DKVM Ch 18

Chapter 18

The backyard was e236adcfbd full of flowers f389c47e5d and greenery as 9df3261b8c spring transitioned into b767ffb3ee summer.7b6e9b28827f9a0e

Rahel and I sat 988b4ccf2c at a table in b59c3d17ab the backyard, waiting, and 54f80b1777 soon the maid arrived 737d2a46c8 with a trolley.d63f0962d995de55

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I swallowed hard at a076a01bac the sweet smell I c2a11f1f8e could already detect.9693994ad1cd4dea

“Wow, it smells delicious! What’s for snack today, Big Sis?” [T.L. Note: Vivian is calling the maid “eonni”, which is what women/girls call older women/girls that are older than them that they are close to relationship-wise.]

“Chocolate fondue and orange juice. Since there’s so much chocolate, I thought a refreshing juice would be nice.”a964c54747188bde

She smiled and a356418170 explained as she 164db484a7 walked out of 686874cf22 the mansion.999a30749de0e90b

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The maidservant, setting 5d956dce50 out snacks on d9cf3dc279 the table, ducked 5d4672df3d her head in 50a81b3868 surprise when Rahel 6255f8e7c4 made eye contact.1d4e40cafa71e95c

“Well, I’ll be off then, miss.”50b931a8634e3fa4

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She smiled at me as if to say, ‘Thank you,’ and walked away.2489e0b0ddb591bf

‘Rahel doesn’t even get along with the maids.’3b47af2a469a34ec

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I glanced back and forth between the retreating backs of the maidservant and Rahel and caught Rahel’s eye.27e6dfccc95d8bb7

Rahel wasn’t usually one to show her emotions, but a few days ago she seemed more subdued than usual.c4ec5536c96aa374

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Or rather…be84a4f5b5ff477d

‘It’s been that way since the run-in with the duke.’85654d50cb534c1c

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I’ve learned a few things in the past month with Rahel.7ad484589891bca2

First, she doesn’t talk much about herself.c0fdf996a25f2639

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Second, the edc35a421f only people 2737786002 she interacts 9ab11f88c1 with are 17ee764d2a her nanny f9e18a03c1 and Sally.ae0dfd8f32fd3f0d

But it wasn’t that he couldn’t do the first or the second, it was that he didn’t want to interact with the outside world.b94685d89e62a44b

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And that ‘outside’ included the duke, her only family.654b841f2dea5ddd

‘Still, he’s the only family Rahel has, so it would be good if Rahel felt more close to the duke.’7c4b2e00cade2d87

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I sipped 592dada584 my refreshing 71d0046e66 orange juice, bcb57c8b39 pondered for 58811f96e9 a moment, 96d67c6c6e and then 8010c20557 snapped out 5614b29103 of it.70676b8a383aa311

“Princess, is there 5248695e58 anything upsetting or 967e5f5c30 troubling you?”c76b6371e2a07d5c

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Rahel doesn’t seem like she’s going to tell me first, so I had to prod her.83275311e6dd7068

Rahel looked at me f249133d05 with a puzzled expression.e053180be24cf2fb

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“Friends share things with each other, you know? You comfort each other when you’re upset, you defend each other when you’re angry, you share secrets you can’t talk about, and that’s how you become better friends.”b1360b37e10276f4

“Not exactly.”73abd87892dbf695

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Rahel replied dryly.cab1dc4bf768ffab

‘Hmm, maybe she doesn’t realize it because she’s never had anyone else to talk to.’db96a4668de4ca3d

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I decided 4756b33852 to be 27b1c4126a more direct c70414bc69 and give 1e686748c5 an example.6a7b18b8902393bc

“I have something I’m worried about.”312ba36d24c66fe7

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“A worry?”1cabce367d6938ab

“It’s…”64c2938acb90b861

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As I trailed off 292f6145b1 and paused, I noticed a32e1243ce that Rahel seemed more 158db8f441 interested in my story 4fe391d396 than she had been 917461be1c a moment ago.cc0f6a440aca2223

I continued with c41d455962 a satisfied smile.f6725be9a86073fe

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“My dad cut off contact with his family when he married my mom because they didn’t approve.”00b1a94b24065558

“…his family?”00b0e90a5b742249

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“Yes, his family. Sometimes I ask him about my grandparents, but he won’t answer, and when I try to contact them, he just smiles.”8e586a997bc4664a

