The next day arrived.
“What? A drug that makes the transcendent run wild?”
“You found the solution? Argel was the key?”
Dalia truly learned how upsetting it was to have the matter proceed without her.
Hikan couldn’t help but avoid looking at Dalia, who was fuming.
“Yes. And Duke Artus joined hands with the Holy Empire to deal with Meldon.”
“……Is he going to use that drug on Mr. Meldon?”
“…… It’s more common than you think for parents to kill their children. I don’t want you to know this either.”
Dalia suddenly remembered what Hikan had suffered from their mother in the past. She thought that it was a sad world here.
“You don’t have to be depressed.”
Hikan looked at Dalia’s expression and carelessly ruffled up her hair.
“Why did Aceras develop such a drug? It’s meaningless if I’m here anyway.”
“It’s not like you can be at all the mana explosion sites. In addition, once someone like Meldon starts running wild, contact itself is impossible unless he is killed.”
Dalia, who had seen Meldon beat people, had no choice but to admit.
“Anyway, did you hear that Meldon became Meldon Artus thanks to you?”
Dalia nodded.
This is what she started first before Kelsion.
It has already been about a month since Dalia went around asking for help from other transcendents, like collecting the seven marbles that can grant wishes. (*t/n: shout out to those who understand the reference hahaha)
The matter that was completed earlier has now come to fruition.
Thanks to this, the transcendents of three families simultaneously submitted a statement to raise Meldon’s status as a transcendent .
The Imperial Family also euphemistically conveyed their will to do so.
Duke Artus had no choice but to weep and bitterly accept it. It is said that the social world, which has been noisy these days, is now making a lot of noise like they are in their element.
However, even so, Dalia’s common sense could not comprehend Duke Artus at all.
It would be humiliating to be kicked out of the capital and live in the local estate, but he’s even trying to kill his own child?
Hikan spoke flatly.
“Well, even if it wasn’t for you, it would have been inevitable someday. Duke Artus is someone who is bent on protecting his family. Whatever happened, it would have ended up like this.”
“……I see.”
“Is there anything else you’re curious about?”
Dalia shook her head. She couldn’t think of any more questions because there’s a lot on her mind.
“The inevitable flow…….”
Leaving Hikan’s office, Dalia murmured in whisper a phrase that particularly bothered her.
Several times, she had gone against the big story flow of the original several times.
However, there are things that still went as the original. Like Aceras, who became the Pope of the Holy Empire this time too.
In the original <The Labyrinth of Ouroboros>, Aceras always becomes the Pope of the Holy Empire in every route.
In the original, all the transcendent male leads went crazy without being able to control their power.
Aceras developed a drug that drove the transcendent crazy in the Holy Empire.
“……Don’t tell me.”
A hypothesis came to Dalia’s mind.
At first glance, the hypothesis that everything that happened in the original might have started with Aceras is ridiculous.
And she realized one more thing.
‘The reason why Duchess Mary Blueport became like that…… it was Aceras.’
“Miss Dalia, you have a guest.”
“Huh?”
Before she knew it, the butler was standing next to Dalia, who was lost in thought. Dalia asked.
“Who is it?”
“That’s…….”
“Ah, it’s okay. I can just go and see.”
Dalia went to the drawing room to greet the guest.
As expected, it was Meldon who came.
He was sitting confidently on the sofa as if he was at home with his legs crossed, and his arms across the armrest of the sofa, discussing the taste of black tea with the maid.
Cedric, who looked bored, was also sitting on the other side of the sofa. Dalia’s expression brightened up from the unexpected guest.
As soon as Cedric saw her, he loosened his frown and smiled beautifully.
Meldon, who glanced across Cedric’s face, also noticed that Dalia had come just by looking at his expression.
After Cedric kissed the back of Dalia’s hand, Meldon kissed the back of Dalia’s hand in an exaggerated manner.
Dalia smiled and congratulated him.
“Congratulations on becoming an Artus, Mr. Meldon.”
“Thank you, my dear Miss Dalia. I wanted to tell you first, but I lost the chance.”
He grinned. Now she is quite used to this sly smile.
As promised, he continued to call Dalia as Miss after becoming a member of the Ducal family. Even if he becomes the Duke of Artus later on, he will continue to do so. She was glad when she thought about it.
“…….”
She looked up at his face for a moment.
She just heard what Hikan said, and she felt a bit uneasy about it. He must know everything that his father had prepared to kill him.
“……Are you alright?”
“Ah, sweet Miss Dalia. I guess you’ve already heard it all.”
Meldon gave a bland smile and shrugged his shoulders. Cedric looked at Dalia and said affectionately.
“We already knew that the Duke would do that. That’s why I deliberately provoked him even more. That way, he’ll cooperate with the Holy Empire faster, and quickly reveal what they’re hiding. Thanks to this, I was able to prevent Aceras from plotting again this time.”
