Chapter 26
A Sudden Visitor from the Church
At long last, the lycoris flower has arrived!
It’s not the golden lycoris—the one that’s said to be the ultimate cure for magic overload—but even if this kind just helps ease the symptoms a little, that would still be wonderful.
Professor Robert seems highly motivated, so while results might not come right away, I’m sure he’ll do his best.
Of course, getting hold of the golden lycoris would be the best outcome.
But… that flower grows only in Miranda’s homeland.
Hmm… even if I wanted to go, I probably need to grow a little older first.
I really wish I could grow up faster…
“Holy Sword-san, has the Hero appeared yet?”
“No.”
So that means the Demon King hasn’t been revived either.
That’s… kind of a relief.
Father’s injuries are almost fully healed, so that’s another load off my mind.
Maybe I can finally relax for a while before the Demon King appears.
…Or so I thought—until the Church suddenly sent an inquiry about our friend-or-foe detecting door charm.
They were suspicious that it might be a curse designed to keep out certain people.
“What should we do, Brother?”
“Letty, you’ve done nothing wrong. Hold your head high.”
Serios-oniisama said that confidently, but… I was still nervous.
After all, the Church holds tremendous power in this world.
They’re the only ones capable of healing wounds tainted by miasma—the corruption that spreads from injuries caused by monsters.
The strength of the monster determines how thick and potent its miasma is.
With weaker monsters, minor scratches usually dissipate naturally as the miasma fades away.
But if it’s a powerful monster, even a small wound can spread miasma through the entire body. The victim’s skin blackens, their body withers in agony—and then they die.
In the novel “Gran Avelle,” the Hero returns to his village only to find it ravaged by monsters, with the villagers dying in torment. That’s the moment he vows revenge against the Demon King.
One of his companions even loses an arm to miasma poisoning…
Come to think of it, the book never actually explained what miasma really is.
It gathers and eventually gives birth to the Demon King, but… what exactly is it?
While I was lost in thought, an unexpected visitor arrived—from the Church. Without any prior notice.
Normally, when visiting a ducal household, one sends a formal message well in advance to set a date.
But lately, between the Crown Prince and now the Church, unannounced visits are becoming far too common.
To make matters worse, Father still isn’t fully recovered, so we can’t even receive guests properly yet.
But the visitor was insistent.
He declared that as long as the heir of the house was present, that was sufficient reason to barge in.
Worried, I followed my brother to the entrance.
There stood a man who looked to be in his early thirties, flanked by two guards.
He had reddish-brown hair, gentle-looking brown eyes that curved like thin threads when he smiled… but there was no warmth behind them. The emptiness in his gaze made me instinctively hide behind my brother.
“A pleasure to meet you, Lord and Lady Rosenberg. I am Cardinal Rebrant, of the Inquisition.”
The Inquisition!?
The Inquisition is the Church’s special division tasked with hunting witches who use curse magic.
Once someone is declared a witch, they’re forced to wear a magic-sealing collar—a device that prevents them from using magic ever again.
In other words… total magical paralysis.
Wait a second.
Isn’t that… one of my death flags that I was supposed to have avoided!?
“An honor to meet you, Cardinal,” my brother said calmly. “I am Serios Rosenberg, and this is my sister, Leticia Rosenberg.”
“N-nice to meet you…”
I peered out from behind my brother to give a quick greeting.
Sure, it was rude, but I’m only five years old—surely they can’t scold a five-year-old for lacking perfect etiquette!
“So, you’re Lady Leticia?”
“P–pyeh!”
He crouched down to my eye level, and a strange squeak just escaped me.
So embarrassing…!
“You’re familiar with my sister, then?”
My brother’s voice dropped a little—low, cold, protective.
It wasn’t directed at me, but… even that tone of his sounded so cool.
“I was informed that she suffers from magic overload, but she looks surprisingly healthy.”
I didn’t know what to say, so my brother smoothly took over for me.
“It’s thanks to the Fuzzball.”
“Fuzzball…?”
“Yes. Surely you’ve heard of them? The spirits that live in dragon nests.”
“Ah… yes, but…”
The Cardinal trailed off thoughtfully—then suddenly stiffened, his eyes going wide as he looked past me.
I turned to see what startled him, and sure enough, a giant ball of fluff was rolling toward us.
“Moko!”
Moko bounced against me with a cheerful poing, and I hurried to catch her.
Her fur, as always, was glossy and well-groomed—thanks to the maids’ diligent brushing.
“…And what exactly is that?”
“Moko.”
I answered plainly.
The Cardinal’s expression twisted into something indescribable.
“Don’t tell me… that Fuzzball grew?”
“She got big!”
I smiled brightly and held Moko up with both hands to show her off.
The Cardinal’s expression grew even stranger, and he glanced toward my brother as if silently begging for help.
My brother’s shoulders trembled slightly—clearly fighting the urge to laugh.
He looked so composed even in amusement… it was honestly unfair how good-looking he was.
“Fuzzballs have long been theorized to be a type of spirit,” my brother said evenly. “It seems that’s true. We used some of Moko’s fur to embroider charms, and anyone who bears ill will toward our family finds themselves unable to pass through our front door.”
Then he fixed his gaze on the much older cardinal, eyes steady and defiant.
“In other words, it is no curse. It is a blessing—a divine protection bestowed upon the Rosenberg family by this spirit.”
