Chapter 225: Lainella's Fate is Decided by Lainella (18)
Chapter 225: Lainella's Fate is Decided by Lainella (18)
An awkward atmosphere always lingers when people meet for the first time.
This group was no exception. The Saintess, Senior Elsie, and Seria, in particular, were having a hard time adjusting to the Percus Mansion. All three wore expressions of slight tension.
The only ones looking peaceful were Ian, Reto, and Celine.
It was a natural reaction for Ian, as he was returning to his family home after a long time, and the mansion was a place Reto and Celine had frequented like their own homes since childhood.
It would have been stranger if they weren't comfortable.
To Ian's surprise, Ria didn't even start nagging him the moment she saw him.
Ian, who had been worried about getting an earful, couldn't help but look much brighter.
After the brief introductions, Ria took the lead to guide the group. She spoke in a polite, refined tone.
"Fortunately, we have spare rooms in the mansion, so I hope you will stay with us. Of course, it may not compare to the places you distinguished guests are accustomed to, but..."
"It is quite alright, sister."
The Saintess spoke with her usual benevolent voice.
Ria’s golden eyes flickered toward the Saintess.
"I have stayed in an orphanage while helping Brother Ian before. Besides, I do not come from a particularly noble background myself. So, please, do not worry too much."
At that, Ria offered a faint smile.
"...I see."
The Saintess smiled back, seemingly pleased by Ria's reaction. She kept glancing at Ian as if boasting about how well she was handling things.
Ian couldn't help but let out a short, dry laugh.
As if to say that if it ended here, she wouldn't be his sister.
"However, one thing weighs heavily on my heart. Ordinarily, a Saintess should reside in a temple... I was worried the Percus family might have been too greedy, fearing that the old temple might be uncomfortable for you."
"...Pardon?"
The Saintess was caught off guard by Ria’s words, which poured out as if they had been rehearsed.
The Saintess wasn't so foolish that she couldn't grasp the intent behind those words. In fact, her intuition, honed in the cutthroat world of politics, was second to none.
The reason she was flustered was that she couldn't understand why Ria Percus was being so wary of her.
Ria Percus was a merchant.
And one of a merchant's most important assets was their network. A Saintess, holding the highest position in the Holy Kingdom, was essentially a priceless commodity that no merchant would want to miss out on.
Even a small connection could yield immense profits.
The Saintess, who had dealt with countless merchants, had assumed Ria would be the same. Indeed, Ria had been treating the group with utmost courtesy.
But the side Ria was showing now was different.
She was actually being hostile toward the Saintess.
The Saintess, who had been hoping to make a good impression on Ian's younger sister, felt a sense of injustice.
"In that case, there is no need to prepare a room for the Saintess in the mansion. I would hate for it to become an obstacle to your volunteer work. I shall guide you to the temple separately later..."
"...Ria."
While the Saintess stood there dazed, Ian finally had to sigh and step into the conversation.
Ria’s cold gaze shifted to Ian.
The man shook his head with a bitter smile.
"She's my guest."
"...Hmph."
It was a rather insolent response to give to the older brother she was supposed to respect.
To just snort like that.
However, Ria surprisingly followed Ian's lead without further complaint.
"Very well. Then the Saintess may stay in this room. And next..."
As Ria politely guided them through the mansion, Elsie walked while clutching Ian's sleeve with an anxious look.
Her gait was exceptionally stiff.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say this was the most nervous moment of her life.
Elsie tugged on Ian's sleeve with a confused look in her eyes.
"M-Master..."
"Senior Elsie, seriously, don't use that title."
Ian spoke in a solemn tone, but Elsie’s whispering voice was already trembling strangely.
Whew, whew. Elsie took deep breaths, trying to calm her racing heart.
"W-what should I do? What if your family doesn't like me?!"
"There's no way that would happen..."
Ian wanted to reassure Elsie, but his voice trailed off.
To be honest, he wasn't sure either.
