Chapter 63

After returning from training with the knight squadron, Cain sat on the sofa in his room and began knitting a scarf.

The first one had frayed edges because he had repeatedly undone and redone the beginning. As a result, the completed scarf went to Ilvaleno.

The second one was knit from start to finish without any redos, so he kept it for himself.

Confidently, he knit a third scarf with large pom-poms on both ends and gave it to Dianah.

On the day Dianah received the scarf, she walked around the house wearing it indoors and proudly showed it off everywhere.

Cain was now knitting his fourth scarf.

Embroidery and knitting were perfect for thinking. As the cold season approached, he chose knitting over embroidery and decided to knit scarves.

Dianah, wearing a scarf with pom-poms, looked so adorable that Cain thought about knitting a matching hat and gloves for her, but since he was knitting to think, he decided to avoid complex patterns.

After returning from training with the knight squadron, it was now Cain's free time.

Iannis was teaching Dianah and Ilvaleno in another room, leaving Cain with some free time.

Cain, recalling the original game, quietly continued knitting the scarf.

"Can I say that I've managed to avoid the worst ending where everyone is killed...?"

Ilvaleno, who had been forced into a life of crime after being treated kindly by the protagonist in childhood, met the protagonist again and, in the ending, killed everyone except the two of them to create their own world. In the game, it was left vague, but fans speculated that the two later committed suicide. It was a popular ending among fans of the Meriba route.

"I've erased Ilvaleno and the protagonist's past episodes and there's no sign of him returning to his old life for now..."

Even if Cain's father paid off the criminal organization, they still made contact and reduced the frequency of jobs. It's unclear whether this was due to poor coordination between the upper and lower levels of the organization or the decision of someone within it.

However, with the lower organization now gone, it's unlikely that Ilvaleno will return to his old life for a while.

"To avoid the prince's route, I need to prevent Dianah from becoming the prince's fiancée..."

Despite having a fiancée, the prince was drawn to the protagonist and, without breaking the engagement, married Dianah on paper. However, he quickly bestowed her on an elderly noble in a distant region.

To avoid this, either the protagonist and the prince must not fall in love, or Dianah's engagement to the prince must be prevented. Since one can't control other people's hearts, preventing the engagement is more reliable.

"Still, it's incomprehensible why Dianah, who is so cute, honest, and kind, would be attracted to the protagonist..."

As a child, Cain found it difficult to overturn an engagement arranged by parents.

Nevertheless, he had to continue expressing his disapproval of the engagement to his parents and Dianah, saying things like, "I won't let Dianah marry," "I won't let Dianah become a queen," and "I won't let Dianah marry the prince." While it seemed he was just being overprotective, he managed to get the promise, "We'll listen to both of their feelings."

He was also trying to convince Dianah that the prince was not a suitable marriage partner and considering whether Arundilano could be matched with someone else.

"It was just that Dedini saw motherly qualities in her..."

For now, he was thinking of increasing Dianah's opportunities to meet people by taking her out more often.

Having lunch with Cain or taking breaks during sword training with Arundilano wouldn't do.

If it became normal for the prince to accompany them on official duties, more nobles would bring their daughters to the inspection sites.

Arundilano, who seemed more alert during work, might even find a romantic interest.

"The teacher route and the second prince of the neighboring country route are currently out of reach..."

The teacher route involved a second or third son of a viscount who aimed to join the royal magic corps but failed the exam and reluctantly became a teacher. He was encouraged by the protagonist, who saw his potential, and later married into the protagonist's family.

Dianah, who cheated to get the necessary points to be a duchess, was exposed and expelled from home by her parents.

"Why? Dianah has nothing to do with it..."

Cain, unable to help but interject in a Kansai dialect.

"Maybe I should just make sure Dianah studies well enough to get good grades without cheating..."

Dianah, who once claimed to dislike studying because she was compared to Cain, now found learning enjoyable thanks to studying with Cain and Ilvaleno.

