C 85
"It is an honor to serve you, my lady. I am Khan, the head of 'Terem,' the shadow of the Etham family.
This is Ashmond, the deputy leader of the knights directly under Etham, 'Noir.' It is an honor to serve you.
After breakfast following the flood, my father asked me to go somewhere, so I followed him to the training hall.
There were two groups of people standing in the spacious place.
One side was a group that looked like assassins dressed in easy-to-move jet-black clothing, and the other side was knights in black armor.
Both groups stood side by side in perfect formation, and their numbers were considerable.
"As a rank-and-file soldier of the Etham family, simply follow the orders of the family matriarch. It would be good for you to know their faces."
"Ah..."
It's not like you're giving military power to a ten-year-old...
"I suppose he's just telling me to keep an eye on them?"
The looks directed at me were mixed with curiosity.
Furthermore, Terem, Noir.
Both were groups that only the elite of the elite could enter. Places where only the top 1% of the Etham family's soldiers gathered.
"By the way, the leader of Noir is Charniel, the eldest brother you saw earlier."
"Ah..."
That's why he had such a big sword. I nodded slowly.
"Terem belongs to the family head. It will always be by your side, so you can call on it whenever you want."
"At any time?"
"Yes, on the street or anywhere."
Does that mean I'm being monitored 24 hours a day, 365 days a year?
"Yes."
Thinking that there was no danger, I accepted it docilely.
"It's just that the other side doesn't seem to like it very much."
I could feel the sadness in their eyes.
Did Dad also catch them and force them to serve me?
"Unlike before, from now on, you will always have a maid and an escort by your side."
"Yes..."
"It's for your safety."
He knelt in front of me and said softly.
"You are the matriarch of the Etham family, my daughter, and also a living testament to the ancients."
"I know. It's okay."
"Yes, that's good."
Erno Etham gently stroked my hair.
"If there's someone you want from Noir, choose one."
Hmm, no one in particular.
"Is there any outstanding talent in <Adopted>?"
In fact, as soon as I took the Dragon's Death route, I skimmed through the text, so I couldn't remember.
"Dad, please choose."
No matter how much I think about it, my head is a blank slate. I shook my head and said.
"If? Then..."
Erno Etham slowly looked at the knights of Noir.
"Third, twelfth."
When Erno Etham spoke, the knights, third and twelfth of Noir, stepped forward and knelt before me.
"...It was said that Erno Etham called the Knights by their number, so it was true."
Someone who really has no personal affection. I didn't hate it so much since I was the only exception there.
"Pleased to meet you, my lady. My name is Iona."
"This is Adam."
She was a female knight with tied brown hair, and a rough-looking male knight with navy-blue hair.
"These two will be fine. They are good at it, and both are married."
"…Yes?"
What's the correlation between being married and being my knight-escort?
"They are married, so they won't flirt with you."
"... ..."
Iona and Adam shuddered at the same time.
It was clear that they wanted to retort, seeing their clenched fists and trembling hands on the ground.
"No one will...? I'm ten years old, Dad."
Feeling unfair, the Knights of Noir nodded at my words.
"But you're cute. Beautiful. People with strange tastes might casually chat with a 10-year-old girl."
"Those wouldn't be the knights here..."
The knights of Noir agreed with a slight nod.
However, it wasn't easy to reassure Dad. On the contrary, he snorted.
"Daughter, such trust shatters in an instant. Trust no man except me."
I was speechless for a moment at Erno Etham's earnest words.
After looking at the Knights of Noir, I smiled awkwardly and nodded.
I didn't really agree. But otherwise, the conversation seemed unlikely to end.
"All right, that's all you have to do for now. Don't you have classes today?"
"No. It's a day off. So I'll go out for a while and then come back."
"Where?"
"To the temple!"
I have to go see Lucilion.
No matter how much I thought about it, when I thought of Chronos Etham, I felt uneasy.
Moreover, I couldn't stay still when they said it was my fault.
"Daughter."
Dad, who had been silently watching me, opened his mouth. When I raised my head, he added:
"Don't think that just because they are priests, they will all be clean and upright."
Ah, it seemed like he was saying not to trust the people at the temple.
It was when I was about to nod in agreement to ease his worries.
"They have more dirt in their heads."
"Yes, I'll be careful."
