Sure! Here is the translation:
—
After sending Tia to school, I was busy folding laundry when the central telephone rang with a ping.
“I’ll go down and check!”
Though I had learned how to use it, I had very few opportunities to actually use the telephone.
The telephone wasn’t widely available, and nobles tended to prefer letters sealed with magic for ease of communication.
Since there were hardly any nobles familiar with Duke Dragania, the only times I had received a call were when the government office had urgent news.
I picked up the receiver, slightly puzzled.
“This is Dragania. Please state your identity and the purpose of your call.”
“This is the captain of the guards. We have confirmed that three unidentified demons have entered the institution through the main gate. It is highly likely that all three are armed. We will update you again when we capture them, so please refrain from outdoor activities and exercise special caution. Additionally, please contact us if you have any further information.”
“······!”
It felt as if my heart had dropped.
If it were just a few illegal aliens roaming about the institution, the captain wouldn’t be making such a fuss.
It was clear that something much more serious was at hand.
For example, those three demons could be dangerous individuals…
“Who is it? What did they say?”
“Tia is in danger…”
“Hey! Julia! You have to tell me what’s going on!”
This was a big deal.
Tia was in danger.
I hurried out of the villa and headed towards the main gate.
Without a coachman, there was no one to drive the carriage.
I would have to catch any carriage off the road.
The butler would surely be furious at such an undignified act, but there was no choice in an emergency.
“Oh no, what do I do…”
I felt like I was losing my mind.
My heart was pounding wildly, and I couldn’t calm down.
By now, St. Sophia must have received the same warning and declared a state of emergency.
However, it wasn’t yet time for a carriage to have arrived at the school.
There was a significant chance that Tia might encounter danger on the way.
“Hurry, hurry…”
As I rushed around the corner, it seemed my hair tie had snagged on some bars and broken.
My hair fell loose and disheveled, but there was no time to fix it.
I even tripped once on my long skirt.
When I finally got onto the main road, it was chillingly empty.
Instead of the usual crowd of pedestrians and carriages that filled the area, fully armed soldiers were stationed at the pathways.
Seeing that made me even more afraid.
It made it clear that this was truly a dangerous situation.
“Excuse me! Miss! Where are you going?”
“······.”
If there were no carriages, I had no choice but to run.
I ignored the soldiers trying to stop me and started to run toward the outskirts.
I had to confirm that Tia was safe, no matter what.
Only then might this pounding in my chest subside slightly.
“Ah?!”
At that moment, my wrist was gripped tightly, causing me to lean forward.
Fortunately, someone’s hand wrapped around my waist from behind, preventing me from falling.
I became a bundle of laundry caught in a strong arm.
“Let go of me! Please!”
“Calm down.”
“I’m in a hurry! My daughter is in danger!”
“Calm down, Julia. Look at my face. It’s me.”
“······.”
I struggled, but both my wrists were caught.
Realizing that there was no way to escape, I looked into the face of the man holding me.
It was a man in the usual black priest’s outfit.
It was Alexander.
The moment I saw his face, the excitement dulled a little.
“Ah, Alexander. Could you do me a favor? Just hold off the soldiers for a bit. I don’t have time for checks. I’ll be right back after a visit to St. Sophia. Okay?”
“Julia. It’s fine. You don’t have to worry.”
“No, it seems you don’t understand the situation…”
“I understand well. I just received a report. All three of the demon assassins were found dead in an alley.”
“Still, I need to check if my daughter is safe…”
“Tia is safe as well. I just confirmed that she was unharmed and entrusted her to the guards for protection on my way here.”
“Ahh…”
My legs went weak.
I sat down right there on the street.
Thank goodness.
What a relief.
After being so tense, I finally relaxed and even felt tears come to my eyes.
In the end, I ended up crying for a good while in the middle of the street.
Throughout it all, Alexander quietly stayed by my side.
“Are you alright now?”
“Yes. But why did you come to find me?”
“······.”
Once I regained my composure, a natural question formed in my mind.
Why had Alexander come here?
Why had he sought me out?
Did he come to personally inform me that the situation had been resolved, thinking I might be worried about Tia?
That didn’t make sense.
He couldn’t personally visit every parent of the students.
There had to be another special reason.
When I looked up at Alexander, he seemed to have a slightly awkward expression.
“Actually…”
“Yes. Please feel free to speak.”
“The three demons that entered from the Demon Realm were confirmed to be assassins sent by the remnants of the Demon King’s army, based on my investigation.”
I was about to ask how he confirmed that but stopped myself.
Come to think of it, this man had been involved in assassinations as well.
I had forgotten about that.
He likely had connections in that area of information.
“I’m truly sorry, but it seems that the target of those assassins was none other than Lady Tiamat.”
“What?!”
I nearly fainted from shock.
I had thought it unlikely, but it turned out to be true…
Once again, my heart dropped.
I was deeply relieved again that Tia was safe.
