What A Family Is (2)

You don't deserve to be unhappy.

It was a strange thing to say.

How could someone she barely met tell her that she doesn't deserve to be unhappy?

But.

Adonis found those words piercing her heart.

A drop of water fell on her hand.

"Ah."

Adonis, who realized it late, bowed her head and apologized to Reed.

"I'm sorry...."

"You can cry if you want to. I'll pretend not to know about this."

"No, that's not it."

Despite her words, the tears welled up. She wanted to make some excuse, but even that, she couldn't do.

"Ugh, uh...."

Adonis tried to calm her heart, but it was difficult to manage the emotions that were welling up.

She knew very well that she couldn't stop it and had to let it out.

However, she couldn't cry.

Because she was not a princess, but the Third Knight Commander, Adonis Hupfer.

As the face of the Hupper Kingdom, she always had to be an inspiration to others.

She couldn't be crying pitifully like this.

Adonis pressed her tear glands hard with her finger.

Despite being a woman known as the "Giant Slayer" and possessing such traits, she was woefully inadequate to block her tiny tear glands.

She swallowed her tears and her sorrow for a while.

Reed waited patiently for her to control her emotions.

Once she had calmed down a bit, Reed stood up from his seat and quietly handed her a glass of water.

After drinking all the water, Adonis, stroking her chest, opened her mouth again.

"I am.... a disgraceful woman."

It was a shockingly frank confession coming from a knight.

However, Reed listened to her words calmly.

"Why is that?"

"Whenever I see my younger brother, I think of our mother... I miss her terribly, and also, my heart turns bitter... I start to hate him without end. Even though he didn't kill our mother, even though he is not at fault...."

Queen Elizabeth Hupper, Adonis's biological mother, had to make a choice when she gave birth to Morgan II.

And Elizabeth chose Morgan II, sacrificing herself in the process.

It was a gesture of a great mother's love and a wound as well.

At the end of her teenage years, at 17,

Adonis lost her mother in that way.

"I knew from a long time ago that His Majesty the King dotes on my younger sibling. No doubt he intends to place him on the throne."

She wasn't a fool, so she had some idea.

"That's why I'm afraid to look at my little brother's face. I was afraid that my wicked heart might be exposed to his innocent eyes, so I had no choice but to keep my distance from that child."

The Giant Slayer, Adonis Hupper.

She, who was praised by everyone, also had the heart of a delicate girl.

But she, who had no one to rely on, could not reveal her true feelings.

She had been living a life thoroughly for the Hupper Kingdom, wearing the mask of a knight.

Reed listened carefully to Adonis's words.

He too felt it. That she was revealing her inner feelings for the first time.

"Commander of the Knights, no, Miss Adonis."

Reed spoke to her in a gentle voice.

"I understand that family matters can be difficult. But you are not disgraceful."

"Why is that?"

"Everyone has desires. There are even people who kill their own family due to their desires. But you have tried to protect your family. Even though you've avoided your sibling, it's probably because you were trying to suppress the evil emotions that well up even without your knowledge. Just by this fact alone, you are a knight and an older sister who is nobler than anyone else."

Reed approached her and handed her a handkerchief in his left hand.

"So, you don't need to blame yourself. You don't need to make yourself unhappy."

His golden eyes showed a warm smile.

She couldn't stop it.

Even though she tried hard to block the tear ducts.

Even though she bit her lips hard and tried to hold on, everything fell apart because of this man who spoke kindly.

In the end, Adonis cried out loud.

Adonis looked down at the handkerchief Reed had handed her.

The red handkerchief embroidered with golden threads was soaked with her tears.

Adonis blushed with embarrassment at the handkerchief and carefully put it in her pocket.

No, it would be more accurate to say she hid it.

"I will... wash the handkerchief for you."

"You can throw it away or burn it on your way. It's better than having a rumor going around that you received a handkerchief from the owner of the Silence Tower."

As Reed said this, Adonis looked up at him with her moist emerald-like eyes.

"You are kinder than the rumors, Tower Master."

"Rumors?"

"I heard that the owner of the Silence Tower used to be an authoritative person. Cold and jealous of those who are superior to him."

"...I think it's quite inappropriate to tell you this."

"But because you are not like that, I can say this."

Reed turned his head as if embarrassed.

Seeing his expression, Adonis almost laughed unwittingly.

Adonis, who was about to smile, touched her face and returned to a blank expression.

She had returned to being the Knight Captain Adonis Hupper, but she could not hide her reddened eyes.

"How can I help you with those who are trying to defame me?"

She couldn't just stand by when she heard they were planning to ruin her.

But Reed decided to just accept Adonis's feelings.

"Please, Knight Captain, just act as usual. This matter is for the wizards."

"The wizards' matter... I see. My involvement wouldn't be helpful."

Just as a wizard doesn't understand a knight's battle, a knight doesn't understand a wizard's battle.

Wizards, who value information, never reveal their secrets.

Adonis had been educated to never trust anyone since she didn't know their true intentions.

Recalling her training, Adonis looked at Reed.

Was it right to trust this man?

'I have no choice but to trust him now.'

Reed had been honest with her so far.

His honesty allowed Adonis to express her feelings, and Reed accepted them as they were.

So, for now, she decided to trust Reed.

"Did you tell anyone else that you were going to the Silence Tower?"

Reed asked Adonis.

There was a need to be cautious, as just their meeting could allow someone to make certain predictions.

If necessary, he even considered creating a new alibi.

