Chapter 169

༻━━━━━━༺✧⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄✧༻━━━━━━༺

It was a long way back to her place by herself.

Luciel’s eyes turned red, and suddenly she saw a greenhouse garden.

Kizef sent fruits along with the letter.

‘Shall we plant this fruit?’

Luciel cautiously entered the greenhouse garden. A magic lantern lit amidst the luxuriantly grown ornamental plants was softly glimmering at night.

During Luciel’s absence, the greenhouse garden had changed a lot. Most of the plants were herbs and were re-planted in front of the Cicline’s apothecary in the territory, and instead, plants of special climates and beautiful flowers were seen.

However, there was a plant that remained in the same corner. It was a banana with a bunch of elongated fruits.

‘It’s the banana that Leoni liked.’

As soon as Luciel thought so, she felt someone’s presence in the greenhouse where she thought there was no one.

She saw the back of Leoni’s chestnut-like yellow head. He had been cold the entire time they were together today.

It’s been a long time since Luciel has last seen him, so she thought he’d grown a lot, but seeing him looking up and not moving from the spot in front of the banana tree, he was still a child.

‘Good. I’ll have to ask what’s going on.’

Luciel once again gathered up her courage and approached Leoni.

“Leoni, you still like bananas.”

As their eyes met, again Leoni’s face hardened and he tried to avoid it.

When he saw Leoni trying to get out of the greenhouse garden, Luciel blocked his way. Then he turned and tried to go the other way, but this time Luciel blocked him with her arms wide open.

“Don’t go, talk to me.”

Leon’s thick eyebrows wriggled like caterpillars.

“Teleport.”

Shrek.

Blue light flickered, and Leoni tried to teleport, giggling with a showy chuckle.

‘Well, I don’t want to do it like this, but I can’t help it…….’

But Luciel was confident that she would not lose in magic skills. She blinked and cast a spell.

“Hold!”

Soon, Leoni’s feet were tied tightly to the spot.

“……Whoa, what are you doing?”

Tap. Tap.

As Luciel leisurely approached him, she answered.

“It’s because you keep avoiding me.”

“…….”

Luciel seized Leoni by the shoulder, and was deeply worried that his thin, shaky eyes seemed somehow hurt.

“Leoni, why are you acting like a stranger? This sister missed you so much…… ”

“……What. We’re strangers.”

Leoni, who faced Luciel, said so as his eyes red as pomegranates fluttered to and fro.

She hugged Leoni, who was taller than his peers.

“……Wh-what are you doing?!”

When he was trapped in Luciel’s arms without escape, Leoni dyed his plump cheeks red.

‘Seems like a kitten growling.’

As Luciel reached out her hand and stroked his soft hair, he did not dodge it anymore. Leoni’s expression looked more relaxed than before.

Now that his anger was released a little, it was her chance, so Luciel said.

“……Maybe…something is wrong, isn’t it?”

“No.”

“Then why are you so angry?”

“I’m not angry…….”

Leoni’s eyes were tearful when he met Luciel’s eyes, but he shook his head and confidently said.

“You didn’t say anything to me. Luciel went to the tower, and brother went to Dracan. Don’t you think it’s too much?”

At those words, even Luciel couldn’t help but nod her head deeply. It was true that she didn’t talk to Leoni properly because he was young.

“Sorry. Were you hurt by it?”

“……There was no letter.”

“Oh, that’s not true. I’m sure I sent it on your birthday…….”

“A card with a few lines?”

“…….”

Leoni’s protruding lips were as cute as a duck, Luciel groaned.

“And I know you didn’t tell me all the secrets.”

Leoni rolled his eyes like a wildcat and Luciel felt sweat dripping down his face.

Most of the stories related to Luciel were confidential to little Leoni, so there might be a misunderstanding that his family was leaving him behind.

‘It’s not like that…….’

“……Ah, that.”

Luciel tried to make excuses, but now that Leoni had grown this much, she thought he was old enough to know.

Luciel put a finger to his lips and said.

“You must not tell anyone but our family.”

When Luciel asked like that, Leoni puffed up his cheeks.

“Hey, do you think I’m that young?”

“All right, I’ll believe you. I’ll tell you a secret, so next time, please don’t ignore me.”

“…What are you going to show me?”

Luciel seized mana and collect it, and Leoni’s eyes, which had been silently thinking that it was frivolous magic, grew very large.

Trollong, Trollong!

Luciel handed the brilliantly shining topaz to Leoni he asked,

“……W-What is all this? Is Luciel a witch?”

Leoni worriedly asked with a distorted face. A witch from a book he had read somewhere flashed through his mind. Witches do all sorts of strange magic.

“Do you think I look like one?”

“That……then can you ride a wand?”

“No, I can’t ride it.”

Luciel smiled and summoned her wand to show Leoni.

“I don’t think it looks like it’s meant to be used as a ride.”

Summoning a gleaming wand, Luciel looked so mysterious that he couldn’t take his eyes off her.

