"What was I thinking... You were worrying about something so adorable?"
"..."
Jevella's chuckling figure was giving me a headache.
This is driving me crazy.
She said she didn't want to work but wanted to enjoy the privileges, and everyone thinks that's normal?
That the Patriarch of House Zahav just needs to go out and fight whenever something comes up?
That turned my suspicions into certainty.
This damn family. Not a single normal person in it.
How the hell did a place like this become the ruler of the south, one of only four grand ducal houses in the empire??
I couldn't comprehend it... but the answer came quickly.
Dungeons.
After spending the past few days here, I'd noticed something. Among the incomprehensible southern customs, pointing to dungeons usually got you pretty close to the truth.
Anyway, it had to be because of the dungeons. Probably something like martial prowess being more important than all the petty details.
I was letting out a deep sigh when...
"By the way, it's been a while since I've seen this gem too."
"Hm? Oh, right. You believed me right away when you saw it. You know what it is?"
I shrugged and poured the gems from my pocket onto the bed.
Colorful gems of various sizes. Jevella picked up the largest one, with the most vivid color.
A ruby boasting a high saturation of red.
She held it up to the lantern light. Its flawless, transparent sparkle drew an involuntary gasp of admiration.
I wonder how much that would sell for if I hawked it outside.
"Brings back memories. It was the gem decorating the necklace I wore when I was little."
"...?"
I'd just started letting my imagination wander when suddenly my ankle was grabbed, yanking me back to reality.
"Hehe. Don't make that 'I can't understand this' face. It's not just any gem or anything."
"No..."
I wasn't wondering why she'd wear an expensive gem on a necklace for no reason. I was baffled at how she could fondly recall such a past.
Of course, I swallowed those words. For Jevella, that might really have been fine.
...Not that I don't flip out at the sight of black mages myself.
Not everyone is like me. Besides, didn't she say she could self-heal, at least mentally?
"You know how dungeons don't really turn a profit when you factor in entry costs and sacrifices... but sometimes they spit out rare treasures. This gem was one of them."
"I see."
"You've experienced it yourself, Enoch, so you know, but dungeons often birth monsters that couldn't form naturally. They say this one's a crafted heart from a Crystal Golem warped by immense mana."
"Isn't this a ruby? Crystals and rubies are completely different materials..."
"They named it Crystal Golem because the type that uses crystals for a body is the most common, but actually, it's a monster with the habit of patching its body with precious metals that conduct mana well. In this case, it seems it grew by swallowing rubies saturated with the dungeon's mana."
"Oh... So dungeons have gems just rolling around everywhere?"
"Wouldn't that be nice... I think they only come from deep places that are hard for people to manage."
Fair enough. If gems—or anything infused with dense mana—were lying around everywhere, the south would be far richer than it is now.
But in reality, dungeons don't make much money.
The reason adventurers flock to them isn't because the dungeons themselves pay off. It's because House Zahav buys monster byproducts at premium prices.
Essentially, it's subcontracting: paying adventurers to hunt monsters for us. The byproducts are proof of the kill and a way to recover the valuable parts.
"Anyway, this gem still retains one trait of the Crystal Golem because it's so saturated with mana."
"Don't tell me... the golem-type's self-repair property."
"Oh? You know about it?"
"Eh, I happened to fight one once. Just the one, though."
"True. They're rare on the surface, away from underground."
A crazy alchemist once unleashed an artificial golem on me when he was trying to catch me. I eventually took it down, but it was a hassle at the time.
As I nodded, lost in old memories for a moment, Jevella smiled and dropped another bombshell.
"They used that property to enchant it with magic that brings it back to this room if you stray too far. I barely escaped once as a kid, but then the necklace suddenly glowed, and I was yanked right back here."
"..."
Please, warn me before sharing stories like this...
I let out a deep sigh and snatched the ruby from Jevella's hand.
"Hand it over."
"Eh? Oh... You're the head of House Zahav now, so it belongs to you anyway."
Jevella looked back and forth between me and the ruby with a slightly uneasy expression. She tapped her neck and spoke.
"If you're thinking of putting a collar on me again, could you at least use high-quality leather for the lining? It chafes pretty bad."
"It's not like that."
I held up the ruby demonstratively. Then I gripped it hard between my thumb and forefinger.
Crack!
