Chapter 56

As Kain walked down the hallway to borrow a book from his father's study, Diana came running from the other end, waving her hand and calling out, "Big brother!"

Kain squatted down on the spot, ready to welcome Diana, and spread his arms wide to wait for her. Normally, she would plop into Kain's chest, pressing her forehead against his chest, but today she stopped abruptly in front of Kain, standing straight with her back.

"Diana?"

Kain tilted his head, asking what was wrong, and Diana smiled and bowed.

"Good day, Brother Kain. I am Diana. It is an honor to meet you."

Diana lifted the middle of her skirt slightly with her left hand, placed her right hand on her chest, and tilted her upper body slightly to the left. This was the lady's greeting in this world.

Glancing behind Diana, Kain saw Mr. Silas, the etiquette teacher, walking slowly toward them. Diana had probably learned the lady's greeting today. When you learn something new, you want to show it off to everyone right away.

Kain stood up, straightened his posture, and placed his right hand on his chest, raising his left hand slightly with the palm facing outward.

"Good day, Miss Diana. I am Kain. It is an honor to meet you. I am deeply grateful to have the fortune of meeting you again today. I could run around the world three times with the overflowing happiness I feel now."

Saying this, he tilted his upper body to the left. They looked at each other with serious faces, but then they both burst out laughing.

The lady's greeting in this world was a bit different from a curtsy. She lifted the skirt on one side only and did not bend her knees.

It was unclear whether the game developers wanted to add originality, the illustrator drew the stills without fully understanding the curtsy, or if the posture was a supplement to the world's setting because there was no specific setting in the game.

"Your posture is beautiful, but your words are too long. Be concise," Silas said.

"Understood," Kain replied.

Although Kain was currently skipping all his private lessons, he was still a student. Silas pointed out the noticeable points that needed improvement. Despite his stern face, Silas was good at praising when it was deserved.

"Good job on maintaining your composure in front of Miss Diana," Silas said.

"Thank you, Mr. Silas," Diana replied.

"Miss Diana, you did well. If you keep your head straight when tilting your body, it would be perfect," Silas added.

"Yes!" Diana exclaimed, beaming with joy. She then said she was going to greet her father and hurried off.

Silas, who had started to follow Diana, stopped and looked at a corner of the hallway.

"Master Kain, enjoy the afterglow when no one is around, or train yourself to endure until you can be alone."

With that, Silas continued walking without stopping. In the corner of the hallway, Kain was crouched, covering his face with his hands, sobbing over Diana's cuteness.

Meanwhile, Dismaia was in his office, completely floored by Diana's "Nice to meet you" greeting.

In his room, Irvaleeno was brushing Kain's hair while he read a book.

Kain had started growing his hair since he began learning magic. It is believed that magic power accumulates in the body, so a larger body is advantageous. Naturally, magic power also resides in hair, so many mages have long hair. Kain's magic teacher, Tylnoa, also has long hair.

"It has grown quite a bit," Irvaleeno commented.

"There's a saying, 'Hard hair, easy nails.' It means that if you work hard, your hair grows, and if you relax, your nails grow," Kain replied.

"Proverbs don't always apply," Irvaleeno said.

Kain's hair was about shoulder-length, making it difficult to tie up. However, the bangs and side hair often fell into his eyes, so he usually pinned them back. Irvaleeno took a hair clip from his pocket and showed it to Kain.

"Can I use this hair ornament to pin your hair back?"

"It's a beautiful lace carving. But, isn't this a bit girly?"

It was a small wooden hair ornament with a lace-carved design of vines, stars, and the moon. It had a pin on the back to hold the hair.

"Selenosta made it. It's an application of the fine work he learned while apprenticing at a blacksmith. I've been keeping it for you and Miss Diana."

He then took out another hair clip with flowers, rabbits, and butterflies carved into it.

"He's quite skilled."

Kain examined the hair clip from various angles, holding it up to the light and looking at the back. After a while, he handed it back to Irvaleeno.

"Use it to pin my hair back. Later, I'll put one on Diana too, and we'll show them off to Mother together."

Kain and Diana both had bright, straight, and lustrous golden hair. The dark brown wooden hair clips, though seemingly plain at first glance, had very intricate designs. The dark color stood out against their bright hair, and the cute design complemented their golden locks.

Some time later, Selenosta decided to live and work at a jewelry workshop that Elise favored.

Diana's greeting phrases are randomly selected from what she has learned. For now.