After finishing adventurer registration, Novem and I decided to stay at a relatively affordable inn in Darion.
Once we entered our room, we both read through the booklet that Hawkins had given us.
The contents were simple.
"Don't cause trouble for others."
Beyond that, it covered things like guild rules and etiquette.
"It's practically for kids."
When I shared my honest impression, Novem nodded in agreement.
"You're right. But these things are important."
From the Jewel, the Second Generation also expressed strong agreement.
"That's right! That's exactly it! There are so many people who won't even follow simple, established rules!"
(The way he said that felt oddly heartfelt — like he had some serious grievances.)
After skimming through the entire booklet, I closed it and put it back in my bag. Novem had finished reading too.
That's when I asked the question that had been bothering me.
"Novem, that money—"
Before I could finish, the Second Generation's urgent voice rang out from the Jewel.
"Lyle, wait! Don't ask! Actually, I don't want to hear it either!"
However, the First Generation, seemingly just as curious, decided to ask anyway.
"Why not? There's no harm in asking. Besides, House Foxes is a baron family now, right? They must be well-off. I wonder if we managed to repay a little of the debt."
The First Generation spoke with a satisfied tone, but the Second Generation immediately shouted at him.
"You idiot! Novem is the second daughter of a baron family! Don't you realize that coming up with that much money means even a baron's child had to go to extraordinary lengths?!"
(Wait… really? I had no idea.)
I hadn't picked up on it at all. I still couldn't quite grasp that ten gold coins was an enormous sum.
Novem looked slightly troubled. Then, with a gentle smile, she spoke.
"It's all right, Lyle. It was certainly a large amount, but I still have a little left to spare."
So ten gold coins really was a lot of money after all. Even for someone like me who never had much, it was envy-inducing.
"How did you manage to have so much? Your parents, I assume?"
"N-No, well… that is…"
"Not from them? Then where did it come from?"
That's when the Second Generation yelled at the top of his lungs — though only I could hear it.
"I told you to drop it, didn't I?!"
Novem lowered her head. I started to panic, wondering if I'd asked something I shouldn't have.
"N-No, I just… was curious, that's all…"
I tried to steer the conversation away, but before I could, Novem opened her mouth to speak.
"My parents did help prepare some funds for my journey. But… it was partly my own selfishness, and I felt I couldn't really accept it as is. So… well…"
She seemed to struggle with the words, but what she told me was staggering.
"I sold the household items and clothing that had been prepared for our marriage. I'm so sorry."
Seeing the sadness on Novem's face, I realized I'd made a mistake. And on top of that, the ancestors' voices came streaming from the Jewel.
"Wait, what? Household items… what?!"
The First Generation was bewildered.
"I told you! I told you to stop! Now look at the guilt…"
The Third Generation also chimed in.
"Speaking from my era, the household goods a bride brought to her new home were quite the treasure for a girl… How is it these days?"
The Seventh Generation answered.
"Still treasure, without question. One's personal property brought from the family home isn't something one can freely dispose of at the new household. More to the point, the family sending her off would be doing everything in their power as well… Given the Walt family's standing, they may have put House Foxes in a difficult position."
Hearing that, the First through Fourth Generation all let out wails of despair.
"No!!"
"That's exactly why I said not to ask! There's always a reason a girl has that much money!"
"I'm sorry for causing trouble all the way to our descendants…"
"What are we supposed to do?! We've been burdening House Foxes for generations! How on earth are we ever supposed to repay this?!"
The First Generation kept screaming while the Second Generation seemed to have sensed it from the start.
The Third Generation recalled someone from House Foxes who had helped him and began apologizing.
The Fourth Generation was reportedly in tears.
(My mana is draining like crazy… also, did our ancestors really cause them that much trouble?)
House Foxes, which had continued supporting the Walt family through all of that, had to be an incredibly compassionate lineage.
In truth, Novem was the same way — always doing everything she could for me.
(In other words… the guilt is absolutely crushing.)
When it came to marriage, even outside the nobility, a girl would be provided with household goods. That was the assumption for any decent family.
But for the girl, marriage was a momentous occasion. The furnishings, clothing, and other essentials would be chosen without compromise.
Some would even purchase expensive heirloom-quality items passed down through generations.
For the girl, those were her treasures. She had sold them all and used the money for my sake.
(Wait, hold on… If she managed to put together that money within days of me being kicked out of the house…)
When I thought about it, Novem must have sold her household goods at fire-sale prices.
Realizing this, my face went pale, and Novem comforted me.
