9 – Krrraaahh

“Here, this is your bonus for the month.”

“Thank you.”

All labor in this world deserves just compensation.

If not, one might face a gruesome ending akin to the dastardly employers who occasionally surface in the news.

Well, truth be told, Porto covers the wages of all the staff, but with the recent increase in living expenses…

I paid Dalpi her due.

“The envelope feels rather light.”

“Didn’t you say your current salary was 100,000 credits?”

“Indeed… it is.”

Dalpi cautiously opened the envelope.

And her expression shifted to one of utter surprise.

“Why, why are you giving me so much?”

The sum I’d paid Dalpi was a whopping 100,000 credits.

Gazing at the banknotes bearing the face of the founding king, Dalpi was rendered speechless.

“You’re more competent than the other maids, aren’t you? And you handle a lot on your own, so just take it easy.”

“But my duty is solely to attend to you, Master, and that’s what I wanted in the first place. No matter how I consider it, it’s far too much…”

“You’re doing a fine job. This is compensation for that.”

Dalpi’s rose-pink lips pursed slightly.

I found her blank, speechless expression rather refreshing.

No one had wanted to be my personal maid.

After all, it’s hard to imagine someone wanting to serve the youngest son, ostracized by the head of the family and his siblings – logically speaking.

Frankly, if I didn’t have my memories from my past life and Nob AI, it would have been me, not Felix, who ended up on the battlefield.

Dalpi was the first to reach out to me, a person in such a precarious position.

After the successor trials, Porto increased my monthly allowance more than tenfold.

A full 200,000 credits, which was a considerable sum for me.

Perhaps only Uriel and Kenneth among my siblings receive that much from Porto.

Jefer has the most money, but he’s the sole exception, since he’s running a business under his own name.

Anyway, Dalpi deserved this money and more.

Honestly, I wanted to give her more, but I felt bad that I couldn’t give her more than this because I don’t know what will happen in the future.

“Thank you…”

“Good. I look forward to working with you!”

“Yes, I look forward to it as well.”

Dalpi and I exchanged smiles.

“Did you say you were heading to the academy today?”

“Aye, the Crimson Magister sent a missive.”

“Then I shall see to the carriage.”

“Please do.”

I boarded the carriage Dalpi had readied.

No coachman was hired separately.

Dalpi herself was the driver.

Judging by the stableman’s nod as soon as he saw her tending Tristy’s steeds, this maid was more capable than I could have imagined.

“You can even drive a carriage?”

“It’s a maid’s basic competence.”

“Being a maid really is a remarkable profession…”

Dalpi sat in the driver’s seat and guided the horses.

I settled my posterior onto the plush cushion and closed my eyes, resting until we reached the academy.

“We have arrived.”

Had I dozed for an hour? Opening my eyes at Dalpi’s words, Tristy Academy came into view.

It was likely the largest edifice in the Tristy dominion.

I admired the educational ground constructed upon a broad and level plot, quietly impressed.

Dalpi alighted from the driver’s seat first.

Then, producing a handkerchief, she scrubbed my face vigorously as I exited the carriage.

“Ugh.”

“Hold still, please.”

She also tidied my hair, dabbed perfume on my wrists, and straightened my necktie.

She was completely like a sister.

“Always present yourself neatly, Young Master. It’s a waste of your handsome face otherwise.”

“Alright…”

“Then please wait here a moment. I shall entrust the horses and carriage.”

While waiting for Dalpi, I surveyed my surroundings.

Tristy Academy.

There were eight educational institutions in the Kingdom of Justina, one of which was Tristy Academy.

While reputed to be slightly lacking compared to the Royal Academy, it was a prestigious academy among the top tier of educational institutions, boasting renowned professors and new facilities.

For the record, aside from Felix and myself, all of Tristy’s scions had at some point attended this academy.

Kennes, Uriel, and Zephyr had long graduated, and I knew that Haniel was on leave due to a chronic illness.

The good-for-nothings? The Tristi family wouldn’t let *them* near the academy, lest they bring shame upon the name.

Thinking about it again, it’s damn depressing.

Never thought I’d end up in this place because of it.

Life really does throw you for a loop, doesn’t it?

So, I was admiring the flowers in front of the main gate when I heard a commotion nearby.

“Does anyone know that guy in the suit?”

“Never seen him before. Hold on, is that a star-shaped birthmark under his eye?”

“Eek, isn’t that the Tristi symbol?”

Students clutching textbooks were staring at me.

An intensely uncomfortable kind of stare, at that.

