I Became the Childhood Friend of the Northern Duchess – Chapter 20

The passage of time changes many things.

Even the colossal mountains, the winding rivers, and the once-immortal imperial castle.

And people aren’t any different in that regard. No, it’s precisely because they are humans that they are most affected by the changes of time.

When Edgar’s height was about the same as the sunflowers blooming in the garden, many changes also came upon him.

First, he was able to use magic.

Though not very skillfully, he could handle low-level spells even without holding a sword.

Moreover, after nearly four years of rigorous training without fail, Edgar had developed quite a bit of muscle.

While still not having a bulky physique, he had gained a decent amount of muscle that suited his age.

This was also why Edgar felt quite proud recently.

“You’re quite diligent today, my son.”

“Yes, have you woken up?”

The two greeted each other as father and son met on the first floor early in the morning and headed straight to the dining room.

Edgar, having forgotten to bring his wooden sword, leaned it against the wall at the entrance of the dining room before stepping inside.

Katria, who had arrived earlier, warmly welcomed him.

“Good morning, my son.”

“Yes, Mother. How are you feeling?”

Worried about his mother, who had recently suffered from a severe cold, Edgar immediately asked her about her condition, prompting a gentle smile from her lips.

“I’m feeling better now, thanks to the herbs you brought me.”

“That’s a relief. If I need to go to the mountains again, I’ll gather more.”

Edgar had started frequently visiting the mountains around the time he turned thirteen last year.

While searching through books, he became interested in learning about herbs and thought he might make use of what his friend gifted him.

If he delved deeper into the study, it would be possible to create potions from herbs or combine them to make new medicines, but that was still beyond his reach.

However, he had managed to memorize several herbs that were good for specific ailments, and since then, he had benefited greatly from that knowledge.

“Oh, by the way, I heard that Lady Helene is coming today.”

“What about Ariel?”

“She’ll probably come too, right?”

Edgar slightly tilted his head as if sensing something amiss.

He had a childhood friend with whom he had shared nearly thirteen years, but her recent behavior had been somewhat strange.

In the past, she would incessantly come and go from the Billhark Family, holding Helene’s hand, but these days, she seemed to rarely show her face, and sometimes Helene would visit the Billhark Family alone.

Was she preoccupied with something? Whenever he asked Helene about it, she would just shake her head and smile as if she couldn’t answer.

‘Has she hit puberty?’

They say girls hit puberty faster than boys, so it wasn’t particularly surprising.

He had somewhat anticipated it since the beginning of the year.

Still, the one thing that baffled him was what catching pubescence had to do with avoiding friends.

Edgar had experienced puberty himself, but during that time, he had become more distant from his parents rather than his friends.

He felt as if he might have made some mistake, yet there were no obvious signs pointing to that.

Could it be that she had business with her family? There were no signs of such a thing, though.

‘I don’t know.’

He couldn’t know everything about someone else’s inner thoughts, so he had no choice but to move on.

Time will sort it out, after all.

“That was delicious.”

“You finish quickly. I still have half left.”

“Well, that’s just how I am.”

With a good appetite, Edgar always finished his meals faster than his adult father, even though he didn’t eat less than him.

Having stood up first, he started to leave but remembered something.

“Mother, could you call me when Ariel arrives? I’m going to try to get some rest.”

“Isn’t that the kid who said it’s not good to sleep right after eating?”

“Well, sometimes such days come around.”

Shrugging his shoulders, Edgar turned away, and Katria chuckled at her son, who seemed to be getting more of a sly fox every day.

Meanwhile, leaving the dining room and heading to his room, Edgar plopped down heavily onto his bed.

Regardless of what happened when Ariel arrived, his day wouldn’t be peaceful.

So, he needed to conserve his energy beforehand.

An hour of sleep should be enough.

It would be nice if he had an alarm clock for times like this, but unfortunately, such things didn’t exist in this world.

‘Maybe I should get a personal attendant.’

That was also the very first question his father, Ransel, had asked him when the new year began.

He had asked if he needed a personal user.

At first, he felt uncomfortable with someone hanging around him, and he didn’t particularly like directing someone lower in status, so he declined the offer. But he was gradually starting to feel the necessity.

Especially right now.

‘Maybe one day, that day will come.’

There was no need to rush into thoughts, so Edgar decided to let go of his musings and slowly fell into a lower state of consciousness.

