How Can Someone Be Named Chun-sik? (3)

Chloe, who had been hiding in the storage room with me, suddenly approached and licked my cheek.

Naturally, I was startled out of my wits. It turns out people really don't make a sound when they're truly shocked.

'Is she actually insane?'

"Are you crazy? What are you..."

"Mmm. Salty."

Chloe smacked her lips. She closed her eyes, savored the taste with all due deliberation, then opened them and asked.

"Did you perhaps cry?"

"I did not cry! More importantly, you, are you seriously out of your..."

"Master. You cried."

-Poke, poke.

Chloe was grinning from ear to ear and prodding my cheek repeatedly.

The slight melancholy I'd felt just moments ago evaporated completely, replaced by sheer incredulity.

Who am I? I am the youngest son of the Northern Grand Ducal House. I am an exceedingly precious person.

And yet she licked me and kept poking my cheek? A great noble's child? A commoner doing this?

If my mother were to learn of this, Chloe would certainly be reduced to C/h/l/o/e before the day was out.

No. Given my mother's tendency toward overprotectiveness, she might personally separate every stroke, every bone, one by one.

To that extent, what Chloe had just done was an act of madness. By this world's common sense, something deserving death a hundred times over.

But watching Chloe beam, utterly oblivious to the gravity of the situation, my anger soon transformed into urgency.

By the empire's standards, she had indeed committed a capital offense. Still, letting someone actually die just because they licked a cheek felt a bit much.

"That's not the point. Do you understand? If this gets found out, you'll die for insulting nobility."

"Huh? Insulting? I was merely looking after you, young master. My father used to lick me too when I cried."

"I'm not a child... Wait. Your father licked you?"

Chloe had said something beyond the reach of my common sense.

Then she told me about her parents. To summarize, she was the child of a human woman who had married a pure-blood beastman male, and she was therefore more accustomed to beastkin culture.

"So beastkin lick their young when they cry?"

"Yes. They lick them thoroughly. The more they lick, the more it means they love them."

"Haa..."

At her explanation that licking young children was a natural thing among beastkin, I clutched my head.

I mean, as an intellectual and a manly man, I want to respect cultural differences. But this is a bit wrong. If you come to the empire, shouldn't you follow the empire's culture? And I'm ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠not a child, I'm a manly man, so why lick me?

There were abundant points to argue, but still, I could feel that she truly hadn't licked me with bad intentions. So I resolved to cover up the mistake she had made.

'Mark of a manly man. Magnanimity.'

"Fine. I understand. But anything about licking me or something like that is absolutely secret. Understood?"

"Why a secret? Are you embarrassed?"

"Huuu... You'll really die. If I tell my mother about this, you won't even have bones left to pick."

"I would like to fight the Northern Grand Duchess too, actually."

"If you wish to depart this life, I won't stop you."

After that, I grabbed her shoulders firmly and glared at her as I spoke.

"Listen carefully. No matter who asks, never speak of what just happened. Understood? The moment anyone knows, your life is over."

"That lady over there is watching right now."

"⋯?"

Chloe, who had been meeting my eyes squarely, calmly looked toward the door. When I followed her gaze...

The head chef came into view, drenched in a cold sweat and repeatedly casting sidelong glances this way.

-Glance. Glance-glance.

'No, what sin did the head chef even commit?'

Having grasped the situation, I moved swiftly.

"Head chef? Let's bury this matter. Understood? You know if they find out you failed to stop what just happened, you'll be in big trouble too."

"What are you suddenly talking about? I saw nothing at all."

"...Sure enough, head chef. A thousand times more excellent than Chloe! It turns out you're not just good at baking cookies!"

* * * * * *

Thanks to Chloe's unintentional shock therapy, the gloom from earlier had vanished completely, and I felt oddly refreshed.

When I stepped out of the kitchen, a servant nearby shouted.

"Ah, Young Master Yune!"

"What? Little brother!?"

Hearing that, Sister Mar came sprinting at superhuman speed from a corner of the garden.

Seeing Chloe and me, my sister breathed a sigh of relief, as if genuinely thankful.

"Hoooh... I was worried. Where did you go?"

"My head got a bit heated for a moment, so I went to cool off. Sorry, sis."

"No. I'm the one who's sorry. I meant to tease you just a little, but it was definitely a bit of a mean prank to pull on a boy. Sorry."

And when I saw the worry and apology brimming in my sister's eyes as she awkwardly scratched the back of her head—

'See. Just as I thought.'

