Translator: Nox

Chapter 15

I Will Save My Father

I Will Save My Father, Episode 16

Episode 16

The reason Grandmother had summoned Father to the main house was undoubtedly because of that damned joint responsibility again. The lowest-ranking member of the family was always the easy target.

I let out a huff of indignation.

“Theon, are you going to go release those?”

Theon was staring at a distant thicket, holding the sack the twins had abandoned.

“Yeah. I’m going to leave them somewhere far away from the annex.”

“Let’s go together.”

“I can go alone.”

“I know a really great pond. Let’s let them go there.”

“Really? Okay.”

I let out a wicked laugh internally.

Oh, it was a great pond indeed. My aunt loved that pond so much that she took the twins there for walks almost every day.

‘A bullfrog might just jump out at them during their walk~’

Hee-hee. Humming to myself, I took the lead and guided the way.

But I came to a sudden halt when I got confused by a fork in the path, and Theon, who was following behind, bumped into me.

“…Berry.”

“Oops, sorry for bumping into you.”

“Your head is really round.”

“Huh?”

He had called my name so seriously that I thought he was angry, but it turned out he was just commenting on the shape of my skull.

“Reeaaally? Dad says that sometimes, too.”

I couldn’t see the top of my own head, so I didn’t know if it was true or not.

But saying someone’s head is round… doesn’t that just mean it’s like a ball?

I tilted my head back. Theon’s hand was twitching in the air. It vanished quickly, though.

“What is it?”

“It’s nothing.”

It certainly wasn’t nothing. He was so flustered he had to turn his head away.

I narrowed my eyes at Theon as he cleared his throat. Something was up. For him to be this flustered, could it be—?

“I have a leaf or something on my head, don’t I!”

It must have gotten stuck there earlier when I was crawling through the arborvitae trees to prank the twins.

Dad might nag me if he sees it. I offered my head to Theon and made a polite request.

“Please take it off.”

“…The wind blew it away. It’s gone now.”

Had there been a breeze?

I tilted my head in confusion but quickly snapped out of it. This was no time for this. I was supposed to go out with Dad.

“Let’s go release the frogs quickly before Dad gets back!”

I grabbed Theon’s hand and walked briskly toward the pond.

Splash.

The bullfrogs that went into the pond were quite large. After telling them to give my regards to the twins, I returned to Pebble House to find Father already there.

“Dad! Did you go see Grandmother? Did you get in trouble?”

“Trouble? Hardly.”

Father, who was about to enter his room, caught me as I lunged at him. He lifted me up and met my eyes. After confirming that only Sherry was nearby, he whispered to me.

“The one who got in trouble yesterday was Berry Berry. I noticed you didn’t even write your apology letter. Did you finish it? I even gave you some time alone.”

Since my competence was a secret, I had to hide the fact that I was good at writing. Only Sherry knew I was supposed to write an apology.

“I was planning to write it tonight….”

I laughed awkwardly, trying to dodge Father’s sudden attack.

I had completely forgotten about the apology letter he told me to write because I was too busy eavesdropping on the maids’ conversation yesterday.

It really wasn’t because I didn’t want to write it.

“Write it tomorrow. Sleep at night. We need to get ready to go out. Where’s Theon?”

“Theon’s on the first floor! He went to wash his hands.”

“Is that so? Sherry, please help the children get ready.”

“Yes, I will.”

Father set me down and went into his room, saying he was going to change.

“See you in a bit!”

I waved excitedly to him, only to realize a moment later that I’d been tricked by his subject-changing tactics.

‘He used my apology letter to dodge the topic!’

He clearly didn’t want to tell me what happened with Grandmother. Did he hide things from the other me like this, too?

I could more or less guess. The fact that Father had returned so quickly meant he had accepted Grandmother’s proposal as it was.

‘This makes me so upset.’

Surely she didn’t ask for compensation equal to the value of the pearl earrings? I couldn’t stand the thought of the fortune Father had painstakingly saved being handed over for something like that.

I wondered what he’d agreed to give. I wouldn’t even want to give them a single kona.

---

The Punishment Room.

Imprisoned there, Anne recalled the events of yesterday.

Without knowing why, she had been framed as a thief. They said the earrings—which she had never even seen—were found in her house.

Why me? It was Marian, the one who had sent her to Pebble House as a spy, who revealed the truth behind the situation to the confused Anne.

“From this moment on, you will be branded a thief. Your life will be spared, but you will be kicked out of the Travel estate.”

“M-Lady Marian. I cannot leave Travel.”

The servants of Travel were provided with houses where they could live with their families in the living space between the walls.

Only the Travel Count’s family offered such benefits. It was something one couldn’t even dream of in other families.

Anne knelt and begged Marian.

