Let’s Make Saving a Habit - Chapter 41

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

Chapter 41
I chuckled and replied.
“You’re a famous person, after all. How could I not recognize someone like you, grandfather? A mask won’t conceal your distinguished bearing.”
The former Duke let out a low sound and stopped pressing further.
To reveal how I had identified him, he would have had to expose his own Ability.
He had used an Ability at the Underground Auction House that diminished the target’s cognitive perception—apparently one of his replicated Abilities.
He had certainly used his power, yet he was puzzled as to how I had discovered his true identity as Declan Papiope.
It was simple.
An Ability that interfered with the mind was useless against someone who possessed a far stronger Ability.
As long as one’s mind remained resilient, a mere moment of concentration could break free from its effects.
The former Duke had never encountered an Ability User stronger than himself until now, so his confusion was inevitable.
For similar reasons, the nobility maintained strict control over their bloodlines.
They concentrated their limited Psi among a select few to preserve the strength of their Abilities.
Thus, the Empire had virtually no illegitimate children among the nobility.
Should a child be born by accident, they would hunt them down and eliminate them by any means necessary.
In any case, my adoption into the Papiope family seemed to have been glossed over, so it was time to broach the main subject.
“I was actually planning to seek you out, grandfather, so this works out perfectly!”
The former Duke pointed at himself with his index finger, looking bewildered.
“…Me?”
“Do you remember the wager we made with a wish token?”
“You… don’t tell me you came to the Papiope residence for that reason?”
“Among other things, naturally.”
I pulled my lips into a wicked smile, like a loan shark come to collect overdue interest.
Well then, sir. It’s time you fulfilled your debt.

