Chapter 6
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: Northern Grand Duchess (3)
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Living under the same roof, Elaine and I barely exchanged a single word.
It was because we strictly followed the second rule.
Invisible person.
At first, I wondered if it could really be that simple, but as time went on, I gradually came to understand the true purpose of that rule.
“Do you always walk around like that?”
“…”
“Aren’t you cold? Amazing.”
And well she might—inside the house, Elaine wandered about in nothing but thin silk undergarments draped with a single shawl.
The fabric was so light and airy that it fluttered a beat behind her with every step she took.
She seemed utterly unbothered, but as a man, I found it quite troubling.
“...I have my reasons.”
“I see.”
“I’d appreciate it if you followed the rules.”
Invisible person. I know.
“…”
Well, setting aside my own discomfort, her attire was undeniably out of place.
This was the North.
In a word, brutally cold.
One of the biggest discomforts I’d faced since arriving in the North was this unrelenting chill.
At night, even straying a little from the fireplace sent bone-chilling shivers through my body.
Yet here she was, not just skipping an overcoat but dressing even lighter.
“In a way, it’s impressive.”
Come to think of it, even when we first met and whenever she went out, Elaine always dressed thinner than the average Northerner.
So wandering half-naked at home wasn’t all that strange for her.
I headed back to my room.
Of course, avoiding unnecessary arguments meant keeping my eyes down and trudging along like a nuisance—but there were clear advantages too.
And one of those advantages lay right before me now.
“Maybe I should make a few more cores while I have the chance.”
I sat on the floor, fiddling with whatever metal parts came to hand.
Infusing them with mana etched intricate circuits onto their surfaces.
Magic engineering.
I could finally resume my long-craved research on automaton puppets.
It was like a ray of light piercing my life.
The peace maintained by treating each other as invisible persons was sweeter than I’d imagined.
#
“Darian, this is delicious as always! The fish is so fresh.”
“Heh heh, I’m delighted to hear such praise from you, miss.”
Elaine’s praised fish dish was exquisite even by my standards.
No—it was hands-down the best fish dish I’d ever tasted in my life.
The chef was Darian, the elderly butler who looked after both Elaine and me.
At a glance, he seemed like a kindly old grandfather with his perpetual gentle smile.
But the noble etiquette ingrained in his every gesture hadn’t been honed overnight.
“I hope it suited your tastes as well, Master Yudel.”
“It was excellent. I can feel the depth of experience in your cooking.”
He folded the corners of his eyes in a warm, benevolent smile.
“It’s been fifty years since I swore my loyalty to the Delbergs. This is only natural.”
Hmm... fifty years.
He’d been here long before I was born.
No wonder the fish was so good.
“Fish dishes like this are rare treats even down South.”
“Heh heh—worth the early morning catch from the lake, then.”
He caught it himself, huh.
That explained the freshness.
It hit me anew just how demanding a butler’s life could be.
“I’ll excuse myself first, Darian.”
Elaine rose and left.
Only then could I finally let out a deep sigh.
“Haah...”
“You seem troubled, sir.”
“I’m worried about the future.”
Of course, if we could keep living this quietly, it’d be perfect.
But I knew that wasn’t possible.
If Elaine demanded to break off the engagement after all this, things would get seriously messy.
The Silverhardts would throw a massive fit.
Especially the elders.
I’d be cut off from my family and unable to settle properly in the North—a wandering outcast with nowhere to go.
I had to prevent that at all costs.
“Life isn’t easy for anyone, but you seem to have it harder than most, Master Yudel.”
“A little more than that.”
Darian poured me some tea.
One sip, and the fragrant aroma blooming in my mouth eased the throbbing in my head a bit.
“Don’t worry too much. In my experience, paths always open up eventually.”
I gave a wry smile.
Darian returned a small smile of his own.
“The miss has carried the Solar Disease since childhood.”
“Solar Disease after all, huh...”
“You knew?”
I nodded.
I’d suspected as much.
Elaine’s mana circulation had too many irregularities.
It felt twisted from the root.
But Solar Disease...
Was that why her body ran so hot?
Once Darian confirmed it, my curiosity about Elaine stirred anew.
The Solar Disease was that rare, after all.
“Most don’t last three years.”
But Elaine wasn’t a three-year-old child.
At most, she was a year or two younger than me.
Sure, there were elves or celestials who lived centuries without aging outwardly, but she was human.
“She inherited her sturdy constitution from the family head. You could call it the Delberg power. Our bloodline has always transcended human limits in physical endurance.”
“I see. That clears it up.”
I could still picture the day we met—her launching off the ground, sword aimed at me.
That speed and power were pure innate talent.
“Your eyes are sparkling, sir.”
Darian gazed at me with a pleased expression.
“Mages have an insatiable thirst for knowledge. While knights hone their bodies to grow stronger, mages gain power through what they know.”
He was right.
Mages were eternal seekers of the unknown.
“That gap creates an unbridgeable rift between knights and mages, but I’ve always liked mages. That look in your eyes reminds me of my old friend in his youth.”
“Not sure if that’s good for Elaine.”
“Time will tell.”
He rose slowly from his seat.
“If the miss ever gives you trouble, just say the word. I’ve got my love whip ready.”
“...You can use that on a grand duke’s daughter?”
“Heh heh! What are you saying? The grand duke himself grew up under this love whip.”
“Haha...”
“Heh heh!”
After Darian left, I sat there pondering for a while.
“...He spanked the Northern Grand Duke’s butt?”
Darian was even more remarkable than I’d thought.
#
“Get dressed. We’re going out.”
Amid these peaceful days, Elaine suddenly ordered an outing.
