My Youngest Keeps Bringing Home Male Leads - Chapter 31

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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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Chapter 31
Well, that’s because I tidy it up every time I visit.
But there was one thing she couldn’t possibly mention, so she pressed her lips shut and began to exaggerate a bit more instead.
“Of course. Any person with sense wouldn’t behave that way as a guest. And goodness, how roughly he treats me—whenever I offer him counsel, he silences me with Magic so I can barely breathe…….”
As she said this, Aserl paused for effect.
Agnes, who had taken the earlier remarks in stride, seemed genuinely startled by this latest claim.
Her wide eyes trembled as if she couldn’t even imagine Kesenor capable of such violence.
Aserl, delighted at this reaction, even made a show of dabbing away a tear.
“When I bring him research results I’ve labored so hard to extract, he tears into them all day long, and—he’s even hung me from the ceiling when something displeased him.”
Of course, she kept hidden the fact that she’d been conducting rather dangerous research, and an explosion had nearly occurred because of it.
“It’s all so I can have an easier time, perhaps, but still—he’s merciless over even the smallest matters, and it makes my life so very difficult.”
“How dreadful, to be treated so harshly…….”
Agnes found herself utterly confused about what to say.
She couldn’t fathom that Kesenor, who never failed to maintain his courteous demeanor, would treat so roughly the graceful and charming woman standing before her.
Yet Aserl’s downturned eyes and plaintive tone didn’t seem to carry a lie.
Of course not.
Aserl had only omitted some context—everything she said was the pure truth.
She simply kept concealed the small fact that mages tend to hurl dangerous spells about whenever they grow bored.
Did she want to craft a lie?
Then you simply mixed eighty percent truth with twenty percent falsehood!
“I’m afraid I’ve imposed upon you with my complaints. I was rather rude, but you seemed like someone who would listen.”
“Not at all. You must have been that upset to speak of it.”
Agnes swallowed the words that circled endlessly in her mind, pressing them behind her lips.
She wanted to ask whether the Celestial Tower had weathered the fissure safely, whether Kesenor was unharmed.
But it was difficult to broach concern for him when Aserl had just described how much he troubled her.
“In any case, there are no overall issues. Since you may doubt the contents, I shall affix the Celestial Seal to these documents for you.”
“Can a Mage Tower seal really be used to notarize financial statements like this?”
“Of course. We are, in a manner of speaking, mathematicians as well. Some of us even engage in accounting as a secondary pursuit.”
Could it finally be? Could they at last escape the burden that had tormented her family for so long?
The reality of it seemed almost unreal.
Agnes clutched the documents bearing the Celestial Seal to her chest.
She knew Aserl was standing right there before her.
But her heart swelled so fiercely she could scarcely contain it.
Even more than when she’d beheld the heaped gold coins, she felt joy now.
The despair that had seemed so endless could finally be brought to a close.
* * *
“Well then, I should take my leave.”
“What are you saying! You must stay for dinner! I would feel terribly guilty if you left just like this!”
Just as Aserl was about to depart, Agnes clung to her urgently, giving her pause.
‘If I leave now, I’ll surely have to fight that creature again.’
The image of the monster spewing viscous fluid whenever it struck the magical barrier flashed through Aserl’s mind, and she nodded with conviction.
“Then I shall gratefully accept your hospitality.”
Seeing how radiant Agnes’s expression had become after speaking with Aserl, Elena and Lilia spared no effort in preparing the evening meal.
As a result, though they lacked expensive ingredients, the table was laid abundantly.
During the meal, Aserl peppered Ignitan, a member of the Giant Race whom she was seeing for the first time, with questions.
“What sort of place is it where the Giant Race dwells?”
……
“You’re not the size of a true giant anymore, yet—wait, you can expand and contract your body at will? How is that even possible?”
……
But Ignitan, unlike when he spoke with Agnes, offered no response whatsoever.
He simply held his spoon and fork in silence, moving them methodically.
Agnes grew embarrassed watching him.
Fortunately, Aserl paid it little mind, finished her meal with evident enjoyment, and departed via Teleport.
The next morning.
Agnes stood before a carriage parked outside the Mansion alongside Alfred.
Inside the carriage lay documents she had meticulously organized and a quantity of gold coins.
