How to Replace Your Dad - Chapter 166

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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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How to Replace Father
Chapter 166
* * *
Yustea ran along the Mana Thread connected to the scout, her thoughts racing.
‘The advancement in magical technology is astounding.’
That a mechanical doll could move this naturally was remarkable.
Of course, it was slower than human speed.
But that slowness gave her—untrained as her body was—the chance to use self-activating magical devices.
‘Stella’s Mana Control has developed to a considerable level.’
Yet beyond control, the rest remained immature.
The fact that Mana Tracking was possible proved as much.
Her own abilities surprised her most in Mana Tracking.
‘The quantity of mana is enormous.’
Normally, merely glimpsing the mana thread with her eyes would have depleted her reserves entirely.
She had definitely grown stronger.
‘This level of power couldn’t come from Andres’s teachings alone. So it’s true after all—I was cast out.’
Yustea recalled those beings called Irregulars she had seen in Esgaroth.
As they had revealed, she didn’t place complete trust in their words.
For two days she had moved in secret to verify the truth.
And what she found was…
Yustea Cuaron Esgaroth.
A strange surname.
It appeared in the register of names and in official documents bearing the Emperor’s seal.
Not Andres.
‘So I really was abandoned….’
It was an end so absurd it bordered on ridiculous.
“….”
Yustea halted briefly, gripping the sword hilt tightly.
‘Stop.’
This is not the time for brooding.
Right now, she was in a competition, and what mattered was winning it.
‘Don’t lose sight of priorities.’
Set emotion aside.
Focus on your objective.
Yustea resumed her sprint up the mountain path.
How much time had passed?
By the time her hair was damp with sweat, a cottage came into view.
A cottage densely surrounded by mechanical dolls.
‘That’s the base.’
Yustea hid herself behind a tree and withdrew a small, rounded object—no larger than an adult man’s palm.
A Mugganstone.
A powerful magnetic magical device that had turned Stella’s scout into scrap metal.
After steadying her breathing, Yustea hurled the Mugganstone toward the cottage.
Zing—!
In an instant, all the mechanical dolls fixed their attention on it.
“Activate.”
The moment she murmured the word, the Mugganstone flared.
The mechanical dolls nearest to it were dragged toward it at tremendous speed.
Crash-boom-boom-boom!
As the dolls clung to the Mugganstone, a gap opened in the perimeter.
Yustea moved to slip through that opening and advance inward.
But she had scarcely gone a few steps when she stopped short, staring at the base.
* * *
“Why has she stopped?”
“This foolish girl…! She should charge straight through the gap in the defenses!”
There was no way that small frame could contend with mechanical dolls.
Not even with the Mugganstone.
A single Mugganstone could neutralize roughly a dozen of them.
But the number guarding the base exceeded that twofold.
“She’s made a gap only to give the dolls time to reposition. Tch….”
The elderly nobleman furrowed his brow.
At that moment, Yustea in the Mirror World blew a whistle.
Two massive hawks dove from the sky like arrows.
They snatched up one of the mechanical dolls at Yustea’s gesture.
[Drop it from above!]
The doll plummeted through the cottage roof.
Then—
Bang—!!!
“…?!”
“…!!!”
A tremendous explosion!
Many of the mechanical dolls defending the perimeter were caught in it at once.
The two hawks were far enough above to escape damage.
Yustea’s position lay outside the blast radius.
All who watched the Mirror World’s image gasped in shock.
Some lurched to their feet, mouths agape.
“A… a trap….”
Someone murmured.
“Sending the scout was a trap to lure her to the base!”
The elderly nobleman gripped his cane with both hands and cried out.
“But how did Yustea ever suspect it was a trap?”
“The dolls made terrible noise clinging to the Mugganstone. Yet those inside never peered out the windows. That’s what tipped her off.”
“A fine judgment, though it’s unfortunate she triggered the trap at all.”
“It appears Stella had prepared magical devices in advance to prevent fire from spreading across the mountain. The flames were extinguished in moments.”
Yet the majority of the assembly had their minds elsewhere.
“Wait—where is the prince? What has become of the prince?”
As those words were spoken, the Mirror World’s image shifted.
Stella was transporting Luciano in an escort carriage.
The carriage was drawn by a horse-form mechanical doll.
“True enough—there was no rule forbidding the hostage’s movement.”
“Hmm…”
“Remarkable. So the girl possessed such strategic wit?”
