When Roel heard those almost nonchalant words from Charlotte, he suddenly found himself at a loss for words. He stared at the impassive Charlotte, whose eyes were fixated on the blue skirted woman. Off in the distance, he could still see her chatting merrily away with some man, and he felt his mind going blank for a moment there.
If she is Charlotte’s mother, who could that man be?
Watching his mother-in-law in name’s tender interactions with this blonde-haired man, Roel felt his face stiffening up. Needless to say, he had looked through his fiancée’s family records prior to their first meeting, including their portraits too. Charlotte’s father, Bruce, was supposed to be a ginger-haired man.
Most importantly though, the records didn’t state that Charlotte’s parents were divorced. Considering that the two of them were still married, and Charlotte’s mother was here flirting with another man, this…
What’s going on here? Did we just catch her mother in the midst of committing adultery? What in the world is this? This isn’t a telenovela!
Roel stared at Charlotte mouth agape, electrified by this soap opera-like twist of events. He thought that Charlotte was here to watch butterflies, but not wanting the hassle that would come from entering the singles area, she dragged him here with her as a plus one.
However, from the looks of it now, that didn’t seem to be the case.
What do people usually do at times like this? March up to the adulterous couple and splash a cup of water on them? That wouldn’t work though. We aren’t in our original bodies, and any Origin Level 6 transcendent can easily stop us. In other words…
“I get it. Evidence collecting, right? How should we go about it? I haven’t really learned any spells for that.”
Roel’s face suddenly lit up with excitement, and he stared at the duo before him in the distance like a little paparazzi ready to collect a huge scoop. All he needed was for the boss to say the word, and this hot scoop would be all over the tabloids by tomorrow.
Unexpectedly, his boss, Charlotte, responded to him with a confused gaze.
“Hm? What’s wrong? You don’t need to stand on ceremony here. Regardless of our relationship, I’ll at least back you up here.”
Roel smacked his chest reliably before directing his gaze at the adulterous couple before him with his teeth clenched.
Damn you two! That blonde guy over there obviously looks like some sort of gigolo!
Roel clenched his fists tightly, ready to get some action.
Meanwhile, Charlotte looked at Roel with a conflicted look on her face. She opened her mouth several times, only to stop hesitantly each time. In the end, she squeezed out a slightly forced smile and said.
“Thank you, Roel, but… there’s no need for that.”
Her forced smile carried a slight tinge of sorrow before she turned to gaze at the scenery before them.
“You’ve misunderstood. I wasn’t intending to do anything here. I just wanted to see her.”
“See her?”
“It has been five years since I last saw her.”
“…”
Roel’s eyes widened in surprise. Charlotte pondered for a moment before explaining her own circumstances concisely with an oddly nonchalant tone.
It was a story not on any of the reports Roel received. After hearing everything, he found his heart unable to calm down for a very long time.
Frankly, Charlotte’s family situation far surpassed his imagination.
Charlotte’s mother, Adelicia Milton, was the second daughter of the Austine Empire’s Milton Ducal House. The Milton House was a behemoth with a long history behind it. Its origins could be traced all the way to the Second Epoch’s Ancient Austine Empire, so in a sense, its lineage could be said to be even older than the Ascart House.
A house with such a long history to it should never be underestimated. In fact, during the mass migration westward at the inception of the Third Epoch, the Milton House was in a managerial position.
The story afterward was as Roel knew. After arriving at the new land, a huge internal conflict that had been brewing through the entire journey finally broke out among the migration army, leading to the fracturing of the Ancient Austine Empire. Many people scattered with their followers in a bid for independence.
The Milton House was one of the stubborn conservation factions. It wielded significant power in the migration army, so it refused to acknowledge the other deserting factions since it was at odds with their interests.
Eventually, the Milton House, together with several other major noble houses from the Ancient Austine Empire, formed the foundation of the new Austine Empire. In order to highlight its legitimacy, this bunch of people came up with the infamous Pure Bloodline Theory.
To summarize, the Pure Bloodline Theory postulated that everyone aside from the people of the Austine Empire were barbarians. The nobles who originated from the Ancient Austine Empire were depicted as a superior breed, and it was their prerogative to rule over the other countries.
So, the people of the Austine Empire were first-tier citizens, and everyone else was a second-tier citizen or worse.
This theory was a strong binding force for the Austine Empire during tumultuous periods, and it legitimized their actions in annexing nearby countries after their foundation. As a result, the Austine Empire grew swiftly over time. Its belligerent behavior had the support of its citizens who viewed it as justified use of force against traitors. It was not ‘conquering other countries’ but ‘regaining the land that they rightfully deserved’.
This Pure Bloodline Theory became the source of the Austine Empire’s arrogance. Ever since its rise to power, it had been pushing the theory widely amongst its people. In fact, some of its extremists even advocated for intermarriage amongst the high nobles, so as to avoid the dilution of their bloodline.
Charlotte’s mother, Adelicia, was one of the beneficiaries and believers of this extreme Pure Bloodline Theory.
More than 10 years ago, in an attempt to repair its relations with the Austine Empire, Rosa began offering great support to the Milton House, and in exchange, Adelicia was betrothed to the leader of the Rosa Merchant Confederacy, Bruce, as a symbol of their alliance.
It was a marriage that carried no romance at all, completely driven by interests. Naturally, the only possible outcome was an empty shell of a relationship.
Roel had once heard in his previous life that when a marriage crumbled, it was the children who suffered the most. This saying was best exemplified in Charlotte’s life.
