This time, the game we were going to play was dice rolling, where the outcome is determined solely by luck, with no advantage or disadvantage for anyone.

“Six! Six! Six! Six! It came out! Six!”

“No way. This is invalid. The dice fell off. Roll it again.”

“There’s no such thing!”

But the two were so invested in this game, as if their lives depended on it, and they couldn’t stand it if their piece fell even slightly behind.

Meanwhile, I, who had consecutively thrown high numbers, surpassed those two boys and reached the finish line.

I was in first place. Since the winner had emerged, the game was clearly over.

It should be over.

“Please, six…”

“Please…”

The game was over only for me. They abandoned the out-of-reach first place and aimed for second place.

Roger’s piece was closest to second place, with six spaces left to the finish line. As if this was something important, Roger even started praying.

“I’m rolling it!”

The dice in Roger’s hand rolled. Yurik and Roger poured all their focus on the spinning dice.

After rolling for a while, the dice stopped… It was a six.

“…It’s second place! I’m second!”

“…”

Roger rejoiced noticeably and laughed brightly. With an expression as if he had saved the country, Roger placed his piece on the finish line. He reveled in this victory.

Until Yurik flipped the game board.

“What are you doing!”

“Let’s play another game.”

“Hmph, you’re in a bad mood because you lost? Fine. Shall we make another wish for the other game too? Huh?”

We played many games.

Ball playing, card games, word guessing games, etc. Strangely enough, I won all of them, but no one remembered the first place winner. The competition for second place was always fierce.

Yurik and Roger gritted their teeth at each other and tried their hardest to become second. Then when the final outcome was determined, the loser would be dejected, and the winner would secretly clench their fists in joy.

…I was the winner of all the games. No one remembered that.

* * *

“I can’t do this anymore. Let’s stop here for today. Let’s call it a draw, okay?”

I was tired.

Unlike me, who was slouching on the sofa, Roger and Yurik were grinding their teeth.

“Play another game!”

“Fine, bring it on.”

Monsters.

As a result of the games, their win rates were exactly half and half. The two seemed determined to play every game that exists in this world until a final winner was decided.

“Let’s wrap it up now. We can always play games again next time.”

At my words, the two boys put on a serious expression.

“No.”

“No way, Lize.”

“Yeah, I thought so. Then I’ll use one of my wishes here. Stop playing games right now and let’s prepare the chessboard before the Duke arrives.”

At the mention of a wish, the two flinched. I felt sorry for Roger and Yurik, but I had absolutely no intention of playing any more games. Not even a little bit.

The two just stared at the messy table as the game truly ended.

“Hurry up. Roger, clean up the table with me, and Yurik, go get the chessboard.”

“…”

“…”

The two reluctantly got up from their seats.

Finally, when they were about to move to do their respective tasks, Yurik, who was supposed to get the chessboard, stopped after taking a few steps towards the stairs. He glanced at me and Roger once.

“What’s wrong? Yurik.”

When I asked, thinking he might have something to say, Yurik approached the sofa again.

“I forgot where it is.”

“What?”

“The chessboard, I mean.”

“…?”

Lie.

That’s a hundred percent lie.

Even I, from the Marsen family, knew where the chessboard was located in the Penton mansion.

The chessboard is in the small study at the far right end of this floor.

But he doesn’t know where it is?

I couldn’t hide my bewilderment as I looked at Yurik, who sat back down with a brazen face. In the meantime, Roger, who had quickly cleaned up the table, also sat on the sofa.

“…”

“…”

“…”

The three of us maintained silence without a word.

“By the way, Duke Penton is late, isn’t he? It’s almost time for him to arrive.”

I casually brought up the topic first.

“He might have gone to watch the chess tournament being held in the capital. Today is Baron Kito’s first preliminary match.”

“Really? I didn’t know!”

“Father might bring back the game record.”

The preliminary rounds have already started!

“But that Baron Kito person. He’s not a suspicious person, is he?”

Roger asked, narrowing his eyes. At the same time, Yurik’s expression hardened.

“What do you mean?”

“No matter how talented Lize says he is, suddenly offering to teach chess? And he’s a child of the Marsen family. It’s well known that the relationship between the Penton family and the Marsen family is bad. Isn’t it natural to be suspicious?”

“Baron Kito is our father’s old friend.”

“That’s what’s suspicious.”

Roger displayed his characteristically sensitive personality. The relationship between the two, which was already precarious, gradually crossed the line due to the conversation.

“Who are you to say that? I don’t remember inviting you.”

“Lize Marsen asked me to come along.”

“Then erase your suspicion about Baron Kito. He is also someone who teaches Lize.”

“I came along in the first place because he’s suspicious.”

Why are they bickering?

“Stop it. Roger, Yurik. Let’s all get along well, okay?”

I spoke nicely, but the hostile atmosphere didn’t dissipate.

“Lize. Who is this kid? Can I kick him out?”

“Hah, sorry, but Lize can’t kick me out.”

My head spun at Yurik’s question. The gazes of the two boys were fixed on me.

“Lize.”

“Lize.”

Any answer would be troublesome. At times like this when it’s so troublesome…

“I think it’s better if I go get the chessboard. It’s in the study, right? I’ll bring it!”

Avoidance is the best strategy!

“The study door is locked right now, Lize.”

“Then… it must be somewhere else, right? I’ll just go look for it! Don’t worry. I won’t rummage through the rooms!”

I moved faster than ever before. After climbing the stairs, I leisurely searched the rooms.

I found Yurik’s room with the door wide open. Sadly, the chessboard was neatly placed on the desk in that room.

