The Youngest Daughter Of The Great Wizard Of The Famous Swordsmanship [EN]: Chapter 25

25. Melody Oser (2)

November 25, 2023

Rosette and Lucas exchanged a quick glance, both their eyes then darting towards Duke Adrian.

Joseph was still confined in the underground prison. They were at a loss for words, unsure how to explain the complex situation to Melody.

“Melody.”

Duke Adrian knelt, bringing himself to Melody’s eye level. Still tense, Melody clenched her small fists, her eyes darting nervously around the room.

“First, can you tell your Uncle Adrian how you’ve been?”

Melody hesitated for a moment, then recounted everything from beginning to end. According to her, the story unfolded like this:

Missing her brother terribly, Melody had followed a man who promised to take her to him.

She ended up in an unfamiliar mansion, living almost in confinement, but she hadn’t felt particularly unhappy. The people in the mansion had been quite kind to her.

‘They must have been planning to use Melody as leverage with the Dallas family if necessary,’ Duke Adrian thought.

Melody said she missed her brother every day, constantly asking when she could see him, but they always told her to wait.

Then, today, she had ended up here.

Having finished her story, Melody instinctively shrank back, her earlier confidence gone.

“So, where’s my brother? Where is Joseph?”

“Joseph is out on an errand for a while,” Duke Adrian said, choosing his words carefully.

He had no intention of allowing Melody to see her brother until he had thoroughly investigated Joseph’s actions. Instead, he offered Melody a reassuring smile and gestured to a nearby maid.

“Please take her to her room for now.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

Rosette hurried after Duke Adrian as he turned to leave, eager to begin his investigation.

“Father.”

Duke Adrian paused, turning back with a softened expression.

“What is it, Rose?”

“What are you going to do about Joseph Oser? And Melody?”

Duke Adrian offered an awkward smile.

“That’s something I need to think about further. It’s not something you need to worry about, Rose. As I said, this is a matter for the adults.”

“But it *is* my business, too.”

Rosette’s voice was unusually firm. Duke Adrian, intrigued, pressed her further.

“Why do you say it’s your business?”

“I made a promise to Joseph Oser. That I would save his sister. Joseph Oser listened to me and helped me in return.”

Duke Adrian muttered, a hint of discomfort in his voice.

“But Rose, Joseph Oser betrayed our family…”

He couldn’t bring himself to utter the word ‘betrayed’ directly, so his voice trailed off. Rosette finished the sentence for him.

“I know. He *was* going to betray us. But in the end, he kept his word.”

“Kept his word? Where did you learn such a phrase?”

“…I heard the knights using it.”

“You’ve learned quite difficult words,” Duke Adrian said, stroking Rosette’s hair as if impressed. Rosette blushed slightly but continued.

“Anyway, I don’t want Joseph Oser to be punished.”

“That’s for your father to decide.”

“And I want to take classes with Melody.”

“Classes?”

“Yes.”

Rosette explained enthusiastically.

“If she takes classes well, I think Melody could become a great mage, too. So, I want to take classes with Celine [the Adrian family’s exclusive mage].”

Duke Adrian couldn’t immediately refuse her request. The fact that Melody possessed a talent for magic was interesting, but it was Rosette’s earnestness that truly caught his attention.

It had been two months since Rosette had become the youngest member of the Adrian family.

During that time, Duke Adrian had lavished her with everything she could possibly need, holding nothing back. At first, Rosette had seemed burdened by the attention, but she soon began to shyly accept the gifts.

However, she had never once *asked* Duke Adrian for anything she needed.

This was the first time the child had proactively requested something. Duke Adrian didn’t know whether to be pleased or embarrassed by this development.

He desperately wanted to grant Rosette’s wishes, but…

“Then let’s go to Celine first. We need to determine whether Melody actually has a talent for magic or not.”

“Yes.”

“If Celine says she has no talent, then we can’t teach her, even if we want to. You need to understand that.”

“Yes.”

However, Rosette remained unconcerned. There was no way Celine wouldn’t recognize Melody’s potential. In fact, knowing Celine’s personality, she might even make a fuss about wanting to personally mentor Melody.

“Then let’s go.”

“Alright.”

Rosette reached out to Melody, who was standing hesitantly beside the maid in the distance.

“You come too.”

Melody glanced around nervously before trotting over to join them.

“Okay.”

Rosette took the cold hand of the younger girl and confidently led the way towards Celine’s lab.

* * *

“Miss Rose!”

As soon as they entered the lab, Celine rushed over and swept Rosette into a hug. Rosette struggled, kicking her legs in protest.

“T-Too heavy!”

“Heavy? You’re as light as a feather! You still need to put on a little weight. Are you eating well?”

“Of course!”

Rosette declared confidently. She could confidently say that she ate better than anyone else, enjoying three full meals a day. She was certain she could even out-eat Lucas.

Celine smiled contentedly and gently set Rosette back down.

She bent down slightly, observing Melody, who was still hiding behind Rosette.

