Chapter 64

The next day.

“So, with that in mind...”

Father had called Kyle and me into his office, then suddenly made an announcement.

“I’m going to train Kyle to become one of our order of knights.”

Dun-dun—!

“Gasp.”

My mouth dropped open into a little triangle.

And Kyle...

“So that means I get to stay with Aisha?”

Completely unaware of the grim future awaiting him, his round eyes sparkled with excitement.

***

A few days later.

“Oh! Kyle turned into a human. And your eye color's different today too?”

“Hi. Mister told me I have to drink a potion every day from now on.”

That was when Father finally explained Kyle to me.

Kyle was a demon—half monster, half human.

He could communicate with monsters, and one day that ability would become an incredibly powerful gift.

Which was why—

“You're going to class today, right?”

“Yeah.”

Father intended to raise the still-young Kyle properly.

“My feet feel weird.”

“Your feet?”

“Someone put something on them.”

Kyle pouted and tapped the floor with the toes of his shoes.

He was dressed neatly in a shirt and shorts.

Naturally, he was wearing shoes as well, though he still looked a little awkward in them, as if he'd never worn any before.

“Those are shoes. If you're going to live as a human from now on, you'll have to wear them. You'll get used to them, okay?”

“Hmph.”

He puffed out his lips, but his head bobbed up and down in agreement.

Hmm.

What should I do? Why am I the one feeling anxious just because he's going to class?

Kyle reminded me of a little child left alone by the water.

Just a couple of days ago, he'd still been my tiny kitten, so I couldn't help worrying.

Since it's his first lesson, I should take him there myself.

Clap!

I clapped my hands at Kyle, who was still performing some strange tap dance in his new shoes.

“Kyle. Focus.”

“Hm?”

“If someone asks you, ‘Who are you?’ what should you say?”

“Umm...”

Kyle's eyes grew round at my question.

After thinking very seriously, he lifted his brows and answered proudly,

“I'm the king of the monsters.”

“Nooo!”

That's the last thing you should say!

I narrowed my eyes into sharp triangles and gave my order.

“You can't say that. Now repeat after me.”

“Hm?”

“I'm Kyle. Nice to meet you.”

I held out my hand in greeting.

Kyle awkwardly looked back and forth between me and my hand.

Then—

“...I'm Kyle. Nice to meet you.”

As he spoke, he took my hand.

Shake, shake.

As praise, I gently shook our joined hands.

His eyes widened, and the tips of his ears slowly turned pink.

“Very good! From now on, you greet everyone like that, okay?”

“Why?”

“Because today's class is Noble Etiquette and Character Development. This is the very first step toward good character. If you want to become a good person, you need to build good character.”

“So if you don't have character, you're a bad person?”

“Something like that. Starting today, your teacher's going to help you find yours.”

“Oh.”

Fortunately, my little bit of advance coaching seemed to work.

Kyle, who had looked completely lifeless over a single pair of shoes, suddenly became motivated.

For now, I guess rote education is the way to go.

“Let's go to class now. Since it's your first lesson, I'll stay and watch.”

“Okay.”

Holding Kyle's hand, I slid open the door to Classroom One.

“Good morning, Lady Aisha. And I see today's student, Kyle, has arrived as well.”

The tutor welcomed us with a warm smile and a respectful bow.

Then—

“Dandelion?”

A familiar voice echoed through the classroom.

Huh? The only person who calls me Dandelion is older brother Lucas.

Surprised, I poked my head into the room.

“What are you doing he—”

Lucas began, his delighted gaze shifting from me to Kyle.

Then—

“That bastard... How dare he hold Dandelion's hand?! Hey! Who are you?!”

Crash!

Lucas flipped over his desk and marched straight toward us.

“How dare you.”

Ah.

Come to think of it...

“You've got some nerve grabbing Dandelion's hand!”

That's right! Kyle and older brother Lucas were supposed to be taking the same class!

And this is the first time Lucas has ever seen Kyle...

“Older brother, it's not what it looks like—”

Sweating nervously, I tried to hide the hand I was holding with Kyle behind my back.

“Young Lord.”

A large figure stepped between us and Lucas.

“The gentleman beside Lady Aisha is Kyle. He'll be attending lessons with you.”

It was the tutor, still smiling politely.

“What? Kyle?”

Lucas stopped in his tracks.

Crossing his arms with a scowl, he glared at Kyle.

“Who is this guy, and why's he taking lessons with me? Don't tell me he's from the main line too?”

“He isn't from the main line. However, both Young Lord Lucas and Kyle happen to require the same subjects. His Grace decided it would be best for them to study together.”

“Father said that himself? Fine, whatever.”

Whoosh—

“Y-Young Lord Lucas!”

The instant the tutor let his guard down, Lucas darted forward.

With a lightning-fast hand-blade, he chopped our joined hands apart.

“......”

Then he lifted his chin with a smug expression that practically said,

See that? That's my skill.

“So what are you? If you're not from the main line, are you from a branch family? You've got a lot of nerve trying to study with me.”

Innocently, Kyle blinked.

Then—

“I'm Kyle. Nice to meet you.”

As though he hadn't heard a single word Lucas had said, Kyle held out his hand for a handshake.

“What? Hah!”

Smack!

Naturally, Lucas slapped his hand away.

“...Oh.”

Kyle stared at his hand hanging awkwardly in midair, his eyes wide.

But Kyle's bizarre behavior wasn't over.

If anything, it had only just begun.

“Where did your character go? Did you lose it?”

“...What?”

“Aisha said people who don't shake hands don't have any character. If you lost yours, you should hurry up and find it.”

“You done talking? Looks like words aren't gonna wor—”

“Young Lord Lucas?”

At that moment—

The tutor stepped between them once more and placed a red sticker onto a report sheet.

“For refusing Kyle's handshake, and for using inappropriate language... that's two demerit stickers.”

“Wah! Teach—”

“In the classroom, you must address me respectfully. That's another demerit sticker.”

“Aagh! Teacher, sir!”

As another terrifying red sticker was added—

“What's a demerit sticker?”

Kyle, curious about absolutely everything, perked up his ears and approached the tutor.

“Well... it means you've lost some of your character. You have to earn smile stickers to get it back.”

“Oh. So Lucas is a character beggar right now?”

“Hey! I'm not a beggar!”

Lucas shouted.

Kyle looked completely bewildered.

The tutor quietly added another demerit sticker.

The same scene repeated itself over and over.

Looks like there's no place for me here.

Feeling strangely proud, I quietly slipped out of the classroom.

It was a relief to see Kyle adapting so well to his lessons.

As time passed, Kyle gradually became accustomed to life at the Kreutz estate.

The first piece of evidence—

Kyle had finally reached the point where he and Lucas actually greeted each other!

There had been one decisive turning point.

The other day, I was walking Kyle to class when—

Dandelion. You're still looking after that idiot?

Lucas, who had arrived early for class, suddenly rammed his shoulder into Kyle.

Lucas. You still haven't found your character? What if you get another demerit sticker?

Kyle answered with bright, innocent eyes, showing no sign that the hit had hurt.

From Lucas's perspective, it probably looked like an invisible idiot beam was shooting straight at him.

...Hey! If you're going to keep talking about character, then you have to call me older brother too!

Older brother?

Yeah! I'm older than you! So why don't you call me older brother Lucas? Did you lose your character too?

Okay, older brother Lucas.

......?

Lucas's eyes went perfectly round.

On the third day after meeting Kyle, my older brother finally realized something.

Kyle was far more innocent—and far more clueless—than he'd ever imagined.