Chapter 11 - Princess and the Teddy Bear (3)

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"Okay, that's it. If you need anything, just pull the cord next to the bed — if you're thirsty or need to use the restroom, or anything else, don't hesitate to use it. You're welcome to use it for any reason. Ho ho."

"Umm... I understand, Sarah...Thank you...yawn."

"Oh my, look at you yawning. Well, I'll be going then. Sleep well, miss."

"Unnhh...good night...Sarah...."

-Click.

As the door latch turned, the sound of footsteps faded away, leaving nothing but silence in the room.

Soft light from the magic-powered bedside lamp cast an ethereal glow, illuminating the room gently, allowing Adele to see the room in the dim light.

Adele lay in bed, staring up at the ceiling; ornate and luxurious decorations covered the entire ceiling, with a grand chandelier at its center that seemed to be made entirely of carved crystal.

The bed she lay on was so large it could easily accommodate ten young children, yet the space around her was filled with a multitude of colorful dolls, leaving no room for another step.

And the blanket was something else entirely. The luxurious goose feather quilt she was wrapped in provided a level of comfort she had never experienced before in her life.

Not long ago, she would have never dared to imagine that she would have such a luxury.

Unlike the things her mother had always told her, the people here seemed to love her very much. Her father, of course, and the servants all treated her kindly.

And...her brother.

She felt like she would fall asleep at any moment, but she desperately tried to recall the events of the day.

'Brother Edwin...?'

* * * * *

"Do you know who I am?"

When Edwin uttered those first words, Adele was already halfway lost in thought. 'Who is he?'..... Adele had picked up various pieces of information from the maids who gossiped secretly behind the master's back in the mansion.

The eldest son of the Reed family — eccentric in personality, disliked commoners, had broken off an engagement with an angelic fiancée, and even caused trouble at the academy, leading to his suspension.

The more she listened to these stories, the more Adele's fears grew.

She already knew about her origins before she came to the mansion. She'd been told about her origins before she'd come to the manor. However, if this man had the same personality as the one described, who despised commoners, how would he perceive her?

Her father had tried to reassure her, but all her resolutions had vanished the moment she first laid eyes on Edwin.

His imposing stature filled the room, and to Adele, his massive gray eyes seemed icy and cold. With round cheeks and a rounded belly that belied his size, his appearance reminded her of something she knew.

That's right... a troll. Surely it was the monster from the fairy tale Sarah had read to her yesterday, the one who stole the princess from the prince. And now this troll was asking her if she knew who he was.

Calm down. She had to choose her words carefully if she wanted to survive this.

Adele desperately racked her brain, and then cautiously spoke the answer she had in mind, "Aren't you... the lord of the manor..."

Oh, it wasn't the right answer. When Edwin heard her answer, Edwin frowned as if he didn't like it, shaking his head from side to side. This is bad. She made a mistake. What happens now?

Adele closed her eyes tightly, cursing her own stupidity.

"No, no, no..."

"..We're siblings, aren't we?"

"So you should call me... brother."

However, the moment Edwin mentioned those words, Adele's eyes, which had been tightly closed, suddenly snapped open. She had considered the possibility, but had discarded it, thinking it couldn't be true. But it was the correct answer?

She felt a little nervous, and before she knew it, she was repeating Edwin's words, her voice trembling, "Brother... Edwin...?"

As soon as the words left her mouth, Edwin smiled happily happily and nodded, then approached her. He placed his hand on her head and lightly stroked it, as if combing her hair.

'Uh...huh?!'

Adele was momentarily taken aback by the unexpected situation, but for some reason, Edwin's gentle touch was too much for her to resist. No, she didn't want to resist. And then, Adele was finally able to look up at Edwin properly.

Those cold eyes now seemed to hold a kindness and sympathy for her. And now that she looked closely, his protruding belly felt strangely comforting and fluffy. This is...not a troll.

Yes, this is...a teddy bear. Her favorite teddy bear, the one she loved so much that she always cuddled up next to it when she slept. Like Edwin, the bear had round cheeks and a plump belly. She had even given it a name, "Eddie."

Yes, this was undoubtedly a divine intervention. The mother goddess must have taken pity on her for not missing a single prayer every day, and sent her a new big brother — one who was kind, gentle, and as soft as her beloved teddy bear.

By the time Adele's thoughts had reached this point, the negative thoughts about Edwin had long since been erased from her mind without a trace.

* * * * *

'Hehe…'

Adele giggled and hugged her teddy bear 'Eddie' that she'd placed beside her tightly. She had been right all along. Brother Edwin was so sweet. He told her to enjoy her snacks, and he even ate the bell peppers and carrots that she didn't like. Oh, when she had started to doze off from post-meal drowsiness, he had noticed and kindly suggested that she go to bed first.

Though it had only been a brief moment, Adele felt a twinge of guilt for having initially equated him with a monster. Now she was determined to make amends.

'Tomorrow, I'll greet Brother Edwin properly.'

Adele was a little disappointed that she had been too tense to look Edwin in the eye properly. She vowed to show him a different side of herself tomorrow and closed her eyes.

Before long, the only sound in the room was Adele's quiet breathing.

* * * * *

"Good morning, Adele. Did you sleep well?"

I had fallen asleep early yesternight, perhaps due to the accumulated fatigue, and my eyes were wide open at the crack of dawn. I got up, exercised a bit, and washed my face when I ran into Adele in the center of the main hallway.

