kscans

Chapter 208 - A Kind Master

After getting the bath ready, I returned to the living room.

Kaede-chan was already there, drinking cocoa with Arc.

"Arc, go get in once you finish that."

"Okay. Thanks for this."

Well, he is a guest.

"Oh, Senpai, would you like some too? Or would you prefer coffee?" Kaede-chan asked.

"I'm sleepy, so coffee, please."

"Coming right up."

Kaede-chan placed her cocoa on the table and headed to the kitchen.

I sat down next to where Kaede-chan had been sitting.

"She's a good wife, isn't she?"

"You can tell, right? She's super cute."

And kind, too.

"By the way, why are you Eleanor?"

"I've been like this since yesterday. I was planning to change back before bed, but I was too tired and fell asleep. I'll change back before my bath."

It's fine to be Eleanor-san since Arc is here, but I want to be Okita-kun in front of Kaede-chan.

"Hmm... Just for reference, do you ever get them mixed up?"

"You mean Okita-kun and me?"

"Yeah. Like, do you ever get confused with your consciousness, being male and female?"

Well, I have been told my sexual harassment is terrible...

"I don't. When my gender changes, my strength and height change too. It's like I become a completely different person. It feels less like my gender changed and more like I transformed."

It's like being a magical girl. At twenty-six years old...

"But you're Hajime in front of Kaede, right?"

"I'd hate for Kaede-chan to think I'm a pervert, wouldn't you?"

"I think it's a bit late for that..."

Excuse me...

"Kaede-chan! You don't think I'm a pervert, do you!?" I shouted towards the kitchen.

"It's okay. I'm used to it now," Kaede-chan replied as she returned with my coffee.

"See?"

She doesn't mind.

"You have some conveniently selective hearing. She's clearly just given up on you."

Be quiet!

"Let me guess what you really want to ask. You're worried about whether to tell Lydia-chan about your gender, aren't you?"

"...Yeah. I feel like it's not being honest."

He must have his own sense of guilt. He has been deceiving her for years, after all.

"Hey? Are you really going to make Lydia-chan your wife? Are you planning to make her your queen?"

"Yes."

He says that part so clearly. He's a kid with a surprisingly strong sense of self.

"Then let me give you some advice. I wouldn't say anything. But you should probably be honest."

"You wouldn't tell, but I should?"

"Because I'm confident I could keep up the deception."

"Pfft..."

Kaede-chan deliberately set down the cocoa she was drinking and snorted. Ignore her, ignore her.

"Are you trying to say I can't?"

"For better or worse, you're an honest person. And the fact that you feel guilty about the lies you've told so far is the problem. Those kinds of things always come out eventually. Especially since you're going to be husband and wife."

It might be fine with someone you see occasionally, but once you become family and live together, the truth will come out.

"Do you not lie to Kaede?"

"I do lie. I lie all the time."

I'm only human.

"That's not good."

"It's fine. I'm sure Kaede-chan lies too."

She is a little devil, after all.

"I don't lie," Kaede-chan denied with a sweet smile.

"See?"

"I think I kind of get it..."

Well, she's cute, so it's fine.

"Everyone lies. But as long as there's trust and love, it's fine."

"You say embarrassing things with such a straight face."

I'm saying this for your sake! Stop provoking me!

"What I'm saying is that the lie you've been telling is the kind that destroys trust."

"You're right..." Arc looked dejected.

"In Feire, we have a saying. It's not a crime if you don't get caught."

"They do not. That's from your dictionary, Senpai."

Shut up. Ignore her, ignore her.

"But you will get caught. I'm sure of it."

To be frank, I have a feeling he's already been found out. His age of thirteen is just too suspicious.

"Should I tell Lydia?"

"That would be best. But there's a chance she'll come to hate you. If it comes to that, you can blame it on me. Say that an evil witch turned you into a woman."

"Hmm... I see." Arc began to ponder.

"Well, do as you like. You'll be able to marry her either way."

The King would probably force it if he had to.

"Lydia says that every time we meet, so maybe you're right."

She's more head over heels than I thought.

"Hmm. Good for you."

"I'll think about it. Thanks for the advice."

"Not at all. I'll always be here to listen."

I'm sure he'll come to me for advice when he drinks the TS Potion. Changing gender, when you think about it, is a huge deal. It's too delicate a matter to discuss with anyone who hasn't been in the same situation.

"You were a good person after all!"

"You're just now realizing that? It's only natural for me to look out for my disciple."

"...You're steadily trying to make that a reality."

Just get to work already. I have to maintain my connection to the future king. And I need to drill the proper hierarchy into him from a young age!