“Gah! Wh-what the hell are you?!”
Ron flailed like a fish just pulled out of the water, jerking upright.
Looked like he’d finally decided I was worth responding to. I flashed him a bright smile and answered.
“Mm. I’m Tania.”
Ron scrambled off the sofa, putting some distance between us like a wary alley cat, eyes wide and agitated.
“That’s not what I asked!”
I tilted my head slightly, playing innocent.
“No? Then what did you want to know?”
“Why the hell did you sit on me?!”
“Oh, that. You were rude right off the bat, so I figured you wanted us on the same level.”
Ron raked his hands through his hair like he couldn’t believe this.
“Unbelievable… Father’s brought home a total lunatic!”
“Haha, it’s kind of cute how you’re snapping at me with that filthy mouth.”
He must’ve grown up showered with the Merchant Guild Master’s love.
He’s basically spoiled rotten.
“Who the hell are you calling cute? You’re a whole head shorter than me!”
Ron’s face went bright red as he glared daggers at me.
Ah. So he’s weak to compliments?
Seeing that just made my lips curl up.
Still a kid, after all.
I couldn’t help it—I burst out laughing.
“Pfft, then what would you rather I call you instead of cute?”
“Nothing! Just get the hell away from me!”
Even as he barked that, I tilted my head, still smiling.
“But I want to stay by you, Ron. I like you.”
“Wh-what…?”
Maybe it was the first time someone his age ever told him that.
With that personality, any girl who might’ve liked him probably ran off bawling.
I smiled with my eyes crinkling into half-moons.
“Obviously. Because you’re absolutely adorable.”
“Ugh! Stop calling me cute already!”
“Even the way you throw a fit is cute.”
“You little—!”
Ron looked so genuinely tormented I almost thought about switching it up.
“Hm. If you hate ‘cute’ that much, how about ‘pretty’?”
“I’m done talking to you!”
Finally fed up, Ron stormed off.
I hopped off the sofa and started trailing after him.
“Aww, come on~ Play with me a bit.”
Seeing how easily I toyed with Ron, the employees who’d been watching the whole time started whispering in amazement.
“Wow, I’ve never seen anyone smile at Ron like that.”
“Yeah, and it’s the first time I’ve seen that brat actually flustered.”
Just then, the Merchant Guild Master and Unc Aiden came down the stairs one after the other, looking like they’d finished their discussion.
I scampered over to the staircase before they’d even reached the bottom.
“So, did you two come to a conclusion?”
The Merchant Guild Master looked a bit displeased as he opened his mouth.
“Turns out, he’s carrying a mercenary badge from Honeysuckle.”
The Honeysuckle Mercenaries.
That was the group that had once counted the legendary Mercenary King among their ranks—a place only proven elites could join.
Their mission success rate was incredibly high, and unlike most mercenaries, they never stirred up pointless trouble, so their reputation was spotless.
I beamed.
“See? Totally trustworthy. I told you I’ve got an unbeatable eye for people.”
The Merchant Guild Master lightly flicked my forehead with his finger and spoke firmly.
“But it was still reckless of you to just go staying at a stranger’s house.”
“Yes yes, it was very wrong of me.”
I raised both hands in a fake show of remorse, and he let out a small sigh.
“You seem to have your own way of thinking, so I won’t try to stop you. But if your foresight ever shows you a bad future, come here immediately.”
“Um, you’re saying that pretty loud. I think Unc Aiden can hear you.”
“I meant for him to hear.”
I glanced over at Unc Aiden.
He didn’t seem offended at all—if anything, he looked like he thought it was perfectly reasonable.
“But Tania.”
“Yes, Merchant Guild Master?”
“All that’s fine, but… what’s with him?”
His gaze drifted to where Ron was curled up on the sofa like an angry cat, glaring at me.
I gave a little shrug.
“He said he hated being called ‘cute,’ so I tried ‘pretty,’ and now he’s like that.”
✦ ✦ ✦
That night.
Tania squirmed and sat up in bed.