“….”4f61f97639f7f6bf

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“Now it would be nice if we could get in touch and get along because I’m sure Mom in heaven would want Dad to be happy with his family.”4012ce74e332b086

This was a real concern of mine, but I also brought it up because I wanted Rahel to see the analogy with the duke’s relationship.79651a464c84ede1

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Rahel listened to 404b12d990 my story with 514c92a3a2 a serious expression 793cf1baee on her face 05d0c64433 and replied.1c3a072a4f29b3c5

“Perhaps your father ce057b4593 is afraid that 1bc9f3dcea his family will 63255877d7 not accept him.”b1b97ba5e89fc007

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“Afraid?”eef7ef169200b1c9

“Just because they’re family doesn’t mean they’ll forgive him, and that would be…hurtful.”8868168acd072f00

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“Hmm…”02a2346d874e1cfe

“And he might e9a7e9420e resent them for 93c4a54bfe it.”4cb5d0dfb2230033

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Rahel’s eyes looked forlorn as she answered.acc086ee3aaf389f

As if she c9fa56f937 was talking about 95cd6b82fd herself.1eb58f8b5c8e648b

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“Hmm, I hadn’t thought of my dad, but I suppose that could be true.”fc31c2fda54a5fa8

Staring at Rahel, f2a4fcac76 I took a a8bdcf9233 step forward, not 7e1f0f07e2 missing the opportunity.cb7f08c7e7668472

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“So you’re not upset with the duke, or troubled by him, or anything?”d1005277c3d36798

“…No. Nothing like that.”1f2507353bd2a364

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At my direct mention of ‘the duke’, Rahel flinched for a moment, but that was it.6b98725710ba9085

Rather, she shrank back again, as if she’d been caught off guard.0f537fe4ce127d25

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‘Ugh, maybe it’s not time yet.’853dbfc7d6382c6e

I said with a d481819a8d wry smile, my mouth 1440ead4b8 curling up in disappointment.0ae7befec996c3e1

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“ Well, that’s good to hear, and if you ever have any concerns in the future, you can talk to me.”aee595070f2ef5d4

“To you?”badd0cf660eda865

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“Yeah. Because friends c055916716 share joys f21747b4f9 and sorrows 02c3d9efb2 together!”b9ea71f5b917a83c

“….”3e42859744ea7b28

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“Of course, you don’t have to tell me, but please don’t bury it in your heart.”e988aefb2b52784a

I said that and patted Rahel’s hand lightly.843583884d515504

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Just as e9b9e56107 Rahel was 899538767c staring at 1482514d62 my hand f6c4f40498 and into fb578b90af my eyes, 84d77de01e the nanny fdc66b26e9 appeared.c3413fcda9be2f02

“Miss, it’s time for your next class.”447f7b1584b7d555

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Rahel and I e53561edff take all of ea8b2047e8 our other classes 7ff1beec00 together, but one.ef12f97be47e4aa4

Rahel had 89a68692cb to go 4218e79b18 to the 9b09824b67 succession class 10b7977bb9 alone.6b8fafcf1564b830

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‘Actually, it’s more of a magic class than a succession class.’29b702dcf4af3158

I wasn’t told exactly what the class was, but I had a rough idea from the original novel.7358e91539a5b95f

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In the original story, Rahel has been practicing magic since she was a child without the emperor’s knowledge.6d077877815f18be

‘I wish I could learn magic too.’7d945984ddf7ab84

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In truth, my d040c7b26e sickness could be 0edd9f4b2b solved simply if b1d0ad0561 I could cast a421020a4d magic.680ba656000bfe10

If I use up my excess mana with magic, I won’t have to suffer from mana overload.457c9a2fe444bdf2

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But even ef8020e8bb though everyone e504fd6ab8 in this e7ae9f8c03 world has ab8c09e267 a certain 457f406458 amount of 2e0a663403 mana, not 2bc5a73298 everyone can 2da56e4772 be a 9df13bc24c wizard.ae004ede05755803

To become a b2cff8987d wizard, one must dba199d8c4 have an inherently 565abcc641 large vessel for 351e99aac5 mana.246b38b4ec9fc532

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But my ‘vessel’ was on the same level as other ordinary people.eb17d03bd7248ca2