The other nobles whispered among themselves, eyes wide with surprise.
“Using yourself as bait and striking back in reverse—that was the strategy Yustea employed in the Family Tournament preliminaries.”
“Rather than merely resenting a tactic used against her, she learned it and turned it back. Astounding growth.”
“That’s not all she learned. If Yustea had fallen straight into that trap, the competition would have ended here. The proxy’s death would have meant automatic victory for Stella, would it not?”
“That lesson she absorbed in the Family Tournament final.”
The Empire’s nobles exchanged rueful glances.
The delegation from Iparam broke into delighted laughter.
“Excellent.”
“And is it not Stella alone who excels? Prince Terrius is equally worthy. For a ruler, the keenest eye for talent is what matters most.”
“Quite so. The ability to know people and manage them is the most vital virtue for the leader of a new age.”
Those words were also a rebuke directed at the Empire, which had failed to manage its people and had seen the Restoration Council flourish.
The Empire’s nobles’ expressions darkened.
Even the heirs of families in attendance to obtain Iparam’s mana stones frowned.
Roji of the Olvera Family silently clicked her tongue.
“Do something. …Holy Maiden.”
Meanwhile, Stella pressed on steadily.
Luciano, riding in the escort carriage, spoke to Stella.
[That path leads downward to the mountain entrance.]
[Yes. That’s precisely where we’re headed.]
“You’re heading to the mountain entrance?”
“Why in the world? If you were searching for Yustea’s base, you’d need to go to the mountain peak.”
“Correct. Surely she would have established her base at the peak, where approach is difficult.”
[Yustea wouldn’t set up a base where everyone expects her to. She places traps in the predicted zones.]
The nobles’ eyes widened at Stella’s words.
[That girl always acts in ways no one anticipates. And wherever there’s anticipation, there’s a trap.]
“True enough—given Yustea’s path of movement, she wouldn’t have descended from the peak.”
“It seems the vision granted to the Holy Maiden alone…”
Stella’s prediction was accurate.
At the mountain entrance, among wild grass and thick foliage, stood a crude lean-to.
[I thought if a base had to be hidden at the entrance, it could only be here.]
Stella swept aside the cloth that appeared to be the entrance to the shelter.
What she found was—
[Brilliant work, Stella.]
Prince Terrius, smiling broadly.
“Ahahaha!”
Iparam’s prime minister burst into hearty laughter.
“The hostage is secured. Current position: mountain entrance. Once we exit the mountain, victory is assured. There’s nothing more to see in this competition.”
“….”
The Emperor watched the Mirror World with an icy expression.
Stella quickly unwound the cloth bindings from Prince Terrius’s wrists.
[Let’s go.]
[Right.]
The end was drawing near.
The Emperor quietly asked his attendant.
“How long until they exit the mountain?”
“Five minutes should suffice….”
The Mirror World showed Yustea running again.
She was still on the mountain slope.
‘From Yustea’s current position to there in five minutes—impossible.’
Stella and Terrius descended the mountain.
The escort carriage bearing Luciano moved with them, the reasoning being that the Empire’s prince could not be left out in the cold.
With such consideration shown to the Empire, the competition itself offered nothing to criticize.
Stella, Terrius, and Luciano reached the mountain entrance.
The Emperor’s eyes pressed shut.
To declare victory for Iparam from the lips of the Empire’s Emperor—his stomach roiled at the thought.
‘Curse it all….’
In that moment—
[What is this…!]
[Don’t touch it. It’s Poison Fog.]
‘Poison Fog?’
The Emperor’s eyes flew open.
A few of those watching the Mirror World gasped and lurched halfway to their feet.
The Emperor quickly turned his gaze to the Mirror World.
It was Prince Terrius who had named the poison.
Terrius studied his surroundings with a grave expression.
More precisely, the blue-green mist spreading across the mountain entrance.
It was being emitted from magical devices placed at regular intervals.
Marquis Nevarro, half-risen from his seat, glanced to the side.
“That… that isn’t….”
Marquis Esgaroth chuckled and replied.
“Who else would have set it, if not Yustea?”
Then—
“Uwaaaahhh—!”
“Waaaahhh—!!!”
The Assembly Hall erupted in chaos.
The elderly nobleman, trembling with excitement, waved his cane and cried out.
“Yes! Even if you seize the hostage, if you cannot exit the mountain, you’ve won nothing!”
