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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: A Tense Dinner
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***
A palpable tension hung heavy in the air.
The servants carrying the food held their breath, terrified of making even the slightest mistake.
The dining hall of the Lanshuss estate.
A man with a commanding presence sat at the head of the table.
It was Lucius.
Seated near him, Lumina glanced around the room.
The dining hall, bustling for the first time in a long while, was filled with relatives whose faces she hardly recognized.
Unlike the tense servants, the relatives chattered ceaselessly.
Among them were her aunt, Teresa Valles, and her maternal uncle, Joseph.
“Is the meal to your liking? The head chef of the Lanshuss estate is a man of exceptional skill, having once worked in the imperial palace. Even I find myself unable to forget the taste of the food here…”
“Lumina.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“How does it taste?”
Lucius cut Joseph off mid-sentence and asked Lumina.
Gasp.
The spoonful of soup she had just taken almost caught in her throat.
Narrowly avoiding disaster, Lumina beamed.
“It’s delicious! Very much so.”
In truth, she had no idea what it tasted like.
“Is it to your liking, Your Grace?”
“It’s adequate.”
Doesn’t ‘adequate’ mean it’s bad?
Lumina wasn’t the only one who thought so; the other relatives did too. They turned pale and frantically signaled the servants to replace the dish.
As the silent storm passed, Lucius spoke in a detached tone.
“You’re not eating well.”
“What? I am eating well! Look.”
Lumina put on a show of eating three spoonfuls of soup in a row.
Gulp, gulp, gulp.
The soup went down as smoothly as water.
At a glance, it seemed she was eating with gusto, but Lucius was right.
Until he spoke to her, she had been stirring the soup with a silver spoon, wondering if they had put poison in it.
After experiencing death, Lumina had become wary of the act of eating itself.
When? Who? How?
There was no one on Lumina’s side in this house.
That meant she had to protect herself. She had no choice but to be constantly on guard.
*They wouldn’t use poison on Endymion.*
With that thought, she had eaten some of the gift cookies Endymion received a few times.
Those few cookies were the most she had eaten in one sitting in recent memory.
Although they were so cloyingly sweet they didn’t suit her taste, which was its own ordeal.
Hiding these circumstances, she ate diligently, and soon the bottom of the bowl began to show.
“By the way, Lumina, how did you come to know the Duke?”
“Did he know your mother?”
When Lucius’s iron defense proved formidable, the relatives changed their target.
It was Lumina.
They had been subtly avoiding Lumina until now, but if the Duke of Heart was involved, it was a different story.
Their eyes were bloodshot as they schemed to woo the naive child and forge a connection with the ducal family.
A flicker of a glance.
Lumina, who couldn't have been unaware of this, glanced at Lucius.
And Lucius, who had been indifferent, opened his mouth.
“I’m her guardian.”
“Is that really true?!”
Joseph raised his voice.
He seemed to have noticed that something about the situation was strange.
Joseph wasn’t the only one who noticed. Lumina’s aunt, Teresa, stepped forward.
“A guardian, so suddenly? I never heard anything about this from the late Count and Countess.”
A hint of displeasure colored her tone.
It seemed she couldn't yet determine whether the Duke of Heart's appearance would be a boon or a bane to her.
Lucius, on the other hand, was composed.
“She is a child who could become my ward at any time and in any manner without it being the least bit strange. She is so bright that, with permission, I would even have her marry my son.”
…What?
What about your son’s consent?
No, before that, what about *my* consent?
There’s been none of that at all.
At this story, which had not been discussed at all beforehand, Lumina almost dropped the spoon she was holding.
Clatter—
The sound of cutlery hitting the marble floor rang out loudly.
‘Could it be, me?’
It wasn't.
A relative she didn't recognize had dropped their cutlery, their grip having gone slack.
They probably all felt the same as Lumina.
“Ho ho, our Lumina is indeed a very pretty child. Amiable, too.”
Her aunt, Teresa, trying to quickly control the situation, seemed to find the lie about her being ‘amiable’ difficult, and for a moment, she clenched her jaw tightly.
‘She’s going to break a tooth like that. I really hope she does.’
It was a fleeting moment.
But Lumina didn't miss it, and a malicious thought crossed her mind.
“She’s strong, persistent, and has no rough edges.”
Her slapped cheek must have hurt quite a bit. It seemed to still hurt.
Her true feelings came out, even saying things one wouldn't say when praising a child.
“I fully understand Your Grace's desire for such a bright child. However, our Lumina lost her parents not long ago.”
Since when was she ‘our Lumina’?
Lumina found it grating that Teresa kept calling her ‘our Lumina’.
