Chapter 14
“Get up this instant!”
Smack!
A sharp pain exploded across her cheek.
Startled awake, Kanna opened her eyes.
“You! They said you were the one who did that to Orsini? To my son!”
A furious woman glared down at her.
The moment their eyes met, Kanna recognized her immediately.
It was Chloe Addis.
Her stepmother.
“Why did you hit me?”
Kanna muttered in a dangerous tone.
Being awakened by an unexpected slap was deeply unpleasant.
Chloe ignored her question and raised her hand again, preparing to strike.
“Stop!”
Before Kanna could curl up to shield herself, someone grabbed Chloe’s wrist.
It was Kallen, who had rushed over after hearing the commotion.
“Mother! What are you doing?!”
“Kallen! Kanna hurt Orsini!”
“I was the one who allowed her into this house.”
“She is my guest.”
“Treat her accordingly.”
Chloe violently shook off Kallen’s hand.
Though she was clearly furious, she seemed unable to ignore her son’s words and refrained from striking again.
“What is the meaning of this?”
“The girl who was thrown out of this family is back…”
“And Orsini is injured!”
“Thrown out?”
“I simply got married and left.”
Kanna grumbled in annoyance.
Sparks practically flew from Chloe’s eyes.
But that was all.
Perhaps because Kallen was present, she quickly regained her composure.
“Kanna.”
“It’s been a long time.”
“But I’m afraid I can’t say it’s good to see you.”
“I feel exactly the same.”
“Orsini is suffering terribly.”
“I’ve heard you’re the only one who has the antidote.”
“Don’t torment him any longer.”
“Please give it to him.”
“I’ll give it to him if he apologizes for what happened earlier.”
“I’m truly sorry.”
“I was wrong.”
“It won’t happen again.”
The apology came so smoothly that Kanna narrowed her eyes.
As expected.
She’s far more clever than Orsini.
“Very well.”
Calmly, Kanna opened a cabinet and took out a small medicine bottle.
“Here.”
“Apply one drop at a time.”
“His wound will heal.”
She had said she wouldn’t hand over the antidote until Orsini apologized personally.
But that had merely been a way to vent her anger.
Whether Orsini apologized or not made no real difference.
She still hated him.
She had simply wanted a little revenge for the past.
“It would be better if you came yourself.”
“You were the one who injured him.”
“So naturally, you should be the one to treat him.”
Apparently Chloe still didn’t trust the antidote.
Kanna had expected as much.
She nodded and stood up.
“All right.”
“You filthy piece of—”
“Quiet, Orsini.”
“If you keep talking, I might accidentally drop and break the antidote.”
He had drifted in and out of consciousness so many times that his complexion was ghastly.
Clicking her tongue, Kanna sat beside his bed.
“Does it hurt?”
“The hell kind of stupid question is that?!”
“Do you trust me?”
“…What?”
“Are you certain this medicine won’t burn through your flesh…”
“…and this time keep going until it reaches your heart?”
Chloe immediately shouted,
“Kanna! What on earth are you saying?!”
What am I saying?
I’m threatening him.
Making sure he behaves himself from now on.
“Relax.”
“It was just a joke.”
“Don’t make jokes like that.”
“Someone as skilled as Orsini wouldn’t be frightened by something this small, would he?”
“Kanna!”
“Yes, yes.”
“I understand.”
Opening the bottle, Kanna slowly dripped the antidote onto the wound.
As though by magic…
The burns immediately began to heal.
Chloe watched in near disbelief.
She… made this?
She had known Kanna spent her entire childhood absorbed in alchemy.
But she had never once seen any results.
In truth…
She had never cared.
Not about alchemy.
Not about Kanna.
She had always dismissed it as the worthless hobby of an idle little girl.
Then Kanna suddenly stood up.
“There.”
“It won’t hurt anymore.”
“I’m going back to sleep.”
She immediately left the room.
This time, she intended to sleep soundly.
Very soundly.
“…”
Her footsteps abruptly stopped.
A massive shadow blocked the doorway.
A shadow large enough to swallow her whole.
