Chapter 109
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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Chapter 109
[Lahedis, just three more times.]
[...Would I really forget and mess up something this simple?]
[But even squirrels fall from trees sometimes.]
Yesterday, when I met with Lahedis, I had him practice the ceremonial movements.
Since I hadn't anticipated participating in the ceremony myself, naturally my purpose wasn't to observe and learn.
'Since it's his first official event, it has to be perfect!'
The Emperor would surely be watching with keen eyes, ready to pounce on even the smallest flaw in Lahedis.
But the practice I repeated for Lahedis's sake ultimately helped me instead.
And by fortune, the fact that the ceremony's recitations were in ancient language posed no problem for me whatsoever.
'Most books about Dark Spirit users are written in ancient language, after all.'
Dark Spirit users appeared only among the demon-kind and those of mixed demon blood.
And since most books about them were written in that distant past when relations between demons and humans weren't hostile,
it was a familiar language to me, having lived as a Dark Spirit user and read related texts for over a decade.
'Well, Allen probably didn't think that far ahead.'
At the exhilarating conclusion born from coincidence and my past efforts, I wore a smug smile.
Yet Lahedis still seemed worried.
"This time we got through safely, but it was still reckless. You should have made an excuse about being ill and avoided it."
"That's what I was planning to do at first...."
So I had conveyed through my Aunt to the Emperor that I couldn't participate in the ceremony.
"But then I realized I couldn't keep hiding behind someone forever."
This time, I hid behind my Aunt's back.
Next time, whether it's Father, the Duke, or Lahedis, they'd all be willing to hide me.
But.
"If I only hide, doesn't that amount to admitting I'm a weakness? Then people would target me even more."
"...."
"That's why I showed them. That I'm not someone to be trifled with."
To the Imperial Family, to those who looked down on me as a noblewoman of commoner origins, and....
To the people I love, who are always worried about me.
I wanted to become someone they could trust their backs to, rather than someone who needed protection.
"And in the end, I pulled it off, didn't I?"
Lahedis, who had been gazing at me intently, soon conceded with a soft chuckle.
"You're right. Running away doesn't suit you."
You've always chosen to face things head-on rather than flee.
As he added this, Lahedis reached to stroke my head but paused upon seeing the elaborate styling I'd put into my hair for the New Year Ceremony, then lowered his hand and instead gently caressed my cheek with the back of his hand.
"Ah, ahem! W-well then, let's go change."
Feeling suddenly self-conscious, I turned away from his touch, when I heard footsteps approaching.
"Vivian."
Upon seeing who owned that voice, my eyes widened in surprise.
"Father?"
I thought Curtis Rohan was assigned to Imperial escort duty today and had returned to the Imperial Palace with the Emperor?
Curtis Rohan approached me urgently and immediately fired off a question.
"How did you end up participating in the ceremony earlier? Your sister must have told you about it."
"Oh, that's...."
I explained to Curtis Rohan the full circumstances of how I came to attend as a substitute because Han Young-sik's condition had deteriorated.
Of course, I left out the part about it being Allen's intention.
'It's all in the past anyway, so there's no need to bring up something that would only dampen the mood.'
Curtis Rohan, who was usually oblivious but strangely perceptive at times like these, seemed suspicious that something was off about my explanation, but fortunately he didn't press further.
"To pull it off without hesitation after seeing it only a few times—that's impressive. I'm proud of you, my child! You're wonderful, our princess!"
...Though he did move on to an embarrassing moment instead.
"Ugh! You're getting makeup all over your uniform, mister!"
I grumbled at Curtis Rohan, who embraced his grown daughter without regard for time or place, but my body remained docile in his arms.
However....
'Huh?'
Lahedis's gaze as he looked at Curtis Rohan and me seemed somehow displeased.
But before I could dwell on that question, Lahedis interjected between us.
"But shouldn't you be at the Imperial Palace if you're assigned to Imperial escort duty, Father? I understand His Majesty returned directly to the Imperial Palace."
There was a peculiar accent in Lahedis's inflection as he mentioned "Father."
Curtis Rohan seemed to notice it too, as the corners of his mouth twitched upward.
'Surely they're not about to fight again...?'
Just as I was about to separate the two of them, driven by a familiar ominous premonition.
"Commander!"
An Imperial Knight appeared with urgent footsteps and delivered troubling news.
"A demonic beast has appeared in the forest near Jedo Island."
* * *
The eventful New Year Ceremony had concluded well, and a week had already passed.
"Yaaawn...."
I rose from bed with a yawn and opened the window first.
As the cold wind hit me directly, my drowsy mind snapped awake.
Now alert, I summoned Kamang and Ppiyak in turn—the name I'd given to the Light Spirit.
"Good morning, you two."
Kamang, whose form was a dark aura bundled into a sphere, and Ppiyak, shaped like a chick, radiated their energy as if greeting me in the morning.
"Mwang!"
"Chirp!"
Seeing the two spirits in the morning sunlight, I suddenly recalled when I first arrived at the Capital.
'When I first came to the Capital, I was so afraid of sleeping in an unfamiliar place that I'd fall asleep with Kamang summoned....'
Since becoming accustomed to life in the Capital and at the Estate, I hadn't been calling them unless something was amiss.
Except during training or occasionally in the morning like today.
'Especially Ppiyak—it would be problematic if others saw him.'
Feeling sorry for Ppiyak, whom I couldn't summon often, I stroked him, and Kamang, who had been watching, trembled and puffed up his body.
Is she jealous?
Whether it was due to their opposing natures or the anxiety(?) of having to share a single contractor, I made a proposal to Blackie and Ppiyak, who still regarded each other warily.
"If you two get along well, I'll give you something delicious later. How about it?"
If this were about human relationships, I wouldn't force them together like this, but since these two had made a contract with me, they had no choice but to cooperate.
At that, the two spirits, who had been turning their backs to each other and standing far apart, gradually drew closer.
And finally, the bodies of the two spirits touched ever so slightly.
"Good. You did very well. I'll give you a snack later."
Satisfied, I praised the two spirits, then dismissed them from their summoning and headed toward the Dining Room.
'Father must have come home last night too, right?'
Ever since the demonic beasts appeared on the day of the New Year Ceremony, Father had been commuting to the outskirts of the Capital every day to hunt them.
He left early in the morning and returned late at night as a matter of course, and just recently, he hadn't even come home at all.
I thought that even if he stayed out one night, he would certainly have returned today, but....
"Your father didn't come home yesterday either."
Waiting for me in the Dining Room was only my Aunt, just as it had been for the past week.
Unable to contain myself any longer, I pouted and vented my frustration.
"How is His Majesty supposed to manage state affairs without our family?"
"Hmm?"
"Think about it. He doesn't even pay much, and our family's income is far greater than his salary! How can he work a honorary position day and night like this?"
My Aunt, who had been laughing for quite some time while watching my indignation, suddenly let out a sigh.
"But I wonder why so many demonic beasts are suddenly appearing. I heard the barrier is still holding up fine."
At my Aunt's worried murmur, I suddenly recalled a conversation I had with Father a few months ago.
[If the barrier weakens and the two worlds connect, war will break out again.]
[....]
[And if war breaks out... you'll get hurt.]
[....]
[That's why I wanted to prevent the war.]
I had agreed to do my part in preventing war, but Father hadn't said anything significant since that day.
So I had completely forgotten about it....
'Perhaps the barrier has weakened again.'
And Father, who overprotects me, might be struggling alone, trying not to involve me.
Once that thought occurred to me, I felt that I couldn't just stay here.
'I need to go find Father.'
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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