After making a black joke that left one unsure whether to laugh or cry.
I fell deep into thought, wondering if there was any way to somehow get Liliet out of here.
*As far as I know, Liliet should be forbidden from going outside.*
Of course, if I, as her uncle, were to take her out, there would be some justification.
The problem was the psychological resistance Liliet felt.
If I suggested taking a walk or looking around the ducal territory,
she would undoubtedly be unable to readily agree, even solely because of what her stepmother had said.
It couldn't be helped.
I felt sorry for our cute little niece, but
I supposed I would go with the 'make her impatient' strategy here.
Having immediately set the plan, I let out a loud sigh, as if for Liliet—who had returned to study mode—to hear.
"Haa, this is rather troublesome."
"Troublesome? Is something the matter?"
"Actually, I was planning to buy a new doll today. But I simply couldn't find one that caught my fancy. So I came here wondering if I might borrow our little niece's strength."
"My strength?"
Liliet tilted her head as if she couldn't understand.
It was an adorable cuteness, as if life had been breathed into a doll.
"Do you happen to know there's a famous doll shop in the ducal territory?"
"No. It's the first I've heard of it."
Yes, of course it is.
Actually, I made it up too.
Since it's a ducal territory and all, I figured there might be at least one such shop.
"I was planning to stop by there with you to get a recommendation for a new doll to bring home."
"...Ah!"
"But to think you had no interest in dolls. I'm in quite a bind. Since I was stopping by anyway, I thought I'd gift you a cute doll as well and look cool as an uncle, but..."
"U-um..."
Had she finally realized her mistake?
Liliet wandered about where to put her tiny, button-like hand, calling for me with a trembling voice.
She must be in quite a pickle.
Because she went and said with her own mouth that she didn't like them.
She'd ended up ruining her uncle's plans for no reason.
And on the other hand, she must be inwardly disappointed.
If things went well, she could have used me as an excuse to get a cute doll.
But even that path was now blocked.
I felt a bit sorry for seemingly tormenting Liliet like this, but
it was all for a greater cause, so I hoped she would endure just a little.
Now there were only two ways forward from here.
Either honestly admit that she actually liked dolls, mustering her courage,
or make an excuse on my behalf and offer to come along.
"If you need my help, Uncle, I don't mind..."
And our smart little niece chose the latter, as expected.
Rather than be branded a liar, she decided to tell yet another lie.
What a naughty little niece.
But this uncle forgives everything.
"No. I couldn't possibly trouble you when you should be focusing on your studies."
"Uuu..."
But while I said I forgive her, that didn't mean I would be easily swayed.
Please forgive this contrary uncle.
It was all because I wanted Liliet to be honest, so I hoped she wouldn't hate me too much.
"U-Uncle."
"You called?"
"I... I want to see the dolls too. Could you take me?"
Oho.
The reaction came faster than expected.
Perhaps breaking down the walls around Liliet's heart might happen sooner than planned.
Looking down at my niece, who grabbed my sleeve with her tiny hand, her ears dyed completely red as she pleaded,
"Gilbert, are you outside?"
"Yes, Young Master. Did you call for me?"
I called for Gilbert, who had been waiting outside.
Then I glanced down at Liliet, who was probably just now realizing something with a sudden sense of unease.
"Tell them I took Liliet out briefly for important business. If anyone says anything, use my name."
I spoke a bit loudly, as if for Liliet to hear.
At that moment, both Liliet's and Gilbert's eyes widened simultaneously.
Well, of course.
The 'Baal Arzent' I had known was someone who didn't care at all about the family's internal affairs.
Naturally, he wouldn't have known that Liliet was being persecuted by her stepmother.
Nor that she was being bullied by her only older brother.
But the way he had spoken just now—anyone could tell—sounded as if he were aware there were forces that would try to find fault with a ten-year-old child stepping out for a moment.
"Understood. Please go and return comfortably."
Gilbert, being quite quick-witted, nodded without making too much of a fuss.
Now all that was left was to take Liliet out.
Then it was time for the standard romance-fantasy trope.
