“T-Thank you….”
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ shrugs with satisfaction.]
Yuri, holding the dog bowl with a reluctant expression, offers her thanks.
Though she’s actually quite pleased inside, it seems she’s too embarrassed to express her true feelings openly.
The dog bowl is scientifically superior, boasting several special features.
However, due to its negative public perception, only a few wise individuals recognize its value and use it.
Now that Yuri has joined this wise group, she can’t help but feel happy.
At least in this mansion, she can freely use the high-performance dog bowl without worrying about others’ opinions, greatly improving her quality of life.
“I’ll use it well….”
After finishing the meal, the maids hurriedly brought out a three-tiered cake as dessert.
I thought it would last at least a week.
“Huh? What’s with that look, Aslan?”
“It’s nothing….”
I was shocked to see the first and second tiers disappear in an instant, and the last tier being cut up.
I knew Charlotte, Yuri, and Sylvia ate a lot, but even Julia and Irene were eating way more than me.
Well, Julia generates mana at a level comparable to a Grand Mage, so her metabolism must be high.
And Irene is strong enough to rival a Sword Master even unarmed, so she probably needs a lot of nutrients too….
Realizing that I was the one eating the least here was unexpectedly shocking.
The gift exchange was done.
The meal was finished.
We even shared the cake while chatting.
Just as I was about to wrap up the birthday party—
“A-Aslan! Take this! Since it’s your birthday, it’s special! …Here!”
“Ehehe! I prepared something too!”
“…?”
At that moment—Plop.
Julia placed an envelope in front of me before turning red to the tips of her ears and dashing away.
Charlotte firmly placed an envelope in my hand and followed after Julia.
Since we live under the same roof, there’s usually no reason to write letters.
It seems they wrote them in celebration of my birthday.
Were they secretly envious of how Yuri and I exchanged letters?
After the party ended, Irene returned to work.
Yuri naturally ran off to the yard with Charlotte and Julia.
Now was the perfect time to read the letters.
“Ehehehe….”
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ feels strangely uncomfortable with your laughter.]
First, Charlotte’s.
The envelope seemed oddly thick, and the moment I opened it, colored paper poured out.
They were drawings she had painstakingly worked on.
Most of them depicted Dirt-Dirt, Laura’s avatar, and Water-Water.
Looking through them made me smile, but I became certain of one thing—Charlotte was not destined for art school.
Next was Julia’s.
When I opened the envelope, a neatly written letter appeared.
– To Aslan.
– I think this is my first time writing a letter…
– Today is Charlotte and my birthday. And it’s also exactly one year since we first met you.
– When I first saw you….
“My Lord.”
“I’m busy right now.”
“It’s urgent.”
“I’m in the middle of reading the first letter Julia ever wrote to me, a moment of deep emotion. Are you saying this is more urgent than that? Fine. Let’s hear it.”
I was reading with a barely contained smile when Sylvia suddenly interrupted, ruining the mood.
Just how urgent could it be to disrupt this moment?
It better be serious.
Grinding my teeth, I set the letter down for a moment.
“I came to ask if my birthday would be celebrated as well. You gave gifts to Charlotte and Julia, and you even prepared one for Yuri. I, too, request that my birthday be commemorated regularly, with appropriate gifts.”
“Are you a kid?”
“I am not. However, my childhood was utterly devoid of memories. My youth was spent working like a slave for the family, branded by someone against my will, leaving no time for creating any memories.”
“…”
I was about to reject her outright.
But then Sylvia made a sorrowful expression, and I was at a loss for words.
That brand… I was the one who put it on her….
She was deliberately making me feel guilty.
“You go all out celebrating the birthdays of slaves you’ve only known for a year,
but someone you branded over seven years ago? I’m just a caught fish to you now, not worth the effort?”
“…”
“I see. Well, that’s fine. I have no choice but to lock myself in my room and soak my pillow with tears.”
“…!”
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ strongly condemns you, saying you’re clearly in the wrong!]
At that moment, Sylvia suddenly deactivated her Aura and transformed into the appearance of a child.
