What on Earth Happened?
What on Earth Happened?
Margarete and Albert, the second and third daughters of Nordkirchen.
They were twins, born almost at the same time, but because Grand Duchess Erengard decreed there must be a clear order among siblings, they had no choice but to refer to each other as older sister and younger sister.
Of course, that was only in name. The two regarded each other as equals, not as older and younger sister.
"Sis. What's the first thing you'll do when we get home?"
"First I'll greet the Head of the House, then wash up. Ah, since Yune's health has improved, I'll go see him too."
"Yune. I used to worry so much, watching him lie in bed till he was ten, but now that he's finally recovered, I can't tell you how relieved I am."
"You can say that again."
The family carriage had come to fetch them from the Academy. Inside, the sisters chatted away.
Soon they noticed the carriage's jolting had noticeably lessened, and they realized they had entered the well-paved roads of the Grand Duchy. They swallowed nervously.
"Still, we did manage to graduate early by a year and a half. Even the Head of the House would give us a word of praise, wouldn't she?"
"Forget it, forget it. If I heard praise from her, I think my heart would pound so hard I'd die."
"True, you had it worse than me. ...It seems like the order we were born determined the rough treatment we got from the Head of the House."
The reason for their tension was their upcoming meeting with the Northern Grand Duchess.
Even though she was the mother who had given birth to them, the reason they dreaded the Northern Grand Duchess was the ruthlessness they had experienced. From a young age, under the pretext that "children of Nordkirchen must grow up strong," she subjected them to training that bordered on abuse. As her daughters, how could they possibly have a favorable impression of her?
Of course, it was merely training, and it is said that afterward Erengard anxiously pestered the doctors to ensure her children suffered no lasting aftereffects... But because Erengard herself kept this a secret, to the sisters the Northern Grand Duchess was simply the cold-hearted head of the house who had trained them harshly since childhood without a single word of praise, with frozen blood and tears.
Erengard herself was poor at expressing emotions, her face was fearsome, and her personality could not be called kind even by the most generous flattery. For all those reasons, they had kept their mother at a distance until now, but...
They did not know. That the moment those misunderstandings would shatter was approaching. That the gears of parent and child—between Erengard and them, which had been spinning uselessly—would soon begin to mesh properly.
* * * * * *
The two sisters headed straight for the Head of the House's office the moment they arrived at the Grand Ducal House.
They gaped at the sight before their eyes.
"You have done well. Margarete. Albert."
Sitting at the table in the Head of the House's office was the Northern Grand Duchess, their mother, Erengard, ready to receive them.
Her expression was so cold it was hard to believe she was greeting children she hadn't seen in a year and a half. Her gaze fixed on them as if they were mortal enemies.
But the sisters immediately realized that her expression had markedly softened. The terror and charisma that once could make one wet oneself just by being looked at had diminished greatly.
If that were all, they would have merely thought, "The Head of the House must have had something very good happen today," and never gaped like commoners. The reason they were so shocked was none other than—
It was because of their youngest sibling, Yunes, who was sitting on her lap and staring at them.
"...Ah! Mar, big sis! Albert, big sis! You two have really changed a lot!"
"...Sitting on the Head of the House's lap? I'd rather ride a dragon."
"It's a relief he's gotten healthy, but my god. Does that kid have no fear?"
In their memories, Yune was a frail child who coughed in bed every day. A sibling who, since birth, had been sickly—unlike a Nordkirchen—and whom they hadn't even been able to share more than a few meals with, let alone play with.
It was a relief that such a sibling had become so healthy and was grinning, but...
There was Yune, plopped down on the Head of the House's lap in light clothing that was practically underwear, unthinkable for a noble young master.
Albert, who had been covering her mouth in shock, barely managed to speak.
"Um, Head of the House. Why are you holding Yune in your arms...?"
"...Right. That was unbecoming of a noble. Yune, get down."
"Huh? Mom, aren't you going to pet me anymore?"
"M-Mom?!"
"My god, he called the Head of the House 'Mom.' Not even 'Mother,' but 'Mom.'"
A second shock swept over the sisters. To call that Northern Grand Duchess "Mom"...
But Erengard didn't get angry at the utterly un-noble address, and carefully placed her hand on Yune's head.
-Pat, pat.
"A little is all right."
An event so earth-shattering that the mighty Northern Grand Duchess was petting her child.
