Father, I Won’t Do Anything

“You were absent from the Magic Tower yesterday.”

“Ah… I was at the Count Bondrewd’s estate.”

Upon hearing this, Diamid’s brow furrowed slightly.

“For what reason?”

“To… engage in some activities with the young lady Marilyn there.”

“Through the entire night, you mean?”

“I ended up dozing off midway…”

For some reason, Jaina couldn’t shake the feeling of being interrogated.

‘Was there something I was needed for yesterday? How did he become aware of my absence?’

“Was there perhaps something improper in my conduct?”

“…No.”

“Then I shall head inside first.”

With a polite bow, Jaina turned towards Mikael.

No matter how irate Mikael might be, it was far preferable to conversing with Diamid.

“Staying out overnight without permission at the mere age of thirteen?”

“My mistake. I will be sure to provide advance notice next time.”

Jaina endured a barrage of Mikael’s scolding.

About how alarmed he had been upon finding her missing last night.

How even her maid had been utterly flustered, an unprecedented occurrence.

How he had contemplated deploying tracking magic across the entire Empire.

“I was about to go retrieve you myself before that brat claimed you were with a friend, so I left you be. You know that?”

Mikael’s eyes narrowed menacingly.

“But is she truly just a friend? Or did you perhaps get caught up in some unsavory business? This cat mentioned her having dueled the girl’s knight escorts before.”

Mikael possessed an almost preternatural intuition for such matters.

“Sometimes friendships do blossom through conflict, you know. I wasn’t being held against my will.”

“If you had been, I would have razed that entire county estate without hesitation.”

Mikael clicked his tongue in apparent disappointment before pinching Jaina’s plump cheeks and stretching them taut.

“Owww- Sthahpp ith-“

“You’re aging me prematurely, you little troublemaker! Are these chubby cheeks all you’re good for?”

Though Jaina wished to protest his nonsensical rationale, she knew remaining silent was the swiftest way to curtail his nagging lecture.

“You also attended a concert with the Tower Lord just a few days prior, didn’t you? That makes two outings already.”

“Yes, he invited me to come with him.”

“What? Truly?”

Mikael erupted into an exaggerated outburst.

“Compared to when you first arrived at the Magic Tower, doesn’t the Tower Lord seem to be treating you far better these days?”

Jaina recalled her initial encounter with Diamid.

-How do I know that you too, like your mother, aren’t a brazen swindler and a materialistic person

-Even if you were my biological daughter, nothing would change. Don’t ever approach me or expect anything from me again.

He had certainly changed considerably since then. Back then, the notion of venturing outside alone with Diamid would have been unthinkable.

“Keeping you secluded here at the Magic Tower, could it be he has come to secretly acknowledge you as his own daughter?”

“That’s not the case.”

Jaina adamantly refuted the claim, prompting Mikael to gaze at her with stunned bewilderment, rendered momentarily speechless by her adamance.

“The Tower Lord would never do such a thing.”

Jaina was well aware of the details from the novels – how she had died, and Diamid’s subsequent actions in the aftermath.

‘Suggesting I’d sooner be struck by lightning seventeen times in the same spot would be more plausible.’

For he could never acknowledge her as his daughter under any circumstances.

* * *

Today, Jaina found the dining hall to be exceptionally lavish and ornate.

“Come in, Jaina. The Tower Lord will soon be evaluating the meal, so why not offer a taste test?”

“While I would happily partake, what if our palates differ, causing me to lead you astray instead?”

“I highly doubt that will be an issue. Truthfully, I’m far more concerned about your assessment than the Tower Lord’s.”

Hilvenzia wore a meaningful smile.

“What if the food is so unpalatable that it drives you to run away from home?”

Realizing Hilvenzia was obliquely referencing her overnight absence, Jaina broke out in a cold sweat inwardly.

“That would never happen.”

“Really?”

Hilvenzia’s narrowed eyes seemed more intimidating than ever before.

‘Responding flippantly in such situations would be akin to leaping into a raging inferno.’

To avoid provoking Hilvenzia’s ire further, Jaina meekly replied:

“I won’t stay out overnight again. And if I must, I will inform you in advance.”

“My, how obedient you’ve become.”

Yet Hilvenzia didn’t let the matter drop so easily.

“Still, I wonder why our dear Jaina acted so improperly despite knowing better…”

Sensing the potential for further reprimand, Jaina swiftly reached for her utensils.

“Then I shall partake with gratitude.”

As she began sampling the food, chewing thoughtfully, Jaina’s expression brightened like the morning sun.

“Is it to your liking?”

“Yes, absolutely delicious.”

Jaina enthusiastically gave two thumbs up.

“Hohoh. As expected, the satisfaction of a pleased diner makes all the effort worthwhile. The denizens of this Magic Tower are utterly devoid of taste buds, utterly overwhelmed by magic.”

Grumbling, Hilvenzia exchanged a glance with Mikael diagonally across before quirking a peculiar smile.

“I had worried you might find my cooking insipid after indulging in superior fare yesterday… But I’m relieved that wasn’t the case.”

Jaina sensed her overnight absence would be a lingering topic of scrutiny.

“Ah, haha, ha.”

