"......What? The Eseled Ducal Family, that place is......"
"It's become so declined that it's called a garbage dump."
The Eseled family, having gathered all sorts of problematic members from various families, earned the disparaging nickname of a garbage dump.
To be sent as the successor of such a place......
Edward fell silent for a moment.
Navia's ultimate goal seemed to be to get out of Agnes.
But, why?
"Why do you want to leave the Ducal Family of Agnes?"
His tone sounded as if he was asking why she would make such a foolish decision when she was in such a good place.
Edward didn't stop there.
"Staying in Agnes, you could at least marry into a decent family with good conditions."
It was a bit doubtful whether a girl of only eight years old could fully understand marriage, but Navia seemed capable enough to comprehend it now.
"And even if the head of Eseled has no spouse or children, his cousins do. Do you think they will leave you alone?"
It's like walking into a trap on your own.
Navia understood enough even without the rest being said.
Walking into a trap? Well.
'I'm already in a trap here.'
"That's a valid point."
Navia smiled as if a mouse was considering a cat.
"But that's not something for you to worry about, teacher."
From her tone, Edward sensed that she had already accounted for that much and closed his mouth.
He wondered if he had ever been so thoroughly outplayed by someone, but couldn't recall such a time.
This was a first.
Yet, he wasn't upset.
Rather, he felt a strange sense of anticipation.
"I will make a contract with you, my lady."
As Edward conjured magic to create a contract, light gathered in the air.
Whoosh.
The light read and absorbed the terms of the contract, transforming into letters.
Navia and Edward confirmed the content and shook hands.
Poof!
A more intense white light burst from the softly glowing letters.
It was the spectacle of a contract being formed.
The light transformed into a ring and fell onto his palm.
Watching Edward put the ring on his finger, Navia explained the cure.
"Have another magician absorb the reverse-flowing magic from the patient's body to create a temporary vacuum. Then, infuse magic along the correct path into the emptied body."
"Ah......!"
This method would be impossible for a mediocre magician, but Edward could certainly do it.
'After all, he was the one who discovered this treatment.'
Edward's mind raced with this unexpected idea.
It was feasible. A perfectly viable theory.
His face lit up with exhilaration when Navia suddenly asked.
"Today is the day you report my academic progress, right?"
"......Yes, it is."
Edward was too tired to ask how she knew that too.
"Tell them during the report that my brainwashing has weakened. That way, you won't be in as much trouble no matter what happens in the future."
Faced with what was essentially a threat, Edward had no choice but to comply.
"......Understood."
Navia hopped down from the chair, holding her skirt hem and bowed elegantly.
"See you next time, teacher."
Her overly formal gesture would have seemed cute to an outsider, but Edward couldn't take it as just a child's playfulness.
He felt a subtle intimidation from the one holding the reins.
Navia turned and briskly left the study.
Her silver hair fluttered like wings.
"......Ha."
He had been thoroughly defeated until the very end.
Edward ran his hand over his face, sighing, yet kept his gaze on the door Navia had just left through.
Following the lingering image of the vanished silver.
* * *
Thud.
As the door of the study closed, Navia completely dropped the smile from her face.
'Persuasion is this easy.'
The sight of Edward kneeling and lowering his gaze was deeply satisfying.
Yet, she also wanted to scream.
'How could you, who knew my desires better than anyone, do this!'
Navia had grown up admiring the noble and proud members of Agnes, unaware that it was all a result of brainwashing.
She was helplessly manipulated by the cunning of adults.
The suggestive magic Edward used amplified the general human longing to be loved and acknowledged.
Being deprived, Navia was particularly susceptible to the suggestive magic.
'I used seven tries to nullify that suggestion.'
Now, Navia had a mental barrier that Edward's level of suggestive magic couldn't break through.
That's why on the eighth life, she thought and acted on her own will.
Was that why? She survived the longest throughout all the sessions.
She received the most recognition.
But in the end, she failed.
Love? Family? Such things are illusions.
Navia crossed the corridor with a fearful face and then paused.
"Oh, unconsciously performing the basic form..."
Being intensely trained during the eighth session, the basic form sprang out unconsciously if she didn't pay attention.
Despite suddenly stopping her steps, her appearance didn't change at all.
It was to the extent that even though she suddenly stopped walking, her demeanor did not falter at all.
But this sense of intimidation felt strangely familiar, as if she had experienced it before.
As if she were a true 'aristocrat'...
It was when Navia's gaze darkened.
