2
## Chapter 2
“Your name is Arin?”
“Mm-hmm! I’m Arin!”
“……”
Ethan stared blankly at Arin’s answer.
Thinking that perhaps he had heard wrong, he asked her one more time, but the answer he received was exactly the same.
“Then… were you human from the beginning?”
He cautiously continued with his next question.
Even as he wondered whether this was really something one should ask a young child.
At this point, though, Ethan had no choice but to ask.
He had to make sure that the girl standing before him really was the Arin he knew.
“Umm… no.”
“You weren’t?”
“I was originally a sword!”
“A sword… Right. So you were a sword.”
At Arin’s answer, Ethan nodded.
Thud.
Then he collapsed helplessly onto the bed.
‘So I understand why she calls me Dad now.’
Ethan understood why Arin regarded him as her parent.
Although his mind was still confused, he could understand how she had arrived at that conclusion.
‘The hidden power of the legendary sword Arin, which I obtained from the Ice Valley… Was this what that legend was
talking about?’
But he was still surprised.
He had never imagined that Arin possessed an ability like this.
‘I thought it was just an exaggerated story.’
The reason Ethan had chosen Arin as his sword in the first place had not been because of some legend about her hidden
power.
He had simply been inexplicably drawn to her and had used Arin as his beloved sword.
‘And the result was regression. And Arin turned into a human.’
And that choice had ended up changing the future.
Ethan could only be amazed.
‘Wait. Then the power Arin had…’
At that moment, a question arose in Ethan’s mind.
It concerned the mysterious ‘power’ Arin had displayed right before his death.
Specifically, how he could make use of it again.
As he silently sank into a whirlpool of thoughts—
“Dad? Why are you spacing out?”
Arin tilted her head and spoke to Ethan.
“……”
Ethan turned his gaze toward her at her call.
She was still staring at him with bright, sparkling eyes.
‘If Arin had been human, I guess this is exactly what she would have looked like… It’s exactly how I imagined it.’
An innocence untouched by the world.
That was the assessment Ethan had made when he first discovered Arin in her sword form. He had thought that this sword
was untouched by the filth of the world.
And now, looking at Arin, he became certain of it. Although she had changed from a sword into a human, that part of her
had remained unchanged.
‘I’ll have to take more time to figure out that power.’
The power he had felt from Arin right before his death.
As much as he wanted to obtain it right now, Ethan knew very well that it was impossible.
He could not even utilize aura in his current state.
“Arin. How old are you?”
So for now, he decided to take an interest in Arin herself.
There was no need to rush obtaining that power. He could do it after creating his Aura Heart.
“5,300 years old!”
“Huh?”
Ethan furrowed his brows at Arin’s answer.
“5,300 years old?”
He could not understand what possible basis she had for coming up with such an outrageous number.
“Yep!”
“Can you tell me why you answered that way?”
“Because~ Arin has lived as a sword for that long!”
“Oh.”
But he understood after hearing her explanation.
If he included the time she had spent existing as the legendary sword, then that number was probably correct.
“…From now on, if someone asks, say you’re five years old.”
“Why? Arin is 5,300 years old.”
“Because answering that way will help Dad. Surely you don’t want to make things difficult for Dad, do you?”
“Umm… Arin is 5,300 years old, though…”
Arin made a disappointed expression at Ethan’s words.
Then she fidgeted with the blanket and blinked her eyes a few times before—
“Okay! From now on, Arin is five years old!”
She answered while spreading all five fingers of her right hand.
“I don’t know if this is something I should be asking… but where is your mother?”
“There isn’t one! Dad is everything to Arin!”
“Ah…”
Ethan made an awkward expression at Arin’s answer.
He had not expected her to have a mother in the first place.
After all, Arin had originally been his ‘beloved sword.’
‘This feels strange.’
Yet for some reason, he felt sorry.
The very fact that such words were coming from a young child’s mouth made him uncomfortable.
“Dad. Dad… does Dad hate Arin?”
Arin asked Ethan in a slightly trembling voice.
“Your expression doesn’t look good. Is it because of Arin?”
It was because Ethan’s expression had gradually hardened.
“Huh?”
At Arin’s sudden question, Ethan’s eyes widened.
He had simply been lost in thought about something else, but hearing her say that caught him off guard.
“It’s not because of you. I was just thinking about something for a moment.”
“Really?”
“Of course. Why would I hate you? I have absolutely no reason to.”
Arin tilted her head at Ethan’s words.
“Really?”
Then she asked Ethan once more.
Whether he really did not hate her.
Her eyes were filled with anxiety.
“That’s right.”
Ethan answered seriously.
“I’m not going to abandon you. So you can rest assured.”
He meant it.
Even when Arin had been in the form of a sword, she had been his cherished beloved sword.
There was no way his affection for her would disappear in an instant just because she had become a child.
‘Then she really is no different from my own daughter.’
