I Played the Role of the Adopted Daughter Too Well

Zenon smiled, “Ma’am.”

 

“Yes, go on.”

 

“I don’t mind submitting the report, but you might be greatly disappointed.”

 

“That’s not for Zenon to decide.”

 

Isabella walked slowly and sat back in her chair.

 

She knew.

 

“I won’t lie, but I won’t report if it’s unnecessary.”

 

She waited for a moment.

 

Zenon also needed some mental preparation.

 

After a while, Zenon finally spoke up.

 

“The report I intended to submit was originally meant to be confidential for the Duke.”

 

Isabella narrowed her eyes, “Do tell. Since the Duke is absent, and I’m acting on his behalf, it’s right for you to report to me. The Duke would understand perfectly.”

 

“Lady Isabella seems to be paying a lot of attention to Lady Viola.”

 

That made Zenon feel proud. He received recognition from Isabella, the practical executioner of Winter Castle.

 

“How much longer should I wait, Zenon?”

 

Zenon cleared his throat and spoke. “I’ll tell you. Lady Viola is currently in a very deep sleep.”

 

Isabella nodded in understanding. She was curious about what report the competent butler would make.

 

“To ensure this, I spent two months’ salary to use the Silent and Terra Phee spell scrolls.”

 

“And?”

 

“As a result, she fell into a very comfortable sleep and is currently chewing on her hair. She’s probably having a good dream, like eating an egg tart.”

 

Isabella’s expression twitched slightly.

 

“And that was the report you wanted to give to the Duke?”

 

“Yes. Without a single lie.”

 

“I see.”

 

Isabella nodded. Zenon wouldn’t lie.

 

‘There must be a hidden meaning.’

 

There must be a coded language between the Duke and Zenon. Deep sleep. Silent spell. Terra Phee spell. There must be some connection between these keywords.

 

‘Viola seems to have gained quite a bit of the Duke’s trust.’

 

To the extent of exchanging coded messages with Zenon, her butler.

 

“Since you’ve reported, you may go. Thank you for the valuable information. I’ll make sure to keep a record and pass it on when the Duke returns.”

 

Zenon bowed his waist slightly and turned to leave. Isabella noticed the smile lingering on Zenon’s lips.

 

Seeing that, Isabella was completely convinced.

 

‘It’s certain. There’s something I don’t know. And whatever that something is, it feels like it’s going to stir up a big storm in the succession competition.’

 

She recalled Zenon’s words.

 

‘I don’t mind submitting the report, but you might be greatly disappointed.’

 

Isabella’s eyes sank deep. He wouldn’t make a report that would cause great disappointment to the Duke.

 

‘I must find out.’

 

Many thoughts raced through Isabella’s mind.

 

Meanwhile, Zenon headed towards Viola’s room without wiping the smile off his face.

 

‘I should cover her with a blanket.’

 

***

 

It had been two weeks since Viola returned to the Duke’s mansion.

 

Mariantu was unexpectedly quiet which was good for Viola.

 

‘Please, let everything pass without any incidents.’

 

Although she knew it was unlikely, she still hoped for it.

 

Meanwhile, Shailan tried to control his breath before going to Viola’s room.

 

Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.

 

His heart pounded. It was always like this before meeting Viola.

 

‘Surely, she won’t surprise me again today, will she?’

 

Every time Shailan saw Viola, he was surprised.

 

Her growth was so dazzling that it made Shailan feel inadequate and ashamed, even though he didn’t consider himself a genius.

 

“You should continue to strive today. You’re not slow to achieve, but mastering the grass sword is very challenging.”

 

Viola nodded her head. She had heard that phrase so many times that it was becoming annoying.

 

‘By now… am I still lacking?’

 

The emphasis on not being slow to achieve almost sounded like a consolation.

 

In the novel, the only description included was, ‘The grass sword was actually a great sword. It just hadn’t met the right owner.’ There was no explanation of how much skill would be developed when mastering it to a certain extent.

 

“Today, we’ll train to increase the cutting power a bit more.”

 

She had succeeded in making the grass move according to her will. Now, she needed to develop practical killing power.

 

“Let’s try cutting this thick branch. It’s done like this.”

 

Shailan demonstrated. The thick branch was cut into multiple pieces.

 

Shailan prayed silently, ‘Please, don’t let her succeed! This is something I barely achieved in my 10th year.’

 

“Understood. I’ll try.”

 

As Viola concentrated and followed the verbalization Shailan taught her, the grass cut through the branch well.

 

Shailan cut his branch into 17 pieces, while Viola cut hers into 3 pieces.’

 

‘As expected, Viola isn’t on my level.’

 

Viola neither seemed greatly disappointed nor pleased.

