PMZ 103 – ★Mother

I can imagine the shock that Chris got, but I’m shocked too.

My sister became a mother …while still unmarried. I feel like I’ve been betrayed.

I’ve been putting up with so much… No, I shouldn’t think like this. This is just me taking it out on her.

That little Lav of mine is going to be a mother…

It’s as if my childhood suddenly stopped, moving away, and gone forever.

No matter how strong I got, no matter how old I got, no matter how much I could drink, I was always got treated like a child sometimes, and I’ve become spoiled.

But from now on, I have to become a real adult.

I’ll have to become a good uncle.

Uncle…

Uncle.

A shock indeed.

This may be just a mundane event for a commoner, but as a nobleman, isn’t it a disgrace?

These two, are they going to be okay?

“Brother, do you have anything to say?”

Chris, who had fainted with his eyes open, quickly regained consciousness at Alice’s words and blinked repeatedly.

“Well, uh, um…”

He got off the sofa and kneeled on the floor, and took Lav’s hand.

“Will you marry me?”

“She will; it’s decided already. Anyway, what are you going to do now? Personally, I think you should inform father and mother first before consulting the doctor for proper examination.”

“I know that. I’m sorry, Luv. I know you were anxious. I’m sorry I didn’t notice… Oh, God. I haven’t thought of a name yet. I have to decide quickly.”

“It can wait for a few more months. Can you explain this to fathers directly? That’s what I’m most worried about.”

“Ah, don’t worry.”

“Then please do so, as soon as possible. It’s best if you could do it before the day ended. Also, no matter what anyone says to you, please continue to be a shield and ally to Lav. I will support you, but the most important thing is yourself.”

“…Yes. I know.”

“Are you sure? …since you can’t speak well with people, I cannot help but think that it was too much for you to become a father before marriage.”

“Perhaps you are right… but.”

“… What is it?”

“I’m happy. I was quite shocked, but mostly I’m just happy. Thank you, Lav. I don’t know how many more decades we have left, but will you… grow old with me?”

He sat down next to Lav, who had started crying, a few tears fell on the back of Chris’s hand, and Chris gently put his hand on her shoulder.

“Alice, thank you. I’m okay now. …Can you leave us alone for a minute?”

Alice and I looked at each other, nodded at each other, and stood up.

We walked out of the salon and down the hallway. Feeling a bit awkward.

“… it’s not the story I want to hear from my family member.”

Alice chuckled.

“That’s true.”

I completely agree with you on that. I never dare to imagine those two already in that kind of relationship.

It’s something to be happy about if you are married … but just got engaged. And thanks to the fact that we exchanged siblings and got married, the awkwardness was doubled.

For some reason, we couldn’t look at each other faces, so we just walked forward together.

“You were calm,” she said. “I was expecting you to be angry.”

“Me? Why?”

“Because you told me not to do that until we were married…”

“Oh… That’s just what I want to do, and I’m not going to force my ideal on anyone else. If he tries to avoid responsibilities, I’ll get angry, but I know Chris is different.

For me, as long as they don’t cause their child to cry lonely in the middle of the night, I’m fine with that.

In that respect, I don’t have any worries in this environment with Chris and his family. The Duke and Duchess might have a headache after this, but there’s nothing I can do about that but apologize.”

She stopped and looked up at me. She looked a little relieved.

“I’m relieved. I was a little worried that if you got really angry, the house would evaporate.”

“Such thing is impossib—”

“Fufu… But from now on, you and I are going to be aunt and uncle. I think I’ll make myself a maternity suit. I’d like to support Lav until she becomes a mother.”

“I don’t know if she will be okay. I’m not sure if she knows what it’s like to be a mother …”

Tears spilled out of my eyes.

I’m crying?

What is this, why?

As if a lid had been opened, the back of my eyes suddenly became hot, and I couldn’t stop.

Alice was looking at me in surprise. I was surprised, too.

“Um… let’s go to your room, okay? Give me your hand.”

Alice takes my hand and starts walking towards the guest room.

I felt like a child.

I stopped crying and walked alongside her.

Alice led me to the guest room without saying a word.

It was only now that I realized.

I wanted to see my mother. I also wanted to let my sister see her.

A lot of thoughts swirled around me, but that’s simply what I feel.

Some of the love overlapped with the vague memory of my mother, who died of postpartum fever. I didn’t know there was such a naïve part of me inside.

I barely remembered my mother, but I pray that my sister would be able to become a healthy mother.

When I reached the guest room, Alice came in with me and closed the door.

She sat down next to me on the sofa and wiped my eyes with a handkerchief.

“I’m okay now. Thank you.”

“Really? Everyone wants to cry at times, so there’s no need to hold back. Here.”

Then she pulled my head closer and let me rest my forehead on hers.

I feel like I’m already fine, but I also was filled in this pathetic sense of security in her embrace, making me reluctant to leave.

I put my arm around Alice’s back, and she does the same in return.

My heart is warm inside.

I’m really glad to have met you.

After a while, Alice started to talk.

“When Lav asked me for advice, I was about to scold both of them.”

“mnn.”