The ruby shattered in an instant, releasing a massive burst of mana outward.
The fragments and erupting mana fused, glowing red and illuminating everything—like sparks flying everywhere.
I smirked at Jevella, who stared blankly at it.
"We don't need things like this anymore, right? You've got a lot on your plate from now on, Sis. Can't have you tied down by this."
Of course. She's the one who has to inherit House Zahav in my place.
And to prevent it forcibly dragging her back during any future midnight escapes like this, I figured I'd smash it for good now.
Having learned the dark secrets of House Zahav, even darker than the rumors outside, I was resolved to escape the Young Lord position no matter what.
But maybe this held more meaning for Jevella than I thought. As the lingering mana faded into the air...
Tears streamed from Jevella's eyes.
...And blood burst from my mouth.
"Cough!"
"E-Enoch?!"
The panicked Jevella jumped up to check on me, but it was pointless.
After all... this was a side effect from the human experiments done on me in childhood in this life.
I hadn't expected it to hit right now, but it wasn't triggered by specific situations anyway—just bad luck. Nothing to be done.
"Cough! Heok!"
"What's happening all of a sudden... No way?!"
Jevella urgently pressed her hand to my chest.
"It's hot. And the mana flow is all tangled. This is..."
Of course it was. Mana I'd just been hoarding without knowing how to control was spasming. Of course it'd feel hot, warped into fire attribute mana.
There was so much pent-up mana that she might hurt herself, so I gently pushed her hand away.
"Cough... Your hand. Dangerous."
"That's not important right now!"
"Just sleep it off, kehk! And it'll be fine."
True story. Sometimes the mana just knots up like a stomach cramp for no reason. After half a day, it sorts itself out.
Sure, I was completely defenseless while asleep, which was a huge weakness living in Calypso Territory... but this was House Zahav. Even if I blacked out briefly, I'd be safe.
Just like always. No need to force myself to stay conscious.
I pulled the corners of my mouth up as much as possible to reassure Jevella.
"It's fine. Just gonna sleep a bit and wake up, Sis..."
With those final words, I closed my eyes for a while.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Jevella quietly gazed down at the suddenly collapsed Enoch.
If not for the blood on his lips, his serene face might fool you into thinking he was simply asleep.
Enoch had said he was fine, but Jevella couldn't relax.
"No... You were perfectly healthy... Why now..."
Her voice trembled as she examined his body again. But the symptoms hadn't changed.
House Zahav's bloodline, born with solar mana, had powerful resistance to any kind of heat.
If such a Zahav felt intense fever... it could only mean they were burning up from within.
Jevella could easily imagine what came next.
He'd suffer greatly once, then be fine for a while. Maybe even better than usual.
But as time passed, he'd weaken bit by bit until all his mana evaporated, leading to death.
Just like the other blood kin poisoned by her venom.
"Enoch was different... He was different from the others, so it should've been okay... right?"
She hadn't made an antidote. Naturally. She'd meant to kill him from the start—what use was an antidote?
She might be able to develop one now with research... but could she do it in time?
"..."
Only then did Jevella realize what she'd done.
Her hasty judgment had turned Enoch into a terminal case.
Enoch, who might truly be Zahav blood, unlike her or Cain.
The one who'd smashed her long-binding collar without hesitation.
She'd led him to death with her own hands.
So what now?
She'd make the antidote, of course. But she had to prepare for the worst, if it was too late.
"I promise you this, Enoch. My little brother. I'll make sure you're happy for as long as you live."
If he wanted something, she'd grant it. If he wanted to do something, she'd help.
So he'd have no regrets at the end.
With that resolve, Jevella grunted as she properly laid Enoch on her bed and began wiping the blood he'd spilled.
He'd said he'd be fine after sleeping a bit.
So she had to make sure he felt no discomfort when he woke.
She steadied her emotions, her expression. Perhaps because she was so used to acting, Jevella's usual benevolent smile returned.
Yes. This was good.
She pulled a chair to Enoch's bedside and quietly watched her brother.
Until the sun rose bright, her exclusive maid Laila came looking, and belatedly, Karen realized Enoch was missing and came rushing in panic to report.
Jevella quietly watched Enoch. Only Enoch. As if etching him into her mind no matter what happened.
It would be much later before she realized her own misunderstanding.