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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Melody Oser (3)
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“Melody!”
Finally released from his cell, Joseph stumbled toward her.
His legs gave out several times. He embraced Melody, who was simply overjoyed to see her brother after so long, and wept.
“Melody, *sob*, Melody.”
“Brother?”
Hugging Joseph’s neck tightly, Melody began to cry along with her brother.
“Brother, why are you crying?”
“It's just... I'm so happy to see my Melody after so long.”
“I'm so happy to see you too!”
Joseph now held Melody by the shoulders, meticulously looking her up and down.
“Are you hurt anywhere? Did the strange men scare you?”
“I'm not hurt! The strange men were scary, but I was okay!”
Unaware of the torment her brother had endured, Melody answered brightly.
“Good, that's a relief. A true relief...”
Joseph began to sob again. At a nod from Duke Adrian, the maids gently separated Melody from Joseph.
“Come now, Young Lady. Shall we go have some snacks with us?”
“Really? Are there lots of yummy things?”
“Of course.”
“But what about my brother?”
“He'll be along shortly. You can go ahead and start eating.”
“Okay. Brother, I'm going ahead!”
Waving to Joseph, Melody followed the maids out of the room.
Duke Adrian spoke quietly to Joseph, who was still shedding tears.
“Don't worry too much. As Melody said, she was treated quite well.”
“But how... She was clearly taken hostage.”
“It seems Melody has a considerable talent for magic. They likely planned to raise her as a mage and use her. That's probably why they kept her alive, even after everything went awry.”
Joseph, who had been blinking in confusion, finally grasped the situation and clenched his fists.
“So they were planning to use my Melody, just like they used me. And I had no idea...!”
“Still, it's fortunate. Thanks to that, Melody was able to remain safe.”
“...”
“As I said before, we will take Melody into our care here at the duchy. If you prove yourself, we intend to sponsor her and raise her as a mage. Celine has already agreed to teach her.”
Magic wasn't something just anyone could learn, especially not commoners.
Many with talent were forced to let it go to waste, unable to receive proper training.
But to be taught directly by the Adrian family's own mage? This was an honor for his entire family.
Stunned, Joseph soon understood the duke's meaning and prostrated himself at his feet.
“Thank you, Your Grace. Thank you so much.”
“You should direct your thanks to Rosette. This was her choice.”
“The young lady...”
Joseph shot to his feet.
“May I go see her?”
“You may.”
“Thank you. I will come to greet you properly later.”
Still a bit unsteady, Joseph hurried inside. Duke Adrian watched him go before heading to his office.
It was time to bring everything to a close.
***
Melody's eyes widened at the sight of the lavish snacks, the likes of which she had never seen before.
“Can I really eat this?”
Jane answered with a smile.
“Of course.”
When Melody still hesitated, Rosette, sitting across from her, placed a checkerboard cookie in the girl's hand.
She was mimicking what Lucas had once done for her when she had hesitated before a grand breakfast.
After a moment, Melody popped the cookie into her mouth, and her eyes lit up. Rosette asked cautiously.
“Is it good?”
“Mhm.”
That was all it took for Melody to start eagerly devouring the snacks. Nibbling on a treat herself, Rosette mustered the courage to continue their introductions.
“How old are you?”
“Me? Eight! And you?”
“I'm eight too.”
“So we're friends?”
“Friends?”
Rosette blinked blankly.
“We're the same age, so we're friends. Why? You don't want to be?”
It wasn't that she didn't want to. The word "friend" just felt a little unfamiliar.
Of course, she had friends her age at the orphanage.
But the "friend" used to describe the children she was close with back then felt somehow different from the "friend" Melody was using to describe them.
*It's not bad.*
In fact, it felt good. Rosette felt a bubbly warmth spread through her chest and tapped her feet.
“We'll both be learning magic from Celine from now on, so let's get along.”
“Okay!”
Listening to the two children's banter, Jane hesitated for a moment.
Strictly speaking, Rosette, the daughter of a duke, and Melody, a commoner, could not be friends.
But since Rosette seemed happy, she decided to let it be for now.
*If Melody becomes a mage later, she could receive a knighthood or even a noble title. It would be wonderful if she and the young lady truly became friends.*
She thought to herself.
Just then, a calm knock sounded, and Joseph Oser entered.
“Brother!”
Melody leaped off the sofa and ran to him. Joseph swept her up into his arms.
“Brother, try this! It's so delicious!”
“My Melody, were you having snacks?”
“Yeah!”
“Well, I have something to say to the young lady. Can I put you down for a moment?”
