Youngest 063
by CristaeEpisode 63
“No, you really don’t have to eat it!”
“If you want cake, you need to have your meal first. Let’s go.”
“Huh?”
While I stood there blankly, I realized Liam had already made it halfway down the corridor and was looking back at me.
His gaze lingered, then came a short sigh.
“So it’s true, what Void said. You really are a spoiled child.”
“Wh-what?!”
I flailed my limbs like a fish freshly caught, because Liam, having strode up without expression, lifted me easily onto his back.
“Let your legs dangle. Quickly, now.”
His tone was strict. Was every word he spoke going to be so strict with me?
The adolescent who lifted me strode off at a brisk pace, faithfully following the stickers I’d placed to mark the way to the dining room.
What kind of bookworm has such a broad back? And why is he so strong?
“H-hey, slow down!”
“……”
Only then did he stop, just as he was taking the stairs two at a time. He tilted his head, violet eyes turning to me.
“That word is strange.”
“Huh?”
“The word ‘hyung’.”
Why…?
Something about his voice seemed oddly thoughtful, and I pressed my lips firmly together.
“Youngest fairy. I’ll investigate this mystery, so until I reach a conclusion, you’re forbidden to call me that.”
“Investigating… forbidden…”
Still, thanks for granting me a little distance. You picky, otaku teenager…
But to my surprise—
Liam turned out to be my perfect mealtime partner!
“Bell peppers? Hand them over.”
“Eek.”
Delighted, I transferred those green monsters from my plate to his.
The seasoning was incredible and they were stewed until edible, but I still hated them all the same!
“You’re still picking out the vegetables.”
Dad shook his head as though he’d given up hope.
“If you eat mostly vegetables, you won’t get sleepy reading.”
“If you’re sleepy, just go to bed, please…”
“Father, if you could please bother to button your shirt properly for once, I’d appreciate it.”
Both men ignored each other’s requests.
Spear against shield… no, maybe just two spears clashing?
I quickly chewed the meat Void had cut up for me, changing the subject.
“Hey, there’s a children’s contest at the Verdure Festival.”
Mister didn’t seem particularly interested.
“I know. And just how long are you going to keep chewing that?”
“I’m still full because I ate so much cake earlier…”
“That’s a problem. I should have called Borvel.”
“I’m perfectly fine! But I’m going to enter the Verdure Festival contest!”
At this, Void, tearing his bread, frowned deeply. He’d eaten so much cake earlier, and yet his appetite was still insatiable.
“Why would you enter something so trivial?”
I gulped down my meat.
“Hyung, I guess you haven’t heard about the Verdure Festival contest prize.”
“What is it?”
I cupped my hands over my mouth to whisper.
The Hero Collection card. A never-released limited edition.
“……!”
Void’s nostrils flared wide.
“Haa… Sorry, Rubian.”
The expression of someone who could never relinquish their most cherished possession.
What is it? Dad asked lightly, but Void and I exchanged a silent agreement with our eyes to keep our mouths shut.
“A fair contest, then.”
“You’re on!”
Just what I hoped! Fired up by this declaration of war, I brimmed with excitement.
Void turned to Liam, who sat next to me.
“Liam hyung, are you going to enter too?”
“No, not interested.”
Liam looked entirely unmoved.
I couldn’t help but marvel at his flawless profile.
“Wow, the way you eat bell peppers is downright elegant…”
“What? I could’ve eaten bell peppers too, you know!”
Void yelled, sounding terribly aggrieved as I clung to Liam’s side.
I simply beamed and gave double thumbs up.
“Victory through action!”
“That’s basic.”
“Che! I’m going to write this in my diary!”
A diary… My lips unconsciously pouted in a sudden duckbill.
“Meh.”
That’s right—I’d been banned from accessing Void’s diary.
Glaring straight ahead in discontent, I watched as Void, understanding my look, stuck out his tongue and wore a smug face.
“My diary~ it’s a diary with a lock~”
“So annoying!”