"It's fine. They technically still belonged to my parents at that point, but I had their permission. Besides, this was money you needed to succeed as an adventurer. I believe it was well spent."
Once you purchased household items, they were treated as secondhand goods. And if you were in a rush, merchants would lowball you without hesitation. On the merchant's side, they'd probably been caught off guard too.
She must have been bought out at a far lower price than what was originally paid.
The ancestors' voices fell silent — either worn out from all the screaming, or more likely, my mana had hit its limit.
I did feel genuinely exhausted.
"Why…?"
"Hm?"
"Why would you go that far? Those were household items you'd painstakingly gathered! You could have found a marriage partner other than me easily enough. So why… why would you sell everything and devote it all to me?!"
"Lyle…"
I'd lashed out at Novem.
I was a man who had lost his position as heir and been cast out by his own family.
I was naive, a burden on Novem, and a disappointment to my ancestors.
Everything I'd built up until now meant nothing. I had no standing and no money. I couldn't understand why someone like Novem would give everything for me.
Since the age of ten, when my parents had begun treating me with coldness, I'd watched the people around me gradually drift away. Even then, Novem had stayed by my side — or so I remembered.
People around her whispered that she was gambling on a slim chance — that she was only staying close in the hope I might one day become lord.
But the me of now truly had nothing. And yet, some part of me couldn't believe she would still stay.
"There's nothing worth devoting yourself to! I lost to my sister — to Ceres — and got thrown out! I'm a fool! I have… no value whatsoever!"
"…"
Novem gazed at me with earnest eyes. I averted my gaze from her violet irises. I was afraid she'd look at me with disappointment.
From the age of ten, I'd worked desperately hard, driven by something close to terror. I'd pushed myself so I wouldn't be abandoned by my parents.
But my sister surpassed every one of those efforts with ease. Each time, I pushed harder than ever before.
— Even though it was crystal clear that it would never pay off.
I had fought alone.
Then Novem spoke to me.
"I've been watching you this whole time."
"What?"
"When we were little, you could do everything, and you were so kind… Do you remember? When I was small, I was always alone. Even when I was invited to the Earl's estate, I couldn't fit in with the other children."
Those childhood memories were pleasant ones now. But the memories of fear from after I turned ten were so overwhelming that I'd forgotten.
"Oh, come to think of it, that's right. But even though you were alone, the other kids actually paid a lot of attention to you. The boys would pull pranks trying to get your notice."
Their clumsy attempts at getting her attention only isolated Novem further. I remembered stepping in to mediate as the Earl family's heir.
Childhood memories, from what now felt like the happiest time of my life.
"You worked so incredibly hard, and even when your parents treated you coldly, you never gave up… Watching that made me want to push myself too."
After I turned ten, everyone around me drifted away. I spent most of my time alone.
I had memories of Novem being around, but with the rumors circulating, she never spoke to me.
"When I was thirteen. My parents called me in and told me the engagement with you had been decided. I was so happy. I thought, finally, I can support Lyle from his side."
"…It was all for nothing. All my efforts, compared to her — completely wasted."
My mana was draining rapidly, and my thoughts wouldn't cohere.
I was lashing out because I couldn't control myself anymore — that's what I wanted to believe.
Tears welled up.
"Nobody… nobody ever looked my way…"
"I was always looking. You were always trying so hard, Lyle."
"But I got thrown out of my own house… I lost everything…"
As I whimpered and complained, Novem gently wrapped her arm around my shoulder.
"I'm here. I'm right here by your side."
"My parents said they didn't need me. I just wanted them to see me… I just wanted them to praise me…"
Tears spilled down one after another. The feelings I'd been holding back surged up from the deepest part of my heart, and strangely, that gave me a little relief.
"I was always watching. You were wonderful, Lyle. No matter what happened, you never gave up. You faced your fears head-on — that takes real courage."
Right…
I had been terrified.
Of my sister's very existence.
Of Ceres, that perfect being. But running away wasn't something I wanted either. Even knowing I'd lose, I wanted to try.
And in the end, I lost everything.
By then, I'd stopped caring. I thought things would work themselves out somehow, but the world wasn't that kind.
If Novem weren't here, I couldn't imagine where I'd be right now.
"Lyle, you have value. I can say that with confidence. So let's keep going, Lyle."
"…Yeah."
That night, I fell asleep with Novem's arms still around me…
"Nobody ever looked my way~"
"I lost everything~"
"But Novem stayed by my side~"
"That's basically a plus! Stop wallowing!"
The First, Fourth, and Third Generation sang, and the Second Generation finished by yelling at me.
