I Became the Friend of a High-Born Lady
Thump. Thump.
Edgar’s heart hammered against his ribs. After all, he had just become the friend of someone far above his station. If only his mouth had developed enough to form proper words and explain himself—but there was no one here who could speak for him. What do I do?
Of course, since the whole thing had happened between children who could barely babble, Lady Helene might choose to let it slide. But that was only a hope. Once an accident had occurred, he couldn’t relax until he knew what would come next. At this rate my heart really will burst.
Never mind his mind—his body was that of a two-year-old toddler. The heart of a child who hadn’t even taken his first steps, let alone reached puberty, was pounding this violently. It was honestly terrifying.
Meanwhile, Helene had hurried over at the sound of Ariel’s crying and now questioned the two maids standing at attention beside her. What exactly had happened?
Catria’s personal maid, Rune, couldn’t bring herself to answer. She could only fidget and glance around nervously. If she described what she had witnessed, she might end up scolding Edgar in the name of defending him.
Perhaps sensing the tension, Shephy—Helene’s trusted head maid—offered a gentle smile and spoke as though the matter were trivial.
“It is nothing serious, my lady. You need not worry. It was merely an accident that occurred while Young Master Edgar was trying to help the young miss.”
“Help her?”
What kind of help could a two-year-old possibly give? Helene blinked, searching for the real meaning behind the words. A soft smile curved Shephy’s lips.
“Young Master Edgar gave the young miss a pendant as a gift, but she attempted to put it in her mouth. He quickly snatched it away to stop her.”
“…A two-year-old did that?”
“Yes, my lady.”
It was hard to believe, yet it was the truth. Helene stared into Shephy’s eyes, but they remained perfectly steady. Having spent more time with her than anyone except her husband, Helene could tell at once that every word was genuine.
“How remarkable. He’s only two, yet he already possesses the instinct to protect my daughter?”
Helene leaned down slightly and met Edgar’s gaze with calm, searching eyes. Though he was called two years old, he had not even lived a full two years since birth. How could such a tiny child have acted that way?
Even with a stranger leaning in so close and staring directly at him, the boy showed neither fear nor hesitation. He simply looked back at her with steady, unwavering eyes.
From behind them, Catria could only watch the scene with a pounding heart. The one mercy was that her son had not committed any grave offense. Still, the fact remained that he had made the Grand Duchy’s only daughter cry, and that left an unpleasant aftertaste.
“Catria.”
“Y-yes, my lady.”
She fought to keep her voice from shaking. Helene continued.
“Have you decided on Edgar’s future path yet?”
Future path? Catria’s eyes widened. He was only two. Of course he would eventually inherit the family as the eldest son, but they had not yet chosen any specific direction for him.
“He is still so young… We have not discussed it with my husband.”
“I see.”
Helene fell silent, lost in thought.
Everyone knew the Bilhark family had served the Robeheim family for generations. If things continued as they were—three years, five years, ten years—the boy named Edgar would become Ariel’s attendant or loyal vassal. That was simply how the history between their houses had always unfolded.
Is that truly right?
Helene knew the truth. She could bear no more children. She could not escape the fate that had been handed down through the ages. Her only daughter would inevitably become the next head of this iron-blooded family that ruled the north, and in that position it would be nearly impossible to find a true friend. She would only meet peers who approached under the guise of friendship for the sake of gain.
Some would say it was the duty of one who carried the blood of the Grand Duchy. Her own husband would probably have spoken the same way. But as a mother, that was not the future she wanted for her child.
Wouldn’t just one be all right?
A friend occupied a realm that neither family, vassal, nor lover could replace. There were things one could not say to family but could tell a friend. There were tasks one could not entrust to a vassal but could ask of a friend.
Helene wished for at least one such person to stand beside her daughter. It might be the last gift she could give the child who would one day bear the heavy burden of the Robeheim name.
“Catria.”
“Yes, my lady.”
“I have a request. Will you hear it?”
“Please ask anything of me.”
Even if she were ordered to slit her own stomach on the spot, she would obey without hesitation. Between the Robeheim and Bilhark families, there were rules a vassal house must follow that went beyond mere differences in power.
“I wish to keep this child, Edgar, by my daughter’s side.”
“You mean… to raise him as a servant…?”
It was not a difficult request. In fact, it would simply be following precedent. Servants of the Grand Duchy were expected to possess both character and knowledge, so it was common to bring in children from other noble houses. For lesser nobles it was an opportunity to form ties with greater ones, so the arrangement benefited both sides.
Yet the words that left Helene’s mouth were nothing like what Catria had expected.
“No. Not as a servant. I wish to keep him as my daughter’s friend.”
“Pardon…? Her friend…?”
Catria doubted her own ears. Of course, when children were very young, families sometimes allowed them to interact as equals to preserve their innocence, setting aside status for a time. But there were limits. To let the son of a barony—one so minor that its authority was barely worth counting—become friends with the daughter of a Grand Duchy ranked among the empire’s top three?
“M-my lady… I am grateful you think so highly of our son, but he is hardly worthy to be the young lady’s friend…”
She knew how humiliating it was for a parent to speak this way about her own child, yet it was the only path left. Had Helene suggested raising him as a servant, she would have accepted at once. But friendship was an entirely different gulf. Eventually the children would grow and learn the truth. As his mother, how could she ignore the shock that would strike Edgar then?
“It’s all right, Catria. I am not asking him to do anything for me.”
Helene gazed into the small boy’s eyes. He had not looked away from her even once. She had not seen the makings of a valiant warrior in him, nor the potential of a great scholar. She had simply felt, instinctively, that this child might remain by her daughter’s side no matter what.
“Edgar, please take good care of our girl. She may grow up blunt like her father, unable to read the room… but I hope you will stay beside her and watch over her.”
The wife of the Grand Duke bowed her head and made a personal request to a mere two-year-old. Catria tried to intervene, but Shephy quietly shook her head and signaled with her eyes that she should let it be.
“Daa—!”
“Hehe, yes. Thank you.”
When Edgar lifted the pendant high in his little hand and answered with vigor, a smile of relief finally bloomed on Helene’s face.
She had always trusted her eye for people. It was thanks to that insight that a woman born with a frail body and no particular talents had come this far.
Having answered so boldly, Edgar now stared intently at Ariel where she sat across from him. Jet-black hair and vivid crimson eyes. Even at two years old her features were already striking; she would clearly grow into an extraordinary beauty.
So this little girl is fated to die young…
That was the only thing he knew about Ariel Robeheim. He had no idea why she had died, who had been involved, what sins she might have carried, or whether she had been framed. None of it.
He reached out and gently touched her cheek. The warmth passed through his tiny fingers. Ariel tilted her head adorably, as if asking what he was doing.
It wouldn’t be so bad.
At least if this girl was not someone who had to vanish like dust. In this new life, watching over someone’s path might not be such a terrible thing.
It was no boast, but he was confident in his ability to play with infants—mostly because he considered his own mental age rather low. In fact, I might end up enjoying it more than she does.
Still, for Edgar it was a welcome development. As the future head of the Bilhark family, he had left a positive impression on the Robeheim household he would one day serve. Moreover, he had become friends with the Grand Duchy’s only daughter. If that wasn’t a happy ending, what was?
“Oh dear, he’s fallen asleep.”
Perhaps the strain had simply been too much for such a young body. While he had been pinching and playing with Ariel’s cheek, Edgar lost the battle against sudden drowsiness.
He had seemed so dependable only moments ago, yet in the end a child was still a child.
Helene smiled, lifted him herself, and gently placed him in his mother Catria’s arms.
Please become a good friend to her daughter. As a mother, that was her only wish.