IBYVS 27

Chapter 27

I covered my mouth with a napkin and almost jumped out of my seat as I asked back in shock.

“Cough, what? Cough, Marinest, cough, kid—kidnapped?!”

I even started choking and coughing, and Cedric quickly handed me a glass of water.

“Yes. Kidnapped. But do you know Lady Marinest? Why are you so shaken…?”

Ah, right. I’d lied that I lost my memory.

I was so shocked I forgot.

Phew, I need to stay on guard.

I waved my hand while drinking the water.

“No, it’s just… anyone would be shocked hearing about a kidnapping.”

Cedric only nodded quietly at my words.

“But why does that concern you?”

Kaliv turned to Edwin with a puzzled look.

As if wondering why Cedric had to confirm a kidnapping involving Lady Daphne of House Marinest.

Edwin explained.

“All the major families received an official request for cooperation. But we did not.”

“Isn’t that because Indigentia’s ‘family magic’ isn’t suitable for search and tracking?”

In this world, there was something called “family magic.”

Family magic was, as the name implied, a unique form of magic that only members of a particular house could use.

This magic was traditionally handed down only from head to successor, preserving the lineage.

The gravity magic that Cedric and Kaliv used was exactly this family magic.

And the Marinest family, the heroine’s family, specialized in water magic as their family magic.

But after Daphne’s regression, instead of water magic, she inherited the Imperial family’s “Mirror Shield Magic.”

I said,

“Gravity magic uses the forces of attraction and centrifugal force, right?”

For example, you could nullify a person’s gravity and make them float in a weightless state, like drifting in space.

Conversely, you could increase gravity so that it crushed their whole body, like the force pressing down when a plane takes off.

It was said that great magicians could even apply this magic to slow down time itself.

The novel had described it as a higher version of telekinesis.

“So it’s excellent for offense and defense, but doesn’t it make sense it wouldn’t be suited for search or tracking? Not compared to other families’ magic.”

I’d heard that there were families that could transform into dogs or use psychometry to do detective work.

As far as I knew, people in general were aware of family magic and its characteristics.

It was the very symbol of a house, after all.

That’s why, when Jeril was dismissed and a new etiquette teacher was assigned, the very first lesson was about family magic.

Edwin replied to my words,

“Yes, that’s correct. However, even families without remarkable magical ability still received cooperation requests.”

“Meishalatz?”

Kaliv asked, and Edwin nodded.

“Uh…”

I faltered for a moment.

The Body of Meishalatz, the Water of Marinest, the Gravity of Indigentia.

According to the original novel, these three families were considered the Empire’s representative houses.

And only these three houses were allowed entry into the Imperial exclusive “Sanctuary of Knowledge.”

The Sanctuary of Knowledge contained all the world’s wisdom.

It was said that if one sought it out, they could even obtain secret information about other families.

Because of that, the three families maintained a façade of neutrality while secretly checking each other’s power.

“So Marinest sent a request for cooperation to Meishalatz, but ignored Indigentia…”

Kaliv, who had just been acting childish, muttered coldly.

“They’re not… trying to join hands, are they?”

He looked at Cedric as he asked.

“Who knows.”

Cedric answered as he stared at the table with his calm hydrangea-blue eyes.

The magic of House Indigentia was classified as a powerful form of ancient magic.

And Cedric, who wielded it, was so strong that even the Imperial family dared not touch him lightly.

But if two houses deliberately teamed up against him… things could get troublesome.

“What will you do, Brother?”

“For now, we need to confirm things, just in case.”

“Confirm?”

“Yes. Remember what Elia once told you? Parents would do anything for their child. Even if it means bowing their heads to a house they dislike. That’s what parents do.”

Kaliv nodded silently at Cedric’s words.

“But the relationship between Marinest and Indigentia isn’t that bad. Even if I was cursed while the young lady was protecting the Crown Prince.”

It was an unfortunate accident that happened while protecting the Crown Prince, so no compensation could be demanded.

Kaliv seemed to recall this, and frowned unpleasantly.

Regardless of circumstances, since he loved Cedric dearly, it was distasteful to him.

