Chapter 36

However, Mother unexpectedly looked unbothered, her expression unchanged as she looked at me and spoke in her usual warm voice.

“So this is the daughter you said you took in this time.”

“Yes. That’s right.”

Mother soon slowly reached out toward Ahre, stroked her head, and smiled.

“She is quite cute, and she resembles you. Especially her hair—it seems even prettier than ours.”

At Mother’s words, I glanced down at Ahre’s hair. Perhaps because she ate so well that all the oils meant for her body went straight to her hair, her lustrous silver locks looked breathtaking. To be fair, the hair of myself and the rest of my family had a slight platinum-blond tint to it, but Ahre’s hair was a flawless, star-shining silver.

Ahre, as if finding it pleasant to have Mother touch her head, closed her eyes obediently and relished the touch.

“Still, it’s a bit awkward to be called ‘Grandma’.”

Even though she acted like it didn’t bother her, was she still caring about it after all? I quickly tried to think of an alternative title, but Mother spoke up before I could.

“Fufut, I quite like it, so I will specially allow you to call me by my name. Ahre, was it?”

“Her actual full name is Aria, but you can just call her Ahre.”

“I see. Ahre.”

At Mother’s call, Ahre, who had been entranced by the touch, lifted her head while still nestled in my arms. That sight was almost murderously cute. If Ahre had been just a little smaller or I had been a bit bigger, I felt like I might have just tucked Ahre straight inside my pocket.

“Why is that? Grandma.”

Watching Ahre deliver yet another massive shock to Mother with her innocent, unknowing face, I felt my heart skip another terrifying beat.

Yet, once again, Mother just gave a light smile as if nothing were wrong. It was clear that Mother also found Ahre’s cuteness endearing. Otherwise, there was no way our mother would have let that slide so peacefully.

“Hoho, I am still not quite at the age to be called Grandma. From next time on, when you address me, please call me ‘Arsila’. I am not one to boast, but there are very few people in this world permitted to call me by my name.”

That was the first time I ever learned Mother’s name. Since she was always addressed by titles like Duchess or Madam, there had been no way to know, and above all, nobody else around seemed to know Mother’s name either.

Ahre nodded and spoke Mother’s name out loud.

“Arsila.”

At Ahre’s call, the corners of Mother’s lips curved into a soft line.

“What is it, Ahre?”

“You see, Ahre is currently so, so hungry.”

The moment those words finished, a loud rumble echoed from Ahre’s belly as she was held in my arms. I was too flabbergasted to even speak. After eating all those snacks and devouring every single piece of the Mosquito Baguette snacks that belonged to my brother, was she still not full?

Heinel, who had been quietly watching this entire scene from beside me, also seemed too baffled for words, offering a brief bow to Mother before turning to leave. Yet as he walked away, he glared a fierce look at me behind Mother’s back. If Mother hadn’t been standing right there, I would have stabbed right back at those eyes. Damn it.

“Then I shall take my leave now, Mother.”

“Yes. Go along.”

Thinking to myself that my true natural enemies in this novel weren’t the male leads, but my own older brother, I glared at Heinel’s retreating back and set Ahre down on the ground.

I hadn’t realized it while holding her, but the moment I put Ahre down, my arms started throbbing with numbness. Well, with how much she constantly stuffed her face, it would be weirder if she weren’t heavy. It looked like I was going to have to take drastic measures and put her on a diet.

“Then let’s go get some lunch.”

“Yes, Mother.”

“Ah, right.”

Just as we were about to head toward the dining room, Mother spoke up as if suddenly remembering something.

“Come to think of it, did you receive the letter?”

Letter? What letter?

Ah!

At Mother’s words, I remembered the letter I had received just a short while ago. At the same time, I also remembered why I had been looking for Ahre. Since I couldn’t mention the Dragon Heart in front of Mother, I decided I would just ask Ahre about it privately later and answered Mother’s question.

“Ah, I got it a little while ago. But because I was looking for Ahre, I haven’t read it yet.”

