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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 62
Chapter Title: Keeping Secrets
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"Do we really have to just keep watching like this? Without doing anything?"
"Yes."
But he had firmly warned them to draw a clear line.
"Make sure your name—especially your family name—isn't used carelessly."
"Ralph, I'm sure you'll handle it just fine on your own."
Ardores added his piece. Muniel nodded in agreement.
"And don't make it obvious to Al and Rubens."
Muniel's opinion was that the wise boys would conduct themselves properly without needing to be told.
At those words, Kalarop recalled his sons who never got along with Rima.
What if it wasn't simply a difference in personalities...
"...This is just my unfounded suspicion, but."
Kalarop asked cautiously.
He was trying to act as nonchalant as possible, merely seeking confirmation for the one hypothesis that had popped into his head.
Kalarop quietly clenched his fist.
"Is there any connection?"
The voice that had feigned composure ended up trembling like that of someone in a rage.
"Is that the reason my wife and daughter ended up like that...!"
Nibelria was about to share the new business plan with Al and Rubens.
But Armifera swiftly clamped a hand over her mouth.
Gently, without hurting her.
Nibelria fiddled with the calloused, scar-covered hand blocking her mouth as she looked up.
"Hey now. You can't just blurt that out."
Armifera shook her head, insisting it was classified information.
Phew. Finally freeing herself from the hand, Nibelria said,
"Classified means secret, right?!"
"That's right. You get it."
"Can't Nini tell what business she's starting? You've gotta advertise to bring in customers. 'Come on over! Buy our cookies!' Like that."
Everyone burst into laughter as she mimicked the touts she'd seen at the department store.
Nibelria's lips twitched into a grin as well.
"But you can't."
Armifera explained the reason.
"Because someone might copy it."
She spoke gravely in a subdued voice, warning that they could lose their chance to make money.
Shocked, Nibelria's mouth fell open wide.
"Wh-who would copy it? To mess with Nini?"
"Someone might sabotage you out of jealousy over Nini making money, or some nasty idiot could do it just to be mean."
"The world is scary...!"
"That's why it's best to keep anything money-related a secret."
"Even from Al and Rubens? They're Nini's subordinates."
I trust those two.
Nibelria blinked her bright, sparkling eyes as she said it. Al and Rubens wore deeply moved expressions.
"Not even these two."
"Aw, we wouldn't steal Nini's plan!"
Rubens cried out, feeling unnecessarily hurt.
"Nini's our little sister! Would a big brother protecting his sister steal from her? Right, bro?"
"Exactly. But business is important, so I get what Armifera means about keeping it secret."
"Thank you for understanding, gentlemen."
Treated like adults, Rubens forgot his sulk and flashed a toothy grin.
Nibelria tilted her head slightly toward Arep. Then she whispered in a tiny voice.
"Then just Nini and Arep know. Right?"
"......"
"It's our secret. Hehe, secret!"
A secret just between the two of them.
Her ticklish whisper slipped through Arep's ear, making his little heart pound even faster.
It wasn't really just between the two of them.
Solles knew. The Dayamor adults knew. Armifera had even verbally agreed to partner on the business with Nibelria.
But Arep forgot all of that, utterly lost in the very idea of a secret shared only by him and Nibelria.
"......"
Arep nodded vigorously.
"J-just... between us..."
He murmured slowly in a faintly trembling voice.
Arep had sharply pointed eyes.
When his face was blank, he looked like he was angry.
His personality, on the other hand, was timid and easily frightened. He was very conscious of those around him.
As a result, Arep had been relentlessly bullied at the orphanage.
Especially over his eyes—he got endless insults for them.
So the boy didn't like his own eyes.
If he ever caught his reflection in water or glass, he'd whip his head away.
He'd prayed countless times before bed to wake up with normal eyes like everyone else's.
"......"
But now Arep could face his reflection in the mirror.
"All washed up?"
Ardores's voice came from outside the door.
"Yes!"
After wiping the water from his face with a towel, Arep opened the closed door.
Arep was in the middle of learning to wash his face by himself.
Rubens had bragged about doing it alone, which sparked Arep's competitive spirit—he'd begged Ardores to let him learn too.
'Is it because he's Wolf...?'
Ardores thought as he wiped away the tiny water droplet lingering under Arep's chin.
'Being part of a group is making him grow so fast.'
