Chapter 12: Where the Heart Lies

When I told Father, after he returned to the Lattiche estate, that I wished to enter a convent, he pretended with all his might not to hear me.

Father, it is far too early for your hearing to fail.

Behind him, Sebas fainted on the spot.
The other servants followed one after another.
Given the gravity of the situation, I could not press the matter further.

And yet—

In the very end, an outrageous bomb was dropped upon me.

While Father and I continued our fierce parent-child battle over my entering a convent, I pondered how I might possibly persuade him.

Perhaps I should flee abroad and enter a convent there.
Or choose a place difficult to interfere with from the outside—perhaps a church.

Anna and Mother Lati try to stop me, but as long as I remain in Lattiche—no, within this country—I feel I will remain a potential spark.

The House of Lattiche is a grand ducal family, a hereditary central vassal line so powerful that even the royal family must handle them carefully.
For Kishtarial’s position to be secure, it would be best if I were somewhere that could not appear on the public stage.
If I were dragged out into it, I could only imagine a future as a puppet.

I cannot enjoy peace forever inside the cage Father built to protect me.
Once I come of age, the distortion would only grow.

I was troubled over how to persuade him.

The servants of the ducal house—so kind—are unanimously opposed to my entering a convent.
Julius, whom I rely upon most, leads the opposition, though he does not say it outright.
Anna, my personal maid, pleads with tearful eyes for me to reconsider.
Mother Lati’s gaze speaks volumes.
Father smiles and cuts the matter down in a single stroke.

Never before have they all been so uncooperative with my wishes.
For Father, who dotes upon me, the thought of my leaving his side is unthinkable.

I cannot help but sigh.
Escaping abroad under Father’s watch would be even harder.

Without an accomplice, it would be impossible.
But no one would dare defy Father for my sake.
An accomplice would practically equal execution.

This is my moment of resolve.

Only I can defy Father and remain unscathed.

At that moment, I noticed a tapping at the window.

Perhaps branches from the garden trees were striking it in the strong wind.
Tonight was meant to be a storm.
If it continued, a branch might shatter the glass.

Should I ask Julius or Raven to cut it down?
It would be cruel to wake the gardener at midnight.
Surely one branch could be cleanly severed with magic.
Julius and Raven both seem proficient in offensive spells.

Incidentally, the game version of Albertina was an all-rounder.
Offensive magic, curse-type debuffs, barrier magic—she was an elite noblewoman.
Until the endgame, she wielded her excessive talent for vile deeds like a blooming flower of evil.
On some routes, she was practically the final boss rather than a mere villainess.

As for me—who never even attended the academy—my offensive magic is pitiful, my curse magic earns puzzled tilts of the head from Anna and Raven, and only my barrier magic is ironclad, perhaps reflecting my fervent desire to remain a shut-in forever.
In exchange for my lack of attack or curse ability, I can at least use basic healing magic.

As a top-tier noble lady, magical studies accompany my education.
The higher the rank, the more likely one is to possess strong mana in the Kingdom of Sandis.

I am entirely defense-support type.

In short, I cannot even cut a branch with magic.

As I approached the window, I found Kishtarial standing there, rain-damp and anxious.

“Kishtarial!? What are you doing here so late—?”

“What do you mean what am I doing!? Is it true you’re trying to leave the house!?”

How quick his ears are.
But did he truly scale the balcony just to ask that?

Father had issued a gag order.
Only a handful of servants present at our confrontation knew—Sebas among them—and Julius, whom I told first.
Julius would not so easily leak such a matter.

Kishtarial must have used magic to come here.
As I pressed a handkerchief to his damp hair and brow, it quickly grew soaked.

We are of similar age, but naturally have separate rooms.
Our balconies are not so close as to move between them easily.
And this is a ducal estate—security measures abound.

“More importantly, Albel. Are you truly going to a convent?”

“…Yes. Father has not agreed yet, but that is the plan.”

His face hardened in disbelief.
He understood that if I had already told Father, my resolve was firm.

“Do you hate this house?”

“No. I love it. I love Father, Mother, you, Anna, Julius, Raven—everyone.”

“Then stay. I will protect you. Even if Father were gone, even if Julius became my enemy, even from other nobles or the royal family—I would protect you.”

His aquamarine eyes, so like Father’s, pleaded with me.

He has grown taller, stronger.
Yet his jewel-bright gaze remains beautiful enough to make young ladies swoon.

I am grateful he cares so deeply.
But as long as I remain here, I am more likely to become his obstacle.

He endures Father’s merciless training, excels in intellect, combat, and magic, and ranks among the academy’s best.
If all goes well, even the princes favor him.

And beside such brilliance—
A reclusive, scarred stepsister of royal blood who has never stepped into society.