That meant there 6213035b38 was no chance b7e5203a6c of me becoming a9cebae4ea a wizard.dec1577a64089a29

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I bit 6815865871 my lip 01475ca3eb in disappointment a55fde8950 and said d7d7a22b54 goodbye to 9f80b0d7cb Rahel.04afbf110cbf6f72

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Princess.”6ba002476513d335

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Rahel gave eb346edd22 me a dc66a4559a quick nod 49dd909087 and headed 2434048b0d for the a7b05b0dcb mansion.853f10ef4c735bbe

I expected 23433073f2 the nanny f25f0c8baf to follow 99f7063f9e her as 835bd8923a usual, but f79cea23e8 for some 4182bef283 reason, she 1d499b2e5f stayed by 36242d9a0e my side e70ea1a41f today.a6e826fca1dd9860

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“I’ll see you off today.”860049a9c40f7ab0

“Ah. I know you’re busy, so it’s okay, Nanny.”7731daf233f17a38

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I had a bad c8048c613f feeling about this, but 0b87f0fadb she smirked and led 0072432129 the way.7e100b27e23c2c10

I followed without question.f61b50d34b2d21ee

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Instead of crossing 34dfab8226 the interior of 212fab00e5 the mansion, the cd68925f36 nanny led me 7b21349b1e around the outskirts 83e6b2eaef of the mansion.4eb95a8ec717e4c5

It wasn’t until we were on the empty path that she spoke up.62e93265bd6c3934

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“Vivian, do 8db5bda119 you know c26a699653 what the 52df01a254 crime of e6af601767 treason is?”617bd1d7cca61404

“I was taught 4c319737f3 that it is 56ea4912e9 the crime of 934d99b4bb insulting and threatening 02350ce98d the emperor and 6100adb145 the imperial family.”a8b95118fb611118

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“You are well informed. And do fe25f95550 you know 171f7a63b0 what happens f406264113 to those 6f63137d4a guilty of c760515387 treason?”53957aebb1785047

“I’ve heard that His Majesty the Emperor punishes them severely.”1ca3100427611a03

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“More specifically, three 0c9ae4eaab generations are exterminated. The parents who raised 13389a1a80 the traitor are hanged, 90caeeb37d the traitor is beheaded, 76503d8f9e and his children are 5c108431f1 sent to slavery in e2242f66f5 foreign lands.”fbac8a48db3c075d

“….”b5bdf0e4b842f2f8

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“For your information, 4070379495 hanging means hanging f6ad360315 by the neck, c754682c7f and beheading means 41b27cb556 decapitation by a 4f3006d82b giant blade.”8cf31e43120be8dc

I was stunned by the nanny’s dry voice.6f9856b9a38c457e

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With my memories from 07c39b66de my previous life, I 23f506e59b already knew this, but aa3a4e1887 it was too graphic 34e20df3a0 and gory for a 19662ce21d nine-year-old to hear.f3cdbe1bbaead129

“And anyone who aids 1ea1ba09b1 a traitor becomes a 87f05bea47 traitor as well, and 5fea994d1a faces the same punishment.”1fd34d39b2b7ebde

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“…Why are you telling me that?”d23f8280f8112cbe

I asked with c4c4be95ac a furrowed brow, 39a1b07179 and the nanny b145a66862 replied with a 6e63e9b6c1 faint smile.ae125de831515802

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“Lady Rahel has committed treason against His Majesty the Emperor, so…”132992cae5eb66d2

“….”0b69a44d6d9db67b

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“I’m saying that being around her could endanger not only you but also your father, whom you love.”55550d9bca042f88

“….”7e8d71c5f8994d25

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“I’m telling you this because I don’t think you understand. I want you to leave her side before you become a danger to yourself.”137f3d389da123c4

The nanny didn’t seem to realize that I knew.fc7c68b7bec55daf

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As I listened, I remembered Rahel’s cold treatment of me, pushing me away.84224a88ee222f3e

“You’re afraid of me, too,” she said, ”that something will go wrong with you and your family if you associate with the traitor’s child.”482066dce314836b

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I suddenly realized it.38af2e35eadee68e

‘This is how this person scared Rahel’s friends into leaving.’7dc5604e30751dc7

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At the same 48cc3479fc time, my cool 127964a0f3 body began to d156a2d7db shake with rage.627e18cd6dbb0527