Chapter 31

She thought he was so bright she might've gone blind.

"What's wrong?"

But Iberin's reaction made Lyssel flinch, and he quickly checked her expression.

"Was I just being strange? My facial muscles moved, but… is it actually really weird…?"

"Ah, no. It's not that."

"Then what?"

Given Lyssel's personality, however she dressed it up, he wouldn't easily buy it.

Lately his trust in Iberin was practically absolute, so he'd accept it, but the problem was that Iberin didn't know that.

"Your Highness, are you aware?"

"What?"

"You are obscenely handsome."

"…What?"

"Not just handsome—obscenely so."

"…And?"

"And? A man with that ridiculous a face just smiled bright enough to light up the world! For a measly extra like me, the shock is enough to go blind!"

"……."

Iberin said it with rather excessive honesty, and Lyssel looked thrown.

"It's not because it was strange, it's because you're handsome—I reacted without meaning to. So you're the one who shouldn't get the wrong idea."

Lyssel, who had never once in his life been told he was handsome, just tilted his head.

But at least it wasn't strange, so he nodded.

What mattered was that it didn't look strange to Iberin.

That was when Ether, who'd been quiet, spoke up softly.

"Mommy."

"Yeah?"

"What's hand-some? How does Ether look?"

"Ether looks just like His Highness, so you're completely handsome!"

"Really? Even when Ether smiles?"

"Of course, of course!"

The answer was kind of pre-decided, you just say yes-style, and Ether grinned, satisfied.

"Mommy's super handsome too! Handsome when you smile too!"

"Thanks, Ether~."

Iberin let out a peal of laughter.

But after that brief stretch of talking and laughing, the strength suddenly drained out of her.

"Uh, I… I'm sleepy…"

Her vision had already gone hazy as she let her head drop against Ether's shoulder.

She was actually passing out, but if she fainted again it'd cause an uproar, so she'd kind of mumbled it instead.

But you couldn't just fall asleep on command. The last thing she saw was everyone watching her with serious expressions before she lost consciousness.

---

Fainting this often started to worry Iberin too.

How long it would keep happening was its own problem.

"Since it's been so long since you were really ill, I was worried it would hit hard—you'll need about two months of recovery."

"Will it affect the schedule for returning to Lecashe?"

The trial had been canceled, so barring anything else, they had to head back.

"For now, it's not possible."

"…So you're saying we have to stay in the capital for two months?"

It might work for Iberin, but it was impossible for Lyssel.

There was no telling when Lyssel's urge to kill would hit.

And finding monsters in the capital wasn't exactly an option either.

"We'll have to see how it goes."

The truth was, she'd already coughed up another round of blood the moment she'd woken up, causing another scene.

Ether had cried like the world was ending, and Lyssel had stayed by her side with a grim expression.

Ether had cried himself to exhaustion and was now asleep.

"Hh, honestly."

Iberin was learning, bone-deep, just how miserable a sick body was.

The constant blood made it feel even more dramatic.

The physician said the corrupted holy power was making her keep vomiting up dead blood.

That explained why the blood had a dark tint.

He'd added the shocking note that she might keep coughing up blood at intervals for some time.

"Anyway, once things settle down a bit, you should head back, Your Highness."

The trial had been canceled, but the emperor had promised firm action.

He'd find it a headache too if Iberin found another reason to come up to the capital, so he'd deal proper blows to the six Gelta nobles and the Pletanin barony.

She'd heard the Gelta nobles already in the capital had been quietly dragged off to the palace.

Whatever the details, he'd make sure none of them tried something like that again.

More importantly, since the brainwashing and hypnosis attempt on Ether had failed, they'd surely try a different method—she'd have to prepare for that too.

Cough.

There was so much to do, and this weak body wouldn't even let her think in peace.

"I-Iberin!"

"I-I'm okay. Khh, cough!"

It hadn't been long since the physician had said the dead blood would keep coming, and here it was again.

The sensation of the slimy clot crawling up her throat was horrible.

It made her eyes water on their own.

"How could I leave you and go."

Beside her, Lyssel, who'd been fidgeting helplessly, wore an anguished expression.

But looking at it coolly, that wasn't a good enough reason.

"What if something happens? You have to go. Take Ether with you and look after him well."

"That child too?"

"You'd leave him here next to a sick me?"

"N-no. I'll take good care of him."

"You'll go?"

"…Yes."

He looked thoroughly unenthusiastic, but at least getting the I'll go out of him put her at ease.

If only Ether would agree as easily.

"More importantly, Your Highness."

"Yes?"

"Do you even know how to look after a child?"

"…I'll try."

Lyssel wore a resolved expression.