She would come to Cain to show off what she had learned after class. It was fun.

Incidentally, Dianah, who was exposed for cheating, was told by her parents that she had disgraced the family and was expelled from home. It was a sudden change from being spoiled.

"Anyway, since Dianah can't yet enter society, there's no way to meet the second or third son of the viscount who is supposed to become a teacher..."

The same goes for the second prince of the neighboring country. If he were to start something now, it would only be by changing the actions of Cain or Dianah.

The second prince route began with the prince, who was studying abroad, feeling out of place with the cultural differences. The protagonist, a commoner, approached him, saying, "I don't understand the rules of the nobility either," and they became close as they learned the country's culture and noble rules together.

When the idea of the second prince taking a bride from this country to deepen ties between the nations was proposed, Dianah, a duchess, was a candidate, but the prince refused. The prince married the protagonist, and Dianah became a concubine to the first prince, who had a bad reputation and already had a wife and concubines.

"Why! Dianah has nothing to do with it!"

If the commoner protagonist and the second prince could marry, that would be fine, Cain muttered. The second prince, to show that he had no intention of challenging the first prince's succession, or to prevent factional disputes by marrying into the powerful duchess family, pushed Dianah onto his brother.

This was currently out of reach.

Once school started, he could try to approach the second prince before the protagonist and teach him about the country's culture and noble rules.

If a marriage alliance was the goal, he could arrange for Arundilano to marry a princess from the other country.

"I should check if there is a princess in the other country..."

The routes with the classmate mage and the younger junior were also out of reach for the same reason as the teacher. If there were future events like the prince's friend-making parties, he might find suitable candidates there.

For now, since they were still children and not in society, they couldn't meet. Without meeting, he couldn't influence the protagonist to fall in love with Dianah or prevent her from being harsh to Dianah.

It was fortunate that he had managed to build relationships with Ilvaleno and Arundilano.

For now, the most reliable method was to raise Dianah to be a kind and straightforward girl.

He needed to make everyone Dianah's ally.

Even if she ended up engaged to the prince and the prince fell in love with the protagonist, a good relationship with Dianah might lead to a sincere resolution to annul the engagement.

If she didn't cheat, she wouldn't be exposed by the teacher, and her kind and cute nature might prevent her from being given to the philandering first prince.

Everything was still a possibility.

"Until the game starts, I can only watch over and guide Dianah to become a cute, smart, kind, and lovely girl."

Despite all his thinking, Cain concluded that he could only take care of Dianah.

Three scarves were now complete.

"Um, Master Cain?"

After dinner, a butler called out to Cain as he walked down the hallway.

"What is it, Parepantle?"

"Master Cain, I heard you've been knitting scarves recently."

"Yeah. It's getting cold soon, and simple patterns help me focus on my thoughts."

"I see. By the way, what did you do with those scarves?"

Cain thought it was a strange question.

"The first one was clumsy, so I gave it to Ilvaleno. The second one was better but still not great, so I kept it for myself. The third one was nice, so I gave it to Dianah. After that, I knit a few more while thinking and gave them to the gardener, Arundilano, and Sarasinya. It gets cold outside, you know."

"Are those all the scarves you've knit?"

"For now, yes... Do you want one, Parepantle?"

Thinking the butler might want one, Cain asked, but the butler slowly shook his head.

"Actually, Master and Mistress are wondering if they can get one today or tomorrow... When you have time, could you knit one more, or even two more, for them?"

Cain had never considered knitting for his parents, who were nobles and wouldn't wear a child's scarf in public.

When he told the butler this,

"It's not about whether they can wear it in public, but whether they can receive it."

Cain decided to knit a slightly more intricate scarf over three days and gave it to his parents as a gift.

Even though it was still a mild day with warm sunlight, his father wore the scarf to work that day.

At dinner, he smiled and said he had developed a heat rash.