Another month flew by.
Eris's education was progressing smoothly. Her swordsmanship advanced so quickly that she became an intermediate-level student before turning ten.
That meant she could now handle any average swordsman.
Ghislaine said that, even though she was only nine, she could reach the Advanced level in a few more years.
The little demon was a genius.
As for me? If I were asked directly, I'd say I was making decent progress.
Eris still couldn't beat me in swordplay, and I couldn't even see Ghislaine's movements at all—but she said I was getting faster every day, so I just had to take her word for it.
Eris's reading and writing skills were at least functional.
Ghislaine, who had been tricked many times and even sold into slavery because she couldn't read, was desperately trying to memorize everything.
Unfortunately, Eris was falling behind in arithmetic.
It was her weak point. Still, there was no reason to panic.
I had no idea what she'd do when she grew up, but highly advanced mathematics weren't necessary in this world.
She just needed to master the four basic operations in five years.
That was enough.
The magic lessons had been going well, but we seemed to hit a small plateau.
Through chanting, the two of them could cast most basic spells.
Eris had mastered nearly every school of magic except earth, but Ghislaine could only cast fire spells.
I wondered about the difference in their abilities, even though they were taking the same class.
Was Ghislaine simply bad at water, wind, and earth spells? That's what it seemed like, but I wasn't sure.
In any case, it was clear that just chanting the textbook spells wasn't enough to overcome the problem.
Casting spells from different schools had come very naturally to me, so I didn't know how to help them. I'd had them practicing silent casting recently, but the results were less than satisfying.
Sylphie could do it easily, so I wondered if it was a matter of age.
Or maybe Sylphie was just especially talented.
Sylphie... how I miss her! I should write a letter home...
...
Eris's tenth birthday was approaching.
A person's tenth birthday was special.
It was customary for nobles to throw large parties for a child's fifth, tenth, and fifteenth birthdays.
For Eris's birthday, the grand reception hall and the adjoining courtyard were opened for the celebration.
Gifts came from all over, and all the nobles of Roa were invited to attend.
Since Sauros was a rough military type, the initial plan was a self-serve buffet—until Philip stepped in and turned it into a dance party to make it easier for the less wealthy local nobles to attend.
The mansion was full of frantic activity.
Dog-eared maids ran back and forth through the hallways.
Normally, maids weren't supposed to run, but apparently in this house, they were allowed to when things got hectic.
Some were running full speed, fast enough to knock over a transfer student rounding the corner and send them flying to the moon.
I stayed at the edge of the hallway where I wouldn't be in their way.
I wasn't really going anywhere—I was just going for a walk. That's right, a walk.
Until I ran into that controversial figure...
"Tch..."
Red hair, wide hips, and... very generous breasts. She was Eris's mother.
From the day I arrived, she made her hatred for me clear.
At first, I thought it was due to some long-standing grudge with my father—and in part, it was.
But Philip told me the real reason.
Apparently, the four Greyrat families had fought over full control of the region, and the Notos family had won.
As tradition dictated, the losing factions had to give up their male children to the winning faction, which partly explained Hilda's hatred toward me.
Having her own children taken away while being powerless to stop it, and then seeing a stranger's child wandering around as if the place were his... I'd be upset too.
So I decided to keep my distance from her.
...
The day of the dancy party Eris was dressed up and seated like a princess when Sauros roared for the festivities to begin.
I crouched in a corner and watched from there.
During the opening ceremony, Philip and his wife skillfully handled the poorer and less noble aristocrats who gathered around the family.
They conducted themselves so impressively that no one could find an opening.
If someone tried to get through, they'd have to face Sauros himself.
They quickly looked for escape routes once they found themselves on the receiving end of his booming voice and irrational, one-sided conversation.
And so came the moment to dance.
As we had planned from the beginning, I took my role as Eris's first dance partner.
It was the simplest, most childish dance, but since Eris was the star, we took her to the center of the room. We just had to do what we'd practiced.
"What are you doing!?"
When the music started, Eris froze with nervousness.
There was no way we could dance like that. Forget dancing—she might try to kick me and run away.
Hmm...
I used my eyes and steps to add some feints to our routine.
When I did, she immediately pouted.
"What's that for?" she muttered again, but this time she sounded less nervous and more like herself.
After that, she stepped on my foot several times, but we managed to finish the dance without falling.
It wasn't the best dance in the world, but we got some applause.
That was all I needed.
I'd fulfilled my obligations, so it was time to overeat.
Today there was an unusually large selection, including a kind of bittersweet fruit cake, a meat dish using a whole cow's head, and a beautifully arranged cake.
As I stuffed my face with food, I spotted Ghislaine, who was on guard duty.
Her eyes weren't begging for food, but she did have some drool dripping from her chin.
Fortunately, I was a man who knew how to read conversation.
I wrapped some food in a napkin and ordered a maid to take it to my chambers.
The guards and servants would have a lavish feast themselves after this, I heard, but nothing like the food being offered here.
