Chapter 20
Chapter 21
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: Blackjack
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Ruena remained frozen in place, fork still dropped on the table.
She could have passed for a statue in the garden without raising any eyebrows.
If she hadn't blinked, I might have thought time itself had stopped.
'Does she hate it?'
The silence stretched on, so I asked cautiously.
"You don't like it?"
"Ah!"
Ruena jumped in surprise, her mouth opening and closing soundlessly.
She glanced back and forth between me and the floor before hanging her head and mumbling.
"...I like it."
Her voice was tiny, but to me, it rang louder than anything.
I let out a quiet sigh of relief in my mind.
Her long silence had me worried she might refuse.
Just to be sure, I asked again.
"Really? You'll go out with me?"
"...Yeah."
"Then let's decide when and where. Oh, and where we should go─."
Maybe because the plan was working so well,
we chatted excitedly, forgetting I'd pulled an all-nighter.
What time to meet,
where to go,
what to do once we got there, and so on─.
Before we knew it, time to head home had arrived amid our nonstop planning.
I packed up my things and smiled at Ruena.
"Oh, right. Thanks so much for your help."
"...I didn't do much."
"What do you mean? Thanks to you and Buddy, I got to talk with the Grand Duke."
As I said that, I handed an almond to Buddy.
Without his cooperation, sneaking into the mansion would have been a nightmare.
"Buddy, tasty?"
"Tasty. Tasty."
"Still, eat in moderation. I'll bring more next time."
As I gave him the last almond, Ruena's voice came from behind me.
"By the way... Celen."
"Yeah?"
"What did you talk about with Father?"
I'd expected the question, but my heart still dropped.
A bit flustered,
I straightened my iron mask and flashed a bright smile.
"Just that I'd be a better friend to you. Something like that."
"...You had to sneak in at dawn for that? House Noir's foresight really is unpredictable."
"Uh, yeah. Haha."
I ignored the cold sweat trickling down my back.
Even on second thought, it was a flimsy excuse.
'In the future I saw with House Noir's foresight, I sneaked in at dawn and convinced the Grand Duke.'
Still, I was glad Ruena didn't press further and even helped cover for me.
Our family's foresight, known to the entire kingdom,
made my lame lie sound plausible.
'That's why being famous has its perks.'
Today, I was truly grateful to House Noir.
Maybe from the tension releasing,
fatigue crashed over me, and I hurriedly shouldered my bag.
As I said goodbye and turned to leave, Ruena gently tugged my clothes.
"Still..."
"Yeah?"
"...I'm glad I get to keep seeing you because of this."
Ruena looked up at me, ears flushed red.
Seeing her like that made my heart pound a few extra beats for some reason.
'This girl is really─!'
I readjusted my crooked iron mask and smiled brightly.
"Me too."
"...Celen, will you come tomorrow too?"
"Tomorrow?"
Honestly, I was exhausted enough to want to sleep the whole day,
but for some reason, I couldn't say no.
In the end, I nodded with a smile, and Ruena's lips curved up slightly.
Seeing that made my whole body tingle oddly.
Still...
She's cute when she smiles.
Just a little.
Sunflower seed-sized, maybe.
I left the mansion with Ruena seeing me off.
Before departing, my eyes met the Grand Duke's from afar, but thankfully, nothing seemed off.
...Just a momentary scare that made my heart sink.
'Still, glad I somehow pulled it off...'
I sighed in relief while watching the passing scenery from the fast-moving carriage.
House Noir's mansion came into view before long.
Yawning widely, I headed to the glass dome in the garden.
By now, they should be done greeting all the guests and cleaning up.
Father and Aron were inside the glass dome.
I gave a quick greeting and approached Father,
to resolve the question that had nagged me the whole way home.
After organizing my final question─.
I looked at Father before me and carefully spoke.
"Ugh, uh... uuuu..."
"...Go sleep, Celen."
"......"
"Aron, take your brother to his room before he collapses."
Life never goes your way, after all.
The moment I saw my family, my stamina gave out, and I ended up being dragged to bed by Aron.
I slept straight through well past lunchtime.
A sweltering summer day with cicadas chirping.
Warm sunlight filtered through the curtains.
"......Ugh."
...aiming right at my eyes.
Irritated, I rubbed my eyes and sat up,
and my sore muscles screamed in unison like they'd planned it.
It was warranted, though.
After all that exertion sneaking around,
an all-nighter on top, and rushing back to Eliad mansion without proper rest.
My body deserved a dozen apology letters.
I stretched my leaden limbs.
A glass of water sat on the table, probably left by Aron.
