Thanks to riding at full speed, Kaian was able to arrive just a little after 4 o’clock.
“Ian uncccclllleee!”
As soon as Kaian dismounted and entered the kindergarten gate, Aeer spotted him with surprising speed and ran over.
The energy bursting from his small, fragile body was hard to believe.
‘He is definitely my son.’
Kaian wondered what made him ever suspect the child might be someone else’s.
Just by looking at the shimmering pale platinum hair fluttering in the wind and the tall, well-built frame compared to other children, it was clearly a child who resembled him.
There might have been a way to perform a paternity test at the temple, but there was no need for that.
However,
‘We’ll need to prepare new clothes and shoes.’
The clothes Aeer was wearing now, although simple in design, were made from quite expensive fabric. It was the result of Estel’s careful effort to minimize anything that might draw attention to his commoner status.
Even so, it was not enough in Kaian’s eyes.
If he had grown up in the imperial palace, the child would have worn far more luxurious clothes and lived in better conditions. He was, after all, the First Prince of the Empire, and Kaian intended to correct that now.
“Uncle Ian! Did you come today again because you missed Aeer?”
“Of course. I did.”
He wanted to act more gently than before, but he wasn’t used to dealing with children, so it only felt awkward.
His stiff tone made him worry that the child might be scared.
“Wow! I’m so excited! Then can I really sleep over today? No, I have to sleep over! Please?”
Fortunately, the child was still excited, chatting brightly with an energized face.
“Alright. That was the plan anyway.”
“Yay! Then let’s wait for mom and go together! I’ll convince mom!”
“Today I came to pick you up instead of your mother, so we’ll go straight home.”
Kaian deliberately softened his tone at the end.
“Umm… then that’s not okay… I don’t mean I don’t want to, but—”
Aeer, who had been excited a moment ago, now hesitated as if something was bothering him.
“What is the problem?”
“My mom said I must never go with an adult she didn’t approve of…”
‘Is this education against possible kidnapping?’
The child explaining his opinion so seriously was quite admirable.
“Hello. Is there a problem?”
“Teacher Ann!”
At that moment, a young woman Aeer called Teacher Ann approached. Now that he thought about it, she seemed to always be nearby whenever he met the child.
“I came to pick up Aeer.”
“P-pardon? But—”
“Is there a problem?”
“Did Aeer’s mother not come with you?”
“She is unable to come, so I came instead.”
“I’m sorry, but the mother didn’t give us any prior notice. For safety reasons, unless a guardian directly authorized by the mother comes, we cannot release the child alone.”
This was troublesome. It was a checkpoint he had never even considered.
He thought about revealing that he was the child’s father, but even then, they probably wouldn’t believe him immediately.
‘That would only raise more suspicion. So what now? Estel can’t come here herself.’
Just then—
“I’m sorry I’m late, Aeer! I’ve come to pick you up.”
Someone rushed into the kindergarten yard.
“Aunt Ria!”
Aeer greeted the middle-aged woman happily.
“Ah, you’re here!”
Teacher Ann also greeted her warmly, as if she knew her.
“Hello, Teacher Ann. Aeer’s mother suddenly had something come up, so I came instead, hoho.”
“I see, as expected. This gentleman here also told me, but since this is your first time picking him up alone, I couldn’t release him right away. I’m really sorry.”
The teacher apologized to Kaian.
“It’s fine. I think being strict is better for the child’s safety.”
“Then we’ll be going. Come on, Aeer!”
“Yes, Aunt!”
“Please go safely. See you tomorrow, Aeer.”
“Goodbye, teacherrr!”
The middle-aged woman gently took Aeer’s hand and left the kindergarten. Kaian silently followed behind them.
“I’m Amelia. I’m quite close with Libeta.”
After they had walked some distance away from the kindergarten, the woman turned to Kaian and spoke in a lively, friendly tone.
“Honestly, my son who works in the same merchant company as Libeta said they might need someone to look after Aeer today. So I rushed over! I didn’t expect someone else would already be here.”
Among the information Cedric had brought about Libeta Marian, there was mention that she worked as an accountant for the Erme Merchant Guild.
The moment Kaian received that report, he realized she was likely the mysterious guild master of Erme.
Such impressive business strategy and ability to rapidly develop a poor region were things Estel could easily achieve.
‘Still, their intelligence network is quite useful. To notice something was wrong so quickly.’
In her time as Empress, Estel had not only been capable herself, but also a leader who brought out the best abilities in her subordinates.
‘Even after losing her memory, that talent remains.’
Seeing this, there was still hope. Even the curse of monsters hadn’t erased everything—maybe her memories were the same.
“Aeer, shall we go to Aunt’s house today? Want to sleep with big brother Peter?”
“Hmm… I like Peter, but I want to play with Uncle Ian today!”
“Is that so? Then we’ll go home.”
“Yes! But when is mom coming? Is she busy again today?”
“We’ll ask Uncle Ian on the way.”
Amelia gently placed Aeer’s hand into Kaian’s.
“You’re going to Libeta’s house, right?”
“Yes.”
“Then I’ll head off now. I only helped with pickup.”
“Thanks for your help, but how can you just hand over a child without even knowing who I am?”
Kaian immediately lifted Aeer into his arms.
“Because it’s obvious who you are.”
Amelia looked between Kaian and Aeer and replied casually.
‘Either she has sharp eyes… or she’s just bold.’
Still, it was fortunate. He could take the child without further delay while Estel was away.
“By the way… are you planning to ride that horse?”
“Wow! Horse! Uncle Ian, are we riding a horse today too?”
“Yeah. You enjoyed it last time, right?”
“Yes!”
Following Amelia’s gaze, Aeer noticed the horse tied to a tree and jumped excitedly.
“Wait, that’s not a good idea.”
“Why do you think that?”
“Who would put a child not even four years old on such a high horse? There are carriages here too. Libeta would faint if she knew.”
“That so?”
Now that she said it, it made sense.
“Fine then. Leave the horse for later after dropping the child off, and take the carriage you came in. I’ll retrieve the horse later.”
“Thank you, then I’ll—”
“No need. Just make sure you pay the driver properly. It’s a hired carriage.”
Amelia pushed Kaian into the modest hired carriage and even closed the door herself.
“Alright then, bye! See you next time, Aeer!”
“Bye-bye Aunt!”
Waving cheerfully, Amelia stood there until the carriage disappeared from sight.
“I thought the child’s father was dead, but he’s alive after all. Sigh. Where has he been all this time?”
Amelia, Peter’s mother, was Libeta Marian’s closest neighbor and friend in Aren, and one of the few people who knew the true identity of the Erme Merchant Guild master.
Thanks to Libeta’s help, her illness had been cured and her household had improved greatly, so she considered her a lifelong benefactor.
At the same time, she felt sympathy for Libeta, raising a child alone just like herself, and wanted to help her.
“Raising a child alone is so hard. And he shows up now. Hmph!”
Though she was displeased, she didn’t jump to conclusions, not knowing the full story.
“Looks like he’s some high-class gentleman. Let him experience it then. Feeding, bathing, and putting a child to sleep alone—let him see how much work it is.”
Amelia turned away again, hoping that young man would experience single-handed childcare for even a short while and apologize to Libeta.