This world really is too small…
Xia Li took another careful look at Luya.
But thinking about it more, it wasn’t so surprising after all.
Most of the nobility of the Engelia Empire lived comfortably in the Holy City, and the number of nobles who stayed behind in Steinburg, this frontier city on the border, was very few.
Meeting a noble lady around the same age who just so happened to be Filia’s betrothed wasn’t as unlikely as it seemed.
I’m sorry for disparaging Filia in my thoughts just now…
Waaah! What kind of person did I think my sister was? I even wanted to hit her… Enis hugged her head with both hands, silently repenting over and over again.
“Hmm?” Luya looked at the two of them with a puzzled expression at their strange reactions.
“Um, little Luya… wait a moment!” Enis hurriedly grabbed Xia Li’s hand and pulled her aside, lowering her voice to a whisper. “Xia Li-nee, what should we do now?”
“At this point, we might as well activate the original plan.” Xia Li’s expression grew serious.
“The original plan?”
“You knock out the clerk, I’ll tie up Luya and stash her in some basement.”
“No… that won’t do! Little Luya is already so pitiful…”
“Then it looks like it’ll have to be your sister who gets taken away.”
“Xia Li-nee, don’t you have any normal solutions?”
“Then we’ll pretend we’ve never met Luya and continue with the original plan to snatch the bride… yeah, that should work.” Xia Li said, twitching at the corner of her mouth.
Yeah right!
It’d be easier if I didn’t know Luya.
But now that I do, and she treats me so kindly, how could I snatch her away at a wedding with all eyes on us?
Just imagining that scene makes me want to crawl into a hole.
“Hmm… Xia Li-nee, what if we try starting from little Luya’s side? If we can convince her to ask her family to cancel the betrothal…” Enis suggested.
“If Luya had any say in her family, she wouldn’t have been sent off for a political marriage in the first place.”
Seeing Luya’s physical condition, Xia Li knew she was a marginal figure in the family just like Filia, a pawn sacrificed for political gain.
Ugh, this mess just keeps getting worse.
I really want to use the Demon King’s identity to blast these insect nobles to kingdom come.
Xia Li muttered angrily to herself. If this were a game with so many side quests, I’d at least get some high-grade magical artifacts or ancient spellbooks.
But in reality, all there is are silver coins.
And those were promised by Enis.
Isn’t that just moving money from one hand to the other!
“Little Luya, an engagement is a big deal, especially since you’re so young…” Enis still wanted to try talking some sense into Luya.
“Yeah, after all, this is someone you’ll spend the rest of your life with.” Luya nodded slightly.
“But you don’t even know the person!”
“Mother spent a long time choosing someone suitable. I trust her eyes and judgment.”
“Guh… don’t you have your own thoughts?”
“If my own thoughts could let me stand up again…” Luya looked out the window at the people passing by on the street.
“You mean the marriage can help you stand again?” Xia Li frowned.
Filia has that kind of ability?
Or is it some sacrifice the Carthus family made in this political exchange?
The Carthus family controls the Night Holy Temple, and those church types have extensive knowledge of blessing magic, along with many related magical artifacts.
It’s not impossible to make a disabled person walk again.
There really is something in Steinburg today that can create such a miracle.
The relic Lucifer mentioned—the Sacred Relic, the Blood of the Night Goddess!
Xia Li’s heart trembled as she caught on to the crucial point.
That drop of divine blood is currently held jointly by the four great families, and the sudden marriage alliance between Stein and Carthus at this moment—could it be a struggle over that blood?
“I’m not really sure either, but mother says the chance of success is high.” Luya lowered her head and looked at her fragile legs, her expression complicated.
“Will the Carthus family give you anything?”
“No, it’s the girl I’m engaged to.” Luya hesitated for a moment before saying, “By merging with her magic, maybe I can fix the problem in my body.”
“Problem… weren’t your legs always like this?”
“It started the day I awakened my magic…” Luya’s smile was tinged with bitterness as she looked into Xia Li’s eyes. “Xia Li-nee, could you please bow your head?”
“Okay.” Xia Li knelt down on one knee.
Luya hugged Xia Li’s head, resting her forehead against hers.
The next moment, the surroundings were swallowed by darkness.
Mental world…
Xia Li saw a streak of blood red.
Behind Luya was a clear waning moon.
The blood-red glow emitted by the crescent moon was like countless threads wrapping around Luya’s body.
“I was blessed by the goddess at birth. My mother and family valued me highly, giving me the best education, treating me as the future hope of the family.”
Luya spoke softly.
“The family made an exception to have me baptized at eight years old, but at that time, I saw the symbol of the Night Goddess again.
“The goddess gave me an embrace and blessing but did not grant me the magic to carry the blessing.
“That baptism put me into a coma for seven days and nights, and when I woke up, my body was like this…
“It’s ridiculous, isn’t it? The blessing others crave is the root of my suffering.”
“So, you want to share the burden of that blessing through the magic fusion brought by marriage?” Xia Li didn’t expect Luya’s situation and unconsciously stroked her hair.
“To gain magic as well.” Luya placed her hand over her chest. “My magic source has been gradually drained over the years, and now it’s completely gone…”
Losing magic and being unable to use spells was even harder for her to accept than losing sensation in her legs!
“…” Xia Li listened, feeling this was an even tougher problem to solve.
Filia’s problem was the lack of the goddess’s blessing.
Luya’s situation was the exact opposite.
If they gave each other their first time, letting their magic and blessings merge, it seemed like their problems could be solved at once.
It really wasn’t easy for Luya’s mother to find such a perfectly matched partner.
Filia could live the life she wanted with Enis, Luya could regain a healthy body, and their families could reap huge benefits, maybe even gain the divine blood.
A world where no one got hurt, completed!
Since the interests are clear now, maybe it’s best to leave them alone and let their families fend for themselves.
That way, I can save some effort.
…Though Xia Li wanted to say that, thinking back to the expression Filia showed while confiding on the balcony, she gave up on the idea.
Besides, Luya’s body was trembling slightly at this moment.
She was also afraid of the unknown marriage.