Chapter 35
Chapter 35
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 36
Chapter Title: The Watcher in the Window
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That was the secret to how they protected their territory, despite their numbers being smaller than the other clans.
But Sage still wore a look of confusion.
"What does that have to do with my question?"
"You just asked when you could undergo your next growth."
And that was her answer.
Sage looked incredulous.
"Are you saying you think I *want* Aileen?"
"If not?"
"It's because I thought I could see Aileen sooner if I became an adult."
"Oh, is that so!"
Most don't go to such lengths just to see someone!
Muhella thought to herself.
Sage felt as if he'd been roped into something, and it left him with a sense of unease.
The truth was, he had offered to invite Aileen to the North precisely because he wanted to understand the reason himself.
He thought that if he could just see her one more time, he might finally understand why.
"I said I would invite Aileen to the North."
"......What did you say?"
"Will it be too cold for her here?"
Does he not yet know what it means to invite someone into one's territory?
There was no way.
Sage, who was already receiving lessons on succession, couldn't possibly be ignorant of that.
Muhella answered, bewildered.
"......It might be cold for her."
"Her weakness is rather inconvenient."
Sage muttered under his breath. There was so much to consider.
Before they knew it, the carriage had crossed into the northern border. Snowflakes began to drift into view.
Sage leaned back comfortably in the familiar air.
"When I become the Head, I'll have to expand the territory first."
"Hah."
Muhella was stunned. To think he was already planning to expand their territory just to invite Aileen north.
The moment she mentioned the little girl might not withstand the cold, he was already laying out his plans.
If only he'd stop to consider his own train of thought, the answer would be obvious.
Is it because he's still young?
She was confused. And at the same time, she was worried.
If the object of his desire were a thing, that would be one matter, but when it was a person, the story was entirely different.
'This is a little dangerous. ...But perhaps it's still fine for now?'
It could just be a whim.
Sage was prone to whims, after all.
"Well, do your best, Sage."
Though she suspected Aileen's family would never in a million years allow her to visit the North.
* * *
Recently, strange things had been happening.
Namely, the feeling of being watched.
At first, I dismissed it as just a feeling, but as time passed and it continued, I realized it wasn't.
Feeling that intense gaze once more, I stopped my arm mid-color.
And I shouted loudly.
"Aween's not scawed at aww!"
My clear, ringing voice echoed throughout the room.
I quickly turned my gaze toward the window.
The clear glass reflected only a bright sky and lush green leaves.
I'm sure there was something there!
My eyes wide, I climbed down from my chair.
I ran to the window and stood on my tiptoes.
Peeking over the sill, I could just make out the vast, empty garden below.
"Nobody's here again."
I was super fast this time, too.
With no results, I let out a big sigh.
I went back to my desk and sat down, but I couldn't stop my gaze from repeatedly turning to the window.
I purposefully swung my legs, gripping the crayon tightly in my fist.
"Aween's not scawed of ghosts. Not one bit."
In truth, my heart was pounding.
I muttered the words like a charm, the complete opposite of what I truly felt, and swallowed hard.
I was no longer interested in coloring.
All my senses had long since been focused elsewhere.
As I was half-heartedly coloring in the picture book, Rosaria, who had finished tidying the bathroom, came out and asked with a puzzled face.
"Lady Aileen, did someone come?"
"Hnng? No. Nobody came."
"Then who were you talking to earlier? What is it that you're not scared of at all?"
I decided to confess to Rosaria what I had been keeping a secret.
"Wosawia......."
"Yes, Lady Aileen?"
Sniffle.
I bit my lip, on the verge of tears.
The hand I'd clenched to keep from being scared was smudged with crayon.
Frustrated by the whole unpleasant situation, my nose began to sting.
In my head, I knew there were no such things as ghosts, but my emotions were a separate matter.
"Aween's so scawed....... I think there's a ghost....... Waaah!"
I had shouted that I wasn't scared at all, but it was all a lie.
As I began to cry my heart out, Rosaria calmly asked again.
She seemed uncertain if she had heard correctly.
"A ghost?"
"It's been watching me fow a while......."
At the sudden mention of a ghost, Rosaria looked bewildered.
As I threw myself into her arms, she gently patted my back.
"Don't cry, Lady Aileen. It's not a ghost."
"Weally......?"
"Yes. So there, there."
"Hic... okay."
"Did it seem like someone was watching you, Lady Aileen?"
Nod, nod.
I just nodded in Rosaria's embrace. I heard Rosaria let out a small laugh.
"I'll take care of it for you."
"How?"
"Because I think I know who the culprit is."
I don't know how she knew, but Rosaria's words made me feel a sense of relief.
I wiped the tears streaming down my cheeks with the back of my hand.
Once I had calmed down somewhat, Rosaria stood up and walked to the window. It was the same window I had just checked.
What is she trying to do? There was no one there.
Rosaria, who had opened the window wide, spoke softly to the silent empty air.
"If you don't come out right now, I'll make you disappear without a trace. One. Two......."
Though the content of her words was anything but.
As Rosaria began counting without warning, a figure, whose hiding place was unknown, hastily revealed itself.
It was a white-haired man with an elegant impression.
I hadn't expected a person to really appear from the sky, so I stared blankly at the man.
The deep violet eyes that noticed my gaze locked onto me.
"Hello, Young Lady. This is the first time we're seeing each other like this, isn't it?"
I was so surprised I started to hiccup.
The man, who had been perched on the windowsill, brought his body into the room and grumbled.
"That's too harsh, Rosaria. At least tell me you're going to start counting. Do you think I'm Karma?"
My eyes widened at the mention of a name I had heard before.
It seemed the three of them all knew each other.
"Lady Aileen got scared because you were hiding and watching. You should be grateful I even counted."
"Ah, that was a mistake. I tried to be careful, but I got caught."
The man's tone was brazenly confident.
Hearing his words, Rosaria smiled sweetly.
"You were probably itching to get caught."
Their conversation flowed without restraint, as if they had known each other for a long time.
I quietly approached Rosaria's side.
I was curious who the man was and wanted to ask why he was hiding and watching.
"Is he Wosawia's fwiend?"
"Ah, this is Mesis."
Rosaria introduced the man.
"He was a colleague I was with at the border, and he's been assigned to be your escort, Lady Aileen."
"Me?"
Is that why he was watching me in secret?
I remembered that Karma, whom I had seen a few days ago, had also been called an escort.
Finding out that Mesis was also protecting me gave me a sense of familiarity and put my mind at ease.
It seems everyone is watching from somewhere!
It felt like we were playing hide-and-seek.
Where can I go to see them all?
I had a mountain of questions I wanted to ask, but I decided to ask them one by one.
"Mesis was pwotecting Aiween, too?"
"Of course. I rushed here from far away to protect the Young Lady."
"Mesis. You're being too informal."
Rosaria warned Mesis.
Mesis looked chagrined.
"I'm sorry. I did practice, but I'm not used to it."
I don't really care about things like that. I smiled, saying it was okay.
"Hey. Is the bowdew vewy faw away?"
I couldn't quite grasp the size of the South, so I asked. Mesis began to count on his fingers.
"It takes several full days of running, so yes, it's far. The southern edge is a very long way off."
"Wow."
Having recently become immensely curious about the outside world, my eyes sparkled.
"I wanna go see it, too. When can I go?"