Ch.94Adelia (1)

If someone were to ask who has the closest yet most complicated relationship in the world, I would answer without a moment’s hesitation: blood relations.

Blood relations, as the term suggests, are ties that cannot be severed, bound by blood. Yet ironically, they can become worse than relationships with strangers.

The word “impiety” reminds us that even among family members, there are virtues and responsibilities to uphold. Breaking these makes one unfilial and commits a grave sin as a human being.

Unfortunately, countless people in this world abandon their familial responsibilities. This is especially prominent in medieval society, characterized by class systems and a vague concept of human rights.

Abandoning illegitimate children is commonplace, and cases of family members fighting each other to the death for succession rights are not uncommon.

Throughout history, people have tried to avoid conflicts between blood relations, but when blinded by greed, blood ties mean nothing.

Thus, blood relations can become worse than strangers, even objects of hatred, and sadly, in such situations, lingering attachment often remains.

‘I had my suspicions, but…’

I looked at Adelia’s face, which had moved beyond tension to anxiety. Not only were her sky-blue eyes trembling, but her lips were quivering aimlessly as well.

Seeing her cold sweat, anyone could notice she was suffering from severe anxiety. Considering Adel’s usually carefree personality, this seemed like a completely different person.

The reason for her trembling was the three nobles facing us—the royal family of the Kingdom of Teres attending the exhibition.

With sky-blue eyes and even sky-blue hair, they evoked the image of a blue sky, naturally exuding the dignity unique to royalty.

“Red hair… a child of House Mayshall?”

When the awkward standoff continued and no one spoke, the man muttered first.

He didn’t speak quietly but loud enough for me to hear, giving me an opportunity to speak. I gently released Adelia’s hand that I had been holding.

Of course, I didn’t forget to check her condition while letting go. She seemed to want to say something but kept opening and closing her mouth repeatedly.

This made it clear that there was a complicated history between her and the Teres royalty.

“Excuse me for a moment. I am Issac Dukar Mayshall, second son of House Mayshall, which is hosting this exhibition. It’s an honor to meet the sky of the Kingdom of Teres.”

“Hmm. I am Laos Ducard von Curtures, the rightful heir to the Kingdom of Teres.”

When I politely greeted him according to protocol, the man introduced himself in a monotone voice. Even while introducing himself, his gaze remained fixed on Adelia.

Then the woman beside Laos introduced herself in a characteristically low voice, rather curtly.

“Hyria Ducard von Curtures. Lara.”

She called the name of the girl whose shoulder she was holding.

At Hyria’s call, the girl opened her eyes wide and hurriedly responded.

“Ah, yes! Nice to meet you. I am Lara Ducard von Curtures, the third princess of the Kingdom of Teres.”

The doll-like girl with adorable features politely greeted us, slightly lifting the edges of her dress.

Her clear voice and cute appearance nearly overwhelmed my heart, but I was more concerned about her etiquette.

As a royal from another country, Lara didn’t need to be so polite. Like Laos and Hyria, she could have simply stated her name.

Hyria seemed to know this, as her eye twitched, but she eventually responded by closing her eyes tightly. It seemed Lara had made such mistakes more than once.

“You said your name was Issac? For a hastily organized exhibition, the structure is quite well put together.”

After all introductions were complete, Laos approached me and spoke in a friendly manner. Even as he approached, he continued to glance at Adelia.

I was slightly startled by his sudden approach but answered somewhat awkwardly.

I wasn’t particularly bothered by his informal speech, as he was royalty. Royalty only use formal speech to nobles of other countries in official settings.

This exhibition was more of a festival than an official event, so speaking informally wouldn’t cause any diplomatic loss.

“Thank you. Actually, the imperial palace provided all the support, so our family didn’t do anything.”

“You’re honest. I suppose you’re half a tourist too?”

“Not half—I’m just a tourist.”

“Despite your blunt tone, you have wit.”

“I’ll gladly accept that as a compliment.”

“Hahaha. Good, good. But…”

Laos laughed heartily at my response, then subtly shifted his gaze to Adelia.

She now seemed unable to even meet his eyes, lowering her head and saying nothing.

Due to her short hair, her expression was fully visible, and it hadn’t changed much from before.

Hesitation, fear, worry, tension—all sorts of complex emotions were mixed together, making it impossible to define precisely, and cold sweat was pouring down like rain.

Just looking at her, I could tell her condition was beyond bad—it was serious.

After staring at Adelia for a while, Laos seemed to have an amusing thought and smiled mischievously at me.

His smile was identical to the one Adelia used to make, proving their family connection.

“Sorry to ask when we’ve just met, but what’s your relationship with this woman? I saw you holding hands earlier… perhaps?”

“No. She’s just a close senior to me.”

“You seemed quite affectionate for that, holding hands and all.”

