The Northern Duke’s Eldest Son’s Tutor

Life at Eristirol Castle after just over two months wasn’t bad.
I was a bit happy yet sad that my workplace and home had become the same, but overall it was good.
The bed in my room was nice and soft, and the warmth inside compared to the outside was nice.
While the room was good, there was something else that was even better.
The food.
The restaurants I had been to until now were at best local gem level.
But the level of the castle’s chefs couldn’t be compared to those restaurants.
Was it Michelin in my past life?
If that existed here, they would deserve 5 stars, no, 6 stars.
The skills of the castle’s chefs were unbelievable, to the point where I could eat anything they served, even if it was food I’d never seen before.
“Miss Sofia, would you like a bite of this…?”
“No, I’m fine.”
Perhaps my thoughts showed on my face, because Kyle suddenly offered me some of the meat he was eating.
Although I am a tutor, I’m also Kyle’s personal servant.
A servant doesn’t eat with their employer.
Naturally, I declined Kyle’s offer.
Though I was quite disappointed, eating breakfast and dinner is enough.
“Young Master.”
“Yes.”
I spoke to Kyle during his meal.
But what I was about to say wasn’t just my own thoughts, but a message from the head of the family, the lord of Eristirol, and the effective ruler of the north, the Duke of Eristirol.
“The head of the family has asked what you think about taking magic lessons.”
To be precise, he said this to the head butler, not to me.
“Since I cannot use magic, we would need to invite an instructor from the magic tower for you to learn about magic. What do you think about this?”
“Hmm… magic..”
If I could use magic, it might be different, but I belonged to those who couldn’t use magic.
I could use mana but not magic, which was a bit confusing, but it couldn’t be helped.
That was the norm in this world.
Kyle is a noble.
Most nobles could use magic.
Just recently, the mage I mentioned in the story to Kyle was also a noble.
Although her rank was relatively low.
“The instructor we invite will be a woman, so you don’t need to worry.”
“…..”
Kyle still hasn’t completely overcome the trauma from that time.
After all, the instructor also needs to be a woman, not a man.
“What do you think? You don’t necessarily have to start right now. It would be sufficient to start within a few years…”
“Then I’ll postpone it.”
“..Yes.”
Is magic not well-regarded among nobles?
If I could truly learn magic, I would have definitely learned it.
Contrary to my thoughts, Kyle immediately postponed the magic lessons.
I should inform the head butler.

By the way, I started exercising with Kyle a few days ago.
In my mind, the only thing I could think of to make someone more energetic was moving their body outside.
Fortunately, inside Eristirol Castle, there was a place for knights to train, which was perfect for exercising.
“Young Master, you just need to do one more set.”
“Ughh…. one more set..? I’ve already done four sets…”
“No excuses. You must do at least five sets.”
“Then let me drink some water first…”
“Yes.”
I’m making Kyle work out in a rarely used training ground.
I would probably get scolded or fired if I did this without permission, but Kyle also agreed to it.
No problem.
He probably knows that it’s good for him in many ways.
“Then let’s start again. One.”
“Oneee!!”
“Twooo.”
“Twooo…!!!!”
To be honest, I was surprised that this was the body of a twelve-year-old.
When I was twelve, I was at boarding school reading books all day, with a soft body.
But now, twelve-year-old Kyle has a body that can handle five sets of push-ups.
Of course, he’ll get muscle soreness, but that’s actually appropriate for his level.
As proof, his body is already starting to develop after less than a month.
Once his body is complete, learning swordsmanship from the knights would be…
Since they’re a male-dominated group, that wouldn’t work.
No, wait.
It’s unlikely that there isn’t a single female knight in the domain’s knighthood.
Couldn’t we ask a female knight?
“Thirty…!!”
While I was briefly thinking about Kyle’s future, the last set had already finished.
“Well done, Young Master. Here, let’s take a break while you drink some cool water.”
I gave Kyle water.
I had taken a very slight sip, but it was such a small amount that he probably wouldn’t notice.
Even if Kyle has good intuition, how would he notice that?
“Gulp…gulp…. phew…”
“Are you feeling a bit better now?”
“Yes… but the water seems a bit less than before…”
“What?”
“The water seems about one sip less than usual.”
“….”
No, that’s impossible.
It wasn’t even a full sip, it was more like half a sip, and he noticed that?