To think he'd show such consideration for his little brother.
As expected, he was the one in our family responsible for 'at least one normal person.'
Downing the full glass in one go finally cleared my head a bit.
'Father... I have to ask him today.'
Attunement at 50%.
The threshold where I lose House Noir's power
and put myself in danger─I had to confirm it.
After a quick wash-up, I headed to the glass dome.
This time of day, they'd be preparing to receive guests.
Three years of showing up daily had me memorized on the schedule.
Thankfully, I didn't have to live glued to a chair anymore, starting two years ago.
It was exactly on the third anniversary.
With no progress in my magic power or foresight, Father kept his promise and set me free.
'...Or maybe he couldn't afford my dessert expenses anymore.'
Anyway, for the past two years, it's been Aron instead of me.
Honestly, that's how it should be.
He's the perfect heir material,
while I'm just a runt with the oddity of seeing far futures.
I entered the glass dome, House Noir's stage.
Father was still staring expressionlessly at his documents.
Aron, meanwhile, waved and smiled the moment he saw me.
"Sleep well, Celen?"
"More like I passed out."
"Yeah, you were out cold the second I laid you down."
Aron nodded with a chuckle.
After a short chat with him, I approached Father.
Father's pale blue-gray eyes lifted from the papers to meet mine.
"Father."
"What is it."
"I have something to ask."
At my words, Aron stood from his seat,
as if giving us space to talk alone.
As expected, he was the most normal of us brothers.
As Aron left, he tapped his pocket watch.
A signal not to drag it out, considering Father's schedule.
I nodded to him at the door.
Once Aron was out, Father set down his papers and spoke.
"What do you want to ask, Celen."
"I have some questions about unique abilities."
"Speak."
I handed him the notebook where I'd compiled info on the ancestors' powers.
Father examined it closely, then narrowed his eyes slightly.
"I see... You've studied hard. It's not far off from what I know."
"Good."
"So, what's your question?"
I pointed to the line in the notebook.
The part about 'If attunement to the immaterial exceeds 50%, you lose your essence and can't use House Noir's power.'
The moment our eyes met, I asked.
"Is there no way to check my attunement level? Like a magic tool that shows exact numbers...?"
"There is. Though not precisely."
Father removed the ring from his finger and handed it to me.
A rough design with no gem,
but House Noir's crest was engraved in bright gray on the black metal surface.
Meaning─
this wasn't just jewelry.
"Take it. It can give you a rough gauge of the ratio."
"...Can I really have it? Isn't it valuable?"
"Not particularly. It's merely a tool to detect danger."
As Father slipped the ring onto my finger, he continued.
"Fortunately, it's clear."
"What is?"
"The crest. Only a Noir can make the crest on this ring manifest."
I hurriedly checked the ring.
The crest was far sharper than when it was on Father's hand.
A very bright, vivid white.
Relieved, I immediately asked.
"So I can gauge it with this?"
"Yes. The clearer the crest, the more intact your essence. Celen, take off the ring and place it on the table."
I did as Father said, removing the ring and setting it down.
The moment I did─.
The faint glow faded,
and even the sharp House Noir crest vanished without a trace.
As if it had never been there.
When I cautiously slipped it back on, the crest revived as if nothing had happened.
"...This gives a decent idea, then."
"Yes. Though useless if you get too greedy."
Father eyed me gravely and continued.
"Celen, do you remember the card game we played?"
"Card game? You mean..."
"Blackjack."
Blackjack.
The game where the closest to 21 without going over wins.
You can keep drawing cards until 21,
but one greedy draw can ruin everything you've built.
The reason Father brought it up was obvious.
"Remember this, Celen. The moment you chase immediate gain, you risk losing it all."
"...Yes."
"And that notebook is for reference only. You know unique abilities can be similar but never identical."
I nodded slowly at Father's words.
Reference, but don't rely on it blindly.
Differences from the ancestors' powers were already clear to me.
On a moonlit night,
we can steal anything alike,
but the ancestor had no lunar limits, while I could only do it under a full moon.
There were probably other differences too.
I'd only used it once yesterday, so I knew little beyond that.
'Once a month. Too few chances to figure it out.'
For now, understanding the ancestor's power was my best bet.
At least─
I could set some boundaries on what's allowed.
Even after my talk with Father ended,
I continued studying the ancestor's power,
while simultaneously preparing the perfect plan for Ruena.
For my peaceful future.
I couldn't afford to drop either.
'Perfect.'
Thus, fully prepared, the day of our promise arrived.
"Hello, Celen."
"......Ah."
Once again, I heard my iron mask crack.