104 – On the Incurable Disease -1-
The Desmont family, who had come to the hospital after an accident, sat on a soft sofa with heavy expressions.
It was 7 p.m.
It was time for dinner, but the three of them had no intention of moving.
Olivia, who was fidgeting with her fingers, glanced at Darbav’s serious expression and spoke softly.
“Abbey. Is brother going to prison?”
“No, he’s not.”
Olivia looked suspiciously at Kyle, who was sitting to Darbav’s left. Kyle’s clothes were a mess from the hospital visit, with his head bandaged and disheveled.
She cautiously asked Kyle, who was wearing a nonchalant expression, “Is brother going to prison?”
“…No, he’s not.”
“Why?”
“…Would it be good if he did?”
“No.”
Olivia lowered her head and expressed a small wish that her brother wouldn’t eat beans and rice.
“You don’t like beans.”
“That’s right.”
“So, he shouldn’t go.”
Touched by Olivia’s concern, Kyle’s eyes grew moist. He never expected his sister, who usually threw a fit over side dishes, to remember his dislike for certain foods.
Regardless of who the sibling was, Kyle thought that the feeling of someone caring for their older brother was the best in the world.
“Do you want anything, my sister?”
Without hesitation, Olivia replied, “A chocolate castle.”
“…”
“Can’t I?”
Kyle regretted the words he had just uttered.
“I’m sorry.”
Perhaps Kyle’s idea of a chocolate palace size and Olivia’s idea of a palace size were very different. Kyle, who thought he would have to earn more money in the future, nodded bitterly.
“I’ll give you money.”
“…Brother, you’re awesome.”
Olivia admired Kyle.
“So, what happened?”
“What?”
“A fight.”
There was a hint of excitement in Olivia’s eyes. She hadn’t witnessed the fight between Kyle and Nojo Daegari.
Today at the hospital, Kyle stood quietly next to Nojo Daegari, being his shoulder to lean on, and walked out. Olivia, of course, as well as her father Darvab, were very disappointed that they couldn’t watch the fight.
Somehow, in Olivia’s eyes, there was a slight worry, as she couldn’t understand the outcome of their noble conversation.
“Did you lose?”
Kyle extended his fist and showed Olivia a tiny scar. Observing the almost invisible wound closely, Olivia raised her head, looking crestfallen, and answered.
“You lost….”
Kyle firmly corrected Olivia’s misguided assumption. It was absurd to think that the Deathmont family, known as the Empire’s Strong Chickens, would lose. It was an unworthy story.
With a proud voice, Kyle replied to Olivia.
“Brother doesn’t lose, Olivia.”
“So, did you win then?”
“Right.”
With a slight smile, Kyle briefly introduced today’s opponent, Nox, a figure not too strong but not weak either.
In simpler terms, a mediocre guy.
“His name’s Ruin.”
“I know.”
“You do?”
“Yeah. He used to be a good buddy at school. Liked getting things right.”
“…?”
From Noble mtl dot com
Numerous question marks popped up in Kyle’s mind, but he didn’t bother asking. No point prying if Ruin and Olivia didn’t seem that close.
If they were close, Ruin would’ve at least pretended to recognize her. But someone named Ruin seemed to remember avoiding eye contact with Olivia rather than pretending to know her.
Since there was no apparent connection, Kyle decided not to dwell on it.
Kyle boasted about fights.
Olivia gazed at Kyle with proud eyes, and he, wearing a pleased smile, spun tales of today’s events.
“He was a mage dealing with flames. Talented at a young age.”
“He was a disciple of Matop.”
Listening silently, Darvab nodded, leaving the backup to himself.
“Turned out for the better. Might as well blast Meteor in Matop’s face.”
“Father. Is it war?”
“No, it’s just a saying.”
Darvab’s brief impression, victorious in the subtle competition against Matop, went unnoticed.
Kyle talked about his battle with Ruin in a rather dignified manner.
“I asked that guy. What’s the deal with backstabbing?”
“And then?”
“He said, ‘Can’t you wait? I’m busy.'”
“Oh…”
“He didn’t even bother making a reservation, saying he’s close with a doctor. He had quite an arrogant excuse.”
“So?”
“I threw a punch.”
Kyle proudly recounted the victory achieved not with magic but with his fists.
Durbab nodded approvingly, seemingly proud, hearing that two wizards had fought like dogs, setting aside their magic.
“As expected, men rely on their fists.”