A daughter of a prestigious family who claimed to be a pet?
This went beyond a matter of like or dislike; it was a question of how to even accept such a being. Seeing Ian's troubled expression, Elsie grew even more anxious, and the frequency of her deep breaths increased noticeably.
On the other hand, Seria, who had heard a lot from Celine beforehand, seemed a bit stunned.
"Senior Ian, that person is... your younger sister, right?"
"Yeah, my sister. She's two years younger than you."
Which meant she would reach adulthood next year.
Despite Ian's answer, Seria whispered with a voice full of disbelief.
"B-but... she's quite different from what I heard from Miss Haster..."
"Polite, right? Well-mannered, too."
Seria’s face flushed slightly, perhaps thinking her question was a bit rude. Hesitantly, the girl nodded.
Ian swallowed a hollow laugh.
"Just wait and see. She's only like that with others."
It didn't take long for the mansion tour—which felt both short and long—to conclude.
"...Finally, this is the room I am using. If you find anything uncomfortable, please call for a servant at any time."
Ria looked perfectly composed as she finished speaking.
It was a flawless tour.
Though she had occasionally thrown in some subtle jabs, she was polite and had boldly skipped unnecessary explanations so they could understand the general layout of the mansion.
However, there was one thing missing from her explanation, causing Seria to tilt her head.
"...Um, Miss Percus?"
"Yes, Lady Yurdina."
If they were at the Academy, they would have spoken as equals, but this wasn't the Academy.
Naturally, a member of the Yurdina family, one of the Five Great Noble Families of the Empire, would receive better treatment. This was the background that necessitated the titles 'Miss' and 'Lady.'
"It seems you haven't shown us Senior Ian's room yet."
At Seria’s point, the Saintess and Elsie naturally nodded their heads.
It was possible because the three of them shared a single goal.
They had come to spend time with Ian, so it would be problematic if they didn't know where his room was.
Each of the women sought that information with their own sense of purpose.
Ria placed a finger on her lips as if contemplating the question for a moment, then let out a soft exclamation.
"...Aha."
And then, the girl wore a beautiful smile.
"I moved Brother's room recently."
"...What? I never heard anything about that."
"I will guide you there now."
Ian reacted with disbelief, but Ria didn't even pretend to listen.
The group exchanged blank stares before they had no choice but to follow Ria again.
Only Ian reacted as if to say, 'Here we go again.'
The atmosphere of the group, which was initially filled with questions, changed completely not long after.
Ria didn't just go down to the lobby; she was heading outside.
The suspicion in the group's eyes deepened.
It was as if one could see hallucinations of question marks floating above their heads.
But Ria’s steps were unwavering. Her attitude was so confident that the group followed her without even being able to raise an objection.
A moment later, they arrived at the back garden, where a large pit was located.
Judging by the amount of excavated soil, it seemed to have been made recently. Standing before it, Ria held a shovel in one hand and thrust the blade deep into the ground with a thud.
Ria spoke with a beaming smile.
"There. This is Brother's new room."
For a moment, the group felt as if their brains had stopped working at the sound of that cheerful voice.
Only Ian, Celine, and Reto let out deep sighs.
By now, even her polite and refined way of speaking had vanished.
Ria’s hand was clearly pointing inside the pit.
Ian wiped his face with both hands and spoke pleadingly.
"Ria, please... not in front of the guests..."
"...In front of the guests?"
At those words, the smile Ria had been wearing began to crack.
The corners of her mouth started to quiver.
"Do you have any idea what kind of guests I had to deal with because of you, Brother? Do you want me to recite, one by one, exactly what kind of uniforms the Imperial Treasury wears?"
"That, well, you see... Ria."
Ian let out a long sigh.
"I'm sorry. But I really had no choice..."
"Don't give me that."
Slowly wiping away her smile, Ria tightened her grip on the shovel.
Thwack! As the shovel blade dug into the ground again, a clump of dirt flew up.
