Chapter 80
Benicia glanced at Aden with a bittersweet expression before looking down again, then back at him.
“Staying comfortable in the current situation is something anyone in that position can do. But moving forward takes a courage that’s not so easy to gather.”
Benicia stood up and walked over to Aden. Despite having grown up, she still looked at him as if he belonged in her embrace, her expression warm. She raised her arm and gently patted his shoulder.
“I’ll give you that courage.”
“Mother.”
“Aden, you possess a great strength that I never could. Sometimes it can be a pain, but it’s also something that can give you a push when you need it.”
Aden looked up at that strength. As he met her swirling golden eyes, Benicia smiled. It was the same smile of his mother he had seen countless times, lifting him back up after he’d fallen during his rigorous training as a child.
***
“What are you looking for?”
A voice interrupted him as he was organizing some boxes, and he looked up to see Daytum entering the office, eyes wide with shock at the mess around them.
“Oh, you’re here! Please, have a seat.”
“I’m fine.”
Daytum looked awkwardly at the chair he pointed to, which was piled high with boxes.
Seeing Daytum’s discomfort, Aden stood up and walked over.
“I brought the documents you requested, my lord.”
“Thank you, Daytum.”
“But… what happened here? If you were looking for something, you should’ve called for me or one of the staff.”
“I had to find it myself. By the way, is this the document?”
He nodded at Daytum, who looked down at the documents.
“It’s not the latest one. The Magic Association is a pretty closed-off group, so the sponsorship records aren’t updated every year. This one is from six years ago.”
Aden narrowed his eyes as he examined the material.
“This doesn’t have what I’m looking for.”
He looked up at Daytum urgently.
“I don’t need the latest documents. Do you have any past records of the sponsorship?”
“Past records? How far back…?”
“Since they started sponsoring the Magic Association.”
He scanned the scattered boxes around him, papers strewn across the floor, old, crumbling boxes, and spilled ink. The office was a disaster.
“Even if I sift through these documents, I can’t find any of the early records of Bozbourne’s sponsorship of the Magic Association.”
Bozbourne had begun sponsoring the association about fifty years ago. They had taken in Media, a witness to the association’s wandering after losing its central point in the Blue Mountains, and that was the work of the current duke’s grandfather.
“The documents from the first year up to the twelveth year have vanished. All of them from this pile.”
He couldn’t find any sponsorship records, even after digging through unrelated accounting ledgers and records of support given to other organizations.
Daytum glanced around with a dry look in his eyes before bending down to pick up a paper that had fallen on the floor.
“Did you really search all this on your own?”
“I had to do it alone since there’s so much confidential information.”
“Even so, it must have been exhausting to find this much…”
Daytum paused mid-sentence and let out a deep sigh. He set the document down and scanned the room again, a look of concern on his face about how to clean up the chaos later.
“I don’t know why you suddenly need that document, but I’ll search for it. So why don’t you leave this to me and start getting ready? The engagement ceremony is tomorrow, and it’s already late.”
Daytum adjusted his glasses with a trustworthy look.
“I’ll clean up this room, so you go and take a break. The Count is worried about you.”
Knowing that Daytum was aware of his weakness with his parents, he had brought them up as a soft way to persuade him. He knew this would make it hard for Aden to refuse.
Thanks to that, he felt forced to back down from insisting he keep searching.
“I don’t know how much of the early documents are left, but I’ll make sure to get them to you in time. Trust me and rest, my Lord.”
He had no choice but to surrender to Daytum’s insistence. Reluctantly, he stepped away, feeling an urge to keep searching, but he eventually moved on.
‘There must still be something left.’
He couldn’t believe Bozbourne would completely erase those documents. Even if the names of where they had sponsored weren’t explicitly listed, there might still be material from which he could infer details.
And he needed that information.
Just like how Bozbourne had pressured Aden and Rippleton into the engagement ceremony, they likely had a past they wanted to hide.
It wasn’t a secret deal involving shady transactions and under-the-table payments.
It was something Bozbourne desperately wanted to keep hidden.
‘Immortality.’
A power that all those in power desired.
But no one had ever reached that place.
The dream that had been passed down from the Bozbourne duke, or rather, from his grandfather, surely remained in some form.
