“I was just about to call you.”

Ignoring the Duke’s words, Rublion approached me quickly. Then he hugged my neck tightly.

“Auntie, I’m so happy.”

I raised my hand and gently stroked the child’s head. I saw Viscount Tirel rubbing his nose with his finger, seeming moved.

“But why do I keep crying?”

The child buried his face in my shoulder and rubbed it vigorously. As I patted the child’s back, I suddenly looked at the Duke.

He, who had been expressionless all along, was softly smiling while looking at Rublion.

‘So he does know how to smile.’

It seems like things progressed in a bit of a whirlwind, and while I’m somewhat suspicious, the little one is happy and I negotiated satisfactorily, so I decided to let it go.

‘He did say he would protect me…’

Ironically, among the many conversations I had with the Duke, only the promise to protect me kept echoing in my mind.

I guess I wanted someone, anyone, to rely on. Me.

[This is the timeline separator]

I had many concerns about Anna’s position. Knowing this, the Duke arranged for her to be used as a dedicated maid while I stayed at the Duke’s residence.

Thanks to this, Anna was delighted to receive a high salary, and the Duke’s maids were pleased to be able to learn skills from Anna.

“My lady, the Duke has sent a knight for you.”

It was the knight who had been guarding the door when I was confined under the pretext of negotiations.

“You can call me Winter.”

He introduced himself by presenting his sword in the proper manner. I awkwardly smiled and replied that I looked forward to working with him.

Accompanied by Winter, I arrived at the Viscount’s residence to find the repairs already completed. The workers, covered in dust, were gathered in the mansion’s courtyard to receive the remaining payment, with some dozing off, seemingly tired.

“Thank you for your hard work. The young lady has prepared generously for you.”

Anna distributed the money pouches she had prepared to the workers. Even those who were drowsy with sleepiness opened their eyes wide and kept bowing, saying thank you.

After the workers disappeared in their wagons, I entered the mansion with Anna and Winter. Passing through the first floor, which didn’t need much work, we went up to the second floor to find everything changed as if brand new.

After checking each repaired area in detail, I entered the storage room. I wondered if there might be any toys worth taking.

‘Should I take this?’

There would be many good toys at the Duke’s residence. But this toy, the only one of its kind in this world, was the sole toy known only to me, who had been reincarnated with memories of a past life.

A toy that I, as a child, had specially made using gestures, footwork, and even drawings.

Rattle. Rattle.

“It seems to have stiffened from not being used for a long time. It’s a bit stiff.”

About the size of my fist.

Three horizontal lines and three vertical lines on each face, with nine pieces, and a total of six square faces that could move freely up, down, left, and right.

In my past life, it was called a cube, and in this life, I named it Dellipizet. I thought that Rublion, with his exceptional intelligence, would quite like it.

‘Is there anything else?’

I dumped out the toy box and looked through it, but apart from the Dellipizet, there was nothing worth taking.

“My lady, I’ve packed everything you asked for.”

Anna came carrying a large bag, struggling with its weight. Winter’s arms were also laden with bags.

“Oh? You still had that?”

Even Anna knew about the Dellipizet. She had found it fascinating to watch me match all the sides to the same color, so I had sat her down and taught her the rules a few times.

And I gave up teaching her after a week. Anna had absolutely no talent in this area.

‘He’ll like it, right?’

Thinking about how the little one would be pleased to receive the Dellipizet, the corners of my mouth involuntarily turned up.

“Are you taking it with you?”

“Yes.”

I got up, putting the Dellipizet in my pocket. My legs were a bit numb from squatting for a long time, but eager to show it to the little one at the Duke’s residence, I walked briskly, enduring the tingling sensation.

[This is the timeline separator]

While I was away at the mansion, the maids had busily moved my luggage, saying that my room had been decided. It was the second largest room in the main building, not in the guest annex of the mansion.

“Auntie, do you know? My room is right across from yours!”

Rublion had somehow already come inside and was bouncing on the bed.

“The Duke’s room is at the end of the corridor. Shall I show you around?”

I caught the excited little one and lowered him from the bed. Then, after seating him calmly in a chair, I said,

“It’s impolite to enter someone’s room without their presence. Besides, I’m not curious about what the Duke’s room looks like.”

“Really? Even though the Duke’s room has Meurten’s new work hanging in it?”

“…I’m curious about the new work, but I don’t want to enter a room without its owner.”

“Tch.”

The little one pouted his lips. I smiled gently and tapped his nose with my finger.

“Instead, there is a room across from here that I’d like to see. And coincidentally, the room’s owner is right in front of me.”

“Would you like to see my room?”

“Yes, I’m very, very curious about what the little one’s room looks like.”