“I like that! Dad is the best!”
Hug!
At Ethan’s answer, Arin broke into a bright smile.
Then she spread both arms and hugged Ethan with all her strength.
‘Anyone who saw this would really think she was my daughter. How can she feel this much like one?’
Ethan looked down at Arin’s face in his arms.
From her white hair to her distinct facial features.
There were so many similarities that someone could genuinely believe he was her father.
‘I don’t dislike it.’
To be honest, Arin was exceptionally beautiful.
Even though she was still young, it was obvious that she was already different from other children.
‘This is going to be a headache.’
And that only gave him more worries.
Anyone looking at them would think she was his daughter, so there was no way people would not misunderstand.
Knock, knock!
“Young Master. It is Sebastian. May I come in?”
At that moment, Sebastian, Ethan’s personal butler, knocked on the door.
“Yeah. Come in.”
Ethan answered without thinking.
It was an instinct formed from years of habit.
‘…Wait!’
Then he immediately realized something.
He was not alone in the room.
“Come in.”
Creak.
He hurriedly tried to stop Sebastian from entering, but—
“Breakfast is ready…. Hm?”
It was already too late.
“……”
Sebastian opened the door and stepped inside.
Then, upon seeing the scene before him, his entire body froze.
“Sebastian… Uh.”
Ethan opened his mouth as he looked at Sebastian.
Sebastian had been the man who had worried about his well-being all the way until his death before the regression, so
Ethan wanted to tell him that he was grateful.
But—
“It’s a misunderstanding. This is a misunderstanding.”
There was no way those words could possibly help in the current situation.
The cold look in Sebastian’s eyes made it painfully clear what he thought of Ethan.
“Dad! What’s a misunderstanding?”
Arin asked with a curious expression at Ethan’s words. Sebastian shifted his gaze toward Arin.
“Dad…? Come to think of it… She looks remarkably like the Young Master…”
He alternated his gaze between Arin and Ethan.
“Young Master.”
He called out to Ethan in the most subdued voice Ethan had ever heard from him, both in his past and present lives.
“I’m disappointed.”
Then Sebastian frowned and continued.
“……”
Ethan was left speechless by Sebastian’s words.
Never in his life had he received such a contemptuous look from Sebastian. Not even during the period when he had lived
like a complete wastrel.
‘This is unfair.’
And now, after regressing—
He had received those words from Sebastian at the very first opportunity.
Since this was not even something he had caused of his own accord, Ethan felt like his chest was about to burst from
frustration.
Meanwhile, Sebastian, being the seasoned butler he was, quickly regained his composure and assessed the situation.
“For now, let us go have breakfast. The head of the household is waiting.”
“…Right.”
Ethan nodded weakly at Sebastian’s words.
“Dad! Arin is hungry too!”
After hearing the two men’s conversation, Arin spoke in a bright voice.
“Arin…”
Sebastian muttered Arin’s name to himself.
Then, just as he looked at Arin with a complicated expression—
“Hello!”
Arin cheerfully greeted Sebastian.
Her large, clear eyes and skin that looked as pale and soft as milk pudding.
She was the sort of adorable child whose appearance alone could make every worry and concern in one’s heart disappear.
She was so cute that—
“Heh heh.”
Even Sebastian, who had been feeling troubled over Ethan’s latest incident, could not help but smile.
‘Sebastian fell for her too.’
Ethan had felt exactly the same way when he first discovered Arin.
An innocence that seemed as though it could never exist in this world again.
He had been drawn to that innocence even when she was a sword, so now that she had taken the form of a child, its effect
was bound to be several times stronger.
“Lady Arin, are you hungry as well?”
Sebastian, who had fallen for Arin in an instant, asked her with a kindly expression whether she was hungry. Thanks to
the greeting Arin had given him, his heart had even become peaceful.
“Yes! My tummy is rumbling!”
“I see. Then would you like to have a meal with the Young Master?”
“Okay!”
Arin answered energetically.
“Is Grandpa not eating?”
Then she looked at Sebastian’s face and asked an unexpected question.
Since he was actually seventy years old, calling him Grandpa was not technically an incorrect form of address.
“Haha! I have already eaten. And rather than Grandpa, please call me Sebastian. That would be the proper way to address
me.”
“Hmm. Grandpa suits you better…”
Arin furrowed her brows as though disappointed by Sebastian’s words.
“Okay! Sebastian!”
Then she finally called him by his name as he had asked.
Grin.
Sebastian’s lips curled upward at the sight.
“It feels just like I’m looking at the Young Master when he was a child.”
Then he quietly continued to Ethan.
“There was a time when the Young Master possessed such a pure and utterly clean soul. But now…”
“I know what you’re going to say, so could you stop there?”
“Since there is a child present, I shall do so.”
At Ethan’s words, Sebastian kept his mouth shut.
No matter how much trouble Ethan had caused, Sebastian could not completely disregard his wishes.