“It was you, the priest, who stopped it. Thank you so much.”
“No. I didn’t kill those three… Hmm. I’m not sure. When they were discovered, all three were dead side by side.”
Alexander hesitated for a moment before clearing his throat and continuing to answer.
An unknown vigilante had presumably taken out the three assassins before they could reach Tia.
And Tia was scheduled to return home immediately under the protection of the guards…
In any case, St. Sophia declared a school closure today and sent all students back, so there would be no impact on her studies.
“It might sound a bit irresponsible, but we have no idea why the remnants of the Demon King’s army are targeting Lady Tia. Do you have any guesses?”
“No, I don’t…”
“I’ll try to identify the cause as soon as possible. Until then, I’ll keep a close watch over Lady Tia and protect her.”
“Is that really okay?”
“Yes. From now on, I’ve taken on the role of her supervising teacher.”
“······.”
I took his outstretched hand and stood up.
I was so bewildered that I couldn’t say anything.
He wasn’t part of the garrison or the local church; he was a member of the church sent for a special mission.
The fact he was willing to take responsibility for Tia filled me with gratitude.
While his method might be somewhat unsavory, it was clear that Alexander was truly committed to the justice he believed in.
I felt that way.
I turned silently and shouted toward Alexander’s back as he was about to leave.
“Teacher!”
“Ah! It’s a bit embarrassing outside. Please rein it in…”
“Thank you. I really appreciate it.”
“I didn’t do it for thanks. It was just what I had to do.”
“Still, thank you. I just wanted to say that.”
“······.”
Alexander blushed slightly as if he was embarrassed, scratched his head, and turned back to leave.
It seemed praise was still awkward for him.
That look was slightly cute.
*
“Mom! They said I don’t have to go to school today!”
“Ugh…”
Not long after, a carriage carrying Tia arrived under the escort of the guards.
I jumped off the carriage and tightly hugged Tia as she ran toward me.
There she was.
My soft and cuddly daughter, Tia.
I almost cried again, and I had to stifle my tears for some time, hugging Tia tightly.
“I am the guard who will be patrolling this area regularly from now on. If anything happens, please let me know.”
“Yes…”
“Mom, I’m uncomfortable! Let go of Tia!”
I replied while still holding Tia tightly.
Then the guards simply bowed and withdrew.
Once there were no watchful eyes, I gently set Tia down and quickly checked her all over—her face, arms, legs, everywhere.
There were no injuries.
Except for a slight scrape on her knee, likely from running and falling.
“Muhuh, Mom, that tickles!”
“Ah. What a relief…”
If anything had happened to Tia, I really, really…
I wouldn’t have been able to maintain my sanity.
Tia seemed blissfully unaware of how serious the situation had been today.
It seemed she hadn’t encountered any assassins at all.
I was so glad that this smile hadn’t been distorted.
I held Tia tightly for a long time without letting go.
“Muhh! Mom, it’s uncomfortable! I want to go out now!”
“No. Let’s stay like this a bit longer.”
“Ah, Julia! Did you hear? The Duke visited the institution!”
“What…?”
“Muh?!”
As I loosened my grip, Tia, who had been trying to push away from me, toppled backward.
I turned to where the voice had come from.
There were maids gathering together, whispering.
“When did that happen?”
“He attended the parliament yesterday. But some people saw him today as well. Strangely, he was spotted in an alley. If he was going to spend the night at the institution, he could have stayed at this villa, so why didn’t he come?”
“Isn’t it obvious? Unless he slept with another woman.”
“Is that so?! The Duke has a lover in the institution…!”
While the maids were chattering on with such nonsense, my head was filled with complicated thoughts.
The demon assassins from the Demon Realm had been found dead.
Yet from Tia’s reaction, it was clear that the assassins had likely been dead before they could confront her.
In other words, someone had known that the assassins would harm Tia and had preemptively stopped their approach.
Only one person came to mind who could do that.
No matter how far away he was, he had the ability to oversee everything.
Someone who cherishes Tia dearly.
‘Duke Dragania.’
Adding to that the information that he had been spotted in the institution today, it was now certain.
That man had been keeping an eye on Tia and had protected her.
It might not be just this one time.
There might have been several instances like this, but they just hadn’t surfaced until now.
Thinking that filled me with a sudden surge of anger.
‘You bastard…’
He says he would go back to his homeland.
If he was going to stay close, then why did he leave?
This cowardly jerk…
I was frustrated and could no longer hold back my anger.
“I can’t let this go. I have to see the Lord.”
“What?!”
“What do you mean?”
I would have to face him again.
I needed to see his face and talk to him.
What on earth had he been thinking when he left?
Did he truly feel sorry?
Was he being so attentive to Tia out of genuine remorse?
Or did he have another feeling altogether?
I felt like I needed to question him directly.
Only by laying everything out can I calm this restless and itching heart of mine a little.