“But then I thought about it, I realized that I was willing to do that with you too, so in the end, I couldn’t say anything.”

I don’t know how to respond to that. ……!

I chuckled and look up at her face. I wonder if one day we’ll be like those two, confused and happy to have a new family. It doesn’t feel real yet, but I’m sure someday it will.

Alice smiled.

“I’m sure she’ll be a great mother.”

“Yes, she will.”

I’m not worried. Lav and I have met some really good people.

I wish I could tell my old self that hated nobles, that there are good people like this out there.

Alice looked at my desk and noticed something on it.

“… Oh? Is that lavender? It’s unusual to have flowers on the desk.”

“Oh, that’s…Mr. James gave it to me. He said I should give it to the girl I like.”

She found it.  I didn’t have to decorate it, but I think I’ll give it to her now.

I’ve got the same flower that the Grand Mistress gave me, and if I don’t tell her why and give it to her now, I’m afraid she’ll get the wrong idea.

I reached into the teacup and pulled out a thin, wet bouquet of lavender flowers.

“Huh?”

I heard the sound of a hard object hitting the rim of the cup.

I looked at it curiously and saw that there was some kind of stone stuck to the stem.

 –What’s this?

There was a purple stone in the shape of a ribbon wrapped around several stems.

I’m sure it wasn’t there when I put it in.

“What’s that? …is that amethyst…? It has an unusual shape.”

A gemstone.

It’s really odd – it looks more like a ribbon turned into a stone, which is a bit bizarre.

How can a gem be cut into such a shape? If it was metal, I could still understand it.

Someone followed me into this room. ……? No, what kind of pervert is that?

What is this? It’s creepy.

“I was going to give it to Alice, but I don’t know anything about this stone. And there’s something weird about it. I think I’ll just leave it here.”

It was somewhat awkward to give Alice something with such a strange object attached to it. I pulled out the stone and put the flower back in the cup.

Alice then looked dissatisfied at me.

“What’s the matter? You want this? But it’s not mine.”

When I showed her the amethyst, she shook her head and pointed to the flower.

“You said it was for the girl that you liked.”

“Do you want it?”

“I want it.”

In the end, the lavender ended up in Alice’s hands. Alice, who is smiling happily with the flower, was much more beautiful than I had imagined.

“Thank you very much. I’ll take good care of it… Still, it’s strange, that stone, not only the shape but also who left it there?”

“Looking at this, It’s probably not so cheap. I’m not sure, but I think I’ll report it to the Duke.”

That night, the Duke called me, and Alice and I went to his study.

When we opened the door to the study, we saw the Duke looking exhausted.

“Oh, Father. What’s wrong with you? You look like you’ve aged about ten years at once.”

“they were flirting in front of me… anyone would get old if you showed them something like that.”

I think that the Duke, who is showing his true colors, must have heard about the example from Chris. I’m not sure what to do, but I’m sure it’s a good idea.

“That’s why I didn’t really want to see you guys either.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s fine if you don’t know, but I hope you realized it already… Anyway, as you probably know, Chris’s wedding plans have gone off schedule. We’ll reschedule it after the baby is born and after we see Lav condition after giving birth.”

“I’m sorry about my sister…”

“No, that’s okay. We are also responsible for the fact that Chris could get close to someone outside of his family for the first time, and we were so excited. When two people who love each other life together, it can happen.

…rather, I was expecting you guys to be the ones to do it. I was surprised that it was Chris.”

“What? You expect we will do that?”

“As a parent, if I wasn’t prepared for that, I wouldn’t have let you live together in the first place. But now, if it were possible, I’d rather if you didn’t. I don’t want both siblings to get married with a child.”

“That’s true…”

“I’m not going to say now that it’s not appropriate for a nobleman. Chris is famous for his eccentricities, and Alice hasn’t been a proper lady for a long time.”

“…Father, you… you’re right…”

“Oh yeah, Alice. I heard that you were very ‘active’ at the Academy and at the Baron’s house. I can’t help but laugh at the stories coming in from those places. I’m glad you are doing that with Hayato by your side.”Q

“ee?”

Wait, am I her guardian!?

Seriously?

I thought Alice is my owner…

As I changed my perception of the hierarchical relationship with Alice, the Duke leaned his back against the backrest and sighed.

“I guess I was wrong about Chris. I always thought he was reserved with women. …no, let’s not talk about that anymore. The reason I called you guys here is something else. This arrived from the adventurer’s guild.”

He handed me a sealed envelope that he had left on the desk.

“A nomination Quest. To Hayato.”

I see I wonder what it was, and as I quickly cut the envelope, the words “urgent” were the first thing I saw.

“An Urgent matter, Duke… in such case like this, which one I should prioritize? The AcademyAcademy or the quest?”

“This time, it’s the quest. It’s fine, isn’t it? You’re banned from mock battles and not behind on any of your schoolwork. It’s not a problem if you take a little time off. I’m also a little curious about that quest.”

“What?”

 “Well, go ahead and read it.”

At the Duke’s insistence, I look over the letter.

It said, “Request for the extermination and investigation of unknown monsters appearing around the royal capital.”