When my father came home drunk, he would unfailingly inflict violence on my mother.

Sometimes, my mother would be bedridden and unable to cook.

Not sometimes, but often.

At those times, my father would yell at me to make food.

At me, who wasn’t even 8 years old yet.

The foods I could make as a young child were few enough to count on one hand, and since there were no ingredients at home except potatoes, I had no choice but to make rösti.

Ah, of course, it wasn’t as ingredient-rich as the rösti sold here.

It was a terrible dish with nothing but potatoes, and if lucky, some carrots or onions.

I must have made it dozens, no, hundreds of times.

I made it so many times I can’t even remember how often.

Having eaten it so much then, I never want to eat rösti again.

*

“……”

The content was serious, but the person in question spoke calmly.

As if telling someone else’s story.

Kalos immediately realized that Irene could be so calm not because she wasn’t angry, but because she was so angry that she had transcended it, unable to contain it all.

Just how much hardship must she have endured to become like this?

“……”

Kalos clenched his fist, feeling anger rising towards Irene’s father whom he had never even seen.

At the same time, he wanted to comfort Irene out of pity, but he didn’t know what to say.

If she had cried and complained about what happened to her, he could have at least consoled her, but her indifference made him hesitant to speak.

Having experienced that in situations like this, words carelessly spoken could deeply wound the other person, it was even more difficult to say anything.

“……”

Unlike Kalos, who was troubled by various thoughts, Irene felt somewhat relieved.

This must be why people say joy doubles when shared, and sorrow halves when shared.

The problem was Kalos.

“……”

Irene glanced sideways at Kalos.

She had expected his expression to be bad since she told a depressing story, but it was even more serious than she thought.

While Irene wondered if this was really such a serious matter to react to,

She was grateful that Kalos seemed to care about her that much.

She also realized anew that Kalos was a good person.

“……”

By the way, it seemed like something needed to be done about this atmosphere.

Irene, finding the atmosphere even heavier than when they rode here on horseback burdensome, spoke in a bright voice trying to change the mood somehow.

“Still, maybe because it’s been a while, I feel a bit glad to see it. I’m also curious what that rösti would taste like.”

“……”

Kalos furrowed his brows and gently took her hand.

“You don’t have to force yourself.”

……He’s really a good person.

I wonder why such a good person has such terrible rumors about him.

Irene thought this is why you shouldn’t believe baseless rumors, as she placed her hand on top of Kalos’s.

“I’m not forcing myself, I’m really curious.”

It wasn’t a complete lie, since there was a tiny bit of curiosity.

“Grand… I mean, Lord Ron, have you tried rösti before?”

Irene, who almost called him ‘Grand Duke’, barely managed to correct the title.

Kalos smiled faintly and replied.

“No.”

“Then you should try it once. It’s tastier than you might think.”

Kalos was reluctant, but with Irene’s continued urging, he had no choice but to nod.

Irene, who had marched energetically towards the street vendor saying she would buy some, returned with slumped shoulders.

“What’s wrong?”

“…I forgot I don’t have any money.”

Until now, she just had to tell Jessie whenever she needed something and it would be taken care of, so there was no way she would have money.

Irene carefully broached the subject, swallowing her embarrassment.

“Um, by any chance……”

“I don’t have any.”

Kalos answered before Irene could even finish speaking.

The Grand Duke of Esper having no money?

When Irene looked at him with disbelieving eyes, Kalos shrugged.

“Why would I need to carry money around?”

Ah, I see.

Normally nobles don’t carry money themselves……

In other words, they couldn’t buy rösti from the street vendor.

It would be possible if Kalos revealed his identity as the Grand Duke of Esper, but they couldn’t reveal his status just to eat some rösti.

“I guess there’s no helping it.”

Irene let out a deep sigh full of regret.

“Next time, I’ll make it for you myself.”

I don’t understand why she wants to dredge up painful memories.

Kalos was about to say there was no need, but seeing her eyes shining with determination as if she would definitely make it, he changed his words.

“Do as you like.”

*

The area in front of the relief station in the western plaza was crowded with people who had come to receive relief supplies.

Since they came out to check if the relief station was operating properly, I thought we would go inside to check various things.

But Kalos just stood outside watching, without going in.

“Aren’t you going in?”

At Irene’s question, Kalos thought for a moment and then turned around.

“There doesn’t seem to be any need to go in here.”

From the start, he thought this place would be operating properly since there were many eyes watching, but.

He came just in case, but as expected, there was no need to come here.

“Please line up over there!”

“Please fill out this record book here!”

There were enough relief station staff, and the domain residents who came to receive relief supplies followed the staff’s guidance without causing any disturbances.

The problem was with the relief station in Solace.

Kalos looked towards where Solace was and cautioned Irene.

“The atmosphere at the relief station in Solace will be very different from here, so don’t be too surprised when you see it.”

*

Despite Irene steeling herself based on Kalos’s kind warning,

On the other hand, she subconsciously thought that even if the atmosphere was different, it was still the same relief station.

