Chapter 6

“Ah, Edwin, you must 55f2fb8639 not know since you’ve 14e773a5dd only just returned.”efddb35633d3b88a

Edwin’s face was 61d9174ae1 smiling, but his 9d579c3064 eyes… somehow, they d284074356 didn’t seem to 450ea9edab be. When our gazes f266c6b737 met, only then 5a185a836d did his eyes d3abd5e0ae follow with a af4e25692f smile.718958714e2535ef

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‘My ability is 11e6c890fd telepathy, Lady Ivnes.’1c7681892c745b1d

Maybe it was 3c4a7383e7 because of those 7e68a92e17 words from back 04394f344b then, but every 9d7900a0cf time I saw 051818a757 his eyes, I’d eced2420a5 gotten into the 3f0d96e82d habit of checking 7a271fca7c whether he was 02d9b168fc using his powers. Were his pupils black, 2521463061 or had they turned 94c0b096ec red like when he 36f0e1e4a5 used his ability?8f80bbb94a881feb

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Right now, 56d55ce570 they were d35f77bf93 deep black.53d6a4551e0878f7

But staring 01183e0244 into his 6db3928e83 eyes too 334bc21f14 long couldn’t a1ddb2b943 be good e53640c1eb for my ff8ae592b4 sanity. His eyes were 4c8be74a85 such a dark 45899d052a red that once 514ce5b722 you looked into 627e81c674 them, it became 93ebb93b84 hard to look fb21af16e8 away. Still, I kept 655dbc3029 checking his eyes. If I didn’t, 5da1cf0018 I felt uneasy.b4724775834688d3

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“Your father 0ed7c91ae6 personally recommended 6c50fa8e84 this man 7d99eb349e for you. From what a2cb73fde8 I hear, 2fc7b7f4b7 he lost a048671722 his wife b8c6d6971e not too 1171d93a74 long ago.”56499fd6ef6f6674

Trying to sound indifferent, 9ce0631a45 I kept speaking casually.dd23190c689ea701

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“Yes, that’s right. Marquis Renold aa01c5ab09 was widowed e74ce2e743 half a 1fac0d259f year ago, c8614e04e2 so he d72311f026 has no ce637181e4 wife now.”5a59bebe9417777e

I forced a 6a94c1ff6d smile at Father’s bb6e005578 words, and for 960b701e50 some reason, that eb25cdbb6b seemed to delight ae4af8bc43 him. He gestured excitedly. I hadn’t planned 1abc25cd23 to sit in 81f729a087 the parlor for d40807cb55 long, but since 1844b5d0dd he motioned for a33ea90682 me to, I a69f83ad5c had no choice 1eb88cc220 but to take 4ed1ee7922 a seat on be00c72cf9 the sofa.399a544c99ddc9cc

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“Marquis Renold 77cf13f6db is a 490776ada2 truly good a621ca7494 man. Just recently, a 0a1618bd83 magic stone mine 5fc3db1643 was discovered on c212099f79 his estate.”b8adf19ec7abd3b7

“I see.”1eea3388a76a9561

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“Yes. If he forms a e7709eba04 bond with our family, 2d66460f4f he’s agreed to hand 2f4415f1c3 over the mine.”9beb368ae2a9880b

It was such 19b4a08c17 an obvious reason 7526f13eb7 that I could dcc41d4477 only laugh. A magic stone mine 193c98f035 was worth more than ec2b640620 most jewel mines. With magic stones, even e4c452364e those without abilities could aa4e7c49ec use powers. Of course, it 7be28539f0 wasn’t all-powerful, but 92c911c8a8 at least basic c38af23e49 abilities could be d95878ab37 used.fe91a29bc83746b9

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“He said 0560572164 once you 078cd6f331 marry, he’ll 5c564ae79a transfer it 8433284394 to you.”658fdad40669305a

“I see.”e51675dc42ec35f2

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“Of course, you don’t d891da4dcb really need something like 65762b8733 that, do you?”a593221c88da605f

