‘Who was it again?’
Veronica said ‘uncle,’ so he must be a relative. He also had the black hair and red eyes that were symbols of the direct line. His status must have been quite high. However, I didn’t remember any relatives appearing on Veronica’s side in the novel.
This either meant the man in front of me was a minor extra with little significance, or…
“How much could a child possibly be in pain for her to cause such a fuss and come all the way to the temple? Tsk, tsk.”
“…”
Even though they were relatives, they weren’t on the same side.
I looked at the man spewing nonsense with cold, dead eyes. But before I could even open my mouth, an unpleasant voice burst out from beside me.
“Am I invisible, Marquis Blair?” Dandelion asked with a stern face, as if speaking on behalf of Veronica, who couldn’t say anything to her older relative.
“Ah, my apologies. Your Majesty.”
“…”
But anyone could tell it was a perfunctory apology, not what you would expect when addressing the emperor.
‘Marquis Blair.’
It was a name I’d never heard before, a person not worth remembering. And to have Winston’s blood but be so hostile to Veronica and me. He couldn’t possibly be on the Empress Dowager’s side, could he? I looked up at Marquis Blair, who looked just like Winston but with a suspicious expression.
‘Hmm?’
But upon closer inspection, I felt a strange sensation from him. It was the same feeling of déjà vu I had when I first met Abel. As I wondered what it was, I saw a broach with a fancy ornament on the Marquis’s chest.
‘Oh-ho.’
It was the fourth jewel demon I had found. The pitch-black gem, which seemed to let no light in, looked radiant. A gem that was just pure black, unlike the slightly striped onyx. It was obsidian.
‘His name was… Ilness, wasn’t it?’
My memory seemed to be getting worse since I was possessed by this child’s body, but thankfully, I remembered the details from the novel relatively clearly.
It was a good thing, regardless. Even though they had a bad relationship, this person had inherited the black gem that the retainers kept because he was a close relative.
“Tsk, anyway, Veronica. I’ve told you before, haven’t I? Don’t make such a fuss over a child. It’s an embarrassment to the family to bother the High Priest over something so trivial.”
“…”
“So what if she’s a little sick? It’s not like she’s going to die. Please stop it. Don’t you know what people are saying about you?”
“I don’t.”
“Tsk, tsk, that’s why you were dumped by Marquis Lionel. You’ve always had such a stubborn personality…”
“…”
Wow, this was a person who just spouted nonsense from start to finish. I was just letting his words go in one ear and out the other, lest I rot from listening to him any longer, when I heard a grinding sound next to me. Dandelion seemed to be truly angry. Marquis Blair was going to be in big trouble. Well, it had nothing to do with me. I put on a bored expression and called the demons.
‘Demon, Vivi.’
[M-master.]
[Master…]
‘Are you two feeling better now?’
[Ugh, I’m sorry.]
[I’m so sorry…]
As we got a little further away from the center of the temple, Desmond and Vivi finally came to their senses. They were too embarrassed to show their usual high spirits, having been so weak unlike the unaffected Dolens. I continued calmly.
‘I’ll forgive you, so go steal that guy’s gem.’
[Oh, it’s Ilness. How many years has it been?]
[He was alive after all!]
‘…’
‘He was alive after all?’ The demons’ reactions seemed a little strange.
I had a bad feeling about it, but I didn’t pay much attention. I hid a sly smile and said, ‘Steal it as soon as he leaves.’
[Got it!]
[Leave it to me!]
Just in time, Marquis Blair’s nonsense was coming to an end.
“I will handle it myself, Uncle.”
“You’ve never listened to your elders…”
“I said I will handle it myself, Uncle.”
“Ahem.”
Veronica’s low voice echoed faintly. Marquis Blair, who had been looking down on Veronica as a relative, coughed awkwardly and turned away at her cold glare.
“Princess, let’s go.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.” Dandelion naturally put his hand on Veronica’s shoulder and said.
Perhaps because she was so angry at Marquis Blair, Veronica didn’t pay him any mind and walked forward.
