Chapter 1

I realized I had reincarnated with the title "～." Until now, I had been writing short stories, but this one seems to be getting too long for a short story, so the fourth work is a serialized piece. I would be delighted if you could enjoy it even a little.

Wow.

As I opened my mouth to eat lunch, I froze, staring at the scene in front of me.

Inside the house, I encountered an unexpected battlefield.

"Cut it out!"

"You're the one being ridiculous. Bursting into someone's house like this—"

"Oh, I thought it was a doghouse because it's so cramped."

"…Who are you, anyway?"

Yeah, yeah. I was thinking the same thing.

"This thief cat doesn't know me. You must have been seducing our people."

"Huh? Get outside."

"Exactly what I was hoping for."

Suddenly, a beautiful lady burst in, and the battle between her and my mother was about to begin. I thought, "Wait, I've seen this kind of battlefield before."

"Huh? I shouldn't have seen this before, so why… Wait, what, what, what, what, what?"

That's right.

I've encountered a similar battlefield before.

I remembered the time when the CEO's wife and her lover had a similar argument in the company's lobby.

That was the trigger.

Suddenly, a massive wave of memories flooded my mind.

I am me, but not the same me. These are the memories of me who was born and raised in Japan on Earth.

Yes, it happened when I was working at the reception desk of a company.

The CEO's wife stormed in, demanding that the CEO's mistress, who was a secretary, be removed.

The intensity of the fight between the two women was terrifying even to recall.

I want to take my time to think about and recall everything, but I'm worried about my mother right now.

I tried to move my small body and pushed the door open with all my might.

"Here we go."

When I stepped outside, the battle between the two women had already begun.

Both of their hair was disheveled, and my mother had a scratch on her face, probably from the other woman's long nails.

"You did this, didn't you?"

My mother's flying kick, after a running start, was impressive.

But now wasn't the time to be impressed by the technique.

"Mom!"

"Grf—"

My mother, distracted by me, was tackled and knocked down.

I hurried to her side, worried that she might have hit her head badly.

"Mom, Mom!"

At that moment,

I was suddenly grabbed by the arm.

"You look just like her."

I realized.

This is not the kind of look one gives to a small child.

Yes, I'm only four years old.

What should I do?

I'm worried about my mother, but I also feel in danger.

I'm in a big pinch.

What should I do in a situation like this?

Maybe there's a good idea in the memories of my past life.

But I couldn't think of anything, so I laughed nervously.

"...Your smile when you're in trouble looks just like hers."

I was startled.

Because the woman in front of me wasn't angry anymore.

She was looking at my face with a sad and loving expression.

"Tell your mother not to show her face in front of my people again."

"I can hear you. Ow, ow, ow."

I turned around, and my mother was just starting to get up.

"Wait a minute."

"What?"

"I don't know your husband."

"Huh? You have a child who looks just like him, and you're going to deny it?"

"That's the misunderstanding. This child isn't mine."

"...What?"

Both the woman who stormed in and I were surprised.

Because I thought of my mother as my mother.

Even though I was only four, I had always been with my mother since I could remember.

"When I woke up, there was a baby in front of the house. That's this child."

I was just shocked by the unexpected turn of events.

"If you know who the father is, take him away."

"What are you talking about?"

"As you said, this place is like a doghouse, and we can barely make ends meet."

"Well, I apologize for coming here and saying such rude things."

"It's fine. I was already thinking it would be tough to survive the winter this year."

Indeed, this small house, with its drafts, is so cold in the winter that I thought we might freeze to death. And my mother always shared her limited food with me. There were days when I prevented her from working properly, and she must have endured unnecessary hardships because of me.

I thought she was my real mother, so I just relied on her and took what was given to me.

"I'm not trying to kick Tori out. But if there's a father, go meet him once. If you can't live together, come back."

"Mom."

"Go on, Tori."

So, when the two of them had come to an agreement, the other person in the room spoke up.

"Are you saying you're going to take this child home?"

"You coming here was fate."

"Well, I was planning to take him home anyway."

"Take this opportunity to have a proper talk with your husband."

"...Right, I'm Olivia Middleton."

She said, and the woman, who had dirtied her beautiful clothes in the fight, bowed gracefully.

"Middleton... Could it be that Middleton?"

"The Middleton from the earl's family."

"...You're the earl's wife?"

"Yes, I'm the earl's wife, even if I don't look like it."

"You're a bigger catch than I thought. I'm Jade."

"Jade, I'm truly sorry for the misunderstanding this time."

"It's fine. You're tougher than I thought, and I like you."

In the end, my mother and Olivia were laughing and talking.

After finishing her conversation with my mother, Olivia knelt in front of me, not caring about her dirty clothes.

"What's your name?"

"Tori."

"Tori, this might be a bit difficult for you to understand, but listen. There's a man who is your great-grandfather, and he's sixty-five years old and has decided to write a will."

"A will..."

"Yes, a will where he decides what to do with his property after he dies. He's still healthy, but nobles have an obligation to create a will through a magic contract when they reach a certain age."

"Magic contract..."

"I don't know the details, but basically, many people are claiming to be Middletons and trying to get their hands on the old man's property."

"Claiming to be Middletons..."

"Yes. We've been investigating whether these people are really from our bloodline, but most of them are fakes. And there are so many of them that we're exhausted. So, we decided to search for the Middletons with the strongest bloodline, and that's how we found you, Tori."

If there's a magic contract, does that mean there's magic in this world? I have many questions, but the biggest one is:

"Am I a Middleton?"

"Yes, you are definitely a Middleton. We had a skilled mage search for Middletons, and your sky-blue eyes, which might be hard to see now because they're dirty, and your hair, which is probably a beautiful silver, confirm it."

My hair is a dull gray, but it might look silver if washed.

"I'm leaving Tori with you."

"Yes."

I waved goodbye to my mother and followed Olivia, making sure not to fall behind.