"Um, Uncle? This hand...?"
"It means you should hold my hand."
"May I? Someone like me..."
"'Someone like me'? Escorting a beautiful lady is the greatest joy a man can know."
I deliberately knelt on one knee before the hesitating Liliet with exaggerated gestures.
"My beautiful niece. Would you spare this uncle some of your precious time?"
"......"
I extended my hand with an unctuous tone, as if I'd slathered it with a handful of butter and oil.
It was so cringeworthy I felt like my hands and feet were twisting up like squid legs on a grill.
Plop.
The moment I saw Liliet carefully place her hand on top of mine and quietly nod, it all melted away like snow.
"...Yes."
How pitiful it was to see that small hand trembling faintly.
Still, I smiled, feeling that there was merit in doing something I didn't usually do.
I sincerely hoped from the bottom of my heart that this child would become happy.
Holding that wish deep in my heart, I left the room with Liliet.
***
Clip-clop. Clip-clop.
Each time the horse's hooves struck the ground in a steady rhythm, Liliet, held in my arms, flinched.
She must feel uncomfortable in her unfamiliar uncle's embrace.
"Niece, are you very uncomfortable?"
"Yes? Ah, no. I'm fine. It's not that I'm uncomfortable, it's just..."
So she wasn't uncomfortable?
I thought it was Liliet's characteristic 'pretending everything is fine' kicking in,
but looking at her expression, that didn't seem to be the case.
Liliet, who had been stammering, turned her head slightly and glanced at me over her shoulder.
"It's my first time riding a horse alone with someone. I was just a little awkward."
"Your first time?"
"Yes. I've ridden in a carriage before."
Hearing a daughter of a duke's family say this, one would normally think,
'Ah, she must have been raised so delicately that she's only ridden in carriages.'
But knowing her circumstances, I couldn't overlook it so easily.
Rather, my heart ached even more.
*Even my strict father used to put me on a horse and play with me.*
Even when movement wasn't the goal, in this world's setting, horseback riding served as a form of entertainment.
For children of noble families,
it meant they had the experience of riding in their father's arms at least once when young.
But this child didn't even have such trivial memories.
Perhaps that's why Liliet, nestled in my arms, seemed somehow happy.
"I'm glad you're not uncomfortable. I was worried I was needlessly dragging you along for one of this uncle's few hobbies."
"A hobby?"
"Yes. I spend so many days alone in my workshop just reading books, so I took up riding around outside occasionally as a hobby, partly as strolls."
Actually, it was hard to call it a hobby.
I couldn't overcome the nagging of a certain someone nearby—I had to take walks,
but I didn't want to walk on my own two feet, so it was a compromise I'd barely managed to squeeze out.
At first, I tried riding in a carriage and reading books while circling the neighborhood,
but got scolded with 'is that really a walk?' so I had to compromise with a horse.
I felt a bit aggrieved as to why a carriage wasn't okay but a horse was,
but I couldn't win against the fundamental argument that a walk means basking in sunlight.
I even asked if it would be okay to ride in a carriage with the door open, but they just threw a book at me.
"By workshop, do you mean where you conduct your research, Uncle?"
"That's right."
"It must be a wonderful place."
"Not particularly wonderful. It's a place reeking of ink and rotting paper day in and day out. Rather than a workshop, it might be better suited to be called a dingy back room."
"Not a workshop but a back room... Pffft."
Oh, she laughed.
I hadn't particularly been aiming for that.
Rather, was Liliet's taste dad jokes?
I didn't recall anything like that in the original setting.
Well, whatever.
Just seeing a cute kid laugh cutely was more than enough satisfaction.
"Come to think of it, I heard the news. That you've reached the 7th Circle this time... It's late, but my sincere congratulations."
"Thank you. Your praise makes me happier than the compliments from the old fogeys at the Association."
"O-old fogeys?"
"They exist. Wrinkled grandpas and grandmas who've become slaves to the budget."
"Aren't they all very impressive people?"
"Hmm... Well, yes."
They were people of some renown.
