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Translator: penny
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: I'll Really Treat You Like a Big Sister
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Do whatever you want. But you must keep Sierra by your side at all times.
Things had gone far more smoothly than I'd anticipated. I'd worried Roselia might obsess over the medicine and try to monopolize it, but the worst-case scenario never came to pass.
Roselia granted permission for my business with just one condition: that Sierra always stay by my side.
It wasn't a demanding request, so I accepted without hesitation.
"Now I can make money again."
All I needed now was to set up a safe at the imperial bank.
For the time being, my room was spacious enough to store cash, but I couldn't pile it up there forever. I'd have to propose it to Roselia again at the right moment.
Either way, I could finally set my sights back on enrolling in the academy.
Feeling inexplicably buoyant, I hummed a little tune as I entered my bedroom.
And there, in my returned room, I came face-to-face with an unexpected figure.
"You look like you've seen a ghost."
A pair of amethyst eyes gleamed softly, staring straight through me.
It was Camilla.
She sat languidly on the corner of my bed, her gaze as vacant as ever.
"Need something?"
"The herbs... I tried them."
Camilla hopped down from the bed and approached me. In her hand was the remnant of a burned-up bundle of herbs.
"A spell?"
Camilla asked.
"A spell?"
"No combination of these ingredients produces such a potent sleep effect anywhere."
She must have examined my herb bundle thoroughly. And she seemed to have considerable knowledge of herbs, too.
"What did you do to it?"
Her eyes pressed silently, laced with subtle pressure, demanding an answer.
"...Trade secret."
Unable to meet Camilla's hollow gaze, I turned my head away before adding cautiously,
"And we agreed not to bother each other, remember?"
"..."
"I won't bother you anymore from now on. So don't worry."
Camilla stared at me in silence for a long moment before stepping closer and gently placing her hand atop my head.
Her small, soft fingertips lightly stroked through my hair.
Camilla ran her fingers through it a few times, tousling it lightly.
Perplexed by her inexplicable actions, I looked up at her curiously.
"What are you doing?"
"..."
Instead of answering, Camilla's face scrunched up slightly.
Then she brushed past me and left the room.
"Mother says we're all having dinner together tonight."
She delivered the curt notice and vanished.
I absently touched the strands of hair where her fingers had lingered, murmuring softly.
"...What was that about?"
The gentle clink of cutlery echoed through the Rahel Tani dining hall.
Including the fake count, the four of us were eating together.
"Ahh~ here you go, my dear."
As always, Roselia approached me with a fork at the ready.
She beamed, waiting for me to open my mouth.
"Feeling shy with your little sister watching?"
At her teasing words, I quickly parted my lips and took the meat from the fork.
Roselia pretended to pat my head affectionately, looking pleased.
And for some reason, Camilla watched me with cold eyes.
"Want a bite, Camilla?"
Perhaps sensing Camilla's gaze, Roselia rested her chin on her hand and flashed a playful smile.
"I'm fine."
Camilla turned her head away and refused flatly.
"I know. You hate this kind of thing."
"...Yeah."
After that, Roselia and Camilla quietly ate from their own plates.
Was it just my imagination?
The air felt somehow awkward.
Even though they'd known each other far longer than I had, there was a strange distance between them.
"How are your lessons going?"
Camilla nodded curtly at Roselia's question.
"Yes, I'm learning a lot."
"Good girl. I'm proud of you."
"..."
The conversation cut off again.
Even I, eating beside them, felt the awkwardness.
The fake count showed no interest in playing the father role, silently slicing his meat.
It felt like indigestion was inevitable.
"There are... lessons here?"
I ventured cautiously to break the heavy silence.
Thankfully, Roselia nodded and replied.
"Magic, history, swordsmanship, noble etiquette. Various teachers come by."
"Really?"
How very noble. While commoners toiled in labor, nobles locked themselves away in the chains of academia.
"Bella, if you want, I can assign you a teacher too."
