Little Merlin lay quietly on her mother’s stomach, listening as Ophelia told the story until the very end.
Although it was told from a third-party perspective, Ophelia made sure to emphasize the misunderstandings between the two. Merlin had written letters to Mahina, and Mahina had written back, even sending her own wages. There was also Lucia’s account; Mahina claimed she had seen Merlin on a date with a purple-haired girl in the Capital on the day she received her award. She, too, felt she had been betrayed.
It was like finding the process once you already had the answer. Due to the schemes meant to drive them apart, Merlin had not received any replies for a long time. Naturally, Mahina suspected Merlin was cheating, and when she saw the illusions deliberately created by the Talan family, those suspicions were instantly confirmed. The same was true for Merlin. Having waited so long without a response, she had agreed immediately when Mahina suggested they part ways. Two people who originally loved each other ended up going their separate ways because of the accumulation of time and doubt.
As Ophelia spoke, she watched Little Merlin’s expression. Lying on her stomach, Little Merlin listened to everything with slightly drowsy eyes, as if she were truly listening to a bedtime story. That young, tender face did not show the shock or anger Ophelia had expected; there were no major emotional fluctuations.
Finally, the story came to an end at the point where the letters were successfully delivered to both parties. Ophelia called out softly, “Sweetie.”
Little Merlin replied in a low voice, “Hmm?”
“Do you understand?” Ophelia looked at Little Merlin’s unwavering expression and wondered if she shouldn’t have said anything just yet.
“Yes, it’s mostly like that.”
Ophelia stroked the Merlin in her arms. Little Merlin pouted, and a layer of mist quickly gathered in her hazy eyes. “Even if it was a misunderstanding, so what? The fact that Little Merlin was hurt is still real. *Sniff, sniff.*”
Ophelia gently patted Little Merlin’s back and said softly, “Mommy just wants you to know the whole picture. I’m not telling you to forgive her.”
If anything, as a mother watching her daughter suffer for so many years, Ophelia herself could not easily forgive Mahina.
Little Merlin buried her face in Ophelia’s arms, her voice becoming muffled. “Humph. Even if there was a misunderstanding, the fact that Little Merlin was hurt won’t change. Little Merlin has been in pain all these years and kept being bullied by Mahina. I won’t forgive her so easily.”
Seeing Merlin looking like she was about to cry, Ophelia hugged her tightly and turned on her side, cradling the girl in her arms.
“Little Merlin was so lonely, and she kept bullying me…” Merlin sobbed, her small hands clutching Ophelia’s pajamas. “She even poked at my sore spots. Even if Mahina was being manipulated by others, and even if Mahina comes to apologize, the fact that Little Merlin was bullied won’t change!”
“Yes, yes… Mommy knows. I understand.”
“Little Merlin is a Lonely Wolf. Little Merlin is already used to being lonely and hurt, *awoo, awoo*.”
Hearing those ridiculous sounds of “*awoo*,” Ophelia’s heart felt as if it had been pricked by a needle. Now Ophelia understood why Little Merlin kept making those strange noises tonight. A mixture of heartache and anger surged within her. Ophelia suddenly cupped Merlin’s small face, forcing her to look at her through tearful eyes.
“Stop talking like that!” Ophelia’s voice carried a rare sternness.
Startled, Little Merlin let out a tearful hiccup.
“Little Merlin isn’t lonely at all. Don’t you have Mommy?” Seeing her daughter’s stunned expression, Ophelia’s tone softened again, but her attitude remained firm. “You are absolutely never allowed to say such things again! What do you mean you’re ‘used to being lonely and hurt’? How can anyone get used to that? Pain is pain, and sadness is sadness, do you understand? When you’re sad, come to Mommy!”
Ophelia used her thumb to firmly wipe away the tears from the corners of Merlin’s eyes. “You are Mommy’s treasure. In front of me, you never need to act tough, and you don’t need to pretend to be a wolf. You are an Elf Princess… honestly. If you want to cry, cry loudly. If it hurts, scream it out. As for that strange noise… you aren’t allowed to use it anymore either, do you hear me?”
“But…”
“No buts! Listen to your mother!”
“Waaa…”
“Merlinlia… do not think I am very patient. I will not say it a second time.”
Little Merlin looked at her mother’s angry expression and shrank her neck. “Okay…”
Ophelia sighed. “Then why does Little Merlin want to continue inviting Mahina? You didn’t know about the misunderstanding then.”
Earlier in the evening, Mary had already told Ophelia that Merlin found sunbathing boring and that she had invited Mahina.
“I don’t know. Even though she did many awful things to Little Merlin, when Little Merlin sees her, my heart doesn’t seem to feel much. I just think the things she did in the past were awful!”
Ophelia rubbed her cheek against her daughter’s. As expected, her daughter was still in a phase where she couldn’t understand romance.
“And so?”
“Her back looked very lonely, so I invited her.”
“As expected, our Merlin is a kind and strong child.”
Little Merlin rubbed her cheek against her mother’s chest with some irritation. “I’m not! Little Merlin is very fragile! Little Merlin isn’t strong at all, Little Merlin is very fragile…”
Ophelia felt the clothes on her chest grow damp. Merlin was much more honest now.
“Yes, yes… our Little Merlin is still a baby. A fragile baby naturally needs Mommy’s care.”
To Ophelia, this was not a bad thing. No matter what kind of person Merlin was, as her mother, she would accept her. If anything, she felt relieved; keeping things bottled up inside is bad for the body and leads to a breakdown one day.
She took out a handkerchief to wipe Little Merlin’s tears. “Mhm. Because Little Merlin is a fragile child, Mommy will do her best to protect her cute Little Merlin and keep her from getting hurt, okay?”
Little Merlin sobbed, her red eyes looking at her mother. Finally, she nodded obediently and replied with a thick, nasally voice, “Mhm…”
“So, do you still want to meet Mahina tomorrow?”
“Since I promised Mahina, I should still see her.”
“My baby is so good at keeping promises.”
“Waaa, I don’t hate her that much.”
“Then let’s go to sleep.”
Ophelia adjusted the pillow beside her and gently rested Little Merlin’s head on it. She used the handkerchief to wipe away the remaining tear stains and gave Little Merlin a soft kiss on the forehead.
“Goodnight, sweetie.”
See, that makes sense. Just because it was a misunderstanding and they apologized doesn’t make the years of pain go away.