But in my eyes, they were just old farts crazy for alcohol and budget.
There were even a few whom I had once respected.
They raised disciples and established research institutes or workshops,
and seeing them all become slaves to the budget afterward was quite pitiful.
"I heard you reached the 7th Circle at an unprecedented speed. Is that true?"
"It's embarrassing to say from my own mouth, but somehow it turned out that way."
"Who reached it the earliest before you?"
"My master, of course. He probably reached it at twenty-five."
"Three whole years earlier than such an amazing person..."
Liliet's eyes, filled with quiet admiration, held the spark of a child,
yet somehow felt melancholic from another angle.
Seeing her lips pout slightly, I could roughly guess her inner thoughts.
"Don't worry. Our little niece will become someone far greater than me."
"Ah, no. How could I possibly dare to be greater than you..."
So when I offered some encouraging words, her ears turned bright red and she waved her hands so frantically they became a blur.
She probably thought it was just empty flattery an uncle would normally give.
The most comedic part was that she'd never even heard such common empty flattery from anyone around her.
"It's not empty words to win your favor, but the truth. So trust this uncle."
But ironically, my words weren't exactly a kind lie to build rapport with Liliet.
Because it appears in the story too—
Liliet's true talent.
Actually, in this *Beloved Young Lady* world setting, there's a very important concept.
It's called the 'Grace of the Stars.'
Those who inherit this Grace of the Stars are born with one unique ability each.
The male protagonist, Leon, is the prime example.
Leon possessed the trait called 'Incomprehensible.'
This is the ability to be the only one capable of deviating from the laws and principles of the world.
Literally, it means becoming an existence that the world cannot comprehend.
The effect of this ability is simple:
One is not bound by fate, and when resisting fate, gains immense power.
With this ability, Leon, in the original work, when events reached a certain outcome—
had the power to destroy that outcome and save those around him.
It was a cheat-like ability befitting an original protagonist.
Conversely, when not resisting fate, it had no meaning.
That's why Leon's usual combat prowess wasn't as outstanding as one might think.
In the early days of the academy enrollment, he even lost to Liliet in practice matches.
Meanwhile, Liliet was also a possessor of the Grace of the Stars, though this was only revealed just before her death. Its name was...
*Admiration of the Sword,* was it?
It was an ability where, when she had someone she admired, the greater the bond and feelings toward that person, the more her power increased exponentially.
And in the original work, Liliet's object of admiration was naturally the protagonist, Leon.
The problem was that her feelings were admiration, not love or affection.
Just before death, realizing this fact through the female protagonist, Tiana, Liliet despaired and ended her own life.
She had been shocked to learn that the emotion she'd believed was love was nothing more than admiration.
One might say it falls short compared to Leon,
but according to the author's words, if Liliet had followed a normal route, she possessed such tremendous potential that she would have become the Empire's greatest sword.
*If I reach out my hand, the time for that power to manifest will come sooner.*
It doesn't have to be me who is the object of admiration.
Actually, there's no need to rush it.
If things flow as they should, Liliet will meet Leon at the academy and face that destiny.
It's just greed as this child's uncle, as the person most attached to her, so to speak.
I wish for her to awaken to that power a bit sooner and achieve faster growth,
so that the day she is recognized by those around her comes quicker—that's the personal desire I hold.
"Do you understand? Keep this uncle's words firmly in mind, Liliet. You are a child more special and precious than anyone."
"...Yes, Uncle."
Liliet's face still looked confused as she answered.
It felt as if she were saying, *'Someone like me?'*
I didn't try to force the words I'd just spoken into her head.
She would come to realize it eventually anyway.
Because I would make it so.
Hee-yi-ing—!
Soon after, when the slowly walking horse came to a halt,
we had arrived at the ducal territory and dismounted side by side.
"U-Uncle...!"
"K-heuk!"
No, let me correct that.
More precisely, Liliet was so cute, unable to get down and not knowing what to do, that I left her like that for a moment.
Look at her arms and legs flailing about.
She's so adorable I could die, really.