“Isn’t that Esther Tristi…? The magazines said he was 15.”

“The genius who solved the Millennium Problems?”

“Come to think of it, he kinda looks like the pictures.”

“He’s really handsome… How about whoever loses rock-paper-scissors has to go talk to him?”

Please, just go your own way.

Despite appearances, I’m an introvert, you know.

But, contrary to my wishes, people started to gather around.

“They say he’s going to revolutionize the magical world.”

“Apparently, a few research teams from the Fire School achieved great results this time, using his explanation of the Hellfire Recreation as a reference; that’s what my brother told me.”

“He’s really amazing….”

Honestly, I’d be lying if I said the attention wasn’t nice.

In my previous life, I was utterly ordinary, and for the fifteen years I’d lived as Esther Tristi, I’d been treated like an ugly duckling, so my shoulders couldn’t help but straighten.

But, I solved everything with the help of Nob AI, and the goal was simply to survive the successor trials.

I didn’t want *this* much attention.

It’s like the feeling of that wimpy kid at a training camp, receiving unwanted attention and being forced on stage to sing with a microphone.

I felt suffocated.

‘Dalphy, when are you coming back….’

I waited for Dalphy, all shriveled up.

*

“Mistress Etilla, how was your lesson today?”

As Etilla Bedford emerged from the lecture hall, Rangrang took her textbooks for her.

“Oh, just the usual, I suppose?”

Etilla cocked her head. “Is there something on my face?”

It was because Rangrang was watching her with a satisfied smile.

“I’m glad to see you’re feeling more spirited.”

“Huh…?”

“Last time, you were quite down in the dumps over the Millennium Problems, weren’t you…”

“When did *I* ever look down in the dumps?!”

Etilla exclaimed, her voice sharp!

“I wasn’t, not at all! I simply wasn’t feeling well, that’s all!”

As they say, a strong denial is a strong affirmation. Rangrang, who had observed Etilla huddled in her room hugging her knees and sniffling for a week, was seemingly unbothered, and merely smiled contentedly.

“Ah, is that so….”

“Honestly, geez, who said I was down in the dumps!! I wasn’t down, I truly just wasn’t feeling…”

Etilla turned her head away, looking sulky.

“Mistress, I’m sorry….”

“Hmph….”

“Please, forgive me. Yes…?”

Rangrang skillfully soothed Etilla, whose lips were now forming a pout. It might be considered a rather impudent remark for a maid, but to Rangrang, Etilla was like a child she had borne in her heart.

Having raised and cared for Etilla since she was a babe, she prided herself on being the best at lifting her spirits in all the world.

When Rangrang slipped a sweet chocolate into her mouth, Etilla’s expression melted away.

“Let’s return to the dormitory.”

“Hehe, alright.”

As they walked down the corridor toward the dormitory, the two noticed a crowd gathered in front of the main gate.

“What’s this? Why are there so many people?”

“Hmm…?”

They stopped by the window, observing the commotion at the gate.

“-…Water… …all gone!

– …Over there… …help me!”

It felt as though a celebrated figure, a High Mage perhaps, or even the King himself, had graced the academy with their presence.

The source of the throng was a boy who seemed to be Etilla’s age, or perhaps a little older.

He appeared slightly taller than Etilla.

While his build was small and slight compared to a grown man, a suit fit for a gentleman suited him remarkably well.

He possessed, as one might say, a small head, giving him pleasing overall proportions.

His shoulders were quite broad, and he possessed a remarkably handsome face.

Meeting him on the street, one might be struck dumb, mesmerized by his fox-like charm.

“He’s handsome. Who is he?”

“Hmm, I couldn’t say…”

‘Black hair and red eyes.’

Etilla pressed her hand against the window.

“That face is so familiar, ugh, who is it?”

“I doubt he’s someone the young lady has been close to…”

Etilla lingered there for quite some time.

She furrowed her brow at the unfamiliar sense of déjà vu, scrutinizing the boy intently.

‘Black hair, red eyes, black hair, red eyes…’

And as a young, beautiful maid, her hair the colour of lavender, led the boy away…

“Ester Tristi!!”

Etilla cried out.

“Yes?”

Abandoning Rangrang, Etilla began to run.

Ordinarily, she loathed exercise and detested running, but this was a different matter.

“Ugh!! Wait up!!”

She had business with the boy who had solved the Millennium Prize problem before she had.

“Huh…?”

Rangrang blankly watched Etilla’s back as she suddenly began to move her legs with earnest effort.

“W-Wait up!!”

Hastily, I followed after Etilla.