Chapter 121
Chapter 121
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 121
Chapter Title: A New Encounter (2)
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“I understand. So, can I see Amy now?”
“Of course. The young lady is waiting. Please, get in the carriage.”
As the carriage departed, a beautiful garden with roses in full bloom unfolded outside the window.
If the Ogent family expressed their family spirit through grand avenues, the Carmis family's spirit seemed to be one of free-spiritedness. Unique works that ignored standards and uniformity were erected throughout the garden.
“It's truly wonderful. I feel like I've stepped into a dreamland.”
“I'm glad you like it. The Carmis garden has traditionally reflected the tastes of all its members. We designate sections and allow them to be decorated to their liking. This is a unique family tradition that values individual personality. The artificial fountain you see now was built at the suggestion of Lady Amy when she was ten. We call it the Rainbow Fountain.”
Shirone leaned his head out the window. As the cone-shaped fountain sprayed water, the droplets scattered light, creating a beautiful rainbow.
“Haha! The Rainbow Fountain. That's so like Amy.”
Adelle watched Shirone admire the garden with a benevolent gaze. He could guess why Amy's face had brightened since she returned home at the end of this semester.
“The Carmis family has an ability called Red Eyes. Thanks to it, they excel much faster than others in whatever they do. Knowing this, the family members tend not to interfere with one another much. A report about the Arcane incident came in, but the head of the family simply confirmed the young lady's safety and ordered that she be left alone.”
Shirone's jaw dropped. To be told to leave her alone after an incident that had endangered his daughter's life. He could feel just how broad-minded the members of the Carmis family were in their view of the world.
“Of course, it's not that there is no affection within the family. It's simply their nature, but Lady Amy, being the youngest, sometimes couldn't understand her family. She even went astray when she was younger than she is now.”
“Ah, I knew about that. But I didn't know there was such a story behind it.”
Shirone recalled his first meeting with Amy. He had resented her greatly when he was being bullied in an alley around the age of twelve. But that was all in the past now, and learning the circumstances behind that history made him feel even closer to her.
“Watching the young lady these past few days, I've been thinking how much she has changed from when she was a child. Shall I say she has come to enjoy her own affairs, much like the other young masters of the family? It is likely thanks to you, Sir Shirone. Thank you.”
Shirone could see the sincerity in Adelle's bow. Indeed, for someone who had cared for Amy since her birth, it couldn't just be the feelings of an employee.
That was also why he had judged Shirone so strictly. Of course, a considerable amount of jealousy, as if his cute granddaughter was being taken away, must have played a part as well.
“I'm sorry you lost face because of me. The head butler shouldn't have had to come out to greet me.”
“You are a kind person, Sir Shirone. But you need not worry. Lady Amy granted you entry, I was merely a butler passing by chance, and the head of the family simply ordered for anyone to go at once.”
Shirone grew curious about the people of the Carmis family. If even the head butler cared for Amy so dearly, how strictly would her family treat him? The thought was a little frightening.
“Ugh. I'm getting nervous. I just hope I don't get turned away at the door.”
“Hahaha! They will certainly exceed your expectations. But that is just their nature, so please do not be too offended.”
While they were talking, the carriage arrived at its destination.
Shirone followed Adelle into the mansion. A splendid hall decorated with numerous works of art greeted him. On either side, spiral staircases, like the cochlea of an ear, wound their way up to the fourth floor.
“My lord, Lady Amy's friend has arr—.”
“Aaaah! No way! He's really a boy!”
A woman who looked just like Amy shouted, slapping her own cheeks. It was Isis, the lady of the house.
As befitting a dancer who had made a name for herself in the kingdom in her youth, she still looked young despite being over fifty. But perhaps because of that, every one of her actions dripped with a sense of immaturity.
“What? Shirone was a boy?”
“Me too! Let me see!”
Two men came running from the hallway connected to the living room. They were the eldest son, Daian, and the second son, Ares.
Daian looked young for his mid-thirties, while Ares, two years his junior, had a bushy beard that made it impossible to guess his bare face.
The two men stared intently at Shirone as if they couldn't believe it. Just by looking at their shocked eyes, one could tell how confused they were.
“Uh, um... Hello. I'm Amy's friend, Shirone...”
“Now, let's skip the greetings and come over here. Honey, Amy's boyfriend is here.”
Isis recklessly grabbed Shirone's wrist and sat him down on the sofa. One person was waiting there. It was Shakora, the head of the Carmis family, whose name even Shirone knew.
He had heard that Shakora was a man who once wielded immense influence in the political world but retired after becoming disillusioned with all sorts of corruption.
“Hmm.”
As Shakora lowered his newspaper, his intellectual features were revealed. He was the tallest in the family, and his body's proportions were perfect, belying his age.
Shirone broke into a cold sweat, like a rabbit that had jumped into a lion's den. The gazes scanning his body as if appraising a work of art were unbearably burdensome.
When the men's eyes began to glow red, Shirone swallowed hard. The sight of the three of them activating their Red Eyes at the same time was rather terrifying.
*‘Ugh, they're memorizing me. They're storing me in their heads.’*
Shirone, who knew about the ability of Eidetic Memory, felt as if he had been shackled. They would probably be able to recall this moment forever, transcending time and space.
“Um, hello?”
Unable to bear the awkward atmosphere, Shirone braved the embarrassment and greeted them again. Only then did the Red Eyes fade from the men's eyes, and as if she had been waiting, Isis clung to him.
“Wow, he's handsome. This is unexpected. Are you really Amy's friend?”
