SRNVW 07

Chapter 07 …

Maybe it was because he’d finally put himself together properly, but as he sat in the garden under the sunlight, his face was dazzling.

His fine silver hair—praised endlessly in high society—fluttered in the spring breeze. Beneath it, his thick eyelashes and those golden eyes with their mysterious glow were far more visible than they had been yesterday.

“Live long enough, and I guess you really do see flowers talking?”

“Thanks for the compliment.”

“You think that was a compliment? I was being sarcastic because you showed up where you absolutely shouldn’t be!”

Why the hell are you showing up in the garden next door?!

Even at my outburst, Erios merely curved his eyes coolly and smiled.

Ha, with a face like that, what kind of knight was he supposed to be?

He looked more like he’d seduce monsters than fight them.

Not rough in the slightest—just absurdly elegant!

“Why are you here?”

“I moved in.”

“No, I mean why?”

Just yesterday, he’d acted like he understood everything I said. Like he was accepting it all…

And yet after obediently leaving our house, he moved in next door?

“Because I wanted to.”

Was that bastard seriously calling that an answer?

While I stood there dumbfounded, Artea—having overheard the news—perked up instantly at the word “moved.”

“U-uncle moved here? Really? Why?”

“……”

“…No! It’s not like I’m curious!”

After all her proud declarations about hating her uncle and successfully running away from home…

Apparently, realizing she’d cried and begged to live with him after the fact was embarrassing enough that Artea no longer actively looked for Erios.

At least, that’s how it appeared on the surface.

Whatever she really felt, she hurriedly fled before I could even answer and stopped asking about Erios or saying she wanted to see him.

At least, that was true until then.

Ba-bam—

“Hm?”

Until Erios made the first move that very afternoon.

“What is that sound?”

But a man who moved into the house next door in just one day was clearly no ordinary lunatic.

Erios had no intention of sitting quietly if it meant making Artea aware of his presence.

“This bastard has seriously lost his mind.”

I was speechless when I saw a massive stage installed in the neighboring garden.

Moving in within a day, setting up a stage, and positioning it in the direction most visible from the room where Artea and I stayed—

It was utterly absurd.

Ba-bam bam—
Shall I cast a magic spell again today?

“Waaah!”

I immediately recognized that opening.

Wasn’t it the wildly popular children’s musical currently sweeping the entire empire?

Ppiyo ppiyo, today again bam bam
They underestimate me because I’m little
But they don’t know
Tomorrow, I might save the world

No, what exactly were the adults doing if children had to save the world?

Honestly, if a world could only be saved by letting kids get hurt and broken, maybe it deserved to perish.

“Don’t underestimate me!”

But Artea enthusiastically shouted back at the performance.

Maybe I was taking this too seriously.

Good thing I didn’t say, “Your aunt will protect you so you never have to do that.” That would’ve ruined the mood.

So I let Artea continue immersing herself as the little hero saving the world.

Her excited shrieking was so loud in my ears that it rivaled the actors’ stage voices, but it was fine.

…A little eardrum damage was probably acceptable.

I deliberately forced my attention away from the musical’s questionable content and tried focusing instead on the magical devices used for the production.

“Huh….”

If only Erios hadn’t chosen that exact moment to make eye contact with me from beside the stage and slowly wave.

That bastard is the one who tore down the tall wall between our estates. No wonder the stage is so damn visible.

Artea, absorbed in the musical, didn’t notice Erios at all.

But Erios, as if none of that mattered, just looked directly at me and smiled.

That bastard?

He always wore that stoic expression. Since when could he smile just to annoy someone?

Well, “smile” was generous—it was barely the slightest upward twitch of his lips.

But since his face almost never changed, even that felt enormous.

And incredibly irritating.

But Erios’s schemes didn’t end there.

“It smells sweet!”

After the musical ended, he had pound cakes baked until the scent drifted all the way to the Sortis estate.

Sweet, buttery, rich.

