Now This Family Belongs to My Mother Chapter 153

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Before noon, good news reached Stella.

 

“Saintess, Grand Duke Blanche says that he will send Lord Kobel to the temple.”

 

At the priest’s words, Stella smiled. “I knew Grandfather would make a wise decision.”

 

She felt considerably more at ease. If Hubert had refused to hand Kobel over until the very end, she would have had to silence Kobel herself. It would have been such a hassle to get rid of Kobel secretly.

 

With the temple applying pressure and even the emperor stepping in, Grand Duke Blanche could have done nothing. Still, I never expected the emperor himself to get involved.

 

Kobel had tried to kill Hubert. By keeping Kobel alive, Emperor Ignasio intended to place a force within the temple that could keep the Blanche family in check.

 

I should meet the emperor later under the pretext of thanking him. And while I’m at it, if I could even bring the emperor over to my side, it would be perfect. And, if possible, Crown Prince Ludwig too… As that thought crossed her mind, a base desire began to rise in Stella’s chest.

 

Now I am a saintess. Someone who stands on equal footing with, no, even higher than Epirosa! Now that she had become a saintess whom everyone looked up to, even the crown prince would no longer be able to ignore her.

 

Just then, the priest spoke while watching Stella’s expression. “And your older brother wishes to see you… Should I tell him you’re busy and send him back?”

 

“Yes, send him ba— No, wait. Since this is the last time, I’ll see his face.” Stella changed her mind and had Nicholas brought into the room.

 

He couldn’t possibly have found something like Epirosa’s weakness anyway. Still, if she soothed him a little, she could make use of him as someone to keep an eye on Epirosa. After all, there was no one better than Nicholas to report on what was happening inside the Blanche’s household. As long as I don’t take him to the temple, there’ll still be some use I can get out of him.

 

Stella greeted Nicholas with a gentle smile on her face. “Brother, this is the last time.”

 

“What did you mean last time?” Nicholas asked, looking puzzled.

 

Stella spoke as though wondering why he was pretending not to know. “Once I go to the temple, it’ll be difficult for you to see me, won’t it? Still, I’ll invite you to the temple from time to time, so make sure you come.”

 

As Nicholas listened to Stella, a sly smile crept across his face. “You’re saying this because you think I couldn’t find Epirosa’s weakness, aren’t you?”

 

“What?” Stella asked back in surprise. Could he really have found Epirosa’s weakness? There was no way Nicholas could have managed that with his abilities. Is he just bringing some nonsense weakness again and acting all smug about it?

 

Stella looked at her sibling with a face devoid of any expectations. “You found out Epirosa’s weakness?”

 

“What do you take your older brother for? Of course I did.” Nicholas confidently pulled out a piece of paper.

 

Stella glanced over the paper half-heartedly, then flinched. This is really Epirosa’s handwriting. It even has her name written on it… But what does it say? It looks almost like a magic formula…

 

“What makes you think something like this is Epirosa’s weakness?”

 

Nicholas was momentarily flustered. Epirosa said Stella would recognize this immediately if I showed it to her. “Do-Doesn’t it just look suspicious at first glance?” He mumbled awkwardly. “If you really want to know for sure, ask Uncle Kobel, whom you saved! He’s proficient not only in magic but even in dark magic!”

 

“Uncle Kobel is certainly well-versed in magic, but…” At that moment, the words ‘dark magic’ flashed through Stella’s mind. Could this be a dark magic formula? Her heart began beating rapidly with anticipation.

 

Seeing Stella’s face flush, Nicholas regained his confidence. “How is it? Quite the critical weakness, right?”

 

“How did you get this?”

 

“I followed Epirosa around without even sleeping. Then I found this in the room where she’s currently staying.” Nicholas spouted the lie he had prepared in advance.

 

Stella quickly snatched the paper from Nicholas’s hand. “I’m going to find out what this is.”

