Lorraine's Book - 3

The moment I heard the word 'book,' I immediately knew who the culprit was.

'*Lorraine.*'

It was obvious without even looking. He must have given Shiren some kind of Romance Novel, and Shiren, after reading it, learned all the wrong things.

I suppressed a sigh and lightly flicked Shiren's forehead.

"Ow."

When I flicked her forehead, Shiren rubbed her brow and looked at me.

I waved my hand at Shiren and said,

"Hey, that thing Lorraine gave you? Hand it over."

"..."

At my words, Shiren stared at me with a look that clearly asked, *How did you know?*

I sighed, looking at Shiren, then snatched the book she was trying to hide in her arms.

"Confiscated."

"Ah!"

Shiren flailed her hands, her face crestfallen, like Daisy's when her candy was taken away.

My heart softened slightly at Shiren's expression.

But I knew I couldn't let it slide, so I forced myself to suppress my feelings and looked away.

*

After a long, deep rest, I stepped outside to find Liana waiting for me, arms crossed.

She seemed to have something to say, so I slowly approached her.

Liana checked some documents and then spoke to me.

"Please listen without panicking."

Given that she used the word 'panicking,' it seemed something that shouldn't have happened, but it had.

“*Not that it matters to me.*”

Whatever had happened, it wasn't a big deal for me, a High-grade Expert on the verge of becoming a Highest-grade Expert.

I nodded, looking at Liana with a relaxed air.

Liana then delivered some rather shocking news.

"There's a rumor that Elysia is going to become the Saintess of the Order."

"Are you kidding me?"

Beyond surprise, utter absurdity washed over me.

I shook my head, clicked my tongue, and asked,

"Why?"

"I don't know the reason, but I suspect the Order Faction made some kind of deal."

"Then why would the Order specifically choose Elysia?"

I understood they needed a Saintess to replace Ruen.

But I couldn't fathom why they would specifically put forward Elysia, so I asked about it.

Liana pondered for a moment before telling me the reason.

"Perhaps it's to target Lord Damian?"

"Me?"

"Yes. Elysia is your antithesis, Lord Damian, so it seems they might be trying to use her to keep the Karsaril House and you, Lord Damian, in Containment."

"Containment... But usually, don't you need someone with some influence to exert Containment?"

... Elysia had not only fallen to rock bottom but had also lost all her standing.

I shook my head, wondering what benefit they could possibly gain by putting Elysia forward.

Liana shrugged, looking at me.

"Anyway, since Elysia has become the Saintess, it would be good if you kept that in mind when you're active."

I nodded, indicating I understood, and Liana leaned against the wall, speaking to me.

"So, how much have you grown? From your expression, it looks like you've grown tremendously..."

At her question, I chuckled and told her what I had achieved.

"High-grade Expert."

At the mention of High-grade Expert, Liana exclaimed in admiration and said to me.

"Already a High-grade Expert at that age... It's truly unbelievable. If the world were peaceful, Lord Damian, you would have risen to an impossibly high position."

"I'm a High-grade Expert, but I feel like I'll reach the Highest-grade Expert soon."

"Huh?"

Liana seemed to think I was joking, so she laughed and waved her hand.

"You mean you *feel* like you will, right? Anyway, Highest-grade Expert... A Highest-grade Expert is on par with Lord Lorraine. If Lord Damian reaches that level, it would be better to call you Lord Damian instead of just being Lord Damian."

Then she spoke to me in a playful voice.

Hearing her words, I felt a playful urge myself, and suppressing a laugh, I confirmed with Liana.

"Really?"

"Yes, what?"

"You said if I reach Highest-grade Expert, you'd call me Lord Damian. Was that real?"

"...Uh, if it's possible?"

Hearing that, I was about to agree.

But then I shook my head, deciding to raise the stakes.

"Want to make a bet?"

"A bet? What kind?"

"If I reach Highest-grade Expert within a month, how about you call me Older Brother Damian instead of Lord Damian?"

"...?"

At my suggestion, Liana looked at me with an expression I'd never seen before.

I met her gaze with a calm expression.

Liana, overwhelmed by embarrassment, fidgeted and spoke to me.

"Ah, no, what are you talking about? 'Bro'... that's a bit much."

"Scared?"

"No, not scared... Fine, let's do it. But if I win, you have to call me Older Sister Liana, Lord Damian?"