When Sylvia acted like a tragic heroine in her adult form, pretending to be pitiful, I could at least endure it.
But the moment she reverted to her childhood appearance and, in that soft voice, spoke of soaking her pillow with tears…
I felt my heart pounding uncontrollably.
“Then, I’ll be on my way….”
“Your birthday. Of course, I should celebrate it. You’re not just a mere bodyguard—you’re someone who has pledged their life to me.
So, naturally, it’s only right that I properly celebrate your birthday as well. I was planning to do so from the start.”
“….”
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ nods approvingly, saying you made the right decision.]
I hurriedly grabbed Sylvia’s wrist as she was about to leave, pulling her onto my lap.
Thinking it over again, it really was only right to celebrate her birthday too.
“What do you want as a birthday present?”
“Hmm. First, please dismiss me from my position as the CEO of Vermont Security.”
“Sylvia. No matter how young you may look right now, there are some requests that can be granted and others that are absolutely impossible. Think carefully before you answer.”
“…Understood.”
Hearing Sylvia’s unreasonable request, I reflexively frowned.
She wanted to step down from being the CEO of Vermont Security?
That was out of the question.
“Then, perhaps… when spring comes, would you go to an amusement park with me?”
“Amusement park? You mean like a theme park?”
“Yes… I’ve always wanted to go, but most of the rides had height restrictions, so I wasn’t able to ride them….
Now, I could just deactivate my Aura and meet the height requirement, but going alone would be too embarrassing….”
“So, you want to go with me and pretend to be an innocent child enjoying the amusement park with their big brother or uncle?”
“Th-That’s right…! Putting it that way makes it sound a bit embarrassing, though….”
Ah. I completely understood now.
She could revert to her child form now, but playing alone would make her self-conscious.
And asking someone else to go with her would be too embarrassing, so she needed my help.
“Alright. When the amusement park opens, I’ll go with you.”
“Really!? Thank you, my Lord…!”
Sylvia leapt off my lap in delight.
Of course, I said I’d go with her, but I never said we’d go alone.
So it wouldn’t be a problem if Charlotte and Julia tagged along as well.
Imagining young Sylvia holding hands with Charlotte and Julia as they ran around the amusement park…
just picturing it brought a satisfied smile to my face.
Of course, considering the age gap, Sylvia would likely suffer some mental damage from running around with children, but that wasn’t my concern, so I decided not to worry about it.
‘Alright, time to finish reading Julia’s letter.’
With the troublesome one taken care of.
I picked up Julia’s letter again.
– At first, I misunderstood you a lot, Aslan, but now I know you’re a good person.
– What seemed like oppression at first was actually all for our sake.
– You call us slaves, but you never really treated us like ones….
“Ahhh.”
She already realized it.
I had prepared myself for the possibility that she might only come to understand my good intentions after growing up, but she had already figured it out.
As expected of a bright girl—she had completely seen through my benevolent and profound intentions.
I was even on the verge of shedding tears of emotion when—
“Waahhhhh!!!”
“…!?”
A loud scream suddenly echoed through the mansion.
That was Charlotte’s voice.
What on earth happened?
“Sylvia. Carry me.”
“Yes.”
Sylvia swiftly returned to her adult form, and I climbed onto her back as she dashed toward the source of the noise.
Exiting the mansion and reaching the back garden,
I finally spotted Charlotte.
“Charlotte! What’s going on!?”
“Mister, Mister! Look at this! Even my Super Super Cool Blade has Aura now!”
“Super Super Cool Blade…?”
“That’s the name I gave this dagger!”
“…”
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ claps enthusiastically, exclaiming that, as expected, you’re truly a Dark Knight!]
Charlotte held up the dagger high toward the sky.
Compared to the Aura radiating from the Super Super Strong Sword, the aura was definitely weaker,
but a clear purple aura was still shimmering around the blade.
Wait.
That dagger wasn’t a Holy Sword, nor was it made from any special material—it was just an ordinary dagger, wasn’t it…?
