Mana and Nikolai

“My lord, young masters, welcome back.”

The butler lowered his head and spoke with neither servility nor arrogance.

His tone conveyed respect without losing elegance, perfectly matching his bearing.

“Rise.”

Mana dismissed the formalities out of habit.

To him, ceremony hardly mattered.

The butler had been his old friend for many years.

Ever since Mana’s youth, when he first began traveling, this elderly gentleman had always followed him.

Thinking carefully, it had already been more than fifty years.

Time truly spared no one.

“…Ah.”

The father and his two sons followed the butler into the inner courtyard, walking swiftly toward the estate.

Mana let out an unconscious sigh.

He himself did not even realize that he had sighed.

The long sigh went unnoticed by him.

But others saw it clearly and took it to heart.

“My lord?

Why the sigh?”

The butler had followed Mana for decades and knew him well.

The Ironblood Duke had never hesitated over anything.

In politics, he stood alone.

With his own strength, he debated countless opponents, pushed through reforms, and led the empire toward prosperity.

The success of those reforms naturally offended some people.

But they truly spared the nation from famine.

That feat of verbal conquest made him famous in his early years, earning him the supreme title of Ironblood.

Emperor Louis, naturally, granted him the reward he deserved—

A fiefdom.

It was one of the eight great vassal states of the Austan Continent.

The Bordeaux region.

After receiving his territory and becoming a grand duke, he did not grow complacent.

He vigorously promoted agriculture and developed the economy.

He also successfully made magitech the primary focus of his duchy’s development.

In less than ten years, Bordeaux’s magitech openly became the best on the continent.

He also knew well that if his duchy grew too powerful, it would become the target of suppression sooner or later.

The tallest tree catches the wind.

Thus, he always maintained a balanced attitude.

Neither conspicuous nor obscure.

Other duchies dared not move against him.

And yet—

Even such a nearly flawless and wise duke had sighed.

The butler could not understand it.

“My lord, since that incident, you have never sighed again.”

“What could be the reason this time?”

That incident referred to Golia’s death in childbirth.

It was Mana’s unresolved knot.

Having followed Mana for over fifty years, the butler had only ever seen him sigh once.

This second sigh filled him with doubt.

“Old Nik.”

Mana spoke softly.

“Tell me.”

“If you had a close family member, shunned by you for over ten years without reason.”

“Even when everyone bullied him, you never helped.”

“Yet he always put on a face that said, ‘It’s fine, I don’t mind.’”

“Until the day he completely broke down.”

“Only then did I realize he was like a snail.”

“Resilient, yet fragile.”

“Unable to receive any light, yet unable to truly disappear.”

“I wanted to save him.”

“But I did not want to help him.”

“To free him from suffering, I sent him away from home.”

“I hoped he would learn to protect himself and leave forever.”

“Yet at the same time, I hoped he would return now and then to see me.”

Mana sighed again and continued.

“I don’t understand my own feelings.”

“You know, a normal person would have left that so-called ‘home’ forever.”

“But he came back.”

“He used what he learned after leaving to save the two people who bullied him the most.”

“In the end, I didn’t even say thank you.”

“He went off to die like that.”

“Not even a body was left behind.”

“It’s ridiculous.”

Mana gave Nikolai a bitter smile.

“My lord is speaking of the third young master, I presume.”

Nikolai replied calmly.

“I understand.”

“Please put your mind at ease.”

“The dead cannot return.”

“The third young master went to war to repay kindness.”

“He repaid your aid.”

“You need not bear any burden.”

“You believe that back then you should have protected him properly.”

“But now, everything is already too late.”

“You feel longing because blood ties cannot be erased.”

“That is only natural.”

“I believe Allen became a ‘substitute’ for this very reason.”

“At present, my lord should cherish what remains.”

“Build good relations with the two young masters.”

“That is the priority.”

“After all, the dead cannot return.”

Nikolai spoke honestly.

At this moment, Charlotte and Alex had already returned to their own rooms.

Each was making preparations, inspecting rooms that had long been cleaned.

That was why Mana and Nikolai could speak of Allen freely.

Because Charlotte and Alex were the two people Mana referred to.

“I always felt that upon learning of his death, I was strangely relieved.”

“As if a burden had finally been lifted.”

“But it wasn’t entirely that.”

“I began to feel something was missing.”

“That was when I realized—

He was also my child.”

“Just like Charlotte and Alex.”

“He should have lived happily, just like his brothers.”

“But because of my inaction, I abandoned him.”

