Youngest on Top - Chapter 225

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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 225

A scene I had glimpsed in passing flashed before my eyes.

“It seems Sacred Maiden Saelika was born with it.”
“Hmm?”
“A feeling that we’re different from birth….”
“Why, why do you think that?”
“It’s just that you have such a noble and dignified air. Unlike me….”

Shuellina spoke with the same dejected expression as before.

“I should have just pretended not to know. I should have acted as Sacred Maiden Saelika’s bracelet….”
“….”
“Then the Duke would have been so much happier, wouldn’t he? Because he would have gained a daughter to be proud of, not someone like me.”

As Shuellina fidgeted with her words, the Perardin Noishurael Duke’s aide stepped forward with a sympathetic expression.

“What are you saying? How could anyone dare suggest that His Grace’s daughter is lacking?”
“But—.”
“It is more than enough that you are safe like this. Did His Grace not say so just now?”
“….”
“That he has given you everything. That by appearing before him again, he has given you everything.”

Shuellina bowed her head deeply.

“But those were words he spoke to Sacred Maiden Saelika….”
“Those were words spoken to His Grace’s daughter, whom he had lost and found again. More precisely, to you, Shuellina, the bracelet’s true owner.”

At those words, Shuellina lifted her head again.
Her grayish-blue eyes reflected the Duke with crystalline clarity.

“Really? Even if I’m an inadequate Sacred Maiden, not Sacred Maiden Saelika, that’s all right?”

The Duke gazed at Shuellina for a long moment.
Slowly, his lips parted.

“…My daughter lacks nothing whatsoever.”
“Your Grace…!”

Shuellina, overcome with emotion, suddenly threw her arms around the Perardin Noishurael Duke’s arm.
The sudden warmth made the Duke stiffen.
Shuellina rubbed her cheek against his arm, smiling with evident happiness.

“Hehe, Dad….”

A small, shy voice that escaped softly.
The Duke’s eyes trembled as he gazed at Shuellina.

The Duke said nothing in response.
Yet he did not withdraw his arm from her embrace.

“…This is the first time I’ve witnessed Your Grace behave this way. You, who once rejected those claiming she was a princess so cruelly when they pretended to call you Dad….”

The moved Aide dabbed at the corners of his eyes with a handkerchief.
At those words, Admiral Ekellan stared intently at the two of them.
Then he smoothly interjected.

“What’s this. After all the searching I’ve done, you only dote on this ice block as your real father?”
“Ah, A-Admiral?”
“So I’m not needed, only this frozen fellow is good?”
“That can’t be! I still can’t believe that someone as wonderful as you, Admiral, is my uncle….”

Shuellina spoke while twisting her body shyly.
Admiral Ekellan grinned widely.

“Uncle nothing. Call me Dad.”
“Pardon?”
“You should be part of our family like Mikhail. That place over there has terrible conditions. It’s no environment to raise a child. That’s why you were lost.”
“Ah, that….”
“So forget that father and come with me instead.”
“Eh? Yes?”

Admiral Ekellan extended his hand to Shuellina.
Shuellina looked back and forth between the Admiral and the Duke, uncertain what to do.

Crack!
Perardin Noishurael Duke knocked away Admiral Ekellan’s arm.

“Can’t you see she’s uncomfortable?”
“Tsk, already making your move, are you?”

Admiral Ekellan crossed his arms and plopped down beside Shuellina.

“Well then, I suppose I’ll settle for being an uncle. For now, at least.”

Admiral Ekellan gave a subtle wink.
His charm was so captivating that one could understand how he had set so many women’s hearts ablaze.
Shuellina’s face flushed crimson.

The nobles whispered among themselves as they watched.

“Seeing Perardin Noishurael Duke and Admiral Ekellan like that, you can really tell they’re family.”
“The only one who was ever that close to both of them was Sacred Maiden Saelika, wasn’t it?”
“Now that his real daughter has appeared, Saelika has been cast aside.”
“Well, she was probably just a substitute anyway. The support for the next High Priestess selection will certainly change.”

People giggled as they gazed at Saelika.

* * *

After the banquet, at Perardin Noishurael Duke’s residence.
Shuellina gazed around the mansion with a face full of emotion.

“My goodness, I’ve never seen such a beautiful and magnificent place! And this is really my home!”

She darted about like an excited child.
The servants standing at attention chuckled softly at the sight.
Startled by their laughter, Shuellina shrank back.

“I… I apologize for my mistake…”
“A mistake? Not at all, Young Lady.”
“In this residence, nothing you do could ever be considered a mistake, Young Lady.”
“We simply couldn’t help but smile—you are such a delightful person.”

Shuellina’s face flushed crimson.

“L-lovely? I’ve never heard such words before.”
“Now then, please come inside.”

