About Being Picked Up and Adopted by Talula

Orson tried to stop W, but a bill smacked him right in the face.

"Sir, you're not planning to skip out on the bill, are you?"

"Of course not... Whoa, Long Island Iced Tea costs this much!?"

"That's the standard price, sir. Will you be paying by card or facial recognition?"

Orson froze for a moment, rummaged through his pockets, then shrugged.

"I'll pay by washing dishes."

I should've known better than to give all my money to Uncle Isaac.

Your daughter, I shall raise her (?)

"Ughhh..."

That night, Orson staggered back to the Rostov estate, rubbing his head. His head was spinning like crazy.

He had nearly fallen asleep halfway through chatting with an enemy who wanted to kill him... In the end, W had to splash water on him with veins bulging on her forehead to wake him up. The first thing she said was, "There's no sense of accomplishment in killing someone like you."

"Ugh, that's so embarrassing..."

If there really was an emergency, Orson could rapidly wake himself by tuning his body. However, that would speed up the increase in Originium concentration within him, and besides, it would be making a mountain out of a molehill.

In any case, he should probably never touch alcoholic drinks again...

After silently making that vow, Orson washed his face and returned to his duties as a senior guard at the estate, where he happened to run into Lumen.

"Good evening, Miss Natalia."

"Orson? Where did you go after school?"

When Natalia saw Orson, she walked over and asked with a hint of displeasure.

"Uh... There were other bodyguards watching over things on the way, so I went to check on Duke Baikal's situation."

Orson gave her an explanation that was half true and half false. Lumen frowned and stared at him for a while before sighing.

"I see... Then, Orson, do you have time to explain what happened with that classmate Sonia and that club?"

Lumen smiled as she stepped closer. As the eldest daughter of the Rostov family, her pressure was instantly overwhelming. Compared to her, Orson truly looked like a cat that had just had its tail stepped on.

"Well... Actually, Sonia is a student I saved before. We just happened to end up in the same class, so... that's how it happened."

"Mm, I understand."

Lumen nodded to show she understood, and only then did Orson breathe a sigh of relief.

"Then obviously, Orson, you should transfer schools tomorrow."

"That's completely backwards!"

"Ha..."

Lumen sighed awkwardly as well. Recently, she had been losing her composure more often than usual, though she did not know why.

"So, Miss Natalia, how was your day?"

Orson tried to change the subject while Lumen rested a finger against her cheek in thought.

"Mm, same as always. There's nothing but false flattery and admiration all around me... How ridiculous. I'm surrounded by so many people, yet I can't find a single friend I can confide this fear in..."

"Why not try talking to Sonia and Anna?"

Orson tried to set up Lumiere and Lumen as a couple from the side, but Natalia frowned.

"I'll pass. Classmate Sonia... Hmph."

Lumen snorted. That reaction, at least, was quite fitting for a high school student.

"Well, you'll get used to it. They're all good girls. I'll be going now, Miss Natalia."

Orson waved goodbye to Lumen, but she called out to him again just as he was about to leave.

"Orson—"

"Mm? What is it, Miss Natalia?"

"You don't have to call me Miss anymore. Since we attend school together, it feels strange to address me like that..."

Lumen looked away and spoke softly.

"Although you're right, wasn't it Miss Natalia who exposed my identity at school earlier?"

Orson muttered quietly. Back then, after Lumen and Lumiere had blurted out thoughtless words just for the sake of talking big, they had both turned red and spent ages explaining themselves.

In the end, Orson's undercover identity had been tossed straight into the trash.

"Anyway, it's decided. One more thing—Orson, are you angry that I dragged you into school for that reason?"

"Please rest assured, Natalia. I'm actually quite happy to be there."

Orson smiled at Lumen, then left the room.

After saying goodbye to Lumen, Orson followed the original plan and headed to the Head of the Rostov Family's room.

Could it be that they found out I slacked off after school and they're going to fire me...

Orson thought nervously.

But they already paid me, so getting fired is fine!

Orson thought cheerfully.

"Sir Andrei, you sent for me?"

Having already prepared himself to get kicked out, Orson knocked and entered the room. Across from a luxurious solid wood desk sat the leader of the Rostov family, Lumen's father.

"Mm. Time is precious right now, so I'll get straight to the point—Odie."

"It's Orson."

"You've been here for four or five days now. It hasn't been long, but for me, it's enough time to observe someone. Do you have any leads on the Rossa family heir, a vassal of Duke Baikal, losing his memory?"

Lumen's Father pushed up his glasses, his eyes seeming capable of seeing through everything.

"Mm, it was because he drank counterfeit alcohol, right? Even vodka has fakes? That's truly heartbreaking!"

Orson spouted nonsense with a straight face.

"Actually, I can vaguely sense it, Orson. You are different from the other guards. It's not merely your professional ability. Your level is different as well."

Lumen's Father ignored Orson's attempt to joke around and continued.

"That's just your imagination, Sir Andrei. More importantly, as a senior security officer, may I ask what measures the Rostov family currently has to counter Duke Baikal?"

