Lewiwood Pasayen appeared, dragging ‘something’ in his hand.
The man’s face was a ruin—eyes swollen shut, features unrecognizable beneath a mask of bruising. His leg hung at an unnatural angle, clearly shattered.
“I’ve caught the one behind the golems. You can all rest easy now.”
*An invader, then?*
Looking at the state of the man, I couldn’t tell who was truly the villain. The golem-maker was undoubtedly the culprit, but seeing him beaten so mercilessly, I couldn’t help but feel a flicker of pity.
“Good work, everyone. Elzen, take them to Pelun. I’ll finish things up here.”
At Lewiwood Pasayen’s gentle instruction, Elzen nodded.
*Wait, where did the older sister go?*
She had been right here a moment ago, but now, she had vanished. I wanted to say goodbye!
“Let’s go, little one. We have much to discuss.”
“Uung.”
Elzen’s eyes softened as he scooped me up. I rested my cheek against his shoulder, letting out a long yawn.
*I suppose this was a fairly fun picnic…*
Zzz.
A cozy embrace was all a tired baby needed to drift off.
* * *
After everyone returned to Pelun, Lewiwood Pasayen was left alone. He sat astride the unconscious Goliath Velarion.
“Come out. I know you have something to say.”
His dark blue eyes fixed on the shadow beneath his feet, gleaming with a cold light. Before long, the shadow began to bubble as if the darkness itself were boiling, and from it, a young girl emerged.
It was Dioroz Bellarion.
“I wanted to watch you struggle a little longer, though. That cute little baby bunny displayed an unexpected ability.”
“Yeah, tell me about it.”
Elzen and Dioroz Bellarion knew each other, just as Lewiwood Pasayen and Dioroz Bellarion were acquaintances. They belonged to hostile families, so they couldn’t be called friends, but they weren’t exactly enemies, either. At the very least, they were capable of a civilized conversation.
Strictly speaking, Dioroz Bellarion was the only person in the Bellarion Family capable of having one.
“It goes without saying, but you’ll keep Shuperti Pasayen’s ability a secret, won’t you?”
Lewiwood Pasayen smiled tenderly, tucking a strand of her silver hair behind her ear. The kindness was fake, a superficial varnish, yet it was as smooth as the real thing.
Dioroz Bellarion beamed back.
“Let’s see. What if you grant me one small, trivial favor?”
“Since it’s a request from a lady who has come all this way, I suppose I must.”
“Then, could you pull out that moron’s tongue for me? I don’t even want to lay a finger on him.”
She pointed at Goliath Velarion. The body that had clearly been unconscious suddenly flinched.
He had been awake the entire time.
“Is a single tongue enough of a price for your silence?”
“That ‘moron’ is the second son of the Bellarion Family. It’s plenty.”
Hearing his sister’s words, Goliath Velarion struggled to move.
*The shadow—if I can just merge into the shadow!*
With wide, desperate eyes, he mustered every ounce of strength left to slip away, but the next moment—
*Thud!*
It sounded like he’d struck an iron plate; he bounced back, pinned to the ground.
*W-what? Why isn’t it working?*
A baby flying through the air, whirlwinds smashing a legion of golems to pieces. The Pashayen Family was insane. It was nothing like it had been before. If he could just report every detail to the Head of House, he might avoid the fallout of this disastrous mission!
“My, where are you going in such a pathetic state?”
“Uwaaaaaagh!”
*Crunch.*
Dioroz Bellarion stepped down hard on his injured hand. Thin, thread-like shadows coiled from her body, lashing around Goliath Velarion in a tight web.
Shadow Pinning. A technique used when a Bellarion faces another Bellarion.
“You’ve spared me the trouble of chasing you; I’m most grateful.”
Lewiwood Pasayen, who had been watching, dusted off his clothes and stood up.
“No, don’t, Aaaaaaaaagh!!”
*Flap!*
With the image of a few crows scattering across Goliath Velarion’s dilated pupils, he fainted—permanently silenced, rendered unable to speak for the rest of his life.
“Lewiwood Pasayen, you intend to become the Head of House, don’t you?”
“It’s not an intention, it’s a given. Just as it is for you.”
Dioroz Bellarion and Lewiwood Pasayen locked eyes. Both aimed to lead their respective families. The only difference was that Lewiwood was already established on the path to becoming the Successor, while Dioroz was still hiding her claws.
“Lewiwood Pasayen, if you want to become the Head of House safely… you should be careful of your mother.”
“…….”
“Because the only person who can drag you down from your position is Cecilia Pashayen.”
Dioroz Bellarion moved her shadows to seize Goliath Velarion. As he watched her disappear, Lewiwood Pasayen clicked his tongue.
“Ah, I knew that much even without you telling me.”
His mother was greedy. When the current Head of House passed away and Violet Pashayen ascended to the position, his mother would surely use him to slit the new leader’s throat before installing herself.
*Not only that, she’ll try to get her hands on the entire Pashayen Family and turn me into her puppet.*
The problem was that his dear mother was hot-headed, short-sighted, and lacked judgment. If left to her own devices, the family would be ruined within five years. Besides, Violet Pashayen wasn’t someone to be trifled with, either.
*She’s too timid to pull off anything major, so I’ve been letting her be while placating her, but…*
Why had Dioroz gone out of her way to warn him?
“This is troublesome. I’ll have to look into it…….”
Lewiwood muttered, trailing off. No matter their blood ties, he could not allow her to obstruct his path.
“Older Brother, I’ve come to pick you up!”
Not long after, Elzen returned.
It was time to return to Pelun.