She was going into the city to repay the debt.
“That’s quite a sum of gold coins—won’t it be dangerous?”
“That’s precisely why I’m bringing Pavel and Ben as escort.”
“Still, perhaps it would be best to ask Ignitan for his aid as well.”
Alfred offered Agnes a gentle smile as she struggled to set her worries aside.
“If you leave, I’ll only fret the more—what if someone attacks while you’re gone? Besides, you mentioned inspecting the territory today. Won’t you take me with you?”
“It’s just our village, not beyond the fiefdom. What could possibly happen?”
“That’s not quite true. The older folk remember kindnesses from the Laberose House and remain well-disposed, but I’ve heard the young are different.”
“There’s not much to be done about that. They work the land year to year, and we’ve neglected things—not just for a season or two, but for years now. Ever since the cracks began appearing a year ago, rumors have grown uneasy.”
“Of course they’ve faced hardship. In any case, when I went down, the mood was far from favorable.”
After pressing his concerns upon her at length, Alfred departed with the carriage.
Agnes watched it recede into the distance for a long while.
She turned to seek out Ignitan, her mind drifting as she walked.
‘Why do such people come to our house?’
It was what Alfred had asked her yesterday, curious and puzzled.
Of course, Agnes knew nothing.
All the secrets were likely held by Amy.
Why everyone helped her in every conceivable way remained a mystery.
Ignitan was in the back garden, assisting with the construction of a wall.
As he hauled bricks from the cart to the workers, they spread mortar and stacked them methodically.
The foreman caught sight of Agnes and hurried over.
“You’ve arrived, Miss.”
“The work seems to be progressing smoothly.”
“Indeed. Most of all, thanks to that gentleman, the pace has quickened remarkably. How can a person possess such strength?”
The foreman did not seem to suspect that Ignitan might be of the Giant Race.
Agnes, who had no desire to explain, managed a wry smile.
“Is there something you needed?”
“I came to meet with Ignitan.”
Had he known of her arrival from the moment she appeared?
The instant his name left her lips, Ignitan set down his work and approached.
Agnes smiled and bowed slightly to him.
“Isn’t this exhausting?”
“Not at all. What is it?”
“I have a favor to ask.”
“The steward here mentioned it—that you plan to go down to the village and need an escort.”
“Yes. If you’re willing, might I impose upon you?”
“Of course.”
Ignitan, answering briefly, vanished into the mansion with surprising speed.
The reason became clear soon enough: he reappeared, dust swept clean from his clothes.
The two set out on foot toward the village.
The Laberose Mansion perched atop a gentle hill; below it wound a winding path that descended into broad fields where roughly forty households clustered together.
‘I always held Ruppert’s hand on the way down then…….’
When was the last time she had visited the village?
Until she turned nine, she’d made the trip constantly, bored even slightly, leading a servant or two along to play.
It had been nearly ten years.
Halfway down the path, Agnes turned to glance behind her.
The memory surfaced of playing through the village and being carried back on a servant’s shoulders—right here, looking back at the mansion.
As the sun sank beyond the hill, she had gazed upon the crimson sky.
Behind her, the aroma of evening bread baking drifted up, holding her in place.
When she whined of hunger, Ruppert had laughed.
‘The coarse bread they eat won’t suit your palate, Miss.’
‘But I’m hungry.’
‘When we return, something far more delicious will be waiting. Just a little longer, Miss.’
Every corner of the path was crowded with memories from childhood.
Her pace naturally slowed, and Ignitan, who had been walking ahead, turned to look back at her.
He did not ask why she lingered.
He simply gazed at her with dark, steady eyes.
As she quickened her step, he resumed walking ahead of her once more.
His pace had grown somewhat slower.
As if matching the rhythm of Agnes lost in memory.
Seeing this, she could not help but ask.
“How long do you intend to stay here?”
“Quite some time.”
“Am I truly someone that important to you?”
Ignitan turned his gaze toward her.
His eyes held no warmth, yet no malice either.
And yet, unlike the other two men, words flowed from her without hesitation when she spoke to Ignitan.
“It’s strange, really—both you and the others coming all this way just because Amy said something, helping us out like this. I find it odd.”

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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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