Now This Family Belongs to My Mother Chapter 151

* * *

Bang! Stella roughly yanked open the last drawer, her face turning red. “There’s nothing here!” She had spent the entire night tearing through Epirosa’s room like a madwoman. But she couldn’t find a single thing that could be used as a weakness against Epirosa. All she found were useless, trivial items.

 

She collapsed onto the floor of the messy room. It looked like she would end up just cleaning the room without gaining anything from it. Stella couldn’t let anyone find out she had made such a mess.

 

Did she already move everything because she knew I’d do this? Considering that Leonoe had been given a separate room, there was a high chance Epirosa had anticipated this as well. How does she know me so well? It’s like she’s lived through this before!

 

There was one more thing weighing on her mind. What if Grandfather refuses to hand over Uncle Kobel? If that happened, Kobel might expose Stella as a fake saintess. If Grandfather really won’t hand over Uncle Kobel, I’ll have no choice but to silence him.

 

Stella stared out the window with a cold expression. Bang! The door connecting the room to the parlor suddenly burst open without warning. She rushed out to the parlor.

 

“You can’t do this!”

 

“Why can’t I? I’m her older brother!” Nicholas was barging in, pushing past the priests who were trying to stop him.

 

As if I wasn’t annoyed enough, now this guy shows up.

 

The priests who had followed Nicholas into the parlor to stop him were left wide-eyed at the state of the room.

 

Forcing a kind expression, Stella spoke to the priests. “You must have really wanted to see me to come at this late hour, Brother. It’s fine, I’ll talk to you for a moment. So, could you leave us?”

 

At her command, the priests closed the door. As soon as they did, Stella’s face turned cold.

 

“Why are you here?”

 

“Is there a reason I can’t come to see my little sister? But what happened to this room?”

 

“Stop meddling unnecessarily and just say what you need to say and leave.”

 

“How can you talk to your older brother like that?” Nicholas approached Stella with a menacing expression.

 

Stella sneered at him and opened her palm. Soon, a yellow light radiated from her hand.

 

“W-Wha…!” Nicholas stumbled backward in shock, falling flat on his back.

 

Clenching her hand tightly, Stella extinguished the flames. “This is divine power. In other words, I’m no longer just your little sister. I’m the saintess.”

 

“E-Even if you’ve become the sa-saintess, how can you cut off the bond of blood! N-now it’s just you and me!”

 

That’s the problem. Of all people, the only family she had left was that idiot Nicholas.

 

“Ta-Take me with you! Take me to the temple too!” Nicholas shouted.

 

Stella glared at him with an annoyed expression. “Say something that makes sense. What excuse would I have for taking you there? Are you going to become a priest?”

 

“Uncle Kobel is going as your guardian! Then take me as your guardian too!”

 

“Uncle Kobel is being taken because God revealed it to me.” Stella approached Nicholas, who was sitting on the floor, and tapped his forehead repeatedly with her index finger. “Why would I take my older brother who’s completely useless?”

 

“W-What do you mean I’m useless…!” Nicholas jumped up from his seat, flustered. “I, I…” But even after standing up, he seemed at a loss for words and stammered.

 

Stella waved her hand dismissively, clearly unimpressed. It was a gesture telling him to leave quickly.

 

“I-I can do anything you ask!”

 

“What?”

 

“Just give me a chance! I can do it well!”

 

Stella crossed her arms and stared at Nicholas, as if telling him to keep talking.

 

“Even if I stay here, I’m treated worse than a bug! We don’t even have our parents, and Grandfather doesn’t care about anything except Aunt Leonoe and Epirosa! You became a saintess, so you’ll be able to live well. But I, I…!”

 

“So you want me to take you to the temple with me and get you some position?”

 

“Yes! Even a small one is fine. Of course, if it’s too small, it’ll hurt my dignity, so something appropriate…” Even in this situation, Nicholas couldn’t let go of his greed.

 

“Then bring me Epirosa’s weakness.”

 

“What…?”

 

“If you can’t even do that, why would I take you to the temple?”