✦ ✦ ✦
After expressing my wish to Grandfather, I wandered through the Duke’s Residence with a refreshed spirit.
The Duke’s Residence was so vast that I hadn’t managed to see it all before evening dinner arrived.
I headed to the Dining Room, curious whether Lucian would actually attend the meal.
Surprisingly, Lucian was already seated at the table.
He noticed my entrance and immediately turned his gaze toward me, but flinched upon spotting the bruise on my hand.
As expected, my hand bore a distinctly blue bruise.
Of course, perhaps because my body was frail, the color had come out darker than I’d anticipated, which startled me as well.
The Duchess also noticed my arrival and was about to greet me with a smile when she gasped and suddenly rose from her seat.
She approached me quickly, grasped my wrist, and her expression twisted with concern.
“Tania…! How did you get this bruise on your hand?”
I had sworn Lena, the temporary maid, to silence, but since she was a temporary maid the Duchess herself had assigned, I’d been worried she might mention it.
However, seeing the Duchess’s surprise at my hand, it seemed the news hadn’t reached her ears after all.
“Oh, this? I accidentally pinched it while closing a door.”
As I overlooked Lucian’s transgression, relief washed across his face, which had been watching me with anxiety.
“My goodness, you should have been more careful. It must have hurt terribly.”
The Duchess released a small sigh and gently cradled my hand in hers. Her warm touch transferred directly to me.
“Why didn’t you seek treatment from the Duke’s Residence physician earlier? Didn’t your temporary maid tell you there’s a healing Ability User here?”
“She did tell me!”
“Then why…?”
Well, I needed to show Lucian the bruise so he would understand what he’d done.
He needed to know exactly what his actions had caused.
“It will heal quickly with time anyway. I’m fine! Thank you for your concern.”
“Tania, do you think I would simply overlook my daughter’s injury?”
“No? But…”
The Duchess wore a playful smile as she withdrew her hand from where it had been cradling mine.
In that instant, my hand appeared perfectly healed.
“Huh…?”
I blinked in confusion before belatedly realizing that her replication Ability naturally included healing-type abilities as well.
“Let’s keep it a secret between us that I treated you.”
She whispered softly near my ear, then withdrew a handkerchief and tied it gently around my hand.
The handkerchief seemed to carry a subtle fragrance that was distinctly the Duchess’s own.
A calm, woody-toned scent that soothed the heart.
“Thank you…”
“What are you saying? What wouldn’t this mother do for her precious daughter?”
I gazed at the handkerchief she had tied around my hand with an indescribable expression.
For some reason, a ticklish warmth bloomed in a corner of my chest.
The absence of a mother I hadn’t even realized was empty—it was being filled.
In truth, I hadn’t often wished for a mother to exist.
Because I had Aiden.
I had only wished that the Old Gentleman would become my father.
But now that I actually had a mother….
It wasn’t a bad feeling.
No, it was so warm that I found myself growing a little greedy.
“Tania, shall we go to the table and have dinner now?”
The Duchess Papiope, who had bent down to meet my eyes, straightened up and was about to return to the table.
I grabbed her sleeve to stop her and spoke in the softest voice imaginable.
“Thank you, Mother.”
For a moment, the Duchess Papiope’s eyes widened in disbelief.
Then, as if delighted, she broke into a radiant smile and teased me playfully.
“They say it takes time to get used to calling someone mother, but you’re faster than expected.”
My attitude had changed so drastically in just a day that I should have felt embarrassed, but instead I responded with shameless confidence.
“Ahem, I adapt rather quickly. Don’t you think I’ll survive well anywhere?”
“My goodness, what an incredible strength! You won’t starve to death no matter where you go. Now, shall we go have dinner?”
The Duchess Papiope took my hand and led me to the table.
Then, as if handling a delicate glass sculpture, she personally seated me in my chair.
My seat was across from Lucian again today.
As the Duchess Papiope seated me and took her place, I met Lucian’s crimson eyes. He seemed lost in thought.
Without hesitation, I smiled brightly at him.
Lucian was startled by my greeting and averted his gaze like someone caught in wrongdoing.
Beads of cold sweat formed on his straight forehead.
Ever since he saw the bluish bruises on the back of my hand, his conscience seemed to prick him repeatedly.
He wasn’t a child with a wicked nature.
After all, when he had harshly struck my hand earlier, he had looked startled with an expression that said “this isn’t what I meant.”
I’m not sure how long we exchanged glances, but the Duchess Papiope began eating and casually asked about my day.
“Tania, what did you do today?”
“Today I explored the Duke’s Residence! It’s so vast that I couldn’t see everything, but it was wonderful. Hehe.”
“And?”
“I also went to the Kitchen and got some cookies! Everyone was so kind to me that I honestly didn’t know where to put myself.”
“It seems the servants took a liking to you as well. You must have had a fulfilling day.”
“That’s right. Luckily, I also met Grandfather, whom I didn’t get to meet yesterday, and we had a nice conversation.”
“Father…?”
“Yes. Our grandfather.”
The Duchess Papiope immediately furrowed her brow and asked.
“Did that old man give you any trouble? He does like children, but he’s been in a foul mood lately, so I was worried he might have been harsh with you.”
“No. Contrary to your concerns, Grandfather was very kind when I first met him.”
He even helped me escape from the Underground Auction House, and he readily agreed to grant me the wish I won from our bet.
“Is that…so? Father has a warm heart, but he’s not usually one to express himself prettily. How surprising.”
“Perhaps Grandfather took a liking to me as well?”
“Well, he might have been a bit kinder to a young child like you….”
While chatting pleasantly with Duchess Papiope, I glanced sideways at Lucian.
Dinner began once I joined the table, but he barely touched his food, weighed down by guilt.
When the conversation lulled, the Duchess quickly noticed that Lucian seemed unlike himself and asked with concern.
“Lucian, is something wrong? You don’t look well.”
“Oh, no. Nothing happened at all. I’m eating quite well, you see?”
He forced the corners of his mouth upward in a smile, then brought food to his lips.
The Duchess raised her eyebrows, but she seemed to have no intention of prying into what he wished to hide, so she returned her focus to her meal.
“Well, that’s a relief then. If you need any help with anything, be sure to tell me.”
“…Yes.”
That was when it happened.
Someone burst loudly into the Dining Room.
“Well, well, well! Here you all are eating without me, the household’s most senior member! You ungrateful brats!”

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