Chapter 34
While the two adjutants were talking—
“My lord, something urgent!”
A knock sounded from outside. Irelia paused.
Valnemisa didn’t employ servants, so it must be one of Dimar’s attendants—but if it was someone who could hide their presence this well?
While she turned her gaze to the door, Berdin gestured.
—Click.
Linden, receiving the signal, opened the door. Outside stood a man dressed like one of Dimar’s servants.
He was from Kaive.
“What is it?”
At Berdin’s question, the servant answered urgently.
“We received a message from Stella Academy.”
“Hm?”
Irelia blinked.
She had wondered if something had happened in Dimar, but instead the unexpected name of Stella Academy appeared.
“There was an incident at the academy, and during the faculty meeting they requested that the guardian come.”
At those words, Irelia froze. Berdin did too.
“An incident?”
His voice dropped low.
For a moment, Irelia felt as though a chill spread around him.
It was like the strange temperature shift when you step from warm sunlight into shadow.
“Yes, the aca—”
The servant’s report was cut off by Berdin.
“Eline?”
The servant paused mid-sentence, and Berdin asked again in a somewhat sharper voice.
“Is the child hurt?”
“She is safe.”
Only after hearing that answer did Irelia clearly feel the sharp pressure around Berdin ease slightly.
“However, they are requesting the guardian to come quickly. They said they want to hear from the sponsoring family.”
At that, Berdin frowned. Irelia’s wandering thoughts also disappeared.
“Sponsor?”
Both of them asked at the same time.
Irelia turned to look at Berdin.
Eline and Berdin were in a sponsor–ward relationship? Not blood relatives?
But Berdin’s face clearly showed irritation.
Once again a cold aura seemed to radiate from him.
Irelia unconsciously looked at him.
He seemed to be restraining himself, but the chill in the air clearly carried anger.
Even the servant trembled under his piercing gaze.
His dead younger brother’s daughter.
They were blood-related, but since he hadn’t formally adopted her, technically it could be called a sponsorship relationship…
“…Let’s go for now.”
The work at Valnemisa had just about finished anyway.
“We’ll handle the rest.”
Instead of nagging, Linden said that and saw Irelia and Berdin off.
In that strange atmosphere, the carriage headed toward Stella soon departed.
Stella Academy
The people of Stella Academy prided themselves on working at a sanctuary of education free from outside pressure.
Indeed, across the continent, if one had to name a place least affected by power, Stella Academy was often mentioned.
But if they were calling the guardian, it seemed they couldn’t completely ignore external influence.
If they truly handled incidents according to academy rules regardless of a child’s background…
“…We didn’t expect the Duke and Duchess of Dimar themselves to come.”
If that were the case, the staff wouldn’t be looking at them so flustered.
Irelia narrowed her eyes.
Tch. I knew it was rotten, but it’s worse than I imagined.
Her gaze drifted briefly to the carriage they had arrived in.
Because academy rules required noble crests to be covered, the family emblem was hidden under a cloth bearing Stella Academy’s seal—but the carriage’s extravagance couldn’t be concealed.
“Wow… look at that carriage!”
“It’s amazing!”
Even the children could tell that the owner of such a carriage must be a noble.
“Who is it?”
Berdin and Irelia turned toward the voices.
Since they were still children, almost no one recognized Berdin, who had rarely left Dimar territory.
But Irelia was different.
“Isn’t that Lady Irelia?”
The shocked voice struck Irelia’s ears.
From the murmuring, she could see several children who recognized her running inside the building.
Probably to check the portrait in those heroic biographies.
Kids, don’t rely on that. They drew me shorter there.
“I’m the one surprised the academy would call the guardian directly.”
At that moment, Berdin’s cold voice rang out.
The curve of his lips resembled his usual smile, but Irelia sensed a chilling coldness in his expression.
As expected, sarcasm followed.
“Especially from Stella, which claims to educate children equally regardless of background.”
“Well, ahem.”
The academy staff member coughed awkwardly.
“Still, for the nobles who wish to see the children they sponsor…”
“Sponsor?”
