After being practically forced out of the O’Brian residence, Yui and her mother, Sherina, arrived in front of their family’s bakery in the commoner district. It went without saying that the place was small—it wasn’t even remotely comparable to the size of the O’Brian residence.
Yui had kept this a secret from her mother, but she and her brothers had come to the commoner district on several occasions to observe their grandparents. This meant that Yui wasn’t surprised by the vast differences between the ways nobles and commoners lived. Still, knowing that she was going to be living there from now on felt incredibly odd.
“Yui, this is my parents’ home,” Sherina said. She took a deep breath, taking in the nostalgic atmosphere. The scent of freshly baked bread wafted through the air around them. “It smells good. That’s my dad’s bread,” she told Yui. “All right, let’s go inside.”
Prompted by her mother, Yui entered the bakery.
“Mom, dad!” Sherina shouted, unable to conceal her delight at returning home. An elderly man and woman stepped out from the rear of the building. Yui recognized their kind features. However, this was her first time seeing their faces from up close.
Yui’s grandparents froze, their eyes widening as they laid eyes on their daughter. “Sherina, is it really you?” Yui’s grandmother asked.
“Yes, it is. I sent a letter saying I’d be back soon, didn’t I?”
“You did, but I didn’t think you’d really come. I thought we’d never see you again.”
Yui’s father, Arthur, had banned Sherina from seeing her parents. He also never took her to high society events. In fact, he had hardly ever let her leave the house at all. She had been virtually under house arrest. However, Sherina had maintained written communication with her parents, and Yui and her brothers had noticed that every time their mother received a letter from her parents, she would hide from her children and quietly cry. That was the reason they had wanted to see what their grandparents were like, but they thought introducing themselves to the couple living quietly in the commoner district would have been a bother, so in the end, they’d only watched them from afar.
After a tearful reunion with her mother, Sherina joyfully embraced her father. Yui met her grandfather’s gaze and flinched.
“Sherina, is this who I think it is?” he asked.
“Yes, she’s your granddaughter,” Sherina replied. “Okay, Yui, say hello to your grandpa and grandma.”
“Oh, um, my name is Yui O’Brian. Grandfather, grandmother, I’m pleased to make your acquaintance,” she said, lowering her head and dipping into a graceful curtsy. It was an entirely typical greeting for a daughter of nobility, but her grandparents’ eyes widened, and they didn’t respond. Yui looked at her mother nervously, wondering if she’d done something strange. Sherina giggled softly.
“Yui, you aren’t the daughter of a count anymore, so there’s no need to greet them like a noble would. Besides, it isn’t ‘grandfather’ and ‘grandmother.’ It’s ‘grandpa’ and ‘grandma.’”
“Grandpa? Grandma?”
“That’s right. From now on, don’t call me ‘mother’ anymore either. Call me ‘mama.’”
“Mama...” Yui said. The word was unfamiliar to her, and she spoke it as if testing it out.
Her mother smiled happily. Yui had never seen her smile so brilliantly before. Up until then, her smiles had been kind but lonely with a hint of sorrow. Yui had assumed that that was just the way her mother smiled, but seeing her now, Yui realized that she had been quietly suffering the entire time. The O’Brian residence had been Yui’s home, but it had never been that way for her mother. This saddened her, and she lowered her face.
Her grandfather knelt down to meet her gaze once again. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m Orso, your grandpa. How old are you?”
“Twelve.”
“You’re already that old?” He offered her a toothy grin. “Welcome, Yui,” he said, extending a hand toward her.
Yui felt disoriented, but she still took his hand and shook it. Then her grandmother squatted down in front of her.
“Hello. I’m your grandma, Maria.”
As her two grandparents gazed at her with kind smiles on their faces, Yui found herself feeling awkward. “It’s nice to meet you,” she repeated and bowed her head.
Once everyone finished greeting each other, Yui’s grandparents quickly closed up the bakery, then showed Yui and her mother around. The building contained both the bakery and their living quarters, with the living room in the back. Sherina had fond memories of the house, but to Yui, who didn’t know how commoners lived, everything felt brand-new.
“Let’s head upstairs, Yui. I’ll show you your room,” her grandmother said. With a smile that closely resembled Sherina’s, she directed Yui to the second floor. “This is it. When I read the letter saying you’d be coming here, I rushed to clean it out, but if there’s anything not to your liking, just let me know.”
Yui’s new bedroom was cramped; although it was a typical size for a commoner’s quarters, it probably wasn’t even half the size of her former room in the O’Brian residence. Commoners lived very differently from nobles, and Yui would have to get used to that. Still, she didn’t feel particularly down about it. Her grandparents were kinder than she had expected, and more than anything, she was filled with relief to have finally been released from her former life. It was reassuring knowing that she would never again be subject to her father’s terrifyingly cold gaze. She had no idea if being a Liefe was truly such a bad thing, but at the very least, her grandparents didn’t seem to hate her for it. It might take time to get used to everything, but she had a feeling that she could do it.
Yui took out the pendant she’d hidden beneath her clothes and squeezed it in her hand. The stone of the same color as the boy’s eyes brought back memories of him.
“It’ll be okay,” she said to herself. He’d promised he would come see her. Yui knew she could make it until then.