IWOE 10

The Real Head of the Household Was Me — Chapter : 10

“Then I shall understand that you accept the engagement to Her Highness, the Imperial Princess, Rian.”

Ainrias folded the letter he had opened so that Rian could read it.

Then he turned toward the Duke of Elheim, who had heard the entire conversation between the two.

“How should I reply to this letter, Father?”

Regardless of the engagement, inviting the Crown Prince to Elheim was entirely up to the duke.

After the spirit stone had begun to glow, the people of Elheim had remained silent and refrained from taking action.

The spirit stone had finally undergone a change.

In order to keep it completely secret, they had to avoid attracting attention from outsiders as much as possible.

“Reply that we will invite His Highness the Crown Prince to Elheim.”

Unexpectedly, the Duke of Elheim answered this way.

“It would not be a bad idea to have a conversation before deciding on the engagement. After all, is this not about choosing Rian’s spouse?”

Even the strict Duke of Elheim was weak when it came to his youngest son, Rian.

Moreover, Elheim was a family that determined its next duke based on water abilities.

Although he did not say it aloud, the elders and the duke had already decided inwardly that Rian would become the next duke.

“The date…”

The Duke of Elheim’s expression turned cold.

“It should be on the day we welcome the heir of Virche.”

An event to receive an honored guest who brought a letter of visit had to be held, even if only as a matter of obligation.

It was a custom that had begun with the meaning that guests who came to visit would not be harmed.

It did not matter if they did not hold a welcoming event, but the Duke of Elheim absolutely hated the thought of Elheim becoming the subject of gossip.

“We should hold an event to welcome Mihael Virche soon. Hold a banquet at night and invite the imperial family. Ain.”

Mihael, who had come seeking treatment for his eyes, had remained quiet all this time.

More than half of a month had already passed, yet not a single water awakener had come forward claiming that they could lift the curse.

“What kind of event will you hold during the day, Father?”

At Ainrias’s question, the corners of the duke’s mouth twisted cruelly.

“A hunting competition.”

It was an event in which the blind heir of Virche would be unable to properly participate.

Only two layers of the curse remained.

“I truly never expected you to be able to break the curse on your eyes.”

Walter spoke to Mihael as he untied the strings of his velvet blindfold.

Mihael’s previously blurry eyes were much clearer than before.

In fact, Mihael could now distinguish the shapes of objects.

Under the light, he could even tell what color the objects in front of him were.

“Then did you think I was lying?”

Walter swallowed hard.

Mihael’s smile was enchanting and beautiful, but he must not let himself be captivated by it. It was a warning sign that his head was about to be pierced by an arrow.

“No. I was simply impressed that you managed to break something that even Saint Estella had given up on, saying it was too difficult. You must be an extraordinary person.”

“That’s right. Because I’m an extraordinary person.”

It was obvious flattery, but Mihael seemed pleased to hear it.

“If you can see this well, there shouldn’t be a problem even if an assassin appears during the hunting competition.”

Walter sighed as he recalled the absurd words delivered by the eldest son of the Duke of Elheim.

‘He’s completely insane.’

Walter knew that the Duke of Elheim hated Virche, but this time, he had gone too far.

If holding a hunting competition to welcome someone who could not see was not an insult, then what was?

Yet Mihael seemed to find it rather amusing.

As he had said, he would crush Elheim someday in the future anyway, so he could simply regard this as entertainment before that happened.

“What other news is there?”

“They say the spirit stone seems to be about to awaken.”

Virche was a place that did not care much about the power of death.

Elheim, on the other hand, maintained its family through the power of water, so they were still obsessed with their founding head and the legends surrounding him.

Whenever Walter saw the direct descendants of Elheim worshipping the stone, he felt ashamed.

“This time, I sneaked into the room of the founding head. It was fascinating, though.”

The spirit stone he had actually seen was overwhelmingly imposing.

The light violently surging within the blue crystal was frightening.

“It wouldn’t be strange even if something were actually being born from it…”

“That has nothing to do with us.”

“Exactly! Little Master!”

Whether Elheim prospered or the power of water grew stronger, Virche had little interest in it.

The spirit stone was merely a stone that was not even worth going out of their way to destroy.

The bell announcing midnight rang.

“Get out.”

At Mihael’s command, Walter left through the window with an aggrieved expression.

Mihael could see his blurred face contorting into a sorrowful expression, but he left Walter alone.

The reason for his generosity was simply that he was in a good mood.

‘Today, surely I’ll be able to see her face.’

A total of five curses had been removed so far.

Every time a curse was lifted, Mihael became able to see more clearly.

At first, he could distinguish light.

Later, he could distinguish shapes, albeit vaguely.

Now, he could see colors.

