Ch.156156. Meeting the Parents

“Ahem.”

The food laid out on the spacious dining table was so luxurious it wouldn’t lose in comparison to a royal banquet.

Despite being in Violein, the territory of the Bright family located relatively in the south, the dishes were made with precious ingredients like seafood from the western sea and fruits from the east.

A strange silence hung over it all.

It was understandable, if one thought about it.

This was supposed to be a meeting between the Verdi and Bright families to celebrate each other, but…

The Zeronia family had inserted themselves between them.

The Bright family wanted to expel them but had to keep quiet after hearing that Deus, who was hosting this gathering, had invited them.

The name “family meeting” had long lost its meaning. It was questionable why everyone had to endure this awkward situation together.

“Hmm, delicious.”

Of course, there were some who weren’t affected by the atmosphere.

Deia, for instance, was quite enjoying the delicacies that she couldn’t normally eat in Norsweden.

“Try some of this.”

“I can eat on my own.”

“If that were true, you wouldn’t be so skinny. Eat more.”

Sighing, Deia glanced sideways at Erika sitting across the table.

“You should have taken better care of him while you were together. He has important work to do, and I’m worried he might collapse.”

Though she said it with a smile, there was clear hostility in her words. The atmosphere grew even colder.

“If I forced him to eat, it would stress him out. I like Deus just as he is. Even if he collapses, I’ll be there to support him.”

Deia flinched slightly at the direct response. She hadn’t expected Erika to so openly express her affection for Deus.

“Erika takes good care of me regularly. There’s no need to worry.”

She had bought me dessert before, and she often brought delicacies to my research lab, concerned about my thinness but never being pushy about it.

Crunch.

I felt a weight and pain on my foot.

Glancing at Deia, who was stepping on my foot, I saw her wearing a mask-like smile.

“What?”

“…Take it easy.”

I don’t understand why she’s having this power struggle with Erika, but now isn’t the time.

I turned my gaze to the others.

Gideon from the Zeronia family and the head of the family, Giltea Zeronia, seemed eager to say something but couldn’t utter a word, feeling like unintentional intruders.

“Ahem, Lord Deus. I think it’s time you explained the reason for this gathering.”

It was Elan, the head of the Bright family and Erika’s father, who finally spoke up.

“I thought today was meant to strengthen the engagement between Erika and Lord Deus, but it seems that’s not the case.”

He glanced briefly at the Zeronia side before continuing.

“We have guests who aren’t necessary, don’t we?”

In response, Giltea, with his red hair extending like a lion’s mane, snorted and replied.

“We also have a relationship with your daughter.”

“…”

“When she came wagging her tail, saying she’d marry Gideon, you were fine with it. But now that we’re hesitating a bit, you insult us like this?”

Bang.

Giltea, overcome with emotion while speaking, stood up abruptly and glared at me.

“Let me be clear. The others in my family said this was a heaven-sent opportunity and that we should make a good impression on you, the Spiritmaster.”

“F-Father!”

Gideon tried to stop Giltea, alarmed by his sudden attempt to overturn the situation, but Giltea’s finger was already pointing at me.

“We will rise again eventually. It seems you invited us just to discipline the Bright family, but you’ll regret treating us like dogs.”

Giltea turned sharply to leave. I’d heard he had a rough personality, and it was clearly evident.

Especially his thick forearms gave the impression that the blood of a warrior ran strongly in him.

I was about to speak to stop him, but…

“What bullshit.”

Deia, who had been eating chicken, rested her chin on her hand and interjected.

Giltea’s gaze turned to her. Despite his fierce killing intent directed at her, Deia casually stabbed a piece of chicken with her fork, twirling her wrist.

“The fall of Zeronia was your own fault.”

“What did we do wrong?! We had nothing to do with the assassination attempt on His Majesty!”

“If you get too close to the sun and burn to death, is it the sun’s fault or the one who got too close?”

“You…”

“You shouldn’t have grown so big as to threaten the royal authority. You should have just staged a rebellion, you bastard.”

“Can you take responsibility for what you just said?”

Casually mentioning rebellion was quite risky, but…

Deia shrugged and replied.

“I don’t know, maybe I’m possessed by an evil spirit.”

She glanced at me, dismissing the matter lightly. She knew that such statements wouldn’t compromise our position, which showed her confidence.

“And you say you did nothing wrong? What you did to the people of Setima was quite a spectacle. What nonsense.”

“That was war and actions of our ancestors! We’ve also given up valuable land and erected a memorial for them. Aren’t the enslaved Marias people living there now?”

“If you’ve taken responsibility, then just admit it and move on. It’s disgusting to see you acting all innocent and wronged!”

“…”

“Did you really give up land and build a memorial out of genuine remorse? You just cut off a piece of yourself to beg the royal family to stop squeezing you.”

It wasn’t wrong.

That’s why Giltea couldn’t continue, and a one-sided verbal assault began.

“You came here thinking you might get something out of it, didn’t you? Hoping the Spiritmaster might show you some mercy.”

“…”

“But now that you’re here, you see the situation is going badly. So you’re trying to save face by acting like a warrior? How embarrassing! If you’re going to act like that, draw your sword and come at me!”