Over the past few days, Orson had dealt with three batches of mercenaries here and there. However, according to W's intelligence, Baikal's methods would soon become even more extreme.

"Mm... To be honest, I have almost no private army of my own, and nearly all the Sarkaz mercenaries have already been hired in advance by Duke Baikal. Marquis Boris is occupied with the cleanup following some laboratory incident and has no spare capacity either."

Lumen's Father spoke with a troubled expression.

"But I cannot retreat. I will ensure the safety of my wife and Natasha. No one has forgotten how cruel life was in this city under the rule of the old nobility. I will not allow history to repeat itself and let everything we worked so hard to change become nothing."

"That sounds inspiring, but you haven't answered my question at all, Sir Andrei."

Orson casually praised Lumen's Father's resolve, but as he said, there was still no solution to the current situation in that speech.

"Indeed... So listen carefully to what I'm about to say."

"Mm, please go on."

Orson lifted the glass of water on the table, trying to wash away the last traces of alcohol's effects.

"If I die, Natasha will be in your care."

"Pfft—!"

The water Orson had not yet swallowed sprayed out through his nose.

"Brother, are you out of your mind!?"

Orson looked at Lumen's Father in alarm. The man did not look like he was joking at all.

"No. I am preparing to seek an audience with the Emperor. I heard that the current Emperor has always wanted to reform the old nobility. I tried contacting him before, but there was no result. So I've decided to go to Saint Gallant Castle myself—frankly, it's a suicide mission."

"You're being far too reckless, whether it's choosing to see the Emperor or entrusting Natalia to me. I might not be a good person, you know?"

Orson hurriedly tried to talk Lumen's Father out of it.

"There are two kinds of merchants. One excels at prolonged observation, while the other likes to place decisive bets. Clearly, I am the latter—I believe you are a trustworthy young man."

"That's complete nonsense... What if I approached you from the beginning with ulterior motives? Wouldn't that ruin everything? And if you leave, the Rostov family will be swallowed by Duke Baikal in an instant."

Orson continued explaining, trying to make the Head of the Rostov Family abandon this foolish idea.

Back in the northern territories, Orson had always been the one explaining to others that he and Talula were good people. He had never imagined there would come a day when he had to explain that he might not be a good person.

"No. I'll leave Duke Baikal a little gift. It will keep him busy for a while, at least. Of course, after that, he will go all in without regard for the consequences. If I have not returned alive by then, please protect Natasha."

"Even if you say that..."

"Anyway, that's that. I'll leave tonight. I'll leave it to you to explain things to Natasha, Orson."

Lumen's Father stood up, took a briefcase, and left the room, heading toward the front entrance.

Just as Orson was still hesitating over what to do, Lumen's voice came from behind him.

"I knew it... Father! I thought you were acting strangely today when I got home—there has to be another way! I haven't given up, so you can't give up either!"

Having vaguely sensed something was wrong earlier, Lumen ran out of her room and tried to catch up with the Head of the Rostov Family, only to be held back by the butler rushing after her.

"Stop him, Orson—help me stop him, Orson!"

Lumen stretched out her hand and shouted. She knew full well that her father would never return alive.

"Natasha is in your care, Orson, if things turn out in the worst possible way."

Caught between the two of them, Orson closed his eyes and thought for a few seconds. At last, he opened them and looked back at Lumen.

"I'm sorry, Natalia."

"Orson..."

Lumen froze. Everything before her was changing far too quickly for her to understand.

Then Orson instantly appeared beside the Head of the Rostov Family, casually grabbed a vase, and smashed it straight into the back of his head.

Bang!

"I don't know how to gently knock people out like they do in movies, so this was the only way. Sorry..."

Orson rubbed his hair. Beside him, Marquis Rostov lay on the ground with @△@ for eyes, his head two centimeters taller from the bump.

"Ah... Mm, o-okay."

Lumen blinked.

Then, there was only one answer!

"Ooh, ahh, mmm, oohhh..."

In the main hall of the Rostov family estate, Orson was surrounded on the floor near the entrance by a group of bodyguards. Numerous crossbow bolts, firearms, batons, and knife handles pinned him down tightly, with crossbow tips and batons even shoved into his mouth.

"Can someone help me explain this..."

Orson looked toward Lumen, who anxiously kept trying to persuade the bodyguards.

"Everyone, calm down...! Orson wasn't trying to assassinate Father! He was only helping me stop Father!"

Lumen desperately tried to prevent the situation from getting worse. After all, if one ignored the process and looked only at the result, it was simply, "Orson smashed the current head of the family in the head with a vase."

"This guy has only been here for a few days! Young Miss, you must have been deceived by him!"

The security captain, who was restraining Orson most enthusiastically, shouted loudly while twisting Orson's arm with force, whether intentionally or not.

"Orson isn't that kind of person... Besides, this is my order!"

"I'm telling you, Young Miss, you've been deceived! This guy is definitely one of Duke Baikal's people!"

"Yeah! He looks especially suspicious!" "He's an undercover agent!" "Absolutely!"