With that, his body began to feel a little heavier.

* * * * * * *

Clatter. Clatter.

A carriage carrying a precious guest made its way with a vigorous sound, bustling towards its destination.

Inside the carriage were a pair of mother and daughter, both with long black hair. If one only looked at their appearance, they might easily mistake them for sisters with a minor age difference.

Ariel, staring vacantly outside, sighed softly at the countless similar sceneries she had been watching for hours.

“Every time I come, I feel like Ardeum is so bland. Right, Mom?”

“We can’t help it. It’s quite far from the Dimensional Stone.”

Ardeum was located almost at the northeast end geographically.

And there were only four places in the northern region where one could use the Dimensional Stone for teleportation, with the closest one to Ardeum being over four hours away by carriage.

For a daughter who couldn’t stand such boredom, it must have been quite a torture.

Helene smiled, patting her daughter’s head as if she understood her feelings.

“You’re not a kid anymore, so stop being petted like that.”

“What can I do? I still look like a kid to you.”

“Oh dear…”

Despite saying that, Helene didn’t seem to genuinely dislike it, as Ariel subtly leaned against her mother, surrendering her weight.

Now fourteen, Ariel had matured considerably.

The child who used to treat her mother like a friend had just recently learned to speak formally and was beginning to restrain herself in her actions.

Occasionally, she found herself missing those times, but as a mother, she knew she should bless her growing child and bore it.

She still vividly remembered the surprise she felt the first time her child had asked her, “Did you sleep well?”

“How boring it would have been if you stayed at the family home.”

“I just wanted to have some quality time with Mom.”

“Haha, our daughter is quite eloquent now.”

In the past, she had clung to her mother, expressing her affection directly.

But now, it seemed shy for her to voice such words, carefully concealing her feelings behind her words, which was just adorable.

“By the way, is there something going on with the Billhark Family?”

“Well, I need to discuss something for a moment.”

“It must be something that can’t be sent via letters or through someone else.”

“That’s right.”

Ariel turned her head back to the window in understanding, seeming to take in the scenery once more, which had been repetitively dull. Now, it looked like she might be admiring someone’s face as she gazed intently for a while.

Looking at this, Helene couldn’t help but stifle a laugh, trying hard not to let her daughter notice.

She seemed to believe she had matured considerably, and while that was true, there was still something that hadn’t changed.

It was that she seemed even younger now than when she was just ten years old.

“Daughter, there’s something I’d like to ask you.”

“What is it?”

Why the sudden question?

Her mother was someone who already knew everything about her. There was nothing to hide.

Ariel instinctively shrank back in nervousness, and Helene smiled silently as she finally spoke out what she wanted to ask.

“Isn’t the reason you’re going to the Billhark Family today for something else?”

“…?”

Blink. Blink.

Taken by surprise by the sudden question, Ariel wore a dazed expression as if she’d been hit over the head with a blunt object.

And soon, the warmth rising from within began to envelop her face entirely.

The sound of something bursting was just a figment of her imagination.

“W-What do you mean? W-Why would I have any business in such a backwater place…!”

“Oh really? I heard from Shuri that you put on quite the flower arrangements early in the morning, which you don’t usually do?”

“Shuri…!”

Shuri was the maid assigned to Ariel last year, a daughter of Helene’s maid, Shefi.

As soon as the unexpected name popped up, Ariel couldn’t help her anger and snapped her jaw.

Why would such trivial nonsense reach her mother’s ears and drop her into this embarrassing situation?

She resolved to punish Shuri as soon as she returned to the family home.

“Looks like it’s true that there’s something else going on after all.”

“O-Of course! Why would I want to meet that idiot Ed!?”

“Oh my.”

Helene’s reaction was one of surprise, but the smile on her lips held a different tone.

It was as if she was saying, ‘Got you there.’

And without a hint of mercy for her beloved daughter, added the final blow.

“Daughter, Mom didn’t say that the reason was Ed, did she…?”

“Huh?”

A solid three seconds of silence followed.

Ariel quickly raised her hands to cover her red face and shook her head as if she knew nothing.

That idiot Ed was not good for her at all.

Not one proper letter had been sent, and he made her heavy-hearted.

What a real fool, an idiot, Ed.

Once I see him, I’ll definitely knock my fist into his face.