“Are you calm now?”
“……Sorry, Young Master. I got a bit carried away.”
“Sorry, Young Master……….”
After a round of the game, the table was in complete disarray.
Five sheets crumpled by Grandpa Butler, cards all mixed up because Sally cast several spells, and the table was half-split from how intensely we played.
It was made of paper to begin with, but finding an intact card was nearly impossible.
Under my subtle gaze, Grandpa Butler and Sally averted their eyes. Well done.
“Remember, this is just a board game for fun.”
“Truly, I am deeply sorry.”
“Sorry……….”
“Well, that aside.”
The table was split, and the sheets were ruined, but honestly, that’s not the important part.
In fact, being that immersed in the game is proof that it’s *fun*.
“Har… no, Kyle Galli. How was it?”
“……Quite impressive.”
“It was really fun!”
Well, it’s a board game that stirs up primal competitive instincts.
Unlike strategic board games, Hali Gali only requires your physical reflexes and quick thinking. At first, reactions might be slow, but the more you play, the better you get.
Especially since you’re competing over a single bell, your hands and bodies naturally collide. With each physical clash and seeing your opponent win right in front of you, anyone’s competitive spirit would ignite.
Plus, the victory condition of collecting cards lets you instantly see who’s in the lead.
It’s the best game to play with friends, and its reputation for destroying friendships isn’t for nothing.
“Grandpa Butler, it’s fine to enjoy it this much, right?”
“Of course. Even the Head of the Family wouldn’t scold Young Master Kyle for this.”
“Good to hear. Sally, sorry, but can you bring more sheets? Let’s play again.”
“Yes, yes!”
“And this time, no Aura or Magic. You know why, right?”
“………Yes.”
“Okay………….”
It’s fine for them to enjoy it, but I should join in too.
I smiled brightly at the slightly sulky Grandpa Butler and Sally.
At that time, I thought this would just be a game for the three of us.
Like it always had been.
*
“Hehehe……….”
“Sally? Sally!”
“Huh!? Oh, uh?”
“Snap out of it, Sally. It’s time to sleep, stop giggling.”
In the annex where the family’s maids stay.
Some servants commute, but maids and butlers who work from early morning often stay in the annex prepared within the estate.
And naturally, a unique atmosphere and customs form in the annex.
Initiation rituals for newcomers, gossip, factions, bullying—all that stuff.
She was a seasoned maid who had even earned her stripes in such places, and though she learned magic from the family’s magician, she was an oddball who insisted on living in the annex.
Even though she could have lived as a personal magician if she wanted, she stubbornly held onto her position as a maid.
Of course, everyone here knew the reason why.
“Sally, are you thinking about Young Master Kyle again?”
“Wha—?! N-no, absolutely not!”
“Yeah, right. Sally, are you still dreaming? Do you think Young Master Kyle would ever pay attention to you?”
“……Just being by his side is enough……”
“Wow. You must be really satisfied.”
Sally turned her head sharply away from her teasing maid colleague and buried her face in her pillow.
But by then, the maids had already started gossiping about Sally and Kyle.
“Senior Sally is so frustrating. How many years has it been now?”
“Ten years. That’s when Young Master Kyle brought that dummy here.”
“Ah, Senior Sally was an orphan, right?”
“Don’t say that when you’re the same. It sounds weird.”
“So what? Orphans can tease each other about being orphans. So, Senior, you’ve been working as Young Master Kyle’s personal maid for ten years?”
“Pretty much. I got demoted once, but after crying my eyes out, I suddenly learned magic and returned as his personal maid, doubling as a guard.”
“Wow……”
While Sally pretended not to hear, the maids kept chattering.
The topic naturally shifted from Sally to Kyle.
“Young Master Kyle is great. Handsome, kind, never gets angry. Sometimes I wish the second young master would take a page from his book.”
“Did you forget the dice gambling incident a few years ago? That’s why the second young master lost all his allowance.”
“Ah……”
“I’m just jealous of Senior Sally. Being Young Master Kyle’s personal maid must be so much fun!”
“Fun? What’s fun about it?”
“You don’t know? Why do you think Head Butler Charles sticks by Young Master Kyle? He’s the third son, so he doesn’t have much to do. He mostly stays in the mansion and plays games. Working by his side means you could spend the day playing games. Sounds amazing, right?”
“Really……? Senior Sally, that’s so unfair!”
“Now that I think about it, it’s kind of annoying. While we’re busy running around, Sally here is playing board games with a handsome young master.”
*Zing.*
The maids, realizing the harsh truth, turned their gazes toward Sally. Cold sweat dripped down Sally’s neck as she pretended to sleep.
Despite appearances, she was one of the most senior maids in the annex, so her only equal colleague stepped forward as the representative.
“Sally.”
“I-I’m sleeping……”
“Sally.”
“I said I’m sleeping……”
“We’re not trying to steal your position as the personal maid. But can’t we take turns for a day or two? Right?”
“I-I can’t heeeear youuuuuu……”
“Should I go talk to Young Master Kyle directly?”