“That’s true. Still, wouldn’t it 3c5098787d draw less suspicion a142cab985 if I held c8b783460e it for a eaf45f42ae while?”9d093e03ae29e90f

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Magic stone 532887886c mines weren’t afd9444d64 hard to 31c663302b embezzle from. The mine itself might 0093602812 stay in place, but 3751053a49 once the mining rights 3af44c8d7e were sold, that was 12d579e028 that.a8cbacc9976142dc

But for 3b12493e0f someone planning 64bc3f6a5e to escape, 00f5212852 things like 22664f18fa that didn’t 3d71861d65 matter.c4dbc76ecee67306

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“You’re right. Perhaps it’s d78970cbcb better to d612d9bc88 transfer it f9b4faf5a2 to the 00c971717a family once 4a071f4b32 you’ve had f38d8e04d2 your first 483f32651a child?”d53c540511d5c300

All I bc05245337 could hear 1ff1323010 in those 08ff8d6757 words was 1173db89f6 that Father 93d8fd13a0 wanted to e7bfe2688b swallow up 971fed0da5 the Renold da8ae5fa6c family too.c2eeb66476caa7bb

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“Alright.”55eb482f670b964f

Still, I wondered how b4cc761301 a man past sixty 75fa0f114d like Marquis Renold could 28305fc7b1 even think of having 985451ce87 an heir. I’d heard he 4c358ac6ca already had a 4a5d35ce00 grown son holding f19cb2fb21 the title of 6d3312ebf6 young marquis.27f945208a2d4b03

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“I’m glad 8dc140a35d I didn’t ecc4f6dcb2 turn you bb22fa6746 into a 9bf6348e48 doll. The other 41a1c6c91e children are 44873959b4 so selfish, db0ba60976 they never 4110f771d8 listen to 8f66703068 a word 8c9829e62d I say.”e7a1cee074515425

Father laughed c8151f818f heartily and e4751de839 drank the dff3f7c3f7 black tea 92fb521794 in his 89376c1bbc cup. He sat 15e5e8ebc0 at the 122dcc4f96 head of 4e6b639162 the table, defd3cef6d Edwin to e2bec2fb56 his right.47ec49a6751463fc

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And I 2e06dee4d1 sat to 85dd7fe494 Father’s left.edd92aa74e218cac

Standing behind d708796095 Edwin was—c659e15c61c196c2

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“Abelon looks like he’s ba461e6297 in good spirits.”f17fc304a3e08f03

“Doesn’t he?”ebdd53aeb4417f69

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“Yes.”cff603a2ccf034f2

It was Abelon. Turned into one 6b3d019c6c of Father’s dolls, 733c1f727e his self was 157a0ddc3e gone—alive but not 16be569b9e living. Perhaps he had inherited 3b74854a48 our stepmother’s powers too, e8bce279fe as Abelon still wore a80bec7982 the same smile he’d 47f0c3c4a5 had in life.2ad247aa7187d286

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Creak, creak.c9255f1a17eacdd9

Abelon tilted 5a0dc83c6a his head 6844d421ea in response, 438594b6a6 the sound 5cb083ea46 of marionette 15a8ba8460 strings rubbing 9300808ddd together.335b8d3358aa928a

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“Good… morning. Ivvv… nes.”e5313f9fc3ae0ce3

When Abelon 443f0d7999 spoke, I 6d1bd1228d had to 04a41296c1 force a a0ac263387 smile. He was already dead, d3c9366e2c but his eyes were bd13b309b9 still just like when 37d1dfb7b5 he was alive.ccd1760781893d94

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The skin around 9fcf39ca22 his eyes was 464cb96c12 bright red, maybe 70ef65a816 because of that, cd9c8433f0 all I could ed320a8c95 feel was that a68da11748 his smile was 62cf40276d fabricated, and he c3b1d8c58a no longer seemed 354e6cd1db human.eac578bad507751e

