Ch.29Coming of Age and Wedding Ceremonies (1)

“…Why is everyone reacting like this?”

I didn’t expect it to be this effective.

I had Leclerc review the letter before sending it to the nobles, and they all sent back similar responses.

They apologized for acting rashly based on rumors and indicated they wouldn’t meet with me anymore.

“Isn’t this a good thing? You don’t need to worry about them anymore.”

“I suppose so, but…”

Is this really right?

Sigh, I don’t know. Let’s just get back to work.

……….

“…Ines, what did you say?”

“I want to hold my birthday party and our wedding at the same time.”

Ines, who had been sitting on the sofa in my office watching me, rushed over as soon as work hours ended and made a suggestion.

Well… it’s not an impossible request, but…

“Ines, are you sure? Your birthday celebration will be overshadowed by the wedding.”

Ines’s upcoming 19th birthday also marks her coming-of-age ceremony.

In this world, the coming-of-age ceremony is extremely important as it signifies one’s transition from childhood to adulthood with equal value in society. If that ceremony gets overshadowed by the wedding, it might become an unpleasant memory for Ines.

No matter how important a birthday with a coming-of-age ceremony is, it wouldn’t be more important than a duke’s wedding.

“Yes, I’m fine with it. We just had the coronation ceremony recently, and having consecutive banquets would be burdensome… But the main reason is that I want to have the wedding as soon as possible. Above all, the wedding is more precious to me than the coming-of-age ceremony.”

Squeeze—

“Ines!?”

Ines, who had been speaking calmly, suddenly smiled brightly and approached me, embracing my head.

Since I was sitting in a chair, my head ended up touching an inappropriate place, which startled me greatly, but Ines didn’t seem to mind at all. No, she actually seemed to be enjoying it.

“Before, our conversation was cut short by an unexpected accident… but finally, we’ll be able to share the same bedroom.”

“Huh?”

Come to think of it… Ines had mentioned sharing a bedroom before.

I completely forgot about it because of the major incident when Chloe fainted that day.

“As you said before, we’ll have to wait a little longer until we truly connect… but at least we can sleep together, right?”

Ines said this while stroking my head and pulling me even closer.

…It’s a bit embarrassing to be treated like this by someone who’s not even 20 years old.

“Ines, wait, this is—”

“Lady Ines, you must maintain your dignity.”

“—Ugh…”

At that moment, Chloe, who had been nearby, approached and pulled me away from Ines.

Normally, no one would dare to touch me, the Duke, so carelessly.

Even if such a thing happened, Leclerc would severely scold anyone who laid hands on me, but since Chloe is my sister and Ines is my fiancée, everyone else here doesn’t even dare to try stopping them.

“…I apologize for my rudeness, Duke.”

“Y-Yes… Ines.”

Ines slightly bowed her head and quickly glared at Chloe who had separated us, then immediately returned to her original expression and formally apologized to me.

…What was that? I got goosebumps for a moment. I didn’t know Ines could make such an expression.

“It’s a shame I couldn’t take your first, but… I’ll take your other firsts.”

With these final words, Ines left the office with a smile in her eyes.

First? What does she mean by… Oh?

[Your lips are moist.]

‘…Ah.’

I remember what Ines said that night while looking at my lips.

…Don’t tell me that “first” refers to—

“Hehe.”

“…”

When I turned my head, I saw Chloe smiling with satisfaction as she watched Ines leave.

Although Chloe had fainted from stress when Ines suggested sharing a bedroom with me before, now she showed no signs of distress.

…What’s going on with these two?

……….

“Haaaaah…”

Chloe… Ines…

I never expected them to get along so poorly.

I was hoping they would become friends, but instead—

Knock knock—

“Who is it?”

“Master, it’s me.”

“…”

I was lying in bed lamenting today’s events when Chloe knocked on the door.

This is the first time since that day that Chloe has come to my room at night rather than in the morning.

“…Come in.”

“Yes.”

This is perfect timing. I should hear Chloe’s opinion about Ines.

After receiving permission, Chloe immediately opened the door, entered, and approached me.

“Chloe, what brings you here?”

I should first ask why Chloe came to my room.

“I wanted to talk to you about what happened today…”

“Hmm?”

I was lying in bed but sat up and asked Chloe why she had come to my room. Chloe took a slightly deep breath and trailed off.

“Um… You said that even after marrying Ines, you wouldn’t have children for a while…”

“Y-Yes… That’s true, but… why?”