Even the faint, lingering knot in my heart came completely undone. To think I'd hidden away by myself and moped when it could be resolved this simply.

Suddenly feeling deflated, I gave up thinking and buried myself in my sister's embrace.

'I said some harsh words earlier, so I should say nice words to match, right? Loading cuteness, one shot.'

"Yeah. Sis, I love you. I like you so much."

"...!?"

My face pressed deep into my sister's lower belly area. My sister's tone of voice shot up in an instant.

"...Little brother! Other servants are watching. A boy in that kind of outfit, in an open place like this—this isn't proper."

"Huh? Then it's okay if it's just the two of us in your room?"

"Saying it that way makes it sound weird!"

Unlike her usual easygoing demeanor, my sister flapped her hands in a fluster. At the sight, Chloe covered her mouth with her hand and snickered.

...Right. Chloe. I need to do something about her.

"Sis. Lend me your ear for a moment."

"Huh? Why?"

"Well..."

After that, I whispered to my sister so the people around couldn't hear.

"About Chloe. Was she like that when you originally met? Like, not scared of nobles at all."

"Yeah. That's why I liked her more. She's like a friend."

"She doesn't seem to really understand the weight of the noble status. That friend-like behavior, she did it to me too. Even poked my cheek."

"Really? Was it bad enough to upset you?"

"I'm fine with it. But if Mom sees her treating me like that... she'll die by Mom's hand, you know? You're the one keeping her around. So hurry up and do something, educate her somehow."

"Ah... got it. I'll sort it out."

After hearing me out, Sister Mar grabbed Chloe by the neck and lifted her up.

And then.

"There. Valérie. Shall we have a little physical conversation?"

"Lady Margarete? Is it a spar?"

"Yes. Let's start with a spar."

The two headed toward the knight order's training grounds. With a scheduled regular check-in with the merchant company coming up, I headed to my room.

While I was on a call with the Merchant Company Head through the communication orb, the sound of Chloe yelping echoed faintly from beyond the window.

...Yelping? What kind of sound is that?

* * * * * *

Right after dinner.

During the meal, Sister Mar had informed me in a listless voice that 'it should be done by now,' so I was on my way to meet Chloe.

Originally, I hadn't intended ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to deal with Chloe anymore, but... I got a little curious what exactly a cat beastkin had to endure to end up crying and yelping.

I made my way to the servants' quarters, specifically to the room said to be assigned to Chloe.

-The door burst open.

"Oh. Master?"

As if she'd recognized me just from the footsteps alone, Chloe popped out before I could even open the door.

Having shed her butler uniform and changed into casual clothes, she looked at me briefly. I nodded.

'Hm. I wondered if my sister might have beaten Chloe up, but it looks like she didn't. She seems fine.'

"I told you I'm not your master. I'll come in for a moment."

"Yes!"

After that, I naturally entered Chloe's room.

It was a desolately bare room with no furniture at all, and small to a degree that couldn't even compare to my room.

Feeling the difference in status anew, I crossed my arms and looked up at Chloe.

"So. What did you do with my sister?"

"I sparred with Lady Margarete. I lost for the first time, but it was fun."

"For something like that, I kept hearing yelping, keeng-keeng sounds."

"Lady Margarete kept hitting my head, so that was why. Being hit in the same spot over and over, it gradually hurt, and I couldn't help it."

"The spar is one thing. Didn't she teach you anything about nobles and such?"

"Ah..."

At the mention of nobles, Chloe's complexion suddenly turned pale.

I almost felt admiration, thinking my sister had taught this hyena-ambition patient the fear of the world.

"...Her Grace the Grand Duchess. Is a monster."

"Huh?"

"I can't win. I don't want to fight. Even a dragon couldn't win against that."

Chloe abruptly said my mother was terrifying and drooped her ears.

After that, Chloe began her explanation, trembling.

After the spar, Sister Mar and Chloe went to sign the contract again. But they happened to be caught by Mother, and ended up filling out the magic contract right in front of her.

The moment Chloe saw Mother, far from any competitive spirit, she felt the terror of death and kept whimpering. And as for my sister, Mother's thorough scrutiny of every clause in the contract made things so bad that she actually started to feel sorry for Chloe, apparently.

"Pfft. What's so scary about Mom? Both of you have a long way to go to become manly men~."

"...There's something that only beastkin know. An instinctive sense of an opponent's strength. The gap was so overwhelming, I was terrified."

"Oh? You have something like that? Then how strong am I?"

"Even if three thousand of you, Master, came at me, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I would win."

'...Sister Mar. This isn't resolved at all, you know?'

