Everyone but Me Is a Spy - Chapter 2

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 2
Nina’s dream had never wavered.
Not before leaving the Orphanage, nor after she’d been fortunate enough to become a maid at the Count’s Estate.
She had always wanted a family.
Left abandoned at the Orphanage entrance with neither birthplace nor surname nor any story to her name, all the director could give Nina was a name alone.
A slip of paper with her name written on it, tucked inside white cloth wrapped around an infant—that was all she had.
The war had only recently ended, and the Orphanage was overflowing with children who’d lost their parents, while few households sought to adopt.
No one dared, for the air hung thick with the specter of another war, another flight, another upheaval.
In the end, most of the children turned fifteen in the Orphanage and were forced to fend for themselves.
Nina was one of them.
Yet her extraordinary memory and aptitude from childhood had allowed her to find work in shops scattered throughout the district.
The Ilite Kingdom granted commoners no right to sit for civil service examinations, so stable employment was out of reach—but she managed.
After the war, many nations had become free states where anyone, regardless of station, could find work; but she had neither money nor courage to leave Ilite.
When the kindly innkeeper she’d often worked for happened to know the housekeeper of a certain Count’s household and recommended Nina for a position there, it had felt like genuine good fortune.
Two years had passed working as a maid at the Count’s Estate.
It was good to have her food and shelter secured while earning coin besides, but the longer she worked there, the more she ached for the family she’d never known.