Deia was on a passionate tirade. Erika glanced at me, silently asking if this was really okay, but I just nodded gently.

But she must have seen that.

“Hey! You! Your sister is fighting so hard for you, and you’re making eyes at your fiancée?”

“…That’s enough. Sit down now.”

“Ugh, brothers are always such a pain.”

Deia gulped down her wine. Her actions might have seemed rude, but…

Were the people here aware of how calculated she actually was?

Deia and I had already coordinated before entering the banquet hall.

In this uncomfortable situation where everyone was at odds…

It was obvious that the side with nothing to lose would be the first to leave the table.

To see how far each family could endure, where their limits were, Deia had gone on the offensive emotionally.

Due to my position, I couldn’t check this myself, so Deia sacrificed her image to forcibly reveal their hand for me.

Thanks to her, I was certain.

The Bright family showed no signs of backing down.

And the Zeronia family…

“Please sit down. I will caution Deia.”

At my words, Giltea cleared his throat awkwardly and sat back down.

In the end, his aggressive stance was just a power play, a declaration that they wouldn’t be easily manipulated by us.

But when Deia came on stronger, their hand was completely exposed.

We started from an advantageous position, but Deia had still won this psychological battle.

“The reason I’ve called you all here is simple.”

Everyone focused and listened to my words. If Deia had used the stick, it was my turn to offer the carrot.

“I want to give you an opportunity to contribute to the kingdom.”

It would sound like I was planning to use them, which was true, but both families’ expressions brightened slightly.

In times like these, when royal authority was soaring, serving the royal family and joining the royalist faction meant benefiting from the crumbs that fell.

“It will be a proposal you won’t find disagreeable.”

* * *

The meeting, under the guise of a family gathering, lasted until late evening, but since no conclusion had been reached, they decided to continue the next day.

It was a tactical timeout.

The eldest and second sons of the Bright family immediately headed to their father Elan’s office.

As soon as they entered, the eldest son, Elia, spoke.

“The Spiritmaster’s proposal isn’t bad. But it’s disappointing.”

The opportunity to maintain good relations with the royal family was good, but the engagement with Erika seemed effectively broken.

The Zeronia family might be happy to have a chance to curry favor with the royal family, but for the Bright family, who wanted to strengthen their ties through marriage, it was not the best outcome.

Not the best, but a second-best option.

“That stupid Erika was clearly already on the Spiritmaster’s side.”

At Elia’s words, the family head Elan sighed deeply in disappointment, but…

The second son, Edwon, interjected with a confident smile.

“Then let’s go in a different direction.”

“Hmm?”

“Do you have some kind of plan?”

Under the gaze of his father and brother, Edwon confidently pounded his chest.

“I will marry Deia Verdi.”

“…Is that possible?”

Having witnessed Deia’s temperament and intelligence firsthand, the two looked at him doubtfully.

But Edwon responded with a fresh smile.

“Deia Verdi kept glancing at me throughout. I counted over ten times our eyes met.”

At his words, the two saw an unexpected possibility.

Edwon was particularly handsome even within the Bright family. True, he had quite a colorful history with women, but that might actually be an advantage in skillfully wooing Deia.

“Well, she’s quite attractive, so I’m interested too. Since Erika failed, I’ll take on that responsibility.”

Though he spoke this way, Edwon was genuinely attracted to Deia’s appearance.

“From what I’ve seen, she’s quite an emotional woman. If I create a few natural, fateful situations, my charm will be more than enough.”

Edwon was convinced that Deia had feelings for him, given how many times their eyes had met.

* * *

The next morning.

The meeting, under the guise of a family gathering, was scheduled for the evening, so there was time to move around freely.

Deia sat on a bench in the Bright family’s garden, arms crossed and legs crossed, looking bored.

Beyond, Deus and Erika were spending time looking at the flower bed, which irritated her.

‘Why is that idiot doing unnecessary things?’

He wasn’t going to marry Erika anyway, so why spend time with her?

The family had gathered after a long time, so wouldn’t it be nice to have a family conversation?

Isn’t the current family more important than a potential future one?

‘Though she’s not even a potential one.’

Sighing deeply, Deia continued to glare at the two until she noticed someone approaching from the side.

The second son of the Bright family, Edwon Brilliant, was standing there with a bright smile, holding a flower.

“You seemed to like the family’s flowers, so I picked one for you.”

“…Ah, yes.”

Deia tried to maintain her expression while examining Edwon.

The bright smile revealing his teeth.

‘Ah, he finally got it out.’

Deia had been staring at Edwon because food had been stuck in his teeth yesterday, which had bothered her so much she’d wanted to pull his teeth out. Fortunately, it wasn’t still there today.

“Would you spend some time with me?”

‘What’s with this guy?’

She wondered why he was suddenly hitting on her.

‘Hah, does he think I’m easy?’

In an instant, Deia clearly saw what the Bright family was trying to do, and she almost snorted in derision.

She wanted to ask if his brain needed ventilation, maybe in the form of a bullet hole, but…

Looking at Deus and Erika in the distance, she felt a surge of spite.

“Follow me.”

Deia stood up abruptly and walked straight toward the two.