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chapter 43
“Right, right—our Riri is a little villain. And this one’s the bad snake.”
When Caesar comforted his sulking daughter, Resa turned to him and asked,
“Wouldn’t it be better if we joined the auction? They said it’ll be one of the auction items.”
“That is the most straightforward approach.”
“But it’s strange. Even if it’s a black market auction, how could a holy relic end up there?”
Seran, who had been quietly listening to his parents’ conversation, pointed out a valid question.
“It’s probably sealed—its power, I mean. Like the Sword of Dawn.”
“Indeed.”
“That makes sense, magically speaking.”
Those were Illei, Seran, and Yuri’s comments, one after another.
If the Book of Revelation had also lost its light, it could easily appear as an ordinary item to the average person.
“To enter a black market auction, we’ll need fake identities. I’ll take care of that,” Caesar said.
“And we’ll need clothes that look just refined enough—but still a bit sinister. I’ll handle that part,” added Resa.
After the duke and duchess finished speaking, Seran raised his hand on behalf of his siblings.
“Yes, Seran?”
“We probably won’t be able to participate this time.”
“Ah, that’s right—you said you were opening trade with the Magic Tower.”
“Yes. And we still need to find a suitable merchant to act as the public face in Ersioni’s place. So about that…”
As Seran explained what help he needed, Caesar nodded.
“I’ll assign you an aide. You’ll learn quite a bit from this field.”
“Thank you, Father.”
“Never forget that we’re always behind you.”
Resa smiled warmly and patted the heads of all three brothers in turn.
At that moment, Lirian, who had been waiting for a chance, suddenly pushed her head forward.
“Me too!”
“Of course, our Riri too.”
Their affectionate mother-daughter moment brought smiles to everyone’s faces.
Illei stood a little apart, watching them.
He thought it was only natural—this was a family matter, after all, and he didn’t belong to it.
“Baaaaan.”
“Illei.”
The mother and daughter, looking exactly alike, turned toward him at the same time, making him flinch.
“What are you doing over there? Come here.”
“Oh, no, I—”
“Baaaan!”
“…Lirian, why are you saying that out loud?”
“I’m urging you.”
Lirian came running with tiny thudding steps and grabbed Illei’s wrist.
“Come on!”
Illei had no choice but to take one step, then another, toward the Ersioni family.
When he reached them, Resa handed him a snack.
“Here you go, Illei. Since you’re the youngest, this one’s yours.”
Receiving the same snack as the other three siblings, Illei’s ears instantly turned red.
“Wow! I have a younger brother now!”
“…Be quiet, will you?”
“Snack…? Yaaawn.”
Half-asleep, Jeril rubbed his eyes, but when he saw the snack, his eyes lit up.
“Tiny one! Let’s see who can chew a hundred times before swallowing!”
“Yay! I’ll win!”
“Kids, eat slowly so you don’t get a stomachache.”
“I want coffee.”
“……”
Illei was at a loss for words as he watched the duke’s children, each with their own quirks. Then Lirian dragged him off again.
“Illei! Let’s play together.”
“What? Play what?”
“Oh, the youngest brother’s joining too? No mercy!”
“No mercy!”
“Jeril, I told you not to talk like that—Lirian copies you.”
Illei glanced around the noisy room, a sense of nostalgia washing over him.
It was just like the lively days he had spent in Ersioni before the regression—those six months of warmth and chaos.
Memories that had faded with time came back to life, and before he knew it, a small smile crept onto his lips.
“Fine. Try it—if you can win.”
“Gasp!”
“He’s a villain!”
Lirian’s cheerful chatter filled the air.
Laughter echoed as the children giggled and squealed.
Sweet pastries, soft cakes, favorite drinks, and steaming tea completed the cozy scene.
While Illei was talking with Seran about business, Lirian secretly moved the raisins from her cookie onto his plate.
“Hey! Brother, the tiny one’s picking out raisins!”
“Ah, no! I didn’t!”
When Lirian tried to deny it, Illei gave her a look of disbelief.
“Then what’s this mountain of raisins supposed to be?”
“T-that’s… because the raisins wanted to go to Illei!”
“Does that even make sense?!”
“Waaah!”
Illei pulled gently on her plump cheeks, stretching them out.
Lirian flapped her short arms in distress, silently calling for help.
The three brothers watching just shook their heads in unison.
“The youngest really needs to fix her picky eating.”
“Incredible elasticity.”
“But raisins are tasty.”
Jeril popped a handful of raisins into his mouth as he spoke.
Meanwhile, Caesar, who had been watching the children, noticed Lirian didn’t protest much and decided to indulge himself a bit—
he reached over and stretched her other cheek.
“Daddy, I hate you!!!”
“Wait, why am I the bad guy all of a sudden…!”
Now he had to soothe and comfort his pouting daughter, who had turned away in dramatic offense.