I nodded, agreeing.

Liana, already acting as if she'd won, said to me,

"Lord Damian, you probably don't realize this because you reached High-grade Expert faster than expected, but to ascend to Highest-grade Expert, you need an absurd amount of insight and experience."

I nodded silently, and Liana continued, beaming.

"So, you need at least a few years of Training to even glimpse that level, and several strokes of divine luck to reach the rank of Highest-grade Expert. Doing it in a month seems impossible."

From her teasing, it seemed she was quite looking forward to my calling her “Older Sister”.

I seriously considered punching her.

But knowing I'd soon be able to tease her back, I deliberately let it go and just kept nodding.

"Hehe, so Lord Damian, you'll be calling me “Older Sister~” soon enough; you'd better be prepared."

"Yeah, you just worry about calling me “Older Brother”."

"Yes, yes."

Liana, bouncing with excitement, skipped off somewhere.

I shook my head, watching Liana's retreating back, then decided it was time to greet my family and let them know I was back.

*

First was Older Sister Lilia.

When I told Sister Lilia I had become a High-grade Expert, she jumped up and down, grabbing me and spinning me around wildly.

Seeing her so happy made me happy too, and I smiled contentedly, though Older Sister Lilia's insisting we *had* to take a picture of this moment was a minor issue.

Second were my parents and Older Brother Aiden.

Though not as exuberant as Sister Lilia, all three were incredibly happy and praised my achievement.

Notably, Dominic Karsaril, Damian's father, correctly predicted that I would soon become a “Highest-grade Expert”.

“*And finally, Lorraine.*”

Strictly speaking, Lorraine wasn't House, but he had been by my side for a long time and was one of the few people I could trust my back to.

It was right to consider him practically House, so I included him.

I told Lorraine that I had reached High-grade Expert and felt I would soon reach Highest-grade Expert.

"Young Master is a Monster, so it's only natural, isn't it?"

His reply was more nonchalant than I expected.

"Huh?"

"Well, Young Master is a Regressor... so I figured it was obvious."

To be precise, I wasn't a Regressor.

But using the term 'transmigrator' didn't seem right, so I just gave an awkward laugh.

Lorraine looked at me, gave a thumbs-up, and continued speaking.

"Anyway, congratulations! Now, during Sparring, I won't have to hold back and can go all out."

"What?"

"Hehe, Young Master has no idea how long I've waited for this day."

I shivered, hearing Lorraine's sudden ominous words.

I immediately decided to flee and was about to move quickly when a thought suddenly struck me, and I spoke to Lorraine.

"By the way, you gave that book to Shiren, didn't you?"

I handed Lorraine the Romance Novel I had confiscated earlier.

Lorraine, looking guilty, gave an awkward laugh and avoided my gaze.

I sighed, looking at Lorraine, and lightly lectured her.

"As you know, Shiren has absolutely no knowledge in this area. If you inject her with misinformation like this, her common sense is highly likely to go completely awry..."

"Huh? Shiren, you say?"

"Hm?"

I blinked, looking at Lorraine, who was looking back as if *I* were the strange one.

Lorraine, looking puzzled, said to me,

"It's true that Shiren lacks common sense because she was confined in the Laboratory for a long time... but it's not like she has *no* knowledge at all in that area."

"Oh?"

"Well, I've subtly taught her a few things within the House, and more importantly, Street-born people often hear a lot about such matters, whether they like it or not."

"..."

"It seems that in such places, there are more opportunities to encounter those kinds of stories. So, she might look naive, but she probably knows more about that stuff than Young Master does."

"Couldn't she still not know...?"

From what I'd seen so far, she seemed completely clueless.

I was confused, unsure what the truth was, when Lorraine looked at me and continued speaking.

"Anyway, what's certain is that Shiren isn't as ignorant as you think."

The moment I heard that, I nodded, wondering if I had treated Shiren too much like a child.

"Besides, Shiren... well, Young Master... Anyway, I hope things work out for you two!"

Lorraine stopped mid-sentence, then pushed me out of the Room.

Having no choice, I decided to return for now and went back to my Room.

Something hidden inside the Bed caught my eye.

“*Is that Shiren?*”

It seemed she was hiding there, playing a prank with Daisy.

As a joke, I yanked the blanket back hard, only to reveal Ruen lying there awkwardly, dressed in somewhat suggestive white clothes.