1-2 - Days Of Frustration

“—Milly, what did you mean by that?”

“…Huh, Lord Leon? Weren’t you asleep?!”

“Your words bothered me so much that I woke up. So, what did you mean earlier? You said you’d stay until I got married, didn’t you?”

“Well, um… Oh, honestly, that won’t do. You can’t use something like that as an excuse to stay awake. If you don’t take your naps properly, you won’t grow up big and strong.”

“—Milly, stop avoiding the question.”

I slipped out of her arms, abandoned my childish way of speaking, and looked Milly straight in the eyes.

“You see, I want to live a life where I can honestly say I’m happy. So if there’s something threatening my future besides being confined to this detached building, I want you to tell me.”

“…Lord Leon?”

“What’s with that look? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“…If anything, perhaps an elf. Even though I’ve known you since you were born, for a moment I could have sworn you were already an adult.”

“An elf? You mean the long-eared race that lives for centuries?”

“I’ve never told you about them before… Yet you even know those legends?”

“Well, yeah.”

Of course, she hadn’t actually said the Japanese word for elf, since we were speaking a different language… But judging from the context, I’d guessed that was what she meant, and apparently I’d been right. So elves existed in this world too.

“Anyway, could you explain what you meant by what you said earlier?”

“Well, that’s…”

“It’s fine. I can more or less guess what you’re going to tell me, and I won’t lose my composure over something like that. …Though I suppose that’s not very convincing coming from a child.”

“No, how should I put this… I’m beginning to doubt that you’re actually a child at all, Lord Leon. You wouldn’t happen to be hiding an extra ten years of age, would you?”

Sorry, more like twenty years—but there was no way I could say that, so I merely gave her a wry smile.

Milly watched me thoughtfully for a moment before finally letting out a small sigh.

“…It isn’t a particularly pleasant story, you know? Do you still want to hear it?”

“Yeah, I still want to know.”

“Such an immediate answer. Very well. If you insist, I’ll tell you. …Although, now that I’ve agreed, I’m not quite sure where to begin.”

“Where to begin?”

“You seem to have realized that you’re being confined to this detached building, but do you know why?”

“Yeah, more or less. Father confessed quite a few things when he came to visit. Because I’m the child of his mistress, Caroline-san is worried that I might threaten her son’s position, right?”

“Y-Yes, that’s correct.”

“Then when you said I’d be married off, did you mean they’d use marriage to get me out of the Granches family?”

“That’s… essentially correct. There would also be an element of political marriage involved, but I believe removing you from the family would be the greater priority. Though… I’m truly amazed you understand even that much.”

Milly let out yet another sigh of astonishment. Was it just my imagination, or had she gone beyond surprise and started looking downright exasperated?

…Still, being married off into another family for political reasons, huh? Being confined here was restrictive enough, and now I learned that even my marriage partner would be chosen for me.

…No, wait a minute. If I stayed with the Granches family, I’d simply spend my entire life shut away in this detached building. Depending on who I married, perhaps my circumstances could actually improve?

“Hey, Milly. How would they choose my marriage partner?”

“…Hmm. Let’s see. Broadly speaking, I imagine they’d select someone who would be advantageous to the Granches family.”

“What kind of person would be advantageous?”

“Probably someone from a family with a certain amount of wealth or influence. So I don’t think you’ll have to worry about going hungry or living in fear of monsters.”

…So there were monsters in this world, too. Could this actually be a fantasy world of swords and magic? I was curious, but… For now, I should finish asking about the marriage.

“If family background comes first… Um, could I end up with some older lady who’s particularly fond of little boys…?”

I carefully phrased my question to avoid directly mentioning unmarried older women or shotacons. In response, Milly averted her gaze and muttered quietly.

“As a possibility… Well, I suppose it could happen.”

“Ugh…”

Sure, my mental age was over twenty, but having a wife who was physically older than my mother would be a bit… No, I’d have some serious reservations about that.

