Chapter 100 — Meeting the Family
Chapter 100 — Meeting the Family
Translation: Godtl
Lelia walked briskly toward her uncle. It was to introduce her friends before he noticed anything strange.
Her uncle's eyes widened when he discovered them.
All the friends stood up and looked at the uncle.
'Come to think of it, Uncle and my friends might know each other.'
However, they seemed to know each other better than she thought, as her uncle laughed loudly and approached them.
"You, this guy!"
The one her uncle happily approached and hugged was Kalix. He rejoiced like a child, but then furrowed his brow as he looked at the other guys.
"Right... come to think of it, you guys were all friends, right? The ones who always hung around together...."
Her uncle narrowed his eyes especially at Oscar. Then he reached his hand toward Lelia.
"Lelia! Come here. This guy right here is the one I was going to introduce to you!"
Her uncle patted Kalix's shoulder and smiled proudly.
"……!"
Lelia blinked as she looked at Kalix with a surprised face.
It was you...?
Kalix was happy to see her uncle but looked at Lelia as if he didn't understand what was going on.
His expression seemed to say, 'Karius's niece was you?'
What is this... what's going on?
"Come here quickly, Lelia!"
"……."
Lelia approached her uncle with an awkward smile, though she was confused inside.
Her uncle made Lelia stand next to Kalix, then stepped back and clapped as he looked at the two.
"Wow! I knew it! It's completely like a painting, a painting!"
"……."
In the chilly atmosphere, only her uncle laughed loudly, hahaha.
"You really are a well-matched pair. I knew this would happen. I knew you two would get along perfectly!"
"They don't suit each other at all."
Romeo muttered in a voice loud enough for everyone to hear, but her uncle lightly pretended not to hear.
"By the way, they're our Lelia's guests? What's going on?"
"Well... that. He helped me in the capital once... and we became friends then."
"Really? My...! It's fate!"
Her uncle looked at Kalix with admiration.
"You saved my niece from danger? What an amazing guy!"
Did saying he helped become saving her from danger? It wasn't wrong, but somehow it felt exaggerated.
It seemed the other friends were completely invisible to her uncle's eyes.
"Wait! We have such precious guests, we need to treat them properly! Butler, butler!"
Karius seemed to realize something and hurriedly left the reception room.
Lelia looked at her friends with a tired expression.
Everyone had unreadable expressions, but one thing was certain—they were all glaring at Kalix.
'...It seems everyone is upset that Kalix didn't tell them about his eye condition.'
Lelia sighed inwardly with regret.
But Lelia couldn't blame Kalix for that matter.
Though it wasn't bound by a taboo spell, Kalix had clearly kept it secret for the sake of his friends.
She understood that feeling better than anyone.
Lelia looked at Kalix with pity, feeling a sense of shared misfortune.
By the way... what about... the kiss?
The servants bustled about to prepare the guest rooms.
Oscar leaned against a pillar in the corridor. Listening to the steady patter of rain, he watched the servants going in and out of the room adjacent to his.
Romeo, having roughly unpacked and stepped out, spotted Oscar and approached.
"You, are you okay?"
"...About what?"
"You didn't need to be sharp with me too."
"......"
"You're really... I can't figure out what's going on in your head."
Romeo clicked his tongue as if dealing with a troublesome younger brother.
Just then, Griffith, who had likewise finished organizing his belongings, came outside, spotted the two, and slowly approached.
"Romeo, no need to share information with this guy. Since he acted alone anyway... that means our shared purpose is over now."
At Griffith's words, Romeo sighed inwardly. Again, here we go again. These damn troublemakers.
Honestly speaking, from the moment they reunited with friends on the battlefield, the two had not been on good terms.
But back then, at least they had the shared purpose of uncovering the truth behind 'Leo's' death, but now...
"But... well, I don't know. It seems like your purpose might still be the same as mine?"
Griffith sneered at Oscar and dropped a meaningful remark.
At Griffith's mocking expression, Oscar spoke through gritted teeth, not hiding his emotions.
"If you don't want to die, get lost. Don't think I can't kill you."
"...Same goes for you. You shouldn't think I can't kill with divine power."
The two men's murderous gazes clashed in the air. Sensing that someone might actually die at this rate, Romeo stepped between them.
"Hey! Stop it, you bastards! Fighting in front of your big brother? Knock it off!"
