Unexpected Guest (3)

Since becoming a student of Merhen, the Melody pianist, her skills improved day by day.

She became sensitive enough to detect even the slightest air pressure with Esquema, and her fingers played on the keys so fast they couldn't be seen.

Reina's performance received praise even from the great royalty.

But for Rian, whom that sound had kept awake since childhood, it was nothing but a killer noise.

"Darn it, the witch has gotten stronger. But humans won't die so easily."

Reina seemed to hear nothing but the sound of her performance.

It was evident she was very concentrated, her lower lip protruding.

Her hair was disheveled as if she had been awake all night, and her eyes were puffy.

She only wore shorts, so her thighs were fully exposed.

In fact, she had been playing the piano for 17 straight hours.

It was a funeral song known for its difficulty on the continent, and she had been struggling with it lately.

A barrier is both a curse and a blessing for an artist. It's a phenomenon that appears just before skills improve.

In such cases, Reina stayed awake for days and overcame the barrier.

Rian glimpsed a new hope.

If he could sneak into his sister's room and pack her things, he could escape by jumping out the window or breaking the wall.

'Alright, I have to stay calm. I'll go back home.'

Rian moved slowly along the grand piano's blind spot.

If he could reach the stairs like this, the operation would be a great success.

Of course, Reina was seated on top of her brother's hiding spot.

The moment hope shone in Rian's eyes, she abruptly stopped playing, as always.

'Ah, darn it.'

Reina spoke without even looking at him.

"You, what have you been up to lately? Seems like they're teaching how to make people laugh at the swordsmanship academy these days."

"Tch, if you saw me, you should've at least pretended you didn't. And what's with your appearance? An adult maiden playing the piano in shorts? Don't insult art."

"Becoming brazen. You definitely weren't hit enough."

Contrary to her threatening words, Reina picked up her skirt and put it on.

Only the family knew she'd undress layer by layer as stress increased during practice.

"Hehe, you're still embarrassed in front of your brother, aren't you? Ah, ack!"

The moment Rian burst into laughter, Reina's sole struck his face.

Rian had also trained hard, but her speed was still too fast for him to react.

"Darn it. What the hell are you doing? Ptoo!"

Reina extended her hand to Rian, who was spitting.

"Give me your report card."

Rian's face stiffened.

As expected, what was about to come had to come.

"Why, why the hell does my sister care so much about my report card? I'm an adult too now. Ah, ow!"

Reina yelled, pulling Rian's ear.

"You won't give it to me? Want to die today?"

"Ah, okay! Here, here!"

Rian took out the report card from his pocket and threw it on the floor.

Then, without looking back, he ran to his room.

"Phew! He definitely didn't get enough beatings. When will he grow up?"

Reina picked up the report card and spread it out in front of her eyes.

The training subject scores decreased in order, and in the end, the number of all cadets and the overall ranking were written.

Reina's hands trembled after checking Rian's rank.

Last place!

It wasn't even second to last, but truly the last place.

'Ridiculous. No matter how pathetic it is, work hard.'

Reina turned the report card over to review the teacher's comments section.

As she read the text, her eyes widened in shock.

[We regret to inform you that your son has ended the semester with the lowest grade.

We believe Rian thinks he has opened his Scheme, but the faculty has concluded that it is simply a placebo effect caused by his increased physical strength.

This is known as an imaginary Scheme phenomenon, although extremely rare, it can occur occasionally. This is a time when he needs the warm attention of his family.]

"Oh, seriously! I can't live like this!"

Reina crumpled her report card and stormed up the stairs in anger.

When she burst into the room, she found Rian packing his belongings, sitting like a bear.

"Hey! You're in last place!"

"Ah, I don't know. It just happened."

"Also, Imaginary Scheme? What the heck does that mean? So it's like... something like... imaginary pregnancy."

"It seems so."

Rian replied as if it had happened to someone else and resumed packing.

Since the report card had been made public, he was already free from all earthly problems.

Reina looked at Rian as her insides bubbled.

Unable to contain herself, she mercilessly hit Rian's back.

"Oh, you good-for-nothing! Just die, die!"

"Ow! That hurts!"

"Is it really this hard? You just need to use the Scheme!"

"I don't know! What am I supposed to do if I can't? I did my best. Anyway, get out of the way. I need to leave; I might miss the carriage."

"Leave? Where are you going? Stay home! When we're done here, we're going to talk to Grandpa, so you should come too!"

"No! I have a promise!"

"A promise? What kind of promise can you have? Looking at these grades, do you still want to have fun?"

Rian almost used his Shirone card in a fit of rage.

But he held back in the end. It was something he should never tell Reina.

It was a double date.

If she heard that Shirone was going with a woman, it was clear that Reina would use any means to stop him.

Initially, he hoped that Shirone and his sister would get along, but now he was eager to separate them.

A prudent and calm woman suited Shirone much better than a witch like this.

"What kind of promise is it? If you don't tell me..."

"I made a promise with a girl. We agreed to hang out."

"A girl? What kind of girl knows a guy who goes to the fencing academy?"

"There are also girls there. Elzaine Tess, you know the Elzaine family, right? She's their daughter."

Reina was familiar with the Elzaine family, which had been prominent in diplomatic circles for a long time.

However, if she were the daughter of an elite family, she'd have a high nose.

It was unimaginable for her to go on a trip with her brother, who came back being the last in class.