“…I’m only asking just in case. Does the head of the household know about this?”
“Unfortunately, I have to say no.”
“That is truly unfortunate.”
“I agree.”
Ethan nodded in agreement with Sebastian’s words.
“Now, shall we head out with Lady Arin?”
Then he once again reminded Ethan that breakfast was ready.
“Yeah… We should go.”
Ethan took a deep breath at those words and slowly exhaled.
“Arin. Let’s go.”
He spoke to Arin, who was staring intently at him.
“Yes, Dad!”
Arin answered as though she had been waiting for him to say it.
At the same time, she hopped off the bed and landed on the floor.
Sebastian looked on at the sight with a pleased expression.
“Then, if you will follow me.”
At Sebastian’s words, Ethan nodded.
‘How am I supposed to clean this mess up…?’
And so, while wondering how he was going to deal with what came afterward, he headed toward the dining room.
---
Ethan and Arin walked down the corridor toward the dining room.
“Oh my… That child is so cute.”
“Did the Young Master really have a daughter like that?”
“She’s the spitting image of the Young Master when he was young. Blood really can’t lie.”
The maids they encountered along the way admired Arin when they saw her.
“But… This time, he really went all out causing trouble.”
“At this rate, could he be kicked out of the family?”
They whispered among themselves.
‘I can hear every word, you idiots.’
Ethan sighed inwardly as he heard them.
Thanks to the sharp senses he had honed in his previous life, he could easily hear even fairly quiet voices.
Of course, that did not mean he intended to reprimand them for it. The current him was no longer a wastrel.
However—
‘She’s not my child… She really isn’t. Well, she kind of is, but not that kind of child. How the hell am I supposed to
explain this?’
His sense of injustice remained.
But there was nothing he could do.
There was no way to undo this.
“Haa…”
Knowing that, Ethan simply gave up and trudged toward the dining room.
Creak.
When he opened the dining room door and entered, the head of the Calassar family, Giovan, was sitting at the far end of
the table.
Ethan gave Giovan a small bow.
“Arin. Let’s sit here.”
“Yes, Dad!”
Then he sat down in the prepared seat with Arin.
“……”
Giovan stared silently at the two of them.
There was no sign of any emotion on Giovan’s face.
No surprise. No anger. No bewilderment.
‘…He’s furious to the very top of his head.’
Someone might have described Giovan’s state as peaceful, but Ethan certainly did not.
For Giovan to be this calm meant—
‘I’d better prepare myself.’
It meant that Giovan was deeply disappointed in him.
“Hmm…”
Perhaps Arin sensed that something was wrong as well.
She avoided the gaze of Giovan, who was staring intently at her.
“Dad…”
At the same time, she tightly grabbed the fabric of Ethan’s clothes.
She looked exactly like a frightened, shrinking child.
“Let’s eat first.”
Seeing that, Giovan spoke in an indifferent voice.
At the same time, he withdrew his attention from Ethan and Arin and began cutting the meat on his plate.
“Arin. Let’s eat too.”
Ethan spoke as though he had been waiting for Giovan to say those words.
Then, just as he picked up his knife and prepared to cut his meat—
“Umm… Nghh.”
A strained sound came from beside him.
“?”
When he turned his head, he saw Arin gripping her knife and fork in her fists and struggling with her steak.
‘…She was a sword, yet she doesn’t know how to use a knife?’
He found it slightly strange.
He had assumed that if she had been a sword in her previous life, she would be good at handling tools of a similar
nature.
Stab… stab…
The unfortunate steak was slowly being turned into minced meat by Arin’s clumsy attempts with the fork.
“You’re not supposed to hold them like that. Here.”
Unable to watch any longer, Ethan repositioned the fork and knife in her hands.
“Dad, how do I do this?”
“Watch me and follow along.”
“Umm… Oh! I did it!”
Arin watched him and diligently cut the meat.
And when she finally succeeded in separating a piece from the steak—
“Dad. Say ah~”
She speared the piece with her fork and held it out toward Ethan.
“……”
Ethan flinched at Arin’s sudden action.
Then he subtly glanced toward Giovan.
“You never even taught the child basic table manners?”
“No… Well, you see…”
Do you seriously expect me to teach a sword how to use a knife?
Ethan wanted to ask that, but he could not bring himself to talk back.
Fortunately, Giovan did not press the matter any further.
“Enough. More importantly, you’re not planning to ignore something your child is giving you, are you?”
“Daaad. My arm is going to fall off!”
Arin spoke to Ethan once more.
“Ah. Right…”
Hearing that, Ethan turned his head toward Arin.
Nom.
Then he swallowed the piece of meat Arin had offered him in one bite.
“Hehe~”
After seeing that, Arin smiled contentedly.
‘Can I even clear up this misunderstanding? No… I probably can’t.’
All the while, Ethan remained unaware of how impossible his situation looked to everyone else.