Chapter 135
Chapter 135. The Seed Sown
In the end, Lumiafia couldn’t sleep a wink out of anxiety, and when she awoke, breakfast wasn’t going down her throat. So, she aimlessly wandered outside to distract herself.
She didn’t even feel like facing friends or acquaintances, so she climbed a tree in the thicket at the edge of town where she often played with her brother when she was younger, just to space out.
(What should I do…?)
Looking up at the starry sky with a droopy face, there was nothing Lumiafia could do.
And being a creature of habit, by the time night rolled around and she hadn’t eaten anything since she woke up, her stomach started to grumble.
Thus, when it was time for a late-night snack, she made her way back to the mansion without much thought.
“Oh, Lumia. You’ve returned.”
At the dining table, the members of the Valt family had gathered. Her grandfather, Jijiivart, looked relieved to see Lumiafia show up.
“We haven’t seen you since morning. We were worried.”
“…I was just taking a walk,” Lumiafia replied curtly, but she noticed all her family exchanging glances as if they had made a silent agreement.
After that, there was no real conversation, and when the meal was served, just as she was about to dig in—
“—This evening, a messenger came from the Dios family.”
Zikvart suddenly spoke up, making Lumiafia’s heart jump.
“Germadios, who has regained consciousness, seems to have uttered that he was ‘taken in by Lumiafia’s schemes.’”
Clang!
The sound of Lumiafia’s fork clattering to the table echoed.
“I want to confirm the facts. Can you tell me what happened?”
Zikvart’s tone was still calm.
The gentle manner in which he spoke only made her more fearful, as if he were trying not to reveal his inner feelings.
“…”
If only she had immediately denied it with a sharp “I don’t know!” But with her words stuck in her throat, Lumiafia could only look down in silence.
Tick, tock… The sound of the pendulum clock echoed in the dining room. The steam rising from the food in front of her felt like someone else’s business.
“Lumia.”
Zikvart opened his mouth again.
“Right now, I can still forgive you. But this incident can turn into a troublesome fireball that you might not be thinking about. It’s not just your problem; it concerns our entire family.”
Still in that calm, admonishing tone.
“So, please tell me concisely what happened.”
After a few more seconds passed… Lumiafia remained silent.
“…If you still choose to stay silent out of self-preservation—then I won’t be merciful, even to my daughter.”
Hic! Lumiafia gasped, unable to lift her face. The sight of her father, arms crossed, was in her peripheral vision. His tone remained unchanged, but the air was as chilly as midwinter; her body began to tremble on its own.
“Father…”
Seeing this, her older brother Eijivart, seated beside her, spoke up.
“Eij, even you aren’t allowed to interject.”
“No, that’s not it… If you don’t calm down a bit, Lumia won’t be able to speak even if she wants to.”
“…Whoops.”
The sound that followed was her father rubbing his own face. In any case, Lumiafia could not look her father directly in the face, terrified of what expression he might be wearing.
No, it wasn’t just her father.
Everyone in the family wondered how they looked at her—
“Lumia. This isn’t about scolding or getting angry at you.”
Her grandfather, Jijiivart, sighed as he spoke.
“This matter could even affect your brother’s future. Honestly, just tell us what happened. If we don’t confirm the facts, we can’t take the right steps.”
With his calm tone, coupled with the words about her beloved brother’s future being at stake, Lumiafia resigned herself and began to speak hesitantly.
“…So, that man said… ‘If you can outsmart the prince, I might reconsider you…’”
Keeping her head down, the fact revealed from her lips left the others with expressions that looked like they had bitten into something sour.
“Oh, give me a break…”
Her brother seated beside her groaned. Lumiafia squeezed her hands tightly on her knees. It was much more painful than any rebuke or angry voice.
“I see.”
Zikvart thoughtfully stroked his chin, pondering calmly.
“—‘The Valt family, fearing the young, arrogant prince would threaten the chieftain’s interests, devised a scheme to undermine him using Lumiafia, hinting at the potential for Germadios to become the next chieftain and setting Lumiafia up as a pawn to crush the prince’s face’—”
As if reciting a script, Zikvart suddenly locked eyes with Lumiafia.
“—This is the Dios family’s claim. They apparently intend to cut loose that pitiful man and loudly proclaim that our family used you for a cowardly scheme.”
“What…!”
Lumiafia’s eyes widened.
“No! I… I didn’t mean it like that!!”
“It doesn’t matter what you meant,” Zikvart replied evenly.
