The Foundation's Agent
A quiet surge of pride swelled in Jona’s chest.
You did far better than anyone could have anticipated, Milady.
To be perfectly frank, he had never dared to expect this much. When they had first met, his sentiment had leaned past mild doubt and bordered on outright disappointment. For the briefest, most irreverent moment, he had even entertained the blasphemous thought that the Boss’s legendary eye for talent had finally failed.
She had arrived burdened with a dizzying assortment of psychological quirks, standing barely tall enough to reach his waist. Her facial features certainly hinted at a striking future, but in that moment, he could only wonder what a girl like this could possibly accomplish. Had the Boss intended to delegate tasks that only a woman could perform? He had even entertained such cruel, unsparing conjectures.
"Training? I'd love to!"
Yet with those cheerful words, Orknodi had shattered every grievance and worry he harbored, dismantling them through pure competence. She had trained on hollow sleep, never quite shedding the rough, unsightly habits picked up from years of scraping by on the streets. Even so, she had soldiered on without a word of complaint. She recognized the profound value of the opportunity granted to her, and she harbored genuine gratitude toward the Boss who had extended that lifeline—and toward Jona himself. She leaned on the Boss as her "Papa," relied on Jona as her guardian, and would often waddle over to wrap her arms around his legs.
Whenever I look at Milady, I cannot help but be reminded of a flying squirrel.
She would hide at the slightest provocation, observing people from some unseen perch, but the moment she heard her name called, she would come bounding across the floor to bury herself in his coat. She was fundamentally different from the countless prospective scholarship candidates who had slapped away extended hands only to ruin themselves, and she operated on a plane entirely separate from the dregs who had barely scraped through the entrance exams to enter the Lower Class.
Which is precisely why my anxiety only deepens.
To the master she shadowed like a mother, she was merely an adorable flying squirrel. Yet the moment a flying squirrel stepped into the unforgiving wilderness, its freedom vanished. From feral cats no different than tigers to predatory birds circling the sky, the wild teemed with natural enemies waiting to tear it apart. Orknodi would be no exception. No matter how vastly she outstripped ordinary foundation scholars, that inescapable label would brand her wherever she went. The world remained on high alert against the Waihiemhai Foundation—just as bitterly as the Foundation loathed the world. For a young child, it was an unimaginably suffocating burden.
“May I speak with Milady in private for a moment?” Jona requested.
“Be my guest,” Minerva answered, granting a brief postponement on the group assignments.
It was a priceless window of time, worth its weight in gold. Jona chose his words with utmost deliberation.
“Listen closely, Milady. I, too, was once a scholarship student taken in by the Waihiemhai Foundation.”
“Whoa, really?”
“Why offer such an exaggerated reaction when you understand so little of what it means?”
“Because you looked like you wanted me to be surprised.”
“Please take this seriously. Milady, you stand at a critical crossroads that will dictate the rest of your life.”
“??”
“The Foundation has provided you with a personal butler, a maid, dedicated training facilities, and more than enough capital. None of this was born of pure goodwill.”
“Then why did they?”
“They will demand a price. The moment they judge that you can climb no higher, they will require your complete, unyielding devotion from whatever position they assign you.”
“Hehh. Is that how it works?”
Her expression remained utterly untroubled, radiating radiant innocence. As expected, she had not grasped the gravity of her own predicament in the slightest.
“However, if you refuse the Foundation’s sponsorship here, you can walk away as a free person.”
“Me? Turn down a sucker who's willing to co-sign for me?”
“I implore you to consider this with grave caution. While an enormous sum must be repaid, the Academy has extended an unprecedented gesture of favor to you, given your outstanding entrance exam marks.”
It had come from Proctor Minerva herself. When Jona had arrived claiming to be Orknodi's guarantor, she had slipped him a legal parchment.
◈ Gift Academy shall assume full payment of all debts incurred by Examinee Orknodi toward the Waihiemhai Foundation.
◈ The Waihiemhai Foundation shall not exercise any form of influence over Examinee Orknodi.
◈ Should an examiner of Gift Academy deem that the Waihiemhai Foundation has exerted influence, the Academy may enforce commensurate penalties upon the Foundation.
If Lady Orknodi simply affixed her signature to this document, she could tear herself free from the Foundation’s grasp forever.
“The Academy will cover every expense, finalize all administrative procedures, and forge a brand-new identity for you.”
“Jona……?”
“All you must do is take this pen and sign.”
Do not ask questions, he silently begged. Please, ask nothing and simply take the pen. Over and over, he prayed within the silence of his thoughts.
“Then what happens to you, Jona?”
Evidently, gods were never entities worth believing in. A god never deigned to listen to the desperate prayers of the powerless.
“As an active operative of the Foundation, any further contact between myself and Milady would legally constitute an exercise of influence. Therefore, we would be forced to part ways. Permanently.”
“Then I don't want to! Throwing away my own butler? Why on earth would I ever do something like that!”
Was it because she had chosen him? Or was it because she was walking the very same path he had once trodden? Even as he watched her life veer toward a point of no return, an overwhelming, profound sense of fulfillment flooded his chest.
“Milady does not yet understand the utter despair of having someone else dictate your existence. Even if you come to cherish something, even if you come to love someone, you will be forced to crush those feelings with your own hands.”
“Can't I just keep climbing higher, then?”
“...Do you truly believe you will be an exception?”
“It's fine. Because I'm a Player.”
“A Player……?”
