The First Real Smile
Kyle followed the lessons better than I had expected. Then again, the material wasn't particularly difficult to begin with, so that was only natural.
"Young Master, I did tell you not to hunch over like that during meals."
"Ah."
Of course, he was still a child, so mistakes were only to be expected. There was no need to scold him for them. He was just a kid, after all.
I placed a hand on Kyle's back and pressed gently.
"Like this. Straighten your back as much as you can, then bring the fork closer."
"Y-yes!"
The real problem was this: if he startled just from me standing this close, how was he ever supposed to hold a conversation in high society? And this was only because I was a woman. If a grown man had done the same thing, Kyle would have screamed, no question about it.
If he stayed this timid, I worried he might end up getting ostracized later on. The thing was, Kyle came from a background that shouldn't have allowed for a personality like this. He'd been shy even before last year's incident, which meant it was simply how he was born. His circumstances were far too perfect for this to have been something he'd developed after the fact.
He was the sole son and heir of the Eristyrol Grand Duchy in the Dextrin Empire. His younger sister was still little, so his position as successor was rock-solid. And that face of his—it was the kind of face that could reel in most of the girls around him. Even the picky ones, I suspected. That mysterious white hair and those matching blue eyes were especially striking. Once he made his debut in high society, he'd make a name for himself on looks alone.
"Miss Sophia... why are you looking at me like that? Did I do something wrong again...?"
"No. I was simply looking at you for a moment, Young Master."
Even now, he shrank back just because I'd been looking at him. He listened well. He followed his lessons diligently. If I could just fix that personality of his, he'd be fine.
I almost sighed, but I held it in. If I sighed, he'd just flinch and curl up all over again.
"Young Master, do you have any hobbies?"
"Hobbies?"
"Yes."
The reason I was asking about Kyle's hobbies was simple. I needed to raise his self-esteem, one way or another.
"Hobbies... I like... horseback riding."
"Horseback riding, you say?"
I was relieved his hobby wasn't anything strange. Thank goodness it wasn't something like collecting bugs or fishing. Horseback riding was the perfect hobby for building Kyle's confidence. All I had to do was wait until he got reasonably good, then tell him, You look so dashing, Young Master~
"In that case, let's have you spend your leisure time horseback riding from now on. I'll make the arrangements."
"Yes."
Was it because he'd be able to enjoy a hobby he only occasionally indulged in more regularly now? A faint smile appeared on Kyle's face.
Kyle didn't have anything that could be called an official schedule anyway. Aside from sleeping, eating, and lessons, the rest of his time was essentially free. I'd thought it strange that there weren't more activities on his calendar, but the head butler had confirmed that nothing else was scheduled. I figured they'd halted all his outside engagements after last year's incident.
The next day, lessons wrapped up as usual. Thanks to Kyle being such an attentive student, we actually finished early.
"Young Master, shall we head to the stables?"
"Are there no more lessons today...?"
"That's right. You followed along so well that we finished early. So it's leisure time now. Would you like to go to the stables right away?"
"...Yes."
The horses were in the stables, naturally, so that's where we went. We didn't talk much along the way. I wanted to strike up a conversation, but every time I spoke to him out of the blue he jumped, and I was starting to feel bad about it. Maybe it would get better once we grew closer. Still, we were going to be seeing each other for years. The thought of nothing but stiff lessons and rigidly hierarchical conversations the whole time didn't sit well with me.
"Young Master, do you have a horse you usually ride? If so, I'll bring that one out."
Without a word, Kyle walked into the stables and pointed to a horse with a striking black coat. That was probably the one he'd been riding for some time.
I fetched a lead rope, clipped it on, and gently led the horse out of its stall. Then I gave it a few strokes with a brush and wrapped its legs. I'd ridden plenty of times back when I worked as an adventurer, so the process was familiar. And as expected of a horse belonging to nobility, it was nothing like the temperamental beasts you saw in villages. It followed even a stranger's hands without fuss.
"Young Master, would you like to mount right away?"
"...Yes."
After finishing the rest of the preparations, including the saddle, I asked him. Kyle looked a little nervous, glancing back and forth between me and the horse. Was he tense about riding with his tutor watching?
