Chapter 21: CH 20

I got even more upset and cried out loud. All of my reasons had flown away.

I just couldn’t stand the fact that my pitiful peach juice was horribly taken away from me too soon.

While I was crying my eyes out, I noticed a black hair popped up in my view.

My eyes met Marius’, whose face was akin to a rabbit caught in a trap.

Marius hurriedly ran towards us, examined the children, and asked what happened.

Shuel mumbled in a tearful tone, appearing very nervous.

“Uh, well…while Rieta and I were arguing, I hit Rwen’s arm and Rwen’s juice fell down.”

“That’s it?”

Marius asked in a bewildered tone.

It meant that she couldn’t believe that I, who had never cried before, would be wailing over one peach juice. But to me, it felt like she was disrespecting my peach juice.

This was unfair. Why are you doing this to my peach juice? Is aunty sweeter than my peach juice? Is aunty cooler than my peach juice?

I cried my eyes out and the commotion only ended when Kendrick, who had rushed towards us, promised me two glasses of peach juice.

What everyone had learned from that day was that I was more stubborn than they thought and that I earned an endless peach farm from the event. 

‘That…just why did I do that?’

[pr/n: so stinking cute. I cannot.]

Looking back on it now, it was an embarrassing memory.

Even now, when I go to the kitchen, the chef would always give me a glass of peach juice.

‘I was young, I was young…’

After enjoying my life as a child for a whole year, I felt like my mental age had faded away.

Now, I was afraid of the hallways at night when the candles were extinguished. When four egg tarts were served for desserts, I would have a secret battle with the younger kids.

Still, I’m one year older now. I am now 10 years old!

The girl in the mirror stared back at me with a broad smile. Her gloomy look disappeared and instead, a rosy glow now flattered her cheeks.

It was one of the changes that occurred while living in the Sebrirua Duchy. I began to stare at myself in the mirror quite often.

In the past, I avoided looking in the mirror because I was disgusted with the appearance of my lifeless eyes. But these days, I finally look like a human being.

Like a child with fair skin and round eyes……It was quite pretty.

“Ahem.”

A little embarrassed, I feigned a cough.

Sometimes I felt quite embarrassed when I caught myself looking at my own reflection in the window.

Of course, everyone who saw that praised that their young lady was so pretty, but it was still very embarrassing.

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Come to think of it, I wouldn’t be able to see them for a while.

Suddenly, I felt depressed. I removed and fiddled with the tie tied up over my shirt.

A brown jacket embroidered with gold threads. The plain white shirt and tight skirt still felt unfamiliar to me.

Today, I was leaving for the capital to attend the academy. I came over to the Duchy around this time just a year ago, so it was a new experience.

I was tired of Shuel and Rieta’s fights, but now it seems that I would even miss their fuss.

After checking my pocket watch, I hurried to the room to see the children’s faces for the last time.

There was no need to wear the school uniform, but I did so anyway since they wanted to see me in them.

“Shuel, Rieta, I’m……”

As I opened the door, my words faded away. The room was strangely quiet. It couldn’t be helped.

“Where is Shuel?”

Because only Rieta remained in the vacant room.

At my question, Rieta silently avoided my gaze.

After a year of experiences, my back began to hurt. That usually meant bad news…

“Sister…”

“Rieta. You only call me ‘sister’ when something bad happens.”

“This. Shuel gave this to me.”

I took a deep breath and received the note from Rieta.

It felt ominous, but I was still hoping it was nothing.

Yet, as expected…

「 Greetings, mother and father. I’m going to the academy. See you there. Rieta, brother will be back soon. 」

With that crooked handwriting, it was undoubtedly Shuel’s.

Where did you say you were going?! What do you mean ‘see you there’?! ‘Who’ is going to be back soon?!

“This punk……!”

＊  ＊  ＊

A sight that could not be witnessed even if one paid for it – the Duchy of Sebrirua turned upside down over a single note from a child.

After I announced Shuel’s disappearance, everything in the castle came to a standstill.

Everyone from the chef, maids, butlers, and lady-in-waitings to the lower ranking maids working in the laundry room; everyone stopped what they were doing to run out and look for Shuel.

It was to be expected. A year ago, Shuel was a kid who escaped the castle and got kidnapped simply because he had wanted to eat cotton candies on the street.

