Chapter 17
A boy?
“Hm?”
Repornia tilted her head in confusion. The information she knew didn’t match the knight’s testimony.
‘I’m sure the ones who came to the cabin back then were the lady next door and this knight, right?’
She even thanked the knight for reporting the situation. Was the boy perhaps the lady’s son?
“But after he reported it, he suddenly disappeared… Later, the second reporter was the lady living next door, whom I ran into while surveying the area.”
The lady next door was the second reporter? Then that meant someone else had reported it first. Then who?
‘…Was it the person who switched out the miniaturization potion?’
If not, how would they even know a child was in that house and make the initial report?
“What did the first reporter look like?!”
Repornia urgently asked Sir Vellic. Her words came out slightly clipped, but she didn’t have the luxury to care about that now.
“Did you hear that? So cute…”
“I never thought anything when the second young master couldn’t pronounce things, but… she’s really cute.”
The nearby knights murmured, but Repornia ignored them entirely.
Sir Vellic recalled the memory slowly and finally spoke.
“He had very striking features for a child, enough that he stood out… but I didn’t look closely.”
“Hair color? Eye color?”
“Nothing unusual. Black hair, golden eyes.”
…Huh?
The moment Sir Vellic said that, Repornia involuntarily recalled that boy.
No way…
‘That boy definitely looked at me and said, “You’re alive.”’
What if he said that because he thought she was supposed to have died—because he was the one who switched the potion?
It all lined up perfectly.
“What the—kid. Isn’t that exactly the description of the boy you mentioned earlier? Is that why you asked?”
At Phelence’s question, Repornia brushed it off with a smile.
Of course, that boy might not be the first reporter. But Repornia’s instincts told her there was at least some connection.
‘Just wait until I get my hands on you.’
Repornia clenched her tiny fist.
* * *
Repornia circled the training grounds once but still couldn’t pick a guard. Phelence recommended several, saying each had outstanding skill, but Repornia refused every single one.
The reason was simple.
‘Gasp. That knight is the one who chased me relentlessly when I was stealing…! And that one nearly caught me the day I infiltrated!’
They were all knights she had encountered during her years as the Pope’s spy. Terrified of getting found out, she buried her face in Phelence’s chest and whined that she didn’t want them.
Of course, she wore a mask on missions, so they probably never saw her face—but still. Better safe than sorry.
And she absolutely did not want persistent, highly competent knights as guards.
It was humiliating as a grown adult, but thankfully everyone dismissed it as the tantrum of a five-year-old.
“Kiddie. After what happened, you need a guard. If you don’t want one sticking close to you, they can follow you from afar and stay hidden.”
That’s exactly the problem!
She couldn’t search for the heirloom while constantly wondering when or where someone was lurking nearby.
Repornia sneaked a side glance at Phelence.
All day today, Phelence had carried her around. He could’ve set her down, but in the training yard he claimed sand would dirty her shoes and the servants would struggle to clean it. In the hallway, he said she was the perfect weight for exercise and kept carrying her.
‘I got used to it without even realizing.’
At first she thought being carried around in someone’s arms was embarrassing, shameful, ridiculous.
But now? She was comfortably wrapped in his arms, touring the training grounds for hours.
‘My social dignity…’
Thankfully, no one knew she wasn’t actually five.
“If you have something to say, say it, kid. Don’t just look at me like that.”
He had sharp intuition—terrifyingly sharp. If someone like him stayed close as her guard, watching her all day like a hawk… ugh.
“I’m going to leave once I’m healed anyway.”
Repornia tried persuading him.
“So like you said, I’m someone who’ll be leaving soon, so there’s really no need for a guard—ow!”
Before she could finish, Phelence reached out and wrecked her hair.
“Don’t—don’t do that!”
Repornia flailed her short arms and swatted his hand away.
Her hair flew wild, obscuring Phelence’s expression. After painstakingly fixing her hair, she glared at him.
Phelence was smiling at her.
“You messed up my hair!”
“Oh? I think it looks even prettier now.”
Repornia glared as hard as a five-year-old could—but Phelence just laughed.
“With that tiny head of yours you’re always thinking strange things. Why do you hate it so much when someone’s offering to protect you? At least stay safe until you leave.”
“Even a child has things they don’t like.”
