Ch.81Reckless (5)

After that, I exchanged various conversations with Dmitri, and the area we delved into most deeply was undoubtedly history.

As the head of the Reckyless family, Dmitri boasted extensive knowledge, and I too possessed knowledge that, while not at a professor’s level, was certainly not inferior.

Thanks to this, our conversation never faltered, and it continued so long that Marie even expressed her boredom.

Dmitri in particular possessed deep knowledge about the cultures of other countries, explaining in detail why those cultures emerged and what form they take in the present day.

As if I couldn’t miss this unexpected opportunity, I took out the magic pen and notebook I usually carried and recorded everything diligently. No matter how many books I had read compared to my peers, I still had many shortcomings when it came to understanding the cultures of other countries in detail.

“Do you always carry a pen and notebook with you?”

While I was busy taking notes, Dmitri raised one eyebrow as he looked at my magic pen.

He seemed more interested in my habit of recording in my notebook rather than the magic pen itself.

I paused my note-taking and answered in a blunt voice.

“Yes. I have a habit of recording important information so I don’t forget it.”

“That’s truly an admirable habit. My daughter should learn that from you.”

“Hmph. I don’t forget things once I’ve heard them, you know?”

Marie turned her head sharply and expressed her dissatisfaction at Dmitri’s criticism.

Being treated like a sack of barley while they discussed boring historical topics, she couldn’t help but complain.

“Is that why you asked to borrow my notes?”

“Hey!!”

Of course, when I made that unnecessary comment, she immediately shouted.

I smiled slightly at Marie’s reaction as she blushed deeply and huffed, unable to hide her embarrassment.

Not only me, but Dmitri also let out a rare hearty laugh. Only Marie couldn’t laugh in the cheerful atmosphere.

Knock- Knock-

[Master. It’s almost lunchtime.]

Sebastian’s voice came from outside the door while the good atmosphere continued. Both Dmitri and I checked the clock in the guest room.

Is this when people say they didn’t realize time was passing? Looking at the clock, it was almost lunchtime.

Sebastian knew I wouldn’t be eating lunch and would be returning home, but he seemed to be informing us that lunchtime was approaching just in case.

As lunchtime approached, Dmitri stroked his chin and looked at me.

“It’s already this late. Are you really going to leave without having lunch?”

“Yes. I want to meet my family as soon as possible. I’m planning to get takeout on my way.”

“There’s no need to spend money. Take some food prepared by our chef. I’ll give separate instructions.”

“If you insist, I’m grateful.”

“Sebastian.”

Upon my acceptance, Dmitri called Sebastian, who was waiting outside the door, into the room. Sebastian entered and approached Dmitri’s side.

Dmitri gave orders in a low voice to Sebastian, who stood beside him with a neat posture.

“This friend will be returning home without lunch, so there’s no need for separate preparations. Instead, tell the chef to prepare something simple to take away, like takeout. It seems he’ll eat it in the carriage.”

“Understood.”

“And stop by my office to bring a ‘Remover.’ There should be a new one in the drawer.”

“Yes.”

Sebastian received Dmitri’s instructions and moved toward the door.

I watched Sebastian’s back as he walked out the door with neat steps, and then asked Dmitri about something I was curious about.

“Duke, may I ask what kind of item a Remover is?”

“Let’s just say it’s something you’ll like.”

“Something I’ll like?”

“Well… you’ll definitely like it.”

While I was tilting my head with a puzzled expression, Marie, who was sitting next to me, chimed in. This made it even harder to grasp what kind of item it was.

After a while, Sebastian returned. In his hand was a long, white object.

I fixed my gaze on the somehow familiar-looking object. Meanwhile, Dmitri received the item from Sebastian and showed it to me.

“This is what we call a Remover. Like your magic pen, it has magical formulas inside.”

“What is it used for?”

“Remember the notebook you were writing in earlier? Try pressing this button and touching it to the notebook.”

Dmitri, seemingly judging that showing was better than explaining, handed the object to me. I took it with a questioning look.

Overall, it looked like a club. Should I describe it as a pencil with an extremely thick diameter?

