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Chapter – 37
“If I didn’t accept you, that would mean I’m not accepting my brother’s efforts either.”
“……”
“My brother is a great person who can overcome any rival that appears.”
The boy’s expression, as he said this, sparkled brightly.
Just like it had back then, when he had talked about his future dreams while smiling.
“Yeah! Melony can totally win! Brother Aster will definitely beat Melony!”
“No, well… I wouldn’t say that… Haa, I don’t know.”
As Louis let out a sigh, I quietly sat down next to him again, our hips touching.
“Then, can you be Melony’s brother for real? Will Melony… accept you as a brother?”
My heart pounded.
It felt like I was just one step away from the mountain peak.
Under my sparkling gaze, Louis made a ‘Ugh’ sound and scratched the back of his head.
The ears revealed through his hair had turned bright red.
“Well… of course! Now, no matter what anyone says, you are my sister. I am your brother!”
“Kyah-!”
I immediately jumped up from my seat and started bouncing around.
Wow, wow, wow!
I’m finally being acknowledged!
Finally!
I was so excited.
It was the first time I’d had my position so firmly recognized by a member of the Duke’s family.
My heart was fluttering, and my hands and feet felt tingly.
And my chest also felt mushy and fluttery…
“I really like you, Brother! I, really really like being Brother’s sister! The best!”
After fluttering around until I was nearly feverish, I threw myself into Louis’s arms.
“…Really? I’m the best?”
“Yeah! Brother is the beeeest!”
“Even better than Grandfather or Uncle?”
Oh, a sharp question there.
After a moment’s thought, I nodded vigorously.
“…For now, Brother is number one!”
In this world, the rule of flattery is to favor those who are present over those who aren’t, right?
Yes, that’s how it is.
Luckily, my strategy seemed to work.
Louis’s cheeks were twitching uncontrollably.
“Well, I am a pretty cool brother. There’s nothing to be done about it. If you have any troubles from now on, tell me. Your number one brother will solve them for you!”
“Yeah, yeah, I’ll only rely on Brother!”
At my energetic reply, Louis burst out laughing, ‘Ha, ha, ha!’
His laughter seemed somehow relieved, and I laughed along with him.
The previously tightly shut boy’s room overflowed with laughter.
“You seem to have gotten close to Louis.”
The Duke said, feeding me a strawberry jelly.
“Mmmph, mmmphmph.”
“Talk after you’ve swallowed.”
Nod nod.
I diligently chewed and swallowed the jelly in my mouth before speaking.
“Yeth! We got clothe. He akthepted me ash hith shister.”
“That’s good. Glad to hear it.”
“Yup. It wath good!”
After accepting me as his sister, Louis from then on began to be excessively good to me.
He must have felt sorry for complaining to me, even for that short time.
‘I didn’t really mind though.’
Even though I told him it was okay, Louis didn’t believe me.
Well, whatever.
It’s good if he’s nice to me!
“Well then, is it my turn to keep my promise now?”
Promise?
What promise?
Tilting my head at the promise I couldn’t recall, the Duke answered while eating a jelly.
“Don’t remember? I said if you succeeded in becoming friends with Louis, I’d give you a congratulatory gift.”
Ah! Ah!
Right! That was it!
I finally remembered.
“Tell me when you become close. I’ll give you a congratulatory gift too.”
He’d said it offhandedly while teasing, so I naturally thought it was a joke.
My heart started pounding at the mention of a gift.
Given the situation, the ‘gift’ the Duke would give could only be that one thing.
That thing!
Exactly, that thing!
“The holy relic… ish that it?”
“…Hah.”
The Duke let out a dry laugh at my sparkling eyes.
“…You didn’t bring it up, so I thought you’d forgotten, but you’re a marshmallow with a good memory.”
“Melony ish thmart.”
“Yeah. You’re doing great, my daughter.”
Whoop.
…I was momentarily speechless at the embarrassing term of endearment.
I’d gotten used to him being called ‘Father’ now, but terms like ‘my daughter, our daughter’ still didn’t feel natural.
Heh, heheh.
As I laughed awkwardly, the Duke pinched my cheek, not too hard.
“Oww?”
“Such a silly expression.”
“Nho, thtop it!”
As I mumbled my protest with my cheek still pinched, the Duke laughed and let go.
“The contract… I should write that too. A promise is a promise, after all. Think about any conditions you want, Marshmallow.”
“Me?”
“Yeah. Usually, the person who wants something should think about such things. However-“
However?
“I’ll reject it if I don’t like the condition. I’ll keep rejecting it until I’m satisfied with it.”
…Wouldn’t it be better for him to write it himself then?
But instead of grumbling, I answered, “Okay!”
Anyway, he said he’d write the contract for me.
“Are you that happy?”
“Yeth, I’m happy. Hehe.”
I couldn’t stop grinning.
I got close to Louis, and now I get a contract too.
But the good things didn’t end there.
“So, what should I give as a congratulatory gift?”
“…Huh? Isn’t the gift the holy relic?”
“I don’t want to give that as a gift.”
With a twisted smile, the Duke rested his chin on the table and asked.
“I’ll give you a separate gift. Anything you want besides the contract?”
For a moment, something did come to mind.
‘…I want to meet that kid again.’
Calix.
The boy who saved me before the regression.
Although I had put it off due to Louis and Grandfather’s matters, I couldn’t stop him from popping into my head from time to time.
I also thought that I definitely wanted to go meet him again someday.
But asking for this as a gift…
‘Since he’s a novice priest, I’d have to go to the temple to meet him again…’
And the Pantebe Duke’s family really hates the temple, they say.
Sigh.
Groan.
Seeing me look troubled, the Duke shrugged his shoulders lightly.
“You don’t have to say it now. You can tell me later if you think of something. I won’t cheaply pretend it never happened.”
“Really?”
“Of course. Tell me when you think of what you want. Whatever it is, I’ll grant your wish.”
A large hand gently ruffled my hair.
“I told you before, you don’t need to worry about things like being considerate for no reason.”
For a moment, I held my breath.
‘This is weird.’
My chest felt ticklish and fluttery.
Every time the Duke said things like that, it felt like I really had gained a family…
“Hooo…!”
Snap out of it, Melony.
You’ve only just managed to get the contract written, you shouldn’t get greedy now.
Pulling myself together, I hopped down from the chair.
And then.
Pat pat pat pat.
I ran straight to the Duke and hugged him.
If you receive a gift, flattery should naturally follow.
This is also a rule I learned through Angela.
“Thank you, Daddy! Melony liketh Daddy the motht!”
I shouted with all my might, dangling in his arms.
“Daddy…?”
The Duke muttered softly, but I didn’t hear it.
My mind was too full of self-justification, trying to overcome an inexplicable sense of embarrassment.
‘This is part of fulfilling the contract! In the book, Angela did this to her father too…!’
Yes, so I have no choice but to do it.
It’s not that I want to do it, I have to!
Really, being a contract daughter is this tough!