“A lock~ it’s got a lock~”
“Tch, and ninety-nine percent of it is about me! I thought it was like an exchange diary!”
“It’s not an exchange diary.”
“Don’t worry, youngest fairy. If I figure out the mechanism, there’s nothing I can’t open.”
Liam, who’d been listening, cut in.
“What the—whose side are you on, Liam hyung!”
“I’m on my own side. The gods are on my side, too…”
“…? I don’t really get it, but that’s cool.”
“Don’t look up to Void hyung. That’s just a case of ‘second-year syndrome.’”
“What’s ‘second-year syndrome’? Hyung… is he sick? Ruby, can you heal it?”
“Unfortunately, it’s an incurable condition that only time can fix…”
“Makes you sound interesting. I like it.”
“Kids.”
Dad let out a deep, weary sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose.
All the noisy chatter came to an abrupt halt.
“I never thought I’d be saying this in my life, but…”
“……”
“Stop talking and just eat.”
Just then, the father of three looked as if the energy was draining from every fiber of his being.
‘Ah, did I do that?’
I cleared my throat and picked up my fork with new resolve.
At that moment, hurried footsteps approached.
“Your Grace.”
Turning, I saw it was Sir Leon, face somewhat pale.
“What is it?”
“We’ve had a message from the gate…”
Why that ominous pause?
“Her Grace, the Duchess, has gone missing while returning home…”
“What?!”
Clatter. My fork fell from my hand.
Oh no! The frail, sunlit heroine is missing! My face tense with worry, I looked anxiously at Dad.
“Haa…”
“Oh dear…”
“If you’ll excuse me.”
And yet… why did all the grown-ups seem less than concerned?
“Just when things were quiet… Here we go again.”
“Father, should I fetch a tracking device from Grandpa in the annex?”
“Do that.”
“Last time she disguised herself as a fruit vendor, but I wonder what she’s up to now…”
Void muttered, vanishing from the room.
“Well, enjoy the rest of your meal.”
Liam polished off his food with perfect composure before heading up to the third floor again.
“What? What? How is everyone so used to this?”
“Hide-and-seek.”
“……”
“It’s my wife’s hobby.”
Dad got up, ruffling my hair.
“I’ll fetch her, Ruby.”
Could it be… the Duchess was the strangest one of all?
Mister immediately led the knights and set off in pursuit(?) of the Duchess.
Fortunately, now that the Ipsen kidnapping incident had been resolved, not all the knights needed to remain here.
Even Grandpa, fully immersed in the hot springs, was summoned by Void and went out with him, leaving me all alone in the manor.
Dad had confirmed with me endless times whether I could stay by myself. After the hundredth time, I slammed the door in his weary face.
“Long live staying at home!”
As I rubbed my face into the fluffy white covers, a sudden thought flashed through my mind.
“Wait, hold on. Isn’t this my chance?”
It was the first time those three troublesome people were all out at once.
Liam, the reclusive adolescent, took his cake box and locked himself away in the annex for two nights and three days—insisting not to be disturbed.
I leapt up and pressed my earlobe.
‘Khal, Khal, Khalid! Hey, buddy! Kaaaal! We’ve got an emergency! A real one!’
My desperate call was met with a scratchy connection.
[ Geez, you startled me! What on earth is it? ]
‘So… you really were ignoring me.’
[ …Guess this thing is broken again. What? I can’t hear you well, Ruby. ]
I ground my teeth. I wanted to argue on the spot but… I needed his help more, so I decided to swallow it for now.
‘Stand guard for me! Now’s the time! The Zevert hot spring! You’re at the training ground, right?’
[ Yeah. I saw everyone rush out, but I didn’t know why. ]
Khalid let out a short huff, as if steadying himself.
[ I’ll send the squirrel. Follow it out. ]
Hooray! Squirrel! Hooray!
I wiggled my toes in glee.
“Hehehe, I never knew such a place existed. Hehehe.”
The Zevert family’s private hot spring, stretching out behind the manor, was truly a paradise on earth.