“Father! Look over there! Excuse me! Maiana, take a look!”

Ariante’s voice echoed loudly inside the carriage. It was such a loud voice that it might have been heard even by people far away in the capital.

“Lady, please calm down. My Lady!”

“No, look at that! Look over there! The castle is sparkling! The roof is sparkling! Look! Hurry!”

Excited, Ariante grabbed Maiana’s shoulders. Already uncomfortable in an unfamiliar dress, Maiana felt almost suffocated by the collar and ruffle decorations wrapped around her neck and shoulders.

“Gasp, Lady…”

“Quickly!”

At that moment, Cedroy swiftly pulled Ariante into his arms. As the child, startled, blinked her eyes wide open, Cedroy held her tightly, preventing her from moving, and lightly tapped her forehead with his head.

“This child, Ariante. Maiana almost suffocated because of you.”

“No, I didn’t!”

“Yes, you did.”

Ariante, who had been blinking her eyes, giggled and kicked her feet. While Cedroy, who had kicked her abdomen while struggling to get away, relaxed for a moment, Ariante slipped out deftly this time, and Maiana pulled her close.

“I can’t see!”

“Lady, calm down! Just look at that for a moment.”

Maiana’s voice was more desperate than ever, and the carriage slightly jolted at that moment. Not missing the moment when Ariante stopped struggling, Maiana quickly took out a caramel from her pocket and put it into the child’s mouth to keep her from moving.

“It’s caramel.”

Moving her small tongue, Ariante looked at Maiana with a gasp, her breath catching.

“Now, Lady. Please sit here.”

“I want to stand and see.”

“If the carriage suddenly stops, you’ll fly off through the roof like a cork. You wouldn’t want that, would you?”

When Maiana said with a pleading look, Ariante sat down obediently but with a mischievous smile.

“A cork! It’s a carriage! What’s on top of a carriage is a roof!”

“Whether it’s a cork or not, it’s still a lid. It covers the top. Now, are you calmer?”

“Yes.”

Although she answered nicely, the restless posture suggested otherwise. Maiana glanced resentfully at the splendid scenery passing outside the window.

‘Why make the garden so fancy!’

From the moment the Duke’s carriage passed through the main gate of the capital, Ariante’s excitement had already reached the point where it was about to fly to the sky.

From the moment she saw the golden decorations of the huge doors open on both sides and the immediately connected pansy garden, Ariante’s feet almost didn’t touch the ground. If we took out the time she spent hopping, she had been flying for about ten minutes.

Cedroy tried several times to calm Ariante, but even Maiana struggled to handle her. Cedroy’s expression, watching his daughter scream and whirl around the carriage, was serious, and it was clear that he was contemplating whether he should show her to the Duke right away upon arrival at the capital.

But anyway, caramel works… Cedroy thought. With his cheek bulging, he looked at Ariante, who was looking up at him with wide eyes, breathing heavily.

“Ariante, are you happy to be in the capital?”

“I’m happy!”

Before his words could finish, an immediate response came back. As Ariante raised her arms, Maiana gently touched the child’s knees again.

“Lady, when you get off the carriage, if you say you want to run through this garden from end to end, I won’t stop you at all. But please don’t stand up in the carriage. It’s really dangerous.”

“Even when it’s running so smoothly?”

“Even so. Even so, you have to be careful. Understand? Don’t stand up and run around in the carriage. Never.”

While nodding her head, Ariante, with a mischievous expression, said, “Lid! It’s a lid! What’s inside the carriage is a roof!”

“Whether it’s a lid or not, it’s still a lid. It covers the top. Now, are you calmer?”

“Yes.”
“Can I stand on the horse?”

“If you ask the horse and it agrees, then go ahead and stand up.”

“How can a horse speak like a human!”

Maiana shrugged as if to say, “Well, who knows?”

“I don’t know. The lady really wants to stand on the horse! She wants to stand up so desperately! If you think that way, instead of crying ‘heeheehee!’ you can say, ‘Lady, you can stand up. I will escort you very gently.'”

While Maiana made nonsensical remarks in a low voice, Ariante, who was amused, almost fell backward. While she supported the child’s back with a smile, Cedroy, who had clenched his fist and was biting his lips, spoke.

“That way of speaking… Where did you learn it?”

Maiana looked at Cedroy with a mischievous expression.

“There are so many boring men who talk like that.”

Ariante added, “What does ‘talking like that’ mean, Maiana?”

Asking this. Maiana, who seemed momentarily flustered, closed her mouth. Cedroy, for some reason, smiled as if he found it amusing.

“So, you have to be careful even with buttons in front of children.”

“You’ve become a master of parenting.”

“Thanks to someone who taught me well.”