Now This Family Belongs to My Mother Chapter 129

* * *

“Thank you, Cardinal.”

 

“Think nothing of it.”

 

At my gratitude, Cardinal Lenon Gianni shook his head. He glanced at Ibe, the knight in silver armor standing beside me.

 

I had come to the temple because of Mom, who insisted on making Ibe her personal guard.

 

“He was already a knight who always stayed by Madam Leonoe’s side. As if it were his destiny.” Fortunately, Cardinal Lenon Gianni, the second-in-command and de facto leader of the temple, understood my intentions. “Besides, if it’s none other than Lady Epirosa, blessed by the temple, who is taking him, it’s an honor for us.”

 

“Thank you, Cardinal.”

 

“If you ever need assistance, please don’t hesitate to let me know.” Lenon bowed politely. He was always kind to me. People said he had a cold side, but I had never felt that from him.

 

“Why do you keep hovering around my mom like that?”

 

“…”

 

I figured he wouldn’t answer. With a huff, I blurted out whatever came to mind. “Did you fall for my mom or something?”

 

“…!” Ibe flinched, his shoulders trembling.

 

I was the one caught off guard. What on earth? So it’s not about some divine destiny or anything? He’s just smitten?

 

Suddenly, I remembered something Mom had said about Ibe.

 

“Handsome.”

 

Right, the two of them… I couldn’t deny it anymore. There was definitely something between them. Even though I felt a strange sense of alienation, I couldn’t help but think. There’s probably no better escort for Mom than Ibe. As long as Kobel was around, Mom needed someone as loyal and skilled as Ibe by her side.

 

When Ibe returned home, he suddenly plucked a single flower blooming in the garden.

 

“What are you doing?”

 

“…”

 

“You’re back.”

 

It was Mom who answered instead of Ibe. She tried to act like she had just happened to come out, but it was clear she had been waiting for us to return. I was about to pretend not to notice, but Ibe scurried over to Mom and held out the flower he had just picked.

 

“What am I supposed to do with this?” Mom said that, but she still smiled as she accepted the flower.

 

“…”

 

Once again, a deep sense of alienation washed over me.

 

“Epirosa, come here.”

 

Mom gestured to me. As I approached, she tucked a flower behind my ear.

 

“You look so adorable. Don’t you think so, Ibe?” Mom spoke as if she were showing me off.

 

Ibe stared at Mom, who was smiling like she was about to burst from how much she adored me, and then nodded.

 

Feeling embarrassed, I tried to take the flower off. But Mom jumped in alarm. “Leave it on. You look so cute. Everyone will love how adorable you are.”

 

“Mom, I’m going to have my debutante next year. This kind of thing is for little kids.”

 

At that, Mom’s face fell.

 

“To me, you’re still my baby. And…” Mom trailed off, unable to finish her sentence.

 

I had a feeling I knew what she wanted to say. She probably wants to give me the love she couldn’t when I was younger.

 

After hesitating, Mom finally spoke. “If I could, I’d even feed you your meals.”

 

“Mom, that’s a no.”

 

“What about singing you a lullaby by your bedside…?”

 

“Only sometimes.” I answered firmly. But since I understood how Mom felt, I wanted to compromise on at least one thing. “I’ll keep the flower in my ear. But just for today, okay?”

 

“Alright, thank you. And thank you too, Ibe.”

 

At Mom’s words, Ibe lowered his head shyly.

 

With the flower still tucked behind my ear, I headed to my room. I could hear the murmurs of the servants as I passed by.

 

“Oh my, how adorable. It makes her look so youthful.”

 

“Well, Lady Epirosa is already beautiful. If she dressed up like this more often, she’d be even more stunning.”

 

The reactions were unexpectedly positive. But what awaited me in my room, as I returned in a good mood, was an unwelcome guest.

 

“Epirosa, could you spare some time for your uncle?” Standing in the middle of my room was Kobel, wearing a sly smile. That smile overlapped with the face that had once cursed me.

 

A chill crept up from my fingertips. The heart that had softened just moments ago froze over in an instant. Right, I still have too much to do to enjoy such tender moments. I sneered inwardly. Besides, there’s something I need to get from Kobel. The information about the curse he placed on Mom.

