Youngest 103

Episode 103

“How can that portal break after just a few uses? And even if it was damaged, with a mage of that caliber…”

Shh. Khalid brought a finger to his lips.

I clamped my mouth shut and began stacking blocks again.

“Who here could possibly know more about this than you?”

“…I suppose Asha couldn’t say much in front of the kingdom’s watchers.”

“Right. That mage tried to pull something to search this place further, but… we’re heading back to Zelox tomorrow anyway.”

As I picked up an orange block for the third tier, I nodded slowly.

“That’s true.”

As expected, my family had decided not to linger any longer in Ipsen.

Other nobles seemed intent on attending the hunting competition or the string of social gatherings yet to come, but there was no way Father would care for such things.

Besides, the magical beast subjugation would be happening soon.

“It’s possible we’ll run into that mage again, so stay put in the manor today.”

“Well… I wasn’t planning on going out anyway.”

I had no plans to leave, after all.

I’d just stay home quietly, tying knots or something.

‘And tonight, I’ll definitely use the herbs!’

If I ended up falling asleep again tonight, then I might as well resign myself to sleeping forever!

With renewed determination, I set my resolve.

“But what happened in the carriage yesterday?”

Khalid asked out of the blue.

At some point, he had folded his legs on the floor and crossed his arms, gazing intently at my face.

“How did you know?”

“Leon said you looked a bit out of sorts.”

I recalled the glimpse I’d caught of Sir Leon’s face through the carriage window.

Gasp—even in that brief moment, he’d observed me.

Knights—they really do have a sharp eye.

I hesitated for a moment as I stacked the blocks, then answered.

“It was… nothing much, really.”

“Mm.”

“Licht said he thought I was a mage.”

“What?”

“Fortunately, he managed to convince himself he was mistaken, but Father asked me about it.”

A brief silence passed.

“So… did you tell the Duke the truth?”

I shook my head slightly.

“I couldn’t bring myself to say it.”

Reaching for the final block, I decided not to place it after all.

“You know, I feel like I’m so inconsistent and strange.”

My fingertips traced the edge of a block without purpose. As always, Khalid listened quietly.

“When Father accepted me as a girl, I felt an overwhelming surge of courage… but when it comes to telling him I’m a mage, I just can’t get the words out.”

Confusion welled up inside me.

I had no idea what the right timing might be.

I didn’t want to disappoint Father.

‘I don’t want to see that same expression from yesterday.’

Not even for a moment did I want him to regret becoming my family.

But then… when, and with what expression, and what face should I finally speak these words?

‘Why is there no answer for things like this?’

I wished someone would just tell me—spell it out.

“It’s only natural to be cautious.”

His still-youthful voice flowed gently.

Khalid took the block from me and placed it at the top.

“It’s an important matter for you.”

“That’s true…”

“And on top of that, there are tracking mages outside right now, so you have every reason to be cautious. There’s an order to things, after all…”

I looked silently at Khalid.

“And whatever choice you make, I know it’ll be the best one for you. So just do what you feel is right.”

My mouth hung open.

“You…”

“…?”

“Sometimes you really speak more maturely than I do.”

“You’re not an adult, either, are you?”

“Ah, uh… I suppose not.”

I looked over at the completed block castle.

The castle, stacked orderly tier by tier, stood firm and unshaken, even against sudden winds.

“True. There are priorities to things.”

For me, the top priority now was to check the next events of the original story.

I straightened up and grinned broadly.

“Good! My head feels a bit clearer now. You always tell me exactly what I needed to hear.”

“Do I?”

Khalid nonchalantly started sorting the blocks.

I looked at him anew, seeing his profile with fresh eyes.

‘He really is such a good, upright kid.’

Yes, just keep growing up like this.

‘But… am I the only one always whining?’

Suddenly, that thought occurred to me.

Come to think of it, Khalid almost never came to me for advice or shared his worries. He never really grumbled about anything being difficult.

And still, he always listened to my complaints without the slightest sign of displeasure.

I felt strangely moved.

“Khalid, you really are truly, truly, truly kind and gentle.”

“Kind…”

A slight grimace appeared on his handsome face.

“What’s wrong? As if I’m the only one who’s called you kind.”

“No, I… I am kind. And gentle, too.”

Something about his awkward tone seemed off. I tilted my head in confusion.

As we packed away our things and walked together, Khalid suddenly asked,

“…Is there nothing else?”

