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Chapter 15

"Friend—"

"Friend—"

For a moment, I could have sworn I heard an echo, as if the word were reverberating across the open plain—that's how silent the surroundings had become.

The murderous edge in Father's expression cracked; Kizef paused; and Werner, who had been glaring at Isid with sharp, narrowed eyes, looked utterly dumbfounded.

And Isid—

"An accurate description."

He murmured lazily, looking deeply satisfied.

The situation was a complete mess.

Ironically, the first to sort things out was Isid.

More precisely, the moment I sneezed, Isid moved fastest.

"I think it'd be best to go inside first."

After summoning a blanket from thin air and draping it over my shoulders the moment I sneezed, Isid spoke calmly to the three still-dazed men.

Sniffling, I accepted the gesture with familiar ease and gave an awkward smile in agreement with Isid's suggestion.

"…I was a little cold."

At that, even Kizef and Werner, who had been glaring at Isid, eased their stance slightly—though they didn't stop eyeing him warily.

Ah, so he really is my friend.

The situation was quite delicate. If they hadn't caught us like this, explaining would have been much easier.

"…Let's go inside for now."

Father sighed first and turned around. Kizef and Werner looked like they had plenty to say, but since Father had spoken, they held back for now.

Relieved, I didn't let go of Isid's hand and scurried after them.

Throughout the walk, silent pressure was directed our way, but I was the only one who could protect Isid here.

Once inside, we settled in the drawing room on the second floor.

I'd initially wanted to go to my comfortable room, but the three of them strongly objected…

'He's really fine, you know.'

Seeing the three of them on guard against Isid, I could only sigh.

In this world, the only beings as harmless to me as Isid were my spirits.

I couldn't explain that, which made my chest feel tight.

Anyway, I brushed off the three's hands and sat right next to Isid.

After a while of that strange atmosphere—

Click—

Alberto, pushing a trolley, set a cup of tea before each of us.

Poor Alberto—how did his ears catch this at such an hour…

"For Miss, it's milk with honey. I considered hot chocolate, which you enjoy, but since it's late at night, I thought it best to keep the sweetness moderate."

"Mm, thank you…"

"Same milk for Miss's friend."

Isid only nodded in response. I poked him in the side.

"Say thank you."

"Me?"

"Hey."

"…Thanks."

Only when my sharp glare persisted did Isid reluctantly offer his thanks.

Werner on the opposite side looked like he was about to lose his mind, while the gentle Alberto simply chuckled, said "Not at all," and left the room.

Alberto, who neither questioned the situation nor cast unnecessary glances at Isid, was truly the epitome of a butler.

Should I explain first? But how? As I pondered, I took a sip of the warm milk.

As the smooth, warm liquid went down, I felt a bit of tension ease—

"First, Rowena."

…Nope, not at all.

My shoulders tensed at Father's call. I'd never been scolded by him before, so I was even more nervous.

"Yes…"

"Do you know what you did wrong?"

Of course I knew my fault.

"I left without saying anything…"

I nodded, hesitated, then timidly spoke.

I'd acted on the assumption I wouldn't get caught, but since I had, making excuses was pointless. Even if I hadn't been caught, sneaking out was still wrong.

"I'm sorry, Father…"

I apologized gloomily, feeling guilty, and Father let out a heavy sigh.

"You have no idea how shocked I was when I realized you were gone. If I'd been even a little later, I would have woken the entire household to search for you."

My mouth fell open, but soon I realized that was only natural—and felt utterly pathetic.

Overjoyed at finding Isid, I hadn't thought things through properly. That was my fault.

'If I'd stayed talking any longer, it would have been a real disaster.'

Even now it was a mess—if I imagined the entire estate searching for me…

Just thinking about it made my vision darken, and my shoulders curled inward like dried squid.

Fortunately, Father didn't scold me at length.

But the situation wasn't over. In fact, a more important and serious problem remained.

'Now I have to explain…'

I stealthily rolled my eyes.

If I'd known this would happen, I should have asked him to come tomorrow…

Aside from sneaking out, the biggest issue in this situation was likely that I'd disappeared in the middle of the night and returned with some boy.

If I'd come back alone, I could have made up some excuse.

But I hadn't wanted to leave Isid, so I'd acted impulsively—and the price was steep.

Nevertheless, what was done was done, and now it was time to explain somehow.

"…Rowena."

"Yes."

"I'd like you to tell me who that child next to you is."

Instead of asking Isid directly, Father asked me. I thought I noticed his voice turn slightly strange, but I had no time to dwell on it.

Ugh, here it comes.

"Well, you see…"

"…"

"…First of all, he's my friend."

I had no choice but to repeat what I'd said outside.

At least it was fortunate that Isid had shrunk to my age. If he'd appeared in his true form, there probably would have been an incident before we even got inside.

"Friend…"

Father echoed my answer with a vague expression. And in that reaction, I sensed something odd.

Actually, there was another strange point.

'Come to think of it… why is he so wary of Isid?'

And Father at that.

Right now, Isid was about Werner's size. Whatever was inside, on the outside he looked like a kid.

Yet Father had been excessively on guard since the moment he saw Isid—the way he kept his energy subtly elevated while watching him proved it.

Why?

Just as I was pondering that—

"Stop worrying. There's no need."

Isid laughed and spoke lightly.

I whipped my head around, and Isid met my gaze briefly before shrugging and glancing at Father with his eyes.

"Your father already knows who I am."

"…What?"

For a moment, I thought I'd misheard.

What did I just hear? What does Father know?

At the end of my slow-turning gaze, Father's face appeared—not at all surprised.

That composed expression was practically proof that Isid's words were true.

How, though…?

"…How?"

My murmured question rose like a question mark. Isid answered calmly.

"Because he's a Valentine."

"Huh?"

What kind of answer is that? It's true that our family name is Valentine, but what does that have to do with you knowing his identity?

I tilted my head at the absurd reply, and Isid added:

"The imperial family and the temple probably know I've awakened too."

"The imperial family and the temple…?"

At the sudden expansion of scale, I blinked, and Isid looked at Father.

"Am I wrong, current head of Valentine?"

All eyes in the room turned to Father.

And after a moment—

"…You are correct, Guardian Dragon."

Father answered.

A brief silence fell.

I was pondering how Father knew; Kizef and Werner were wearing expressions of unprecedented shock.

Then Werner shot up as if springing from his seat. Pointing at Isid in disbelief, he stammered:

"Th-this little squirt is the Gu-Gu-Guardian…"

"…"

"That's impossible!"

Werner's lips flapped before he cried out like a scream, looking at Father with a face begging him to correct what he'd just heard—but Father's silence only gave him the answer he didn't want.

"Then that shameless… is really… a dragon…"

After stammering for a long while with a face as if he'd gone pale, he collapsed onto the sofa.

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