It’s a bit embarrassing to have this conversation with Chloe.

No matter how close we are, discussing sexual topics is a bit…

“Before, you said it was because she wasn’t 20 years old yet… so then—”

“…Chloe.”

I cut off Chloe’s words midway. From her expression, tone, and gestures, I could tell where she was going with this without hearing more.

Chloe is thinking that since she’s 21 years old and meets the condition, she has an advantage over Ines.

“As I’ve said before, you’re my precious family. My little sister.”

“Master…”

“I… I can’t see you that way.”

Where did things go wrong?

As Chloe said, we’re not related by blood. But that doesn’t mean we’re not siblings.

Moreover, I vividly remember Chloe when she was very young. She was a crybaby, picky about food, loved warm things, and was happy to have a family.

I came to see Chloe as both a little sister and a daughter. Although she’s very beautiful, I simply cannot view her romantically.

“…Master.”

“So you shouldn’t have such feelings either. I’ll find you a good match—Ugh!?”

Thump—!

I was hanging my head and sighing when suddenly everything went dark.

Judging by the softness behind my back, I must have been laid down on the bed.

“What are you… Chloe?”

“Hehe…”

When I came to my senses, I saw Chloe with a seductive smile above me.

With the backlight behind her, the atmosphere is quite intense.

Squeeze—

“I was so envious… of this…”

Chloe, who had laid me on the bed, spread her arms to embrace me, buried her face in my chest, and rubbed it from side to side.

Envious? Is she talking about Ines from earlier?

“Just… let me stay like this for a moment.”

“…”

If she had tried to do something strange like before, I would have immediately pushed her away, but Chloe is just hugging me tightly without doing anything else.

So I’m hesitant to remove her. Regardless of her intentions, her actions are purely innocent.

…Come to think of it, she was like this when she was young too.

Back then, she would often hug me without caring about others’ eyes, saying she loved her brother so much.

A nostalgic memory—

Knock knock knock—

“Ugh!?”

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

This sound of scratching the door with the back of the hand… it’s Lorel’s style of knocking.

“Duke, it’s me.”

“…Ah.”

This is bad.

Not a servant, but Ines herself has come.

“Chloe. Move aside, Ines is outside—”

“No.”

“What?”

“I don’t see why my precious time should be interrupted by that woman.”

…This is no joke. Chloe is dead serious.

“Duke?”

From outside, Ines’s voice sounds confused by the lack of response.

“Ah, ahhh… Ines, I’m not feeling well today…”

If I forcibly removed Chloe, the sound would definitely be heard outside. For now, I need to lie to Ines.

“So I can’t talk now, let’s talk tomorrow morning—”

“But Chloe went in there.”

“—…”

…She saw?

“Chloe, you’re in there, aren’t you?”

Her tone is still thin and cute, but a chilling, eerie energy is flowing from the door.

“Duke, I’m sure you can discern what’s right and what’s wrong.”

“Ines, wait…”

“So I’ll let it go for today. Chloe, you know you shouldn’t do such things with your brother, right?”

Ines let out a laugh and then left before I could make any excuses. The sound of her footsteps echoing in the corridor gradually faded away.

“…”

Chloe remains still, just hugging me. It’s a stark contrast to how she was happily rubbing her face from side to side just moments ago.

Judging by the strength in her hands embracing me… she doesn’t like this situation.

“…It seems there are many eyes watching.”

“Ah…”

With those words, Chloe separated from me.

Chloe’s revealed face wore an expression I had never seen before. Yes… it was like looking at a hated enemy. It was an expression I could never imagine from the Chloe who always followed me with a smile.

She quickly returned to her normal expression, but… to think that the once-innocent Chloe could make such a face…

“Phew— Ah!? M-Master, I’ll bring you new clothes right away!”

After separating from me and composing herself, Chloe looked at my chest in panic and hurriedly searched through the wardrobe.

New clothes? What does she— Oh.

The area where Chloe had been rubbing her face is wet with saliva. Since my pajamas are white and made of cotton, the saliva stains are quite noticeable.

“Here you are…”

“Th-Thank you, Chloe.”

She must be quite embarrassed about getting her saliva on me.

Her face is bright red, her gaze is darting around, and her pronunciation is slurred and imprecise.

“I-I’ll see you tomorrow!”

Chloe handed me new pajamas while fidgeting, then quickly fled the room as if escaping.

The room that had just been in the midst of a great storm is now very quiet. As if nothing had happened at all.

…What is going on?