“Fufufu, I see. It’s not like it’s a secret, so I’ll tell you about it on the way. Autumn is in full swing now, and the weather is so nice that the royal palace is hosting a grand ball. Your mother put in a bit of effort, you see.”

A ball? Did she mean a place where you gracefully converse with invited guests and dance those high-class dances that only educated people knew how to do?

Since I had zero thoughts about attending a ball, I simply nodded. Having no knowledge of dance or rhythm, I had no desire to go to a ball in the first place. I had ignored all the invitations that occasionally arrived up until now, and I had intended to ignore this one too. But listening to what Mother said started to make me a little anxious.

“You must have felt a lot of stress from diligently studying swordsmanship and magic lately, so for our dear daughter, Mother has specially invited all the children you used to be close with in the past. Of course, that includes you, Armienne.”

“I see. People I used to be close with. Thank you, Mother. I’m really looking forward to it!”

“Seeing my daughter so happy makes me glad too. It was well worth the effort.”

“……….”

Though I spoke with a calm exterior, inside, cold sweat was pouring down by the bucketful. People I used to be close with? I couldn’t even recognize Yul right away when we first met, and now I was expected to act all chummy with people I couldn’t even remember.

The problem wasn’t just that.

At a massive royal palace ball where who knows how many people might show up, I was supposed to dance, yet the only dance I knew was the messy freestyle dance I did holding hands with old ladies. If I danced like that right in the middle of a ball, my life would undoubtedly come to an immediate end.

“Mother will also make an appearance at the ball for Armienne’s sake, so won’t you show this mother a beautiful dance? My daughter.”

“Of course.”

I wanted to throw the word “of course” straight into the trash and say it was impossible, but I lacked the courage for that in this situation. Well, wouldn’t things somehow work out?

Just as I was trying to brush it off with vague thoughts, as bad luck would have it, a maid was carrying a bucket of water meant for the kitchen. Her foot slipped, she fell forward, and the water inside the bucket splashed straight ahead—and by sheer, terrible stroke of bad luck, that water splattered right in front of us.

“Eek!”

The only silver lining was that it hadn’t splashed onto Mother, and since most of it had spilled on the floor, the amount that actually hit us was minimal.

Since it wasn’t a major splash, I was about to brush it off when I froze in place at a sudden chill radiating from beside me. Mother was staring at the maid with an icy expression. I had almost forgotten for a moment, but our mother was the absolute template of a villainess.

There was no way she would let something like this slide.

“Come here.”

“S-Sob. Yes, madam.”

“………….”

Watching the maid, who was already shedding tears as if she had accepted her death, my first thought was whether I was going to have to break in a third maid today. At that moment, a delicious smell drifted out from the kitchen, causing Ahre to sniff the air.

To be sniffing around like a dog right in front of Mother! When we got back, I felt like I had to smack her palm to instill some proper dragon identity into her.

After swallowing a mouthful of saliva, Ahre hurried straight over to Mother, having apparently figured out why we weren’t going to eat delicious food yet. Seeing Yul—whose situational awareness became unusually sharp only when food was involved—I felt deeply worried about her future, but since she was cute, I just left her be.

“Arsila, Arsila.”

Calling her name twice in a row showed just how desperate Ahre was right now. Standing in front of Mother and rubbing her belly, Ahre spoke.

“Ahre is so, so hungry right now. I want to eat delicious food right away, right away.”

At Ahre’s words, Mother briefly glanced down at the maid, then let out a small sigh and nodded. For a brief second, I thought, Is it really going to end just like that? But believing that would be like believing Ahre would stop eating snacks from now on—it was completely implausible and meant underestimating Mother.

“I would ordinarily wish to punish you myself, but my sweet granddaughter says she is hungry. Since your faults were making a mistake in front of me and splashing dirty water on my precious daughter, I shall forgive you with just 12 strikes of the whip and an extra 12 hours soaking in cold water.”