“Ugh, ughhh……! You……!!”
Finally, when Kyle’s name came up, Sally couldn’t hold back any longer. Knowing the young master, he’d probably agree to switch for a day or two and tell her to rest well during that time.
For Sally, being by Kyle’s side was a form of relaxation… but if she had the courage to say that directly, she wouldn’t have been like this for the past 10 years.
Even if it was just to not be separated from Kyle, she needed to make sure here.
“Hey, absolutely not! I’m a guard magician, and I’m supposed to be by the Young Master’s side—”
“Anyway, Head Butler Charles is always with him. Is there anyone who can beat him?”
“Ugh…”
“And besides, we might be able to make Young Master Kyle happier than you can, right? He’s probably tired of just playing board games with you, don’t you think?”
“…Board games?”
“Huh?”
“T-that’s…! Fine, if you, if you guys can beat me even once in a board game!!”
“If we win?”
“…I-I’ll… I’ll step aside!!”
“Oh?”
The unexpected gain made the fellow maid’s eyes light up. She never expected Sally, who’s so devoted to the Young Master, to actually say something like this.
If she lost even once, she’d have to step aside with tears of blood, but if she managed to beat all the maids gathered here, there’d be no more complaints in the future.
For Sally, it was a once-in-a-lifetime gamble, and it wasn’t much different for the other maids either.
The only thing that bothered them was why Sally had proposed such a bet in the first place.
‘Well, there’s no way I’d lose even once, right?’
In the end, the maids’ thoughts converged into one. A vague confidence that none of the over ten maids gathered here would lose.
And so, after exchanging glances, the fellow maid nodded as their representative.
“Alright, just bring the game board, right?”
The game where the goal is to move pieces and capture the opponent’s king, which Young Master Kyle called “chess.”
The fellow maid was about to prepare the game board, but…
“Ah, no… wait.”
“Huh? What else is there?”
“…Kyle Galli.”
“Kyle… what?”
For a moment, she was stunned by the familiar name, but Sally rummaged through her personal belongings and pulled out a sheet of paper and a deck of cards.
New cards she had made to replace the ones she and Head Butler Charles had destroyed while playing.
Since Kyle had entrusted them to her, Sally carefully brought them out.
“What’s this?”
“It’s a game… that Young Master Kyle made himself.”
“Huh? The Young Master? Really?”
“Y-you won’t have any complaints with this, right?”
“Of course not, but…”
As a fellow maid who remembered the dice incident from a few years ago, she couldn’t help but frown slightly.
If this goes wrong, wouldn’t it be the maids falling into gambling this time instead of the knights?
Despite the suspicious looks, Sally seemed somewhat confident.
“J-just try it! You’ll understand once you play!”
“Uh, okay…”
Well, if it’s not gambling, it should at least be a decent pastime.
Even if it’s not as good as chess, as long as it’s somewhat fun, it’s fine.
The fellow maid thought so as she placed the paper on the floor.
“But it can’t be a game that takes too long, okay? I have cleaning duty tomorrow morning.”
“D-don’t worry!”
“Oh? So what.”
“The seniors are playing a game!”
“Let’s watch first. Keep an eye out and get ready to beat Senior Sally.”
“Kyle Galli…? A game named after the young master?”
“Well, even if I lose, as long as one of the remaining maids wins, it’s fine.”
“Shall we give it a try for fun?”
*
“Kyle, you know why I called you here, right?”
“…Yes, Father.”
The head office of the mansion, located on the top floor—a place usually accessible only to Father, the eldest brother, and key retainers. It had been a long time since I last entered, but knowing this wasn’t a good sign, I couldn’t help but break into a cold sweat.
With my hands behind my back, trembling in anxiety, and Father—William Byron, the head of the Byron family—sitting at his desk with a stern expression…
“Today, your personal maid and 14 senior maids under the head maid were all late together.”
“……”
“Being late itself isn’t a big deal. No nobles were visiting, and it’s not like there were no other servants working. The delay was only about an hour, so it ended as a minor incident… but.”
*Tap.*
William pulled out a slightly crumpled bell and a deck of cards that looked like they’d been roughly handled from the drawer.
He placed them on the desk.
“While hearing the reasons for their tardiness, something interesting came up.”
“…That is…”
“Kyle Galli.”
“……”
“I heard it’s a board game you created, Kyle.”
“…That’s correct.”
“And this was also a game you made, right?”
*Clatter.*
He rolled five dice he pulled from the same drawer.
Dice that had been banned in the family after a gambling incident involving knights a few years ago.
“I already heard from Charles, but it’s best to hear it from you directly.”
“…Yes.”
“So, explain it to me, Kyle.”
“……”
“If your explanation is inappropriate or insufficient…”
William, a good father but also a cold and rational family head, who, like my second brother, doesn’t view board games favorably, glared at me.
“Board games will be banned from now on.”
…For the sake of my boredom, hobbies, and future, I had to do something.
Absolutely.
