TMLOH 129

Chapter : 129

I was kidnapped by some mysterious assailant.

‘What the heck?’

Why is my life so eventful? It’s just one accident after another, without a single break.

When the kidnapper first grabbed me, I struggled as best as I could, but what could the strength of a little kid like me really do? Besides, I’m the weakest of the weak…

After being subdued and dragged through a gate, my memories cut off.

When did I even lose consciousness?

By the time I woke up, three whole days had already passed.

‘Well, I guess it makes sense. With this fragile fish-body of mine, I went to a business exhibition, gave an unplanned presentation, got caught up in a mage’s rampage, and even performed a recital. That was already my limit.’

And to top it all off, the day had to end in a kidnapping! A kidnapping ending?!

“Oh, you’re awake!”

“Quick, call the physician!”

“Medicine, bring the medicine!”

Apparently, I’d been ill on top of everything else, because the maids rushed in as soon as I stirred and forced medicine down my throat, then summoned a mage.

While vitality and healing magic seeped into me, I blinked blankly at an utterly unfamiliar room.

Then came the maids I’d never seen before. They bathed me, dressed me in new clothes, and even fed me breakfast.

“So cute.”

“She’s so calm.”

“Right? I thought she’d be crying and screaming.”

“Is she really okay? She’s too quiet.”

Since I had no energy to say anything, they started getting strange ideas.

“Maybe she just doesn’t understand us?”

“Of course, Albrecht people use the continental tongue.”

“But we’re speaking Dellore.”

Ah… so that’s why their accents sounded a little odd. They were speaking a different language.

Great. First a ‘writing master,’ now apparently a ‘foreign language master’ as well.

Still, from the few hints they let slip in conversation, I was able to piece things together.

This was Faital, the southern empire known as the “Southern Empire.” It was famous for its mild climate and fertile soil year-round.

“……?”

Do I look like I care? Whatever.

“Wait, no! Don’t do that!”

“You’ll mess up her hair!”

The moment I grabbed my head in frustration—trying to figure out why on earth I was even here—the maids suddenly went silent.

They quickly lined up in a row and held their breath.

Heavy footsteps echoed, the door opened, and an oppressive presence filled the room as a man stepped in.

“Uh…?”

The kidnapper.

The only familiar face. Instinctively, I pointed at him.

He raised an eyebrow.

“Ah.”

I quickly lowered my hand, intimidated by his sharp, frightening expression. His face went back to its cold blankness.

“……”

“……”

What is this atmosphere?

I shrank under the tension. Then, when my eyes met his, I saw his stiff lips relax ever so slightly.

And then he spoke a single line.

“From today, I’m your father.”

Excuse me? Who gave you permission to rewrite my family register?!

* * *

“Oh, that man?”

“Yes. He’s the absolute ruler of Faital, the Southern Empire.”

“The Regent Duke, Ludwig von Roch.”

At last, thanks to a maid who knew the continental tongue, the kidnapper’s identity was revealed.

Wait—that kind of person?!

“Why? Why me? Kidnapped?!”

I was so flustered my words barely came out.

Do you even know me?

I forgot my fear and demanded answers. But his reply was absurd.

“Because you’re my daughter.”

Since when?!

Sure, I’d heard stories about people claiming other people’s kids as their own. But I never thought I’d actually be on the receiving end.

Dazed, I couldn’t accept the sudden turn of events. And he—this kidnapper suddenly claiming to be my father—showed no intention of giving a proper explanation.

“Make yourself comfortable. This is where you’ll live for the rest of your life.”

“……?”

Says who?!

“I want to go home.”

I said it clearly, but the Regent Duke didn’t even acknowledge it.

“I’ll give you anything you want. Just be at ease.”

I want to go home!

I would have tried to run away… if I had the faintest idea how.

“I don’t even know how to escape!”

Wuuuung—

At least Aether was still hovering loyally at my side.

“Sigh… my cursed fate.”

Clearly, the heavens had twisted my fortune beyond recognition. Otherwise, how could all these things happen to me in just a few months?

Maybe I should take my saved-up allowance and go to a temple for a blessing.

I flopped onto the bed, arms spread wide.

“Mom…”

I wondered if Mehen was okay. Was he worried about me?

“…Dad.”

And then I thought of my reckless father. Hopefully, Mehen would be able to restrain him.

* * *

At the Halbern estate.

Mehen, with his arm still in a cast, was barely holding back Valere.

“Please, calm down!”

On the day of Arelin’s disappearance, both Mehen and Valere realized it far too late.

There were plenty of reasons: the capital had been in chaos after a major terrorist attack on key institutions, Valere had been tied up by the Crown Prince and civilians, and despite the huge crowd, almost no one had actually seen Arelin being kidnapped.

It happened in that fleeting moment when the rampage stopped and the barrier stabilized—pure coincidence hiding the culprit.

Even the mages of the Tower, who had treated her as their savior, were beside themselves for losing her right under their noses.

“Please, I’m begging you, calm down.”

It wasn’t until the second day that they checked the gate records and discovered the truth of Arelin’s abduction.

Ordinarily, that would’ve taken half a day at most, but with the government paralyzed by the terror attacks, everything had been delayed.

Whatever the terrorists’ intent, in the end they had unwittingly aided the Regent Duke of Roch.

The moment Valere learned the kidnapper’s identity, he stormed out in a murderous rage. Mehen barely managed to stop him.

Valere’s eyes lingered on Mehen’s bandaged arm.

“Why’s your arm still like that?”

“There were too many severe injuries. I said I’d let mine heal naturally.”

“Don’t be an idiot. Pour a potion on it.”

“Idiot?!”

Mehen frowned.

“The faster you recover, the more help you’ll be to everyone.”

Clicking his tongue, Valere personally poured a potion over Mehen’s arm.

“Why did you even help that woman? She wouldn’t have died if you’d left her.”

“Do you realize that ‘that woman’ is the Empress?”

Mehen raised an eyebrow.

“……”

At least Valere had the decency to shut up under the rebuke. Mehen pressed his temple, sighing as he pleaded.

“I’m not asking you to befriend Her Majesty. Just—don’t make her an enemy.”

Valere’s lips twisted in a mocking smile. Mehen sighed again.

“Are you absolutely sure Arelin was taken? Kidnapped for real? Are you really going to cause an uproar without verifying first?”

“I’m sure.”

“……”

Mehen’s face crumpled.

“Do you want to start a war? Do you think His Majesty will just stand by?”

“Mehen.”

Valere’s voice dropped to a whisper.

“As long as the battlefield doesn’t touch Albrecht lands, Ed won’t care.”

His normally gentle eyes gleamed with a chilling sharpness.

“He won’t care about the outcome either, so long as it doesn’t harm him.”

“……”

“The only ones who need bleed are the Halberns.”

“As if it’s that simple.”

Mehen gave a weary smile, pleading.

“Valere, is this really the best way? Let me try. Maybe there’s another way…”

“Mehen.”

Mehen’s wavering eyes met Valere’s. Today, those violet eyes sparkled dangerously, almost bewitching.

“Neither he nor I will ever give up on Arelin. Not until one of us is dead.”

Valere recalled the first time he’d crossed paths with that man, behind the auction house.

“We both can’t let her go.”

Still trapped in the past, with half-mad eyes.

How could he not recognize it?

He was the same.

“I’ll bring her back.”

Mehen’s strength gave out. He had no choice but to release Valere.

And so—

Just as the Halbern troops, including the Saren Knights, were deployed to the southern front, the Regent Duke of Roch filed an international lawsuit against the Halbern Duchy, claiming Arelin’s parental and custodial rights.