I Became the Youngest Sister-in-law of the Ruined Reverse Harem’s Male Leads - Chapter 126

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

#.126

“Uncle. Why are you saying that?”

“What? Did uncle make a mistake?”

I was angry that Francois wasn’t afraid.

The fact that he had given up on his life, his attitude of not suffering as I wanted him to… and that nonchalant expression on his face.

“You’re going to die. Aren’t you scared?”

“There’s no one who isn’t afraid of dying. But I’m trying to accept it anyway.”

My emotions became intense and my fists trembled. I suppressed my anger and spoke.

“Are you trying to become like Rebecca too, uncle?”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“Rebecca made a contract with the demon king because she felt sorry for me and wanted to undo all her wrongs. That’s why the demon king was revived this time and caused chaos. Are you also giving up everything and trying to die because you feel sorry?”

My voice trembled violently as I went on.

Francois had the same troubled expression as when he had to force me to drink mana potions when I was 6 years old.

“Uncle will find another way on his own. I’m doing that even now.”

“You only have a few years left.”

“It’ll be resolved within a few years.”

“But what if it doesn’t work? Saying you won’t die by my hand means you’ll kill yourself, doesn’t it?”

What I wanted wasn’t revenge. I just wanted Francois to be hurt as much as I had been heartbroken.

To cry and suffer like I did. To be hurt the same way and properly realize what wrong he had done to me.

But Francois had already been atoning in his own way for a long time and was settling everything.

That point made my insides boil with anger.

It was too selfish, and I was too upset.

And I had come to like Francois too much…

“Li, Lilliana. Don’t cry.”

Tears came pouring out.

When I wiped my eyes with my hands, tears dripped through my fingers.

“Uncle. You’re really mean. I hate you so much!”

It was awful. I hated him so much I wanted to tell him to live on nothing but carrots.

If he had treated me badly in my past life, he shouldn’t have been nice to me now out of guilt.

He should have been mean to me this time too so I could hate him more comfortably.

Yet he showed me sincerity and was preparing for death on his own.

“Don’t die, I’m telling you. Don’t get hurt either.”

“I, I won’t die. Don’t cry.”

Francois couldn’t hug and comfort me like before, so he crouched down and was at a loss.

I cried loudly while hitting his uninjured shoulder.

“Don’t die and think about it while eating only carrots every day! Be envious of me eating delicious food, and regret every single day that you can’t play with me anymore and wish you hadn’t done that before! Waaahhh!”

Sadness and anger, disappointment and sorrow. And a drop of love all mixed together – what would adults call this emotion?

Because I knew the answer, I was still young and knew nothing.

So I just sat down on the floor and poured out the tears that burst forth.

Instead of saying clichéd words like “I’m sorry,” Francois stayed by my side with a face more pained than mine.

For a long, very long time.

* * *

“Hic. Hng.”

After I stopped crying, hiccups came out. I wiped my swollen eyes one last time.

Francois was still crouched beside me. When our eyes met, he bit his lips slightly and forced a smile.

“Don’t smile. You made me cry like this and you can smile?”

“You weren’t like this when you were little, but Lilliana, the more you grow, the more you seem to resemble Emilia. Edith and Regina aren’t like that.”

“What do you mean I—!”

“The way you snap back sharply, and how affectionate you are – you really resemble Emilia a lot. But uncle likes that side of you.”

When I met his golden eyes full of affection, I felt like I had become a precious being.

Francois, the uncle I knew, was that kind of person. He craved affection and wanted to love someone just as much.

A person ready to love even though a demon had been planted in his mind. That’s why he was lonely, and his solitary eyes that reached me and my sisters quickly sparkled with warmth.

“Uncle. When I secretly entered the manor last time, you said the house was a mess because an experiment failed. That was a lie, wasn’t it?”

“How did you know?”

“I could faintly sense a bad aura from the house.”

“You’re right. There was erosion the night before. I put up barriers all night, but the house becoming a mess was unavoidable.”

“I like that side of uncle.”

“That… side?”

“You could have told me honestly and shown how hard it was to gain sympathy, but you didn’t.”

After exchanging compliments once, I felt the awkward atmosphere had cleared.