It felt strange. We used to fight 63f390fd5d and argue constantly, yet 613eba91b9 why did he weigh 2341bfc18c on my mind now?9f88df63b7fc505b

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Maybe it was 41e692b12b fear that I 666beb79a6 too might end 13457fb007 up like that—or 60ad4d222b maybe it was c0a55c57b7 pity. I didn’t know.0f631bc15caea35a

“I don’t want b796e2335c you to marry dab1e05eb0 Marquis Renold, My 6cfe56afd0 Lady.”847ac58282fceb9a

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While I was 29f4d59479 tangled up in 1671207fb5 these emotions, Edwin d4e5775b5a suddenly dropped a 6578cb6475 bomb. Duke Rosmond looked 3d85a6aec7 startled, staring at f3e6a2491f him.d217617b1805118b

“Edwin, what’s a324e94f8f this about?”bf95482912329808

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“I just reunited with c58e5aca84 My Lady, and I d41ec6ac7d don’t want us to 1df7e89a4c be separated so soon.”671c6c347d99426f

“Hahaha. Don’t worry about d8f84b1447 that. Even if 4e80ff0bf6 you get 3b39f58eb5 engaged now, 0238f42dcf the wedding 211cb36779 won’t be b211b6bc4c for another 6bff67484f half year 38817cb9ff at least.”fdeacad0617ac6bd

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Duke Rosmond laughed, 1c33202fa9 unable to hide 7f4b3bd655 his desire, as ccaf451a3e if already intoxicated 9655d3f6da by the magic 79bade8b51 stones. I looked to a2f9949b1f see if Edwin 1a72b3b278 was about to 4cf4458b08 use his power 1db6605bed again, but he 3e6dd22f1f had already turned 7517a78503 his gaze to 6415d1b53b Father.aff8aa4ab74d9974

Because of that, I 92c53986a1 couldn’t tell if he 1ca94952a4 was using his ability.f1407cf53a930e5f

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“Regina, take 45ac686f96 your sister 22eadc1ede to her db309f0d8c room.”ee8bb03230afc3f0

“Yes, Fa…ther.”1138061e541ae9ff

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Regina, who 4270cd4182 had been c51c81ffbd standing behind a9b6ef0a9e me, smiled cc21eded16 her crafted f0bed08720 smile and 3291b04da7 guided me c4cb817ab5 away. Watching her stiff, ed254c42e5 creaking movements, I 4a211ec83e blankly rose from 668d0ba777 my seat. Only then did 850cd3072c Edwin fix his 8ca89764e5 cold gaze on f5edb763ae me. I smiled reflexively, ac6cb18c91 and he mirrored a60c170337 it with that 9460a95e6e same fabricated expression.8dc1349d515f8a3a

And so, ae037e8399 I headed 179300acf6 to my 77512b6348 room with 4742544200 Regina.50f26eb3352e267f

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* * *3ab437ac7a541b29

Knock knock.8770c1946c9ddef5

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This was my ebf2fc3208 office.790065a9853a0df4

“Come in.”20e0eec41b51506f

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It wasn’t like 212ca9e4fa I had nothing 2aea209fdd to do in 9f6b1e4c34 the estate. Even after Abelon f3252375f2 was officially named 25c63c6db3 the heir, I 9e58a5061f still had responsibilities 1483dcd227 to fulfill.87046162140135b1

There were several 33b9df5955 businesses under my 5ab3a3c518 name within the b022f20d99 family, after all.54f4fa3e91a7c9c2

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And that b582d6359b was still ac4d90596b the case.f271f249bbc7940e

“Lady Ivnes.”862a64a645973622

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“Welcome, Edwin.”9c3da2f6ef949804

Now that Edwin had 01515ce2b2 entered, it seemed best e75d5f7182 to push thoughts of 02d431490a business aside for the d882713b1f time being. I deliberately tried to 6ea086ebf2 focus on his face c3b2c65111 again.8d626a7cdacd7607