His escape because he couldn’t eat more cotton candies wasn’t particularly foolish or naive.

It was just a thought and trouble any seven year old kid would have.

The only issue during that situation was that Shuel had lived a very sheltered life and hadn’t really learned about the dangers of the outside world.

Shuel indeed had learned it the hard way, and for that reason, he was afraid of leaving the castle for a while.

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However, the problem was that human beings are forgetful creatures. Especially children who tend to forget even quicker.

For Shuel, it was an extra special case as he had the record of escaping the Sebrirua Duchy once amidst all of the strict security that was implemented.

He could have left the castle if he wanted to. 

While everyone shouted out for him and searched for Shuel, I took a deep breath in an attempt to calm down my thoughts.

He would have to go down to the village to get a carriage, but considering that I saw Shuel just an hour ago, it meant that Shuel had yet to reach the village.

So, where would he go now?

Did he go to the garden? If I looked for him at the centre, maybe I would pass by him in the garden…

No, that’s not it.

Fan translation by Dropped Inks.

There was no way the Sebrirua’s coachmen would give a carriage to Shuel, who wanted to travel to the capital.

I erased the hypothesis that was running. If it was Shuel, there was no way he would hide so poorly.

The Duke of Sebrirua had many enemies, and it seemed unlikely that weak children could survive the day should the castle’s walls fall apart.

Because of my concern regarding that, the game that Rieta, Shuel and I played the most during the whole year was hide and seek.

Thanks to that, we had now reached a point where most adults would be unable to find us if we hid ourselves. That included Shuel.

That child, who toed the line of being a gifted genius, was very smart. Sometimes, it even caught me by surprise.

‘But there was no way he would have used such a foolish method.’

I calmly figure out Shuel’s next move again.

Shuel had already experienced what would happen when he goes outside on his own once.

So he wouldn’t have gone to the village recklessly.

There was only one way he would be able to get to the capital safely without going to the village.

The answer was just right under my nose!

I jumped up and rushed forward.

When I went down to the entrance on the first floor, I saw a carriage waiting for me outside.

Butler Levin, who stood in front of me with a solemn face, turned to me with a regretful look.

“I apologise, Miss. I had searched the carriage to find the young master but no luck. It’ll be over soon, so can you wait a little bit longer?”

As if to prove his words, the neat carriage had been fully turned upside down. It seemed quite difficult to reorganise them as he had even searched through all of the luggage compartments.

I shook my head at Levin’s words.

“Please relay to the rest, there’s no need to search for Shuel any longer.”

“Yes? What do you–”

When I placed my index finger onto my lips towards Levin, he ceased his flustered question, and shut his mouth in understandment.

I walked towards the messy carriage and jumped on……well I tried to anyway, but my legs were too short, so I received help from Levin.

The carriage seats were all slightly disordered in height, indicating that it had already been searched.

The journey to the capital takes a long time, so when the seats were reclined, it could be used as a bed. It also meant that Shuel could be hiding behind it.

I lifted the seat carefully.

Several boxes soon appeared. They were used to store items away.

“Miss, that place has already been checked.”

Levin whispered to me quietly. I nodded my head.

I’m sure he did, but he probably didn’t think about checking inside the box.

While I waited silently, the lid of the box shook subtly, as though it was breathing.

“Shuel…”

“……”

“Come out, now.”

Even after I called for him gently, Shuel remained silent.

I raised my voice a little louder yet the box lid didn’t move as though he was holding his breath.

“Are you not coming out? I’ll count to three. One, two……”

The box still remained quiet.

Sighing, I opened the lid of the box and found a frizzy platinum hair.

Hic. Shuel hiccupped in shock.

I sighed again at the stubborn figure that still did not raise his head. I gestured to Levin and closed the carriage door.

“Shuel. Aren’t you going to face me?”

“……”

“Okay, I get it. You don’t want to see my face. I was planning to leave later in the evening, but guess I have to leave now—”

“No!”

Thud!

“Ugh……”

At the sudden attack, I grabbed onto my nose and backed away.

Shuel’s head, which rose up fiercely, was very hard.

Ah, it’s stinging a lot. Is it going to bleed?

Raising my head while gently caressing my nose, Shuel had a pale face and his hand trembled softly.

He looked like he couldn’t believe he had just attacked me.

I reached out and grabbed Shuel’s nose.

“Caught you, you punk.”

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