“Uncle. Be good to me. Then who knows, maybe I’ll pity uncle and help you.”

“Even if you don’t help—”

Francois was saying that much when he quickly shut his mouth as I glared at him. He rolled his eyes around looking for the right answer.

To think the Mage Tower lord doesn’t even know such a simple correct answer. Francois turned out to be quite stupid. No wonder Liliana scolds him every day.

I held out my finger to him.

“Promise me!”

“What?”

Even without knowing what I would demand, Francois quickly intertwined his finger with mine.

“Uncle will be my servant from now on. I’m the hero. Got it?”

“Servant?”

“Yeah. I’m going to the Demon King’s Castle to defeat the demon king. I’m going to rescue the prince trapped in the castle.”

“Wh, who is the prince?”

“If you become a loyal servant, I’ll promote you to prince on the day of the final battle. Servants have to serve the hero, so you can’t run away or die. You have to stay by my side every day making delicious food as offerings, doing laundry for me, and taking care of the horses too.”

I quickly stamped the promise and even made a copy.

Now that we’ve promised, Francois is my servant until the day of the final battle. Even if he asks me to cancel it, I absolutely won’t.

“Lilliana…”

Francois’s eyes reddened and he hugged me tightly with his uninjured arm. His embrace, noticeably thinner in just a few days, was trembling finely.

I hate Francois, my uncle, as much as I love him. And I love him as much as I hate him.

So I decided to entrust this emotion to the time that would come. If I torment him thoroughly while cherishing and loving him, I’ll have grown much taller and become more mature.

The me at that time will make wiser decisions than now.

What I could do was trust my future self. That was my best.

* * *

“Big brother!”

“Brother!”

Filippo and Yosiyas grabbed Edgar from both sides.

“Play with us!”

“Let’s play!”

It wasn’t to the extent of kissing his forehead and hugging him tightly like Lilliana did whenever they met, but Edgar was quite fond of the twins too.

So even when they broke his cherished toys, he didn’t show it, but today was different.

“Get away. And I’m not your brother, I’m your uncle…”

“No! Play! Play with us!”

Filippo stretched Edgar’s cheeks, squishing them.

Edgar, who had been lying on the bed like a corpse, frowned and tried to remove the hands, but it was futile.

Filippo was a persistent and stubborn baby.

“Let’s play! Lily, brother, Filippo, Yosiyas! Let’s play!”

Lily. Edgar visibly flinched when Lilliana was mentioned.

Edgar jumped up and pushed past his younger siblings, fleeing to another room.

Regina, who had been bringing snacks, saw this and caught the children who were chasing after him, stuffing cookies into their mouths.

“Please watch the children.”

Regina, having entrusted the children to the nannies, quickly chased after Edgar.

His expression looked troubled, and since he rarely came alone without Lilliana, she was concerned for various reasons.

Knock knock.

When Regina knocked, the door opened from inside.

“Are the little ones bothering you?”

“They’re still young.”

“If staying only at the Imperial Palace feels suffocating, you can come here and stay.”

“No. It’s just…”

Regina quietly waited until Edgar chose his words.

She had heard that he knew about Marius and Edith’s impending divorce.

Having regarded the two as parents for the past few years, his sense of loss must be considerable.

‘I should have paid more attention so Edgar could rely on us more… I shouldn’t have focused only on raising the twins.’

Edgar was more mature than his peers and much taller and bigger in build, but he was still just a boy who hadn’t even reached puberty yet.

One who liked to fidget with the Cookie that Lilliana had given him as a gift.

“About middle school. I still haven’t decided where to go, and I don’t know who to discuss it with.”

“If Edgar says he has concerns, anyone would immediately make time to put their heads together with you. Don’t think like that. The adults are just waiting for Edgar to tell them.”

“There are some worries that don’t change even when you discuss them. I’m sorry. Please don’t worry too much about it. It seems like a decision will be made soon anyway.”

Eventually, Edgar said he should go play with the twins who were looking for him and quickly left the room.

He had just turned eleven a few months ago on his birthday, but the loneliness hanging on Edgar’s shoulders seemed as heavy as if it had filled his entire 11 years of life.

Regina realized that something was going very wrong.

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