“Nora?”
‘How did she find her way here? Is she looking for me?’
Seeing the figure standing at the door, Elena’s face turned pale.
She tried to shrink further into the corner, attempting to make herself less noticeable.
Nora’s red hair wasn’t tied up in its usual ponytail.
Instead, like her mother Talia, it was specially braided at the crown, with the long strands falling straight down—less dashing, but with a touch more maturity and allure.
She also wasn’t wearing her usual Adventurers’ Association lightweight exploration outfit. Instead, she wore an expensive gauze dress.
“Ah, Miss Nora… May I ask what brings you to my humble abode so suddenly?”
“Sir Fen.”
Nora usually knew Fen, but this time she didn’t call him “Little Brother Fen” as usual.
Behind her, several maids respectfully clustered around her, clearly indicating this visit was out of the ordinary.
Nora glanced around the room from the doorway and quickly spotted Elena huddled in the corner.
Meeting the girl’s fearful gaze, her tone also carried a hint of curiosity and inquiry.
When she truly saw the girl’s beauty and those unique golden pupils, Nora couldn’t help but feel awestruck.
“And this child is?”
‘It’s over… it’s over… We’re a man and a woman alone in a room right now!’
‘I… I won’t be misunderstood as some kept mistress of Fen’s, will I?’
“Ahem… This child is called Elena… She’s my younger sister.”
Fen’s mind worked quickly.
“Younger sister? Didn’t your parents pass away long ago?”
“She’s an adopted sister, like me—well… She just came from the countryside to the Holy Capital to seek a living, like I did back then, and is staying with me for now.”
“This child is quite shy and not well-versed in etiquette. I hope Miss Nora won’t blame her.”
Although the look of suspicion didn’t leave Nora’s face, Fen’s calm explanation seemed to temporarily convince her.
“Let’s get to the main matter.”
Nora shifted her gaze away from Elena.
“I heard from Voss that Elian’s resignation letter was delivered by you.”
“So it’s about that—”
Fen feigned surprise.
“Miss Nora, please, come in and talk. My home is humble, but it’s clean.”
“No need, I’ll just ask a few things and leave.”
Nora shook her head bitterly.
“Fen… you know my younger brother best…”
“When he gave you the resignation… did he tell you… where he… was going?”
She seemed to have mustered her courage to ask, but under Fen’s deep blue, utterly calm and unruffled gaze, Nora felt like a prisoner being tortured, each second an agony.
It seems these two… have also heard the recent rumors circulating in the Holy Capital…
Under the scrutinizing gazes of Elena and Fen, Nora’s volume noticeably decreased.
The guilt unmistakable in her words held none of the poise of a young lady from a great family.
“Well… the entire Valcier family is looking for Elian…”
Nora added, lacking confidence.
“Mother… Lila… and I are all very worried about him.”
Fen didn’t speak.
He slightly turned his head to look at the silver-haired girl beside him.
Elena knew Fen was asking for her stance.
‘…Do as you wish.’
Elena clicked her tongue, signaling Fen to proceed as he saw fit.
Having received Elena’s personal permission, Fen was overjoyed.
He had long wanted to criticize the Valcier family’s ‘signature behavior.’
Although he had certainly appreciated the CGs of the three Valcier women back then—well… he felt a bit sorry to Elena about that, but that was a minor matter…
Every time he entered his post-clarity phase and pondered the story details, Fen would get heated by the three women’s contrasting attitudes and the storyline’s differential treatment of Elian versus Voss.
Originally, Fen had considered that Nora and the others were Elena’s family, thinking he should avoid commenting on her relatives out of respect…
‘Screw it, I can’t take it anymore. Time to blow up at her!’
“Miss Nora… So you still remember there’s an Elian in the family…”
Nora took a deep breath.
Fen’s tone wasn’t as polite to her as usual.
She knew he wouldn’t be giving her a pleasant look next.
“I thought… Voss had kept you all so entertained… that—”
“That… you forgot the time. Otherwise… how could you wait nearly a week after the incident… to come inquire about where your most ‘beloved’ younger brother went—?”
Nora’s face turned deathly pale.
“No… that’s not it, Fen! That… that’s just a rumor…”
Nora tried to argue.
“Nora… we’re both adults—what’s true and what’s rumor, you know perfectly well in your heart.”
Fen gradually took control of the conversation’s rhythm.
Next, he was going all out.
“The three of you, constantly claiming to be the ones who love Elian the most…”
“Elian is the one who dotes on Lila the most, yet he was absent from her birthday party that night. Weren’t you the slightest bit suspicious at the time?”
“I just…”
“After something happened to Elian, you didn’t think about where he might have gone then. Now, after nearly a week, you come here putting on this show of familial concern?”
