Chapter 52
“This is an opportunity, Your Majesty!”
The voice continued without a hint of hesitation.
“A chance to find out if Neroli Mivan Lorrenod truly possesses a special power—if she really is connected to the divine.”
“And for that, I will be living in hell for a week,” the Emperor muttered, not even bothering to look at the speaker who had approached him.
“If the results are not worth the cost… someone will have to take responsibility.”
Anyone else would have gone pale under such pressure. But the speaker simply smiled. A flicker of madness glinted in their expression.
The Grand Duchy of Tellum.
It was home to the Emperor’s only full-blooded sister—the Grand Duchess—and a leading noble house of the neutral faction.
“Technically, she’s our aunt.”
Though the House of Tellum was a formidable noble family, they had always lived cautiously, never stepping out of line.
The reason was simple: the Emperor kept a close eye on them, constantly sharpening his blade.
“That snake is just itching to expand his influence.”
Lorrenod was a nation where imperial power reigned supreme. Maintaining central control over such a vast land for centuries wasn’t easy.
But as time passed, even that imperial authority had begun to erode.
High lords still bowed to the Emperor but prioritized their own interests. Blind loyalty was a thing of the past.
Of course, the proud Emperor could never tolerate such insubordination.
“Especially since the House of Tellum holds a legitimate claim to the throne outside the Lorrenod bloodline.”
That’s why nearly every Emperor in history had regarded the Grand Duchy with suspicion and tried to control it.
This current Emperor went further—he wanted the House of Tellum wiped out completely.
“The former Grand Duke foresaw this and arranged a marriage with the Imperial family, but it was meaningless in the end.”
The Emperor was the type to discard blood ties in favor of his goals—even if it meant destroying his own sister.
Eventually, the purging of the Grand Duchy began.
“But the Grand Duke and Duchess swore a solemn vow to the Emperor.”
They promised never to bear children and pledged that, upon their deaths, their territory would return to the Emperor.
It was that vow that narrowly spared the duchy, allowing it to survive.
“That’s why this is the only destination the Emperor permits us to visit.”
To him, the Grand Duchy was practically already his land.
Perhaps because of these circumstances, our aunt grew especially fond of children.
“Especially Moren—the youngest among us.”
Thinking that, I glanced sideways.
Moren was scribbling something into his book.
I reached out and ruffled his hair.
“You’re not feeling queasy?”
Even the nicest carriage could be a little bumpy sometimes.
He looked up from his book and smiled at me.
“Sis, seriously? We’re Lorrenods! Motion sickness doesn’t stand a chance.”
“Right. Of course.”
Lorrenods had long surpassed the limits of human physical ability. The idea of one getting motion sickness was absurd.
Moren set his pen down and turned to me completely.
“By the way, Sis. I didn’t get the chance to ask earlier because of your classes—but this trip to the Grand Duchy, did you arrange it?”
“Why do you ask? We always visit the duchy around this time of year.”
“Yeah, but… Mom’s not around anymore. And I’ve heard the Emperor’s been interfering with you a lot lately.”
Oh dear. So the rumors had reached Moren too?
Well, if even an outsider like Hist had noticed, of course Moren would too.
I lightly tapped his furrowed brow and smiled.
“Don’t worry. Your big sister has everything under control!”
I tried to sound as cheerful as always. Moren blinked at me for a moment.
Then, in a quieter voice, he said,
“You don’t have to pretend to be okay.”
“…Huh?”
“The side of you I saw before—that was the real you, wasn’t it?”
At his words, my smile slowly faded.
So that moment had left a deep impression after all.
I met his eyes and asked in a flat tone,
“It must’ve been strange. So different from what you’re used to.”
“In this palace, no one lives without wearing a mask.”
“But I… I’m not weird to you?”
Yes, everyone wore masks—but mine was a particularly thick one.
Because I had a secret that could never be revealed.
If someone found my duality disgusting, I couldn’t blame them.
