“Huh. You want to tame a monster.”
What on earth was his daughter talking about?
Duke Speda inspected what Luciana was holding as she made her report, even feeling dumbfounded.
“I have lived to see all manner of things. Your brother said he wanted to raise a bear when he was young, but you have surpassed even him.”
Not that he was one to speak, given his own fondness for falconry.
The problem this time, however, was that the animal in question was a monster.
-Whiiine.
Duke Speda’s eyes sharpened.
It was still young, but that silvery mane, so like Luciana’s eyes, clearly belonged not to an ordinary wolf but to a Diawolf, one of the Three Great Monsters of the North.
“I merely thought that taming a monster and having it kill other monsters would be an excellent way to preserve the glory of my coming-of-age ceremony forever.”
His daughter’s words sounded plausible at first.
But still.
Anyone who saw her tenderly stroking the Diawolf’s head would never think she had brought it here for that reason.
“Lucy. If that creature harms the residents in any way, I will not spare it.”
A monster’s wildness and hostility toward humans were on an entirely different level from those of ordinary wild animals.
It might look like a small, adorable puppy now, but it could become another nuisance in the future.
“I understand. If that happens, I will take its life myself, so do not worry.”
However, Duke Speda caught the faint tremor that flickered in the blue eyes that otherwise looked so cold.
It was an emotion of hesitation that only family could notice.
“As if you would.”
“…Please trust me.”
As the duke, he could not leave a monster, an unpredictable danger, within the castle.
But his position as her father was different.
If he killed the monster his daughter had brought home after completing her coming-of-age ceremony so successfully, she would surely be deeply disappointed.
It was a pup that could not even walk properly yet. It would be all right to watch it for a little while.
That was the compromise.
The father’s heart had weighed more heavily in his decision, but as duke, he still gave a stern warning before rising from his seat.
“Remember this. If you cannot do it, I will kill it.”
“Are you granting me permission?”
“Call it a coming-of-age gift. I trust that you will manage it properly.”
“Do not worry! I will give my personal attendant strict instructions and have him manage it thoroughly.”
As he watched his daughter’s face brighten noticeably, Duke Speda allowed himself a faint smile as well.
***
After the Diawolf moved into Luciana’s room, one good thing and one bad thing happened to me as her attendant.
-Whiiine.
“Hehe. Are you hungry? All right. I will bring you some milk right away.”
The good thing was that Luciana, who usually showed nothing but coldness, often revealed a relaxed expression.
Thanks to that, work became much more enjoyable when I got to admire her beautiful face.
The bad thing was… my workload had increased tremendously.
“Hans, what are you staring blankly at? Bring the milk at once.”
Cleaning up its droppings, grooming its fur, and feeding it.
I could not leave such trivial tasks to the duke’s daughter, so they naturally fell to me, her personal attendant.
“Yes, I will be right back!”
This was still not so bad. I got a cute wolf pup and beautiful Luciana to admire as my reward.
-I can see your feet. Hurry up.
-Is this not something the servants should do?
-You truly know nothing. How can an attendant who gives orders to servants fail to understand the work himself? No more complaints. Go at once!
Yegor was neither cute nor beautiful, and he only piled work onto me. Compared to that old man, this was much better.
“So, what is its name?”
“I named it Fride. It means traitor in the Old Northern Tongue.”
Why would she give her own pet a name with a meaning like that?
I looked back and forth between Luciana and the wolf in bewilderment.
“It will tear apart its own kind, so is that not a fitting name?”
“…I suppose that is true.”
So she had thought it through. I was not sure whether it was a good name, but what did a name matter?
As long as it performed well.
“So, what is next on the schedule?”
Regrettably, the life of a high-ranking noble was very busy.
Naturally, I was busy as well, since I had to manage and attend to her schedule.
“It is two in the afternoon now… A social gathering with the other young nobles will be held shortly.”
“Hm.”
She frowned as though the idea displeased her.
“It seems you are not particularly keen on it.”
“You are perceptive as well.”
With a bitter smile, she stroked her long hair.
“It is nothing much. There are simply a few people I cannot stand the sight of.”
That was unexpected. Luciana had not been particularly sociable in the original story, but she had never gone out of her way to make enemies, either.
Yet she was openly showing how much she disliked them.
“Social maneuvering is a nuisance. I do not want to watch people who could not even exchange a few moves with me in a fair duel speak arrogantly in front of me.”
It was the fate of high-ranking nobles.
She seemed to be under considerable stress from establishing her place amid the tangled interests among the various nobles.
“Then why not skip it?”
“That would be acceptable. I could use sparring with you as an excuse.”
“…On second thought, perhaps skipping it is not such a good idea.”
Luciana’s ability was far too high for sparring with ordinary soldiers. There were only three kinds of people who could cross swords with her.
The knights of House Speda, her father Duke Speda, and me.
I was a good training aid, after all. No matter which swordsmanship she used, I slipped away from it one way or another, forcing her to think up ways to break through and naturally improve.
However, I was dying from having to endure the sparring.
