Chapter 6
6
I subtly turned my head to check my surroundings. The eyes of the Dubled people flickered slightly.
"Did you stand up for us?"
I was taken aback when such a cheesy line popped out of the mouth of an emotionally sensitive retainer.
'I just wanted to hit Marco.'
As the retainers reacted this way, Marco, who was rubbing his reddened eye, huffed.
"That's ridiculous! Why would I say such a thing? That's a lie...!"
"That's, a lie."
A low voice clung to my ear. It was Duke Dubled.
As the Duke's gaze turned to Marco, Marco flinched, and the Duke spoke again.
"To dare to do that to a child under my protection."
His murmuring voice was chillingly cold.
I couldn't help but flinch, and Marco, who had been trying to make excuses, forgot what he was saying and swallowed hard.
Baron Jude approached, saying, "Y-Your Grace."
"H-He made a mistake. He's just frustrated. Isn't that right? There's no way my son would have referred to Dubled that way...!"
The Duke moved slowly and approached Marco. His languid hand grabbed Marco's chin.
"Since your father insists, I'll give you a chance."
"...Yes?"
"If you can swear that your words are true, even if I sear your tongue and gouge out your eyes, I'll overlook the fact that you dared to cause a commotion within my sight."
"......"
"Of course, if you can't prove it, it won't end with just you."
There was no way he could prove it.
'He's just telling me to die.'
Marco turned pale and froze, and the Duke's gaze deepened.
"I'll ask again. Is my child's statement a lie, or the truth?"
"......"
The Duke's aura was not something an ordinary child could handle.
Marco's hands trembled like aspen leaves. His pants became wet, and traces of liquid trickled down his ankles.
"T-Truth... It's the truth."
In the end, Marco blurted it out.
Baron Jude's face turned blue.
Now that his son had admitted it, he could no longer make excuses.
The Baron hurriedly prostrated himself and bowed his head.
"P-Please spare me, Your Grace. I have committed a crime worthy of death."
The Duke released his hand as if throwing him away, and Marco, drained of strength, collapsed to the floor.
"Clean it up."
Soldiers rushed in at the Duke's command.
Even in the midst of all this, Baron Jude and Marco shouted, "Forgive us... Your Grace!" But the Duke's expression remained unmoved.
Now that they had been properly marked by Duke Dubled, it would be difficult for them to live in the Empire.
As I watched the Marco father and son being dragged away, the retainers gathered around me with beaming expressions. Their mouths were even more slack than usual.
"How could you be so admirable?"
"The way you stood up to the big boy was spectacular."
"Your calm explanation of the situation was also excellent."
The retainers poured out words, praising me.
It seemed the misunderstanding that 'I was angry at Marco for daring to call Dubled a pile of garbage and rushed at him' had not been resolved.
My conscience pricked me, but I decided to think positively.
The retainers in this position were the Duke's closest aides.
I was already thinking about making a good impression at today's introduction, so it was like killing two birds with one stone.
'Besides, the Duke took my side. I might have made a good impression on him too.'
I glanced at the Duke.
His expression as he looked at me felt softer than usual.
Relieved, I unknowingly sighed, and one of the retainers reached out his hand.
"Are you tired? You have every right to be. Come, come this way. I'll escort you to your room."
The retainer who said that had a very kind expression, but I slowly backed away.
You're a stranger to me... It's unfamiliar...
As I retreated with wary eyes, the other retainers burst into laughter.
"This person. Haven't you heard? The young master is very shy around adult men. He must be afraid because you're so big."
"But he snuggles up to His Grace just fine, doesn't he?"
"That's because the young master likes His Grace."
"Come to think of it, he always smiles only at His Grace."
The Duke's gaze turned to me. I made eye contact with him and smiled unconsciously.
This was similar to not showing your back and walking backward when encountering a wild beast.
I won't provoke you (cry), so don't attack (kill) me.
-That's what it meant.
The retainers laughed heartily.
"How can the young master like His Grace so much? Isn't that right?"
"Perhaps."
"Even when we were listening to the story of the Order last time, he was always sitting on His Grace's lap."
"Well..."
"You must be happy to be so loved."
"It's a nuisance."
The corners of the Duke's lips seemed to rise arrogantly as he said that.
'I was just trying to get along, but that's mean.'
I became depressed after receiving such a harsh evaluation.
As the saying goes, after hardship comes happiness.
Meeting Marco brought back bad memories, and I even heard the Duke say it was a nuisance, but there were also good things.
'The retainers have become fond of me.'
They seemed to think it was very admirable that I, with my small body, had rushed at the big boy for the sake of Dubled.
And when I caught the eye of the powerful, amazing changes occurred. Even the administrators and management employees began to take an interest in me.
Originally, I used whatever items the employees picked out for me.
Since I was going back to The Capital soon anyway, there was no reason to buy 'things for me.'
But when I gained the attention of the management employees and administrators, I was able to buy household goods for myself.
I was very excited as I went to the shopping district with Leah and the maids.
The Dubled shopping district was a paradise.
It was much more prosperous than Amitie Territory or Valua Territory, where I had lived in my previous life.
