Chapter 41
The Duke narrowed his eyes and said,
“Come to think of it, you were quite close with my younger sister, Fedeira.”
“Huh? Oh… yeah, I was.”
She and the Duke’s deceased younger sister, Fedeira, were cousins and also very close friends.
Perhaps because of that, the Duke cherished her even more—almost as if trying to make up for everything he couldn’t do for his late sister.
“Fedeira was cheerful too, but not once did she get involved in family matters.”
So don’t you go meddling in the family’s business either.
The Duke was clearly giving her a warning.
“I wasn’t trying to meddle, I was just worried.”
Of course, she had a card up her sleeve anyway.
When the Countess of Fremeng awkwardly nodded in agreement, Duke Clasta gave a satisfied smile.
“That’s more like it. Are you doing okay these days? How’s your relationship with Count Fremeng?”
As soon as I stepped out of the room holding Wigen’s hand, he flung mine away.
“You’re seriously Uncle’s daughter?”
The obedient demeanor he’d shown in front of the Duke had vanished. His tone was condescending.
“Yeah.”
“You’ve got to be kidding. You’re not even blood-related. You can’t even call him Dad.”
A rebuttal burned in my throat, but I said nothing.
Just let it go. He’s the Duke’s precious child.
The look the Duke gave Wigen was far gentler than usual.
If I got into a fight with the kid he doted on, I might get kicked out of the house.
“I heard you won the martial arts competition?”
“Yeah.”
“Is that all you can say? ‘Yeah’? Are you stupid?”
Calling me stupid was practically a greeting at this point.
“If Mom hadn’t dragged me off to the South for a trip, I would’ve entered and won. I heard you’ve been training with a sword for less than a year? Let’s spar.”
Ugh. Annoying.
“If you don’t, I’ll tell Uncle and have him scold you!”
I wasn’t sure the Duke would get mad over something like this…
‘Can’t you just do what you’re told? Does it have to get all the way to me?’
When I was being raised by Regan, it was always like that. So maybe the Duke would get mad too.
I didn’t want to see him angry.
So Wigen and I headed to the nearby training grounds.
“Here I come!”
Wigen shouted as he brandished his sword with determination.
From head to toe, he was full of openings.
Honestly, I could win just by standing still, but since he was being earnest, I figured I might as well engage. So I picked up my sword.
Let’s end this quickly without hurting him.
“Yaaah!”
Wigen cried out as he swung his blade.
I didn’t dodge. I blocked it head-on.
If I break his sword, maybe he won’t bother me again.
But the moment our swords clashed, I knew something was wrong.
Wait, I overdid it.
Lately, I’d only been sparring with full-grown adults or monsters.
Plus, thanks to the ginseng Saren had sent me, I was practically overflowing with energy.
Meanwhile, Wigen was only nine years old.
I’d tried to go easy—but my sword moved with far more strength than I’d intended.
The impact shattered his blade.
Then his arm twisted backward, and he collapsed onto the ground.
“…Are you okay?”
I stepped closer and asked.
He glared up at me with frightened, tearful eyes. But the pain must’ve been too much, because he burst into loud sobs.
“Waaahhh!”
“What’s going on?!”
The Duke and Countess Fremeng came rushing out.
The Duke’s face had turned stiff.
I’m doomed.
“Wigen!”
The Countess of Fremeng hurried to her son’s side.
“She—she hurt my arm…!”
Wigen sniffled as he pointed at me.
“Don’t lift it. Goodness, what on earth happened…?”
“We were going to spar, but she attacked me before I was ready.”
“What?”
The Countess’s gaze turned sharp.
“Ah! Ow—Mom, don’t touch it! I think it’s broken!”
Liar.
Sure, I hadn’t perfectly controlled my strength, but I hadn’t swung that hard.
And he attacked first.
But I just bowed my head without saying a word.
I already knew that speaking up now would only make things worse for me.
‘So the vase shattered on its own? Someone saw you do it, you know.’
‘Regan, I didn’t! I really didn’t!’
‘So that person lied? Ariel. I know you’re the daughter of the Evil Dragon, but lying like this…’
I shut my eyes tight and prayed.
Please don’t lock me up alone. Just let it be a few hits and done.
“I can’t believe you attacked him before he was even ready! What if he’d gotten seriously hurt? And to think you’re supposed to be a candidate for heir when you don’t even understand basic rules—”
“Enough.”
