C 130
Anyway, it seemed that all of this could only be resolved by meeting with Albion and Hill Rosemont.
"I have classes tomorrow, right?"
Tomorrow, I will meet with Hill Rosemont and try to find Albion using my abilities.
"I don't know what to do..."
"Do you think Professor Hill needs Mr. Albion?"
"...Yes. It's the first time I've seen him show so much interest in someone."
"Mmm. I see, I understand."
Even so, I felt quite proud that someone asked me for help, so I nodded.
"Do you have somewhere to go?"
"Yes... My brother gave me a house in the capital."
".... Ah."
So, does it make sense to expel him?
He's a really stubborn person.
People like Hill Rosemont are often called tsunderes in the 21st century. Look at how they take care of everything even though they grumble.
"...That's good."
I wondered if I could really get involved in this, so I bid farewell to Phil Rosemont.
Phil continued to hold my hand tightly and asked with a sad expression, then slowly walked away.
"My lady! Why are you arriving so late?"
"I was talking to someone."
"I see, then let's go back."
"Yes!"
I returned home in the carriage with Laurent.
* * *
"...Why are you looking at me like that?"
"It's just that Professor's aura has changed a lot."
Hill Rosemont, with his arms crossed, no longer wore round glasses and no longer looked like a simple country boy.
His tied-up hair and slightly sunken eyes gave a somewhat decadent feeling.
"If you're not going to pay attention, I'll just go home."
"Yes, I will. But do you want to live with Director Albion?"
"Didn't I tell you? It's for that child, Phil Rosemont, I said."
By the way, wasn't he quite irritated?
"How is the wyvern?"
"...It seems like it will wake up soon."
"It won't be enough even if you stay by its side all the time. Can you wander like this?"
"I can guess the moment, so you don't have to worry about it anymore."
Hill Rosemont responded very coldly.
He seemed to think I had heard something from Phil Rosemont.
"I actually heard it, but..."
In fact, solving this problem was simple.
"What if you were honest and said you wished Director Albion was by your side?"
"...If you're going to talk nonsense, I'll stop being your teacher from today."
"You'll give up on me?"
Hill Rosment frowned when I widened my eyes and tilted my head.
It hurt a bit to do it so openly.
"A dragon that is as cute and charming as me, but also has wings and amazing abilities?!"
"What does it matter if you're not mine anyway?"
"But we're still friends."
"..."
Hill Rosemont stopped moving for a moment. He looked at me with a somewhat puzzled expression and sighed.
"Does that game of being friends still continue?"
"I never thought of it as a game."
"Then do you really think of me as a friend?"
"Yes, that's why I'm sitting here trying to help you."
Seeing the expression on his face that said I wasn't helping at all, I clicked my tongue.
"Anyway, it's too much."
I still wanted to get back to the main topic.
"I heard that you didn't do it on purpose when you killed your parents a long time ago."
"How did you...?"
Hill Rosemont's eyes widened, but then he clenched his fists and let out a sigh.
"Did Phil tell you?"
Hill Rosemont said he was willing to kill me right now if necessary.
It seemed like even the slightest courtesy had been wasted. This was better. It felt like I was dealing with the real Hill Rosemont now.
"Why weren't you honest?"
"To whom should I have told? All those involved are dead anyway, so no one knows."
"But in reality, you're not such a bad person..."
Hill Rosemont's expression cracked at my words.
"Did Phil say that? That I killed my parents."
"...Oh."
I was about to say "yes," but hesitated for a moment.
[—But one day... I made a big mistake, and my father tried to kill me...]
[—That day, my brother protected me.]
After a while, I remembered yesterday's conversation and shook my head.
"It wasn't like that..."
I thought that was exactly the nuance.
But he didn't exactly say that his older brother killed their parents. He just said, "He helped me."
"Oh, no way...."
Suddenly, a thought came to mind and then disappeared.
Hill Rosemont, with his arms crossed, fell silent for a moment. He looked at me uncomprehendingly and opened his mouth.
"Phil was the one who killed my parents."
While denying my own thoughts, Hill Rosemont said with a smile.
"...What?"
"Phil was beaten all the time. He never left the basement, he has a shy personality, he can't lie, and he makes mistakes all the time..."
Hill Rosemont slowly moved his lips as if to change my thoughts about Phil.
"There's no way he could have fit in among the Rosemonts, who had a good reputation in high society. They were ashamed to have given birth to him, so they locked him up and raised him like a beast."
I was speechless for a moment and couldn't say anything.
It seemed like Phil was being pushed to the limit and might end up doing something he shouldn't have done.
[—You know, no matter who it is, nobody will hate you, right?]
[—Yes, of course.]
Suddenly, I wondered if Phil knew all of this.
"Was Phil trying to test me too?"
While I was lost in thought, Hill Rosemont smiled and spoke.
"It was more of an accident. The knife he threatened us with was there."
Hill Rosemont's smile grew deeper as I pursed my lips.
He really has a bad personality.
Does this make him feel like I'll avoid Phil Rosemont?
Or does he want me to be afraid? Is he hoping to start a rumor?
"Phil, too, it's embarrassing to bring that up again after being treated like that."
"What do you mean by that?"
"It's difficult to deal with."
Hill Rosemont suddenly approached and smiled.
"Are you trying to kill me?"
"...Well, it would be difficult to easily kill a dragon hatchling."
Hill Rosemont's expression wasn't very good.
"...I'm not going to talk about that."
"Everyone said that in front of me."
"Do you think I'll betray both of you?"
"People are inherently treacherous creatures. Whether you want to or not, as long as the environment creates it."
I was also left speechless by Hill Rosemont's extreme distrust of humans.
"But why do you like Director Albion? You never know when he might betray you."
Hill Rosemont looked at me for a moment.
He shrugged, as if he didn't know why he had to say that.
"That person..."
"..."
"He has the trauma of losing his daughter, so he won't be able to easily abandon us."
Those are really sad words.
Only through the wounds of others do we gain the courage to trust others.
"...I was like that too."
Seeing him on high alert makes me feel like I'm watching "Cha Miso."
I was like that too.
Because I had gone through so much, there were times when all the kindness I received from all sides felt like poison.
"...You can go out now."
However, there will be people in this world who will stand by your side even if that's not the case.
Someone who will take care of the awkward but wounded Hill and Phil brothers with affection and with all their heart.
Hill Rosemont was about to furrow his brow. The door to the room opened quietly.
Hill Rosemont's eyes widened, and he hesitated to get up from his seat. There were two people standing at the door.
"Director, Phil."
Albion had a stern expression, and I couldn't tell what he was thinking, while Phil had his head down, looking tense as if he were a criminal.
"You..."
Hill Rosemont stared at me.
"How do you feel, Director?"
I smiled and extended my hand to Albion.
"What do you think? Now, do you want to hear what I suggested yesterday?"
Albion silently looked at Hill Rosemont, then turned his gaze to me and sighed.
"Truly..."
Albion slowly approached me.
"I don't know what you're thinking."
Even as he said this in a stern tone, he firmly held the small hand I had extended.
"...It's okay, I'll do as you say."
He leaned in and lightly rested his forehead on the back of my hand, then straightened up.
"Hill, Phil."
"..."
"Yes..."
The response came only from Phil. Albion frowned.
"Hill Rosemont."
"...Why are you calling me?"
"You two need to talk to me."
Albion raised Hill Rosemont's arm.
He held Phil Rosemont's hand with the other and slightly nodded his head toward me.
"Thank you for helping."
"You too..."
I smiled.
"Thank you for helping me when I was lost, Director."
Albion, with wide eyes, soon smiled slightly and left the room with the two brothers.
