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Chapter 25
As he was lost in thought, Abelus suddenly realized he was smiling again—and was startled.
He had never felt emotions like this just by thinking of someone.
No, saying he had never felt it in his life would be a lie. Back in his distant childhood—when there was someone worth remembering—there had been times like this.
But now, all those feelings had long since faded, and only a faint awareness that such emotions had once existed remained.
‘Was it similar?’
He stopped for a moment and stared at the plum in his hand.
Of all things, it was a vibrant reddish-orange, reminiscent of her hair.
‘Seeing something like this must be why I’m having useless thoughts.’
I should just give it to her and leave. Repeating that to himself, Abelus began walking again.
“Where’s Calidora?”
He stopped a maid near the front entrance who was carrying some clothes.
“Oh my goodness, young master!”
The maid, who had already felt sorry for the girl playing alone, was overjoyed that he was the one asking about Calidora.
“The young lady is in the courtyard! She’ll be so happy if you go play with her.”
“She’s in the courtyard? I don’t see her.”
There was no one where the maid had pointed.
“Huh? Where did she go?”
Abelus walked into the courtyard himself.
Maybe she was hiding in the bushes, he thought—but then he saw it.
‘This is…!’
The large rock Calidora often sat on was scorched black.
‘That’s not a power she should be capable of using.’
His heart sank.
“Calidora!”
Where in the world had she gone?
‘W-What is going on…?’
“I didn’t think you’d really bring her. Impressive, Nonus.”
“You just dump annoying tasks on me.”
I trembled under the stares of the people watching me with curiosity.
‘What is happening? Where am I now?!’
I had just delivered some fruit to Lord Abelus and was resting in the garden when my body suddenly floated up—and then I lost consciousness.
When I opened my eyes, I was in a strange room, sitting on a chair I’d never seen before.
“So, what are we supposed to do now?”
I immediately recognized the man who spoke while tearing spell scrolls labeled “Soundproof” and “Dark Room.”
It was the same man who had spoken to Ankus the day I wandered around the annex—Nonus, the eldest son of the Erasinus family.
‘Which means…!’
Everyone in this room belonged to the Erasinus faction.
From the way they fawned over Nonus, the others seemed to be lower-ranking relatives and slaves.
I looked around. The structure and furniture of the room were unfamiliar. Since I knew every corner of the main residence, this must be a room in the annex.
“What are you staring at, you insolent brat?”
Nonus, catching my eye, suddenly exploded in anger.
He was large and brutish-looking—his anger instantly intimidated me.
But there was no reason I, the rightful heir, should bow to a pointless bully.
I chose to stand my ground.
“Anyone can look.”
“What?!”
Nonus flinched, and laughter erupted around us.
“You ill-mannered little—!”
“I’m not ill-mannered! You’re the rude one who brought me here without permission!”
“Shut your mouth!”
Nonus slammed the table in front of me so hard it echoed loudly.
The shock was so strong my body bounced slightly, and tears welled up from the physical fear—even if my mind wasn’t scared.
But I clenched my mouth shut and held back the tears. I’d rather die than show weakness in front of these people.
This was the Erasinus faction’s hideout deep within the annex. There was no one here who would help me.
“Pathetic little brat.”
“She needs to learn her place first.”
The others in the room merely sneered and watched from afar.
Just then, the door opened, and a group of people entered.
A woman from the Erasinus faction and her accompanying slaves.
“Nonus! I told you to bring the child, not intimidate her.”
“She was being rude, so I scolded her! If you have a problem, why don’t you deal with her yourself?”
Nonus shouted defensively.
Amid the chatter, I learned the woman’s name—Vivia Ignicia, Nonus’s younger sister and the second child of the Erasinus family.
“Young lady, would you come here?”
Vivia, who sat next to me, spoke gently. When I didn’t move, she took a green grape from a fruit bowl and offered it.
As if I’d fall for that.
“No.”
But even as I said that, my head turned on its own and my mouth took the grape.
Maybe because I was hungry, my body ignored my brain’s commands.
“Mmm…”
“See? She’s sweet and obedient when treated kindly.”
“Send me back where I came from!”
“That’s not possible. Our father wants to see you. Just wait here a little while and play with us, okay?”
Why would Erasinus want to see me? Hadn’t he openly scorned me as a criminal’s daughter?
“I don’t want to see him.”
“Now, now. Saying ‘no’ too much makes you a bad girl. Our father isn’t scary. He just wants to celebrate you becoming part of the family.”
‘What nonsense!’
He only looked for me after I drove away the child he actually cared about. If this were about something legitimate, he could’ve called me in public.
Even the Erasinus siblings didn’t seem to know why I had been summoned.
Nonus was grumbling nonstop to the young boy sitting quietly at the desk.
“What could he possibly want with some lowborn foreign child? Does Father really think that dim-looking brat could replace Skyvola?!”
Lowborn foreign child?
Even though the head of the family formally adopted me, I was still being called that?
Besides, my mother’s homeland, Hella—although divided into many city-states—was on par with our kingdom in terms of development.
Logically, a woman from such a place, formally married to someone from Ignitus, couldn’t be called lowborn.
“I’m not lowborn! I was recognized by—”
Before I could shout back, the pale-faced boy corrected Nonus first.
“But brother, she’s not lowborn. Her mother was from Pyreon…”
But Nonus didn’t even listen and instead raised his voice.
“Then shut your trap! Are you saying I’m wrong?!”
“N-No, of course not. Now that I think about it, you’re right…”
“Oh really? Are you messing with me? Why would you say something uncertain, huh? Ah, I get it. Paulus, you’re trying to humiliate me in front of everyone!”
“N-No! I wouldn’t dare do such a thing…”
The boy named Paulus broke out in a cold sweat under Nonus’s wrath.
‘Right, the Erasinus family had three children.’
I didn’t remember all the details, but I knew that much.
Nonus, who acted recklessly and was eventually eliminated by political rivals.
Vivia, who married a wealthy man as if fleeing.
And the sickly youngest son Paulus, who disappeared after refusing to serve in the Aeterna army.
But that’s all I knew.
Skaivola and Vellicus were so dominant in the history books that these three barely made an appearance.
“Lady Cassia, you haven’t been reading history books lately, have you?”
“Lord Abelus is dead… There’s no reason to anymore…”
That was… kind of the reason.
Unlike Abelus’s chronicles, which I had memorized inside out, I had only skimmed through their stories once.
‘Should’ve studied harder…’
Now, I deeply regretted it.
“You’re always like this. All you ever do is sit around and criticize others.”
“S-Sorry, brother…”
