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Chapter 12
“Open a bank account for a child?”
After verifying Baron’s identity through a few procedures, the bank clerk took the money from me and created an account.
Soon, a passbook—folded and tied together from a sheet of paper—was placed into Baron’s hands.
Baron tilted his head in confusion.
“Why did you make this?”
“Because thanks to you, I can go night foraging at sea. So a portion of what I earn belongs to you.”
“Eh?”
I left the bank with a bright smile.
“From now on, every time I earn money, I’m going to save a portion in your name.”
Baron only grew more confused.
“Why? You’re the one raising me, aren’t you?”
“Even so, you should still save little by little. That way you can go to the academy later and things like that.”
Baron’s eyes wavered.
“Ah… the academy?”
“Yeah. You’ll go to school, study, and make friends.”
“I don’t need that kind of thing.”
“Oh come on, why not?”
I gently patted his head.
“You’re smart, so you’d do well at the academy. And you’re good-looking too, so you’ll be popular.”
“Popular?”
“Yeah. When you get a bit older, you’ll probably have lots of girlfriends too.”
“I don’t need a girlfriend. I like you, sister.”
He said it so seriously that I couldn’t help but laugh.
“That’s because you’re still a kid.”
Baron frowned, but I continued without minding it.
“Let’s save money and send you to the academy. If you study hard and graduate, you’ll be able to do a lot more. You’re strong too—you could become a knight, or even reclaim your noble title by earning merit.”
A faint breath escaped Baron’s lips.
“No… I really don’t need the academy.”
This kid clearly didn’t want to study.
“You’re just saying this because I caught Search for you, right?”
That much was obvious.
Baron handed the passbook back to me and kicked at the ground.
“If you’re really grateful, then instead of things like that…”
“Instead of things like that? Is there something you want?”
“On the way home… just for a bit, um…”
“Um?”
Baron fell silent, then shyly lowered his gaze. His face was completely red.
“…Can you carry me? And before bed… can you give me a goodnight kiss and say goodnight?”
“…Huh?”
“I-I want a goodnight kiss.”
‘Ugh!’
It was such a childish request.
So this is what they mean by heart-fluttering!
He looked so adorable that I instinctively pulled Baron into a tight hug and rubbed my cheek against his.
I couldn’t help making soft cooing sounds.
“Aww, our Baron just wanted to be carried, huh? But that’s not related to Search. The savings are savings, and your cute little carry and goodnight kiss are something I’ll always give you.”
“No, that’s not—!”
“Alright, alright.”
Before he could protest further, I crouched down and offered him my back.
Even though he was the one who asked to be carried, he hesitated awkwardly, shifting his body closer.
I grabbed him firmly and stood up in one motion.
“Aww, you’re so cute. Hold onto my neck properly.”
“Y-yeah…”
From behind, he wrapped his arms around my neck and buried his face between my shoulders. I could feel his warm breath—and the faint curve of his smile.
Even though I couldn’t see his face, I could tell he was genuinely happy. That made me happy too.
Today, I’d just buy a little bread for dinner and some seeds for the garden before heading home.
While humming as I walked home carrying Baron and finishing my errands, I spotted something strange.
There was nothing there this morning… so what is that?
On a vacant lot near our house, workers were building a structure.
The plot was quite large, and the pile of construction materials looked expensive at a glance. It seemed like someone was building a villa near us.
A man dressed in fine clothing was examining the site with what looked like a construction foreman, holding blueprints. He definitely looked like a noble.
Then he turned his head and saw me.
“…Huh?”
His eyes widened in shock, and his mouth hung open. The blueprints slipped from his hands and fell to the ground.
What’s his problem?
He rubbed his eyes several times and looked again, as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
There was no reason for him to be surprised by me… which meant it must be Baron.
“Baron, do you know him?”
“No.”
“Then why is he looking at us like that?”
“Dunno.”
Soon the man regained his composure and approached politely.
“I couldn’t help overhearing. Do you perhaps live in that nearby hut?”
“Yes. But why were you so surprised just now?”
For a moment, I thought his gaze flicked toward Baron.
“I-I thought the hut was unoccupied. I wasn’t told anything when I purchased the land… I didn’t realize there were neighbors.”
He cleared his throat and smiled.
“Nice to meet you. My name is Raven.”
“Ra-Raven?”
I studied his face carefully.
Dark blue hair, gray eyes, pale skin.
He matched the description of Raven, a major supporting character and one of the male lead Bloden’s close aides.
Wow, I actually met an important character from the novel in person! That means the male lead, Bloden, must be arriving in this city soon.
“Are you Sir Raven Aner?”
The excitement made my heart race.
The man blinked in confusion.
“Sir Aner? Do you know him?”
“Of course. He’s famous across the entire empire.”
He appears so often in the novel.
As my eyes sparkled, Raven coughed awkwardly.
“Ah… yes. Sir Raven Aner is indeed famous. However, I’m afraid you have the wrong person. It’s just a case of identical names. I’m a merchant.”
“Huh! I’m sorry!”
I hadn’t even considered the possibility of a namesake.
I quickly apologized.
“My mistake.”
“It’s alright. I look forward to getting along with you. Please just call me Raven.”
“Yes, nice to meet you, Raven.”
After exchanging greetings, I looked back at the construction site.
“You’re building a large mansion?”
“Yes. A beautiful grand residence…”
Raven nodded, but Baron cut in.
“It doesn’t look like that. It looks like it’s about the size of our hut.”
Raven nodded even more strongly.
“…That’s what most people think! But actually, the little gentleman you’re carrying is correct.”
He smiled brightly, rubbing his hands together.
“It will be about the same size as your hut. I think it’s best when neighbors have similar-sized homes.”
“What? But this land is huge… and there are so many materials.”
No matter how I looked at it, it didn’t seem like a hut-sized house at all.
But Raven just smiled as if it was nothing.
“The land includes space for a garden. I plan to build a fence, plant flowers, dig a pond, and set up a small vegetable garden. As for the materials… I may have miscalculated and bought too many.”
“I see…”
I nodded absentmindedly.
Then Baron suddenly spoke.
“Then what are you going to do with the leftover materials?”
I was shocked.
Not only was he speaking casually, but his tone was almost arrogant, like he was talking down to someone beneath him.
“Baron? Who are you talking to?”
I whispered urgently, but Baron answered loudly on purpose.
“Who else? Raven.”
Oh my goodness.
“S-sorry. He’s still a child and doesn’t know better.”
Flustered, I smiled apologetically at Raven and set Baron down. Then I lowered my voice and scolded him.
“Baron, you can’t speak casually to Mr. Raven. You have to be polite.”
“Why?”
His response made me even more flustered.
Baron tilted his head slightly, looking genuinely confused.
“Because he’s someone you just met, and he’s much older than you.”
“I’ve only ever used polite speech with my parents.”
That made me instinctively slap my forehead.
‘Right… I forgot. He’s a noble.’
I sighed.
“D-did you also speak casually to the innkeeper?”
“Huh?”
“If you did, that innkeeper probably got angry with that kind of personality…”
“…Ah.”
