Chapter 17 - An Unexpected Rival?

Chapter 17 – An Unexpected Rival?

“Did you know you have a second mother?”

“…No.”

Making a sound with her tongue, she dug into Sierra’s arms.

“I only have one mother!”

Sierra’s chest was soaked with tears. It was obvious that tears were swelling in Hanael’s big eyes.

‘Until now…. she’s not had a father, but I was afraid she might believe her mother didn’t exist either.’

Sierra stroked Hanael’s hair and was lost in deep thought.

At first, she told Hanael that she was her aunt. She used to call Sierra “auntie” for the longest, until she started calling her “mother” at some point.

‘Well, Hanael doesn’t quite understand. The fact that it wasn’t her mother who raised her…’

That was how the title was settled.

‘But I think I need to explain about my sister in detail now.’

No matter how irresponsibly my sister left Hanael behind, she was furious and declared that she would kill her sister, but in fact, Sierra still trusted her sister a lot.

Just as Hanael only had Sierra, Sierra only had her sister, Amil, the Grand Archmage.

It was strange since she would never abandon her child for no reason.

‘Why the hell won’t you come, is there a real problem…?’

Sierra closed her eyes. In fact, she always thought she was a weird person, but nevertheless, she always made the right choice.

Before…

When the young Sierra was bored and alone, her eccentric sister used a teleport scroll all the way from the northernmost continent just to make her smile.

Teleporting from a long distance had its side effects. Her sister was no exception. Her nose was red, and her hands were extremely cold. Her powers almost refluxed due to going so fast, but they still had a laugh.

Despite Sierra’s constant request, her sister did not come for Hanael…

Either intentionally or because there was a reason. It must have been either reason.

‘I have no idea why you refuse to come yet, I really have no clue.’

Sierra patted Hanael.

Unfortunately, “educating” Hanael had to be postponed until tomorrow.

Sierra had many concerns about whether Hanael could face the reality properly.

***

At the same time, while much noise about the paternity test was in full swing at the duke’s mansion, a regular ball was being held in a salon near the palace as usual.

Of course, this ball was quite special.

It was full of nobles, as it was hosted by the emperor’s famous daughter, Princess Illiena.

Under a gorgeous chandelier, several tables were perfectly prepared and a small stage where you can waltz across the center.

Of course, the people who gathered today chose to eat finger food rather than dance.

The main discussion was, of course, Sierra.

The ladies with their lace fans in their hands continued to talk while eating and drinking.

“…Come to think of it, did you hear?”

Regardless of whether it was a noble or a commoner, gossip had no business.

Thanks to the owner of the teahouse, even if he was drowned, the series of incidents that the Marchioness Andante Mails suffered was secretly spread throughout the social world.

“Her, the duke’s commoner…”

“Some say that the commoner woman is actually the secret daughter of the godmother.”

Lady Macbeth, who was expected to be Duke Idios’ first love, frowned slightly. But there was nothing she could do.

“…There’s also a rumor saying that she bore the child of His Grace.”

They all glanced at Macbeth, with her pale complexion due to the lack of blood. In fact, it was widely believed in the social world that Macbeth had a deep connection with Cassius.

Everyone made a bet deciding whether Duke Idios would end up with Macbeth or with the princess…

She, who seemed to be heartbroken, tilted her head and walked away. The ladies who were watching Macbeth started to gossip.

“But didn’t you say his first love was Lady Macbeth?”

“I heard she met him at the academy!”

“Really… what will be of this?”

The gossips of the ladies echoed through the room.

At that time, a man who was drinking wine and acted as a flower on the wall blinked his eyes.

“This… sounds quite interesting.”

At his gentle sigh, the ladies around him signaled each other with eye-to-eye contact.

To all the ladies gathered here, this man aroused desire.

He first attended the princess’ tea party for the first time, drawing attention from others as soon as he appeared.

In fact, the reason was obvious. His appearance was one of the finest in the capital. Green light hair with warm gold eyes and his eyes that shone seductively.

It was so admirable that there would be no one who would not be shaken if he tried and seduced someone. He may be the most beautiful person in the empire.

Besides, he was a mysterious person.

Although he attended the princess’ tea party, no one here was sure of his identity.

Ladies speculated that he was from a distant side of the imperial family, wondering what part of the country he was from, or maybe whether he was a prince of a foreign country. There was only a rumor going around.

But they couldn’t even ask who he was. The man stood like a wall against others, unlike his awkward appearance. It was the same for even a small number of men who were allowed to attend the tea party.

One of the ladies, who was peeping at his sculptural side profile, opened her mouth cautiously and courageously.

“May I call you young……master?”