“Huh?”

“Kind and gentle. And?”

“Is there supposed to be more?”

“Not necessarily…”

He mumbled under his breath.

I pondered, then added,

“Oh, you’re handsome! And strong!”

Khalid’s steps came to an abrupt halt. I chuckled, recalling the girls I’d met at the banquet yesterday.

“The girls couldn’t stop whispering about you, you know?”

Not surprising, since he’d won the riding competition!

“…And you?”

“Hm?”

I turned to look at him. Khalid, not meeting my eyes, had turned his face away at an odd angle.

Was it the spring sunlight? The tips of his pretty ears were flushed red.

“What about me?”

“Did you join in? When they… talked about me.”

My eyelashes fluttered twice.

“No? I didn’t say a word.”

Well, not that I didn’t want to—I just couldn’t.

Since they hadn’t let me join. I wasn’t at their table, after all…

‘If they had, I’d have bragged about it non-stop.’

That he was my friend and all.

‘Wait. Maybe that’s a bit much?’

No matter how much I want to praise him, speaking behind someone’s back isn’t quite right, is it?

‘Oh no. Is that why he’s upset?’

Panicking slightly, I darted into Khalid’s line of sight.

“Khalid, Khalid! Calm down. From now on, I swear—never, ever! I’ll never mention you again!”

“You don’t have to go that far…”

The boy’s expression turned even colder.

Huh. Is this not it?

“What is it, then? What do you want?”

“I just… hoped you’d think about me more often…”

“Huh?”

“So that you’d think of me more… No, never mind. What am I even saying.”

Unable to finish even a single thought, Khalid started rambling incoherently. This wasn’t good.

I watched him, face bright red, and waved my hand in front of his face in concern.

“You must have overheated. What are you going to do if you’re like this already?”

He stared at me, then buried his face in his arm.

“My lady!”

Just then, Hazel called from far away.

“You have visitors!”

“Huh, visitors?”

“The Count of Camellan! He’s arrived with the youngest lady!”

“Gasp, Titi!”

I dashed out, overjoyed to see Sortier, who had been bedridden ever since the kidnapping incident.

“Khalid, aren’t you coming?”

I called out to Khalid.

The boy, head finally raised, gazed at me in silence.

He looked, for some reason, a bit resentful, almost wronged…

“I’m going ahead!”

Only then did Khalid stomp after me.

“So in the end, you want someone who’s kind, gentle, and handsome, huh.”

“What did you say?”

His storm-gray eyes swept over me sidelong, burning with some unfathomable spark.

“Just wait and see. I’ll be even kinder, gentler, and more handsome for you.”

What was that—a declaration of war?

“Uh… sure, do as you like?”

Well, then.

If I’m not careful, he’ll grow up a proper gentleman, won’t he?

---

As I made my way to the manor’s outdoor garden, Sortier jumped up from the bench.

“Rubian!”

“Titi!”

We greeted each other with pure delight and grabbed hands.

“Oh? Licht, you’re here too!”

“Hello, Rubian. I ran into the Camellan young lady just outside.”

Licht gave a soft smile.

Sortier stared at me for a moment, then her mouth fell open.

“You really are a girl!”

Her pastel blue croissant hair bounced energetically as always.

“I can’t tell you how surprised I was when I heard. But now… you look completely at ease!”

“Hehe.”

“To be honest, I felt at ease with you from the start, Rubian. You were always different from the troublemaking boys.”

She added the last part in a whisper, so Licht wouldn’t hear. I grinned back.

“How are you feeling?”

“I’m all better! It’s a shame I missed the Festival of New Green, but… Oh! Congratulations on your victory at the festival! You were truly, truly amazing, Rubian!”

Sortier bounced up and down, sharing my joy as if it were her own.

I rubbed my nose in embarrassment.

“It wasn’t all that…”

Oh boy. Now I really couldn’t help but show off my gold badge again…

“The girls wouldn’t stop whispering about the masked Northern Lady’s exploits!”

“Ugh. That’s a bit much.”

That title wasn’t doing my public image any favors.

I gave serious thought to my reputation.

At that moment, Hazel arrived, smiling warmly.

“Come along, my lovely young ladies! The tea table is ready.”

“Oh! I brought some tea food!”

“Why, thank you, my dear. May I have some?”

“Of course!”

Sortier took Hazel’s hand and led the way.

As I hesitated, Licht and I met eyes for a brief moment.