Despite Romeo's intervention, neither man withdrew their gaze from the other.
"The dead captain would be so pleased to see this! Stop it!"
At Romeo's words, Oscar's expression twisted. He instantly grabbed Romeo by the collar and spoke as if warning him.
"Who died? Don't ever bring up such unlucky talk again."
"......"
Romeo narrowed his eyes and glared at him. Oscar scoffed.
"We all know anyway, is there a need to keep quiet about it?"
Just then.
"Hey! What are you doing? Fighting? Don't fight!"
Kalix, who had come out of his room, saw the three and brushed past them as if a casual passerby.
Romeo tapped Oscar's hand gripping his collar and muttered.
"...One person still... doesn't seem to know...?"
"......"
Romeo muttered while looking at Kalix's retreating figure.
"No, how can... he be like that...? That guy is really... can't even tell him."
Oscar relaxed his grip on Romeo's collar, glared at Griffith once more, and turned away.
Romeo straightened his wrinkled collar and looked at Griffith with disdain.
"Why are you provoking him? Since you possess divine power, show some consideration for patients... Huh? In a way, aren't you a healing priest yourself?"
"I can't figure out that bastard's mind."
At Griffith's words, Romeo nodded in agreement.
"I feel the same way about that."
"...That broken bastard is going to put Leo in danger, definitely."
"Well that... I think the same."
Romeo looked at Oscar's retreating figure with a bitter expression.
Duke Superion, returning just in time for dinner, welcomed the newly arrived guests with pleasure.
He took particular notice of Kalix.
"So, you're the one who saved our Lelia?"
"...Yes. Well... ah, that's right. That's right!"
Kalix tilted his head in confusion, then nodded with certainty as if something had come to mind.
It seemed he recalled the time he had carried her and fled when Lelia infiltrated the Imperial City.
There were a few other instances where he had helped Lelia as well.
Lelia sighed as she watched her grandfather and uncle scrutinizing Kalix with great interest.
She was relieved that at least her other friends were dining comfortably.
"Well, I'm glad our Lelia has made so many good friends. But why are they all... men...?"
Duke Superion examined their faces one by one with a sour expression.
They even possessed stunning good looks that would stand out anywhere.
While pleased that his granddaughter was sensible, Duke Superion also felt a bit anxious.
He worried about what would happen if Lelia announced she wanted to marry someone among them.
His expression grew particularly heavy when looking at the three men other than Kalix. This was because they all held tremendous status.
Noticing this, Romeo naturally spoke up.
"We are all your granddaughter's friends, so please speak comfortably, both of you. Also... I have one request."
"Very well, then I'll speak freely. Thank you for considering an old man.... By the way, a request? What is it? Speak freely."
"If we stay here, rumors will spread quickly. I hope you'll make it known officially that we're staying here because of our connection with Lord Karius."
It meant he didn't want people to know they had come here because of Lelia.
Understanding the underlying meaning, Duke Superion nodded while still carefully observing Romeo.
He wanted to give good marks for how deep-thinking he appeared.
Meanwhile, Lelia also looked at Romeo with grateful eyes.
It was clearly because of potential pursuit from the Temple.
"It's been a long time since Superion Castle has been this lively. When your grandmother and aunt arrive, they'll be delighted. That fellow Zenon will be coming soon too."
Hearing this, Karius spoke up as if something had just occurred to him.
"Father, I heard some strange news today."
"What is it?"
"They say strange people have appeared in the north. Heretics, apparently... and their numbers seem quite large. It looks like their ranks swelled instantly in a short time. They even have an army."
"Is that so?"
At those words, Lelia's eyebrows rose. It was talk of those people. Heretics who worshiped the Mad Dragon as a god.
"Since it's adjacent to our territory, shouldn't we send knights? The outer territory residents are anxious."
"Then... let's request assistance from the Temple."
"When will we wait for those people? They're slow as can be. They'll arrive in about three years, I suppose."
"Still, it's a heretic force. Won't they come quickly?"
"In their eyes, alchemists are a bigger problem than heretics."
"Then when Zenon arrives, let's send him."
"No!"
Lelia, who had been listening quietly, suddenly shouted, and her grandfather and uncle looked at her in surprise.
Her friends also sent her looks asking why she was acting this way.
"That's... I mean...."
Lelia's lips trembled.