---

It must be because I suffered from a fever all day.

The next morning, when Edgar woke up, he realized that his body felt heavier than usual.

More than anything, he couldn’t turn his head well, and it felt as if something heavy was resting on his shoulders.

‘Not good.’

At this rate, he would have no choice but to skip his daily training.

It had become such a part of his routine that even skipping a day left an uncomfortable feeling.

Clunk.

“Ah!?”

As soon as he rose his heavy body and stepped out of the room, he stumbled upon an unexpected intruder and fell flat on the ground.

His aching body was already bothering him, and now this was just adding insult to injury.

He worried that he might have hurt his tailbone, but thankfully the pain dissipated quickly. But who was the culprit?

“I-I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to startle you.”

Ah, what an early visitor.

Edgar first saw the long, black hair before the familiar voice tickled his ears.

Without even seeing her face, Edgar forced a smile and got back up.

“It’s fine. But what brings you here so early in the morning?”

“Mom wanted me to tell you to have breakfast. If you’re still not feeling well, she said she’d send a maid to bring it to you.”

“Oh.”

Realizing it was already breakfast time, Edgar reflexively checked the time.

He had woken up later than usual. It seemed the fatigue from yesterday had taken a toll on his body.

‘Let’s go eat.’

Even if he wasn’t in his prime condition, he was still capable of walking to the dining room to eat himself.

Checking his forehead, it felt like the fever had gone down significantly, and perhaps moving around might actually aid in his recovery.

“Are you sure you’re still not feeling well? Should I have them bring it to you?”

As he hesitated to respond, Ariel looked worriedly at him, studying his complexion.

Edgar hurriedly shook his head.

If he said the truth, she might start crying again. After all, she was a sensitive girl.

“No, let’s go together. I’m almost better.”

“Really? That’s a relief.”

Ariel’s face brightened instantly as she marched ahead confidently.

‘She sure loves to take charge.’

To be precise, she enjoyed having others follow her rather than following others.

Whether it was a result of her education in the imperial family’s lore or simply her nature, he couldn’t tell.

In that regard, the two were well-matched friends. After all, he also preferred following rather than leading.

Following Ariel often led to unexpectedly fun adventures.

“So, if you’re better, what should we do today?”

“You’re planning to play again today?”

“Yeah! But it’s boring to just stay inside the mansion.”

Should he call her bold?

It was quite absurd for her to be eagerly planning fun things after what happened just yesterday, yet perhaps this was the purity of a ten-year-old child.

‘I wonder if she’ll be okay.’

The problem was that his body wasn’t fit for playing around.

Ariel seemed fine walking even though she had sprained her ankle yesterday, but he couldn’t do that.

But if he used his condition as an excuse to refuse, he could clearly see what would follow.

“Let’s have breakfast first and think about it.”

“Okay.”

For now, he decided to delay his answer and buy some time.

When the two arrived at the dining room, they quietly walked inside.

Excluding his father, who had temporarily left the mansion for official business, only two people were sitting at the table.

“I’m sorry for being late.”

“I was just about to serve food. It’s fine, please sit down.”

Helene smiled kindly as she gestured for them to take a seat.

The seat of honor was empty, and Helene and Katria were sitting across from each other, with Edgar’s designated seat next to his mother.

“How are you feeling, son?”

“I’m fine, so you don’t need to worry.”

“Good, you’ve had a tough time. Your mother has been singing your praises…”

Still, Katria warned him not to push himself too hard as she gently ruffled Edgar’s hair.

Edgar nodded obediently and began to observe the dishes being placed in front of him.

‘Meat. Nice.’

People often said that when one was unwell, they lost their appetite, but that was the opposite for Edgar.

In fact, during times like this, his appetite surged, and he believed that filling his stomach would help him recover more quickly.

So in that sense, today’s breakfast menu was a great choice.

“Edgar, is there anything you would like?”

“Something I want… you mean?”

As he was savoring a piece of meat before him, Helene subtly asked him a question.

Could she be trying to make up for what happened yesterday with a reward?

The timing of the question was a bit too perfect to be a mere coincidence.

But he couldn’t jump to conclusions, so he decided to gauge her intentions.

“If this is because of what happened yesterday, it’s really okay.”

“Huh? Oh, it’s not just because of that. I’m sorry if I made you misunderstand.”

“Really? Then why…?”

Why would she single him out like that?

Helene had sometimes brought gifts before, but those were mainly for family exchanges; she had hardly ever given him a gift just for him.

