SRHNVW 10

chapter 10

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  Even though she’s a nanny, she doesn’t seem very close to Miss Artea…

Was that what the butler said?

My mind was tangled, but even now, there was no telling what kind of accident might happen because of the problem with the magical device.

‘I have no choice.’

In the end, I made a decision.

“Artea, do you want to go see Uncle?”

Ever since that guy moved next door, I had a feeling a day like this would come. Damn it.

“Yeah!”

Artea quickly nodded, then made a “oops” face, but despite her embarrassment, she didn’t take back her words.

No matter what, she must want to see Erios.

So, finally, the meeting of the three of us—Artea, Erios, and me—was set.

“You don’t seem very close to Artea, Nanny.”

I lowered my voice and whispered only to Erios.

Even in this urgent situation, I felt he should know.

“It’s not the nanny’s fault.”

Artea’s first nanny had died in the carriage accident involving her sister.

The second nanny left because of sudden health issues.

The current nanny had only been there a few months—it was the third.

‘No wonder the child feels uneasy.’

“She was the one Artea seemed to like most among the new hires.”

Still, even with the third nanny, Artea hadn’t opened up.

Erios guessed that since the people around her kept leaving, Artea might have become reluctant to get close to anyone.

“So, the nanny hasn’t done anything wrong, right?”
“She was the one most suspected when Artea disappeared this time.”

The butler had implied it was because the nanny was inexperienced.

Erios, however, seemed to suggest that both were innocent.

I’d have to go back and talk with the nanny and the maid.

“Bellona, focus on your work for now. I’ll take care of Artea.”
“I’m sorry.”
“You only just took on Artea. You have your own duties too.”

I knew that, but I couldn’t help feeling heavy-hearted.

Erios, silently watching me, hesitated for a moment, then gently placed his hand on my shoulder and whispered:

“You know too, right? That focusing on solving the problem and returning to Artea is the best thing to do.”

It was lucky Erios had moved next door.

If he hadn’t been here, Artea would have been crying alone among people she couldn’t rely on…

“Master, this way.”

Even when we arrived at the scene, Bellona’s mind didn’t settle.

Of course, she knew she couldn’t stay by Artea’s side 24/7.

She knew that, but… maybe because the time came sooner than expected, she wasn’t prepared.

‘I called it crazy at first. If Erios hadn’t been here, this could have been a disaster.’

At least, knowing that her uncle was there, she could leave Artea for a moment.

No, it wasn’t just about watching over her.

If Erios hadn’t grabbed her and said what he did, she might still be wracked with guilt.

“This is a huge problem! The device isn’t responding! Is it already broken? I heard ‘Rorozo’s’ magical devices were made by people worse than the tower’s official wizards… I thought the tower’s rumors were nonsense, but…”

Bellona listened to the person shouting at the device, unrelated to the actual magic, while inspecting it.

The issue was easy to identify.

“It’s a simple magical energy tangle. It will take some time, but it can be fixed easily.”
“What’s that?”
“It’s damage caused by not following the instructions.”

The energy tangle wasn’t the device’s fault—it was the user’s mistake.

“I warned multiple times not to use other magical devices nearby or cast magic… it’s in the manual too…”
“Why so complicated? You should’ve made it properly!”

The man finally seemed to remember the instructions and waved his hands, leaving in a rush.

To think the emergency was caused by user negligence, leaving Artea crying…

“….”

Wizards in the tower often spread malicious rumors about non-wizards using magical devices.

They were always looking for opportunities to bring me and my business down.

“Master, are you okay? You know so little about the device… Should I go and say something?”

I could sense the subordinate waiting for my instruction.

I didn’t want to waste energy on something unnecessary.

“There’s no time for useless things. Fix it quickly, then we return.”

I decided to focus only on the task at hand.

Bellona threw herself into repairing the device, even skipping meals.

She carefully rearranged the magical energies intertwined in the device and infused new energy where it had been damaged.

“You really are a master.”

Despite warnings from those around her that she was overdoing it, she kept working.

Even though fixing tangled energy took a lot of time, she managed to solve it sooner than expected.

“Put that customer on ‘Rorozo’s’ blacklist from now on.”
“Yes!”
“Normal magic wouldn’t tangle the energy like this. If mishandled, it could cause not just a broken device, but a major accident. I doubt warnings will help.”

Once the task was finished, Bellona thought of Artea again.

Was she crying again?

Was she still waiting for Bellona to return?

“Artea…”

The heavy feeling of leaving a crying child behind lingered.

Even when arriving at the mansion, Bellona hesitated to enter.

When she finally stepped inside:

“Auntie, you’re back?”

Surprisingly, Artea wasn’t crying.

She even smiled brightly.

“I thought you’d cry!”
“Uh… yeah.”
“It’s okay! Just leave! I can be brave!”

Her eyes were puffy and red, but she spoke boldly.

Yet, her smile, not a tantrum, made it harder to look away…

“……”

I struggled to look away and gestured to Erios, asking what had happened.

Erios only blinked, making no big gestures.

“Artea took a short nap. She seems to feel better now.”
“That’s right, I’m okay!”

In truth, she wasn’t really okay.

Artea just felt embarrassed.

‘I can’t act like a baby anymore!’

Five years old is still a baby, but six years old means she’s grown up.

She hated behaving like a baby.

She feared her aunt might dislike her if she did.

‘I’m grown up now, six years old!’

Even living with her uncle hadn’t helped, and she couldn’t do it just because she moved in with her aunt.

“Auntie, can I help? You must be tired! Should I massage your shoulders?”
“No, it’s okay.”
“I’m strong!”
“Really, it’s fine!”

Even if the small child tried, it would only tire out two people.

Bellona wanted to tell Artea she didn’t need to worry about her, but instead, Artea seemed sullen.

“Artea?”
“Yes! I’m glad you weren’t tired!”

Then, turning around, Artea let tears fall.

She kept thinking about what she had said earlier: that she couldn’t come along because she was too young…

‘I guess I’m not needed by Auntie.’

She wanted to be someone her aunt needed.

Otherwise, she might be abandoned.

‘I’m still a baby!’

Sniffle.

Tears kept falling.

Artea wiped them with her tiny hands, pretending she hadn’t cried.

She wanted to act like nothing happened, but her red eyes betrayed her.

‘Why am I still not an adult?’

Looking back, even telling her uncle not to leave—without realizing it—was childish.

Her pride had been deeply hurt.

‘I won’t forgive you again!’

…Or so she thought.

• U-uncle… don’t go… Waaah…

She actually said that.

A classic example of a stubborn, annoying child.

After sleeping, she had tried to avoid being separated from her uncle, reassuring herself that it was okay because her aunt was there…

But when her aunt had to leave for work, her heart sank, and she cried again.

• Artea, do you want to go see Uncle?

So she nodded.

Even though she had run away once, refusing to live with her uncle…

‘Acting fickle is childish. No one will like it. Now he must really dislike me.’

But it was strange.

Even though she said she didn’t want to live with him, then said don’t go, then said she disliked him, still… he stayed by her side.

‘If I ran away, I’d be happy to be away from you! I found you annoying! …That’s what I thought I’d say.’

Yet her uncle didn’t seem to hate her.

According to what people had said, he would want Artea gone, but he didn’t.