“We’re not that kind of relationship.”

I could draw a clear line because it was truly not that kind of relationship. I had held Adelia’s hand only because her condition seemed concerning.

“Hmm… is that so?”

Laos stared into my eyes after hearing my firm answer, then shrugged. I wasn’t sure if he believed me or was just letting it go, but it seemed there would be no harm to me.

“Alright. So you’re saying you have no relationship?”

“Yes. By the way, may I ask what your relationship is with Senior Adel?”

“That…”

At my question, Adelia raised her head in surprise. She began looking back and forth between Laos and me with trembling eyes.

She seemed to want to say something but couldn’t, repeatedly opening and closing her lips as if her throat was blocked. It was heartbreaking to watch. What could have happened between them to make Adelia react this way?

“…You ask what our relationship is?”

It seems my question wasn’t good for Laos either. As soon as I asked, he erased his friendly smile and immediately became serious.

His expression suggested that he found even being associated with her unpleasant, extremely so. For a moment, I felt I had stepped on a landmine, given his very negative expression.

As I was inwardly sensing something was wrong, Laos turned his head with that unpleasant expression to look at Adelia. Coincidentally, Adelia had also turned her head toward us, and their eyes met directly.

“… …”

Face-to-face with Laos, Adelia froze like a mouse before a cat. Even her previously quivering lips were now tightly sealed, with only cold sweat streaming down.

I worried she might faint at this rate. While I was thinking this:

“…We have no relationship.”

Laos turned away from Adelia and answered me. His unpleasant expression had completely vanished, leaving only a mischievous smile.

Unlike Laos, however, Adelia’s expression… “devastated” would be an understatement. Her heart seemed to have dropped with a thud, her complexion turned pale, and the focus in her eyes began to fade.

This alone would have been enough, but Laos’s cruel words didn’t end there. He continued to act nonchalantly despite Adelia standing right beside us.

“I don’t know what you’re thinking, but neither I nor we know this woman. In fact, we’re seeing her for the first time today.”

“… …”

“She seems to be a commoner, so be careful who you associate with. Although you’re an imperial noble, I rather like you.”

“…I understand.”

Who would dare express refusal before royalty? Laos nodded with satisfaction at my affirmative response, then looked at Adelia.

Although Adelia’s focus had completely disappeared, Laos didn’t stop pouring out his venom toward her.

“You should know your place. Shouldn’t you?”

“… …”

Perhaps due to this, Adelia’s focus returned.

But then something astonishing unfolded before my eyes.

“Ugh… hic…”

As if all the emotions buried in her chest erupted at once, tears welled up in her sky-blue eyes.

She was biting her lip hard, seemingly trying to hold back, but she had already crossed her limit and couldn’t control her emotions.

There’s nothing more shocking in this world than being denied by your family. She was openly denied by her family, and in front of me no less, so the shock must have been immeasurable.

I slowly reached out to Adelia, who seemed about to explode. It was an action born from a desire to somehow calm her, but…

Tap tap!

“Huh? Senior Adel!”

Before my hand could reach her, Adelia was quicker to flee. I hurriedly called after her rapidly retreating figure, but she had no intention of stopping.

Despite the crowd gathered around, she pushed through everyone and escaped. Because of this, her figure disappeared in the blink of an eye.

“This is why commoners… they have no manners.”

“… …”

“I apologize if I’ve ruined the mood. These days, commoners trying to climb up are not uncommon. Even with the Jeiros Revolution, some things should be maintained. Don’t you agree?”

I didn’t answer. I just stared in the direction Adelia had gone with a complicated gaze.

Laos didn’t seem to care much about that either, as he patted my shoulder and offered advice that wasn’t really advice.

“You should avoid getting involved with her too. And let’s pretend today never happened. Well then.”

Laos passed by me as if nothing had happened. Hyria and Lara, who had been watching from behind, followed.

While Hyria passed by me indifferently, Lara stared intently at my face as she passed. Eventually, when they had completely passed, I heard Lara’s clear voice from behind.

“Sister. That brother is really pretty. Right? I think he’s prettier than you.”

“Be quiet.”

“Can’t I play with that brother later?”

“Lara.”

“Heeng.”

Judging by Lara’s particularly immature behavior, she seems to have grown up receiving plenty of love from her family. Completely different from Adelia who just left.

I stared at their retreating figures as they began to view the exhibition, then turned my steps toward where Adelia had fled. I’m not sure where she went by now, but I should be able to find her if I ask around.

“A woman with brown hair and sky-blue eyes? I’m not sure.”

“She ran away crying? Ah, I saw her go that way earlier…”

“She went between those buildings over there.”

Since Adelia’s appearance was so striking, it wasn’t difficult to ask around. I arrived near the village alleyway where she was reported to have entered.

