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Chapter 14
It was only then that I realized what was going on, and Baron pouted, rolling his eyes.
“I-I didn’t say anything at all back then. I wasn’t even allowed to speak.”
“…Ah.”
So that could be it. I let out an involuntary sigh of pity.
Still, not reading the room and lacking manners were two different things.
And if I kept indulging him with overly forgiving thoughts like “he’s my precious child,” Baron would grow up into a handsome delinquent.
And the person in front of us was not lower than us in status—if anything, he was higher.
I had no verified identity, and Baron was an orphan.
Which meant if that man got angry at Baron’s rudeness, things would become extremely troublesome.
Before the situation escalated, I needed to correct Baron’s behavior and make him apologize.
“Baron, I know this might be hard to understand, but I’m trying to raise you properly. You understand, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Good. Then from now on, let’s speak politely to adults we’re meeting for the first time, okay?”
“You didn’t say anything about me speaking casually to you, sister.”
“I’m fine, but our new neighbor might not be. He could be offended if someone suddenly speaks to him informally.”
“No, he’ll be fine.”
“You don’t get to decide how other people feel. Baron, how would you feel if someone arbitrarily decided your feelings for you?”
“Excuse me?”
That immediate reply made the corner of my mouth twitch.
At the same time, I was reminded—deep in my bones—that Baron was truly nobility.
“See? You don’t like it either. Other people are the same.”
“Then I’ll just ask him.”
Baron lifted his chin proudly and called out to Raven.
“Raven, does it bother you that I speak casually? Like my sister said, should I speak politely?”
“Eek! I told you not to do that!”
Startled by his shameless tone, I quickly crouched down and pulled Baron tightly into my arms.
His mouth was muffled, and though he tried to resist by placing his hands on my arm, he quickly went still.
Cold sweat ran down my back. I hurriedly glanced at Raven and apologized.
“I-I’m really sorry! I’ll teach him properly!”
Raven cleared his throat a few times and smiled kindly.
“No, it’s fine. I don’t mind at all, so please let the young gentleman speak casually if he wishes.”
“…Huh?”
“In fact, I liked him at first glance, and hearing him speak casually makes him feel more friendly, so I’m quite happy.”
“…Eh?”
“I rather like bold and handsome children, so truly, please don’t worry about it.”
“……”
I carefully studied Raven’s expression. He genuinely didn’t look offended at all.
“Ah, and please don’t say anything to the young gentleman while you’re holding him so tightly.”
Only then did I realize I was still hugging Baron tightly.
“Oh, sorry. That must’ve made it hard to breathe.”
I quickly let him go. The moment I did, Baron staggered back several steps and covered his face with his arms.
“See? I-I told you, right?”
His entire face—and even his ears—were bright red. He must really have been struggling to breathe.
“Yeah. You’re right.”
Feeling awkward, I scratched the back of my neck and nodded.
We got away with it this time, but it was only luck. If Raven had been a bad-tempered person, things would have gone terribly wrong.
And speaking casually to an adult you just met really was rude.
I took Baron’s hand and introduced ourselves properly.
“I’m Hailey. This is Baron. Thank you for being understanding. We hope your construction goes smoothly. We’ll see you again.”
“Yes, Baron-nim, Hailey-nim. I look forward to seeing you again.”
His manners were extremely proper.
But something about it still felt odd.
Was he someone who naturally spoke politely to everyone, even children? “Baron-nim” and “Hailey-nim,” really?
“We’re much younger, so please just call us Hailey and Baron casually.”
He quickly waved his hands.
“Oh, no, no. I prefer speaking this way regardless of age.”
“Then I’ll also call you Raven-nim.”
“I’m used to it, but there’s no need for you to do the same, Hailey-nim. Raven, or Mr. Raven, is fine and more natural. Please feel comfortable. Now then, I must return to overseeing the construction.”
Raven politely excused himself and went back to where he had been.
“He speaks casually when others speak casually to him, but insists on using honorifics himself… and keeps trying to lower himself while raising others…”
I muttered to myself, tilting my head, then asked Baron,
“He’s a strange but kind person, right?”