“He never asked me for anything.”

“He didn’t even know what it meant to ask.”

“Only after he died did I realize how foolish I was.”

“Everything was my fault.”

“I committed a grave error.”

“I drove them into opposition.”

“Now I regret it.”

“But he is already dead…”

Mana spoke calmly, as if recounting someone else’s story.

“I am the chancellor of a nation.”

“I am the Ironblood Duke.”

“I judge decisively.”

“I act without hesitation.”

“I have done right.”

“I have done wrong.”

“But I have never regretted anything.”

“Except now.”

“I truly failed him.”

“……”

Mana fell silent.

The summer sunlight was dazzling.

It pierced through the uncurtained windows and fell directly upon Mana’s face.

Nikolai looked at the man before him.

An old man past fifty.

His hair was still thick, betraying no sign of age.

Yet it had almost completely turned white.

The once brilliant golden hair inherited from the Leonardo family was now replaced by strands of silver.

Normally, a man of fifty would not have hair like this.

Yet recently, all of it had turned white.

“My condolences.”

Nikolai stood up and patted Mana on the shoulder.

He then left the hall.

He needed to have his wife prepare for the welcoming arrangements.

So he excused himself.

His wife was preparing a lunch large enough for everyone in the estate.

He went to help her.

Mana rested his forehead in his hand and began to ponder.

………………

“Karianna, help me a bit.”

“This outfit is so hard to wear.”

Allen called out toward the doorway.

This formal dress was truly troublesome.

A blue-and-black dress with two layers of fabric.

The inner layer was comfortable silk.

The outer layer resembled a scholar’s garment, textured and refined.

The pleats formed layered ruffles.

Neat rather than messy.

Creating elegant patterns.

The hem reached the middle of her calves.

Beautiful yet dignified.

She wore black ankle-length cotton socks and brown flat leather shoes.

Altogether, they looked simple.

Yet carried a unique charm.

Allen felt something strange about it.

“See?”

“Isn’t it much prettier when you change clothes?”

“Stop dressing like an old man all the time~”

Karianna said, wearing the same outfit as Allen.

“Father said we need to dress formally for the duke’s welcome feast.”

“Why do you dislike skirts so much?”

“I’m used to traveling.”

“That’s why I don’t like skirts.”

Allen made up an excuse.

“And you?”

“Why are you always managing me?”

Allen countered.

“Because I like you~”

She laughed.

“Huh?”

“You like me?”

“That’s a confession then?”

Allen teased.

“Pfft, no!”

“I mean I like your way of handling things.”

“Not that kind of like!”

Karianna hurriedly explained.

“Besides, I already like someone.”

She added.

“Oh!”

“That’s serious!”

“I know now!”

“These past few days you keep mentioning Alex.”

“Do you like the eldest young master?”

Allen said with exaggerated surprise.

In truth, she had sensed it.

Karianna often spoke of Alex.

Always praising him.

Allen disliked her two brothers and would occasionally criticize them.

But whenever she spoke ill of Alex, Karianna would immediately jump up to argue.

Even someone as wooden as Allen understood the reason by now.

And just now—

Karianna’s face had flushed red in an instant.

It was obvious.

Allen did not want to see her brothers at all.

But she had no choice.

She could only let fate decide.

In fact, this body reminded her of childhood.

Of the dark wine cellar.

Her mind began to ring.

Cold sweat followed.

The beating that night.

The small dark room.

They became her permanent scars.

“You look terrible.”

“What’s wrong?”

Karianna noticed Allen’s pale face and gently touched her forehead.

“It’s nothing…”

“Hahaha.”

Allen forced a bitter laugh.

This was something she did not want others to know.

She planned to hide at the very end of the dining line.

Avoid eye contact with her father and brothers.

She was afraid she would not be able to stop herself from running away.

She was weak again.

She did not know if, once discovered, they would confine her again.

From childhood to now, she had tried countless ways.

She had never succeeded in pleasing her father or brothers.

She had finally felt sunlight.

She did not want to fall back into darkness.

“Secretly telling you.”

“My dad is the butler~”

“If you want anything, I can ask him for you.”

“If you’re sick, we can take leave this afternoon and go to the church.”

“No need.”

“Thank you for your kindness.”

Allen replied.

“I told you not to say thank you!”

“It makes us sound unfamiliar!”

“Let’s go.”

“Stop fooling around…”

Allen said.

Then she stepped out the door.

It was time to face them.

“Wait for me!”