Chapter 66
“You weren’t in the Tower yesterday.”
“Ah… I was at the Bondrude estate.”
At those words, Diarmid faintly furrowed his brow.
“Why?”
“I was with Lady Marilyn of the house, just… playing.”
“All night?”
“I fell asleep halfway through…”
Somehow, Jeina couldn’t shake the feeling she was being interrogated.
Was there something I was supposed to do yesterday? How did he even know I was gone?
“Did I do something wrong?”
“…No.”
“Then, I’ll take my leave.”
Jeina bowed politely and quickly made her way toward Mikael.
No matter how angry Mikael was, it was still better than being questioned by Diarmid.
“You’re only thirteen, and you stayed out overnight without permission?”
“I’m sorry. I’ll make sure to contact you next time.”
Jeina endured a barrage of scolding from Mikael.
He said he was terrified when he couldn’t find her last night, that even her maid had never seen her act like that before and was panicking, that he’d almost cast tracking magic over the entire empire.
“I almost came to drag you home myself, but they said she was your friend, so I let it be. You know that?”
Mikael glared at her.
“But is she really your friend? You didn’t get dragged there for some weird reason, right? That cat said her knight once fought you in a duel.”
Mikael had an uncanny instinct for trouble.
“Sometimes people become friends after fighting, you know? I wasn’t forced or anything.”
“If you had been forced, I’d have blown that whole estate off the map.”
He clicked his tongue in frustration, then stretched out both her cheeks.
“Uwah—stop—pleashe—!”
“You’re making me old! You think being chubby-cheeked makes everything fine?”
Jeina wanted to argue that it had nothing to do with her cheeks, but she knew staying quiet was the fastest way to end the lecture, so she held her tongue.
“By the way, I heard you went to a concert with the Tower Master the other day? That’s twice already.”
“Yes, he invited me to go with him.”
“What? Really?”
Mikael’s reaction was explosive.
“Compared to when you first came here, doesn’t the Tower Master treat you really well these days?”
At that, Jeina remembered their first meeting.
“Like your mother, you are a shameless fraud and a parasite.
Even if you were my own daughter, that wouldn’t change.
Don’t ever come near me again—or expect anything from me.”
He had changed a lot. Back then, she never could’ve imagined going out alone with him.
“The fact that he lets you live here peacefully… maybe deep down he’s started to think of you as his daughter?”
“That’s not it.”
Jeina denied it firmly. Mikael blinked, startled by how decisively she said it.
“The Tower Master would never think that.”
She knew. She knew how she died in the novel—and what Diarmid had done afterward.
Honestly, saying I’d get struck by lightning seventeen times in one spot would sound more believable.
There was absolutely no world where he’d ever see her as a daughter.
That day, Jeina thought the Tower’s dining hall looked especially extravagant.
“Welcome, Jeina. The Tower Master will be judging the meal soon—want to do a taste test first?”
“I’d love to, but what if my taste doesn’t match his and it causes trouble?”
“I doubt that. Actually, I’m more worried about your opinion than his.”
Hilvenzia smiled slyly.
“What if the food’s so bad you decide to run away from home?”
Jeina broke out in a cold sweat. She realized Hilvenzia was indirectly referring to last night’s incident.
“I’d never do that.”
“Really?”
Hilvenzia’s eyes narrowed dangerously.
If I talk back now, I might as well jump into a fire.
Jeina answered as meekly as she could.
“I’ll never stay out again. And if I ever have to, I’ll tell you in advance.”
“Oh my, what a good girl.”
But Hilvenzia wasn’t done.
“Then why did our sweet Jeina do it, knowing it was wrong…?”
Sensing the danger, Jeina hurriedly picked up her utensils.
“Th-then, thank you for the meal.”
As soon as the food touched her lips, her face lit up like morning sunlight.
“Tasty?”
“Yes, very!”
She gave two enthusiastic thumbs up.
“See? Food’s worth making when someone eats it like that. Everyone in this Tower’s tongue is dead—filled with magic instead of sense.”
Grumbling, Hilvenzia exchanged glances with Mikael across the table and smirked.
