The morning sun shone brightly in the spacious courtyard of our castle. There, I was sitting on the shaded patio reading a book whilst ignoring the noisy young man seated in front of me.
"..ey...Hey!" A young man with brown hair sought my attention. He wore fancy noble wear, but contrary to that, his manners were rather thuggish. "You still listening here Mr. Birdie?"
"Sorry, I wasn't. I still haven't finished my studies, so if you don't mind, can I go now?" I asked in a polite tone.
"*Sighs*... Screw that load of crap! We're talking about your first adventure on the outside world, and I came all the way here from the county just to chat with you y'know? At least make an effort." The young count said with a slight air of sadness.
"... I don't think I have a say in that matter," I replied. It's not just that I don't have a say in it, I don't even know anything to have a say in it.
On my eighteenth birthday, the emperor, my father, allocated me the task of venturing the continent for the purpose of establishing my connections with the dukedoms.
Although the emperor's wars haven't ended yet, many of the former kingdoms and nations had already knelt before him. Those kingdoms and nations then became part of the empire's territory and were retitled as mere states and dukedoms.
"Eh? Not even excited?" The young count asked, "It's your time to spread your wings and fly high Mr. Birdie!"
"Say, I've been meaning to ask, how come you're still alive after calling me as you please?" I asked in a casual manner whilst keeping my attention on my book.
The count flinched before freezing with his hands up like a criminal. "Y-you say the scariest t-things y'know!? You're never going to have a w-wife!"
Trying to hide his embarrassment, he folded his arms and turned his head to the side with an unstable smug stapled on his face.
"...I also don't have a say in that," I commented.
The young count looked exasperated as he rested his head on the tea table, then gave out an audible sigh before standing abruptly and pointing at me.
"Listen here you! Contrary to the lessons here in your birdcage, the world is freer than you think! Why do you think I suggested for you to be the one adventuring?" The young man said smugly as he proudly puts his hand on his chest.
"You're the one who suggested that?" I asked with an apathetic tone. I thought letting me out of this castle was the emperor's decision, but looks like it was the count's doing. What did I even expect, it seems that even that man has forgotten about me. Not that I care.
The young count's face visibly whitened as he realized his mistake. "Ahh-no, no.. yes... But it was still your father who approved of it and handled the preparations y'know!"
I took a sip of tea and continued reading, ignoring the childish attempts of the young count to cover up his mistake. It is not like it would change anything; In fact, it would even bring me greater misery because I have to interact with more of those two-faced nobles. I do, however, still appreciate this man's sincerity.
Sensing my uninterest towards our conversation, the count cried out, "Wahhh! Don't tell anyone okay! Yeah? Promise yeah?" I could literally see the eyeballs of this supposedly noble figure wailing out.
"Well, not like I could tell it to anyone," The count's eyes opened wide in a slight surprise, "I would if I could though~," I said in a playful tone, maintaining my calm whilst reading my book. As if a dam had been destroyed, the young count cried out and took a hold of my shoulders, "That's not funny y-you!" He said whilst shaking my entire body.
"Knock it off!" I said as used my book to push his face away. This pathetic excuse for a noble is one of the only people who actually try to befriend me. Although he's rather rowdy, he's a soft-hearted person who I don't need to wear a 'mask' in front of.
His desperate wailing became quieter and quieter as the 'world' slowly collapsed upon my awakening.
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My eyes slowly opened, adjusting to the bright sunlight coming from the open window. And the face I'm caressing, "So-Sophia?!" I abruptly pulled my hand out of Sophia's face.
"Did my face feel good master?" She asked like she didn't mind.
"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to do that!" I said in defense. However, I do find her face soft. Even if she was an automaton, her face was no different than a human's. In fact, her face felt soft and delicate, as if she was a real girl. Wait what am I thinking!
"If it's master, then it's fine." There! She said something weird again! Who in the world would program an automaton to say those words with an apathetic face?!
Sensing my discomfort, Sophia stood up and said; "I'm glad you're okay master. If it weren't for that knight, you probably would have been in a coma due to the corrosive gas you inhaled." Knight? ahh, you mean Master Renard.
