"Good day, young master Nayre."
"Hello, Captain. Have you gotten familiar with this place?"
"Thanks to you, we've settled in well. By the grace of Queen Aurel, please rest assured and leave this place in our care!"
Standing before Nayre was the captain leading Queen Aurel's knights. Her clear gaze subtly lingered for a moment on Nayre's face and his crimson eyes.
She was the only captain in this unit, and the number of knights under her command had been deliberately kept minimal.
After all, they were stationed here to guard the Farshore territory on behalf of young master Nayre—having too many might give rise to unnecessary implications.
Even though they were few, just seeing knights of Queen Aurel was enough to deter any fool from making trouble.
Because they served directly under Queen Aurel herself—no one in their right mind would dare provoke Her Majesty, the supreme ruler of Aurel's kingdom.
"Then I shall entrust this place to Her Majesty without concern. I doubt anyone would dare cause trouble here."
"You flatter us, sir. That said, every key location under your name is already guarded by your own magical automaton knights. Technically, we're not even necessary."
As the knight captain spoke, she glanced toward the silver knight statues standing on either side of the distant gate.
They looked like statues, but were actually magical automaton knights created by Nayre himself, tirelessly guarding key areas of the Farshore estate day and night.
"They are machines—they can only repel enemies. For everything else that goes on here, I trust you knights to handle it. That's why I'm counting on you."
"Yes, sir. I assure you, we will protect this land to the best of our ability."
What she meant was that her team would perform their duties faithfully—and nothing more. They would not involve themselves in any unrelated matters.
Nayre understood perfectly. After all, these were Queen Aurel's knights—they could indeed be trusted.
"Daddy!"
"Come here, Little Rue! I was just about to look for you."
A boy of about ten years old ran happily toward Nayre with his hand raised, calling out in a bright and cheerful voice.
Trailing behind him was a chubby, snow-white magical automaton.
"......"
The knight captain's eyes widened. Did she hear that right?
That boy—Little Rue—just called young master Nayre… **daddy?**
Young master Nayre was the current head of the Farshore family. Four years ago, he had graduated early from Aurel's Knight Academy and inherited the title of clan leader.
Without any opposition or obstacles, at the age of sixteen, he had become the head of Farshore.
And he had done so with absolute control—**Nayre was Farshore.**
People still called him "young master" because he had not yet officially come of age. In the Farshore family, one must be thirty years old to hold a coming-of-age ceremony—much later than the typical noble age of twenty.
Though this was not particularly strange. In Aurel's Kingdom, the current third Queen Aurel had reportedly ascended to the throne a thousand years ago—**at the age of ten**.
Which meant Queen Aurel III was now **1010 years old**.
This wasn't surprising, as Queen Aurel was no ordinary person, nor an ordinary monarch. She was a being entirely unique.
But the current head of Farshore was only twenty. How could he have a son?
Little Rue looked to be around ten as well. Did that mean young master Nayre had a wife and child at the age of ten?
No, that couldn't be. The knight captain dismissed her own wild guesses and decided to go straight to the source.
She approached the silent dark knight who had always stood vigil behind Nayre—**Velucica**.
This dark knight carried an aura of terrifying strength. Her combat prowess far exceeded even the knight captain's.
But fortunately, during the past few days of working together, the captain had discovered that Vylushica was surprisingly easy to talk to—aside from the intimidating dark markings on her face.
"Lady Dark Knight, may I ask—who is that child?"
Vylushica didn't respond immediately. She instinctively turned her left cheek slightly away from the captain before replying.
"That's Ruby Farshore. The magical automaton knight behind him is Big White—his guardian and assistant. He is young master Nayre's godson."
"His older sister is Dr. Amira, young master's chief scientist. Many of the automatons here—including Big White—were created by her."
"I see…"
With that explanation, the knight captain quickly understood.
Dr. Amira was a renowned scientist. It seemed Nayre didn't just take the boy in to win her favor.
Watching Nayre crouch down and chat with Little Rue so happily…
It was clear—this child was truly dear to him.
"Listen closely, Rue. I'll be leaving for a while tomorrow, so I have an important task for you."
"I want to entrust it to my most trusted godson and Big White!"
Hearing his master—Nayre—speak, the chubby white automaton immediately waddled over and stood at attention.
**(●—●)**
"While I'm gone, I want you two to maintain the magical automatons. Can you do that?"
Nayre pulled out a silver-white token engraved with the Farshore flower crest.
It was a family heirloom—a token representing Nayre's authority as head of the clan. With it, one could issue commands to all automatons under his control—not only to maintain them, but to command them.
Nearly every automaton.
—So, this godson wasn't just some casual choice. Young master Nayre genuinely trusted a ten-year-old boy this deeply.
This left the strongest impression on the knight captain.
"Okay! I promise you and big sis—I'll complete the mission! Let's do a high-five!"
Little Rue happily accepted the token, as if he had just been given his favorite toy.
He held up his tiny hand toward Nayre.
"Good! I knew I could trust you. But before we high-five—do you remember our daily rule?"
"Of course! If you don't maintain it today, you'll have to repair it tomorrow!"
*Clap!* Nayre lightly slapped his palm against Rue's.
"Great! I'm leaving everything to you and Big White. Be sure to take care of yourselves too."
Nayre gently patted Big White's round head, then hugged Little Rue and placed his hand over the boy's chest.
Through the fabric of his clothes, a complex magic circle began to glow faintly.
"......."
A sound came from within Rue's chest.
But it wasn't the usual thump-thump of a heartbeat.
It was—tick, tick, tick—like the sound of a clock.
"Alright. Your heart is working fine. But remember to check it every day. Big White, keep an eye on him."
"Understood!"
Rue didn't act like anything was wrong. Clutching the Farshore token tightly, he dashed away excitedly.
Big White nodded its head up and down at its master, then followed closely behind Rue.
Nayre had adopted Little Rue as his godson not just because Dr. Amira had joined his side.
The real reason was even more important:
Rue's heart was one of Nayre's greatest masterpieces.
A creation so improbable, it was nearly impossible.
The only heart in the world ever made through magitech.