On the way back after saving Marion the nanny from the curse.
We became close contacts of the red pox.
As a result, we were to be isolated in a separate residence to prevent infecting everyone, including Father, my older brother, and sister.
After leaving Marionโs mansion, some time passed, and the Grand Dukeโs estate came into view. I spoke to Sara, who was seated next to me.
โSara, thatโs the house where Luria and the others live.โ
โHow splendid.โ
โIndeed. And over there, thatโs the birdhouse.โ
โBird?โ
โYes. Iโll show you something fun, so watch.โ
I opened the carriage window and looked outside. A stronger wind blew in, which felt refreshing.
As if keeping watch over the carriage, the usual flock of birds soared in the sky above.
I stuck my arm out of the carriage and shouted loudly, โLittle ones, come hereeeeee!โ
The reason I called the little ones was that the big ones were heavy, and it would be difficult to bring them into the carriage.
โTweet tweet,โ โChirp chirp,โ โChuu chuu.โ
Immediately, three sparrows flew over to my arm and perched on it.
โThank you, sparrows.โ
โTweet-tweet.โ
I brought the sparrows inside the carriage and showed them to Sara.
โSee?โ
โAmazing! Lady Luria, are you friends with the birds?โ
โYes, friends. You should try petting them too, Sara.โ
Sara gently petted the sparrows perched on my arm.
โSo cute.โ
โChirp chirp.โ
โTheyโre adorable. Hehe, hehe.โ
Sara smiled brightly.
After she had her fill of petting them, I let the sparrows back outside.
โThanks. Luria will be staying at the lakeside villa for a while, so be good and wait, alright?โ
โTweet-tweet.โ
The sparrows tilted their heads a few times before flying off energetically.
At that moment, the carriage was traveling through the forest surrounding the Grand Dukeโs estate.
As always, the forest seemed full of signs of animals.
โMother, what kind of animals are in the forest?โ
โWell, we donโt see many animals, but there might be small ones like squirrels or rabbits.โ
โHmmm. But I feel like there are signs of much bigger creatures. What do you think, Sara?โ
โI donโt know. Butโฆ maybe?โ
โYeah. Iโm sure there are.โ
Iโd like to explore the forest someday.
Iโm already five years old. I think Father and Mother should start allowing me to explore the woods soon.
While I was lost in thought, the carriage passed by the Grand Dukeโs estate and continued on.
โMother, what kind of place is the villa?โ
โThis will be Luriaโs first time there as well.โ
โWell, todayโs also the first time Iโve been outside the estate.โ
โThen it might be fun. The villa is a place where we take summer holidays.โ
According to Mother, it was a building located near the royal capital, closest to the main residence among the Grand Dukeโs properties, except for the central mansion.
It was a relatively small house by the lakeside, about an hour away from the usual mansion by a four-horse carriage.
Both my older brother and sister had stayed there for a few weeks in the height of summer when they were younger.
โItโs been years since I last visited the lakeside villa.โ
โMother, has it been a long time for you too?โ
โYes, it has. Well, His Majesty was also planning to visit this summer, so it works out well.โ
โHis Majesty? You mean Grandfather?โ
โThatโs right.โ
I hadnโt known that His Majesty, my grandfather the King, was planning to visit the lakeside villa.
โWill you check if the building is damaged or anything?โ
โThe caretaker handles that properly, but just in case.โ
Mother must not have visited the villa for several years because she couldnโt take me outside before.
It must have been a favorite summer retreat for my siblings.
โIโm looking forward to it. I hope we can all come together from now on.โ
โYes, that would be nice.โ
โNext time, Marion should come along too, right, Sara?โ
โโฆYeah.โ
Sara still seemed uneasy.
She was likely worried about the new house, whether we had avoided catching the red pox, and most of all, about Marion.
โSara, when we arrive at the villa, you should write a letter to Marion. Iโll teach you how to write it!โ
โOkay.โ
โOh my, Luria, can you really teach her properly?โ
โOf course! Oh, Sara, swimming in the lake will definitely be fun.โ
โYeah, it sounds fun.โ
โLuria, you canโt go swimming by yourselves, itโs dangerous.โ
โItโs fine! I know that!โ
I kept talking about fun things so Sara wouldnโt feel uneasy.
Even Carro sat on Saraโs lap to help ease her worries.
After traveling for a while in the carriage, the lake came into view.
