Chapter 51
When Meteo woke up, the Pluto household regained its stability.
I, too, felt much lighter and took the potion that the healing priest had given me after finishing my meal.
Of course, I never doubted that he would be fine, but still, I had been so anxious the entire time.
Now that I could finally relax, I let out a small sigh.
“Phew…”
Truly, every single day of my life has become precious.
You never know when you might face death again.
Just then, there was a knock at the door. Turning around, I saw someone rushing into my room.
It was Rearwin.
“Senti!”
“Madam.”
As I tried to get off the bed, she immediately stopped me.
“No, Senti. Just stay there and relax.”
Before I could even get down, Rearwin came close to my side.
For some reason, the marchioness’ face was full of a beaming smile. It was thanks to Meteo recovering safely.
Sitting beside me, she said:
“I’m so relieved that both you and Metty are safe. Really, it’s all thanks to you. Thank you.”
“No, it was really just a coincidence…”
Rearwin shook her head.
“No, it’s not. I can’t tell you how grateful I am that you were with Meteo yesterday… I don’t even want to imagine what would have happened if you hadn’t been there.”
“I’m really glad I was with Meteo too. He was actually showing me how to use that heirloom at the time.”
“Ah, so that worked out well too.”
Rearwin smiled softly, though a little pityingly.
I could clearly feel how distressed she must have been over what had happened the night before.
Suddenly, her gaze fell on my neck.
I felt slightly embarrassed under her look. The marks where the Demon King had strangled me were still quite vivid and ugly.
‘I guess I’ll have to start wearing a scarf all the time.’
Just as I thought that, Rearwin looked up at me with sad eyes and asked:
“Are you taking the potion properly?”
“Yes, I drank every last drop.”
“Well done.”
Rearwin gently smiled and stroked my head once.
“By the way, is it true?”
“Eh?”
Suddenly, her face brightened with excitement.
“Really? Yesterday, your father carried you from the garden all the way to the mansion?”
Ah.
So she had heard about that too. Well, it was no wonder she was surprised.
I quickly added an explanation.
“I’m sorry. I kept insisting I was fine, but there was no helping it. How could I dare ask the Cardinal to carry me?”
“No, that’s not what I meant. Of course it’s fine! It’s perfectly fine! Aren’t you like a daughter to me? But I never imagined Father would care enough to carry you himself. He barely ever carried Meteo or our twins…!”
“W-was it because you thought I was badly hurt?”
“No, absolutely not. Our father has always raised his children strictly. Miles was so shocked when he heard about it too!”
“…!”
Wow.
So it was that rare of an event.
Knowing that made me feel even more burdened.
In her excitement, Rearwin suddenly grabbed my hand.
“Senti, this is no ordinary thing. It’s proof that our father is very fond of you. He’s never even seen a daughter or granddaughter, and yet someone as cute as you, who possesses life force and saved three members of our family, has made him melt. He’ll surely want to treat you like a granddaughter.”
“R-really?”
I could understand her calling me like a granddaughter.
I was indeed around the age of a granddaughter. Moreover, I was under the protection of the daughter-in-law and living in the same mansion.
When Ruben first saw me, he treated me like an unwelcome guest who had barged into the mansion, but that was no longer the case.
However, Rearwin continued with more.
“Of course! I told you before, he might even formally adopt you.”
“But didn’t he say he would never adopt anyone who isn’t a distant relative?!”
Rearwin shook her head firmly.
“No. You have something stronger than blood. Just wait and see. Our father will want to do everything he can, even if it means adopting you. You’re someone who saved three of our family members!”
“…Ah.”
I didn’t know what to say, so I just opened my mouth slightly.
Rearwin smiled brightly, but inside, I felt like crying.
‘I should never have become some kind of noble!’
How had I ended up saving three people from the Pluto household?
I couldn’t help but think about the possibility that one day everyone would learn my father was the Demon King.
Of course, it’s unfair, since I only share a body with the Demon King, but who would understand that subtle detail?
If I were formally adopted into the Pluto household in this situation, their eventual sense of betrayal would be unspeakable.
Oblivious to my inner thoughts, Rearwin clasped her hands together like in prayer and excitedly said:
“If you’re officially brought into the Pluto household, it’ll be a huge event. You’ll live a life far more splendid than now. Just imagining it is so overwhelming. You wouldn’t envy any princess in another kingdom.”
“Y-yeah…”
I answered vaguely, feeling dumbfounded.
Could it really come to the day when Ruben officially adopts me?
If that happened, I would legally become Meteo’s sibling. Meteo would probably jump in disbelief…
For me, suddenly having older and younger brothers was quite a strange concept.
Shaking my head, I realized I had let my imagination run away with me, since such a formal adoption was unlikely to happen.
After a while, Rearwin left the room, telling me to rest well.
I fell into a nap and didn’t wake up until the afternoon.
My stomach was still pleasantly full, and my body felt light. Indeed, lying in the duke’s mansion bed allowed for faster recovery than in the dormitory.
“Ughh…”
Stretching comfortably, I got out of bed.
I wondered how Meteo was recovering.
‘He’d be fine either way… but still, I should check on him, right?’
It wasn’t really worry. Someone like Meteo, a genius with divine power, didn’t need me to worry about him.
He would probably already be back to his normal self.
Wrapping a scarf roughly around my neck, I opened my door.
“!”
I almost screamed in surprise.
Meteo stood there, looking startled, one hand raised, probably intending to knock.
“Why are you here?”
He lowered his hand and answered.
“I just came to check on you. We went through trouble in the demon realm together, so I couldn’t just ignore it.”
“Oh, perfect timing. I just woke up. Want to come in?”
“Sure.”
Meteo followed me in, answering somewhat indifferently.
Sitting opposite each other on the sofa, a brief awkwardness passed between us.
Noticing that Meteo seemed unable to meet my eyes properly, he cleared his throat.
“Are you okay?”
“Huh? What? Oh, my body? Of course! The healing priest said my bones had cracked like an earthquake, but everything should be fixed now!”
“…It wasn’t okay at all.”
Meteo’s eyes narrowed.
But he quickly shook his head lightly, as if it were nothing.
“Well, you received treatment, so it’s fine now. If we had been a little later, we both could have really died.”
I shrugged without denying him.
He was right.
The demon ranked 161st in the demon realm, with stronger magic than usual, was still beyond our level.
“But in the end, Princess Aldred died, and we survived. That counts as our victory, right?”
Ahem.
I tried to act triumphant for no reason.
But Meteo didn’t seem in the mood to play along.
“No. I was defeated. And you saved me. That shouldn’t have happened…”
“Eh? That was just luck―”
“Anyway, someone saved me. I shouldn’t be such a weak being.”