"Hey, lowly one."
A voice full of hostility rang out from a distance.
Navia knew who it was without even looking.
Turning her head to the side, sure enough, Wood was leaning around the corner of the hallway, looking at her askew.
Wood had received punishment for the first time in his life: to be confined to his room.
He felt so angry he could die. He felt he could not endure this humiliation unless he took it out on Navia.
But he would be scolded if caught by Nikan. He was frustrated and angry, but the Duke within the mansion was his father.
He did not want to be confined again. So Wood racked his brain.
'At this time, I made sure that no one approaches the east wing of the first floor.'
A place where only he and Navia would be present.
A stage set for unleashing violence without hesitation.
Wood's choice was appropriate.
As Nikan was particularly sensitive to external scrutiny, causing another major commotion would lead to severe reprimand.
Despite the clear danger, Navia remained calm and composed.
'Wood, of all people, has used his brain quite well.'
It was almost applaudable that the impulsive and impatient Wood would wait in the hallway to mete out punishment.
Wood smirked maliciously.
"Did you think I would just let it go?"
Physically and socially, Navia was at a disadvantage. If Wood hit her with intent, she would not be unscathed.
'But is this situation really only advantageous for you?'
"Today, in my hands..."
"Are you trying to kill me?"
Navia asked with an innocently clueless expression, uttering chilling words.
Feeling a strange pressure, Wood denied it reflexively.
"Wh-who said anything about killing?"
Wood felt the oppression as if he had willingly entered a tiger's den.
But this sense of oppression felt familiar, as if he had experienced it before.
Right. Yesterday.
Navia asked with the alertness of a rabbit pricking up its ears.
"Then why were you hiding here like a mouse, waiting?"
Wood was the typical person who was weak before the strong and strong before the weak.
His faltering at the outset was pitiful.
"Pitiful."
Wood froze on the spot like a stone statue.
"...Pitiful?"
Pitiful? But, was this girl talking informally to him now? Realizing the situation, Wood's expression twisted violently.
"Do you really want to die?"
As he raised his fist, Navia let out a derisive laugh, as if she could no longer hold back.
"Always the same."
After realizing his father valued Navia's appearance, Wood cunningly only punched without hitting her face.
But he was unaware now.
"Then kill me."
He was still only ten years old.
Soon he would not hesitate to kill, but not yet.
As a ten-year-old Wood, who committed acts like putting bugs in rooms or locking people up, couldn't bear the weight of murder.
Yet, she was prepared for death.
"Go ahead, try killing me. Father would be so pleased."
Thud, thud.
As Navia quickly closed the distance, offering her neck, Wood was terrified by her momentum.
"Get, get lost!"
Thump!
Instead, he pushed Navia away in fear.
Navia staggered backwards, her hit shoulder feeling numb but not particularly painful.
Navia glared at Wood with a deadly look.
"Do you think you can kill me like that?"
Wood shouted, his face pale.
"If you come any closer, I'll really kill you!"
As Navia, flashing red eyes, moved closer, Wood felt an unbearable terror.
Navia boldly grabbed his hand and placed it on her neck.
"Go on, kill me!"
"Let go of this!"
Wood screamed like a banshee, summoning all his strength and magic in a survival instinct.
Kwaaaa!
A large cylindrical column of water erupted right before Wood.
"Ugh!"
Navia, suddenly trapped in water, lost her balance and struggled.
Wood, initially in shock, slowly regained his composure.
"Ha, haha! See what happens when you mess around? Serves you right!"
Navia, knowing how to swim, tried to escape the water column immediately.
But her body would not respond.
Watching Navia struggle in the water, Wood sneered and taunted.
"Do you think this magic-created water is just like ordinary water? It's imbued with my willpower!"
The water, guided by Wood's will, restrained Navia's movements.
Her breath grew short. Her body felt terribly heavy, and her heart raced wildly.
This was the same sensation as when she nearly died in a carriage accident at the lake in the first round.
'No way. It can't be.'
But this sensation...
'...Was it not just an accident back then, but magic used to kill me?'
Navia writhed in anger and agony, while Wood laughed heartily, having regained his ease.
"See, I told you I'd kill you."
'Why do such people possess such powerful magic? Why!'
Despair and rage trampled her mind. A nauseating sense of powerlessness surged.
Even with all her information, she was powerless before real might.
But.
'I can't die here!'
"At that moment, her right wrist heated up intensely, just as it had in a dream."
