Chapter 26
“My Lady, I’ve been looking all over for you.”
Aramis leaned over the balcony railing.
Callista stood with her back to him, resting on the balcony ledge, gazing at the garden fountain. In one hand, she held a plate piled with something. In the other, a fork.
“Where have you been? You’ve been gone for a while.”
“I’m here, Aramis.”
She replied calmly, poking the food with her fork.
At that moment, Aramis’s face turned pale.
“My Lady, what are you eating?! That’s dangerous!”
Whoosh—!
Like a flash, he flew forward and smacked the object she was about to eat out of her hand—sending the plate and fork flying over the balcony.
Clang—clink—crash.
The dish shattered in the garden, and the dark object landed in the flowerbed.
Aramis sighed in relief.
“That could’ve been dangerous. That’s an ingredient used by hunters to ward off monsters.”
He added a scolding tone, seeing she hadn’t taken a bite.
“You’re usually so cautious—what were you thinking? You avoided the Dyllan family’s poison last time, but now—”
“Aramis.”
“You can smell it! How could you even—”
“…It was.”
Callista murmured, still staring down where the item had landed. Her hand was still outstretched, plate now gone.
It was the first time since childhood Aramis had seen such a lost expression on her face.
“…What?”
“That was the chocolate I received from Harper.”
She slowly turned toward Aramis. Her expression had completely changed.
Her icy blue gaze now burned with fury. One hand was clenched, the other glowing with blue aura.
“You believed Harper’s words at face value? Just one look at that thing—”
“Aramis, are you itching for a duel?”
She cut him off sharply. The blue aura flared, threatening to engulf him.
A chill ran down his spine.
“Let’s use swords. Bring me my rapier.”
“I-I surrender.”
Whoosh—
Aramis tossed his longsword over the balcony before the duel could begin.
“Duel over. My Lady wins.”
It was a trick he had used as a child, and it worked again.
Callista glared at him for several long seconds before the aura faded.
Aramis slumped into a chair on the balcony, sighing. Before she could get angry again, he changed the topic.
“If you wanted sweets, you could’ve had the candy I brought you. Or Vittori’s. Last year you finished all of it in 30 minutes, so we prepared five times more this year.”
“I’m saving those.”
“You mean… you haven’t had any candy today? What exactly were you waiting for?”
“…”
Callista didn’t answer. Instead, she looked at him in silence.
He blinked at her expectantly, but she didn’t explain. Instead, she asked a completely unrelated question.
“Aramis, what do you think siblings are?”
“…What?”
He blinked, shocked. Callista hated vague, philosophical questions like that.
If he had asked something similar, she would’ve revoked his knight title on the spot.
But she was serious.
She stared at him, repeating,
“I asked. Answer me.”
“…They’re the curse of fate. A punishment from the gods that you can’t get rid of, no matter how dirty they are.”
He cleared his throat and answered solemnly.
“They act sweet to others but stab you in the back, borrow your stuff without returning it, scatter toys that hurt your feet—those sinister—”
“I’m not talking about you and Vittori.”
“Oh. Then… two-faced hypocrites who—”
“Not about my uncle or father, either.”
“Then what other siblings do you mean?”
Aramis looked genuinely confused.
Was she referring to retainers? Servants?
“Today, I gave Harper the Tear of Espé.”
“…What?”
Aramis was stunned.
“That priceless gem? The one the Duke of Litra gave you with the pendant?”
“Yes.”
“The one passed down from his mother, with individually carved diamonds by the Empire’s best craftsman?!”
“Yes.”
“The one enchanted by a high sorcerer—”
“It was the only small shiny thing I could give a child. Don’t overreact.”
Callista cut him off, annoyed.
Aramis frowned with concern.
“Are you sure it’s okay to treat Harper that kindly?”
“What’s the problem?”
“You told me before,” he said, his voice serious now.
“That it would be best for both of you to keep your distance.”
“…”
Callista looked away briefly, then back again.
“…I’ve already seen her. What can I do?”
“You said showing affection to someone you might abandon later is cruel.”
“…What can I do if I’ve grown fond of her?”
“You said it’s cruel to form bonds you can’t uphold.”
“…”
She bit her lip. For once, her eyes wavered.
“…What can I do… when I care?”
Aramis’s face darkened.
“What if Harper tries to claim the dukedom?”
Callista answered without hesitation:
“If she wanted that, would she have avoided Father? She doesn’t want it.”
“What if others push her into it?”
“…”
“The Council Chairman and others will try to use her. As long as you both live under the same roof, and the Duke doesn’t disown her as an heir—”
He sighed.
“You’ve had one goal your whole life.”
“Yes.”
Callista closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them.
“To become the head of House Luferne. That’s what I wanted.”
“What’s changed?”
“…I don’t know. Not yet.”
She looked out at the garden again and murmured:
“…Not yet.”
“Perfect. Odorless and colorless.”
Theon put down the vial Vittori had handed him.
“Amazing, Vittori. I thought I’d asked the impossible.”
“The root’s medicinal properties are strong. The research was the hard part.”
Theon and I exchanged a smile.
Vittori held a vial of detox potion, made from Yellowgreen Root, capable of neutralizing around 12 types of poison.
Compared to the grotesque, reddish-black roots, the potion looked clear and harmless.
A few days ago, Vittori had given us a full report on Yellowgreen Root’s properties—how and when to use it.
“It’s especially effective for poisons with withdrawal symptoms. It treats addiction.”
She said Cory Berries were one such case. Also illegal drugs in casinos and taverns.
Meaning it could help both nobles and commoners.
“So… we’re selling this?”
Vittori pointed to the vial.
Despite being paid handsomely, she still didn’t know the full plan.
“No.”
I shook my head. She turned toward me, confused.
“We’re not… selling it?”
“Nope. If someone needs it, we’ll give it to them. And we’ll even share how it’s made.”
I said firmly. She looked even more bewildered.
“Didn’t we create the antidote just to hide that it’s made from Yellowgreen Root?”
“Only to change people’s perception,” I said.
“If we told them the red-black root was medicine, they’d never believe us. We had to prove it worked first.”
Theon explained. He was the one who brought Vittori into the plan.
“Hoarding this kind of knowledge is dangerous. The more profitable it is, the more enemies we’ll attract. Hiding the truth wasn’t part of the plan.”
That part of his plan aligned with my thinking.
“So you’re spreading the knowledge, but buying the root supply first?”
Vittori asked.
“It’s hard to grow in the Empire. The thirty roots Theon got cost a fortune from a poison collector.”
I shook my head again. Theon replied:
“That was my idea. To be first to negotiate. I thought even Karnai wouldn’t object.”
“Then why…”
“But the Lady refused. Said it gave her a headache.”
He glanced at me with his usual subtle bitterness.
“She proposed something easier.”
Vittori’s eyes widened.
“…You proposed something, not Theon?”
“Yes.”
“What was it?”
She looked at me, half-doubting.
“Land. I’m going to buy land.”
“…What?”
“The land between the Empire and Karnai. Where the trade route will be in the future.”
“…”
“I’ll buy it with my allowance.”
Theon and Vittori just stared at me.
Theon looked proud.
Vittori looked like she’d been struck by lightning.
“…Is that… possible?”
I nodded.
“It’s just thorny wasteland right now. Super cheap.”