Even in a world blurred like a painting washed by water, he could distinguish some colors.

Perhaps after today, he would be able to distinguish colors completely.

‘You said you would tell me your name before removing all the curses. I hope that day is today.’

During this time, Mihael had grown much closer to the other person.

The more they talked, the closer the two became. Now, the other person would sometimes come at midnight even when it was not time to remove the curse from his eyes.

“Mihael.”

He could see the door opening.

A human figure approached and looked up at Mihael.

A clear voice asked him,

“Is something good happening?”

“Yes. I was waiting for you to come.”

The eyes he met seemed closer to blue than sky-blue, unlike most water awakeners.

Mihael looked ahead and thought for a moment.

Then he smiled softly.

“Your visits are the most enjoyable thing to me.”

“That’s a relief.”

The person who had seemed emotionless at first actually possessed an incredibly gentle personality.

Even though their expressions did not change much, Mihael could feel it whenever those careful hands touched him.

Riarte approached Mihael.

“Me too. Meeting you is the most enjoyable thing for me.”

Mihael liked the other person’s whispers.

The words were so sweet that he wanted to swallow them alone without showing them to anyone else.

“Then, I’ll remove the curse.”

Riarte approached and examined Mihael’s pupils.

The eyes of someone under a curse did not react in their pupils.

But now, when exposed to light, his pupils constricted normally.

“How well can you see now?”

“I can see relatively well.”

Mihael turned his eyes away from the face he could now see within his field of vision.

He could now tell how close they were.

Close enough that he could embrace the other person if he pulled them toward him, and, if he exaggerated slightly, close enough that a kiss would not seem strange.

“Can you really see properly?”

A white hand entered Mihael’s field of vision and gently caressed his face.

“It’s fine. I can see properly. At least, I can distinguish your shape.”

Because they were in darkness, Mihael’s reddened ears could not be seen.

“Then wait for a moment without closing your eyes.”

The closer they got to the end, the more complicated the structure of the curse became.

If Riarte had not read the other forbidden books that Hwiamin had gathered, she might not have been able to break this curse.

The power of water carefully severed the joints connecting the curse.

“It looks like it will take a little longer than usual today.”

Riarte, who was examining the curse, spoke.

“I don’t mind. But why?”

“The level of this curse is higher than I expected. Is it okay if I stay here until morning, Mihael?”

“Of course. You can stay here even longer.”

A languid, satisfied smile appeared on Mihael’s face.

“Thank you.”

After saying that, Riarte examined the curse again.

By now, Riarte knew that she was considerably stronger than the other awakeners.

It was a conclusion she had reached by going to the library during the day and observing the water awakeners from a distance.

Even the Duke of Elheim and his blood relatives did not possess abilities as powerful as Riarte’s.

‘It’s more complicated than the previous curses.’

The final two layers of Mihael’s curse could not be removed as easily as before.

That did not mean she could not remove them.

It would simply require some time and strength.

‘How could someone place a curse like this? It’s far too powerful to be the Sevenfold Veil that I know.’

She felt as though she was about to remember something.

She wanted to search through the forbidden books again and find information about the Sevenfold Veil.

Unfortunately, the Duke of Elheim had burned all the books concerning curses.

Since the old books themselves were rare, there was little chance of obtaining the same books again.

Therefore, she had to remember.

‘Curse. Sevenfold Veil.’

At that moment, a fact about the curse suddenly came to Riarte’s mind.

“I remembered, Mihael.”

“What?”

“You said the power of a curse varies depending on the sacrifice.”

The sacrifices that could be offered varied from inanimate objects to living beings.

“This is a curse that used a person as a sacrifice.”

The abilities possessed by awakeners and ancient powers had completely opposite properties.

In order to affect Mihael, a direct descendant of Virche, many people would have had to be sacrificed.

After hearing Riarte’s entire explanation, Mihael spoke.

“If you’re talking about a sacrifice, there’s one thing that comes to mind.”

Not long before the curse appeared in his eyes, the small northern city of Siarun had been completely destroyed.

The official reason was an epidemic.

Because it was deadly and highly contagious, the imperial family restricted access to Siarun.

“Now that I hear what you’re saying, it does seem strange that an entire city was destroyed overnight. I’ll order my escort knight to investigate Siarun.”

Mihael paid no attention whatsoever to the reaction Walter would undoubtedly have as he cried out in despair.

“Good. But you must be careful.”

Her beautiful lips curved up slightly.

It was a faint smile that only Mihael, who had seen it from up close, could recognize.

‘I can see?’

Mihael stared straight ahead.

The power of water was already stripping away the curse.

The blurry world before his eyes gradually began to come into focus.

At last, the other person’s appearance was completely captured within Mihael’s field of vision.