When Berdin repeated the word again with displeasure, the staff member inhaled sharply.
Perhaps remembering Berdin’s nickname—Dimar’s Mad Dog—the man looked visibly tense.
“F-first, we will guide you to see the item your child broke.”
Clearly eager to escape the situation, the staff member overlooked an important detail.
“She’s… not the heir?”
Berdin muttered quietly.
Irelia’s eyes widened.
He had clearly said heir.
He intended to make his younger brother’s child the heir?
From Irelia’s perspective it wasn’t really her concern.
Once Valnemisa developed enough to stand on its own, they would go their separate ways anyway.
Whether Eline became the Duke of Dimar or not had nothing to do with her.
Still, such an unusual decision naturally sparked curiosity.
Was he really planning to never properly take a wife?
Even leaving aside traitors, the council elders must exist—wouldn’t they say something?
Then again, since they had accepted the “heir threat” instead of pushing the marriage issue, perhaps the council simply wanted a successor carrying Berdin’s blood…
It was strange.
Not a normal situation.
If Berdin eventually took a proper wife, and she bore a child and demanded the succession for her own child?
By then the outside world would already consider Eline the heir.
That would mean Eline would end up fighting for succession with her newborn cousin.
…
Berdin had asked about Eline’s safety first when he heard about the incident.
He didn’t seem like someone who would want her dragged into a succession struggle.
Unless…
Did he really have no intention of marrying?
Why?
She couldn’t understand.
Even if he pretended to be a reckless fool, he didn’t seem like someone who ignored his family entirely.
Tilting her head in confusion, Irelia followed the academy staff and Berdin into the main academy building.
Inside the Academy
“First of all, the victim of Miss Eline’s incident is the son of Marquis Ragnan.”
One side was simply “Miss Eline,” while the other was “the Marquis’s son.”
Seeing the obvious favoritism, it seemed the academy had already been deeply affected by outside power.
And right from the start—
“Victim?”
Berdin repeated shortly.
Irelia could feel the chill in his voice, but the academy staff leading them seemed oblivious.
Perhaps the first staff member who greeted them was low rank, because this new man, dressed in more ornate clothes, appeared to hold some status.
“During swordsmanship class, the young lord of House Ragnan challenged Miss Eline to a duel. Although Miss Eline is usually not very active in swordsmanship classes, she accepted this time.”
Not active?
She didn’t like going to the academy, but not because of the classes.
“…I might break things.”
Suddenly Irelia remembered Eline’s words.
Perhaps that was why she usually avoided participating.
“If you cause trouble, I’ll handle it. You know who I am, right?”
Had Eline joined the class because I said that?
Something seemed to connect in Irelia’s mind.
“So, Eline wasn’t hurt?”
Berdin asked.
Irelia glanced at him.
Even the staff member seemed surprised that he cared about that first.
“W-well, the one injured was the young lord of House Ragnan.”
At that, Irelia clearly saw Berdin’s expression relax.
This guy only cares about Eline’s safety.
Even if the academy collapsed instead of the marquis’s son, as long as Eline was safe, he probably wouldn’t care.
But the academy official, who seemed to have zero sense of the mood, continued gesturing dramatically.
“The young lord’s sword was completely shattered. His hand was injured…”
“Oh.”
Irelia exclaimed in admiration.
Even as Berdin glanced at her, she thought:
She shattered a sword and disabled his hand?
Eline is seriously talented.
“…But he generously agreed to overlook the matter.”
The staff member began stumbling over his words, clearly trying to speak favorably about the marquis’s son.
Whatever Marquis Ragnan had done for the academy, the staff member’s increasingly awkward expression made it obvious.
“And as you know, children’s emotions can run wild.”
Berdin listened without changing his expression.
His face was so cold it was hard to tell if he was listening at all.
“S-so it seems the young lord played a small prank on Miss Eline using the carriage model he had.”
“A prank?”
Berdin repeated.
At that moment, the killing intent that burst out was real.
—Thud.
Without thinking, Irelia grabbed his wrist.
At this rate he’s really going to destroy everything!
