“Lisianthus Duchess?”

Hearing Derek’s words, Casis showed a surprised expression for the first time. His beautiful blue irises, like glass beads, sparkled.

‘Hmm.’

Noticing his younger brother’s interest, Derek instantly became smug. The boy puffed out his round belly and continued speaking proudly.

“Yeah! It’s totally amazing, right?”

“Indeed.”

Casis readily agreed.

Among the three boys of the marquis family, the Lisianthus ducal family was quite an interesting topic. It was because of their mother, Hazel.

Casis recalled the night when he and his brothers had huddled together to sleep with their mother.

“Mom, Mom. I can’t sleep. Can’t you tell us an interesting story?”

“Elder brother Allen, be quiet. You’ll chase away what little sleep we have.”

“Hmph! How can sleep run away if I wasn’t sleepy to begin with? Casis, are you stupid?”

“The stupid one is you, elder brother.”

The marchioness sighed at the squabble between the second and third sons.

She reluctantly began her story.

“Well then, I’ll tell you about the most interesting person I’ve ever met.”

“Wow! Who is it?”

“The Duchess of Lisianthus.”

“Ooooh!”

Even for the marquis’ children, the story of the kingdom’s only ducal family was quite fascinating.

The marchioness told her sons about how the duchess, before her marriage, had decorated the entire debutante ball venue with star-shaped candies. And how fantastically beautiful it was.

Derek, with a flushed face, grabbed his mother’s finger.

“Does she have children too?”

“…She did.”

“And now?”

“Now she doesn’t. They died.”

The marchioness’ light brown eyes filled with sadness. Seeing this head-on, Casis felt a fresh shock.

It was rare for his always aristocratic mother to show such overt sadness.

“As you know, the Lisianthus ducal family has no heir now.”

Casis, who had been observing his mother’s face, carefully asked.

“What if the duchess’ child had lived?”

“She would have become the duchy’s only young lady.”

“Young lady!”

The word ‘young lady’ sounded cool, and Allen clenched his chubby fist and shouted.

“I want to be a young lady too!”

“Allen, you idiot. How can you be a young lady when you’re a boy?”

“Why? I want to be a young lady!”

“Then, are you going to wear a dress with lots of lace like a girl? If you do, I won’t play with you anymore.”

“Elder brother, you’re so mean!”

Allen puffed up his cheeks, then soon stuck out his red tongue with a mischievous expression.

“Take this!”

“Allen, you…!”

“Both of you, stop it.”

The marchioness commanded in a stern tone at her immature sons’ childish fight.

“It’s time to sleep now. If you fight anymore, I’ll send you back to your rooms right away.”

“Tch.”

“Hmph.”

Derek and Allen glared at each other before turning away abruptly.

However, both boys wanted to sleep with their mother tonight.

After that, the boys who had been fidgeting with their eyes closed fell into a deep sleep one by one, and the story of that day seemed to fade away like that.

However, after that day, the story of the ‘young lady who might have lived’ that the marchioness had told often became a topic of conversation among the three boys.

This was because all the boys had met the Duke of Lisianthus before.

A big, scary-looking adult man.

The ruler of the south.

The kingdom’s only duke, Your Grace.

“The duke’s daughter, I’m so curious.”

Derek said to Casis, who was lost in thought.

Casis frowned at having his reminiscence interrupted. He stroked his softly spreading silver hair and retorted.

“But Mother said the young lady died. It’s strange for her to suddenly appear.”

“Why? There could have been more than one young lady.”

“That’s…”

Casis, who was about to say it was still strange, soon realized that Derek’s words made quite a bit of sense.

Even the Marquis Hyacinth family had three sons. It wouldn’t be strange if the duke had one more daughter.

Derek’s brown eyes sparkled.

“I wonder what she looks like?”

“Who knows.”

Casis replied in a gruff tone. He added.

“If she takes after the duke, she’d probably be a girl much taller and scarier-looking than us.”

“Woah…”

Derek gaped, seemingly spreading his wings of imagination according to Casis’ words. The gap where his canine tooth was missing was black.

“A girl who looks like the duke… Hmm… She might be scary…”

An image of the young lady formed in Derek’s mind.

Hair as black as jet. Blood-red irises.

A physique far larger than her peers and a fierce expression. A blunt personality to boot.

“Ugh?”

Wait, wait, this is too scary.

Derek shuddered.

Casis looked at his elder brother with disdainful eyes and asked.

“How old is she?”

“I don’t know!”

“What do you know, elder brother?”

“What? Is that how you talk to your elder brother!”

“Acting like an elder brother when there’s only a three-year difference.”

Casis grinned.

Unable to hold back, Derek pinched his annoying younger brother’s cheek.

“Wha are you doing? Let go. (What are you doing? Let go.)”

