“That’s a good thing! A gift!”

Despite my objection, the attitude of the maid sisters remained very firm.

“A gift? That’s not a gift! That must be a threat to Lady Sien!”

“We should eliminate that ferocious creature right away-”

Cutting off the maids’ words, I shouted loudly.

“No! I like the goblin!”

Because it’s the cute goblin I’ve always wanted!

Leaving the maid sisters behind, I clenched my fists tightly and ran excitedly towards Blin.

The carriage had already arrived at the fields of our mansion.

Delphia’s attendant and the goblin in the carriage were looking at me with innocent eyes.

Delphia’s attendant, looking trembling, delivered a message to me.

“S-so… We heard that Lady Sien likes goblins… I-I’m sorry.”

“Why are you sorry?!”

“S-sending such a hideous thing as a gift… Lady Delphia really likes to p-play pranks…”

I tilted my head at the attendant’s words.

And I looked at the goblin with a heart full of happiness.

The goblin wasn’t saying anything, but it was staring at me with a villainous expression.

It was very cute.

“I like Blin!”

“B-Blin…?”

I’ve already decided on a nickname.

“It’s a nickname!”

The surname is Go!

The name is Blin!

***

A rumor spread widely among the public.

It was a rumor that Delphia Mirmode had gone mad. She was collecting all kinds of monster poisons and evil magical tools indiscriminately.

The story that Delphia was acting out to gain an advantage in the succession race became established as the official theory, but well.

…The reality was a bit different.

All the monster poisons and evil magical tools that Delphia collected…

“Hehe, Papa. How do I look?”

They were all in my, Sien’s, hands.

I smiled mischievously and put my hand to my mouth.

“Let’s eat bread quickly, Sien… It’s dinner time.”

“Mm!”

Watching me eat bread vigorously, Papa spoke with a complicated expression.

“I put the goblin in the underground dungeon… no, underground.”

“Gasp. Underground? Our Blin! It’s my pet monster…”

When I looked a little gloomy, Papa carefully said.

“Blin… seems to like the darkness a lot…”

Papa muttered while rubbing his face with a complicated expression.

“How did our daughter come to like something like a goblin…”

I reminded him of reality.

“Papa. You have to adapt now.”

“…”

“Now Sieni will become a very terrifying demon…”

When I spoke mischievously, Papa asked with a complicated expression.

“How… did you come to like such a terri… terrifying thing, Sien?”

“Just because. Sieni was originally like this.”

Papa’s lips quivered but stopped.

“…”

I blinked several times to change the situation and turned the topic.

“Papa, you know, Big Sister Delphia seems like a bit of a nice sister.”

Fortunately, Papa joined in my change of topic.

Although he looked a bit displeased.

“…Are you enchanted by the gift?”

I waved the letter I had put in my pocket and said.

“But she gave me Blin and a letter… Um, it’s nice.”

Although the content of her letter was a bit puzzling…

[The reason you’re gathering ability users like healers must be to get stronger. If Matthias Mirmode bullies you or tries to kill you, come to me.]

She seems to have a severe misunderstanding about Papa.

I carefully said so as not to offend Papa.

“But that sister, she sees Papa too negatively!”

“Is… that so?”

“Yeah. She said to come to her if Papa bullies me. Where can you find such a kind person as our Papa?”

Delphia’s only problem is exactly that.

The fact that she sees our benevolent and kind Papa as a villain.

But well…

It was rather good for such rumors to spread within the family.

I decided not to correct that part and to move on to the next step.

“Gasp, I want to write a reply now!”

I called the maid sister and quickly received a quill pen and letter paper.

Meanwhile, Papa’s eyes, like a dark abyss, were staring at me constantly, but I ignored it for now since writing the letter was important.

On the dinner table. I picked up the quill pen and wrote the letter very politely.

[That’s right. Our Papa is definitely not a fool. He’s not a pushover either, he’s very very bad.

Actually… he’s similar in personality to a demon.

Surprised? Scared?]

After writing this far in crooked handwriting, I hesitated a little.

What Delphia likes the most these days is…

[Then I’ll come to play next time. Bye bye.]

This seemed like quite a polite letter for a child.

Looking down at the letter I wrote after a long time, I felt quite proud.

I folded the letter like a paper airplane and handed it to the maid sister.

Papa watched me writing the letter enthusiastically with a bewildered expression.

***

When an excited Sien left the table dancing a cute little dance, Matthias felt the need to investigate again why Sien had become like this.

As a result of the investigation, Delphia Mirmode had certainly lost her power and was dedicating everything to Sien…

What kind of conversation did she have with Sien to be so enchanted?

Although Sien was cute, the situation was somewhat strange even to the doting father to the point of raising suspicion.

He, who could never tolerate any suspicious matters when it came to Sien, decided to dispatch an investigation team right away.

After a few minutes, Matthias’s subordinates gathered at his word.

“Sien seems to be getting tainted by this family.”

“Yes, Lord Matthias.”

“Why has my daughter become like this.”

He added with a questioning look.

“Find out if five-year-old children are usually… like this.”

As soon as they heard his words, more than ten subordinates prostrated themselves.

When ten men with fierce looks knelt on the floor, the sight was truly spectacular.

However, Matthias muttered languidly as if he was used to the sight.