As I almost finished bringing the food, my eyes fell on a pretty little girl in front of me.
"It's a pleasure to meet you," she said, before offering me her name. She was the daughter of one of the lesser nobles.
Her name was so long I couldn't remember it all.
"Don't you want to share a dance with me?" she asked.
I explained that I only knew the basics before hitting the dance floor.
I thought I was actually a pretty good dancer. When she was done, another girl came over, and I was asked to dance again.
What the hell is this? I'm pretty popular, huh? They came one after another, including a woman in her thirties and a girl younger than me.
I'd turn them down if our height difference posed a problem, but generally I'd say yes to anyone who asked.
It wasn't like I was a Japanese guy who couldn't say no.
It was just that after I said yes to the first girl, it was hard to turn down the rest.
Maybe they had an ulterior motive,
but there were so many that I couldn't remember their names or faces, so I wore myself out.
Once my popularity had dwindled enough, Philip came up to me and explained,
"That was my father's doing." Apparently, when people asked Sauros who the boy dancing with Eris at the beginning was, he boastfully told them that I was a member of the Greyrat family.
In other words, it was all old Sauros's fault.
Not that I could blame him. They had asked him about me:
"That boy who danced with the Young Mistress at the beginning did a splendid job of calming her nerves. Could he be one of your illegitimate children, Lord Sauros?" Apparently, that was enough to put him in a good mood.
We had planned to keep my last name a secret, but perhaps it was unavoidable since alcohol was present in the air.
But now that they knew my last name, they could assume I was a member of the branch family or the son of a mistress. I was going to be someone important in any case, so the nobles sent their daughters and granddaughters after me.
I asked him, "Wouldn't it have made more sense to approach me right after the first dance?"
He said he noticed me wrapping the food in napkins and found it so endearing that he decided to wait until I was finished. The people who were paying attention really noticed every detail.
"I ask that you refrain from following Paul's example and not sleep with every woman you meet, lest you sully the noble name of our house," Philip said out of nowhere, and I looked at him in shock, which made him laugh out loud.
Damn wretched nobles...
Eris was the last girl to approach me.
Her usual vivid and energetic appearance was replaced by a blue dress. Her hair was arranged in an updo with a floral ornament inside.
She would look pretty if you didn't really know her.
She also seemed exhausted after attending her first dance party and being approached by strange adults, one after another.
However, she still seemed excited, perhaps because she was the star of a party that was going so well.
"Don't you want to dance with me?"
The loud voice, wide-legged stance, and indomitable expression of the rude Eris I knew had dissipated.
She remained as graceful as any of the other girls who had approached me.
"With pleasure," I replied with a fake smile.
I took her hand and we headed toward the aisle.
As we moved toward the center of the dance floor, Eris looked around and giggled a little, all proper.
Suddenly, a song with an uneven, up-tempo beat began to play—a song we'd never practiced before.
Perhaps the musician was trying to be considerate of the guests.
"Uh, what..." That metaphorical jab was enough to throw Eris off. All because I was acting strange.
She looked at me pleadingly, and I began inserting feints in time with the music.
It had an uneven rhythm, but it suited Eris's style better, although her steps were rather disorganized.
I took her hand and moved in and out, just like we did during sword practice.
We adapted our movements to the music, but they were still erratic.
We probably looked quite peculiar to the spectators.
Eris was having fun.
She was finally laughing like a girl her age should, instead of being grumpy and pouting, as she usually was.
Seeing that was enough to make me feel this party was worth attending.
Applause erupted when the dancing ended.
Sauros came running, lifted us both onto his shoulders, and ran around the courtyard, laughing the whole way.
It was a pleasant party.
When the party was over, I invited Ghislaine and Eris to my room.
Actually, I only wanted to invite Ghislaine... but Eris was with her, so I extended the offer to Eris as well.
Eris's stomach growled when she saw the table full of food. She must have been too excited and nervous during the party to eat everything.
I let out a wry laugh before pulling out some cheap wine I'd bought in town and hidden in the depths of my vanity.
It was for Ghislaine, but Eris wanted a drink too, so I poured three cups.
We touched glasses and drank.
The legal drinking age in this country was fifteen, but we ignored that today.
It was okay to do something wild once in a while.
It was a pleasant celebration.
At least Eris didn't act like the brat she usually is for a couple of hours, and that was enough for me.
When I woke up the next day, Eris was by my side. She had such a fierce personality, but her sleeping face was as relaxed and adorable as a normal child's.
In the middle of the party last night, Eris fell asleep, so she passed out on my bed.
That's when Ghislaine said she was coming back and left Eris there, returning to her own room.
I shook myself like a worm and slowly left my room. Hours later, Eris arrived at her arithmetic class with a furrowed brow and flushed cheeks. I wanted to tease her a little about this, but I knew if I did, she'd skip my classes, so I continued with classes normally. But Eris acted a little more docile than usual in the following days.