“……Then what about the report?”
“Oh, that.”
Cedric let out a small laugh.
“Dalia, have you seen the real seal that Merida showed you? We delivered a fake seal to the Duke through her. It transforms its contents as we want the moment he puts it on the scroll.”
“…….”
“She is quick to judge the situation, so I expected she would immediately talk about the family’s situation if I threatened her with the seal. It all went according to the plan. The Imperial Palace staff had worked hard creating this scenario.”
Cedric kindly explained.
As if he had suddenly remembered something unpleasant while he was talking, he rubbed the space between his brows with an annoyed expression.
“Originally, it was Meldon’s job to mess with Duke Artus, not me…….Meldon dumped it on me.”
“I was so grateful that Miss Dalia received a business card from my father.”
“What, what?”
After a while, Dalia realized what he was talking about.
Her face flushed red in an instant.
She had kept the business card that she received from Duke Artus just in case.
But she almost forgot about it because they haven’t seen each other since then. It seems that Cedric was looking through her bag at that time to search for it.
She didn’t even know it was missing.
‘……Then Sir Cedric turned the Duke Artus family upside down…….’
Dalia shouted at Meldon in anger.
“W, why would you say that!”
“But how can I do that to my father?”
Meldon pretended to wipe away his false tears.
Dalia, who is still feeling soft hearted from what she heard before, flinched. Cedric glared at Meldon with a discontented look.
“Don’t act pitiful. Do you think Dalia is a fool?”
“Ah, I’m so sorry.”
Meldon’s sarcasm changed the aura around Cedric. Meldon quickly lowered his tail.
“My foolish father doesn’t know anything on how things work yet. His daughter’s betrayal. This is the last chance we give him.”
“Last chance?”
“If he left the potion to me instead of using it because of his last conscience, we will also give him proper respect as the previous Duke. But if that’s not the case…….”
“It means death.”
Cedric said cynically.
Meldon also smiled. There was a sharp blade hidden in his casual words.
“Unfortunately, I received an invitation from my father today, Miss.”
Meldon smiled and turned to Dalia.
Dalia realized the identity of the blade. Duke Artus has already decided his own fate.
“Right now there are only two children from the Duke and the Duchess in Artus’ direct line. In exchange for Merida’s cooperation, we have agreed to spare the Duchess and Felix.”
Now the end of Duke Artus is just around the corner. And next spring, Lewayne will come to the capital.
The story of <The Labyrinth of Ouroboros>, which Dalia tried hard to change, is also getting closer to the end.
After saving Hikan from the start, Dalia decided that she didn’t want to make anyone in the original to be unhappy.
‘Can I do it?’
So far……she does not know.
Dalia caught Cedric before the two left. He looked at her with a gentle smile.
“Yeah, Dalia.”
“That……will Mr. Meldon be alright?”
“Well. He probably has endured more in his life than he does now, sweet Dalia.”
Dalia hesitated.
She knows because she had played the original. Meldon has gone through much worse than he does now, when he was working for Verix.
Cedric smiled playfully at the distraught Dalia.
“Of course, I’ll give him consolation if you want to. But I also have one condition.”
“What is it?”
“I want to kiss you on your eyelids. Close your eyes for a moment.”
Her face flushed red.
Cedric, however, still spoke casually and slightly bowed his head to Dalia.
“I kept looking into your eyes. Because it’s so pretty.”
“N, n, no, com, comfort words like this…….”
At that time, Meldon, who was walking ahead, turned around and looked at the two.
He said to Dalia, beamingly.
“Ah, I can hear everything, so you don’t have to make Sir Cedric do it. I understand how you feel, Miss.”
“That crazy……”
It was the first time she had heard Cedric say harsh words.
However, he hurriedly withdrew his words as if he were conscious of Dalia.
Then he smiled very beautifully at her again, briefly kissed her forehead and turned around, before she could stop him.
“Bye, Dalia.”
“Oh.”
Dalia covered her forehead belatedly. She didn’t have a fever, but only the place where his lips touched felt strangely hot.
Translator Note: Oh my Cedric….you’re getting bold now (＾་།＾), and Meldon be like: I will stop your sly advances Cedric ╮(︶▽︶)╭ no lovey dovey in front of me
++and yesterday was my birthday yuhuuu 11.11 …nice date hehehe…so TMI of what happened yesterday…I was on teams call with my colleague discussing work (very seriously at that), then my mom n sister suddenly barge into my room holding a cake, singing the birthday song…just so you know, my mic was on at that time, and they were singing so loud that I was like…ummm this is awkward…once both my mom n sister realized the situation, they slowly walk backwards (in a slow motion HAHA) and closed the door (ノ_<。)….I was thinking ‘what is this comedic timing