The girl stood with her head bowed, trembling. It didn't take long for that trembling to turn into a scream.
Her burning golden eyes flared up.
Then, a tearful shout erupted.
"...D-don't give me that crap!"
And before anyone could stop her, Ria lunged at Ian.
As if practiced, Ria’s hands grabbed Ian’s hair. While the group stood in shock, Ria began to pull Ian’s hair haphazardly, tears pricking her eyes.
"Do you know how many years I worked to build that merchant guild?! But it's bankrupt! What are you going to do... my three years! I stayed up every night to grow it! And I did it for you, of all people!"
Whining and pulling Ian’s hair, there was no trace of Ria’s previous elegance.
Instead, tears were even welling up in those cold golden eyes.
Even Ian seemed accustomed to the situation of his sister grabbing him by the hair.
He grimaced in pain and stammered out excuses.
"I-I told you, I had no choice! If I hadn't, the world would have ended—"
"What kind of nonsense is that!"
But Ian’s words were cut short by Ria’s continued wailing.
By now, Ria’s eyes were spinning. It meant her emotions had reached their peak.
Even then, the group could only watch this other side of Ria with bewildered eyes.
She was too different.
It felt as if her personality had been swapped.
"World ending?! Why would someone like you get involved in something like that! It's dangerous! D-do you really want to get in trouble?! And my guild... m-my guild, what am I going to dooo..."
Finally, tears began to fall in droplets from Ria’s eyes.
"Take responsibility for my life! You have to support me for the rest of my life! T-take responsibility for my lifeee!"
Watching the two siblings bicker like that, the group’s blank gazes turned toward Reto and Celine.
Celine had already looked away with an expression that said it was painful to watch, while Reto just shrugged with a faint smile.
"She's always like that."
With that, Reto looked back and forth between the deep pit and Ian, who was currently getting his hair pulled.
"...She really, well. She likes her brother that much?"
It was a truly cryptic statement.
It was quite a while later that I was finally released.
Fortunately, mana could even strengthen hair follicles. Comforting myself with the fact that not many hairs had been pulled out, I sat in the reception room looking like a complete mess.
Ria was sobbing, dabbing at her eyes with a handkerchief.
In truth, she probably wasn't that sad, but it was a tactic to gain my sympathy. Ria had followed me around since we were children.
I wasn't unaware of her intentions. Even so, there were times when I just had to let her win as her older brother.
As I sat there dazed, Senior Elsie wore a tearful expression from the seat next to me.
"A-are... are you o-okay...?"
"...He's fine."
The answer actually came from an unexpected source.
Ria, who had finally stopped crying, was regaining her calm voice.
"I know everything about Brother. So, Brother is fine. I know because I've done this a few times."
"...You say that like it's something to be proud of."
I muttered a small protest and leaned back into the chair. I had managed to tidy up my hair temporarily, so at least I looked presentable.
Once things seemed to have settled down a bit, I had to bring up a question I had been harboring.
"Ria, more importantly, where did Father, Mother, and Brother go?"
At my question, Ria stared at me as if wondering what I was talking about.
So I had to ask again, feeling even more bewildered.
"Guests have arrived, yet the Head of the Family and the successor haven't shown up. That's strange. Why are you the only one in the mansion?"
"...You didn't hear?"
Ria narrowed her eyes slightly and looked back and forth between me and Senior Elsie.
Instantly, my heart rate slowed.
It was a kind of intuition.
An ominous feeling was pricking at my chest. Senior Elsie seemed to feel it too, as she looked at Ria with an expression mixed with doubt and tension.
In a dazed voice, Ria said:
"The Magic Corps of the Lainella family was scheduled to arrive today. So they went to greet them. It's an official exchange between families, after all... Didn't you call for them, Brother?"
No way.
Right now, Senior Elsie and I were practically in a state of running away together.
Immediately, my palm struck my forehead.
It seemed that my connection with the Lainella family was destined to continue even here in the Percus territory.