Thus, he assumed his guess was correct, only to find out it wasn’t, and now he was more puzzled than ever.

Seeing Edgar’s wide eyes, Helene giggled lightly and glanced at Ariel.

Ariel, who hadn’t even touched her food, looked especially cute today with her little hands fidgeting.

“Your birthday is coming up soon, isn’t it? I’d like to give you a gift to celebrate it.”

“Oh.”

Only then did Edgar realize that his birthday was just three days away.

‘I completely forgot.’

He tended to pay attention to others’ birthdays, but when it came to his, he could hardly care less.

If it was a gift given to celebrate his birthday, he would gladly accept it.

Rejecting it would be insulting to her.

“If so… I would like to receive a sword.”

“A sword?”

The unexpected word made the eyes of both the Robeheim ladies widen.

Surely a ten-year-old child wouldn’t want a sword as a decoration but for personal use?

“It’s not difficult, but first, I want to ask about its purpose.”

Even in well-known noble families, bestowing a real sword to the heir usually happened after they turned thirteen.

Before that, one could train and practice, but they would always use wooden swords instead.

This wasn’t merely because a child using a real sword was deemed dangerous.

A sword was essentially a will. It was believed that whoever possessed a sword must have the firm resolve to wield it.

‘Does this child truly possess that much determination?’

He had always thought of her as an unusual child.

However, giving a sword held entirely different implications.

As the mistress of the noble Robeheim family, gifting someone a sword meant she was affirming that person’s will and honor.

This wasn’t about her name, Helene, but about her role as the head of the Robeheim family, implying she would hold him in judgment.

Edgar did not avoid Helene’s gaze; instead, he met her steady gaze with one of his own, as if to prove his determination.

It wasn’t because he had grand ambitions; he simply didn’t see himself as the right vessel for such things.

But through yesterday’s experience, he realized painfully that in order to support this naive princess’s future, he needed more strength.

“It’s not that I need a sword. I just want to receive it as a symbol to solidify my resolve.”

“A resolve, huh.”

Helene kept silent after that, studying Edgar’s eyes.

What a curious boy. If he had been like other kids his age, he likely would have offered flowery reasons to convince her.

She wasn’t silly enough to be swayed by such empty words.

Yet here was this boy.

He neither stated his concrete aspirations nor revealed what his resolve entailed.

For some reason, Helene found his words almost sounded like a request for investment into him.

Even so, his eyes burned with a fierce determination that was palpable.

“Then, will a sword suffice?”

“Yes.”

“I’ll be sure to bring it next time I visit. Look forward to it.”

Although it was a gift, it was also a form of permission.

Edgar bowed his head deeply, expressing his gratitude respectfully, while Katria looked back and forth between the two, utterly bewildered.

After their conversation ended, the meal went on without incident.

Finishing off the meat faster than anyone, Edgar wiped his mouth with a napkin.

Suddenly, a memory from yesterday flashed in his mind, and he exclaimed, “Ah!”

“Speaking of which, Ariel, what’s the gift you promised me yesterday?”

“Oh, that…”

What was it? Why was her reaction so lukewarm?

Edgar, wondering if Helene knew about it, casually glanced over at her, and upon making eye contact, she brought a finger to her lips as if signaling him to wait.

It seemed she wanted him to hear it from Ariel.

Edgar’s curiosity only intensified.

“Did you feel anything strange yesterday?”

“Strange?”

The only strange thing was that she had blatantly ignored his words.

That couldn’t possibly be the answer.

Still, he decided to give it a shot; if he got scolded, he would deal with it then.

“Maybe, the part where you tried to go to the mountain without listening to me?”

“Yep.”

What? Was that really true?

Edgar’s eyes went wide in disbelief at the unexpected answer.

But how did that relate to the gift? He racked his brain but couldn’t come up with anything.

“The mountain we went to yesterday…”

“Why the mountain?”

Surely she wasn’t planning to give him a wild ginseng she picked herself or something.

In the first place, whether wild ginseng even existed in this world was a different story.

“That’s the gift.”

“…What?”

“Geez, I mean…! The mountain is the gift!”

Ariel finally returned to her usual self, her frustration evident as she shouted.

Edgar stared at her, still struggling to comprehend reality, his eyes wide open.

So what this impetuous princess was trying to say was…

“You mean you’re giving me the mountain?”

“Yep.”

He had thought he was immune to most of her antics, but that was clearly his pride talking.

In a daze, Edgar managed to gulp down a sip of water.

He had jokingly considered that she might give him the mansion, but a mountain? Was this really reality?