“It’s how they will spread this. How the surrounding people will perceive it.”
“No way… I really didn’t mean it like that…!”
Lumiafia looked around, seeking agreement from everyone, but her mother and brother closed their eyes with serious expressions, while her grandfather pressed his brow as if struggling with a headache, remaining as still as a statue.
Tick, tock… The clock continued to measure the time.
“…One day, you’ll have to go off and marry on your own. Considering that, I’ve let certain things slide until now, but—”
Eventually, Jijiivart squeezed the words out.
“Maybe I’ve been too lenient…”
His voice dripped with deep regret. Her usually kind grandfather, who would compliment her for even the smallest things, now gazed at her with genuine disappointment, and Lumiafia felt utterly crushed.
“I’m sorry…”
She could only shrink down in regret and apologize. She wished she could just vanish from this place. She wanted to erase this moment completely. If only she could go back and slap her past self before saying something so foolish…
“What shall we do, Father?”
Ignoring Lumiafia’s apology, Zikvart sought the opinion of the current chieftain.
“I suppose we can only deny it and say we don’t know.”
Jijiivart switched gears, stroking his chin thoughtfully.
“After all, there’s no evidence that their claims are true. Germadios went berserk and was killed as a result, and now the Dios family is trying to drag us down. Our family can only assert that.”
“However, it’s true that Lumiafia slipped out during the banquet.”
Once again, the gazes of the chieftain and the next chieftain shot her way, and the sobbing Lumiafia flinched.
“The empty seat on the stage must have stood out.”
Understanding the sarcasm in Zikvart’s words, all Lumiafia could do was whimper, sniffling and “uuuh…”
—Lumiafia had slipped out, and then Germadios came to pick a fight.
That fact was known to everyone who had been in the banquet hall… lending strange credibility to the Dios family’s claims.
“Moreover, someone might have seen Lumiafia talking to Germadios. No, regardless of the truth, soon there will be witness after witness… Friends of the Dios family, no doubt!”
Zikvart spat out harshly.
“If this devolves into an argument over what was said or not, it will only play into their hands, Father.”
“Hmm… Indeed. While it’s close to mutual destruction, to offset that fool’s blunder, we can only drag out the other fool…”
To her grandfather’s use of the word “fool” so casually, Lumiafia had no voice left and was only shedding tears profusely.
“…Um.”
At that moment, Eijivart raised his hand hesitantly.
“What is it?”
“I think it would be best that no matter what the Valt family wishes to assert, we first quietly explain the facts to His Highness and the Grand Duchess and apologize.”
That was a perfectly reasonable suggestion. Jijiivart and Zikvart exchanged glances.
“That too.”
“Yeah, that sounds right.”
While the Valt family’s reputation was important,
Even more so, they needed to deal with the prince, who had no qualms about breaking the horns and his domineering mother.
†††
“—And that’s the situation. I sincerely apologize for my foolish granddaughter.”
The current chieftain, Jijiivart, bowed his head, while at his feet, Lumiafia was prostrating, crying “I’m so very sorry…!”
After a late-night snack, it seemed that the entire chieftain’s family had come to apologize, leaving Zilbagias bewildered.
Wow, that Germadios guy really kept picking a fight, and here I thought that was just how he was.
I never expected this would happen because an 80-year-old man was eager to show off for a 13-year-old girl…
“Such a fool…”
Honestly, that’s the truth. I really don’t care at all.
For me, I was really just glad I had someone I could hit.
If only I could have broken a few more horns; nobody would have lamented it.
“Uuuh…”
I felt nothing for Lumiafia, who was trembling in a heap on the carpet.
… Well, it was only natural for a young girl in a complicated phase of life to feel disgust towards a guy like me, who was considered a womanizer.
Then I casually said, “Hey, that guy’s getting a bit too cocky. Go teach him a lesson,” and ended up triggering a sword fight.
It’s true that I deliberately stirred things up, but Germadios was the one who instigated it, after all.
Even if they said, “It was all Lumiafia’s fault!” I’d honestly just respond with “Oh, really?” and wish they’d hurry up and go home.
“So… what now?”
I asked, keeping any inner thoughts off my face and adopting a serious expression.
“I understand what happened, but what’s next?”
However, it was Plato who continued from my words.
“—So, what kind of resolution do you intend to reach? That girl is involved.”
With a cool smile, she elegantly crossed her legs under the fan.
Oh…
Plato, you’re seriously pissed off…