To resolve my growing curiosity, I gripped the object like a pen and held it to my notebook. The notebook contained the knowledge Dmitri had shared with me earlier.

And when I pressed the button located in the middle, an amazing phenomenon occurred.

“Huh?”

It disappeared. The black writing recorded with the magic pen.

The writing completely vanished only where I had touched the end of the device. The paper became clean as if erased with an eraser or white-out.

“It’s a magical item called a Remover. It can erase pen records within a short time of 5 minutes.”

Dmitri explained while I stared at my notebook with a blank face, watching the writing disappear. When I raised my head, I saw Dmitri smiling.

I met his gaze and quickly checked if other writing would be erased too. As he said, text written a while ago wasn’t erased, but all the recent records were completely removed without a trace.

Even just this is truly a treasure of treasures for me. I beamed with happiness before quickly returning to my normal expression.

The magic pen alone boasts a terrifying price, and this Remover item must have a matching price tag. No matter how wealthy the Duke’s family is, I don’t think he would readily give this as a gift.

“…May I ask why you’re giving this to me?”

So I asked. I tightly gripped the Remover and carefully questioned Dmitri.

I indirectly expressed my desire to have the Remover, and if he proposed a reasonable deal, I was willing to accept it.

Dmitri seemed to notice that I wanted it and smiled slightly. I tensed up a bit when he smiled, hoping it wouldn’t be a strange proposal.

“It’s just a gift. No special reason.”

Eventually Dmitri opened his mouth, and a casual answer flowed out.

But I didn’t eagerly accept it and maintained a cautious attitude.

“Even as a gift, this is too expensive an item for me. A magic pen just converts mana into ink, but a Remover seems more complex… isn’t it?”

“You’re right. If a magic pen has a value of 1, a Remover has a value of 10.”

Just as I expected. This Remover item boasted an enormous price that I couldn’t afford.

Of course, considering the income from the Biography of Xenon, I would gladly pay the full price, but not as a gift. It’s too expensive to receive as a gift.

As I was about to put down the Remover to politely decline, Dmitri stopped me with a resonant voice.

“There’s no need to feel burdened. I’m giving it to you because I like you. You wouldn’t refuse, would you?”

“…It’s too expensive for me.”

“But it’s mere pocket change for us of House Reckyless. Take it while I’m asking nicely. Think of it as payment for teaching Marie history.”

“…Thank you.”

When the head of House Reckyless insists like that, what can I do? But I couldn’t hide my joy, and the corners of my mouth kept twitching.

Just knowing such a magical item exists is an incredible windfall, and I even received it as a gift. For someone like me who had to throw away entire manuscript pages after one mistake, I couldn’t help but be happy.

“Are you that happy?”

Marie commented, perhaps noticing my twitching mouth corners. I tightly gripped the Remover with both hands and answered with happiness.

“Yes.”

“It’s the first time I’ve seen you this childishly happy. You really do love the things you love.”

As Marie analyzed, I am the type who really loves what I love.

When my father gave me the magic pen as a gift, I didn’t express it because joy and emotion were mixed, but my feelings weren’t much different from now.

“Seeing you so happy makes me glad too. If you want, I can give you other things as well.”

“No, this alone is more than enough of a gift for me.”

When I waved my hands in refusal, Dmitri muttered quietly with a subtle smile.

“More than enough… what an interesting phrase.”

*****

True to his word that his visit was just a visit, Issac left the Reckyless mansion before lunchtime.

Before leaving, Marie asked with regret if he couldn’t stay just one night, but Issac flatly refused. He wanted to reunite with his parents as soon as possible, and above all, he judged it would be improper.

“Then give me a kiss.”

“Gladly.”

In the end, they made up for the regret with a kiss while Dmitri momentarily left to call for a carriage. After that long yet brief kiss time, Issac returned to his long-awaited home in a carriage specially called by Dmitri.

Afterward, Marie stood quietly at the mansion’s main gate until Issac’s carriage was out of sight. Although it was just a short month, the thought of not seeing Issac already made her heart heavy.

