“..Did you say ‘how dare’?”

Annette was the first to come forward. The villagers seemed to be frightened by the sudden appearance of Avilos, who had a peculiar appearance.

However, that girl, Annette, whom he met after 10 years, did not appear to be intimidated at all.

“Sir Avilus Theses.”

In the time he hadn’t seen her, the fact that her eyes were raised sharply gave off the feeling of a lady to the point that it was difficult to call her a little girl now.

There was power in the light green eyes.

―But it was nothing, Avilus smirked, twisting his lips.

She said with cold, sunken eyes.

“Sir Theses, be polite. This is where His Highness the Crown Prince of El Dorado and His Excellency the Grand Duke are. Not only that, but Marquis Winston is also here.”

As she looked around, calling them one by one, Sislin, Heinrich and Kyle, who were mixed among the villagers, appeared.

“....!”

Oops.

Avilus’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“Ah, that’s why I..”

Avilus’ words that were indicating a change in his attitude were cut off at once, and Annette emphasized each word and syllable.

“‘How dare’.”

“....!”

Suddenly, Avilus’s mouth shut.

“You have no manners in front of noble people, and you talk as you please.”

She lowered her eyes and said scornfully.

“This is not only a crime of ‘insulting the nobility’ but also a crime of ‘insulting the royal family.'”

“Miss Annette! Ha, what do you mean it’s an insult to the imperial family! Such wild accusations!”

Avilus was so embarrassed that he used former speech to the younger Annette. It was too late to take it back, so he gritted his teeth.

‘This wicked girl.’

She was even worse than before.

Avilus, of course, was not a commoner either, but it was clear that he was rude in the presence of high-ranking nobles and a member of the imperial family.

Annette, who had seized the momentum, looked back and uttered indifferently.

“..Isn’t that right, Your Highness the Crown Prince?”

“Ah.”

The man with eerie, bloody-looking red eyes gently stroked his ear.

“I certainly feel a bit insulted.”

“....!!!”

It was an expression that would eat the opponent alive. Sislin smiled, revealing his white teeth.

“Cutting off one of those unique ears will comfort the insult.”

“I, Your Highness, I—!”

Then, as if seeing something filthy, Heinrich frowned and said,

“I’ll take both arms then.”

The grand duke, also known as the Vivantum, shrugged his shoulders.

“I just don’t like the way it hangs.”

“....!!!”

‘Y-You crazy.’

Among the dogs, Marquis Kyle Winston, who looked normal, seemed to remain still, but he soon opened his mouth with his characteristic noble accent.

“I will do it with both ankles. Seeing him standing upright, he seems to be ignorant of obedience.”

“....!”

The carnivorous stag laughed softly.

“It is better to adopt a posture of submission for the rest of his life.”

—It was the craziest thing ever.

In addition, the expressions of the <Winston’s Shields> standing behind the Marquis of Winston looked as if they were going to grind Avilus (they were already vicious-looking, so the effect of a ‘bouquet of violent flowers’ was appearing).

“..Please, spare me!”

Avilus fell flat in his place.

“I apologize! I did not recognize Your Highness the Crown Prince, Your Excellency the Grand Duke of Hyacinth, and the Marquis of Winston.”

This was a place where there was no owner to protect him. There was no one to stop them from killing him.

Then Annette opened hermouth.

“—Stop it.”

“.....”

“.....”

“.....”

Surprisingly, the three madmen kept their mouths shut.

Lying down on his stomach, his eyes widened; Avilus couldn’t believe it.

What just happened?

All three of them were listening to the words of a small woman. It was as if a keeper who skillfully handled wild beasts appeared.

It was impossible to know what kind of power this little girl had.

Annette looked down on him unreservedly and said:

“Why did you come to me, Sir Theses?”

Avilus raised his head slightly as the crown prince had not yet allowed him to stand up, forcing him to let his forehead stay at her feet and replied,

“―Prince Gerard has sent a formal summons.”

As he was delivering the summons on behalf of Prince Gerard, it should have been done standing upright.

At this rate, it’s the same as Gerard putting his head down and offering the summons.

However, to Avilus who was wondering if he would allow him to get up from his current position, Sislin simply chewed and spit out these words:

“Not allowed.”

“....!”

Avilus, who represented Gerard’s power everywhere, was unfamiliar with this insult.

He trembled and handed the summons to Annette.

Annette looked down at the scroll for a moment.

‘What is written on it?’

Actually, she had a guess as she returned to town after being attacked by the Belkains. That Gerard would exert pressure not only by force but also formally.

