Chapter 23 – Someone Who Isn’t Even Family

Ethea replied bluntly instead of thanking him,  

“So there was.”  

She headed up the hill again. Lyle waited a few seconds, then followed, silent. Maybe it was because Ethea was so cold, but she felt uncomfortable. His gaze always seemed to hide something she didn’t know.  

She wanted to end all this.  

She stopped and turned to face him. He stopped too.  

His eyes seemed tinged with red—not a deep red, but a reddish hue spreading into the gold, as if orange paint had been mixed in. Maybe it looked different because of the setting, but the color of his eyes wasn’t what mattered.  

Ethea walked up to him, stood facing him, and sighed—a sigh of frustration.  

“I can’t stand it anymore.”  

“Hm?”  

“Why don’t you just tell me now?”  

“Tell you what?”  

“Lyle. I don’t want to hate you.”  

“……”  

“I believe there’s a reason. The reason you didn’t come back after leaving.”  

“Well. I suppose there’s a reason. I’m just waiting for the right time.”  

“The right time? What’s that? Why do you keep hiding things like a riddle?”  

“It’s not a riddle.”  

“Then what is it? What’s making me so frustrated?”  

“Etty.”  

“I still remember what you said before the experiment. You said it was for my happiness. I’ve lived thinking only of that. Whenever I struggled alone with Gin after you left, whenever I started to hate you, whenever I felt I couldn’t handle the boiling hatred for you, I kept that in my heart. There must have been a reason. There must have been some story that made it inevitable.”  

Lyle’s gaze changed. He was unsettled. He moved his lips, as if debating what to say.  

Ethea stepped closer to Lyle.  

“The you I knew wasn’t so irresponsible. You couldn’t treat me badly. You always tried to care for me, even a little. I know you always did something for me. Do you remember putting crabapple fruit on the wall? That was a signal for me to come outside, right? Whenever I went out, you always had a gift ready for me—palladium or whatever. And then you made Gin and left. Tell me. Was Gin really born by accident? Were you too scared to come back? That’s not it, right? There’s some reason, isn’t there? Lyle. You have to tell me now. Don’t keep frustrating me.”  

Without realizing it, Ethea was gripping his arms tightly. She was afraid he might run away if he felt pressured by her words, so she held him to keep him there.  

Lyle didn’t avoid her. His tightly pressed lips slowly parted, and hope appeared. Ethea nodded, thinking it was finally time for an answer…

“Mom, let’s take these home and decorate! The fallen fruits are so pretty—they shine like jewels!”  

Gin shouted from afar, running toward them with his hands full of pinecones and acorns. They were all golden, so they were indeed pretty.  

“Yeah, they’re really pretty.”  

But Gin’s cheerful shout wasn’t welcome when Ethea was finally about to hear Lyle’s answer.  

Seisil followed Gin and corrected the child’s words.

“To take them home and decorate—well, it’s a nice idea, but those fruits only shine like that in this magical space. If you take them home, they’ll return to their original color, dear.”  

At those words, Gin stopped running, his smile fading a bit in disappointment. Lyle then picked Gin up and walked away, avoiding Ethea’s gaze, as if he hadn’t heard her question.  

“Do you want a golden pinecone?”  

“Yes!”  

“Hm. Let’s think of a way, Gin.”  

“Still, I’m honored that you picked me up,  Your Majesty!”  

Watching them walk away, Ethea felt drained.  

She’d tried to coax him with her heartfelt words, but what she got in return was… being ignored.  

“You don’t look well, Lady Ethea.”  

Ethea looked at Seisil, who spoke. She couldn’t tell if his expression was truly concerned or not.  

The man who was the Emperor’s fiancée’s sibling. His attitude toward her was ambiguous. He seemed sociable, friendly, and cheerful, but perhaps he was also keeping her in check.  

Suspicious, Ethea passed him and replied,  

“The whole forest is so dazzling, it makes me dizzy.”  

She was about to leave it at that, but suddenly he brought up something unexpected.  

“Ah! Your father was an alchemist, right? Sir Javir Parazia, if I recall. Is he well?”  

It was a question with questionable intent.  

Why would he ask about Javir’s well-being? And he didn’t even use polite speech when referring to someone else’s father. So what if he was the Mage Tower Master—how dare he call her father merely ‘Sir’?

Was it a threat? Pretending to be friendly while observing her, then planning to threaten her as she became more of a nuisance? She’d just been talking alone with the Emperor, so she might seem close to him. For the sake of his own sibling, crushing her and her family would be nothing for this mage.  