The rumors alone are easy to imagine.

“I can only ever be Lattiche’s weakness. Father shields me now, but that cannot last forever. Many seek to curry favor with this house—or bring it down. Even those connected to the royal family.”

“…Who told you that?”

Ah. So I was correct.
At the mention of the royal family, his demeanor sharpened.

In the original story, the royal family struggled to handle Albertina.
She bore rare royal-lineage eyes.
Her engagement to a prince had stemmed from that.
Even after condemnation, some routes reduced her to a womb to increase royal blood.

The Kingdom of Sandis suffers outbreaks of Megil Fever—Mana Fever—every few decades.
Those with strong mana are especially gravely afflicted.
The current royal line is thin for that reason.

A terrifying illness once destroyed magical cities and nations.
It brings high fever unresponsive to ordinary medicine.
Only suppressing mana allows one to endure the worst phase.

Kishtarial’s mana is immense.
On some routes, he falls ill.

But that is another matter.

“Who told me? No one. Even I can see it. I am not a child anymore.”

“You are not foolish, Albel. You are necessary. Do not belittle yourself.”

Warmth seeped through the silk of my nightgown from his palm on my shoulder.

He has grown into such a gentle brother.

But—

“…It is true I am a burden.”

“Then I will bear it. Stay with me forever.”

“That is impossible, Kishtarial. As head of the house, you will one day marry a lady from another family. She will be your partner in society. Treasure her. Though I am the eldest daughter of the main line, I have done nothing. She will shoulder the role of duchess—”

“I don’t need her.”

His low voice cut through mine.

When I looked up, his bright blue eyes blazed fiercely.

I had seen that light before.
In Michaelis.
In Julius.

I had refused to recognize it.

“Don’t, Kishtarial,” I whispered inwardly. “I don’t want to hear it.”

But his grip on my shoulders would not let me turn away.

“I don’t need any woman like that. I only need you.”

“I have always watched only you. I knew you saw me only as a brother. I knew you loved me as one. I met other ladies in society and at the academy—but they are all the same. I feel nothing. I cannot love them. I am that kind of man.”

“Choose me.”

My small, narrow, happy world shattered.

After that, Raven sensed another presence in my room and burst in with a knife in hand.
Without knocking—clearly he thought it an intruder.
He closed the distance instantly and pinned Kishtarial down, blade raised—only to realize who it was.
He frowned slightly, released him, and positioned himself protectively before me, urging Kishtarial to leave.

Later, Anna and Raven scolded me severely for allowing a man into my room—even if he is my brother.

From their tone, they both seemed aware that Kishtarial views me not as a sister but as a woman.
Apparently, I truly am dense.

Bound too tightly to the otome game’s scenario, perhaps.
Somewhere in my mind I believed Albertina von Lattiche could never be loved—least of all by the capture targets.

“For matters of that sort, the Duke has enforced strict regulations, so perhaps it cannot be helped… but you truly did not notice,” Julius said.

“…Frankly, it is remarkable you were not already led into a physical relationship and thoroughly devoured—Raven, come here.”

Julius cut Raven off with an intimidating smile and dragged him away.

Apparently, I am in danger.
Perhaps I always was.

Kishtarial has now been forbidden from seeing me—

Not by Father the Demon King.

But by Mother Lati.

I recall it faintly.

She struck him with a fury beyond anything I had ever seen, snapping her fan in the blow.
Father stood stunned.

“Do you understand what you have done, Kishtarial!? Albertina is an unmarried lady! Even if you are siblings on paper, you know the difference between what is permitted and what is not! You know how sheltered and innocent she is!”

Am I truly that naive?

“Mother, it was I who let him in—”

“You were startled in a storm when your brother appeared on your balcony, were you not?”

“…Yes.”

“And he chose the balcony because he knew Julius and Raven would stop him in the hallway! He counted on you not to abandon him in the cold rain!”

Her heel struck the floor sharply.

“If things had gone one step further, Albertina would have had no choice but to choose you as her husband! I will not have my daughter forced into an unwanted marriage!”

At her words, Kishtarial paled.

Then she embraced me.

“Even without blood, you are my daughter, Albertina. You had every right to reject me and Kishtarial. Yet you welcomed us more than anyone.”

Warmth enveloped me.
And tears spilled freely.

“Mother… I—”

I could not say it.

That I want to stay.
That I am afraid.
That I long for ordinary love.

To love.
To be loved.
To hold hands, to laugh, to kiss.

To be an ordinary girl.

But I can never be the heroine.
If I falter, I bring ruin.

Exhausted from crying, I fell asleep in Mother’s arms.

And during this visit home, Kishtarial was formally forbidden from seeing me.