โSara, Luria, look, the lake is visible. Itโs beautiful.โ
โWow!โ
โYeah, itโs so pretty.โ
The lake was indeed beautiful, but I sensed something a bit strange.
โThereโsโฆ something mysterious about it.โ
โOh? Perhaps youโre sensing the presence of the lakeโs guardian.โ
โGuardian? Whatโs that?โ
โWell, thereโs an old tale about a great guardian that lives in this lake.โ
โWow, itโd be nice if it were true, donโt you think, Sara?โ
โYeah.โ
If it really exists, that would be exciting. But I didnโt feel the presence of such a guardian.
Rather, it seemed like there were fewer spirits here compared to the area around the Grand Dukeโs mansion.
Maybe the strange feeling was because, despite the lake being beautiful and surrounded by nature, the lack of spirits felt unusual.
โOh, by the way, Sara, do you like swimming?โ
โIโve never swum before.โ
โIโll teach you, so donโt worry.โ
When I said that, Mother spoke in an exasperated tone.
โLuria, youโve never swum in a lake either, have you?โ
โI havenโt, butโฆ Iโve been practicing.โ
โOh, thatโs impressive.โ
โI practiced in the bathtub.โ
Whether or not I could swim might one day make the difference between life and death.
Thatโs why Iโd been practicing splashing around in the bathtub.
The maids always complimented me, saying, โYouโre so good at this.โ
โCarro, Iโm good at swimming, arenโt I?โ
โKyuu~.โ
Carro, who always watched my bathtub swimming practice, agreed that I was skilled.
โโฆPracticing in the bathtub isnโt very ladylike, so you shouldnโt do it too often, okay?โ
โI understand, but thereโs nowhere else to practice.โ
โThatโs trueโฆ though a lady doesnโt really need to know how to swim.โ
โThatโs not true. Drowning doesnโt discriminate between boys and girls.โ
If only boys drowned, there would be no need to practice. But thatโs not the case.
Girls can drown too, which means itโs necessary to know how to swim.
โWellโฆ thatโs true.โ
โThatโs why Iโll keep practicing swimming.โ
โBut, Luria, itโs still spring, so the water will be cold.โ
โCold?โ
Cold water would be a problemโit might make me catch a cold.
โYou should wait until itโs much hotter to swim in the lake.โ
โOkay. Thatโs a shame for you, Sara.โ
โYeah.โ
As we passed by a few small villages, the Grand Dukeโs villa came into view.
It was about two sizes smaller than the mansion I live in.
On the roof of the villa, the usual birds had already perched.
As Sara and I got out of the carriage, holding hands, the birds flew down to greet us.
โHoho!โ
โPeep peep!โ
โCoo coo!โ
โAh, the owls have come tooโthank you!โ
โThese birds are your friends too, Lady Luria?โ
โYes, Sara, you should pet them too.โ
โHoho.โ
โTheyโre so fluffy and cute.โ
The birds seemed pleased to be petted by Sara.
โUsually, thereโs also a chicken named Koruko, but weโll see him when we get to the house.โ
Unlike the dove Daru, who came along on his own, the chicken Koruko stayed behind to guard the house.
โKoruko! I want to meet him too!โ
โYes, Koruko is very cute.โ
While Sara and I played with the birds, Mother was discussing security arrangements for the villa with the attendants.
Feeling bored, I explored the nearby area with Sara, Daru, and Carro.
โDonโt wander too far, okay? There might be dangerous animals in the forest.โ
โOkay. We wonโt go far.โ
Not wanting to get scolded, we stayed near the carriage.
The villa and the large lake were surrounded by a vast forest.
โBut there donโt seem to be many animals around here, do you think, Sara?โ
โYeah.โ
This forest was much bigger than the one near the mansion, yet it felt like there were fewer animals here.
โIf there are any, maybe theyโre just squirrels? Do you think there are prairie dogs?โ
โKyuu.โ
As we walked around the carriage chatting, I found a stick.
โHey, look at this cool stick!โ
It was about the same height as me, with just the right curve to make it look stylish.
โCool?โ
โYes, itโs cool here, donโt you think?โ
Sara tilted her head curiously.
โCome on, donโt you think so?โ
I waved the stick around, trying to show off how cool it was.
โOh, I see. Itโs cool!โ
It didnโt seem like she really understood its coolness yet.
But eventually, she would surely get it.
โLuria, Sara, letโs go inside now.โ
โOkay!โ
โAlright.โ
Together with Daru and Carro, Sara and I entered the villa.