New face 05

The next morning, when I woke up and turned to the left, I saw Bobo sleeping beside me with his cute little face. I couldn't resist cuddling him a bit. He didn't wake up, though. Instead, he tried to push my face away with his tiny, adorable paws, eyes still closed. After I hugged him enough, I heard some noises coming from the garden outside. When I opened the window to look, I saw my dad and that man, James, practicing swordsmanship downstairs.

They looked like they were enjoying themselves. Even my dad, who was smiling—a sight that was new to me—was laughing and talking like they were old friends who hadn't seen each other in years. Well, to be fair, they really hadn't seen each other in ages.

I still remember Bobo's report. He didn't manage to bring me all the information since we're far from the capital, but what he did share was enough. James's family is part of the nobility, a count's family, and they're incredibly wealthy. Apparently, James ran away to this place to escape an arranged marriage. Funny enough, it seems my dad went through something similar.

I'm not entirely sure what rank my dad held—maybe he was a count too, considering he was friends with a count's son. But one thing is clear: he was wealthy, and he also fled from his own arranged marriage. Sigh, no wonder they get along so well; they really are good friends, bound by the same fate.

Just then, my dad noticed me. He gave me a warm wave with that familiar, nerdy smile, and I waved back. Unfortunately, it also caught James's attention. He flashed me that strange smile of his, which made me quickly close the curtains and head downstairs.

As I entered the kitchen, I saw my mom preparing breakfast, all while keeping an eye on my dad through the window.

"Morning, Mom," I said, leaning in to give her a kiss.

"Morning, darling," she replied with a soft smile.

"Did he stay the night here?" I asked, nodding towards James outside.

She responded with an irritated expression. "Unfortunately, he did."

"Ouch, that hurts, Sarah. You act like you don't enjoy my company," James said as he walked into the kitchen with my dad right behind him.

"I am enjoying it... I finally noticed," she replied with a hint of sarcasm.

"Do you see that? She's evil," James teased, pointing at my mom. "You were the only one who saw her as an angel back then."

Dad walked over to Mom and planted a kiss on her cheek. "Well, she only needs to be an angel for me," he said with a playful grin. After a brief pause, he added, "Though I don't mind her... evilness sometimes, in bed."

That earned him a swift punch from Mom, reminding him that I was still in the room, while James made an exaggerated gagging motion.

As we all sat down at the table to eat, Dad asked, "So, what are your plans for now?"

"I took the librarian job for the time being," James replied, taking another bite of bread with butter. "I'll start looking for a house to rent soon."

"You can stay here until you find a place," Mom said, and the whole room fell silent as we stared at her in shock—especially me. I was sure she disliked James, but she continued in a calm voice, "Ed loves books and is always at the library, so it's good that you'll be there to take care of him."

James raised an eyebrow, looking like he had just remembered something amusing. "Is that so?" he said. Then, turning to me, he added, "By the way, I didn't properly introduce myself. My name is James. You can call me Uncle James. I was your parents' best friend when we were younger... though I'm not quite sure how they see me now."

I mumbled a quick, "Hello, Uncle James," and went back to eating, trying to make sense of everything.

"How old are you?" James asked, his curiosity seemingly endless.

"Four years old," I replied.

"Do you like reading books?" he followed up.

"yes".

"And swords?"

"Not really," I answered.

"Magic?"

"Kinda."

"When's your fifth birthday?" he pressed on.

"Close."

"How close?"

" In Six months."

He kept firing question after question, without any sign of losing interest. Meanwhile, my parents sat there, calmly eating their breakfast, completely unconcerned with the rapid-fire interrogation happening at the table. I kept my answers as short as possible, hoping he'd run out of questions soon.

"Do you hate me?" James asked, his voice sounding a bit uncertain.

"No, I just don't know you enough to have a feeling about you yet," I said between bites, keeping my tone matter-of-fact. "And my first impression of you is not good."

My dad immediately burst into laughter, and even my mom couldn't help but smile a little at my bluntness.

James looked bewildered. "Why is that? I wasn't that bad, was I? I thought I was actually being nice!"

"Nice?" I raised an eyebrow, still focused on my food. "You just feel... strange."

That seemed to confuse him even more, as my dad's laughter echoed across the table.

"You were acting so arrogant and mean towards me and the baker when you realized we were commoners," I said, still holding my fork.

James sighed, clearly taken aback. "I wasn't, actually. If you saw how most nobles treat commoners, you'd know how nice I am by comparison. Besides, I already knew the baker was a commoner." He paused, then pointed to my hair with a smug smile. "You, on the other hand, are obviously a noble."

I blinked in surprise. "But I'm living here with commoners," I replied, my voice rising slightly in confusion.

"Exactly," James smirked. "That's what makes you stand out even more."

"Well, first of all, your dad is a noble, and as his son, you are a noble by obligation," James started, then hesitated for a moment, glancing at my family. I could guess what he was about to say, but I stayed quiet. He cleared his throat and continued, "From your hair color alone, I know you're noble. Where you live doesn't change that. It's in your genes—it shows just by looking at you."

As I instinctively touched my hair, he added, "We can't let you continue as you are right now. You need proper education. I'm not the best teacher, but I'm better than these idiots," he said, pointing to my parents jokingly, though his face turned serious again. "Since you're under my watch when I'm working, you'll start studying the common sense of the world to be prepared for the academy."

He glanced at my parents, who didn't deny him, then added, "If we leave things as they are, you'll be bullied or overly pampered because of your looks—people will take advantage of that." His voice was firm, and the fact that my parents agreed with him hit me hard.

I couldn't help but think, Just how do they see me?

Hello sunshines! ☀️

Here's a new update, and I truly hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it! 🌸

Oh, and another thing—I've started working on two new projects! One is a translation of a Chinese story called "Later On, I Was Known As A Fake Actor!" It was a request from a friend, but since I'm translating it anyway, I figured, why not share it with all of you?

The second is another original story of mine, titled "Echoes of a Lost World." To all my wonderful fans who are already enjoying this story (yes, this one 😄), I hope you'll give my new work a look and share your thoughts with me.

Once again, thank you so much for all your support, and a big, big, BIG thank you to: the hashs, Zandrani, Chrysanth, Maya, Entertain, Halp, Arpita, Krysta, Ribin, and Juntae! 💖

Thank you! 😘