“Given the timing, as her relative, I must approach this with caution…”
“Since when has House Heart become a family swayed by the words of others?”
Lucius stabbed the fork he was holding elegantly into the table.
Thunk—
It didn't seem like he used much force, but the fork was embedded right in.
The atmosphere instantly turned deadly.
“Do I seem like a man from a family so sordid as to take a child and do wicked things to her?”
“Th-that’s not what I meant!”
Teresa, realizing her slip of the tongue, hastily denied it.
She, who had been so vicious in front of Lumina, had no choice but to be meek before the Duke of Heart.
Fortunately, Lucius quickly lost interest in Teresa. There was another topic of conversation remaining.
“As her guardian, it is my duty to see the environment in which my ward has been raised. Can you show me around after the meal?”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“I would prefer to have our after-dinner tea in your room.”
A jolt.
Most of the relatives, who knew how Lumina had been raised, flinched.
“To look around the bedroom of a young girl… it’s a bit…”
“I’m fine with it!”
Not missing the opportunity, Lumina interjected.
“But it might seem a bit shabby to you, Your Grace. If that doesn't bother you, then I don't mind.”
Lumina, smiling brightly, was radiant. So much so that one could find no trace of abuse.
“If there are any shortcomings, it's all my fault. So I'm not ashamed!”
“So she says.”
Lucius agreed.
His tone was one that would silence anyone who might try to object.
‘Lumina, that cunning little thing…!’
Grit.
Teresa quietly ground her teeth.
She did not like Lumina.
One of the reasons was that Lumina was the spitting image of her mother.
Lumina's mother had adored her younger brother—Teresa's brother. Watching them was enough to give one the creeps.
Because of that, even though Lumina only resembled her in appearance, her assessment of the girl grew harsh.
‘No. It wasn't just her looks; her personality seemed to resemble her mother's as well.’
She was the kind of child who would say things like ‘good riddance’ when her parents died.
It was impossible to look at her favorably.
‘Joseph, was it? Showing up in a rush so late and daring to covet the Lanshuss fortune. I don't like that either.’
The funeral was over, but the reason Teresa remained planted in the Lanshuss estate was to use Endymion to control the Lanshuss family.
‘I’ve been short on money lately and was looking into a new business venture, so the timing was perfect.’
Endymion's maternal family were commoners, so they wouldn't have the gall to show up and demand a share of the fortune.
Having made all these calculations, Teresa concluded that all she needed to do now was persuade Endymion.
But as she proceeded, Lumina's existence became a major obstacle.
Joseph seemed to be thinking along similar lines, as he was trying to persuade Lumina.
As a result, subtle factions had formed, and she was just thinking how annoying it had become.
‘That family’s bloodline is just a hindrance. It would be nice if they just handed over the money and disappeared.’
The same went for the Duke of Heart, who had suddenly declared he would become Lumina's guardian.
If this encounter could end with him becoming a good connection, it would be absolutely perfect.
But there was a problem.
‘If that Lumina thing tattles to the Duke that she was abused…’
The person who had directly abused Lumina was her now-dead stepmother.
However, hadn't Teresa known the whole truth and condoned it with her silence?
Worried that the fire might spread to her, Teresa decided to take action herself.
***
After the meal, Lucius took a walk around the Lanshuss estate.
Of course, the relatives trailed behind him like a persistent shadow.
They were still desperate to strike up a conversation, but his iron wall was formidable.
Thanks to this, with the relatives acting as a living backdrop, Lumina and Lucius were able to exchange small talk.
The last place they headed to was Lumina's attic room.
“Is this a dressing room? Or a playroom?”
“No. It’s my bedroom.”
Hearing Lumina's answer, Lucius couldn't quite hide his displeasure.
“The estate isn't exactly small. Is there no room for a child as tiny as you?”
“Oh, Lumina, really.”
The situation she had worried about was unfolding.
Before Lumina could open her mouth, Teresa stepped in.
“Your Grace, I've heard this is a room for punishment. I understand her bedroom is elsewhere.”
“For punishment?”
“There are times when a child doesn't listen, are there not? This is where she is sent up for a short while.”
“…”
“I know you're excited that the Duke of Heart has offered to be your guardian, but to go so far as to lie and say this is your room just to get attention… You shouldn't do that, Lumina.”
Teresa gently chided Lumina, using the same excuse her stepmother had.
‘So in the end, it’s my fault.’
She was smoothly shifting all the blame onto Lumina.
When Lumina fell silent, Teresa gave a satisfied smile.
“Where is the dressing room?”
“The dressing room is, of course…”
Once again, Teresa was about to answer.
“Pfft.”
A short laugh was heard.
