CH 10

*******

That night, in the residence of the Marquis of Haveling.

As Eristella expected, Patrick’s hysteria went unerringly to the young Leighton.

“Your wrong attitude will surely become a problem in the future. This is all for you.”

His words were very smooth because the anger he had built up from the residence of the Grand Duke of Adelasia was still uncontrollable.

On Leighton’s terrified face, there was a faint resignation unsuitable for a child.

Patrick, who pressed the child down with all sorts of nonsensical rants and shouts for a long time, finally rolled up his sleeves.

Leighton, anticipating what was to come, closed his eyes tightly. But all he could hear was an unexpected noise.

When Leighton opened his eyes after gaining courage to do so from the loud sound of furniture falling, he saw Patrick lying in the distance with a broken table.

“This……. What is this…….”

Patrick’s face, which was dazed for a while, soon turned red with anger.

“This ungrateful thing. You know how to perform some clever tricks. And, who took care of you all this time, yet you are trying to do this kind of trick on me? Who was it, Grand Duke Adelasia told you to?”

Patrick jumped up and tried to rush like a water buffalo, but as if an invisible wall was blocking, he couldn’t touch the child’s hair.

Instead, a stronger wind blew him all the way to the end of the room, as if the earlier attack was a joke. He hit the wall so hard that the loud noise seemed to have reached the lower floors of the mansion.

After lying on the floor and moaning in pain for a long time, Patrick, nevertheless, did not give up and raised himself.

“You’ll see. I’ll make sure you’ll never think of such nonsense again…….”

It was when Patrick, who became even more furious when he saw Leighton without even a single strand of hair tousled in contrast to his bruised himself, fired a fierce shot at him.

“What are you going to do?”

A low, matured voice rang out.

Even without a burst of anger or shouting, it had the power to make people feel fear.

“N-No, Madam……!”

Patrick gasped, battered and blue, but Sophia Haveling was already looking at the scene with a cold gaze.

“This is a misunderstanding. I can explain everything. Rather…….”

Patrick hurriedly made an excuse.

“It seems like Leighton is playing an awful lot of pranks…….”

“Not me! It’s not really what I did!”

Leighton, who was shaking in the corner, plucked up the courage and shouted.

“You keep lying…….! You’re still young and you lie to avoid responsibility.”

Looking at the situation unfolding before her, she leaned towards Leighton, completely turning her gaze away from Patrick.

Unlike her usual, a slow but kind voice came out.

“Leighton, Grandma was wrong. Come with me.”

Turning around, she gently wrapped her arms around Leighton’s shoulder.

Patrick’s desperate cry echoed behind her back, but she didn’t even glance at him.

“It’s noisy late at night.”

Sophia simply instructed the knight to put away the noise.

*******

The next day, a letter came from the Marquisate of Haveling.

As soon as Heinricion opened the letter, Eristella popped out of the corner she was at and perched on his shoulder to confirm the results.

— Thanks to you, I realized my mistake.

Patrick Haveling will be expelled from the family and he will pay for what he has done.

Also, Leighton decided to enter the Magic Academy.

Whether he becomes a knight or a wizard, it will not change that Leighton is the heir to the Marquis of Haveling.

P.S. Please continue to take care of Leighton as his uncle in the future. —

The more Heinricion read the contents of the letter, the more he heard the laughter of the fox in his ear.

When their eyes met, Eristella, who had been taking off with her tail whenever he showed signs of coming over to speak, raised her head confidently and looked at him.

‘Who else would have found the device and put it on Patrick? Even if you had found it, would you have used it like I did?’

The device that Eristella put on Patrick while pretending to be friendly was actually a child protection device.

Originally, it was an item made for the young Heinricion, but blood ties were impossible to deceive, hence it was also effective for Leighton, who had similar mana quality.

However, because it was put on the abuser’s side, not on the victim, it was effective on only one person, so it became worthless instead and was forgotten.

‘Can you still not accept me?’

The fox’s eyes that were full of energy were filled with confidence.

Even a fox could have such an arrogant and mean face.

Eristella had an expression that made Heinricion realize again.

Just by looking at her face, he seemed to know what she was trying to say right now.

As expected.

Eristella slammed her front paw on her floor, as if indignant.

‘Look, it wasn’t you! You almost didn’t know what was going on with your nephew!’

