I Became the Childhood Friend of the Northern Duchess - I Became the Childhood Friend of the Northern Duchess chapter 20

20 – 4 years time

The passage of time changes many things.

The huge mountains, the meandering rivers, and even the old castles of the empire that seemed to last forever.

Is it different just because it is a person? No, rather, as a human being, it was the law that was most rapidly affected by the change of time.

Around the time Edgar’s height became roughly the same as the sunflowers in the garden, many changes came to him as well.

First, the ability to use magic.

I’m not very good at it, but if it’s a low-level magic, it’s possible to use it enough even when I’m not wearing a sword.

In addition, as a result of repeated training without missing a single day for nearly four years, Edgar gained quite a bit of muscle.

It wasn’t a lot of muscles because the body wasn’t developed yet, but it was good to see the right amount of muscles for that age.

It was for this reason that Edgar felt proud recently.

“You are diligent today too, son.”

“Yes, are you awake?”

The father and son met on the first floor early in the morning and exchanged greetings, and the two headed straight to the restaurant.

Edgar forgot to bring his wooden sword, so he leaned against the wall at the entrance of the restaurant for a while and went inside.

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Katria, who had arrived earlier, greeted him warmly.

“Good morning, son.”

“Yes, mother. How are you feeling?”

Edgar, who was concerned about the condition of his mother, who had recently suffered from a bad cold, immediately asked a question, and her lips drew a thin arc.

“You feel better now. It must be because of the herbs my son brought me.”

“That’s fortunate. If I need to go to the mountains, I will pick them up again.”

Edgar began to visit the mountain frequently when he turned thirteen last year.

It was because I was thinking about using the acid that a friend gave me as a gift while I was learning about herbal medicine that I found after searching through books.

It would be possible to make potions with herbs or combine herbs to make new medicines if you dig a little deeper into the study, but that was still impossible.

It was just that I knew quite a few herbs that were good for certain diseases, so I benefited from it in many ways after that.

“Oh, I heard that Madame Helene is coming today.”

“Also Ariel?”

“Maybe not?”

Edgar tilted his head slightly, as if there was something unpleasant about him.

He had a childhood friend of almost 13 years, but her behavior was a bit strange recently.

In the past, she would have walked in and out of the Billhark family holding her mother Helen’s hand, but these days, she rarely appears in public, and sometimes Helen visits the Billhark family alone.

When I asked Helene if something had happened, she just laughed and shook her head as if she couldn’t answer.

‘Has puberty come?’

It wasn’t surprising since I’ve heard that girls go through puberty earlier than boys.

Entering this year, I expected it to some extent.

Even so, the only thing I didn’t understand was what connection puberty and avoiding friends had.

Edgar also went through puberty, but back then, it was more likely that he grew farther away from his parents and closer to his friends.

I wondered if I had made a mistake, but I had no clue where to point it out.

Maybe the family was busy with work. I didn’t see any sign of that, though.

‘I don’t know.’

It’s not possible to know all about other people’s inner affairs, so we have no choice but to move on.

Anyway, time will solve the problem.

“I really enjoyed the meal.”

“You eat too quickly. Mom still has half left.”

“I’m kind of like that.”

Edgar, who was a good eater, often finished his meals faster than his grown-up father.

It wasn’t even that much less.

He got up first, remembered what he forgot to do while he was about to move, and then turned around.

“Mother, can you call Ariel when she comes? I’m going to sleep in my room.”

“What’s wrong with the kid who said it’s not good to sleep right after eating?”

“Sometimes you have days like this.”

As Edgar shrugged and turned his back, Katria laughed at her son, who seemed to be becoming more of a snarl by the day.

Meanwhile, Edgar, who left the restaurant behind and went to his room, immediately buried himself in the bed.

When Ariel comes, the day won’t be smooth either way.

So I had to stock up on stamina before that.

I just need to sleep for an hour or so.

It would be nice to have an alarm clock at this time, but unfortunately, it was not in this world.

‘Should I have an attendant, too?’

It was also the first thing his father, Lancel, asked him when the year dawned.

I wonder if you don’t need a separate exclusive user.

At first, I was uncomfortable with someone hanging around, and I didn’t like having someone below me do it, so I refused, but I felt the need more and more.

like right now

‘Someday that day will come.’

It’s not something to think about in a hurry, so let’s close our eyes first, and Edgar stopped thinking and slowly sank to the bottom of consciousness.

As a result, the body gradually became heavier.

