I Will Try to Save My Dad - Chapter 114

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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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Chapter 114

This was only the second time I had laid eyes upon the Emperor.
I had regarded him merely as someone who could reveal my father’s identity—the highest authority in the Heishal Empire—yet I had never truly entertained the possibility that he might be my father himself.
[…The Emperor is… your…]
But there was something different from the grand banquet.
I could now perceive the language of the wind. Even for a swordsman naturally attuned to the wind’s essence with exceptional talent, understanding the speech of spirits required the fruits of long, arduous training.
My rapid growth had been thanks to Windis and my master. Under their influence, my affinity with the wind had steadily deepened.
‘The wind is speaking to me.’
Since it was not human language, I had to feel it through sensation.
The wind spoke to me: that I had come from that man, that his blood flowed through my veins.
But how did Berry know?
“Huh? What do I know?”
I watched Berry feign innocence with wide, round eyes. Because I had bent my waist to meet her gaze, her face appeared clearer than usual.
The fact that she had dragged me here and asked me various questions about His Majesty the Emperor clearly meant Berry knew something.
“Do you know who my father is?”
At my question, Berry’s eyes widened. Yet from that reaction alone, I could not definitively conclude that she knew everything.
Whether the pocket watch belonged to my father, or whether its owner was the Emperor—neither was information Berry could possibly know. Still, I did not mind.
If Berry knew even a little, I had no intention of hiding anything beyond that. I was displeased that Berry knew my secret.
“I don’t know….”
I spoke to Berry, whose words trailed off.
“It’s His Majesty the Emperor.”
“…What, what?”
“Mother left me my father’s belongings. A pocket watch engraved with the imperial crest. You knew the owner of the pocket watch was His Majesty the Emperor, didn’t you?”
….
Berry nodded with a bewildered expression.
In truth, she had not even known of the pocket watch’s existence. If I retraced whether I had acted in a way that warranted such a confident question, that was not the case either. But answering affirmatively to my words seemed the most effective way to avoid suspicion.
After all, it made no sense that she, a seven-year-old granddaughter of Count Trabel, would know the secret of Theon’s birth.
“How did you… find out?”
Theon had seemed unchanged after attending the grand banquet. But now the shift in his heart was evident. It meant he had only recently learned that the pocket watch’s owner was His Majesty the Emperor.
I asked Theon to confirm my suspicion.
“Was it intuition? They say there’s an instinct between parent and child—even at first meeting, they recognize each other.”
“The winds told me.”
“Huh? How?”
“A swordsman born with an affinity for the wind can converse with spirits. My master has also said he sometimes speaks with Windis.”
The wind? As if I had never considered such a thing, I blinked. Theon continued.
“When I saw His Majesty the Emperor just now, the winds told me that I had inherited his blood.”
Then, fearing my words might sound absurd, I added more.
“My teacher says spirits don’t lie.”
“….”
Theon watched Berry in silence, growing tense.
Perhaps she couldn’t believe him after all. Berry was never one to accept unrealistic stories easily. He wondered if he should have said something more plausible, like that his late mother had told him, but—
‘I don’t want to make up lies for Berry.’
Yet the worry gnawed at him that she might see him as a liar. Berry squeezed both of Theon’s hands firmly.
“That’s right. I already know Father talks to Windis sometimes.”
“Yeah.”
Berry believed him. The anxiety that even Theon himself hadn’t fully recognized was finding stability simply in the fact that Berry understood his situation.
“What about the Emperor? Does His Majesty know you’re his son?”
“I’m not sure. But when we met, he didn’t seem to know.”
“Then….”
“Berry.”
Theon spoke to her.
“This is a secret.”
A secret only Berry and I know. A secret between us that even Jeffrey must never learn.
Watching Berry nod, the corners of Theon’s mouth lifted slightly.

***

There was no reason I would meet His Majesty the Emperor at a shoe shop in Goldport.
His Majesty had greeted my cousins from the Trabel Estate—everyone except me—and, claiming he had no time to accept the family’s invitation, had simply purchased his shoes and left.
I was in my room at Stone House, turning over what had just happened.
‘Wow. I was really shocked.’
I never expected Theon to tell me he was the Emperor’s son. I was flustered by the unexpected revelation, but perhaps this was better.
‘Theon and I are basically in the same boat now!’
I now had justification for grooming my boyfriend into a proper Crown Prince.
Hehe. Starting tomorrow, I had so much to teach Theon. Since he tended to push himself too hard, I’d have to guide him slowly and carefully.
“But that’s tomorrow’s problem—”
Right now, this was the real issue.
I shifted my gaze back to the paper in my hand.
When I’d returned to Stone House just moments ago, Jack Jack was waiting for me. A reply had come from Aunt Mariane.

———-
I never expected Baron Oldman would resort to blackmail.
If I don’t state my conditions within the deadline, he’ll tell my father?
———-

The uncouth opening made it clear just how angry Aunt Mariane was with Baron Oldman.
“Hmm.”
Though if she hadn’t said it that way, she would have refused to settle accounts with Baron Oldman forever under the pretense of biased judgment.
“Getting angry instead. Calling him a mere bandit.”
In any case, I read through the rest of the letter carefully once more.

———-
I do not wish to hear Baron Oldman’s explanations delivered through his representative’s mouth.
Evidence and witnesses can be fabricated as easily as one pleases.
Take the Chalice of Truth from the Temple of Aubaut and answer the two questions below.
If you prove your innocence there, I will accept the previous outcome.

1. Is the person holding the chalice Baron Oldman himself?
2. Did you collude with the Dwarves for the most perfect gem assessment?
———-

The Chalice of Truth could be used by anyone under the supervision of a high priest if they were a follower of the Aubaut Religion—a miraculous sacred object that would fill with crimson liquid if one spoke falsehoods.
“Ugh.”
The condition Aunt Mariane had set was simple in itself. There were no catches, so the chalice shouldn’t fill with crimson liquid.
All I had to do was hold the chalice and answer the questions.
“The thing is, Baron Oldman…”
I groaned and buried my face in the letter in frustration.
To use the Chalice of Truth, the person answering the questions couldn’t be alone. A high priest, one witness, and the person asking the questions had to be present at minimum.
She intended to drag Baron Oldman before my eyes. I didn’t know Aunt Mariane’s true intentions, but this time she had put me in a perfectly difficult position.
“Baron Oldman is nowhere near…”
I didn’t even want to imagine what would happen if a seven-year-old me appeared before an angry aunt.
Aunt Mariane would know, all the relatives would find out and throw a fit. And Father knowing about it was even worse. My insomnia might flare up again…!
“But still…”
I couldn’t miss the settlement funds that were contractually owed to me. Securing funds for the future was important.
Should I tell Grandfather about this? And then what? Would Baltar accept Aunt Mariane’s objection as a member of the Trabel Family? Would he continue dealings with the Trabel Estate?
If I were an adult, I wouldn’t have needed to use the alias Baron Oldman.
“Huh?”
It was the moment my seven-year-old worries were deepening.
…If I were an adult?
A thought flashed through my mind, and my eyes lit up.

***

When you’re troubled, the best thing to do is seek out someone with experience!
“Lucian!”
Uncle Lucian turned his head at my call.

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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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