My second day in Darion was spent attending a beginner's orientation at the guild, purchasing the necessities, and going to bed early to prepare for the next day.
But I was told an emergency meeting was being called, and I was dragged to the conference room by force.
Inside the circular room with eight doors, four figures sat around the table, singing and teasing me.
"You… you guys were watching that whole time…?"
Embarrassment. Pure, crushing embarrassment.
That morning, I'd been so mortified I couldn't even look Novem in the eye. And now, at night, the entire ancestor assembly had come out to mock my most humiliating moments.
"On the contrary, I was even more embarrassed watching that!"
The First Generation had been cheerfully singing, but now she snapped and started shouting.
"I was embarrassed too! But my mana was gone, I was lightheaded, and I was in a terrible mood — what was I supposed to do?!"
I mustered what little counter I could, but the glances I got were ice-cold.
The Seventh Generation in particular—
"W-Well… I mean, you were kicked out of the house at fifteen, Lyle, and you're still just a kid, so… you were lonely, weren't you, Lyle?"
"Stop! Don't be sympathetic! It just makes me feel even more embarrassed!"
I covered my face with both hands. My skin was practically burning.
My face had to be crimson right now.
In the midst of this, the Fifth Generation, apparently fed up, raised her voice.
"Enough. Move on to the real topic. You've teased him plenty."
The four of them climbed down from the table and took their seats.
"Fair enough. We got some good material out of it. Let's call it here for today."
The First Generation said with satisfaction, but after being exposed like that, I couldn't muster a complaint.
(They're absolutely going to bring this up every single chance they get…)
"So, what's this emergency meeting about?"
I asked, wanting to get it over with.
The Fourth Generation returned to her role as moderator and opened the discussion.
"Lyle… why don't you marry Novem?"
"Huh, marry her, sure, I suppose… Wait, marry!?"
I looked to the Fifth Generation and the others.
In principle, the Fifth Generation onward didn't particularly favor Novem.
And yet, even from the later generations—
"Just do it. Honestly, I don't think you'll find anyone else. You know the Walt family code, right?"
The Walt family code — a set of requirements for any woman who would become a bride.
The code, supposedly established by the First Generation, was still upheld in the Walt family.
"Y-Yes, I know… Novem does meet all the criteria, but…"
The Walt family code—
"A woman taken as a wife must first be of outstanding appearance."
"Second, she must be in good health."
"Third, she must have a strong constitution."
"Fourth, she must be intelligent."
"Fifth, she must have fair skin."
Those five. Since the family had risen to the rank of Earl, additional criteria related to mana capacity and magic had been added.
"Sixth, she must excel in magic."
This one had been added by the Fifth Generation.
The Second Generation was wholeheartedly pushing for Novem.
"House Walt did banish Lyle, but let's be honest — the true heir of the Walt family is obviously Lyle, right? The code is still in effect, and I went through a lot of trouble myself, so trust me: if you let Novem go, there won't be anyone else. And honestly, if you go through everything she's done and still refuse to marry her, she'll curse you for real."
The Sixth Generation reined in the Second Generation and spoke.
"Curse or no curse, she's still a perfect match, wouldn't you say? Lyle, marry her as soon as possible."
"I-I do love Novem, truly. But being told out of the blue like this, I don't exactly have the means to…"
The Third Generation chimed in.
"Just work hard going forward. If your education was solid, you should be able to handle most things. Well, I never had trouble finding a partner, so I wouldn't really know, but finding a good match is supposed to be incredibly difficult."
Hearing that, the Second Generation flew into a rage.
"I'm the one who found your partner, you know! Do you have any idea how hard I worked so you wouldn't have to suffer through what I went through!"
The conference room was noisy, but then the First Generation dropped the real bomb.
"Hey… what's a family code?"
She genuinely didn't understand, tilting her head as she looked around at everyone.
"Huh?"
"…Seriously?"
"Oh boy."
"I kinda had a feeling it would be something like this."
"Why doesn't the First Generation know?!"
"Hold on. You mean the code wasn't established by the Walt family's First Generation?"
Everyone was dumbfounded. Well, everyone except the Second Generation, who was trembling, barely holding back an explosion of fury.
But the First Generation remained oblivious.
"I think Novem's a great girl and you should marry her. But what's this about a family code? Is it some kind of rule for picking a marriage partner? What kind of idiot made up such a troublesome rule?"
The Second Generation shot to his feet, jabbing a finger and roaring:
"THAT IDIOT IS YOU, YOU IDIOT!!"
"Wait, really?!"
The First Generation had absolutely no memory of the family code whatsoever.