I Am a Manly Man
I Am a Manly Man
I am a man among men. The phrase "manly man" exists for people exactly like me.
Whenever I asserted my sheer manliness, my orphanage friends used to say things like "There goes the manly-man wannabe again," but—
'Characteristics of a real man: He asserts himself with dignity and is unshaken by slander.'
—true to that motto, I steadfastly went around telling everyone I was a manly man.
So. I absolutely refuse to.
"Young master~! Where have you gone~!"
"Oh my. Head Butler. Has young master Yune hidden himself again?"
"It appears so. Truly. I never imagined he would detest dancing practice this much."
"His debutante ball is coming up soon. This is worrying."
"Ahem. In any case, if you spot young master Yune, please detain him. The young master is delicate, so a man's strength should be more than enough to lift him."
"Yes, ma'am!"
I am never doing splits in tights that cling like a pervert. What's so great about dance practice anyway? ...What's that? For a successful high-society debut? High society is just a bunch of boys covering their mouths and giggling at each other—basically a pervert party. Why would I want to mingle with them?
Characteristics of a real man: He walks alone and does not flock with the herd. Anyway.
At any rate, I had hidden myself from the wicked butler who wanted to capture me and surrender me to that so-called dance instructor, and was now basking in the warm sunlight.
In my previous life, my small frame had been an insecurity, but now it's proving useful. Hmm.
I'd eaten my fill at lunch. I'd also secretly swiped a cookie from the kitchen and stashed it in my pocket for a snack.
Just going to eat my snack and take a nap...
"Young master? Oh dear. Hiding in a place like this again."
"Hwaaah!?"
Just as I was about to sleep, my personal attendant, Chloe, materialized out of nowhere and hoisted me into the air.
I kicked my dangling feet furiously in protest.
"What's wrong with you! Put me down!"
"...Honestly, young master. Wandering around in such thin clothes again. No matter how young you are, a man shouldn't go about in attire that's practically underwear."
"Shut up! Why do you force me into formal wear every single day when I'm just staying at home anyway! Dressing like this is a thousand times more comfortable!"
"Because it is shameful for a man to bare so much skin to unrelated women."
"I said put me down! That's an order from your master!!"
"Goodness... and you tore up my slave certificate yourself, too."
Apparently unable to endure my violent rampage, Chloe carefully set me back down onto the grass.
I immediately plopped my rear onto the ground.
"Anyway, I am absolutely not going. So you should pretend you didn't see me."
"My apologies. The head butler ordered me to find you and bring you back."
"I'm your master, not the head butler! Whom should your loyalty serve? If you pick me, I shall specially bestow upon you half of this cookie... huh. It's crumbled."
I'd tried to pull out the cookie I stashed in my pocket as a bribe for Chloe, but the cookie had broken during my earlier rampage and was now half crumbs.
While I was regretfully munching away at the remains, Chloe let out a sigh.
"Honestly, when will young master Yune ever grow up?"
"...? I grew up ages ago. My mental age is no different from an adult's."
'I was fourteen before the possession, and now I'm ten. Add them together and that's twenty-four, right? Mentally, I'm a proper adult.'
But Chloe's eyes narrowed skeptically, as if she found that utterly unconvincing. Tch, half-hearted bribes aren't going to cut it, I suppose.
"Instead of that, Chloe, wanna sleep too? Right next to me."
"...!?"
"Oh-ho. So you're sleepy too, Chloe? How about it. Together..."
I'd joked about sleeping together, and Chloe's eyes began quaking as if an earthquake had struck. Sensing an opportunity, my eyes gleamed as I tried to entice her further...
"Ah, young master! There you are!!"
From the distance, the head butler spotted us and came stomping over. Clutched in her hand was a pair of white tights that looked like a skintight bodysuit.
The moment I saw it, I snapped at Chloe.
"Aaaah! Chloe, you're so freakishly tall the head butler spotted us!!"
After that, I was left dangling in the head butler's grip and hauled before the dance instructor.
'I've seriously got to get the hell out of this house if I want any peace of mind. I can't wait to enter the academy... I'll graduate from the academy and become an adventurer right away and leave. Without looking back.'
This had become my daily life in the Nordkirchen Grand Duchy ever since I was possessed into this world.
It was summer.