Is this what being a noble is like, or is Kyle just abnormally perceptive?
One thing’s for sure, if he had debuted as an adventurer, he would have easily surpassed Gold rank and simply attained Platinum rank.
“I… took a slight sip. I’m sorry.”
“…It’s okay. Yes.”
“Thank you.”
“No… I should be…”
“?”
The last part was so quiet I couldn’t hear it well.
Since he didn’t repeat it, it probably wasn’t that important.
Kyle and I got up from the training ground.
There was no need to continue staying in the sun, and Kyle had also sweated a lot, so he needed to wash.
“How is it, Young Master?”
“…It’s good.”
“Is that so?”
I was massaging Kyle’s body, which was tired from exercise.
Without doing this, the muscle soreness would be too intense and could affect his daily life tomorrow, so I massage him like this every day after exercising.
“Ouch….”
“Should I be a bit gentler?”
“..No. It’s fine as it is.”
Is this what being a boy is like?
He’s twelve years old but doesn’t want to show pain in front of a woman.
There’s no particular reason for him to gain my favor anyway.
Ah, I suppose he might want to gain my favor to get a gentler workout next time.
By the way, nobles tend to marry earlier than commoners, but Kyle doesn’t have any women around him.
He’s certainly not a bad guy, and rather, he’s almost the best husband material among boys his age, but he has no contact with women.
Perhaps because the north is cold, there are no noble ladies visiting Kyle, and Kyle has absolutely no meetings with the opposite sex except for me.
“Young Master, perhaps you’re not interested in women?”
Even if there are no women to meet around him, if he were interested in women, wouldn’t a man go out to meet them directly?
Could Kyle possibly be gay? No, no matter what, that absolutely can’t be the case.
“What?”
“You will marry someday, Young Master. So before that, meeting other noble ladies…”
“No.”
“Dating and… What?”
“I’m not interested in other women.”
“Oh….”
He’s really gay?
No, no matter what, isn’t it a bit dangerous for the son of a ducal family to be gay..?
I was shocked to learn of Kyle’s shocking preference.
I was really, extremely shocked.
Gay…
The student I’m teaching is gay….
No, wait. As someone whose past life is the current life, I can understand his sexual orientation.
A tutor who’s teaching him should be able to understand at least that much.
“The massage is finished. Would you like to wash up?”
“Yes.”
After the massage ended, Kyle moved to the bathroom with his bath attendants.
As I tidied up after the massage, I thought about what else to do today.
We’ve already finished reading in the morning, and exercised, so there’s nothing else scheduled for today.
It seems like there will be an extremely leisurely time until Kyle takes lessons from knights or mages from the magic tower in a few years.
Even now it’s too leisurely, and though I suggested more lessons, Kyle postponed taking lessons from knights or mages until a few years later, so it can’t be helped.
I am the tutor, but Kyle is also the employer, so if Kyle says no, I can’t do it, and if he says he wants to do something, we do it.
“Still, it would be better to learn magic or swordsmanship earlier…”
These aren’t just anything, but things done directly with the body.
Not only does talent matter, but the difference in skill is greatly affected by the time spent learning.
No matter how much of a genius a novice mage is, the reality is they can’t defeat an archmage who’s close to 500 years old in magic.
If that were possible, it would truly be a web novel, a ridiculous light novel.
That’s why I recommended both to twelve-year-old Kyle.
I brought up magic with the expectation that Kyle could probably accomplish both… but I was rejected.
“At least starting within 3 years would be…”
I’m not simply trying to make Kyle take these lessons because I want him to become stronger.
The Duke left a message, and the nobles of Eristirol go hunting themselves when they become adults.
Not the ordinary animal hunting that regular nobles do, but hunting monsters directly.
I’m not sure why nobles have to do such things.
What I understand least is why the Duke of the ducal family directly participates.
What kind of hunting is Eristirol’s hunting that even the Duke participates?
I want to go along sometime.
Though I’ve retired and am now working as a tutor, I was also an adventurer.
An adventurer who traveled freely and earned money by hunting monsters.
Truly, very occasionally, I want to go outside, ride a horse, and gallop through Eristirol’s snow fields.
“Hmm… When Kyle grows up, it might be good to go hunting with him once.”
I may not be a teacher like a god, but still, if a teacher says she wants to go, he would probably take me.