Chapter 37
“Ung! Whump!”
“Count Orbia, know that you are alive thanks to your daughter. I won’t kill you right away, you will be given enough water and food to keep you from dying. I don’t know, but maybe you will freeze little by little.”
Chi-ik.
There was a sound of something being lit on fire, and then a stinky smoke erupted.
“I asked that child. What would you do if you met your father again? Do you know what came out of the mouth of the small and delicate child?”
“I want to learn magic and take revenge with my own hands.”
“Whomp!!”
The Count tried to move his body again, but this time he was trampled on by the Duke’s shoe and was unable to move.
“I couldn’t even guess how much you have abused the child. Did you intend to do to her what you did to her sister?
The Count trembled and shook his head.
“Womp! Uhng”
“Even the devil won’t live like you. Oh, how did I know that…?”
The Duke briefly shook the magic lantern to light the way.
“Bring the woman.”
Soon after, a knight brought Luciel’s nanny,
“…Ugh. That’s what the Count ordered me to do. I’m only guilty of taking his orders. I have only sinned by making it happen. It was all
about giving drugs, starving and abusing the child. Sniff. Now that I’ve said everything, let me go. Please?”
The nanny also sobbed in a frightened voice, perhaps because she was trapped here.
“…Stop and let her go.”
When only the two remained again, the Duke briefly released the gag.
“Do you admit your sins now?”
“I-I-It’s not me, it’s not me! Save me, sir! Yes? Well, I’ll do anything. Whatever it may be!”
“It’s noisy.”
A word from the Duke and the Count’s mouth was once again gagged.
“… Come to think of it, I think I was too generous. Lock this trash in a cage next to a monster for a while. Say your greetings to your neighbor.”
-Gruururu! Krugururur!
Eventually, the Count, who heard the cry of the monster, froze on the spot and turned, white. It was only then that he could see why Bellstein was called such a villainous family.
*
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*
Except for the dungeons, the Duke’s Castle was as peaceful as usual.
Back to class time.
“Luciel, have you done your homework well?”
“Of course.”
Luciel smiled and showed all three magic. Even after finding out the magic, she practiced triggering for two days, so the task was completed in perfection.
“Oh, you’ve done a great job. Through this project, you learned more about magic, right?”
“Yes. I can’t wait to have my wand.”
Gillard stroked Luciel’s head.
“Well, there’s no need to be in a hurry. Until your attribute manifests, it is better to learn various magic tricks using a magic wand.”
“Yes, the more you know about magic, the more interesting and fun it is.”
Gillard also had fun teaching because of Luciel’s passionate behavior.
“Okay, since you have finished your assignment, shall we go find out what you’re most curious about today?”
He winked while saying so. Today, Luciel’s eyes were always on him. Gillard was really cool when his rope flapped over his shoulder every time he moved.
“What are you curious about?”
Luciel’s crimson eyes rolled around.
“I don’t know, Grandpa. Hurry up and tell me something interesting.”
As if she couldn’t guess an interesting topic, Luciel hung on Gillard’s arm while shaking her head gently. He took a golden compass out of his jacket pocket. It seemed an unusual object, for it to glisten and flash a dazzling light when lightly rubbed with the hem of the clothes.
“Luciel, hold this tightly and gather mana.”
“This is…”
“It is a magic compass that identifies which attributes you will manifest based on the attributes in your mana. Take it.”
“Yes.”
It was so large and heavy that Luciel’s both small palms were not enough to hold it. On the outside, a dragon was engraved.
‘It’s the Bellstein coat of arms.’
Luciel struggled to open the lid, but it didn’t open. Gillard smiled and opened it for her. Inside, there were four shapes drawn in the east, west, north, and south directions.
“East means wind, west means earth, south means fire, and north means water. Dark or light attributes have a special reaction. Give it a try.”
“I can’t see it. Please let me know when I’m done.”
“Okay.”
Luciel was really nervous, so she took a deep breath and received a compass again. Then, she closed her eyes and slowly moved the mana that swung around the body to the compass.
Shik shik shik.
The compass’s golden needle began to spin. Gillard was also curious about what attributes Luciel would express, so he looked with bated breath.
Luciel slightly opened her eyes and asked.
“Are we done now?”
“No. Not yet.”
The needle didn’t mean to stop. Instead, the golden compass began to emit light. Soon, an illusion was reflected from the round light.
“No way, this is…”
“What’s wrong, Grandpa?”