---

Iberin returning to the territory right away was, for now, impossible.

For someone who could barely move, a long carriage ride was poison.

But the emperor was saying he wanted Iberin out of the capital immediately.

"Maybe he wants me to die on the way."

The trial had been canceled, but Lecashe had lost nothing.

The emperor hadn't lost anything either, but he had to be angry that things hadn't gone his way.

"Please don't say that, it's frightening."

"Anyway, what do we do."

"…I don't think the emperor said it casually."

"Yeah, that's what I thought."

From the emperor's standpoint, it would suit him fine if Iberin died on the road back, but from the Lecashe Grand Duke's house's standpoint, that wasn't going to happen.

One way or another, Iberin was staying in the capital.

"Ah, the vicious bastard."

He really was scrabbling to gouge something out, Iberin muttered, swearing under her breath.

"I'm sorry, Your Highness."

She couldn't shake the feeling that she was the one in the way.

"What's there to be sorry for. Your health comes first to me."

"Me too, Mommy!"

Iberin smiled bitterly.

Of all the times for her health to fall apart, it had to be after they'd come up to the capital.

The timing was just terrible.

But what was done was done, and unless she suddenly got better, there wasn't much of an answer.

"I'll go and ask him to at least let you stay in the capital."

"…Really,"

"You don't need to apologize."

"I was going to say thank you."

But even saying that, Iberin looked deflated.

Lyssel hated seeing her like that.

So he blurted it out without thinking.

"Smile."

"What? Out of nowhere?"

"…I want to see you smile."

For a second Iberin was so caught off guard she burst out laughing.

When she laughed, Lyssel found himself smiling too.

The butler still didn't seem used to seeing Lyssel like this and blinked at him with a marveling expression. Ether just laughed happily.

---

When Lyssel left for his private audience with the emperor, Iberin sat thinking.

She couldn't stand the emperor's scrabbling for anything he could get, and she didn't want to leave him be.

He was probably so pleased with himself right now.

Just thinking about it made her stomach twist.

For the first time, Iberin found herself wondering if she had a mean streak.

In any case, the emperor didn't even want the name Lecashe spoken in the Aleta Holy Empire.

But Lecashe was famous as a cursed house.

It wasn't a good kind of famous, but it meant they weren't an existence anyone could just erase.

"Pons."

"Yes."

"Let's do something the emperor would hate."

"What?"

The butler at her side jolted, eyes flying to her.

But picturing the Iberin who'd taken down the six nobles in a single move made him want to laugh.

Making the emperor squirm didn't seem impossible.

"How?"

"Nais."

"The lawyer?"

"The trial was canceled, but we promised to help him. And I'd like to give him a chance to actually work as a lawyer."

"That's true."

"Let's hire him. Under the Lecashe name."

"What?!"

The butler reacted hard to the unexpected suggestion.

Lecashe had lived for ages under the stigma of being cursed.

The emperor had wrung countless benefits out of that Lecashe and was always itching to wring more.

"We support Nais under the Lecashe name and help him defend commoners."

"My word."

"Then people will start thinking Lecashe isn't such a terrible house, won't they?"

"……."

"If Nais keeps working as a lawyer, the Lecashe name will come up. In a good way, too. It shouldn't happen, but even if something does go wrong later, people might not defend us, but they won't speak ill of us either."

Helping a few commoners might not move the needle much.

But nobles obviously didn't need Lecashe's help.

The butler had gone quiet, and just as she was wondering if it wasn't a good idea, he started clapping with a stunned expression.

"…What's the clapping for?"

"It's such an incredible idea. Mistress, are you possibly a genius?"

"Oh, come on."

Iberin let out a small laugh at the flattery and asked,

"So you don't think it's a bad idea?"

"It's a stroke of genius."

"Enough with the flattery."

"I mean it."

"All right, all right. Anyway, for this to work, Nais's involvement is non-negotiable."

{"I'll lock him in, without fail."}(#td4gm738hjn6)

The butler bowed reverently, eyes shining.

---

When Lyssel returned, he wasn't wearing a bright expression.

"What did the emperor demand?"

"…He said he wanted one wish granted."

"A wish?"

"Yes. Anytime he wants it."

He wasn't even doing anything—just allowing Iberin to stay in the capital—and he was demanding an open-ended favor.

Did the man really have no conscience?

But Lyssel wouldn't have had grounds to refuse.

"All right. Whatever."

"I told him stripping Iberin of her position, killing her, forcing her to take her own life—those were all dead in the water."

The list coming out of Lyssel's mouth was more extreme than she'd expected, and Iberin was the one thrown.

What in the world was that vicious wish, exactly?

Iberin blinked dumbly for a moment, then had to brace herself in shock.