episode_0031

I find myself applying makeup to Lily, who is now 12 years old and about to have her coming-of-age ceremony.

Lily keeps her eyes tightly shut, feeling my hands as I apply the makeup. Her expression is happier than ever, perhaps due to the excitement of becoming an adult.

As I finish up Lily’s makeup, I take a closer look at her.

Four years. It’s been four years since I entered this world.

There have been many small incidents along the way, but nothing major has happened so far.

Whether it’s because I’ve taken good care of Lily, ensuring she gets proper nutrition and love, or because she’s grown up receiving love, or perhaps both, the 12-year-old Lily I saw in the game and the current 12-year-old Lily are clearly different.

First and foremost, her height. In the game, she was still small enough to be considered a child, but now Lily has grown so tall that she reaches up to my chest.

She still feels small to me, but she’s an adult now. I still can’t quite grasp the medieval standards of adulthood. For Lily’s coming-of-age ceremony, I brought out my best makeup skills to make her shine.

Even with her eyes closed, Lily’s cute and beautiful face stood out.

“Are you done?”

Her small lips part, and the beautiful sound of Lily’s voice flows out. Since turning 12, she has started using honorifics with me, like in the game.

Honestly, Lily’s use of honorifics feels a bit awkward. She doesn’t call me “mother” like in the game, just using formal language. I thought that once we became this close, Lily would call me by a more intimate term first.

“Yes, it’s all done.”

As I finish speaking, Lily opens her eyes. Unlike when we first met, her eyes now exude vitality and charisma, and her bright red eyes meet mine through the mirror.

“You look really pretty. Thank you, Amelia.”

She smiles slightly as she looks at me, and for some reason, my face feels flushed.

Lily gets up from the makeup table and tells me to come with her. We head to the Alhyun Room within the family, where the coming-of-age ceremony will take place.

Normally, the coming-of-age ceremony would be a small affair with just me and Lily, but this time, with Helena’s help, we decided to have a formal ceremony within the family. I’m grateful for that.

Lily’s steps are more lively than ever. Is it because she’s becoming an adult? Or is she excited about the academy she’ll be attending soon?

Last year, Lily mentioned at the place where she and Helena were that she wanted to go to the academy when she turned 12. When she said she wanted me to come with her, I was surprised.

She said it was okay as long as I was there. I’ve been trying to reduce Lily’s dependence on me, but it seems to have only increased, which is a concern for me these days.

Helena still hasn’t fully recovered from the shock. It was so difficult to calm her down and stop her from crying after some time had passed.

Fortunately, the distance between the family and the academy is shorter than I thought, so we compromised on spending Sundays at the family with Helena all day.

I thought Lily wouldn’t agree, but she said it was okay for one day a week. I’m not sure if I should say she’s grown up more than when she was a child, always trying not to fall behind.

“Amelia.”

“Yes.”

“Do you remember our promise?”

“Of course.”

Lily often reminds me of the promise we made back then. If she still loves me when she turns 20, we’ll get married.

Lily has been mentioning it steadily for four years.

Lily, who had never received affection or love from anyone, must have found my affection to be a great happiness for her. That’s why she felt those emotions as love.

I still find it remarkable that Lily has been remembering everything up to now, but I wonder if she might start having different thoughts soon.

If she goes to the academy, meets various people, makes friends, and receives sex education, will Lily’s thoughts change?

But if Lily suddenly wants to get married in the future and brings a man home, it might be heartbreaking. I might not be able to bear it…

I’ve been taking care of Lily for four years as if she were my daughter. Is this why people become doting parents? Seeing Lily grow day by day is truly heartwarming.

I used to be someone who didn’t get married and just played games at home in the modern world, but now I was raising Lily with more love than anyone else.

And now, Lily has become an adult by medieval standards.

We’ve arrived at the Alhyun Room.

The current master, Essex, is almost dying, so Helena is sitting in the master’s seat. Ian, Helena’s son, is standing by her side in armor.

Like Helena’s knight.

Ian has also grown a lot in the four years. He now looks like a respectable knight. Solid. Sturdy.

And below him, the attendants stood in a row on both sides. They looked like they wanted to crush someone together. And I don’t like the look of the attendant who is eyeing my Lily.

