Even a Scoundrel Gets Tired

169 – The Avoidance of Choice: A Postponement?

“…Choice? What are you tal—”

“…It seems you

haven’t heard yet, Brother.”

In that instant, Aria’s

complexion began to darken considerably,

and soon after, her head fell towards the ground.

Her complexion, before anyone noticed,

had paled to nearly the same hue

as the color of her hair.

And those eyes, ever beautiful,

like gleaming rubies,

now held such a deep, encroaching shadow

that their original color was almost unrecognizable.

“Aria, what is that sound

you keep making?”

“….”

“Aria…!”

This was the second time.

Seeing her like this.

She never revealed her

true feelings easily.

Always, even with unspoken troubles, she’d just swallow them down.

Especially after she learned

what Duke Reinhardt had done

to me.

I knew it too.

That she felt guilt towards me, at least a little.

How could I not?

Considering her usual behavior.

So I also knew she didn’t want

to rely on me.

That even relying on me was,

for her, a kind of key

that unlocked her guilt.

There were things

I deliberately left unsaid for that reason.

But, even so,

I simply couldn’t bear

to just stand by and watch

my sister’s face darken like this.

Absolutely not.

At the very least, I thought,

I had to hear what was troubling her.

“Aria…”

“…Sorry.”

But, as if to deny even that much, she…

He turned his back to me,

and walked away.

“Forgive me, forgive me,”

he kept murmuring,

a meaningless apology.

*

While Reinhardt’s mansion

lay in shattered ruin,

and members of the Order

and dukes exchanged their farewells,

there was one woman in the mansion

who wasn’t part of the Charlotte family.

Aria Reinhardt

was currently wrestling with considerable worries.

There was her brother, who had left

only her behind, and had already

whisked away to the Academy.

And then there was the matter of her future,

which she needed to seriously consider.

She didn’t want to return

to the Reinhardt family mansion.

Her father,

Duke Reinhardt, would undoubtedly

fly into a rage if he found out,

but she simply couldn’t

bring herself to live in that mansion any longer.

It wasn’t the servants or anyone else.

In fact, they had

constantly worried about her,

since she was always skipping meals.

Of course, even if it was

connected to their own well-being,

the fact remained that

they had worried about her.

At the very least, she held

no grievances against the people of the family.

However, her father.

Duke Reinhardt was a different story.

There was a time when he

had seemed endlessly cool and strong.

From a young age, Aria…

Having grown up watching his steadfast back,

I never doubted that he was the most

strong and magnificent man in this empire.

Someday, I vowed, I would become just as

strong, protecting the people of our house,

and raising high the undeniably

sublime standing of our family.

‘…How did things come to this?’

Yes, clearly, it was like that until then,

but now, the Duke Reinhardt of the present…

She found it impossible

to view him favourably.

Where had his former uprightness gone?

He had become a monster chasing only

phantoms like the family’s honor.

How he had

changed like that… she wanted to stop

anyone passing by and ask.

People always change.

Aria, who had lived in the ducal estate since childhood,

suffering all sorts of checks and

intrigues from the nobles,

knew the truth of those words

better than anyone,

but she never imagined that even her father would change so much.

Who could have known?

That his steadfast back

would change so as to no longer be trustworthy.

Her family, which once displayed a glorious status,

turned out to be a place

draining the lifeblood of her brother,

and his once honorable blade, which had always slashed down monsters,

had somehow begun

to turn against others.

Now, even with empty words,

she could no longer

call him a good father.

‘…What am I to do now? Where should I─’

“Lady Aria?”

“Ah… Good day, Lady Sino…”

“Hmm, no need to be quite so formal, you know~”

It was then.

The young lady of the

Charlotte family had arrived.

Still swaying her ever-beautiful, rose-tinted hair,

wearing her usual,

unhurried expression,

she was approaching, a quick, light-footed

shuffle bringing her nearer.

“Aria, wasn’t it?

How about we drop the formalities?”

“Ah, are… are you sure that’s alright?”

“Of course! You’re my friend’s little sister!”

To have her come so suddenly,

suggesting a change of address,

and treating her with such utter

lack of reserve,

made her feel foolish for

having worried so much only a moment ago.

Because even if she just kept

mulling things over like this,

nothing would particularly change.

“Ah… I-I was wondering, why did you suddenly seek me out…”

“Ah, that’s right? Father wants you brought to him!”

“M-me?”

“Unless there’s another

Aria living in our mansion?”