Adelicia was forced by the marriage contract to bear an heir for Bruce, but in her bigotry, she unhesitatingly chose to abandon her progeny, Charlotte. She believed the blood of her daughter was impure and a disgrace to the Milton House’s noble bloodline. Charlotte’s very existence was a stain on Adelicia’s reputation.
Roel couldn’t even begin to imagine just how much it must have hurt to be discriminated against by her own mother, and it left him with chills running down his spine. He dazedly stared at Charlotte, wondering just what kind of emotions were lurking in her head as she recounted this dark chapter of her history.
“Back when I was 7, I came to the Austine Empire to visit her secretly. I was filled with anticipation as I made my way to the Milton House. Back then, I didn’t know the reason behind her hatred toward me. I thought that she simply had a fallout with my father. When we met, I ran forward and attempted to hug her…”
Charlotte’s voice suddenly trailed off at this point as she stared silently at the faraway woman with her emerald eyes, seemingly replaying the very scene in her mind.
“She kicked me aside. She wasn’t even willing to touch me with her hands.”
“…”
Roel’s face twitched. He lowered his head and took a sip of the sweet fruit wine, but it tasted oddly astringent.
“Why did you come to see her then? What’s there to see for someone like her?”
“I don’t know. It could be indignance, or maybe I do carry some lingering affection for her. I’m foolish, aren’t I?”
“… No, you aren’t.”
Roel shook his head.
“I take back the words that I said earlier. It was rude for me to speak in your place. It’s only normal for a child to carry some affection for her own birth mother. It’s just that… I don’t think she’s worthy of you.”
“!”
Charlotte blinked in surprise. She turned her eyes over to look at Roel for a very long time before her lips curled up a little.
“You sound angry.”
“I am angry. What’s wrong with that? Should I not feel angry?”
“No, that’s not it. I just… think that it’s quite refreshing. Those around me usually dare not criticize her before me.”
“It’s just a difference in positions. I can’t be bothered to mince my words here. Do you feel uncomfortable about this?”
“No, it’s fine.”
Charlotte shook her head. She began swirling the cup of fruit wine in her hand unconsciously as she felt a mysterious tingle in her heart.
“This is the first time an outsider has gotten angry on my behalf. It feels rather peculiar, but at the same time, it does delight me a little… But now that I think about it, my fiancé isn’t exactly an outsider either, right?”
“Cough cough!”
The mutterings of this auburn-haired girl made Roel choke on his saliva. Charlotte chuckled softly behind her hand in response.
“You were doing that on purpose?”
“Was I? I thought I was just iterating the truth.”
“I can’t refute that, but still… Forget it.”
Roel decided to just turn away and continue sipping on his fruit wine. Meanwhile, Charlotte continued to stare at him for a while before suddenly speaking.
“Thank you.”
“…”
Roel didn’t respond to Charlotte’s words of gratitude. The two of them silently watched the scenery before them while the couples around them continued immersing themselves in their own little worlds of romance. It was only after nightfall that the host began urging everyone to use their mana to incubate their butterflies, hyping up the atmosphere.
Soon, the youths in the room began professing their feelings for one another. Gasps of amazement could be heard nonstop as beautifully glowing butterflies broke free of their shells and unfurled their wings.
The ravishing smiles of the ladies were comparable to the radiance of the Nightglow Butterflies.
Meanwhile, Charlotte raised her hand toward the woman dressed in blue as she made her prophecy.
“The most brilliant Nightglow Butterfly for the night will be emerging from her hands.”
“Hm? Why is that so?”
“That’s because the host of this event is none other than the Milton House. When it comes to the incubation of Nightglow Butterflies, what’s important is not the amount of mana but the attribute of the mana. I have no doubt that the incubator held by that man has been charged with mana from the Austine Royal Family’s Kingdom Origin Attribute.
“Unless the Theocracy’s Xeclydes personally incubate an egg with their Compassion Origin Attribute, it’s impossible to compete with the Austine Royal Family’s Kingdom Attribute in terms of purity and prowess. By receiving the brightest butterfly, it’d highlight Adelicia as the most beautiful and noble woman here.”
“…”
The words ‘most beautiful and noble’ brought a slight frown to Roel’s face. It was ironic how a woman who had abandoned her family and scarred her daughter was able to live so carefreely in the world. With such thoughts in mind, he turned to his other companion and asked softly.
“Grandar, is the Kingdom Origin Attribute formidable?”
The voice of the giant swiftly reverberated in response in his ears.
“Still passable.”
“Compared to mine?”
“Trash.”
“Pfft. I see.”
The giant’s curt responses carried hardly any emotion at all, but Roel could still sense a hint of bias in the seemingly honest answers, and it made him chuckle a little. He lifted his box and started infusing his mana into it while looking at the girl before him.
Slowly, light began to gather in the vicinity of the incubator.
“Stop looking,” said Roel as he stepped forward and blocked Charlotte’s line of sight.
The gaze from his golden eyes met with Charlotte’s beautiful emerald orbs, and for the first time, there was a slightly tender smile in his gaze.
“Most beautiful woman? The Miltons sure have a bad sense of humor. If anyone here is worthy of being honored as the most beautiful and noble woman, I think the strong-willed person standing before me would be more than appropriate.”
As Roel said these words, the mana coming from his Crown Origin Attribute began to rush outward. Beneath the gentle light coming from the incubator, his smile looked warm and gentle.
“These aren’t empty words, Miss Charlotte. The butterflies can attest to it.”
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