“D-Don’t worry, Lord Leon! I heard that the Sphiel family, which has close ties with House Granches, recently had a daughter. There’s a chance she might be chosen as your partner!”

“Oh, there’s a girl like that?”

“Yes. She’s three years younger than you, and apparently she’s a little girl with the appearance of an angel.”

“An angel… huh.”

“Oh? You’re not very interested? …Ah, of course. You’re still so young, Lord Leon. I suppose it’ll be a little while before you start taking an interest in girls.”

“Well… Yeah, I guess?”

I’d only been thinking that people tended to describe just about any baby that way, but having her think I was interested in the opposite sex at my age would be troublesome, so I gave her a vague nod.

Still… Three years younger, huh? Someone three years younger than me would be the same age as Saya had been relative to me. I’d never considered it before, but what if Saya had also been reincarnated in this world—

Even if she had, she couldn’t possibly be younger than me. I’d spent a little over a year battling my illness after Saya passed away, so if she’d been reincarnated, she should be about a year older than me.

“Hey, Milly. I don’t suppose I have an older sister or anything… do I?”

“You do.”

“Yeah, I figured things couldn’t possibly work out that conveniently… Wait, I do?”

“Yes. She’s your older half-sister, and she’s one year older than you.”

“………Wait, seriously?”

Could she actually be Saya reincarnated? No, no, no. There was no way things could work out that conveniently. It had to be a coincidence… Probably. Still, now I was curious.

“What’s my older sister’s name?”

“Lady Claireridil.”

“Claireridil… So that’s my older sister, huh. Is there any chance I could… meet her?”

“That… I’m sorry, but it’s not something I can decide.”

“Yeah, I figured.”

My half-sister—in other words, the daughter of the lawful wife who’d had me isolated. There was no reason for her to have a favorable impression of me. I’d like to meet her someday, but… perhaps I should wait for a suitable opportunity.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t be of more help. And I’d only just promised that I’d always be on your side, Lord Leon.”

“Don’t worry. There’s nothing you can do about that.”

“Thank you for understanding… Though now I’m beginning to wonder which of us is supposed to be the adult. Is there anything else you’d like to ask about?”

“Hmm, let’s see… Oh, you mentioned elves earlier. Are there any in this world—no, I mean, around here?”

“They’re a race that generally doesn’t leave the forests, but apparently some elves do live among humans. I don’t know whether there are any in this area, though.”

I see. So elves living in human settlements were probably quite rare. That matched the image of elves I was familiar with.

“Then does that mean there’s something like magic, too…?”

“Elves are said to primarily use spirit magic.”

“Ooooh… So magic really exists! Wait, does that mean there are other kinds?”

“Um… There are also black magic, white magic, and inscription magic.”

“I see, I see. Black and white magic are for attacking and healing, right?”

“…Yes, but how on earth do you know that?”

“Don’t worry about the details. More importantly, what’s inscription magic?”

“Inscription magic involves engraving inscriptions onto a target to produce various effects that persist over time.”

Persistent effects, huh? So it was something like creating magical items? Nice. That sounded fascinating. I’d love to try using one of those types of magic.

“Hey, Milly, can you use magic by any chance…?”

“I’m sorry. I’ve never had the opportunity to study magic.”

“I see… Then what about getting some books on magic?”

“That would be… Well…”

“Ah… Don’t tell me you’ve been ordered not to give me an education or anything like that?”

“…Yes. So while I can teach you anything within my own knowledge, I think obtaining books would be difficult.”

Gaaaah! I’d had a feeling that might be the case, but hearing it confirmed was still frustrating.

I’d finally been reincarnated into another world, and there were all sorts of things I wanted to do, yet I was stuck living in confinement! It was like being shown a feast and forbidden to eat! Come on, let me become an overpowered hero or use modern knowledge to revolutionize the kingdom’s administration!

Sigh… Could I really live freely and find happiness in an environment like this?

It looked like I had a difficult road ahead.