Chapter 55

Amidst the low hum of the bustling shelter, Tony took a short nap. Once morning came, there would be plenty of work to do.

Tony’s grandfather had been a nobleman. However, he was merely the seventh son of a minor noble—and the son of a mistress at that. Thanks to that lineage, Tony was currently able to work as a government official, albeit a low-ranking one.

His parents had served the Lord’s family as the Head Chamberlain and the Head Maid since the time of the Lord two generations ago. Under the previous-previous Lord, they had been high-ranking servants with good working conditions, but they were demoted to stablehands on a whim by the last Lord.

The previous Lord was reckless and spent money more extravagantly than anyone else. He found Tony’s parents a nuisance for cautioning him, so he banished them to outdoor labor. At that time, not just his parents, but many other long-time servants were reassigned.

All the high-level servants were replaced by people who wouldn’t defy the Lord and could be hired cheaply, or by shady characters he had met in town. The original staff were either demoted or kicked out entirely. The manor was extended and renovated, taxes were spent like water, and the lives of the people of Sutrena fell into poverty.

Even so, Tony’s parents did not grow bitter and continued their work as stablehands. At that time, a rare magical beast obtained by the Lord from two generations ago was being kept in the stables; his parents’ job was primarily to care for it. Tony, who loved riding beasts, often visited the manor to help his parents.

The beast, a horse-like creature called Grani, was incredibly intelligent and gentle by nature. Although it was a species meant to gallop through forests and plains at high speeds, it was forced to live in a tiny stable simply to satisfy the Lord’s desire for a collection. Despite the cramped conditions, Grani opened its heart to Tony and his parents.

However, the previous Lord abused Grani. He was the kind of man who would enter the forest and hunt innocent magical beasts under the guise of “sport.” Having injured Grani once while his parents were away, the Lord discovered a way to vent his frustrations close to home.

One day, while Tony and his parents were tending to Grani’s wounds, the Lord appeared with a blade, intent on harming the beast again. Naturally, they tried to stop him. In response, the Lord turned the blade toward Tony and his family. All three of them were unarmed. Even with magic, it would have been difficult for the three humans and one beast to escape simultaneously.

Just as they braced for the end, Grani—who had been standing quietly until then—let out a loud whinny, reared up, and kicked the Lord. Again and again. It was as if he were trying to protect Tony and the others from danger.

Normally, a magical beast that harms a human—let alone a Lord—is executed. Therefore, Tony and his family unchained Grani, opened the stable doors, and secretly let him escape. The clever Grani understood the situation and headed for the forest just as his parents told him to.

Fortunately, the Lord was killed at night, and there were no witnesses.

His parents had only been there late because they were tending to Grani; under normal circumstances, they would have finished work and headed home long before then.

Thus, the incident was processed as a freak accident that occurred when the drunken Lord approached a magical beast. Tony and his family feigned ignorance and hid the truth.

Once the previous Lord was gone, the staff serving the manor were quickly disbanded, and his parents quit their jobs. Currently, they help out at a riding-beast ranch in the suburbs.

The only other person who knows about this is Henry, who was dispatched from the Royal Capital to fill the vacuum left by the Lord’s absence and happened to notice the discrepancies in the case. Even so, Henry had also processed it as an accident.

The truth was supposed to stay hidden forever.

At least, it would have, if a new Lord hadn’t arrived and if Grani hadn’t succumbed to the new moon’s mana-drunkenness, losing his sense of judgment. Tony felt a dark weight in his chest as he considered what would happen next.

After that, I slept in my room for a short while. When I woke up, Lord Nazel was sitting right beside me.

Beyond him—through the open window—the garden looked refreshing and serene, as if yesterday’s incident had all been a lie.

“…Good morning, Lord Nazel. It’s already bright outside, isn’t it?”

“Good morning, Agnes.”

“Did you get any proper sleep, Lord Nazel?”

“I’m fine. I slept just as much as you did.”

Lord Nazel smiled warmly and gently stroked my hair. Even though he had just woken up, he looked perfectly put-together. He had likely already finished his morning rounds of the shelter.

“Agnes. When I saw you outside last night, I thought my heart was going to stop.”

“Ugh… that was…”

“You were trying to rescue the townspeople, weren’t you? Everyone was so grateful.”

“Lord Nazel, I’m sorry for worrying you.”

When I apologized, his brows dipped in a troubled expression, and he patted my head again.

“Once we’ve finished tidying up the shelter, come with me for a bit.”

“…Oh? All right.”

Lord Nazel pressed a kiss to my forehead and walked gracefully out of the room. Once I finished getting ready, I hurried to join Lord Nazel and Tony.