Marionโs house was small but old and magnificent.
It had no extravagant atmosphere at all, but was simple and sturdy in construction.
As soon as the carriage arrived, about twenty birds landed on the roof of the mansion.
They were the owls who always played in the courtyard. I felt reassured by their presence.
โCarro, itโs best if you stay hidden in my pocket.โ
โKyukkyu.โ
โStay hidden until we play with Sara, okay?โ
โKyuu.โ
Carro is more reliable than Daru, so I feel at ease.
As I spoke to Carro, my mother smiled gently and watched us.
When we got off the carriage, Marionโs husband, the Baron himself, came out to greet us.
Leaving one servant and a maid behind in the carriage, we were guided by the Baron into the mansion.
Four of the Dukeโs household attendants who had been assigned as our guards followed us into the Baronโs house.
In order to carry out the treatment for Marion secretly, we had to avoid the attendantsโ eyes.
It was probably the biggest obstacle to the treatment.
We were led into the reception room, where we introduced ourselves to each other.
Upon entering the reception room, I took off my hood and let my hair show.
โโฆNo, Miss Luria, you truly are lovely.โ
The Baron briefly reacted to my red hair and eyes, but he didnโt say anything.
He must have heard the legends about the wicked woman who brought disaster.
โThank you. Baron. Is Sara not here?โ
I immediately asked the Baron.
In the reception room the Baron showed us into, there were only a few servants besides the Baron, and no children were present.
โLuria has been saying for a while that she wants to meet Sara.โ
When my mother said this, the Baron showed a troubled expression.
โHowever, Sara is still very young, and her manners areโฆ wellโฆโ
โPlease donโt worry. She is Marionโs child. I consider her family.โ
โIโm flattered by your wordsโฆ butโฆ as you might know, Sara is not the kind of person who could meet Her Highnessโฆโ
โI told you not to worry,โ my mother replied with a smile, though there was a certain commanding force in her tone.
โSuch gracious words!โ
In response to my motherโs words, the Baron exaggeratedly expressed his gratitude and told a servant to call for Sara.
After a while, Sara arrived in the reception room, dressed in a beautiful outfit.
She was small and had something resembling dog ears on her head.
There was also a tight tail under her skirt.
Sara might be a beastkin. It was the first time I had met one in this world.
Neither Marion nor the Baron were beastkin, which meant that perhaps her grandparents or even further back were beastkin.
As I stared at her tail and ears, Sara anxiously grabbed her ears with her hands to hide them.
โโฆโฆโ
โSara, introduce yourself.โ
โSaraโฆ desu.โ
โPut your hands properly in front of you.โ
โY-yes.โ
Sara let go of her ears and moved her hands to the front of her body, then bowed her head.
โIโm Luria. Nice to meet you.โ
โโฆโฆโ
Sara looked troubled and bowed her head again.
โSara, greet her properly.โ
โIโm sorry. I must have spoiled her too muchโฆ she hasnโt learned proper mannersโฆโ
โNo, no. Donโt worry about it. Sara, Iโm Amalia, your motherโs friend.โ
โโฆโฆโ
Sara again bowed deeply.
My mother bent down gently and held Saraโs hand.
โSara, if you have any troubles, you can tell me, okay? I think I can help.โ
โโฆโฆ Yes.โ
The Baron, from an angle where my mother couldnโt see, waved his hand at Sara.
Seeing this, Sara bowed her head once more and ran out of the room.
โโฆI am truly embarrassed. My daughterโs education has been neglected because of her motherโs illnessโฆโ
โNo, no. Sheโs adorable. A good child.โ
โIโm flattered by your words.โ
The Baron, looking quite apologetic, answered my motherโs questions about Marionโs condition seriously.
We quietly listened for about three minutes, but it was mostly information I had already heard from the bird guardians.
I had to find a way to leave this place and head to Marionโs treatment.
As I was thinking this, my mother suddenly smiled at me.
โHm?โ
โReally, Luria, youโre hopeless.โ
โHuh?โ
I was a little confused when my mother smiled at me.
โYou must be bored by the adult conversation. You look so sleepy.โ
โIโm not sleepy!โ
I wasnโt sleepy at all, but it seemed like my mother misunderstood.
โIt might have been a bit hard for you to follow the adult conversation, huh?โ
โChildren are like that.โ
The Baron smiled cheerfully.
โOh, thatโs right. Go play with Sara. Baron, would that be alright?โ
โWell, butโฆ my daughterโโ
For some reason, the Baron hesitated.
Iโm sure my mother noticed the hesitation, but she showed no sign of caring.
She spoke firmly, unlike the usual considerate way sheโd speak to us or the servants.
โAh, donโt worry about it. You, the one standing there. Take Luria to Saraโs room.โ
โYour Highness, please waitโโ
โMy, Baron! Really, donโt worry about it!โ
My motherโs pressure is unusually strong.
The Baron, being from a marquis family and the consort of the Grand Duchess, is unable to respond to my motherโs strong words.
โLuria still lacks manners. Children, you seeโฆโ
My mother continues without letting the Baron speak. He looks perplexed but can only smile vaguely, unable to interrupt her words.
While speaking, my mother briefly falls silent and smiles at the maid.
