kivrin was a natural-born prodigy in the novel, but what was I?
*A transmigrator’s perk, after all?*
“I don’t really know, but I’m relieved that you see the same thing I do. At first, I thought there was something wrong with my eyes. I mean, who would write something like that on a stone tablet…?”
“…”
The corners of Kivrin’s mouth turned up.
I paused.
“Did you feel that way too? Have you ever thought that everyone else was normal and you were the only strange one?”
“I used to.”
Kivrin subconsciously touched the scales that had appeared on his face.
I placed my hand over his and asked.
“What about now? Does having me here make you feel even a little bit relieved? I felt relieved seeing the same thing as you.”
“M-Me too.”
“Wow, that’s a relief… So I was at least a little bit helpful!”
I beamed.
Even if it was just a transmigrator’s perk, I could finally hold my head high after boasting in the Snake Pit that he could count on me.
“Hey, not a little. A lot!”
Kivrin corrected me with exaggeration, then smiled along with me.
“My lessons for t-today are over. Let’s go to the dining hall together.”
Had it gotten that late already?
I muttered with a pout.
“But I ate so many cookies, I’m not hungry…”
“…What?”
Kivrin looked shocked.
I nonchalantly reached for the remaining cookies but flinched.
Kivrin held out his hand with a resolute expression.
“G-Give them to me.”
“…”
“They’re confiscated.”
I obediently surrendered the cookies.
* * *
Requesting a visit from Daniel was easier than I thought.
The day after it rained, I found Daniel in the garden, watching the birds.
“Hello, Baron.”
“My lady.”
He greeted me warmly.
Thanks to the few conversations we’d had, I comfortably crouched down beside him.
“Do you like animals, Baron?”
He let out an awkward laugh.
“Is it that obvious? Everyone who sees me asks the same question.”
“…”
*That’s probably because you look like a beggar, but you’re tending to an injured leopard with the utmost care.*
I imagined Nina was living a life of luxury, a complete contrast to Daniel.
“I do like them. I live with a leopard right now, so I can’t keep any other animals. Oh, her name is Nina. She’s five years old and loves to play with a ball.”
*R-Really?*
