Chapter 18 – A Day in the Life of Reed
The Valdia territory governs neighboring lands and is considered a “frontier” due to its distance from the imperial capital, granting it some decision-making power. I am Reed Valdia, the son of the frontier margrave who rules over this frontier.
Every morning, a certain little devil always comes to wake me up.
“Good morning, Nii-chan! It’s morning~!”
“Ugh!!”
“Oh, good morning, Mel…”
“Hehe, good morning, Nii-chan~”
She is Mel, Meldy Valdia. She is my adorable little sister. However, in the mornings, she turns into quite a mischievous little devil. She seems to enjoy waking me up and has been doing so without fail for some time now. Strangely enough, she always jumps onto the bed where I’m sleeping and pounces on me, which has become her favorite way of waking me up. It feels like a “body press” from a past life. It’s a secret that I’ve become a little scared of mornings because of this way of waking me up.
There was a time when I woke up early or prepared myself because I was afraid of Mel’s “body press.”
“Muu~ Mel woke Nii-chan up!! I hate it!! Hmph!”
At that time, she scolded me in an incredibly cute way. Even the maid accompanying Mel, Danae, was smitten by her appearance. However, Mel seemed genuinely angry, and she didn’t speak to me that day. The next day, when I was waiting for her as usual, she burst into tears.
The butler, Galun, approached, and the maids gazed at me with puzzled expressions. Danae looked at me sympathetically. Since then, I have come to accept and prepare myself for Mel’s “body press.” Considering that Mel is only four years old, Father doesn’t make a big deal out of this behavior. Galun and Danae simply smile and observe the situation. I wonder if they have forgotten about me? There is a saying that excessive cuteness breeds a hundred times more animosity, and it truly captures the essence of dealing with children.
Well, Mel is so adorable that I forgive her for anything.
When I wake up in the morning, it’s time for breakfast. Mother, Nunnaly, is unable to leave her room due to an illness. Father is currently in the imperial capital, so it’s just Mel and me for meals. The butler, Galun, and the maid, Danae, join us. There are several others waiting in the background as we have breakfast. Sometimes, when Father is present, Galun whispers something to him. But in general, we enjoy a family meal together. The basic meal consists of salad, bread, and soup. Occasionally, from my memories of my past life, I long for rice and miso soup, but I have resigned myself to not having them, at least for now.
During meals, it is customary to make as little noise as possible. Perhaps due to my memories from my past life, I have gained a reputation for eating very neatly, even though it doesn’t match my age. Mel eats like any other child her age, but there is still an air of nobility around her, and her eating manners are surprisingly elegant for a four-year-old. However, there are still moments of difficulty and mistakes, so Danae occasionally guides Mel on how to handle the tableware.
“See you later, Nii-chan~”
After finishing breakfast, Mel returns to her room to start her studies. It’s what they call an elite education. Regardless of how cute Mel is, she is still a noble’s child. There are plenty of subjects for her to study, such as preparing for the future, manners, language usage, and dancing.
However, being only four years old, she also wants to play.
Sometimes, she sneaks away from her lessons, and it’s absolutely adorable. I think it’s because it’s one of the few times Mel can have some physical contact with me when she comes to wake me up every morning. After parting with Mel, I always go to my mother’s room to check on her. I knock on the door of my mother’s room and wait for a response before entering.
“Good morning, Mother.”
“Reed, good morning. It’s reassuring to see you looking lively.”
While exchanging greetings, I take a seat on the chair next to my mother’s bed. It wasn’t there before, but since I come here often, Galun and the maid have prepared it. Of course, there is also a chair for Mel. My mother sits up in bed and always reads a book.
Previously, my mother was often asleep when I visited her room. Although there were times when she sat up when I arrived, lately, I believe she has adjusted to my daily visits.
My mother, Nunnaly Valdia, is suffering from an incurable disease called “Mana Depletion Syndrome” in this world. However, only a few people in the mansion know about this. I wonder if Mother herself is aware that she has Mana Depletion Syndrome?