 

I pulled the flower from my ear and hid it behind my back, forcing myself to suppress the disgust and smile. “Of course. What brings you here?”

 

As I greeted him warmly, Kobel responded with a face pretending to be kind. “I feel like I’ve been neglecting the household too much. It seems I’ve placed too heavy a burden on you, a child, and Leonoe, who’s still recovering.” He said apologetically. “From now on, I intend to take on the role of the eldest son. Hand over all the businesses you’re managing to me and take a proper rest.”

 

This was something I had anticipated. With his funding cut off, he was trying to use my businesses to continue his dark-magic research.

 

“It’s fine. If I don’t have work, I feel empty. I don’t want to burden you with something like this, Uncle. Aren’t you already busy with your research?” I shifted the topic. “Should I… help you?” I asked, feigning innocence with a tone devoid of ulterior motives.

 

I saw Kobel’s pupils dilate. Exactly as I expected. In my past life, he had used me to gather treasures that allowed him to communicate with divine beasts. There must have been a reason he went out of his way to exploit someone as ordinary as me. I could see him quickly calculating his next move.

 

Kobel spoke with a sly glint in his eyes. “As it happens, I’ve been conducting research for your mother. She’s still suffering from severe headaches, isn’t she?”

 

“Yes. I’m very worried about her.”

 

“If you help me just a little, it would greatly aid in creating a cure.”

 

“Really? You can heal my mom?”

 

“Of course. Absolutely. Just a little help from you, that’s all I need.” Kobel said with a sinister smile.

 

I nodded as if I were someone clinging to a fragile thread of hope.

 

* * *

It was a few days later. Kobel called me to his room.

 

“Are you really sure about this?” Britlyn asked with concern.

 

“Don’t worry. You stay here and wait. When the time comes, come into the room.”

 

I instructed Britlyn and then placed the red pill I had brought between my teeth.

 

Kobel’s room was less of a typical room and more like a gloomy laboratory. Bubbling solutions, flasks, mysterious books, and materials were scattered everywhere. But he’s hidden all the dark magic materials, huh.

 

“What can I help you with here?”

 

“I’m making medicine for Leonoe, but there are some ingredients I couldn’t get my hands on,” Kobel said as if he had been waiting for this moment. “There are three ingredients I need. Can you get them for me?”

 

Kobel unrolled a scroll. It was a piece of paper covered in incomprehensible letters and drawings. I couldn’t read the letters, but I had a good idea of what the drawings were. The archmage’s relic, the magic tower’s treasure, and a unicorn’s horn. The treasures I had tried to retrieve under Gale and Kobel’s orders in my past life.

 

At that time, Kobel had claimed that those treasures would make Gale the master of the divine beast. And when I actually brought those treasures, the divine beast had reacted. But only that much. The treasures no longer had any effect afterward. As for the unicorn’s horn, I had never managed to obtain it, so we never tested it.

 

This time, Kobel will say these will heal Mom. I can’t fully trust his words, but thinking about what I experienced in my past life… These items serve to help establish a connection with the divine beast. It’s worth a try. After all, the biggest issue with Mom right now is her inability to connect with the divine beast. Her headaches might even stem from that.

 

“I need to retrieve these, but as you can see, I’m too worn out from traveling to go by myself.”

 

“Then I’ll go get them myself.”

 

Kobel explained the locations of the treasures and the precautions to take. I listened half-heartedly, as I already knew everything. Instead of paying attention to his explanation, I focused on memorizing the unfamiliar characters written on the scroll.

 

“And there’s one more thing I’d like to ask of you,” Kobel said after finishing his explanation. “I have a medicine I want to test to see if it works… I just need a single drop of your blood.” His eyes gleamed ominously.

 

“It’s a medicine to alleviate your mother’s headaches. Since you’re Leonoe’s direct bloodline, I want to test it with your blood.” He then added to prevent suspicion. “I already tested it with my blood, but there was no reaction. Still, since you’re her daughter, I thought it might work with you.”

 

Even in my past life, Kobel often demanded my blood, claiming it was for experiments to make Gale the master of the divine beast. I knew it would be the same this time.

 

Pretending to bite my finger, I crushed the pill hidden between my teeth. A red liquid stained my fingernail.