Chapter 53, One More Request

Translator: Lizz

 

“By the way, there’s one more thing I wanted to ask.”

Gina brought it up.

“Actually, this request might be even more important… I want someone to train me as a lady’s maid. At this rate, I feel like I won’t be able to properly serve Lady Sylvia, a Duke’s daughter.”

Edward, who had been walking beside her, looked at Gina.

That was something Edward had been thinking about too.

Indeed, she had done well despite lacking knowledge.

But Edward himself didn’t know the proper skills of a lady’s maid either, so while she seemed competent on the surface, he couldn’t be sure it was enough.

“…The only connection I can use is in the neighboring country. Or rather, it would be through Calogero.”

He said that and made a clearly displeased face.

Gina looked at Edward with an exasperated expression.

“Are you still uncomfortable with Calogero? You’ve been working with him for over half a year now. And you’re way closer to him than I am, aren’t you?”

“Could you not use the word ‘close’?”

Edward replied with a sour expression.

Still, since Calogero held the dual roles of High Priest and butle, and Edward was both a close aide and a knight escort, they had frequent meetings. Especially regarding Sylvia’s education as a Castle Lord, which was being planned with the neighboring country in mind, Edward and Calogero inevitably had to work together and exchange opinions.

No matter how much they disliked each other, they had to endure it for Sylvia’s sake.

Edward let out a heavy sigh and then spoke to Gina.

“…I’ll consult with him and look for someone who could serve as your trainer. I was thinking it’s about time to begin Lady Sylvia’s education as a noble daughter anyway, so it’s a good opportunity to ask for an introduction.”

 

The Marquis of the neighboring country would probably wonder why they were making the request.

Officially, the reason was that the distance was too great and no suitable tutor could be found willing to come all the way here.

That was actually true.

Even if they put out a call, anyone willing to come to such a remote place probably wouldn’t be very reliable.

Besides, they were going to have more dealings with the neighboring country.

So, they planned to use the reasoning that it would be better to learn the neighboring country’s etiquette, and thus hoped to gain their support.

 

The reason it could be said with certainty that domestic relations would remain weak was because there was no route into the fortress town that passed solely through domestic territory.

The only way to reach the fortress was via the drawbridge at the rear gate. However, the drawbridge was usually raised.

The remaining option was through the neighboring country… The path the three of them hadn’t chosen at that crossroads led to a checkpoint in that country.

After passing through the checkpoint and continuing for a while, there was a bridge. Crossing it and walking along the river led to another checkpoint. From there, it connected to the bridge Sylvia had repaired.

Edward believed that this oddly carved-out fortress city must have been the result of some kind of deal between the neighboring country and the Ducal family. But for now, it had been left alone. Regardless of the circumstances, Sylvia’s position as the castle lord was unshakable.

 

Sylvia held a contract declaring her the Lord of the fortress. Moreover, it was a magical contract, making it absolutely irreversible.

If someone tried to forcibly annul it, some kind of penalty would likely be imposed. In that case, even the king wouldn’t be able to override it.

That was why she didn’t leave the fortress. No one could make her leave.

 

“-Edward?”

Gina called out, snapping Edward back to reality.

He realized he had been overthinking things just to avoid consulting Calogero, and with a renewed focus, he nodded to Gina again and told her he agreed.

 

They chatted casually as they walked, eventually arriving at Sylvia’s room.

After knocking, Gina and Edward peeked inside and saw that Sylvia was already awake.

She was thrashing around for some reason.

Gina exchanged a glance with Edward.

“What’s the matter, Lady Sylvia?”,

she asked, and Sylvia turned to them.

“I was exercising”,

she replied with a straight face.

“‘Exercising’?”,

the two of them echoed in unison.

Just as they wondered why she was suddenly doing that, Sylvia answered seriously.

“Both Gina and Edward can ride horses. But I can’t. I want to learn. I don’t want to ride Mr. Pig.”

Gina and Edward nearly burst out laughing.

 

-Previously, Sylvia had seen Gina and Edward riding horses and said she wanted to ride too.

They let her ride with them, but Sylvia insisted she wanted to ride on her own.

When they told her it was too dangerous, a pig stepped forward. It seemed to say, ‘Ride me’.

…She managed to ride it, and the pig looked quite pleased. Everyone else nodded in agreement that Sylvia riding the pig was adorable, but Sylvia herself didn’t seem satisfied.

“That’s why I’m exercising. I’ll exercise a lot so I can ride a horse.”

Gina strongly objected to Sylvia’s statement.

“If you say that, you’ll make Mr. Pig sad! Mr. Pig looked very pleased to carry you, and for Mr. Pig’s sake, you should ride it again!”

“Ugh”, Sylvia faltered.

 

Sylvia was seven years old. But she was small and slender, so she could easily ride a pig.

They had been feeding her plenty, yet for some reason she never gained weight, and her growth was slow.

As Sylvia pouted and fidgeted, Edward gently reasoned with her.

“Exercise is important, and eating well is too. But given your age and build, horses are still too dangerous. It’ll take a few more years. Until then, please keep practicing with the pig. I’m sure the horse is looking forward to the day you can ride it, and the pig would be honored to help you train.”

Convinced by Edward’s words, Sylvia nodded enthusiastically.

“Okay! Then I’ll keep practicing with Mr. Pig a little longer.”

“That sounds like a good plan.”

Edward nodded with a smile.

He also thought Sylvia looked adorable riding the pig, so he hoped she would keep doing it a bit longer.