It was an unexpected offer.
Honestly, it tempted me.
Learning anything would help with academy life later. Even if the other subjects seemed dull, I desperately wanted to try magic and swordsmanship.
Of course, I knew full well my body had no talent for either—a complete dullard.
But how could I suppress the romance of swords and magic in a fantasy world?
Just seeing mana flow before my eyes was thrilling; how overwhelming would a real magic lesson be?
"Do you want to learn?"
"No, it's fine. I have to start my business tomorrow anyway."
Yet I shook my head.
Lessons here would essentially be private tutoring, which would cost a fortune.
I could handle it if it was my own money, but relying on the count family without compensation didn't sit right.
"It's impossible anyway."
But the one who responded wasn't Roselia—it was Camilla.
She fixed me with a piercing gaze and spoke quietly.
"Big Sister's body can't learn magic."
Her voice was firm as she continued.
"It's not suited for swordsmanship either."
"Camilla."
Roselia called her name in a somewhat stern tone, and Camilla promptly shut her mouth.
Roselia smiled faintly and spoke to me gently.
"If you want lessons, just say so. I have to fulfill my duties as a parent, after all."
"No, really, it's okay."
Why was that?
There was no reason to take words from Camilla—who was younger than me—to heart, yet my pride stung anyway.
Her words felt like she was dismissing me as worthless.
"...Camilla's right."
"Bella."
Roselia called my name cautiously.
I slowly turned my gaze to Camilla, who continued eating beside her.
"But that doesn't mean there's no reason to learn."
Roselia's eyes widened in surprise, while Camilla furrowed her brows slightly.
"Not everything requires talent to challenge."
"..."
Camilla stared at me wordlessly.
Her gaze felt a bit threatening. But unlike before, I didn't flinch under it.
In the few days I'd spent here, I'd learned one thing.
Camilla never defied Roselia.
I couldn't tell if she feared her, but she always obeyed her words without fail.
And Roselia desperately needed my medicine.
As long as that held true, Camilla wouldn't treat me carelessly.
"..."
Camilla raised her hand and lightly snapped her fingers in the silence.
Black Flame
Snap. With a light sound, a black flame bloomed at her fingertips.
"Big Sister can't even light a flame like this."
Her whispering voice mocked me, stabbing deep.
"That's the limit of Big Sister's talent. Blind stubbornness isn't good."
It seemed like ridicule on the surface, but Camilla's eyes remained emotionless as always.
"Camilla. What do you think you're doing?"
Roselia's voice chilled the room to ice.
Camilla flinched, glancing at Roselia before speaking softly.
"With magic... it's better to know your limits, Mother."
"..."
"I've seen plenty despair when they hit theirs."
Roselia regarded Camilla silently.
No direct reply came, but that silence meant she agreed inwardly.
"This isn't dinner table talk. Apologize to your sister."
Under Roselia's firm pressure, Camilla finally bowed her head to me.
"Sorry, Big Sister."
It was an apology without heart.
Camilla probably had no idea.
That the words she'd just said were the exact type I hated most in the world.
Words saying I had no talent. Telling me to give up because it was pointless anyway.
How many times had I heard them in my past life?
[Maybe... you should just give up?]
[What? School? Who do you think you are...]
[Quit while you're ahead—you can't even pay tuition.]
[It's unavoidable. You're an orphan, after all.]
I clenched my fists as those voices flashed through my mind.
"...What if I do light it?"
I muttered, almost to myself.
But that small, thin voice reached Roselia and Camilla's ears.
"Bella."
Ignoring Roselia's cautioning tone, I stared Camilla down directly.
"If I light a flame. What then?"
Camilla scoffed.
It was the most emotion she'd shown since we met. The problem was, it was mockery.
"If you do, I'll really treat you like a big sister."
I'll prove it.
I've vowed countless times that this life would be different from my last.
I'll show them loud and clear.
That I can do it if I really try.
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