Chapter 86

“Oh, you were also here, Duchess.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Was he the third prince?

But still, I was a bit touched that he was polite enough to extend the courtesy of greeting me first.

You could say that another of the emperor’s good points was that he made nearly all  reasonable men in his surroundings seem well-mannered.

“Hm…..”

The way the two brothers were inspecting me was a bit strange, but this, too, was a little different from the last time. Their pitiful looks had previously had some traces of suspicion, but now they contained a trace of sympathy for me somehow.

When I pressed my lips together awkwardly, Tenon pointed to Selene seemingly in an effort to divert the current atmosphere.

“Is that bird perhaps…..”

“Ohh, we must greet him. Hurry.”

“……”

“Come on. Say ‘hello, my name is Reina.’”

I acted like I was debuting a newborn baby still carried on my back, even practicing ventriloquism as my face heated up.

Politely, but not so much like a real person.

That was her important mission. Perhaps because she couldn’t bear it any longer either, Selene’s head drooped.

“…..quaack.”

“Please understand. She is a bit shy. She’s someone I’m raising like my own daughter.”

“……I, I see.”

Tenon bit the inside of his mouth, making a face like he didn’t know where to look. From what I’d heard, he was the captain of the palace guard, but he seemed like he was more bashful than he looked.

‘But would this brother be a bit better?’

Let’s see.

Without hiding a single speck of expectation, I cautiously turned my eyes to them.

Though it was unsure whether they knew they had become candidates in the screening for ‘Haniel’s Backup Guardian’ or not, the two men were looking at Selene with mixed feelings.

Good. They had the heart to look at an animal. Plus 10 points.

First of all, no matter what these men did, nothing was more certain than the fact that they’d already surpassed the man sitting on that throne over there.

“Now that I think about it, you must be keeping many animals in the palace as well. From what His Majesty has said, I’ve heard he also has a sizable dog.”

“Oh, you must mean that dog.”

“……”

Okay, so it was clear that none of them named animals.

But on the other hand, seeing how these brothers steadily kept their consistency, I was now grateful that Haniel had a name, even if it was one they didn’t call.

The more I saw them, the more the brothers enlightened me to the fact that ‘this situation is relatively the best it could be.’

“Yees. About that dog. With how many princes there are, how much care the dog must be getting! Just like our Reina here.”

“…I, I wonder.”

In contrast to how Peyton’s expression became solemn on the side, Tenon became a bit triumphant as he seemed to remember something.

“Though the dog mostly is by our eldest brother, His Majesty’s side, once in a while I do take it on walks.”

“Oh my, so you have! That’s incredible!”

“…….”

Clap clap clap!

Tenon’s cheeks reddened at the praise, which was more intense than he’d expected. Though he seemed to wonder if this was really something to be praised, he also didn’t seem to hate it.

“Ahem, for I thought as an animal that has the blood of a magical beast, forcing it to stay inside did not seem like it would be a good idea.”

“Of course! That’s exactly right!”

Look! You all are humans too, so there has to be something we can wring out of you that you did well!

“As you may expect, giving affection like that as you bring the dog around here and there is good for their emotional development. Of course, in front of delicate babies, or….”

“Yes. It was also I who had suggested to His Majesty to bring the dog to Haniel.”

“…….”

What did you say, punk?

I lowered the hand that I’d raised to clap in agreement and tucked my hair behind my ear instead.

Seemingly oblivious to how I’d fallen silent, Tenon continued talking longer than ever.

“Since he insisted on going to see the child, I recommended it to him. After all, that dog is the only one blood-related to magical beasts in the empire, so anyone who sees it would be sure to admire it.”

“…….I see.”