“…….”

‘This was all thanks to someone!’

Eristella looked up at Heinricion with glittering eyes.

‘And, that’s all. If you could help me, it would all be good!’

“…….”

‘You’re not going to kick me out like this, are you!’

Eristella squirmed, moving back and forth on the shoulder of Heinricion, as if arguing, glaring at him with her eyes wide open, insisting as much as she could.

She finally pulled her head away and cried like a wolf.

People did not know it well, but in fact, Heinricion was vulnerable to affection from an early age. Eristella had helped Layton and she was Eristella, he would never be able to turn away.

And Eristella’s prediction was correct. Heinricion, who had been looking at her half-heartedly, opened his mouth slowly.

“All right.”

The corners of Eristella’s lips went up.

“Do whatever you want.”

Finally, the answer she wanted fell.

Heheheh.

From now on, she would be able to live here legally by agreement. She was often frustrated and uncomfortable because she was a fox, but now that things were like this, she could ask Heinricion for a favor.

It was when the excited Eristella covered her face with her fluffy front feet and laughed.

Tok, tok.

After Heinricion’s permission fell, Rowen entered. He held out the documents he had in his hands in front of Heinricion and said,

“Your Excellency, this is the report.”

“Report?”

“This is a report on the search status of Her Highness the Princess. It is the result of expanding the scope to foreign countries, as you’ve instructed last time.”

As Rowen reported, his thoughts were complicated.

It had been half a year since Princess Eristella disappeared. It wasn’t a short time.

Meanwhile, Heinricion had been researching the whole of the empire in search of her. He mobilized all means and methods. He also spared no expense for the search.

Nevertheless, no traces were found.

It meant there would be nothing to find in the future.

As proof of that, the imperial family no longer looked for the princess, and even held her funeral a while ago.

But for some reason, Heinricion could not give up at all. He didn’t seem to go this far out of a simple sense of duty.

So, at some point, it became difficult for Rowen to report on this matter.

No matter how many times it was reported, the content was the same.

The search scope was expanded based on the last trace, but no other traces or witnesses were found.

The scope was only getting wider and the amount of money and manpower poured in increased.

Moreover, whenever Heinricion checked the report, he would suddenly become depressed. Rowen, who had been observing the whole process, hoped the day would come when Heinricion said he would not accept the report.

But today was not that day. Rowen had no choice but to bring the report.

“Ah. That.”

Heinricion responded indifferently.

Already, this report had no meaning for Heinricion. The person he was looking for so much was now standing next to him in the form of a fox.

With her ears pricked, Eristella listened to the story related to her.

“Yes?”

Rowen was taken aback. His master had always taken reports with similar content seriously.

It was the first time he had such an insincere reaction. Heinricion, who saw Rowen’s questioning gaze, flipped through the report and covered it.

“I think you are right.”

“Yes?”

“I’m going to stop looking.”

Heinricion spoke like he had put his heart down. Rowen was more than surprised, he was so startled that his jaw almost fell out.

(TL/N: the direct translation was ‘put his heart down’ but it’s more of “he spoke like ‘he had strengthened his resolve and decided so’.)

Even though he tried to persuade him, he didn’t even pretend to listen. Suddenly? Why?

“Really? You said you won’t stop until you find Her Highness the Princess…….”

Rowen found it difficult to understand at first listen, so he wanted to double-check. As Rowen continued to clarify, Heinricion’s fingers twitched busily.

His eyes were also shifting back and forth as if nervous.

“Ahem.”

“?”

In the end, Heinricion coughed and cut off Rowen’s words.

“I decided to stop looking. Know that and go out.”

“…….Yes.”

Rowen heard the words he had been longing for, but he went out with another question.

As soon as Rowen left, Eristella, who was curled up on a bunch of documents, looked at Heinricion with sharp eyes.

He turned his head and their eyes met. Her eyes curved playfully.

The smile that clearly provoked him was insidious.

‘Heh. You’ve been looking for me.’

There was an illusion that Eristella’s subtle voice was ringing in his ear.

He even suspected that she was really talking.

Heinricion turned his head away, coughing to hide his embarrassment. But he couldn’t shake off the strange gaze that touched the back of his head.

‘Anyway, he’s a bit shy. He’s been like that since he was a kid.’

Heheheh.

Eristella hummed her as if she was cackling.