Baron grinned.
“Yeah. I think we’ve got a good neighbor.”
“Yeah, I think so too.”
Nodding, I took Baron inside and set our things down.
“Take a break, Baron. I just remembered something I need to check.”
“Huh? Where are you going?”
“The government office.”
“Why?”
“Raven said he bought this land, right? I want to check whether the land we’re living on also belongs to someone.”
“Oh, right. You said this wasn’t originally where you lived.”
Baron said casually,
“Why not just ask Raven instead of going to the office?”
“Huh?”
“If he bought the land, he might know exactly who owns what.”
“…No, that would be a bother.”
“He seems like a good neighbor. He’ll probably answer right away.”
Baron strode out the door.
Then his voice rang out loudly.
“Raven!”
Startled, I rushed outside.
Baron was waving his hand and beckoning Raven with his fingers.
Hey, you little—
Raven had turned toward us. He had been talking with someone who looked like a construction supervisor while holding blueprints.
“Baron! You can’t call people like that!”
“Why not? Raven said to treat him comfortably.”
“I said you can speak casually, not that you can call him like that whenever you want!”
“You can’t treat adults like they’re neighborhood dogs!”
My heart was pounding with panic.
But then Baron pointed.
“He’s already coming.”
And he was right.
Raven had handed the blueprints back and was hurrying—no, running—toward us.
That made me suspicious.
“Is he just well-built but foolish? Or overly naive?”
But then I shook the thought away.
“No, but he’s a merchant, right? If he were foolish, he’d lose money. How could a merchant survive like that?”
While I was thinking this, Raven arrived and politely bent down to match Baron’s eye level.
“Yes, Baron-nim. What is it?”
There wasn’t even a hint of displeasure in his eyes.
At this point, I was starting to think Raven might be either extremely naive—or just unusually fond of children.
“When you bought the land, did you see who owns the land we’re living on?”
“Ah. I know.”
Raven stood up and looked around.
“This is Snoril territory, but the sea belongs to the Empire, so this entire area is state land.”
He gestured as he explained.
“The mountain beside us and the stream behind us are also included.”
A question naturally came up.
“Can you buy state land?”
“More precisely, you buy usage rights. I purchased the usage rights for the portion I developed.”
He explained that usage rights were recorded under names, while unused land was simply marked as state land.
In other words, the land we were living on was entirely state land.
A sudden worry rose in me.
“Then… should we move out?”
“No.”
Raven immediately shook his head and smiled at our hut.
“I only purchased usage rights because I needed to build properly. Anyone can live on state land without reporting it. You just have to move if someone later buys usage rights. Nobles don’t strictly regulate it—it’s not realistic to control everything. Most people living like this are those who live day by day without identity verification…”
He trailed off.
His eyes suddenly widened as he looked at me.
“Wait a moment. Forgive me, but… you wouldn’t happen to lack identity verification, would you…?”
* * *
My heart was pounding.
A strange smell of smoke and herbs mixed in the air. It was hot and suffocating, making it hard to breathe.
“Princess! Please open your eyes! You’ll die like this!”
At someone’s urgent shout, I snapped my eyes open.
A lavish interior was being swallowed by flames, and I was crouched down in fear.
Instinctively, I looked around quickly.
An escape route—where is it? There must be a secret passage!
“Hurry! This way!”
A woman in knight’s uniform pushed a burning cabinet with her bare hands.
Even though the flames touched her face, she didn’t even cry out in pain—everything felt unreal.
Soon, a passage behind the cabinet was revealed. I forced my trembling legs to move toward it.
In that moment, I saw a mirror on the wall.
A beautiful girl with platinum-blonde hair, blue eyes, and a pale, delicate face—she looked about mid-teens, wearing an elegant dress.
As I followed the woman pulling me, I stumbled through the dark passage.
Distant shouting echoed behind me.
“We must evacuate everyone!”
“What about the king and queen?”
“They’re dead! We still haven’t found the princess!”
“Then keep searching!”
“We can’t! The place is about to collapse! We must retreat—agh!”