I often forget he's a knight due to his lax attitude, but I guess he does have a knightly exterior though.
"If you'll excuse me, master, I will bring your meal now. Do you need anything else master?" Sophia asked. I thought about her question as I observed my body. Parts of my skin which contacted the corrosive gas were wrapped in herbs and bandages. My arms didn't really look all that damaged other than the slight shakiness, but it feels as if every muscle on my arms is moving and pulsating their own way as if I lost coordination with my body.
"Would my arms be all right?" I asked.
"It's all right. Although master's body is weak against his own magic, master didn't overexert his stigma. So it should be fine after a few days' rest." She replied. "Anything else master?"
"White. Call me by my name instead of 'master'." For the past four months, she has been calling me 'Master.' However, because of the little time I actually spend with her, the thought of properly asking her to call me by name just left my mind.
I had to dream about my one and only friend just to remember that I haven't asked Sophia to do so.
"...Is that an order Master?" Sophia asked.
"No. It's a request from a friend." I said with a soft smile.
"Friend?" Sophia asked, tilting her head in confusion. Well, I can't blame her. I doubt automatons have that concept between people, but having a master-servant relationship doesn't really sit well with me.
Telling Sophia that would take a troublesome amount of explanation, so I just said that to her in a sincere manner. That way, she wouldn't just brush this request off as simply a child's innocence.
"I see... That means that white and I are friends now right?" She asks as if to confirm, tilting her head upward with a finger pointed on her jaw as if she was pondering. Then the unexpected happened. Her normally expressionless face brightened as a beautiful smile appeared. "If that is your wish, White Lucklastrey."
Taken aback from the sight in front of me, I couldn't help but feel as if she became more... human. "J-just White. You don't need to state my whole name."
"Yes, White. I will go get your meal and Mr. Galiard since we actually have a lot to discuss." Sophia said as she gazed at the window. Following her gaze, I got myself out of bed and looked outside the window.
Since our house is built on higher grounds compared to the village of Bluoir, it is a great spot to oversee the village and the massive forest.
A distance away, a part of the forest looks to be in a dim and gaseous dome. Trees were leafless, some even missing all their leaves. Giant shard-like feathers were like tombstones impaled on the ground and trees, but the most eye-catching of them all is the white crystal-like beast simply displayed there like an ice sculpture without any signs of melting.
"S-Sophia, how long was I out?" I asked with a tinge of nervousness apparent in my voice.
"Only for a day, since most of your injuries came from the corrosive gasses and your own magic. But you should still take a rest as your body hasn't fully cleansed itself and is still recovering from your magic's recoil."
I stared in awe from the looks of that area. Before I collapsed, I honestly thought it looked beautiful, but now that I'm looking at it from afar, "Y-yeah... That does look like something we'll have to discuss..." I responded, but Sophia shook her head.
"I didn't mean that. I meant the guardian of the forest building a nest on our garden."
"Huh?!" I looked down to see the Griffin making use of our house's materials to build a nest, and he's even making the old man help him! I swear, this Griffin is too full of himself, who does that to a sickly guy anyways? Damn it.
I made my way to the door before Sophia, "White, what's wrong?"
"I'm eating downstairs so we can have that 'discussion' asap." After saying that, I walked full speed ahead downstairs. Although I could say my body hasn't really been "that" damaged, it seems that I'm feeling weak due to my overuse of magic and the fact that I haven't eaten yet. So before I go outside, I decided to stop by the kitchen to get something to munch on.
...
Unknown to White's knowledge, the surprised Sophia stared blankly at the door. Her hair fluttered with the gentle breeze of the wind as she took a chronographic-looking pendant out from her pocket.
Her gentle gaze, as if reminiscing, looked as if the concept of hope had materialized in her eyes. A small and gentle smile appeared on her face as she opened her mouth, "He's just like you, Luck..."
Placing it back inside her pocket, the smile she had didn't fade, even as she followed after White.