Reincarnated User Manual

The book Lucia was searching for was in the hands of a girl she had never seen before.

As she lifted her gaze slightly from the book in the girl’s hands, she met the face of a girl of similar age. Watching the unfamiliar girl flipping through the pages with her cute little hands, Lucia found herself absentmindedly entranced.

‘… She’s adorable.’

That was Lucia’s first impression of the girl.

With hair that glowed faintly reddish under the light, blue eyes that stood out on her petite face, and the flawless porcelain-like skin unique to children, all combined harmoniously, contributing to the mysterious aura surrounding the girl.

Thanks to the non-human beauties she’s known, Lucia thought she’d never be awestruck by someone’s appearance again. Yet, the girl’s appearance was dazzling enough to make Lucia reconsider.

Perhaps because she’d been staring for too long, the girl, noticing Lucia’s gaze, looked up and met her eyes.

“Is this your book?”

“…Huh? Mine?”

“Yes, you kept looking at my hands, so I thought I’d ask.”

The girl said with a bright smile. Her smile was so heartwarming that Lucia could only blink, momentarily lost for words.

‘It’s not my book… Or is it?’

While Lucia hesitated, the girl gently closed the book and approached her.

“My name is Siriel.”

“Siriel?”

“Yes, Siriel Prient.”

Upon hearing her name, Lucia’s eyes widened in recognition. She vaguely remembered the mention of a Siriel from lunch today.

‘Is she that man’s daughter?’

Lucia stared intently at Siriel. This doll-like child was Hugo’s daughter?

“You… Are you…”

Hugo’s biological daughter?

She nearly blurted out the question, but quickly covered her mouth with her hand.

However, it was a logical suspicion. Siriel looked nothing like Hugo, to the point where her appearance would be inexplicable if she wasn’t his adopted child.

That man, Hugo, seemed… too large to be considered human. He was so intimidating both in height and hand size that she wondered if he could even defeat an ogre with his bare hands.

Conversely, Siriel looked like a tiny fairy.

Her silver hair was tinged with a shade of red that seemed as if it couldn’t exist in reality. Even the airy frilled dress she wore made her seem like she had leaped right out of a fairy tale, moving so adorably that it was almost an illusion.

“What’s your name?”

“Huh? Uh… Lucia…”

“That’s a pretty name!”

With that, Siriel quickly grabbed Lucia’s hand. They had just met, hadn’t they? Lucia was slightly taken aback by her friendly behavior.

Regardless of what Lucia might have been thinking, Siriel chatted away.

“The girl my grandpa spoke of was you?”

“Grandpa?”

“Johan. I mean Johan. He mentioned you a little before coming here.”

Johan was the only knight among those brought by Hugo who spoke, and he remained vaguely in Lucia’s memory.

“After we arrived, Grandpa told me about you. That there’s a girl around my age. I was so happy.”

“Happy… you say?”

“Yes.”

Siriel, not letting go of Lucia’s hand, began hopping around gleefully.

“I’ve always played alone.”

Then, she suddenly wore a melancholic smile.

“Grandpa said our house is so grand that not many guests come. So, I usually only have the knights to play with, and it’s not much fun.”

Siriel pouted as she candidly shared her situation.

“Even they, when busy with training or duties, would only occasionally play with me.”

“……”

“It’d be nice if I had siblings. That’s why, you know? You can’t imagine how excited I was when I heard there’s a friend my age here.”

“A friend…?”

“Yes! Because of that, I couldn’t sleep last night and slept the whole way here.”

Siriel chuckled as she spoke. Even before Lucia could ask anything, she had introduced herself thoroughly.

‘Such a lively child.’

Lucia wasn’t sure why she found it amusing, but watching her eased her weary spirit.

‘Not bad at all.’

Lucia found herself unwittingly smiling.

“Ah, that’s right!”

Siriel, who had been holding Lucia’s hand, let go and hurried to the spot where she was reading a book just moments ago.

Soon after, Siriel presented Lucia with the fairy tale book she had been reading.

“Do you like this book too?”

“Uh… well…”

Lucia stiffened at Siriel’s question. Her eyes widened in shock, and she gulped. The reason was none other than the embarrassment of the book’s existence.

Historically, influential rulers often had songs or books praising them disseminated to the masses. Yet, every time, Kyrie had scoffed at them, mocking their vanity.

-I won’t let anyone create stories about us.

-Does Kyrie dislike such things?

-Obviously. What the hell are those? They’re trash, even worse than hypocrisy.

-You enjoy being complimented, too.

-No, that’s not the problem. People who only see the good and feel affectionate will turn their backs the moment I show a hint of weakness.