[I got the gem!]
[Hehe, I swapped it with a pebble perfectly!]
‘You both did a good job.’
I had successfully obtained the fourth jewel demon. With a triumphant expression, I got into the carriage to return to the mansion.
“Dia! My baby!”
“…”
As soon as we arrived at the mansion, Duke Winston made a huge fuss, hugging me. I heard that at the temple, they had specifically requested only Veronica and me to come. They must have thought that if all the direct descendants of Winston went, it would be too much of a burden.
‘Besides, the High Priest was wary of the jewel demons, which were now just a name.’
Diandre had said it was a joke, but if I hadn’t acted like an innocent child back then, I might have been discovered. Children can’t lie, after all. It seemed Diandre thought he could find out if Winston was involved with the demons through me.
‘That snake of a man.’
He probably wouldn’t even guess that an adult like me was possessed by a child’s body. I snorted and looked at the Winston direct descendants, who were making a fuss again today, with a bored expression.
“This won’t do. I’ll have Dia sleep in my room for a while.”
“What?”
Duke Winston said in a serious voice. The surroundings became noisy with murmurs.
“What are you saying, Father? No matter if you’re her father, having Dia sleep in a man’s room…”
“How can I leave the child alone after what happened?”
“That’s true, but…”
Duke Winston and Vincent argued. Veronica, who had been listening quietly, spoke up.
“Of course, Dia should sleep in my room.”
“But if something happens to you too…”
“I’m not so careless.”
“Hmm…”
The glint in Veronica’s eyes was a little scary. The duke seemed to feel her spirit and was momentarily speechless.
“Is this issue settled then? And since His Majesty has arrived, you should go greet him.”
“Ah, right. My apologies, Your Majesty.”
“No, it was a big matter, so I understand.”
Unlike Marquis Blair’s rudeness, Dandelion shook his head with a rather pleased expression.
“Thank you for your understanding, Your Majesty. Please come this way.”
“Thank you.”
Dandelion went straight into Duke Winston’s office, not the reception room. It seemed they had something important to talk about.
“Dia, are you sleepy?”
“No, I’m not.”
“Then shall we read a picture book, Mom?”
“Su…” I was about to say sure, but then I heard Dolens’ voice.
[I’ve brought the child.]
‘Really? Where is he?’
[For now, I’ve put him in a room here with no one around.]
‘Hmm.’
The fact that Dandelion was here made it easier for Dolens to move around. I nodded my head in satisfaction. And then I changed my words to Veronica.
“Mom, I’m sleepy.”
“Oh, are you?”
“Yes.”
“Then let’s go to bed.”
Veronica, who easily believed me, went to the room. It was Veronica’s room, not the room I always slept in. It seemed I would be staying with Veronica from now on.
‘You two, don’t get caught until I get back.’
[Got it.]
[Yes!]
Thankfully, the demons didn’t talk back to me, perhaps because of what happened at the temple. With the help of Desmond, Vivi, and Dolens, I slipped out of the bedroom where I was pretending to sleep and headed to where Nathaniel was.
[He’s here.]
“Hmm.”
The shabby room looked like the servants’ quarters. But no one seemed to be using it now; it was dusty and smelled musty. No one would come to a place like this. Just in case, I asked Dolens to stand guard and approached Nathaniel.
“Wow…”
“…”
When I finally saw Nathaniel in person, I was so amazed that I involuntarily let out a gasp. The faint sunlight streaming in from the window shone on Nathaniel’s translucent white hair. Cedric also had similar silver hair, but this was different. It was pure white, as if all color had been bleached out. I stared at him for a long time, captivated. Then I suddenly realized I didn’t have time for this and shook my head.
“Um, hello?”
“…”
“Hello, Nathaniel?”
He didn’t move at all when I called his name, so I gently nudged his shoulder. But still, Nathaniel didn’t budge.
What’s wrong with him?
As I was feeling perplexed, I heard Dolens’ voice.
