Chapter 21

“Go on.”

Urged by Lady Aria’s expectant gaze, I hesitated for a moment before carefully loosening the drawstring. As if it had been waiting for that very moment, gold came pouring out.

“Whoa—!”

Startled by the clatter of the cascading coins, I hurriedly reached out, but the pouch was so stuffed that the gold spilled over my hands and tumbled onto the floor.

They say when a person is too shocked… no, when a shifter is too shocked, they can’t even cry. I just blinked, staring at Lady Aria with a dazed face.

Watching me with an amused expression, Lady Aria stood up and approached. She picked up the gold from my hands and the floor, tucked them back into the pouch, and spoke in a tender voice.

“This pouch, and the one I gave you yesterday—they both belong to you, Poblian.”

“They’re both mine?”

When I asked back in disbelief, Lady Aria gave a deep nod. She pointed to the pouch she had just brought out.

“To be more precise, this one will be sent to the Fennec estate starting today, but it will be sent in your name.”

‘Money going to the Fennecs in my name?’

I quickly recalled the terms of the five-year contract between Winchester and Fennec, but there wasn’t a single clause about paying this much money. Confused and speechless, I listened as Lady Aria continued in a slightly subdued tone.

“To explain this, I suppose I have to tell you about what happened last night.”

“Last night……?”

“Actually, Esteban came to see me last night. He asked if it would be better to send you back to Anif even now, and bring someone else instead.”

“Esteban did?”

Surprised by this unexpected news, I reflexively questioned her. Even looking at Lady Aria’s nodding head, I still couldn’t believe it.

‘Was he asking about the side effects in the carriage because he didn’t trust my abilities?’

If it had been when I first arrived at Winchester, I would have ignored him, thinking, ‘The Grand Duke allowed this, so what are you going to do about it?’ But now, those words didn’t come easily. I soon realized that the feeling I was experiencing was disappointment.

‘To Esteban, my ability is basically a matter of life and death for people, so I shouldn’t feel hurt.’

As my expression darkened, Lady Aria reached out and covered my hands, which were resting neatly on my lap. I flinched and looked up, meeting her water-blue eyes filled with warmth.

“Poblian, do you miss your family in Anif very much?”

“Pardon?”

I blinked at the seemingly random question. It wasn’t that I didn’t miss my mom and dad, but the bigger question was why she was asking this now.

‘Surely the conversation didn’t just jump without any context……’

Over Lady Aria’s face as she waited for my answer, I saw a overlap of Esteban’s face when he had asked if I missed my family. With a heavy thud in my chest, I finally understood why Esteban had gone to Lady Aria last night to say those things.

‘……Is Esteban actually kind, or is he just a fool?’

The moment I realized the truth, my chest felt tight. Because he was afraid he might hurt others, he wouldn’t even let himself enjoy the festival properly—yet, just because of my single comment about missing my family, he tried to send me back to Anif. A jumble of thoughts tangled in my head, making it hard to process.

When I didn’t speak, Lady Aria spoke up cautiously.

“Poblian.”

“……Yes, Lady Aria.”

“If you wish, I can demand right now that your sister fulfill the contract.”

“…….”

“Technically, the original party to this contract is your sister.”

“…….”

“Of course, if we do that, Winchester will not hold the Fennecs or you responsible. I swear this on the name of Winchester.”

Lady Aria’s voice, as she squeezed my hands, was firm. I knew her words weren’t just empty talk. Legally, I had come to Winchester by exploiting a loophole that only specified a “direct descendant” of the Fennec family, but at the time the contract was signed, Ariel was the only recognized descendant. Since I couldn’t humanize back then, I wasn’t officially recognized.

‘So if Winchester pointed that out and demanded Ariel be sent instead, the Fennecs would have no choice but to send my sister.’

I realized that was why Lady Aria was bringing this up. She wanted to tell me that if I truly wanted to go back to Anif, she could make it happen.

Anif was a peaceful, lovely place. The things I had experienced in my short month at Winchester were things I might only encounter once in a lifetime back in Anif.

‘If I just stay away from the main characters, how much drama could an extra’s life really have?’

If I played dumb and went back, I could enjoy the peaceful and comfortable life that every possessor or reincarnator dreams of.

‘Of course, that’s assuming Ariel could actually do her job.’

After thinking for a moment, I stole a glance at Lady Aria and asked softly, “Would it be… unacceptable for me to continue fulfilling the contract instead of my sister?”

I felt Lady Aria’s grip on my hands tighten. Her lips trembled as if she were debating what to say, then she spoke with resolve.

“Poblian, I am Esteban’s mother, but I am also Grand Duchess Winchester. I know very well how much of a burden it is to say this to someone as young as you.”

“…….”

“But I am going to be shameless and say it anyway.”

“…….”

“I want you, not anyone else, to stay at Winchester—by Esteban’s side. I am truly sorry for making such a request, but for the duration of the contract… could you stay here for just five more years?”

Past Lady Aria’s desperate face, I could see the gold sitting on the table. Only then did I realize why she had given me such a large allowance while also trying to send more gold to the Fennecs in my name.

The first thought I had upon realizing this was: Winchester had a legitimate contract with the Fennecs, so why was she so incredibly sorry to me?

I gave a bright smile to Lady Aria, who was clutching my hand like a lifeline.

“Well, first, I want to tell you that coming to Winchester instead of Ariel wasn’t because someone forced me. It was my own choice.”

“…….”

“That means I came here knowing from the very start that I would have to spend five years in Winchester.”

“……Poblian.”

I continued, grinning at Lady Aria’s face which was a mix of pity and gratitude.

“And my parents know that too. They sent me here to fulfill the contract knowing exactly what it meant.”

“…….”

“So you don’t have to feel so sorry to me or the Fennecs. It was a fair contract, wasn’t it?”

“But Poblian, you are still so young…….”

“It’s true I told Esteban I missed my parents, but I can handle it! I’m already thirteen, after all!”

My effort to sound extra brave seemed to work, as a faint smile finally touched Lady Aria’s lips. I picked up the larger of the two pouches on the table and said, “Since you said both allowances are mine, can I just take this one for this month? And from next month, I’ll take the smaller one!”

“You can have both.”

“Oh, if I spend too much now, it’ll be hard to adjust when I go back to Anif later. To be honest, I didn’t really have a separate allowance back at the Fennec house.”

Lady Aria, seemingly worried about my feelings after that playful answer, said even more carefully, “Poblian, you don’t need to feel burdened by what I give you. I just feel bad that you’re here away from your parents and……!”

“The fact that you accepted the change in the contractor to me is already more than enough payment, isn’t it?”

“…….”

“So it wouldn’t make sense to keep taking more. And this is just my own greed, but I want the Fennecs and the Winchesters to be on equal terms.”

“…….”

“That way, Esteban and I can be truly good friends.”