Yves had a point.
In the Kingdom of Zeptenia, a person with a special ability known as a ćBlessingć was born only on very rare occasions. Within their team, both Lelia and Ghislain possessed Blessings, making them virtually unmatched.
Moreover, they had thoroughly investigated and analyzed House Artois’s fighting strength. Under normal circumstances, there was nothing to fear. But that was not what worried Lelia.
“I’m not frightened of them. I simply would not feel good if they interfered in something beyond their capabilities and died…”
Apparently, House Artois had served as a candidate’s guard during the Crown Prince Selection several times in the past and helped lead that candidate to victory. It was an honor rooted in their bloodline’s tendency to produce people with Blessings, and the family took great pride in it.
But no one in the current house possessed outstanding ability. Protecting a candidate during the selection should therefore have been beyond them, yet House Artois had concealed that fact out of pride.
A Blessing could not always be distinguished from ordinary magic by appearance alone, so deceiving the public was not difficult. House Artois might accept a protection assignment beyond its true abilities merely to preserve its prestige.
Noāthey would almost certainly do so. Pride and appearances mattered more than anything to that family.
(When I still lived at home, my brother behaved in public as though he possessed a Blessing. The entire family helped make his claim appear convincing.)
More specifically, her brother pretended that he possessed a Blessing granting him an exceptional amount of magical power and the ability to cast devastating attack magic. To support his story, Lelia had been made to wear bandages around her arm and claim that he had accidentally injured her because he could not control his overwhelming power.
Her stepmother had even used cosmetics to create false scars upon her own face. Looking back, the entire family had behaved rather bizarrely, but at the time they had been utterly serious.
(It was obviously implausible, but I wonder if they are still maintaining that charade…)
Remembering her mildly deranged family left Lelia with complicated feelings.
And what would happen if they learned that Leliaāthe daughter they despisedāhad awakened the Blessing they had so desperately wanted? Merely imagining it was exhausting.
With a distant look, Lelia shook her head faintly and withdrew an envelope from inside her clothing.
“…The truth is, I received this letter.”
It was addressed to “Lelia Artois,” using a family name she would never willingly claim now.
The sender was the Marquis of ArtoisāLelia’s father.
“It arrived at the apartment the organization rents for me as part of my cover. Inside, my father wrote that I should return home. He says he will magnanimously forgive both what happened six years ago and my divorce three years ago, so we can all live together happily as a family. Quite the fantasy, isn’t it?”
“What?!”
“What is that supposed to mean?! The nerve of him!”
“…”
Yves and Marianne raised their voices, and even Ghislain, who had been listening in silence, furrowed his brow.
Their anger was understandable. They knew both how Lelia had been expelled from her family and how House Artois had refused to allow her through its gates after House Erlanger divorced her three years ago.
Lelia found warmth in the indignation of her colleagues, yet kept her eyes on the scenery beyond the window.
“With the Crown Prince Selection beginning, they must want me to provide information about my former husband and House Erlanger. He is considered one of the leading candidates.”
“…Lelia, would you have returned home if you hadn’t received this assignment?”
Marianne’s unexpected question made Lelia widen her eyes.
“Why do you ask?”
“Because whenever you discuss House Artois, your eyes become frightening. Of course, I don’t mean returning as a member of the family. I mean going back for revenge. It would be only natural to resent the family who treated you cruelly and threw you out, so I wouldn’t say anything if that were what you wanted.”
“…I see.”
Lelia smiled calmly.
She knew her expression had stiffened. But memories she could never forgive rose within her, making it impossible to smile properly.
(I certainly cannot forgive the people of House Artois. But it is not because they falsely accused me and threw me out…)
It was connected to a truth she had uncovered three years ago during her mission to tear House Erlanger apartāsomething she had never told these companions.
“…”
Yves sensed the faint shadow upon Lelia’s face and understood that she did not intend to explain it. He snorted, deliberately changing the subject.
“In any case, that was a close call. If Duke William Erlanger hadn’t divorced you because he couldn’t love a foolish woman, you might have become a candidate for crown princess. That’s hilarious.”
“Hehe. My former husband certainly was an excellent judge of character. Divorcing me was the correct decision.”
This time, Lelia managed to smile as she praised her ex-husband without reservation.
At that moment, the carriage arrived at the mansion’s entrance.
āHer reunion with William Erlanger awaited her.
