In a villa belonging to the Alway Ducal Family on the outskirts of the Wethered Kingdom’s capital city, Emilia Alway’s angry voice echoed. Her fury was directed at Rosa Roen, a member of Waalthe, the continent’s foremost assassination organization, whom her mother, Cornelia Alway, had hired to kill Hannelore Alway, the main wife, and Olivier.
“What do you mean, ‘what do you mean’? I only did what I was supposed to do.”
“What are you supposed to do! Kidnapping Yeny Daum, are you out of your mind?!”
Emilia’s anger stemmed from Rosa having kidnapped Yeny. If it became known that she had kidnapped the granddaughter of Baron Daum, her father’s most trusted subordinate and benefactor, she couldn’t predict what would happen to her mother and herself. Emilia herself had once felt disdain for Jared Murphy and wanted to eliminate him, but upon reflection, she truly felt it was fortunate she hadn’t. Not only had she come to like Jared and desired him, but he was also Baron Daum’s grandson and a Court Mage Candidate. Because he was Olivier’s fiancé, she had a strong desire to crush him. However, at worst, she risked making enemies not only of her father and Baron Daum but also of the Mage Association.
“I told you, didn’t I? Don’t kill Jared Murphy.”
“I heard you. But there’s no reason for me to obey you.”
“Why not!”
“Don’t misunderstand, you brat who can do nothing without wielding your parents’ authority. It’s your mother who hired me, Waalthe. Not you. Cornelia Alway ordered me to kill Jared Murphy, so I’m carrying out the依頼.”
“My mother didn’t say to kill him!”
“No, she did. In private, when you weren’t there.”
Upon learning of her mother’s hidden agenda, Emilia was struck speechless. Only now did she truly grasp her mother’s resolve.
“So… as I suspected, Mother…”
She knew her mother wanted Hannelore dead, enough so to hire an assassin. However, a part of her held an unfounded belief that she wouldn’t actually go through with it. She had never clearly asked her mother why she wanted Hannelore gone so desperately. Even if Hannelore were to disappear, it didn’t guarantee her mother would become the main wife. Considering the depth of her father’s feelings for Hannelore, it was possible no one else would ever be the main wife. Yet, Cornelia believed that if Hannelore were out of the picture, everything would be resolved. She firmly believed she would become the main wife and her son would be the heir.
When she first learned of her mother’s scheme, Emilia, finding it amusing, had considered becoming an accomplice. If Olivier were gone, Jared’s fiancée would disappear. Her father would surely want to bring Jared into their family and would choose a new fiancée for him. She thought that she, being close in age and openly harboring feelings for him, would be chosen. Yes, she had thought that.
But it wouldn’t turn out that way. After investigating Jared, Emilia learned that if Olivier hadn’t become his fiancée, it had been decided that Yeny Daum, Jared’s cousin and Rosa’s kidnapping victim, would become his fiancée. In that case, even if Olivier were gone, things would simply revert to that. Emilia didn’t care about noble titles, but a Duke’s daughter could never become a Baron’s consort. More importantly, Rosa was willing to kill Jared, using Yeny as a hostage. Beyond her own affections, Jared would die if things continued like this. Honestly, she had reached her limit following her mother, who would do anything to eliminate Hannelore. Emilia disliked Olivier. Because of her, she could never forget the days of being compared to her, no matter how hard she tried, and she had always thought Olivier might as well die if she was going to. So, when Rosa appeared, she hadn’t felt anything. But now, it was different.
Seeing her mother’s lack of composure, Emilia herself became calm. And she remembered. She remembered playing with Olivier and Conrad in the past, and how much fun they had. She remembered Hannelore tucking her in at night when her mother, who rarely paid her attention, couldn’t. And Emilia finally understood why she disliked Olivier so much. Olivier, who was loved and doted upon by both her mother and father, unlike herself, was simply envied. “I’m just the daughter of a mother driven mad by jealousy,” she muttered to herself. But she didn’t want to become like her mother.
Until now, seeing Olivier and the others targeted by concubines, she had felt a sense of schadenfreude and looked the other way. She had even supported her mother’s attempts to kill Olivier out of her own ill feelings towards him. But she couldn’t anymore. She had reached her limit.
She knew everyone would probably laugh, but Emilia’s feelings for Jared were genuine. At first, she was bothered by Olivier being his fiancée and tried to harm her. She had even tried to kill her, but she hadn’t been serious. She had merely given the order, and when the person who received the order said it was impossible, she changed it to harassment. The more she investigated, the more it felt as if she had known him for a long time. Even though she knew it was an illusion, her feelings deepened. As her feelings for Jared grew stronger, she came to realize her mother’s abnormality and regained her composure. And she had advised her mother to stop, to turn back while there hadn’t been major harm, but the result was Yeny Daum’s kidnapping. She understood that she could no longer stop her mother. However, she couldn’t abandon her and couldn’t report it to her father. Emilia desperately did not want her mother to head towards ruin like this.
As a last resort, she sent Pfeil to Jared. Rosa would not give information to Pfeil, so Emilia relayed information to Pfeil herself, allowing it to reach Jared. However, she had instructed Pfeil not to mention that she had asked him to do anything. Emilia clearly remembered the wary eyes Jared had given her when they met at the mansion, and she thought that if he knew she was involved, he might not believe her. She could easily imagine the situation worsening if that happened.
Actually, Rosa had kidnapped Yeny, but she hadn’t contacted Jared. She had decided to have Pfeil act as if he had received a message from Rosa. She thought that way, they could take the initiative. All that remained was to help Yeny escape.
“Let me meet Yeny Daum. I want to apologize for what has happened.”
“But that means you’ll be seen by her.”
“Oh, do you intend to release her?”
“Regarding that girl, it’s a plan to ensure Jared Murphy is killed. When she’s no longer useful, I’ll release her.”
“Is that so? By the way, where are your subordinates?”
She noticed that the members of Waalthe who were supposed to be following Rosa were absent. There were several adventurers outside the mansion, and she had wondered about it.
“I judged that my subordinates couldn’t defeat Jared, so I sent them back. Instead, I hired adventurers, though they are disposable.”
“So, that’s how it is. In other words, even with your subordinates, you saw no chance of winning, so you took Yeny Daum hostage. You can’t defeat Jared Murphy otherwise, can you?”
