My Youngest Keeps Bringing Home Male Leads - Chapter 4

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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 4
How had she gotten back to her room?
When she came to her senses, a heavy box was clutched in her hand—the one Kesenor had forced upon her as she was leaving the parlor.
The box Amy had sent was filled to the brim with gold coins.
An astonishing amount.
Even if Agnes quit her position as a governess immediately, it would be enough for the entire family to live comfortably for at least a year.
Agnes murmured in a daze.
“Amy brought this back from Dragon’s Lair…….”
She looked down at the back of her hand, remembering the sensation of a maple leaf, but there was nothing there.
Before leaving the parlor, Agnes recalled what Kesenor had said.
‘I intend to remain here for some time.’
‘Agnes, I came all this way from the distant North for you alone.’
‘If there is anything you wish to know, please find me at any time.’
Her head felt so full of tangled thoughts it seemed ready to burst.
When she needed to sort through her mind, repetitive, simple actions helped.
Agnes bathed as she normally would, then carefully removed the soiled sleeve from the dress she’d worn while searching for the twins during the day and sewed a clean one back on.
The servants would have done the washing, but she loathed to burden them with tedious work like this.
Afterward, she changed into her nightclothes and lay down on her bed.
The narrow room given to Agnes. The familiar ceiling. The familiar touch and scent. Everything was exactly as it always was…….
“Hah…….”
What of it.
No matter how unbelievable the story, Amy was alive, wasn’t she?
She was safe, uninjured.
Agnes laughed foolishly, then pulled out the letters written by Rupert and Amy.
The moment she saw them, she could no longer hold back her tears.
Agnes wept aloud like a child, utterly unable to contain herself.
She didn’t remember falling asleep after that. When she opened her eyes, morning had arrived.
Looking in the mirror, her eyes were swollen and puffy.
Though it was a pitiful sight, she couldn’t help but smile. She’d barely been able to eat half her meals for days, but today she finished everything on her plate.
In high spirits, Agnes hummed a tune as she made her way to the twins’ study room once more.
Naturally, they weren’t there.
The weather outside was clear, so she hadn’t expected them to be anyway.
“Incorrigible creatures.”
After a sigh, Agnes stepped outside. The mansion grounds were flooded with brilliant sunlight.
Spring had arrived.
She hadn’t noticed it until yesterday, but the entire world was draped in fresh green.
Colorful flowers bloomed proudly among the thick shrubs, and the song of small birds sounded beautiful to her ears.
Though the landscape was the same, it felt entirely different from yesterday.
“Can it feel so different…….”
Even with Amy’s return, Laberose House would still face hardship.
Their father’s debts were simply too vast.
And yet the world seemed full of joy. The only thing that had changed was the hope that Amy would return.
Agnes moved lightly through the grounds, searching for places where the twins might be hiding.
“Not here either.”
She checked beneath the twins’ favorite tree and among the tall grasses, but found them nowhere.
“Leonard! Cedric!”
She called out loudly, but no answer came.
These were children who usually giggled the moment she drew near, eager to play their tricks on her.
“Should I call for the servants?”
Just as worry was beginning to creep in, a hand suddenly emerged from the thick shrubs and pulled Agnes forward.
“……!”
On the verge of crying out, she caught sight of the person who had pulled her.
Agnes gasped for breath as she called out his name.
“Your Grace?”
“Good morning, Agnes.”
Kesenor was dressed differently from yesterday.
He wore a fitted dark blue shirt and trousers, his long hair neatly tied back to keep it from tangling.
Unlike yesterday’s stiff, constrictive clothing, his solid frame was now more pronounced.
“Oh…….”
Agnes became acutely aware of how close they were standing and felt her face flush.
His face was right in front of hers.
In her haste to hide in the shrubbery, she’d wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her upper body against his until she could feel the warmth of his skin through the fabric of his clothes.
Startled, she tried to pull away immediately.
“……!”
But he didn’t let her go. If anything, he tightened his grip around her waist.
“I—Your Grace!”
To the flustered Agnes, he bent his head and whispered near her ear.
“Have you given thought to what we discussed yesterday?”
She hadn’t had a moment to spare for it.
That unreal talk—something that didn’t sit right in her palm—mattered far less than the fact that Amy and Rupert were alive.
Seeing Agnes lost in thought, he twisted his lips into a smile and pointed to a tree standing some distance away.
Its leaves were trembling unnaturally.
“Weren’t you looking for those children?”
