Chapter – 18
Grandfather brought out a large box from his office and showed it to us. It was the first time I had ever seen his hands trembling.
Inside, the letters that had come from the Academy over the years were stacked neatly one by one.
The young lady is doing very well. In only two months, she has advanced to the intermediate class and has joined three joint research projects.
She has advanced to the upper class. We suggested that she send at least one letter to the ducal house, but she refused. She is currently participating in five joint research projects and is doing very well.
The more I checked them one by one, the more I could only laugh in disbelief.
It would be better if your letters were simpler. Last time, Lady Kiana said, “They are too long and detailed, so I don’t want to reply.” If you wish to receive a reply, please keep them as short as possible.
It would be better if you do not come to the graduation ceremony. Lady Kiana is scheduled to receive an award, but she says if her family comes, she will not attend the ceremony.
“Haha… haha…”
The shock was overwhelming. I never even knew the professors were sending letters like this to the ducal house.
And they said they told me to write letters too? That was an obvious lie. In reality, on special days like my birthday or New Year’s Day, my advisors were always busy comforting me.
“Lady Kiana, I cut ties with my family long ago as well. You can just marry scholarship and research here. Stay with me always. At least here, people are valued by the number of papers they publish.”
“At times like this, sitting blankly only drains your energy. Lady Kiana, shall we just continue our research as usual? We will all celebrate your birthday together.”
They were lies that would have been exposed immediately if we had compared stories.
But we never compared stories.
Very cleverly, the short and simple letters Grandfather or my brothers sent were delivered to me. So both sides believed we were keeping in touch, just coldly and casually.
“Wow, they’re truly vicious.”
Joshua shook his head and muttered.
“They completely destroyed one family.”
<Let’s be accurate with our words.>
Hou declared solemnly.
Well… Hou was right.
Even though we only contacted each other rarely and carelessly, we had all simply thought, Ah, so this is how distant our relationship is.
That itself showed the true state of our family.
“These lunatics…”
I read the professors’ letters to Grandfather over and over again.
It felt like something inside me was quietly collapsing.
I already knew I had been betrayed once because of what happened before my regression. Even so, if I had still trusted the people at the Academy like before, the psychological shock would have been enormous.
I desperately wanted to belong somewhere for a reason. If I failed, I was afraid I would lose the only place I belonged.
That was why I pushed myself so hard.
Of course I enjoyed magic engineering, and research was my hobby. But I always believed I had to produce satisfying results for the Academy.
So I lived shut inside the laboratory without sleep, eating less because eating too much upset my stomach.
And the reason the Academy needed to hold onto me so tightly was obvious.
“Let me confirm once more. If Professor Kiana Prelai dies, then under the laws of the Duchy of Lyloni, all patents registered under her name will belong to the Academy, correct?”
After all, every achievement I had was tied to the Academy.
I realized before my regression that their feelings were false, but I never knew they had also pushed me farther away from my family psychologically.
Perhaps they were afraid I might return to House Prelai.
A heavy knot formed in my chest.
Of course I wanted revenge on the Academy. But now I was angry enough to regret delaying it even a little.
“Grandfather!”
Joshua suddenly shouted.
“Are you really going to leave that damned Academy alone?”
“Leave it alone?”
Grandfather replied coldly.
“…I should send Alex.”
Good heavens.
He was sending that mad dog?
Without thinking, I muttered,
“Oh my… I almost feel sorry for that damned Academy.”
Then I quickly came back to my senses.
Wait. The opponent was the Academy.
I had reacted too instinctively to the name Alex.
I immediately shook my head and corrected myself.
“No, no. I take back feeling sorry for them. That is extremely appropriate.”
Just imagining Alex standing in front of the Academy made every knot in my chest melt away instantly.
Joshua also nodded with a deeply satisfied face.
“That Academy is finished.”
He even clapped and added,
“And it’s also wonderful that the mad dog will be far away. I won’t have to see his face for a while. That mutt said if I stepped into the ducal house, he’d cut off my ankles.”
The Duchy of Lyloni was quite far away.
I had already heard he was far away investigating the last assassination attempt. Now it seemed the day Alex returned home had become even more distant.
“You just stay here quietly. The mad dog will take care of everything himself.”
Joshua said proudly, acting as if it were his own achievement.
I silently nodded.
There was no need for me to grind my teeth over the Academy anymore.
Sending Alex there… honestly, there was no greater revenge than that.
I felt completely refreshed.
Still, some things had to be protected.
“Um, Grandfather.”
I also had to make sure it would not interfere with my future plans.
“…Please send another letter saying the students—well, at least the graduate students—should be spared. They don’t know anything. And don’t destroy the Academy system itself. I still have things to do there.”
“I shall do that. I’ll only crush those at the top.”
Grandfather nodded readily.
Just then—
From outside the greenhouse came the sound of tiny wings fluttering.
Flap flap flap.
‘Huh?’
It sounded exactly like Ppiyakki’s wings.
But it couldn’t be Ppiyakki. They said secret delivery took a week. It had not even been a full day yet.
However, my expectation was completely wrong.
<Ta-da! I’m here!>
A tiny yellow lark landed on top of my head and began chirping proudly.
“What?”
I asked in shock at Ppiyakki’s much earlier arrival.
“You said it would take a week?”
<I came super early, right? I don’t know why either! It took a week when I was with Melissa, so this is really strange!>
Grandfather and Joshua both stared back and forth between me and Ppiyakki with shocked eyes.
No, how could this embarrassing situation come so quickly…?
“G-Grandfather! T-this is…”
I panicked and hurriedly spoke, rolling my eyes around. There were servants nearby too, which made it even more embarrassing.
Just when it felt like Grandfather and I had finally become closer, Ppiyakki appeared.
“Melissa, that overly kind fool… she said she’s not a Prelai anymore and sent Ppiyakki to me…”
Then after glancing at Grandfather, I quickly added,
“This time I really didn’t threaten anyone, didn’t get angry, and didn’t bully anyone! I truly didn’t want it, but Melissa suddenly just…”
I had committed too many sins in childhood, so I had no choice but to defend myself desperately.
But before I could even finish, Ppiyakki flew up with a deeply shocked face.
<You don’t want Ppiyakki?! How cruel! Your heart has changed! Your personality was already terrible, but now you’re fickle too!>
Tears filled Ppiyakki’s eyes.
<When you were young, you wanted Ppiyakki so badly and only did naughty things! But now that Ppiyakki has come to Kiana, you’ve lost interest? You sinful woman! I hate you!>
With a loud sobbing cry, Ppiyakki flapped away angrily toward my room.
“……”
That reaction was far more violent than I had expected.
