Interrogation in the form of conversation(3)

So Ethan turned towards his uncle with confusion on his face.

"Almost forgot. You should wear the defensive artifact that I gave you. 'Cause, you know, it would be useless if you kept it inside your ring."

"Ah, right."

He sent his mana to the ring and brought out that defensive artifact. It was a sapphire pendant made from mithril with a magical carving of the young lady's image inside the stone—the image of the Anselm family ancestor, The Water Fairy Rebecca.

Ethan totally forgot about it after putting it inside his ring. So now he was slightly embarrassed.

"Um, sorry. But is this alright for me to have such a valuable artifact? And shouldn't Uncle give it to Alice or Millicent? After all, isn't this artifact the Anselm family's heirloom?"

At the time when Ethan received this artifact, he hadn't thought much about it and put it inside the ring without looking at it properly. And now, after going to the market and seeing how costly artifacts may be, he wanted to return it to his uncle.

"Hah, Ethan, you are now part of the Anselm family, and I have other things prepared for my daughters, so no need to worry. So won't you agree that's pretty normal for member of our family to have such an artifact?"

"Um, yes. But..."

"Then do you think that we are not part of your family, so you can't have such a gift from me?"

Ethan's eyes became wide open at such a ridiculous statement.

"Of course not! Uncle, aunt, Alice, and Millicent, grandpa, and grandma are my family. And that won't change. It's just that I'm really grateful for what you've done for me. So it's difficult for me to keep it..."

It was too embarrassing for Ethan to say such words, so his face became redder and lower with each word he said. And now he was looking down, not daring to see two adult men's reactions.

Though his uncle was smiling warmly, Captain Siegfried wore a slightly confused expression on his face.

"Haha, so it's because we're dear to you that you didn't want to accept this artifact. I'm glad to hear it."

Said his uncle warmly. And Ethan raised his still-red face to look at him.

"But, you know, Ethan, you are dear to us. So we wish you to be safe, and that is the reason why I gave this artifact to you. And, as you noticed, this is one of the Anselm family heirlooms. So it's not just a simple defensive artifact; it has will and can choose its owner."

[Artifact with will?]

Ethan was confused to. Not like his teacher, though, because he knew about such artifacts and knew that it's impossible to hold them if you don't have the necessary qualifications. And Ethan was confused because, though he was the nephew of Karl, he wasn't his blood relative, so it should be impossible for him to hold such an artifact without any difficulties.

And seeing his confusion, Karl chuckled.

"Heh, sometimes you can be clueless about obvious things, Ethan."

But Ethan was still confused.

"Alright, if you are still confused, I shall explain it to you. You can hold this artifact because it agrees that you are a member of the Anselm family."

"Huh? But..."

"Strange, isn't it?"

"Um, yes."

"I know, right. At first, it was given to me by my father when I was a clueless little kid. At that time, your mother was very strict with me, so to make her kinder to me, I gave it to her. And, you know, the artifact didn't reject her. Though later it became a disaster when my parents found out about it, haha."

Though it sounded like something bad happened in the past, Karl was chuckling like it was a good memory, which was confusing to Ethan.

"My mother was really furious at that time, and my father made great efforts to explain to her that Eliza wasn't his illegitimate child and that he never cheated her, but she didn't believe him until Eliza herself explained about her family. She lived in a hidden village in the north-east mountains until she appeared at night inside this mansion."

Karl stood up and went towards the window to look outside.

"Though she never told us about what happened to her family, and we only managed to judge that it wasn't anything pleasant,"

He muttered it with a low voice, but Ethan wasn't able to hear it. And after some time, he returned to his seat.

"At the end, this artifact was left in your mother's possession. And the reason why it didn't reject her might be because our families were connected in the past, judging by our families eye color. Like your mother, you have blue eyes. And in the Anselm family, too, similar trait prevail. So, you can keep this artifact. And if you still think that it's too much for you, keep it until you become stronger, like your mother did."

"Um, okay."

Ethan put the artifact around his neck and hid it under his shirt.

"Good."

And after hearing about his mother's past, Ethan wanted to know more.

"Um, uncle. Do you know where that village is?"

"No, your mother never told us."

Karl shook his head. And Ethan can do nothing about it; his only choice is to accept it with a disappointed sigh.

"Um, can I leave now?"

"Yes, but I still have one thing to say. Though I'm glad that you don't want to worry me, if something really bothers you, you should tell us, your family, about it. You know, if you keep quiet if something bad happens to you because you don't want to worry us, it makes us more worried. You understand, right, Ethan?"

"Um, yes."

"Good. You can leave now."

Ethan, after bowing to two men, left the room.

And seeing Ethan leaving, James went inside.

[It looks like your uncle knows about what happened at the market.]

[Really? But how?]

There was the sound of the door opening. It was James who was holding the tray. And seeing that Ethan is still near the door,

"Is something the matter, young master?"

"Um, no. I was just thinking about some things."

"Then I should go."

James bowed and left.

[You are becoming better at hiding your emotions. Good.]

[Um, thank you?]

Said Ethan hesitantly, because he wasn't sure if this was the matter of which to be proud.