"It's all right, Young Master. It's fine if you make a mistake. I'll be right here to help."
I stepped over to Kyle, who was standing beside me, slipped my hands under his arms, and lifted him straight up.
"Wha—?!"
Kyle turned his head toward me in surprise. But I had no choice but to lift him. He was shorter than his horse, so this was the most effective method. Of course, I wasn't particularly tall myself, so once I got him up, he'd have to swing himself onto the saddle.
I carried him closer to the horse, and Kyle finally seemed to understand. He swung his leg over and settled into the saddle. Now we were ready.
"Young Master, you need to hold the reins."
Maybe it had been a while since he'd last ridden, because he wasn't even holding the reins. I pointed it out. It was unlikely, but if the horse suddenly bolted, he'd need those reins to keep control.
I led the horse with Kyle on its back, walking it slowly out of the stables. Despite having Kyle on its back and a complete stranger at its head, the horse followed the lead meekly.
Once we were outside, I ran into a problem. Getting the horse out of the stables and getting Kyle mounted had gone fine. But now what? This wasn't a suitable place for riding, no matter how you looked at it. Circling around here wouldn't be any fun, and there wasn't a proper path, which meant a real risk of getting hurt.
"Young Master, shall we head over toward where the knights train? I think riding here might be a bit dangerous."
I asked him directly. At the end of the day, I was in a position where I had to follow Kyle's decisions. If he said he'd rather ride here because he didn't want to be near the knights, then I'd just stay close and make sure he didn't get hurt.
"Would it... be all right if we went...? What if we get in their way..."
"It'll be fine. The knights won't be bothered or upset just because you're there, Young Master."
If a knight complained about their employer's son wanting to ride a horse, they wouldn't last long as a knight in this territory. The Grand Duke would have their head.
"...Then... let's go..."
Once Kyle agreed to go to the knights' training grounds, I led the horse and we arrived together. What greeted us was the sight of the Eristyrol knights at practice. It had been a long time since I'd seen real knights—not just village guards.
We headed straight for a proper riding course. Well-kept grass and ground, maintained so the horses wouldn't get hurt. Kyle had ridden before, so there was no need for me to keep holding on now that we'd come this far. I let go of the reins and told him to go enjoy himself.
"Looks fun..."
Watching Kyle ride around by himself, smiling, I found myself wanting to ride too. Maybe I should have brought two horses from the start.
And it really was his hobby, apparently—he was smiling. I realized this was the first time I'd seen Kyle smile like that since I'd arrived at Eristyrol Castle.
That was probably the real him. Not the boy who startled and shrank back every time I spoke to him, or the one who watched the male servants warily whenever they walked past. That smiling face—that was the real Kyle.
We still had a longer road ahead than I'd thought. Lessons mattered, but closing the distance between us seemed even more important.
Once again, I waited outside Kyle's room until it was time to wake him. When the hour came, I quietly slipped inside. I drew back the curtains that had been blocking the sunlight and stood beside his bed.
"Young Master, it's morning."
My past-life self had never been a morning person, and neither had I before attending boarding school. I'd always been the type to sleep in and show up late.
"Nnnngh......"
In that regard, Kyle was a diligent child. I'd only said one thing, and he was already getting up. Give it another year and he probably wouldn't even need me to wake him.
"Miss Sophia... water, please..."
But he was still a child, after all—asking me for water with his eyes still closed. I placed the cup I'd prepared for him into his hand. Kyle drank with his eyes still shut, gulp after gulp.
If I'd had a little brother, would he have been like this? His hair color and eye color were completely different, of course, but it felt a bit like raising a younger sibling.
"Young Master, would you like breakfast right away? Or would you rather wash up first? Or perhaps..."
"Or perhaps...?"
"Would you like to sleep a little longer?"
I said it with a smile. There was a set wake-up time, sure, but it wasn't as though he had a mountain of things to do first thing in the morning. If he wanted to sleep more, he could.
"...Then... I want to sleep more..."
Unlike the timid demeanor he usually showed, here he was, stating what he wanted like a normal kid. I'd be grateful if he could just do this much all the time.