After dinner, as William and Larisa walked through the corridor hand in hand, Larisa suddenly asked:

“Is William going to become a duke?”

“Huh?”

William stopped and looked down at Larisa. She widened her eyes and stared back at him.

“Then, you’re not running away?”

“Uh…”

William knew that Larisa was quick-witted, but for some reason, it felt like he had broken a promise with her. He was flustered.

“Duke, should I or not?”

Larisa squinted her eyes.

“Why are you asking me that?”

“Well…”

William scratched his head. He had promised to open a shop with Larisa, and it felt like he had unilaterally decided to become a duke.

“If you want to, do it.”

Larisa, already talking with her mouth full, said. Sitting in front of her with their eyes locked, William spoke.

“I don’t know if I want to become a duke. But they say there are many things you can do if you become a duke.”

William honestly expressed himself.

“So, I got greedy. While thinking about what I could do if I became a duke…”

“If you want to, just do it, fool. I’m going to run away alone.”

Larisa pouted and said. In the midst of that, William became curious.

“Wait, I understand for me, but why do you want to run away?”

“I don’t want to marry you.”

Even though he thought it was a natural thing, William was shocked once again.

“I want to be rich, but I don’t want to be a noble.”
Larisa delivered the final blow to the petrified William, who had stiffened like a stone.

“I’m not sleeping with you anymore.”

Larisa pushed away William’s hand and walked alone to her room.

A well-behaved child suddenly acting up can leave one feeling empty. That’s what William thought.

“Did you two have a fight?”

Siod, who noticed the subtly changed atmosphere, asked. While William hesitated, Larisa cheerfully replied.

“No!”

“Really?”

It wasn’t a fight, but William came to realize that there was no one trustworthy in this world. Smiling, Larisa urged Siod.

“Teacher, what are we studying today?”

Now that it was the weekend and William had come, Larisa didn’t run to hug him. She didn’t come to his room at night, saying she was scared alone.

“How about learning dining etiquette today?”

“Yes, sounds good!”

William watched Larisa practicing dining etiquette with a disappointed expression, holding a playset for role-playing.

“She said she didn’t want to become a noble, but she’s diligently learning etiquette.”

What thoughts were going on in that small head? Upon reflection, Larisa had never once said she didn’t like something in front of the adults.

Was it really okay to just agree with everything?

On the other hand, Larisa’s mind was also complicated.

“I thought he was on my side!”

Thinking that William might become a duke made him feel less close, just like before.
Before, it was easy to approach William as he seemed lonely, but now, William had become the precious son of Guinevere Rodante, unreachable in a high place.

After class, Larisa returned to her room, and lying alone on a bed that seemed too high and large for her small body, she pondered.

“How should I live?”

Larisa was alone in this world. She had been alone since her mother passed away, but William had treated her so kindly that she had momentarily deluded herself.

Thinking about it, she didn’t know why she felt so close. Larisa, who grew up in the slums, had never easily relied on or expected things from others.

But here, she had opened her heart too easily to William, who seemed so lonely. As Larisa turned her head in confusion, Daisy, who came out of the bathroom, spoke.

“Miss, it’s time for your bath now.”

After becoming a maid, Daisy faithfully performed her duties every day. Bath preparation and grooming were part of her tasks, and she considered raising Larisa into an excellent noble lady as her responsibility.

Larisa asked with a sulky face, “Why do I have to bathe every day, Unni?”

“Oh? Noble young ladies bathe every day.”

“I’m not a noble lady.”
Larisa was completely fed up. Larisa, born in the slums, had taken a bath for the first time after coming here. Since Daisy became her maid, she bathed every day.

“I don’t want to bathe today…”

“But today is lavender flower day?”

“I don’t like lavender flowers.”

“Oh my, what should I do? I prepared so diligently.”

Daisy made a pitiful expression. Kind Larisa usually listened well when spoken to this way.

This time, too, Larisa sighed deeply and entered the bathwater without much choice. As Daisy created lots of foam in Larisa’s pink hair, she asked,

“Why are you so sulky today?”

“It’s hard.”

“…Is the class very difficult?”

“No.”

Young Larisa couldn’t fully understand her emotions yet, but just the idea of life changing brought a vague sense of fear. She doubted her ability to do well, especially becoming a proper noble was even more uncertain.

“Daisy unni, will William become a splendid duke?”

“Yes, he will become a very excellent person.”

“I don’t like an excellent duke.”

Daisy spoke with an awkward tone, “Oh my, why are you like this today?”

“I also don’t like when unni uses honorifics.”