She didn’t even know what she had done wrong. As she pleaded not to be cast out, a small pouch of gold coins was tossed in front of her.

Anne’s eyes wavered as she gauged the amount by the size of the pouch. It was enough to sustain a living even without working as a maid.

But—.

“You’ll need more money. Won’t you?”

As if she knew Anne’s circumstances inside out, Marian spoke while gently waving her fan.

Anne asked.

“What… do you want from me…?”

“One of the core doctrines the Aubaut Church emphasizes is mercy. The spirit of forgiving those weaker than oneself.”

“…….”

“I will make it possible for you to attend a gathering of high-ranking nobles. There, you will confess what Raytan did to you. Then, you will get the money you want.”

Anne couldn’t understand Marian’s words.

What had Raytan done to her, and what was she supposed to confess?

Marian lowered her brows, speaking to Anne in a tone of mock pity.

“It would be truly tragic. If my brother were unable to return to his position as a Grand Master because of such a scandal.”

---

We took a carriage and arrived at the shopping district of a place called Hisport Town, located right next to the Travel estate.

After a quick lunch, the place we visited was a boutique.

“Good.”

“Perfect.”

Father and I sat on the sofa, nodding and clapping. In front of us stood Theon, who had just emerged in a change of new clothes.

Theon had looked dashing even when wearing hand-me-downs.

Now, dressed in sophisticated clothes that perfectly fit his physique and image, he was the definition of perfection.

“He’s so cute. Just a moment. I think a ribbon tie would look even better on him.”

“…….”

The clerk caught Theon again just as he was trying to come over to us.

“Dad, Theon’s embarrassed.”

I whispered to Father while keeping my eyes on Theon, who was blushing under our applause.

Theon’s mouth was set in a straight line, but the tips of his ears were stained bright red.

And when Father and I see something like that, we just can’t resist the urge to tease him a little.

“Dad, should we adopt Theon? Hmm?”

“Baron Boltman and his wife are still around; saying such things is rude.”

“Then I have another idea. Let’s get adopted into the Boltman family.”

“That’s not a bad idea.”

As Father and I were saying such things with serious faces, Theon, now finished with his ribbon tie, walked over to us.

“……Should I ask my grandfather?”

Blushing even to his cheeks, Theon went one step further than us.

He was serious, wasn’t he? If that was a joke, then Theon was a genius with incredible talent.

“I appreciate the sentiment, but Baron Boltman would be troubled, so you don’t have to do that.”

Father, looking satisfied with Theon’s outfit of navy and white, raised his hand to call the manager over.

“The clothes he’s wearing now are the best. Let’s have him wear those out.”

“Thank you. Since Master bought them for me, I will cherish them.”

Theon bowed deeply. Apparently not hating his first disciple’s gratitude, Father gave a light smile and accepted the gesture.

“But Theon.”

“Yes.”

“You’ll have to cherish the clothes over there, too.”

I pointedly turned my head toward a corner. I could see the staff busy moving around with piles of clothes.

They were the clothes that Theon and I had tried on here.

“Dad paid for all of them.”

Theon’s eyes went wide.

“One suit is enough for me—”

“Lord Raytan, may I ask for your signature on the receipt?”

“Give it here.”

Right on cue, the manager approached with a receipt and a fountain pen on a golden tray.

Since Theon seemed at a loss, I had him sit next to me and pointed at the orange juice on the table.

“The juice is good.”

“Yeah.”

Theon picked up the glass of juice and pressed it into my hand.

…Why are you giving this to me?

He even put the straw to my lips. It felt awkward to say this wasn’t what I meant.

I quietly sipped the juice through the straw and turned my gaze toward Father and the manager.

“By the way, Lord Raytan, Lord Yosel’s boutique is also in Hisport Town. Are you sure it’s alright not to go there? Our boutique is their competitor….”

“Our tastes don’t align.”

“It is an honor. That our boutique can satisfy your tastes, Lord Raytan.”

Father handed the signed receipt back to the manager along with the pen. However, the manager stood there holding the tray as if he still had business to attend to.

Did he have something else? This orange juice is tasty.

Father, Theon, and I all looked at the manager. Being at the right height, I was the first to notice a familiar piece of paper.

Glub glub. I cleared my throat while still holding the straw, causing small air bubbles to rise and pop on the surface of the juice.

‘Th-That is….’

The manager’s fingers were twitching under the tray. A piece of paper with a familiar handsome face drawn on it was stuck to the bottom of the tray, its edge slowly revealing itself.

‘I don’t know what he’s trying to do, but I don’t think… it’s a good idea….’

A cold sweat broke out on my brow.

The blue eyes in the drawing looked displeased, as if they found this entire situation disagreeable.

It was the wanted poster for Raytan Quartz Travel.