I cannot ask her about it. However, whenever I see Mother with a distant, sorrowful look, I feel as though she senses her impending death. Since Mother is confined to her room, I inform her about what happened yesterday and how things are in the morning.
Every morning, Mel talks about how she wakes me up with a “Body Press,” and Mother laughs happily, saying, “Well, I used to do that to my family when I was little too.”
I have memories of my past life, but I also have memories of Reed Valdia. I feel that the personality I have now is a mixture of Reed Valdia’s true memories based on my past life memories. However, I try not to dwell too deeply on it.
Reed vividly remembers when Mother Nunnaly was healthy. After Mother Nunnaly fell ill, Reed’s heart became restless, and he took it out on various things, such as his sister, the maids, and the butlers.
In his heart, he wonders why his own mother ended up like this. Did he do something wrong? Why did his own mother get sick instead of other children’s parents? It brings back very painful and complex emotions.
Reed’s strong determination to save Mother is fueled by his intense feelings.
“…Reed, are you okay? You seem troubled.”
“Oh, sorry. I was thinking about the martial arts class later.”
“I see. Well, just don’t overexert yourself.”
“Yes, Mother.”
After conversing with Mother for a while, the time for the martial arts class approached. Considering the travel time, I had to leave soon. I stood up from my chair and bowed lightly to Mother.
“Well then, I’m off to the martial arts class.”
“Be careful not to get injured. And say hello to Mel too.”
“I will, Mother.”
With a spirited reply, I exited the room.
Scene transition
From the training ground, the resounding clash of trees, “Kan!! Kon!!” echoed.
“Lord Reed, you have improved greatly!”
“It’s because of Reubens’ teachings!” I trained in martial arts one-on-one with Reubens. We began with radio calisthenics, followed by running.
By the way, radio calisthenics did not exist in this world. I told Reubens that it was the first thing I did when exercising and that it helped prevent injuries.
At first, he seemed skeptical, but after doing it together a few times, he asked, “This is good. Can we incorporate it into the knight order?”
“Well, sure. But keep it a secret that I taught it. Let’s say it was Reubens’ idea.”
A few days after I responded to Reubens, news spread throughout the mansion that the knight order had started performing peculiar movements before training.
After all, there were over a hundred members in the knight order. With so many people synchronizing their movements during radio calisthenics, it became quite a spectacle when observed from the upper floor of the mansion.
Seeing that, I remembered a video from my past life and internally named it “Self-Defense Forces Calisthenics.” I was taken aback when I realized that the movements didn’t align well with some members, and I could see them being scolded by their superiors. At that moment, I thought to myself, “This is not the radio calisthenics I know.”
“Radio calisthenics not only prevents injuries but also helps train the unit to move in sync. The knight order commander praised me for coming up with it!”
Reubens approached me with a friendly, dog-like demeanor and reported as if saying, “Praise me, praise me.” If he had a tail, I’m sure it would be wagging.
“Oh, the ‘Self-Defense Forces (SDF) Calisthenics,’ huh? It’s really impressive, isn’t it?”
“What’s the ‘Jetai Calisthenics’?”
TN: SDF = 自衛隊 = Jietai = Jetai
When Reubens heard the name I gave, he tilted his head slightly, making a sound that resembled “Kuun?”
“It’s the self-defense forces. I’m not sure what to call it exactly. It feels like performing calisthenics in an organized and disciplined manner as a unit, rather than individual movements. It’s not the radio calisthenics I know, so I just called it ‘Self-Defense Forces Calisthenics’ on my own.”
“…I’ll take it!”
“Huh…?”
Without waiting for my response, Reubens quickly ran off.
Subsequently, rumors started circulating within the mansion that the knights’ synchronized training was a new practice called “Jetai Calisthenics,” serving both as injury prevention and coordination training. The maids, becoming fans of the knights, would often remark, “The knights doing Jetai Calisthenics are so cool!” Occasionally, cheerful voices could be heard echoing through the mansion.
Every time I witnessed this scene, I would silently mutter to myself, “It’s not the radio calisthenics that I know.”
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