"Boys, if anyone flirts with Eirin, cut their throat."
"Yes, understood."
What?
What does he mean by that all of a sudden? I shook my head in astonishment, and Erno Etham looked at me with a serious expression.
"I fear that my daughter has grown up so well.
I'm not even an adult yet!
I really don't know what I'm going to do when I'm an adult. Marriage must be with someone who will never be intimidated by Dad.
...Can I do it?"
A feeling of unease ran down my spine.
"Should I go with you, Eirin?"
"I can go alone."
I had a strong feeling that I would never meet Lucilion if I went with him.
First, I have to go find Chronos Etham.
A quick look at Chronos Etham will give me an idea of what to do.
Actually, I thought it would be much easier to deal with him than with the people I recently met.
I somehow managed to appease my father and get his permission. Shortly after, a carriage arrived, but Dad didn't seem very happy that I was going to the temple.
"Dad, I'm leaving."
"Can't I really go?"
"No, because Iona and Adam are there."
When I got into the carriage, the two knights also got in.
Erno Etham looked at the carriage with a disgusted look, but luckily, the carriage didn't break down.
"I'll be back soon."
"...Be careful."
When I waved to him once more with a determined attitude, he finally kissed me on the cheek and bid me farewell.
The carriage set off.
Here, in the Empire of Oried, there was a god believed in by all the people of the empire.
ARMA.
He was the empire's only god who brought prosperity to the empire and led the empire's souls to salvation.
And the largest temple in the capital of the empire was the first temple to ARMA. This was the mother of all the temples scattered throughout the empire and the largest temple.
"There are so many people."
"Yes."
"Please don't leave my side, matriarch."
In response to Iona's words, I nodded.
As if today were some kind of festival, the temple was filled with people. The believers also seemed busy.
I walked through the people who were peacefully praying and headed further into the temple.
Due to the nature of temples, most of the space was open to the believers, and thanks to this, there was ample room for movement.
"Matriarch, is there someone you're looking for?"
"Yes."
"Who are you looking for?"
"My third uncle!"
Chronos Etham will know where Lucilion is.
No matter where Lucilion was, it wouldn't be a place where I, a stranger, could enter, so the fastest way was to appease Chronos Etham.
"Where should I go..."
As I walked down the path, I arrived at an empty area.
"What a stupid beast! Do you know how precious this holy water is? Your insignificant body can't afford it!"
Crack!
The harsh sound of a whip stopped my steps without me even realizing it.
When I turned my head toward the source of the sound, I saw a very thin man crouching by a well, trembling.
Next to him was a priest holding a whip, and a silver bowl was scattered on the ground.
He continued to whip the man who looked like he hadn't even eaten properly.
Blood spurted, and ears and a tail protruded from the terrified man's head.
"Ears and a tail...?"
I opened my mouth wide.
Isn't he a Suin?
It is said that the adult body of a Suin that has originally been well controlled is almost indistinguishable from that of a human.
I heard it's because they know how to capture the mana that is unique to a Suin.
"Matriarch, you shouldn't look at things like this."
Iona stomped her foot in embarrassment, then apologized and carefully covered my eyes.
"You! How dare you?!"
Shaaa, shaaa!
The continuous sound was unpleasant.
I raised my hand and gently pushed Iona's hand away, and she bit her hand in embarrassment.
It's just anger.
I'm not punishing him for his mistakes.
He's just venting his anger.
I really hated being scolded for no reason from the old times. I hate it terribly, and I hate seeing others suffer.
I feel like I'm going to throw up because my stomach is turning upside down.
"Hey."
I approached the man who was whipping with an expression that couldn't tell if he was a priest or a monster.
"Who dares...?"
As if he couldn't overcome his anger, the priest turned his head and looked at me, then saw the knight of the escort standing behind me and relaxed his arms.
The Suin, who was crouching on the ground, trembled and looked up cautiously, then opened his eyes wide.
"What are you doing here, dear lady?"
"That's too much."
"I'm just scolding him for doing something wrong. Look, he's a dirty Suin."
Lacking sincerity, he lifted the tear-stained chin of the man with the tip of his whip.
"The chapel is over there, but if you took the wrong path, it's better for you to turn back."
"I don't want to."
"What?"
"I don't want to; I'm here on business."
"What business...?"
"First of all... I'll hit you."
