Translator: MarcTempest
Proofreader: naturallyInconsistent
Chapter 154 Shade
My body felt perfectly fine.
After leaving the bedroom, the first thing Trixie saw was the head maid, who was leaning against the wall of the corridor and sleeping.
Flan had advised her not to enter, but she was so worried about Trixie that she endured standing there for almost a week.
And there was one more thing.
The head maid was not the only one who was sleeping leaning on the wall.
Louis and Becky were also snoozing side by side, beside him.
Trixie was amazed.
She felt as if her body had been washed clean, and she also marveled at the mindset of someone who could keep their place for a week because they were worried.
And now, the four of them were walking slowly along the corridor of the mansion, exchanging stories.
“The former lord really liked you, miss.”
“…”
It was awkward to hear Isaac being called the ‘former’ lord. She couldn’t believe that she was the current lord.
“He wished for you to reach the peak of the flame more than just being kind to you. He thought that it would be a good thing in the end…”
“I had no idea.”
“Well…”
Head maid nodded her head.
“He strictly ordered the older maids to keep their mouths shut. And he also said that someday you would stop hating him.”
As soon as she heard that, Trixie snorted.
What do you mean, stop hating?
She still hated her father.
She hated him for passing on his power to her and leaving her alone.
“Hmm…”
Becky glanced around and opened her mouth.
“Trixie, how did you feel? About the former lord, I mean.”
Then Trixie’s gaze turned to the side of the corridor.
There was a portrait of Isaac there.
It was drawn quite similarly, but the paint couldn’t express his blue eyes that shimmered like waves.
“He was always strict. Mom rarely came back to the mansion, so I waited every day for her to return.”
It was not a lie.
Trixie thought that Isaac was a very angry person and that he hated her sincerely.
She had no choice but to think that way.
He was always irritable because he was devoted to something, and he would whip her if she made even a slight mistake. And he would invite famous magicians to the mansion every day and have meetings until late at night.
One day in her childhood, Isaac quietly called Trixie to his room.
That was the first time she saw him drunk.
It was a day that the von Fritz, the flame family, didn’t welcome. It rained as if the sky had a hole in it.
The thunder was so loud that the words were barely audible, but Isaac put his hand on Trixie’s shoulder and said.
─I failed to escape from your mother’s shadow.”
Trixie didn’t know what emotion was mixed in his voice. She couldn’t hear him well anyway.
─No matter how hard I tried, no matter how much I achieved, no one recognized me. People will only remember your mother’s flame in the end. I also spent my life looking at the fire.”
Maybe he sobbed then.
─My daughter.
He said to Trixie.
─You must not be hidden by your mother’s shadow. You must surpass it. You don’t know how cruel it is to be trapped in this shadow. I hope you never know.
It was a story that young Trixie couldn’t understand.
After that, Isaac never showed his emotions again.
His face lost its expression, and his tone lost its intonation. He rarely explained why he ordered Trixie to do something.
One day, mom visited the mansion.
Mia von Fritz.
Trixie still remembered what her mom said after seeing the traces of her dad’s efforts.
─Why did you do this much? You worked hard.
She definitely said that.
After finishing her thoughts, Trixie opened her mouth calmly.
“Dad was a stupid person.”
“…”
“He knew better than anyone that he couldn’t surpass mom’s flame, but he didn’t give up.”
Trixie’s eyes were still on Isaac’s portrait. She reached out and touched it.
Her head was still full of questions.
Why did he suffer alone with his worries? Why didn’t he give up even though he knew it was impossible?
“He was more foolish than anyone, but I guess I wished he was a genius.”
Isaac raised his daughter in the opposite way.
He made Trixie strive for the impossible, so that she could become a genius.
“…Trixie.”
Becky quietly took off her hat. She hugged it as if it were a doll.
Not only Becky, but also the head maid and Louis didn’t know what to say.
They just looked solemn.
Becky was the first to break the silence.
“But…”
She continued cautiously.
“Wasn’t there a better way? I know I’m not in any position to say anything, but I just feel so sorry for you.”
“It’s the difference between magic and innate abilities.”
Louis answered carefully.
“They say that innate abilities of the highest level can be inherited easily, but magic requires a life as a medium. There’s no other way.”
As always, reality was too cruel.
The stories of Isaac teaching Trixie with affection and making her a genius, the stories of him passing on his power comfortably while keeping his life…
They were, of course, nonexistent.
“I hate it.”
Trixie bit her lip.
“Dad didn’t trust me. He thought I could never surpass Mom without inheriting this. How dare he…”
But she couldn’t finish her sentence.
How desperate must he have been?
How much had he suffered from the sense of defeat and inferiority, until his emotions had worn out and numbed? How hard had he tried to prevent Trixie from going through the same thing?
Silence fell again, and Becky fiddled with her hat and said something.
“He was still a good person. I don’t know who my parents are, so I don’t really understand… Ugh, I don’t know what to say to be polite or comforting…”
“He wasn’t a good person.”
Trixie cut her off. The girl’s eyes were filled with many thoughts.
“I told you. Dad was a fool, and I hate him. He was irresponsible. He was incompetent.”
“…Trixie.”
“I don’t care what others think. I don’t. Who would want something like this? What I wanted was…”
Trixie stopped talking.
No, she couldn’t.
She turned her body away from the portrait of Isaac.
Since they couldn’t even guess the feelings of the person involved, the others kept quiet.
Then, at some point, Becky opened her mouth.
“Oh, Trixie. By the way, Flan…”
“You better not talk about that.”
The head maid quickly stopped Becky. But Trixie had already heard the name Flan, and she was curious.
Come to think of it, the trivia in the bedroom was Flan’s. She hadn’t opened it yet, but she had checked the note.
The note that told her to come to the grave.
“What are you talking about?”
Trixie asked, but no one answered.
“What are you talking about?”
“That’s…”
As Trixie pressed, the head maid couldn’t keep stopping her.
Finally, Becky opened her mouth carefully.
“Flan said it was nothing, and he told me to tell you to come to the grave when you wake up…”
Everyone looked at Trixie nervously because of the shocking story. But Trixie just asked again.
“Did he say anything else?”
Becky swallowed dryly.
“I don’t know if I should say this…”
“It’s okay. You can tell me.”
“Uh-huh.”
Becky nodded slightly.
“He said not to have any regrets. He said that a mage should never lose her way in any situation. And he said that emotions always make you lose your way…”
Becky raised her hand hastily and added.
“Oh, no! But I don’t think Flan meant it in a bad way. You know Flan’s personality, right?”
“Where is Flan now?”
Trixie only asked that.
“He’s… probably near the grave. He’s been there for a week.”
“Near the grave?”
“Yeah. He doesn’t eat or sleep.”
“…”
Trixie’s eyes narrowed.
What was he thinking, staying near the grave for a week, leaving a note for her to come there? She felt like she had to find out.
“I got it.”
Leaving the rest behind, Trixie took a step.
◈
Dawn.
The exact time she had seen in her dream.
Trixie arrived at the grave. In the center of the very quiet space, a man stood quietly.
“You came.”
He only muttered that.
…Finally, Trixie faced Flan.
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