Chapter 7
“Kid—”
Pop!
In that instant, the water droplet burst.
Instinctively, I snatched up the document lying on the table and jumped back.
Whoooosh—
The water that had been packed inside the droplet poured out all at once, drenching the grand duke.
Drip. Drip.
Silence fell over the study.
“Gah.”
“…Haa.”
Soaked through, the duke lowered his head and let out a long breath.
From his hair down, everything around him was thoroughly wet.
“S-Sorry. But I protected the contract.”
I fluttered the contract and beamed. That was a close one.
“You. Hand that over.”
It seemed water droplets were better at making people angry than surprising them.
Clutching the contract tightly, I looked at the duke.
He held out his hand. Seeing the way he looked like he might snatch it away at any moment, I hurriedly signed and pointed at the paper.
“The contract’s finalized, so no take-backs! Deal’s sealed!”
“Haa…”
The duke rubbed his face, then looked around at the ruined study before speaking to me.
“Add one more clause. Absolutely no using your powers inside the house.”
“…Yes.”
Obediently, I picked up the pen and scribbled the clumsy letters.
Sneaking a glance at the duke, I carefully slid down from the chair and lightly waved my hand.
Thankfully, the water that had made a mess of the study rippled and gathered onto my fingertips in an instant.
The problem was that it didn’t dry the soaked duke.
“Grand Duke, if you catch a cold, it’ll hurt. Make sure to wipe yourself dry with a towel.”
Now that the study was spotless again, only the drenched duke sat on the sofa with his head bowed.
It felt like a chill radiated from around him.
“T-Then I’ll be going now…”
Sensing the danger, I quickly fled the study before the duke could get angry, the contract tucked under my arm.
“The discussion’s over. But I think you’ll need a towel.”
“A towel, you say? I’ll inform the maids. Welcome to the grand ducal residence, Lady Ariel.”
Albert smiled broadly at me as he was about to enter the study.
I grinned back and nodded.
A moment later, Albert’s scream echoed from inside the study.
“Aaah! Your Grace, what in the world happened?! Towels—quick, bring towels!”
I flinched. Glancing back toward the study, I fidgeted with my fingers.
“Lady Ariel, did everything go well?”
Kishan noticed me and approached. The maids hurried past with towels into the study. I grabbed Kishan’s hand.
“We need to run. The Grand Duke is mad.”
“…Pardon? What happened in there?”
“Ariel showed the Grand Duke her power… and it was scarier than expected.”
When I put on a frightened expression, Kishan whispered softly,
“So you disciplined His Grace when he tried to throw you out.”
“Not really… but he must’ve been pretty shocked by Ariel’s power.”
When I slowly lifted my head, Kishan smiled and offered me his hand.
Naturally, I took it, and we headed toward my room.
“Wow… is this really Ariel’s room?”
“Yes. This is indeed your room, Lady Ariel. A maid will be assigned to you soon.”
I looked around with wide eyes.
To think the place I’d woken up in yesterday was my room.
A soft bed, a spacious room, and all kinds of dolls prepared for me.
It was far too large for one person to sleep in.
Kishan told me I could pull the cord if I needed anything, then moved toward the door.
“Please rest.”
“Yes. Thank you.”
I replied without taking my eyes off the large window.
I toddled over, stood on my tiptoes, and looked outside.
A gentle rain was falling.
“Looks like it’s going to rain a lot.”
I greeted the droplets settling on the grass.
The water spirits seemed to be in high spirits, fluttering all around the garden.
“Wow! There’s even a fountain over there!”
At the large fountain in the front garden of the grand ducal residence, water spirits were gathered, playing together.
[Come on, Ariel. Come play with us.]
[If you want to grow stronger, you have to train diligently.]
Their whispers made me throw the window wide open.
“Add one more clause. Absolutely no using your powers inside the house.”
Ah.
No using powers inside the house!
I stretched my hand out the window. This should be fine—it was outside.
“Hoo!”
I created a water droplet and carefully climbed onto it. Riding the wind, I soon reached the fountain, and pop!—the droplet burst.
I splashed into the fountain, shook off the water, and looked at the spirits.
[You’re already getting good at using your power, Ariel.]
“Really? You think so? Then maybe I’ll awaken quickly?”
[Maybe. Did something good happen?]
“Yeah! I think I finally found the right place this time.”
[Neptutus will be pleased. You’ll do well.]
Their words put me at ease.
This time, I really felt like I could do it right. My chest tingled, and I couldn’t stop smiling.
[Oh! By the way, do you know who keeps crying?]
“Huh? Someone’s crying?”
I lifted my head from the water, where I’d been quietly enjoying the calm with my eyes closed.
A spirit spun around me like it was dancing.
[There’s a little kid crying behind that tree over there.]
[Yeah, yeah. He looked really sad.]
At the spirits’ words, I turned my head toward a large tree.
Climbing out of the fountain, I stood still in the thin rain, staring in that direction.
“A little kid.”
My palms grew sweaty.
Slowly, I walked toward the tree.
The rain was light, but an ordinary child would fall ill if they stayed in it too long.
The softness of the mud beneath my bare feet, the scent of wet grass brushing my nose—it was all peaceful. But my heart pounded hard in my chest.
When I reached the large tree, I found a child silently crying, his head buried in his knees.
Without a word, I reached out and shielded the boy’s head from the falling rain.
I didn’t know how long he’d been standing there, but his golden hair was soaked, water dripping down from it.
“He really looks exactly the same.”
Even without seeing his face, the air around him resembled the grand duke’s. In truth, the moment I’d heard the spirits, I’d already realized who the little boy was.
“If you stay like this, you’ll catch a cold.”
“…What?”
He slowly lifted his head.
His eyes looked like a cloudy sky rather than a clear one, and my fists clenched.
“Hi. I’m Ariel.”
“…I’m not interested. Go away.”
Tirier, I wanted to meet you.
Were you always crying alone like this, too?
I couldn’t tell if his eyes were wet from the rain or from tears, but the sorrow filling them made my chest ache.
“Do you want to cry?”
“……”
“Then cry out loud. I’ll make sure no one hears.”
Otherwise, it just stays bottled up inside, and the sadness keeps growing.
I knew better than anyone how hard it was to swallow your tears alone.
And how no one ever noticed, no matter how much you endured.
“Just don’t cry alone anymore.”
Whooosh—
Suddenly, the rain poured down harder. Leaves shook, and the world filled with the sound of rain.
Tirier’s small shoulders trembled, and soon his golden eyes brimmed with tears.
I sat beside him and quietly shared his sadness.
I gently took Tirier’s trembling hand as he clenched his lips and sniffled.
Curled up in silence, Tirier finally broke into sobs.
Pat, pat.
Without a word, I tapped the back of his hand—small, just like mine. Tirier didn’t pull away. He cried.
I knew how comforting this small warmth could be.
Because when I cried alone, I’d wished someone would just be there beside me.
The loneliness of feeling left alone in the world—of realizing no one was on your side—was too heavy to bear at such a young age.
“So you were lonely too, Tirier.”
What kind of sadness do you carry?
I had so much I wanted to ask, but I didn’t want to interrupt the time he needed to let it out.
So I let Tirier cry as much as he wanted.
I simply looked up at the sky, where the rain continued to pour down in silence.