Keeping her head lowered, Kanna stared blankly at the man’s legs.
They stood like towering mountains.
A chill suddenly ran down her spine.
Every hair on her body stood on end.
The back of her neck stiffened.
His presence alone was overwhelming.
Like standing beneath a blazing sun, his sheer aura instinctively made every muscle in her body tense.
Steadying her breathing, Kanna slowly lifted her head.
He possessed an enormous frame.
Even taller than Orsini.
Even taller than Kallen.
His body radiated an oppressive strength, as though it had been carved from solid mountains.
Her gaze continued upward…
Until it finally reached his face.
Sharp eyes.
Dry green irises that resembled a barren desert.
Kanna’s breathing stopped completely.
“…”
It was her father.
Duke Alessandro Addis.
Why?
Meeting her two younger brothers…
Meeting her stepmother…
None of that had shaken her.
But now…
It felt as though a beast had clamped its jaws around her heart.
She couldn’t speak.
She could barely breathe.
Alessandro Addis hadn’t changed at all.
People said warriors who reached the highest realm aged very slowly.
He seemed living proof.
He still looked like a young man.
Just as handsome.
Just as imposing.
Exactly as she remembered from her childhood.
Then…
His statue-like lips finally moved.
“Kanna.”
Yes, Father…
She thought she answered.
Or…
Had she?
Her mind had gone completely blank.
She couldn’t even tell whether she’d actually spoken.
It felt as though she were merely watching herself from afar.
Her father stared at her as though trying to carve her face into his memory.
Then he slowly raised his hand.
His large palm rested gently against her cheek.
“…!”
It was the first time he had ever touched her.
The shock was so overwhelming that her mind nearly stopped functioning.
Yet Alessandro’s expression remained perfectly calm.
As though touching her were simply a natural right he had always possessed.
“Kanna Addis.”
He spoke her name in a deep voice that echoed like thunder inside a cavern.
“You’ve come back.”
At that moment…
An utterly absurd thought crossed her mind.
For a fleeting instant…
It almost felt…
…as though Alessandro had been waiting for this moment all along.
A ridiculous thought.
There’s no way.
That couldn’t possibly be true.
Kanna forced herself back to reality.
Now was the time to respond properly.
“It’s been a long time, Father.”
Then an odd feeling suddenly tugged at the back of her mind.
Wait…
What did Father just call me?
Not Kanna Valentino…
But Kanna Addis?
…No.
This wasn’t the time to dwell on that.
She forced herself to stay focused.
“I’ll explain everything.”
“The reason I’m here is…”
She spoke cautiously.
Half expecting him to interrupt.
To tell her to shut up.
Or order her thrown out.
Instead…
Alessandro remained silent.
He didn’t interrupt her once.
In fact…
He stared at her with such unwavering attention…
…that it almost seemed as though he were listening.
That alone felt strange.
Almost unsettling.
Still, Kanna focused on explaining herself.
“…That’s why I came.”
“I was allowed into the estate on the condition that I cure Lucy.”
“So…”
“Please don’t blame Kallen.”
At last, she finished speaking.
Feeling somewhat relieved, Kanna cautiously studied his expression.
Like a criminal awaiting judgment.
After all…
He had once ordered that she wasn’t even to be allowed through the gates.
She had violated that order.
Of course he’d be angry.
But…
Why isn’t he saying anything?
Holding her breath, Kanna nervously fidgeted with her fingers.
Alessandro simply continued staring at her.
Without a word.
The silence piled up around her like mountains, pressing down until she almost suffocated.
Only then…
Did he finally speak.
“Very well.”
“…Pardon?”
“Do as you’ve said.”
That was all.
Alessandro turned around without another word.
Then strode away.
So quickly that Kanna didn’t even have a chance to stop him.
“Huh?”
She stood there completely dumbfounded.
Turning her head, she saw Chloe wearing exactly the same expression.
The face of someone who had just witnessed something utterly unimaginable.
“Do as you’ve said.”
He actually said…
“Do as you’ve said”?
Not…
“Do it if you have a death wish.”
