Thought It Was 'The End', Only to Return to a Changed Genre - Chapter 12
Adeline shuddered inwardly. Even after becoming closer, she could never let her guard down around Lucian.
He had taken her out supposedly for fun and then exploited her mercilessly.
Lucian was fundamentally an inscrutable person; it was hard to fully trust him.
He wouldn’t tell everything he knew unless paid, and even though he called her a friend, he didn’t hesitate to trap her for his own benefit.
‘The Imperial Crown Prince is the same, all these friends are really not normal…’
What had happened to her social circle?
Still, as long as she paid, Lucian was a good ally.
He even had the ability to make the living appear dead.
“Why are you smiling like that?”
And what’s with that look in your eyes?
“No, just thinking… you really don’t know anything.”
“About what?”
“About everything that happened after you disappeared.”
“Everything went well, didn’t it?”
“That’s what you think, sure.”
“The Saintess married the man she loves… Everyone lived happily ever after, didn’t they?”
“Pfft!”
Lucian burst into laughter as if he had heard a very funny joke. Adeline was shocked.
“Hey, you’re laughing…?”
She had seen him feign laughter before, but this was the first time he genuinely laughed. It gave her the creeps.
“Don’t laugh! It’s terrifying! What are you scheming!?”
“I’m not scheming anything.”
“…”
“You seriously don’t know anything.”
It was frustrating to be told repeatedly to her face that she knew nothing. Adeline spoke gruffly.
“If you’re just going to tease, then leave. I’m tired.”
“I was about to go anyway. Unlike some people, I’m busy.”
Busy going around killing people… If someone heard him, they might think he was doing volunteer work. Adeline snorted.
Lucian said,
“Cheer up, Adeline. A lot has changed while you were gone. It’ll be interesting.”
“There’s nothing interesting about it. You say that in front of someone whose mother has just died.”
“Oh, right. That was the story, wasn’t it? Ah, sorry, forget I said anything.”
“…?”
His warm smile seemed ominous.
Lucian whispered something to Lloyd and then left without a second glance.
“What did he just say?”
“He said I can go and work for him anytime if I get bored of being by Master’s side.”
“…Are you going?”
“You said you can’t live a day without me.”
“Indeed, I’m a sunfish.”
“I don’t know what a sunfish is, but I definitely don’t want to see you die because of me, so I refuse.”
“I really love you, you know.”
“Yes, yes.”
Lloyd nonchalantly accepted Adeline’s habitual confession as dispassionately as he brushed off Lucian’s habitual scouting. Muttering to himself that she really was incorrigible.
“Let’s hug, my little brother!”
“Try touching me.”
Adeline laughed heartily at Lloyd’s disgusted reaction. He was just like a teenage younger brother.
“Are you really not going back to House Bertrand?”
“Now that I’ve come this far?”
“I still don’t understand why you had to do that.”
“You didn’t ask questions when you helped me though.”
“I was just following orders. But if everything ended with the Saintess’s marriage as you said, wasn’t there no need to give up everything that was rightfully yours?”
“How could I face them, after I’ve cut those ties with my own hands?”
Adeline smiled bitterly.
Though she hadn’t formed deep attachments, it didn’t mean she was devoid of guilt.
‘Back then, I thought I’d die if I didn’t get off the stage… I couldn’t consider my family’s perspective.’
Only after leaving Delmuz did Adeline realize how mentally overwhelmed she had been at the time.
It’s impossible to stay sane without enough sleep.
She hardly remembered about half of the days she had spent tormented by nightmares.
“Shame doesn’t really help you live. Just be shameless once and claim your share of the Bertrand family’s fortune. Aren’t your living costs barely manageable now?”
“I don’t remember ever giving you too little for living expenses…”
“How long do you think you can keep living off that?”
“We still have plenty of money.”
Thankfully, their finances were still robust.
She had prudently collected valuables each time she got bullied by the Imperial Crown Prince and Lucian.
“So, how are you planning to manage the flower offering? The Bertrand family won’t just let anyone in.”
“Lucian said he’d help me sneak in at night. He even got me theater tickets to kill time in the meantime.”
“How much is this?”
Lloyd seemed to have turned into a money-grubber over the past five years, which saddened Adeline. She resolved to make herself rich so her attendant could live without financial worries.
‘Now that I’m free, maybe I’ll ask Lucian to create a new identity for me and try starting a business.’
Adeline said,
“It’s a welcome-back gift.”
“You’re not really believing that, are you?”
“Of course, he must be plotting something to screw me over. That’s his hobby.”
Lloyd chuckled briefly. Adeline shrugged her shoulders.
“I guess I’m not much use to him anymore.”
“That may be true.”
“…”
“If it bothers you, just reclaim your identity.”
“I don’t want to.”
One doesn’t burn down the barn to get rid of the rats. She would quickly leave Delmuz after making the flower offering.
