IVF 02

Chapter 02

The head of the family?”

“Yes, the head.”

Her uncle nodded with a face full of conviction.

No one present believed that Lumina would become the next Count of Langshus.

Not even Lumina herself.

“The one with true legitimacy as heir is you. Not that little brat.”

“If you mean the brat…”

“Endymion or whatever his name is—the boy who rolled in from who-knows-where.”

Her uncle dismissed her half-brother Endymion without hesitation.

“If you hand the position over to that brat like this, what do you think will happen to you? The moment Sister Chloe died, they already started looking down on you. Now they’ll seize the chance and get rid of you first.”

Lumina couldn’t answer right away. It was a perfectly plausible concern.

Seizing the moment, her uncle grabbed her hand.

“You’ve grown so thin you look dreadful. If Sister Chloe in heaven saw you like this, she’d be heartbroken.”

His eyes even brimmed with tears as he pitied her situation.

“I don’t want to see my niece treated so unfairly. I’m only stepping forward because I want you to reclaim what was originally yours. Think of it comfortably.”

“…I understand what you’re trying to say, Uncle. But this isn’t something I can decide on my own.”

A twelve-year-old child had no power to sway the family.

Lumina gave what she thought was the best possible answer.

But it clearly didn’t satisfy her uncle.

“You only need to trust me and follow my lead.”

Trust what, exactly, about a man she’d met for the first time today?

She knew it was absurd. Yet her uncle continued to coax her with honeyed words.

“This is something only you can do. Or will you just sit there and be trampled?”

Something only she could do.

All her life, Lumina had been a failure, living trapped in the shadow of her deceased mother.

So hearing that only she could do it sounded far more tempting than it should have.

“…What do I need to do?”

“Good. A wise decision! Just do as I tell you—there’s nothing to worry about.”

Her uncle, Joseph, used Lumina as a figurehead and allied himself with several collateral branches of the Langshus family.

Endymion was the Count’s biological son, but half of his blood was commoner.

Those who found that distasteful—or those who simply wanted a share of Joseph’s scheme—gathered around him.

Regardless of their motives, Joseph smoothly swallowed up Langshus and called Lumina his good fortune.

But in truth, meeting her uncle had been Lumina’s misfortune.

Rewards poured into Lumina’s hands as if they were prizes.

Money that seemed endless no matter how much she spent.
Attention showered upon her.
Freedom to do whatever she pleased.

Like a collapsed dam, everything came rushing in at once, and Lumina couldn’t keep her bearings.

Taking advantage of that, Joseph frequently dragged her to gambling dens so she wouldn’t have the chance to think otherwise.

Just as he intended, Lumina quickly sank into luxury and indulgence.

That was when it began—
the days when she was plagued by auditory hallucinations and her nerves grew increasingly frayed.

She spent her days deteriorating without even realizing it.

What became of Endymion?
What was happening within the family?

She had no energy to care.

Time passed swiftly, and Lumina came of age.

And the Langshus household was plunging into ruin.

“Marriage?”

“Yes. It’s not such a bad arrangement for you.”

The moment Lumina reached marriageable age, Joseph pushed forward a political marriage.

“As you know, our situation isn’t very good these days. Ah, but don’t worry too much. Marriage will solve everything.”

A business venture jointly conducted by Joseph and the collateral branches had failed disastrously.

With the family’s fortunes declining, Joseph’s first instinct was to use Lumina.

As always, he tried to gloss things over in the direction that suited him.

This time, Lumina answered without hesitation.

“I refuse.”

Marry someone whose face she didn’t even know? There was nothing to think about.

Lumina firmly rejected him.

“But, Lumina…”

“I’m the head of the family now. You remember clearly that once I became an adult, the position would officially be transferred to me, don’t you?”

The collateral branches’ involvement had only been temporary.

She clearly remembered the promise that she would assume leadership upon adulthood.

“Of course I remember. That’s exactly why I’m saying this.”

Joseph spoke in a coaxing tone.

“Our financial situation isn’t good. You understand that the money you spend doesn’t come from digging it out of the ground, don’t you?”

Her spending was one thing—but the true financial blow had come from the failed ventures Joseph and the collateral branches had pursued.

Yet Joseph omitted that inconvenient fact and made it sound as though everything was Lumina’s fault.

“You’re right. You’re the head of Langshus now. If you’re the head, you must bear responsibility befitting that position.”

He sighed as if helpless, soothing her.

“You wouldn’t want to reduce your lifestyle further, would you?”

Joseph would keep his promise.

Even if what she inherited was an empty shell of a house, the head was still the head.

If she had thought more deeply, Lumina would have realized that.

But her headaches left her no room for such reflection.

Satisfied that the immediate problem would be resolved, Lumina nodded.

And so her marriage to a man she didn’t even know proceeded.

She didn’t know his face.

She didn’t particularly care.

In a state like a bomb that could explode at any moment, Lumina returned to frequenting gambling dens—

Even the day before the wedding.

“Did you hear?”

“Ah, that?”

Rumors of all kinds circulated in gambling houses.

That day was no different.

At a nearby table, people chatted as usual about major and minor events of the Empire.

“They say the Hart heir went berserk and died.”

“That Legion?”

Legion.

A term for those who manifested powerful supernatural abilities beyond human limits.

Legion abilities weren’t inherited by blood. Noble or commoner—it didn’t matter.

