Chapter 83
“That’s right!”
Phew. Only then did Noah let out a long sigh of relief.
“Ah, I was worried for nothing. No, if you had such a plan, you should have told me beforehand! Making me sit here fretting! You’re such a bad person, Your Grace!”
As Noah grumbled, Elbadin tilted his head slightly and asked,
“I didn’t know you were this anxious. Why? Is it because the one who showed up with the child was Baron Jaeger?”
At that, Noah scratched his cheek.
“Probably.”
Since Baron Jaeger, famous for his sincerity, had stepped up to guarantee Elise’s identity, it was hard to dismiss her as just another fraud like the ones they had encountered before.
Elbadin asked,
“Then isn’t that actually fortunate? It would mean we’ve finally found Radia’s and my child.”
“Your Grace, are you serious right now?”
“What about?”
“Are you saying you want that girl Elise to be your real daughter?”
“……”
Elbadin let out a faint sigh and put down the documents he had been holding.
He leaned back slowly against his chair and continued,
“……Yes, I truly wish to find my child.”
“So… you mean you’d be fine even if that girl really is your daughter?”
At Noah’s follow-up question, Elbadin looked at him quietly and asked back,
“Why are you acting so unlike yourself? Is there some reason Elise can’t be my daughter?”
Noah suddenly shouted,
“Didn’t you say you were certain Lucillea was your daughter?!”
The moment Lucillea’s name was spoken, silence once again filled the office.
Noah swallowed dryly.
‘Of course, I know too.’
Lucillea’s age didn’t quite match, and she didn’t resemble Elbadin in appearance at all.
Unlike Elise, there was no one to vouch for her identity, nor was there any tangible proof.
There was nothing—no puzzle piece to serve as evidence. And yet…
‘But considering that transformation magic was cast on her, her age could easily be faked by a year or so.’
For a child who had already concealed being under magic, hiding her age by a year would have been nothing.
With a sigh, Noah continued,
“She’s a girl with many secrets, but that’s why I thought she must be Your Grace’s daughter.”
Elbadin asked,
“Why?”
And Noah answered proudly without a moment of hesitation,
“Because she gets along with you!”
“……Get out.”
Annoyed, Elbadin gave the order to leave, but Noah quickly added,
“And her mana!”
“……”
“You heard it from the old man too, right? About the strange energy mixed within Lucillea’s mana.”
“……”
Elbadin slowly nodded.
Before leaving the ducal estate to search for materials, Archmage Arkel had visited him.
And he had spoken about the mana flowing within Lucillea’s body.
“They call it affinity with nature. I believe that may be the reason she hasn’t been able to determine a specialized attribute.”
Affinity with nature.
It was said to be a power only useful in the distant past, in an age when humans lived closer to nature.
“Is it a good thing or a bad thing?”
“I thought it was bad, but Lucillea herself insists it’s good.”
“She liked it?”
“Yes. She said it would help with herb cultivation, so she considered it fortunate. A wise and positive child. However…”
Arkel stroked his chin, his expression darkening.
“Because of that affinity, choosing a specialized attribute will indeed be difficult. It is undeniably an obstacle to her growth.”
But Elbadin remained calm despite Arkel’s words.
“She doesn’t have to grow strong. As long as she keeps moving forward, that’s enough.”
“Don’t you find it wasteful? With such vast mana at her disposal…”
“It isn’t wasteful. If that vast mana only hinders what she truly wishes to do, then it’s better off unused.”
“……”
It was both trust and consideration—choosing not to force possibilities onto the child.
And indeed, even after Arkel left to gather his materials, Lucillea had successfully cultivated rare herbs on her own and even developed new potions.
Perhaps she hadn’t grown much as a mage, but in the things she wished to do, she was clearly making progress.
Of course, she still hadn’t chosen a specialized attribute.
Noah spoke up,
“I’ve seen it before. That so-called affinity with nature. Someone else had that same power.”
“……”
Elbadin’s gaze slowly shifted to Noah.
Noah met his eyes directly and carefully said,
“Radia.”
That night, in Elise’s room.
Baron Jaeger tossed the letter he had finished reading into the fireplace.
Whoosh—! The letter quickly burned to ash, the flames flaring briefly.
Staring into the fire, Baron Jaeger murmured softly,
“An ancient relic, huh…”
The letter had said that an ancient relic capable of verifying bloodlines was on its way north.
And that the Archmage had obtained the materials needed to activate it, and he too was heading north.
‘The authenticity of the evidence must already have been confirmed.’
In that case, the relic bound for the ducal estate was most likely one that could prove blood relations.
‘I didn’t think he’d go this far to verify.’
Baron Jaeger clicked his tongue inwardly, realizing Elbadin was far more meticulous than expected.
“So. What did His Excellency say? Did he order us to withdraw?”
His aide, Delson, who stood behind him, shook his head.
“No. He said that if even one material is missing, the ancient relic cannot be activated.”
“So, we only need to tamper with one material.”
“Exactly.”
When Delson answered with his head bowed, Baron Jaeger sank into thought, chewing over his words.
“But we’re being watched closely. We can’t move freely.”
“Which is why…”
Delson’s gaze shifted toward Elise, who was sitting on the sofa.
Elise munched noisily on a lollipop, clearly uninterested in their conversation.
Turning his head back, Delson continued,
“His Excellency gave Elise separate orders.”
“And what are they?”
“That is…”
Just then—
Whip! Delson suddenly jerked his head toward the window.
“……”
Startled, Baron Jaeger asked,
“What is it?”
“Ah…”
Delson scanned the window carefully, then shook his head.
“Nothing. Something seemed to pass by.”
“This is the fourth floor. Who could pass by here? Probably just a bird.”
“Yes, that must be it.”
“So, what were the orders?”
.
.
.
[Luciiiiieee!!]
Through the snowstorm outside, Cookie flew straight in through the window.
Brr! So cold! My beak is freezing!
Landing lightly on the windowsill, Cookie shook his whole body quickly, scattering snowflakes everywhere.
Lucillea rushed to shut the window and pull the curtains as soon as Cookie entered.
“You worked so hard, thank you!”
She cupped Cookie in her hands and ran over to the sofa.
Placing him on a small perch set on the table, she asked,
“So, what did they say?”
Lucillea had just sent Cookie to Elise’s room after spotting Baron Jaeger’s aide going inside.
Having always felt something suspicious about Elise, she knew she had to eavesdrop on their conversation.
At her question, Cookie’s eyes turned deadly serious.
[Fire!]
“Fire?”
[Yes! They’re going to set a fire!]
“…What?”
Lucillea’s eyes flew wide in shock.