"Where are you lying? Be honest! Do you have other hidden motives?"

"I don't know, mind your own business! I'm leaving!"

Ignoring Reina's persistent advance, Rian, who was absorbed in packing his bag, jumped up and ran off as soon as the opportunity presented itself.

"Hey! Don't go!"

By the time Reina reached the door, Rian had already dashed up the stairs to the second floor and ran toward the front door.

It wasn't a distance she couldn't catch up to if she activated Esquema, but Reina let it slide with a annoyed expression.

Since childhood, she was so sure she could control Rian, who was her bread and butter, even a hundred thousand miles away.

"Haha. Yes, go ahead and take the carriage diligently. Let's see who gets there first."

Behind Rian, who was fleeing, Reina was waving his report card in frustration.

***

After bidding farewell to his friends, Shirone walked toward the carriage sent by the Ogent Family.

Temuran, the head butler of the main family, came to meet him.

Just as when he had difficulty organizing the Great Library, his strict impression remained the same even after half a year.

However, the attitude toward him was quite different. Not only did he bow courteously, but he also showed a kind smile on his face.

"It has been a while, young master. You've done well."

"It's been a while for you too, butler."

At first, being addressed as a young master felt uncomfortable, but after half a year, it no longer bothered him.

Of course, it was still embarrassing; that much was true.

The two sat in the carriage and chatted as they headed towards Shirone's home.

In particular, Shirone was glad to learn about the people of the Ogent Family.

"Wow, is he already a civil servant?"

Rian's older brother, Ogent Rai, passed the knight examination.

Of course, as a Level 10 knight, he wasn't in a position to relax and was said to have busy days on the front lines.

"Yes. Additionally, Lady Reina was promoted to the Director of the Seventh Royal Band. She's doing very well. The head of the family is still occupied with public affairs, and the eldest will retire soon and return to his hometown."

"Oh, but I heard Rian's older brother is also there? What is he doing?"

"Um, that's not something I can comment on. I only know he is a Level 6 knight. This might be presumptuous of me, but it would be better not to mention the eldest son in the main house."

"Oh, I see."

When he thought about the Ogent family's disposition, it didn't seem like a family that would have family discord. Still, he thought if it was a story that couldn't be mentioned, it might be a political issue.

"Is Rian okay? I'll see him soon anyway."

Temuran's response was the briefest of all so far.

"We haven't heard anything from him in six months."

"Hahaha! That's so typical of Rian."

As they enjoyed their conversation, the carriage had entered the forest before they realized it.

Shirone opened the window and enjoyed the scenery of his hometown.

The colorful forest scene already seemed to welcome his return.

The carriage entered the courtyard of Shirone's house.

It was exactly the same place Temuran had come to pick Shirone up in the past.

"Thank you for the ride. I will visit you again soon."

"I just did my duty. Have a good time then."

With an excited heart,

Looking at the humble yet lovely log house brought new emotions.

'Thank you. I will be filial during the holidays.'

As he approached the house, he thought more and more about his parents.

His hardworking mother and his father who didn't hesitate to kneel down to send him to the magic academy.

Shirone opened the door and shouted with excitement.

"Mom, Dad!"

"Hahaha! That's right, that's right! Beer is indeed the best with pork!"

"Father, do you also believe that? I also found out that beer doesn't go well with lamb!"

"That's right. Lamb has a strong flavor that ruins the taste of the drink. Come on, let's have another drink!"

Shirone stared into the living room.

He was surprised because the atmosphere was more festive than expected, but the real shock was that the giant kid was sharing a drink with Vincent.

He had grown significantly taller, and his hair was shorter. But his strong impression was definitely that of Rian.

"Shirone! You're here!"

Rian jumped up.

But it was Vincent who ran faster than anyone else.

The moment he hugged him, the smell of alcohol wafted heavily. It seemed like he had been drinking quite a bit.

"Ouch! Our son is here! You're not hurt anywhere, right?"

"Ew, you smell like alcohol. What's happening all of a sudden? Why is Rian in our house?"

"He stayed two days to see you. He even helped cut firewood, and we went hunting together. How was it? Wasn't it fun?"

"Hahaha! Of course, Father! After all, a true man should know how to hunt!"

Shirone didn't find it funny.

The father he knew was not the kind of person who treated a noble with such indifference, even if he was his son's friend.

What kind of camaraderie had they developed in just two days that they were already drinking before lunchtime?

Shirone wriggled out of Vincent's arms and shouted at Rian:

"They said you were out of contact? Did you pass by your house before coming here?"

"No, why should I go to that house? This is my Lord's house, right, Father?"

"You're hilarious! You've gotten into trouble again, haven't you?"

"What accident could I cause?"

Although pretending to be innocent,

It wasn't that he was avoiding going home, it was that he couldn't.

Shirone sighed and walked into the living room.

'Haa, this wasn't the plan...'

The eagerly awaited father-son reunion ended in a drinking party.

However, seeing his father happier than before, he felt somewhat relieved not to be able to cry.

"Oh, Shirone is here. Come here, my son."

Olina warmly hugged Shirone.

Once again, he thought the only thing he could believe in the world was his mother, and Shirone finally managed to exchange the greetings he wanted.

"Mom, you've gone through a lot while I was away, haven't you? I'm sorry."

What hard work? The Ogent family helped us a lot.

Olina patted Shirone's back while looking at Vincent.

Her son came after half a year, but she didn't like how he was drunk.