The Male S*ave of the Count Sianella Family

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Ainel Shianella rushed into the office, followed by Siabel and Sion, along with notable figures from the Count’s House, who gathered around Shione in small groups.

With everyone’s heated interest, Shione became the undeniable hot topic, even touching upon Siabel’s position.

Especially, the reaction from the previously neutral retainers was quite pronounced.

“I heard you’ve reached a new level. Congratulations, Princess Shione.”

“You are the chief treasurer, after all. Thank you.”

“The Princess has also set off on her journey, blessing you, Shione. Truly, it could only be described as heroic!”

“Err… that seems a bit exaggerated… but thank you for saying that.”

It seemed our Shione was dazed by the flood of oily compliments pouring in.

“Shione, you don’t need to be so humble. They’re not wrong at all. At this rate, I’ll have to dedicate myself even more to swordsmanship.”

“Siabel, no matter how you look at Mother, the number of matters you need to handle won’t decrease.”

“…I’m sorry, Mother.”

“Now that the Church matters have been sorted, I’ll take on some of Sister Siabel’s duties.”

Just like Siabel, who was purely celebrating Shione’s achievements without a hint of jealousy, it was only natural for Shione to receive such treatment.

Of course, that wasn’t the only change.

‘From now on, her position will only grow stronger.’

Siabel, the eldest daughter with profound talents in academics and martial arts. Her achievements at such a young age were certainly on par with anyone in the kingdom. Although she firmly held her position through her title as the eldest daughter and her outstanding talents, it was a different case with our Shione reaching master level.

‘…If Shione has now mastered her skills, then that means she has surpassed me hardware-wise.’

Having experienced touching the edge of mastery myself, I didn’t need any realizations, yet my physical body hadn’t transformed to match the level of a master. Nonetheless, it was undoubtedly an encouraging situation that she might be stronger than me now.

My spirit, Tania, held the potential to rise to the level of a great king. If Shione could unleash such power with her arrows, the chances of success were immense.

‘I’m curious to see how strong she’ll become once battle commences.’

The future Count’s House would be overwhelmingly influenced by Shione, especially concerning military affairs evaluated as individual strategic weaponry.

Thus, as the conversation circled back to proposing a celebratory ceremony, certain retainers, deep in thought, had their interest peaked at its highest.

‘I suppose they want to secure a spot for themselves, huh.’

Still, I wasn’t particularly worried about it now.

The punitive measures they had undergone, which started with the pretext of inspecting fraud, was because of me. If they couldn’t figure this out, there was no way they could flaunt their status as retainers in the Count’s House.

Having Shione, who was already accompanied by Diolia and me, couldn’t be underestimated. We could selectively gather the exceptional ones left after filtering out the rest.

‘We might as well team up with our Baron family for some synergy.’

Thinking that way, I noticed the heated interest melting away. Thanks to Ainel regaining her composure, Shione was able to return to her room and take care of herself.

So, while I considered doing some work with the knight orders, I heard;

“Baron Karpel, you are to follow my daughter.”

“Me?”

“Yes. All of Shione’s skills root from the Baron. Moreover, it’s often said that the Baron, who can manipulate two spirits to the utmost level, is close to a master. I hope you’ll assist Shione while she gathers her energy and recalibrates herself.”

“I will gladly follow.”

“Thank you. I’ll be sure to express my gratitude later.”

Eventually, drawn by Ainel’s request and the more significant promise of gratitude, I followed Shione.

Of course, while she was regulating her energy, there wasn’t much for me to do.

‘Realizations are, after all, realizations.’

Having ample understanding of myself, I simply sat beside her on the ground, aiding her in gathering mana more easily.

After a while, Shione finally opened her eyes with a small sigh.

“It’s finally over. Did you manage to sort your energy well?”

“Thanks to your help, I organized it nicely. But—”

Suddenly, Shione glanced at me, almost sneakily.

“Ah, maybe it’s because I focused for too long, but I’m feeling a bit tired…”

Rolling her eyes and looking everywhere, she seemed dizzy and shook her head.