At the servants’ urging, Shuellina ascended the staircase.
Passing through a long and beautiful corridor, she opened a grand door to reveal a space so charming it took her breath away.
A room utterly distinct from the solemn residence of Perardin Noishurael Duke.
It was a nursery.

“Ah….”

I could tell at a glance who the owner of this room was.
Time seemed to have stopped from the moment a young princess was lost.

Shuellina hesitantly stepped inside.
And she placed her hand upon a small mobile.

“For some reason, it feels nostalgic.”
“….”
“A comforting sensation.”

Shuellina picked up a tiger plush and hugged it tightly.
Perardin Noishurael Duke flinched.
Seeing this, Shuellina startled and set the plush down.

“Oh, I apologize. I shouldn’t have touched it without permission….”
“…No. It is late. Show this child to her quarters.”
“Yes, Your Highness. Young Lady, this way please.”

The butler guided Shuellina away.
Watching Perardin Noishurael Duke and Admiral Ekellan head in a different direction, Shuellina asked.

“Excuse me, where is the Duke’s room?”
“It’s on the floor directly above.”
“Then I should….”
“Your room has been prepared in the western wing.”
“The western wing is the space prepared for guests, isn’t it? The eastern wing here is for direct family.”
“…Young Lady.”
“Well, I am a guest after all.”

Shuellina nodded with a forlorn expression.
The servants spoke.

“It’s simply that a room wasn’t prepared for you in the eastern wing right away. The western wing has many well-prepared rooms….”
“Yes, the largest and finest room in the western wing is your room.”
“To receive such a precious room, I should be grateful for my station. But I…it seems I’ve become restless.”

Shuellina’s spirit visibly deflated as she mumbled pitifully.

“I’ve only stayed in hotels since coming to the Regime. I thought I finally had a home of my own, but here too I feel like a guest—.”

The servants gazed at Shuellina with sympathetic expressions.

“Someone like me shouldn’t be staying beside Father— I mean, the Duke—.”

Even calling him Father seemed to make her hesitant.
The Aide urged Perardin Noishurael Duke with a “Your Grace….”

“…Prepare a room for her in the eastern wing.”
“Yes, Your Grace!”

As though I had been the one to receive permission, the servants’ faces brightened immediately.
Meanwhile, Shuellina stammered.

“N-no, I wasn’t throwing a tantrum about staying in the eastern wing…. I’m really fine staying in the western wing!”
“From what I could see, it certainly looked like a tantrum.”

Admiral Ekellan interjected with a chuckle.

“Admiral…”
“You can ask for anything. If it’s our Reyarsha.”
“…”
“And then if you cry out ‘Thank you, Dad!’ what is this ice block that wouldn’t grant it.”

At those words, Shuellina looked toward Perardin Noishurael Duke.

“Thank you. I… um— D-Dad…”

She bowed her head with a quick nod, then scurried away in embarrassment.
The servants quickly followed behind Shuellina as if escorting her.

“…”

Perardin Noishurael Duke quietly watched her retreating figure.
Admiral Ekellan chuckled and crossed his arms.

“That’s rather cute, what she’s doing.”
“…”
“If she really were my niece, that is.”

Perardin Noishurael Duke’s gaze turned toward Admiral Ekellan.

“No, it’s obvious. Playing the pitiful one.”
“Admiral.”

The Aide called out to Admiral Ekellan as if to stop him.
The Admiral smiled broadly.

“Isn’t it cute, trying to draw attention?”
“It’s different from the people around you, Admiral. She’s not playing pitiful—she genuinely lacks confidence. She can’t even properly act spoiled toward parents she’s met after more than a decade.”
“…”
“In fact, shouldn’t you be the one hurting more than I am, Admiral? You share blood.”

At the Aide’s words, Admiral Ekellan furrowed his brow.
Perardin Noishurael Duke turned his body.

“Let’s go inside and talk.”
“…Right, there are quite a few ears listening.”

The Admiral shrugged his shoulders.

* * *

Study.
The moment Perardin Noishurael Duke took his seat at the head of the table, his aides spoke.

“Here are the investigation materials.”
“All the timelines align perfectly.”
“The bracelet is not a forgery either. If it were, Your Highness would have recognized it from the start.”

The Duke rubbed the space between his brows as he reviewed the documents.

“…As for the Perpidian Temple…”
“They knew nothing of the Young Lady’s birth. That bracelet didn’t appear particularly valuable at first glance, after all.”
“…”
“So when Your Highness visited, they offered no hints. The Perpidian Temple is such a remote and humble place that they were desperate to forge some connection with you.”
“We didn’t think it was a temple where the priests’ abilities or the Sacred Maiden’s abilities would be of great help.”

