“Overeating is not good.”

Askal flatly refused. Rublion’s lips protruded even more.

“Listen while you eat. We’re planning to go on border patrol in two days.”

Rublion’s hand, which had been chewing the steak stored in his cheeks, dropped below the table.

“… Will it take long this time too?”

“No, we’ll just check on the movements of the Eastern Empire and return.”

“Last time you said it wouldn’t take long, but it took two months.”

“That was unavoidable.”

Rublion’s mood plummeted.

“I’m sorry for leaving you alone. If you want, you can stay with Baron Tirel.”

“No.”

Rublion finished chewing the meat he was eating and swallowed. Then, with a serious expression, he asked.

“Can I bring someone else to the mansion?”

“Who are you trying to bring?”

“The auntie.”

The duke pondered for a moment before saying.

“If you want, do that. Baron Deli is also planning to go outside the border with me, so the young lady will be alone too.”

Rublion’s eyes, which had been gloomy, were now sparkling.

* * *

Seeing the exhibition hall of the duke’s residence with my own eyes made me uneasy. Even during Black Swan’s heyday, we hadn’t collected that many works, and seeing such an incomparable collection made me feel strange.

“Young lady, the baron has sent a letter.”

In my father’s letter, there was information about Tid leaving to patrol the empire’s border in two days.

It said that the Eastern Empire’s momentum was unusual, so it was unavoidable, and that only minimal personnel would be left in Artenbach while everyone else departed.

Suddenly, I became curious about whether the duke would be departing too. As a lord who also has an elite order of knights and a modern army, it would be natural, but still.

‘The little one will be left alone.’

Thinking that, I looked at Anna, who was staring blankly at me from the side.

It wasn’t time to worry about the kid. It was time to worry about myself.

‘I should stop by the bank first when dawn breaks tomorrow.’

Although it shouldn’t happen, I had a feeling that something bad might happen while my father was outside the empire. So I planned to withdraw some money from the account under my father’s name to hire mercenaries.

“Anna, go to the mercenary guild tomorrow and find out if there are any mercenaries available for long-term hire on a daily wage.”

If the border patrol also includes mercenary units, there might not be any mercenaries available to hire. That would be quite a headache in its own way.

* * *

The day my father left for outside the border.

It had been drizzling since dawn. After feeling chilly all night, I ended up with a cold.

“Young lady, you need to eat something to take medicine.”

I lay in bed, blankly staring at the ceiling. It was a heaviness I hadn’t felt in a long time.

“What time is it now?”

“Just past ten o’clock.”

“Did you go to the mercenary guild?”

“How could I leave when you’re sick?”

Anna’s voice was already wet with tears. I forced myself to sit up.

“Please eat this.”

Anna placed a bedside table in front of me and pushed forward the potato soup she had prepared.

Forcing it down despite having no appetite made me feel even worse.

“There should be cold medicine in the big shelf drawer in the living room. Can you bring it for me?”

“I’ve already brought it.”

As expected of a personal maid.

I opened the medicine bottle and poured the cold medicine into my mouth. The effect spread quickly.

“I’ll feel better after a nap. So don’t worry.”

“Yes, young lady.”

“And go to the study and bring me the power of attorney.”

Anna bowed deeply before going out. Shortly after, she returned with a paper labeled ‘power of attorney’ in her hand.

“Before going to the mercenary guild, stop by the bank and check how much money is in father’s account. With the power of attorney, you should be able to view it even if you can’t withdraw.”

“… You’re thinking about work even when you’re sick?”

If I don’t do it, no one else can.

Because the Deli barony doesn’t have a housekeeper to manage the mansion or a butler to manage the money.

“I believe you’ll do well, Anna.”

“Just trust me, young lady.”

Contrary to her answer, Anna’s eyes were full of concern for me.

After sending Anna off like that.

In the quieted room, only the sound of rain hitting the window and the crackling of firewood echoed.

The rhythm, both regular and irregular, synergized with the medicine’s effect. I kept blinking my eyes before eventually falling into a deep sleep.

How long had I been asleep?

I heard someone opening the door. In my hazy consciousness, I saw Anna fidgeting with her hands.

“You’re back?”

Seeing that my eyelids were heavier than my body, it seemed the cold symptoms had almost disappeared.

“Ah, young lady, what should we do…”

Anna stuttered. My foggy mind instantly cleared.

“Why? What happened?”

Anna bit her lips tightly like someone who had committed a crime. Then she handed me a certificate issued by the bank.

“What’s this?”

It was a certificate stating that my father’s account had been suspended, and that Deli Barony, as the guarantor of a debtor who had borrowed business funds from Artenbach Bank four years ago and was now in long-term default, also had an obligation to repay.