But if Moren were to turn his back on me like Gobard…
Just then, Moren responded firmly.
“Not at all!”
He grabbed my hand and plopped it on top of his head.
Out of reflex, I patted his hair.
He giggled innocently.
“No matter what side of you I see, I know you still care about me.”
“Moren…”
“So I hope you’ll be comfortable around me! Just like you said—we’re together from now on, right?”
I looked at my little brother with a complicated expression.
It was touching, what he said.
I did care about him deeply. I felt both responsibility and affection.
If I hadn’t known the truth… maybe I could’ve rejoiced purely in this moment.
“Then I’ll try to be a little more relaxed around you from now on.”
“Yay!”
“But you need to remember this one thing.”
I looked him straight in the eye, my tone serious.
“We’re together now because our goals align. But if the time comes when our paths diverge, we have to be ready to part ways.”
“…Huh?”
Moren blinked, clearly taken aback.
I watched him calmly.
Eventually, sensing my sincerity, he gave a reluctant nod.
“…Okay.”
Seeing his spirits drop made me feel uneasy.
Maybe I didn’t need to be so wary yet?
After all, Moren didn’t know anything yet.
After some hesitation, I spoke gently.
“And… thank you. For accepting my contradictions as they are.”
At that, Moren lifted his head and met my gaze. Then he nodded again.
“Yeah…! Thank you too, Sis!”
“For what?”
“For everything. I’m always thankful. You’re like my second mother!”
“…I see.”
Looking a bit bashful, Moren smiled faintly and picked up his pen again.
Hist had assigned him a mountain of tasks to complete while at the duchy.
As I watched him working on a magical formula, I sighed inwardly.
That’s when the spirits gathered around to console me.
[Emergency! Emergency! What are we going to do about our master’s little brother?!]
[He’s still young~ Just be gentle with him~]
[No! If we let this continue and something goes wrong, we won’t be able to control it! We need boundaries!]
[But what if that backfires~? Humans always long for what they’re denied~]
[Then that’s his weakness, not our master’s fault!]
[So cold! You’re so cold, Nesgal!]
[I’m just being realistic, Modway!]
[Then it’s all Nesgal’s fault if things go bad~]
[Ugh! You fish, you never shut up!]
[They’re fighting! They’re fighting!]
“Quiet, everyone.”
At my word, the noisy spirits immediately clamped their mouths shut.
I turned my gaze out the window.
The original storyline has never been wrong—not even once.
Even the small notes my mother had jotted down had come true one by one.
That’s why I’d struggled so hard to uncover it all.
I’ve used that knowledge to influence events…
But now that I knew everything, I couldn’t shake this gnawing anxiety.
Because just like real life, the original story didn’t only contain a future favorable to me.
Maybe ignorance really was bliss.
Among all the information I had gained, there was also the truth about my siblings’ madness.
Even Moren’s eventual descent.
I’m prepared for this.
I couldn’t expect his symptoms to be as mild as Kinia’s hallucinations.
In fact, that would be wishful thinking. Kinia was an extremely rare lucky case.
But still… I had hoped the object of his obsession wouldn’t be a person.
Anyone but that.
But unfortunately, in the original story, Moren’s obsession had been directed toward “family.”
And among them, the one he had spent the most time with.
I let out a deep sigh in silence.
In the original, Moren became nothing more than a puppet of the Fourth Empress.
The final villainess, who schemed to make her son the Emperor.
The youngest prince, who never once rebelled against her.
There was a reason for that.
In the original, the person Moren cherished most was his mother.
And this time…
That role is mine.
How was I supposed to handle this?
I had seen, firsthand and repeatedly, just how dangerous obsession toward a person could be.
Through the Emperor and Derien, obsessed with “the most beautiful one.”
Through Gobard, obsessed with “his love.”
And now my little brother is going to end up the same way?
I turned slightly and looked at Moren’s profile.
His innocent eyes were focused solely on the task at hand.