A deafening roar swept through the chamber.
Unlike the Empire’s nobles, the Iparam delegation sat rigid with shock.
Iparam’s prime minister, who moments before had been laughing heartily, now gripped the armrest of his chair with white knuckles.
The Irregulars grinned and spoke.
“The young lady said it herself. Two days weren’t enough to know every corner of the mountain better than Stella.”
“Right. If the other side has mastery of the terrain, then the first thing to do to seize the advantage is…”
“To draw the opponent into one’s own domain.”
“…That’s what she said.”
At Yuise’s words, the nobles gasped again.
“Yustea, pride of the Empire! Our Holy Maiden!”
The elderly nobleman, dizzy with excitement, shouted huzzahs.
This time, even the Emperor could not hide his delight.
“Ahahaha!”
He laughed aloud and spoke.
“The eye to discern talent is vital indeed. But even more important is the ability to nurture that talent.”
“….”
Now it was Iparam’s delegation who clenched their teeth.
From the Mirror World came Luciano’s leisurely voice.
[Take care. That’s purified extract of Poison Fog.]
The very poison that, spreading from Camellia in Marquis Esgaroth’s garden, had infected countless people.
Luciano had also used extract to annihilate the horde of dragons that had swept across the eastern regions.
Stella cried out in panic.
[Harming the hostage means instant defeat!]
[Then cross the Poison Fog for victory? Though you’d be exposing the prince to danger.]
[That… that’s….]
Stella stared at Terrius in confusion.
Terrius let out a hollow laugh.
The Iparam delegation watching also looked grim.
‘This competition was meant to diminish the Empire’s prestige and elevate Iparam’s standing.’
‘If it becomes known that the prince himself risked poisoning for victory, Iparam will be held in contempt.’
If the prince of Iparam had willingly exposed himself to poison to lower the Empire’s standing, all would say the Empire possessed strength enough to warrant such measures.
The entire purpose of the competition would be lost.
* * *
“I… if I perform Purification…!”
Stella spoke in agitation.
Luciano chuckled quietly, and Terrius wore an awkward smile.
“Performing Purification without being a Saint is beyond you.”
Stella bit down hard on her lips.
That title of “Saint” had repeatedly blocked her path.
Or rather, Yustea herself was the blockade.
“Don’t waste mana seeking another exit. It’s the wiser choice.”
Stella swallowed hard.
‘That’s… right. I haven’t lost yet.’
“There is another way out, though it’s far. A hidden path on the far side of the mountain.”
“There is?”
“Yes. It’s a path not on any map, so Yustea won’t know of it.”
“If that’s your judgment, so be it.”
“We should take the prince with us. If Yustea finds him and performs Purification, we’d lose before escaping.”
“A sound idea.”
Stella unlatched the escort carriage.
The hidden path was too treacherous for the carriage to traverse.
Luciano stepped out willingly.
Under the competition’s rules, a hostage could not resist.
Yet there remained the risk he might secretly signal Yustea, so his wrists were bound firmly with a Mana Control cord.
The three set forth to seek another exit.
After walking some twenty minutes—
Stella’s pace quickened steadily.
‘Ten more minutes and we’re there.’
Victory was within reach.
The arrogant Yustea would kneel, and the eyes of those Empire subjects who had scorned her would open wide.
‘Faster… faster…!’
Driven by urgency, she outdistanced the mechanical soldiers escorting them.
“Stella, moving ahead of your escort may not be the wisest—”
Terrius had not finished his sentence when—
Swish-snap!
A rope erupted from the earth, yanking Stella away in a single instant.
“Ahhhhh!”
Stella’s entire body scraped against the ground as she was dragged, screaming.
“You were late. Waiting grew tedious, Stella.”
“…!”
It was Yustea.
* * *
[You were late. Waiting grew tedious, Stella.]
The elderly nobleman cried out, “Ow-wah!”
“She knew of the other exit! The Poison Fog wasn’t only meant to stop their escape!”
“She was herding them down that path!”
[An exit unmapped. In the time given to me, I sought only that.]
[You….]
[I’ve come to escort you, Your Highness.]
Luciano in the Mirror World smiled.
Dazzlingly handsome.
[I thought my eyes would go blind from the beauty.]
Yustea, age eleven.
The period when she had been in fierce opposition with Luciano.
‘Have I lost my mind?’

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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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