You, come here for a moment. There’s a zipper on your back, right? Isn’t there? If I unzip it, there’s an adult inside, correct?

No, I should restrain myself. Yes, I’m the adult here, I should control myself.

Suppressing the anger that was welling up inside me, I asked Alice,

“What kind of person is your arranged marriage partner?”

After contemplating whether to speak or not, Alice looked at me and shrugged her shoulders.

“Well, since I probably won’t see you again, I’ll tell you.”

Look at how she’s talking. Are you perhaps a transmigrator too? Or have you regressed? How many times have you gone through this?

“He’s the third son of the Gillion family, Matthew the Idiot.”

“Idiot?”

“You’ll understand how stupid he is within a minute of talking to him. He’s the dumbest boy I’ve ever met.”

As Alice thought about Matthew, her face flushed red with emotion as she continued speaking.

“He struts around saying I should listen to him because I’ll be his wife in the future. He doesn’t even know the name of the first Emperor of the Empire, yet he spouts nonsense about working in the Imperial Palace when he grows up. To think I have to marry such an idiot! I’d rather marry our dog, who’s smarter than him.”

She seemed to have a lot pent up, as words poured out without pause. I hesitantly asked,

“Why did you end up in an arranged marriage with someone like that?”

“I have no choice. My dad owes a debt to the Gallion family. Who would marry that idiot if it weren’t for an arranged marriage?”

After ranting for a while, Alice let out a deep sigh.

“Then who do you like?”

Surprised by my question, Alice’s eyes widened, but she quickly turned her head away and replied curtly.

“…I don’t like anyone.”

“Is it perhaps a commoner?”

“Ugh… How on earth do you know that?”

“I can read minds a little.”

“Liar. If you could, you would have known who I was when you made me talk earlier.”

Ah, she’s really not cute at all.

“Alright, alright. Let’s say I’ve gained some wisdom with age. So, is it really a commoner?”

It seems there’s nothing as interesting as other people’s love stories.

I urged Alice, not hiding my impatience.

Alice thought for a moment, then reluctantly began to speak.

“…His name is Anton, the son of a maid who works at our house.”

“What kind of boy is he?”

“He’s smart. Incomparably more so than Matthew. He’s also brave enough to come rescue me when I get lost in the forest, and he’s kind.”

“How does he think of you?”

“Well, I suppose he just sees me as the daughter of his employer. Even if I liked him, there’s nothing I could do about it anyway…”

The girl who said this fiddled with the corner of her book with a sulky expression. The love troubles of a 10-year-old are truly profound.

Indeed, romance novels might seem foolish. Her arranged marriage partner was not only an idiot but also looked down on her, and the person she liked wasn’t interested in her and was a commoner, so there was no possibility of a relationship.

“Now it’s your turn.”

“Huh?”

“Since I told you my story, you should tell me yours. Don’t tell me you were just planning to listen to my story?”

What a sharp little one.

“O-okay. What do you want to know?”

“Well, I’m not particularly curious, but since I talked, tell me about your fiancé.”

If you’re not curious, you don’t have to listen, you know.

Fiancé… I pondered how much I should tell Alice, and decided to share just a little.

“Well, my fiancé is an idiot too.”

As soon as I finished speaking, the sound of books tumbling down was heard from behind the bookshelf.

“Oh my, are you alright? Customer?”

As I paused my words to listen to the slightly noisy conversation next door, Alice added,

“It’s Michelle. She’s new and seems to have made another mistake. Anyway, continue your story.”

Oh my, I thought you weren’t curious?

I suppressed a laugh as I watched Alice, who was asking more persistently than expected for someone who said she wasn’t curious.

“Well, that person is someone who’s extremely conscious of others’ opinions, and that’s why he decided to marry me.”

“…Why?”

Alice asked, tilting her head.

What’s with that look of disbelief?

“What’s wrong with me?”

“Um, in many ways? Also, add a lack of self-awareness to the list.”

Alice told me without a hint of apology. If I keep talking to her, I’ll be reduced to just meat by the time I leave.

“Originally, it wasn’t me who wanted the arranged marriage, but the man’s side. Because marrying me would free him from at least one of the interferences from his surroundings.”

“That’s quite… mean.”

“Right? I think so too.”

I giggled, agreeing with Alice’s words. To think that the one sympathizing with these words is a 10-year-old child. Is my life alright like this?

“But why is he an idiot? Can’t he even do addition and subtraction like Matthew?”

“No, he’s actually quite capable. He’s extremely good at his work.”

