Something's off.
I don't know what exactly, but something's definitely off.
That's the conclusion I've reached.
It's not like this dysfunctional family being strange is anything new.
It's not like this needlessly sprawling mansion being strange is anything new either.
But what I currently find strange isn't either of those things.
It's Lyriette's oddly shifted attitude, starting this very morning.
"Uncle, where are you headed today?"
"Ah, I'm just going to stop by the workshop in the east wing for a moment. I left some books and supplies there."
"Would it be alright if I came along?"
"Of course."
At first, she'd said she wanted to come with me to the workshop early in the morning, and since she's still a child, I figured she was just curious, so I took her along to let her look around. That's how it started.
But somehow, after that,
"Uncle, are you heading out?"
"Yes. I'm running low on books to pass the time, and the ones in the study don't interest me much."
"Would it be alright if I came along?"
"S-sure."
She followed me even when I was just going out at lunchtime.
"Uncle, it's getting dark—where are you off to?"
"Just thinking of taking a night walk. It's a full moon, so the sky is quite bright tonight."
"Would it be alright if I came along?"
"Er, um... go ahead, then."
Even right after we ran into each other after dinner, when I was just stepping out for some fresh air, she tagged along without fail.
"Uncle, where are you going?"
"It's nighttime now, so I'm off to bed. You should turn in early too, Lyriette."
"C-could we talk just a little longer? I'm not sleepy yet."
"...I suppose that's no trouble."
After that, she kept me by her side chattering away nearly until dawn.
Looking at the behavior alone, none of it seems strange.
It's a universal thing for children to want to cling to an adult they've formed a bond with.
But the fact that it was specifically Lyriette made it feel odd.
She'd always seemed so mature for her age.
The child who rarely indulged in whining or asking favors from others—seeing her stick to my side like this created quite a sense of dissonance.
Of course, Lyriette does still have a child's innocence in her, so she has asked me to pat her head or done similarly small, mildly clingy things before.
But that was always confined to the sort of things that never took up my time—barely qualifying as "clinginess" at all.
*Does this mean we've grown that much closer?*
It gave me a faint sense of unease, but I decided to think of it positively regardless.
In the original story, this child who could never lean on anyone was now coming to me without hesitation, trusting me—that was something to be happy about, and also exactly what I'd hoped for most.
But as one day became two, and two became three, the unease gradually grew.
"Well then, I'll excuse myself first."
"Alright."
"U-Uncle!? I'm sorry. Father, Mother. I'll excuse myself too."
One day during breakfast, I finished my meal first and stood up, and Lyriette hurriedly shoved food into her mouth before scrambling to follow me.
The sight of a bit of food stuck to the corner of Lyriette's mouth—she who always ate so neatly and properly, minding her manners—was rather amusing, but it also raised a question in my mind.
"Is something the matter, Lyriette?"
I asked, wondering if something urgent had come up.
"No. It's nothing in particular... It's just, it still feels a little awkward when you're not around, Uncle."
"That's understandable enough."
Lyriette fidgeted with her hands and averted her gaze.
It was a perfectly plausible thing to say.
Even though about a month had passed since then.
After all, this was a family that used to barely exchange a single conversation in a day, now sharing meals together cozily like any ordinary family.
What to talk about, how to respond—
for someone so young, it was bound to feel awkward and clumsy in all sorts of ways.
*And here I thought she was handling it well.*
Having watched from beside her this past month, I hadn't thought there was much to worry about.
Well, if she herself found it difficult, it would be strange for me to make a fuss about it.
"Then shall we go look at some flowers, to help with digestion?"
"...Yes! I'd love to!"
Still, the sight of Lyriette smiling so brightly was just adorable.
Even if I couldn't take full credit for it, the thought that I'd contributed even a little filled me with a certain quiet pride.
"With early summer coming soon, the flowers have bloomed thickly. This one's especially pretty."