โPlease hurry and take Luria to Saraโs room.โ
Seeing my motherโs smile directed at the maid, I couldnโt help but mutter in my mind, โThatโs scary.โ
Her pressure was that intense.
It was different from the smile she usually gives me.
(This isโฆ the pressure of royaltyโฆ)
There was a force that made subordinates instinctively want to comply. My mother was not born into royalty but married into it. Even so, could she exert this much pressure?
I looked at my mother with respect.
โUnderstood.โ
Under my motherโs pressure, the maid started moving without waiting for the Baronโs orders.
โYour Highness, thatโโ
โChildren are such cute things, arenโt they, Baronโโ
The Baron tried to say something, but my mother didnโt let him finish.
(โฆThis is socializing.)
This may be the first time Iโve seen the social face of a Grand Duchess outside.
There might be things my mother doesnโt want me to hear. Since I probably wouldnโt understand them anyway, and if my mother doesnโt want me to hear them, I donโt need to.
Besides, itโs convenient to be separated from my mother now.
After all, whatโs important right now is Marionโs treatment.
Iโll make use of this opportunity.
I followed the maid out of the room.
โWhich way is Marionโs separate room?โ
โAh, yes. Itโs in that direction, but please be careful as there is an infectious disease going aroundโฆโ
โMm. I understand.โ
As long as I know the direction, I can manage. If itโs just one maid, I might be able to shake her off.
After all, Iโve been training in swordsmanship every day, so Iโm physically fit.
While I was thinking this and looking around,
โRest assured, Lady Luria. We are providing proper protection.โ
One of the Dukeโs servants, who had been following us, spoke to me from behind.
I hadnโt sensed his presence at all. Terrifying.
โYou donโt need to follow me, right?โ
โThatโs not possible. My job is to protect you, young lady.โ
He said in an unyielding tone, with a full smile.
Among the four servants who entered the mansion, only one followed me, which was a stroke of luck.
Still, even if itโs just one, he is an elite bodyguard, so shaking him off wonโt be easy.
It canโt be helped. Iโll have the servant wait outside Saraโs room.
After walking a little further, the maid stopped.
โWhatโs wrong?โ
โPlease wait here, young lady.โ
The maid walked toward a room at the end of the hallway.
I listened closely toward the room.
Actually, I have a special skill where, when I concentrate, I can hear better.
By the way, when I concentrate, my vision improves too.
Itโs similar to when I used body-enhancing magic in my past life.
However, since I donโt feel like Iโm using magic, it must just be a skill, not magic.
And since itโs a skill and not magic, I believe it wouldnโt affect my height.
Using this skill, I tried to hear what was going on in the room, and I could hear the voice of an adult woman cursing.
โYou shameful thing!โ
โโฆโ
โSomeone like you, from the Baronโs familyโโ
The voice of the woman scolding sounded loud.
โโฆThatโs ominous.โ
I muttered quietly enough so the maid couldnโt hear.
โExcuse me!โ
The maid called loudly to the room.
โWhat is going on?โ
โThe Dukeโs daughter, Lady Luria, has arrived.โ
โโฆโ
The door opened, and a woman dressed like a nobleโs wife stepped out.
She glared at me as she looked me up and down.
โHow troublesome. โฆUnlucky.โ
She said mockingly, hiding her mouth with a fan.
The womanโs stomach was bulging.
She must have been about seven months pregnant.
She was probably the Baronโs sister or cousin, who had returned to her family after becoming pregnant.
I ignored her.
I wouldnโt introduce myself to someone who called me unlucky.
โTo not even introduce yourself, how rude.โ
Itโs proper to speak first to someone older.
That woman couldnโt speak to me first, as Iโm the Dukeโs daughter.
So, she whispered behind my back, thinking I was just a five-year-old child.
โMaybe a rude and unlucky daughter like you would be well-suited to that gloomy and foolish Sara.โ
My father must have kept me away from the mansion to protect me from such gossip.
โYou think I canโt hear you? Whatโs your name?โ
โHuh?โ
The woman let out a dumbfounded voice. She hadnโt expected to be questioned by a child.
I was angry.
I didnโt care about the insults directed at me.
No, actually, itโs not that I donโt care, but I absolutely cannot ignore the insults directed at Sara.
I donโt know Sara very well, but I owe her a debt of gratitude for sharing her motherโs milk with me.
โHa? Not โha.โ Whatโs your name? I must report it to my father.โ
โHuh?โ
The woman looked bewildered, probably not expecting to be questioned.
โMy lady, thereโs no need to ask. Iโll make sure to properly investigate the name myself.โ
โYeah, please do.โ
โAh, excuse me.โ
Flustered, the woman hurriedly left, trying to hide her face with a fan.
Itโs too late now to try hiding her face. The Dukeโs servants saw her.
In no time, all her information would be exposed.
โI apologize. Please wait outside.โ
โWhy, what for?โ
โSara was being bullied. She might be crying.โ
The servant who accompanied me today has undergone special training.
They use sensory-enhancing magic, so they must have heard the woman bullying Sara.
โโฆUnderstood. However, please keep the door open so I can respond quickly if anything happens.โ
That was the servantโs greatest concession, as their job was to protect me.
โGot it. Keep an eye out for any women or others approaching.โ
โUnderstood.โ
I asked the servant to keep the maidens away, then quietly entered Saraโs room, leaving the door open.