Chapter 129……………………………………………..
After waking from the blessing, Roland believed that Liena was a witch and that he himself had been under black magic all along.
Well, since I never properly explained things, it’s natural he’d think that way.
In any case, the fact that he had been manipulated by a common orphan he had always looked down upon seemed to have inflicted a tremendous wound on Roland’s mountain-sized pride.
“I’ll never forgive her! That lowly creature stole every bit of wealth from me!”
Rather than stealing it, the brainwashed Roland had willingly handed it over himself—but to him, it was all the same.
“More importantly.”
I tapped the table to draw Roland’s attention.
“You said you had something urgent to tell me. Could you explain what it is?”
Personally, Roland was someone I had absolutely no fondness for, but there was no reason to refuse information he was willing to provide.
“The movements of that wicked witch are suspicious.”
Still fuming, the old man spoke through gritted teeth.
“She’s definitely plotting something.”
“How are they suspicious?”
“She summoned them to the capital.”
“Who?”
“Don’t be too shocked when you hear this. The ones she called are…”
Roland paused dramatically, making even me swallow nervously.
“Ethan, Claire, Benjamin, Charles, Olivia, Joanna, Lucia, Daniel, Grace, Isaac…”
“Wait, wait! Why are there so many?!”
“I told you not to be surprised.”
For a moment I was stunned by the endless list of names—but they sounded very familiar.
I had heard those names many times both in After Returning, I’ll Walk Only the Flower Path and in reality.
Because they were Liena’s…
“Your uncles, aunts, cousins, great-aunts, and uncles-in-law.”
“From the witch’s perspective, yes. Of course, I’ve never acknowledged that lowborn girl as a Cassius.”
“You’re saying she called them all to the capital?”
“That’s right. They’re probably on their way here from all over the empire as we speak.”
In short—the entire Cassius collateral family was gathering.
Good heavens.
My mouth fell open.
I had suspected something when Liena suddenly appeared with Roland before, but…
To think she’d summon every single one of her relatives!
Liena’s relatives were characters who appeared constantly in the first part of the novel.
At first, fitting the reputation of the “demonic ducal family,” they were cold or indifferent toward Liena, a common orphan.
But one by one, they fell for the child’s warmth and charm.
By the end of Part 1, the entire Cassius family had become completely devoted to Liena.
After becoming duke, Duke Cassius didn’t monopolize the family wealth but shared quite a lot with his siblings.
That didn’t mean they were close, however.
Having grown up fiercely competing under Roland’s rule, they barely interacted with each other.
At least, that was how it was before Liena appeared.
Once their hearts were stolen by the “little bunny,” they constantly visited Cassius Castle, eager to bring her rare gifts.
“Liena! Why don’t you just become this uncle’s daughter?”
“That’s right! We only have sons, and I’ve always wanted a daughter.”
“Don’t be ridiculous! Liena promised long ago to come to our house!”
“Liena, you already have plenty of older brothers. Don’t you want an older sister? If you become our second daughter, there’s nothing we wouldn’t do for you.”
“Brothers, perhaps you could yield Liena to my husband and me. We have no children.”
“I agree. We would raise her as our only daughter and love her more than anyone.”
“Why are you leaving me out? Even a lifelong bachelor can raise a child.”
“Little bunny, should this uncle get rid of all these people for you? Just say the word. In return, you’ll become my daughter.”
Whenever they fought over Liena like that, Duke Cassius would shout in frustration:
“Everyone get out! Liena is my daughter!”
Eventually, he had had enough and moved his residence to the capital.
He warned them fiercely that if anyone came to the capital and tried to claim Liena without his permission, he wouldn’t care if they were family.
After that, visits to Cassius Castle stopped completely once Liena left.
Because of that, during the two years I lived there, I never saw them except at the wedding.
Well, at least they attended Liandro’s wedding. That’s better than this old man, who didn’t even show up…
While I was thinking that, Roland—worst of the Cassius family—snorted angrily.
“Why do you think that leech gathered them in the capital? If she’s planning something, she needs money. Edmund is wary of her now, so she’s trying to lure the others!”
“Duke Cassius is wary of Liena?”
“Of course! I warned him seriously last time—not to fall for that leech!”
