“So pretty...” Yui said. The Orthyrian gemstones shone like prisms, and their rainbow sparkle changed color depending on the direction you looked at them. Laroque had used them to great effect to create a small, reserved, yet cute design. They fit Yui’s ephemeral aura perfectly, which made sense, given that they had been made for her. As she stood in front of the mirror and tried the jewelry on, nearly all of the customers in the store were looking at her.
“So the jewelry on display was hers,” one said.
“I wonder what family she’s from.”
“How do you think she was able to afford something so expensive?”
Besides that, Yui could faintly make out several envious comments here and there, like “I’m so jealous,” or “I wish I could try them on, just once.” Some had heard the rumors that prospective buyers had been firmly rejected no matter how much or how persistently they’d offered to buy these pieces—these people had come only to see the jewelry. Thus, it made sense that so many people were paying attention to Yui.
“I knew Laroque could do it,” Layce said, satisfied. “He’s an odd one, but his skill is second to none. They fit you perfectly, Yui.”
“But papa, I can’t take all this...” Yui said. She had thought there would only be a single gift. In contrast with her father’s elation, her feelings of guilt surpassed any of the joy she felt. With the clothes and shoes Lydia had given her and the jewelry on her ears and around her neck, just how high was the total price of everything she had on? She was so afraid to know that she couldn’t even make a guess.
“These are my feelings for you, Yui,” Layce said. “This is your first birthday since you became my daughter, so it’s also a kind of commemoration for me. Please accept them.”
It was to celebrate that Yui was his daughter—when he put it that way, there was no way she could refuse.
She smiled softly. “Okay, thanks, papa. I’ll treasure them.”
Layce contented himself with her smile, which Yui only revealed to people she was close with. Suddenly, he heard a displeasing voice coming from right next to him.
“Hey, that was on display just now, wasn’t it?” Adele said. “Let me try them on! It’ll only be for a bit.”
Adele’s rude behavior instantly soured Layce’s mood. She and her mother were the only ones who didn’t notice that she had done the one thing she should’ve avoided.
“Adele, don’t ask that. It’s rude,” Adele’s mother said. However, she continued. “I’m sorry, but my daughter really seems to like them, so if you can, would you mind letting her have just one?”
She sounded like she wanted to say, “You already have so much, so it’d be no big deal if you sold one piece.” The way she pleaded with Layce with an awkward, troubled look on her face might have made the average man want to instinctively help her. However, Layce was the wrong man to try it on. He held his wife and daughter above anyone and anything else, and he didn’t feel charmed by her behavior in the slightest. The only thing he felt was annoyance, and nothing else.
“You can’t be serious,” Layce said in a bone-chilling voice. “In one breath you’re apologizing for your daughter’s impoliteness, and in the next, you’re telling me to give you something? I don’t think you feel sorry at all. That’s the only way I can comprehend how you’d be able to say something so shameless. I have no desire to speak with someone so rude. If you’re going to ask for something, please learn proper manners beforehand.”
The woman looked somewhat surprised. She probably hadn’t imagined he would refuse. As soon as he finished speaking, Layce paid no further attention to either mother or daughter, and he didn’t look at them again. Though the mother stood there dumbfounded, Adele flared up with anger. She was about to talk back to Layce when several people around them started talking.
“To be suddenly demanding that... She’s an awfully impolite lady. Who is she?”
“Quite so. Even if you were thinking it, you should never say something like that. How shameless.”
“And if you wanted to negotiate, there’s a proper way to do it. What was she thinking?”
When Adele and her mother noticed all the judgmental looks directed their way, they hastily left the store.
As Yui watched them go, she had a question for her brothers. “Hey, are they, maybe...?”
“Yeah, they are,” Carlo confirmed. “They’re the woman he remarried and her daughter. The daughter is our half sister, and she’s your age.”
“I see... That’s what I thought,” Yui said, her expression clouding over. Carlo patted her head to comfort her.
Layce frowned. “I’ve heard about them, but they sure are something else.”
“Yeah, her mother only cares about herself, and at home, she only ever does what she wants to do,” Cecil explained, still clearly irritated.
“Adele is her favorite, but she never taught her daughter any manners,” Carlo said angrily. “Adele’s always impolite and doesn’t have any common sense.”
“Our stepmother was surprised when dad stopped paying attention to her.”
“That felt good. She doesn’t have that kind of charm in the first place, so I don’t know what sort of mistaken impression she’s under.”
Judging by those harsh words, Yui could tell how much her brothers hated them.
“Well, it’s no matter. Those idiots are gone now. What’s most important is Yui,” Layce said.
Cecil nodded. “You’re right.”
“Yeah,” Carlo added.
With the three of them in agreement, they went up to Yui and gazed at the jewelry on the table.
“By the way, whose are those?” Cecil asked. He was looking at a necklace, a brooch, a pair of earrings, and a ring with the same Orthyrian gemstones as Yui’s. They, however, had a more grown-up design.
“They’re Sherina’s,” Layce said happily.
Yui and her brothers brought their faces close together, and Carlo whispered quietly, “No matter how you look at it, he had her in mind first.”
Yui and Cecil seemed to agree.
“I think so too.”
“Same here.”
What confirmed it for them was the fact that the gemstones in the pieces meant for Sherina were clearly larger than the ones in Yui’s set. There also were more pieces of jewelry for Sherina.