Published by LILAC Novels Just a group of friends translating novels. View more posts11-14 minutes 26.01.2023
“Ailette!” Melin shouted, making an embarrassed face. Surprised by the outburst, Ailette squeezed her eyes shut before escaping into my embrace.
“Why would you scare the child by yelling?” I asked, wrapping my arms tightly around Ailette while glaring coldly at Melin. As soon as Ailette was in my arms, the man stood up with a flustered expression.
“Ailette.”
Ailette’s breathing became haggard when he called for her.
“Come to Dad,” he said with a commanding tone.
Her shoulders were visibly shaking—it wasn’t easy to get rid of the fear that was carved into a young child’s body. Pleased to see the child’s scared appearance, the man spoke again, tone even harsher this time.
“Ailette, are you going to make me repeat myself? I told you to come.”
She turned her head to look at the man. From behind, Sercia quietly muttered curses under her breath and started to move forward, as if she was about to kill someone.
“Ailette.”
However, when I called out Ailette’s name, Sercia halted and Ailette turned to look at me. I wiped the child’s face, which was damp from sweat and tears, before speaking.
“Ailette.”
“Sister… I…”
“No one can force a choice on you.”
Ailette’s red eyes looked lost. They trembled like a thin tree branch shaking in the wind.
“It applies to that person over there, me, and the Lapileon family members behind us.”
“…”
“We can’t say we’re thinking of you if we make decisions for you with no regard for your emotions.”
“Sister…”
“But like I said, regardless of the reason or situation, no one can force you. No one…”
Shaking in fury, I took a deep breath to calm myself before placing Ailette’s tiny hand in mine.
“…Can ever hurt you.”
Sercia was as unmoving as a rooted tree, standing tall while staring at me silently. Melin, on the other hand, screamed at me with a trembling voice.
“What are you saying to someone else’s child? Ailette! Come here immediately! I’m your mom! Your mom is calling you!”
Ailette’s shoulders shook once more. I grabbed both of her hands and continued speaking.
“I promise, Ailette.”
“…”
“I’ll never leave you alone again.”
As I intertwined our fingers, Ailette tightened her grip.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t be there when you were hurt or sad. I’m sorry for letting you suffer all alone.”
Theodore, who had come to my side before I knew it, stared at the two people with a scary gaze before turning his head to look at me. Selphius had been about to run toward them, but like Sercia, he stopped in his steps and froze like a statue when he heard me speak.
“Ah…”
Staring dazedly at our linked fingers, Aieltte weeped. She tightened her lips as if she was trying to contain her tears, but her efforts were in vain, for her tears kept falling.
“I’d like it if you stayed with us, Ailette.”
“…Sister.”
“Will you let me—let us—help you?”
While sobbing, Ailette nodded her head before burying her face into my hands.
“Ailette!!” Melin shouted, furious at Ailette’s actions. Rid of all reason, Melin unhesitatingly approached me, but Theodore and Sercia quickly blocked her path. Melin took a step backwards, taken aback.
“How dare you say weird things to someone else’s daughter? I am her mother! Who do you think you are to…?!” She yelled in a piercing tone. I hugged Ailette closer to me and covered her ears with both of my palms.
“Do you think that Ailette will feel the same way as you two?”
The man’s volume escalated after I spoke.
“I-I’m going to leave and report all of you bastards for kidnapping my child! I’ll report you!”
“Do you lack a brain? Who do you think you’re raising your voice at?!” Sercia mocked, voice dripping with sarcasm. The man’s chin quivered as he became increasingly embarrassed. When it seemed like he was about to speak again, Theodore stepped forward.
“You’re going to report us for kidnapping?” he jeered.
Theodore reached out his arm and gripped the man’s shoulder as if he wanted to crush it.
“How dare you yell at my wife? You don’t know your place.”
“Ugh!”
“Report us? Go ahead and try. However, you’re familiar with the effects of our blood, aren’t you?”
“…!”
“You must know firsthand that it’s a very good tool for assassination due to its inability to be identified as poison when it’s consumed. You did sell out of it, after all.”
“T-That…!”
“If you want to sell an item, you should check whether it works or not, no? Shouldn’t you test it yourself?”
With a cold smile, Theodore took out a red handkerchief from his pocket. He then waved it in front of the man’s face.
“Okay, now take a guess. Do you think my blood is on this handkerchief, or is it not? Even if it was, you wouldn’t be able to tell since the handkerchief itself is red, right?”
Theodore, who was no longer smiling, released the man’s shoulder in favor of tightly gripping his cheeks.
“Open your mouth.”
He forced the man’s lips open. The surprised man attempted to resist, but the difference in their strength was too vast. In the end, Theodore managed to forcefully stuff the crumpled red handkerchief into his open mouth. Theodore didn’t loosen his grip on the man’s face until he had finished this task.
“Wh-Wh-What are you doing?!”
As soon as Theodore let go, the man tearfully took the handkerchief out of his mouth. He touched his lips with trembling hands before running to the corner.
“B-Blaaaargh!”
Then, he shoved a finger down his throat in a desperate attempt to make himself vomit.
“Th-This is a threat.”
Melin muttered as she watched him, visibly horrified. With eyes full of evil, Melin turned to look at us—no, to look at me, who was holding Ailette in my arms.
“What do you know? You don’t know anything! That child is curs…!”
“Enough.”
