Chapter 108
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Chapter 108
I never expected Belzeon to be this angry.
Of course, I had prepared myself to receive some scolding.
I had promised to keep a low profile in the Holy Empire, yet I had used my power.
Still, after running through various calculations in my mind, I had concluded that Belzeon would be more than capable of covering it up, so I acted accordingly—but Belzeon was behaving unlike himself.
He was acting completely out of character.
In front of the Cardinal, he ranted about killing Lemil or not killing him, and he was genuinely angry with me.
His gaze was so terrifying that I couldn't help but nervously gauge his mood.
It was all the more so because I didn't understand exactly why he was angry.
I was vaguely trying to deduce the reason for his fury.
"What do you think of me?"
I was at a loss for words.
He continued without waiting for my answer.
"If you regard me as your older brother."
He pressed forward with a sharp, commanding tone, but the words he added at the end were damp like a rainy day.
"Please... don't do anything dangerous."
I froze solid like ice.
'He's angry because I was in danger!'
Realizing my mistake belatedly, I faltered in this unfamiliar situation.
The thing was, by my standards, this wasn't dangerous at all.
'Of course, I'm a baby right now, but still.'
Kieran must have surely told Belzeon that I was a Fairy.
Even knowing that I was an extraordinarily powerful Fairy, I never imagined he would be angry about it being dangerous.
Looking at his reddened eyes that seemed ready to burst into tears at the slightest touch, I recalled the silver-haired boy who had been huddled in the corner of the Study.
Suddenly, my heart ached as if being pressed down.
Swallowing the pain, I quietly opened both arms to him.
Belzeon embraced me as if he had been waiting for it.
Given the difference in our sizes, it was less of a mutual embrace and more like I was nestled snugly into Belzeon's arms.
I stretched my short arms as far as I could, pulled Belzeon close, and apologized.
"I'm sorry."
Even as I mumbled my apology, Belzeon said nothing.
Burdened by my many transgressions, I tried to observe Belzeon by tilting my head this way and that.
But because he pressed his chin firmly against the top of my head, I couldn't see his face.
After resting his face on my head and remaining silent for a while, Belzeon suddenly spoke.
"Ishuel said so. That he became strange because of you. I also thought the Twins had changed quite a bit."
"...?"
"I'm no different. It's the same for me."
Belzeon murmured.
"Because you changed me."
This man, who was always rational, had done something irrational.
I poured out every emotion I had always hidden and suppressed without reservation.
There was no denying that Belzeon's transformation into his raw, true self was undeniably caused by Chesa.
How had things come to this?
A relationship once filled with wariness and suspicion had become bound by sturdy threads.
Yet Chesa did not dislike the bonds the men of House Basilian had woven around her.
The threads were more resilient than expected, heavy as chains, and....
Sometimes I wondered if they'd tied them a bit too tightly.
Still, I too had grown fond of the Basilians.
I did not resent how they regarded me as their youngest and stepped forward to protect me.
It truly felt like having a family.
'Though we don't share blood, isn't this just as good as a real family?'
Or perhaps even better than a real family?
I had no basis for comparison, so I couldn't be certain.
I made a promise to Belzeon.
"I'll listen well to you, older brother. I won't do anything dangerous."
As I spoke, I extended my pinky finger.
It was the hand gesture Hata and I used whenever we made a promise.
"...."
Belzeon silently intertwined his finger with mine.
Then he pressed his thumb down firmly as a seal and cautioned me.
"Don't you dare strain yourself. That crown isn't worth anything."
He seemed displeased that I had been scheming with Skaya's young princess.
"If you get even a single scratch because you were chasing after one crown."
Belzeon trailed off, looking at me.
The unfinished sentence only made me more anxious.
I asked him carefully.
"W-what will you do...?"
Then Belzeon let out a soft laugh.
His elegant fingers gently pinched my soft cheek.
"Maybe I'll blow up the Grand Temple this time?"
"...."
It sounded like a joke on the surface.
'But it sounds completely serious.'
If I didn't want to see a bomb go off in the Holy Empire, it seemed best that I simply be more careful from now on.
***
The duel between Benji and Theo unfolded in hushed silence.
