“Lucia?”

“…Could it be, these children are Phil’s niece and nephew?”

“Phil’s…?”

As soon as he heard that, Alves tensed.

He stared at the children and took a deep breath. Then, he knelt before us and asked seriously.

“…Lucia, did you hear the names of these children?”

“…Eh? They are Al and Lida…”

“Al… Lida… as I thought…!”

My brother crouched down and held his head.

...What happened?

While I was wondering what to say, someone tugged on my hand.

Al looked up towards me.

“Lucia, who is this person?”

“He’s my brother, Alves. He’s Phil’s friend.”

“Hmm…”

Al alternately stared between me and my brother.

I wondered if he thought that we weren’t very similar. Lida, who was curious, approached my brother.

“Hey, Alves, are you a knight?”

“…Formerly, I was one.”

“To be honest, we recognized your face, but it was supposed to be a secret from Lucia!”

“Yes, yes, Phil told us to not say anything unnecessary!”

The children seemed to be fond of my older brother.

My brother had a tall and solid physique. Children of their age were usually scared of him when they first meet.

…No, rather than feeling nostalgic, the seem to be accustomed to seeing knights?

…Also, my brother’s reaction was similar Phil’s when he spoke about his family.

“…So, where did Phil go?”

“Well, he found them climbing a tree, caught them when they were about to fall, and went looking for those who’re responsible for them…”

I thought that it’d be better to explain for the time being. As soon as I told him the details, my brother stiffened once again.

“…Just now, I heard something strange. They climbed a tree? And they fell?”

“Indeed, when they were peeking in on the ball, the branch Al was sitting was about to break.”

“…What…?”

Al then spoke, “Well, it was an accident. Lida, though. She could have jumped off by herself, but she still had Phil catch her, anyway.”

“…Uwaaa! I don’t want to hear the details!”

Alves groaned.

However, he immediately raised his face and stood up.

“Lucia, you may go. I’ll be the one to watch over these kids.”

“Eh, but…”

I hesitated upon recalling Phil’s serious expression as he entrusted those children to me. Then, I heard the sound of multiple people coming from the other side of the courtyard.

There were three maids and several knights—and Phil was among them. The moment the older woman saw the children with me, she looked relieved.

“Al-sama, Lida-sama, I was worried!”

The woman embraced the children tightly.

As, age-wise, she didn’t seem like their mother, was she their caretaker?

“Everything’s fine, now, Lucia. Let’s head back.”

“That’s right.”

Alves urged me and I nodded.

The children reacted to that. They squeezed my hands from both sides.

“Are you leaving?”

“I still want to spend time with you!”

“…Hey, you monkeys. Lucia-chan didn’t come to play with you. She came to participate in the ball, so let her go.”

Phil roughly ushered the two away.

I, surprised, released their hands. Phil smiled at me.

“I’m sorry, but would you please return to the venue with Alves? I’ll return soon after I’ve sent them back…”

Then, he looked to something behind me. A little later, I heard the footsteps of someone approaching from behind.

“Phil! Did you catch them?! Good job!”

It was a male voice.

Someone seemed to have come from the ball venue.

When I tried to turn around, Alves squeezed my shoulder.

“Brother…?”

“…Alves, take Lucia-chan and run away.”

“It’s useless. If I run now, I’ll be seized for suspicious behavior. Dammit, why didn’t I notice sooner!”

Confused, I didn’t turn around. The entire time, Alves and Phil were discussing about something.

Meanwhile, the footsteps behind me approached and stopped in front of Phil who was holding the children.

“…Why is my brother still at the ball at this time?” Phil asked.

“That’s because the kids vanished. I had to look around, otherwise that’d have been an even bigger problem. I stayed at the venue and pretended to be on guard to look for more leads!”

The man talking to Phil was cheerful.

When he noticed the children’s line of sight, he turned around. As the children were looking at me, the man, too, inevitably caught sight of me.

---

***T/N: LEMME GUESS, IT’S THE DUKE?! THE FIRST SLASH CROWN PRINCE?! THE SECOND PRINCE?!?! JUST SOME RANDO WITH KIDS!?

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