Chapter 19: Shattered Bonds

Even the chaotic scene of the destroyed room didn’t catch her attention.

The doll embedded in the wall went unnoticed.

“Lady Elin!”

Luke’s gaze was fixed solely on the collapsed Elin.

He quickly scooped her up.

“What in the world happened to you?”

It was evident that her mana heart was strained.

Every time he gently patted her back, chunks of blood poured out.

“Cough… Cough.”

Elin, having spat out all the blood from her mouth, slowly lifted her head.

A chill ran down Luke’s spine.

Her eyes were void, utterly empty, causing goosebumps to rise.

“…Teacher.”

Upon recognizing Luke, vitality returned to her gaze.

The chilling emptiness was replaced by…

“Hic…”

Her tear-filled eyes brimmed with sorrow.

Fresh tears began streaming down, tracing over old, dried ones.

“The doll…”

“The doll?”

“I threw it away.”

“What?”

Looking around the room, everything was in shambles.

Not that there was much to destroy in the first place.

If the doll had been there, it would’ve been impossible not to notice.

Luke’s gaze naturally turned toward Lara.

Now he understood why she ended up in such a state.

Despite warnings, Lara had dared to provoke Elin.

Luke recalled how, in the game, the doll disappeared around this time as well.

Silently, he hugged Elin tightly.

A doll that had been with her for over a decade disappeared overnight.

Not by her choice.

Luke couldn’t begin to fathom how Elin felt.

Understanding the silent signal, Elin buried her face in his chest.

She sobbed quietly, even restraining her tears, unused to expressing emotions so openly.

Holding her close, Luke rose from the wreckage.

A bitter chuckle escaped him.

So this is the weight carried by a 12… no, 13-year-old child.

Luke gently questioned Lara, who was pretending to be unconscious.

“Did harassing such a small child bring you any satisfaction?”

Lara flinched, subtly confirming she was feigning her injuries.

Without awaiting an answer, Luke walked past her.

“I’ll take care of this, Lady Elin. Rest now. When you wake, everything will be resolved.”

He offered a reassuring smile, masking the overwhelming burden he carried.

The healer arrived to examine Elin.

“Her mana heart has been strained again,” the healer diagnosed.

“Will rest suffice this time as well?”

“Yes, but her condition is worse than before. She’ll need a much longer recovery.”

“I understand,” Luke responded with a nod.

It made sense.

To unleash such raw mana power and wreak havoc on the room—it wasn’t surprising she was left in this state.

After the healer left, Natia turned to Luke.

“So, what happened exactly?”

The gossiping maids had ensured the news reached her ears.

“What could have possibly occurred for the room to be destroyed and for her personal maid to end up like that?”

“I’m not entirely sure,” Luke answered, meeting Natia’s skeptical gaze.

“Truly. It happened while I stepped out briefly.”

“Then you have a vague idea at least, don’t you?”

“…It seems her personal maid threw away a doll that Lady Elin cherished deeply.”

“…A doll?”

Natia’s expression said it all.

‘All this over a mere doll?’ she seemed to think.

“Lady Elin didn’t mean for things to escalate this far.”

“Even so, how could something like this happen? Destroying a room and harming her maid?”

“Lady Elin is still inexperienced with controlling her mana,” Luke explained while placing a cold cloth on Elin’s forehead.

“I told you before, didn’t I? She has exceptional talent.”

“…This isn’t exactly how I wanted it to be proven, though,” he added with a sigh.

Natia stared at him for a moment before letting out a deep sigh herself.

“What are we supposed to do about this…?”

‘Not educate, but manage,’ her tone suggested.

To her, Elin wasn’t a child in need of nurturing but rather a troublesome burden causing endless issues.

“Do you intend to punish Lady Elin?”

“Of course. After all, look at the mess she caused.”

Yes.

Letting this incident slide without any consequence would be absurd.

Breaking some furniture might have been one thing, but harming a maid?

Even Gerald wouldn’t have gotten away without punishment for such a thing.

“She had her reasons. I just hope the punishment won’t be too severe,” Luke said firmly.

“All this fuss over a doll? That hardly seems like a reason,” Natia scoffed, glancing toward the sleeping Elin.

“…She’s still a child,” Luke murmured.

The doll was incredibly precious to her.

“Be that as it may…”

Natia folded her arms, biting her lip as if deep in thought.

“At the very least, she should receive 100 lashings with a cane…”

Luke cut her off with a sharp declaration.

“I’ll take the punishment in her place.”

“What?”

“This happened because I failed to guide her properly. As her tutor, it’s my responsibility to bear the consequences.”

Natia smirked, her eyes narrowing with calculating amusement.

“Well, I suppose that makes sense.”

She tilted her head, her cunning expression giving away her scheming thoughts.

“But I can’t exactly punish you in her place either.”

“I have no desire to be struck by the Duchess myself,” Luke quipped dryly.

Corporal punishment wouldn’t solve anything; even Natia likely realized that.

“In that case… I have another idea,” she said, grinning slyly.

Luke listened as Natia detailed her plan.

“…Understood.”

Luke accepted the terms without protest, his tone resolute.

When Elin finally stirred, her entire body felt heavy and her head pounded like it was splitting apart.

Her burning forehead and sore limbs reminded her of the previous incident.

She slowly opened her eyes.

“…Ah.”

A cracked voice escaped her dry throat.

Above her was an unfamiliar ceiling.

“Where… am I?”

The wrecked room was nowhere to be seen.

Memories came flooding back—the despair of losing her bunny doll, the uncontrollable surge of mana, the explosion, and…

Being cradled in Luke’s arms as she sobbed.

A surge of embarrassment washed over her.