The reassurance of belonging somewhere, the sense of accomplishment from fitting in and playing his role—it was stabilizing Arep at an astonishing speed.
"Hm. I'd give this wash a 70."
"That high?"
"Yes. You dried off well. But your sleeve got wet, and there was still water on your chin..."
"Next time, I'll roll up my sleeves first and make sure to dry my chin all the way."
"Tomorrow it'll be higher than 70 for sure."
"Hehe..."
When Arep smiled, his sharply pointed eyes curved softly.
"Your eyes are really pretty, you know."
Ardores said.
Arep's eyes went wide with surprise.
"It's true. Especially that red—they sparkle so brilliantly and stand out. Even if you got lost, I'd spot you right away."
"...Lady."
"Hm?"
"The lady said my eyes are pretty too."
"Nini takes after me, so she has a good eye for pretty things."
A large hand ruffled Arep's blond hair into a mess.
Arep let out a soft chuckle, amused by how his head bobbed with the motion.
Ardores straightened the tousled hair for him.
"Hm."
With a satisfied nod, Ardores headed to the dining room with Arep.
Arep gazed enviously at the thick finger gripped in his hand.
He wanted to grow up big like Ardores someday.
Big in body and heart alike.
"Ardores sir."
"Yes?"
"My eyes aren't weird, right?"
"Not weird at all. They're pretty."
"Back then... at the orphanage..."
Arep quietly shared a few of the painful moments he'd endured there.
Ardores halted his steps and listened with as calm a demeanor as he could manage.
"...Must've been tough."
It was a dry remark, but sincere.
Arep hurriedly added,
"It's not tough anymore."
"Good. If anything tough or sad comes up, tell me anytime. Even if it hits you out of nowhere like today."
"Won't it be a bother?"
"Not in the slightest."
You're never a bother.
Arep's ears flushed red at Ardores's words.
The two resumed their halted steps.
"By the way, Arep."
"Yes."
"Who said those things to you?"
"......"
"You don't have to say if it's hard."
But Arep shook his head and gestured with his hand, just like Nibelria had once done.
Ardores gladly crouched down and brought his ear close.
"Actually..."
Whisper whisper.
Whisper whisper.
"...Hm. Not a bad plan."
Seletrina skimmed over the proposal Nibelria had submitted.
For the past few days, Nibelria had been diligently hashing out the business plan with Armifera.
She'd put it down in her own words and drawings before handing it over to Seletrina.
A large carriage was prominently illustrated in the proposal.
Above it was written "Transport"—a fairly difficult word for Nibelria to write.
Armifera must have taught her that one.
"We really, really worked hard on the plan!"
Nibelria emphasized her efforts.
"Right, Aunt?"
"They really put their all into it. I saw it firsthand. And this is the proof."
Armifera pulled out the document she'd been hiding behind her back—the real proposal for truffle distribution.
Seletrina reviewed that one meticulously as well.
In the meantime, Nibelria and Armifera clung tightly to each other's hands, desperately praying for Seletrina's approval.
And before long.
"Alright."
Seletrina nodded with a bright smile.
"Lubeo will buy up the truffles. And we'll entrust the distribution process to Nibelria's 'Meow Shop.'"
"Yay!"
Nibelria threw both arms high into the air.
"Nini, we did it!"
"We're gonna make money! Yay!"
The little niece and her muscle-bound aunt hugged each other tightly in delight.
"But, Aunt!"
"Yes?"
"What's 'entrust' mean?"
"Oh, dear."
Armifera explained what entrusting meant.
"It's when you ask someone else to handle a job for you and pay them for it."
"Money!"
"That's right—money! We're making money!"
"Kyaa!"
"However."
Seletrina brought them back to reality as she watched the joyful pair with fondness.
"Do you two actually have any money?"
"Aunt has no money? But you're a grown-up."
"I just became the Mercenary King, so I'm broke. I left all my savings back in Ratlo as goods..."
Nibelria and Armifera had run smack into a fundamental problem.
They had no startup capital for the new venture.
"Sigh, Seleli sis can be so ruthless about stuff like this..."
She could've lent it, but she never would.
Armifera glanced at Nibelria, belatedly regretting the fortune she'd left behind.
"Nini, don't you have any? You're always saving so diligently in your salary account."
"Three million Uba."
A tidy sum for a child, but nowhere near enough.
But the issue was resolved quickly.
