As always, by the time I finished seeing the frantic rush of patients, the sun was setting.
Though in this city, with all the smog, it hardly matters whether the sun sets or not.
When evening came, I would return to the mansion in the car driven by Otto.
"Good work, Otto."
"Have a safe evening, Young Master."
I returned Otto's farewell from beyond the car window.
Considering the Otto from eight years ago who projected 'let's not get close' with his entire body, this was great progress.
The first place I headed upon returning home was the kitchen.
Which translates to grilled blood sausage.
Served with grilled apple, vegetables, and Egg Scramble.
When the finished dish was placed on the dining table, my father let out a sound of admiration.
"Yulian, what is the ingredient for today's sausage?"
"It's pig's blood. Nobles in the Southwestern Region often make sausage from pig's blood."
"Is that so? Thanks to you, Yulian, I feel like I'm traveling all over the Empire from our dining table."
The reaction was good.
After my engagement issue was resolved.
My parents no longer showed any involvement in my cooking.
This was because the Marquis Hausen Family, with whom I had an engagement, didn't seem to mind my cooking.
Thus, all that remained were my parents, who purely enjoyed my cooking.
Clink, clank.
To my parents' left, and across from me, a small boy was engaged in a struggle with his fork.
It was Fried, who had turned seven years old this year.
"It's yummy, Hyung-a."
Sausage, grilled apple, and scramble.
It was a natural reaction, given the combination a seven-year-old was bound to love.
The problem was the salad, pushed off to one side of the plate.
Pretending to pick up the sausage with his fork, Fried surreptitiously pushed the vegetables to the corner of his plate.
He seemed to think he was being subtle, but it was far too obvious.
"Fried, I even sautéed them in butter to make them tasty. Do you dislike them that much?"
"Umm... Sorry, Hyung-a."
Just then, Freya's fork moved toward Fried's plate.
Swish, swish.
And the salad that had been pushed to the corner was moved back to the center of the plate.
"...Younger nuna?"
"..."
Freya was feigning ignorance.
When Fried secretly pushed the salad to the corner again, Freya performed a restoration back to the center.
...I'm not sure if it's right to use Body Strengthening against a seven-year-old.
As this series of actions repeated, Fried's lips began to pout.
At the moment Fried's hand, holding his fork, hesitated over a carrot,
"Nom."
Erika, who was sitting next to me, leaned over and stretched her fork toward Fried's plate.
The salad vanished before Freya could even react.
Fried's face lit up.
Conversely, a frown formed on Freya's brow.
"Unnie. What will you do if you give in to all of Fried's spoiled behavior?"
"Kids are supposed to grow up eating what they want. He'll eat his vegetables on his own when he gets older."
Fried beamed at Erika's words.
"Thanks, Eldest nuna!"
Erika chuckled and ruffled Fried's hair.
"I'm only eating the carrot. You eat the spinach."
"Aww..."
Fried, dejected again, poked at the innocent spinach with his fork.
Freya, beside him, wore a victorious smile.
Watching my younger siblings on the other side of the dining table, I subtly changed the subject.
"Freya, your first year of the High School Division is almost over, isn't it?"
"Yes, Older Brother."
"It's already been a year. How was it?"
"Honestly, it was a bit difficult at first. The class density is different from studying at home."
Freya gently dabbed her mouth with a napkin.
She was currently attending the Academy's High School Division.
Most hereditary nobles don't attend the Academy's High School Division.
There isn't even enough time to learn their family's Arcane Magic.
They start attending the Academy from the Undergraduate Division.
But Freya's situation was a little different.
"The law is hard because there's so much to memorize."
She wanted to follow in her father's footsteps and become a Judicial Officer.
Her parents were also supportive of her dream.
That was why Freya was currently attending the High School Division's Department of Law, learning about the Empire's laws.
"But I was able to adapt well because I met a good senior in my Study Group."
"You said that senior's name was Valeria, right?"
"Yes. That's right. She's scheduled to graduate this year."
Valeria.
Top of the Class in the High School Division's Department of Economics and my Scholarship Student.
I remembered her because she was the Saintess Candidate's older sister.
It was a relief to know she was guiding Freya.
Even aside from being the Saintess's sister, she was a child with outstanding potential.
The interesting thing was that I hadn't been the one to connect the two of them.
Valeria had joined the Student Council for the sake of success, while Freya had joined because she wanted to enter public office.
They ended up hitting it off and naturally became close.
When I first heard they were close, I thought about how small the world was.
"Freya, were you the Head of the Disciplinary Committee?"
"Yes. Senior Valeria recommended me, so I think I'll become the Vice President next year."
It seemed Valeria had taken a liking to Freya.
For what reason, I didn't know.
'I'd have to see her personality in front of me to know.'
I'd gotten a rough grasp of the other scholarship students' personalities over several meals.
But I still hadn't figured out Valeria's personality.
Whenever we had a meal, she would just sit quietly and give unremarkable answers.