Only a rare few awakened to such power.

Once registered with the state, awakened Legions served as living weapons.

That was what the public knew.

Among them were several famous figures.

One was Duke Hart.

The man being discussed today was his son, the Hart heir.

“To be devoured by his own power and die. Pathetic.”

“They say the more they use their abilities, the further they drift from being human. That’s why the stronger ones often have physical or mental abnormalities.”

“Still, I thought since both father and son were Legions, he wouldn’t go berserk.”

“Right? If you’re born a Legion, you should at least protect ordinary people like us properly. Otherwise you’re no better than a useless Legion.”

Normally, Legions were indistinguishable from ordinary humans.

They blended seamlessly into daily life.

But when they used their powers, physical traits appeared—
scales forming on skin, animal ears and tails sprouting, wings emerging.

The traits differed from person to person.

The gamblers were busy tearing into public figures over cards—

When suddenly—

Crash!

Something swept everything off a table, and someone collapsed.

“So the madwoman of Langshus is making a scene again,”
people turned with that unspoken thought—

Only to freeze at the sight of Lumina lying unconscious on the floor.

Shock.
Confusion.

And then—

“Legion.”

“She’s a Legion!”

Their eyes filled with greed.

“A Legion?”

Joseph’s eyes gleamed upon hearing the news.

Lumina had collapsed mid-gamble—with butterfly-like wings revealed.

The wings had soon vanished, but dozens had seen them.

Good thing he had assigned watchers just in case. Otherwise those damn gamblers might have snatched her first.

“She lived with me for years without showing any ability.”

Legion powers usually manifested before age five.

“Then…”

A useless Legion.

There was no other explanation.

“Rather than marrying her off to some mediocre house, selling her another way will fetch a better price.”

Because Legions were so powerful, ordinary people feared even approaching them.

But occasionally, a useless Legion appeared.

They possessed no destructive power—only the outward traits.

Unlike ordinary Legions, their traits appeared suddenly, like a sneeze.

Stories spread like ghost tales—

“Turns out my colleague was a useless Legion.”

And wealthy collectors who loved rare things traded them secretly for high sums.

“She has no real ability, and I’ve trained her well. I’ll make easy money sitting still! Ha! God really is on my side!”

Joseph smiled in satisfaction.

What a remarkably useful niece he had.

The day of the wedding arrived.

But what Lumina wore was not a wedding dress.

“Let go! I said let go!”

Large men grabbed both her arms and dragged her along.

She resisted, but they were twice her size.

Still, sensing danger, she summoned every ounce of strength to fight back.

She bit one man’s hand fiercely as they dragged her down the stairs—

And came face to face with Joseph.

“My, my. She’s the finest jewel of Langshus. Be careful. What if you scratch her and lower the price?”

“Uncle.”

Lumina glared at him.

“What is this?”

“You said you’d fulfill your duty as head. I’m simply making that happen.”

“I agreed to marry. This is kidnapping.”

“Kidnapping? Yes, you could see it that way. But, Lumina—you’re a Legion.”

“…!”

“So you knew.”

Joseph grinned at her reaction.

“If Sister had such an important secret, she should’ve told her dear brother before dying.”

“….”

“There was a huge opportunity right in front of me, and I lived like a blind fool.”

His eyes glinted with greed.

“So you’re selling me?”

“Marriage as a bride or life as a useless Legion—it’s all the same. Be grateful I’m getting you a higher price.”

“Do you think you can do this and get away with it?! I’m the head of this house!”

“Yes. The head. Though I wonder if an empty title even counts.”

“….”

“All the relatives agreed. If you disappear, no one will worry.”

That couldn’t be true.

“You traitor! How can you do this to your own niece?! We’re blood!”

Joseph shrugged.

“You’re learning a valuable lesson. Family bonds are just a façade. You’re still so young.”

Things had gone smoothly thanks to that.

Lumina realized everything had gone wrong.

Seizing a moment of distraction, she shoved the men away.

I have to escape.

But—

Thud.

Her legs gave out.

Joseph watched her collapse.

“I’m glad I’ve been drugging you all this time. Watching you struggle when you can’t even control your own body is amusing.”

“…”

“Handle it properly. No loose ends.”

Her arms and legs were bound.

“Move her quickly. The client isn’t very patient.”

Her vision went dark.

Darkness.

“…Have mercy upon this infinitely fragile life. We gather here today to hold the funeral of Count and Countess Langshus, who have departed into God’s embrace.”

When she opened her eyes after death—

It was that day.

The day she was twelve and heard of the Count and Countess’s deaths.

She had returned to the past.

Her decision to follow her uncle had never happened.

“It’s better they’re dead.”

Every choice she had believed to be right had been wrong.

Such a life was better off nonexistent.

Lumina looked at her aunt, who stormed toward her.

At first she had wondered if this was just a dream.

But when her aunt slapped her—

She knew it wasn’t.

Last time, I said Father and Stepmother deserved to die and got slapped. If this were a dream, it wouldn’t be this identical.

Certain now that her previous life had been real, Lumina slapped her aunt back just as hard.

“You crazy bitch!”

“Oh? How did you know? That’s my nickname.”

If her foolish ending had been like that—

“Since you know I’m crazy, you should’ve stayed out of my way.”

This time—

She would not go down so easily.