Chapter 3
Lephonia lifted her head, which had been bowed low.
"I greet the Duke!"
The knight who had been holding Lephonia in his arms saluted with a stiff, rigid body.
"I heard there was a commotion earlier."
Because he was standing with his back to the sunlight, his face was not clearly visible. However, perhaps due to his stature, which was far taller than the knight’s, his overwhelming presence made her flinch.
"What is that?"
"We received a report of a child wandering without a guardian, and we were on our way to take her to the poorhouse."
The Duke.
The knight had clearly called him "the Duke."
In this empire, the only person who could be called the Duke is...
As she met his cold, icy blue eyes, she found herself holding her breath.
His soft-looking silver hair fluttered in the breeze. It was the same color as Lephonia’s, but unlike her own messy hair, it shone brilliantly like moonlight.
The incorruptible Guardian of the Empire who protects peace and safety.
It was none other than the Duke of Kreitan.
As an Aura user, his appearance had not aged; he looked so young that it was hard to believe he was the father of two sons and the lost Lady.
'So this person was a knight of the Kreitan Duchy.'
Lephonia stared at the uniform of the knight holding her. The blue uniform was attire that only knights of the Kreitan Duchy could wear within the empire.
'I should have recognized it from the start.'
It wasn't as if her memory had worsened just because she had become a child, but she had been so flustered that she hadn't even checked for such things.
"A child?"
The Duke of Kreitan turned his gaze toward Lephonia, who was held in the knight's arms.
Their eyes met. At that moment, his eyes, which seemed as though they would never waver no matter what happened, flickered for the first time.
"…Laila?"
The Duke of Kreitan muttered in a hollow voice.
'Laila? What is that?'
Lephonia wrinkled her nose. At the same time, he approached Lephonia with a blank expression. He was scary enough when she was an adult, but meeting him while stuck in the body of a five-year-old was even more terrifying.
"What is your name?"
The Duke asked, somewhat urgently.
"Le, Lephonia."
Overwhelmed by his presence, Lephonia blurted out her real name before she could stop herself.
"How old are you?"
"Five years old."
"Where are your parents?"
Lephonia shook her head vigorously. The Duke glanced at the knight as if telling him to explain in detail.
"Ah. When I asked her, she said she didn't have any. She, um… she said she was abandoned. It seems she has actually been living alone in an ownerless house."
It’s my house.
"Abandoned?"
The Duke of Kreitan looked at Lephonia with his brow furrowed. Under his menacing aura, Lephonia quietly lowered her eyes.
"…You were on your way to take the child to the poorhouse?"
"Yes."
"And after that?"
"Pardon?"
"I asked what happens after you take her to the poorhouse."
"Oh… first, we would verify her identity and parents."
"The child clearly said her name and that she was abandoned. What comes after that?"
"Well, uh, she would stay at the poorhouse until someone who wishes to adopt or a sponsor comes along."
"Is that so?"
No sooner had he finished speaking than the Duke reached out his arms toward Lephonia, who was still in the knight's embrace.
'Huh?'
His large hands gripped her under both armpits, and he lifted her up just like that.
'Uh?'
Lephonia blinked, looking up at the Duke who had picked her up.
That was when it happened. Suddenly, a thick, formless energy poured from the Duke of Kreitan’s body toward Lephonia.
"Ack!"
She cried out in surprise. But it didn't hurt.
'Is this… Aura?'
As if gauging something, the Duke of Kreitan furrowed his brows and poured out his Aura.
'Could it be… he realized I’m a criminal!'
Lephonia gulped hard.
"…No, that’s not it. But something, hmm."
Fortunately, it seemed he hadn't discovered her, as the Duke of Kreitan withdrew his Aura.
The knight, who had been watching in confusion from the side, called out to the Duke.
"Du, Duke?"
"There is no need for that."
"Pardon?"
"I said there is no need to take her to the poorhouse."
Their eyes met. A strange, unreadable emotion swirled in the Duke's blue eyes.
"I will take this child."
"Pardon?"
"Excuse me?"
What on earth is happening all of a sudden?
* * *
The sound of the carriage wheels rolling broke the quiet silence.
'What on earth is this situation right now?'
Lephonia hugged her raised knees tightly and glared at the Duke sitting across from her with eyes full of wariness.
The Duke of Kreitan.
For some reason, she couldn't fathom, he was sitting right across from her.
'Where is he taking me?'
Noticing Lephonia’s glaring gaze, the Duke, who had been looking out the carriage window, turned his head.
His glowing blue eyes felt cold, as if they would freeze a person just by looking at them. Lephonia, gripping her tense hands tightly, asked boldly.
"Where am I going?"
Contrary to her determined expression, a soft, childish voice spilled out.
The Duke rested his chin on his hand and stared at Lephonia with a languid gaze before opening his lips.
"You said you were five."
The Duke stroked his chin.
"You're small."
Lephonia’s brow furrowed at the sudden remark about her size. She couldn't deny it, as she had been smaller than her peers even when she lived in the poorhouse.
"…They said if you're small when you're young, you grow more after you become an adult."
Of course, she hadn't been taller than others even after becoming an adult.
"Is that so? You'll have to work hard at it."
The Duke laughed lightly.
'Is this better than being ignored entirely?'
Lephonia glanced at the Duke with eyes full of suspicion.
