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The End of The Fools and Eides’ Past

[Part 2]

Translated by: ME

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*****

「...The reason Eides climbed so high, becoming the head of the Ministry of Magic and being ruthlessly strict regarding the misuse of magical tools, Wellmy... is because he lost his mother and sister to them.」

Wellmy’s eyes widened at Master Crates’s words.

It was a famous story that he policed cursed magical tools with a severity described as cold-blooded, and that he had unraveled their principles and made them public knowledge. However...

「To be precise, they were his stepmother and stepsister. It hasn't been made public, but Eides is actually the son of the previous Marquess’s younger brother.」

「This is the first I've heard of it.」

「Yes, very few people know. Even His Majesty the King might be unaware of the truth.」

Eides’s father had apparently assisted the previous Marquess in managing the territory, but he lost his life when he was caught in a building collapse caused by an earthquake during an inspection.

「The wife he left behind was pregnant. And the child who was born possessed violet eyes.」

「That means...」

(Just like Sister Lola.)

「The Marquess asked the young widow, who had just lost her husband: would she raise the child herself, or would she act as if it never happened and marry into another house? ...Unlike your mother, she chose the latter.」

She abandoned Eides and left for another family.

「The truth is hard to discern. The previous Marquess registered Eides as his own son and, seeing the talent he displayed, named him his heir. I can only imagine how his daughter felt—the sister who was originally supposed to take a husband and inherit the Marquessate—right before she reached adulthood.」

The sister, who had everything taken from her by a much younger brother, and the previous Marchioness, whose own child’s future status had been usurped, both harbored dark thoughts within their hearts.

「Yet on the surface, the three of them were close. Whatever grievances they had were likely small at first. They had received a first-class noble education, and the previous Marquess was by no means a cruel man. He was strict, but he loved his wife, his daughter, and his brother’s son alike.」

It was a cursed magical tool that shattered that peace.

「At some point, a magical tool was placed inconspicuously in the women's quarters. Its purpose was to amplify a person's dark emotions. We only found out later, of course. ...Having lost his right hand in his brother and being kept away from home by his increasing workload, the previous Marquess was slow to notice the gradual change in his wife and daughter.」

Eides was mistreated. However, it was apparently limited to being ignored or avoided.

「Eides didn't understand why they hated him. But one day... when he casually pointed out a mistake his sister made in a spell, everything suddenly exploded.」

Master Crates explained that the cursed tool was like a psychological time bomb.

「The Lyloud family maintained a relationship with the Marquessate, but we never entered their private rooms. Screaming that he was mocking them and asking if he was happy to have stolen the headship, his maddened sister lunged at him with a fruit knife. His stepmother, meanwhile, thrust a poker into the fireplace and brandished the glowing iron at him.」

Sensing his life was in danger, Eides used magic to blow the weapons from their hands. The red-hot poker hit the floor and ignited a bottle of high-proof liquor—part of the Marquess’s collection—that had been knocked over and broken.

「In an instant, the ladies' dresses caught fire, and they were engulfed in flames. Eides couldn't save them as they continued to claw at him even then... and the parlor was swallowed by the fire. One of the attendants who had come to restrain the women upon hearing the commotion grabbed Eides and fled.」

Master Crates spoke sadly, noting that Eides always wore a glove on his left hand.

「Yes.」

I had wondered about it, as he never took it off, even when sleeping.

「There is a burn scar there from when his sister grabbed him. I heard the story from Eides after the incident.」

Due to the immense scandal and the fact that the two perpetrators were dead, the truth was suppressed, and it was officially ruled an accidental fire. Ultimately, the person who placed the tool was never found.

「Eides didn't hate them. But he grew to loathe cursed magical tools from the bottom of his heart.」

『Mother and Sister were kind,』 he had said. 『Even if they truly hated me, they weren't the type of people to show it like that.』

「It was after that. Eides began to distance himself from women and threw himself into his studies and magic. Soon after, I went into exile myself, so I wasn't able to stay by his side.」

Hearing the story, Wellmy felt as though she could understand his feelings as if they were her own. Because...

「Is that why you gave me lessons in curse-breaking, Father...?」

「That's right. And I suspect Eides’s reason for helping you two was much the same. If only he had noticed sooner, if only he had questioned things more, if only he had sought help... those women might have been saved.」

Goldray had noticed. Wellmy had wanted to save her sister.

And so... they had sought help from Master Crates and Eides.

「It doesn't make up for it. It's self-satisfaction. But it was likely because of that regret... Eides became the head of the Ministry of Magic, and I wanted to help people as a curse-breaker.」

So that the kind of tragedy that befell them might be reduced, even if only by a little.

「That is why, Wellmy, you truly took the best possible action. Despite being a woman, the fact that you were in a similar situation and were trying to break through it... Eides must have found you dazzling, seeing you accomplish what he himself could not.」

That was why he was drawn to her and helped her.

「It's certain that he's fallen for you. Despite his attitude, Eides hasn't laughed so happily since he lost his mother and sister. ...Through your actions, you saved his very heart.」

Wellmy was bewildered by her own emotions as she listened.

The Eides who was always teasing. The Eides who occasionally caught her with a gentle gaze. The Eides who hugged her tenderly and stroked her hair.

She couldn't be honest with him. And yet, when she showed her affection as best she could, Eides would smile happily.

The man-hating, tyrannical Magus Lord was nowhere to be seen when he was with Wellmy.

She didn't quite understand what it meant to have "saved his heart." But if she had been able to be of use to him—the man who seemed so perfect, who saw through all her schemes, and who gave her so much love—even without knowing it...

(I’m so happy.)

She had thought she was only on the receiving end. Knowing that wasn't the case made her incredibly, deeply happy.

「...Thank you, Father.」

For telling me this.

Since coming to this mansion, since that night at the ball, Wellmy had become prone to tears. Most were tears of joy, but back at the Ernest house, she had almost never cried.

「So, I want you to pamper Eides in return. That boy lost all affection. The previous Marquess was busy, and I doubt they had much chance for physical contact. Just as Eides showers you with affection, I want you to return it to him.」

「...Yes.」

Master Crates nodded with satisfaction and stood up. After he left, saying he would come again, Wellmy cried just a little more.

That evening, when Eides emerged from his office as usual, she threw her arms around him in a tight hug.

「What is it, Wellmy?」

「I love you, Eides.」

Eides, taken aback because he was usually the one to initiate the embrace, looked down at Wellmy, who was burying her face in his chest and wrapping her arms firmly around his back.

He gave a wry smile, as if to say "Good grief," before softly returning the hug.

「Crates told you something he shouldn't have, didn't he?」

「It wasn't something you shouldn't have. Master Crates told me something very important.」

Because she now understood the state of Eides’s heart and the meaning behind his actions... Wellmy felt she had moved a step or two closer to him.

It might have been an illusion.

「I won't let go. Even if you grow tired of me, I won't leave you.」

「It's Eides, Wellmy. I told you to call me by my name, didn't I?」

Gently stroking her head, Eides picked Wellmy up as he always did.

「Besides, you don't have the right to leave. ---Wellmy, you are mine.」

As he spoke those words as if she were a precious treasure, Wellmy wrapped her arms around his neck once more.

---She prayed that her feelings would reach Eides, even if only a little.

*****

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