Oh, Lord. Every time I see Mother like this, I am scared half to death. Calling it 12 whip lashes—an ordinary person would faint after just 5. To receive 12 of those and then spend 12 hours in freezing water, and yet be told it was a special leniency—if she hadn’t granted leniency, her head would have been chopped off on the spot.

My face turned pale at the sheer horror of the punishment, but Ahre burst into a laugh, happy at the thought that she was finally going to get to eat.

“Giggle.”

I didn’t know whose child she was, but her emotional circuits were definitely withered and dry. Ah, come to think of it, she was my child now. Anyway, how could anyone laugh after seeing a scene like that? Next time the opportunity arose, I definitely had to sit in and observe Yul’s educational sessions with Ahre.

With no other choice, I stepped forward and spoke.

“Mother. Can’t you forgive the maid?”

At my words, Mother asked with a look of puzzlement. To her, the idea of letting such a situation slide without punishment seemed unbelievable.

“What is the meaning of this, Armienne?”

“W-Well…”

What should I say to smooth this situation over? But no matter how hard I thought, not a single good excuse came to mind. So I just answered without any prior thought.

“Just because.”

Gasp! Holy shit. What on earth did I just say? Giving an answer like that in front of Mother—she might as well look at me and say, “You’re no daughter of mine,” and make me take the whipping meant for the maid instead.

Mother looked at me with a startled expression, inspected me closely, and then opened her mouth.

“Is something the matter with you? Are you feeling unwell? Hmm, now that I look closer, you do seem a little pale.”

It wasn’t me who answered her. Eager to eat as soon as possible, Ahre spoke up about what happened yesterday the moment Mother’s question finished. Normally she was slower than a sluggish slug, but when food was on the line, she was faster than lightning.

“Yesterday, Mom was super, super sick. Blood was dripping down like this onto the bed, and Ahre was so scared she cried and cried. And right now, Ahre is so hungry. It feels like my stomach is stuck flat against my backbone.”

So basically, she was hungry, so let’s hurry up and eat.

Feeling a twinge of guilt for not realizing I had been sick yesterday, Mother apologized and pulled me straight into a hug.

“I failed to pay proper attention to my daughter, being the mother I am. I am sorry.”

“It was nothing major. It’s just something every woman goes through.”

“Fufu, my daughter has truly grown into an adult already. I understand. I shall make a special exception and forgive the maid this time. If my lovely Armienne wishes it, then of course, it must be so.”

Breathing a massive sigh of relief inwardly, I managed to eat lunch safely with Mother and returned to my room alongside Ahre.

As soon as we stepped into my room, I asked Ahre, who was patting her stuffed belly with satisfaction and throwing her body onto the bed:

“Ahre, where is the Dragon Heart your mother left behind?”

At my question, Ahre flinched for a split second. Catching that subtle reaction without missing a beat, a dreaded thought crossed my mind. There was no way this bottomless-pit dragon had left behind something edible inside a cave where food was scarce.

“A-Ahre doesn’t know what a Dragon Heart is. Waaahhh.”

Anticipating a scolding from me, Ahre burst into tears even before I could chew her out, which only made me angrier. It definitely wasn’t because Ahre had already eaten the Dragon Heart I had planned to consume myself that I was mad. As a mother, I simply couldn’t forgive her for lying to me.

“Why are you lying?! Hand out your palm!”

“Waaahhh, Ahre really doesn’t know. I didn’t eat the guardians either.”

“………….”

So she ate the guardians too. No wonder I hadn’t seen hide nor hair of them.

As I smacked the palm of Ahre—who blurted out her own wrongdoing smoothly without even being asked—I thought to myself. There was nothing to be done about the already devoured Dragon Heart, but I still had to prepare for the ball.

I’ll have to ask Yul.

Trusting that asking Yul would somehow sort things out, I redirected my energy back toward Ahre’s education.

Daring to touch my Dragon Heart!

Whack…

“Waaahhh, it hurts.”