“Those rascals! I told them it was dangerous!”
The moment she moved to bolt away, he caught her again.
Shouldn’t she be angry at this point—shouldn’t this be considered rude?
As she hesitated, he asked.
“What will you do?”
“This happens all the time anyway.”
“I could descend with Magic and bring them down myself.”
“It’s fine. I’m their tutor, after all.”
Only then did he release her.
But Agnes didn’t dash off immediately; she paused to consider.
Because of family circumstances, Agnes had never attended a Debutante Ball or gone to a party.
At such gatherings, people usually danced pressed close together like this, so was this degree of contact really such a big deal?
‘Would it be all right if I asked him not to do this again?’
She worried he might think her hopelessly provincial, hopelessly childish.
After brushing grass off her skirts and turning it over in her mind, Agnes finally spoke.
“I would prefer you not touch me without permission next time. It’s uncomfortable.”
“Ah, I—”
He seemed about to apologize, but Agnes shook her head and hurried toward the tree.
Somehow, the back of her neck burned.
Doing her best to ignore it, Agnes concealed herself in the thick brush and moved carefully forward.
Climbing a tree was nothing at all.
Agnes removed her shoes and began ascending nimbly.
The memory of scampering through every corner of the Territory as a child still lived in her body.
“You troublemakers!”
Several hazelnuts came tumbling down below the tree—they’d clearly been planning to drop them as she passed underneath.
The children, startled, spotted her and erupted in noise.
“How did you know? You didn’t make a sound!”
“Didn’t I tell you not to climb trees so dangerously? If you do this again, I’m making you write one hundred pages of Imperial History!”
“No!”
“That’s cruel! How can anyone write all that?”
“You write through the night! Or would you rather I report this to the Countess?”
“You’re mean! Agnes is a witch!”
“If you don’t like it, try driving me away! Do you really think another tutor would come to you? If no one does, you’ll be sent to Boarding School instead! You’ll live in a cramped room with a roommate and wake up at six every morning for calisthenics!”
“No!”
After sending the children down first, Agnes descended after them.
Her hair hung in complete disarray, and her dress was stained with brown streaks where tree sap had marked it.
Brushing leaves from her clothes, Agnes sighed.
The Duke was probably watching her in this state.
Hidden as he was by the undergrowth, she couldn’t see him, yet she sensed he remained.
‘What must he think of me……’
A noblewoman working as a tutor wasn’t enough—now climbing trees without restraint.
‘Well, what of it. There’s nothing shameful in striving for one’s family.’
Agnes returned to the study room and seated the two children. They still wore sullen expressions.
Regardless, Agnes opened a book on the table.
It was Volume Two of Imperial History.
“Continuing from yesterday, we’ll study the fourth Emperor, Roberto Cardiam. Cedric, what do you recall from yesterday’s lesson?”
“I don’t know—I don’t remember!”
“Mind your tone.”
She spoke in a stern voice and fixed him with a sharp look, causing Cedric to flinch and settle back into his seat.
“Teacher…….”
“What did we cover yesterday?”
“…….”
“Very well. If you don’t remember, Leonard?”
“You said there were repeated battles, large and small, with the Other Races.”
“Excellent. You’ve retained it well.”
Though the children were mischievous to an exasperating degree, once lessons began they participated well enough.
This was because every month the Countess herself would check on their progress, and had threatened to send them to Boarding School if their test scores fell short.
They disliked studying, yet they had no choice but to do it anyway.
And the impulse to flee into the forest and hide away was something they wished to avoid.
“I mentioned yesterday that the reign of Roberto Cardiam was tremendously significant. At last, the longstanding conflict with the Other Races could finally be resolved. Human territory was confined to the center of the Continent, and it was decided that the Other Races would be respected in their own domains. In other words, a Non-Aggression Pact was established.”
She was in the midst of her explanation.
Knock, knock.
Someone rapped at the door.
Thinking it might be a maid bringing refreshments, she opened it—only to find Kesenor standing there.
“Duke?”
“If it wouldn’t be a bother, might I observe the lesson?”
“Is something the matter?”
At that, he lowered his head and whispered softly near Agnes’s ear.
“I’m curious about you.”
“……!”
Flustered, she looked up at him, and he smiled slightly.
Heat crept across her cheeks.
“Since I’m a mage, I can’t help but be curious about things.”
For a moment, Agnes didn’t grasp his meaning, and she met his gaze while frozen in place.

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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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