Favored by the Family That Will Become the Strongest! - Chapter 12

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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At such moments, Dietrich Hartmann, who had once been her friend, would boast carelessly.
“Of course, why wouldn’t she be? Our Diena is a legitimate heir of the Five Great Houses, after all.”
Of course, both of them had completely changed their tune once they learned she was Powerless.
The memory left a bitter taste in her mouth.
‘I won’t think about those two fools.’
Diena shook her head and focused her attention on Bianca.
But something felt off.
The dark aura clinging to Bianca’s body was far less than expected. It bore no resemblance whatsoever to the state of someone slowly dying over the course of years.
This had only been possible because the people of the Cardian Family had avoided contact with Bianca as much as they could all this time.
‘The continuous use of Side Effect Suppressant must have helped too.’
Diena’s expression sharpened.
‘Then Bianca’s death was indeed caused by Matilda.’
Bianca was far too thin—skeletal to a degree that made Diena’s own malnourished frame from the Rothwell Family look robust by comparison. It was clear that Matilda had deliberately controlled what food she ate.
‘Let me test whether my Ability works on this.’
Diena moved with the practiced grace of someone who had been pouring tea for years. Even the way she opened the container of tea leaves was far from ordinary.
Diena poured the tea into Bianca’s cup. Bianca lifted it as if in a trance and took a sip.
“…Wow.”
A subtle smile bloomed at the corners of Bianca’s mouth at the taste of the tea. She closed her eyes and began to drain the cup.
Diena, who had been quietly observing her, tilted her head and asked.
“Why won’t you try the sandwich?”
Bianca had not touched any food besides the tea.
At the sudden question, she startled and waved her hands in denial.
“I don’t need to eat. I’d get fat, and a noble lady is supposed to be careful about such things.”
“…”
“And I’ve been told that eating something like a sandwich—opening your mouth wide—doesn’t look good. It’s better to eat just a little bit of cookies or cake.”
At those words, Diena’s brow furrowed.
“Why would you need to lose weight? I think you’d look lovely even if you gained more.”
Bianca shook her head.
“No, if I get fat, everyone will dislike me.”
“Who would dislike you, my lady?”
Bianca pouted her lips. She didn’t want to tell Diena the truth—that every noble maiden at the gatherings dismissed her.
Matilda had said she needed to lose weight to avoid being looked down upon by them.
Under normal circumstances, it might have bothered Bianca that Diena was contradicting her own thoughts.
Yet strangely, she felt no anger. Perhaps it was because she found herself overwhelmed by the elegant aura that Diena emanated.
“How do I look to you?”
Diena slowly asked in return to the hesitating Bianca.
“Am I not pretty at all?”
At the question, Bianca’s face flushed.
Diena was by no means an unpleasant sight to behold. Rather, she was beautiful enough to match Bianca’s exact taste.
She seemed more beautiful than any of the noble maidens Bianca had seen at the gatherings.
“No, you’re not bad, I suppose.”
At this, Diena widened her eyes in feigned surprise.
“But I’m much rounder than you are, my lady?”
“You? That’s a lie.”
At her words, Diena shook her head without hesitation.
“It’s not a lie. Even if you gained more weight than you have now, my lady, I think you’d still be absolutely adorable.”
Bianca’s ears flushed crimson at the unexpected compliment.
“W-well then, I suppose I should eat some cake.”
Just as her hand reached for the cake, Diena carefully shifted the position of the sandwich in front of her.
In doing so, she subtly placed her fingertip against Bianca’s hand. It was to activate her Purification Ability.
In that instant, Bianca’s tense expression visibly relaxed.
“Hmm, somehow my body feels lighter.”
Bianca murmured in bewilderment.
At the same time, Diena’s face brightened.
‘My Ability works on Darkness Encroachment!’
If it worked to this degree, she could heal her far more quickly than expected.
‘Though completely curing Darkness Encroachment will require considerable effort on my part.’
Using the Purification Ability meant the caster suffered damage proportional to the darkness they expelled. In fact, Diena’s fingertips were trembling faintly.
She grasped her own hand so Bianca wouldn’t notice.
Fortunately, that was all. If she cured everything, she might not even cough blood.
At worst, she might lose consciousness—something she’d grown accustomed to in her previous life.
But that aside…
‘She’s not Powerless?’
Diena sensed a faint but unmistakable Ability aura emanating from Bianca. It was an aura only she, a Purification Ability user, could discern.
She had encountered cases similar to Bianca’s before.
‘Cases where the Darkness was too dense for the Ability to awaken.’
She had once healed someone who radiated an aura similar to Bianca’s.
‘Cases where the person could only awaken their Ability after all the Darkness within their body was completely healed.’
Such cases were rare now, but they would become more common in the future.
And that awakening was something the Side Effect Suppressant could never achieve. It alone was incapable of completely eliminating the darkness within the body.
‘But with my Ability, it’s possible.’
Diena’s Ability clearly possessed a power superior to the Side Effect Suppressant.
“Diena, why did you suddenly move this?”
“Yes, my lady.”
At Bianca’s puzzled question, Diena came back to herself.
‘For now, treating the Darkness Encroachment comes first.’
Diena smiled gently and spoke.
“The sandwich looked delicious too. Please try some first.”
After a moment’s hesitation, Bianca reached for the sandwich.
She carefully picked up the sandwich from the table. Her eyes flickered with uncertainty before she took a small bite.
Diena watched her with soft, crinkled eyes.
“It’s delicious, isn’t it?”
Bianca replied coyly.
“Well… it’s not as bad as I thought.”
* * *
Matilda, who had been observing the two of them the entire time, furrowed her brow deeply. She crossed her arms and let out a heavy sigh.
“Bring Diena here. The tea time is over now.”
At her words, the maids beside her hurried forward and dragged Diena out of the room.
Once the door closed, Matilda approached her at once and glared down at her.
“What gives you the right to comment on the lady’s diet?”
Matilda’s voice was glacial. Diena answered without backing down.
“My lady is still young. This is an age when she needs to consume balanced nutrition. Yet she’s not eating properly.”
“Hah. What would you know? Of course you wouldn’t understand, but a noble maiden is supposed to be thin. That’s what’s beautiful. That’s what’s dignified.”
“That’s not true.”
Matilda was left speechless by the unexpected backtalk.
“What?”
“I’ve heard that among noble maidens nowadays, health is considered a virtue. It’s more fashionable to eat properly and exercise than to be extremely thin.”
Matilda let out a scoff.
“I don’t know where you picked that up, but don’t speak carelessly. I am of noble birth. You are a commoner! Even if you knew, I would know better.”
Then she pointed at Diena with her finger and spoke in a sharp voice.
“If you spout such nonsense again, you’ll be punished. Even if it was Balcan who brought you here, I am in charge of managing you!”
She thought that by now Diena would understand her warning.
‘A commoner, no less—surely she won’t dare contradict me again.’
But contrary to Matilda’s expectations, Diena did not change after that day. If anything, she visited Bianca even more frequently.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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