“I was worried you’d come back saying my cooking was worse than what you had yesterday… glad that’s not the case.”
Jeina had the sinking realization that the “overnight incident” was going to haunt her for a while.
“Ahaha…”
Her eyes and mouth smiled stiffly as she forced a laugh, then quickly changed the subject.
“So, do you eat this with the peel or without it?”
“Any way’s fine—it’s delicious either way. This one’s grilled with salt…”
Jeina eagerly began tasting each dish one by one, asking questions about how to eat them.
Hilvenzia hadn’t lied—watching Jeina’s tiny mouth constantly move made all the effort worth it.
Nom, nom.
Hilvenzia pulled out a recording orb from her pocket and filmed her. Seeing the puffed-cheeked squirrel-like girl on the crystal made her smile in satisfaction.
I should reorganize my “Jeina Collection” later.
Beside her, Mikael nudged Hilvenzia.
“I forgot my orb. Make me a copy.”
“…”
“Then I’ll trade you the footage from when I took her out last week.”
Hilvenzia looked annoyed but eventually nodded.
“Fine.”
Their “Jeina collections” were steadily growing.
They competed over who captured her cutest moments, sometimes even exchanging clips for “research purposes.”
“Now then, ready for dessert? I made several, but my best is the Shizemel Tart.”
“If it’s your specialty, I’m excited to try it.”
Mikael, who had just walked in, chimed in when he saw it.
“I haven’t seen this one before. ‘Shizemel’… sounds familiar, though.”
“It’s rare—even the Heora Kingdom, where it’s imported from, produces only a tiny amount. It’s hard to get. Consider yourself lucky, little one.”
Hilvenzia said it was her favorite dessert.
“Go on.”
At her urging, Jeina took a small bite.
“…?”
But she didn’t say it was delicious right away.
Something felt strange.
Maybe because it’s my first time tasting it?
She tilted her head and took another bite.
Was Lady Hilvenzia’s taste always this peculiar?
Until now, Hilvenzia’s cooking had always matched her palate perfectly.
So Jeina finished the tart despite the odd flavor—yet it still felt off.
“Lady Hilvenzia… is Shizemel supposed to taste spicy or tingly?”
“Spicy? Not at all.”
“But look, her face is red,” Mikael said, but Jeina didn’t even hear him.
“Huh?”
Suddenly, her head spun, and a wave of nausea hit her.
“My throat… it’s stinging—ack! cough—kek—!”
Jeina lurched forward, gripping the edge of the table for balance—then collapsed with a crash.
She rolled off her chair and couldn’t get up again.
Her coughing turned into violent retching.
“W-what…?”
“Jeina? What’s wrong?!”
In the middle of vomiting, Jeina’s eyes flew open wide, her body convulsing.
She couldn’t breathe.
“Wh-what the hell? What’s happening? Old hag, what did you put in that tart?”
“Don’t look at me! You think I’d mess around with food like that?”
“You’re the only one who’d go that far!”
They briefly turned on each other, but the severity of her reaction made it clear—this was no prank.
“Damn it, was it poison?!”
“I ate the same thing! It can’t be.”
Hilvenzia, pale and sweating, frantically contacted the temple—but her face hardened as she got the reply.
“…I see.”
Her expression was grim.
“The situation’s bad.”
To treat someone suffering from such severe respiratory distress, they’d need a high-ranking priest. But every one of them was currently incapacitated from divine exhaustion—after performing powerful healing rites, they couldn’t use holy power for weeks.
Still, they couldn’t just wait.
“If it’s poison, I could look up an antidote—but if it’s not, then what on earth caused it?”
Mikael muttered in growing panic—then suddenly froze.
“Wait… Shizemel… I have heard of it.”
“What?”
“That extravagant dessert the old witch adores—it’s made from the Shizemel fruit. But it’s so rare I’ve never seen it served, not even once. And now I remember why.”
His teeth clenched; his expression twisted.
“I heard it from the elders in our family—when the Tower Master was young, he almost died after eating a Shizemel fruit.”