The second daughter, Margarete, was so shocked that she let her inner thoughts slip out.
"...What in the world happened."
* * * * * *
Oddly, my two big sisters were reacting with extreme shock.
But whether they were shocked or not, I was enjoying the touch of my mother's hand as she comfortably petted my head.
One of the ways I'd started coaxing affection out of Mother after my body had somewhat recovered: going into the Head of the House's office and pestering her to pet me.
When I pestered her like that, Mother would reluctantly sit me on her lap and pet me, as if she had no choice. But contrary to her reluctant expression and tone, I could clearly feel deep happiness in the way her hand moved while stroking my head.
Of course, I'm not crazy enough to be so unmanly and act like a spoiled brat for nothing.
The reason I'm doing this is...
"Anyway, Mom. You'll buy me those grapes, right?"
"Huff. Fine, I'll buy them."
To collect the various game items—especially the "elixir" type items that permanently increase stats.
In the original game, these were precious items you could only get by farming the same map over and over, hundreds or thousands of times, but...
The Northern Grand Duchess's defining trait: she can crush anything with money. And a manly man's defining trait: not wasting time taking the long way just to protect his pride.
That's why I was cuddling in Mom's arms and acting spoiled. If I simply asked her to buy them, she'd interrogate me on all sorts of reasons why I needed them, but if I acted cute and begged, she'd readily agree.
At the joy of soon being able to eat the "Grapes of Dionysus," a consumable that unconditionally raised intelligence by a whopping 0.2 just by consuming it, I wiggled my hips in delight.
"Yes~! Mom, I love you! Well then, I'll be off! Big sisters, see you later!"
After that, I left the office, leaving behind my sisters who were staring at me in a daze and my mother who looked at me with a hint of regret.
Mark of a manly man: leaving quickly without looking back once the goal is achieved.
"Hehe. I'll pile on stats and become a super strong mage. Then I'll become an Archmage that even Sister Flare will heap praise on! Aja aja, fighting!"
* * * * * *
Albert, dizzy from the excessive shock. And Margarete, standing as if her soul had left her.
The first to regain her senses was Albert.
"Head of the House, what on earth was that just now...?"
"About Yune? That little one kept pestering me to pet him, so I had no choice."
"Uh, are you sure it's all right? If word gets out that Yune was sitting on your lap in such attire, strange rumors might spread."
Albert immediately voiced her concern. Having learned of all sorts of filthy rumors among the nobility during her two and a half years at the Academy, she couldn't help but worry.
But Erengard slightly shook her head.
"I understand what you're worried about, but it's fine. I've already issued a gag order to the servants of the Grand Ducal House."
"Even so, a noble young master wandering the castle in such clothing..."
"Would it not be even more un-noble to scold Yune, who has only ever lain in bed and knows nothing of the world, for being un-noble? And his etiquette lessons will begin soon, so do not worry overmuch."
"Are you all right with it? That Yune, sitting on your lap..."
"Mar, what's the matter? Is there a problem with a child being held by his mother? Even for a noble, I think that much is acceptable."
Margarete had interjected, but at the Head of the House's words, which sounded as if she truly saw no problem at all, she couldn't continue and shut her mouth.
It's not like the Head of the House to act like that. She never once did that for us. Many words circled in her mouth, but...
-Thump. Pat, pat.
"Anyway, you also have done well. I am proud of you."
"...!!!"
Because Erengard rose from her seat and casually placed her hands on the sisters' heads, commending them for their hard work, any words they had died on their lips.
They simply felt, for the first time, the touch of the Northern Grand Duchess, the Head of the Nordkirchen House... the woman who was their mother.
"The Head of the House... her hand is unexpectedly warm..."
Thus, the gears of parent and child that had been spinning uselessly for so long finally meshed together for the first time and began to turn, all thanks to the existence of Yune.
* * * * * *
That evening... before that.
Albert was unpacking her traveling gear in her room.
-Pitter-patter.
But at the sound of light footsteps passing by her door, her brow furrowed slightly.
"Running around the Grand Ducal House so frivolously. A new servant? I'll have to warn them."
She opened the door to scold whoever was running past her room. She couldn't stand noise.
But standing before the door was not some new servant.
"Huh? Yune...?"
"Albert, big sister!!"
It was Yunes, eyes sparkling and snorting with excitement. Her youngest brother.