Kays Translations

Just another Isekai Lover~

Chapter 228: A Tea Party at the Townhouse

Nero looked genuinely shocked when I told him, “I’m neither a Sword Saint nor a great mage.”

Ah. He truly had known nothing. I had said something unnecessary. If I had kept quiet, Nero might never have learned about those ridiculous rumours.

“Then Lord Julius must be a sage…”

“How did you reach that conclusion?”

How had this happened? Nero’s thoughts had simply moved in another direction. Surely the orphanage was not full of stories about me. Nervously, I asked.

“Don’t worry. It isn’t a rumour. But some of the children may think of you that way.”

“Not even vaguely, all right? Nero, please correct any misunderstandings. I’m only a magic pharmacist.”

“Yes, my lord. I’ll make certain everyone understands.”

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Please be discreet, Nero. I was relying on you. Just when the rumours that I was a Sword Saint and great mage seemed to be fading, I had somehow become a sage. How miserable.

With that weighing on my mind, I attended the tea party the following day.

“Brother Cain! Lady Meeka! You made it.”

“Julius, that is not how you greet guests. The practice has already begun.”

“What do you mean? The starting time hasn’t arrived yet.”

“Some guests come early. You still need to receive them properly.”

“Oh…”

I had relaxed because they were family, but this was practice for the evening party. I needed to regard them as guests first and relatives second.

“My apologies. Brother Cain, Lady Meeka, welcome to our tea party at the townhouse.”

“Julius, those clothes suit you wonderfully!”

“Urk!”

“Meeka, wait!”

Overcome with enthusiasm, Lady Meeka pulled me into a crushing hug. The unexpected force squeezed a strange noise out of me, and Brother Cain hurried to separate us.

“Th-thank you for coming.”

“I’m sorry, Julius. Meeka, that was hardly proper etiquette.”

“I-I’m sorry. Should I hug him more gently next time?”

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“No.”

Brother Cain held his head. He seemed to be struggling more than I had realised. Apparently, Lady Meeka also needed etiquette practice, which might explain why they had both been invited.

When I glanced at Brother Alex, he wore a wry smile that seemed to say, Another problem child. How rude.

“Lord Julius, thank you for inviting me today.”

Brother Cain bowed with the elegance of a gentleman. Beside him, Lady Meeka hurriedly performed a graceful curtsy. As expected of Brother Cain, he handled the greeting well, though he kept glancing towards Brother Alex throughout.

Apparently, Brother Alex had not given him a passing mark. At least I had gained another reassuring companion in misery.

“I’m glad you could both come. I apologise for the short notice, but this is valuable practice. You cannot remain sheltered at the academy forever.”

“Understood. I will demonstrate how much I have improved today.”

“I look forward to seeing it—from both of you.”

With that, Brother Alex moved away. He was the host of today’s tea party, so we younger brothers had to defer to him.

“Phew. I knew I shouldn’t have come.”

“Brother Cain…”

“Oh? Weren’t you going to show Lord Julius how much you had improved?”

Lady Meeka giggled behind her fan. She had apparently switched into proper-lady mode. Why had she not done that from the beginning? The damage was already done. Still, she looked every bit the charming future sister-in-law.

“By the way, Julius, have you heard who else is coming?”

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“No one told me. Princess Daniela will probably attend, but I don’t know about anyone else.”

“Princess Daniela is coming?”

The colour abruptly drained from Lady Meeka’s face. Evidently, she had not expected the princess to attend. Had Brother Cain failed to warn her that it was possible?

“I suspected as much. Now we only have to see who else appears.”

“Cain, you knew Princess Daniela might come, didn’t you?”

“Meeka, calm down.”

Lady Meeka swiftly closed the distance between them, forcing Brother Cain to lean back under her intense stare.

“Why didn’t you tell me something so important?”

“Because you would have refused to come.”

“That…”

The atmosphere was becoming awkward. At times like this, retreat was the wisest choice. Brother Cain could manage the rest. Lady Meeka would eventually marry into House Heine, so she needed to become accustomed to surprises of this scale.

Good luck, Lady Meeka. With that silent encouragement, I joined Axel and Ijidol. Both had already entered ‘gentleman mode’ and were stiff as boards. Nero, fully prepared, stood beside us.

“If you remain that tense, you won’t last until the end.”

“That’s easy for you to say. I’ll become even stiffer when Princess Daniela arrives.”

“Exactly. I wish you would be a little gentler with us.”

They complained, but they looked presentable. As I adjusted their clothes, a commotion arose near the entrance. Princess Daniela must have arrived. We needed to greet her at once.

“Come on, both of you.”

I led them towards the entrance, with Nero naturally at my side. He looked like a perfectly trained young attendant. I could hardly believe he had reached this level in so little time. Nero truly was more capable than I had imagined.

A luxurious carriage stopped before the entrance. On closer inspection, it was not merely ornate; it was heavily reinforced, with small windows and no royal flag or family crest. It looked almost like an armoured carriage disguised for a social visit. Surely not…

A step was placed before the carriage door. After a knock from outside, the door opened quietly. Princess Daniela descended first—followed by Her Majesty the Queen.