Chapter 166

Truth sometimes makes people uncomfortable.

And the truth revealed by Count Winslet truly pained my heart.

Every two generations, the firstborn of the Winslet family is born with outstanding magical talent, but divine power has little effect on them, and they die young.

And… they are unable to have children.

This truth hit me out of nowhere like a car cutting in without signaling, leaving my vision swimming with dizziness.

Still, I couldn’t afford to fall into despair.

Let’s try to look on the bright side.

Couldn’t this be the reason why, despite all the rumors of Winter Winslet’s numerous affairs, there had never been any scandal involving illegitimate children?

…It wasn’t much of a comfort.

After all, no matter how you spin it, this was effectively losing half the essence of what it meant to be human.

Now, there was one more reason why I had to overturn the fate of death placed upon Winter Winslet.

Steeling my resolve, I asked the Count,

“I now fully understand what I’m up against. Is there anything else you know? Anything at all that might help me find a cure?”

The Count shook his head with a heavy expression.

“I’m sorry, but I’ve told you everything. The ancestors of the Winslet family also spent countless years trying to uncover the cause of this hereditary illness and find a cure…but not a single one succeeded.”

“I won’t give up.”

“Then go, pursue it.”

Creak.

Count Winslet rose from his chair and approached me.

Placing both hands firmly on my shoulders, he said,

“A cursed fate to die at the age of twenty… Until now, there hasn’t been a single exception, so it became more of a rule than a curse. But you’re the first to break that rule. So, my son, if anyone is meant to put an end to this curse… I believe it must be you.”

His hands gripped my shoulders tightly.

That alone conveyed the depth of his sincerity.

And so, a question began to form in my mind.

From what I’d heard, Winter Winslet had a major falling out with his father ten years ago. So serious, in fact, that he was stripped of his position as heir before leaving the family.

But the Count I was seeing now… was far too kind.

He was sharing all the secrets he knew without hesitation, even cheering me on not to die.

Is this really the relationship of a father and son who were supposed to be estranged?

“It’s not directly related to the cursed fate, but there’s something I’ve been curious about.”

“Ask anything you like.”

“I heard that ten years ago, I had a huge fight with you and left the family after cutting ties… Is that true?”

“You were holding onto that all this time?”

The Count gave a gentle smile and patted me on the shoulder.

“Of course it was made up.”

“Made up?”

“Yes. For Anna’s sake. You were the eldest son of our family, intelligent, and already well-versed in magic. In order to name your younger sister Anna as the heir instead, I needed a convincing reason.”

Ah.

That made sense.

The fact that the firstborn son was fated to die young could easily become a political weakness for a noble house.

So naturally, the Count must have planned early on to name Anna Winslet as his successor. But he had to keep that a secret.

If the eldest son was still alive, handing down the title and estate to a second child…especially a daughter would surely cause an uproar.

“I had originally planned to pass the title to Anna after you passed away. But you didn’t die, and I needed a way to persuade the vassals.”

That’s why the Count fabricated the story of discord between us and spread it himself.

“Even so, there’s still something that doesn’t quite add up.”

“What is it?”

“If what you say is true, then I never actually did anything to harm the family, did I? But the Anna I saw earlier today…”

She claimed I’d abandoned the family because I was obsessed with women, that the damage I’d caused was immeasurable.

Not only that, she accused me of coveting her position as heir, speaking with a sharp tongue and a thorny attitude.

When I pointed this out, Count Winslet gave me an apologetic look and replied,

“That’s because of me. I taught her to think that way.”

“…Huh? But Anna is destined to inherit the title and eventually learn the secrets of the Winslet family. Was it really necessary to lie to her?”

The Count shook his head.

“No, in her case, I had to lie even more. You see, the two of you were very close… or rather, Anna looked up to you quite a lot.”

“She looked up to me…?”

Considering the way Anna Winslet had treated me when I first arrived at the manor, that was almost impossible to believe.

The Count explained,

“There’s a big age gap between you and Anna. Do you know why that is?”

“No, I don’t.”

“You showed talent for magic at the age of eight. When I saw that, I realized you had inherited the cursed fate. That’s when I knew the Winslet family needed a new heir. So your mother and I had Anna.”

And that, he said, was why Winter Winslet had a younger sister ten years his junior.

“But the birth came too late. Your mother fell ill after giving birth to Anna and passed away soon after. Can you imagine how Anna turned out, growing up without her mother’s care and love?”

Naturally, she clung to the only other close family member she had….her much older brother, Winter Winslet.

