I had a nap, and when I woke up, everyone looked exhausted. Whatâs wrong? I felt that my eyes were a little swollen, probably because I fell asleep while crying.
âLeila-sama put this on your eyes.â
âAi.â
Dory put a warm towel on my face.
âLei, come here.â
âAi, Niini.â
I toddled towards Onii-sama.
âYosh,â Nii-sama said and lifted me on his knees.
âYou really love her a lot,â Bart said in admiration as he looked at us.
âYes, because Lei is our light.â
âThat. It must have been hard on your dad.â It was Mill who said this carelessly.
âOtou-syama.â
I want to see him. I looked up at Nii-sama with those feelings in my eyes, and Nii-sama nodded gently.
âYes, Lei. Otou-sama grieved, and it was hard on him. Heâs even prepared to end life in this country if Wester makes the wrong move.â
âA-ai.â
He said something scary so smoothly. How do you want an infant to react?
âOh no, look what Iâve said. I was astounded by what Lei had to go through, that I said something trifling.â
Honestly, thatâs not a follow-up.
âLetâs leave it at that. Youâre seething, Luke.â
âIâm sorry for acting childish.â
Nii-sama looked sulky when Gill warned him. On the other side, Huu looked a little grim. If I had chosen not to follow him when we were in Trentforce, then Wester would probably be in a lot of trouble right now.
âLei, we heard a lot of things from Bart and his crew while you were resting. To be honest, I canât believe that they took a toddler out hunting. However, I also heard that you might have been kidnapped had you not been with them.â
âAi. Dere were bad peopwe.â
Nii-sama gently patted my head.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
âBut you were too reckless. Iâll tell Otou-sama about how hard you tried and how reckless you were. Heâll probably get angry at you.â
âAi.â
Itâs unavoidable. I sighed.
âThen, shall we talk about Sebas, Lei?â
âAi!â
Nii-sama held me as he stood up, then he gently sat me down on the sofa, kneeled down and met my eyes. Nii-samaâs violet eyes were shaking a little.
âSebas isnât in the mansion any more.â
âWear?â (Where)
Why? Sebas certainly took good care of me, and he worked as a butler at the mansion.
âHe went missing as soon as you were kidnapped. Apparently, he took Hannahâs family and fled somewhere.â
âHannah.â
My chest hurt a little, but Iâm worried that Sebas is missing. The room fell silent.
Why did Sebas disappear? I looked down and thought.
Hannah. Matthew. Medicine.
Okaa-san. Job. Remington.
âNiini. Whathâsh Remingthon? Bad?â I said, and Nii-sama shook his head.
âRemington is part of the Four Marquises. And, well, thereâs no evidence that theyâre directly involved at the moment.â
Which means Hannahâs Okaa-san didnât have to quit her job. Yet, Hannah committed a crime because of that. She had to atone for her crimes. What will happen to the family of a criminal? And what kind of person is Sebas?
âSebash did for Lei.â
I looked straight into Nii-samaâs eyes.
âHe dishappeared for Lei.â
At the back of the room, Jude looked up at the ceiling. Nii-sama put his hands on both of mine, quietly touched his forehead and closed his eyes.
âYou also donât doubt Sebas.â
âOtousyama awnd Lei importhanth tho Sebash. Niini importhanth.â (Otou-sama and Lei important to Sebas. Nini important.)
Itâs obvious. He held me when no one cared about me.
âSebash wash thhe firshth pershon tho caww me Leiwa.â (Sebas was the first person to call me Leila.)
âLei, I made you think of something sad!â Nii-sama buried his face in my lap as if asking for forgiveness. I gently stroked Nii-samaâs pretty blonde hair.
âItâs oway. Itâs oway.â
Then, I looked at Jude.
âHewp Sebash.â
Jude nodded.
âLuke-sama, may I talk to Leila-sama?â
âOkay.â
Jude kneeled next to Nii-sama.
âLeila-sama, Iâm glad youâre safe.â
âAi.â
âSebas avoided the direction that Master took to save you. Instead, he went east from the royal capital, and it seems like he entered this Wester town.â
âHere.â
âYes.â
Sebas is coming.
âRegardless of his reasons, I think he must have heard rumours that Sebel was collecting magicians. Even if a magicianâs magic power is mundane in Kingdom, it becomes quite a lot in Frontier.â
Sebas and Hannah certainly had magic power that was inferior to Otou-samaâs.
âWeâre secretly looking for him with the help of Westerâs royal family. We canât take him back to Kingdom, but Master ordered me to at least give him his severance payment so he could live with ease.â
âAi,â I replied, but when I go back to the mansion, Sebas and Hannah wonât be there anymore. My small world didnât stay as it was. And...
I glanced at Alistair and Bart. I have to separate from these people. At that time, Nii-sama got up, moved and obstructed my sight.
âThen, weâll have the audience tomorrow as scheduled, and spend time with family today. Lei must be tired too.â
âI heard that was the plan. A room has also been prepared for the hunters. Iâll have you shown to your rooms,â Prince Huu said, and everyone got up. Bart and his crew approached me, and each of them patted my head. They didnât care that Nii-sama is here. Finally, Alistair reached out towards me. He tried to hold my hand, but then he suddenly pulled back and awkwardly patted my head.
Speaking of which, Alistair always held my hand probably because he is a little older than me, but he hardly patted my head.
âIâm happy for you Lei,â he said and turned his back as if he was shaking off something and chased after Bart and his crew who were waiting at the entrance.
âWait, Uncle.â However, Gill called to his back. Youâre calling him uncle, but isnât it rude to say wait?
âAre you talking to me?â
âYes, Uncle.â
âIâm Alistair.â
âThen, Alistair,â Gill called his name without hesitation.
âYou heard what Luke said before, right? That weâre spending time with family today.â
âThatâs why Leiâs with her brother.â
âAre you an idiot? You and I are family. Youâre in the same room as me.â
âHah?â Alistair had his mouth opened. Gill walked up to him.
âCome.â
âNo, I donât want to.â He objected reflectively. Gill sighed and looked at Bart.
âBart and you guys. Help.â
âEh, me? Do I persuade him?â Bart stepped back a little and scratched his head, âHey, Alistair. Heâs right. Go with him for a bit.â
âBart!â
âWe wonât disappear without saying anything. Why do you think we came to the capital for?â
Alistair widened his eyes and nodded reluctantly.
âAlright, follow me!â
âDonât give me orders!â
The two quarrelled and left before us.
âAwishthair.â
âDonât worry. Gillâs a nice guy.â
âAi.â
Nii-sama took me off the sofa and held my hand.
âI still have a lot to tell you.â
âLei two.â
âThen, letâs go.â
âAi.â
The hand holding mine was warm.