“Out of the blue?”
“Yeah. Knight induction ceremony. One of ours is becoming a knight this time.”
The abrupt invitation left me a bit dazed.
So I hadn’t been invisible after all?
“Why are you staring like that? We’re engaged, at least on paper. We should attend public events together.”
“Right.”
I rummaged through my wardrobe right away.
I had a uniform tailored for family banquets and events, but it was too thin for Northern weather.
“Wear this.”
“Looking out for me?”
Her expression soured.
Shouldn’t have said that.
Still, the outfit she handed me was stylish, elegantly restrained in design.
And above all, warm.
I liked it.
“Ready.”
“Not bad... Let’s go.”
Dressed in the finery, we headed to the induction site.
The Northern battlements were staggeringly tall and massive, no matter how many times I saw them.
True to Delberg tradition, the ceremony was held before the castle gates.
“Quite the crowd.”
Fitting for the frontline army dividing humanity from the demon realm—a massive force had gathered.
All troops except those on guard duty were participating.
The birth of a new knight in the territory held that much weight.
“Uh... Master Yudel!”
“Brunhild, is it?”
A familiar face appeared.
Brunhild had grown a bit since then. Right in the thick of her growth spurt.
Cattleya stood behind her.
“I-I’m training under Lady Cattleya now. I’ve mastered mana manipulation just like you taught me.”
She pulled the training automaton puppet I’d given her from her pocket.
Whirr.
“Moves well.”
The puppet followed commands just like the demo I’d shown her before. But that was it.
“That puppet can fly.”
“Pardon?”
“Didn’t you hear? It can fly.”
I snatched the puppet from the dumbfounded Brunhild’s hand.
Infusing it with mana sent it floating through the air.
“See?”
“It... it’s really flying...”
Brunhild’s eyes went wide. She’d only gotten it crawling on the ground? Effort lacking.
“By the next time we meet, make it do everything you can imagine.”
“How far...?”
“You’ll figure that out going forward.”
Digging through earth, swimming underwater—the possibilities were endless.
Because I made it.
“Y-Yes, sir...”
Brunhild nodded glumly.
“Oh, and one more thing—don’t take Cattleya at face value.”
“What? My master?”
She was dangerous.
The type who’d stop at nothing for her goals.
Brunhild needed to heed my words.
“Answer me.”
She looked confused, but my serious gaze made her nod reluctantly.
“Long time no see, young master. Slandering me to Brunhild? Looks like you’re settling in.”
“That shamelessness hasn’t changed.”
“I truly regret that incident.”
Still expressionless.
That’s what scared me most. An unreadable face meant no clue to her thoughts.
“I’ll accept your apology. In return, teach Brunhild well.”
“As you command.”
I felt bad for dumping Brunhild on her without proper guidance.
Once I had some breathing room, I’d train her right.
Her mage talent was among the best I’d seen.
“This way, Master Yudel, Lady Elaine.”
We passed through the throng of attending soldiers to the VIP area.
Luxurious chairs awaited.
“You’re here.”
Grand Duke Elun was there too.
I gave a brief nod and took an empty seat.
Elaine, unwilling to show discomfort before her father, sat obediently beside me.
After a short wait, silver trumpets blared three times.
It’s starting.
A banner emblazoned with the Delberg crest unfurled atop the platform.
The sky was overcast, but the eerie howl of the north wind whipping the flag lent the scene even greater grandeur.
As the inductee ascended the platform between ranks of knights, thunderous cheers erupted from the crowd.
She walked slowly, kneeling before the grand duke.
In that moment, long ears peeked through her flowing hair.
“An elf...?”
An elf, here of all places.
I knew they existed, but seeing one in person was a first.
A shiver I couldn’t name prickled my skin from head to toe.
Soon, the grand duke’s sword rested gently on her shoulder.
Another massive roar from the crowd.
#
The induction ended, and the elf knight came straight to Elaine.
Thanks to that, I got a close look at those long ears.
“Miss! I’m a knight now! Pretty cool, right?”
She knew Elaine well, rubbing her face against her like a cat in heat the moment she saw her.
Elaine didn’t seem to mind, patting her back.
“Well done, Sian.”
“Hee hee... All thanks to you. Without you, Elaine, I’d be slaving away for capital nobles. Huh? Who’s this guy...?”
Only then did the elf knight notice me, offering a hasty bow.
“Who’re you? Don’t recognize you.”
Her eyes held a hint of wariness.
Elaine sighed deeply before answering.
“My fiancé, for now.”
“Eeeeeh?”
The elf knight clapped a hand over her mouth in shock, then shot Elaine a sly grin.
“What... He’s a catch. Thought you weren’t into guys, Elaine.”
“Hey!”
“Eek!”
Elaine chased off the elf knight.
As she left, an awkward silence settled between us.
“You two know each other?”
“…”
“Looked pretty close. With an elf, no less.”
Elves weren’t common.
They lived several times longer than humans, but their weak reproductive instincts—and the fact they were still secretly traded as slaves by depraved nobles—kept their numbers low.
“Yeah... I took in Sian and her child when nobles were hunting them. The shelter’s grown a lot now, with more kids.”
Elaine looked genuinely pleased.
She was telling me, for one.
And her gaze kept drifting to the elf knight basking in the soldiers’ cheers.
She hid it well, but she took real pride in the elf becoming a knight.
It was the first time I’d seen Elaine look that happy.
“Take me there sometime. That shelter.”
“Why should I?”
She squinted at me.
I chuckled.
“I’m quite the scholar, you know. You could trust me with teaching the kids.”
Who knows?
The异種 kids under my guidance might one day lead the Delbergs’ future.