Chloe hadn't given even the bare minimum lip service toward nobility.

Flabbergasted, I asked.

"Hey. Do you talk this bluntly to Sister Mar too?"

"I do, but."

'Tsk. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Sister Mar. You didn't just see Chloe trembling in front of Mom and decide it was all resolved, did you?'

And I sighed once more, freshly reminded of Sister Mar's habit of doing things just barely enough.

If only Sister Mar possessed even a third of Sister Albert's meticulousness.

"Anyway, to me—no, to nobles—be courteous. I'm not saying this because I want to be treated with respect. It's because if Mom catches you speaking carelessly to me, you might really be in enormous trouble."

"...I will try."

Anyway, when I invoked my mother and scared her, Chloe nodded meekly. Seen like this, she really was like a child.

...A child?

"Chloe. I'd forgotten to ask. How old are you? Are you older than Sister Mar?"

Now that I thought about it, I hadn't asked Chloe's age, so I asked without much thought.

I had roughly figured she'd be around twenty. But Chloe's answer far exceeded my expectations.

"I'm ten years old this year."

"......Ten? With that body!?"

I knew about the beastkin trait of maturing physically earlier than humans.

But even so, with that development, ten? It's absurd.

'No, wait, now that I think about it.'

But thinking again, there was actually some evidence to support Chloe's age.

The bizarre drive to run away from home and immediately get a job at the arena. The innocence of not knowing to fear nobles. And the slightly awkward honorific speech.

'I thought she was just incredibly immature. So it was simply because she's an elementary schooler in a grown body.'

On top of that, hadn't Chloe lived as a gladiator for about fifteen months before coming here?

Only then did it all make sense. Why Chloe had done all those crazy things.

As I stared at Chloe in astonishment, she smiled and looked back at me.

"How old are you, Master?"

"I told you not to call me Master. If you absolutely must call me something, say Young Master. And I'm nine."

"Understood, Young Master. As a one-year-older big sister, I will protect you from now on!"

"No, you're my butler...!!?"

Hearing my age, Chloe smiled and suddenly thrust her body forward.

Before I could even finish retorting, the loose top she was wearing slipped right off.

Thanks to her large chest, it snagged midway and catastrophe was averted before it came all the way off. But regardless, the whole sight was excessively immodest for a man.

"Hey, fix your clothes, quickly! Your chest is completely visible!"

"My chest? I'm a woman, so showing my chest is fine."

"I'm not fine, so hurry up!"

Chloe idly pulled her clothes back up, looking as though she truly didn't understand what she had done wrong.

I heaved a deep sigh toward her.

'She hasn't even had sex education, apparently. ...She's someone who'll have nothing to do with me from now on, but still, it's pitiful. I should at least give Sister Mar a heads-up. To give her sex education.'

Leaving her to adjust her clothes, I returned to the main residence.

"Because Mother was watching from the residence, I had no choice but to assign her as your exclusive butler. Sorry."

It was not even five minutes after I'd left Chloe's room that I heard Sister Mar's words and internally screamed.

What the hell. I'd said I didn't need a butler or anything, but life shoved Chloe onto me.

* * * * * *

And so, I gained an unwanted exclusive butler. A butler named Chloe.

Uneasy about how Chloe treated me with particular familiarity and kept playing pranks, I began teaching her various common-sense matters...

And so time began to flow.

Through the merchant company, I steadily collected elixirs and artifacts and shared them with my family. Meanwhile, I hired renowned magic academy professors as tutors and honed my magic.

Sister Mar was appointed as the Deputy Knight Commander of the knight order and began accumulating experience, while Sister Albert started practicing military command.

My mother's routine never changed. Only, day by day, her smile grew more natural and beautiful. Her expression softened to the point where she would greet me with a faint smile whenever I visited the Head of House's Office.

Thanks to that, my two sisters no longer hesitated to call her 'Mother.' Of course, they still got scared stiff when Mother got angry occasionally... but since I'm the same, I can't really say anything.

And Chloe. Even though she learned this and that common sense from Sister Mar or me, her attitude toward me, at least, didn't change. She treated me as if I were her real younger brother.

Apparently, she was perfectly courteous toward other people, but she just wouldn't do it with me.

Like that, we enjoyed tranquil daily life in the North. For a whole year.

And so, I leaped over all four seasons and turned ten...

Summer came once more to the Nordkirchen Grand Ducal House.

"Yune. You are now ten, so prepare for the debutante ball that will be held soon."

My debutante ball, too, was upon me.

...Ugh.