Then she leaned over, as if to fall, resting her head upon my leg like it were a pillow.

“It’s obvious you’re acting.”

“Hmm, so you dislike it?”

“It’s not that, but wouldn’t it be easier just to ask for a knee pillow from the start?”

“Such things shouldn’t be spoken, but should rather be done whimsically.”

Shione lightly brushed off my words and settled more comfortably.

Gently running my fingers through her hair, like petting a soft puppy, I asked;

“So, how do you feel about becoming a master?”

“A master… I’m not entirely there yet. It feels like I’ve broken through a wall, but there’s still dust and debris everywhere?”

Dust and debris, huh.

“But still, I feel like if I want to do something in the future, I could achieve it.”

After all, she had shattered the wall of mastery almost instantly. Now, if her body adjusts to the stronger mana flowing from her heart, wouldn’t that solve everything?

Just as I thought this, Shione suddenly stretched her arms up to the sky.

Then, unexpectedly wrapping her arms around my neck, she pulled me in for a kiss.

“Hehe, it’s all thanks to you, Ray. If it weren’t for you, I might never have picked up a bow, let alone become a master!”

“Even so, surpassing the level of mastery in an instant is something Shione wholly deserves praise for. I doubt anyone throughout the continent’s history has ever skipped levels like that.”

“Now you’re just buttering me up, again.”

Though she claimed that, it seemed my words genuinely pleased her since she began to act cute unprompted.

Rubbing her cheek against the hand resting above her head, putting her fingers into her yawning mouth and pulling them out without a care, she smiled sweetly without getting angry.

Thus, I too enjoyed her reactions with laughter until Shione scrunched up her face, looking puzzled.

“Thinking back, there was something strange.”

“Something strange?”

“When I felt the wall breaking, I sensed something exceptionally special. Uh… what should I say? Like a small twinkling star?”

“Were you referring to that twinkling star just before the arrow shot?”

“Exactly! When I shot that star with my arrow, it felt like the wall exploded into pieces.”

I kept my mouth shut, pondering Shione’s words.

If it was just before shooting the arrow—

‘That was when I felt something divine.’

It was when I was overwhelmed by the aura suddenly emanating from her.

It seemed that timing perfectly coincided with what Shione referred to as that star.

Indeed, the moment she comprehended the concept of that star, the status window appeared at the right timing.

『Toward the star that prevents disaster』

『‘Shione Shianella’s’ Star Blooming 12%』

It might not be fitting anymore to gauge her strength with the concept of a master.

As she began to propose a unique concept of the blooming star.

『Unearth the forgotten city to inherit ‘Shianella’』

I had no idea what that ‘Shianella’ signified.

However, given the description of it being the star that prevents disaster, wouldn’t inheriting that grant us ample chances of victory?

If it’s a forgotten city, it also refers to the demonic realm we were delving into. The areas related to Shianella were the only ones left. If we continued on our path, it seemed likely we could awaken that star alongside surpassing mastery.

While I quietly contemplated this,

“Ray.”

Before I knew it, Shione wrapped her arms around my neck again, puffing her cheeks with a sulky expression.

“What are you thinking so hard about while I’m right here?”

“Oh, I was just—”

“Just kiss me already.”

As though this entire thing had been her intention from the beginning.

In the end, I could only escape after my lips were swollen from her kisses.

*

The day Shione became a master.

As the sun set and the moon was preparing to cast its gentle light, a letter arrived before me. It looked undeniably expensive.

Carefully opening it, the contents immediately revealed themselves.

─The Central Noble Social Club invites Baron Karpel.

An invitation to a gathering of nobles in the plaza of social meetings, centered around the capital, dominated by influential families across the kingdom.

It was none other than the recommendation Shione obtained through Evan at the social gathering of aristocrats.

I couldn’t help but chuckle at the absurdity of the situation.

“Looks like I have to go together again.”

The baron of slave origins, finally making his debut at the noble Central Social Club.