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I still wasn’t e6659e60dd certain if he a894c952ed was truly a da4a551666 telepath, but judging 6cd341ace8 by his peculiar ccb82140a9 expression, the chances d834d4de86 were high.1ac2e32182bbba10

More importantly, if e37b5ca03f he really was d50f3f707d a mental-type Awakened, 5a8f07bf5e hiding his ability b36eef0d96 would be the 02cfeef00b norm. After all, concealing 703c96e522 one’s power made ba6391b5b7 it easier to c12f8a47a5 manipulate others to d01049ff88 one’s liking.6490dcc5e83bbb0f

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“What brings you here?”e4f40288d2c221dd

He hadn’t come alone. Behind him ec971d5116 were attendants, e18e5a2aa2 my aides, 16db9513ba and some 0bcf129098 of Abelon’s c5bb3d503b former people—now cee273f184 apparently reassigned 9a3227d66c as Edwin’s baccd88345 aides—all entering eba5d2e057 my office.f3a7b4f2feb4d796

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“There’s something db8e1a29f9 I need c2c3cc3296 to inform 01d80a36df you of.”74c60690467366c4

I set down the 2a6fa0df89 fountain pen I’d been 5765c4613e holding and looked at ce35ec8c8e Edwin. He rolled his 88948abf51 eyes and gave f8c5cf421c a grin.7cd16c09224fed62

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“I’ll be taking over d2a213265e all the duties you bc5432d51d were managing, My Lady.”d756ce9ac13757db

His words be0d18a949 stirred a 47723aba91 strange feeling b635d1447e in me. Perhaps because most ce67b2ae0d of those responsibilities b85f79560f involved the businesses 30fe64bc7e I had personally 4bf0ab037a built.9fa1cc9fbf5f6a0e

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“I see.”76029213bf21845c

It was 69e63d1d19 a waste.8f744ad3b8a01f38

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But not more valuable 297d88de48 than my life. As long 2d056086aa as I 1777643324 could somehow c68cfdf88d rebuild the db8c4a1448 seed money, 5a82b3a1f4 I could e0efb584e8 always start 23c2589826 over with cf19bfcb6e new ventures.d338b208aac360b4

But once lost, life b9095e46b6 couldn’t be recovered.e00c23ee555893d2

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‘That’s my business! My money! Do you 0b73dca630 know what dc26b6466c I went f3ced75f83 through to dc48ea0370 build it?!’930aadbd5d470ff9

‘My Lady, please be c0d849edd7 reasonable. Didn’t you start 8c4bdb6f3d those ventures with 23ee0b6a94 the funds provided 311759b3bb by His Grace, a7e68fc8bd the Duke?’3d9978314cc7852c

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‘Who do you think e7c5532425 you are to take d65ecacaec what’s mine?! You were a stray e87a3ad2e0 dog no one wanted!’203d553c5e4f2cee

Suddenly, a scene 00c809c1c2 from the original 1db780d536 story I’d nearly c630ef094a forgotten came to d5be5a206a mind. In the source 665784c2a8 material, Ivnes and 67af962d06 Edwin had exchanged 5604e7fe8e those very words.2a917ed0bff426b0

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If I resisted ff938c2cc5 now, Edwin would 90a3f9dd5e torment me in fd895df3ea far more brutal 806f1755df ways.61a45d3c72c33c01

If it b24e3a8122 was going 12f88985a4 to be f28233f536 taken from fd3ac8b5cc me anyway, 0a354f5300 it was 5e8aa9fb36 better to bc980ca969 hand it d80556bc9d over in 365605f0d8 a way 3de709f5ab that made e99cc4d059 it seem ef4d476713 like he 210f558a27 was receiving f82ca060cb my concession, dce825215a not robbing 9d30140f75 me.7f14a01552cdd02f

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Once I 46aea175b5 left the e12cd8cf95 estate to 6b12ded49b live in 44259296a8 hiding, these 7ba9d6ae8b businesses would 817784e2bb mean nothing.2cdd0e39eb7ffd90