“Okay!”
After setting Melody down, Joseph approached Rosette and knelt on one knee.
“Thank you, Young Lady. It is thanks to you that Melody could be saved.”
“That's because you had a change of heart.”
“Still, if it weren't for you, the duke would not have been safe, and we would never have found Melody.”
“...”
Joseph adopted a knight's formal posture, placing his right fist over his left breast.
Strictly speaking, it was a gesture Joseph, still a knight apprentice, was not yet entitled to make, but Rosette didn't question it and simply watched.
“I have not yet been knighted, so I cannot swear a knight's oath. But I can promise you this one thing. From now on, I will live for you, Young Lady.”
“For me?”
“Yes. My life is yours alone. When I am formally knighted, I will swear my oath to you.”
He watched the silent Rosette's expression.
“Will you accept?”
Melody, who had been watching, crept over and knelt on one knee beside her brother, facing Rosette.
Rosette looked at the two pairs of blue eyes gazing up at her and nodded.
“Okay.”
“Thank you, Young Lady!”
“Thank you!”
The three of them looked at each other and smiled bashfully.
None of them knew then that it would take only a year for Joseph Oser to formally swear his knight's oath to Rosette.
***
“No connection. Is this really all there is?”
Duke Adrian set down the report and pressed the corners of his eyes. His aide bowed his head, his face apologetic.
“We've searched as thoroughly as possible... I apologize.”
Viscount Chaney, the mastermind of this incident, was a man who had harbored a grudge over a proposal Duke Adrian had presented to the emperor six months prior.
He likely believed the proposal would pass if Duke Adrian were out of the picture and had plotted to eliminate him.
This was the official reason that had been uncovered so far.
However, almost no one believed it.
Duke Adrian was certain someone was backing Viscount Chaney. He had mobilized the full intelligence network of the Duchy of Adrian to uncover the viscount's benefactor.
But nothing had been revealed.
“Viscount Chaney is not the type to devise such a meticulous plan. Planting two spies in the Duchy of Adrian with the Chaney family's intelligence network? Utter nonsense.”
“I will investigate further.”
After the aide left, Duke Adrian opened his closed eyes.
He mulled over what his eldest son, Daniel, had told him earlier.
-Father, Rose has been saying strange things for a while.
-What did she say?
-She told me to be careful when riding in carriages.
-Carriages?
-Yes. In the end, it was you who was in the carriage accident, but I couldn't simply ignore what Rose said, so I'm telling you now.
Daniel had added.
-Also, His Highness Prince Joshua said something similar...
-His Highness the Prince as well?
-Yes. He warned me to be careful of carriage accidents. To be precise, His Highness mentioned it first, but the timing was similar.
Joshua and Rosette, around the same time, had warned Daniel specifically about carriages.
It was certainly a peculiar matter.
So, after parting with Daniel, Duke Adrian had met with Joseph Oser just in case.
-Were they targeting not only me but also Daniel?
But Joseph's answer was 'no.' He had stated without a hint of hesitation that the unknown party's target was specifically Duke Adrian.
The target was different, but a carriage accident had indeed occurred.
Duke Adrian could not let this go. He tapped his fingers on the desk before rising from his seat to see his beloved youngest daughter.
***
When Duke Adrian arrived at Rosette's room, she was still talking with Melody.
“Rose.”
Melody, who had been chattering happily in front of Rosette, stiffened.
“Miss Melody, shall we go see your brother?”
The quick-witted Jane led Melody out.
Only Rosette and Duke Adrian remained in the room.
*What does he want to talk about?*
Seeing the duke's unusually serious expression, Rosette grew a little tense.
Everything had ended well, yet the duke still looked like he had something to say.
And sure enough, the duke, seated across from her, asked gently.
“Rose, I heard you said something to Daniel before.”
“What was that?”
She had a feeling she knew, but she feigned ignorance.
“That he should be careful when riding in carriages.”
She knew this day would come. Rosette calmly gave the answer she had prepared.
“When I was in the village, I heard a lot about carriage accidents. That's all.”
“Why did you only say that to Daniel? Weren't you worried about me, Isabelle, or Lucas?”
Rosette shook her head vigorously.
“I was worried.”
“Then why?”
“Isabelle and Lucas don't ride in carriages very often, so I wasn't too worried.”
“What about me?”
The duke looked a little hurt as he asked.
“You're...!”
Rosette hesitated before spreading her arms wide and beaming.
“You're the strongest Sword Master in the world!”
The implication was clear: there was no need to worry about him.