Melin, who’d been backed into a corner, started pounding her chest and repeating herself over and over until a firm and old voice stopped her.
“I’ve been letting you speak without intervening, but it seems you don’t know when to stop, Melin.”
Gloria, who’d been behind the partition, got up with the help of Finneas. As soon as she saw the source of the voice, Melin’s shoulders flinched. She then dropped her gaze to the floor, now frozen in place.
“M-M-Miss Gloria.”
Suddenly, her complexion was fearful and pale.
“I haven’t seen you since Zen’s funeral, Melin.”
“W-W-Well…”
“I did say I’d see you again, but I never imagined it would be in this manner.”
Gloria’s voice, which was kind yet wiry and caring yet sharp, cut into Melin.
“I never blamed you for Zen’s death, Melin. I never said that you were the one who made my grandson die.”
“I-I didn’t know you were here, Miss Gloria… I-If I did…”
“If you did know, then what? You would have pretended to love Ailette? Or maybe you would’ve pretended to show respect to the Grand Duchess?”
Gloria let out a deep sigh before running a hand through her white hair.
“When Zen died…”
Melin flinched once more in response to Gloria’s sorrowful voice.
“Do you remember what you said to me?”
“Th… That…”
“You declared rather loudly that you’d definitely raise Ailette well, but in order to do so, you needed a generous monthly payment.”
Gloria straightened her posture before looking down at Melin, who was shrinking into herself and bowing her head, with an intimidating glare.
“M-Miss…”
Melin couldn’t even speak properly, her voice barely audible. She hunched her shoulders.
“Melin.”
“…”
“You’ve lost my trust.”
“M-Miss Gloria! S-So…!”
“We will raise Ailette from now on. I will no longer send you any money for her childcare. I will also be rescinding your rights to the business and land that were given to you based on Zen’s inheritance.”
With a pale face, Melin’s mouth dropped. She hurriedly fell to her knees, giving off a completely different impression from the confident appearance she’d had until now.
“Miss Gloria! I-I made a mistake!”
After being put in a position to lose everything, she was finally starting to show signs of regret—even if she was just acting.
“I-I only did it because it was too hard to live…! I-I adore Ailette so much!”
However, Gloria remained emotionless as she stared down at Melin, who was still kneeling in front of her. Melin began rubbing her hands together and pleading with Gloria.
“I-It’s okay if you take Ailette. I won’t look for her again. But please, just leave me with the land and the rights to the business…”
To the very end, this woman was…
“You abused a child of Lapileon for several years, Melin. Your punishment will not be light.”
Melin crawled along the carpet on all four limbs and grabbed the hem of Gloria’s dress.
PIC HERE
“Miss Gloria! Please, listen to me…!”
“How dare you touch her with those dirty hands of yours?”
Without a hint of mercy in her cold eyes, Sercia stepped in between the two. She deftly kicked Melin’s hand off of Gloria with her shoes. Then, she mocked Melin, who was clueless as to what to do.
“Your primary concern shouldn’t be about the land or the rights to the business.”
“Wh-What?”
“Have you forgotten about the agreement to not let others know about the Lapileon family’s secret?”
Melin’s eyes widened.
“You should know what happens to those who go against that agreement.”
“W-Wait… O-Only that person knows! W-We didn’t tell other people! Really! T-Truly…!”
“I hope you saw a lot of sunlight on your way here.”
Bending over, Sercia lightly tapped Melin’s two cheeks.
“You won’t ever see it again, after all.”
“Ah… Ahhh…. Aaaack…!!”
Melin, grabbing onto her hair with both of her hands, ripped it out and screamed. The man was still in the corner, crying and drooling—retching. It was a fitting end. Paying Melin no mind, Gloria walked to my side elegantly.
“Should I call you Miss Pershati?”
“Yes.”
I nodded my head quickly. As I observed her rough and sharp eyes, in addition to her expression that revealed nothing about her emotions, I had a thought.
‘Theodore and Sercia have inherited a lot of their grandmother’s genes.’
“Are you thinking that it’s difficult to read my expression?”
What the—how did she know? When I gasped with surprise, Gloria spoke calmly.
“If you live long enough, you gain the ability to read someone’s thoughts by looking into their eyes.”
After letting out a sigh full of lament, Gloria looked around. She saw Selphius, who remained by Ailette’s side while looking at the two people with a scary gaze.
“This kid sure has grown up quite a bit. His shift from living in the countryside to staying in the Capital is also thanks to you, right, Miss Pershati?”
“Ah… Somehow… yes.”
She then looked to Sercia, who was still smirking at Melin.
“I’ve also received a lot of letters from Seci about you. It was quite fascinating to see Seci, who doesn’t trust people easily, compliment you.”
“That… is also true, somehow.”
“It seems Your Highness is the sole hope of our family, since the curse does not work on you,” Finneas said.
“Yes.” Gloria nodded slightly at his words.
Wh-What hope? I’m not anything like that.
Then, Gloria glanced at Theodore.
“Miss Pershati, being married to someone who won’t leave your side must be difficult.”
“I’m fine.”
It was a contract marriage anyway, so it didn’t matter if Theodore wouldn’t leave my side. Shortly after that comment, Gloria turned her head to look at Ailette, who was still sniffling. Her eyes, which had been cold, were now full of sympathy and guilt.
“Miss Pershati.”
“Yes?”
Gloria turned her head. The last target of her gaze was me.
“Thank you for saving my kids.”
Sponsored Content