“Get up. And if there’s anyone who’s having a bad influence on my daughter…”

They rose to deal with the evil and wicked things around Sien.

“Bring them alive before me. And… Delphia Mirmode.”

The person who had received Sien’s letter, which even Matthias had rarely received.

Matthias gritted his teeth.

Complex thoughts like ‘How dare that lowly person receive a letter from my precious daughter’ crossed his mind.

In the cold and quiet atmosphere, Matthias muttered quietly.

“I heard that person swore allegiance to Sien.”

Recently, Matthias attacked a strategic point in Delphia’s territory. Expecting to have a hard time as Delphia was quite a formidable opponent. However, Delphia Mirmode fell too easily.

As if it was planned to fall into Matthias’s hands.

It was an anticipated, but uncomfortable victory.

One person who knew this fact carefully opened his mouth.

“Yes, that’s right.”

“When everything is over, bring her alive too.”

…I should have a conversation with Delphia soon.

It seemed certain that Delphia was also a person of concern who was having a bad influence on Sien.

She even dared to give Sien a goblin as a gift, so she was harmful in herself.

***

Meanwhile, the next morning.

Inside the temple.

Ted, who had fallen asleep right after returning from the tea party yesterday, headed to the training ground. It was to fulfill the official training schedule for the holy knights.

But today, the atmosphere at the training ground was a bit strange.

The few holy knights gathered in place kept glancing at Ted.

Moreover, their faces were flushed red.

In summary, they looked a bit excited.

‘What’s going on?’

But training came first.

When Ted finished all the duels and sheathed his sword, the group of holy knights who had been gathered together approached Ted as if they had been waiting.

“Hey, Ted!”

“Congratulations!”

“What…”

Suddenly receiving congratulations.

“Your brother is really amazing!”

“Huh? What do you…”

Even sudden praise for his brother.

He hadn’t said he had a brother. Of course, he didn’t intend to hide it, but he didn’t intend to openly reveal it either.

The holy knights tilted their heads at the bewildered Ted.

“Huh? Ted, didn’t you know?”

“Your brother came to the temple yesterday!”

“Really, I heard he has an incredible ability!”

Finally, the details of the incident began to unfold for Ted.

When the priest saw his face turn pale, Ted carefully asked.

“…Did Acid come to the temple?”

Ted’s face was filled with confusion.

The other holy knights also shrugged with confused expressions.

“Yeah! Don’t tell me you didn’t hear?”

“Yes, I was at a tea party that day…”

“A tea party… Ah, with Sister Gabrielle?”

“Yes.”

The holy knight made an expression as if he understood.

“I heard the Mirmode family asked you to stay, but I wondered why you ignored that and went to a tea party.”

“That’s a tea party you don’t have to go to… Sister Gabrielle must have specially requested it?”

“Still, your brother came, shouldn’t you have been at the temple rather than at a tea party?”

Gabrielle didn’t say a single word about Acid to him. She looked anxious throughout the tea party yesterday.

The puzzle was slowly coming together.

Ted clenched his fist.

“…”

Living as a holy knight, he had been quite sensitive. He thought he could discern others’ goodwill or hostility.

But he didn’t expect Gabrielle, who was barely ten years old, to act this cunningly.

He didn’t expect that he wouldn’t be able to meet his precious younger brother Acid, who had finally gathered the courage to come see him.

“Hey, Ted, Ted!”

“Where are you going, buddy!”

Ted started running hurriedly without even saying goodbye to the holy knights.

It seemed he needed to go find Sister Gabrielle.

***

Gabrielle was staying in her room.

She seemed to brighten up when she heard that Ted had come to see her.

“Ah, Ted. What’s the matter?”

“…I’ve come to see you, Sister.”

She pointed to the table and smiled brightly at Ted.

That smile, which would have looked lovely under normal circumstances, didn’t feel good to Ted.

“Sister, I heard my brother came to visit yesterday. Did you know about that in advance?”

At Ted’s straightforward words, Gabrielle’s expression became puzzled.

But soon she set her lips firmly as if she had decided something.

“Ah, yes. Acid, was it?”

“…Yes.”

“I knew. But escorting me is more important than that brother. Of course, that brother…”

An inevitably greedy smile spread across Gabrielle’s lips.

“I heard he’s quite an incredible talent.”

“…”

“That child, it would be good if he could serve me along with Ted.”

Ted’s gaze towards Gabrielle turned cold.

However, even at this moment, Gabrielle didn’t seem to think at all that Ted was angry.

She just stared at Ted with an innocent-looking face, as if she thought Ted would naturally accept her proposal.

Now it was time to point out.

Sister Gabrielle, your attitude is wrong.

And now he will declare that it’s time to leave the temple and serve Sien.

“What do you think, Ted? About protecting me together with Acid?”

It was quite an abominable thing to say for a young girl who had manipulated it so that Ted and Acid couldn’t meet.

With one word from Gabrielle, Ted and Acid’s relationship once again drew parallel lines.

Because the situation became that he stood up his younger brother who had courageously come to visit him despite being hurt.

And now she changes her attitude like this after knowing that Acid has healing abilities?

How can a young girl be so heartless and cunning?

Ted momentarily couldn’t suppress his anger and gritted his teeth.