“… Young lady.”

Tears streamed down Anna’s face.

It was a perfect strikeout.

* * *

I couldn’t believe it, so I went to the bank myself. If there was any silver lining, it was that the account was just suspended, and if the defaulting debtor conscientiously repaid the money, we wouldn’t have to pay in their stead.

But what I had hoped for and believed in had become a pie in the sky, so I felt utterly dejected.

I walked aimlessly through the rainy streets without an umbrella. After scolding Anna, who was following behind sobbing, to go to the mercenary guild and do what I had ordered, I walked like a madwoman again.

‘What should I do now?’

Even if I make plans, will I be able to execute them?

Was my belief that things would get better now wrong?

Is selling the title to a wealthy bourgeois and giving up on Black Swan the best option?

‘… There’s no use pouring water into a broken jar.’

I resented my father.

‘What did I do so wrong?’

Along with the falling raindrops, tears filled with despair fell too. Even if I tried to grasp my trembling hand with the other, they just shook together.

I walked and walked in a trance. Is there really no one I can rely on in my life?

After walking for a long time, familiar buildings came into view. It was the entrance to the shopping district where Black Swan was located.

‘Right. The account is just suspended, not that the money has disappeared.’

There’s no benefit in lamenting my situation.

‘I may be frustrated, but I won’t give up.’

I absolutely cannot abandon Black Swan that mother left me.

I absolutely cannot hand over the title to Johnston who has given up on being human.

As I made up my mind, motivation that wasn’t there before started creeping up. If I meet the debtor and persuade them to pay at least the interest, the account suspension can be lifted.

Once the account is unfrozen, I can withdraw everything in cash and deposit it under Black Swan’s name.

‘Right. There’s always a way to live.’

I’ve lived well until now. Even when I was swindled out of ten million tiga, there was a way.

As I steeled my resolve and turned towards Black Swan, my body was heavy from being soaked, but my heart felt much lighter.

Just as I arrived at Black Swan with that lightness, I was startled and shouted.

“Kid?”

The kid, soaked in rain just like me, was crouching in front of Black Swan’s door.

“What are you doing here?”

“I came to see auntie, but the door was locked.”

The kid grinned despite looking like a drowned rat.

“If the door is locked, you should go back home. Why are you staying here like this?”

“I came by rented carriage…”

The kid shivered. I hurriedly went into the office to grab a towel and came back out.

“Let’s go inside for now. You’ll catch a cold at this rate.”

“Yes, auntie.”

The kid answered with a weak smile. Thinking about how the child must have been waiting in the pouring rain while I was walking and blaming myself, my heart ached.

Once inside the office, I lit the stove first. The kid’s lips were trembling from the cold.

I quickly lit the fire and put the kettle on. As I was about to hug the child to share body heat, I realized I was also completely wet, so I took out all the towels from the cupboard and wrapped them around the kid’s body.

“Wait here for a moment. I’ll quickly go buy some clothes for you to change into.”

“Don’t go, auntie.”

“Why? You’ll catch a cold if you stay like this.”

“You’ll catch a cold too, auntie. You’re all wet too.”

The kid weakly got up from their seat, unwrapped one of the towels I had put around them, and started wiping my face.

‘This is strange.’

It was really strange. Just until a moment ago, I felt like I was alone in this world. I clearly felt lonely with nowhere to rely on.

“If auntie gets sick, my heart hurts too.”

Why does the kid’s small voice sound so affectionate?

Why do tears keep welling up?

“It’s the same for me. If you get sick, my heart hurts too.”

“Hehe.”

What a cute laugh. So apologetic.

“I’m not cold anymore. It’s warm thanks to the stove. Auntie, come sit here too.”

I let out a big sigh and sat down next to the kid, pulling their shoulder close. Though small, they were still human, and their body temperature was quite warm.

“Auntie, father is gone.”

“I know.”

“Even if I go to the mansion… there’s no one there.”

The kid said, fidgeting with their fingers that poked out from the towel.

“You know what? I’m afraid of thunder and lightning. It always rains when father goes outside the border.”

I patted the kid’s shoulder.

“The thunder sounds just like cannons. Father is the only person I have left, and I’m afraid that sound will take him away from me.”

An emotion that would have been better not to know in a lifetime.

A kid who learned the loneliness of being left alone at such a young age.

I hugged the kid even tighter. At this moment, I wanted to be a reliable adult that the child could depend on.

“So, can’t you stay with me just until the rain stops?”

The corners of the kid’s eyes drooped down. Instead of answering, I nodded while patting their shoulder.