Repornia said firmly. Phelence paused.
“It’s uncomfortable and scary to have strangers near me. Even if they’re guards protecting me, it feels suffocating knowing someone I don’t know is secretly watching me.”
She spoke calmly.
“I know assigning a guard is to prevent another incident. That’s why…”
She stopped, eyes widening. A perfect idea popped into her head.
A way to avoid both Phelence and another guard.
“I picked my guard.”
“…Right in the middle of talking?”
Phelence tilted his head.
“Yep. You.”
Repornia pointed at him with her tiny finger.
“…What?”
“You be my guard.”
She chose the academy’s infamous dropout fossil.
He already suspected her of being a fraud and monitored her constantly. Getting a guard wouldn’t make him watch her less.
So in that case…
‘I’ll just make Phelence my guard!’
And if she had the second son of House Krytan as her guard, she could naturally approach the Duke now and then.
The heir was the eldest son anyway. Phelence would either rot away at the academy again or eventually become a knight after graduating.
Meaning Repornia could select him.
‘At least my brain didn’t regress with my body.’
She smiled, proud of her brilliant choice.
“…No.”
Until Phelence refused.
“What?”
Repornia’s satisfied smile froze.
“Why not?”
Completely unprepared for rejection, she stammered.
Phelence stared at her. His eyes were cold—none of his usual teasing.
“Because I don’t want to protect you.”
He set her down as he spoke. They were already in front of her bedroom.
Her room had been relocated temporarily after the fire destroyed everything.
The interior was filled with new furniture and belongings, not hers, so she didn’t care much.
“Think about another knight.”
He patted her head twice and turned away.
Repornia watched his retreating back for a moment, then turned without hesitation and entered her room.
“Young Lady, you’re back—oh my, what’s with your face? Did something happen?”
“No. Nothing.”
She answered Buddy lightly. No need to mention that for a fleeting moment—
Phelence’s serious rejection had made her heart drop.
* * *
After a night’s sleep, Repornia sorted everything out neatly.
‘If he refuses, that’s not the end. I’ll just follow him around until he accepts.’
She’d been rejected plenty in her life—why was she so shocked yesterday? It didn’t make sense.
‘I just got too used to having a child’s body. Humans really do adapt fast.’
While Buddy and Becky helped her get ready, she continued sorting her thoughts.
‘None of this even matters. I’ll steal the heirloom, go back, buy the antidote to undo the potion, and regain my original body. None of these relationships will continue anyway.’
Might as well use the five-year-old body to its fullest.
And actually, the more Phelence refused, the better.
She would say she only wanted him. He would keep refusing.
‘And then assigning a guard gets pushed back further and further!’
Perfect.
Repornia pumped her tiny fist and headed to the dining hall. The Duke of Krytan and Phelence were already there.
“Ponya. Did you sleep well?”
“Kid. Why do you look so serious today? Off to explore something?”
Repornia sat on her designated chair. And the moment she did, she went straight to the point.
“I want you to be my guard, Senior!”
Phelence choked, completely thrown off by her ambushing him at breakfast—and in front of the Duke no less. He even turned red like he’d swallowed wrong.
“…Phelence?”
The Duke blinked, wondering if he heard correctly. But Repornia beamed innocently like the five-year-old she appeared to be.
“Yes! I asked yesterday and got rejected, but I still only want Senior!”
What can you do when a five-year-old insists? Childhood privilege.
“Hah. I definitely said no.”
“Yes, I heard.”
Repornia replied cheerfully.
“I’m going back to the academy soon. Even if I say I’ll guard you, I won’t be here long.”
“Then just do it while you’re here. After that, I’ll talk to the Duke again to find someone else.”
Her logic mixed with childish whining. Phelence said nothing, quietly eating instead.
Seeing that, the Duke tried gently persuading her.
“Ponya. Phelence will be leaving soon. How about choosing another knight…?”
“But strangers are scary.”
She expected this. No matter how wild Phelence was, he was still the Duke’s real son, while Repornia was just an adopted child. Naturally he’d take his son’s side.
So she prepared her line in advance.
“After what happened, I get tense when a stranger comes near. Even if they’re a guard protecting me.”
She smiled sweetly.
“I want Senior to guard me.”
Here it comes.
The terrifying power of a five-year-old’s stubbornness.