"That's called a peony. It's said to be so beautiful they call it the Prime Minister of Flowers."
"You know quite a bit about flowers. I hadn't realized."
"Father told me. He said it was Mother's favorite flower."
I see.
So peonies were the flower Viola loved.
That was a detail that didn't even appear in the original story, so it felt refreshingly new.
There was a certain pleasure in peeling back the layers of a backstory I hadn't known about.
"How's your father doing these days?"
"He's doing very well. There are still occasional moments when he forgets me, but he remembers quickly and apologizes right after. Even when I tell him it's alright, he still looks so ashamed..."
"As he should. If he hadn't, I would have dropped a meteor on this mansion."
For a man to have suffered so much, and to have been forgiven by this adorable daughter of his, and still occasionally lose his memory to the far side of oblivion—that was simply unforgivable.
When I said this with mock indignation, Lyriette apparently took it seriously and waved her hands frantically in alarm.
"T-that can't happen. Uncle...!"
"I was joking. Even so, a meteor's a bit much. Our niece here might get hurt."
"...Is dropping one even possible?"
"I haven't tried, so I wouldn't know."
"Hearing that makes it feel even less like a joke."
As if she'd personally saved the mansion, Lyriette wiped away a drop of cold sweat with a sigh.
Honestly, how adorable can one child be.
"Anyway, it seems your father talks about your late mother quite a lot these days."
"Yes, he tells me so much. Listening to him, I can really feel how much he loved Mother."
"Well, that much I can't deny, though it pains me to say it."
No matter how much of a wretch that man is, that much I cannot deny.
I was the one who watched it all unfold right beside him, after all, better than anyone.
"Uncle, what is love, exactly?"
"Hah, that's quite the philosophical question all of a sudden."
"Uu, don't laugh at me. I'm being serious."
Lyriette pouted, her lips jutting out, muttering sullenly—a rare sight from her.
I know she's being serious.
But when a question like that comes from such a young face, this kind of reaction is unavoidable.
"Hmm. Well, at the very least, the love between family is certainly different from love between a man and a woman."
"Weren't Father and Mother family too?"
"They were a man and a woman first, before that."
"That's difficult. What's the difference?"
I suppose that's a bit much for a child her age to grasp.
Distinguishing between familial love and romantic love wouldn't be easy.
"There are many theories, but in my limited view, I think it comes down to how much you think about someone."
"How much you think about them...?"
"Right. For instance, Lyriette—despite everything that's happened, you cherish and love your family now, don't you?"
"Yes. Very much so."
That was such a Lyriette answer.
"But even so, you don't spend the whole day thinking only of your family, do you?"
"No. Sometimes I think, I hope Father recovers soon, I hope Mother and I grow closer, or, Brother seems especially sluggish today—things like that."
Somehow her thoughts about Abel carried a particularly sharp edge.
He's basically a punching bag by now.
Good news, that.
"But if someday you come to truly, deeply love a man with all your heart, you'll find yourself thinking about him all day long."
"About him... all day?"
"Yes. When you wake up in the morning, you'll wonder if he's woken up too. At lunch, you'll wonder what he's eating. Before bed, you'll long to see him. Something like that."
"Ah..."
A small gasp escaped Lyriette's lips.
Had she realized something?
"Then... am I in love with you, Uncle?"
"...Hm?"
At that bombshell that flew from her mouth right after, my body froze for a moment.
The pure eyes looking up at me blinked once, twice, and the most innocent words imaginable spilled from Lyriette's lips.
"Lately I can't think of anything but you all day, Uncle. In the morning I want to see you, at lunch I want to see you, and in the evening I wanted to see you too."
"Did you? That's a lovely thing to hear."
Ah, so that's what she meant.
It seemed my explanation had been far too one-dimensional.
*Is that why she's been sticking to me so closely lately?*
That made sense, more or less.
At the same time, that still-unspoiled way of thinking of hers struck me as remarkably endearing.