Being an alley, it was sparsely populated and felt dark despite it being daytime. Originally, our territory didn’t even have such alleys, but it seems they formed as more buildings were constructed.

And then…

-Sob… hic…

Someone’s sobbing reached my ears. Due to the quiet nature of the alley, the sound seemed amplified.

I roughly calculated the direction of the sound and walked toward it. The closer I got, the louder the sobbing became.

Eventually, when I reached deep into the alley where it seemed no one would come, I found a woman crouched on the ground, crying.

“Hic… sob… waaah…”

“… …”

“It’s too much… too cruel… at least a greeting… hic… could have been… hic…”

Adelia, who had always been confident and passionate about everything, was now in tears. Like a dam that had completely shattered after forcibly holding back emotions, she was pouring out all her sadness.

I quietly watched Adelia, who was wailing almost to the point of lamentation, then slowly approached her from behind. She was too busy shedding tears to notice my arrival.

“Just… just… once… hic! Sob… hic…”

“… …”

“Waaah…”

Adelia was crying so pitifully that I worried she might collapse from exhaustion. She was busy constantly wiping her eyes as the tears wouldn’t stop.

Deciding I needed to calm her down a bit, I took out a handkerchief from my back pocket. Carrying a handkerchief is a basic courtesy for nobles.

The handkerchief was ordinary without any special pattern, but it would be sufficient to help Adelia in her current state.

“Senior.”

“Hic… sob…”

“Senior Adelia.”

“Sob… huh?”

Having released some of her pent-up emotions, Adelia turned her head at the sound of my voice. Her eyes were so swollen from crying, and she was even dripping with mucus.

Unable to hide my concern, I silently offered the handkerchief to Adelia. Not understanding the situation, she called my name with a cracked voice.

“…Issac?”

“I thought you might need this.”

“…Did you follow me?”

Adelia was busy asking questions without taking the handkerchief I offered. I nodded in response.

Then she looked back and forth between me and the handkerchief with a somewhat confused expression, before hesitantly reaching out her hand. This was drastically different from her usual confident self.

The shock of being denied by her family just now must have hit her hard, as she even found it difficult to interact with me.

“Just take it.”

“O-okay…”

When I said that, Adelia took the handkerchief with a start. Then, while cautiously watching me, she began cleaning her tear and mucus-covered face.

“Achoo!”

“… …”

True to her character, Adelia blew her nose thoroughly into the handkerchief. I smiled wryly at the sight.

It seemed best not to take that handkerchief back but to discard it. After all, handkerchiefs were abundant at home.

While I was thinking this, Adelia seemed to have calmed down somewhat and sniffled. Though her face was clean, her eyes were still swollen, and her nose was red as if drunk.

“…Thank you. I showed you an unsightly side of me.”

“Not at all. But Senior Adel, those people from Teres…”

“Sniff. Yes. They’re my family. Half-blood relatives at that.”

Half-blood relatives. This means Adelia is an illegitimate child.

In this world where class exists, having illegitimate children isn’t particularly strange, but it was somewhat surprising that she was the king’s illegitimate child.

But what was strange was the harsh treatment she received, and Adelia’s lingering attachment to them.

Judging by how Laos treated Adelia as if she didn’t exist earlier, there must be an unpleasant history between them. A normal person would have severed blood ties, but Adelia’s case was slightly different.

“…My mother was a prostitute. And my fath… er had relations with my mother during his vigorous years. And the result is me.”

“If it’s the king of Teres…”

“Yes, that famous so-called romantic person.”

I know a bit about the King of Teres, Friedrich. A king famous for looking only at his queen despite having the means to keep concubines.

Their relationship was so good that despite not having concubines, they had four children. According to rumors, he wanted more children, but the queen found it too difficult, so they stopped.

It was incredibly surprising that such a king had an illegitimate child, and that child was Adelia.

“You wouldn’t know, but the life of lower-class people is very miserable. If I had grown up under my mother, I would have sold my body too. With a pretty face, I would have been sold quite premium.”

“… …”

“My mother knew this, so she took me to my father. To avoid such a life at all costs. But as you can see, well…”

Adelia didn’t explain further. Honestly, there was no need to explain.

Laos treating Adelia as if she didn’t exist, and Hyria blocking Lara’s approach—these alone give a rough idea of how Adelia was treated.

Although she avoided the life of a prostitute, she must have lived a life of contempt and disdain from her family. Perhaps she even suffered abuse. It makes me feel even more sorry for her.

Meanwhile, Adelia lowered her head and continued speaking as if muttering. Her voice sounded resigned.

“So when I came of age, I was practically kicked out to enroll at Halo Academy. They did say they would recognize me as family if I graduated with good grades…”

“But you sensed it wouldn’t happen.”