“Yesterday I was so exhausted I just took over Unc’s bed without thinking…”
Now that she was actually thinking about it—if she was hogging the only bed in the house, then where was Unc sleeping?
Sure enough.
When she carefully cracked open the door and peeked out, there was Unc, dozing off slumped in a chair.
Right. This house didn’t even have a sofa.
So last night too… Unc must’ve been stuck sleeping uncomfortably like that.
Letting out a small sigh, Tania grabbed a pillow and hugged it to her chest, wearing the pitiful look of a little kid who couldn’t sleep.
“Unc…”
At her soft call, Unc’s eyelids lifted slowly, like he’d been awake all along.
“…What is it?”
“I’m scared to sleep alone.”
“You didn’t seem scared at all last night. Slept just fine on your own.”
Ouch.
But Tania still had one more foolproof card to tug at his heart.
She traced a little circle on the floor with her toe, speaking with a sulky look.
“…Then what if I said I always envied kids who could sleep next to their parents?”
Sure enough, Unc’s eyes twisted up immediately.
He’d guessed the absence of parents weighed on her, but hearing it come from her mouth was a whole different punch to the gut.
A wave of indescribable guilt shot up his spine, flooding through him.
Trying to shove down the emotion that threatened to spill out, he muttered low.
“…Fine. I’ll stay with you.”
The moment Unc stood up, Tania’s face lit up and she hurried back into the room.
Then she scurried to the edge of the bed and patted the spot next to her like it was obvious.
“Right here!”
Unc brought the wooden chair with him, and raised an eyebrow at the empty side of the bed.
“I said I’d stay with you. Didn’t say I’d get in the bed.”
But Tania just looked at him with sparkling eyes.
She knew getting him inside the room was already half a win.
“No matter how wide you make those puppy eyes…”
“Uuuungh?”
“It’s still a no—”
“Uuuuuuung?”
He gave up.
Aiden squeezed his eyes shut.
That face was way too cute. How was he supposed to get the word ‘no’ out when she was looking at him like that?
In the end, just like Tania expected, Unc was the first to cave.
“…Alright.”
Aiden slowly lay down at the very edge of the bed, trying to keep as far from her as possible.
Tania stared at Unc and giggled, like it was the funniest thing.
“Heehee.”
“What’s so funny?”
“Oh, just… everything.”
The fact that Unc, who’d once died, was now alive and breathing right in front of her.
That even though their first meeting this time had been so different, Unc still treated her just the same.
It was enough to make her heart overflow with relief.
Meanwhile, Aiden couldn’t bear to keep looking at the way Tania’s face shone with genuine happiness. His eyes slipped shut.
“Enough silly talk. Go to sleep.”
“Okay. Sleep well, Unc!”
“…Yeah.”
It hurt so much, seeing a child who could be so happy just to lie next to someone who’d promised to protect her.
Every moment he spent with Tania made Aiden feel like the worst kind of sinner.
Who knows how long he lay there with his eyes closed.
When her breathing settled into a calm, even rhythm, he seemed to think Tania was asleep. She quietly spoke up.
“Unc, you know…”
“…”
“They say the harder you try to forget bad memories, the more they stick. So it’s better to just pile on good memories until they cover them all up.”
Just like how she’d finally escaped those awful nightmares last time around.
“So… I’ll be that for you, okay?”
So that someday he could laugh and talk about a failed first love without it hurting.
After getting all that out, it was like she’d said everything she wanted. Tania drifted off to sleep without hesitation.
Once he realized her breathing had gone deep and steady, Aiden clutched his chest like it hurt.
From the very first moment Aiden had held her tiny newborn body, she’d been his whole world.
She didn’t have to try to become that—she already was.
All Aiden felt was pure gratitude that Tania was alive like this.
He wanted to pull her into a crushing hug and tell her that again and again.
But he couldn’t quite make himself do it. Instead, Aiden clenched his teeth and looked down at Tania’s small, round forehead.
Tania.
How the hell am I supposed to keep you safe?
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