“Yes, I am.”
“Oho? Then are you in the graduating class too?”
“No. I'm in Class Five.”
“Hmm?”
Isis frowned. The brothers also tilted their heads. Flustered, Shirone felt he had to add something else and opened his mouth.
“But I'll be in Class Four starting next semester.”
“Aha!”
Suddenly, the three of them broke into bright smiles. The same expression, the same reaction. Shirone fell into a state of panic. It seemed they hadn't been interested in his class from the beginning.
*‘Where on earth am I? Who are these people...?’*
Shirone suddenly recalled Adelle's words.
*—They will exceed your expectations. Please do not be too offended.*
Adelle's advice was not a lie. But they were a family that exceeded his expectations in a different way than he had thought. Should he say they had a pleasant yet eccentric disposition?
“When did you meet Amy? You two are dating, right? Huh? Do you hold hands at school too?”
“Huh? No, that's...”
Shirone stalled for as long as he could. Here, Amy's position came first, so it was better to be reserved with his words.
“What's the big spectacle? What are you all doing, crowding around without the person in question?”
A voice from upstairs rescued Shirone, who was on the verge of collapse. Amy was looking down at the hall from the spiral staircase on the second floor.
The second son, Ares, spoke, his beard twitching.
“Oh? You changed your clothes? You rushed to your room in a flurry when you heard Shirone was here.”
Amy shut down the teasing before it could start.
“So what? Was I supposed to meet him in my pajamas? Anyway, everyone disperse. Dad, is it okay if I talk with my friend?”
“Go ahead. Isn't he the first boyfriend you've brought home? The Carmis family way is to try everything you can so you don't have regrets later. Hahaha!”
Amy didn't even bat an eyelash at Shakora's mischievous joke. It was important not to show any opening, as they would dig in relentlessly if she let herself be swayed even a little.
Even as Shirone ascended the spiral staircase, Isis's questions continued.
“Amy, be honest. He's your lover, right? You're a couple, right? Huh?”
Amy quickened her pace as if she couldn't hear a thing. But her mother, from whom she got her nature, was just as persistent as Amy.
“Don't be like that, just tell me. What's the relationship between you two? You are dating, right? Right?”
“Yes!”
Unable to hold it in any longer, Amy shouted fiercely and headed for her room.
Isis's mouth fell open in a daze. This time, even Shakora seemed surprised, raising his gaze to look up the stairs.
But the two of them had already disappeared from view.
Once inside the room, Shirone and Amy sat facing each other awkwardly across a table.
Shirone first looked around the room. The bookshelf was filled with magic books, and in a corner, out of sight, were a few romance novels that looked as if they'd never been opened.
*‘Haha! Seriel must have lent her those.’*
She was known as a tomboy at school, but her room was surprisingly feminine. His eyes were particularly drawn to a large doll sitting on the bed. It was a teddy bear with fiercely slanted eyes.
“You have a doll. A teddy bear, at that.”
“So what? Am I not allowed to have a doll in my room?”
“No, it's just that it kind of looks like you. Haha!”
Amy clicked her tongue with a 'tch' and fell silent. To be honest, she couldn't think of anything to say. This was also the first time she had shown her room to a boy outside of her family.
“But are you really okay with this? I get pretending to date at school, but I don't think you need to lie to your family.”
“Don't worry about it. They probably don't care anyway. They're just doing it for their own amusement.”
Just as Amy said, they were a free-spirited and unique family. But he could vaguely sense that beneath the surface, they were connected by familial love.
“Enough with the nonsense. What brings you to my house all of a sudden? Is there something you wanted to talk about?”
“Actually, the thing is...”
Just as Shirone was about to speak, the door creaked open. Isis's face peeked stealthily through the narrow gap.
“Oh my, did I interrupt you two at a good time? I brought you some tea to drink while you talk.”
Isis shuffled over and placed the tea on the table. All the while, her eyes were fixed on Shirone.
As Shirone tried to speak again, the door opened once more, and this time, Daian entered.
“I brought some snacks...”
Daian's gaze, too, was glued to Shirone. The sight of him walking forward while his head was turned to the side was comical.
Amy sighed. This had never happened before, so from their perspective, it must be amusing.
Her brothers were usually uninterested in anything but the most bizarre events, but their little sister had never once brought a boyfriend home before.
“Alright. Just come all the way in. I know you're waiting outside.”
The moment Amy's words fell, a foot kicked the door wide open. Ares was standing there, holding a plate with both hands.
“We had some fruit... haha.”
“I said it's fine, so come in. Since it's come to this, I might as well introduce you all properly. Shirone, is that okay?”
“Ah, of course.”
And so, the entire family, excluding Shakora, ended up sitting across from Shirone.
“This is Shirone, a rising star at the magic academy. And Shirone, this is my mom. She was a dancer in her youth.”
“I see. No wonder you're so beautiful.”
“Hohoho! Amy takes after me, doesn't she? But it would be troublesome if you fell for me. I wouldn't want to hurt my daughter.”
“Ah, yes.”
Shirone said he understood. No matter how he thought about it, there was nothing else he could say.
“And this is my older brother, Daian. He's a certified Grade 5 swordsman and serves as the captain of the Royal Archers. He's back home for a bit to consult with Dad on a political matter.”
When Amy finished speaking, her family turned to look at her with surprise.
Even if he was her boyfriend, there was no need to mention internal family affairs. It was proof that while she was pretending to be composed, she was also nervous on the inside.