To the point where her age of ten was hard to believe.
Liliet's attitude was polite and courteous.
"Yes. And how have you been, Uncle?"
"I've done nothing but pore over books all day, so I'm not in the best shape."
I'd been locked up in my workshop trying to reach the 7th Circle, after all.
It felt like my entire body still reeked of ink and paper.
"What brings you to see me today?"
A faint anxiety lingered in Liliet's eyes as she asked the reason for my visit.
How bitter.
Kids her age normally, when a man who is an uncle—or an uncle figure—comes to visit,
should have their eyes sparkling, thinking, 'Oh, maybe he'll give me some pocket money.'
Just how terrible must the lot who'd come to see her have been for her to act like this? Tsk.
"Since I've returned to the main house after a long time, I came to see my pretty niece's face. I also have some important business."
"My face? It's not particularly pretty, though."
"Really? To this uncle, it's a very pretty face. You'll have men weeping for you later."
"Th-thank you for the compliment."
Liliet showed a surprised expression before bowing her head respectfully.
But I could tell.
That this child hadn't felt even the slightest stir of emotion.
No, to be exact, she had likely taken my praise as empty words.
Just how little praise must she have received growing up to act like this?
In my previous life, my younger sister would flush red and giggle endlessly whenever the adults around her praised her for being cute.
"Niece, do you have time later?"
"Did you ask if I have time? I have to study today."
"Study? Do you have a test or something?"
"Ah, no. It's just that neglecting one's studies is unbecoming of a member of the Argent family..."
Liliet spat out a far-fetched excuse, avoiding my eyes.
No doubt she couldn't stand her stepmother's nagging and was about to sit at her desk, practically forced.
Good grief, how much is there to study when you're ten?
Seeing parents desperate to push their kids around, both in my past life and now, makes my teeth grind.
They'd be better off going to the playground and playing in the dirt.
"I see. That's a good attitude. Then what were you studying? May this uncle take a look?"
"Ah, yes..."
In my heart, I wanted to take Liliet out of here right now, buy her something tasty to eat, and take her for a walk.
But for now, I decided to hold back and narrow the distance between our hearts.
'It was mentioned in the original story, too, that Liliet felt safe in this room.'
For Liliet, this room was a prison, but also the only sanctuary that protected her.
Because in the original story, her stepmother and her older brother, among others—
the people who tormented her didn't come all the way to this room to do so.
Truly ironic.
That the prison confining her felt the most comfortable.
Perhaps it was because she couldn't yet think of this place as a prison.
She was a child who didn't even know what freedom was; it was possible she couldn't even think of leaving here.
For now, I'd narrow the gap by teaching her some stud— ...hmm?
"...Niece, what was it you were studying?"
"The basics and practical application of swordsmanship."
"......."
It seemed my plan to narrow the distance by showing off a cool uncle side had been ruined from the very first step.
I should have at least learned the bare basics of swordsmanship when Father nagged me about it.
***
Her blue eyes darted about restlessly.
She looked this way once, then at her notebook once.
Then she stole another furtive glance this way before snapping her head away, repeating the motion.
Guess I was making her uncomfortable.
Well, if I put myself in her shoes, I'd feel awkward too.
An uncle she'd barely ever spoken to had suddenly barged into her room and was now staring at her studying from the seat beside her.
'Cute.'
But there was such childlike adorableness in her demeanor that I decided to savor the sight a little longer.
To me, who had only known Liliet as the cold, prickly figure from the original story, it was an incredibly fresh sight.
"U-um, Uncle."
"Hm?"
"You said you came for important business. If it's not presumptuous, may I ask the reason?"
"Ah."
Right. Get a hold of myself.
I'd pulled out an excuse on the spot, but hadn't thought about what came after.
I guess I'm hopeless at using my head for anything besides magic.
"That's right. But I can't disturb my niece, so let's talk later."
"Yes."
Still, after making up a suitable excuse, Liliet thankfully seemed convinced.
Though she probably wasn't actually convinced.
She'd likely closed her mouth because she had nothing to say after I brushed it off.
By the way.
'It's really barren.'
What kind of ten-year-old girl's room looks like this?
I half-expected a ghost to appear in this room.
The essentials were certainly there.
In other words, that was all there was.
There wasn't even a small doll for a child to play with, let alone—
—not even plants one might commonly use to decorate a room.
A servant's room was probably decorated better than this.
"Niece."
"Yes, Uncle."
"Do you not like dolls, by any chance?"
"Dolls? Well..."
When I asked casually out of curiosity, Liliet averted her gaze.
It was the most troubled expression she'd shown yet.
She must have found it hard to answer easily.
I knew.
Because in the original story, Liliet loved dolls very much.
Even after entering the prime of her youth, she displayed small dolls in her academy dormitory and lived among them, that's how much she loved them.
In a way, she was making up for lost time.
She wouldn't have been able to do so while at the main house.
Because of Casdia Argent.
That damned second sister-in-law had never bought her any, spouting absurd logic about how it didn't make sense for a daughter of the Argent family to play with frail dolls.