"Your name is Lephonia?"
Lephonia flinched at the sound of her name.
"…Yes."
She was flustered that she had blurted out her real name, but she calmly organized the situation.
"Are you planning to sell me off?"
"Do you think I would?"
The Duke answered her question with another question.
"…Who knows."
Even the director of the poorhouse, who had a reputation for being kind and taking good care of children, had been selling off the older children behind the scenes for profit.
The holy and sacred Pope was no different.
So, why would the incorruptible Duke of Kreitan be any different?
Even if she succeeded in jumping out of the moving carriage, she wouldn't get far in this five-year-old body before being caught.
That was the limitation of being five.
So, it would be faster to persuade the Duke of Kreitan right here.
"You won't get much money for selling me."
Lephonia, hugging her knees tightly, muttered as if to warn him.
"Who would buy me for a high price? I look like I’m skin and bones and wouldn't be able to do any work properly, so the current me wouldn't even make it to an auction house. I don't look healthy either, so perverts who buy children's blood wouldn't be interested, either."
As Lephonia’s words continued without hesitation, the Duke’s face began to stiffen.
He seemed displeased to hear that she wasn't worth much.
"Do you even know what an auction is?"
"Buying and selling things."
Lephonia answered immediately.
"And you know about auction houses even knowing that… Ha, no. Never mind. You know quite a lot, don't you?"
"I heard the knight call you Duke earlier. I’m telling you because I thought you might not know."
After speaking at length, her pronunciation became slurred. A five-year-old’s tongue is truly shameful.
"Who told you such things?"
"I heard it here and there. It’s not a lie, it’s the truth. You can look into it yourself. You won't get much for selling me."
"Should I say thank you for telling me? How kind."
The face of the Duke of Kreitan, who was saying thank you, was stained with murderous intent and looked fierce.
Her mouth was frozen with fear, but she had to keep talking.
"Just hire me as a maid."
"A maid?"
"I’m good at working."
This had been Lephonia’s original plan. To get hired as a maid at the Kreitan Duchy and steal the heirloom.
It was a little different from her plan, and she hadn't even been able to confirm the heirloom, but it was an opportunity nonetheless.
"I’m good at cleaning and doing laundry. I’m even better at organizing."
She had learned everything from aristocratic etiquette to cleaning, laundry, and organizing. Lephonia was confident in all of it.
"Didn't you just say yourself that you look like you’re skin and bones and wouldn't be able to do any work properly?"
"I only said I look like that, I didn't say I actually am. Everyone fails to recognize a talented person because I look sick, but I’m giving you a chance, Duke. A talented person like me… ah."
In the middle of her sentence, her words stopped as a large hand grabbed her wrist. The Duke of Kreitan slightly rolled up Lephonia’s sleeve.
A thin, frail wrist, which had been hidden under the loose sleeve, was revealed.
"It doesn't look like you’re suited for maid work, considering you’re such a 'talented person'."
"…I’m young, so I can eat a little and still work. My food costs won't be high, and my wages will be low, so I’m very cost-effective."
"Ha."
The Duke of Kreitan, who had carefully let go of her wrist, let out a sigh.
Was she wrong? This was the best plan she had for now.
Lephonia, biting her lip, explained her value once more.
"Since I’m young, my bones don't break easily, and even if they do, they heal quickly. Even if my bones break while carrying something heavy, they heal right back, so you can make me do as much as—"
"Stop."
The Duke of Kreitan firmly cut her off.
"I think you’ve misunderstood, but I have no intention of selling you, nor do I have any intention of hiring you as a maid."
"……Huh?"
Lephonia blinked. At the same time, the carriage stopped, as if they had arrived at their destination.
As the Duke of Kreitan stood up, the carriage door opened as if they had been waiting.
'Where is this?'
A startled Lephonia peeked outside the carriage.
"Gasp!"
She took a sharp, startled breath. Outside the carriage, she saw countless employees bowing their heads toward the Duke.
Behind them, she could see a mansion so massive it could rightfully be called a castle.
'This is…….'
Lephonia’s eyes wavered.
'It’s the Kreitan Duchy!'
Why am I here?
I did intend to infiltrate… but if this counts as infiltration, then I suppose it is.
Beyond the open carriage door, she could hear the employees greeting him.
"Welcome back, Duke of Kreitan."
The Duke of Kreitan.
Hearing the reality of it with her own ears made her body tremble. Lephonia was now standing alone in the middle of enemy territory without a weapon.
'Could it be that he realized who I am and brought me here to capture me?'
In the current situation, that was the most likely possibility. If not, there was no way the Duke would bring an outsider into a mansion with such tight security.
'I didn't even realize I was being dragged into enemy territory.'
Lephonia covered her head with her small hands. There must be many knights of the Kreitan family in the mansion, so she couldn't even run away.
Then how was she supposed to survive?
"What are you doing?"
As Lephonia was racking her small brain, a large hand reached out in front of her eyes.
It was the Duke of Kreitan’s hand.
Lephonia blinked and stared at the hand he had extended.
What does he want me to do with this hand?
Does he mean for me to confess honestly?
"Ha."
A sigh from the Duke drifted over the head of Lephonia, who was deep in serious thought.
Then, he gently took Lephonia’s small hand in his.
"Come here."
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