Since the Holy Empire stood to gain nothing regardless of the outcome, they had discreetly managed the affair to avoid any commotion.
As expected, Theo seized victory with confident assurance.
The moment Theo achieved an overwhelming triumph over Benji, his first act was to rush toward Chesa.
"Chesa!"
He came bounding over, drenched in sweat and caked in dirt, drawing sharp glares from Ishuel.
Under normal circumstances, he would have heeded Ishuel's piercing gaze.
But Theo, thoroughly intoxicated with excitement, paid it no mind.
"I won. Just as you said, Chesa. Benji was nothing. I truly defeated Benji!"
I had always known I would win.
Yet seeing Theo ramble on in such unbridled joy, Chesa found herself smiling warmly and offering him praise.
"You were amazing!"
At that, Theo's expression grew strangely vacant for a moment.
Soon after, his face crumpled with emotion.
He murmured softly, his nose reddening as he fought back tears.
"It's all thanks to you, Chesa."
Without Chesa, he would never have found the courage, and so he attributed his hard-won victory entirely to her.
Ishuel, displeased by Theo's fawning before Chesa, spoke with biting sarcasm.
"Marquis Nemea must be delighted as well."
The moment the Marquis was mentioned, Theo's expression darkened like storm clouds gathering overhead.
Having successfully dampened Theo's spirits, Ishuel wore an innocent smile and pulled Chesa into an embrace.
Unaware of Ishuel's deliberate provocation, Theo responded with guileless sincerity.
He forced his lips upward into a smile and answered obediently.
"The Marquis would likely scold me for wasting time on such frivolous matters."
"That doesn't matter at all."
Chesa stepped forward to defend the pitiful Theo.
The ribbon Ishuel had tied in her hair fluttered as she approached him.
Theo bent his large frame to look down at Chesa.
Chesa tilted her head back, craning her neck to gaze up at him as she spoke.
"I'm happy that amazing Theo won."
“....”
"Aren't you happy too, Theo?"
"...I am."
Theo hesitated for a moment.
But his reluctance was brief.
The great bear smiled with genuine happiness.
"I'm very happy."
Chesa smiled warmly in return, mirroring Theo's joy.
As the two of them created an atmosphere brimming with delight, Ishuel's expression grew distinctly uncomfortable.
"A bear, no less..."
She muttered audibly enough for him to hear, but at least she refrained from tormenting Theo further.
It was a relief.
'I wish I could tell Kieran about this too.'
Though she carried herself as if something bothersome had occurred, Kieran subtly looked after Theo.
He even observed Theo's swordplay a couple of times under the pretext that House Basilian could not afford to lose.
He would surely be satisfied to hear that Theo had won.
'But he's been busy lately.'
I recalled the day I had visited Kieran after returning from that gathering.
Belzeon had delivered the first task of the Pure Child Prayer Ceremony to Kieran.
The moment I heard the assignment—'Contemplate what you can offer to God, and bring something unique in this world'—Kieran laughed outright.
It was an irritating laugh, yet subtly tinged with a hint of amusement.
"Assigning such a task to House Basilian.... Even the Holy King has lost his mind."
Yet he casually reassured me not to worry about anything.
Until that point, everything had been peaceful.
Until I heard that I had nearly died because of Cardinal Milliod.
Belzeon recounted my actions in meticulous detail, and the smile vanished from Kieran's face.
After hearing everything, including how I had stepped forward to stop Lemil's rampage, Kieran murmured expressionlessly.
"My dear Chesa, you don't listen to Father at all...."
Of course, I had promised not to use fairy power within the Holy Empire.
If I hadn't stepped forward then, everyone might have perished.
Yet I was given no chance to explain.
I was simply cast out of the Study, and Kieran and Belzeon spoke alone for a long time.
'And since then, I haven't properly seen his face.'
I worried whether Kieran had harbored some strange intention.
The fact that I hadn't yet heard news of the Cardinal's death suggested he was still acting with reason, at least.
'He must be quite angry.'
I fell into contemplation alone.
If only I could meet him and talk things through....
Even after that, meeting Kieran proved difficult.
In the end, the Pure Child Prayer Ceremony began without my having a proper conversation with him.
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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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