“…Then why is he marrying you?”

“Are you going to keep doing that? I won’t tell you anything more.”

“Ah, I got it. I won’t do it anymore. So please continue your story.”

Alice was now completely leaning towards me, waiting for my words. When I see things like this, she’s undoubtedly just a child.

I told Alice about Giblin. About how he had gossiped about Ilion at Marchioness Lancel’s birthday party not long ago. Of course, I didn’t mention any important parts that could reveal names or positions.

“But after hearing all that gossip, you didn’t say anything? What’s even more absurd is that I recently received a shameless letter from that man asking to do business together. Do you know what he said when he saw that?”

“What did he say?”

“He said he would agree to the contract. Does this make any sense?”

A few days after the party, a business proposal arrived from Giblin. He was undoubtedly a shameless guy. To say such unspeakable things and then come slinking around trying to get something.

While helping with Ilion’s work and reviewing documents, I asked Ilion, thinking he would obviously refuse.

Ilion answered me in a stiff voice.

“He said personal emotions shouldn’t interfere when weighing profits and losses.”

“He seems much more mature than you.”

“What good is being mature? He’s just constantly fretting and worrying about what others think. Let him live like that for the rest of his life, whatever.”

Alice, who had been pondering my words, chimed in.

“He might be more mature than you, but I think I understand why you called him an idiot.”

“Right? You think so too? That’s why sometimes it’s hard to just stand by and watch.”

“So? Did you really make the contract?”

“No! Actually, I pretended to make a mistake and spilled the tea I was drinking on that contract! The ink smeared so much you couldn’t read the text!”

“Hahaha!”

Alice laughed loudly, seemingly pleased with my answer.

The child, who had been laughing while holding her stomach, finally stopped laughing and asked me.

“Didn’t you get scolded?”

“What could he do when I said it was an accident?”

In reality, Ilion did look troubled, but he didn’t scold me much.

And I suggested an appropriate solution, saying ‘Let’s just say the letter was lost in transit’ as I threw the water-soaked letter into the kindling.

“Is that fiancé of yours a good person?”

“Hmm… I suppose so. If I had to say, he’s a good person. He’s kind, doesn’t get angry easily, reluctantly gives in when I keep pestering him, and apologizes right away when he does something wrong.”

“Doesn’t he sound like a much better husband than Matthew?”

“Pfft, maybe so.”

I nodded and laughed at Alice’s words. Well, he might not be much of a husband material even compared to Matthew, but there was no need to say that explicitly.

“Hey Alice, if you hate Matthew that much, how about breaking off the engagement?”

“That’s impossible. I’m only 10 years old, you know.”

“But you can interfere in kids’ affairs, right? If worse comes to worst, we could abandon that Matthew guy in some far-off mountain. Where no one can find him.”

“…Pfft, that might actually work for an idiot like Matthew.”

Alice burst into laughter as she said that.

“And from now on, make sure to show off a lot in front of Matthew. It would be even better if you secure a position in the Imperial Palace first.”

“Why’s that?”

“Usually, idiots like him have a bit of pride, so they can’t stand it when a woman is better than them. That’s why he gets angry when you give him advice.”

Alice nodded in agreement with my words.

“But if you work in the Imperial Palace first, that idiot would end up working under you, right? Then he’ll think it damages his pride and say he doesn’t want to get engaged.”

“Will that really work?”

“I think so. Why? Because he’s stupid.”

Alice laughed out loud once again, seemingly pleased with my words.

As expected, a childlike laugh suited her better than trying to act mature with a sullen face.

Of course, I know. What I said isn’t a direct solution.

But it’s sad to see a child, only 10 years old, already worrying about adult circumstances and feeling depressed.

So my answer might have been simply for my own satisfaction, wanting to see the child laugh, but seeing her laugh made me feel a bit relieved.

***

Even after saying that, Alice recommended a few novels that she found interesting. Deciding to trust her judgment, I headed to the counter with the recommended books.

“Have you finished selecting your books?”

“Yes. Thanks to this, I won’t be bored for a while.”

I answered Ilion, whose intentions I still couldn’t fathom, as I placed the books on the counter.

Alice, who had been following me, grabbed the hem of my skirt and asked,

“Is this brother your fiancé?”

“…B-brother?”

You called me auntie, but why is he ‘brother’? He’s actually older than me, you know.

“Why are you reading romance novels, auntie?”

“…What?”

Alice, who said that, glanced at me and whispered ‘liar’ in a small voice before turning around and leaving.

W-wait a minute. What did I do wrong? Hey!