There wasn't a single clue from which to infer her personality.
The only thing I'd figured out was that she had a severe sister complex, one who dotes on their younger sister.
Just then, my father, who had been listening quietly, nodded.
"I should send a graduation gift to that friend, Valeria's, house sometime."
"Would that be alright, Father?"
"Freya, she took such good care of you. How could we not show at least this much gratitude?"
I nodded as well.
If Father sent a gift, Valeria's mother would probably be pleased.
While I'm at it, I should also send a graduation gift as Director Schun.
"By the way, does that friend Valeria have any thoughts of entering public office?"
Freya shook her head at Father's question.
"No. My senior plans to join the Merkur Trading Company as an Apprentice Accountant. She received a scholarship from the company, so she has to stay there for ten years."
"That's a shame, but it must be a good thing for her. I hear many young people these days want to join the Merkur Trading Company instead of public office."
"Right? She's amazing, isn't she? Let me tell you how amazing my senior is..."
Stars lit up in Freya's eyes.
She put down her fork, clasped her hands, and leaned forward.
"Her internship was only a month, but after it ended, the Guild Master himself offered her a full-time position. To an intern. And a student who hadn't even graduated!"
"That is certainly amazing."
Freya's voice grew higher.
I noticed this during the Founding Festival too, but this child gets particularly like this when introducing someone else.
If you ask her to talk about herself, she speaks in an ant-like voice, but she'll chatter about someone else's accomplishment with shining eyes as if it were her own.
Come to think of it, she showed that side of herself at the Founding Festival as well.
'I wonder if she boasts about me like that elsewhere.'
That would be a little embarrassing.
In any case, once she was fired up, Freya went on and on, boasting about Valeria without a break.
Thanks to her, I was able to get a rough grasp of a personality I couldn't figure out despite dozens of meals.
Before long, the meal was over.
Father went up to his study first, and Mother followed, taking Fried up to the 2nd Floor.
Only Erika, Freya, and I were left at the dining table.
I stopped Freya as she was about to get up.
"Ah, Freya."
I took a check from my vest's inner pocket.
"Here's your allowance. Buy some gifts for the people who helped you out this semester."
This is all part of networking.
It was also necessary for someone aiming for public office.
Of course, Freya could handle it with her own allowance.
But then, her sincerity might not be fully expressed.
That's why I'm giving her an allowance like this.
Freya accepted the check with both hands, her eyes wide.
"Older Brother, but isn't this a bit much?"
"You have to buy a graduation gift for Senior Valeria, don't you? From what I heard earlier, it sounds like you owe her a lot."
"...Thank you, Older Brother."
Freya politely folded the check and put it in her pocket.
Just then, Erika, who had been watching with her arms crossed, shook her head.
"Teacher. Hasn't your money sense disappeared? Who gives an allowance with a check?"
"Then will coins be fine for your snack money, Erika?"
"On second thought, I think it's good because I can feel your sincerity in the amount written on the check."
I gestured to Erika with my chin.
"Speaking of which, today's your blood transfusion day, isn't it?"
"Yeah, that's right, Teacher."
"Come on up. I've prepared it along with the Heparin."
Erika followed behind me.
Freya, left behind in the dining room, bowed her head deeply in gratitude.
*
A few days later, the morning was the same as always.
The days were no different from usual: going to work at the clinic, seeing patients, entrusting Erika with blood pressure measurement or infection screening, and eating lunch at Wangcho's Restaurant.
Wangcho pestering me for gout medicine was the same as always,
and my nagging him to cut out meat was the same as always.
"Teacher, I can't give up meat."
"Then I can't give you medicine. I won't be coming here as often soon, anyway."
"But..."
"For your information, I've shown your face to other healers. They'll nag you just like I do, so you'll be in trouble if you eat whatever you want just because I'm not here."
"..."
I was in the middle of afternoon consultation.
The magic tool communicator placed in the corner of the consultation room rang.
It was the Merkur Trading Company.
'At this hour?'
The regular report is on the weekend.
It was rare to get a call from the trading company on a weekday afternoon.
With that doubt, I turned on the communicator.
— [Young Master. I apologize, but I have something to report urgently.]
It was the voice from the Trading Company's Secretary Office.
The tension in the voice was palpable.
"What is it?"
— [It's regarding the scholarship students. Two scholarship students from the foundation have been out of contact for three days.]
"Loss of contact?"
— [Yes. According to the Academy, they haven't attended class for two days. Their belongings are still in the dormitory, but they themselves are missing...]
"What are their names? I have more than one or two scholarship students."
— [Eli from the Department of Alchemy, and Kal from the Department of Swordsmanship. And...]
"And?"
— [She is not a scholarship student, but they say Young Lady Nihilrit was not seen at the Academy today either.]
"Secretary."
I took a deep breath and spoke to the secretary over the communicator.
"Dispatch the Ironclad Special Mission Unit. Now."
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