“When you left ten years ago, she was devastated. She screamed that she didn’t want the heir’s position, cried her eyes out, locked herself in her room, and went on a hunger strike. She nearly starved herself to death.”

“…It was that bad?”

“She refused her heir lessons on purpose, drove away tutors more than once. She said she thought if she did that, you might come back.”

When Winter Winslet left the Count’s estate, Anna would’ve only been ten years old.

Far too young to properly process the sudden loss of family.

The Count let out a sigh.

“That’s why I had no choice but to use a hardline approach to change her thinking. I told her you had brought great disgrace to the family, that you were stripped of your title and banished because of your wrongdoing.”

In other words, he’d used shock therapy.

“Every time she refused to believe it, every time she said ‘That can’t be true’ I added more to the story, little by little. And before I knew it… you had become a traitor in her eyes. Someone who sold out the family.”

When I looked at him with a heavy expression, the Count gave an awkward cough.

“I think I tried to sever her emotional attachment too quickly, and the backlash ended up turning into resentment toward you. It’s all my fault, so… please don’t judge her too harshly.”

“But still, the attitude she had earlier today was a bit too much…”

“Oh, her temper? That’s always been bad. It’s just that the two of you used to get along.”

“……”

Haah.

So the nasty personality and sharp tongue are part of the Winslet bloodline after all.

With that, the questions I had were completely answered.

I gave my father, the Count, a polite bow.

“I’ll be taking my leave now.”

“How long do you plan to stay here?”

“I intend to leave at first light tomorrow morning.”

“You’re welcome to stay as long as you’d like…”

The Count trailed off with a disappointed click of the tongue and shook his head.

“But I suppose someone being chased by death wouldn’t exactly have the luxury of time.”

He was right.

Now that I knew the truth behind the heart condition, I needed to return to the capital and begin searching for a way to resolve it.

When I first possessed this body, I thought all I had to do was avoid the death flags.

Turns out, there’s a lot more maintenance involved than I expected.

No wonder Winter Winslet had a 100% death rate. He didn’t earn that title for nothing.

“Well then, go on. It’s about time I retired for the night as well.”

“Yes.”

After finishing my farewell, I turned to leave the study.

But just as I reached for the doorknob, I suddenly felt something was off.

The door to the study was already open.

I was sure I had closed it when I came in.

It’s not like the wind could have blown it open.

What was going on?

As I frowned quietly in suspicion, I heard the light sound of footsteps in the distance….tap tap tap.

The footsteps quickly retreated, fading into the darkness.

Someone had been eavesdropping on my conversation with the Count.

***

Early the next morning—

Just before dawn, beneath the pale blue glow of morning light, I was preparing to leave the Winslet Castle.

Not that there was much to prepare.

Just one travel bag, Dahlia, and Dahlia’s own bag.

With those three things loaded into the carriage, I was ready to depart at any time.

As usual, Dahlia who had an even lighter sleep than I did was already up before I came to wake her.

She’d even gone around saying goodbye to the castle’s staff.

Apparently, she’d made a few friends while we were here.

“They said since we’re leaving right away, the kitchen packed this for us.”

Dahlia handed me a basket covered in cloth, and the scent of fresh butter wafted out.

Inside were warm, freshly baked bread, cheese, smoked ham, and ripe berries….a humble but hearty meal.

I’d been prepared to gnaw on whatever stale rations were left in the carriage on the road back to Maronford, but thanks to Dahlia, I was about to dine in comfort.

“Well done.”

“Really?”

After helping a delighted Dahlia into the carriage, I placed one foot up and climbed in myself.

Just then, from far off, someone began running toward me, shouting my name.

“Winter Winslet!”

I turned my head to see who it was, gave a slight nod in recognition, then ignored them and boarded the carriage.

That only made the person run faster.

“Where do you think you’re going! Stop right there! I said stop! Ugh, seriously…”

Gritting her teeth and glaring at me was none other than Anna Winslet.

Judging by her nightclothes, she must have rushed out as soon as she heard I was leaving.

Naturally, pajamas weren’t made for sprinting.

So it was only inevitable that she tripped over the long hem of her robe.

“Argh!”

Just before she could fall flat on her face, I used telekinesis to catch her and set her upright.

Her face flushed bright red.

Of course, that red was a mix of anger, irritation, and embarrassment.

“Don’t bother thanking me.”

Even though I told her not to, Anna insisted on expressing how she felt about me.

Her long, slender middle finger which was pale and elegant like that of a noble lady rose in a pointed gesture.

She really is my sister.

“So, what do you want?”