“Okay. But who is this pretty little lady?”

Melody, who was desperately clutching at Rosette’s clothes, hesitated before answering.

“I’m Melody Oser.”

“Oser?”

Celine’s beautiful face clouded over slightly. As the Adrian family’s exclusive mage, she was more aware than most of the incident that had thrown the mansion into turmoil over the past ten days.

Apparently, the name of the boy who had started it all was Joseph Oser.

‘So, this child must be the younger sister in question,’ Celine concluded, glancing at Duke Adrian, who was standing behind the children. Duke Adrian gave a subtle nod, indicating that everything was alright.

Relieved, Celine asked, “You’re Joseph Oser’s sister?”

Melody’s eyes widened.

“Do you know my brother?”

“Of course.”

Celine’s eyes sparkled, this time with a different kind of excitement.

“By the way, there must be a reason why you brought this adorable little lady to me?”

Like Rosette, who hadn’t fully mastered her mana, Melody was also emitting a faint magical aura.

She was nowhere near as naturally gifted as Rosette, who was clearly a prodigy, but if nurtured properly, she had the potential to become a skilled mage.

“Yes. I want you to see if this child has a talent for magic.”

“There’s no need to even check. She’s very talented.”

“Really?”

“Still, just in case, should I check properly? Melody, is it? Can this sister hold your hand?”

Celine knelt down and extended her hand. Melody looked at Rosette with a frightened expression.

“It’s okay. She’s a good sister.”

Only after Rosette reassured her did Melody hesitantly take Celine’s hand.

Immediately, a bright light emanated from Celine’s hand, flowing into Melody’s. Melody’s eyes widened in surprise. Celine smiled and focused her energy.

Soon, the light enveloped Melody’s entire body before fading away. Celine exclaimed excitedly, “She’s really talented!”

“How talented is she?”

Celine practically shouted.

“I’d want to raise her myself if I could!”

Realizing belatedly that the other child was Joseph Oser’s sister, she quickly corrected herself.

“But there’s no need to go that far.”

Duke Adrian looked back and forth between Rosette and Melody with an unreadable expression.

Melody hid further behind Rosette, while Rosette looked up at the Duke with a pleading expression.

After a moment of silence, the Duke made his decision.

“Let’s think about it after we’ve completely resolved this incident. If the Adrian family sponsors this child, are you willing to teach her?”

Celine asked back in surprise.

“Sponsor her? But this child is…”

“Yes. Originally, before this incident, we were planning to sponsor this child and send her to the academy [a school for mages].”

“If that’s the case, I’m all for it! Nurturing talented students is every mage’s dream. She seems to be about the same age as the little lady, so it would be good for them to take classes together. Having a friend to work with improves learning efficiency.”

“Alright. Then I’ll contact you again later.”

“Understood.”

“Then Rose, go to your room and rest for now. Melody, was it? I’ll guide you to your room too, so rest there.”

“Where’s my brother?”

“I’ll let you meet Joseph when he returns.”

“Okay.”

Duke Adrian watched the two little girls leave the lab and headed back towards the underground prison.

* * *

“How did it go, Duke?”

Joseph, who had been anxiously waiting, spotted Duke Adrian emerging from the darkness and rushed to the bars of his cell.

“My sister, is Melody alright?”

“Yes. Melody is safe.”

As soon as he heard those words, Joseph burst into tears that he had been desperately holding back. It was a raw, childlike cry.

“Thank… Thank you, Duke.”

“Thank Rosette later, not me. Things wouldn’t have worked out so well if it hadn’t been for that child.”

“I will definitely express my gratitude to the little lady as well.”

“By the way, I need to decide on your punishment now.”

The Duke’s voice was cold and devoid of emotion. Joseph wiped away the tears that had soaked his cheeks and adopted a determined expression.

“I will accept whatever punishment I receive. I will die if I am told to.”

“…”

“However, Melody is innocent. If you could just safely send her back, I really don’t care what happens to me. Melody… not my Melody. It may sound selfish, but Duke, please don’t punish Melody.”

Duke Adrian looked down at him with a blank expression.

“Joseph Oser. You clearly tried to betray the Adrian family. Even though your sister was held hostage, the fact that you attempted to betray me remains unchanged.”

“…”

“But it is also true that you saved me at the risk of your sister’s life and your own. I have been constantly considering which points to weigh more heavily.”

Duke Adrian gestured to the knight who was waiting behind him. The knight opened the prison door and unlocked the manacles on Joseph’s wrists and ankles.

Duke Adrian helped Joseph to his feet, who was clearly bewildered by the sudden turn of events.

“Adrian does not forget favors. I have decided to value the fact that you ultimately chose Adrian.”

“……!”

“However, I will be assigning you a guard for the time being. Melody will also be staying in the Adrian family. Whether it will be as a ward or a hostage depends on your future actions.”

“Then…”

“Yes. You may go see Melody now.”

As soon as those words were spoken, Joseph was helped out of the underground prison by the knight.