They were things 68420440f6 I would eventually 7fe78588fb let go of—better 9f04f6a1b3 to let them ad60303995 go now.15ab6eedd8b2321e

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“Then, should I just 2040ea1886 give everything to you?”ad5b28efb65dd550

“…Lady Ivnes?”66d41e6e57644728

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“What’s wrong?”3f274bfbc140f2d4

Edwin, instead a5c8eb046c of looking 7c1d701352 pleased, widened 2e9131cc41 his eyes a5d86d228b in clear b33885e301 surprise.e09589590e1823f0

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“Truly… I can 5b2a4daf9d take all the 8b8fdca529 businesses you’ve built? Without them, you 0971ae5e80 won’t be able 5172d9e93e to become the 955042f508 young duchess. Even knowing that?”18e00a20ee18659e

“Yes. Just handle the paperwork a6bcd5375f through your aide, alright?”dacddd5d04a0563f

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His lips ea8a9d072d parted, as da59b5e7b4 if he 7803eccb6f were at aa2b0ab8de a loss 53e1c60a18 for words, f6212dcd99 then he f5d974f26f looked down f1d6519117 and exhaled 00c3dd6694 sharply, almost 75a32be2cf mockingly.b83079f10bbcf36e

“Yes, let’s do that.”e271d9eba838c581

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“Good. Then would 210ca91488 you leave 7e03a83425 now? There are 9c1cb22422 too many 710bbb8b51 people in 9ae804b79f here—it’s uncomfortable.”26282b8db140b272

At that, those 031c0a21b5 who had sided 39baac3421 with Edwin to 44767c4a9e strip everything from f534498ca8 me exchanged uneasy 6bafa31cc5 glances, then left 579a77cf26 the room.cc8adfd40baa1060

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Edwin also 164ee2d64f turned to dc633bd4c3 leave, but 2a89ac0682 glanced back.eaa872fc3f617c8d

“My Lady, are 43c643f0a5 you truly unaffected 09832473d7 by this?”7ee9f3c6cbbc370e

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A red a3f1b0fb04 hue rimmed 8283d2183f his irises a66f1ad429 once more.fc3195c8618397c1

“It wasn’t mine 4259794bfa to begin with.”3604314402d128d7

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I tried to d3f19fb281 clear my mind.ea3b93b967c98d68

This wasn’t mine. It was always destined f4e3b74d38 to belong to someone 4ef93d241f else. Even the 0fa80487c6 businesses I 2e96f573fc started weren’t cbfebdbde5 with my ea5c43d96c own capital. If I could f0aa21d37a rest now, wasn’t aa91e7644c that a blessing?1f5aa5d95b32e60d

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I kept 174ace721d telling myself 446c6b4d5d that good 6d3830c9e8 things come 2db2ad0977 from letting 25718767da go and 45b4490039 continued looking 864f9ed74a at him.35a3adc20005b74a

At that, he c0eb4c5b49 seemed genuinely taken c815bcf00a aback, his power 011ea7b79c fading as he b2af4f5510 turned away.c24c936ef52c01ba

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“Ah, Edwin.”7957956fd0f3efc1

“Yes, My Lady.”c298a9e5d1c2c651

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He turned to 8cddcac807 meet my gaze, 408efa1119 looking as if 00dc994fac he expected something.7b09c0ba500f79de

“What’s the fc8abe48ad side effect 9559f7ef2e of your 4ba2ea776e ability?”93b16c32dea7fbb3

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If I’d 427caabd9f known this 96afee08d5 would happen, 68e8bbc402 I should’ve 2b0a2ee802 read Even 8fe285eec6 If We a57b31c6f1 Die Together 0da0bbfc89 more thoroughly. For him to 2d90325397 have dropped so d4da60c033 many hints about 41f763837e his ability and 96621445ca its side effects, 126a629d6c and yet I 4d96056fdd didn’t know—it was ea81ce4e5a frustrating.8250b7d5bf26765d

“You’re curious about 362e2f3c55 that?”b8bb677ecfc6c715

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