I found it much sooner than I thought. I entered the room, mumbling to myself.

As I slyly examined Yurik’s desk, there were three books borrowed from the library and one doll.

It was a bear doll that suited Yurik’s taste. Despite its cute appearance, it was quite worn out, so the seams of the doll’s body were clumsily twisted in several places. It seemed like there were multiple failed attempts to tie the seams.

‘Should I sew it for him?’

After pondering, I thought I’d have some time anyway, so I picked up a needle. I had experience sewing clothes by myself several times because I wasn’t used to the maid’s touch.

How much did I sew in my previous life? Starting from socks to underwear, school uniforms, and regular t-shirts. There was hardly any clothing I hadn’t sewn.

As I skillfully sewed Yurik’s doll, I felt proud at first, but then regret washed over me. What if Yurik gets angry because I touched his belongings without permission?

Come to think of it, it was strange. Yurik could have asked the maid to sew this doll for him. But instead of asking, he did it himself.

“I should have thought about it.”

It was too late for regrets. In the end, I tore a sheet of paper from the notebook on the desk.

[Sorry for touching it without permission. If you don’t like the way I sewed it, I’ll try to find the same one. I’m really, really sorry. – Lize Marsen -]

This should do, right?

In the meantime, I wonder if Yurik and Roger have become a bit friendlier?

I heard that men usually grow up while fighting. Now that they’ve fought to some extent, it’s time for them to become friends. With a light heart, I came out of the room.

“Damn it!”

“Let go?!”

I heard a noisy sound from the entrance. As I headed towards the stairs at the unsettling sound, the sight of two men fighting and exchanging blows came into view.

Roger and Yurik, whose faces had turned red, not knowing when they started fighting, were grabbing each other’s collars. It was so intense that even the maids working there hurriedly tried to stop them.

“…Gasp.”

This is big, big trouble.

“What on earth are you doing?!”

I quickly put down the chessboard and ran to the two of them. Roger and Yurik gritted their teeth and stretched out their arms to hit each other at least one more time.

“Stop it! I said stop!”

I squeezed myself between Roger and Yurik. Even though they were young boys, men are still men, and their strength was no joke. At this rate, innocent me was about to get hit.

“Lize, move!”

“Stand back, Lize!”

I absolutely can’t stand back.

I stuck my body in between them and spread my arms out to the sides. As soon as their bodies were separated, the maids nearby grabbed Roger and Yurik’s arms. Fortunately, we succeeded in separating the two.

“Let go! That guy insulted Baron Kito!”

“Insult! I just asked a question! Because there’s not a single person to trust in this world!”

“Not a single person to trust in this world? Then why did you follow Lize?”

“Lize is… Lize is different!”

Even when separated, those mouths wouldn’t stop. Both of my ears were numb from the two of them just shouting with their faces bright red.

“I don’t know what the disagreement is about, but let’s resolve it through conversation. It could be a misunderstanding.”

“Hmph, if it could be resolved through conversation with him, it wouldn’t have come to this. Lize.”

It’s not something to brag about! Roger.

I elbowed Roger’s abdomen while smiling, but I might have hit him quite hard because a groan escaped Roger’s mouth. Roger suddenly sat down with a thud.

“Roger?”

Was I too harsh? I quickly approached Roger to check if he was injured. In contrast to my frantic gestures, Yurik called me carefully from behind. But I didn’t respond due to the urgency of the situation.

“Are you okay? Roger?”

When I was about to lift his shirt to see if there were any bruises, Roger’s groans also stopped. Feeling something was off, I raised my head and saw Roger’s brazen face. He tricked me!

“…Lize.”

“…”

I heard Yurik’s voice from behind. This time, I really made Yurik angry.

I unknowingly gulped once.

“I’ll ask you.”

“…”

“Me or him?”

What kind of question is this?

– Screech.

That’s when it happened. The sound of wheels that would save me was heard. In less than a few seconds, Duke Penton appeared through the opening door.

“D-Duke.”

“Oh? Lize? Are you here to play?”

“Yes…”

“Perfect timing! There’s something I wanted to show you… Huh? There’s also someone I haven’t seen before.”

“…Ah, he’s my friend. His name is Roger Bakus.”

I introduced Roger on his behalf.

“Bakus? That sounds familiar. Is he from the Bakus family of the organist Reginald, by any chance?”

“He’s Roger’s uncle.”

“Then the tenor Rick Bakus is…”

“That’s Roger’s father…”

“What a coincidence! I went to Rick Bakus’ concert a few days ago, and it was very impressive!”

The Duke repeated exactly what Duchess Penton had said earlier, without a single word out of place.

Duke Penton seemed quite delighted to talk about the Bakus family, so he went on and on.

“They are all outstanding artists. People with exceptional efforts and talents to showcase their art.”

“Y-Yes, that’s right.”

“Ah, but where did my wife go…”

Duke Penton, who was continuing the conversation, belatedly turned his gaze and looked at his son. He immediately stiffened his expression upon seeing Yurik’s injured face.

“Yurik! What happened to your face?”

“…It’s nothing.”

“Nothing, my foot! Whose fist made my son’s face like that? Huh?!”

Yurik shifted his gaze to Roger. Duke Penton, who unwittingly followed that gaze, had his mouth open wide.

“W-What is this?”

“I tried to stop them, but…”

As I stammered in embarrassment, another commotion was heard from outside. It was Duchess Penton and Yune, who had gone to the market.

“Oh my, you’re here, dear? But… did something happen? Why is the atmosphere like this?”

“Looks like someone fought!”

The Duchess and Yune immediately sensed the tense atmosphere.