As if she had scattered the moonlight, her long silver hair and the bright smile became prettier than when she was young, making him stare blankly.

“If…If Lu-Luciel is a witch it’s all right too……!”

“……Huh? I’m not a witch. Rather than that, Why do you keep calling me by my name? You used to call me sister everywhere when you were young.”

“……T-That.”

Leonie had red cheeks again but turned the topic around.

“Then if you are not a witch, what you are?”

“I am a fairy. A fairy with the power to make jewels.”

“……Fairy.”

Little Leoni didn’t seem to know what that meant yet, so Luciel was quite lucky. Because she wanted to tell less painful stories.

“Well, if you keep making those jewels like this, then we must protect you very carefully.”

“That’s right.”

Leoni shrugged his shoulders and stretched out his chest to say.

“Okay, then I’ll protect you.”

Luciel smiled mischievously as she remembered the promise he had made in his younger days.

“Well, then Leoni will be my knight. No, is it my wizard?”

But Leoni shook his head and said while squinting his eyes.

“No, no. I will be your husband.”

“……What? Pff! That’s not allowed. I am your sister-in-law.”

Luciel burst into laughter while looking at Leoni who was cute, but he told her.

“I heard that the marriage with brother would end in three years.”

“Oh, where did you hear about that?”

“Uh? What……I don’t know.”

While Luciel was thinking of Kizef, which she had forgotten for a moment, the hold magic suddenly dissipated, and Leoni picked up unknown flowers in the surrounding garden. When he put them together, it became a bouquet.

“Sister Luciel, ah, no, sister-in-law. In three years, I will be as tall and as strong as the banana three. So when I grow up in this wall, I want to marry my sister-in-law. Let’s get married! Huh?”

A bouquet of flowers was offered with his still small hands. Leoni’s ears were as red as his chubby cheeks.

Surprised by the seriousness of the young child, Luciel dropped the bouquet while receiving it, and Leoni quickly picked it up and popped it out again.

“……What?”

“Sister. Let’s get married. Yes?”

“……Well, Leoni.”

Leoni clang to Luciel and begged her.

‘He has only grown in size, but it’s still a little Leoni on the inside.’

Luciel sighed inwardly and asked, barely trying to appease him.

“Why do you want to marry me?”

“Because you are the prettiest in the world.”

“Well, that’s…… Leoni, when you grow up, the prettiest person in the world will be someone other than me. So save that word for now, so that you don’t regret it.”

“…….”

As Luciel said that, she patted Leoni on his back. Then Leoni sighed like a deflated balloon, and then he said.

“Well, I’ve been dumped. Am I that bad?

Leoni had a strong naughty impression thanks to his short scarlet blonde hair and thick eyebrows. When one side of the forehead was exposed, his tall nose bridge becomes more prominent and his beauty stands out more.

As he was stroking his smooth face with his hand as if he knew he was handsome when he asked so.

“Our Leoni has the face of a Prince.”

At Luciel’s praise, Leoni, unable to hide his crooked mouth, replied.

“So are you going to miss me like this?”

“Leoni, where did you learn all those things?”

Luciel said, ‘There’s nothing this ten-year-old can’t say’ while holding up the basket of berries that Kizef had sent her.

It was a hard, flat brown fruit. When tapped, a popping sound could be heard.

“Leoni, what is this? Your brother sent it to me.”

“Oh, that. Brother also sent me something similar.”

“Oh really?”

“Yes, I’ve already planted them over there.”

When Leoni went to the place where his finger was pointing, Luciel saw a place where soil was piled-up.

“Would Sister like to plant hers, too?”

“Yes.”

Leoni took Luciel’s fruit and skillfully planted it using the magic tool.

“Wait a minute. If you put my jewels in it, anything will grow well.”

Shosh.

When Leoni planted the topaz on the fruit, Luciel moistened it with water magic.

They didn’t know what kind of fruit it was, but if it was Kizef, he would have sent something that would please her and Leoni.

Still, it was fortunate that his misunderstanding was resolved. Leoni in her previous life grew up crooked and went down a bad path.

‘I should pay more attention.’

“Leoni, if you have new friends, show them to your sister.”

“Yes. Don’t worry. I’m not going to have a girlfriend.”

Leoni laughed and scratched his head but Luciel replied.

“You can date.”

“I hate it. A good man is single-minded.”

Leoni shook his head, crossing his arms. He seemed to have misunderstood something again, but the night was getting closer.

“Let’s go to bed now, it’s late.”

“Yes.”

Leoni, holding Luciel’s hand tightly, summoned the sphere in his other hand with light magic to illuminate the darkness.

“I’ll take you to the private residence.”

“What are you talking about. Sister will take you.”

“They said it’s the man who escorts.”

Tired of arguing with the stubborn Leoni, Luciel just opened a spatial portal and waved her hand.

“Leoni, this one will go straight to your room so go inside. Good night!”