Forcing an artificial laugh while her face remained frozen, Jaina deftly steered the conversation elsewhere.

“By the way, are these meant to be eaten with or without the shells?”

“However you prefer, they’re delectable either way. These are salt-baked, you see…”

With gleaming eyes, Jaina began sampling each of Hilvenzia’s meticulously prepared dishes one by one, proactively inquiring about the proper way to consume them.

Hilvenzia’s earlier remark about finding satisfaction in Jaina’s appreciation proved no idle boast – the petite girl’s mouth remained in constant motion.

Munch munch.

Retrieving a visual recording crystal from her pocket, Hilvenzia captured footage of Jaina’s chipmunk-like cheeks puffed out while eating.

A satisfied smile graced Hilvenzia’s lips as she reviewed the crystal’s contents.

‘I should reorganize my Jaina collection soon.’

Beside her, Mikael gave Hilvenzia a light nudge.

“I seem to have accidentally left my recording crystal behind. Share a copy with me, won’t you?”

“…”

“In exchange, I’ll provide you the ones I captured of Jaina and me on our recent outing.”

Though maintaining a disgruntled silence initially, Hilvenzia soon nodded in resignation.

“Very well.”

Hilvenzia and Mikael’s respective Jaina collections continued to expand steadily.

The two engaged in friendly competition over capturing her most endearing moments, though they also covertly collaborated to enhance each other’s archival quality, if reluctantly.

“Shall we move on to desserts soon? While I’ve prepared an assortment… my personal favorite is the Shizmel tart.”

“If Lady Hilvenzia vouches for it herself, I eagerly anticipate sampling it.”

Arriving belatedly, Mikael interjected upon noticing the Shizmel tart:

“This is new, even for me. Shizmel… the name rings a faint bell, yet I can’t place it.”

“It’s a delicacy so rare that even this munchkin would struggle to consume it easily. Imported from the Heora Kingdom, only minuscule quantities are produced annually, rendering it extremely difficult to procure.”

Hilvenzia had mentioned the Shizmel tart was her absolute favorite dessert.

“Here we go.”

At Hilvenzia’s prompting, Jaina took a bite of the tart.

“…?”

However, unlike before, she didn’t immediately declare it delicious.

Something felt amiss within her body.

‘Is it simply an unfamiliar taste?’

Tilting her head quizzically, Jaina took another bite of the Shizmel tart.

‘I can’t recall Hilvenzia’s tastes being quite so distinctive before?’

Thus far, Jaina had found Hilvenzia’s preferred dishes aligning well with her own palate.

So she had consumed this latest offering in its entirety as well, yet couldn’t help but find the flavor strangely pungent.

“Lady Hilvenzia. Is Shizmel supposed to be so acrid and spicy?”

“Spicy? Not at all, that’s hardly the intended taste profile.”

“But look, her face is flushed red.”

Though Mikael chimed in from the side, Jaina failed to register his remark.

“Huh?”

Suddenly, her head began spinning as nausea set in.

“My throat feels strangely parched and prickly… Urp. Ughh.”

Violently swaying, Jaina barely managed to brace herself against the table with her arm. But her strength soon failed her entirely.

Thump!

Jaina tumbled from her chair, collapsing onto the floor, unable to rise again.

Amidst a series of coughing fits and dry heaves, she soon began vomiting uncontrollably.

“Oh no…”

“Jaina, what’s wrong? Why so suddenly?”

After an extended bout of vomiting, Jaina’s eyes flew wide open as her body began convulsing violently.

She was experiencing respiratory distress.

“Wh-What’s happening? Why is she like this? You old hag, what did you put in that tart?”

“As if I would ever do anything of the sort!”

“I can hardly fathom you going to such extreme lengths!”

Initially suspecting one another, it soon became apparent Jaina’s reactions exceeded the scope of any mere prank.

“Damn it, did someone poison the food?”

“I partook of that very tart as well. There were absolutely no foreign substances present.”

Though perspiring anxiously, Hilvenzia calmly initiated communications while her expression remained grim.

“…Understood.”

After receiving a response from the  temple, Hilvenzia’s face hardened further.

“The situation is critical.”

Only high-ranking priest possessed the ‘healing’ ability potent enough to treat such severe respiratory distress. However, all current high-ranking priests capable of wielding healing magic were presently indisposed.

This was because employing ‘healing’ invariably induced debilitating aftereffects so severe that the priest became utterly drained of holy power during their recovery period.

Yet they couldn’t simply stand idly by, either.

“If poisoning is the cause, we could search for an antidote, but if not, what other explanation could there be?”

Muttering frantically like one stricken by obsessive compulsions, Mikael’s expression suddenly shifted to one of dawning realization.

“Come to think of it, Shizmel… I’ve heard that name somewhere before.”

“What is it?”

“The pinnacle of extravagant indulgence for that gluttonous old hag, her absolute favorite dessert – yet as the Tower Lord Princess’s nephew, how could I be unfamiliar with such a delicacy? But I’ve never once seen it grace our table before. I’ve just recalled why.”

Gritting his teeth, Mikael forced out the words with evident anguish:

“I remember overhearing the elders mention how the Tower Lord nearly perished from consuming Shizmel fruit in his youth…”