In the end, Kyle spat out insults, calling Ruin a coward for resorting to magic.
“He’s a coward. Just like his master.”
“Nevertheless, I won.”
“Indeed… my son. The future of Deathmont looks bright.”
Kyle gazed proudly at his fist, softly murmuring, ‘Men rely on their fists…’
Even if the outcome was in Kyle’s favor with magic, he didn’t want to use it against a sneaky and ignorant opponent like Ruin, opting for a primitive method to secure victory.
Durbab, witnessing Kyle’s wounds, also wore a pleased expression.
“You’ve grown. My son.”
“I’m just like my father.”
“Hehehe. Quite an exaggeration.”
Watching this, Rosanna, with a warm smile, touched her throbbing forehead as she observed the two wealthy men engaged in a lively conversation.
“Ugh…! Everyone’s boasting! Boasting!”
“How similar you are to yourself. Isn’t that right?”
When Darvab spoke somewhat sulkily, lowering his head as if asking, “Isn’t that a compliment…?” Rosanna sighed and smacked Darvab’s back.
“Oh, come on! Hold back a bit! Enemies are watching!”
Kyle spoke to Rosanna with a serious expression.
“Didn’t your mother have a similar personality in her youth? During her adventurer days, she even had a nickname like ‘Red Glove.'”
“Quiet. That’s Mom’s embarrassing past she wants to keep hidden.”
“Proud of you, Mother.”
…
Rosanna nodded.
After a moment of silence, she spoke to her gathered children and husband.
“So, why did you summon me here?”
Rosanna, who had been preparing dinner, temporarily paused her work due to Darvab’s call.
Darvab replied to Rosanna with a slightly serious tone, urging her to quickly prepare dinner.
“There’s something I need to discuss.”
“A discussion?”
“Yes, a very important one.”
Darvab spoke with a low, serious voice.
“What’s for dinner tonight?”
Darbav received another blow to the back of his head.
*
On the way back from dropping Yuria off at the dormitory to returning to the mansion.
I stretched with a proud heart, thinking that I had a fulfilling day after a long time.
“Ah… I’m tired.”
The conversation with Yuria was more enjoyable than I thought.
It didn’t feel awkward, and maybe because we didn’t have any heavy conversations, I felt happy throughout our talk.
It was fun to hear about the events from the novel from the perspective of the person involved.
Listening to Yuria’s emotions about what happened while I was away from the academy, and hearing the specific details that were not in the novel, I felt excited as a reader after a long time.
And talking to a beautiful woman also made me feel good, you know. Of course, she’s not prettier than Miss, but it felt good to feast my eyes on her.
It’s 7:30 in the evening.
I shivered as I looked at the mansion in the distance.
“Nothing unusual will happen, right?”
It shouldn’t be a problem to go with Kyle. I was worried because Miss and the master aren’t trustworthy people.
‘It would be nice if nothing happened until we return to the mansion….’
It was a very trivial request, but since Miss had never granted such a request before, I sighed and walked towards the mansion.
My life in the capital is coming to an end.
There’s about 3 days left now.
After 3 days, the mansion’s construction will be completed, and the master’s birthday will also come to an end. I felt a little gloomy at the thought of having to clean and take care of the housework that had been put off, but the thought of going home after a long time brought a small smile to my lips.
The journey that started with the lady’s inexperienced driving.
It was a journey that began with many worries, but it was quite a meaningful journey in that it was able to untangle two twisted relationships.
The relationship with the members of the Desmont family and the relationship with Uria. It wasn’t perfectly resolved, but the relationship between them and me, which had become softer than before, became a turning point that relieved the suffocating frustration.
The streetlights brightly illuminate the dark path.
Perhaps because it’s the capital, the densely lined streetlights made it less scary to walk alone.
Personally, I’m a coward who’s afraid of ghosts and dark places, but thanks to the occasional patrolling guards and the brightly lit streetlights, it wasn’t so scary.
“I should go on a date with the lady tomorrow.”
As I looked towards the end of the long journey and walked towards the mansion.
I heard a familiar man’s voice from behind.
“Ricardo.”
When I saw his face, I lightly nodded.
“Lord Kyle.”
Kyle was standing in front of me.
He was looking at me with a slightly solemn expression.
“Let’s talk for a moment.”
“It’s about Olivia.”
Kyle had a small piece of paper in his hand.
[‘Olivia’ Diagnosis]
Rosana must be having hard time everyday with 3 members of her family having mage mindset, also means loose screw somewhere