The Duke raised a hand. The Countess went silent.
I could feel his gaze land on my bowed head.
“Ariel.”
“…”
“Let’s talk face to face, shall we?”
I slowly raised my head.
I thought he’d be glaring at me with fury, but to my surprise, the Duke was calm.
“Tell me. Did you really strike Wigen before he was prepared?”
He’s… asking me? Why?
I thought he’d believe Wigen and scold me immediately.
Maybe he thought I was frozen from fear, because his voice softened.
“I’m not trying to scold you. I just want to understand what happened.”
“I… well…”
Could I really tell the truth?
Wouldn’t I get in more trouble for ‘lying’?
“…We were going to spar. But Wigen struck first. I only countered.”
At my answer, the Duke gently patted my head.
“I see. That’s what happened, then.”
“Brother! You actually believe her?!”
“Well, if my daughter says so, who else should I believe?”
I hadn’t really expected anything.
But the Duke truly believed me.
“Looks like it’s just a slight sprain. Don’t make a fuss. That sort of injury happens all the time during sparring.”
“But—”
“If Ariel had wanted to attack, she wouldn’t have left it at that. She would’ve broken your nose instead.”
The Duke said this to Wigen.
“I’ll let it slide this time, but from now on, no more lies. Train harder. A whole year’s gone by and there’s still no progress.”
After sending Wigen off to the infirmary, the Duke gently consoled me.
Even during afternoon lessons, my mind kept drifting back to that moment—the way he had taken my side.
I was supposed to be memorizing the imperial timeline, but I ended up laying my head down on the desk.
I felt like I might cry.
This is so strange.
Come to think of it, from the moment I arrived, the Duke had never once raised his voice at me.
He always believed me. Always stood by me.
It’s really strange.
Infirmary.
Wigen clung to Countess Fremeng, pouting.
“Mom! Why did Uncle take her side? Why?!”
“Wigen, please calm down—”
“No! Uncle likes me best! But I got hurt and I’m the only one getting scolded!”
He thrashed on the bed in frustration.
“So annoying! Why is she the heir? It should obviously be me—”
“Stop it, Wigen! You’re too worked up. Let’s get you treated first, okay?”
The Countess tried to soothe her sobbing son.
“Don’t worry. Mommy will make sure you get your rightful place back.”
“Really?”
“Of course. That girl isn’t even blood. Your uncle will get tired of her soon. So don’t cry. Shhh.”
“Mmh…”
The Duke had no biological children.
The only close blood relatives he had left were herself and her son, Wigen.
Though she was a noble too, Count Fremeng was nowhere near the Duke’s level.
“Don’t worry, my sweet boy. Just trust your mother.”
A few days later, Wigen came looking for me.
When I looked at him cautiously, he scratched his cheek and grinned awkwardly.
“Sorry about the other day. I panicked because I thought Mom would scold me, and I lied without thinking.”
Since he apologized first, I had no reason to reject him.
It’s suspicious, but still… better to get along than not. The Duke cherishes him, after all.
I understood how precious a remaining blood relative must be to someone who’d lost their whole family.
I didn’t want to cause the Duke any trouble by staying on bad terms.
After that, I often spent time with Wigen.
“Ariel, check this out! It’s a model kit that’s all the rage in the South right now…”
Whenever the Duke or Countess Fremeng saw us getting along, they smiled warmly.
“Brother, kids are still just kids, huh? Fighting one minute and besties the next. Reminds me of us.”
“Yeah.”
“Remember that time you got one of those model kits as a gift, and Fedeira stole it because she wanted one too?”
“She got caught trying to sneak it at night.”
The Duke’s eyes gleamed with nostalgia.
He seemed lost in memories of his late sister.
“And when you scolded her, she acted all shameless about it.”
“She really had a temper. Looking back, I should’ve just let her have it.”
The Duke smiled wistfully.
He must’ve been really close to his family. I guess that’s normal for most people.
As I fiddled with the model, I thought of my own.
My birth father—the Evil Dragon—and my foster parents, Regan and the rest.
None of them were worth mourning.
I was the one who killed the Evil Dragon, and now I was plotting to kill Regan too.
My life’s a joke, honestly.
“Duke, look at this! Wigen and I made it together.”
I presented the completed model ship to the Duke.
He smiled as he looked at the large vessel.
“Well made.”
Then Wigen tilted his head and asked,
“But why do you still call Uncle ‘Duke’?”