“Mom said that originally, elder brothers have the right to educate their younger siblings.”

“It’s not ‘right’, it’s ‘duty’. Are you tongue-stupid? (It’s not ‘right’, it’s ‘duty’. Are you stupid, elder brother?)”

Having said that much, Casis waved his short arms in annoyance.

However, for children under ten, even a one-year difference is quite large.

For seven-year-old Casis, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t match the strength of ten-year-old Derek.

“Let go alweady! (Let go already!)”

“Don’t wanna. Nyeh nyeh.”

“Ah, weally! Stop! (Ah, really! Stop!)”

What saved Casis from his predicament was the marquis family’s maid passing through the corridor with her arms full of blankets.

“Oh my, Young Master Derek!”

“Eek…! Anna!”

Derek, who had been teasing Casis, let go with a guilty expression. Casis irritably rubbed his red, swollen cheeks.

“Young master, were you bullying Young Master Casis again?”

“Bu-bullying? I was just playing with my bored-looking younger brother, that’s all.”

“That’s a lie, Anna.”

Casis quickly interjected.

“Look at my cheek. It’s like this because elder brother pinched me.”

“Oh my.”

Anna rushed to Casis in surprise.

“Oh dear. He must have pinched hard. It’s very red.”

“Right? So hurry and tell elder brother to go to his room.”

“What? No! It’s too boring to be alone in my room!”

Derek cried out with an aggrieved face.

However, Anna knelt in front of Derek with a smiling face.

“Young Master Derek.”

“Y-yes?”

There’s pressure emanating from that smiling face.

Derek broke out in a cold sweat.

“The marchioness told me to make sure you absolutely do not come out. So let’s go back to your room with me now. Understood?”

“C-can’t I just stay here?”

“No, you can’t.”

“Ugh…”

In the end, Derek trudged back to his room, held by Anna’s hand.

Even as he walked, he kept looking back at Casis several times, clearly full of lingering attachment.

Casis picked up the book he had been reading with a relieved expression.

“Finally, some peace and quiet.”

Rustle.

The page turned.

Casis, who had been quietly touching the paper after closing the door, suddenly looked out the window and muttered.

“I wonder what she looks like…”

Although he pretended not to be very interested in front of Derek, he was still an inevitable child after all.

A carriage bearing the crest of the Lisianthus ducal family glided to a stop in front of the marquis’ mansion.

Due to the social gathering, several carriages from various families were lined up in front of the Hyacinth marquis’ mansion, but among them, the duke’s seal was particularly eye-catching.

“Let me assist you in alighting, Lady Hilton.”

“Ah, thank you.”

One of the knights guarding the marquis’ door extended his hand.

A slender white hand emerged from the carriage. Next came flowing golden hair.

“Thank you.”

“It was merely my duty.”

The middle-aged knight looked pleased at the noble young lady’s polite greeting.

“Bonita, come this way.”

“Yes.”

A small voice was heard from inside the carriage. The knight’s eyes widened as he looked at Aria.

“Oof.”

Good heavens.

The knight reflexively covered his mouth when he saw Bonita in Aria’s arms.

Bonita’s round, gentle eyes blinked. The little girl, who looked like a baby rabbit, stared at him for a moment before saying,

“Hello, mister.”

“Ah, ah. Hello, young miss.”

The knight responded half a beat late, thanks to being somewhat dazed.

But… but!

‘She’s so cute!’

The knight, who was also a father of a family, originally liked children. Especially a little girl who reminded him of his own ten-year-old daughter at home.

He grinned broadly and waved at Bonita.

“I hope you have a fun time today, little miss.”

“…Yes!”

So cute!

Her polite responses were adorably perfect.

The knight followed Bonita with lingering eyes as she toddled along, holding the noble lady’s hand.

However, that knight didn’t know.

What the tiny girl he was watching with fond eyes was saying right now.

“Mother.”

“Yes?”

“That mister seems to have had something good happen to him.”

“You’re right. What do you think it might be, Bonita?”

Aria asked with expectation.

In her mind, she imagined cute answers a child might give.

Like getting candy, or liking children, or some other cute and adorable response.

However, Bonita gave an answer completely different from Aria’s expectations.

“I think he received a bonus.”

“…Huh?”

U-um?

Aria’s brain stopped.

As she blinked in bewilderment, Bonita said with a serious face.

“Mother always looked very happy whenever she received something called a bonus. She would buy meat every time. So I like bonuses.”

“I-I see.”

Aria replied in a subtle tone.

The corners of her mouth twitched awkwardly.

It was fortunate that Bonita couldn’t see her expression.

“Do you like bonuses too, Mom?”

However, at this direct hit that followed, Aria thought with a dazed expression.

‘I should be careful what I say in front of Bonita.’

Children, indeed, learned so quickly.