“Luciel, you’d better check it out yourself. I’ve never seen such a case before.”
The round sphere gradually shone and constructed an illusion. The moon, a symbol of darkness, and the sun, a symbol of light, passed by and soon an empty circle appeared in the illusion.
“……. What attribute is this?”
Luciel carefully asked. It was also the first time Gillard had seen it. It’s neither darkness nor light, but just an empty circle.
“Luciel, your mana doesn’t seem to have any attributes.”
“… Is that possible? Then how do you do magic?”
“There is non-attribute magic, and tools such as wands and other familiar conducts are needed to use magic of other attributes.”
“Non-attribute…”
Luciel was a bit disappointed that the result she had expected throughout the whole time, was empty and non-attribute.
“Even if it’s a non-attribute, you can do magic, so cheer up.”
“Yes, it’s okay.”
In fact, Gillard seemed more disappointed than Luciel. He thought Luciel’s mana would have great potential. But his predictions would, eventually come true.
*
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*
Perhaps because it was spring, the Castle became busy with the spring festival.
“Why are there so many festivals these days?”
The Spring Flower Festival seems to have been held a few days ago, but today is the Spring Strawberry Festival. Thanks to this, I was able to taste the fresh best strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries harvested on the farm.
For the first branch of the strawberry festival, you could also enjoy Chef Seth’s ambitious strawberry buffet. The strawberry buffet was held on the lawn sponsored by Duke’s Castle, and dishes made of strawberries, ranging from appetizers to desserts, were served.
However, as expected, the most items were desserts such as cakes and juices.
The first thing Luciel reached for was strawberries with honey and whipped cream. Some of the pointed and fresh strawberries were as big as Luciel’s fist.
“Leoni, eat this.”
Luciel applied whipped cream to a particularly large king-like strawberry and gave it to Leon, and she took a bite of another. The harmony of fresh juicy strawberries and soft whipped cream was just perfect.
Luciel said after diligently chewing.
“As expected, strawberries are love.”
Then someone came out to the buffet garden and approached the two children. It was a young lady of gentle impression with violet hair.
“We prepared this for you two, so please enjoy it.”
“Are you chef Seth?”
“Yes, ma’am. Thank you for always enjoying your meal and even leaving a heartfelt note.”
“That’s a given. Each and every dish was a great happiness in my life.”
Luciel asked her if she could touch her hand, just once. She thought great dishes were born from that hand.
“Chef Seth’s hands should be protected by the country. Because they can do magic in the kitchen.”
“How can you say that in such a lovely way? Do you need more homemade strawberry candies?”
“That’s always a must.”
“I always have the ingredients ready.”
When Luciel smiled, Seth couldn’t hold back and asked.
“Little Madam, may I be excused and touch your cheek just once?”
Luciel nodded her head in a small gesture. Seth, who slightly touched the white and soft cheeks, spoke with a face that was softly melting down.
“Hehe, it’s so soft and cute. Little Madam’s cheeks look like soft pudding…..”
Leoni looked at Seth and Luciel with a somewhat condemning expression.
“You are all weird. You know that, right?…Whoa!”
“Leoni’s cheeks are soft, too.”
“Oh my, young master cheeks are also cute…”
When Luciel slightly stroked Leoni’s plump cheeks, he blinked his eyes and calmly left his cheeks to his sister’s touch.
“So soft.”
‘He looked as cute as a puppy, so Luciel patted his soft blonde hair.
“I want to touch it, too. Sister’s pudding.”
“Just a little bit.”
Watching the two children caressing each other’s cheeks, Chef Seth and the attendants ‘behind them, Rose, Bessie, Sasha and Eva also smiled.
“After the strawberries, it’s going to be a sock festival, I already want to see how much our Little Madam will love it.”
Rose whispered to Bessie as she looked at the notebook taken out of the apron pocket. As Luciel’s ears perked up, the two waved their hands at Luciel as if it was nothing, making Eva warn the two.
There were three people watching this from a higher terrace. The Duke, Gillard, and Ellington also smiled seeing the children’s happy faces from afar.
“The strawberry festival is successful.”
The Duke praised Ellington for organizing the festival.
“Thank you, sir. What should we do next?
“What would be good?”
“A giraffe that Leoni likes? Luciel’s favorite socks?”
“Both are neck to neck.”
“At this rate, it will be filled with festivals all year round.”
It was a very serious conversation among adults planning a festival for children.