Chapter 16

Chapter 16: I Stole Yooju's First Love

Mother led me to the room.

The room, which had been locked for quite some time, remained as it was when Mother used it.

I felt a pang in my heart, sensing Father's love.

‘It might be a bit burdensome for them if I say I wish they could live together.’

If I said it, she would surely listen, but I didn’t want to get the family I desired at such a cost.

On the coffee table was the lavender tea Mother often drank.

“Sit down, would you like a cup?”

“Yes, please give me a cup.”

After serving me tea, Mother began to examine the bracelet seriously.

“I can feel some unique power.”

“Really?”

The stone seemed to contain a slight amount of magic, emitting a warm aura.

Mother's expression, as she observed the bracelet, was not good.

“Who gave this to you?”

“Daniel.”

“That rascal?”

“Haha.”

Mother frowned and muttered.

Putting down the bracelet, she sighed deeply and asked me.

“It looks like it’s made by combining seasonal stones and magic stones.”

“Seasonal stones?”

Seasonal stones, the higher grade of magic stones, were extremely rare.

While magic stones contained magic power, seasonal stones generated magic power.

Because they were so rare, they were hard to find, and research materials were even scarcer.

To think of attaching a magic stone to a seasonal stone.

Either the person was so rich that money grew on trees, or they were crazy.

“What’s the purpose of this?”

“Um, it seems to be for seeing people’s hearts… but only for a few specific people…”

Explaining the concept of a favorability system to Mother was quite difficult.

But as the head of the Magic Tower, she quickly understood what I was trying to say.

“What a strange thing to make. Who would create such a useless thing? It couldn’t have been that dimwit.”

“It’s an old story, and I don’t remember it well. I just remember buying it from a magician… So I thought you might know. There are many people who make such things in the Magic Tower.”

Mother frowned at the mention of the Magic Tower.

The Magic Tower was full of people obsessed with magic. Sometimes, even Raymond seemed normal in comparison.

Mother believed the Magic Tower was created to monitor each other to prevent those deeply immersed in their own worlds from causing trouble.

“I’ll look into it. I have a rough idea of who might have made it, and the conference is coming up, so he’ll probably show up.”

Mother said this and put the bracelet in her pocket.

After a moment of silence, she looked at me with a worried face.

“How are you doing?”

“How am I doing?”

“About Wilhelm, that rascal, and the engagement break-up.”

Though it was over, Mother seemed quite worried. Feeling grateful, I smiled.

“What can I do? I don’t like him.”

“The Emperor? How did you meet him?”

Faced with Mother’s questioning, I hesitated.

I couldn’t tell her that I proposed to him out of anger to get revenge on Tatiana.

“Um, well, it just happened.”

I averted my gaze to avoid her suspicious look.

“You’ve never caused trouble before, so it’s okay to do it once.”

“Really?”

“Karin, you’ve been too well-behaved. Hmph, this way, hmpf, that way.”

“Have I ever been like that?”

I blushed with embarrassment.

Mother laughed at my reaction and patted my head.

“Mind your own business. Leave Wilhelm to me.”

Despite her confident attitude, I couldn’t say she was the most reassuring.

* * *

The Hunt Marquessate was noisy from morning.

No less than the Duke and Duchess of Pionea, or rather, the Duke and the former Duchess, had come.

The delay in Wilhelm and Karina’s engagement break-up had turned into a bigger boomerang with the former Duchess’s involvement.

The Hunt Marquess and his wife received them, rolling their eyes.

“Thank you for coming so early in the morning, Your Grace, Head of the Magic Tower.”

The Marquess, who seemed to have lost his mind, was replaced by his wife.

It was absurd to have to resolve the mess their well-raised son had caused.

“Did you expect us to come because of your lack of effort?”

The Duke, known for his good nature, mocked, and the Marquessess closed her mouth. The Duke’s face was far from normal.

One cheek was swollen as if he had been hit, and the Marquess and his wife knew who had done it without being told.

“We know why you’re here, Your Graces.”

The former Duchess, or rather, the Head of the Magic Tower, elegantly lifted her teacup.

“Yes, it’s probably about the engagement break-up. But Wilhelm has reflected a lot since that day. It was a mistake, and he has already apologized to the Lady.”

“Apologized….”

The Duke openly mocked them.

They seemed unaware of what Wilhelm had done at the Duke’s residence.

“First, bring Wilhelm. I want to ask him directly and hear his explanation. He told my daughter that he wanted to be the mistress of the Grand Duchess, so at least I need to hear his explanation.”

The Marquess called a servant to fetch Wilhelm. Wilhelm, who had been training to clear his mind in the practice yard, hurriedly washed up and entered the reception room.

“Called… It’s been a while, Your Grace, Head of the Magic Tower.”

Wilhelm, seeing the two people sitting in the reception room, realized what was happening.

He clenched his fists tightly, trying to keep his expression neutral.

“So, you seem to be doing well, Wilhelm.”

“Thanks to your concern, Your Grace.”

“I didn’t do enough to worry about you, so you haven’t been doing well. You know why, right?”

Wilhelm closed his mouth at the Duke’s uncharacteristic mockery.

The Marquess gestured for him to come closer.

“Didn’t you go to apologize to the Lady recently? I think you must have heard her answer.”

Karina had strongly wanted the engagement to be broken, but he had to pretend he didn’t know.

“She said she wants the engagement to be broken. But it was a mistake, and I have no intention of breaking the engagement with the Lady.”

The Marquess and his wife cheered inwardly at Wilhelm’s firm tone.

Finally, their son had come to his senses!

If he changed his mind, the Lady would surely accept him.

“Then, Wilhelm, is it a lie that you said you wanted to be the mistress of the Grand Duchess?”

Freyja’s question put Wilhelm in a dilemma.

He couldn’t abandon honesty, the most important virtue of a knight.

But love was also one of the most important virtues of a knight.

Wilhelm tried to hide his trembling voice as he spoke.

“Of course, it is.”

“That’s what he says, Your Grace. We have no intention of breaking the engagement with the Lady. Please reconsider.”

The Duke was angry at his answer. It was as if he was blaming Karina for all the wrongs!

“How dare you lie? You came to my house and said all sorts of nasty things to my daughter about following the Grand Duchess and being negative!”

“I never said such things.”

The reception room instantly turned cold with the murderous aura of the two powerful men.

Seeing the trembling Marquess and his wife, Freyja spoke.

“It’s easy to tell who is lying. I wouldn’t be the Head of the Magic Tower for nothing.”

Her words made his mind go blank.

He had completely forgotten that Freyja was a magician.

If his coercion of Karina was revealed, he might lose his position as the head of the knight order and his parents’ favor.

He had used violence against a lady and even framed her for a crime.

Wilhelm realized how absurd his actions had been.

It was the first lie he had ever told, and it was a crucial and fatal one.

“There’s a magic that can replay the memory of a place, so we can determine who is telling the truth.”

Freyja stroked her chin regretfully and continued.

“Of course, it would be better if the memory from the cafe remained, but it’s been over a month, so it’s unlikely.”

Freyja looked at the flustered Wilhelm and suggested.

“So, if you don’t mind, why don’t we all go to the Duke’s residence to check the memory?”

“Agreed! Let’s go to the Duke’s residence right away.”

Before Wilhelm could answer, the Marquess agreed first.

The Marquess and his wife knew Wilhelm well.

This straightforward and simple-minded man would never lie.

That’s why he boldly went to the Lady and proposed to be her mistress.

So, his claim that he had apologized and sought forgiveness must be true.

“Understood. There’s no need to call a carriage.”

Freyja raised her hand and teleported them all in one go.