“Right. At least if I showed effort… they would recognize… me… hic…”

In the middle of speaking, emotions welled up again, and Adelia bit her lip and began to cry.

Clear tears fell drop by drop from her eyes that resembled the clear sky.

“I just… wanted to be like… hic. A normal family…”

“… …”

“Is it so hard… to call me sister? Those bastards…”

Drip- Drip-

She didn’t even think to wipe with the handkerchief; tears flowed from her eyes and fell onto the cold ground.

Seeing her clench her fists in anger, it seems the wretchedness of her life is painful to her.

I worry she might commit suicide someday at this rate. I bent my knee to match her eye level and spoke quietly.

“Senior.”

“Hic… what…”

“Is the reason you’re attached to those people because of your mother?”

Adelia nodded at my question. And while sobbing, she explained the circumstances.

“Yes… Mother said… hic! This life is… much better than…”

“… …”

“I don’t even know what happened to my mother now… hic! If I became a princess, I wanted to proudly… sob. Visit her…”

What a miserable life. It’s so different from mine, born as a noble and raised without lacking anything.

Perhaps the reason she played mischievous pranks on Nicole was because Nicole was the first friend she made. Until enrollment, she must have suffered physical and emotional abuse from her family, making Nicole a very precious person to Adelia.

If even Nicole lost interest in her, she would find it hard to endure the loneliness that would come. I looked at Adelia sobbing, then glanced down slightly.

True to her word about having worked hard, her hands were covered with calluses and scars.

“How should I live now…”

“… …”

“I’ve lost confidence. After graduating from the academy, I have to return to the kingdom. And then again…”

Adelia shuddered just at the thought, indicating how severe the abuse must have been. The fear and dread imprinted in her mind are gradually eating away at her.

Judging that this couldn’t continue, I carefully took her hand. A hard and extremely cold sensation was transmitted through my hand.

Perhaps because warmth was transferred as I held her hand, Adelia stopped trembling and raised her head readily. Her face, now a mess, was filled with questions.

“…Issac?”

“It’s okay, Senior. Don’t cry.”

While I can understand Adelia, I cannot empathize with her. So any comfort I give now would be of no use to her.

But it’s much better than doing nothing at all. Just having someone present in such a situation can be a great comfort.

I know this well from my previous life when I lost my entire family. The friends who approached me at the funeral home became the driving force that helped me hold onto life.

If those friends hadn’t been there, I would have committed suicide long ago. People are infinitely weak when alone, but with even one pillar of support, they can be incredibly tenacious.

I took the handkerchief from Adelia and gently wiped her eyes. Adelia didn’t resist and accepted my gesture.

“I understand you have complicated circumstances, Senior. And there’s not much I can do to help. Right now, I can only offer comfort.”

“… …”

“Above all, you look pretty when you smile confidently. So don’t cry. Although I can’t help, I’ll be by your side.”

After wiping the last tears from the corners of her eyes, I ended with a gentle smile.

“Okay?”

“… …”

“So let out all of today’s events in tears, and from tomorrow, I’d like you to return to the Senior Adel I know. And call me ‘cutie’ as you always did.”

Adelia looked at me with a somewhat dazed expression. Deep confusion filled her sky-blue eyes.

After a moment, having organized her thoughts, she trembled her lips and forcibly pulled up the corners of her mouth. It was a bizarre smile, unclear whether she was crying or laughing.

“L-like this?”

“…It might be better to just cry for now.”

“S-sorry…”

Adelia immediately became dejected. I chuckled at her diverse range of expressions, then tried to put the handkerchief in my back pocket.

I planned to throw it in a trash can later.

“W-wait.”

“Yes?”

“That handkerchief… I’ll wash it and give it back.”

Just before I put it in my back pocket, Adelia grabbed my wrist urgently. I opened my mouth with a question.

“I don’t think that’s necessary? We have handkerchiefs all over the mansion.”

“Still, it got dirty because of me. I should at least take responsibility. Right?”

“If you say so…”

I nodded and returned the handkerchief to Adelia. Her expression noticeably brightened, and she held it preciously with both hands.

“Thank you. I’ll definitely return it later.”

“Yes.”

“And… Issac.”

“Yes?”

Adelia called my name and then smiled with her characteristic vibrancy. Her eyes were swollen and the tip of her nose was red, but it was definitely the smile I knew.

As I stared at her face, Adelia expressed her gratitude to me.

“Thank you so much. I feel stronger because of you.”

“What’s there to thank? This is nothing.”

“It’s because of that thoughtfulness that she’s dating you. I understand now.”

She seems to be referring to Marie. I shrugged my shoulders and spoke as if it were nothing significant.

“If you say so, Senior, then it must be.”

At my words, Adelia affirmed with certainty.

“That’s right.”

She was still preciously holding the handkerchief with both hands.