He believed that form was connected to the contract between Bozbourne and Rippleton and Bozbourne’s support for the Magic Association.
“I-I’m sorry. I must’ve dozed off…”
“It’s okay. You should go rest now. I’ll be going to bed soon too.”
When he returned to his room, a maid who had been dozing off at the table startled awake.
After smiling at the embarrassed maid as she wiped the drool from her cheek, he sent her on her way.
Lying on his bed, he repeated his thoughts for a while before finally succumbing to sleep.
***
Early the next morning, I got up, reviewed a few more documents in the chaotic study, then climbed into the carriage after breakfast.
Bozebourne wasn’t too far, so it didn’t matter if I left slowly, but I had an appointment with Aden.
“Be careful, Sierra.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll be back soon.”
I gave my father a bright smile, trying to ease his constant concern, then leaned back against the moving carriage.
It didn’t take long to reach Bozbourne.
Since it was right next door and the roads were well-developed, the carriage that set off in the morning arrived at Bozbourne before the sun was at its peak.
As soon as I stepped down from the carriage, a familiar face appeared.
“Thank you for coming.”
It was Fiorette, appearing with a dry expression.
She nodded briefly at me before responding mechanically.
Did they assign an aristocrat to guide me instead of a butler or servant?
This wasn’t just any half-hearted noble but a family that had devoted a long time as Bozbourne’s retainers.
Using them for guidance was probably meant to showcase Bozbourne’s power.
What a strange idea—to use nobles to greet nobles.
That was a thought that only someone from Bozbourne would have.
“…I’ll guide you to your room.”
As Fiorette turned away when I stared at her silently after getting off the carriage, I followed her.
The Bozbourne estate looked chaotic with preparations for the engagement ceremony.
Maybe that was why she ignored me, even though I was a lady of the Brilloxen family, who had served Bozbourne for many years.
She didn’t even nod, acting as if I wasn’t there at all.
‘…What is going on?’
Despite the blatant disregard, I noticed a red mark on the back of her neck.
A scar? Or something else…?
“Here we are.”
Fiorette’s voice pulled me out of my thoughts.
She opened the door and looked at me expectantly, so I nodded briefly before entering.
I watched the servants unpack my belongings for a moment before stepping back outside.
I faced Fiorette, who was still standing there as if she had been waiting for me.
“Thanks for the guidance.”
Fiorette gave a slight bow.
I stared at her flowing hair, then looked up at her face.
“It looks like you were hurt.”
Fiorette frowned slightly as if she didn’t understand what I meant.
When I lightly tapped my finger on the back of my neck, her dry expression broke slightly.
“I can see the marks. Since the scar is quite long, it seems like the injury was serious.”
“…”
Fiorette covered her neck with her hand and bit her lip without saying anything.
Her reaction confirmed my suspicions.
“…I’ll take my leave now. If you need anything, just let me know. Well then…”
Fiorette, visibly flustered, hurriedly ended the conversation, looking more shocked than usual.
After giving instructions to the maids to step back, I looked at her retreating back and spoke up.
“Wait.”
Fiorette flinched as she turned away, about to walk off quickly.
Turning slightly to face me, she looked back at me with a sideways glance.
I found a small item in the contents she was carrying and handed it to her.
“If you leave it like that, the scar will last a long time.”
“…”
“If you apply this, minor scars or wounds will disappear quickly, so take it.”
The potion made by a high-ranking priest was as miraculous as its price.
It could erase most wounds.
However, given its cost, which was about the price of a small house, it wasn’t something you’d use casually unless it was a real emergency.
Fiorette silently stared down at the potion I handed her, biting her lip before looking up.
“Do I look pathetic to you?”
“…?”
“Or do you feel sorry for me? Or maybe you think I’m so frustrating and pitiful that you’re doing this?”
“Fiorette.”
“Honestly, it’s not fun at all. Every day just feels like hell.”
This was the first time I had seen any emotion from Fiorette, who had only shown a dry demeanor, like a marionette with its string cut.
Her eyes were shaking, and her lips were moving quickly.
This wasn’t the Fiorette who had aimed at me in the forest.
“No need to feel sorry for me. So, I don’t need this…”
“Medicine is really convenient, you know.”
“…What did you say?”