But that wasn’t the case.

“Ah……”

The atmosphere really was completely different.

Unlike the relief station in the western plaza which was somewhat bustling like a marketplace but still had some order,

The relief station in Solace was truly chaotic.

“Give it to me! I know you have it, hand it over now!”

“It’s over there! We need to take that!”

People were shouting, trying to take as many relief supplies as possible even by force.

“Y-You can’t do this!”

“Where are the security guards! Stop them immediately!”

The relief station staff and security guards were struggling to prevent the supplies from being taken away.

In the process, harsh curses and violence were exchanged as a matter of course.

Having grown up hearing cruel curses and violence from her father, she thought she was somewhat used to this kind of thing.

But Irene closed her eyes tightly and bowed her head deeply at the horrific scene that completely shook that notion.

“Why… is it like this here?”

To the question that came out like a lament, Kalos answered while pulling her hood down to the tips of her hair.

“Solace is the place that most needs order, but ironically, it’s the most disorderly place. Most of the criminals who have committed all sorts of crimes, as well as vagrants and beggars, stay here.”

Sadly, most of them were humans, not underground residents.

Free humans not under the control of the underground lord.

This was one of the main reasons why the administrators, composed of underground residents, had difficulty managing them.

“They were already difficult to handle, but with the situation worsening due to the monster riots, they’ve become even more violent than before, making it even harder to manage them. It seems they’re having difficulty even distributing relief supplies.”

Having seen the scene with her own eyes, Irene understood immediately.

“So that’s why the administrators… asked Lord Ron for help.”

Irene hesitated for a moment, still not used to calling Kalos ‘Lord Ron’.

Perhaps thinking she was afraid, Kalos patted Irene’s shoulder reassuringly and said,

“No. The administrators didn’t ask me for help. They didn’t even report that Solace was in this state.”

“What? Why not?”

“They judged that reporting to me wouldn’t solve anything.”

Moreover, since Kalos had entrusted the administrators with autonomous domain management, they didn’t bother to report the problems.

Irene glanced at the still chaotic relief station and asked him.

“So you came to check in person? Curious if the administrators were neglecting the people here, if the relief station was operating properly?”

“That’s part of it, but I came to see with my own eyes what the problem is, and to judge if there really is no way to solve it. That’s also why I came secretly.”

If he had told the administrators he was coming, they would have cleaned up this place somehow.

Then he wouldn’t have been able to properly assess the situation, so Kalos came without informing the administrators.

“I should go in and check the situation in more detail. I also have some questions for the staff.”

He’s going to enter that chaos?

When Irene’s face turned slightly pale, Kalos added,

“If you want to return to Esper Castle first, you can do that.”

“No. I’ll go in with you.”

Even though she was a little scared, having come this far, she wanted to stay with him until the end.

She would be safe by Kalos’s side.

It was a decision she could make thanks to her firm trust in him.

*

While it was chaotic outside the relief station, inside was relatively peaceful.

There were no rough shouts or curses to be heard.

She had been worried inwardly, but thankfully it was fine.

While Irene, deeply relieved, looked around the relief station, Kalos caught a staff member and asked various questions.

Having finished her brief tour of the relief station, Irene watched this scene curiously.

From the looks of it, the staff member didn’t seem to recognize Kalos as the Grand Duke of Esper at all.

‘How can they not recognize him?’

He wasn’t wearing a wig or special makeup, just ordinary clothes.

Anyone could see he was the Grand Duke of Esper, but it was strange that they didn’t recognize him at all.

Come to think of it, when they went out to see the fireworks, people didn’t recognize him either.

Perhaps the residents of Esper domain don’t know their lord’s face?

While looking at them in confusion, Irene suddenly felt a gaze and turned around.

A man outside the window was staring intently at her.

“…!”

Irene’s eyes widened as she confirmed the man’s face.

The golden eyes within trembled uselessly, filled with fear.

“Fa…ther?”

That can’t be. Her father is dead.

He surely burned and fell to hell… so why is he standing there?

While Irene stood frozen in shock at the unbelievable reality, the man suddenly disappeared from the window frame.

“W-Wait a moment!”

Though scared, Irene hastily opened the window and checked outside, thinking she needed to confirm if that man was really her father.

She turned her head violently, making a whoosh sound, but her father was nowhere to be seen.

There wasn’t even a trace that someone had been there.

Did I see wrong?

I’m sure I saw him…

“Rene?”

“!”

Irene turned her head in startled surprise at the familiar nickname only her family used to call her.

Perhaps because she had just seen someone resembling her father, her heart pounded even harder.

Kalos, who had approached right behind her without her noticing, looked down at her strangely.

“What’s wrong?”

“Ah, well… I thought I saw a strange person outside, but I think I was mistaken.”

Irene briefly considered telling him she saw someone resembling her father, but ultimately hid that fact.

She couldn’t confirm if that man was really her father, and.

To begin with, it didn’t make sense for her dead father to return alive.

Yes, it was an impossible thing.