Chapter 141
C141
I knew that the original plot changed quite a bit thanks to me.
"But, isn't the breaking of the barriers an event separate and independent of my participation?"
I wondered if I had missed something important, so I asked Margaret if there had been any issues with the barriers in the last two weeks.
"In the text, I haven't heard that anything like that happened recently."
"I knew it, I wasn't the only one who hadn't heard of it."
Mia probably won't receive much attention at the upcoming incense-burning ceremony if things continue like this.
The fact that there were no damages to the monster barriers meant that Mia didn't have a stage to play an active role as the female lead.
"Putting that aside, no matter how many times I looked for that defective coin, I couldn't find it."
It was something I liked a lot.
The servants approached me with a dress full of jewels and colorful accessories while my mind was wrapped in an unresolved premonition.
It was for the dinner held today in the mansion.
In addition to the direct line of the Seymour family, the families of the indirect line Seymour were also invited to the incense ceremony and are currently in the capital.
"Deborah hated her relatives a lot."
Deborah is the only one who had no mana sensitivity among all the direct lines, and the fact that she was lagging behind the others constantly pricked at her inferiority complex.
Perhaps that's why Deborah dressed glamorously to show off to her relatives later. Then, she would look down on them while opening her fan.
But instead, she would look ridiculous as if she were conscious of her inferiority.
"In the text, it's not even a dance; this colorful outfit is too much. Bring elegant and formal clothing."
"Yes."
I walked out the door in an elegant evening gown.
As I descended the stairs, Belreck and Enrique suddenly stood in front of the door.
"How can you be an escort when you're a scaredy-cat?"
"I'm not a scaredy-cat!"
Enrique grumbled as he clenched his small fist, and Belreck extended his arm towards me while mocking.
"What the hell just happened?"
"I'll accompany you to dinner."
"I'll go with Enrique. Could you accompany me?"
"Sister..."
When I extended my arm to Enrique, he held onto me tightly with his big, shining eyes, as if he were moved.
"I tried to improve your mood because I obviously knew you didn't like relatives."
Belreck grumbled as he lowered his arm.
"Don't I feel bad? I'm fine these days."
"Good. You're also threatening the successor, so I worried for nothing."
Belreck matched his pace with mine while teasing and arrived at the dining room with them.
When three members of the direct line entered together, they drew everyone's attention, and Dad smiled gently.
"You all came together. Come, take a seat."
I couldn't lose my appetite just because of this atmosphere.
I focused on the glamorous two-hour dinner and emptied the dessert.
Meanwhile, the head of the family was worried about the future of the empire with anxious faces.
"I'm worried about the upcoming incense ceremony because public sentiment is not good."
"But haven't the barriers calmed down lately?"
"If there is a crack again and it causes great harm to people, people will consider the imperial family and the nobles as incompetent."
"A small amount of water breaks the rock*, but the cause of the crack couldn't be found..."
Rosad arrived in the middle of a serious conversation.
Rosad immediately emptied the wine as soon as he sat down as if he were thirsty.
"Rosad. What happened for you to arrive so suddenly?"
"I returned from an investigation with Major Cassie because there was an unknown earthquake."
Major Cassie was also a battle mage; I knew him because he asked me to pass by the battle training field whenever he went to give a lecture at the tower; it seems Rosad chose him as an investigator because he had good knowledge of the terrain.
"And then?"
"I wondered if there was a problem with the barrier, but when I went to the Temple of Euclides, I came back empty-handed because nothing happened."
"I was anxious about the barriers, but I'm glad nothing happened."
"That's right."
It was a comforting atmosphere in general, but I felt out of place and squinted my eyes.
"Something is strange."
When I muttered, the curious eyes of the head of the family were focused on me.
"What is strange?"
Rosad also questioned me.
"If it's the Temple of Euclides, isn't that place not far from the capital?"
I knew because I remembered all the important locations of the temples.
"But I wonder why there was no aftershock at all."
Earthquakes don't vibrate just once in a single occurrence, but lead to a series of small earthquakes.
"The earthquake is not a local phenomenon, but it's strange that there was no vibration in the Yones district adjacent to the temple. Moreover, the capital, the coastal region, is not a region where earthquakes are frequently reported. It's not like there's a volcano nearby."
Then, the elderly head of one of the indirect families agreed with me with a surprised expression.
"What you said is correct. My estate is near a volcano, so earthquakes happen frequently, and there's always an aftershock."
"So, are you saying it's not a natural phenomenon like an earthquake? No one could feel any vibration here today."
Everyone nodded in agreement with Duke Seymour's words, and I was lost in thought.
"Maybe, Mia's incident calming the barrier is related to this earthquake?"
I'm sure there is a connection with the monsters based on the novel's timeline.
"What if the crack occurred underground, and not on the surface?"
Rosad suddenly stood up at my words.
"Moreover, if the monsters are still underground, wouldn't this earthquake phenomenon be more convincingly explained?"
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