“Yet they still didn’t reach out to Indigentia… despite the fact that ability-wise, Indigentia is far superior.”

Cedric’s lips twisted into a crooked smile.

Though called the “Body of Meishalatz,” that wasn’t actually a magical power.

It was just a name given because of their naturally superior physical strength.

In short, it couldn’t compare to gravity magic.

And among the three great families, their power was the weakest.

Kaliv asked,

“Hmm… Do you think the Duke of Marinest is hiding something from us?”

“Yeah. The Duke must know that asking for our help would be more beneficial.”

Given the wealth and power of the two houses, Indigentia should have been the first to be asked for cooperation.

Even if their magic wasn’t suited to searching, they could at least provide manpower.

“Yet the fact that they didn’t request it is definitely suspicious.”

“I’ve heard the Duke of Marinest cherishes his daughter greatly.”

“Of course. Now that she’s awakened the Mirror Shield Magic, he has every reason to.”

Cedric’s reply to Kaliv’s words was laced with mockery.

It was only natural that Duke Calvados of Marinest cherished Daphne.

This world was a parenting-type romance-fantasy, after all.

If Daphne had been kidnapped, now was hardly the time to be picky.

He’d want to borrow even a cat’s paw to help. So why wasn’t the Duke…?

Hmm, questions drifted in my head.

Even in the face of his child’s kidnapping, was there really something preventing him from reaching out?

I hesitated for a moment, then spoke.

“Then shouldn’t we volunteer to help?”

“Yes, that would make it easier to see what’s really going on.”

At Cedric’s answer, I let out a quiet sigh of relief inside.

Even if Cedric had refused, I would’ve had to persuade him.

Because the fact that the heroine had been kidnapped meant things were aligning with the original story!

After deflecting the curse, the evil fairy kidnapped Daphne.

“How dare you block my curse? Unforgivable!”

And during that process, the evil fairy—who was the only one able to lift the curse—died, and Kaliv fell into darkness.

The current situation was eerily similar to the original flow of events.

But I could swear—I wasn’t the kidnapper.

I felt the tips of my fingers turn cold.

Wait… could it be… that I wasn’t Elia?

What if it was just a case of a same name or similar appearance, and I wasn’t the “evil fairy” at all?

Then… wouldn’t that mean I wouldn’t be able to lift Cedric’s curse either?

No, no.

That couldn’t be right. Cedric’s actions didn’t add up if that were the case.

Despite losing his sense of smell, he could still recognize my scent. Despite losing his taste, he could taste my cooking.

And as far as I knew, in <Not Yet> the only character with crimson hair and pink gemstone eyes was Elia.

That was why I’d immediately assumed I was the evil fairy.

Yeah. I shouldn’t jump to conclusions. No need to worry yet.

First, I needed to confirm whether Daphne’s kidnapper really was the evil fairy.

If it wasn’t, then this time it would be undeniable proof that I truly was Elia, the evil fairy.

Cedric said,

“We should head to the capital first.”

“Yes, agreed.”

Kaliv nodded, then told someone to fetch their coats.

I also followed the brothers, preparing to depart for the capital.

From their perspective, there was no reason for me to tag along.

But being left alone in the castle without them was dangerous.

Especially since Marquis Babylon’s self-imposed house arrest had ended.

And besides, the contract required me to always be accompanied by one of the two brothers.

The sudden trip to the capital was prepared immediately.

We would use a teleport portal instead of a carriage.

And since we had a townhouse in the capital, there was no concern even if we had to stay several days.

As I followed them, I recalled the original story.

Now that I thought about it, something was strange.

In the original novel, the evil fairy had cursed Lenoir when she was sixteen.

So why, after Daphne’s regression, had the curse been placed when she was only six?

Why had it been advanced by ten whole years?

Even though I’d read all the side stories, I couldn’t remember the explanation.

Perhaps it was a plot hole that the original never resolved.

But for some reason, I felt I needed to uncover this error.

Even though Daphne’s kidnapping was the more urgent matter.

Before long, the space around us turned white as the teleportation spell activated, carrying us straight to the capital.