Whether it was because of Roland’s warning or not, it was true that the relationship between the duke and Liena had changed.
After all, I had personally witnessed them arguing in the mining village.
“I don’t think it’s just about money.”
“Then what is it?”
“…”
Roland Cassius now hated Liena, and Duke Cassius had also changed.
Perhaps Liena wanted to confirm something.
Whether the other Cassius relatives had changed as well.
According to Liena’s own memories, the Cassius bloodline—descended from demons—was somewhat resistant to the goddess’s blessing.
If she didn’t know about my blessing, Liena might suspect that the Cassius bloodline itself was the cause of the change.
Well, that’s only my guess.
But otherwise, there were plenty of followers in the capital who could support her financially.
There was no reason to call all her relatives here.
Ignoring Roland’s constant nagging about why I stopped talking, I asked him a question.
“How did you find out about this? Liena wouldn’t have summoned you.”
“…Old man?”
“Please overlook minor details.”
Roland coughed irritably.
“One of them told me.”
“Oh really?”
“More importantly, hurry and free them from that witch’s claws! At this rate, the fortune I built with my own blood and sweat will go to someone else!”
So he hadn’t come to me out of pure concern for his descendants after all.
“…It’s not that simple.”
I paused to consider how to handle this situation.
If I acted rashly, I might fail to break the brainwashing and only make Liena more suspicious of me.
While thinking, my gaze fell on Roland’s unpleasant face.
Suddenly, an idea occurred to me.
“Among the people Liena summoned, who resembles you the most?”
I already had someone in mind, but I wanted Roland to confirm it.
“Hm? If you mean resemblance… my youngest son, Isaac. He’s the one who told me about the witch’s summons.”
Just as I thought.
“Ha… It would’ve been better if Isaac inherited my position instead of Edmund. If only he didn’t have that wandering habit.”
“Can you call him out somewhere? Without mentioning me?”
“Ah! I see! You’re planning to remove Isaac’s black magic first. He resembles me—his mental strength is excellent, and he has good judgment.”
No.
I chose him simply because his personality was terrible.
So far I had freed many people from Liena’s blessing, but Roland was the only one whose attitude changed 180 degrees.
The others, including Cecil, lost their obsessive devotion to Liena but didn’t develop hostility toward her.
Why was that?
After rereading the novel carefully, I realized something.
Roland Cassius was fundamentally someone incapable of truly loving others.
Liena had wanted even such a cold man to love her, so the blessing worked.
But that love existed purely because of the blessing—so once it disappeared, not even a trace remained.
That was the conclusion I reached.
If I wanted a genuine relationship, I’d never choose someone like Roland.
But what I needed right now was a temporary ally—someone who could instantly turn against Liena.
If they still retained affection for her after the blessing broke, they were unlikely to side with me.
Two days later, Roland summoned me again.
He said he had arranged to meet Isaac.
Fortunately—or unfortunately—Isaac was the first among those summoned by Liena to arrive in the capital.
The meeting place was one of Roland’s safe houses in the capital.
“So my father wants to see me first for once. Has he finally gone senile—”
The man swaggered into the room, then frowned when he saw me.
“What’s this?”
I stood up calmly and offered my hand.
“Hello. I’m Idel Luciviu.”
“…Luciviu? Liandro’s ex-wife?”
Isaac Cassius ignored my hand completely and glared at his father.
“Now that I think about it, our little bunny said Father had been acting strange lately. Don’t tell me you’ve betrayed Liena and joined hands with this woman?”
His blue eyes gleamed coldly.
Isaac Cassius—known as the biggest troublemaker of the Cassius family.
Simply put, he was someone who feared nothing.
As Roland’s late-born son, he inherited the Cassius family’s superior looks—young and handsome.
But inside he was rotten.
A scum who valued human lives less than flies.
If not for his laziness and wandering nature, he might have inherited Roland’s position and ruled the Cassius territory with terror.
“Uncle Isaac is dangerous, so I have to keep him under control!”
Even Liena, who was usually generous toward those who loved her, had once described him like that.
“Senile? You dare say that to your father?”
But Roland Cassius was Roland Cassius.
The old man didn’t even blink as he drew his sword and pointed it at his own son.
“You worthless brat. Sit down quietly.”
A man who feared nothing—even more than his son.
