SEVL 8

Chapter – 8

Joshua sighed deeply, looking thoroughly exasperated.

“Hey.”

Then, as if incredulous, he said,

“You know, you might as well do what Grandpa and Alex do—just tell me to stop doing ‘stupid stuff’ like this. That would be better.”

For a moment, an awkward silence hung in the air.

Well… it was true that Grandpa and Alex despised Joshua’s “Lorelai” intensely. But it wasn’t just about preserving the prestige of the Prellai family.

I looked down at my teacup without saying anything.

The Prellai family—a noble house sworn in steadfast loyalty to the royal family, renowned in the empire, able to command summoned creatures, and wielding immense influence in every matter.

My grandfather, the head of the Prellai family, Scari Prella, had two sons. The eldest was my father, and the younger, my uncle, had fallen for a commoner and ran away long ago.

Since I was very young, the atmosphere at the Prellai mansion had been extremely bleak. When I was five, my mother had run away in the dead of night, leaving behind only a note, along with the carriage driver.

And while being chased by the knights, she fell off a cliff with the driver and died. After that, my father, brokenhearted, went on an overambitious monster hunt in the northern duchy and never returned.

The problem was…

‘Even when I do nothing, I feel like an alien in this place…’

My reflection appeared in the tea.

Pink hair and pale green eyes—my mother’s sweet features—but I had hated my appearance since I was a child. Because everyone in the Prellai family had blonde hair and red eyes. My grandfather, my father, my brothers, even Melissa…

And on top of looking different, I had no summoned creature of my own. I couldn’t help but feel immense psychological pressure.

But looking back now, I realize I wasn’t the only one hurt in that unstable household. I wasn’t the only one abandoned by our parents. So Alex, Joshua, and I all grew up in our own equally messed-up ways.

“Brother.”

After a long silence, I slowly spoke first.

“I really meant it when I congratulated you on your independence earlier.”

“…Huh?”

“You know, before I went to the Academy, I had this magical device I was secretly working on at the mansion.”

Joshua’s eyes widened, clearly hearing this for the first time. Of course, my research in magical engineering had always been a secret from my family.

“What it did was… change the color of your eyes.”

“What…?”

Upon hearing me, Joshua let out a baffled laugh.

“All this time, you just shut yourself in your room and researched stuff like that?”

Another silence followed.

Even if we didn’t say it outright, we were thinking the same things. The denial of our mother—we couldn’t forget it, even if we tried. I hated that I looked different from the rest of my family and that I couldn’t summon a creature of my own. I constantly questioned whether I was really a Prellai daughter.

I wished there had been some kind of paternity test, so I could have been openly disowned by the Prellai family and felt at ease. But as things stood, I would live my entire life in ambiguous limbo, unsure if I was truly my father’s daughter. That was why I left the empire.

Joshua finally spoke after a moment of silence.

“Why bother with something useless like that…”

Yet he couldn’t continue, weighed down by complicated feelings.

“Yeah… it was useless.”

I looked at him calmly and said,

“But no matter what people say behind my back, I really do have talent in magical engineering. You were even on the verge of becoming a professor, right?”

Joshua gave me a skeptical look, like he wanted to say, “What’s an academy professor from that tiny country?” but held back.

“That’s why I think your efforts weren’t meaningless, brother.”

Joshua’s eyelashes trembled slightly at my words.

In fact, there was a reason Grandpa and Alex were at odds with Joshua.

Joshua couldn’t accept the truth about our mother’s infidelity. He hated adultery so much that it was unbearable.

I don’t remember clearly, but our parents were said to have had a happy marriage. Our father couldn’t accept reality even after seeing the bodies of our mother and the carriage driver.

Joshua, knowing his parents had been happy, was deeply shocked and suffered greatly. A nanny, seeing his distress, said, “It’s not that unusual. It happens more often than you think.” Curiosity led Joshua to investigate the social scene behind the scandal, which suited him surprisingly well… and from there, Lorelai became extremely successful.

I could finally understand Joshua’s feelings, which I had never noticed in the original story.

“I hate Father too. I know it was mentally hard for him because of Mother’s infidelity—I know that!”

This was written in the document where Joshua, drunk, had rebelled against Grandpa.

“But when he went to dangerous places, ignoring all warnings, he didn’t think about his children at all.”

Grandpa didn’t say anything. He was naturally taciturn and had even suggested the northern monster hunt to give Father a change of pace—though he couldn’t have known how dangerous it would become.

“How can parents be so irresponsible after having three children?”

That was why Grandpa and Alex never acknowledged Joshua’s efforts. People thought it was just about preserving noble dignity, but the reality was more complex. They judged that Joshua couldn’t move past his old wounds. “Please live your life and move on.” That was Grandpa and Alex’s wish. One parent who failed to do so was enough—our father.

“Maybe it started as something useless. But you came this far because of your aptitude and ability, right? My thoughts are a bit different from Grandpa and Alex’s.”

I shrugged.

“Even if it started from a meaningless past, continuing on makes it your path.”

Joshua’s face became slightly solemn. Seeing that, I felt an unexpected warmth and genuinely tried to comfort him.

“From that perspective, I’ll keep cheering for your trashy gossip magazine’s success.”

“…”

“Even if you live your whole life like a moody teenager and keep driving Grandpa crazy, at least you’ll always have enough to eat.”

I didn’t forget to add praise and encouragement to boost his self-esteem.

“And congrats on discovering your love for gaudy luxury goods. Understanding yourself is always a good thing, right?”

Hmm, maybe I said too much. But after nearly dying, I felt like I had to say everything I wanted to.

“Well, I’m leaving.”

Feeling awkward, I stood up immediately—but Joshua grabbed me.

“Kiana!”

Then he suddenly handed me the cushion I had complimented earlier.

“You said riding in the carriage is hard.”

“…Huh?”

“Take this with you. It’ll help.”

I blinked in confusion, holding the cushion silently, and Joshua quickly said,

“You gave me a vase too. It’s just payback! Give and take!”

I sighed deeply and smiled shyly, trying to truly communicate, knowing exactly what he felt.

“You live such a tiresome life, brother. If you want to give something, just say it. Looks like meeting your annoying little sister after a long time and hearing a kind word made you act like a pushover.”

“….”

“Anyway, I’m really leaving now.”

“…Alright. Let’s go.”

Joshua put down his teacup and stood. I tilted my head and asked,

“You’re walking me all the way home?”

“Why would I? I’m just going to exercise.”

I smirked.

“Exercise? Walking? Breathing? Really…”

Just as I was trying to communicate with him again, Joshua cut me off.

“And listen carefully. The disgrace of the Prellai family is me, not you. Got it?”

“…Huh?”

“That’s determined by reckless actions, not eye color. Of course, you’re reckless too, but less than me.”

What?

“…But no matter what people say behind my back, I really do have talent in magical engineering. You were even on the verge of becoming a professor, right?”

Is he mad at me for calling myself the disgrace earlier?

I stood there blankly, staring at Joshua.

“Why aren’t you saying anything?”

And just when he should have left looking cool, Joshua, intoxicated with his own charm, added,

“Is your heart reacting first because you’re moved? That’s why you can’t speak properly?”

What the heck. I couldn’t let that pass. I sighed and answered.

“The brain reacts first, then the heart sinks.”

“….”

“The brain comes first.”

“….”

Joshua, apparently at a loss for words, muttered as he turned away,

“I hope your magical engineering fails.”