Mana depletion, my lack of Vitality, and the attendant duties that came afterward. I wanted to avoid sparring with her whenever possible.
“It was a joke. My father went to the trouble of arranging this gathering with the other nobles. I would not call it off as I pleased.”
“A most sensible decision.”
“You are far too visibly pleased.”
I had to mind my expression.
“Oh, it is already this late. I will show you to the drawing room.”
“Changing the subject, are you…?”
Ignoring her displeased gaze, I headed for the drawing room where the social gathering would be held.
***
Luciana looked down at her clothes.
Rare purple dye, which could be harvested only from certain monsters in the East, and diamonds said to occasionally emerge from the West’s magic-stone mines.
She had heard that this dress, which brought them together, was ideal for displaying the prestige of House Speda.
‘Uncomfortable.’
There might be aesthetic appeal in the eyes of others, but the garment severely restricted her movements.
Everything wrapped around her arms and legs felt terribly constricting.
Even so, there was only one reason she wore this dress.
It was entirely for the social gathering.
Click.
The high-heeled shoes were much the same.
Even the slightest weakness became a target for scrutiny at social gatherings. Her height, which was a little shorter than that of her peers, was no exception.
They only restricted her movements, but she had no choice but to wear them to conceal her weakness.
Her gaze suddenly fell on Hans walking ahead of her.
There was not a trace of dignity in his exceedingly light steps, but neither were there shackles called rank and responsibility.
His utterly free appearance looked distinctly different from hers, which made even walking uncomfortable because of her high-heeled shoes.
Luciana murmured without realizing it.
“I envy you.”
“Pardon? All of a sudden?”
“I was simply thinking that you are free.”
“What are you talking about? Free? I have to wake up early and do all sorts of chores. Besides, the servants and maids subtly look down on me because I am a newcomer from the West. Recently, I have been cleaning up after Fride, too…”
Hans had been speaking playfully, but he fell silent when he turned to look at her.
“Is something troubling you?”
There was a noticeably cautious air in his voice when he spoke again.
“It is nothing.”
“How can you say it is nothing with your face so stiff? Problems grow lighter when you share them. You should not carry a log by yourself. Come on, tell me.”
He was only the child of a baronial house. It was obvious that he would not be able to empathize.
Yet there was also a sense of expectation.
Just as he had during the coming-of-age ceremony, perhaps he would use his ingenuity to help her this time as well.
“If I said that I was going to skip the social gathering now, what would you do?”
“…That would be a little difficult. Yegor would definitely scold me, asking why I let my master go down the wrong path.”
Was that too much to ask?
After all, they had only found the Diawolf den by chance during the coming-of-age ceremony.
If he showed ingenuity multiple times, it would no longer be ingenuity.
“Forget it. I was only saying it, so do not give it any thought.”
Her disappointment naturally made her voice cold.
She passed Hans and headed for the drawing room. This was her house. There was no problem even without his guidance.
***
‘…She is sulking.’
Her emotions were so painfully transparent.
Even so, my mind was not about to change.
‘I am already in Yegor’s bad books.’
Since the coming-of-age ceremony, the Head Attendant had seemed to be grinding his teeth as he gave me no time to rest.
If I helped Luciana misbehave again and got caught?
-You did it before, and now you have caused trouble again. Have I not told you again and again? An attendant must sometimes stop a master who is heading down the wrong path.
I had no desire for an endless barrage of scolding, so I silently followed behind her.
-Ding.
[Quest Issued!]
[Fulfill Key NPC ‘Luciana’s’ Desire to Break Free]
[Reward: Ability to View Luciana’s Affection]
Her Affection had never once updated properly since I awakened the Status Window, apart from immediately afterward.
…Right. I had worked so hard during the coming-of-age ceremony. I should at least see how much it had changed.
Making that excuse, I whispered quietly to her as she walked farther away from me with a cold air around her.
***
“Actually, it is not as if there is no way. If you cooperate a little, it is possible to skip the social gathering without anyone noticing. Of course, it would not bring dishonor to the house, either.”
The unexpected words from behind made Luciana stop in her tracks.
“That is welcome news. Go on, tell me this method.”
“…You cannot get angry after I tell you, all right? I did not bring it up in the first place because I thought you might hate it.”
Hans fumbled something out of his pocket.
“What is that?”
“It is something I obtained from a notorious criminal in the West long ago.”
Luciana immediately understood what he intended to do with it as soon as she saw it.
“I will grant permission. But there is a problem. Can you do it properly?”
Hans grinned, living up to her expectations.
“Say it twice, and it is nagging; say it three times, and it is asking for a beating. Give me just a little information, and I am confident I can do it better than anyone.”
Even the slightest mistake would be a risky choice that could stain the family’s name.
Before Hans had come, she would never have granted permission.
However, she had already made her decision.
The joy of breaking free that she had experienced during the coming-of-age ceremony could not be satisfied with only one taste.
If she could feel that freedom once more, what did the means matter?
“Your confidence, at least, is trustworthy.”
And if it was Hans, he would surely do well.