So it wasn’t a shock.

Finally, having received the scroll, she opened the summons and checked the contents.

And,

‘Also.’

Arsenic entered the corners of Annette’s lips.

Not a single thing had changed in ten years with the vile, Gerard.

Yes, it’d be sad if it changed.

━━━━???━━━━

「‘Annette von Axelferion’ is ordered to immediately return to the Imperial Palace of El Dorado.

The deadline is three days.

If you do not voluntarily comply with the order, we will implement compulsory return measures in three days.

—Gerard von Axelferion」

I sat down at the table and looked through the summons alone.

‘This is a really mean tactic.’

—Forced return in two days.

If the summons came without anything else, it wouldn’t be considered mean, but..

Today, Gerard showed me.

What would happen to this small island of Bayonaire when the ‘forced return measures’ are implemented.

He probably has no intention of dragging me away quietly.

Even to break my spirit for disobeying orders.

Earlier, seeing this summons, Kyle said,

“Owner, at that time, you were not officially registered with Gerard, but you can finish the process even after you become an adult.”

“Doesn’t Sister already know? She knows more about the adoption laws of the empire than we do.”

—Heinrich was right. After escaping from Gerard, especially when I got bored, I would rummage through adoption laws.

I wanted to avoid it when a day like this came up (though there was no way to do it right away).

‘According to the imperial law, there are only two cases of stopping the entry process.’

One is when you have already formed a family and your own family exists.

The other was the succession of ‘titles’.

It was only possible when both were leading their own families.

It was rare for an adopted child to disappear without being registered during the adoption process, but it was a provision made a long time ago based on the case of an orphanage child who had been abducted.

When the family found the child again, he had already established a family on a distant land.

Eventually, the adoption process was canceled.

“..This is what Sislin meant.”

When I told him it would take some time before I could answer the proposal, he replied:

“I think you’ll decide soon.”

I whispered quietly.

“This is what he expected.”

As a way to avoid being formally adopted by Gerard, it might be a situation where, in fact, there was no other option but marriage.

‘Alas, this is like a mouse cornered with three totally expensive rings?’

‘Isn’t the mouse so luxurious?’

I pinched my chin and looked down at the table.

“..Is marriage really the only way?”

I took out the three ring cases and put them side by side.

I must marry one of the three madmen to escape the demon Gerard.

Heuk heuk,?oh my God. Why is the difficulty level of my life continuously in hard mode?

‘Isn’t this really too much?’

“..If not. As usual, I can come up with other methods.”

I shifted my gaze to the locket on the other side of the table.

It was spinning and twinkling next to the three rings.

―The light still had not stopped.

As if that was not enough, somehow, I felt that the light was getting brighter. It wasn’t an illusion.

The locket left by my parents.

‘It’s clear it’s a magic item. Based on this, there is a high probability that my parents are not ordinary commoners.’

Or, even if they were ordinary commoners, it might be possible to get an exemption from the imperial law if they were my real parents.

It was quite impossible to be admitted into another family if I had parents.

I immediately requested a meeting with Kyle.

This meeting was between the ‘Leader of Larva’ and the ‘client’.

The discussion progressed very quickly, as I had already briefly talked about it in a letter last time saying I had something to request.

“It’s definitely fascinating.”

“If we investigate this locket, we might be able to find my parents. The problem is..”

“Time is running out.”

“—That’s right, the summons in three days. Is it possible?”

The leader of the dark guild, one of the best on the continent, smiled with his gentle eyes. Attractive Indian dimples dented his face.

“I will look into it within three days.”

“.....”

I sweated a little at that.

―Oh my God, Kyle. Is that possible?

‘I think I’ll be satisfied if you even manage to investigate within a week.’

To be honest, I thought it would be impossible in three days.

No matter how he was the leader of the best dark guild in the world.

But it would be a little rude to show distrust, so I lowered my eyes and smiled.

“Then, I’ll trust only Kyle!”

Then he gently grabbed my hand and did not let it go.

“....!”

The girl did not notice. At that little gesture and the word ‘Trust’..

..The carnivorous stag’s cheeks turned red, and his eyes were filled with strong will.

And indeed, the ‘smile and trust’ that his owner gave him came back with great results.

━━━━???━━━━

The next day.

Kyle Winston, the world’s most diligent investigative man, appeared and said with a twinkle in his eyes.

“I have found the source of the ‘locket’ you mentioned.”

“....!!!”

Yes? No, already?