No, if she had merely stopped at not buying them, that would have been better.
That crazy bitch had committed an insane act of burning the stuffed doll Liliet had saved up her allowance to buy right before her eyes.
"...Yes. A daughter of the Argent family has no need for such fragile things."
The expected answer came back.
And along with it, the expected change in expression.
The sight of the ten-year-old child desperately trying not to reveal her true feelings was so heart-wrenching it made my chest tighten to the point of choking.
She'd grown up too fast.
But saying that was too cruel.
To be exact, I should say she'd grown adept at hiding her emotions too early.
It might be a very useful ability in society.
But for a child her age, it was hardly a desirable ability.
Yet I didn't have enough built-up rapport to make her reveal her honest feelings.
Then how about this?
"Really? It's embarrassing to admit, but this uncle loves dolls very much."
"What? Y-you, Uncle?"
Had she never imagined a robust, full-grown man with a head of dark hair would say he liked dolls?
Liliet opened her eyes wide like a startled squirrel.
It looked as though lakes would overflow from her eyes.
"Is something strange?"
"Ah, no. I just thought it was a little unexpected rather than strange."
"What part?"
"That someone as strong as you, Uncle, likes dolls like me."
"But didn't you say you don't particularly like dolls?"
"Huh? Ah, um, well...."
So even a child has her limits when it comes to hiding her true feelings.
Whether it was because she felt a sense of kinship or because she was simply impatient,
I smiled as I watched her unconsciously use herself as a point of comparison.
What a shame.
If only I'd pressed a little more, I could have heard Liliet's true feelings.
"Haha, just kidding. Of course, as you said, it may be unexpected. But I think, on the contrary, your view feels slightly narrow-minded."
"I'm sorry."
"I'm not blaming you. I just want you to change your thinking a little."
I straightened my index finger and pointed at Liliet as I spoke.
"You spoke as though dolls were things that strong people shouldn't like, didn't you?"
"Yes."
"What is the reason for that?"
"That's...."
It must be hard to answer.
After all, no matter how mature she tries to act, she's only a ten-year-old child.
For example, boys like robots.
And girls should like dolls—let's say that's the common perception for children this age.
Even so, if you press for the reason, it's hard to explain.
Because it's simply the common perception of the world.
She grew up seeing and hearing that, so it's only natural she thinks that way.
And for Liliet, the only person capable of instilling so-called common perception was none other than Casdia Argent.
It was a simple matter.
She only needed to say it.
That dolls are things for the weak to play with.
That they are unsuitable for a daughter of the Argent family.
Listening to her stepmother's teachings delivered as if they were the natural order of the world, this child would have had no way to reject them in her mind.
Even if she had originally liked dolls.
She would only come to think of it as wrong, as a sin, and gradually grow distant from it.
It wouldn't lead to questioning or attaching doubt to it.
That is the most important reason why you mustn't force knowledge or ideas onto a child.
"...I'm sorry. I don't really know."
"It's okay. Not knowing something isn't wrong."
"It isn't wrong?"
"Why? Has there been someone who said it was wrong to admit you don't know something?"
"No, it's just...."
As if stung, Liliet flinched in surprise and avoided my eyes again.
Somehow, everywhere I stepped was a minefield.
And these weren't even mines this child had laid herself.
They were the shit some deranged bitch had dropped all over the place, which made it even worse.
"Anyway, to share this uncle's humble opinion, it's merely the narrow-minded values of the world."
"Why is that?"
"Because there should be no right or wrong in liking something."
Liliet gasped in surprise.
It seemed that single sentence carried some resonance for this child.
"Of course, that doesn't mean anything goes. For example, niece, have you ever seen people causing a scene while heavily drunk?"
"Yes, Father once..."
"What did you think when you saw that?"
"I was a little scared."
"That's it."
Pointing my thumb up as if praising a good observation, I continued my explanation.
"No matter how much you like something, you mustn't cause trouble for others. If you like alcohol too much and cause a scene, or like money too much and exploit people, those are certainly sins."
"That's true."
"But if this uncle likes dolls, does anyone suffer for it?"
"No."
"Right. Far from causing harm, it would be a great help to the doll shop owner."
Of course, if we took this further, there would be much more to consider.
Just because you don't harm others and like something alone,
if one asks whether it is necessarily morally correct, another answer might emerge.
But this child didn't need to know that much right now.
All I wanted to tell her was, 'Your preference is not wrong.'
"In other words, whether you may like something or not is for you to judge. The gazes and voices of the world can be important at times, but they aren't necessarily correct. Do you understand?"
"Yes."
"Good. As expected, our niece is smart."
When I clapped my hands together in praise, Liliet blinked her eyes blankly.
"Why do you look like that?"
When I asked the reason for her odd reaction, Liliet flusteredly waved her hands,
and answered with a strange expression impossible to tell if she was shy or sad.
"Actually... I'm happy because it's the first time I've ever been praised."
"......."
I could feel the complex emotions contained in that one sentence so keenly that I stopped speaking without realizing it.
When I came to see Liliet for the time being, I'd have to prepare a barrage of praise.