There were even specialty stores that could only be seen in the downtown area of The Capital, so it was fun to look around.
'There's even a toy store.'
Perhaps it was a place frequented by noble children, as more luxurious items than the toys in the general store were on display.
Children left the store, each holding a toy.
A little lady, about six years old, wearing a large bonnet, was holding a very soft-looking doll.
'That's right. They're releasing that doll around this time.'
It was a doll in the shape of various animals, and if you hugged it tightly, it would say, "I love you."
Suddenly, my first life came to mind.
That doll was the first and last thing I had asked for from Duke Amitié, who was my father in my first life.
[Abadi, I want dat doll. (Father, I want that doll.)]
Duke Amitié, holding my skirt and hesitating, said sternly to me.
[LeBlaine, if we donate the money to buy that doll, we can save countless starving people. Do you still want the doll?]
[......No. (......No.)]
[Excellent. Today, you have gained charity and consideration instead of a doll.]
Duke Amitié smiled as he said that. I liked his smile so much that I never asked him for anything again.
'Actually, I really wanted it.'
Eighteen-year-old Mina received that doll as a gift from him.
The Duke, watching Mina hug the doll and like it like a child, was smiling even more brightly than before.
'No, let's not think about that time.'
As I shook my head, Leah said.
"Young Master."
"Yes."
"Since we're out, shall we buy you a toy?"
She must have thought I wanted a toy.
'Leah is so kind.'
She smiled brightly.
"Choose anything."
Anything?
As my eyes lit up, the maids recommended toys.
"How about a puzzle?"
"Blocks seem fun too, don't you think?"
'Toys...'
My child's brain seemed to be shouting, 'Buy it for me!' but I squeezed my eyes shut and turned my head.
'No, I can't waste this opportunity on toys.'
I forced myself to turn my gaze and pointed to another product. It was a bright red carnation corsage.
"But that's not a toy?"
As Leah looked at me with a puzzled expression, I intertwined my fingers and answered.
"The kids at the orphanage said they give this to people they like. (The kids at the orphanage said they give this to people they like.)"
"Oh my, that's right. Day of Gratitude is coming up soon."
In Wiggentra, there was a custom of children giving carnations to their parents on Day of Gratitude.
And I was going to give this to an adult too.
'To Leah!'
I was originally going to give it to the Duke, but I decided to stop after remembering him saying "It's a nuisance."
'I shouldn't make him dislike me by bothering him more.'
Instead, I would give it to Leah, the head of the maids who took care of me, and the kindest person in the world.
I had died three times and lived four times, but it was my first time giving a corsage, so my heart was pounding.
'After all, surprises are the best.'
Leah, who knew nothing, smiled and paid for the corsage.
Dubled Castle.
The Duke and his retainers moved to the conference room to discuss the major and minor affairs of the jurisdiction.
As they walked down the hallway, the retainers exchanged light banter.
"Oh, a carnation corsage. Did you receive it from your daughter?"
Baron Lopner, who was wearing a red corsage, proudly puffed out his chest.
"Yes. She put it on me with her little hands, saying it was Day of Gratitude tomorrow."
"How admirable."
Baron Lopner, who had been waiting for a chance to brag, seized the opportunity and boasted.
"A child who is only six years old handing me a carnation with her little hands, isn't that the happiness of living?"
As he laughed heartily, the other retainers nodded.
"There's nothing like the joy of raising children."
"Yes. In fact, what good are honor or wealth? It's not as good as the happiness of a child loving their father, and a father loving their child."
"That's right. What's the point of piling up wealth in the warehouse? If you can't feel that kind of happiness."
"Well, wouldn't those kinds of people be cold-blooded people who don't know emotions in the first place?"
"That's right."
"How pitiful. Carnations are the ultimate happiness."
At that time, another retainer asked the Duke.
"Your Grace, you must have felt that happiness when you received a carnation."
"I don't know."
"Yes?"
"I don't have one. I've never received a carnation."
The office became silent as if cold water had been poured over it in an instant.
The retainers swallowed hard as they looked at Duke Dubled, who had three sons but had never even seen a carnation.
Duke Dubled and his three sons were beautiful and talented enough to be mentioned countless times in people's mouths, but they were cruelly cold and indifferent to others.
In the first place, they were not in a relationship where they expected affection from each other.
"No, well... B-Boys are originally not very considerate. They often just say thank you for raising them."
"I've never heard those words either."
"......"
Then another retainer stepped forward to try to salvage the situation.
"What's so important about words or carnations? On Day of Gratitude, hearts are conveyed just by embracing each other."
"......"
The Duke didn't answer.
Could it be that they had never even embraced each other!
The retainers swallowed hard.
It felt like they were falling into a swamp the more they opened their mouths.
The Duke twitched his eyebrows as he looked at the retainers who didn't know what to do.
The retainers desperately rolled their eyes, looking for an escape route with pale faces.
Then they discovered LeBlaine and the maids coming from the opposite side. They were wearing their outing clothes, as if they had just returned home.
And they saw it.
The carnation corsage held in LeBlaine's hand!