“Miss. It’s time to go back.”

“…Alright.”

Eventually, when the carriage passed through the Duke’s gate and completely disappeared, Marie followed Sebastian’s words and moved her steps inside. Still regretful, she looked back before entering the mansion.

Issac’s carriage was no longer visible beyond the firmly closed gate. He had truly gone home.

“Sigh…”

Marie let out a deep sigh at the longing that seemed to be already approaching. If she had known this would happen, she would have bitten those soft cheeks after the kiss, but there wasn’t enough time.

As she entered the mansion with a gloomy expression, a familiar voice reached her ears.

“You look disappointed.”

It was Dmitri. He was waiting for Marie and Sebastian at the main entrance with his hands behind his back.

As a Duke, he had his dignity to maintain and didn’t personally see Issac off, but he had accompanied him to the main gate like this.

Meanwhile, Marie opened her mouth with a bitter smile in response to Dmitri’s words.

“Was it that obvious?”

“It wouldn’t make sense for a father not to understand his daughter’s feelings.”

Marie chuckled when Dmitri answered glibly. Though externally respected as the Duke of the Empire, in Marie’s eyes, he was nothing more than a father who loved his daughter.

Marie looked around and gestured for Sebastian to withdraw. At that gesture, Sebastian bowed his head politely and moved elsewhere.

Finally, only Marie and Dmitri remained at the main entrance. Marie checked again to make sure no one was listening and then asked Dmitri in a quiet voice.

“Dad. You roughly know who Issac is, don’t you?”

Again, Marie has the ability to instinctively see through people’s psychology. Because of this, she felt a kind of dissonance during the conversation between Issac and Dmitri, and when he gave the Remover as a gift, she was certain.

That Dmitri had vaguely noticed Issac’s true identity. Fortunately, he didn’t show it, so Issac was completely unaware of this fact.

Meanwhile, Dmitri shrugged his shoulders and answered as if it were nothing.

“Marie. As you know, I am the Duke of Reckyless who assists His Majesty the Emperor. All events that occur in the Empire are reported to me. Even if it’s something the Crown Prince did personally. I’ve also conducted separate investigations.”

“Since when did you know?”

“I became certain only recently. Thanks to that, I think I need to revise the law to prevent loopholes. This could be abused for tax evasion.”

“…What are you going to do now?”

Marie asked with a slightly lowered voice. Although he was her silly father, he was still the Duke of Reckyless.

As she had asked Issac, he was a person sitting proudly at the highest position among ‘those who hold the pen.’ So she couldn’t help but feel anxious.

No matter how much he personally liked Issac, she had no idea what he might do. If he did something unnecessary, she would try to stop him somehow, but her power was woefully insufficient.

While Marie was thinking about this and feeling anxious, Dmitri opened his mouth in a solemn voice.

“At first, I was planning to take action. Though not as an individual, as the author of the Biography of Xenon, he is very dangerous. But after several conversations, it seems fine to leave him be.”

“Why?”

“As he said, change in the world is a natural phenomenon. Forcibly stopping it would only cause great damage to us. Like how you can forcibly block a flowing river, but eventually the dam will burst. Still, it’s good to be prepared.”

After saying this, Dmitri glanced at Marie and then smiled brightly as he continued.

“Above all, you’re his girlfriend now, aren’t you? I approve both as a Duke and as a father, but if he does anything strange, tell me. I’ll deal with him accordingly.”

“…Dad.”

Marie shot him a look of contempt at his low-quality joke, momentarily forgetting her anxiety. For reference, that frivolous tone that doesn’t match the Duke’s dignity was all inherited from her mother.

Regardless, Dmitri didn’t stop teasing Marie.

“So when do you want to get married? If you want…”

“Right now.”

“… …”

“I want to do it right now, so send a marriage proposal to Issac’s mansion.”

Did he realize Marie was serious?

‘…I need to reconsider this.’

Dmitri muttered to himself, unable to even answer.

“No, I’ll just send a letter. Someone of your status can make it arrive in a day, right?”

“… …”

And so Marie’s vacation began.