"That's a form of love too. Though it's different from love between a man and a woman. It's simply something that happens between family members who cherish each other especially."
"...I see."
Still puzzled, it seemed, Lyriette tilted her head, repeatedly touching her index finger to her lips and pulling it away.
I suppose it's too difficult to understand right now.
The difference between what she feels for me and what she'll one day feel for a man she truly loves is something she'll come to realize naturally, in time.
*Pat, pat.*
"It's alright. There's no need to force yourself to understand it now. You'll know it when the day comes that our little niece finds a man she loves, and this old uncle isn't even a passing thought to you anymore."
As I said this while stroking her soft silver hair, Lyriette shook her head fiercely, looking as though she might burst into tears at any moment.
"T-that will never happen! You're the most precious person to me, Uncle, more than anyone else!"
"Hah, I appreciate the sentiment, even if it's just words."
"I mean it. Just the thought of you disappearing, Uncle, is..."
Hm? What was that?
I caught "Uncle," but her voice suddenly dropped so I couldn't hear the rest at all.
In any case, I hadn't meant to make Lyriette cry, so I decided to take responsibility and soothe her here.
"I'm sorry. That's not what I meant by it. I only meant that when our niece finds a man she truly cares for, everything else around her will fade into the background—that's how deeply she'll fall for him."
"So deeply that everything else fades?"
"Yes. I haven't experienced it myself, but someone once said something like that to me."
It wasn't something I'd experienced in this world.
It was something my parents had told me in my past life, back when I was Yoo Shin-woo.
"They say falling in love makes a person cunning. You'll stop at nothing, resort to underhanded tricks just to win that person's heart, see only them, and want to keep them by your side and no one else's."
"That sounds oddly detailed. Are you sure that's not from your own experience, Uncle?"
"Now, now. Don't tease your uncle who hasn't even had a first love yet."
I gave her a light knock on the head with my knuckle, and Lyriette giggled bashfully, offering an apology.
"So does that mean you have no plans to fall in love with anyone, Uncle?"
"None for now. I don't even know if I ever will. I suspect I'll just live out my life as a bachelor and die alone, quietly growing old."
I'm not particularly aware of having high standards, but then again, I've never met a woman who caught my eye either.
I'm not exactly a confirmed bachelor, but I have no particular urge to force myself into romance or marriage either.
When I said this with a hint of self-deprecation, Lyriette suddenly covered my hand with her own tiny one.
"It's alright. Even if that happens, I'll take care of you for the rest of your life, Uncle."
She puffed out a breath through her nose, her expression resolute as she declared her intent.
Honestly.
I know full well this is just the sort of thing children her age tend to say, like "I'm going to live with Mommy and Daddy forever!"—but I can't help the warmth that spreads through my chest all the same.
To think I'd hear words like these from Lyriette, of all people.
I really have lived a good life.
"You won't take it back later, will you?"
"N-no! I mean it."
"Really? May I ask you again, once you're an adult?"
"Of course. Please, please ask me again."
Ah, I've lost this one.
I only meant it as a joke, but I've gone and burdened the poor child unnecessarily.
I supposed the right move here was to gracefully bow out as the loser.
"Alright. If I'm still without a partner when I'm old, I suppose I'll have to live off our little niece."
"Yes, please do! Oh, and Uncle..."
"Hm?"
Wondering if there was something else she wanted to say, I widened my eyes,
"...You've called me 'little niece' four times today. Little niece, that is."
"....."
Lyriette's eyes glared at me, sharp as an angered snake.
Her gaze was so fierce that, for a moment, I—her uncle with over a decade's age gap on her—actually felt intimidated.
"You'll make it up to me, won't you?"
"O-of course."
In the end, I spent the entire day glued to Lyriette's side.
And that night, when I returned to my room,
*I trust you've heard the news.*
*I'll come fetch you myself tomorrow.*
A short letter awaited me, containing nothing more than that brief, businesslike message.