“Elian’s devotion to you all far exceeded his devotion to himself. Even you yourself admit that Elian’s care and affection for you surpassed yours for him, right?”
“Elian told me everything… Your comments about him while you were having fun with Voss weren’t exactly kind… Where was the familial love then?”
“Didn’t Miss Nora say you loved Elian the most?”
Fen sneered a few times, no longer hiding the mockery and disdain in his words.
“What kind of love is that? Were you just thinking with your lower half?”
‘Little Brother… he really knew…’
Nora’s face was completely flushed red.
She stood trembling on the spot, none of the reserved dignity of a noble young lady left.
“You just took his affection for granted, enjoying it without fear. Superficially, you shouted nice slogans, performing the act of mutual familial concern; but when he was truly vulnerable, you weren’t even willing to give him a bit of attention, just kicking him aside.”
Fen pointed it out bluntly.
“I…”
“Can you swear that while you were having fun with Voss, you thought of your younger brother, who hadn’t returned home, even once?”
Nora swallowed. She saw the silver-haired girl beside Fen now curiously raising her head.
Those golden eyes gazed at her, yet they were like the judgmental Holy Light, making her panicky, as if all lies were laid bare.
Elena awaited Nora’s answer—she still held onto her filter and illusions about her at this moment.
However, to her disappointment, she didn’t hear a single confident “Of course!” from this capable older sister’s mouth, as she had once imagined Elena would say. What awaited her was only hesitation and endless silence.
“…”
“Little Brother Fen…”
“Usually, out of respect for Elian, I called you ‘sister.’
Now that Elian has lost all hope in you all, let’s not engage in this noble hypocrisy with me.”
“…”
Nora looked at this friend of her brother’s with a complicated expression, her mind seemingly searching for a way to salvage the situation.
“This place no longer welcomes anyone from the Valcier family—”
“Please leave.”
Sensing that Elena’s state was a bit off, Fen issued the order to leave.
The red-haired figure left, utterly dejected.
Though she was a noble, though she was a young lady of the Valcier family, there was nothing she could do.
Because in Fen and the others’ hearts, she was already an unclean person.
Click—
As the footsteps faded away, the door finally closed.
Elena’s body began to tremble again.
She felt her nose sting—even though Fen had spoken many of the words in her heart for her, even though he had poured out her grievances, at this moment, large teardrops still uncontrollably welled up and fell.
“Elena…”
“So… it was all just my wishful thinking…”
“Originally… I naively thought… all of that was caused by Voss—Lila and the others were so wonderful in my impression that I simply thought—thought it was all Voss’s problem, that he was the root cause of everything, and I only needed to hate him…”
“When hating Voss… I would feel an immense sense of satisfaction in my heart, so I could temporarily forget all the pain inflicted on me…”
“But now… heaven is telling me… my family… they were willing participants, they were ‘accomplices’…”
Fen felt the girl might shatter the next second.
“Father taught me… taught me that loving others can also bring oneself happiness…”
“But… but I’m not happy at all right now… I feel so… so much pain—”
“If loving someone is this complicated… so complicated that… I don’t want to try anymore…”
“Then—then should I also start hating them?”
The light gradually faded from the girl’s eyes.
She buried her head in Fen’s broad chest, wanting to forget everything through sobbing.
Feeling his chest grow damp with tears, Fen gently stroked Elena’s silver hair.
“Elena…”
Reading the girl’s usual inferiority complex, her usual fears, he just murmured softly in her ear, his voice as gentle as drifting feathers.
“I’m not qualified to advise you to hate or love your family.”
“I just want to tell you—”
“Love, loving, might not necessarily make a person happy…”
“But hate—constantly holding onto hatred for others—will definitely not make you happy.”
The girl’s sobs grew quieter.
She was listening carefully to Fen’s words.
“Do you remember what I said to you back then?”
“Now, I still say the same thing—”
“Even if love for others leaves you covered in wounds, you still have me, Elian. If you want to find happiness, I still implore you; implore you to be like that Elian who pitied the world, and try loving once more…”
……
After holding Elena’s head in that position for what felt like ages, she finally stopped sobbing.
“Thank you… Fen…”
“Uh… Since you’ve stopped crying, could Miss Elena please move her head a bit away from my chest?”
Seeing Elena had calmed down, Fen quickly joked, trying to lighten the mood.
“After all—after all, Elena must mind too, right? Otherwise… otherwise you’ll call me a pervert again later…”
“No… don’t…”
“Huh?”
“Let me… let me stay like this a little longer.”
Elena replied, her face flushed red.
“Right now… my mood isn’t good…”
The two maintained a tacit silence. Neither spoke, neither questioned.
The silver-haired girl continued to lie in the young man’s embrace.
Just maintaining this hugging posture allowed her lonely heart to feel a moment of warmth.