The Protagonist’s Party is Too Diligent – 116
EP.116 Memory (2)
It was an obvious statement, but in games like this, young girls and boys were typically depicted as exceptionally attractive.
Yes, boys as well. Frankly, there weren’t many ways to draw boys that would make them look “cool.” No matter how stylishly they were illustrated, to an adult’s eyes, they were still just kids. Even if an elementary schooler exclaimed, “I’ll protect you!” it would only come off as adorable.
…Right, an elementary schooler.
Come to think of it, my current age was 15. If you excluded the age of the soul inside this body and added the “in-universe” age of this body to the time I’d lived in this world, that’s where I landed.
In Korea, that would correspond to a third-year middle schooler. Though outwardly, I didn’t look much different from a high schooler. I wasn’t sure if it was due to the game’s character modeling carrying over here, but that seemed to be the case.
When I thought about it, putting bunny-girl outfits on kids this age was a completely insane idea. While the characters’ physical development was different from Earth’s, which often made me forget their ages, in the first installment of the game, most of the cast were just fledglings.
If we hadn’t been wearing masks, people in the casino would have probably guessed immediately that we were far too young to be there.
Well, maybe someone would have recognized Alice as a princess before they noticed anything else.
In front of me now, however, was a child who was clearly younger than me by several years, looking like an upper-grade elementary schooler or, at most, an early middle schooler. Of course, the concept of middle school wasn’t fully established in this world yet.
The child had green hair, wore an outfit resembling a butler’s uniform designed for kids, and had such a charmingly cute face that he wouldn’t have seemed out of place as a regular character in the original game. But this was a face I had never seen before.
Naturally so. If I hadn’t saved him, he likely would have been sold off somewhere. For that matter, if his face hadn’t been so strikingly pretty, he probably wouldn’t have been at that orphanage to begin with.
The boy looked up at me with emerald-like eyes, his expression showing a slight hint of surprise.
I wasn’t as skilled as Alice at discerning facial expressions, so I couldn’t tell whether he was surprised by my appearance or by realizing that I was “Sylvia Black.”
“They are precious guests who will be staying here for a few days.”
the butler said, addressing the child.
“Ah, yes.”
The boy replied almost immediately, his voice sharp and clear. The butler’s brow furrowed slightly, seemingly displeased by the brief moment of hesitation earlier.
However, he didn’t scold the boy in front of us. In fact, he didn’t seem like the type to raise his voice at anyone. The boy didn’t show any signs of intimidation around the butler either. If he had been mistreated, he wouldn’t be standing so confidently.
The boy lightly placed one hand over his chest and clasped his other hand behind his back as he offered a slight bow toward us. The motion was so smooth and natural that it was evident just how well-trained he was.
“My name is Daniel, a trainee butler. I look forward to serving you over the next few days.”
Of course, he probably wouldn’t be directly guiding us around much… Oh.
Daniel.
Hearing the name, a memory buried deep within my mind began to surface. There had been a child with vivid green hair—quiet and reserved. Perhaps his demeanor had been similar to Claire’s, though he was even younger than she had been.
We had all been so young. Claire and I had been only five years old, and some were even younger. All of us were children that the old woman at the orphanage had “acquired” from somewhere.
She kept us for a while and then sold us off later at a high price, treating us like “merchandise.”
Had Daniel been particularly attached to me?
I couldn’t really say. Back then, nearly all my attention had been focused on Claire. Sure, I’d been kind to the other kids too—I’d shared my food, told awkwardly made-up stories to entertain them—but that was about it. There had been too many of them for me to care for each one individually. It wasn’t like I could manage that alone.
Still, thinking back, none of the kids had caused any major trouble. That likely meant Daniel had been one of the children who followed my words obediently.
“Daniel!”
Claire, as if she were meeting an old friend after ages, instinctively moved to rush forward but froze in her tracks. She glanced at her mother.
The baroness was watching Claire with a stern expression.
I looked at Claire too.
She had lifted both hands slightly, likely intending to run to Daniel and hug him tightly.
But that sort of behavior wasn’t appropriate for a fifteen-year-old girl in this world.
Although teenage marriages weren’t unheard of here, they weren’t especially common either. However, children who joined the academy weren’t treated as kids forever, either.
In this world, the line between “adult” and “child” was extremely blurred. Tales of seventeen-year-olds lying about their age to join the military were celebrated as heroic anecdotes, yet the moment teenagers attempted to take on certain responsibilities, adults over twenty would intervene, declaring such matters unfit for children.
This world didn’t yet have things like human rights charters or the equivalent. Whether those would be established in the future, I couldn’t say.
“Uh, long time no see?”
Claire quickly spread her raised hands, then waved them enthusiastically as though that had been her intention all along.
“Haha…”
Daniel, watching Claire’s antics, gave a faint, troubled laugh before bowing his head slightly.
“It’s been a while, Miss Claire.”
“……”
Claire immediately pouted in dissatisfaction at the formal address.
There didn’t seem to be any romantic undertones between the two of them. Honestly, such an atmosphere would have been strange given their respective demeanors. One of them seemed both young and mature at the same time, while the other still leaned much closer to being a child.
More than that—
I slowly lifted my gaze and surveyed the room.
It was clean and well-organized. Not barren, but arranged in such a way that the various items within it fit perfectly into their designated spaces, creating a cozy atmosphere.
The room had two bunk beds, suggesting it was originally meant to house multiple occupants.
“The other children have all left to pursue different opportunities. For now, Daniel is the only one staying here,” the butler explained.
The butler, noticing my gaze, answered before I could ask, and the baroness nodded softly in agreement.
Perhaps Claire had once stayed in a place like this with Daniel. Of course, the boys and girls would have been housed in separate rooms, but before she was adopted by the House of Grace, they might have shared a bond like that of siblings.
Would she have hugged him without hesitation back then? Knowing Claire’s personality, it seemed likely.
My wandering gaze slowly drifted downward and settled on Daniel’s face.
I studied it carefully.
Was there any sign of injury? Did he look unhappy or sorrowful? I wasn’t entirely sure why I was searching for such things, but for some reason, it felt necessary.
In the end, I found nothing.
Realizing this, I felt a quiet sense of satisfaction before speaking.
“Are you doing well?”
It might not have been proper to ask such a question without introducing myself first.
But Daniel replied as if he already knew who I was.
“Yes, I’ve been doing well, without any lack or trouble.”
“That’s good.”
I searched for the next thing to say. How should I continue?
“I heard that there are others from the same orphanage…”
“They are all under the protection of the House of Grace. Now, each of them is looking for ways to repay that kindness through various endeavors.”
“I see.”
I took that to mean that they were all doing well.
“……”
I almost asked if he remembered my face but stopped myself at the last moment.
I felt like I already knew the answer.
At first, I thought he was merely surprised to see an unexpected guest. After all, news of two princesses visiting the manor would have already spread to every servant in the territory.
But there was something in his expression—an understanding—that felt different.
“It’s late today,” I began slowly, carefully considering how to proceed. “If you have no pressing engagements tomorrow…”
I hesitated mid-sentence, questioning whether this was the right way to phrase it.
“Could you introduce me to your friends?”
In the end, I asked just that.
For a brief moment, silence filled the room. It wasn’t a tense silence, merely a pause.
“I would be glad to do so.”
Daniel bowed his head slightly as he answered.