 

“Then I’ll get ready to go to the temple with you…”

 

“Get Grandfather’s permission first.”

 

“Huh?” Nicholas dumbly asked back.

 

“I’m going to the temple with Uncle Kobel under Grandfather’s approval. Surely you weren’t planning to go to the temple on your own without even getting Grandfather’s permission, were you?”

 

“Hey, that’s not what we agreed on!”

 

“How is it different from what we agreed on? If you get Grandfather’s permission, I’ll take you to the temple.”

 

Nicholas glared at Stella, huffing angrily. Wasn’t this exactly the situation Epirosa had warned him about?

 

“Instead of wasting time glaring at me, you’d better go find Grandfather.”

 

“Y-You…!”

 

Since Stella wasn’t wrong, Nicholas stormed out of the room, huffing.

 

There was no way Grandfather would give him permission. Stella smiled triumphantly. No matter how useless a grandchild Nicholas was, there was no way Blanche would send even Nicholas to the temple. That was a matter of Blanche’s pride.

 

Stella took the paper and went to find Kobel. Fresh out of the prison, Kobel was preparing to leave for the temple with the priests’ assistance.

 

“Aah, my niece has come.”

 

Upon spotting Stella, Kobel smiled with his gaunt face. Having not seen sunlight for a long time, the skin all over his body had turned deathly pale. The place where his left eye had been used as a sacrifice was now an empty socket.

 

“Oh no, I suppose I shouldn’t call you my niece anymore now that you’re the saintess.” Kobel even tried to kneel before her.

 

“It’s fine. Get up.”

 

Stella stopped Kobel. She knew that his behavior didn’t come from genuine sincerity anyway. However, the priests seemed deeply moved by Kobel’s devotion.

 

“This Blanche is different from the others we have seen until now.”

 

“To think he truly knows how to worship the saintess…”

 

“This must be why God chose this man as the saintess’s guardian.”

 

Knowing Kobel’s true nature, Stella found their praise irritating to hear. “I have something to discuss with my uncle, so please leave us for a moment.” She sent all the priests out.

 

“You even sent all the priests away. Is there something important you want to say?”

 

“Uncle, please take a look at this.”

 

Stella held out the paper Nicholas had brought her. Kobel accepted it with a smile, but his eyes soon widened. Moreover, upon discovering Epirosa’s name on the paper, the corners of his mouth twisted upward viciously.

 

“This is a dark magic formula.”

 

“Really?” At Kobel’s words, a wicked smile spread across Stella’s face as well. “Are you saying Epirosa used dark magic?”

 

“Most likely. This is a formula that uses the power of darkness to heal the sick.”

 

“Then, could it be…?”

 

Kobel chuckled and nodded his head. “Looks like she tried all sorts of things to heal Leonoe. And in the end, she even got her hands on dark magic.”

 

“Epirosa acted so high and mighty, but I suppose she is no different after all.” As Stella spoke, a wicked glint flashed in her eyes for a moment. “Then could Aunt Leonoe’s recovery also have been because of the power of dark magic?”

 

“Who knows? I can’t be certain about that. Considering that the divine beast’s avatar chose Leonoe, it’s more likely that it wasn’t…”

      

“Still, the possibility isn’t completely zero. Right?”

 

Kobel stared intently at Stella, who was brimming with anticipation. This girl was ready to turn lies into truth if it suited her. He smiled as well and nodded. “That’s right.”

 

“Aah, my goodness!” Hearing the answer she had hoped for, Stella couldn’t contain her excitement and leaped from her seat. “We might be able to clear your name, Uncle!”

 

“Clear my name?” Kobel asked.

 

Stella smiled wickedly. “Epirosa used dark magic herself and pinned the blame on you, Uncle. Isn’t that right?”

 

Kobel was impressed by Stella’s wickedness. How could her mind work so quickly at times like this? This girl was born for this. She was indeed an ideal child to use as a sacrifice. His eyes glinted coldly.