Adonis shook her head.

"No. There have been increasing attacks on travelers in the small villages within the Hupper kingdom, so I went out under the pretense of patrolling."

"Alone...you say?"

"Yes."

She's bold.

But thinking about it further, Adonis had the ability to bend even a giant's spine, so what would she fear from bandits?

She could probably turn bandits into blocks and stack them neatly.

Anyway, it didn't seem necessary to make an alibi.

"For now, I'll pretend I don't know anything. If there are any signs, I'd appreciate it if you send them through a bluebird or a dove, not a letter."

"Understood."

"Thank you, Tower Master."

Adonis courteously greeted him.

"Oh, and Miss Adonis."

Before parting, Reed stopped her.

He took out an item he had prepared in advance and handed it to Adonis.

"What's this?"

"It's a substitute for the perfume I mentioned before."

"But that perfume wasn't yours, was it?"

There was no need for Reed to give her this item, as he had lied to protect himself.

"It doesn't matter. Shouldn't a man keep his word? It's an item I've already chosen, so please accept it."

Adonis took the perfume.

And she immediately ripped open the box.

It wasn't polite to open a gift in front of the giver, but Adonis had something she wanted to confirm enough to overlook such rudeness.

The scent that suited her.

She felt she had to confirm that scent in front of herself.

She took off her gauntlet, placed it between her legs, and sprayed the perfume on her slender wrist.

As she smelled the faintly rising scent, she responded.

"It really... seems to suit me."

She spoke with a straight face, but Reed could tell.

He could hear the joy in her voice.

***

The Capital of the Kingdom, Cohen.

Someone was anxiously wandering around.

Right now, they couldn't focus on anything else. The most important part of their grand plan had failed.

"If you keep running around like this, do you think things will be solved magically? Then world peace must have been achieved already."

Freesia taunted Morgan with a mocking voice.

Morgan responded with a disgruntled expression.

"Didn't you say that no one would find out about this?"

"Of course, I didn't expect someone to catch on.. I'm not a prophet, how was I supposed to know all that?"

"You really didn't reveal this plan to anyone else, did you?"

At that, Freesia scowled. She got up from her crooked position and approached Morgan.

"Are you doubting my abilities? You of all people?"

As soon as she finished her words, someone grabbed Morgan's throat.

A black hand was choking him.

It was a hand extending from Morgan's own shadow.

If Freesia had made up her mind, Morgan's neck would have already snapped.

Freesia's eyes glowed red like a demon emerging from hell.

"Listen, wise king. It seems like the blood isn't flowing to your head lately, making you lose your nerve. Just because you teamed up with me doesn't mean you're in a position to order me around. If anything, you should be the one apologizing to me."

"I did as I was told."

"If you did as you were told, then why did it fail? My plan was perfect. Undoubtedly, your pathetic acting ruined everything. You showed your daughter your pathetic desire to prolong your life, didn't you?"

"If you continue like this..."

"What? What are you going to do? Void the contract? I can throw away the book you gave me anytime. And the moment I discard it, I can expose the fact that you gave me the book. The wise king who bowed his head to the worst tower master, doesn't that sound funny? If it's proven true, who would stand up for you?"

No matter how much he thought about it, he was the one with more to lose.

If it became known that he was pretending to be good while clinging to a villain, he would lose everything.

That's why Morgan immediately backed down.

"I apologize. I dared to doubt your ability..."

"Don't do that next time. A dog should act like a dog, got it?"

"...Yes."

"Good."

As soon as Freesia finished speaking, the black hand around Morgan's neck returned to its original place.

"What should we do now?"

"Anyway, the ceremony has not been completed yet. Trying to rush will only lead to loss. Let's take our time and find a way to torment your daughter."

"Of course I will... but the problem is who figured out this plan. It's obvious they'll interfere again... Do you have any idea who it could be, Tower Master of the Black Sky?"

Freesia replied with a sullen face.

"I don't know. I didn't bother to think about it."

"Understood. Then I will think about it."

But Freesia already knew who had intervened.

'Reed Adeleheights Roton.'

The only man she called by name among the Tower Masters and among all the people alive.

It had to be him.

When she was causing a ruckus in the Cohen Castle under the name of Brosa, he was with her and she told him about her plan.

If the plan to harm Adonis without anyone knowing had gone awry, the most likely suspect would be him, who knew a little about the inside story.

'He figured out the trigger was the perfume, and with the help of other tower masters, he succeeded in helping...'

Freesia'smethod was clever.

Her plan to awaken mana and implant 'trigger hypnosis' in a person was hard to detect unless heard in advance.

Freesia was extremely curious as to how Reed figured it out one step ahead.

'Does that mean he knew in advance what was going to happen to Adonis Hupper?'

Is he colluding with the wise king?

What she was most curious about above all was.

'Did he do that knowing that this was a plot devised by me, Freesia?'

***

Tower of the Black Sky.

She was the second-ranked Tower Master, but the gap between her and the third-ranked was as wide as heaven and earth, and she didn't lag behind even Helios, the chairman.

If he opposed her despite knowing her identity, it would have been quite an audacious act.

If it had been her original personality, she would have set up a magic circle around the Tower of Silence and destroyed everything from the nearby village to the forest and the mountains.

She had shown her true colors to everyone who dared to oppose her.

But when it came to Reed, she simply broke into a smile.

A wicked smile that was unbelievable for a child.

'You've always been a fascinating one.'