“Why would the Duke suddenly…”

“I haven’t a clue, do I? And,

weren’t we supposed to drop the formalities?”

“….”

“Well, no need to force it,

but… call me ‘unni’ sometime, will you?”

“Yes…”

“Father’s in his study

now, so go see him there, alright!”

Still with that subtle,

shining smile,

She vanished before me in an instant.

Or, more accurately, it would be better to say she sunk into the floor.

Though nowhere on the floor

was there any sign of a special passage,

if it wasn’t that,

there was no way to explain how she disappeared.

As if she were

falling from the air to the floor,

her body plummeted downwards,

vanishing the moment it did.

“..I really can’t get used to that magic.”

“Oh, Miss. Where are you headed?”

“Ah, hello. Mrs. Bence..”

“Off on some errand, perhaps?”

“No, the Duke

asked to see me for a moment..”

*

Having shaken off the

numerous and attentive servants of the manor,

Aria was finally able

to enter the Duke’s study,

and at the same time, could finally meet Duke Charlotte.

Duke Charlotte’s

study was… well, how should I put it?

It wasn’t as

ostentatious as I’d imagined.

No, rather, it fell far short of my expectations.

No matter how I looked at it,

I simply couldn’t believe this was the Duke’s study.

‘..The desk looks a little worn, too?’

That the head of the Dukedom

was frugal was understandable, a plausible enough story.

He might not want any unnecessary expenditure.

But even so,

surely he could replace a desk that

was chipped and worn in places?

And it wasn’t just that.

Far from being opulent,

A decidedly unremarkable interior.

Furniture that, no matter how one looked at it, failed to exude luxury.

All of this truly occupied

a space in the Duke’s office, and

even the common ornaments were rather scarce,

so that an unfamiliar eye might have easily mistaken it for

the room of a Count or Baron.

“Haha, does that desk trouble you?”

“Ah…no, if I have made you uncomfortable, I apologize─”

Had she been staring too intently at the desk, which seemed particularly worn?

The Duke stroked the desk, the very one she had been observing with such attention only moments ago, and let out a hearty laugh.

Though his expression gave no hint of offense,

to prepare for the possibility

that he might be displeased,

after a moment of deliberation,

she lowered her head and offered an apology.

“No, well, it could certainly trouble someone.”

“….”

As indifferent as her bowed head might have been,

the Duke did not find any fault

in her behavior.

Rather, he defended her, saying it was alright.

“Certainly, for the office of the head of the family, it’s a rather old item.”

“….”

“But do you know why I

don’t discard it?”

“..I wouldn’t know.”

“Simple, because nothing is

as familiar as this.”

“…?”

Aria did not understand.

If it were a great treasure, or

an heirloom passed down through generations, that would be one thing,

but that desk had no magical enchantments placed upon it,

it was simply an ordinary wooden desk.

And yet, you didn’t change the desk, just because it felt…familiar?

Born and raised within the Duke’s estate,

she simply couldn’t fathom it.

“Haha, I see an expression of incomprehension?”

“Ah…no, it’s not that…”

“It’s alright, well…it is true it’s rather old.”

“….”

“I’ve thought about replacing it

countless times…”

“….”

“But this particular desk,

for some reason, I found myself reluctant to change?”

At his words, she took a

slow, sweeping glance around.

The other furnishings, the

wallpaper, and even the decorations,

though somewhat plain,

clearly showed the signs of recent care

and diligent maintenance.

Dust-free wallpaper and

furniture so impeccably clean it gleamed.

A level of care almost

inversely proportional to their actual value.

“So I wondered,

why couldn’t I bring myself to change it?”

“….”

“I even tried using

different desks a few times…”

“….”

“But I always ended up switching back.”

“….”

“So, I had to make a choice.”

A desk befitting the

dignity of the Duke’s heir,

or one that, though perhaps

lacking in outward splendor,

had become utterly,

thoroughly familiar.

“Back then, I chose the latter.”

“Yes…”

“Hahaha, you’ve got that ‘why-are-you-suddenly-saying-this’ look all over your face, haven’t you?”

“…”

“My dear lady, you might want to learn a little about managing your expressions.”

“…Thank you for the advice.”

“Well, anyway, that’s why. The reason I’m telling you all of this…”

“…”

“Is to offer you a choice, from this moment forward.”

“…Pardon?”

“Think it over carefully. Once you decide, there’s no turning back.”

And her answer, upon hearing those two choices, was to ask for just one more day –

An avoidance of choice, a holding pattern.