Did he even add orange peel? It smelled unbelievably fragrant—

No, that wasn’t the point.

“Artea, this is a gift for you.”

His eyesight was annoyingly good.

From where Erios stood—below us—it seemed like he shouldn’t even be able to see us clearly.

And yet that bastard casually addressed Artea with complete ease.

His smooth, pleasant low voice was as soft as spring sunlight.

“Your favorite orange pound cake and almond muffins. I even brought the head chef for you.”

“Woooow!”

Later, I found out Erios had used money to recruit every chef capable of making Artea’s favorite desserts, braised beef, and even vegetables she usually refused to eat.

Ridiculous.

Did he leave our estate so easily because he was that confident he could win Artea over?

He adjusted the size and angle of the musical stage so it was perfectly visible from Artea’s terrace.

He baked what looked like hundreds of orange pound cakes just so the smell would drift next door.

Seriously—once sliced, how many pieces even was that?!

“Um, from the Duke of Killieth’s estate… they’ve sent pound cakes, cookies, and assorted treats as gifts.”

“……”

“They said… please take good care of Miss Artea…”

They distributed enough to the servants and knights too, so nothing went to waste, but still.

Everyone already smelled it. I can’t exactly tell them to reject it.

And of course, he specifically made the kind loaded with butter so the aroma traveled farther.

Yet he’d balanced it with orange and nuts so it wouldn’t feel overly greasy?

I don’t want to care, but I care!

How much sugar was even in that?

Wasn’t this a direct highway to diabetes?

Not that I was a child.

There was no way I’d be swayed by desserts.

“Auntie, isn’t it delicious?”

“It… is good.”

So yes, I ate the pound cake.

But not because I wanted to.

Artea insisted so passionately about how delicious her favorite recipe was that I had no choice but to politely try some.

…It’s not like he made it because I liked it too.

He probably only had it baked because Artea liked it.

And besides, rejecting orange pound cake was simply inhumane.

I leave it to you!
If we combine all our strength, we can do it!

That day, and the day after that…

The feast of performances and delicious food continued without end.

“Today it’s not a musical—it’s a string ensemble?”

“Maybe tomorrow he’ll bring in a choir.”

The people of the Sortis estate had started their mornings cheerfully, working to bright live music.

The Sortis servants are definitely becoming more favorable toward Killieth…

Give them tasty food, show them fun things—

No, were they being domesticated?!

Pressing my fingers to my temple, I eventually approached next door and addressed Erios, who sat leisurely in the garden with one leg crossed over the other.

“I might not care since I’m Artea’s family… but isn’t this a nuisance to the other neighbors?”

“I explained properly that it wouldn’t go on late into the evening, and they actually seem to enjoy hearing music they normally wouldn’t. Isn’t that fortunate?”

When had he even taken care of all that?

Ha—and for the children’s musical, he’d invited all the nearby kids and their families too.

Watching the children in the front row enthusiastically interacting with the actors, Artea practically lost her mind.

If I hadn’t somehow convinced her the terrace had a better view, she might’ve leapt down there herself.

He’s really doing absolutely everything just to get one child’s attention.

At this point, I had no choice but to react.

So I approached what could barely even be called a wall and addressed Erios, who stood on the other side.

“I never realized the Duke of Killieth—who supposedly doesn’t even have enough bodies for all his responsibilities—had such a deep interest in the performing arts.”

With a gentle smile plastered across my face, as though I were absolutely not picking a fight.

“People would be shocked to see the Knight of Radiance like this. Hmm… You kind of resemble a flamboyant male peacock desperately courting.”

“You’re right that I want love. I’m glad it’s that obvious. I only hope Artea realizes it too.”

Even after I jabbed at him like that, he stayed calm?

That sly snake.

He was a duke, for heaven’s sake—didn’t he have any pride?

I smiled sweetly once more and continued provoking him.

“Aren’t you embarrassed, going this far just to get your niece’s attention?”

But the answer I got back was completely unexpected.