“Call me whatever you like.”

His friendly and wistful voice made the lady smile with joy. She continued carefully.

“Where are you from, young master?”

Curiosity rose from the ladies gathered at the same table.

“…I come from Tomseun, the south. Shall we have a dance and a drink, my lady?

The young lady’s face reddened, becoming a rosy color. It was such a fatal smile for the eye.

***

Princess Illiena’s tea party was held for three consecutive days.

And on the last day, the princess called in a man. She called him by the name of “Ijel.” People began to whisper at the man’s name.

Although he had attended each time, no one could find his identity.

But Ijel knew how to handle all those rumors gracefully.

He remained silent until he sat face to face in a small secret room with the princess.

“Ijel, have you heard all the rumors?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

It was a simple answer. The princess’ gaze strangely stuck to him.

Their relationship was quite suspicious.

“…And what kind of rumors are spreading?”

“As you know, there’s much talk about a woman who is residing with the Idios family.”

“Carry on…”

Leaning comfortably against the backrest, Princess Illiena tilted her chin to her side and murmured huskily.

“My goal for the Idios family, do you think it will still come true?”

“Yes, of course. It is very much possible.”

“Even after all those rumors?”

“We’ll make it possible.”

A sinister line flowed across the mouth of the gentleman.

“…What will you do if you fail?”

“It’s not possible to fail.”

It was an obvious rant. The princess frowned and impatiently continued.

“Our opponent is Duke Idios.”

“I know.“

His young and playful face was strangely cold.

“I’ve never failed before.”

For a moment, the overwhelmed princess clenched onto the teacup tightly.

“…Yes, I look forward to it.”

The man named Ijel nodded, and his expressionless face turned into a smile.

“Don’t forget. You certainly promised to pay the price.”

The princess, who saw his expression change in just a second, nodded, becoming stiff.

Having joined hands with this suspicious man, she planned to pay a good price.

***

A week has passed.

The paternity test had not started yet. This was because they were busily making fresh potions.

‘I thought it would be done right away.’

She lied in bed and stared into the air while pondering.

It has now become a big problem that I got used to a life where everything could be solved by pulling a bell rope on a fluffy bed with a blanket. Due to that, she gained weight and was on the verge of becoming plump.

Sierra tried to spend a leisurely time but was interrupted with a gift from the godmother.

“What is this?”

“Someone told me you like to treat patients.”

Sierra’s eyes widened. At last, the godmother got what Sierra really wanted!

Her heart was beating fast.

It was a special element that would treat a patient with a headache. Sierra decided to show her skills after a long time.

And an enormous warehouse to store herbs that Cassius built for her!

‘Sierra, I can give you everything you want.’

‘Crazy…’

At that time, Sierra almost hugged Cassius, unaware of her actions.

‘…If you want something else, I’ll give you more. You only need to say it.’

‘Thank you!’

Sierra remembered everything Cassius said timidly when he pointed to medicinal herbs.

She planted apricot seeds in the warehouse and added some dew with motala herbs, which are not usually used as a headache remedy.

‘Those herbs aren’t usually used. But I use them!’

Sierra practically lived in the library during her time at the academy and worked hard to mix and study various herbs. She was a genius in medicine, and her brain functions very quickly. It wasn’t just that, though.

‘I’ll add in a bit of mana here, and then I’ll be done!’

As the younger sister of Amil, an archmage, she also had excellent magical skills.

It was her mana that could be used to make magical medicine.

Pharmacists were also divided into two categories. A “former” is a pharmacist who only deals with herbs, and a “latter” is a pharmacist who can manipulate mana like a wizard. Magical pharmacists were very rare. In addition, the effectiveness of the medicine is divided into many different ways depending on the pure energy of a magical pharmacist and how well it is managed.

Of course, Sierra’s mana was exceptionally pure. She had been pretending to be a normal pharmacist until now, but now she can show her skills to the fullest!

“It’s finally done!”

Sierra finished making her potion. She had a patient with a headache waiting in the drawing room and was exiting the warehouse to hand them a translucent orange-colored potion.

However, while walking down the hall with her potion, came across a doctor from Hipo Kingdom, Hentel.

Sierra smiled brightly at him.

“Hello, Mr. Hentel!”

“It’s a pleasure to see you.”

He also had a small potion in his hand. Although he looked old, he had outstanding academic inquiry skills. His curious gaze turned toward Sierra.

“Excuse me, may I ask what you have?”

“Ah, yes. I made a potion for headaches! Where are you heading?”

“I’m preparing to attend a medical symposium for a while. Although…”

Hentel’s eyes narrowed. His eyes were stuck to the small potion bottle Sierra held.