 

“Fi-Fine. Just give me a little time…”

 

“The deadline is tomorrow. No, before I leave this place today.”

 

“How am I supposed to find it that quickly?”

 

“If you can’t do it, just stay here by yourself.”

 

“Ste—”

 

“My brother says he’s leaving now!”

 

Before Nicholas could even finish his sentence, Stella called for the priests outside the room. Her attitude made it clear she wasn’t going to give Nicholas any more chances. Soon, the priests came rushing in.

 

“It’s time for you to leave now.”

 

“Ha, but, Stella, I—”

 

“Goodbye, Brother. I’ll be waiting for good news.” Stella even waved her hand to see him off before slipping into the room behind the parlor.

 

“Stella! Stella!”

 

“Please leave.”

 

In the end, the priests dragged Nicholas out.

 

* * *

It was breakfast time. Stella sat in her mother’s seat as if it were the most natural thing in the world. It was the seat of honor, second only to Hubert’s.

 

“Grandfather, I’m planning to leave at noon today,” Stella said after finishing her meal. It was essentially a notice demanding that Kobel be handed over by then.

 

“Alright.” Hubert replied briefly without much reaction.

 

The one who seemed more shaken was Nicholas. His face turned pale, and he kept fidgeting with his hands.

 

What’s with him? Is there something going on?

 

After breakfast, I told Mizulin to keep an eye on Nicholas. And before noon arrived, troubling news came from the imperial palace.

 

* * *

“His Majesty has sent a congratulatory message to the temple.” Benjamin said.

 

It seemed Hubert was already aware of it, having been briefed by him.

 

“What does it say?” I asked, curious about the contents of the emperor’s message that prompted Hubert to call for me.

 

“We sincerely congratulate you on the saintess’s descent, and the imperial family will do everything in its power to ensure that the saintess and her guardian can adapt well to the temple.” Benjamin recited the contents of the message he had received.

 

I frowned. The imperial family will do everything in its power to ensure that the saintess and her guardian can adapt well to the temple. This was outright pressure on us. They’re telling us to send Kobel to the temple. How did they know Stella wanted Kobel as her guardian? That meant there was a spy within the temple.

 

“Since His Majesty has gone this far in pressuring us, we have no choice but to respond more forcefully.”

 

“What method are you planning to use?”

 

“I called you here to ask for your consent regarding that.”

 

Hubert extended his hand to Benjamin. Benjamin then handed over a prepared piece of paper. The luxurious imperial paper was completely blank except for the top and bottom lines.

 

[In the name of Octavia Empire’s emperor, I, Ignasio Leopold, hereby command.]

 

The space beneath it was empty. And at the bottom was the emperor’s official seal.

 

“This is the blank imperial decree we received from His Majesty, isn’t it?”

 

“Yes, it’s an imperial decree we can fill in as we wish and announce under the emperor’s authority.”

 

We had received this imperial decree in exchange for not holding the emperor accountable for his involvement in the treason conspiracy incident. But now, the reason for bringing out this imperial decree was clear.

 

“I intend to have the emperor issue an imperial decree in his name stating that he will execute Kobel instead of sending him to the temple.”

 

If that happens, not even Stella, the saintess, would be able to take Kobel away. The responsibility for betraying the saintess’s intentions and executing Kobel would fall squarely on the emperor.

 

At first glance, it seemed like a flawless plan. However…

 

“Grandpa, you must not use that imperial decree right now.” I spoke firmly.

 

Hubert raised one eyebrow. “Why?”

 

“It would be a waste to use the emperor’s imperial decree at a time like this.”

 

“But if Kobel, who tried to bring down our family, goes to the temple, it could lead to an even bigger problem.”

 

I bowed my head to Hubert. “It was my mistake to secretly give Kobel food and prolong his life without informing you. I will accept any punishment. However…”

 

I could feel Hubert’s gaze burning down on me from above.

 

“Even if Kobel dies, as long as Stella goes to the temple, another crisis could befall our family.” I raised my head again and met Hubert’s red eyes. “That’s why we must save the imperial decree, in case something happens.”