Miorc meat tastes great, but I’m sure you wouldn’t. Useless.
“Ha ha ha! Lord Duval, I’m sure the young lady is just nervous seeing her father after being apart for so long.” Mr. Sharp Eyes was laughing, but there was a condescending ring to it. That didn’t bode well. He gestured to the seat opposite him and said, “Here, take a seat first.”
Before sitting down, I wondered if they’d let me step out for a bit. If I had known this was going to happen, I would’ve returned to the dorm and contacted House Aspozat. Just in case, I cast a protective barrier over the walls and furniture so they wouldn’t get broken. Making barriers with curves and angles was a drag, but I had plenty of practice from the Mystic Forest. I couldn’t protect the sofa across from me, but it would be fine if I used a spell to lift it and dump the people sitting on top.
Given what we were here to discuss, there was a chance of me turning violent. Always make sure to think a few steps ahead. With that done, I reluctantly sat down on the sofa.
“Hey, girl—”
“Excuse me?”
Both of them recoiled.
Do you have any right to call me that?
Quickly recovering, sharp eyes cleared his throat. “We’ve come here to discuss the recent arrangements.”
I didn’t trust that phony smile of his. I tried to come off as cold as possible with my reply. “Arrangements? I don’t believe anything’s been arranged.”
“Hm?”
Father and sharp eyes both looked at me with wide eyes.
“Of course we did!” the miorc erupted. “I’m sure I had a message sent to you! Girl—”
“Excuse me?”
Again, quit calling me that. A miorc can’t survive in the Mystic Forest if he’s dumb, y’know?
As I glared at my decidedly unintimidating father, sharp eyes took over.
“R-Regardless, Lord Duval had a servant leave a message at your dorm, did he not?”
“Yes, a message that contained nothing but meaningless information. It had a place, time, date, and nothing more. I assumed it was some sort of prank.”
That was a lie. I reported it to House Peylon, then put it out of my mind. I hung on to the paper, but only because House Aspozat had told me to. If it was up to me, I would have burned it like it had the plague.
Hearing my response, sharp eyes cast a doubtful look at my father. “Lord Duval, what is the meaning of this?”
“D-Don’t look at me! I made sure to inform my daughter that her marriage has been arranged!”
Oh, I have more explaining to do.
“Yeah, there was that other letter. Someone I don’t know very well suddenly sent me a card saying nothing more than that they’ve arranged my marriage. I thought it was a prank, so I told my guardians about it.”
“Guardians?” my father and sharp eyes asked at the same time.
I bet that was pretty confusing, since the old man across from me was supposed to be my guardian.
“While I’m in the royal capital, I’m in the care of House Aspozat,” I added.
The moment I said that name, the two grew very pale.
Ha ha ha, scary, isn’t it? After all, they’re at the top of the royal faction. Oh? Are they here?
Just as the two started to tremble, there was a familiar presence beyond the door. They rapidly approached the door and entered without knocking.
“Pardon our intrusion, but we’ll be joining you.”
It was Sheila. And Thand was with her.
“Eee!” my father squealed as he jumped from his seat. Pathetic. Honestly, what did my mother see in this man?
There was a flash of confusion on Sheila’s and Thand’s faces, but then they turned to me.
“Lera, this isn’t necessary. Please remove it.”
“Okaaay.”
They must have noticed the barriers. My father and sharp eyes, on the other hand, probably would have said something if they had noticed. Sheila and Thand both joined me on my side, sandwiching me between them on the sofa.
“It’s been some time, hasn’t it, Quinevan? I believe we last met at your wife’s funeral.”
Despite her smile, Sheila was overpowering. My father’s river of sweat was proof of that.
“Y-Y-You might be right about that,” he stammered.
“Hm?”
“My apologies! You’re exactly right!”
He looked like he might start groveling at any moment. It’s painful knowing your father is such a small man.
“So?” Sheila continued, her voice instantly dropping low. “What are you doing inviting Lera to a meeting here?”
“W-Well, I’m...”
He couldn’t say it. He couldn’t tell her that he had gone ahead and brought me a suitor.
Since Sheila already knew about the messages, she continued on. “Yes, that’s right. You sent some strange letter to this girl. It would appear you’ve gone and arranged a marriage for her.”
“Th-That’s...”
“It’s what? Speak clearly now!”
“A parent has a right to manage their child’s marriage!”
“Typically, yes. However, have you been a typical father?”
My father didn’t have an answer. What could he say? When I was three, he kicked me out, sending me to a distant relative. After that, he never once sent me a letter or came to see me. I only ever thought of Duval as the house that kicked me out.
“I’m sure you’re very, very well aware of this,” Sheila said with a frightening smile, “but noble marriages require the approval of the royal family. Do you have that approval?”
Again, he had no answer. This time, it was sharp eyes who panicked.
“Lord Duval? What is this? Don’t tell me you haven’t—”
“D-Don’t worry! I’ll absolutely get approval!”
We’re gonna need to see the evidence.
Hearing his excuses, Sheila became increasingly incensed. It’s funny—the room got plenty of sunlight, yet I felt cold.
“That would imply you haven’t yet received approval. So how do you explain all this?”
“Eeek!”
My father looked like he was about to fall from the sofa and crawl out of the room.
Sheila shifted her attention to sharp eyes. “Oh, you there. I believe you’re Qualos of House Boht, yes? I don’t know what Quinevan might have told you, but he has no authority whatsoever regarding this girl.”
Sheila’s bewitching smile ordered him to put two and two together, which he signaled he could do with a shake of his head.
“P-Pardon me. Lord Duval, you can forget we ever spoke.”
“Huh?!”
Sharp eyes left the room without sparing my father another glance. Left behind, my father appeared on the verge of death.
“Now, let’s have a little talk, shall we?” Sheila said. “Oh, Lera, you can return to the dorm now.”
“Okay. Excuse me.”
I let the adults take care of the miorc from here.