As soon as I entered the Alhyun Room, I quickly slipped out to the side. Lily looked at me and smiled slightly, then walked confidently in front of Helena. Ignoring the reactions of the attendants, she walked confidently and beautifully.

As Lily passed by the attendants and was about to reach Helena, the Alhyun Room began to get noisy. The reason was that the attendants were taken aback by Lily.

Lily was confidently and openly displaying the mana she had always hidden. Even an ordinary person like me could feel Lily’s energy, so the attendants must have felt that Lily had awakened her mana.

A power that could fill the entire Alhyun Room. The attendants showed various reactions as they looked at Lily.

Some looked greatly surprised and hostile towards Lily, while others smiled like con artists and then glared at Helena as if they wanted to kill her.

Helena just smiled softly as she looked at Lily’s mana. Of course, Helena and Lily had sparred with each other for four years, so they must know each other well.

“Quiet.”

-Thwack.

When Helena struck the fan she was holding, the Alhyun Room quickly regained its silence.

“Lily Narri Estelle.”

At Helena’s words, Lily knelt before Helena. And so, the coming-of-age ceremony that had begun ended somewhat anticlimactically.

After a few words from Helena and Lily’s responses, the ceremony ended. I thought it would be a big party, but it ended quickly. Now I was thinking of returning to the guesthouse with Lily. But suddenly, when Helena spoke up, the Alhyun Room turned chaotic once again.

“Essex’s days as the master are numbered. Therefore, I will now select the next master here, following the Estelle family’s tradition.”

A bombshell was dropped.

“What are you talking about!”

“Madam Helena, have you lost your mind!?”

The attendants began to question Helena in unison.

Originally, it was almost certain that Ian would be the next master. After all, he was Helena’s son.

But suddenly, they were deciding on the next master. What is Helena talking about?

However, Helena, Ian, and Lily seemed calm. Ian had a more knightly look in his eyes than ever, and Lily had a confident expression on her face.

What? Was I the only one who didn’t know?

Among the shouting guests, Helena’s voice, though small, resounded powerfully.

“Isn’t it the Estelle family’s principle that when there are multiple heirs, the strongest is determined through a duel? Isn’t that right?”

“Is that girl really fit to be the heir!?”

“Nari Estelle Lily also carries the noble blood of the Estelle family.”

I have no idea what’s going on. I thought it was just a party, but suddenly, a significant event to determine the next heir of the Estelle family’s position is taking place.

==

Everyone in the Alhyun Hall moved to the training ground. Except for Lily and Ian, everyone else was seated, and the two stood in the center of the training ground.

It didn’t seem like a simple duel. Ian was fully armed and had a real sword in hand, preparing.

Lily just smiled at me without doing anything.

I feel like I’ll have to spank her after this is all over. She didn’t say anything to me and caused such a commotion. Of course, I’ll have to spank Helena’s bottom without mercy.

She seemed to be hiding something from me recently, and I thought it was just a trivial matter, but she was hiding this?

It’s ridiculous to talk to a mere maid, but we have a relationship so far!

And being the heir is not a good thing. Just look at Helena now, you’ll understand that it’s a position that requires a lot of effort and responsibility.

Surely Lily will overwhelmingly win this duel. Helena must know that as well…

So does that mean Lily becomes the Estelle heir? Wait, then what about the academy?

“Begin!”

Amidst various thoughts, Helena’s voice resounded, and Ian rushed towards Lily at lightning speed. However, Lily seemed to have no intention of avoiding it.

“Lily!”

I called out to Lily without realizing it. Just as Ian’s sword was about to reach Lily.

The sword stopped abruptly. Something that looked like a red bandage protruded from behind Lily and grabbed Ian’s sword.

It looked like a red bandage, and strange magic seemed to flow like liquid on the outer edge of the bandage.

The red bandage moved according to Lily’s gesture, starting to press Ian, and shortly after, Ian declared surrender by planting his sword on the ground.

It was a duel where Lily, who had never shown any weakness, won flawlessly.

Even the guests were speechless, unable to believe how strong Lily was.

I felt proud. I had been ignoring and rejecting Lily as a bastard child, but it felt great to see Lily being recognized.

And so, that was the moment when today the next heir of the Estelle family was decided.

Our daughter is amazing!

Wait, what will happen now? Suddenly, my head hurts. My future plans have changed.

==

Amelia

==

Helena