* * * * * * *

All right. All right.

The carriage carrying the precious guest made a powerful noise and moved toward its destination.

A pair of mother and daughter with long black hair were riding in the carriage, and looking at them, they looked like sisters with a slight age gap rather than mother and daughter.

Ariel, who had been watching outside the window indifferently, let out a low sigh at the similar scene that had been repeated countless times for several hours.

“I feel it every time I come, but Ardenum is far away. Right, Mom?”

“It can’t be helped. It’s a place that’s quite far from the dimension stone.”

Ardenum was geographically located almost at the end of the northeast.

And there were only four dimension stones that could use teleport, even in the northern region, and among them, the closest dimension stone to Ardenum was a place that took more than four hours by carriage.

It must have been quite a struggle for a daughter who couldn’t stand being bored.

Helen smiled as she stroked her hair understandingly.

“I’m not even a kid anymore, but I’m petting him.”

“Are you still a girl in your mother’s eyes?”

“Mom is really… … .”

As if he didn’t hate it, Ariel quietly leaned her back towards Helen and surrendered herself.

Fourteen-year-old Ariel has matured considerably.

It wasn’t long before the child who treated her mother like a friend learned that it was an honorific word and started to learn moderation in every action.

Sometimes I miss that time, but I endured it because I knew that as a mother, I had to bless a child who was becoming an adult.

How surprised he was when he first said to him, ‘Good night.’

The memory was still vivid.

“I could have stayed at my parents’ house if it was troublesome. I’m sorry about your mother.”

“It is cumbersome. I just wanted to come out with my mother after a long time.”

“Huh, my daughter is talking well now.”

In the past, she was a child who clung to her mother’s arms and expressed affection directly.

But now, as if he was embarrassed to say such a thing, he didn’t look at her, and he didn’t show it as much as he could, and it was just cute how he opened his mouth.

“Come to think of it, what are you going to do with the Billhark family?”

“Yeah, I have something to tell you.”

“It looks like it’s something you shouldn’t have written or sent to someone else.”

“right.”

Ariel turns her head out the window again as if she finally understood.

Whenever I complained about the same scenery, I devoted myself to appreciating it for a long time to see if there was a face that came to mind.

Helene, who was watching this, was busy laughing while holding her breath as much as possible so that her daughter could not hear it.

I think I believe that I have become more mature… No, it’s actually like that, but one thing hasn’t changed.

Maybe even younger than when I was a 10-year-old kid.

“Daughter, I want to ask you something.”

“What is it?”

What kind of question is this all of a sudden?

In the first place, my mother was also the one who knew everything about me. There was nothing to hide.

Ariel, who was a bit nervous, shrugged her shoulders, and Helen smiled silently and brought out what she wanted to ask.

“Isn’t the reason you’re going to the Billhark family today actually somewhere else?”

“… … ?”

dreamy dreamy

Unexpecting the sudden question, Ariel put on a dazed expression as if she had been beaten on the head with a blunt instrument.

And soon, the heat that gradually began to rise from below enveloped his entire face.

It must be because of the mood that there was a popping sound.

“W-what are you talking about! I-I have some business in that corner of the country… … !”

“yes? I heard from Shuri that you did that with the flower arrangement, which you haven’t done well since morning?”

“Shuri… … !”

The maid in charge of Ariel, who was assigned last year, was the name of the daughter of Sheppy, the maid in charge of Helen.

When the unexpected name popped up, Ariel gritted her teeth, unable to hide her anger.

Why did he put such a pointless fact into his mother’s ears and put himself in such a predicament?

I made up my mind that as soon as I returned to my hometown, I would surely punish him accordingly.

“Then I guess there really isn’t another reason.”

“Of course! Why would I want to meet Ed that idiot!?”

“oh.”

A surprised reaction came out of Helene’s mouth, but the line drawn on her lips was of a slightly different nature.

A smile full of mischief, as if to say, ‘It just caught me.’

And without mercy, he dealt the final blow to his precious daughter.

“Daughter, Mom never said Ed was the reason… … ?”

“Yes?”

About 3 seconds of silence continued as it was.

Ariel raised both hands without saying a word, hurriedly covered her blushing face, and shook her head as if she didn’t know anything.

Ed, that idiot, somehow didn’t have any corner to help him.

Doesn’t it make you take a heavy step because even a single letter is not sent properly?

Anyway, real idiot, idiot, Ed.

just try to meet I’ll punch you in the face right away.