“Wow! Then right now…”

The little one, who was speaking with a smile as bright as the pouring sunlight, suddenly stiffened. After a moment, he sprang up from the chair and said,

“Uh, um… Could you wait for a moment? Just 10 minutes, no, 5 minutes!”

Then he dashed out of the room. Left standing alone, I chuckled, recalling the afterimage of the little one’s retreating figure.

‘It feels like he’s rushing to clean up when a friend comes over to play, doesn’t it?’

The urge to tease him rose slowly. With one corner of my mouth raised mischievously, I went to the front of Rublion’s room. Then I cleared my throat, “Ahem, ahem.”

“Uh, ah… Not yet!”

The little one, realizing I was standing in front, called out urgently.

“Knock knock knock, may I come in?”

“Ugh, not yet. Just a little bit longer!”

A series of clattering sounds came from inside. I pricked up my ears and waited quietly.

The room, which had been noisy, soon became quiet. Shortly after, the door slid open.

“You can come in now.”

The little one’s face was flushed red from how busily he must have moved. I smiled broadly and grasped the hem of my skirt.

“Thank you for inviting me.”

At the polite greeting, the little one raised his eyebrows. Then he thrust his chest forward and stood in a dignified posture, saying,

“Please, be seated. I shall bring some tea.”

A bed larger than two of my beds at the Viscount’s residence combined, next to a tea table at a height suitable for children. And beneath that bed, the legs of an easel and the corner of a canvas peeked out, not fully hidden.

The little one pulled the call bell to summon a maid and ordered tea.

“So this is what your room looks like.”

“It’s a bit awkward as this is the first time I’m showing my room to someone other than the servants.”

The wood-colored wallpaper with thin planks creating stripes gave a natural atmosphere. It suited the wild young predator well.

The little one began to introduce this and that. But it was just trivial explanations, like when he started using the bed or that he had read all the books on the bookshelf.

Just as he was running out of things to explain and a brief silence fell, the maid came in with perfect timing, bringing tea. I returned to my seat and sat facing the little one.

“As a reward for showing me your room, I’ve prepared something fun.”

As I showed my pocket, the little one’s eyes widened with curiosity.

“What is this?”

I took out the Dellipizet and placed it on my palm.

“This toy is called a Dellipizet. See how all the sides are the same color now?”

The little one nodded vigorously. I scrambled the Dellipizet in front of the child.

“Watch carefully. The goal is to match the mixed colors back to their original state.”

I started turning the pieces according to the rules, step by step. Before long, the Dellipizet returned to its original form.

“You play with it by mixing it up and then matching it again. It’s not as easy as it looks, is it?”

The little one was smiling adorably, with a face that seemed to say it would be terrible if I didn’t give it to him. The way he held out both palms neatly together was too cute.

“Auntie, if I solve this by the end of today, will you grant me one wish?”

“By the end of today? This is harder than you think.”

The little one hesitated with an “Hmm” before speaking.

“I’ll give it a try. So if I succeed, grant my wish.”

“It’ll be difficult… Alright! If you can return it to its original state before dinner, I’ll grant your wish.”

I only showed it once right in front of him. No matter how smart he is, he couldn’t have memorized the rules in one go.

“Really? It’s a promise!”

“But I’ll mix it up.”

“Okay! Mix it up thoroughly!”

I diligently turned and mixed the Dellipizet. Who could refuse when such an already cute child asks with such an adorable expression?

[This is the timeline separator]

Should I call it a miracle or say I’ve been had?

Or perhaps I should call him the genius of the century?

“Auntie! I solved it!”

It hadn’t even been two hours since I gave him the Dellipizet, but the little one brought it back with all sides perfectly matched.

“…How? Did you really do this?”

I couldn’t believe it. Not just one side, but all six sides were matched.

“Yes! You showed me how to do it, remember?”

“You figured out the rules just by watching once? I turned it really fast.”

The little one’s nose was pointed high in the air.

“So, since I solved it, you’ll grant my wish, right?”

Right. A promise is a promise.

“What’s your wish? If it’s something I can do, I’ll do it.”

The little one grinned.

“My wish is for our family to sleep together.”

“By ‘our’, you don’t mean…”

A chill ran down my spine. I hoped that the ‘don’t tell me’ I was thinking wasn’t true.

“You, me, and the Duke.”

The little one said with a wide grin. I swallowed hard before answering.

“Little one. The Duke and I aren’t a couple, and we’re not close enough to share a bed. So, how about a different wish…”

Rublion’s expression froze coldly. The child asked in a voice full of disappointment.

“Are you going back on your word now?”

This wish could lead to misunderstandings with the Duke, making him think I’m a strange person. So refusing would be the right thing to do, but looking at the child’s eyes, I found it hard to say no.

So, the trick I came up with was this:

“First, get permission from the Duke. If the Duke agrees to sleep together, then I’ll consider it too.”