The Count’s household was warm and full of affection between its members, and to Nina, who had no family, it was achingly enviable and lonely.
Even as she prayed each night to the moon for a real family, even until the moment she learned her wish had been answered, Nina envied the young master of the Count’s house.
More than the fact he could attend the Academy.
More than the pile of celebratory gifts he received for it.
More than the triumph of his practiced, difficult performance winning him praise and delight.
What she envied most was having family there to share in his joy.
The young master, who’d abandoned his unicycle and thrown himself into the Countess’s arms like a bird taking flight, looked happier than anyone she’d ever seen.
She’d always dreamed of such a scene, but believed it was something she could never have.
Then, a gentleman appeared suddenly at the Count’s Estate bearing something in his hands—the Will of Lekita Bonz, Nina’s grandmother.
From that day forward, Nina’s life turned completely upside down.
‘I had a family all along!’
With that single fact, all the sorrow and loneliness she’d carried melted away in an instant.
‘How could something that only happens to the protagonist of a novel happen to me, always the supporting character?’
As Nina stepped into the reception room of the Townhouse, she tried to still her wildly racing heart.
But seeing the “family” standing before her, she found herself unable to calm down at all.
“Come, come in.”
“We’ve been waiting for you.”
Their warm smiles and open welcome made it worse.
Nina brushed her flushed cheeks and gathered her skirt lightly as she bowed.
“It’s an honor to meet you. I’m Nina.”
Then, with a sheepish grin, she corrected herself.
“Ah, well—I’m Nina Bonz now.”
She couldn’t count how many times she’d said the name “Nina Bonz” aloud in the carriage on the way here.
That she would one day introduce herself as “Nina Bonz” before her family and the other Bonzes—it felt like she might soar away.
Was this what it felt like to be adopted?
No, it could not be.
‘I wasn’t adopted—I’ve come home to my real family!’
She was holding back the urge to scream with joy and bounce about when a man with dark brown hair, neatly combed back, stepped forward first.
He extended his hand to Nina for a handshake.
“Cheyson Bonz. I’m your uncle.”
“My… my uncle…!”
Before Nina could even catch her breath, a woman with reddish-brown, slightly coarse hair cascading to one side approached her with a beautiful smile.
“I’m Natalisha Bonz. Cheyson’s younger sister—your aunt.”
“My aunt…!”
Next came a woman with ashy-brown hair twisted up neatly.
“Welcome home. I’m Kathari Bonz—your cousin sister, I suppose.”
“Sister…!”
And finally, a man with long greenish-brown hair braided down his back offered his greeting.
“Pleased to meet you. I’m Exci Bonz, Kathari’s brother—your cousin.”
“Cousin…!”
Nina clasped hands with each of them in turn and beamed.
“I love it so much. We all have pink eyes!”
A brief silence rippled through the drawing room.
The four people around Nina exchanged glances in quick succession.
‘Why would she point out eye color like that?’
‘Did she notice the Pink Lens and is mocking us?’
‘Has she instinctively sensed something suspicious? She truly is Lekita’s blood.’
‘Perhaps she’s only suspecting. Still, it’s remarkable.’
It was something that would have passed unnoticed in a blink by an ordinary person.
But Nina, who had honed her business sense by earning money through odd jobs since childhood, sensed immediately that she’d made some mistake and quickly studied the four of them.
Now that she looked, they were dressed entirely in black from head to toe, with black accents throughout.
“Oh! I’m—I’m so sorry. I just got so excited thinking I finally had a family that I——”
Nina pressed both hands to her chest and bowed her head deeply.
“Please forgive me. I offer my respects to the departed. Though I have no memory of them, I’m sure they were especially dear to you, having lived together as uncle, aunt, and siblings.”
“Ah.”
A vacant sigh escaped Exci’s lips as he sat listening to her words.
Then he suddenly buried his face in his hands and began to weep.
“Sob… they truly were wonderful.”
“Sniff…”
Before long, the rest of the family had grown somber as well, wiping tears or lowering their heads.
During the carriage ride, Nina had been intensely curious about her grandmother.
What she’d looked like, the light in her eyes, what kind of life she’d lived.
But in her excitement at meeting her family, she’d forgotten all about her grandmother, and she felt ashamed of it.
‘No matter that I don’t remember her, she was someone who left behind such a considerable inheritance…’
As Nina slouched, her shoulders sagging with dejection, her aunt Natalisha wrapped an arm around her back.
“Still, we met because of your grandmother. I’m truly happy about that.”
“Me too! I’m really happy.”
“Nina, come sit here with us.”
“…!”
Come sit with them? The words were so warmly familial that Nina’s eyes went wide as she let Kathari lead her to the sofa.
“You must be tired from the long journey. Why don’t we have some refreshments together? The kitchen should be preparing a generous supper for this evening.”
“Yes. Oh, sister!”
On the table sat an elegant teapot and cookies.
‘Tea time with my family!’
Nina’s expression gradually softened as she chatted warmly with them all.
The fragrant tea warmed her chest, and the sweet cookies coaxed a smile to her lips.
By the time the teacup had been refilled twice and the cookie plate lay nearly empty,
Nina, now settled comfortably into the gathering through all their easy conversation, brought out a question she’d carried since her days at the Orphanage.
“But how did I come to be separated from my family?”
Cheyson opened his mouth as if he’d expected her to wonder about this.
“Your mother went missing during a trip to Ilite, and you never saw her after that. We didn’t even know our sister was pregnant or that you’d been born.”
“Good heavens…”
At Nina’s exclamation, Natalisha exhaled softly.
“Your grandmother searched for your mother—her sister—right up until she passed away, and that’s how she found you.”
“Then my mother…?”
“Her health had weakened, and she passed away not long after giving birth to you.”
“I see…”
Nina had already braced herself for the death of her parents to some extent.
That explained why they never came to find her even after she’d reached the age to leave the Orphanage.
During her time there, she’d preferred not to think of herself as abandoned, so she’d vaguely assumed they’d simply passed away.
As Nina’s expression darkened, Exci changed the subject.
“You’re home now, safe and sound. You won’t be separated from your family again.”
“That’s right. And make yourself comfortable. This is your home, so you can do as you please. Is there anything you’d like to do?”
Kathari pushed the cookie plate forward and asked, prompting Nina to look up from her thoughts.
“Now that you mention it, there’s something I’ve wanted to do since I was at the Orphanage—if I ever had a family.”
At that moment, the four exchanged glances once more, swiftly and carefully.
‘Has she already awakened to the romance of explosives?’
‘It must be marksmanship.’
‘If she’s Lekita’s granddaughter, surely she wants to learn to subdue multiple people with a single rope?’
‘It’s definitely poison.’
“I…”
Nina smiled shyly as she spoke.
“I’d like to learn to ride a bicycle. A two-wheeled one.”
After a moment of heavy silence, Natalisha narrowed her eyes and asked.
“Do you just want to ride a bicycle? Or is there something else you’d like to do…… together?”
“Something else? It would be nice to do other things while riding a bicycle!”
Thunk.
Startled by Nina’s bright answer, Exci kicked the table leg.
‘Impressive. She’s already aspiring to commit assassinations while pedaling.’
The family members who had greeted Nina warmly all shared the same thought as they recalled the master’s warnings.
‘Lekita’s granddaughter. She looks demure and adorable — but clearly one can’t let one’s guard down.’

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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