“I'm Papa's daughter, aren't I? And the Foundation helping me is Papa's foundation in the end, right?”
“…One could view it in such terms, yes.”
“Then there's no problem at all.”
Her conclusion had not been forged through deep, agonizing contemplation. It sounded like the naive, childish bravado typical of any growing adolescent.
“It's only natural for a kid to help out their Papa, isn't it? Inheriting the family business might be kind of a cliché, but as long as they don't force me to do only that for the rest of my life, I can totally lend a hand.”
She merely wished to think of herself as extraordinary, placing herself upon a pedestal above others.
“I don't know what Papa or the Foundation wants from me, but I'm strong. Demanding things from me won't be that easy. Because I'm just gonna keep getting stronger!”
“...Is that so. You truly are strong, Milady.”
Which made him want to protect her all the more. It was precisely to safeguard her that he had tried to push her away. He had pretended to yield to the Academy's unreasonable meddling solely to grant her this glimpse of an escape route beyond the Foundation's reach. Yet if she refused to take flight—if she obstinately rejected leaving the open cage—then he was left with no choice but to shield her himself.
“Then, as of today, Milady shall enter Gift Academy as a scholarship student of the Waihiemhai Foundation. The responsibility of serving as your guarantor shall fall upon myself, Jona Waihiemhai, dispatched representative of the Foundation. Do you agree to these terms?”
“Of course I agree! You're on my side, aren't you, Butler?”
Orknodi reached into her collar and drew out a pendant that had been tucked safely against her skin. Dangling from the chain was the very whistle he had given her, instructing her to blow it whenever she found herself in trouble. She had rarely blown it, yet the metal bore unmistakable traces of how tenderly she had kept it. How many times had her small fingers traced its edges? How many hours had it rested warmly against her chest? Looking up as she proudly displayed the whistle he had handed her at the inn, her eyes brimmed with a degree of absolute trust that felt almost overwhelming.
“Nothing you tell me to do could ever go wrong. You always give the best advice, Jona. Even if I hate how you nag me so much and keep forcing me to eat ridiculously healthy food.”
“You flatter me far beyond my worth.”
“So, does this mean the boring stuff is finally over? I've got so many stories to tell you! During the entrance exams, Uncle Giselle and Uncle Son Ocheon and I……”
With this, she officially belonged to the Foundation. One day, that very smile might cease to belong to her, stripped away to become property of the syndicate. If she failed to fulfill the Boss's grand designs, the odds were overwhelming that Orknodi's dreams, too, would be mercilessly crushed. Even knowing that—even foreseeing that entire bleak future—the man known as Jona Waihiemhai could only stand quietly at her side, listening to her chatter.
"There are rumors that you caused trouble regarding the disposal of the previous 'Young Lady'……"
"That is quite enough."
He had ignited an incident so severe that even Leaf, an assassin operating under an entirely separate chain of command, was well aware of it. If he repeated that identical mistake, this time he would be the one purged by the organization.
I cannot truly help you, Milady. If the organization and you ever part ways, I am the man who will be ordered to become your executioner.
And yet, why did she place her entire heart in his hands with such unreserved faith?
"I see. You will always have a 'next Young Lady,' won't you?"
"Which number was I?"
"Could I ever be your last Young Lady?"
Do not remember. Do not let yourself be swallowed by it. For a representative of the Foundation, for a butler serving his lady, not a shred of faltering was permitted. He forced his mind to recall the sticky warmth of blood under his boots, the sensation of steel severing flesh humming up through his fingertips, the chilling sight of a dying heart going cold.
“...And so, you know what happened next?”
“Milady. We must save the rest of your tale for another time. It appears my allotted visitation window has drawn to a close.”
“Ehh? You're leaving already?”
“We shall meet again soon enough.”
He had already lingered far too long. When Jona concluded the conversation and stepped back outside, Minerva addressed him.
“And the matter of the agreement?”
“She declined. As of today, Milady is officially a scholarship student of the Foundation.”
“Is that so? A regrettable outcome for both of us, Mr. Guardian.”
“May I take it that Milady has been assigned to Group A?”
“Naturally. Now, if you will excuse me.”
As they walked down the corridor leading out of the consultation quarters, Orknodi tilted her head back to look at him.
“When do I get to see you again?”
“Guarantors of incoming students and representatives of sponsoring institutions are permitted to visit the Academy only once a month, strictly on designated dates. When that day arrives, I shall come to see you.”
“No way……. A butler is supposed to stay right beside his master every single day. This makes no sense.”
“It is an inviolable regulation of the Academy, and thus unavoidable.”
“I totally hate this realism patch.”
Smoothing away the rumpled creases of her uniform, Jona offered a quiet piece of counsel.
“Refrain from uttering such incomprehensible phrases in front of others. Classmates of high birth or rigid decorum may look down on you or subject you to harassment.”
“Don't even worry. I've already made a ton of friends. I even got close with Big Sis Arcadia from the Florence Kingdom.”
The sole prominent lady of the Western Noble Coalition. She was notoriously proud, calculating, and exceedingly difficult to approach, yet Orknodi had already established a personal rapport with her? The butler's initial shock was fleeting. He quickly realized that with the uncanny social magnetism this child possessed—a charm that had captivated even his own hardened heart—such an achievement was only natural.
Yes. If it was this Young Lady, perhaps she truly would be all right.
“Then, until the day we meet again, please take utmost care of your health, Milady.”
“You too, Jona!”