It was a place where sacred power was not strong enough to receive divine oracles.

“Yet who would have thought the Young Lady was there all along…”

Another aide responded to someone’s murmur.

“Nothing is confirmed yet.”
“But there are no contradictions in all the evidence.”
“However, the Young Lady doesn’t fully remember either.”
“She was so young then. The timeline matches, she’s worn the bracelet since before her memories began, so what more do we need?”
“One thing remains.”

At Admiral Ekellan’s words, the aides lifted their heads.

“We must verify whether her blood contains the blood of mythology.”
“But that…she is a Sacred Maiden, so she doesn’t possess sacred power anyway.”
“Whether real or false, the results would be the same either way. There’s no need to make her suffer by drawing blood…”

Despite his aides’ words, Admiral Ekellan gazed at Perardin Noishurael Duke without responding.
The Duke exhaled deeply.

“Everyone, please withdraw for now.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“We shall conduct another investigation to ensure there are no contradictions or overlooked information.”

The attendants withdrew, leaving only the Perardin Noishurael Duke and the Admiral in the study.
The Perardin Noishurael Duke spoke to Admiral Ekellan.

“You don’t believe at all that she is my daughter.”
“It’s far too convenient.”
“….”
“She arrives with nothing but a single bracelet, and yet we’ve allowed her into the Duke’s residence. In circumstances like these, we must verify thoroughly and exercise caution.”
“….”
“I couldn’t very well say, ‘Ah, so you were the bracelet’s owner? Wait a moment. I think this requires some verification.’ in that situation.”
“….”
“You clearly entrusted the bracelet to Sapo on purpose to manipulate us into immediately recognizing her as our daughter—”
“Serge Echelan.”

The Perardin Noishurael Duke called out to Admiral Ekellan coldly.

“Speak truthfully.”
“About what?”
“You’re displeased that your Sapo is not Reyarsha.”
“…! What are you—”

The Duke’s eyes deepened as he observed the Admiral’s agitation.

“When Saelika first held the bracelet, you only concerned yourself with the possibility that you might have misread it.”
“….”
“More precisely, you only concerned yourself with the possibility that we might misread it and wound that child.”
“That’s only natural—”
“And when Saelika held the real bracelet, how were you then?”
“….”
“Were you not the same as I?”

The Perardin Noishurael Duke’s eyes blazed a vivid blue.

“That this child was truly my daughter, that I knew it would be so. That I had finally found her.”
“….”
“Pitiful, forlorn, remorseful, guilty, and so very— beloved.”

The Duke’s voice trembled as if his breath were boiling over.

“So you knelt right there and would have torn out your own heart for that child on the spot, wouldn’t you?”

Admiral Ekellan opened his mouth.
But no words came out.

“And then the moment you learned the bracelet belonged to a different child, you changed your attitude entirely, didn’t you?”
“…Saelika’s situation was different.”
“Different how?”
“You know it too. Saelika was too— she was like that child.”

Admiral Ekellan ran a rough hand through his hair.

“You did the same thing! You said that child spoke the exact same words as your sister.”
“….”
“I never would have done such a thing? For years now, I’ve watched that child far more closely than you ever did!”
“….”
“Do you know how my heart sank when that child cut the cookies for me?”
“….”
“Saelika is Saelika. She’s my Shuellina, and that’s enough. Even as I thought this child was precious to me for that reason alone.”

The Admiral’s eyes burned crimson.
It was a face entirely at odds with his usual composed and leisurely demeanor.

“Sometimes I dreamed that child was our Reyarsha.”
“….”

The Duke remained silent for a long while, his eyes firmly closed.

“Was it better that Sacred Maiden Saelika was your daughter?”
“I should have just pretended not to know. I should have acted as if she were Sacred Maiden Saelika’s bracelet…. Then you would have been far happier, wouldn’t you?”

Behind his closed eyes, the image of Shuellina appeared.
Opening his eyes at last, he spoke.

“What if Shuellina were truly my daughter?”
“…!”

At those words, Admiral Ekellan seemed to have the breath knocked from his lungs.

“You saw it too—how the child immediately clutched that tiger doll among all those toys.”
“…That is.”
“It was Reyarsha’s favorite doll.”
“….”
“If your affection for Saelika becomes a wound to Reyarsha.”

From Perardin Noishurael Duke emanated a chill as piercing as a winter’s night.

“I will not forgive you, Serge Ekellan.”

A bitter smile crossed Admiral Ekellan’s face.

“Even if you don’t forgive me, I don’t think I’ll be able to forgive myself.”
“Then perhaps it would be good to verify your claim.”
“…!”
“Whether that child carries the blood of mythology.”

The Duke’s voice settled heavily throughout the study.

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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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