-Hmm… I see…

Considering she had made such statements, it made it even more poignant. If, by chance, someone from her past life who knew her saw her now, they might laugh uncontrollably.

Fortunately, as far as she knew, there was no one who knew she was Kyrie.

‘Well, the story is interesting, so isn’t it fine? The illustrations are impressive, and though the descriptions are extravagant, it’s not exactly false…’

Reading a book praising herself wasn’t as bad as she thought.

“Uh… well… I do like it?”

Thus, Lucia found herself responding on the spot.

However, her response was a bit hesitant. If it was an adult, it might be different. But deceiving a young child who knew nothing weighed on Lucia’s conscience.

“Really?!”

Siriel’s large eyes sparkled as she hopped around excitedly.

“I really love this book too!”

“…Can you tell me why?”

Lucia coughed awkwardly and asked Siriel. She had never heard an opinion on the book apart from criticism. And she was curious about a child who liked a book that contained her own story.

“I want to be like Kyrie when I grow up!”

Siriel answered with a big smile.

‘To be… like me?’

Goosebumps formed on Lucia’s arms.

However, an even stronger feeling of pride washed over her. Having gone through so much hardship and not receiving any rewards, seeing a child who genuinely admired her made her heart swell with emotion.

“Uh… I, I really admire Kyrie too.”

Lucia tightly closed her eyes, trying hard to suppress her overwhelming emotions, but the corners of her mouth twitched uncontrollably.

“I think we can be good friends! We’re of the same age, and we like the same things.”

“…Yeah, I kind of like you too.”

“Really? So, are we friends from now on?”

Siriel giggled gleefully for some reason. There were many things that bothered Lucia about becoming friends with a 9-year-old, but…

“Sure, why not be friends.”

She thought it wasn’t so bad to become friends with a child who was showering her with such genuine kindness.

---

-Knock knock-

A knock resounded in the bedroom located in the deepest part of Dawn Castle.

“Young master. It’s Yuma.”

“Ah, come in.”

The door opened, and in walked Yuma, followed by Berta.

“Greetings! Master!”

“Alright, Berta. It might take some time. Sit anywhere you like.”

“Y-Yes.”

Berta replied with clear tension. The reason for her tension was that all the servants of the mansion had gathered in Shiron’s room. Almost everyone’s eyes were intently fixed on Berta.

Moreover, the room was filled with dense magical energy, making it hard to even breathe.

Berta sat down on a chair in a corner and tried to regulate her breathing, wondering how the young master could remain so calm in this atmosphere.

The answer became somewhat clear without further explanation: the holy sword she had seen him discover earlier was in his hand.

“Now.”

Shiron, seeing Berta neatly dressed in her uniform, smirked. He then looked around at all the servants in the mansion.

“Anyone here willing to get pricked by the holy sword?”

Shiron tapped the holy sword in his hand, waiting for a volunteer.

The first to raise her hand was Yuma.

“I’ll do it, young master.”

“You can’t, Yuma. You’re injured.”

“…I see.”

Yuma hesitated for a moment after Shiron’s comment, then nodded in agreement.

“If not Yuma, any other volunteers? We’ll decide by drawing lots then.”

“I-I’ll do it!”

The one who raised her hand was Ophilia, with her eyes tightly closed. Opening her eyes, she slowly approached where Shiron stood.

“Ophilia, I won’t forget your sacrifice.”

“P-Please be gentle, young master.”

“I’ll try to make it as painless as possible.”

Ophilia, with a frightened expression, extended her pale arm. Another maid approached and gagged Ophilia’s mouth.

Ophilia’s trembling arm was very slender.

“Watch closely, Berta. You are witnessing a historic moment.”

“…Yes.”

Berta pulled out a notebook from her possession as Shiron firmly gripped Ophilia’s trembling arm.

“One, two!”

Three!

Shriek!

The holy sword held by Shiron grazed Ophilia’s arm ever so slightly. Despite it just being a blade grazing the skin, an intense burning smell wafted up.

A single red line appeared where the blade had passed.

“Young master, it’s undoubtedly genuine.”

Yuma, who had been observing the process, spoke up.

“Well done.”

“It, it wasn’t as bad as I thought. I guess I was too scared.”

Ophilia, having spat out the gag from her mouth, wiped the cold sweat from her forehead.

“Didn’t I say I’d be gentle? Don’t you trust me?”

“He, hehe.”

Shiron gave a bitter smile and comforted a chuckling Ophilia.

“The verification of the authenticity of the holy sword is done.”

Shiron discreetly put away the holy sword, ensuring no one noticed.

“The succession ceremony is tomorrow. Just promise me one thing.”

He took a deep breath, wiping the smile off his face.

“If I fail, no one should step forward.”