Adele seemed like she had just woken up, still in her nightclothes, rubbing her eyes. Seeing her like that, I remembered Adele dozing off in the hall last night. She was really cute. But she seems to sleep a lot because she's still young. She should be able to grow up even more, shouldn't she?

"Uh...huh?"

Adele made a strange noise when she heard my greeting, and then she finally woke up and tried to tidy up her clothes with her hands. Her cheeks seemed to be a little red, too. She must be embarrassed to show her unkempt appearance to others. She's really cute...

"G...good morning, brother. I'm sorry, I was going to greet you first, but..."

"It's okay. You look like you're still sleepy, so you can go back to sleep if you're tired. Aren't kids supposed to sleep a lot? When I was your age, I took naps all the time."

"Oh... really... No, it's fine... but..."

I can't help but laugh at Adele's serious internal conflict over something so insignificant. Is this something to worry about so much? She seems to be torn between wanting to look dignified and her primal needs. She doesn't have to be like that yet. It's best for a child to be herself.

I decided to save her the trouble.

"Come on, let's go inside. I'll tell Sarah to set aside your breakfast. So you can just sleep soundly and eat as soon as you wake up, right?"

"Oh, oh, brother?!"

I scooped her up and started carrying her to her room. She was so light that she felt weightless before I could even put my strength into my arms. Can a person be this light?

Adele said she had a hard life, so her growth may have been stunted by a poor diet in childhood, which could be a problem. I need to tell the cook to focus on giving her nutritious meals.

"Oh...big brother... you can put me down now..."

"Ha ha, are you worried about me getting tired? Don't worry. I don't think I'd even be tired carrying ten Adeles."

"Ten...Adele?...Hehe..."

Adele, who was initially pretending to struggle, gave up and surrendered to me when I didn't put her down. I took her to her bed and laid her down, and I even covered her with a blanket so she wouldn't be cold. As expected, she must have been tired, because Adele fell asleep soon after.

I left the room and made my way to our usual small dining room, not the banquet hall from yesterday. The butler had informed me earlier that my father was out of town on business, so I would have to eat breakfast alone this morning.

There's a family meeting in the afternoon, so I'll have to take care of my business in the morning.

I finished my meal quickly, changed into my outerwear, and headed out the mansion's main gate.

* * * * *

"Hmph...hmph...Ah, I'm so tired...it's so darn far..."

After walking for 30 minutes from the mansion, I finally saw my destination. Actually, a 30-minute walk wasn't that far, it's just that my body was in terrible shape.

As I caught my breath, I beheld an imposing building constructed with white marble exteriors.

Arched stained glass windows adorned with various colors of glass depicted colorful images of saints. At the top of the building's tall spire, a long cross stood, adding to its grandeur — this place was known as the Madehaven Diocese of the Trinity Faith, commonly referred to as the church.

And since those who believe in the Trinity Faith, regardless of their social status, make up the absolute majority of the population, the Holy Kingdom, the headquarters of the Trinity Faith, held significant influence in the world.

After taking a moment to catch my breath, I approached the guards stationed at the church's main entrance.

"Hello, brother. What is your name and purpose of your visit?"

"Thank you for your hard work. Tell the bishop of Madehaven that Edwin Reed is here to see him."

When I showed my family crest, the guard who confirmed it, nodded and said, "We welcome the visit of the master of the Reed family. Come this way... I will inform the bishop immediately, so please wait for a moment."

I was guided by the guard to the church's reception room. I thought I would have to wait for a while because I didn't contact him in advance, but contrary to my expectations, the bishop in charge of the diocese arrived at the reception room in less than 5 minutes.

The bishop's priest uniform, covering his fat body, was soaked with sweat, so it seemed that he had rushed to come as soon as he received the message. It's nice to have authority, I suppose.

"Welcome, Master Edwin. Have you been waiting long?"

""I just arrived. I came without any prior notice, but I am very grateful for your warm welcome."

"Ha ha, how can we treat the master of the Reed family poorly? Come on, have a seat."

The bishop's welcoming words put me at ease as I took a seat.

* * * * *

In the original story, Edwin was not mentioned after he was expelled from the academy and returned to his hometown.

However, after personally confirming the location of my hometown in my memories, I realized that there was another reason why Edwin did not appear.

If the episodes I know from the original work unfold here as well, then in the not-too-distant future, the Empire will soon be facing a great war against a huge number of demons that have suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

And while the war will eventually end in a truce between the two sides, thanks to the efforts of Hero's party and others, more than half of the territory will have been reduced to ashes by that point, especially the southern part of the country that is closest to the Demon Realm.

The most unfortunate fact is that my territory, Madehaven, was located on the exact border between the empire and the demon realm.

Given its geographic location, if war were to break out, this place will be instantly overrun by the demonic forces.

Therefore, unlike other regions where some recovery is possible, Madehaven will be completely destroyed without a trace.

It is a fact that can be easily inferred; if no action is taken, it will undoubtedly come to pass.

And right now, there's only one person who could do anything to prevent this horrible future. And that was me.

The reason I visited the church today was to obtain an item necessary to avoid this catastrophe. It is something that cannot be found anywhere else but within the church.

If you want to read the first 25 chapters for free and read up to the final chapter for a cheap price patreon.com/Makima02