With her guard up to the extreme, Ethea spoke firmly to Seisil.  

“Lord Lint.”  

“Please, call me Seisil.”  

“I’m just an ordinary person.”  

“Pardon?”  

“Our Gin is an ordinary child too.”

“Ohh, is that so?”  

“His Majesty finds Gin adorable and is giving us a ‘pleasant time’ like this, but honestly, there are times it’s overwhelming. I think I preferred the quiet days before.”  

“Oh, but isn’t this better? You must be much more comfortable than before.”  

Was he mocking her for receiving child support from the Emperor?  

“Enjoy this time, Lady Ethea. His Majesty likes it too, doesn’t he?”  

Ethea felt uncomfortable continuing the conversation with him. She tried to ignore him and leave, but he brought up her father again.  

“By the way, I asked about Sir Parazia, but it seems I received a completely unrelated answer. Well, if you don’t want to say, you don’t have to. Hahaha!”

***

Far in the future, Gin would remember today as a happy day. For the first time in his life, he saw a golden forest, ate food made at the Imperial Palace, received an invisibility cloak as a gift, visited the Mage Tower, and toured the grand hall with beautiful stained glass alongside Lily. For a child who’d never had a proper outing, it was the greatest luxury.  

It was the same for Solei and her daughter, who had tagged along.  

“Thanks to Gin, we’re living it up. It was fun.”  

“I’m glad you enjoyed it. Lily, did you like it?”  

“Yes, Gin. I liked it too!”  

Ethea listened to Solei and the children’s conversation as she wandered through the palace.  

In the distance, Lyle and Seisil watched the departing guests. Lyle silently waved to Gin, but seemed to avoid Ethea’s eyes. Seisil repeatedly promised Solei that next time he would definitely visit her woodcraft workshop. They were kind hosts, even preparing a large carriage for the guests to return home comfortably.  

Ethea sighed. These repeated meetings meant nothing if Lyle didn’t tell the truth—it only made things more uncomfortable.  

Suddenly, Solei stared quietly at Ethea. Ethea felt she understood the meaning of that gaze—it was as if Solei was whispering that Ethea had a lot to say about her relationship with His Majesty the Emperor.  

“Etty.”  

“Yes, Solei.”  

“You’re going to your father’s house now, right?”  

“Yes.”  

Javir’s house was behind the Imperial City, so it was a good chance to visit.  

Solei spoke, holding Gin and Lily on each side.  

“Then go. I’ll take the kids home first.”  

“Thank you.”  

“You can stay a night or two if you want.”  

“Yes.”  

Gin, listening to the adults’ conversation, suddenly spoke.  

“Mom.”  

“Yes?”  

“Can’t I go to Grandpa’s house too?”  

These moments were the hardest for Ethea. And she felt resentful toward her father, who didn’t treat Gin warmly.  

To Javir, Gin was just a small, annoying obstacle to alchemy—like the perfume of Ethea’s mother, Luire, or all the elements that corroded palladium. But this fact would hurt the child.  

Unaware, Gin kept begging. Usually, he didn’t whine, but now he did.  

“I want to see Grandpa too. I can barely remember his face.”  

“……”  

“I bragged to my friends that Grandpa’s an alchemist, but since I’ve never really seen him, it feels awkward when I try to explain. I won’t be a bother. I can just watch quietly. So can’t I go too?”  

Solei, perceptive, noticed Ethea’s troubled expression and answered for her.  

“Haha, who did Gin inherit such eloquence from? Just listening, no one would think he’s a little kid.”  

But Gin wasn’t the type to forget his request just because he was praised.  

“Thank you. But… huh? Mom. Please?”  

Ethea crouched to meet Gin’s eyes and took his hands.  

“You see, I’m going today because Grandpa hasn’t replied to my letters. I’m not sure if he’s sick or something happened, and it wouldn’t be good if something went wrong when I brought you along. Sorry. I’ll go alone. Please understand, okay?”  

“……”  

“If Grandpa’s fine, I’ll definitely take you next time. Gin.”  

Ethea hooked her pinky with Gin’s and promised. Only then did Gin nod, though he still looked disappointed.  

“Okay, kids. Let’s go home now. Etty, don’t worry about Gin.”  

“Thank you.”  

Solei took the kids home. Ethea went straight to Javir’s house—it was just a thirty-minute walk.