 

Shailan nodded.

 

“This is quite good for a first attempt.”

 

“Thanks for the encouragement.”

 

For a moment, Shailan almost chuckled.

 

‘Encouragement? When did I do that? I should be the one receiving encouragement!’

 

The past 10 years seemed to have turned worthless. Honestly, Shailan wanted to cry.

 

He remembered the words his master had told him long ago. 

 

“There was a time when the grass sword was the greatest sword in history.”

 

It was over 1,000 years ago. As a child, Shailan loved stories about the first grass sword owner, Perse.

 

“Wow. Was the grass sword really that amazing?”

 

“Yes. Everyone in the world respected and feared Perse. One day, Perse conceived the grass sword. And within that single day, he reached the level of ‘Fortune.’”

 

‘Fortune’ referred to the level of moving the grass with willpower.

 

“And he achieved the level of ‘Cutting’ in just 2 weeks.”

 

‘Cutting’ referred to the ability of imparting cutting power to the grass.

 

“Perse was half man, half god.”

 

“Wow!”

 

Young Shailan believed those words without question.

 

Seeing Shailan’s cute reaction, his master chuckled and said, “If there was such a person in the world that could master the grass sword, they would become the strongest warrior on the continent. No, they would become the strongest warrior in all of history.”

 

Now Shailan thought his master was half mad and full of hot air, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that there was some truth to his bragging.

 

‘Master’s bragging must have been real.’

 

There must be someone out there who could achieve the level of growth Perse did.

 

Shailan remembered his master’s last words.

 

“Perse said, ‘Someone who can use the grass sword without verbalization will perfect the grass sword.’”

 

Then Viola asked, “Master, is it possible to achieve ‘Fortune’ without verbalization?”

 

Basically, the grass sword required verbalization. In magical terms, it was like spell casting. Of course, simple and basic spells could manifest without verbalization. The grass sword was similar in that aspect.

 

So Shailan demonstrated.

 

“It’s done like this.”

 

‘Fortune’ was the most basic manipulation of the grass sword and Shailan could manage it without verbalization.

 

‘Ah, so this is how it’s done.’

 

Viola then showcased ‘Fortune’ with just her willpower, without verbalization.

 

“Is it done like this?”

 

Shailan was silent for a moment. He was so familiar with the grass sword that managing ‘Fortune’ without verbalization was possible, but Viola was different. She managed ‘Fortune’ without being at Shailan’s level.

 

‘What should I say?’

 

After a moment of thought, Shailan finally spoke.

 

“…That’s correct. But stick to the basics. The grass sword is fundamentally manipulated by verbalization.”

 

Because of that, Viola didn’t properly recognize her own growth.

 

***

 

Viola called Tundra to the training ground.

 

“We’re going to spar. Do your best.”

 

Tundra easily dodged Viola’s grass blades, cutting them effortlessly. Tundra’s wooden sword touched Viola’s neck.

 

Tundra did his best during sparring because that’s what Viola told him to do. But after the spar, he was unsure. 

 

“I’m sorry…”

 

Doing his best in sparring was one thing, but daring to aim a wooden sword at his owner’s neck was another matter entirely.

 

“Don’t worry.”

 

As Viola sparred with Tundra, she realized something.

 

‘No way can two weeks be enough.’

 

No matter how excellent the grass sword was as the author’s chosen skill, two weeks was not nearly enough time. Viola humbly acknowledged and accepted her own weaknesses.

 

‘It would be too dangerous to spar with Vichen…’

 

Vichen was too great of a killer prodigy.

 

So she sparred with Zenon, but even sparring with him ended too blandly.

 

“You are working hard, Milady. It’s beautiful.”

 

“I’m still weak.”

 

“You’re humble.”

 

Zenon had noticed Viola’s tremendous growth long ago.

 

‘Growth like this without difficulty should be impossible.’

 

He could feel how much Viola was striving, both seen and unseen. He didn’t realize that Viola actually thought of herself as weak.

 

And soon, another two weeks passed.

 

It had been a month since the Forget-Me-Not Gathering when Viola received a letter.

 

‘A duel?’

 

It was a duel request from Mariantu. Since she had been preparing mentally, it wasn’t shocking.

 

‘It’s finally come.’

 

With the grass sword, there was no chance for her to win, so she would probably have to summon Pom-Pom to protect her body.

 

Pom-Pom, who protected the witch Heidi from the Guardian’s sword. In terms of defense, she had an unrivaled ability, so she should be able to protect her body.

 

‘Who will be the opponent?’

 

When she opened the duel request, Viola was shocked.

 

‘Huh?’

 

It was a familiar name.

 

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Translator Note:

 

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